#based on one of the many elementary schools i attended

[emperorofthedark]

Gunther Goth Elementary.

[runfromthemedic]

Danny Phantom adopts more kids than Bruce Wayne

I’ve seen a lot of fics going around about how Danny will get summoned as the Ghost King via cultist and dpxdc fics going around and I had an idea.

So Danny (ages 14-16 ish depending) gets summoned a lot, and in those summoning's there is usually a sacrifice. Normally, if the sacrifices are kidnapped adults and the like Danny beats up the cultist and just lets the sacrifices go.

But what happens when the sacrifices are younger?

A literal child gets offered up, a soul contract binding them to Danny (probably as a slave or food or whatever, I just think like John Constantine’s contracts but without the con). Danny still beats up the cultist but now he has a kid with a soul contract that he can’t break without severe backlash happening to the kid and there already pretty hurt form the cultist.

Panicking and worried about the kid, Danny seals the contract but with some adjustments, so now for all intent and purposes he now has a kid. 

Danny takes the kid back to the Far Frozen for Frostbite to heal, constantly sending calming emotions to his new kid while panic texting Sam and Tucker they had a kid now and spamming Jazz with questions on how to parent.

Many freak-outs and logistic family meetings later and they’ve worked out a relatively (more like half-way) decent plan for parenting. The kid is very happy with the new and loving parents and auntie and things calm down as much as things can with three liminal teenagers, a half-dead one, and a elementary schooler can between parenting, going to school, ghost king duties, and hiding all of this from Jack and Maddie. 

Danny cries the first time the tot called him Dad. Sam and Tucker record this for blackmail. Danny gets even when Sam and Tucker breakout the waterworks when they get called Mom and Pops.

And then a few months later another summoning happens, this time with a 17 year old. They get adopted.

Five months after that, another summoning, this time with two 12 year old's. They get adopted.

Thirteen months after that, another summoning. The kids 15. Adopted.

Two months after that, summoning and there’s three of them. All adopted.

By the time Danny, Sam, and Tucker are about to hit college age they have thirteen kids give or take.  All of them call the Trio Dad, Mom, and Pops. Doesn’t matter if some of the kids are older. Team Phantom are the best parents most of them have ever had. Age is blatantly ignored in most situations. Dani is considered the oldest. The first adopted kid is considered the second oldest, etc.

Danny’s castle in the Infinite Realms has a room for all of this kids and portals going out into different dimensions depending on where the summoning happened. The Trio didn’t want to completely uproot any of their kids lives so they make sure all of the kids have the right records, access to schooling, etc. 

Cue two of the kids (maybe three if you want John Constantine drunkenly auctioning off his at the time non-existent first born, accidents happen, the whole hodgepodge family has a understanding to punch Constantine on sight if they ever see him on their siblings/sons behalf) being from the DC universe.

Older of the two goes to Gotham U (I think studying communications, politics, philosophy etc to be able to help Danny with his Ghost Kind Duties) and the younger getting a scholarship to the fancy rich kid school Damian attends. 

Danny’s kids are about as liminal as they can get between the adoption contract, all of the ectoplasm exposure, and the kids all living in the Infinite Realms the majority of the time. Damian and the younger get along like a house on fire be cause they have similar interest based on life. I think the older sibling somehow befriends Tim Drake, Tim possible develops a crush.

Batman is very paranoid about the two possibly metas around his kids

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

Maybe I’m dumb but isit true that Rielle was classmates with the octatrio?

It's sort of implied but not outright said. Or, rather, that's a conclusion many fans (myself included) have drawn based on the wording in book 3. (The phrasing is similar in Japanese; I'm just showing English screenshots because that's what the majority of my readers will understand!)

In 3-11, Azul describes the photograph with Prince Rielle in it as one that "[commemorates] a visit to the museum". In 3-27, Deuce reads the caption for this photo: “A visit from Prince Rielle and his schoolmates.” (Ignore the fact that EN has written Rielle’s name two different ways lol)

Then in 3-35, Ruggie says the picture is a "group photo of an elementary school class". Floyd says that it's "a picture from our school field trip" and points out himself, Jade, and Azul in it.

Technically, it could be that their class happened to visit the museum the same day that the young Prince Rielle was there too. If that's the case, then why is Rielle pictured with some random elementary school's class? Maybe he wanted to be nice and engage with his people, but I'm not so sure this would be allowed for any royal to do on a whim (I imagine his guards or attendants might stop him; no way was he there alone and unattended).

It could also be said that maybe Rielle went to the same school as the Octatrio and in the same year but a different class since Deuce says the pic was of Rielle and his schoolmates, not classmates. Additionally, Floyd says it was a school trip they went on, meaning other classes from their school may have also tagged along. However, it has been made clear that the picture in question is of Azul and the Leech brothers’ class. Why would someone not in the same class as them be in that photo? Rielle must be in the same class then, right?

This line of thinking is what has led many to conclude that Azul, Jade, Floyd, and Rielle were in the same elementary school class.

If you consider the backgrounds of the Octatrio, the "Rielle is in their class" headcanon could make sense. They all come from reasonably well-off families (Tweel mob family theory + Azul's stepdad lawyer and his mom who runs the most popular restaurant in the entire Coral Sea), so it's possible that their parents could afford to send them to some prestigious school where other children of wealthy families (royals included) study.

I hope that helps! Let me know if you have any alternate interpretations for these lines.

[astroismypassion]

Astrology observations 💟💟💟

Credit goes to my blog @astroismypassion

💟 Aries Juno might marry really impulsively or just too soon, like after 6 months of knowing them.

💟 Pisces Moon believes you can be friends with an ex, even more so if they are Cancer, Air or Virgo Sun.

💟 I mentioned about Sun conjunct Moon and how if you are for example Leo Moon you feel like only Leo Sun can “tame” you. I noticed something similar happening when you both have the same Juno sign. You will feel like you can relax in their presence, like THEY have everything under control and this will give you comfort in exchange.

💟 Solar Return Ascendant will show the traits of the people you will encounter that year. But the Descendant sign will show how they will act toward you. For example: Capricorn Rising means you will encounter and deal with older people than you that will be workaholics, detached, but they will act towards you (Cancer Descendant) like you are naive, innocent or too inexperienced, they might look down on you because of that.

💟 Capricorn Venus or Venus at 10, 22 (Capricorn degrees) is challenging. People that are attracted to you, you don’t find attractive at all. And those that you are interested in, get intimidated by the image that you hold (especially in public, your status or what you have achieved already). Those that are attracted to you fall for your image in general public (10th house) without really knowing you up close (4th house). They might also reject you, because of what you do or they reject your status. Like they can say “I can’t be with a finance guy/musician/a lawyer or someone who works in STEM etc.” for example.

💟 One of the more superficial placements is Libra Juno or to some extent even Juno in the 7th house, because you fall for the popular, very good-looking person that is highly sought after. So because they have so many other potential love choices, they have hard time committing to you.

💟 Sagittarius Moon and Moon Jupiter aspects (especially Sextile and Trine) are really proud of where they studied or which elementary/high school/college they attended.

💟 Capricorn Moon lives in a cold city or literally your home is not situated on the sunny side. Or you live in a city with cold temperatures throughout the year. Within your home you might often feel cold or your family was really stingy with warming up the house.

💟 With Juno in the 7th house you will ALWAYS seek JUSTICE. These to me are veryy petty people. If you were late 15 min, they will be late 15 min the next time you get together just so that you too feel how this feels, to be waiting for someone.

💟 To me Venus conjunct Ascendant in synastry is too idealized. Because it can point even to jealousy coming from Venus person over Ascendant’s life at some point. And overall, it can lack depth, like it’s too superficial, almost like you two are together, because of each other’s looks.

💟 You know how we talk in astrology about 8th house synastry that they want what you have? It’s not that they really like your hoodie and want it for themselves. It’s more complex, deep in psychological nature. And usually very specific as a result of that. Like they wanted travels that you had in childhood, because they never got the opportunity to go out of the country as much in their childhood.

💟 Neptune in the 2nd house buys gifts based on how strong their emotions for you are. For example: if they feel very strongly for you, they will buy you an expensive gift. If they don’t know you that well or you’re just acquaintances, they will give you a small, little gift. It’s just based on how much they feel for you.

