#end the dichotomy

[emry-stars-art]

Neil covering Andrew up again, but make it sweet this time

[And the follow up]

[frogwithapen]

In acknowledgement of Tumblr fixing the latest glitch quick smart, a personal hierarchy of app colour schemes. From hated to liked.

5. Light mode. Feels like every colour visible to man and then some have gathered together for the sole purpose of burning out my retina. There is no dimness setting that can fix this.

4. Dark mode. I can see it, but i feel like I'm straining my eyes. Used across all apps that have it as an option, but only because it's the lesser of two evils. Side effects include less likely to keep me up but confuses the auto backlight adjuster.

3. A tie between Discord and Tumblr. Discord's dark mode is lighter than most and the occasional colour helps break it up. Tumblr's low-contrast blue background is superior, but it loses points because of how easily the light creeps in. The pink shoelace ad isn't too bad, but the yellow pukuchu guy is an eyesore; not to mention user posts or the "video could not be loaded" placeholder.

2. The app i use for reading downloaded fic. Customisable background and font, including images. Currently the background is a deep blue nebula-adjacent, set up for night reading.

1. Ao3. Two words: Custom. Skins. If i want a royal purple background, i can have a royal purple background. If i wanted a pink background that is a perfect light-dark inversion of that royal purple, i can have that instead. In fact, i have both - depending on what size screen I'm logged in on. Perfection.

Honourable mention. Musicolet. Mostly dark mode, but the notification and now playing screen pick a colour based on the album art of the song playing.

App developers, please stop making me pick between high contrast light mode and high contrast dark mode. End the light-dark dichotomy.

[wildflowercryptid]

the girls are beefing in the clubroom again. [ og post ]

[gingermintpepper]

“Your hair’s gotten longer.” 

It’s conscious effort that keeps him from tucking the strands behind his ear, from taking the knife at his hip and shearing it all off. He keeps his stance focused, attentive, there’s little else he can do when he’s taken so completely after his mother when it comes to his hair. His father scratches his chin, the clouds of his beard snaking about his finger like mist parting for mountain-peaks. Ares’ chin is still child-smooth. He can feel the tickle of his over-long fringe against his soft jaw. There’s no heart in his chest, but still he feels as though a pulse is lodged in his throat. 

Father sighs, put-upon, disappointed, and Ares feels a slight tremor start in his calves from holding himself so tense. “Well done, Ares. Go clean yourself up and get some rest. Phoebus will want to look you over later.” 

He should be ecstatic to be praised by his father. Over-the-moon with joy. There should be pride emanating from every pore of his body, the blood on his skin should be sweeter than ambrosia. 

Instead, he bows, manages a soft ‘thank you, Father’ around the lump in his throat and immediately flees the room. A mild ‘make sure to trim your hair’ hits the back of his head like a spear through the skull. He almost wishes the great door had slammed on his foot so he would have reason to feel this horrid in his retreat.  

Phoebus Apollo is waiting for him in his infirmary. 

He’s gilded as ever, gold from crown to heel. Perfect like the statues they carve of him in his temples. He has a smile for Ares when he sees him, a crinkle at the edges of his pretty eyes from the weight of his joy. Ares is waiting to see the crack in the marble, to see if that’s the chip that’ll reveal his fangs.

“Brother,” he greets, and his voice is warm - like the arms that embrace him, his voice is so warm, “Welcome back. I’ve heard you’ve done well.”  

There’s a tremble in Ares’ fingers he hadn’t noticed before. Strain from carrying his sword for so many days, a throb from wounds he hadn’t noticed he’d accrued. “Heard? There’s already gossip?” 

Phoebus blinks, disarming, demure, coquettish, “But of course,” and Phoebus’ voice is honey to Ares’ gravel, the juxtaposition is grating on his skin, “It’s Olympus. The gossip began long before you set your course.” Those warm hands lead him further into the room, bodily sits him on the chaise, pulls his helmet from his head. It’s all one, unbroken motion, “It’s summer alas, so I could not watch your war myself, but I hear it was quite the decisive victory.” 

A thousand thoughts run on horseback through his mind then. 

