#student perspective

[onward--upward]

genuinely diabolical how differently these scenes are lit.... the way they sapped all of the warmth out of the set when they're fighting, versus the warm glow that infuses the space when the space is finally full of their family again... it's so great. and so intentional! both scenes are set at night, as far as i can tell, and yet the second one is lit entirely differently. brilliant

[lemongrace]

finally felt brave enough to try and tackle how I imagine my Highborne OCs' home looking like, and this is the result - a quasi-cathedral/fortress that doubles as a fancy, if a little dilapidated estate on a lone island in the middle of the sea

[steampunkhobo]

I’m sure I’m so late to this conversation but I’m so confused/curious about what intersex disorder Cardinal Benitez is supposed to have. Like- it’s implied if not outright stated that he presents externally as a “typical” male and doesn’t have ambiguous genitalia (that in combination with the idea that all that was requested by the papacy was a hysterectomy and not any kind of “sex reassignment” or genital alteration- which I highly doubt would have been accepted anyway- more likely anything more and he would have been defrocked, the church being how it is. Though also possible he has a microphallus or hypospadias which both could easily be overlooked at birth/in the seminary, as well as being common in cis men and therefore “acceptable”) and we know for certain that he has ovaries and a uterus- that much alone makes me think persistent Müllerian duct syndrome. But Benitez also says that his chromosomes would make some classify him as a woman, and individuals with PMDS have XY chromosomes. But it also can’t be de la Chapelle syndrome or Klinefelter syndrome, giving him a mostly “typical” male body (potentially smaller build, less hair, genital variations like a microphallus or Hypospadias) but XX or XXY chromosomes, because a uterus and ovaries aren’t present in those conditions. Ovarian tissue can be present, but not a fully developed set. (Amendment: there are, though rarer, cases of a developed uterus and ovaries in de la Chapelle syndrome. There’s very limited data about this specific variation, and things will vary from person to person, but it’s usually caused by congenital adrenal hyperplasia, which causes significant health issues. If Benítez has de la Chapelle syndrome, it would most likely be due to CAH, and he’d be quite unwell without treatment. Though again, it’s under-researched and reported, especially variations that don’t cause major health issues. Much rarer and more complex, but certainly possible that this is his situation- potentially from exposure to certain hormones in utero. It’s complicated. Thanks to everybody that helped me explore this subject/syndrome further!) Because the uterus and ovaries have been proven beyond a shadow of a doubt to exist, I’m assuming the mention of chromosomes was a mistake/misunderstanding and Benitez is supposed to have PMDS, but that condition is pretty damn rare- not that this writes it off, but it’s something to consider. Still, unless I’m overlooking something that seems to be the best fit?

It’s probably just details being muddled by the writers, but I think it’s interesting. And the ambiguity is kind of nice, because people can tailor their headcanons how they see fit. Lots of potential for representation in this one character. (No matter what body your Cardinal Benitez has I love him. Forehead kisses muah muah)

[mishy-mashy]

Imagine we get to the Paranormal Orphans chapter (410) in the anime, and instead of a normal narrator like Midoriya or AFO, it's just- Present Mic.

*Present Mic*

DAMN MAMA-RAKI! YOU REALLY GAVE BIRTH TO THAT?!

If only he was swept away by the river at birth and drowned- COUGH!!!

[ticklingtimetickstotest]

[yarrowdraws]

I forgot to post this, I cleaned up the isometric room sketch I drew a while ago + added the characters

[dead-inside-demiboy]

Everytime I see people get upset about any form of media, especially indie/youtube stuff because the creators werent "inclusive" enough or "did it wrong" I just remember my irl friend, a cishet white guy who is fully an ally and friends with many poc, queer, and trans people telling me how he ran a dnd campaign with a group of characters that were each a color, and how his players were disappointed cause he made the only female one pink and the only non binary one the robot, and how the two of us had a good laugh about it.

Like give these people a break sometimes, we are all human, and especially if you aren't a part of a minority, sometimes you just want to tell a story and aren't thinking of how many brownie points you can slip in. Also, we are all dumbasses! Irl we let the people in our life be stupid sometimes, lets extend the same kindness online please.

Yes, inclusivity is great and we should be asking larger companies to tell more stories with different perspectives, but also lets not harass people and indie storytellers for these same things please? We are all stupid humans and a lot of people don't have the big eye of the internet to give them the "correct" beliefs.

[francisforever2014]

gen ai hate has gone so far that we’re glorifying undergrad term papers . we’ve lost the fucking plottttt

[screechingfromthevoid]

I love the way Dorian and Ashton both talk to the Arch Heart.

Because Ashton is hell bent on dragging them down to their level. Ashton wants every bastard with a superiority complex to feel a boot on the neck for just a moment. It doesn't matter if that person has more money, more magic, or infinite power. They would be no where without the people they're standing on. The workers they exploit, the libraries they study, the worship they receive. All that power comes from the collective, the little guy. And Ashton wants all of them to come down to earth and fucking see who they've been using for the first time.

While Dorian is still stuck on the narrative that mortals are their children. You don't give birth to things that are not of you, or are completely different than you. Dorian keeps hearing "we're like you". He keeps hearing about the fear of mortality and the bonds of family. He knows that the gods and mortals are the same. And he's hell bent on reminding them that they are equals. If they weren't the same species: how could they come so close to godhood? How could a mortal become a god? Dorian speaks to the gods with no reverence, no policing of his tone. Because as they sit at the Arch Heart's table, with fake food and fake wood and fake bounty, they are equals. They are both in the same position. Dorian Storm does not think himself a god. He just knows the Gods are the same as them. Him and the Arch Heart both create and revel in beauty. Of course one gave to the other. But everyone must have a teacher. And there will always come a time where the teacher and the student can play a duet in such harmony no one can decipher who once taught who.

