#tw discussions of violence

[boreal-sea]

I think it's important to differentiate different kinds of prisoners, because I think it does harm to all prisoners to pretend they're all the same.

There are legal and illegal prisoners.

Legal prisoners are technically, by law, being held legally. You may not agree that they got a fair trial, and it's absolutely fair to look at these systems and go "you are abusing the law to arrest, charge, convict, and imprison people unfairly. This may be legal, but it is inhumane and unethical". But you can't call this out if you ignore the fact that technically, those prisoners are "legal", because you're trying to call out a system of abuse that has been codified into law.

But we also need to be able to differentiate a codified system of abuse from illegal prisoners like human trafficking victims, kidnapping victims, and hostages. "This prisoner is a hostage and their life is up for ransom in order to manipulate someone else, which is not only illegal, it is an incredibly inhumane and unethical thing to do to a person. All hostages are innocent, and all hostages are in immediate, life-threatening danger because the people holding them are not beholden to any standard of law".

If you call all prisoners hostages, you're not going to get very far, because the legal system you're trying to critique will just shake its head and say "we're not holding illegal prisoners, they went through our court system and were convinced, this was all legal".

And if you treat hostages like legal prisoners, you legitimize terrorists and kidnappers by pretending they have some kind of legal right to be holding their victims. They do not. No one has a right to kidnapping and ransom.

[velichorus-k]

The second installment of this comic right here. In which the gang hangs out :) pages under the cut!

[apolaskiart]

"Please don't make Hootsie an orphan..."

[cikebabbler]

i just found out ppl didn't like or didn't read the footnotes in babel bc they're "just additional information" and i just want to say rEAD THEM PLS BABEL IS MEANT TO READ LIKE A MEMOIR A NONFICTION HISTORICAL ACCOUNT THE FOOTNOTES AREN'T THERE JUST FOR STYLISTIC PURPOSES IT'S MEANT TO IMMERSE YOU INTO THE SPECULATIVE NATURE OF THE STORY LET YOURSELF BE IMMERSED THAT'S WHY YOU DON'T APPRECIATE THE BOOK YOU'RE NOT ENGAGING WITH IT IN THE WAY YOU'RE MEANT TO READ THE FOOTNOTES

[bluebellowl]

Ok, fnaf submas idea(maybe)

Now, i cant remember if you said something about a train chase scene between the twins and the player or not but if you didn’t then that is what i am proposing.

How i imagine it going is at first the player/gregory is taking the train to some new area that’s been unlocked with the twins having been a neutral party throughout most of the game until now or freddy mentioning them and helping gregory reach them to unlock fast travel(with little train stops here there that have been found across gameplay)

And upon the first encounter the twins become hacked and attack gregory as the train is going with you the player racing to get the conductor car with the twins following in suit behind you quickly (either rushing at you on their two feet or that really creepy bent-backward crawl on their hands and feet and their heads turned[360 turning capabilities?] in order to accommodate that position)

Once you get to the front car you then have control of the train and veer it onto an unfinished track, freddy contacts you and sets up some type of like bomb or something, you somehow escape the train before it crashes leaving the twins to scream metallically (and somehow fearfully) into the trash area. Fast travel is still accessible, you just don’t have the twins there to manually run the train, its on autopilot now until you get them back up.

Alternatively, if one them catch you, you either get fucking decked/punched to death (one punch only shown) or suffocated. Gruesome yes but i imagine afton getting real fuckin sick of the player at this point and commands animatronics to kill on sight no matter what.

And depending on who you find first they will either follow you around the trash dump(Ingo after you get him a battery) or head straight to the nearest train station to wait for you(Emmet).

Once they’ve been reunited you take em to the repair area, find a few leftover parts and fix em up as much as you can. Ingo’s voicebox still has that unnatural, glitchy, autotuned baritone and Emmet still twitches(he twitched and sputtered a lot before the repair, a result of his fall) here there due to faulty wiring/coding that would require an engineer and coder to fix fully, not a child. That and the parts were a little outdated.

Oh man I'm eating good today!! Thank you so much for that plot idea. I'm having a lot of fun juggling that around in my brain!

Some of that I already sorta used in previous fnaf AU pieces.

Like crashing the train into the trash dump and befriending the twins again after finding them down there.

or

Using the train as a means of fast travel to make navigation easier but with a catch.

But you mentioned that the twins are neutral at first, but the first time you actually encounter them they'll attack? Will they be a mystery at first then? Like you only ever see a portion of them from the back? Freddy would probably insist they'd be such nice fellows, like he does with music man. I wonder what would move him to place a bomb in order to blow them up. Maybe the train crashing off tracks and the fragile pizza plex floor might even be enough to doom them.

I do love the idea of them just straight up punching Gregory to death upon sight as their jumpscare. Just unrestrained violence. And you know those guys have the Newtons to crush an adult skull! Suffocation might be even creepier I think. Just their manic eyes staring you down, hands around your throat at your vision goes dark. As if they were simply putting you to sleep.

[mewos-laptop]

A lot of y'all have PAINFULLY missed the point of the story Mouthwashing is telling through Anya.

Now, take everything I say with a grain of salt, as *I am not a victim or survivor of sexual assault or rape*, however I know a disturbing amount of folks who ARE victims, and know quite a bit about the reactions and thought processes of those who have gone through sexual assault.

