#they've fed you lies

[theladyofbloodshed]

the archerons known nothing about prythian truly. All they know is what they've been told by the IC. It would have been nice to see Nesta doing her own research on laws and history but that would require her to be independent and not exchanging innuendos with cassian or panting over his muscles. I'd have loved scenes of Nesta not just working in the library to stack the shelves, but pausing over book after book because that title sounded interesting, or hey a history of Illyria, maybe I can share that with Emerie, and that be how she begins to heal because she wants to go to the library every day to learn. Nesta Archeron, who loves learning, being like i can learn all of this?? for free?? i can just come here whenever i want to educate myself?

Like have any of them ever picked up a book and researched the significance of a mating bond? They've just been told by the IC that they are mates and that's it. No questioning, just acceptance that this is how things are.

[squiblysabre]

"omg these characters are so romantic!!" you fool. you've fallen right into their trap

[dee-the-red-witch]

How to ACTUALLY date a trans girl

(This column was originally submitted to Autostraddle as a reply to their "A Trans Guy’s Guide to Picking Up a Trans Girl" but since they've apparently passed on it, it gets to be posted up free everywhere else instead.) Picture this- you’re a trans woman who’s been in transition for three years now. Your dating life has gone from abysmal to amazing in alternate fits and spurts and you’ve found not just one, but three awesome partners despite the many, MANY pitfalls you’ve experienced along the way. And then one day, your social media feeds ping up with screencaps of a guide to picking up girls like yourself. Needing a good laugh, you click through. And read. And proceed to smack your forehead with your own palm in frustration a few times and giggle and some other lines on the first readthrough. But things feel off, so you read again. And begin to seethe. And then start opening up the Word document and start typing frenziedly into it. Because honestly? At the end of the day, as a trans lesbian who dates all sorts of people on non-male parts of the amorphous spectral mass that is Gender, I feel like I’m obligated to. I wanted to go into that first reading and find a column that actually got things right, and this was so far off the mark in the worst ways, so I feel like I have to set some things down on paper. Because this guide reads, in so many ways, like everything my cisfem friends have complained about in the straight dating scene for years. Reading through it that second time, I felt almost the exact same sense of of sheer grease and sleaze that I’ve felt reading incel pickup guides. I felt like I was being seen as a pretty object at best and a disposable sex toy at worst. I wasn’t treated as human. At best it was a bunch of stereotypes, none of which applied to me. But under it all, I saw other bits- the tricks an abuser used to lure me in. The lies my rapist fed me. The excuses made by folks online for why I should be treated like a monster or thing because of my identity. You know, the specific blend of misogyny that singles out transfem identities in general- transmisogyny. And since we’re addressing the elephant in the room, I want to address a few particular points from Gabe’s article before I give you some real idea of how to go about this. And I want to emphasize here- this is after editing out a page of swearing, going over Gabe’s own past history of transmisogynistic writing, and just cutting it down to the actual points where the original article really went wrong, and also pick up a few points at the end that’ll actually work well for trans guys or anyone else who might be interested in a relationship with a trans girl. First off, if you’re trans as well? Stop playing the ‘we’re both trans’ card. ESPECIALLY if you’re coming at it from a ‘Why yes, I used to be a woman’ angle. For one, you’re telling us at the same time that you see us as former men, which is usually very much not the transfem experience (Personally, I always felt like I was putting on a ‘man’ act. All the time. Badly.) and for another, you’re being transphobic to yourself and your own identity. If we’re there to date you, it’s as the man you are- be that guy.

Secondly, just because the trans woman experience shares similarities with the experience you had trying to be a woman up until you came out and transitioned, it also has staggering fundamental differences, and your attempts to relate are going to highlight those differences in ways that aren’t going to work in your favor. We didn’t get to go shopping in public, or if we did, it was fraught with fear at being caught out in the early stages of transition, followed by massive frustrations with both trying to figure out where we fit into women’s sizing. And then discovering that absolutely nothing available in local stores, including thrift shops, would fit right, especially not that cute choker we’d always been drooling over. That nothing smelled right for lotion or perfume because we were dealing with a body chemistry that was going through a slow shift on HRT. And we don’t need or want to be reminded of just how much we stand out from the other girls in those kind of regards.

Also, maybe, just maybe, don’t do things that would get seen as completely misogynistic and creepy if you pulled them on a cisgender woman. Don’t go digging into her socials- stalkers and chasers pull that crap and it’s beyond tiresome. Don’t try to deduce what her pretransition life was like, that’s for her to share, if she chooses to. Don’t see her as a stereotype- some of us never played New Vegas, owned cat ears, or like thigh-highs. On that first date if you ever get there, don’t bring her flowers, lovebomb her like mad, constantly find little ways to touch her, any of that- if she has any experience, she’s waiting for the other shoe to drop in response, because she’s had this treatment before and it ended oh so badly. Just be yourself. And get it through your head that the bear is still definitely a choice regardless of everything- after all, we have examples like Gabe to prove that transmisogyny certainly isn’t limited to cis folks.

What should you do? Treat her like any other woman. Treat her like a human being, because we get so little of that, even from the rest of the LGBTQIA+ community. Yes, you’ll more than likely have to take initiative, because we’re used to seeing our attractions, needs, and desires as being perceived as aggressive or predatory by others. When you touch her, do it with assertion and intent- none of the little brushes and stalker moves- ask if you can hold her hand, or put an arm around her, so she knows you actually want to be here and want contact with her. Listen to her, and pay attention- let her be open and honest about her experiences and interests, and remember what she tells you, because she’s going to need to know that she’s wanted and valued for who she is and what she’s into, and it will be part of how she connects to you. And finally? Common sense and communication- every last one of us is different in a lot of ways, and asking or making room to talk about things from physical contact and sex to social activity or group outings or anything else can save a lot of blunders from ever happening. All in all you can and should date trans women! Please! A lot of the best relationships I’ve ever had were with other trans girls and I don’t regret any of those. But you have to put down the pickup guides, stop seeing us as fetish dispensers and sexy lampshades, and actually deal with us as people, first.

[ere-the-sun-rises]

Batfam and the Lazarus Pit

This isn't my idea, and I honestly can't remember if @frownyalfred or @bruciemilf came up with this idea first, but it's been living in my head rent free and I need to get it out.

There are Lazarus Pits under Gotham, even contributing to why the city's so cursed. The Bats have each used a Lazarus Pit at least once (maybe not Spoiler and Signal, but I'm not sure). I'm fairly sure it's also canonical that the more you use it, the more prolonged the effects are and it kinda changes you incrementally but permanently.

Enter the Batfam, who train like crazy and are Olympian-level athletes all on their own, and using the Lazarus to help each other on death's door. (They don't tell each other when they do this, and they think it's never been done to them - except Jason, he can always tell - but they also don't share when they've done it to others.)

As time goes on, everyone gets older, stronger, more proficient at their jobs. Some take on younger teams, some proteges, some fly solo or stick around home. It's one of the OG Leaguers who points it out one day when they're having a civilian lunch - probably Ollie or Hal. In my head Bruce is one of, if not the youngest, OG Leaguers. So it's not crazy when Clark or Barry start to wrinkle around the eyes or get grey in their hair well before Bruce would. Bruce is also a public figure - he's got appearances to keep up.

But then ... Bruce is over 40 and his hair is still as black as it's ever been. His wrinkles are from his scowling and focus, only crinkling around the edges of his eyes and mouth a little bit. Idly, Hal wonders out loud if Bat's eyes have always been so dark, almost like coals. Barry notes that Bruce is way bigger than he used to be, that he bulges the suits he wears to galas with his size. Ollie, who's own beard is greying, bitterly points out that even Bruce's stubble is still black.

