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loveemagicpeace · 7 months

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Synastry & Composite chart Part 2 🍬💍🍒

🦋Composite Chart🦋

☁️ASC : How the relationship started & how others / environment see you

☁️ASC ruler : Area of focused expression

☀️Sun : Indicates what brought you together and what goal you have in life

☀️Aspects to Sun : Shows purpose of the relationship supported or not

🌙Moon : Emotional connection & the soul of the relationship

🌱Mercury: communication, thinking and how they fit together in mindset

🍒Venus: how u two love and your love language together

🥨Mars: drive, anger & power, sexual attraction

🔥Jupiter: luck , gift, wisdom, traveling, exploration, growth

🪐Saturn: karmic things, honesty, responsibility, maturity of the relationship

❄️Uranus: difference, uniqueness, unpredictability, rebellion

🫀Pluto: intensity, depth, transformation

🧚🏼‍♀️Neptune: dream, fantasy, confusion, obscurity, illusion, lies

🍬Northnode : Indicates in what direction you should grow as couple

💕1st, 5th and 7th : Important houses in Composite

✨Aspects✨

Conjunction : Binding force, depending on the planets combined

Sextile : Harmonic union, comforting

Square : Challenge, No break-ups when you understand each other

Trine : Harmonic union, cooperating well together

Opposition : More prone to break-ups, attraction

💍7th houe shows what’s needed to make the relationship work.

☀️Sun : Need for balance in ego’s inorder to make it work. It’s a good placement for marriage, but it can quickly evolve into becoming open enemies if you are not willing to compromise and listen to each other.

🌙Moon : Emotional involvement is a strong theme. Giving security to each other is needed aswell as balancing the emotions of both people. Safe place and home of relationship.

🌱Mercury : Equally sharing is a theme. Communication is strong, but also the point that needs to be balanced inorder for it to work.

🍒Venus : A very good placement for all love relationships aswell as business related relationships. It’s important to find balance in giving & receiving.

🦋Venus & Neptune placed within the 7th house can indicate a relationship where it will feel so familiar, it’ll feel as though it is unreal and goes beyond this realm. Soulmate energy, especially in tribes, but any aspect. It could be hard to stay angry at one another.

🍬Neptune Conjunct Juno can indicate a twin flame/ soulmate energy. It could also feel as though you’ve been with this person before within past lives if you believe in that kind of thing. The connection will not be easy to let go of and will have something for the natives to learn.

🫐North Node in the 12th house can indicate a connection that may feel like a spiritual connection or could feel as though there is a significant purpose for the connection itself. Both can have dreams about each other that may reveal things about the relationship itself.

🥐Jupiter is in Conjunction to Saturn in a composite chart, it is normal to expect that you will never forget the connection whether it’s romantic or platonic. It could be an indication of staying together for a very long time or for even a short amount of time.

🐚Synastry chart🐚

💕Venus & mars are the most important indicators in relationship because Venus represents love and mars represent drive and passion and when the couple don't have aspects with the venus and mars. It's hard for relationship to survive.

🎡Moon square Mars -It can be challenging aspect because it suggests an emotionally intense nature. Two people can get along very well at one time, and hate each other intensely at other times. Sometimes they can't find a common point of emotions and energy.

🌁Asc square Venus- many times it indicates that when you see a person for the first time, you don't like them. Energy can be very strange and challenging. Later, emotions can develop and it becomes more calming.

🌆Pluto & mars in 4th house synastry -it shows the home you want to create with the person, how you want to live and how you see their family and they see you. Pluto can represent a great transformation that the person brings to your home, and you yourself can transform a lot through this relationship. You can also see how you really want to live with this. Many times, however, the pluto indicates that the mother of the 4th house person can be intense, mysterious and possibly treacherous. A lot of times she can do things in secret. Mars, on the other hand, can represent some internal conflict and more direct energy. That you may notice right away whether their family accepts you or not. Both planets together can represent a more combative side of the family and that many times you feel that things are going too far. Many times mom can be the reason for a fight between you.

🌱Moon in 10th house synastry- can be good or not. Depending on aspects. It can lead to responsible, serious emotions, but at the same time emotions can only come from success, career, practicality and you can feel that in this relationship and passion. You may have reservations before fully expressing yourself to the person and you may have the feeling that the person does not understand how you feel.

🛼Venus in 12th house- a spiritual connection, maybe a love meant to be found. You can meet a person in interesting circumstances. Many times, however, a person may be covering up their real relationships from before or certain secrets about money. A person may come forward in a completely different way than they really are. Love can be covered up, it can mean that no one really knows what is really going on. Sometimes it can lead to the person having you, delusions, or wanting to have you in any way.

✨Lilith in 12th house -lilith shows where the relationship can be the darkest and how the person wants to control you. This connection can bring about dramatic change and transformation. Lilith person may just seem to be out of control in their emotional expression. This can seem overwhelming and dramatic for House 12 person to deal with.

🪐North node conj saturn- karmic relationship means that you have a mission with this person in this life, which you have to complete.

🥨A lot of aspects with saturn means that this relationship is not necessarily something that you want, that will bring you something passionate or happy. It can mean a lot of responsibilities and lessons that can be very difficult. Maybe a relationship in which you can feel trapped.

🦋If relationship don’t have any 1st, 7th, 8th house it can mean that the relationship will not be so successful and you will always feel like you made the wrong decision.

🎸For personal readings u can sign up here: https://snipfeed.co/bekylibra 🎸

-Rebekah🧚🏼‍♀️🍬🐚

#astrology #energy #zodiac signs #planets #astrological houses #synastry chart #composite chart

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too-fond-to-be-fearful · 9 months

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Been thinking recently about the goings-on with Duolingo & AI, and I do want to throw my two cents in, actually.

There are ways in which computers can help us with languages, certainly. They absolutely should not be the be-all and end-all, and particularly for any sort of professional work I am wholly in favour of actually employing qualified translators & interpreters, because there's a lot of important nuances to language and translation (e.g. context, ambiguity, implied meaning, authorial intent, target audience, etc.) that a computer generally does not handle well. But translation software has made casual communication across language barriers accessible to the average person, and that's something that is incredibly valuable to have, I think.

Duolingo, however, is not translation software. Duolingo's purpose is to teach languages. And I do not think you can be effectively taught a language by something that does not understand it itself; or rather, that does not go about comprehending and producing language in the way that a person would.

Whilst a language model might be able to use probability & statistics to put together an output that is grammatically correct and contextually appropriate, it lacks an understanding of why, beyond "statistically speaking, this element is likely to come next". There is no communicative intent behind the output it produces; its only goal is mimicking the input it has been trained on. And whilst that can produce some very natural-seeming output, it does not capture the reality of language use in the real world.

Because language is not just a set of probabilities - there are an infinite array of other factors at play. And we do not set out only to mimic what we have seen or heard; we intend to communicate with the wider world, using the tools we have available, and that might require deviating from the realm of the expected.

Often, the most probable output is not actually what you're likely to encounter in practice. Ungrammatical or contextually inappropriate utterances can be used for dramatic or humorous effect, for example; or nonstandard linguistic styles may be used to indicate one's relationship to the community those styles are associated with. Social and cultural context might be needed to understand a reference, or a linguistic feature might seem extraneous or confusing when removed from its original environment.

To put it briefly, even without knowing exactly how the human brain processes and produces language (which we certainly don't), it's readily apparent that boiling it down to a statistical model is entirely misrepresentative of the reality of language.

And thus a statistical model is unlikely to be able to comprehend and assist with many of the difficulties of learning a language.

A statistical model might identify that a learner misuses some vocabulary more often than others; what it may not notice is that the vocabulary in question are similar in form, or in their meaning in translation. It might register that you consistently struggle with a particular grammar form; but not identify that the root cause of the struggle is that a comparable grammatical structure in your native language is either radically different or nonexistent. It might note that you have trouble recalling a common saying, but not that you lack the cultural background needed to understand why it has that meaning. And so it can identify points of weakness; but it is incapable of addressing them effectively, because it does not understand how people think.

This is all without considering the consequences of only having a singular source of very formal, very rigid input to learn from, unable to account for linguistic variation due to social factors. Without considering the errors still apparent in the output of most language models, and the biases they are prone to reproducing. Without considering the source of their data, and the ethical considerations regarding where and how such a substantial sample was collected.

I understand that Duolingo wants to introduce more interactivity and adaptability to their courses (and, I suspect, to improve their bottom line). But I genuinely think that going about it in this way is more likely to hinder than to help, and wrongfully prioritises the convenience of AI over the quality and expertise that their existing translators and course designers bring.

#alright getting off my soapbox now #apologies if this is not particularly coherent - i was very much working through my thoughts as I was writing #but yeah tl;dr i am not huge on LLMs especially for language education and am deeply disappointed by the way things are trending #anyways if anyone knows any learning tools that are similarly structured i'd appreciate the recommendation #being able to easily do a little bit of study on a regular basis helped me a lot and i've yet to find anything similar #duolingo #language #language learning

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slavonicrhapsody · 1 month

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honestly i think the most that can be assumed from hornsent wearing the caterpillar mask is that hes okay with the jarring process, since it has such heavy connections to bonny village+the gaols, plus i think itd make an interesting parallel to marika where you have these two traumatized characters who lost everything to horrific acts of violence whod them go on to condone OTHER horrific acts of violence just because it happened to The Other Guy (hornsent losing his family to the crusade, being okay with jarring shamans cuz its an important ritual of his people and he desperately struggles to retain any last connection he can to them; marika losing her family to jarring, sending messmer to crusade against the hornsent without caring about his methods just so shed have her vengeance)

theres even something to be drawn about marika from how hornsents quest ends ("if miquellas redemption would quell the desire for revenge i feel, then i dont think i want him to redeem anything after all" <-poorly summarized dialogue lmao) wherein, combined with the shaman village lore, we can draw the parallel that marika didnt *want* her thirst for vengeance slaked, because much like how killing messmer didnt bring back any of hornsents people, becoming a god was equally disatisfying for marika. in much the same way marika tramples over corpses to become a god, hornsent metaphorically walks over messmers corpse to try and take his place as crusader, this time against the people of the erdtree.

it also paints messmer in a REALLY interesting light. hornsent is so consumed by revenge he doesnt focus on anything else beyond a nostalgic reminiscence. miquellas goal, as told to him, is to give the hornsent a chance at peace and to rebuild, and hornsent would rather sacrifice that to feed his own flames of vengeance. similarly we can assume marika never told messmer the location of bonny village or the gaols because theyre untouched by the crusade, despite definitely knowing where they are, and the gaols indicate that even after bonny village stopped sending jars, they remained in use by utilizing prisoners (potentially even prisoners of war+deserting soldiers) for at least SOME time before we find them. indicating that also, to marika, it was the death that was important. the fear, and the killing, and the slaughter. messmer by contrast sets up a clinic for the jarred shamans, is capable of being convinced against crusading and burning certain areas such as salza arguing in favor of sparing rauh, and has a library dedicated to the people hes genociding that stores information about their culture and anatomy (judging by the models he has hanging in the storeroom).

messmer, who places himself symbolically between the hornsent and marika to spare her the shame of being the face of the crusade, committing atrocities out of sympathy and love for his mother, vs hornsent who desires to commit atrocities out of an overwhelming need for revenge, vs marika who DID commit atrocities for revenge and desired them to never stop even if it meant losing the things she cared about (despite initially showering messmer with blessings and affection and special physiks, eventually she stopped saying anything at all about the war without grace or honor, and only miquellas prying reveals it all again, including the son she loved and left behind)

like UGHHHH i LOVEEE when characters have foils and you can use the patchwork of lore to help fill in the blanks about everyone theyre connected to

oh Hornsent and Marika are ABSOLUTELY meant to be parallels… both are on revenge quests where their goal is to keep killing and killing until every single person related to their enemy is dead. Marika has Messmer burn the Hornsent cities to the ground in vengeance for her murdered village, but most of these people were civilians, farmers… familes and their children who had probably never even seen a jar — their only crime was to be part of the same society.

