#this season meant so much to me

[celestialowlryx]

THE DRAGON PRINCE - BOOK 6: "STARS" ↳ We are, all of us, stardust. Held together by love for an instant.

[fortycumber]

the sounds of muffled screaming is me fangirling into my pillow with a big sheepish grin on my face.

[fiendishartist2]

smth i think ppl get wrong when writing jon is that he has to be a bitch but he cant be cruel. if you take away his bitchyness its not jon anymore, he just becomes a fanon husk of himself. but if you make him too mean, then you're forgetting the awkward politeness and humanity of jonathan sims. remember: he may be a stubborn dickhead, but he let martin stay in the archives without having to be asked, even back in season 1

[dollypopup]

"Colin should have grovelled more!" "Penelope folded too easily"

I think statements like this typically come from people who like Penelope. . .but don't really understand her. And don't really understand just why she cares for Colin, and just why him groveling would not in any way bring her peace.

Penelope and Colin are kindred spirits in their loneliness, in season 3 more than any others. Penelope had lost her friendship with Eloise, and Colin didn't really have a close friend circle to begin with. Except with Pen. Pen was the person he could put the mask down for, could open up to, (in particular with their 'dreams' discussion) and that's why he couldn't even entertain the idea of giving up talking to her in Season 2. She is a vital part of his life, and holds so much significance and importance to him.

I imagine that's what made their silence over his travels especially painful for him. They spent such a long time talking after Season 1, and he even informs her that her letters were so encouraging, that it helped him heal something inside of himself. That if she could see him in a gentle way. . .so could he. (And he repays this, because he is honest to god out here acting and looking at her like she hung the moon in the sky). But without her presence in his life, he spiraled. Didn't feel confident in being who he is, and thus put on his persona more firmly. We know this because he wrote in his journal that "I want to be less needy, less insecure, while still maintaining the core of my vulnerability that makes me who I am". That he misses his family, that he misses home.

And we know, from the books, that Home? Home is Penelope. Penelope is his North Star, is his guiding force, and who I argue he feels he needs. In his very first scene, he looks toward her house, tries to find her in the window. When he does not, he returns to his family. In the outdoor gathering, he looks for her and finds her, eager to talk. He states aloud that he misses her, and I imagine he wrote it, too. Not hearing back from her over the course of his travels was surely something that hurt him, but he doesn't hold any ill will toward her for it, only wants to reconnect again. In fact, the one and only time he brings up how he misses her and that she didn't respond, she makes very clear the reason why: she heard what he said and it hurt her. And he's ashamed of it.

Colin hears her call him cruel, and instead of ruffling his feathers about it, instead of getting upset, instead of having a chip on his shoulder as I feel so many men would about it. . .he understands why she does so.

Penelope is a woman who has been largely treated poorly in her society. She feels unheard, she feels undesired, and in her circumstances, and I can't help but ask myself. . .has anyone ever truly apologized to Penelope for hurting her, before? Her mother? Her sisters? Eloise, likely, but. . .anyone else? And the way Colin did? Because of all the characters in the show, Colin? Colin knows how to apologize. He has a lot of practice in it. And very importantly: Colin, a man of privilege in his society, apologizes. . .predominately to women. To Marina, to his mother, and multiple times to Penelope.

Ultimately, Penelope wants to be heard, Penelope wants to be understood, Penelope wants to feel desired.

And Colin checks every single one of those boxes. He informs he is not who he was before, and then he proves it to her. He hears that he hurt her, and he comments on it directly. An entire night apart, and he comes back to her 'Because I embarrass you' with 'I am most certainly not ashamed of you', replies to her 'I am a laughingstock' with 'you are clever, and warm, and I am proud to call you my good friend'. He hears her proclaim her own insecurities, and empathizes so deeply with her. He listens. He understands. He makes clear that he cares for her, and that she *is* desired. 'You lift my spirits' 'I seek you out at every social assembly'. That she helps him see the world in ways he loves, that he sees HER and how much she has cared for HIM, that she makes him feel appreciated, that he appreciates her, in turn.

And then? Then? He shows her. He tells her, and he shows her. His actions all throughout Season 3 reinforce this apology. He continues looking for her in every corner of every ballroom, he continues complimenting her, he laughs at her jokes and respects her boundaries, he is ever so gentle with her, he listens to her with an attentiveness that no one else has ever given her. To Lady Whistledown? Sure. But to Penelope? Who else in the entirety of that ton has listened to Penelope the way Colin has?

Absolutely no one.

Penelope Featherington ghosts Colin Bridgerton for months with no explanation, and Colin comes back wanting to reach out to her, and she finally tells him why.

And he apologizes. Because he listens. Really, truly listens. And really truly cares.

I need you to understand how rare that is, even nowadays, but especially back then. That Colin is the kind of man who can put his hurt to the side and realize he made a mistake, that he said something callous, and he adores her, and he can't lose her, and he has to see her and make it right.

