#i didn't apologize to the well

[luthienne]

Mahmoud Darwish, from The Butterfly's Burden; I Didn't Apologize to the Well" (tr. from the Arabic by Fady Joudah)

[Text ID: A deep voice shouted at me: / This grave isn't your grave.]

[dapper-lil-arts]

Darlings. is it gay when the phantom you created as a manifestation of your dreadfull loneliness takes the form of one of your closest friends.

Fanart of this pretty good horror rarijack fanfic, "The haunting of carroussel boutique" personaly i am surprised the writer didnt take the chance to point out how fucking funny this is. Me n kim started laughing about it during stream and i just had to draw this

[frankengrlz]

it's immediately clear that both the creature and victor find some of their greatest comforts in nature and that's one of the key features that connects them and proves they're not so different from each other, but i've also noticed that they tend to admire different TYPES of nature

victor tends to amaze at "the high and snowy mountains [...] immense glaciers [...] the rumbling thunder of the falling avalanche [...] the supreme and magnificent mont blonc" (65), typically finding the most comfort in the "savage and enduring scenes" (64) which tend to be colder and rougher yet unchanging; while the creature found that his "chief delights were the sight of the flowers, the birds, and all the gay apparel of summer" (94). there is probably something to be said about the creature's affinity for spring and summer, the seasons of rebirth, of NATURAL and beautiful life, a direct contrast to his unnatural, coldly scientific, "wretched" rebirth that he abhors so much

i was discussing this idea with a friend, who added that victor finding solace in the frozen and dead beauty of wintery environments, a typically less-favoured season, could reflect how victor often refuses himself the typical joys of life. throughout the novel, he struggles with his self-worth because of the guilt induced by his creation of the creature and the deaths that then followed, and the only reason he even desires peace and comfort is because he knows he needs to present himself that way to his family in order for them to be happy ("i [...] wished that peace would revisit my mind only that i might afford them consolation and happiness" [62]). i built on her idea by noting how the creature acknowledged that he "required kindness and sympathy; but [he] did not believe [him]self unworthy of it" (94), a completely contrasting stance from victor, who finds himself undeserving of the many comforts offered to him by his family

furthermore, it seems that victor finds beauty in glory & majesty ("[the scenery] spoke of a power mighty as Omnipotence--and i ceased to fear, or to bend before any being less almighty than that which had created and ruled the elements" [64]), while the creature finds beauty in warmth & growth. both characters seem to find what they desire(d) in the versions of the natural world that they admire most

to reference what i said in the beginning about the connections between victor and the creature, this observation only contributes to my understanding that victor and the creature are incredibly similar, and many of their identical traits involve a rejection or a reversal of the other; they both ardently wish for each other's destruction, they both ruined each other, they're the reason that the other is simultaneously a victim and a villain in their own sense, they both hate themselves but for reversed reasons (victor hates himself for what he's done rather than what he is, while the creature hates himself for what he is more than what he's done), and now this--they both find solace in nature, just opposing kinds. like father, like son

[minorfamilysupremacy]

new BTS footage from santhipong sillapachai on facebook

[riktorart]

2021 - 2023

[rox-of-iu]

ayoo guess who finally sat down and caught up with cultivate B)

is me. so you know what that means.

spoiler warning for cultivate ch 30-37

there was actually.... more things i wanted to draw but I already did so many I had to physically restrain myself hfsjkkdh anyway yes can you tell i love this fic very much

yet once again. cultivate by the wonderful @neonghostcat

[quirkle2]

[zombie au] mentally ill teenager meets another mentally ill teenager and pretends he's the normal one

[taurus-caeli]

This Novel...Isn't Doing Well (A SAGAU drabble)

“Why isn’t my latest series selling well? You’d think my audience would give it a chance after reading Onibudou…!”

You took a sip of rainbow aster. “It’s because it’s unfamiliar. The market sells what’s currently popular. Those that go off the beaten path will face more trials compared to the rest.”

“...I’m sorry Your Grace, but you lost me after ‘trials’.”

