#ok this rant is way longer now peace

[whoknoes222]

people will always make art. i feel like it's important for people to understand this. AI can do the lines and colors but even if it became as skilled as a human it cannot make art. it can make 1000 of the same 1000 pictures it was fed, it can't make a new piece from it any more than a monkey typing Shakespear knows how to write.

and if AI art takes over (which is literally impossible, let me set that fear aside right fucking now)? well we'll still make fucking art. if art isn't profitable we'll make it. if art was illegal we'd make it. art is something quite inherent to humanity and nothing will remove it, especially some bargain bin toasters trying to be picasso. the biggest threat they pose is the same threat as the corporate art style: at most seeing some more bland as shit than usual billboards.

[yourlocalgrass]

Ok wait now I need to rant about this (if you haven’t watched the trailer you’ll think I’ve gone gibberish) so like with everything feeling off and weird going on right Lucifer trying to persuade mc in a way ‘everything is okay, just take my hand and everything will be fine, there’s nothing to worry about’ (spoiler there definitely is lmao) like imagine it as a whisper by the ear and then imagine an mc who just wants to be at peace and live normally again especially one that cares for Lucifer and his brothers trying so hard not to fall into these sweet honeyed words because they know something is wrong and feels off but Lucifers words are so close to making them give in despite the gnawing feeling but oh how badly you’d like to give in, take his hand fully, and hear his words for longer so that it will ease your worries…

But yet you know it won’t remove the feeling completely. It will only complicate your feelings further. So you know you must move away.

Wow. That was a lot. Haha brain rot time :D

[zecretsanta]

ZEcret Santa Fic

To: @oobi-oobi

  From: @classycorgiposts

Prompt: The cast of 999 keeping up with each other after the events of the game

Me: First text to make sure I have everyone’s number. 

Clover Field: Got it!

Light Field: Received

Junpei Temyouji: No issues here

Ichiro: Here

  Lotus shot Seven a withering look from the seat next to him. “I *know* I have yours, idiot.”

  “Yeah yeah, my bad.” He rolled his eyes.

  Me: Good. Is everyone doing ok? Big lug and I are at the airport waiting on the flight now

Clover: lmao 

Clover: All good here! Light and I will be getting back home soon

Lotus: Got it. Stay safe, and like that Alice woman said, if anything weird at all happens, get in touch

Junpei: Ok mom

Lotus: I’m serious

Junpei: allright, I got it 

  ——————————————-

The moment Hazuki stepped off the plane and saw her daughters, it was like a valve opened and the turbulent emotions she’d been experiencing since the Nonary Game came pouring out, breaking her cool demeanor she’d put on for the others. Seven watched as she burst into tears and ran across the lobby, pushing her way through the crowd towards her daughters, who barreled into her arms, sobbing with joy in return.  

  Standing off to the side so as not to interrupt the moment, Seven pulled out his phone. 

  Seven: Back in Japan. Hazuki’s girls met us here- all good

  Responses came within moments. 

  Light F.: Wonderful news.

Clover F.: SEND PICS

Junpei T.: Awesome, good to hear 

Clover F.: I SAID SEND PICS 

  ——————————————-

  Sitting on the couch in his apartment’s living room, Junpei’s leg bounced up and down nervously as he watched a TV special on the news about the arrest of Cradle Pharmaceuticals CEO and the liquidation of the company. His apartment felt emptier than it had before. 

  Me: You guys see the news?

Snake: Listening to the report as we speak. 

Seven: Took longer than it should have for this to have gone public. Cradle run hospitals here in Japan have been in disarray, they’re almost certainly gonna shut down.

  Since his return home, he’d felt restless and anxious. A nervous energy coursed through him at all times with no outlet. Kanny and Aoi were gone, and all the others he could talk to about the Nonary Game were far away.

  Junpei: Any leads on them yet?

Seven: I already told you I’d let you know as soon I found something, calm down kid

Seven: I’m doing the best I can, but without some kind of lead to follow, it’s near impossible. Akane and Aoi completely took themselves off the map

  Sighing, Junpei continued watching the news. He needed to do something. Anything.

  ——————————————-

Running his hands along the desk in his study, Light felt the sounds and vibrations of the small army of groundskeepers working on maintaining the gardens and forest outside their family’s manor.

  “So what’s going on?” Lotus’s voice came over the phone. “It’s unusual for you to need help,”

  “So you say. I apologize again for the sudden call, but it’s our mother. Put frankly…she’s become tyrannical.” Light sighed. “She’s kept a close eye on us both since my accident as a child of course, but since we’ve returned home, Clover and I haven’t had a moment’s peace. We’re hardly ever allowed to leave the house, and her paranoia over something happening to us again grows day by day. The kicker is that we’re even particularly close emotionally.”

  “Hmm. Let me talk to her.” Lotus declared after a moment’s thought. “Mother to mother.”

———————————————

  “Your mom did what!?” Junpei said in disbelief. Sitting up in bed, he’d been awakened by a sudden call from Clover, groggily listening as she angrily vented on the phone. 

  “Yeah, bodyguards! How insane is that!? My brother tried talking to my mom as his soon a bunch about letting us be even a *bit* independent, but nothing worked, and there was no way she was gonna listen to me. But then Lotus tried to talk to her and she went completely ballistic, ranting about ‘dangerous strangers’ and us just being stupid kids!”

  A sudden notification while she was ranting caused Junpei’s head to swim.

  “Holy shit…I just got a huge amount of money sent to my bank account!

  “What?” Clover gasped. “You think…it’s them? It’s gotta be, right?”

  Junpei’s mind raced. “Hang on- I’ve got an idea.”

———————————————

Seven stood in his office with Junpei on speaker, in front of a cork board with countless photos, cut outs of internet articles, and maps connected by bits of string. It might’ve been cliche, but damn if it didn’t help with seeing the big picture from pieces of a case. 

  “You getting close to their estate?” He asked. 

  “Yeah, almost there. You know, I was really confident about this at first, but I’ve been getting nervous the closer I get. My palms are all sweaty.”

  Junpei was on his way to the Field estate in a car he’d bought with the large amount of money that had been mysteriously deposited into his bank account from an unknown source. 

  “Man, I still feel weird about helpin’ with this too…” Seven mumbled halfheartedly. “But their mom’s basically holdin’ them hostage.”

  “Right.” Junpei’s voice hardened. “

  “If they manage to slip out and follow the route we planned, that is. 

  “They will.” Junpei’s voice grew confident. “They’ve got this.”

———————————————

Sprinting through the carefully tended forest in the pitch black of night, leading her brother and Junpei by the hand, Clover still couldn’t help but laugh with elation. The confused shouts of the bodyguards tearing apart the estate they’d managed to give the slip after days of careful planning with Junpei, Lotus, and Seven were incredibly satisfying. 

  She left behind a cutting note for their mother, so at least she’d know why they left, and that it was extremely of their own accord this time. The money Junpei had randomly received was a lead- one that Lotus and Seven could follow to the Kurashiki siblings. They’d meet with Junpei, hitch a flight to Japan to reunite, and then…Clover didn’t know. But it was a future full of possibility. 

  “Clover, I hear a vehicle.” Light said. “Is that him?”

  A moment later, Clover heard the sound of tires. Just as they exited the dense forest behind their estate on a remote back road, a sedan screeched up the back road, and disheveled Junpei threw open the doors. “Holy shit, it actually worked- you got out.”

  “Let’s talk later!” Helping Light into the back seat, Clover hopped into the passenger seat, quickly hugged Junpei, then threw on her seat belt. 

  “We can catch up shortly.” Light said, hardly out of breath. “For now, we should make ourselves scarce.”

  “On it!” Junpei stepped down on the accelerator, and they were off. “I’m still getting used to this car, so sorry if the ride’s bumpy! I haven’t had to drive in a while!”

“I’m sure it can’t be any worse then Clover’s driving back in Nevada.” Light said wryly, a bittersweet expression on his face as they got further and further from home. Junpei may have brought up the plan for them to run away, but Light had been the one who heavily endorsed it and planned it out. It had been a necceasry evil, for him and Clover both. 

“Rude!” Clover grinned. The adrenaline of escaping from the prison of her home still coursing through her, Clover stuck her head out the window and laughed, the wind blowing on her and the trees passing by in a blur.

A future of freedom, of searching for the truth with the only people she trusted, was in sight.

