#xy's is a bit complicated but honestly it does well

[thedawningofthehour]

Yea I forgot the story plays in like 2021, so I just wrote that Avatar comment bc man I love the second movie (I dont remember anything from the first), it‘s like 2am rn I am no night owl so I didnt use my brain much

ANYWAY, I am impressed the fam still believes they will get Donnie back bc I am losing hope lmaoo, also, interesting tidbit about the XXY chromosomes, will that be relevant in the future??

Honestly, the extension of the world of Avatar is smth really great about the second movie. Plot wise, I fear it might become repetitive if they dont think of smth for the next one. The emotions are 🤌🏼✨

Not really relevant to the plot, just something I thought of when I was looking up spiny softshell biology and trying to figure out how all that nonsense works.

Weirdly, Klinefelter's does actually seem to fit Donnie. I know they didn't, like, plan that, but it is funny that it happened with the turtle that had sex chromosomes before and therefore may have weird chromosome things going on already. (Splinter probably also has chromosome weirdness, but he was already past puberty and snipped, so his infertility didn't really matter)(they obviously have other chromosomes and there's other chromosomal issues that arise from mashing two completely different species together, but Draxum's ooze was made to minimize complications arising from that, and obviously the original Yokai who had significant genetic issues didn't pass them on) People with Klinefelter's are often taller with lower muscle strength, which fits his lankier build. They often have coordination and speech issues-check and check. It even fits my personal headcanons, with people with Klinefelter's being more likely to develop auto-immune disorders and having a low interest in sex. (Donnie's bi but he's got shit to do, he doesn't have time for that)

Also worth pointing out that it's not exactly Klinefelter's, because Donnie doesn't have two X chromosomes. He has the XY chromosomes from Splinter and a single Z chromosome from his turtle parents. The Z chromosome just occupies the space a second X chromosome would be and Leo confused it because it looked similar to an X chromosome. I have no idea how the whole 'chromosome mashing' thing works for Yokai overall, but while I can go ahead and say "mutants are allowed to have weird numbers of chromosomes that would normally result in severe health problems in humans because they're really not human anymore," it's a bit different for allosomes. In organisms that use sex chromosomes, aside from some organisms that use X0 or Z0 systems where the heterogametic sex just has the one, they all have two sex chromosomes. And there are issues if there's more than that.

There's some weirdness in the mutation process, some chromosomes get thrown out, some stay against their best interest, and sometimes the resulting mutant is a pile of tumors and meat. Draxum's ooze was modified to prevent most of the catastrophic consequences, but stuff still happens. I chose to say he has three sex chromosomes instead of four because trisomy disorders are generally pretty mild, while tetrasomies are usually much more severe and cause serious intellectual disabilities. Which doesn't fit Donnie.

(I don't mean any of this in a TERF bullshit way, I'm talking exclusively about what Donnie's got in his blood, he can be whatever gender he damn well likes)

[queensconquest]

when do you gaze at your soulmate?

when they’re sleeping

it's not just the way they're at rest. it's that they're at rest with you. it's not just that they're safe but that they feel safe enough to let you see them like this. it's trust and it's intimacy. and you're not sure you're ready for them to see the emotions in your eyes right now. they've been through enough. you both have. sometimes it scares you just how much you love them. it terrifies you that you feel happy as they lay there, eyes closed and hair a little messy. their features twitch and you know they're dreaming and it scares you because if you fall asleep too you won't have a nightmare tonight. you'll dream of them. or nothing at all. and either way it will make you need them more. and you're not supposed to need anyone but it's them. you want to hold them in your arms and never let go. you want to protect them but you know they want to protect you to. this is the kind of love you long for and it's the kind which will hurt if you lose it. but here you are anyway. it's too late now. you're glad it's too late to go back.

when they’re dancing

you're not sure if they know you're there or not. you're not sure if it matters. you watch them sway to the music, watch as they twirl around and smile for no one but themselves. they're free and laughing. they're alive and vibrant. they're everything you might never be except when you're with them. so full of life it makes something in your chest tighten. there are frown lines at the corners of your mouth but your lips are smiling right now. rare. and often, only for them. they have light in their hearts and some days you fear the darkness in you might swallow it whole. but they'd never let you walk away. so make sure the darkness inside you keeps all the other monsters away from their tender heart.

tagged by: stole it ~ tagging: just steal it cowards

[diamondsableye]

Every single time I see a TERF or GCer tell a medically transitioned trans person that “you’re still your [insert birth sex here]”, it just reveals how piss poor their understanding of biology is. Granted, I don’t have a degree (because college is time and money expensive, and I’m in short supply of both) but I basically binge watch college level lectures regarding a multitude of different biology subjects, so I’d like to think that my words here carry a bit of authority. Not saying it replaces a degree, but I sure as hell know more than the average person if I’m being blunt.