Anya's story is not one of revenge. That is not the story that is being told.

As much as I would love to see a story of a victim triumphantly killing their rapist, that is not what Mouthwashing's story is about, and you need to accept that.

Mouthwashing is telling a story about real life, it's giving you a realistic representation of what most rape cases are ACTUALLY like.

From what I know, none of the perpetrators of my friends' sexual assault have been given jail time, even if they were reported and the police were given proof.

Most of my friends' family members and friends didn't notice how uncomfortable they were around their abuser, nor what was happening, and I doubt most of them could have truly done anything about it, either.

Even when *I* noticed, the most I could do was lead my friend away from their abuser and try to stay in between them.

Most everyone on Anya's ship knew, but there wasn't anything to be done. It was the middle of space, so what COULD they do? They enabled Anya's abuser because most of them were given no choice, and by the time that maybe they'd care enough to enact anything on him, he was the co-pilot, so *they couldn't do anything even if they wanted to*.

Anya would not have killed Jimmy. Anya tried to get the crew to notice what happened to her, and they couldn't protect her either.

That's the reality of sexual assault.

You are not going to be a warrior of justice, killing this rapist and freeing yourself from the chains of trauma, you are a victim.

No matter how angry, how disgusted, and horrified you may feel about the events of the game, that will not change the fact that Anya's story is representative of the reality of sexual assault, and the reality that millions of people actually live through.

So no, Anya would not kill Jimmy. The crew would not kill Jimmy.

Mouthwashing deals with this reality. You are meant to sit with it, to sit with the horror and the reality of the fact that Anya will never be the same, and would not ever be able to get revenge or closure.

Mouthwashing is telling the story of rape victims through the media of fiction, but that does not give you the right to rewrite that message into the satisfying ending you think every story needs to have.

My friends will never get their satisfying ending. My relatives will never get their satisfying ending. All of their rapists are free people, and alive right now.

The aftermath of rape is not a satisfying story.

[bonefall]

BB!Honeyfern -> Honeysnake

A girl who's gonna be stealing a little more time in BB.

[ID: The Better Bones version of Honeyfern. She is a spiky, golden, blue-eyed cat with a brown mask and stripes. Her torso, paws, and 'boots' are creamy. She is being bitten by an adder, and prepares to bite back]

Clanmew Name: Mlashiff, Mlasis (Mla = Honey + Shiff = Frond, the leaf of a fern) (Mla = Honey + Sis = Serpent, generic term for snakes)

Alignment: ThunderClan

Relations: Parents - Sorreltail, Brackenfur Siblings - Molepaw, Cinderheart, Poppyfrost Ex-Mate - Berrynose Apprentice - Briarlight

Honeyfern stands tall as the strongest, most ambitious kitten in the Brackenfour litter. Through BB!Po3, she is a rising star in ThunderClan, and Hollypaw's rival. Honeyfern's ferocity was only matched by her compassion; in early BB!OotS, she doesn't hesitate to lay her life on the line to attack an adder in defense of Briarkit.

After fighting for several days against one of the worst injuries Clan cats know of, Honeyfern survives, and is bestowed the Honor Title of Honeysnake before even getting her first apprentice.

(One of the first completely uncontroversial choices that Bramblestar makes!)

But, the painful ordeal causes Honeysnake to realize things about her boyfriend, Berrynose. Traits that had once been endearing were suddenly not so cute. Boldness comes across as selfishness. Protectiveness becomes controlling behavior. His 'sense of humor' means he doesn't take things seriously.

If only it could have been so simple to just leave him. No, she never would have guessed that the week she left Berrynose, he would immediately become interested in her sister. Poppyfrost!! What are you doing?! GIRL

With her uncle Thornclaw as deputy and far too busy for an apprentice anyway, it's obvious who Briarkit's mentor must be. The brave cat who saved her life became her guide and best friend, staying by her side through every hardship until her fateful death during the Battle of the True Eclipse (BOTTE).

LOTS more under the cut!

Honeysnake's personality is firm, responsible, and occasionally overly proud of herself. At the same time, she is driven by kindness more than anything else, and would break her own back to lessen the burden on her clanmates. She takes after her dad, Brackenfur, more than any of her siblings!

Because she massively values her own strength and her helpfulness, she can be goaded into overexerting herself and bossing around other cats. She doesn't mean to be pushy, but her heart is so large that she sometimes fails to realize that she's only made things worse. Big sister energy!

She must learn to balance this; a flaw is often a value in excess.

When she was an apprentice, her personality could really clash with Cinderpaw's.

Cinderpaw is very emotional, to the point of instability. Honeypaw couldn't understand that Cinder had to learn to work it out on her own, and sometimes inserted herself into her problems

This would make them both upset, as it wouldn't work and then Honeypaw would scold Cinderpaw for not taking her unsolicited advice.

In spite of all this, they love each other and got closer when they got older. It's ironic that Honey and Poppy would eventually be the ones fighting-- they NEVER fought as kids!

She fell in love with Berrynose after he developed a crush on her. Honey hadn't really thought much about romance before then, but she fell hard.

