#theyre both wrong but theyre both also right

[fratboykate]

Because I can't let it go and I'm an east coaster. Enjoy waking up to this:

Kate tries so hard to make sure the kids are not impacted by her and Yelenas argument. She and Yelena are in agreement on that so with the kids, it's business as usual, but kids got these stupid things called brains and feelings so they know their moms are having problems.

Maks, fearing for his family staying together, apologizes for being upset that Yelena missed the play. Yelena can either break or look at Kate like "he forgives me, why can't you" because I genuinely think she's so analytical and book smart, she forgets feelings so she could really go either way on that.

But you just have the kids walking on eggshells around them and Kate hates it but Yelena keeps saying "we need to get over this" which isn't an apology. It's kicking the can down the road. And so they're in therapy one day and Kate just goes OFF about not letting her kids feel abandoned and Yelena should understand why that issue is so important.

I need to go lay down.

You really can't dangle angst in front of me and expect me to resist. Here's 2k words of "moms are fighting" like that other anon said lol.

---

Yelena pokes her head into the dimly lit office where her wife sits, intently pouring over stacks of documents.

"Hey. You coming to bed?" Kate flips a page and scribbles a note on the edge. "You don't have to sleep in the guest room...You should come to bed...I stopped at La Perla on my way home and bought some new things I could show you. You never say no to a private fashion show." Kate thumbs a few pages back and cross-references that data with the one on the current page. Yelena is blatantly getting iced out. The blonde nods and sighs. "Well, at least I know you'll have to talk to me on Friday from four to four fifty."

Yelena references their standing bi-weekly couple's therapy appointment in jest, mostly trying to lighten the air between them. She loathes that Kate can hold a grudge like no one else.

"It's not a joke, dude. None of this has ever been a joke to me." Kate rebuffs her without looking up from the splayed-out folders.

"Are you implying it is to me?"

Yelena steps inside, closes the door behind her, approaches one of the two plush chairs across from Kate’s desk, and unceremoniously plops herself onto it.

"You treat it...us...very aloofly when you feel like it. Like things you can put on a shelf when it's inconvenient to have us around, so, yah. I guess I am."

"You always have the drama dialed up to twelve." Yelena states, her tone lighthearted. She's frankly pushing to minimize this, not maliciously, but because she needs it to go away. Yelena needs them to be okay again. She can only handle them being in a weird place for so long before it starts to drive her slightly mad, and this has already been going on for weeks now. Slowly escalating until it all blew up.

Kate huffs and shakes her head incredulously.

"Maybe people are right. Maybe we do marry versions of our parents because you're exactly like my mom."

W O O F. Kate could've called her wife a slur and it would've stung less than being compared to either of Kate's parents, particularly Eleanor.

"The hell is that supposed to mean?!"

"You're a genius. Figure it out."

"Why are you hellbent on making this worse? He forgave me. Why can't you?"

"Dude..." Kate swallows an aggravated, throaty groan. "Sometimes I can't figure out if you're actually this dumb outside your little lab or if you pretend to be so I let you get away with shit."

"You're angry. I get it. But don't insult me. I draw the line at disrespect. We can talk this through without going low or being childish."

A bitter laugh escapes Kate.

"You seriously have zero self-awareness. It's stunning to watch. You should have one of your coworkers observe you. 'Genius who's a fucking idiot in disguise: a study in how she gets through life.' could win you some awards. That's all you care about anyway."

"Yeah, we're going to do this in therapy because I'm not letting you goad me into saying something I don't mean."

"Whatever."

Yelena stands and attempts to walk away, but Kate's reply forces her right back down.

"Stop acting like a child, Katherine. I have three of those already. Don't need a fourth."

"You remembered you have kids?! AN EARLY CHRISTMAS MIRACLE."

Yelena rises again and manages to walk a few feet this time, but she eventually pivots and stomps back. Kate has successfully managed to push her buttons.

