#but speaking only age wise i don't see a problem with it

[the-tarot-witch22]

Personality of your future spouse - Pick a pile

Pile 1/ Pile 2

Pile 3/ Pile 4

Hello everyone ! This is my another pick a pile or pac reading so please be kind and leave comment or reblog, and let me know if it resonated with you!

Note : This is a general reading or collective reading. It may or may not resonate with you. Please take what resonates and leave what doesn't. And it's totally okay if our energies aren't aligned!

How to pick : Take a deep breath and choose a pile which you feel most connected to! You can choose more than one pile, it just means both pile have messages for you!

I worked really hard on this pile please show some love by leaving comments, likes and reblogs!

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Pile 1:

(The cards I got for you guys - 6 of swords, king of wands, 4 of pentacles, king of swords and 9 of wands)

Okay so the first thing i heard and feel is they are quite chatty or like to talk a lot, or travel a lot too when they are sad or not happy with circumstances at hand, They are also very masculine and dominant, like a leader or very bossy, They are also quite outspoken like they won't be quiet, if they see something which doesn't sit right with them, they might tend to not indulge in things which are holding them back, they are quite a problem solver, their advise and wisdom is to die for, they will speak right thing at right time, they might be extrovert too, but they will balance you out well, they like to move forward, they are comfortable in their own skin, they might have had a time or phase where they didn't like how they looked and how they were but time changed them now they comfortable in their own skin, and they try to make other person very comfortable as well, they are not very judgemental, for some of you guys travelling is so prominent, like your future spouse goes to different place, experience different cultures, try different food, it's a part of their personality, they also seem very mature regardless of their age, their situation might have caused them to grow early, they might like to go out or have fun in adventure parks, greenery, they also like to run or keep themselves in shape, for some of you your future spouse seems like a computer geek, they have a very unique and very charming personality, they attract people both genders towards because of their unique sense of humour and personality, they have transformed very much in their lives, for some of you your future spouse has gone through so many changes, hardships which caused them to where they are, they also seem very focused and determined, if they want something they will get it type of attitude, "i heard failure doesn't scare me, not trying enough does" spoken like a real business man, they seems very wise guys, they are also very seductive and sexual , like they are secure in their body, they don't have fragile masculinity, they are very respectful towards people and others, they might not seem to show emotions very well, but you will know they care for you, their action speaks louder than words, they are also quite private about their personal life, they won't be spilling secrets to everyone, just to someone who are close to them, they are also very quite protective and jealous, they won't like anyone clinging onto you, let it be anyone even a pet, like "they are mine", they will make sure the other person knows, you are with them, their temper is calm unless someone provokes them, then they are like they don't even see who is in front of them, they won't hurt you, but their anger is quite bad if someone gets on their bad side, they also seem bit materialistic, because off their past, i feel, they also seem very logical and intellectual a great person to talk to and spend rest of your lives with, they don't take betrayal easy, they might cut off people easily, they sometimes tend to hang on past or just look back at things that has happened but they try not to do that, they know its only gonna waste time and nothing can happen, but they also get proud of their growth, quite confident, they also seem hardworking independent and the person who stands their ground very well, they also don't care what others think of them. They also seem very passionate.

Honestly? They are wonderful! You guys are lucky and so is your future spouse!

They could be fire and air sign in their big 3 or 6. Especially Sagittarius or Aries, or might be you guys as well. Or they can have fire or air midheaven.

Pile 2:

(The cards I got for you guys - 4 of pentacles, king of cups, 9 of cups, 5 of swords, The hanged man and page of cups)

Okay so the first thing i felt they wear heart on their sleeves a very honest and open book type of person, they are emotionally mature in tune with them, knows what they want in a person, so forget the fear of mixed signals, because your future spouse will tell you thousand times they want you, give you reassurance, the love you want and desire. They are the kind of person who would not like people eyeing you, very protective some of you can say over protective, but don't be scared they are not controlling but just scared to lose you, because you mean so much to them, they tend to think they are not enough for you and end up overthinking and becoming jealous, and honestly in a good way, i don't feel any negative and ill intentions from them, they tend to give you the world and love you want they won't be like refusing you, they will make sure your needs have been met, they are self sufficient too, and has a good job too, they seem very soft and loving, as i said an open book, so they won't hide things from me, they embrace their both sides, in bed they can be a switch, or be very versatile they tend to make you feel at home and very comfortable, their energy is calm, even while doing your reading i felt sleepy, very soft spoken and soft person, they also seem very curious to learn new things, they might have trouble saying no or might be you as well, They have a good heart, they don't like to cause pain to someone if they end up hurting someone , it will affect them too, they are quite sensitive too, they don't like conflicts they rather avoid having them, they also seem very loyal and honest, i heard "I will die for you queen", i also heard they are very caring towards environment, they will cherish you so much, they might sometimes take things to their heart, they are very sincere too, values honesty a lot, They also seem to have spiritual side, or they seem lucky in money or financial department, they tend to get anxious at times, like at time of conflicts it doesn't seem to suit them, i also feel their manifestations comes easily to them and they just don't realize it , for some of you they could be very religious, they might just be also lucky in general, they also have a tendency to win, or have competitive side to them, when it comes to their profession or you, they are very laid back to or might like procrastinate at times, for some of you your future spouse could be very lazy or just like to sleep in, very attractive and young personality, or they seem younger they might look young or have a heart of child, pure they seem to be very charming, can be quite flirtatious without realizing it, i heard "was it a coincidence, we met?", "i don't think it was i have dreamt of you so many times yet i can't remember you", wow, they just gave me something for you guys.

Your future spouse seem like a sweetheart honestly, so loving, love it for you guys!

Their possible zodiac signs could be - water signs in their big 3 or 6 especially Cancer and Scorpio , or for some of you - earth signs or they can have a water midheaven.

Pile 3:

(The cards I got for you guys - 7 of wands, 3 of cups, The empress, Temperance, knight of cups, 3 of swords, 5 of pentacles and the star)

Okay so the first thing i felt was they are quite hardworking, for some of your future spouse could be workaholic and they have so many responsibilities and burden on them, They tend to overthink a lot, they are quite righteous and stand up for people who have been wronged, they like to earn but with their strength and hard work, they also seem kind of serious but warms up when you know them, they like indoors, they might be ambivert and they seem very adaptable, they tend to find happiness in small things around them, their might be someone they are close to or helped them come out of their shell, they tend to have many people or friends but only few of them seem genuine, they also could be teacher or have that teacher personality they like to correct you or tell you things teach you stuff, they might be quite experienced in bed, they also seem very focused and determined to get things done, they don't like to left things on tomorrow, more like do it now, they also seem to like to have parties or small celebration with their loved ones, as i said small things can make them happy and small things can make them angry too, they really seem to focus on self and self growth, i heard "self - righteous person", they have so much to give, the love, the things to their loved ones, their love language could be act of services, they tend to meet their friends or pals a lot, they don't like to do flirting or leading someone on, they are very nurturing and caring too in touch with their feminine side, they also seem to love kids, or they might be good with them, they are financially abundant too, but all because of their hard work, they don't like people who are very codependent, they will care and open up but at their own pace, for some of you they could have a water venus, they are good and caring boyfriend as well as husband, they are also very balanced, or have became balanced, after the traumatic or bad experience in past, but that's for another thing and pac, i won't go in details, but i also feel they got their heartbroken or for some of you they broke someone's heart, but later they now realize their mistake and respect people's emotion, they also seem very gentlemanly, or charming person, they are quite a listener more than a talker, for some of you they like to things slow or for some of you they are quite forward, for some of you they might had trusted wrong people in their friendship or business or work, they seem to be vulnerable too, but with right people, not with everyone if you earn that, they love you, i also feel for some of you they might have brought up in poverty, but now they are doing very much better now and has good job or money, or had a hard time when they were kid or younger, they value for things and money, as i said very caring, i also feel their aura is quite healing or they might work in medical field. They might at time be judgemental or jump to conclusions too, but nothing too bad. I also they are quite happy, when they achieve their desire goals.

They seem like chill person honestly! love it for you guys <3

Their possible zodiac sign in big 3 or 6 - Scorpio, cancer, Gemini, Libra or Virgo and Capricorn, Aries or Leo too.

