#might get me some angry anons but overall i really value it for what it taught me

[terresdebrume]

Sometimes I find myself thinking back on my first stint of work as a camp supervisor for summer camp geared towards autistic and psychotic kids when I was 21 and just like. Hoping M. is doing fine. I'm sad that I didn't have the experience then that I have now because the way I handled conflict with him was not great, and I wish I'd thought to apologize for it in the brief time we saw each other afterwards

[dotster001]

Hi! I would like to request for the 1k event with twisted wonderland please!

My OG was kalim, after that it was Floyd and now it's Ace. I chose Kalim first since I knew the game by fanfiction and downloaded the game later. I saw that he was like the sun and I grew up poor but kalim didn't and seeing him not making it his whole personality is really nice, also he just seemed a nice person overall. For Floyd and ace it's the same reason, they have a bit of the same chaotic side like me and they also like basketball and their best friend is tired and get into trouble with them but their best friend still have a stupid side like my own best friend. Change isn't really a bad thing either. I don't really miss Kalim but I'll probably put him back soon!

About me!:

I'm chaotic, I don't have any physical type, I'm ENTP, my greatest value is justice, I like basketball, surf, snowboarding, skating (board), I love kids, I love spicy food and trying new ones, I travel a lot and wish to travel more, I love art, literature, and history, I love the 80's, I hate the color black and my appartement is full of colors with lots of candles, my aesthetic is skate, chaotic academia and retro

The tale: romantic and romance, fluff (I can't andle heavy angst but you can add some) and harem sounds good 👀

Thank you so much and congrats on the milestone!! ♥︎♡♥︎

(Honestly anon, top tier men choices, I love all three of them 😊 Anywho, I hope you like it!)

A Tale Where Ace is a Dork, But he's Your Dork

"Crabby, why are we here," Floyd pouted.

Both him and Kalim were sitting side by side on Ace's bed. At first Floyd had been interested, but now that he was finally here, he was bored.

"Here's how things stand," Ace said. "As you both have probably heard, the prefect and I have been seeing each other a lot lately, and I plan to ask them when they arrive in an hour."

"Since you both dated them in the past, I thought I'd ask what you guys did wrong so that I don't make the same mistake," he said with a wicked grin.

Floyd was about to snap at Ace, when Kalim interrupted, suddenly looking distraught.

"I did something wrong?!?!?" He cried.

Ace faltered. "N-no, you didn't do…."

"What the hell Crabby, I'm fucking perfect," Floyd interrupted. 

"I…I'm sure you were," Ace stuttered.

"But you just said…" Kalim started but Ace finally cracked.

"Sevens! Okay, you were both great boyfriends to them! I just want to know how to be a good boyfriend! God!" He yelled, sitting down with an angry humph.

The other two sat quietly. Then Kalim offered a soft smile.

"Just be yourself. They like you for you. Anyone can see that."

"He's right. But if you're down on yourself they might not stay interested. They like that you're chaotic and stupid," Floyd said, lightening up now that he was able to get a jab in at Ace.

"He's right you know," he heard you say behind him. He turned over his shoulder, and saw you leaning against the door frame, looking wildly amused.

"I like my Trappola to be a silly chaotic sports boy," you said with a grin.

"I can do that," he said, grinning his usual smug grin again, before standing, grabbing your arm, and pulling you flush against him.

"Hey baby," he grinned wickedly, but his cheeks were a blazing red, "Wanna go snowboarding with me this weekend. Romantic-like?"

He was picturing not only showing off his sport skills while enjoying a mutual hobby, but having to snuggle with you for warmth afterwards. The perfect date.

He supposed it was his own fault for inviting Floyd and Kalim into his room.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaw!" Kalim said, holding his hand to his heart, and giggling.

"Gross," Floyd groaned over the top of Kalim.

He would have yelled at them to butt out if you didn't giggle and run your hand through his hair.

"I'd like that a lot."

"Knew it," he grinned nuzzling against your hand.

"Now get the heck out of my room so I can cuddle my new partner," he shouted before dragging you to his bed and flopping on top of you. "You live here now, by the way," he hummed in your ear before burying his face in your chest.

The moment would have been perfect, except…

"Cuddle pile!" Both Kalim and Floyd shouted before jumping on top of them.

[syubub]

Rae I was hoping you could do a reading (nothing grand, it can be small) on BTS’ (each member’s individual) current post-Grammy energy? The past 24 hours have been a rollercoaster of emotions. I noticed a lot in their demeanors on both their vlive, and reaction to the loss they posted on Twitter. I have my own analysis and observations, but all that mostly comes from a psychological/logical pov. I want your take on the spiritual side and most importantly your thoughts on what the cameras won’t show us and what the members would probably never vocally/publicaly express (since bless their hearts, they’re such humble people). — 💼

That's such a great ask 💼 anon! I love the idea and I have to do it right now bc I need to know lol

bts post-grammy energy reading

Disclaimer: this is for entertainment purposes and not to be taken as fact. This is only my personal interpretation!

So first off we have the energy of the group.

The 6 of coins, the magician, ten of wands reversed.

Starting with the 6 of coins

This to me feels like they are happy to have preformed and likely feel very loved.

Like they're happy to have shown their talents to the world and spread some joy and love

The card itself Is a lot about give and take and sharing and I think they feel that with army

The kind of solidarity and appreciation of eachother

With the magician (this came up in pre grammy read too) it feels like the determination and drive to succeed. They probably are feeling motivated to come back again stronger.

I see this too as bts not holding back and doing what they feel they have to do (I'm excited for what it could be)

Then we have 10 of wands reversed

This talks about feeling relief about being able to release a burden

This makes a lot of sense

In a way they were kinda carrying A LOT on their backs with this grammy nom

And for it to be over I think now they can catch their breaths

Seokjin

Knight of wands.

This is so very him.

Passion, inspired action, energy.

It's the "pushing foward bc I have a thing that I'm going to do" energy

I see this as him being fired up and like "Okay so this is how we can do this and next time this will happen and we can do this as well"

Very much no time to dwell

It's the confidence and belief in himself and the group and their goals

Like he took his time to be be angry, sad, mad and whatever but I don't think it was at not winning. It was all the other stuff

And now hes ready to continue and push through

He could have a million ideas in his head rn

The knight of wands is one of my absolute favorite cards

It's also associated with sagittarius so maybe I'm just a bit biased lol

Renewed energy and passion

Love it

Yoongi

YOONGI

It's in caps bc im yelling

Ace of cups

You absolute pain

Yes this card can be about love

In this context though I see it as creativity

Ace is always the start of things.

The ace of cups is an emotional beginning

The beginning of a new creative project fuled by emotions and your emotions about your experiences

Yall

Yoongi is writing and making stuff and this might just be the new project that takes them to the grammys and win them the trophies

Yoongi had a planned we should always listen carefully to his words.

He technically said a 2021 grammy preformance and 2022 grammy win...

Ugh

Essentially I think that whatever project comes from the emotions of this time will be extremely significant for them

Maybe we'll get a song or album that talks about the shit they go through with interlude: FUCK YOU AND YOUR BULLSHIT

I hope we get swearing...

Probably not bc in true bangtan fashion they can form their emotions and experience into beautiful metaphors.

To sum up I think yoobi kinda knew what would happen so he sees it as an opportunity to take the emotions/creativity and create a very special thing(again, is he consciously aware of this shit??)

Hoseok

Wheel of fortune reverse

Hobi :(

Dissapointment and misfortune

It's that "the whole world is against me" feeling

I bet he was extremely excited and it was just an emotional blow to him

I think he probably can't help but be hard on himself

Like, "if we did this better" or "we should have done this"

But he knows that it's not his fault. It's just hard not to question yourself

It's feeling like they just can't catch a break

With this card though I feel like there's also an energy of no longer feeling like they have to "play the game"

Breaking the cycle

I think dynamite served 2 purposes

1. To bring joy and some sense of normality to a mid pandemic world

And 2. To play the game by its rules. Everything according to the book

Kinda an experiment

And to see that even doing everything right and excelling at the game didn't really change the scammys mind

Theirs freedom there

They did it the grammys way

And now they'll do it the bangtan way

Bc they've learned

Maybe they'll try another English song but it will be more them

Namjoon

Seven of cups

This card...

The first thing I want to talk about is illusion

The idea that an option you pick has a whole lot of things hiding behind the surface and it's not what it first looked to be

Being hyped up by the grammys and having a bunch of interviews and stuff only to be used

I think namjoon is dealing with that extra hard because as a leader I think he has this idea that he's ment to protect his members

I think he feels a bit like, "I should have seen this coming and been more careful"

Stuff like that.

When joon said "I told you" after they announced the winner

I feel like he told them that it was un likely bc the closer and closer it got he kinda started to see things for what they really were

I think too that joon is trying to decide where to go from here

Do they try a new English song?

Do they say fuck it and make a metal album?

Do they make an album focusing on the positives?

Do they make an album talking about the negatives?

Do they mix a bunch of ideas together?

Do they go back to their roots?

Very many options and namjoon is trying to choose the best one

However.

Everything has an upside and a downside

Jimin

Chim chim

The hermit

Soul searching and introspection

Listening to yourself

I think jimin might feel a bit down

Like, he needs time to re evaluate

I think jimin tends to base his worth on some external factors and he might have put a lot of his own worth on this situation

So now he has to go back and remind himself that this doesn't define him and that his value has nothing to do with the grammys or how others view him

Like hobi he might be bit hard on himself rn

But the hermit is such a powerful card bc you find yourself in the soul searching and you can asses how to move foward

I think also the hermit might also symbolize feeling shut out of the music industry and maybe too a bit of shame about not winning

JIMIM :'(

Taehyung

Ha

The high priestess

This whole situation did not pass his vibe check in the first place

I think he probably knew

Maybe his angel told him or he subconsciously knew

Very much trusting his intuition and will probably be using that to guide him going foward in what he will do with this situation

Creating and being vulnerable and open is important

Anything that has to do with intuition and creativity and empathy

He's probably also comforting jimin in preticular rn

He's also probably thinking about how to comfort us

(Maybe he's working extra hard to push the mixtape foward in order to comfort us)

(( we are trying to comfort YOU. You don't need to comfort us!!))

Regardless

It's a very intresting energy and it makes sense lol

Jungkook

The hanged man

Koo

A pause to re evaluate

Similar to jimin in that this is a time to reflect and to do some soul searching

Taking the time to see things from a new perspective that is desperately needed for him

Some new and important thing might be on the horizon (see yoongis reading) and he will be able to see it and see its potential because he's taking time to just

Exist

Gather his thoughts so that he can know what he's feeling and take that

Morph it into something beautiful

And use that to move foward with a new perspective.

I think also this could indicate feeling like this is a hurdle they can't get over.

Stuck where they are bc the obstacles are insurmountable.

Another interpretation is being made an example of publicly?

Like he might feel like they failed publicly and that it hurt rather than helped south Korea as a whole?

But overall feeling like he needs that new perspective and taking this as an opertunity to find that!

I hope this kinda makes sense! I only pulled one card bc I think they're all feeling A LOT of things and I wanted to focus on the main theme.

It's a lot more positive than I thought but that's bts for you, always looking to grow and learn and create. I'm really interested to see what kind of songs come from this emotional influx! I think it definitely differs some from what they've shown so I'm curious how this energy manifests for them!

[frogtanii]

It’s wind anon! (Imagine me as the screeching seagull meme) just pushing through the week. Getting the test out of my mind—it just sucks because there’s always this one test that I completely mess up on—and as someone who has to deal with all honors classes and my grades tend to be good, every time I fail to meet up to expectations my stress skyrockets. (Imagine a world where grades don’t matter and school is learning based rather than mark based...) Family pressures too—okay, wind anon is done ranting.

