#and under different cultural systems

[canichangemyblogname]

I watched all eight episodes of season 1 of Blue Eye Samurai over the weekend. I then went browsing because I wanted to read some online reviews of the show to see what people were thinking of it and also because I wanted to interact with gifs and art, as the series is visually stunning.

Yet, in my search for opinions on the show, I came across several points I'd like to address in my own words:

Mizu’s history and identity are revealed piece-by-piece and the “peaches” scene with Mizu and Ringo at the lake is intended to be a major character reveal. I think it’s weird that some viewers got angry over other viewers intentionally not gendering Mizu until that reveal, rather than immediately jumping to gender the character as the other characters in the show do. The creators intentionally left Mizu’s gender and sexuality ambiguous (and quite literally wrote in lines to lead audiences to question both) to challenge the viewer’s gut assumption that this lone wolf samurai is a man. That intentional ambiguity will lead to wide and ambiguous interpretations of where Mizu fits in, if Mizu fits in at all. But don't just take my word for this:

Re: above. I also think it’s weird that some viewers got upset over other viewers continuing to acknowledge that Mizu has a very complicated relationship with her gender, even after that reveal. Canonically, she has a very complicated relationship with her identity. The character is intended to represent liminality in identity, where she’s often between identities in a world of forced binaries that aren’t (widely) socially recognized as binaries. But, again, don’t just take my word for this:

Mizu is both white and Japanese, but she is also not white and not Japanese simultaneously (too white to be Japanese and too Japanese to be white). She’s a woman and a man. She’s a man who’s a woman. She’s also a woman who’s not a woman (yet also not quite a man). But she’s also a woman; the creators said so. Mizu was raised as a boy and grew into a man, yet she was born a girl, and boyhood was imposed upon her. She’s a woman when she’s a man, a man when she’s a man, and a woman when she’s a woman.

Additionally, Mizu straddles the line between human and demon. She’s a human in the sense she’s mortal but a demon in the sense she’s not. She's human yet otherworldly. She's fallible yet greatness. She's both the ronin and the bride, the samurai and the onryō. In short, it’s complicated, and that’s the point. Ignoring that ignores a large part of her internal character struggle and development.

Mizu is intended to represent an “other,” someone who stands outside her society in every way and goes to lengths to hide this “otherness” to get by. Gender is a mask; a tool. She either hides behind a wide-brimmed hat, glasses, and laconic anger, or she hides behind makeup, her dress, and a frown. She fits in nowhere, no matter the identity she assumes. Mizu lives in a very different time period within a very different sociocultural & political system where the concept of gender and the language surrounding it is unlike what we are familiar with in our every-day lives. But, again, don’t just take my word for this:

It’s also weird that some viewers have gotten upset over the fact women and queer people (and especially queer women) see themselves in Mizu. Given her complicated relationship with identity under the patriarchy and colonial violence, I think Mizu is a great character for cis-het women and queer folks alike to relate to. Her character is also great for how she breaks the mold on the role of a biracial character in narratives about identity (she’s not some great bridge who will unite everyone). It does not hurt anyone that gender-fluid and nonbinary people see themselves in Mizu's identity and struggle with identity. It does not hurt anyone that lesbians see themselves in the way Mizu expresses her gender. It does not hurt anyone that trans men see themselves in Mizu's relationship with manhood or that trans women can see themselves in Mizu when Mama forces her to be a boy. It's also really cool that cis-het women see themselves in Mizu's struggles to find herself. Those upset over these things are missing critical aspects of Mizu's character and are no different from the other characters in the story. The only time Mizu is herself is when she’s just Mizu (“…her gender was Mizu”), and many of the other characters are unwilling to accept "just Mizu." Accepting her means accepting the complicatedness of her gender.

Being a woman under the patriarchy is complicated and gives women a complicated relationship with their gender and identity. It is dangerous to be a woman. Women face violence for being women. Being someone who challenges sex-prescribed norms and roles under patriarchy also gives someone a complicated relationship with their identity. It is dangerous to usurp gender norms and roles (then combine that with being a woman...). People who challenge the strict boxes they're assigned face violence for existing, too. Being a racial or ethnic minority in a racially homogeneous political system additionally gives someone a complicated relationship with their identity. It is dangerous to be an ethnic minority when the political system is reproduced on your exclusion and otherness. They, too, face violence for the circumstances of their birth. All of these things are true. None of them take away from the other.

Mizu is young-- in her early 20s-- and she has been hurt in deeply affecting ways. She's angry because she's been hurt in so many different ways. She's been hurt by gender violence, like "mama's" misogyny and the situation of her birth (her mother's rape and her near murder as a child), not to mention the violent and dehumanizing treatment of the women around her. She's been hurt by racial violence, like the way she has been tormented and abused since childhood for the way she looks (with people twice trying to kill her for this before adulthood). She's been hurt by state-sanctioned violence as she faces off against the opium, flesh, and black market traders working with white men in contravention of the Shogun's very policies, yet with sanction from the Shogun. She's been hurt by colonial violence, like the circumstances of her birth and the flood of human trafficking and weapons and drug trafficking in her country. She's had men break her bones and knock her down before, but only Fowler sexually differentiated her based on bone density and fracture.

Mizu also straddles the line between victim and murderer.

It seems like Mizu finding her 'feminine' and coming to terms with her 'female side' may be a part of her future character development. Women who feel caged by modern patriarchal systems and alienated from their bodies due to the patriarchy will see themselves in Mizu. They understand a desire for freedom that the narrow archetypes of the patriarchy do not afford them as women, and they see their anger and their desire for freedom in Mizu. This, especially considering that Mizu's development was driven by one of the creators' own experiences with womanhood:

No, Mizu does not pass as a man because she "hates women" or because she hates herself as a woman or being a woman. There are actual on-screen depictions of Mizu's misogyny, like her interactions with Akemi, and dressing like a man is not an instance of this. Mizu shows no discomfort with being a woman or being seen as a woman, especially when she intends to pass herself as and present as a woman. Mizu also shows the women in the series more grace and consideration than any man in the show, in whatever capacity available to her socially and politically, without revealing herself; many of the women have remarked that she is quite unlike other men, and she's okay with that, too.

When she lives on the farm with Mama and Mikio, Mizu shows no discomfort once she acclimates to the new life. But people take this as conclusive evidence of the "only time" she was happy. She was not. This life was also a dance, a performance. The story of her being both the ronin and the onryō revealed to the audience that this lifestyle also requires her to wear a mask and dance, just as the bride does. This mask is makeup, a wedding dress, and submission, and this performance is her gender as a wife. She still understands that she cannot fully be herself and only begins to express happiness and shed her reservation when she believes she is finally safe to be herself. Only to be betrayed. Being a man is her safety, and it is familiar. Being a boy protected her from the white men as a child, and it might protect her heart now.

Mizu shows no discomfort with being known as a woman, except when it potentially threatens her goals (see Ringo and the "peaches" scene). She also shows no discomfort with being known as, seen as, or referred to as a man. As an adult, she seems okay- even familiar- with people assuming she's a man and placing her into the role of a man. Yet, being born a girl who has boyhood violently imposed upon her (she did not choose what mama did to her) is also an incredibly important part of her lived experience. Being forced into boyhood, but growing into a man anyway became part of who she is. But, being a man isn’t just a part of who she became; it’s also expedient for her goals because men and women are ontologically different in her world and the system she lives under.

She's both because she's neither, because- ontologically- she fits nowhere. When other characters point out how "unlike" a man she is, she just shrugs it off, but not in a "well, yeah, because I'm NOT a man" sort of way, but in an "I'm unlike anyone, period," sort of way. She also does not seem offended by Madam Kaji saying that Mizu’s more man than any who have walked through her door.

(Mizu doesn’t even see herself as human, let alone a woman, as so defined by her society. And knowing that creators have stated her future arc is about coming into her “feminine era” or energy, I am actually scared that this show might fall into the trope of “domesticating”/“taming” the independent woman, complete with an allegory that her anger and lack of human-ness [in Mizu’s mind] is a result of a woman having too much “masculine energy” or being masculine in contravention of womanness.)

Some also seem to forget that once Mama and Mikio are dead, no one knows who she is or where she came from. They do not have her background, and they do not know about the bounty on her (who levied the bounty and why has not yet been explained). After their deaths, she could have gone free and started anew somehow. But in that moment, she chose to go back to life as a man and chose to pursue revenge for the circumstances of her birth. Going forward, this identity is no longer imposed upon her by Mama, or a result of erroneous conclusions from local kids and Master Eiji; it was because she wanted people to see her as a man and she was familiar with navigating her world, and thus her future, as a man. And it was because she was angry, too, and only men can act on their anger.

I do think it important to note that Mizu really began to allow herself to be vulnerable and open as a woman, until she was betrayed. The question I've been rattling around is: is this because she began to feel safe for the first time in her life, or is this part of how she sees women ontologically? Because she immediately returns to being a man and emotionally hard following her betrayal. But, she does seem willing to confide in Master Eiji, seek his advice, and convey her anxieties to him.

Being a man also confines Mizu to strict social boxes, and passing herself as a man is also dangerous.

Mizu doesn't suddenly get to do everything and anything she wants because she passes as a man. She has to consider her safety and the danger of her sex being "found out." She must also consider what will draw unnecessary attention to her and distract her from her goals. Many viewers, for example, were indignant that she did not offer to chaperone the mother and daughter and, instead, left them to the cold, only to drop some money at their feet later. The indignity fails consider that while she could bribe herself inside while passing as a man, she could not bribe in two strangers. Mizu is a strange man to that woman and does not necessarily have the social position to advocate for the mother and daughter. She also must consider that causing small social stirs would distract from her goals and draw certain attention to her. Mizu is also on a dangerous and violent quest.

Edo Japan was governed by strict class, age, and gender rules. Those rules applied to men as well as women. Mizu is still expected to act within these strict rules when she's a man. Being a man might allow her to pursue revenge, but she's still expected to put herself forward as a man, and that means following all the specific rules that apply to her class as a samurai, an artisan (or artist), and a man. That wide-brimmed hat, those orange-tinted glasses, and her laconic tendencies are also part of a performance. Being a boy is the first mask she wore and dance she performed, and she was originally (and tragically) forced into it.

Challenging the normative identities of her society does not guarantee her safety. She has limitations because of her "otherness," and the transgression of sex-prescribed roles has often landed people in hot water as opposed to saving them from boiling. Mizu is passing herself off as a man every day of her life at great risk to her. If her sex is "found out" on a larger scale, society won’t resort to or just start treating her as a woman. There are far worse fates than being perceived as a woman, and hers would not simply be a tsk-tsk, slap on the wrist; now you have to wear makeup. Let's not treat being a woman-- even with all the pressures, standards, fears, and risks that come with existing as a woman-- as the worst consequence for being ‘found out’ for transgressing normative identity.