[whimperandabang]

six of crows + “you can never go home“

originally i was going to write this in the tags of this post, but i hit tag limit before i even got halfway through. so i’m making it its own post.

the idea of “you can never go home” is core to each of the six crows which is why it’s such a jewish story. if you don’t want to read through my long rants, here’s the short version:

kanej can never go home because the children who belonged in their homes are dead.

jesper can never go home because to him, home represents shame. wylan does go home, but his homecoming is born from being set adrift much the same way as the other crows are.

helnik can never go home because their loyalty to their homes has wavered, and they can never come back from that.

ok rant time. first: kaz. kaz can never go back to his original home outside of lij because the boy who belongs there is kaz rietveld, and kaz rietveld is dead. maybe you could call ketterdam his new home - he probably would - but that’s even more tragic in a way, isn’t it? he’s so tied down to ketterdam. he’s unable to return to one home and unable to leave the other. (shameless self promotion time: my wip the sower explores this; it probably won’t be published on ao3 for a long while but if you’re interested to know what that’s about and get progress updates + teasers you can check out my fanfiction sideblog @tealquills, everything related to that wip should be under the tag “the sower”.)

now inej. my favorite diaspora girl. inej can never go home because of who she’s become - “a suli girl who had become a killer”. she can’t unbecome the dangerous girl, the girl with claws who names knives after saints. she can’t unbecome the wraith. and the wraith doesn’t belong in the suli caravans. the girl who did “died in the hold of a slaver ship”. she loves her family deeply and wants to be with them and still be loved by them, but she cannot go back home with them. the wraith can’t settle, especially because she always seeks justice. she’s no longer complacent, and she could not bear complacency. she feels purpose and drive to save others from what she endured at the menagerie. between these two things, is it any wonder she takes to the sea?

jesper can’t go home because his home is too entwined with feelings of boredom and shame. after aditi’s death, the monotony of farm life became unbearable. the shame and guilt associated with his durast abilities became unbearable. most of all, the grief became unbearable. it was no longer viable for him to live in novyi zem, at home with his father who loved him so much and failed him so profoundly. and so he went to kerch, and there was no going back.

for wylan, too, home is a place entwined with shame. jan van eck made him feel ashamed for his disability, building up intense feelings of worthlessness and guilt. wylan’s story is interesting in that he does go home, quite literally. he ends up living in van eck’s manor with jesper. in this way, he’s not really living a “you can never go home” story arc the same way as the other crows. but that idea is still core to his character, because for awhile, it was true. after the attempted murder on the boat, wylan had no home. he was set adrift in the same way kaz was after using jordie’s corpse as a raft, in the same way inej was after her time in the menagerie, in the same way jesper was after aditi’s death. wylan can only find his way home again after he experienced what it was to be without a home, and he will always carry that with him.

nina can’t go home because she’s realized she wants a life beyond that of a soldier, and ravka will never give her that. through matthias, she learns to aspire to peace and betterment rather than being a cog in the machine. she loves her country, but she can never quite be loyal to it in the same way again. the world but specifically ravka and fjerda will never let her and matthias be more than grisha and drüskelle, and she can’t accept that. even in king of scars and rule of wolves when she’s working for the ravkan government again, she can’t stay long. she goes to fjerda, and while she’s there, she takes up matthias’s mission. she starts building bridges. she tries to end the war. she falls in love again.

and finally, matthias. oh, my tragic boy. matthias can never go home because... well. you know. after coming to love nina, he can never be truly loyal to fjerda again, but it’s still his country. he spends all of six of crows and crooked kingdom trying to find a way to reconcile the truly awful parts of the country he calls home with everything that he believes makes it worth saving. he wants to go home so badly in a way that even inej can’t quite match. but in the end, he can’t go home because his wants are not enough. because one man’s personal journey cannot save an entire nation. because his love redeems him, but it can’t redeem fjerda.

[definitelynotnia]

sorry i have to rant or i will cry i hate when im so angry that the anger comes out as tears

tw: random guy being a general asshole abt lgbtq and trans ppl so if you dont wanna deal with that today, cz ik there's already enough hate literally everywhere online, then please save yourself from this burden and move along, i hope u have a nice day bcz if i cant then someone should

i just spent my whole afternoon arguing with this guy- it was such a waste of my time i haven't slept properly last night and i wanted to take a nap but my nap time is GONE i hate this i told him im done with this conversation and that i dont give a shit about him enough to want to educate him on things and have him change his opinion i TOLD HIM IM DONE i told him that he can keep his opinion shoved up his ass and as long as he doesn't bully people i dont give a shit i was READY TO GO TAKE MY NAP but nooo this bitch is like "just say you've run out of valid points" like BITCH NO.

i can't have valid points to counter you with because all the points ur giving me are utter bullshit like how the fuck am i supposed to reply to "ppl assigned male at birth wearing skirts and make up is worse than war" like WHAT???? DO YOU HEAR YOURSELF??? ARE YOU INSANE? what the fuck am i supposed to respond to that with? except that trans people aren't hurting anyone and war is, and he's like "at least war can be contained, these people are spoiling the mentality of the youth" like YOU ARE THE SPOILED YOUTH not the other way around, im like listen if you were really pressed about children and how trans inclusivity impacts children then you would have at least read more about that but if your first point is only "they're doing surgery on children" then clearly you have not even done as much as a simple google search so we both know that you just heard that in some random reel and went with it and you dont give two shits about the supposed 'children being made to undergo surgery', which they're not, and all you actually care about is looking cool and edgy by hating on the lgbtq community because thats whats in trend right now in india. he's like these people are too privileged why cant they just shut up and enjoy life they are rich like first of all rich people can have problems too??? also being able to afford therapy and gender affirming care does not equal to rich thats like saying if someone in ur family has any chronic illness ur automatically rich like ??? also poor people are trans too? and im so sick of these ppl thinking being trans is just an american thing or a first world problem like brother no? you are literally living in india trans people are mentioned in the FUCKING SCRIPTURES are u KIDDING ME? being trans is not a new sudden occurence its been there for longer than you have. like literally after 2 hours of conversation the only points he could think of to hate on lgbtq for no reason is

they are rich and privileged so they shouldnt have problems

if they have a problem with their gender they should keep it to themself and not fight it (??????)

they are running from their problems (they are literally solving the problem thats the part which everyone is mad abt its when trans people try to solve the problem by being okay with expressing themselves freely and to counter i said that even alcoholics are running from their problems ive never seen any of u andrew tate cocksuckers ever make a "joke" bullying alcoholics he's like thats different like literally all his "points" are him just saying whatever and then if u try to explain it with logic he'll be like no but thats ok bcz i said so and this is wrong bcz i said so like fuck you dude)

they shouldnt have rallies and stuff because there's more important things like war that the government should focus on (he was the one who said "war is a beacon of peace there cannot be peace without war" when i had first mentioned that its ironic that out of all the bad things happening in the world rn LIKE war the biggest thing he's worried about is a "man" wearing a skirt but ok sure now all of a sudden war is a big boo boo and we should all be focusing on that, so basically when he wants to hate on ppl war is irrelevant but when a marginalised group wants to fight for their rights that time war is the most important point and no one elses suffering is valid bcz there is war)

it is spoiling today's youth (im not even gonna talk about this because i do not see how people living their lives and just existing is considered "spoiled" and "corrupt" but people regularly hating on, bullying and degrading a whole ass community just because they are uneducated swines lacking critical thinking skills and a spine that saw some 'famous' youtuber or influencer or wtv or maybe a reel with 'dark humor' dissing on lgbtq and pronouns and 'blue haired girls' and now they thing they're oh so cool and edgy and dIfFeReNt and "not like those woke snowflakes" just cz they degrade and bully a whole community of people every chance they get)

im so done im SO DONE with this bullshit its EVERYWHERE its a trend now to be hateful and mean and an asshole to anyone who isnt "normal" according to heteronormative standards. i understand not having an opinion, to some extent ok i get it you're young you don't need to be involved in this yet but no, they want to have an opinion but they will do no research they physically shudder at the thought of reading a book and god forbid they actually google up a trustworthy article to confirm some of the bullshit they believe they will do none of this but they will scream and shout about how lgbtq is the problem and magically that is the only "social issue" they care about and they care soo vehemently apparently that they have to post about it and make dArK jOkEs about it and use slurs and degrade them every chance they get because THEY are harmful yes sure you who are actively spreading hate are the angelic saviours of society and a community of people JUST EXISTING are the ones that are harmful, right.

[foxymoxynoona]

Rant anon here- yes! Thats exactly what I meant. About the attitude that a lot of people in the fandom seem to have whenever the members mess up. It feels gross and it feels like they’d let them get away with murder. It feels like they treat them more like objects or dolls than humans that have flaws and can make bad choices. It feels like the more the fandom tells the company that “it’s ok!!! They shouldn’t have to respond to hate!!” It will keep pushing the boundaries of what they do and do not take seriously enough to formulate a response. The group has mentioned, ad nauseam, their morals and what they want to do in this industry. It feels like they’ve stopped caring and that’s what I feel like grossed me out (other than the weird attitude towards the group I mean).

