#I'm a reflection of the community.

[blackstarlineage]

"I'm a reflection of the community."

Tupac Shakur

[idontmindifuforgetme]

lived my whole life in guilt bc i thought i was responsible for people's feelings. newly realizing that other people are responsible for their feelings and reactions, even if they make it seem like i'm the problem. a lot of the time it really has to do w them and their own emotional regulation. i can't keep thinking i'm not allowed to have space bc of other people's insecurities. like i literally refuse to dim myself. other people are responsible for their feelings just as i'm responsible for mine.

[tea-cat-arts]

I simply think this fandom doesn't give Wei Wuxian enough credit for the various ways in which he saved Lan Wangji

[divinish-comedy]

"He was a defense attorney without peer. It sounds trite, but it's true. Well, he may have had one peer now that I think about it. Your mentor, Mia Fey"

[deiaiko]

#24.3 Hatz vs Grace

"Hatz, can you teach me how to wield a sword?"

Hatz recalled a conversation he had with Grace from a few years back. 

"Why?"

"I want to learn swordsmanship. And you seemed to be the best person to ask."

It had surprised him greatly then. After all, he knew that Grace was registered in the wave controller class. And it was a really hard favor to refuse, especially because he took pride in his swordsmanship, and it would be an honor to teach his friend.

Hatz let the memory fade into the present. He adjusted his grip on the wooden training sword that Agni's team had prepared, and took a deep breath to steady himself. 

In front of him, Grace mimicked his move. His form still needed some improvement, but it looked firmer than his first time learning.

"Five minutes. Start!" Dan cheered as he dropped the previously used wrinkled paper from his hand. It hit the ground rather uselessly as none of them took their chance to lunge forward.

Hatz walked carefully to his right, circling Grace. He wasn't sure if he should attack first or wait until Grace made his move.

Everything about Grace was confusing. He offered a hand and befriended him and spent a good amount of time getting to know everyone, but he left without saying goodbye. He knew a lot about the tower, but he didn't know how to play basic card games. He was a pacifist who wouldn't unsheathe his sword at the slightest conflict like Hatz did, but he decided to join FUG, which was the most dangerous criminal syndicate in the Tower. On top of it all, Hatz was still worried about whatever had happened to Grace a few days ago, yet Grace acted like it never happened.

Grace followed his pace and kept their distance, so Hatz decided to make the first move. He let some of his frustration out with the strike, giving it enough force to let Grace know how worried he had made him be for the past years.

However, Grace blocked it rather effortlessly. Just like how his feelings for Grace had never mattered to begin with.

Hatz gritted his teeth. With one smooth motion, he twisted his sword and aimed for another more powerful strike.

If it were a real sword, perhaps it would've cut Grace's palm, with the way he stopped the blade with his bare hands.

Grace let the sword go like it was molten hot. "Ah, oops. Reflex."

Hatz felt a smile tugging at his lips. It was the time like this that reminded Hatz, that Grace wasn't born a swordsman, just like how he wasn't born a wave controller.

There were just things that Grace did in his own way, whether purposely or not. Whether he was or wasn't aware of how his actions would affect others, both good and bad.

"To block that move, I suggest twisting your sword like this." Hatz angled Grace's hand to the image he had in mind, and rehearsed his previous move to make his point. "It'd allow you to block with minimal effort, and be able to prepare yourself for a follow up move."

"Oh that's smart. I'll remember that. Thank you." Grace sounded genuinely impressed that it filled Hatz with pride.

"I thought this was a match! Not a sword training session!" The princess booed from the audience seat.

Some chuckles and cheering could be heard afterward, and they resumed their match.

Hatz realized that Grace still remembered the lessons that he had taught him way back then. And not without improvement too, which proved that he had been practicing now and then.

While it neither solved any mystery regarding Grace nor eased his worry, just knowing that Grace took his teaching seriously had lifted a lot of weight off his heart. Because it showed that Grace cared about the thing that mattered to Hatz, and it made Hatz feel like he was worth something to his dear friend.

The match later ended with a draw, to the majority's prediction.

