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togglesbloggle · 1 year

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Okie, here’s a slightly dangerous essay I’ve had rattling around for a while. Dangerous because Discourse, which I usually avoid in this space, so I hope you’ll try not to reward it too much and provide weird incentives for me. But it’s a pretty interesting little model, too handy to fully pass over in silence.

Expect mild gender-binary essentialism and heteronormativity for modeling purposes- invoking these things in an explanatory but not normative or ethical sense.

Aside from being aggressively horrible, the state of female beauty standards as a cultural force is also fiddly and interesting in a way that I can’t resist chewing on. Naively, beauty ought to be a pretty idiosyncratic thing. We understand differences in taste between Picasso and Rembrant, or a trip to the mountains and a trip to the beach. But when it comes to human beauty, especially female beauty, we keep needing to reach for phrases like ‘traditionally attractive,’ and things in that vicinity. It’s understood that this ‘traditionally attractive’ stuff has tremendous influence over how our society is ordered, but its origin seems… vague, at best? And it clearly varies between cultures and times; it’s monotonic, not static. And the further away you get from socially mainstream forms of sex, the more it breaks down. Gay and kink communities seem to resist it somewhat, in the form of ‘types’ like bears and butches and whatnot, though it’s still lurking in the shadows a fair bit. So, why?

I’ve arrived at a model that seems to have decent predictive utility, which is: (female) beauty standards are set principally by the ability to convince others that you can leverage male agency.

This is, notably, not exactly the same thing as actually leveraging male agency, or even actually being able to. Male agency itself, though notably responsive to beautiful women in the general case, is of course a lot more complex when you start talking about individual men. These may be asexual or gay, obviously, but even the ones attracted to women are going to have individual preferences, navigate those preferences in different ways, and be more or less responsive to leverage. So to ‘be beautiful’ you’re attempting to land on a consensus, common-knowledge understanding of what everyone else thinks men are attracted to, one that’s anchored by the experiences and preferences of men, but because it’s women who try to achieve beauty in most cases, female-led social spaces are often where ‘beauty’ is processed and filtered from the complicated individual preferences of men and forged in to a coherent set of standards for women to work towards. (Economic forces also play an important role, of course, and are gendered in different ways.)

That consensus, in turn, need not correspond to the preferences of any individual man, even though it’s still (in a removed sense) ‘about’ male preference. An individual woman can even sometimes find more success in the dating market by deliberately stepping away from traditional beauty standards and finding something closer to the actual preferences of (a subset of) the men around her, though that means sacrificing real and important status in other circles. Because as power, the concept of beauty depends on the state of common knowledge among people on both sides of the gender dynamic as much as it does on the behaviors and preferences of men. This is part of what allows beauty standards to vary so widely in time and place (that is, they’re arbitrary to some degree), but be so strong wherever they appear- it’s a Schelling point that women can use to communicate both to men and to other women that they have some degree of influence over others. Thus, one of the many tragedies that heterosexual romance has to navigate. To achieve beauty as power, women have to get closer to that Schelling point, even though being ‘beautiful’ in that sense may actually make it harder to find a good partner that you like. Beauty means the competition is tougher, you’re locked out of considering the preferences of individual men you care about, you’re locked in to fairly oppressive standards that sand off many of your own best qualities because they’re too rare to be included in the consensus, and you’re now filtering for men who date women generically for social prestige rather than having intrinsic interest in you as an individual. But no human can opt out of the power game entirely; the consequences of ostracism in a social species are lethal.

Also, the old joke about ‘Woman Upset that Men are Staring at her Breast Implants’ is, in this model, a perfectly rational set of behaviors on the face of it- you don’t need to invoke either dysphoria or hypocrisy. The woman in question is not interested in actually provoking male behavior, she’s interested in communicating to others, often and especially other women, that she could if she wanted to. She wants enough social power to feel safe, which is a basic and sensible primate drive. It also demonstrates how this particular form of power both promotes and benefits from restrictive male gender roles, particularly as regards when and how to respond to women. The more restrictive the roles, the safer it is to accumulate power without being exposed to undue risk of unwanted (or unsanctioned?) male agency, and in turn the more power will be leveraged by beauty as a force. Feedback loops. Depending on the specifics of culture and local social networks, it’s quite possible for an individual woman to experience the benefits of beauty primarily as higher prestige in her interactions with heterosexual women, and for the dynamic between herself and men as a group to skew more and more negative as she achieves beauty, without beauty itself being net-negative.

(Aside: notice how increasingly restrictive standards of sexual decorum in men in the 21st century correspond to a leveling-off of female workforce participation rates. Libertine attitudes from the 60’s through the 90’s correlate with an expansion of economic power among women as an alternative to gendered beauty.)

One of the reasons that I like this model is that it’s written in the same alphabet as displays of traditional (i.e. political, military) power within formal hierarchies, displays of wealth, or even physical prowess- using this framework, beauty, wealth, and hierarchical power are all measured roughly by the number of people that will do what you ask them to. It makes sense that there would be commonalities between them, such as elements of a seemingly counterproductive red queen race, or brinksmanship in which neither side wants to actually deploy their power.

The differences are also real, and significant- because of the intrinsic dynamics of heterosexuality, beauty-as-a-face-of-power is ‘flat’, without tesselating hierarchies, and it doesn’t scale up indefinitely. This gives it a more limited scope than being a CEO or a president with control over employees, and a much more limited scope than you get through wealth in a tangled economic system. It also means that beauty is much less winner-take-all, meaning that almost all women benefit at the margins from pursuing beauty. It also peaks early and then degenerates over time. All these together in a dynamic mix I think help explain a lot of the complicated relationships that many women have with their physical appearance.

For example, this model makes it pretty easy to talk about why both women and men would be averse to a woman asking a guy out, even in This, The 21th Century- a woman who takes the initiative is in a sense forfeiting a game in which women demonstrate how powerful they are, and making herself less interesting at the margins during a stage of courtship where nobody has much information about the other party.

It also, I think, makes a lot of the old Incel discourse more legible, though it’s probably wiser to leave that particular one as an exercise for the reader. And it’s worth noting also that physical strength shares a surprising symmetry with female attractiveness in this sense, even if explicitly leveraging the social power of physical intimidation is taboo in a lot of modern urban cultures.

Anyway, it’s a good little model. Like all models, it’s wrong, but I think the epicycles here are modest and it's a useful way to interrogate a wide variety of phenomena.

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ceo-of-kimona · 4 months

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The hook of the ship.

So sure, they have a dynamic. These girls have chemistry and they can hit it off with each other consistently, but in order for a ship to go from “cute” status to a tier beyond it needs to have a certain it factor. It needs a powerful hook to it that kicks it up a notch, something that is not only wholly unique to the dynamic but powerful and raw and emotional. In short, it needs a certain unique spice that no other ship with these characters has.

And boy, does Kimona have spice in droves.

Among its many unique and powerful elements, this one is by far my favorite. In short: essentially Ramona’s most common response to a bad situation is to run away as fast as she can, and Kim’s greatest fear is abandonment. She still harbors damage from Scott leaving her without a word in high school.

Do you feel those gears turning?

I’m honestly absolutely baffled by the stunning lack of Kimona fics that feature angst, since these two seem built for angst from the ground up. While I love the fluff, I subsist on it, I feel as if there is a void of potential that absolutely NEEDS to be filled.

Imagine it. Ramona and Kim finally get that relationship together, Kim can stop pining (ha ha ha) and actually be happy for fucking once. We get some fluff or whatever, the girls being cute with each other (believe me they have capacity to be cute with each other) and all that.

Then, something horrible happens: a terrible misunderstanding, a really really bad mistake on one of their part, a sudden disaster that catches them completely off guard, whatever. Their life is flip-turned upside-down. And Ramona sees the fucked up situation, sees the world crumbling around her, and does the only thing that she truly knows how to do. She runs. She runs away from Kim as fast as she can; what else can she do? She’s ran every other time. Why is this any different? This is just what she does, who she is.

So, Ramona runs away like she always does, no surprise there. While her running away has always hurt the person she’s running away from, Kim is different. Ever since high school with Scott she has had a stunted ability to share her true emotions, somehow even more so than the rest of that cast. After being abandoned by Scott, she has kept up her walls to prevent herself from ever being hurt again like that. Then, she meets Ramona, she feels her walls fall all over again. Sure it’s tough, but eventually it all works out. All of that emotional rawness and vulnerability was all worth it and now she can open up. Now she can relax. Then boom. Before she knows it, Ramona leaves her without a word. Just like Scott did. The woman she loved, the first woman she ever loved, a light of her life that was far more than the high school crush that Scott was, is now gone.

She ran away, only leaving a note saying to not try and find her.

Needless to say, this would fucking break Kim. The ultimate punishment from the universe to her for even daring to try and open up to someone.

She would be positively catatonic. It would take months for her to even leave the house! Her entire world has crumbled around her. Everything she built, everything she fought for, it was all gone. The abandonment issues she finally worked past with Scott were now back in double thanks to her and now nobody is left that understands her like Ramona did.

Think about Ramona too, what about her? This would be her essentially succumbing to her nature once again. But this time she wouldn’t be able to justify it as “an asshole guy who she was right to dump” no this was Kim Pine, the girl she had known for years. She knows about her abandonment issues, she knows about her fears of just being left alone again, she knows all of it. She was the first to truly know about it. Yet she still wasn’t able to resist her impulses and she ran away anyway, fully knowing how much it would hurt Kim.

That is the potential of this ship, one we are still yet to truly understand.

#oh my fucking god the ANGST my holy shit wow #somebody write this!! before I do!!#don’t force my hand I have a keyboard and I am willing to use it #y’all don’t even fucking know #kimona #kim pine #ramona flowers #wlw #scott pilgrim vs the world #pineflowers

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antianakin · 6 months

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I honestly think deep down Shin wants to be a Jedi. She has the Padawan braid. She's asking questions about the Order. Baylan in his own quest for power or whatever else he's looking for in bringing back the Empire that murdered millions is not even giving her the true choice to be a Jedi or knock off Sith. I do want to know how she ended up his apprentice but I truly think once you Fall at all you're unable to be a true mentor, you just see the apprentice as a tool.

Wild to me possibly the only (not Master Huyang) character who's never met a real Jedi or been part of the order actually is interested in it. Tbh I want more of Reva and her breaking free from the Inquisitors and wouldn't mind Shin getting her own freedom arc as well. (We're back to Please Bring Reva Back)

I'm not sure I'd personally go so far as to say she WANTS to be a Jedi so much as that Shin is perhaps very CURIOUS about it. It's unclear just how much Baylan has actually shared with her about what being a Jedi was even like, what it would've meant, the kind of things they did, etc. And she seems young enough that she'd have grown up in a time when the Jedi were already destroyed and knowledge about them and their existence was being stamped out so much that it nearly reduced them to the stuff of legends. I don't think Shin knows enough about what the Jedi ARE in order to want to be one. She knows Baylan used to be one and that they are now gone, yes, and is clearly curious about what that means for Baylan and for her and their relationship, but I think that's likely about as far as it goes. And, ironically, that ignorance is potentially what allows her to be less negative about the Jedi than anybody else. She didn't know them well enough to create her own opinion, she can't be disappointed in them the way Baylan and Ahsoka seem to be, and isn't exposed to Huyang discussing "Jedi protocols" the way Sabine is. So instead of being disappointed or annoyed by anything Jedi, she's just... neutrally curious about it.