Pile 4:

(The cards I got for you guys - Wheel of fortune, 6 of cups, 9 of pentacles, strength, the star, king of pentacles, 4 of pentacles, 5 of wands and 10 of pentacles)

Okay so wow the first thing i heard and feel is they are quite the provider or has that let me do it energy, for some of you, your future spouse is very mature, they seem very lucky and have things on their fingertips when they need it, if their is a situation they don't like, the situation seems to improve on its own somehow, they believe in "time is precious don't waste it" very understanding, and have figured out their life purpose, they seem to move forward, for some of you your future spouse seems introvert, but they like to move forward in their own way, they like to win and go ahead, they also feel loved when someone appreciates them and shows them with their actions, they might like to read as well, like self help books, or might be you guys, but they seem into reading anything news, articles, they likes to be updated on political affairs, or what is happening around them, "i also heard timid and shy" so for some of you might be that at first, they created their own fame and luck type of vibe i am getting, they also has a very transformative personality, or went through changes, they might have lost someone young a pet or someone close to them, a grandparent, but all the changes and ending has made your future spouse stand on their own which makes sense why they are very wise or mature, you guys can check pile 1 too, i somehow got similar messages for pile 1, your future spouse personality is very interesting honestly, sweet, spicy and calm, love that vibe i am getting, they seem to like and feel nostalgic things, for some of you animals or helping people make them happy, they seem very sweet, they like to help people and go beyond for that, they might like flowers or nature a lot, they are also quite very independent, and self secure, like they know they are good, they don't need someone's opinion, they value facts or honesty, for some of you they are quite confident, they have worked hard and has achieved their goals, as i said they created their own fame self made person, they are brave , courageous and very spiritual too, they like to believe in old myths too, not a blind follower don't worry, they are quite focused and determined to make their life a better for themselves and others, they believe in equality, They will go to lengths to protect their loved ones, their love is healing, their personality is healing so maybe they have at times attracted broken people in their life, they like to go with the flow, they don't let people treat them as pushover either, in past for some of them could have been, but now it's very different for them, As i said they changed a lot, they definitely are a sugar daddy very rich guys very rich, they might also like to have everything their heart desire let it be anything, when they love they love very deeply, they are also very possessive over their materialistic things and their loved ones, "its mine, so its mine" no one gets to have it, but in a good way, its hot honestly, they are self build and for some of you they have gotten inheritance or comes from old money, they might have been close to their grand parents, i also feel they have stress or they take sometimes too much work pressure which causes them to have inner conflict with them, but they are learning with time, They are also very practical and logical a very much problem solver, they are quite ambitious too and love to work on their goals.

Your future spouse is a package <3, good for you guys!

Their possible zodiac sign in big 3 or 6 - Earth signs especially Capricorn.

Thank you for stopping by! Take care and remember you are loved <3

[sofoulandfairaday]

Please share all of your Sirius and Bellatrix thoughts ♥️

I have way too many, darling.

The TLDR is it is our choices that show us who we truly are, far more than our abilities. The long version is under the cut.

When reading about them I usually prefer stories where their original 8-9 year gap is preserved (it annoys me to no end when people write the Order and the Death Eaters as entirely made up of people in the same couple of years in Hogwarts —really? Was the conflict exclusively waged by child soldiers? Were Dumbledore and Voldemort just chilling before 1977, when they decided to start recruiting?). With that being said, I can also enjoy fics where - for shipping purposes - their ages are more compatible, to make them share time in Hogwarts or during the First Wizarding War.

I think they are very, very alike personality-wise. The narrative draws some delicious writing parallels between them, both physically and in their expressions, vices and virtues, and choices. Directly between them, might I add. The author underlines the difference between Bella and Narcissa more than once, we're meant to see it, and similarly we're meant to see the similarities between Bella & Sirius.

They are haughty, passionate, powerful, competent, arrogant, bright, much more intelligent than the fandom thinks they are. In general, they suffer from the stigmatization that many characters - but some people in real life do too - that someone who is intense and impulsive cannot possibly be as intelligent as people who are meek, soft-spoken, generally more controlled. Think what the fandom does to Sirius vs Remus and Bella vs her sisters, when every arrow points to the fact that they are actually the cleverest in these pairings.

They are both some shade of mentally ill, and not because of the curse of the Blacks - half the Blacks went mad didn't they? What's the saying? Every time a Black is born the gods flip a coin. god the Targaryen-Black parallels are gold - Sirius is very likely horribly depressed in OOTP, something no one around him seems to understand, infuriatingly. The only one that seems to get it is Harry, who has the literal Dark Lord living in his brain (= bigger problems to deal with). Bella is... I don't know what she is, ask me after my psychiatry module next year, but my money is on PTSD after Azkaban - after all, she didn't have the escape of an Animagus form behind bars. She would also very likely be victim-blamed for these different feelings, which would lend itself to a delicious nobody else in the world understands us but us type of post-Azkaban dark!fic which I would love to read.

They are both skilled at magic, and while they might despise each other for their respective political views, they respect each other because of this. Bella is probably above him in terms of magical power and skill, because she's 9 years older and because of Voldemort's training, but Sirius seemed to be keeping up quite well with her during their fight in the DoM.

Speaking of which, I am sure that Bellatrix's scream of triumph was due to her winning their duel, not because she thought she had killed him and that is probably the single thing I love the most about HBC's interpretation of her in the movies. That look. 10/10.

I am of the opinion that Bella is all bark and no bite when it comes to certain members of her family, especially her sisters. Sure, she might say that she wants to prune her family tree but 30 years later in the beginning of DH, she still calls Andromeda sister. I'm sure she would want nothing more than to put him under lock and key for the rest of his life and never let him escape, not kill him. And, to me, the way Sirius speaks of his family is very interesting. I'm sure he firmly believes that he hates them, but his actual feelings are more complex than that. You can hate someone and still desire their love, their respect. You can hate that they are the only people in the world who understand you - and hate yourself more in turn, for it.

Sirius seems to me like someone haunted by his own darkness. He, much like Harry, would be constantly worried that he's becoming like them. I'm sure it's a weak spot for him and I wish we had heard more bickering, or at least a full interaction between Bella and Sirius (I feel like she would claim him as hers, underline how much he cannot escape his own blood, even just to mock him/unsettle him in battle). But what Dumbledore says to Harry is true: it doesn't matter how alike they are, it's their choices that matter much more. And I feel like this is why the two of them would never reconcile in canon. They stand for different things.

I also think there might be some - and I know Freud is controversial nowadays, but bear with me - penis envy, on her part. Because Sirius was born the heir - something she would have given her left hand to be: to be born and die a Black instead of being expected to marry into another family - and he squandered it all away by consorting with werewolves and mudbloods. But no. He got everything and pissed on it, and it's just not fair. And by choosing not to come back, even in the two years after Regulus' death, he made sure that the Black Family name will die with him- and I think that is just something she can never ever forgive him.

Now. Everybody knows I don't like TCC and my preferred view of Bella is someone with fertility issues, even to the point of being sterile.

[I read an amazing fanfic once and a line from it stuck in my brain - "If I can't be life, then I'll be death"]

But. If we do see it as canon. This is also the reason why - despite being overjoyed at Delphi's birth - I am convinced that she wished for a boy when she was pregnant. If she had a boy with the Dark Lord, who couldn't possibly give them his name, the House of Black would have an heir. This is also the reason why I don't thing she was necessarily opposed to having children with Rodolphus - the "spare" would have been her heir.

Bellatrix would say that Regulus was her favourite cousin, but truth be told, it was really Sirius whom she respected more - at her core, in my opinion, Bellatrix is really only someone who respects power. Sirius is like her that way.

But Bellatrix is clearly a cruel person, which Sirius is not (or at least, he tries not to be: Kreacher and Snape are two very particular cases of people who are mean to him back). Also, Sirius' view of the world is much more egalitarian - If you want to know what a man’s like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals. Bellatrix is clearly someone who sees the world in terms of hierarchies, and lives within them (see: how she acts around Voldemort and what is implied of her treatment of house-elves who obey their masters: there is a scale and some serve others, and as long as they do so well they have certain rights; disobey, you get punished).

(Bellatrix is somewhat a feminist character but let's be real- she's not a revolutionary. She went to the Dark Lord and showed him just how powerful she was - aka my wand is bigger than all these male DEs' - and he said "okay, fair, I'll give you the Mark", thereby freeing herself. She is not a "equal representation for women inside terrorist organizations!!" type of girlie)

I also love how her death parallels Sirius'. It's thematically beautiful and it excuses her death coming at the hands of one Molly Weasley (who could never ever in a million years have beaten her on skill alone). She dies because she is arrogant. It's one of her traits. Overconfidence. She was always meant to die like that.

[coincidentally one of the reasons why she would not be a hufflepuff like some suggest: this woman is not humble]

I could go on, but I think I've rambled enough.

P.S. Let's not sleep on the fact that the two of them together would be hot.

[nooblord9001]

Thoughts on the Graves parents? I saw a video detailing all the... well, details we have on them, and I think they're pretty interesting in their own right, though of course it's all in service of the main characters

Also do you think Andrew's conception was unplanned, unlike Ashley's?

Holy shit, my first ever Tumblr ask?! (not including the ones where the night elves are having a normal one in the inboxes of people who speak positively of Lily lol)

ty ty ty ty ty--!

*sees it's TCoA&L related*

💀 ...welp, guess it's time to make an ass outta myself!

*grabs the stepladder and yoinks the basket that Lily accurately-labeled "Flowers in The Attic but it was made by the folks behind Llamas With Hats" and placed on the top shelf*

Going only off what I've personally observed, I consider the parents to be the "actual" villains of TCoA&L: it seems pretty cut-and-dry that Andrew was unintended (hell, I don't even think Ashley was intended; IIRC Mrs. Graves had her when she was 17, and I just don't see a teenager putting life into the world intentionally), and instead of doing the responsible thing at-- what was she? 15?! --and getting an abortion (or at the very least, giving the kid up for adoption), she tried to play 1950's Nuclear Family in a late 90's/early-2000's economic landscape where such a lifestyle would be completely unsustainable.

So when Ashley reaches the age where the Nuclear Family model's worst weaknesses rear their ugly head, instead of Actually taking responsibility and sending Ashley to a therapist, Mrs. Graves-- in her infinite, galaxy-brained wisdom 🙄🙄 --decides to dump a possibly-neurodivergent girl onto her barely-older brother. As Lily pointed out in her video, any psychologist worth their license would tell you that is the single worst thing to do in Mrs. Graves' situation short of disowning and abandoning the child completely.

