#i don’t care about whatever reasons you come up with the justify why it’s actually totally fine

[fastidious-and-a-mess]

guys can we PLEASE stop shipping riz w people. honestly at this point i kind of don’t even care if you yourself are also acespec/arospec/aspec.

yes, aspec people can be in relationships, etc etc, but riz specifically has expressed over and over and over again that that is something he personally has absolutely zero interest in.

he’s not just canonically aroace, he also canonically does not want a relationship.

“aroace people can be happy in romantic/sexual/queerplatonic relationships” is a true statement. “people who do not want to be in any kind of monogamous committed relationship can be happy in a monogamous committed relationship” is quite a bit harder to argue.

i’m just so sick of it. i’m glad we all understand that there’s nuance to aspec identities, and everyone’s expressions of and experiences with their own aspec identities are going to be different and personal.

like, it’s not even just about the asexual/aromantic aspect anymore. it’s also just refusing to let him not want to be in a relationship. why are so many people so resistant to the idea that he does not want to be in a relationship. like genuinely, why can you not accept that there are people who just don’t want that. who would just be unhappy in a relationship. why can’t you wrap your head around the idea that wanting a relationship is not a thing that everyone secretly wants. like, No, he hasn’t just not “met the right person” yet. because there is no right person. because he’s simply not interested.

this post is kind of rambly and not as effectively phrased as it could be i think but idc.

TL;DR: riz being aroace is not the only reason to not ship him. he also, explicitly and repeatedly, has stated he does not want to be in a relationship. “aspec people can be in relationships” is completely irrelevant because regardless riz simply does not want a relationship. please just respect thag.

edit: plz don’t like this is u wont rb. i won’t guilt you into rbing, it’s ur blog i’m not ur dad do what u want etc etc. it’s just irritating for me personally to see ppl interacting w this but not willing to actually put it on their blogs.

[tinycozycomfort]

moon, a hole of light

pairing: qz!joel miller x f!reader

day one of @pascalisbaby and i's joeltober: dacryphilia -> read her day one here

summary: It makes you feel like a toy, like some misused stuffed animal with loose seams and fur that’s been rubbed to the weft. Your use brings him comfort, his comfort brings you hurt.

warnings/tags: dacryphilia, unprotected piv, substance abuse (joel), age gap (joel is 46 [~10 yrs post outbreak]), reader is not), yearning, dom/sub dynamics, smidge of underwear play, pet names (honey, sweetheart, etc), joel is mean

word count: 2.4k

rating: explicit! 18+ only, mdni

a/n: i'm trying so hard to shorten things so forgive me as i navigate this learning curve.

main masterlist

A lot of life is weeping. 

In joy. In sorrow. In fury so poignant it makes you wilt. Your body furls in the collapse—u-shaped shoulders that guard your insides, the lock of hard elbows into thigh. 

It stings to feel so little, so vulnerable—to let anyone see how ugly emotion’s face can be—yet you let it happen, knowing that this is the only thing that separates you from the rest of them; they’ve spilled out all they had, hollow in the center after nearly a decade of ‘justified action’. 

So you cry, and you sob, and you don’t care for their uncomfortable shifting and curled lips. Tess gives her best in the way of comfort, not letting a scoff slip as much when she can help it. Tommy will at least leave the room. 

But Joel—Joel will watch. Joel will encourage.

He’s taken the liberty of cycling himself through every shape your hurt takes, the tears pouring over for all of his near-misses and his inability to care for you how he’s meant to. You see the way he grins to find that you cry when you’re happy to see him the same way you do when he insists he should leave. 

Part of you thinks he likes it—pushing you to react and then having something to show for it. You think he especially likes when it causes you pain. You cry longer in those moments, working though fits of frustration while he kneels at your feet and watches your face sprout tears like light rain. 

He pets you through it—even when he’d been the one to kick you down in the first place—to tell you you were good for sticking around, for being brave enough to have faith in him. 

He enjoys having something to come back to, and wounding you is no obstacle in the pursuit of feeling needed. 

It makes you feel like a toy, like some mis-used stuffed animal with loose seams and fur that’s been rubbed to the weft. Your use brings him comfort, his comfort brings you hurt.

You know he’s gearing up for another slip-away with the swift shift to kindness; Friday night he caresses you, soothes the ache of something not yet felt, to ease his exit. All pretty words and the affection he so desperately wants to hide, whispered promises of how much better he can be, how he can give you everything you deserve.

Come Saturday morning, you’re discarded. 

He’s gone again on another outing, one he persuaded Tommy into joining—if the silence is any indication—even though he needs nothing; that in itself makes you even more sure it has everything to do with wanting. The burn, the desire, is something you see so clearly in the glaze he gets on later nights, the crinkle of soft plastic that trickles out through the open bathroom door. He swears it’s nothing—even to Tess, when she’s around—that he’s not on anything. He throws any excuse he can muster; it’s the wounds and the healing and the aging that make him stumble even in the lit apartment.

Everyone knows what’s actually going on, why the trips outside the QZ are becoming more frequent. It doesn’t get lost on you all the times Tommy complains of Joel disappearing to meet more than one mysterious, unarranged contact who asked for privacy—who wanted Joel alone. 

Whatever it is he’s buying keeps him numb, so Tommy lets it slide, and Tess is apathetic towards Joel for reasons you aren’t too willing to know about. You’ve only tagged along so recently, so maybe they pity you, or they feel better about throwing Joel onto someone else—to ruin another thing if only to feel better about having been ruined. 

You cry through the weekend in long streams, worried for him, until the hot tears pool and curl the cotton of your t-shirt—forever wet. You stay laid out on the bumpy sofa cushions for hours before your back feels just as knotted and you have to relocate to the bed, only rising again to shower and half-eat and sulk, until you’re too weak to keep track of the seconds.

When he swings in on Monday night, boots knocking as he raises them up on the rack by the door, you’re at the tail-end of another bout, cheeks damp and chest catching where it’s pinned by your shirt against the bed. 

Joel walks into the room like he’s done nothing wrong. He walks in alone. 

“Where’s Tommy?” you ask, but he ignores you.

Instead, he comes to you with tattered hands, fresh bruises and torn skin, and tugs you up by the creases under your shoulders so you’re seated, kneeling by the bed to level himself with the picture he’s come to love. 

“Oh, sweetheart,” he coos, words slow, “What are all those tears for? Me?” 

You huff out a few shaky breaths to steady yourself, “Where’s Tommy?”

He sighs, long and hard and uneven, “He left. Why the fuck does it matter?” 

He peers up so you’re forced to face him and you can see it now, the film of wet that clouds his eyes, sticky lashes and deep creases of exhaustion purpling the skin where they brush. 

“Why did he leave? Because you’re high? It’s too late for him to be out there.”

You already know he didn’t hear anything past the accusation, brought to a boil at the mention of another one of his failures. He gathers up the soft flesh of your cheek in his hand, the blunt curve of his nails digging in to find teeth through the skin. He grips tight to let you know of his anger—that he could easily wring the life out of you like water. 

“You’re getting real brave for someone who sits and waits for me like a dog.” 

Fire prickles in the tips of your fingers, stretches across the top of your chest in humiliation. You can hear the weight of his words even through his gentle slur, like he means it, twisting away as best you can to speak, “Is that really what you think this is?”

He’s laughing before you even get it all out, the corner of his lips perked up on one side, “No one forced you to, and I certainly don’t remember asking.”

You shove at him then, with force, your hands bending back enough to pinch when he doesn’t budge. He leans into you instead, a challenge. 

There’s barely time to choose before he does for you, gathering up your wrists in one hand, the one around your jaw tightening. 

So close now, you get a better look at him—his hair stuck to his forehead, cheeks flushed red but with paler lips. His eyes are round, pupils cartoonish and wide. He’s still so pretty, even when dulled by the sheen of his high. 

He heaves onto you, shy of livid, and you start to feel like you’re suffocating under his stifling heat, billowing out from where he’s damp with sweat under his denim shirt. The pills work fast, and for longer than they should, so you can tell he’d spent the peak of his high elsewhere, but he’s on a jagged edge of almost coherent.

You slide your thighs together at the whole of him, so strong and honest and invested in you—negative or not—something you usually find him being incapable of. He sees it.  

“Oh, but you do it because you like it, don’t you? Couldn’t wait ‘til I came back. Little thing just needs some attention, hm?”

“Joel, I’m serious. Are you high right now? Where’s your brother?”

Joel wedges a thigh up under the crease of your knee, uses the grip he has on your body as leverage to move you further up the bed, climbing up with you pushing himself into the cradle of your body on the way.

“Please. You don’t give a fuck about Tommy,” he snaps, releasing and depositing you so he can make work of your shorts and the buckle holding himself back, “He’s not going to bother us, if that’s what you’re asking.” 

You whine as he releases himself, can’t help how you grow wet between your legs, heart throbbing in your throat. He’s not wrong, as mean as he is how he puts it—-you’d die for him if it meant he’d look at you. If you could have him to yourself.

His cock swings free as he shoves his jeans down only enough to be out of the way, not bothering to remove your thin strip of underwear once your bottoms are tugged off. He’s hard for you, another flattery that sends shivers down your spine, the feeling of arousal flashing along your whole body—fingers folding and ankle rolling. You’re excited for him, and this display of joy doesn’t please him as much. 

“I didn’t say it was a good thing. You’re pathetic,” he sucks his teeth, hooking a finger in the cotton across your seam, peeling it away from where it's slicked down, knuckle dipping in the place you’re pooling, “But it’s cute. You’re still young enough to have hope.”

He strings the gusset up and away, presses his length against your cunt before replacing it, trapping himself.

“It’s okay that you love me, sweetheart. Don’t be embarrassed. Hang onto that. It might work out for you some day.” 

“But not with you,” you whisper, half an offense and half an admission of awareness—he doesn’t love you, hasn’t and can’t and won’t, but you’re willing to take what you can get.

“Cry about it.” 

Joel grinds his cock against the wet slip of your cunt in short, tight motions to better catch against you, soaking himself. He presses three fingers against the base of it like a vacuum, holding himself between the two of you, the scalloped edge of your underwear twisting when they roll over his skin. The hard of him on your clit makes you gasp, and his mouth hangs open in a soundless laugh. 

And you are crying, sooner than you thought, barely registering it until you feel it falling into the cup of your collarbone, a steady stream that barely burns brighter than the flare in your core. 

“You really should be more careful with that little heart of yours. Gonna hurt yourself.” He slides his hand further up his cock to the tip, releasing the pressure and guiding himself to your center. Joel slides himself in to the hilt, leaning down on one forearm to hold himself up. 

With his unoccupied hand, he brushes the flesh of your cheek, following its path with kisses—the warning is a genuine one, followed by no punchline or remark, the first time tonight where he’s actually tried to resonate with the predicament he’s put you both in. Earnest. 

The give and take of him, flowing freely between unrelenting harshness and the soft comfort of his reassurance should be nauseating, but it shines a beam of light behind your eyes when you close them, white-hot and blinding. You’re sobbing enough to wonder how you haven’t stopped; you can feel your own wetness when he rubs down your chest with his mouth, gathered up from his mapping of your face. 

Joel’s knee digs into your side as he hikes you up on his hip, eliminating even the air between your bodies, sweat-soaked and glued together. He’s pushing himself into a place you’ve often found unconsidered, that spongy spot at the back that marks the beginning of your womb. The very center of you, he’s reached, and you start to move in an act of self-preservation, unsure whether you want him to continue forward or exit. You’re mumbling something about Joel, yes-too much-don’t stop-wait-please don’t stop and when he leans back he’s beaming at you, the point of his canines shining in the dim light of the room. 

He looks dangerous, like the man you’ve seen hobbling and flighty and inebriated—only ever close to anger—was just the very surface. This is the man that hunted men—that sought conquest and destroyed lives. He’s done the same to you, you realize, and now your being is nestled within the palm of his hand, pliable and willing and fully at his disposal. 

