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shanastoryteller · 1 year

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Do you think you'll tackle Serene and Endymion in your Greek Myths? They are gorgeous btw. ;)

Not all titans were subdued. Not all were lost, or chained, or changed.

Some simply endured, too large and distant to be concerned with matters of titles and thrones.

Helios raged. Even bound within Tartarus, his sun burned brighter and angrier with each day, feeding off the hatred of the cursed titan. Seas turned to deserts as water was baked out of the earth. Apollo scooped up Helios’s chariot, bringing the sun to bear and returning a normal rhythm to the days and nights. Helios’s rage burns him even still, but the chariot has at least accepted its new master.

Artemis becomes associated with the moon because she is her brother’s other half in all things. But she constructs her chariot herself and it is used for races and to transport huntresses and little else.

The moon’s first goddess has never left. She has dragged the moon across the sky in her chariot of starlight uninterrupted for over a millennia.

The titan Selene did not join the fight of the new gods and the titans. She did not defend her brother nor did she attempt to save him.

But neither has she acknowledged the new pantheon. Zeus rules the sky and has demanded an audience with her many times, but she has never granted it. Zeus chases her chariot, but even riding lightning he can’t catch it when she unhooks the moon and no longer has its weight slowing her down.

Poseidon shakes his head and says, “Leave her be. I am the master of the sea and yet if I suddenly had to push forward every inch of the tide myself, I wouldn’t be left with much power to do anything else. All you’re doing is causing problems for the rest of us. Leave Selene to her work.”

Artemis agrees. If even Poseidon thinks bothering the moon titan is a bad idea, then they should listen. Usually he can’t be bothered to have opinions about anyone outside of his own wife, and even that’s rare.

Zeus gives up. Time passes, as it does, and no matter how the sun bucks and fights against her brother’s grip, sometimes going too quick and then too slow, the moon continues at the same steady pace.

Artemis grows stronger beneath moonlight. This must be because of her worshippers, or perhaps her brother’s. She never answers any prayers for tides or from people lost in the darkness, refusing every attempt to give her a power not her own, but her silence doesn’t seem to discourage anyone. Under the night sky her chariot moves impossibly fast and moonlight seems to always find her through the trees, which makes hunting difficult, but she doesn’t dare complain.

She does not want to earn Selene’s ire.

But despite her best efforts, Artemis does not manage to avoid her attention.

She is separated from her huntresses, spending the third night in a row tracking down a leopard that Demeter claims she drove mad on accident. Artemis doesn’t believe her, but the truth is irrelevant. This creature stalks and kills with Demeter’s blessing upon it, taking down all manor of creature and person.

Her temples have been filled with those begging for her aid. She’s blessed many spears, but her blessing doesn’t seem to be able to outweigh Demeter’s.

That irritates her enough that she’s seeing to this personally. She’s going to skin that damn leopard and wear it’s pelt to the next meeting of the pantheon.

One moment she’s skulking beneath a canopy of leaves, following several drops of blood she’s convinced will lead her to her prey, and the next the hair of her arms is standing on end and her heart is beating fast enough to make her light headed.

She swings around, spear raised, convinced that the damn leopard has found her first.

It’s not the leopard.

“You are the one they are praying too,” says a woman, her body soft with roundness and with the palest skin Artemis has seen on a living person. The extra skin beneath her chin gives her a perfectly circular face and the pockmarks across her face and body are a perfect echo of the moon’s many craters.

Selene tucks her ink black hair behind her ear and looks at her with equally dark eyes.

Artemis was born long after the war with the titans and she’s never ventured into Tartarus. She had assumed their presence felt much the same as other gods, that perhaps it was similar to the feeling of getting caught up in Hera’s rage.

It’s nothing like that.

Selene’s power is like a physical weight, as if they’re suddenly underwater and it’s surrounding them everywhere. Artemis lets it push her to her knees, bowing her head and trying to force her heart to calm. “Titan Selene. I swear that I did nothing to encourage them. I have not claimed any of your power.”

She should have done more than ignore them. She should have toppled temples and killed dissenters. She should have redirected their prayers. Anything to prevent what’s happening now.

“Would you like to?”

Artemis risks raising her head. Selene doesn’t sound angry and she doesn’t look it either. “I don’t understand.”

Selene gestures to the sky. “The moon is different from the sun. The sun pushes forward on its own and must be restrained and goaded in equal measure. Untethered, it will still rise and set. The moon must be pulled. It wants nothing more than to rest and unprompted it will stay motionless. If I step from my chariot for even a moment, the moon halts. It is unmoving now, as we speak.”

Artemis looks up. The moon always looks still to her. She wonders if the tides have noticed the difference.

“I have not been able to walk among earth for more than a few moments since I forged my chariot, lest all that follow the moon also go still and silent. They call you a moon goddess.”

“Please don’t make me take your place,” she says, not above begging. If the goddess traps her on her chariot, Artemis won’t have a choice.

Selene smiles, amusement making her eyes sparkle like distant stars. “You are young. You could not survive the chill or the weight for long. But perhaps you could endure for an hour or two.”

“I don’t understand,” she repeats, but some of her fear is starting to recede. Selene is not speaking like she’s going to strike her or curse her.

“There is a man,” she says, then pauses.

“Oh,” Artemis blinks, then, “Um, that’s not really my area. I could ask my brother?”

Selene laughs. “No, that is not necessary. I just need time. Will you steer my chariot each night so that I may walk across the earth unworried? Then you shall be a moon goddess in more than name.”

A titan, offering to share power for so little a reward? There has to be a catch. “Aren’t you worried that I’ll take too much?”

“I am not a goddess as you are a goddess,” she says, her derision light enough that Artemis can choose not to take offense to it. “My power neither grows nor dwindles based on the opinions of mortals. If you gain more, I do not have less.”

It shouldn’t be that surprising. All gods have some level of innate power. But not like this, not something that could alter the course of a planet, not this large and this terrifying.

Artemis decides then that Selene must be the most powerful of the titans. Anything else is too much to think about.

“I accept,” she says.

Selene reaches out, wrapping her thick fingers around her wrist, and then Artemis is somewhere else and she’s freezing.

“You get used to the cold,” Selene says, nudging her to the front of her chariot. The starlight glitters beneath her, driving home how her own silver chariot is nothing more than a pale imitation, no matter how it shines. “I drive the chariot forward with own will.”

Artemis’s works similarly. She focuses, and the chariot lurches forward, but then it jerks backwards. She glances behind, seeing the massive moon attached to the chariot with pulsing, heavy black chains. She tries again, slower, but no matter how much power she puts behind it, the moon won’t move forward a single inch.

“It’s alright,” Selene says. “I’ll help. You’ll grow stronger.”

She leans forward and spits out into space. Her saliva splits into two and then grows, until two massive, pearly white great wolves are standing at attention. Selene summons more of that strange black chain, looping it around the wolves’ chest and forming a hook to pull it through the front of the chariot before handing the ends to Artemis.

They’re heavy enough that she can feel the weight dragging her arms down. “What do I–”

Selene whistles and then wolves bound forward. For a moment they just strain against their chains, but then Artemis adds her own power to push the chariot, and then slowly, painfully, the moon is dragged forward.

“Good,” Selene says, the word settling into Artemis’s bones. “Stop when you must, but not before. I will feel the moon’s stillness and return.”

Her disappearance leaves the air surrounding Artemis even colder, but she refuses to shiver and instead urges the wolves faster with a snap of the celestial chains.

Endymion spends most of his nights on the tallest mountain within walking distance of the city, tracking the stars’ movements so that his fellow astronomers can check their equations against the realities of the heavens.

It takes him much longer than his colleagues and he blames it on an unsteady hand.

The truth is that his hands are perfectly steady. He has a one tablet of star positions and several rolls of linens with paintings of the moon. He’s not a very good artist, but something about it compels him, and so he spends hours each night determined to capture ever crevice and angle.

“Why are you always looking at me?”

He startles, dropping his brush, and turns on his heel to see who on earth is up here with him.

It’s a woman, with long black hair and a large body. There’s a puckered line along her cheek and he resists the urge to press his fingers against it, to follow it’s path until his fingers reach her lips. The soft pink of her plush mouth is the only bit of color on her.

Her question catches up with him and he sputters, “I’ve never seen you before!”

He would remember.

“You are always looking,” she insists, walking towards him. “What do you see?”