"I told you. I told you so many times that more than one was a bad idea. I'd be stretched thin. It's why my parents only had me. My mom knew this career is complicated. Time-consuming. But unlike you, my dad listened. He got it and they acted accordingly. Responsibly."

Halfway through her diatribe, Kate jumps in and begins talking over her wife.

"I'm sorry I can't be a perfect, obedient lap dog like your dad. I wanted a big family. You always knew that."

"AND YOU KNEW I DIDN'T! You knew it. We talked about it for years. You should've married someone who wanted the same things."

"You should've just said no if you weren't going to be around."

"Do you even remotely comprehend that it’s basically impossible to say 'no' to you?! Remember the cabin? I told you I didn't want kids and you threatened to leave me, Kate. You asked for a divorce, said you were done with me if we didn't."

"Don't rewrite history now. You said you weren't ready yet. YET. Not that you didn't want them at all."

"It was so clear. It was clear what I meant."

"Words have meanings. You can't change them retroactively. That is NOT what you said."

"Maybe not at that moment, but I told you I had doubts before that day. More than once. You heard what you wanted to hear."

"One is a mistake. Four is a pattern."

"You wouldn't stop asking! I wanted to make you happy. That's all I've ever wanted. Obviously Maks...after......Maks was my idea. I know that. I needed it after the...It felt wrong not to try again. And you were so upset. You tried to bury it, but I could see it. I always know. I knew it would make you happy to try again."

"They're not some consolation prize, dude. What is wrong with you?"

"I never said they were. Don't put words in my mouth."

"Can you leave? I have work to do."

"I love them. More than I think I could ever quantify."

"You're doing the bare minimum. Congratulations. Good for you."

"Stop being an asshole. I'm trying to have a conversation."

"I got shit to do."

Yelena doesn't move, mind racing. After a long beat, she speaks anew.

"Maybe it's my pride, maybe it is...but do you have any idea how hard it is to feel so incredibly subpar at the ONE THING you're desperate to be great at? I don't have to try at work. That's innate to me. It's easy. This...all of it...I feel like I'm treading water every day. There's not one day that I've gone to bed feeling I've done a good job with them. I think I can be a good partner, most of the time at least. I feel like I did it for a long time before we had them, so I can confidently say I'm no less than competent on that front, but I've never felt anything except terrible at being a mom. It's an awful thing to come to terms with every single night. I don't think there's been ONE night since Alex was born when I don't beat myself up over everything I did wrong or could've done better that day before I fall asleep. It's suffocating sometimes, Kate. I often feel like the weight of my own disappointment is smothering me. Add yours on top of that and…it’s not easy for me. None of it. You're a better mom than me. Always have been. They love you more too and I get it. I get it. It's understandable. If I were in their shoes, I would too."

"It's not a competition. Never has been."

"Sure. Doesn't mean this come naturally to only one of us and it certainly isn't me. Sometimes it feels like the best thing I can do for all of you is stay out of your way. You seem to do fine without me when I'm not around."

"We've kind of had to learn to lately. You checked out."

"I didn't."

"This is your dissertation all over again."

"If you felt that way, why wouldn't you say something? We promised we would never let it get that bad again. We said we wouldn't."

"I can't spell everything out for you."

"I also can't read your mind."

"Trust me. You don't need mentalist skills to put two and two together. You just don't care enough to pay attention."

"Why do you go out of your way to say things that hurt me when you're angry? You know I care. Of course I care."

"Why do YOU go out of your way to DO things that hurt ME?! ALL.THE.TIME! All the time, dude."

"I don't mean to."

"That would be an excuse for almost anyone else, but you've got a big ass brain, so...try again. Not good enough."

"I don't know how else to apologize for missing the play."

"This is so much bigger than the play! My god, it's impossible to talk to you."

"Try."

"Yelena, I have work. This is the third time I've asked you to leave my office."

"Work is more important than this?"