First thing’s first, sex is determined by 5 categories: chromosomal sex, gonadal sex, hormonal sex, internal and external genitalia, and by extension one’s phenotype. All of these barring chromosomal sex are modifiable to some degree, some of which (like hormonal sex) are able to be completely flipped to cis standards. Honestly if you’re gonna argue that you can be 4/5 for one sex and say “actually your sex is based on the 1/5” when chromosomal sex is... dubious at best, then I’m sorry but you’re just.... wrong? Anti intellectual? You don’t like science? I’ll break down some common arguments here.

“If it’s surgery it doesn’t count/because hormones are not naturally produced it doesn’t count, you’re still your bio sex”

This usually results in a thought process where we apply our understanding of intention to the human body. The body is a biological computer, it is a complex machine that can grow and change in a multitude of ways and is very much in constant change, but it doesn’t really “know” what’s going on. It doesn’t care that HRT is man made, all the body does is revive these chemical signals which activate different processes within the body. Legit 90% of your physical makeup is all determined by hormones. If you have the hormonal sex of a male, it doesn’t matter if it’s the result of HRT or not, the body interprets this the same way it would if it was natural and the resultant biological processes follow suit. It is a biological computer following the hormonal code it’s been given, and if the receivers are active then it’ll adjust its software and to the best of it’s abilities it’s hardware accordingly. Same goes for surgery to an extent as well, the body incorporates modifications to itself typically to whatever hormonal instructions have been given, it doesn’t care if it’s “real or not”, your bio sex HAS BEEN MODIFIED. Trying to argue against the fluidity of sex is partaking in biological metaphysics, and is not reflective of what we understand of reality.

“No matter what your cells will always be (XX/XY), every cell is sexed inside you”

For starters, the SRY gene in the Y chromosome determines your birth sex, not your actual chromosomes. Anyone competent at biology will know this. Secondly, being XX or XY with properly functioning SRY genes or lack thereof doesn’t determine as much as TERFs will have you believe. The SRY gene is an activator gene, it doesn’t technically code for a whole new body, it just determines embryonic development. All of us have genetic code for both male and female phenotypes, and we all start out sexless at first. If the SRY is activated, and the proper hormone receptors are working, and the following “hormonal code” runs as it should, then the embryo will change course and develop as male. (Any interruption during this process can result in an intersex condition, and there’s a myriad of ways this can happen. Sex is a tricky and complicated thing, not some stupid binary). If there is no SRY gene activated, or there’s an issue with androgen hormone reception, or an issue with carrying out said hormonal instructions, then typically the embryo will resume “default development” which is female. So in reality, chromosomes are almost meaningless when it comes to determining sex and even SRY presence/absence isn’t straightforward either. You can have XX or XY chromosomes and have your body actively following blueprints for male/female respectively thanks to how hormones interact with the body and our genes. In any event, additionally it’s proven that our genetic code is literally in constant fluctuation and modification. You don’t need to be hit with radiation to have DNA changes, commonly it’s being constantly effected by one’s environment. Literally genes linked to increased risk of depression can be “turned on” even if one was born with their activation absent is introduced to high stress environments. Basically our bodies are never static and trying to argue that your sex is based as what you were born as is just... wrong. Saying that one is male/female based on chromosomal sex alone is just flat out admitting that you’re either ignorant or anti-intellectual when it comes to biology and you should be ashamed.

Also just in general genes are weird. We’ve got fossils of prehistoric retro viruses inside us which make up 5% of our DNA as opposed to our 2% of DNA which codes for active protein creation. We’re literally more genetically fossilized viruses than what codes us specifically as human, and we all have more bacteria on and within our bodies than our number of actual cells. Literally trying to prescribe complex modes of human interaction and existence from our biology is, to put it scientifically, very fucking stupid.

That’s all I really have for now, this was solely discussing medically transitioned trans people and I didn’t get into the intricacies of sex/gender in terms of their historical social and cultural meanings, and how sex need not align with gender. For most situations outside of medical needs, gender within its social context is the only thing relevant to our day to day interactions, and it cannot be accurately determined through scientific means how much of it is socially constructed vs how much of it is Innate or to what extent it may be immutable.

Oh and minor footnote before I gotta go back to my work, non medically transitioned trans people are valid nor should you have to medically transition to be recognized as your gender. This was merely a post discussing how TERFs have no idea the complexities of biological sex and have an outdated binary based view of how sex is actually categorized and recorded.

