#I really like this portrayal tbh

[straight-to-the-pain]

I don't know if anyone else in the whump community has read 'A Constellation of Vital Phenomena' by Anthony Marra but it is genuinely a really good book and also has some of the best depictions of torture and its aftermath that I have read in fiction.

I wanted to share some of my favourite quotes, hopefully without too many spoilers as it is out of context, but maybe skip this post if you don't want to know anything at all going in.

To give a brief summary, the book centres around the lives of people in Chechnya during the first and second war between the Russian government (Feds) and the separatist rebels. The main story focuses on a man (Akhmed) who is trying to save his neighbour's daughter from being killed by the Feds after her father is taken away in the middle of the night. He does this by taking her to a hospital where he then volunteers. One of the people in his village (Ramzan) becomes an informer for the Feds after being tortured, and this is explored in the excerpts below.

‘Information the Feds would torture them for was written here on the walls for all to see. It was well understood among the men that the Feds had as much sense as two bricks smashed together. It was also understood that pain, rather than information, was the true purpose of interrogation.'

'During his first detention in the landfill, in 1995, in the first war, he had refused to inform. They had wrestled down his trousers, shown him the bolt cutters, and still he had said no. Screaming, thrashing, with his manhood half severed, he had said no. He had done that, and now he was ready to start saying yes.'

'He would have confessed everything, but they didn't ask, weren't interested, threatened to cut out his tongue and put pliers to his teeth if he spoke one more fucking word. Electric wires were wound around his fingers. A car battery was drained into his bones. God might have been watching, but it wasn't God's finger on the battery switch. The interrogating officers didn't speak. Instead he was an instrument they played, performing a duet, and in their own way they conversed through his sobs. They both wore very shiny shoes. That was all he would remember.'

'He had trouble walking, He had forgotten torture could be so exhausting. The new interrogator, the one with less shiny shoes, held him upright, using his whole body as a crutch, and helped him walk. He carefully wiped Ramzan's forehead with a handkerchief before opening the door to the next room.'

'The interrogator with less shiny shoes crouched behind him. His hands were wet. Ramzan promised everything, and the interrogator, like the parent of a child too old to believe in ghosts, watched him with disappointment, his clear eyes saddened by Ramzan's sincerity. The interrogator took off his jacket, rolled up his sleeves, laid the live wires on Ramzan's chest and mapped the border of their shared humanity. Ramzan offered his soul. He begged to be enslaved. The known universe contracted to the limits of the cement floor, and on it, the interrogator was both man and deity, prophet and god. By ten o'clock the interrogator with less shiny shoes asked his first question. By eleven the electrical wires were unwound from Ramzan's fingers. By noon he was allowed to dress. By one he was on the FSB payroll. He kept thanking the interrogator with less shiny shoes.'

‘Greed didn’t motivate his informing, at least not primarily; primarily he informed by necessity, to survive, for his love and hate and above all awe of the power wielded by the interrogating officer with less shiny shoes.'

'That was his greatest fear. Could he stay silent? Could he withstand what awaited him? He told himself that his love for the girl should fortify him against any torture, but this, like so much of what he told himself, was a lie. After all, he was squeamish at the sight of blood, what would he say when lying in a puddle of his own? But he saw no other way. He would pray for the strength to stay silent, for a quick heart attack, and leave the rest to God.' (This is Akhmed POV)

'When they threatened to beat me, I said nothing, Akhmed. When they threatened to beat me, I said nothing. When they threatened to electrocute me, I said nothing. When they threatened to castrate me, I said nothing. I said nothing, Akhmed. Whatever you think of me, you remember that once I said nothing when a wiser man would have sung. And the interrogators, they couldn't believe it. They called in others to examine me. I was there on the floor, and above their faces were dark ovals silhouetted by the ceiling lights. They had beaten me hard and I couldn't hear right, but I kept saying no, with every breath I had. The main reason they let me go, the only reason they didn't shoot me right there was out of perverse respect, some sort of professional courtesy. But I wish they had shot me, Akhmed, because the good part of me died there, and all this, everything since, has been an afterlife I'm trying to escape.'

‘I knew what was coming. I knew it never stops. They put a shame inside you that goes on like a bridge with no end, the humiliation, the fucking humiliation of knowing that you are not a human being but a bundle of screaming nerve endings, that the torture goes on even when the physical hurt quietens. People treated me differently when I came back the first time.'