💟 Your Mars sign shows how you react to stress. If you have Sagittarius Mars, you might gain weight. If you have Libra Mars, you could gain weight due too eating too much desserts, sugary foods and drinks. If you have Virgo Mars you can be prone to breakouts and skin issues when under a lot of stress.

💟 Gemini Juno and Juno in the 3rd house: you will always feel like people that are approaching you are playing mind games (especially in the beginning stage).

💟 The reason why Taurus Venus give so many little gifts and trinkets, it’s because they want everything you touch in the future to remind you of THEM. Zero lies told I swear.

💟 Aries Juno might be really indecisive whether the person they are marrying is truly the one. Libra Juno on the other hand will marry someone despite knowing deep down they might not be the one.

💟 If you have Capricorn Moon and you moved out of your family home, you might still have your belongings (clothes and other important items) at your childhood home, those items can stay there for years before you will be picking them up.

💟 I’ve said it before and I’m saying it again there is CERTAIN duality to Pisces Rising or Rising at a Pisces degree (12, 24) folks. I came across many of them in the past few years and I swear their need for privacy is as high as that of Scorpio Rising. They might have some secret hobbies, secret friends or people that they hang with and don’t want others to know they are spending time with them. They also take on the habits of their 7th house people, so their friends, crushes, romantic interests, partners etc.

💟 If you two have Scorpio Rising in the Composite chart they will always come from a dark place into the light very literally. They might be walking down the street at night when it’s dark, but the moment you see them, they step under a street light. Or they might always come from places that there isn’t much light. Or they appear after grey, stormy weather and it’s a rainbow. Also they could be an element of unintentional HIDING. Like they hold stand behind a pool, a billboard, so that is hard to see them. Or they could quite literally hide their face in front of you, so they would turn around when near you and you will see only half of their face. Often this happens in attempt to control THEMSELVES, their emotions and reactions since it would be too easy for you to decipher their body language, gestures and expressions.

💟 Taurus Juno and Taurus Part of Fortune people even look like they are type to HAVE MONEY. I swear they often have that look of “I’m coming from a wealthy family” through their looks, possessions they own, how they act.

💟 You might often feel people who conjunct your South Node can’t offer you anything new. Like you already have things, traits, items they want to give you. However, you might most likely pick or stick with people of your North Node. Like if you have Gemini North Node, you could stay in relationship for a long time with Gemini Sun, just because you feel like they can offer you a lot of connections, acquaintances. If you have Virgo North Node, you might be “stuck” with a Virgo Sun long overdue just because they are consistent and talk to you every day and you enjoy that. Or if you have Libra North Node, you will stay with Libra Sun or even a Taurus Sun just because you feel they are the only person that gives you constant love that you need.

💟 I think Rihanna (Aries Moon native) really describes typical Aries Moon behaviour well. She mentioned she gets bored of things really quickly and easily. Once she has done something before and she is doing it again, she is already bored DURING the activity. This captures Aries Moon essence who constantly wants to experience and do things in a fresh, new way, perspective, so that they remain fresh and inspired.

Credit goes to my blog @astroismypassion

[piizunn]

september 30th, 2023

People who are not First Nations, Métis, or Inuit will never know the sickening feeling of finding out the playground you used to go to is the site of a former residential school, a school still in use by the town of Fort Smith, NWT.

fig. 1. Joseph Burr Tyrrell Elementary School in Fort Smith. Sarah Pruys/Cabin Radio.

First, I’d like to make clear that to my knowledge none of my my immediate family members are residential school survivors, I share community and space with many people who are and I personally attended the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and I will only be speaking on my own experiences. I descend from 7 historic Métis Otipemisiwak families by the names of Berthelet, Caron, St. Germain, Larivière, Dazé, Dubois, and Boudreau, who come from the historic Red River Settlement and Batoche. I come from Amiskwaciywâskahikan, Treaty 6 and I now make my home in Mohkinstsis on Treaty 7 land. I introduce myself in this traditional way of the Métis Otipemisiwak to contextualize my knowledge and experiences, honour my family, and situate myself on this land and in this conversation.

Today is Orange Shirt Day, a day that honours Phyllis Webstad, member of Stswecem’c Xgat’tem First Nation (Canoe Creek Indian Band), and survivor of the Residential School system. Her story is what has inspired this national day of honour and action. Beyond wearing orange I would like non-Indigenous settlers to really consider the history around them and the experiences of survivors and those who lost their lives. I would like you to physically step up for us, be there for us when we are being beaten down, sit with Elders and listen to their stories, learn about their joy as well their pain.

I attended Grandin School, an elementary school in Amiskwaciywâskahikan (Edmonton, Alberta) before it was renamed to Holy Child. For anyone outside of the area I will describe it; the school is over one hundred years old in a historic neighbourhood. Near the school is an LRT station underground and on one side of the platform was a large mural depicting Bishop Grandin, a nun holding a native child, an Indigenous family at camp, and a residential school. Based on the fact that Bishop Grandin spent time working in Saint-Boniface of the Red River Settlement, Fort Chipewyan in what is now Alberta, and Île-à-la-Crosse in what is now Saskatchewan, it can be assumed that the family is either First Nations or Métis, however it must not be forgotten that the Inuit of the north also suffered these institutions.

A quote from Bishop Vital Grandin haunts me to this day, more now than ever.

“We instil in them a pronounced distaste for the native life so that they will be humiliated when reminded of their origin. When they graduate from our institutions, the children have lost everything Native except their blood.”

- Bishop Vital Grandin, 1875

Fig. 2. “A mural depicting Bishop Grandin at an Indian Residential School is located at the Grandin LRT Station in Edmonton.” Image courtesy of Jake Cardinal and Alberta Native News.

I remember teachers taking us to the Is platform to sse the murals but it was not a critical conversation they were very much pro church and viewed residential schools from a sinister paternalistic perspective.

The mural was eventually covered up but the narrative in grandin elementary was that they were "helping native families. I remember inside the school by the main stairwell there was a portrait of Old Grandin and it was literally so scary to me hated walking past it so much I would sprint up the stairs whenever I walked past him alone.

I attended the seventh and final Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s national event in March of 2014, at the end of one of the days I was there I took the train to see my old elementary school, to see the mural and to really consider what I had been taught in school versus what my community and family has taught me. Again, none of my direct family are residential school survivors but many Métis are and this history is often hidden. Prayers up and tobacco down for every single survivors, living and in spirit form.

Fig. 3. The mural depicting Bishop Vital-Justin Grandin at an Edmonton LRT Station was covered in orange Tuesday, June 8, 2021. Kirby Bourne, Global News

First Nations, Métis, and Inuit have been talking about their family members who did not come home and the abuse they experienced. This is not new information, and you have to sit and listen no matter how uncomfortable you are because nothing is more uncomfortable than colonial violence. When news came out about the children of Kamloops in 2021 it was devastating how many people I knew personally that were completely ignorant of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the history of residential schools. What happened in these institutions are absolute atrocities many people would rather not face even the knowledge of what happened to these children, both alive and passed on. Like the survivors, the perpetrators of these horrors live on and have never been held accountable.

Continue to honour your community, stand up and show up for First Nations, Métis, and Inuit. Learn about the history of settler-colonial occupation of this land and how you yourself are directly benefitting from this ongoing genocide. Residential school survivors and the children who never came home are in your community; they are the kind kokum down the hall as well as the middle aged man living on the street, their children young adults, teenagers, kids, babies, they still carry these experiences and memory down to the atoms that make up each of their cells.

works cited

Bourne, Kirby. ‘Mural at old Grandin LRT Station to be removed this fall,’ September 23rd, 2021, Global News.

Cardinal, Jake. ‘Edmonton Paints Over The Grandin Mural’, Alberta Native News, June 10th, 2021.

Grandin, Vital-Justin. On the goal of residential schools, 1875.

Pruys, Sarah. ‘MLA calls for new Fort Smith schools, citing residential school legacy’. Cabin Radio, March 5th, 2023.

Webstad, Phyllis Jack. Phyllis’ Story In Her Own Words, OrangeShirtDay.Org

[rpmemesbyarat]

You only need as much information about your character as is necessary to tell a story.