Did Father overhear some terrible slander that pre-emptively disappointed him? Was Ares’ victory merely a rumour, a bet his father hadn’t bothered to take? Was the gossip more enticing than the stark truth? That Ares wasn’t some child toddling about in the shadow of his sister, that his sword and spear weren’t merely for show - he’d think such a thing would warrant celebration. Not -

“Oh my,” Phoebus is in front of him, pleasant warmth more sticky heat with how close he’s pressed himself into Ares’ space. From this angle, Ares can see the multi-coloured flecks of his eyes, like shards of golden glass suspended in ichor. From this angle, with his hand so gently holding his hair, were Ares to blink too hard, he’d swear Phoebus looked just like his mother. “Your hair’s grown long again.” 

He pushes Phoebus off with such force that he bangs into the wall. It’s Phoebus, it won’t make even the impression of a scratch on him, but Ares wishes it would. Wishes he’d hit his shoulder or crack his neck or hit his head just hard enough for all that perfect, gilded gold to bleed. 

“I’m only here for you to heal me,” the tremble in his hand extends to his shoulder now. He flexes and unflexes his palm. Gods what he would give to just have a sword - “Don’t waste time with the pleasant-work.” 

Phoebus huffs, adjusts the fit of his himation, “...Only because we’re meant to be celebrating your victory.” He crosses the room in two great strides, his hair a swirling tempest behind him as he gathers his poultices and wraps. “The only reason I’ll not throw you from the window is because we are meant to be celebrating your victory.”  

There’s not enough acid in his tone for this to truly be a fight. Ares’ jaw clenches, he bites out a terse, “How benevolent.” 

“Aren’t I?” He’s got nectar and his sutures in hand, that focused look falling upon his face when he switches from overbearing busybody to Paeon of the Gods. “Now strip unfaltering Ares, let us see the measure of damage done to your indomitable flesh.” 

(Somewhere between the fifth set of stitches and the gentle frown that crosses Phoebus’ face when he notices the persistent tremble in his fingers, Ares pins his eyes to the far wall and asks, “What does it mean when Father says ‘well done’?” 

Any other sibling would mock before they gave a true response. Any other sibling would laugh and dismiss it, would say that praise is praise and any lingering ill feeling is just the worst of the war still fogging his mind. Phoebus does not answer immediately. He doesn’t make a single sound. The question settles like fetid water between them, unignorable, the scent right there on the tip of the tongue yet firmly unacknowledged. Ares closes his eyes and tries again to settle his squirming so he does not interfere with Phoebus’ work.  The metallic snip of scissors cutting thread breaks the silence. Phoebus bids him to sit up and slides his warm palms up his back until his fingers tangle gently in the ends of his hair. He twists the dark red strands until he’s gathered it all into a neat handful, holding it loosely as he switches his scissors for his shearing blade. “You should know it was not praise,” Phoebus says softly. The first of Ares cut hairs fall like viscera from his head. Phoebus treats each cutting with the sacredness of a blood-sacrifice. If he focused on the moment of tension right before the blade cuts though, Ares thinks he can imagine the agony of his sister’s sacred birth. “It is acknowledgement. Father thinks you’ve done well so he says ‘well done’.”

Gently, Phoebus releases him. Ruffles his head so all the extra hairs fall like red rain to the floor. Ares runs his fingers through the ends now curling against his ear. “Has he ever told you ‘well done’?” 

A laugh, warm and gilded, “No, and it would not make you feel better if he had.” 

Ares swallows down a thousand different questions. Phoebus wouldn’t answer them, he’s infuriating like that. Instead, he clenches his teeth, the phantom of Father’s dizzying tangle of grey cloud-hairs persistent in the corner of his eyes. “Cut it shorter.”

Phoebus doesn’t protest. He never seems to say a word when it really matters.)

[helbrides]

political thriller where padme and dooku are besties/toxic mentor-mentee/weird grandpa-adopted kid in a leo mcgarry + josh lyman style. padme accepts dooku’s offer in a sudden move because she’s sick of the chancellor and finds anakin fascinating but unnerving. dooku is all like “oh my evil plan is working” but they both slowly realize that they’re fucked once dooku and padme realize the scale of palpatine’s ambitions. dooku as a way for padme to express rebellion against the chancellor and the failing republic by sneaking secrets and helping the CIS. padme as a way for dooku to have a second chance and the hopefulness of the youth. leftist infighting. kotor influences and the understanding of the failures of the jedi in being tied so intimately w the senate. “we will watch your career with great interest.” is this anything???