[sage-nebula]

oh man im really loving those posts about alan's lost parents coming for him and stirring all kinds of trouble. you think this is something ash can help alan with at some point with some input? given the novelization's canon of him having a dad that vanished out of shame due to being a shitty trainer and all. maybe something to help alan settle his resolve on staying with those that are truly important to him? taisetsu mono, right? or is this something that alan and sycamore work out themselves?

Thank you! I put quite a bit of thought into Alan’s parents / heritage, so I’m really happy you like the posts! ♥

I don’t think Ash would help Alan with this, only because by this point Ash is either back in Kanto, or possibly even already in Alola. (It depends on how long he stayed in Kanto before traveling to Alola, but you get the idea. This takes place somewhere around that time, post-XY(&Z) and around the beginning-ish of SM.) Since there’s already an ocean between them, Ash isn’t around to notice that something’s up with Alan, and thus he’s not really in a position to ask. Alan also isn’t the type to call up someone else to talk about his problems; it’s one thing if Ash notices and asks him, because we see in canon that Alan is willing to share his feelings with Ash if Ash asks him directly. But even Ash isn’t someone that Alan will actually call to talk about his problems with. He wouldn’t want to put that on Ash’s shoulders, especially not out of the blue. So unfortunately, in this regard Ash wouldn’t be able to offer any advice, because he wouldn’t know about it. He’s off in Kanto / Alola, completely oblivious that any of this is happening. =/

(I do think that Ash would, however, have some interesting thoughts / feelings on it if he did hear about it, though. I mean, at this point I don’t even think he knows that Sycamore is Alan’s (unofficially) adoptive father; while I think he has come a long way from his obliviousness when it came to recognizing that Sabrina’s father was her father, and while he no doubt picked up on the fact that Sycamore and Alan are very, very close (he picked up on the fact that Manon was important to Alan, after all, and he had only spent about twenty minutes around Manon, if that!), I don’t think he’s aware of their actual relationship, beyond the fact that Sycamore asked Alan to come work at the lab again. So I think he might at first be surprised to hear that Alan is actually an orphan, and then would fall back into some complicated feelings, because his father did walk out on him and Delia and he has never known the man. There are times, I think, when Ash thinks that he’d like to see his father again, but then I also think there might be a lot of resentment buried deep down, because Ash’s father left Delia to be a single teenage mother, and while Delia has done a wonderful job raising Ash, and while he no doubt feels that their family is perfect just the way it is, I think that Ash is also perceptive enough to know that things were hard for Delia at times, that even though she’s always done her best to keep smiling and persevere, and even though he did his best to try and be easy to take care of, it was still hard for her to manage the restaurant and take care of him at the same time, and his dad left them to that, and never called or anything. So when he thinks about that, I think he might feel angry, and feels sort of like “good riddance” to his dad, and hopes he never meets him. But then he also kind of wants to, especially since he doesn’t know that his dad is a garbage trainer, since Delia tells him that his dad is a wonderful trainer and would be proud of him … and so on and so forth, it’s complicated. So I think Ash would think on it for a while, and would feel kind of complicated, especially when he thinks of situations like how Brock’s dad, Flint, came back to take care of the family and Brock gave him that chance, or how Sabrina’s father was always hanging around in case she could be helped, et cetera. I think ultimately he would, as you say, say that he thinks Alan should stay with Sycamore, that family’s not so much who you’re related to by blood, but who you care about in your heart. Your family is what you make it, you know? Like, Professor Oak’s not actually his grandpa, but he’s always kinda been a grandpa to him since he never met his actual grandparents for whatever reason, and so he considers Professor Oak family even if they aren’t actually family. And Brock’s like his big brother, which means he guesses that he also has ten little brothers and sisters thanks to all of Brock’s younger siblings, and it doesn’t matter that they’re not blood related because they’re still family. So in that sense, Ash would think that things should follow for Alan the same way, that even if his biological parents are back, if he doesn’t feel like they’re his family, then they don’t have to be. I definitely think that Ash’s feelings would fall along those lines, and he’d say so if asked, but since he’s not around he can’t really be asked about it, alas. :/)

That was a really long aside, haha. Anyway, this would be something that Alan would work out mostly on his own, and I say “mostly” because there is one living being on this planet that Alan does talk to without prompting with whatever’s on his mind, and that’s Lizardon. We actually see the two of them talk numerous times in canon, both in TSME and in the main series, and we know that Alan understands the feedback that Lizardon gives him, because sometimes the things that Lizardon says take Alan by surprise for a moment before he reacts: 