And suddenly, Bruce hits 50 and he's still thick-chested and dark-haired. The other Bats only seem to get more and more ... more. No non-meta can spar with them anymore unless they hold back and they seem to have endless stamina and pain tolerance. Clark and Diana think nothing of it, but the other fully human Leaguers start to wonder what's really going on. If maybe Bruce had lied to them. But J'onn swears that in their own minds, all of the Bats fully believe they're human. Aside from the suspicion, there's no reason to believe otherwise. They still bleed and scar, no matter how beautiful they seem to remain. No matter that Bruce keeps going and going and going even after others his age have been retired for years.

Fed up one day, Ollie asks him how he does it. Dermatologists? Botox? Just For Men? Bruce snorts and rolls his eyes. He smirks, "Good genes, I guess."

Bruce is nearly 70 when the grey creeps into his hair and his body starts to slow. His children are still active as ever, and when Tim takes up the Batman mantle, Bruce retires to train new heroes. One young hero complains that Bruce hits like one of the Amazons she trained with but he only responds that he's never stopped being the Bat even with tbe cowl off.

And then ... Leaguers start dying. Gradually, age takes them one by one and they's succeeded by the heroes they've mentored and the children who followed in their footsteps. Grey is starting to creep into Dick and Jason's hair, but they're still as vibrant and lively as ever.

It's only when it's just him left of humans of the original group that he actually considers why. If anyone should have died young, it should have been him. And yet, he's nearing 90 and not nearly as withered as some of them had been when they passed away. The vitality he's always attributed to his genetics and continued activity can't explain why all his children remain as beautiful and capable all their lives as he has. So one day, he gathers his wayward children down in the cave like they used to 50 years ago and asks them to be completely honest with him.

"Have any of you used the Lazarus Pit on anyone here without telling them or reporting it?"

The silence he's met with is deafening.

[luveline]

hi honey, i love you so so much!!

what about stripper!reader with derek morgan?? he's on a case where strippers are being murdered, and while hotch is driving morgan calls you and tells you not to go into work because of what's going on, and emily is listening in on the conversation from the backseat and they tease him

thank youu!! love you!

ty for requesting lovely!! ilysm ♡

"I know you don't like listening to me, but could you do me a favour? Just this once?" 

Emily leans over in her seat so Spencer can see her side eye. "Who's Morgan talking to?" 

"Stay home tonight. No, this isn't a jealousy thing, you vixen–" 

Spencer shrugs. "No idea. But–" 

"But," Emily agrees. They've just left a crime scene with a specific victim, and now Morgan's on the phone asking someone to stay home. That someone would have reason to visit said crime scene's location, and the word vixen suggests female rather than male, which means, "Morgan has a secret stripper girlfriend." 

Spencer's entire face takes his frown, eyebrows pinched, mouth quirked into a telling line. "I like the implausible," he murmurs, "but that feels illogical. Where would they have met?"

"Uh," Emily says, widening her eyes at him. "Where do you think, Spence?" 

"Morgan doesn't need to go to a strip club." 

Emily understands what Spencer's saying. There are lots of reasons that people frequent strip clubs or gentlemen's clubs and none of those reasons apply to Derek. It's possible he could go socially, but it's just so unlike him, it doesn't add up. 

"I'm telling you the truth. I can't give you more detail than that, I just need you to stay home tonight." Derek pauses, laughs. "Alright," —his voice takes on a mechanical rendition, clearly having been fed a line he has to repeat aloud— "I, Derek Morgan, am an ignorant, jealous man, who can't cope with the fact that you don't want me, and am making up sad and childish lies to get you to stay home from your job. Is that what you wanted? Yeah, laugh it up." 

Emily laughs and grabs the headrest as he hangs up on you, pulling herself forward to taunt him as is required. "Care to explain yourself?" 

Derek sighs. "This is why I didn't tell you guys." 

"What!" Spencer says, though his smile is more audible than his incredulity. 

"So you have something to tell us?" Emily asks. 

Derek knows he can't weasel his way out of telling them, and he doesn't really want to. "I don't have a secret stripper girlfriend," he says, rolling his eyes, "she's not my girlfriend. She is an exotic dancer at one of the clubs downtown, and I met her at Home Depot." 

Emily isn't perturbed that Derek heard their gossiping. She's shameless. She doesn't even care that Hotch is frowning behind the wheel. "What was an exotic dancer doing at Home Depot?"

"Weirdly, Emily, she has a home. She wanted help finding renter friendly flooring." 

"Can we meet her?" 

"Never," Derek says with a smile. Emily couldn't know this, but he really likes you. You're sweet, super funny, and yes, you're a stripper. You work hard. Pole dancing is as physically demanding as any manual labour and you're damn good at it. "Ever." 

Spencer interjects the ensuing argument with a statistical analysis of strippers who are homeowners (unfairly few), but Morgan doesn't answer, trying to read a new text from you discretely. 

Sorry if I embarrassed you at work :( is it really not safe to go ?? Maybe u can come and be my bodyguard. I won't even make u tip me 4:10PM

He sends back, Really not safe. Stay home for me, relax for a few days. Call you tonight even if nothing changes 4:11PM

My hero <3 I trust u, but be careful OK ? and pls if it isn't too much trouble can u bring back some of those weird candies again? thank u thank u <3<3<3 4:14PM

Hotch makes a quiet sound of approval, eyes on the road. "The same girl you were with at Docklands? Rossi said she was cute." 

"She is." 

"Rossi met her?" Emily asks. "Oh, you're the worst."

[offtorivendell]

On Elain, Gwyn and their apparent romantic worthiness.

TW: mentions of death, violent or sexual assault, infertility and pregnancy/childbirth related trauma. Please do not proceed if these topics bother you.

Disclaimer: please, please engage with this post with kindness. I promise I am not writing it to stir the pot, but because I - and many others - are fed up with seeing hurtful and harmful rhetoric spewed by the fandom, yet having no back up when dealing with it. Word vomit incoming, I'm sorry. This has been bothering me for a while.

My love to everyone who has been hurt by things they've read in this fandom. 💜

It's 2024 and I cannot believe we are still seeing posts, almost daily, about both of these women; all giving reasons why they cannot possibly be with Azriel. And I don't mean the debatable but utterly harmless discussions about Elain not looking good in black or Gwyn blabbing to Merrill when asked not to. Whatever, go nuts. I mean the truly horrific takes based around things these two women have had no control.

Now, my post history makes it very obvious where I stand in terms of ships, and yes, I'm well aware I've spoken before about the inherent power imbalance - that I perceive - which would exist if Azriel ever became involved with any of the priestesses in the women's shelter he is charged with protecting (to be clear, that's not me suggesting that Gwyn and her story isn't powerful, or powerful representation to those who see themselves in her, nor is it personal to Gwyn, or indicative of any of the sheltered priestesses and their ability to heal; it's purely a function of Azriel's position of authority over their sanctuary). I want to reiterate that my stating my feelings about this was never done with the intent to shame people who do ship them; we all ship who we like, and real world ethics should rarely come into it.

That being said, the following, in my opinion, is one of those times.

Firstly, I just want to say that lived experience informs how we interpret fiction, so please let me clarify something: the people who have said that they don't think Gwyn is ready for a relationship yet, and that NSFW fan art of her with anyone makes them uncomfortable, are not in any way in the wrong. They're simply the other side of the coin to those who find it empowering, and both are valid responses, often related to personal trauma. The problem lies with those very few who say that Gwyn could never have a romantic relationship, and call those who talk and/or post about it "gross." Some have called her "damaged goods." This is absolutely wrong and whoever is doing it needs to stop.