“I really haven’t seen you before,” he says, but doesn’t move away when she comes right up next to him. This close, he can see some faint color in her cheeks. He wonders if there are any other parts of her that tinge from pale to pink.

He feels heat rush to his own face at the thought. The bright moonlight that lets him see her so clearly is the same moonlight that’s going to give away his indecent thoughts.

But she doesn’t call him on it, instead pointing down at the crumpled linen. “Why?”

“Oh,” he flushes even more. “I don’t know. It’s beautiful, isn’t it? That’s reason enough.”

Endymion waits for her derision, the same that he’s received every time he’s gotten caught, but instead she curls her hands into the material of his shirt and says, “I agree,” and then she’s yanking him down to press her lips into his.

He tries to convince her to follow him home, but instead she disrobes right there and he can’t argue with that.

“Be here again tomorrow night,” she orders when the sweat is cooling on their bodies.

She likes to order him around. He doesn’t mind. “Won’t you tell me your name?”

“I will not answer questions that you already know the answer to,” she says, and then kisses him again before he can argue.

He means to walk down with her, to escort her home at least, but the moment he turns his back on her, she’s gone.

It takes him seven more nights with her for him to work up the courage to call her Selene.

She smiles and bites his shoulder, the imprints of her teeth a perfect circle.

gods and monsters series, part xxxiii

read more of the gods and monsters series here

#gods and monsters series #selene #artemis #endymion #greek mythology #asks #BEING-ELSPETH

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teddybearsandspaceships · 29 days

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Some random notes from yesterday's (25/05/2024) Scar stream. Not even all of the best parts because there were so many, at one point I was just laughing out loud pretty much continuously.

A chatter mentions Scar being the "mob boss." Scar is immediately delighted. In the shopping district he won't be the zoo keeper, he'll be the mob boss with his own outfit etc.

Scar built the nether portal for his train (it looks super cool!) and is now transporting skeletons to the nether so they shoot anyone approaching it because he wants to discourage people from using his nether portal. He put his own heads on the skeletons and calls them "Scar Junior." Only one of them dies.

Doc shows up for distraction and support. He teaches Scar things about redstone, like how you can place a lever on the block next to a rail to activate it. They complain about the new YouTube layout, Doc blames Elon Musk, who according to Scar lives in Doc's head rent-free 28 hours a day.

"just because you look like a taxi driver in Indiana Jones doesn't make you less evil"

Ren shows up too. Doc and Ren start to complain about shipping. Scar tells them a heartwarming story about his local UPS guy.

apparently Doc was a wandering trader in the woods as a kid. He traded home-cooked German food to American soldiers from a nearby base. For ammunition.

Next topic: the "worst" (unrestricted) fireworks. At some point Doc does an exaggerated German accent. Doc also made a joke about Scar being 48, Scar says he prefers the rumors about him being smart and handsome, Doc says that's just the truth.

Scar and Doc getting trolled by horns, including Cub shouting "help" which they both thought was real for a second. Chat suspects "horn man" is Grian, but it's such a huge variety I'm pretty sure it has to be Cub. Finally Cub shows up (briefly)

After all the skeletons were moved Scar wants to add a drowned. He got the go-ahead from Etho to take one from his farm. Scar blocks off Etho's portal and Doc wonders what he's getting dragged into, calls himself an Ethogirl once again

unfortunate realization: a drowned will not attack people with tridents in the nether because there's neither water nor night time. But then chat did experiments and they say it should work? Spoiler: it works very well.

the first trident guy refused to put anything on his head, but the second one put on Scar's hat \o/ so he can even move during the day. It becomes night though, Scar asked people in chat to sleep and Bdubs logs on ^^ a few seconds too late though, Ren slept first.

Oh noo, the trident guy hit a free-ranging iron golem and was killed. Bdubs joins the group just to say it serves them right. Bdubs is telling on them to Etho.

Doc refuses to mess with Etho's landscaping. Bdubs makes a walkway but very carefully. Scar, head in hands, this is what it's like with Etho fangirls… next Minecon, Scar says he'll print Bdubs a shirt with Etho's face on it. Bdubs says Scar is the one obsessed with him, coming over all the time.

Scar talking about a Hermitcraft rule called the "open seas rule", if something is built on the ocean it's free for taking. (Bdubs is skeptical)

Bdubs says dealing with Etho is like dealing with a rabbit. Don't pester it, you just have to leave it and it'll come to you. "How many moms does Etho have on this server." "This is what it's like having a friend." "Oh I wouldn't know" xD "We're friends not moms"

Doc complains about how hungry he is. It's late and he really wants to eat his mini pizza. Scar: why don't you just get a feeding tube, then you don't have to eat.

Bdubs: "I'm just taking notes for Etho later." Scar: "this is just Limited Life the whole time." "Every second is a second closer to Etho logging on and catching you guys"

Scar is now shifting the blame for their misfortunes to Tango because he never offered help or even made jokes in chat. Threatens to throw him out of the LNC, even ^^

"Ooh, you're not trapping Etho's portal!" "No, it's his own" "Oh there's no reason for me to be here then." Bdubs logs out immediately, then…

NOW Etho logs in xD "Etho's here, he's gonna come over here and cause an issue." "What's this about trapping my portal?", and other quotes such as, "I'm watching what you're doing Scar and it's infuriating me." "Put some water down" ("It's the nether!"), telling Bdubs he should have let his iron golem die instead of healing it, and "What you're building a rollercoaster over here, what is this"

"How do we do this, Doc?" "I don't know, give Etho some blocks and let him do it" "No no, I came for the show" Doc is just standing there with two dozen tridents in the ground in front of him xD

"You're like the muppets, those two older ones" - Doc about Ethubs. "We're the comic relief" "Yeah that's it"

Etho is concerned, they're representing Hermitcraft after all, people will think they're incompetent. Etho: "Tango, what do you think?" "Oh god don't tell me Tango's here." Tango is now here :D

Scar: "just to be clear, I am competent, things just didn't go to plan…"

Scar is in protest to both the nether and their nether hub. Etho: "If only we had a couple people around here often referred to as the best builders ever…"

Etho, contemplating the skeletons and trident guy: "So what are you going to do if Cub comes by with his Thorns armor?" Scar hides his head in his hands.

aww, Bdubs and Tango telling Scar LNC will help him with that mountain ^^

Doc finally logs out. Spoiler: he got his mini pizza.

#hermitcraft #hermitcraft streams #gtwscar

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antianakin · 1 year

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So I've seen a few arguments that Jedi could have relationships with planetary leaders/Senators so long as they're not letting themselves get attached and all parties are aware that the Jedi is going to have to place their duties before their personal relationship. And while I understand the appeal of putting Jedi with characters who can understand the responsibility and duty aspect of their lives, I'm not ENTIRELY certain that this is inline with what we know about the Jedi and their philosophies and values. While there's no rule FORBIDDING those kinds of relationships, I think there'd be a few reasons why the Order would probably heavily discourage them.

The first is straight-up just favoritism or the appearance of it. The Jedi are supposed to be serving, if not the entire galaxy, then at least the whole Republic. This is a major reason why they've chosen to be beholden to the Senate and the Chancellor as a sort-of symbiotic relationship based on a hell of a lot of trust. While FRIENDSHIPS with Senators and planetary leaders is totally fine and probably even encouraged to some degree, romantic or sexual relationships start adding extra levels of expectation and obligation that could end up being a problem.

As an example of this, we see in season 1 that when Padme discovers the Blue Shadow Virus becoming an issue on Naboo, she straight up LIES to the Queen and the Jedi Council in order to specifically get Anakin there by insisting that the Gungans revere Obi-Wan as a hero due to the events of Phantom Menace and so it would make things easier of Obi-Wan were there, knowing that it will mean Anakin comes along as well presumably. However, Obi-Wan is then never asked to speak to the Gungans at any point within the entire two episode arc once he does arrive, nor does speaking to Gungans even ever seem necessary. Padme straight-up takes advantage of the Jedi Order itself just so she can force a situation where she gets to see her secret Jedi husband again. This means the Jedi are now playing unintentional favorites, something they would theoretically try very hard NOT TO DO.

Obi-Wan having friendly relations with multiple planetary leaders obviously DOES come in handy more than once, but Anakin's secret romantic relationship with Padme is something that causes the Jedi themselves to be taken advantage of in a way that could've come back to bite them in the ass later if things had gone differently.

