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#“Don't use me against my people again. I can't do that again”
artsekey · 2 days
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I really hate how ads have taken over the internet. On one hand, I know that hosting a website costs money, right? And ad revenue is one of the simplest ways for free-to-use websites to cover their operating costs.
My question is-- and I would genuinely love an answer-- is this ever going to stop? Tumblr ran for a long time without ads. So did Youtube. I know that the cost of hosting so much media has gone up, but there are a lot of users on these websites that make the content that drives people to use the service that don't see any of the money generated by this revenue. On Youtube, there's at least a way for creators to make some money from what they do. For most, it isn't much, but the opportunity is there. On Tumblr, well... the ability to convert the visibility of my blog into any financial gain practically nonexistent, though they did at one point promise that users would be able to make money from ads run on their blogs (whatever happened to that, Staff?).
"You can pay to avoid seeing ads!" Tumblr says, as if the views on my main blog alone over the past few years have not generated more than enough ad revenue to cover the price they're asking me to pay, the person who is actively making content that brings eyes to their ads.
I'm not mad at Tumblr for hosting ads. I get that it has to happen because it's the easiest way to keep the site free, and honestly, I imagine Tumblr's staunch opposition to monetization has been a real obstacle for the team building Tumblr. But at the same time, it feels like yet another small concession in the usability of the site. I'm tired of ads that auto-play with blaring audio while I'm scrolling. I'm tired of adds that, if I touch them while trying to scroll past them, take me to an external site. Outside of tumblr, I'm tired of looking for information online only to get a webpage that's 95% ads and otherwise illegible. Hell, I recently got an ad on Discord. Was it unobtrusive? Maybe. But it was there, for the first time, and I know that won't be the end.
I know the first reply I'm going to get on this is "use adblock", and yes, that's a solution, but think about how much the landscape for media has changed in just ten years.
Popular forums are basically gone outside of reddit.
Youtube, without Red, is ad hell. You can't watch more than 3-4 minutes of video without getting sent to marketing hell.
Instagram, Tumblr, Twitter-- it's terrible. I firmly believe they've manufactured a worse experience through the implementation of ads to convince you to buy into their premium services.
Just Check out this video of Penguinz0 trying to watch a video on a third-party site.
There's discussion of putting ads into video games.
Remember when games didn't include micro-transactions? Blizzard is charging $70 for one mythic skin. You could almost buy Overwatch 1 twice-over at that price-point.
Influencers make a living by making their lives into advertisements.
Youtube has retaliated against users using ad-block on non-chrome browsers by artificially inflating the load times of it's videos.
What can we do about this? I imagine companies see it as an infinite money hack; users can't stop companies from hosting ads, and the action they could take to voice their displeasure-- leaving the site, using other competitive services-- has been all but obliterated thanks to the homogeneity of popular social media outlets. If someone is truly so incensed about ads, well-- it isn't like they have to engage with them, right? They can enroll in a cheap, auto-renewing service to get rid of ads entirely. Well, wait, the price of premium might just have to go up. Don't worry, it's auto-renewing! You won't even notice it. Oh, no, it's got to go up again, you won't even notice it.
There's no incentive for them to cap this behavior, and no way for us as users to pressure them to do so. We create these spaces; we fill them with color, art, activism, community, and the companies that ride on the tailcoat of the spaces we create tell us to give them more. What comes next?
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An Animalistic Disaster
CH-19 : A Deer Vs Wolves
Masterlist
Summery :Where you get your ass saved from being almost killed.
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*Some time after you left*
Alastor and Niffty was sitting outside the cabin, lazily enjoying each others company. Niffty had turned into a human and leaned against Alastor's body. Alastor, even though he hated dogs,he has learned to at least tolerate Niffty's presence. That doesn't mean he allowed her to stay close to him in her full dog form. That form irked him.
"Hey Alastor.." Niffty finally broke the silence. "Do you think you'll ever transform?"
'Of course I will. Why would you doubt that?'
"Because what if you don't like (Y/n) ever? You need to like her so you can be human again."
Alastor scoffed and looked away. ' Don't you worry your little head about it. I will find a way somehow. I am the radio demon after all.'
Niffty still wasn't convinced as she looked into the distance again. "You know, she's likes you a lot! We talk about you sometimes."
That got his attention. He turned his head towards Niffty again. 'What did you guys talk about? It better not be something to tarnish my reputation my dear!'
" That's girl's talk silly. I can't tell you that! " Niffty chuckled with both hands covering her mouth. Alastor rolled his eyes at such a display ."But I can tell that she really likes you."
'We know that already. That isn't something new. I'm used to ladies fawning over me.' Alastor thought back to his time as a human in the 19's. Indeed, despite his colour back then, women would throw themselves at him nonchalantly. It was both a blessing and a curse for him. Blessing since it helped his popularity grow, curse since he hated those type of contacts. This lowered a lot after he became an overlord. People were far to afraid to approach him then.
"Yes but she's different. She might like you but she'll never push herself onto you. You're rumoured to be asexual and she respects that."
'I'm a what now?'
"Asexual!" Niffty repeated herself. "Don't you know what it is?"
'I'm afraid not dear. Is it one of those modern slangs?'
"Of course not! Let me explain what it is then."
And thus Niffty spent almost an hour and a half explaining different types of sexualities to him, including asexuality. It took a lot of tries to get Alastor to properly understand the concept.
' So you mean to say, that it's normal to not want to engage in such activities? My, all this time I thought I just hadn't found the right girl for me to have those desires. Or worse, there was something wrong with me...' Alastor's smile faltered a bit. It was crazy how times had changed. Normally he didn't like such changes but this was one of the better ones.
'Of course, not that I mind about having something wrong within me. Haha! I am a serial killer after all.' His smile came back as quickly as it disappeared, not wanting to seem vulnerable in front of someone. He supposed he could admire your respect about his boundaries too. Unlike those other girls in his past, you actually cared to make him comfortable, no matter how much you liked him. It made him feel a bit....warm inside.
He spent the next few hours just chatting with Niffty. As sun began to set, Vaggie came over to the pair.
"Hey, (Y/n) hasn't returned yet. It's already getting late. She said she'd be back before sunset. Have any of you guys seen her?"
Niffty and Alastor looked at each other and shook their head. "No...we haven't. We've just been chatting here all afternoon." Vaggie sighed, worry immenent in her face. "I see... sorry for bothering you then."
As Vaggie went back to the cabin, she couldn't help but think about what might have happened to you. You were an adult human. You could handle a night out yourself. Still worries begun to rush in one after another.
"Alastor...you don't think something happened to her do you?" Before Alastor could reply, a howl broke through the night. Both Niffty and Alastor's ears perked up. A blue light caught in the corner of their eyes. Whipping their head towards it, they strangely found a bright blue butterfly that was seemingly glowing in the dark.
Just like you before, they couldn't help but follow it. It felt like it was the right course of action. Though they couldn't tell why. They began to chase after the butterfly at full speed as it was rushing through the forest. Niffty had already transformed into her dog form to run faster.
Soon Niffty picked up scent of something. It was blood. There a familiar scent with it. Your scent.
Niffty's eyes widened with the realization as she shouted at Alastor to let him know. Soon enough, they were able to hear faint growls, snarls from distant. What really made their heart almost stop was the low moaning of you.
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You tried. You really tried to hold on by yourself as long as you could while trying to find find a way to escape. You picked up a nearby branch you found to defend against this horde of wolf that were dead set on eating you.
But there were only much you can do. After some time, you were bleeding all over, barely standing. A wolf's claw teared a big slash on your back. Another one almost teared your leg off before you gave it a good punch. There were small scratchs and bite marks all over. The blood coming out from all over your body was starting to harden on your clothes.
It was hurting to stand already as your body reached it's limit. You collapsed on your knees as the bloody branch you were holding fell down with a thud. You couldn't do this, not anymore. It all hurt too much. You felt tears pricking at your eyes as you thought of your inevitable death. Would there even be anything left of your body after these wolves finished eating you? How much would it...hurt?
A wolf jumped on you, teeths bared to finally consume your sweet flesh. It's teeth were only a few inches above your face as you closed you eyes. Suddenly something small but fierce jumped onto its neck from a side and bit onto it, pushing it to the ground. A sickening crunch followed soon after.
You opened your eyes warrily a little. Your vision was still blurry so you couldn't see clearly. Judging by the sound of the small thing...it was probably a dog. It looked back at you and transformed.
"(Y/n)!.......okay?? We'll...out..here.."
You couldn't hear her words clearly. You saw a big black figure rush through and stand in front of you protectively while facing the wolfs. Did they come to protect you? If so, you could rest a little right? You finally collapsed and shut your eyes.
Your head fell down on Niffty's lap as she shook you to keep you awake. 'Niffty my dear! Focus on protecting (Y/n) and getting her back to the cabin. I'll deal with the wolves!'
Alastor shouted out while looking forward at the canines. It was clear the wolves remembered him just as he did, increasing their anger tenfold. His consciousness was shouting at him to run. He doesn't need to do this. You weren't worth risking his life for. But against his better judgement he was still standing here, between you and these vicious animals.
One of the wolfs lunged forward as he quickly moved out of the way and pierced it with his antlers. But another one quickly followed and bit behind him. He kicked it off him as fresh trail of blood flew from his body.
"Alastor! Her conditions getting worse!" Niffty said screaming. "She'll die if we don't do something about it!"
Alastor knew that already. Niffty didn't have to spell it out for him to know how dire your situation is. He only gritted his teeth. No matter how much he thought, he couldn't think of a way out. It seemed like you understood that as well.
"L..eave..me..go.."
You choked out with the last of your breath before blacking out. Alastor pulled his ears back. You remained ever the good girl till your last drop of consciousness. Always sacrificing yourself for others sake. How admiring....
It's not like that thought didn't cross his mind. Leaving you here should be the wise course of action here. Yet why did did he feel so....bad? Is it because he lived with you all this time? Or when he saw how careful you are with touching him when you were stitching? Or the things Niffty told him about you this afternoon? He wasn't sure. He knew if he returned without you, everyone would shun him out.
"Haha...." He chuckled bitterly at himself. Perhaps you have began to make an effect on him. Whatever happens, he decided,
He was going to stay by your side.