Baylan and Shin's dynamic had the potential to be really interesting, to really work as a foil for Anakin and Ahsoka (or a parallel, perhaps more accurately), and it just... never quite got there. There wasn't enough focus on who they were as people or what got them to where they are now and what either of them even wants out of life and this relationship. It could've been really interesting to look at another relationship where the mentor seems in control and like he's got good intentions but has also fallen to a desire for power and taken advantage of this child he's taken on as an apprentice and the impact this actually has on the apprentice in the long-term. But doing that would've required recognizing that Anakin wasn't actually always a good person, that Anakin was perhaps NOT actually that good of a master to Ahsoka, and that Anakin having already begun his descent into darkness when he took on Ahsoka has had long-term negative impacts on her. And this show was unwilling to do any of that. So there's really no way to make any kind of meaningful parallel with Baylan and Shin, which is too bad.

I definitely think that Shin asking about the Jedi and being abandoned by Baylan has potentially laid the beginnings of a "redemption arc" for her, but whether it'll actually be done at all well is very very questionable. I don't think they laid anywhere NEAR enough groundwork for their characters to make me give a shit about Shin being redeemed or to understand why she'd even WANT to put in that kind of work. I have no idea what Shin wants aside from a very generic idea of "power" which she seems to be bouncing around trying to find (training with Baylan, fighting for Thrawn, taking over the bandits). We'll see where that goes, I guess.

But Reva had INCREDIBLE set-up to continue following her journey. Reva basically HAD a "redemption arc" of sorts in the Kenobi show where we see some of the bad things she's done, we find out exactly why she did those things, we see her reach her goal and FAIL, and then we see her struggle through the aftermath of that failure until she makes the choice to stop and do better. There is so much beautiful set-up for Reva to go places from here, to see Reva not just find freedom, but to see Reva truly reclaim her identity as a JEDI. I'd LOVE to see Reva figure out how to be a Jedi again despite how little training she actually got. The only other character with as little training as Reva so far has been Grogu and Grogu chose to LEAVE the Jedi life behind in favor of being a Mandalorian. Kanan and Cal were both padawans already, but Reva? Reva was still an initiate, we don't even know if she ever had a gathering to make her own lightsaber. There's SO MUCH left open to explore with her and, with the right showrunner, such a beautiful story to tell about what it means to be a Jedi under these specific circumstances and how being a Jedi can save you from your own darkness.

I'd take a Reva follow-up story over a single more moment of Shin ANY DAY.

#star wars #shin hati #reva sevander #baylan skoll #jedi #shin hati critical #shin critical #pro jedi

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ahundredtimesover · 26 days

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Omg the mysteries have been unveiled!!!! Can't put into words how much I love this story. Thank you endlessly for putting so much effort, time, and care into it. It's amazing that we get to share the fruits of your talent! It's even crazier that you managed to build a story that just ticks all the points for me and scratches my brain just right.

I commend you for not falling into the common traps of fanfic writing by rushing into things and buying into scenarios that are just not realistic for a non-fantasy fic. As much as the characters' decisions, actions, and attitudes might frustrate us, that's what being human is like! That's real! That's life! We are so contradictory, and we say the wrong thing or the right thing at the wrong time, or we fail to say what must be said.

I will admit that I've been frustrated by both jk and oc throughout the story, and thought they made things more complicated than way they needed to be but now I understand why it's taken so long to get to this point. I get oc's desperation to break free. At first, I was so confused. Why walk away from a job that gives you a decent wage and is prestigious? Surely not everyone likes their job all the time, and would like to have more money, more free time... Now, I understand her fully, and I empathize. There's nothing worse than feeling indebted, subservient, ashamed... it's like she has been walking on eggshells all the time. Even if the family didn't see her in a negative light or looked down on her, sometimes your insecurities get the best of you and your brain convinces you that the worst case scenario is indeed happening right under your nose.

I'm excited to see her heal, grow, and THRIVE! I want to see her comfortable in her own skin, to believe and KNOW she deserves positive things in her life, to feel invigorated by her job, to feel more relaxed, to have time for herself, to find hobbies and passions. Who knows... maybe she dabbles in writing in the future? 👀👀 (She did mention she loves storytelling and the creative process). Of course, healing is complicated and I predict she might have hard times ahead, wondering if she did the right thing, if walking away from jk means losing him forever...

I hope the time apart (hopefully not too long 🙏, although it makes the most sense) allows them both to see things more clearly and approach their feelings in a new light, without the baggage of power dynamics. Starting a relationship with your boss is just yucky, BIG no. For the people saying that's what should've happened... how would that have made her look like? Oh, yall helped my mom and I escape domestic violence, pay for my uni education, gave me an internship and a job (although my girl earned this, but yk negative self talk), AND then I start sleeping and dating one of the company heirs whilst still working as his assistant? Absolutely not.

Also, jumping right into the relationship after her resignation seems too rushed as well, oc more than jk (imo) needs to sort herself out and find herself, find her identity away from the shadows of her past and jk's family and company. How can she be in her first actual relationship if she feels like she can't stand on her own two feet? How can she do good by her and jk if she feels insecure, lost, and unfulfilled? Love and intimacy don't solve all your life problems. That's the heartbreaking realization they both are starting to have. I will say that seeing the more romantic side of jk and oc was soooo cute. His reasoning (although flawed) of wanting to keep her in the company in order to ensure her being respected and safe warmed my heart. I agree with that other anon that jk might not take the separation too well, and might revert back to his old ways, which could potentially put off oc? She might be at a point where she wants to reconnect, and he's just not there yet (I won't mind this possibility because I, too, LOVE angst 😭)

Also Mr. Ri's backstory :( Bless his heart. He has done so so good by oc and her mom. He deserves ultimate happiness, as well. Also, what about Mr YOONGI! I can't wait to read his opinion about all this and how he will try to help out both of them.

Overall, what a chapter. It has been my favorite yet (hard choice cause you have a goldmine here). I can't wait (I can and I will) for chapter 12!! Much love ❤️

(I'm usually an anonymous fan, but this story is just so good I'm powering through my shyness and panic to send this message off anon 🫣)

HIII oh wow, so much to absorb here and I love it! 🥹Which is also why I took a while to respond. I loved reading through this and knowing what you thought. This story took months of frustration and stress to come together haha but I'm glad it’s able to resonate with readers and you guys can see what I was trying to say through the characters. 😌😌

It's a slowburn for the reason that it's important to get to fully know them, from their pains to their hopes because it's how we understand why they do what they do; it's how we connect with them, too. Bc these very flawed humans have bits and pieces of us in them. Especially with OC - no matter how 'good' a job seems to be, if it doesn't fulfil your desires, if it makes you doubt what you've achieved, it's gonna constantly eat at you, and it finally became too much for her once she realized that her feelings for JK would keep her in a place that she's not happy in, even if the man who makes her happy is right there. Obviously there are the hindrances given their positions, but ultimately it's OC making a decision for herself.

It's also interesting to note what you and other readers propose or believe must be the way forward. They both need healing, but clearly all the years they've spent alone and on their own haven't really done anything good to them. And also, they didn't go through a breakup. It's more like a rejection of requited feelings, and like I said to another reader, they don't know what happiness with each other feels like, and they may not exactly need healing from each other. As we've seen, they find comfort in each other. But I totally get what you're saying about needing time away. Much of OC's feelings of being lost and insecure and unfulfilled are tied to her job, and now that she no longer feels bound by it... it's a good thing! This is actually what I was hoping that people would see because echoing what you're also saying, being apart isn't always a bad thing. 😉

We love Mr. Ri! He's such a comforting character, so is Yoongi. And together with Jimin, we see that OC still has good men around her despite the other assholes she dated. 😌 and also, if u think this JK is romantic... AWW WAIT UNTIL rich boyfriend jk happens 🤭🤭 hahaha but anyway. I loved this. Thank you so much for coming out of the shadows and dropping by. I super appreciate it. It makes me feel fulfilled that I could give you something to ponder and hope about. 💕

I hope you're well! Stay safe always! 🫶🏼🫶🏼

#mimianswers #fic: iwyts

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gatheringbones · 2 years

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[“Sovereignty always represents itself as a symbolic break with the moral order; this is why kings so often commit some kind of outrage to establish themselves, massacring their brothers, marrying their sisters, desecrating the bones of their ancestors or, in some documented cases, literally standing outside their palace and gunning down random passers-by. Yet that very act establishes the king as potential lawmaker and high tribunal, in much the same way that ‘High Gods’ are so often represented as both throwing random bolts of lightning, and standing in judgment over the moral acts of human beings.

People have an unfortunate tendency to see the successful prosecution of arbitrary violence as in some sense divine, or at least to identify it with some kind of transcendental power. We might not fall on our knees before any thug or bully who manages to wreak havoc with impunity (at least, if he isn’t actually in the room), but insofar as such a figure does manage to establish themselves as genuinely standing above the law – in other words, as sacred or set apart – another apparently universal principle kicks in: in order to keep him apart from the muck and mire of ordinary human life, that same figure becomes surrounded with restrictions. Violent men generally insist on tokens of respect, but tokens of respect taken to the cosmological level – ‘not to touch the earth’, ‘not to see the sun’ – tend to become severe limits on one’s freedom to act, violently or indeed in most other ways.

For most of history, this was the internal dynamic of sovereignty. Rulers would try to establish the arbitrary nature of their power; their subjects, insofar as they were not simply avoiding the kings entirely, would try to surround the godlike personages of those rulers with an endless maze of ritual restrictions, so elaborate that the rulers ended up, effectively, imprisoned in their palaces – or even, as in some of the cases of ‘divine kingship’ first made famous by Sir James Frazer’s The Golden Bough, facing ritual death themselves.

[…] Indeed, if we are trying to understand the appeal of monarchy as a form of government – and it cannot be denied that for much of recorded human history it was a very popular one – then likely it has something to do with its ability to mobilize sentiments of a caring nature and abject terror at the same time.

The king is both the ultimate individual, his quirks and fancies always to be indulged like a spoilt baby, and at the same time the ultimate abstraction, since his powers over mass violence, and often (as in Egypt) mass production, can render everyone the same.

It is also worth observing that monarchy is probably the only prominent system of government we know of in which children are crucial players, since everything depends on the monarch’s ability to continue the dynastic line. The dead can be worshipped under any regime – even the United States, which frames itself as a beacon of democracy, creates temples to its Founding Fathers and carves portraits of dead presidents into the sides of mountains – but infants, pure objects of love and nurture, are only politically important in kingdoms and empires.”]

david graeber and david wengrow, the dawn of everything: a new history of humanity, 2021

#david graeber #history stuff #currently reading

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ansbobcar · 1 month

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"Theoretically what if I said 'yes'?" [Darren x Wirth Headcanons]

Taking a break from my OTP (Rinka x Orter) to focus on my first mashle oc aka Darren Randel (read more info here) ended up making me think they could be a potential ship over Darren x Rayne (I haven't even written out my ideas for them properly) so uhhh yah!

This is a long ass post and devolves into general ideas towards the end.

tyyy @golden-eye-ramblings with the idea making :D

_ _ _

First impressions? They hated each other bro. Darren legit made Wirth taste worthlessness to another dimension (lost his magic completely until sundown so about 5-7 hours) for insulting the fact she didn't use a wand at all (which she gets pretty pissed about if they try to make themselves seem better than her)

He hated this moment so much he started studying/practicing to get payback towards her whenever they encountered each other again

And that happened to be during a Labyrinth/Maze exercise in order to test their knowledge from their Advanced Magic Classes which gave out silver and bronze coins (Lang and Adler houses only)

Wirth put a lot of effort to track her down since she ran after getting stranded by her only buddy (Rayne) who SURF PARTISAN-ED OUT OF THE HEDGES--and then ambushed her whilst she was fighting a golem (man-made magic training doll nicer than Deadervants)

but Darren uses and manipulates Wirth's attacks to put down the golem and 2 silver coins spawned. At this point in time she doesn't get what the coin system is so she just splits the share and Wirth is like what in the generousness is this? Does she think he's that pitiful??? And they part ways from the thing.