The entire fandom, even those who find romantic or NSFW content involving Gwyn uncomfortable to consume, frequently acknowledges that her trauma doesn't define her, and of course she should be able to enjoy love whenever she feels ready for it. Those who say otherwise are readily condemned from all corners. I've seen it happen and called the people out myself, as have many other Elriel shippers when necessary. However, Elriels are still very regularly and very publicly blamed for the actions of a few (some of whom I truly believe are burner accounts wanting to cause chaos, with their Elriel themed usernames and no post history), despite our largely collective action to call them out when we see it.

Could we do better? Absolutely, but so can you!

Because, on the other hand, I've noticed that, whenever I or others have tried to explain why the pliable bones "theory" - which attempts to reason that Elain could never be endgame with Azriel, as she and any baby would die during the course of pregnancy or childbirth - is equally as harmful, we are met with people publicly and wholeheartedly refusing to understand why (especially recently). Some horrific comments have been made to my friends, not to mention all of those I see well after the fact, which are never widely condemned by any but us. People will argue back that we're wrong, and have even suggested we're weaponising infertility! On Mothers' Day, of all the fucking painful days to say that.

Some of the push back I've seen recently includes:

"Nobody has said Elain is infertile."

No, nobody has, and that's not what we're saying or have ever said. We know you don't think this, as the Elucien fandom loves to write and draw Elain and Lucien's hypothetical future children (which is super understandable, as this is a romantasy fandom after all - no shame, enjoy your warm fuzzies).

What we are saying is that, if it's true that Elain's anatomy wasn't changed as Feyre and Nesta's was - and to be clear I cannot stand that entire plot, I wish SJM had chosen literally any other reason why Feyre's pregnancy was dangerous, as it is simultaneously degrading and doesn't fit with her previously established lore - then Elain and Azriel, together^, would be functionally infertile. Yet it's only ever framed as Elain's body not being able to work with Azriel's, never the other way around.*

^Why didn't the bat boys have to sacrifice their wings to keep their wives/mates safe? Why did the women have to change their anatomy? Because it would make it harder for them to be all powerful? Well Nesta sacrificed her powers! Why not just have Feyre be cursed by an enemy or something, and Nesta found a way to use the Dread Trove to save them all. Ugh. I love SJM's books, but this was such a miss.

*HOSAB/HOFAS SPOILER: funnily enough, this was never said about Ruhn and his eventual mate, even though he actually did think he may be unable to father children, thanks to the Oracle's prophecy. People shipped the hell out of him and a couple of different women throughout the CC series, despite the chance he could never get them pregnant.

"People haven't called Elain damaged goods, so it's not the same. We're allowed to not like her."

My faerie porn* lover in christ, what the fuck do you think the pliable bones "theory" is actually doing? It is suggesting that Elain's hypothetical inability to survive having children with Azriel, and for those children to also survive childbirth, is impaired. Ergo, she's damaged.

We don't care if you don't like Elain, we're allowed to have different preferences in characters and ships. That has never been the problem.

*I use this term with affection as a great lover of the genre.

But "damaged" vs a functionally "impaired" uterus? It's the same damn thing, and sorry, it's misogynistic af, not to mention ableist and homophobic at a minimum. In the same breath you are also reducing your favourite to her apparently functional uterus (even though the pliable bones argument is medically inaccurate, by the way - this is really damning of the state of health education across so many countries).

"Hahaha/lol."

Yes, I have seen people laugh and treat this as a joke. As recently as tonight, in fact. It's disgusting.

Regardless of your lived experiences and shipping preferences, both of these takes about Elain and Gwyn are equally degrading and horrific and need to stop, but if you're only calling out the comments that hurt you/your friends/your ship and not the others, then you should maybe attempt some basic self reflection and analyse those double standards you're carrying.

This entire fandom needs to do better. I'll say again, for the umpteenth time, to any of my fellow Elriels that if you think mocking Gwyn's past is funny, then you're not mature enough to read an adult series. But this works both ways, and if you think mocking infertility is funny/use it as a win, then you're just as immature. I would really and truly appreciate it if we were not left alone to argue over and over again why discriminating against someone who couldn't "have a man's children" is wrong, and why many, many people in this adult fandom - that is largely comprised of women! - might find such a theory, and the resulting discourse, incredibly upsetting.

Infertility hurts; not having a kid when you want one can be viscerally painful. Besides that, I know very few people who have given birth who don't carry around some sort of emotional or physical trauma from doing so. Treating a character's hypothetical infertility with one man as a joke is gross.

Please don't call Gwyn "damaged goods" or suggest that Azriel would choose somebody else over Elain because she couldn't have his kids.

They are the same thing.

It's not hard to be kind. Pain is not a competition.

We should all do better, and take care of each other.

[who-knew-a-sheep-can-write]

Werewolf Bigby Wolf x Reader Headcanons

🌙 Bigby's been a werewolf for a good handful of centuries already, turned right before they all had to seek refuge in the Mundy World hundreds of years ago during the Saelum Trials. It may seem like he has a perfect handle on things, but in reality, he doesn't.

🌙 He used to lose control all of the time, especially in the first year. There were so many rumors and stories that came from him doing so that they've lasted centuries to the modern day. People nowadays brush it off as fake or bring up how back then, glasses weren't a thing so they were all crazy which is a breath of relief on Bigby's part.

🌙 He rarely loses control these days. The last time he could remember off of the top of his head would be the whole Crooked Man incident getting gunned down in the alley. In some sick and twisted way deep down inside, he loves the feeling of hunger and relief that washes over him when he lets go but he will never say it out loud.

🌙 His will isn't the only thing to keep him sane. Centuries of experiments and spells and charms and trinkets the thirteenth floor conjured up also helps, but they all have their breaking point. At least he doesn't turn on full moons anymore and go on a rampage through New York like in the movies.

🌙 There are times, however, when even the thirteenth floor's magic isn't enough and Bigby's iron will breaks. It's rare, but when it happens, it's messy.

🌙 When you two started dating, he could feel the beast inside of him writhing with life, almost like it wanted to come out just to be with you. It was a shock at first, he had never felt like that, especially when he had his little thing for Snow. He likes that feeling though.

🌙 Be careful with certain scents. Bigby's nose is like no other and very strong scents can give him horrible headaches. He won't say anything unless you ask him what's wrong. He loves the smell of you naturally already, there's no need for all of these sprays and scented lotions.

🌙 Speaking of scents, he can also dictate your emotions. It was a skill he taught himself over time. He mostly uses it to try and catch people lying, but's found it useful to detect if you're in distress or even if you're feeling very flirty.

🌙 It's the same with his hearing; Another skill he's honed over the years to weed out the truth from the bullshit lies he's fed. He often listens for your heartbeat during the day if you're around the Woodlands.

🌙 You knew what he looked like, but you hadn't seen it in so long. Bigby would sheepishly look away as you oogled at him in his form. He liked the way you looked at him with those eyes, and he could practically smell your satisfaction, but he wouldn't say something.

🌙 He has a bit of a temper, so flares tend to happen. It's often just the glowing eyes, but there have been times where the claws came out. He doesn't mean for you to see him like that, often worried that you may suddenly see him as the brute many others see him as.

🌙 Speaking of that special little side of him, he loves it when you card your fingers in his thicker hair- especially when you scratch lightly at his scalp or even at the fuzzy sideburns he grows.

🌙 He also likes it when you idly play with his fingers should you hold his hands when he's like that. You're admiring his sharp, black claws without a care for how dangerous they are. It puts his striking nerves at ease.

🌙 Compliment him. It catches him off guard and gets the wolfman blushing and stuttering when you compliment his furry little self. His yellow eyes, his solid body that radiates heat, his strong arms that can hold you like you weigh nothing.