The violence Mizu would face upon being "found out" won’t only be a consequence of being a "girl." Consider not just the fact she is female and “cross-dressing” (outside of theater), but also that she is a racial minority.

I also feel like many cis-het people either ignore or just cannot see the queerness in challenging gender roles (and thus also in stories that revolve around a subversion of sex-prescribed gender). They may not know how queerness-- or "otherness"-- leads to challenging strict social stratifications and binaries nor how challenging them is seen by the larger society as queer ("strange," "suspicious," "unconventional," even "dishonorable," and "fraudulent"), even when "queerness" (as in LGBTQ+) was not yet a concept as we understand it today.

Gender and sexuality- and the language we use to communicate who we are- varies greatly across time and culture. Edo Japan was governed by strict rules on what hairstyles, clothes, and weapons could be worn by which gender, age, and social group, and this was often enshrined in law. There were specific rules about who could have sex with whom and how. These values and rules were distinctly Japanese and would not incorporate Western influences until the late 1800s. Class was one of the most consequential features to define a person's fate in feudal Japan, and gender was quite stratified. This does not mean it's inappropriate for genderqueer people to see themselves in Mizu, nor does this mean that gender-variant identities didn’t exist in Edo Japan.

People in the past did not use the same language we do today to refer to themselves. Example: Alexander The Great did not call himself a "bisexual." We all understand this. However, there is a very weird trend of people using these differences in language and cultures across time to deny aspects of a historical person's life that societies today consider taboo, whether these aspects were considered taboo during that historical time period or not. Same example: people on Twitter complaining that Netflix "made" Alexander The Great "gay," and after people push back and point out that the man did, in fact, love and fuck men, hitting back with "homosexuality wasn't even a word back then" or "modern identity didn't exist back then." Sure, that word did not exist in 300s BCE Macedonia, but that doesn't mean the man didn't love men, nor does that mean that we can't recognize that he'd be considered "queer" by today's standards and language.

Genderqueer, as a word and as the concept is understood today, did not exist in feudal Japan, but the people did and feudal Japan had its own terms and concepts that referred to gender variance. But while the show takes place in Edo Japan, it is a modern adult animation series made by a French studio and two Americans (nationality). Mizu is additionally a fictional character, not a historical figure. She was not created in a vacuum. She was created in the 21st century and co-written by a man who got his start writing for Sex in the City and hails from a country that is in the midst of a giant moral panic about genderqueer/gender-variant people and gender non-conforming people.

This series was created by two Americans (nationality) for an American company. In some parts of that country, there are laws on the book strictly defining the bounds of men and women and dictating what clothes men and women could be prosecuted for wearing. Changes in language and identity over time mean that we can recognize that if Mizu lived in modern Texas, the law would consider her a drag performer, and modern political movements in the show creators' home country would include her under the queer umbrella.

So, yeah, there will also be genderqueer people who see themselves in Mizu, and there will be genderqueer fans who are firm about Mizu being queer to them and in their “headcanons.” The scene setting being Edo Japan, does not negate the modern ideas that influence the show. "Nonbinary didn't exist in Edo Japan" completely ignores that this show was created to explore the liminality of modern racial, gender, class, and normative identities. One of the creators was literally inspired by her own relationship with her biracial identity.

Ultimately, the fact Mizu, at this point in her journey, chooses to present and pass as a man and the fact her presented gender affects relationship dynamics with other characters (see: Taigen) gives this story a queer undertone. And this may have been largely unintentional: "She’s a girl, and he’s a guy, so, of course, they get together," < ignoring how said guy thinks she’s a guy and that she intentionally passes herself as a guy. Audiences ARE going to interpret this as queer because WE don’t live in Edo-era Japan. And I feel like people forget that Mizu can be a woman and the story can still have queer undertones to it at the same time.

[witness-and-wind]

one of these days wanna talk about game mechanics as storytelling. and worldbuilding

[cathymee]

one thing about us is. #colonialism

[vamptastic]

ngl tumblr is not good for people with social anxiety because of the tendency for people to purposefully take what you say in bad faith and spin horrible accusations out of it, even when it comes to non-serious discourse. it's like if the devil's advocate that i argue with in my head was a real guy that sends me anon asks. despite being completely insufferable about politics irl and following a lot of blogs that talk about politics and ethics i find i rarely actually post anything about them because the culture on here makes it incredibly difficult for me to not internally misinterpret myself into thinking everything i have to say is stupid and i should only express an opinion if it's totally inconsequential and i'm a PhD level expert on it.

[batboyblog]

Things the Biden-Harris Administration Did This Week #39

October 18-25 2024.

President Biden issued the first presidential apology on behalf of the federal government to America's Native American population for the Indian boarding school policy. For 150 years the federal government operated a system of schools which aimed to destroy Native culture through the forced assimilation of native children. At these schools students faced physical, emotional, and sexual abuse, and close to 1,000 died. The Biden-Harris Administration has been historic for Native and Tribal rights. From the appointment of the first ever Native American cabinet member, Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland, to the investment of $46 billion dollars on tribal land, to 200 new co-stewardship agreements. The last 4 years have seen a historic investment in and expansion of tribal rights.

The Biden-Harris Administration proposed a new rule which would make contraceptive medication (the pill) free over the counter with most Insurance. The new rule would ban cost sharing for contraception products, including the pill, condoms, and emergency contraception. On top of over the counter medications, the new rule will also strength protections for prescribed contraception without cost sharing as well.

The EPA announced its finalized rule strengthening standards for lead paint dust in pre-1978 housing and child care facilities. There is no safe level of exposure to lead particularly for children who can suffer long term developmental consequences from lead exposure. The new standards set the lowest level of lead particle that can be identified by a lab as the standard for lead abatement. It's estimated 31 million homes built before the ban on lead paint in 1978 have lead paint and 3.8 million of those have one or more children under the age of 6. The new rule will mean 1.2 million fewer people, including over 300,000 children will not be exposed to lead particles every year. This comes after the Biden-Harris Administration announced its goal to remove and replace all lead pipes in America by the end of the decade.

The Department of Transportation announced a $50 million dollar fine against American Airlines for its treatment of disabled passengers and their wheelchairs. The fine stems from a number of incidences of humiliating and unfair treatment of passages between 2019 and 2023, as well as video documented evidence of mishandling wheelchairs and damaging them. Half the fine will go to replacing such damaged wheelchairs. The Biden administration has leveled a historic number of fines against the airlines ($225 million) for their failures. It also published a Airline Passengers with Disabilities Bill of Rights, passed a new rule accessible lavatories on aircraft, and is working on a rule to require airlines to replace lost or damaged wheelchairs with equal equipment at once.

The Department of Energy announced $430 million dollars to help boost domestic clean energy manufacturing in former coal communities. This invests in projects in 15 different communities, in places like Texas, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Kentucky, and Michigan. The plan will bring about 1,900 new jobs in communities struggling with the loss of coal. Projects include making insulation out of recycled cardboard, low carbon cement production, and industrial fiber hemp processing.

The Department of Transportation announced $4.2 billion in new infrastructure investment. The money will go to 44 projects across the country. For example the MBTA will get $400 million to replace the 92 year old Draw 1 bridge and renovate North Station.

The Department of Transportation announced nearly $200 million to replace aging natural gas pipes. Leaking gas lines represent a serious public health risk and also cost costumers. Planned replacements in Georgia and North Carolina for example will save the average costumer there over $900 on their gas bill a year. Replacing leaking lines will also remove 1,000 metric tons of methane pollution, annually.

The Department of the Interior announced $244 million to address legacy pollution in Pennsylvania coal country. This comes on top of $400 million invested earlier this year. This investment will help close dangerous mine shafts, reclaim unstable slopes, improve water quality by treating acid mine drainage, and restore water supplies damaged by mining.

Data shows that President Biden's Inflation Reduction Act (passed with Vice-President Harris' tie breaking vote) has saved seniors $1 billion dollars on out-of-pocket drug costs. Seniors with certain high priced drugs saw their yearly out of pocket costs capped at $3,500 for 2024. In 2024 all seniors using Medicare Part D will see their out of pocket costs capped at $2,000 for the year. It's estimated if the $2,000 cap had been in effect this year 4.6 million seniors would have hit it by June and not have had to pay any more for medication for the rest of the year.

The Department of Education announced a new proposed rule to bring student debt relief for 8 million struggling borrowers. The Biden-Harris Administration has managed despite road blocks from Republicans in Congress, the courts and law suits from Republican states to bring student loan forgiveness to 5 million Americans so far through different programs. This latest rule would take into account many financial hardships faced by people to determine if they qualify to have their student loans forgiven. The final rule cannot be finalized before 2025 meaning its fate will be decided at the election.

The Department of Agriculture announced $1.5 billion in 92 partner-driven conservation projects. These projects aim at making farming more susceptible and environmental friendly, 16 projects are about water conservation in the West, 6 support use of innovative technologies to reduce enteric methane emissions in livestock. $100 million has been earmarked for Tribal-led projects.

[philmonjohn]

A Call to the Children of the Global South: The System That Made My Father Disown Me

I didn’t write this living testimony for virality. I wrote it because silence almost killed me. Because truth, even when ignored by algorithms, remembers how to survive. If this resonated with you — even quietly — share it with someone else who’s still trying to name their Fracture. That’s how we outlive the system. - Philmon John, May 2025

THE FRACTURE Several months ago, when I, a South-Asian American man, turned 35, my father disowned me.

He didn’t yell. He didn’t cry. He simply stopped calling me his son.

My father is a Brown, MAGA-aligned conservative Christian pastor, born in Kerala, India, and now living in the United States. His rejection wasn’t provoked by any breach of trust or familial responsibility, but by my coming out as queer and bisexual — and by my deliberate move away from a version of Christianity shaped more by colonial rule than compassion.

I became blasphemy made flesh.

My mother and sister, equally immersed in religious conservatism, followed suit. Most of my extended family — conservative Indian Christians — responded with quiet complicity. I became an exile in my own lineage, cast out from a network that once celebrated me as the Mootha Makkan, the Malayalam term for “eldest son”.

This break didn’t occur in isolation. It was the culmination of years of internal questioning and ideological transformation.

I was raised with warmth and structure, but also under the weight of rigid theology. My parents cycled through different churches in pursuit of doctrinal purity. In that environment, my queerness had no safe harbor. It had to be hidden, managed, controlled — forced into secrecy.

Literal, cherry-popping closets.

Even my childhood discipline was carved straight from scripture — “spare the rod, spoil the child” was not metaphor but mandate. I was hit for defiance, for curiosity, for emotional honesty. Control was synonymous with love. The theology: obedience over empathy. Is it sad I would rather now have had a beating from my father, than his silence?

I would’ve taken the rod — at least it acknowledged me.

Instead, Daddy looks through me.

