#they are a victim in this incident but important to note that they have always treated themselves as 'the center of the world'

[inkonsistentsky]

so opium wars and the emergence of tensions...as most know, the glorification or fetishisation of asian cultures is not a recent phase that has cropped up in history. this is more relevant for this period of british aggression against the chinese people, no i will not be correcting the wording of this because again i'm not going for nuance. anyway i thought it was interesting just how thoroughly they switched from idolising and presenting china as a pinnacle of morality and intelligence ( i think it was a french philosopher who upheld the chinese for this perception of them being greater than many other nations, he was super popular at the time but i can't quite recall his name? i think the research paper was 'search for modern china' under obviously, johnathan d. spence, i want nobody to tell me how generic of a choice that was, or i will cry:< I THINK IT WAS VOLTAIRE BUT I CAN'T REMEMBER PLS TELL ME IF SOMEBODY ELSE KNOWS THIS PAPER)

anyway kinda forgot where i was going with that but yes they went from this sort of idealisation of china and saying like "AWW CHINA scrunkly guy i like your art and culture:>" to "dude what are your policies lmao, cancelledddddd". essentially french philosophers? decided that china's policies achieved little to no progress and that they were ruled by pointless fear instead of reason when establishing a law or a societal norm. i'm not saying whether or not i agree with that...but i'm just saying europe had a lot of greed in their policies so i'm not sure if they're ones to talk. anyway yeah fun lil tangent thing! this is by no means a comparison of voltaire's idealisation of china's cultural climate as equal to the modern day's fetishisation of east asian cultures and her peoples. (it was more prominent or, at least, more obvious during the? mm i wanna say 1940s-1960s, like somewhere between world war two and the vietnam war but i haven't gotten into much of film or cultural impacts of the cold war and the prior wars, or quite frankly the relationships between anything other than the big three and china/korea so i'll say it's a tentative time period)

anyway yeah. :/

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

AITA for setting a boundary on a Minecraft server that I didn’t want to interact with one of the admins after he quit my partner’s dnd campaign?

I (20, nonbinary) was on a lgbtq+ discord and had become friends with a trans guy (henceforth referred to as A) who was a minor. This was easy to forget as he made raunchy jokes, got drunk and high on call, and I have horrible memory issues (so I often opt to just remember people’s names and topics I should avoid around them via making little notes.)

We would very often end up in a vc together with others from the server, including our respective partners, chilling, playing games, sharing fun things we found. (His partner will henceforth be referred to as B, and mine as C) (I had known his partner before from another server and was happy to see them getting along then eventually getting together)

(C especially would always give advice like “if you’re drinking, make sure to eat/get some carbs, drinking on an empty stomach is bad!” Because they love researching medical effects to make their writing and worldbuilding feel more realistic)

There were a handful of incidents where I believe I was the asshole

I loved showing off games and musicals to people, and this has the unfortunate effect of sometimes unintentionally saying words that anger people.

Incident 1) I was playing a game and mindlessly saying location names- and I got a dm- I pause to glance at it- and I got a message saying “hey remember [redacted] is A’s deadname and he’s uncomfortable that you keep saying it”. I pause, make a mental note of “but. It. Wasn’t directed at him?” Then continue playing, dodging saying the name for the rest of my time showing the game.

Incident 2) I was showing off a musical I like- and there’s a cute scene where a character suggests a name for another character, saying that they don’t need it anymore, and it just so happened to be A’s deadname again.

Incident 3) I was playing Sea of Thieves solo- and struggling. I’d been hit by lightning, and now was being attacked by a shark. A and B were making fun of the fact I had slipped into an accent out of sheer panic so I (enraged and not thinking at all) said “I’ll name the damn shark after you, fillet and gut it!” (A really likes sharks. I also like sharks but apparently not as much as him)

(I apologized for this on call later, saying that I was emotional and mad, and if I’d been thinking I wouldn’t have said that. I also apologized for the previous incident about the deadname)

A and B had also joined C’s dnd campaign alongside another one of our mutual friends, D (who did not leave the campaign, but that’s not important right now). I have reason to believe C told the others they couldn’t be either of the two classes I said my character thought they were, but I don’t know. Things went great (or so I thought) we got some plot trails (one connected to the race of my character, one being D’s character’s family) and everything seemed fine- A was flirting with a lot of the enemies and NPCS (C found the character arts via google images and unfortunately ‘attractive’ seems to be a main character design commonality)

Then one day, I woke up to check the campaign discord because of a ping and noticed both A and B had left the server and there was no new messages- confused, I hopped into call with C- who explained that A had dropped a long list of accusations about Myself and C, essentially insulting us and accusing us of things like ‘sending NSFW things to kids’, ‘acting like the victim’, ‘naming a character A’s deadname’, ‘DM favouritism’, and a whole bunch of other things. I was- shocked.

(A also apparently messaged D and said something like “sorry for ending the campaign like that, if you want to use your character you can always write with me!” And got angry when D said they didn’t leave the campaign.)

(C is also a generally sex-repulsed Asexual. They were forcing themself to become more comfortable with it because of A’s raunchy jokes)

This was followed by some harassment from A and B.

A tried publicly calling out C on social media (which C had only used to make a single post sharing something they had made for someone’s art/design) for “sending nsfw things to minors” and on another platform for “being a fake ass bitch”, as well as both of them heckling a new haircut I’d been nervous but excited to try and get for years and just figured out how to ask for (responses such as “omg no ew why would you do that”), as well as A saying “no I don’t” a picture I shared of C and I going to see a musical together with the caption “you wish you were here!” (All were shared and reacted to publicly on the discord server)

(To be fair about the haircut- the stylist had cut part of it a little too short and it made my face look especially chubby)

This is where I start to feel less like the asshole

So I went on the discord for the Minecraft server and said “hey, I don’t feel comfortable interacting with A after the allegations they’ve been making”. A immediately got defensive and angry about me saying “allegations” and kicked me from the discord before I could defend myself (and C).

I explained the situation to the admin of the server we’d met on, who also owned the Minecraft server, and apologized to them that they had to moderate. Both A and I lost our mod privileges on the discord, and I also found out A had been given multiple “cease and desist”s for… saying/sharing vulgar/nearly nsfw things on the discord before. And they did it again. The reason they were never banned or kicked was that the admin had made it in hopes that A would make friends.

Now. To a part that still horrifies me.

A legitimately found out C’s mom’s number, and called her to insist that C sent NSFW things to minors. (C suspects that they got it from a time C called the police out of genuine concern for A who hadn’t responded to any messages in around a day)

C also told me that the most they had sent A was like. Attractive anime guys from the first page of google images because C really liked big anime man chests. A apparently sent C full on p*rn once.

The problem is- I feel like I was the asshole- even though most of the “incidents” were accidents because I try to not remember someone’s deadname because- it’s? Not their name anymore? And it didn’t help that I genuinely do not remember being told it was their deadname until after incident 1.

Was I the Asshole?

What are these acronyms?

[meaningofaeons]

-ˋˏ✄┈┈┈┈ unbearable

⊹ character(s) - sampo koski ⊹ word count - 1.7k ⊹ notes - gn!reader, angsty, hurt/comfort?? possibly slightly ooc sampo sorry </3, unedited

ugh I rlly couldn't help myself making my first work on this account sampo (tho I really did consider svarog LMAO he's grown on me a lot) but I hope you all like!! this is like. my redebut onto tumblr writing hehe ^w^

Surely, there couldn't be a more unbearable man on this planet — no, maybe in the entire universe — than Sampo Koski.

Perhaps he had his good sides, though, you would find yourself musing every once in a while.