By the time Bonnie & Clyde: Ohio Edition have grown up, Mrs. Graves somehow still hasn't even tried to put two-and-two together as to what the actual fucking problem is (hint: it's not Ashley, and it's definitely not Andrew), throws her kids to the wolves and has the audacity to try celebrating that the two are "No longer her problem." Mrs. Graves is the type of woman who would vote for the Leopards Eating Peoples' Faces party.

Look, I'm not a psychologist, a victim of parent-on-child abuse (at least not to the extent that would provide relevant experience to this conversation-- at most, I was neglected by my bio-mom for the first three years of my life, and then promptly adopted by Mom who's unironically The Best), or even that particularly good at character/media analysis, but it's pretty open-and-shut to me that 90% of the awful shit these characters go through could've been avoided if Mrs. Graves and her husband ever wised the hell up and realize the shitshow they've put their family in.

anyways 10/10 ig well done Nemlei in making a detestable villain no cap 😅

[aprilblossomgirl]

Through Wat's Lenses

Originally, I kept this in my personal notes, but as I'm processing episode 11, I found these to be a little helpful in putting my perspective. So, I'm just going to make this a full text post. These are my favorite lines of dialogue from Wat. I specifically made this note on his lines because, oh, I think they're wise words, no, because his lines made a good caption of each episode's things-learned-about-the-plot, in my opinion. So, I'm not lying if I said my viewing experience of the Eclipse is very much shaped, mostly, by the way Wat see-through his lenses.

===================================

Episode 1

"In every movie I watched, each character has a goal and motive to do something."

This was basically a set-up of almost everything. I started to mildly question everyone's motive because of this line. And by motive, I mean knowing the context, knowing where they're coming from for each decision and/or act they did.

Episode 2

"Akk was helping me. He was making Teacher Waree think she had a backup. You know people her age hate to lose faces. It's a big deal. He was trying to help, and so was Ayan. But they chose different methods. Come to think of it. Aye was pretty cool. He was totally talking back to Aunt Waree."

I think this is where I officially became very fond of Wat. Here, he did many things at once. First, he gave a narrative about the old generation (represented by Teacher Waree) as viewed by the younger generation (represented by himself). Second, he tried to put some understanding to Kan on how Akk had helped him through that narrative. Third, when he mentioned Aye, he might have unknowingly put some understanding to Akk as well. When Akk tried to stop Aye from talking back to Waree, I see it as Akk didn't want Aye to get into trouble. But only after hearing what Wat said, he started to see Aye a bit differently. And, lastly, with all that talks, Wat managed to reconcile both Kan and Akk. He could make Kan listen to him, he defended Akk the way Akk hesitated to do so by himself. How is it that Wat's not a peacemaker, the one standing on the middle ground, doing the job of being neutral, not taking sides but not staying silent either. How is it that he didn't speak his mind at the right time and the right place for his words to be contextual. You can't tell me not to have respect for this boy.

Episode 3

"Hey! What's wrong with you guys? Why making a grumpy face? Don't tell me you're jealous of Thua and Aye. / What? If you don't have a crush on him, why are you making that face? / Are you sure? / If you two want to know, why don't we go ask them? / What? You want to know but don't want to ask. And you think it all in your heads."

When I rewatched this episode and listened to this part of the conversation using subtitles in my native language, I realized something that should be obvious, but I misunderstood anyway when I watched it the first time using the English subtitle. It didn't help that I was also distracted by the focus on Kan's heavy reaction. So, when Wat said this line, don't tell me you're jealous of Thua and Aye, by you, he meant both Kan and Akk, also referring to his previous line, what's wrong with you guys? So, I think it's pretty safe to think that Wat knows there's something between Kan and Thua, as well as between Akk and Aye. He's not oblivious, just being (too) practical, and can't see what's the problem with bringing the topic up, only when there's only the three of them.

Episode 4

"The teachers were so harsh on Aye today. / Do you think someone is behind this hardship on Aye?"

Another line that gave a narrative about the situation with Aye. After this scene, Akk was seen looking for Chadok in his office. Perhaps, he knows that he was someone behind all those tests from the teachers to Aye. He might have guessed someone was behind the attacks, and after Wat voiced it out, he considered confirming it to the only person he has in mind.

Episode 5

"But I agree with you. We can't just judge people without hearing their reasons."

Another simple line as a middleman of the three friends. He validated the change in Akk, and made Kan understand the change is good.

Episode 6

"Akk is bonkers when he's surrounded by close friends. / He's a good leader. He always put others before himself. But he can be a little weak-minded sometimes."

"Thua seems soft but he's not stupid. He can surely survive. Don't worry about him."

"You seem so worried about Thua these days. It's weird. / You didn't even want to walk past him back then. You were so afraid people would say you two are the legendary boyfriends."

Nobody could ever convince me that Wat is not observant. He understands his closest friends well and knows things that happened to them. He has no problem explaining it to others or saying it directly to the said friends. Now, after episode 11, I gave closer attention to what he said about Thua. While not explicitly stated, his description of Thua's character implied that you shouldn't worry about the outward impression he gave. Who knows this line, he can surely survive, implies surviving a based-on-lies, that is the Suppalo curse, oppression.

Episode 7

"No, we aren't. Think about it carefully. Those who think differently read different books, watch different movies, or appreciate different types of art than us. / You are what you eat. What you take builds who you are."

Personally, I think these are the most significant lines from Wat throughout this series. It gave the narrative that underlies the show, as well as the motive of the World Remembers group for doing the protests over the old strict rules in general and the uniform rule in particular, which we know, is only a metaphor for a broader political movement at the scale of a country. There are layers of takes from these lines. If you want to change something, think differently. To think differently, have diverse and out-of-your-comfort-bubble references. Read with context. Be mindful of what you consume.

Episode 8

"Kan. I think this is so weird. Before this, Akk was the one chasing Aye. Now Aye is chasing Akk Instead.”

I might be wrong about my interpretation here. I think these are the only lines that highlight Akk and Aye's relationship shift in the romance term. Akk was the first to like Aye, unbeknownst to himself, and Aye fell with Akk later, fully conscious of the matter.

Episode 9

"I like a screenplay that someone wrote. His name is Nut. He writes indie film screenplays. / He likes to play around with the grey area between tales and reality. / I'm interested in what's happening in our school. The protest and the Suppalo curse."

This time, no lines were indicative of other characters or the story. It was the episode where Wat started to take pictures/videos at the school. Also, in this episode, he stated his intention of what story he wanted to tell by referring to a screenplay he liked. I guess this line, "...to play around with the grey area between tales and reality," should have somewhat prepared us for the not-so-beautiful chaos, but, whether we like it or not, a part of that grey area (edited; previously I wrote reality), that was episode 11. But that is another discussion.

Episode 10

Kan: "So the Suppalo curse is back?" | Wat: "I don't think it is."

In this episode, Wat continued taking pictures/videos at the school. That only important line he said, answering Kan, briefly but firmly implied he doesn't believe there was even the Suppalo curse to begin with.

Episode 11

"About what? I don't care who you like. What I do care is what you did."

And finally, my beloved boy exploded. He was angry that Akk lied to them about the curse, and for a reason, I believe, that's not attached to himself personally. He was mad because he realized Akk had inflicted danger on others, even to a life-threatening level. He focused his anger on Akk for doing what he had done and did not extend it to Aye for hiding the fact. And, while he was angry and disappointed and had every right to be, he still knew his boundaries. He still knew he needed to prevent Kan from fighting Akk. Even when he got irritated with Thua, he was the one ready to put himself between Kan and Thua. The boy had his rage and emotional complaint but was a peacemaker still, a middleman, the one to be neutral and take only the side of the truth.

===================================

After this brief revisit of Wat's lines of dialogue, I might have come to my terms with the feel-like chaos that is episode 11. Of course, people are free to interpret as they see fit since the series is, after all, an already published work of everyone involved, open for any receipt. And, here I am, finding my way to process and understand the intense information poured at once in the episode. Now, I am beyond happy the show gave us Wat because of whom I think I could appreciate the Eclipse for what it is and what it wished to represent.

[mbti-notes]

Anon wrote:

Hello mbti-notes and thank you for having this blog. INTP here (probably). Sorry if this post is unstructured. I'm writing this in middle of what I think of as Fe-grip (anxiety/depression) as my problem is related to that.

If you aren't certain about your type, do a proper type assessment. I won't comment on function development otherwise. At the end of your message, you ask whether your thinking is "rational". This is a concerning question since INTPs should automatically understand what it means to be rational and how to determine it.

My aux Ne is trying to remind me of lots of future worst case scenarios, to the point that I experience anxiety, depression and hopelessness.

These "future worst case scenarios" you speak of are fiction. It is your imagination, so why do you treat them as real? Are you being rational when you can't tell the difference between what happens inside your mind and external reality?

And my Si (combined with Ti) tries to find out other people's experiences (online) and facts to support them. And then my Fe makes me regretful, anxious and depressed.

I don't really understand, why should other people's experience have any bearing on you? Are you not an individual with your own path and your own life to live? Are you being rational when you conflate their experience with yours?

I have written to you before. To cut the long story short, I made wrong choices and also trusted my family in some cases in my late teens and 20s, which caused me to waste all those years and my youth with it.

