#OTP: Who We Are For Love

[aylaaescar]

so. Rionne telling Josie she loves her. I'm waaay too attached to how it goes in-game to headcanon differently - I'm a sucker for the "Anguished Declaration of Love" trope, and with generally logical Rionne just blurting it out in the middle of a duel? a duel that, in any other circumstance, would feel like a waste of time? love it.

Blackwall: why are you doing this, Rionne? seems out of character for you Rionne: .............pragmatism Bull: uh huh.

but. but. if that arranged marriage thing didn't happen, I think Rionne would still just kind of blurt it out. just not during a duel, obviously - it's after a short kiss and a "I'll meet you for lunch after we're done doing our work", and Josie is wide-eyed while Rionne is kind of buffering because did she just say that. you did, bbg! you sure did!

[thirdeyeblue]

“Nine would have treated Martha better than Ten did”

I need to talk about this argument that never seems to stop circulating.

Note: Not a venomous/anti post. There’s more than enough of that across fandom spaces as is, and this is supposed to be a place for ✨sweet, blissful escapism✨

When making this argument, people seem to envision a scenario in which Nine never met Rose.

While I can appreciate a good hypothetical, recognizing Rose's significance to the Doctor (Nine and Ten) is essential to understanding why things with Martha played out the way they did in the first place.

In the third series, the Doctor is grieving. This grief is deliberately threaded into nearly every script, whether spoken aloud or not (and these are just a few examples):

He's burning in Rose’s wake the entire time Martha travels with him, which is why it’s so frequently called upon: It’s 100% deliberate in framing his grief. He grieved as Nine too, of course— having been fresh on the heels of the Time War — but then he met Rose, which changed everything.

Back then, he was still a rude, traumatized pain in the ass, but we watch Rose soften more of those jagged edges with every episode as they grow closer; as he lets his guard down and forms a deep connection with her.

He falls in love (against his better judgment) and it's game over.

And yes: provided S1E1 had been titled 'Martha', one can realistically assume things might have unfolded similarly to how they did with Rose. However, it wouldn’t have been that way just because the Doctor was Nine and “Nine was different” — it would be because he wasn’t already in love with someone else. The same can't be said for the start of S3.

Think of it like this: if Rose AND Martha had been in that cellar — if Nine had taken both of them along with him in S1 — we’d eventually be looking at the most melodramatic love triangle ever, what with him living in close quarters with two brilliant, gorgeous, compassionate young women... But Doctor Who is plenty “soap opera” as is with just one woman in the TARDIS.

(I certainly wouldn’t object to reading that fic, though)

Now, regarding the unrequited elephant in the room…

His inability to be romantic with Martha isn’t because he thinks her lesser, nor is it for lack of compatibility. It isn't because Rose is any better than her. It certainly isn’t just because he’s Ten.

It’s really only for one reason, which can't be denied — and now I’m a broken record:

He is still in love with Rose.

(cut from a tenrosedaily gif)

Nine is Ten, and Ten is only such a mess in S3 because he’s just lost the love of his life. Martha merely got caught in the crosshairs of a volatile Time Lord in mourning, and yes — it sucks. Absolutely.

But it also feels dismissive to chalk Ten and Martha’s relationship up to little more than some sort of mindless dance of pining, jealousy, and toxicity.

Ten trusted Martha with his life over and over again — and hers, with him. He constantly praised her brilliance, happily carting her around time and space with no intention of letting her go. In the BBC’s extended universe of novels/comics/cartoons/etc, there’s so much depth to their relationship: love and trust and trauma and sacrifice. They had their own special bond as mates, their own complexities — so it’s a bummer that it's forever overshadowed by the other things.

I’m not denying that there was a lot of stuff that sucked/was for sure toxic about Ten's S3 behavior, but so many of the things I've seen him catching flak for can be directly attributed to being A Clueless Fucking Alien Idiot (not a trait that’s unique to Ten) — as well as his flat-out obliviousness to Martha’s feelings.

So yes, I agree: if Rose never existed, he would have treated Martha differently as Nine. He also would have treated her differently as Ten. Certainly.

But Rose did exist, and when discussing canon, it matters.