Berrynose was bold and exciting. She was always the one chasing after other people, finding ways to help everyone except herself. To BE pursued instead felt flattering, even freeing. He could be REALLY mean, yeah... but that was endearing, for a time. It felt like honesty, and it was refreshing that he would just say the things she would hold back to be polite, or diplomatic.

They were getting serious before the snake, which is now shuffled to happen in the first book of BB!OotS

The energy in ThunderClan had been... off, for a while. Since Hollyleaf had revealed the secret of her parentage and vanished, uncle Thornclaw had replaced Squirrelflight as deputy, and Leafpool was demoted as Cleric.

The couple had been discussing kittens and such, something uplifting so things could start to heal and move on.

In hindsight, they were normal adult discussions. In Honeysnake's reflections, something is ironic about how mature Berrynose had been just before the incident. Like he really was growing up, for a while.

Was he truly getting better? Or was that just a side of him she stopped being able to see in the new light? She'll never know.

The fight with the adder is burned into her mind, in extreme detail.

She remembers being cuddled next to Berrynose from the second level of the camp. She remembers the way her stomach dropped when she realized, from her vantage point, that a branch-shaped object under the wall was slithering. How she screamed for Briarkit to get back and bound across the quarry faster than she'd ever moved before.

The snake bit her first, and then she bit it back.

Venom from an adder burns. It quickly spread up her paw and through her arm, searing her veins like fire. She crumpled into a screaming heap next to her dead foe, sending the entire camp into a panic.

Jayfeather, already overwhelmed through being a new Cleric working alone after Leafpool's demotion, having recently been publicly disowned, and still mourning his sister, had to spring into action

And the very first crack that Honey noticed on her mate was how Berrynose threatened Jayfeather. "You'd better save her, if you don't I'LL kill you!"

Jayf didn't even dignify it with a response. She was glad he didn't. She didn't want Jay doing anything but helping her not have burning blood.

An adder bite is one of the deadliest, most painful, difficult injuries to treat across all four Clans. She required round-the-clock care and was in constant pain, for days, without guarantee she would survive.

And Berrynose was unhelpful, to say the least. Even going so far as to wrinkle his nose when Jay chewed up a mouthful of nettle for Honeyfern's treatments.

What she once found funny and endearing wasn't so cute when he couldn't be serious when she wanted him to be.

Leafpool, ex-Cleric, started stepping in to help Jayfeather in the den... against Bramblestar's demotion. Jay had never treated such a serious injury before, the rest of the Clan didn't stop needing treatment

The Clan was already a bit split on the idea of Leafpool not being a Cleric anymore. She's Leafpool Moonpool. She made mistakes-- but what else are the Queen's Rights even for?

Has she not already been punished? And what about Honeyfern, their clanmate, who needed her help right now?

And Bramblestar would NEVER prevent Leafpool from giving an injured cat from getting the proper treatment they need..........

But, of course, Berrynose was more loyal to his mentor than almost anything else. He had concerns about an unholy, codebreaking ex-Cleric attempting to heal his mate, and what it would mean for Bramble to rescind an earlier command.

Honeyfern, obviously, didn't care if StarClan themselves had come down to say Leafpool Bad. She wanted to not suffer and die.

And after monumental effort on the part of two trained cats, the entire Clan doing their part to support her, and Honeyfern's indomitable will to survive, the burning cooled to embers and the pain subsided.

She survived the bite of an adder, killing the beast in the process. An achievement that was so impressive that ThunderClan concluded she MUST be truly blessed.

Bramblestar is stingy when it comes to Honor Titles, but for this? He could not ignore it. The Clan needed a morale boost. She had survived the insurmountable. Everyone had come together over this situation, in a way that they hadn't in many moons.

So, as soon as she could stand for a ceremony, he decreed before their ancestors that the venom had been an anointment (thornclaw came up with that line). From now on, she would be known as Honeysnake, in honor of her survival.

It's rare that cats who are so young receive such Honor Titles, and it immediately boosted her up in status.

Berrynose was jealous of this. Not in a way where he'd say so openly, but in the way he would downplay her Title, not celebrate her achievements, or use it to deflect in conversations.

The breaking point was when the newest crop of apprentices was assigned, and Bramblestar decided that Honeysnake was absolutely ready for her first apprentice.

(Millie's three kits, despite being a little older than Dove and Ivy, were slightly delayed in their apprenticeship so they could all be apprenticed at once)

Hazeltail and Mousewhisker had proven themselves strong and competent, ready for their first apprentices. Mousewhisker was given Bumblepaw, Hazeltail receives Blossompaw.

To make sure there weren't too many young mentors, Birchfall was given Dovepaw, and Brightheart received Ivypaw.

And, lastly, to commemorate her strength and honor how she'd saved this child, Honeysnake was given Briarpaw.

...leaving Berrynose as the only cat of his litter without an apprentice! While Bramblestar, HIS mentor, was leader!!

But instead of being upset with Bramblestar, he felt Honeysnake had taken what he'd been owed.

Maybe some other time, Honey would have tried to comfort him, and make him feel better about it all

But she was DONE. That was ENOUGH coddling! SHE was the one who had gone through all of that, killed an adder and saved Briarpaw, and now he feels so entitled to an apprentice that he's upset with HIS MATE?

Poppyfrost, meanwhile, had been watching the ceremony of the apprentices with a forlorn gaze... and was about to get sucked in.