I used to sort-of scoff at the season 3 episode where Padme and Satine meet up on Mandalore and it's PADME who says she has sway with the Jedi Council and can therefore ask them to send a Jedi to Mandalore to provide advice or something, despite the fact that Satine is close personal friends with Obi-Wan. However, if Satine is choosing NOT to call upon Obi-Wan and their personal relationship in order to ask for a personal favor as a planetary leader, this falls in line quite nicely with the way they seem to be handling their relationship in general. As a Republic Senator, Padme can presumably go through more official channels to ask for this favor on Satine's behalf in a way Satine, currently, cannot. The ONLY time we see Satine make use of this connection with Obi-Wan is when her government is being literally overthrown and her life is in danger, so the stakes are a lot higher. Satine waits until there's quite literally no other option for her before she pulls on her relationship with Obi-Wan, and she ASKS for help from Obi-Wan and the Jedi. Padme on the other hand seems to have very little hesitation about leveraging her personal relationships with the Jedi and lying to the Jedi in order to ensure their help comes to her planet. Satine is choosing to be RESPECTFUL in a way I didn't quite recognize before.

The second aspect of this is political agendas. It flows into the first one, obviously, they're connected. The favoritism issue stems from politicians having their own personal political agendas. Obi-Wan even states this outright in Attack of the Clones pretty early on when he's coming up against Anakin's feelings for Padme starting to blind Anakin to most everything else. He reminds Anakin that as much as they might LIKE Padme, as kind and selfless as Padme seems and can be, she is also a career politician which means she has political agendas by definition. It's literally part of the job. Padme is beholden to her people and her Queen and what they expect and ask of her as a Senator.

They can't trust that Padme will not attempt to use the Jedi to push her own agenda. They can't assume that Padme would set aside her agendas just because she's friends with them. They can't assume that their relationship to Padme would be her priority. It's her job to prioritize her people, her system. And it's a GOOD thing that she does so, that's the whole point of having a Senator. But this does mean that Padme's personal political agenda may not always line up that nicely with the Jedi's job of serving EVERYONE equally.

We see a good example of this relationship and the Jedi pushing back against it in the season 1 episode with Riyo Chuchi. Riyo attempts to order Obi-Wan into basically doing Riyo's job for her. Obi-Wan, however, says no. He argues that him stepping in at this point is no longer going to truly fix the problem, and convinces Riyo to do her job and speak for herself. Riyo wants to help her people, doesn't trust herself to do it well, and so tries to ask Obi-Wan to do it for her and won't listen when Obi-Wan tries to protest that that plan won't work anymore. She attempts to order Obi-Wan around specifically because he's a Jedi and she's a Senator. And Riyo's not even in a relationship of any kind with Obi-Wan really, they're barely even friendly acquaintances at this point.

Padme is required to push her political agenda in whatever way she thinks is best. As a Jedi, Anakin is supposed to treat everyone in the Republic (and ideally everyone in the galaxy) equally. Which means he CANNOT prioritize Padme OR her agenda, and he cannot trust that Padme is not at some point going to ask or expect him to do exactly that if they're in a relationship.

I don't think the Jedi discourage relationships of any kind, and are actually generally fine with their members having romantic relationships (and obviously have sex as per Word of God) so long as they put their duties as Jedi first and don't become attached. But that being said, I think they would GREATLY discourage relationships with planetary leaders and Senators, which is why we see Obi-Wan explicitly telling Anakin that while his FEELINGS for Padme aren't really an issue, he does need to keep that relationship strictly "friends." Obviously everyone sort-of knows Anakin's doing it anyway, three members of the Council are entirely aware of it existing and do exactly nothing about it, so it's clearly not explicitly forbidden or against the Code on its own, but I don't think any of them are particularly happy about Anakin's choice there given how dangerous it has the potential to be politically, and they're probably hoping at some point he'll be smart enough to end it.

#jedi #jedi order #jedi council #obi-wan kenobi #satine kryze #padme amidala critical #padme critical #anidala critical #this all came about because i had the immensely sad realization that this means obi-wan/bail can't happen either #not unless i go for a post o66 au where obi-wan stays on alderaan or something #and the complete lack of a jedi order means that relationship dynamic is entirely changed now

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hiiragi7 · 4 months

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what are your thoughts/input on transandrophobia?

I think that a lot of people inappropriately view masculinity itself as synonymous with privilege, when it is far more complex than that. The presence of masculinity itself is not privilege, nor is it even seen as an inherent goodness; for individuals who do not fit societal expectations for masculinity (socially, sexually, chromosomally, hormonally, and so on), rather than being viewed as near or moving towards embodying a "perfect" male body, those with any ambiguity or cross-sex experiences are viewed as disordered and non-conforming.

Intersex people are systemically altered and mutilated for traits deemed masculine, so masculinity is not inherently seen as positive; transgender men are also often strongly discouraged from transitioning towards masculinity. In examining this, I find that while maleness is associated with privilege, it is only so as long as that maleness aligns with colonialist concepts of what maleness is and how it performs. In other words, it is conditional, and it upholds dyadic and cis binaries.

Even in the case of trans men who are "stereotypically male" in terms of their bodies and how they behave socially, who have a flat chest, testicles, a penis, and do not have a vagina, uterus, and ovaries, and whom pass, they are still viewed as queerly disordered; factors such as being born female or intersex but transitioning to manhood, being raised socially as a different gender, being on HRT for the rest of their lives, having had surgeries done in order to reaffirm their gender, these are things which fall outside of sexual and gender norms and which affect the ways in which a person can access privilege. For those who do not fit bodily or social expectations of masculinity, it is even more ambiguous.

A large discourse I have seen with regards to transandrophobia/antitransmasculinity is that it pushes the idea that misandry is a systemic issue, which I strongly disagree with; trans men and transmasculine people will experience oppression based on masculine traits and manhood, and this concept is not particularly out there or odd to me, as an intersex person which sees intersex people oppressed specifically for expressing manhood or masculinity. When masculinity or manhood is experienced outside of the rules of the enforced gender sex binary, it is repressed and exorcised.

While individual trans men may conditionally experience aspects of male privilege in some areas of life, this is not true of most trans men. I don't find it useful when people make broad statements like "transitioned trans men have male privilege" or "trans men are inherently privileged over trans women because they are men" or so on. I also find it ignores racial and cultural differences and how that impacts privilege.

So, in closing, I do find that trans men and transmasculine people experience oppression based on expressing masculinity or manhood, though similarly to transmisogyny I do not believe this oppression is inherently unique to them, and may be experienced by trans people outside of trans men and transmasculine people depending on the circumstances. I think language to describe that experience is important, as with transmisogyny. I also find that transandrophobia/antitransmasculinity and transmisogyny are not in conflict with each other, and rather are deeply intertwined expressions of overlapping oppressive systems.

#trans issues #transphobia #lgbt discourse

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daphneyoumustmakehaste · 1 month

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I have nowhere else to spew my politics garbage so I'm choosing tumblr as you do. Focusing on America and Britain here because that is what I know best and its what I study.

It is so so aggravating whenever I see people (specifically left wingers or left-centrists such as democrats and Labour voters) discourage people from voting third parties/candidates. A few years ago, I would have been foaming at the mouth at this statement. I remember a couple years back (when I was literally like…14) I posted on here encouraging people to vote Biden because “no one wants Trump”. But now I’m older, and Biden has been exposed as the decaying, wicked old man that he is (but my opinion on Biden is neither here nor there and has little to do with the point I want to make, so if you Biden lovers can just shut up and block me if this makes you mad please x) I’ve come to realise that voting for third candidates is an essential part of democracy.

Almost the same argument is used whenever left-wingers say they want to vote for third parties. “You’re going to divide the left. We need to get [Republicans/Conservatives] out of power. Please vote for [Democrats/Labour].” And I do agree. That voting for third parties and candidates will have consequences in dividing the left. However, voters DO NOT OWE their votes to left parties purely because they are “left wing”. Just because a candidate is “the better option” does not mean you owe them your vote.

Over the past couple of decades, I think a mindset has formed of “no matter what this party does, I’m going to vote for them because i don’t like the other option.” You don’t think politicians know this is a popular mindset? This allows them to say and do and vote for whatever they want with minimal repercussions. Just in 2024 alone, Joe Biden has become increasingly more defensive over Israel despite MANY of his 2020 voters opposing this. And fair enough. If that is what Joe Biden believes in, then I think he should freely express it. But if voters don’t want to vote for him on account of that, you cannot guilt trip them into voting for him because Donald Trump is an awful option (which he is, and obviously I don’t want him to become president, but it’s a sacrifice I think people should be willing to accept).