I see a lot of people stressing that they don’t feel they’ve developed their protagonist enough to begin their story. And in some cases, that’s possibly true. But in a lot of cases, these folks often have a pretty fleshed out profile of their character’s appearances, likes, dislikes, and so on, yet still feel it isn’t enough.

Hey, remember Calvin & Hobbes? It’s a comic strip series beloved by many, including me. We never know Calvin’s last names, or the names of his parents, or the exact nature of his dad’s job, or how they met, or their lives before being his parents. We don’t know anything about Susie’s family, or the bully Moe or babysitter Rosalyn; they’re only seen in the context of their interactions with Calvin. We don’t know about the lives of his teacher or principal outside of school. We don’t even know the street that he lives on, or the name of the city. It could literally be any suburbia, and I think that’s the point. This is Calvin’s world as he understands it, where Mom and Dad’s names are just Mom and Dad, and Dad’s job is just some ambiguous office, etc. While Calvin’s imagination is huge, it’s contrasted by his reality being very small and localized, confined almost exclusively to his home, school, and neighborhood, with occasional trips to the doctor, store, beach, museum, or zoo. In fact, the creator Bill Watterson regretted the story in which he added Calvin’s Uncle Max specifically BECAUSE of how it expanded the potential of Calvin’s world, especially since it required some awkward writing to avoid having him call the mom and dad by their names, and Watterson very much wanted them to remain unnamed.

This is a world that is deliberately small and information deliberately scant, and it works MARVELOUSLY. Calvin & Hobbes is the world through the eyes of a creative, hyperactive child and it’s perfect like it is without us needing to know everyone’s family tree, zodiac sign, favorite food, and political affiliations. Now, does that mean NO story needs that information? Absolutely not! There are stories where that might be relevant or even ESSENTIAL information to include about a character.

The question is, is your story one of them? Perhaps, instead of trying to work out your cast down to the last detail, work out what your story will require from your cast, and build their bios based on that. It’s not BAD to have superfluous details, and they’re often very fun for fans, but one should also avoid stressing out about lacking them when it’s unlikely they’ll come up in-story.

[As a note, this is one of the VERY many differences between story characters and RP characters; RP characters often need to come with very thorough bios and headcanons for others to consider them well-developed or worth interacting with, and because you alone don’t control the story, virtually ANYTHING can come up. Hence why a lot of people feel they need their character’s astrological chart worked out, their blood type, a list of allergies, and where they attended elementary school, since all those things may get asked in RP—-but you don’t NEED them for a story unless YOU make it that way!]

[writer168]

I've read your "the lemonade stand" and i'm really curious how the events that happened in "Hoshigaki" and "Eight" trasfer to it, so if you had perhaps an outline of it and don't mind sharing, please share, i'm wracking my brain for how it could work.

Have a wonderful whatever-time-is-it-where-you-are!

hi!

so the barebones ideas i have for team eight's lore in the lemonade stand goes something like this:

the akatsuki have based themselves in north america, but kisame leaves sakura in tokyo with an old relative on his wife's side and doesn't keep in contact, hoping for the best and living with the guilt the second he drops her off. unbeknownst to him, that relative passes a few weeks later and sakura is promptly shuttled into an orphanage

the years sakura spends there helps her grow into the calm, smart, calculating version we all know and love in the original hoshigaki-verse. naruto is a part of the same orphanage but they don't really interact. she sees him cause trouble, get chastised by the works, watches the cycle spin over and over. but it's none of her business and he's never really talked to her, so she keeps her head down and spends her free time finishing homework that's too easy for her and sticking her nose in library books until curfew hits

she meets kiba sometime in the middle of elementary school and her free time splits to spend some time at the circuit of shelters and veterinary clinics the inuzuka family owns

by junior high, sakura and kiba are thick as thieves. the first day of their first year, they meet shino and immediately get him in trouble with them. they spend that day's detention under kurenai yuuhi, their homeroom teacher. from that day on, shino's sucked into their group and they gain a reputation for themselves by racking up more absences than attendances and most teachers couldn't care less about what they do with their time. they still turn in their assignments, still keep up their grades, and if they keep their 'delinquent tendencies' out of their sight, it's not their problem

kurenai disagrees. they're good kids, she knows it, and she'll try to help steer them on the right path no matter how many detentions she has to host for them. now if only they could take it seriously and stop bringing her cheap snacks to bribe her into letting them leave early

it's also in junior high that naruto starts hanging around sakura and her friends. they both had growing up in the orphanage in common, and both had that troublemaking gene, and it was both of them that went out of the orphanage together to make a deal with a landlord who didn't mind renting out some rooms to a couple punk kids who were tired of the group home. the kids were scrappy and clever and knew their way around the streets so he offered them this: a unit for each of them if they ran odd jobs for him whenever he needed them to. when they made deliveries, they'd never look into a package. when he sent them to check up on people, they wouldn't get caught - if they did, he wasn't doing anything to get them out of it

anything beat going back to the orphanage. so they agreed

back at school the other teachers keep telling kurenai it isn't worth the effort, especially when police officer tenzo keeps hauling them back to the school if he can catch them out during school hours. but what they don't care to notice is how police sergeant tenzo is half trying to keep himself from laughing along with these kids and half trying not to worry himself gray when he find that they've thrown themselves into another fight with another group at another school. it doesn't matter if they keep winning, and it's certainly not funny when kiba's cheek is so swollen that it makes him talk weird for a week

but what tenzo's really worried about isn't the fights or the truancy or how scary smart these kids can really be. it's that because they're scary smart that they'll get in trouble with the worst sort of people one day, and him and kurenai won't be enough to save them

his fears are realized in the kids' second year of junior high when one day, they disappear

kurenai is distraught. her and tenzo are the only ones outside of the inuzuka and aburame families that actually care that the kids are gone, and along with it comes some gutting realizations. her the kids never stirred up any real trouble, per se, but they never made many friends at school or got in any other teacher's good graces or care enough to actually address the reputations they've built up for themselves

for a year and a half, she mourns them. she watches inuzuka tsume demand the police to find her son and why the hell aren't you doing anything he's out there and he's thirteen and if you don't do something he'll be dead. she watches aburame shibi, the quiet and polite managing partner of the renowned Aburame Law Offices, blame his son's friends for turning him into another bad kid when he has such a bright future ahead of him. she watches as tenzo tries his best to keep their case open because he's so sure they're still out there despite it growing cold around the edges; he'll never give up on them, he says, even when everyone up to the superintendent general of the tokyo metropolitan police department - second in rank only to the chief of japan's national police agency - thinks he's chasing shadows. she watches as naruto never loses hope of sakura and kiba and shino coming home and... and that one has a particular sting to it. especially when it's only recently that an explosive altercation between him and his best rival landed naruto a couple month's stay in the hospital and had sasuke whisked off somewhere out of japan without leaving so much as a phone number behind

kurenai never loses hope, and it's that same hope that kills her a little bit every day

everything changes when naruto starts his first year of senior high school. because three kids stroll onto the same school grounds like they hadn't ever gone missing in the first place. sakura, taller and stronger and indifferent and with a shock of pink hair. kiba, louder and angrier and sharper and a hearing aid in one ear. shino, more brazen and colder and more blunt and never taking off the dark sunglasses he's taken to wearing on his face

they're back, and it's like the warmth has found its way back into kurenai's blood

(it's later when the kids and kurenai and tenzo flee to north america for a charge of a murder they didn't commit that the latter two find out what really happened. one day when the kids were skipping school like usual, they see police officers dumping the body of a missing child. back then they hadn't been quick enough or strong enough or wise enough to react accordingly and get sucked into a dark conspiracy that they never wanted to be a part of in the first place. superintendent general shimura danzo is kidnapping kids, he had once sold some of them to disgraced scientist orochimaru to supplement illegal experimentation, and prime minister sarutobi hiruzen was covering it all up.)