The update! The drama—I was there the moment it updated and I saw the comments rush in and I was laughing real hard.

But my reaction to the update!

Osamu POV :0!!! The insecurity... “all it did was remind him that he was alone”— I empathize because gosh, that is so real.

The attachment to Meiko though... his emotional state is on a very unstable tightrope. “Osamu had Meiko and he used to have Daichi and Iwaizumi...” that entire section has all my red flags raised. He’s going to completely break when everything comes out.

The loud clang startled me though. I was like “!!!” But it was our YN! Our kind, wonderful YN!! Trying to get snacks wwwwww.

Osamu thinking YN is cute :0 I be having a lot of thoughts about that but him squishing it down is fair. He considers himself to be in a committed relationship (though Meiko does not reciprocate and I am ready to fight regarding that) but I can respect his devotion (even if it is very misguided).

But. “After all, you were the reason Atsumu hated him now and never spoke to him anymore.” My gosh. What do I even say about this? Because the blame is entirely thrown off. I mean, you mentioned before Atsumu had a specific reason for believing in you over Meiko so I’m still waiting for that but Osamu is thinking something wrong but it’s a human action. It’s so easy to blame people to make yourself feel better. And your brain can do it without you realizing the depths of what has been thought.

Osamu being angry (!!!) and being a complete utter douche. YN literally just wanted a bag of chips and you’re here, crowding them in the pantry and being hostile. I don’t have much to say about it because he realized his mistake but by then he already stressed YN really badly and I am...(long sigh).

Atsumu to the rescue. We appreciate Atsumu very very much in this house. It really sucks that Osamu and Atsumu are confronting like this—I mean, Atsumu has been fighting a bit and Osamu had not really been listening to Atsumu on his own end prior to this confrontation so I’m...exhausted and a bit sad in the “It can’t be helped” kind of way.

“Osamu allowed him to, too in shock and ashamed to protest, much less fight back.” It couldn’t be helped considering how everything developed but...it still hurts my chest a bit, y’know? And then Osamu tries to apologize and I’m ready (so so ready) for them to communicate because they desperately need to—

But then Meiko comes in (I am...ready to throw stuff at her. Lots of stuff. Packing peanuts. All squeaky and annoying and bad for the environment just like she is—or something like that, I dunno, I’m half dead because I’m dealing with cramps rn) and all my wishes for them to finally have that much needed conversation where Osamu can finally break down and cry—all my wishes are turned to ash like.

(Angry Wind anon noises)

Meiko rubbing her makeup all over Osamu’s shirt like he is a rag. What in the... And her 4 inch heels please, I cannot, why, I can’t deal with this, I can’t, don’t make me get close to her because I’m like Yachi (stressed out of my mind). Please don’t do this to me. But yeah, Meiko with her poor makeup that doesn’t stay on her face. What the heck....

And Meiko’s scent... gross. Like, brown sugar, cute, nice, baked goods do smell really nice, (ever add a bunch of vanilla extract to a recipe? It like, perfumes around everywhere, it’s insane and wonderful) but chances are (because it’s Meiko), it’s overbearingly sweet. Chinese food (I do not trust her taste in Chinese food to be frank), I happen to come from a Chinese family, I have Chinese food for dinner like everyday, it would take a lot to be able to get that sort of scent on you. And I do mean a lot. And hairspray??? Chemical? I do not,,, I,,, Osamu, why would you breathe that in? It’s gonna be real bad for your lungs? And we already know Meiko smokes as well—your lung health, please value it—

And then the Suna entrance. Wonderfully done fr0ggy!

Final thoughts, I am very much projecting onto Yachi rn. Yachi has been in the house for less than a week and she already has to deal with this. The company should give her a raise. My gosh.

Anyway, might as well do a thoughts/headcanon thing because it’s been a while and my mind is still on gem/jewel stuff (so hope you don’t mind!)

Okay, so Kenma I think would go with a warm colored gemstone, and citrine would work well with him! “Protection against evil thoughts” because we know Meiko has ramped up is insecurity and lowered his self-esteem.

I mentioned this before last time but Sakusa is definitely onyx. That black is iconic, and “sharpening wit” would make sense with his grace for word play and snark.

Akaashi is an interesting one...I think sapphire. I mean, sapphire can have many colors besides the classic dark blue, so that’s one thing, but it’s known for “loyalty and a pledge of trust” which Akaashi gave. I think it’s suitable for him.

Suga...initially I was thinking pearl would match him in terms of appearance, but actually looking at my reference, turquoise would work really really well with him. “Protect from evil, maintain virtue, bring good luck”. Would work well.

For Atsumu and Osamu I wanted something that could represent their duality. My first thought was gold and silver. I mean, it’d fit in terms of appearance but I’m not sure that would be the best comparison. Gold doesn’t rust so it fits Atsumu who never fell for Meiko’s tricks. Silver has been said to vanquish dark/evil beings (vampires, werewolves, the classic silver bullets and stakes). It would be interesting to see if the comparison will apply to today’s update :D!

I like how my brain shut off and couldn’t remember anyone else for a second—anyway, Oikawa... every time I think of him, I want some hue of blue wwww. I guess Aquamarine “soothing influence” would work. Since he joined YN’s side, he has been able to see the big picture and be a voice of reason. He’s thoughtful and I think aquamarine which encourages long relationships is suitable because that is what he wanted. So yes, aquamarine.

Bokuto...is a tough one. I’m trying to still keep with their color schemes a bit. I think carnelian would work. “Health, luck, bold energy, warmth, joy”—it would represent him fine. It’s a bit more orange than I would prefer but it suits him so I think it’s okay.

Iwaizumi... emerald? I mean, he does suit green tones, and “rebirth, regeneration, new hope” would work just fine for him.

Right now my brain is complete mush and I can’t think of anything for Kuroo and Daichi. Like, Kuroo would be red, sure, but the more famous ruby/garnet I think don’t represent him fully because he is still rather contained. Hmm, would need to think about them more.

But I’d like your thoughts on this too :D!!

I wanna do something suitable for all colors for YN, so opal! YN has many different parts and colors and is overall a very vivid person—if you tilt opal, you see more and more faces and things underneath being brought into your eyes. YN may be seen from many different perspectives, but YN is always beautiful and amazing. So opal is what I think YN would be.

Anyway, I’ll end here :D! Need to eat lunch. Much love towards you fr0ggy! Make sure you eat and rest up too~ drink some water or any other fluid to hydrate! And keep warm too. Much love to all the fans and supporters and ask senders too! It’s really awesome seeing and hearing from all of you and seeing new faces with the old. Love the excitement and points you all bring up—makes my brain happy.

MAJDKD I NEED TO POST THE NEW CHAPTER BUT I HAD TO RESPOND TO THIS FIRST BESTIE ILY N I LOVE TUIS — I AM OBSESSED W THE CRYSTAL (??) STUFF??? IVE NEVER UNDERSTOOD IT BUT I THINK YOIVE EXPLAINED EACH GEM N WHY SO BEAUTIFULLY I AM IN LOVE W U KITH KITH UR SO LOVELY HAVE AN AMAZING DAY (sending u good vibes n anti-stress love >333)

[abla-soso]

I'm sending you this ask because I saw this post and I think this might be a case of a cultural misunderstanding? The entire conversation was very disconnected; almost nobody understood what the other was attempting to say.

I think witchesofcolor did assume about mimiwrites2000 originally but they did correct themselves pretty quickly.

They warned mimiwrites2000 about the language they were using and then explained it to them. In the U.S. if someone saying says something incredibly offensive (part of the statement they made most certainly was) then it's considered good manners to correct them immediately (particularly foreigners) so that they don't accidentally offend others. However this might be offensive in wherever you're from.

I also don't particularly believe you're anti-black either.

But, your overall behavior was (by western standards) super aggressive and you've mistaken some things as well.

When referring to AAVE that is not a 'Westerners' issue. AAVE is a specific dialect native to only Black Americans. It's words have become quite popular on the internet but they're often used improperly (as you mentioned); however because Black Americans still use the words as they were meant to be this leads to confusion and irritation (particularly the latter for Black Americans). Both you and mimiwrites2000 use it quite a bit so be there might be more confusions in the future.

Throughout the post no one called mimiwrites2000 a racist or anti-black; they said the language used was. The action was anti-black; no one said anything about the person. There's a big difference.

It was said/implied that both witchesofcolor and visibilityofcolor attacked mimiwrites2000 which again isn't accurate. To attack is imply they were purposely malicious; which they weren't. In reality, they were relatively polite. That of course doesn't mean that mimiwrites2000 didn't feel hurt; but they weren't attacked.

Honestly, you sounded really dismissive? It almost seemed like you didn't care that something offensive was said? You appeared more offended that someone corrected mimiwrites2000 and you then that something harmful was said? Like, as long as you're suffering in Palestine damned be anything else; even if it's hurtful to other marginalized communities.

Also, you claimed that you were being tone policed but you really weren't. Tone policing is when someone refuses to help/support a movement because they didn't like your tone (or attitude/words/etc.). While your tone wasn't liked; all involved still support Palestine regardless.

Overall, everybody made accusations and assumptions.

I believe neither you nor mimiwrites2000 are native English speakers (or from a western country) and language is really tricky (especially English!) so certain things are maybe lost or aren't understood but it's lost on me how you are so confident you've said or done absolutely nothing wrong. Especially since most of that entire post is in regards to something most non-Americans (including those from western countries) would have a lot of trouble understanding.

Anon, I appreciate your compassionate effort to fix this mess, but I’m really over it, and I highly doubt we can see eye to eye on this. 

It’s not just a language barrier, there is definitely a huge difference in culture clues/values. 

What I found incredibly offensive in my culture (ignoring a grieving person’s cry for help and focusing on how their wording offends me) doesn’t seem to be a big deal to you. Where I'm from, if a person is in desperate need of help, you don’t get to make it about yourself instead. Even if that person deliberately insults you, you listen and help them first and then deal with the insult. And it’s more outrageously rude when that person who was asking for your help was obviously clueless and never meant to offend but you still prioritized your hurt feelings anyway. 

You can’t imagine the level of shame and humiliation a person from an Arab culture feels when a person ignores their cry for help and tries to nitpick the words they used to ask for help, especially if they were subjugated to constant silencing and dismissive attitude before (and mimiwrites2000's private messages to me expressed how terrible she felt). 

That’s why I was angry and aggressive. 

And I’m not gonna apologize for it. 

Because while I listened and honored those guy's wishes and vowed to never again use that word that they found offensive (because I was NOT dismissive of their complaint itself), they - on the other hand - never listened. 

They demanded that a grieving victim who was crying for help be held accountable for an innocent mistake she made, but they completely absolved themselves of their own gross western-centric bias. 

They choose to call me all kinds of nasty names over and over and bombarded me with really vile, hateful messages for days.  

So sorry, but I don’t owe them shit.

But I will answer the rest of your points:

I had no idea what AAVE is, and neither did mimiwrites2000. Assuming we should have known anyway is a classic example of western-centric bias.

Even if mimiwrites2000 wasn’t directly accused of racism, the mere fact that her cries for help were ignored and she was forced to defend herself - because of an unintended offense that was caused by nothing but innocent cluelessness - was outrageous enough to me as an Arab. That post was about uplifting Palestinian voices - who were actively silenced right now - and allowing them to express their outrage and grief freely, regardless of how westerners feel about it. It was NOT the time or place to nitpick and police Palestinians voices. If someone was offended by a Palestinian’s choice of words; they should have approached them privately and respectfully, but not in my fucking post.