Golden light shone brightly along his body, blinding the wolves that were about to approach him. Alastor looked at his hands. "Finally... about time..."
Suddenly a familiar blue light shone in the corner of Niffty's eyes. Turning her head towards it she saw the butterfly again. It was sitting on top of a carcass. Wait no, it was sitting on top of a handle. A handle that sparkled brightly from the moonlight radiating of it now. It was (Y/n)'s knife, Niffty recognised.
Looking around, when she saw no wolves close by she chased to it. The butterfly flew away again into the distance as she arrived. Niffty picked up the knife in a swift motion. "Alastor! Catch!"
Alastor eye's darted towards Niffty's voice that wasn't behind him anymore. He was about to scold her for leaving you alone but held his tongue when he saw the sparkle of a knife shine in her hands before she threw it at him. He caught it effortlessly in his right hand. As soon as she threw it, she ran back to you and scratched at a wolf that was threatening to come too close for comfort while growling.
Alastor was bleeding from his forehead and multiple gashes from all over his body. But he felt newfound strength flow through him as soon as he held the knife. Ah, he missed this, this thrill of the hunt. He had a crazed expression on his face as he looked over at the wolves standing before him now. The ears on his head perked up as it sensed a wolf coming in closer. Just as it launched he moved out of the way and cut a big slash across it's neck and kicked it away. The wolf's now limp and dead body fell onto the ground beside you and Niffty.
"Come on, it's time to play, puppies..."
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On the other hand, everyone was worried sick at the cabin. Angel found the bag you left at the edge of the forest and brought it home.
"What if something bad happened to her... Vaggie I'm scared!"
"Clam down toots! I'm sure she's fine.... probably..." Angel looked away, not being convinced by his very own statement.
"We cannot find Alastor and Niffty either. If Niffty was here, maybe she could have sniffed (Y/n) out." Pentious pointed at his nose. Husk took a gulp of orange juice you had since alcohol was gone. You really needed to stock up on some alcohol.
"What if we all go find 'er?" Cherri proposed. "She should be around somewhere here right? Since her bag was found close, she should be close as well."
"We... could do that...but what if we get lost? It'll take forever for everyone to get back together again." Vaggie looked at everyone present. "But it'll be our last choice, if she or Alastor or Niffty doesn't come back within half an hour. We're going out."
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The fight was going much better then before. Alastor easily transformed between deer and human befitting of the situation. He could stab a wolf with a knife and then toss it in the air and kick another in its shin after transforming. Then again collect the knife after becoming human. It was fun.
But this couldn't go on forever. He knew that from the fatigue coursing through his body. He had to end this quickly while the adrenaline was still present. After some more slashes and stomps, he remained the only one standing in a field of fresh corpses.
He didn't have time to celebrate his victory. As soon as the last wolf was down, he quickly returned to you. The black stripes of his dress has been painted red with both his blood and the animals. He crouched down to inspect your pulse. It was weak, but you still had it. Alastor let out a breath that he didn't know he was holding.
Alastor put the knife away in his pocket. He softly picked you up in his arms, careful not to put too much pressure on the cuts of your body. His own body was hurting severely, but he needed to be strong for your sake.
"Niffty, run back to the cabin and tell Vaggie to come immediately. And also bring someone to help carry her quickly. I'll be right behind you."
Niffty nodded her head and began sprinting towards your cabin. Alastor looked at your face with a soft gaze. He leaned down and whispered, "Stay strong my dear. You'll be fine, I promise.." With a final breath he began heading towards the cabin as moonlight shone on both of you.
Perhaps because he was so caught up to save you, he didn't notice a pair eyes watching the whole thing.
"Interesting...."
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By the time Niffty reached the cabin, she found all of them standing outside, ready to depart in search of you. Their eyes widened seeing Niffty with blood on her dress.
"NIFFTY WHAT HAPPENED??"
It didn't take long enough for Vaggie to reach Alastor with Niffty alongside to guide her. Alastor gave a small smile towards the crowd as they collectively gasped seeing the both of you. Without wasting a moment, you were transferred on the back of Husk as Vaggie cast her healing. Alastor was about to fall down but Pentious caught him just in time.
"Hang onto me!" Pentious took one of Alastor's hands and slid it over his shoulder to support him. Vaggie kept casting her healing all the way to the cabin as Charlie started to cry. You were placed in your room with Vaggie, Charlie and Cherri. They changed your bloody cloths and cleaned you up first. Only then the boys were allowed to come.
Alastor on the other hand was placed on the lounge in the other room with only Niffty and Husk. Niffty sew up all the cuts and scratches he had and Husk just stood in a corner watching. Alastor wasn't comfortable with showing anyone else his bare body.
After that was done Alastor laid down on the lounge with a cover on his body as Angel walked in and popped next to him sighing and started a smoke.
" How's....(Y/n)?" Alastor found himself asking while looking at the ceiling. He didn't want to appear too worried for you, yet he could help but be anxious. " She'll live. Vaggie's doin all she can to save her." Angel took a drag of his cigarette and blew the smoke. "But what exactly happened? Why was she in that forest and how did you two find her?"
Alastor and Niffty began to tell their tale from when they found the butterfly to Niffty seeing the butterfly on the knife to Alastor carrying you. He skipped the part of his determination to protect you though. But he greatly told the tale of him slaughtering the wolves with great detail that left Angel's stomach turning.
" That butterfly...do ya think it could be a demon like us?"
"It's very much possible. It certainly wasn't any normal butterfly. But how did it gain the power to control us? I don't think any of us had any power like that."
" What if it's something entirely different from us? " Niffty jumped in.
" That would certainly explain this phenomenon. Though we can't really be sure. To know about it properly we need that butterfly. But that isn't a safe choice considering what happened today. "
A silence befell the room once again as Cherri slipped into the room. She took a sit next to Angel. "Vaggie's working her magic right now. If she wasn't here, not sure what woulda happened to her."
" Yeah...also smiles, ya transformed..." Angel said with a toothed grin looking back at him. He had deep curly brown hair and light brown skin. Two fluffy deer ears stayed atop his head. His glasses which were drowning in blood when they first saw him was cleaned again and sitting on his face. Plus Angel could swear he saw a brown tail poking out from behind Alastor's dress when Pentious carried him back.
Alastor's amber coloured eyes scanned Angel's face. He knew exactly what Angel was trying to get at.
" So ya do have feelings for-"
" None of that! "
" But you needed to have intense feelings
  to transform ~"
" I merely wished to protect her that's
all. If I came without her you all would have scorned me."
" Same thing!"
With Alastor transforming, it meant the whole crew was human once again. Things should be a lot easier now.
" Also...does (Y/n) know about this? That
  we need to have feelings for her to
  transform? "
" Obviously not. We all collectively agreed to keep this a secret from her."
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The night went by rather quickly. Before Alastor knew it, he was falling asleep. The fatigue and the effects of blood loss finally caught up to him.
You opened your eyes the next day at afternoon. The first thing you realised that almost every part of you hurt. With a huff and a grunt you pushed yourself up a bit. Vaggie was sleeping lying her head on the bed and and her hands on your torso. Charlie was asleep on the desk on the other side of the room. Angel came in with a plate of food and he let out a scream seeing you awake. He quickly put the food down on the table and rushed to you.
Apparently Vaggie has been healing you nonstop throughout the night, she pushed her body to her limit and passed out around the morning . Charlie was the same, she used her ability to smoothly clean your cuts and remove branches stuck to you. Your eyes widened hearing about Alastor.
" Alastor? Where is he?"
" He's fine, he's in the other room. Do you want me to call him to you?"
" Yes, him and everyone else. I want to know what exactly happened..."
Alastor wore one of Pentious's shirt's for now. He and others soon joined in your room. You made sure to talk quietly so you didn't wake up the sleeping girls. They deserve to rest.
"That butterfly....that damn butterfly is the reason behind all this.."
"But I don't understand one thing." Pentious looked lost in throught with a hand on his chin. "Why would that butterfly bring you both to danger and then help you fight back?"
"To know that we need to be in contact with it. But there's no need to rush considering what happened."
You sighed loudly, all that matters that all of you were still in one piece. You'll have to take a few days off from your work to recover. You'll ask your colleague to cover for you. He owes you one anyway for the time you secured him a date with his crush.
That being said, you finally looked at Alastor properly. This guy was handsome as fuck. His brown locks fell onto his bandaged forehead in a lazy manner. His honey eyes locked into yours as he felt you staring at him. You quickly averted your gaze, but you knew that he knew you were staring. A smirk formed on his face as he leaned in close to you.
"Don't I get a thank you for saving you back there, my darling?"
You let out a small yelp and whipped your head towards him. Then again backed your face away when you found his face inches apart from yours. When did he get so damn close?
"Yes uh, thank you..for saving me back there."
Alastor's grin just got wider seeing your flustered expression. He booped your nose as you blinked in confusion.
"Dear don't think I forgot all the things you did and said when I was stuck as a deer. I promise to pay back every.last.bit."
You couldn't help but gulp in the way he said it. Plus the intensity of his stare just added to this making you feel like fainting for the second time now. Just what did you get yourself into?
"Yeah, smiles ya gotta back up a bit. If Vaggie was awake she'd chew your ass up."
"Don't worry, I won't bother her too much. Rest assured my friend."
Something clicked into you just then. Today's the day you've been waiting for a long time. Hazbin hotel season one has officially been released!
"Guys, wake Charlie and Vaggie up again! We have your future to watch!"
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A.n: Sorry for the long wait. College has been straining all my energy and will to live (⁠っ⁠˘̩⁠╭⁠╮⁠˘̩⁠)⁠っ
This was one of the main scenarios that has been on my mind since the beginning of the fanfic. I had to start writing a whole ass story to make it understandable lol.
Also guys! GUYS!! I GOT FANARTS!!! LOOK AT THIS!!
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These two were the first ones that got sent. It's Vox as the blue butterfly. Man I love his suit 🫠🫠
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The second was this, our two girls!! Charlie and Vaggie both in their animal and human forms!! Also there's our first ever transformation moment~
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Y'all remember the iconic moment of Husk putting on our shirt? 🥹🥹 They drew this!!! And there's our cutiepie Niffty and Mr. Precious!!
