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raven-at-the-writing-desk · 1 month

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In what ways would you change Yuu (or would you get rid of them entirely)? The writing feels inconsistent on their place/importance. If they were just a conduit for the player to watch the events unfold that's one thing but in another story they are an active player.

I'd personally play into the beastamer aspect more. They are supposedly the reason why Ace, Deuce, and Grim were able to work together thus I'd want them to have more agency in making plans, giving orders, etc. Rook calls them Trickster but in what way (lol). The vagueness of being a self insert pains me. I'd also want to give them some magically infused weapon (or has a magestone embedded) just so they aren't fodder or sideline material.

Mmm… As much as I dislike the blank slate self-insertiness of Yuu (I’d prefer to read about an actually realized character), I wouldn’t want to get rid of them altogether. I think they’re important for the role they serve in the narrative even if in execution is inconsistent and not done well.

The problem with “changing” Yuu is that there has to be a certain level of ambiguity due to the design of the game. You cannot give them too much personality or you risk alienating the audience that likes to project or self-insert. There’s also a limit to how much uniqueness a mobile game can lend its players characters; the format isn’t exactly known for having super in-depth player arcs, it’s known for their colorful casts of rollable characters. The devs have to toe that line carefully, not to mention juggle Yuu’s participation with letting the other characters shine. It is for this reason that I won’t be doing a total overhaul of Yuu or just deciding “give them a personality!” as what I’d change about them. Rather, I’ll be proposing alterations while thinking like a dev (ie preserving the current story and as much of the self-insertiness as I can while also trying to give Yuu more to do/say).

Now Yuu, being the outsider to this world, is perfectly poised to have others dump exposition on them. This serves the dual purpose of being able to diegetically explain things to the player. (We wouldn’t get this advantage if the player character was changed to be like… a Twisted Wonderland resident; you could explain some magic things to a layman, but a resident wouldn’t need more common knowledge like country names exposited to them. Were this the case, we’d need an additional excuse for Crowley to take in a native.) It’s also convenient to have them be the “eyes” for the player to experience the world through, since Yuu is able to conveniently be present for most major main story events. It essentially makes them a human-shaped video camera.

I’ve often heard people suggest that if we need a POV character, why not go with Grim since he basically serves the same purpose now anyway. My answer to that is: Grim is also an arrogant asshole who picks fights, just the same as any other NRC student. If Grim were the player character, he wouldn’t be contributing much or helping to guide the other students learn to get along. We need Yuu here to be that driving force for change because Grim simply isn’t capable of it when he’s instigating himself half of the time.

A smaller thing about Yuu that I love is the idea of them being the school photographer! (This is something that is shown in the second anniversary animated video too!) It gives us context for the cards we roll and it implies that Yuu is the one documenting these precious memories. I want Yuu to stay if only for this reason.

Personally, I wouldn’t make Yuu a combatant. This is antithetical to their role and I feel would instead work against them (or at least create a scenario where Yuu has to have some level of battle prowess; this impedes on the self-insert nature of them). Sticking a magic item in their hand makes little difference since they most likely wouldn’t know how to handle it in the moment. (Nor would a magicless human even be able to use some of them; for example, a magestone is completely useless to them.) A magicless human with no combat experience is just another liability to account for, not to mention it actively puts them in harm’s way. It might be cool in theory, but I think in practice it goes against the very concept of Yuu. They’re meant to be here to show that there is “another way” to the NRC students—that violence doesn’t solve all your problems, proof that you don’t need to be a powerful being to “change” others or the world around them. They’re supposed to be underestimated and not seen as much of a “real” fighter, and they’re supposed to prove those notions wrong by demonstrating their worth via other avenues. In this “the weak obey the strong” school, Yuu has to be the one to show them that strength comes in forms that are NOT magic power or battle prowess.

I feel that Yuu works best on the sidelines as a supporter and strategist. Strategy is, after all, half of the battle, and it’s a part that people tend to overlook in favor of the flashier fighters. But strategy is crucial and it can turn the tide against a formidable foe (as we see in the prologue)!! I think this is something the NRC students need to be made more aware of too, so Yuu should stay as the strategist; they just have to be given more opportunities to show off those skills!

With all of that being said, here is what I would change about Yuu:

Drop the beast tamer thing. It gets mentioned prominently like once in the prologue and then never becomes truly relevant. Maybe it’ll become important when it comes to taking down OB Grim, but that will be SO late in the main story that the payoff doesn’t seem worth it. There are no examples of Yuu’s beast taming skills ever being used in the main story, so the whole “oh you have the makings of a beast tamer” thing is so useless. If you really want to keep it, then let Yuu’s innate talent/skills for beast taming help them out at least once per main story book. This means I’d want to see instances of Yuu getting other creatures (ie not just Grim) to help them out.

Allow Yuu the agency to act on their own when it comes to finding a way back to their own world. Going home is so often relegated to a single line or a few sentences and then not addressed again until next book. Have Yuu take initiative instead of waiting around for updates from Crowley. They should go out and ask questions, investigate on their own, etc. Maybe have them get involved in each book’s conflict because they happen to get mixed up in it while conducting research instead of being TOLD to go and fix a problem. Book 6 marks the only real time I can think of Yuu making a drastic decision against Crowley’s advice. It puts them at great risk, and that’s something they’re willing to take for the sake of saving their friends. We need more moments like this throughout the rest of the story. However, Yuu won’t be allowed to do whatever they want unrestricted because 1) it falls out of the scope of a mobile game title and 2) we want to largely retain the capacity to self-insert. So when I say give Yuu more agency to act, I mean it ONLY in the sense of being more proactive in their efforts to get home.

Add a short comment or two from other characters depending on which dialogue options are picked for Yuu. It would be too ambitious to incorporate a full-on branching storyline or strong “choose your own adventure” elements, but at least have the other characters consistently comment on whatever brief dialogue option Yuu has rather than ignoring them 90% of the time. This wouldn’t alter the story in any way but it sure would be nice to have a little more flavor text and more of Yuu actually being acknowledged as present.

Yuu should fully commit to being a planner and strategist. We get to see this aspect of Yuu like once or twice in the prologue (when they tell Grim where to spit fire at the ghosts/planning how to beat the Phantom in the mines) and then are left to extrapolate this to the rest of the game. Maybe you can argue they figured out Azul’s scheme in book 3 too, but this isn’t good enough. If you’re going to set up the idea, then have consistent segments in each book that reinforces that idea. Have Yuu brainstorm ways to jailbreak in book 4, have Yuu be perceptive enough to notice that Malleus isn’t feeling great in book 7 (only for Malleus to brush them off/insist he has a solution), etc.