“My point is: It’ll be generally difficult to sell an original creation if the audience isn’t familiar with them. So you have to slowly introduce them first until the audience does!”

“After this, I’ll help you with that part.”

[1very1fancy1doilies1]

ripred the rat for my sister's birthday :)

[brainworms-all-night-long]

Idk who I'm directing this at but I need to say it, something about Nine's redemption being rushed, when he like. wasn't even redeemed to begin with? He just apologized and promised real hard not to do it again. The show ended before he even could get his redemption and let everyone see that he was just having a really bad day and can actually do better.

His outlook and attitude towards the world haven't changed, others' opinions on him haven't changed (for the better anyway). You could argue about him fixing up the shatterspaces being what counts since that made everything be well and good by the end but like, is it really. He said he's gonna fix them once he's done with Sonic multiple times while he was actively trying to kill him (and you can trust everything he says 💯) so that wasn't his final change of heart against previous morals or anything.

Also, he never wanted to destroy the shatterspaces in the first place, they kinda just got caught in the crossfire and he merely rolled with it because he knew he had the power to fix it later and reveled in it (and you could argue the whole flipping around New Yoke as being deliberately malicious, but I think he deserved to do that, as a treat) I believe he most likely would've just disappeared off the face of the universe and fully isolated himself in the Grim if he didn't need Sonic's energy to stabilize the Prism, but that's besides the point.

What I'm saying is that an apology is not a redemption.

[idle-daydreams]

I just saw you post about demon king!Chuuya with a darling with mental health problems and i just got randomly inspired. So if you're comfortable with it i'd like to request something similar.

Basically while darling doesn't try to die or want to, she also doesn't care to live. Like she won't try to die on purpose but also won't stop her death, simply because she doesn't see any value in life. So when he abducted her she was also really chill with it since she couldn't care less. What i would like to request is how Chuuya reacts when she laughs off her near death (i'll leave what happened to you) and how he reacts when she tells him she doesn't think her life is worth the effort (she suffers from severe self-esteem problems).

With love,

An anon ❤️ (i rlly like ur works 😊)

Tw: self-harm, suicidal tendencies, violence, murder, yandere.

You looked out over the carnage in numb silence. The wind whistled over the blood-drenched snow, over the corpses of your father’s soldiers in crimson armor. Their slayer sat perched atop the rocks, framed by the full moon.

“Are you all right?” he asked.

“You killed everyone,” you said, taking in the blood seeping into the snow. The decapitated head from which it came was that of your father’s personal physician, an odious man who’d been convinced your listlessness had been a wilful act. The carriage had crushed his corpse as it landed.

“[Y/N], you’re bleeding.”

Your name on his lips drew your attention. You looked away to see him watching you, his expression far more concerned than it should have been. You raised your hand towards the stickiness on your shoulder, wincing as pain lancinated down your arm.

“Careful,” the man said. “You might have broken it. I tried to get you out without running the carriage off the road, but these bastards had a fight in ‘em.”

“I didn’t,” you said. “Not more so than...”

Not more so than anyone would have had their carriage rolled down the mountainside.

Slowly, the man reached out towards you. There was blood staining his fingers, which should have frightened you. Instead it made you laugh.

“Hey, what is it?” the man said as you curled up onto the ground, shoulders shaking. “[Y/N], what’s wrong?”

“You tried to kill me,” you said, giggling. “I nearly died there, didn’t I?”

“What? Hell no, I’d never hurt you!” The man dropped to his knees beside you, grasping your face in his hands to force you to look at him. “Hey, [Y/N], come on! Did you hit your head or something?”

“Maybe.” you reached out to trace your hand along his cheek, taking in his appearance. He was incredibly handsome, more than any man or woman that you’d ever met. “Who are you, exactly?”

“I’m the Shutendoji,” he said gruffly, placing his hand over your own. “Though you can call me Chuuya.”

“Shutendoji?” You blinked. “You’re the... Drunken Demon.”