Kate's eyes shoot up from her computer screen to scowl directly at Yelena.

"Don't play that bullshit with me right now because that would be RICH coming from you."

"I'm only trying to talk."

Kate doesn’t offer an answer and refocuses on her work instead. 

Yelena is not deterred. She’s not leaving. 

They sit silently. Kate examines papers then types as anger oozes out of each pore. Yelena wordlessly follows her every move with her eyes. 

After around a dozen minutes of Kate trying to play it cool while her wife's gaze bores into her, she forcefully shuts her computer and glares at Yelena.

"My entire fucking childhood, I had to watch my parents pick other shit over us. I won't let you do it to them. I know what it did to me, what it did to Deej and I'm breaking that pattern. I also won't force them to watch us do this charade of pretending to be okay for their sake. Either we fix it...YOU fix it...or it's done."

"So what? You want me to quit my job? Become a stay-at-home mom?"

"No. I just need you to get your fucking priorities straight."

"So it's you, or it's done?"

"'Prioritize your family over work' is a pretty fucking basic ask, dude. Don't make me sound irrational because I'm not."

"Why do you always do this? Why do you always throw divorce around so flippantly the moment we have big issues come up?"

Kate stands from her chair.

"If you're not letting me work, I'm going to bed. I'm exhausted."

"If you truly want to break the pattern, then stop running away like your parents did..."

"Yelena." Kate speaks over her wife. Firmly. A blatant warning that she should stop going down that path.

"...They blow relationships up every time things get hard because it's easier to walk away than to work at it."

"Don't bring my parents into this."

"You already compared me to your parents. Twice."

"If you don't want that, quit acting like them. Simple. I'm going to sleep. In the guest room."

"You're the one who always walks away..."

"Yelena, I swear to fucking god...Stop talking."

"...and I'm the one always chasing."

"Must be nice living in an alternate fucking reality. For someone who claims they don't want a divorce, you sure love to do everything in your power to push me to it."

"You know what, Kate? Fine. You want to be away from me this badly? I'll go to a hotel tonight then stay with my parents starting tomorrow. You come find me when you're ready to stop acting like your father and are willing to have a conversation with me like the adults we're supposed to be."

"Do whatever the fuck you want. It's what happens anyway."

"Good."

"GREAT."

Kate storms out of the office, leaving Yelena behind. The blonde exhales explosively and allows her head to sag between her shoulders. 

That's not how tonight was supposed to go, but Yelena is too proud to back off from the threat now. She has to call Kate’s bluff at some point, or they will get stuck in this cycle forever. Now might be as good a time as any to see how far her wife is willing to take this.

...Seems like she has to go pack.

[julijbee]

girlbossing too close to the sun.

[oifaaa]

if you want a romantic anime I can recommend "president of the student council is a maid?!". it's sort of a classic so you might have heard of it but it's cute. not without it's issues of the time and of the genre. but still it's very decent. funny and the main girl and the love interest boy are interesting

also something you might have seen: classmate. just a lil bit of school romance, it's a film. it is gay in a very like. sort of realistic but not for the sake of angst and suffering kind of way. very good animation

Yeah unfortunately I have already watched both of these its weird thinking about how Maid sama used to be one of those animes everyone would have watched not in like the way people watch anime or trending shows now a days more of the if your friend was trying to get you into anime and they gave you a list of recs maid Sama would be on it and yeah Doukyusei came out around the same time yuri on ice did which is weird to think about how long ago that was now

[acidicpenumbra]

they get to dance. or. whatevers up with them. this was already sketched like right after finishing the last art wirh the two of them so i had to finish it. i think the dynamic idea is interestinf actuallt irs a shame that like. nothing fuckinf exists but alas i have tje power to create and boy did i do that. erm. hey guys. more infinadow before i fixate on another pairing i suppose