[wakeywakeyjakey]

The Batman characters I always write and view with DID (aka the “DID baddies”) are Batman, Two Face, and Scarecrow—and I LOVE that they each present with such wiiiiildy different interactions with their headmates + experiences within their headspaces.

The way I see it, Bruce and Batman coexist easily. They have the same mission so they work alongside each other and view the other as having an extremely valuable role to play in their life/are aware that they can’t function without each other. What’s cool is that they have completely different approaches to their collective goal, but ultimately they trust the other and both get where they want to be (from a big picture perspective).

Harv and Harvey coexist grudgingly and work against each other in a lot of ways (it’s a WIP) BUT they have a system (haha) for how to navigate daily life so that they both feel equally represented in their decisions. While “trust” might be too strong a word to use, they definitely both see the other as capable of living their collective life even if/when they don’t agree with the other’s decisions—and so they mostly don’t stand in each other’s way.

Jonathan and Scarecrow DO NOT COEXIST! Jonathan views Scarecrow as a liability actively ruining their life and thus works to keep Scarecrow away from the front entirely. Scarecrow views Jonathan as weak and unwilling/unable to do what needs to be done to keep them both alive. The one area of overlap is their research (and criminal endeavors) so it’s the one space they’re willing to coexist, but outside of their heists they’re almost exclusively at each other’s throats and would rather the other not have access to their life/body/decisions.

It adds so many layers to their characters and entirely fleshes out the “personas” when you come at it from the lens of DID as opposed to just viewing it as a costume they take off at the end of the night imo!

[mississpissi]

hi my name is sarah and my controversial timothy stoker headcanon is that he hasn’t had a drink since danny. he wants his head to be clear. he wants to be able to know what he is seeing and trust that. he wants to be able to clearly remember what he sees. this is what keeps his focus and his anger sharp. that’s all thanks.

[gothoevsky]

ГАМЛЕТ — 1964.

[natequarter]

thinking about the way bbc ghosts handles repression once again... the captain is your classic case of "six feet in denial, cannot Show Emotions, etcetera etcetera," but basically all the other ghosts bar robin pull the exact same move, just in slightly less blatant ways (except for fanny, who is just as bad as the captain). thomas makes me feel painfully seen: he is six feet in denial (about his death and what people think of him), and he cannot Show Emotions, but because he specifically does not Show Emotions by very blatantly shoving what can't actually allow people to get close to him in other people's faces (whiny, annoying, loud, pathetic, constantly sad but in the shallowest way possible, and sometimes sarcastic), and uses this as both a cover and a desperate cry for help, nobody ever notices that he actually is hurting, to the point that the julian cries more freely than him! julian! seriously!

[gwensy]

gonna be annoying in the tags

[chadsuke]

Comics Read in 2024:

Her Tale of Shim Chong Vol. 1 by 비완 & Seri (2018)

Her Tale of Shim Chong Vol. 2 by 비완 & Seri (2019)

Her Tale of Shim Chong Vol. 3 by 비완 & Seri (2019)

Her Tale of Shim Chong Vol. 4 by 비완 & Seri (2020)

Her Tale of Shim Chong Vol. 5 by 비완 & Seri (2020)

Her Tale of Shim Chong Vol. 6 by 비완 & Seri (2020)

Her Tale of Shim Chong Vol. 7 by 비완 & Seri (2020)

Her Tale of Shim Chong Side Story by 비완 & Seri (2020)

Let's Hide My Little Brother S1 by Jihoo Chae & Chen Li (2021)

[ID: Covers of the aforementioned books. End ID.]

[gingermintpepper]

Stray Gods, I would like to make a formal apology for prematurely issuing a low score on my Apollo-in-media Judgement Scale before playing you. Yes, you do commit many cardinal sins with his physical design such as having him look like a surfer bro with the Brad Pitt-Achilles nape length bob and that is, in some ways, unforgiveable, but I should have known better than to judge a book by its cover. Or, in this case, an Apollo by his abs.

[katyspersonal]

Do 8, 10, 21 and 25 for the Bloodborne fandom. I am curious

(Asks from this ( x ) meme)

8) common fandom opinion that everyone is wrong about

It is kind of a hard question, because opinions are opinions! They are not supposed to be right OR wrong! I suppose that some of them do fall on the territory of lacking perspective, and in that case I'd say insisting on how Yharnam is Victorian London! To be honest, again, everything in Bloodborne is off-brand and Yharnam has several inspirations, but like... there is the Czech clocktower, there is off-brand Nikola Tesla with his inventions, names like Micolash an Iosefka, and there is Polish language on the graves in Hemwick!