It just feels like they’re too old and too seasoned to be making these mistakes. They should know better- or at least know that when you hurt people the best thing to do is apologize- regardless of whether or not you felt you did something wrong. At the end of the day you hurt someone (this is all the metaphorical “you”) regardless of intention and that, a lot of times, is enough for some to step back and reevaluate the situation.

Through out this all it feels like there’s a lack of the accountability that we hold more western artists to (this is a research topic in its own right and far more intelligent people than I have written about it and produced wonderful articles and video essays on the subject. I am not one of those people and it’s 4 in the morning where I am and I don’t feel like delving into why we infantilize East Asian pop stars at this hour). Not that the accountability we have here is great, but at least it’s more talked about than suppressed (this can be seen with the growing number of Taylor swift defectors after her recent cease and desist letters)

Hm, it's interesting to talk about cross section between infantalizing and model minority racism overlapping with celebrity halo effect. TBH now that it's no longer directly my job, I don't spend much time paying close attention to music artists unless it's something really within my interest or it crosses into more mainstream attention --so I'm sure about the Taylor Swift controversy you're talking about, and I only have knowledge about a handful of Asian-artist controveries so definitely not enough to talk about that cycle or compare it with western artists in any real way other than to say this is such a rich and complex topic to dig into from the fan side, the consumer side, the partnerships side.

I'm certainly not going to explain away anyone's mistakes, people can answer for their own, I will only say we are never too old to fuck up haha, but yes then you do the learning, growing, and repair process.

Definitely agree that criticism or calling out incorrect behavior isn't hate, it can in fact be a demonstration of love and respect --and also that it's completely and entirely reasonable to take a step away from supporting an artist or group becasue you are not comfortable with their behavior! Not only because it's a way of putting your money and time where you want to endorse but, for the other types of folks you're talking about who see everything with rose-colored glasses, it can help create some space and ability to not only see humans as complex and likely to make mistakes, but also disrupts a hard part of hero-worship that i think may come into play too psycologically: I love this artist and believe they are good so if they screw up, I can't admit that they made a mistake because what does that say about me?

Anyway, I know you probably already know this 1000x over but protect yourself and your heart and your peace. It's ok to need to take a break from things or groups of people or whatever when they are filling you with rage, especially if you feel unable to really fix or change what you're seeing. <3 <3 <3 I'll always be here too!

[bleepbloo]

So I'm no longer into the Second Citadel, but I want to Rant

Basically what the title says. This point will be divided into two parts: What made me ultimately give up listening to the show, and the spoilers I was made aware of due to the latest episode dropping.

Td;lr: I wouldn't recommend listening to the Second Citadel; you're only going to be disappointed.

So, let's start with the season 3. I'll be blunt and admit that I never listened to it, but I did read the transcripts and know the ending to the season.

Namely, Caroline leaves her position as Captain of SC, taking Olala, Quanyii, A'le, and Angelo with her.

Now, I did like Olala, as a character and as a concept, because she was cute, and brought something new to the world, but I wasn't the biggest fan of this move on Caroline's part; especially since the previous season she had just stated that "She had found peace there", but I was ultimately accepting of it, mostly because I knew Kevin was struggling.

Look, if you listen to the commentary tracks and listen to the storylines, you can TELL Kevin has a hard time writing multiple characters at once and keeping track of the plotlines. Which, fair, that's not a easy skill to master, especially with what is regarded as a ensemble cast.

But, at the time, I had had faith towards Kevin as a creator; I had thought that he would have been able to handle it well. Send Caroline away with the new cast, let them have adventures we can catch up on; we can then refocus on the other members of the cast!

Like Marc, who had finally become a knight, but was still struggling in his role, what did he face in his day to day? Was it actually what he wanted, or just the best way to gain respect and be treated as a 'normal man'?

Or Tal, who still needed to talk to Marc about what he wanted, or more importantly, what he didn't want in life, which was being a knight? How was he going to bring up the conversation? What would end up being the breaking point for him?

Or the Bonquet, still trying to work things out together? Or the Queen, trying to rule in a time of famine? Or Absolum? And finally figuring out what was up with Dampierre?

That didn't happen.

Instead, I found out that there was a timeskip of multiple years, and we were still focused on Caroline and her merry band.

I don't mind Caroline as a character, but why were we still focused on her? She - in an ensemble cast - had gotten PLENTY of her own episodes last season, alongside Angelo and Quanyi. Also, there was no mention or show of the characters we had previously known in the first part of the series. What happened to them? Did they all get killed by the Citadel?? Also, having briefly read the wiki to part 1 of the Perils, why was Angelo saying he had only learned to enjoy reading with Olala, when in S2, he openly read stories to Damien? Did he not actually like reading to Damien?

Hey, Kevin? Why did Angelo tell Olala that he had had sex with A'le? Why is an adult man talking about his sex life to a teenager? Why is that a thing the wiki fucking says for Perils part 1? How is that even remotely ok?

The thing that really upset me, and made me drop in it's entirety was the fact that in portion of the transcript I read - Angelo never mentioned talking to Damien within the opening paragraphs.

His best friend? His favorite rival that he pulled out a tree for? That they read stories to each other? Hugged? Angelo being terrified when Damien handed him the letter to give to Rilla if he had died?? Those two guys??

And not once, in the many years, did either of them try to find each other, send each other letters, or even WONDER about each other?

I don't know if any one has a best friend before, but like, you tend to worry about them if you haven't heard from them in a while. It would probably be worse if there wasn't a way to instantly get in contact with them; they don't have phones in the Second Citadel.

And Damien IS an anxious worry-wart; he worried about his friendship with Angelo when he had given him a tree that was ONLY two feet tall? (Or was it too men tall? Can't remember, point still stands.)

Like. If you have listened to the second season of SC, with Damien's mind constantly going and assuming the worst, having to see certain things with his own eyes whether or not Angelo was ok -

You are very good at LYING to yourself.

Also, that's a hell of a long time for the things to be left behind, especially with the various event flags set up the previous season; such as, the war the monsters were attempting to kickstart, the huge bug that had just been hatching out (that could possibly have had functioning wings!!!), Dampierre, the lack of resources regarding wood and the famine previously mention, how Marc and Rilla's relationship was doing after she lost Olala (whether Olala had left willingly or not, Rilla still lost something Marc had entrusted her with, which is bad), Dampierre, what it meant to be a god in this world, the Kite and him being a former knight, the other missing Golden Age Knights, Dampierre, the previous characters mentioned in the previous season, the Saints and their whole deal, and did I mention Dampierre?

There's more, but, I think you get the idea.

That was not a problem with the characters or the world itself; that's an issue with the writer, and I was (fortunate to have) recognized that.

If the writer couldn't care enough about the characters to keep their characterization straight, why would - or, more importantly, should - I care?

That was the point I dropped SC, and the penumbra podcast as a whole.

Like, I had liked Juno Steel when I had listened to it, but SC had scratched an itch I didn't even know I had.

And now it had given me a rash.

For a time, that was it, that was all it was. I hadn't kept up with SC at all, and unfollowed a lot of the SC blogs I used to follow.

Then I happened to hear about the latest episode

And boy, a lot of the feelings I had regarding it came rushing back

And all the questions I had had nearly two years ago were still present!

Not once was it ever addressed Marc's ascension to knighthood and how he was dealing with that!

Not once was Tal able to talk to Marc1

Not once did Rilla kiss her Lizard!!!

So much is still left unanswered!

And it's still left unanswered!

We don't know who Marc and Tal's mom is, if their dad is even still alive, if Rilla's Parents are still alive, why Absolum has such a hate boner for Marc, whether Mira is actually a Lesbian or just trying to be a Good Ally (TM), how Caroline and Quanyii even met, whether or not Rilla and Damien will even be married TO EACH OTHER, much less Arum, how did Arum know so much about humans to begin with, what Angelo is - something like Olala or a monster wearing a human skin - and how come he's so strong,

or even at the bare FUCKING MINIMUM, how magic even works in this world!

And it's been three years since the show started! I shouldn't have to wonder about how magic works!! or have to wonder about monster society!! Like was Arum special because he had the Keep, or was he just given the title recently - in the story - for his work against the humans??? What separates Arum as a Lord versus the other monsters? Is it his intelligence? The Keep? The fact that he can talk? I don't know! I shouldn't still have this question, BUT HERE WE FUCKING ARE, I GUESS.

Honestly, I would have preferred an entirely new cast of characters working with Olala, because at least then, we could have gotten more world lore!