Have a short story segment that explains how or why Yuu earns their nickname “Trickster” from Rook. We got this with Floyd, so the other known nicknamer should reveal this, especially since the name “Trickster” implies intelligence and cunning. Yuu should have an opportunity to demonstrate this (in book 5 maybe?), which earns them Rook’s respect and the new title. This should also be informed by other parts where Yuu shows how smart they can be.

More time bonding with Grim. I say Grim specifically because I commonly see him as a hated character in part because of how he “steals lines/time” away from Yuu. (Adeuce and Malleus are fine as they are because the former already stick up for/help Yuu out and the latter is meant to stay mysterious until late in the main story.) This means that if you don’t already like Grim, the whole “Yuu chases them to Styx HQ to save Grim” plot point in book 6 rings hollow. To truly build a bond with Grim, please give us moments prior to book 6 that show how much they care for one another and are linked to each other as partners. Times when Grim causes inconveniences for Yuu don’t count. Give me instances of them cuddling at night or talking to each other about their hopes and dreams or whatever. This would establish the value that Grim sees in Yuu, as well as the value that Yuu sees in Grim. It makes it more believable that Grim would cry when he’s alone or realizes he hurt his partner, and that Yuu would defy the headmaster’s advice and put themselves at risk to save Grim.

Better incorporate the ghost camera and its usage in the main story. The ghost camera provides an in-universe explanation for gaming meta (ie the card illustrations); in the main story, it’s hardly ever mentioned save for its introduction in the prologue and when Yuu takes a picture of Mickey with it. What should happen instead is Yuu will take a picture of the characters involved in that chapter. This way, it’s a physical reminder of the time everyone spent together and the bonds they’ve developed. It further strengthens the idea of the students learning to get along and Yuu being there to facilitate that while also keeping the ghost camera relevant.

More time where Yuu actually bonds with/“changes” the other characters. One huge gripe I have with the main story is that we’re TOLD that Yuu’s presence changes and improves the boys for the better, that they teach them how to get along. Very little of the actual main story supports this (outside of the prologue). At best, Yuu has a very short chat with some of the OB boys at the end of their respective book. Yuu should have a little more time in this regard. I don’t know, maybe Idia is still struggling to socialize when he comes over to play video games at Ramshackle so Yuu has to gently encourage him to give it a try or says something to help include him in the conversation. Little things like that! Keep the strong interactions the other characters have in changing the OB boys (like Trey being the one to rush to Riddle’s side, the twins teasing Azul, etc.), but have Yuu help facilitate them opening up emotionally and being vulnerable with one another.

This last point is debatable (I keep changing my mind about it), but possibly make a point of showing how Yuu is adjusting to this new world. This honestly might mess with the self-insert aspect (which is why I debated to leave this out), but I also feel like it might be interesting to reinforce Yuu’s desire to go home h demonstrating homesickness or issues with settling into Twisted Wonderland.

To summarize, the changes I’d make largely involve making TWST commit to briefly mentioned details (that they largely don’t follow through on) and making Yuu actually do a little more to warrant crediting them with resolving issues + fostering friendships. A lot of the problems that exist now are due to promising a lot but then poorly executing on what was promised.

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sykam0re · 2 years

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Analysing the new Splatoon 3 Wave 2 DLC - Side Order

I am about 90% sure this is supposed to be Agent 8!

As such, what I talk about next will be based entirely around this assumption - if this is wrong, then this analysis is void, but it's just for fun anyway so hskshj

I personally believe this wave of the DLC will be tackling the loose ends in regards to Octo Expansion, and more specifically: 8's amnesia prior to starting it. Having no memory of who they are or where they came from, they fight their way through the metro, defeating Tartar along the way and reaching their freedom on the Surface.

But then...

Who are they still?

Besides the memcakes, this issue is never quite resolved. As such- I believe the DLC will focus on that! With Agent 8 rediscovering who they used to be, and who they are now. Figuring out their identity and sense of self so they can finally know who they are. And based on what we saw in the trailer, I have several ways to back up this idea.

First up: the hub. A coral-ridden, colour-bleached version of our beloved Inkopolis Square. There is a strong coral themeing throughout the entire DLC trailer, and I think the reason why might be relevant to 8.

Coral bleaches when exposed to stressors in its environment, such as light, temperature and nutrients. So perhaps this is a metaphor for all the stressors on Agent 8's psyche. Their environment has changed dramatically, from Underground to the surface world of Inkopolis, so it wouldn't even surprise me if such changes still left them quite out of it.

It could also be a metaphor for how Inkopolis Square still isn't home for them. Considering the very intentional hotel-esque interior of the tower, a hotel being a place travellers go to stay in, this could very well encourage the idea that this still isn't home for 8. Just a glorified trip, regardless of whether or not they even can go 'home'. If they even remember home. The fanciness of it could also be a nod to how out of place they feel, as though they were in a place far out of their league. Like a common man in a palace, it feels...out of place.

Then? You have this image of multiple octolings. Multiple '8s', that perhaps could imply that they are still struggling to find their identity in a sea of so many like them. So many soldiers like them, so many test subjects like them...

They were always one of thousands, nothing more than a number in a crowd, so they never had any individuality. They never felt they were unique. So why is them who got to find their freedom? Why were they special?

And now we make it to the key in all this:

Pearl and Marina.

Pearl and Marina were a key component in helping 8 escape the Deepsea Metro. So if anyone would be here for them in such a struggle: it's them. The idea of it being a recollection of 8's memories could also explain Marina's glitched out appearance here.

It's just a memory. Were her tentacles blue, or green? Was this her outfit? Or was it something else? Maybe 8 even has some lasting memory issues after everything...hence how even newer memories seem to escape them.

Pearl seems to meet them in the blanked out square, so they're likely a key part in all of this. Just a hunch.

Overall though, I'm really really excited!! This DLC looks like it's shaping up to be something amazing, and I hope my silly ramblings at least interest some of you <:)

Thank you for reading! ♡

#splatoon #splatoon 2 #splatoon 3 #agent 8 #off the hook #damp socks splatoon #splatoon 3 dlc #octoling #speculation #theorising #kami rambles #text #side order #pearl splatoon #splatoon pearl #marina splatoon #splatoon marina

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adobe-outdesign · 10 months

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Thoughts on the Aisha? It’s been my favorite neopet ever since I got a mcdonalds plushie of it when I was like 8 before I even knew what neopets was

Aisha are great because they're almost somewhat normal cat-like creatures—except they have two pairs of ears, one normal set and one set sticking up like antennae. These ears are the most important part of their design, as they're both visually distinct and very memorable.

Aishas also vaguely implied to have some degree of extra-terrestrial origins due to the existence of alien Aishas, which is a nice bit of worldbuilding and helps explain the weird ears even more (not that they're that unusual by Neopet standards, but still, it's neat).

