#i'm going to help the people of this world with this powers

[flowergoddessblooms]

I stagger to the bathroom to reach the medicine cabinet. Ugh, this headache is almost worse than the time I had an aneurysm when I was 23. Can't believe it's been almost a decade since then.

As I try to prop myself up against the sink, my vision catches an uncanny flash of red. I whip my head to catch it, only to stumble and fall due to the sheer stupidity of what I think I saw. Obviously it couldn't be real. I must be asleep, dreaming one of those absolutely real dreams and I'll probably wake up any minute now.

But no.

The nightmare never ended.

I glance at myself in the mirror to confirm the monstrosity I thought I saw and, yep, right there are two jarringly red horns jutting out of my forehead. It was an odd feeling. Cautiously, I try to touch them. Coarse, almost like sandpaper grating on bones. They're lined with concentric circles going all the way down to the base and touching them feels like... touching a bone in my body?

The feeling is inexplicable, it's as though I mutated or evolved or just...dreamt a really bad dream. Yeah, it should be the third one. I mean, how am I supposed to go to work looking like this?! How am I supposed to go anywhere? Halloween was months ago and I don't think my boss would appreciate me "wearing" horns in the middle of May!

As if right on schedule, my phone buzzes. A reminder for a meeting I have with potential clients to close a big deal. But there's no time for that. I can't actually go out like this.

As I pace around, thinking about what excuse would not get me fired, it suddenly strikes me. If this is real, there's no way I'm the only one. Someone else out there must've woken up with... ugh, horns. Still feels weird to say it.

I turn on the little TV set in the corner of my room and...huh? The news reporter is panicking because she grew a pair of green horns. The live feed shows the City Square, people running astray. Eerily enough, not everyone has grown horns.

As I squint my eyes and scoot closer to the TV to figure out the chaos I notice a mother violently trying to reach her blue horned child, who is lost in the crowd. Just as she was about to grab his hand, his body falls limp and hits the ground with a thud. Even over the television, her wails are visceral and raged, only to get shot herself. Police swarmed the City Square, their rifles raised and movements chaotic. They did not hesitate. Blood flowed on the streets as bodies dropped, each passing minute worse than the one before.

Does that mean only a part of the population has been affected by this? Just as I was about to increase the TV volume, my head seared with pain, as though it would split open any minute and a thunderous voice bellowed, its origins unknown.

"Heed my words, mortals. Cleanse this wretched world of vermin unable to cast judgement, for sins so vile, even the mercy of the Lord shall not grant them life after life."

The second the voice stopped talking, my headache vanished. Petrified, I stared at the TV for anything that would help explain what was happening. The now horned news reporter rambled on, until she was shot by a nearby civillian. An elderly man, he rushed up to the camera, his eyes crazed, as he grinned unnaturally, grating his teeth, "These are the sinners, the Lord has arrived and given us the power to purge all evil! Hallelujah!"

The voice said to cleanse the world of pests who have sinned. Does that mean it's the people with the horns?

But why is it that, when I see the news, bodies and bodies of horned individuals drop dead without fighting back?

Are we the sinners? Or have we been sinned against?

You woke up this morning with a terrible headache, and discover you’ve grown horns while you’ve slept. Unbeknownst to you, this is just the beginning.

[the-modern-typewriter]

I think I saw that one of your fav authors is VE Schwab. I actually found your blog while I'm waiting for one of her books at the library. I love how you both do power dynamics and flow! I 💕 your blog!!!

I would love to see a possessive king who has to keep recovering a prince that's betrothed to him but keeps running.

Thanks for giving me my fix while I try to last the months long wait at the library! 😂

"You're clever enough to keep escaping despite all odds," the king murmured. "Why aren't you clever enough to realise that will never end where you want it to?"

The prince glared at him.

The king helped himself to another sip of tea, before he finally deigned to glance up from his breakfast table. Implacable. So seemingly genteel among the fine trays and silver, as if he were not a thing of avarice and dominion made flesh.

"Even should you make it all the way back to your kingdom," the king said, "they'll send you straight back. They gave you to me, remember? You are my betrothed by right."

"They don't know you. If they'd known who was truly asking-" The prince bit himself off, his fists curling.

The king hummed.

"And you think telling them of my true nature will spare you it. That they'd fight for you?"

"Of course they would."

"And would they fight for you like I would?"

The prince stared.

The king smiled, pleasantly, and slid a plate of hot bread rolls across the table towards him. An indication to sit.

The prince did not, though his legs felt jellied with the exhaustion of running. He said nothing.

"I'd fight for you like a holy war," the king said, voice too soft for such dark eyes. "Like laying siege to paradise. I'd fight for you in a thousand year campaign. I'd reduce your kingdom to a citadel of bones and ash before I let them keep you from me. I'd begrudge you no amount of bloodshed, no horror, because you are mine." His head tilted. "How would your former people fight for you?"

"Honourably," the prince snapped, mouth dry. "Kindly. I am their prince!"

"Perhaps." The king shrugged. "Or perhaps they'd begrudge. Resent the ordinary lives wasted and the livelihoods ruined by their pretty little princeling who thought he had the right to marry for love. As if he were just a man."

Bile burned up the prince's throat, at that.

"Merely something to think about," the king said.

"Maybe I won't go home then! But even five minutes away from this place, away from you, is a blessing."

The king did not seem offended or bothered by that, any more than he had the prince's glare or numerous defiances. It made the prince want to shake him until his teeth rattled.

"Do you not care that I do not love you?" the prince demanded. "That I do not wish to be yours?"

The pleasant smile flickered off the king's face for the very first time and what was left was terrible.

The prince took an automatic step back, though he did not consider himself a coward.

The king rose from his chair, rounding the table. The prince looked around at the guards but they were the king's guards, no matter their official job title, and they only stared ahead unmoving. No doubt, they would stare even if he started screaming. Crying. Pleading.

The prince backed up another step before forcing himself to hold his ground. His shoulders squared as the king came to a stop in front of him. He braced for - he wasn't sure what.

"I will say this once, and only once, my clever prince." The king stroked the backs of his knuckles gently down along the prince's jaw, nudging his gaze back when it tried to slide away. The prince's breath hitched. "If I did not care, I could keep you with broken legs in a straight jacket, blind and dumb and mute until I felt you'd learned your proper place here. I could marry you tomorrow without care for your own customs, rituals or comfort. Do you understand?"

The prince felt a little dizzy.

"There a worse fates in the world than being mine," the king said. "The sooner you understand that, the sooner you might make a home in this place that you are not so eager to run from."

"So I should thank you?" It came out hoarse.

"I do not expect you to thank me. I know who and what I asked for when I asked for you."

The king's hand dropped and, for the first time, the prince felt strangely bereft of its heat. Its grounding presence. He swallowed.