Sure, he was a filthy conman, always tunnel-visioned on his next profit. Not much consideration for strangers aside from their pockets, not to mention that terrible habit of his to spam anyone whose contact he could get his hands on with scam ads and malware links he was paid a pretty sum to spread. Even his own 'friends' wouldn't be spared from his constant phishing attempts.

Maybe he did get a bit too reckless if the job was especially large, especially profitable, and maybe he did sometimes ditch just before the bill at a restaurant would arrive, and maybe he did piss off a group of automatons, causing them to chase you two to the edge of town until —

You sighed irritably, pinching your temple as you tried to refocus your thoughts.

In spite of all that, Sampo did have his benefits, you surmised.

He had ended up dropping in at just the right time during that automaton chase, even though you'd assumed mere moments earlier that his disappearance from your side meant he had run for the hills and left you behind. You avoided a lot worse injuries thanks to him that day.

And yeah, he did stop that miner from scamming you out of a good chunk of your paycheck that one time — albeit at the cost of another group of naïve victims who he led the man directly to. 'The only one who can swindle you out of all your pocket money is me!' he had claimed, and promptly received a beating over the head.

But once you opened your eyes again, beholding the sight of Sampo Koski sat on his knees before you in shame, twiddling his thumbs as he glanced to the side with a guilty smile...

You weren't quite sure his positive aspects could completely abate your wrath.

On this very day, the man before you had asked you to come with him to Rivet Town to assist with a 'very important business discussion'. You, foolishly, decided to trust him again.

'Give him the benefit of the doubt,' you'd thought. 'Maybe this time it's actually something honest. Maybe this'll really help him.'

Rather than a discussion, though, the foxlike man had instead led you right to a large group of automatons.

'It'll be fine,' he'd said, shrugging. 'Just need some scrap metal for a client! It's technically still a business discussion, we're just discussing with our weapons rather than our mouths!'

So he'd left you to dismantle the automaton pile, until another group of very much active robots had spotted you two and barreled towards you for vengeance.

The man hadn't even noticed in your collective fleeing that one of the bots had managed a sizable gash on your leg, hindering your escape until the two of you finally stumbled back into town.

Of course, the filthy scammer escaped unscathed himself.

Just recalling the incident sent you into further distress as the pain ached in your leg — you hadn't bothered to get it treated by Natasha yet, too focused on giving your 'business partner' a piece of your mind as soon as possible.

Sampo didn't dare speak a word himself. Your stormy expression was enough for him to keep his trap shut tight, too afraid of your mood to risk worsening it.

He had really done it with his latest stunt — a little 'prank gone wrong', as he put it, until he saw just how upset you were — and he knew it, too.

"I just..." Green eyes immediately shot over towards you as you began to speak, but your words only cut off into a heavy sigh, leading you to slump into a chair in the corner of your dingy apartment. Seeing you kneading your forehead with a look of exhaustion more so than anything else, the sly man took his chances with a conversation.

"L-Like I said, Y/N, it was all in good fun!" he laughed anxiously, feeling his palms begin to sweat. "I wasn't actually going to leave you to get all the parts by yourself, or ditch you when the bots came running, or anything —"

"Quiet."

Your voice shut him up once again.

Sampo was exceedingly nervous today. Usually, you'd just get angry with him, expression twisting into that cute, flushed pout that he'd gotten so fond of.

You'd hit him over the head, scold him loudly, drag him by the ear... but you were never silently angry. Not like this.

"Does it really make you happy?" your voice echoed through the room at last, your face still hidden beneath your exasperated hands. "Is it really that fun? Are you getting a good laugh at my expense?"

Sampo's smile, though nervous, fell.

"You know, Sampo Koski," His spine straightened at his full name being used, rare shame filling his cheeks. He felt like he was being scolded like a toddler. "You always pull something or other over me. Usually, it's bearable. But it's gotten to be too much."

"Y-Y/N —"

"I choose to offer you my trust in so many ways, and you just...!" Your hands clutched onto your hair in complete vexation. "You always take advantage of it! Always! Even when I try to help you, or give you the benefit of the doubt, try to convince myself you're being honest for once!"

You peered through your fingers at him with one eye.

"I can count on two hands the amount of times you've shockingly come through for me, and yet, I don't even have enough hairs on my head to equal the amount of times you've swindled or betrayed me! This is the last straw, Sampo Koski!"

"Y/N, l-listen —"

"I'm going to Nat's."

His mouth fell agape as you just got up and began walking towards the door as you'd said.

"Wait!"

"What?" you sneered as the man half-rose to his feet, frozen by your glare. "Worried that I'll tattle to her and you'll get another earful to ignore? Don't worry. She knows that every injury I get is your doing, so she's going to find out one way or another."

"...Injury?" Sampo asked, dumbfounded. You raised a brow, thoroughly ticked as you turned and walked away again.

It was then that he noticed the blood soaking your pants, the torn material of your clothes sticking uncomfortably to the gnashed skin. Your limp was more pronounced than he'd like to admit, considering he clearly hadn't noticed it prior to now.

The door slamming brought the man back to his senses, and he immediately pursued you, grabbing onto your wrist before you could make it ten steps away from your home.

"Let go, Sampo! While I'm still being nice!"

"I'm sorry!"

"I don't want to hear it! I —" Upon processing his words, you turned, a look of mild horror washing over your features as you raised a brow again. "...Eh?"

Sure enough, the Sampo Koski had just said the words 'I'm sorry' in a tone that sounded more genuine than anything he'd ever pushed past his lips — that is, if his souring expression was anything to go by.

He'd never said that to you before, not in the several incidents before this, so you certainly hadn't expected it now.

He looked gutted.

"I should've — I shouldn't've — Urgh..." Sampo scratched the back of his neck. You narrowed your eyes.

"Don't tell me this is just you being too afraid of Nat to let me get treated by her."

"No, no, listen," he waved his hands around wildly. "I'm... sure, I'm afraid of Miss Natasha, plenty afraid, in fact! But... being real honest, I'm way more afraid of you walking out on me for good."

His head bowed, and he looked completely downtrodden at this point.

"Y-You've been better to me than most, and I guess... I don't know. I just thought you'd always be there, sorta... Which was wrong of me to assume!" Sampo's speech was jumping all over the place as he hastily attempted to keep your attention, worried a single wrong word would send you walking away again. "Very wrong! I took advantage of ya a lot, and... Well, I'm sorry."

You stood there in silence for a good, long while.

It was plenty of time to make even Sampo nervous. You couldn't deny reveling in the way his fingers twitched anxiously, his eyes darting to you and back to the floor as he awaited your response — or lack of one — to his apology.

Finally, you sighed again. A very long, drawn-out, wrongdoing-emphasizing sigh.

"Well, I assume you can't promise that this will never happen again."

"Heheh... Well, if we're being really, really honest..." he simpered, not meeting your eye. "I can at least promise that I'll never let you get hurt on my watch again, though! Not ever! Koski's honor!"

The comical way he put a fist to his chest, as though mimicking a Silvermane Guard, put a reluctant smile on your face. Finally, you snorted out a laugh, bringing his infamous smile back again as well. This time, however, it was more relieved than mischievous.

"I really hate you sometimes," you murmured, pulling him into a hug as you buried your face in his shoulder. "But I'll let it slide. Last time, Sampo Koski. Don't you mess up again."

"I won't!" he shouted, perhaps a bit too eager. Still-shaky hands found your figure as he gently returned your embrace, something a bit more tender in his eyes when you pulled away. "I won't."

"Fine."

"Now, then, why don't we mosey back on into your house and get that leg patched up, eh?"

"Sorry, Mr. Koski," you teased, folding your hands behind your back as you continued your trek towards Natasha's clinic. "As much as we just shared a heartfelt moment of emotional growth, I don't trust your shoddy patchwork first-aid, not for something that hurts this bad. You'll just have to deal."