🌙 When he's full wolfman, he often shies away from your gaze at first, worried that you may come to your senses and be disgusted by him- But you aren't. He's instead shocked when you approach him with that smile he fell in love with.

🌙 He's tall as fuck when he's turned, often having to hunch over in your apartment and duck to get through doorways. He often fills up the doorway with his hulking body, his body is broad and muscular, it can be a bit awkward maneuvering around inside.

🌙 He often loves it when you fall asleep while he's all fuzzy, preferring you to sleep on top of him with his beastly arms wrapped around you. There's no need for a blanket as his furry body is enough to keep you warm.

🌙 He likes to tease you when he's like that. Nipping lightly with his fangs, his claws lingering or splaying his large paw across your body, dwarfing you with his size. Anything you say to scold him jokingly earns you a deep wolfish chuckle.

🌙 If you're a fable that also has a different form, it comforts him when you turn and lounge around with him in the comforts of either of your apartments- mostly yours as it's bigger than his by a long shot.

🌙 He's a protective person, it's really in his nature. You're his, and Bigby gets a sour taste in his mouth when certain Fables get around you. He doesn't mean to be jealous and over-protective, he's just acting on his wolfish instincts.

🌙 But if something happens? Hell will break loose. He prays that it would never come to it where it's another Crooked Man situation where he had to turn to protect Snow and almost lost complete control. He saw the pure fear painted all over her face, he doesn't think he could handle that same look from you.

🌙 He lays awake some nights where his nightmares wake him from his sound sleep. It's all the same shit, constant worries pulling at the back of his mind. It scares him to the bone knowing that there's the possibility that he could fully lose control and even hurt you, even with that possibility being so low.

[basalamander-corner]

When you stop to actually think about it, the situation the octolings go through in pretty horrifying. Not just living in a home where the sky could collapse on them at any moment, but the futility of everything they're doing.

We learn in Splatoon 3 that some octolings clans (like Shiver's) lived above ground. They never went down into the Octo Domes, and became well-established to the point of being almost ruler-like? I don't think it's made clear if the great clans that Deep Cut hail from are seen as lords over the Splatlands or what, but they're clearly influential and powerful. So the octolings... really didn't need to spend all that time suffering.

Every one of them could have waltzed onto the surface and easily integrated into inkling society, and no one would bat an eye because as we all know: inklings are stupid as shit! They didn't care when Marina ended up there! So they wouldn't care about others.

So what was stopping them?

Could it be that the higher ups of the Octarian army, those closest to Octavio, were so blinded by their loss, by their sense of pride and their own selfishness, they felt the need to prove they were better than the inklings? To prove they didn't need their "blessed surface", and that they could survive just fine on their own? Their loss was humiliating, and for their superior weapons to lose to such a weak enemy, clearly they need to show their strength to persevere through even the most horrifying of situations.

Clouded by their arrogance, the Octarian army could only imagine that the inklings were keeping the zapfish (and other energy sources) away from them in order to punish them for daring to fight in the Great Turf War in the first place. They were so caught up in this loss they didn't realize inklings had forgotten all about the war within two generations! That sure, the inklings might have learned about it in school (as we hear from Pearl), but they don't know much else other than the basic facts.

And so, the younger generation of octolings suffered the most.

While the generation who lived through the war were trying to return to their glory days, desperate to show off their power and abilities, the newer generation of octolings are forced into fighting for a war they never wanted from a young age. We don't know if all octoling training starts at age 6, but Marina is certainly a case of it. Regardless of when they started fighting, they are fed propaganda and lies from birth.

Inklings are dangerous. Inklings are evil. Inklings will destroy you if they see you. You must avoid them. They hate you because you are an Octarian. That is why you must train.

And they have no choice but to believe it, because they've never seen anything to the contrary. They live in these crumbling domes, they know the inklings live on the surface with unlimited power, so of course they have to believe what their higher ups are saying, and what their own eyes are telling them. The new generation of octolings embody the teachings of their predecessors. As much as it might hurt to fight, as much as they are run ragged and used and abused, it's all for the best. It's for their protection. For their safety. If they step back, if they refuse service, then they're letting everyone down. The Octo Domes would lose power forever. How can you leave your own people to die? Are you selfish? Do you think the innocent must suffer? No. You'll be a good little soldier, and you'll follow orders.

But in the end—as the octolings find their way to the surface after Octavio is defeated and the Zapfish is recovered for the first time—they find out that everything they had done was for nothing. They lived through horrible conditions, believing that inklings were punishing them, only to come to the surface and find that none of it was true.

Are any of them resentful? Do some think of their time underground fondly (like Marina is implied to)? Do they see it for what it was: a futile attempt at holding onto some semblance of dignity after their humiliating defeat to an enemy who couldn't even wake up on time?

Or are they left deeply scarred by it all? Hurt that the older generation—the ones who were supposed to know best for them—would turn their backs on them and let them suffer for a so-called "greater good" that didn't even exist!

Some ramblings about how my own OCs fit into these thoughts are down below. Feel free to skip if you don't want to read something less canon!

Sashi was long trained into being the perfect soldier. He was bio-engineered for it, spliced together using the genes of other soldiers that came before him. He is mistreated by those above him... and it's deserved, isn't it? After all, he isn't an actual octoling. He was created, he wasn't born naturally. So he isn't really sentient, is he? He's just a thing. A useful tool for what the Octarian army wants to accomplish.

And so as he's mistreated, he starts to embody that too. It takes finally escaping to the surface for him to realize and come to terms with the fact that what happened to him wasn't deserved. And I think that, while he isn't resentful, he is angry at Octavio. Sashi looked up to him when he was younger: the brightly shining king who clearly wanted what was best for his people. But when Sashi learns that every was for nothing, well... he certainly won't be happy about it.

Except... we find out that Octavio (and some of the other higher ups) would have never dreamed about treating Sashi the way he was, or any other experiments for that matter.

Yes, Octavio was blinded by his own pride and dignity, but he genuinely wished the best. And to him, creating an army of super-soldiers that could fight to protect them in battle was the best decision to make. So then why? If Octavio never ordered the cruel treatment, why did it happen?

Let's go back to the propaganda and lies: many octolings would believe it. They would grow up hearing about the glory days, the stories of war... and they want a piece of that pie. They want to be a celebrated war hero, they want to rush into battle and defeat the inklings that keep them oppressed in the dark for so long. And with that desire to fight comes a penchant for cruelty. So they treat the experiments—and other lesser soldiers—poorly. Because their job as soldiers is to fight fight fight and keep fighting, so it won't hurt to push them far beyond the limits of what is humanly possible, right?

And Octavio is blind to all of this. He is blind, and it seems like he doesn't care.

So they are left to suffer in silence.

@sharliexth here's a more concise version of my thoughts I shared with you the other day lol

[tswaney17]

Elriel Month 2024

Collection of fics, artworks, and more for @elriel-month 2024. Double asterisks (**) indicate NSFW.

New Beginnings

Accidental Chemistry - Part 3: All the Feelings: Azriel had his whole life figured out. He was the head of his department at work. He had a nice house with his own space. He could pick up any woman he wanted for a good fuck before moving on. He didn’t need commitment—didn’t want it. But when his brother and sister-in-law ask for a favor, he finds his whole life turning upside down in the blink of an eye. All because of his new roommate: recently divorced Elain Archeron.

And her three-month-old son.

Clandestine Meetings

A Game of Chess: Elain is tired of waiting for Azriel to make a move, to explain why he left her on Solstice. So, she's going to force his hand. Because Elain knows Azriel would never back down from a challenge.