Hornsent, though he despises Marika and Messmer for burning his family to death, does exactly the same thing that she did: he vows to kill Marika and ALL her kin, and he goes after us even if we helped him simply because we are one of Marika’s chosen. It doesn’t matter that we gave him scorpion stew and that I’m sure deep down he wants to like us, we were always marked for death in his eyes just because of who we are.

This is exactly the purpose of the caterpillar mask… feeling any guilt or regret about his actions would get in the way of Hornsent’s sworn mission. Hornsent having this mask implies that he had some knowledge of what the potentates did and sought out their attire for their violent rituals as a touchstone for his own violent quest. A lot of people act as if the jarring process was something the entire hornsent population explicitly believed in and supported, and it’s true that the practice is basically built into the society’s entire prison system, but the ritual slaughter and jar worship are implied to be esoteric practices carried out only by specific groups of people… I highly doubt this is a practice that every Hornsent knows of intimately and enthusiastically supports. And we know some did explicitly oppose the jar rituals; the greater potentate who wrote the cookbooks we find was disgusted by the practices of his village. So Hornsent finding and wearing the potentate mask is like him knowingly embracing the darkest, most violent parts of his society in order to use them against their enemies.

Messmer’s position in this story really is interesting because with Hornsent’s quest, he’s set up to be like his “final boss,” the guy who cruelly slaughtered his people and called them savages. But when we actually get to Messmer, he’s so much more subdued then we’d have thought, like an apathetic shell of his former self… he doesn’t even verbally acknowledge Hornsent’s presence, like he means nothing to him. The war against the Hornsent was never Messmer’s war, it was Marika’s. Messmer carried out this violence in vengeance for his mother and her village, but when Marika stops speaking to him altogether, the war starts to feel more and more like pointless violence, like he’s just going through the motions.

I won’t go so far as to say that Messmer had much sympathy for the Hornsent he was murdering; the specimen storehouse was more of a project said to be created by his fire knights who were uncomfortable about letting an entire society’s knowledge go up in flames (but chose to burn it anyway). but he absolutely has a different attitude than his mother… he feels more like her tool… used up and discarded

and lol no worries

#asks #elden ring #hornsent #marika #messmer

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sarahisslytherin · 6 months

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•❣•୨୧ 𝙙𝙧𝙪𝙣𝙠 𝙖𝙨 𝙙𝙧𝙪𝙣𝙠 ୨୧•❣•

felix catton x reader

summary: after seeing felix continuously surrounded by girls at his birthday party, you try your hardest not to get drunk on jealousy.

contains: jealousy, angst, fluff? oh, and like a million references to drinking.

a/n: this one's for all my fellow retroactive jealousy girlies out there! yey mental illness! wrote most of this at 2am so don't mind the elusive ending.

word count: 0.8k

the cicadas have been droning on for what feels like an eternity as you wait for felix beneath the minotaur statue at the maze’s heart. the inky sky above you stretches on beyond the garden walls, fractured by an array of white-hot stars. you cross your arms, tap your heel briskly against the earth, indicating your frustration to no one but yourself. all night you’d watched girl after girl fawn over felix, linking their arms into his own, batting their lashes with an evident goal. you couldn’t watch any longer, stomping away towards the maze, wishing for nothing more than to get so lost you would never be found. nevertheless, you have been.

“so this is where you’d disappeared to.” felix sighs, golden angel wings glimmering in the moonlight. “i’ve been looking for you all over.”

“surprised you even noticed i’d gone.” you scoff.

felix purses his lips. “i’m sensing some tension. what have i done now, hm?”

he cocks his head at that, a confused look about his features. he holds up an offering, a bottle of fine wine he’s clearly been helping himself to. you refuse it, try teasing him to forget your emotional turmoil, but it comes out all wrong. “wouldn’t you rather get drunk with your fan club?”

felix wastes no time towering above you, a gentle hand clasping your chin, a soft pair of lips pressing your own. “are you jealous, love?” he asks, and you can practically hear his smirk. “this has to be cutest thing. sure, maybe they were a little enthusiastic, but you know i only have eyes for you.”

“oh, hush!” you whine, swatting his hand away. “why don’t you go bother one of your girlfriends.” you know you’re being petty, but you can’t bring yourself to care.

“i only have one.” he says, voice gravelly and stern. “and don’t you forget it.”

felix has grown to be well-versed in the art of comforting you. he knows you often feel insecure or not worth his time, a concept he will never truly grasp, in spite his best efforts. what he doesn’t know is the gut-wrenching feeling of imagining your lover leaving you for someone else. the knowledge that he loved someone else before you, who knows how many. you try to fight it, remind yourself this is a natural thing and in no way his fault.

“i’m sorry.” you click your tongue. “i don’t mean to be annoying or toxic.” your voice takes on an edge, a subtle quiver only a trained ear such as felix’s could detect.

“hey, none of that.” he playfully scolds, enveloping you in strong arms. “you’re the only girl for me, you know that. i’ll remind you as many times as you need.”

“why do i feel like this?” you asked. “you’re nothing but understanding and loyal.”

he gives you a warm smile, plants a kiss atop your head. “it’ll pass, love. trust me.” there’s a silence so heavy neither you knows how to break it.

“want a drink?” he asks, holding up the wine. felix smirks as he tucks a stray strand of hair behind your ear. perhaps a bit of humor will do the trick. “in a way you’re kind of an alcoholic, you know, only drunk on jealousy.”

you give him a roll of the eyes and a faux laugh. “at least i’m not an actual drunk.” you tease as you take the bottle from him.

“we all have our faults.” he jests. “you feel better?”

“sort of.” you sigh, but you realize it’s a lie as you start to spiral once again. you wonder if you’ll ever be able to harness those feelings of yours that lead you to this state. the jealousy that feeds you manufactured visions of felix`s past, one where he was happier with someone who wasn’t you. one where another person slept on your side of the bed, touched him the way you do. you know it isn’t real (not anymore), but the mind can be quite a convincing thing —

“love?” you hear felix say, and suddenly you’re on a staircase; your makeup is fresh, the night still young. “you look amazing!” he says proudly as he takes a drag of his cigarette. it’s the first he’s seen of you this evening, and he can’t stop himself from drinking in the sight before him. it was all in your head. now the party has just begun and your mind will not stray. the vicious cycle will not repeat itself. there will be no comforting, no drying of unnecessary tears tonight. you will focus on the man, the angel before you and steer clear of the maze of jealousy. yes, you will get drunk tonight, drunk on open-mouthed kisses, drunk on someone who wants you and only you.

#felix catton #felix catton x you #felix catton x reader #felix catton x y/n #saltburn #saltburn fanfiction

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blommp717 · 2 months

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I try to follow what you are saying, but I find your content confusing, and based on some of your repeat asks, I’m not the only one. The way you explain ND could use improvement, in my opinion. Maybe it’s because English isn’t your first language or because your understanding of ND is more theoretical than experiential—it seems like both. This is fine, but have you considered improving your English (or teaching in your mother tongue and paying a professional translation service?) and actually living in the ND state of being (not just reading or watching videos about it) before attempting to teach in a language you seem to struggle with? You could be more successful and less misleading.

There’s a lot of misunderstanding and inaccuracies in your writings, and your pinned post gives the impression that you aren’t the type of person to humbly take advice and cultivate self-awareness. Which in and of itself doesn't really reflect what one would expect from a guru or someone who has reached a profoundly deep nondualistic understanding and wishes to guide others. You seem bothered by critique or questions that you haven't already read the answer to. Maybe you could sincerely cultivate Self-awareness of how you are appearing to people who have genuinely experienced the ND state of being, not just an intellectual understanding, and those who have not. Maybe I’m wrong (I very well could be), but it seems like you read about it but haven’t actually had experiences beyond reading and thinking about it. It feels shallow and without real rooting in experience, not just theoretical knowledge. This is just a humble observation from another seeker on the path, so take it with many grains of salt. May you find equanimity and authentic awakening and be of genuine assistance to others. Peace.

I most definitely think you’re coming from a space of aggression instead of actually trying to inquire firstly, moving forward. I don’t really get how people asking questions is an indicator of me not knowing what I’m really talking about as opposed to people learning to accept how easy it is. Allot of these people come from LOA so they think there’s a process, they think there’s work to do, so having such a drastic shift will obviously not feel easy at first 🤭and secondly I’m baffled about the language comment, I have zero clue what makes you think that kind of stuff is okay to say to anyone, regardless of if it’s true or not, please seek some humanity and get it together. You don’t want to be saying all of that b.s to the wrong person. I reallllyy hope you don’t act like this in person with anyone.

Alright so, to what the actual focus of your text should have been.

If you notice, my pinned post was allot more recent than when I started posting, it was more of a response to someone claiming I’m giving false hope and that explaining the idea of “manifestation” alongside non-duality is wrong. Which I’m literally not, im not sure if your truly following up on what I’ve posted because I make it very very clear since the beginning and almost in every post with a long ask that I. Am. Not. Teaching. You. How. To. Manifest. There’s absolutely no such thing, it might look like it and feel like it but it’s not. I even have a post where the entire thing is me talking about why there’s no such thing as manifestation. And I have zero clue where you got any of that information about who I am as a person from that post alone when all I’m stating is how I’m not going to stop helping people? 😭😭

I think another confusion people who “enter” NonDualism have is they think awakening is real. You told me to reach a state of ND being or the State of ND which I’m not really sure what you mean by that because it doesn’t exist. It’s sadly time to burst the bubble. There is no awakening, if you truly understand nonduality, there is no journey, there’s no goal, there nothing that you can do to achieve enlightenment because it doesn’t exist, these are concepts and ideas self realized to give the “self” and “I” a reason to exist. I perfectly well understand what nonduality at its core is and have hundreds of what I’m sure people would call “succes stories” with it. My old posts have plenty of explaining as to what, just, no duality states regardless of getting what you want. How can there be a journey? There is no self thst has a journey, just ideas and thoughts spinning together in a flurry and naming it “self”. You don’t exist.

And for you, you want to understand no duality? I’m going to try not to be cryptic but here we go. You can’t and neither can I , no one can understand and seek, you’re not a seeker and there is no path, this is the truth. And no one can have a journey because there is no identity in any of this, there is no self as a person, there is no “me” on a “path”, there is no “one” here who understands anything. It’s all self actualizing thoughts making it seem like there is a journey, the “I” or what people call ego, needs purpose to exist. It feels like a threat when everything is dissolved. The idea that there is more to do, will be true for as long as you pretend it is. And without the false idea of a journey this “self”or “me” loses its purpose. It can be “hard” to accept but truly it doesn’t matter because the nature of existence will not change. Think about it why does the idea of something higher, a bigger step, some grand moment seem so enticing? And for who does it seem so enticing for? The false identity, the “me” the “self”. It’s just another story. You might sit and be, it may lead you deeper into sensations in the body and most likely a “profound” sense of understanding, but quite honestly if your looking for a tiny spark of magic to keep you going on and thinking there’s even more and even more to experience, it would be absolutely useless.

You are already all, whats there to find

Understanding nonduslity is realizing, how can any of this be more grand if there is only one, how can more be achieve if there is a constant state of nonduality? How can the illusion reach a higher state… the higher state is also just illusory, the self, body and world is just illusory. You as everything are pretending to be a person pretending a self and pretending that this person is also self and needs to understand and reach more profound states of being.