Sampo trailed after you like a puppy, rubbing his hands together like the shady businessman he was, familiar swindling smirk back already — though it grew more anxious by the minute as you neared Natasha's.

"Ah, come on! Can't we work out a deal? A bargain?! I said I won't let you get hurt again! We're both reasonable people, right...?"

"Y/N...? Y/N, come on!"

[momentaryescape]

I'm Comin' Over

Jay Halstead x Reader Word Count: 853 Warnings: None Authors Note: This is the first of a One Chicago mini-series based on the "Im Comin' Over" album

��Jay was in the car before he even picked up the phone. He knew he shouldn’t, that after your last goodbye that should have been it. But no matter how many times he told himself not to, he would still drop everything for you. Neither of you could fully let go. He thought “to hell with closure” as he ran every red light he hit. Closure could wait, you needed him, and he needed you.

——————

You called him after a hard day working at Med with the patients of a massive incident that Intelligence had been called in on. Every time Maggie called out that a patient was coming in you were scared Jay would be the one on the stretcher. Will was the only one who knew that you and Jay had been together, and he knew by the look on your face what you were thinking. 

“He’s okay y/n. I just got off the phone with him, and he told me they were safe.” He gave you a nod before walking away to go check on more patients.

For the next god knows how many hours you and the rest of the ED helped patch people. Will kept you updated when he heard from Jay. You didn't know but he was also keeping Jay updated on you as well. You loved your job but on days like this one when there are more patients than you can count you get overwhelmed and never talk to anyone, knowing others have it worse. Jay was the only person who could get you to open up.

——————

When your name flashed on his screen he knew you needed him. This wasn't the first time one of you had called the other, but this was the first time it was for something neither of you could avoid.

“Hey y/n” His voice was soft.

“Hi, Jay. Do you uh..do you think you can talk to me? I need to talk to someone.” The sound of your voice reminds Jay of the night he would hold you as you let it all out. The times you would fall asleep and dream of what your future with him would look like before it was over.

“Always.” You broke down when he said that. “Today was rough, I uh…every time someone came in I was scared that it was you. That something happened and you were injured. But please Jay, I know moving on was getting closer, but I need you.” Your voice shook, trying not to cry.

“To hell with closure. You need me y/n. We can save it for another time.” You were his world, even if you weren’t his anymore.No matter what he would be there for you.

——————

When he knocked on your door you jumped. You had gotten off the phone with him when he was around the corner from your apartment. In the few minutes since the call ended, you had zoned out, replaying the day in your head on repeat. The fear you felt every time a new person was rushed in that it would be Jay. 

Opening your door you instantly fall into his arms. The mask you had been wearing all day was no longer on. He guided the two of you into the house, locking the door behind you before making his way to your couch. Sitting down next to you he wraps his arms around you pulling you into him. Neither of you talks, the only sound in the room is the soft sob you let out into his chest. Tears marking their presence on his shirt. Pulling you closer, he places a kiss on the top of your head. After a while you look up at him, breaking the silence. “I'm sorry for making you come all the way over here.” He shifts, causing you to sit up. He turns so you are sitting facing each other.

“You never have to apologize for calling me or needing me. You are the most important thing to me. I will always be there for you. Night or Day. No matter how many times we say it's over I will always say fuck the closure. We keep coming back to each other, the fear you had of me being rushed into the ED is the same fear I get every time a victim matches your description. I don’t want to pretend that I don't care about you and that I'm happy without you.” He lifts your chin so you are looking at him. “You are my everything y/n. If you’re willing, we can try this again. This time we can do it right.” Leaning forward, your lips meeting his. His hand moved to cup your cheek.

When you pull away you smile at him. “I love you, Jay Halstead. And I want nothing more than for you to be mine again. This time through thick and thin. I don't want to lose you again.”

“You never lost me y/n. I promise to love you till the end.” He says pulling you in for another kiss.

[grits-galraisedinthesouth]

Was it worth it Sparry?

"Band aides Don't Fix Bullet Holes..."

AFTER Sparry's unconsciously biased conversation about fathering ginger kiddos, he chose NOT to seek clarification from the offensive family member(s) about what he may or may not have said or heard. Instead, while Sparry & Megain were dating, Sparry (as he told Colbert) assumed that IF their relationship were to go the distance: Megain's African genes would dominate his Ginger genes; however, low IQ Sparry only relayed to Megain whatever he overheard or misheard the Windsor's say so they could document the incident in her middle school girls' burn book as leverage for post-wedding blackmail.

Sparry certainly wasn't shy about entertaining multiple pre-engagement discussions about money, Megain's acting career/income, clothing, security, etc

These discussions led Charles to describe Rachel Megain Markle as "Tungsten."

Megain & Sparry were willing to challenge and debate The Queen of England and The Prince of Wales concerning material things, but refused to address the most important elephant in the room: Megain's DEMAND to work and reside amongst Sparry's unconsciously biased family.

The family came to a workable agreement about Megain's BRF "service" opportunities and Megain eagerly awaited Sparry's proposal.

The public knows that Megain expected Sparry to propose marriage because she phoned Mulroney in the midst of his proposal and said "it's (finally) happening." Rachel Megain immediately accepted Sparry's marriage proposal and wanted to "hit the ground running" for the family and institution that she & Sparry defined as racist unconsciously biased.

These two-faced, full grown, able bodied adults scripted and recorded their very first global lie-fest before the entire world and included how "wonderful" everyone, (particularly Catherine) had welcomed Megain into the Windsor family. Megain proceeded to invade the private homes & intimate spaces of Sparry's family without once telling them the truth about their racist unconsciously biased words concerning Megain's unfertilized eggs.

Megain even gave an unconventional Christmas speech to the ENTIRE extended Windsor family. She recycled how THIS (unconsciously biased) family (unlike the Engleson's) is the family she never had.

If the Meghans were so victimized, why didn't they ask Megain's therapist mother for advice? Megain requested a fast track entrance to the Anglican Church. The Arch Bishop could have coordinated private extended family counseling sessions.

Megain chose to lie before God and to the clergy. As Samantha (BP employee) said, "we have been duped" because Megain always planned for her relationship with the BRF to fail.

While preparing for the wedding, this middle school (adolescent) couple prepared to sell tell their story to NOprah for a biased, 1-sided, televised, air out "hearsay" and our dirty laundry faux therapy session.

These victimized Meghans should have visited with Megain's mom & father over that Christmas holiday. They could have used that holiday to plan for a simple beach wedding in Megain's CA USA hometown. Instead, they invaded the privacy of multiple family members at Sandringham. These intimate engagements provided deceitful opportunities for Me-Me to take note of even more unconsciously biased Windsor family offenses.

This selfish couple displaced the homeless population and billed the UK tax payer for the pre-engagement events, as well as millions of dollars to cover the security costs of their Spring "Spectacle."

The Duke and Duchess of Deceit:

Sparry asked his unconsciously biased father to walk his BLACK fiancee down the aisle.

Sparry asked his unconsciously biased & heavily pregnant sister-in-law to host his BLACK fiancee in her home at Christmas.

After the NOprah lie-fest, Sparry personally contacted CBS & Gayle King to clarify that his racist (unconsciously biased) "conversation" did NOT occur with his elderly grandparents.

The world heard Gayle King relay Harry's "message" and yet today the story has been revised to: "a sussex representative" stated that neither Sparry's grandmother, nor his grandfather were present for "that conversation" (convo Sparry vowed never to discuss).

As of December 2023, "THAT conversation" (relayed to Megain by Sparry) BEFORE they were engaged, BEFORE they were married, BEFORE megnancy has now been revised: an increase from one (1) to two (2) conversations and a decrease from "several conversations" to two (2) conversations.

