#tmi meta

[carelessflower]

On Testing and Qualifying Magnus Lightwood-Bane's Sugar Daddy Behaviors - An Analysis

Multiple arguments have been made against the current High Warlock of Brooklyn, superficially regarding whether this gentleman's reputation as the current Consul of the Clave's sugar daddy is underappreciated or exaggerated. This study aims to dissect the argument with the support of textual evidence throughout the couple's appearances in the series

Paying for their first date

Taking care of the bill like a gentleman. From this instance, one can assume he takes his gentlemanly courting ritual very seriously, as he also reached for the meal cheques in other occassions

Conjuring and pelping to pick fine clothes for Alec

On their famous Europe vacation, it is shown Magnus has a habit of magicking tuxedoes, suits, and well-made sweaters for Alec. Now, if he could upgrade that GAP scarf to a Burberry one, it would be much appreciated

Gentleman behavior

Even though his boyfriend is supernaturally strong with biceps to bite for days and hunts bloodthirsty demons for a living, Magnus would still rather pay someone to carry the heavy luggage than his darling

Luxurious accommodation only

There has been a previously published study on the expenses for all these places here, so this article will be repeating the same key points:

one night at Istanbul Grand Suite on the Orient Express: $26,000

suite in Belmond Hotel Cipriani: $1,056

suite in Palazzo Manfredi, Rome: $729

It is understandably relatable when one pulls Alec Lightwood and wants to do everything in their power to woo him. For Magnus, it apparently includes never letting Alec stay in any place less than five stars

Letting Alec drive the Maserati

It costs around $10,860 to rent a red Maserati 3500 GT Vignale Spider for one day. Therefore, it speaks volumes to Magnus's affection for his boyfriend that Alec almost crashes them and the expensive car off a cliff is just a "tiny accident". It is also very likely he buys this type of car later, seeing his husband's fascination with them

Living together in Brooklyn

Months into the relationship Alec has already possessed a literal key to Magnus's home and proceeds to move in after weeks of getting back together. For other poor souls who are looking for a 3-bedroom brownstone in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, the rent would be estimated at around $5000 per month. For the Consul, it certainly would involve a different type of payment method

Alec's magically money-full pocket

The consul carrying energy bars in his duffle bag instead of using the 15000$ in his pocket guarantees the funniest mental images one could possibly imagine

Enchanting Izzy's whip for Alec's birthday

Knowing Alec's top wish is to keep his family safe, Magnus chooses to tip his boyfriend's sister's whip in a prized potion to help her on the battlefield. Loving someone to the point you want to protect what else they love

Assisting shadowhunter without payment

This element may prove to be the strongest supporter of Magnus's claim as THE sugar daddy of the shadowhunter chronicles universe title, seeing how he used to overcharge shadowhunter on their business (deservingly so), and now he is willing to do all kinds of crazy shenanigans without an ounce of money. Whoever's in charge of the Clave's budget better send Alec the biggest, freshest, most expensive fruit basket

Final note

In conclusion, this research paper does not provide a definitive answer to the argument but encourages readers to draw their own perspectives. Nevertheless, it is a great possibility that in his report, the consul stated he used 10-20 dollars each week while he was traveling across the world, going to Japan when he craved sushi and staying in the finest places, all thanks to his generous husband

tag list: @magnus-the-maqnificent @literallytypogod @hoezier-than-thou @sociallyineptbibliophile @queenlilith43

@khaleesiofalicante @wandererbyheart @raziyekroos @onetimetwotimesthreetimess @alexandergideonslightwood @andrwminward

@noah-herondale-lightwood @elettralightwood @dustandducks @deliciousdetectivestranger @delightfullyterrible

