#Spectacle P

[vocaloidsongpoll]

do you like this vocaloid song?

(composed by Spectacle-P)

submitted by @choco-myth! thank you so much!!!

[strabin]

　いつ描いたかよく分からないからまとめてドン。モンハンだったりふたご姫だったり窪谷須亜蓮だったりスぺピだったりなんかもう色々。

[funeral]

Nietzsche ultimately attempted to explain that our lives are governed by unseen forces beyond our comprehension, that there is a world of inner motives hidden behind a veil we are oblivious to. Our valiant struggle to imagine the workings of the universe—our universe—is ultimately pointless; we will never be able to acknowledge the underlying truths of existence. All truth is beyond comprehension—and all comprehension is nothing more than skimming the surface of oceanic depths . . . Therefore, it is our fate, as humans, to accept a reality composed entirely of illusions.

David Peak, The Spectacle of the Void

[mpsansy]

I’ll do more, these were just sitting in my files for days…

[idolbound]

I think people likely do suspect Meredith might be a little 💅 you know?

Obviously some followers of the Chantry take up vows of chastity, though from what I've been reading, while templars aren't required to take said vows, they do require special permission to marry as they may be required to move to other Circles or to do the Chantry's bidding elsewhere. As it were, if a spouse can provide their own support (e.g., owning land, having a role in another organization like the City Guard [I think of Aveline and Wesley, as he was apparently a former templar]), then permission is granted. This process likely deters most templars from formally marrying, or even maintaining long-term relationships.

That said, it's evident that templars in Kirkwall frequent the Blooming Rose often enough that Meredith eventually orders a raid of the place to find out which of her knights have been paying for sex and 'ruining' the reputation of the Order and its Knight-Commander. Obviously this demonstrates that templars seek and pay for sex without commitment nor worry about an actual relationship.

But, I am also certain that templars do have relationships beyond the Order - and perhaps, also, within it, though this is obviously discouraged and likely to earn reprimand for engaging in activities that could be seen as distracting from their duties (and creating a conflict of interest / tension among the ranks).

Now, with that context in mind, let's get back to Meredith.

Of course, already in Act 1 people are terrified of Meredith, and those who serve her do not want to break rules or cross her. She too wouldn't have any interest in being involved with someone serving under her, though I'm sure there are speculations about her interests. After all, we know from World of Thedas vol 2 that, when she stormed the brothel, she came across a very naked, very erect Jethann and politely and quietly excused herself. I'm sure Jethann has talked about this incident and rumours have spread; either the Knight-Commander is indeed, just a paragon of her faith and upholding a strict vow of chastity, or she isn't interested in men. While not a common assertion, someone, somewhere has probably drunkenly theorized about it. Like all the other rumours about Meredith, I think this one would certainly be among them.

Additionally, and this is in the game itself, but if Hawke is male and 'flirtatiously' compliments Meredith, she shuts him down by saying "I do not wear this armour for how it looks" and all but rolls her eyes at him. If Hawke is female, she simply says nothing (again, likely that they forgot to record a line / chose not to), but sometimes actions speak louder than words!

Now, in my own personal headcanon, I believe that as a Knight-Templar, Meredith had to deal with her templar brothers finding her attractive and desiring her in that way, which in response, she had to assert over and over, her utter disinterest in them. Most of these boys and young men thought they were rejected because Meredith was so focused on her studies, but others really found it hard to believe she would reject them. Obviously, this started the rumour mill about Meredith, both among her own cohort and beyond; after all, she was already a contentious initiate, since she already had an 'in' to doing well in the Order ahead of her peers because she was Knight-Captain Kell's unofficial adoptive daughter. Her blatant rejections towards her fellow knights' advances only added to that, with speculations ranging from the fact she already had a secret lover outside of the Gallows, to the fact she simply preferred the company of the fairer sex.

While it was true that Meredith was intensely focused on her duties and becoming the best Templar she could be, she was well aware of her romantic interest and sexual attraction toward other women early on (likely around age 16-17). I think as a ward of the Chantry that Meredith likely developed some close, possibly homoerotic friendships with other girls who grew up alongside one another, but obviously as Meredith became a templar initiate and stayed in the barracks of the Gallows, some connections may have been lost over time.

As an adult and new Knight-Templar, I believe Meredith - young, tall, and handsome - did have numerous illicit affairs with Chantry Sisters over the years, including when she became Knight-Captain, but stopping when she became Knight-Commander. As I've discussed, Meredith is hypersexual and this affects her relationships, but during this time, because of her duties, she is never able to form a long-term romantic relationship, preferring short-lived and secretive sexual relations, hidden by the cover of nightfall and the shadows in the darkest corners of the Chantry. While she has always been hypervigilant about, well, just about everything (due to her PTSD), there have always been wandering eyes and listening ears that notice such things.