This is how “manifestation” is possible. There is no one and nothing “happening” all there appears to be is what you appear as, it’s hollow, almost like a projection. This can’t be turned off, you appear as all there is and as long as the body is here thoughts will appear, ideas will appear, visualizations will appear, you take it as just thinking or talking to yourself or daydreaming or predicting what might happen next, but that’s all what “manifesting” is. In every timeless moment (instant is not fast enough so I say timeless) stories are realized, you take it effortlessly as how your life is. Simple things like how you expect your parents to respond to you not picking up their phone, or what kind of day at your gonna have at school to literally everything, it’s constant, it’s everything, it’s always “on”. Your luck, the compliments you receive, how things work or don’t work out for you, all of it. This is not just life as it is but the entire “manifestation” it’s an experience of what “it” (you) appears as. And if all is what you are and the appearance relies on the perception of the appearance, then perceiving any type of story like, having brown eyes but you want blue. Okay, “I have blue eyes” this is not an affirmation, this is a truth, this is what “ “ (you) now appear as, timelessly, and needing proof or evidence is useless as it puts the attention back at “has it changed it”. If you understand its all you, you also know needing evidence or proof is truly completely useless. “But I checked the mirror and my eyes are still brown” with what understanding did you move to the mirror with. An expectancy of brown eyes? Hmm.

Well I think this is getting long winded, I’m not gonna make this even longer than it is, hopefully you find some clarity in this and I strongly urge you, before making random comments or being just rude, ask yourself with what state of mind am I moving forward. Do I really need to say it this way? Because truly, I’ll remain here doing what I do, I’m incredibly grateful that I can be able to help so many people so it brings me a sense of joy (though unreal 🤭). But I hope you understand there is a proper way to question and criticize, and well, your claims feel like they were based off reading 2 posts and calling it a day 😭😭. Anyways I actually will thank you regardless, I’m sure many people can learn from what you’ve initiated me to explain, have a great life, I hope to see you come again in future posts 🫶🫀🪷🪷☀️

#manifest #nonduality #master manifestor #blommp717 #manifestation #law of assumption #nondualism

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eerieeccentricities · 2 months

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Your Love is a Vice Grip

Il Dottore X fem!Reader

(A/N: This is a fic I've been playing around with for about 6+ months. Definitely needs a lot of edits and work done to it, but I just want it posted somewhere I suppose. Haha!)

(tw: Blood, Injury, bad workplace environment, foul language, confrontation, slight physical aggression, 18+ ONLY!!!)

DO NOT REPOST!!!!

Summary: Just another cog in the machine. That was all she expected to be. That was all she wanted to be. Anything more than that and her life would be on the line, more so than it currently was anyway. Being a part of an organization such as the Fatui always carried risks, but the pay was good, and the only thing she had to worry about was the eccentric Doctor’s occasional outbursts. Keep her head low and don’t get in the way of the 2nd Harbinger, easy enough, right? She thought so….until she found herself on the bleeding end of one of those outbursts. Suddenly, she can't seem to shake him, and she begins to wonder if it is what lies on the inside of these reinforced walls she should fear instead.

Medical Terminology: Prefix - Hema - Blood

‘Shit…’

She was bleeding. Quite profusely, at that. She watched only momentarily as the carmine liquid dripped down her gloved hand, which was now shredded beyond use, and onto the pristine white tiles below, reflecting on what had just transpired.

It was her damn reflexes essentially, a grab at something that was thrown in her general direction, a moment of instinct before thought. It was laughable, considering thought was supposed to conquer all in a place such as this. To be a researcher, a scientist, who could still not overcome something The Doctor would surely see as ‘primitive’ was an unspoken folly amongst those here.

She squinted, now noticing it wasn’t just her blood that was dripping to the floor. Whatever it was she was attempting to catch was filled with something of an azure blue color, and that something was mixing with her blood and seeping into the open wounds. While it didn’t burn, it did leave a numbing coolness wherever it trailed, and any chemical reaction on human skin was always a cause for concern.

Regardless of her instinctual stumble, she needed to follow procedure and take the correct precautions now. Thick soles crunching the forgotten glass below, she hurried to the wash stations, arm held out to avoid getting the unknown substance on her person any more than it already was.

Ideally, a quick scrub in the sink would work, she’d rather avoid the emergency showers if at all possible. Although it did technically have a curtain, the thing was flimsy at best, and she would rather avoid stripping in front of her colleagues with only a plastic drape no thicker than a sheet of paper between them.

Especially now of all times, when The Doctor, the Prime himself as indicated by his signature mask, decided to grace them with his ever-fleeting presence. While this was the primary laboratory it was still a rarity to see him, and not one of his segments, overseeing the ongoing operations here.

Each lab was dedicated to a specific area of research, the main branch, this branch, focusing on Cybernetics and Biological Enhancements. Also known as the birthplace of many, if not all, of the segments currently wandering all corners of Teyvat. Seeing Ruin Guard parts and other machinery scattered amongst that of biological specimens was the norm, ideas and experiments of them all working in tandem was the goal.

It was a productive and, dare she say, quiet atmosphere to work in. Especially for those who worked on the machinery portion of the lab, like herself.

Well, it was usually anyway. The presence of the Harbinger could only mean one of two things, there was a meeting that called for the Harbinger’s presence, or there was an experiment that garnered his attention and required their subject specialties.

She deeply hoped it was the former, as the latter would mean a much longer stay, overseeing and criticizing anything he deemed incorrect or foolish had a chance of ending in outbursts consisting of thrown objects and verbal lashings.

Like today, the fading memory of his livid voice to a colleague close to her own station easily told her that something didn’t go as planned. That something failed. Failure wasn’t something he took lightly, and this failure ended in her being an indirect victim of his, dare she say, tantrum.

Rumors came to mind of those he deemed stupid being turned into test subjects themselves, thoughts of him ‘finding some use out of their miserable existence’ didn’t easily leave the brain. In fact, it clung to it, a reminder to not fuck up lest one could find themselves strapped to the surgical table at a moment's notice.

A part of her wondered if she might see this rumor come to fruition with her own eyes soon, to walk in tomorrow morning with the vaguely familiar body of her coworker stripped of name and so kindly gifted a subject number.

Even if that were so, it still wouldn’t matter, not in the long run anyway. They would soon be replaced and work would continue as normal, as it always did. Just another broken cog replaced.

Approaching the wash station, the tattered glove was quickly stripped and tossed into the closest biohazard waste bin, the other staying on as it wasn’t damaged and could still provide ample protection from the painful scrubbing she would have to endure on the other.

Her eyebrows twitched for just a moment before relaxing once again, the stinging pain was starting to set in now, but she couldn’t bring any more attention to herself than she knew she already had. Even the slightest hint of weakness could be one's downfall in a place like this. Between the competitive nature that festered in the labs and The Doctor himself, any sign of weakness was not unlike that of prey being fed to a pack of starving wolves.

Preoccupied with getting the faucet on and preparing the correct cleanser, she failed to notice the ‘tink’ing of metal on the tile quickly approaching, following the mixed blood trail she inevitably left in her rush.

It wasn’t until a vaguely familiar gloved hand grabbed her wrist, pulling it back with such force she feared for a moment her shoulder may have been pulled from its socket, that she even noticed a presence even close to her. Looking back to the cause soon made her blood run cold, the mask of The Doctor leaning in, lips twisted in a snarl.

“What was that?” His hand tightened into a bruising grip around her wrist, the odd mixture of red and blue staining his own bicolored gloves as he relentlessly squeezed. The gruffness of his angered voice with the gritting of his pointed teeth ever threatening, a reminder as to why she was one of the few who preferred to stay under the radar. While raising in the lab ranks came with its perks, mainly a huge pay increase, it also came with downsides. The wrath of The Doctor being the biggest.

“I…” She started, mentally kicking herself when her hesitation was noticed, as evidenced by his low growl. “ I apologize, sir.” She made sure to say it clearly, making it a point not to falter this time. “I was following lab procedure.”

“Do you take me for a fool? Or are you that dense? You know that’s not wh-!”

A reverberating slam of metal on concrete echoed through the large lab, the light from the hallway invading the natural darkness of the area. The intrusion silenced even The Doctor from his tirade, though the clenching of his teeth indicated the interruption made his mood drop even lower.

In the middle of the large double doorway stood The Knave, her monochrome coloring stood out like a ghost, her red ‘X’d eyes landing on The Doctor before her face twisted into a sneer.

“What is it?” The Doctor called over his shoulder, annoyance dripping like venom from his voice alone. “Can’t you see that I’m busy?”

“The meeting has been called to order,” She stated, brows furrowed. “Yet you are still here dilly-dallying like a child refusing to leave the playground. ”

“Her Majesty-” He started before being abruptly cut off by the 4th-ranked Harbinger.

“-will not tolerate another absence, Doctor.” Then she was gone as quickly as she arrived, the clinking of her dangerously pointed heels down the hallway the only indication that the Harbinger was even there to begin with.

“Tsk.” He threw her wrist down as if even touching her was a taint to his person. Shifting his heels, he turned to the door before glancing back over his shoulder. “I’ll deal with you later. Both of you.” He finished before he, too, disappeared down the hallway.

#il dottore #dottore #dottore x reader #il dottore x reader #genshin fanfic #fanfic #genshin impact fanfics #not confident but having fun #trying to figure out how to pretty everything up #i'm sorry i'm tying!

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astercontrol · 9 months

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Ever think about how amazing it is that we got a character like the Bit in TRON 1982?

I mean, yeah, having some cute little robot or animal side characters was, and still is, very typical of movies in that genre.

But, look at the Bit.

It's based on a computer science concept, of course: the simplest unit of data in a computer, a single 1 or 0 indicating yes or no. And it's anthropomorphized just enough to get actual computer nerds confused about what exactly it is supposed to be. Clearly you'd need lots more than one bit, to create a programmed entity that behaved the way a Bit does!

Is it the mystical energy of Programmer Spirits that animates it beyond what should be possible-- as it does for the Programs themselves, who also aren't nearly complex enough to be alive on their own? Or is a Bit something else, like an external subroutine of a program, which is called a Bit simply because of the way it communicates?

Who knows? Who cares? It's a Bit! It's adorable!

And yet… this same level of anthropomorphizing is very unusual for Disney, and for the whole genre, in a whole different way.

Though it's much more animate than one could reasonably imagine for an actual bit… the Bit is much less anthropomorphic than any creature playing any comparable role in any comparable movie I can think of.

It has no eyes, no mouth, no words except a synthesized Yes and No. It expresses itself only by shifting appearance between three faceless geometric shapes.

And yes, we love it! Yes, we adore the heck out of that sassy little thing! Yes, we will absolutely look at this object that resembles no person or animal in existence, and we will find enough cuteness to scream over!

We are the weird nerdy audience that you sucked in with the promise of a movie about computer programs being alive, and YES we are invested enough to take this ALL the way!

But I haven't seen any other movie do this, ever since.

And even the original Tron movie wasn't GOING to do it, at first.

Now, every other time I've looked at the early development of ideas in a movie, I've seen a pattern of "Less Relatable being reworked into More Relatable." Any creature design that looks "too weird," "too unfamiliar," "too alien," will evolve over the course of edits, until it satisfies the developers' expectations for being something audiences can relate to.

In other words… looking at the early concept art and the final product, I am certain any other movie I can think of would've adapted the Bit in the exact opposite direction.

Same with the MCP.

Whether it's a villain or an adorable little sidekick, the fans who became captivated by the classic Tron movie are an audience eager and ready to see life and personality in something utterly alien, something that resembles no actual life in the world we know.

And yet, I'm sure this wasn't even the goal of any of the character designers.

When you look at the early design of the Programs, you see them follow a more typical pattern, starting out more robotic, less humanoid, less "Relatable," and progressing toward recognizable humanity.

That movie, I'm pretty sure, was an exception to the rule not because of any philosophy about what would resonate with audiences... but simply because of the constraints of the medium.

The Bit and the MCP became more simple, more geometric, because that was easier to computer-animate.

Programs became more humanoid because that was easier for human actors to play.

A big, huge chunk of what made this movie relatable in a gloriously weird way, to gloriously weird audiences who may have had serious trouble relating to lots of other media, is just a serendipitous side-effect of the wild experiment that it was.

...I wish movies would take risks like that more often.

Really.

#tron #tronblr #tron 1982 #concept art #tron bit #creature design #mcp #master control program #analyzing

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therhythmafterthesummer · 2 years

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Rhythm’s Masterlist

Please be aware that if you interact with my works and you don’t have any indication of being an adult in your profile you’ll be blocked. If you’ve added your age indicator in your profile and want to be unblocked you can reach out to me on @therhythmafterthesun. For more info you can read this post.

