#verse: the negate

[bambayah]

In light of the new Vivre Cards, (will totally ignore the power-scaling shizz happening)

Landscape photographer!Shanks x Farmer!Mihawk (but actually the owner of the lands he tills)

Shanks going out of the city to find inspiration again only to find it in a quaint and seemingly abandoned mansion with vast lands with only an eccentric farmer as its caretaker.

Seeing Mihawk, Shanks’ thinking of changing careers and be a model photographer instead with how effortlessly breathtaking the other man is even if the subject of the photo is the garden he takes care of and Mihawk just happens to be in the picture.

Down in the dumps photographer Shanks finds his muse in a grumpy, borderline misanthropic farmer.

[nascentwaves]

"Lightsworn by the way."

[missallanea-archive]

@willowdied: ❛ will i see you again? ❜ orpheus to persephone?

For some, the question would've been met with a teasing boastfulness -- she could already hear the words she'd have uttered echoing in the back of her mind: long as this earth keeps on spinnin', I'll be here, child. Sure as the sun falls and rises. Orpheus seeks not godly promises or wisdom, but something smaller. Something far more personal than Persephone is used to offering to mortals, even those who she would consider to be her champions.

She reaches out thoughtfully, tracing a hand along his cheek in an almost motherly fashion. He sought comfort, and while it was not always in her habit to give it, she can afford a bit of kindness to him. He had more than earned it.

"If you need me, Orpheus. Anywhere the summer sun is shinin', you know I'll be 'round."

various question sentence starters

[w0rmsmeatofme]

Is this anything or

made a chart go crazy go stupid

[killer-queen-k]

The line in the Telemachus verse of Hold Them Down where Antinous sings “Hold him down while I slowly break his pride, his trust, his faith, and his bones” sounds a lot like he’s threatening to rape Telemachus before killing him, inside his father’s palace and (unknowingly) in front of his father no less. This could maybe be an allusion to how some versions of the Illiad say that Achilles raped (or at least attempted to) Apollo’s kind of-son Troilus in Apollo’s own temple, which put Achilles at the very top of Apollo’s shit list. This might have been part of why past that point Antinous was so doomed it seemed like even the gods had it out for him and maybe why the suitors were spared no light or viability in the palace because the illiad established that (even threatening )act as something that would earn Apollo’s ire. Presumably this might’ve been what made Apollo forgive Odysseus for his crew having eaten his cow because he was like “nah man I get it, go tear their asses to shreds #sponsored” therefore negating Epic! Odysseus’ need to go appease Apollo and letting him spend the rest of his years happily with his family.

TW: Sexual Assault

I think this is a really interesting interpretation! I don't know much mythology outside of Epic but you've definitely made me want to go read up on that. (Damn fuck Achilles tho fr).

I think it is interesting how some animatics have chosen to portray Telemachus' murder scene which somewhat aligns with what you've mentioned. Most visuals include Antinous with his hand over Tele's mouth, pinning him down and other things commonly associated with the visual of sexual violence.

And then in the song Odysseus the way Telemachus says the line "Get off me!" also (to me at least) once again evokes the idea of sexual violence. Begging someone to get off of them.

One "Hold them Down" animatic that I thought was really interesting was an animatic where there's a visual of a flower wilting (representing Telemachus' innocence being deflowered). And there was another one where Antinous carved an A into his cheek before licking his tears/the wound.

Antinous in the musical is sexually violent throughout the musical and I think it's an interesting choice in animatics when they choose to have that aspect spill over in the Telemachus verse of the song.

I think there's an interesting parallel to toy with the Apollo idea too.

Sorry that has been my mini tangent but yes.

[shadowsndaisies]

dogfighting 101 - 01: let's make it interesting

wc: 1.3k

synopsis: harvard is a good friend (and petty on your behalf)

main masterlist

athena-verse master post

a/n: hi friends! hope you're all doing well, have some more top gun maverick athena plot.

You got lucky on the first pairing.

“Athena! Harvard and Yale! You're up!”

“Let's go boys, we got a fossil to take down,” you smirk.

Harvard rolls his eyes, throwing an arm over your shoulder, and quietly to you he whispers, “that fossil raised you.”

“Exactly why I get to say it,” you tease, leaning into your friend for a moment.

Harvard shakes his head and pulls you out on to the tarmac. You pause briefly, looking out as Payback and Fanboy pass by, tapping at your shoulders, wishing you luck. Your eyes focus on Bradley though, doing push ups as Hondo counts them. You know the tarmac is blazing, you can feel it through your gear, you can imagine having to do push-ups right now would be miserable. You can even see the strain on his face.