You keen for him, thin and high in the channel of your throat, and he pinches your face, sealing his mouth over yours to swallow it. He’s breathing hard into you, the movement of his hips growing shaky, rhythm breaking down a half-step so that you're just swaying against the bed under his weight in little jolts. 

“Joel, please. I want to make you come.”

“Keep crying for me just like that and I will. Can you do that?” 

You’re so close, the anticipation feeling like warm sand sliding under your fingertips. Joel wrestles a hand into the side of your hip where it’s tightly pressed to his, finding your clit with the pad of his thumb. Your babbling continues, Yes, I promise, I promise, and Joel nods, relenting. 

He presses hard against the nub, and shoves himself in that much further, and you start to come undone beneath him, the waves of pleasure coursing through to the ends of your limbs.

He’s still moving above you, talking over you—good girl, good girl—removing his hand so as to not overstimulate you before bringing it up to brush his knuckles over the hinge of your jaw, so careful even as he hammers into you, “So sad, honey. Poor thing.” 

You’re still caught up in your own rambling, but you tip your head yes and he picks up his pace again, chasing his own end, “Say it for me. Can’t do it unless you say.” His voice is a little warbled, and you can tell he’s crumbling. 

“Please. Come inside me, Joel.”

Joel grunts, the noise catching in his mouth like a hiccup, overtaken with the pleasure of your permission. The heat of him spreading inside your body has your legs shaking and cunt pulsing in response.

You fight to catch your breath, running a hand over your face to snap back into focus.

He falls over to lay on his side, still connected to you, dragging you over with him. He hides his face in the fold of your neck, knocking his forehead into your throat. 

“Really sweet of you to wait, honey,” he breathes, sliding out of you with a long drag, a thread of wet spooling out in his wake, “Now get the fuck out.”

[yuikomorii]

After thinking more deeply about it, people shouldn’t get mad when seeing the majority shipping AyaYui because they are the most perfect for each other…not always in the good way. They are both obsessive weirdos that are unable to communicate properly and end up doing so much dumb shit that not only hurts them but also the ones around them.

Now I’m not saying they are the most problematic characters in the game, but they just are such menaces for whoever is connected to them. They be wondering why Yui wouldn’t make such a good couple with Subaru and Azusa but the reason is that they’re exactly too soft for her. They just want a kind and motherly girl but Yui keeps putting them in uncomfortable situations, doesn’t respect their boundaries and is unable to comprehend their introversion. Ik she was in a dangerous situation at first but that’s over after the second game, isn’t it? They started dating so if that’s what she truly wanted, she has to take responsibility for that and bring her brain to work.

Now about Mr. Yours Truly, he wasn’t irredeemably bad in the first game but he was such an asshole, let’s be frank. After the first game, Yui started treating him poorly or, again , not paying attention to whatever he was going through but I just couldn’t feel bad for him. They both fucked eachother up so bad but in an equal way so I can’t say any of them is better than the other, like some of their individual fans do. I’m not saying this about the Admin but some Yui and Ayato stans must actually hate the characters and only love their fanon version of them. Just because they forgive their abusers and are friendly doesn’t make them the kindest character anyone has ever seen. They did too many bad things to be considered the kindest and I’m not gonna follow the “they went insane” excuse because I really don’t care. All characters are insane and broken but not all of them did as much shit as they did.

I’m not justifying anything from that dick but e.g. when Karlheinz commits a genocide to make ghouls, he is said to have abused his powers and is evil but when Yui commits a genocide because her cute Ayato-kun 〜 died and kills all living things on both worlds, that’s seen as romantic? Like that’s extremely evil and selfish of her too. Or when others complain about the vampires being possessive and jealous, when Yui is the same person that stabbed Shu and threw him in the dungeon afterwards out of jealousy and she also paralysed Ayato then used him as her pleasure slave only because he drank blood from other chicks. Again, I’m not excusing them but she’s just as worse when triggered enough. All the fanwars are stupid when the game only has characters that wouldn’t be perceived as mentally sane or innocent angels in real life.

// Uuh… you kinda worded it a bit too harshly but I do get where you come from.

The thing is Yui, Ayato, Azusa, Subaru and Yuma are characters described by Rejet as either pure or kind-hearted, yet this doesn’t mean they necessarily have to be saints sent from above 24/7. Good people can react horribly under stress, pressure or shock. Yes, they can do wrong stuff and treat others badly as a result, but this doesn’t mean they have a bad soul. Trauma is not the same from person to person and everyone reacts to it differently. It can turn good people into monsters depending on the severity of the circumstances and some might never come back to their original nature. And, even if they do, this will not excuse their actions, but as long as they try to change for the better and take accountability, I believe they deserve a second chance.

Rejet makes Yui go mad in some endings and After stories to demonstrate that she is capable of doing something as awful as the Diaboys if an event hits her hard enough, just like it did to them. And, to be honest, that's realistic. Of course, not the story, but the fact that every person, no matter how strong, has a breaking point.

Speaking of the genocide committed by Yui, the reason why it’s considered romantic is not the deed itself, but the fact Yui created an Ayato ghoul after exterminating everything, only because she wanted to be killed by the man she loved. I think this was the only time Yui seriously used her brain, and the fact she was crazy when doing that, makes it hilarious.

As for the Yandere endings, Yui does that to Shu in MB, if I recall correctly but it was so unexpected because she really didn’t get any vibes throughout the route, therefore I guess it was just random writing. In Ayato’s route, the obsessive tendencies were obvious when she started looking through Ayato’s swimsuit magazines and tried measuring her boobs to the ones of those girls. I was pretty sure she would pull a possessive move on him later on, lol.

Truth be told, I don't mind that in fictional couples as long as they're both obsessed with each other and it's not one-sided. Besides, it’s funny how even Ruki called Yui “Ayato obsessed” in CL.

As a DL fan, I understand that no character is a total green flag because they all display toxic behavior in regular circumstances, no matter if intentional or not. Nonetheless, that shouldn’t stop us from loving them. Some people prefer the softer aspects of DL, while others prefer the darker, but keep in mind that those who prefer talking well about their favs don't want to be always reminded of all the bad things they did, especially if those characters regret them or weren't in the best mental state at the time.

[em-allay]

“Tommy will understand. Tommy will understand- I- I know- he’s going to take a bit of time to understand. You know what- we’ve had our differences recently, but I know- I KNOW he will be a good helper for this, he will really. I’ve seen, I’ve seen how he acts . He’ll come around, He’ll come around”  --Wilbur Soot

So I found this quote while I was trying to fact check something during the Pogtopia era, and in case anyone is wondering, he says this at the end of cc!Wilbur’s video Am I the Bad Guy? For further context, c!Wilbur says this right after he makes the deal with Dream to rig up Manberg with TNT and blow it up during the Red Festival.

Now what I found so interesting about this quote is how well I think it could fit into Wilbur’s recent lore Inconsolable Differences. I could see Wilbur thinking this as he takes Tommy to the prison, as Wilbur knowingly traps Tommy with him and Dream, as he threatens to kill himself, as he gives Dream the discs and tells him to burn them in lava. I can see Wilbur thinking this as they head to the community house while Tommy is crying how Wilbur betrayed him again, while Wilbur reveals he didn’t actually burn the discs, while Wilbur calmly and patiently tells Tommy that he did it so Tommy could be free from Dream. This quote alone, and how well it can still fit within recent lore, goes to show how Wilbur’s perception of Tommy hasn’t changed one bit. While I 100 percent believe Wilbur would do anything, would give anything, to make sure Tommy is safe and sound, he fails to think about how his actions can negatively affect Tommy.

Wilbur thinks he understands Tommy, because he knows him, he knows that Tommy will understand him. Yet, even as Wilbur tries to calmly tell Tommy that he did this for him, that now Tommy is free from Dream and he can do whatever he wants, Tommy is quiet. Tommy is quiet as he holds his discs, looking away from Wilbur, and when Wilbur asks Tommy if he understands him, Tommy only nods quietly. As he turns towards Wilbur, Tommy can only glance at him briefly before turning his gaze back towards the floor. Through his body language, Tommy is clearly showing how much these events have upset him- he can’t even maintain eye contact with Wilbur for longer than a split second. So even as the conversation ends with Tommy thanking him, I doubt Tommy truly forgives him.

Tommy thanking Wilbur doesn’t stop the hurt Tommy felt during the events of the prison, and when Tommy voices his frustrations by saying “every time you make whats mine about you. You make whats completely mine and you take it away from me and you strip it and make it about you” , though said in upset anger, I do believe he means it. Just because Tommy can technically understand Wilbur in this situation, because he most defiantly doesn’t always understand Wilbur’s reasoning for everything, doesn’t make what Wilbur did okay. You can argue that Wilbur was right that if Tommy didn’t fully believe they were his discs, that his plan wouldn’t have worked, but the means don’t always justify the end. Wilbur relies heavily on believing Tommy will always come around as long as Tommy can understand him and his logic. However, Tommy is a character that is completely driven by feelings and emotions. The only reason as to why Tommy always comes around is because of his love for Wilbur, his brother, and Tommy knows this, he knows he always ends up siding with Wilbur regardless of his better judgement.

Tommy has disagreed with Wilbur many times, but continues to follow him because he feels like Wilbur needs him, and he needs Wilbur, and in a sense, they do need each other. They both want the best for each other and will do anything to get that for one another. However, this leads to a continuous cycle. Wilbur will continue to make decisions without thinking about how it can emotionally hurt Tommy, while Tommy will continue to support Wilbur even to the determent of himself. Cause even though Tommy loves and cares about Wilbur, he doesn’t trust him, or as he says, “Wilbur makes me feel safe in the same way two guns pointing at each other feels safe.”

On some level, I believe Wilbur is aware of this based on how he keeps thanking Tommy for trusting him as they make their way through the nether towards the community house. This could also be one of the reasons as to why Wilbur hasn’t apologized to Tommy yet, because he subconsciously knows all of this. He knows he has hurt Tommy, even as he tries to justify it, he understands that Tommy will keep coming around and continuing to follow him. Maybe Wilbur doesn’t want to admit that Tommy is one of the people most deserving of his apology, because if he does, he also has to admit how much pain he has caused him, even if that wasn’t at all his intentions. Maybe Wilbur is scared that if he asks Tommy for forgiveness, Tommy won’t give him the forgiveness he desperately wants. Maybe yet, what Wilbur is truly scared of most, is that Tommy will forgive him.

[stillness-in-green]

Pair O' Geten Asks

Congrats on your newly discovered Geten Appreciation, anon! I too like Geten a lot and feel that he, like the rest of the MLA, was Robbed.  He really would have made an interesting foil to Dabi and I have only conspiracy theories about Editor Meddling to explain why we didn’t get that.  The Rei-like appearance?  The opposed power set?  The father figure to whom he’s incredibly loyal?  The focus on a powerful quirk as more important than anything?  Come on; why write all that if it’s only going to matter for one (1) fight that doesn’t even come to a conclusive end and before we even have a bunch of concrete information on Dabi’s childhood relationship with his father?

Also, Geten and Dabi trying to run a regiment together would have been hilarious and it is but one of many things we were cheated out of seeing by that bedamned three-month timeskip on the villain side.

As well, Geten’s interesting to me for the same reason that Mustard is: they’re the only two young villains for whom we just don’t get much angle on student parallels, rescue arcs, and/or sympathetic portrayals.  Geten at least has far clearer motivations than Mustard, but it’s really frustrating to see the both of them basically written out of the story when they both seem far too young to be deemed Not Worth Saving.  (I mean, I obviously don’t think anyone should be declared off-limits for saving no matter how old or how far gone they are, but it’s particularly egregious when it comes to the younger villains.)

As to his loyalty to Re-Destro, I'll fold some discussion of that into my answer to this other ask, answered below the jump:

(CW: discussions of child abuse and cult dynamics)

Ohhhhh my god, anon.  Thank you for coming to me with this so I can assure you that, yes, Re-Destro absolutely does have genuine affection for Geten and his intentions absolutely do not come from a place of malice.

