#like how did we come up with that

[bri-cheeses]

Christmas Post!!

Okay so I just had this idea so sorry if it’s a little sloppy, but anyways here we go.

The Hufflepuff six and seventh years organize a huge Christmas party the night before everyone goes home. They leave the fifth years out of it because they’re way too stressed about school and homework and O.W.L.s, but the rest of the “upperclassmen” want to party. So they get to work inviting six and seventh years from all of the other houses, which is easy because they’re Hufflepuffs who have countless friends that they can invite.

But anyways, this is the Marauders’ seventh year and the Skittles’ sixth year, so both groups are invited. The day before they have to leave for Christmas break, almost every six and seventh year in the castle heads to the seventh floor, to this one very specific hallway where there’s a tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy and a couple of pacing Hufflepuffs directing people to a door that is, quite simply, just suddenly there. (James and Sirius recommended it to the Hufflepuffs when they were looking for a place to host the party, but they conveniently forgot to correct the Hufflepuffs when they assumed that it was a very specific and odd room that only appeared the day before Christmas break).

When the students walk in, they realize that they were right to dress up in fancy outfits like the invitation card said, because it is decked out in there. Where exactly “there” is, no one is quite sure, but it seems to be a giant ballroom that no one knew about until today. There’s a large section a floor that’s been left open for dancing, and one side of it is ringed with a wide range of different styles of tables and chairs. There are low, rectangle tables that sit twenty or so, along with high, round tables that sit only two or three. The overall effect should be chaotic, but somehow the tables are arranged in a way that makes it look purposeful and aesthetic. There are also centerpieces at each table, poinsettias and candy cane towers and miniature figurines of reindeer and Santa’s sleigh, and it makes the whole place feel extremely festive.

In addition to this, there’s a long table that’s near the other tables (for convenience) that holds heaps of food. Since the Hufflepuff common room is so close to the kitchens, they’re quite good friends with the house elves and convinced them to cook a feast for tonight. Some of the Hufflepuffs even helped the house elves to make the food, and they had a blast hanging out and cooking with the elves.

Hung from the ceiling are garlands and strands of pearls, and mistletoe that grows in random places. There are also little fairies hovering up there, and it makes for quite a beautiful overhead scene. And, opposite of the side of the room with the tables, one wall is made completely of glass. It looks out over the dark lake, which adds to the beauty of the room because of the light of hundreds of stars in the night sky reflecting off of the black water.

It’s so beautiful that the Slytherin Skittles almost forget to breathe when they walk in, wearing their finest because Evan, their resident fashion expert, insisted on following the directions on the card they were given. They all look absolutely stunning, and certain Gryffindors ( *ahem* James *ahem* Marlene) are certainly not staring as they make their entrance. (For reference, the outfits I’m imaging the Skittles in are based on this post by @melemart ).

Pandora drags Evan off to go find Xenophilius, and Barty follows them because he’s a weak man who follows Evan everywhere like a lost puppy. Especially when Evan is looking like that.

This leaves Regulus and Dorcas with the task of finding a table for them, but since Evan insisted on arriving at a “fashionably late” time, most of the tables are already full. The only table with enough room for the six of them (5 Skittles, 1 Xenophilius), is one of the low tables that seats a ridiculous amount. And there’s already plates there, but they’ve been temporarily abandoned. Besides, the plates are all on one toward one end of the table, and there’s plenty of room for the Skittles to sit.

So they do, waiting for Pandora, Evan, and Barty to return with Xeno. When they do, they get up to go to the table with all the food, picking up delicate china plates that have swirling, moving paintings of winter scenes on them. They load up with all the food they can muster, and Barty gets particularly excited when he sees that they have arancini that look (somewhat surprisingly, he mutters) like they’re traditionally supposed to.

After the Skittles have filled up their plates with soups and salad and stir fry and pizza and steak and chicken and tacos and pasta and dumplings and everything else you can imagine, they return to their table. However, they return to find it filled with the owners of the plates of food—the so called “Marauders” and their friends.

Dorcas ends up next to Marlene, across from Regulus, who shoots them a worried glance. It’s no secret that Dorcas and Marlene are bitter rivals on the Quidditch pitch, and he, along with everyone else, is worried that they’re going to get into some sort of fight. It is a secret, however, that Marlene and Dorcas have been meeting up for the past month or so, and are no longer rivals—if they ever really were. In fact, Dorcas has been planning for a while now to ask Marlene to be her girlfriend once they get back from Christmas break. It’s hard keeping something as wonderful as her growing relationship with Marlene a secret from anyone—especially her closest friends. She’s not sure that she’s done the best job at hiding it, either, typically leaving whatever room she’s in when she realizes that Marlene has a free period, poorly made excuses flying out her mouth as she leaves in a hurry.