“He tells me that he absolutely, 100% loves Rose... He tells me how my daughter; my wonderful, beautiful, clever little girl saved him from himself before… And he says that’s all because of me! I made her into the Rose Tyler that saved him.”

-Jackie Tyler, Flight Into Hull!

Martha got the short end of the stick in S3. She came round at the wrong place and time, but that doesn't mean it was all bad. It doesn't mean the Doctor didn’t adore her. It certainly doesn't mean the time they spent together was wasted or worthless. They were brilliant!

Sure, he could be a twat, but let it be known that he was a twat with Rose as well, both as Nine and Ten. I’m sure Tentoo can be plenty infuriating, too. So while I'll defend Ten (and Tentoo) into the ground forever and ever and ever, I'll concede that he's fucked up.

The Doctor is a certified Pain In The Ass. It’s one of the things I love so much about this character — dynamics.

But never forget that Martha was goddamn tough as nails and overcame every bit of it. She moved on with her life, and the Doctor moved on with his. One can only pray that, when they inevitably drag her back onto the show (which feels inevitable if I'm honest), we see at once that she's been living her best life for all these years.

[italictext]

2econd 2ight 2eer

[xuanelle]

Rogue and Gambit #2 Cover by Kris Anka

[id: edit of Rogue and Gambit on a pale red background. Gambit is wearing a yellow and blue costume with his coat, and Rogue is wearing a green and white costume with a small white cape. Their suits are ripped, and they're facing each other while in fighting poses and they are both smiling. Gambit is holding a glowing card in his hand and Rogue is clenching her fist behind her as if she is about to punch something. /end id]

[r0zzk1ll]

"this man, is weird.. CRAZY weird.." "he was always very bright.."

[thetadoodles]

Zoom for sarcastic comments about Gallifrey and "mad professor capaldi's hair"

[iceinherheart-kissonherlips]

Jesus, he thinks, something is wrong with us, we are unwell, no one has ever felt any of this without destruction. Empires have fallen like this, he thinks, but it only makes him want her more, makes him look at his hands and think, My god, what a waste of time doing anything else but holding her. What a waste, and then he says aloud, JesusfuckingChrist what have you done to me? And she says, Kiss me.

He kisses her, thinks, Go on, ruin me. Wreck me, please. 

She kisses him back and she does. [x]

[kaidanalenkosprmanager]

THE BEST OF SHENKO 1/?

The end of the world has a way of reminding you of all the things you forgot to say do. Mass Effect: Legendary Edition (2021)

[bougiebutchbitch]

man it'd be real nice if people kept their Shitty Uncharitable Takes and Blatant Character Hate out of the character tags, but this is the fandom where 'Ed physically mutilating Izzy over and over, and torturing the crew, is actually all Izzy's fault because Ed has no agency and Izzy said A Mean Thing to him once' is a genuine popular take. so I don't know what I expected

[pensbridgertons]

SWANFIRE APPRECIATION WEEK 2023

day 4 ♡ time travel au

when zelenas portal opens, emma and neal get sucked in and transported to the enchanted forest, back in time to the moment emmas parents meet. while they watch on from a distance as snow and charming are about to have their first encounter, emma accidentally distracts snow and throws the whole moment off, changing history and interrupting her parents’ first meeting, therefore potentially erasing herself from existence. to prevent this from happening and fix their mistake, the two must figure out a new way to get snow and charming to meet. in order to do this, they seek help from rumpelstiltskin, which means neal must encounter this past version of his father and also make sure rumple doesn’t realize who he is. with his help, and the plan they concoct, involving convincing snow to steal charmings ring from the castle, sneaking into charming and abigail’s engagement ball, and breaking out of regina’s prison, they manage to set everything on the right path, and emma watches on as her parents first fall in love. with the wand that rumple provides them, emma is able to make a portal to transport them home.

[asky22]

This scene right here. THIS SCENE RIGHT HERE HAD ME BALLING!!!

This drama. Their romance. The slow burn. Ugh everything about it is perfect.

[aylaaescar]

Sidane and Morrigan: 12 and 16. Rionne and Josie: 23 and 24, please!

thank you!! 🖤

12. What struggle have they seen each other through?

there's the whole Blight, but that's a cheap answer so I will not go w that lol. okay here's one that idk if I've ever shared before, but Sidane lost their vision to an injury at the top of Fort Drakon.