The thing with the way people headcanon RD and Geten’s relationship is, I think, pretty straightforward: Toxic Blorbo Anxiety.  Modern fandom, especially on tumblr, has really co-opted a lot of social justice rhetoric to make what once would have been dead-ass basic character/ship flame wars sound more justified and meaningful; as a consequence, altogether too many people have this idea that one’s taste in fiction (characters, relationships, themes, whatever) is a direct measure of one’s moral character.  Ergo, it’s no longer okay to just like a character with significant flaws—you have to find some kind of reason why that character’s flaws aren’t actually their fault.

People who hate Geten have zero problems writing him off as a toxic ableist eugenicist.  People who like Geten—well, some people are perfectly capable of liking Geten while acknowledging that he’s a violent little shit who espouses quirk supremacist ideals that go considerably farther than the ideals professed by anyone else around him, even the people higher up the chain of command.  For the “my taste in characters mirrors my moral character” folks, however, liking Geten means an immediate need to find a likely character to offload all of Geten’s moral failings onto.

Re-Destro is the only character for whom Geten has any demonstrated feelings whatsoever; this makes him the only available scapegoat.

And it’s ridiculous!  It is pulled literally out of thin air.  As you said, the databook is explicit that Re-Destro gave Geten “lots of affection,” but you see echoes of it in the canon as well.  There’s the flashback Geten has to RD smiling and patting him on the shoulders and entrusting him with an Important Task, as well as the implication that Geten cares about RD so much that Re-Destro burning himself caused Geten’s quirk evolution.  Re-Destro himself gets this beat, indicating trust and high regard, just after Giran gets sassy with him about the MLA losing their number advantage to the Sad Man’s Parade:

Yes, absolutely, Geten is fucked up from being raised in a cult.  Re-Destro was raised in the very same cult, however, and with a lot more fuckery about his ancestors and identity loaded down on him to boot.  Geten at least can just be Geten, you know?  The very best version of Geten that he knows how to be!

Of course, an ideal version of Geten would, among other changes, probably be going to school.  Now, Geten’s schooling is not RD’s responsibility—so far as we know, he isn’t Geten’s actual legal guardian.  Nonetheless, I’m sure he could make Geten do it if he really wanted to press the issue, and it’s no credit to him that he hasn’t.

Still, before I condemn RD for that, I’d want to know what RD’s own schooling situation was, or what the MLA approach is to school in general.  One of the things that defines cults, after all, is limiting members’ access to outside information, which is why they’re all such proponents for homeschooling.  I would be shocked if Re-Destro himself wasn’t homeschooled for at least his younger years, and therefore lacks a full frame of reference for why that’s a problem.

Speaking of RD’s frame of reference for things, and getting back to your actual question about ReDadstro, while I don’t read RD and Geten’s relationship as explicitly having familial vibes, I do think they’re close enough that a lot of people in-universe probably look at them and wonder.  The main reason for that is that, well, look at Re-Destro’s whole scenario!  He’s the scion of Yotsubashi Chikara, a blood-descendant of the leader of the original Meta Liberation Army, and, oh, does the story never let him or us forget it.  His authority over the group is entirely rooted in that ancestry; he and they all believe that it must be Destro, no one else, who brings Liberation to Japan.

That all being the case, then, why on earth doesn’t Re-Destro have any kids?

Seriously, the guy’s got to be over 40, and if the lineage is that important—and it is; Skeptic says explicitly that he wants to recruit Twice so that the MLA never has to fear a repeat of Destro’s loss—why hasn’t RD secured the bloodline for the future yet?  Even if he’s fairly confident in his and his followers’ ability to ring the bells of liberation in his lifetime, you’d think some contingency plans would be in order!

I also think it’s fairly telling that a guy whose authority is so rooted in family doesn’t seem to have any of his own—not just kids, but siblings, a spouse, parents, grandparents, anybody.  While it could simply be a function of his limited screen time, we have at least some idea of what the family situation is for most of the other major villains.  AFO, Shigaraki and the rest of the League, Gentle Criminal, Overhaul—for all of them, we can point to at least one thing and say, “That’s the situation,” even if it’s as simple as e.g. the implication of Spinner becoming a hikikomori or Overhaul being an orphan.  It seems to me that if there was a family line in charge of the MLA, we would have seen at least one other member at some point.  That we never do[1] suggests pretty strongly that Re-Destro is the only Yotsubashi around at the current time.

My headcanon, then, is that Re-Destro, a man so psychologically burdened by the needs of being the Great Destro’s successor that he saw an omni-nihilist like Shigaraki as freedom delivered on divine wings, doesn’t have children because he doesn’t want them.  Or, more accurately, because whether or not he, Yotsubashi Rikiya, might want children, he’s unwilling to have them so long as there’s any chance his burden could become theirs.

And thus we get to Geten.  If Rikiya might have wanted children in other circumstance, it’s not so surprising that he’d have a streak of paternal instinct that came out with Geten, especially when Geten was younger.  Here’s someone who’s powerful but never going to be in any danger of inheriting all of Rikiya’s burdens, someone whose loyalty is to Rikiya personally, rather than to Destro’s blood.[2]  Of course Rikiya’s fond of him!  He’s not entirely free when he’s around Geten, but at the very least, Geten transparently doesn’t care about the MLA’s glorious history.

I have to think that everyone around them Feels Some Sorta Way about this, especially those shadowy figures we saw telling young Rikiya all about his “inheritance,” but the downside of raising a six-year-old to be the supreme leader of your underground army is that there’s only so much open pushback you can offer once the six-year-old turns forty.  If RD wants to maintain a close relationship with Geten, there’s not really anyone who can put their foot down about it beyond a certain amount of pointed-but-respectful questioning.

As for what Geten thinks of this state of affairs, the way I conceive of them, Geten is painfully aware that Re-Destro is heavily burdened, and Geten wants to relieve as much of that burden as he can.  However, one of the reasons RD might find Geten comparatively relaxing is that Geten doesn’t occupy a specific place in the MLA’s organizational structure.  That might be because Geten lacks the temperament for leadership, but it might also be because RD likes that Geten is a bit sideways of the power structure that defines so much of the rest of Rikiya’s life.  Geten’s closeness to the Grand Commander might be enviable to others in the MLA, but it doesn’t seem to come with any particular authority; Geten probably wishes that RD would give him more to do![3]

Hence, I assume, his single-minded fervor about living up to Re-Destro’s trust and eliminating the people in Re-Destro’s way and so forth.  If it’s somewhat rare for Re-Destro to give Geten actual tasks to fulfill, all the more reason for Geten to pounce so vigorously on what opportunities do arise.

In summary, while Re-Destro and Geten’s relationship has some pretty huge red flags in it—the lack of schooling, the way RD being Geten’s patron rather than giving him a real position keeps Geten dependent on RD’s favor, the way Geten is singled out as having this relationship with RD, the disconnect between the values they extol— in the context they live in, I think it’s pretty wholesome!  That is, they’re both pretty fucked up by the cult upbringing, in ways neither of them is fully capable of even recognizing, but I think they both mean well by each other, and their lives are stabler and happier for each other's presences than if they were still both MLA but weren't aquainted.

Could it be better?  Sure!  But there’s a nigh-unbridgeable canyon between, “Based on what we know about the characters’ circumstances, this relationship has some concerning elements,” and, “Re-Destro is physically abusive, thinks Geten is only valuable as a weapon, and has groomed Geten himself to believe that.”

The far side of that canyon must be in Narnia, because stepping through a magic doorway to another world where BNHA is a completely different story is the only way anyone’s going to be able to produce canon evidence for the Re-Destro As Abusive Groomer claim.  As Shigaraki and All For One prove, however, there’s no villain in this story that can’t be rendered more cloyingly, simplistically sympathetic by cramming a bunch of physical abuse into fanfic where none exists canonically.

Thanks for the asks, anons! Please go forth and continue loving Geten freely. And Re-Destro also, because god knows he needs more love.

---

[1] The closest we get is the family portraits the League find in the obviously-intended-to-be-Re-Destro’s-summer-home they ransack in the live drama reading from that LOV stage event back in 2021.  No word on whether Horikoshi had any input whatsoever on that script, however.

[2] The tell here is the consistency of Geten’s motivations.  He never connects Re-Destro’s authority to Destro Classic like Skeptic and Trumpet do, nor does his loyalty change to Shigaraki post-Deika as you might expect if quirk supremacy were really the only thing Geten used to measure worth.

[3] It’s very telling that when we’re being introduced to the heads of the MLA, getting their real names and day jobs, Geten isn’t included in the lineup; he remains an unnamed parka troll with bad table manners.  He does get a proper rank in the PLF, of course, but by that point Re-Destro has ceded control to Shigaraki, so RD no longer has to worry so much about how he defines or doesn’t define the relationship or what people might think of it.

[thearchmanofgreenfield]

All five of them were so caught by surprise that Lucian almost feel over. For a moment, he was convinced that it was his father, it took him a few seconds to register that the voice sounded more childish than any adult voice. But he wasn’t the only one, for he saw even saw Joe jerk his head and take a step back.

“AH!” they all said in unison. But as Lucian looked at the entrance to the hallway he realized who was actually standing there. For at the entrance to the hallway stood Luin, standing straight in a brown shirt and amber coat with a book in his hand. Looking confused as to Lucian and the others reaction.

“What?” he asked tilting his head curiously.

“What are you doing here?” Lucian shouted after taking a deep breath to calm himself.

“That’s what I want to know!” Luin answered back without hesitation. “Isn’t that your father’s study? Why are you trying to break into it?”

“That’s…none of your business!” said Lucian, finding it difficult to come up with a suitable reason to justify his actions. But his response only seemed to make Lucian more curious. Lucian realized he needed to find a way to make him leave. “Why are you awake this early? And what are you doing carrying a book around the house? I thought recluses didn’t like crawling out of their caves,”

“Excuse me!” said Luin, offended by Lucian’s remarks. “But this book isn’t for me, it’s for Elliott. I told him I’d show him of my favorites and see if he shares my taste”

The mentioning of Elliott attracted the attention of the Hatlys, who both looked Luin with confusion. “Elliott? What’s he doing with you? He’s supposed to be asleep,” said Laura. Luin scoffed, “He snuck out of his room and came to see me after you both left him alone. You should know not to do that. It almost seems…negligent”

Both Hatlys seemed to take great offense with that statement. Laura seemed furious. “How dare you accuse us of such things! Do you know who you’re talking to?”

Luin did not waver. “I do. But luckily Elli enjoys my company more than yours. So he was not too sad about it.”

The Hatlys were fuming. But Lucian knew that they didn’t have time to argue. “That’s all well and good, so why don’t you go back to wherever you came from and leave us be!” he said trying to shoo away his annoying cousin.

Luin laughed, which did not make Lucian happy. “Are you daft? Now that I’ve seen what you all are up to why would I just walk away?”

Lucian groaned and rolled his eyes. “What do you want? Do you expect us bribe you, is that it?” to which Luin simply grinned. He then began to walk closer to the group. “Tsk, tsk, dear cousin. Do you really think you can buy me? The fact that you tried confirms to me that what you’re up to isn’t very allowed,”

“Well, whatever we’re doing doesn’t concern you. And if you still wish for me to keep the secret of how you obtained that newspaper then I suggest you walk away and leave us be,” Lucian said, hoping that this might get him to go away. But alas, even this threat seemed to have little effect.

“Oh I doubt either my father or yours would care about an old newspaper when they find out you all have been colluding behind their backs”

The mention of the newspaper seemed to intrigue the others, particularly Joseph and Laura. “Hold on, you got that newspaper from him?” asked Laura.

“Yes”-replied Luin. “I told him I’d paid off the newspaper delivery boy to get me a copy. Now he’s trying to use my words to threaten me! How idiotic,” he said while narrowing his eyes at his cousin.