[clowningaroundmars]

my absolute fave thing to read in punkflower fics is lovesick puppy hobie brown

cool-as-a-cucumber hobie overthinking miles' every move, leaving lingering touches on him, longing glances thrown his way

certified BAMF hobie hanging by a doorway or window just a second too long before leaving miles

"skinny-hot" hobie refusing to believe someone as ✨️cool✨️ as miles would be into someone like him

badass punk hobie just yearning and pining and practically draping himself all over miles in desperate attempts but then pulling back all scared when anyone even hints that they should get together

god, i need pining lovesick loser hobie like AIR rn 😭

[eggmansplatformboots]

theyre that couple that say goofy lovely dovey things like ‘marry me?’ before making important decisions as like their ‘i love you’ or whatever and then will fight to the nondeath over small inconsequential things eg sonic put shadows eyeliner in the wrong fucking cabinet!!

[cosmicallyavg]

when they bring thirteen back for a multi-doctor episode they should bring yaz back too and then they should kiss

[crimeronan]

watching alfie become catastrophically enamored with lunter over the course of thanks to them was so fucking funny i LOVE showing toh to new people. everyone gets something slightly different out of it. and it is Literally Always Hilarious.

[opens-up-4-nobody]

...

[rearranging-deck-chairs]

imagining an alternate eotd where when asked about her confusing gay crush under threat of daleks one neuron in yazs brain fired differently and instead of going with "i dont know what you mean" she said "yes". same but opposite energy of when the doctor asks if shes a bad date and yaz super boldly just says "no". same but opposite.

because like imagine youre dan. he probably already had a good guess about what the situation was but his assumption being wrong is not out of the realm of possibilities. the idea that they could have talked about is not out of the realm of possibilities! if youre dan! if you just got here. if you didnt see all of s12.

like just imagine that scene! yaz just baldfaced lying as a way to like, bounce the idea off of him plus double duty to affirm her own beliefs that like the doctor never would plus triple duty paralleling 11x4 for 13 to ensure dan is never gonna ask about this again.

and WE'D KNOW. WE'D FUCKING KNOW. it'd be such a doctor move.

"have you ever told her?" "told her what?" "how you feel about her" "...yes." "well what did she say?" "i think you can guess" yaz snaps because she thinks she can. she has guessed or assumed or sort of correctly inferred a while ago that like, nothing is going to happen here, theres no point in her saying anything because the doctor isnt interested. and dan is like "i find her kind of hard to judge actually" because he still wants to hear an actual answer from yaz but yaz just laughs and goes "tell me about it" and then shes saved by a dalek.

of course we still want dan forcing their hand but thats easy to arrange by instead of him going all battering ram with "she likes you" in the next scene he just has to mention it. and i dont really know how he'd mention it because im not really sure how this would look to him.

so particulars to be determined but he does mention it In Some Way and now theres the doctor in a situation yaz indirectly accidentally put her in where shes suddenly having a Lot to process and also shes gonna lie about :) shes gonna lie about it so hard :)

maybe dan's guess is that whatever the doctor said was less-than-definitive ie vague as fuck because hes known her for like a week and has already seen how good she is at explaining herself and also because of yazs bitter "tell me about it" so maybe what he says is like "you better not be stringing her along"

and the doctor, in her perfectly inscrutable grey area between true What The Fuck Are The Humans Talking About This Time and a carefully crafted mask of obliviousness, goes "string her along what"

"i just mean that you gotta make sure your intentions are clear because it's really not fair to keep her guessing, and hoping"

and the doctor says "i dont understand what youre saying dan" because she really doesnt <3

and dan can still say his canon line "i think that you do, but you pretend that you dont" and in this case hes wrong, but he still hits the mark, wrong calculation right answer because the doctor is still like Fuck.

because she does know, of course. she does know about yaz and shes knows about herself and she knows what shes avoiding. and she will still do the same thing in sea devils. and this weird little lie yaz told will probably never come out. the doctor and her talk, dan isnt there, never sees how New this all is. the doctor has no reason to find out what yaz said to dan.

but we know. we know!!! we get to see this whole comedy of errors play out and still somehow arrive at the same answer. we have to live with how clearly none of them correctly assume each other's understanding of the situation. it'd be frustrating as fuck and such a nice encapsulation of what thasmin has been since the beginning. these half-communications that bounce off each other kind of painfully like billiard balls.

they would never find out. sea devils and potd play out exactly as they did and nobody would ever know. except us. it's a portrait of their shared fatal flaw finally laid out for us in broad daylight at the exact moment they come together. and only we can see it.