This was after his first battle with Ash, in XYZ013. I like to think that Lizardon was commenting on Alan’s clear, genuine happiness, and that’s why Alan was so taken aback. He didn’t even realize how genuinely happy he was feeling as a result of the battle, even as he said it was excellent. But when Lizardon pointed out it, Alan was taken aback as the awareness hit him … and then he closes his eyes and smiles, because yes, Lizardon is right. We also see them talk after Alan’s second battle with Ash, at the end of the episode by the campfire, wherein Alan is still in a very good mood after the battle earlier and receiving a positive message from Manon, and talks about how he’s nostalgic for the days back at the Professor’s lab, and how they need to continue to get stronger to protect what’s important to them. So we know that Alan talks freely with Lizardon about his feelings, and also that he understands the feedback he gets in response (and sometimes doesn’t even need it verbalized; in TSME 4, after his fight with Manon, he says to Lizardon, “You look like you want to say something,” but since the next battle is about to start, Lizardon huffs, shakes his head, and turns to face the fight instead). So I think that, in this situation, he would absolutely go straight to Lizardon to talk about it, no doubt while they’re out on their flight after the dinner he had with his parents (or even like, they fly somewhere, land, and then he talks about it). They would probably have a good, long talk about it; Alan would tell Lizardon everything that had happened, and after Lizardon got over the initial surprise (he would have never even thought something like this was possible; the only parent Lizardon has ever known Alan to have is Sycamore, even if Alan doesn’t call him “Dad”), he would listen as Alan went into his personal feelings on the subject, as he talked about how conflicted he felt, how he wants to stay (and wants the Professor to adopt him, has always wanted the Professor to adopt him, wishes he could be good enough for the Professor to adopt him but knows he isn’t, especially now), but how he feels like maybe he has a responsibility to his parents to give them the chance they’re asking for, maybe he’s being selfish or cold, maybe he’s once again hurting people he has no business hurting. Maybe it’s wrong of him to stay because that puts a burden on the Professor as well, puts the lab at risk, et cetera. Maybe his parents showing up isn’t about him, but maybe it’s a way for him to stop putting the Professor at risk and leave without forcing the Professor to kick him out, since the Professor’s too good of a person to do that. Alan would think and feel all of these things, and he would talk about them with Lizardon, because Lizardon is the one he speaks most freely to about whatever it is he’s burdened with. And Lizardon would listen, but then he would give his strong, equally as blunt opinions right back, that they don’t know these people and Alan isn’t required to do anything with or for them, and hasn’t Alan already given up and sacrificed enough for other people? He’s done it constantly over the past two years, and honestly—

“It’s not like that. You make it sound like a bad thing. I was doing what was—what I thought was right.”

‘But it wasn’t.’

“No, but only because I was stupid enough to be fooled by the Director. It wasn’t wrong to protect the Professor, Manon, and everyone else. It was wrong to listen to the Director. There’s a difference.”

‘You’re not stupid, and enough sacrifice is enough—’

And so on. I think that talking to Lizardon would help a lot, and would help Alan reach a conclusion, not so much about whether it’s right or wrong to sacrifice to protect the people he loves (and Alan would point out that it’s not like Lizardon wasn’t right there by his side, so honestly Lizardon has no room to talk—and Lizardon would fire (ha) back with, well, obviously he was, what, does Alan think Lizardon is going to leave him? No, that’s never going to happen, and Lizardon is pretty sure Alan damn well knows that, and so on and so forth), but about what to do in this situation. He would still be feeling stressed out about it by the time he gets home that night, which is why he pretty much comes home, takes a shower, and then goes to bed, but talking with Lizardon definitely would have helped him get his thoughts in order, and reach a conclusion about what it is he should do—about what the Right thing to do is, even though it’s hard for him to trust himself on that now after everything that happened with Lysandre. (And given that he’s Gryffindor down to his core, the fact that the Team Flare situation has shaken his faith in his internal moral compass is extremely troubling and damaging to him. It’s part of why he needs that sounding board from Lizardon to be sure—or at least as sure as he can be—that he’s making the right decision. And even then, there’s still some doubt …)