Without getting into Poppyfrost too much here, her key traits are Curiosity and Avoidance. Setting boundaries has always been difficult for her, or saying no to people. So when Berrynose turned his sights on her following his breakup with her sister...

Poppyfrost felt good. She felt desirable, for the first time since she'd given birth to Jayfeather's secret children. She hadn't shared with anyone how low she'd felt for the past 6 months, and it suddenly felt like there was a light in her life.

From Honeysnake's perspective, though, Berrynose found a whole new way to get into her life through Poppyfrost. Poppy started taking his side, or at the very least, not supporting her sister. Honey couldn't get away from Berry without avoiding Poppy, too. So the fights continued.

But, the most important thing in Honey's life quickly became her apprentice.

Briarpaw was attentive and enthusiastic, a bright little ball of light and hope. Honeysnake had a lot to teach her and she listened eagerly

But Honeysnake couldn't save her when the tree came crashing down.

Briarpaw lost control of her back legs, and it was immediately, widely accepted she would not be able to become a warrior.

As Jayfeather spoke with Littlecloud about how to treat her and give her a good quality of life, picking up the "notes" for Wildfur's old mobility device, Millie started becoming very controlling of her daughter.

At first, Honeysnake tried to give the family space... she didn't know what to do, if it was right to get involved or not.

After all, Millie is Briarpaw's mother. She just wants what's best for her, and Honeysnake wasn't sure how much Briarpaw could do now either. She loves her apprentice, so she didn't want to hurt her, or ruin her family by accident.

But then she started to realize how miserable Briarpaw was becoming. She was always such a joyful kid, so excited to get out there and try everything. A radiant little fireball, eager to fight for her Clan.

Now, she was silent, just letting her mother speak for her, only ever piping up to comfort her own parent.

Her quietness wasn't coming from her injury-- it was coming from how Millie was making her feel like her life was over. Like it would have been better if she died, since it was hurting her mom so much to "see her like this."

One day something hit Honeysnake, like a revelation. "I never stopped being her mentor. It's STILL my job to be there for her!!"

She couldn't completely stop Millie from making Briarlight feel awful. She couldn't prevent Blossompaw from misplacing her anger on her sister. She couldn't make Graystripe do his job as a dad to help his kids.

But Honey could be there for Briarpaw. She could be a safe place to talk, a friend and a mentor, and just get her away from Millie for a few hours a day.

And she was even wise enough now to realize that arguing with Millie directly would only make things worse for the young cat. Everything was for Briarpaw, what SHE needed. How to help her.

Together with Jayfeather, they'd even planned out how to schedule things so that Briarpaw could speak for herself without Millie interjecting.

For Briarpaw, it meant everything. There were people in her corner.

Though she couldn't pass an assessment in the usual way, Bramblestar still allowed Briarlight to get her full name. After all, she, like her mentor, had survived the unthinkable.

Honeysnake had never been so proud of anything in her whole life.

And at the end, just before the Battle of the True Eclipse when the Dark Forest was going to attack, they had a final conversation. Watching the moon inch closer to the sun, and knowing it may be the last time they ever spoke.

Briarlight said something she'd been holding back for a long time. "I'm sorry I couldn't be the apprentice you deserved..."

It made Honeysnake's belly lurch. After all they'd been through, to hear she was still holding onto a piece of what Millie made her believe was painful. "What...? I didn't save you to make a warrior. I did it because you have a life to live. Brili, I'm your mentor. I'm supposed to deserve you."

It turned out to be exactly what they suspected, the last words they'd ever speak to each other. Honeysnake fought ferociously for the Clans in the BOTTE, reunited with her old rival Hollyleaf and putting her quarrels aside. She meets her fate halfway through the night, in the bloody Second Wave.

Her death fills ThunderClan with sorrow. She's deeply mourned by everyone; her mother, sisters, friends, nespring, Clanmates. But most of all, Briarlight holds her memory close to fill her with strength in the coming years.

Honeysnake's spirit is invoked for fulfilling one's full potential, and making hard, painful choices to reach it. As the generations go on, she's associated with the shed skin of snakes and beetles, and the 'necessity' of putting oneself in danger to help others.

OTHER TRIVIA

SPIKY. I decided to give her Brackenfur's colors with Sorreltail's texture. She's the most intensely-colored of her siblings, BRIGHT golden, hence the name.

She's also got Sorreltail's torso marking going on, and her fuzzy 'dividers.' She got the boots from Brackenfur though.

In BB, she has Sweetness Tolerance! Ironically enough, she is able to taste and enjoy honey... and boy does she like her sauces.

Her favorite food is honey-glazed bacon, meat strips cut from the belly of a boar. A rare treat but a delicious one. She likes to eat the whole thing like a noodle, chewing it upwards and not using her paws at all.

As a kit, Brackenfur used to tell her to mind her manners. She had a bad habit of eating things without using her paws, because she likes sauce but not getting it on her beans.

She had her eyes on deputyship from a young age. She wanted to be just like her dad.

Losing him was rough. It was even harder when Bramblestar took power just a few months later, she felt like she should have been seeing her dad making the announcements...

But, she stayed strong, especially for her siblings who seemed to be taking it even worse.

Canon doesn't mention what sort of snake bit her, but BB takes place in northern England and the only venomous snakes there are ADDERS babey!!