((then, superintendent shimura finds out there are witnesses. he figures them out, packs up three teenagers into a shipping crate and loads them up on a ship, and sends them off to their deaths. when their bodies are inevitably found, it won't be hard to spin it: "three juvenile deliquents up to no good. something like this was bound to happen. what a shame, what a tragedy. may their souls end up in a better place than their bodies did."))

the conspiracies end up coming to light by the time the kids are sixteen, exposing a rotten and corrupt system that the new prime minister, senju tsunade, is quickly and aggressively working to root (ha) out. but even as names clear and charges drop and japan is ready to welcome three misjudged teenagers back with open arms, they decide to stay in north america.

kiba's intrigued with the goings-on in technology department at RAIN Securities and would probably go to college for something in the field. he's a whizz with tech anyway, and he knows they're probably going to pay for his degree in exchange for his employment

shino knows he's going to put himself on track for medical school. kiba and sakura are always getting hurt and he wants nothing more than to devote himself to the little family they've made for themselves. keeping them safe and healthy will always be in his top priorities, and he's already had exposure helping the medical team at catatumbo sanctuary in south africa. sure it was all veterinary medicine, but at least he knows he's interested in that sort of science

and sakura, well, isn't sure what to do with herself. she's content with floating through high school and taking general courses in college until she finds something worth doing. maybe she'll find something in physics; the subject makes kiba gag, and that's as good a reason as any to study it

it's not like the north american high schools are much different than the ones in japan when it comes down to what matters, anyway. she doesn't make any other friends in the school, she doesn't endear herself to the staff, she submits her assignments and takes her tests and thinks that they school should be lucky they don't have to deal with her and the boys' truancy habits this time around. the days go by and she spends her time after school in a rotation of places: her dad's gym, konan's company, sasori's tattoo shop, kakuzu's car customs shop. it's more of a variety than japan, but it's still routine. she doesn't expect any change

then one fateful day, she gets a project partner in the form of the the football team's pretty boy. and the timeline of the lemonade stand begins :)

this... really got away from me lmao. the outline turned out to be both way more information than i thought i'd get down and not enough detail to fully explain how the world is molded by the events of the hoshigaki-verse, but i hope it's a good structure to give you some idea of how things went down! i could definitely make a prequel fic to elaborate on the world, but we all know i'm already struggling to update my current fics lmaooooo

but if you have any specific questions, i'd be happy to answer them! thank you for your wonderful ask! <3

[flowerbloom-arts]

(this is a reupload of a an ask post that is """mysteriously""" not showing up on my or other people's dashes. The following post exposes the truth about Moominpappa, and after many attempts at reuploading this with screenshots of the post and with the images I used I found that it's the screenshots that are causing problems. The people must know the truth of Moominpappa's lies, and I shall stop at no end to try and educate people on the web of lies that Moominpappa from Tanoshii Muumin Ikka 1991 is created for himself. Tumblr and its agenda to keep 90s Moominpappa's dignity in tact shall not dissuade me any more! Book Moominpappa would be APPALLED BY SUCH SHAMELESSNESS!)

-

@helshdy asked:

Sorry if this is obvious but how did they retcon the moominpappa backstory? Do Hodgkins, Joxter, Muddler, and Fuzzy just straight up not exist?

-

Okay so like... let's start with the stuff the episodes actually tell us.

There's one episode where the Moomin family (Sniff, My and Snorkmaiden included) get invited to Aunt Jane's mansion, which is pretty cool to see tbh, we finally get to see what her living situation is (she doesn't even have a housekeeping staff, she's so goddamn lonely)

And in one scene the kids are cleaning a room and they happen upon a photo album, and the album features... a younger Moominpappa living with Aunt Jane at what appears to be a summer house....

[INSERT SCREENSHOTS OF AUNT JANE'S PHOTO ALBUM]

Now, this is an odd discrepancy that goes unquestioned by the kids but it's not unreconcilable with Adventures of Moominpappa, maybe this is just one childhood summer Moominpappa deliberately left out of his story because it didn't contribute to his story and he doesn't like Jane. That's a minor enough piece of lore to make it make sense.

But then there's Return To Childhood, the episode with Wimsy.

After a mishap with the kids except Moomintroll mistaking Wimsy for an intruder, Wimsy and Moominpappa explain the history of their friendship to everyone, and what they say is uhhhh... (checks notes)

Moominpappa would constantly change schools in his childhood and then he and Wimsy were dormmates at the last school he went to.

...

Now that completely throws AoMP out the window.

We also have real tangible proof of this in the episode, Moominpappa and Wimsy try going on a little adventure together and they come across their old school, it even has the initials they carved on a tree and the same principal is still running the school (AND DOESN'T LOOK ANYTHING LIKE THE FILLYJONK PRINCIPAL).

[INSERT SCREENSHOTS OF MOOMINPAPPA AND WIMSY'S INITIALS ON A TREE AND THE SCHOOL PRINCIPAL]

And based on the kids that currently attend the school it seems that this is a an elementary/middle school?

[INSERT SCREENSHOTS OF THE PRINCIPAL SURROUNDED BY A GROUP OF COSTUMED STUDENTS]

(they're wearing costumes for a festival here)

And that's like. Woah. Holy crap??? Moominpappa like...... actually lied to us. ATLEAST about the majority of his life. And of course the kids don't question this because of Bad Writing BUT WE KNOW NOW.

Though, with all of this I'd have to backpedal and say that Edward the Booble as he was does in fact exist, there's an episode where the characters get Edward so they can use his tears to heal a mermaid tail, although he doesn't seem... quite as big as he was in AoMP (it could just be the animator's horrendous inability to be on model but this is beside the point)

The Ghost, is also real, we all saw him in the Dame Elaine episode didn't we. It's undeniably him, it has all the references we need without a shadow of a doubt despite the very different appearance between that episode and AoMP.

Allegedly he still lived on the island the Oshun Oxtra were on (but we could also argue that it wasn't necessarily that particular island, or it could mean that Moominpappa did in fact go to That island but the events didn't transpire the way MP said they did)

The fact Moominpappa is lying about his backstory could also explain his utter lack of familiarity with Mymblemamma despite his claims of having been friends with her in his youth (allegedly in the Japanese dub MP didn't actually say she was Little My's mother and that she was just another lookalike like the rest of the parents, but also allegedly in the Finnish dub he did say she was her mom, so which is it??) and we can't chalk it up to the show's lack of continuity because based on the Dame Elaine episode the show was perfectly capable of having continuity that adheres to MP's Memoirs even before they actually adapted it. (Both Dame Elaine and Moomin Builds a House were episodes before AoMP part 1)

And the most damning thing about this whole thing is that if you actually watch the AoMP episodes, Moominmamma explicitly had no way to call Moominpappa out on this, she explicitly doesn't know what his backstory was pre-meeting him. "But surely she'd point something out if she didn't know who the Oshun Oxtra was" WE DON'T KNOW IF SHE'D KNOW, SHE WAS LITERALLY OUT OF THE ROOM WHILE MOOMINPAPPA DESCRIBED THEIR MEETING, AND SHE OBVIOUSLY WASN'T HEARING WHAT MOOMINPAPPA WAS SAYING OR WHAT THE KIDS WERE TALKING ABOUT BECAUSE SHE WAS CONFUSED ABOUT THE KIDS STARING AT HER IN DISBELIEF.

IT ALL MAKES SENSE NOW

MOOMINPAPPA IS JUST A BAD STORYTELLER AND I DON'T HAVE TO ACCEPT THE UTTER LACK OF CHARACTERIZATION AS REAL

IT'S ALL A LIE

JOXTER AND MUDDLER WERE PROBABLY OLD SCHOOLMATES FROM ONE OF HIS SCHOOLS AND THE REASON WHY THEY WERE LOOKALIKES AND PARENTS WERE BECAUSE HE DIDN'T ACTUALLY KNOW THAT THEY HAD KIDS

WOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!

[fortitudinem]

I’m working on a fic rn and it takes place right after the barrier being taken down, in my mind because thousands of student enroll at aurodon prep in a matter of months they’re forced to do co ed dorms and have as many as 4 people in one dorm. What do you think abt this.

Hi, so I thought I'd made a post about this but apparently I can't see it so here goes:

After the barrier comes down, Ben commissions a whole new school just for kids from the Isle. They put up temporary housing over the summer and then term starts the next year. He repurposes an old college building into a new school just for VKs after learning about their lack of formal schooling and need for extra support.

Students are sorted not by grade or age but tested and taught based on their ability level, as some of the older Isle kids cannot even read. There are extra support lessons for those who are very far behind where they should be.