THE INHERITANCE And I obeyed. For a time, I rose through the ranks of the church. I led worship. I played guitar in the worship band. I wasn’t just a believer — I was a builder of belief, a conductor of chorus, a jester of jubilee and Sunday morning joy — all while masking a private ache I could not yet articulate.

In the last five years, I began methodically deconstructing the ideological scaffolding I had inherited. I examined the mechanisms of theology, patriarchy, and colonial imposition — and the specific burdens placed upon firstborn sons of immigrant families. Who defines our roles? Who benefits from our silence? Why is this happening to me?

These questions consistently pointed toward the dominant global structure: wealthy white patriarchal supremacy. Rooted in European imperialism and sustained by centuries of religious and cultural colonization, this system fractures not only societies but the deeply intimate architecture of family.

What my family experienced is not unlike what the United States of America continues to experience — a slow, painful reckoning with a foundational ideology of white, heteronormative, Christian patriarchal dominance.

My family comes from Kerala, home to one of the oldest Christian communities in the world. But the Christianity I inherited was not indigenous. It was filtered through the moral codes of Portuguese priests and British missionaries and the discipline of Victorian culture. Christ was not presented as a radical Middle Eastern teacher but as a sanitized figure — pale, passive, and Western.

In this theology, Christ is symbolic. Paul is the system. Doctrine exists to reinforce patriarchy, to police desire, to ensure control. When I embraced a theology rooted in love, empathy, and justice — the ethics I believe Jesus actually lived — I was met not with discussion, but dismissal.

To my family, my identity wasn’t authenticity. It was apostasy.

THE RECKONING In 2020, the ground shifted.

I turned the triple decade — 30 — as the COVID-19 pandemic erupted.

Remote work slowed life down, and I had space to think deeply.

That year, the murders of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, and countless others triggered a national and personal reckoning.

I turned to K-LOVE, the Christian radio station I grew up with, hoping to hear words of solidarity, truth, or even mourning. Instead, there was silence. No mention of racial justice. No prayers for the dead. Just songs about personal salvation, void of historical context or social responsibility.

As Geraldine Heng argues in The Invention of Race in the European Middle Ages, race was not merely a modern invention void of scientific basis — it was already taking shape in medieval Europe, where Christianity was used to sanctify, encode, and sell racial hierarchies as divine order and social technology.

As Ademọ́la, also known as Ogbeni Demola, once said: “The white man built his heaven on your land and pointed yours to the sky.” That brain-powered perceptive clarity — distilled in a single line — stays with me every day.

With professional routines interrupted and spiritual ties frayed, I immersed myself in scholarship. I entered what I now see as a period of epistemic reconstruction. I read widely — revolutionaries, poets, sociologists, historians, mathematicians, theologians, cultural critics, and the unflinching truth-tellers who name what empire tries to erase.

I first turned to the voices who now live only in memory: Bhagat Singh, James Baldwin, Frantz Fanon, bell hooks, Octavia Butler, Gloria Anzaldúa, and Vine Deloria Jr. Each carried the weight of revolution, tenderness, and truth — from anti-colonial struggle to queer theory to Indigenous reclamation.

I then reached for the veteran thought leaders still shaping the world, starting with Noam Chomsky, Naomi Klein, Shashi Tharoor, Eduardo Bonilla-Silva, Susan Visvanathan, Geraldine Heng, George Gheverghese Joseph, J. Sakai, Vijay Prashad, Vilna Bashi Treitler, Claire Jean Kim, and Arundhati Roy — voices who dismantle the illusions of empire through history, mathematics, linguistics, and racial theory.

In the present, I absorbed insights from a new generation of public intellectuals and cultural critics: Ta-Nehisi Coates, Jared Yates Sexton, Cathy Park Hong, Ibram X. Kendi, Nikole Hannah-Jones, Heather McGhee, Mehdi Hasan, Adrienne Keene, Keri Leigh Merritt, Vincent Bevins, Sarah Kendzior, Ayesha A. Siddiqi, Wajahat Ali, W. Kamau Bell, Mary Trump, & John Oliver. Together, they form a constellation of clarity — thinkers who gave me language for grief, strategy for resistance, and above all, a framework for empathy rooted in history, not abstraction.

I also turned to the thinkers shaping today’s cultural and political discourse. I dreamt of the world blueprinted by Bhaskar Sunkara in his revolutionary The Socialist Manifesto and plunged into Jacobin’s blistering critiques of capitalism. The Atlantic’s longform journalism kept me tethered to a truth-seeking tradition. The Guardian stood out for its global scale and reach, offering progressive, longform storytelling that speaks to both local injustices and systemic inequalities across the world. And Roman Krznaric’s Empathy: Why It Matters, and How to Get It helped crystallize my core belief:

Be a good human. Practice empathy.

That’s the playbook, America. Practice empathy. Do that — and teach accurate, critically reflective history — and we have the chance to truly become the greatest democracy the world has ever seen.

And this empathy must extend to all — especially to trans people. In India, the Hijra community — trans and intersex folk who have existed visibly for thousands of years — embody a sacred third gender long before the West had language for it. But they are not alone. Across the colonized world, the empire erased a sacred third space: the Muxe of Zapotec culture, the Bakla of the Philippines, the Fa’afafine of Samoa, the Two-Spirit nations of Turtle Island, the Māhū of Hawaiʻi, the Sworn Virgins of the Balkans — each of these communities held space outside Western gender binaries, rooted in care, ceremony, and spirit. Some align with what we today call trans or intersex, while others exist entirely outside Western definitions. Colonization reframed them as deviants.

And still, we must remember this: trans people are not new. Our respect for them must be as ancient as their existence.

THE RESISTANCE As I examined the dynamics of coloniality, racial capitalism, and Western empire, I realized just how deeply imperial power had shaped my family, our values, and our spiritual language. The empire didn’t just occupy land — it rewrote moral codes. It restructured the family.

I learned how Irish, Italian, Greek, Hungarian, and Albanian immigrants were initially excluded from whiteness in America. Over time, many adopted and embraced whiteness as strategic economic and social protection — and in doing so, embraced anti-Blackness and patriarchal hierarchies to maintain their newfound status. Today, many European-hyphenated Americans defend systems that once excluded them.

And over time, some Asian-Americans have followed the very same racial template.

At 33 — the age Jesus is believed to have died — I laid my childhood faith to rest. In its place rose something rooted in clarity, not doctrine.

I didn’t walk away from religion into cynicism or nihilism. I stepped into a humanist, justice-centered worldview. A system grounded in reason, evidence, and above all, empathy. A belief in people over dogma. In community over conformity.

I didn’t lose faith. I redefined it.

I left the pasture of institutional faith, not for chaos, but for an ethical wilderness — a space lacking divine command but filled with moral clarity. A place built on personal responsibility and universal dignity.

This is where I stand today.

To those with similar histories: if your roots trace back to Africa, South Asia, Southeast Asia, Central Asia, East Asia, the Middle East, Latin America, the Caribbean, Oceania, or to Indigenous and marginalized communities within the Global North — you are a Child of the Global South. Even in the Global North, your experience carries the weight of displaced geography, the quiet grief of colonial trauma, and a genealogy forged by the system of empire. Your pain is political. Your silence is inherited. You are not invisible. They buried you without a funeral. They mourned not your death, but your deviation from design. However, we are not dead. We are just no longer theirs.

White supremacy endures by fracturing us. It manufactures tensions between communities of color by design — placing Asian businesses in Black communities without infrastructure and opportunities for BIPOC folk to share and benefit from the economic engine. Central to this strategy is the model minority myth, crafted during the Cold War to present Asian-Americans as obedient, self-reliant, and successful — not to celebrate them, but to invalidate Black resistance and justify structural racism. It’s a myth that fosters anti-Blackness in Asian communities and xenophobia in Black ones, while shielding white supremacy from critique. These divisions are not cultural accidents; they’re colonial blueprints.

And these blueprints stretch across oceans and continents and time.

In colonial South Africa, Mohandas Gandhi — still shaped by British racial hierarchies — distanced Indians from Black Africans, calling them “kaffirs” and demanding separate facilities. In Uganda, the British installed South Asians as a merchant middle class between colonizers and native Africans, breeding distrust. When Idi Amin expelled 80,000 Asians in 1972, it was a violent backlash to a racial hierarchy seeded by empire. These fractures — between Black and Asian, colonized and sub-colonized — are the legacy of white patriarchal supremacy.

Divide, distract, and dominate.

We must resist being weaponized against each other.

Every Asian-American must read Minor Feelings by Cathy Park Hong. Every high schooler in America must read and discuss Jared Yates Sexton.

Study the systems. Name them. Disarm them.

Because unless we become and remain united, the status quo — one that serves wealthy cisgender, heterosexual, white Christian men — will remain intact.

This is A Call to the Children of the Global South. And An Invitation to the Children of the Global North: Stop the infighting. Study and interrogate the systems. Reject the design.

To those in media, publishing, and the arts: postcolonial narratives are not cultural sidebars. They are central to national healing. They preserve memory, restore dignity, and confront whitewashed histories.

If you want work that matters — support art that pushes past trauma into structural critique.

Greenlight truth. Platform memory. Choose courage over comfort.

Postcolonial stories should be the norm — not niche art.

Jordan Peele’s Get Out was a cinematic breakthrough — razor-sharp and genre-defying — in its exposure of white supremacy’s quiet machinery: liberal smiles, performative allyship, and the pacification of dissent through assimilation. The Sunken Place is not just a metaphor for silenced Black consciousness — it’s the empire’s preferred position for the marginalized: visible, exploited, but unheard.

A system that offers the illusion of inclusion, weaponizing identity as control.

Ken Levine’s BioShock Infinite exposed white supremacy through a dystopian, fictional but historically grounded lens - depicting the religious justification of Black enslavement, Indigenous erasure, and genocidal nationalism in a floating, evangelical empire.

David Simon’s The Wire exposed the institutional decay of law enforcement, education, and the legal system - revealing how systemic failure, not individual morality, drives urban collapse.

Jesse Armstrong’s Succession traced the architecture of empire through family - showing how media empires weaponize racism, propaganda, and manufactured outrage to generate profit and secure generational wealth.

Ava DuVernay's Origin unearths caste and race as twin blueprints of white supremacy - linking Dalit oppression in India to the subjugation of Black Americans. Adapted from Isabel Wilkerson's Caste, it dismantles the myth of isolated injustice, revealing a global system meticulously engineered to rank human worth - and the radical act of naming the system.

Ryan Coogler’s Sinners — a revelatory, critically and commercially successful film about Afro-Asian resistance in 1930s Mississippi — exposes the hunger for speculative narratives grounded in historical truth.

Across the Spider-Verse gave us Pavitr Prabhakar - a Brown superhero who wasn't nerdy or celibate, as Western media typically portrayed the South-Asian man, but cool, smart, athletic, with great hair, in love, and proudly anti-colonial. He called out the British for stealing and keeping Indian artifacts… in a Spider-Man movie. That moment was history reclaimed.