As far as Sycamore goes, Sycamore actually wouldn’t steer him one way or the other, for two reasons. One, Alan isn’t going to be forthright about this. As we’ve seen, Sycamore typically has to work to get Alan’s feelings out of him, because Alan doesn’t want to burden him any more than he already thinks he has. If Sycamore simply asks “how are you feeling?” he gets an “I’m fine” in response. Anything beyond that is a result of gentle probing, and Sycamore setting up the situation so that they can talk about it. Alan won’t seek him out and volunteer that information as he will with Lizardon, and he won’t answer on the first try like he will with Ash. With this situation in particular, though, Sycamore feels that it’s not really his place to pry. He asked Alan how things went when Alan came back to the lab the first time (after dinner with his parents, before his flight with Lizardon), and Alan simply said things were fine before he left again. Sycamore can tell that Alan doesn’t really feel fine, and he’s concerned about that, but this is a really sensitive matter and he doesn’t want to push if Alan doesn’t feel like sharing. And that kind of hurts, and he has some doubt, and he feels like … it’s as I explained in the previous post. Sycamore feels like he should be happy for Alan, or like, if Alan has this chance to get to know his biological parents, this should theoretically be a good thing. It’s not Sycamore’s place to interfere with that. They’re Alan’s parents, this is something that he should be free to deal with on his own, however he sees fit. If Alan doesn’t want to talk to him about it, that’s … fine, it should be fine, it’s not really Sycamore’s place to feel upset. And he does feel upset, and he does want to gently probe, but then he’s worried that if he does that he’ll be crossing boundaries that he doesn’t have a right to cross. Honestly, the fact that he never officially adopted Alan is rather coming back to bite him right now, because if he had then he could pull the “well you weren’t around so I adopted him and he’s legally my son” card, but he can’t pull that card because he doesn’t have that card. Regardless, Sycamore wouldn’t press that night because he would be concerned about crossing boundaries he has no right to cross, and would also have some doubt that maybe he’s perceiving upset in Alan that isn’t really there because he’s upset—that, perhaps, he’s projecting on Alan. So he would hold back and they wouldn’t really talk much that night. (He would tell himself, though, that if Alan still seemed upset the next morning, he’d try gently poking that information out of him. He doesn’t get the chance to do that, though, since Lucia and Sebastian return first thing the next morning. Sycamore is … overjoyed at their reappearance, as I’m sure you can imagine.)

When Lucia and Sebastian come back, Sycamore forces himself to take the same stance he had the day before: It isn’t his place to interfere, it’s Alan’s right to handle this however he wants to, he doesn’t really get a say in this, can’t let his own personal feelings possibly impede on Alan’s happiness, et cetera. (Though again, all the same other concerns still apply, i.e. why have Lucia and Sebastian suddenly shown up again now, do they have ulterior motives, et cetera.) He would step out of the room as Alan handles things in the lab’s foyer, and would totally plan on not listening … but then Cosette cracks the door to listen there, and Sophie joins her, and as Sycamore gives the two of them an appalled look, Sophie is like, “I’m just a bit worried, you know … I want to make sure he’s okay.”

“I’m … I’m just nosy,” Cosette says sheepishly. “But my nosiness comes from concern, promise.” 

And Sycamore sighs, and he thinks this is probably wrong, but if Sophie and Cosette are eavesdropping … he eavesdrops, too, even as he’s aware of the little voice in the back of his mind telling him that this creates a risk of him hearing something that he really doesn’t want to.

Fortunately, though, he doesn’t—or at least, it ends up all right. Because when Sebastian asks Alan if he thought about what they said, and, “Are you ready to come home, and give our family a chance?” Sycamore’s heart drops all the way to the floor. It’s lucky he’s not actually holding anything this time, because he reflexively squeezes his fingers into fists so hard he probably would have broken whatever he was holding. He had no idea that’s what Alan’s parents had talked to him about—hadn’t thought, or considered … though even as he stands there, numb with shock and upset, he knows he probably should have realized it. But he hadn’t, and now they’re here, and—

“I have—I did think about it,” Alan says, and his voice is quiet, steady. “And my answer is no. I can’t. I’m not who you think I am—who you want me to be.”

“What do you mean?” Lucia asks, confused, as the sudden tension Sycamore had felt melts into relief. “Baby, we’re sure you’re our son—positive. If you’re doubtful, we can get a DNA test—”

“It’s not that,” Alan says. He isn’t looking at them. He’s be staring at the floor instead, his own hands fists in the pockets of his lab coat. He takes a deep breath before he speaks again. “I’m sure that, biologically, you are my parents. We share enough physical similarities for that to be obvious. A DNA test isn’t necessary.”

“Then—”

“Are you familiar with the many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics?”

Lucia and Sebastian are both perplexed by this seemingly sudden subject change, and on the other side of the door, Sycamore, Sophie, and Cosette all exchange looks as well.