But Dorcas gets lucky tonight, because if she tenses up from sitting next to Marlene, her friends simply chalk it up to that old Quidditch rivalry.

Marlene smirks when she notices how rigid Dorcas has gone beside her. Then she simply starts digging in to her food, that infuriating smirk still on her face, and Dorcas wants to kill her. Not really though. But almost.

Across from them, Regulus has long since stopped eyeing them with a worried look. He has taken to staring intently down the table at a diagonal angle. For all their obliviousness when it comes to Dorcas, however, the rest of the Skittles know exactly who Regulus is staring at, and why. Barty huffs a laugh when he sees what Regulus is doing, and shakes his head. Regulus shoots him a glare before going back to what he was doing, this time managing to be slightly more discreet as he eats.

Barty and Evan sit next to each other, Barty gesturing animatedly about something while Evan watches with an amused expression. Barty is sitting next to Dorcas, and Evan is at the end of the table, which suits him just fine. It means that he can keep his full attention on Barty without feeling like he’s ignoring the person next to him.

He wonders distantly about what’s in the eggnog that Barty swiped a few glasses of as Barty’s gestures get bigger and bigger, and his words starts to get tinged with a hint of a Sicilian accent. It’s cute, and Evan sits there with an absentminded smile on his face as he nods along to Barty’s rant about he and his grandma make the perfect arancini.

Across from them, next to Regulus, is Pandora and Xeno. They’re currently in a debate about which would be more interesting to see—an octopus made up of jello, or a caterpillar made of a cheese puff. Pandora argues for the octopus, because one, jello is her favorite food (and let’s be honest, who doesn’t like jello?) and two, octopi are fascinating creatures. (“Seriously, Xeno, just imagine what it would be like to see a jello octopus juggling eight different things at the same time!”) But Xeno argues for the caterpillar, because what would it be like when it changed into a butterfly? Would it have a chrysalis that’s made of cheese? Or would it be made of puff? Or would it be made out of Cheez-It Puffs? And would the butterfly be a cheese puff too, or would it just be orange? Eventually Dorcas and Marlene get pulled into their conversation, despite being several seats down, and Marlene argues vehemently for the octopus while Dorcas sides with Xeno, because really, what would its chrysalis be made out of?

And Evan and Barty get up to go get more eggnog and to see what the new, sudden fuss about the food table is, and they see that it’s turned into a dessert table now. And Barty once again gets extremely excited because look, Evan, they have gelato! And so while Barty piles up on that, Evan grabs some cheesecake and a brownie.

They return to their table bringing the good news, and it causes a small stampede as those who are finished with their meals get up to go get dessert. Barty and Evan enlist Regulus to help them bring back eggnog, and they come back with a tray of glasses that they set in the middle of the table.

And eventually everyone returns, and most people snag a glass, and there is definitely something in that eggnog, Evan decides, because the conversation starts flowing so easily between both sides of the table that it starts to feel like they’ve all been good friends for a long while.

And then there’s mistletoe growing over Marlene and Dorcas’ heads and they don’t notice until it’s almost in their faces, and suddenly Regulus is laughing his head off because their faces are so red. He just doesn’t understand what the real reason why they’re blushing so hard is until Marlene says “Fuck it” and leans in to kiss Dorcas on the mouth. And then everyone is hooping and hollering and it’s chaos, but it dies down after a while.

And so Barty and Evan sneak off to go to the dance floor, and Pandora and Xeno leave to go find some of Xeno’s friends, and Sirius drags Remus off to go show him some of the constellations that you can see out the window.

And it’s a good thing that Sirius leaves, because maybe Regulus has finally had enough of waiting, or maybe there truly is something in that eggnog, because suddenly Regulus stands up abruptly, scraping his chair on the floor, and goes around to the other side of the table. No one knows what he’s doing until he grabs James’s face in his hands and kisses him hard, and then James is reaching up to grab Regulus’s face too and they’re practically making out in front of everyone.