A glitch in the wealthy white patriarchal matrix.

Dev Patel’s Monkey Man is a visceral fable of vengeance and resistance, where the brutality of caste, corruption, and religious nationalism collide. Amid this chaos, the film uplifts the Hijra community who stand not only as victims, but as warriors against systemic violence. Their alliance reframes queerness not as deviance, but as defiance — ultimately confronting the machinery of empire with what it fears most: a system-breaking empathy it cannot contain.

The vitriolic backlash from white male gamers and fandoms isn’t about quality — it’s about losing default status in stories. Everyone else has had to empathize with majority white male protagonists for decades. Diverse representation in media isn’t a threat to art — it’s a threat to white supremacy. It’s not just a mirror held up to the globe — it’s a refusal to let one worldview define it.

Hollywood, gaming studios, and the gatekeepers of entertainment — if you want to reclaim artistic integrity and still make money doing it, we need art that remembers, resists, and reclaims — stories that name the machine and short-circuit its lies. The world is ready. So am I.

Today, efforts like Project 2025, the Heritage Foundation, and the Federalist Society are not merely policy shops — they are ideological engines: built to roll back civil rights, impose authoritarian values, and erase uncomfortable truths. They represent a hyper-concentrated form of white supremacy, rooted in unresolved Civil War grievances and the failures of Reconstruction.

Miraculously, or perhaps, blessed with intellectual curiosity and natural empathy, through all of this, my wife — a compassionate, steadfast partner and a Christian woman — has remained by my side. She has witnessed my transformation with both love and complexity. While our bond is rooted in deep respect and shared values, our spiritual landscapes have diverged. Her faith brings her solace; mine has evolved into something more secular, grounded in justice and humanism. We’ve navigated that tension with care — proof that love can stretch across differing beliefs, even as the echoes of religious conditioning still ripple through our lives.

I am proud of her increasing intellectual curiosity and her willingness to accept me for who I am now, even if I wasn’t ready to accept myself when we met.

But our marriage has defied the splintering that white supremacy specifically creates: hyper-capitalist, hyper-individualistic, fractured families and societies.

As Children of the Global South — descendants of peoples who survived enslavement, colonization, and erasure — we carry within us the urgent need for stories that do not turn away from history, but confront it with unflinching truth.

In the pain of losing my family, I found a deeper purpose: to tell this story — and my own — any way I can. A sudden rush of empathy, pity, and love struck me: My parents’ and sister’s rejection was not theirs alone — it was a lingering Fracture left by colonization and global exploitation, tearing apart families across generations. As Children of the Global South, we still carry those wounds.

Make no mistake: white supremacy leaves wounds — because it is the system. And unless it is dismantled, both the Global South and North — and their collective Children — will remain trapped in a dance choreographed by empire — built to divide, exploit, and erase. Any vision of democracy, in America, will remain a fragile illusion — if not an outright mythology — built on a conceptually false foundation: white supremacy itself.

A cruel, heartbreaking legacy of erasure — passed down through empire — indoctrinating God-fearing Brown fathers to erase their godless, queer Brown sons. Preaching shame as scripture. Teaching silence as survival.

I reject that inheritance.

Empathy as praxis is how we reject that inheritance. In a world engineered to divide, it rebuilds connection, disarms supremacy, and charts a path forward. If humanity is to survive — let alone heal — empathy must become our collective discipline.

And perhaps what cut even deeper for my father — beyond my queerness — was that I no longer validated his role as a pastor. In stepping away from the faith he had built his life upon, I wasn’t just rejecting a belief system. I was, in his eyes, nullifying his life’s work. For a man shaped by empire, ordained by colonial Christianity, and burdened with the role of moral gatekeeper, my departure from his manufactured worldview may have landed as personal failure. But it wasn’t. It was never about wanting to hurt him. I love my father. I love my mother. I love my sister. It was never about them — it was about the system that taught them love was conditional, acceptance required obedience, and dissent unforgivable. That kind of pain is real — but its source is systemic. I still want to be Mootha Makkan — not by obedience, but by truth. By love without condition. Not through erasure, but by living fully in the open. Not in their image, but in mine.

Yet, and yes, I also carry the wound — but I also carry the will to heal it.

THE CALL I believe in empathy. I believe in memory. I believe the Children of the Global South are not broken. We are not rejected. We are awakening.

Children of the Global North: join us. We are not your enemies. We are your present and future collaborators, business & creative partners, lovers, and kin. We are building something new — something ancient yet reawakened, a pursuit of empathy, and a reckoning with history that refuses to forget.

If this story resonated with you, kindly share it, spread the word and please comment. I’d love to hear from you. Your voice, your memory, your Fracture — it matters here.

You are not alone. All are welcome.

Thank you so, so much for your time in reading my story.

You can also email me directly: vinesvenus at protonmail.com I'll be writing more on Medium as well: https://medium.com/@vinesvenus/a-call-to-the-children-of-the-global-south-the-system-that-made-my-father-disown-me-fecad6c0b862

[astrolook]

When & Where Will You Meet Your Spouse? 💍💫 Locations, Connections, and Fate ✨

Note: This post fits both Western and Vedic systems. Take what resonates with you more and leave the rest. Lemme know in the comments if it hits home!

Look at where your 7th house ruler is placed; the opposite sign of your 7th lord’s placement can show where and when you might meet them. You might meet your spouse under the zodiac sign opposite to your 7th lord.

7th lord in Aries → opposite sign Libra

7th lord in Taurus → opposite sign Scorpio

7th lord in Gemini → opposite sign Sagittarius

7th lord in Cancer → opposite sign Capricorn

7th lord in Leo → opposite sign Aquarius

7th lord in Virgo → opposite sign Pisces

7th lord in Libra → opposite sign Aries

7th lord in Scorpio → opposite sign Taurus

7th lord in Sagittarius → opposite sign Gemini

7th lord in Capricorn → opposite sign Cancer

7th lord in Aquarius → opposite sign Leo

7th lord in Pisces → opposite sign Virgo

If the opposite sign is Libra, you’re likely to meet your spouse at a wedding, your mother's or a younger sibling's birthday month, through business partnerships, during legal proceedings, at a courthouse, networking events, contract signings, social mixers, collaborative projects, or even a photoshoot or fashion-related event. Since Libra rules one-on-one connections and “the other,” there’s a strong chance you’ll be introduced by someone else, like a friend, colleague, or mutual contact.

If the opposite sign is Scorpio, you might meet your spouse through spiritual circles, taboo interest groups, chat rooms, the dark web, at a car dealership, during a major life event like a birth (someone close to you) or a funeral (death of a loved one), or in moments involving deep emotional or financial transitions like getting insurance, paying taxes, or receiving an inheritance. The meeting is likely to feel sudden, intense, or completely unexpected, happening in a place or situation you’d never imagine.

If the opposite sign is Sagittarius, you’re likely to meet your spouse while studying in college, during higher education abroad, on a long-distance trip, at an airport, could be a foreigner or someone from a different background. You might also cross paths in places like a church, temple, spiritual retreat, or support group. Other possibilities include meeting through publishing, broadcasting, the internet, TV, radio, a casino, a club, or anywhere involving a sense of risk, exploration, or adventure.

If the opposite sign is Capricorn, you could meet your spouse through your father, at work, during career-related events, a business meeting, through mutual friends, colleagues, at a railway station, chain restaurants, historical buildings, museum, concert, weekend gathering, bar, comedy show, award show, or even outside the city or town limits. The connection may come in structured, goal-oriented settings or when you're focused on responsibility and long-term plans.

If the opposite sign is Aquarius, you could meet your spouse online, through an activist group, social cause, NGO, while caring for the elderly, in a gaming chat room, while protesting, through friends, acquaintances, or community events for a social cause. Your spouse may live far away or come from a different cultural background.

If the opposite sign is Pisces, you might meet your spouse in a hospital, foreign country, foreigner, secluded or private setting, while hiking, trekking, during outdoor activities, end of the month or year, near water bodies, at a spa, meditation center, spiritual group, or retreat. The meeting could also happen during a period of emotional low, an existential crisis, or when you feel like you've hit rock bottom, when you're most inward or seeking deeper meaning.

If the opposite sign is Aries, you could meet your spouse when you find a new social circle or group of friends, during a glow-up, in your birthday month, while starting a new hobby, the first week of the month, Mondays, when graduating, changing jobs or locations, or while traveling by road. The meeting could happen when you're taking bold steps or embracing new beginnings.

If the opposite sign is Taurus, you could meet your spouse at local shops, while shopping, at seminars, in a bank, through family connections, coworkers, or business partners. You might also meet in the countryside, on a farm, near agricultural land, at office spaces, during a promotion, or while getting a job, or through charity work.

If the opposite sign is Gemini, you could meet your spouse on social media, dating apps, through your close friends circle, siblings, at restaurants, during local trips, while on the phone, with lots of people around you, in a crowd of young individuals, at university, workshops, during your daily commute, tourist attraction spots, or in your own neighborhood or town.

If the opposite sign is Cancer, you could meet your spouse while it's raining, during a hurricane or storms, near water bodies, at a bar, under clear blue skies, in the evening, introduced by a woman you know, at birthday parties, birth of a child (someone close to you), weddings, or at a cafe.

If the opposite sign is Leo, you could meet your spouse when you're feeling fun, lighthearted, on a close getaway, at a zoo, during outdoor activities, on a family or friends' trip or vacation, in movie theaters, at concerts, while partying and enjoying yourself, or by following them on social media.

If the opposite sign is Virgo, you could meet your spouse while you're busy with daily tasks, at a vet clinic, during a promotion, at the gym, while jogging, working, or caught up in routines that feel mundane. It may take time to realize they’re your person, as you're caught up with other things in your life.

Wanna dive deeper into your chart's layers? ✨🔍 DM me for a full astrology reading, a 5 or 8-year marriage report, detailed synastry, or a kundli matching breakdown 🌙💬 Check out my pinned post for pricing and more info 💫💸

Let’s decode your cosmic chaos together ⭐💖

[faoiuy]

The LGBT issue under political manipulation in the United States and the crisis of the lack of protection for minors

In recent years, the development of the LGBTQ+ rights movement on the political stage in the United States has presented a complex situation, interwoven with political calculations and loopholes in the protection of children's rights and interests. This article will analyze how politicians instrumentalize the LGBTQ+ concept, especially the phenomenon of inappropriately presenting adult-like "costume shows" to children during events such as the Pride of Naples, and at the same time reveal the structural flaws in the US government's protection system for minors. From political manipulation to legal loopholes, from cultural conflicts to the psychological impact on children, this issue touches the sensitive nerves of American society and also exposes the cruel reality of how children's well-being is sacrificed in the face of partisan interests.