"Get some rest," the king said, his pleasant smile back, "if you will not join me for breakfast. You have had a difficult night, from what I've heard, and I'm sure your next attempt to flee this place will be no less gruelling. You'll need your strength, love."

The prince let himself be led back to his chambers in a daze.

[shapeshiftersvt]

A Transition

Okay. Deep breath. Here we go.

I started Shapeshifters when I was 28. It was the spring of 2014, we were at a Transgender Tipping Point, and I wanted a binder covered in scales. I had been trans and out for two years and I felt right. I felt queer. I felt like an alien: beastly, monstrous, fantastical. Powerful. I connected with other queer and trans people feeling similar ways. I wanted to give them my best feelings; I wanted them to feel what I felt when I put on my homemade blue-scaled binder.

Tomorrow I will turn 40. It's 2025, and putting on a binder feels more like armor. Like protection. Like: this is a container that holds who I am, still, always. Like: I am connected to my queer folk. I am connected to my found family and my greater community and to over twelve thousand people who we have clothed with binders just like these.

Shapeshifters has borne my partner and I through eleven years. We got married, moved to our dream town, bought a house, had a child. I have put everything into this enterprise and it has given me everything back. I am so grateful for this job and this career and this life.

And I'm ready to move on. I'm ready to begin a new career, to make a few large changes in my life for my own mental health. Somehow, by luck as much as hard work, this company grew out of the aether, and, honestly... it's outgrown me. I never really meant to run a business, or employ people, or manage a supply chain. It just sort of happened along the way. I've done my best with it, I've made it what it is. And I know that someone with a different kind of energy and organizational capacity and drive could make Shapeshifters into so much more.

So, this is my notice! I am selling Shapeshifters.

Not right away, and not to just anyone. I want to hand this company over to someone who will do right by it; who will keep it as this local, community-focused business known for customization, acessibility, and genuinely compassionate customer service.

We are the high-end tailored option for a highly niche market. We need someone who knows the field and can bring love to the work. Preferably someone who is near or can relocate to southern Vermont. We need someone who can manage a small team, who can approach every week as a new challenge, who can organize tasks and processes on multiple levels.

We have helped thousands upon thousands of people go out into the world as their authentic selves! It's wild. It's wonderful. It's fulfilling. And, sometimes, it's a lot of finicky detail work involving layers of spreadsheets, pattern math, hands-on sewing, and machine repair. Sometimes it's road trips to Pride festivals and sometimes it's filing taxes. All this too is part of the work.

If that's the kind of work you want to be doing, reach out to me. Shoot me an email at eli@shapeshifters.co with the subject line 'Biz Transition' and let's talk. Tell me about yourself and what you want and what you can do. I'm open to all the financing options. I would love to train the right person from scratch and seller-finance a long-term sale.

If you know someone who you think would be a good fit, please send them my way. We have relied upon word-of-mouth from the very beginning, and I suspect that's how we'll find our new showrunner going forward.

So. Do you want to run an established, successful business that pays trans people to make things for trans people?

Hit me up.

[pushspacetocontinue]

"Well, I suppose variety is the spice of life," Bill said, "But we'll have to see if we happen to spot one in the wild."

Bill had no idea how Erica was going to make that kind of distinction. They looked like regular people after all, but maybe Erica had some kind of method.

Russell couldn't help smile on hearing Lucien laugh. It was one of the best sounds in the world, especially right now.

"I should have done the same with Lewis when I had the chance," Simon said, "But I am just glad I am trying to build something back up with my other brothers before it could have been too late. I've not been appreciating them as much as I should have been."

"Ah, don't sweat it, Simon," Travis said, "It wasn't really easy to be honest. I think we were all a bit guilty of distancing each ourselves from each other."

But now that could change.

If Antonio had been around to hear Erica's comment, he might have just chuckled and made a joke about to stop making him feel old. Only his sisters could joke about that.

"Yeah, good idea," Travis said, "Sometimes you have to do questionable things if it means less problems for everyone in the long term."

He did pick up some of the books, just in case Rook might have found them useful or even fun to read. Russell looked over to where Lucien was gesturing, and after a moment, he realised just what he was getting, and took the crowbar in his hand once more. One of the things that had been used to make so many concoctions to hurt others. It had to go.

"Let's, let's do it," Russell said, giving Lucien a nod.

Bill still kept some tentacles around Rook even after they finished their ascent, just so Rook would know even if she lost her footing, he would catch her.

But then Rook's statement brought him out of his thoughts, and then he gave Bill a little nod.

"Go ahead, Rook," Bill said. It seemed that he knew that this was a time to be serious, "I'm all ears, and remember, it's okay to take your time if you need to."

It appeared that Antonio standing Frosty up and taking off the gas mask had allowed Leofric to also take a better look at the kid as well.

"I can smell that on him too," Leofric said, some mild sympathy in his voice, "Five really did see him as nothing more than some kind of chess pawn, and that is a good idea. We should take him somewhere safe to rest before we follow through with the promise I made to Erica. I can provide some extra concoctions as well, in case they might be necessary."

Antonio nodded, then reached over to gently take the gas mask off entirely.

"I think we can appreciate the scent as well," Antonio agreed. He frowned at Frosty's statement, "We can discuss that later. Right now, you need to get some rest. You will be looked after."

And if Frosty tried to refuse, Antonio had the thought that he could probably use his powers to convince Frosty that it was the best thing to do right now.

"Yes! And maybe a telemarketer too!"

Willow decided not to question how Erica planned to recognize such a person in the wild. It was always wise not to get in the way of her vengeful plots.

"Well, I must treasure the experiences of my older siblings." Willow replied, before adding, "Or that of a twin."

It was nice to hear Simon speak fondly of Truman. The brothers trying to get along was especially heartwarming, considering the horrid adults they had to live with while growing up. Willow hoped the future would keep looking up for all of them.

Her train of thought was disturbed by Lucien's laugh when he was hugged again. She really couldn't recall him ever being that happy. But with someone like Russell as a partner, it wasn't surprising.

"You are forgiven." Lucien replied softly, "Let's go commit some property damage."

"We could do that! I missed out on a lot of movies, so it shouldn't be hard to pick one." Erica smiled as the crane started sinking into the abyss, "Well, I guess we'll just have to find the keys. I really hope it wasn't in his pockets though."

"It wouldn't be such a loss. Red muscle cars are statically a sign of the early onset of midlife crisis." Willow noted, following after Erica.

"Does it mean we should repaint it before we let Antonio drive it?"

"We should do so regardless." Willow replied, "Then I will fabricate the necessary documents."

While this hideout wasn't as organized as the previous one, there was still enough equipment lying around to confirm that Five and his thugs had been camping out there for a while. Other than his car, his brewing kit had been left behind, along with a modest collection of books. Some tomes were rather old, while others were most recent editions.