Powers & Possibilities

Eternal Consolation Prize: They always said Elain Archeron would have a choice when it came to her mating bond with Lucien. They swore they'd never force her hand. So, what happens when all those promises end up being utter lies? Because Elain would rather die than be some sort of eternal consolation prize.

Choice

Wildest Dreams: Azriel returns home and finds his wife, Elain, and their babe girl enjoying the sunset. The sight of them stops him in his tracks. Because how did he get so lucky to have his wildest dreams come true?

Hold Tight & Don't Make a Sound

“Welcome home, Azriel, my shadow.”** - Spicy art**

Once Upon a Dream

Who's Afraid of Little Old Me?: Azriel is a hunter, paid by the people to slay whatever beasts are terrorizing them. But when he's asked to kill the powerful sorceress who's luring girls into the night, what he doesn't expect is to come face-to-face with the most beautiful woman he's ever seen. After being fed lies about her, Azriel finds himself falling for the gentle-hearted woman.

Tropes & AUs

I Do Bad Things with You - Epilogue: Elain and Azriel were high school sweethearts until Azriel unexpectedly ends their relationship after graduation. It's been ten years since they've seen or spoken to each other. But when the bank that Elain worked at part-time to pay for medical school is robbed at gunpoint, she's surprised when the criminals seem to recognize her and retreat in fear. She later finds out that Azriel is the head of the Velaris Mob and has placed her on a "do not harm" list and decides to confront the male that once held her heart. After years apart, their reconciliation is anything but easy. When a threat arises, Elain and Azriel have to figure out a way to co-exist again while not letting their history or feelings get in the way, which proves to be more of a challenge than either of them anticipated.

Death's Fanged Beast

Unholy**: Azriel is a priest at the local church. But not even his vows can stop his temptation. Elain Archeron is sin itself. And it turns out, she wants him just as badly.

Endless Possibilities

I Do Bad Things with You - Cover Art

[actual-changeling]

Heya! Do you have any msr fic Recs?

I do have a lot! My ao3 bookmarks are all public, so you can go and browse those by fandom since I save every single fic I read. Fake/pretend relationship and anything involving them figuring out their relationship while around people are two of my all time favourite tropes. Here are some of my favourites though, they're either oneshots or completed:

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles (~66k, E)

Getting home proves to be challenging for our favourite agents. Set during Season 7, after Millennium.

True Lies (~106k, T)

Post-Terma, Scully can't help but think they need protection against any future kangaroo court congressional hearings and comes up with a rather unconventional solution that she proposes of Mulder.

Since We Fell Apart (~23k, T)

Post One Son, Scully is fed up with playing second fiddle to everything in Mulder's life, and decides it's best to just be done with him. Skinner asks her to work one last case for the X-Files - undercover in Arcadia.

Keep It All the Year (26k, M)

Scully is summoned to San Diego for a funeral at Christmastime, and ropes Mulder into her family dysfunction. Set in S6, canon divergent but not wildly so.

The Whole Story (~2.6k, T) by @sisterspooky1013

If they thought Maggie couldn’t tell when two people are holding hands under the dinner table, they've got another thing coming.

The Marriage Spectacular (~20k, M)

Lost FBI agents. Stormy weather. A marriage retreat in a mountainside inn with one room available.

una via (~19k, M)

Mulder and Scully's changing relationship in the period after Amor Fati.

Plus some of my favourite authors whose works I am still digging through and enjoying a lot. There's nothing better than reading a great fic, going to their profile, and then realizing they have like 100 more of them.

Skinfull @baronessblixen OnlyTheInevitable fragilevixen @danascully77 cecily_sass audries kittenscully

I'm probably forgetting a bunch of people, so you're very much invited to add your favourite fics and/or your own (self promo is explicitly welcomed!!).

[rius-cave]

Do you think the reason that Adam calls the exorcism entertainment is because it's because his mind is trying to trick him into liking it or excuse it by calling his descendants trash as a way to cope. Or, in his own messed up way, he sees it as helping them end their sinful ways. Like, "If you won't help yourself, I'll force you one way or another" type of deal.

Hmm, I'll be honest, neither? Kinda? But also yes???

To me the exterminations come from being fed time and time again that he's the hottest shit in the world, in heaven even, he's perfect and can do no wrong. Sinners aren't human anymore, they're nothing, they're worthless, they're a literal waste of space. He sees them as beneath him because of his own narcissism and self-importance. He's also like, they've ruined humanity, they ruined my legacy, they don't deserve to live.

I think him justifying the exterminations is kind of a surface level thing, but it comes from years and years of having been fed lies and his bad behaviors being enabled by everyone in Heaven.

[camellia-thea]

I'm curious about your thoughts for present day Armand/Daniel. How do you think starting their romance when their both vampires now changes their character arcs and dynamic? It feels crucial that Daniel was human and Armand was a vampire. Granted this is assuming the show is not doing a past version as well.

i'm so sorry, this has been sitting in my drafts for ages; this is such an interesting question, thank you! this was sent in reference to this post about book canon devil's minion. if there's anything here i can clarify on, let me know; this might be a little disjointed as i've jumped in and out of working on it for a week and a half!

i think that it's a little complicated overall, but not in a way that makes a good (for the viewer, not healthy) relationship impossible in the show! i think assad and eric both really love their characters and it's pretty clear to me that they're absolutely fighting for us dm fans. and given the recent interviews with rolin saying that everything between them has been devil's minion so far, i'm certain we'll end up well fed!

i'd love for there to be a past relationship that armand has taken from daniel, and i do genuinely think that it is a potential way they might take it. however, if we're going by the assumption that they aren't, i actually think it will work pretty well! there are obvious dynamic shifts between them, but that was never not going to happen, given the changes the show made to book canon (generally for the better! i think they've handled almost everything very well).

i think that a relationship starting between them with them both being vampires wouldn't work if it had been in the 70s, but i actually think it being old daniel works really well.

obviously the chase is a really really important part of the development of their relationship, but i can see it playing out in both directions; daniel chasing armand because 'what the fuck, man? you turn me and leave?' and on the other end, armand following daniel to keep him safe from other vampires, given he's pulling a lot of negative vampire attention towards him. i'd love for armand to appear for a night, engage in an argument or simply just appear wherever daniel is, then vanish again. i think that there is still a lot that can be played with in regards to the way that armand interacts with daniel as a fascinating creature and a step between the world and him.

i do think that this armand is a lot more in tune with the modern world in comparison to book armand, but i don't necessarily think that's a bad thing. book armand was living in a very different context; he and louis had been separated for a while before daniel was approached, and armand had essentially been drifting since then. a young man who connected with the world, as directly as daniel was trying to, was something that book armand needed. i think that now, with the wound of a very explosive separation from louis, he needs something different. someone (relatively) steady and also someone able to call armand on his own bullshit and lies. daniel has not lost his connection to the world around him, nor his nature of wanting the truth and to see the world. i'll come back to that in a minute.

i think the changes made to daniel match very well with the changes made to armand. older daniel is a lot more direct than younger daniel, and i think that young daniel, while being willing to stand for what he wants, did not have the power to set hard boundaries and expectations. older daniel, both because of life experience and because he is a vampire, comes at it with a little more equal footing. i think that he also knows how to look for armand's red flags, and i think that will help. i don't think that there will ever not be an inherent power dynamic between them, but that's part of the fun. i also think that daniel being more able to sidestep that dynamic.

but the key thing, i think, is that daniel, as he is in the show, understands how to live. maybe not well, but he has lived a full life in a way that armand has not had the opportunity to. i think that vampirism is a way for daniel to reconnect to living, and given the small snippet we've already seen of him, he's thrown himself into it. a book tour, hunting, having fun with mind-reading during interviews, i think he's reveling in what's been given to him. this is something louis was attempting to do with his photography, though the show very specifically makes commentary that he is not managing to connect with his subject matter in a way that daniel is. (i'll come back to this in a different post because it's interesting and i have commentary). armand needs that connection, this armand, book armand, both of them need a new connection to life, and i think that older daniel is a brilliant match.