Important: all my stories are intended for an 18+ audience only. by reading and interacting with them you acknowledge this fact. if you’re a minor, i can’t control what you do or don’t do online, but i request that you please don’t interact with my blog.

don’t hesitate to leave an ask or reblog my work with your comments, i appreciate every and any feedback :)

if you want to see a more simplified version of my masterlist (one with only the titles, word counts, and basic themes of the fic) you can view it here.

Stray Kids

Bang Chan

Series:

Being a rebel fighting against a galactic oppressor was no easy feat, but it was something Chan took great pride in. As they took part in a stealth mission, Chan and his friends found themselves on an unknown planet, meeting a mysterious ally; an ally that, over the course of five long months, will help Chan regain hope. [this series has been reworked as of 16/08/2023]

One Shots:

Your best friend has sent her most trusted knight to help you escape your abusive home, an intriguing man with many facets you can’t wait to uncover.

The Room: 3k [Alternative Universe | Smut | Established Relationship | Angsty]

Some nights, you wanted nothing more than to spend them with Chris in your room. Thankfully, once you came home tonight, you were able to do just that.

Two Shots:

As a Princess, all you’d ever been deemed good for was doing what you were told and keeping to your role, something that frustrated you beyond belief. It wasn’t until you met that young wolf in the forest that you finally realised there was more out there for you.

The King of the Forest 02: 2k [WerewolfKing!Chan | Supernatural/Fantasy AU | Smut | Royalty | Mediaeval Setting]

You had one goal: get your husband’s expert opinion. It should’ve been a quick visit to his study… In hindsight, you should’ve known better.

Herbie: 10k [Mechanic!Chan | Smut | Some Fluff | Strangers to Friends to Lovers]

Chris was the best mechanic you’d ever met. He was good at his craft, capable of bringing your dingy car back to life time and time again. He was, also, excellent at riling you up just by existing, which wasn’t the best when you were absolutely convinced he just wanted to be friends with you. But maybe, just maybe, he’d prove you wrong.

Herbie 02: 5k [Smut | Fluff | Friends to Lovers (kind of)]

As it turned out, your hot mechanic friend also had a crush on you. After rocking your world in his repair shop’s office, you wake up the next day on his bed in his clothes, ready to spend a lazy morning together.

Five-Point Star: 6k [Bodyguard/Assassin!Chan | Smut | bit of Fluff | Angst | Strangers to lovers to enemies but lovers?]

With a career like yours, you knew you shouldn’t let yourself fall in love. But honestly, in retrospect, there was no way you wouldn’t have fallen in love with Chris. After meeting him, you couldn’t help but hope that he’d be the last person you fell this deeply for–maybe foolishly so…

Five-Point Star: The Aftermath: 17k [Bodyguard/Assassin!Chan | Smut | bit of Fluff | Angst]

After months of hindering a mercenary’s attempts to get to the person Chris was hired to protect, after months of many fights, injuries, and plotting, he had expected for the resolution to be much more satisfactory than this.

Drabbles/Timestamps:

[23:26]: 1k [Roommate!Chan | Roomies to ???? | Fluff]

You couldn’t sleep, and desperate times require desperate measures.

[02:11]: 1k [Boyfriend!Chan | Established Relationship | Smut | Fluff]

After waking up in the wee hours of the night, your boyfriend simply needed you to warm him up.

MiniSeries - A Mutually Beneficial Agreement

A Mutually Beneficial Agreement - pt 1: 3k [Demon!Chan | Supernatural AU | Smut]

How ironic... to have found yourself entangled with a demon called Christopher, of all things. Some people would’ve made you believe he was taking advantage of you. But you knew better.

A Mutually Beneficial Agreement - pt 2: 14k [Demon!Chan | Supernatural AU | Angst | Smut | Some fluff]

Your favourite demon seemed to be full of surprises, some you could more than get used to, but others that… you weren’t sure you could get used to at all.

MiniSeries - The Realm of Nyaldra:

Purple Flame: 6k [Dokkaebi!Chan | Fantasy AU | Royalty AU | Established Relationship | Smut]

The Firelands’ Gifted Tribes hated each other, especially the Goblin Children and the Dragon Children, but they were willing to work together against a common enemy. Thanks to the war, a pair of star-crossed lovers find the opportunity to end the decade-long feud between the two Gifted Tribes, a goal they’ll strive for whether the Goblin King and the Dragon Queen like it or not.

Whenever Chan held you in his arms again after spending long periods of time apart, he couldn’t help but feel selfish–and even a bit foolishly hopeful. [A sort of pt. 2 to Purple Flame].

Series of One Shots/Drabbles - WereRoommies:

It’s Cold Out: 8k [Werewolf!Chan | Supernatural/Fantasy AU | Roomies to Lovers | Smut]

Your roommate had been acting weird lately, weirder than usual. It was because of his condition, you thought; and in a way, you had been right, just not in the way you had expected.

Rut: 4k [Werewolf!Chan | Supernatural/Fantasy AU | Roomies to Lovers | Smut | Fluff]

Your roommate’s rut is coming to an end.

Chris had a dream since he was very young. He wanted to have a pack of his own, to build a safe space for people with views just like his. Once he managed to accomplish that, he would’ve never imagined that his next dream would arrive at his doorstep in a pretty sundress.

It’s Warm In: 4k [Werewolf!Chan | Supernatural/Fantasy AU | Smut | Fluff | Established Relationship]

You try to spend an intimate, relaxing evening with your boyfriend a handful of months after his rut.

Love is Easy: 10k [Werewolf!Chan | Supernatural/Fantasy AU | Smut | Fluff | Established Relationship]

After two years of living among werewolves, of being an important member of their pack, you finally get to partake in one of their most important activities: their ‘monthly camping trip’.

Surprise: 2k [Werewolf!Chan | Supernatural/Fantasy AU | Smut | Fluff | Established Relationship]

Your boyfriend had been stressed with work lately, so you got yourself a pretty lingerie set to surprise him, hoping to cheer him up.

The aftermath of an argument with a supernatural being was something no one ever prepared you for, much less if that supernatural being was someone you were romantically involved with. You figured it’d happen eventually, you just weren’t aware of how much it could hurt.

Lee Know

One Shots:

Alone Together: 8k [SpacePirate!Lino | Sci-Fi AU | Smut | Established Relationship (kind of) | Lovers (idiots) to Even More Lovers (affectionate)]

Minho was a man on the run, an outlaw. He was always getting himself into trouble, thieving and fighting against the people that perpetuated an unfair system that did nothing but bring pain to those the system considered lowly and unworthy. For his next mission, he decided to ask for help from the person he trusted most in this world, you.

The Taste of Love: 3k [Vampire!Lino | Supernatural/Fantasy AU | Smut | Some Fluff | Mediaeval Setting]

Every handful of centuries, Minho found himself someone that was willing to let him feed off of them. It usually wasn’t planned, it sort of just happened. This time, that person was you, the baker that had just moved into town. He wanted nothing more than to have a taste of you, in more ways than one.

Drabbles/Timestamps:

Cherry eyes, cherry lips: 1k [Vampire!Lino | Supernatural/Fantasy AU | Fluff]

A stroll to the beach with your recently turned friend leads to a couple compromising situations.

Backseat: 1k [BestFriend!Lino | Smut | Best Friends to Lovers]

Unable to wait a single second longer, you found yourself laying in the back of your best friend’s car.

Series of One Shots - WereRoommies:

Minho was your rock, he was your anchor, your best friend, which was why you just couldn’t stop yourself from falling for him, even when he was, essentially, a supernatural being. One ‘camping trip’ might be the last push you needed to finally confess. Or maybe not…

Starting a relationship with the man that had been your best friend since you were a kid was and wasn’t easy in equal parts. It was, because there wasn’t anyone in this world you trusted more than Minho, there wasn’t anyone that made you feel this safe. But sometimes, it just wasn’t. Not only because of the physical distance, but also because of the challenges that posed having a supernatural boyfriend who didn’t like to talk about his equally supernatural problems.

Are You There, Wolf?: 8k [Werewolf!Lino | Supernatural/Fantasy AU | Smut | Fluff | Best Friends to Lovers]

Minho had always deemed himself a bit of a weirdo. In his humble opinion, he’d only become even weirder with time, especially after he acquired his supernatural… condition. He’d never cared much about it, not when you’d always been there for him, and hopefully you would always be.

Changbin

One Shots:

Get Used to It: 3k [non-Idol!AU | Slice of Life | Fluff | Mild Smut]

A pig plushie becomes Changbin’s best wing-man - or alternatively - the one where two idiots finally confess.

In the Labyrinth: 14k [Minotaur!Changbin | Mythical/Fantasy AU | Angst | Smut | Fluff]

The Labyrinth was an enigma for most people. Its existence was known, but what exactly happened within it was a complete mystery. When you entered the Labyrinth, you weren’t really sure what you’d have to come face to face with… Not even in a million years would you have guessed just exactly what you’d find in here.

Series of One Shots - WereRoommies:

Changbin was an alpha. He had always been an alpha, but he had a secret. A secret he had only ever shared with the alpha of his pack, a secret he had kept buried as deep within him as he could, a secret he had decided to ignore, until the presence of that annoying omega coworker of his wouldn’t let him ignore it anymore.

Heat: 6k [Werewolf!Changbin | Supernatural/Fantasy AU | Smut | Fluff | Established Relationship]

With you, Changbin was able to explore areas of himself he’d never even imagined existed. With you, Changbin found himself feeling at home more than ever, which was why he wanted nothing more than to experience your heat with you, too.

The Love I Always Dreamt Of: 5k [Werewolf!Changbin | Supernatural/Fantasy AU | Smut | Fluff | Established Relationship]

As you and Changbin got to fulfil one of your shared fantasies, he couldn’t help but be reminded that you were the one and only wolf for him.

The Wedding Planners: 3k [Werewolf!Changbin | Supernatural/Fantasy AU | Smut | Fluff | Established Relationship]

Planning a wedding was way more stressful than Changbin could’ve ever expected. It seemed so easy at first, like all that was needed was to fulfil a checklist and call it a day, but he realised very quickly that there was a reason for the concept of bride and groomzilla to have been created.

Hyunjin

One Shots:

Blessed: 4k [Incubus!Hyunjin | Supernatural/Fantasy AU | Suggestive | Mild Smut]

Being intimate with someone was something you had trouble understanding. When you steal an alluring, unexpected item, you finally get a taste of what being with someone was actually like.

Felix’s crude reality made it so he hardly dwelled on the fact that he was alone. He never would’ve imagined he’d find a loving family of his own, or that he would be capable of imprinting and finding a soulmate, let alone two. [This story is an instalment of my WereRoomies series. you don’t need to read the other instalments to understand this piece].

Han Jisung

Drabbles/Timestamps:

[00:08]: 1k [Suggestive | Fluff | Best Friends to Lovers]

When you agreed to come to this party, you would’ve never imagined you’d end up making out with your best friend, but you were certainly not going to complain. Not when you’d wanted this for the longest time.

Felix

One Shots:

Seungmin

One Shots:

A Helping Hand: 4k [LabHybrid!Seungmin | Smut | Fluff | Best Friends to Lovers | Roommates to Lovers]

After one too many shots of vodka, your best friend confided in you a little problem he’d been dealing with for a couple of months now. Tipsy-you figured that you were more than suitable to give him a helping hand.

I.N | Jeongin

One Shots:

Odd Eyes: 5k [Demon!Jeongin | Period setting | Mild Angst | Fluff if you squint?]

Being cursed was not something you ever planned for your life–clearly–but now that you were, your demon will help you make the most of it.

#non-rebloggable for now #masterlist

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avelynss · 7 days

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Echoes of Betrayal

Warnings: Spoilers for Hogwarts Legacy, Aged up characters.