“You remember the rules?” Yale asks as he catches up to the two of you, but you know both of the men caught where your gaze was focused. Harvard’s arm is still tight around your shoulders, and he gives you a squeeze.

“I remember, do you?” you ask, swallowing your thoughts and turning back to the pair.

“Well there was this pilot at Top Gun with us, she gave us so much shit, but hand to God if she isn't the best pilot I’ve ever flown with. She had these rules up in the air, how to focus in, what we leave on the ground, she drilled them into us, really. But, she made us better aviators, hands down,” he teases and you shake your head, happy that these two were your partners for the first go. Brigham turns you with a smile, pushing you toward your jet.

“I think you give me too much credit, Logan,” you muse as you stop beside your jet, grabbing a hold of the ladder.

“Not possible. Show ‘em what this nepo-baby’s made of,” Harvard negates with a teasing tone, tapping your shoulders.

“Yes, sir,” you muse rolling your eyes before climbing up into your jet.

You spot Harvard and Yale as they walk past Rooster. You see the tap Harvard does, stopping Yale, and you watch as he pulls his phone out. The two stopping to snap a photo, undoubtedly teasing him in the process. Yale shakes his head as they walk, and as if feeling your gaze, Harvard turns back meeting your eyes. You know he can see your frown, but all he does is tap at his chest and point at you.

FLASHBACK: TOP GUN

“Why haven’t you emailed him back?”

Brigham’s question catches you off guard, you’d been sat in the Naval Aviator’s lounge at Top Gun. Your laptop open as you switched between Bradley’s most recent email, and a text chain you had running with Amelia about going sailing on your day off over the weekend.

”What?” you ask, turning to look at Brigham.

You liked Brigham, and Logan. They were a good team, and smart aviators. Talented and clever, its makes sense why they got invited to Top Gun. They were also the only two of your class that you actually enjoyed spending time with. They were the only two who didn’t make nepotism jokes as soon as someone realized you were a legacy, that your old man was a Top Gun graduate. They were a solid team, solid aviators, and solid people, you were quickly starting to consider them friends.

”You’ve had that email open on and off the last few days,” he notes casually as he sits down across you.

”You’re a snoop, Lennox,” you deflect with a flat look.

”Guilty, I got two older sisters, snooping was a part of the job, and you make for an easy target, Mitchell,” he shrugs in response. “But it doesn’t answer my question.”

”Not that it’s any of your business, but I never email him back,” you admit honestly.

”Bradshaw, I recognize the name, he’s an aviator too, came through Top Gun last year? Or was it the year before?”

”Yeah something like that, goes by Rooster,” you confirm.

”So what’s the story?” Harvard’s pokes.

”Doesn’t matter,” you shrug off.

”Oh, I get it,” he decides smirking, leaning back as your eyes narrow. “Hook up gone wrong.”

You choke on that, an incredulous look taking over your features. “Ew, no! God,” you scoff.

”Then what?” there’s a challenging smirk still on his lips and you decide that making friends might have been overrated.

”We grew up together. Something happened when he was 18, set him back, made him mad. He blames my dad,” you nutshell.

”So he blames you too?”

“He did. Said some fucked shit, and I decided distance was for the best.”

“That bad?”

“I was raised by a naval aviator for a dad, Harvard. I spent deployments in the PACFLEET Commander’s home. And in every other moment until what happened, I spent with Brad and his mom. What he said, it wasn’t something he gets to walk back by trying to email me life updates,” you bite back, venom in your voice.

Harvard’s hands go up in a second, surrender, he mimes. Your shoulders drop and you look at the roof before taking a breath. “Sorry,” you apologize. “I… I try not to be mad, it was a long time ago.”

“Respectfully, I’ve only known you since we got here, but, if you’re still mad, if it still hurts, then I think it’s justified,” Harvard offers.

“Like I said, it was a long time ago,” you repeat, shaking your head.

“Maybe, but you don’t seem like one to hold grudges, Athena. Whatever he did and said, and you don’t have to tell me, it’s enough for me to know that I don’t think I like him very much.”

You smile softly despite yourself. Just a little quirk of the lip from the blind support you’re being offered. It was so different than the ‘maybe you should reach out’ and ‘hasn’t it been long enough?’ that Sarah, Ice, and Viper would drop, and it’s not their fault you never told them what Bradley said, but you weren’t ready for that, not truly. Brigham in one conversation, had reaffirmed your belief, had brought a comfort that you never realized you needed.

“Thanks, Brig, really,” you say softly.

“Anytime, Athena. You practically kept Yale and I from being booted day one, what ever you need, we got your back, girl, always,” he promises.

You nod softly, willing yourself not to get emotional from the support.

“C’mon, Yale was looking for you earlier, I think he want’s to try that taco place we passed by on the way to the beach the other day,” Harvard offers, effectively ending the previous conversation.

