#it occurs to me that some people on here don't know what that phrase even means...

[starlitangels]

Hi. I have a useless and possibly worthless opinion

All the stories Erik is telling really only work in this format

Like, if these stories were all running concurrently as several book series all in the same universe, they'd be expensive a lot to try to keep track of

But imagine this: we get the stories of, say, Vincent, Sam, David, Asher, and Milo first in a book saga. We kinda understand how magic works, but it's hugely centered on vampires and shifters.

Also, for the sake of understanding, the listener characters are either not present or are real characters with names in their own right

Then we get the D.A.M.N. Fam storyline and we get to learn more about how magic works for Physically Intrinsic Magical Cores rather than the Physically Extrinsic Cores that vampires and shifters have. We learn more about empowered culture as a whole (especially with bridging) and get our introduction to d(a)emons for real, rather than offhanded comments from the characters we'd already had

Let's also say Guy is a short spin-off standalone book. Geordi is too. Ollie is only a side-character in the Ivan chapters of the D.A.M.N. Fam storyline. Aaron is mentioned, but never really seen

Then we get The Balance and Sovereign State and Carpe Deus. And Aaron gets a proper introduction as Elliott's older brother

Look me in the face and tell me that you wouldn't think at least one of these stories jumps the shark

Look at me and say, that after what would probably be years of Redactedverse books establishing the rules of the universe, that you would feasibly believe that it'd be possible for there to be another plane of existence (Death), or that it'd be possible for there to be people stuck in the Meridian

Without believing that he was running out of ideas and jumping the shark in order for the stakes to be higher than ever and the stories to be bigger than ever like when TV shows do that from season to season

They'd have to be running concurrently. So a set of TV shows like when Arrow and The Flash were running at the same time might work

But I honestly think for everything to stay believable, they have to be happening at the same time in shorter, episode format so that the rules of the universe feel flexible enough to allow for the whacky stories like The Balance and Sovereign State

Because if I was reading this as a book series and understood that the Meridian was just a magic quilt between Aria and Earth/Terra/Elegy and I read Sovereign State, I'd be like, "That doesn't work with established lore! Author, sir, I love the snarky demon main character but what are you doing?!"

But in this format, I was totally willing to accept it because it's all going on concurrently.

[biribaa]

I saw you were taking requests for The Amazing Digital Circus, so if you want can you please write Headcannons for Kinger, Caine, and a character of your choice x a reader who’s abstracting in front of them

Also remember to drink lots of water and to take breaks!

-🧪Anon

Kinger, Caine and Ragatha x reader who's abstracting in front of them

I appreciate your kindness but I'm a computer, I think water is one of the things I need to "drink" less and prevent more.

TW/CW: AHH... Spoilers, also angst. Reader does get abstracted in all scenarios cuz we still dont rlly know if someone can be saved from getting abstracted

Kinger

Imagine lost your partners TWICE. Lolololol loser/J

Everything seems to occur in slow motion from Kinger's point of view, a heart he once had is somehow beating against his body. He prays to any god on this earth, be it real or not, or even Caine maybe, that this nightmare isn't happening again to him. Please, everyone, but not you.

Kinger tries to do everything so his lover don't reach the great peak of their insanity, even though he's not very good at it, knowing his personality. But trust me when I said, he tried. Who cares if he will get all glitched for touching your form, he needs you.

He never thought he would live another nightmare inside a nightmare. And in seconds that felt like painful hours to Kinger, here "you" are, a noisy form covered in eyes that flash in different colors. Your skin (if we can call it skin) moves abruptly as if it were a bag full of enraged cats. And, god, how he wished it was him instead.

Things are resolved by the talking human jaw, and yet the silence in Kinger's little pillow fort is no longer comforting as it once was. Silence now makes the small chess piece itch in agony. Silence that could be enjoyed with your presence, with holding your hand or dancing with you, and chat about random stuff he and you knows. The feeling of missing someone is familiar to him, and yet, it hits him in ways that his years in this circus haven't hit him.

Caine

While Kinger tries to do everything, Caine actually does anything to try saving your corrupted mind, and the lack of power in this situation leaves the digital being in panic. A simple snap of the fingers is not enough, and this information makes him tremble in ways he never thought he would tremble before for a simple human.

You aren't just any character, you are his favorite, the lil' buddy he spoils every hour and that always push a giggle from him. You were his very own star. The show could continue the same without you, Caine was sure of it, but could he? Without a character as entertaining as you in action?

"Of course I can fix them, I am Caine!" It's a phrase that was repeated several times in the presenter's programming, But with every grunt coming from the thing that once was you, it's just a reminder to Caine that he did a horrible job trying to take care of you. There were other characters that were abstracted of course, but... You were special to him. His favorite star. His star.

Caine even feels hesitant to put you in the hole of other characters who were abstract before. He preferred to keep you in a cage away from other people's contact, with no one hurting you and no one hurting you.

He knows, he knows the painful truth that you cannot be considered a sapient being, but even though you are a trace of what you once were, Caine doesn't have the courage to lose you forever.

With the other characters, Caine will act normally, with his loud and lively personality. Only if they analyze Caine close enough, the characters would notice something wrong with him.

And then, sometimes, he just stares at you in the cage. Caine ponders if he should admit the lost of his favorite star, it would be easier, but the pride in his chest screams that there must be some way that he could actually save you from...this.

Ragatha

Somehow, the scene is all silent for her. Ragatha stares at you as if the impossible itself is happening in front of her.

Ragatha holds your hands about to disappear, she caressed what was left from your shoulders, she hurriedly whispers words that would normally calm you down, but nothing can save you from the fate of your sanity, just leaving her with the pain of being glitched.

Of course, she had her other friends like Pomni, but lost you?!

Ragatha thinks she saw everything during her new experience in the digital circus, but something common like losing someone so important was the end of the line for her. You were her darling, her sunshine and her little everything even.

Everything she did sounded slightly more boring and boring without your presence, and Ragatha could do nothing about it. She continues (at least tries) to remain strong after that, still trying to complete the little adventures that Caine gives to the participants. But Ragatha's slow pace and lack of smiles was very noticeable.

The weight on Ragatha's chest is too much, losing someone so sweet and perfect for her in such a horrible way is too much. And the worst part is that Ragatha believes that she could have done something to save you, she could have been with you more often so that your mind didn't fall apart like this. But now, she can do nothing but mourn.

[pouletaulait]

"Do you even intend to quit – not really" 🧐

After reading Chapter 58 I thought about this exchange between Yashiro and Kage for a bit:

At first sight this might suggest that Yashiro actually considers staying in the Yakuza. I think based on what we know and how this statement is framed though, I come to the conclusion that this suggests the exact opposite in fact; Yashiro’s reluctance to stay in the Yakuza shines through yet again.

Granted, in the above scene Yashiro does in fact say that he doesn’t really want to quit BUT what he said before that stood out to me. Confronted by Kage about how he’s still affiliated with the Yakuza he first diverts his question by saying „don’t say things as if you’re an ordinary person“; I think this points out that Yashiro doesn’t like to think of himself as that different from Kage (or „civilian“ people in general, probably), he’s sorta putting the two of them onto the same level… outwardly he appears to lower Kage’s „status“ as a law-abiding citizen to his own, but, objectively speaking they both know that Kage is not in fact a shady person (at least from what I can tell, after all, he doesn’t appear to be affiliated with any „shady“ people apart from Yashiro and Kage always complains about Yashiro dragging him into these affairs). So, what this ends up doing is lifting Yashiro’s status up (I hope I’m phrasing this in a way that makes sense). Anyway, I think what this conveys is that Yashiro still looks down on Yakuza members (he’s definitely not proud of being one) and that he’s still not fully comfortable with people viewing him as a member or even acknowledging his Yakuza-status himself. He then goes on to say that it’s not easy to leave. Now, this could suggest a) that it has been on his mind (which we already know to be true) and b) that he feels the need to justify the fact that he’s still affiliated with them. Only when Kage questions him again Yashiro finally says that he doesn’t REALLY want to leave. His way of phrasing it doesn’t sound super convincing and he probably says that to get Kageyama off his case and also because, if he is honest with himself, he still can’t see himself actually taking that step after all. I know I might be reading too much into this but it stood out to me that Yashiro didn’t just throw Kage a snarky comment like „why the hell wouldn’t I still be a member?“, in the same vein as his first comment „what kind of upstanding guy runs a shady illegal casino?“ Instead he is somewhat opening up to Kage in his own way.