i don't think armand could ever not love his fledgling. i don't think he could ever not end up obsessed with any fledgling he makes. armand loves completely, fully, and obsessively. his love consumes him enough that he reshapes himself to fit the other person. and given how significant a fledgling is to him, i don't think there could ever not be some sort of relationship there. this is doubled by the fact that armand is so unused to -- and terrified of -- dealing with loneliness, and the breakup with louis means that i think he will be actively seeking the presence of others, specifically daniel, even if that's following him at a distance.

and i'm a little sad at the lack of mind reading that will happen between them, because armand planting thoughts into daniel's head is a personal favourite from the books, but i think they have the potential to play with the sire-fledgling bond instead, which i'm curious about!

i also think it's super important to remember that the next season is the vampire lestat, not the queen of the damned, and that the devil's minion chapter takes place during the space of over ten years. while it's been confirmed that elements of qotd will feature, and i don't think they'll set daniel and armand aside, but it's still very distinctly lestat's turn in with the talking stick, as it were. and i think that it'll be a very good thing for daniel to learn more about armand; the children of darkness (or satan, in the books) is super important and i think that it'll be really interesting to get daniel responding to it.

either way, i think it's going to be good. i know assad and eric are so passionate about it, and rolin has also been very clear about its presence. i trust them to make choices that are justified with the characters, are interesting for the plot, and have good thematic influences.

[ashintheairlikesnow]

🧤 Invasive/Uncomfortable exam for Rafael

CW: BBU, medical whump, medical setting, dubcon touching (nonsexual), discussions of dubcon/noncon, BBU, pet whump

-

"What seems to be the nature of the problem?" The doctor isn't asking him. No one ever asks Rafael questions - he's just a pet, after all, barely human.

A human-shaped sex toy. Like a vibrator that needs to be fed three times a day. He hums, a sound like a flat vibration, and then smiles, a little dreamily, at the internal joke.

Everyone ignores him.

"Someone went rough on him last night," Boscoe says with a shrug. His master's favorite and highest-level servant, paid a small fortune to handle these sorts of things in his absence, pretending that it wasn't him who went so rough, that he isn't the reason Rafael is here right now.

Rafael slept alone in the big bed last night, once Boscoe was done with him, and he barely slept at all. The ache still throbbing and spiking through his lower half has as much to do with that as the loneliness.

The clinician looks at Boscoe with eyebrows raised above her glasses, waits a beat, and then primpts, "Any more detail than that?"

"Nope." Boscoe shrugs again, gives a half-cocked grin. "Sorry, I'm just the household manager. Mr. and Mrs. Isbell went on vacation in Europe."

They had kissed him, each of them, and then left him lying in the bed, trying not to cry. Boscoe had come in an hour later, and told him to make noise, as much as he wanted.

So he did.

He never tells his masters about Boscoe hurting him when they're gone, because only with Boscoe is Rafael ever allowed to scream.

"Fine." The doctor looks Rafael over, without distaste or judgement but with absolutely no feeling at all. It's almost nice, to have someone who doesn't need to tell him he's pretty, or that he looks like a good slut, or any of the things the people around his masters seem to believe are compliments. "All right, you, lay down on your back for me and just scoot those hips right to the edge."

"Yes, ma'am," He responds, laying back on the padded exam table easily, even allowing his back to arch with graceful, perfectly feigned thoughtless seduction as he slips his heels into the leather stirrups and moves his arms slowly over his head, shifting until his ass nearly hangs off the edge.

"Good boy," The doctor says absently. Rafael shivers a little with pleasure at the praise, keeping his eyes closed and biting down on his lower lip. It's a trained reaction, one that's thoughtless by now, but it's never really instinct.

The nurse, an older woman, doesn't even look at him as she takes her place at the end of the table. The doctor grunts as she puts on blue latex gloves and smears clear lubricant on her fingers. "Hold steady, pet. This might cause some discomfort."

Rafael wants to ask her if there is anything you can do to him that doesn't.

He keeps his mouth shut, though.

Boscoe is still watching him with his arms crossed where he stands against the wall. Rafael chances only the slightest glance, looking away when he sees Boscoe's eyes trailing over the welts left along Rafael's ribs from the night before, the bite marks so deep they've bruised in the shape of teeth on one hip.

"His owner signed off on the use of his body?" The doctor asks as she slides the first finger inside. Rafael bites his lower lip harder to keep himself quiet, because it doesn't feel uncomfortable - it stings, torn skin protesting yet another invasion.

"Yes," Boscoe lies easily. Then, to add a kernel of truth, "They often allow their friends or business partners to use him."

Not their employees, though, but that's never stopped Boscoe. And Rafael knows how to keep secrets, knows how to trade his silence in front of the masters for the ability to weep when they're gone.

One finger becomes two, then three, the pain rising, and Rafael can't hold back the softest whimper no matter how hard he tries. "Ma'am-... Ma'am, I-"

"Sssshhh," The doctor shushes him harshly, and Rafael swallows back any thin, weak protest against her touch he might have been able to manage. "I know. I can tell this is hurting you."

She doesn't stop, though. She gets a small silver tool out, rubs it over in the same lubricant, and then forces that inside, too.

When Rafael cries out, the nurse slaps a hand over his mouth to muffle him, glaring down at him at his vision blurs with tears. His chest heaves, panting with the need for this to stop, to stop hurting, just to give him a minute to prepare himself for it.

But no one listens to him.

It's not like he's a person, anyway.

[pillarsalt]

I was seeing so much hate for radfems that I finally decided to check it for myself and the amount of misinformation about your group is crazy. The whole "radfems love beauty standards" touted everywhere but I see more posts denouncing the beauty industry in a day by radfems than I ever do everywhere else because people implode if you say that shaving is bad. The "radfems love being victims and want to remain victims" thing when it's women giving each other advice on to leave abusive relationships. Like. It's insane. I've seen bad parts of it that were victim blamey or racist but the overwhelming majority is just feminism. Good feminism that criticizes society as a whole. And more black and racial minority women than anywhere else on tumblr. I feel like I was immensely lied to. I'm less alarmist about trans people and I think that calling them slurs or disrespecting them is unnecessary but truthfully it is awful that sex has been erased from talks about feminism. I have no idea what kind of parallel reality everybody lives in because I found myself agreeing with a ton of things radfems say and I even believe that the people wrongfully calling you out would agree too if they listened.

Thanks for this message anon, and thanks for making the choice to look into things for yourself instead of just going along with what everyone tells you. Very few people who hate "terfs"/feminists actually understand our points of view, because it's forbidden to even briefly read or listen to what we have to say, the reasoning being that we'll somehow magically "indoctrinate" you. No one's allowed to hear us, so when asked "but why are they so bad?" they have to make up random bullshit that has nothing to do with what we believe. The real reason is because our arguments are quite basically common sense approaches to women's rights and pattern recognition when it comes to differences in male and female experiences. It's hard to un-see what was right in front of your eyes the whole time.

I'll add that I personally don't think calling trans people or anyone else slurs is acceptable. I do think a lot of women on the feminist side of tumblr have a lot of anger and resentment built up towards men who identify as trans because of the misogyny they've seen come out of the trans movement, anger I honestly think is justified. The moral high ground is always the best road to take, but after having womanhood mansplained to you for the hundredth time as a collection of regressive stereotypes because you're just a stupid bigot cis bitch and you wouldn't get it, yeah being a bit mean in return is understandable. I still think it's unnecessary to use slurs.