He stands, gently shutting your laptop with a pointed look before offering a hand to pull you up.

You take it gratefully, and pause once you’re on your feet, pressing a sweet kiss to his cheek, “you’re a very good friend, Brigham Lennox, and I am very grateful,” you tell him.

“Let’s go, we gotta get out of here for a bit,” he says dismissively, cheeks pinking slightly.

You nod, and walk in front, he follows after you, handing your laptop back with a smile.

...

You’re brought back from the past as your name is called, giving you the 'all clear' to start take-off protocols. You take a breath and remember the rule, leave it on the ground, a clear head for clear skies and soon enough the three of you were in the sky over the training range.

...

everything: @butterfly-skinnylegend

athena’s tags: @omgbrianab @smoothdogsgirl @bazellawriz @sbrewer21 @inky-sun @djs8891 @rory-cakes @geeksareunique @je6291

[religious-extremist]

Mistranslation by the KJV, Luke 11:28

27 As Jesus was saying these things, a woman called out from the crowd and said to him, “Blessed is the womb that bore you, and the breasts which nursed you!”

King James Version

28 But Jesus said, “Yes, rather, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it.”

Eastern Orthodox Version

28 But Jesus said, “Yes, and more than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it.”

The Greek word menounge (μενοῦνγε), translated above in the text of verse 28 as “yea, more than that,” but rendered inaccurately in the KJV as "yea, rather," is the same word which occurs in Phil. 3:8, where the KJV gives Yea, doubtless, and in Rom. 10:18, where the KJV gives Yes, verily.

The force of menounge is that it corrects the previous statement, not by negating it, but by amplifying it.

Philippians 3:8 “Yes, without a doubt, I consider all things as loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus, my Lord, for whom I suffered the loss of all things. I consider them as dung, so that I may gain Christ.”

Romans 10:18 “But I say, did they not hear? Yes, most certainly: Their sound went out into all the earth, Their words to the ends of the world.”

Evangelicals and opponents of traditional Christianity often frame this statement of Christ as proof that His Mother was not holy or deserving recognition, that she was merely a vessel with little importance, and this perspective directly results from a mistranslation of Christ’s words.

Indeed, blessed is she who contained the Uncontainable: Christ our God.

Understand that Luke’s Gospel was originally written in Greek, so perhaps we ought to study the original language that the scriptures were written in to have a better understanding of Christ’s life-giving message.

Edit: I made a Part Two, I might make it a series. The second part is linked below!

[kakashixhatakesxwhore]

been kinda ready to [REDACTED] so... let's think about secretadmirer!kakashi rn...

this isn't spellchecked btw :3

secretadmirer!kakashi who sees you in the market square one day and suddenly feels his throat constrict and his ability to form cogent thoughts leave him entirely...

secretadmirer!kakashi who has to wait until he happens upon you the next day to strike up a conversation, all too beguiled by your beauty to spit any game, but who is quite remiss to be curtly turned away as you continued your way down the street to... wherever...

secretadmirer!kakashi who wracks his brain to figure out just why on this gracious green would you reject him? was he too forward? not forward enough? it couldn't be that you outright disliked him... that would be absurd...

secretadmirer!kakashi who can't negate the spark that sizzles in the root of his heart... don't you feel it too?

secretadmirer!kakashi who leaves a bouquet of hand-picked wildflowers from his favourite valley near Hokage Rock, paired with a neatly inked poem that took him an excrutiating swath of time to conjure up, on you doorstep the next day...

secretadmirer!kakashi who sees you walking on air as you go about the village in the days following and feels a genuine smile tugging at his lips for the first time in a while...

secretadmirer!kakashi who resolves to leave those two little gifts on your doorstep every time he returns from a mission...

secretadmirer!kakashi who talks himself up to physically hand you this bouquet, after months of leaving his heart on your doorstep... but who, when it comes down to it, still can't find it in him to stay to even watch your reaction...

secretadmirer!kakashi who kicks himself when he next returns to the village after a long mission and sees you out on what looks very much like a date with some random jonin...

(he did more than kick himself - but he'd never want you to know about the poor trees caught in the path of his kunai as he visualized the gnarled bark to resemble that stupid guy's stupid face)

secretadmirer!kakashi who skips the flowers and keeps his latest poem for himself - to save you from any conflict with your beau, of course...

secretadmirer!kakashi who spends the entirety of his next mission with a sharp pain in his chest...