@letsgofortacos

@kita-no @thelightofthebane @secrettryst @goldendreams3 @cityofdownwardspirals

@stupidfuckindinosaur

@i-have-not-slept @rinadragomir @potato-jem @kasper-tag @cam-ryt

@banesapothecary

[lord-montgomery]

hating on or condemning simon because he "cheated" has always felt like just such a clear misread of the situation to me. i'm not gonna say he didn't fuck up but he also didn't ..cheat. if isabelle could date multiple people at once why couldn't he? he was just matching the energy isabelle brought to the table. and honestly i think it was his right to do so, maybe not with maia, but no one told him that was a rule.

and as he noticed things were getting more serious he did have instincts knocking at his heart telling him he needed to break it off with one of them. he just put it off too long. the reason we're given for this is that he didnt want to hurt either of them, and while i'm sure that's true, i don't think that's the whole story. because lbr by cofa the choice was clear. but that choice would also be an admittance that he wants isabelle more than she wants him. and he's been through that before. he's been the guy always prioritzing someone who has other priorities. and he can't be that again.

when everything does come to a head, both girls do get upset, but maia forgives him so much faster than isabelle does. and i think it's izzy's reaction that a lot of people base their perception of this situation on. but the thing is.. simon didn't know about izzy's cheating-based trauma. or that what he did would get mixed up in that. and ik i've said this before but her reaction also had a hell of a lot to do with anger at herself for letting simon have that kind of affect on her, rather than the simple facts of his actions. she went into self-preservation mode.

i just don't think the severity of his misdemeanor can be measured by the black and white metric of dating two people = cheating and cheating = unforgivable. even if it cut izzy deeper than expected.

[blindmagdalena]

i need incognito homelander BADDD!!

you and me both. we are SO BACK for inconspicuous handjobs and back room blowjobs in public areas. gonna make that man WHIMPER!

i’m about to go on vacation but i’m already lowkey buzzing with fic ideas and Situations.

also i wonder what it would do to homelander to be recognized outside of his costume. it’s so much of him, his brand. he didn’t bother to wear sunglasses so he must not think it was necessary.

do you think it would catch him off guard? an unexpectedly intense swell of emotion that he can’t quite place. to be cared about and spoken to genuinely. hmmm! much to think about.

[chasedeys]

do you mind sharing that pic of Joe and Jamarrs handshake with Jamarrs shirt hitched up?? neeeed to see it 😅

FFTSSTFffststtfft i got u boooo dw 😭😭👍

behold insanity

would be my fav pinky shake tbh if i weren't you know a sucker for lore and bitching narratives so the roty pinky shake is my fav. this is definitely the horniest pinky shake though because i can delude myself to thinking that joe's gaze downwards was straight to ja'marr's ridiculous exposed midriff.

several other honorable pinky shake mentions (outside of game days' post tuddys those are in a league of their own):

the baby biletnikoff award one! soooo enamored by that one like oh i got an award huh let me link my pinky with the guy who helped me get it first etc etc. then he got a roty award and did it AGAIN these two's lore and history is honestly insane

that one with the new locker room vid that honestly made no sense like why did they do it then?? bald asses doing that loaded-with-history friendship shit right in the middle of the camera when one of them is wearing bright neon pink with a downright blinding bottle blonde head im crying they are NOT real people

and also the one with the first rookie season game presser 'i thought he was dropping everything' possessive protective flaunting ass oughguhgh it always gets me like he did it right in front of all those cameras and reporters who said shit about his guy like an extra fuck you he's mine and he's good you knowww

oh and also the kc career game presser with the slightly awkward ass hug wow several moments during pressers damn you bengals their joint presser WHENNNN

[purgaytorysupremacy]

oh nuts. a life experience has given me a new layer of perspective on Cas's homosexual declaration of love to Dean.

recently I had occasion to tell a person I had feelings for them knowing full well they didn't feel even a twinge of the same thing for me. while the whole thing was a decidedly unpleasant experience, I kept laughing at myself internally bc I didn't want to say "the happiness is just in saying it" like fucking Castiel over here. (we don't need to talk about it, it's fine.) (I am happier having said it and it's kind of bullshit, but I digress.)

because the thing is, the happiness isn't in just saying it, right? the happiness is in the having. I made a whole TikTok "proving" that the Empty didn't come for Cas when he confessed his love, but rather when he realized Dean loved him back. even for Cas, the happiness was in the having, not in the saying, however brief it was.

and I've always been one of those people who rolled their eyes at the whole concept. why would the happiness be in just being, in just saying it, if it's right there in front of you to have. and then it hit me like a tonne of bricks (as I was washing my kitchen counters).