What do you mean by "waste"? Aren't all of your experiences a part of you and important for making you who you are? Acceptance of your past is an important aspect of self-acceptance. Are you being rational when you seek the impossible, such as wanting only positive experiences and never any negative things in life?

Then in my late 20s, I found my path and decided to fix my life. The problem is, despite trying to improve my life (in order to find a career and also reach my other goals), I feel behind in life. I know I can't make my life as good as the wise version of my teen or YA self, or a person that starts this process in their early 20s.

What do you mean by "fell behind"? By what standards? Society's standards? What is this "wise version of my teen or YA self" you speak of? Wisdom can only come through learning from extensive life experience, so teens, by definition, aren't wise. It may sound insulting but it's a fact of brain maturation. Your perception of the past seems distorted, so your comparisons are nonsensical. Are you being rational when you adopt arbitrary beliefs about "success"?

I'm also really terrified of ageism and aging. To the point that I get a panic attack everytime I see small signs of aging in myself. I've heard people are more respected and desired from 18 to 30. I was always indifferent towards those things and didn't care about being desired by other people, but lately things have changed and I'm starting to get terrified of myself, my age, my body and my future.

People age and die; these are facts of life. Are you being rational when you spend all your energy refusing to accept the facts of life, rather than taking action to make the most of your limited time?

I can't get over my lost youth. I studied something my family wanted and even graduated, but couldn't find a career with it where I live. And I spent most of my 20s in isolation. I refused to date, refused to make friends didn't experience life much and didn't reach my goals (professional, gender-related and immigration related).

You refused to date, refused to make friends, and refused to live a full life? In other words, you are now facing the consequences of your decisions. Negative consequences exist to teach you the error of your ways, such that you can CHANGE and evolve throughout life. Are you being rational by getting angry at logical consequences, rather than learning from them, making different decisions, and getting better outcomes?

These days, I'm either numb or experiencing Fe overload (panic attack, anxiety and depression and some worse things). To the point that I'm afraid of myself. I can't trust psychiatrists as I live in a conservative place and don't know if I can explain EVERYTHING to them.

I sympathize that it's difficult for you to get professional help where you are, but this doesn't mean it's an impossibility. With the internet, you have access to people all over the world. Perhaps you need to learn how to use your imagination for good and explore more possibilities for getting the help you need. If you are deep in Si loop, it means you talk yourself out of good opportunities or convince yourself there are no good opportunities, because you don't want to risk feeling disappointed or hurt again. If that's the case, are you being rational when you'd prefer being stuck in pain to moving forward in life?

And I can't trust my family either. I have tried to find solutions online. It says you have to accept aging or hide it, but I can't do either of them. Nothing has been able to help me. I still regret losing my 20s/youth, not being able to be myself, starting late, etc. To the point that I can't be hopeful about my future. I'm also angry with my society/cntry for being conservative and irrational, for making me stay closeted, forcing me to be covered and wear things that don't define "me" in public, and not being able to deal with a person like me. Plus other issues. I'm also disappointed with my family, for being ashamed of me, forcing me to dress up and hide/change myself, not seeing my struggles and not researching. And most of them are high Si or Se users, so when they see me depressed, they either gaslight/shame me for it, or buy me food or want to take me out, which actually makes me guilty and more depressed.

I have written many times about the pointlessness of blame. It is a distraction. It is a way to deflect responsibility. It is a way to wallow in self-pity by always taking the position of the helpless victim. By your own admission, over and over again, you kept allowing yourself to be swayed by mere opinion. And now you blame all those things rather than facing up to the facts. Without being in touch with the facts, on what basis can you make good decisions? Are you being rational when you continually refuse to face facts?

Yes I know, the most logical thing here is to focus on my goals and studies. And I'm trying my best. But those fears and regrets are always on the back of my head (sometimes even worse) causing me anxiety attacks.

You seem to have a habit of constantly fighting against your feelings and emotions - has it worked for you? Or have they only gotten worse the more you resist and battle them? When a strategy doesn't work, is it rational to keep repeating it?

This is an issue of poor emotional intelligence and another example of being unwilling to face facts, in this case, the facts of your psychology. Please consult past posts about how to improve your emotional intelligence. Are you being rational when your decision-making process has been hijacked by runaway negative emotions?

I mean, my youth got wasted, and from now on, I'm probably going to experience age discrimination and ageism in many areas of life (professional, dating, clubs, etc), even if I reach my other goals and immigrate to a better place.

Do you know why you suffer fear of ageism? Because you have chosen to use age to define your worth. You have internalized the destructive ageist standards of the most shallow members of your society. You blame others for their faults, but you have chosen to be just like them, haven't you?

At some point, you have to grow up, which means making a difficult decision: Are you going to be your own person and live life as you need to, guided by your own carefully considered beliefs and values? Or are you going to keep subjecting yourself to the standards of others and constantly suffer on a roller coaster of their dis/approvals?

You can't have it both ways; you can't keep seeking the highs of validation without also experiencing the lows of invalidation. As long as you keep using this shallow system of evaluating your self-worth, you'll suffer. Pain is unavoidable in life, but suffering is a choice. Is it rational to keep choosing suffering?

My question is, 1) Am I making a rational judgement here?

I'm hard-pressed to find any rational judgment above. It is rational and healthy to feel bad about bad circumstances. You ought to seek comfort for getting through difficult times and support/assistance for changing what you can about negative situations. But it isn't healthy or rational to indulge judgmentalness, throw around blame, dwell in negativity, and/or obsess about things you don't have the power to change; these activities are an empty comfort that not only hold you back in life but keep you stuck in pain and suffering.

2) Is there a way to permanently get out of Fe grip without being later triggered by Si viewpoints?

Yes, it is through properly developing Ti and Ne. If you really don't want to correct your flawed judgment and open your mind to alternative ways of thinking and solving problems, then perhaps you do need to reconsider whether you are actually INTP.

[literaticat]

hi jenn! i'm spiraling a bit, because my book includes a myth from my culture that has already been written about in a popular novel in the same age range. it's a completely different book though--setting wise, plot, themes etc. it isn't even a full "retelling" of the myth. i've so far in querying had a decent request rate but now scared the fact that it's the same myth will make an agent not want it? scared too bc it's a non-white myth that i'll be even more tokenized?

You say your book is very different from this other book aside from the fact that the same myth has something to do with it, and I don't really see the problem. If people are familiar with the original myth, or they read that other book and loved it, maybe they will WANT to explore the idea of that myth in a different way. If people don't know the myth or haven't read that book, maybe your book is their introduction to the story, and they will love it, and look, you just introduced new people to a cool mythos!

I'm not saying that it's impossible that an agent would turn it down because of this other book -- I guess it's possible if they are like "eh I didn't really like that other book, meh" or "eh, that book already exists, I don't wanna compete with that" and lump the two of you together. But then that's their short-sightedness, and they are not the right agent for you anyway.

After all, there are several authors all doing "Literary Versions of Greek Myths" as we speak, and that's not only NOT a problem, in fact, the success of Circe and Song of Achilles has made room for all these other books. There are nine bajillion re-imaginings / re-tellings / based-on-lightly / alluded-to-if-you-know-what-you-are-looking-for versions of Cinderella and Beauty and the Beast and Pride and Prejudice, etc. Off the top of my head I can think of a dozen examples of each that have been published over the years, and there's no sign that books with those themes will ever STOP being published -- because actually, even though the long-ago source material or the general characters or plot or WHATEVER are familiar to readers, readers LIKE them. Plus, these books are totally different from one another, and that's never been a problem - so this shouldn't be, either!

[fountainpenguin]

So I'm trying to figure out how to explain Poof and Foop being caught up with their peers mental age-wise at the end of / right after the time freeze for writing reasons. Cause if they were being held back by the time freeze, and fairies aren't ready to attend school until they're 40-50, wouldn't they still be years behind in that regard? Was their mental age unaffected by the time freeze?

I personally had them aging while they were in Fairy World (i.e. the time freeze only affecting Earth). That's why it took 50 years for Fairies to catch on and even then, they didn't put the pieces together until Timmy confessed... Fairies kept aging normally, so only godparents would notice, but you have to be down on earth to interact with your godkid and if you're on earth, you're getting influenced by the magic overlay.

Poof's development was delayed because he was only aging while away from Earth (such as visiting extended family or attending school), but he did indeed age. Perfectly reasonable for him to know what 2+2 is by the time he's 40 to 50, I think.

FOP canon establishes pooferty, so we know the jump from babbling baby to speaking in full sentences is totally normal in their world, so I always assumed a jump in logic and awareness came along with it.

A good example of this would be my one-shot "Hidden" which shows Foop struggling with some development milestones (in this case, A-not-B search error) despite being able to talk:

"Something is seriously wrong with you! I'm not a baby anymore. I am an intelligent being! You make a mockery of me with your silly parlor games!" "Please retrieve the jack-in-the-box, Anti-Poof." "Oh my smoke! It's right here, you insufferable paperweight!" So saying, Foop ripped Caudwell's jacket from the floor. … to reveal that the stone floor was bare beneath it. "What?" Both hands clapped to the sides of his head. "What is this trickery? I don't understand. Where did it go? It was hidden right here last time."

Post-pooferty, he'd have no problem making the leap from "I watched this guy put my toy under a blanket so therefore my toy is under the blanket and not under his jacket the way it was last time."

Frozen timestream is also where we get "Shouldn't Have Survived," which is that one-shot about the Burger World employee getting in a fight with Happy Peppy Gary over... well...