How thoughtful of Sparry to use his wife's paranoia & her self-hatred to blackmail the entire Windsor family & markle his kids' royal heritage.

Megain hates The Royal Tea House. Please follow the link to subscribe & LIKE

[cowboy-garfield]

wait, have you ever seen the larry evidence? these men are still writing songs about each other and fake dating women?? even if they’re not together now, they’re closeted. many ex-boy band members have come forward with their own experiences of being forced to hide their sexuality (i.e., lance bass, ricky martin)

LMAO IS THIS A TROLL ARE Y'ALL FUCKING WITH ME... this is one of my friends isn't it hsjdkghsk /j

Dude I hate to break it to you, but you've picked the wrong Rango to tango with. My irl friend has been studying the larrie conspiracy DEEPLY for more a year now out of morbid fascination, and I've been along for the entire ride. We're losing our shit on the phone as I type this. I made that brba post referencing the black mold thing before it even broke 200 notes. I know about your rainbow bears and tattoos and babygates and 28.

If you've got something to throw at me, give me your best shot. I'm already in the belly of the beast with your so-called "evidence." And I've never seen a bigger crock of parasocial copium and sunk cost fallacy in my LIFE.

Genuinely idk if this is someone fucking with me, but if you seriously obsess over and speculate and state personal details about real people as if they're factual... then you seriously need to reevaluate your life. Not only is it unhealthy, but it's just weird as hell.

You don't know these people, and they don't know you. They're grown ass multimillionaires who can do whatever the fuck they want.

Hell—they've been involved in WORSE scandals than if they were merely to come out, but y'all probably wouldn't acknowledge any of that to save your life—because then they wouldn't be your little victimized uwu boys. The victimization angle is very important to the agenda I've noticed, because if you tell yourself you're always on the defense (or that someone else is attacking you/whoever you're shipping), you're free from having to self reflect. You're the victims, so why would you need to?

Here is the real kicker though. The real nitty gritty. Even if it came out that these guys WERE closeted, it would still be weird and unhealthy!!

It's genuinely difficult for me to even say any of this, because I've seen the decade-long trips these people go on, and i know how insanely detached from reality they get. But in the simplest terms, it's not your fucking business.

Loving someone's songs, being a fan, buying their merch, streaming their music, or hell—even just liking them as people (which is fine within reason, just like anything)—none of these are qualifiers that give you permission to speculate the details of someone's personal life. There are no qualifiers. At all.

Everyone is entitled to privacy, and no amount of fan devotion gives you a magic coupon owing you those private matters. It doesn't even give you the right to speculate on them. Re: the Heartstoppers actor outing incident. You are not a special fan, and you are not owed anything. Especially when there are thousands and thousands of people who also think they're special fans who just "really get the guy."

Even if that's not what this original ask was specifically saying, that's what the whole culture around this bullshit claims. It's implied. "I'm in the special secret circle of people who know what's Really going on! God our boys need us to support them through this separation so bad :'( It must be so hard for them, I can't imagine. Thank god I'm the one seeing their Obvious signals. Thank god they have me. Those non-believers are just homophobic sheep; I'm the only one who really cares."

The only thing you people have done for them (other than adding half a decimal point to their mountainous bottom lines) is ruin their friendships and lives.

Try to imagine having every minute detail of your life documented and analyzed by people you don't know. Imagine all this invasion is being used to prove a lie about your intimate personal life, which you cannot make them stop believing because of the narrative they've already committed to. Imagine your every denial being 'just more proof.' Imagine your child, girlfriend, wife, being sent death threats daily for years. Imagine having everything from your body language to your cousins' instagram likes to your fucking shopping clothes be scanned for "clues." Everything.

Now imagine that same ferocious invasion extends to every friend, partner, family member, and random ass person you stand next to for five minutes--everyone you will ever meaningfully interact with. That's the fucking pain of theirs I can't imagine; not some made up fucking ship fic about how "the big mean suits are keeping the gay babies down ;("

I can't imagine it. I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy. And I honestly admire their decorum about it. Because if I was in that position long enough to not lose my fucking mind, you bet your ass I would go harder than this:

But who am I kidding. All these sources are just more false flags from HQ, aren't they? When you invent a boogeyman who doesn't exist—when you craft an entire fanfic ARG out of normal, meaningless occurrences—anything can just be waved offg. Anything can be proof, and anything can be lies from management. You're forever liberated from the shackles of critical thinking! How convenient.

I understand that this is a novel and a half for one ask, but don't mistake that as investment in convincing you. I fully realize I sound just like a redditor, but after more than a year of seeing this batshit, that brain fungus meme blowing up out of nowhere and bringing larries right to me? Oh god, that's ambrosia.

I have been confused, fascinated, and disgusted by this fandom for ages; it's like watching a car crash. Despite the length of this, it's never been worth my time enough to start fights with random blogs though. Most are so removed from reality that arguing would be pointless anyway; can't fight delusion with logic. If that worked, none of this would be happening in the first place. So having the opportunity to rip into this shit when it's been doordashed right to me is like crack. With a laughably confident ask to boot.

This isn't me being a tryhard; I know that so many Larries—especially the oddly large demographic of 30+y/o women—are beyond hope. They've put years up to the double digits into this narrative and likely had it impact their life negatively, which tends to happen when you obsess over a conspiracy. To admit defeat now—to accept reality; boring, thankless reality where they aren't the victims with a promised happy ending—would probably break their brains in half. (Not to mention the toxic hazing, doxxing, elitism, and witch hunts that occur in their own fandom. Don't think I don't know about that shit either.)

I say this with hedonistic glee: I wrote this shit for fun. I could have been working on final projects right now, but I wanted to do this instead. It's not so much wanting to be rude to you in particular as it is me ripping into HL fandom and celeb conspiracists in general. Sorry that your ask was the sacrificial lamb, anon, but I would also like to thank you for being on anon so I could go off without fear of people coming to harass you. If you're a naive fan who got indocrinated by other fans, sorry for the rude wake up call I guess, but tbh I'm not really holding my breath.

And let's knock out some allegations before they even start, shall we? I am not a homophobe. I am not saying celebrities aren't pushed to act a certain way or that abuse doesn't happen in the entertainment industry. I don't care about 1D (hell, half the time i can't tell them apart). RPF is at best, fucking weird and at worst, actively harmful. I think 1D's music is mid. I don't think their relationships are fake, nor do I think that WHOLE ASS CHILD is some random hired actor. As a lesbian, that guy couldn't be the janitor of the lesbians let alone the king. Fucking nobody irl talks about these guys. If they came out, it would be old news within a week. There is no Qanon-esque day of reckoning where they're going to come out and shut up all the #haters. There is no storyline; real life doesn't have those. Homophobia is bad, obviously. Regardless of my opinions on their music or crummy things they've done (which I don't even know much about since I don't care abt them aside from the Larrie craziness), I hate that this toxic fan bullshit has affected them negatively and that goes for any celebrity. This is a wider problem than just the 1D crowd; not even gonna touch beatles, tswift, or kpop. Reality has no clues like a fucking Columbo episode. Lastly, y'all aren't even special--said friend has unearthed at least five near-IDENTICAL rpf shipping conspiracies in everything from fifty shades of grey to olympic ice skating. And those aren't even gay, but they still give their fans secret symbols that they're being kept apart for Some Reason through clothing and special numbers.

Anyway. It's finals week and I have life shit to do. Larries, feel free to file this away in your 'Naysayers Who Will Be Proven Wrong Someday!' hoard. Briefly entertaining a reality where they do come out, guess what: I still don't give a shit. They're just two rich white dudes who make top 40 pop songs. Toxic parasocial fan behavior like this would still be just as weird and shitty as it is in our actual reality, where these guys have never openly declared dating anyone but women and verbally detest this shipping behavior.