[yvtro]

so there exists this popular belief that the main source of conflict between jason and bruce is that jason needs bruce (his dad) and not batman. it is something that i agree with, but i don’t think the fanon reading takes into account how much jason himself is not aware of this dichotomy and conflict of interest (at least in canon.)

i don’t reckon he would personally be able to articulate it, because the main reason the conflict arises is that he can’t draw a line between batman and bruce. bruce is a father to him both as a civilian and in cowl, and let me tell you, this becomes a problem as early as in his robin days. i would even argue it’s what indirectly leads to his death. when bruce benches jason after the garzona fiasco, jay latches onto the idea that he has a biological mother that he can find, who will be a parent to him instead. that is because while he knows (or knew) that he was loved, for him being son to bruce and robin to batman is the same. in his mind, being benched is as good as being thrown out of the family. and it makes sense, because when you read the 80s run, you really see that the way batman treats robin in the field is nothing short of paternal still. he even calls him “jay” when they’re patrolling alone. all the times we see jason and bruce bonding, even if it’s some fun pastime like going to a museum or a baseball match, it’s also a part of some batman investigation. and if you look further back, bruce asked jason if he wanted to be robin even before he took him in, as batman, before even revealing his identity to him.

so it is completely to be expected that for jason, bruce’s responsibilities as a father, as batman, and as a civilian, are all in the same category. and it also explains why jason confronts him about it in mask himself. in jason’s understanding, it’s not that bruce failed as a father because of his commitment to batman. in jason’s pov batman failed as a father, the same as bruce did, because they’re obviously the same person, and if it’s his no kill rule that caused this failure, then for sure the whole philosophy is kinda shitty. cue developing a whole new code that allows you to kill people in order to protect people you care about. (and it goes without saying that jason cares about everyone, the bleeding heart that he is)

going back to the core of the problem, i think that also because of that, realistically, jason wouldn’t want a deal where bruce accepts him “as his father” or “as a civilian” while batman still actively denounces his methods. he needs acceptance from batman as much as he needs it from bruce wayne, because he doesn’t differentiate between them (for a good reason). he doesn’t understand that there’s any tension between bruce as a vigilante and as a parent. and i think it makes it even sadder because he’s not really able to rationalise it as neatly as meta interpretations do. for him all that is happening is his father rejecting him.

[k2ulhu]

thinking about that line in existence when mulder is asked how he found scully and william without coordinates and he says "there was a light. I followed it" and I really love that line because just...look. the man has been chasing lights in the sky since he was 12 years old. he's been running after ufos trying to find his sister, trying to find the truth, searching for a meaning in it all. he has been following lights his entire life and they led him to scully. they led him to his son. they led him to his family. like he always wanted to believe they would.

[crystallizsch]

The First Kiss (?)

yuusha tala x jamil viper (oc x canon) word count: 800+ cw: pure angst

(awajkjfsdkjl omg some writing reveal about their relationship dynamic? 😳 ALSO THIS ENDED UP BEING LONGER THAN INTENDED AAHH and there are bound to be typos in here but uhhh anyways—)

At last, they found themselves alone, wrapped in each other's arms, savoring the calm evening air.

Yuu smiled and raised her bare hands to cup Jamil’s cheeks gently. It was rare for the prefect to have her gloves off. So Jamil’s face heated up at the touch.

“Haha. Your face is warm, Jamil.”

“Whose fault is that I wonder?”

“Couldn’t be me.”

They joked, feeling their breathy giggles against one another and realizing their lips were almost touching.

Was this… Was this finally the moment?

Sure, she was already incredibly lax with him before — being affectionately touchy with him and constantly giving him quick and casual kisses on the cheek (as she does with basically her closest friends). But they seemed to have become close in a way that was more than Yuu’s “overly friendly” nature.

So what about a kiss on the lips?

A sudden wave of uncertainty hit the magicless prefect. Her hands dejectedly slid back down Jamil’s chest as they curled into fists.

The implications of a first kiss on the lips felt a lot heavier on her than she thought.

