#well that's what war does to you

[radioactive-cloud]

those past few days are really testing my patience with some of the takes and opinions i've seen on the internet and i'm so fucking done with all of this i just want to delete all my accounts from everywhere and live somewhere in the woods (as far away from russia as i can) and to never come in contact with another human being again

[writingpoorly]

me: *aroace* how do I write a date?

[shroomerr]

You guys ever read the most beautiful, jaw dropping, feet kicking, leaves you with a feeling of yearning fic that it possesses you? yea that was me anyways here’s vampire Kyle and his annoying assigned bodyguard who’s also a witch

(ALSO IF YOU WANT TO READ SAID FANFIC ITS A KYLE X READER FIC CALLED ITS FALLING FOR THE IDEA BY FEDOSAURUSREX ON AO3 THAT INSPIRED ME TO WHIP THIS WHOLE AU UP)

[puppppppppy]

i feel like im not making any sense but does anyone else feel like there are stories that let u run with them and ones that spell everything out for you

[phoenixkaptain]

My favourite thing about Leia is how fucking soft she is.

Like she is a little lady. She speaks very gently. She cares so much. She’s protective and warm. She just smiles and looks so happy. With Luke. Like, only Luke.

In the movies, this is also the case, but it really is one of my favourite parts of the 2015 run of the comics. They’re like, Leia: “Luke is doing great” while Luke is in the background getting thrown through a wall.

Sana (I love Sana) says she’ll won’t take Leia to Nar Shaddaa (to Luke) for free and Leia immediately offers her credits. When Sana is like “nah, just give me Han” Leia immediately agrees, and like. It’s funny for a variety of reasons but my favourite one is that Leia is trading Han for the Chance of seeing Luke.

And like, the comics show Leia telling Luke that she supports him even though he has to leave and she is very sad about it. She’s super disappointed she doesn’t get to go on the long probably meant-to-be boring mission with him. She just wants to hang out with Luke and make sure he’s okay and try not to lose him in the first fifteen minutes (again) or fifteen minutes after finding him again (also again).

I mean, it isn’t just Leia, I fucking adore Chewbacca’s relationship with Luke because. “Who would be stupid enough to volunteer to go on a doomed rescue mission for Skywalker-“ and it’s Chewbacca, Chewbacca is stupid enough, Chewbacca has the ship idling in the hangar, Chewbacca has had a Luke Rescue Kit in the ship since Luke left a week ago, Chewbacca is so ready to go on a doomed, borderline suicidal rescue mission for Luke.

Chewbacca just beats up a bar full of people to get them to tell him where Luke is. Like, that’s amazing. It’s adorable. He makes C3PO come with him. A wonderful idea. Chewbacca eventually picks Luke up like Like is a big cat. My favourite panel of all time.

Chewbacca and Leia are both over there like “I’ve only had Luke for three and a half months and if anything happened to him, I would kill all of you to get enough blood to perform an ancient ritual to make him perfectly alright again and I would start with Han.”

Han, meanwhile, is over there like “rude. Understandable, but still. Super rude.”

And I just think how soft Leia is with Luke is really sweet and how soft Chewbacca is with Luke is really cute and how both of them are so sarcastic to Han for literally no reason other than that they Thrive with his annoyance-

It’s great. If nobody else gets the characters, the 2015 run comes the closest.

[skitskatdacat63]

2009 Singapore Grand Prix - Fernando Alonso

[marvel-starwarsfangirl]

Crosshair is fuckin selfish, he knew how to get to Tantiss THE WHOLE TIME, but withholds it because of “trauma”, which is an awful excuse, he reveals that he knows how he their once OMEGA gets captured, showing that he only cares about his squad, not his other brothers, he could have told Echo all about Rampart, and Echo, Rex, Gregor, and Howzer could have ran the entire mission to get Rampart and get to Tantiss earlier

Crosshair never changed, he is still the selfish bully that was introduced to us on Anaxes

While I respect your opinion, I disagree with your take that Crosshair has never changed. He is a very complicated character who has been through a lot. And he has changed. He has learned that loyalty belongs to those who will reciprocate it and treat him with respect.