In addition to the four ears, the other main notable thing about Aishas is their near-constant closed eyes (though some Aisha characters do have theirs open), which are punctuated by a ring around the outside. The ring is nice, as it helps break up their otherwise solid body colors a bit.

I'd also argue that Aishas benefited greatly from customization. First, their old artwork was getting very dated and needed a refresh anyways, and secondly, the only real change is that they're standing now, which doesn't really affect anything.

But the other big benefit the Aisha received is that their collars became a wearable item that can now be removed. I'm not going to lie, I never liked the collars. First, they're weird because in-universe, Neopets are anthropomorphic, and indeed, no Aisha characters sport the collars. Secondly, as a species, where do those collars come from, and why do Aishas wear them? And thirdly, they tend to add unnecessary color to their designs (like how the blue and green Aishas shown above sport red and yellow collars—though this varies depending on paint job). The "A" tag also feels clunky. They're not the worst, but having the choice to remove the collars or keep them is the best of both worlds.

The only big benefit to the collars is that they do sometimes do some really fun things with them depending on the color, as I've spotlighted below.

Favorite colours:

Alien: No Aisha review would be complete with talking about alien Aishas, which are absolutely iconic in their own right. Species-specific colors are always enjoyable, and the fact that the alien Aishas have SIX ears is fantastic. I also like the spacesuit/helmet combo, and the red triangle at least accents the red color a bit if you choose to keep it on. I just wish they had done something fun and futuristic with the collar, instead of sticking to the standard version.

Darigan: The converted version of this pet isn't terrible, but the unconverted version is fantastic. The thin body looks great, almost snake-like, and the pointed tail matches the tall ears, which are given a delightful devil-horn look. The spots help break up the body a bit, as does the addition of an underbelly, and the collar changes shape to a D for darigan, which is fun.

Mutant: Mutant Aishas, my beloved! What a great design. Replacing the second pair of ears with mouths and then accenting the pink lips with floppy, tongue-like spikes on the back is just great, with the pink working great against the blue. Bonus shoutout for the singular eye and the mutated "A" on the collar. My only nitpick is that the collar tag should've been the lighter teal of the stripes on the ears, and the band should've been pink.

BONUS: I'm cheating by including this, but I have to give a shout-out to the baby Aisha for being downright adorable with its little binky collar and soft blue color. I'm not usually big on baby pets, but this one's actually pretty great.

#neopets #neotag #aisha #neopet reviews

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autistic-bowlcut-swag · 1 year

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Propaganda under the cut

Jeff Andonuts

-Overall characterized as pretty awkward, the kid first introduces himself by listing his flaws (including “I’m very nearsighted” among them, the silly, that’s a neutral trait!) and then saying he wished they could be friends when he literally just saved people that called him over there telepathically with the phrase “friend we never met” in there! Almost like he was rattling off a memorized script in a way and I say this in the most awww look how hard he’s trying way possible. He’s pretty implied to be nocturnal as he works during the night and his specialty is fixing busted technology. He’s very good at it too! His dad was also a scientist but their relationship is interesting? Anyway, tldr his dad was always so absorbed in his work that they hadn’t seen each other in 10 years while Jeff was at boarding school and for context, Jeff is 13. Relationship with mother unknown. Do not ask. We don’t know either. Anyway, he’s got the autistic swag in the tbh stares at you blankly way. You can’t even see his eyes in most official art, so he’s just peak -_- to me right behind Frisk Undertale. Did anyone submit them too? Maybe I will if I have the energy.

-saved my life while i was playing this game also he has guns and can make a lot of gadgets he cannot crit but also cannot miss and hes super genius

Peter

-pathetic below average guy at the beginning of the story, everyone treats him like shit. then he gets possessed by an angel and he has to go kill god. he meets two guys and he falls in love with one of them and through the power of love and friendship and gay people they save the universe and also peter kind of becomes god. anyways its never outright said that hes autistic but he very clearly is and ive never met a single person in the fandom who disagrees. his special interest is rocks and he used to have a job sorting them at the rock factory. he has a pet lizard named lizard. hes still a pretty below average guy throughout all of the god killing stuff also but hes pretty nice and his humanity single handedly changed the narrative. he had gay sex

-autism swag . he likes rocks

-OHHHH BOY. Peter Sqloint was just a dude with a lizard until the archangel of retribution Exandroth possessed him. then he met Rumi (WHO HE WILL LATER HAVE SEX WITH AND MARRY BECAUSE OF HIS AUTISTIC SWAG) and Thanatos (big robot bitch who likes the lizard and hates Gods) (they all hate gods) (they kill gods). Anyway Peter Sqloint is THE Autistic with a Bowl Cut ever :3 OH he beats exandroth in a battle in his mind after he's stabbed by Thanatos (it wasnt his fault, a god put a spell on him). He comes back though, so it's chill

#jeff andonuts #earthbound #mother 2 #just roll with it peter #peter sqloint #jrwi apotheosis #just roll with it #off topic question but how would someone go about starting just roll with it?#asking for a friend 👀#autistic bowlcut swag tournament

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khorneschosen · 7 months

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Why the claim like that of extra credits that fantasy races have a good/evil alignment being wrong, so wrong that it can't be applied in media, is itself wrong, is what I am going to argue here.

I think what is necessary to fundamentally express why their opinion is wrong, is the background of why they made it. They made it aligned with the academic view that man is purely a blank slate, with no rationality, no genetics shaping him in anyway, and are ultimately a product of their nurture rather than nature.

One aspect I want to point out is they often claim, "this is morally flawed" only because they try and relate them to real kinds of people. Or that "this is boring" or "this is lazy writing" or some other claim.

It isn't because they believe these things are argued on that basis, because they don't as they don't argue on that basis, it's because claiming its boring changes the debate from them applying their ideology directly to an issue as in "my ideology, which you don't practice says this is wrong" to "this is boring" which is an aesthetic debate rather than the naked policing of other people.

I am not adding what they are policing people on. Which you gain the police someone on their hobbies you do it on the rest of their life as well.

Fantasy races, are not just some endless variations on human. Whether defined by evolution, science fiction, magic and etc, they are different from humans, in both form and/or nature in some way.

This is why you make a fantasy race to show, create and strain the contrast that comes in comparing the fantastical to what is human.

It's why humans are often the everyman of every setting because while human nature can be complex, the fantasy race is the contrasting element, the nature of the contrast can change by degrees but not that it is a contrast.

They fundamentally must be of a different nature to us, even if we are blank slates which we aren't, that fact alone provides the contrast. You could do culture differences but then you have to constantly deal with the fact that contrast when it erodes the very second that race is separated or living in shared space. The inherent to the species implies the constant application of that contrast and how the human deals with it.

