#this does not seem like an ending on good terms. decade+ relationship and your most important driver leaving like this

[blorbocedes]

there is something rotten going on in brackley

[all-pacas]

I love how House is a much better parental figure for Chase than his actual parents,even tho he's a disaster. The bar is so low...

The bar is subterranean. And I think the funny thing is, I don’t think either of them would label their relationship as such: Chase kind of does this with every authority figure he runs into (sucks up to them and tries to get them to like him); House resists every relationship that isn’t on precisely his own terms.

I was thinking just the other day about Human Error vs the Nobody’s Fault/Chase duo. A bit running theme of House is that he hates change. He lives in the same apartment, drives the same car, plays the same guitar. What relationships he has are grandfathered in: he’s known Cuddy on and off since med school, Wilson for a decade at the series start. He had One Relationship with Stacy. He does not generally seek new friends or romantic partners.

And House when called on this gets pretty contrary, of course. He buys a motorcycle. He buys a new guitar. He… fires Chase. And that’s an interesting decision to me, because it really is out of nowhere. House is told he’s struggling to let Foreman go, to let things change, so he proves he’s fine with change by… firing Chase. It’s not because he actually hates Chase; I’m not arguing they’re bffs or have a reciprocal father-son thing at this point. But he’s had Chase the longest.

And the point comes up again in Nobody’s Fault. Cofield practically starts his conversation with Chase with: you’ve worked with him longer than anyone. He brings the point up again with House: 

COFIELD: He's your friend, and he's not well. HOUSE: He's a coworker. COFIELD: Coworker whom you've known for almost ten years who nearly died and who's still scared he may not walk.

(earlier: 

COFIELD: So your testimony is that Dr. House's complete lack of concern is evidence of his deep concern?

)

And yes, sure, knowing someone ten years is enough in itself. But again and again for House, that’s a big deal. That’s… Wilson in S1. Chase has been part of House’s life for a decade. House fired him and he came back. I’ve talked before about how, to Chase, House is the one constant in his life, the one person who approves of what he does and takes him back and wants him around. But it really does go both ways. No, Chase isn’t the only person House has, or the most important person in House’s life. But Chase got fired, and he came back. House punched Chase and immediately regretted it, and Chase didn’t press charges or hold a grudge.

The thing is, House really doesn’t treat Chase like a peer or an equal, and Chase doesn’t try (unlike Foreman and Cameron) to be treated as an equal. I think that’s why their relationship has such father-son vibes; they’re both seemingly pretty happy with the weird employer/mentor/approval seeker relationship they ended up with. But on other levels, they’re very close. Chase gets House, and while in some ways he does seem to idealize him (Chase consistently — and very interestingly given his own history — ignores and enables House’s addictions), he neither idealizes House into a polish or into a monster: he is very good at reading House. They’re both very observant, they both hate opening up, they have deeply parallel histories that the show eventually leans into. Chase was not the first fellow House ever had, but he is the first one that stuck. The first one that stayed.

House can’t admit that means something, but Chase doesn’t need him to, because Chase knows how House thinks. Chase is lonely, S8 drives home he’s lonely and stuck and wants change (and will never get it): House, in his way, always makes it known he notices and cares. They’ve been in one another’s lives for ten years.

[randomfanner]

Halsin + Thaniel and Oliver Headcanons

There will be non-relationship head canons and relationship head canons, all fluffy or Angst content because this is getting really long. I was going to do smut, and I will do smut eventually, but this post is not the post.

TW: Loss of a child, loss in general, lot a of sadness in that. Also in general there is going to be expected backstory trigger warnings. Like the fact he was kept chained to a bed for 3 year. Also on a lighter note, drug use is talked about, it's pot.

Halsin will adopt everything and everyone if you let him. He considers Oliver and Thaniel his kids, he considers Arabella and Yvenna his kids. He considers most of the tiefling kids his kids to an extent. Nieces and nephews perhaps. He loves Scratch and the Cub and Tara(Gale has complained that Tara sometimes goes to Halsin's lap rather than his). If you leave this man alone in the forest and he finds and injuries baby animal or an animal, he will bring it home and nurse it back to health and it will come to visit or just live with you.

We get very little from Thaniel in terms of screen time, and also Oliver after he comes to camp so I am putting head canons.

Thaniel is a good kid. He is pretty quiet, calm and respectful of adults and people in general. He is good with animals, good with plants. Most of the time at the very least. He is... rather reserved. Halsin and Thaniel became friends not because Thaniel let himself be seen, it was a 5 in human year old Halsin chasing this fey child through the woods. He is shy, and doesn't really talk much to people.

Now, he does actually does seem to like talking to you. Halsin has spoken highly of you, Halsin cares about you deeply and you did very much saved Thaniel's life. You killed the man that tormented him for several decades. He does feel he can talk to you.

Now, with that in mind, Thaniel is a fey child. A well behaved and well meaning fey child but he is a fey child none the less. He does have a mischievous. I promise you he has tried to steal your name, and you fell for it Halsin has to talk Thaniel into giving your name back.

Thaniel and Oliver share an end goal with you and Halsin and that is to parent trap your ass. They like you, the fey don't like losing what they like.

Oliver is a little shit. He can be a very sweet little shit and he does like you and Halsin a lot, but he also can torment you in many ways. Mostly because this child has been alone in the wilderness and doesn't have any socialization. Halsin realizes this and is very good at being patient with the traumatized child.

He pulls pranks all of the time when he was around camp, and he does like to trick travelers when they begin coming through. However he does like you and he does like Halsin. So he can be rather nice, he may even let you have his true name... if you promise you will be his mama and papa.

He wants a family. Please let him have a family.

Loss of a Child, Loss, Acceptance of Loss, A traumatized Child

So, man has considered Thaniel his kid for awhile now, he would never say it because once he called himself Thaniel's 'big brother' and Thaniel reminded him, rather quickly, that Thaniel was in fact older then him This was when they were younger Halsin could not guess Thaniel's reaction if he called him son. So when Thaniel was lost Halsin was crushed beyond measure. He did grieve for years and was still admitting grieving until you came along and helped him find his son again. And make sure he would have a friend after Halsin was gone with the earth again. Halsin knows how to accept death, but he also knows it doesn't stop the grieving and that is OK. He may set time aside to be alone and just... grieve if he feels the need to. He grieves but he also remembers. He tries to make good time matter and last for as long as he can. He does... restrain himself during bad times. But when he has those small moments and any chance he gets, he is rather passionate. Even with the smallest things like a kiss or being able to hold hands.

About Thaniel because this kid has some serious trauma. So does Oliver but we get more screen time and information about Oliver so:

Thaniel is a very respectful and mature kid mostly because he is an immortal 8 year old. He is very traumatized. He gets friends and then his friends get older then him and then they die. And he forever young and in the forest. It can take awhile of course, elves live for hundreds of years but... lives for hundreds of years is different then living forever. And he hates being reminded of it so that is why he refuses to let himself call Halsin dad or acknowledge that. He can acknowledge Halsin is older but not that he is going to lose another father and another friend.

Halsin has tried to help him with this as much as he can. He reminds Thaniel that he will still be there for him in the earth, in the dirt and in the spirit. And Thaniel believes it, but it still hurts.

On a bit of a lighter note, reincarnation is I am sure canon in DND, like, there is a spell for that so I assume it is a process they will happen eventually. Druid just speed it up. so Halsin has probably been Thaniel's dad multiple times... (and with you a few times perhaps, if nature has willed you to come together through lifetimes)

So Oliver is like, the best thing that has ever happened to this child. Having a younger brother who will always be a friend is the best thing for this sad forest child. He has a friend who will not get older than him and die.

Small note with Oliver

So, Haslin likes to whittle and just. One day Oliver asks for figure of Mommy and Daddy and his Dog and Halsin does make them for him, of course, and Oliver just sort of puts it on display and man, Halsin has never felt sorry for killing a shadow once in his life and now here he is, mourning with his son because ya.

I have my own traumatized immortal natural spirit child so I really like Thaniel and Oliver. Can you tell?

We done with the angst mostly, be warned pot still remains and so does general Halsin Trauma.

So anyway, I am not crying, and Halsin is a walking snack machine I swear. We are using all DND spells and he has create food and water at all times and uses it a lot. Ever short rest you all get food, water, and he even has bowls and cups prepared at all times that he whittles himself so you have something to enjoy your snack in. He does also offer food and water to all of the refugees when you get to Baldur's Gate.

His snacks consist of berries, nuts and different seeds, when it is a longer rest he can summon meat and vegetables. You know he helps with this sort of stuff all of the time. He likes to cook and I believe he is probably a pretty good cook.

He knows how to cook with a wide range of ingredient. He can cook a dish anywhere you place him. He knows forests, plains, coasts, caves, and even the under dark. He is also very aware of general signs of what is edible and what is not that, so he can always find safe food.

Food is very much a love language for him as well. He cooks for you all the time and also makes you different kinds of sweets. He can bake, he can cook, and he can probably grill and cook on a camp fire. He is amazing at it. Unless you put him in an actual kitchen. Than the poor man because confused and clueless (Poor bear man doesn't understand how a stove works).

Halsin will take care of you no matter what happens. If you get injured he is nursing the wound and cooing that it will be OK because he is here and he has you. He kissing the wound and cure wounds it and will make and will make sure you are all better. He knows you can do with out it, and if you would prefer he can save or wait on the extra bits and simply take care of the wound, however he is taking care of the wound do not mistake him.

He is so doting when you get sick or are pregnant or on your period or if you get poisoned. Man will get you the bed of the finest furs and feed you the best soup to make you feel better. After of course, you down his awful tasting medicine that does cure you pretty quickly because he is a man who knows a thing or two about medicine. He is a healer. He knows how to make you feel better.

Man likes doing hair. It is an elf thing and we can see he believes it on his character look at his hair, he has so many little braids in his hair and he wants to do yours. Please let him do yours. He will explains why he really wants to do it so, you understands how much this means to him. He also wants you to do his, of course. But he just likes, adding flowers to your hair and little bits of nature. No matter what gender or how long your hair is.

Man is also always giving you small gifts. Something he whittled himself, flowers and snacks, pretty rocks, basically anything and everything. He is a bird trying to woo his mate by bringing them shiny things. And it probably works, let's be honest.

Halsin is REALLY good at whittling. It is a little bit more than just a side hobby and he makes toys for kids with his whittling. He will make bears, people, animals, plants, monster, a kid asks for a toy of it, he will carve it. Thaniel and Oliver do have a whole set of bear figurines that keep them safe at night and scare away any beasts that mean them harm.

However he does also use his whittling skills. He can make tools, bowls, utensils, and things for another day. Halsin does not normally need gold however when he is Baldur's gate he is very good at making it on the fly because he can simply whittle something and people will buy it.