And when Barty and Evan hear about it, they’re furious. Because what do you mean Regulus finally made a move, and they weren’t there to see it? After putting up with his whining and pining for years, they don’t even get to see the fruits of their labor?

And so Evan has to go running off in search of some more gelato for his boyfriend in an attempt to cool him down, and then they go over to the window to where there are some high tables that sit two, and they have a good time sharing gelato and looking out at the castle grounds.

Further down from them, Sirius is still pointing out constellations, oblivious to the uproar that just happened at their table, while Remus watches him with a fond look in his eyes.

Marlene and Dorcas take to the dance floor, and Dorcas has just worked up the courage to ask when Marlene blurts out “Do-you-wanna-go-on-a-date—I-mean-like-a-real-date—it’s-okay-if-you-don’t-but-I-just-thought-that-I’d-ask-please-say-yes.” And Dorcas stands shocked for minute, trying to process what Marlene just said. Marlene has just started to get truly worried when Dorcas smiles and leans in to kiss her for a good long minute, before she pulls back and grins and says “I would love that.”

And Pandora and Xeno have also started to dance, but they aren’t dancing in the typical sense of the word. They’re twirling around with their arms up, laughing and having a great time confusing everyone with what they’re doing.

James and Regulus are still at the table, talking to each other, and Regulus actually looks really, really happy for once.

Lily and Mary are standing by the desert table, having what looks like a very deep conversation, and Marlene and Dorcas start to bet on when they’ll get together. Marlene has fifty bucks on January, but Dorcas doesn’t think that it will be until at least Valentine’s Day.

Peter and his date, Benjy Fenwick, have struck up a conversation with some Hufflepuffs, who just brought out a game of Apples to Apples, and they couldn’t be having a better time.

When they all leave several hours later, they all agree that it’s the best Christmas party they’ve ever been to, and the Hufflepuffs start talking about making it a yearly tradition.

Leaving Hogwarts the next day is harder than it’s ever been, but spending Christmas with their families is a nice trade off. Barty gets to spend his Christmas with his grandma this year, since his father is away on a business trip, and he couldn’t be happier about it. Evan and Pandora spend their break in Switzerland, on their yearly skiing trip, and Regulus finally accepts the Potter’s invitation to spend Christmas with them. Dorcas and Marlene promise to send owls to each other, and the constant rapping of owls at their windows never fails to bring a smile to their faces.

All in all, it’s the best Christmas any of them have ever had, and they couldn’t be happier.

[welcometogrouchland]

[ID in ALT] I've made posts before about Talia/Dick co-parenting Damian moments (will never happen but let me dream) and this came to me in a vision. Took me ages to finish for some reason 😭 and then even longer to post

[bacchuschucklefuck]

they licensed his ass

my finished piece of the FWMS (official name definitely 100%) thing we started a few days ago! I had fun I hope folks had and/or continue to have fun with the sketch as well.

[thottybrucewayne]

I think what I want to get into with the "Anyone can do harm." thing that I keep beating yall over the head with is that literally anyone, anyone at all can do harm it's not "in your DNA" to be an abuser or written in the stars that you'll be a predator. Whatever image you have of an abuser in your head, drop it and replace it with your favorite person in the world and you'll probably be closer to the truth than you realize. It's easy to address harm when it's coming from someone you already hate. I see it happen all the time. Someone you couldn't stand for no real reason does something heinous then all of a sudden here comes the avalanche of "I always knew they were a fucked up individual." No, you didn't. There is no possible way you could have known, you just already didn't fuck with them before they started doing something you could use to justify your hatred of them. I'm guilty of it too! I'm petty, mean, vindictive, and yes! I'm way quicker to believe something bad about someone I hate versus someone I love because I'm human. Still, y all gotta learn to move past that initial "Well, they were always nice to me!" gut feeling and understand that nobody truly knows anyone and anyone can be capable of anything. Even victims. Even you.

[babacontainsmultitudes]

Not a Francis hater, not a Francis apologist, but a secret third thing (watching him be a fucked up little freak and enjoying the show 🍿)

[nebuladreamz]

A little different than last year's, but here we are again. To say that this past year hasn't been absolutely wild would be a lie, cause HOLY SHIT MAN

This year's birthday is. A little different for me, but you already have the silly comic to show that so I won't make like a broken record oops

But, despite the changes and hills that life's decided I should climb or throw at, it hasn't changed the fact that I'm so genuinely fucking thankful to the people that I've known since joining this fandom. I'm not even kidding when I say that being here has actually changed my life for the better. I know I said something similar last year, but this time, hoo boy it sure turned up the AMP and test how far I could go.