In short, their series of videos on the topic are just wrong. Races of evil or good nature are not boring, lazy, or whatever aesthetical judgement they are pretending it is, and the view of humanity in regards to the blank slate is fundamentally wrong.

#extra credit #extra credits #extra history #fantasy writing #fantasy #fantasy race #philosophy #politics

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spot-conlons-pimp-cane · 2 months

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superpower newsies au: each newsies powers

some of these were inspired by other ppl but I'm sorry I forgot the @'s for them, so sorry!

anyways, enjoy!

Jack: he is a master with his lasso, and always has it on him. He can do almost any trick with it, and often uses this fact to impress people (cough david cough)

Davey: he can use words to get whatever he wants, he can persuade people, deter people, and make anything he says sound any way he wants. If he wants to sell a headline, make it sound true, if he wants to mess with people, make it sound fake.

Racetrack: along with buttons, race has 2 abilities. He has superspeed, and he is a human lie detector. This helps win him card games, and also helped get him banned from the lodgings weekly poker night, because he already knew everyones tells.

Albert: he can camouflage himself both physically and socially. He can blend into the background, literally and figuratively. He is also banned from hide and seek because of this.

Finch: Albert equates him to a disney princess, seeing as he can talk to birds, and mimic any bird call in the world.

Bumlets: he can convince you to do anything, and you won't even realize you've done it. He can convince anyone of anything, and he makes it seem like it was your idea! He wants a cigarette from you? Oh, thanks for offering it to him!

Specs: he can shapeshift into anyone he's made physical contact with, but unlike almost everyone else, his powers derive from an item. He has to be wearing his glasses, or else his powers wont work.

Skittery: due to being anxious, he is very shaky, but if he wants to, he can affect things around him, causing mini earthquakes to items, sometimes even furniture and likes to use his ability to mess with people.

Kid blink: he shares a power with Racetrack, being super fast. He uses this to his advantage to get ahead of all the other newsies. He sometimes uses his ability to help others, but also abuses it as a way to escape the bulls and angry shop owners he steals from.

Hotshot: his ability is being good at everything. There is not much more to it, just that everything he tries he's good at, he's a hotshot.

Snitch: he has amazing hearing, though sometimes it gets too much. On the bright side, he is definitely the person you want to go to for a gossip session! He knows all the drama, and he is, as the name implies, a snitch.

Mush: he is a human furnace. He has abnormally hot body temperature, and makes a great cuddle mate ("back off, he's mine!" - blink). He can also focas his power in his hands and shoot sparks, and sometimes, if he tries hard enough, he can start fires.

Spot: he can turn invisible, almost like a ghost. That's why race has dubbed his power "ghost mode" he can go invisible, and when he does, you can't hear him, or even touch him. Its like he just disappears.

Tumbler: durability. He can take lots of tumbles and get up just fine.

Sniper: perfect aim. That's how he got the name. He physically can't miss a target. He could literally shoot his slingshot in the opposite direction and still hit what he was intending to hit.

Buttons: he, like race, has 2 powers. 1st, he can repair almost any object, and sometimes walls if he tries hard enough. 2nd, has an infinite supply of buttons. This caused Sniper to call dibs on the bunk on top of his, for infinite projectiles, and buttons, in turn, gets free protection, and gets spared from being used as Snipers target practice.

Dutchy: he can understand any language. He didnt even realize he could at first, but its almost as if every language is translated to english in his mind.

Swifty: he can contort his body into unnatural shapes. Scaring some of the newsies who were unfortunate enough to see him while he stretches.

Elmer: he can control plants, make them grow, generate them out of thin air, manipulate them in any way he sees fit. This also helps when he wants to get buttons a gift and makes him a bouquet.

Smalls: can change their size, usually to be smaller. But if they try hard enough, they can get taller/bigger.

Mike and Ike: these two can communicate telepathically with each other, but no one else. Most people suspect its due to the whole twin thing, they even decided to call it twin telepathy. It is one of the many things that affect the twin-bond they have. They are almost like a hive mind.

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taranida · 5 months

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Thomas Zane's writing or the lack thereof

The third and final point I left unanswered in my theory about the 70’s.

the extent of Thomas’ writing powers, since as much as it is stressed a lot that he wrote himself out of reality, Barry, with a little research, is still able to find out about his existence, yet Alan in one of the “Writer in the Cabin” TV’s claims “A story is a beast with a life of its own. You can create it, shape it, but as the story grows, it starts wanting things of its own. Change one thing, and you set off a chain reaction of events that spreads through the whole thing.” The chain reaction here never happens: we have hard evidence that both Thomas and Barbara existed.

I guess, I should start with the rules of writing things into reality, that we learn throughout several games.

In AW1 Alan says about chain reactions: change one thing and others will follow, because the characters and the world in the story must be true to themselves. In AWAN it expanded even further with Alan making his, sometimes quite ridiculous, phantasies come true by starting the chain reaction by nudging the reality to fit his writing. One way or another it’s established well enough: each word causes the butterfly effect. Write something wrong and the whole thing will fall apart or twist; forget to add a little detail and the event you lead to will never happen.

There is a bit more about it in his Hotlines in Control:

Be clever. Make them do the work. Form the image in their minds. They make it. You just imply. Incept. They are drawn to the mystery. Obsessed. You set it up, they put it together. Their interpretation. And there's only one, because you give them no choice. And they believe in it, because it's theirs now.

Again: put a detail in and make people do the work. If you do it clever, you don’t need to expand on every little thing, the story will leave them no choice but to accept, believe and act accordingly.

The story needed many beginnings. Many springs. Streams that turned into a river, a flood, and then, an ocean. This was one. Wake used the materials he had. The connections he had. The people. The places. Wake put them in to make it true. His wife. The psychiatrist. His city. These connections, like magnets, moved things. Alice was a conduit. She'd been in the Dark Place. The Thing-that-Had-Been-Hartman sensed her near. Sensed Wake through her. Went berserk. Broke loose. Wake made sure Alice was already gone by then. Safe. The more springs, the more the story became real. The more people believed. Cause and effect. It was extremely delicate and hard work. It had to go through the path of least resistance. Where success was most likely. Where there was a connection already.

Alan always stresses out how important it is to thread on reality, use all the tools to make the events as plausible as possible for everything to fall into place. Yet, much of his writing, that came true, is pretty unbelievable stuff. Mr. Door in the second game calls Alan out on it: the rules are self-imposed, the loops are a choice. My take on it and all the hoops Alan creates to jump through: it doesn’t really matter what you write, the chain reaction will happen, as longs as you, as a creator, believe that’s possible.

