#i think the big part isn't necessarily that im able to do things its more

[nemesis-is-my-middle-name]

I think the bonds making both parties stronger/smarter is really cool! A mutual benefit.

I think that its more a neuteral magic thats not a specific branch. I mean branches have a trunk a trunk has roots. I think its more of a unrefined clunky trunk type of magic than the branches are bc its a linking of souls a linking of magics which reach beyond their branch. Im thinking bonding with creatures has been around for a WHILE I mean the solacion ruins are a thing. 'Life touches Life to Create Something New and Alive' and That predates the clans I think. So bonds might predate the life manipulation magic branch or something.

I do think the life manipulation mages do it more tho! Its just a tendency and they form them better (I think it should be VERY hard to unconsentually do a bond like that, its is a matter of Souls after all. maybe it requires some form of divine, maybe for mortals to do it they need a divine instrument of some sort *looks at the orbs the clans have guarded for years that Irida has access to*) Tho a life manipulation mage could Absolutely block someones magic that sounds cool and its fitting but poor Ingo.

Wait if Ingo has his memories lost and Magic blocked can he summon his friends!! DOES CHANDELURE (Which might be a pun name or something idk) COME WITH HIM? IS SHE STUCK IN HIS TATOO?? WHAT ABOUT HIS OTHER FRIENDS?? NOOO THAT MAKES ME VERY SAD!!

oh i really like the idea that these bonds are like, a primal thing, magic agnostic, similarly to akari's powers. i do feel like this veers towards making pokemon a central part of the world again but i'm not actually averse to it in this way? since like, the wardens are gonna be here no matter what lol so bonding with animal companions is gonna Have to be here as a thing no matter what. (also this suggests to me that akari should have some sort of special familiar. creation starters v2?)

oooooh also at the idea that it's a specifically divine thing. which for the draconids would probably be via meteorite or mega stones? and would mean it could only be done by the lorekeeper and other high-ranking individuals, which is very fitting for their societal structure and the control they have over the swordguards. meanwhile for the clans it would be irida and adaman. it fits really well! also Yikes at the maybe-implication that somebody could steal the adamant/lustrous and use them to force a soulbond.

re: ingo's companions... hmm. i'm not really sure if the twins would even have the full teams that they have in canon, in this world? if soulbonding is such a special divine thing, it feels like maybe they would only have their aces, or something. + the fact that they can fight primarily with their own magic & so a big group of familiars isn't necessarily needed. orrr maybe they have pokemon companions, but only chandelure and eelektross are properly soulbound? with the rest being support/companions that help them with whatever their job is, but not to the same degree of intensity as a soulbond is. which i guess answers the second question: at most ingo would have access to chandelure, he'd have absolutely no way to contact the rest.

...hmmm... but then you've also got the fact that chandelure is sort of a partner to both ingo and emmet in their subway teams, so i sort of lean towards the idea that she's still with emmet, and can maybe sense her soulbond's location, but can't reach him. so then emmet's stuck deciding between going on a road trip with chandelure to try and chase him down, or staying and trying to actually do their jobs. maybe he sends chandelure by herself or with another companion to find him, bc he can't leave himself.

...alternately to all of this: whatever happened to ingo also snapped the soulbond he had with all his companions, which is also why irida didn't find any of them when she did her own warden-noble bonding on him. which would also mean that not only would they not really be able to track ingo, emmet and chandelure wouldn't even know if he was stil alive. what if the soulbond broke because he died?

[stagefoureddiediaz]

damn —has she really only been in 18 episodes? i know it’s a lot, but it somehow feels like so little in the long run of things.

like —just wow.

Okay but love, i literally had to delete and tumble and have my sister lock my laptop in my room, cause the episode ended up coming out super late where i live and i had to do everything in me to avoid spoilers.

your little nest in the washroom was so super adorable.

and thank you for always taking your time with our asks; you’re literally so sweet and it makes me so happy.

i come bearing questions, though. i know your costume meta will be out soon, but im impatient. sue.

May’s outfit.