Either way, none of it really caught Erica's attention, who was more fond of shiny things. Lucien, on the other hand, knew where to start from with his task.

"I just know where we should start from." he said, while pointing at the kit. That accursed brewery of horrors had to go.

Rook made sure to hold on tight as well as they ascended. Without the adrenaline and the heat of the fight keeping her distracted, she was suddenly awfully aware of how high up they were.

The task at hand was simple enough, though. So she felt like that was a good time for a chat. "Hey, Bill. There's something I'd like to talk about..."

Frosty stopped his pitiful escape when he heard voices around him. He let out an annoyed grunt when he was grabbed, but otherwise didn't have enough fight left in him to make himself a problem. Not when he couldn't even stand upright without the room spinning around him.

Veronica's eyes turned red and she immediately took note of the ice mage's paleness, along with his rather absent look. Frosty was awake, but he was likely experiencing a major case of brain fog. They'd have to be gentle with him. Even the slightest stress could aggravate his conditions.

"Well, he mainly needs to rest, but I'd rather keep an eye on him for a few hours. There is no telling how his body will recoil from Five's drugs and the draining." the ghost lady said, before spraying Frosty with a potion that vaguely smelled like rosemary and thyme, "This is just to make him safe to handle, in case the snake's poison has some delayed effects we don't know about."

Frosty only briefly raised his head for a moment, mumbling a complain before he finally found his words. "...not going home. They don't want me."

[yourcupbearer]

‧₊ 𐔌 Transplural Tips & Ideas <3 ˚｡⋆୨୧

You heard me, I'm gonna do what nobody's done before... and by that I mean plenty of people have done it before. But that's besides the point! <3 This post is a buuunch of tips about furthering your progression into plurality from start to finish, from a cisplural + cisDID! These are all just ideas though, and none of it is mandatory; you're still just as plural even if you don't do any of these things! <33

Note that this is a very, VERY long read, framed to help you further understand and form your system. It can also be used by cisplurals / severity-plurals! This post includes: general tips to encourage progress, how to recognize and help alters form, inspiration for fleshing out fragments, tips for creating your headspace, and more!

I. General Tips!

⊹˖ ⤑ Affirmations, affirmations, affirmations. It might not seem like it, but your mind can do a lot of things just with the power of suggestion, and the language you use affects you deeply!! No saying things like "I want to be a system" -- be more specific; "I want my headspace to be more fleshed out", "I want my sysmates to be more distinct", etc. This not only helps you get clear goals set that you can actually work towards, but it also helps to convince your brain that you're a system.

⊹˖ ⤑ Avoid negative language and fakeclaiming. Similarly to the above, you need to use affirmations that help convince your brain. Negative language tells your brain those negative thoughts; I go into a little detail about this more here, but essentially, don't use negative language when discussing your transition! Even if you're feeling like your transition is going too slowly, using sarcasm with positive language will still trick your brain that you're being positive. Think of every time you fakeclaim yourself or call yourself a singlet or whatnot as five steps back; in order to make up for doing it once, you have to do a whole lot more of affirming to make up for it! This is to say that it isn't impossible to transition if you're very negative, but you will see more progress faster if you try to avoid it.

⊹˖ ⤑ Find a plural community to help affirm you. There are plenty of discord servers and tumblr communities centered around plurality. Find one and introduce yourself as a system -- not a "questioning system", not a "transitioning system", but as a system. This will help you affirm your identity more, as people will see and treat you as a system, and you can still ask for tips regarding helping your system form!

⊹˖ ⤑ Do research into different forms of plurality, how they manifest, and how they form! Do research into various -genic types, and see which one feels right to you. And if multiple feel right, you can always have multiple, or have different ones for different alters! You can find plenty of resources into helping you understand and mimic various ways of system creation if you know what to search for; try looking into endogenic systems, western tulpamancy, median systems, and seeing what you think might work for you! However remember that your system is your own -- It’s okay if you don’t have clear switches, distinct voices, or a headspace that’s easy to visualize. Many systems are subtle, blurry, or co-conscious, and none of that makes you any less of a system!!

II. Headmate Formation!

⊹˖ ⤑ When you first start off, it might be easier to notice different alters based on when your headspace changes (your actual mood and behavior -- not the inner world!). Don't force them, but notice them. Start by paying attention: any thoughts that might seem out of the blue, sudden shifts in your emotion, any habits that feel unfamiliar... Try to ask yourself if this is you or someone else! This is true for all systems, not just transplurals; I do this a lot when fronting to check if I'm alone in front.

⊹˖ ⤑ Give these changes names! It doesn't have to be a permanent name, but recognize them as a different person (or at least a different facet of you, if you believe in the "parts of a whole" formation). Over time, try to flesh them out; triggers can be things that put you into that mindset, interests can be things that you often engage with during that mindset, things like that! These are fragments, but they can form into full alters over time.

⊹˖ ⤑ When you recognize that this is happening, log it! Personally I use SimplyPlural ("SP"), but you can also use Octo-con (although SP is far more common, octo is mostly used by antis). You can also track this in any notes apps, journals, etc, communicate with alters, keep track of alters, organize alters, and more! Both are compatible with the discord app PluralKit ("PK") too. Some systems use Tupperbox, but I prefer PluralKit personally since it can easily be synced with SimplyPlural. You can use SimplyPlural on both mobile and desktop! I'll also be making a different post full of my SimplyPlural organization for those who want to get extra fancy with it, however this is just up to personal preference

⊹˖ ⤑ Try to communicate with your sysmate. At first you might need to put on a "mask" of sorts to do so, to try to give them a voice, but over time this will come easier as they settle in and find their own identity. You can do this also by letting them communicate with others; let them sign off on posts or messages they send with a specific "proxy" (either their name or an emoji), let them create a separate sideblog on Tumblr, let them use their own PluralKit or Tupper bot -- all of these are fantastic ways to help find what makes them them!

III. Fleshing out Fragments!

⊹˖ ⤑ The next step, once you've started to recognize fragments / facets, is to look into different types of alters. There are some common alter types that pop up frequently (please note that most of these descriptions are based in what they do for your system, but this may not be true of all alters of these types; along with this, there are plenty more not listed):

A) "Littles", which are children, usually needing cared for. These alters usually have the job of holding feelings of childhood, be it good or bad, and seeking out care and attention. Some systems have many of these; some have very few, if any at all.

B) Nonhumans, which can be animals or monsters. They usually hold feelings of being dehumanized, be it by reclaiming it or holding those negative feelings associated with it.

C) Religious alters are very common as well, be it an introject with a religious source, or an alter who believes they are a deity, angel, priest, demon, etc. These usually form to either help guide the system with religious endeavors, hold opinions and trauma about religion, or express some other facet caused by religion.