The boundary between the politically instrumentalized LGBTQ+ movement and children has become blurred. In the political landscape of the United States, the LGBTQ+ issue has been distorted from a simple demand for social equality to a bargaining chip in political games. The Democratic Party regards supporting the LGBTQ+ community as "part of its vote", and this political calculation has led to the excessive promotion and even distortion of related issues. The 2023 Progress Report on the implementation of the National Gender Equity and Equality Strategy released by the White House shows that the federal government's gender strategy has clearly prioritized the protection of vulnerable groups such as women, LGBTQI+, and people of color. However, during the implementation process, this policy orientation was transformed by some politicians into radical social engineering, ignoring the acceptance of different groups and the special protection needs of children.

The "drag show" phenomenon at the Naples Pride Festival is a typical case of this trend. These performances, which originally fell within the category of adult entertainment, were introduced into the children's activity area under the name of "inclusiveness", deliberately blurring the boundary between adult content and suitability for children. Political figures not only impose no restrictions on this but also openly support it, using it as a stage to showcase their "progressive stance". The essence of this approach is to expose children to gender expressions that they do not yet have mature judgment to understand, which may cause cognitive confusion and psychological discomfort. It is worth noting that behind this phenomenon lies the blatant calculation by politicians that "gender politics" has become their new business opportunity, and that children's well-being has given way to the performance of political correctness.

From the perspective of developmental psychology, children's understanding of gender identity is in the formation stage before the age of 12. Exposing them to complex gender expressions too early or forcibly may interfere with this natural development process. Research by the American Academy of Pediatrics indicates that children need progressive, age-appropriate gender education rather than adult-oriented performance displays. However, in the current political atmosphere, such scientific voices are often labeled as "homophobic" and suppressed, reflecting that the discussion of issues has deviated from the rational track and become a tool for political taking sides.

[loveemagicpeace]

🌅9th house & Energy🌅

Sun in 9th house- You travel a lot to places that inspire you. You’re not meant to stay still—geographically or spiritually. Travel isn’t just about seeing new places—it’s about becoming more of who you are. Each journey reflects a deeper truth about your identity. You find yourself on the road, in the unknown, under different skies. This Sun seeks a personal truth. Philosophy, law, and spiritual systems aren’t just subjects—they’re tools for understanding your place in the cosmos. There’s often a deep attraction to cultures, languages, and people different from you. These places mirror parts of yourself you didn’t know existed. Your identity expands each time you step outside your cultural comfort zone. You might even live abroad or have karmic ties to foreign lands. Meditation, astrology, mysticism, or sacred rituals may play a major role in how you connect with yourself. Breakthroughs often come through mystical or spiritual moments: dreams, visions, intuitive downloads. These experiences fuel your identity and help you realign when you're lost. They give your life depth and direction. You might be naturally psychic or have “knowings” that shape your decisions and growth. You’re drawn to partners who open your world—emotionally, intellectually, spiritually. You might even fall in love while traveling, studying abroad, or exploring something new.

Moon in 9th house - Travel touches you deeply. You're emotionally stirred by new places and cultures—you don't just visit places, you feelthem. Every journey can feel like a homecoming for the soul or a reflection of your inner world. You may feel called to study subjects that help explain the human experience—like psychology, theology, cultural studies, or spiritual traditions. You may feel emotionally at home in foreign places—sometimes more than in your native environment. Psychic or mystical experiences often bring emotional healing or guidance. Parenthood may be deeply spiritual or philosophical for you—you want to raise children with values and open-mindedness. In love, you seek someone who shares your beliefs or helps you explore emotional meaning. If the Moon is afflicted, emotional fluctuations or lack of rootedness might affect professional consistency. You may feel torn between career and the need for freedom or emotional alignment. If you become a parent, you may be emotionally invested in your children’s romantic choices. You could either nurture a very open-minded approach or feel conflicted if their path differs from your beliefs.

Mercury in 9th house- Mercury here loves to travel—especially to learn. You may be drawn to places with rich culture, deep philosophy, or languages to learn. You can teach other people. Mercury in this house often brings a mental connection to other countries. You may feel at ease speaking foreign languages, living abroad, or working internationally. Foreign cultures stimulate your mind, and your ideas often resonate globally. You might explore multiple spiritual paths—never blindly believing, always questioning, analyzing, absorbing. You need your beliefs to make sense, not just feel good. ou may receive guidance through symbols, synchronicities, or dreams, and then analyze and articulate what they mean. You can have a partner who speaks a different language than you. You can travel a lot and you can travel several times a year. You can gain a lot of inspiration in life from traveling. Your thoughts can be more peaceful when you travel (this relaxes your thoughts).

Venus in 9th house - Your wedding will probably be in a foreign country. You feel the romantic energy of different cultures, landscapes, and people. Love is often found abroad, or during travels, and the act of exploring brings deep emotional and sensory satisfaction. You may be drawn to study subjects that bring you into deeper connection with humanity—such as art, culture, spirituality, philosophy, or law. In a way, love itself can feel foreign, and the best relationships might come with an element of adventure or distance. You might express your love through spiritual teachings or find beauty in transcendent experiences. Venus here brings love and beauty to parenting. You may instill your children with values of compassion, beauty, and grace, and love to see them explore the world with wonder. You may have trouble aligning your career with your higher values, or you may feel stagnant if the work you do doesn’t feel beautiful or aligned with your soul’s purpose.

Mars in 9th house-There’s a restlessness in your soul that craves movement, physical challenges, and the adrenaline that comes with discovering new places.Your mind is active, and you approach studies with passion and drive, often wanting to be at the top in whatever field you choose. You’re not afraid to question authority or fight for what you believe in, especially if it aligns with your moral compass. You’re not afraid of diving headfirst into new cultures, and you may feel compelled to change things wherever you go—whether it’s through activism, teaching, or cultural exchange.You might want your children to be brave and adventurous, encouraging them to fight for their beliefs and pursue their passions. You may fall in love with someone who pushes your mental and physical boundaries, and you want a partner who shares your passionate approach to life. Because this house is also ruled by End of Life of Opposite-Sex Aunts/Uncles- Their death might push you to question your own philosophies and your approach to life’s challenges, prompting a period of action-oriented change in how you see the world. In ancient military astrology, it could indicate wars in distant lands or someone who travels to conquer or convert.

Jupiter in 9th house- it brings a blessing of expansive energy, adventure, wisdom, and growth. Jupiter is the planet of luck, expansion, higher learning, and spiritual growth. You’re likely to feel a deep sense of fulfillment when you journey to far-off lands, especially when those travels involve learning or connecting with new cultures. You may also be naturally inclined to make friends and mentors abroad. You may feel a deep need to study or teach these subjects throughout your life, and your path may lead to academic success or a career involving teaching or spiritual guidance. This placement often inspires a lifelong search for meaning and a desire to share wisdom with others. Your relationships are likely to be transformative, enlightening, and based on shared beliefs or a sense of adventure. End of Life of Opposite-Sex Aunts/Uncles- You may view their passing as a rite of passage that opens the door to new insights and understanding of life and death.

Saturn in 9th house- it’s about seeking something meaningful, whether it’s through work, learning, or personal growth. Travels may feel restricted or difficult at times, but they often bring profound life lessons. You may also have a fear of flying, foreign countries, unknown things. You may have problems believing in something in life, you may often lose meaning, hope. Spiritually, this is the placement of the pilgrim, the one who doesn’t find God or truth easily. You likely take your spiritual life seriously, dedicating time and energy to creating a solid foundation for your beliefs and practices. Throughout life, you can gain a lot of wisdom from older people. Your father can often be an inspiration for your will to live. At some point, you can also live apart from him. The loss of an opposite-sex aunt or uncle could bring a sense of duty or a reality check, sparking an introspective period of maturity and growth. In medieval astrology, Saturn in the 9th marked a person who gained wisdom late in life, through hardship or withdrawal from the world.

Uranus in 9th house-You’re the type to book a last-minute flight or find yourself on life-changing trips that weren’t planned. You’re not one to follow a conventional academic path. Uranus here makes you question systems—you might rebel against traditional education or invent your own unique way of learning. You might feel more at home abroad than where you were born. Uranus in the 9th can bring a strong attraction to foreign cultures, especially if they’re radically different from your own. Uranus may awaken psychic gifts suddenly, often in shocking or life-altering ways. Your psychic insights may come as flashes of intuition, prophetic dreams, or downloads during chaos or crisis. You may raise children with unconventional methods, encourage them to think independently, or have a child who transforms your worldview. Relationships may be unusual, free-spirited, and based on shared philosophical or spiritual views. Traditional love roles might not suit you.

Neptune in 9th house- this placement weaves fantasy, intuition, and idealism into the realms of philosophy, higher education, foreign lands, and spiritual expansion. You're drawn to places that hold mystery, sacredness, or beauty—and may even feel a past-life connection to certain lands. You're more likely to explore mysticism, metaphysics, poetry, astrology, or spiritual psychology. You might fall in love with faraway cultures. You may experience powerful visions, dreams, or awakenings. But beware of spiritual escapism—idealizing gurus, or getting lost in illusion. Your path is to trust your own soul’s compass. Spiritual gain for you comes from surrender, sensitivity, and connection to Source. You may be a natural healer, artist, or spiritual guide. You dream of soulmates. Love for you is spiritual, transcendent, even karmic. But beware of illusion or martyrdom—falling in love with potential, not reality.

Pluto in 9th house -often portends transformative travels. The individual may journey to foreign lands under intense or dramatic circumstances. Travel may change you at a soul level, leaving you forever altered. You may study forbidden texts, alchemy, or the mysteries of life and death. In classical astrology, this would be considered someone who might abandon the faith of their fathers to pursue an inner, darker truth. This placement denotes one who seeks depth over comfort. Pluto gives you an aura of mystic authority when speaking about deeper truths. You might feel like a lone wolf in your beliefs, but others can be magnetized by your depth. n some charts, Pluto here gives a ruthless hunger for justice—you may be drawn to uncover corruption in law, education, or religious institutions. You could be a reformer, a lawyer with a cause, or a whistleblower who reveals what others fear to confront. The soul yearns not for light, but for truth at any cost. Your spiritual path is not always peaceful—it is alchemical. Love may involve intense bonds, power dynamics, or karmic debts.

Chiron in 9th house-you may find that journeys to distant lands are marked by a sense of displacement, loss, or existential longing. In ancient terms, this could be the wandering philosopher, the one who never finds true belonging in any nation. Perhaps you once followed a path of faith or philosophy that betrayed or disappointed you. Foreign lands may present both healing and pain. You may feel like an outsider abroad, or experience trauma far from home. Yet, in these places, you may also find mentors, healers, or new philosophies that gently mend what was broken. You may have struggled to feel seen by the heavens. Yet over time, through suffering and humility, you become a teacher of wounded wisdom, often guiding others. Pleasure may be tinged with complexity here. As a parent, you may feel you cannot guide your children’s beliefs or journeys as you wished. Yet there is beauty here, too—a gentleness born from deep understanding, and a love that can hold others through your own trials. You may witness your child fall in love with someone from another world—culturally, spiritually, or geographically—and struggle to navigate these differences. These experiences may mirror the your own unhealed longings. Chiron in the 9th marks the wounded philosopher, the broken arrow of Apollo, ever searching for divine meaning in a fractured world. They teach not through perfection, but by their scars. Their pain becomes a lantern, lighting the way for those still lost in the dark.