Midterms arrived and Darren did pretty bad on them obviously. (she's legit only great at offensive magic)

Walkis although more competitive is really lenient with their passing marks (because the school staff are so corrupt for accepting so many bribes) which she barely achieved after fighting for no instant failing grades so she underestimated the strictness of Easton's grading.

Wahlberg and the teachers agreed that if she failed the next one/finals they might consider expelling her so she literally panics and ends up asking Rayne to help tutor her but this guy is 1) a bad teacher, 2) easily distracted by the bunnies-- they both are really distracted by the bunnies so she has no progress beyond taking remedial classes which she barely understands.

She tries to figure out where she went wrong but Wirth takes the textbook she wanted to take and like are they about to break out into another duel. Darren's about to raise her voice but Wirth shuts her up with a silencing spell (library has to be quiet or not the cursed silencer appears and does the unimaginable).

Girl explains her situation and Wirth hawks in superiority: oh my gawd I'm actually better than her! But he kind of wants to duel her again so when she gets emotional about getting expelled if she does really bad the next round he is like: "Well, Darren. You've come to the right guy! I'm great at all subjects, so what do you need help with?" Darren: "Everything else that's not Magic Geography and Magic Zoology" aka a lot of subjects.

And when I say Darren is bad she is BAD. Calls beakers, conical flasks and funnels "CUPS". She cannot tell the difference. "What did you even study?" because he is genuinely shocked at her stupidity. "The textbooks take so long to decipher and barely have pictures..."

So Wirth ends up making them study into the night and for a week straight they start drilling in the basics. Which she semi understood until he pulled out models and analogies with his mud magic.

Thus begins their mentor/mentee dynamic and Darren unironically calling him "Professor"

So when she improves and gets passing grades just before the summer they're like super duper happy

They both do summer internships at the Bureau of Magic's Power Administration and Darren like knows his whole worth-power-value mindset origin.

"Why not go for something more attainable?" "Like?" "Your... brother?" "Why my brother?" "Surely, you're close to him." "Not really, we've barely talked since he went to school. He's much older than me..." "What's his job?" "He's a Divine Visionary." "What's his name?" "Orter." Darren gets struck with the biggest WTF???? since that guy tried to like kill her.

No wonder Darren was in such a sour mood when she first saw Wirth, he was related to the guy who hated her guts and nearly beat the crap out of her during the questioning she had to do at the Bureau!

"How about we get an internship over the summer and meet him?" and he's like ok.

And thus, we are exposed to Darren's self-centered/self-interested personality and lack of communication skills (since she thinks she's easily readable, SHE'S NOT)

She manages to set up a meeting between them (Rinka and Orter) and completely destroys his self-esteem and confidence by getting straight to the point. "Do you know he has sever self-esteem issues because you're not giving him any attention?"

Orter's tryna understand what's happening but Wirth is like what the hell: "I didn't ask for you to butt into my own problems!" and he fumbles his anger/embarassment towards Orter but broski is just like: "Is that true?" regarding Darren's question.

Rinka makes the situation worse by tryna deescalate the situation with a soothing/calming spell. "There's no need to use additional violence, ruins the atmosphere more than needed." Rinka comments. "I've placed a sound barrier too. It's a safe space."

Wirth at Darren - "I CARE THAT SOMEONE'S TRYING TO JUST SHOVE THEMSELVES INTO MY PRIVACY LKKE THEY KNOW ME!!" The 3 of them just watch him pop off at Darren before it devolves into his insecurities: "Are you trying to make me feel even more worthless than I already did?!"

"I only agreed to help you with your studies! Not to get help with my own life!"

"You can't just FIX me! You can't just come in like that expecting that everything gets resolved in an instant and then you take all the credit as 'mY sAvIoR', do you have any idea how INANE OF AN IDEA THAT IS?! No! Of course you don't! Because you only ever look after yourself!!"

"Wirth. Is what you're saying true?" and bro leaves with no answer (on the verge of tears)

Their whole dynamic crumbles and Darren has some REFLECTION TIME YAYYYYYY. Some slow improvement on Darren's part with Rayne's help (blud shows his point through his actions that mimic her behaviour)

Rayne points out that Darren is not as easy to read as everyone believes her to be. Specifically, regarding her hatred for Orter and that she'd never even try to think about sabotaging Wirth. "It's only been a month since you've joined, you collected 1 whole gold coin already. I doubt it."

And then she would have apologised in person but like. Wirth is studying for the hardest attainable credit ever??? so she writes an apology letter and prays it gets read because yeh.

Dw blud read it becuz the letter ended up in Shuen's fangirl mail inbox and bro got motivated a bit more and like: oh-kay...

They're friends again yayyyy and the DV Candidate Exam is happening and they bicker through the entire ordeal until they arrive at the final round. The 1v1 battles and he gets obliterated by Rayne *whomp whomp whomp*

But surprise! His bro watched him struggle and decided to give him some affirmation and suggests replacing him (Wirth) for the winter break visit because he's kinda like disappointed that he didnt get into the next round (he wanted to do a rematch against Darren) and like the dad favouritism/worth shenanigans.

Darren gets 2nd place and enters the Trimagicathlon.

When Darren heard the match ups she got mad because she wouldn't be able to fight Wirth. (In terms of raw power, Rayne is just superior that she was lucky to be blessed with her crazy cheatcode magic to make the matchup work.)

They were in different brackets too so it just added salt to the insult bro.

So they're friends again and because Wirth doesn't have to go to his parents Darren is like: Let's intern again! But before that, mid-terms/finals!!

And that's when people start to catch whiff off seeing the two together more often.

"Have you heard? The 3rd fang is seeing that crazy wandless psycho!" "What!? Aren't they rivals or something?" "Didn't you see them at the library earlier? They were smiling at each other!"

The Magia Lupus were also kinda curious about this too so they asked him and bro's reaction is priceless because he was immersed in making a model/analogies to help Darren until they arrived. Lost his composure, literally screamed in their faces for ruining the models, and like he legit says: "Even if I did like her she's only interested in Rayne Ames"

Ain't no way in hell he's gonna become a simp for her you know?

"Theoretically, what would happen if I said I had feelings for you?"

"Then theoretically, what if I said 'yes'?"

"I doubt anything would change. We'd bicker, help each other out. Bicker more. Oh and you might be able to join us for board game night."

"Sounds fun but also boring at the same time because it just sounds like what friends do."

"I've never really had feelings for anyone so it's a bit new to me."

Wirth is dejected a bit.

Conflict of interest is she brings bro over to Rayne's BIGGEST SECRET—his bunnies and gets mad mad at her. Wirth wants to get involved but the two of them tell him to stay out of it. "This happened before you got into the picture."

But yuhh if Wirth ever confessed, he'd get friendzoned in a heartbeat because 2nd male lead syndrome!

Darren probably tried to get Rayne to join the Magia Lupus board game nights but he'd rather meet his bunnies over people so Darren gets comfy with them.

Criticizes their diets so hard (seriously why is wirth's favourite food fruit punch???), she literally is starting to become overworked as a 3rd year making nearly 15 lunchboxes every single day.

The main character syndrome it girl to overworked parent pipeline is so real for her.

She literally bonks their heads in s1 when she realises they did all that weird stuff. "I thought we were besties!" she shakes her head and penalties them to without magic for atleast 4 days.

#mashle oc #mashle x oc #wirth madl #mashle #mashle fanfic idea

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meltthefrozenheart · 1 year

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FROZEN 2 about "Get This Right" and Kristanna: "It took their relationship to a different place. It also took away from the Anna-Elsa story too much." - Chris Buck

And why it could be very useful and important for the future:

I believe it's quite important to consider how Jennifer Lee and Chris Buck had to completly sacrifice Anna & Kristoff original arc in order for their romance to not take away from the sisters relationship and journey.

Ironicaly, the 1st Frozen litteraly put romance easily under the spotlight because Anna & Elsa were emotionally distant from each other, and Anna saw her "salvation" in a idealized love story with an handsome prince (Hans):

But this is also meant to reflect of Frozen 2 follows Elsa's narrative, where romance doesn't have the importance it has for Anna in F1, focusing entirely on facing the dangers and saving the day.

In the original drafts, "Get This Right" was clearly meant to directly parallel "Love Is An Open Door", showing how Kristoff deeply struggled to express his (sincer) feelings (without Sven being there for support), afraid to mess things also because he's been given the title of "Lord". But the song it's also important because it proves how Anna is an amazing girlfriend, wanting to leave him the space he needs and supporting him in expressing his feeling, giving him the security he deserves, at the point that she's the one that actually proposes to him, and from there, "Get This Right" moves from a Kristoff's solo, to a duet between him and Anna:

Plus, the song was then meant to end with a Olaf's joke directly referecing to Hans: "Aw! Hey, what you think the odds are that he turns out to be a deranged murderer and tries to kill you like the last guy she almost married did?"

Considering the story the movie gives us, Frozen 2 decides to leave Kristanna behind because the central romantic line doesn't come from Anna's present, but from her parents past, so reconnecting directly to herself and, most importantly, Elsa and her powers:

In many ways, instead of giving a much more definitive dynamic to Anna & Kristoff relationship, watching Kristoff singing "Lost In The Woods", admitting to himself how important Anna, is an important next step on his part, allowing to focus on helping Anna the moment she needed him the most, prove to her that he perfectly understands why she behaved like she did and finally getting the right moment propose to her:

But this also means that Anna's side of the relationship still remains uncomplete, because, as said before, rewriting their arc to limit the romance and using "Lost In The Woods", Anna appaeres more in the wrong (even if she's perfectly understandable) even compared to the original version, where Kristoff's himself was so afraid to let her down, that he was hiding how unconfourtable he felt at Arendelle, causing a temporary break up between them.

Yeah, in the final version, Anna's assures Kristoff that she doesn't truely care about seeing him wearing formal clothing ("I prefer you in leather anyway"), but this doesn't change that, deep down, she's still troubled by her experience with Hans, and Kristoff himself is now engaged to the Queen of Arendelle, and imagine how difficoult would be for him to truely adapt to that kind of life.

All of this is important because it ws willingly left the door wide open for a new story where Kristanna could get much more space, not only thanks to the engagement (maybe the wedding itself, or just the preparations), but also because Anna & Elsa have found their purposes in life, there can be a balance in their story that neither Frozen, nor Frozen 2 had for their arc as sisters.

Most importantly, Frozen still remains a franchise that subverts the tropes, and an entire movie allowed to "play" with Anna & Kristoff already engaged from the first minute seems quite perfect, considering the series of events they have behind them, but also what they've learned from their adventure in the Enchanted Forest.

#Frozen 2 #Kristanna #Anna #Kristoff #Princess Anna #Anna and Kristoff #Elsa #Queen Elsa #Queen Anna #Olaf #Sven #Hans #Prince Hans #Arendelle #Enchanted Forest #Frozen 3

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mmani-e · 2 years

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please tell us more about you ageswap au

Alright so first of all, Teruki helms a yakuza organization called the Hanazawa Crime Family instead of whatever the hell CLAW was in the original show. This makes Seasoning city waaay different and has a more oppressive but flashy environment, everyone in the org has flashy suits with the exception of Shigeo who has a pure white one. Notable members of Claw would include all of the Awakening lab kids, the middle-school delinquent leaders, Sho, Ritsu, Shigeo, and ofc Teruki

As for the character roles:

Serizawa - An anxiety-ridden kid with social issues, tends to run away from them to avoid himself going wild and breaking shit. Loves hanging out with his cousin Shimazaki, and his employer Tome

Tome - An insane free-spirit that runs a moving business called "Madam Tome's Telepath Tent" it's set in a roving tent to avoid Teruki's protection racket. Tome thinks she's got psychic powers and nobody can convice her otherwise, but she's so good at reading people and cutting through people's bullshit she's basically a telepath anyway.