D) Introjects, which you've probably heard of if you're reading this. They can be from fictional media, internet personalities, friends, family, history, or anything else you can possibly think of. These are incredibly common, and often overlap with the above types, too! It is common for systems to have multiple introjects with the same source or source character, and it is also common for alters to form with the appearance of a character or person without actually being associated with their source.

⊹˖ ⤑ Some roles are more common in systems than others; the most basic are protectors, persecutors, gatekeepers, hosts, and littles. You can find a whole host of potential roles for alters on Pluralpedia, if you're looking for inspiration. There's a lot here; if you're trying to see if a term has already been made, then you can also join the Pluralpedia Discord Server, which has channels exclusively dedicated towards helping you find the system terms you're looking for!

⊹˖ ⤑ So, more on introjects -- the most common types are those which are sourced from a fictional character, content creator, or someone you know. But that's not actually all! Introjects can be sourced from ANYTHING that you get inspiration from. Locations, mythology, colors, songs, artwork -- anything you can think of! If you want specific words for every kind of introject, Pluralpedia has you covered for that, too; however the most common ones that I see are "fictive" (from a fictional media), "factive" (from a factional source), "godtive" (an introject of a god, also sometimes just labelled as an introject), and "songtive" (an introject from a song). Alters can also have multiple sources, so go absolutely ham!

⊹˖ ⤑ You need more inspiration for fleshing out alters? Go to Pinterest and look for artwork or characters that you like, and use those as inspiration and faceclaims for your sysmates. What shows or games do you like? Make your favorite characters that you relate to. You have OCs? Make them! I would also highly recommend searching through "Build-A-Headmate" (BAH) blogs, and seeing what fits your fragments! Picrew, Gacha, or other avatar apps can also be a great way to visualize your sysmates.

⊹˖ ⤑ Let your sysmates do things without your opinions or preferences seeping in as much as possible. This might be a sideblog full of only things they like, or maybe a Pinterest board exclusively for them, or their own playlist! A little can go a long way.

⊹˖ ⤑ Filling out their SP profiles, if you did that, can also help differentiate them as individuals! You can search for SimplyPlural templates for custom fields and folders, go to the SimplyPlural discord and view what people have shared in it, look at "OC templates" or "About Me" templates and see what people add to theirs, or anything else for inspiration! Like I said above, I'll be making my own post or doc of how I organize mine for those who want it.

IV. Headspace Creation!

⊹˖ ⤑ This one is a bit tricky, because it takes a lot of work. When you're first starting out, it might be best to make your headspace a place you know very well; maybe that's your house, your home base in a video game, or a fictional world that you have memorized very well. This can be changed and edited later, but it will help with visualizing it while you're getting started! Alternatively, it can be a small space that is incredibly simple; the important part is that you can try to imagine this space. I would highly recommend doing some form of mindfulness and meditation practices, as these will help you focus more and clear your head!

⊹˖ ⤑ Once you have that down, and you can easily and quickly imagine this space, you can start "editing" it. Don't rush this! While it may be very easy for some, it can take a long time for others, and rushing it will make you feel disheartened if it goes wrong. It's better to underestimate your abilities in this regard than to overestimate yourself! Try to add small details. For example, if your headspace is your house, try to imagine an object that you don't own in real life, and add it within your headspace. An example might be a lamp, a rug, or a stuffed animal; start small and simple. The next time you visualize or enter your headspace, see if that item is there. Try your best to visualize it as being there, until it becomes permanent.

⊹˖ ⤑ Once you can easily make edits such as this, you can start expanding the areas inside your headspace and make more major changes. This is where the fun part comes in! Your headspace can be anything you want, as long as you ease yourself into it. You can start the planning stage whenever you want, as long as you don't try to rush yourself with the process of fulfilling those plans.

V. Planning and Visualizing your Headspace!

⊹˖ ⤑ Okay, not that snappy of a title, but this is the fun part. Planning your headspace! I think Mindly is a great app for this if you're in the beginning aspects of planning -- finding out what areas you need, before actually linking them together or fleshing them out. Consider it a skeleton of sorts! You can also do this with common note-taking apps like Milanote or Obsidian too. Regular notes with a sort of "checklist" can be helpful, too.

⊹˖ ⤑ So, what areas does your headspace "need"? This is obviously up to you, but the basics include a "front room", individual houses or rooms for each alter, and a general lounging area. From here, you can go anywhere! A hotel, a campsite, a liminal space, a fantasy world, a college campus, a suburb -- all of it is entirely up to your system, and can be personalized (and changed)!

⊹˖ ⤑ Now that you know what areas you're trying to create, you can start visualizing it properly (or if you're not very fond of rough drafts, you can just skip to this step too, lol). The most common ways to make your headspace are with image dumps such as Pinterest boards, which are easily sorted and can have notes attached, or with proper building games, such as Animal Crossing, the Sims, Minecraft, etcetera depending on what kind of headspace you are looking for. Really, any worldbuilding simulator can work, so go crazy! If you're looking for fantasy maps, I can recommend Inkarnate; and if you can't find anything, you can always make a map from scratch on paper or with a drawing app.

VI. Other Useful Tips and Links!

⊹˖ ⤑ Transtrauma tips by @.neelacstraw

⊹˖ ⤑ Headspace / Wonderland tips by @.sophieinwonderland

⊹˖ ⤑ Transplural/DID/OSDD/etc Subs (Youtube)

[chefboyroui]

I've been pondering how much each villain masturbates, how they do it, do they ever have sexual relations with civilians. I'm more interested in other people's thoughts so you can definitely just skip mine.

William- In his route it is said he falls in love easily and moves on, I can see this also being that he helps a person learn to follow their desires and then sets them free. I picture him jacking off a couple times a week, as soon as he shuts the door to his room, rocking his hips a little bit, or maybe in the shower. He could probably sleep with mostly whoever he wants even without using his power, and he probably has flings more than one night stands.

Liam- In his route he admits to sleeping with women if he thinks it will make them like him. In general, I think he masturbates by humping into something, like folding his pillow on his bed.

Harrison- He's attractive and probably wouldn't have a problem wooing a partner. I don't see him going for a relationship, but maybe hooking up with the same lady occasionally. I can see him trying to read and being too horny to concentrate so he quickly goes to the bathroom to rub one out to some detailed fantasy.

Elbert- Definitely propositioned a lot but ignores it. I don't see him having much of a sex drive until MC, he probably has a lot of trust issues around intimacy given his past.

Alfons- Yes.

Jude- I think he's very busy and his mind is always working, but with so much testosterone, he definitely jacks off several times a week. Sometimes it's in his office, he drapes a cloth over his torso and leans back, jerking it with reckless abandon to some made up story about a gorgeous lady he saw. He also does it in bed, and when he's really into it, he gets on his knees and thrusts into his fist. He's obviously wealthy, so I bet women are willing to overlook his surly attitude, and when he acts and talks like a gentleman, he turns even more heads.