I am just now reminded of it, but we never got an explanation for why there was a monster sneaking into the Citadel, just to try and kill Damien. There were a lot of theories and talks about it, to which I contributed to in the discord, but we never actually got an explanation for why that happened. Did the monster consul send out a hit-job for Damien? Is Damien regarded as something like a demon to the monsters? What about Rilla? Are monsters scared of her for her closeness to Damien? Is Arum dating the SC equivalent of John Wick (Damien) and Hannibal (Rilla) to his people? I don't know!

The show never gave us the answers to begin with.

And it never fucking will, because all the answers and any legitimate care for the show, has been shot out in an airplane, into the night sky, like a shooting star.

And it is burning itself to the ground.

This is no long a Second Citadel blog anymore.

[stealthboy43]

OC’s by @limeinaltime and @edibletrees2

Written by @stealthboy43

The long night arc: part 2

It is an unfortunate fact that we can only secure peace by preparing for war

-John F. Kennedy

Y: Sisters

“Uggghh do I have to?” Y groaned.

“Yes, that's what F said to do..” responded Kat, who had her arms crossed. The two were referring to T, who was too busy working on her coloring book to notice the two arguing.

“But I wanted to do stuff latter, Im not a damn...” A glare was given by Kat, who glanced behind her to T.

“... A dang babysitter.”

Kat rolled her eyes. “C'mon Y, you know no one sees you that way. She’s like a sister to you.”

Well, she couldn’t argue there. T was really the only drone that Y was actually nice too. She felt a sort of sisterly protection for T, which most likely developed from the two sharing the bond via the aging experiment. And when it came to T, no matter how much she argued, she just never could truly say no.

“Fine…” she grumbled “I’ll do it for a little bit…”

***

Y did longer than “a little bit.”

***

T: Grown-up matters

“Ready or not, here I come!” T, who was hiding behind the couch, covered her mouth in an attempt to hide her giggles.

“Hmm, now where did the little drone go..” She heard steps and shuffling as Y began searching around the room, looking for where Y could possibly be hiding. Time passed, the room grew quiet and both excitement and nervousness had filled Y’s stomach. Then without warning, she was suddenly pulled up by metallic arms. “Found ya!” T said, and then encompassed Y in a firm hug, who had yelped and then laughed in joy.

“Knock knock.”

She heard Y gasp and quickly turn around so fast it made T a little dizzy.

“HOLY SHIITAKE MUSHROOMS!!!” She shrieked in a high pitch which elicited a small giggle.

“13, WHAT THE HELL!!” She yelled, putting T on the ground.

“Sorry sorry!” 0 said a bit panicky. “I didn’t mean to interrupt you twos playtime, but 13 needs you to come to the meeting room.”

“What, why?” Y asked. T felt a tad bit worried now herself. They hadn’t been in the meeting room in weeks, when the scary fighting was still happening.

“I don’t know..” 0 shrugged “13 said that X and S were just gathering the whole Squad together.

“I swear to god if this is another one of those dumb..” Y was about to go into a goth style rant, when 0 grabbed her shoulder.

“Y… I think it’s serious…”

Y stopped, looked at 0 and then at T.

“Ok fine…” she groaned, and 0 nodded and walked out the room.

“Awww but I wanted to play more!” T complained. It really wasint fair. She finally got to spend some rare quality time with her big sister, and now she had to go to do some boring stuff. Unfair.

“Unfair unfair Unfair!!!” She stomped her foot on the ground, about to erupt into a tantrum.

Y kneeled down to meet T in the eyes.

“It’s ok T, it’ll probally be for a little bit. I just need you to stay here.”

“But why can’t I come with you?! I’m important too!!”

“Yup, which is why you have to stay here. The meetings are always boring, but your too important to be out though such a boring thing right?”

T stood thoughtfully “Yeah, I guess…”

T looked to the ground, still upset, when suddenly the ground was replaced with the face of a little pink rabbit as Y put it in her view.

“

***

Y had been gone for a long time. She didn’t know how long, it was just a long time. T had continued working on her coloring book with her pink rabbit next to her, when she heard the door open, and she lifted her head to see Y.

“Your back!” She happily got up ran and hugged T, wrapping her arms around her. Y didn’t return the hug, instead patting her on the back.

“How was the meeting, was it boring?”

Y gave a weak smile. “Yup, totally boring…”

But the meeting wasn't boring. It was worse than boring.

It was interesting.

[hijirikaww]

Ooooh now you're *really* onto something there (you have a really nice way with words btw??) - myu's ice + masa's water + kira's dark energy = the coolest combo!!! They'd have such an elegant mysterious vibe to them....I SO want to see this now!! Aww you're right and I *so* want to see them having a tea party, bless (just don't tell natsuki okay?)

THE HORSEBACK AND THE SWORDS THOUGH?? Absolute peak, your brain is 👌👌 magnificent. Going back a bit here but the way I Need to see Camus doing Hwa's wonderland symphony part....the grand sword gestures......it was made for him 😭

With how much Camus suffers around quartet night, I think he'd appreciate the moment of peace Masato & Kira could offer 😂

On a different tangent here: do you think Sannie & Cecil would get along? Since San loves cats and he's basically an irl cat too.....him & Cecil = same wavelength maybe? 😆

Okay but you're so right, it's impossible to bias one member of the demon line & not stan the rest too!! Sanhwa are especially powerful when they're together 😵‍💫 Ateez as a whole are incredible performers, I'm actually a stay but Ateez quickly became my second ults, I couldnt resist them 😭 Do you stan other groups btw? 👀

I'm sorry but I actually don't know that video 😭 but I'll look for it!!!! But gosh, hwa in a wig.....I'm immediately thinking like, do you know when lee know from stray kids wore the long wig? I'm seeing the vision here....hwa with long blonde hair please we need it 😭😭 can you imagine him doing a dramatic hair flip??

The way I saw mamma and instantly thought you were talking about hwa (the mom vibes y'know??) 😂 I love your thoughts please keep them coming 👌✨✨

Okay ahem so AAAAAA while reading this ask I went through so many emotions and became so happy ok?? I need a minute to gather myself back together lol.

Firstly thank you so much for the compliment - this is literally the unfiltered flow of my brain through a keyboard sksjdjsjs but most importantly, I really LOVE rambling with you about this!! Thank YOU for that!!

Dear Broccoli, when do we get this trio plz?

And god forbid Natsuki finds the tea party (something tells me his natural chaos would manage to do it somehow)!!! He would literally crash it with happiness and enthusiasm and sparkles and rainbows and honestly? Chances are he had just been carrying a batch of self-baked cookies that he just HAS TO SHARE.... let's just say they switch locations after that event, and remain ever vigilant..

Literally the next week Natsuki would have probably appeared again this time with an entire angry-cat-Syo to join the party.

Actually, something tells me Kira would develop a Natsuki sensor. Like, without a word he would get up and walk off to like a back room and leave Masa and Myu (gotta rant about this in a sec hold up) in their confusion before they look out the window and see Natsuki round a corner 5 seconds later and just KNOW he KNOWS. From then on they use the Kira detector as a safety feature, it is very reliable :)

SO MYU. I FORGOT ABOUT THAT NICKNAME, *THANK YOU FOR BRINGING IT BACK TO MY ATTENTION*!!!

Like I love Moose passionately, but Myu is so endearing!!! 🥺 precious ice prince mode activated 💙

Ps.. I love how tall he is??? People do not appreciate that enough about this man me thinks. What are your thoughts on that matter?

//I love how every one of these gets longer than the last lol this is so wonderful ~♡

Okay so... I HATE how on point you are about San and Cecil. This should not be allowed. Omg. They would seriously be great buds. They would tune into each other's unique aloofness and work so well. I feel like they wouldn't like, be joined at the hip (like Woo likes to do hahaha) but - much like a real cat-human relationship - be super happy and close with each other when they see each other every so often? Like they are comfortable with the little breaks in between but whenever they are spending time together they are the bestest of buds.

.....

Sanhwa is the absolute BEST.

That is all I've got on that. No words needed. Amazeballs. Mind blowing. Holy floof.

.....