Sir Keir Starmer has moved the Labour Party to more centre ground ever since he came into power in 2020. Again, that’s fine. He should do what he thinks is best for the party. But if voters don’t want to vote for him on account of that, you cannot guilt trip them into voting for Labour because “conservatives are worse.”

I think America are in a much more vulnerable position than the UK. Conservatives have little to no chance at winning the next election, and I think Sunak knows this (despite what he might say). Trump stands a very good chance, and I think this is account of the split that’s originated on the left. That isn’t the voters fault. I think it can partly be attributed to Biden dividing the left, and I think it can also be attributed to the way politics works. Biden was never a strong candidate, even in 2020. The main thing he had going for him was “better than Trump.” But unfortunately, Trump is back for another round, Biden is running again, and we’re in the same position we were last year (history really does repeat itself).

I do think it’s a difficult argument and there is no one way to go about it. Like I said above; I do not want Donald Trump to become President again. I do not wish for another five years of tory rule. But I also don’t want to forget everything bad Biden has done, and I don’t want to forget the shitty, bootlicking things Starmer’s Labour has said.

At the end of the day, the message here is that voters should VOTE FOR WHO THEY WANT. If you want to vote for Biden or Labour because you don’t want the alternative in power, go ahead. The whole point of voting is to strengthen democracy. By “forcing” people to vote for “the better option, even if they’re not the best.” Instead of looking down on the people who choose not to vote for them, maybe you should look upwards and ask why those in power are not doing everything they can to attract and keep voters.

#rishi sunak #joe biden #donald trump #keir starmer #politics #democrats #republicans #america #uk #labour #conservatives #voting #elections #election day #election 2024

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cinnamonest · 1 year

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Alright let's make one thing clear;

Riddle (from TWST) would 100000% do things that are on the verge of momcon. I doubt he'd do actual momcon (I mean have you SEEN their relationship??) but he'd project it on his darling.

I can see him forcing his darling to dress more like his mom, put her hair up like his mom, do her makeup like his mom, but not act like his mom. HE wants the power in THIS relationship.

10000% would call you either "mom", "mommy", or his mother's name while he noncons you.

Yes omg omg AHHHH he WOULD he is such a Mama's boy, a kind of the same vibes as [this post] from forever ago? He would subconsciously single out a darling that bears some physical resemblance and make you his replacement Mommy :))))

Although he doesn't realize it, it's also where he gets his preferences. It's subconscious; if you asked him if he sought out facial features or traits that resembled his mother, he would scowl, say no, that that is a frankly reprehensible notion.

But anyone who has seen both you and her, well, they can't help but raise their eyebrows a bit at the facial structure similarity. No one says anything to him about it, though, out of fear of invoking his ire. The last thing anyone needs is him getting embarrassed over the realization and going into a pseudo-tantrum over what an absurd suggestion it is that he would ever select for someone based on a facial similarity to his own blood. What kind of pervert would even come up with such an idea? He's just too oblivious to his own self to recognize it.

He sort of tries to make you this... ideal figure, what a perfect mommy to him should have been. Obviously he's a controlling little bastard from the get-go, always, always correcting every little thing you do. But the way he moulds you into a maternal figure is not entirely a conscious decision. He enforces things upon you that just sort of seem right -- that you have to wear this and this in this specific way, that you should hold your posture this way, walk like this, speak more formally in public and more casually with him, and with this sort of tone to each setting respectively... no, it's not in the rules or anything, but there's a sort of well-known propriety to such things, you know? Just because it's not a rule doesn't mean there isn't a very specific and proper way for people to behave and carry themselves and so on, especially for someone in your position, seeing as your behaviors and mannerisms reflect on him.

He doesn't realize to what degree his idea of normalcy and propriety has been shaped by example. That is, his own mom. It's where he gets all of his ideas of proper behavior for anything not explicitly in the rules.

It's not just a matter of forcing you to behave a certain way, either, but also discouraging what he doesn't like. Sometimes you do certain things that don't seem out of the ordinary, that you don't even think would upset him, yet he still seems to scowl. What exactly is his problem with the thing you're wearing? It's not inappropriate, nor does it defy any of the countless regulations you know are imposed upon you... but it just doesn't feel right to him. It's not something she... that you would wear.

And why does he not like this or that part of your speech patterns, the hairstyle or length you have, so on and so on? He couldn't say. He just knows he wants to change it to this specific idea he has in mind. All the while unaware he's subconsciously basically just redesigning you into Mommy 2.0, more or less.

But yes, there's a few things that he does not want you replicating: a sense of authority over him, and that constant, merciless criticism. On the occasion you have been upset with or reprimanded something he does, it makes him unusually, exceptionally uncomfortable and upset, the way he stiffens and scowls. Usually, he's fairly receptive to and humble about criticism (as long as its valid), but you're just not supposed to do that. You're the one person that can't, even if he made a genuine mistake. You're supposed to be the embodiment of tenderness and affection.

If he recreates the setup himself, with you, he can give himself a sort of power he never had with his real mother. It's a very comforting sort of feeling, all the warmth and familiarity, but with none of the fear of failure, none of the anxiety around a single misstep. So when you give him that anxiety anyway, it feels like a transgression, like you've done something wrong, and he can treat it accordingly.

And with you, he's a lot more sensitive to criticism too. Even if you say just the slightest thing, even if its worded very nicely and given to him very gently, it upsets him. He's uncharacteristically petulant about it. He'll cross his arms and scowl, mutter something under his breath, and more or less give you a cold shoulder and silent treatment for the rest of the day. Unless, of course, you make it up to him somehow, namely by apologizing and admitting you were wrong and he was right and he did nothing wrong. If not, the bitterness and hurt can last for quite a while.

As for what he calls you, well. He unfortunately isn't the type of guy who can say something and not realize what he's said, so he does catch himself, face buried against your neck and balls deep inside you.

Mommy...

And he freezes up, stops completely. Stiffens. There's a few moments of silence as he has to come to terms with and process his own words.

That -- I don't --

A slip of the tongue, perhaps. So he tries to pass it off as. However, it's only at that moment that it seems to click, all the dots connect and he realizes what he's done with you, how he's moulded you. The poor thing gets extremely self-conscious, hurries to the library to desperately seek out psychology texts in some desire to find out if there's something wrong with him.

However, he does find said material, which claims that, at least to some extent, this sort of thing is normal... maybe not to the extent he's done it, but, it says something about how men often pursue partners that bear some resemblance to their mothers... so he takes that piece of information and runs with it. Rather, he stretches the concept beyond the point of what anyone else would consider reasonable, and extrapolates it to mean that what he's doing is normal, too.

So now, he can let the anxiety go and not have to feel paranoid that he has some kind of problem, because it's normal, so he doesn't have a problem at all, no. In fact, even if you object in some way, he uses the information to justify and argue the matter from that point forward... so he'll keep calling you what he feels like, thank you very much. Just hope it doesn't accidentally slip when you're around others... that would be the end of him, they'd never let him live that down.

And in truth, somehow the whole thing makes him less anxious around his actual mother, he feels less of an urge to live up to her expectations and is less afraid of upsetting her, now that he's redirected his need for approval and validation to you instead. Although with that gone, he does get a bit more openly resentful, which impacts their relationship negatively a bit... and although he'll have trouble both explaining to you where he got all the clothes from that he comes back with over break, he'll have even more trouble convincing her he doesn't know why hers went missing...

#AHHHHHHH #ty for this anon #sorry for the absence btw ive been travelling home #.twst #gonna make character tags for the twst boys too #.🌹❤#also fun fact! the 'men tend to choose partners that kinda look like their moms' thing is true #i remember learning that and being like 👀👀#.momcon

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in-silks-and-flesh-and-leather · 1 year

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darling silky

i hope i didn't overwhelm you with all the asks 😳

i'm just to excited by the prospect of getting more mills stories from you i can't stop spinning out !