...but who is dead chuffed to find out that your relationship had dissolved before he got back to the village, because secretadmirer!kakashi (while empathetic) is exceedingly selfish when it comes to you.

who decides all bets are off, that he really does need to make his move before another nobody comes along to waste your precious time, because secretadmirer!kakashi (though an anxious procrastinator in the most trivial times) knows that you deserve somebody proactive and confident in their admiration.

secretadmirer!kakashi who collects his largest bouquet to date, with only the most flawless flowers that the valley had to offer him, and writes the most gorgeous verse, each word dedicated to you...

secretadmirer!kakashi who gathers up his confidence and strides up to your door - he raises his hand, with every intention of knocking...

secretadmirer!kakashi who swallows thickly and shakes his head, bending to leave the flowers and folded paper on your doorstep, because he is your secret admirer who is scared to death that you would reject his admiration if it weren't a secret...

[jennyfromthebes]

What other live alt lyrics do you like! I like the switch in pronouns for "you speak in smoke signals and I answer in code" even though its such a small thing

Ohhh that's such a good one. I am, similarly, really fond of negations and ifs to whens (as mentioned in my post lol) and tense changes. Some favorites right now, in no particular order:

Water Tower - "small hopes are seen to not be small ones" is always one of my very favorite alt lyrics. The negation changes the entire thing and it's so so good. this is a frequent line change, not always but at least half the time!

From The Nebraska Plant - "searching in the snow for someone in the distance" and "let the scavengers proclaim what its bones are worth". The change to someone makes the whole song more impactful, and "what its bones are worth" vs "how much it was worth" is something I forever have thoughts and feelings about. What its remains still are worth vs what it on the whole used to be worth...I could write an essay just about this one line change.

Only One Way - basically every live performance of this one has different lines (one time he joked "I hope someone is taping the night I finally get all the verses right", and to my knowledge it still hasn't happened), which I absolutely love, but a specific one I wrote down (from 2024-04-12) is "you're gonna learn to listen for the thunder / you're never gonna hear it in time". what a hell of a line oh my god.

No Children - "I hope you blink before I blink at you", which to my knowledge the only recording of that alt line is 2014-06-15, but that's been a favorite of mine for almost a year, and then at the Cleveland show in July he did that line again!

Alpha In Tauris - I know this line from 2014-04-20 but I know it's been done more than once; "yes I'm the model of composure out there / and I'm not even sorry later on!" With the original line being "but you oughta see me shaking later on", it's just a really really good contradiction/unreliable narrator moment and I love it.

I know there's more that I love but I haven't been listening to tapes as much lately so I'm blanking on more of the common alt lines. Thank you for asking this though!! I will come back and add more when I think of them!!!

[drdemonprince]

like im sorry natalie wynn but i do think the fact that ravishment is most popular sexual fantasy for women has something to do with gender politics.

her assertion that gendered power dynamics aren't enough to explain it never really makes sense. she never really makes the case for why sexuality is inherently a matter of power dynamics no matter the actual structures of society.

i feel like the video essay would have been a lot stronger if she would have been able to talk about her own relationship to this subject matter, or even more generally about either ravishment or power/self negation fantasies among lesbians. as it stands all we get is a nod to her eroticization of the sea as a kind of death urge.

i am so amused by her assertion that everyone should become a political verse. like. thats funny

[nalyra-dreaming]

Hi Nalyra! To me, Lestat's impulsiveness and his inability to plan are important character-defining traits of his (what's the quote about how he never envisions an end to anything he does?). His plan leading up to and on Murder Night never felt in character to me for this reason. The idea that he knew his family was planning to kill him and he played dumb for months while cooking up his own plan... that doesn't feel like Lestat. Am I way off about this?

I think that is a misconception, yes. (Sorry^^)

Lestat does plan - show and book verse. Yes, he is impulsive, but that does not negate him planning certain things.

For the show: Lestat courts Louis, for months, tracks him, plans ahead to be able to meet him inconspicuously, too. The meeting at the Fairplay itself, the poker game. Months of courting. Fitting the town house to Louis' likes. And so on. Or in the flashback: Lestat is going to Armand's coven with a cross over his shoulder. Meaning he not only clocked their basic setup and fears, no, he got himself a demonstration help as well - and uses it, as planned.

In the books it is maybe a bit more difficult to "see", because Lestat often does not talk about it (in detail). But the renovation of Rue Royal? The building of a lair there? The whole stunt with the axe and Rhoshamandes? All required planning. And are just a few examples. There's also little things, like having rooms with clothes ready, or suites on standby that he can retire to. Trying to lock down his assets and lawyers before he switches bodies. For example.

All of these things (and these are just a few examples!!) - are and require planning.

As with the illiteracy jokes I think this is a thing that is perpetuated through fanon, because people think it funny. Ha ha. But Lestat is neither illiterate nor does he just strut around without thinking. :) Both show and book canon contradict there, and I do think him trying to outsmart Claudia is very much in character. Remember, Claudia and Lestat... are very much alike, more than they like to admit^^.