There is also a food programme put into place, designed to bring all of the VKs up to a healthy weight and also to adjust their stomachs to the richer Auradonian food.

Living conditions can be quite cramped, with dorms of as many as 8 of the younger kids and then up to four for the older ones, though they aim for four/two as the goal. but the rooms are large enough to accommodate that, they are furnished to a high standard and they're clean, warm and dry. Each dorm has its own bathroom and the older kids aren't co-ed but I couldn't say for the younger ones. Siblings are usually placed together if they're of similar ages, or at least close by if they are not.

the curriculum is designed for Isle kids and though attendance isn't mandatory, completion does give points for getting into colleges. Ben would also probably ask some of the older VKs who have technically 'aged out' of the system (the core four/uma/anyone in that year and above) to attend as well, to try and influence the younger VKs who look up to them to attend the school.

so that's where i sit with that, that's my own personal sort of storyline as i believe they wouldn't want to clog up auradon prep (famously a school for royals and others of note) with all the kids from the Isle as there will, as you noted, be thousands of them.

(my unofficial, official count from my population post being: at the time the barrier comes down there are approximately 2,700 children under the age of five, 2,850 children of elementary school level (5-10), 1,350 children of middle school level (11-13), 1,600 children of high school age (14-18) and 1,300 adults who are over the age of 18 but still fall into the ‘villain kid’ category because they were born on the isle of the lost.)

also noting this does not take into account anything we currently know about rise of red.

thanks for the question, i hope this helps!

[best-underrated-anime]

Best Underrated Anime Group C Round 4: Hitori Bocchi’s ○○ Lifestyle vs Inuyashiki: Last Hero

#C2: Hitori Bocchi’s ○○ Lifestyle (HitoriBocchi no MaruMaru Seikatsu)

High social anxiety girl has to befriend her whole class

#C3: Inuyashiki: Last Hero

Old man turns into robot superhero

Details and poll under the cut!

#C2: Hitori Bocchi’s ○○ Lifestyle (HitoriBocchi no MaruMaru Seikatsu)

Summary:

Many of us know what it is like to transition to a new school with few to no friends in a new environment, going through the arduous process of getting to know people again. Bocchi Hitori knows this struggle all too well, having just graduated from elementary school and thrown into middle school. Unfortunately, she suffers from extreme social anxiety: she faints when overwhelmed, vomits when nervous, and draws up ridiculously convoluted plans to avoid social contact. It does not help that her only friend from elementary school, Kai Yawara, will not be attending the same middle school as Bocchi. However, wanting to help her, Kai severs ties with Bocchi and promises to reconcile with her when she befriends all of her classmates in her new middle school class.

Even though Bocchi has no faith in herself, she is determined to be friends with Kai again. Summoning all of her courage, Bocchi takes on the daunting challenge of making friends with her entire class, starting with the delinquent-looking girl sitting in front of her…

Propaganda:

This is a fun and lighthearted show. Watch it if you need something cute to chill out! The art is cute and colorful, the music lively, and the animation fine enough.

As it's adapted from a four-panel gag manga, the story is simple and focuses on the various characters. They all have pun-based names related to their main personality trait, so they're easy to remember if you know some basic Japanese (Hitori Bocchi means all alone, for example). The girls are all adorable and fun in their own quirky ways, and I loved seeing the heroine doing her utmost best to overcome her fears -and other challenges- to befriend them in the hope of fulfilling her promise. That's the power of the Do-Your-Best Fairy! They all care for each other (despite some teasing) and help Bocchi with her monumental task, never pulling her down for her struggles but gently pushing her in the back when needed.

But most importantly, Hitori Bocchi is a very relatable character. As someone suffering the same trouble, I related a lot with Bocchi, from her silliest worries to her escalating panic and weird schemes in an attempt to prevent anything wrong. Anxiety is faithfully represented, mixed with the right amount of laughing to how far Bocchi can get to avoid fearful situations in her very cute ways. It feels good to see a character like me in a such positive light! The struggles are real and acknowledged, and it’s really moving to see our heroine overcome them little by little in a very humanizing way.

This series has become one of my comfort materials, and I come back to it when I need hope and inspiration in everyday social interactions! If you need one last thing to be convinced, listen to that most adorable and silly song that will give you the Power of Motivation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGoGwlNmZUQ 

Trigger Warnings: None.

#C3: Inuyashiki: Last Hero

Summary:

Ichirou Inuyashiki is a 58-year-old family man who is going through a difficult time in his life. Though his frequent back problems are painful, nothing hurts quite as much as the indifference and distaste that his wife and children have for him. Despite this, Ichirou still manages to find solace in Hanako, an abandoned Shiba Inu that he adopts into his home. However, his life takes a turn for the worse when a follow-up physical examination reveals that Ichirou has stomach cancer and only three months to live; though he tries to be strong, his family's disinterest causes an emotional breakdown. Running off into a nearby field, Ichirou embraces his dog and weeps—until he notices a strange figure standing before him.

Suddenly, a bright light appears and Ichirou is enveloped by smoke and dust. When he comes to, he discovers something is amiss—he has been reborn as a mechanized weapon wearing the skin of his former self. Though initially shocked, the compassionate Ichirou immediately uses his newfound powers to save a life, an act of kindness that fills him with happiness and newfound hope.

However, the origins of these strange powers remain unclear. Who was the mysterious figure at the site of the explosion, and are they as kind as Ichirou when it comes to using this dangerous gift?

Propaganda:

This show is nowadays remembered for referencing One Piece and its obvious CGI, but it’s so much more than that. Inuyashiki is a beautiful, dark, dramatic exploration of humanity, showcasing the brightest good that humans are capable of and the most horrific evil. It seriously explores both extremes, and it forces the audience to solemnly watch every step of the way.

It also has an AMAZINGLY badass OP and a beautifully sad ED, perfectly encapsulating the duality of the show itself.

Trigger Warnings: Animal Cruelty/Death, Flashing Lights, Graphic Depictions of Cruelty/Violence/Gore, Rape/Non-Con, Suicide

When reblogging and adding your own propaganda, please tag me @best-underrated-anime so that I’ll be sure to see it.

If you want to criticize one of the shows above to give the one you’re rooting for an advantage, then do so constructively. I do not tolerate groundless hate or slander on this blog. If I catch you doing such a thing in the notes, be it in the tags or reblogs, I will block you.

Know one of the shows above and not satisfied with how it’s presented in this tournament? Just fill up this form with your revisions, and I’ll consider adapting those changes.

New: Starting round 5, screenshots will be included in the poll post. You can submit screenshots through the form linked above, or through here, via ask or dm.

Guidelines in submitting screenshots:

No NSFW or spoilery images.

Pick some good images please. Don’t send any blurry or pixelated ones.

You may send up to 9 screenshots, but not all may be used.

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

Shortly after news broke Monday of a fatal shooting at a private Christian Nashville elementary school, police said the suspect was transgender. This detail, according to trans people in the state, has poured fuel on an already combustive environment that has led many of them to fear for their safety.

Police say Audrey Hale, who was killed by responding officers, fatally shot three 9-year-old students and three staffers at The Covenant School. Though police have said there is no known motive for the shooting, some conservatives have blamed the shooting on the suspect’s gender identity.

Within 10 minutes of police saying that the suspect was transgender, the hashtag #TransTerrorism trended on Twitter. Around the same time, Republican lawmakers — including Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, and conservative firebrand Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga. — insinuated in social media posts that the shooter’s gender identity played a role in the shooting. And by Tuesday morning, the cover of the Rupert Murdoch-owned New York Post read: “Transgender killer targets Christian school.”

“We are terrified for the LGBTQ community here,” Kim Spoon, a trans activist based in Knoxville, Tennessee, said. “More blood’s going to be shed, and it’s not going to be shed in a school.”

Denise Sadler, a drag performer who is transgender, said she had already hired four armed guards before Monday’s shooting to secure a drag show she is hosting at a gay bar in Nashville this weekend. Following the anti-trans rhetoric spawned by the shooting, Sadler said she is now planning to hire eight.