Cas really didn't think he could have Dean.

at all. in any capacity. he really, truly, and honestly felt to the depths of himself that Dean did not have any twinge of similar feelings, that this really was a Hail Mary shot-in-the-dark. and I think me, personally, really didn't understand that about Cas. that his belief in his love being unrequited was that unshakable.

something else I've been pondering is how audiences have so much more empathy for fictional characters who share traits that IRL they find objectionable and unappealing. but the thing is about fictional characters is that we follow them around in their most private, vulnerable moments. we see Dean mourning Cas when he dies, literally killing himself because he can't live without him, but it's so easy to forget that we're the omniscient ones here.

Cas never knew.

Dean's whole thing was pushing him away, keeping him at arm's length, making it seem like whatever heroic thing he does for Cas he'd do for anyone. he downplays how important it is for Dean to share the Deancave with him, to show him his favourite movies, share his favourite songs. he acts like the things Cas does for him don't mean that much to hide how much they do mean. he uses "we" whenever he even gets in the vicinity of expressing a feeling. "We were worried." "We're glad you're back." "We needed a win." "You're our brother." The audience knew the difference. We saw how he'd clench his jaw or swallow hard or make a face that said "God, I'm being such an idiot". Because we saw him in those little moments. We got to see the cracks in the mask.

but Cas never knew.

the self-hating angel of Thursday was never going to think it was all a way for Dean to protect himself. obviously, that's the delicious tragedy of it all, but what I think I realized at the end of all that is Cas confessing his love to a Dean who didn't love him back wouldn't have worked. Because the happiness really is in the having. If happiness was just in saying it, then The Empty would have come before Cas even finished getting the words out of his mouth.

so Cas's plan wouldn't have worked if Dean didn't love him back.

this is just me yapping on about my own nonsense, but I do think it's really interesting. there's contentment in "just saying it". there's freedom and relief and an unburdening. I think one can argue that it makes being happy in the being easier. there is certainly some joy in telling a person you think that highly of them. but true happiness?

nah.

true happiness is always going to only be in the having. Cas didn't understand the difference until he experienced it, and by then, it was too late.

[iwritenarrativesandstuff]

Other theories I have about the conclusion to the Meursault arc, in no particular order and in varying degrees of conviction and likelihood:

Dazai believes he is not going to make it out of the prison and in fact thinks he is going to die. He says that he will make sure Sigma gets out but doesn't mention himself. Says his goal isn't to escape but to kill Dostoevsky. He's also being weirdly open about his emotions. Mind you, I think it would be odd if he were to actually die in this arc given that it doesn't make a lot of sense to me character-wise but. Idk.

Dostoevsky is not going to die this arc. Look, we still know nothing about him! I feel he's a much bigger threat than Fukuchi and that we're just barely scratching the surface with him. We know nothing about his ability, nothing about the V connection, nothing about what he's been setting up for apparently longer than most of the younger cast have been active. It can't end like this for him. In fact, he's the only one I'm adamant won't be killed in this arc.

Gogol is the true wildcard and may end up as a spanner in the works - he says he wants Dostoevsky dead but when Dazai or Chuuya or both gain the upper hand, he sways events to give Fyodor an advantage while brushing it off with "it's more interesting and entertaining like this". The real reason is that he doesn't actually want him dead at all. At the same time, I wonder if he might find Sigma and try to work with him to get the info he wanted. I seem to recall he wanted information on what Fyodor's ability was. Gogol is on no one's side. Let him be chaotic.