I swear to God, it seems like most Larrie shippers don't even like the men that actually exist. That's the rub, isn't it? Reality sucks, but fantasy can be whatever you want it to be. All the things you like about these guys are authentic, and all the things you don't are just manipulation tactics by the puppetmaster marketing team. Forget the fact that they're fucking human beings and not dolls for your amusement or comfort.

You have no idea if they're fake dating women. You have no idea if they're closeted. You have no idea if the generic ass love songs they write are about each other. The truth none of you people realize is that you're probably never going to know, and if that just eats you up inside—good. That's your common sense trying to chew its way out of the cage of confirmation bias you locked it in.

[lmanburg]

okay so it's kind of technically the end of the week. OFFICIAL LMANBURG STATEMENT because obviously that's the most important thing right now that everyone needs to hear (/sarc). I support shelby fully and hope she is doing miles better than she was before. after seeing that she has made deliberate steps towards silent confirmation, I will no longer be actively supporting william gold or lovejoy the band. the reason I did not want to make this public step initially was because it felt in very poor taste to me to come to conclusions on shelby's private life with speculations and timelines. I hope my stance on that was always clear and that I never came off as if I was attempting to shield anyone.

I'm also going to be permanently stepping away from mcyt content creator spaces altogether. after reflecting on not only on this incident and my emotional reaction to it, but also other recent events in these circles, and overall my experience with fandom about real people in general, I've come to the conclusion it's no longer a healthy subject for me personally to indulge in. this blog wont be deleted and I'll still interact with dsmp content bc it's been nearly two years since it's ended and the ccs have no bearing on it anymore. I'm an english major so I'm a fucking KING at the separation of art from artist for the purpose of crit. however I will be blacklisting any currently running smps.

FINAL NOTES! the url stays that's my word now bitch. I wont be purging this blog bc that would probably be emotional self harm and also I'm a digital hoarder. uhm drink water take care of yourself always put the emotional needs of victims first. - daniel lmanburg

[letapollojusticesayfuck]

[PREV]

April 20, 2026: 9:55 AM

After a moment of great internal debate during which your impulse to hide from the courtroom almost won out, you decide to take a deep, steadying breath and see what Wright has to say about his situation before making any rash decisions. You meet his eyes across the courtroom and incline your head slightly, hoping that that’s actually a universal symbol for “please go ahead and speak” and not just something you picked up from watching too many cool lawyer movies.

Luckily, Wright seems to understand what you’re going for—he steps forwards, straightening his posture a bit, and clears his throat.

“I will admit to playing poker with the victim on the night of the incident—it’s my real job, you see. By day I am a piano player—“

Beside you, you hear Mr Gavin mutter a “Hardly!” into his sleeve.

“—but by night I am part of the Borscht Bowl’s main attraction: upholding its long legacy of atmospheric black-market-style card games. All in good fun, of course. The major draw is the chance to defeat the undefeated.”

You interject, wanting clarification. “The undefeated?”

“Yep. In the seven years I’ve been playing poker in that room, I haven’t lost once.”

You try to imagine it—even with good luck, isn’t poker at least partly a game of chance? To be undefeated for seven entire years…

“You’re wondering about how possible that is, aren’t you, Justice?” Mr Gavin chimes in. “I must admit, I have been curious myself…poker: a test of wits, a silent clash of passions... Only the cards, their backs wreathed in blue flame, know its final outcome. And yet, Wright always emerges triumphant…well. Perhaps not this time.”

Mr Gavin has always been known for his flair for the dramatic.

On the stand, Wright concludes his statement:

“All games at the Borscht Bowl go the same way: we play poker with two decks of cards, in a room steeped in history. The customers leave happily. And nothing untoward goes on. With regards to this case—I will maintain my silence on the murder, with one exception: I never touched the murder weapon.”

You frown, slightly. Wright really won’t talk about the murder? And there’s something about that last statement that’s bugging you—maybe you should check on your updated trial notes.

[gryphonlover]

Whumptober 2023 Day 9

Prompt: polaroid

Victim: Wind

Words: 623

Notes: We're pretending that polaroids and pictoboxes are the same thing. Also, ADHD!Wind is something you can pry out of my cold, dead hands.

Wind loved his pictobox. He didn't have the greatest memory for details, so if he wanted to really remember something and make it impossible to forget, then he took a picture of it. Problem solved.

Growing up with an abundance of extra energy and a lack of memory required some work-arounds. He figured that the memory he didn't have had somehow turned into that extra energy somewhere along the way as a baby. 

Grandma said that wasn't how kids developed, but it was a good enough explanation for him. 

So the pictobox was, understandably, very important to him. It wasn't as important as his sentimental items, like the telescope, or his shield, but it definitely made his life better. He had a system that his Grandma had helped him out with, using a journal and the pictobox and colored pencils to keep his life organized. It didn't work as well traveling around, because it was so much easier to lose his stuff, but everyone knew that the journal, pictobox, and pencils were off-limits.

I had only taken one incident to firmly cement respect for his boundaries, and he was pretty sure that Legend still had a scar from getting bitten after the game of keep-away had gotten out of control.

So he was <i>pretty sure</i> that none of his brothers could possibly be dumb enough to touch any of his things on purpose. Which led to the question of how had his things gone missing? 

Well, the how wasn't currently as pressing as the where. He needed to get his things back and then he could figure out who took his stuff and pound some sense into them, provided that he hadn't just lost them from sheer stupidity and absent-mindedness. 

This resulted in the messy process he was now completely engrossed in. Searching through the entire camp and trying to go about it methodically. 

Everyone else was out and about, leaving him free to lose his mind.

He dug through the laundry pile again, sticking his hands frantically into every pocket and hoping that maybe the pictobox or the pencils had ended up in his pants or something. As he pulled another tunic out of the heap, he could feel his eyes prickling with tears. 

He just wanted his things back so he didn't screw things up by forgetting stuff again, but he couldn't remember where he'd put them in the first place!

"Wind?" Hyrule's voice floated through the air uncertainly. "Is something wrong?" 

Wind sniffed and swiped the tears away before standing up and turning to face Hyrule. "I… I just lost something." 

Hyrule's brows furrowed in concern. "What thing? Your sword, or your telescope?" 

Wind shook his head. "No, I– my things, the journal and pictobox and pencils. I can't find them!" His voice got louder and more distressed against his will, the roiling emotions taking over. He buried his face in hands, embarrassed that he was having a meltdown over losing something so <i>inconsequential</i>.

There was a soft crunch of grass, and the calm aura that Hyrule always put off settled next to him. Wind leaned to the side, just letting himself completely flop onto his brother once he made physical contact.

Thin, warm arms wrapped around him, gently rubbing at his shoulders in an attempt to soothe him. 

When he finally cried it all out, Hyrule helped him up to wash the tear-stains off his face and resume looking for his things. It still sucked, it still sucked <i>a lot,</i> but at least now he had his brother as back up, and between the two of them he was pretty sure that they'd find his stuff. Even if it did take a while.

[the-garbanzo-annex-jr]

by David Litman

CNN has a shaky relationship with polling data, as CAMERA has documented previously. In a previous, admittedly more egregious case, CNN’s Christiane Amanpour appears to have entirely fabricated the existence of polling data that fit her preferred narrative. On July 14, however, CNN’s Abeer Salman took a slightly different track by using existing polling data, but only some of it.

In an article titled “Palestinian leader calls on world to ‘protect us,’ and his people respond with bitter laughter,” Salman reports on the declining popularity of Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas. To her credit, this is a story that needs to be told.