Ellis- I think he masturbates nearly daily and would do whatever would make a lady happy.

Roger- Just from what we see from other characters' routes, Roger is totally DTF. If he gets MC off, he wants to let off some steam too. In one of the events he says he has a hard time picking up ladies. I see him having a wank anytime, after waking up, while waiting on some test results, after missions, before bed, in the middle of the night... He's also one I see needing to have a towel handy as he shoots thick ropes of cum, and has a short refractory period. Probably jacks off daily if not multiple times a day.

Victor- Like Jude, very busy. Probably does not think about sex until he finally retires for the night. I can totally see him having a secret sex dungeon and inviting Will to join him and MC if MC asked.

SPOILERS FOR VICTOR, ROGER, AND JUDE BELOW

Victor- He has a high libido as evident in his route and the event where the villains are abstinent with MC for 2 week and in Victor's story it is because MC got too worn out from so much sex. He carried strong feelings for MC for years, and I don't see him having casual sex or any other relationships because he doesn't want to drag someone into his world.\

Roger- In his route he says he likes to get a lady after going to the strip club, so maybe he pays for sex? I wouldn't be surprised if his size scares people away.

Jude- Due to his route, I doubt he ever pays for sexual acts, and probably doesn't want to get involved with anyone, so he gets pretty pent up.

[dancing-with-maenads]

Hi, you said that you are committed to Dionysus for life and I was wondering what that means. Like how does that affect your practice or how you approach Dionysus etc? I don't usually interact with other Hellenic polytheists online, so I was unaware that devotee has more weight than worshiper does lol

Honestly it's just how I have personally chosen to define the word, it definitely means different things to different people!

For me it's like priesthood without the title or the power, if that makes sense?

I have dedicated my life to spreading what he stands for. Liberation, catharsis, nature, the planet, not leaving your community behind. I have also dedicated myself to helping those who wish to know him more. Obviously I'm not going around and spreading the good word or whatever, but if people have questions, I'm honored to answer, even if I don't always have all the answers. But in life we often just. Don't have the answers to things. But I love answering in the ways I can.

To me devotion is also a promise to my community. I do not go around telling people I'm doing these things in the name of Dionysus,I just do them because they're right. I donate when I can to youth shelters, and I volunteer to help clean up the area I live in of litter, because we have a lot of endangered species that rely on this land. As long as I am able, I will care for the land and for the earth, for that is my God. Dionysus is the untamable wild, and to keep it untamable, we have to keep it clean.

To me personally it also means setting myself on a path of growth, to make myself a good, true, kind, honest, brave, untamable person. One of the things I've been doing for Dionysus is trying every day to do something that is out of my way that has a positive impact. It can be picking up litter, moving a turtle out of the road so it doesn't get hit, giving the cash in my pocket to an unhoused person, leaving a silly note on someone's car because I liked the stickers on it, just anything that I do not need to do, but can choose to, that will make someone happy, or do something good. The whole point is that I am not doing it for me or my satisfaction,I am doing it because making the world a tiny bit better is what will make the world a whole lot better if we all keep at it

Sorry for the ramble, I'm a little bit intoxicated so I hope it makes sense!

[thefdtd-blog1]

I'm bored so let's go there. Fuck it...

If democrats actually believed Trump was a fascist, then it would absolutely be their moral duty to the world and to their country to overthrow him by any means necessary. The idea that this would necessitate the physical extermination of even the majority of his follower base is ahistorical nonesense.

Of course, they are only interested in using him and the republicans as a strawman so they can pretend that they are the "good ones". That their country has ever brought anything to the world but chaos, death and destruction and that they themselves haven't supported the race-worshipping scum to maintain the us' power over the world. Like the ones currently occupying the Holy Land. Same imperialist ghouls, but with a rainbow badge.

This two situations couldn't be more diferent. Democrats are ok with the us plundering the world, so long as they get the ocasional token progressive gesture (either socially or economically) wich Trump is now denying. Since they don't actually want to stop the machine crushing humanity and they just want their tokens back, it would be pretty wild to launch a civil war over this. I'm not denying that. The people actively trying to stop the machine are small niche groups.

In Arcane, Piltover is the plunderer. Zaun isn't some opposition party concern-trolling about the plundering happening in some far-a-way land while directly benefitting from it. Zaun and it's people are the ones being plundered so that Piltover can benefit. Zaun and it's people are the ones that see their resources stolen, their people reduced to fighting for scraps to survive and the rise of cartel-like organizations in the vacum Piltover themselves created by having no local governance in the undercity.

But the writers fail to make this disctinction between a fake opposition party that is ok with all the evil their country is unleashing and a foreign nation being robed of their lifeblood. Probably because they want to fetishize oppression while also keeping it marketable for american audiences.

And so they give Zaun what they themselves want: a token gesture while the war machine marches on so they can tell themselves they are against it while gleefully listening to human bones snapping beneath them. This gestures can come in many ways. A pro-lgtb tweet on a us army account. A program for foreign aid that just serves their country's soft power. A progaganda story about Russia's awfullness straight out of the ukranian MOD's mouth so they can justify supporting people who wear the same pagan symbols as the nazi scum their grandfathers fought against. Trump is taking away this gestures (not out of goodness or evilness but out of incompetence. He genuily believes this gestures don't help the machine just because the "opposition" likes them, thus creating backlash at home.)

Another token gesture can be a seat at the rulling council that will be outvoten every time they try to change things for the people it's trying to represent. Caesar did it with the Gauls afther he killed half of them. The americans do it with Hawaii. And Piltover did it with Zaun. And surprise, it's one of those cartel members who sucked on Zaun's blood while Piltover hunted the people actually trying to make things better.

To follow the us metaphor: Zaun got upgraded from the native reservations to Hawaii. Great ending guys. Didn't even have to go through the akward Puerto Rico stage. They'll still be plundered, but Sevika will now get part of the loot as a gesture. yay

^^^———

I think one of the reasons so many people struggle with the way the “revolution” was handled in Arcane Season 2 is because they truly believe that with enough violence change for the better can be made. “If Jinx just united the undercity against Piltover, they could’ve fought for their rights and won! That’s why they show Jinx with the revolutionary flag in the opening, isn’t it?”

Except this is exactly the mentality Arcane is CRITICIZING.

As Vander says “this isn’t going to solve your problems, it just makes more of them.”

What people need to understand is that revolution ALWAYS involves horrific loss and sacrifice.

As Vander says: “nobody wins in war.”

There is no ONE act of violence to solve all your problems. Everyone in Arcane thinks they know how to solve the issues between their cities. And every time it results in just more and more extreme violence until it ends up with Viktor’s “Glorious Evolution” which just basically strips every one of free will and power.