MAY’S OUTFIT.

it was SOO cute. but i see blues have been important this season, so please, if you’d like. can you expand on that for me? and may’s necklace as well. she’s usually wearing it, I think. it’s interesting to me, because it hinges on being a choker.

does it lend to her maybe feeling she has a noose wrapped around her in the sense of time for uni is running out? maybe she’s still not sure whether she really wants to?

i know nothing about costume theory, so this is all just complete brain rot and speculation.

but if you’d be kind enough to indulge me.

thanking you in advance.

-gabi.

HI Gabi!!!

Good to have you in my inbox! Good work on managing to avoid the spoilers - you have far more restraint than I do - hence the setting myself up in the hotel bathroom - which I 'm glad brought people amusement in the build up to the episode!

I'm nearly always happy to take time and give people full answers to any asks I get - I am humbled that people actually want to seek out my input or opinion on things and I really do enjoy being able to channel my ASD and ADHD into something that feels productive! I might struggle to keep up once I go back to work at the beginning of June, but we'll see how we go!

Mays outfit was divine - I adore nearly everything they've been putting May in this season. but that blue on her skin tone was just perfect it made her glow

Blue has very much been an important colour this season so seeing May in such a bright blue and with the orange in her skirt as well - very interesting!

The blue May is wearing is all about optimism (think blue sky thinking) loyalty and calmness, its a happy shade and really speaks of May feeling comfortable in her decision to go to university. I don't want to go into too much more detail here as it will be in my meta post, but the actual costume itself - the long sleeves and high neckline is sensible and secure - again suggesting May is happy with her decision to go to university.

Her necklaces are a combination of ones she wears regularly and one we've seen a couple of times this season. the shorter one is a borderline choker you're right, but its not constrictive and isn't an obvious chain (like the one Taylor wore in 5x16) to me its suggestive of that fine we tread when growing up - its about learning to be an adult whilst at the same time being aware of your youth and inexperience - knowing there will be bumps in the road (the little balls on the necklace)but forging ahead anyway. So yes her decision to go to university will play a part in that - not necessarily because she feels like she's choking or running out of time but because it is a big change in her life and the unknown is a scary place to be.

The second necklace is like a shield boss (the central bit in the middle of a shield) I will go in to this in my meta a bit more because I think its interesting - especially in relation to the scenes we see it in!

I will be going in to it in more detail in my meta, but it might take me a couple more days than usual, due to my being on holiday at the moment so my meta writing time is a little compromised so hang tight!!

Hopefully this quenches your costume thirst for a few days until I can get my met finished!

[moon-cycling]

this week i have needed sleep and time to myself more than anything. i have gotten to bed early and gotten like the recommended 7-8 hours of sleep each night. and rested a lot, like not done anything too strenuous besides cooking - which is arguably relaxing and good for your body because homemade meals... duh. but i am exhausted. and many things are going on. I had to have a breast exam this week that was energetically depleting. i had to take anxiety meds and hold back tears as i tried to get all of the answers i wanted from the doctor. that was hard but happy in the end. i am missing my boyfriend more than ever. its never been easy to be apart, and we have always missed each other, but now it feels like i am missing such a huge happy part of my life that its killing me. and maybe that's just the comparison of how life is together to how i feel alone. which clearly isn't amazing because i am so so tired. i am working more than i have in the last year. i had so many jobs in 20202021ish and even when i finally cut back on work, my life outside of work did not stop and i was always interacting with other people. because that gives my life so much meaning. but i had a realization that i was not looking at myself as equally wonderful to connect with. and now i do really, but i do struggle with just setting aside the time, especially when i feel like i am not being fully present for struggling loved ones at the moment. and no one is necessarily making me feel like that, but it is an insecurity of mine. i have sooo many people in my life and if i was constantly thinking about everyone (which is how i lived my life until maybe my birthday this year) i would have negative time for sleep and my own body.