So, to everyone, both new and old; thank you for being here :D

@garbagechocolate @darkxsoulzyx @smoljeanius @bunmuffin @skizabaa

@tuzesdays @sleepykas @fernzwing @kandidandi @starsketchez

@just-a-drawing-bean @notdysfunk @ilsole @amberluvsbugs @cloudyvoid

@nomsthecat @alfinefalf @nosleepygay @theblog-with-thestuff

@cacaocheri

(Edit: ty kibbits for informing me of the. Fuck ass tagging system)

AND TAGGING OTHERS BECAUSE. POINTS. BONKS WITH HEAD. GETTING TO EITHER INTERACT OR TALK OR WHATEVER IS ALWAYS A DELIGHT

@ohno-the-sun @kibbits @ink-yy @saltyfryz @kaprisvn

@hierba-picante @sunny-sophies-garden @cookiiemancer @sneeblbop @justaduckarts

@pepethehumanz @crystalmagpie447 @woolysstuff @mocha-illustrates @duhsty1

@sanchensky @pillowspace @victarin @witherfide

[I DEFINITELY GOT SONAS WRONG AND THESE AREN'T ALL THE SILLY PEOPLE I KNOW BUT IM SITTING HERE AT 2:30 IN THE MORNING JUST KNOW YOU'RE THERE IN SPIRIT HANDING YOU ALL POPTARTS WAUGH]

[claraoswalds]

It's racist, my dear, to be blunt. People come from outside, they think we're all witches and druids. For God's sake, child, you walked into a piece of string!

[knockknockitsnickels]

I think this is one of my favorite lines from the Wraith route because of (imo) how much the meaning changes depending on if you got there via Spectre or Nightmare. For Spectre, it honestly strikes me as a genuine question. Why are you doing this to her? If you're on the Spectre route, you presumably already know the Narrator can't really be trusted, since you had to reject his reward to get here. What are you hoping to gain from continuing to hurt her? For Nightmare, it honestly just makes me sad. As the Shifting Mound describes her, "She desires only companionship, but the only thing she knows is how to hurt." This line feels like a plea from someone who genuinely doesn't understand why you keep rejecting her. She wants to be with you, but she just can't understand how to do that in a way which doesn't hurt you.

[naamahdarling]

You know what? You know what I think?

I think that if we lived as we were meant to, in larger intimate ("extended family") groups and with more shared labor and time to do it (UBI NOW) people like me would not feel so useless and burdensome because there would be people around to help and to do what neurodivergent people can't while making valuable space for the neurodivergent to do what they ARE good at.

The way we live right now, all right, the way we live right now forces units of two adults to be able to do EVERYTHING or PAY to have someone come do it for them. I have to do the housework. I have to do it! But I am having to do a million different things and most of them I am not good at. I suck at them.

I wouldn't feel like shit, okay, if I had more than one other person around who was not a child and who could do the things I can't, like do the yard and cook and do repairs and basic maintenance; and someone else to split everything else that I like but is too much for me. It would free me to do what I am good at and enjoy. Cleaning, as in the sink and toilet, the windows, the blinds. Taking out trash. Folding, hanging, and sorting laundry.

But because all the shit I can do often relies on other shit being done first, and I can't do or have trouble doing those things, the shit I can do often can't be done. And even the shit I can do, I can't do ALL of it. So I can't keep up, and things get very bad.

We aren't meant to live like this. We are not meant to live like this.

That thought hurts so much because being able to flee the birth family is integral to survival for so many people. I'm so afraid that living in larger family groups would create more opportunities for, say, queer kids to be isolated, rejected, bullied, and abused. But if we gave people enough money to survive, and stopped considering children the property of their parents with no system in place to help them escape bad situations except a system that is often just as bad, just different.

I'm aware that communes and collectives aren't all that successful and are kind of a joke. I don't mean that. I mean a fundamental shift to multigenerational families where taking in "strays" (which my family did) is also normalized so people escaping abuse into existing households was accepted, with these families centered in maybe a couple of different larger residences so not everyone has to buy and maintain their own fucking washing machine and vacuum cleaner, and so people can benefit from large group meals that yield leftovers, and so child and elder care can also be centralized.