“Well either way,” Joe interjected, seemingly having had enough of the back and forth. “We do not have time to entertain this bespectacled imp. So either you go and or we make you go,”

Luin sighed. He finally seemed to get the message. He turned around to leave just as Lucian went back to trying to open the door, but stopped midway before turning his head back. “Well I could open that door for you, you know”

As expected, all five of them immediately turned to Luin again. “What?” asked Charlotte, interested in what Luin said. He simply shrugged casually. “I can open that door that you all are so desperately trying to get through. That is, if you let me stay”

Lucian raised his eyebrow. “I thought you said that Elliott was waiting for you,”

“Believe me,” said Luin. “If Elli has any good taste in literature, the books in my room should keep him preoccupied for hours. Besides, no offense to him, but this is far more interesting,”

Luin then approached the door while Lucian stepped aside. Lucian saw him peek his eye through the key hole as though were inspecting it. He then reached into his coat and grabbed a piece of wood shaped like a key.

“What are you doing?” Lucian asked, not understanding Luin’s train of thought.

“Something I learned from one of my adventure books,” said Luin while keep his focus on the lock. Lucian saw him insert the key into the key hole. He was still confused as to what he was attempting to do but then he saw him wave his hand close to the wooden key. He saw the wooden key break apart as Luin moved his fingers. He then saw the key change into a different shape. Lucian and the others watched with puzzlement as Luin turned the key and the lock opened. Luin turned the doorknob and swung open the door, leaving Lucian and the others both impressed and confused. Lucian looked at the key as Luin took it out; he saw that it looked completely different to what it looked like when Luin first inserted it.

“Clever,” he admitted. “You reshaped the key while it was still in the lock. I didn’t know you could do that,”

“Of course you didn’t” said Luin smugly. “I wouldn’t expect you to know something so basic even though you’re older than me,”

“Well at least I have some semblance of existence outside that library,” Lucian retorted. It seemed as though they were about to enter another argument. But fortunately the others seemed to have run out patience at that point.

“Well in any case, the door is open. So I suggest we go inside,” Joe interjected. He then swiftly pushed Lucian and Luin aside and went inside. Willow and the Hatly sisters followed him.

“So, what other rooms can you unlock using this?” asked Willow, stopping momentarily. Luin shrugged, “Theoretically can enter any room I please, as long as the lock can be turned by a wooden key”

“Hmmm,” Lucian heard Willow mummer as she walked into the room. Lucian walked in behind her with Luin being the last to enter. Luin then closed the door behind him.

Inside, the room itself was rather extravagant. The walls were dark red with a dark wood trim going along the bottom connecting it to the wooden floor. The room was quite large, with the centerpiece being a long mahogany table placed over an ornate carpet. Next to the table was an unlit fireplace and next to the fireplace was a thin bookshelf. Behind the table was also a window looking out onto the open street. However, the room’s most striking features was located above the fireplace. It was a portrait, large and detailed, showing Lucian’s current family. It hung above the mantel in an almost imposing manner, with nine faces including Lucian, Lily, the twin and his parents standing towards one side with his father holding a large almost six foot tall gold trident in his hands. Grandfather Wren was sitting in a chair in the center and Luin along with Lucian’s Uncle David standing on the other side of the portrait. They all stood staring at the center of the room in an intimidating fashion.

As they entered, Lucian noticed Joe’s attention immediately fixate on something situated on the other side of the room. He looked to see what it was and realized there was small steel safe, about two feet tall, tucked behind the table. Joseph immediately went to it, Lucian saw him fiddle around with the dial at the front while keeping his ear on the door, but it seemed as though his efforts were met with no results.

“What are you doing?” asked Charlotte.

“Trying to open this box” said Joe, “If Demon’s father was going to hide something, it would be right to assume he would hide it here”

The Hatlys sisters then joined him in trying to unlock the box. Meanwhile, Lucian saw Willow go and inspect the desk, where several books laid outstretched. But amidst all of this Lucian noticed Luin eye the bookcase suspiciously. Which once again confused him.

“What is it?” he asked raising his eyebrow.

“This bookcase, it seems…too neat” said Luin. Which did not make Lucian any less confused. “What do you mean ‘too neat’?” he asked, seeing that the bookcase had several books out of place and several books taken out of it and put on the table.

“Will you both stop discussing nonsense and help us open this?” asked Laura, seemingly getting frustrated at the fact that the safe would not open.

“There is something odd afoot here. It cannot be as simple as one safe,” said Luin, still pondering while staring at the bookcase.

“How would you know?” asked Charlotte. “Well, in my adventure books, no secret ever comes as easy as cracking a safe. There is always something hidden somewhere”

“Well WE do not live in a novel!” said Laura. Trying several different combinations. “There isn’t always a hidden layer of complexity to every trivial thing! So are you going to help us or not?”

Lucian heard Luin mummer under his breath. “Don’t forget who got you here in the first place,” then Willow spoke up, “But he does have a point” she said while holding an old book.

“What do you mean?” asked Lucian. Willow waved her hand and gestured him come closer. Lucian approached the table. Willow then directed him towards a book on the table. A book with a black leather over with gold letters. Lucian read the title written on the spine of the book, which read ‘The Circulion Code of Law’.  The outstretched book showed a page titled ‘The Higher-Circulion Official Confidentiality Act’. Lucian then looked at the book Willow was holding, the title read ‘Codes of Transmission and Communication’ and it showed to a page titled ‘The Circulion Cipher’.

“What is all this?” Lucian asked, scratching his head in confusion. “It seems like your father was trying to solve a code,” said Willow holding a sheet of paper up to Lucian’s face. Lucian looked at the paper and saw that it was full of half-scribbled letter and numbers, the meanings of which he did not know.

“It appears your father was deciphering something in that letter. According to the Code of Law, letters written under the Higher-Circulion Official Confidentially Act are written in Muso-Numeral Code. But I can’t find any code like that in this book” she said flipping through the book.

“So what? The letter is unsolvable. Undecipherable?” asked Lucian. Willow shrugged, “To know that we must find the letter”

“A letter that, may I remind you, is in this safe!” Joe exclaimed still being unable to open the safe.

“I am telling you that that’s not the right safe!” said Luin. “It cannot be that simple!”

Joe seemed to lose his patience. He stopped turning the combination lock and shot Luin a malicious glare. “I feel as though you have spent too much time dwelling in imaginary fantasies. If you wish to frivolously search for non-existent secrets then suggest you don’t pester us about it!” he then turned his attention to Lucian, “I suggest you control your little cousin. He’s only here because we let him be here”

Lucian saw Luin give him a sad look. But he simply shook his head. Luin seemed to take that personally since he switched his expression to anger before huffing and making his way over to the bookcase. Lucian then saw him turn the books one by one and truthfully, he found it quite intriguing.

“You’ll see. You’re wasting your time with the obviously fake safe,” he said aggressively flipping through the books. Joe chuckled, “We’ll see,”

Lucian and Willow exchanged glances and shrugged. Lucian saw the Hatly sister’s roll their eyes. Suddenly, when Luin flipped a book on the third shelf of the bookcase, Lucian heard an ominous clang. Like the sound of a gear turning. Then it was followed by a clank and the sound of screeching. Luin took a few steps back and gasped with joy as the sounds of machinery continued. Lucian followed the sound, as it seemed to travel through the wall from the bookcase to the mantel. He then heard the sound of something unlatching and, to his surprise; he saw the portrait above the fireplace move.

However, Luin did not waste any time. He quickly walked up to the portrait and pulled it, opening it like a small door revealing something hidden behind the painting. Lucian’s jaw dropped and so did the jaws of all the others. Joe looked scandalized. But Luin simply gave them a smug look of triumph.

“HA, see! I told you it was not that simple! That safe is most likely a decoy, made to deter would-be thieves like you all!” he said beaming with joy. Lucian had rarely seen him so happy while being outside the library. But Joe wasn’t about to admit anything. He simply straightened himself and looked down on Luin.

“I suppose the bespectacled imp can do something useful after all,” he said in a rather condescending that Lucian did not condone. He frowned at Joe and expressed his displeasure but Joe didn’t care. Meanwhile it was clear that Joe’s comment had hurt Luin, but not enough to make him waver. He simply stood with a smug grin on his face whilst the rest of the group focused their attention on the new safe.

Lucian noticed that this safe also had a combination lock. It was plated with gold and next to it was a golden handle. Above both on those was the symbol of the House of Demon, etched into the metal and embroidered with yet more gold.

“Well how are we supposed to open this?” asked Charlotte.

“Step aside” said Joe pushing Lucian and the others aside. He walked up to the safe and placed his ear on the door. “Let’s try this now,” he said as began to turn the dial. But after a few moments he took his ear off the safe and looked at it, baffled.

“That’s odd,” he said. “I can’t hear any locks turning”

“Hmm” scoffed Luin. “Perhaps your marvelous hearing isn’t as perfect as you boast”

Joseph shot a look of utter rage at Luin. Luin returned the same look. Meanwhile Lucian looked at the safe. His suspicious gaze fell on the symbol etched onto the metal. He then looked at the top of the mantel. He noticed that were a few suspicious red stains on it. Like raindrops.

“I have an idea,” he said suddenly. All eyes then turned to him. “What do you mean?” asked Laura.

“I need something sharp, like a needle or some other thing,” Lucian said hastily. The others looked at him with confused looks but luckily, they decided to listen. The Hatly sisters, Luin and Willow all started to look around the room for something sharp.

“What’s your plan here?” asked Joe, doubtfully.

“Perhaps that dial is also a decoy,” said Lucian. He then placed his hand on the symbol. “Perhaps the key is in this symbol. Perhaps we need to use the Flame to open it”

“A Flame Lock? Hmmm, interesting” said Joe, still doubtful. But Lucian didn’t care. “Well, it’s worth a try. And for that, I’m going to need the Blue Lantern hanging above the door to the great hall”

Joe raised his eyebrow. “What? You want me to get it?” Lucian nodded. Joe still looked as though he did not believe Lucian. But luckily, Lucian didn’t need to do any more convincing as Luin chimed in at that very moment, “I could get it for you!” he said like an enthusiastic army recruit.

“You can?” asked Lucian. Luin nodded enthusiastically. He then turned around and ran out of the room. But no before grinning smugly at Joe before leaving.

“Looks like the imp is more helpful than you” said Lucian smugly. Joe frowned at him. But he didn’t yell, for shortly after that, Willow came once again with a quill in hand.

“Try this,” she said handing the quill to Lucian. “I took out all the ink, but it’s a bit blunt. You might want to sharpen it,”

Lucian looked at the quill. He concentrated. And before his eyes we saw the tip of the quill move and slide to become a sharp point. He then held the quill with the tip facing his finger. He took a deep breath and with all his courage, he stabbed the quill directly into his finger. A small but irritating pain immediately came to his mind. But he tried to ignore the as he took the tip of the quill out of his finger and watched as small stream of blood oozed from the place he had stabbed. Lucian then took another deep breath and proceeded to place his bleeding finger on the symbol. He then proceeded to draw the symbol using his own blood.

After he was done, he took his hand away before covering it to prevent any further bleeding. The others looked at him with concerned expressions.

“Are you sure about this?” asked Laura. Lucian didn’t answer. He and the others then waited for the Blue Lantern. Lucian was partially concerned that Luin might be caught while taking the lantern. But he quashed those worries with the confident assumption that Luin’s mouth could get him out of any predicament.

After a few minutes of restless waiting, the door swung open and Luin entered the room with the blue lantern floating a few feet above him. “It took me a while to get it passed the adults. They nearly saw me taking the…” he said but Lucian just restlessly gestured him to give him the lantern. He lowered the lantern and Lucian grabbed it. He then held the flames up to the blood he painted on the safe.

Immediately, the blood erupted into bright blue fire and disappeared within a flash. Lucian put away the lantern and, after taking a deep breath, turned the latch on the door. And, to his relief and the relief of the others, it opened.

“That…worked?” asked Charlotte.

Lucian pulled the safe open all the way and he and the others all peered inside. Lucian was expecting something quite valuable or something of great importance. But to his shock he found it mostly empty with its contents on consisting of a single white envelope with a broken wax stamp.