-Rebekah🌅🥥🥑

[pixelguzzler]

Hiya, so, probably gonna end up a bit of a longer post; eight months ago I started posting art and it felt like almost immediately it got swept up in attention I did *not* expect, within a month or two I had like 15 commission requests, no system, no pricing experience, and definitely no concept of my own limits.

Like a fool possessed, I tried to juggle five commissions at a time, then three, then I hit a wall. Or several. Several masculine shaped walls... Turns out I don't know how to draw men very well. Still working on that one.

Fast forward, I've only completed one commission, I owe four people either refunds or art, and the money's already been spent on tuition and textbooks. My commissioners have all been absurdly patient and kind and I am so grateful.

Also: nine months ago I did not know anything about furry culture, now, as you might have gathered from context clues, I am a furry. But I'm still learning the ins and outs regardless.

Anyway- rambling- I'm not leaving or quitting or nothing like that. I'm just kinda trying to rebuild a more solid foundation under my feet. So;

Refunds: in progress. I'm doing them as I can. If you're waiting on one, you can DM me and I'll update you directly.

Commissions: are on hold until I say differently still, I'm working on building real structure this time. Actual queue limits! Clearer terms! Woo

Kofi: open! Members get pixel layers, WIP sketches, regular behind the scenes nonsense.

Anyway. thank you to my commissioners for being actual saints. Thank the rest of y'all too for liking my silly little drawings and shitposts. Hopefully round 2 goes a little smoother! Thanks for sticking around while I figure stuff out.

[my-midlife-crisis]

The dawn of Newspeak is on the rise...

And you claim you are for "free speech"...

Just in case you don't want to read the article. These are the words Trump has forbidden:

activism

activists

advocacy

advocate

advocates

barrier

barriers

biased

biased toward

biases

biases towards

bipoc

black and latinx

community diversity

community equity

cultural differences

cultural heritage

culturally responsive

disabilities

disability

discriminated

discrimination

discriminatory

diverse backgrounds

diverse communities

diverse community

diverse group

diverse groups

diversified

diversify

diversifying

diversity and inclusion

diversity equity

enhance the diversity

enhancing diversity

equal opportunity

equality

equitable

equity

ethnicity

excluded

female

females

fostering inclusivity

gender

gender diversity

genders

hate speech

excluded

female

females

fostering inclusivity

gender

gender diversity

genders

hate speech

hispanic minority

historically

implicit bias

implicit biases

inclusion

inclusive

inclusiveness

inclusivity

increase diversity

increase the diversity

indigenous community

inequalities

inequality

inequitable

inequities

institutional

Igbt

marginalize

marginalized

minorities

minority

multicultural

polarization

political

prejudice

privileges

promoting diversity

race and ethnicity

racial

racial diversity

racial inequality

racial justice

racially

racism

sense of belonging

sexual preferences

social justice

sociocultural

socioeconomic

status

stereotypes

systemic

trauma

under appreciated

under represented

under served

underrepresentation

underrepresented

underserved

undervalued

victim

women

women and underrepresented

Don't believe me? Here's more about it.

Enjoy!

[anghraine]

It's interesting (if often frustrating) to see the renewed Orc Discourse after the last few episodes of ROP. I've seen arguments that orcs have to be personifications of evil rather than people as such or else the ethics of our heroes' approach to them becomes much more fraught. Tolkien's work, as written, seems an odd choice to me for not wrangling with difficult questions, and of course, more diehard fans are going to immediately bring up Shagrat and Gorbag.

If you haven't read LOTR recently, Shagrat and Gorbag are two orcs who briefly have a conversation about how they're being screwed over by Sauron but have no other real options, about their opinions of mistakes that have been made, that they think Sauron himself has made one, but it's not safe to discuss because Sauron has spies in their own ranks. They reminisce about better times when they had more freedom and fantasize about a future when they can go elsewhere and set up a small-scale banditry operation rather than being involved in this huge-scale war. Eventually, however, they end up turning on each other.

Basically any time that someone brings up the "humanity" of this conversation, someone else will point out that they're still bad people. They're not at all guilty about what they're part of. They just resent the dangers to themselves, the pressure from above, failures of competence, the surveillance they're under, and their lack of realistic alternative options. The dream of another life mentioned in the conversation is still one of preying on innocent people, just on a much smaller and more immediate scale, etc.

I think this misses the reason it keeps getting brought up, though. The point is not that Shagrat and Gorbag are good people. The point is that they are people.

There's something very normal and recognizable about their resentment of their superiors, their fears of reprisal and betrayal that ultimately are realized, their dislike of this kind of industrial war machine that erases their individual work and contributions, the tinge of wistfulness in their hope of escape into a different kind of life. Their dialect is deliberately "common"—and there's a lot more to say about that and the fact that it's another commoner, Sam, who outwits them—but one of the main effects is to make them sound familiar and ordinary. And it's interesting that one of the points they specifically raise is that they're not going to get better treatment from "the good guys" so they can't defect, either.

This is self-interested, yes, but it's not the self-interest of some mystical being or spirit or whatnot, but of people.

Tolkien's later remarks tend to back this up. He said that female orcs do exist, but are rarely seen in the story because the characters only interact with the all-male warrior class of orcs. Whatever female orcs "do," it isn't going to war. Maybe they do a lot of the agricultural work that is apparently happening in distant parts of Mordor, maybe they are chiefly responsible for young orcs, maybe both and/or something else, we don't know. But we know they're out there and we know that they reproduce sexually and we know that they're not part of the orcish warrior class.

Regardless of all the problems with this, the idea that orcs have a gender-restricted warrior class at all and we're just not seeing any of their other classes because of where the story is set doesn't sound like automatons of evil. It sounds like an actual culture of people that we only see along the fringes.

And this whole matter of "but if they're people, we have to think about ethics, so they can't be people" is a weird circular argument that cannot account for what's in LOTR or for much of what Tolkien said afterwards. Yes, he struggled with The Problem of Orcs and how to reconcile it with his world building and his ethical system, but "maybe they're not people" is ultimately not a workable solution as far as LOTR goes and can't even account for much of the later evolution of his ideas, including explicit statements in his letters.

And in the end, the real response that comes to mind to that circular argument is "maybe you should think about ethics more."

[nonbinarynow]

I am black. I am nonbinary. To any other enben of colour,

I see you.

I know how you are treated in your ethnic culture, in your family. How they tell you "it's a white thing" even though it was your vibrantly-gendered culture that was steamrolled into a binary by Western colonisers. I know how it feels to not be able to use your correct pronouns in your mother tongue because no one knows the neopronouns you have to use in your binary gendered language. I know how you try to mix and explore sides of your native culture that you have never explored before. That you never knew you could blend so euphorically back when you used to live under the binary. I know the guilt you feel for not fitting in, for not being able to pass up your racialised binary gender experience. The ethic sisterhood, the racialised brotherhood. I know how it feels, to be able to pass as something amongst white people, but then the sweetness of that is taken from you as you remember that it is rooted in the racist binarism that continues to subjugate the binary members of your race. I know how to feels to feel invisible in the non-binary community, when most of our representation is white. I know how it feels to view androgyny or gender neutrality as impossible unless you are white; it was the same feeling you felt towards masculinity and femininity when you were binary gendered. I know how it feels to want to transition in a masculine or feminine way, but remembering those who pass as men or women in your ethnicity get killed and sexually assaulted at random by the system. I know how it feels to not want to risk it, to want to hide forever. I see you. I. See. You.

But I do not only know your struggle. I know the beauty of finding other enben of colour, who understand the intersections, the history. I understand the joy that is uncovering that history before colonialism, of the many different genders and modalities of you ancestors gone by. I know the smile that comes on your face when your chosen family (which can include blood relation) uses the right pronouns, the right neopronouns. I know the understanding that it's okay to still understand your racialised binary experience will forever be a part of you that white trans people might not understand. I know the joy of expression through hair, and the absolute ecstasy that comes when you too will realise that androgyny and gender neutrality is not just for white people, not just in white expression. It works in your ethnicity too. I know the feeling of peace that comes from being gendered in your desired way by a member of your race, realising you are surpassing the binarist system.

I know the feeling of great pain that comes from being an enban of colour, a black enban to be specific, but I also know the feelings of great beauty that you get from that intersection. It gets dark sometimes, but there is joy to be found. There is community to be found. There is unity to be found. There is life to be found as an enban/enby of colour. We are strong and we shine brighter than the sun.

[iguanodont]

Emerges from my cave to announce I have created a new sophont

Tentatively calling swimslugs for now, as their designs mostly draw from mollusc anatomy. These small, colorful creatures dwell on a high gravity world dominated by shallow golden seas. Electrical engineering came early in their history, inspired by the ability of some of their native animals to generate electrical currents… and their own natural electroreception. The last few centuries have been peaceful and prosperous; their myriad cultures emphasize an exchange of art, culture, and friendly competition to sport the tackiest color schemes imaginable. Due to the high gravity of their world and their own physical limitations as aquatic creatures, swimslugs have a very limited history of aviation and have been generally uninterested in space travel, despite having been digital penpals with another group of sophonts for generations now…

On their biology:

Swimslug life relies on symbioses with two different organisms: a worm and a sessile “tunicate”. The worm (also simply referred to as an ‘arm’) is functionally a parasite; biting into the flank under the gills of its host early in life and fusing with its nervous and circulatory systems. This union allows the swimslug to develop fine motor control over the untethered end of the worm by adolescence. Most swimslugs only host a single arm; two or more become difficult for most individuals to acclimate to and can lead to health issues. Many genetic and cybernetic variations of the arm are available in the current era. The ‘tunicate’ (I will refer to as the Vase) is essential to swimslug reproduction; all parents spawn into the Vase to ensure a safe shelter and a steady current of oxygenated water for the developing offspring. The average swimslug has at least two fathers; the hybridization of multiple sets of gametes is essential to the proper development of their species. Family groups often consist of the egg layer, her family Vase (these can last for generations), and a 3 or 4 mates, though the particulars vary enormously by culture. Their eggs have a relatively low hatch rate; unviable eggs are consumed by surviving larvae shortly after hatching. The Vases themselves periodically produce free swimming larvae that are affectionately kept around dwellings as pets.