💗love you💗

💗

Not at all, they are so fun and have me dreaming up so many different stories! <3 Thank you so much for all the lovely prompts :)

Since several people asked for a Ruined Wedding with Mills, I thought I would share a quick scene from one of the stories I'm considering with that plot. I hope you like it :)

CW: allusions to injuries, death, light choking and manhandling, under-the-wedding-dress shenanigans, and your daily serving of angst

WC: ~3.4k

Summary: Mills and RC are operatives for the Museum, a guild of assassins. Mills had been with her since day one, helping recruit her and show her the ropes. He was even the first mistake she made, when they gave in to their attraction and had a clandestine affair, even though the Museum frowned on such relationships. Things changed fundamentally between then and now. Henry, her fiancé, is a fellow Museum operative who would not be dissuaded from making their relationship known, demanding official permission to make their union formal. Now the first wedding at the Museum is set to take place, but things are not as they first appear. Mills realizes that two competing Curators, each vying for a seat on the Board of Directors of the Museum, are planning to use the momentous wedding as the stage for a bloody coup. He needs to convince the bride that she is in danger and that they can make it through the night If they work together. And along the way, Mills has every intention of rekindling their old flame.

WC: ~3.4k

The Poine Museum was a tall, majestic edifice, as grandiose on the outside as it was within its thick walls, sprawling wide and soaring high into the night sky.

As far as the rest of the world was concerned, it was a privately owned entity which attracted a global patronage of private collectors who all shared and exchanges priceless pieces of art and cultural heritage. The Museum regularly bid in auctions for prestigious pieces, occasionally taking them home and depositing them safely into the Vault.

Behind the stanchions and velvet curtains, the Poine Museum was a guild of assassins. With a long and storied history, a largely clandestine one, there were many rules in place that allowed the Museum to continue functioning. Possible targets and new operatives were meticulously researched and chosen only if the Board of Directors voted unanimously. Training for operatives was Spartan in nature and there were no guarantees issued – not of ultimately being admitted into the guild, nor even of surviving. What kept operatives firmly tethered to the Museum were the scrupulously chosen targets – undeniably rotten characters who evaded justice through more mainstream channels.

One of the essential pillars of the Museum was that its operatives seldom made lasting unions with outsiders, given the exigencies of the profession they had undertaken. Trysts between operatives were discouraged, but overlooked once done. There was really no helping such matters once the milk was spilled, so to speak. Bonds and marriages between them, however, were a different matter.

Experience had taught the Board of the Museum that operatives involved with one another in major ways grew less efficient, suffered a higher rate of injury and made poorer decisions during Exhibitions. In short, emotional bonds made them more irrational as individuals and worse as operatives.

That was all well enough and generally an easy rule to live by. No Museum operative wanted to bring work home. All Museum personnel were on a retainer and paid bonuses per Exhibition. Exhibitions could last for weeks and even months in extreme cases and if the target was illustrious enough, and they often came out of the blue. Once Provenance established a viable target, which was a complex process in itself, and the Board signed off on it, it was up to Acquisitions to get their hands on it by any means necessary. The last thing any operative wanted was to return home and either be separated from their partner, who was off setting up an Exhibition, or have their precious downtime, meant for decompressing, invaded by more Museum-related work.

So business carried on at the Museum for decades. Until now.

The first official wedding between two operatives was set to be held at the Museum building itself.

You clinked your flute of champagne to your maid of honor’s and shared a smile before tipping your head back, enjoying the citrusy notes over the tang as the drink slid smoothly down your throat. Alexandria was wearing a slate blue satin dress that suited her deep skin tone beautifully. It complemented both the champagne tone of your wedding dress and the slate blue shirt and cufflinks your groom was wearing too. The Museum thought of everything.

You were grateful that Alexandria was with you as you got dressed. The unthinkable had happened – one of your seams had split open as you shimmied into the skin-tight dress. Being an operative from Restorations, she was able to help you get into your dress and laced you up perfectly in the back before setting about fixing the split.

“Lucky for you, I stitched up way worse with way less,” she gritted out through her teeth as she bit off the thread and put it through the needle first go.

“I thought we couldn’t bring in anything through the metal detectors,” you frowned, pleasantly surprised she had her Restorations kit with her.

“Fish bone,” she looked up and smiled, closing the seam up swiftly, leaving it as good as new. You had proof on your own body that she made immaculate stitches, so you had no doubt the seam she fixed was now secure for the duration of event, no matter what acrobatics ensued.

The tall door to your suite opened noiselessly and one of Henry’s groomsmen poked his bald, shiny head in. “45 minutes, ladies,” he informed in a jovial tone and promptly retreated, leaving you to your bridal business.

Alexandria squeezed your hands excitedly and stomped in place like an excited child. ��You ready?” At times it seemed like the guests attending the event felt more excited than the future Mrs. McHenry, you mused. This was a brief moment, to be your own, and you might get to be footnote in the Museum’s history as the two operatives to officially get married, but people were far more excited for this wedding meant in the grand scheme of things. The Museum was not as immutably set it stone as everyone had it beaten into them during their training. Things could change and drastically so. One only had to push decisively in the direction they wished to go.

“Ready or not, it’s showtime,” you shrugged and accepted her hug as she threw her arms around you. She gave one last wave and sent a kiss goodbye before disappearing behind the door, to descend the many levels down to the Gallery, where the ceremony would soon be taking place.

With her departure, you had a reprieve of a few seconds to enjoy the quiet and solitude of the cavernous suite, draining the rest of your drink.

With a visceral grunt, you heard Julian land on your balcony. Too adventurous for a simple entrance through a door, he opted to sneak into the adjoining suite and scale the length of wall separating you, climbing on the balcony and heaving his massive body over it. He was currently absorbed in jimmying your lock.

With a sigh, you walked over and threw the door open. His face fell in disappointment when the door gave way so easily, as though you’d snatched a candy bar from his hands.

“Coast clear?” he asked in his usual husky whisper, looking to your left and right as you retreated into the lavishly decorated room and he followed.

“What’s the matter, Mills? Provenance not giving you enough opportunities you chase thrills? You have to break into my wedding to get your rocks off?”

Not in the mood for teasing or much preamble of any kind, Julian’s expression darkened like a stormy sky. He grew terribly still, somehow managing to loom even larger as he stood quiet as the grave and unmoving. You barely had enough time to set your glass down before he grabbed you by the arms and pulled you into him. He folded you into his broad chest and locked his arms around you so that all you could do was part your lips and welcome his devouring kiss, slackening into his hold and fighting for breath under the bruising force of his affections.

“Easy,” you panted as you fought to catch your breath once he released you. Julian wasn’t listening, though, walking bodily into you and all but pushing you onto the bed.

He stopped just short of tossing you backwards, for a brief moment, snaking his hands down your arms and spreading them wide to take in the sight of you all dolled up for the wedding.

“God, you’re breathtaking,” he frowned, feeling what a momentous occasion this day represented. You saw a hundred hungry thoughts go through his mind, shining darkly in his eyes as they raked up and down your body. The possessive beast inside him roared to life, rancorous that you were dressed up like a vision to marry a different man, even if it was just for show. You saw the change come over him and knew he was seeing red. There was no reasoning with him then.

His hand tightened painfully around your wrist and he stepped into you, sending you both toppling into the queen sized bed. Julian groaned into his kiss and straddled over you, one hand coming up to coil around your neck. He squeezed experimentally, tighter and tighter until you squirmed under him and wrapped a warning hand around his wrist. You remembered then all the truncated fights you had, snatching moments to throw accusations back and forth as to whose fault it was that things shook out the way they did. His hand around your throat, huge and monstrously strong, reminded you how much he loved to have the last word. You grabbed a handful of his hair roughly in retaliation and bit on full lower lip until you started to taste blood. The kiss was all teeth and struggle, more punishing than pleasurable.

“You’re so fucking beautiful, sweetheart,” he rambled as he left sloppy, sucking kisses down your neck and chest, some primal part of him wanting you mark you up visibly as his.

“I know,” you huffed a laugh and smoothed his hair away from his face with a gentler hand, working to wind him down and remind him not to lose it so close to the moment of truth. He sat up, not shying away from burdening your hips with his full weight, which pushed the air out of you in a strained grunt. Julian watched you sprawled under him and took a deep breath, running his hand down his face. “I didn’t spend the whole day getting ready not to look spectacular by the end,” you arched a brow and he caged you in with his large hands on either side of your face, dipping his head lower. The tips of his long inky hair tickled your cheeks before you coiled a hand between your faces. “And I’d like to keep it that way,” you warned with your index finger blocking his hungry mouth from seeking out yours again.

Julian grumbled like a large, dissatisfied cat as he inched down your body, reluctantly relinquishing his favored position on top of you. He offered a gentlemanly hand and helped you stand up. Going down on one knee, he looked up from his submissive position, enjoying the sight of you still flustered from what he did to you.