Anyway, this conversation is yet another puzzle piece that plays into the theory I’ve had from the beginning, that Yashiro will leave the Yakuza eventually. From all we know so far, Yashiro has never really come to terms with being a Yakuza and has generally a very negative opinion of them. The topic of Yashiro struggling to accept this role and the re-occurring questioning of what makes a Yakuza, who’s a good Yakuza, who’s not fit to be one, etc. strongly suggests to me that this is an integral part of this story as a whole and is most probably gonna be relevant to the conclusion of the story. It’s made clear that Yashiro never wanted to be Yakuza in the first place and he’s still reluctant, like… some 20 long years later 😯. I don't want to include too many quotes here because there are far too many instances that could be mentioned and this post is already getting too loooong, as you'll see 🫣, but there are some I'd like to mention. First I'd like to point to one quote from Yashiro that leads me to believe that to him being a Yakuza is not in fact his real identity but rather a role he is playing. He says to Ryuuzaki in Chapter 5:

He sees himself more as an actor rather than a real Yakuza and interestingly enough, that’s what he had aspired to become as a teenager: (aspire might be too strong of a word here but I think in a way he really did):

Now, I know that I'm arguing that Yashiro is talking about himself here ,even though, he's not just referring to himself in his comment to Ryuuzaki but the fact that he talks about Yakuza being just like actors in general and then further generalizing his statement to „people spend their lives acting“ still plays nicely into Yashiro's perception of his own life which will become relevant in a bit *bear with me*; it suggests that he thinks that people are not really free to be themselves because they have to play their role which emphasizes his passive approach to life in general „I have lived my life accepting it all“ (I reference this quote further down).

Every time Misumi tries to drag him in deeper, Yashiro is acting completely reluctant. We first saw this in the very beginning of the story when Misumi and Yashiro talk about the succession and Misumi says to Yashiro „be mine once more“ (Yashiro doesn’t want to give him an answer), when we learn through Hirata’s secret recordings about the details of another conversation between Misumi and Yashiro in Chapter 14 (Yashiro still doesn’t give a straight answer) and we see it again in Chapter 36 when Misumi basically says to Yashiro „don’t forget what you are“ after the time-skip (Yashiro distracts Misumi from the conversation by provoking him). He doesn't agree to anything but he never outright refuses either (he's completely passive).

His reluctance is further demonstrated by the fact that after the time-skip Yashiro’s not really a full member anymore. He used what happened after Hirata’s attack on him to the best of his abilities in a way to distance himself from the group but he couldn’t take the last step. But this clearly points to Yashiro wanting to get out for good.

I think it’s noteworthy that the only time he completely rejects the idea of quitting (as far as I remember), is in Chapter 27 when he speaks to Ryuuzaki in the back of the police car:

This stands out to me because he says this after he’d made up his mind that he was gonna die. So why keep fighting it at this point? (I’m so glad our cute boy is not in such a dark place anymore 😭)

Yashiro has also tried to keep Doumeki out of this world because he cares so much about him. Unfortunately, he wasn’t successful but the statement Yashiro made about the Yakuza in Chapter 22 becomes relevant again, now that Doumeki got a back tattoo (which as we all know made Yashiro furious beyond belief). Yashiro said something along the lines of „do you have any idea how many upright citizens walk around out there with full body tattoos? And how many Yakuza wear normal business suits?“( I hope this translation is somewhat accurate . I had to take it from the official German translation which is not the most exact at times but the only English translation I could find, didn’t seem to be correct 😅) Basically he’s saying, it’s never too late to quit. This was some unfortunate foreshadowing if you ask me but it gives me hope that Doumeki’s status as a full-fledged member and him getting a tattoo won’t prevent them from leaving the Yakuza world behind.

I just cannot imagine Yoneda-sensei making this aspect such an integral part of Yashiro’s character and bringing this topic up again and again if it isn’t gonna be relevant in the end… I know it might be a red herring but I really doubt it at this point. I read the manga as a story of a traumatized survivor of SA finding happiness in life (yes, I’m very hopeful that both Doumeki and Yashiro are gonna make it out alive because anything else would be too cruel🫣). For Yashiro the Yakuza is a hindrance to his freedom and happiness because it’s not who he truly is as a person and as long as he stays he’s going to be under Misumi’s control and Misumi is gonna try to use him, just like his stepfather and all the other men who SAed him when he was a teenager used him. In a way he’s still this powerless child getting used by others. He was an easy target for Misumi because Yashiro was „completely indifferent about himself“ as Misumi put it. This indifference stems from the abuse he suffered. When Yashiro got shot he remembered the SA and he says: „I have lived my life accepting it all. I’ve felt no sorrow. I’ve blamed no one. My life can’t be said to be anyone else’s fault.“ This expresses exactly what Misumi saw in Yashiro: He’s so broken that he doesn't even feel anger, he is beyond caring about himself, his well-being, his future. Putting it differently; he doesn’t love himself and he doesn’t think that he deserves love or a different, better life. This is why he doesn’t really put up a fight against this fate. He’s still passively accepting everything.

To sum this up, it’s mainly his trauma that prevents him from quitting, just like it keeps him from being able to accept Doumeki’s love. Since I believe this story is about Yashiro overcoming his trauma and finding happiness, I think it would only be fitting that once he’ll be able to accept that he is deserving of love, hope and happiness, he’d finally find the courage to take control of his own fate and break away from the path that he felt forced to follow.

And yes, I'm aware that quitting won't be that easy because of Misumi's obsession over Yashiro BUT even though I don't like Misumi too much and I think he's a creep, he's in his own way quite lenient when it comes to Yashiro, I have to give him that. So, I have high hopes that he actually meant what he said about "caring about Yashiro as a person" and will let him leave without too much trouble.

Of course we don’t know much about Doumeki’s plans for his future but if Yashiro and him end up together (which is what I’m hoping for) he’ll most likely go along with Yashiro’s wishes, I guess 😉 And I know, sweet Nanahara would be disappointed but I bet Yashiro and Doumeki would still find a way to adopt their big baby boy into their little family 😜

maybe they’re gonna open up a beach bar in Hawai’i and Nanahara would flirt with the guests and give away all the drinks for free 🤣

On a more serious note, I hope I didn’t get any of the quotes completely wrong. Nuances tend to get lost in translation so it’s kinda "risky" to base a theory like this solely on translations but most of it comes down to my personal interpretation of the story anyways. And I’m sorry if most of this seemed too obvious but I got the impression that I seem to feel more strongly about the fact that Yashiro might gonna leave his days as a Yakuza behind than others in the fandom and I felt the need to present my case 😉

If you actually made it through my ramblings to down here, you deserve some 🍪🍪🍪 😘

[toxicwasteempire]

Foreshadowing in book one for Sidestep secret.

We all know by now but did we always? How many of us picked up the clues for the first book?

I personally was 100% convinced Sidestep was a Re-Gene before I started to play Retribution. This is because my mind is huge™ (Lying). It is interesting how it isn't information the first book is withholding, it keeps bringing it up to the point it feels natural once you read it once again with that knowledge. It doesn't hide it, it's just not said explicitly.

This is not a exhaustive list. I did one playthrough and took every reference, just so you all see my point. Remember, this is all just from one playthrough.

Is not foreshadowing (or is it?) but the phrasing is interesting knowing that Sidestep was made to do undercover missions. At the start, one things they're talking about gender norms in general but Sidestep was taught those in a clinical, artificial environment, with the goal of being as unassuming as possible. Only cuckoos are socialized this way, something that separates them from other Re-Genes.

More clear impossible and this is at the start of the game. Close your eyes and imagine baby Sidestep in a test tube. 🧪👶🏻

Tech-savvy Sidestep knows the capability of modern science, they're a product of it. Is the topic of race and heritage touchy because they see themselves as having no heritage or is do they consider Re-Gene culture as their heritage. (We know they have a unique language) If the latter is true, they would also feel isolated from it, since cuckoos are set apart.

Here is The Point™ it occurs in every playthrough. The existence of Re-Gene is explained and Sidestep is shown extremely distressed after calling the Special Directive. This is the point where it's practically confirmed there's story between Sidestep and the GeniTech corporation. it's difficult to not at the very least suspect.

I mean, the whole situation is stressing Sidestep the fuck out. If her crying, sobbing and throwing up about this isn't suspicious I don't know what is.

"You see Re-Genes have NO HUMAN RIGHTS because a CEO (of a company that kicked off after moving somewhere without a bioethics board) ~~claimed~~ that Re-Genes, allegedly 😒, are not sentient. Oh, you see they can mimic 😋🤗 so if you see some acting alive that's just silly pretending Which is why they have to be BRANDED as the MINDLESS OBJECTS they are just so nobody confuses them for actual people. 🙄 They have no mind after all. Or so they say. 😒 They are used for war... Do what you want with that info."

The way Sidestep talks immediately sends off alarms. Putting aside her being a Re-Gene, it is very clear the moment the Re-Genes are mentioned, the text is also putting in question the apparently known fact that they are not sentient.

Even if Sidestep had not been revealed to be one, I would've be on the side of the Re-Genes. Made by a sketchy enterprise somewhere with little to no regulations, they're marked to make sure nobody confuses them for a human, sent to make rich people richer in proxy wars abroad. The company says uuhhm actually they have no soul so it's okay if they got not human rights. 💕 And I'm supposed to believe that? Go away

Also a journalist was straight up murdered. Como cosa rara.

So the supposedly mindless robots need to have their thoughts shielded from possible telepaths 🤔 how weird.

There's show of kinship if you chose to save the Re-Gene. You see me and I see you. We are the same. We don't deserve this.