Shimazaki - Serizawa's cousin and best bro at the beginning of the series. He's popular and very good at most things he does, but he's also very bored. He's secretly yearned for his cousin's natural gift and can't understand why he can't relax and enjoy it.

Reigen and the Spirit Consultations Club - Reigen is a little conman with a golden core. He runs scams through his school based in his little illicit club where he mostly reads people's fortunes and squeezes money out of them. Despite his existence as a total fraud he's somehow attracted some weirdos who in the main universe are part of the Sun Psychic Union (Jodo, Shinra, and Roshuto) who actually can exorcise spirits.

Suzuki- A destructive loner kid who Serizawa during a rampage of his. He's an angry kid who just wants everyone to acknowledge how great he is and aspires to take over the world at first. After getting whooped by Serizawa he becomes a loyal, if clingy, friend of Serizawa. His friendship dynamic is basically Vegeta's

Option 1: Mogami - A malevolent spirit that once belonged to a great psychic, Mogami was exorcised early on by Serizawa from the body of an adult Minori. Mogami is a being a lot more hostile and insidious than Dimple and harbors a hatred of humanity, and it takes a lot of time of taking shit from Tome before he concedes this worldview a little. (potential dimple replacement)

Option 2: Rusty-Sama - A malevolent cursed entity that was once sacrificed to and given praise in order to keep him away, now forgotten and left to rot. He despises the modern world and wants to see it rot away, but is thwarted by Seri. Rusty is notably mute and can only speak in ghost wails he allows others to understand. (potential dimple replacement)

Ritsu - A super-powerful psychic that uses his powers as a means to lash out against his brother due to unresolved sibling conflict that mirrors the one in the OG show. He swaps with Shimazaki and fights to prove himself superior to his big bro

Shigeo - Teruki's bodyguard and emotionless robot. Shigeo has achieved what he initially wanted in the OG show and has become a completely sealed-off, repressed man who never shows a hint of emotion. He's Teru's most trusted confidant, probably the only one, and works to do his bidding - though deep down he doesn't really like it at all. He made friends with Teru early on, with Teru offering to give him a place where doesn't have to worry about hurting others, and now he no longer worries when he does. Win. Eventually he realizes it's all bs, joins Tome's business and becomes her receptionist/boyfriend

Teruki - Leader of his own yakuza clan, he's an egotistical jerk with a flair for the gaudy and flashy things in life. Unlike Claw, the way he runs his business is not at all low-key and exerts very visible control, wanting everyone to know who's boss. He takes great pride in his achievements and has fun doing all of it

#ageswap au #mp100 #mp100 au

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weirdmageddon · 2 years

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mbti anon, the type i got when i took the test was infp which is arguably. one of the most (if not the most) annoying and organization-adverse types so maybe that's why i cant get the hand of mbti like you do even though it fascinates me

ok first of all i knew it. being an audacious profiler has its perks

second. your first mistake was taking a test

pretty much none of those tests are going to be accurate/valid anyway because a.) the way words and sentences are interpreted varies from person to person, b.) the test creator might have biases and stereotypes in their questions pertaining to a certain function and their placement, c.) they may not even use functions or jungian concepts at all rendering the test invalid and misleading anyway (e.g. 16personalities), d.) jungian typology is not trait-based and is inherently difficult if not outright impossible to “test”

16p CONSISTENTLY gives my actual INFJ / Ni(Fe-Ti)Se friend @decamarks “ENFP” no matter how many times she takes it because her big five is high in extraversion and low in conscientousness (social extraversion =/= jungian extraversion btw).

no test is going to be fully accurate. in order to correctly identify your type you need to actively involve yourself in understanding the mechanics and dynamics of cognitive functions. it’s also the only way to get any real use out of it for understanding how you tick and process information, so taking a test for your type also sort of defeats the entire purpose. don’t rely on a test and leave your type up to a surprise result!! if you feel like you’re boxing yourself in, it’s because you probably are; it’s not supposed to be used to box yourself in. you also need good reliable sources that aren’t vague about how they consider the concepts, and that’s pretty much my main motivation and goal in sharing good resources that are universally workable and actually cut through the fat and misleading information to get straight to the heart of it.

you’re not alone in this btw! a LOT of INFPs hate their own type because of the stereotypes. look at these polls on PDB!

these are comments i found from INFPs regarding this:

i hate INFJ stereotypes too. i love breaking them every single day. like if you understood the functions its very clear how i am INFJ because you can observe Fe/Ti judgments serving my Ni/Se perceptions very clearly all the time. but by stereotypes i mean the highly-regarded magical psychic intuitive empath 1% indigo children with special powers ass shit. i love to grind it to dust beneath my foot with every opportunity i have just because i can. just to become an embodied example of violating that stereotype according to my own understanding of things/just to demonstrate that the logic is flawed, which is a very Se+Ti mindset (xSTP—my subconscious). i feel no different than an ISTP honestly. only substantial difference is that my mind prioritizes raw perceptions so my judgments serve to arbitrate those perceptions (similarly to ESTP who is just me but flipped upside down: Se(Ti-Fe)Ni), whereas the ISTP is the other way around: prioritizing judgments/principles, and using perceptions to contextualize them. in reality i dont feel like anyone special at all. i’m trying to be anything but that. when in rome, do as the romans do philosophy

if it fascinates you i’d be glad to help you get a handle on it the right way. i’m sure you’ll appreciate it if you properly understand it. it’s really not hard tbh it’s mostly reading, what’s important is not the literal words but the essence the words are trying to communicate. again you can get started with what i linked here and/or can dm me if you need anything

#ask game #typology

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prdsd4na · 2 years

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last week i made this post about vegas not using english during his stay at the safehouse with pete and if we think about it the last time we hear vegas talk in english is probably when he says to pete 'who's a good boy?' right before moving into the safehouse

from that moment onward he always speak in thai and the only interection he has while at the safehouse are the ones with his father and with pete and i guess the nameless hedgehog (not considering the one interaction he has with one of his bodyguards when he arrives at the safehouse) and from the analysis made by almost everyone in the tag we know that when vegas talks in english it is because he wants to deceive others so the choice of talking only in thai with pete isn't so random he's himself around pete he isn't acting anymore he's showing all his sides maybe because deep down he understands that with pete he can be himself as pete isn't a stranger and he has already seen him being completely unhinged and evil while being tortured or maybe because the reality of being casted away in the safe house as a prisoner himself has made him realized that it's the first time he doesn't need to put up an act (he just does it with his father acting as the obedient son at least up until episode 13 when he talks back to his father after being once again abused verbally by him and i wouldn't be surprised if that was the first time he ever talked back to his father)

so what's interesting to me is the fact that episode 13 starts with vegas' 'do you know how sexy you are?' referring to pete because for the last two? episodes we have seen pete and vegas bonding over their shared daddy issues and trauma and we have seen them being completely themselves in front of the other while building a strange bond a sort of codependency something they've never experienced before with anyone else so that moment is the first time we hear his english in days (as in the timing of the series) and it's the first time he uses english with pete in a long time and considering how he uses english for shielding himself i wonder if this choice is linked to the fact that after having sex with pete he realized what he did was wrong in terms of what his role as the minor's family heir is and in terms of his fear of showing his true self that vulnerably

according to what we saw in episode 13 the sex scene between vegas and pete was for pete a way to deceive vegas because yes he was the one who kissed vegas and initiated the whole thing and yes he gave vegas consent and yes he gave him the rope to tie him up and deep down he even liked the sex but he used it as a decoy while being captured he studied vegas he tried to understand him in order to win him and he actually did he realized that vegas was feeling something towards him and was opening up and he used it to his own advantage that's why when he comes back to the main house he still lingers on it he's traumatized yes but he's also torn because he feels like he betrayed vegas in order to not betray the main family and he's also starting to realize he actually feels something for vegas

vegas on the other hand is already falling for pete and he realizes it almost istantly that's why he begs pete to not leave him and to forget what happened between them before they kissed he wants to start anew and he understands the power pete has on him he cries and breaks down and we see a vegas we've never seen before

therefore using english again with pete is basically a way for vegas to limit the damage having sex with pete and showing his weak side to him has made so he's raising walls between them again hoping once again pete would decide to tear them down again because he knows pete doesn't feel what he feels yet and unconsciously he doesn't want to be the weaker one in their dynamics

and i feel like what english is for vegas, for pete are his fake smiles because the moment pete came back into the main family's house the first thing he does is smiling like he always does mantaining those void expressionless eyes he put on his fake smiles his fake persona and the acting begins again all this while vegas still weights on him as he protects him by not telling anyone where he actually and by crying while remembering the feel of vegas' hands on his body

i actually had forgotten about how fake pete acted before being captured by vegas and pete being kidnapped gave us the audience a way to know the real pete just like vegas and in this sense vegas actually represents the audience's eyes and we're learning about pete through vegas' eyes along with him and i think that's so important in order to understand vegaspete's dynamics learning about their real characters through their eyes as they're basically different sides of the same coin as they're basically indivisible now that they're linked on a deeper level now that they found each other after being alone and desperate for so long and it isn't just being involved in a romantic relationship it's so much more than that

#i wanted it to be a random post following my previous one about vegas using english again #and this came out instead lol #so get this vegaspete analysis post episode 13 from me lol #vegaspete #kinnporsche the series #kinnporsche #kinnporsche meta #vegaspete meta #vegas theerapanyakul #pete phongsakorn #giordana texts

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apencilandpen · 11 months

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Penguin is truly, truly the character of all time. He was never hinged in this show, not once. He starts out off the rails and only gets worse. Genuinely obsessed with him. And literally all of his relationships. He is Gordon's perfect foil, especially in the first season. The last good man in gotham and gotham's rising crime lord. Justice and order versus power and control. They need each other and feed each other no matter how much they might resent it. It's a cycle that never quite breaks, even as the show progresses. Not quite mirrors, but reflecting each other all the same.

And then there's Nygma. For all of his scheming and his plotting, penguin isn't the "head" of the gotham villains, but the "heart." Nygma is the "head." It's what makes their relationship so interesting. Penguin is his own worst enemy. He wants power, he wants respect, he wants to be king of gotham, but he also wants so badly to have friends. And in his position, true friends are few and far between. Initially, Nygma wants penguin to be his mentor in villainy. But, over time, they become friends. But do they? I'm as big a fan of nygma and penguin getting together and being gothams most evil power couple as the next person, but is that even possible? Is penguin more than a means to an end for nygma? Does nygma actually care about him? Or does he just relish the control he has while working at penguin's right hand?

Penguin's passion will always lead him astray, and nygma's strategy will always keep him just out of reach. Penguin is loyal almost to a fault until you prove unworthy, and nygma can twist almost anything to fit his needs. Their respective pride requires them to take revenge on each other, but do they enjoy it the way they usually would? Questionable. They compliment each other perfectly, and their dynamic is insane.

OKAY so i wrote that bit ^^ before Nygma shot Penguin and became Riddler and now i’m coming back to it and exCUSE ME??? I forgot exactly how insane this whole subplot played :D Yeah, it’s totally normal to force yourself to hallucinate your best friend who was in love with you who you shot and threw in the harbor. Yeah, it’s chill to go on a killing spree to try and find someone who can fill the hole left by your best friend who you shot and threw in the harbor. Yeah, it’s casual that Nygma’s debut as the Riddler plays like a very extravagant coming out story. “Oswald was right, he was the only one who understands” and “I know who I am, but I don’t know how to be him” is very chill and casual. Is it a rule that once you become a villain in Gotham you have to become even more gay than you were before. And WHY is it that after they reunite in the Court of Owls prison their chemistry is even better than it was before :D Like, they’re just staring intensely and still getting up in each other’s personal space for no reason. Why are they like this.