“You don’t know if [the shooter’s gender identity] is going to trigger a community of people who already hated us to come and try to shoot us to prove a point,” Sadler said. “At the end of the day, there’s a lot of hurt going on, there’s a lot of anger going on, there’s a lot of confusion going on.”

During a press conference Tuesday, Nashville Police Chief John Drake said a motive for the shooting was still unknown. The day prior, however, his response when asked if Hale’s identity was connected to the motive left the door open to speculation.

“There is some theory to that,” Drake said. “We’re investigating all the leads.”

It is also unclear how police knew that the suspect was transgender.

Trans men are assigned female at birth and identify as men, while trans women are assigned male at birth and identify as women. When asked Monday whether Hale was a trans man or trans woman, Drake said “woman,” though Hale’s LinkedIn account and interviews with those who knew Hale indicate otherwise.

Bill Campbell, the headmaster of The Covenant School from 2004 to 2008, said Hale attended the school as a child in 2005 and 2006 and identified as female during that time. As an adult, though, it appears Hale may not have identified as female. Hale’s LinkedIn page, which has since been removed, states that Hale used “he” and “him” pronouns. And a friend of Hale’s, Averianna Patton, who said Hale messaged her shortly before the shooting, said Hale signed the message “Aubrey (Aiden),” using Hale’s given name along with a traditionally male name.

Aislinn Bailey, the acting president of Tri-Cities Transgender, a trans-led support and advocacy group based in Johnson City, Tennessee, said her initial reaction to news that the suspect was transgender was fear.

“I knew that as soon as anyone mentioned that, it was immediately going to become the center focus instead of what should be the focus, and that’s gun violence in this country,” Bailey said.

She condemned the choice by police to release information about the suspect’s gender identity when they did not appear certain about it.

“I think it was unethical and highly suspect that information like that, which they had to have known could cause backlash on the trans community — releasing information like that without it being verified, that’s unconscionable as far as I’m concerned,” Bailey said.

She added, “We were already fearing for our lives. Now, it’s even worse.”

Over the last several years, historic numbers of bills targeting LGBTQ people have been introduced in state legislatures across the country, including in Tennessee’s. This year, state lawmakers filed more than 400 such bills — more than half of them targeting trans people specifically — according to the American Civil Liberties Union and a separate group of researchers who are tracking the flow of legislation.

So far this year, Tennessee lawmakers passed two bills targeting LGBTQ people: A first-of-its-kind law that will criminalize some drag performances takes effect Saturday, and another that will ban gender-affirming care for the state’s minors becomes effective July 1.

Nathan Higdon, the chief financial officer of Knoxville Pride Center, is helping organize protests against the new drag law in Nashville and Knoxville this upcoming weekend. Higdon said that while he and other organizers are “scared shitless” that the conservative backlash over the shooter’s suspected gender identity will prompt violence, they’re going forward with the events as planned.

“The people who hate us are always going to hate us,” Higdon said. “We can’t not do these things. We just can’t not show up.”

Threats and attacks of violence directed at the LGBTQ community have spiked recently, with drag performances becoming a particularly popular target.

Last year, there were at least 140 incidents of protests and threats directed at drag events, which have deep roots in the queer community, according to the LGBTQ advocacy group GLAAD.

Just last week, one man was arrested and another was left bloodied as dozens of people protested a Drag Story Hour event in New York City, and on Sunday, an Ohio church alleged on its Instagram account that it had been vandalized with Molotov cocktails after advertising that it would be hosting a Drag Story Hour event in April.

Jace Wilder, the education director for the Tennessee Equality Project, a Nashville-based LGBTQ advocacy group, said the suspect’s gender identity “does not change the horror of what they did no matter their reasoning.”

“It is unfair and inappropriate to ask trans people to speak on this person and the lives they took,” Wilder said in a message to NBC News. “We, just like all other Tennesseans, are mourning. There is no politics I could possibly care about right now when children are dead. End of story. I pray and will stand with the families of all the victims and for peace for our community and I hope we can all show up for them and each other in this time.”

[kafkaoftherubble]

Ok so the idea for dear emperor is that in schools (elementary school, not higher education) kids are treated like crap and are taught nationalist propaganda. They're at an era where people are vaguely aware it's propaganda so everyone dislikes the royal family a little. Basically, the school system is just absolute trash because the royal family keeps trying to change it to turn kids into hardcore monarchists.

Ira never attended elementary school because he lived out on a farm. He attended a military school and later a college, but those were both in adulthood so he didn't get the horrible treatment and abuse of elementary school.

Because of this, Ira cannot understand Edith's desire to change the school system either. All he attended was college and he's best friends with Volker, so he doesn't understand how Volker's family could've created such a horrible school system when they seem to be such nice people.

Because Ira missed out on this universal experience of going to school, he's alienated from part of Edith's views and refuses to see it her way because he's too stubborn in his belief that Volker is perfect

Sorry for my tardiness!

Ah, so an elementary school that keeps having to revise the syllabi to prop up the national narratives du jour? And yet everyone knows that it's just propagandist rewrites. It's historical revisionism based entirely on which narrative helps the royal family (instead of new evidence and interpretations uncovered by continuous historical studies and findings; these are two kinds of historical revisionism)!

Very interesting! I can totally imagine that. In fact, I don't have to imagine. Such a thing is happening in (some states in) the U.S., India [1] [2] [3], Japan, and even my own country. China has its own whole thing. And the Philippines has its own thing, and... really, I kinda wonder which country isn't guilty of this, haha. (I suppose the more pressing issue is the severity of it.)

But this makes me wonder about the degree of freedom in Volker's country. How free are the people to criticize the government?

Have they been free before, but are now less free? My anecdotal impression is that losing a right you used to have often generates way more resentment and urgency to act than never possessing that right, to begin with. The latter is usually a lot more slow-burning than the first as social movements.

Are there other countries around Volker's Country by which information, knowledge, and ideas trade? And I do mean free trading of ideas/the freedom of ideas. While social movements can be homebrew for sure, seeds of ideas have to come somewhere, and across history, these ideas are often cosmopolitan in nature. They are not "grown out of one person or a few in a local and never escaping it to other areas." Instead, ideas are traded across regions, cities, and countries, and they altogether build something grander that can then also be spread to other parts of the world—before assimilating and adapting for local needs. I ask, because Brandi specifically touts democracy. Whence did it come? The best and most viable ideas are built by many instead of one, so I kinda wanna know how an idea like democracy comes to thrive in Volker's Country. (Is it via some books? Some manifestos from far-away land? Some salons within the country?)

There are probably other questions that can flesh out this particular aspect. Why I thought about it is this: the target of these nationalist ideas is children first and foremost, right?

When nationalist revisions happen in education, the ones who shout the loudest are the adults who know what's up. Because these adults can read the curricula, compare it to their own realities/experience/history, and realize it's crap. Kids, however, are statistically less predisposed to do so. They are young and less experienced about the world than an adult. They may also be sheltered from reality—not a fault, because children are supposed to be sheltered in some ways for their development anyway (ex: who the fuck thinks it's good to expose children to war or backbreaking labor?). Their own history is also just starting to grow, being young and all.

However, since you mentioned "everyone knows the education system is trying to make kids hardcore nationalists," I assume that "everyone" does indeed include the kids themselves.

And how would these kids know that their education is shit? The most plausible way I can imagine is "because most of the adults around them tell 'em about it." But for most adults to be able to talk about these things would imply a certain degree of freedom of speech. After all, if only a few kids knew that their education is crap—because their parents told them behind closed doors or because they saw some events with their own eyes—then it wouldn't be "everyone," innit?

Hence my question above!

So yea, just some asides I couldn't help but pursue for a bit hahaha. I hope it's useful for your worldbuilding or plot planning somewhat!

-----

Back to Ira and Edith!

Yes! I think the backstory you give makes a ton of causal sense!!!

Of course Edith would think of education reform! She was once its recipient, and therefore easily projects her lived experience under the system to the the kids of today. She knows the stakes of education because she's been through it. That awards her the necessary sensitivity—or at least, it gives her the potential to be sensitive.

I also like how Ira's personal relationship with Volker while studying influences much of his reluctance to "demonize" Volker.