Thomas, as it is presented, certainly, believed that he can erase himself and Barbara from reality; believed that this was the only way to stop the Dark Presence, to undo his mistake. And we see that some of it worked to a certain degree, as Cynthia tells us:

“He tried to undo it, wrote himself, her, everything he’d ever written out of the world. He was so famous. And afterward no one knew. Oh, Tom.”

Alan, who was very involved in the literary world, doesn’t recognise the name when he sees the shoebox in the cabin; Barry claims:

“Yeah, okay... anyway, there was an island there, owned by a guy called Thomas Zane. Now, some of the articles I found about him make him out to be a famous writer. But I ran a bunch of searches, couldn’t find a single thing he wrote.”

Thomas’ works are really hard to come by; the only people who read him, aside from those who knew him closely back in the 70’s, are Alan and Samantha, who found poems in shoeboxes, and Jesse Faden, who might’ve or might’ve not possessed a shoebox of his at some point in time. But the very existence of Thomas Zane and Barbara Jagger is quite known.

Barry with little efforts finds newspaper articles by Cynthia:

“Zane was heavily into diving, so much so that the place came to be called Diver’s Isle. But the volcano under the lake erupted in 1970, and Zane went down with the island.” […] “It gets better: a local girl, Barbara Jagger, drowned in Cauldron Lake just a week earlier. They were lovers.”

Randolph, the trailer park manager, acknowledges that Barbara is quite famous around here:

“Sure, Jagger’s a local spook story: ‘The Scratching Hag!’ Comes for you in the dark. Childish stuff like that.”

(Thomas is a legend around Bright Falls too, by the way, as seen from this bit of Sarah Breaker’s dialog:

Not even mentioning the Diver’s Isle, that still bears the name given to it by Thomas’ hobby.)

Barry continues:

“I’m just getting to the best part: all of the articles about this stuff were written by Cynthia Weaver. I asked around, and she’s that crazy bag lady you met...” […] “Yeah, anyway, she knew both Jagger and Zane before they both died and she had some kind of breakdown.”

And we have two of those articles in the guide:

This one mentions Thomas at the very last paragraph

And here’s the one about Barbara’s death

What we need from them are dates. They both were written before Thomas erased himself and Barbara from existence, so why the chain reaction didn’t delete those evidences together with other magazines and newspapers that mentioned him or printed his works? I mean, the way-to-go for writers at the time was to publish their pieces in the press, even Alan started like this, yet there is nothing of Thomas’. The bits that remained are those written in Bright Falls, where the AWE, caused by the last poem, originated and is strongest. I don’t believe that the journalist being Cynthia matters in this case; she indeed remembers Thomas and Barbara, but her previous work has nothing to do with it and had to be erased.

There is also a problem of fighting the Dark Presence off. I have to admit, the more I dive into this topic, the more I question if Thomas even wrote anything about deleting himself and Barbara from the annals of history or tried to fix him unleashing the Dark Presence onto the world. All we know about this comes from manuscripts written by Alan and the only two other sources of information. One being extremely vague on what happen and what Thomas wanted to achieve:

The Poet and the Muse

In the dead of night she came to him with darkness in her eyes Wearing a mourning gown, sweet words as her disguise He took her in without a word for he saw his grave mistake And vowed them both to silence deep beneath the lake

And another telling a very different story:

This House of Dreams

The diver (or what was left of him, his true self) spoke the words of his secret poem. The poem described a new world, an island in this sea of darkness, a safe haven, a paradise, a “baby” universe. The nature of the dark place was such that anything dreamed up there, any dream or a work of art, would come true, just as true as anything in our world can be. And the poem came true and the essence of the diver and the essence of his girlfriend escaped from the darkness and disappeared into this new world to live there happily ever after; while their shapes, his now taken over by a bright presence, as his girlfriend’s had been taken over by a dark presence, surged up, through the opening in the lake to our world, to continue their battle there.

According to the Bright Presence here, Thomas wrote his masterpiece about the new world, a personal paradise for him and Barbara to be happy there; not about erasing all traces of their existence and trapping the Dark Presence in the depths it came from, since both Presences surged up to the new playground.

So, did Thomas even care about fixing any mistakes, except for not getting the real Barbara back? Or was his writing so sloppy, he failed to erase anyone from reality properly and failed to contain the Dark Presence in the lake? And what happened after he was cosily tucked away in his new private baby-universe in the Dark Place with his love? How exactly did he save Cynthia, as she claims, from the darkness with his light?

What horror was left behind?

In my theory about the cabin, I wrote that we are led to believe that Thomas was caring, considerate and aware enough to leave a loophole for him to help when someone, as he predicted, eventually will awake the Dark Presence. The catch here is: some of this information comes from Alan’s manuscripts; some — from the “characters trapped” in Alan’s story, as Cynthia put it. What if Thomas wasn’t any of those things? What if he only cared about himself and Barbara and wrote them the happy ending, leaving others to deal with the mess that he caused?

IN TENEBRAS CADERE

“To fall into darkness”. Indeed, in the memory of a very questionable poet.

#alan wake #alan wake 2 #alan wake game #alan wake ii #alan wake remastered #rcu theory #remedy connected universe #remedy entertainment #remedy games #thomas zane #tom zane

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desertsanctuary-blog · 5 months

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Okay, so i totally know you didn't mean it like this, but when you said "When I first saw Clover, I thought to myself, "That's a guy." This was before I saw anything that implied that they used they/them. However by that point, I was comfortable referring to Clover as a guy changing that felt like too much effort." that REALLY felt kind of umm. transphobic. Because thats an excuse a lot of people have heard a lot of transphobic people use as to why they misgender real people. Saying it's 'easier' because you're 'used to it' is kind of like 'well its easier for ME so im going to do that anyways'.

Now I know I know I know you didn't mean it like that since you can interpret Clover however, but i'm just explaining that since it really comes off that way, and I don't want anyone to think you're that kind of person or something.

Yeah, sorry about that. I'm not the best when it comes to the more subtle aspects of conversation.

Just to clarify, I have absolutely no problem with using they/them for Clover, especially if I'm interacting with a post that did so. And the whole 'it's easier' thing is not a viable excuse when it comes to real people.

Clover, and the other humans mentioned in the previous post, is a fictional character with an ambiguous background and not a lot of personality outside of what we're given and our own interpretations. So it makes sense that we would shape them into our own, fleshed-out versions of them but we should still be respectable towards each other and the characters.