Man I can't believe my silly little fanfic inspired someone to draw fanarts!!! God I was so thrilled!! All of these wonderful fanrts are drawn by @/ Little_Wonders7 (twitter) @littlewonders7 (Tumblr) thank you again!!!
As for who the butterfly actually is....I think this will disappoint a lot of you..
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Yes, tis I, your own author. Or the Hazbinfication animal of your author. I couldn't think of any way to bring reader back to the forest where the transformation was supposed to take place. So I forced a reason by placing myself there.(⁠•⁠ ⁠▽⁠ ⁠•⁠;⁠)
This conversation is a thought I had while putting myself there so I decided to draw it.
A clue about this was on my twitter account where there's a blue butterfly on my pinned plus my profile. Shout-out to "sdsblogmainblog" to be the only one to get it!! I feel sorry to everyone who came up with cool theories on who the butterfly could be (⁠;⁠^⁠ω⁠^⁠)
Also no, the pair of eyes watching Alastor and reader was not the butterfly and DW I won't interfere in the story much.
And the winner of the voting issss
🎊VOX🎊
Vox had 27 votes on wattpad
0 votes on Tumblr
11 votes on ao3
Total - 38
Velvette had 12 votes on wattpad
3 votes on Tumblr
16 votes on ao3
Total - 31
I wrote "Your vote has been counted" on the votes I collected. So if you guys want, you can recheck. And I'll explain the requirements of a new character arriving in our world in the next chapter since this is already getting long (⁠•⁠ ⁠▽⁠ ⁠•⁠;⁠)
Also towards people who are sad velvette lost. I only asked who'll be in the harem, not who'll come into this world. And this goes for every single character. Take this how you will.
Stay tuned folks~
Tag list: @legostars @glowinthedarkbones1150 @darifes @aria-tempest @rainbowcake1212 @luxylucylou
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soapycheeks · 3 days
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i just know that mactavish probably have at least two girls waiting for him in their home everyday. so, here's little conversation he'll have with his sweet little eight years old daughter — little angst, fluff — 1.1k words
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her innocent face remains sober. she's not a child who's easily persuaded by sugar-coated lies and half-truths, make your husband impressed by your daughter maturity despite his attempts to throw cheeky jokes to make everything better. "but mommy was mad at you, weren't she?"
"yeah, mommy was mad at me. and she has every right to be." he says calmly. "i'm gone for too many days in the year. that puts more pressure on her to take care of you on her own. and she loves you more than she loves anything else in the world, and she doesn't like it when i doesn't get to spend enough time with you. so... she gets mad at me."
the little girl nods, clearly understanding his point. "you should stay home with us, then." she says plainly, her soft voice filling with honesty as she speaks, makes his heart goes out to her, unable to argue against such pure and simple logic. but he knows how the real-world works, and he can't just quit his job and stay home all the time.
he puts on a small smile, patting her on the head. "i wish i could, sweetheart. but this is my job. i have a responsibility to the people in my unit, and their families - and to my country. i love you so much... but i can't just abandon my work."
"but daddy, how are you gonna help us when you're out there? it makes mommy really sad... and she gets scared..."
"i know, honey... i know. but i promise, i'll be back as soon as i can. i have to go, but as soon as i get back, i'll hug you like this-" he leans down and lifts her up so she's resting against his chest.
his daughter face full of hope once again, there's only one thing on her mind now - she doesn't want her father to go away again. "that'll be really nice." she says softly. "but when are you gonna come back? you're always gone for so long... mommy says that it's taking away the best years we have together, and that it's not fair. is she right?"
he doesn't want to lie to his child, but he also doesn't want to ruin any hope she has. but she's so smart that she always sees right through his lies - that's the problem.
after taking a deep breath, he meets her eyes. "yes. she's right... it is taking away some of the best years we could have together. i wish it wasn't like this. but sometimes we have to do what's important, even when it's hard."
the little girl looks down and bites her lip, then looks up at him and nods slowly. her face still sober but a little calmer now.
"ok. but daddy...?"
johnny glances down at her. the look in her eyes tells him that she's about to ask another difficult, grown-up question - and that it's most likely going to crush him all over again.
"what is it, sweetheart?"
"mommy says... she doesn't want you to die when you're not here with us, because it would make her really sad. and it would make me really sad too, because i'd be all alone while you're gone. and i guess that's how i feel every time you leave. so... please, i'm begging you, daddy... don't die. please don't ever die, okay?"
that does it. he can't handle this last question. he has to turn away from her and cover his face, because even though he's tried to stay strong throughout this whole conversation, he feels the tears spilling from his eyes.
"oh honey..." he murmurs, choking back a sob. "don't you worry about that, okay? i promise... i'm gonna come back home to you, every single time. i'll stay away from danger as much as i can. and i'll be back home with you as soon as i can. i promise."
she lets out a tiny sigh and hug him tighter against her as she finally decides that she's done saying everything she needs to say. her voice is softer and quieter now, like a little whisper.
"i wish mommy didn't get mad when you had to go to your job. i don't like it when she gets mad at you, because it makes everybody upset. i promise, when i grow up, i'm gonna be a girl who doesn't get mad and loves her daddy all the time. i wish everybody could love you like i do."
he little bit speechless, but he knows that the argument between the two of you not that bad, you're just upset with the situation. he sighs and lets out a long, weary chuckle. you had definitely said your fair share of harsh words about him in the past, and many of the things you said have stuck with him.
"you're such an angel, honey... don't you ever change. stay sweet and loving and innocent like you are now, okay? daddy loves you so much..."
she buries her face into his chest and wraps her arms around his neck, clinging to him with all her strength. it's like her one chance to hold onto him as tightly as she can and never let go. "i love you too, daddy..."
he kisses the top of her head and holds her for a long time, not ready to let go of her yet.
finally, after a few minutes, he sets her down on her feet and kneels down in front of her again.
"what do you want to do," he says softly, taking her little hands in his. "i can take you to the bookstore if you want, or maybe get your favorite ice cream."
she thinks for a moment, her face filling with happiness again. when she was feeling sad, she was ready to stay home and do nothing at all. but now that she's happy again, the world might as well be her oyster.
"ice cream sounds super! but first, can we go to the bookstore and just look around, then get ice cream? i like looking at all the books, but i never get to buy any because all the good ones are too expensive and mommy doesn't let me."
he grins and nods. he likes that she wants to look at the books but she doesn't want him to spend too much money on her. it shows that she's aware of his responsibilities and the financial implications of certain purchases, even at such a young age. johnny thinks she's absolutely precious.
he stands back up and offers her his hand, which she grabs excitedly.
my really 1st time wrote about him. likes, reblogs, and comments are wonderfully appreciated!
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katyspersonal · 1 day
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Guys oh my gosh hgbghgg I am a GENIUS! I've finally figured an explanation for, at the first glance, unreasonable vitriol towards Godrick in the fandom! I should have became a psychology professor for this one but don't let me get ahead of myself ok so:
Like.. This can't be the fact that Godrick literally steals peoples limbs to attach to himself, right? Rykard does a similar thing - consumes people and makes them a part of his body, as all those arms sticking out of him are those of his victims. Also both of these characters appear hard to take seriously upon introduction; "i cOmAnD tHeE KNEEL" and "tOGETHAAAA" are equally silly xd But Rykard is really loved, right?
The difference between the two might happen because Rykard is that cool badass rebel against oppressive system, whereas Godrick willingly perpetuates it. But that can't be this piece, and this also can't be Tarnished-hunting. Because another character who simps for the Golden Order and is racist Tarnished-hunts is Morgott, who is also very loved. Adored, even!
I thought maybe Godrick hit the 'disrespecting women' nerve upon insulting Malenia, which is already a sore topic in the fandom? 🤔 But this is likely not true. Not only he himself is definitely not an incel, since Grafted Scions (his children) exist, but also it is all likely an insecurity. Godrick had that line where he called Malenia and Miquella "rank and malformed" when Godrick himself could be considered a disgrace ( 🥁 ) for the Golden Bloodline with his frail, weak build. He has large insecurities that he takes out on other discriminated people, so that certainly wasn't her gender. Again, many other loved characters also disrespect us for who we are, he isn't outstanding. Nor it is him being "pathetic" for escaping the battle he could not win in disguise or kissing Malenia's feet in apology: the 'pathetic old man' is ABSOLUTELY one of the favorite men types on Tumblr and Twitter! The girls (gender neutral) LOVE the 'pathetic old man', that vibe could not have provoked the hate.
Finally, it can't be the authors intention. Miyazaki confirmed Godrick to be a sympathetic character. So, you should feel bad for his situation of continuing the glory of that imposing bloodline that he is not fit for, and NPCs that dislike him are either within their own right to do so, or straight up hypocritical (like Kenneth). Subtexts, media literacy and so on can't be used as an arguement for why Godrick would be intended as repulsive character.
So... Yeah, it seems like there is no real reason for why Godrick should always be singled out, only brought up as a laughing stock, always brought in negative and mocking context in polls and headcanons compilation and bring his fans being seen as weirdos by an effect, right? Whatever reasoning might be the first responce is very easy to debunk! I think I've finally found an actual reasonable and sympathetic explanation as to why fandom dislikes and bullies him so much more than any other character that explains EVERYTHING! I am going to go under cut as this is the result of long, meticulous thinking and this post is already getting long, so here it is:
💫🌺 S K I L L!!! I S S U E!!! 💕🔥💫
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deeptrashwitch · 1 day
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A Haunting Past (pt.5)
Tw: This chapter doesn't have any trigger warning, please correct me if you find any that should be added ^^
Taglist: @alypink @snootlestheangel @mctvsh @stuffireadandenjoy @islandtarochips
@justasmolbard @tapioca-milktea1978 @midnight193 @mutantthedark @welldonekhushi
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Alicia was in the kitchen, looking outside in silence as her tea cup got colder, but her mind was remembering. The times when she was a Sergeant inside Camp Lejeune, before she became a Captain and even before she met Edward, when she ran beside the new soldiers for the 267 during the training basically screaming some cadences to keep the pace. Now those times were long gone, those days were now blurry memories that brought a sour feeling back.