Man learns about charity art shows and finds one that does it for nature and makes a number of things to be sold there and by gods is there a bidding war for it. He normally wouldn't be interested but you know, man wants to help nature.

As stated above he does whittle for you all the time, and he also really like to incorporate imagery that reminds him of you and the things you have done and the relationship you have. Sometimes he will care you elegantly into a cup, other times he will show your family through symbols, other times it is just nature. It is really cute.

Cuddler and PDA all the way man, he loves to hold your hand, give you kisses on the cheek, have a hand on your waist, anything to be close to you. He will stop if you ask of course but do expect big bear eyes from him before he does so. He does not mean to do it but he cannot help it. (In a Astarion x Halsin setting, gets hit with those eyes and just breaks and holds his hand).

He will turn into a bear and let you do all the extremely dangerous things to do to a real bear but we all want to do. Touch the soft and fluffy ears, squish the toe beans, don't deny it, we all do. It is quite sweet and has a wonderful time.

Halsin tends to go into a deeper trance than most elves. Sometimes he needs to be shaken out of his trance rather than spoken out of it. He blames it on the bear.

Also Halsin most certainly smokes pot. He probably experiments with natures creations like mushrooms and other things you can smoke. He knows all about the effects, what it will do and often uses it to meditate... or sometimes have a good time.

He would happily invite you to join him if you would be interesting. I think a high Halsin would be extremely entertaining to watch even if you do not smoke pot with him. All formalities drops and he gets so cuddly. He is already cuddly but he is falling asleep on you cuddly.

OK, so, this is a lot, there will probably be a part two or at the very least a NSFW head canon, probably.

[izzysillyhandsy]

Ed and Izzy: Cleaning up the mess

As of the end of Ep7, Ed has left Stede and his whole life behind because "he doesn't even know who he is". And I'd like to suggest in this rambling essay that Ed's journey to self-knowledge and self-love can't properly begin before he's come to terms with what happened with Izzy.

Although Ed has steadily been trying to make amends, at the start of Ep6 he's still feeling unsettled and guilty as hell about the terrible things he did (was capable of!): killing his dad, condemning his whole crew to certain death, Izzy's toe, shooting Izzy, being "killed" by Jim and the crew with Izzy looking on...

There's a surprising amount of Izzy in Ed's flashback (I was honestly surprised the toe cutting made it in - somehow the whole discussion around "Izzy deserving it" made me think Ed thought so as well? But of course he doesn't think that. Izzy does.)

And while Ed's central conflict is his underlying self-hatred and self-doubt, there still is a daily reminder of all of his worst tendencies and (still very recent) acts right under his nose.

I think I got all the poison out of my system...

...or not. The indestructible fucker's still here.

Izzy is Ed’s walking and talking guilt room and no amount of deflecting, story-telling or sugarcoating can turn that poison into positivity.

Stede, I love you for your sometimes naive, sweet outlook on life (and Ed does too), but Ed and Izzy, that’s years and years of love and devotion, resentment and hate, building each other up and tearing each other down. They’ve just come out of the absolute worst breakup in history, with so many things unsaid and unknown they’d need the whole of S3 to talk it through.

Stede applying his motivational poster line to Izzy of all people is a little bit tone deaf, especially because it happens right while Izzy’s singing a bittersweet love song about/to Ed.

Which he continues, in French, while Ed and Stede are having sex for the first time so that's definitely not helping. I wonder how good Ed's French is, but it is honestly almost comical to imagine Ed cheating on Iz making love to his new boyfriend while his ex is singing his heart out about „It's only him for me, and me for him, for life - he told me, he swore to me, for life“.

So Izzy's still here. Izzy is still visibly hurting, physically (your fault!!) and mentally (your fault as well in so many ways). And you're already over it and having fun with your new boyfriend? Of course not.

Whatever they were/are to each other specifically, Ed and Izzy were as good as married. They spent almost every day together for decades. Izzy let himself be maimed and hurt over and over again out of love and loyalty. And Ed feels very, very guilty about it. Even if this guilt is not the first thing constantly on Ed's mind, it's certainly there in the background, simmering.

On the other hand, Izzy is the one who kept Ed stationary - they had a good, secure (for pirates anyway) life together, why risk change? I don't think Izzy had noticed (or wanted to notice) how bad it'd gotten for Ed for a long time. So there's also a lot of resentment there from Ed's side, all tied up with Izzy.

It's a very complicated mess and I think that all this is at least part of the reason for Ed's confusion and need to... just go.

But that's not all, by far.

History repeating itself...

...maybe this seems a bit familiar?

We don't know a lot of Ed&Izzy's backstory (apart from: it's a long one!), but I think it's (almost) canon that it is Izzy's job to make sure Ed is content and safe and, most importantly, to kill for Ed.

And even though their relationship (whatever it was) probably didn't start out as tender and sweet as Ed/Stede, I think they started out much more carefree and happy, possibly excited and adventurous. Until their lifestyle took a toll on both of them - Izzy as Ed's killer and constant protector and Ed as Blackbeard, who Ed started to resent more and more. In the end, all that was left were two broken people in a codependent relationship.

Now it seems like gentle, sweet Stede is slowly turning into Izzy 2.0 - swearing (as far as I remember, Stede almost never said fuck in S1), becoming a "real pirate", and worst of all, killing for Ed even though Ed almost begged him not to (seems familiar?).

Plus, this is happening when Ed, still freshly traumatized from his stint as pirate extreme wants nothing to do with violence in general and piracy specifically. Least of all he wants Stede damaged (or izzyfied).

Stede seemed like a way out of pirating, a chance for a loving, fulfilling relationship. Maybe even a way out of his relationship with Izzy, who I think Ed (subconsciously?) blames for the destructive path his life had taken.

Now he isn't so sure anymore if Stede actually wants this.

Talk it through...

...eventually, maybe. Hopefully.

Of course, not every obstacle Ed has to face, every step on the road to self-love and happiness is about Izzy. Vice versa, Izzy is much more than his relationship with Ed, and he has his own problems independent from him.

But this "marriage" with Izzy was Ed’s longest and most important relationship, and also the last relationship before Stede. The way their relationship became restrictive, damaging and unescapable in the end was both their faults. It'd be quite natural if Ed was a bit cautious with that kind of history. Am I a person who always ends up like this? How did we fuck up this badly? Is there a way out?

Most importantly though, a lot of Ed’s guilt and self-doubt is wrapped up in Izzy - if you're capable of doing that (and that, and that) to the person you love - what else are you capable of?

In conclusion, Ed and Izzy need real closure, one way or the other. Before that happens, Ed won't be happy on any way he chooses, and certainly not in his relationship with Stede.

At the moment, they're not talking, really. It's incredibly sweet though, the way they make these little concessions towards the other (Izzy doing much more than Ed, as per usual). They're almost shy, asking for advice, giving reassurance and understanding, and sharing bottles, smiles and looks.

Will they get a long heart-to-heart in the finale? Of course not, there's not enough time. I think we might get a symbolic moment though.

Ed already knows Izzy loves him. Izzy really doesn't know (on top of everything else, poor kid). The only thing he got from Ed was the "Sorry 'bout your leg", even the latch got a bit more.

Izzy needs to hear that too. "It's not your fault you're broken. You didn't break you. Just trying to do your job, weren't you?"

(btw, I love that Ed is softly blowing onto the latch here, while Izzy is doing the same to his little shark <3)

It's also possible Izzy will get his "I loved you, best I could" in person. Hopefully not exactly in those words. But, for both of them, this will be a start to open proper communication (which might happen offscreen between seasons).

And when we get S3, Ed will be (more) prepared to embark on his journey to happiness, with or without Izzy by his side.

[greenerteacups]

I’ve just completed your most recent chapter and what a delight it was from start to finish. The slow burn continues to be delicious, and you’re doing an amazing job of gradually adding bits of kindling to the flames to keep DHr’s relationship progressing (and to feed us readers). This most recent chapter was a textbook definition of fic that gets me giggling and kicking my feet.

I’m always amused by our sweet Victorian child Draco’s reaction to sex, and the reference again to sheets and friction sent me. I’m pretty sure this isn’t the first time Draco has been nearly undone by his bedding, and it got me thinking about Pureblood culture’s views of sex and intimacy.

I know oftentimes in fanon, we tend to get Slytherin sex god/goddesses who are having their first sexual experiences pretty early, though occasionally we get a more prudish/Puritanical Draco. We know in Lionheart’s universe, Narcissa alludes to a certain level of hanky panky with Lucius in the RoR, and it certainly seems like Draco had imagined any number of acts with Hermione, even if he hasn’t acted on them in public or perhaps even privately.

If it’s not spoilery, I’d love to know more about how Pureblood culture in Lionheart generally views sex/intimacy, especially inside/outside of courtship and marriage.

It's a mixed bag! I think the Slytherin sex gods thing is a kind of wish-fulfillment (loving compliment) because, put bluntly, the number of 15-17 year-olds who are even kind of charitably good at sex is a mathematical rounding error. Also, Hogwarts has group dorms. Sexiling one person in college is hard enough; imagine you have to sexile (i.e., declare publicly your intent to fuck) 3-5 people every time you want to mess around. I'm not saying it doesn't happen, it absolutely does — it's a coed boarding school, you can't fight the wind — but I will say it's probably more at the realistic level of high schoolers fumbling through the excruciating ordeal of learning intimacy, and not "the plot of Euphoria is happening in the dungeons at all times."

Anyway. I interpret the wealthier pureblood set as a kind of wizarding aristocracy, so while in general they're expected to perform to certain expectations and social mores when they're in social/public settings, the fact of the matter is it's the twentieth century and sexual mores are changing a LOT from decade to decade. Narcissa's upbringing would have been radically different from Draco's in terms of how much sex and intimacy would have been open subject — in no small part because Narcissa's generation kind of blew the ceiling off that particular conversation. She was born in 1955 and lived through the Sexual Revolution, meaning that her childhood, adolesence, and young adulthood took place in practically three different geological eras of social life. Meanwhile, women like Walburga and Druella were members of the Greatest Generation (maybe Silent Gen on the younger side), and would've been incredibly traditionalist.

Of course, no matter what the social rules are, teenagers will find a way around them. For the purposes of Lionheart, in 1995, it's understood by most pureblood parents that kids are gonna do what kids are gonna do, but there are specific standards about who you can be seen with and make certain kinds of promises to. Narcissa kind of references this at the end of book 3; she goes on this insulting little spiel about how generations of Blacks and Malfoys had secret muggle-born pets that they kept on the side, they just didn't bring them to dinner parties. Basically, what you do in the privacy of your bedroom is your own business; just don't get caught and don't try to push boundaries, and your social set will be understanding, up to a point. But it would be absolutely improper for "dating" or "courting" to take place between a muggle-born and a pureblood, because that expresses the intent to associate with them in Society, which is a discrete sphere with its own set of rules — one of which is that you have to enforce the caste system.