Also, he likes to downplay his own abilities, which seems to be contradictory, I know, but that is where these misconceptions also come from I think. Even in the last book, he downplays the whole thing with Rhoshamandes, for example.

[nascentwaves]

"I'm not above playing solitaire if it's against those Duel Academy goons."

[neilgill]

Wish Defense I: The 'Complaints'

“Be to her virtues very kind, Be to her faults a little blind.” ― Matthew Prior

Disney's Wish was actually great and I'm here to defend it.

I'd like to start by negating most of, if not all, the 'complaints' this film's been getting. Please join me as I do this in 12 brief points:

Asha is a great protagonist. She is not just 'quirky' or one-dimensional: she's caring, strong, beautifully flawed, and doesn't solve every problem on her own; the movie makes a point of every one of these. I never saw her as a clone of someone like Mirabel or Anna. And she does have a character arc: she matures and learns to work hard for what she believes in. She learns that doing the right thing is difficult, but it's necessary. All this makes for a beautifully put-together character that gets through challenges and comes out stronger. Why aren't people talking about how great that is?

Magnifico is a great villain. He's an amalgam of familiar villains like Maleficent, Ursula, and Gaston, done in ways that seem fresh and unique. I've seen a lot of people say his motivation seems to change every few minutes or so, but I disagree. Him using his traumatic past is his excuse for his bad behaviour: that's what narcissists do. Just look at Mother Gothel and all her gaslighting. He was always a self-absorbed jerk who wants everyone under his heel, and whose darkness just got revealed more and more. And his 'villain shtick' is a cool and terrifying one: stripping people of their hopes and dreams to make them docile subjects who depend on him. He takes away their agency, essentially their souls and who they are as people. That is the bad thing he's been doing from Day 1, it's what makes him a villain: the film tells us that. How can people defend him? It's like people defending Gaston all over again. He's a great villain in that he goes against the values the story holds dear, challenges the protagonist in personal ways, is wonderful to hate, and is rightfully depicted as in the wrong for doing bad things. He's the selfish one, not Asha as the 'critics' are claiming. Why aren't people talking about that?

Star is a great secondary character. He is intentionally supposed to be a character that harkens back to those like Jiminy Cricket or Timothy Q. Mouse (I have a very personal connection with Dumbo, so this was important to me). People are REALLY misinterpreting that concept art of them: Star and Asha were never supposed to have a romance because Human Star would look like her grandfather. And 'Starboy' would just be a copy of Peter Pan or Genie, which people would definitely slam, thus I'm glad they changed him. See point 11 for more on Star and why his current form is the one they went with. People just care about having a Jack Frost clone (if they did go that route, they'd probably be slammed for copying Dreamworks, knowing 'critics'). The idea of a mute, magical sidekick, something that we haven't seen since Tinker Bell, is a pretty fun one that feels new and cool. And it's important to note that he never grants anyone's wish: he just helps out, letting Asha and others know that they themselves have to make it come true. Why aren't people talking about that?

I was really worried Valentino was going to be little more than a gag, but he wasn't. He helps out here and there, especially when aiding the Teens in freeing the wishes, proving his importance to the narrative. Plus I did find him pretty funny.

The Teens do stand on their own. I went into the movie knowing they were going to be new versions of the 7 Dwarfs, but each of them felt like their own unique person to me, especially Dahlia and Simon.

The animation is gorgeous: you have to watch it in HD or 4k, which people are doing for other films like Spider-Verse or Nimona, just not this one. It is far from 'lazy' or 'Disney Junior level': it harkens back to art styles Walt Disney himself loved. I can't believe they managed to replicate the feel of classic Disney backgrounds, like Snow White or Sleeping Beauty, so perfectly with modern technology. It looks like a painting, or a tapestry. Disney movies are still beautiful. Why aren't people talking about that?

The music is great: I've caught myself singing every song at least thrice. Each song brings something to the table. 'This is the Thanks I Get' fits Magnifico's character, and is something in the same vein as Gaston's song; you cannot tell me that one rent line is worse than 'nobody spits like Gaston'. I still get chills listening to 'This Wish' and its reprise. I don't know how people online are starting to think it's a bad song, but now others are just jumping on the bandwagon. You can see Asha's love and struggles within the song, and it even has the melody of 'Part of Your World'; how can you hate that? I've seen so many people personally connect with that song, myself included... Why aren't people talking about that?