Then disabled people and the neurodivergent and sick and injured people, and pregnant people, and grieving people, would not have to either labor through all those stressors or consign themselves to living off an unlivable pittance or being put under legal guardianship.

I'm not saying anything new. People live like this in other parts of the world and maybe it sucks and I am wrong. But I'm just really mad right now because I can either do laundry or clean the sink but not both, and I really think we could improve society somewhat by making it so I did not have to choose one without sacrificing the other.

[tangents-within-tangents]

Hot take:

Crosshair does not have the Imperial disillusionment and redemption arc of The Bad Batch

Emerie does.

Crosshair has an arc for sure yes but it's not that.

I was thinking about this scene:

and how it got right what this scene kinda didn't:

(It was so close but then bad writing decided to undercut the moment with a joke rip)

And I think it's really interesting that these characters who were more or less raised into the Empire/First Order and chose to leave it are all directly asked why.

But take a look at Crosshair's answers in comparison:

Different context for the asking, yes, but still, compare that to clones like Howzer, Cody, Slip and Cade who left or turned against the Empire because they knew what the Empire is doing is wrong and they weren't just going to blindly follow orders:

Crosshair - Loyalty, Purpose, and Survival

Crosshair didn't choose to join the Empire (though the show isn't very clear or consistent about how much control the inhibitor chips have) but he did, for whatever reason, choose to stay. By the end of S1 we know his chip has been removed and as he definitively says "This is who I am." There were likely still other influences on his decision, but listen to how he talks about the Empire in the S1 finale:

Hunter: Crosshair, I've seen what the Empire is doing. Occupying planets and silencing anyone who stands against them. You know it's not right. Crosshair: You still don’t see the bigger picture, but you will. Hunter: Can't you see they're using you?

Crosshair: We’re not like the regs, we never have been. We’re superior. The Empire can’t protect the galaxy without strength, this is what we were made for. Think of all we could do, together!

Crosshair: You all are meant for more than drifting through the galaxy. It’s time to stop running. Join the Empire, and you will have purpose again.

Hunter: They destroyed an entire city! Crosshair: They did what needed to be done. Kamino, regs, the Republic, that time is over. The Empire will control the entire galaxy, and I am going to be a part of it. Hunter: Don't fool yourself. All you'll ever be to them is a number.

He undeniably knows what the Empire is doing, but he does not care. In fact it sure sounds like he actually supports it and finds self-meaning in it. Hunter spends those episodes trying to convince him it's wrong, he doesn't change his mind. In the end they offer him an out and he doesn't take it.

Wrecker: You coming with us? Crosshair: None of this changes anything. Hunter: You offered us a chance, Crosshair. This is yours. Crosshair: I made my decision.

The next we see Crosshair in "The Solitary Clone" (S2:E3) he follows orders and shoots the Desix governor, right after Cody heartbreakingly tries to do what's right and find a peaceful solution.

Cody: Tell me something, Crosshair. This new Empire, are we making the galaxy better? Crosshair: We’re soldiers, we do what needs to be done. Cody: You know what makes us different from battle droids? We make our own decisions, our own choices. And we have to live with them too.

After this (glorious!) conversation, Crosshair stays. Maybe this began to seed some doubts, but he actually smiles a few scenes later when Rampart assigns him another mission. It seems like for him it truly is as he said in S1:E1 (chip not enhanced yet but still influencing him enough for his brothers to notice he's acting strange):

Crosshair: Republic, Empire... what's the difference.

Crosshair: Orders are orders.

This unethical mission that finally pushed Cody over the edge does not change Crosshair's mind about the Empire, at least not enough for him to take action.

But what does?

Mayday: And here we are, the survivors. Combat troopers stuck babysitting cargo shipments. Crosshair: Mission’s a mission. Mayday: Yeah, I used to say the same thing.

Mayday: After all the clones have done, all we’ve sacrificed. We’re good soldiers, we followed orders. And for what?

This mission has nothing to do with how the fascist Empire treats the galaxy, it's about how they treat their soldiers. It's about how Mayday loyally fought and served his whole life and Lieutenant Nolan let him die

Lt Nolan: He served his purpose as a soldier of the Empire. Crosshair: You could have saved him! Lt Nolan: Perhaps you didn’t hear me, he is expendable, as are you.

Crosshair thought he could find purpose within the Empire, and Nolan shows him exactly what that will be.