Sigma will manage to extract the information from Fyodor - as he cannot kill ability users with his own ability. Based on that one theory that Crime and Punishment only works on non-ability users, hence why Fyodor tricked Ace into killing himself and shot Catgirl with a gun. I wonder if Sigma, spurred on by a new burst of confidence, will take some initiative, figure it out (he's quite intelligent, actually, so I wouldn't put it past him), and get the information he needs.

Chuuya deflected the bullet shot at Catgirl so that it drew blood but did not kill her. Or Catgirl froze time long enough to make a plan with Chuuya. (*sob* i just don't want her to be dead)

They are able to use the info Sigma got to send it back to the Agency, thus wrapping up the DoA arc. However, Dostoevsky has gotten away, which means the four of them - Dazai, Sigma, Chuuya and Catgirl - need to go on a chaotic manhunt/road trip to find him. Chuuya is driving. He is livid at Dazai and is giving him the silent treatment while turning on the radio in the car with music he knows will annoy him. Dazai is shoved in the backseat between Sigma and Catgirl, pouting. Catgirl is revealed to be a kleptomaniac who keeps stealing stuff from them and all the places they stop at. She's not even supposed to be there she just enjoys the drama and the vibes. And poor Sigma does not want this at all but he has some moments where he and Chuuya get to talk and that's somewhat civil. Maybe they end up recruiting Adam for assistance. This makes no sense. :)

Gogol saves Dostoevsky because he doesn't really want him dead. This sends him into a crisis where he becomes more and more volatile and unpredictable. Terrible road-trip #2 electric boogaloo. Gogol keeps trying to kill him and becomes erratic, poisoning his drink, brandishing a knife, holding him at gunpoint. He tries to strangle him but cannot follow through. Fyodor does not care because for as long as Gogol's attachment exists, Fyodor is in control. Gogol knows that for as long as his attachment exists, he can never be free. I am aware this sounds like a screwed up fanfic premise. I want angst. :)

Dostoevsky put something in place for Chuuya on the off-chance that he managed to escape the brainwashing. There's no real evidence for this other than I think it makes some sense that Fyodor would have an emergency measure in place. Perhaps access to misleading information that might make him question things? Idk. Fyodor plays the long game. I want some real effects on the cast.

Got anything to add? :D

[sarahowritesostucky]

This is a weird question, but I saw your re-blog of the gif of Seb from Monday. What are your thoughts on his- ahem -anatomy? Idk if you've seen the leaked pic of Chris's member, either. I'm wondering what your impression is, since you always manage to write such sexy, varied, and actually realistic penises in your stories. Sorry if that's weird 😣

Hey, as Sebastian himself says: "Just stay weird."

I'd bet money he's uncut/he seems uncut from the pics (and that's saying something cause I'm poor AF right now), just by virtue of being from Romania. Of course I'm cheering over that, since I'm sure you can tell by my fics I'm a fan of uncut guys (a rarity in a girl from the USA! lol). Other than that, he seems like a groomer/manscaper to me, and seems normal size wise when flaccid (okay using the word 'flaccid' just made it weird for me 😆).

As for Chris, yes I have seen the leaked pic. He's cut (also not surprising) and seems on the bigger side--not pornstar big, but definitely well beyond average. (I personally think anything over 6" is gratuitous, when it comes to p in v sex and doesn't improve the experience at all, lol.) (In fact, for bj purposes, I prefer a 5-6 incher with girth rather than length. (Holy shit, talk about TMI 😅)

[cabeswaterdrowned]

I had been trying to figure out where some of my issues with Emma's characterization post LM came from you are absolutely right, it definitely feels like CC stopped focusing in Emma's gray morality to focus on Julian's