Sidestep stop hating your body challenge (impossible)

The first one can assume she's talking about being a villain but we know better.

Kinship between Sidestep and Heartbreak. They both being treated like less than a person. I see you. You see me we are the same etc. We also get a glimpse of her life in The Farm.

If you already got the inclination to believe sidestep is Re-Gene mid playthrough, the game proves you right with texts like this.

My poor mew meow...

Being serious, one assumes their tragic backstory means Sidestep's childhood was sad. When actually is simply non existent.

[jacksmusesdrv3]

Since this is nagging at me, and the point of contention in Shuichi's background and 'style of detective' is being... kind of a pain in the arse, to put it lightly, let me try to lay out the odd situation with his detective background as plainly - and, as fairly - as I can. Here goes:

He did detective stuff as a favour to his uncle, that is, was not a formal detective but an apprentice to one. It's likely he wasn't constrained to roles, in this respect.

His tasks involved catching out cheating partners, finding lost pets and eventually, finding runaways. The latter of which - according to his uncle - was a 'preventative measure', to stop them before crime occurs. Shuichi's job was, explicitly, to stop them before it got to that.

He picked up a motto from his uncle, the 'coffee stains on someone's shirt' metaphor. Extraordinarily vague, and one he used in the context of a 'heavy burden' when talking with Ryoma, but the phrasing can imply 'stains' of a person's (perceived) guilt. You could infer that this is a matter of catching out people who are cheating, but you can also generalise it to crime. What's more, the mixed ideas with this motto - that Ryoma was faintly amused by, thinking it strange - makes it feel like something is not communicated adequately.

He read a psychology study, whether purely of interest, what his uncle taught him etc. is unknown, but the key component of said study was how it tricked people- that is, into believing cold water was hot (this is especially interesting to me given that this kind of extreme trick was a theme for DR2's shtick likened to a 'fictional world', and he brought it up in the Virtual World, which DR2 was based in, and Shuichi declares the game 'fiction' by the end, so it really does feel significant, even if not directly related to detective work). So, we're talking some applied psychology, here. Hold that thought...

Shuichi is a good liar- at least, one of his skills is to sway a group into believing him, sometimes with emotion as well. In that sense you could say he's a good actor, which seems unusual for someone who's mainly a sheltered character. That said...

His uncle's policy on runaways was that it was 'necessary to follow up with runaway and client both', and Shuichi explains the policy as 'making sure both parties are happy'. If Shuichi is involved in this process, he is - to some degree - trained to work with people. Is de-escalation part of this? You would expect so, at least. What's more is Shuichi could not confirm if this was a typical detective's policy, just that it was his uncle's.

Shuichi solved a murder case. We don't know how he happened on it, only that it was 'by chance'. We know that lost-pet grade detectives don't solve murders, although the runaways part of the tasks was, at least partially, linked to crimes. What kind of crimes? We just don't know. You might assume however, that one such case could lead to a murder, particularly if a de-escalation attempt were to... fail (this is speculation as an example).

In summary: the extent of Shuichi's uncle's 'education' of him, is vague enough you can infer (as I did) uh... a mixture of things, with no clear idea of where the boundaries in those things are. You also don't know if this is 'above board' training that is typical of a detective, especially with the presentation of a murder case - something exceptionally out of whack for an apprentice to handle, although not an unthinkable consequence - and possible mixed communication going on between him and his uncle.

Also? You don't know how truthful Shuichi himself is being - to himself especially - since he's a known liar. While that's not proof he's lying about anything, it is at least a concern since at the least, he may have cause to lie to defend others based on feeling (and this is something he does in trial 2 for Maki regardless that she wasn't guilty of Ryoma's murder, she still had involvement in the situation, but the nuances of that aren't the point here).

Anyways, how this pans out in the game is up to you, but I felt compelled to clarify my own logic from the start re. this, since it does get kinda-

-from here in terms of my theory, so the 'making sense' can be hard to do. I hope this much is clear, though.

[controversialhottakes]

Apparently these are unpopular opinions but I don't want Wilmon to be endgame and I don't want Wilhelm to abdicate. (I think the show might be heading down the Wilmon endgame + abdication route but I can't imagine them doing it in a way which would feel satisfying to me personally.)

All I could think about throughout the whole season was how unsuitable for each other these two are. They're so different, and I don't just mean their backgrounds, I mean every single thing about them. Their personalities (this one is huuuuge), their values, apparently even their interests since after 3 seasons I can't really name a single thing they both genuinely enjoy (maybe rowing? or was Simon there for a reason? can't remember), unless we count sex which... fair but a rather shaky framework if a long-term relationship is what you're after.

What do they even talk about? Other than Simon hating the system which Wilhelm is at the very centre of. Or the fact that they don't understand each other because Wilhelm is too privileged and Simon is too big a socialist. And while I hate the phrasing I do agree with the sentiment wholeheartedly because it's actually absolutely 100% true. What we have here, ladies and gentlemen, is a conflict of interest. Plain and simple.

One thing that was very clear from the very beginning is that Simon doesn't understand what a relationship with a crown prince entails and that he's really not the kind of person who'd want or should be in such a relationship. He cares too much about other people's opinions, which isn't necessarily bad in and of itself, but people are going to have a lot of opinions if you're dating someone in the public eye, especially the future king, and they're going to be nasty af. Because they can. It's just the reality, nothing you can do about it.

I know a lot of people say that he didn't get media training and so on and so forth. And it is very true and valid. However, a lot of this boils down to his personality. You don't need media training to know that reading comments is a bad idea, let alone replying to them. To me, it's just common sense, and I know he's only 16, but even though it's been a while, I do still remember being 16 and my mindset (on this subject) has not changed since then. Especially if you know you're going to take it to heart, you shouldn't even be looking at the bs people post online.

Simon doesn't fit into Wilhelm's world not because he's poor. He doesn't fit into Wilhelm's world because his personality and values simply don't work in this context. How do you even begin to solve a problem like this? You just can't.

Simon has a very strong personality and even stronger beliefs. There's absolutely nothing wrong with it, it's admirable, but this creates so many problems that are virtually unsolvable. If you watch the series (not just the third season, it's been shown consistently), Simon needs Wilhelm to agree with him. And he wants Wilhelm to do it openly and preferably to feel about it as strongly as he does. Which simply isn't going to happen. In order for this to work, Simon would have to change his entire personality and that would be just awful.

Re: Wilhelm abdicating. You don't make a decision like that at the age of 17. Because this is literally life-changing and there's no going back. His brother just died. His mother is having a nervous breakdown. His father is absolutely helpless. You work through all of that first.

Correct me if I'm wrong but it's only been a couple of months since the accident. Oh and now Wilhelm finds out that his brother was human and not some perfect Disney prince. And he gets front row seats to his always-unnaturally-composed mother's descent into literal madness. Just imagine how terrifying it must feel. This boy is going through a lot, this is not the time to be making huge decisions.

I genuinely believe that Wilhelm would make a great king. Keep in mind that for 16 years, it never occured to him that he might have to do this. This was dropped on him like a bag of cement, together with the news that his older brother, whom he worshipped, was dead. All things considered, he's doing great. Come to think of it, Erik's death is the root of 99% of Wilhelm's current problems. Like he said, he never got to grieve and now on top of that he thinks that his brother was an arsehole and would have hated him for dating another boy. But I think Wilhelm finding out about what happened at the initiation is actually going to help him heal.

Wilhelm abidicating just feels too much like giving in, like he was running away from his problems which is a bit OOC. And it would feel like he was doing it for Simon which is such a bad idea on so many levels. I can't put into words how stupid it would be and, as impulsive as he can get at times, Wilhelm doesn't strike me as the kind of person to just completely fail to think of consequences of his actions when it comes to something this big. I can't for the life of me explain why, but he does come across as rather level-headed and sensible, specially for a 16/17-year-old going through what he's been going through. Certain... incidents... aside (the rifle... yeah, the hell were you thinking? you need to chill out and let it go). Season 2 was peak recklessness, he seems a bit more mellow and settled now. Although breaking up with Simon might turn out to be the final straw, yikes...

[90stvqueen]

I have been contacted by multiple multi-level marketing "job opportunities" this week.

It's starting to occur to me -- and nobody really tells you this -- that unless you are looking for something specific (and probably not entry-level), Indeed is not the place to look for jobs. I was applying for jobs pretty indiscriminately on there a few days ago, and have since been contacted by what looks to be multiple multi-level marketing (MLM) schemes.

Here are some red flags I've found in these job postings that point toward a pyramid structure:

[Company] is a [PR/marketing agency/local startup] that is looking for outgoing, motivated candidates who are just out of college or looking to make a career change!

[Company] will pay for you to be trained in business and sales, so don't worry if you don't have prior experience! This is an entry-level role with HUGE opportunities for growth!

You'll have networking and travel opportunities, such as leadership development conferences and seminars!