“Um … not especially,” Sebastian says. (Before he can help himself, Sycamore thinks a petty thought about how no, of course he isn’t—and then immediately feels bad for thinking something so petty and spiteful. Not everyone is a scientist, after all, and that’s not a bad thing—that’s not something that should be held against Sebastian, and isn’t something Sycamore would even ordinarily hold against him, but the circumstances being what they are …)

“The many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics is a metaphysical theory that postulates that an infinite number of alternate timelines and dimensions coexist with our own, usually explained by the asserted existence of the universal wavefunction. Generally, the alternate timelines and dimensions speculated about when considering the many-worlds interpretation are alternate timelines and dimensions that spawned off from events that could have happened in our past, but didn’t. For instance, if you were driving down a road and came to an intersection where you had to take either a right or a left. If you chose to turn right, that would create a timeline—or dimension, depending on how you looked at it—where you turned left, running parallel to the timeline or dimension you created when you turned right instead.” Alan pauses, then asks, “Does this make sense so far?”

“I … suppose,” Sebastian says.

“But I don’t see … what does this have to do with you thinking you’re not our son?” Lucia asks.

Instead of answering directly, Alan takes another second to collect himself and then says, “Sometimes the branching timelines or dimensions don’t have very much difference between them. In some cases, maybe they even look identical. But in others, maybe they’re very different. Maybe the you that exists in the world where you took a left turn isn’t very different from the you that exists right now. But maybe there’s another dimension out there where you made a much more drastic choice. Maybe the you in that timeline … is very different from the you that’s standing here right now.”

“I … maybe, but—”

“I’m not Liam.” Finally, he looks up at them—secures and maintains eye contact as he continues. “Maybe I am, in a different timeline, in another dimension. If there really is an infinite number of dimensions, as the many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics and reports of legendary pokémon such as Hoopa seem to suggest, then maybe there is one where you didn’t leave me in the forest that day—where you chose to raise me instead. In that timeline, in that dimension, I’m Liam. But we’re not in that timeline, or that dimension. We’re here. And in this one, I’m not Liam. I’m not—I can’t be the son you want me to be. I’m sorry.”

They would try to argue, I think. They’re not really understanding his perspective on this, where he’s coming from, and I think they would try to argue or reason out that they don’t have preconceptions of who he should be, that they want to get to know him, as he is now, and that although they made the wrong choice in giving him up—that Lucia especially made the wrong choice by abandoning him on that rock—that doesn’t in any way prevent them from loving him now, they promise. They’re fine with calling him Alan, they can accept that, and they don’t have any set idea on how they want him to behave, other than as himself.

But he would stand firm on it. He would point out that whether they realize it or not, they have built an image of him up in their heads. They don’t really know him, they know an idea of him, and that would affect how they interact with one another, whether they want it to or not. And aside from that—

“I can’t see you as my parents. Biologically, I know you are,” he adds quickly, as Lucia opens her mouth. “But I’ve never known a mother, and when I look at you, I still don’t see one. All I see is a stranger. And when I close my eyes and think of my father,” he looks at Sebastian as he says, “yours is not the face I see.” 

And that hurts. It cuts deep. Lucia even starts to cry a little, though she does her best to hold it back (she’s never been an open crier). Alan notices, and he feels bad about it—it’s not like he likes making people cry, or hurting them—but not only is it true, but they weren’t accepting his first answer. They kept arguing it. And he’s starting to feel uncomfortable, anxious, because he just wants them to accept his answer and leave, and yet they’ve persisted—

Sebastian, I think, would be the first one to give in, and probably would right then. He’d probably say something like, okay. He—they understand. They won’t push anymore, but if Alan wants, he knows where to find them. They can stay in touch, maybe take things slow, that sort of thing. Lucia would want to keep talking about it—she has that same dragon clan determination that runs through Alan’s own soul, he got that part of his nature from her—but Sebastian would take her hand and gently tug her toward the door. Continuing to push him won’t do any good, and I think Sebastian would know that. Or at the very least, he’s hurt, and not happy with this answer, and so he has this odd mix of wounded pride and feelings that tends to make him retreat and sulk for a while before trying again. Lucia, while still not wanting to give in, would be able to notice that Alan seems a bit relieved by this, and that would make her back down. She’s not happy about it at all, and probably reaches out as if to grab or hug him or something, but Alan makes no move to hug either of them—he stays rooted to the spot—and that clues her in, too, to the fact that it’s not happening. So the two of them leave, and Alan feels … not happy, but relieved, although not … in a really positive way. It’s an odd feeling, where he’s glad it’s over, but that feeling doesn’t translate to happiness. It’s more of a subdued, melancholic sort of feeling.