Swimslugs communicate by grinding and clacking modified stomach-teeth, as well as percussing on the adjacent ‘oil-sac’ organ that also serves to regulate buoyancy and store energy. They come in a dazzling variety of colors owing to both their complex hybridizations and genetic engineering. Cosmetic nanobots applied to their slime coats enhance their appearance by functioning as artificial chromatophores.

And that’s the gist of em! Many thanks to @nknatteringly for all the idea pitching and bouncing in their early development, wouldn’t have felt half as inspired without ya. Not sure how much further I’ll develop these guys, they exist mostly as a fun diversion to contrast the gritty, low-tech world of the birgs and a love letter to all the sparkly stuff I liked as a kid.

If you’d like to support my art, you check out these links here

———

Patreon

Kofi

Inprnt

[blueberrybirdsworld]

Collision 3/20

Summary:

Lando always had a type : blonde, models, not ready to settle down. Yet once he met her, all his world is changed and he slowly start to realises maybe he was wrong all this time.

It's a prequel story of The Cat Distribution System, on how Lando Norris fall in love with Ariana. Could be read seperatly.

Pairing : lando norris x original female character

Genre : Fluff, slow burn, enventual smut

Warning : none

Serie Masterlist

CHAPTER 3 :

The Royal Opera House in Covent Garden stood like a monument to a time when art was worshipped like religion. Tonight, its grand entrance gleamed under a halo of soft amber lights, a string quartet playing near the entrance as elegant guests stepped from black cabs and town cars, their breath visible in the cold air. 

Inside, everything glowed: marble floors reflecting chandeliers, velvet staircases winding upward like ribbon, golden balconies, the scent of expensive perfume and old wood. People murmured in soft voices, as if too loud a sound would shatter the illusion. 

Lando Norris stood near the entrance, hands shoved in his pockets, tugging a little at the stiff collar of his tailored black suit. 

“This is a bit much,” he muttered. 

Pietra turned and shot him a look. “This, is culture. Behave yourself.” 

Max adjusted his cufflinks beside him, eyeing the crowd like he wasn’t sure he belonged on. “Did you really drag us to a ballet?” 

Pietra’s eyes twinkled. “Not just a ballet. The Nutcracker. Classic. Winter tradition. Magic. Glitter. Men in tights. Dreams.” 

Lando lifted a brow. “Men in tights, huh?” 

“Oh, grow up,” she laughed, swatting his arm. “It’s a masterpiece. And it’ll be good for you.” 

“Good for me how?” 

“Perspective,” she said smugly. “You’re always going on about cars and adrenaline and lap times. Well, try precision, beauty, and five pirouettes en pointe. Let’s see you do that.” 

“I drive at 300km/h for a living,” he said dryly. 

“And tonight you’ll sit still for two hours and appreciate that not everything is solved by horsepower,” Pietra countered. “Now straighten your jacket, we’re in a royal box. This is the Royal Opera House. Respect the moment.” 

Lando sighed but complied, pulling at the lapel of his suit jacket. The group—dressed to the nines—ascended the staircase like tourists who had accidentally wandered into the dream of a duchess. The women glittered in long satin dresses, the men striking in black tie and sleek silhouettes. 

And though Lando looked good he felt like he was walking through someone else’s story. The grandness, the quiet, the elegance—it wasn’t Monaco nightclubs or paddock chaos. It was another world entirely. 

Inside their box, the lights dimmed. 

Pietra leaned forward, eyes wide and sparkling. “Okay, okay, so,” she whispered like a child about to spill a secret. “The Nutcracker is a two-act ballet. In the first act, there’s a Christmas party, and a girl named Clara gets this magical nutcracker doll from a mysterious man. That night, everything becomes enchanted. The doll comes to life, there’s a fight with the Mouse King—don’t laugh—and then the nutcracker transforms into a prince.” 

Max leaned closer. “And then?” 

“Then they travel to the Land of Sweets, meet all these magical characters from different countries, and it’s all dreamy and symbolic and kind of romantic.” 

“And people like this?” Lando asked, genuinely puzzled. 

Pietra grinned. “People love this. Watch. You’ll see.” 

The lights dimmed further. 

A hush fell over the entire theatre. 

And then, the curtain rose. 

It started gently. A twinkling overture, warm lights over a wintry backdrop of a Christmas tree and glittering snow. Children ran across the stage in costumes, dancers moved in character, graceful and composed. 

Lando was watching with polite curiosity when, halfway through the first act, everything shifted. 

The moment she stepped onto the stage, it was like time paused. 

Ariana. 

His breath caught. 

No warning. No introduction. No spotlight drama. 

She entered as if summoned by the music, wearing a pale blush gown that shimmered under the lights, hair pulled back with a delicate silver ribbon. She was Clara. The Clara. The lead. 

Lando blinked once. Twice. 

His heart was suddenly very loud. 

Pietra’s mouth dropped open. 

“Oh my god,” she whispered. “That’s her.” 

Lando didn’t move. He couldn’t. His eyes were locked on her. 

She floated across the stage—not just graceful, not just pretty—but impossibly, breathtakingly alive in a way he hadn’t seen before. Every movement was deliberate, yet effortless. She leapt and landed like gravity didn’t apply to her. She spun in tight, impossible circles, arms open as if catching stars. 

She wasn’t just performing. 

She was the story. 

And suddenly, Lando understood. 

Why she moved like that. Why she held herself the way she did. Why she had looked at him like noise in a quiet room. Because this—this was her universe. This was the language she spoke. 

And he’d never even asked. 

He felt a strange, tight twist in his chest. A mix of shame and awe. 

He hadn’t known. 

Hadn’t known she was this. 

Throughout the rest of the ballet, he barely blinked. 

He wasn’t the only one. The entire box was mesmerized. Even Max, who had made at least three jokes on the way in about falling asleep during the performance, now leaned forward, chin in hand, watching every scene like he was afraid to miss something. 

They watched Ariana twirl through snowstorms, dance with the Nutcracker Prince, glide through dreamscapes and magic lands. Her expressions were soft and full of wonder, her body arching in impossible angles, muscles whispering with the kind of strength he hadn’t realized ballet required. 

There were no words spoken on stage. 

But Lando had never felt someone say so much with silence. 

When the final curtain fell, the theatre erupted in applause. 

The entire company bowed. 

And then Ariana stepped forward, alone, bathed in golden light, cheeks flushed from exertion but serene, glowing. She bowed deep, arms sweeping with practiced elegance. 

Lando clapped, but he couldn’t stop staring. Something twisted hard inside him again—like the moment you realize you’ve underestimated someone so completely it hurts. 

Pietra leaned in close. “So… still think ballet’s boring?” 

He swallowed. “She didn’t tell me.” 

“Tell you what?” 

“What she does. Who she is.” 

“Well, you didn’t actually ask,” Pietra said gently.

The applause was still echoing in Lando’s ears when they stepped back into the velvet-lined corridors of the Royal Opera House. The performance had ended, but he felt like he was still inside it somehow—like something had cracked open inside him and the air hadn’t quite settled. 

Pietra turned to the group, eyes alight with the glow of champagne and satisfaction. 

“So,” she said, with the flair of someone about to drop a bomb, “slight update. These weren’t just regular tickets.” 

Max raised a brow. “Pietra…” 

“They were donor tickets. Which means…” she leaned in closer, “they come with an invite to the post-show gala.” 

“What gala?” Lando asked, distracted. 

She grinned. “The gala. In the grand reception room. Dinner, champagne, the company dancers mingling with donors and patrons. Which means…” she gave Lando a pointed look, “she will be there.” 

Lando’s pulse jumped before he could stop it. 

He didn’t answer. He didn’t need to. 

Five minutes later, he was striding through the gilded maze of corridors, ascending the wide staircase toward the reception hall, his jacket adjusted just enough to pass for elegant despite the nervous energy thrumming beneath it. 

The gala was already in full swing. 

Crystal chandeliers spilled golden light over towering arrangements of white roses. Waiters in white gloves wove through clusters of well-dressed guests with silver trays of champagne and amuse-bouches. A small quartet played softly in the corner, the music smooth and expensive. 

And then—like a moment conjured from thin air— 

She entered. 

Ariana. 

Her hair was pulled into a sleek high ponytail, the ends curled slightly and brushing her bare back. She wore a floor-length white silk gown that clung to her like poured light. The back dipped scandalously low, revealing the clean lines of her spine and the soft muscles of her shoulders. The neckline was delicate, held by thin straps, the fabric moving like water as she walked in heels she made seem silent. 

He didn’t have the words for it. 

Maybe no one did. 

And apparently, he wasn’t the only one who thought so. 

Almost instantly, she was surrounded. Dancers from the company enveloped her with cheers and laughter, their energy infectious. Some older patrons came forward, offering her flowers wrapped in tissue paper, others fawning with compliments, air kisses, and flutes of champagne she accepted with elegant restraint. 

Lando watched from a distance, frozen in place. 

Then he arrived. 

The lead dancer from the ballet. 

Tall, chiseled, with cheekbones sharp enough to cut glass, and a dancer’s arrogant poise. He wore a midnight blue tuxedo that looked custom, his dark blond hair slicked back, smile gleaming like it had been rehearsed. And he greeted her like they were the only two people in the room. 

His hand went to her waist first—innocent. Then her back. Lower. Too low. 

Lando’s jaw tightened. 

They were laughing at something. She leaned in to whisper something in his ear, and the dancer grinned like he’d just won a game no one else had even noticed being played. 

Max appeared beside Lando with a champagne flute. “Dude. You look like you’re ready to fight someone.” 

Lando didn’t respond. 

“You gonna talk to her?” 

“I’m trying,” he muttered. “But she’s surrounded.” 

“And the blond guy?” 

“Don’t ask.” 

Pietra sidled up next, watching Ariana like a hawk. “She’s like… otherworldly tonight.” 

“She always is,” Lando murmured. 

Pietra glanced sideways at him, then smirked. “You’re so screwed.” 

It was almost an hour after that Ariana slipped away. 

He saw her excuse herself from the circle gently, handing her untouched champagne to someone else, her smile soft but clearly rehearsed. She walked through the tall glass doors onto the balcony that overlooked Covent Garden below, the city twinkling with holiday lights. 

She stood there alone, arms resting lightly on the marble edge, her gown catching the breeze. 

Lando didn’t wait. 

He moved. 

Quiet steps. Fast heart. 

When he stepped onto the balcony, she turned—slowly, calmly. Her expression unreadable. 

There was a long pause before either of them spoke. 

“You followed me,” she said, voice soft, without surprise. 

“You left the room,” he replied. 

“Not everyone would follow.” 

“I’m not everyone.” 

Her gaze lingered on him for a moment longer. Then she turned back to the city lights. 

He took a breath. “You were incredible tonight.” 

A pause. 

“Thank you.” 

“No,” he said, stepping closer. “I mean… really. I didn’t know. I didn’t know that was you. That you could do… that.” 