"It's two in the morning, Alicia" Wraith murmured as she walked inside the kitchen "you should be sleeping"
"I tried. Didn't work" she said without looking at her
"That's odd, usually you don't have this many bad nights in a row"
"All this made them worse, I can't sleep and even if I use medicine...it doesn't works either"
"...And what are you thinking about now?"
"How to rescue my cousin" she half lied with a sigh "I heard from the team who had this location about how it was distributed"
"And?"
"It's apparently the same"
"Oh, that won't be something good" Wraith murmured before sitting as well "Alicia, I have some things to tell you"
"I'm all ears"
"Watcher called me reluctantly, I'm sure you heard about all that has been happening, right?"
"The attack to the plane was the last thing I heard"
"From there they found some things about Makarov, apparently White Tiger gave that bastard some missiles and he used it against a Russian base" Dominique explained pinching her nose bridge "it all has been a chaos with them as well, but they found some intel about a safe house and most important...the route of a convoy that apparently will transport Makarov himself"
"You don't think he's there, do you?"
"Mmm, at this point I'm not sure, but it has to be someone important to be so well scorted. And the 141 asked for our help to ambush the convoy"
"...When and where?"
"Siberia, two days from today. But, you need to give this one to Luke, I need you for something else"
"Oh?"
"I have something on the Broken Statue matter, it's something smaller than I would like, but it's our best shot right now"
"Tell me"
"The one who did it surely is someone of a higher rank, and I know that it doesn't exactly narrows our suspects since it was a conjoined mission...but I found something on that archive that might give us something" she said, leaving a copy of a note inside the lost archive over the table "it's just a brief mention, but they apparently went after the old Captain as well, the retired William McAllister"
"After Artemis? I mean, he hasn't been in scene since...he put Oliver on charge" Alicia murmured with a frown "why appearing now? And mostly under this kind of conditions"
"No one knew this, but Artemis was one of the people that was consulted during the planning of Firewall with other superiors from the branches. He suggested two teams, SEAL 3 and your Task Force"
"William was involved then? That changes some things..." she murmured before sighing heavily "SEAL 3 and Morocco, how much does Jackson knows? And Edward?"
"You knew about their involvement?"
"When I first heard about Jackson, I guessed it, and about Eddie...I heard it from the 101st"
"I see. Well, Blackwell is just aware of his part of the mission and that there was a rescue"
"Continue"
"And Jackson...he knows that something bad happened, but isn't sure of what was it. None of them knows about Lebanon or Angola"
"Keep it that way for now"
"Alicia"
"I know, just...let me rescue my cousin and have proofs about this traitor, then I'll tell them myself"
"Fine, but if you don't, I will. They need to know before it happens again"
Alicia nodded and sighed tiredly, but chugged the cold tea in a second before standing up. While she left the room, she threw the old dog tags towards Wraith, who grabbed them. Dominique got pale when she noticed the number in it, then looked at Alicia, she had lifeless eyes...the same of that day.
"And even if I don't tell them, they'll figure it out. Right now they know that something is off and Jackson has the original medical record, unfortunately, it's just a matter of time" she said as she pointed at the tags "Broken Statue will have to be desclasified sooner than any of us would like if we continue like this"
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Two days later, Alicia was looking at how Luke, Noah, Elijah and Francis were packing up to go to Siberia as back up. Once again she saw Nikolai, to whom she nodded as they exchanged looks, taking her boys towards the place where they should reunite with Price and the 141. For a second the line remained silent, but soon she heard how the four of them started to report themselves as confirmation, then she used her own radio to comunicate with them before letting them go.
"Origin to Harlem, Cobalto, Delta and Viper" she called with a little smile "you copy, boys?"
"We do, Origin, loud and clear" Luke answered with a low chuckle
"Good, then I just wanted to wish you luck and tell you that this will be alright, I trust that you'll make it back. See you around, boys, take care and show that son of a bitch that he made his worst mistake"
"Will do"
"Now go"
"...Take care you too, tell Doc if you need any help" the Lieutenant told her, really worried
"I will, over and out"
Like that, she stared at the helicopter until she didn't see it anymore, then went to talk with Jackson and Edward. She left them as the ones in charge until she came back, trying to disimulate her nervousness and worries, promising that she just would be out for a day as much. And once they were preparing everything for the daily duties after confirming her, Alicia went towards Wraith, who was already waiting for her with a different car by her side.
They didn't say anything to each other, and just drove off, arriving some hours later to the place shere they needed to be. It was a beautiful house on the suburbs, that was the McAllister house and now Alicia was a bit nervous, has been a long time since the last time she talked with Artemis in person. When they knocked, an old woman opened the door, gasping surprised of watching the two woman.
"Mrs. Diana McAllister?" Wraith asked with a raised eyebrow
"That would be me" the old lady said before looking at the Captain "aren't you the lil' Sergeant that was under my Will's command at first?"
"Yes, that's me, Mrs. McAllister...has passed a long time" Alicia murmured with a little smile "how have you been?"
"Oh dear, come on in, come on in, let's talk inside! It's so good to see you again!"
They got inside the house, looking at some pictures of Artemis and his wife, even some of them with their kids. It wasn't long before they were sit in front of the old lady, who started to talk happily as both of them hear calmly. Soon they noticed that there was no trace of Artemis over there, but Alicia didn't want to ask, she had a bad feeling about it.
"I'm sorry, ma'am, but perhaps you can call your husband? We need to talk with him" Wraith asked sofly, just for Diana to get sadder
"It seems like you didn't know"
"Know what?"
"My William died, in 2017, he died. It was so sudden" the old woman said, looking down "he went to do his usual things and just...died, it was a clogged arthery"
"I see, I'm sorry Diana" Alicia muttered, with wide eyes because of the surprise "I...didn't know"
"I know, Will asked in his will not to tell you, he said you'd be on a bad place" she said before sighing, smiling softly "actually he left something for you as well, want me to bring it here?"
"Yes please, that would be great"
When the old lady walked away, Alicia left the cup over the table, sighing as she put a hand over her face. Wraith looked at her, but waited for a second before the Captain spoke again.
"Artemis didn't die from natural causes" Alicia said with darkened eyes
"What? But his wife said..."
"I heard what she said, but he never had any cholesterol issues and was always really worried about it during and after his service with us"
"Maybe it changed after a decade of not seeing"
"We saw each other in 2015 for the last time, it's difficult that someone like Artemis has that kind of slope" she explained with a grimace "he always was in good health and even if he was having that...it would've been much time later"
"So you think...?"
"It's a suspicion, I'm not sure yet"
"I'll look into it, for now let's see what Cpt. McAllister left you"
Soon the old woman arrived with a sealed box, that Alicia opened after making sure it didn't have any kind of artifact attached, looking inside. It was a bunch of books, more than a hundred, all of them first editions, except for seventeen that were old and worn out journals. Alicia hold her breath for a second and closed the box again, then looking at the old woman with surprise, who only smiled quietly.
"It has been a long time..."
"He was really insistent about it, to keep it until you came here"
"I understand, thank you, Diana" she said, standing up and kissing the old lady's forehead "sorry for taking your time with this"
"Don't worry, my dear" the lady said with a chuckle "if you need help, my daugther will be happy to help you"
"I...will think about it"
Soon, the two of them walked outside the house with the box, and remained silent until they were far from there.
"Care to explain?"
"William used to write everything on journals that he always kept, all these...are his diaries since he arrived to the MC" Alicia explained while she took out all of them and start to read some pages "the last three, they probably talk about Firewall, his suspicions and more...oh shit"
"What?"
"All this is encrypted"
"That's why..."
"Yes, that explain why he left this and why his wife kept it for so long. She was an FBI agent before marrying Artemis, perhaps she knows that William's death wasn't natural"
"Oh, what a curriculum, huh? But why she mentioned her daugther? And why you looked so awkward?"
"Have you heard of Maddison McAllister?"
"Wait, the anthropology eminence?"
"She's their daugther, especialized on encrypted old texts...so probably there's a code in this"
"You...you know a lot about this family, why?"
Alicia looked away with awkwardness, and in a second Wraith joined the points, choking with laughter.
"Before or after you met Alejandro?"
"After, during the time where we broke up" she answered with some shame and a sigh "he had someone in Las Almas too, I was a Sergeant and Artemis basically put us together"
"Why did you broke up?"
"We didn't worked well together, our personalities clashed a lot...and I didn't get over Alejandro by that time"
"You never did"
"Not the fucking point!"
"Ha! Well, whatever, you're lucky we have our own code expert in Black Tomb" Wraith said with a mocking smile "let's talk with Nicholas first before recurring to your ex from all the people"
"I hate you"
"Nah, not true"
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"I can identify some patterns" Nicholas murmured once they went to talked with him, looking into his notebook "there are some soviet well known codes, but also an american encryption. I can decrypt it, but the rest are some I haven't seen ever"
"So we have to go and see her" Wraith said with a mocking smile while Alicia sighed heavily
"Nicholas, pack up, we're going to New York" Alicia said pinching her nose bridge "and no, not you, Dominique, you stay here"
"Fine, fine, anyway I have other things to do" Wraith answered with a smile "good luck"
"Hmm, yes ma'am...?" Nicholas muttered a bit confused
And like that, the next day they were in New York, going to the university where they would find Maddison. While they walked towards the campus, Alicia had a headache, that would be an awkward reunion to have now. Whatever the case, she was smiling a bit as she saw how Nicholas was looking around with curiosity, just in silence.
"Are you good, Nicholas?" she asked with a side smile "are you curious?"
"A lot, but I guess that half of this is above my paycheck" he answered with a chuckle, just to sigh quietly "but I wonder how you feel, you seemed really stressed and tired. So I'm kinda worried"
"I've been...okay, sorry if I worry you, it's just something that keeps me thinking"
"If you say so, but I hope everything ends up well. We're all worried about you"
Alicia scoffed with a smile, but just ruffled Nicholas' hair as they walked to the faculty building, where everyone was filled with excitment. They had to open some path for them with pushes, arriving to a empty spot of the hall, then Alicia sighed.
"What's going on?"