“You don’t have to be afraid,” he said quickly. “I didn’t mean to hurt you. I just wanted to take you away so that I can protect you. I just had to get rid of everyone else in my way first.”

To protect me. The words echoed in your head, melding with the recriminations of your father. “I don’t need protection. I would rather have died.”

“What? Don’t say that, [Y/N].” Chuuya leaned closer, grasping your shoulders to hold you in place. At any other time you would have been scandalized to be this close to a strange man all alone, but considering the circumstances you couldn’t bring yourself to care.

“I’ll say what I like,” you said. “And I am right. Why on earth would you want to protect me?”

“Because I love you.”

This was ludicrous enough to force another laugh from your lips. “What? Why?”

“Why the hell not? You’re great. And I’m keeping you with me.”

“You say you are the Shutendoji, and you say you want me,” you said. “Unless... are you going to eat me?”

“Of course not! I’m never going to hurt you! What part of that don’t you understand?” He shook you slightly, eyes frantic as he met your gaze. “I know what you’re going through, [Y/N]. I’ve been watching you for a while now, watching that motherfucker you call your father has been doing to you. What they’ve all been doing to you. And I couldn’t stand it anymore, that’s why I had to come get you.”

You stared at him, taking in his face, his body, everything he’d done. In some vague, distant way, you understood what he was trying to say, but it was too difficult to comprehend directly.

Chuuya’s eyes tightened. “You don’t believe me,” he said. “You think I’m lying, don’t you?”

“I’m not saying you’re lying,” you said immediately, a reaction shaped through years of mollifying your father. “But if you really love me, then you are on the losing end of that bargain. I’m not worthy of love.”

“That’s what you think.”

“That’s what everyone thinks.” You gestured to the corpses around you. “All of them. Physicians and priests, family members and friends. That’s why they were sending me away.”

“To an asylum, to lock you away forever,” he said with a humorless laugh. “They all got you thinking you were the crazy one, when in truth you're the only sane one out of all of them. The only sane one in a world of crazy people.”

You bit your lip, forbearing to point out that a murderous brute like him could hardly be the arbitrator of sanity. Nevertheless, it was nice to know that someone out there who didn’t think you were a complete waste of space, that you were worthy of being loved.

Its only temporary, your mind reminded you. He’ll soon learn just how pathetic you are. And then he’ll kill you.

“Don’t leave me, [Y/n], please,” Chuuya begged. “I can’t live without you.”

“And what will you do then? Will you keep me locked away as well?”

“We can do whatever you want,” he said immediately. “We can go wherever you want, live however you like. Whatever it takes to make you happy. Just... be with me.”

You looked around yourself one more time. One final time, to seal it in your heart.

“Fine,” you said. “I’ll come with you. Do with me whatever you want.”

"Really?" Chuuya brightened. To your surprise, he wrapped his arms around you, pulling you into a hug. "I love you, [Y/N], I love you so very much. I promise, we'll be together for the rest of our lives."

[desultory-novice]

Y'know, what are the side effects of that paintbrush, anyway? Surely such a wondrous tool can't come without any strings attached, right?

Why, thank you for noticing! (And we'll just pretend I didn't specifically ask you to send me this so I could answer it >w>; )

Adeleine’s soul is NOT weighed down in the same way Noir’s is, so unlike her brother, she is not a good target to be consumed by Dark Matter. (Except in AU AU circumstances...) All that said...

...Don't look at me like that! Everyone didn’t really think that the entire score of events from Dream Land 2 to Star Allies could happen over the span of Adeleine still being 13 years old, did you? 

Sweet Adeleine. Pretty as a picture. And you’ll stay that way forever now.

...All the same, lucky you. Now, no matter how many years pass, your big brother will always be able to recognize you, preserved - like a painting - exactly as you were when his "gift" to you activated.

(She also feels the passage of time slowly, thus, she was not particularly aware how many years had passed until pointed out.)