I drew a girl adder on purpose because something felt very funny about this. here I go pitting two bad bitches against each other. diversity win! The wild animal that tries to eat a baby is a girl!

ADDERFACT: A female Vipera Berus is brown, a male is black and white, but their color can vary immensely.

Bramblestar is a terrible namer. Honeysnake, Mlasis, is a fine name, but he chose the generic term for all serpents (sis) instead of an adder specifically (sipya). In his head it sounded more honorable.

But! It's not the worst!

"Honeyfern" was given by Firestar, and intended to be a nod to her rivalry with Hollyleaf! Hollyleaf's suffix referred to the leaves of most trees, and Honeyfern's to the leaves of ferns.

Both them were named after Brackenfur, who they both looked up to. Brackens are a type of fern, and Firestar wanted to invoke a plant for the names of both cats.

Because Honeyfern was named first and also Brackenfur's child, she got the word for fern leaves.

Of course *Holly*leaf was already named after a plant... but no one ever said Firestar was a FANTASTIC namer either, after all, he's the genius behind "Brambleclaw."

Honeysnake's relationship with Poppyfrost was stable at the time of her death, with her two young nespring having been born... but if it was ever going to "improve," who knows.

but they were cordial. At the very least. She would have been involved in the lives of Mole and Cherry.

Unfortunately there's always a lot left unsaid when someone dies so young. She had a whole life in front of her, cut short because of Tigerclaw's ambition.

[w1lmuttart]

Oc sketch and rant incoming

Also trigger warning for blood and death

You know, I have always thought one thing was kinda odd whenever there's a story of characters from a modern setting having to battle supernatural beings. Whether it's isekai, urban fantasy etc. It's like the one thing that I don't question as much when it's a fantasy setting cuz i can imagine it being something that's part of the characters' lived experiences/lifestyles. That thing is: how come characters don't feel like using weapons to kill living beings viscerally uncomfortable? And I don't mean it in a "oh no I just killed, I'm a murderer now :(((" type of way but like,,, the sensation of it especially if the character is using a sword or other melee weapon. Unless you are working at a butchers, have dissected a frog in biology class or work as a doctor of any kind, you're not really getting to deal with this kind of sensation on a daily basis. Idk I feel like it's a bit of a missed opportunity to develop your character. With that being said

This guy is part of an isekai story/parody thing I've been wanting to make, where I take both the "bland overpowered harem guy who thrives on this world" protagonist and "edgy survival game guy who will take any action to get home" protagonist and put them in another world together. This guy is the latter, and I wanted to explore his journey into becoming a lethal swordsman by having him train to get used to handling it by using small monsters as practice.

So uh ye tldr I feel like there's a little number of people in our current day who would be able to handle weapons against monsters and such without struggles, and I'm tired that stories (especially anime) pretend it isn't 👍

[victoria-vd]

OFFSCREEN POST

The Calm

// tw: panic attack, injury, claustrophobia, physical abuse, discussions of missing children

To say that Victoria was on edge this afternoon would be the understatement of the millennium. 

The once comforting quiet of her dorm had fallen to a tense silence during the past week— as if the room itself held its breath for fear of being lashed out at by the girl that occupied it. The shadows cast by the flickering lanterns trembled in fear, and the curtains sat eerily still.

And yet despite the dim quiet of the room, it was all still too much for her. The air conditioning roared in her ears, the dancing shadows were visually overwhelming, and the soreness in her chest ached horribly. Lying in her bed did little to alleviate the pain from the bruises that littered her torso— putting pressure on her back only seemed to make her feel worse. But she hardly had the energy to sit or stand either, let alone walk and go about her school day as if nothing was wrong.

Just thinking about all the work that will have to be done to make up for her frequent absences…

The past week had been an absolute nightmare for Victoria both physically and mentally. 

She cast a glare at the Hatterene beside her bed. The mere sound of Barcelona’s breathing sent a wave of vexation through her. But she very well couldn’t tell her to simply stop breathing. Many would consider that rude. And her mother’s Hatterene was the last Pokémon she’d want to be rude towards.

The Pokémon in question spared a glance at the girl in the bed, flicking her tendril of hair from side to side like the tail of a cat. A warning. A silent command for Victoria to calm herself by any means necessary. Suppression of the self.

They both remember what happened the last time everything had been “too much”…

Victoria broke her gaze from Barcelona, turning away in the bed to face the wall. She squeezed her eyes shut in an attempt to block it all out. The lights. The sounds. The thoughts— both hers and everyone else’s.

Her powers were both a blessing and a curse. 

The young heiress felt a sudden warmth sneaking under her arm. She glanced down to find her Espurr forcing her way into her grasp, curling up beside her in the covers and nuzzling her head into her chest.

Esperanza. 

Victoria watched the little cat press itself against her. The Espurr had been a parting gift from the Wyrmwoods— dear family friends— shortly before she left for Naranja-Uva Academy that summer. They’d treated her like a second daughter.

A replacement for the daughter they’d lost: her best friend, Estelle Wyrmwood. 

… Has it really been seven years? 

The thought had sent Victoria into a spiral. She curled into herself, a lump tight in her throat. The time had flown by all too quickly and yet agonizingly slow all at once— she was acutely aware of the passage of time in her absence, and yet she was caught unawares by the realization of just how much time had passed. Soon, the years without Estelle will surpass the years with. 