Yharnam is as Slavic as you can get come on fdsjdffds

21) part of canon you think is overhyped

Hard to tell, sometimes it feels like almost nothing in the fandom gets enough attention on the contrary! I am not sure if this is just the small fandom problem, or the problem of the source material being too good, but no matter what aesthetic, lore piece or character dynamic got a lot of attention it ALL feels deserved! I used to think that maybe Choir was getting "too much" attention and eclipsed the rest of the covenants in fanart, but again, 1) they ARE interesting and appealing enough and 2) the sense of one hyped thing 'robbing the spotlight' from another is usually a mistake, people are naturally drawn to what they like and if it didn't exist it is not like all that attention would 'instead' go to more neglected bits! In other words, everything in Bloodborne deserves its attention AND more!

25) common fandom complaint that you're sick of hearing

Kinda tired of the complaints about how Maria and sometimes other female characters are drawn! Not because they are not true, but because they never will REACH their target audience! People that draw Maria with big hips and tiddies and no hint of strength simply do not GO on the websites like Tumblr or Twitter! I don't really see the reason of recycling this complaint specifically in the spaces where people that do draw female characters like this will not even receive this feedback. I can't be 100% free from hypocrisy on this one though because I also sometimes vagueblog rather than addressing what I disagree with directly (in my defence though usually it happens because I physically can't message the person fdhhfds).

But basically, it feels like people have trapped themselves with the whole "never offer unsolicited criticism" mentality and thus can't post criticism UNDER those inaccurate fanarts. The 'treat others like you want to be treated' can and WILL be a bitch, so we're left with frantic posts about how this or that character should be drawn, in the place where everyone already draws this character accurately, so it gets jarring! I am an asshole that will go in people's DMs about drawings to tell them that Henryk's skin is not so pale, that Damian/Yurie/Henriett/etc have grey eyes and not blue and that Malenia is NOT built like Barbie doll so maybe this is why I do not understand the point?

10) worst part of fanon

[vaugarde]

sometimes i think abt that youtuber that said diane nguyen was a dull character in seasons 1-4 of bojack because “shes the character that is the hardest to relate to in the cast because she’s married to a sitcom actor and is a popular ghostwriter, which isnt something many people can say, so to fix her, they needed to let her get divorced and get into a worse financial situation ”

as opposed to the actual sitcom star she married who got the job by wandering into a studio, apparently,

[wolframpant]

"The answer once again is yes." "Will you let me finish?! You don't even know what I'm going to say! You are in your cups! You've had too much wine again."

I, Claudius ♦ Favourite scenes

[acoldsovereign]

SAIYAN LORE & CULTURE HEADCANONS #1 - SOCIALIZATION.

In this post, socialization refers to how each Saiyans greet each other, common phrases, and other such things.

HANDSHAKES: THEY DO NOT EXIST.

Instead, Saiyans grip each other by the forearm, and shake roughly/firmly or gently up and down, twice. Three times is pushing it-- reserved for strained bonds or to quietly say "I don't like you", while four shakes is considered mocking/disrespectful. Most times this is done silently, but there can be verbal greetings to accompany this 'arm greeting' (or replace it entirely).

GREETINGS & COMMON SAYINGS.

"May Yamoshi guide you/her/him/your childling/sister/brother [insert other bond/relation here]." This is the Saiyan version of Bless you/May God bless you/Good morning or goodnight. There is a belief system/religion/spirituality amongst the Saiyans, and it is called Yamoshism. Depending on one's philosophical standing, Yamoshi is either a Patron Saint for the Saiyans or the equivalent of an Ascended Master/Saiyan who underwent a process similar to apotheosis. Either way, this is the best thing to hear if you are a Saiyan or carry Saiyan blood as it is usually impossible to utter it maliciously. It denotes a large amount of care and thoughtfulness.

"May Eelnana shine upon you/grace you/smile upon you/your troop, etc." It's the same as above except it involves the Goddess embedded in Yamoshism. Depending on one's philosophical slant, Eelnana either exists as a separate and real entity (hint: Maiz is a believer in this school of thought), or she's purely symbolic. To be told the Goddess of External Power, Inner Strength and Innovation/Change is smiling down upon you and/or guiding you is no small thing to say. This is explicitly saying you are trusted to know what you are doing, and who you must be.

"May our suns rise on you/never set on you." This is the non-religious/non-spiritual version of the above two sayings.