Because that's why Penelope fell for Colin. Not because he's beautiful, not for his charm, not for his family. But for his heart. Because he shows her kindness in a world that so often disregards her. Because he seeks her out and tries to understand her, truly hears what she has to say and compliments her, says he's sorry and looks at things from her perspective.

Because he saw her when she was invisible.

Penelope Featherington, who grew up in a house that made cruel jabs at her, has Colin Bridgerton come to her and say he regrets what he said, and that he was wrong, and that he understands why she's mad at him. Penelope Featherington who has so rarely had much of anyone tell her that they're sorry for what they said about her, sits before Colin Bridgerton as he professes how much she means to him. That he cannot even spend a full day away from her knowing they're on bad terms with each other without making it right. That he sees how she is hurting and he has to in any way he can amend it. She is lonely, with no one really in her corner at the start of season 3, and she feels like she lost it all, and Colin comes to her and says 'no, I'm here and I appreciate you and you are special to me, please let me in and let me prove it'. Is it any wonder why after she shakes his hand, she stands in the sun, and she feels the warmth of it, she can smile? That she can breathe, again? That she can be truly content for the first time in the season?

Because Penelope Featherington does not want Colin to beg. She knows him. She knows the tender, full heart he hides behind the new cavalier persona. She knows the soft underbelly of Colin Bridgerton.

He never had to grovel. All he had to do was love her. Assuredly. Fervently. Loudly. Unapologetically.

And he does.

[p4nishers]

thinking abt how azi was truly crowley's sunlight through the millenniums. like, here's this demon who didn't mean to fall, who just asked questions and deep down he was still so good. and he is alone, he's the literally the emboidement of the first sin, and NOT by his own choosing. he's so alone and afraid and just wants a real conversation w someone, even if its an angel who'll most likely hate him. and here's the guardian of eden, who gave away his sword, that GOD gave to him, without asking a single question, to help the humans under his charge and he's kind to crowley and crowley is utterly fascinated. zira is basically the first protector, not only to adam and eve BUT CROWLEY TOO. he protects crowley from the first rain bc he's so fundamentally good and kind and crowley can't help seeking him out over the years. when they meet in rome, c is obviously far more withdrawn and angry bc of the things he's seen and was forced to do and there's az again, so happy to see him and even inviting him to dinner. everytime they met, even when crowley was saving azira, he also saved crowley by the simple act of being his friend.

[reggie-gremlin]

"What's it about?"

"Basically about my experience being aromantic and asexual. Like, being in a world where romance and sex are prized above everything when you don't feel those forms of attraction. Growing up feeling that something about you is different, but you don't have the words to describe what that is. But then, freedom. The euphoria of freeing yourself from those pressures and expectations."

- Heartstopper, Season 2, Episode 7

[whoblewboobear]

Maybe it’s my own religious trauma or the huge crush and admiration I have for Ally Beardsley talking but Kristen Applebees just might be my favorite d20 pc of all time.

[sampegger]

do you guys think the writers would have taken it more seriously if it had been alastair around relentlessly tormenting dean in late seasons as opposed to lucifer with sam

[dokyeomini]

“There was a time when I used to think “What if someone had just helped me?” “If someone, somewhere had been there for me?” Eighteen springs had gone by with that question still in my mind. But I finally realized something. That there were good people in my life. Good friends, good weather. Even heaven intervened. And when you said we should die in the spring, what you really meant is that’s when we should bloom. I want to thank you. Thank you so much for saving me. While I know I didn’t grow up to be good, eventually a spring will come when I will fully bloom. I wish you a long, healthy life.”

I wonder if she’ll come see the flowers.

The Glory ep. 16

[doodle-empress66]

This whole part is what Stolitz is right now, Blitz is distancing himself, putting up this invisible wall between them and Stolas wants to help him to open up and understand him! But once they break the contract, like shown here Blitz is gonna be even more closed off than ever.

[un-pearable]

i can’t actually finish the “everyone gets yoinked from different parts of the series by time travel” fic until i finish my rewatch/catch-up but i am never not thinking about it

wip chronology decisions. poor kai trying to wrangle everyone into actually solving the problem and going home. he thought pixal was normal and would be able to help but then he got Monologued™

[omaano]

“You’ve come for your turn early,” the stranger says, turning to look at Boba as if Gregor does not exist. Gregor flashes Boba a grin, all too-sharp teeth, as the stranger steps away, shaking off the attractive glamour as if it’s nothing. Gregor seems as delighted as Boba is troubled to realise that their would-be customer is more cunning than he seems.