“There it is!” said Willow. She pushed her way to the safe and grabbed the letter. The others crowded around her as she opened the envelope and took out the paper inside it.

“What does it say?” asked Laura.

Lucian saw Willow read the letter. Her expression went from one of curiosity to one of slight confusion. “Hmm, it appears we were right about the code,” she said raising her eyebrow while viewing the letter from several angles. She then sighed and handed the letter to Lucian, who grabbed it eagerly and looked at it.

To the Baron Henry Demon, written by [WITHHELD] on the 286th Day of the year 634 AF. Muso-Numeral coded in accordance with the Higher-Circulion Official Confidentiality Act as per the Circulion Code of Law.

F3.D3.A1.B2.F3.A3.D3.E3:A1.F2.A3.G2.G1:G3.E3-E3.B3.D4.B2.G2.G1:F1.A3.D3:F3.A2.E1:A3.D3.D1.E1.D3-F2.A1.D4.A3.D3.E3:D1.E1.A1.F3.A2:F1.A3.B2.E2.E1.D1-B3.E2.A1.G2.G2.B2.G2.G1:B2.G2.E3.G3.D3.D3.E1.C1.F3.B2.A3.G2-E3.G3.E3.B3.E1.C1.F3.B2.G2.G1: F3.A2.E1:G1.G3.B2.E2.D1.E3- D3.E1.F3.D3.E1.A1.F3:F3.A3:E3.A1.F1.E1.F3.D4—

B1D4:C2G3E2B2G3E3—

At first glance, it wasn’t what Lucian was expecting. In all honesty, he was mildly unimpressed.  “Hmm, we need to find out how to solve this,”

“We could take the letter to our library. I bet there is a book that could help us,” suggested Laura.

“But we can’t steal the letter!” said Willow. “If the adults come back and find it missing then we’ll be done for!”

“You all might want hasten your pace” Luin interjected. “Why is that?” asked Joe. Luin looked at the ground and rubbed his feet on the ground. “Umm… I might have overheard the adults talking while I got the lantern. And they might be coming here at this very moment”

The room went silent. “What?” they all said in unison. “And why didn’t you tell us this earlier?” asked Charlotte.

“How could I?” he protested. He then whispered under his breath, “When you are too busy ogling a simple letter,”

“Well what do you suppose we do?” asked Joe.

“We could copy the letter!” Laura suggested. “On a piece of paper or cloth. That way we don’t need to steal it,”

Lucian saw Charlotte glance at her sister for a moment before turning back and saying. “She’s right, that could work!”

The others shrugged. But Lucian knew that they didn’t have time to argue. “Fine, I suggest we find some paper. And Luin,” he said turning to his cousin, “Go stay outside and warn us if the adults arrive”

Luin shrugged but obeyed. Lucian heard him mutter, “Not like it would make any difference, we’re done for the moment they appear in the hallway,” under his breath while he walked. The rest of the group then scoured the room for writing material. Lucian handed Willow the letter and he too began searching. Laura gave Willow the quill that Lucian had used to prick his finger. Charlotte took out a bottle of ink from one of the drawers of the table and Joe found paper in the other drawer. Willow then kept the paper on the table, quenched the quill in the ink and quickly copied the letter as fast as she could. He let go of the quill and let it scribble away whilst standing by itself, it wrote faster that way. Meanwhile, Lucian and the others watched restlessly, the threat of being caught loomed over their heads more and more as time went on. Lucian looked back and forth between Luin and Willow.

“Is there any future where we get caught?” he asked Willow as she wrote.

“I cannot say for certain, but in my experience the number of futures where we do get caught would increase exponentially every passing second,” said Willow hastily. She made the quill scribble faster and faster. And seconds later, it stopped moving.

“Done!” Willow shouted joyously. She quickly took the paper off the table and handed it to Joseph who kept in his coat. “Now quickly! Put everything back! We can’t leave the safe open!”

Lucian grabbed the letter off Willow’s hand before throwing it into the safe and closing the door. The Hatlys kept the quill and ink in their proper places while Joseph rearranged the bookcase and activated the mechanism that made the painting close.

“Quickly! I think I hear someone climbing the stairs!” said Joe, which further hastened the group’s pace. Lucian launched himself out of the door the moment the painting closed with the Hatlys, Joe and Willow coming out moments later.

“Close the door! Use that key of yours,” said Lucian. Luin nodded, he then closed the door before taking out his wooden key and locking it. The then made their way their way out of the hallway and towards the staircase. The panicked feeling slowly dissipating the further they got from the study.

As they approached the staircase, Lucian heard a sound coming from in front of them, the sound of footsteps. As the rush from their swift getaway faded, he realized that Joe was right. Someone was coming from downstairs. Lucian almost instinctively turned away and entered the hallway leading to the library. The others followed him as the all ducked behind the wall of the hallway.

Lucian watched, as the footsteps got closer and closer. First, he saw his father appear, followed swiftly by Mr. Hatly and Mr. Morrow. Behind them was Mrs. Morning and behind her was Mr. Bernstein and a slim but tall figure Lucian knew to be Mr. Angelmore, Joe’s father. Lucian and the others took a step back as they all watched their parents walk across the room towards the study, oblivious to the fact that they were being watched.

“Are they gone?” whispered Luin who had been pushed to the back of the group behind Joseph, who completely obscured his view.

“SHHHH!” said Joseph frantically, Lucian saw Mr. Angelmore rear his head in their direction, to which Lucian tried his best to hide behind the wall. Luckily, once he peeked his head over the wall he noticed Mr. Angelmore follow his father and the other adults into the hallway leading to the study. He breathed a sigh of relief.

“They’re gone,” he said. The others then relaxed themselves. But Joe once again stared furiously at Luin.

“What do you think you’re doing? Do you want us to get caught?” he asked. “What do you mean? I didn’t do anything!” Luin whined.

“Well, thanks to you my father almost caught us!”

“Well gosh damn it! How idiotic of me!” said Luin sarcastically. “If only you let me see passed your pitiful attire I wouldn’t need to ask such basic questions!”

“You annoying little…” Joe began, but before he could finish Laura grabbed him by the shoulder and pushed him back. “Will you both please stop? None among us can take more of your incessant arguing!” she said angrily.

Both Luin and Joe paused. Then looked away. Joe straightened himself as Laura gave him a disappointed gaze. But Joe wasn’t done. “I suppose being unbearably annoying must be a family trait, eh Lucian?” he remarked while smirking smugly as Lucian. Lucian saw both Hatlys frown whilst staring at Joe, so he could only imagine what he was actually thinking. Yet Instead of arguing he simply frowned, “We got what we need, that’s all that matters”

“Well true, but who knows? You might still have some secrets you’re yet to share. Hmmm?”

Lucian flinched before momentarily glancing at Laura who glance at him with an expression of surprise. But luckily for him, Joseph didn’t notice that. “Well it has occurred to me that we still have an hour before breakfast. I could go for some tea, anyone else?” he asked walking towards the staircase.

“I would like some!” said Willow rising her hand. She then shot a glance at Lucian while she walked towards Joseph. “I didn’t get to finish the one I had earlier”

Both of them then walked away and climbed down the staircase together. Leaving Lucian with only the Hatlys and Luin. “Sadly, I also need to go,” said Luin. “I still have to meet Elli, and I might even try to solve this letter,” he said holding the letter in his hands and observing it.

“Do you think you can crack it?” asked Charlotte. To which Luin laughed, “Moor knows that this is the most interesting I’ve done all year. And besides, I think I have a better chance than any of you,” he then put the letter in his book before walking towards the stairs. “So if you’ll excuse me, I shall see you in the breakfast,” he said before climbing up the stairs and disappearing.

This left Lucian with only the Hatlys. “I assume you both also have somewhere to be,” he asked quiet awkwardly.

“I personally would like nothing more than some sound sleep! Now that Elli is with your cousin!” said Charlotte. Lucian then turned to Laura. “What about you?”

“The thrill of breaking into your father’s study seems to have knocked all the sleep out of me,” she said. “I suppose I might as well tell all this to the Bernsteins and the Mornings, if they’re awake. Perhaps you can accompany me; I might need some assistance with waking them up”

Lucian’s face came inches away from turning red. “I…I…” he stuttered but luckily Charlotte cut him off. “Well, you both can do whatever you please; I’m off to get some rest well-earned rest! No chance am I helping you two wake up those featherheads!” she said as she marched off to the staircase.

Lucian struggled to open his mouth. But he then took a deep breath and calmed himself, to Laura’s confusion. “Perhaps you can wake them up and we’ll all gather around and talk inside the library,” Lucian suggested. “There’s usually no one there except my grandfather, and he won’t tell a soul! Mostly because he won’t remember anything we say. I could even get us some tea in order to knock them out of their sleep,”

Laura shrugged. “Well I suppose I could drag them here by myself. So be it”. She then turned away in order to leave. But before she did, she stopped. “And if you’re bringing tea, might I suggest you bring something else along with it. I cannot wait another hour for breakfast!”

Lucian nodded and grinned. “I know the place where Lily hides all her treats, I don’t think she’d mind if some went missing. She stole them from the pantry anyway.”

Laura chuckled. They smiled at each other for a moment. Laura then walked off and finally she too disappeared into the stairs. Leaving Lucian alone in the hallway.

Back to Contents- HERE

[newromesweirdest]

Octavian’s Death: Analysis Pt 1

Earlier tonight I pulled out my copies of the Heroes of Olympus because I wanted to write some Octavian analysis posts, and I’ve been rereading some of his scenes from The Blood of Olympus. I reached his death scene, and I just wanted to hop on here and talk about it for a second.

Firstly, this scene honestly breaks my heart. Was Octavian misguided? Sure. Were some of his actions definitely questionable? Yes. But did he deserve to die like that? No, absolutely not.

Up until this point in the series, Nico had always been one of my favorites as a younger reader. But even when I was a kid and I disliked Octavian (solely because the narration tells us that we as readers should dislike him, and I was too young to really think of it any deeper than that), I still couldn’t believe the fact that Nico wouldn’t allow Will to attempt to save Octavian. “Some deaths cannot be prevented” is the excuse that Nico gives us as to why he doesn’t attempt to save Octavian. To me, it just feels like Nico is trying to justify this action to himself. We know that he dislikes Octavian and even considers assassinating him via shadow travel a few pages prior, and just before the battle itself Nico once again considers murdering Octavian in front of the First Cohort. Immediately after Octavian launches the onager, we’re told this:

“Nico could have even lived with Octavian’s end. He might have even said good riddance. But his heart sank as the comet kept gaining altitude. It disappeared into the storm clouds, and the sky exploded in a dome of fire.”

- Blood of Olympus, page 470

Despite the fact that Nico’s “heart sank”, it still feels to me as if he only half cares. Even with his feelings of guilt, at least part of himself still wants to say “good riddance.”

Octavian, whatever his faults may have been, did not deserve that end.

Something that struck me on my rereading of this scene is the fact that Michael Kahale just doesn’t seem to care at all. Now, we are told that Michael had been previously knocked unconscious by Tyson, and “he had a large red knot on his forehead.” It’s reasonable to assume that he probably also had a concussion, or at least some sort of mild head trauma. One of the main symptoms of a concussion is a loss of consciousness after a blow to the head, as well as a loss of coordination and confusion. Rick tells us this:

“He stumbled as he walked. But somehow he had found his way here from the shore, and along the way, he’d picked up a sword and shield.”

- Blood of Olympus, page 468

So far, Michael exhibits 2 “warning signs” of a concussion. 

At first glance, it seems like this scene is simply showing a blatant betrayal of Octavian by Michael, but I do wonder if there is something more under the surface.

Michael takes in the scene of Octavian with his robes tangled in the onager’s trigger rope, he looks to the sky and sees Festus, and he scowls at Nico. He asks Octavian twice if he is certain about firing the onager and killing the Greeks, and then he tells Octavian to do as he must.