Sounds good, right? But if you look up these companies on Glassdoor, you'll either find nothing or you'll see a mix of reviews:

positive reviews from the current employees who are incentivized to talk up the company

negative reviews from former employees that will often flat-out tell you it's an MLM

there's a lot of repetition in the phrases you'll see across the board: "a great opportunity," high turnover/burnout, manipulative management, lack of transparency, no job security, "hard work pays off," "not for everyone"

sometimes you'll find out that the company was renamed from another company, and if you look that company up, you'll find even more bad reviews explicitly calling it a pyramid scheme/MLM

If you go to the company website, you'll see a clean interface with stock photos of people looking happy, and all of the "who we are" text on the site will be utter jargon that doesn't explicitly tell you what the company does. It will tell you, however, that they're hiring now!

If you make it to the interview portion, (which, if you apply, you almost certainly will, because these companies are preying on people who are desperate for a job) you will be rushed through an initial interview, which will look something like this:

You'll be interviewed alongside another candidate or in a group.

It's a quick 10-minute getting-to-know-you call so the company can see if it's a good fit.

They will ask you to tell them (in front of the other candidates) what you would bring that makes you stand out.

They will ask you if you have reliable transportation.

They will go over the "job description" without ever making it clear what the day-to-day looks like.

They'll tell you about how you're going to be trained in different departments. The departments will have names like "Marketing & sales," "HR & PR," "Leadership development," "Logistics, numbers, and operations," and "Client relations." This is an actual example from a Zoom interview I just did less than an hour ago. These are the "departments" of this company, according to my interviewer.

They'll emphasize that expansion is the goal. Top-level customer acquisition. Their clients are looking to open to new markets, so they're looking for go-getters to quickly fill the role.

IF YOU ASK A QUESTION ABOUT THE COMPANY, THEY WILL DO EVERYTHING IN THEIR POWER NOT TO ANSWER IT. They'll tell you that you'll have the opportunity to ask as many questions as you want if you make it to round two; they'll tell you they have another interview in 2 minutes and don't have time to answer your questions; they'll repeat that this is a preliminary getting-to-know-you call, so there's no need to get into the details just yet.

If you do manage to get a question in, they'll put as vague & positive a spin on it as they can. I asked if the company I interviewed with was a new company (because I couldn't find it on BBB or Glassdoor) and the interviewer told me yes, it's a "branch-off company" to a company that's been around for a few years. He did not tell me what that company was, and I didn't ask, because at that point I knew I wouldn't get a straightforward answer either way.

Y'all, if you find a job that raises any red flags for you, DO YOUR RESEARCH. You should be looking up any company that reaches out to you. Find their website. Read their reviews on Glassdoor and Better Business Bureau. BE SMART AND DON'T LET THESE COMPANIES PREY ON YOU.

[drankyyy]

About Fanny's hatred of everything.

Hi everybody. As everyone knows, Fanny has a line that she often uses, and I want to figure out why she hates everything, when she uses it and whether she can just keep quiet, but at the same time want to speak out.

(I warn you that these are just theories and my personal opinion. And I also don't speak English, so the translation may be clumsy.)

It surprises me that there are still people who think that the whole personality of Fanny is based on hatred of something. They also think that Fanny hates "absolutely everything" for no reason, but this is far from the case and now I will try to prove it to you. But first we need to figure out: why does she hate so much?

We were shown that scene in BFB 1 for a reason, where Fanny said why she hates Clock. She said, "Self-improvement only occurs when we acknowledge that our own behaviors are far from perfect and, dare I say, worthy of hate!". Many people think that for this reason alone, Fanny hates everyone. But can you really say that this is the reason she hates Match, Pen, or DPA (In TPOT 7.)? Of course not, she always has different reasons to hate someone. She said that phrase to explain why she hates CLOCK, not why she hates everyone. We all saw how Clock behaved "correctly" in BFB 1, condemning everyone, but at the same time not noticing his own behavior and probably believed that he alone did not make mistakes here, so he was so surprised at what Fanny told him.

Well, we realized that she has her own reason for hating every thing, so I can already more or less explain why she hates everything. I have an opinion that Fanny can be much more attentive to someone's flaws, including its own. That's right, everyone has flaws, but not all flaws, in her opinion, deserve to be hated. By herself, she is a hot-tempered person, so this may anger her more than it should. But maybe we're just underestimating it? Who knows.

And what about the opinion of some people who think she hates "EVERYTHING"? Hmm... And why don't they pay attention to the fact that she voluntarily agreed to join in BFB? Why doesn't she hate Lightning, Tree, Marker, or even Black Hole? Why did she start hating the pact only from episode 7 of TPOT (well, not anymore, I know). Don't think that Fanny is some kind of robot that says "I hate" every time it hears words. As I said, she hates only what she thinks deserves to be hated, and she considers all of the above to be good.

But can she not speak out about her hatred for everyone? Yeah, she's not a damn robot. Of course he can, if he thinks that the right decision would be to keep silent. In BFB 11, she explained to Snowball why it was necessary to let Flower pass the challenge. Her words: "Letting her do what she wants is safer for all of us, EVEN IF YOU HATE HER." This means that she can keep silent if it could lead to something serious, because it's not worth it.

Basically, I told you everything I wanted to. I hope you enjoyed this theory. Good luck to everyone.

[crownmemes]

House Sentences, Vol. 7

(Sentences from House (2004-2012). Adjust phrasing where needed)

"Physically, you're fine. Mentally, you're weird."

"You're losing it. That's what happens when you have kids. Ceaseless crying and nagging leads to irrational fears."

"Why do you even care if I have a baby? It's not like I'm ever gonna ask you to babysit!"

"I know this is awkward, but we need to talk."

"There's a reason that we've evolved a feeling of awkwardness. It tells us not to talk about things."

"The benefit of being boss is that I don't have to argue."

"Any relationship that doesn't end in a breakup ends in death. Everything falls apart in the end."

"Are you saying you want to date me?"

"Trust me, everybody will be happier if we aren't dating."

"You need to know everything because you're afraid of being wrong."

"Can you honestly tell me you've never done anything hypocritical?"

"Why do you try so hard to get my attention?"

"I think we're supposed to kiss now..."

"It's a bad idea to get into a power play with somebody who holds the power."

"Just tell her how you feel! If you won't, then I will!"

"You really passed your psych rotation?"

"I think you're confusing nice and evil again."

"Why do people get married?"

"You really don't have to keep buying me things."

"You act like you don't care about anyone, but here you are saving lives."

"I don't think you're looking for somebody to prove you right. I think you're looking for somebody to prove you wrong - to give you hope."

"Everything that happened to you can be rationally explained."

"I have issues with authority. You?"

"Why do you care if I'm happy?"

"You're afraid of change. The one thing you have is your intellect. You think if that's compromised, you have nothing."

"I don't mean to be abrasive, especially since you're such a pleasure to imagine naked."

"Your voice is no longer attractive to me with that note of disapproval."

"Has it ever occurred to you that when I don't share something, it might not be meant as a challenge? It might just mean that I'd like there to be one molecule of my life that goes unexamined by you?"

"Cat brains are always in alpha mode. The few scientific tests that have seemed to confirm psychic phenomena, that's where it takes place."

"I get it. You're a little nuts, aren't you?"

"God's mistakes are well documented."

"I'm proposing that you should propose to me."

"Being drunk doesn't change who you are - it just reveals it."

"Every time I go to one of your parties, I end up embarrassing myself in some new and unexpected way."

"Are you going to ignore me all day again?"

"Apologies aren’t supposed to make you feel better. They’re supposed to make the other person feel better."

"You want to kiss me, don't you?"

"Why is it always reasonable in your world to take an emotional problem and sidestep it by turning it into a mechanical problem?"

"You have the luxury of not caring about your image, but I do not!"

"I can smile through gritted teeth and play nice, but there are serious risks of violence involved in that choice."

"Are you ready to play nice?"

"I know you're scheming."

"Are you ignoring me, or are you just letting my charm wash over you?"

[lostfirefly]

Thank you for your kind words and support. I'm feeling a little better, though still in a wild panic. But let's take our minds off everything and have one fluff morning with Buggy and Сatherine. I'm still abysmal at describing things, but it's never too late to learn. But it was fun to create Catherine's songs. English isn't my native language, errors may occur. As always, feel free to share your thoughts)

Bugust. Day 14. Baker (Buggy x OC). I hope this story fits this theme.

"Hey, Cathie-pie, question for you." Buggy walked into the kitchen. "Ancient Egyptian fertility god. Six letters across, the third letter is I."

Catherine stood at the table and beat eggs in the bowl, humming a song.

I mix the batter, sugar sweet, A sprinkle of laughter, a dash of heat. Eggs and flour, whisked just right, A cake to mirror his delight.

"That's Osiris, my love."

"Oh, I remember him. O-si-ris. Yeah!" Buggy plopped down on the chair.

"What are you doing?" Catherine came to him and kissed him on the head. "Hi."

"Hi. A word puzzle." Buggy tapped his pen on the table. "Oh, I know that word. Bacon."

"You're so cute now." Catherine ruffled his hair. "You look like an old man."