Mimiwrites2000 felt hurt because she felt ignored AND attacked. You don’t get to decide that for her. I already explained why an Arab victim would feel greatly humiliated in this situation, so I won’t repeat myself. 

Excuse me, but I’m too busy caring about my people being killed and colonized. I don’t have enough emotional energy to ignore my own deep pain and grief and focus on catering to other’s hurt feelings (which were caused by an unintended mistake and nothing else). We’re already deeply suffering and utterly emotionally exhausted, so have some freaking empathy and don’t demand that we should prioritize your feelings. And the most fucked up thig is: even AFTER I swallowed my own deep grief and pain and catered to their feelings; I was still called a racist bigot who didn’t really care about my own people’s suffering!!! I truly can not fathom this disgusting level of entitlement and lack of empathy.

Tone policing has many examples and it’s not limited to the one you mentioned. Also; claiming to “support” Palestine doesn’t mean shit when you nitpick and derail posts made by Palestinians and prioritize your own feelings over theirs. Don’t police, derail, or silence Palestinian voices. If you find something offensive; you can speak up, but keep the discussion in the DMs.  

[rk1kheadcanons]

AU after the revolution Connor becomes a “symbol of escaping your oppressors (esp sexually-conservative parents)” by becoming Markus’ partner and is very uncomfortable with everyone using him as just an object to project their fears and fantasies onto. He gets called a thot and “Markus’ good little slut” just for kissing and he hates it, the amount of pron people make of him makes him puke. No matter how hard they try, they can’t ignore how fetishized/objectified their relationship is becoming

You have no idea how vastly I love you for your prompt, Anon.

I took this prompt on for many reasons.

As an ally, it's imperative to respect and uplift all forms of love. It becomes a problem when we actively seek it out for the "entertainment value." There are people behind those alternative lifestyles with their own struggles on a daily basis. They are human, not 2d paper and pen figment of some of all perversions. They're not here to be anyone's form of sexual excitement, period. If someone asked me now why had so much more homosexual pairings instead of hetero, I got my receipts for each and every one of them, and I promise "they so cute" is not my first thought. If it is for you, well might give this a thought or two. And, no, I am NOT singling anyone out, never that.😌

Anyways, I'm off my soapbox now. I just felt l I owed it to my friends out there to say that they aren't just "quirky, gay babies, uwu."

That said, you'll have to pry booty shorts-wearing, nail polish bedazzling Connor from my cold, dead hands. I know he can be a BAMF, break my neck, and still be adorable while doing so. That's just gospel, sis. 😏

Markus and Connor had decided to go public with their relationship sooner rather than later for a myriad of reasons. There was a history between the two that no Android alive now would forget.

The famous deviant leader and the infamous deviant hunter now in a romantic relationship was the talk of New Jericho.

Of course, those hurt during the period of time that Connor had not Hu deviated was the louder voice heard from the masses. They didn't establish the 'ex' on deviant hunter for a reason. They were bitter, intimidated, and above all else, felt the relationship between the two men betrayed something that Markus had pledged to them. So long as Connor was just there acting as the security on his off time from the DPD, no one cared. As soon as he showed true signs of his deviation, that he could indeed understand the concept of emotions like love... Well, to many that was unacceptable. What about their friends and possible lost lovers in the original Jericho? They, the murmuring androids, knew that he would have been shackled to his programming, that until it was broken, he would have been just as much a slave to his protocol as they would have been in his place.

The funny thing about emotions though is it tended to make you irrational.

Connor was forever cautious when at New Jericho despite Markus and North, Josh, and Simon finally taking him under their wing. He heard those murmurs, though. It wasn't like he did not have good hearing. Then there were the social protocols that let him know that others were uncomfortable around him. Maybe they glanced away upon looking at him or more obviously changed positions to get away from wherever he strolled.

Connor hated the feeling but he wore the mass shunning like a Scarlet Letter around his neck.

Markus and the others knew of Connor's treatment. Markus often publicly condemned the behavior. It worked for some, others revolted against it. That's when they changed tactics.

Connor immediately became apprehensive about the sudden change in behavior over the next month. No longer did those who meet him look away or run from him, but more and more an odd behavior happened in some.

Connor was met with blushes, flustered looks while others, male, female, or other, looked at him with a look that could only be described as hostility mixed with lust. It caused him to recoil away from those who wore those looks, recalling how North had confided candidly in him, shared memories of how she'd been treated. Those human faces matched those of these Androids.

Markus had come to him without him knowing, so caught up in the sea of emotions he was, pulling him away.

When Connor looked at the other man, his face looked tired. He looked overall defeated and hurt. Before Connor could ask, Markus took him back to his office and gently sat him in his office chair behind Markus all in one desktop he used to interface with when going over things. It was not long before North busted in the office, Simon right behind her, both taking there side by Connor. Josh came in lathe st closing the door and locked it.

Connor was wary. What was going on? Markus began talking to him telling him about how about a month or so ago a new online group had been created, a forum. It revolved around their relationship solely. He told Connor that the maker of the room was in custody, as well as several of the main instigators, that he was heartbroken that this was happening, that he should have done more and to not concern himself, he was taking care of it and to never look at the site as they worked to close it down for good.

The LED on Connor's temple pulsed yellow and Markus had to stop him from searching for it, instead interfaced with the PC front of him on his desk. He knew Connor would want to go to it regardless. He was too inquisitive for his own good.

The website seemed pretty benign, it even had a cute shorthand for their relationship as 'RK1K' or 'R1000'.

Connor gently shed the human skin and interfaced with the site.

It was wasn't cute or sweet at all if the tightening if his other hand on the armrest indicated with the squeal of leather in the starkly quiet room. North's fiery glare was in one screen as well though she gently pulled his fingers away from the chair willing him to grab at her own hand, even if his strength in his stress crushed it. Simon placed a resting friendly hand on his thigh, sad eyes turned up to him.

Markus wrapped his arms around his lover's shoulders and rested his head on one shoulder, also taking in the devastating effects of what misguided hatred could do again with Connor.

The tears came naturally to his eyes as he took in the sheer volume of disrespectful post one after another. Pictures and videos edit made to look very realistic of Connor in a very harmful or demeaning role in his relationship with Markus.

They really did have him as if he was just Markus' slave, literal pet, or even more insulting, just a hole to use, eluding Markus still remained with North but they agreed to this arrangement due to her history as a known sex model. This was insulting to not only him but also North, cheapening her struggle.

Others said that this was his new attack on the android leader: get him used to him, in a relationship with himself, and then when they were in the throes of passion he'd strike like some twisted black widow.

The group chat was abhorrent. Connor to them was little more than a beautiful carcass. He meant nothing to them but they'd be willing to bed him. The female-presenting androids made him little more than just some sort of soft, weak invalid that lived only for Markus to dominate in and out of the bedroom. Others just lusted for them both, striping everything that was Markus and Connor away to nothing but rutting animals, nothing further.

The screen turned off with the withdraw of Connor's hand from it. He was up and out of the chair on his way, away from here. He could not do this with these people.

Markus was right after him.

North and Simon were calling all Androids on the campus for a meeting while Josh had been working on ways to fully dismantle such an awful website.

About time Markus caught up to Connor, he was in a self-driving cab, whisking away from New Jericho, Markus knew most likely to Hank's House called his own to go there.

The meeting went exactly as one would expect from two extremely pissed leaders, one who could remain level headed regardless, and the third finally joined giving the names of the known accused and that the site was permanently shut down. There was no grumbling because they knew that it would be more issues. They all have seen Connor flee the compound, markus on his heels.

For however angry North was, nothing would compare to Markus when he showed that side of him to the people that caused this and the others that cast a blind eye to this sort of abuse, allowing for it.

When Connor reached Hank's door, he knocked hard but couldn't see well due to the tears. His face was flushed as they poured down his face. It was not long before the older father figure lieutenant let Connor inside just as Markus pulled up in his own taxi.

After Hank was assured Markus was not the cause of Connor's distress, he was admitted into the house as well. Markus immediately went and held on to Connor. They were both hurting from that level of hatred.

Of course, Markus would be upset and just as hurt as if the subject matter was him. He loved Connor and the sheer disrespect for the one he cared for was a slap in the face to him, as well.

The situation was explained to Hank, who was livid for them both, and sad that the other Androids couldn't see Connor for himself. Dad powers activated and Connor would stay with him for a while, away from Jericho.

Weeks pass, Markus is hurting and the rest of the leaders can see just how much Connor helped with smoothing the frayed edges in Markus own personality when he was tired, hurt. He tended to be snappish, not meaning to be. While he still did everything required, the whole of Jericho started to understand the gravity of the situation.

Sure, there would still be those who just treated the situation like Markus lost a favorite toy like Connor wasn't even a person, to begin with. As if Markus was throwing a tantrum in the face of genuine mistreatment.

Others though would likely see the pain they caused, fear what would happen if, though unlikely but improbable, Markus decided to walk away from all of this as a leader in the Deviants for his lover.

There are very real rumors.

It's not like they don't see Josh counseling his friend and brother daily when Markus anxiously paces the floor, the sometimes bitter and harsh words directed at no one stating the same grief he feels from this strife of his people and who he's chosen to love in the end. Or how he leaves all things that can be to the three leaders now, where before it wasn't an issue to wear that heavy crown of leadership primarily. Or how when he can he sneaks off to the old human Lieutenant's house to see the ex-deviant hunter and second he can because of that love.

Yeah, the vast majority of people are feeling like they fucked up, including any androids who dared to join in with this witch hunt for Connor and they were part of the group he directly deviated and saved from Cyberlife.

Fractions start to happen among the group, those for and against Connor's presence like finally some of those saved remembered some semblance of loyalty to him. North is fucking done with this shit. All she knows is that she misses her awkward murder baby that is so much more than just arm candy to Markus and it takes both Simon and Josh to keep her from charging into another dispute of Connor this week.

"Shut the fuck up! You have no idea what you are talking about, the person you are trying to tear down just because of his past and programming."

Of course, she'd vested. It was an explicit reminder of her own life before Jericho and how people, human and Android, loved to devalue someone with a sexual abuse past.

Connor's was mentally and emotionally abuse he suffered. The abuse was abuse at the end of the day. He had confided in her. She had seen Amanda...

From that day on, it seemed quieter about the Connor subject.

Six months.

It took six months of Markus creeping to see his lover that felt an outcast, North railing at any Android who dared speak ill of Connor, and Simon and Josh going to see him at the old lieutenant's house.

Simon had missed Connor, too. Though he was quieter about the whole thing, it didn't mean he didn't suffer the same.

Connor was so unique. He could be so cold and calculating in the heat of the moment, gun out, ready to go. But in private, talking about the 'family' dog Sumo, sharing snapshots of him, and talking about a new soft sweater he thought Simon might like as well.

Simon helped Connor with his identity as a homosexual man and as such, they bonded together. Between him and North scheming when they had a night out, it was so hilarious and refreshing.

He missed him.

Josh enjoyed Connor's brand of humor. It was dry as the Sahara, and typically delivered deadpan and it murdered him. Connor did laugh like a madman, but it was typically in Markus presence at his dry humor or sarcasm.

All the while Connor was gone, Markus and Connor talked about the dilemma. Whether Markus came and got him for lunch or they met after work at Hank's place, they talked about it, kept their communication strong, and their relationship stronger. It had been hard for them, and blame had been spread, mostly hurt fueled from Connor's side to Markus initially that this even happened under their leadership. Markus mutely had taken it, feeling as though he could have done more. Then Connor would apologize, realizing that his past was not anyone else fault but his own, that he deserved this treatment to which Markus would rally against, telling him he was good and kind, no he most definitely did not deserve this disrespect. In time, the storm calmed between them and Connor knew what to do.