There is a bit more stuff in your lore that can also add to why Ira doesn't want to see Volker as bad! You might have already known that while conceiving Ira's backstory (he's your baby after all! Hahahhaha), but just in case you missed it:

First, the military school. If I had to imagine a place where the most cynical anti-establishment people and the most diehard patriots will be spawned, I'd think a military school too. Patriotism directed either to the ideal of "the motherland" or to the ideal of "the ruler/royal family" is kinda required to be drilled into all soldiers because it will be important for their job.

Second, Ira's transformation from an illiterate kid to a literate soon-to-be governor. I can imagine how someone will see this transformation as a second wind worthy of gratitude. Imagine never knowing you could be good at art until someone gives you the chance, tutors you, supports you... and then finally awards you a position to do this secret talent you never knew existed in you. I imagine that is how Ira could feel, and it's only logical that he would then feel grateful and a sense of "I owe you." And why wouldn't it be directed to Volker?

Coupled that with Ira's own relationship with Volker's nephew: I assume, for now, that the young prince is a lot more noble and open-minded than his uncle despite also being a recipient of the current education system. Ira could then justify that there is no need for extreme/large-scale/sweeping education reform if the same system could produce someone like This Young Prince. "If the system is so bad, then why is This Young Prince coming out of it pretty good? Clearly, the problem is just Volker losing his touch with reality. The fault is a few individuals and not the system."

This will oppose Edith and Brandi's foundational stance, right? "The fault is in the system, beyond just a few individuals."

----

Honestly, I really wanna know how are you gonna resolve this tension between Ira and Edith now! Will either one of them have to be sacrificed for the other person's cause? Will Edith have to remove Ira for her goal? Will Ira have to remove Edith for his goal? Will they cause a civil war? Will there be a compromise?

Such exciting scenarios!!!

What an exciting story you have there,  π!!! GAH

I gleefully await more Dear Emperor lore from you, brutha!!!

KEEP 'EM COMING!

[bieups]

11월 // November

Wow I totally forgot about this month's calendar because there's basically nothing going on...so I'm adding in a couple of socially important dates (to some of us) that aren't shown on holiday calendars~

8일 - 입동 / Ipdong: one of the 24 seasonal divisions, this day marks the beginning of winter~

16일 - 대학수학능력시험 (수능) / College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT) aka the Suneung: 3rd (final) year high school students & graduates take this exam on the 3rd Thursday of November and it's a huge event. The exam starts at 8:40am and many schools & businesses open later to reduce morning traffic (my school will skip 1st period). There are more buses & subway trains running in the morning, and police have been known to escort test takers so everyone can arrive on time. Planes don't fly overhead during the English listening section to prevent distractions. Family members, teachers, and other high school students often stand outside the schools to cheer on the students as they go inside in the morning & when they come out in the evening. As for the test itself, there are 6 sections: Korean (국어), Math (수학), Korean History (한국사), English (영어), another foreign language/classical Chinese (제2외국어/한문), and other subjects (탐구) where students choose two options from one category: social studies (political science, ethics, etc.), sciences (biology, chemistry, etc.), and vocational education (agriculture, industry, etc.; only for vocational school students). There are also some options/elective topics within other sections, like math & Korean. So the test isn't exactly the same for all students! Only History is mandatory, but most candidates take all the sections except another foreign language. Students decide which subjects/topics to take based on their university plans. Different schools/majors expect applicants to take different subjects. If you don't get a good score, you can retake it the next year.

20일 - 서울 사립초 추첨일 / Seoul Private Elementary School Lottery Day: In Seoul, private elementary schools use a lottery system for admissions and they all do the lottery on the same day. There are a bunch of rules around applying and how the actual lottery is done. Previously, parent & child had to attend the lottery in person, which meant you had to choose one school in the end, but this year I think it'll be online and parents can choose 3 schools? Anyway, due to the lottery, private elementary schools don't have class on this day!

22일 - 소설 / Soseol: one of the 24 seasonal divisions, the day snow begins to fall~

[queerprayers]

hello! i was wondering if you could expand on what you said about “evangelical christian homeschool survivors”. i found it interesting, since i’m close with quite a few people who fit that description, but never thought of it as something that harmful to someone

(i understand that you aren’t a professional source, for lack of a better term, but i would appreciate your thoughts! i hope you have a blessed and lovely day <3)

(re: this post)

Yes I can, beloved! And yep, I'm not a psychologist/researcher/etc., and also have not personally experienced this, but I've been close to people who have, and have heard a lot about it, so I'll give you what I have. This is USA-centric, as usual, because that's where my experience/knowledge comes from.

I do want to make clear that homeschooling is not in itself a bad thing, and there are many people, especially neurodivergent/disabled people, who have benefited immensely from being able to partially or fully have more freedom over their environment. Especially considering the state of the school system in some places, I don't blame any parent for wanting their kid to have a different experience. And looking at recent events like the "Don't Say Gay" bill in Florida, the importance of having a legal way to not send your child to a public school is, I think, important. Autonomy is a human right, and the origins of modern homeschooling were full of liberating ideas.

My sister was homeschooled for a year in elementary school, and it gave her a much needed break and an opportunity to explore learning techniques that worked better for her neurodivergences. When I dropped out of high school, we did consider finishing through homeschooling instead, and even though it didn't work out, if I was in a different situation it would have been a great opportunity. One of the girls I babysit is trans, and her identity is one of the reasons her parents don't feel comfortable sending her to a public school here.

Obviously if a family is religious and homeschooling, religion may play a part in education, just like if a student attended a religious private school. This also in itself is not a bad thing, in my opinion. Passing on tradition and morals to kids and educating your kid about your heritage and beliefs can be a really positive thing. I can totally see incorporating Christian ideas in an education without disrupting the education—for instance, a science lesson about the environment which includes the belief that God made the world and we have a duty to take care of it. It becomes a problem when the belief eclipses the science, I suppose (like creationism)—or when children aren't exposed to diverse ideas.

I don't think people realize how lax a lot of homeschooling laws are in the US. It's completely state-based, so I don't know how it is everywhere, but where I am it was insanely easy to take my sister out of school and, because my parents have high school degrees, basically say, "Trust me, we got this" and proceed to teach her whatever. Because my parents are generally sensible, intelligent people, and have experience in education, it went fine and she was prepared to go to the next grade, but I can't help wondering what would have happened if they weren't.

Because of that freedom, there are a lot of evangelicals/conservatives in the US who have taken their kids out of public schools (sometimes citing "evil secular gay agendas" and the like) and proceeded to teach their kids whatever—"whatever," in this case, being conspiracy theories, fundamentalism instead of science, patriarchal/racist/etc. social norms, and censorship/limited access to diversity of identity/opinion and actual history. You can find endless Christian homeschool resources online that are full of truly limiting and just plain wrong teachings, especially in regards to history and science.

There are numerous examples of going even further than this—someone I knew never went into too much detail (I gathered it was too traumatic to discuss), but did share experiences with me of an evangelical homeschool co-op (multiple families cooperating to homeschool their children together) that used emotionally and physically abusive punishments as well as all the normal brainwashing and manipulation, with zero supervision or consequences. There are so many examples of abused children not receiving help for so long because they were completely isolated from their peers and other adults, partially through homeschooling, and so were not noticed and weren't able to seek help.

It's a complicated situation, because I don't think homeschooling is ultimately the issue here. Lack of supervision is an issue, but ultimately the fault lies with the belief systems themselves. Obviously we can't stop people from believing things—public education and exposure to different beliefs is in my opinion one of the best tools we have to help kids get out these communities and become better people, and when that's taken away, of course these kids grow up either believing exactly what their parents believe, or completely traumatized and spending the rest of their lives deconstructing and undoing the damage.

Again, the idea of homeschooling a child and incorporating Christianity into that isn't inherently bad/traumatic, and while I think lack of exposure to diverse beliefs is harmful, Christian homeschooling can include that exposure and I'm sure it can be done very well. But there's so much abuse, neglect, radicalism, excessive control, and grooming that goes under the radar in these families/communities, and we have to talk about it! I don't know if I'm the best person to do that, but maybe I can help start a conversation or make people aware of the issue.