His turning point is accompanied with this powerful visual of the ice vulture, a symbol (and threat) of death, and also set up within the episode a symbol of survival:

Mayday: Vicious creatures, but you have to admire ‘em. They find a way to survive.

This critical moment (that gives me chills, oof this episode is a masterpiece!) comes right after Nolan calls him expendable and directly threatens him:

Lt Nolan: And if you speak to me again with such disrespect I'll see to it you meet a similar fate, clone.

then Crosshair sees the vulture's shadow and turns to Mayday's dead body (ahh visual storytelling my beloved) then makes his decision:

Crosshair turns against the Empire not because he believes Hunter was right about this:

Hunter: I've seen what the Empire is doing ... You know it's not right.

but because he was right about this:

Hunter: All you'll ever be to them is a number.

Redemption (both in fiction and irl in my humble opinion) comes with making amends and reparations (which is why death 'redemptions' bother me so much but that's a rant for another time). Unlike Emerie, Crosshair never explicitly denounces the Empire or his own actions within it. He never says anything to specifically show if and how his views have changed from what he said on Kamino. He makes amends with his family (sending the warning message, helping Omega escape, making up with Hunter) but that's about it. The most we get in terms of acknowledgement is this:

Crosshair: I thought I knew what I was getting into with the Empire. I thought I was being a good soldier. Hunter: Nobody really understood what was happening back then. Crosshair: I’ve... done things. I’ve made mistakes. Hunter: I have regrets too, Crosshair. All we can do is keep trying to be better, and who knows there just might be hope for us yet.

Which is nice and all but it's more about them making up as brothers so it's way too excusing tbh ("no one knew what was happening back then" ummm? "The Empire will control the entire galaxy, and I am going to be a part of it" remember? And even if at first Crosshair was being controlled by the chip, the fact that he chose to stay after it was removed* means he condones and is therefore still accountable for those actions).

There's also a bit of self-destructive guilt:

Crosshair: Omega, don't risk anything for me. I belong in here.

Crosshair: Omega needs you both. So I’m doing this alone, it’s what I deserve. Hunter: Don’t even think about plan 99, Crosshair. Omega needs all of us.

(which thank you Hunter for pushing back on the death redemption bs and oh look is that a wrap up for the purpose thing?)

But there's no action taken on his part to make up for what he's done or to stand against the Empire (aside from the bare minimum of help with Tantiss, only after it became personally relevant, which like yeah he had trauma to deal with but still).

While I do think the implications/follow-up of Crosshair's turn should have been handled better in S3 (like rip Howzer! he deserved an apology, but that's a rant for another time), I don't necessarily** think this arc is a bad writing choice. It's just saying different things than we expect:

Maybe Crosshair's story is not about standing up against an unjust system, like we see with many other characters (who deserved more screen time but that's a rant for another timeeee). Maybe his story is about how even those who are loyal to the Empire, who actually believe in it, still suffer under and within it's rule. Not to garner sympathy, but to show that there is no winning.

Crosshair has another 'so what changed' convo in S3:E14 with Rampart, in which they draw parallels to each other:

Rampart: You used to believe good soldiers followed orders. Crosshair: Depends on who's giving them. The Empire betrayed us both. Rampart: And you think you can fight them? That's not you. You're like me, loyal to no one but yourself. Crosshair: I've changed.

(note how he says who's giving the orders, not what the orders are)

"Loyal to no one but yourself" describes Rampart much more than Crosshair, since we often saw Crosshair pride himself as a loyal soldier of the Empire whereas we saw Rampart abuse power to be self-serving within the Empire (like when he killed Wilco to save face). But they were both betrayed either way. Vice Admiral Rampart, snively Imperial opportunist through-and-through, shouts "I was following orders!" as he is arrested for the Empire's purposes. (Edit: and where Crosshair rejected the Empire and found new purpose fighting for his family, Rampart was still self-serving in the finale. He still tries to gain power for himself and he gets his comeuppance).

Even Hemlock, the final boss immoral Imperial scientist, who has to be benefiting the most from this system, echoes the expendability idea:

Hemlock: What I am working on is beyond your understanding. Something so vital to the Empire it makes me indispensable.

Then there's CX-2, also set up as a parallel/foil to Crosshair (fight me), who in the end is discarded as no more than a weapon, a tool that served it's purpose, showing us what would have become of Crosshair if he had stayed.