"A professor is giving a lecture today" Nicholas said, pointing at a classroom "aparently a famous one, hmm, Charles Moore"
"Ah, I heard of him, I studied his books when I was preparing to became an officer" she said with a sigh, taking out one of the books she brought as bait "brilliant man, but isn't my favorite author"
"Huh, who would've said" he said with a raised eyebrow "well, maybe one day I should read those books"
"Yeah, maybe" Alicia murmured, narrowing her eyes as she looked at the picture of the professor "oh, oh shit"
"What is it?"
"Ah, nothing. Just something I remembered"
They walked towards professor McAllister's office, while the Captain wondered if she had other option, but then they knocked. Nicholas walked inside first, looking at the woman behind the desk, who smiled at him with politeness. And then Alicia walked inside as well, erasing her smile and changing it for a frown, and the environment became tense.
"Maddison" the Captain said calmly with a raised eyebrow
"Alicia" the Professor answered, coldly and frowning "so you're the one that my mother told me about, what do you want? Maybe talk about us?"
"Keep it as business, nothing else"
"Business, it always is like that with you"
"Ugh, listen, I was never cold with you, was I?" Alicia said pinching her nose bridge "the reason I'm here it's different, I'm not gonna fight with you"
"Hah, then what is it?"
"Your father's journals, my comms expert already decrypted part of it, but some other part is more on your field of expertise" she said as she put the three last journals over Maddison's desk "so your mother told me you could help"
"Of course my mom said that, and huh, you finally went for all the things my father left you" she hissed as she took the journals "but why should I help?"
"I leave that reason for you, all I need is that you decrypt it, nothing else" Alicia said shrugging her shoulders quietly
"I don't see until what point your people decrypted it"
"Here, I had it 'til this point" Nicholas intervened with a cough, leaving his notebook over the desk "I wasn't able to go foward from this point"
"...I'll wait outside, doesn't seem like I'll be useful here" Alicia said with a raised eyebrow, staring at Maddison before sighing "come talk to me when you finish, Nicholas"
"Yes Captain"
Alicia walked outside in silence, waiting on the hall as she texted to Wraith, at the same time learning about what was happening with Luke's mission. She raised an eyebrow when she learned about the package, it was the fucking General Shepherd, and right now they were in the middle of a trial. In a second, the military started to watch the transmission with her earphones, frowning when she noticed Graves as she wondered what his reaction would be.
During Shepherd's declaration in the court, her anger boiled, hearing how he tried to justify himself and his actions in Las Almas and in the Middle East. But she had to admit, to herself and maybe to Wraith, that she snickered when she heard Graves throwing the fault into Shepherd without a blink. It was true that he was a son of a bitch too, but he was better than Shepherd in some aspects, so well...she can lead with it for now.
"Huh, long time since I laughed like this" she murmured with a sad smile, then looked at her phone
She wanted to call Alejandro, talk with him and maybe ask for advice or just to hear from him, with all the stress she couldn't speak with him as much as she would like. In silence she stared at their chat, just to type a quick message and sending it before she regreted it, just waiting as she stared at the hall. It was a second, but he answered and they started to talk, at the same time a bit of the stress was lifted from her.
Alicia smiled when she read his messages, feeling a bit better, then leaving aside her phone after a while. Soon she looked at the other journals she brought with her, reading slightly one of the middle journals she inherited, staying in silence when she saw a picture. It was an old photo from her Sergeant days, where William and Oliver were beside her, all of them smiling proudly with the emblem of the 267 in front of the hangar they had in Camp Lejeune.
Then Alicia's head turned and torned the image, now one of them was dead, and Oliver blamed her, at first she was rageous...but now she thought that maybe he was right. It was her decision to accept their participation on Firewall, they died because of her, and for her.
"Captain?" Nicholas asked, startling her "are you okay? You're crying..."
"I...I'm fine" Alicia said, touching her tears with a sigh "just old memories"
"Here" he muttered giving her a handckerchief "I have the codes, if you can give me some days, then I can decrypt the diaries"
"Thanks boy, let's go. The faster we finish this, the faster everything goes back to the normal"
"Yes ma'am"
Alicia put back the diaries and everything inside the bag, then walked away with a tired sigh, followed by Nicholas. She saw two messages in her phone, and just turned it off with a sad look, work was awaiting.
'Are you okay? Even your boys have called me...they are worried for you, amor' Alejandro wrote
'Licia? You good? Luke told me you were being weird, what is it?' Nicolás wrote as well
"We can finally start the rescue mission..."
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illarian-rambling · 2 days
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Thanks for the tags @corinneglass and @diabolical-blue!
OC Interview
You know, I don't think I've ever done one of these for Ivander. Let's go with him!
Are you named after anyone?
"Not in particular, no. My family tends to cycle through the same old list of names, so there have been plenty of Ivanders before me, but I wasn't named after any specifically."
When was the last time you cried?
"Most nights, I can't help it. My curse puts me in a great deal of pain and when my medication wears off around midnight, I'm usually not doing great. It's nights like those that make me so awfully aware that my time is drawing to an end."
Do you have kids?
"Hell no, I'd probably forget to feed the tragic creature. I'm not putting any child through the trial that me raising them would undoubtedly ensue."
Do you use sarcasm a lot?
"If you have to ask, then you must be denser than you look."
What is the first thing you notice about people?
"As a detective, I'm trained to look for identifying marks. An odd tattoo, a birthmark, telltale scars from a certain trade. All can be very useful if one can remember them."
What’s your eye color?
"Blue. Most would describe them as slightly too blue to fall in the human range."
Any special talents?
"I'm good at remembering things. Who's been talking with whom, who's been clocking in late with bags under their eyes, who's been extra nervous when the time comes for a station audit - that sort of thing. Ceyrel, my partner, says I have a nose for drama, but I prefer to think that I simply like to keep tabs on my surroundings. And occasionally let other people in on my 'findings,' so to speak."
Scary movies or happy endings?
"I really couldn't say. I suppose it depends on what I'm in the mood for. If I'm with friends, scary movies are fine, but if I'm alone in my apartment, I prefer something sappy. Just don't tell Ceyrel that."
Where were you born?
"On a roof, believe it or not. I was told that my mother insisted. According to my uncle, she said it was an important tradition among her people that a baby's first sight be the sky above. In a rare show of magnanimity, my father allowed her to go through with her plan and brought up a midwife and tent to the roof of the Montane compound. And so there it happened. Apparently, it rained hard enough that no one could see the sky in the end anyways."
Do you have any pets?
"No. I can barely take care of myself - I'm not going to tie some animal to my fate. Especially not one that wants me petting it all the time."
How tall are you?
"5'8", but I walk with a stoop, so I seem shorter."
What was your favorite subject in school?
"I was never a fan of school. I did well enough and my tutors never remarked on my behavior, however, I didn't enjoy it. I suppose art, if I had to choose. I liked to paint as a boy, though I was never very good. I thought I might pick the hobby up again once I left home, but I never found the time."
What is your dream job?
"I'd say not having a job would be dreamy, but that's not true, I'd go mad with boredom. I like being a detective well enough. I have the seniority to where they don't make me go on patrol anymore, and sometimes I'll get a case that piques my interest. Really though, it's just a job. I do it, I get paid, I go home. When I joined ten years ago, I had some delusion of making the world a better place and atoning for my sins. However, the only place I ended up making better was the interior of some merchant councilmembers' homes. It's been so long that it's hard to care about such things now - that's how society works and there's no use fighting against it. But back on topic. If I really had to choose, I'd... I'd perhaps like to work in a tailor shop. I have a keen eye for style and I think the clientele would amuse me. Unfortunately though, I couldn't string a needle to save my life, and tailors don't make detective money. More's the pity."
I'll tag @somethingclevermahogony @goodluckclove @savvyminnow @sleepywriter00 and anyone else who wants to play :)
Blank questions below the cut
Are you named after anyone? When was the last time you cried? Do you have kids? Do you use sarcasm a lot? What is the first thing you notice about people? What’s your eye color? Any special talents? Scary movies or happy endings? Where were you born? Do you have any pets? How tall are you? What was your favorite subject in school? What is your dream job?
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maria-sand-22 · 2 days
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People angry with rhys for assigning cassian to nesta damage control and rehabilitation and angry with cassian for being to strict and harsh with her and not making excuses for her behaviours is insane
You really just want rhysand to release nesta into velaris when she took more power from the cauldron than she can handle so she can roam amongst the fae children of his court that she hates so much? If I found out that the leader of my nation released his drunken impulsive abusive racist against our race suster in law who is also overpowered and capable of k*lling us all I'd be rioting the next day.
For all he knew as well there wasn't anyone in his IC who wasn't in danger around her except cassian, he's her mate rhysand probably can't imagine any fae would be capable of harming their mate whether they want them or not.
And for the people thinking nesta wasn't that bad and wasn't a danger to the people of velaris feyre didn't mind killing a fae man she didn't know for the simple crime of being fae, nesta hated fae 50 times more than feyre with 50 times less compassion and Impulse control than her, and for all rhysand knew from feyre's memories she was the devil himself nobody was safe around her except the person she physically couldn't bring herself to hurt;
- she literally never cared about feyre's life when the beast came to take her she only protected elain while letting feyre get taken
- she would constantly verbally abuse feyre to the point of irreversible damage to her character and self esteem
“His snarl set the flames of the candles guttering. 'You aren't what I had in mind for a human- believe me.'
I could almost feel the wound deep in my chest as it ripped open and all those awful, silent words came pouring out. Illiterate, ignorant, unremarkable, proud, cold- all spoken from Nesta's mouth, all echoing in my head with her sneering voice."
"I needed new boots, but Elain needed a new cloak, and Nesta was prone to crave anything someone else possessed."
"[...] I glanced at Nesta’s stillshiny pair by the door. Beside hers, my too-small boots were falling apart at the seams, held together only by fraying laces."
“What do you know?” Nesta breathed. “You’re just a half-wild beast with the nerve to bark orders at all hours of the day and night. Keep it up, and someday—someday, Feyre, you’ll have no one left to remember you, or to care that you ever existed.”
She refused to help even though everyone was in danger. “Find somewhere else,” Nesta said again, straight-backed. “I don’t want them in my house. Or near Elain.”
On top of that, Nesta loves to read and she never wanted to teach her younger sister how to read, but there was no problem in encouraging Feyre to hunt while Nesta herself was sitting at home.