'At All Costs' was never a love song between Asha and Star: Julia Michaels just wanted a love song (find that Variety article), and now it can be used for all kinds of love. I actually did tear up watching that sequence for the first time, seeing Asha hold her grandfather's wish dearly in her arms. I've seen people say it reminds them of what a parent would sing to their child, like 'You'll Be in My Heart', and I think that's just so wonderful and heartfelt. Why aren't people talking about that?

I don't have the actual post, but I'd like to bring attention back to what an artist on the film said: every 'Easter Egg' is meaningfully placed, a tribute to what has inspired generations. Not one of them felt shoehorned in to me. This movie is a tribute, a love letter, a celebration of what people have loved for 100 years. Why aren't people talking about that?

Magnifico's defeat is far from silly. It makes sense given the rules the world of the film runs on: the fact that 'we are made of stars' is a good Chekov's gun that carries a lot of meaningful importance. Each of us is special, each of us has magic, and each of us has hope. And this is where evil dies and good endures: Magnifico cannot comprehend that anyone but himself is worth anything, thus why he cannot quell this and it is the reason for this downfall. He, the villain, loses because he lacks the virtues the heroes possess. Why aren't people talking about that?

The story of this film is special: as confirmed by the staff, the film is an allegory for Walt Disney's life, and the story of Disney overall. Asha is Walt Disney, Star is Mickey Mouse: a magical force of creativity and inspiration that lights up a dark time. Because of the special nature of this, even though I'm a die-hard Disney fan, I'm fine with there not being any romance in this film (even though I'd like it back someday). This was intentionally made as a simple film à la Snow White, which was meant to be a happy, hope-giving film for people back in the 1930s. Just like this film is supposed to be now. One last time: why aren't people talking about that?

This is the first of a few posts I'll make defending this movie, so for other Wish fans out there, please stick around. I don't care if I get dragged for this: I'd rather stick up for my beliefs and defend myself my way than let online bullies like Schaffrillas, Aldone, or Astor Rhymemaster stop me from loving something I really enjoyed. I really hope this movie gets the Atlantis treatment and becomes a beloved cult classic down the line. Until next time.

[maglors-anion-gap]

I've been mulling something over lately. It's almost a given that one will find questionable elements to older texts; some are overt and some sneaky even to the modern eye. There are, undeniably, many such elements in Tolkien's work, and they cause a lot of trouble for marginalized readers and for fan creators grappling with it in relation to meta and fic.

That the Silmarillion is a largely-omniscient myth-text narrative, composed from a variety of drafts, the discarded versions of which we also have access to, further compounds the issue. Who has read what? Who samples from what? How deeply do some themes pervade both the text and the fandom? There are discarded portions that raise eyebrows (and thankfully, were edited out at some point). However, there are moments where those discarded portions shine through the cracks in exposition, dialogue and reasoning left in the official composite text by the sweeping style of the narrative. The composite can be seen to still rest on certain narrative and valuational presuppositions of Tolkien's - presuppositions he assumes the reader to share.

In the text, of course some have value or more of it, some have honor or more of it, some overcome darkness while some naturally succumb to it. The narrative certainty in these characterizations rests on these lurking (racist, antisemitic, ableist) presuppositions, and in some cases handwaves any deeper exploration or explanation.

There seem to be two fan solutions to reckoning with a cross-draft-consistent bigoted theme. 1) Write meta that explores its traits and manifestations in the text and syncretizes canon assertions with authorial biases, and/or fic that directly addresses the in-text impact of these biases. 2) With an awareness of the bigoted themes, create headcanons, new verses, and fic that subverts, rewrites, or negates the original theme. The former refuses to allow the presuppositions of the text to become the presuppositions of the fandom. The latter allows (particularly marginalized) fans generative space, fodder to create anew, breathing room, and expanded perspectives. Different functions, parallel purposes, both important.

Because it's fandom, and it's large, and our idea of on-the-side fun and not our job or our marriage, we do not have the same preferences for how we go about dealing with these textual issues or the cohesive pressure to be like minded (even as we recognize the need to deal with them). One person's way of reckoning with textual biases or gaps may strike another as reaching too far from canon to be of appeal. This is a common reaction to headcanons, canon divergences and alternate universes, and crack or humor, particularly in the tolkien fandom. However, personal preference is not a basis for asserting that someone is reading the text wrong, especially when the issue at hand is one of reparative analysis and creation.

I am drawn to the issue of the Petty Dwarves. Most information on them comes in pieces from disparate drafts and satellite texts. Some information was erased entirely from the published Silmarillion. However, many people have noted the continual issues in Tolkien's treatment of the Dwarves, the iterative issues with his treatment of the Petty Dwarves, and rightly begin to link the two, plumb them down to their connecting factor, and begin excavating the silences in the narrative which Tolkien allows to be filled by presupposition.