In the timeline of Kirkwall, as mentioned above, I don't think such a rumour would become known by Meredith as most people are frightened of her and wouldn't dare mention it, but I do think the templars who have known her since the beginning, and those who have perhaps seen or heard a little too much, might know about where her preferences lie. In Thedas, for the most part, it would seem that having same-sex attraction is not seen as inherently bad or evil, though according to Brother Gentivi, in some places it is considered a quirk of character or sometimes scandal if done indiscreetly , or it can be accepted provided a noble still contribute to procreation and reproducing heirs for bloodlines.

In this case, given Meredith's position as Knight-Commander, and the other actions (or inaction) she takes regarding the templar-mage conflict and ruling the city, people knowing her sexuality is truly just another piece of gossip shared over ale in Lowtown, though one that may invoke further judgement by some.

[grandcovenant]

the fact laxasia is the boss who blocks your way to sophia. and they have fuck all to do with each other. the missed opportunity of it all. can you imagine if laxasia was an interesting character.

[estradasphere]

really interesting tags on the hct poll! (not meaning to put this person on blast or anything i actually kinda agree with them)

[westvocap-ocbracket]

ROUND ONE! SIDE B-15

Rag Doll Vs. Mavra Kamenev

[rubbish78]

Katie Kay one of the dancers from Panic! At The Disco - Live in Denver 2006

[pancakehouse]

hello bab!! absolutely obsessed with this prompt game idea xx im giving you a choice between 12 and 19--take your pick xox

send me a richard siken line and i'll write a mini fic inspired by it

hi omg HELLO ridi!! isn't it insane! prob the worst idea anyone's ever had im so excited about it!!!!!

ahhh god okay i went with:

19. i take off my hands and i give them to you. (oh also, vaguely nsfw? like not at all but also sorta, to be safe!)

“Did you know I’m left-handed?” 

The question startles Remus. At first, he’s sure he’s misheard, muffled as the words are, spoken into the small dip of skin where his collarbone meets the bony juncture of his shoulder. It was never a spot Remus thought was particularly notable or interesting, at least not until the day Sirius Black decided to attach his lips there, and make it so. 

Remus' breath hitches. “Hm?” he murmurs. His hand tightens in Sirius’ hair, fingers scraping scalp, and he tugs lightly until Sirius lifts his head. “What?” 

Night sky leaks through the curtains, and Sirius’ eyes are shining, lips parted and cherry red. There’s always something that sits heavy in Remus’ stomach on the nights they do this, like holding your breath underwater, or the slow tick of a broken clock. Something that’s over, inevitably, just as soon as they're brave enough to admit it. 

“I said-” And Sirius is grinning, because surely he’s only thinking of the bulge in Remus’ trousers, and how they can be as loud as they want now, here, in their flat, and is not - like Remus - thinking of all the ways he’d break himself apart, limb from limb from limb, if it might drag this thing out a little bit longer. “I said…” Sirius leans in, presses a kiss under Remus’ jaw, “-did you know-” another kiss to his throat, one to his chest, “that I-” cold fingers, skirting under his waistband, “...am left handed.” Sirius finishes with a poke and a loud, wet smack just above his belly-button. He snickers into it, warm breath tickling the hairs there. 

“Yes, Pads,” Remus huffs, stomach trembling, his voice horribly shaky. “Seeing as I shared a dorm with you for seven years, and classes for just as long…yes, Sirius, I had noticed sometime in there that you were left-handed.” 

There’s a moment, still and quiet. The sheets are warm, and balmy summer air drifts through the open window. A bird perches on the sill, claws scratching into chipped white paint and grass that’s sprung up between the cracks. They look at each other - him and Sirius, not him and bird - and the heavy feeling in Remus’ stomach feels sort of nice. Like a weighted blanket.

Eventually, Sirius nods. Slowly. “Well, good,” he says. His mouth quirks in the corner. “Good, because I’ve noticed things about you, too.” 

Remus’ hands find themselves back in Sirius’ hair.

Have you? he wants to ask. What kinds of things?

And then: because there are so many things i’ve noticed about you. i noticed that you went for a run in the rain yesterday and your legs were hurting after and your hair looks lovely when it’s damp. and last week at the park your hands smelled like orange slices and sometimes you smile when i walk into the room and also sometimes you don’t. 