On a cool, wet morning in October, Connor Anderson moved back into New Jericho, back into the living quarters with one Markys Manfred. Sure, there were murmurs but nothing like before.

One android saw this again felt some sort of way about Connor and his existence at Jericho. Just as she readied her verbal barbs, another shut her down before she could even start.

Connor witness it; Markus did too, as did North, Simon, and Josh as they were welcoming him back. A majority of people saw this brave soul stand up for one of their leaders as they had never done before.

It makes a difference in the way Connor is perceived and treated. Instead of the leadership having to police the situation, the fear of another common android speaking out for Connor and against the naysayer's curves the negative vibe that attempts to take hold again.

Connor is now welcomed back by the majority of New Jericho, not the minority, and things are back to running smoothly as before he left.

[ill-be-istj-if-no-one-else-is]

Hello! I’m an autistic girl in my lower 20s and am hoping you could assist me in typing. Regarding functions, I believe Te/Fi in some order are my middle functions since I notice use of both, but you can be the judge. Regarding enneagram, I thought I had a 479 tritype, but recently my mother pegged me as a 1. I am not sure she understands ennea as well as I, but she probably views me more objectively than I view myself. 1/8

First off, I realize typing me is difficult, because in addition to autism, I have selective mutism (aka there are times when speaking is either very difficult or impossible for me) and therefore I do not have as many real-world experiences as most people my age. However, I am familiar with the type of info you need, so I think I can provide enough for you to help me get closer to determining my type. I tried to write three asks related to perceiving axis and three relating to ennea. 2/8            

I have a reliable memory; I can recall specific conversations nearly to the word and easily remember facts and numbers. However, I tend to insert the present into the past. In childhood memories, I see people looking as they do now. I can’t identify when I learn things, because my current knowledge enters any related memories. If I think back to a conversation, it seems I knew then what I know now regarding the person, the topic, and myself. 3/8            

It’s easiest for me to talk about straight facts-my age, my college (I’m a business major, not because I like business, but because I had no idea what to do, and so chose something practical. I don’t like telling people I’m a business major because they often have assumptions about the sort of people who have certain majors, and while business majors are not bad people, they are not ME). Most often, I talk about facts and stories regarding people. Other topics are nearly always boring. 4/8            

I have no imagination. I draw, but only directly from photos. I can’t make up stories or brainstorm ideas. I can, however, build off of what others start. I find logical holes in fantastical ideas never meant to have a basis in reality and think of how they could become true. I always think of words’ literal meaning, but can usually identify when the intent was not literal. My form of humor is making puns from literal interpretations or laughing about the ironies found in life and people. 5/8            

I am always bored, chasing after things to do, people to interact with, ideas to explore. I want all the experiences and all the feelings, frequently dwelling on feelings to magnify them (whether positive or negative). When I am not dealing with mutism, people tell me my highs and lows are too drastic for them, but I can accomplish anything just as well whether I am crying, or in an extasy, or calm, so I forget, in the frensy of experience, how my moods can impact others. 6/8            I have a strong moral compass, strong opinions, and a degree of rigidity, which I express freely to my family. I think similarly to my family, and differences can be resolved through explanations with little conflict. Around people who live by different underlying values and assumptions, I do not bring up what may not be agreed upon by the group, and I find it easier to give up my rigidity when away from home. However, I never go against my principles. 7/8         

I relate to the “inner critic” of ennea 1 since I always feel condemned by myself, as though I am both defective and morally wrong. However, I do not dwell on such thoughts, chasing entertainment and rationalizing away any doubts. Overall, I am outwardly positive. I am always smiling, even if I was crying a moment before, and am perceived as bubbly, sweet, and outgoing. Overall, these are descriptors I appreciate, though I also wish I could be better understood. 8/8            

--------------------

Hi anon,

I think you have high Fi, but I am not sure about the rest, nor enneagram. 1 doesn’t sound quite right, but neither does 4. I also want to note: I do believe that while MBTI is based off neurotypical people (or at least, considered neurotypical in the 50s, when a lot of things went undiagnosed), it’s possible to type many people who aren’t neurotypical, but I’m not any kind of mental health professional. So some of the things you mention, like picturing people as they are today in your memories, could be autism if you have difficulty with visualization (you seemed to imply difficulty drawing without a picture reference as well), or it could be type-related, and I honestly can’t say. So I appreciate you stating it’s difficult, and hopefully what I say here gives you some ideas of what might be typology related that you can incorporate.

Anyway: for Fi, I think your emphasis on sticking to principles and your general desire to actively explore your darker emotions both fit Fi very well.

A lot of the other stuff is, as mentioned, hard to figure out. I think sensing makes more sense here - you’ve made some very practical choices, and thinking through how to make fantasy things come true fits well with sensing as well. So either ESFP or ISFP are options.

Some of the more Si - seeming stuff sounds potentially more like it might be either just who you are as a person; again I can’t say if this is specific to autism but I think it’s often hard to separate what you know now from what you knew at the time of a conversation - it’s normal for anyone’s experiences since a past experience to color how they look at it now. For a more universal example, if you’ve since fought with a friend or broken up with a partner, even happy memories with them might take on a certain negative aspect, be it sad, regretful, or angry.

I don’t really see 1 in that 1s actively do dwell on those feelings of corruption or tend to focus on taking actions to not be bad or corrupt (eg: volunteering), and if you prefer to distract that sounds more like 7. You also have some aspects of 9, with disliking conflict on moral stances, so I wonder if you might be a 9w1 core with a 7 fix. I’m not sure you’re a 4 core and because you have high Fi it could just be the overlapping elements, but 479 sounds like a reasonable tritype for you. And if you’re an ISFP or ESFP, that tritype in pretty much any order for will fit.

[olivenight17]

Liv I feel like sending in a matchup!! Pls don't worry about rushing it!! Aside from things you already know about me, I'm bi, an aggressive 5''2 shorty, INFP with a 100% on the introvert, I'm lonely and can't make meaningful connections, short temper, can get distant, I seem cold but I can be a sweetheart, I put others before myself all the time, really insecure abt everything, the rare times I talk I want it to be meaningful, im a gemini and finally, I'm dead set on sth once I make it my goal!

Ahhhh, I’m so happy you decided to send one in! Firstly, you’re a mood because ooooof same, our only differences are I’m an aries and I tower over you at 5′8 lmao. Now, I could have gone with Keigo... but that’s the obvious choice and who would I really be if I made things easy for myself?

Also, remember sea anon? Twas me, I was really debating who to match you with and Sirius, for some reason, struck my mind. But then I went “Hey, she is one watery lady and would probably be the type to go all romantic walks on the beach or want to go sailing and not everyone likes water. I don’t know if Lily likes water, I know, I’ll just anonymously ask her cause I sneak!” And, for other reasons as well as the one that you’re not the biggest fan of water, I decided against matching you with her in the end anyways.

For now though, I give you... well actually your other favorite character lol and best girl Nejire!

- Oh wow, opposites truly do attract, don’t they?

- While you’re 100% an introvert, she’s 100% an extrovert and I hope you can handle it!

- But in all seriousness, she gets that you’re an introvert and she’ll try her best not to rope you into extremely draining social situations. And she’s usually pretty good with it, the most you have to handle is just the big three all at once lol

- She saw you probably standing a bit away from the others and in her mind went “Wat. She’s too adorable to be standing alone like this, this needs to change.” And then went bouncing over to you, all friendly and smiles.

- Honestly, all of those negative things you think about yourself and how lonely you are? Straight up prepare to never feel that way ever again.

- She will be your personal cheerleader from this point forward and she won’t take self deprecation as an answer because she knows you and how wonderful of a person you are!

- You say you can’t make meaningful connections, well that’s about to be hecka false because Nejire is all about making those meaningful connections, so not only do you have one with her, you’re gonna have some with the rest of the big three and on top of that, Nejire’s just gonna help you make connections. The great thing about having a social girlfriend is that she can actually help you with social things! (And now I’m jealous because ah that’s what I need crap-)

- She can help you with the distance thing too, if it is a thing that you want help with. Just simply because she... won’t let you. She tends to keep the ones she loves close to the heart and it’s honestly really hard to shake her off. I mean, you’d have to go detective levels to be distant and remain distant because she just doesn’t let it happen.

- But if it’s a case of “I’m really drained socially please I need a break.” She’ll get you, and she’ll back off. Though she’ll text you every few hours to see if you’re still in charging mode, unless you specifically say that you’ll tell her when you’re feeling a bit better.

- And, while at first I thought Nejire might not be the best with short tempered people, I realized she’d probably handle it like a champ! She’s just such a bright person the anger doesn’t really affect her, so if you snap she just tilts her head like “Hey, you seem upset. Are you okay?” She’s more concerned than anything, unless you’re getting angry over something small like... I don’t know, losing at Mario Kart? That’s trivial enough I think lol, if it’s something like that she just laughs because she finds the anger hilarious

- Oh, oh, and you wanna know the best part about this matchup?

- She can’t technically make fun of you for being short!

- I mean granted, she is still two inches taller, but if she teases you for it, you can shoot right back because you’re both in the same boat. Also, I mean, more convenient for the both of you when you wanna kiss, no one needs a ladder, we’re good here. (okok, no more short themed sentences, I love you, and any of these kinda jokes are an example of my love!)

- Though Nejire is quite bubbly, she does know how to have a meaningful conversation, it’s usually when you’re both having quiet time somewhere and cuddling. The mood is just so relaxed you both can really get to talking. But let’s be honest, anything Nejire says, is what she means. If she didn’t believe in what she was saying, she wouldn’t be saying it, she’s too honest for that.

- Loves your determination to get things done! She’s quite the determined person herself, so really, you two make the greatest go-getter couple ever!

- Really, your INFP personality is kinda perfect for her.

- On one hand, your ability to focus and see the bigger picture is great, while she’s serious and focused with villains, it’s a bit harder for her to have that same focus with other aspects of life. You being her anchor is great and she’d really be appreciative of the fact you can keep her steady.

- On the flip side, she loves your caring personality. You genuinely like to help others and every time she sees you doing so her heart gets a little more soft because wow did she fall for one amazing and sweet person... even though you like to hide it at first. You’re both very loyal to each other and wouldn’t betray the other’s trust.

- Overall, you have a very well balanced, understanding, and just really loving relationship because you value the other so much and you would both honestly do anything for each other.

I hope you enjoyed, Lily!

[queeruma]

Okay, so an anon sent me this ask:

Can I ask if canon materials say anything about Uma and Ursula’s relationship? Do you have hcs about it? I never read the third Descendant book so I don’t know much about her

and I wrote up this post, posted it, immediately realised that tumblr had fucked up all the formatting, deleted it, and then realised that by deleting it I’d also deleted the ask. I’m sorry anon, my brain is not functioning properly, but here’s my answer, hopefully formatted correctly this time:

Hi anon! So I thought I could answer this in like 10 minutes, and then it turned out that I have a Lot of thoughts about Uma and Ursula’s relationship, and here we are almost two days later (this post kind of just turns into Uma hcs at the end sorry about that)

Yes, between the movie, Rise, and Uma's Wicked Book, there's actually quite a lot of information about Uma and her mother.

Under a cut because this got long:

Within the actual text: Uma's relationship with her mother is… complicated, to say the least.

On the one hand, Ursula is about as far from a loving, caring mother as one can get. She has been forcing Uma to work for her, without pay, since Uma was 'so little she could barely see about the counter'. She is verbally abusive, berating Uma and humiliating her over her losses to Mal, and we see in the film that she's not above harming Uma physically either. And Uma seems certain when she's speaking to Ben that her mother does not care for her at all.