Some relevant articles/resources: (Content warnings for descriptions of abuse and related issues)

How Christian Schools and Homeschooling Teach Supremacist Conspiracies by Audrey Clare Farley (Ms. Magazine)

The Homeschool Apostates by Kathryn Joyce (The American Prospect)

Former homeschooler on the Duggar family's horrifying fundamentalist "education": "It's literal rape culture" by Jenny Kutner (Salon)

Traumatic Homeschooling: How Evangelicals Use Education to Totalize by R.K. Stollar

"I broke away from a strict homeschooling community cult" (BBC)

A warning on homeschooling by Elizabeth Bartholet (The Harvard Gazette)

Coalition for Responsible Home Education

Kitchen Table Cult (podcast)

Homeschooling: Indoctrination or Liberation? by Andrewism (YouTube)

Homeschooling by Ex-Fundie Diaries (YouTube playlist)

r/Homeschool Recovery (has a ton of discussions and testimonials)

<3 Johanna

[truthundressing]

I live in the US and ever since I read angus thongs and perfect snogging in middle school I’ve wanted to understand how British school works. I think we can exchange some information here 🤣 ok so in the US it’s like this: every year you’re in a “grade”, and the school year starts in late August or early September and ends in late May or early June, with a two week break around Christmas that they try to pretend is secular. The first “grade” is “Kindergarten” which you typically start at age 5, so usually everyone is having the same birthday over the course of the school year, but not everyone’s birthday falls just so, and some people skip or repeat grades. After Kindergarten the grades go up like normal i.e. “first grade” “second grade” etc. and the grades are divided up into “schools”. There’s usually elementary (K-5), middle (6-8), and high (9-12) school, but a lot of places alter the delineations or add more. For example, I had intermediate school (5-6), middle school (7-8), junior high (9-10), and high school (11-12) but that’s a bit ridiculous. Then once you graduate 12th grade, you get your high school diploma, and you can go to what we call college at that point, which is “higher education”. There are requirements to “get in” to college, and it costs money to attend. You usually have to take some racist tests and get good scores and send your scores off with applications to colleges and pray that you get accepted by a college that doesn’t cost a million dollars an hour. You are required by law to go to grade school (K-12) but if you drop out you can take a test called the GED to prove you Know Enough and it’s the equivalent of a high school diploma but you don’t have to suffer in actual high school. So how does British school work? I’m thrilled to find out wtf gcse means 🤩 lmao <3

ohhhhh my god ok yes !! lets exchange!!this makes so much sense but i still have so many questions skdjsk i have 2 american cousins so i feel like i should know way more than i do😭😭.

so with the classes you take, how does that work do you just get to choose as many as you want or do you have required classes? and what is an AP class, like is it more advanced? and do ppl take them to help with college applications or smthn? also (sorry im just so curious😭) what is a gpa? like... i have never understood how that works or why its needed lmao.

ok so with english schools we have 'years' but you start at age 4 in reception in primary school. After reception you start year 1, 2 etc and primary school is reception to year 6 (age 4-11). Then in year 6 (age 11) you take these exams called SATs (for maths, english comprehension and english grammar/spelling) which are to help determine your grade targets once you start secondary school, but also if you apply to private secondary schools or even some public schools getting good SATs results helps you get in.

So then secondary school is age 11 to 16 or 18 (depending lmao its a bit complicated). At 16 you do GCSE's which are exams to help you get into sixth form or college (not equivalent to college in the US). At 14 you can choose the subjects you want to take for GCSE's which again is based on your targets. So for example everyone has to take english, maths and at least one science but i had quite high targets so had to follow the baccalaureate where i was required to take all three sciences, a language and either geography or history but then could also choose 2 others (i took food technology and computer science😁). Then you study just those subjects for the next two years, with the exception of P.E. and R.E (religious education🙄) which everyone has to take up to age 16 but you don't have to take the exam for.

Phew ok😅then at 16 you go to sixth form or college. Sixth form is either its own building or part of a secondary school and you have to take either A-levels or BTECs, both are qualifications but you need A-levels to get into university. BTEC's are more career focused i believe, so things like engineering, construction, media, IT etc. A-levels are basically just your usual schools subjects and you can take 3 (sometimes 4) and then when you apply to uni they have specific requirements. Like if you want to study medicine you need an alevel in biology and chemistry for example. Then colleges are only for 16-18yr olds, they offer courses that are again more career focused, for example by 17yr old brother is in college atm doing photography.

The school year is pretty similar here i think, we have a 6 week summer holiday, 2 weeks at christmas and 2 at easter but we also have half-terms which is basically a week off in the middle of each term (so in october, february and may/june). University is completely different though bc we dont get the half-terms :(

I thinkkkkk thats everything😅honestly who decided to make its so comlplex skdjsksl and i didnt even get into the types of schools like private/religious etc😅😅

ALSO angus, thongs and perfect snogging is an iconic read😌

[2d-dreams]

Hi, happy WBW! (I am @writeblr-of-my-own, this is my main and apparently I can't switch them).

For this question, what is the school system like in your world? What kind of schools there are? If magic is present, is it taught?

Happy wbw!! And thank you!!!!

Firstly, Flatland is a non-magic world of geometric figures, so no magic schools, aw! And I will not yet go mention Exwhylia/Ypwherenia/Zetwhatia because whooole other thing so just focusing on Flatland for these yea yea.

Schools are divided according to Configuration, where the number of sides directly affects career opportunities and time spent in school. More sides, more time in school and more opportunities. Women/Lines, of course, do not go to school, and are usually taught Feeling and the Line Code [AKA good manners/how to avoid being killed by the government] at home. There have been cases where they are sent to Elementary schools to take the Ladies Program [essentially what they would otherwise learn at home, or to distract them until old enough to marry], but this is usually because a feminine relative/mother is unavailable.

The types of schools are, in order of class from lower to higher:

Rudimentaries, Elementary, High, and University.

These are based not on age, but on what classes are allowed in them. I'll start with the one mentioned in the book.

Elementary School

Elementary schools are for triangles above 20 degrees both Isosceles and Equilateral, though making obvious distinctions between the two. They primarily teach the Art of Feeling, using chained living Isosceles men, refered to as "specimens" as instruments for teaching the Art. They teach basic planiturth-elementary levels of math, biology, reading, a grossly modified version of history, and the bases of the Flatland doctrine of Configuration's importance. Isosceles stop attending at 11-12 years old, Equilaterals at 15-16. These schools are generally funded by the government, free or inexpensive, though this isn't a lot to say when you consider the triangular wages.

Rudimentary School

Rudimentary schools [also known as rudies in the Isosceles slang] are exclusively for Isosceles triangles and also free, though not obligatory for those of higher degrees, whose fathers have enough brains to teach their sons their craft. Isosceles come after finishing their Elementary schooling. Those under 20 degrees arrive too. Here they are taught whatever skills they need for their future jobs, with the things taught varying depending on the types of jobs available, along with generalized subjects like obeying orders, working in factories or introductory military training. All men with enough degrees to think [those above 20 degrees] can choose their jobs or what classes to take, but those below have their curriculum, life and job chosen for them the moment they slide in.

Violence against or between the students is common and occasionally encouraged, as Isosceles are considered subhuman or pests of which there is an extreme abundance anyway.

High School

These schools are attended by Squares and any shape of greater side count. These are private, and some are extremely prestigious and expensive. Some classes are still restricted to certain side milestones, mostly Hexagons and Dodecagons. These go beyond basics, teach a more accurate [Still modified!] history of Flatland, Sight Recognition instead of Feeling [in many, Feeling at school is a great offense], pay special attention to mathematics and are left at 18 years old. Also if you don't pass the Sight Recognition exam, you get killed or become a social outcast. Hooray!

University gets a passing mention because, being accessible exclusively to Squares and above, doesn't bring anything interesting. It's just University.

Other Systems/Miscellaneous Stuff

High Polygons and Circles are too good for even the most luxurious schools, so they tend to receive private tutoring.

Circles of the High Priest or Chief class receive a special education program at a Circular University where they learn of the greatest secrets of Flatland, like the heretics of the Gospel of 3D and the secret uses of color.

Irregulars can go to school under strict supervision, but most parents would rather hide them until they can legally be murdered.

In the non-civilized areas, education, like childcare, is often communal. This is seen even in the Degraded Isosceles worker communities or rural villages, separated as they are from the other Shapes, where the men work all day and the women have little else to do.