"The story is told from Feyre's point of view and she may not have interpreted it correctly." Yes, because there are really many interpretations for your older sister to leave you to die while hugging the other sister. Thank you, next.
If Nesta was a man he would've been an irredeemable monster after acosf, because for an abuser she never truly redeemed herself or expressed any true remorse through actions rather than internal thoughts
Remorseful abusers don't try to hurt their victims further by dragging their reputation through the mud when they take them into their new home
Remorseful abusers don't try to attack or alienate their victims support system
Remorseful abusers don't try to rationalise or excuse 5heir abuse
They simply accept that they F'ed up and live with and accept the consequences of their actions such as their victim struggling to trust them again, their victims loved ones disliking them or never forgiving them, etc..
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souglias · 2 days
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People Say To Take Things One Step At A Time For A Reason [GINTOKI]
OR: Gintoki makes a dire mistake about you in his drunken state
Gintoki x f!reader
c/w: gintoki has been drinking, alcohol mention, use of pet names (but for humour effect), all fluff no angst :>
word count: 1.2k
note: something I wrote for fun and sheesh finally a fluffy gintoki fic rather than my usual bittersweet fics. For my followers who saw my post about a gintoki multi-chapter fic a while ago, just in case you thought this is it, this is not it. Inspired by this (I couldn't find the image from the original artist's twitter 0-(-( )
All likes and reblogs are appreciated!
-
The phone rings at your bookstore at 1am as you're finishing up some administrative logs. It must be a prank for a call that’s way beyond opening hours. Even if it isn't, you decide you don't want to deal with queries at this time. The phone quietens after 5 rings.
Not long later, the phone starts ringing again. It sounds like urgent business for someone to be calling a bookstore twice in the middle of the night.
"Hello, this is Kabukicho books. How can I help you?"
An all-too-familiar voice comes out from the receiver. His words are slurred and you press the receiver to your ears as you strain to listen to him.
"Heyy, are you free for... dinner?"
"Gintoki. It is long past dinner."
"Dinner is any time after lunch and before breakfast."
"I want to sleep and you should too."
You hear whining from the other end of the phone. "Can't you have at least a parfait with me? We haven't met in a while!"
Is this a secret, roundabout cry for help from him? Coming from the very lips of Gintoki, those words feel like stark yellow paint on a white wall.
Regardless, you are a little concerned he's going to die in a ditch somewhere instead of making it home. Even if he's gotten this drunk multiple times before he called you today. 
He prompts you again with a "hello" before you hear some crashing on the other side.
You suppose once is fine. It is a solid reason to see the person you harbour feelings for. On top of that, he's right that the two of you have not seen each other for a while. And just maybe, it is a sign that he chose to call you out of everyone else.
(Okay but maybe you're just being delusional. Who else he could even call? Kagura would simply smash the ringing phone at this hour. If he calls up the Shimura household, Otae would tell him to die rather than let her younger brother pick him up.)
You sigh, "Where are you now?"
He hums a little before telling you the bar he visited. You pack up your work (that is still 1% unfinished) and head out into the cold winter night to find him. Gintoki should thank his lucky stars that you like him, otherwise, you would have left him to freeze. Almost no one gets to interrupt your work.
You easily find the telephone booth near the bar he patronised. As you approach the telephone booth, you see a scene you find somewhat humorous. He's bent over backwards in the cramped space, face pressed against the clear glass of the booth and feet propped against the other side. His eyes are closed, mouth slightly open with drool.
Taking out your phone, you snap a photo of him before you knock on the door. He's so ridiculously unsightly, but it endears you.
One eye of his cracks open and his lips upturn. You swing the door open and give him an unamused look. That doesn't shake his half-lidded eyes and a wide smile.
"Yo, you pretty thing."
Your heart skips a beat. Gintoki is possessed, or he's lost it. All Gintoki has been calling you is an ugly hag and a shit-faced bitch. To call you pretty is... out of this world.
"You're way too fucking drunk. Get out of there by yourself, I'm not helping you."
As he twists and turns to get himself out of that difficult position, he whines again. "Help me, woman! You can do this little thing for me right?”
Seeing him struggle, you decide to milk this scene. “Well, who am I for you to assume this is ‘little’?”
“My girlfriend.”
You're sure your face is visibly red at this point, and your heart is beating in your throat. You manage to stammer out, "What?"
"You're my girlfriend duh!" He exclaims without an ounce of doubt in his statement.
He's lost it. He's lost it.
"Since when? Huh? Huh? Why was I not informed about this?"
"Huh? Why are you-"
Gintoki freezes and he narrows his eyes at you. It dawns on him that you are not his girlfriend. 
To be precise, he has not asked you to be his girlfriend. 
Suddenly, he's able to stand upright in the phone booth. He remains rooted there, his body turned away from you. What has he done? His heart beats at a thousand per hour and he thinks he might collapse.
"Did you mistake me for a girlfriend or something? Anyway, you should have told us you have one."
He could pretend to black out now. Or maybe he should try to be smooth.
"Well, no... I don't. I just forgot I wasn't in the future, that's all!"
Gintoki timidly looks over his shoulder to check your reaction. From the puzzled look on your face, he fucked it. He doesn't even remember the exact pick-up line if one like this actually existed. Something about a girlfriend but in the future. 
"What are you talking about..."
He averts his gaze again. The obvious way to clarify everything is to be honest with you. It's that easy. It's that easy. But he can't say it. Even in his half-intoxicated state, he feels like he'll keel over saying those three or five words. He did plan to say it some time, but not in this manner.
You watch his broad back slowly shrink inwards, and you hear him mumble something you don't catch. A gut feeling fills your chest. You breathe, slowly regaining your composure. Meanwhile, he decides he should pretend to black out.
"Look, if you wanted me to be your girlfriend, you should have asked me first. I would have said yes. Don't skip steps, please. I'd like some order."
Already amid Operation Pretend-To-Collapse, Gintoki falls backwards and lands on the ground. But his eyes are wide open instead of shut as he lies on the ground, searching for a sign of a joke from you. You lower into a crouch, continuing to stare into his bewildered eyes. 
“So, what will it be, darling?” 
The weight you put on what you just called him makes him shudder. His face is too distractingly hot compared to his body for him to come up with any kind of retort. He mumbles again with his eyes looking elsewhere. 
“Huh? I can’t hear you, you have to speak up.” 
Words come out in a murmur. All you hear is the word “girlfriend” but you egg him more. “What?? Is this all you got, Sakata Gintoki??”
His hand reaches for your face and he pulls you towards him, pressing your lips against his. You can smell a sweet alcohol scent on him. When you pull away, you find a fiery, intense gaze in his eyes.
“You’re my girlfriend now, stupid.”
Just like that, he renders you speechless. But a smile tugs on the corner of your lips, and you stifle a laugh.
Gintoki picks himself up from the ground, still a little woozy. You grab his arm to steady him, then decide to wrap your arm around his back. He stiffens slightly but eases into your arm for support. When he rests his arm around your shoulders, both of you begin the journey to his home.
“Just so you know, I have unfinished work thanks to your ‘little’ favour. You owe me now. Maybe you should be the one buying me a parfait instead, honeypie.”
He glances at you only for a moment, unamused, before he turns away. You laugh, getting a kick from the whole night of teasing your friend-turned-boyfriend. Suddenly, you stop laughing.
“You didn’t throw up before you met me right?”
“I didn’t.”
Disgust starts creeping onto your face. “Are you sure? Are you sure?”
“I didn’t, you shit.”
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saintfaulkners · 2 months
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theconfusedartist · 9 months
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Des and Alex would be soooo domestic. Alex comes back after beating the shit outta infected and Balckwatch troops and just. Collapses on Dana's couch.
They argue over who's allowed to use the controller first and end up watching horror movies for about half an hour before the power and signal cuts out bc all over the island bc they're making sure nothing gets in or out.
They banter over how the movie should or will end, when Des knocks on the door and Alex is all over him when he opens it up, like a massive koala bear. Des is so used to Dr. Mercer doing this, then trying to pretend like it was Des that jumped him like he was losing his mind that it's actually refreshing how Alex is unabashedly cuddling him.
They go over to the apartment that Des took over since most people left the vicinity of Penn Station days after Balckwatch was shooting people in broad daylight and Alex asks "wanna see something I just learned? It's cool as hell". Ofc Des agrees and it's just a montage of them play fighting as Alex shows off ALL of his abilities bc he knows Des won't be scared off or scream, with crashing and ungodly noises of destruction.
Dana peeks in hours later when things are finally silent and sees the two of them snuggled up on a completely destroyed couch (that was destroyed last time they did this, is the damn thing respawning?) and assumes they just got done doing some of the most disturbing sex stuff ever. She doesn't wanna know, doesn't ask, but can't get away without them seeing her and saying hello. It feels like the worst experience every time this happens to her bc she assumes that they're having ungodly weird virus on human sex, and they do, just never the time she peeks into the apartment. They're just playing.