I THINK I remember seeing LK in a wig?.. Not entirely certain if my mind maybe made it up though. Was it Halloween costume related by any chance? Bet he looked stunning. Is he your bias in Skz? Owo

I am soooorrt of a multi stan?? Like I really stan ATEEZ way above all, I don't super follow other groups with every single release etc. But I do know a lot of other groups and listen to soooooooooo many different groups I can't keep track :)

Skz is perhaps the group I know the second best?????? Me thinks?? Might be shared with Enhypen. Anyway, 3racha is the bomb. They are all super talented and badass too. My wholehearted approval. The other day I actually learned the 143 challenge!!! It is so fun to do!! :D

Anyways, speaking of boys in wigs, boys with LONG HAIR THO. I sure love those ;)

.. Camus totally gets that right 👌🏻💯🌠

Even mullets! It is really unbelievable just how fabulous boys can be :)

Btw this is the video I was talking about! Very funny and worth watching haha~

I 100% approve of the mom Hwa vibes because really? Does it get any more wholesome than that? He is a blessing to this world seriously. So sweet, so caring and kind :)

Speaking of all these mammas, made me think of Mama - like the show each year - BOY DID YOU SEE THEM KILLING IT WITH THOSE STAGES!?!?!?! THE SECOND YEAR!?!? HWAS OUTFIT???? (EVERYONE'S OUTFIT?!?!?!?!?)

Omg. Like, they sure let out the demons in that one. Beautiful work of art that stage is from front to back, I'm still so blown away by it.

SINCE I CAN MAKE THIS POST EVEN LONGER:

Did you follow Kingdom???? Skz and TEEZ slayed so hard. Tbh all groups did tho. Amazing content. Blown away.

Special mentions go to WOLF cover with their mixed members (and Peniel slaying) was so good. Can still not believe there is such awesome content out there just like that.

Hope your day is going well, you sure are improving mine! Sending happiness your way! ~☆

[bookishtheaterlover7]

Ok, before I came here because I found it interesting to see how they dismantled the lie behind Chris Evans' marriage, because I realize that there are many gaps in that relationship that suggest that it is nothing more than a PR, but after the party VF the hatred and envy towards that woman on the part of you and your anons is chilling, they focus so much on discrediting her and making CE look like she was a victim in all this, my God he is the perpetuator of this whole show along with her work team, and you believe that she is the bad one, my comment is specifically directed at you, the person behind this blog, your hatred of that woman has led you to publish rantings about other mentally insane people, the tarot thing is the great evidence of this, do you seriously believe all that nonsense that any crazy person writes to you and you just go and publish it? That takes away from the seriousness of your content, I left you a message yesterday in which I advised you to leave this for a moment for your emotional and mental peace, and apparently you ignored it because you are more interested in pouring hatred towards AB. What if it turns out that Chris Evans is really married to her and they are really together and they really plan to increase their family soon? Wouldn't that make you feel worse for being in so much denial about that relationship? I'll tell you, for me they are married, whether the world believes it or not, they already have the label and if they are, they carry everything that that implies, such as having children, his family approves whether the fans like it or not, The day that Chris Evan and that girl announce a pregnancy in whatever way they decide to conceive it is not going to erase the truth behind it and the truth is that they have a commitment beyond marriage and will be united for life through that child if they ever had it. My advice to you: free yourself, maybe two years from now when he announces a divorce and has already had a child with her, you will no longer be here supporting him and adoring him as you do and when you find out that news he will even give you Anyway, you will realize how stupid you were for having wasted so much time and energy behind a machine to defend the honor of someone who never had it. I wish you the best and I hope you can get over CE soon, be a fan of his work, not his personal life, what he decides to do with his life is his problem, not his fans.

Hey, Anon.

Sorry you felt ignored. And you really don't see my point.

Why do you think I keep saying that I want this to be over? I'm going to leave for longer periods of time because of school in a few weeks. Something that's really important to me.

If he's really married okay. By then I won't give any fucks about who he has in his personal life, he'll just be another eye candy on a long list of eye candy.

And you think I won't tear him to pieces? I started to tear into him the second he walked onto the red carpet with those colors.

I'm savoring my last few weeks without something important to occupy me. I'm basically on my last few days of vacation, so to speak. LET ME ENJOY THEM AND USE THEM AS I LIKE!

And if I'm stupid for this, I'll gladly laugh at myself. Because the Lord knows I find myself ridiculous for acting like this and that in high school. Trust me, it's a fact of life, that a person will look at their past, laugh and be embarrassed.

And you can stop reading my content and block me for all I care.

My blog, my rules, my only place to vent anything and air it out. And I don't need anymore judgement for that.

[marine-mayday]

This is just a rant, you can ignore if you want x

Basically, I had a really bad day yesterday bc of a really fucking stupid thing and instead of dealing with it like I should have, I went out on a walk in the middle of the night, in the rain, alone and didn’t tell anyone. I’ve just come back from a run and I feel so much better but also really idiotic bc I hate that I did something so ridiculous. And I’ve watched too many murder docs to actually think that was a good idea. Anyway, I’m now sitting on the bottom of my stairs and I was scrolling through instagram and I saw a quote about always being second choice and that really resonated. I am so scared of not being enough or being left and being alone for the rest of my life that I don’t actually let anyone in, despite how much I might convince myself I do. And part of that quote was about looking after yourself first, which, I have to be honest, quotes like this I’ve seen previously, I always thought were a little cringy (like this post, sorry) but I actually realised it was right and that I can’t keep putting my self worth on others bc that’s never going to end well and I have to figure out a way to be ok with being by myself or I’ll never be ok with being with others.

Anyway, this whole post is a little rant bc I didn’t want to tell anyone how much I’m struggling, which is not healthy bc I know they can help but I also want to be able to look after myself. Again, not incredibly healthy but we’ll see.

I just sort of wanted someone else to know how I’m feeling, or at least feel like someone else knows what I’m feeling. I know I’ll definitely slip back into the dark place but I’m hoping I’ll be able to get myself out a bit faster and it’ll take me longer to regress. Which again, lots of quotes about this and I didn’t realise how accurate they are.

But thanks to coming to my Ted talk on my life as a mentally ill undergrad psych student.

Peace x

[sarah-dipitous]

Hellsite Nostalgia Tour 2023 Day 212

Soul Survivor/Deep Breath

“Soul Survivor”

Plot Description: facing mounting problems in hell, Crowley seeks out an unlikely ally in Castiel, while Sam’s determined efforts to cure Dean hit a snag

Would I Survive the First Five Minutes??: No one died

Oooo, can you not cure Dean the same way you did Crowley??

Ok but what DO you care, Sam?? I’ll never (til Dean’s no longer a demon) stop ranting about how much you ran your mouth about how little you cared about him, how you would have let him die if he had been doing the Trials…it’s no wonder he’s like this now

I hope Hannah’s not falling in love with Castiel. And not in an “only destiel is correct” or hating on ships that would pass as heterosexual way. He just…he needs a friend. He needs someone he can lean on right now instead of being the one others lean on

Jensen directed this one??

Why’s this guy look like the dude Dean killed last episode?? Omg is he??

OH MY GOD. SAM PUSHED THAT GUY TO MAKE THE DEAL FOR HIS SOUL?? DUDE.

Jensen is mesmerizing in his taunting and anger

Omgggggg Crowley. You MISS HIM. YOU MISS DEAN. This is the funniest show in the world, but they want me to believe they’re serious

RIP to the demon who wanted to be Crowley’s rebound

Oh thank god Sam called at that moment. It LOOKED like Hannah might have wanted to kiss Cas…

Sam, bestie, you had me til you said “we don’t get to quit in this family.” Remember that time you hit a dog and went on a romantic side plot instead of looking for Dean AT ALL?

I’m in so much pain right now. This conversation is SO TODOBROS “your very existence sucked the life out of my life”?! “This isn’t my brother talking” “you never had a brother. Just an excuse for not manning up”?! “This family is all we’ve ever had” “well then we’ve got nothin”?! “You’d say that to dad?” “Dad?! Oh there’s a prize. The man who brainwashed us into fighting his losing battle”?! “Is this you manning up?” “This is me yanking your lame ass out of the fire”?!?!?! I am SCREAMING!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Crowley’s hell problems don’t seem so bad compared to literally everyone else’s

That is quite possibly the kindest way he could turn her down, but I don’t like seeing Hannah hurt

Nooooo not the angel who got away from them last time

(There are possibly too many plot lines going on in each of these episodes)

Nooooo not the picture of Mary and baby Dean, of the boys and Bobby, of just the boys together 😭

Uhhhhh, where did Dean go???

Huh…why…is Crowley stealing grace (likely for Castiel but WHY FOR CASTIEL?! Not ungrateful, just confused)??

Wtf Dean? The meat cleaver wasn’t enough? You wanted to go with the blunt object of a hammer??