But TRUE progress can only be made when we work together despite our differences. Look at America. When we fought against ourselves in the Civil War we still ended up creating a rift in our culture that to this day has not healed. But when we unite together to take down a common foe like in WWII we can achieve remarkable things. United we stand, divided we fall. The revolution of Zaun where they fight Piltover was never going to end with Zaun in a good place. We already saw that with Vader’s revolution, why the FUCK do you think Jinx doing the exact same thing would end up better?

This is WHY Jinx only unites the Zaunites in the end. Teaming up to take down Ambessa and the Machine Herald was an act of violence, but it was also an act of UNITY. Of progress!

This is why Sevika joining the counsel is SO important. Because Zaun and Piltover worked together instead of against each other, TRUE healing can begin.

True REVOLUTION can begin.

It bugs me that so much of the criticism of Season 2 is wishing there was more violence or endorsing the violence of Zaun over Piltover. That’s such a black and white non-nuanced take on the struggles going on. Arcane is challenging you to critique these ideas, and people are refusing to because they truly believe that with the right kind of violence all their problems will be solved.

[graveyardgremlins]

that's it, i'm writting a Transmigration!AU fanfic of superbat... yall do whatever you want with that information

[serpentface]

Do psychotropic drugs and/or ritual play a role in any of the blightseed cultures? A pretty broad question, lol

Yeah that’s a very broad question, the answer is about as much as it tends to play roles in real history. Alcohol is pretty ubiquitous (outside of cultures that abstain from intoxicants) and used for a variety of purposes, opioids are commonly used in some parts for pain relief or recreational purposes, stimulants (usually in mild, natural forms) are used to provide extra energy, and hallucinogens are most commonly used as part of a larger religious framework (rather than for recreational purposes). Any more elaborate answer kinda has to be case by case in a certain culture or part of the setting.

I'll just take this as an opportunity to talk about the one established sect that pretty much REVOLVES around psychoactive use. This is the Scholarly Order of the Root, which is a sort of mystery religion + elite community of scholars who currently occupy the Ur-Tree and its forest in the far southern Lowlands (southeast of Imperial Wardin, on the same land mass).

The Ur-Tree is the obligatory Huge Fucking Fantasy Tree (and its surrounding forest). It’s a mass of vegetation about a mile tall and almost as old as Plant Life Itself, its upper branches are primeval plants, which become more modern the nearer they get to the ground (and each 'level' holds tiny ecosystems, some containing descendants of LONG-extinct arthropods/other small animals). Its lowest branches and the surrounding forest are contemporary plant life, and all is connected and protected by an incomparably MASSIVE fungal mycelium network (which is itself a living god).

A lot of the Scholars' more secretive practices revolve around experimentation with substance use with the goal of expanding the Mind and transcending the body to fully connect to the Dreamlands, and they have a supply chain of traders and mercenaries called Rootrunners who traffic substances into the Lowlands. Most of their psychoactive use is in a very intentional capacity and not just like, for fun, but a LOT of them are just straight up addicted to cocaine (in the form of alchemically refined bruljenum, which is used for practical purposes of its stimulant effect during long hours of work).

All known psychoactives are desirable for experimentation (particularly hallucinogens), with each having properties that either allow expansion of the Mind, transcendence of the body, or outright divine communion. Their effects are logged in great detail and interpreted to form the basis of the Scholars' understanding of the natural world and reality itself.

The most important substance is Ur-Root, which is root matter from subterranean levels of the Ur-Tree that have both their own intrinsic psychoactive substances and a very, very high concentration of living god mycelium. The tree root contains DMT and the mycelium has its own wholly unique effects (being an actual living god). They alchemically refine it into a purer, more potent form, and use it to expand beyond the body and directly commune with the Giants, a group of entities they have identified as the only true gods.

An Ur-Root trip starts off with minor visual distortion, which turns into shifting fractals that slowly obscure the vision. Eventually the senses are entirely taken over by a 'tunnel' of rapidly shifting fractals and geometries. In a complete trip, the experiencer gets a sense that they have been pushed through a membrane and entered another realm, finding themselves in a distinct experiential Space.

At this point they may encounter entities which communicate to them in a language impossible to describe but wholly understood. These beings are understood to be the Giants, or at least aspects of the Giants that mortals are capable of comprehending (they often take familiar tutelary forms of the Mantis or the Snake, or appear resembling the same type of sophont that the experiencer is, all composed of ever-shifting geometries). The experiencer often feels a sense of unconditional and endless love from these beings, though the Giants may be more hostile and may appear in the form of the Trickster (usually a cultural figure regarded as malicious, be it an animal or otherwise) in a bad trip.

(^Up until this point, this has mostly just been a DMT 'breakthrough' experience ft. 'machine elves' and the like).

They are then removed from this space and returned to something that feels like the real world, but is nearly unrecognizable. They have a sense of rapidly moving through time, and will usually see 'the spires' towards the beginning, which just so happen to look like this:

(source + some context via Implication- the spires are exactly what this art is depicting)

The experiencer continues to move across an unfathomable amount of time, occasionally 'seeing' other such flashes of unfamiliar landscapes and creatures, and yet also being devoid of all their senses, the 'seeing' is pure, unfiltered experience. There is a sense of interconnectedness with all life, and that one has become the forest (or even Life) itself. The sense of time is wildly distorted, the trip lasts only about 5 minutes but feels like an eternity and is understood as literal hundreds of millions of years.

The experiencer has usually lost any remaining sense of Self and individual consciousness during this phase (in which case this time distortion is usually a neutral or even peaceful experience), but some retain a fraction of their identity, and find themselves trapped and conscious while experiencing what feels like eternity (which can be LIFE-CHANGINGLY distressing, even after the fact).

(^This latter part of the trip is the effects of the Ur-Tree fungus).

The trip ends with a sense of rushing through the ground and back up into one's body, at which point they will abruptly return to their senses and consciousness. The details are then immediately retrieved via interview and recorded in immense detail. The whole experience is understood as having been full comprehension of the Dreamlands, communion with the Giants, and then a tour through the act of creation.

This is done as part of the initiatory practice into the inner mystery-religion of the scholars, and as needed for study by high scholar-priests. It is not taken lightly, both as it is absolute communion with the gods and reality, and in that it can be a very, very difficult experience. People who have gone through this often walk away with a permanently shifted perspective, often in a positive and/or comforting way- a sense of interconnectedness with all life, a peace with the concept of death, seeing less of a point in individual ego and the concept of Self, and comfort in the sense of divine love they (may have) experienced. This heavily influences the philosophy of the Scholars and has had effects by proxy in the religious worldviews of the region.

Details of this experience are closely guarded, and initiates are given absolutely no prior knowledge and expectations for their trip. This is seen as a necessity- their naivety will allow for a true, unfiltered experience, and can be used to gauge whether they should or should not be accepted. Those that have a distinctly bad trip upon initiation may be assumed to have been 'rejected' by the giants and thus denied full priesthood, though this largely depends on How they interpret their distressing trip- those who identify this as a test and harsh lesson in a journey to enlightenment may be accepted (as this is how fully initiated scholar-priests interpret and handle their bad trips).