You hiked up your dress, revealing the full length of your naked leg, save for the garter on your thigh, and placed your heel on his proffered knee. He smirked like a cat playing with a mouse and ran his eyes over the flesh of your leg. Hands followed where his eyes had roamed, mapping out every inch and every curve from your ankle, up your calf and the often forgotten erogenous zone right at the back of the knee, ghosting the tips of his calloused fingers over the soft spot until he saw your thigh flex deeply from his teasing touch. Then he ran his warm hand over your thigh, tracing his thumb over the white lace of the garter.

“You got something for me, big guy?” you bumped his shoulder with your knee as a reminder and he smirked, biting his lips to keep his comment in.

With a wicked glint in his eye, he reached into the inside pocket of his jacket and produced a short dagger, with a dramatic curve in its wide blade. The hilt was a smooth white bone with inlaid golden veins. It was a beautifully made scimitar dagger, and its design and sturdiness made it highly versatile. The blade was no more than eight inches, but it was a veritable butcher’s knife that could cut, skin and debone with ease. A marvelous choice for the evening’s festivities.

With an approving smile from you, Julian took the liberty of sliding the cool blade delicately against your skin, watching gooseflesh rise under the cold lick of steel. You hissed and felt the slice of cool metal shoot all the way through you. When the hilt hit the garter, he tested it, wiggling it back and forth and was pleasantly surprised to see it was not moving around. You had chosen well too, Julian realized. The garter you were wearing was essentially a lace-trimmed harness. He wondered if it could be repurposed as a kind of garrote in a pinch, but then he realized it was a silly question. You knew what you were doing.

Next, he fished out a straight razor with an ornate ivory handle. The blade was polished smooth, nearly as reflective as glass and it gleamed as it caught the light, spinning and snapping open and shut around Julian’s thick fingers, dancing like a butterfly knife around his thumb, jumping over to between his index and middle finger, looking like it would bite off the tips of his fingers at any moment, but never managing to. The message was clear; this was a weapon you could easily use and shove back somewhere against your skin safely – if you’re agile and fast enough – as opposed to other, clunkier weapons you would need to bury in someone’s body or discard as you ran or climbed. You took the razor and slid it between your breasts, letting it rest inconspicuously against the boning of your corset.

While you rearranged your bust, Julian placed a kiss on your knee, dragging his prickly beard and mustache up the soft flesh of your thigh. You buried your hands in his long hair and he nipped, smiling into your skin when he felt the jolt it sent through you.

“It’s been too long, hasn’t it?” he pondered out loud as he pressed his full lips into your thigh, pushing your voluminous dress out of the way with both hands wrangling its many layers.

Your head fell back against the wall with a thud and your eyes rolled shut when he burrowed his prominent nose against the lace of your underwear, leaving a smacking kiss against the fabric.

You felt teeth graze and catch the edge, sliding your underwear to the side and your eyes flew open when you realized he had no intention of stopping. Hands scrambling to grab a firm hold of his hair as it kept bobbing and getting lost in the tulle and satin, you finally managed to grab two fistfuls and yank him back. He emerged from the white waterfall cascading down your hips with a satisfied, drunken expression and you teetered, planting your feet to find your balance independent of his body. His hands stayed under your dress and held your thighs firmly at the sides. Your breasts nearly overflowed out of the dress as you heaved breaths and tried to glare, but Julian was still looking far too pleased with what he had done, beginning to move his teasing hands under your dress again.

“You need to go,” you warned, not looking forward to parting with him.

“What’s the rush?” he shrugged and got to his feet, stretching to his full height like an elegant black cat in his tailored suit. A black tie rested against a black shirt and his massive, chiseled form was held in by an immaculately tailored jacket, in his favorite midnight black shade. You were pleased to see he went the extra mile to look good for the event. “The wedding can’t go on without you. Make ‘em wait for it, sweat a little,” he winked and pressed up against you, crowding you against the wall. You shut your eyes in exasperation, as unwilling to make him go as he was to leave.

Accepting momentary defeat, you wrapped your arms around his neck and felt him position himself so his body fit perfectly against yours, chest pushed into yours, hips kissing up against yours and lapping like waves against you. You kissed him deliberately, making sure to taste his lips, his tongue, his skin as you burrowed into him, latching onto his sinewy neck and making him groan a symphony into your ear.

His hips pressed more insistently against you and you closed your eyes to savor the sensation of him. Then a laugh rocked through his body as he felt something under your dress. “Is that a scimitar in your pocket or are you happy to see me?” he grinned like a fool in love and you shook your head, drunk on the sharp, masculine scent of his perfume and the insistence of his body against yours.

“I think that should be my line,” you teased and wiggled your hips under him, feeling with your body for the thick rod of flesh growing stiffer by the moment. Even through all the ample cushioning of your dress, you felt what you were doing to him and gave him a satisfied peck, which he unsuccessfully tried to deepen.

His large hand disappeared behind your back and cupped your ass, pressing you closer to him and he nuzzled against your neck, right at the spot that always made you squirm and moan his name. When it didn’t come as expected, he pulled away and looked at your questioningly through the curtain of dark hair you mussed up together.

“What is it?” he asked, flipping it out of the way to take a better look at you. As if you needed any more reason than the obvious to be preoccupied. He had just stolen artifacts from the Museum to help you defend yourself once the two factions started raising hell at your wedding reception. Your intended wedding was to become a massacre and you could not let anyone know that you knew.

Regardless of the obvious concerns, he waited steadily, ready to listen if you wanted to share anything before all hell broke loose. His eyes almost black with blown out pupils, cheeks flushed as he panted from your embrace and lips sumptuously kiss-bitten, he made your heart ache.

“This could very well be the last time I’ll ever be pretty,” you shrugged, opting for a joke. All things considered, you were grateful Julian got to see you like this, dressed up like a doll, and hold you, even if it was just for a few moments. It gave you the chance to imagine how it might have been had it been you two getting married. After you were done climbing out from under a mountain of assassins, you could have a broken nose, a missing eye, a scar splitting your face in half. You’d seen operatives survive malfunctioning parachutes and headshots, with Restorations giving them top of the line reconstructive surgery. They were never quite the same afterwards, of course, but you figured you could get used to it. If you make it in the first place, that is.

Julian was silent for a moment too long, at a loss for how to comfort you without resorting to hollow platitudes. “I was never pretty and I did just fine,” he gave a crooked smile and ran his hand down your cheek. His face switched to business-like as he dug two thick fingers into the elaborate hairdo you spent a good hour and half sitting still for and tossed a hairpin to the floor. He retrieved one, in the shape of a butterfly, with sapphires embedded into its elegant body, glinting between intricate silver wiring that made up its wings. The delicate beauty of the decorative piece stood in stark contrast to the thick, sturdy blades, curved to lay harmlessly against your scalp, but sharp enough to punch through flesh and hack at it.

“Almost forgot – something blue,” his mouth curved into a satisfied half-smile as he carefully slid the hairpin into place, holding his breath in concentration lest he scratch you.

“You’re the most striking man I’ve ever seen in my life,” you admitted as you watched him, feeling your eyes involuntarily fill with tears.

Julian, instead of flattered, looked horror-stricken.”No,” his nostrils flared angrily and his face grew stern, ”don’t do that. Don’t say goodbye to me.”

“I’m not, I just—“

Whatever you were about to say died in the space where his lips met yours and your breath became his. It was for the best. There was nothing you could have expressed in words that you couldn’t express with the way you held onto him, like he was all you would ever have.

@thegrislady @safarigirlsp @queeniebee @lumberjack00fantasies @vedavan @mythrielofsolitude @house-of-cadwyn

#commander mills x you #commander mills x reader

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illeaadante · 7 months

Text

Thoughts on Infinite Realms Geography

I was infected by brainworms via this post. So here we go.

I've talked before a bit about how the ghost zone/infinite realms presents itself: individual lairs either as floating islands or pocket dimensions behind closed doors, and collective lairs such as the Acropolis or Far Frozen.

I've also talked about how ghosts are beings of emotion and empathy (tangent: Vlad doesn't have a lair-- and can't have a lair-- because he doesn't want to be a ghost and doesn't accept that part of himself. Sure, he accepts the power it grants him, but he'll always think of himself as a living human with a condition instead of a halfa.) and how that emotion effects their powers and their relationships to each other.

I submit that the infinite realms are as fractured and disparate as they are in canon because of Pariah Dark.