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[jessicas-pi]

y'all got me all hyped to do more merfolk AU art so I finished the Love's Lights scene

[charmwasjess]

It's funny, I've been a writer my whole life, I do it for work, for my art, and just for fun here in this space. But I still occasionally get those off days where it's like, dang what if my cake isn't that good? what if it should be a totally different flavor than the kind I like to bake?

And actually, it's really nice to realize I'm not so entirely controlled by that feeling the way I was when I was much younger. But also, maybe it never goes away entirely? So much of writing is an ongoing conversation with yourself. Almost competition with your own ability, one of those sports like swimming or running where so much is a head game. I'm a distance runner, and so maybe that's why the comparison feels so easy: the fear of plateauing, recovery from injury, making yourself practice the same thing again and again until you get better.

Writing stories has its own set of challenges for me because I am not a fiction writer by nature or training at all, I'm a poet and an essayist. I still remember one of the better-regarded writer professors of mine who had me for a mandatory fiction course for my degree, telling me laughingly afterward "I heard you were good so I was so confused when I had you in my class - just don't EVER write fiction" - criticism/advice I have clearly not followed! And at the same time, I think that's part of why I write fiction for fun, because I don't have to be the best - it's joyful to me and a space to play and be vulnerable. But then, being vulnerable?! :o Looping back around to the risk and uncomfortable self-assessment.

I guess I'm not really going anywhere with this - just appreciating how much of it is a process, and how it never gets stale, even doing it for a long time. You start over again a lot, but it's never boring. And I hate being bored.

[arttsuka]

One thing I can't stand about lgbtq media (the ones where there are canon lgbtq characters) is how a a lot of the time, people in the fandom don't want to allow valid critisism. They always use the 'this is a queer show' and 'you're just hating because these characters are gay' and 'gay relationships are complicated, you just don't understand'. They use the characters and their sexualities as a shield to stop critisism.

Saying something is bad and providing evidence and references to support your opinion isn't you being an awful human or homophobic. I'd argue that it's worse to excuse everything just because a show or movie has queer characters.

Not everything you like has to be perfect. You can still like something even if you know it's objectively bad. Let other people enjoy what they like too, even if that is them explaining why they don't like something. Policing what other people like or dislike is just toxic and it turns people away from fandom spaces, creates a negative environment and reputation.

[aprilblossomgirl]

Dangerous Romance (2023) Episode 8

Dir. Lit Phadung Samajarn & Toh Worawut Thanamatchaicharoen

I actually thought you had changed. Turns out, you're still the same spoiled rich kid. I was wrong. I guess I put too much trust in you. So, I've always been a jerk in your eyes, right? Hey. Me wearing this makes you tear up? What? No! I’m just happy. Did I really make it? I’m not just a spoiled rich kid anymore, right? Um. You’re not. You’re one hella talented rich kid. The most talented one in my eyes.

[bacchuschucklefuck]

the never stop blowing up vhs is where cute twinks go to get harmed

[specialagentartemis]

my dissertation writing support class is great because some days it is useful information about how to format your dissertation and some days it is painful but necessary writing accountability and some days it is the most frustrating waste of time ever and there is no way to predict what each week will be

[fenanera]

barely awake & i am haunted by the bold lined commonalities between solas, the inquisitor, & now rook, fashioned out of innate rebellious nature & made to withstand challenge, question, cataclysm, the list goes on. i am stuck here thinking about solas reflecting on how similar his dynamic with rook is to one he possibly had with mythal (towards the end) - did he stand on some ledge with her, battling her with pleas for common sense as rook did with solas ? did the followers of his rebellion look at him with the same hesitant faith that thedas had for the inquisitor ? the same unsurety, hinging on evidence that power often corrupts the good intentioned, having to constantly prove oneself better than tyrants without falling into the same trap. solas the mirror is right in front of you.

[momo-t-daye]

Momo's Snapedom AU Ask Game!