CHILDLINGS & PROPER CONDUCT.

Baby Saiyans are called childlings up until adolescent age (16). Other affectionate names are not translatable into Universal, or other dialects as easily, but the pronunciations are suspiciously similar to the following words: hellspawns, hellhounds, critters and runts. Childlings who stay on the planet are expected to learn hand-eye coordination as soon as they're able to talk. Childlings are who sent away, aka "infiltration babies" are typically abandoned/not talked about until they come back stronger. Until then, they are out of sight, out of mind. Childlings staying on the planet are treated nicer than their weaker counterparts (unless like Maiz, they have a visible birth defect that can impede their ability to fight and defend themselves). In this case, they are pushed harder to overcome their limitations and only then, are they treated with more grace than their counterparts. Outside of that, childlings are typically encouraged to interact with their environment and make connections. If it turns out they're the type of Saiyan who cannot bond easily, this is when they figure that out and plan "ahead." If they can bond, their lives will be a bit easier-- they'll have a second family to fall back on (Team Bardock as an example). However, just because a Saiyan can bond doesn't mean they will get close with everyone. (Ex. Karne was atypical in this regard; she was warm and bubbly on the surface and actively sought out friends, but she was picky about what bonds she wanted. She was insistent on becoming Bardock's first friend* even when he was being difficult. She genuinely loved and doted on Seripa/Fasha, who took over as the more "hot-headed personality" as they both grew up. She ruthlessly killed Artichoke after confirming her pregnancy with Maiz, who she actually wanted. She was emotionally available for her daughter and spoiled her rotten with love and affection. She loved her so much to the point of shoving her into a space pod to save her life during the Genocide). Maiz is the same way, and she's aware of it to varying levels**.

Most Saiyans were either trained to be independent or part of a collective. Individualism spiked post Yamoshi's generation, but especially under Frieza. Incidentally, King Cold didn't do much meddling; he found their ability to work as a collective amusing and intriguing. It was Frieza who took issue and thus, started nitpicking at them little by little until a schism was later created-- one that would give rise to the very thing he feared; a union of Saiyans. (This union and their old, ancient traditions that were taken underground would later give rise to the legend he tried to erase: the Super Saiyan).

[schnuffel-danny]

trying to think of f/f ships I have in DP and realizing that I.... I'm so dedicated to my limited number of blorbos, that I don't really ship anything besides Maddie/Jack/Vlad???

like, I guess there's potentially romantic dynamics I like with some of the kid characters, but I just.... idk something in my brain just doesn't wanna get invested in shipping of kid characters :,D so it just starts and ends at "eh, I guess they could maybe date, for a bit? idk they're like 14, their love lives do not concern me"

[foxballad]

Good morning! I have things on queue so if i owe you a reply it will be posted. I think i have answered all the threads that i owe according to my thread tracker but if i forgot to answer something, please let me know! I already started to work on the memes i owe in my askbox so they will be put on queue too!

Also i will be quietly writing them in my drafts. I’m kind of feeling negative about my portrayal but hopefully this will pass soon 😭😭😭

[redrobemerle]

not to be a little hater (except that i absolutely am being a little hater and im right to be) but

the "Young Justice - All Media Types" tag on ao3 just. should not exist. YJA is a mishmash of predominantly the og Teen Titans comics and the Teen Titans comic from '03 (not the Teen Titans '03 (animated) tie-in comic. thats a New Teen Titans adaptation.) with bits and pieces from n52 (like kaldur being aqualad). Young Justice '98 is a COMPLETELY different story that shares. basically nothing with the show (only one yj '98 character shows up in the ESTABLISHING SEASON of yja. and hes also a Completely Different Person.)

like, dont get me wrong, "all media types" tags, can be incredibly helpful, especially when it comes to stuff like comics, because of how people have a tendency to pull from different continuities.

but like.

unless its a crossover fic of yj '98 and yja (which. genuinely i would like to see more of its an interesting concept to play with) (or yja and yj '19 for that matter!), the Young Justice (Comics) and Young Justice (Cartoon) tags are mutually exclusive. PLEASE treat them as such. I should not be seeing the following set of fandom tags on 90% of YJA fics:

I know its DCs fault for giving them the same name (and also. releasing the animation tie-in comic of YJ '11. which very much does not help the confusion) but PLEASE i am BEGGING here

[ladyseidr]

every time i think abt william being a sort-of decent father when the kids were younger i take -50 damage