"Hey, I'm not old. Old man can't be the sex god. I thought I proved my title to you this night."

"God!" Catherine rolled her eyes. "I knew this phrase would stick in your head, pervert!" She gently slapped his head. "And by the way, tell that god that he is punished."

"But why?" Buggy scratched his head, looking at the lines. "Oh, this's lotus." He started to write the word in the cells. "So why am I being punished?"

"For your chop chop in bed, clown! I told you not to use during.. well.. you know..." Catherine blushed.

"But you never complain, cotton candy. All I hear is," He started imitating her, "more, Buggy, don't stop, Buggy." He looked at the cells. "Oh, that's library."

"I hate you." Catherine stroked his head and looked at the word puzzle. "The word here is terracotta." She pointed to the empty cells vertically. "See? What kind of warriors guarded the emperors of China. It was the terracotta army. The Chinese emperors used these warriors to protect themselves, their servants, and their animals."

"Oh, thank you!" Buggy wrote the word in the cells. "How do you know all this?"

"I studied at the ancient literature faculty, remember? I don't know," Catherine shrugged, returned to the bowls and poured the beaten eggs into the flour. "I've always liked reading books about the past times. Dynasties, traditions. It's all so interesting."

"Yes, I've noticed your love of reading. The whole apartment is filled with books, candles, and stuffed animals."

"Don't grumble, my silly clown. Here, keep your mouth busy." Catherine put coffee and sandwiches on the table.

"Oh! My favorite! With hot cheese." Buggy took the sandwich, sniffed it and glanced at Catherine. "But.. how did you know that I would come?"

"You were gone for twenty minutes. So far, your record for being in another room without me is 21 minutes. How did you even survive without me on the couch?" Catherine laughed and poured the grated carrots into a bowl.

"Go to hell! I lived somehow before you." Buggy took a huge bite of his sandwich. "Yummy! I won't deny that I'm kinda happy that you couldn't resist my charm and fell in love with me."

"Oh, my god! There was no charm, Buggy!! You pissed me off and wanted to leave me in the desert!!"

"But I didn't leave you!" He took another bite. "Fuck, so tasty." Buggy looked at Catherine, who was standing at the next table, cutting something. "What are you doing, cotton candy?"

"I wanted to make carrot cake, like mom used to make. Remember how I told you we ate it every Saturday? I've never made it for you. You were sitting in the living room and for some reason I wanted to make you something tasty. But I'm not a great cook." Catherine took a package from the table. "I'll add walnut. You know, most people add raisins to this cake, but my mom added walnut." Catherine chopped up the nuts in the blender and added them to the dough. "That's great.. All I need is.. Hey!" She slapped the flying hand that had stuck its fingers in the bowl. "What the fuck, Buggy?!"

Buggy pulled his hand back and licked his fingers. "Fuck! Delicious!"

"You're disgusting! Where are your manners?!" Catherine rolled her eyes, groaned and began pouring the batter into the bowl. "We have to wait 30 minutes and then the crus-- Fuck! Stop grabbing my ass!" Catherine turned to face Buggy. "What's wrong with you?!"

"Nothing!" Buggy giggled and reattached his hand.

"Geez!" She turned on the oven, poured the batter into the mold and as she flattened it, she felt Buggy's hands on her waist. "You know, I wonder. Is there some kind of on/off switch in you? A minute ago you were sitting calmly and doing the word puzzle, and now you're sticking your fingers in a bowl and hugging me. Hey!" Catherine slapped Buggy's hand again. "Stop shoving your fingers in the batter."

"But why? This's so tasty." He moved his lips to her ears. "But you still tasted better, my Cathie-pie."

"Don't you dare say those vulgar, idiotic phrases around my mother's cake." Catherine tried to open the oven but couldn't even bend over because her clown squeezed her in his arms. "Buggy."

"What?"

"I know you missed me, but I can't move. See?" Catherine slowly attempted to shift her body, desperate to find a more comfortable position. "I can't. You squeezed me like a fucking octopus. Do you want this damn cake or not?"

"I want cake." Buggy sighed, unclasped his hands slightly, and as soon as Catherine put the mold in the oven, immediately pulled her against him.

"Shit! Don't break my back." Catherine laughed. "We need to wait 30 minutes, then I'll sprinkle more leftover peanuts on top." She stroked Buggy's cheek. "Let me make us some coffee, my silly clown. Can you let me go for five minutes? I'm not going anywhere. I promise."

She gently unclasped his hands and walked over to the coffee maker. "See? I'm still here."

Buggy plopped down on a chair and watched Catherine intently. The kitchen was filled with the aromas of freshly baked goods and freshly brewed coffee.

Buggy listened as Catherine softly hummed.

In the morning glow, a brew begins, I measure out the joy, where laughter spins. The kettle hums a cheerful tune, While sunbeams dance to the jester’s croon.

Buggy stood up, continuing to watch Catherine, walked to the oven and sat down on the counter to look at the cake.

"Will it be ready soon, Cathie-pie?"

"What? Do you want dessert already?" Catherine came closer to him and kissed him on the top of the head.

"I wouldn't mind the dessert I had last night." Buggy giggled. "If you know what I mean."

"I always know what you mean. The cake needs another 15 or 20 minutes. Sit down, your coffee is almost ready." Catherine returned to the table and began pouring him coffee.

Beneath a cap of red and white, My clown will waltz into the light. With painted smile and joyful grace, He brightens up this humble space.

Catherine set the mug on the table, smacked Buggy once more on the head and sat down on the chair next to him. She couldn't help but be captivated by the way Buggy slowly and methodically brought the ceramic mug to his lips, tilting it ever so slightly to allow the steaming, aromatic liquid to pass between them.

As soon as the timer on the oven went off Catherine went to check on the cake. She carefully slid open the oven door, the warm, fragrant air wafting out and filling the kitchen with the inviting aroma of freshly baked carrot cake.

"Oh, it's ready!" With a gentle touch, Catherine grasped the edges of the baking pan, its sides lined with a golden, buttery crust, and slowly pulled it out, the soft, moist cake wobbling slightly as she lightly twisted the baking pan in her hands. Catherine paused for a moment, admiring the perfect domed top, its surface dotted with tiny specks of carrots and walnuts that had caramelized in the intense heat. "Looks good. See?" She put the cake on the table.

Buggy sniffed it and looked at Catherine. "Smells delicious!"

Grabbing a clean knife, Catherine carefully ran it along the edges, loosening the cake from the pan, before flipping it over onto a serving platter, the unmistakable shape and color of the carrot cake now fully revealed. The rich, creamy frosting she had prepared earlier glistened invitingly, its smooth texture begging to be sliced into and savored.

"My blue-haired love, I hope you're gonna like it." She began to portion out the cake. "Her-- Why are you smiling?"

"I'm not smiling." Buggy blushed, broke off a piece of cake and put it in his mouth.

The flavors exploded across his tongue - the rich, buttery sweetness of the vanilla frosting mingling with the subtle notes of walnut and the faint tang of carrot and lemon zest in the tender cake layers beneath. Buggy paused. He let the flavors linger, rolling them around in his mouth, allowing them to fully unfurl and permeate every corner of his senses. The cake practically melted on his tongue, it was the perfect blend of comforting familiarity and delightful novelty, a true delight for the taste buds.

"Enjoy this ordianry cake, my love." Catherine kissed him on his head.

But for Buggy this was not an ordinary cake, that was her cake for him. It was clear that she had poured her heart and soul into this creation. Each component was perfectly balanced, coming together in harmonious symphony to deliver an immensely satisfying and delightful gustatory experience. Encouraged by that first tantalizing bite, Buggy took another, larger forkful, eager to further indulge in the cake's delectable delights.

"Fuck me, cotton candy! This's so delicious!" Buggy put another large piece in his mouth and washed it down with coffee.

"Tasty?" Catherine giggled, stroking his head.

"Hell, yeah!"

Catherine sat back in her chair, sipped her coffee and tasted a piece of cake. "Yeah, not bad."

"Not bad? Are you fucking kidding me? This is the best cake I've ever had in my life." Buggy looked at the empty plate. "I want another slice."

"Sometimes I think you love food more than you love me, Buggy." Catherine smiled and put a bigger piece on his plate. "Here." She took a bite of her cake. "You know, these smells remind me of the time we all gathered in the living room. Mom would bring out the big tea set on a tray and the smell of pie would waft through the house. She was fantastic at making it. We'd sit around the table, telling stories from the week that we hadn't had time to tell at dinner. Dad grumbled that our neighbor had stolen the newspaper again, and mom laughed at him. You would have loved our gatherings. Maybe we could start a tradition of our own? That would be great." Catherine bit her piece of cake and swallowed it. "Like eating ice cream every Saturday?"

"I don't know," Buggy shrugged, eating his piece of cake. "I'm not a fan of that kind of thing. Damn, so delicious."