Why DOES Crowley want Cas’s help?? Ok but aside from that ONE GUY Dean killed and ONE demon burning himself to not live in your hell anymore, what problems do you ACTUALLY have?? Or is this a nip it in the bud situation? Which would be smart

(Ok but like…Jensen’s a good director. This is an absolutely gorgeous episode. And obviously the credit doesn’t go solely to the director but SOME of it does)

No but like this cat and mouse game in the bunker is SO GOOD

I don’t trust that he’s fully cured. I want it to be true but it can’t be that easy. Especially since he still has the Mark of Cain…

It makes me so sad that Cas has had his problem VERY TEMPORARILY fixed but…is still focusing on Dean’s problems.

Not Dean looking a the same pictures Sam wassssss

This is too nice of a moment between them to not be ruined in the last like twenty seconds…ok turns out it WAS just a nice moment of peace between Cas and Dean

Ohhhhhhh our first glimpse of Rowena!!! Crowley’s mother has entered the chat!!

“Deep Breath”

Plot Description: The Doctor and Clara arrive in Victorian London and find a dinosaur rampant in the Thames

This trex would have looked so much worse i the RTD era a and I think I would have liked it more. But Vastra and Jenny fighting over the dino’s gender is kind of funny considering Vastra was THERE

Ohhhhhh Twelve is still cooking a bit. Yeah…we needed to let him cook a bit more before he got chased and swallowed by a dinosaur.

Oh…they redecorated the opening credits. I don’t like it

Omg…I love this part. He’s so mad at the concept of a bedroom. I think about that at least twice a year despite not seeing this in almost a decade. “You’ve got a whole room just for not being awake in?! What’s the point? You’re just missing the room!”

(I’m a little mad I’m not going to finish this before midnight. But I didn’t know this episode was more than an hour long)

Oh…some cyborg guy is…doin some shit

This is a weird conversation…and I don’t know that I agree with how Clara’s being treated. Not all companions go through the Doctor regenerating. It’s a WEIRD EXPERIENCE TO GO THROUGH.

Sir if you don’t get off that roof—why is the dinosaur ON FIRE???

Strax has a hard time letting go of his Sontaran customs…we do not melt people in acid

“Lots of young men doing sport. Is that sport? Could be sport” this is what is allegedly in Clara’s subconscious: yaoi

The way Clara AND the Doctor are both concerned with his new face. I know it’ll be significant but I wanna know why NOW

“These are attack eyebrows!” Omg his rant about his eyebrows and then having a Scottish accent 🥰

This poor man the Doctor just happened to run into…he’s so scared

Ruh roh…who brought them together for lunch??

I’ve missed a contentious doctor-companion relationship. Though the closest we truly got was Donna and Ten, but THIS. They both think the other is an egomaniac. They’re so mean and snarky to each other

Why are these people just like mechanical dolls?? No wonder the Doctor called them all pudding brained at the beginning of the episode

(OH MY GOD. I FUCKED UP. I WAS SUPPOSED TO WATCH SHERLOCK THREE DAYS AGO.)

It’s not that I don’t like Capaldi as the Doctor but this episode is…it’s not it. It didn’t have to be over an hour long…

TO WHAT END?! To get home?? Why is the captain android of this ship trying to turn itself into a real boy?!

Wtf?! You don’t just LEAVE YOUR COMPANION LIKE THAT!!!

Ah, so that’s why it’s called Deep Breath? Because Clara has to hold her breath to pretend to be a robot for an unconscionably long time?

Omg omg omg THEN WHO SET THEM UP FOR LUNCH IF NOT THESE ANDROID PEOPLE?! Was it Vastra?? Seems like it

I like Twelve. I don’t like this episode. The “Doctor comes in contact with an ancient being comparable to themself shortly after regenerating” was so much better with Eleven (if Ten had one, i can’t recall it)

Why does Twelve keep leaving Clara?! It’s so rude

I like this TARDIS redecoration better than the last one, but Ten’s and Eleven’s with the Ponds were both better. I like the warm lighting and this does have a little of that, but it’s also…weirdly dark

He’s over 2000 years old now?!

Wait…could it be Missy?? Who gave Clara the Doctor’s number back when and who set them up for lunch?

I wish she didn’t need Eleven’s support to stay by Twelve’s side to help him.

I know this garden. YEAH!! Missy!!

[reidsbookclub]

Title: The Joker And The Queen

Pairing: Spencer Reid x Reader

Warnings: mentions of Spencer’s addiction, mentions of minor character’s death, mentions of Diana’s abduction.

Summary: Spencer meets the one person he had given up all hope in finding

WC: 900

AN: inspired by Ed Sheeran’s song “The Joker and The Queen” because I just know that song would speak so heavily to Spencer, his self-doubts and anxieties.

♖♗♘♙♖♗♘♙♖♗♘♙♖♗♘♙♖♗♘♙♖♗♘♙♖♗♘♙♖♗♘♙♖♗♘♙♖♗♘♙♖

“When I fold, you see the best in me. The joker and the queen”

Spencer Reid never saw himself as someone worthy or deserving of love. Everyone he ever loved either ran away from him (his father, in some ways, though not her fault, his mother), or they left him (Gideon, Maeve). Spencer had given up on the idea that he would find someone that would love him unconditionally, someone that would take him and wouldn’t mind his ranting, headaches, and nightmares, and the crazy hours that came with the job. To those who asked, he would say that the road to love was broken for him. Never would he have imagined that his “broken road” led him straight to you.

Spencer had spotted you first, curled up in a library sofa reading. The sunlight behind you cast a soft light yet in his eyes illuminating you and your beauty. Spencer had always seen himself as a “joker” in playing card terms, and at that moment the closest comparison he could give you was “the queen” thinking that there was no way you would ever see him and accept him he decided to admire from afar, dreaming of the “what ifs” that could happen if he had decided to approach you.

It had been years since Spencer had gotten a nightmare but, naturally having just been released from prison, his mom’s abduction, and Mr. Scratch taking Emily he had his first nightmare that following week. It was the middle of the night, looking around his apartment he knew he could not be there one moment longer so he grabbed the first book his hands touched and decided to go to the community lounge his apartment complex had. Once settled down, he looked down and saw that the book he had picked was The Narrative of John Smith and it was the event that took him over the edge, breaking down in tears. Unknowingly to him, you were in the community lounge as well, having been sitting by the bay window reading, only having looked up when you heard someone enter. You had moved into the apartments he lived in during his time in prison.

“Hey there, I know you don’t know me but is everything ok?”

Startled, Spencer turned around and was even more perplexed when he saw it was you

“I-uh-what are you-i-no thank you” Spencer struggled to say

“Well...stranger, they say I’m a good listener”

“Spencer, Spencer Reid”

“Well, Spencer, if you need someone to listen, judgment-free and no interruptions just listen, I’m here”

Taking a deep breath, spencer just decided to go for it, let her in and talk about everything. For the first time feeling at peace and at home with someone he talked about things that he had never openly talked about with his closest friends. Spencer talked about his addiction, Gideon leaving and subsequent death, Maeve, his imprisonment, and his mother’s kidnapping. After he was done, he couldn’t believe everything he had dumped on you. Thinking you would decide to not even bother with all the baggage he has and not want to even be his friend he started to quickly apologize.

“I cannot believe I just did that. I am so so sorry, you did not deserve all that dumped on you. You must now think…i don’t even know what you must think of me now” Spencer began to ramble but then quickly stopped when you stood up, put a hand on his cheek, and whispered the word “strong” looking into his eyes you said, “strong, that’s what I think of you” and just like that, with one single word and a gentle touch, you turned that single moment into a moment that would forever be engraved in his mind, not because of his eidetic memory, but because no one had been that way with him.

Deciding to part ways and go to sleep you both had made your way to your respective apartments, noticing then you both lived across from each other. With the promise of having breakfast together and a kiss on the cheek you made your way into your apartment and Spencer had made his way into his.

Walking towards his bookshelf and opening the book Maeve had given him he reread the quote for what seemed like the millionth time. “Love is our true destiny, We do not find the meaning of life by ourselves alone- we find it with one another” deciding it was time to dive headfirst into his anxieties to see where this newfound friendship Spencer found himself dreaming of beginning again in his journey for love and positively enchanted with who he came to refer to as sunshine.

Time and time again you proved you would stick by through anything, nightmares, headaches, anxieties, and insecurities, no matter how many times life tried to knock him down and he was ready to give up thinking that prison had destroyed him you were there to remind him the best of him. He was always so captivated by how you would see the best in him, no matter what.

Spencer knew well that you could fall for anyone, he was grateful that you fell for him, but he did not understand how you could have dived into a relationship head first fearless with a “joker” but what he did not know was that you didn’t see a joker, you saw a king.