I really agree with your last point, there's a reason that feminist rhetoric is so suppressed on both sides of the political spectrum. Consciousness raising is so important, caring about women is important. No matter how hard they try to silence us, women will keep talking to each other and women will continue to wake up to the lies they're being fed.

[isleofdarkness]

Do you honestly think that the Aks are being completely brainwashed? Like they were being told that the vks were evil?

TL:DR; yes, though not completely. I think they've just been fed a lot of propaganda and a lot of facts have been left out of their education. Because that's really the only thing that makes sense.

In this essay I will be drawing from my school experiences as well as those of my brothers and friends. I will also being drawing from my mother's experiences, as hers are the same but her school was far larger than my first high school (graduating class of both of my high schools was less than 100. Her graduating class was over 7,000.) Also I've been working on this for an hour so it might not make that much sense.

I think they were definitely being fed a lot of propaganda and that they had no idea how bad conditions on the Isle were. I also don't think it ever occurred to them that the villains would be terrible parents. Why would it? All of their parents seem to love them and I doubt they have education on what abusive parenting is because, let's face it, I can name a few that are probably abused (Jane, Ben, etc.) I think they were misinformed, probably actively lied to by the monarchy, and that's why they thought the Isle kids were going to be evil.

Look, if they just had the notion that the Isle kids would be evil because of their parents, their minds would have changed far sooner. Teenagers are petty but not like that. If they knew what the Isle was like, knew what abuse from a parent was, I don't think they would have actively hated the Isle kids like they did. Jay and Carlos- okay, maybe their first impression was a bit of a what the fuck moment, but they were literally boys being boys. And then they both go for tourney and Jay is an incredible player, he clearly has the time of his life, does his dorky little victory dance.

Then Coach calls him over and Jay comes over looking like he expects to get a verbal smack-down. When Coach praises him, Jay lights back up. And the entire thing... that's just not normal. The way Jay deflated was just too much for a usual "oh great, a teacher's gonna yell at me," his joy completely vanished and he looked almost scared. And then Coach praised him and Jay nervously smiled as though he still expected to be yelled at. It's only when Coach welcomes him to the team that Jay seems to reignite, grinning like he just won the Olympics. From that tiny bit of relief and that tiny bit of praise, Jay went from somber and silent to absolutely thrilled, and the way those tiny things caused such extremes raises a red flag for me.

Carlos, however, sucks at tourney. He's terrified, audibly screams and panics, and that's not normal, either. A nerd in gym class will be a bit nervous and awkward, sure, but I've never seen a nerd full-on panic the way Carlos did. And yeah, maybe that could be a confirmation that Jay is violent and Carlos knows it, but the way Carlos reacted. He didn't run away. He didn't throw his stick directly at Jay, just at his feet as though trying to scare him away. When that doesn't work, he hunkers down, taking cover behind his shield rather than literally taking two steps to the side. That's not a normal reaction. None of that is normal, not even for a nerd in gym class. Even if he realized that Jay was way bigger, stronger, and faster, that's still not a normal reaction. No, that was 100% fight-flight-freeze-fawn, and the way Carlos pretty instantly went to fawn raises red flags with me. Fawn isn't like the other three. The first two are seen as simple adrenaline responses, freeze raises some eyebrows but can also just be an adrenaline response that's just a bit abnormal, but fawning is pretty much always seen as a trauma response. All literature on fawning calls it a trauma response- either present trauma, such as getting jumped and badly beaten, or past trauma. No present trauma, so that leaves past trauma. Again, could be with Jay, but that's still not normal.

But sure, maybe Auradon kids haven't taken intro to psychology like me and couldn't pick up on the fawn thing. What did Carlos even do? He was just sitting there the entire movie? Then he adopted a dog and didn't try to skin it? Carlos was very clearly not a threat- they didn't know he was a genius, after all. But they still treated him like a villain. They were still afraid of him for no reason. That doesn't really make sense to me, it's not a reaction to new information I would expect from high schoolers. Sure, maybe he'd get bullied, but the nerd friend group would open up to him. Clubs would become available. Maybe a study group or a tech guys group. None of that. Despite him not being a threat, they held onto the idea that he was dangerous despite all evidence to the contrary and kept excluding him. That tells me they had been told beforehand, a lot, for many years, that anyone on the Isle was evil. That way, when Isle kids did come over, they assumed Carlos was an evil villain despite all evidence to the contrary and excluded him.

Evie... what did she even do? Was she too pretty? Too smart? Let me tell you about high school boys as someone who was a high school boy a few years ago- they flirt. They like to see which girl will turn red with a glance, a few words, a simple touch. They like to ask girls out just to prove they can- sometimes they even ask girls out as a joke, which is really fucked up bullying done to girls seen as undateable. A large amount of them would jump on the chance for a date, a night, and/or a relationship with a pretty girl. And Evie is an extremely pretty girl. And yet they stay clear. Chad and Doug are the only two that take interest- Chad, who sees someone he can manipulate because he could probably tell she had been making eyes at him, and Doug, who was also from the gutter (dwarf kin, nerd, not all that hot,) but who, very importantly, spent a lot of time around her and actually knew her as a person. And that's all, despite Evie pretty clearly not being in a relationship as Chad sure never spent any time around her. Notably, Chad's friends never hit Evie up for homework. I've no doubt he was bragging all about it, but they never hit her up for an easy way out of homework. Evie is an easy girl to get a date with and an easy girl to manipulate, as she's so desperate to please her mother by getting a prince, but no one really takes advantage of any of that other than Chad. Even though she hadn't done anything, they still stayed away from her. Whether it was hatred or fear I don't know, but it's strange behaviour from all of the boys in an entire high school.

Mal... don't remember her doing anything before the whole hair spell thing. All I remember her doing is Jane's hair, magically. Then Lonnie walks in and asks for her hair to be changed even though "I know you're like, evil and all." Mal hadn't even done anything but Lonnie called her evil, which, yeah, could just be a simple preconceived notion- at my school, we thought the transfer from our "mortal enemy" (yes, midwestern schools apparently have mortal enemies with other schools in the area) school was some kind of plant. She joined the football team (American football) and it was like, great, she's going to sabotage us. But then she played football like everyone else and we realized that she wasn't a plant and she pretty quickly assimilated into the middle school. When the kids from other schools came over and didn't do shit to bring down our school, we relaxed within a few weeks and they assimilated easily. Mal has been there for more than a few weeks, not doing anything, but still hasn't assimilated. Even when she helps people with her hair spell, she still doesn't assimilate. Even when she starts dating Ben, who seems to be extremely popular, she still doesn't assimilate. They don't try to assimilate her. I know I keep saying assimilate like they're the Borg, but assimilating into a new high school is a good thing. It means you get friends to sit with at lunch, clubs and "elite" classes you can take (such as this business class at my school, which the teacher had to invite you to join. People would always get the teacher to let their friends join because it was a very easy class,) jobs, and, most importantly in this example, general acceptance from the school at large. Mal, despite doing nothing, then starting to help people, then starting to date the popular guy, never seems to assimilate. She never gets general acceptance from the school.

None of them do.

I need to stress that, in the first movie, the Isle kids hadn't done anything. If you haven't done anything, it's fairly easy to assimilate (in my experience, the only people who had trouble assimilating were narcs (as in snitches, not people with NPD.)) In fact, there's usually at least one friend group that literally exists to help people assimilate- some extrovert keeps adopting all of the loners into the group and that's a huge part of them assimilating. Don't let those high school dramas fool you, it is not hard to assimilate and you will almost always be assimilated whether you like it or not. But the Isle kids, who have never done anything, do not assimilate. They are outsiders for pretty much the entire movie and seem to still be outsider'ed in the books. The Auradon kids really stick to the idea that these kids are evil despite all evidence to the contrary. It takes them a long time to warm up and some of them, a seemingly not insignificant portion, never do. That's not normal high school behaviour and I speak as the guy who literally came to a new school in a sundown town dressed like a punk and still found a friend group within two weeks.