Also “You’re going to kill me because I didn’t love you back? Get over it.” “You’re right. You didn’t love me back. But I’m going to kill you because you tore down the empire I built and because you shot me.” is objectively so fun of an exchange :D I love them, they’re unhinged

#my post #my stuff #just my two cents #talkin about tv #gotham #digital scrapbook #their dynamic is so 'your knife in my back and my gun to your head but we wouldn't have it any other way' and i love that for them and for

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alovelyburn · 2 years

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Rambles about the Golden Age Arc Part 10

After that last ramble post, @zombiesgohome pointed out to me that not only does Miura’s three (types of) love interests theory apply to Guts, Casca and Farnese, it also applies to Griffith - Guts is the one he longs for, Casca is the one right by his side, and Charlotte is the one with the money and power.

It’s interesting really - I don’t really disagree that those are huge romantic archetypes (though I’d add “person of lesser power/money that you can take care of and feel bolstered by”) - but ultimately I don’t think it’s really tied to sex or gender, it’s just broad descriptions of possible romantic relationship dynamics.

Anyway!

Rambles about the Golden Age Arc Part 10

I know it’s not exactly news that the Hawks as a whole really loved Griffith - that’s part of the tragedy of their fate, after all. But recently I was looking over some of the later chapters, e.g. the one where Rickert smacks Griffith in the face, and one thing that comes up with both Rickert and Guts is this separation between Griffith the White Hawk and Griffith the Hawk of Light. Just like Guts struggles to maintain his anger at first because Griffith looks like the old Griffith that he loved and admired and only really goes full feral when it becomes obvious that NeoGriffith is Femto in a Griffith suit (kind of but anyway), Rickert still declares himself a follower of the original, human Griffith even while disavowing the current one.

I’m VERY interested in what’s going to happen with Casca now. She’s the one he hurt the most directly, after all.

I had somehow forgotten that this took place a month after the queen’s assassination. That kind of puts Guts and Casca’s feelings for each other in the ‘developed offscreen’ category like Griffith and Guts’ relationship as well. I mean this isn’t a soap opera or a romance manga (kinda) so that’s not surprising and I’m not complaining. It’s just that rereading reminded me of the timing and that made a number of things click.

Actually, I’ve been having a lot of “revelations” re: Casca which I’ll get into later, probably... next post? I guess. Anyway.

OKAY SO THERE’S A LOT GOING ON HERE, lets break it up into a few character storylines, some bigger than others.

The Order is:

Corkus -> Casca -> Judeau -> Guts -> Griffith

Basically just for flow. Anyway.

1. Corkus - starting with the one no one cares about. I wrote a big meta about Corkus many years ago but I don’t remember what exactly I said, so let’s just do the nutshell version of my understanding of Corkus.

So, Corkus used to lead a band of thieves, doing his thing, before Griffith showed up and beat him down and then did what Griffith does: he ate Corkus whole, metaphorically. This is both the source of Corkus’s respect and admiration for Griffith and the source of his resentment of Guts, because his ego is contingent on the belief that when someone like Griffith exists all the normal people can do is bow down and submit... and that everyone except Griffith is normal.

That being the case, Guts deciding to become Griffith’s equal and stand beside him is an existential threat to Corkus’s self-image. If Guts can break out and do his own thing and find his own way of living then why couldn’t he? Why did he end up eaten by Griffith’s flames like everyone else? Does that mean Guts is better than him - more special than him? Or does it mean that he, a normal person, gave up his dreams for no reason?

To be clear, I’m not saying he’s going around hating Griffith - on the contrary I do think he loves and admires Griffith just like the others. But his feelings, like many of those in Berserk, are very complicated - that he has this sort of conflict in himself is evident by the way he reacts when Guts asks if he doesn’t have something he wants, too. Some dream of his own. And of course Judeau contextualizes it by explaining Corkus’s past and how he came across Griffith to begin with. But I think the most telling thingS of all are the way he rails against Guts for acting like he’s “the only one walking some path of profound suffering that no one understands. Like you’re the only one who’s special,” and his rant about how normal (non-Griffith) people have to make due with what they have instead of trying to be winners, basically. His anger reflects his unacknowledged (even by himself) frustration and pain at having been subsumed, and his final declaration - “You can never become Griffith” is an attack on Guts, sure, but it’s just as much reassurance to himself that Griffith is the only special one and anyone who tries to maintain a separation from him is stupid.

Which is why he can’t handle it when Griffith loses that duel. It throws the belief he’s hung onto all these years into doubt, and he’s not ready for that.

NEXT UP.

2. Casca, who I’m doing before Judeau for a reason despite her being the larger character. So here is where obviously you start to really see the way her heart is drifting and her mind is changing. It’s not complete, and she’s still holding onto her love for Griffith - as she says later, she’s reluctant to let herself change because so much of her identity hinges on her devotion to and love for Griffith. But the heart can’t be controlled that way and you can see that change even when Guts makes his latest attempt to cheerlead for Griffith and Casca to get together - the sweatdrop, the feeling to her face like she’s holding something in, or struggling with something.

And obviously just her being there, just her running to get Griffith in the hopes that he can stop Guts from leaving, is evidence of it as well. It wasn’t so long ago that if she saw him leaving she would have rejoiced, but now?

I’m sure she’s trying to tell herself that she’s upset because she knows Griffith needs him.. Which he does, and I’m sure that’s part of it... but in the end, she wants Guts to stay because she wants Guts there with her. That’s why she seems to feel his departure almost like a physical blow.

But the thing is...

...a lot of people take Casca’s development of feelings for Guts as evidence that her feelings for Griffith weren’t real - I talked about this a few posts ago, like the idea that she loved an idea of him not the real person, which doesn’t work because she knew better than anyone that the idea of him is BS. It kind of comes, I guess, from this thing I see in fandom a lot, One True Syndrome. Like all the fanfiction that insists that the two people in a couple have never loved anyone before, never even understood what love was!!, until they got together.

It’s romantic but it’s not realistic, and in this case it’s also wrong. Casca herself is actively worried that falling for someone else will make it seem like she didn’t really love Griffith - and even after she gets together with Guts she still struggles with her feelings for Griffith, resulting in her wavering between them during the rescue.

Long story short, I think she just has feelings for both of them, and so it’s hard for her to anchor on one or the other. Ultimately her decision to accept her feelings for Guts - and later her decision to be with Guts - is... genuine, but also circumstantial. The moment she decides to call out to Guts is also the moment she realizes that there’s nothing she can do for Griffith. There’s nothing she can give him... because there’s no room in his heart or his space for anyone but Guts.

And later, when she’s feeling torn between them again, her two decisions - first to stay with Guts and later to remain with Griffith - are really made for her due to Griffith’s physical state and needs.

And I mean, Judeau knows that, which is why he keeps trying to get Guts to take off with her, which brings me to...

3. Judeau - So I think the main thing to keep in mind when trying to understand Judeau is that he’s in love with Casca and that really is his primary motivation when giving advice. I assume that’s what he’s referencing in that one melancholic panel where he says there’s no one who never wanted anything -- his love for her, but also his relative normalcy which keeps him from standing out both in general and to Casca herself, who does appear to have a fondness for epic hero types.

Which brings me to what really comes to mind with Judeau and that is... the parallel between himself and Guts when it comes to the Casca/Griffith situation. Because Judeau loves Casca, but he never really tells her that or tries his own luck with her, he just hangs back and tries to arrange for her to be happy with someone else. Based on his last thoughts during the Eclipse, I would say it’s because he doesn’t think he’s cool enough - good enough - for her... so he tries to arrange for her to be with someone who would be worthy of her.

For years, that was really just Griffith... and while he doesn’t seem to try playing matchmaker with Casca and Griffith (presumably because he knows Griffith can’t be with her even if he wanted to) but... even then he tries to mitigate her pain over her one-sided torch. This is why he pulls her aside after the Cave incident to let her know that Griffith was worried about her and considered her vital.

But now there’s a better option: someone she could have. Judeau can see the feelings developing between them, and there’s no princess in the way with Guts. There’s no big dream. And Guts is leaving, which Judeau clearly thinks would be best for Casca as well, since being near Griffith almost inevitably means she devotes herself to him regardless of how destructive it may be for her. So...

He’s trying to set up that better option for her.

And that’s really interesting to me because it’s obviously exactly the way Guts reacted to the Promrose speech + Cave interlude. Which leads me into...

4. Guts - who, by all rights, should be a “save the best for last” but it flows too well from Judeau to resist.

So, as Griffith’s speech works its toxic magic on Guts’ already tenuous sense of security, he begins to see himself as unworthy of standing with Griffith and thus drawing back. Meanwhile, Casca’s story, her dream of being Griffith’s sword, makes her more worthy of Griffith in his eyes.... thus he does exactly what Judeau is doing: he tries to set up Griffith with someone who is better for him than Guts himself.

I just think that’s incredibly interesting, and I don’t think he’s setting them up because he loves Casca and wants her to be happy because... it started before he had any real substantial fondness for her. Of course at this point, after all that’s happened with her, he is drawn to her. But those feelings - his feelings for Casca and Casca’s for him alike... they’re real. But they also formed in the void they felt in Griffith’s absence, starting from the platform at the bottom of the stairs where they stood side by side, looking up at the one they wanted to be near but couldn’t reach.

As of now, though, Guts has already decided that Casca is worthy of Griffith... which means implicitly that she also needs someone like Griffith to be worthy of her.

And I mean, look he obviously didn’t leave because he wanted to win Casca - he really thought Casca and Griffith would end up together. But it does seem that once Judeau made him aware that Casca’s chances with Griffith aren’t... great, that kind of jogged his head up and made him look at the thoughts about her that he had left unacknowledged.

Which brings us to the big event of this group of chapters, obviously...

This duel is really where everything goes wrong, and the misunderstanding between these two is honestly just horrifying and painful. Each of them are mired in their own issues so deeply they can’t see what’s right in front of them - especially in Guts’ case, because honestly how does he not know Griffith loves and values him as a person - the only person he doesn’t need a reason to risk his life for. A lot of the time when I see this situation described in say synopses or discussions, people talk about it as though Guts really wants to leave the Hawks and feels stifled by Griffith’s dream, but really... he doesn’t want to leave. He’s leaving entirely because it’s the only way to get what he really wants, which is to stand beside Griffith.

And you can see in his thoughts how little he understands Griffith’s feelings for him. Like so:

“Your confidence in me as your soldier is vanishing into thin air.”

To Guts’ mind, Griffith is upset that he’s losing his best soldier. Like a lot of fandom thinks, but this has been disproven time and time again - even with Guts’ own words back during the “do I need a reason” scene. And in his own internal monologue in a moment we’ll see that Griffith isn’t thinking about his battle utility at all.

But Guts can’t see that. He sees Griffith’s ongoing mental breakdown as evidence of resentment. He knows Griffith doesn’t want him to leave, sure, but he doesn’t have any idea of how much or why. And also? The only reason Guts is willing to physically fight Griffith for his independence... is because Griffith specifically said that's what he wanted someone to do in order to be his friend.

He took Griffith’s words to heart and is trying to fit that mold, do the things Griffith needs, but the sad thing is that when it comes to this kind of topic, Griffith is mostly full of shit and lying to everyone including himself.

But it gets worse - Guts takes Griffith’s attempt to physically bar him from leaving as a good sign - it shows that he still has some value in Griffith’s eyes... which is all he’s really looking for, so of course he can’t relent.