#undertale #undertale yellow #desert sanctuary #desert sanctuary au #uty au #undertale au #undertale yellow au #uty #clover uty #undertale yellow clover #clover undertale yellow #uty clover

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mackmp3 · 6 months

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tell me about christopher ecclestons doctor vs david tennats doctor

or explain what the hell is goin on with the daleks

or you could tell me about (insert musician)’s influence on music

just some options for you to lore dump to :)

RAHHHHHHH OKAY THANK YOUUUU this will be um. super spoilery for doccy whomst.

okayyyy so christopher eccleston plays the ninth doctor who tragically only gets one season AND HE'S SO FABULOUS he's really funny and sarcastic and he says 'fantastic! :D' a lot and is also a massive dork and yayyyy i love him - the interesting thing with nine is that we dont see his regeneration. like we don't see him come into being but its implied that the incarnation before him was horribly injured in The Time War and then became nine, who wanders around alone for a bit racked with guilt and lonely and full of regret and all that fun stuff until he meets ROSE :DDD who pretty much says you're super weird & offputting but also the most interesting thing that's ever happened to me and he's like cool uhm. maybe i do need friends after all so then he takes her on a date to the destruction of her planet to show off that he wasnt kidding about the time machine bit. he also has a really cool leather jacket. and a northern english accent and a sliiiiightly butch lesbian buzzcut. anyways he's very fabulous and also kinda tragic but yeah!! i love him.

BUT THEN universe under massive threat from daleks etc the only way to save the world will be massively catastrophic etc etc so he sends rose home to save her. and she is understandably super upset by this so she ABSORBS THE HEART OF THE TARDIS (pro tip : usually people dont survive that) so she can get back to him, resurrect this other guy who kissed them both and rewrite time so that this will definitely always happen & also destroys a whole lot of daleks. this is called BAD WOLF (<- the capital letters are important. to me.) and its killing her so nine kisses her to pull it out of her (she doesnt remember this) so it kills him instead. then *magicical girl transformation* he explodes into golden light and becomes david tennant!!!!!

david tennant is the tenth doctor and I LOBVE HIM FORVER ADN EVER my specialest little scrunkly girlboy pathetic wet cat terrifying alien guy-shaped-being <33333. rose is understandably like wtf who're you (because the doctor Never does timelord 101 and tells them about regeneration and the two hearts thing) and he is sad about it. so he takes her home. then passes out in front of her mother and sort-of-boyfriend who're also like wtf. anyways he's fine and rose pretty immediately is like wow this guy is actually beautiful & way less grumpy now and they go n do a whole bunch of stuff and they very clearly love each other A Lot (like she loves him when he's nine too of course but it changes) and in my head it's teenage lesbian undefined relationship mutual obsession b/c those be the vibes. a Thing happens and she end up trapped in an alternate universe from which she can never return and the doctor manages to hologram himself in there for a minute to say goodbye and HE ALMOST SAYS I LOVE YOU TO HER but the connection runs out. a lot of other stuff happens and ten is actually pretty scary at points in a way that nine never gets to and A Lot happens to him. my beautiful babygirl she has Every Problem.

see cos the doctor is actually massively emotionally repressed and while nine was a lot closer time-wise to destroying his own planet, ten was coping a whole lot less. ten is often described as the most emotional and most human of the doctors and thats probably true but he's also the most afraid of that vulnerability - he just cant help showing it. he's full of love but he's also full of a desperate sadness and guilt. a lot of guilt. nine has this guilt and the love he just has found a way to not be so raw with it. he is far more measured with his emotions. i reallllllllyyyyyyyy wish we could have seen what would have been done with his character had we got more time with him but alas t'was not to be.

like a good example of that is when we meet nine he's been alone for some time and appears to be more or less okay with that, maybe not super happy but more or less adjusted and functioning. when ten is alone for a while he sort of loses it a bit until he find someone..... like after he and rose get separated, and i mean IMMEDIATLY AFTER, he meets donna who I LOVE :D but he's still so racked with grief that he kills a whole race of spider things and canonically would've destroyed himself along with them if she hadn't been there to tell him to stop. (like legitimately there's an episode, Turn Left, about what would've happened if the doctor died and it's uhm. its unnerving to say the least). ten can't deal with being alone but Also can't deal with loving someone. especially when he is so very aware that he has to lose them.

ten has three seasons & then a year of specials, and he has and then loses the most companions of the doctor and the way he deals with this is Fascinating. he is separated from rose, martha leaves of her own volition b/c she realises that she cant spend her whole life living For Him and that she deserves her own life too, and then he has to wipe donna's memory to save her (she gets it back like. fifteen years for her and ~1000 years for the doctor later but thats a whole thing). like nine does the whole 'no one can get close to me because i will always end up hurting when they die/leave and that will usually be my fault' thing BUT TEN. TEN feels the same way he just can't help himself from making friends and falling in love (grayaroace) with everyone he meets and still being emotionally destroyed when they die. nine's way of coping with the guilt of the time war is to push people away in the first place and ten's is Never Stop To Think Never Stop To Examine Feelings. so yeah. lots of fun.

ALSO the daleks!! theres a ton of lore to them as well, but in short they're genetically modified creatures who have been selectively bred by this guy davros (who has major darth vader vibes. down to the voice and the mechanically supported body) to only feel hate and want to destroy everyone who is not a dalek. they're these weird little things that kinda look like rubbery octopuses inside the metal thing (they're not robots they are actually alive) and they suck. also they're really hard to get rid of like. i swear at least five times the doctor says 'this is the last of the daleks' like bestie just you wait about half a season. the daleks and the timelords (the doctor's species) fought The Time War which really really sucked and they're mortal enemies. so yeah!

#heheheeeee my favouritest very expansive fiction universe yippee ^.^#doctor who #hi anon thank you for the ask <3 #this kinda long lol #tenth doctor #ninth doctor #rose tyler #<- i love them <3

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just-some-random-blogger · 2 years

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typing and running 🏃‍♀️🏃‍♀️🏃‍♀️🏃‍♀️ s/o and morpheus

“You can not take everything”

“But I can handle it. " ~ double meaning 😏😶 ~

Skin

Dream of the Endless x Reader

Summary: You've always been overeager when it came to your lover, but who could blame you? Anyway, he doesn't seem to be complaining.

Word Count: >600

Warnings: Implied sexy times, dream soft hours, gender neutral!reader, low key bratty!reader, fluff, typos, etc.

A/N: WHY ARE YOU RONNIN!? 👿 since all my requests are only ever anons lol, and all of yall sa 's/o' im convinced you're the same person tbh AHHAHAH that just changes speech patterns LOLOLOLOLL also, we're entering dream soft hours because i saw this post and T_T i hug i kiss i love but more importantly, i annoy gif 1 from pinterest IM SO ANNOYED BY THE TINYNESS OF THE GIF BUT WHATEVER totally not me finishing this in the middle of my class HAHAHAHA

It wasn't always that I had him like this, sleeping underneath me.

I mean, after all, what use was sleep to its King?

I found tranquility in the sound of his deep breaths. With my head pressed against his toned chest and the sound his heartbeat lulling against my ear, my fingers were inspired to draw shapeless lines across his chest.