He was the ghost King, and responsible for the whole of the realms, and ruled with an iron fist. Part of tyrannical rule is keeping groups separated as much as possible to discourage rebellion. And if the Infinite Realms is also slightly sentient, then all of the relationships between different ghosts, the hierarchy, would also be visible within the spacial positioning of the lairs. Individual lairs at the bottom, collective lairs in the middle (both because they are stronger and so Pariah can keep a better eye on them) with Pariah's Keep at the top as king.

Locking Pariah away in the Sarcophagus of Forever sleep broke the realms out of that strict structure, but it didn't do anything to reconnect the Realms (and we all know that neither the Ancients nor the Observants would bother with things like socializing different ghost communities to each other. Perhaps a few of them made attempts to reach out or maybe make a few introductions, but people are people are people even if they're dead, and sometimes you gotta force people to communicate.) So the tyranny was over, but the isolation of the realms wasn't. In fact, it spread the lairs further out now that there was no Hierarchical north to pull them together.

Without Pariah, Lairs floated whichever way they wanted. I propose that the mentality of the owner of the lair contributes to it's motion: moving away from the lairs of ghosts they have beef with and closer to friends and family, and that when both ghosts decide that they want to stick together, their lairs just kinda click together like lego pieces. Enough of those individual lairs click together and you have the collective lairs.

What that means, though, is that when Pariah came back, Amity Park was sucked into the infinite realms so that he could watch it, because it is arguably the biggest collective lair, being the home of two halfas (because neither Danny nor Vlad have actual Lairs in the Realms at this point) and who knows how many liminals.

Then Pariah is defeated and shoved back in the sarcophagus, and Danny gets both his title and his Lair by right of conquest. Kicking Amity Park back out into the living world as a haunt and not a lair.

So, Danny is the Ghost King, even if uncrowned, so the realms start moving again. Suddenly, the Acropolis and the Medieval section are very close to the Keep and the Portal, and they have a field of Lilies and Asphodel bridging the gap between them. The Far Frozen is still Frozen, but not as Far with land bridges connecting them to the other lairs. All of Danny's other rogues/friends/frenemies start getting lairs attached to each other as well, and all of them orbiting the Keep, not as subjects but as friends.

However, Having all of the friendly lairs surrounding Danny's lair doesn't sit right, because he's a protection spirit. So, the outer wall of the Keep grows and spreads to surround all of the friendly lairs. It creates a bubble around those that he wants to protect that they all can leave, but need to belong there to return. Danny's lair turns into a giant planetarium of Lairs, with a surrounding Ring which is where ghosts must go to be allowed into the protective sphere of ghosts Danny calls his own.

Eventually, a vast majority of the ghost zone concedes to the protection of their king and there are multiple layers (not because of hierarchy, but because of ease of connection) of lairs all spinning around the central Keep, which is used as a council chamber.

tl:dr eventually, the Infinite Realms looks like this biblically accurate angel of an orrery.

#danny phantom #meta #headcanon #Infinite realms #ghost zone #fanon #danny fenton #vlad masters #headcanons about the GZ/IR #i did not remember the world orrery so it took a bit to find this picture #I also like to imagine the individual doors floating through all of the other Lairs and around the edges like motes of dust #i just think they're neat

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devisrina · 2 years

Text

(Long post) We need more posts under this tag. So I'm going to take the liberty of analysing all the hints we got to Bela and Eric since they were subtly thrown in there and wouldn't hold any importance until the courtyard scene.

Season 1 episode 1 -

We didn't get anything romantic out of the dialogue, but the elements of the directing style are used to foreshadow/parallel the scene in S1 ep 10 where they are at the same location

It's supposed to reflect on time passing and how close they've gotten and are going to get in the near future.

It also matters that Bela approached Eric first in the pilot instead of Ryan, Eric gets a deeper introduction first (This holds no importance to Bela at the time, but it matters from a viewer's point of view, especially since this gets repeated in every episode that the Catullan gets mentioned/Mekki Leeper (Eric) and Conor Donnally (Ryan) are in.) From the get-go, we get shown that Eric isn't very approachable, he reinforces Catullan rules, and he's strict in comparison to Ryan.

Even though Eric's first conversation with Bela seemed to make him come off as misogynistic and racially insensitive, there's actually a few things to note about this interaction that differs from when we saw him in orientation.

Even though he says '600 words, no puns.' at orientation, he was willing to hear Bela out on her idea even if he didn't agree to it.

He genuinely doesn't want to discourage her because he can notice her passion for comedy.

We learn later in the episode from Ryan that the whole board decides who gets picked, so learning this makes Eric come off as more ignorant than sexist and racist. He's just afraid of changing the system.

I'm also assuming that this is Eric and Ryan's first year of being co-editors. It's more likely to assume that Eric got chosen for his work ethic/writing skills and Ryan was more chosen from the social aspect.

Just to be clear, I am not justifying Eric's behaviour. It was not right to talk to Bela like that. I feel like he consciously knew that the Catullan was not right for Bela, not because she wasn't good enough, but because it was heavily male-dominated and he wasn't confident enough to change the structure.

Season 1 episode 5

I think this was the first substantial hint that we get to Bela and Eric being a possible pairing.

Notice how he's the person who opens the door when Bela crashes the wine and cheese soiree? He doesn't protest to her being there, he simply just asked "What are you going here?" if he was one of the people who didn't want her there, I feel like he would've told her to leave. Especially since we know he's not that nice to the other freshmen.

I feel like the next scene where she joins him and his friends to try to know what they were talking about was one of the moments where it really does humanize his character. He doesn't ignore her, nor avoid the topic of conversation, he lets her join in on the conversation.

His half-smile was more out of amusement rather than being rude. He smiles twice in this scene and we know from episode 8, as told by Bela, that he rarely smiles.

And this was the episode where I feel as though he's intrigued/interested in her but he himself doesn't know yet.

Season 1 episode 7

This is a little detail, but I feel like it just adds to why these two are actually more compatible than people think. When Jeff turned in his submission, Eric makes a snarky comment about Jeff's piece on baby Yoda. I feel like Bela making the same comment with the same expression as Eric does really represents their similarities.

Comparatively, we know that Eric is more strict when he has to instruct things to the group (Can be seen when he's talking in episodes 2 and 7) . But when something is directed at Bela, he's actually softer. I think it's because she carries a similar work ethic to him, and she's always willing to learn. I think he really admires that about her which is why she stands out to him a lot more than the other freshmen do.

"I'm not sure if Eric likes me enough."

Bela saying this matters because it means that she does care about what Eric thinks of her personally. Especially since this leads back to the pilot episode where Eric says he doesn't know if she'd make the cut.

"Eric doesn't like anyone. I'm his best friend and roommate, and he still regularly calls me a talentless hack."

This foreshadows episode 8 where Bela and Carla's piece gets chosen for the instagram page. It also foreshadows episode 10 where Eric says Bela's piece was pretty solid.

Season 1 episode 8

"Eric's not that bad."

Carla saying this was a message to the audience that despite Eric's outward mean exterior that he puts on, he's not as bad as people think he is.

"Eric? the only time I've seen Eric smile was when I tripped on a cord."

This is supposed to make you think about the times we've seen him smile. And most of the times we've seen him smile were actually directed toward Bela. (it even foreshadows to later in the episode where he does smile at her when her piece gets picked for the Catullan instagram.)

I also think the fact we get told that he smiled at her when she tripped on a cord instead of being shown it was on purpose to heavily exaggerate it since it's from Bela's point of view. I think if we saw a scene when this happened, his smile would most likely have been more of an 'I'm charmed.' smile. Because Bela doesn't know that Eric does think highly of her.

Also, I feel like his smiling when she tripped on a cord does still have significance since it means he's paid attention towards her.

Season 1 episode 9

"Now Eric officially hates me, I shouldn't have said anything."

Again, she cares about what Eric thinks of her because she admires him from a writer's point of view.

Not much is there to discuss but the fact he took offence to Bela referring to Ryan as the 'handsome' editor as opposed to him shows that he subconsciously does have romantic feelings for Bela.

Eric apologising by writing out his apology shows that he's better articulated through words. He says in the note that he comes off awkward and thoughtless, which explains a lot about how he talks to people because he's not used to being a leader and meeting new people. And I think the fact he went back to apologise to her and explicitly state the words 'I believe you and I will do something about it.' means a lot to her because title 9 didn't do anything, Eric saying that he believes her and will do something about it makes her feel better because it gives her clarity. Especially since we knew that she was having a hard time processing what happened to her (She probably still has a hard time figuring it out. But having people to support her is helping her deal with it.)