Word Count: 3.5k

Summary: After Ranrok’s defeat, Avelyn sealed her destiny with a fateful decision: to absorb the last vestige of dark power from the vault and vanish. Now, two years later, the Ministry of Magic tasks a newly appointed Auror, with the formidable challenge of finding and capturing her. Yet, deep within the core of his being, a powerful instinct compels Sebastian to protect her at all costs, even if she has transformed into something monstrous beyond recognition.

A throng of Ministry officials moved across the castle floors, as clouds of dust rose in what remained of the school. The sound of heels, determined and violent, echoed through the castle, setting an unyielding rhythm.

Traces of ancient magic pervaded the air of the now-ruined castle, guiding them almost naturally towards their objective. Their mission was not only to capture the source of this extremely powerful and dangerous magic but also the one person who seemed capable of possessing and controlling it. They believed that Avelyn’s presence had been the cause of the devastation they faced.

The air was charged with a different aura from what had once been its home. Since Ranrok absorbed the power from the last hidden store beneath the castle, Hogwarts had been left in ruins. Although Avelyn managed to defeat him, the battle had left the castle in ruins. However, Ranrok’s defeat was just the beginning of an even greater darkness. Desperate for the power he had sought, Avelyn decided to absorb that dark energy herself, acquiring unimaginable and terrifying power for a witch of her youth.

The Ministry was unaware of the darker aspects of what had happened in the stores, and their understanding of the situation was superficial and flawed. They believed that Avelyn had escaped with that fearsome power, and capturing her had become an absolute priority. However, Avelyn’s true intentions remained hidden. Gone from sight, her whereabouts were a mystery, and her goals a terrifying enigma. The search intensified, but the real threat of what Avelyn could do with her new strength remained beyond the reach of those trying to stop her.

The freckled man moved stealthily behind them, dressed in the same attire as his colleagues, an indication that his desire to become an Auror upon completing his studies had been fulfilled, and he was also on the hunt. The uniform presented itself in an enigmatic and elegant all-black ensemble. His elongated robe, with an impeccable cut, accentuated his slim and well-defined figure, flowing with an effortless air of sophistication. The black shirt, fitted and tailored to his torso, outlined the muscles subtly visible beneath the fabric, suggesting the discipline and physical work he had invested to reach his current position.

His brown hair, carefully combed to the side, contrasted with the deep black of his clothing, giving him a touch of calculated refinement. His freckled face emanated a controlled intensity. His jaw was slightly tense at the situation, revealing his defined jawline, and his neck, stretched and snug in the shirt, highlighted the determination and tension emanating from his presence. The combination of his outfit and expression projected an image of authority and purpose, ready to face any challenge that came his way.

Yet, his imposing exterior could not hide the storm raging within him. Anguish tormented him, unable to understand why she had embraced such a dark fate. The betrayal, even towards himself, perplexed him in a way that caused him deep pain, leaving scars he could not mask.

Noticing that the Aurors were distracted, Sebastian slipped cautiously into the Slytherin common room. His colleagues knew of the relationship he had had with the missing woman; they knew they had shared their last year as students at Hogwarts and that their bond had been at its most intense. This situation created distrust and questioned his objectivity. As a result, he had been assigned more intense surveillance than usual, suspecting that his emotions and the undefined nature of his relationship could influence his performance, putting the novice under close scrutiny. But that connection gave him an advantage that the Ministry was undoubtedly taking advantage of. And he deeply knew they were not entirely wrong.

Skillfully, he cast "Alohomora" to enter the room of the woman in question. Sebastian knew he needed to find her before the Ministry did; he needed to learn the truth with his own ways. The thought of that dark force controlling her consumed him from within, and deep down, he yearned to hear her voice once more.

He pushed the door gently to avoid alerting his colleagues and entered the room, which was completely disheveled. Everything was scattered on the floor and the chests. The beds were unmade, as if their occupants had abruptly gotten up and had to flee. Drawers and wardrobes were in disarray, as if a hasty packing had been done. Clothes and personal belongings were strewn on the floor, evidencing the haste with which they had left.

He roared internally, recalling those moments with painful clarity.

Screams and cries had filled the castle during the evacuation. Teachers and prefects ordered students to leave their rooms as the castle trembled with the intensity of an earthquake. The evacuation was in full swing, and there was no trace of Avelyn or Professor Figg. Fear enveloped him like an oppressive shadow, knowing that she must be facing that relentless darkness, alone. He knew well her strength and prowess with magic, but that awareness only intensified his anguish. He had an overwhelming desire to protect her, a drive that had consumed him throughout the year he had accompanied her. The image of her fighting against such a formidable threat alone tormented him, intensifying his anguish and desperate longing to be by her side, to face the darkness with her.

He shook his head, trying to clear the memories and return to reality. He opened his eyes as if he could escape the oppressive feeling that enveloped him. The past was behind him; two years had passed since that incident, she was still alive, and he had to find her. He was tormented by uncertainty, his doubts twisting in his mind. Something deep inside whispered that her intentions were pure, that there were ethical reasons behind her actions. If they captured her and she could offer an explanation, everything could be solved, right? That hope was the only beacon amid his storm of confusion and despair.

However, he noticed there was something unsettling in that room. He approached the bed quietly, gently touching the rough winter sheets with his fingertips. His skin prickling as he felt her lingering aroma still pervading the air. He inhaled deeply, his eyes violently closed, letting the familiar scent envelop him. An almost primal impulse took over him. Her essence remained there, intensely present, making his heart beat with a mix of longing and anguish.

On the bed, atop the green sheets, rested a golden locket in the shape of a snake. Sebastian recognized it instantly: it was the same one he had seen on the night of the yule ball, adorning Avelyn as her hair was styled and her curls framed her face, enhancing her hellenistic beauty.

He took the locket with trembling hands, examining it closely. It was a piece of exquisite beauty, perfectly capturing Avelyn’s defiant attitude and reflecting her unique personality, true to her house at Hogwarts. With a sigh full of nostalgia, he brought the locket to his lips in an intimate and melancholic gesture before carefully placing it in his pocket. The sense of her presence remained alive in the object, intensifying his desire to find her and understand her fate.

He continued his search in the wardrobe, now fully open, hoping to find some clue about her whereabouts. The house robes and uniforms were meticulously folded and hung on the hangers, showing an order that contrasted with the chaos of the rest of the room. However, his attention was drawn to a velvet emerald hanger, which presumably had held the dress Avelyn wore that winter night. Now, the hanger was empty.

Suddenly, the truth hit him with devastating intensity. The empty hanger, the meticulously folded clothes hanging, the locket perfectly placed on the bed, and the lingering aroma in the room formed a dark and revealing puzzle. Sebastian stood paralyzed, the impact of the revelation leaving him breathless.

She was in the castle, warning him, and only him, of her presence.

He then plunged into his search with the determination of a nocturnal hunter turned predator. He knew with certainty the exact place where she was waiting for him, and nothing could stop him in his relentless pursuit of her.

Pieces of green fabric were scattered down the spiral staircase, illuminated by the faint moonlight. The moon, peeking with a waning silhouette, cast a pale glow that mixed the emerald color of the fabric with a dull gray.

The Auror's cloak swept fiercely down the spiral staircase as he raced up to the top of the tower. Fear enveloped him like a shadow, and a sensation of dizziness and nerves churned in his stomach, empty for hours.

Betrayal was the only thought now circling Sebastian’s mind as he faced the immense door before him. However, he didn’t know who that betrayal referred to: Her? Him? Both? Despite everything, he could not abandon the hope that there was an explanation for all of this. He was dissociated at its most.

He approached stealthily to the stream of light filtering through the staircase. The light partially illuminated his freckled face, highlighting the honey color of his eyes under the moon, which seemed enormous in the room that stretched before him. From his position, he could partially see the room, though he didn’t need to see further, as he knew the place well.

The room at the top of the Astronomy Tower stood majestically atop the castle, offering a panoramic view of the vast horizon beyond the walls of Hogwarts. In the highest room of the tower, the atmosphere was vast and desolate. The room was circular, a feature indicating it had been designed for meeting purposes, but now was unused, reserved only for secrets shared by a few.

The room was devoid of furniture, leaving space for a massive astronomical sphere in the center. This sphere, worn by time, seemed to be the only witness to past events, surrounded by the dull shine of the wood covering the floor. The ancient stone walls blended with the warm tone of the wood, but their worn and damaged appearance conveyed an aura of antiquity and destruction. Debris fragments and dust accumulated in every corner suggested a recent devastation, contrasting with the grandeur and history the room had once known in more splendid times.

The moonlight caressed the air, beautifying the bluish atmosphere while revealing dust particles that had been lifted, indicating someone’s recent presence. The sound of creaking wood did not disturb the figure with her back turned, leaning on the railing. The disheveled curls on her shoulders reflected the moonlight with an almost ethereal glow. The woman in question appeared peaceful and calm. Her eyes, in harmony with the emerald pieces of fabric scattered across the floor, emitted an air of sadness as they gazed indifferently at the celestial satellite, which seemed to want to enter the room to be close to her. Her face, which Sebastian had observed and admired over the years, was now somewhat dirty and marked by indentations with traces of a reddish liquid. Blood.

As he caught sight of her, a sudden tight sensation gripped his stomach, as though a vice had clamped down on his insides. His heart began to pound violently, each beat reverberating through his chest with a force that was almost painful. Her mere presence left him breathless, his entire body consumed by the overwhelming presence of the women in question.

He resisted the urge to enter the room and clean that face, and he wondered whose blood it was, hoping it wasn’t hers. He couldn’t help but notice the tears in the skirt of the dress she wore that winter night, revealing her legs, now covered in bruises. She was undoubtedly the living image of a woman who had been at war. “What has she been doing?” he wondered, his heart pounding as uncertainty overwhelmed him.

The creaking of the stairs didn’t seem to have any effect on the woman, who remained still, her eyes fixed on the satellite illuminating the night. Sebastian approached as quietly as possible, feeling the tremble in his legs that threatened to make him lose his balance. She was there, in front of him, after years of uncertainty. His dream of seeing her again, which had seemed like a distant wish, was becoming a reality. Despite the dirt on her face and clothes, her beauty was undeniable, as was the serenity that emanated from her presence. And there was something more. She emitted an aura of powerful darkness that would disarm anyone who dared challenge her. And he would have been willing to kneel before her if she had asked him to.

When he finally reached a distance he deemed appropriate to not seem invasive, the woman broke the silence with a soft and melancholic voice.

"How many wars do you think it has had to illuminate?" she murmured, referring to the moon hanging in the night sky. Sebastian tensed, realizing that she had already sensed his presence. He decided not to respond. The woman shifted her gaze from the satellite and raised one of her bruised hands to examine it carefully.

"It's ironic," she continued. "The beauty of the light it emits and the evil we do with it." Another pause. "Wars must look beautiful under its light."

Sebastian shuddered at the coldness of her comment. He chose to remain silent, struggling to find the right words. Finally, the woman turned her face and looked at him directly. Though her sadness remained, her green eyes couldn’t help but brighten upon seeing him.

"Why didn’t you invite me?" she asked directly. Sebastian, surprised, took a while to broke his silence.

"Sorry?" he responded, confused.

"To the ball," Avelyn clarified. "Why didn’t you invite me?"

Sebastian took a breath, trying to organize his thoughts. He didn’t understand what that had to do with anything now. He sighed before answering.

"I... I thought you might not want to go" he said, his voice steady. "I heard you talking about how pointless you found the event, and I understood what you were dealing with." He met her gaze directly, a hint of resolve in his eyes. "And I avoided the situation because I was afraid of making things worse. I was too scared to face it head-on.” He concluded with an almost inaudible whisper, "And I deeply regret that."

His words faded into the air, and Sebastian lowered his gaze, ashamed. Silence filled the room, heavy and uncomfortable. Avelyn, once again absorbed by the moon, showed no signs of wanting to continue the conversation.

Sebastian stood there, waiting for a response that never came, as the night slowly advanced, dragging with it the doubts and regrets weighing on both of their hearts.