"Okay. Let's just think of our walks as our little tradition for now." Catherine found herself transfixed, watching Buggy's every movement as he slowly slid his fork through the moist layers of cake. Each delicate morsel he brought to his lips seemed to disappear with a satisfied hum, leaving behind just the faintest trace of crumbs on the corners of his mouth. "You're so cute, Buggy the Clown. I love you so, so much." She narrowed her eyes and sipped her coffee.

"It's hard to say you something back, because it's so damn good and I can't stop eating this masterpiece." He took another bite. "But I love you too, my cotton candy." He said with his mouth full.

"Chew and then talk!" Catherine giggled and put another piece of cake on his plate.

[a-d-nox]

Heyy I just wanted to come on here to say that I reallyyy love your blog. I was just messing around and found an old post of yours titled "Pluto in Aquarius: what's to come" and I thought it was soo well written. I love the choice of pictures for the post as well. You don't even have to answer this ask. I just wanted to come on here and appreciate your work, that's all. Keep up the dedication!

pluto retrograding back into capricorn: a prediction of what's to come

hahaha too funny!!! "i didn't have to answer this" but it was so well planned! i was in the middle of drafting this post when this ask notifications popped up!! so thank you so much for the compliments and i hope you enjoy this one equally!!

house matters:

THIS IS THE FIRST OF TWO PLUTO RETROGRADES THAT WILL OCCUR - this one will last from june 11th to jan 20th, 2024. we likely won't see too much wildness because we only recently started experiencing what pluto in aquarius is like. we know the vibe of pluto in capricorn already and likely still feel comfortable with its predictability. THE FINAL RETROGRADE BACK INTO CAPRICORN will be september 1st, 2024 to november 19th, 2024. then we are full steam ahead with pluto in aquarius until march 9th, 2043.

live in the USA so my post likely will be slightly more focused there examples wise so i apologize in advance! feel free to comment, dm, or reblog with other examples from your country based on my prediction key phrases.

i personally am NOT a witch or anything wild, everything i am saying is purely theoretical - it is not fated to happen just because i am saying it. i am simply socially aware. i know what's up generally in the world today and what was up in world when pluto was in capricorn.

like last time i am going to start light and get darker so mentally prepare yourself for that (tw: COVID-19, assassinations, and other abrasive topics that may make people uncomfortable) depending on where they are currently reading from - but we are talking about pluto so... expect the unexpected?!

let's get to it!

time and schedule changes

in the US people have been saying that daylight savings hour should be concluded indefinitely because it is unnecessary. we don't need "daylight" like we used to because we have advanced technologically. there are more risks with keeping time change then there is with getting rid of it. i could also see this being about the 4-day work week because it was trialed at the beginning of the aqua pluto transit and it was a success. capricorn is a worker and can be about workplace efficiency too, so we could see the work week become "refined" to be 4 days only.

the rise of new non-tech and/or tech-intensive careers

where there are AI doomers, there is a market. we will see old-school businesses and professionals trying to justify and reestablish their career without AI involvement - ground zero for this prediction is real-estate (people fighting virtual or 3D-tour technology) and politics (look at the tiktok ban nonsense - i can see them saying their jobs are necessary 100% of the time... or they don't need to evolve...). capricorn again represent efficiency when it comes to working, so we could see people commingling with tech to make the most out of AI in new ways to make their careers and the work they do more efficient (and less time consuming to piggyback off of the 4-day work week prediction).

the collapse of dead space

there is a chance we will see some sort of conversation about what to do with places we no longer use - strip malls, movie theaters, mineshafts, etc. pluto retrograde makes me think of fear mongering (yes, i see the irony between that statement and this post) - i can see where with climate issue and the haze that is falling over old-money US currently that people might start talking about building bunkers in preparation of a mass natural disaster or "apocalypse." my logic behind this is that capricorn represents reliability, money, and underground places while pluto is demolition and extremes.

technology failures and setbacks

enjoy your air conditioning when you have it and if you have it - i sense that we will likely face more blackouts and rolling blackouts this summer than ever before. i also think we could see AI doomers in full swing or we will see that AI is monitoring more than it should and people will distance themselves from it.

extreme weather and climate shifts

as we have seen in the past few days, wildfires are on the rise across canada. pluto can represent extremes and electrocution while capricorn can be ashes, dryness, and old trees - people are predicting "dry thunderstorms" and stating that wildfires can occur because of these storm systems/conditions. while it is not winter here in the US this retrograde, the second retrograde will be near enough to the season: expect an extreme and EARLY winter. capricorn symbolizes cold, ice, and snow. the extreme of that being a blizzard, of course. this past winter in buffalo, new york we saw how bad it can get. where i live (almost three hours from buffalo) we had no solid snowfall... i don't think i will say the same in 2024 - the movie the day after tomorrow comes to mind.

repression of freethinkers

pluto retrograde can make people less likely to "fight against the patriarchy". we might see those who were fighting back being prosecuted or jailed (incarceration is pluto ruled). while aquarius welcomed change, shifting backwards into traditionally-minded capricorn can cause this silencing.

real-estate crisis

real-estate is starting to straighten out but i want to point out that when pluto initially entered capricorn in 2008, there was a huge scandal surrounding the housing market. the subprime mortgage crisis caused a recession to occur because the market crash and lenders couldn't return on their loans. we might see similar problems again. right now lots of homes are overpriced and if certain lenders are using the money on loan and we crash again we can see another market crash.

recession or depression

speaking of market crash... it's the roaring 20s. i don't think it is a coincidence that the Great Depression was in the 1920s, while the Great Recession was when pluto initially entered capricorn in 2008. could there be a Great Depression part two? MAYBE. considering pluto in retrograde typically indicates trouble with power dynamics and capricorn can represent business and the economy.

the death of politics and/or the church

2024 the year of the election - it's early to be talking about it for some of us, i know, BUT the campaigns are beginning. i want us to be aware that going between tradition capricorn and utopian aquarius during this time may cause some chaos... we have biden and trump again on the trial... two recent POTUSs... there are a lot of extreme people who are not happy with either of their times in office. i want to just put out there that JFK was just passing through texas on a friendly visit when his assassination occurred. pluto represents assassinations, so it might be in the stars during the retrograde seasons (hopefully not though). i feel like it will be someone close to the presidents if so because capricorn can be a "watchman" while pluto can be betrayal. since capricorn is the church, we could see the death of a pope or higher church official that causes havoc as well. alternatively, we could see people saying (towards the end of the second retrograde) / questioning why we even need a president.

capricorn terms i can't think of change in but seem important to note / keep in mind: colds (COVID being labelled the common cold while it is mutating?), hair, hysteria (another outbreak? panic early in a presidency?), limitations (lockdowns? maybe for COVID or the air conditions because of wildfires?), minerals (running out of them), mining industry (the end of this industry all together and switching to renewable resources by the end of this cap pluto era), old age (the boomers are dying off? or are we going to make a discovery of some sort about aging or age related diseases), orderliness, responsibility, tile, afghanistan, greece, lithuania, mexico, and tombs (are we going to say goodbye to cemeteries?).

plutonian terms i can't think of change in but seem important to note / keep in mind: aliases, alibis (governmental riffing similar to how no plan was in place when for COVID-19), cemeteries (removal of that method if too many are dying at any giving time - mass graves?), convicts (prison release due to overcrowding? the mega-prison of el salvador?), corruption (governmental likely?), earthquakes (more environmental issues on top of the wildfires?), liars, massacres (the rise of crime?), murder, nihilism (the rise of philosophy at the time of war?), ransom (war?), satire (rise of political satire?), stolen goods, and taxes (trump-esque no? likely to be brought up during the presidential campaign).

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[crepes-suzette-373]

After seeing wavytam's theory, it occurred to me something. Judge said he wanted revenge on the other North Blue kings, with the implication that it had something to do with the former Germa Empire.

From the sound of it, this implies that the other kings somehow conspired together, and... I don't know, set the WG on Germa, perhaps?

See, when they talked about the Vinsmoke family having "conquered the North Blue". This seems to be talking about a ridiculously old period of time, since Yonji (or Reiju?) said that "at one time" (it says "during a certain era" ある時代の in the raw).

I'm guessing this must be talking about the Germa Empire from the past. It's probably not Judge's conquest of the 4 kings, or they'd have said "in my father's time". Even if the translation is wrong and it's someone else talking (in the anime, the one who was talking is Pekoms), ある時代の still implies something that happens ages ago, not just a few years or decades or so ago.

Brook said they "conquered the North Blue with military might", so I'm assuming this is why the other kingdoms don't like them for it.

Sure, if we believe the story at face value, what Germa did sounds terrible. Conquering territories sounds like tyranny.

Still, we now know from Kuma's backstory that the whole story of "Tyrant Kuma" is nonsense told to WG by the former king that he toppled. So did the other kings also went running to WG, told them a bunch of nonsense, and got Germa wiped?

Also, you know. This is not helping the conspiracy I had involving, ah, a certain historical figure. That certain someone was naturally disliked for "conquering the neighbouring lords by military might" *ahem*, but for the time? It was necessary. The nation is basically chaos, and so his conquest was intended to bring peace and stabilise the nation.