Kenny's eyes roamed around the office. They settled on a calendar resting on the desk beside the pencil sharpener and a pink laptop - one of those 'tear off one page a day' types of calendars. "Gary… What year is it?" "2002," Gary answered without hesitation. "Or did you want it in the Fairy calendar? It's the Year of the Last… the Last… Well, I can't be expected to remember what it was exactly-wactly, but you get the idea. Oh, Last Berry- that was it. It's the Spring of the Last Berry. LS, 90, YoLB19. Yes: June 13th, 2002, exactly a week before the Fairy calendar turns to summer on June 20th. What?" When he saw Kenny's expression, he tipped his head, the soft blue tassel on his graduation cap bouncing against his dark cheek. "Am I wrong?" "I dunno. Where I'm from, it's 2008." "Well, well! I respect and support you. Haha, I don't even know you anymore, friend, but here on Earth it's 2002. I sing the counting song with the kids. Every day. For the last seven years. I think I know how my numbers go, Kenny..."

Them... Thank you FOP for giving us a canon frozen timeline for 50 years; no media will ever feed me so well again <3

Besides Timmy, who made the Secret Wish, Kenny's the only human who was ever aware of the frozen timestream, though he quickly succumbed to the time freeze magic and fell for the lies just like everybody else. I like to think he tracked Timmy down and confronted him and Timmy pulled him aside and did a little gaslighting... Shh, you didn't see anything...

He went a little nuts and that's hinted in the 130 Prompts even if it's not the main focus, but we love him for it.

That wasn't your question, but I'm still not over the fact that they brought him back for Season 10 and he is STILL serving burgers and looking bewildered about it...

POV: Your place of work (which is outer space) blows up in S7E1 and you spend the next 3 to 4 seasons wandering Dimmsdale because no one cared enough to send you back up there. Kenny, my son...

[wrongcaitlyn]

How realistic or related to irl do you plan on making tgol? You have absolutely no obligation to make this fic very political, but it’s a bit insane how much our current real-world problems could have an affect on the characters 😭😭 So would you rather make it “lifelike” or will they belong to a more perfect world?

honestly... it's a bit complicated😭 i think that in my head, it's very realistic because i see things happening every day and think in my head "this is what nico di angelo would do" (yk, like actually supporting palestine, posting links to donate, donating himself), and also, i do think that he would be a very political singer. as in, he would definitely speak his mind about causes that are important to him - like laws against trans people, the don't say gay act... lots of other things too. so in my head, he absolutely is speaking on these matters (conservatives hate him)

however, my only thought abt writing that into the actual fic is just... where's the limit, then? if i mention something about him talking about a particular event, what about the several other issues that i'm not writing about? all of this is taking place in the past, and i'm already forgetting the characters' literal birthdays, so i would have needed to write it into the plot from the very beginning on what the political state of the us is, what laws are being passed, what politicians are being elected - logically, i know that all of these things have such a huge impact on the characters, as politics do, but i just don't have the time to do all that research (aka, going back into past news articles that describe all of that stuff throughout the past five years) for what is really a coming of age popstar au story that may be angsty at times, but isn't meant to be taken too seriously.

so the real answer is that i'm limiting the activism that i write into the fic to charity groups/other activists that are fictional. the chase space, for example, is helping queer youth, and i intend to (spoiler) make it so that he announces all the proceeds from a certain merch line will go to benefit that. the chase space isn't a *real* charity, but i do want to convey that he's using his platform for good - and that's the best way that i can see myself doing it/being able to incorporate it plot-wise. other than that, i think a lot of his posts are supporting various charities and he has petitions linked in his bio pretty much all the time, it's just not necessarily mentioned in the fic.

whether that means that they all live in a perfect world or that the issues are still there and the activism is still happening, just not being written down, however, is up to you. i know that fanfic is often used as escapism (myself included), and i don't want to force people to see it as very realistic if they don't want to - but if they do, then that's up to them!

i think i, personally, see it as a mix of both. and the fic will cover general issues - like, for example, transphobia, homophobia, misogyny all still exist - and these issues will be confronted using things like the chase space and something else that i've been planning as a sort of background plotline. but specific political issues won't be written into the fic because of the aforementioned reason. but thank you for the ask!! i feel like i was kind of unintentionally avoiding confronting these things and it was good to finally put it to words! <3

[definesanity]

Du a Gwyn.

For a Childrone, Beau sure knows how to make her feel like crap.

"Beau, I'm fine, don't worry," she continued to stress, even when she knows she's more than fine.

Considering she's been properly cleaned and repaired for the first time in probably 21 years, Beau was giving her the most bombastic side-eye known to Drone-Kin. Drone kind? Oh, who even cares at this point?

Beau continued to watch her sort the buckets and boxes filled with numerous supplies given to them by dear suppliers (see: any unfortunate, unlucky soul whom was found by Alice before the Sentinels), and gestured to the notepad besides her.

"Yeah, I can write; shocker, huh?"

He rolled his eyes, then pointing at a sloppy-written part of it:

1. Get spare parts needed (for antlers/other body parts)

2. Keep Yeva's kid away from the Prom

*Oozee Uzi said she also has witchcraft. Bit of a problem.

Alice clinked her fingers together. Beau only nudged her, looking concerned.

"...Don' give me tha' look, Beau," she rubbed his head, adjusting his cowboy hat. "Aye'll be alrigh'. Trus' me, okay?"

Beau gave a sigh using 'DISSAPOINTED_SIGH.SFX', but ultimately let her go. But not before he gave her something.

It looked like a camera, of sorts. A very crudely-made one, mind, with... wait.

"Beau, is this a Robo-Goddamned Sentinel lens?"

A smirk came on to his face.

"...Thanks." a rare moment where her eyes were whole, she smiled at him, and he gave her a thumbs up back.

Well, with friends like these...

-----------------------------------

...That reminds her.

"So, what's Yeva's kid like?"

Uzi was on her bed, arranging her chaotic collection of notes, and Alice was crouching on the chair that she pushed towards the bed after hopping on to it.

"She's... strange. I was pretty sure she had the Solv--ah, the witch power, but, anyways: she's quiet, speaks Russian, and I'm like, kinda alright with her? I mean, we've chatted a couple of times, but it was mostly class work."

Alice hummed. "Have you thought abou' befriendin' 'er?"

"What? No! That'd mean I'd also have to befriend Lizzy, and friends don't suit me!"

"Then what am I, lil purp?" she leaned over her, but Uzi seemed to have lost any fear from it.

"You are some mad Worker Drone I found and is leeching off of my cleaning supplies. Also, how old even are you, anyway?"

"Hey, it's rude ta ask a lady her age, ya know?"

A dry look was Uzi's reply.

"...Oh, fine. I'm forty-one."

Uzi blinked in surprise. "Wait, really? Damn, you look... surprisingly good. No... nano-wrinkles or anything."

Her eyes became whole again, and lifted her right eyebrow. "Oh, really now?"

"Easy there, I'm just saying," she rolled her eyes, then looked at Alice's. "Also, you look... weird, with full eyes."

"More used to these, huh?" they went back into circles. "Eh, so am I; makes it easier for people to think I'm just some crazy witch livin' down below."

Uzi's face changed into text: "BUT U ARE? (⁠ ⁠･ั⁠﹏⁠･ั⁠)"

"...I ain't winning this," wisely kicking herself back over to the desk, she started to write again.

"So, back to what were we talkin' abou'..."

"Look, I don't even know where to start with 'making friends'. No point trying in something I can't even do."

"Uh huh."

"Don't 'uh huh' me!"

"Nuh uh."

"Stop with the slang, it sounds weird!"

Alice smirked in response. Hey, she could be funny too, on the occasion.

-----------------------------------

Doll liked to keep things simple, as ironic as it may sound to others.

And she knew that others, didn't. Take Lizzy; she and her were... friends? But, point remains, she overcomplicates things.

Then, enter the scrawled note she found:

Hey, I'm terrible at this so just meet by my house after classes

--Uzi

P.S. No this isn't some kinda plot, I legit just want a chat and also just let urself in

Now, that was curious. Uzi Doorman, making small talk? Perish the thought!

...Is what Lizzy would jokingly say. Doll, however, says it's odd.

She admits she always wanted to get to know Uzi; the angst-ridden goth girl was an interesting person, so hey, who knows, hm?

...Of course, she had neglected to mention the antler-headed Worker Drone who lived in there.

"Heya, Surface-Slicker--!"

She instinctively lifted her arm up--

ERROR: LIKE OBJECT CANNOT BE EDITED.

"...Well, that's just rude." she said, her eyes looking at her with mild annoyance.

Erstwhile, Doll was sure she nearly oiled herself. ["Y-You as well?"]

"Mm? Oh, that. Yeeeeah... pain in the ass, like, but it still has some uses." The woman shrugs, slithering her way over to the bed where Uzi was sleeping. "Don' worry too much abou' her, she'll wake in a couple'a minutes."

["...I see."] Doll then coughed into her hand. ["Apologies for attacking you. I simply have never seen someone else with this... curse."]

"An' I wish you didn't see any more. It ain' fun, having a power you can't control, righ'? But try and control it, or suppress, or even just go along with it... an' you end up like the others."

["What others?"] came the sharp reply.

"You would know." the lady responds, before taking out a picture. "Of all people."

Doll took the picture, and nearly vomitted.

Her mother.

Ma... she...