"All those days spent working at Ma’s restaurant, serving up gruel and scrubbing the floors, and I’ve never gotten paid a coin.” - UWB “Uma had worked at the Fish and Chips Shoppe her entire life, from when she was so little she could barely see above the counter, until she was old enough to wear an apron, carry a tray, and take an order.” - ROTIOTL “Uma was glad to have the place to herself. If Ursula were around, she would only be raging and complaining about how she had been saddled with such an ungrateful and useless daughter. Ursula never ceased to remind Uma how often she’d lost to Mal. When she’d learned Mal had been chosen to go to Auradon, Ursula flipped her tentacles. Uma never heard the end of it.” - ROTIOTL “Things I wouldn’t miss about the Isle: (...) Ma yelling at me” - UWB “My mom doesn’t care about me either. Well, not unless she needs someone for the night shift.” - D2

On the other hand, we see a certain level of respect between the two of them. Uma seems to be proud of her mother's strength, and is very comfortable showing her heritage as 'daughter of the sea witch'. Despite her mother's treatment of her, we never see Uma being afraid of her mother (contrast with the core four in the first movie, who definitely are). Uma remembers her mother taking her to Hook's inlet to watch the crocodile wrestling, and (repeatedly) telling her the story of her defeat at Eric and Ariel's hands. She states that her mother taught her about the importance of negotiation. Ursula, lamenting over her loss in her final battle, tells Uma that they would be 'Queens of the Seas' if she'd won. Given that unlike most of the villains, Ursula doesn't seem to be trying to manipulate Uma into anything in particular, I take this to mean that Ursula would have given her daughter what she felt was her due.

And, most importantly, Ursula has one single piece of her nautilus necklace left when she's on the Isle, and she gives it to Uma when Uma is a small child. Uma likes to hold it when she's feeling anxious. There's clearly more than just antagonism between them.

‘Uma was special: she was the sea witch’s daughter, a force to be reckoned with!’ - ROTIOTL 'The gold was warm against her skin, and she felt a faint echo of its former power. It had the sense and shape of her mother's wrath.' - ROTIOTL “No, last I saw her was on the news when she was blasting you with her magic!” Ursula laughed. “Good for her!” - EFTIOTL “That’s my mom! At least Maleficent recognised her power.” - MSB ‘“Mama was really something, wasn’t she? Back then?” said Uma.’ - ROTIOTL “Ma used to take me down to Hook’s Inlet when I was a kid, and we’d bet on the crocodile-wrestling matches there.” - UWB 'She recalled her mother telling her about that final battle (…) Prince Eric had taken the wheel and rammed his ship right into her heart (…) Uma always held her breath at that part of the story, wondering how it was that her mother had survived such a battle. Because even though she'd lost, she'd survived. Prince Eric hadn't destroyed her completely.' - ROTIOTL ‘Her mother had taught her about the power of negotiation, or as she’d described it, talking someone out of their greatest treasures and giving nothing of value in return.’ - ROTIOTL 'Queens of the seas, Ursula would lament. We would be queens of the seas if not for that awful Triton and that terrible Beast.' - ROTIOTL ‘(...) the locket she wore around her neck. Inside was a tiny piece of junk that her mother had given her as a child. “It’s all I have left,” Ursula had said at the time. Uma never understood why a sliver of metal mattered so much, but she liked holding it when she was anxious.’ - ROTIOTL

I think Uma's outfits also say a lot about her relationship with her mother. The core four pretty much exclusively wear their parent's colours, even after they've rejected them. We already know that colour means a lot in these movies, considering the thought they put into the shades of purple in Mal's hair and clothes in D1. Every VK either wears their parent's colours - Harry, Celia and the core four - or they don't resemble their families at all - Gil and Dizzy.

Uma's purple undertone, her hair and skirt resembling octopus arms, and the mesh undershirt with holes that mimics octopus suckers are all there to reflect her status as Ursula's daughter. She's proud of her heritage - but there's probably a practical reason as well: there's an element of protection in reminding people of her mother.

However, I think it's telling that her main aesthetic and colour are all her own. The pirate hat, the tough leather jacket complete with epaulets, the chunky belts, her sword, and the overall teal theme, all make it very clear that Uma is her own person, and no one who looks at her is going to forget it. She's not going to ride by on her mother's reputation all her life - people will know her name, not just her parentage.

Her symbol also demonstrates this mix of nature and nurture. Mal, Evie, Carlos, Jay, Harry, and Gil all have symbols that refer directly to their parents (Gil signs off UWB with a bow and arrow, presumably a reference to his father's skill at hunting). In contrast, the skull and crossbones - crossbones in this case being a trident and sword - with a wave in one cheek, an eyepatch, and octopus arms below it is 'the unofficial symbol of Uma, daughter of Ursula - pirate queen'.

--

As far as headcanons are concerned, I can’t really list them? I just have a kind of general ‘this is how Ursula affected the way Uma’s life went’ hc:

I think all of Uma’s better memories of her mother are from her very early childhood. By the time Uma and Mal stop being friends, Ursula has already pretty much checked out of everything; I don’t think she ever tries to manipulate Uma in the way Maleficent and the other villains do their children. She leaves the work in the shoppe to Uma and retreats into her Auradon soap operas. Uma is used to seeing other parents on the Isle put effort into their relationships with their children (that is never actually a Good Thing but baby Uma doesn’t know what decent parenting is) and she wonders if Ursula’s lack of manipulation is her mother neglecting her because she sees her as worthless.

So Uma kind of decides that she’s going to be as independent as possible, because if she makes her distance from her mother her choice, she doesn’t have to confront the possibility that Ursula is neglecting her because Uma isn’t good enough for her. And because I loathe the canon Uma and Mal backstory with the passion of an anti-vax parent for essential oils, here’s my take on it (credit for the idea that Maleficent encouraged Mal to end their friendship goes to @edream93 in her wonderful fic ‘We’ll Light the Fuse’ - it partly inspired this hc):

Uma and Mal were good friends from a very young age, and there was some genuine affection and trust between them, which Maleficent obviously did not approve of at all.

She allowed it for a while because they did get into a lot of trouble together, but as Uma drifted further away from her mother, she became concerned about Uma’s influence on Mal.

See, Uma might have started out distancing herself from her mother to protect her own feelings, but she also actually began to care less about her mother’s opinion of her.

Maleficent, who wanted Mal firmly under her control, knew that if the two girls stayed friends, Uma might encourage Mal to question her mother’s authority.

And if there’s one person on the Isle talented at subtlety and manipulation, it’s Maleficent. Mal and Uma’s friendship was doomed to end the second Maleficent decided she wanted it to.

I also think Ursula’s F- parenting plays into Uma’s feelings about Auradon. Uma is genuinely right about the Isle - it is unfair and morally abhorrent that the children of villains are fated to live in a ‘fate worse than death’ for the crime of being born to the wrong people. She and the other descendants of villains unquestionably do not deserve to be there.

But Uma’s desire for freedom and revenge isn’t just based on her rational disapproval of the Isle. It comes from a huge amount of anger and pain, and it’s admirable that she manages to use those negative feelings (along with her love for and loyalty to her crew) to motivate herself. She is equally furious and terrified - Auradon abandoned her, Mal abandoned her, her own MOTHER abandoned her - and either she didn’t deserve it, in which case she has to be angry at basically the whole world, or she did, in which case...

yeah, she tries not to think about that.

Luckily, between her friendship with Harry and Gil and the loyalty and respect she gets from her crew, more often than not she’s able to believe that she deserved better she deserves so much better she deserves the whole fuCKING WORLD.

Ultimately, Uma is a very practical person, and any feelings she has about her mother, positive or negative, will not stop her from getting off the Isle and going after what she wants - whatever that ends up being. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that the octopus-inspired elements and purple undertones of her D2 look are gone in D3.

[bettsfic]

a third stance on the moral dichotomy of fandom

i have one more thing to say, or i guess reiterate, on the topic of moral purity policing in fanfiction as perpetuated by minors, in a more rebloggable format than my previous asks. what i have to say is an incredibly unpopular opinion because it takes neither side of this dichotomized issue, and addresses, not the minors perpetuating the purity rhetoric, but the adults fighting against it. 

first i’ll offer a run-down of the overall issue at hand:

side 1, or what i call “think of the CHILDREN”: there is a large sect of people in fandom right now, mostly teens and young adults as far as i can tell, who believe that taboo works (noncon and underage) should not be allowed to exist. if they are written, they should be flagged and subsequently taken down. these people seem to hold these beliefs for several reasons, the prevailing ones being “fiction affects reality” and “children might read it!!” this stance is the active one, the (literal) minority, the side trying to enact change upon an established and (legally) supported status quo. these people do not separate the art from the artist. 

in practice, these beliefs are aggressive and toxic. we see them in rude or cruel anonymous asks urging writers to kill themselves. we see them in “only follow if” and “do not interact if” pages with lengthy bullet point lists of traits and behaviors that are Not Okay. we see them in yfip. we see them in anti tags. we see them in long, poorly researched and contextualized responses to well-meaning pro-”ship and let ship” posts. we see them in accusations of pedophilia for fics and ships that are not in fact pedophilic. we see them in phrases like “abuse apologists” and “problematic” and “romanticize” and “fetishize.” 

despite the seeming growth of what i’ve been calling the Gen Z Puritanical Movement, what we see on tumblr is only a narrow view of a much wider issue spanning outside fandom and into the world of art itself. it stems from problems of decades past, McCarthyism, the Hays Code, the nuclear family, for example, and the subsequent counterculture movements against them. right now Gen X has all the power and prestige in the enormous world art, and being the children of Baby Boomers, they simultaneously believe you must always separate the art from the artist, while also widely disbelieving (or having had to learn) that inequality and disenfranchisement have any bearing in the success of art. 

“the discourse” as we call it has its roots in every creative field and we are in midst of a revolution in the way we understand and interact with art. i believe, with any revolution, the answer is not in stalling it but negotiating with it, learning from it, interrogating it, and adapting. 

side 2, which i’ll unpack below, is comprised mostly of what i would venture are Millennials, and fall somewhere between Gen Z purity and Gen X freedom. and as much as i want to discuss this gaping chasm of beliefs further, i’m specifically talking about the way transformative art is presently policed by side 1.

which brings us to the other side.

side 2, or what i call “i do what i WANT”: these people believe that a fan writer/artist should be able to write, post, and share with the public any creative work the mind can devise as long as it is warned/tagged properly, and all people who do not want to view their art should walk away and not interact. key phrases include “ship and let ship” and “don’t like, don’t read.” the prevailing root of this belief is that all art is valid and important, all art belongs, even when that art is devised entirely by the id. additionally, they believe they do not have to justify, defend, or explain their art in order for it to exist, and most importantly, it is every reader/viewer’s responsibility to understand the difference between fiction and reality. these people separate art from the artist. 

in practice, these beliefs are poised to defend of the attacks from side 1. this is a reaction to a movement, an assertion of maintaining the status quo. we see posts speaking to an audience of side 1, pleading or at times demanding for them to learn not only the fraught history of fanworks but also the greater context of art and censorship. these posts are then reblogged by people with similar beliefs, attacked by side 1, and no one seems to really learn anything at all. the dichotomy is maintained. battles end as posts fall into obscurity, but the war rages on.

side 2 holds the status quo, the most common sense. it is the most educated perspective, upheld by the wiser and older parties of fandom, the transformative artists who have lived through strikethrough and boldthrough and have experienced the damaging consequences of the censorship and ideology of side 1. moreover, it is upheld by the actual people who built and run the archive on which our art rests. in this dichotomy, side 2 has all the power. side 2 is the majority. 

here’s where i get to my incredibly unpopular opinion:

people in positions of power have no reason to meet aggression with more aggression except to re-establish and assert that power over the minority opinion. aggression does not sway the minority opinion; it only fuels it. 