With respect to specific mores and rules, there's a few references to "etiquette." That stuff's inspired by real etiquette manuals from Victorian and Edwardian England, though I've occasionally thrown in my own twist when it suits me. Dance with the one that brought you; you should have an escort to balls, theoretically but not necessarily someone you're interested in; women run the household, men run the estate. There are certain standards of chivalry and respect on the men's part, but there are also standards of ladylike conduct and decorum on the girls'. Daphne is shocked when Katie wears a suit to the Ball— to the point where she's like "?? ARE you a girl?" — because the rules of dress and poise have been so drilled into her. The level of slut-shaming we get from the Slytherin girls (despite several Slytherin girls being sexually active) also indicates how female sexuality is policed in a way male sexuality isn't; the rumors about Draco and Daphne hurt Daphne, not Draco. This double-edged hypocrisy runs hand in hand with the idea that women are training to be wives, and shouldn't be sleeping with people (if anyone) who they're not seriously pursuing for marriage. Relatedly, courting/engaged couples are usually seen together, a la Crabbe and Millicent, because the idea is you're supposed to be preparing for your marriage; now that you're socially connected, you've begun your tenure as a Unit, and you're expected to act like it. It would be strange for Vince or Millie to go to a ball with someone else unless that partner was a relative or (possibly) a close family friend. It would... imply something.

Marriage between a man and woman would be expected, not because purebloods on the whole are traditionalist — which, to be clear, they are ��� but because the emphasis on bloodlines means children are a priority. Pansy gives us the best précis on this in Book 2. Blaise, being gay, is in an interesting place vis-a-vis the marriage question because his position doesn't come from being heir to an old estate, it's from his mother's money; in that respect, he's not bound by usual expectations of hereditary legacies, which is possibly why he's comfortable being out. (Although there's a blink-and-you-miss-it remark about some tension with his mom in "Miseducation.")

[nalyra-dreaming]

Hi! Loved your season finale recap and I agree with most of what you said 🙂‍↕️

I’d like to offer my two cents regarding Devil’s Minion specifically! From what I have gathered not only from what the show has explicitly shown and told us, but also from cast/showrunners interviews etc., I can honestly say that when it comes right down to it, I just don’t think Rolin is that interested in exploring the relationship between Armand and Daniel in depth… yet. He might do so in the future or change his mind and actually do it in S3, but his current kinda blasé attitude towards them as a pairing makes me think so. He clearly has different priorities right now wrt Lestat, Akasha, TotBT stuff, etc., and he has been very honest when he says that the main reason they turned Daniel into a vampire this early in the game is because they wanted to end the season with a “shocking” twist/on a high note in case they didn’t get renewed, and because he wanted to give his buddy Eric the fangs he’d been longing for for literal decades (and good for him for getting them!). He’s like “don’t worry DM fans, they’ll get some scenes together and at the end of the day Armand turned Daniel so 👍 it’s ok 👍”, but seems to be a lot more focused on Daniel’s individual journey as a vampire, and what it means to be a vampire who was turned as a sick, old man and who now has nothing to lose and is making the most of his immortal life. And I’m personally looking forward to their take and I think Eric will kill it (no pun intended), but also I’m a little disappointed because if they do DM and actually go there in terms of their canon relationship…. It’s going to take a loooong time for them to get there imo, and waiting literal years is going to suck. Not saying I’m not going to do it because I actually might lol, I’m just trying to be as realistic as possible atm.

I think… I think Rolin is going to put the Body Thief arc in-between and that is why DM is going to be pushed back a bit. Which DOES make sense in the long run, but is unsatisfactory right now, I do understand.

But… I do think we’ll get our seasons, and they will do them justice. As I said in my post therefore moments I wished we were already on season 4^^

Butttttt … it is what it is. We‘ll have to enjoy the journey ^^

[captain-hawks]

i'm sitting at the airport terminal in the middle of the night and something wild just happened to me and my first thought was "is this miya twin coded?" so i popped over here because 1. you're one of my absolute favorites. 2. i was just re-reading your kita piece for all the glorious emotional smut. and 3. you also <3 the miyas. please excuse me as i process this.

in senior year high school i went to a weekend-long statewide competition and met these twins in the elevator. one of them definitely had more swagger, more teasing confidence (the kind that guys who are usually successful with ladies have) and the other one was a little quieter, seemed a bit more sincere even though he talked less. we hit it off in conversation and they asked me and my friend if we wanted to grab food with them. i wasn't entirely sure but i thought maybe they were flirting? i was pretty sheltered up until that point and didn't want to assume incorrectly. towards the end of the comp the quieter twin asked if he could come visit me in my city and i, confused, asked "why??" spoiler alert: i ended up dating him for ~2 years.

i found out early on in our relationship that after our "casual dinner" that night when they got back to their room, Swag twin wanted to try his luck and see if he could get with me, but Quiet twin said that he would FIGHT HIM because Quiet really liked me and genuinely wanted to ask me out and he said he wouldn't let his brother ruin that by trying to hook up. Swag was apparently used to usually getting his way, so he realized how serious Quiet was to threaten to beat his ass so i guess he backed off. I didn't find this out until after Quiet and i started seriously talking/dating.

I went out of state for college but we maintained the LDR until halfway through my sophomore year. classic breakup reasons: growing pains/long distance was taking its toll/i wanted to explore life. but we remained on good terms and consider each other friends! we rarely talk, but he still let me use his netflix login for the past 11 years. when he was moving into a corporate role a couple years ago i helped him with interview prep, and when i was looking for a new job he sent me reqs he thought were a good fit.

he's had at least a couple relationships in the near-decade since we broke up (we don't talk about dating but i had seen on social media at some point). i've dated and had a few situationships and am now in a 4 year relationship with my bf. however, he most definitely doesn't know this because we don't chat often, i'm rarely on socials these days and my bf is a very private person.

i'm so sorry for how long this has been. all of this context is to say...i am chilling in the airport on my way home and I GOT A CONFESSION FROM QUIET?? something about i'm the one that got away, he feels he'd won the lottery by meeting me and having me in his life, he referenced the fight he had with his brother all those years ago and said he'd fight the same fight TO THIS DAY. i am flummoxed. i think it is a sign from the great spaghetti monster in the sky that i need to log off tumblr because my very first thought was "what in the fanfiction trope is this?" does this shit actually happen irl? now i need to go deal with this.

anyways thank you for reading this if you got this far! idk if it's just because it's twins and their dynamic is vaguely similar to osamu and atsumu but i was like...have i been isekai'ed into a miya twin fanfic? the sleep deprivation may be catching up to me and i may be entirely unhinged idk

first of all, ily and i’m so flattered you thought of me and ran over here to share this story. i literally read this while brushing my teeth because i was running late for work this morning, but i was so invested i had to read the whole message before i left.

anyway, EXCUSE ME????? i actually can’t get over this. how does it feel to have lived in a real life miya twins fanfic? are you taking interviews at this time? HE SAID HE WOULD FIGHT!!!! HIM? THE ATSUMU/OSAMU DYNAMICS i cannot believe. somewhere an author is on their knees (it’s me, the author). AND NOW THE CONFESSION???? OVER A DECADE LATER? i almost choked on my toothpaste. (i feel like there’s also irony to be found in the inherently symbolic nature of getting that message in such a transitionary, liminal space like an airport in the middle of the night.)

nonnie, i hope you have safe travels home and can get some much-deserved rest after that absolute bombshell. if there ever happens to be a future update or footnote to this story………..you know where to find me.

[twopoppies]

Kanye West is crazy and I usually don't pay no mind to his blabbering but what he said recently about every famous person having a zionist in their contract I believe 100 percent. I'm kinda mad at Harry for not speaking up on this. I know he rarelly does talk about any social issues and I never minded that and would defend him in front of holier-than-thou stan twitter that wants to cancel him for breathing every 5 days but this is like, the only situation where the only thing you can do is post and the palestinians are actively asking you to do it because they can't. He said once in an interview that he's waiting to find one thing that's gonna be his thing to be passionate about. Idk isn't an ongoing genocide a good reason to start... And I'm saying I'm really not looking at Harry Styles for moral guidance or expecting him to be super informed or an activist. But decades from now we're gonna look at this the way we look at the holocaust and wonder how did this happen. Does he really want to stay neutral on this... And he has a lot of friends who are zionists (Winston) or that signed that stupid petition in defense of Israel (Corden, Irving, Olivia)... History won't treat him well if he stays silent as one of the most influental people in the world right now. And the thing is I love him to death and I know he doesn't have a single evil bone in his body. But he is extremely privileged, uninformed, surounded by zionist friends, with whom he is, from what I've observed, very naive. But he won't be given much grace for his silence. At the end of the day it's everyone's own responsibility to educate themselves. He's a 30 year old man with internet access. Because I think what Kanye said is true I'm kinda giving him the benefit of the doubt. But I'm not sure that history will. Or that he deserves it.

Kanye isn’t only crazy, he’s insanely anti-Semitic. Basically he’s blathering on about the old nonsense about “the evil Jews” controlling Hollywood. So he can just fuck off.

I agree with you that Harry is privileged and likely very uninformed on political issues like this one and yes, he’s in a rather complicated spot because he’s very closely affiliated with Irving Azoff who is clearly supporting Israel. I don’t know if Irving/Ben/James are the only ones he’s getting information from, though. I hope not.

I know his fans want him to speak out, and I know that to us it seems like a no-brainer. But, I don’t know if he will make any clear kind of pro-Palestinian statement. I don’t think that means that he supports Israel, but what it ultimately does is make him look like he does and makes it look as though his business relationships are his priority.

At the same time, I really do understand that he may be feeling caught between a rock and a hard place and that keeping out of it is the best option (as most celebrities do in terms of politics). And I understand how complicated it can be as a “brand” to take a stance when your business partners are on the other side of an issue. He’s far from the only celebrity who hasn’t said anything. And I understand that not everyone thinks public displays of activism are as valid as boots on the grounds/money where you mouth is activism. But I can see what a difference people speaking up has made in helping the general public see how awful things are (which, hopefully means there will be political pressure to help the people of Palestine).

Personally, I don’t think history is going to focus on what Harry Styles did or didn’t say, and I don’t like the idea of leveraging threats to one’s legacy. But I do understand what you’re saying and that you’d like to know he’s done something positive in this situation. I truly don’t have an answer for you. I feel very overwhelmed by the whole thing.

More here

[schmem14]

(Hello, my Tumblr is the only account I have that isn’t Katbeth86, but I love it’s name too much to change it 🙈)

Peculiar Prompt: Harry/Luna, Hidden Soulmarks (each person know where their own are, but the marks can’t be seen by others unless they choose to expose them), angst is fine, but I would please request a happy ending 🙈

What are peculiar prompts? Click HERE to find out and join in the fun!