(I am not excusing Eric for his actions once again. The way he reacted to what happened to Bela was very poor.)

Season 1 episode 10

I feel like when we watched episode 9, we didn't fully warm up to Eric yet. But I think the fact he held up to what he said, taking further action, going as far as to defend her credibility after Ryan tried to use the handjobs against her, while also defending both Bela and Carla's word was a step up for him in the right direction.

Also when Bela leaves, you can mainly see Eric and Evangeline's reactions toward it.

It shows he has capabilities of changing and with the proper guidance, I think he'd have a great character arc. Eric already had a pretty nice character arc in season 1. It was a smart writing choice because, for the most part, he seemed very background, mostly just there, but throughout the scenes, it largely hints at him being misunderstood. Especially when you acknowledge the fact that he probably got manipulated by Ryan. When you take note of Eric having minimal people he lets in, it largely took a toll on him that his best friend would do such a thing to Bela, who he has grown to care about.

"You think it's fun that I have 2 dads?"

Again, this shows that he cares about her opinion/what she thinks. It's sweet because when you think about how disingenuous a lot of the other people in his life were (The guys at the Catullan taking Ryan's side.) he really only mainly got along with Evangeline, Carla, Jo, and Bela. He likes that Bela has no motive, she means everything she says to him because she likes his presence.

"I do."

Fangirling rn, the actors just have amazing chemistry with each other. It's so natural and I love it so much. Bela agrees to it and he reacts back with "yeah, I guess it's kind of fun." just seals everything for him. I think he realized at this point that he has a crush on her.

It also helps that this scene has a lot of flirty subtext with their body language. (I love how Bela does a flirty shoulder tilt when she asks if she'll see him around, because it's something that Eric does at her in the teaser clip of the season 2 trailer when they're at the library and she's talking about writing a piece about short kings and he's like *shoulder head tilt* "I'm flattered, thank you.")

That little teaser we got of them in the season 2 trailer also shows that he's loose now that he and Bela are friends and it's really nice to see!

#bela x eric #bela malhotra #eric miller #amrit kaur #mekki leeper #tslocg #slocg #hbo #hbomax #the sex lives of college girls #bela and Eric

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snow-ii · 1 year

Text

feeling like you are about to give up? do this

original draft created on 12.09.2022 posted on 15.03.2023

are you tired of getting constantly discouraged and 'failing' manifesting? try doing this!

disclaimer alert !! im making this post with hopes to help some who might be out there trying out every technique but still failing to make any visible progress. by no means im trying to push my loa beliefs on anyone nor im trying to overcomplicate loa, or spread limiting beliefs this is simply a lil push to people who are about to give up !

another disclaimer alert !! you dont need any technique to manifest, and there arent any rules in manifesting, manifesting is instantaneous. you creat your own rules.

had to make sure i clarified it properly cause ik some of u like to argue ahha :,)

anyways keeping all those in mind, scroll down

Alright so by now you've probably heard/seen that it definitely takes less than 3 days to manifest something or for a mindset shift from 'in the state of lack' to a 'state of abundance' right?

and if you are still reading you probably has overconsumed information and is constantly trying out new techniques trying all that to get what you want. and u r probably blaming urself and doubting your power whenever a minor inconvenience happen.

....right?

let's do some activities for that!! and im 100% sure if you manage to do it properly you'll reach the sabbath/god state in no time.

there are 4 activities in total let's get into that !

Ⅰ. removing everything from your brain ⅠⅠ. affirming ⅠⅠⅠ. embody your desire state ⅠV. living in the end

Ⅰ. Removing everything from your brain

Now at this point if you feel like your brain is about to blast from all the information you've over-consumed. Let it all out. Forget about all off them. Like fr do it. ok BOOM ! 😵‍💫ooooookay

now read this and read it and re-read the points i'm about to tell you until it gets into your head!

( just so you know this is strictly based off how i view loa and the whole manifesting thing in general so there might be some information that's inaccurate or that might not align with your beliefs but at the end of the day its what works for me so :) )

Law of assumption = whatever you assume true, is true

3D and 4D

3D is the reality where your senses function, litreally everything you see, feel, hear, smell, taste is in the 3d 4D is your imagination, that's where assumptions/ thoughts are created ( by you 🫵 ) your 3D acts as a mirror which is constantly reflecting the persisted assumptions in your 4d. The whole point of loa is not to change your 3d, but to change what goes on in your 4d so that 3d will reflect it.

3. To get what you desire, let go of the old story, change your thoughts to match with the new story

you have acne and you want to get rid of it the more you identify yourself as a person who has acne = the more you get it when you start thinking and identifying yourself as a person who has clear skin, that would be reflected in the 3d

4.You create your own rules

This is very important !! There is no set-in-stone rule for loa, infact there are no rules at all !. However we as individuals can create our own rules to make manifestation easier for us.cause againnnn what u assume is true= is true, so if you assume your rules will help you manifest that would happen. lemme give u an example :p

i will speak about how i view loa. ( feel free to skip this part its not that important ) i believe we shift every second not even second, every millisecond? nah even quicker than that. i believe with every choice i make, multiple realities are created where i selected another choice. i believe everytime i grow the desire for something, everytime i imagine something a reality is created where i have it/ or it happened. i hope you understand what im saying lol :D so what i do is i act as if i already have what i desire which eventually shifts me to a reality where i actually, already have it.

5. Logic doesn't matter

it doesnt matter, at all. you can manifest flying, having wings hell you can even manifest a unicorn. the possibilities are endless. please dont let anyone convince you, you cant manifest a certain thing just because its seemingly 'impossible' or 'illogical'

6. You are not an exception

please please please my love dont you ever think that you are an exception to loa just because u 'failed' to manifest something, or just because u feel like everyone's more successful than you in manifesting. that is litreally not true, you are the operant power in your reality, you are GOD excuse me? how dare you doubt yourself. who else will hold the godly power in your OWN reality other than you? um

to summarize all of it : assumptions create reality, 3d reflects the persisted 4d assumptions and thoughts, to manifest something change your thoughts and start thinking in a way how you would think if you already had that certain desire, keep persisting on that ! make your own rules, there are no logic involved so go crazy with it :)

if you read up to here and realized what you've been doing wrong and is now confident in manifesting congrats !!

but if you still feel like you need a lil push or something to try out to grow more faith, keep reading :)

this is initially a 3-day activity thingy but honestly if you feel like you want more time you can continue each activity for more than a day .

first choose what you want it can be litreally anything.... huge boobies? clear skin? idkkk a mansion?? anything

ⅠⅠ. Affirming

ok so first of all what's affirming? what are affirmations?

basically affirmations are statements, that you can use to remind yourself what you already have

for ex. I have clear skin, I have feline eyes. I love being 5'6 tall. Isn't it wonderful to live in new york? ( these are some random stuff that popped in my head lmaodaj )

now on the first day i want you to affirm no matter the circumstance, keep affirming affirming. see something in your 3d that you didnt want ? affirm. while going to sleep? affirm. while peeing, shitting? yea affirm

ignore the 3d, stop paying attention to it.

the language, your choice of words doesnt matter.you can literally make up a random word like 'loo' and assume affirming that would work, cause rmr you create your own rules ;)

yea keep affirming. at some point you'll feel like no longer affirming cause you've done successfully convincing and reminding yourself of what you already have <3

this is mainly done to saturate your mind and to ensure less wavering will be done.

ⅠⅠⅠ. Embody your desired state

on the second day start embodying the way how you would be when you have your desire, thrive in the feeling of you already having it. practice yourself to feel how natural it is to be in the state where you already has it.

ⅠV. Live in the end / Keep your thoughts in check

( do this while continuing the previous step !)

the last thing you have to do is, for an entire day or two keep every thought/ assumption that you get in check. Sounds impossible but its always good to try isnt it!?.

The moment you get a thought think to yourself. ' would i think this way if i already have what i want?'

like that do it for a period of time and im 100% sure in no time you all the struggling you go through to manifest will disappear.

edit / 3.15.2023

i dont agree with several stuff ive said in this post rn but i still think its a bit helpful, i didnt really go thru it that much so expect lot of typos and grammar errors

#law of assumption #loassumption #loass #neville goddard #manifesting #affirming #manifestation #self concept #persisting #ideal life #living in the end #affirmations #subliminals #success stories #loa success

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