High schoolers are a pack species and when someone doesn't have a pack, they try to find them a pack or an existing pack opens up for them. And there are all of these inter-pack relations- the gamers are cool with the geeks, the geeks are cool with the nerds, the popular girls are actually usually cool with the weird kids, the weird kids are cool with the Edgy TM (the punks, goths, and emos, may be in one group or in multiple depending on how big the population is) kids- there's a whole political system going on in high schools. There may be a Switzerland group that kind of keeps to themselves, but the other groups will usually stand up for them on the basis of "they never did anything to harm anyone." A North Korea group, which is a group that is largely disliked by the population but does have an ally or two, is super rare and they've always done something- in my school, that group was made of narcs. The Isle kids seem to make up a North Korea group, largely isolated due to dislike from the general population but with a few allies. But, again, they haven't done anything. High school kids aren't just going to force an innocent group of new but peaceful (and actually beneficial) people to be a North Korea group.

But if high school kids aren't like they are in high school drama movies, why are the Isle kids exiled as hard as they are?

Simple, because the Auradon kids have been fed incomplete facts, misinformation, and propaganda for their entire lives.

Yes, I know, this is probably actually the creators refusing to acknowledge what high school is actually like, but I am going to maliciously comply with suspension of disbelief because I hate Disney. I am going to pretend they did everything for an in-canon reason. And the in-canon reason, due to all of what I've outlined above, can only be false teachings from Auradon because high school kids are not like this.

[sophieinwonderland]

(Might as well get this reply to a syscourse post about me out of my drafts too.)

You hit the nail on the head when you said "if it's not fun" that you don't see the point, even if it also has to do with what you believe you're doing to help. You're here to have fun firstly, and if the work of eradicating bigotry isn't fun, you're not all that interested.

I've been here for years having the same discussions, trying to help people when I can and do my best to help grow the community and counter misinformation where I see it.

And there are a lot of days when it can feel exhausting.

I'm one person. And I'm arguably not even an entire one of those. I don't front nearly as much as my host, and most of the time I get ends up dedicated to this.

So yes, I do want some of the time I spend on this blog to be on topics I enjoy.

And nitpicking this just feels gross and manipulative.

I don't particularly care about the anti-psych conversation. I think we all agree there are significant flaws in the psych system. It just seems to me that your plan to fix those flaws would be destroying what's there and rebuilding it completely, where I would prefer the Ship of Theseus approach of replacing it bit by bit.

I don't generally use spoon theory much, but I don't know a better way to put it than saying I don't have the spoons to hash this out. Or at least, it's not somewhere I think would be beneficial to dedicate them towards. 🤷‍♀️

The heart of deradicalization is compassion. To disentangle bigotry from big, messy emotions, you have to approach it from an emotional standpoint.

Absolutely! This is 100% true! If you want to deradicalize, this is the best approach.

When it works, anyway. Thing is, I tried this approach early on. Spent a couple months talking to an anti-endo. I honestly thought we were on good terms and that I was making progress. We had been exchanging questions about our own experiences with plurality.

Then when I was banned, they turned around and cheered along with most of the anti-community.

Even then, I wasn't going to completely give up on compassion. I tried more. But the thing about notoriety, whether deserved or not, is that it immediately poisons any attempt at genuine conversation. By this point, I had already gotten a rather undeserved reputation among anti-endos, and if I tried communicating publicly with one, it wouldn't be long before they got an anon or reblog telling them how bad I supposedly was.

And while I feel my reputation was undeserved at the time, I realized that if I would never be able to convince them, I might as well play into my role as the boogeyman anti-endos want me to be.

No, calling anti-endos worse than parasites and an evil hate group is probably not going to deradicalize them. But they've already been fed so many lies about me personally and are primed to disregard anything I say anyway. Compassion from me won't work.

You know what I think this tactic does do, though? I think it shifts the middle ground for people who can't make a decision. Many people have a natural attraction to the center. It's a logical fallacy, but this too is rooted in emotions.

If the spectrum is "endos are scientifically impossible and are hurting trauma survivors and you're ableist for supporting them," and just "endogenic systems are actually real and valid," what do you think "neutral" means in such an environment? Because to me, it seems like centrism lands in favor of the anti-endo when these are the extremes presented to neutrals.

But amp up pro-endo rhetoric to match that of anti-endos, replying with "anti-endos are an evil anti-science hate group bent on hurting a marginalized community for existing," and now the center alignment shifts a bit more in the pro-endo direction.

And to be clear, this isn't far off from how I've always felt. The only things that's changed was a willingness to say it out loud. But I don't actually need to convince everyone this is true. I just need to shift what appears to be the moderate position to something that would actually be more moderate and advantageous to us.

...

And that brings me to one final gambit I'm making.

That I'm am going to lose people with these idea. That there will be some pro-endos who will be pushed away from this blog by me labeling anti-endos as a hate group or by my tactics in the way I respond to them.

These pro-endos will shift more towards moderate stances.

And that, IMO, can be useful too. Because it positions them to do what I can't, where they'll appear more approachable and "reasonable" to anti-endos. That allows these systems to do what I can't and be able to connect with people on the other side.

There is a reason why I will often turn a blind eye to pro-endos who are saying horrible things about me, personally, and just let them carry on. (As long as they aren't attacking other members of the community.) It's because, whether they are with me or against me, as long as they're pro-endo, they're still useful in spreading our message.

And I'll admit, this might be a dangerous play. Push people too far, and they might go straight to the anti-endo side.

But... I don't see that as too much of a risk... despite playing into the boogeyman persona anti-endos gave me, I have lines I don't cross. I'm not sending threats. I'm not saying people deserve to die. I'm not going on to positivity posts to start fights like Hyaena-Bites did back in the day. And if I see pro-endos crossing these lines, I do my best to rein them in or call them out.

I've intentionally established myself as an extremist in my views and rhetoric, certainly. But not in my actions.

Finally, for all that you position yourself as an expert in psychology, ironically, you yourself are acting in a way that serves to further radicalize anti-endos. Rather than learning and engaging with genuine, known, deradicalization tactics, you are the perfect "enemy" for the genuinely malicious anti-endos to use to convince the ones indoctrinated into thinking they're doing good that pro endos are dangerous.

To be clear, I've never positioned myself as an expert in psychology. I'm a girl with a blog who did a couple free psychology courses and has read a few papers in a very specialized area of interest.

But I think this line of reasoning is silly. Anti-endos are always going to be able to find targets to vilify and make into an enemy.

I just figure that if their enemy is inevitably going to be someone, it might as well be me. I think I'm better able to take harassment than many others in this community.

Putting a giant bullseye on my chest isn't an accident. It's an intentional decision.

But also... am I really? Am I really the "perfect enemy" to convince anti-endos that the endogenic community is dangerous?

Because guess what? There are a lot of pro-endos out there who take things too far. There was the doxxing incident a couple years ago. There are people who send death threats. There are people who send gore. There are genuinely abusive people who have been in various endogenic communities. That's not a problem with the community. It's just a fact that every large community is going to have bad people in it.

And then there's me who... is not always totally polite? Comes off a bit strong? Calls anti-endos a hate group? Calls them evil?

Do you really think this actually compares to the worst things in the community?

Does this really seem "dangerous" to you by comparison?