In a way, it definitely reads like a betrayal scene. And on the surface, that’s exactly what it is, but if Michael did have a severe concussion, it could explain why he seemingly failed to register the severity of the situation. He shows no reaction to the smoke rising from Octavian’s jewelry, and he doesn’t seem to react to the toga wrapped around the tripper rope either. Remember, we’re seeing this through Nico’s POV. Nico tells us that Michael “took in the scene”, but we don’t actually know how much of it he actually processed or truly understood, especially after such a hard blow and a loss of consciousness.

It’s hard for me to decide if Michael knowingly allowed Octavian to die. On one hand, it feels like an obvious and blatant betrayal, but on the other hand, I do wonder if Michael was even fully aware of the situation at hand.

It’s a tough thing to call, and I think a lot of it comes down to what you personally believe. I just found the concussion possibility interesting, because from a medical standpoint it’s very likely that Michael did suffer some form of head trauma from Tyson’s blow, and it could explain his actions during this scene, at least in part.

Another thing that struck me during my rereading was the fact that it almost looks like Octavian knows that he is going to die. Mainly, his final words to Michael:

“A good friend to the last.”

That isn’t something that you just say out of the blue. Yes, both Octavian and Michael are on a battlefield in the midst of a battle as this line is spoken, and yet neither of them (at least as far as Octavian is seemingly aware of) are in imminent danger. So why then would you claim that someone is a “friend to the last?”

Furthermore, Octavian reiterates throughout The Blood of Olympus that he will be remembered as the savior of Rome or of the Romans. This is also one of the final things that he says.

Octavian seems thoroughly adamant that he will be remembered as a hero and a savior.

I could write a lot more about this (and I will very soon!!), but for tonight I’ll leave you all with this:

I believe that Octavian knew full well that he was going to die, and I believe that he knew that he was tangled in the onager, either through prophecies or through a quick observation that Nico missed.

[rottingmanifesto]

16 or 36 for anything you feel like writing currently! :D

Trying out some different formats. Hope it’s legible. Fair warning that I got way too carried away with ‘total control’, so it’s under a cut.

16. in dreams

Journal, Lincoln, 1st person.

Keep havin’ weird dreams. Can’t explain them very well, all I know is I keep scaring the hell outta a few of the guys when I jolt up. Davis suggested I see the Chaplain ‘bout it. Pretty sure it’s not demons, so unless he’s got holy-water-melatonin, I don’t think he can help.

One of the dreams is about Danny and Nicki arguin’ over their old man’s body. Cancer or poisoning or something of the like. Not sure why I’m there at all, I just am. Both keep beggin’ me for an answer. I can’t. Someone’s cut out my tongue and noises don’t help. He’s dead, they’re arguing, I can’t do anythin’.

Father said something offhandedly in a letter about my nightmares being chronic. Happened when I was a kid, stopped for whatever reason, an’ now they’re back. Never told him I was having any, but that’s Father for you. He jus’ knows things. Didn’t tell Sammy or Ellis though, both seem to think I’m fine. Not sayin’ I’m not. Just don’t think it’s worth tellin’ them, worryin’ them over stupid shit like dreams. Got bigger issues than that.

36. total control

Script-ish, John and Connor, 3rd person.

J: You were supposed to die.

A: Yeah, firing squad. I remember. Hard to forget.

J: Would’ve preferred a hanging, actually.

A: Didn’t know the United States still used that method.

J: I’m sure they’d make an exception.

A: (mild discomforting laugh) Of course they would.

J: (faltering, lowering gun, searching for words)

A: Maybe you should set the gun down. Your hand’s twitching. Don’t want a misfire.

J: Shut the fuck up.

A: What, I can’t look out for you? What happens if you twitch and kill that friend of yours out there?

J: Don’t bring him into this.

A: Lincoln, right? Hear he’s taking after you very well. Brazen and theatrical.

J: Yes, because you’re a master at subtlety.

A: Comes with the job.

J: Jesus Chr—a fucking warhead isn’t subtle.

A: Neither is hanging a man from a Ferris wheel. Or, you know, (signaling to cheek with J’s given-cigarette) this.

J: That was self-defense.

A: Sure. Of course.

J: Can you just go one fucking sentence without being an asshole, or is that above you?

A: Give me a reason to, and I will.

J: I have a gun and you don’t.

A: That’s not enough, Johnny, and you know that.

J: Don’t call me that.

A: Sorry, I’m delirious from the blood loss. I thought you were that kid I helped so many years ago. He looked an awful lot like you, too. (painful cough, takes a drag to cover up whatever expression he has on his face) Forgive me, Mr. Donovan.

J: You know, I used to believe in you back then. (voice breaks, begins to pace, having his back to A) Thought you represented everything great about this country.

A: Don’t I still?

J: You don’t. You’re just as fucking greedy and selfish as everyone else. (wheels around to face A, pointing a quivering gun between his eyes)

A: Exactly. That’s the real America. The one that doesn’t care about drafted soldiers drowning in mud, or those who come back seeing shit and knowing they fundamentally aren’t right anymore. The one that doesn’t care about people like your friend out there. The one that would sooner hang you for being a homosexual than me for being a so-called “traitor”.

J: So you’re justified with selling a goddamn nuke, is that what you’re saying?

A: (still fucking smiling) Your comprehension has improved some. Congratulations.

J: (crouches down to be eye-level) So the money was just to sweeten the deal, huh? To ease your conscious— (he presses his hand into A’s wound as harshly as possible, causing A to jolt in pain)— when innocent people inevitably fucking die?

A: We both know I won’t be the last person to do so. If it isn’t the NVA, it’ll be someone else. It’ll keep going until the United States is destroyed.

J: (begins to pace again, silent, blinking hard to avoid tears)

A: I was going to end it, John. I was going to make everyone free from this bullshit. Including you. Including your friend. Including everyone else who is subject to America’s tyranny. I was going to do what you’re too cowardly to do! I was going to end it all!

J: (whips around sharply) Are you finished?

A: (panting, out of energy, the pain finally overcoming the adrenaline and pride, he realizes he’s no longer in total control.)

A: It appears so.

[crystal-ball-of-ow-canon]

In your post about how Gabe was being pushed aside for Jack in Genesis I wanted to ask why you thought Blizzard hated Reyes? Is it more than just how bad Code of Violence was?

I never really engaged with overwatch content back in the day until Overwatch 2 came out and all the controversy got me interested in the characters, so I wasn't around for most of the ride.

Thank you for asking! This is going to be a long one so buckle up

So before we proceed I want to clarify that part of “Blizzard really does hate Reaper” is a bit of a joke, a good old ribbing in Blizz’s direction just because of the lack of Reaper lore that we get and the lack of quality, it really does seem like Gabe gets the short end of the stick

And I’ve said this before but also me being critical of Gabriel’s story line and making these jokes that Blizzard hates Gabe and Blizzard doesn’t know it’s own lore isn’t me trying to attack any of the writers individually or as a group. Ongoing stories are prone to complications and change, that’s to be expected, Jeff Kaplan famously could not keep track of any of the lore and constantly said things that Michael Chu had to later come out and correct. A lot a lot of work goes into making Overwatch, mistakes often come from things being rushed or unable to be double checked (the video game industry should unionize) they have to deal with incoming demands from execs, they’re having to create new lore for new maps and new heroes, it is not an easy balancing act at all and these people are pouring their passion into something they care about and that is not to be dismissed

With all of that out of the way

Does Blizzard Hate Gabriel Reyes?

I have talked extensively about Gabriel Reyes on this blog, famously I have a giant actual 3000 word dissertation on my main critiques of how blizzard has handled Gabriel from his characterization to his lore.

To get specifically to your question tho, I don’t think inherently Genesis itself sidelining Gabriel is Blizzard hating Gabe, but more of what my anticipations for not only Genesis pt 3 as well as the hero mission will continue to handle him.

Genesis is an in universe documentary of the Omni crisis and the forming of Overwatch’s original strike team. Gabriel was the original strike commander however in the post I believe you’re talking about Gabrie does not seem to be the focus once the documentary timeline shifts to discussing the forming of Overwatch, something that would be weird (at least in my opinion) again given that again Gabriel is supposed to be strike commander at this point.

I did not mean to infer that the documentary itself was proof that blizzard hates Gabriel, I was merely making an observation that “wow Gabe sure is being pushed aside, almost like he’s not the strike commander lol”. I apologize if that’s what you took from it. I did talk a little about if the documentary is an in universe propaganda piece for Jack (thus justifying why Gabriel isn’t focused on) as Jack actually seems to be the one at the forefront of the strike team, he’s the one who shakes hands with Mina and his uniform is the very same as his strike commander skin. So the post was trying to say “I wonder if there was purposeful thought behind this decision or if blizzard straight up forgot that Gabriel’s actually supposed to be strike commander, wouldn’t be surprised because blizzard hates Gabriel lol”

The reason why I say “Blizzard hates Gabe” is a combination of things. I’ve already said they just can’t seem to keep his lore straight but that’s a more general problem. Gabriel just doesn’t get a lot of lore attention especially given the fact that he’s one of the key players in the story. One of my biggest problems is what seems to be the overexplaining of Jack’s narrative with the underexplaining of Gabriel’s narrative

“For whatever reason Blizzard feels the obsessive need to explain and justify Jack’s character. He has an origin story (which by the way doesn’t mention Gabriel’s tenure as Strike Commander making Jack infer that he lead Overwatch through the omnic crisis, I’m just saying), his animated Hero short, the Bastet short story where he shares a perspective with Ana, the Old Soldiers comic, and the Uprising comic. All there to show Jack beleaguered as he might be, still a good person trying to do the right thing because don’t worry he’s still a good guy. Gabriel gets no origin story, no dedicated short to himself, just the comic Retribution alongside the archives event, and finally in 2022 6 years after the game release the short story Code of Violence which turns Gabriel into the Punisher. Sure Gabriel is involved in a lot of stories, but we don’t much get his perspective on events and for someone who’s apparently the linchpin in the whole Overwatch story (being what really happened between him and Jack at Zurich), I kind of think there’s a discrepancy in point of views provided.” - my dissertation

Furthermore I have this whole thing where still to this day blizzard hasn’t given any good reason as to why Gabriel is in cahoots with Talon. There seems to be this giant double standard with how Blizzard frames Jack and how they frame Gabriel. I consider them two sides of the same coin, former military who have become disillusioned with the system seeking justice for the wrongs done upon them except Jack is a vigilante and Gabriel is… a terrorist again for no explainable reason (to keep me from making this tangent any longer I cannot impart how poorly blizzard has explained how Gabriel went from assassinating former the former Talon leader to working directly with/for Talon)

This has been an ongoing problem from the beginning, Code of Violence just made a lot of things worse as it is in general a bad take (and poorly received) as well as making the timeline more impossible

I hope this explained at least a little bit for you, again apologies for how long the post is (as you can see I’m a little neurotic about the whole thing)

If you have any more questions I am more than happy to chat (you can ask or dm me)

[vampire-sugar]

Reading QOTD post! I’ve only got two chapters left to finish this thing… the story has picked back up again and I’ll probably finish today but had some things I wanted to post about. In sum it’s gotten interesting again but also Anne says some very wild things about the global south that takes me out of the story.

Thoughts and spoilers under the cut.

Cw: mentions of rape

Finished the story of the twins conclusion chapter…

The story picked back up again!! Khayman keeps proving himself a horrible character!! And Anne should never write about non-Western countries ever!! Let the book speak for itself…

Quotes that made me write ??? in the margins:

Lestat, reading the mind of one of the men he’s about to kill.

“And a savage hatred of the women rose out of him, replete with images of rape and retribution that made me smile, and yet I understood. Rather completely I understood. So easy to feel that contempt for them, to be outraged that they had dared to become the enemy, (…) they, the women!”

Khayman when the King and Queen are getting attacked by villagers + spirits, who at this point supposedly hates them for making him rape the twins:

“It was Khayman, loyal steward to the King and Queen, who snatched up a torch and went to the aid of his master and mistress.”

Lestat, about the indigenous Haitians meeting European colonizers:

“Not a single blood descendant remains of those peaceful beings who had breathed this balmy air, (…), and thought their visitors gods perhaps, who could not but return their kindness.”