To your point about him not saying anything do to trauma, I argue that it isn't an awful excuse. The mind is a truly powerful thing and when you are in constant survival mode, you will do things that others will raise eyebrows at. Crosshair DOES NOT want to go back at any cost. He was badly hurt physically and psychologically. From his perspective, withholding information will protect both himself and his squad from going back there. As someone who has pretty bad anxiety at times, I sympathize with him. I don't say that lightly.

To your point about Omega, yes he only really goes back for her. Omega is the one person throughout the entire show who always tried to understand him. Crosshair is a character driven by his loyalty to others, especially his brothers and Omega. When the person who is the literal light of his life gets taken, it makes sense that goes back for her.

To your point about him being selfish, I do think he is. His one and true loyalty will always be to his squad. But that doesn't mean he hasn't learned to work alongside his fellow brothers. He literally risked his life to save Mayday. And I firmly don't believe that S3 Crosshair would say "he's just another reg." He's grown from that. You're right that he could've just told Echo and Rex and leave the rest to them. But at the same time, I think it's worth looking at things from his perspective. He wants to avoid Tantiss and anything to do with it. If that means not saying a peep, then that's what he'll do.

At the end of the day, Crosshair is a very nuanced character. Is he selfish? Yes. But I don't think it's fair to say that he has never changed. He has come a long way since we first met him on Anaxes.

[backjustforberena]

"It is ill luck to look upon the face of death." RHAENYS TARGARYEN, 1x8 & 2x3

[vaguely-concerned]

I don't know what I love more, the fact that as rook you can make a statement in NO uncertain terms that you are NOT responsible one way or the other for the theological implications of the shit you're discovering in the 'regrets of the dread wolf' memories. not my jurisdiction. quite simply none of my business. not my chantry circus not my chantry monkeys. irrelevant to the matter at hand here we'll kill that god if we get to him he can get in line. or if the best thing about it is seeing the lone little 'lucanis approves' that pops up right after choosing it. corvid with a knife about to commit deicide keeping it real and sensibly, pragmatically, wilfully agnostic with me here in this magical lighthouse today

[velvet-games]

shipping jayvik out of spite now smh

[bonefall]

So, your Clear Sky post is absolutely horrifying, but it was very needed, so thank you. What are your general thoughts on tackling his abuse for the AU? Like you've said, pretending he's a good guy is not the way to go, but are you planning on toning down *some* of the situations, just to give some of the cats a break? Clear Sky is a very realistic depiction of abusers, but that seems to come across even without victim number 25, yknow? I'm very curious about how you'd like to go about this.

My most recent big change was bringing Slash back into the fold, because I realized that it was actually a disservice to not address where DOTC's themes dip into Colonialism. It's a hard topic, and I'm still trying to work out the details, but I realized it was important.

With how BB!DOTC is such a MASSIVE overhaul, to properly address abuse and the ways it impacts you, ableism and its violence, and xenophobia broadly, a huge reworking of Slash belonged here too. He's one of the greatest examples of how badly WC demonizes non-Clanborn cats. I shouldn't dance around it.

That's what I need to do with Skystar.

MANY of his victims have happier endings than canon, though. Bumble is one of the most famous, bumped up into a major character and directly responsible for the formation of ThunderClan. Bright Storm is taking most of Gray Wing's roles. Birch and Alder are getting examined, with either a father who wants his kids back or Milkweed as the mate of Misty.

A lot of people will die because of him, even more will be hurt, but I see BB!DOTC as a story about victims and survivors.

Others might grab POVs here and there, but as a response to canon which I feel is Clear Sky's story told in many parts, I center this rewrite around Thunder Storm. The path of kindness he marches down, with love and with anger, and the people he helps.

So BB!Star Flower...

Previously I was playing her as ENTIRELY just manipulating Clear Sky. She was loyal to One Eye and trying to get at Skystar to bleed him dry for 8 lives to sacrifice; but connected to Thunderstar over recognizing him as a victim who deserves her idea of justice. So, she offers Thunderstar the final kill, so her father will be grateful to him and he'll get power AND the death of his abuser.

(When Thunderstar looks upon Skystar, pathetic and neutralized down to one life, he thinks about the collateral damage that will descend upon the forest if he accepts the deal. He decides that he has found the line between Justice and Justification. Of course he wants the power to make his enemies cower, protect his people, and eliminate Clear Sky so he never threatens them again; that's not the problem.

He can still do these things. He wouldn't NEED the power of a war god to do so.