And the thing is, his choice not to explain himself to Griffith is... I guess inevitable? It’s not like he’s hiding his reasons in general - Casca knows through implication, and he outright told Judeau and Corkus. I’m sure if Griffith weren’t there, he would have explained himself to Rickert and Pippin too. It’s only Griffith he has to hide it from, and why?

If you’re trying to be cool in front of someone, you can’t tell them you’re trying to be cool for them, it ruins the effect. He’s trying to do what Griffith wants, and Griffith said he wanted someone who lived for himself. Saying he’s living for himself for Griffith doesn’t really sound right, does it?

So he’s quiet about it. But the sad thing is, that resolve in his face - the steely determination and commitment to his path that Griffith sees as a fervent desire to get away from him is, of course, the opposite thing entirely.

And then finally....

5. Griffith - Anyway, the second Guts says yes he’s leaving, Griffith’s visibly goes into full panic and he never comes down from it. In fact, I would argue this scene is where the Griffith we knew until this point disappears. Because from here until the torture dungeon he’s barely functioning (mentally) and then after that he’s broken... and after that he’s Femto. So... you could say Guts’ swordstrike is a deathblow to the Griffith he knew, and we knew, until this point.

Now, I’m going to say this again: I think if you don’t believe Griffith is literally in love with Guts you’re just wrong. I don’t... say that very often about interpretations but I do think this is pretty explicit. And this is relevant because there’s this fantastic post by @strugglewithlonging that goes over the internal mechanics of Griffith’s loss and it hinges on the understanding that Griffith loves Guts, which he absolutely does.

Post on the Duel!

The duel has always been something I struggled with... because I suck at visual interpretation (although I’m making an effort to improve). It just seemed odd to me that Miura made a point of saying that they’re evenly matched and then had Guts win this completely one-sided battle so decisively. For a long time I just figured it was about Griffith’s bad footing and emotional instability, but it was THAT POST that made me realize that Griffith is actually not attacking at the angle or in the way that his strategy demanded. In short, they’re evenly matched, but Guts is determined and committed to his course of action... while Griffith completely lacks the ability to truly risk Guts’ life.

And this is pretty... consistent, right? Because he lets Guts get away in the Eclipse - he reaches out as Femto with the intention of crushing him but then just. Doesn’t. And ever since then, with the minor exception of the Black Swordsman arc when he defended himself from a blow to his head and ended up knocking Guts into the floor), he has never actually struck at or raised a hand against Guts, ever. I know a lot of people consider that an issue of Femto/NeoGriffith thinking Guts is beneath him... but he doesn’t? He went all the way to the Hill of Swords to see him because he knew there was a chance his feelings could be a confounding variable. In his Femto form he says a lot of shit, but that’s just Femto talking smack specifically to upset Guts, which is obvious but also mentioned in the guide book.

In any case, it’s a perfect storm of awful that leads us to this point. It’s Guts asking Griffith why he would risk his own life for a soldier, Griffith all but admitting that Guts isn’t just a soldier to him, and how that made Guts feel. It’s Guts overhearing that speech at all, much less when he is in an incredibly vulnerable mindset from the incident with Julius and Son. It’s Casca falling off that cliff and ending up in a cave where she tells Guts about her dream of being with Griffith. It’s multiple assassination attempts on Grififth that forced him to bring Guts into his confidence and show his dark side - the part of him that he hates and tries to keep from the world. The part that leaves him shaking and self-harming, that he thinks no one could accept. And it’s Griffith asking “Do you think I’m cruel?”* and Guts trying to be supportive by essentially saying yes by omission - even though that’s certainly not what he meant to say.

....I’m also going to interject here and note that the actual Japanese says something more like “Do you think I’m a deplorable/terrible/disgusting person” as I recall. Which makes his insecurity even more obvious and is more in line with his question to Casca re: being dirty.

And this is all so important because Guts was always able to see that side of him without flinching, or turning away... and that’s what lets Griffith start to unclench a little at a time - which is obviously not easy for him as he himself tells Guts -

Guts is his haven. That’s the thing. He’s not just Griffith’s best soldier, or even just Griffith’s only friend. He’s not even just the man Griffith obviously loves. I mean... obviously. He’s also Griffith’s only safe harbor. He’s the support system Griffith has always denied himself, going back to that river when he carved up his own arms after selling himself to a pedophile and then swallowed down his distress to support Casca instead.

And now that support system is leaving - didn’t even bother to say goodbye! - and his lack of explanation will obviously lead Griffith to one conclusion: Guts is trying to get away from him. So... yes, Guts thinks he’s a disgusting person, a cruel person, and even if he figures it’s inevitable that Griffith will be that way to pursue his goals, that doesn’t mean he wants to be there for it, or involved in it. That’s what Griffith hears, even though Guts totally did not say that. Even though what Guts actually thinks of Griffith is... very different.

And it’s sad because they both want the best for each other and they both want to be near each other, but the skew in their perception is evident. So evident that when they think back to the beginning of their relationship...

Guts sees Griffith fighting to obtain a soldier, and Griffith sees the first time he ever opened up to someone.

Ouch.

Now, before I go (despite only covering two chapters, I don’t even know), here’s a pretty explicit parallel that reveals how Guts thinks Griffith sees him:

Just a rock on the side of Griffith’s path - something he didn’t care about, but was willing to use to his own advantage... just like he’s done before, right?

But, of course, it wasn’t true then, either.

Til next time!

OOOH IM PUTTING THIS ON THE MAIN BERSERK TAG nothing happens there anyway but at least I haven’t seen a lot of batshittery like there was back in the day so we’ll see.

#berserk #rambles about berserk #berserk meta

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mermaidsirennikita · 2 years

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Immortals After Dark Hero Power Ranking: Part Nove

Finished the Torture Island arc and while I can see why Declan Chase is so loathed, Iiiiiii did not think he was as bad as people make him out to be. Iiiiii had fun.

Garreth MacRieve, werewolf, Pleasure of a Dark Prince

Pros:

–invented “werewolf versus demon” basketball because he was SADS

–smells Lucia masturbating and is like WAIT WAIT WAIT I CAN FIX THAT

–gets Lucia off through prison bars…. a determined man

–engages in a Road Runner/Wile E. Coyote dynamic with his heroine for a YEAR where he’s just chasing her around the globe while she crushes him with trucks and shit… he sees it as foreplay

–is actually truly the most woke werewolf hero; rightly points out to Lucia that she’s not exaaaactly being chaaaaste when he’s tearing that shit up every night even if there’s no penetration; keeps himself from going full moon crazy with magic in order to keep Lucia from being pressured into sex with him, and even when that magic breaks super holds back until she makes a conscious decision; does not do the Ritual Doggy Style Full Moon thing because he wants to look into her eeeeeeyes and ground her and even puts her on top, a KING

–catches a special new butterfly for her and names it after her leave me alone I’m crying

–“lass, I’m about to make you a widow” …. this shit works every time

–even a GOD can’t make him hurt Lucia

Cons:

–does not believe that women should have jobs after they find their werewolf soulmates, but to be fair, he is completely right, why the hell would I work if I had a rich werewolf soulmate who hunts big game for me and does all the cooking and cleaning and work and shit

–is honestly big stupid about plunging into danger

–is honestly big stupid about a lot of things… plan for keeping his woman from pursuing her immortal mission was “I’ll just fuck her until she passes out and then I’ll go do big mission for her”, admirable but not flaw-free logic

–was gonna help Lachlain steal a baby

–BIG “dumb younger brother” energy

–“we’re werewolves we’re very curious and always have to solve mysteries” lmao okay Scooby Doo

2. Rydstrom Woede, demon (king), Kiss of a Demon King

Pros:

–called Sabine a “good girl” even when she’s actually being a bad girl

–is explicitly a dom

–the first time he smiles is after she flips him off

–is into spanking

–takes Sabine to a bar and everyone leaves the bar because she’s evil and he’s all “awwww baby I don’t understand why they don’t like you :(” when she’s committed, like, war crimes… down ridiculous…

–his big comeback to his enemy is like “lmao well I’m about to make your girl’s eyes roll back in her head SOOOOOOO EAT IT CUCK”

–has two elaborate fantasies in this novel: a) suspending Sabine from the ceiling and edging her until he lets her grind against his face B) watching Sabine cuddle their cute baby. The duality of demon king

Cons:

–I mean I guess he did some pretttttyyyyy dubious shit to Sabine, but only after she did them to him

–met a woman and became her friend and talked to her for days and literally didn’t remember fucking her once until she reminded him…. I thought it was funny

–that time he went at Sabine’s tits for so long that the next day she was all “THEY HURT SO BAD” so I assume he was like a newborn baby or something

–“I don’t have any fetishes!!!!” has every fetish known to man

–was so down ridiculous that he went to try and kill himself to save her… this is a pro… but I’m gonna pretend it’s a con

–is pretty hard on Cade who was just trying!!! his!!! best!!!!!!!!!! but again this is only mildly a con because his disappointed dad thing is hot

3. Conrad Wroth, vampire, Dark Needs at Night’s Edge

Pros:

–exceedingly good at removing obstacles between him and what he wants

–a virgin and SUPER embarrassed about it in a way that is INCREDIBLY precious (when he finally fucked this woman and went “So I was good?” I almost fucking wept)

–murder puppy only wants death and blood (until he discovers………… other things)

–a natural born dirty talker

–BABY BOY…. BABY BOY…./EVIL

Cons:

–has erectile dysfunction for a significant part of his book, he gets better but I was so sad for him

–I mean, is fully insane and wants to murder his entire family, but nobody’s perfect and Nikolai kinda deserves it

–wears sunglasses indoors

–got aroused while buying underwear for her and had to limp home

–made Bowen MacRrieve sad and that makes me really upset because I love Bowen MacRieve

4. Bowen MacRieve, werewolf, Wicked Deeds on a Winter’s Night

Pros:

–is a werewolf general

–was celibate for 1200 years after his lover got so scared of his wolf form that she gored herself on a tree stump (lmao)

–spent those 1200 years trying to bring her back to life

–great at catching and preparing seafood

–breeding kink (wants to put all the bairns in Mariketa)

–kinda into bondage…?

–gets hard at the thought of Mariketa’s carnage, even when he is the carnage

–update pro: gets sent to a party by himself so that Mariketa can run an errand and just sits there confused and miserable at the bar by himself waiting for her to show up even though he knows people there; I imagine this is much like that SNL skit about a dog park for boyfriends, where the shy boyfriend hides under a picnic table

Cons:

–kind of a fuckboy (will say his dead lover’s name when he comes, ONE TIME, but “Mariketa” and “Mariah” begin similarly so)

–doesn’t like it when Mariketa chant incantations into her mirror because it creeps him out

–breeding kink (casually tries to get her to stop taking birth control)

–makes fun of Mariketa’s vibrator, even if I found that actually hilarious

5. Lachlain MacRieve, werewolf, A Hunger Like No Other

Pros:

–chewed his own leg off to get to Emma, pinned her to the ground in broad daylight, and inhaled her neck like a fucking FREAK

–actually pretty good at being the werewolf king (saves Bowen from his own stupidity multiple times, much daddy, very authoritative)

–saw Emma kill her own dad and basically swooned

–is absolutely down to get his blood sucked… through his penis (I believe he says that’s the only way he’ll accept BJs now…?)

–gets by on missing 150 years of progression purely on intimidation, which I personally find deeply sexy

Cons:

–I mean yes Lachlain is one of the rape-iest IAD heroes even if most of that was werewolf instinct and burning alive for 150 years

–doesn’t know how to use an iPod

–but will max out your credit cards

–a werewolf supremacist (is this a bad thing…?)