Lost and Found

CW: none

Pairing: Harry Potter x Luna Lovegood

Rating: T

WC: 1.9k

*Disclaimer: There is a depiction of the Jewish Holiday of Passover/Seder in this story. I am not of the Jewish faith, but I did my best to research the traditions and holiday in preparation for this ficlet.

*****

“All finished, Harry,” Ron grunts as he stacks his stack of gleaming plates on the counter. “I think I did a fair job of it.”

Harry looks up from dusting a bookshelf to where his friend has been scouring every dish until they’re clean enough for tonight. 

Harry sets his rag down.  “Thanks for helping me. I’ve got the rest squared away.”

He plasters what he hopes is a pleasant smile on his lips, but for some reason, it’s harder this year to pretend he’s okay. 

“No problem, mate. I should get going. Gotta pick up the kids from King’s Cross on the way to get Hermione from work. We’ll all be back by sundown, brisket and all.” 

Harry nods but doesn’t trust his voice not to wobble. He’s grateful Ron came to help, but even his leaving for a few hours feels treacherously like abandonment. Every goodbye does when you’re as alone as Harry is.

Ron sees something in Harry’s expression and pauses. 

He ambles over to Harry to enfold him in a hug. 

A torrent of vulnerability so long dammed breaks free. Harry’s breath shudders and hitches with pitiful sobs that soak into Ron's sleeve as he pat's Harry's back. 

“Harry—”

“—I know, alright? I—I can’t find her, whoever she is. I can’t seem to fill the hollow space here,” Harry pulls away to clutch his heart. “I’m not getting any younger, Ron. I’m not sure when I’ll find my soulmate, not after two decades of searching. I feel so alone. I need her.”

Ron sighs and leans against the couch opposite Harry, arms folding as he contemplates. He finally asks the thing he’s suspected, ever since Harry first told him about the soul mark hidden on his palm. “Does Ginny know that’s why you divorced her?”

Harry nods and flips his hand to rub his thumb over the smooth skin, concentrating on making the glamour dissipate. 

The mark had appeared in the centre of his palm eight months after the last battle. At first, he’d thought Ginny would possess its twin, but when he’d asked her about it, she’d been as bewildered as him. 

They’d both been too young and too in love to fathom the weight of marrying when he was soul-bound to another. It became a widening chasm between them, preventing him from feeling at home in Ginny’s embrace. 

“Hermione and I worry about you,” Ron says. Of course, they do. “I know you have the kids, but they’re at Hogwarts most of the year. And even if Ginny is still on good terms with you, it’s not enough. Maybe you should try again, Haz. Maybe it’s time to give up on your mystery soul mate and find someone a little closer to home.”

Ron’s only being a good friend, and Harry doesn’t bother to explain that someone who hasn’t been soul marked can’t understand how every other intimate relationship is a poor imitation of who and what he yearns for. 

Ever since divorcing Ginny, he feels the lack more than ever. He cherishes a hope after this month of preparing, the Passover celebration tonight will spark some much-needed joy after a lonely winter. He’s even prepared this home, pretending she’s coming like Elijah of old to fill the space he left her. 

“I’ll be okay, Ron. I’ll see you later.”

Ron claps his large palm on Harry’s shoulder. “You sure?”

“Yes, Ron. And thanks.”

“Anything for my best mate.”

*****

Hours later, guests begin to arrive. 

Ginny is first with their kids, who fling shoes and coats onto the floor of his sparkling entryway. 

“House looks great, Har…” Ginny kisses him on the cheek. “Jamie! Get back here and hang your coat! You too, Al and Lils!”

They grumble under their breaths but comply. Normally, Harry’s house isn’t so immaculate, but this is a special time of year. 

Ginny produces a crock from under her arm, charmed to stay hot. “I made the matzo ball soup, just like you asked.”

“Smells amazing, Gin. Thanks! I’ll take this to the kitchen.”

Next to arrive is Harry’s one Jewish friend from Hogwarts, Anthony Goldstein and his dangerously pregnant wife, Padma Patil. “Good to see you, Harry! Thanks for hosting this year…” Anthony winks before herding Padma to find a comfortable seat on the couch.

Hermione and Ron arrive next with the precocious Rose and exuberant Hugo in tow. 

“Mum, can I try the wine this year? I’m fourteen, and Jamie gets to have some!” Rose whines at Hermione. 

“Absolutely not. Jamie is nearly of age, and you’re not quite old enough,” Hermione explains in a longsuffering tone. 

“I’ll give you a little sip of mine,” Harry catches Ron whispering to Rose seconds later as he winks at his scowling wife. 

Anthony calls from the kitchen where he’s removing several parcels from the bag he’s brought. “Where do you keep the seder plate, Harry?”

“Just a sec, I’ll grab it.” Harry dodges the giggling train of Lily and Hugo as they race past him. He locates the precious porcelain plate with its six cups and unwraps it with careful fingers. It’s one of the few things he’d been able to salvage from his childhood home and his first clue of the lost heritage of his father’s family. 

He sets the plate on the counter and helps place each element—Horseradish, Charoset, Potato, Shankbone, Egg, and Lettuce. 

When they sit at the table together, Harry opens his copy of the Haggadah and begins to read. 

“Prepare the meal of the supernal King. This is the meal of the Holy One, blessed be He, and His Shechinah…”

It’s a solemn affair, less boisterous than in years past. 

They speak in hushed words as they sample the Karpas. 

The crack of matzah is loud in the reverent silence that even the kids seem to be observing this year. 

Lily’s voice is soft and melodic as she recites the four questions. 

Later, when she and Hugo search for the afikoman hidden earlier by Anthony, they don’t shriek and thump about quite as loudly as they usually do. 

The candles burn low. 

The food dwindles from plates and bowls. 

Harry pours the fourth round of wine followed by Elijah’s cup at the last empty chair of the table. 

Every year, he waits for this moment, secretly hoping that as the Jews hope Elijah will grace their tables, his soulmate will somehow be waiting at the door. 

Harry stands and walks to the entryway with shaking fingers. His heart pounds faster and faster. He feels hot inside, burning, full. 

He lifts a hand to the doorknob, ready to open it when three sharp raps on the door splinter the silence. 

The room seems frozen in amber, every eye huge and expectant, craning to watch Harry welcome the unexpected guest. 

Harry twists the knob, pulls it open, and sees her. 

*****

When the soul mark appears on her palm on the day of Xenophilius’s funeral, eight months after the end of the war, Luna sees it as an omen. 

Not in the sense that she longs to chase it, but that she longs to turn the other way and never stop running. 

She’s not one for great displays of sadness, but that doesn’t mean her foundations don’t crack with the newfound knowledge that one thread of love has the power to hurt her this much. 

Luna leaves Hogwarts, education incomplete.  She flits from country to country discovering all manner of cultures and magic. She loves people and things with her body and her mind, but her heart is reserved for the one whose sign she hides under a permanent glamour. 

Years pass, and she never stops moving, though she does stop marking time. 

Sometime around the first silvery grey strands threading through blonde, Luna finds herself getting pulled in the undertow of fate to the thing she’s avoided for so long. 

It’s an early spring morning and she’s curling her toes and arching her back in a languorous stretch, wiggling closer to the warm body beside her in their battered canvas tent.  A surge of urgency wakens within her. 

He needs her. 

She’s known his identity for years but refuses to get in the way. Last she heard, he married her best friend, had a litter of kids, and got a proper job at the Ministry. 

Huddled and comfortable as she is against Rolf in their campsite in Grindavik, Iceland, Luna realises it’s time to come home. 

She rolls off his cot and locates a pair of cargo trousers—hers, she thinks, but they’re about the same size and colour. He’ll never know either way, hyper-focused as he is on his research. 

Rolf rolls over, grumbling for her to come back to bed, but Luna’s already in a rhythm, the need to move so powerful she has no time to waste.

Everything she owns fits in a shabby rucksack patched with scraps of fabric scrounged on her travels. She slings it over her shoulder now, toeing on her boots as if she’s running the race of her life. 

Luna dashes out into the cold dawn air, the last vestiges of northern lights snaking away from view. Luna quickly locates her broomstick and flies toward the glowing embers of sunrise. 

Toward home. 

She flies all day, never stopping once, not even when her fingers ache and her stomach growls in hunger. She follows the homing beacon in her heart, getting closer and closer to him. 

To Harry. 

She’s never been to his cottage, but it looks warm and comforting in the glow of lights from the window. Luna stops before the gate, her heart thrumming with nervous energy. There’s a large oak tree out front, the sturdy boughs bending in a protective shade over the yard, a crude swing hanging from the lowest of them. 

Luna can see herself on that swing, his hands warm on her back as he pushes her. 

She can see herself kneeling in the humble garden, planting all her favourite clippings from every land she’s ever seen. 

She can imagine spreading a tablecloth on the weathered picnic table while Harry brings dinner out, their towheaded child tottering along behind him, thumb in her mouth as she follows the smell of food. 

She can imagine cosy nights before the fire, and eternal mornings binding every sinew of hers to his as they make love. 

Her heart clenches at the sudden longing, the unfamiliar desire to put down roots.

She opens the gate and approaches the house. Her fingers won’t stop shaking as she raises her fist to knock. 

The door creaks open, and there he is. Time has worn crinkles in the corners of his eyes, and there are whips of grey in the curls at his temples, but other than that, he’s the same. 

“I’m home,” she says, the words tasting right in her mouth. She lifts her palm and concentrates, making the glamour fade. 

Harry’s heart is in his eyes as he presses his palm to hers, a perfect mirror of marks humming against one another. She’s never felt so complete in her whole life. 

“Welcome home,” he says. “You’ve come at just the right time.”

[femmefatalevibe]

Hi love! 💕

I'm a college student and I started an internship two weeks ago at an IT company. There's a problem though, a man. He's the training director at the company so even though we're not working directly together, I get to see him quite often when he comes to check up on us. He's not having any kind of incorrect behavior towards me, I'm the problem. I'm incredibly sexually attracted to him, and I just can't help it. He's in his early 30s, impossibly attractive, polite, kind, funny, super educated, successful. The problem is that I find it hard to focus when he's around, I can't speak to him in a clear and eloquent way, I'm constantly hyperaware of his presence, sometimes I even daydream about him while I'm at work. I feel like my entire focus is on him and not on my work and I'm falling behind because of that, and I'm incredibly annoyed because I worked really hard to be where I am now and I still have huge goals to accomplish and I can't let a man who's probably not even interested in me get in the way of my goals. Usually I'm the only one who matters to me, and I always said that my goals and dreams are more important than relationships, but with him I can't help myself. But I don't want it to be like this. I'm the only one who matters, I'm the love of my life, my focus should be on myself. I don't know what to do tbh. Could you give me some advice, please?

Thank you!