[ohnonotthehorrors]

It’s not that I hate, or even just dislike, Hohenheim.

I think he’s a really fascinating tragic character that was honestly pretty justified for most everything he did.

However. I am first and foremost an Edward Elric Supporter. And I think Ed hates Hohenheim with the power of the sun. As he should. If you see me bashing Hohenheim know it’s not ME It’s the angry twelve year old boy that’s taken over as the devil on my shoulder and wants to punch his dad (again.)

[erosyrup]

a continuation from this post; and the return of Amélie from the actual teacher au fic!

[non-operator]

Death Mark II thoughts

I'm like 8 months late, but I finally finished it-- and by finish, I mean I watched a playthrough.

It's been a year, but just in case: Spoilers Below

I think it's pretty significant that in order to get the true ending, Yashiki has to make it extremely clear to Sakamoto that his relationship with Michiho and Himeko is completely platonic. In fact, it seems that this is the only difference between the Good and True Ending.

In the Good Ending, he doesn't get that message through and that leads to Sakamoto pushing The Departed even harder to distance themselves from Yashiki, ultimately leading to her demise. I think this outcome happens because Sakamoto's insistence that the two girls keep their distance still expresses to The Departed that there is still a real possibility that they can get together with Yashiki. And as much as they want love and marriage, I don't think that was their ultimate desire-- and I don't think Departed!Douryou was lying when she said she disapproved of student-teacher relationships.

So then, Yashiki making Sakamoto understand that his rapport with the girls comes from concern for their safety and taking their worries seriously rather than anything else is what turns the tide. That Sakamoto allows Michiho to continue to investigate with Yashiki implicitly tells The Departed that Yashiki isn't interested-- and as such, he won't take advantage of their love (for him).

When The Departed died, their excitement for marriage and (most likely undeveloped) love for their chosen grooms were exploited by the adults they trusted. At that age, even if they later turned to feel indifferent or even hate their husbands in time, it was a time they should've been allowed to cherish those emotions. Kind of like that one reading of Romeo and Juliet, where the tragedy lies in the fact that children were not allowed to experiment with love due to the adults and the situation around them. I think this is also shown with how Departed!Douryou just wanted Yashiki to acknowledge Departed!Michiho loves him even if he can't accept it. Just because he knows that it is a love that will fade or immature, it is a real emotion to the girls experiencing it and it would be cruel to disregard it; unlike the priests who took advantage of these feelings to arrange the marriage only to ignore them once they started the ritual, if that makes sense.

(It might also be why Sakamoto later apologizing and allowing Departed!Michiho to continue investigating with Yashiki plays into her survival and the True Ending achievement: before while she was worried about keeping the girls safe from a potential predator, Yashiki has already made it clear to her before this point that he's not interested in them, but her main issue laid in how the situation could be misconstrued from an outside perspective regardless of intentions; even if she did accept that Yashiki wasn't going to go after the girls, she was largely worried about the girls' reputation and future-- as well as the school's. It's only when Yashiki makes it clear to her that his concern involves the general student population with all the "disappearances" as well as actually listening to his (temporary) students that Sakamoto relents. The priests had been preoccupied with tradition and the appearance of the brides, even the standards of choosing the grooms and brides were based on social reputation, somewhat reminiscent of Sakamoto (even if she genuinely cared for the students, it was in a way that overlooked their actual thoughts and feelings [i.e. the rising fear of The Departed or in the girls' case, wanting to be listened to]). So Yashiki's stubborn compassion and perseverance created change in the girls' environment that gave audience to their voice in a way.)

Which is all to say: The Departed truly let go of their grudge and "changed" for the better/"chose their humanity" because Yashiki had been a safe person to love-- not because he would love them back, but because he never would. The "marriage" in the True Ending then is a way for The Departed to safely live out a romantic daydream without the fear that they'll be hurt by it, as they had been when they were sacrificed. And I think it's Yashiki's adamancy on maintaining that boundary as well as making it clear to the adults around him and pushing for them to change their focus to treasure the girls' opinions that pushed The Departed to hold hopes and dreams once again, which they entrusted to the real Michiho and Himeko.

[czaneavecg]

Ah yes, sewing Hornet's ver lmao-

[yulless]

Eden

[axelsthoughtss]

Reading the book and realizing that Sheng Wang is the type that kids their age either like or dislike.

Sheng Wang brought out insecurities from others by merely seeming so perfect. Unlike Jiang Tian who is practically considered a god in their high school, Sheng Wang was the new fish in the pond who doesn't know how things work yet. The kids wanted to help him out because he's new and interesting and isn't quite a threat (yet). It's natural to underestimate him even if he seemed confident enough with his abilities. Now imagine this kid who should be struggling as much or worse than you adapt so quickly, kept up with the lessons, get high grades, outrank lots of students, and obtain accolades in a short span of his stay. He's still new but he's already better than you. He's new but he's turning out to be Jiang Tian god-level too (but better cuz this one is a lot more friendly).

So yeah, either you'd be amazed by this person and want to befriend him or you hate him by simply being better than you.

[buttercupshands]

getting older and realizing how good writing of both undertale and deltarune is and getting to experience it with a new perspective is so cool