[zuko-always-lies]

Why Azula Staying a Villain Will Only Lead To Bad Stories[anon submission by justanotherthrowaway1950]

People say that Azula should stay a villain usually do to some combo of the following: she was born evil; her mental illnesses are untreatable (especially in her time); it would cheapen the redemption arcs we have already seen; she exists only to be a foil to Zuko; she needs to remain a villain to show what would have happened if Zuko had everything he wanted at the start of the show (and why what Zuko wanted at start was ultimately bad); and that she is better as a villain. But regardless of all that, I think the best reason against keeping Azula a villain is that we have already seen what Bryke will do if they keep Azula a villain.

Illogical power buffs despite spending two years in captivity to the point one could make a credible argument that she is the strongest non-Avatar, non-bloodbender, and non-sprit fused character in the franchise.

Shoddily relying on vaguely alluded to asylum abuse (and a word of god statement) to justify one of the smartest and cunning characters in the franchise engaging in several half-baked plots that don't really seem to further any of her goals or help her satisfy any of her desires.

Giving her Gaang-tier asylum inmates to serve as her new hench-women, either because they are scared of her and/or being manipulated, which doesn't make sense since she no longer has any political power and thus they can ignore her once she breaks them out. Not to mention she doesn't seem to have regained all of her mental faculties (ex. her Mochi rant during Smoke and Shadow and how her eyes bulge out like crazy!Azula in The Search at the end of the rant). 

Or because she became non-ironic friends with them, which doesn't make sense since Azula during her time in the asylum was clearly not in the mental state to take care of herself, let alone make friends not relying on her status or fear-mongering. Especially when The Search has Azula blame "Ursa" for making Zuko, Mai, and Ty Lee stop fearing her, heavily implying Azula still thinks fear is a good way to maintain relationships. Not to mention two of them almost killing Aang after incapacitating him if it wasn't for his plot shield granted by LoK (he needs to die as a 66 year old man so he can reincarnate into Korra).

But most galling, how everyone starts acting stupid and incompetent (and thus denigrating them and their arcs/character growth) whenever Azula is involved so Azula can remain a credible threat despite The Gaang all being masters in their respective fields and having the resources of several nation-states at their beck and call plus a PMC (The White Lotus).

Like when Azula burned all those letters, how come Zuko didn't order his guards to pat her down?

When Azula escaped into The Forgetful Forest and Zuko said he tried, does that mean Azula managed to evaded an Avatar State power seismic sense? Or that she evaded June's shushu? Did Zuko call Toph or The White Lotus to help him capture one of the biggest threats to his throne and world peace? And so, what does it say about them that a mentally broken Azula still managed to evade them?

How was she able to break out six girls from her old asylum without Zuko finding out? Moreover, how come Zuko, or anyone for that matter, never asked any of the asylum workers what Azula was hallucinating about? For if they did, maybe Zuko wouldn't have taken Azula to find her literal trigger warning and put his beloved mother (and her family) in danger. In addition, how come no one asked Azula who "she" was?

But I admit all of the above this assumes Azula was getting relatively modern treatment and that anyone cared about her mental health, which doesn't seem to be the case. I don't blame them (I don't believe abuse victims have to help their abusers and nor do I believe that the oppressed have to help their oppressors) but still, are they world leaders who have been proven to be highly competent in the past when dealing with sensitive issues? So what changed? 

How come Ukano was willing to work with Azula to restore Ozai for the sake of his nation and family when not only is Fire Lord Zuko indebted to him for life due to Mai saving him at The Boiling Rock (not to mention Zuko offering him a job when his governorship disappeared after Bumi retook Omashu), but also when one of the first things Ozai would do after taking back power is killing Mai for her treason (imo, it is clear that after Zuko's defection, the only punishment for treason was death, with no chance for life in prison like Iroh had)?

How come The Gaang plus Zuko don't spend every waking moment after Smoke and Shadow hunting down Azula when she has made it clear with her actions (engaging in mass kidnapping with her own terrorist group and manipulating other terrorists groups to serve her ends) that she would do anything to turn Zuko into a tyrant? Especially considering this the same person who conquered Ba Sing Se as a 14 year old with just two childhood friends and her brother and thus her threat to Zuko at the end of Smoke and Shadow is anything but hollow?

For doesn't The Gaang have a responsibility to ensure that the fragile peace they have built remains? Especially when it is mostly their fault that Azula got free and that it is their general incompetence that allows Azula to remain free and a threat?

But on a more serious note, the biggest issue with Azula's character, or the comics in general, is LoK. For thanks to LoK, we know everything ends up being ok and that Zuko has a long and prosperous reign.

Thus, LoK hamstrings' Bryke's story choices; for example, if I told you that at one point Azula would escape after being cruelly locked in an asylum for two years due to being a madwomen and that she had become the GOAT fire-bender (her lighting manipulation and smoke generation put her in a different tier from everyone else imo) and H2H fighter in ATLA, you would assume that Azula would be leading a plot to overthrow Zuko and eliminate everyone in her way along with everyone who betrayed her en route to restoring the old regime. But instead we get Joker!Azula whose "true destiny" is to make Zuko have one day bad so he'll turn out like her even though the audience knows thanks to LoK she'll never succeed, making the whole thing a waste of time for the reader. And now Bryke wants to write more stories for Aang's time?!

IMO, unless they retcon LoK and/or the comics, it appears the stories they can tell will be lackluster for the reasons I already articulated. But who knows, I might be completely wrong (and boy do I hope so).

-Submitted by justanotherthrowaway1950

I think you raise some excellent points. The comics do no character any favors. Joker villains tend to be incredibly stupid and boring, and turning Azula into one of them while ignoring all of her canon motivations was beyond stupid. And you're right, if Azula is still trying to involve herself in politics in order to further Fire imperialism, she should be remaking the world in the process and continuing to be an active threat. She has the power to single-handily destroy the entire post-war order, and the Gaang should be acting like she does, not fucking off to their own lives and ignoring the problem.

Ironically enough, there's an argument to be made based on LoK that Zuko largely turns into the same sort of tyrant his father was, just acting for a different cause. But apparently Bryke see nothing wrong with extrajudicially locking people up forever in torture prisons designed to just barely keep people alive.

The one point I would like to make is that I haven't heard any evidence that Bryke are actually interested in doing more stories in Aang's time. Avatar Studios has said nothing to that effect. Ironically, their involvement with the comics might prevent them from doing more damage there, because they would almost certainly have to retcon the comics in order to tell a story post-war and they might be reluctant to do so. The other thing is that they had an opportunity to do a story in this time period in the past, and instead chose to do LoK.

[yoichichi]

Modern!au Hange Zoë Relationship Headcannons

Hange Zoë x reader

a/n: hi!!! This is my first post for aot on this blog! Plspls tell me your thoughts and if you guys like this :) requests aren’t open quite yet but will he soon, I just need to finish some things up in my drafts first :) you can look at WIP page on my pinned post on my blog to see some other aot works I’m working on atm before I open requests :) pls enjoy !!! I luv them on god

gif not mine, credit to owner

Please tell them to go to bed, they have no self regard for their sleeping habits and WILL stay up for 2 days straight

It does not matter if they’re in bed with you either, they will lay with their back against the headboard and you cuddling into their side while they stroke your face until you fall asleep and then IMMEDIATELY start reading

The amount of times you’ve woken up to them still awake in the middle of the night looking at you like 👁👄👁😃 good morning sunshine~~ just go back to bed ~~ maybe you’re dreaming ~~ , cause they KNOW you’ll scold them and they’d like to avoid that at all costs

PLS they definitely wear one of those stupid little head light things so they can read while you sleep

AND IT JUST ADDS TO THE DISORIENTATION YOU FEEL WHEN YOU WAKE UP ABAJSKWJWNA

* 💡

* 👁👄👁

“good morning sleepy head”

I truly feel like they’re a pro at getting you to fall asleep though, not even so they can stay up they just are so good at soothing you

That one spot in between your shoulders thats always sore? They’re hands find it without you even having to mention

The way you have to cuddle laying on your right side and your left? They’re already adjusting themselves on the couch so that can happen

The way you like kisses on the top of your head but not your temple? Check ✅ they’re fingers are resting at your temple to remind them it’s always the top of your head -as if they’d forget-

Expanding on this, they’re just so good at remembering details about you in general???

And of course some of it is the basics like your favorite snack, your favorite candle, the current show your binging, the laundry detergent you always buy, etc.

But some of it you wouldn’t have even asked them to remember?? Like it gets more and more obscure the longer you’re together

Like how you wouldn’t like the leather seats in their car, which you mention once cause the skin on your legs were sticking to them in the summer

And then they’re in the market looking for a new car and this one doesn’t have leather seats, which to yourself you’re like oh cool :)

But then they just bring it up while you’re driving with them one day like

“Isn’t it nice that now when you wear shorts your legs don’t stick? I tried keeping that in mind for you, babe.”