There is no winning in the Empire. Loyalty is not rewarded, it "doesn't go both ways." Everyone has to fight for their value. Even high ranking individuals** who for a time benefit from the injustice, in the end are just pawns to be used up and cast aside at a whim for the Emperor's gain. Even people who are motivated by self-interest alone cannot survive within this system, the only viable option in this galaxy is to fight the Empire and dismantle that system. (unless you conveniently find a magically safe island to hide away on but that's a rAnT fOr AnOtHeR tImE)

Which brings us back to...

Emerie - Cooperation, Compassion, and Choice

(Okay this post has already gotten away from me but I still want to talk about her to show the contrasts.)

Emerie may not have been given a lot of screen time to really flesh out her development, but there is a lot that is pretty clearly implied with her:

Crosshair: They’ll never turn her [Omega] over. Hemlock: They don’t have a choice. She is a clone, and therefore Imperial property. *Camera cuts to an angle more centered on Emerie’s face*

Crosshair: Give me your access card! Emerie: It won’t get you outside!

Emerie: I tried to warn him what would happen if he did not cooperate with the Doctor.

Emerie: Prisoner? Omega, you are no such thing. It will take time to adjust, but you will acclimate. It is far safer in here than out there.

Emerie: You should go back to your room. Crosshair: You mean her cell?

Emerie: Why children? Hemlock: Children are easier to attain and more agreeable to the subjugations. They are unaware of why they are here and what they possess.

Emerie: They're children. Like I was... Was your plan to discard them too? Nala Se: The Empire will keep them in order to control them.

We don't know a lot about Emerie's background, but it's clear that she had a lot less choice than Crosshair and less opportunity or ability to leave. Unlike Crosshair, we never directly hear Emerie's views of the Empire (and she was most likely 'taken under Hemlock's wing' before the Empire even came to power), but lets look at how she talks about the Tantiss:

"Remain calm. Cooperate and you might survive."

"Don't make this worse, Crosshair! There is no escape!"

"All of us serve a purpose here."

"The Doctor will inform me, if it's necessary."

"It's best not to ask questions."

"Escape is not possible, Omega. This is for your own good."

She honestly does the best she can within the system she is also trapped in. She tries to help Crosshair, Omega, and the vault kids in the only way she knows how (warns Crosshair about the hounds and security, tries to protect Omega from Hemlock, tells Scorch his "actions were extreme" with Jax, insists on overseeing Bayrn's retrieval, double checks his m-count (to give him an out), and tries to find out where he came from). When she gives Omega, and later Eva, the doll, I think it shows just how little she really is able to do here (and it's kinda heartbreaking imo).

The framing of this shot especially (after Jax's escape attempt) visually shows how Emerie herself is trapped/imprisoned:

Despite the fact that very little of this is Emerie's fault, she has very little power and she is doing all she can, the narrative does not excuse her role in the Empire:

Nala Se: What will you do, Emerie? Emerie: There is nothing I can do. I don't have that kind of power. Nala Se: Don't you?

Emerie: I- I was doing my job. Echo: Yeah, I’ve heard that before. You’re a clone. How can you be part of this?

These fighting-the-Bystander-Effect conversations parallel these exchanges:

Hunter: We made a choice, and so did you. Crosshair: Soldiers follow orders. Hunter: Blind allegiance makes you a pawn.

Crosshair: We’re soldiers, we do what needs to be done. Cody: You know what makes us different from battle droids? We make our own decisions, our own choices. And we have to live with them too.

which did not change Crosshair's mind. And honestly, all respect to Echo's disappointed mom glare™ but I think it's clear Emerie had already made her decision, she just needed help to actually be able to do anything about it. When she stopped Echo, with her voice wavering on the verge of tears (ahhh v good voice acting), she clearly had no intention of turning him in. She's on her own in the Empire's most secure facility with very little resources, if she had tried anything on her own she most likely would have failed and been killed

Omega: Emerie, you don't have to do this. Emerie: (sigh) I’m sorry, but I do.

but as soon as she is enabled by an ally, she immediately turns around to help: giving information and getting Echo through security, helping the kids escape, and giving Omega the tablet that allows them to free the other clone prisoners.

Where Crosshair's turn is accompanied by the symbolic imagery of the ice vulture, Emerie's is the removal of her (literally rose-tinted!) glasses:

Symbolizing how she has shed her previous views/indoctrination that altered her perception of the Empire and blinded her to it's wrongs. It's disillusionment.