But Salman, who has a history of slanted coverage (and even uncritically publishing an antisemitic cartoon), doesn’t end there. She portrays the story as one in which Palestinians are frustrated that Abbas is not “protecting” them from “increasing Israeli settler violence and frequent, deadly Israeli military incursions…”

In doing so, Salman shifts the story from one of growing Palestinian extremism and violence into one of Palestinian victimhood. The narrative portrays the situation as one in which Palestinians are mocking Abbas’ “calls for peaceful resistance” (a dubious claim itself) not because they are increasingly supportive of violence against Israelis, but because they are victims of Israeli violence.

But the data, including the polling data from Salman’s own source, works against her narrative.

The CNN reporter cites a Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research (PCPSR) poll, pointing out that “71% were dissatisfied” with Abbas as president and “74% demanded that he resign.”

However, Salman leaves out the other side of the story from those PCPSR polls. As Abbas’ popularity has declined, two other indicators have taken notable and contemporaneous turns: (1) support for the two-state solution has declined; and (2) support for “armed confrontations and intifada” has risen.

Tracking all three questions since March 2015, we see the following trend:

Source: Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research

Shortly after satisfaction with Abbas began dramatically declining (from 37% in 2020 to 32% in 2021, 23% in 2022, and 19% in 2023), support for armed confrontations and intifada” began sharply increasing (from 43% in 2021 to 52% in 2022 and 58% in 2023). Equally important to note is that support for a two-state solution has simultaneously declined in a similarly dramatic fashion (from 40% in 2022 to 27% in 2023).

That is, the story isn’t just one of declining popularity for Abbas. It’s one of greater support for violence and for rejection of living peacefully, side by side with Israel.

While one must always be cautious of reading too much into polling data, as a recent CAMERA study showed, around the same time that polling data began showing these trends, the level of Palestinian violence dramatically surged, jumping from 1,248 attacks in 2020 to 2,063 in 2021 and 2,674 in 2022. And while UN data suggests violence by Israeli settlers has also increased, the data shows quite clearly that settler violence grew more slowly and remains at levels dramatically lower than Palestinian violence, with 358 incidents in 2020, 496 incidents in 2021, and 849 incidents in 2022.

This preempts the suggestion that the growth in support for violence among Palestinians was a response to growing Israeli violence, given that the data shows the surge in violence has been overwhelmingly driven by the Palestinian side.

One other polling point left out: what Palestinians prefer over “peaceful resistance.” While Salman states that many Palestinians mock calls for “peaceful resistance,” she leaves out what the polls show they prefer: “armed struggle.” While the polling question has not been consistently asked over the same period by PCPSR, the March 2023 poll showed Palestinians chose “armed struggle” (54%) over “popular resistance” (21%) as the “most effective” method to end the conflict and achieve statehood (only 18% chose “negotiations”).

This information exposes Salman’s narrative as rather superficial and misleading in its portrayal of the larger context. While she is correct in noting Abbas’ decline in popularity, a story which deserves far more attention than it has gotten in Western media, her misleading narrative leaves works to distort the other highly relevant trends shaping Palestinian societal views.

[crystalwhisp]

Your fnaf au! Do you have a list so far of what characters and ideas you have sorted?

Why yes I do!

So I already have a post about the animals/characters each of the boys is regardless of model generation (Edds=bear/Freddy, Matts=barn owl/Chica, Toms= Rabbit/Bonnie, Tords=Fox/Foxy. The only exception to this rule is the Circus or Funtime animatronics

The one I haven't gone over yet are:

Lolipop kid (AK) who replaces balloon boy and hands out lolipops to guests!

JJ doesn't have a replacement yet so send me asks for ideas!

The puppet (Laurel) who replaces the marionette and worked the prize corner!

I still gotta go over the human characters and the souls that poses the animatronics! (Please note that most of these are ocs made specifically for this au cuz I wanted more girl characters and didn't know how to use the background ones from Eddsworld)

Rosetta Silver fills Afton's role of resident child murderer and, in the interest of not giving away too much before her solo backstory post, she's a complete POS! Like you will want her DEAD by the time I'm done explaining.

Michie Goliard fills Mike Schmidts role as night guard. She's made some awful mistakes in her past but she has a kind heart and genuinely wants to make everything right.

Jessie Felbers fills the role of Jeremy Fitzgerald as the day shift guard! She is just the sweetest thing! Too bad she her head munched during "the incident." (More on that later) Not to worry though she lived and all it took was a little surgery! Btw her and Michie have a thing for each other.

Now for the aforementioned children (Tw child death and description of said death, details about the victims personalities always come first as they are more important than how they died NOTHING WILL BE USED FOR SHOCK)

FNAE 2

Bea is the little Italian girl possessing Withered Eddy and Toy Elly (I'll explain joint/twin possession later). Timid and mild mannered, she loved singing and sewing. She was 10 years old.

Cause of death: She was stabbed

Hilde is the little German girl possessing Withered Matt and Toy Matilda. She loved helping bake sweets and was very sweet herself. She was 8 years old.

Cause of death: She had an artery cut open and was left in the deep freezer in the back.

Kaia is the little Māori girl possessing Withered Tom and Toy Tamara. She was loyal to a fault and a bit headstrong with a serious love for music. She was 9 years old.

Cause of death: She had her skull crushed.

Sunny is the little Norwegian girl possessing Withered Tord and Toy Tori. She had a special interest in marine life and was an adventurous child. She was 8 years old.

Cause of death: She was drowned in the kitchen dishwashing sink.

[poppyandzena]

Regarding P and Z fighting often, I remember from Milena's google doc that her potential discomfort with seeing fights like that in-person during a visit were treated as, like... Milena's problem. Or like Milena was just 'weak' or something when... no? Most people would be very nervous to see two people having screaming arguments in person? Especially if there's a background of trauma? I for one always get nervous when people raise their voice. P and Z definitely normalize screaming at each other, to the point of shrugging off others' potential discomfort as like a sign that things aren't gonna work out if they can't "handle it". That's not healthy for anyone and the way Poppy's completely fine with that despite being a therapist makes me really nervous.

@transpersian feel free to corroborate. In a general sense, Poppy and Zena's strange twisting of common relationship advice only serves to benefit them. Yes, conflict is an inevitable aspect of even the most peaceful relationships. Note how I say "conflict" and not screaming, demanding, threatening, gaslighting, or even fighting.

Conflict should be dealt with compassion, openness, and rationality. Humans aren't automatons, but the majority of us are capable of using both logical and emotional reasoning at the same time. Sometimes, those skills escape us. A few screaming fights are not wholesale indicative of abuse. But what are we screaming about? Infidelity, unwashed dishes, addiction, coercive behavior?

Always always always pay attention to how you and your partner treat each other when the heat dies down. It's almost more important than the inciting incident itself. Healthy relationships have catharsis and a sense that both parties are fulfilled with the resolution, not just tolerating it to keep peace.

Poppy and Zena sound like they want to normalize volatile cycles of conflict because that is how they have lived, and that is how they continue to get away with their shit. There's no real resolution in their poly relationships, only cool-down periods and complacency that all build up until the victim cannot take it anymore. Then the victim either leaves or is tossed aside for someone younger, more bright-eyed. Previous victims are framed as part of the evil collective so Poppy can appropriate victimhood.

[placegrenette]

Why domestic violence (against women primarily) is a big concern in Kazakhstan right now.

I haven't seen a good informal roundup so I'm going to take a stab at one. As always, do not entirely trust your ignorant American narrator.

It's not that domestic violence hasn't been on people's radars previously–y'all might recall that way back in 2019 Ninety One took part in a campaign against gender-based violence led by the US Consulate General in Almaty–and there are a good number of grassroots organizations that I know nothing about and can't do justice to. (A coalition of 16 of them, the Union of Crisis Centers in Kazakhstan, gets mentioned in this 2019 Human Rights Watch piece.) But it seems to have exploded in the last week or so as a result of several high-profile cases.