–says “Kiss me like you want to live” which I guess I should put as a con because it’s non-consensual but whatever I was dow–

6. Murdoch Wroth, vampire, Untouchable

Pros:

—just extremely determined… his heroine can’t bear skin to skin contact? He’s gonna use an icicle as a dildo. He fucked up so bad she fled to an ice kingdom? Well, he’s gonna fucking find her

–probably the closest IaD gets to a himbo… HE WAS MORE THAN A RAKE, DAMMIT!!! HE DIED IN A WAR!!!!!!!

–I don’t think y'all get how impressive it is that he consistently hit the clit through a blanket AND fucked her to orgasm with an icicle for like a year

–is actually a very good brother

–finds out his woman maybe married another guy and goes “she’s going to be a widow” I love mess

Cons:

–I mean does bitch a lot about how sexually frustrated he is but his heroine is an ice princess who can’t stand skin to skin contact without extreme pain so……………………… I do get it blue balls kill

–will masturbate to the thought of you in the shower while you’re unconscious six feet away covered in arrow wounds… if that’s something you’re not into…

–has confidence issues because the Wroth brothers are rattled off like Nikolai: the leader! Sebastian: the brain! Conrad: the mysterious babe! Murdoch: … the slut?

(do love that the Wroth bros are the Charlie’s Angels of this series)

–bit Dani without her consent blah blah blah

7. Cadeon Woede/“Cade the Kingmaker”, demon, Dark Desires After Dusk

Pros:

–extremely loyal to his brother (which I found cute)

–orders ahead to get pre-packaged food for Holly to accommodate her OCD, while helping her Walk on the Wild Side

–was the first guy to 69 with his heroine in this series

–stalked Holly for like a year (stalking is love)

–gets adorably tongue-tied around her, but not in a lame way

Cons:

–lied to Holly for like… that entire book lmao (even though it was fun)

–is called the Womb Raider for a reason, apparently (a little tooooo potent)

–sort of fucks with Holly’s birth control, in the sense that he made sure she was super fertile, but to be fair Holly did not… actually… take birth control

–threw out Holly’s OCD meds, though I chalk this up to the year the book was published

–just sort of drove around giving Holly head for WEEKS while Rydstrom was getting sexually tortured, so like…. maybe doesn’t have GREAT priorities…. maybe has the best priorities… Rydstrom was fine…

8. Nikolai Wroth, vampire, The Warlord Wants Forever

Pros:

–deeply efficient and good at his job (being a bloodthirsty warlord), which turns his mate on as much as it should literally everyone else

–scars all over

–very family-oriented, which means he’s extreeeeemely daddy, and very much uses that in the bedroom

–will try to make nice with your bitchy sisters for you

–is receptive to therapy, even if the therapist was his beaten and bruised brother whose advice was basically “do better”

Cons:

–did steal Myst’s chain and used it to make her come on command; which, while I liked it, was very much non-consensual

–insecure about Myst’s history as the greatest femme fatale of the last couple millennia (though he gets better and decides to be a sex-positive feminist)

–that time that he turned his little brothers into vampires against their will

–was so down bad that he literally started to waste away when Myst didn’t let him get off for five years

–does not properly heat his manor

9. Declan Chase/Aidan the Fierce/Gabriel/Edward/whoever the fuck else he was, berserker, Dreams of a Dark Warrior

Pros:

--I mean you can't really go wrong with someone who is so determined to have his heroine that he just defies death and keeps coming back throughout the ages

--probably the only employee at Torture Island to get in trouble for workplace sexual harassment.... impressive

--that time he cried after suffocating Regin (it must be truuuuue love truuuuuue love)

--that bathtub scene where he was like "wait no actually I'm taking over this weird sexual interplay thing we have going on"

--his days-long island hike grovel where he was like just sadly walking around and being like *eye emoji* at Regin.... hilarious

Cons:

--I actually totally got why Regin forgave him (true love + dick too bomb) but personally I feel like it's basically impossible that Lachlain and Rydstrom and Sabine are gonna let the shit he pulled slide forever so suspension of disbelief was rough there

--he did vivisect a MacRieve, and I am nothing if not a MacRieve Stan For Lyfe

--the drug addiction issues are rough

--that time he had to let Lothaire bite his neck whenever he wanted and Lothaire was like "if I call you a girl's name just go with it" and it DIDN'T turn into sex? Sads

10. Malkolm Slaine, demon/vampire, Demon from the Dark

Pros:

–we love a virgin hero always

–gave Carrow the heads of her enemies As A Treat

–very good at giving sensual baths

–a responsible, loving step-demon to what is admittedly an annoying child

–made Rydstrom, Nikolai, Garreth, and Myst all “YOU WANNA GO BRO???” in what was by far one of the funniest parts of the series

Cons:

–honestly a very sweet guy

–swallows toothpaste TWICE

–comes against Carrow’s leg like thirty seconds after meeting her (actually a pro in terms of hilarity)

–TOO BIG, WON’T FIT (pro)

–could’ve been meaner, I’m not gonna lie

11. Sebastian Wroth, vampire, No Rest for the Wicked

Pros:

–all but a virgin when he meets Kaderin

–Gentleman in the Streets Freak in That Random Nightclub Where He SNAPS

–joined the mile high club remarkably fast

–throws out all his principles for her

–Speaks Like Dracula but in a “I vant to suck your clit” way

Cons:

–borderline beta, or as beta as a murderous centuries old vampire warlord can be

–a little tooooo accommodating of Kaderin’s bullshit

–could have been more demanding, to be honest (Bowen and Lachlain would noooot have been as patient as he was, which some would like but I was a little weary of)

#romance novel blogging #immortals after dark #thinking of making a separate 'thad is not a hero (yet) but he deserves to be here' entry #pros: 'brought beer to torture island instead of food'#'calls declan chase DC'#cons: 'has never met a person who wants to murder him that he doesn't like'

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waelthscape · 11 months

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saturnrevolution · 3 years

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☆Stellium through the houses☆

please credit my instagram page with the same name if you repost outside of tumblr!!

I got a lot of stellium related messages, so here it is. I have a 6 planets 1st house stellium, so I have a lot to say.

☆ Stelliums are a very controversial topic, as each astrologer has their own way of interpreting it. However, essentially a stellium is a focus on a certain sign or house in a chart. Some astrologers believe that 3 or more planets makes a stellium, whilst some believe 4 or more planets. I tend to go with the 3 or more planets stellium interpretation. However, I personally do not interpret asteroids or angles (asc,dc,mc,ic) as being part of a stellium and mostly focus on planets, but it really does depend on the dynamic of each chart.

☆ A stellium is much stronger if it happens between personal planets (sun-mars) or if it's a combination of personal planets and generational planets (saturn-pluto) and if the planets are in strong conjunctions. The closer to each other and the more planets, the more focused and rare the chart is.

☆ Any planet or sign that is part of this stellium will be a significant one in this person's journey. So if someone has a 2nd house stellium involving the sun, moon and mercury - then houses in which they have leo, cancer and gemini/virgo will have a focus for them as well.

☆ If not cared for enough, a stellium can turn into an obsession of a person on that particular sign's energy or house energy. That is why, it's important to find ways in which you balance the energy of your stellium and this usually works through implementing more of the opposite house's and sign's energy into your life.

Each house ⬇⬇⬇⬇⬇

☆ 1st house stellium

A first house stellium means that there is a focus on self expression and developing this person's identity, as well as outwardly expressing their personality. These people might have strong personalities and really take pride in it, especially if the sun is involved. I find that 1st house stellium people have multiple layers to their personality. This is not to say that they are two faced, but when it comes to their identity, there is never a moment when you get bored of getting to know them as there are endless new things you can find out about them. First house stelliums embody the energy of all the planets that are found in there. The more planets, the more blend out the energy is and it might be harder to pinpoint exactly the ways in which a certain planet is coming off as. These people might have the ability to adapt to the environment they are in and portray a certain personality depending on the situation, while still appearing as their ascendant. The ascendant is the one that dictates the flavors of those energies in the house. The downside of having a first house stellium is that they can be rather individualistic to the point where they do focus way too much on themselves and live in a bubble. Also, there might be a lack of cooperation and they might find it difficult to work in a team or ask for help (not really if you have 7th house planets as well). It's always a great idea to balance with the opposite house, so spending time with your loved ones or investing in your romantic relationships or engaging in teamwork activities will help. In terms of appearance, these people are rather going to turn heads with their aura and have a sort of intriguing vibe to them. These people are straightforward and really shine whenever they are in their confidence and have so much of themselves to share with the world, they are meant to put it all out there and be appreciated for it.

☆ 2nd house stellium

Having a second house stellium means that there is a focus on the material world and possessions and depending on the sign the planets are in, you can tell a lot about what possessions actually mean for this person - this can mean that they either value money or they value spirituality and life experiences over the material. However it may be, these people have a lot of inner strength. Whenever they feel down, they do get back up and they always fight to make it on their own. There might be an issue here with wanting to keep things for themselves too much or with putting too much pressure on themselves to the point where it affects their self worth and they get insecure. They need to be careful to not rely too much on the idea that there is just one clear path for them to go on and that if they do not reach a certain status, things won't work out for them. Career is also quite important for these people, but more as a way to reach security, they are always prioritizing comfort and are quite consistent with their decisions. They might have strong values and really continuously work on their self worth. For these people, it's important to balance the energy with the 8th house, so engaging in things that have to do with shared experiences, shared finances, opening up, being vulnerable and building deep connections where they can let their guard down and relax. Also, there might be a tendency to be a bit stuck in their comfort zone and fear change, so leaning towards the 8th house and finding ways in which they can embrace change and dive deeper into the darker side of things will be really beneficial. They might own a lot of things that represent their personality - even if this means a car or a collection of stickers with spiritual meaning, they have few things that they own that have sentimental value. They are very practical and calculated people and their consistency is usually what gets them to be successful eventually and be appreciated for their integrity.

☆ 3rd house stellium

A third house stellium shows that there is an emphasis on communication or things of the mind for this person. As the 3rd house also rules the years when we are in school or our hometown, it's likely that these people either got a lot of attention in school or had some traumatic experience when they were younger, depending on the planets or signs involved. However, the purpose of a 3rd house stellium is to use their voice in order to express the things that maybe were once repressed or that they feel a deep need to talk about. These people have a lot to say and they have powerful opinions, without necessarily judging others. They can, however, get in heated arguments and sometimes get stuck into their ideas or their thoughts. 3rd house stellium people have a great eye for details and a way with words - they might be good at writing or singing or anything that involves communication, even small talk. They need to be careful not to be too keen on the details that they forget the bigger picture and should balance their 3rd house energy with the 9th house - so engage in more spiritual activities or find metaphor in their daily life and not always seek to analyze and understand the things around them, including emotions. These people can be prone to mental health issues and need to snap out of this by simply taking action. Their country of origin or their immediate and familiar surroundings will likely be an area where they will thrive and they might become well known in a very specific field or niche that they are so good at cause they are great at assimilating information and research. One of their purposes is to use their unique voice and point of view in order to speak up for those that are not able to do it themselves and so make them feel seen and understood, while they also share their potential with the world and often do that through their amazing storytelling gifts - they could even write a book or have a start-up!