I have found that people who cite personal preference may bring up canon elements to excuse or disprove certain readings; I would argue that the canon elements cited are less often exculpatory of our faves and more often proof of deeper biases, proof of biased presupposition as a stand in for rich characterization. Let me explain. We hear from the Sindar that the Petty Dwarves are reclusive, aggressive, and territorial (on this they base their initial assessment that the Petty Dwarves are two-legged animals for hunting). We hear from the Dwarves who cross the Blue Mountains later that the Petty Dwarves descend from expelled Dwarves who were the smallest, weakest, most conniving and self-serving, and violent persons. At one point, Tolkien describes the Petty Dwarves as older residents in Beleriand than both the Sindar and the eastern Dwarves, and the original inhabitants of Nargothrond, and it is them who Finrod hires to finish its construction. Tolkien describes the Petty Dwarves as agreeing to do this under false and duplicitous pretenses (for what reason, he doesn't say); later, Mim tries to kill Finrod (again, the narrative is sparse on motive), and Finrod alternately outs the Petty Dwarves from Nargothrond or pays the other Dwarves to turn them out. Tolkien evidently means for this to paint a picture of a group of people who are inherently wicked, cannot help but be so, are hated and pitied (for one does not preclude the other, and all good people should pity bad people, after all), and bring about their own diminishment. There's the in-universe justification for it.

I mean to explore why it is not satisfactory to leave the matter alone at "the Petty Dwarves brought about their own downfall." To begin, why does Tolkien rely on the characteristics he does when describing both the Petty Dwarves and Dwarves in general? These are multiple pieces of bigotry at play, chiefly some old antisemitic stereotypes (which have already been unpacked at length and by Jewish fans who are more knowledgable than I; if other have more to add, please do so). But I will give it a try.

First, Tolkien never pins down why the Petty Dwarves are expelled westward, only vaguely pinning it on their inborn characteristics. One old piece of antisemitism held that Jewish people were smaller and weaker than gentiles; Jewish men are still held to be less masculine, which can be traced from a medieval supposition that Jewish men menstruated. Coupled with the ableism of expelling the stunted and the inutile, Tolkien describes here a sort of itinerant and pitiful scrounger who does not belong in a society to which it cannot contribute and into which it cannot assimilate. The concept of vagrancy and the homelandlessness (consider the antisemitism in the concept of the cosmopolitan Jew, and Tolkien's deliberate linkage of Dwarves and losing their homes), is further connected to antisemitism by the Petty Dwarves being duplicitous, self-serving backstabbers toward Finrod, who Tolkien sets up as innocent and trusting enough to sleep unguarded near Mim, further juxtaposing the two. Furthermore, the gentile assertion that Jewish people are violent is escalated to accusations of blood libel and sorcery. Tolkien may not go that far, but he ties this predisposition for violence into the passage about Nargothrond, and their territorial defensiveness and their aggression toward the Sindar. Jewish people have long been stereotyped as insular, traditional, and cold to outsiders (consider the gentile furor over "goy"). All of this passes under the surface of the text - where Tolkien does not elaborate, this rises to the surface to color the reading.

When fans identify these elements in the text (and realize they are very similar to Tolkien's handling of the Dwarvish sacking of Doriath, or gold sickness, or Dwarvish isolationism as a whole), they begin to investigate the places they show up in text. The meta they write must try to syncretize the canon of what is said with the authorial context applied in the characterization. The fic they write must try to fill in lazy gaps left, and to imagine and then confront the missing exigence to the conflict while refuting the antisemitic presuppositions upon which the text relies in place of characterization.

Because it's fanwork, some people may have concepts that you think miss the mark or push further with assertions than you think is logical. However, no one who is in good faith creating, exploring, or trying to remedy the issues of the text, can be accused of using their ideas as a cudgel against canon or against others. Discussion is welcome, when it is conducted in good faith as well.

Relying too heavily on the surface-level assertions of canon to shoot down these musings at times verges upon what I have described above: leaning into the in-world justifications of hierarchy and subjugation to excuse the real-world hierarchies upon which these presuppositions are built. It is not so important how or when the Sindar realized the Petty Dwarves were people: what matters is that Tolkien created a character group, designed to be hated and pitied but never respected, onto whom he mapped real world stereotypes, and set them up in events where these stereotypes lead. It's highly worth considering why we are defending portions of text that are inherently bigoted. The whole broth here is the issue, but people are quibbling over whether they've fished out a potato versus a turnip.