With an elegant and decisive gesture, Sebastian approached her. His torso leaned slightly forward, showing an attitude of courtesy and respect. He placed one hand on his stomach while extending the other in a clear invitation, as if offering a promise. His expression reflected a mix of confidence and guilt, inviting her to join him in an imaginary dance with a simplicity that made the moment even more special.

Avelyn seemed surprised by the scene. At first, she doubted Sebastian's offer, but then she stepped closer and took his hand with a delicacy that Sebastian had never experienced before, as if her touch was an unexpected caress. When her hand brushed against Sebastián’s, a spark of electricity coursed through his body, igniting a warm, vibrant sensation.

They gazed at each other in an endless silence before taking the first step toward one another. Sebastian's gaze combined gratitude with disbelief, while Avelyn’s expression seemed submissive, inviting him to continue.

Carefully and slowly, Sebastian brought Avelyn’s hand toward himself, handling it as if it were made of glass, while his other hand timidly rested on her waist, bringing her even closer.

Having her this close suddenly awakened a primal desire within him, fueling a deep and wild longing. The space between them seemed to thrum with magnetic energy, and each shared breath felt charged with a longing that was, at the very least, overwhelming. Yet he restrained himself to maintain the softness and sweetness in his touch.

With no music to accompany the moment, they began to move awkwardly and timidly. With a firm but gentle grip, Sebastian guided Avelyn in the confined space of the Astronomy Tower. Sebastian opened his arms to allow Avelyn to twirl around them. Their movements were slow and clumsy, causing both to laugh timidly at the lack of professionalism. Despite the awkwardness of the moment, Sebastian couldn’t help but admire Avelyn’s beauty as she moved, guided by his arms. He also sensed the contrast between the triviality of the moment and the dark purpose that had reunited them there that day. Deep down, he wished that moment could last forever. The innocence she exuded was a deceptive façade, knowing well the power she truly possessed and the monster he was facing.

A whirlwind of thoughts swirled in his mind as he contemplated the woman in front of him. The profound beauty she radiated that night seemed to merge with a bitter feeling of death and betrayal that engulfed him in an almost painful passion. His heart wrestled with a contradictory and overwhelming desire: deep down, he wished she were dead, yet he knew he would be the first to sacrifice himself to prevent such a fate. The paradox of his emotions consumed him; he felt a visceral attraction and a fierce impulse to protect her, even though his own mind and heart were torn apart by internal conflict.

They had no idea how long they had been spinning and dancing; it felt as if time had stopped, and they had reverted to being the same students they once were, when their movements abruptly ceased when Sebastian, in a gesture of desperation and need, pulled her toward him with an intense force, enveloping her in a hug that was almost violent in its urgency. The contact took her by surprise, and Avelyn let out a small gasp of astonishment.

The man buried his face in Avelyn's neck, inhaling her scent with an almost primal intensity, as if trying to absorb her completely. He embraced her with a force that seemed like an attempt to merge with her, seeking refuge in her closeness. Avelyn, still stunned, responded to the embrace by firmly wrapping her arms around Sebastian’s back, her hands running over his tense muscles in a gesture of comfort.

They slowly sank to the floor, their bodies nearly undone by the intensity of the contact. Avelyn tightened her embrace, trying to comfort Sebastian, who seemed broken and fragile. Worried, she lifted his face with both hands, forcing him to look directly at her. His eyes, brimming with despair, reflected a deep pain. The man was fucking kneeling before her.

"Sebastian?" she asked, her voice trembling.

"I'm sorry," he murmured, his voice broken.

"What?" Avelyn inquired, confused.

"Bombarda!"

In the blink of an eye, everything changed. The floor exploded into a thousand pieces, and a group of Aurors stormed into the room, efficiently and quickly surrounding Avelyn. The air was thick with the palpable sense of betrayal as the Aurors secured Avelyn’s capture.

In the midst of the sudden chaos, Avelyn remained firm, showing no trace of fear. Her stance was defiant, and she raised her wand with an attitude that exuded unshakable confidence, as if she were used to conflict. There was no sign of fear in her demeanor.

Her eyes, however, were fixed on Sebastian, with a gaze that combined disappointment and deep sadness. The betrayal in his actions was met with an expression that not only showed disillusionment but also a tangible pain. Her eyes, clouded by tears that never fell, reflected deep regret, as if she were mourning the loss of a trust that had been fundamental to her.

Sebastian, paralyzed in the corner, saw the sadness and unshakable resolve in Avelyn’s posture. Her face, a mixture of betrayal, determination, and pain, became etched in his memory. At that moment, the full weight of his betrayal hit him with crushing force. The reality of his actions crumbled around him, turning his once-clear intentions into a heartbreaking nightmare.

In the blink of an eye, the Aurors and Avelyn were gone, leaving Sebastian alone amid the debris of the Astronomy Tower. The room was filled with the unsettling silence of abandonment, and the magnitude of his actions weighed on him as he stood in solitude, grappling with the deep emptiness and regret that now enveloped him.

But he was convinced that only this way could she truly be free.

Hi! Here’s an initial impression of one of the ideas I’ve had for my story. It’s not a finished version by any means, but I wanted to share with you a first glimpse of my concept. I hope you like it. I plan to develop my ideas as they come to me, and perhaps someday they will become solid enough to write the entire story. If you have any ideas, I’m open to adding them!

And, of course, their song...

youtube

<3<3<3

#hogwarts legacy #hogwarts legacy fanfic #wizarding world #hogwarts oc #slytherin #sebastian sallow #sebastian sallow x mc #sebastian sallow fanfiction #hogwarts legacy mc #fanfic #writing #writers on tumblr #writerscommunity #Youtube

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enchant33 · 1 year

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Are you delusional? How? Short tarot PAC reading.

You can be delusional about so many different things, it could be a relationship, a job opportunity, or you may simply be projecting your insecurities onto someone. It’s fine as long as you’re well aware and know it’s a coping mechanism.

First

Second

Third

Meditate carefully to intuitively select one of the images for your reading.

First image :

Cards : Eight of Wands, Knight of Pnetacles, Seven of Pentcles.

You are delusional about moving .

It appears that you have been contemplating a move or travel in the near future, but the cards indicate that this might not be happening as soon as you think. The presence of the Knight of Pentacles suggests a slow and steady approach, indicating that any major movement or journey is unlikely in the immediate future.

It seems that you have been nurturing a desire to go on a trip, perhaps to enjoy the summer season. However, the cards reveal that this desire might be somewhat unrealistic or overly optimistic at this point. It's essential to remain grounded in your expectations and not get carried away with fantasies of immediate travel.

The Knight of Pentacles also brings attention to matters of material stability and practicality. It suggests that you might be facing some challenges in the realm of finances or resources. It's crucial to address these concerns and focus on building a strong foundation in the Pentacle department, which represents material aspects and earthly matters.

Instead of investing energy in the idea of traveling right now, the cards advise you to concentrate on your current goals and aspirations. This is a time to work diligently and put in the effort to achieve what you desire. By being patient and persistent, you can make steady progress towards your objectives and eventually create the opportunity for travel and exploration when the time is right.

Second image :

Cards : Seven of cups , Justice, Hierophant

You are delusional about a decision.

The tarot cards are urging you to approach a significant decision with a clear and rational mind. The presence of delusion suggests that you might be allowing unrealistic expectations or wishful thinking to cloud your judgment. It's essential to ground yourself in reality and avoid daydreaming or getting lost in fantasies while making this choice.

The cards hint at the possibility that this decision might involve legal matters or ethical considerations. It's crucial to prioritize fairness and objectivity in your approach. Avoid making decisions based solely on emotions or personal biases. Instead, strive to be as ethical and moral as possible, ensuring that your actions align with your values and principles.

The cards also indicate that this is not the right time to make a choice that brings sudden and drastic changes into your life. Take your time, carefully weigh the pros and cons, and consider the potential consequences of your decision. Avoid rushing into anything impulsively. Patience and thoughtful contemplation are crucial during this period.

Third image :

Cards: 2 of pentacles, 2 of cups, the star.

You are not delusional about this connection .

The connection between you and your partner is truly special and filled with positive energy. The appearance of the 2 of Cups and The Star cards signifies a beautiful and harmonious bond between the two of you.

The 2 of Cups symbolizes a deep emotional connection and a sense of mutual understanding. It represents the harmony and balance present in your relationship, where both partners are on the same wavelength. Your feelings and ideas align, creating a strong foundation of emotional intimacy.

Accompanied by The Star card, this reading emphasizes the presence of hope, inspiration, and creativity in your relationship. You both bring out the best in each other, and your connection goes beyond the material realm. The Star card signifies a spiritual connection, suggesting that your relationship is guided by higher ideals and a sense of purpose.

You both support each other's dreams and aspirations, encouraging one another to reach for the stars and pursue your true passions. This spiritual aspect of your bond fosters a deep sense of trust and encouragement, allowing you both to grow together in love and understanding.

Disclaimer:

Remember, the tarot serves as a guide, and the ultimate decision-making lies with you. Use the insights gained from this reading to navigate your path and make informed choices that align with your long-term goals and aspirations. Stay focused, stay patient, and success will come your way. Best of luck on your journey!

#pac #tarot #tarot pac #pick a card #pick a card reading #pick an image #pick a picture #pick a pile #tarot reading #intuitive

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minhkhoas · 11 months

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THE GHOST-MAKER: a deconstruction of his identity

2.2k words | An analysis of the stereotypes & tropes surrounding Minhkhoa Khan

Minhkhoa Khan, also known as the Ghost-Maker, has been a rather significant part of the Batman mythos since his debut in Batman (2016) issue #100. The Ghost-Maker is introduced as the supposed antithesis to Bruce Wayne’s vigilante identity of Batman— he’s described as self-centered, sadistic, and cold, not holding any ounce of empathy for those around him. He kills without remorse, something that sets him apart from his Gotham counterpart, and refers to himself as having been diagnosed as a psychopath at the age of eight.

“Ghost-Maker sees Bruce as a spoiled rich brat. Bruce sees Ghost-Maker as cruel, selfish, and wildly self-important. He is more hedonistic than Batman. He is bisexual, sleeping with anyone that catches his attention. He drinks. He does drugs. He enjoys all the selfish pursuits of life. He is a PSYCHOPATH. He does not experience empathy for other people. He says that that is his strength over Bruce. Ghost-Maker is a vigilante because he enjoys being the best he is at what he does. He is like Sherlock Holmes, caring more about the art of the mystery than the victims of the crime. Ghost-Maker is most concerned with perfecting his craft. Batman is trying to fill an emotional void, and that is why Ghost-Maker sees him destined to fail.”

— James Tynion IV

On paper, it’s clear that Tynion intended for him to serve as a simultaneous ally and enemy to Batman, his allegiance swaying just as his morals do. Tynion describes Minhkhoa as centering his entire crime fighting philosophy around the need to be the best at what he does, which leads him to constantly seek to outdo Batman. The first blatant sign of his involvement in Gotham comes in the form of a message to Batman— one that involves the killing of over a dozen men, a rather brutal way to announce his presence to one of his oldest acquaintances. Whilst Batman discovers the carnage, we see Ghost-Maker complaining in length about the inefficiency of Batman’s work and the overall state of Gotham. He takes a keen interest in Bao Pham, a seventeen-year old boy who’s donned the identity of Clownhunter, a vigilante who takes justice into his own hands by killing those who conspired with the Joker. This, combined with the aforementioned massacre, is the first indication of his personality and overall lack of empathy. He shows no hesitation in his plans to seek out and kill a teenager in order to essentially shock Batman into realizing his efforts are useless.

The extent of his alleged ‘psychopathy,’ as it’s referred to both in-canon and by the creator of Ghost-Maker himself, is further explored following his initial stint in Gotham in the form of a flashback. It is then that readers understand the depth of his and Batman’s relationship; it’s clear that they met in their youth and trained together, only to separate after Minhkhoa’s penchant for killing divided them. Their relationship is once again shown to be competitive, with Minhkhoa and Bruce using physical violence to settle a disagreement. Throughout the altercation, Minhkhoa taunts Bruce and seemingly uses his emotions to his advantage whilst remaining levelheaded. All of these details develop him into a character who finds amusement in violence, and feels little to no guilt at manipulating others.