(Across the room on the top shelf, the glass display case suddenly cracked.

Barcelona perked up at the sound, directing her attention to the girl beside her.)

But regardless of the presence or absence of Estelle in her life, her life has been defined by her only friend. 

…Well… that’s not exactly true, was it?

Wasn’t Esper also her friend? 

That question had plagued Victoria every day for the past month. What was Esper to her? The answer was complicated. She granted Esper luxuries that she’d bestowed to very few in her lifetime: her extended presence, a first name basis, the permission to use not just any nickname, but that nickname. There was a level of comfort she had with the girl that she found rare amongst individuals her age. She’d outright called Esper a friend of hers to the girls in the elevator. 

By all accounts, Esper fit the criteria of a friend. 

And yet Victoria hesitated to label her as such in her own mind. 

It felt like a betrayal to Estelle. 

Victoria turned her face into her pillow and choked out a quiet sob. Every heave of her chest sent a wave of pain through her torso. Her bruised ribs screamed at her to stop, but with just one moment of weakness, the entire dam had begun to crack under the weight of seven years of repressed emotions.

(The crack on the glass expanded, threatening to shatter at any moment. The flatscreen TV flickered to life for a moment before it too cracked under a sudden, invisible force.

No, not the screen. The whole TV.

The Hatterene whirled around to Victoria to place a handlike tendril on her shoulder, attempting to shake the girl out of the emotional spiral she’d put herself in.)

The young heiress hugged Esperanza to her chest, letting warm tears crawl down her cheeks. Esperanza; the subtle nod to Esper’s namesake had not gone unnoticed by her. Had she actually picked a name that fit her Pokémon? Or had she named the Wyrmwood Espurr after her in a poor attempt to fill a seven year long void?

Was she using Esper as a replacement for Estelle?

(The glass casing shattered into a million tiny shards that floated into the air. Loose objects scattered about the room levitated themselves from where they lie. A sudden pressure began to build within the dorm, like an invisible force was squeezing the outer edges of your skull, threatening to crush your brain matter between its palms.

Victoria was a ticking time bomb seconds away from exploding. 

Barcelona needed to act now.

She quickly snaked the tendril of hair around the girl’s torso and pulled her out of the bed—)

Victoria was suddenly ripped from the comfort of her bedsheets. Esperanza flew from her grip and was accidentally thrown to the floor. For a brief moment, panic surged throughout the girl’s entire body.

(The Hatterene pulled Victoria into the confines of her hair, encasing her in the cocoon of psychic-imbued strands that enshrouded her body.

When the risk of a psychic outburst was too great, the best solution was to suppress the psionic energy and block it from being expelled by the source.

To choke it out until it passes.)

NONONO. NOT AGAIN. NO SHE COULDN’T DO THIS AGAIN.

Victoria tried to thrash about and kick her legs wildly, but hair slithered up every limb to restrain her, leaving no gap for her psychic energy to escape. The bruises on her torso became increasingly apparent under the constriction of Barcelona’s hair. 

(The floating objects trembled in the air. The cracked TV crumpled into itself under the room’s pressure. The bathroom door flung open with enough force to knock it halfway off its hinges.)

Barcelona frowned at the state of the room. Hm. It seemed this outburst was particularly powerful. This could prove to be an issue…

Glancing to the nightstand where Victoria’s Pokeballs lie, she levitated them into the air and released the Pokémon from within.

Matador and Maria were quick to appear before her.

The Hatterene barked orders at the two Pokémon, directing them to assist in restricting Victoria’s psychic outburst to the confines of the room. They needed to act now before—)

A loud wail suddenly erupted from the other side of the room, briefly distracting the other three Pokémon to find the source of the noise.

Esperanza had started crying.

Which wasn’t a big deal.

The bigger issue was that this was enough of a distraction for Victoria to thrash her way out of her psychic prison.

And all Hell broke loose.

[morrigan-sims]

broken vows, broken horns

"Leave, and never come back. If you ever set foot in this city again, you're dead, you hear me?" He spits in Val's direction before turning away, muttering under his breath, "Traitorous little devil."

This is a little glimpse into Val's past, back when they were 17.

When I made Val's tattoos, one of the other players said that the snake motif reminded them of gang tattoos where the symbol of the gang is repeated across the body. That planted the seed for Val's backstory in my head. And even more perfectly, I had already decided weeks ago that the reason Val is never seen without their captain's hat is that their horns had been broken many years ago.

But why would breaking of horns matter? Oh, of course. It's an all-tiefling gang! And broken horns is a sign to anyone who knows the gang/criminal underworld that "this person is not to be trusted, do not let them join your crew".

So I ended up with a tiefling gang called the Horned Serpents, and decided to place them in the port city of Xen, where Val will be taking the party after rescuing Rook. This would explain why Val hadn't been there in years (15 to be precise), and thus allow the DM to surprise me with whatever is going on there.

Unbeknownst to me, Xen and the surrounding area has a... complicated history with the Hells, and already is wary of tieflings. So it makes perfect sense that the tieflings there would band together, especially if they were already ostracized. (Yay for accidental mind-reading!)