They have both been dancing around their feelings about one another. They both knew what they felt about one another and even made a show of teasing each other for it. But neither explicitly stated what those feelings even were.

Yuu felt much more guilty in that regard, considering her more than a flagrant expression of that affection toward him. One would think she was leading him on, but that was never the case.

And she really, truly liked him but—

Jamil tightened his arms around her waist when he felt the hesitation in her body. This subtle move caused Yuu to look deep into Jamil’s eyes again. Her heart squeezed at the sight of a soft and gentle look as she looked back with a distinctly sorry expression on her face.

It was bizarre that these were once the dangerous eyes that brought her pure hatred toward him. Now that they looked so kind and genuine, they admittedly felt more dangerous. How unfair.

“…..We don’t have to, you know,” Jamil said in a low voice. It sounded vague enough that even he did not know if he was only referring to them sharing a kiss or having a relationship overall. He also tried to be reassuring, but he was aware of the slightly sad and disappointed tone he let slip in his voice.

Yuu gulped and then felt her breath hitch in her throat. It was as if Jamil had read her mind.

Damn you, she wanted to say to him. At this point, she did not know what to say. Yuu felt like she was caught in a lie and wanted to prove him wrong. But she can’t. It wasn’t that she felt anything less for him; she simply felt conflicted about finally sealing her feelings with a kiss. The prefect just wasn’t ready. She doesn’t know when she will be. And she did not want to admit that.

Meanwhile, Jamil was relatively ready to receive that kiss. Of course, he would not say that out loud. From his perspective, Yuu would have to act first if there was truly something more to their relationship. But it seems like today was still not that day.

“I’m sorry…” Yuu whispered under her breath.

Jamil did not answer. Instead, he gave a quick peck on the prefect’s nose, which caused her face to flush. She quickly buried her face on his shoulder with a shaky sigh, her hands gripping his clothing. The vice housewarden half-heartedly laughed at her reaction as he snaked his hands higher around Yuu’s back, giving her a gentle hug instead.

There were no words exchanged between them for a period of time. They simply rested in each other’s embrace.

Still, this indeterminate name to their relationship weighed heavily on both of them.

Jamil couldn’t even say that he would wait for her. Because that would be a lie. As painful as that realization may be, he knows he wouldn’t. Why would he? Yuu repeatedly expressed her homesickness anyway.

Besides, Jamil was used to it. All good things were never permanent. That was what he was telling himself at least... Somehow this time, it was getting harder and harder to convince himself that he could simply accept losing something — her specifically.

And for Yuu’s part, she was also aware of this — that she knows she’ll be leaving all of this behind one day. The prefect had her own plans for the future, and she assumed that the vice housewarden would have his own.

There was no point in committing to anything. Because if they dare even act upon their true feelings, or heavens forbid say it out loud, it will make the inevitable separation even harder.

this was the vibe when i was writing this btw hgffjhklj

[spacedlexi]

As someone who loves both Kenny and Violet, I feel like I’ve found my calling here 😭😭😭

They’re genuinely so similar, and I do agree that the fandom has male bias, as well as protagonist bias actually

Clementine has the opportunity to befriend/romance Violet and then let her get kidnapped 20 minutes later. And for Violet, that is the most obvious feeling of betrayal! I don’t understand why people in the fandom struggle to realize that their actions have consequences

Lee can basically hate Kenny the entirety of the first season and then the fandom defends Kenny for his actions.

Clearly most of us totally understand Kenny’s response to Lee’s and by extension Clementine’s behavior, so why can’t they understand Violet’s response to Clem’s? Makes no sense to me

honestly i feel like aside from having a male bias the fandom has more of a kenny bias than a protag bias. i see his ass EVERYWHERE. CONSTANTLY. some people act like he raised clem as much as lee did 😭 (and i dont like the way the fandom talks about clem sometimes 😒 ties into the "weird about women" stuff)(and javi? wheres javi? i would like to see more javi. i actually think i see david more than javi)

anyway. i DO find kenny to be a compelling character and understand Why hes popular. its why i initially thought vi would be more popular among those fans! people who like both kenny and vi i can trust to have understood the assignment 💀 because they really do share similarities. but things some people LOVE kenny for they absolutely LOATHE violet for. and its just???? whats not clicking???