A shift in Minhkhoa’s depiction arrived with the publication of issue #4 of writer Chip Zdarsky’s Batman: The Knight, a ten-issue storyline following Bruce Wayne as he trained around the world in preparation to become Batman. We see Minhkhoa and Bruce meeting as young teenagers with the shared goal of pursuing crime fighting, journeying together across the world. Their friendship blurs the line between platonic and romantic expression on multiple occasions, with Minhkhoa nearly kissing Bruce at one point during their training. It even extends beyond their time together in the form of one of Bruce’s mentors— Dr. Captio who, incidentally, was training Bruce to overcome physical pain despite him being incapable of overcoming his emotional pain— referring to Minhkhoa as “the little ghost that broke Bruce’s heart” following an argument that caused them to separate and ended in Bruce finding Dr. Captio without Minhkhoa’s help.

The topic of Minhkhoa’s name is another trove of information entirely, as Bruce only discovered his true name after months of traveling with Minhkhoa. Sometime following this discovery, Bruce inevitably begins to use the nickname “Khoa” to refer to him. Whether it was given to him by Bruce or pre-existing is unknown, but he is the first person to refer to Minhkhoa with it, suggesting that he did create it. The notion that Minhkhoa, who’s previously been described as not caring for other people, would allow this is just one of numerous plot points brought up by Zdarsky that slowly chip away at the one-dimensional caricature created by Tynion.

Minhkhoa is a brown, Asian, bisexual man, all of which is established by James Tynion IV throughout Batman (2016). He hails from Singapore, though the multiethnic nature of his name— with ‘Minh’ and ‘Khoa’ being Vietnamese names and ‘Khan’ having roots in South and Central Asia— suggests his ancestry stretches far beyond the city-state. It’s unclear if Tynion intended for Ghost-Maker to be so ethnically ambiguous aside from his clear Asian ancestry, that of which is truly confirmed by Minhkhoa’s appearance on an Asian-American Pacific Islander heritage month variant cover. His racial identity is rarely touched upon, which is simply the start of the slippery slope that becomes the fetishization and exotification of non-white men in Western media.

Minhkhoa is shown to sleep with both men and women in a rather careless manner, using sex as a form of meditation in order to solve crimes and further his own crime fighting agenda. He shows little to no emotional connection with the people he spends his nights with, and is significantly more promiscuous than Batman is. This in itself is a heavy propagation of the idea that bisexual individuals are unable to stay in committed relationships because their lack of single-gender attraction renders them incapable of forming meaningful connections. He appears in DC Comics’ 2023 Pride volume, in which he interacts with Catman— Thomas Blake— and subsequently sleeps with him, thus underlining the common theme of Minhkhoa’s relationships being limited to nothing more than a physical connection. This is emphasized especially when he’s seen leaving bed with both a man and woman by his side, whom he tells to make up grand stories about their time together in order to hyperbolize his feats and create mystery around his life.

His penchant for meaningless flings and physical connection is intrinsically connected to his status as a brown man, a member of a group that tends to be largely fetishized by Western audiences. He is visibly brown/tan when depicted with large portions of skin showing, often in the aftermath of a night of passion, yet he’s whitewashed when presented in other contexts. This pattern deviates in Batman: The Knight where we still see an aspect of sexualization when he’s seen seducing a man far older than him in issue #5, a tactic that could’ve been largely avoided and yet was likely used to emphasize his bisexuality. He is only allowed to be brown when it’s appealing to the audience, when his body is on display, and when he’s not meant to be an esteemed crime fighter.

On another front, his identity as the Ghost-Maker is largely debated by the global community, with most people believing he doesn’t exist. He’s treated as a myth— a man larger than life, despite his seemingly active involvement in Southeast Asia’s crime scene. The mere concept of the Ghost-Maker is treated as legend, similar to how the people of Gotham speculated over Batman’s existence during Bruce’s early days as the vigilante. However, it raises a larger question: Why is Minhkhoa Khan so elusive, and what were the motivations behind making him so?

The answer requires the consideration of several factors: the fact that there are less than ten living people who know Minhkhoa’s name and even less that have seen his face, the overall nature of his work as a vigilante with no qualms against killing, his status as a ‘foreign vigilante’ when compared to the other members of Batman’s circle, and the treatment of his overarching identity as a whole.

It’s clear that Ghost-Maker is far more secretive than Batman, most significantly in his personal life. Batman is inextricably tied to his public persona of Bruce Wayne, the former-billionaire CEO of Wayne Enterprises and “Gotham’s favorite son,” whereas Minhkhoa Khan is simply unknown to the world. When considered in the scope of his vigilantism, it makes sense: he commits objectively more ‘severe’ crimes than Batman, disregarding the fact that he doesn’t kill when working with Batman following his promise to refrain from doing so. However, when factoring in his racial identity, it quickly begins to unravel.

Comic books are far from immune from stereotypes, and even more well-known for orientalism in iconic characters such as Ra’s Al Ghul and his daughter, Talia, both of whom are portrayed with a certain mystique and air of exoticism. Though it may not have been intentional, there is something to be said about the tropes surrounding Minhkhoa Khan. He’s mysterious, alluring, and utilizes swords similar to katanas despite not being Japanese, adding to the air of foreignness surrounding him. Bruce states on numerous occasions that there’s something “broken” in him, and a large part of their arguments are founded on the basis of Bruce attempting to pacify or fix Minhkhoa and his efforts being rejected every time.

When Bruce Wayne is angry, it’s justified, often caused by an overwhelming need to survive in the instance of Batman: The Knight. When Minhkhoa Khan is angry, it’s out of malicious intent to harm others and is just further ‘proof’ of his innate inhumanity. He’s not allowed to be angry, not in the sense that Batman is, because his anger is violence and his violence is feral. His actions are driven by an inability for him to control himself, hence why he has no issue with sleeping around and killing people. There is always something inherently ‘other’ about him because he is brown, something that is even further emphasized by his juxtaposition to Batman.

Minhkhoa is without a doubt a complex character, as seen in the way he seeks out knowledge to understand the emotions of those around him— most notably Bruce— and effectively go against the harsh stereotypes surrounding him. The layers to his personality are deep, and yet they’re not immune to subconscious bias on the writers’ parts. He’s violent, almost alarmingly so, and is only “tamed” when he makes a promise to a white man. He allegedly doesn’t understand emotions and has to be told to make an effort to do so despite being a grown man, and this in itself is a disservice to two integral parts of his identity.

His presumed antisocial personality disorder is treated as one-dimensional and not multifaceted as personality disorders tend to be, and he only seems capable of experiencing one emotion at a time. He’s allowed to be harsh, but that harshness is dulled when he’s around Bruce, his alleged ‘pacifier.’ He’s shown to be emotionally stunted and incapable of caring for children despite being exceedingly smart in other categories, which is strange. It would be assumed that a man of his caliber would understand the fundamentals of raising a child, especially when he understands his own emotions enough to program an artificial intelligence to feel fear for him. Perhaps it’s intended to be a mirror of Bruce Wayne’s own inability to seek professional help, but Bruce is allowed to and has grown from their youth, while Minhkhoa evidently hasn’t.

There is an inherent issue within the overarching ‘Batman Family’ in that less popular characters are shunted in favor of placing Batman at the forefront, depriving his allies of the proper growth and characterization they deserve. We see it in Barbara Gordon and Selina Kyle, whose character development arcs have been completely shattered post-New 52 in order to make them more palatable love interests for Dick Grayson and Bruce Wayne, respectively. It’s seen with Stephanie Brown and Cassandra Cain, who are often overlooked in favor of their male counterparts, and it’s seen in Duke Thomas, who has always been placed on the outskirts of both canon and fandom content despite being created ten years ago and being a fairly-established character.

Minhkhoa is no stranger to this trend, his personality and actions seemingly shifting based on whether he’s interacting with Batman or not. This could be explored in depth through a lens other than the precarious pacifier-pacified dynamic, yet DC Comics refuses to pursue anything further. They attempted to mold him in Batman Incorporated (2022) but fell short with a lackluster plot and prolonged continuations of the aforementioned tropes and stereotypes.

Ghost-Maker is a character teeming with potential, as are all of Batman’s allies, but he’s veering towards a dangerous characterization if DC continues to go down the path of hiring uneducated writers to portray him. There are several intentional aspects of his character, most notably found in his intentional color parallels with Batman, and yet they can’t seem to put in an effort to treat him and his experience with care and respect.

#mars.txt #dc #bruce wayne #ghostbat #minhkhoa khan #ghostmaker #UMMMMM. I was kind of insane ove rthis sorry

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maniculum · 10 months

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Bestiaryposting: Holghras Results

Now for what everyone -- or at least a certain percentage -- has been waiting for: the results for the Holghras! Anyone who found that sentence confusing can catch up by checking this page: https://maniculum.tumblr.com/bestiaryposting .

This time around, they should all fit into one post, as the response was a little smaller. I see how it is: everyone wants to draw Spooky Corpse-Eater With Magic, but nobody wants to draw Horny Bird With Problems.

I kid, of course. The Wutugald had some pretty clear visual elements that people could hook onto, but the Holghras entry is mostly about its behavior and doesn't give much information on what it looks like beyond "it's a bird". So it's pretty clear why people might have a harder time drawing artistic inspiration from that one. (And I really and truly appreciate those of you who took a crack at it anyway.) The level of physical description is going to vary a lot entry to entry, I'm afraid -- to some extent I think it's about whether it's an animal the reader is expected to be familiar with, but there are definitely a few detailed visual descriptions of animals most medieval Europeans would have seen because the author wants to do some symbolism. So it's a toss-up. Anyway, here's the link to the description people are working from:

And the results, again roughly in order of appearance. If yours isn't here, let me know -- I saw one post that said something about Tumblr eating their original attempt, presumably out of Bird Homophobia. I'm happy to reblog any that I missed due to Tumblr's functionality.

@bruncikara (link to post here) gives us our first interpretation. I really enjoy the medieval bestiary style, including the use of the Generic Medieval Plant that always reminds me of mutant asparagus. I think the border is designed to evoke the thorns in which the Holghras nests, which I also appreciate. The bird's pose, flat on its back with its neck curved up, is great, and it's shown performing its signature Hide With Dirt move. I think at least some of the inspiration comes from quails here, judging by the head... feather... thing... [Wikipedia break] ... okay, apparently it's just called a "plume", which I should have guessed. This is the first example of the common (and correct!) assumption that the Holghras is a member of the order Galliformes.

@jamiethekeener (link to post here) gives us this one, also posing with its signature dirt clods. I'm reminded of a cardinal, personally. The artist provides a brief comment on their design, noting that they are not a bird expert. I think this is a pretty cute juvenile bird, and the way it holds the dirt comes off as kind of playful.

@silverhart-makes-art (link to post here) has produced another very naturalistic drawing, which (in my non-expert opinion) manages to look very much like a real bird without specifically looking like any bird in particular. They apparently do know birds, because they specifically name-drop Galliformes in their description of their design decisions. I like the decision to also include one of the bird's Signature Behaviors, i.e., the mother carrying her chicks.

@pomrania (link to post here) has given their Holghras a selection of striking features, which they explain in their post. There's a lot in that post, actually, and I really enjoyed reading the whole journey of this particular drawing. You should go read it too -- the post linked above also provides a draft version, a link to a series of progress sketches, and a link to an explanation of their design choices that includes rumination on how to make a bird look "slutty". Go check it out, we'll be here when you get back.

@sweetlyfez (link to post here) describes her design choices briefly, indicating that her goal was to pick Bird Attributes that could look unsettling in combination and suggest that the bird depicted has a "terrible sex life". Mission accomplished, I think -- that bird does not look trustworthy. Also now we know that thing on its head is just called a plume, so good for us. I really like the effect the -- watercolor? I think? I don't know art -- provides, and that seagull-esque spot on its beak really is a great touch.