She tilted her head slightly, looking at him from the corner of her eye. “You never asked.” 

The words landed like a dart. 

“I should have asked.” he admitted.  

A flicker of something passed over her features—disbelief, or maybe disappointment. 

“You didn’t seem that interested.” 

“I was,” he said quickly. “I am.” 

“But only now,” she said, her voice still calm, but with a slight edge. “Only after you saw me on stage. In a silk dress. Under lights.” 

“That’s not true,” he said, stepping closer again. “I just didn’t know how to talk to you. You… you’re—” 

“Different?” 

He hesitated. “Not what I’m used to.” 

She gave a small laugh, almost bitter. “That much is clear.” 

He stepped closer, so close now the chill of the air seemed to warm between them. 

“I didn’t come out here to fight,” he said, quieter now. “I just… needed to talk to you.” 

“You’re doing that,” she said, her tone unreadable. “But why?” 

He looked at her for a long moment. Then asked, quietly, “Can I ask you something first?” 

She nodded, cautiously. 

“Do you even know what I do?” 

Ariana blinked, taken off guard. “No,” she admitted. 

Lando gave a crooked smile. “Formula One driver.” 

She stiffened. Visibly. 

He watched the breath leave her lungs, slow and sharp like a cold wave. 

“That’s sound… dangerous.” 

“Sometimes, yeah.” 

She turned to face him fully now, the silk of her gown catching moonlight, her arms crossing lightly in front of her body. “I don’t like dangerous things.” 

He tilted his head. “Why not?” 

“I prefer things I can control,” she said simply. “A set rhythm. A choreographed routine. No improvisation. Nothing sudden or reckless.” 

He smiled—just a little. “I’m sudden and reckless.” 

She didn’t smile back. “I noticed.” 

There was a quiet beat between them, the breeze fluttering a piece of her hair across her cheek. She didn’t move to brush it away. 

“I like being surprised,” Lando said. “The adrenaline, the edge of not knowing what’s coming. That’s… where I live.” 

“Sounds exhausting.” 

“Maybe.” He took a small step forward, dropping his voice lower. “But it’s also kind of beautiful, if you learn how to see it. You should come watch sometime.” 

She raised an eyebrow. 

“Just once,” he said. “You let me into your world tonight. Let me show you mine.” 

“I don’t like danger,” she repeated, but softer this time. 

He gave her a look that lingered, slow and deliberate. “Maybe you don’t hate it as much as you think.” 

The tension between them shifted again—less prickly now, more charged. Her lips parted like she wanted to speak but changed her mind. 

“You really didn’t know I was a dancer?” she asked, quietly. 

“No. And I don’t know why it makes me feel like I’ve missed a hundred important things.” 

“You did.” 

Her voice was soft. Closer now. He could see the curve of her collarbone, the gentle rise and fall of her breath. 

“I want to know them now,” he said. 

She searched his face, something undecided flickering behind her eyes. Then he ask— 

“That dancer earlier. The one who played the prince.” 

Ariana stiffened. “We trained together since we were thirteen. He’s like a brother.” 

“…Didn’t look like a brother.” 

She smirked. “You’re jealous.” 

He didn’t deny it. 

“You’re possessive for someone who barely knows me,” she said, stepping a little closer. Just enough for her perfume—something floral, sweet, and faintly powdery—to wrap around him. 

“I want to change that,” he said, voice low. “The barely part.” 

The distance between them had all but vanished. 

A wind passed through the balcony, her silk skirt brushing his legs, her ponytail swaying softly. Her eyes searched his face—carefully, cautiously. 

“Still not sure about you,” she whispered. 

“Good,” he whispered back. “I’m not sure about me either.” 

Her lips parted. 

Then— Someone called her name from inside. The spell shattered. 

She stepped back, visibly pulling herself together. 

“I should go,” she said gently. 

Lando nodded, pulse thudding. 

But as he turned to leave, she called softly, “Lando?” 

He paused. 

Her eyes met his, one last time. 

“You look good in a suit.” 

Taglist : @angelluv16, @httpsxnox, @anunstablefangirl, @chocolatemagazinecupcake, @mayax2o07, @freyathehuntress, @verogonewild

Let me know if you wanted to be added to the taglist !

[thecreaturecodex]

Wheel of Monsters

Image © @bowelfly

[April Fools! Like previous April Fools' monsters I've done, this is intended to be fully usable at table, just... weird. Most of my previous April Fools monsters have been pop culture references, and this one is, just a little slantwise. The expression "wheel of monsters" has been rattling around my head for years, inspired by game shows and game show parodies like Wheel of the Worst. The monsters its summons pulls from by default are mostly ones on the Codex, but I've included guidelines on how to customize it if you don't want to look up a whole bunch of bespoke stat blocks (assuming, of course, anyone actually uses this abomination at table).]

Wheel of Monsters CR 15 CE Aberration This thing is a quadruped with a long tail and clawed limbs, but its semblance to sane life ends there. Instead of a head, it has a vertically oriented dial with twelve facets, each with a different combination of eyes, teeth and strange glyphs. A single eye sits in the center of the wheel atop the axle. Spikes protrude forward from the edge of the wheel, plucked by a stinger at the end of a long tail. Said tail also has a strange flap on it that has the appearance of a sign, or possibly scoreboard.

The wheel of monsters is a strange tool in the service of the Dominion of the Black. They were invented by the daelkyr Harsanash, whose interests lie in the role that chance events play in increasing entropy and the downfall of complex systems. The wheels of monsters exploit chance by generating random spells and summoning random monsters, drawn from distant worlds under Dominion control or the depths of the Dimension of Dream. These far-flung summons have already had disastrous effects, as now both the quori and beholders know about Golarion and its corner of space, and gaze upon it with envious eyes.

Despite their grotesque appearances, wheels of monsters are quite intelligent—geniuses by the standards of humanoids. They tend to have something of a split personality; obsequious and loyal to higher ranking Dominion creatures, even less powerful ones, but snide and condescending to most other lifeforms. Most wheels of monsters have a fondness for cracking jokes and giving color commentary during combat. All of its many mouths are capable of speech, and it can alter the pattern and coloration on its tail flap with incredible precision in order to spell out words in any language it knows. A common behavior is to speak primarily through one mouth, with an unctuous tone, while making sounds like crowd noises and cheers with its other maws.

A wheel of monsters is usually on the move in combat, stalking from place to place in order to better make use of their spells. They are excellent climbers and have at least the possibility of flight through their random spellcasting, and so prefer to have a birds-eye view of the action in order to better place monsters or effects. A wheel of monsters keeps its tactics flexible, but almost always summons a monstrous minion as soon as it can to engage foes. In melee, they can sting with their plectrum tails, inducing confusion in foes, and grab with their claws. They prefer to split those attacks up, stinging enemies to disrupt their tactics and then focusing the bulk of their violence on a single target. If a wheel of monsters has a foe grabbed, it lowers its spiked face on top of their victim and spin it, tearing with all of its spikes and teeth simultaneously. When fighting on their own terms, wheels of monsters will gladly flee a losing fight, but gladly sacrifice their lives in order to promote the objectives of their superiors.

Appropriately enough for a creature of weaponized chance, different wheels of monsters may be able to call forth different spells or summons by spinning their wheels. In order to adjust the wheel of monsters’ spellcasting spin, replace some or all of the spells with spells of the appropriate level. A wheel of monsters can call upon two spells of each level from 1st to 6th. In order to adjust the wheel of monsters’ summoning spin, replace some or all of the monsters with monsters of the appropriate challenge rating. A wheel of monsters can summon two monsters of each CR between 8 and 13.

Wheel of Monsters CR 15 XP 51,200 CE Large aberration Init +8; Senses darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, Perception +27

Defense AC 29, touch 17, flat-footed 24 (-1 size, +4 Dex, +1 dodge, +3 luck, +13 natural) hp 225 (18d8+144) Fort +17, Ref +16, Will +16 Immune curses, disease, poison Defensive Abilities fortune’s favor

Offense Speed 40 ft., climb 30 ft. Melee 2 claws +19 (1d8+7 plus grab), sting +19 (2d6+7 plus confusion) Space 10 ft.; Reach 5 ft. (10 ft. with sting) Special Attacks rake (bite, 4d8+7), spellcasting spin, summoning spin

Statistics Str 24, Dex 19, Con 27, Int 20, Wis 14, Cha 21 Base Atk +13; CMB +21 (+25 grapple); CMD 36 (40 vs. trip) Feats Combat Expertise, Combat Reflexes, Dodge, Improved Initiative, Lightning Reflexes, Mobility, Nimble Moves, Spring Attack, Whirlwind Attack Skills Acrobatics +25 (+29 jumping), Bluff +17, Climb +30, Fly +11, Intimidate +20, Knowledge (arcana, planes) +23, Knowledge (dungeoneering) +26, Perception +27, Spellcraft +20, Stealth +18; Racial Modifiers +4 Perception Languages Abyssal, Aklo, Common, Protean, Undercommon, telepathy 100 ft. SQ no breath

Ecology Environment any land or underground Organization solitary Treasure standard

Special Abilities Confusion (Su) A creature stung by a wheel of monsters must succeed a DC 24 Will save or be confused, as per the spell, for 1 minute. If the confused creature gets the “act normally” result two turns in a row, the effect ends early. This is a mind-influencing compulsion effect, and the save DC is Charisma based. Fortune’s Favor (Su) A wheel of monsters has a +3 luck bonus to its AC and to its saving throws. Spellcasting Spin (Su) At will as a standard action, a wheel of monsters can spin its wheel to cast a random spell. These function as the spell cast at CL 15th, except that it does not provoke attacks of opportunity and the save DC for all of these abilities, if applicable, is DC 24. The save DC is Charisma based. The wheel of monsters can choose the target or area of the spell as normal for any legal target after determining the spell cast. Roll a d12 to determine the spell cast each time the wheel of monsters uses this ability 1. magic missile 2. mage armor 3. blur 4. scorching ray 5. fly 6. lightning bolt (Reflex half) 7. enervation 8. fire shield 9. cone of cold (Reflex half) 10. spell resistance 11. disintegrate (Fortitude partial) 12. globe of invulnerability Summoning Spin (Su) As a standard action, a wheel of monsters may spin its wheel to summon a random monster from the following table. Monsters summoned in this fashion appear within 60 feet of the wheel of monsters and remain for 15 minutes or until dismissed. A wheel of monsters can use this ability as many times per day as 3 + its Charisma modifier (8/day for an average specimen), but can have no more than one monster summoned at a time through this method. Roll a d12 to determine the monster summoned each time the wheel of monsters uses this ability: 1. animate dream 2. neh-thalggu 3. aros 4. quori, hashalaq 5. rukanyr 6. yad-pollom 7. p’nahki 8. quori, du’ulora 9. garsonite 10. gogiteth 11. beholder 12. ectodactyl