Mereel & Family Booksellers by binz, shiplizard

Allow me to recommend one more awesome Bobadin fic - since @sidhebeingbrand and @toughbreaks were kind enough to let me illustrate their fic for my "Jaster lives" square for @bobadinweek's Bobadin AU bingo card... with a bit of cheating - my love for which only grows and grows with time (and trust me, it does get better with every re-read! ). Fantastic and delightful world building with Victorian era and fae magic, and beautifully written characters where every single one of them vibrate with life. (Boba gets to suffer his 99 siblings, Jango is forced through some emotional catharsis kicking and screaming, and Din is trying his best to be a dad of a fae child. It's just the best, okay?) I'll eventually want to make one more drawing for chapter 2, I just realized during my latest re-read that I imagined the whole scene wrong ^^;

[abigfanofstarwars]

that was .. so much better than i could’ve hoped for

🥹

[simp-legend]

Currently crying cause I can't accept that THIS Wednesday is the last Bad Batch episode ever! I'm gonna miss the show so much. And don't even get me started about how tonight is going to be our last Bad Batch eve! 😭😭

[conschintz]

as a cult survivor, i have immense respect for how @quiddie handled the lukura in burrow's end. specifically in episode 1, the moment that it was revealed that thorn was a cult leader, i was ready to bail, but i decided to stick through the first episode at least just to see if it was something i could handle. and... man. i was genuinely sobbing with relief by the end of the episode.

the problem with so much cult-driven media, i find, is that it dehumanises the members/victims of the cult. they're just there to be vaguely creepy, or to sacrifice themselves for their leader(s), or to die outright to cult doctrine, usually for shock value. they're not actually people.

so you can imagine my fear when the stoats were escaping the poison, that we were going to get some scene where a member has to sacrifice themselves for thorn/viola, or it would be revealed that they all died waiting for orders etc. but we didn't... instead, in their last moments, aabria gave them what cult victims in media very rarely get — agency. viola's anger being met with teedles' "but they have families too," yes... yes!!! thank you! and then "if they ran, it was because they hoped to save them, and i can't begrudge them for that" i just... i don't think i can actually put into words how much that exchange meant to me. it was such a departure from what we're used to. even though most of them still died(?), it was not in service to thorn, or because of their lukura's beliefs. they were mothers and fathers and daughters and sons; they were no different to any of the pcs. they were trying to save themselves. aabria... the woman that you are. thank you.

[twomanyfandomshelp]

I’m rewatching Heartstopper because I literally cannot wait until October 3rd and I need more of this show pumped directly into my veins. It comes out two days after my seventeenth birthday, which is kinda exciting. But I digress.

I literally watched the whole first season today, which is quite impressive considering I actually did a lot of other things and didn’t start watching it until about two in the afternoon. And I finished it at like 10 pm, so it’s not like I stayed up super late to finish it either.

Rewatching this show I was giggling and kicking my feet and also yelling at the screen because sometimes the characters make kinda dumb choices and even though I already know how everything ends I still get way too invested. I just love this show so much, it’s such a comfort show for me.

My friend got me into the graphic novels right after season one released on Netflix, and after reading the whole series in two days (at the time there were four books, and soon after I found the WEBTOON and sped through that as well), I binged the entire show that day.

Heartstopper is such a pure show, and it just shows that representation is so important. I’ve heard so many stories of people realizing their sexuality (ME!) or finding the courage to come out to their parents or their friends or at school, and I think there’s just something so magical about this show.

Minor spoiler here, but Issac’s arc in season two was one of the things that kinda helped me realize that I was aroace because when I was watching the show and watching how he interacted with James and romance it made me think “huh, that’s kinda how I feel” and then I did some research (mostly comprised of scrolling the aromantic and asexual tags on tumblr, but a bit of googling as well) and realized that I’m aroace. So this show, that I already absolutely adored, suddenly became the catalyst for realizing my sexuality, and it just has such a special place in my heart. Whenever I’m sad I always rewatch the show or reread parts of the WEBTOON because it never fails to make me smile. To give me hope that there are others out there who are like me, even though all of my friends are straight and cis. And there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that, I love my friends, and they were all very supportive when I came out to them, but they just don’t understand sometimes. They don’t really understand what it’s like to be a part of the LGBTQIA+ community. To be different. It’s not like I’m out publicly, only a few of my close friends know, but it’s still hard sometimes not having anyone to talk to about all this (besides all my wonderful aspec moots of course). My irl friends just don’t understand that sometimes I feel broken, or like there’s something wrong with me. Because, even though I’m very comfortable with my sexuality, I’m in high school, and romance and sex are such a big thing, and it can sometimes be a little overwhelming or isolating when you don’t feel those forms of attraction. Especially when two of your best friends have boyfriends. And I’m very happy for them, but sometimes it stings a little knowing that I can never have that. Obviously queer platonic relationships exist, and that’s definitely something that I want for myself in the future, but it’s just different.

My mom watched the first season with me after I wouldn’t shut up about it, and then again when season two came out we watched it together (it was like my third watch through both times lol). Once season three comes out, and we see more of Issac’s arc of self discovery and figuring out his sexuality, I might end up using it as a bit of a starting point to come out to her, but I don’t know. I know that she and my dad are very supportive of the LGBTQIA+ community, but it’s just so different and scary. Any advice?

P. S. I did not mean to write this much, if you read this whole post, thank you. Thanks for taking the time out of your day to read about my ramblings.