Quite possibly the biggest, and ugliest, one is the murder of Saltanat Nukenova; her husband, Kuandyk Bishimbayev, has apparently been ordered to jail as the suspected killer. I think this case is getting a lot of attention because Bishimbayev was a well-known figure who was in government at 27 and who is now suspected of corruption (apparently his father was buddy-buddy with Nursultan Nazarbayev; the top article on Orda.kz right now is an article raising questions about his mother's wealth) and because he was rich (see previous clause; also, the argument that may have led to him beating Nukenova to death apparently started at their restaurant); but friends of Nukenova's are coming forward saying that Bishimbayev had been physically abusing her for years.

I say "several cases" because the translated introduction to the latest Zamandas podcast refers to three separate cases, but I only know of the Nukenova murder. Suffice to say it seems to be the tip of a longstanding, widely-known iceberg. Here's the translation of a Facebook post by Zhanna Muhmadi, whom Eurasianet describes as a "well-known lawyer":

I would like to remind you that in Kazakhstan they give a WARNING for intentional beating of wives! You beat her once, you get a warning, but the second time you can kill her. In our country, even for the murder of wives they gave 1.5 years. P.S. Sincere condolences to the girl's family. The most severe punishment for all murderers!

(Note that Google Translate rendered "You beat her..." as "You beat him," but I changed it; I suspect Russian has the same direct object for male and female third person.)

I've found translating timestamps useful in the past, so here they are for the most recent Zamandas podcast linked above:

00:00 Start of the podcast. Why are we recording this issue and important issues of domestic violence. 03:11 Terrible news of the past week. 07:08 About justifying comments and impunity. About Bishimbayev. 09:07 About manipulation in the media and blogging sphere. About Rashev. 10:59 What is known at the moment? 12:40 About silence. 13:56 Why do men hate women in Kazakhstan? 18:49 About rape in Taldykorgan. [note: this is harder to find information about, but apparently a high-ranking police officer in Taldykorgan has been detained on suspicion of rape.] 20:46 About the law on domestic violence and the inaction of the police. 24:04 “If you don’t hear girls, listen to men” 28:30 Why are men silent? 33:36 About n*violence and emotional tyranny. 37:20 About the incident with the security guard at the nightclub. 42:02 About misogyny. 44:50 About traditions and non-violence. 47:48 “If someone raises a hand against you, leave” 50:20 About education. 54:15 We as a society cannot forgive such things. 56:20 The problem of domestic violence does not have a social portrait. 58:14 About divorce and conviction. 01:00:02 About romanticization in the media. 01:01:03 About tightening the law. See something - say something. 01:04:01 About the relationship of law enforcement agencies to victims. 01:07:07 About male solidarity. 01:08:03 About the incident on the train and the conductors. 01:10:06 About the Don’t Be Silent Foundation. 01:12:51 About the situation in bars and spiking. 01:16:55 Conclusion.

The "Don't Be Silent Foundation," by the way, is NeMolchi (Не Молчи = "do not be silent" in Russian); I don't know if they're taking donations.

ZaQ and Alem both linked (in Instagram Stories) to a petition (machine translation) currently circulating that's calling upon the Kazakhstani government to take domestic violence more seriously and create stronger criminal punishments for it. (Alem spoke in his stories before sharing the link; unfortunately, as usual, I can't tell you what he said. @ninetyonekz translated the stories: one, two, three.) Orda has an article about the petition (machine translation) that notes that it was originally created in 2021 and basically went ignored for two years. The more cynical among you might say that domestic violence is this week's Current Thing in Kazakhstan, and the guys do not want to be seen as lagging behind. To be fair, I think Veronika has been publicly and privately acknowledging these issues for much longer; she linked to the petition as well, as well as to Dr. Aigerim Turekulova, who recently wrote about the health risks to Kazakhstani women and girls from interpersonal violence. Backup dancer Diana also linked to it, and wrote (if the machine translation got her caption right) about how her ex-husband was physically abusive, and people told her not to bother reporting it to the authorities, it would be a waste of time.

I don't know if this is going to lead to longer-lasting change. I sure hope so, but there's a lot of competition for We Need to Do Something About This right now, both in Kazakhstan and globally (a week or two ago a bunch of people, including I believe all of Irina Kairatovna, were raising money to help residents of Gaza City, and we haven't even gotten to the ArcelorMittal mine disaster in Karaganda last month). Also I would put the odds of a backlash as high. But at least something is happening. And since I suspect most of my audience is either against domestic violence or pro learning about Kazakhstan, it seemed worth reporting.

[starlightiing]

Esteban doesn't need defending either. Whatever is going to happen to him is a result of his own behaviour with his teammates in Alpine itself building up for 4 years now. The team clearly had enough of him trying to sabotage the races for both cars especially when he himself asked for no lap one incidents and fighting with each other after Miami and then he goes and breaks his own demand and disobeys a direct order that was given to him 20 minutes prior. Esteban isn't a saint or victim here that you think. There is a reason he is getting kicked out of the team . There is a lot you don't know about.

I'm simply posting this because you are not being rude and I do very much appreciate that. However, I am not interested in a back-and-forth on this right now. I'm happy to hear what you have to say on the matter since you are presenting it (albeit, in my opinion, slightly condescendingly) calmly and without name-calling. I am interested to hear the opinions and the takes.

I am just tired of this situation and I don't have a whole lot more to offer on it than I already have. But your views and information are certainly noted and considered important here and I appreciate you being civil on the matter. I am always open for discussions, but in this case, my discussion meter on this topic has about been worn out completely and for that I apologize. I owe you a discussion at a later date. But I am not ignoring this or you, I can assure you that. Differing information/opinions/viewpoints are always welcome here.

Thank you for your message.

[alynnl]

My Take on Gumshoe's Backstory

I played through the Ace Attorney trilogy as well as the Investigations duology, and noticed a blank spot in a lot of characters' back stories. Since he's important to Edgeworth and I love him plenty on his own, I'll be focusing on Detective Dick Gumshoe and what his past might have been like. Part of this (but probably not all of it) will end up in a fanfic I've been taking notes for here and there.

In the beginning, Gumshoe lived in his family home with his parents and two younger siblings (one brother, one sister.)

His mom and dad owned a convenience store. (In the present day, it's run by his younger sister and her husband.) Overall the family isn't the richest one on the block, but they're happy to share a home together.

Gumshoe was an energetic child who got along easy with others. He became close with an older family friend, Jay Walker - an auto mechanic who seemed like he could fix anything.

Gumshoe's love of gadgets comes from his Uncle Jay, who was always working on something in his garage at any given moment. It was not unusual for the two of them to spend their evenings tinkering with various tools and electronics.

Jay made the offhanded remark that Gumshoe knew his way around a toolbox, and he'd make a great apprentice. This was something the boy took to heart, making him want to sign up for shop classes once he got into middle school.

When he was twelve years old, Gumshoe became involved in a murder case that would later be known as the YB-5 Incident. It began when he was walking home after a night at the arcade with a couple of his classmates. He stepped onto his block just in time to witness a drive-by shooting. He hid as the car sped further down the street.

Gumshoe went to check on the victim, realizing to his horror that it was his Uncle Jay who had just been shot. By the time the paramedics arrived, it was too late. It was later said that Jay died instantly.

The following week, the police and the investigating prosecutor swept Gumshoe's neighborhood from top to bottom, questioning everyone as to what they saw and heard that Friday night.

The lead prosecutor on the case was Manfred von Karma. He informed Gumshoe's family that the boy would have to testify in court as a witness if they are to give their neighbor's murderer the guilty verdict he deserves.