☆ 4th house stellium

A fourth house stellium means that there is an emphasis on feeling secure in this life. These people might have went through an impactful childhood - either in a good way or a negative way and they usually base their decisions on the things they learned in the past. They might have a numerous family or some trouble in this area, however there is a focus on family for them. Their motivation comes from feeling safe and knowing that those around them are well. Also, they are likely to learn a lot from building a family on their own, weather this means getting married or simply owning a pet. These people are warm and caring and have this innate mother instinct that shines through. They are also quite intuitive and empathetic, however this is mostly a private area for them which they keep to themselves. The place they live in can influence their mood so much. The trouble here comes when they focus too much on being in a safe and comfortable environment or being surrounded by people they care about that they do not prioritize their growth or they tend to be a bit codependent. They need to balance the energy with the 10th house, so focus on their career and their future goals and use these really beautiful qualities they inherited from their family as an asset into putting themselves out there. Depending on the planets or sign they have here, they might not have moved a lot and when they do, it likely feels like they are out of their comfort zone, they need to build a space that encourages their growth and that's rather luxurious even. They might own a beautiful home later on in life and build their own kind of world there. These people are likely here to break family patterns that were felt for lots of generations before them and share their stories with the world or use the wisdom they gain to inspire and heal others in very profound ways.

☆ 5th house stellium

A fifth house stellium shows a person that is naturally talented or gifted. This can mean that they were basically born with a talent for drawing, singing, being really good at multiple things that enhances their personality and puts them in the spotlight. They came here to showcase these talents and they need to be careful to not to take them for granted and instead use them as a way to find meaning and pleasure in life. They can sometimes lean too much onto the idea of finding pleasure and adopt this careless attitude that focuses on prioritizing themselves before their friends - which can be both good or bad depending on the situation. These people are likely naturally good with children or they are meant to have children of their own and so keep their talents alive, they are also likely to have artists in their family or people that have, again, some really natural skill. Creativity might shine through for these people, depending on the sign and they can also be quite lucky romance wise or be natural flirts. They should be careful not to get too emerged or too obsessed with their pursuits that they forget about the world, so balancing this energy with the 11th house - with being with friends, finding a community that has the same interests as them or involving themselves in fighting for a bigger cause through their skills would help, even building an online persona. If more difficult planets are involved in this stellium, they might have difficulty with their self worth or went through some experience which made them lack the confidence they need to show their talents. Once they find that fire inside, these people are the bright stars that have a lot of admirers of their work and can be amazing leaders if they follow their passion and do not let fear lead the way, as well as really good teachers that people talk about for generations to come.

☆ 6th house stellium

A six house stellium shows someone whose focus in this lifetime is in perfecting their daily tasks in such a way that they match their future goals and get them closer to their aim. These people are action oriented perfectionists, this is why sometimes their wish to do everything in a perfect manner can stand in their way of their action-taking. It's great for these people to find balance in their life by investing in their opposing house, so engaging in spirituality, journaling, going to therapy in order to understand their subconscious mind, invest in their art, write or focus on healing their mind before their body from time to time. A six house stellium is going to be concerned with their body - the way they show up into the world, but also the way they care for their body, the things they eat, how much exercise they make, their skincare routine and how present they are with these tasks. They can sometimes get so stuck into daily things that they forget the bigger picture and they are prone to being workaholics or to burnout. It's important to take things as they come and reduce the expectations they have on themselves. Another trait of a 6th house stellium is their ability to be of service to others - depending on the sign they have in this house, they know how to be of help and really hate feeling useless, they are great at giving advice and observing the details. They are most likely to see something you are not seeing and they have a sharp mind and critical thinking. Also, having coworkers that match their values is a very important trait to them and if they cannot find that, they'd rather work alone or open their own business. As long as they do not overly engage with their daily routine and know that their discipline does not define them, that's when they can achieve the most perfectly imperfect things in life by showcasing their daily tasks that got them to the success they achieved.

☆ 7th house stellium

Having a seventh house stellium shows a lot of emphasis on relationships, socializing and discovering oneself through interactions to the other. These people are likely social, they love discovering and getting to know others and they feed on conversation. They are rational, but also extremely sensitive and can feel very deeply for those that they love, sometimes even in a psychic way. As there is a focus on the other, the problem here arrives when these people overidentify with their partner, their best friend, their family - they rely their whole being on them and they forget about their own needs and wants, they ask everyone about what they should do and they do not make decisions that are in tune with their own authenticity, they might be people pleasers during their darkest times and completely get lost in making people like them. This is why, they need to get themselves out of their comfort zone once in a while and focus on first house themes - take decisions on impulse and trust their intuition, speak up on what is bothering them and even spend time alone to self reflect or invest in some personal activity. This will help them find balance and the harmony that they are always looking for in relationships. These people could even become known for their successful love story. Their potential won't be the same without someone being there to watch them as well, so they are the perfect example of harmonized work, relationships and personal life in time, great multitaskers and storytellers too! Just need to tap into their shadow side, not be afraid to ask around and explore what they are capable of. They came into this life in order to search for people that match their values and to learn to set boundaries and say no to those that don't, they came here to inspire others and lead them with their soft skills, they came here to make others feel loved and in turn, get to know their own potential, which is huge.

☆ 8th house stellium

Having an eight house stellium shows that this person's emphasis is on things that are rather taboo, dark or private. This person is likely to be someone that does not enjoy being in the spotlight (especially if they have personal planets here), but they are amazing when it comes to behind the scenes. What this means is that these people have the ability to read and understand others in a really deep way, so much so that they do not need things explained in words, as they just feel the vibe. This is why, they would be really great in jobs that require them to use their intuition or jobs that require them to do the secret, insider type of behind-the-scenes work, no matter the industry they work in. However, they would do perfect psychologists, psychics or even undercover workers of some sort. These people are passionate and can dive really deep into the subject they are interested in an completely get immersed into that. The problem here is that stellium energy is very obsessive and 8th house energy is the same, so putting these together can get a person to become obsessed with a subject, a situation, another person even to the point where they might stalk this area or to the point where they do not care for their basic needs, such as food, just to spend time observing and investigating this subject. Another challenge for an 8th house stellium is the fact that they are able to feel so much what others are feeling makes them really sensitive and can get easily hurt if they do not separate the bad things that happen into the world from them. It's important for them to balance this energy with the 2nd house energy, so to spend time focusing on the material, on making sure they spend time showcasing their skills through work, but also searching for stability and going away from change and chaos from time to time. These people can also have a sexual energy to them and are likely always in an ongoing personal transformation, even due to the things they had to go through in the past. These people are meant to help others heal, as they are open to the dark like no one else and they have the potential to discover hidden truths, while also discovering themselves.

☆ 9th house stellium

Having a 9th house stellium means that there is a focus on wisdom, beliefs and constantly looking for meaning. These people hold a lot of inner wisdom that just seems to come out of nowhere, as if they were born with it. They are the ones that are not afraid to make mistakes and that take every experience as one to be learned from. You see these people chasing their impulses and the fire within. It's likely that they will move a lot in this lifetime or travel - these are things that help them see the world differently and fuels their wisdom. They might have a culturally diverse background or they might be interested in foreign cultures or foreign languages. If this is not them, then they are the readers, the mind travelers, the spiritualists or religious people that search for eternal questions of the mind. They usually find themselves asking how the world was created and what's wrong or what is right, what's moral and what's not and they have really well thought beliefs. The problem with a 9th house stellium comes when they need to go a bit deeper than life philosophies, when they need to not base all their decision on experience, but rather on facts or on emotions. These people might feel as if darker things in life make them want to run away, in their endless search for spirit, they might shy away from anything that involves emotion or face to face communication, as they do not like getting caught by and being stuck in details. This is why, an advice for them is to invest more time in the 3rd house - to try to listen to what people actually have to say and not what they believe in, to try to see a person besides their spiritual beliefs and music taste - but instead to look at their life struggles and their emotions. What's challenging for a 9th house stellium is to have confrontational conversations that make them feel uncomfortable. As a paradox, the 9th house is all about getting out of their comfort zone, but for them getting out of their comfort zone is staying in their immediate comfort and not trying to escape, they might be surprised how good it feels. The purpose of these people is to go forward with ideas and belief systems that have been studied and felt for generations and to ask the right questions at the right time, so much so that they change people's lives with their positive way of living.

☆ 10th house stellium

A 10th house stellium person is likely going to have an amazing work ethic and find pleasure through investing time in their career. These people are likely to achieve great success in their career and even be recognized as a public persona. The place where they most shine is the moment when they spend their time being productive, organized and working on their goals. The sign can influence the energy a lot, so you don't have to be a super organized person if you have this placement, but you likely have your own personalized way of organization that works for you. They are motivated and sometimes overly critical of themselves, as they always want to reach and do more than they can even take on honestly. This is why they push themselves beyond their limit every time and it's important to stop and asses their process and praise themselves before they move on, they often don't know how much they have done. A good way to do this is for them to focus on the opposite house energy, which is their 4th house - take time to rest, spend time with family, be lazy and allow people around them to slow them down. It's all right to be behind with schedule and it's all right to be human and not feel like a robot 24/7. The problem can come when they have some personal issue that interferes with their daily work. Usually, if they find themselves being more productive than usual, it's a sign that there is something in their personal life that they are trying to avoid by diving deep into their most safe space - work. These people could sometimes get sick because of overworking, so please listen to your body and slow down if you do not feel very good. Overall, they are the ones that help everyone else organize, but the ones that can also do the small tasks - so they would be amazing managers or most likely find success in any area they are going for, as they actually do the work, put in the effort and get so much pay off in time.

☆ 11th house stellium

An eleventh house stellium person will have their focus on matters of the future, groups of people and environments. These people are the ones that are great when it comes to coming up with innovative ideas in order to revolutionize a generation. In today's world, an 11th house stellium can be seen either vouching for a good cause at a protest or creating their own non-governmental organization or being an internet star. People that have more planets in this house are likely naturally good at technology or at least the internet or they are very skilled when it comes to some unique niche interest of their and they often lead people onto the right direction with their minds. These people are selfless and unfortunately can sometimes care too much about their environment and not enough about their own needs, so it's important for them to balance this energy with the 5th house energy and try engage into creative, artistic outlets or simply just do any activity such as going out or even watching movies just for their own pleasure - without needing to share it with anyone and without needing to make a purpose or a cause out of it. However, they do not necessarily have to be internet stars to be seen, they could even go the other route of being against social media and engaging in a very hippie, healthy way of living or simply choose a traditional route when everyone goes for the modern - anything that makes them stand out. They can also feel misunderstood sometimes because of this and alone, but finding the right community that shares the same interests as them or just the right small group of friends with the same values will do wonders. These people can also be rather controversial, as they are most likely the first ones to start a trend, a movement or be bold enough to take a chance to think and express themselves differently compared to the environment they grew up in.

☆ 12th house stellium

A 12th house stellium has their focus on the outer reality, but not necessarily a material one. These people are extremely selfless and would give a lot just to simply help someone. As the 12th house can also represent karma, these people might have had some lessons in their early life and even later on that felt karmic - it made them feel as if they did not do anything to deserve such experience and since they have been there, they have such a deep ability to be compassionate and understand where everyone is coming from. However, their past experiences made them feel small and helpless and this is the reason why they believe that making themselves small in the first place and being there for others more than their own is going to bring them good karma in return (this belief is at a subconscious level). When in reality, their ultimate purpose in this lifetime is to find themselves. Unless they stop giving their all to everyone in hopes to get something in return and actually take the matter in their own hands and fight for themselves, they will likely feel lost. These people have such artistic and intuitive souls, they absorb the energy around them and are very strong as they can endure things for long, but the real challenge is to go onto the journey of discovering themselves and find out how amazingly it feels to put yourself first and feel happy through balancing with the opposite 6th house and focus on the present moment, learn to prioritize their needs and focus on moving their body and taking the days step by step. These people came here to show us a lesson of how much you can heal the world by healing yourself - just do that and let the magic unfold.

#astrology #stellium #longpost #zodiac #signs #aries #taurus #gemini #scorpio #libra #sagittarius #capricorn #virgo #aquarius #pisces #leo #cancer #posted #houses

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