Hi love! This is a frustrating dilemma. Crushes can be intoxicating. Fortunately, you seem very self-aware and are good at practicing self-control.

The first thing to consider is whether you actually are attracted to this man, as a full person or even just sexually, or the idea of him as a figure of authority. A love affair with a boss or someone in power is not exactly an uncommon real-life fantasy. Remember: Beyond the office environment, do you really think this man will be attractive to you? Are you comfortable romancing someone whose had over a decade more of adult life experience? Is he even single, does he have kids? If you figure out through some self-reflection that you're projecting a fantasy, consider writing down the qualities you find attractive about him or dig deep as to why the thought of dating a much older man is appealing to you.

Secondly (and most importantly), think long-term and about your career/professional reputation. Consider for a second if you ended up sleeping with this man, how incredibly awkward that would be on a daily basis, and how that could damage your career in the future. Allow that visceral feeling of discomfort to squash any sexual feelings if you can.

Third, get out in the dating world to distract yourself otherwise. Hyper-focusing on forbidden fruit can only make it appear riper and sweeter over time. Get busy (or one way or another) with putting yourself out there to find a romantic interest or even just focusing more on your hobbies and friends – anything to transmute these lingering feelings will do your body and mind some good.

Hope this helps xx

[skelezomperman]

Have you ever considered part of the reason that Altena's writing is rather garbage is that she is part of an oppressed group (Thracians) and all the stops are pulled to make the oppressors (the Northern houses) look to be as equal or even good in the narrative?

FE4's narration straight up says that the people of Thracia WANT to be ruled by the Leonster houses AGAIN (implying this was the case before), when we know this not to be true and very unlikely for Thracians to want this. We are never shown what New Thracia looks like aside from the people being unified. But it's worth asking ourselves, unified under whose terms? Arion steps down, and Leif gets to be King. I don't think Leif would be a bad king for Thracians, but it's hard for an oppressed people to simply accept the same oppressors willingly even if they had a change of heart.

FEH Altena focuses more on her Leonster identity and simply calls out Travant for his "savage" nature. Travant, despite his flaws, is engaged in a war of liberation against his oppressors. His cause is just, and that is quite literally all that matters. The Aed Massacre and every single act of violence Thracians perform against the North, while tragic, is nothing compared to the mundane violence Thracians undergo every minute of every day for the past few decades now. If not for how incredibly loaded the word is, I'd be pressed to say it is a genocide.

Altena's character in FE4/5 exists as it does because she's "one of the good ones" and serves as a collaborator to make us forget the righteous cause of the Thracian people in favor for a nebulous negative peace where Thracians and Northerners just sit down and get along rather than any real restorative justice.

First of all, I want to compliment you on being willing to ask tough questions about the Jugdral games. I don't entirely agree with your assessment but I'm happy that people are willing to look at it with a critical eye. It's necessary to be willing to do this in order to be honest. For the rest of the answer I'll go through each of your points individually.

I actually have an unreleased essay about viewing Jugdral through an ethnographic lens which I'm planning to release later this year as part of a larger work. I won't summarize the entire essay but I don't personally think the developers intended to make a serious effort to portray prejudices in the Jugdral games. FE5 sheds more light on the relationship between the North and South of Thracia, but in FE4 I feel like there wasn't much thought put into portraying Southern Thracians as "oppressed."

Moving on, there seems to be an inconsistency here. FE4 Chapter 8 says that "the people" wish to be unified under Leonster, but FE4 Chapter 9 says that "[Southern] Thracia's people hardly offer Seliph an eager welcome." I wonder if Chapter 8 is referring to the Munster District rather than the peninsula as a whole but I couldn't find anything to support that theory of mine. I do agree that Leif's ending is not "happily ever after" and he will have difficulties unifying Thracia even with the Thracian-raised Altena being an asset to his effort. That said, I don't want to single out Leif or even FE4/FE5 for this. Most games just say "the lord ruled happily ever after" and don't go in-depth into postgame worldbuilding issues that may crop up (e.g., Marth needing to consolidate power after every other ruler in Archanea abdicates). I do see Altena as someone who would advocate for the Southerners under a unified Thracia and help cater to them rather than someone who imposes the North's rule, but I admit that's headcanon. I'd also note that FE5 does go out of its way to have August teach Leif about the suffering the Thracians go through - to me, this leads to the idea that Leif will make good on the mistakes of his father and grandfather.

It definitely does look bad that Altena calls Travant "savage" in FEH, I'll agree there. I do want to make a point that Travant is the only non-generic Thracian who really does this "savage" behavior (not counting generic bosses like Coulter). Arion does continue to fight Seliph after his father's death but that's because of him being stubborn and indecisive more than any wish to harm innocents. In FE5, Arion also acts as a sort of white knight to save Tarrah from being captured by the Empire. Then we have Dean and Eda who outright join Leif's army with Arion's consent no less. The brutality of the Kingdom of Thracia is more about Travant personally than it is about the nation at large in my opinion. I don't think the game really shows all Thracians as being bad. If my memory serves me right, the only person who says prejudiced things about Thracians as a people is Quan with the "hyenas" comment - not Leif, not Dryas, not August, not Lewyn, not even Finn.

Let me finish at your central point which is that the games look over an oppression by the Munster District and goes out of its way to make Thracia look bad. I can't say I agree with this point; in fact, I think the game does quite the opposite. Even in FE4, Lewyn delivers a lecture in Chapter 8 to mention the poverty that Thracia suffers. FE5 goes out of its way to create more worldbuilding to add justification to their animosity towards the North with the food embargos. The point of Travant is that the player is supposed to feel bad for him while still rejecting his brutality. FE4 is very on the nose with that narrative. I think it's fair to think that he isn't a complete villain; he still wants what is best for his people more than anything else. But I can't just say "he was justified because of what the North did" and leave it as that because that erases the central conflict behind Travant as a character. The player is supposed to ask whether his senseless violence is justified and it's supposed to be an open question. You can't make Travant out to be a bloodthirsty villain nor can you say that he was in the right because Quan was worse; you must retain that complexity behind Travant in order for the character to work. And that complexity does exist! It's simplistic, maybe, but FE4 and FE5 at least make an effort there to show both sides of this question. Maybe you could argue it shouldn't be pushing one answer but at least it goes more in-depth there.

As for Altena, I personally have a much bigger problem with the perceived lack of agency with regards to Arion than with her participation in the Thracian worldbuilding. The worldbuilding could be perfect but I'd still have a problem if the relationship with Arion was the same. But thank you for providing me the opportunity to answer.

[small-screen-superman]

I love My Adventures with Superman, but I decided to write some thoughts about the one thing about it that bugs me most. Spoilers for episodes 4-6! The best way to read it is my non-Tumblr blog, but I'll include the text below too.

About a month ago, it finally happened. My Adventures with Superman came out. I’ve been looking forward to this for a long time; I wrote a blog post when it was first announced over 2 years ago. Based on what little was known about the show back then, it seemed like exactly what I wanted: a show focusing on Clark’s humanity and his life at the Daily Planet, and especially his friendship with fellow Planet employees Lois and Jimmy. That is indeed what the show is about. So do I like it? You bet I do! It’s charming, fun and exciting. It is indeed very focused on characters and relationships, but that does not mean it skimps out on the action. It’s also pretty humorous.

If any of this sounds like a good show to you, I recommend watching it. It’s available on Max (formerly HBO Max). At the time of this post’s writing, the show is up to its seventh episode. This post contains spoilers for episodes 4-6, so if you want a “fresh” experience of the show, you should stop reading. But if you do decide to finish this post instead of running off to watch the show, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t watch the show – I don’t think learning the information found in this post will ruin your experience at all.

At any rate, this is your last warning for spoilers.

When MAWS was newly announced, I thought its premise sounded so promising that it might end up being basically exactly what I’d want a new Superman cartoon to be. That might’ve been a little too optimistic. I didn’t fully realize how nontraditional MAWS was going to be. That’s not a bad thing in and of itself, of course, but as a fan of the traditional Superman setup, I don’t necessarily consider it ideal either.

The first big change that’s obvious from the very first episode is that Lois reciprocates Clark’s interest in her from the start. Many villains are also massively re-imagined. But in this article, I want to focus on what I consider the most radical change and the one that I’m least on board with: by episode 6, both Lois and Jimmy know Clark is Superman. Or, in in-universe terms, they both learn Clark is Superman shortly after Superman first appears.

Wasted Potential

It took some effort for me to fully understand why this idea bothers me, so it will take a bit of time for me to convey it too. The first and most obvious issue is that it closes off a lot of potential stories that could be told. Of course, it also opens up possibilities for other stories to be told, so the real issue is that it means stories, plot points, and ideas that I personally want to see are closed off.

I’m sure after decades and decades of superhero media, a lot of people are tired of seeing superheroes constantly keeping their identities secret from even their close friends. But in all honesty, I just am not. I think this setup, tried-and-true as it may be, is full of potential.

Some of that potential is for humor. MAWS is pretty humorous, so it would fit right in. What’s a bigger deal is that I enjoy the irony and tragedy of this premise. In the 1950s Adventures of Superman live-action show, the friendship between Clark, Lois, and Jimmy is also important, but they don’t know that he’s Superman, and to me, there’s something about that which is just so interesting and sad in a way: having a strong, almost family-like bond with others, and yet not willing to let them know something so fundamental about yourself. It just seems poignant to me. I guess I always like for Superman to have at least a touch of sadness to his character.

Not being able to open up to others, even others we care about, is something that I think almost everyone has experienced at one point or another. There’s something strangely satisfying about seeing Superman represent such a basic human struggle in an extreme way. I guess technically, MAWS also depicts this struggle since Lois and Jimmy found out Clark was Superman, rather than being told by him…but it happening so fast means there’s no time to dwell on this struggle or really appreciate it.

MAWS could’ve still been fairly revolutionary by making Lois and Jimmy learning about Clark’s identity happen relatively early, but not within the first couple of episodes – at the end of the first season, for example. This way, they would’ve had time to actually use the potential of the “classic” setup.

However, as I thought more about my dissatisfaction with MAWS’ choice, I’ve come to realize there’s an even more fundamental reason why it bothers me.

I Want a Contrast Between Clark & Superman, and Now That’s Much Harder

There are a lot of foundational aspects of Superman that contribute to his appeal as a character. Which aspects are more appealing or important is highly variable from one person to another. As I’ve thought about why MAWS’ decision and its consequences don’t feel right to me, it’s brought to mind how important a certain aspect actually is to me. That aspect is simply the contrast between Clark and Superman.

Now, Clark and Superman’s apparent personalities have varied greatly over the years, both in general and in relation to each other. Sometimes, Clark and Superman act extremely differently – Clark acts cowardly, mild-mannered, and clumsy, while Superman is bold and headstrong – that sort of thing. I’m not necessarily talking about that. Some versions of Clark don’t seem to act much differently from Superman (especially in Adventures of Superman and many Post-Crisis depictions), and I actually like these versions better a lot of the time.