In theory I think the idea of their arc being Emma starting off the more ruthless and revenge driven character then easing up on that mindset as things unfold with Malcolm (I really like that little moment where she tells Julian about how her conceptions have changed since killing Malcolm didn’t give her closure, but we should have seen more of her introspection on this after it happened before bringing it back up in QoAAD) vs Julian being more of a wolf in sheep’s clothing whose manipulation and ruthlessness becomes more apparent over time, until eventually Emma is willing to do something morally gray (break the parabatai bonds) that in this set of circumstances Julian will not do, is compelling to me but the execution on Emma’s side falls short after LM because there’s not consistent enough exploration of her changing attitudes towards glorified vengeance and violence, more of an occasional check in. Part of this has to do with pacing/structure and although I love TDA and find the ensemble probably the most compelling overall of tsc series it is overstuffed with how many povs their are as much as tlh is. But also Julian clearly took priority to her at some point and his arc is more the focal point of books 2 & 3 despite all the povs, maybe if that was only the case for LoS it could work because then LM is more Emma focused LoS is more Jules focused but even though QoAAD is pretty all over the place Julian’s emotionless + grieving arc feels like it’s at the heart of the book, and I like that arc I mentioned I related to quite a few of the grief manifests as repressed/controlled emotion aspects so subjectively that clicks for me, but it does put Emma in the role of having to be more of a tether morally for most of the book and then there’s not enough of a transition between that and the moment where she goes to break the bonds. So yeah it’s partially cc prioritizing exploration of the male mc’s gray morality as the series goes on and being less interested in the female leads corresponding gray morality (and I know I would be far meaner about this if I didn’t like Julian as much as I clearly do) partly just other pacing and point of view distribution issues towards the back half of TDA that lead to this. Is how I see it. I do also think there’s something to critique about how while I adore blackstairs and enjoy that they flip some gender roles typical of cc’s earlier books couples, if when gender inverting the bad-boy-with-a-heart-of-gold x good-girl-going-bad trope the male version of the good girl with a dark heart thing gets to have a more centralized arc that is allowed to go further gray morality wise than female chars you’ve written in that vein (I would say that both Clary and Lucie count as this, Lucie in particular has a lot of parallels to Jules imo which is fun family tree wise ) and have the more centralized arc whereas while I do think Emma is a much better written character than Jace who she was clearly originally conceived as the female version of, she doesn’t have the centralized status Jace does narratively.

I do think both modern TSC arcs end up prioritizing Jace / Julian over Clary / Emma in terms of who’s character and dynamics the series eventually revolves around most (although again TDA being so ensemble changes this a little). I’m meaner about it with tmi because I don’t like Jace and Clace doesn’t work for me as a ship, and more just passively critical about it with tda because I do love Julian and Blackstairs really works for me as a ship, so I’m definitely a bit of a hypocrite there but I’ll still critique what’s relevant. I think both historical arcs do better with this I’ve spoken before about how Tessa is my Favorite tsc char as well as protag, and I think her arc and narrative is really really good and that she is central, maybe tied with Will towards the end but definitely her narrative isn’t given less importance than the guys and I’ve disagreed with takes on that to the contrary. Cordelia is an interesting case because again, the overstuffed nature of the cast means she often does not feel like the protagonist in her own story and I found that aspect worse in tlh than for Emma in tda. However I actually really don’t agree with takes that Cordelia’s story went badly because she was turned into ‘just a love interest/got lost in her romance plot’ because imo James is way less of a character in his own right than she is even in the last book where he has more agency than he did with the gracelet. Her emotions and struggles drive the plot of their romance much more than his do, and outside of it she does get to be a more proactive character in the Lilith paladin plot, dealing with her familial relationships etc. So while I did often feel like I would rather tlh focus on Cordelia herself more that really had nothing to do with James who I think was just not a priority for cc a lot of the time. Perhaps there is something to the cursed plots Will / James start out with and that device creating a need for cc to lean on the female protagonist’s characterization more (but also I’ve only read TLH once so maybe my opinion would change if I revisited I do want to say I don’t think I am a TLH or TMI expert).