Emerie's story shows us that even those who are raised and indoctrinated into this system can, should, and will escape (with needed help). Even those who did not choose to be apart of the Empire and are not making the decisions still have the responsibility and ability to act on what they know is right.

Emerie, whose name means 'Home strength' 'Brave' and 'Powerful', and "reflects the importance of leadership and authority in the workplace".***

While Emerie is only in one more scene after her turn, so the wrap up is a bit rushed, she still very simply does what Crosshair does not:

Emerie: Because I was wrong about this place. And I'm trying to do the right thing.

Echo: I’m sure Senator Chuchi would find what you have to say very helpful for our cause. Emerie: I have a lot to make up for. I’d like to help out however I can.

She admits wrong, takes accountability, commits to making amends, and leaves with Echo to go take on the Empire (which hopefully we will get to actually see more of some day).

So, in short, she's showing us how redemption is done right!

---

Notes:

*Whether this writing choice was good/logical/in-character or not is another discussion entirely, but I'm going off of what we were given, what the show is presenting in the canon text and (reasonably inferred/intentional) subtext. Crosshair is pretty multifaceted and I could only touch on so much here. There's a lot of ways to interpret his character/choices, but I tried to avoid the realm of speculation or fanon explanations (even if they sometimes make more sense lol).

**History and political theory are not my area of expertise at all, so I have NO idea how well this aligns with real-world fascism stuff and therefore what implications this storytelling choice could have. I think the message of like 'if you think you could survive or gain power by doing what the Empire/fascist system wants you are wrong' could be good (like how everyone is actually harmed by the patriarchy type of a thing), but I hesitate bc maybe there are those who would benefit, since it's a hierarchal system, right? If anyone more knowledgeable than me has incite to share, by all means

Either way, I do think it works in-story and in-universe though. It's just in the execution. The main problem (even from a strictly theme/character arc stand point) is the lacking follow-up/consequences for Crosshair in S3. Like you gave your character accountability by removing the chip and I think that's great setup for an arc but you gotta follow through with that and actually hold him accountable!

***I'm always curious when clones have 'normal' names, like why did they chose the name Emerie of all things? So I looked it up. Idk how reliable sources are for name meanings so take it with a grain of salt but it's still fun. Fits pretty well, and clones names have definitely had significant meanings in the past (like how Rex and Jesse both mean 'king') so I'm pretty sure it was intentional.

Anyway, thanks for coming to my tedtalk

[snekdood]

"if we make america worse and more of a dictatorship that will be even harder to unravel and make it the way we want the country to be, maybe then everyone will join our Glorious Revolution!" bb girl you cant even be in the same room with someone who thinks you should vote, how in tf do you think you're gonna unite people to fight in The Revolution with you? it's gonna be you and your 5 friends, i hate to break it to you.

[welcometogrouchland]

Disgustingly messy and crusty sketch dump but I couldn't get my own terrible theory out of my head and ended up making a bunch of sketches about it. Also at the end a bonus dickbats and Damian doodle bc I was reading an issue of their Batman and Robin run (IDs in Alt)

[puppetmaster13u]

Prompt 117

Bruce does not enjoy magic. In fact he’s absolutely horrible at it, to the point it’s better that he avoids it in general. Getting thrown into some sort of summoning circle bullshit was not helping him feel any better about it either. 

At least he isn’t dead… probably. He might be surrounded by green and there might be a massive entity sitting on a throne, but he isn’t dead yet. Even if the cult had been rambling about sacrificing ‘the dark knight to the dark king’. 

… His kids are definitely going to kill him, but there are small children peeking out at him from within the being’s cape. Who seem happy enough, while the… king looks exhausted in a familiar way. Well. Maybe it’s his own parental exhaustion talking, but they can’t be too bad if their kids are happy to be there. 

[valewritessss]

Biana Vacker is what the Aphrodite cabin should’ve been

[botanyshitposts]

messed up seed fact of the day is that even the ability for a ‘crop’ of plants to come up and flower and make fruit all at once is bred for. if you’re just some seed buried in wild uncolonized woods or prairie there is no such thing as a hard set emergence time even if all the other plants are doing it. it’s just when the vibes are correct and for some native plants that takes legitimately years and multiple winters. or you could do the opposite and try to grow all at once with everyone else right away in the first spring if it suits you but still, no guarantees. no point to this post it just weighs on me heavily

[al-luviec]

I got so insanely mad while drawing this

+ closeup and normalness