Even without a big personality change, there’s still a big contrast between Clark and Superman. Clark, as an identity and persona, is a human being with no powers who lives a human life and is in effect limited in many of the ways humans are, since he has to hide his powers and chooses to live the same kind of life humans live. And while we, the audience, know Clark is Superman, we still see him acting as a normal person and being treated as a normal person by most people he interacts with. This causes the idea of Clark the Human to be firm in our mind…and that, in my experience, makes it more powerful and compelling when we see Clark and Superman “meet”: when we’re reminded that they’re one and the same. It can lead us to contemplate how unusual it really is that a man who appears normal is actually, well…Superman.

I’ll give a couple of TV examples of seeing Clark and Superman “meet” that gives me a certain sense of wonder. In the 5th episode of Lois & Clark (Requiem for a Superhero), while Clark and Lois are investigating, in order to hinder the people who are about to discover them, Clark creates a mini-earthquake, pretending it’s an actual earthquake. In a way, this gives me a sense of awe because Clark had been acting as a normal human around Lois, and in a sense it’s almost as if I had fallen for the illusion of Clark being human. To suddenly see such a display of his powers gives me a sense of amazement that such a powerful being would practically “be” a normal human. I don’t think I’d have had this sensation at all if Lois just…knew Clark was Superman. Of course, Lois does eventually learn Clark is Superman in this show, but there’s still plenty of time giving to establishing the illusion of Clark being human.

An “opposite” example (seeing the Clark-ness of Superman, rather than the Superman-ness of Clark) is in the 6th episode of Superman: The Animated Series (Feeding Time). Parasite finds out Superman’s secret identity (due to being able to gain knowledge from people whose energy and powers he’s absorbed) and kidnaps him. As Parasite explains his plan to keep Superman there indefinitely, Superman says that his co-workers will look for him when they realize he hasn’t come into work for a while. Seeing this be one of the first things Superman says makes me think that he doesn’t see himself that differently from how we see ourselves. To the viewer, there’s something a bit shocking about Superman suddenly having to rely on normal humans, but this doesn’t seem to be the case from his perspective. In a way, it makes me amazed to contemplate how Superman can be one of us despite being, well, Superman. A powerful contrast like this would be hard to create if Superman talking with someone who knows he’s Clark is something that happened extremely frequently.

Do you see what I’m getting at? I enjoy being amazed at the fact that Superman and Clark are one and the same. I enjoy seeing that contrast and then being reminded that it’s all an illusion. It really makes you think about who Clark/Superman is, and how his humanity and, well, “Supermanity” can coexist – how for him, it might be natural, but for us, it’s remarkable. I like finding it amazing that he’s both man and Superman – both human and “god”. If Clark is constantly interacting with people who know his secret identity, it’s very hard for something like that to ever happen.

I have a feeling this might have been a deliberate choice, but in MAWS, the two personas of Clark and Superman feel…a bit insignificant. After all, since he spends so much time interacting just with people who know his secret already, he’s free to openly use his powers even when he’s not in his Superman persona. Heck, in episode 6, Clark doesn’t change into his Superman outfit at all, and it barely seems to matter.

I don’t like the fact that it doesn’t matter. I like that Superman has 2 different identities that are perceived very differently. It’s a pretty important factor as to why I like the character. I love to see that contrast and to remember that it’s just an illusion. It makes me think about who Superman is in a deeper way – about how there are realities about himself that he keeps separate in the views of others via his two identities, and how that dual identity both conceals and reveals who he is, in a sense. It’s really interesting stuff that I feel like I can’t encapsulate in this article without going off on a tangent, but the point is, if you don’t really get to see Superman “doing” his dual identity that much, it’s hard to get much out of it.

An Aside: MAWS Could Still Make a Contrast Between Clark and Superman…But They Don’t

OK, this is somewhat tangential, but I think it needs to be addressed or this article will feel a little incomplete.

I established that there being a contrast between Clark and Superman is not dependent on Clark and Superman acting as though they have noticeably different personalities. Obviously, though, them having different personalities is still a big way for them to have a contrast between each other. If MAWS actually employed this method of having a contrast between them, perhaps it would bother me a little less that another huge method (him mostly interacting with people who think Clark is a normal human) wasn’t present. However, MAWS…definitely doesn’t do this.

The two most common ways to depict Superman and Clark is to have Superman be bold and for Clark to be “wimpy” in some way (with the “wimpiness” being a fake personality to fool people into thinking he’s not Superman), or for them to both be bold. MAWS takes a road less traveled and makes Clark being awkward and nervous (though not to an extreme degree) be his actual personality. It would then make perfect sense for Superman to have a fake personality of boldness, but they don’t really go in that direction, except maybe very subtly. I guess Superman isn’t that openly insecure, but he’s certainly not as confident as you’d expect him to be. It feels…very wrong. Heck, even if they didn’t make Lois and Jimmy learn the truth so fast, it would still probably bother me that Superman acts in such a nontraditional way. But the fact that they did makes it worse, because it makes seeing a contrast between Clark and Superman basically impossible.

An Additional Aside: It Might Not Hurt MAWS, But It Sets a Precedent

I do wonder if I’m overreacting about this. MAWS is still a great show and Lois and Jimmy knowing the secret from early on is a part of it, and the show wouldn’t be the same without it. So maybe it doesn’t really matter. It’s not like MAWS has to be the ultimate version of Superman that contains everything that makes the character appealing.

But a popular show making a big change could very easily influence future interpretations, so the very fact that MAWS is doing this could have ramifications for future versions of Superman. I’m not meaning to say adaptations should be afraid of changing things just because other people might copy them. I’m just saying, it wouldn’t be surprising if other media took cues from MAWS in this area, and I think that could be unfortunate.

Maybe this is paranoid, but I think it’s at least worth mentioning. It’s normal for adaptations to influence other adaptations and even the comics themselves, and this change traveling to other media is not a happy prospect for me. (Though I’m keeping in mind that this change can be used for interesting and quality stories, of course. But it becoming widespread and making its way to very important and/or high-profile media would be quite disappointing to me.)

So yeah – I think I did an okay job articulating why I’m unsatisfied with MAWS’ decision to have Lois and Jimmy learn the truth so early. I can’t say there’s anything inherently wrong with it from a storytelling perspective or in terms of what the writers want to accomplish. And it certainly doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy the show – it doesn’t even mean I can’t enjoy the parts of the show that are direct consequences of this decision.

Essentially, all that it means is that MAWS will never feel anywhere close to a “definitive” version of Superman to me. It will always feel more like “Superman with a twist” or something like that. That’s not a horrible fate to be consigned to at all…it’s just not as good as what I was hoping for from MAWS.

[henrysglock]

Personally, I was saying (and I think we're in agreement here) that for Jessica it was falling in love, and that that's very much a valid route for her, but that for George it doesn't have to be. No one said it had to be like that for George, just that is was like that for Jessica. And that's cool! Go Jessica and her partner.

But either way re: "Mom doing the most already"...I'm sorry to say it, but sometimes that's just not enough. It's wonderful and important, and it can absolutely be necessary in creating that baseline of positive self-image/self-worth, yes, but it really is one thing to be loved by a parent and another to have someone meet you organically without the construct of a parent-child relationship...and choose you anyway. Really really different experiences, both important in the realm of formative experiences and personal growth/understanding of one's value as a community member, which is a common basis for understanding of one's own identity and self worth.

And yes, it can just come from the character and their perception of self, but that's unlikely to happen in a healthy way, unless they have some kind of community support (see: Maslow's hierarchy of needs), which you mentioned (see: fave emo in theater company). Outsider/community support is, typically, integral to the creation of a well-rounded individual (read: one that values both the world and themselves). However, to find that kind of in-depth personal acceptance in a community can be difficult/unrealistic...especially for people who are considered "weird", like George already seems to be. Finding steady, long-term community support isn't always something that happens. It's great when it does, but it's not necessarily common. So having that support come from a long-term platonic (or yes, sometimes even romantic) figure can often become integral to growth as a person. To discount that, personally, rubs me the wrong way.

Given all that...his mother, as the remaining source of external love and acceptance, runs the risk of becoming that sole focal point of "I can't destroy the world, Mom's there/the one person who truly loved me is there." And what happens, then, when Mom dies? That source of love is just as ephemeral as a friend, sibling, or yes, even romantic, relationship.

And honestly even then it all varies by person, because I've known plenty of elderly folks who have been best friends and/or partners their whole adult lives. Hell, my mom and her best friend are going on 40 years together with no end in sight. So to discount this route as being "unable to fill the gap" for more than a few decades is lowkey reductive of both long term friendships/sibling relationships and romantic relationships (for those who choose to pursue them). And then, this whole time we've been assuming that this community support (see: theater company) stays around longer than a close friend might.

Either way, over and over it's about finding people who love and support you so that you can self-actualize your way out of being the antichrist. Whether that support be a single person or a group of people is relatively immaterial...not to mention that the whole point of the original reply to OP's prompt was that focused, external love saved this kid from his fate by creating a space for him to self-actualize into a well-rounded person.

So I'm not entirely sure if you're trying to argue in favor of the "you can't love others until you love yourself" type of self-actualization, because that rarely helps people. In fact, it's more likely to isolate them and turn them down more destructive paths as a result, regardless of whether they're good, evil, or otherwise at their core.

Your church-going, God-worshipping sister adopted a small child and you’re excited to see them. But when you do, the child is a menace. They’re throwing things everywhere, setting furniture on fire with seemingly nothing, chanting in Latin to summon demons, but the weirdest thing is that your sister doesn’t seem to mind.

[pleasantspark]

Forever & Ever - Chapter Four (…Baby One More Time) Frieza x Fem! Frieza Race OC Genre: Horror/Romance(?) Tropes: Yandere Part of The F&E Series Warnings: Possessiveness, Frieza (Because he's a whole ass warning in of itself), Sexism, Forced Gender Roles, Misogyny, Internalized Misogyny, Stalking, Implied Offscreen Death, Death, Yandere Behavior, Canon Divergent, Impossible Logic, DBZ Logic, Forced Pregnancy (Offscreen), Abusive Relationships, Gaslighting, Toxicity, Implied Sexual Assault, Actual Sexual Assault (Depicted under the cut) AUs Utilized: Frieza Redemption Arc AU (Separate Arc, a COMPLETE different whatif) Frieza Race Overhaul Doc Used! Please check for it here: x A/N: Although it's not sexual assault (graphic at least) it's still something that the victim does NOT want, keep in mind, I write macabre and dark things, just because I do DOESN'T mean I am a labelled Proshipper, people can write dark things and also be a good person, dark stories and macabre things shouldn't be offlimits or seen as weird in your writing because some things on the internet seems too extreme, if you don't like it, then you can skip it. Also, I am aware Frieza's personality isn't a yandere as the story suggests, but the thing is, he's not meant to be one, at first he was but as the story progressed, he's far from a yandere, but a complete and utter sociopath and psychopath. That feels no remorse for his actions and would continue to hurt others, a far more extreme personality then his canon. I plan to have atleast 6 more chapters, since I only have little ideas planned, but I assure you, Cooler isn't going to be written off as a one time character, he's planned to be reused, and this series has a good ending. Enjoy.