[twig-tea]

Bake Me Please finale

I was already so done with Bake Me Please by last week, that the only thing I wanted out of the finale was Oab and Atom getting some kind of closure around the tension with their mom.

Instead I got a reconciliation I didn't want via overdramatic tension from Shin lying in the bed of his own making and a bad apology, and a hint at a consolation couple that could have been cute if they'd had anything hinted prior to the last episode.

And no closure with the only interesting dynamic in the show. The brothers are still just working at the bakery even though Atom knows it's not what he wants to do, Oab said nothing to his mom for being cool with Shin dying as long as the bakery survives so he's still stuck in the same situation with her too...there's no resolution for the initial problem that set up the entire show.

Also are we supposed to be happy that Guy has now abandoned his other bakery?? I'm truly confused about how this ending is actually happy other than from a romance perspective.

I will say even after all that, Ohm and Guide still built tension between them as Shin and Peach in that reconciliation scene which is impressive considering how annoyed with both of their characters I was by the time we got there; and similarly I believed the spark between Guy and Oab even though it was unearned by the plot lol so kudos to the actors on this show for doing their best with what they were given.

This is going to be a really weird comparison, but: this is how I felt at the end of the robot boxing movie Reel Steel, where they win a fight and the movie ends on a triumphant note but actually none of their problems are solved.

[carelessflower]

do you think the reason alec was so frustrated and acted irrationally when magnus dodged or refused to tell him anything about his past or more about him is because it reminded alec of how his parents would treat him. close, there’s a special bond there for sure, but he was always in the dark, depending on any scraps they feel pity enough for him. needed to not ask question, to go out of the line, to simply act like everything was fine. and because magnus was nothing like maryse and robert, didn’t reprimand alec for his irritation, his anger, alec wanted to push and push, to see how far the limit stretch, until everything was out of his control

[greasydumbfuck]

late night metafrankposting because i have to go back to college tomorrow and it might make me sick

[skelespidey]

metab day did indeed make me shit btw

[purplebass]

The Last Hours may divide the TSC fandom a lot, but I still think that it manages to come full circle at the end. The closing scenes of CoT happen at Hyde Park, where everyone is gathered for a picnic. This is nothing new, since the TLH gang also has a picnic in Regent's Park in chapter 4 of Chain of Gold. The main difference is that in the CoG, the park is the place where the equilibrium is broken by the demons' attack while in CoT the equilibrium is restored and the characters who survived are moving on with their life. It isn't unusual for an author to end the story where it began. TLH has a tie-back ending, which means that the plot is brought back to where it started and the reader often has a sense of déjà-vu because some events often repeat themselves in a different way (Barbara being attacked at the party in chapter 3 of CoG and Alex being kidnapped at the Christmas party in chapter 20 of CoT are also examples of this kind of tie-back storytelling). The ending of CoT is set in the summer of 1904. Summer is the season of maturity, and it's the moment when flowers and trees are at their peak. And it is also set in a park, which is the symbol of renewal and new beginnings. This ending is a nod to the beginning of the series too, because Cordelia and Alastair arrive in London at the end of summer in 1903 (for them, that was also a new beginning). You may either love or loathe TLH, but I don't think the plot is completely all over the place in terms of structure

[darcyolsson]

clary fairchild neurodivergence summary pls

i said that kind of jokingly without too much thought behind it but honestly. i think clary is neurodivergent coded in the way that virtually all 2000s/2010s female YA protagonists are neurodivergent coded, that is to say, because she's written to appeal to and represent bookish teenage girls, she ended up accidentally ND coded because guess what! people who obsessively read tend to not be completely neurotypical lmfao

that being said, clary has a few symptoms of both adhd and autism:

emotional dysregulation: do i even need to explain this one lmfaooo. one thing about clary she is always angry (as she should be!!!). for most of the mortal instruments, we watch clary go through traumatic events, which she processes by getting very upset at minor things/the wrong people. especially when it comes to her anger, she pretty much isn't capable of controlling it AT ALL