Lestat, talking about how Akasha would need the help of other vamps to fulfill her vision:

“How can you begin without them? I mean really begin, not with these backward villages, I mean in the cities where the people will fight.”

And again:

“…those poor villages we’ve conquered, they are the same as they’ve been for thousands of years.”

Those poor villages are hopeless and unimportant, got it, thanks Lestat/Anne.

Maharet talking about Mekare being in South America:

“Centuries perhaps before man had penetrated the southern reaches of the jungle continent, Mekare had come ashore there (…). How long had she wandered among birds and beasts before she’d seen a human face? Had it been centuries, or millennia, this inconceivable isolation? Or had she found mortals at once to comfort her, or run from her in terror?”

Included that last part in the quote bc it’s as if Maharet hadn’t just said that first part of how, according to her, South America was uninhabited for centuries after the time of the twins.

Anyway, I did like the part where Maharet tells them all about The Great Family, and all the vamps are moved. It is moving, to see that after all the Twins and their people have been through, their family survived. (Let us forget about the marrying within the families part).

The Story of the Twins Conclusion chapter ends with Lestat arriving at the house, meaning that the Queen is probably also there.

They are going to try and reason with the Queen to convince her that what she’s doing is bad or whatever (which obviously it is, she’s bringing more death and destruction to places already riddled with it in order to create an empire of her own) in a way that Lestat was unable to articulate. Obviously it is clear at this point that she doesn’t actually care about ridding the world of oppression etc but I don’t like how the “moral of the story” for lack of better term is going to be like “this is why we should not interfere with human problems” or what Lestat pretty much said already, that the poor and war torn countries have always been that way and there’s nothing to do to change it, it’s just how the world works. When actually what Akasha says is so true —>

Lestat thinks that all the tragedies that Haiti has faced is “their destiny; their world; they who are human”. And Akasha replies:

“And what are we? Are we useless? How do we justify what we are! How do we stand back and watch what we are unwilling to alter?”

But Akasha is evil and a liar so… I doubt there will be a VC character who thinks this and actually believes it unfortunately…

Anyway, very excited to be done with this one and move on to the next. I am so determined to get to at least TVA before May 12th but given the pace at which I have read this book… i might be delusional lol.

Bonus prediction:

This might be like obvious at this point but I think the way they are going to kill Akasha without killing themselves is by having Amel transfer to Lestat. Is this why he’s like for real called the prince later? Probably.



[and-then-there-were-n0ne]

I’m always sensitive to the ways internet culture pressures people to adopt certain performances of how to be a person. And it feels like the most aggressive of these pressures are about how to be a modern woman.

For example, there’s a well-meaning but casually destructive trend that’s prevalent on Instagram. These memes idealize a state of impossible self-regard in women, an unachievable narcissism that’s justified through a garbled kind of feminist empowerment. You are not merely to be a healthy and functional adult who rises above the depredations of everyday sexism. You have to be some sort of Amazon warrior queen mystic who “manifests” what she wants through sheer force of will. It’s not hard to see where such impulses might come from. Women are systematically robbed of confidence in essentially every human culture, unless it’s in the specific arena of physical attractiveness or motherhood. I don’t know how you’d go about denying that. [...]

Unfortunately, the way that meme culture has responded has been to produce images like the one at the top.

There’s an endorsement of absolutely deranged self-confidence, an impossible level of self-belief that I imagine is actually only achievable while high on PCP. The meme I’ve included is in fact a pretty tame example of the genre. The idea seems to be that because women often lack confidence for bullshit reasons, we should convince women to try and pump themselves up with confidence like a child overfilling a balloon. Ideas common to these memes include that you don’t care about what anyone thinks (you do and should care), and that normal emotions are beneath you (they’re not). The problems in your life, no matter how mundane, are all the product of sexism or haters or sexist haters, and there is no such thing as a legitimate conflict between two sincere people who both have defensible desires. Anything that obstructs your goals, including people with their own autonomy, is merely an obstacle to be stepped over without a second thought. The standards of self-love here are so lofty that they seem just as unreachable as all of the other social standards that woman can’t possibly meet.

I find the attempts to embody this trend pretty sad. You may get a pretty standard picture on a woman’s Instagram, completely innocuous, and the caption will be like “watch out bitches, I’m finally ascending to my final form.” It’s all a little… strange.

Sadder still, this stuff comingles with the batshit generalist mysticism that is so common on social media today. Horoscope stuff, obviously, but also Tarot and numerology and (let me calculate the necessary number of quotation marks) “““““““energy”””””””. The previously-mentioned notion of “manifestation” has endured as a zombie grift 15 years after the publication of the book that popularized it, The Secret. Manifestation or “the Law of Attraction” tells people that everything they get or don’t is the product of their desires and intentions, so stop complaining about your leukemia, thanks. How this fits alongside the Zodiac stuff, which asserts the exact opposite of you being solely in charge of the events of your life, is unclear. One way or another you end up with an incomprehensible set of beliefs about the world that are both exacting (if you don’t tend to your energy you deserve what you get) and opaque (who could actually follow all this shit?). As an atheist this concerns me. As a feminist it offends me: apparently now women need literal magic to escape oppression. For whatever reason, the popular conception of the paths to women’s liberation just gets more convoluted and inscrutable over time.

I don’t know, to me being a badass bitch doesn’t seem fun. It seems alienating and tiresome. Also I’m so sick of the constant modern insistence that we love ourselves. Stop telling me to love myself all the time. Mind your business.

Here’s what I suspect: mentally healthy people, if they still exist, aren’t healthy because of the constant presence of positive feelings of self. They are healthy because of the habitual absence of any feelings of self at all. (I guarantee you this is already a thing in psychology or some 19th century German philosophy but it’s proving stubbornly resistant to my Googling.) Where we’ve gone wrong as a civilization in terms of understanding confidence is in thinking of it as a presence, as an emotion. But I think what we perceive as confidence is simply not constantly thinking about yourself and your value. That’s more real and sustainable to me than thinking about yourself all the time and consistently feeling good about what you find. Unfortunately it seems like not thinking about yourself is what many modern people find hardest of all.

Bad folk wisdom about confidence is all over our culture. [...] Whatever the case…. I am not a woman and I have no idea what it’s like to experience the endless swings in society’s perception of not just What Women Need to Be Now but also Why Women Need to Reject What Society Thinks Women Need to Be Now. I don’t want to condescend, nor do I want to do the Good Male Ally routine. I just want to say as a typical dude that it’s not that men don’t feel much pressure to conform to gender stereotypes. We do. It’s that we don’t have to deal with the meta layers women seem to have to navigate, the sense that you can’t just resist societal pressures to act according to gender expectations but rather have to swing wildly between one conception of femininity to another, endlessly made to worry that you’re doing it wrong as you try to shake off one bogus caricature of your gender while leaping to another. [...]

There was a version of this post that included a bunch of the weird empowerment/yoga/girlboss/mysticism/juice cleanse memes I’m talking about and made fun of them. But I realized pretty quickly that it would be a shitty thing to publish. The women who are making and sharing those memes are just trying to navigate a bewildering array of choices about how to exist in a sexist world, and if they’ve arrived at a cartoonish version it’s only because all the more mundane approaches seem to have failed. It’s certainly possible that I overemphasize meme culture and that it’s all ephemera that nobody takes that seriously. But I suspect not. Memes are a language of the youth, and it appears that the youth are facing the same old challenge of forces that pressure women to be everything and nothing all at once.

[alex-rambles]

I remember seeing that you stated that yandere Bill would punish and break the reader through any means necessary but i was wondering if you could make headcanons on like what would happen if the reader simply refused to break despite the how awful his torture gets and bill soon comes to realize the reason why he’s not able to break us is because we've already been broken by previous abuse and trauma. Like it reminds me of old man mcguckin(idk if thats how you spell it) saying "You can’t break whats already broken." And the reader is already too traumatized and ‘ruined’ by their past that his methods and torture simply doesn’t work on them.

Also a little extra but I was hoping you could also include the reader being dead set on never loving Bill and they often bring up what a awful person(or dorito or whatever) he is and they often say stuff that really hits him deep. They refuse to love him and submit to him and even say stuff like “You know, if you were actually a good person and actually cared about me I may have liked you.” “You don’t hurt the people you love.” “if you truly loved me you wouldn’t be hurting me like this.” “You’re so pathetic. You claim you love me but your actions speak otherwise. Are you that pathetic that you have to resort to violence in hopes that you’ll get someone to actually love someone like you?” “How would you feel if someone repeatedly put you through hell and in the end they expected you to just love them despite their awful abuse? Hmmmm?” “If you truly loved me you would be protecting me from harm but instead you’re the one causing it. If you TRULY cared about me you would be hurt by the thought alone of me being in pain. But here you are abusing me with no hesitation or any empathy. That is not love and that is why I’ll never willingly love you.” I’ll never love you because it’s obvious you don’t love me.” stuff like that

This is pretty specific so I’m sorry if it’s difficult but if you do write this TYSMMMM 💖💖💖💖

Nah bro (or sis or pal) I gotchu

TW for yandere Bill and trauma mentions

-It irks him to no end initially

-He needs your submission and needs to see you fall, he needs-

-No, he WANTS

-He is conflating wants and needs

-And you verbally stab him every time he sees you

-"How could I love you when your idea of love is horrific sadism?"

-"Why would I submit to abuse and mistreatment? I'm not making the mistake again! "

-Again

-Who was the first time? He presses for details

-And gives them an awful, awful death

-Because they can't hurt you

-And Bill isn't hurting you, he's... teaching

-He's displaying possibly worse behavior, but in his own twisted minds he sees his behavior as JUSTIFIED

-He tries harder to break you

-Failing. Failing. Because you're already broken

-This could end in one of two ways

-The more likely option is unfortunately that he kills you out of sheer frustration, then regrets it for the rest of his (almost over because teehee weirdmaggedon 3) life, because he killed someone else he loved because of his ego,pride, and selfishness

-Option two which is the more fantasy scenario, is him working on redeeming himself for you

[shiroselia]

Just because I’ve seen the discussion going around and whenever we talk about if SSO is “worth it at all” in any capacity the cost of it fucking always comes up, and while I obviously have opinions on the larger debate I don’t really care atm to comment on it, but I Will say something about how people seem to think SSO is uniquely utterly completely fucking ridiculously expensive compared to, eh, whatever it is we’re comparing it to actually I’m not entirely sure, but TLDR is:

It isn’t.

SSO is not uniquely expensive. It isn’t even like ridiculously priced either for that matter. And let’s also remember that what is “worth it” and “priced fairly” is incredibly fucking subjective and in a society where costs wildly vary depending on where you’re looking and from who you’re buying, there really is no such thing as a “true fair price” because even though there is “objective” ways to value things, they are usually never followed because that’s not how to capitalism like a true capitalist. And that goes no matter the industry.

But here’s the thing. Video games cost. This has always been the case. Every video game is expensive to some degree to someone. And as I said, expensive is incredibly subjective and contextual, but considering that around 60€ is standard for most games these days (especially if they have the company attachment to “justify” that price), SSO isn’t unique in its pricing. It’s average as hell. “But Manda!” you say “Aren’t every other 60€ or above game made by way better game companies like Nintendo?!” Well. (Actually no but that’s a whole other tangent) That’s partly brand attachment, not quality assurance. See for example the Switch era Pokémon games, that all cost Atleast 60€. They have gotten their quality justifiably dragged through the dirt ever since the Switch started having Pokémon games, and Yet people buy them even though they’re an absolute disgrace of a game development mess to anyone who cares to research that. And yet people buy them. Because it’s a Nintendo game (brand recognition) and a Pokémon game (brand recognition). And also because some people geuinely do not think they’re bad. Even tho they “objectively” fucking suck ass. Yet that’s considered a justifiable price and people buy it. So just because something is priced a certain way doesn’t mean it reflects its quality. Especially not if you can get away with convincing people you’re worth that price for other reasons. So at the Very fucking least it’s not an SSE-made strategy, it’s just capitalism.