Val was basically raised by the Serpents, but they are too kind, too good a person to be complicit in gang violence for long. So when they were offered the chance, they became an informer, leading to the gang's dismantling and downfall. But some of the surviving/escaped members discovered Val's treachery and came after them, beating them and breaking off their horns. And, of course, delivering the warning to never return to Xen.

Val fled and never looked back. For 15 years they've sailed all around the continent, but never docked in Xen. But if returning there is what it takes to save the life of one of their passengers, they'll do it.

[total-drama-brainrot]

Hmmm what would happen if rice krisp Alejandro meet psycho!noah? Would he still try to hypnotize Noah? Fear?? Or would the two come together and be a train wreck waiting to happen?

Well, the whole point of p!Noah is for him to be pretty indiscernible from regular Noah towards the other contestants, so I Imagine rk!Alejandro would try the same song and dance just to be met with someone who's far too unstable to be hypnotised. After all, the whole concept of hypnosis stems from hypnos; the state of semi-unconsciousness that leaves a person susceptible to suggestions and/or the implantation of hypnotic triggers. For someone like p!Noah, who's eerily smart and extremely manic (underneath the façade of slothfulness), I doubt he'd be able to fall into the initial trance that snagged rk!Noah. And he'd have no reason to reveal that he's immune because he's fucking insane, so there'd be no story.

Though, if p!Noah had any idea just how messed up rk!Alejandro is in the head, they'd get on like a house on fire. Until rk!Alejandro inevitably tries to control/possess him in other ways; then p!Noah would probably bite one of his fingers off or something.

Though that's assuming p!Noah is and always has been The Noah of that universe. If rk! and p! have been swapped during the events of the fic? That's a different can of worms.

Because, from Alejandro's perspective, the person he's weaved a web of triggers and suggestions into in an effort to practically craft himself The Perfect Boyfriend Subordinate is suddenly bereft of his triggers? And the charged animosity between them is just gone? As if Noah's just forgotten what's transpired between them entirely. He'd be oddly offended.

So of course he confronts p!Noah about this, even going so far as to try his failsafe trigger to send (who he assumes is rk!)Noah into a full trance, and yet the nerd before him just strikes him with an unimpressed stare and a raised eyebrow.

...I'd continue, but I really don't want to spoil anything for the upcoming chapters of the RK fic. 😳

[daisydood]

so crazy michonne stabs a sword through a teenage boy that just got orphaned and no one talks about it after

[sigyn-foxyposts]

My personal thoughts on "Twilight of the gods season 1"

Before reading I just want to say that these are my opinions alone! By no means am I saying this show can't be your thing, it just wasn't mine when it came to certain parts! Also what I'll be covering can be a bit of a sensitive topic to some. Such as race and sexual topics, I'm here to defend not hate 💚

Art by my darling @sparrowmp4 💚

Pros:

Starting off with the best is the animation and art style! It's smooth and full of movement, absolutely breathtaking! It will truly keep you watching, just to enjoy it. Character design's are pretty good too, though some could've been done better and were in general a bit bland.

It felt boring In a way when you could've done more but I understand it would be hard on the animators. The scenery they chose fits the with the setting of the story they're trying to tell. In all honestly done very well, excellent!

I really appreciate the references to actual mythology and my culture! There wasn't much culture other than how things looked in certain villages but things such as the retellings of the stories we got from written and oral traditions, it made me very happy seeing them here!

I also heavily appreciate the inclusion of Loki's struggles amongst the gods, with himself struggling being "a scapegoat god" and the focus on him trying to save his children from their fate. As well as the portrail on how not even gods are perfect!

They clearly did their research on Loki's character and knew what the fans wanted! I just wish we got even more, but it was rushed and in conclusion a bit shallow. Still, the effort is there & i eat what I get!

I love the representation of minorities in the series. Such as people of color and their different or even mixed heritages! Same goes for different identities and sexualities. They weren't afraid to shy away from bisexuality and transgender representation, which was very common back then and throughout history!

I did enjoy certain characters like the Seid Kona, Egil, Leif and Loki's development throughout the story and how they were written! But again was all bit rushed..

Cons:

They missed out on showing us a lot more gods and how Ragnarok actually went down, even if most of us know by now..where was fumbulvinter for example? And I don't like when people take certain mythology media as fact, it's the biggest issue I have when it comes to modern media taking on mythology and folklore in general.

Do it right, if not then let it be!

While I love the representation we got of POC people, the way it's ONLY set in a norse setting bothers me. Yes, the story is centerd around the norse but like..we could have had more representation of other cultures too just saying! They were traveling so much, even a reference would've been nice.

No what we get instead, which yeah can work since the vanir are magic and nature based is plant people (I get the thought behind it!) They make the representation we want plant people. Where only two vanir members that look human.. are people of color. What was the point of all that seriously!

Where are the other people of color..?

Now don't get me wrong, Tyra makes sense in this case because we don't know where she came from and that leaves thing for interpretation, I absolutely love that! What's very icky was that Freyja who is presented as a black woman here, is Tiwaz's sister (Basically Freyr idk why his name is a rune now..) and called herself a slave when talking about how Odin married her for her magic... Yikes!

I didn't appreciate how Fafnir was slain either and the fact Sigird killed Baldr when Hodr could've been included so easily in the battle. I honestly think Freyr, Hodr, Hoenir and many more deserve justice, especially those who were completely forgotten like Idunn, Nanna, Forseti, Thrud ect.