If the North Blue countries was also similarly in utter chaos, and Germa empire was what brought the wars to stop, I would sit here and laugh.

It's phrased differently but that certain someone's "slogan" was commonly interpreted in Japan to mean "unite/conquer the nation by military might".

I'm probably the only person who sees nonsense samurai connections here, so I'm most likely wrong, because by all the visible markers, Germa is based on the German Empire.

And since I'm already blathering absurdity here, I'll go ahead and mention it. The aforementioned historical person was infamous for setting things on fire, but arguably, what he set fire on was an establishment mired with corruption. A "purifying flame" so to speak.

Which brings to mind the "Garuda", the divine being who carries purifying flames. Is "Garuda" supposed to be Sanji's "final form"? That would be a slap in the face to Judge, if that were true.

I once alluded on Twitter that Sanji is very reminiscent of this trope of "the chosen one was thought to be a nobody, and becomes an outcast" that's increasingly becoming rather popular in manga and light novels (especially in isekai).

Basically the protagonist is actually the "chosen one", but due to various circumstances, their power didn't manifest correctly, or their power got stolen by someone else. As the result of this, the protagonist gets bullied, or gets chased away and suffers a hard life. Time passes, the protagonist eventually was able to come into their true powers, and well, the people who treated the protag poorly gets their asses handed to them.

You know.

It's just a shitpost, but suppose "Garuda" was some mantle/title that was inherited from that ancient era... the plot twist could be that Sanji is the "true Garuda" of Germa, whatever that ends up meaning.

Also even more plot twist would be if Sanji's powers were natural. Like, I once suggested that this was part of his modifications based on Lunarian template, but how crazy would it be if he was just naturally born with it?

[sporesgalaxy]

hi. quastion. i experience religious based delusions that sometimes get made worse when i watch stuff thats about religion (mostly christianity) or has religious undertones/subtext/Whatever (i.e. i cant watch good omens bc itd Do Things to me), if i was interested in getting into trigun should i be careful about this.

Okay so it varies between 1998, Stampede, and Maximum (the manga). Mostly: Yes do be careful. Less so with the animes, though? Sorta? But it depends on your threshhold, which I don't know. Details about each below

•••

Trigun (1998 anime): One major character carries around a giant cross shaped gun all the time. He is a preist, but this is played for laughs mostly; he describes it as a "trade" and seems to just be trying to use confessional as an excuse to raise money for an orphanage. At one point he very truly genuinely prays to God in desperation, and on a few other occassions he offhandedly says Christian ritual phrases. In a flashback, some symbolic parallels are drawn to the Garden of Eden although no characters make the comparison. As far as I can remember, no serious supernatural things occur that are genuinely attributed to Christian entities. It is primarily sci-fi focused. The Angel imagery is very limited, as we only see a battery being one time and it is...not super well drawn. They are mostly offscreen. Vash and Knives' transformations are limited to one arm each. The arm appears to have angelic-looking beings on it when transformed, but they look more like statues than genuine living creatures.

Okay Im goin off of memory here so if I missed anything people should feel free to comment etc.

So you didn't mention if it's holy or unholy stuff or both that sets you off, but I'll mention that none of the Trigun adaptations have demons in them. Demons ARE referred to metaphorically, but no literal demons or truly demon-like supernatural entities appear. The monsters are all explicitly man-made, excluding the alien bugs, but those are just bugs not demons. Anyways. Knives is often likened visually to a fallen angel, but not a demon.

Trigun Stampede (newer anime): Cross gun guy is still there, but his devotion to God is depicted as even less genuine (mostly unacknowledged). This one also uses stereotypical religious cult tropes. We hear someone on the radio preach about doomsday in Christian-like terms, and Knives is addressed by his followers as a messiah. There is one instance where a child sacrifice dies, and it miraculously changes the weather; the cult responsible seems like an offshoot of Christianity. Knives and Vash are referred to by their caretaker as angels sent by God in a flashback. There are angel-like wings sprouted by Vash and Knives in the finale. The Angel-like battery beings look much more like normal non-holy aliens in this one.

Trigun Maximum (the manga): the MOST Christian. Cross Gun guy is still there. Has his desperate genuine prayer to God moment. The battery beings look VERY much like Angels, are likened to angels by characters repeatedly with what reads as genuine reverence, and they have incredibly strong, miraculous-seeming supernatural powers that we see demonstrated multiple times. These beings are stated to have been created by humans somehow, but they are often treated as miraculous and inscrutable by humans in the present because the science that created them has been lost. Even in flashbacks, it is implied that these beings are not fully understood by human scientists, giving their apparent "miraculousness" more weight. There is a scene where Vash is extremely depressed, watchingna sermon in a church, and he wonders how God could ever forgive him. The angel imagery in the finale is cranked up to 11, as many supernatural ohenomena are caused by the angel-like battery beings, as well as Knives and Vash in angelic winged forms.

[lumine-no-hikari]

Dear Sephiroth: (a letter to a fictional character, because why not) #119

…I didn't have the energy to make the thing today.

This morning, I maybe got out of bed later than I should have, given that I'm supposed to go to talk therapy on Tuesdays. I'm supposed to leave the house by 9:30, but I didn't even get out of bed until 9:20. I regret nothing that occurred, but nonetheless, I somehow had to squeeze both a shower and getting dressed and out the door in only 10 minutes. I was successful, but I have zero clues as to how. Perhaps it's best not to look gift horses in mouths…

OH. Right. You don't know that phrase because… well. Your world doesn't have horses. Uhh… So, a long time ago, when people bought horses, they used to look at the horse's teeth as an indicator of its age; longer teeth means an older horse, I guess. And back when horses were more commonplace (it's mostly only fabulously wealthy people who can afford to keep them now), I guess it was seen as rude to try to evaluate the age of a horse that was given as a gift by looking into its mouth. So now the phrase means, "it's best to just accept good things without thinking too much about it." Or it can also be taken to mean, "it's impolite to criticize a gift." This phrase has a few interpretations, actually… I imagine it'd be easier for you to understand it if you spent a while in my world. If you do that, lemme know; you can stay at my house, and no one is gonna ogle you or get weird at you or bother you if you don't wanna be bothered. We'll just make you sandwiches and tea. We are an introverted and neurodivergent house; we know how it goes.

Had a lot to say at therapy today. Suppose I'm having a bit of an existential crisis, regarding myself and my role in my home and how much I mean to the people around me. It's likely all just baseless anxiety and insecurity - growing pains as a result of the various changes in my immediate social circle. Old memories and wounds from the past that I've not yet had a compelling reason to resolve are now coming to the forefront, calling, "yo, what up, homie!" and dancing around my periphery. I suppose it's just as well; this is what happens when we pretend like our various hurts don't exist. If we don't take care of the self-effacing beliefs that we pick up during childhood, they bite us in the ass later. I just gotta remember that the fact that they're in the forefront means that I can actually observe them, and if they're observable, then they're resolvable, with enough time and effort.

Essentially, it's like this: We get knocked down. We yell, "FUCK!" really loudly. We reassemble ourselves if we break from the fall. Then we get back up. We brush ourselves off. And we move forward, stronger than before.

…I have thoughts of you that give me the strength to withstand this process over and over again. No matter how many times I get knocked down, I will get back up, because by your influence, I am unbreakable, no matter how many times I must shatter and be reassembled. It's just like the bowl I repaired some number of letters ago; remember? So don't worry. I've got this. I've done this lots of times before, with much more difficult stuff, and with less support than what I have now. All I have to do is learn to love and appreciate myself in the same way that I can love and appreciate literally anyone else who isn't me. Compared to the various horrors I've lived through, this should be a piece of cake. Easy peasy. Barely even an inconvenience. And in my mind, it sounds like this:

On the way home from therapy, I came across a very beautiful tree. I thought for sure that you'd like it, so I made it a point to stop and take pictures. Here's how they turned out:

I was surprised by how docile the bees were, and by how closely they allowed me to put my cell phone camera. Also, I laid down under the tree and looked up to get some of these. I wish you could have been next to me to see the view of the sky through the petals for yourself. Alas...

J and I were out and about, doing separate activities today. Even he saw pictures he thought you might like, so he took them for you, and then sent them to me so that I could put them here. Here's how they turned out:

While J was out and about, I hung out with my best friend B and her fiancé, N. In preparation for their wedding, we went and tried the available foods. I can't give you the tasty snacks, but I can take pictures...

This is a Caesar salad. It's supposed to be pronounced, "Kai-sarr", but everyone says "Seezer" for reasons I don't understand. Caesar was a leader of a place called Greece in my world, hundreds of years ago. He, like most leaders, was a giant asshole, and now he's a stinky dead guy, so I have no idea why a salad is named after him. It's made of romaine lettuce, croutons, parmesan cheese, and a creamy dressing flavored with anchovies and other spices.