Second of all, SSO is an MMO. And anyone who knows anything about MMOs the genre know that SSO is both incredibly unique and also like. hella standard with this. Because here’s the thing. SSE are losing themselves money. And I’ve said this before because it’s true, and I’m literally a case example of that myself. So here’s the thing, MMOs usually work on a subscription payment, that’s standard. You buy a subscription and pay monthly (it’s usually monthly) and you pay a smaller (usually) sum every month. SSO has this too, but where SSO is unique (as in non-standard, not alone) is that they a) have more than just a monthly subscription and b) allow a single purchase subscription. This is what is formally known as “flexible payment options” but really it’s just “When do you wanna pay and for how much?”. But here’s the kicker, this is why you can’t really go “SSO is expensive because of lifetime” because if you’re planning on investing in SSO fulltime then you’re really just buying any other game. And also, Not Everyone Pays For Lifetime. As I said 60€ is average as fuck. But you have Options. You Can pay like. Idonno exactly how much but like 11€ for a month if that’s better. But it’s not worth it in the end, longterm. It’s probably better if you don’t have the funds to make singular high-investment purchases, which some don’t, and for them that’s more worth it. But as I said, it’s more expensive in the long run, and that’s why SSE even Allowing us to buy lifetime is a) a good thing for consumers b) terrible for them. It loses them MAD money. Myself as an example: I’ve played SSO since 2011, I bought lifetime in the summer of 2012. I’m still playing 11 years later. And I haven’t payed a single subscription ever since. My lifetime cost SSE the equivalent of 6 monthly subscriptions. I’ve lost them like. over 100 monthly payments since?? So basically what I’m saying is that for an MMO SSO is actually pretty cheap, especially considering that there’s people who have invested the same amount I’ve invested in SSO in other games, and spent Way more. But I’m not saying SSO is cheap, because a single 60€ purchase *is* too much for some people, but it isn’t uniquely so and there’s no such thing as a real objective not worth it, that’s a personal opinion, not fact.

Really I’m just saying that if you’re gonna use SSO’s price against it you should really be considering why you think that’s a Unique Bad SSO Thing, and also what else you’re willing to shill out for in the same price range. Especially if you’re an older player with a few years on your resume.

[gaslightgirlsummer]

i just saw a tiktok with people defending j*s verstappen in the comments, justifying his abuse with max winning the wdcs. now, i don’t care if you love max or hate max or anything in between. you’re entitled to your own opinion. but no matter where you stand, all of this is fucked up. now, i’m going to go on a little rant here with references to some personal experiences, cw for references to child abuse, so don’t read further if you don’t want to

between the media painting jos’ abuse as “tough love”, fans defending jos because max won the championship, and that part of the GQ interview where max is desperately trying to prove to the journalist that he was not abused, i’m so sick of shit like this. these excuses, this false narrative, this is why child abuse still gets a pass in sports and life in general, why children can’t come to terms with the fact that they were in fact abused. i’m so tired of justifying child abuse time and time again through the children’s success later in life, because the abuse allegedly made them tougher, more independent or more ambitious or whatever the hell the reasoning is. i don’t care. it’s never going to be justified i come from a family that had unhealthily high academic expectations for me my entire life and zero tolerance for not meeting them. only now am i starting to truly accept that i’ve been verbally and emotionally abused by my mother for most of my life, because only now i have the people around me to help and the language to be able to recognise and name signs of that abuse. i look at the situation with max and jos and i can see clear my situation in a mirror. my mother was, thankfully, never physically abusive, but when i see max mention things he struggled with and jos rolling his eyes, when i hear max trying to defend his actions because “it helped him build character”, when i see people saying jos’ behaviour was fine, actually, because thanks to him max has a wdc, it hurts. it hurts because there i see my mother rolling her eyes and ignoring me when i tell her i’m too ill and tired to go to school, i hear myself defending my mother saying i have a strong ethic now thanks to her, i see people saying that if it weren’t for how my mother raised me i wouldn’t be even half successful as i am now. things like this are why it took me so long to acknowledge what was going on. and it’s still not easy. and it’s not just me. it’s so invalidating and i can guarantee that hundreds, thousands of children and now-adults who have gone through abuse feel like this too. how people approach child abuse that has been made so public and so general-knowledge speaks volumes of how child abuse is approached in everyday life. and people need to fucking do better. everyone needs to do better, stop justifying child abuse, stop defending abusers, start creating environments where people can heal from their abuse and fee themselves of their abusers. i don’t ask for much. just to be decent people with some empathy, who care more about a person’s health than their success. i still struggle with doing that for myself, even on good days, but i try to do it for others. and if that means repeating all of this over and over again whenever i see jos verstappen’s face, i will. max deserves better than this, i deserve better than this. we all deserve better. 

[hopper-wheeler]

every season el goes on a journey of self discovery away from mike and learns new important things about herself and the world and then she comes back to mike and they still love each other so much and every season people say “el needs to be her own person and go on a journey of self discovery away from mike to learn new important things about herself and the world!!!!!” like y’all it’s been four seasons of her doing exactly that. and mike and el just always love each other even more afterwards and have an even deeper connection each time. when will these people realize it’s okay to just not like a ship you don’t have to make up faux-feminist reasons to act like it’s morally wrong or whatever. you can just. dislike it lol

“I hate mileven bc I care about el! all she cares about is mike!! she’s solely dependent on him!!!” woah wild how they missed so many of el’s plot lines and character arcs while they were so busy “caring” about her

(sorry for dumping this in your inbox lol I just wanted to get it out there to someone who probably gets it, I hope you have a good day!)

don't be sorry, it's totally okay to vent here! and i do get your frustration all too well.

one of the things that bugs me the most about the hate mileven gets, aside from it being wholy underserved imo, is the way people keep trying to find reasons why it's problematic or badly written to justify their dislike. it's okay to just not vibe with a character/relationship. that's fine. it's actually a lot more respectable than whatever this is.

but people would really rather be annoying and waste their time on something they don't even like just to try and come out on top. as if instead of not shipping a couple of 15-year-olds they're actually standing up for women everywhere or something.

which is really funny when the woke takes these people tend to come up with are actually some of the most misogynistic, ableist takes i've ever seen.

"el needs to be her own person."

so women can't be in a relationship and be in love with someone and still be their own person.

"she's too dependent on mike, she needs him too much."

so women wanting support from the people they love makes them dependent and therefore weak.

"el doesn't even have any real world experience. she can't even talk properly and doesn't even know what clothes she likes. she shouldn't be in a romantic relationship. and it's weird that mike likes her. seems predatory idk."

so anyone who's been through terrible abuse and struggles because of that, has a difficulty with speech and understanding social cues, and/or is still developing a sense of identity shouldn't be allowed to make their own decisions or be in a loving relationship. and it's weird for someone else to take a romantic interest in them unless they're taking advantage in some way because no way would anyone just... love them for who they are.

great. that's actually very gross of you.

and don't even get me started on the canon erasure. it's like 90% of people didn't even watch this show. i'm tired of people claiming mileven needs to be given breathing room when they're the only couple to have been separated in some way every season. you can say whatever you want about st, but one thing the show has done since day 1 is give el, the character, plenty of agency. el is not stuck in hawkins. she's not stuck with mike. she chose that. she chose her family and we saw her do that, every step of the way.

so yeah anyone who says "i love el but mileven..." is full of shit. if you actually loved el you'd respect her choices and want her to have the people she loves by her side, supporting her.

[69dias]

hi i hope you’re doing well ! can you write something about what happens to fratboy jk and oc after he says ily😭

hi my love!!! here’s your little Drabble <3 I honestly had zero idea where to take that one so thank u for giving me a reason to think abt it 😭🤞🏽

warnings: nothing much . mentions of alcohol/alcoholism and sex !! poor jk :(

wc: 1k

the thing about jeon jungkook is that he’s sloppy when he’s drunk. a spitting image of his father, even, but he doesn’t like to think about that too much. he says things that he shouldn’t, admits things that he pushes to the back of his brain when he’s sober, and is just incohesive and messy; he’s a messed up man, and alcohol intensifies that and he’s learned that you intensify that, if the way he acts around you is any indication of such.

the thing about you, is that you know of jungkook’s drunken stupors incredibly well. the arrangement you’ve found yourselves in has lasted a while, and while most of the nights you’ve shared have consisted of plain sex, ended with your lipstick prints on whatever surface he chose that day, some of them don’t ever make it that far. but occasionally, frat drinks would be a bit too much and he’d just end his nights curled up in your lap, lips a bit swollen from making out, throat a bit dry from talking to you.

and he’d say things drunk that would leave you in a daze — talk about his family and his friends and how he regrets being in a fraternity sometimes — he’d let you run your fingers through his hair and he’d laugh into your chaste kisses and he’d be different. he’d cry at time, spill his heart out and forget about it (the vodka cure) and he’d drink some more the next week to do it again.

which is what has you doubting him, has you slipping out of his room with nothing but the remnants of your dignity and a hoodie from the depths of his closet that you don’t plan on returning ever again. in fact, you don’t think you plan on speaking to him ever again because he really did not have the right to tell you that; didn’t have the right to spring his feelings onto you and falling asleep, rendering you unable to confirm whether or not there was even a semblance of truthfulness in what he had to say.

and it’s a bit hard to convince yourself that he actually meant it, but the days he’d drunkenly spoken to you on the same bed he’s currently passed out on come to mind, and then it’s even harder to convince yourself that he didn’t mean it.

but at the end of the day, you don’t really have to care about the intentions he had, because you don’t share these feelings. it’s why you walked out on him though you never do that, but you can’t understand why you feel a thrum of pain down to your abdomen that rests there uncomfortably every time you think of how he’d looked when he said it, or why you try to wash yourself off of the memories you have with him, albeit only a few are anything substantial. you don’t share these feelings, so it’s a wonder that you’re thinking so much about the way his voice had sounded, a bit hoarse from the moaning and all the alcohol, but still sweet; sticky, saccharine, sweet that still clings to your body when you’re in bed.

at the end of the day, you don’t share these feelings but you miss his bed, and you miss him just a little more because he’d never let you leave without aftercare, even if you had to wait a while for him to wake up. and maybe you can attribute feeling his absence so deeply because you’re still far in headspace, but that cannot justify the itch in your feelings to text him the next morning, to apologize, to explain yourself.

it was unfair, he shouldn’t have told you, he kept you in the dark for god knows how long, and he’s going to be so confused when he wakes up, but you don’t love him.

/

jungkook doesn’t remember what he said, but he can only figure, through the headache that has now settled deep in the crevices of his skull affirms that it could not have been good. his head throbs with every movement he makes, and it feels like it’s a literal weight on top of his shoulders that he cannot loosen his grip on, and though he’d like to blame it all on the copious amounts of alcohol, he can’t help but wonder if it’s his body’s way of telling him how badly he’s fucked up.

but for the life of him, he cannot remember what he said.

he recalls faintly, the look on your face, and how it’d contorted into one of disbelief with just a tinge of pleasure from the thrums of your orgasm just running through you and fuck, if he remembers the nuances of every featyre of your face, he should be able to remember what he said but he just… can’t. he can’t even force himself to, and he thinks it’s a bit pathetic that this is his fate; racking his brain and trying to piece together what he could’ve possibly told the girl he loves —

love.

that’s it.

he told you he loves you, and the regret settles in his mouth like warm whiskey and it has his stomach churning with something that he cannot attribute to his hangover.

he told you he loves you and he wonders why he does; why he came to that wretched conclusion even if all he ever had with you were drunken nights, some of which he can’t even recall correctly, wonders why he feels so safe with you, why he wanted to see your face so badly last night, and why he wants to call you right now.

he told you he loves you, and he should never fuck someone — you — missionary again, because this was a mistake, and as he runs his fingers through his unkempt hair, he wishes he would’ve kept it to himself because you left. and that can only mean that you heard, and that you don’t love him back.

the thing about jeon jungkook is that he needs to stop getting drunk.