so this morning i had a feeling i should cut back on my hours. i am really trying to work a lot and get a lot of money, but it is severely taking time away from myself. when i am not working a "full" schedule, i get anxiety that i am not working enough and that my life has no purpose without the services i can provide to others. when i am working too much, i feel myself wanting to check out more and just get through the week, focus on sleeping eating and resting. which i romanticized at first to get through it like wow you can just focus on your needs like a little baby in order to make money and be comfortable. but now....baby needs a nap big time. baby will get sick and not be able to work anyways if i don't listen to my body. so today i felt like i needed to listen to my body and not participate in a few hours of work. while i do want money, it is a small amount comparatively and i felt like getting rest was more important today so that my body felt better, always feels like it is flirting with illness this time of year. i felt so guilty cancelling these three hours of work, going back and forth about it in my mind for so long. i couldn't quite put my finger on why but i just really felt like today i should stay home. and alas one of the children in my household i work in is actually sick and they were not going to tell me that. which i do not blame them for, i blame this country and its demands of mothers and parents and lack of support and lack of care of illness and all of that.

but im just so glad i listened to my body because nobody else can. and the families i work with because of the government we have, cannot provide me with the typical job benefits that most people i know with full schedule jobs enjoy. again, i do not blame them, but i do not think that i should be expected to have the same regulations as a salaried and benefitted job. i do not get sick or vacation time, so i just take it without pay when i need to. i try and let people know in advance if i just need personal time, but i am not going to let myself feel like a bad person because its not personal. i am not personally doing anything to these families and same to me. they would maybe expose me to a virus (like another did last week) because they feel they have no choice. they need the childcare that badly so that they can work and make money for their families. i am a person and i am in a family and i also need to take care of myself and my wellbeing and the health of those around me. there are maybe 5 people in america who wake up in a demanding full schedule job and are happy about it. i choose to have a more flexible job because then no job can take my autonomy away from me.

i also just naturally feel so drawn to domestic life, but not in a housewife kind of way. in a i-want-to-make-food-for-people-i-love-and-i-love-everyone-kind of way. i see the genuine importance in keeping spaces clean and healthy and spending time with people, and will not neglect those parts of my life for paid work. because it is work to cook and clean and emotionally tend to people.

i just cannot feel bad about taking time off because then i will be taking on the stress and demands of a system that over time i will not necessarily see the same benefits of. and that so many people wish they had the ability to be more flexible with. and living this kind of life brings on its own stresses and uncertainties that i have to figure out myself, because no one is figuring it out for me.

[cerullos]

this isn't really in line with the meme but what would a Good series eleven have been like? or how can series twelve turn it around/be better?

hm…………………………re: eleven, the only aspect of eleven’s personality i would change is his needless misogyny, because i don’t think that’s necessarily a “component” of eleven, so much as it is…moffat. and really this would be mostly solved by just eliminating all of the creepy, unsettling scenes where rory and the doctor are mutually possessive over amy or collude somehow in treating her like an object (e.g. vampires of venice when rory thanks the doctor for being needlessly cruel to amy and patronizing her like a child, or when eleven is supposedly only allowed to hug amy for a certain amount of time with rory’s permission lmao and don’t even get me started on the girl who waited). i wouldn’t change some of eleven’s worst tendencies (like his constant, prolonged lies–keeping the ring and rory’s existence from amy in S5, the doppelganger and mystery pregnancy fiasco in S6, etc.) or eleven’s selfishness in valuing amy at least in part for how much she blindly adores him, or even “never let him see the damage. and never, ever let him see you age” and all the kind of hideous implications that come with it. i don’t think eleven is…a good man, and i find that interesting, especially in relation to ten (although the 50th imo horribly wasted that dynamic, which had so much more to give). i like the basic concept of ten in his endless compassion, burdening himself with so much pain that the doctor regenerates into a man who is as equally as selfish as he is loving, who does his best to forget and bury his mistakes instead of acknowledging and atoning for them. 