And it’s just??? You’re almost questioning how they even KNOW that until they tell you about the one ☝🏼 time you mentioned it and it was at least a couple years ago and it’s just??? Thank you?!?

But yes, anything you do Hange WILL remember it for better or for worse cause they just see it as a part of getting to know you and love the person you are!

Okok emperor fidgety over here ‼️

WILL talk with their hands so intensely that they’ve knocked over countless drinks, vases, has even flung their fork once

Queue wide eyes and awkward laughing while they blush a little before they rush for a towel to clean up their mess

But will still continue to ramble while they clean, nothing stops their talking

Carpet cleaner is your best friend

Let’s just say when the two of you decided to move into a new place together, hunting for hardwood floors was a must

But BECAUSE this fools always making a mess and needs to just ~lower the chaos a teensy bit ~ they WILL grab onto your hands while they talk

They’d be getting particularly animated and loud and you’d just let out a giggle and nod your head, letting them know you’re listening and they don’t have to be so loud

And they’d just giggle and shush themselves and be like sorry sorry I know with some big stupid smile on their face

They’d reach their hands out and grab yours and clear their throat and raise their eyebrows a little,

“Ok, so, here’s the best part though. Get. This.”

And they’d just go back to ranting but this time they have so much more energy being focused into you rather than combusting out of them

Their eyes are locked onto yours so hard, no longer darting all over the room while they speak

Their hands moving yours only a little, swinging them up and down, squeezing them when they get particularly excited

Their voice is more hushed and deep, their words shooting sharply at you with an intensity vibrating off them making your cheeks burn

Now, when something would normally result in a flying fork, instead it’s a tug on your hands to bring you closer while their voice gets heavier and quiet - almost a whisper - sharing this moment with you and ending it with raised eyebrows and a squeal - sometimes even shaking your arms about if it’s especially exciting news

Speaking of ranting, when you rant you better expect Hange to get JUST as involved as you

You’re frustrated? Yeah Hange is getting heated too, riling you up in the process, it’s their problem now too

You’re happy? Hange is squealing and jumping up and down with you as if they got the promotion ajakskajaja

I feel like the only exception to this would be if you were stressed, upset, or sad

They’re immediately quiet and looking all over your face for any sign of distress with the most sincere eyes

Nodding and responding with little hums of understanding, ready to scoop you into their arms the moment you need them too

The RULER of taking care of their s/o when they’re down or sick

Not only cause they know everything there is to know about your existence lmao

But cause I think they’re smart enough to be able to not be over bearing when they’re taking care of you

They’ll check in a lot for sure, but never smothering you more than you’d like lmao

Their love language is definitely quality time in my opinion

Do you remember how excited they were when Eren agreed to listen to them talk and they talked literally ALL night?? -I miss them like this pls-

Please just spend time with them while they’re doing research at home or reading, they’ll never feel more loved and appreciated

Ok but like :

It’s late, it’s been dark outside for hours now. Your eyes became heavy hours ago but, you don’t have work tomorrow, and you’d hate leaving Hange in here by themselves, so you decided on cuddling up in the living chair in their office - that they definitely put in there for you - on your phone. You were scrolling mindlessly through apps trying to keep your mind stimulated enough when you heard their chair move from the spot they were in for the first time since you’ve been in their. You looked up to see them crack their neck and stretch their arms above their head, they’re shirt riding up just above their belly button.

They sighed deeply and slowly walked over to you, running their hands down the side of your face and cupping your cheeks to turn your head up to face them.

They leaned down at an agonizingly slow pace and pressed a deep kiss on your lips

“Let’s go to bed now, yeah?”

And while you were laying together drifting off to sleep, they’d just kiss your head one more time and tell you how much they love you

Pls you’d mean the world to them

HANGE IS A SEXY DRIVER HANGE IS A SEXY DRIVER HANGE IS A SEXY DRIVER

Like,,, WHEWWW

This isn’t even a relationship HC LMAO

I mean a little -

They’d LOVE to go on roadtrips with you, you can’t tell me otherwise

A fun stupid adventure to buy shitty souvenirs along the way? Meeting strange people and getting all these new stories together? Hange is at peace like this lmao

But more on them driving 👁👅👁

Definitely drives stick, and they’re a FAST driver

Always a little above the speed limit

So good at changing lanes, especially on the freeway

The way they check over their shoulder?? Lawd almighty

Sometimes they’ll check over their shoulder that’s facing you and flick their eyes to your’s for a moment, cause they can feel you staring at them in that brief moment, and they’ll just raise their eyebrows and shoot you a cocky little side smile

And then after they change lanes they reach a hand over and squeeze your thigh before they keep driving

Ok does have bad road rage though LMAO

Not in a dangerous way they just,, swear very loudly in the car and then roll their eyes and apologize that there’s idiots on the road LMAO

Anyways

All in all, Hange is a very attentive and loud partner, so I hope you’re ok with chaos and intensity

———————

a/n: thanks for reading yall!!! Feel free to check out my blog, more aot content coming soon! And I always love to hear from you guys :)

-🐇out

taglist: @plutowrites

[aliyahsomerhalder]

Hello ☺️. Can you write a Kate Schmidt x reader where the reader saves Kate and they kiss thanks❤️

i love you | k.s

a/n: ok sorry it took so long i have had zero motivation to right again, but i had to find a way to make this angsty so have fun reading this

summary: in which the reader loves kate more than a friend, but it’s too late

warnings: me turning fluff into angst, death, crying, poor writing, not proofread

pairing: kate schmidt x gn!reader

‘all i have to do it stick to the plan and everything will be alright’ you repeated in your head for the millionth time that night. you have some how let your best friend, kate convince help a girl named sam. you had been friends with deena, simon, and kate your whole life but you had never met sam before and now you might die for her. to say it stresses you out would be an understatement.

you were currently standing in the middle of an isle trying to get your nerves in check, you had no clue how to handle this situation, which was very unlike you. you were about to continue down the isle when you smacked into a body “shit!” you cursed out, you look up to see kate smiling at you, “hey, you ok?” kate says straightening your crumpled up shirt, you were always like this around her. you always got flustered around her, you cared so much about her. more than any of your other friends.

“oh, uh, i’m just wandering.. i don’t know, you?” i say fumbling with my hands. she grabs my hands and places them in hers, “god, i really didn’t want to have spend my night like this.” she says with a light chuckle, i roll my eyes. “trust me, neither did i. right now we’d be cuddling on the couch and watching new episodes of friends.” i say looking down, at our intertwined fingers, reality finally setting in. “hey, don’t worry. you’ll be fine, we’ll be fine.” shes says pulling you in for a hug, “alright, we have to go out separate ways now.” she say pulling away for the hug and walking away. i sigh continuing down the isle.

i had walked through isles five through eight and no sign of ruby, skullmask, or nightwing. ‘at this point i might go home and watch the reruns of the friends episodes i missed’ i think to myself with an eye roll. i was halfway through isle nine, i heard- the sound of struggling. i followed the sound quickly and quietly, but not before grabbing a frying pan. i followed the sounds until i was lead into the bread section. “kate?!” i tell out before my brain could register what is as seeing. kate was trying to fight off skullmask, but was no where close.

“y/n!? you can’t be here, you have to go now!” kate screams letting her guard down giving skullmask the upper hand. i panicked, not really knowing what i should do until i remember i had a frying pan. i snuck up behind skull mask as quickly as possibly and hit him as hard as i could, knocking him out. “are you okay? omg, i’m sorry i didn’t get here earlier-” i start to rant but i was cut off by the feeling of lips against mine, kate was kissing me. oh my goodness. i pull away reluctantly so i could get air. “that was-” i start to say until i saw the look on her face, “y/n! look out!” kate says panicked, i turn around to see skull mask was up an furious. i felt a shooting pain fill my body.

“run! kate go!” i shout rushing her away, she hesitantly turned and ran towards deena and sam. i grabbed a cupcake pan and used it to dodge his attempts to stab me again, during the commotion i nudge the bread slicer on. i tried to get away from him knowing i was too weak for me to fight him any longer. i stumbled over the frying pan that i had dropped, ‘damn it! i knew i shouldn’t have grabbed that pan.’ i think to myself catching myself before i fell. skull mask took that opportunity to grab me and throw me onto the bread slicer platform. “no! don’t do this, please don’t!” i cried out, trying to fight him off of me. tears streamed down my face, i knew this was it for me.

instead of feeling scared like i thought i’d be, i was at peace. i had finally got the girl, and that’s all i needed to be happy. and i was. because i love kate schmidt and she loves me.