[caruliaa]

one of the worst phenomena in fandom is when theres a character that everyone loves so much and thinks is the greatest guy ever who only ever does nice good things and then some other people start to point out examples of that not being true and then their narrative starts being that that character sucks forever so much and is only ever awful and the worst and we cant have any nuance about literally anything ever yayyy yipee !!!

[moodr1ng]

one weird and annoying effect of me spending so much time on mainly american social media and watching all these american shows and movies and reading books by american authors and having all these online friends from america etc etc is that like.. when i write i no longer feel like i can set my stories in france? like, bc i write in english it feels like i need to set my stories in an english-speaking country, and the us is the easiest one to set up (i think in a way it kinda feels like the "default setting" of western media?). i feel like if i wrote a book set in france itd be weird or confusing to people, and also im always bugged bc like.. the stuff i write in english cannot be directly translated into french, like it doesnt correspond 1:1 to french sentences, and so if i set a story in france im always bugged bc i think "but that cant be what the characters are actually saying, because theres no equivalent to this in french". so i end up setting a lot of my stuff in the us, except ive only been to the us once and not long enough to get a good impression of what living there is like (not to mention ive only been to nyc), so i also feel like when americans read my stuff theyre gonna immediately go "huh? thats not how things are here. this author is a hack who cant do research." .. so then sometimes i set my stuff in fictional countries or in an ambiguous impossible setting which mixes stuff from various english-speaking countries + france, but then that makes my story immediately less grounded. this is such a big issue that it blocks me from writing entire stories i wanna write bc i just cant even begin to put them somewhere 😔

[bidaryl]

the thing about twd fic dying off around s6/s7 is that plot lines and characters beyond that are barely incorporated and included so now we're forever stuck reading about fucking negan being the biggest baddest killer to ever walk the earth and the whisperers and reapers and governors are left in the dust. for once i just wanna read about negan being the Alexandria Outcast: Hated By Most, Needed By Some, and let alpha or the fucking commonwealth be the monster at the end of the story. please

[gibbycat]

some anime onlies jumping to laios' defense and hating toshiro/shuro after the recent episode has the same energy as a parent trying to excuse their autistic teenagers behavior after they crossed someones boundaries with the 'hes autistic, he doesnt know any better'

[thek1ngtalks]

Hate being morally torn by a fictional setting that bears no weight

[robocops-a-christ-allegory]

The summary of my Peacemaker and Comedian thoughts are I believe paul kupperberg when he said the comedian had no influence on his reboot of Peacemaker because turning charlton Peacemaker into a piece of shit who committed war crimes in Veitnam is a very obvious route that makes sense.

Also you can tell Kupperberg was a liberal and Moore was a anarchist because Peacemakers actions are explained like 50% by his personal trauma and mental state and THEN 50% by like Being A US Soldier while the Comedian does not have the "literally mentally ill" explanation and is like that almost entirely because he's a US soldier. Like Comedian is having a evil but "reasonable" (as in: acting like this for his own personal gain, not because he experiences delusions) reaction to his circumstances while Peacemaker is portrayed as like "he's a bad guy but alot of his actions are because he's 'insane'".

Like I know the intent is to make him more tragic but it is that very liberal like "well its not the systems fault ENTIRELY its also because of Peacemakers intrisnically broken brain !!!" and I think that difference between them is really interesting honestly