#alex turns his arm into a whip “so i learned streetsweeper today. tell me what ya think”#proceeds to use it in this tiny fully decorated apartment destroying everything#des smiles “sure lemme use my whip too! <3”#proceeds to whip back#yes Desmond got his whip and training from Aveline. yes Aveline trained him AND Altaïr how to use a whip#Altaïr is amazing at it he chooses not to use it mostly. Desmond loves using it#Des at any time is carrying on his person at least one gun the tomohawk (Connor gave him that one but he did also make him build one of his#own) a machete (thank you Aveline!) and one of the daggers Altaïr made for him#he just looks cute and innocent#that man is armed to the teeth bc people are hunting him#and he refuses to be caught slippin#Alex just enjoys being able to use any of his powers against Des with the knowledge that Des is not only fast but smart enough to not gethit#yes Des is currently pregnant in that permutation. doesn’t stop him from fighting or singing to the twins when hes got downtime#Altaïr wakes up in Desmond's body sometimes (bc hes watching over Elijah in Brooklyn) and is being aggressively cuddled by Alex.#hes like i can't believe im waking up in this position AGAIN#alex is like “oh hey Altaïr whats up?”#Des and Alex are domestic with each other but Dana thinks weird freaky sex is happening when it really isn't#Altaïr knows whats going on 99% of the time but sometimes he doesn't because he wakes up in Desmond's body and is surprised af#is this rambly? yes.#Alex and Des are very domestic people just don't get what the fuck they're doing 100% of the time and assumes its nasty sex#but in reality sex is going on a lot less that people think and more than they would like to know about#also the couch came back bc Alex biomassed it together#most of the things in Desmond's apartment is just biomass at this point and thats how Alex likes it
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vulpinesaint · 9 months
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actually going to throw the hugest fit over my parents making me do dishes. i am HAPPY to do dishes on assigned nights. it's FINE. i hate it so much but i'll get it done and if i'm having constant breakdowns over it then like. idk. maybe that's another issue that you should be looking into but it doesn't mean that i'm not up for doing the dishes. but now my mom wants to have the five of us just. do the dishes on a rotation? which is FUCKED cause i have SHIT to do! the fuck happens when i have dnd? or want to go out with a friend? or have class until late? literally worst fucking idea on earth i can do the fucking dishes but i have to be PREPARED for it. for instance don't make it so every other week i'll be fucking Doing something when it's my night to do the dishes
#so tired and lowkey pissed off about this i'm going to cry#my mom got rlly upset cause the dishes weren't getting done. fair.#my nights got Done most of the time and i volunteered to take on an extra night so idk. i think that should count for something.#but she got upset and said that she would just do dishes from now on#and then realized it was a lot of work and said she couldn't do it on her own and needed people to help#and then said 'we should do it this way!' and never actually implemented that way#like. just said it out loud. but then like. expected it to magically happen?#babe you can't just throw out a hypothetical and go 'alright! now that i have spoken it into existence it's going to happen'#fucking WHATEVER though. cause now it's going to be my fun little dishes night on friday when i have dnd.#first fuckin round of it.#and it's not even that i don't want to i CAN'T do the fucking dishes on friday cause i'm barely in the house!#i'll be home on friday after work for fifteen minutes tops!#so. going to complain. literally some of us have schedules that take up the nighttime.#sorry that neither of my little siblings hang out with people or have regular social engagements or work late or have class late.#but unfortunately i'm literally doing shit. and i need to incorporate things into my schedule or it's gonna fuck all my shit up#and then people will be angry with me for not getting the dishes done. so. again. fuck me i guess#it'll be fine i'll talk to her i just. ugh. the world if mothers just fucking talked about what they wanted and needed to happen#she proposed that Multiple weeks ago and just now i heard her in the kitchen going 'i thought we were doing this...'#bitch since WHEN??? SINCE WHEN??? YOU HAVEN'T BROUGHT IT UP IN A FULL WEEK AT LEAST#throwing my fucking laptop against the wall i'm so fucking tired i just want to sleep#valentine notes
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softgrungeprophet · 1 year
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amazing spider-man annual #5 add that to the list of comics in which peter is indirectly responsible for the death of someone trying to kill him lol
#peter my dude .... this was 1968 btw#nadia reads comics#personally i believe that the reason peter doesn't kill is quite complex and very purposeful#and i think that by nature goes hand in hand with the times he comes very close to it#or is indirectly or directly responsible for a death (i mean... uncle ben for one)#i think you can't have one without the other in peter's case personally#not to subtweet i just happened to read that yesterday and the push-pull of peter's violence vs mercy is always on my mind#on the flip side if anyone tries to debate me on this i will ignore you because it's frankly s conversation i am sick to death of#and i am sick to death of arguing with people trying to defend why i think it's not as simple as ''he doesn't kill ever''#also re asm annual no5 i don't think this was that deep tbh i think they were trying to blow him up so he used them against themselves#and it happened to be in a goofy-serious 1968 issue about the drama of his parents so when the bad guy died he just walked away#do i think it would have been interesting for peter to respond to the fact that he indirectly killed this old dude#yes. do i think it was in character for him to just leave because he was laser focused on finding the truth abt his parents? also yes#also frankly no offense to stan but i don't typically expect a lot of depth of character or philosophy from him#regardless of peter knowingly leading a seeking torpedo to hit a vehicle with his adversaries inside of it instead of#idk a building or something --again i don't feel it's out of character esp given the context#though i do find it interesting#and is exactly what i talk about when i talk about him toeing and frankly often crossing the line#i find that historically over the past 60 years the no kill rule has NEVER been black and white or cut and dry#and he has broken it indirectly on many occasions (and beyond the jokes about videogame ''non-lethality'' 😂)#anyway idk what my point is but it's an interesting read and i like peter's itchy grandpa sweater outfit#such a handsome young man
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jewishvitya · 6 months
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A pro-Palestine Jew on tiktok asked those of us who were raised pro-Israel, what got us to change our minds on Palestine. I made a video to answer (with my voice, not my face), and a few people watched it and found some value in it. I'm putting this here too. I communicate through text better than voice.
So I feel repetitive for saying this at this point, but I grew up in the West Bank settlements. I wrote this post to give an example of the extent to which Palestinians are dehumanized there.
Where I live now, I meet Palestinians in day to day life. Israeli Arab citizens living their lives. In the West Bank, it was nothing like that. Over there, I only saw them through the electric fence, and the hostility between us and Palestinians was tangible.
When you're a child being brought into the situation, you don't experience the context, you don't experience the history, you don't know why they're hostile to you. You just feel "these people hate me, they don't want me to exist." And that bubble was my reality. So when I was taught in school that everything we did was in self defense, that our military is special and uniquely ethical because it's the only defensive military in the world - that made sense to me. It slotted neatly into the reality I knew.
One of the first things to burst the bubble for me was when I spoke to an old Israeli man and he was talking about his trauma from battle. I don't remember what he said, but it hit me wrong. It conflicted with the history as I understood it. So I was a bit desperate to make it make sense again, and I said, "But everything we did was in self defense, right?"
He kinda looked at me, couldn't understand at all why I was upset, and he went, "We destroyed whole villages. Of course we did. It was war, that's what you do."
And that casual "of course" stuck with me. I had to look into it more.
I couldn't look at more accurate history, and not at accounts by Palestinians, I was too primed against these sources to trust them. The community I grew up in had an anti-intellectual element to it where scholars weren't trusted about things like this.
So what really solidified this for me, was seeing Palestinian culture.
Because part of the story that Israel tells us to justify everything, is that Palestinians are not a distinct group of people, they're just Arabs. They belong to the nations around us. They insist on being here because they want to deny us a homeland. The Palestinian identity exists to hurt us. This, because the idea of displacing them and taking over their lands doesn't sound like stealing, if this was never theirs and they're only pretending because they want to deprive us.
But then foods, dances, clothing, embroidery, the Palestinian dialect. These things are history. They don't pop into existence just because you hate Jews and they're trying to move here. How gorgeous is the Palestinian thobe? How stunning is tatreez in general? And when I saw specific patterns belonging to different regions of Palestine?
All of these painted for me a rich shared life of a group of people, and countered the narrative that the Palestininian identity was fabricated to hurt us. It taught me that, whatever we call them, whatever they call themselves, they have a history in this land, they have a right to it, they have a connection to it that we can't override with our own.
I started having conversations with leftist friends. Confronting the fact that the borders of the occupied territories are arbitrary and every Israeli city was taken from them. In one of those conversations, I was encouraged to rethink how I imagine peace.
This also goes back to schooling. Because they drilled into us, we're the ones who want peace, they're the ones who keep fighting, they're just so dedicated to death and killing and they won't leave us alone.
In high school, we had a stadium event with a speaker who was telling us about a person who defected from Hamas, converted to Christianity and became a Shin Bet agent. Pretty sure you can read this in the book "Son of Hamas." A lot of my friends read the book, I didn't read it, I only know what I was told in that lecture. I guess they couldn't risk us missing out on the indoctrination if we chose not to read it.
One of the things they told us was how he thought, we've been fighting with them for so long, Israelis must have a culture around the glorification of violence. And he looked for that in music. He looked for songs about war. And for a while he just couldn't find any, but when he did, he translated it more fully, and he found out the song was about an end to wars. And this, according to the story as I was told it, was one of the things that convinced him. If you know know the current trending Israeli "war anthem," you know this flimsy reasoning doesn't work.
Back then, my friend encouraged me to think more critically about how we as Israelis envision peace, as the absence of resistance. And how self-centered it is. They can be suffering under our occupation, but as long as it doesn't reach us, that's called peace. So of course we want it and they don't.
Unless we're willing to work to change the situation entirely, our calls for peace are just "please stop fighting back against the harm we cause you."
In this video, Shlomo Yitzchak shares how he changed his mind. His story is much more interesting than mine, and he's much more eloquent telling it. He mentions how he was taught to fear Palestinians. An automatic thought, "If I go with you, you'll kill me." I was taught this too. I was taught that, if I'm in a taxi, I should be looking at the driver's name. And if that name is Arab, I should watch the road and the route he's taking, to be prepared in case he wants to take me somewhere to kill me. Just a random person trying to work. For years it stayed a habit, I'd automatically look at the driver's name. Even after knowing that I want to align myself with liberation, justice, and equality. It was a process of unlearning.
On October, not long after the current escalation of violence, I had to take a taxi again. A Jewish driver stopped and told me he'll take me, "so an Arab doesn't get you." Israeli Jews are so comfortable saying things like this to each other. My neighbors discussed a Palestinian employee, with one saying "We should tell him not to come anymore, that we want to hire a Jew." The second answered, "No, he'll say it's discrimination," like it would be so ridiculous of him. And the first just shrugged, "So we don't have to tell him why." They didn't go through with it, but they were so casual about this conversation.
In the Torah, we're told to treat those who are foreign to us well, because we know what it's like to be the foreigner. Fighting back against oppression is the natural human thing to do. We know it because we lived it. And as soon as I looked at things from this angle, it wasn't really a choice of what to support.
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katyspersonal · 9 months
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Speaking of "something intimate touched by dirty hands", I'll be real, I kinda do still need someone to "cleanse" image of Mic0lash for me. Ever since the grand fandom rift I've of course fallen onto the better side where fans are trying their best, I just can tell my Mic mutuals are trying their best with the guy. But something so incredibly bad is connected with the character- You guys know how negative experiences with people can ruin a character (and you're in luck if not the whole piece of media)? This character for me is a manifestation that if someone claims to really love and need me, I should keep in mind that it is a lie I should not trust.