i really dont understand why some people act So Shocked by violets reaction in the cells. like hello?? YOU did this to her??? shes done nothing but put herself on the line for clem (even if clem is mean and ungrateful about it), and the One time vi needs clem to have her back, she doesnt (even tho its an impossible choice to make, and deep down vi understands this). and people shock pikachu face when it pushes her back to minnie like no shit??? but i dont think theyre even paying attention to violets character in the first place so 🙄😑 violet settled into that leadership position on her own and not only do you strip her of that role by letting her get taken she also feels discarded by the One Person who was actually influencing her to change for the better in the first place. AND you can do it all 20 minutes after kissing her. of course shes hurt!!! but people act like shes soooo unreasonable for her behavior (and vi would later agree with them! she tries apologizing to clem on the beach actually. thats how quickly she regrets it. but its too late at that point for her i guess 🙄 irredeemable. to the stocks)

kenny will Literally refuse to help lee look for clem if you pissed him off too much like 😭?? if you arent kissing kennys ass 24/7 he is the worlds biggest bitch about it. but endless excuses for kennys behavior for some reason 🤨 him trying to save ben (or christa but its better with ben narratively) is his first Real selfless act and its why its such a compelling conclusion for his S1 arc (only compounded by the fact its BEN of all people hes trying to save, the reason his family is dead). and S2 kenny is all about how his mental health is in sharp decline and hes becoming more violent as he attempts to control what he cannot 💀 kenny defenders out here using up all the oxygen in the room to make excuses for his actions but the minute vi makes One mistake she immediately regrets (after being nothing but loyal), shes an evil bitch deserving of what she got 😐

gee i wonder why 😭😔

[surreallyy]

Thinking about how Varric and Solas represent the two sides of Cole...and how that is much that same as Solas and Sera for a Dalish elf inquisitior. Solas representing your elven heritage, your connection to the fade. Sera representing your humanity, your connection to the people around you, the people you need to save. They both see you as being like them in some way but have completely opposite expectations of what that means, and if you lean into your Dalishness you end up disappointing both. Too elfy and never elfy enough.

[pickastitch]

i think gem should swear everywhere except her actual videos

[charliework16]

shorty shorts charlie kelly

[pencilpat]

Janus making this fucking face every time his plots are foiled is so funny you're trying so hard to make your points babygirl I believe in you

[rthwrms]

getting real heated about the art vs craft debate (cause its fucking stupid) it's all art. it's all craft. i think white men should be shot for sayign otherwise

[gingermintpepper]

First of all idk if anyone has told you but I love when you ramble in your tags. Like same. I love when people do that.

Secondly that Leto and Hera post goes hard and idk if you have checked the op's tags too because it goes harder. Like never knew they had this much tension wtf but Leto really is That Girl.

Thank you so much! What are tags for if not rambling excessively about thoughts I had on a post but could not structure into a coherent form LOL

And I hadn't originally checked the OP's tags but after I got this in my inbox I rushed over to check and YESSSS OP GETS IT OP GETS IT!!! In general, Leto is someone who is overlooked a lot in mythology - she's put in the same general category as a lot of Zeus' affairs where she exists to be pretty and tragic and innocent in contrast to Hera's imposingness and strict focus on order and face but considering Leto's lineage, that's simply not true. Like OP pointed out, if there is anyone who matches Hera power for power, both in terms of divine identity and regard, it's Leto. Zeus' regard and respect of her (and by extension, his love of her) I feel are extensions of that importance of Leto from a cosmic perspective. Leto, after all, was still a daughter of Coeus and Phoebe, the Titans of the heavenly and earthly centers of knowledge.

So really, all things considered, it makes sense that Leto is That Girl because only That Girl could birth and raise Him and Her respectively, let's be so for real, right now.

[thosewildcharms]

not to over-indulge in my own tags and this extremely hyperspecific au but walk with me for a minute. it's this scene from the series finale of LOST except make it rick and michonne. and instead of it being them reuniting in the afterlife it's them reuniting after the poof! no apocalypse timeline reset and they're getting flashbacks of the original zombie apocalypse timeline. do you see my vision.