(injuries/eye pain cw) a shriek was going to catch Morrigan off-guard, and Sidane just... jumped in the way. they weren't really thinking, bc if they were, they probably just would've used a magical barrier or something. but instead they panicked, and their face got clawed instead of Morrigan's head. now I'm perfectly aware that Morrigan canonically leaves after that fight if the ritual happened, buuuut it's my brain and I say that she stuck around after that, at least for a bit. it wasn't for long and might not even count for this question, tbh? but she stayed with them for a few days until they woke up, since the shriek got them badly enough that they were out of commission for the rest of the fight. Alistair was the one to get the final blow against the Archdemon.

16. How do they react when the other is upset? How do they try to help?

I won't lie to you, I feel like they're BOTH bad at this, at least initially lol. Morrigan grew up w friggin Flemeth as her role model, so I doubt she has any good examples to follow? Sidane is a liiiiittle better, since they have Jowan, their sister Perry, and best friend Ramori, so there's experience there in comforting others even if they're not the best at it. but Morrigan? nah. I feel like she doesn't know how to handle that at first, but learns as time goes on.

tbh they probably just kind of give the other space, at least in the beginning of their relationship? neither of them know what to do but don't want to make it worse, so they'll just leave the other be. but that changes when they start to fall for each other; Morrigan is a bit harder for me to pin down in how she'd comfort them, aside from spending time w them and listening to them vent. Sidane, on the other hand, tries to make Morrigan feel better by leaving a pretty flower or two in her tent, or on her things. historically they've always been a casual hook-up sort of person, they don't have experience with actual romantic feelings, but plenty of novels say that flowers are a good gift, right? they're trying. give them both some time in their relationship to not be as awkward with FEELINGS.

Josie/Rionne

23. What was their first impression of each other?

was Josie there when the Inquisitor was unconscious after popping out of the Fade? if yes, then I'd imagine she was probably curious as well as cautious? they just survived a huge disaster and they have that glowing arm now, so I think I'd feel the same way. if not, I think Josie might have thought Rionne was impressive and brave for how she'd sealed the Rift, but was also... kind of chilly? which isn't wrong, bc Rionne IS a chilly person in general - that just gets amplified when she's a Dalish mage surrounded by human Chantry members who seem to think she's a prophet for their religion. Rionne didn't enjoy her time at Haven, lbr.

on Rionne's end, she was initially suspicious (as she was with everybody), until Josephine greeted her in elvish. for Rionne, it was the first time anybody at Haven had treated her with respect; praising her for the Rift or being their Herald set her on edge at the least and irritated her at worst, because she had no choice in the former and she outright denied the latter every chance she got. so Rionne kind of decided that she had a soft spot for Josie from word go, haha.

24. How did they fall for each other?

would it be corny to say just by being themselves? 🖤 okay less corny, I think it happened just as they got to know and understand each other. they're both hardworking women who put their families (Lavellan and Montilyet) first, so much of what they do is for the people they love and there was a real solidarity that came with that. Josephine is caring and compassionate, gives Rionne cuddles while respecting her asexuality. she knows that sometimes Rionne's just going to be prickly, or not touchy-feely, and it doesn't mean that she's any less loving than she was yesterday. Rionne went out of her way multiple times to help Josephine with her family, and outright dueled somebody else so Josie wouldn't have to marry a stranger. lots of little things and big things adding up to a nice picture.

[waywardted]

Believing in rom-communism is all about believing that everything is going to work out in the end... Now, it may not work out how you think it will, or how you hope it does, but, believe me, it will all work out.

[amtrak12]

Look OTP shipping is my wheelhouse, but now that I've found the Lucifer discord, I will break out the multi-shipping, secondary shipping, and crack shipping to get more femslash in this fandom 😩 I cannot let this show be so damn het!

[makeyouminemp3]

i hate how people can just easily erase and forget and overlook a platonic relationship that had key importance to the show/movie they're apart of, like people talk about them at first, but when the second a romantic relationship is "more important" to talk about, most of the fandom drops it and forgets it when it's convenient for them because apparently it's not as important as romance 😒

[lonely-space-ace]

shoutout to Nyssa and Tegan for becoming canon for the third time somehow