He wonders, vaguely, if Liam is happy in whatever dimension he exists in.

But there’s no point in dwelling on it (even though he’s going to anyway), and so he probably leaves the foyer then to go out to the garden to tell Lizardon what happened. Meanwhile, remember that Sycamore eavesdropped on all of this, and while there is a part of him that is inwardly beaming at how clever Alan is at utilizing the many-worlds interpretation to express his reasoning, there’s a bigger part of him that’s just sort of … warm and fuzzy at the implication he’s pretty sure he picked up on in the last part of what Alan said, that he’s the person Alan thinks of whenever Alan thinks of his father. True, Sycamore has always thought that it was obvious and didn’t need to be said that he and Alan are family, that Alan is his son and that is that, that things are fine the way they are because this is just an unspoken understanding they both share. But something else entirely to actually hear it, and that … well. It’s a good something else. (Of course, he can’t really say anything about it because that will reveal that he, Sophie, and Cosette eavesdropped on the whole thing, so …)

Anyway, that’s how I imagine that falling out. It would probably be a while before either Lucia or Sebastian tried to contact Alan again, though of course they would hear when he became the new Kalos Champion (and would feel a sort of pride, though also a strong pang of awareness that they had no part in raising him, no real part in how he became the person he is today). I’m not entirely sure how subsequent meetings would go, though I do know that they, at least, would still consider him to be their son, even though he does not feel that they are truly his parents. (Like, biologically, yes. But in every other way, no.)

Thanks for asking!! ♥

[sage-nebula]

kcgane replied to your post “ME: [sees that someone is interested in the XY&Z anime because of...”

*tuck and rolls into the Scene* i saw alan on your blog and then i just Knew immediately he is 10000% the type of character i am going to just love and want to talk about and get to know better sO

(Let’s try this again, hahaha)

YEAAAH, DUDE, and I know exactly what you mean!! A very similar thing happened for me (albeit in reverse) with Keith!

I watched Voltron for the first time a couple months ago (I think back in March?) on a whim because Netflix was like “try iiiiit” and I was like “okay” since I didn’t have anything else I was watching at the time. I had already loved Alan for months by this point (I think it’s perhaps almost been a year by now? Getting close, anyway), so I already held super deep affection for him, and I knew pretty much nothing about the show save for fanart that I saw here or there on my dash. Like, I knew it had to do with space, and a giant robot, and that’s about it. But when Keith appeared on his hoverbike to save Shiro in the first episode, my heart jumped in my chest and I was like, “That’s him. I found him. I found the boy.” I knew right away that hew as going to end up being my fave, and whAT DO YOU KNOW, I WAS RIGHT, HE’S AMAZING!

And that said! Alan and Keith actually have quite a few similarities between them, physical similarities aside! They’re each their own character, of course, but they have quite a lot in common in terms of personality, so I really think you’ll like (and perhaps even love<3) Alan as well!!

Anyway, just in case you’re interested, I’m gonna go ahead and draw up a quick episode list for you. :D You’re of course free to watch the entire Kalos series and I’m not going to discourage you, but although Alan is both protagonist and deuteragonist to the main plot that covers the climax of the saga (it’s complicated---basically, they wrote him into the protagonist role, realized once they hit the climax that they still had to account for Ash being the protagonist of the show, and so Alan and Ash flip-flop between protagonist and deuteragonist and it’s a bit of a mess), he only appears in a handful of main series episodes. His biggest part comes in a series of four special episodes called The Strongest Mega Evolution, which is where you really want to start, because that’s where you get his backstory and everything. (Plus, he’s unequivocally the protagonist there---Ash doesn’t appear at all, save for a very brief mention in TSME 1!)

So, if you’re here for Alan’s story, here are the specials / episodes you’re going to want to watch, in order:

The Strongest Mega Evolution --- Act I

The Strongest Mega Evolution --- Act II

The Strongest Mega Evolution --- Act III

The Strongest Mega Evolution --- Act IV

XY068 (“The Coveted Mega Evolution! Garchomp’s Bonds!!”) --- Alan doesn’t actually appear in person in this one. However, this one is still important to his story, imo, as you see more of his relationship with Professor Sycamore in it (particularly in flashbacks Professor Sycamore has midway through the episode, which show shots of Alan’s childhood at the lab), and Professor Sycamore is pretty much his (unofficially) adoptive father. (Like, it’s kind of hilarious in the best way, but if you Google them there are numerous results of people being like “they’re father and son yes????” from various different websites, and when the episodes were airing people on YouTube kept being like “I keep expecting a plot twist where it’s revealed Sycamore is his father.” It’s one of the greatest unspoken truths of the Pokémon universe tbh.) Also, the end of the episode features Sycamore making one of the most suggestive come-ons to another character that you could imagine, so honestly, although the whole episode is good (and, as I said, does provide important material for Sycamore’s relationship with Alan!), if nothing else, that moment there at the end is #iconic and worth seeing at least once.