During the investigation, it's revealed that Jay used to be "Detective Walker," and he was trying to live a peaceful life after retirement. But a criminal from one of his previous cases decided to take their revenge on the night of the YB-5 Incident, since the former detective broke up his gang of weapon smugglers.

The investigation wrapped up, and the trial began. Von Karma emphasized how important it is that Gumshoe give the perfect witness statement, and didn't care much about the boy's feelings or grief he might be experiencing for his family friend.

Gumshoe gives his statement. Even after that, the trial dragged on for months and he isn't given any sense of closure. A verdict is reached merely one day before Jay Walker's funeral was planned to take place.

Gumshoe is left with an emptiness inside even after the guilty verdict. He doesn't feel like this was a victory because the verdict doesn't bring back his friend and mentor.

Then patrolman Tyrell Badd gives the boy some encouragement, saying how he was brave to give his statement on the witness stand. "I've seen grown men break down and cry when they were giving their testimony, but you didn't shed a tear. You have courage, kid. I think old Jay would be proud."

Tyrell's words gave Gumshoe a different idea of who he wanted to be when he grew up. He wanted to protect people, and be there for the survivors left behind just like him. From then on, he had his sights set on joining the police academy, but never gave up the hobby of tinkering with machines in his spare time.

[cladestruction]

ok so i’m going to continue with the Charles x Enif story bc oh boy.

Charles has all the files related to the Nile’s Comet case. however, he doesn’t look at them immediately. he gets to mordhaus, instructs the klokateers to study the files, and then he goes check on the boys. they’re all fine and safe, none even noticed what happened, and even when he informs Pickles about the death of Liz Bane he’s like “oh wow, that sucks. anyway–”. after that, he’s still got a ton of other stuff to worry about bc this is Dethklok and there’s always so much work for the manager, also he already heard most of the important information from the police, so the files are sitting at his office for a good couple of days. eventually, he asks the klokateers to give him a brief analysis of what they found. most of it is just a confirmation of the obvious: Exodus was an undercover cult, they were using Pickles to attract new followers, the Nile’s Comet event was a plan to kill Dethklok, etc etc. (NOTE: i like to think that The Tribunal’s knowledge about Liz Bane is pretty exceptional and not at all what the public knows about her. i mean, not even Charles seemed to know what Exodus really was, and much less knew about Liz’s links to the Order of the Dybbuks and all that. so i’ll push the narrative that the true lengths of Liz’s story, power, and influence are still a mystery to everyone but The Tribunal).

but then a klokateer mentions something else that catches Charles’ attention: among the various documents, there was a file of a girl and her interrogation attached. the klokateers inform Charles that she is Liz’s adoptive daughter. she was a victim of the cult, and she was one of the few people to be with Liz the night before she died and that’s why she was interrogated. other than that, there’s not much relevant information. the girl, Enif Bane, testified to not knowing about the cult and even less about the Nile’s Comet plan, and her test results show that she really did have nothing to do with anything. still intrigued, Charles picks up her file and dismisses the klokateers. indeed, there’s not much about Enif. her history is squeaky clean and she looks very normal (too normal, maybe?). the picture in the document shows her with long hair and a shy smile, with no trace of being the daughter of a cult leader. still, Charles instructs the klokateers to keep an eye out for her. not much is seen though, because there’s not much trace of Enif Bane after the incident, and Charles moves on to occupy himself on whatever Dethklok’s next crazy antics are.

one day though, Charles is asked to go to the record label. it’s an ordinary meeting to talk about sales, resources, management, brand deals, upcoming projects and deadlines, etc. and everything is going smoothly when suddenly a young woman enters the office to give Roy Cornickelson some messages and remind him of his upcoming schedule. her presence would not be very interesting if it weren’t for the fact that she looks terribly familiar to Charles, but he can’t pinpoint from where he knows her. Roy thanks her and the woman turns around to exit the office, but not before meeting Charles' inquiring gaze. the moment lasts barely two seconds, but it feels like a painful eternity. Enif immediately recognizes Charles: the famous and feared manager of Dethklok. Charles in turn takes a bit longer to connect the dots (because of the short hair, the cat-like eyeliner and the darker lipstick) but he finally remembers. she saw her, years earlier, in an ID photo from a classified police file. Enif is terrified, but she keeps it hidden and nobody notices. and just as Charles remembers her name, she exits the room.

Charles acts as if nothing happened. the meeting comes to an end and once Charles is out of Cornickelson’s office, he practically runs to look for Enif. he doesn’t find her, but it’s okay. he goes and asks the secretary if he could look at some of the label team’s files (which is actually not weird, he likes studying the people he works with) to find Enif. and he does. she’s Roy’s personal assistant and attends the label’s PR team. she has a good history and great professional references. Charles is ecstatic with this finding because this isn’t the Enif Bane he had been looking for. this is Enif Cordero. (NOTE: i’m still deciding whether Enif, with the help of the cop-friend, managed to hide all the ties she had to Liz and erase them from existence OR if it would still show on her record that she was adopted, but since she already made the name change and legal procedures to Not be Liz’s daughter, it’s fine and nobody even notices. it’s like hidden in plain sight or something. after all, she still has the perfect alibi of “i didn’t know my mom had a death cult!”, and she could have some kind of document, like witness protection but not really. but yeah, i still haven't decided which option is the best.)

after some time, Charles manages to connect all the points. he’s even able to track down (with the klokateers great connections) her true parents from Colombia and learn of their tragic deaths. (NOTE: i’m still not sure if Charles would figure out that Liz and her cult were the one responsible for the massacre. i’m inclined to think that he did but it would also be incredibly sad bc just like the french massacre back in the 1973, the police were not able to catch Liz and she was not charged for her crimes.) by this point, Charles is incredibly intrigued, but his manager-senses want him to hunt down Enif. being the daughter of a cult leader; having been suspiciously absent from the Nile’s comet incident; changing her name and record; and now working with Crystal Mountain Records, Charles can’t help but think of her as a possible threat to Dethklok. he quickly arranges for another meeting to take place, to which he makes sure Enif will attend. this time, it’s a company dinner. Enif is wearing a dark plain dress and spends the night avoiding the countless glasses of wine the waiters continue to serve. as soon as the opportunity arises, Charles approaches Enif and starts a conversation very casually.

Enif is terrified. she’s heard so many rumors of Charles. just that would be enough to freak her out, but it’s amplified by her constant fear of him recognizing her and putting the pieces of her secret together. still, she tries her best to answer just as casually. Charles acts oblivious as if he didn’t just read her entire criminal and school record, her curriculum, and her current contract. he makes her talk about herself, but she manages to tell as little as possible. they are only interrupted by Roy Cornickelson, who comes to greet the two and comment on how happy he is they finally met since he always thought the two would get along. he also comments on how good Enif is as an assistant, and how organized and professional she is. once he leaves, Charles takes the opportunity to invite Enif to work with him and join Dethklok’s management team. his goal is simple: just as with Melmord, he likes keeping his enemies as close as possible, and if Enif joins him, she would be easier to observe, study, and possibly even eliminate. Enif shyly laughs it off saying she’s not very metal herself and that she’s happy with her job in the label. Charles doesn’t insist, but he sure as hell won’t give up.

the dinner is coming to an end and Enif is leaving. just as she is about to get in a cab, Charles reaches her to say goodbye. they shake hands and he comments on how pleased he is to meet her and how much he hopes they can work together in the future. his tone is sincere, but they both know he’s really just saying “i’ll keep an eye on you, so watch your back.” Enif gulps and says likewise. she gets in the cab and watches as Charles goes back to the pary. and that’s when she realizes there’s no going back.