rejection sensitive dysphoria: clary continuously gets very upset when she experiences something she interprets as social rejection (even though most of the time, she's not outright being rejected). this is mostly aimed at simon. even though he invites her along, because she feels so threatened by his relationship to isabelle, she feels rejected regardless:

lack of social skills: it's mentioned several times that clary felt like she did not fit in at her high school. she also has trouble picking up on implications/hidden meanings when people talk to her. though jace and simon both hint heavily at simon's crush on her, she doesn't pick up on it until simon very explicitly states it:

(side note, clary for some reason always assumes people are gay and it's really funny to me)

hyperfixations/special interests: to be fair, we don't exactly know how much clary's interests play a role in her life, but we know she's at least very passionate about art, anime, manga and fanfiction (yes really)

poor impulse control: one thing about clary fray is that she will run headfirst into dangerand interrupt people while they're talking lol

(my ebook search function couldn't handle the actual amount of interruptions, so this is just the first 8 chapters of CoB lol)

it's also worth mentioning that clary's story can be read as a very elaborate metaphor for neurodivergency. clary is fundamentally different from everyone else, but she mostly managed to get away with it until her teenage years when all of a sudden it became impossible to ignore. she finds out she perceives the world differently than most other people. initially, she thinks of this as something negative, but by connecting with other people who feel the same she realises that it's not necessarily something bad, and she connects with them in a way she can't connect with most people.

i've only read about 3/4 of cob so far, so i'm sure there's a lot more in the rest of the series, but these are the few things i noticed while reading so far :)

[thebellekeys]

Reading chot kinda reminded me just how weirdly lucky tlh gang are like the end was sooo sweet and kind allnd all that while everyone else was literally so sad at the end of their series (especially tmi and tid) and not to mention that tmi are Cassie's favorite punching bags because they STILL continue to suffer (Janus we're waiting). Like imagine James meeting Jace and them telling each other about their possessions and jace being like "oh ye I died, was possessed through nightmares, actually killed people during possesion and after, got stabbed in the heart multiple times, once by my girlfriend been to hell a couple of times and now a psycho me is trying to kill me!"

Yeah, so I've been having a lot of conversations about this with mutuals in the DMs, and while the TLH gang are my babies and always will be, the narrative exists just to coddle them and to protect them. When in conflict, the TLH gang is not a realistic portrayal of, yunno, conflict; there are no stakes whatsoever in the story. Not to mention that this generation of Shadowhunters is very... wealthy and sheltered. The reminder that these are indeed medieval aristocratic families was something that became unignorable by the time ChoI ended. Every time, while reading, when I said I wanted to violently shake both James and Cordelia? this is something that was in part influenced by the fact that James and Cordelia 1. not only spent the whole series having no agency whatsoever but 2. got literally everything they wanted by the end and with no caveats whatsoever. This is a big problem for me, and I have a lot of thought as to how Grace (the one person in the gang who did not get a good ending and who happens to be a villain and outside of Shadowhunter society) factors into this. I am not satisfied in the least by how her story ended.

Cassie will continue to put the TMI gang into the wringer, that's for sure, and it's not a problem for me exactly. But the fact that James and company (except for Matthew, Grace, and Alastair) never had to really account for any of their own choices or feelings or even face long-term consequences by virtue of their existence pisses me off, honestly. James and Cordelia are my babies, they're sweet and good. But they're a little too sweet, too good, too noble, and too brave for anything about them to be believable. Where is the complexity? They spent three books getting tricked and bamboozled and hurt by forces of hell, and in a post-Julian Blackthorn world where I've seen Cassie have characters who had to make real sacrifices and difficult unethical choices because of their circumstances, this idyllic upper-class thing the TLH gang have had going on didn't quite satisfy me.

[cutemeat]

I will never discredit s15 she was my baby first and I will make sure she gets her flowers!!!!!