XYZ013 (“The Strongest Mega Battle! Greninja vs. Mega Charizard!”) --- This is Alan’s first official appearance in the main series! Though the episode itself is still largely focusing on Ash, I find that it’s notable because this does switch over to Alan’s perspective more than once. Again, the whole “they’re both protagonist and deuteragonist” thing begins here. 

XYZ014 (“The Explosive Ground Force! The Zygarde Capture Operation!!”)

XYZ023 (“Ash and Alan! Greninja vs. Mega Charizard Once Again!!”)

XYZ030 (“Find Carbink! Goodra and Dedenne!!”) --- Alan actually appears at the end of this episode. It’s a noteworthy appearance, I feel, not only because it shows him getting something he needs to participate in the climax at the end (trying to be vague to avoid spoilers, haha), but it also shows his motivation for doing so, which was insinuated before but outright stated here. This is an added motivation that he only gets after the other main series episodes (and in particular, after meeting and interacting with Ash<3), so I think it’s important to see, even if it’s just a scene at the end of the episode.

XYZ032 (“The Kalos League Begins! The Mega Charizard Showdown: X vs Y!!”) --- XYZ044 (“Starting From Zero! Clemont’s Decision!!) --- Once you hit XYZ032, you can pretty much watch straight through XYZ044, since Alan appears in just about every single episode (and this is the climax of the plot that began in TSME). There are two episodes in the middle that don’t have much to do with Alan (XYZ034 and XYZ035) because they’re Ash’s League battle with his standard rival, so you can skip those if you want, but I don’t think it would hurt to watch them, either. It’s a good battle. With that said, I should add a disclaimer: Technically Alan does appear in a couple episodes after XYZ044 (XYZ045 and XYZ047, to be specific). However, I personally really do not like them (understatement) because the writers essentially took all of the very real traumas and mental health issues Alan has as a result of everything (you’ll see) and swept them under the rug in order to push a theme there at the end. This, despite giving him what is (in my opinion) the perfect ending for him in XYZ044. So honestly, you could just stop after XYZ044, and pull a Nick Fury and disregard the rest of the nonsense they did with him after that (you know, “I recognize that the council has made a decision, but seeing that it’s a stupid-ass decision, I’ve elected to ignore it”), as I’m doing, but I’ll be honest and admit that those episodes do exist. They’re terrible (at least in regards to what they do to Alan), but they do exist. I just don’t recommend bothering with them, haha.

Oh, and a note of clarification: Technically the Kalos saga was split into two “series.” XY is the first series, and then XY&Z is the second. They’re a direct continuation of each other, so there’s no real change, it’s just that Japan decided to switch up the name of the show partway through. (They do this a lot with the PokéAni, haha.) So that’s why you go from XY068 to XYZ013. I included the episode names so that you could be extra sure of the episodes you need to watch. (Also, if you use a streaming site, be careful: Some of the streaming sites have the order a bit messed up, so you’ll always want to trust the title card in the actual video more than episode blurbs on the website!)

Also! One final thing: Please watch this in Japanese with English subs! The English dub is really bad, and offensively bad in Alan’s case. They literally cast someone who had no prior credited voice acting experience (and sounds like he’s an adult at that, when Alan is a teenager---like, ~15), and it shows. Not to mention that they change the music in the worst ways at times and just . . . ugh. Please don’t go with the English dub on this one. Watch it in Japanese with English subs. You won’t regret it, I promise.

Anyway! This post is long enough as it is, but I’m really excited you’re interested!! (And a bit nervous, haha. He means so much to me that I can’t help but feel a bit anxious whenever I see someone is discovering his story for the first time!) I also, if you’re interested---and not to push my own work or anything, but---have a couple of pre-canon fics that you can read if you want. I can link them to you, since you don’t have to have seen his story first to understand them (since they’re pre-canon, and all). But that’s completely up to you! (I also have a ton of others since I’ve been super invested in him for a long time, but . . . those are probably better with context since they’re during canon / post-canon / AU, hahaha.)

ANYWAY, I’ll stop rambling on now. 8D Let me know if you have any questions!!