@rautavaara (link to post here) has done another beautifully stylized drawing with a very pleasant color scheme. They provide a brief explanation of their design decisions in the linked post. I'm particularly struck by the fact that this version of the Holghras apparently carries its young in the same way that the folkloric version of the stork carries babies: in some kind of cloth wrapping held in the beak. I also like that the chick's feet are sticking out.

@mobileleprechaun (link to post here) apparently had some trouble posting this, but I'm glad they got it through, because it's delightful. I like the little bird on the right with its feet sticking straight up, and the other one under its mother's wing/arm. When I first saw this, I was briefly puzzled why the drawing contrasted male and female birds, because they looked quite similar -- then I noticed the tailfeathers -- then I looked more closely at the male's tailfeathers and cracked up a little bit. The linked post provides a brief explanation of the design decisions, including why the wings look so much like arms. It also has a couple tags that I find funny.

@karthara (link to post here) provides this excellent image as well as a brief explanation of their design choices. I love the over-the-top tailfeathers on the extremely-sexy purple male Holghrases, and the babies dangling from under the female's wing, and the fact that the clod of dirt being held up by the juvenile is at least as big as the bird holding it. Also, those ridiculous tailfeathers are apparently inspired by the Onagadori rooster, which means we're back with the Galliformes.

@embervoices (link to post here) did this adorable drawing of the juvenile Holghras. I particularly like that she's taken a different route than having it just hold up the dirt: this one apparently has a little hidey-hole like a trapdoor spider. This is just very cute all around, I like it.

@cheapsweets (link to post here) provides this excellent and action-packed depiction, along with a wonderfully detailed explanation of their design decisions. (I love reading those.) From their post, it's clear that they also know more about birds than I do, and also name-check the Galliformes as the most likely category. Apparently the bird-people of Tumblr have this critter's number. Also, that is a masterful depiction of a bird running off with an egg, I have to say.

@coolest-capybara (link to post here) has done another medieval-styled rendition, which I really enjoy. This is also, I believe, the first appearance of a human in any of these drawings. (Well. Live human, at least.) I enjoy the depiction of the female bird doing her fake limp to lead the human away from her nest while the males engage in their weird drama up in the right. They provide an explanation of their design choices and inspiration in the linked post.

@scarlettbookworm (link to post here) has given us a drawing that showcases several of the odd behaviors described in the entry. The linked post also provides a description of their design process and an explanation of their decisions. I think this is another very cute picture of a bird holding up dirt, and I enjoy the one at the top shouting "HOLGHRAS!" The egg-stealer over in the bottom right is very good also.

@moustawott (link to post here) has drawn this very vulture-like Holghras in what I have to say is a very well-done bushy area. I had to look twice to realize the background was actually cleverly-arranged splashes and blobs of color that strongly suggest that we're in a bush. Very good art, love the style, and that fuzzy baby Holghras is cute as hell. The linked post provides an explanation of the design decisions.

@strixcattus (link to post here) gives us this rendition of the Holghras, which they describe as being inspired by a prairie chicken and a potoo. Prairie chickens are, of course... Galliformes. Another tally mark in that column. I'm particularly delighted by the giant mouth on the chick in the bottom right. As they did last time, the artist has provided a detailed modern-naturalist interpretation of the animal, which is of course in the linked post. I recommend checking that out; maybe it's just because I'm the kind of huge nerd that I am, but I think these are great.

@treesurface (link to post here) gives us a Holghras that they describe as a cross between a bird of prey and a bird of paradise, which I think is a pretty good idea that fits both the aggressive behavior and the mating behavior described in the entry. I enjoy the fact that multiple artists have decided this bird Likes Big Tailfeathers (and it does lie, but about different things).

@ashfly (link to post here) gives us this picture of a juvenile Holghras holding up its clump of dirt. They also indicate that they have an idea of what it is, which I really hope they'll share now that it's posted and the bird's out of the bag, because I was 100% certain nobody would guess this one. The fuzzy bird is cute, of course, and the rainbow legs are really striking. (Pride legs, perhaps?) I also like that it's clearly looking over at the "camera" to see if we're buying it.

And finally, the official medieval depiction:

... hm. Yeah, some absolute bastard apparently cut out a bunch of the miniatures in this manuscript at one point. Luckily, we have the Ashmole Bestiary over at the Bodleian Library, which is extremely similar, so we can get an idea of the image that was here:

And also, this entry in the Aberdeen Bestiary comes with two images. Here's the other one:

I'm going to assume the choice of coloration was up to the individual artist and the missing Aberdeen illustration was also brown, because the Ashmole version of the egg-stealer also has the more colorful pattern:

Anyway, in case you haven't recognized it from these helpful and very accurate images, this is the partridge. Now you know what's going on in those pear trees.

I don't actually have anything else to add about that. I was frankly a little surprised there was even an entry for "partridge".

#maniculum bestiaryposting #holghras

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haleigh-sloth · 1 year

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Hi! I saw some people saying that Hawks is gonna have a mental break, but honestly I don't see that happening currently, do you think there is a chance for that?? (I tough only him realizing that villains can be saved through Ochaco but nothing more than that maybe him been involved on the Todoroki plot but it's seems that they are now far away from him)

Maybe you are focusing on the extreme negative connotations with the word "mental break" and not really reading it for what people mean when they say that, which is:

Hawks's walls that close him off from everyone and everything and his own true emotions need to finally come down. And that happening is not going to be a fun or smooth or easy process. He needs to "break", as in, those mental walls/barriers need to break. And with that, an emotional and mental "break" should follow behind it.

I can vouch for several friends of mine who desperately want to see him cry. That's really what people mean when they say mental break. Because Hawks won't cry, he won't express hardly any emotion right now because he's not facing what he's done and what he really feels. I wrote about the villains needing to CRY and I feel the same applies to Hawks. The cathartic emotional and mental release people are wanting is because they want him to face his actions, face how he really feels about them, and challenge his way of thinking. That is not an easy process (See: Tomura), so it shouldn't just be something he casually shrugs off like no big deal. If you're thinking people are wanting a legit psychotic break then no, that's not true. And if they are, well, weird, but that's not the crowd I'm talking about here.

I'm sure you didn't want a whole thoroughly thought-out response to this but this is the consequences of your actions (jk)

You brought up Ochacko as Hawks realizing villains can be saved, and yes I agree that's a thing that should happen. Hawks killed Twice, and then proceeded to say he wants to be like Twice. That is not a normal thought process. And in the act of killing Twice, he struggled internally due to his own conflicting feelings on the Jin Bubaigawara he grew a sort of attachment to before the PLF raid, and used language indicating that he genuinely felt pretty fondly of Twice---and then proceeds to stab him in the back (literally). I highly recommend checking out @transhawks meta on the interaction between Hawks and Twice before he killed him, as it really points out some of the emotions Hawks was cycling through in that moment. Also, re-read that scene anyway because you can clearly see Hawks struggling with the situation, only to snap at the end.

So again, even within the context of fictional bnha it's not normal for Hawks to stab a guy in the back and murder him, express pretty much zero remorse about it at all, and then proceed to say you want to be like him because you like him as a person.

Hawks and Twice were put into a mirror situation of Izuku/Tomura, Shouto/Touya, Ochacko/Toga. Twice was Hawks's villain. And Hawks actually kickstarted the whole narrative of attempting to save a villain you've formed a connection with by appealing to their needs in some way and using who you are as a person to that villain. The thing about their situation is that Hawks failed. For obvious story-telling reasons, like he can't accomplish what the kids' goal is before they do, before they even get a chance to entertain the idea of it. But for character-related reasons such as Hawks refusing to face himself and be vulnerable. Twice was just openly vulnerable 24/7, but Hawks didn't let his walls come down even one bit, which was the problem in their dynamic. The problem extends beyond that because Twice is gone now, and you can see that Hawks won't even be vulnerable within himself, to himself, for himself. He just won't do it. And with these hero/villain pairs the manga has set up for the end game, vulnerability from BOTH sides plays a huge part in the kids succeeding at their goal of saving. Hawks refuses to do that, so therefore he failed.

And rather than reflecting on his time since then, what we get when Toga!Twice shows up again:

is Hawks immediately resorting to killing him again, still not facing the mess of a situation it was when he did it for real back in the PLF war.

When Hawks talks about Twice in the way that he does--such as wanting to be like him and liking him as a person (yk like when he killed him), it's framed pretty ominously:

And this panel brings me to his involvement with the Todorokis.

Do I know how Hawks's involvement with Toga will lead into/tie into his involvement with the Todorokis? No, I don't and can't really see the pathway YET, but he's tied to both and it's uncharacteristic of Hori's writing style to leave things unfinished/unaddressed, so I'm confident he's going to make it happen.

Hawks and Endeavor, my god. Hawks, for lack of a better way of phrasing it, wishes Endeavor was his dad. It's coded this way, Hori doesn't go out of his way to beat the allegations either with his art:

Hawks's parasocial attachment to Endeavor (who quite literally never pays any extra mind to Hawks or spares a thought toward him during this whole final arc (or ever tbh)) is not a good thing. It's not cute, it's not sweet, it's not a normal admiration. Hawks's commentary on the Todorokis, his intrusion into their conversation during the hospital chapters, his curiosity about special details (like Shouto's eye), him insisting on just supporting Endeavor literally no matter what--there is nothing positive about that. Hawks even says it himself that he admires Shouto for facing his family's problems, when Hawks never got to (through no fault of his own, but this is a testament to how he feels about the Todorokis). In a sense Hawks just...wishes Endeavor was his dad. I mean that's the most blunt way I can put it. He views Endeavor (the doll) as a source of comfort, like a child would/should their parent. Little Hawks and little Touya being placed in front of Endeavor, whose face is split evenly on the page, is not subtle. It's clear a choice has to be made, and Hawks is not the choice Endeavor is going to make. Touya is.

Now, if Horikoshi wants to write a satisfying conclusion for Hawks similar to that of the LOV setup to have an emotional catharsis moment later on, then he'll make this impact Hawks believably. That should NOT be something Hawks just shrugs off like it wasn't a big deal. Because it 100% will be/should be treated AS A BIG DEAL. He's clung to his image of Endeavor since he was a child. Endeavor the hero, who beats bad guys. Not Enji, the father who rejects heroism in the name of saving his villain son--who burned Hawks's wings and went after his mom let's not forget. That is not something we've seen Hawks contemplate internally. The whole fight Hawks is worried about Endeavor, meanwhile inside Endeavor's head he's thinking about himself or his kids. The relationship is not the two way street Hawks would want it to be. And it's gonna be made clear, and that should hurt.

So, two major things here that really shouldn't be just "¯\_(ツ)_/¯" moments for Hawks. Ochacko saving Toga (dressed as Twice) should be a pretty jarring awakening for Hawks that HE tried to save Twice, but he failed. But Ochacko is succeeding in saving Twice's friend. It should be a pretty upsetting event to look back on that situation and realize that killing Twice really wasn't the answer, or the only options, because Ochacko saving Toga (again, currentlydressed as Twice) is living proof. Hawks failed, and Twice, the guy he says he likes, is dead. Endeavor choosing family (Touya) over heroism (Keigo) should also be upsetting, because his childhood ideal Endeavor is gone.

Both of these things happening should be challenges to Hawks's thoughts and feelings about himself, and that should not be a smooth process that doesn't involve strong emotional reactions from the character. There's a LOT left to be done with Hawks and that's why people want to see it.

Am I confident that it'll happen to the level of that I am confident Tomura, Touya, and Toga will be saved? I wouldn't say I'm that high up on the confidence scale, just because Hawks has always been so weirdly handled by Horikoshi that I scratch my head at his choices with Hawks sometimes. But I AM confident they will be addressed. Hawks maintaining his cool guy demeanor would be really stupid and disappointing tbh, especially because the LOV losing their "cool" demeanor elevates their stories so well and I think Hawks deserves the same treatment.

#bnha #bnha asks #anonymous #takami keigo #hawks #bnha hawks #bnha meta

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