This inner priesthood is only a small fraction of the Scholarly Order, and its greater function is as a hub of education and repository of knowledge, and Scholar-trained doctors can provide some of the best medical care available in the setting ('best medical care in this setting' only means so much but it's pretty solid, relatively speaking). Only a chosen few Scholars ever get to commune with the Ur-Root, and most of the divine secrets revealed in the process are kept hidden (though they indirectly influence the politics and worldview of the entire order).

[oddp1ant]

I'm happily ignorant of what exactly people are saying on twitter, but this does raise some conundrums. On one hand, it would be strange if there were hundreds of failed timelines with each their own all-powerful Viktor, all concurrently messing around with the space-time continuum. On the other, it does kinda cheapen the catharsis of our Jayce succeeding, if it happens all the time.

As I talked about here (on @fuckyeahisawthat's beautiful post) I also believe the acceleration rune is the key to success, specifically because Ekko and the Z-drive are the key to success (him smashing a time machine into the Herald's mask gives Jayce the chance to truly reach Viktor) and the Z-drive is based on the acceleration rune. That whole scene to me is very "oh no, it's going wrong again, Jayce is on his knees about to be Evolved, he's lost - oh what's that?? Ekko with a steel chair!?" It seems to pretty clearly communicate that if not for the rare, unlikely series of coincidences that allowed Ekko to intervene, this timeline would have ended up exactly as (or maybe literally being) Magevik's destroyed world. I think it's meant to feel unique.

My explanation for how this wouldn't create hundreds of independent, parallel failed timelines and Mageviks, is that timelines with the same or near-identical outcomes collapse back into a single stream. The world Magevik hangs out in is glitchy and weird, laws of physics like gravity and time seem eroded and things are multiple things at once - because of the anomaly, sure, but I think you could also fit the idea in there that it's an amalgamation of multiple timelines with more or less the same outcome. That each time Viktor went back and tried a different rune that wasn't the right one, his world got a little weirder. Like file corruption. He lives in a jpeg is what I'm saying. [Edit: and maybe this *is* the anomaly!]

I don't think other Jayces have succeeded. I think some have gotten close, but they didn't have Ekko and the Z-drive to create the opening for them to actually "show" Viktor "this" (= share with him the memory of the ruined world and Magevik's words to him (sidebar, how funny is it that Magevik is like, the only one who can convince me is me, put me on the line ☎️)). I think Magevik lives in a time outside time where he sees everything that has happened and will happen in one big tangle, and he knows that Jayce is the only one who could ever have a chance at getting through to him, but until now he's been missing that wildcard, that extra rewind button that lets it actually happen.

Imagine how many factors went into the timeline we see - Jayce had to be with Ekko and Heimer when he touched the anomaly, Ekko and Heimer had to be sent to the world where Powder had the crystal shards and could help them reinvent Hextech, and Ekko had to know about the Acceleration rune to invert it for the Z-drive. I think this was a mix of endless hypothesizing and trial-and-error on Magevik's part, and a bit of random happenstance/blind luck.

So yeah, I think Jayce and Viktor failed many times, and succeeded once. Like many people before me, I'll compare them to Orpheus and Eurydice - the story doesn't lessen for ending in tragedy each time it's told. Orpheus isn't crueller for each time he looks back and dooms her. But this time, just this once, through sheer will, stubbornness, patience, determination, love, and clawing the powers of time and causality out of the hands of the gods, they managed to change the outcome.

mage viktor discourse again on twitter and all i can say in my little corner over here once again is, I don't know why the entire fandom takes it as canon that mage Viktor failed to save every world he manipulated.

Canon does not provide evidence of this. This is fanon speculation. It's a fine headcanon to have, but everyone talks about it like it's canon when it isn't. Canon is ambiguous about the outcome of the timelines mage Viktor altered. The little nods we are given point, in my opinion, towards the opposite conclusion, that he successfully averted destruction.

I've written meta on this before but in summary:

1) 'In all timelines, in all possibilities' is worded precisely, it's not 'out of all timelines'; the implication is that every time, Jayce brings Viktor back from the brink, not just in our timeline. 'Only you' doesn't refer to our timeline's Jayce, it refers to all Jayces. Jayce always brings him home. If Viktor continuously put the fate of each timeline in Jayce's hands and Jayce failed over and over, I don't think he'd say those words. And the way he says them matters. His words are tinged with wonder, not sorrow. As if over and over again, he is shown that Jayce saves him, and it continues to amaze him. He doesn't sound defeated, like this is the next in a long line of Jayces he's sending off to die. The feeling is that Viktor's faith in Jayce has not been misplaced.

2) If mage Viktor doomed every timeline, there would be hundreds (or more) mage Viktors. All running around manipulating timelines. I highly doubt the writers wanted to get into that kind of sticky situation. The tragedy of mage Viktor is that he is singular. Alone. Burdened with the responsibility of the multiverse. The emotional gut punch of his fate is ruined if other timelines led to the same outcome, and from a practical standpoint, having multiple reality-bending omniscient mages would rip apart the fabric of the arcane.

There are other points, such as there being only one corrupted Mercury Hammer and our Jayce is the only one to receive it, and the fact that if mage Viktor is as omniscient as he is implied to be, he could easily step back into other timelines and correct course, because it's highly unlikely he could sit still and watch things go down in flames. But these things can be argued elsewhere.

While I love conversations about mage Viktor's motives and selfishness vs altruism, the writers & artbook have expressed that Jayce and Viktor care greatly about Runeterra and want to fix their mistakes to save it, and that their reconciliation is symbolic of Piltover and Zaun coming together as well. Yes, they make disastrous decisions towards each other, making choices for the other or without the other, which has negative consequences for their relationship and for Runeterra - but I think fandom pushes their selfishness even past what's canon sometimes, as if their entire goal hadn't always been to selflessly help the world around them. Their final reconciliation is about bridging the gap that grew between them, the pain and grief and secrets, betraying themselves and each other, to mutually choose each other openly and honestly. Part of the beauty of their story, as expressed by the creators, is that in their final moments, they chose each other and took responsibility for their actions by sacrificing themselves to end what they started, together - and that choosing each other saved the world. TPTB have stated this - that Jayce and Viktor are the glue holding civilization together, and when they come back to each other, they can restore balance. It's when they're apart, when they hurt each other and miscommunicate, when they abandon their commitment to each other and their dream, that the greater world suffers. Their strife is mirrored in the story-world at large.