I swear that there was a literal shine to his alabaster skin. It was probably glimmers of stardust, if not the glow of his being, seeping out out him.

It is not because of how blissed I was in our most recent lovemaking that I felt in awe of him, but simply because he was a being of awe.

My eyes fluttered to my surroundings, to the very forms of the room that he had built for us in his domain, in the Dreaming. It was by his will that this place was shaped the way it was, and it was by his adoration of me that I was able to even behold it.

I release a breath and press a kiss on his skin as I place my palm flat on his ribcage.

"I was still trying to make out the form of your illustration," his voice whispers, causing me to shift my gaze up to him.

I smile at his soft expression, unable to help myself in caressing his cheek, "it was nothing."

He hums, a galaxy of blue irises fixed upon me, "I would have made a constellation out of it."

I chuckle and shift from my spot, moving to straddle him like how I did moments ago, "it would have been more confusing than most."

"My love," he breathes through his lips as his hands find their way to my thighs, "I can feel your exhaustion still."

I shake my head and bite my lower lip, "but how can I help myself when I know the pretty thing beneath me has no exhaustion?"

I slowly position myself perfectly above him, so that I could feel his throbbing need beneath me, and rock my hips against his.

“You can not take everything-” he mutters, propping himself up on his elbows, "-I will not have you get hurt."

“But I can handle it," I coo, leaning down to kiss him, "or did you forget?"

The warmth of his mouth tastes like what I would imagine serenity does. When I was with him, I was whole, I was safe, and I was loved. There was nothing more that I wanted than to express this to him, but unfortunately, he made me an absolute mess for words.

My hands land on his chest; his land to my sides, massaging me tenderly.

My entire body begins to burn for him all over again.

I pull away, eyes closed, and rest my forehead on his, "my heart sings for you, Dream."

I slowly open my lids and find his pretty face. Morpheus already had his eyes locked on mine.

"I love you with all of me," I mutter like a prayer, "let me show you this in a way my words cannot."

The next moment, a surprised breath leaves me, and I am now pressed beneath the Dream Lord. He locks his lips on mine with the softest of kisses, then kisses the tip of my nose, my nose bridge, then my forehead, "you do not need to. I know your very dreams are of me."

Though solemn and undeniably true, I cannot hide the amused smirk that grows on my lips, "and you enjoy that," I shift my legs around him, "don't you?"

"Very much," he smirks back at me.

"Then," I tighten my legs around him, "if not to show you my love," I lick my lips, "for me," I give an exaggerated sigh, "will you be so cruel and leave me needy, oh maleficent king?

His brows quirk, "if anything my dear," he rolls his hips, "it is you who are cruel and maleficent."

The moans that leave my mouth hinder any reply from leaving.

"Perhaps, I ought to live up to your slander," he hums, "I wager you'd enjoy that."

#dream of the endless fanfic #dream of the endless fluff #the sandman fanfic #the sandman fluff #the sandman x reader #dream of the endless smut #morpheus fluff #the sandman x you #dream x you #dream fanfic #dream of the endless x reader #dream of the endless x you #morpheus x reader #morpheus x you

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lotus-duckies · 1 year

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anyway here's a pseudo intellectual analysis of the vision quest outfits because i'm normal

The vision quest is interesting to me because it's an instance of the turtles individuality, especially how that shows in the garments they made for themselves.

Raph

Raph deviates the most from the norm, even changing the shape of his mask which feels representative of his feelings of being outcast and wanting to go off to do his own thing.

Most notably, his outfit has a lot of elements akin to alt, adult, or rebellious images, like his belt now resembling a harness, fishnets and his neck being tied off like a choker. It makes for a compelling statement on his desire to be different, be self expressive and individual, to be seen as an adult who can make his own choices and doesn't need to be coddled.

I think this also shows in how he traded his sai, which are typically not very sharp and used for self defense (though offensive techniques can also used), for flaming shredder blades, which are definitely very dangerous for both whoever he's fighting and himself. The fact he used them without hurting himself implies practice, careful use. Wisdom, perhaps. Tempering the fire for power as Splinter said.

(did i mention i think his head reminds me of a snake with its tongue out. that's very important. he looks like a snake with More Teeth for fighting. absolutely lethal)

Also I will briefly mention the implied sensory experience that was what I wanted this to be about. He has significantly more fabric squeezing and covering him, scratchy fishnets on his arms, almost every part of his face is covered except his mouth. Suggesting a sensory profile that he may enjoy pressure stimming, perhaps that goes hand in hand with the fact he's more aggressive in his sparring and fighting. Something to think about.

Donnie

I'm going to talk about Mikey later but i think it's interesting they both chose to paint themselves and wear some kind of armor to protect themselves.

Donnie's design speaks to me as someone who has so much creative energy buzzing inside him but also wants to hide. He seemed to be the most sensitive about the fact they're mutants, often downtrodden about being told he could never be with April because they're freaks, and this combined with that he Knows he's going to get hurt results in the mask. (also maybe he likes casey and his stupid mask maybe he likes it a lot maybe they're kissing on the mouth idk)

The mask and the paint feel very creative expression,very artist form. The desire to build upon a metaphorical blank canvas to make something Different. Straight up covering his face with a skull-esque image. Changing himself from the monster he was to a creature he wants to be (human, casey, etc.

And his choice to change his bo for an axe feels ever reminiscent of the "I can't fight advanced alien technology with a 7 foot staff" statement. Although his bo staff does have a blade now, he wanted More Blade. Just blade. He's giving serial killer energy. Mad scientist energy, even. The axe requires strength that he needs, and we all know from the vizioso incident that he would kill people on sight and this axe reflects that.

Also, the sensory profile: Potentially implies enjoying covered, being in dim spaces, enjoying having a solid material on his face and tolerating the feeling of paint on his skin.

Leo

Leo's interesting because he's the only one who kept his original weapons, and arguably deviated the least from his normal design. I think this a good example of Leo's autism behavior and his desire to keep things the same, holding onto the comfort of familiarity rather than taking the risk to jump into exploration.

The most notable difference being the bow and the arm garments (the guard and the elbow wrappings, likely to protect his arms from strain and the bow whiplash). I love how Leo adopted the bow to compensate for his knee being crapped out, a logical choice to focus on long distance range but still keeping his swords Just In Case (and probably internally hoping he'd still be able to use them well)

It shows Leo's leadership qualities, knowing when it's time to make sacrifices, adapting to new situations, changing for the better, and at the same time, the fear of the unknown and wanting to stay the same.