…have you noticed how i always smile? when i see you. but maybe it’s not obvious. maybe you don’t think it’s obvious, just like you don’t think i know you write with your left hand and have a scar across the middle knuckle from Prongs and maybe you don’t realise i kiss it every time i have the chance and maybe you don't notice how the smell of oranges in summer always makes me sneeze. have you noticed that? what else is there to see?

“Alright,” he says instead. Because it’s their flat and it’s his bedroom and Sirius’ knees are around his hips, and maybe he doesn’t feel like being brave enough to acknowledge anything else right now. 

“Alright?” Sirius laughs. “You’ll allow it?” 

“Sure.” Remus cups his cheek, grins slowly, hesitantly, into their next kiss. Do you feel this? he wants to ask. My hands, these hands, these lips…they’re all yours. Do you have any use for them? “Yeah, alright, I’ll allow it.”

[beartoebeans]

Bertie and Lima, spectacled bears at Chester Zoo.

[strabin]

　春と修羅、なんとoff vocalがないのです！というわけで初めてDominoをダウンロードして耳コピでポチポチ。音が聞き取れなくて困りますわ。音感なんぞ存在しなかったのだ(⁠´⁠⊙⁠ω⁠⊙⁠`⁠)⁠

　実は作った当初のデータはフリーズしたせいでなくなり、ほぼ一からやり直して作ったよ。何してんだろ……。聞き取れないとこもあるから切り貼りしたりごましたりしてるけど、気が向いたらきれいにしたいね。気が向いたら。

[funeral]

An "other" is nothing more than a negative projection of the self, something outside of the inside. In order to understand the self, we must look within—collapse the internal into the external—in order to see beyond. In other words, dissolve the self into something bigger, something infinite and without thought. This is what we mean when we refer to the spectacle of the void. After all, to exist is to be both imprisoned in a limited comprehension of the universe and "privileged" with the burden of consciousness. To exist is to collapse the internal into the external, to come face to face with horror.

David Peak, The Spectacle of the Void

[mpsansy]

One of the things Casper never knew he missed was his mother singing a soft lullaby to him. Even as a newborn, she'd sing to her son. Quietly as to not disturb anyone. Although really, it was because the songs were only intended for her child's ears.

And once she got to singing or humming the tunes, that boy's fussing and wiggling would stop instantly.

---

Extra:

I do think in time she did teach another how to ease her boy with these lullabies. Unsurprisingly to us, it would be Simon.

He was not at all confident in doing this. Or really much for anything that had to do with parenting, yet Elizabeth was not one to criticize him. He's already learned to do so much. And as much as he doubts himself, he was fully capable and willing to.

He's sung to the boy on a few occasions as an infant. But the most prominent time he sung with his heart was when Elizabeth passed. Casper didn't see what had happened to his mother fully, but he knew at such a young age his mom was gone. Unfairly taken away.

Crying and hiding his soaked face through the blankets days after her passing. With the only thing calming him down was Simon by his side. Softly and very slowly with a heavy heart, singing Casper the lullaby. His mother lost her voice and by Simon doing this? He swore that he could hear his mother singing right alongside his uncle. Whether that was true or all in his head was irrelevant.

The point was that it kept him from feeling this sad feeling that wanted to drown him.

[queen-of-films]

4 Black Girl Geniuses With Spectacles

In honor of Black History month, I would like to commemorate all the Black girl geniuses of the world, who don't shy away from their spectacles.

Taraji P. Henson as Katherine Johnson

Hidden Figures is the definition of a Black girl genius. Taraji P. Henson as Katherine Johnson with no doubt inspire young Black girls to pursue S.T.EM. The real Katherine Johnson will also inspire Black girls that even when the odds are against them, to never hold back their intellect.

Keke Palmer as Akeelah

Akeelah and the Bee is what got me into Scrabble. Keke Palmer as Akeelah makes spelling bee competitions inspirational and aspires Black girls to make their dreams come true.

Storm Reid as Meg

Meg is as brilliant as she is fearless. DuVernay's choice to cast Storm Reid as Meg gives a wider spectatorship for Black girls to see themselves through Meg. One of the key aspects in A Wrinkle in Time is the power of believing in yourself, a very powerful message to send to all girls of different shades.

Lunella Lafayette as Moon Girl

Lunella's afro puffs, round spectacles, and tech-savvyness, inspires Black girls to embrace their blackness. Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur shows how Black girls can be heroes of our through our wits and individuality.

[holopossums]

hwUAH?? i'm... perceived by some popular people in the rottmnt fandom?? baffling! but intriguing. and much appreciated, thank you! (i know i'm rather shy, large fandom spaces on social media are intimidating to me)