But if One Eye returns, he will be endlessly hungry, ruthlessly dedicated to revenge, and set out to devour the whole forest. Everything would get worse, and even more people he loves would die. It's where his desire to destroy a monster would lead to him BECOMING one.)

Even on its face, it was previously missing an element. There's a step between "Starf decides to bring One Eye back" and "Starf offers Thunderstar the final kill" that was bare. This is the piece that was missing-- That she, herself, is trying to reach out to the only person who's ever really understood her.

But more importantly... I do feel this topic belongs here, in BB!DOTC. Abuse is a MAJOR theme. SKYSTAR is a monster already. He's harmed two wives in BB (Bright Storm and Falling Cry) and played toxic games with all three kits (Thunder Storm, Pale Sky, Tiger Sky).

And I'd avoid Star Flower being abused... why? Because it's uncomfortable to confront the pattern that Clear Sky displays? That in-canon, he tries to cut all his victims into the same ideal shape, from Storm to Thunder to Star Flower? ...it should be uncomfortable. Everything that I described in Clear Sky Is A Monster is rooted in the same desire for control, power, and punishment most abusive people share, he just happens to be a severe example.

Yes. That includes how he treats his child and romantic partners. The parallels that are drawn between Starf and Thunder are there because he wants power in the form of obedience. Starf replaces the son as a narrative award for his "growth" of not killing random people anymore for a while.

A cookie cutter is an effective tool because IT ONLY MAKES ONE SHAPE.

You know what's more uncomfortable? Reading canon!DOTC and seeing someone who hurt you reflected almost perfectly in the character the writers think did nothing wrong. Because of "good intentions" that were not there.

I will say though, just to be clear; I don't see a purpose in being more than PG-13 about serious topics for this project. I promise none of my intentions have changed. Nothing will be more graphic or gorey than canon WC-- just more intentional.

I'm keeping the sacrifice because it's dope. No one is taking this from me. Girl Moment: Killed her awful husband 8 times to count as 8 sacrifices and offered the last life to her buddy as a show of good will. How else do you make friends outside of high school

But I know now that Star Flower NEEDS to keep the canon fact she has very little agency, UNTIL that moment she snaps.

She's sacrificing one abuser to try and bring back a bigger, badder one, because in spite of everything, her father One Eye always made her feel safe. Even though he promised her off to Skystar, and expected her to be willing to die for him. She's followed every command, every order, past the death of his mortal vessel.

The first, and only, selfish choice she's ever made was in reaching out to Thunderstar to offer him the power of her father.

Thunderstar's Justice is a story about a Thunder Storm at the pinnacle of his arc, how the survivors of his Clan are settling into the new normal after the carnage of The First Battle, how Skystar's arrogance brings a violent god to the Forest... and the connection Thunderstar makes with the daughter of a monster.

[manygreetingsfriend]

i’m sooooooo normal about the god of war series. so incredibly normal i liked it a normal amount and would be so chill talking about it. don’t worry about the sign

[kurthummeldeservesbetter]

Sky deserved better

[kaesaaurelia]

Friends, tonight's Hero Forge theme is betrayal, heartbreak, and having entirely too many dogs.

Companion to this.

[swan2swan]

People: "But--but he can't be that old, his age was revealed to only be sixty-five in Donald Starr's 2008 novel Crash Point, and reaffirmed in the 2012 Guide to the Jedi Order and Chronology of the Clone Wars guidebooks!"

Me: *pointing to medal on my SW Fan uniform* "Do you see this? This was awarded to me for surviving the Spaarti Clone Cylinder Retcon of 2002. Rushed clone production without yslamari was canonized, Kamino became the planet, and Boba Fett is now a clone. Note the Jaster Mereel pip. They awarded these back when retcons were truly upsetting. To children."

[bigcats-birds-and-books]

your favorite of my favorites: A Book Poll

okay, i have now officially seen Just Enough open tags to override my vampiric need to be explicitly invited into things, so! here are my (current) Five Favorite Books for y'all to vote on, in order of Publication Date (and incidentally the order in which i read them)

shout out to @e-b-reads and @beardedbookdragon for the recent open tags! i am inflicting this on paying this forward to @asexualbookbird and @alloreli (who i warned), and to @sixofravens-reads (who i did not).