Cooler walked down the hallways.

He couldn't believe it, he just couldn't.

After nearly a decade he decided to speak to his brother and meet whoever decided to become his Stockholm Victim.

It was quite puzzling to understand how someone of Frieza's type can find someone willing to be his mate, let alone someone not crazy. Cooler was tense as he walked down the halls and into the entrance of his ship. He exited, and heads down to where the meeting was taken place.

Scanning the area, he saw Frieza exit his ship, Cooler could sense something off about his brother. He watched as Frieza walked with Dodoria and Zarbon. He turned to face Salza who kept a smile on his face, but it was clear, his nose turned up at the sight of Zarbon.

"Hello, Brother." Frieza said in that obnoxious voice he oh so hated.

"Frieza." Said Cooler curtly and disdainly.

"Let's not waste anymore time." Frieza turned his back towards Cooler, and Cooler mustered the energy to not try and strangle his brother. He just opted to stare daggers at the back of his brothers head.

Oh how he wanted to kill him.

It's been six hours since Frieza locked her in this room, he said he was going to take care of "business" and by the time he returned, he wanted her to "accept him" she was not feeling the feelings required that Frieza wanted from her and she much rather kill herself then fall for him.

Then, he arrived back, after hours and she felt scared. The tyrant looked at her. And kneeled to her height (Which wasn't needed as he was equal height as her, but I digress.)

"You had all these hours to think of what you want and it's about time I take what I want." Frieza sneers.

Orion knew what he wanted, and she wanted to refuse. To scream, to resist, but he vastly overpowers her in every way. Frieza walked up to her and made out with her passionately she pushed him off and Frieza pulled back and made out with her. Orion whimpered and wanted to scream, Frieza groped her body especially her breasts and tweaked her nipples.

He ended up spending the few minutes groping her and after he did all that, he pulled away his eyes lingered over her small frame, it was definitely clear to him of her female form. She was most certainly a female in every sense of the term.

He viewed her as below him, below the males of his race, and only viewed her as a way to expand the race. Even after she gave birth to their child, he wouldn't stop at trying again and again. He knew that one child wasn't enough. He needed multiple. He needed females as well. If they were to expand their genetics beyond just them.

Orion was quivering, she didn't want this at all. She was sobbing, Frieza found this to be annoying.

"Oh, shut the fuck up." Frieza snarls, he cupped a hand under her chin.

"Be glad I decided to keep you as mine, most of our own kind will just pimp you out and dump you on the side of the road or even auction you off to slave trades. This is a better option then those." Frieza hisses.

That didn't help with her situation at all, and she wanted to sob even harder. But Frieza's grip on her chin only tightened and he released her roughly as she fell back.

"Now be a patient little doll and let daddy play with you. Dress you up, and rearrange you." Frieza coos, and his hatch* opened up.

Cooler stared at the back of Frieza's head, as he was chattering with Zarbon about plans with the Saiyans, while Cooler has a disdain for them, he never vocalized severe hatred for them much like his father and his brother. While his mother never really cared for those affairs. So he much rather chose that over hearing those unhinged racist rants his father went on against King Vegeta and his kind.

Cooler past by various portraits of Frieza which only consisted him and no one else, there was not any pictures of their family, with how King Cold treated him he expected for a hint of their father on the walls, but Cooler suspected he only viewed their father as a pawn in the game he was playing.

Cooler didn't expect for him or their mother to be on the walls, given their history. So he didn't seem surprised that his brother didn't include him.

But he supposed he shouldn't have been surprised that Frieza didn't include any of them, Frieza's raging narcissism knew no bounds. He was just that full of himself. That the only thing he'd rather have on the walls is himself.

"Father, what is wrong with Frieza?" Said a younger Cooler, looking at the incubation bedding occupying Frieza's small form in, King Cold briefly looked up from the documents he was reading before staring at Cooler.

"Frieza's in critical condition, Cooler." Queen Frigid said. Cooler didn't understand.

"Critical Condition?" Cooler questioned, he never heard of that before.

"Yes, that means he needs attention, medical to be exact, he was born really early. Way then he should have." Frigid said.

"Is he supposed to be that small?" Cooler's nose scrunched up.

"He's premature. He's small, small little icijins that are born before they are supposed to end up being small." Frigid said.

"Will he be bigger?" Cooler asked.

"Yes, he'll eventually grow." Frigid said.

Cooler pressed his face up to the glass that housed his little brother. Frieza looked normal upclose for a icijin he was very small and quiet. Hooked to an oxygen tank and seemed to be so fragile.

He at first didn't seemed thrilled with the aspect of being an older brother, but the thought grew on him. He could teach his brother things their father taught him. Leading, reading, astrology and... More things. He was exited.

Cooler found himself walking through the hallways of where Frieza kept his prisoners.

"You keep your wife to be where your prisoners are?" Cooler asked.

"Yeah, wouldn't you want her to not leave?" Frieza asked.

"...That's not a good idea." Cooler mumbled.

"Anyways, we're here, Cooler. You better not try anything." Frieza snarls.

Cooler just rolled his eyes.

Cooler watched as Frieza ripped the heads off of his expensive Collectibles in abject horror. They costed over 600 Galactic Space Credits. He was collecting them to sell them later on. Frieza knew how much they meant to him and did this. He kept the little figurines in their casings and boxes. He made sure the casings were locked in a box with a padded lock.

His father must have given Frieza the key after Frieza pestered their father for it, his heart hurt. He was happy with those figures, it was something their mother and him mutually bonded over. He couldn't do anything with Frieza to snitch on him. So he stomped out his room, and headed to their father.

Upon arriving in their parents room, he knocked loudly and rather roughly causing King Cold to grunt and swing open the door.

"What? Can't you see me and your mother are busy, boy?" King Cold asked.

"Dad, I need to speak to you." Cooler said, trying to keep calm. King Cold grunts and sighed.

"Fine, you have 6 minutes." King Cold opened the door, and he saw his mother sitting on her bed with a concerned look on her face.

"Dad, why did you give Frieza the key to my locked box with my Figurines?" Cooler asked.

"Because he wanted to look at them, he wanted to see what they looked like." King Cold responded.

"He destroyed them!" Cooler said.

"It's not that big of a deal, Cooler we can just get-" King Cold began.

"You can't get me new ones, Dad!" Cooler argues, "They were limited edition! You couldn't get them ANYWHERE else!"

"Limited edition?" King Cold asked.

"You knew how much I spent my time talking about it, I always talked about it at the table, Berryblue told you about it, and Mother did too!" Cooler said.

"Cold, why did you give the key to Frieza?" Frigid spoke up.

"I assumed Frieza had good intentions." King Cold said.

"You knew his intentions were not good, remember all the books we've given to him only for them to be completely destroyed within a week or so?" Frigid asked.

"Frigid, please, they are books not rare figurines. We could replace them." King Cold defended.

"Is that your way of thinking? You can replace those books, but once a figurine that I spent nearly all of our money on is destroyed by our undisciplined spoiled brat breaks that is limited edition, then I can't rush to the store to replace it. King Cold, you fucked up badly." Frigid said, Cooler wanted to break down in tears, but tried to remain calm.

When King Cold refused to respond, Frigid rose to her feet. "Cooler, wait in the docking bay, I have to discipline your brother." Frigid said, Cooler nodded and headed to the docking bay.

Needless to say, after that incident, Cooler and Frigid went to the store to by 10 Figurines which totaled over 900 GSC. And after that Cooler left the key with Frigid who made sure to not tell Cold where she kept the Key nor did she tell Frieza and gave it over.

Cooler still had those Figurines, realizing they were special and held a priceless memory.

Once they arrived in the room, Cooler noticed a female Frieza Race chained to the wall, she seemed to have a dead on the inside look, she seemed to not want to be here.

"Cooler, meet my soon to be wife." Frieza said. With an almost proud look.

"..." Orion barely looked at Cooler. Cooler's heart hurt for her.

"I'll be right back, you better not try anything funny. Dodoria and Zarbon come with me." Frieza commanded. The two elites followed their superior outside, leaving Salza and Cooler alone with Orion. It was an awkward silence before Cooler broke it.

"I'm Cooler, your soon to be brother in law. It's nice to meet you." Cooler said kindly. Orion didn't respond, and Cooler felt weird talking to her then after a few minutes passed, she responded.

"H-Hi, I'm Orion." She said.

Cooler was taken aback by this response, and smiled. "Nice to meet you, I assume you're having my nibling, huh?" Cooler asked. Orion nodded sadly.

"...It's okay, I promise you it's going to be okay." Cooler said, he knew it was false, when you're with Frieza, it was most certainly not going to be okay. But he felt like she needed some words of encouragement to atleast have a peace of mind in a hell beyond her comprehension.

"If you say so..." Orion quietly responded. Cooler sighed and smiled.

"I promise you, I really promise. I can get you out of here, out of his clutches, and I'd do anything to ensure you're safe, you got my word." Cooler said.

Orion looked up, hope was in her eyes, and for once...

Cooler felt hope too.

<Last Chapter >Next Chapter

*Hatch: a place where a Frieza Race's genitalia is stored.

[gre7n]

Family

A local Imam said that God created all humans beginning with Adam and Eve and, therefore, all people are brothers and sisters. How do you respond to this view? Do you think it is helpful or good? If so, why? If not, why not?

(paragraph breaks are semi random btw, i had to do it for tumblr formatting and i didnt feel like trying to make them make sense xd)

When considering the question of this viewpoint of Adam and Eve, I think it is useful to break it down into the premise and conclusion. On one hand you have the premise: Adam and Eve are the first humans. This is an extremely bold claim from a scientific standpoint if your only idea was to claim that a man named Adam and a woman named Eve existed and that these events occurred. In terms of how knowledge is sorted in our modern times with thousands of years of experience, there’s simply not enough to give any hint of truth or relevance of these claims, and the discussions end up being based on emotional convictions rather than the hard scientific truth that is required for these very specific claims being made.