I do love how the Snapedom has folks who write extensive meta with citations and how the Snapedom has oodles of people making a delightful diversity of AUs that gnaw on the bones of the canon narrative skeleton to cook up a more satisfying story-soup! So I thought it might be fun to put together a few questions for an ask game (after all, the fun part of fandom is interacting with other fans):

Do you have a name and/or a tag and/or a master post for your AU (so I can peruse your blog and admire your creativity)?

What is the premise of your AU (one sentence summary, tropes, your big “What-if” question, etc.!)?

Can you describe your AU badly?  (Because I do love hilariously misleading but not actually inaccurate descriptions of stories)

What your favorite thing about your AU? (Does it make you cackle with glee or do you break your own heart?)

What are the major divergence points in your AU?

Is there any part of the canon narrative you really like to build off of or interrogate with your AU?

Are there themes or motifs or specific concepts in your AU that you hope people will notice?  (Do you want to give hints about your masterful foreshadowing or chat about your extensive world building?  Should we all grab a floriography dictionary when flowers are mentioned?)

What are some key life moments in your AU!Snape’s life that differ from canon!Snape’s life?

How and why does your AU!Snape differ from the canon!Snape?

Would your AU!Snape want to trade places with canon!Snape (and vice versa!)? Why?

Do you know if Severus going to escape the gravitational pull of the canon narrative/fate in your AU?

Do you think any other characters are going to escape the gravitational pull of their canon narrative/fate in your AU?  If so, can any of that extra AU!velocity be attributed to Severus’ actions?

What era does your AU primarily take place in (is it focused on part of the canon timeline? Is the canon timeline adjusted a few years one way or another? Or are you playing with a futuristic sci-fi AU or a historical AU or something else entirely?  Maybe you have a 1998!Snape dealing with life in 1942 or some other combination?)

What is his childhood and/or family life like in your AU?  Is it better than his canon life starting out in Cokeworth?

Does Lily exist in your AU?  Are Severus and Lily friends in your AU?

Do any of the Marauders exist in your AU?  What role do they play in your AU Severus’ life?

Do the Malfoys exist in your AU?  How do they interact with your version of Severus?

Does Voldemort exist in your AU?  Does Severus join his cause at any point in your AU?

Does Dumbledore exist in your AU?  What role does he play in Severus’ life in your AU?

Does Harry Potter exist in your AU?  How does he interact with Severus in your AU?

Is there another canon character that plays a major role in your AU!Snape’s life?  What role do they play and how does it differ from their canon relationship with Snape?

Is an Original Character a major feature and player in your AU?  Who are they? What role do they play AU!Severus’ life?  How do they interact with any other canon characters in your story?

Does Severus have a significant other (or others) in your AU?

Does Severus have children in your AU?

Is Severus Snape the Hogwarts Potions Master in your AU?  If not, what is he doing instead?

Does Severus have any major interests (mycology, astronomy, sci-fi, baking elaborate puff pastries, art forgery, etc.) in your AU that we never got to see canon!Snape indulge in?  Do these interests play a major narrative role?

Do you have a snippet of prose (or an art piece or a list of headcanons) from your AU that you particularly enjoy and want to share?

Free space!  Any other questions folks want to ask?

[eddieisashifter]

any other shifters feel a sense of anxiety about talking about their drs online?

not because of cringe, but because you worry that people might judge you for what sides you pick?

like...I know the people I'm shifting for aren't good...I don't care??? Mind your business???

[notbroadwaybound]

well, this has been a depressing night so far

[milfbrainrot]

.

I feel like in the past the mix of this site being used for both activism and fandom helped contribute to a lot of unhinged politicized fandom discourse where yeah ofc there's a political tie to media but ppl used it as... a form of activism where it was given disproportionate importance compared to other activism discussions? Whereas now we're swinging to the opposite site of How Dare You Care About Meaningless TV Shows When Politics.

Like... we can have a mix of realizing there's more important stuff to focus on than shipping discourse in the world at large without also minimizing the insane doxxing and death threats behavior going on in fandom that people in fandom have to take into consideration to be able to do their hobby, esp given how those attitudes stem from irl political climates at times in ways that are telling to study. Hobbies are kinda how we prevent activism burnout also. Crazey how that works.