in other, more practical words, we are ADULTS sharing a public community space with CHILDREN, and some of those children have made it clear that they are angry. 

why do we meet that anger with anger when we are older and wiser and have all the authority? if a child is having a violent tantrum, do you punch them in the face? no, you hold their wrists. you calm them down. you ask them what’s wrong. you try to parse out what happened and work together to make sure it doesn’t happen again. you can’t expect them to articulate that anger; you have to ask questions. you have to listen to them.

side 1 says that taboo works are wrong and bad and shameful. i personally disagree with that belief, but my curiosity lies in the extreme emotional reaction and value judgments behind it. and when enough people are angry about something, if a movement becomes wide enough, it means there is something else going on, some seed of truth happening somewhere -- a needle in a haystack, an invisible shard of glass on the kitchen floor -- that needs to be found. i’m not saying side 1 is right, but i am saying that there is something in that anger which might ring true, even if the toxic rhetoric they are spouting is not. i don’t know what that truth is, and the point of this post is not to find it, but to encourage us to seek bigger answers about this very big problem.

side 2, you might be saying, they’re not children, they’re teenagers and young adults. you might be saying, when i was their age, i knew to obey the etiquette of fandom. you might be saying, we are not equals, they should be learning from us. you might be saying, it’s their responsibility to know fiction from reality. you might be saying, none of this is my responsibility. you might be saying, this movement is getting bigger and scarier and it may become an actual threat to our art. 

and you might be feeling: i have no interest in logically or morally defending the taboo nature my aesthetic interests. i know that they appeal to me, and i know i should not be tasked with or required to publicly explain myself. i should not have to assert that art is separate from the artist. i should not have to endure aggressive mobs of anons in my inbox. i should not be chased away by pitchforks held by my own community. i should not be accused of being a predator, rapist, abuse apologist, or pedophile. 

and maybe you know that you are not any of those things, and to be accused of them is ridiculous and appalling, but maybe it still hurts to be called all of that which makes life so dangerous and cruel. maybe it always hurts to have your art misunderstood.

this brings me back to anger. all anger is devised of pain and fear. we get angry when we’re hurt and scared. when i see two angry sides of a wide divide, all i see is that fear and pain, and all i want is to lessen it. 

on side 1, we have a group of young people whose only context is the present and whose only fear is the future. i put myself in the shoes of what it must be like to be a teenager in america in 2018, how different it is from when i was a teenager. teen stars on red carpet events in 2005 dressed in ugly cargo pants and sweatshirts. millie bobby brown at 13 was dressed like a supermodel at last year’s emmy’s. young people today have more and easier access to information pertaining to violence and sex, consume media steeped in those things, than they ever have. and it’s becoming increasingly difficult for parents to keep them from that interaction. side 2′s rhetoric around this is to wipe their hands free of it -- “your parents should monitor what you’re doing on the internet.” and they should, they absolutely should, but while technology has changed, teenage curiosity hasn’t. i clicked past every 18+ warning i’ve ever seen in my life, and that was my choice, and i handled the consequences. 

but just for a second imagine being 14 again, and curiosity getting the best of you, and clicking on something in which your physical equivalent is being hurt and abused and eroticized. can you imagine not having any understanding of the greater context of what you’ve just read, in art or in life? wouldn’t you be scared too, to know those things exist? wouldn’t you be reluctant to listen to the explanation of them when you are young and afraid and suddenly aware that you can be hurt? 

i am not encouraging writers to stop creating taboo fanworks. i think they have an important artistic purpose and function and place, and i value any mind that can conceive and face such darkness. but as someone who aims to understand as much as i possibly can about what it is to be human, to be alive today, i am inclined to consider the various interpretations of taboo art and its potential repercussions. 

teenagers today are more aware and attuned to -- and have constant access to -- current events than any other generation before, but that does not mean they have learned or educated themselves on the historical context of these events in order to understand them fully. they don’t have a wide perspective, but they do have their moral compasses guided by the abhorrence of the constant human rights violations that occur on macro and micro scales every single day, and it’s those compasses that place value judgments on the content they consume in fandom, the place where they feel, i speculate, the most valued. the place they have the most power and sway. the only place, maybe, that their voice and fear and anger is ever heard, witnessed, responded to, taken seriously. 

being a teenager today is a completely new and terrifying machine made of old parts. we, the adults in fandom, understand the parts but not the machine. how can all the same parts make something so different from us? who built this monster, and how to we destroy it? why is it attacking us when there are bigger and more important battles to fight? why doesn’t it go read a fucking book for once?

that brings us to side 2. if side 1 has the future, side 2 has the past. we see the toxic rhetoric of side 1 and we know what consequences can come of it because we’ve lived the worst of it. we have both the pain of the past and the fear of the future to handle, and neither are easy to cope with. 

so what do we do? we either get angry and fight back, or disengage. sometimes i think the latter is the most toxic of all, because i believe it’s every artist’s responsibility to understand the work they’re doing and the greater context of that work, how it fits in their given lexicon of art. they should not be required to defend it or speak for it, but they should know it. inside and out, they should know their art and why they make it. 

i also believe, if you know your art and why you make it, if you can separate yourself the artist from the art, why disengage from those who are repulsed but reaching out? it’s definitely my gut instinct to meet cruelty with anger and upsetness, but cruelty also piques my curiosity -- i want to know where the repulsion comes from. i want to ask questions. why are you offended by this art? how have you interpreted it? why are you afraid of it? how has its existence hurt you? if nothing else, it always gives me a broader understanding of my work and how it can be seen, which is invaluable feedback for any artist. 

if there is any bridge at all to be built between this divide, i think it is in our ability to ask questions, listen to the answers, and use those answers, not to argue with or defend ourselves or to become upset by, but to ask more questions. 

here are two ways this mentality has helped me -- 

in my old job (commercial finance real estate), i worked with upperclass middle-aged white men who got paid six figures a year to golf and cheat on their wives while i did all their paperwork. eventually i made a hobby of sitting in their offices and asking them questions, knowing they had authority over me, knowing our opinions differed. knowing i had no place to argue with them or leverage in telling them all the ways i felt they were wrong about politics and society at large. i pretended they were teaching me things, showing me the way of the world. i let them believe that, and i continued asking questions, forcing them to articulate aloud why they believed what they believed, hours and hours, slowly boxing them into corners from which they would eventually change their own minds.

in my current job (i’m a college instructor) i do something similar. i sit down with every single student one on one and i ask them questions about their political and social beliefs. often my students are 19, white, straight, affluent, conservative young adults who hold many of the same puritanical ideas as that of side 1 with less of the toxic rhetoric. at first, i was terrified to do this. it was different than my old job because suddenly i was the one with authority. i thought, what if i encounter racism? prejudice? sexism? what if they are fundamentally wrong on every level, and won’t listen to me, someone who knows the greater context of their opinions? what if i end up arguing with them? what if they don’t respect me? what if i can’t change their minds? and most importantly -- is it my responsibility to change their minds at all?

after the first semester, i realized how young they were, how much they still had left to grow, and learn, and live, and that my class would not be able to teach them everything they needed to know in order to strip away the prejudices and narrow-mindedness of their upbringings. i learned that all i could do was be a person in a position of authority listening to their beliefs and asking them tough questions no one has ever asked them. forcing them on the spot to articulate the beliefs they have not before had the opportunity to interrogate. i find i rarely agree with what they say, but i validate their right and ability to say it. to have a voice and space and responsibility in and to society. to think, itself. and most importantly to think through their ideals, which they cannot do if they are never given a chance to be heard, if they are never asked the questions whose answers will lead them to deeper and more meaningful insights.

i have never changed the mind of a single person by arguing, but i have changed several minds by asking. 

we have an entire generation of terrified young people who are lashing out, and i do not want to hate them. i do not want to meet their rage and toxicity with fear, defensiveness, and dismissal. i want to sympathize and listen. i want to know more about why they feel how they feel, what the real root of it is, the seeds of truth behind the rhetoric. i want to understand. and mostly, i want to help fix all the broken and awful things in the greater sociopolitical sphere that have built this terrifying machine and dug our moral divide.

[oumakokichi]

Looking back, was Angie really that influencial ? After all, the only persons she rallied to her cause were Gonta and Himiko, the most naive ones, and the others wouldn't have followed her were they still alive. Since she often spouts nonsense and is openly gross, Himiko had no reason to open up to her, except to trigger changes in her dynamic with Tenko. She was my pre-release favorite, but i ended up finding her two-dimensional. That being said, is she more of a plot device than a character ?

That’s an interesting question!It probably depends on how you look at it, really.

On the one hand, it’s true thatthe only people Angie really influenced to a large degree were usually peoplelike Gonta or Himiko, who are both notoriously gullible. Tsumugi clearly onlyjoined the Religious Student Council for the sake of keeping an eye on thingsand helping herself fly further under the radar, Kiibo joined because of hiscuriosity with human religion in general, and Tenko joined under the pretenseof being friendly with Angie, but was actually just worried about Himiko. So wecan assume those three weren’t nearly as taken in or impacted by Angie’s talentor charisma.

However, I think it’s also truethat Angie wasn’t particularly interested in trying to sway everyone to hercause, at least not by brainwashing them. She mostly wants people who willbelieve what she says at face value and who won’t hesitate to stick up for heror do things for her—basically, she seeks out people who seem naïve andgullible from the start, rather than spending unnecessary time and effort onpeople who are more skeptical and harder to convince, like Ouma, Miu, etc.

Angie indicates in her FTEsthat she seems to have mostly grown up around people who will do whatever shewants and listen to whatever she says. Brainwashing is implied to be thereason, similar to Mitarai’s talent; in her FTEs, Saihara quite literallyblacks out after looking at a piece of her artwork, and the word “brainwashing”comes up directly several times in Chapter 2 alone (and Angie very pointedlyavoids answering the question when Momota asks what she did to Himiko).

But unlike Mitarai’sbrainwashing, which worked pretty unilaterally on everyone the same way, I feellike Angie’s talent might actually be a little closer to Ruruka’s candies,which seemed to have varied effects depending on the willpower of the personinvolved. She stood very little chance of actually convincing people who wereskeptical and cautious by nature to join her Religious Student Council, soinstead I think she rallied as many “easy targets” to her cause as possible inorder to make it harder for the rest of them to go against her decisions.

For all her flaws, I don’tthink Angie was ever interested in actually hurting anyone or enforcing somekind of brainwashed regime over everyone in the school. Rather, her interestshave always primarily been about self-preservation and making sure shepersonally didn’t get caught in the by-blow. The reason she was so emphaticabout wanting everyone to live a “peaceful school life” was precisely becauseshe didn’t trust any of them, and because trying to get out of the school waswhat was leading them to fall for the motives Monokuma kept setting for them(and she was right, in a way). That’s why she crushed the remember lightMonodam tried to give them in Chapter 3, stating that they didn’t need memoriesof the outside world anymore because they were going to be dedicating themselvesto living inside the school peacefully instead.

Angie doesn’t strike me as acharacter who is particularly evil or horrible per se, but rather as someone whois highly concerned with her own self-preservation, and who has led a lifewhere she’s been rather unaccustomed to hearing the word “no.” While her FTEsare very disappointing and badly handled, I find her somewhat more interestingin-game because I don’t think most of the stuff she spouts is actually “nonsense”or “gross.” Quite the contrary, Angie herself is quite shrewd, and a large partof her “quirky, exotic girl” behavior is much more calculated than she lets on.