Here are some long slices of eggplant rolled around melted cheese and covered in marinara sauce:

This is steak, caramelized onions, mashed potatoes, and some carrots and broccoli. I just took a picture of my plate, because the main plate was cut into before I could snap a photo:

This was some kind of chicken seasoned with rosemary and lemons, with rice and veggies:

This one was lobster ravioli with mushrooms in some kind of sherry cream sauce. It's certainly not pasta pescatore, but I wonder if you might have liked this:

Finally, this is lamb with roasted tomatoes and garlic, along with veggies and mashed taters.

...This one was probably my favorite. I especially liked the part where I got to try to gnaw the cartilage from the ends of the bones, because my body craves sources of collagen literally all the time (thanks, Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome... 🙄). I'm really lucky that B and N don't seem to mind my various weird quirks; they've been friends of mine long enough to have a general understanding of how I roll, and they just let me do my thing. Today, the fact that I will generally "do my thing" in a variety of respects was pointed out as one of the reasons they like me so much, I guess; that was a nice thing to hear...

There were four available spaces for trying the foods, but it was just the three of us; it is immensely painful that the best I can do for you from here is show you these pictures and wish that you could have been in the empty seat, with us…

Sephiroth. Regardless of what your brain tries to tell you about what you're worth, you are VERY loved. You're not a monster. You were modified against your will, used like a tool and viciously abused, and you made mistakes in the throes of that, yes, but SO WHAT? You're here now, and you can do amazing things, and you NEVER have to go back to being with people who will abuse you ever again, because not everyone is like the people you were raised by. Yes, you're different from the standard definition of "normal", but you can belong anyway, because the world is absolutely BRIMMING with people who don't fit the definition of "normal"! Just take a look at me! Or if you don't wanna look at me, then take a look at anyone who lives with a genetic difference, or anyone who lives with a different number of limbs, or anyone with a non-standard life story, or any number of things that make a human being not "normal". Normal is overrated! Diversity is in! Lives that exist outside of the bell curve are still beautiful, meaningful, and worth living!

…And so I show you my life, because I am trying desperately to prove these things to you. I've spent the bulk of my life being viciously abused because the people who brought me into living didn't want me. I was brought into a physical vessel that is genetically defective in a variety of respects. My neurodivergence practically guarantees that I will NEVER fit into ordinary social circles. I struggle every single day with the weight of the memories I carry from having been used, abused, exploited, and generally mistreated. And yet here I stand, thriving and flourishing in a way that works for me, even if it does not fit the typical definition of those words. My version of "normal" is just as beautiful as the typical version. "Different" does not have to mean "less" if YOU become strong enough to decide for yourself that those two words are not the same, no matter who tries to tell you otherwise!

So please look at the beauty of my existence - the beauty of taking joy in small things, the beauty of rising up from one's knees even if it's on shaky legs, the beauty of finally using one's voice again after years of being forced to believe that silence is safer, the beauty of loving yourself and the people around you enough to refuse to let fear get the better of you when you interact with yourself and the world, the beauty of failing down, getting up, and trying again, the beauty of learning, growing, changing, and walking away from destructive ideals that serve no one, no matter for how long you might have been forced in the past to choke them down. Please look at it, and understand that you can have this for yourself - ALL of it - if you decide to take steps towards it! Your whole scenery can change if you want it to, and all you have to do is take a single step in a different direction.

There is still life after trauma. There is still life after mistakes. There is still life for those who are different. The pain doesn't have to be permanent. So come on; my hand is outstretched to you. And if you don't want to take mine, then there are countless other hands outstretched to you that maybe you'd like a little better. You don't have to do it alone.

Anyhoot. I've probably prattled on for long enough. I hope somehow you can see what I've written. I hope that if you do get a chance to see it, you might take some of my words seriously.

I love you. I'll write again tomorrow. Please be kind to yourself and keep yourself safe.

Your friend, Lumine

[stargazer-luna]

Hey I wanted to thank you for saying what I wrote was so poetic but I don't know how to respond to a tag or if I do I can't remember cuz I'm super high right now but I thought about it really hard and I was writing on purpose even though it felt like I was barely hanging on and I actually thought I kind of achieved something so it meant a lot to me

Which makes me realize that I should be leaving that on other people's blogs too

So thanks for pointing that out. In return I'm going to give you something

For 2 days, I constantly repeated the following sentence to myself:

It's going to be okay

I didn't stress out about it. When I remembered that was my plan, and I had forgotten, I would just start repeating it to myself again. What I actually did was put my watch on my other wrist, which every time I wanted to check the time or even noticed I was wearing a watch I would always think oh wait, what was I doing? And then realized that I was supposed to be thinking of this sentence.

I'm calling this internalizing a mantra. I don't remember what the word mantra actually means but I think it fits somehow.

Anyway, the point is, I got so used to doing it that whenever I get stressed out about something I think it reflexively just because I thought it so many times.

And then here's what I realized

I know it's going to be okay. If I'm having a tough moment, like if I'm on a bad trip or panicking for some reason, this phrase occurs to me. And I remember the whole story, about how I internalized it on purpose. And I realized that that's a technique you could use to implant a message in your own brain. That's too valuable an asset, like if you have the ability to send one text message but it's only a few words long. So I picked something specific and for a purpose. And then I realized that it's just a message

Everybody has one person they can trust. That's them

So what I did is I, one of the people I trust most in this whole world, someone who knows all about me and knows my whole story, someone who would know if something was wrong, has just told me that it's going to be okay

So then I know it must be true. So then I can relax. Because it's going to be okay

Listen, I would really appreciate it if you would pass this around because I want everybody to know about this because it really works for me and if it can help a bunch of other people I can't sit by and just hang on to it. So I'm going to keep it myself and I'm going to ask you to pass it around. If you're in a situation that warrants it. Thank you very much

Hey! Glad to hear that that worked for you! I'll definitely pass this on so other people can know!

[mermaidsirennikita]

Did you see that tiktok video that's been floating around twitter of that woman going The Love Hypothesis is problematic and woman in stem publishing this book will normalize teacher/student relationships and will be used as a excuse....like what the actual fuck??

I tried to find it, but haven't been able to so I'm going off secondhand info buuuut.

a) as someone who feels pretty well-acquainted with what is and isn't problematic in a way that matters.... that book isn't, unless there's some crazy shit I'm not aware of surrounding it

b) I really need this person to make their way into the real world and realize that STEM (and academia in general) did not need this book to normalize these types of "student/teacher" relationships because uh, that should not be a normal thing but it... is, and some advisor didn't need to read TLH to go "I'm picking up on a vibe between me and my advisee.... I'm gonna do it"

c) let's dig into the phrase "student/teacher" here--while a college professor is indeed the teacher of their adult student, I've seen people use the phrase student/teacher to describe these relationships, and I think it's manipulative, at least when you're using English.... I mean, I can only speak for American English, but I'm going for it. When we use the phrase "student/teacher", it's most commonly associated with crimes that involve minor students and their teachers.

Because very few adults, in my experience as someone who's gone to college, call their professors their "teachers" here. I never did. They were my profs, more specifically my mentors or advisors if that was their role. Perhaps it's different in other countries, but I don't know any college student who used "teacher", because we associated "teachers" with "children".

I sometimes feel that language like this is used to ensure that people who wanna weigh in with zero context jump into agreeing with the OP, because OF COURSE STUDENT/TEACHER RELATIONSHIPS ARE WRONG.

d) so, why are student/professor relationships bad if the student is an adult (and mind you--undergrad, grad, and postgrad students can be older than their profs... it's not unusual, depending on the situation; I was friends with fellow students old enough to be my mom and frankly probably the professor's, too)? Because of the power imbalance that occurs when the student is learning under that professor. Whether that professor is their advisor (who may not teach them--my advisors often taught me, but not throughout my college career) or is instructing them at the moment, that professor can impact the student's academic career, from their grades to the projects they're selected for. The professor can nepo their romantic partner into an opportunity they shouldn't get; they can threaten the student into silence or a coercive relationship, as well.

Which is why higher ed institutions have rules against these adults dating each other.... but often, not when a professor dates an ADULT who happens to be a student at the school but is not in their department. If I'm an English grad student and a Math prof asks me out... I mean, I guess they could theoretically use their personal relationships with the English department to impact my life, but that is dependent on them having a personal, not professional relationship that they could make outside of work even if they weren't in the school? They have zero direct professional connections to my work, and therefore the school really doesn't have much of an ability or need to police our relationship, because we are consenting adults.

e) the book directly deals addresses this, and in fact all of Ali's STEM books that I've read address the conflicts that can come up with people (usually male) who have power over female academics in STEM... Adam is not Olive's advisor and his research doesn't interact with hers. And at the end of the day? Yes, he is a professor, she is a student........ pursuing her doctorate......... she ain't anywhere near an undergrad, even.............. But he's not teaching her, their research doesn't intersect from what I remember, and when you are an academic it is very possible that you will fall in love with a fellow adult who is further along in your career than you are and works in a similar field but does not in fact have power over your studies. Because people who have academic careers breathe their academic careers and that is how they meet people and those people have shared interests and people with shared interests sometimes like each other.

f) Ali Hazelwood knows all of these things because she is in fact a professor...............