I should know by now that when something sounds too good to be true - it IS, but he is like... an "avatar" of that realization. Someone I could just look at at be reminded without the words that yes, I should remember that I'll never be happy or valued like I want to. That my "ability" to see something good even in the darkest people or to listen to the intention of even the most distorted message is reserved for someone else. For something else. I am just not built for things like long friendships, celebrating holidays, exploring the world together, just being loved, just being able to trust, just being cared about, just sharing life with someone. My role in this world is to be a "tutorial enemy". Someone people would have a negative experience with but in exchange, understand who they are and what they really want in life, and let go of their struggles and wishes that tormented them. But I feel like I can only fulfill my purpose in this world for as long as I am ignorant about it. If I stop trusting people and seeking the type of love I need - I won't get attached, so I won't get hurt when people hurt me, so I won't be slain. Because this is what I am in - a videogame enemy that people need to defeat to level up and proceed to their own games. And if I stop respawning - how I can be what I am?
I just should not learn a thing, because people better off after they "murder" me. More cruel and reclused, but better off - more self-sufficient, more confident, more.. secure of how much good they deserve. It would just help them to be more cautious when someone actually toxic appears. Like, someone who is not even self-aware, not struggling and not remorseful. So they won't take chances, to the better.
But I just need to blind myself to the truth, because I've got nothing better to offer to this world than being that "tutorial enemy". People are better after slaying me. I drop Insight points upon being stabbed, and it happened so many times. I guess this character is just cursed with being associated with a truth so horrible that it is better off not realizing it and just be moved like a pawn.
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qqueenofhades · 3 months
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https://www.tumblr.com/qqueenofhades/743255237060689920/the-thing-that-confuses-me-about-the-dont-vote
The “don’t vote” left’s point is basically that, if Biden gets a second term, it’ll basically signal that “They’ll vote for us as long as we’re not Republicans, why don’t we do some REAL fucked up shit, if we can get away with it?” It takes the power out of the people’s hands and places it firmly in the party’s.
I can’t completely disagree with that, my caveat is that there’s no real alternative system or party in place, because top-down change is ineffective; a third party president has to contend with a two party congress.
Except no. This whole "Biden just wants to do as much fucked up shit as possible while not being a Republican, and if you give him a second term he'll do more fucked up shit deliberately to spite you" mindset is only possible as an interpretation if you a) deliberately and comprehensively ignore everything he has done to date, and b) you approach the situation with the maximum bad faith possible. Not to mention, the ultimate outcome of this Big Important Teaching Biden A Lesson is that Trump gets back into power and makes everything orders of magnitude worse, because he does in fact want to deliberately do evil shit to everyone and says so at every opportunity. There is not some magical happy alternative that springs into existence by not voting. If you choose this as a year to Teach Biden A Lesson, you are enabling Trump. Trump will be much, much worse. If you don't care about that, I still do not care what your Great Ideology is. You are not helping anyone and you are directly and irreversibly hurting everyone.
I made a post a few days ago wherein I mentioned that I want to assess Biden fairly, taking into account both strengths and weaknesses, but the rampant bad-faith, lying, misreading, misrepresentation, and open sabotage of him (especially by the online left; the GOP sometimes only wishes they were as good at turning Biden's voter pool against him) makes it really difficult to do that. My frustration with those people makes me just want to go "BIDEN IS GREAT THE END." I know he is a flawed old man (though by literally every account of a career spent in public service, he really does care about making the world a better place and any remotely good faith reading of his accomplishments thus far can see that). It is also very likely that he goes MORE left in a second term because he won't have to face the electorate again, he has always gone more left when pushed before, and he's not actually the scheming genocidal mastermind that leftist social media paints him as. Shocking, I know.
I know there are things in the world we don't like and don't want and want to stop, and therefore we blame our own president for not making it stop. But I have zero, no, none, absolutely none whatsoever sympathy for this pseudo-populist "WE NEED TO TEACH BIDEN A LESSON BY ELECTING TRUMP AGAIN, I AM VERY MORAL MUCH ACTIVIST" mindset. There's this funny thing about America wherein it is still (for now) a democracy. If Biden wins a second term, he can't run again. I would take literally anything these people said more seriously if they focused on developing their dream progressive successor for 2028 (and also figured out how to get that person elected and in a place to make real change) rather than cynically sabotaging Biden in the most consequential election year, again, of our lifetimes. If you don't like him now, find a way to make his successor a better option. Throwing a toddler tantrum and handing the country back to a senile, deranged, fascist, revenge-riddled, theocratic Trump HELPS. NOBODY. I still don't know how many times I'm going to have to say that, but yeah.
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fairuzfan · 7 months
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This post is for the anon who sent me that video asking me to debunk it's claims so they can be better equipped against accusations of antisemitism.
Sorry, I won't post the video since I refuse to have that man on my blog but I can give you common Zionist talking points and the illogicality behind it.
To preface: most of the questions Zionists will ask you are a trap, and will make you fall into a "rabbit hole" (as I was once told when I was younger), as we try to apply their reasoning. My advice is to ALWAYS center the humanity of Palestinians. For example, when a Zionist says:
"Don't Jews deserve a homeland to be safe?"
It fundamentally ignores the core issue: Palestinians are being raped, murdered, and expelled from their homes so that the establishment of this so called "homeland" may exist. When people ask this to you, I personally advise saying something like:
Why must Palestinians suffer for the establishment of this homeland?
Always recenter to the issue at hand—the inhumane removal and treatment of Palestinians.
"Palestine belongs to the Jews and Not Muslims"
The whole premise of this claim is flawed—there is a weird tendency to equate Arab/Palestinian=Muslim when it just is like. Completely untrue. There are Palestinian Christians, Bethlehem is famously a Christian city, who have been there for centuries. There are Palestinian Jews, who have been there for centuries. There are Palestinian Muslims, who have been there for centuries. My grandpa told me stories of how he would turn on lamps for his Jewish neighbors in Al-Khalil (or Hebron) during Shabbat.
To claim that Palestine is EITHER Islamic or Jewish doesn't make any sense and completely neglects the fact that dissemination of culture has occurred for centuries, as well as the intermingling of people throughout generations. To somehow assert that for some reason, Jews and Muslims did not have ANYTHING to do with each other—did not create together, did not build families together, did not build culture together, all while being PALESTINIAN—is incredibly racist and nonsensical. "Palestinian" is not a religious identity—it's a cultural and ethnic one.
Also, it does not negate the core issue—Palestinians are being killed, removed, and tortured so that others can live on that land.
"Well what about [something about partitioning land]?"
Honestly like, who cares about the partitioning throughout the 1900 and early 2000s. Sorry, I'm not going to list the whole "partitioning" history nonsense. The whole reason "Israel" exists is because of a Mass Exodus, murder, and rape of Palestinians. Everything after that is rendered obsolete.
"Well, I heard Palestinians allied with Hitler"
I don't know how to tell you this but Palestine was under British Control. No they didn't.
"Israel withdrew from the Gaza and left them to themselves and they put Hammas in charge"
Oh yeah, Israel totally left Gaza, that's why Gazans' water, electricity, internet, and food is completely controlled by Israel (this is sarcasm, Israel still controls basic life in Gaza).
Go back to centering the idea that no human deserves to be shoved into an open-air prison, starved, and controlled. Did you know that the Zionist Entity controls the amount of water Gazans receive, as well as counting their calories to ensure they don't have enough energy on a day to day basis?
"I heard Israel asked Arabs to stay"
Show them these papers and videos when they say this:
youtube
If you can't show them these videos, check in the next point what to say.
"Well the Palestinians left of their own will in 1948"
Palestinians in 1948 didn't "leave." They had heard of how the Zionist Entity was slaughtering Palestinians en masse. Women especially heard stories of rape and sexual violence. They fled from *violence*. Again, from an earlier post, that this was a calculated effort on the Zionist Entity's part to try and get them to "leave" on their own and "abandon" their houses so that they can come in and say "hey, they left on their own so, we can come in and take their houses now."
Anyways, the idea that once you leave your house you can't ever come back to it is incredibly odd to me as an argument on Zionists' part. Like if you leave your house right now to go to the grocery store and you come back and see someone in your house and they're like "sorry dude, this is my house now, you left so that means you can't come back," you'd be like, "what the hell!" It would be even weirder if everyone agreed with the guy who took your house, which is what happened to Palestinians.
In Al-Khalil, or Hebron, Palestinians always have to have someone stay in their house or else a Settler will come in and take it from them. So it still goes on today as well.
This is not a point, but when that one person in the video said "Arabs lived under Israeli rule" and showed a clip of a bustling city with mountains, I'm pretty sure that was Amman, Jordan, not Palestine lol. Those buildings in the mountains look like how downtown Amman builds the residential areas. Could be wrong tho.
"There are no Jews living under Palestinian rule in Palestine"
What is this, some sort of gotcha argument? What are they trying to prove, the racist (obviously false) notion that Palestinians hate Jews as a whole? How do they know no Palestinian Jew lives in Gaza? Also, Settlers in Palestinian Territory exist??? I had never heard this claim before, its incredibly stupid lol. You're automatically a citizen of "Israel" if you're Jewish, whether or not you live in or outside of Palestinian Territories. So of course technically they don't live under Palestinian rule, they're granted full rights as an "Israeli" citizen automatically!
Go back to talking about the inhumane treatment of Palestinians, I wouldn't bring up the above counterpoint unless they really won't let it go since the main point is mistreatment.
"Why are Christians supporting Israel then, if it's a secular issue rather than a religious one?"
Well actually for a couple reasons:
Oil interests and regional control of goods (White People Supporting White People).
Weird fundamentalist ideology where they want to enact the second coming of Christ.
And finally because they are racist and don't think Arab Christians deserve to live. They literally bombed a 1500+ year church the other day. Why would (White) Christians cosign that.
Anyways, its a stupid argument again, because it forgets the core issue of Palestinians dying and being displaced.
In summary, always go back to the point of centering the Palestinians being displaced, tortured, and murdered, no matter the argument a Zionist gives you.
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