[auryborealis]

Chaos and Her Children (I'm sorry, I didn't really plan a sketch ahead so I couldn't fit Yuna in the eldritch fam group shot lol)

Wanted to make a post about Yuna's biological family. They are all originally Pokemon OCs, but Yuna's vague resemblance to their mother compelled me to put them in the OP verse as well. This is just a placeholder, but I like to refer to the children as The Chaos Sibs :D Excluding Yuna, the siblings take inspiration from the Velvet Room attendants (from the Persona series), the Three Mothers (from Dario Argento's films), Chthonic gods, and certain fears from The Magnus Archives.

Eriza

The mother. While she usually appears to others as a very tall and exceptionally beautiful woman clad in robes and with a gentle voice, she is actually an ancient, primordial god-like entity in disguise. Her true name is unknown but in the human language, it means "The Singer of Unreality." She is largely absent from her children's lives but nevertheless continuously watches over them from afar. Although she finds amusement in mankind's suffering and discord, she ultimately does not want its complete destruction. Her resemblance to Nico Robin is purely coincidental (during the time I created her, I was not into OP and was unaware of Robin's post-timeskip look).

Moira

The eldest. The most serious one in the family. She is a bit of a misanthrope, preferring to stay away from human affairs. She comes off as a stern and cold person, this being considered ironic by her family since she carries "the fires of hell" within her; her main power is to emit and control heat, to the point where anything or anyone she touches, breathes on, or is in her vicinity can burn into ash instantly. She can negate the usage of Busoshoku Haki, and quite painfully, making the user feel as though it is burning and melting off of them. Her animal symbol is the dragon. Her design is largely inspired by Sumika Warakubami from Kakegurui (because as soon as I saw her I just went "omg she looks like a perfect mix of Eriza and [insert father's name])."

Kita

The 2nd child. The most chaotic one of the children and the most involved with the human world. She is often seen hanging out with the Red Hair Pirates - having a brother-sister-like bond with Shanks - though she will occasionally spend time with the Thriller Bark Pirates as well, considering Perona like a daughter. Her powers are associated with darkness, ghosts, and nightmares; she becomes most powerful during the new moon and the solar eclipse. She can also attack by manipulating her sleeves, which includes being able to sharpen them into blades. She can prevent the usage of Kenbunshoku Haki. Her animal symbol is the cat (including big cats, especially panthers). She is the first of the siblings to meet Yuna when she was a child (although Yuna does not remember this).

Carmen

Was the youngest until Yuna was born. Uses male, female, and gender-neutral pronouns. They are similar to Kita in seeking fun and pleasure in the human world, often reveling in their festivities. They are like a walking mix of a mirror funhouse, a haunted house, and a kaleidoscope. They have the ability to induce hallucinations, influence ecstasy and madness, and generate glass shards out of thin air (this being dependent on how much light there is present). The glass shards can be used simply as attacks, build shields, and construct false realities. They can prevent the usage of Haoshoku Haki, or more accurately reflect its effect back at the user. Their animal symbol is the fox.

[Below cut are picrew images that served as insps & refs for their outfits (except Eriza)]:

[solarsunshine]

something that has been really getting to me as i’ve fallen back into destiel and all it’s insanity, is how little people understand the pressure of being queer in red states. like, in no other fandom have i seen the amount of normal world/no power au’s that i’ve seen in spn/destiel verse, so you would think that there would be at least a little understanding/research onto how queer people live and stay safe in conservative cities or in the case of the small town au’s, places with less than 15,000 people? instead i see an abundance of fics where dean is closeted and that makes him the central focus of conflict/the “problem” in the relationship, or the fact that he’s closeted means he has to be suffering from internalized homophobia. as someone who has lived in red states while being very queer, for a lot of other folks being in the closet means safety, not repression. sometimes the closet door’s purpose is to keep people out, rather than keeping us in. there is a very prevalent idea in the minds of a lot of LGBTQIA+ people that small town/midwest/southern queer folks are all repressed, or that freedom means leaving our homes to be out and proud, and i’m not saying that that isn’t true for some people. but for others, we feel that our liberation comes from loving and being loved in the places we’re rooted in. when living in a largely christian and/or conservative town, county, or even state, having the ability to feel love and be loved is freedom and protest all in of itself. whether the couple holds hands on main street or only in their shared apartments (*whispers* and they were roommates) doesn’t negate the fact that they are living queerly and are alive and finding joy in a place that would rather see us dead. to wrap this up (and bring it back onto destiel lol), i do think that dean would be a character that does repress his sexuality, but i don’t think that it’s solely because he’s from freaking kansas. i would rather see how his relationships with family, he’s own self-worth issues, and past relationships affect him, instead of a lot of the stereotyping the fandom does of both him and queer culture in conservative environments. (and please can we stop with the urban, worldly castiel coming in to bring enlightenment and social reform to poor, hick dean? it’s giving classism and i hate that this dynamic is so popular😭)