The picture showed a human in the corner, different robots unlike Drones, and three Worker Drones.

To the right was someone who's face was in the wall. Despite that, red hair was visible, so she can only surmise it's the Drone in front of her (which, now that she's looking at her, spots on top of her antlers(?!) a lanyard like her mother had; this one saying her name is 'Alice'.

In the middle was a very relaxed looking Worker Drone, who seemed to be chilling with the dinosaurs and using the AbsoluteSolver with casualness.

On on the left... Yeva. Her mom. Crying, as her visor broke and bled ink.

"Yeva was always the quiet one; and she never learnt how ta probably control it." Alice said. She looked at her with full, orange eyes. "I'm sorry to hear what happened to them. She was probably the nicest gal I ever met."

["...Thank you. It... means a lot."] Doll then looked over to Uzi. ["Was this why she wanted to make friends with me?"]

"Nah, it was me who wanted to keep that thing under close watch; she genuinely thought you were pretty cool. And, well, her judgement is... decent enough, I think. Better than Nori's was, anyway."

["Maybe, but she never did consider making a rail gun was a bad idea--"]

It was like a lightning strike. As soon as the words left her, Uzi booted up, with 'CONFUSION.EXE: BOOTED' on her visor, and looked over, her eyes narrowed.

"Well, I didn't know I had Robo-Satan in me! So bite me, it worked!" she then got up and walked over. "Ugh, still... I think you're alright."

["Even if I hang out with Lizzy?"]

"Lizzy's Lizzy."

["...Fair. I suppose I agree. You're quite a genius."]

Turning her head, she nodded. ["This thing we all share isn't good. I swear I'll help you both once I find what I'm looking for. Until then, please: stay far away from the Prom."]

"The heck you mean--?"

Red lightning suddenly crackled, and Doll vanished.

"Wha--" blinking, Uzi whipped her head around. "It can teleport you???"

"It does more than just change your eye colour." Alice replied, gesturing at her ID. Green was on it, while Alice presently had orange eyes.

Huh. Weird.

"...She knows we're gonna go to the Prom, isn't she?"

"'We'?"

"Don't pull that face. I'm old, not senile."

Oh, now that was a stretch, for sure...

[infini-tree]

11, 12, aaand 34? for Oogway! `v` i also wrote down 48 and 49 while skimming through the meme but i don't remember what they are now so uh. ig those as well, if it's not Too Much. no problems in that case

honest favorite character asks

11. How did you “fall in love” with this character?

i joke that i started doing it out of spite. the real answer was probably around kfp3 where they implied that oogway was a warlord.

like, prior to that he was not on my radar. but once the movie implied a whiff of moral complexity and the idea of how he changed over a timespan that would be difficult to comprehend for most people he got up to blorbo tier.

12. If you could write effortlessly and as much as you wanted, what story (s) would you write for this character?

besides the next part of the generationswap au fic?

really i only have one. but its one big one that highlights oogway's entire journey. and i do mean all of it (at least the most important parts). oogway has a lot of potential to me since he's lived through so much and there's a lot of vectors that it can be tackled (of which i've tackled in one off doodles ages ago).

there's the obvious one of public opinion having changed a lot from the implication that he was feared along kai to the wise protector of present day. but also its funny just on an in-universe historical level. like the idea of a historian asking oogway about a point in time and he has a niche opinion about it that sends scholars into a frenzy is so so funny.

34. Does this character inspire you with little things in your daily life?

ironically no, lol. oogway is too like. idealized and high up that it feels strange to see him as specifically aspirational. like in general, yes, but there are other blorbos that speak to me in certain specificities he cannot on account that oogway has most of his shit together.

48. What’s your favorite physical/design feature for this character?

the curve of the lip of his shell and the way it opens up. its so shape. i love it but also hate drawing it because i always mess up the way it subtly curves.

sidebar but i think its lowkey a bit funny how the designers committed to making oogway a galapagos tortoise, considering that a majority of the cast at the time of kfp1 were in the area.

this is a less notable feature now that there have been more characters whose species implies they came from far off too (and there's also the spinoffs that mention other societies in the kfp universe). but still,

49. What’s your favorite personality trait in this character?

mostly the idea that he's such a 'big picture' thinker that he doesn't get how it comes off to to other people. i've made a whole post about it as it relates in secrets of the masters, lol

[kom-poetry-channel]

Conans Kongesang

This poem comes from the two first-published Conan stories, The Phoenix on the Sword and The Scarlet Citadel, both of which feature chapter epigraphs some of which are attributed to "The Road of Kings". (Possibly a work by the mad poet Rinaldo whom Conan so admires? But if so, it must be from very early in his kingship, before Rinaldo was corrupted by Thoth-Amon’s Lovecraftian horrors, as it seemingly takes Conan’s perspective.) The stanzas beginning "When I was a fighting-man" and "What do I know of cultured ways" head chapters 2 and 5 of "Phoenix"; "Gleaming shell" down to "Halls of Hell" is in chapter 2 of "Citadel". Thus the poem as presented here reverses the, as it were, conanical order; but as they are chapter epigraphs Howard may well have presented them out of order. In any case it works best this way with the intellectual critique of inherited kingship at the start, and the snarling defiance of "Rush in and die, dogs" at the end to remind the reader of what Conan would have in place of inheritance.

Read enough science fiction, or even Internet, and you'll come across Howard's epigraphs in any number of places - SM Stirling has William Walker quote the "fighting man / mighty king" stanza just before he dies of poisoned wine - but I only recently came across the three extracts put together as a single poem, and was sufficiently struck that I had a rhyming first-draft translation a few hours later. The most difficult couplet was "Right Divine / price of mine", and "mins pris" is accordingly the most awkward phrasing in the Norwegian; moreover, "blod fikk råde" is really not quite the same as "blood was the price", and could just as easily describe the inheritance that Conan is railing against. But no matter, all translation is to some extent re-writing and the essential idea does get across, I think. I'm especially pleased with the alliteration (one-upping Howard just a bit) of "forgylling, fusk og fornuft" and "snedig tunge ... sverdets sang". All those sibilants make a very good defiant hiss for the cornered king's last stand, allowing of course that talking is a free action.

The images are all taken from the Truman adaptation of these Conan stories (along with "Hour of the Dragon", which contains many of the same plot points), published by Dark Horse Comics. I'm quite impressed with the adaptation to the comic format, even the addition of the framing story wherein an elderly Conan narrates these events to the scribe Pramis. The switch from omniscient third-party narration to Conan's retrospective is sometimes a little awkward, as when we see Thoth-Amon quarrel with Ascalante and recover his ring from Dion - events which Conan could not well have witnessed. His voiceover wisely makes one short reference to how he managed to "piece together the details of their plans" from confessions and from Rinaldo's journals, and then ignores the issue entirely. A worse problem is when Howard's narration makes some outside observation of Conan's state of mind, which the adaptation is then forced to have Conan speak as his own insight, as for example "I suppose the instinct of sovereign responsibility might, at times, enter even a red-handed plunderer such as me, eh?" This is not quite verbatim from Howard's "Thus subtly does the instinct of sovereign responsibility enter even a red-handed plunderer sometimes.", but sits much more awkwardly in the mouth of the red-handed plunderer himself. And the awkwardness becomes actively funny when Conan is made to say "the superstitions of my people once again assailed me". I suppose it's possible that the elderly king no longer believes what the middle-aged adventurer did, but even so, most people don't refer to their supernatural beliefs (even former ones) as "superstitions"! But no matter, these are quibbles. Withal it is quite good both as comic and Conan.

Norwegian text:

Det glitrer hult i eldgammel løgn, om konger av guders nåde; som kroner fikk i odel og arv, mins pris, at blod fikk råde! Tronen jeg vant med svette og blod - selge den? Aldri jeg vil! Ikke for løfte om hauger av gull, eller trussel om helvetes ild!

En gang var jeg hærmann, det drønnet i trommer for meg; folket strødde gullstøv foran hvor jeg rei. Men nå, når jeg er konge, lusker de bak min rygg, med dolker rundt hvert hjørne og gift i alle brygg.

Hva vet jeg om det dannede liv, dets forgylling, fusk, og fornuft? Jeg som er født i et nakent land og oppvokst i renkefri luft? Snedig tunge, spissfindige ord, de segner for sverdets sang. Kom, bikkjer, og dø - jeg var en mann, før jeg vant konges rang!

English text:

Gleaming shell of an outworn lie, fable of Right Divine You gained your crowns by heritage, but Blood was the price of mine. The throne I won by blood and sweat, by Crom I will not sell For promise of valleys filled with gold, or threat of the Halls of Hell!

When I was a fighting man, the kettle-drums they beat The people scattered gold dust before my horse's feet. But now I am a mighty king; the people hound my track With poison in my wine cup and daggers at my back.

What do I know of cultured ways, the gilt, the craft and the lie? I who was born in a naked land and bred in the open sky? The subtle tongue, the sophist guile, they fail when the broadswords sing. Rush in and die, dogs — I was a man before I was a king!

[chicaboom-chic]

Shelby brothers x Bisexual reader (platonic)

Telling the Shelby brothers that you’re bisexual Headcanon:

THE READER CAN BE MALE OR FEMALE

John Shelby:

John laughs at you at first, assuming that you're pulling his leg or playing a prank. It's all one big joke to him. It's only when he looks at you carefully and sees the frown deeply etched into your face that he realizes you're not joking. The smile on his face immediately drops, he clears his throat, and looks down, beginning to backtrack on what he said. 