Angie is well aware when othersare skeptical or doubtful of her because she herself isn’t a very trustingperson. She’s quick to suspect others without any hesitation at all, and despiteher friendly demeanor, I don’t think she actually trusts or opens up to any ofthem whatsoever. I think her need to surround herself with people who are naïveenough to agree with her and follow along with her decisions is her own attemptat “insurance,” of sorts. By placing herself behind several people who arehighly unlikely to argue with her and who agree with what she says and does, itdecreases the chances of she herself getting hurt in the by-blow.

This is why she’s so good atpainting a metaphorical picture of what people want from her. Himiko was one ofthe easiest people for her to convince to join her religion initially becauseshe knew exactly what Himiko was trying to do, in escaping from her realfeelings. If Tenko is the force in Himiko’s arc of character development tryingto get her to come to terms with reality and stop running from her ownemotions, then Angie is the force representing escapism and the desire to keepturning a blind eye to the harshness of reality.

In many ways, Angie’s religionis itself a “gentle lie” meant to let the other characters believe whatever theywant to believe so they don’t have to think and fend for themselves. This tiesin quite well with ndrv3’s themes of truth and lies being put on an evenfooting, as it’s difficult to say that one or the other is entirely right orwrong. But it’s also true that extremism is never the option in ndrv3, and that’swhy it’s impossible to keep resorting to escapism forever. At some point, youcan’t continue lying to yourself and you have to accept the truth, and that’sexactly what Himiko herself comes to realize after Tenko and Angie’s deaths inChapter 3.

In that sense, there areseveral interesting points about Angie’s character. In addition to herReligious Student Council representing a lot of ndrv3’s themes about “lies,” it’salso true that she’s meant to represent western religion in Chapter 3 in thesame way that Korekiyo represents eastern religion. A lot of the conflict andthemes of Chapter 3 center around religion in general, so it makes sense thatthose two would take center stage in one way or another. And I do find the factthat Angie wanted to actually perform the resurrection ceremony on Amami quiteinteresting, considering she still seemed to want to find out the mysteriesbehind the situation they were in even if she refused to try actively returningto the outside world.

Overall, Angie is nowhere nearas well-written as she could’ve been. It’s true that by virtue of reducing herto a lot of really bad stereotypes, her depth as a character suffered, and she’sa bit more two-dimensional than some of the other characters in comparison. It’salso true that her FTEs are probably some of the worst-handled in the game,considering there’s no real way to get around the fact that she did try toforcibly take Saihara’s clothes off, got angry when he yelled at her, andSaihara is left with the burden of apologizing to her for getting angry. I canguess vaguely at what they were getting at, with Angie being someoneunaccustomed to hearing the word no all her life, but the scene was stillextremely uncomfortable and never gets addressed as such.

But I don’t think she’s entirelyflat as a character, either. There are still things that are really interestingabout Angie, and I actually find myself enjoying her character the most duringthe first two trials when she’s at her most ruthless and suspicious. It’s funin hindsight to see how cunning she can be while acting extremely light-heartedand ditzy, and she’s absolutely not interested in letting any other characterstake advantage of her or throw her under the bus, so she often works first tothrow them under the bus instead. She and Ruruka are quite similar in someways, really, moreso in their charismatic influence on others (though I willsay in Angie’s defense that she’s never actually intentionally vindictive ormalicious the way Ruruka is).

In my personal opinion, I wouldsay she’s still a character, rather than a plot device. She has her own agendaand her own motives, a lot of the stuff about her brainwashing talent isheavily foreshadowed in her FTEs, and she’s generally pretty intelligent andsneaky in the trials. She’s not exactly on the same level as a “plot device,”though it’s true that the Religious Student Council itself could be viewed thatway.

Anyway, this is my take on it!Angie is one of those characters who I think we were all expecting a lot morefrom, prior to the game’s release, so the way in which she was handled waspretty disappointing, especially since there was really fun potential there.But there are still things about her character I do find enjoyable, even if she’snot my favorite! Thanks for stopping by, anon!

[tigerlover16-uk]

I accidentally deleted an anon ask about whether GT or Super handled Piccolo’s death better. Whoops, sorry. I’ll just answer it in this post.

GT definitely had the more grandiose, quote-unquote “Emotional” death scene. It was beautifully animated and through the music and dialogue, especially that final goodbye, it really sold the tragedy of the situation.

But the context and everything around that death was terrible.

You can look up my “My Thoughts on the Baby Saga” For a full rant on this, but to cut it short, the Black Star Dragon Balls were an ill conceived contrivance and Piccolo sacrificing himself to deactivate them violates Z’s rules regarding the dragon balls, where the normal ones deactivated after Kami merged with Piccolo. Between that and a lot of other story beats, it felt like this situation was contrived specifically for the purpose of killing the guy off.

It really does feel like they killed Piccolo off JUST to be dramatic and for that one part in the next saga. Which is a TERRIBLE reason to kill someone off. If you want to kill a major supporting character, ESPECIALLY one as iconic and beloved as Piccolo, you need to do it in an appropriate manner and have their death mean something in the grand scheme of things, for how it affects other characters going forward and how the deceased characters absence changes the way things work for the overall story.

We don’t see anyone really mourning Piccolo after he dies, that one moment with Gohan crying out his name after Piccolo contacted him about his decision was all we got. We don’t see how the other characters cope with his loss afterwards. Even if it was brief and not enough really done with it, we at least saw Mr Satan feeling down in the dumps and doubting himself over Buu’s loss. No such thing from one of Goku’s best friends and Gohan’s honorary uncle.

Life just goes straight back to normal in the episode immediately after Piccolo’s death. No one really acknowledges him outside of Goku when he meets Piccolo in hell. Piccolo at least has some plot relevance there helping Goku get back to earth, though that repeated joke from the Black Star saga honestly just made him and Dende seem a bit incompetent and that they still needed Goku’s help to do anything to me.

And then Goku just leaves him in hell. And despite Goku casually mentioning he hopes the guy gets out eventually at the very end of the show, we never find out if Piccolo does. As far as we know, he could just spend the rest of eternity as the ogres whipping boy keeping the unruly villains stuck in hell in line.

And frankly, that’s insulting. The character gets nothing useful to do for half the series, shows up once and then immediately disappears after doing literally nothing of value at one point in the Baby saga, and then shows up at the end of that JUST to die, over a plot device that shouldn’t have existed in the first place. And then as a reward for all the character development he’s had to make him a good person and all the effort he’s put in to help keep the earth and even the universe safe over the years, he gets dumped in the deep dark pits of hell to rot just so Goku can be convenienced.

It’s incredibly disrespectful to Piccolo as a character and not a satisfying way to end his own story for people who were invested in him. It robbed him of any potential to develop further and be useful to the story, just to try and tug on people’s heartstrings while not respecting him or his legacy. It’s even worse since anyone who’d just tuned into GT because Z was such a big deal and hadn’t watched the previous series wouldn’t know who the heck Piccolo is or why his death is a big deal other than he apparently matters to Gohan. While him dying would be a big deal to people who had been following Dragon Ball for a while and knew his story, GT’s refusal to actually do anything with him just makes the death feel more hollow than anything for people who might not have watched Z.

It was just overall horribly handled and a slap in the face to fans of the character.

Super’s death scene for Piccolo in the RF saga wasn’t nearly as grand or had as much focus that made it dramatic like GT’s death scene, but it served it’s purpose for what it was. It was a shock moment at the end of an episode where Gohan was being tortured. It’s a cliffhanger that grabs your attention to make you want to know just what the heck just happened, it even shocked people who’d seen the movie and thought they knew everything that was going to happen.

And then we did see the impact that Piccolo’s death had straight after. It spurred Gohan into action again to charge up his energy enough for Goku to teleport him and Vegeta to earth, while we also got to see Gohan’s and the other characters shock and horror over Piccolo’s death, including Dende. We saw Goku being rightfully angry at Frieza and taking Piccolo’s body somewhere safe, showing his friend respect and then trying to reassure Gohan that they could fix things with the namekian dragon balls, showing that they all care enough about Piccolo to try and find a way to bring him back. And unlike the film where Goku was mostly just using the fight as an excuse for fun, in Super seeing the damage Frieza had wrought and especially Piccolo’s death made Goku take the fight largely seriously.

And yeah, they did bring him back afterwards. But instead of rendering his death pointless, Piccolo dying was one of the things that spurred Gohan to start training again, which that has slowly started to pay off with the Great Saiyaman two parter and now with the Universe Survival Saga, even if we only saw the training between them briefly. And his death also emphasizes that yeah, the Z fighters ARE risking their lives when they go into battle and that there are horrific consequences if they don’t pull through and save the day. It may not have been done as expertly well as with all the deaths in the saiyan saga, but they were adapting a movie with a plan already laid out for the next story arc. The writers did the best they could do with the situation.

It also helps that Piccolo got a lot more screentime before hand in Super. While he didn’t do a ton of plot crucial things, we got plenty of fun scenes to show that Piccolo has a personality and character to him, and that he’s clearly an important and close friend to the Son family and especially Gohan, so even someone who’d only watched Super or just the RF saga up to that point could still feel the weight of him potentially being killed off like that. Especially important since in Japan at least, there are bound to be kids watching a Dragon Ball show for the first time who wouldn’t know a lot about the previous shows aside from pop cultural osmosis since Dragon Ball is a pretty big deal. Context is a very important thing for selling these things.

So, yeah. GT may have had the grander death scene, but Super’s death scene for Piccolo served a better story purpose and wasn’t as insulting in the long run to his character, nor did it remove most potential for him for future stories. 

[frogtanii]

It’s wind anon!!! Who is back from the dead!

Last week was a mess of work and poor sleep. Wind anon woke up in the middle of the night for 4 of the 7 days, and had nightmares some of the others. So overall, unpleasant. But now wind anon is all good!

Getting back to reactions now :D!!

Okay, so I might as well react to the Kenma portion of “xxv. Insecurities :(“ because I haven’t gotten to it yet.

Aaaaaa anxious and insecure :0!!!! “I know I’m not the most fun” says Kenma. Wind anon, ready to throw biodegradable glitter all over Meiko’s stuff. Lord knows she doesn’t know how to do laundry—but yes. Kenma, I give many a soft pat.

“She never cared about me or what I liked...she hated the way I looked, which I don’t blame her” okay, these 3 texts (that I very conveniently put into one quotation). Wind anon finding peace with herself by imagining Meiko messing up her eyeliner and being unable to stop. Firstly, I am of the opinion that if she doesn’t care for you, you should not care for her. The idea is that you should not value her criticism and opinion especially when it’s something as superficial as looks and appearance. She was in the wrong, that’s the end of it.

“I don’t have anything to offer you” my heart is kinda heavy with this. I felt this a lot actually. Wind anon has a decent amount of self-deprecation and worries and stuff. She’s been getting better but like... there’s still times that wind anon is...struggling with her inability to do anything and such. I’m the pessimistic type. Constantly thinking of how the way I talk and type is childish, how I’m easily distracted, I talk too much, stuff like that. So this line kinda hurts in the “I understand” type of way.

“I was really mean to you too”. There was one instance where I was...irrationally angered. And I blew up on so so many people. I am ashamed of that incident, and yet...yet... they just...brushed it off? I said lots and lots of mean and terrible things to each of them but they just... I had went and gave apologies to every one of them directly in DMs the day of but they... they all said there was no harm done, that they were okay, that it’s fine for me to get angry too, and I just...couldn’t believe it. Because they all “forgave” me, or stated that there was nothing to forgive. It was baffling, it was...heartbreaking... I did end up crying because I really felt like I didn’t deserve them. Maybe part of the reason I didn’t react to Kenma until now was because some parts really hit close to home. The idea of forgiveness for example. Kenma and I really are the types to beat ourselves up after any sort of mistake. But Kenma is trying to get better, and he should respect himself for that.