Oh and dont get me started on Angrboda and Sigyn here, I'm just happy Boda even got an appearance in the first place, but that isn't enough to be honest! Like all she did was be the poor mother who couldn't protect her children, nothing more to her character even though she's from the ironwoods that we saw in this series.. where was she after those events?! Most likely dead, which would add up. Let's hope Sigyn gets a better appearance!

I don't mind original characters but..when it comes to the point in retellings, do it in a way that makes sense please!! Make the original characters for example meet Sigurd, Fafnir's slayer instead of killing him off! What would their interaction be like? While I understand the main plot and focus was on Sigird taking her revenge on Thor.

It felt a bit boring.. Like yeah, girlboss with a tragic backstory and she can't cry. It feels a bit Mary Sue of her, not only that but they're a bit over powered too!

Here comes another part I've been dreading..the "interesting" interpretation of Jormi and Thor's fate to kill each other at Ragnarok. It felt very forced and weird making them have a sexual relationship, like sure it's a creative twist I guess but..the way the prophecy claimed that Ragnarok would end the gods if Jörmungandr would spill Thor's seed. That's not at all the case and just disgusting!

What hurts me the most about this topic is Loki's attempts to take her place, but how the prophecy wasn't meant for him. Killing Thor was the only way to free their family, so even if it meant death, she did what had to be done. Worse, she was only a child when Thor physically beat her when she tried defending her family..i didn't need that!

This plot felt more like an excuse to add in more sex to a show with too many of those scenes already! Than giving the representation that matters, people forced to do these things just to help their family.

I'll admit Thor's portrayal was somewhat accurate, it just wasn't done the way I had expected it! (Take that as you will)

Yes he has flaws and the gods aren't perfect! Yes, he is a brute who murdered many jotuns and drinks lots of mead with an appetite. Yes, he has anger issues.. And yes he cheated on Sif. That doesn't mean he has to abuse his own kid or have his marriage with Sif go that low. What's worse is when you realize Sif knows he is activity cheating and letting herself be insulted by Thor. When she literally wants Thor dead, she admits she also needs him for the sake of her purpose.

Now, toxic relationships are real and this is a great example but keep in mind that in actual mythology he was willing to break every bone in Loki's body for him simplely cutting off her hair! And he has a tendency to be over protective of his family like in the story where Alvis purposes to Thrud, his daughter! His characterization is certainly something and I hope we get more because when he started crying over his issues and actions.

It screamed, toxic masculinity in my face.

I don't know what was happening behind the scenes but the relationships were developing a bit fast and while I don't mind starting a story on a relationship, the way things were going between Leif and Sigird didn't make me feel much for them in the end. Yeah it's not easy to be a perfectly functioning couple after you lost your whole family because you two were getting married. But when he comforts you, saying you're allowed to grieve and follows you on your revenge trip even though he didn't want to but did it for you!

Also I love my poly rep but making Thyra be a part of their already dysfunctional relationship was a bad move. Thanks for the fake hope you gave Leif actually living a better life with just her. It was so obvious she was into women from the start..why??

I had to sympathize with Leif even more when Sigrid physically hurt him, all because he opened up about what he felt and was done with her crap. Sadly that sympathy went away the moment he decided to waste everything on a woman that cared more about revenge then him.

Finally last point, I very much dislike how characters we were supposed to bond with get killed off so suddenly? Not only weren't they fully developed like Ulfr and Anvari but they had to die for what? Do they come back for the plot later on because I'd certainly hope so!

I don't know if they'll make up for all of these plot lines but since it landed on a cliff hanger, it's definitely coming back. Let's cross our fingers for season 2 to be better and clear things up!! Thank you for reading 💚🤞

[transmasc-wizard]

I'm going to bed now

[mewos-laptop]

Actually I rlly hate the fact that abelism against folks w NPD is so ingrained in the very words we use to describe folks we don't like, bc I honestly hardly ever feel safe correcting folks who use "narcissist" as an insult, bc half the time I know they're going to start spouting shit abt how having personality disorders means you're abusive

AND I DON'T EVEN HAVE NPD.

I cannot IMAGJNE how much more awful it is for folks who ACTUALLY EXPERIENCE NPD to try and correct folks on their harmful language.

It just makes me sad, and I hate feeling so scared and unsafe to correct others, bc I know that I'm more safe than folks w NPD to correct them w/our risk of being hurt for it.

[loveerran]

In 2020, NBC did a survey of 45 states + Washington DC. Of 4,890 transgender women prisoners, only 15 were housed according to their gender identity. This despite the 1994 Farmer vs Brennan Supreme Court decision (Dee Farmer, a trans woman, had to file a lawsuit alleging her beating and rape violated 8th Amendment protections on her own - the ACLU didn't step in until it reached the Supreme Court), and studies consistent with this one that show trans women in prison are 13x more likely to be the object of violence, particularly sexual assault and rape. In the following comparison, all the white dots are transgender women who are not housed according to their lived gender identity, and the red dots are those who are:

We should also note that trans women, particularly black trans women, are far more likely to be incarcerated (10x more frequently than the general population) - possibly due to old and new laws that make it nearly illegal to be trans.