Then he looks up at you again, before asking.  “Are you sure?" There’s not a hint of humor in his voice, his face is deadpan. It’s one of the few times you’ve ever seen John so serious. You don’t know how to feel about it.

When he sees that you're certain he nods; he shrugs and gives you a small smile.

"I don’t see a problem with it if you don’t." He affirms as he clasps his hand over your shoulder, and gives it a firm squeeze. "Although I always knew there was something about you.” He laughs.

-----------------------------------

Arthur Shelby:

You're drinking with Arthur at the garrison when you first tell him, you nearly cause him to spill his drink.

"You're what?" He splutters. He places his glass down immediately. His eyebrows twitch with confusion as he stares at you. You feel nervous at once, unsure if telling him was the right decision. But you’ve already said it, so you press on.

The confusion doesn't leave Arthur's face as you continue your explanation. 

"But you don't look-I mean I never would have thought-" Arthur stumbles over his words unsure of what to say. Even after explaining it to him in the best way you can, his brain is in shambles. After muttering to himself about this being "new age nonsense.", he falls silent for a minute. He's looking at you; his expression is unreadable. Your nerves spike.

"Why didn't you tell me earlier?" Arthur remarks quietly. He sounds hurt, to your surprise. It catches you off guard, he’s not angry, and he’s not disgusted, but he's hurt.

It’s your turn to struggle with your words, you hadn’t expected this.

You open your mouth to speak but Arthur speaks before you.

"Nevermind,” He says shaking his head. He reaches for his drink and takes a sip, before setting it down on the table once more, he stares at the glass of whiskey intently. “It doesn't matter," Arthur states.

"I don't care what you like, and I support you." He looks at you, tilting his head before saying: "Even if it is a little confusing."

-----------------------------------

Tommy Shelby:

The first time you tell Tommy, he's in his office looking at papers, his attention is loosely between you and the papers in front of him. You figured now would be the best time as his attention was divided, perhaps the reaction would be less severe. Out of the three Shelby brothers, his reaction is the one that worried you the most.

But telling him was proving hard, as the first time you had said it, you weren't sure if he had heard you.

"Tommy, I'm bisexual." This was the second time you said it, the first time you’d been met with silence, absolutely no reaction, or even acknowledgment. 

Tommy's eyes don't leave the paper but this time he does respond. "I heard you the first time." He says quickly. It's a response that shocks you. It’s calm, too calm. Horrifying calm. It scares.

You bite your lip. Perhaps he doesn't understand, maybe he was like Arthur and needed extra clarification. "It means I like girls and guys." You state, there’s a slight tremble in your voice. You can feel your confidence dissipate slowly. 

"I know what it means." Tommy sighs. He looks up this time. He looks irritated and bored out of his mind. 

"Oh." You say. You tilt to the side carefully, and you step towards his desk cautiously. You had kept towards the door in case you needed to make a quick getaway.

"And?" You prod him for an answer. You’re not sure if poking the bear is a wise decision, but his first reaction was too ambiguous, and the ambiguity not only leaves you confused but worried.

"And what?” He snaps. “What do you want me to do, hand you a medal?” He adds with a large amount of sarcasm. Once again, this is a rather ambiguous answer. It leans more towards an indifferent side.

You frown. “You don’t care- I mean it doesn’t bother you that I’m?”

“Bisexual?” Tommy interrupts. He merely laughs and his eyes return back to his papers. “No, I don’t discriminate. Now if you don’t mind I'd like to finish these papers without someone standing over me.”

“Close the door on your way out.” He instructs, ultimately ending the conversation.

Your heart stops racing at once, and you feel as if a giant weight has been lifted off you.

A big grin grows on your face as you turn in the direction of the door. As you turn the knob you wonder why you were so worried in the first place.

-----------------------------------

If we are being realistic John would probably assume you have a crush on him and Arthur would punch you in the face. Tommy wouldn't care as long as you don't do anything weird near him.

[soleminisanction]

You seem like youre frustrated with her character the same way I get with her too.

I think see the potential of the character she could be and should be with the correct writing and stories.

I really didnt like her Batgirl run either. There are bits and parts of it I do like and concepts of things there I love but I really dont care for it.

I also wish she wasnt used as a marketing tactic during "run" as Robin. If they were actually serious about it, they wouldve written her run differently and hopefully better.

Thats also the problem with all comic book characters, they have so many different writers with different ideas of what to do with these characters. Unfortunately some of them dont like the characters they write for. I know that Dan Didio hates Steph and never wrote her well because of that. (He also hated Dick Grayson and wanted to kill him off too)

Characters like Steph really are up to interpretation how they are supposes to be personality wise. Recently i havent been liking how shes been written for certain comics (Batgirls, Wayne Family Adventures)

You and I similar to seeing a character we want to be better. I see that she has all this potential to be a great character and love her despite all the garbage writing shes had over her 30+ years of existence

The lack of good stories is a part of it, yeah.

It's also the fact that, while she's hanging around not telling any stories of her own, her ability to do so often comes at the expense of other characters. Like a few months back, they randomly shoved her into a Titans line-up when she's never been a Titan, not once in her entire career, while the actual Batgirl who joined the Titans, Betty/Bette Kane, was nowhere to be seen. And she's part of what ruined YJ 2019, getting forced in awkwardly purely because a bunch of her stans spent months harassing the creators on Twitter, spewing racist epitaphs at the new black characters and demanding that she be included in a team she wasn't solicited for and, again, had never been a part of, purely because Tim was there and they decided he wasn't allowed to have a life without her.

And speaking of that last bit, don't even get me started on the Tim Drake Pride Special again or we'll be here all day. It is genuinely offensive how many people demanded that Tim's coming out be oriented entirely around the feelings of his straight ex-girlfriend.

That's why I can't read Batgirls, either. I can't stand the way they write the relationship between Steph and Cass, it's got no teeth, and perpetually reduces Cass to Steph's "Kato," the hyper-competent Asian sidekick who does all the actual work for an inept white person. Even the issue where they tried to make a big deal out of, "Ooo, this is a special CASS CENTRIC ADVENTURE, we're doing it COMPLETELY SILENT with NO WORDS!" turned out to be all about her running around trying to find Stephanie, and then they copped out with the gimmick and made it so the only words in the book were Stephanie's, talking mostly about -- surprise! -- herself, how great she is and how much she loves being a Batgirl.

Ugh. Spirit World can't come fast enough.

Honestly, when it comes to her run as Robin, I think the story itself could've been just fine if they'd left it as it was and just, hadn't made a big freakin' marketing deal about "OoOoOooOooOoo, the GIRL WONDER, how SPECIAL!!!" They didn't do that with Carrie. Or Tris Plover. Hell, at the time a few people pointed out how silly it was for them to make such a big deal out of her being a girl when Carrie Kelly is the most well known alt-Robin period and the co-star of one of the defining texts of the age.

But, y'know, Carrie was a short-haired butch tomboy with thick glasses who fought with a sling-shot, while Steph is the single most gender-conforming Bat-femme since Betty Kane and is consistently drawn to show off her child-bearing hips so. Yeah.

The part that honestly needs fixing is War Games, which I honestly think is still something that Steph needed to happen, because it did lead her to a moment of growth that she desperately needed (even if Chuck Dixon and Bryan Miller later ruined it.) I think you could fix that story up with just a few adjustments. But, hindsight is 20/20 and all.

I do have to caution a little against attributing malice where ignorance or incompetence is more likely, though. I've never seen any evidence that Dan Didio "hated" either Steph or Dick; rather, what he saw them as was expendable. By all accounts I've ever heard, when he was editorially mandating Dick's death in Infinite Crisis, he legitimately didn't know that Dick used to be the original Robin, he just knew that Nightwing wasn't Batman or Robin and thought that made him expendable enough to kill off for shock value. It took Geoff Johns talking him out of it at literally the last minute to get him to see sense.

(Seriously, you can tell that the page was drawn off a script where Dick got full-on murdered, and the original floppy release didn't have the hilariously awkward page they inserted into the collected editions where Dr. Mid-night promises to save him. It's kinda funny in retrospect.)

Stephanie was the same way, it wasn't that he "hated" her, he just didn't care about any character introduced after the silver age and thought that killing her off would be more ~shocking~ than letting her live and learn a lesson. Didio wasn't evil, he was just bad at his job. Your standard incompetent white guy failing up.

[goodluckmochi]

Changing into Robes

Why do the girls always leave the cabin to go to change into their robes? They all do it at the end of the trip. They ALL do it at the end of the trip. How fucking big are these bathrooms, that HALF OF THE STUDENT PASSENGERS can leave their cabins en masse, and all of them return to their cabins in time for the Hogwarts Express' arrival at the station?

When Hogwarts Express bathroom scenes come up, I picture them as something akin to airlines' coach class lavatories: about the size of a coat closet. But they cannot be that small, if the girls are all marching in to the train bathrooms to change into their robes.

Why aren't the girls changing in the cabins? Why aren't the mixed cabin groups just swapping places? What is it about witches that might require them to each get their own individual toilet stall to change in? Or are the girls' bathrooms like 2 toilets, and 50 little changing closets, made possible only through wizarding space?

Sometimes robes in the HP universe seem like fashionable trench coats: they go over your actual clothes. They go to school in Scotland, I assume it's not at all toasty warm up there, so an over-layer would make perfect sense year round. If you live in the south, you just have thinner robes.