That being said, there does appear to be parallels to the overarching concepts of the theory of evolution. It can be said that, indeed, not just every human, but every animal and bacteria and fungi and species known to exist all comes from the same “source”. At some point a soup of primordial molecules started to replicate themselves and started to increase in complexity naturally and became the gateway point for the rest of our current understanding of existence to begin. This is when we reach the conclusion: all people are brothers and sisters. Now, in the literal sense, this appears to be true. But only understanding this idea through scientific and almost nihilistic means reduces the scope and weight of the idea to its most minute points. In functioning families, there is an acknowledgement that everyone is similar in an almost karmic sense that they all seem to exist in similar socioeconomic statuses, cultural interactions, literally born of the same people who transfer their ideals (or lack thereof) down. There is an acknowledgement that even if things aren’t perfect, you all at least understand each other. How could you not? You all endure hardships together, financial, physical, etc. You don’t have to speak a word in the best cases (the truth rests so clearly), but there is no shame in exclaiming out what is wrong either. This knowledge allows those inside the family to be the best suited to actually point out flaws and problems in each other.

But what happens when the bonds in a family break down? When you see the flaws, but have no ways to express what they are to those around you? What happens when those flaws actively make your life a living hell? Tortured physically, mentally, you name it. Kind of awkward to claim that decades of abuse was all for nothing, that at any point someone could choose to stop. At its best family is loving, but when ignored just like every other emotional problem, it leads to limitless pain. Entire philosophical views of the world built on pain and agony at the most personal level. All of these things are painful to talk about on a personal level, especially for those in the middle of said crises (which some last for decades and never end until death, but those problems can be transferred generationally anyway). We never truly escape it. This is the emotional baggage associated with family in our modern world, and especially in America. So, claiming that every person on this earth, every animal, every cell, perhaps even every atom is family means you have to contend with these exact thoughts and your relationship to everything. It's not just a claim but a way to engage with the world. It paints your view of everything. If you aren’t ready to deal with the consequences of being cosmically intertwined with every being we’ve ever known or could potentially even effect in any way through the butterfly effect, there is a great deal of pain that is waiting to be realized by an individual that has been placed upon others by no reason other than true ignorance. And really, what actually separates you and me? My DNA matches 98.8% of a chimpanzee. Imagine how much I share with you.

And how much we let less than 1% difference pollute our perceptions! There is a cosmic exclamation that when I feel pain, others can too. And it's just as real for them as it is for me. Our minds are extremely complex, and in that complexity, we can get wrapped up in stories. Stories of who we are as people, who the first humans were, which religion we follow of the ten options. But ultimately our true identities are so more magnificent than the one person we are. In just the same way you can look up and see that you are a part of the human family, you can look down and see that the billions of cells and bacteria make up the family that is you. They work together and allow something much greater than any one part to live its complex and independent life. Living proof that collectivism and autonomy are not mutually exclusive. Remember, bacteria and cells would eat each other in a completely hostile world. That is until one day a cell took another cell in, and instead of breaking it down, let it live there. It turned out this cell actually was quite good at converting food into energy, so much so that it was more efficient to let it live inside itself and allow it to replicate and exist together. The concept we call family is just the human interpretation of a process that has been going on for billions of years, but ultimately it's the same story. A country is its own organism, its own family. How long until we can exist as one? As one family, as one people. At the end of the day, which religion you follow, which version of history you tell, or what name you call the beauty of truth doesn’t matter. What matters is that you see life for what it is and love indiscriminately. That you look every person in the eye and see every part of yourself that exists inside of them. There is no ignoring the world we live in. Every experience, every thought, it all points here. Stories are what we tell each other to teach valuable lessons. No one is watching Star Wars and thinking “I can’t believe this all actually happened”. You walk away with a feeling that family can overcome even galactic sized evil forces. Why did the story of Luke and Darth Vader resonate so strongly with an entire world? It's just as religious a story as many actual religions tell. So, is it good? The answer is yes, if what is important is kept as the main focus, and if we allow new stories to be told that capture the beauty of the truth in even more detail and simplicity. We should pray for the day that we can join the entire world with one simple story. Easy to tell, easy to feel. But if it hasn’t yet with one story, we can no longer force it to. There will have to be a new story, inspired by those of the past, not throwing them away, but simply understanding them. Taking what worked, throwing away what didn’t. What else do we do with our thousands of years of history other than learn and grow? So long as there are problems, our work is not over. Never will we be able to be complacent in that which we tell ourselves until that day. Will that day ever truly come? Probably not, but at least in the meantime we can make things tangibly better. Better is all we can strive for.

[talenlee]

Ukyou And Tarou

Ukyou And Tarou

Ranma 1/2, as may be expected of a gag sex comedy manga that ran for a decade, has a huge cast of characters. There are a host of characters who show up for exactly one story, such as some of my favourites, Herb, Shinnosuke and Ryuu Kumon, even if their appearance stretches across multiple issues. I guess I should mention Rakkyosai at this point because hey, remember Rakkyosai? No? Just me? Anyway. Technically, the near-final arc of the story, the Phoenix Mountain Arc, features a bunch of one-hit-wonder characters too like Kiima and Saffron, and oh, hey Pink and Link are in that basket too. If you haven’t read the manga, you must trust me this is a kind of impressive, like I’m doing some strange kind of wheelie on a type of vehicle you don’t understand.

When you limit the cast of the show to just the characters who showed up in two stories or more, the characters that show up the least tends to start indicating some obscure ones. You might be surprised how rarely Kodachi shows up, for all of her significance to the anime in the early periods, or how often Gosunkugi does. Some ‘major’ characters in terms of the end-game romantic options, like Akari and Konatsu live in this space, too, where they never really ‘belong’ to the cast, but they show up at least twice to make sure you know the author didn’t forget about them. Tsubasa Kurenai is here too, in this ‘almost minor’ characters, as is the series’ weird Sexy Child Hinako Ninomiya.

These characters are great fanfodder because they both show how big your brain is when you know these relatively-obscure characters and because their appearances usually mean they have enough of an idea to do something with, but they’re also not so fleshed out you know everything about what interests them. They’re both defined and open, and that makes them great for shipping, in the way that Ranma 1/2 presented a world here you can treat every character as some component of a complex love dodecahedron. Inevitably, you look for a major character who can be, like a molecule in a specific reaction, connected to some other character with a strong enough bond that doesn’t interfere with the major players you were looking to bump into one another.

One of the most challenging characters to attach somewhere is Ukyou Kuonji, because she has both multiple obvious options (Konatsu and Tsubasa) and good reasons for not wanting to end up with either (a seemingly obvious lack of interest and he’s a shithead respectively). That leads to browsing all these other obscure characters trying to find someone Ukyou has a pre-established relationship with which would be interesting, or better yet, someone who has no relationship to her. Ukyou is a really great character, she’s long-running, you see her in a lot of circumstances, and she’s both a handsome boy and a pretty girl. In the great love triangle structure of Ranma 1/2, Ukyou was created, it seems, to be a reasonable alternative to Akane, because she’s not uh, some variety of stupid (Ryouga) or evil (Shampoo).

It is in this space my favourite Ranma 1/2 character appears; the boy whose name is an insult, the slur-popping knuckle-cracking shapeshifting monster boy, Pantyhose Tarou. Tarou for you who don’t know, is a… villain? Let’s say villain, who shows up in three stories: first time he shows up, he kidnaps Akane in an attempt to lure Happousai to him. Second time, he tries to douse Happousai with the Spring of Drowned Samaritan, but it’s actually Spring of Drowned Twins, and so Ranma fights him there to stop him from making Happousai an even bigger problem. Third time, he shows up being chased by a young lady named Rouge, who is also a Hindu god (… is this racist?), blowing him up, meaning Ranma and he have to team up to fight her. They defeat her by giving her medicated back pads, because six arms means you have at least twice as many shoulder problems.

All these adventures, especially the focus on getting Happousai is tied to the twofold problem that Happousai is dangerous as hell, and because he wants to convince Happousai to do something consensually: He needs Happousai to change his name. Which is, as I said, Pantyhose Tarou. Because Happousai is the one who named him, and it’s an obscure rule in his obscure Chinese village. And I get that, I understand wanting to change a name away from something that sucks. The challenge he gets presented with here is that Happousai is a dude who absolutely sucks, and that means that convincing him is only ever done with extreme applications of pressure, which are hard to bring to bear because Happousai is also one of the five most dangerous physical combatants in the whole series.

Of course, you could make the case that Tarou is probably up in that same space, that same kind of immensely powerful dangerbeast, because in addition to being just an immensely skilled martial artist, he’s also got the Jusenkyou curse of the Niuhōmanmaorennīchuan, or the spring of drowned “yeti holding an eel and crane while riding an ox.” Which, as I said before, yes, just glosses over ‘yetis are real’ but what it is, essentially, is a gigantic minotaur with wings that can (somehow) fly. Then he adds to it by getting another curse (drowned octopus), which adds in that if you get cursed while you’re cursed, the curses combine, so now he’s a gigantic minotaur with tentacles that can shoot ink. That’s! Sick! As! Hell!

Aaaand uh, of course, there’s also the fact that he’s an antagonistic asshole who disdains Ranma, despite being perceived, at times, as being more aggressively fem than Ranma. With uhm, some slurs? That’s… not great, that’s not ideal. Yes, it was a different time (the 1980s) and Japan has a different relationship to language but it’s a bit… rich to try and claim it’s not in the same space as a dude who throws around slurs to be edgy. Tarou is a character I have a real fondness for, despite realising as I grew older, what a big dumb shithead he is. It’s not that I’ve changed in my general take on the character – the fact he’s a competitive dipshit is an important part of his character after all!

For a long time I’ve had it in my head that Tarou, a gender-noncompliant prettyboy goon who hated his name and had a bad relationship with his dad could work well in a relationship with Uykou, a gender-noncompliant handsome girl who has a bad relationship with her dad (and also Ranma’s dad). We also don’t know how they think about one another, and in a sex comedy idiot-fest like Ranma 1/2, there’s always room for a first meeting that creates a context that lets two characters form a relationship based on whatever you want. Ukyou is into Ranma, Tarou thinks Ranma is an idiot, but Tarou also is an idiot, as might be indicated by his choices of name changes being extremely stupid. Ukyou’s someone who knows what it takes to construct a new identity (her crossdressing alter-ego), so she has a ground to at least be able to help Tarou get a handle on his relationship to his name and gender, and that’s interesting to me.

On the other hand, we also know they never meet one another, and while Ukyou’s taste in men includes at least exactly one immense idiot (Ranma), that’s based out of a very long term relationship that she’s had to reconcile through multiple stages of life. The reason these two characters can work is because their ability to work together is completely undefined. Essentially, this is a relationship of negative spaces.

This is, as best I can put it together, a ship that I have had in the back of my mind as ‘a good idea’ for nearing on twenty years. It’s detritus from old arguments on USENET newsgroups and half-read rememberings of a pre-translation version of a manga that I only now have begun to read as a whole text, and I think I probably owe quite a lot of my thinking around it on to basically one guy I haven’t spoken to in like ten years.

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