Mage Viktor is framed as a solitary penitent figure, damned to an eternity of atoning for his mistakes. He paid the ultimate price and now is forced to live his personal nightmare of exactly what he was trying to avoid for himself with the glorious evolution. The narrative clues we're given point more in the direction that he saves timelines rather than dooms them. If Viktor's actions kept killing Jayce, the very boy he couldn't bear to not save each time, it would undermine these narrative choices. Yes, Viktor couldn't stand to live in a world where he never meets Jayce, so he ensures it keeps happening. But in that same breath, he couldn't bear to see a world where his actions continue to destroy Jayce and destroy Runeterra. His entire arc in s2 is born of his selfless desire to help humanity, help individual people. He would not lightly destroy entire worlds. That's his original grief multiplied a thousandfold, and narratively it would lessen the impact of the one, true loss he did suffer, his own Jayce. It wouldn't make sense for him to be alright with damning other timelines to suffer the same catastrophic tragedy that created him. I mean, maybe I'm delusional here, but is that not the entire point? Because that's what I took away when I watched the show.

As I said, I love discussions about mage Viktor, as there's a lot to play with. All I wish is that the fandom at large would not just assume or accept the Mage Viktor Dooms Every Timeline idea as canon, when there is nothing in the actual canon that confirms this. Maybe people need to just, go back and rewatch the actual episode, to recall how mage Viktor is presented to us, and what it's implied we're supposed to take away from his scenes, and separate that from the layers of headcanon the fandom has constructed.

[thelaurenshippen]

open ai made a little post about how they chose their chatbot voices and two things stood out to me:

a) I am genuinely pleased and surprised that the voices come from specific real people that they hired and paid, rather than being built off of all of the data open ai has scraped. the voice for siri did one job for one company 20 years ago and now she is literally everywhere without ever being compensated by apple or even acknowledged as the voice. there's simply no way she was paid enough in that original job. whereas, open ai says "each actor receives compensation above top-of-market rates, and this will continue for as long as their voices are used in our products." this could mean literally anything (what market rate are we going above? does continue mean they get residuals or get paid for doing more sessions?) but, christ, at least the actors are doing it with full knowledge of what their voices are being used for and can decide for themselves if the compensation is enough

b) the post talks about working with "award-winning casting directors" to get the voices. first of all, yay for paying casting directors! we love to see it. but they also say the CDs received over 400 submissions in a week and they state that like a big number and it's just...not at all. and look, without knowing the intricacies of the casting process, it's hard to know what approach the CDs took - it's very possible they were selective from the jump and 400 is a lot from the pool they were tapping. 400 would be a lot if you were going to the agencies directly and asking for names, but there's just no way in hell open ai went after big stars for this. so it would've been a pool of unknowns. in which case, 400 is laughably small. even if you're not using the big casting sites like actorsaccess, I've worked on projects with CDs and their own internal systems where we've gotten over 100 submissions for a single role. I've posted roles on casting sites and received literally thousands of submissions in just a few days

look, I have a very limited perspective on this - I am not a casting director (imo, one of the most important and undervalued jobs in hollywood) and I, in fact, hate the process of casting with a passion. but 400 just seemed like such a tiny pool to pull from and, idk, it heartens me! it's heartening to think that there's very little interest from actors and agents to be doing this kind of stuff. and absolutely no shade to the actors who did--I want actors to get their bag however they want as long as it's, like, safe sane and consensual, you know? but there's something encouraging about thinking that open ai hired some big casting agency to get their foot into the voice acting door and people didn't come running

[hawnks]

Logging out for a while, love you miss you <3

[imminent-danger-came]

I was rewatching s2 last night, and ohhh man mk looks over mei so much it's not even funny. times mei has been ignored:

maybe you need to really listen! (during the blindfold ep)

mk just? grabs stuff she's using out of her hands all the time? (video game ep)

maybe you shouldn't skip the tutorials? (video game ep again)

the way he addresses her in dumpling destruction and then immediately pushes her aside for tang

i honestly remember it lowkey kinda bothering me on first watch but now it's REALLY egregious on rewatch. are you scared? I'm so scared. do you WANT to end up like shadowpeach MK

2x03 is so rude because the whole fucking episode they're like "MK you don't listen" and it's so true. He doesn't. Pigsy literally points it out again at the end of 4x14 with the whole sun screen bit:

Pigsy: "Tch, don't bother, I've been telling him that for years but he LITERALLY never listens." Sun Wukong: "Yep! That's how we role."

-

THEY'RE SO FUCKING RUDE. "That's how we role." We. We????? Wukong and MK???? Like WHATEVER. FINE. (("I told you going against the Jade Emperor was a bad idea, but no. Wukong doesn't listen to ANYONE! He just does whatever he wants" Like shut up. Shut up!))

MK gets so stuck in his own head ("You're all stuck up in your own head! None of this is your fault!" +1 to the MK ignoring Mei counter from 4x08) and I think that really contributes to his s2 scramble to get more powerful.

LIKE:

MK: "Stop? Now? Never! I just have to try harder. It's just like the Monkey King said! *laughs manically* I just need to get stronger!"

(2x06 Game On)

VS

MK: "Why didn't he just stop, right here? He was already so much stronger than anyone ever needed to be!" Macaque: "Wukong didn't think so, he always felt he had to be stronger—more immortal."

(4x11 A Lifetime of Mistakes)

-

(Bonus thing between eps 2x03 and 2x06, look at 0:42 in this video for MK hearing Mei but not listening to her. Because of course that's what he would do. *head in my hands .png*)

The terrible s2 choices both Wukong and MK make in relation to their friends is just absolutely delicious after 4x11. Like, OH. This has been a lifelong pattern of Wukong's—paranoia is one of his fatal flaws (paired with his terrible communication and self-sacrificial nature), and while he had the power to stop LBD before he still feel's the need to go after the Samadhi Fire to stop her now, and to protect MK.

Hold on look at this parallel that I don't know what to do with:

MK: "Ugh, I can't do it!"

Mei: "It's alright MK—you did it before, you'll do it again!" Sandy: "Yeah! Maybe it's like Monkey King said: the power will come when you need it most!"

(3x04 The Winning Side)

-

MK: "What! But you said the Samadhi fire was the only thing that could stop her!" Sun Wukong: "I KNOW WHAT I SAID! But I've beaten her before I'll- I'll do it again! Mei was right—I need to stop dragging you into my fights, all of you."

(3x10 The Samadhi Fire)

-

Wukong and MK's reach for power inspires a lot of fear in me! It does! Because, well, MK's current reach for power is going to lead him to his Monkey Form, and uh:

Like I'm scared. I'm scared!

"All doomed to play a role in tearing this world apart!" ; "This is Azure's utopia, and this barren wasteland is the price he paid to build it." ; "I'd do anything for my friends! But at the cost of the world?" "I'm sorry pal, ain't NOTHIN' worth that price!"

[bacchuschucklefuck]

the never stop blowing up vhs is where cute twinks go to get harmed

[neverendingford]

.