my issue is literally just that amy isn’t treated as an equal of eleven’s! even putting aside the obvious power imbalance of amy idolizing eleven from childhood, their basic, everyday interactions are weighed so heavily against amy it’s almost painful to watch at times. one way to solve this would be to emphasize and acknowledge the flaws (eleven’s) i mentioned earlier. eleven’s selfishness is alluded to in episodes like the god complex, but always in a way that empathizes with him and absolves him, rather than highlighting amy’s perspective and the ways in which his selfish actions negatively effect her. even when eleven feels pain it isn’t the same as when, say, ten does because eleven always has a loophole…he’s always a hundred steps of everyone else (amy included).

i mean, look at pandorica opens/big bang…rory is furious (rightfully so, obviously) when eleven basically implies amy’s life doesn’t “matter” in the grand scheme of things, but we later find out he’s only saying this because he’s traveling from a future point in time when amy is already alive again and fine. even when he “dies” at the end of big bang, we later learn he knew all along that amy would be able to remember him back into existence. there are no stakes for eleven, he’s too absurdly smart for any to exist. one of the only times he faces consequences is when he loses amy permanently in angels take manhattan, and that’s telling enough in itself. 

compare this w/ clara who’s constantly given teachable moments with twelve even opportunities to outthink twelve! an episode like, say, flatline could never exist with eleven and amy, the dynamic as it is couldn’t support it…eleven beholden to amy, amy acting as undisputed leader. and i’m not saying that amy isn’t smart because she is, and there’s tangible proof of that–but not smarter than eleven–never, not even for a second. that’s the conceit of eleven as a character, untouchable god “the doctor in the tardis, next stop everywhere.” eleven doesn’t defer to amy because it would literally break his character to do so and that imo is the greatest failing of their dynamic. 

the other, obviously, is that amy isn’t given the means to fight back when eleven disrespects or belittles her…and this is just another side of the same coin. amy’s anger is deliberately framed as kind of…impotent. moffat likes the idea of amy as a “spitfire,” but when push comes to shove it’s always expected that she’ll fall into line when the doctor demands it. it’s played for laughs that amy ignores him and does as she pleases (and she does, when the two of them are on friendly terms–like in vincent and the doctor when eleven orders her not to follow) but in life-or-death moments when amy’s life is at stake, she isn’t even allowed to question the doctor’s authority. it’s supposed to be funny when the doctor tells amy to shut up when she says she’s afraid she’s going to die. if rory were to pull that on her, can you imagine how she would react? but moffat deliberately declaws amy around the doctor, and the implications of that are…really unsettling, if you would rather not just attribute it to virulently misogynistic writing (which it also is, of course). clara and twelve have big blowout fights and yet this is pretty starkly absent from eleven and amy’s relationship…she may snipe at him from time to time, but overwhelmingly amy is expected to roll her eyes and huff and storm off and listen. eleven is barely given reason to feel guilty on these occasions, let alone confront or regret his actions. because, again: eleven cannot be wrong. and a doctor that cannot be wrong…inherently has no need of a companion. i mean, think of what donna says to ten: "i think sometimes you need somebody to stop you.” how many times has amy been empowered to successfully “stop” eleven from doing anything, ever. 

the tl;dr on this is that amy needs so much more agency in their relationship than she was given (but what else is new, she needs more agency throughout her run in almost ever aspect of it). i think…there are elements of something really beautiful in their relationship–and amy does love him without qualifications, which is more than can be said of rory, obviously, even if it’s largely because of what eleven represents for her. i think there are moments where eleven regards amy with a kind of reverence, which we see similarly with twelve and clara later, and it’s…touching. if they had expanded on that thread, it might have grown into something that equaled amy’s childhood adoration of eleven–maybe into something that would prompt eleven to value amy’s input a little bit more than he ever seemed to in canon. there’s a lot there that’s good (the basic template is peter and wendy, and i could not possibly love that more if i tried), but the execution is…really poor, really deeply tainted by moffat’s misogyny and it favors eleven to a ridiculous extent. there’s always that sense of discomfort, like the whole relationship is skewed by how imbalanced it is and how frequently amy’s suffering is exploited to fuel eleven’s rage and grief despite the fact that he can’t seem to bring himself to even respect her as a person half the time.