“It just makes you different. And you being different isn’t bad.” YN...please, making me cry and be soft. I love YN very very very much. Oh, to cuddle in YN’s arms,,,,

“We all wanna help you and be there for you—never forget you’re worthy of love and affection just like everyone else.” Please, I cannot, I love YN so so much I just (cue wind anon sobbing from feels like the cat image with many many hearts around them). Every day we think of YN Supremacy.

Okay, gonna end this reaction here and move on to the next one! Might’ve overshared a bit;;

We <3 u fr0ggy! Take care okay?

ahh welcome back!! m rlly sorry that last week was horrible for you —i know u said ur all good but pls get some rest!!! <333 && u didn’t overshare at all!! i absolutely get being self deprecating, it’s part of the reason why i wrote this chapter the way i did!! anyways much love to u wind nonnie, i hope all is well!!

[diamondarmored-blog1]

Just some stuff from yesterday’s post nothin’ special particularly--

@corditeheart  Idek, it's so small that people think one comment speaks for the entire fandom

INCOHERENT HOWLING NOISES. I can’t even comprehend this mindset. Clearly I am still a summer child who knows not the struggle of fandom veterans. I was relatively late to the party and it’s still my firm opinion that people can do what they want as long as it’s not in an attempt to overwrite someone else. I sort of assume everyone else feels like that as well, so it’s never occurred to me to take one comment as law.

@ahmyhotdog I can only speak from where I've been. Most people in this fandom are nice. This is true. I've met way more nicer people than not nice. But I think part of the issue is if you don't want to people with certain people for whatever reason then a lot of others just don't seem to play with you as well? Or it could just simply be once you find people you enjoy playing with you just end up not looking for new muns to play with.

That’s true, actually! So it could be partly down to misreading peoples’ motivations for doing that? I would usually assume it’s because our headcanons don’t mesh, though I will say that’s happened to me elsewhere. I don’t think it’s the fault of the collective though, I think there are just arseholes wherever you go. Idk, I hear “x is a bad fandom” and I think of Bloodborne (INB4 SOMEONE IS A BLOODBORNE PART TIMER AND TAKES OFFENCE... @ them, come on, man, you know exactly what I mean here. BB is a mushroom cloud on the horizon for everyone else). 

@eruditorem I’ve heard things but honestly ive never seen anything and everyone has been so welcoming??? so idk either. also i dont pick my nose, i pick my butt. i  mean... wait-- dont reply to that

Mostly adding this so everyone knows Bri picks her butt

@legendaryturk Hmm.  Well I'm kind of newish to the fandom at least for RP, and I think...things just go in cycles?  I've seen ups and downs in various fandoms - not just 8, but also ffvii, doctor who, mgs, and tons of other fandoms I've RPed in.  overall I'd say ff8 has been mostly welcoming to me? it's small, and tumblr being the animal it is, people may just flock toward others who share similar writing styles or fanon. Idk, if I find I have something in common with another mun, be it writing style or fanon ideas, I'll kind of squee with them over it, but I *never* do so with the intent of excluding others, kwim? that said, there are times where I feel like muns talk around me and there's a joke I'm not in on, but, I think that's just the beast that is tumblr, and not fandom related tbh.

You were in MGS tho//// / ?!?!?/q/1/

That part about not doing it with the intent to exclude is so important tbh. So far, I’m getting the impression that most of it is misunderstanding. I can’t imagine anyone I’ve come across so far being deliberately dickish in that way. Eg, there’s one person I can think of who doesn’t really want to acknowledge me, but that’s okay, cos I know they’re a heavy Seiferx[redacted] shipper and I’ve already said I’m not, so I’d not be much use to them. We still follow each other, though, and I can’t think that they’d be all like YOU CAN’T SIT WITH ME if I spoke to them.

@diosleighrp  There's douchenozzles in every fandom who try to dictate what other fans can and can't do. It's quite unfortunate, but there are just entitled brats everywhere.

I can’t say much about this, I haven’t had it! Idk why. Maybe I’m too babbymode for the haters to have found. I have had it elsewhere though so I know what you mean and you’re right, they are definitely lurking somewhere. They’re lurking everywhere. 

@lionseed Just like American politics, it's the small angry voices that get the most attention for some reason. Sometimes there's a bad experience, and people take that as proof the fandom is shit.

MMMM and there’s always people with a bad experience to talk about because nowhere’s perfect, so I guess it’s partly on the reader to be on it enough to realise that. I would like if people within the fandom wouldn’t say that about all currently participating members though :( Obviously people can talk about their experience, good or bad, but their experience is with a person, not all of us. 

@underplater Okay, so. I will say that what I've personally experienced with the ff8 fandom is a lot of, "oh wow, I really like your blog and your take on the character you're doing. That's wonderful!" "Oh awesome, do you maybe want to do something with her/him/me?" "Uh... Maybe." Which... Means no. And then people are always all, "You just keep doing you, dear, it's wonderful," but no one sends in memes or replies to stuff? And it just.. I always feel like I'm pressed up against the glass, looking in.So I'd say my experience with the ff8 comm has definitely been that it's very insular and hard to for me, personally speaking, to break in on. ... Sorry, I'm fairly sure this was about my comment earlier? I think I was the one who used insular.... Unless, of course, I guess the problem could be me? But if it is, I wish someone would tell me so that I could drop the muses and just stop cluttering up people's dashes.

JJKASHDJASHFGGHFJDSJJHH this hurt me to read and is the main reason I’ve made time to do this reply post rn. I couldn’t remember who said what, to be honest with you and it surprises me that it was you, purely because you’re always one of the first people to come to mind when I think of “the FFVIII community”, you seem like a valued part of it to me, even if you’re not one of the most active. YOU ARE DEFINITELY NOT THE PROBLEM. I can’t really say with 100% certainty what *is*. With the meme thing, I think it depends what it is. If someone reblogs one of those “send me x and I’ll tell you about y”, I try to send it, but if it’s a starter or something that feels thready, I won’t unless I have an idea to back it with, cos it doesn’t feel any different to writing an actual starter for me. I’d rather do that, but I won’t do it uninvited/randomly because that’s putting pressure on someone who didn’t ask for it. If a lot of people do the same as me and don’t mention it, then that could be a big factor because people can well end up waiting for each other to approach without realising it. It might also be something to do with you having multiple blogs (particularly Reno) and that altering your perception. The reason I say that is because I had the exact same thing myself, I had a male muse in a fandom and everyone loved him - mostly everyone wanted to lowkey do him tbh - and I had a female one who got comparatively zero attention because she wasn’t as accessible to such a wide audience. Ellone in particular is a complex character and it’s a sad fact that people tumblr-wide aren’t always into the idea of paying attention to something before they interact with it. Reno is much more easy to interact with in a casual way, since he’s had more exposure in source material and is widely regarded as being a fun, not-serious character (though I acknowledge he very likely IS, and I know from experience that you will have put a lot of thought into him - I love Reno and anything that gives him some substance). He attracts people from further afield, people who might have only seen Advent Children or only know him through fan works. Ellone doesn’t have a movie or much fanfic, and she’s not really subject of the most popular speculation (lbr - by that I mean “who she’s sleeping with”), so she doesn’t have that far a reach. Your Ellone is so valuable to the whole community, you have a hell of a lot to share in your headcanons and your ideas. I haven’t seen you use Julia too much yet, but I’m sure she’ll be that way too. I think you should pick one of those ideas, pick someone who seems like they could pull it off and tell them about it, because I’m so sure 90% if not 100% of us would thread them with you. That’s all I do tbh!! I’m always prepared for someone to say no, but mostly they’re happy to have been approached with an idea to use as a starting point. PLEASE DON’T DROP THEM. You’re not cluttering up anything. I’m sure I’m not the only one who’s sad to see you inactive on her whenever you are, tbh. I don’t think you realise how essential she is. I know it’s a small, slow fandom, but anything you post raises the overall standard for the sheer fact you did it, and it had your characteristic level of consideration put in. Course, I’m probably biased, cos I think I can tell when people work more behind the scenes than out front on their muse and the related background and I appreciate that, always have.

@misplacedxheroics .... I'm hoping this is permitted that I comment, as it was my blog where you read this post. I'm only addressing what I've experienced in the community, not trying to speak for everyone here. In my personal experience with VIII, more often than not, I see a lot of the insular behavior mentioned. Several blogs that start up are made to feel so unwelcomed that they leave or close up shop. Then there are the pass/agg anons, the ones who attack strong female characters (OC or otherwise) and 'correct' headcanons for canon characters. Whoever the person is, I have to believe it's just one single person. But anons have begun to reach out and outright tell people who they can or can't write with, which is baffling. And lastly, I'm guilty of this, and I'll own it -- We also become so comfortable and so familiar with who we write with we don't try out other players. There's also the overlap of muns playing with 'private' blogs. To me, the word 'private' tells me I don't have access to them. So what's the bother in following or engaging if everyone who writes muses that are in the fandom closed off to the rest of us? I can't say how the fandom should be run, I know I'm the least liked person in this fandom but this is my experience. A very polarizing, cold and unwelcoming experience.  We need to communicate more among one another, set clear boundaries and maintain community and unity, imo.

I think private is just a word people slap on a blog to make it look legit these days, or as a get-out clause if they find themselves followed by some kind of My Immortal Eldritch horror. Least, that’s what I’ve seen in my travels. Private blogs seem to favour their existing friends, but be open to others who will bring them ideas. I had one blog I called private and that’s because I kept getting people saying “wanna rp?” and I’d be like “yeah okay” and they’d literally say “alright you come up with an idea then”. ? / / //???? Also... I’m trying to word this in the least mean-sounding way possible because I’m not one to shit on anyone’s parade, but if I’m really honest with you, I had to unfollow you on an older blog because you were posting vagues about people so often. I don’t mind when people vent, but it got to the point where it was almost every day someone was on blast and I felt like I’d walked in on a family argument. You can do what you want with your blog, it’s on me to unfollow if I don’t like it, so I did. But. Any oversensitive person seeing it probably assumed you meant them and that might have something to do with you finding it difficult to connect with people. You follow that up by slating the entire fandom when it’s not exactly a fandom problem, which makes people less likely to approach you as you’ve already indirectly blasted them. I’ve had people tell me more than once that you’ve posted something about me without naming me; notably when you made a point of reblogging that one anti-Xu post from an inactive account after saying you hate people who disagree with you “on purpose”. I had just posted a silly Xu support one liner that got a few reblogs. I don’t really have a fig to give whether it was about me or not, but it’s a good example of how a vaguepost causes negative ripples. If one person assumed that was about me, another ten probably guessed it was someone else. I was welcomed to the fandom with a couple of how-do-you-dos and an anon telling me to stay away from you or you’d bully me into deleting. That was the first of several. Then you got that anon telling you to stop sending me hate when you hadn’t (what basis did that have?), and one of your friends for some reason assumed I was the one who had sent it and demanded that “anon” show IP proof, which gives the impression that they’d been led to believe it was me for some reason. I know you said you didn’t understand the logic behind me saying that, but we’re both running Statcounter, you know as well as I do how it works and what the implications are of saying that. It’s also how I know the anons I’ve had that I’ve mentioned are not all one person. Maybe it really was a totally out-of-nowhere thing that person said, but when you combine it with the vagues and the assertions that there’s a split in the fandom that no one else (so far) has detected, it causes bigger problems than it would on its own. I’m not trying to put you on blast, this ain’t a callout post and I haven’t taken any of it to heart - it’s no big deal to me - I’m just trying to offer an outsiders’ perspective because I read this as you being honestly oblivious to it, and if I didn’t I’d either have to ignore your comment or lie to you, neither of which I think you’d appreciate - and I assume since you made the effort to drop in despite not following me that you would want a response.