The sensory: Unlike Raph and Donnie, Leo's hood is a cowl neck. gee that's so interesting oh golly i wonder if something happened that made him not want something near his neck gee i wonder why

Mikey

And now I talk about Mikey's armor and paint. While I definitely think Mikey would wear armor to help keep himself safe because he gets hunted a lot, it also radiates "oh man do you know what would look SICK" and "Learn to be strong and calm, like the forest" "okay sensei got it ! *covers himself in wood*"

He chose wood pieces that still have branches sticking off of them, and with the way he painted his face and. general mutant turtle vibes. he looks more like a Creetur, shrekish. Mikey embraces the strange, the unheard of, the monsters and repulsive. Not covering himself with things to hide his turtle nature, but adding More to that nature. (perhaps we could interpret the paint and wood as camoflague, better blending in to his surroundings, being a better ninja)

I'm also reminded of the armor worn by samurais. A bold goal if intended, considering Mikey's inattentive and distracted behaviorisms. But perhaps that is what he aims to become, a noble and admired warrior, making logical choices to protect himself and trying to be better, growing up into a responsible and capable man. I will not mention the last ronin mikey i will not mention the last ronin mikey i will not

Enamoured by his choice of weapon as well. Splinter had specifically given nunchaku to Mikey, which makes me think the kusarigama blade attachments were a modification He made, likely to prove something to himself or his brothers, wanting to do more, as nunchaku are typically given to those in training to develop quick hand movements and good posture.

And then he has eliminated the chain entirely to just have a sickle of sorts. Sickles were traditionally used for agriculture and the same could be said for the kusarigama, but now they appear to have an association with assassination, once again bringing back this idea of wanting to be more dangerous, be taken seriously and doing more damage.

anyway

#is this anything #leonardo hamato #raphael hamato #donatello hamato #michelangelo hamato #tmnt #teenage mutant ninja turtles #tmnt 2012 #analysis

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hobiebrownismygod · 2 months

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It feels wrong to be here without your presence, the door closes behind me with a small groan as if to grieve its occupant. It’s dark inside, I don’t bother to turn the lights on, I remember how you always liked it dim. I step past the shoe rack and mat by the front door and walk past the couch. Stopping, I stare down and remember all the nights i’d fall asleep in your arms. The feel of your chest heaving softly beneath my head now still.

It isn’t as lively as before now that you’re gone. I notice all the crusty patches in the carpet, stains faint but scratchy against the soles of my shoes. I can see the door from here, the hallway short and taunting. Each step I take only seems smaller than the last, the hall stretching as I get closer to the door I’ve been avoiding.

My shoulders feel heavy as I turn the knob, going stiff as I open the door. You never liked cleaning your room, did you? It’d be nice of me to do it for you before they come collect your things. My chest feels heavy as I pick up small doodles, keychains and discarded clothing that’d never be worn again. Your bed was still a mess from the last time you had slept in it, comforter pulled back and sheets wrinkled. The mattress sank in slightly in one spot, I guess that’s where you slept. I tell myself to keep cleaning, but I feel the need to lie down. It wouldn’t matter now anyways. I kick my shoes off, hesitantly sitting atop the bed before lying down and staring at the ceiling. I don’t know why, but i’m trying my best not to change the shape of the fabric beneath me. The weight on my shoulders easing up as I exhale shakily breaths through my nose. My vision blurs, my eyes burn. My nose begins to sting.

Tears fall onto the dark sheets behind me as I look at the ceiling. I think about you for hours before I think about how much time i’ve spent thinking about someone who’s been reduced to a thought. I roll onto my side, closing my eyes shut. Your pillow smells like the hair oil you liked. It makes my stomach churn, why did you have to go?

The moment turns into hours, I can’t get up anymore. I feel my body growing heavy against the sheets. Is it my fault? That you felt your only escape was to remove yourself. I could’ve returned your call. I should have. I remember letting the phone ring that night, turning over and drifting back into sleep. I’m not sure if i’ll ever be able to sleep again.

I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to do anything.

-Mrs. Awesome Sauce. (Jayce)

I’ve been coming to terms with some grief I had, I dunno. I turned it into this. Interpret it how you’d like, it’s implied a suicide, the friend of the victim blaming themselfs.

this hits hard bro

I actually had tears in my eyes thinking about this it’s so sad

Like imagine just waking up one day and you realize wow I’m never gonna see that friend again

hurts

I hope you’re getting help with your grief and feeling better. Sorry it took me so long to see this though!

writing is always a great way to release stress

#tw suicide #fire as always #Sauce #[silvia’s asks]

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mayapapaya33 · 4 months

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I admire the way Neil Gaiman managed to subtly circumnavigate and subvert the preexisting structure he was operating in when writing Sandman. Many people (including myself occasionally) always say, ugh it's so Judeo-Christian heavy, why are they so important and powerful and correct compared to the other Gods? (other than Sandman being a part of a preexisting DC universe and therefore being stuck with it). Well, They are and they aren't, not totally anyway. At least according to Sandman 40. It is HEAVILY implied and outright stated that all the biblical figures we come across aren't what we think they are on the face of it. And actual religious people would, I think, not find any of this very Judeo-Christian at all.

Cain and Abel aren't just the first "human" Victim and Murderer. They're literally just the first Victim and the first Murderer period. Who knows what species they were, what culture on what planet they came from, what they actually sacrificed, what they actually fought over? What their real names are? It's a translation of a translation of a translation of a basic primal story. Whoever or Whatever the All Highest Creator is, they have reinvented themselves time and time again, these are just the faces and names they're wearing right now, the ones that fit. It was different before and it'll be different in the future.

And it's like a fun, weird, confusing Chicken and the Egg situation, since according to the DC database that I just checked for The Presence:

The Presence said it was shaped by external forces which author Mike Carey clarified as the collective dreams, stories, and beliefs of humanity that change reality backward and forward and create the gods they worship.[45] This concept was first introduced in The Sandman: A Dream of a Thousand Cats, where it is said that cats were originally the dominant species on Earth, giant beasts that hunted humans. However, mankind's collective dream of a world where humans ruled over cats altered reality from its very beginning, making it so that humans were always larger than cats.

So Humanity dreamed up an omnipotent being (or influenced a preexisting omnipotent being that was previously Dreamed up by others?) And it wibbly wobbly timeily wimeily has always been so solely because of the power of belief and Dreams. (There's an interesting story right there, what was the DC universe like BEFORE that collective Dream?!) We've done it before and We can do it again. There are other versions of the Universe where other Gods reign supreme but they've been "Dream of a Thousand Cat'sd" This is just the one we have access to a glimpse of.

Does this make sense or do I need to go Visit Dream's realm in order to escape Delirium's?

#sandman #dream of the endless #dream of a thousand cats #fables and reflections #sandman 40 #theology #neil gaiman #sandman meta #sandman theories #sandman comics #sandman comic spoiler

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