-

[Apologies AU Masterpost]

Heads up: This may well be the last mainline Apologies AU "comic" as I am choosing to release the final stories as an illustrated summary, due to their complexity and, most of all, length.

(Help! I want to finish this story sometime in the next century!!)

[the-writing-mobster]

| @frans-monthly | Prompt: Costume / Halloween | SK! Sans x Final! Frisk as Ghostface and well... Obvs she ain't havin any of it | 💙 🔪 💔 |

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[smile-files]

as a jew, seeing what all of these israeli leaders have said is sickening. as a jew, anti-palestinian rhetoric is sickening. as a jew, zionism is sickening.

how dare my people -- a people who've been massacred, ethnically cleansed, dehumanized, forcibly removed, and discriminated on religious grounds for their entire existence -- do the same to another people? how dare we turn our backs on them, when they suffer like we have?

i understand that so much of us have been fed zionist propaganda our entire lives; the same happened to me. i understand the desire for a homeland where we don't have to fear antisemitism at every turn; i want that too. but it doesn't take much thought to understand that a homeland for us, which actively oppresses and kills another people, is antithetical to what we want.

if you, as a member of an oppressed group, believe that your freedom and safety can only exist when you oppress another group, you are acting no better than the people who oppressed you. such a belief is horrible, and cynical, and wrong.

as a jew, i want jewish people to be happy and safe and connected to our heritage; as a jew, i also want other peoples to be happy and safe and connected to their heritage.

don't call the palestinians "amalek". you are turning us into amalek.

doesn't the torah tell us to have empathy for those beaten down by the world? doesn't the torah tell us to make the world a better place? doesn't the torah tell us to free people of their shackles and help them escape oppression?

i have so many israeli aunts and uncles and cousins; i fear for their safety. of course, my parents do as well. i'm worried that this fear, in addition to anything they were led to believe earlier in life, is placing my parents even deeper in the zionist camp. but it doesn't have to be this way! my relatives' safety does not rely on the continued oppression of gaza!

it is easy to be uninformed, to be swayed by propaganda, to blindly hope that israel was founded in good faith -- but we can't lie to ourselves. a world steeped in senseless hatred (which we are now promoting!) could never be a home for us. none of us are free, liberated, equal, until all of us are.

as a jew, to other jews, i implore that we stand with our palestinian siblings. i want us all to be happy and safe. i want us all to live in harmony -- in the holy land and around the world. that is what we all deserve. <3

[kyouka-supremacy]

Who in sskk would you say has the higher IQ?

IQ as in, conventionally smart? Then definitely Atsushi does. I'm sorry. I've said it many times before, but I don't think Akutagawa is a particularly perceptive person. Or witty. Or intelligent in general. It's due to external factors, he never got the chance to have anything that could resemble a proper education; but it's also a matter of his nature, he's just so impulsive, and narrow-minded, and stubborn, he really has the thickest skull ever. But seriously, especially in a world full of geniuses, Akutagawa simply doesn't shine for sharpness of mind, and is way too impulsive and instincts-driven to be a person that relies on reflection or rationality. Everything that Akutagawa does is the epitome of irrational, it's one of the greatest appeals of the character.

Atsushi is smart,,,, I've talked about this also, and I think it's less sustained by canon than for Akutagawa, but I like to think he's a very observant and perceptive person whose intelligence doesn't show because he's constantly surrounded by geniuses, but still he is smart. When it comes to observations skills, I find it easy for him to have them due to his childhood of ill-treatment and abuse: as a defense mechanism, he learnt to be especially observative of people's behaviour in order to tell what sets people off and be able to prevent any escalation, I think that's a widely shared abuse survivor experience. Something among these lines is shown in chapter 51:

I also think Atsushi is a very fast learner. He's observant, and that results in him constantly absorbing other people's knowledge. He's often asking for explanations for Dazai and Ranpo's reasonings, and although I know more often than not it solves an expositive role in the storytelling picture, there's still the fact that it makes Atsushi a person who's constantly trying to understand the reality surrounding him. Atsushi is also shown to be very cool-minded and calculating in fight: from him sliding under Akutagawa and attacking him from behind successfully eluding having to face him front-off in chapter 4, to him retracting his tiger limbs to escape Rashomon's bonds in chapter 12, to the strategy he elaborated with Tanizaki (and his ability to catch up on that) to defeat Lucy in chapter 16, to his attempt to outsmart Fitzgerald in chapter 34 (that, although failed, was still driven by rational thinking nonetheless), and the list could go on. The way in fight Atsushi is shown to ponder over and implement the advices people like Dazai or Mori offered him further makes me believe he's really good at absorbing information. And Atsushi is probably book smart, too! He's compelled by reading to the point he would even risk the orphanage director's punishment just to sneak into the library and read (not explicitly supported by canon, but I can take a guess). According to the second guidebook, he spends his leisure time borrowing books from the library and studying. Overall, he really seems to be rational in all the places Akutagawa is on the contrary driven by impulses¹.

It's like… A physics law when it comes to sskk, that Akutagawa will have the most despicable trait while Atsushi has the trait that is conventionally considered the best; or at least that's as far as my characterization of them goes. Atsushi is beautiful, Akutagawa is ugly². Atsushi is polite, Akutagawa is rude. Atsushi is pure, Akutagawa is stained. Atsushi is smart, Akutagawa isn't. Atsushi is lovable, Akutagawa is destined to cause repulsion in everyone he meets³. In the end, none of this matters: they're no different where it counts, that is, Atsushi isn't any more morally just than Akutagawa is. Atsushi in not any more good than Akutagawa is (I actually suspect the contrary is true). But as far as appearances go, it's still important to portray them as opposites, because Akutagawa being unlovable and Atsushi receiving all the love Akutagawa didn't get for being his contrary - even though deep down they're the same - is almost everything their relationship is about. It's also a big part of why they act like they do towards each other: it's source of Akutagawa's bottomless envy for Atsushi; it's source of how devoted and loyal he will grow to be for him - reaching the point of giving his life for him -, because he can't see Atsushi as anything but perfection. It's source of confidence and of that certain justified hatred towards Akutagawa Atsushi feels because to his eyes Akutagawa is about the worst person to have ever walked on earth. It's source to their wish to annihilate the other as the opposite they can't exist at the same time of. It's the reason Akutagawa had to die, because he's not the good one. Overall it's also expression of Akutagawa's thematic struggle to be good and unavoidable failure at that because of the constraints of a narrative that never wanted him to be good.

But I also think they can make it work. More precisely, I think sskk can make it work when both of them can overcome and defeat the narrative dichotomy they found themselves stuck into: by recognizing that deep common ground of “we're the same” and that where it matters, in morals, neither of them is better or worse than the other. The Beast universe exemplifies that for us readers, but they don't know Beast, so they'll have to realize it by their own. About that, I think Akutagawa already caught on, because he was faster to call out the hypocrisy of Atsushi's good guy façade, and from that it's a short distance to realizing that, as much as he hates to admit it, at his core Atsushi is not that different from himself. It's taking a little more for Atsushi to realize, because it's harder to get down from that higher moral pedestal he believes himself to be on, but with his whole reevaluating Akutagawa after he stopped killing and sacrificed himself for him (and then saved him again. And then showed him how formidable of a team they are when they find a common ground.), I think he's getting there.

Tl;dr: Atsushi is smart and Akutagawa is stupid and yes it fits their personalities, but way more importantly it's consistent with the themes they carry that translate in what their relationship is like.

¹ For further reading on how Atsushi can be witty, please refer to @/gloomierdays's tags on this post. ² For further reading on how Atsushi and Akutagawa's looks can be used to reflect their characters themes, please refer to this post. ³ For further reading on how Akutagawa being not smart (as far as conventional definitions of smart go) ties to his character themes, please refer to this post.

[asleepinawell]

oh no don't make her my problem haha that would just be so terrible I say shoving my women's wrongs scrapbook under my bed