I know some fans like to imagine that nothing is worn under the robes - like a traditional kilt (?) I guess. I can wrap my head around that concept, except none of the Muggle raised students bring it up. And they would. The boys would complain about wearing dresses, you cannot convince me other wise, and yet this is never brought up. And then some one would have to point out that traditionally, even pants don't go under there, and then they'd be freaked out about all of their male professors. There's also the cost concern, because I cannot imagine that robes with self regulating comfort magic come cheap - which means the wealthy will feel and look fine whatever the weather, while literally everyone else is going to be in much, much thicker material or using a ton of warming charms. It's going to be expensive to stay comfortable, or you're going to expend a lot of magic at a very young age (magically speaking) to stay warm enough, I imagine.

Pansy can't roll her uniform skirt higher if she's wearing a mumu type of robe, though she can probably unbutton the collar enough to flaunt her cleavage. Ditto Lavender and whoever else.

If it's traditional not to wear trousers, wearing a Quidditch uniform must be most uncomfortable to kids new to the sport before Hogwarts. I feel like the broom riding class would require specialty wear, because side-saddle seems even less safe than astride, but ... IT NEVER COMES UP. Kids new to riding brooms, other than Muggleborns or Halves raised Muggle style, should all be super uncomfortable in broom riding equipment. Also Witches SHOULD NOT BE RIDING BROOMS IN SKIRTS, regardless of which style the robes would be. Imagine the accident that leads to skin ripped away there. It cannot be rare, the magical world is full of easily remedied accidents - they're easily remedied, so why be smarter about anything?

So, here we are. A couple hundred young Witches are all racing to the Hogwarts Express bathrooms to pull trench coat robes on over their casual clothes, OR Muggleborn Wizards see no problem wearing dresses to their new, weirdo school up in the cold north.

(also, this is the universe JKR wrote - you think she's putting Wizards in dresses? I will accept that fandom is shifting it just to spit in her eye on the matter, but that's about the closest I can make any sense of it)

... why yes, I did just read another scene where the Witches all left the train cabin to change at the end of the trip, how did you guess?

[supercantaloupe]

rent in concert thoughts

rent has never sounded this good musically speaking. HUGE fan of the symphonic orchestrations. bro they got a harp and an english horn in there. in RENT! it's perfect

plus the sweeping strings and big brass sound reminds me so much of the orchestrations of the golden age and mid-late 20th century musical theater orchestration style and i have such a soft spot for that, i really really enjoyed that much

conductor was a ton of fun to watch he was just grooving up there on the podium the whole time

i love that they did a short orchestral medley as an overture at the top of the concert. do not love that the audience chattered away during the whole first part of it but i haven't yet perfected my mind powers to be able to shut them the hell up yet. alas.

dear gd when the audience started to clap along at the beginning of la vie boheme i was like. SHUT THE FUCK UP. thankfully it petered out fairly quickly but like what were you guys THINKING

actually i think opera has spoiled me a bit now because the audience needing to stop and clap and cheer for So Long after Every Single Number. kind of exhausting lmao. let's get on with it guys.

performance wise ali stroker was the star. i went in expecting that. and i was right <3 her delivery of "'THE ONLY WAY OUT IS UP!!!' she whispered." or whatever the line was in over the moon was genuinely funny. hard scene to pull off without being extremely annoying about it but ali stroker manages to pull it off! go queen!

there were a lot of wheelchair users in the audience tonight i noticed and i have no doubt a big reason why they were here was to see her. good for them tbh

okay i normally don't like to rag on performers much but i really. did not like the guy who was playing benny LOL. i just did not like whatever he was doing vocally, he sounded like a dollar store jason derulo to me. actually funnily enough my first thought was "he's giving mj the musical" and then i checked the digital program and he was in mj the musical on broadway...lmao. anyway not the vibe for benny imho

also while i don't think the guy playing collins was at all bad, i wish he had more Presence in his low register. the vocal cast as a whole was missing that low bass-y tone and i expect more of that from collins especially which i was very much missing here

very very glad to finally go to a musical and not absolutely need my earbuds to get through it. it did get a little loud at points especially towards the end but nothing that i needed hearing protection for. thank you national symphony orchestra

(of course i went into it as an Orchestra Concert whereas everyone around me went into it as a Musical Performance so. i'm better than them (joke))

although the sound balance was not the best? there were a lot of times it was hard to hear the actors singing clearly over the orchestra. now i understand that it can be tough to mic a singer loud enough to carry all the way over an entire symphony orchestra, and i'm honestly glad they didn't try to solve that problem by upping the amps to an earsplitting level. and honestly with this performance in particular i'm not even upset that the orchestra is covering the singers a little bit because the orchestra is really what i came to hear (besides ali stroker) and the orchestra is just sooooo good here.

still, worth bringing up, especially in the moments where everyone is singing all together, especially multiple lines simultaneously as in will i, christmas bells, and la vie boheme. especially for the ensemble singers, whom you could barely hear at all

i liked the lighting overall too. decent key lighting on the actors. attractive use of color and textures. for a concert performance it was good and surprisingly not obnoxious

also there was a surprising amount cut from the script for this. i've seen in concert performances of things before and i know it can vary a lot from show to show and performance to performance whether it's just the songs or if any of the scenes are kept as well; rent in concert hewed closer to the former in spirit. almost all of the dialogue was cut, as were a few of the "less important" musical numbers (most of the voicemails, we're okay, etc). even a couple of sections within larger, important musical numbers were cut (notably in christmas bells, which disappointed me bc i actually really like that number and was excited to hear the FULL thing with the orchestra. i feel cheated.)

which honestly leads to some. weird plot pacing? like if we're cutting all the voicemails out of act i that's fine but then they have alexi darling's voicemail from voicemail #3 there in act ii (but still none from the parents anywhere), and it comes out of nowhere. joanne's mini-reprise of we're okay in happy new year A doesn't really land the same when we're okay was cut entirely from act i too. and the entire collins and angel relationship is like ??? when they cut the scene of collins getting beat up in the beginning (but they kept angel meeting and helping him, of course), as well as cutting their section in christmas bells. like ??

honestly the near-complete excision of dialogue is really funny to me cause it feels like they were trying to solve the problem of rent having a messy plot by just. removing the plot entirely. and gd help you if you were watching and weren't already intimately familiar with the plot of rent as it's supposed to go because it was IMPOSSIBLE to follow from this version lmao. and yet they somehow managed to make the little bit of plot (loose as it is) that remains even more confusing and weirdly paced. incredible. zero notes

anyway tldr ali stroker good national symphony good LOVE these orchestrations and i hope that overture/medley becomes a pops concert staple or something

[nothorses]

Seeing you speak about your experiences in school has given me a little hope. I'm pretty similar to you academia-wise (severe ADHD, almost identical story about high school) on top of having a physical disability and depression/anxiety combo, and I'm currently struggling for my life in a community college because the school has been pretty adamant about not giving me accommodations I need. Plus covid meant I discovered online learning is awful for me and I dumpstered my gpa so badly the school almost kicked me out (so yay I have to do in-person classes while being high-risk for covid during a time when no one is masking anymore). But a certain academic subject is basically all I live for. I've been losing hope that I'd ever be able to get into a master's program and do the work I've wanted to do since I was like 3, but I see that you have struggled similarly and were still able to go to a different school and get into a program! That makes me feel a bit more optimistic about my situation. I'm not able to word things very eloquently bc I'm sick as hell with the flu rn but I hope you understand what I mean. Higher education is hostile to human life, especially if you have any kind of disabilities. It's inspiring to see others with similar problems to you be able to persevere.

I'm really glad I've been able to give some hope!! I will say- I credit a lot of my success to getting a diagnosis and treatment, specifically at an age where I was able to make changes I needed to make & was in control of my own identity and autonomy. I also really lucked out on that I majored in education in a school notorious for teaching an extremely progressive philosophy of education; literally designed to help students like me. And the professors generally practiced that, too.

I say this only because I want to be honest about what this stuff can be like- i.e., really hard! You can suffer and claw and drag your way through it, and I don't doubt that you can. But if you can get any help or resources, at all, please please do. If you can find someone at your school who will help you figure that out, please do! Whatever you can to make things even a little bit easier is very, very worth it.

But you can do it. And some tips that helped me:

See if your school has learning disability testing; a lot of community colleges do, and can provide accommodations through that without an official diagnosis.

"Academic renewal" can remove classes from your record that you have retaken for a better grade, or that aren't relevant to your major, which can be a HUGE GPA boost depending on your situation.

Transferring to a 4-year means acceptance rates are a lot higher than if you go straight from high school!

Depending on school and professors, oftentimes your professors will give you accommodations without you needing backup from the disability accommodations office. It's worth asking about!

4-year universities are also more likely to have their own internal healthcare services; I was able to get ADHD treatment through mine, and they deal with that WAY more than any other clinic because it's so relevant to school in the first place. They also often work with external insurances, or they might have a school insurance you already pay for as a student.

I hope you're able to get the support you need, and good luck!! And if school ends up just not being for you, that's okay too- it might not be a bad idea to look into ways you can be involved in your field without a degree, or through some kind of alternative education or trade school program. You can always come back and finish your degree another time; you're entitled to the same catalogue rights from when you first started (i.e. the degree requirements stay the same for you, always.)