#weaned on poison alright

[naivesilver]

HI I'M AT YOUR WINDOW AND SCREAMING ABOUT THE SPOTIFY GAME AND UHHHHH!!!!! How's about 22 with either Pinocchio/Lampwick or just Wick alone (both for TP)

THESE MOODBOARDS BEEN KICKING MY ASS SO HERE YOU HAVE THEM starting from the angstiest one bc of course 💞

Spotify Wrapped Game

22. O Superman, Laurie Anderson

[autism-autobot]

Flower of a Poisonous Seed Part 44:

Part 43:

Tw: swears

"Are you sure you're okay with going out? I don't mind making up an excuse if you're too anxious or anything."

"Are you kidding me? I'm not missing my first Girls' Day in over a thousand years!"

Wukong, being genderfluid, was invited to the Peach Maidens' Girls' Day with their biological sisters and sworn sisters alike. On Girls' Day, Wukong was just another one of the ladies.

Nezha was still very worried about Wukong's safety and health, but it was important to him that Wukong has the chance to enjoy his life regardless of circumstances.

SWK: Besides, Iron Fan is coming too, and you know how much of a badass she is!

Nezha: This is true. I just can't help but worry.

SWK: I know, but please don't spend all day pacing around and worrying about me. I want you to enjoy yourself today, too.

Nezha: I will do my best.

SWK: That's all I ask of you. *nuzzles him*

~~~

PIF: Alright, sisters, what do you have planned for today?

Peach Maiden 1: Wellllllll-

PM2: There's shopping-

PM3: And the spa!

PM4: We could do each other's hair-

PM5: AND NAILS!!!

PM6: And have lunch, of course!

PIF: Yes, but did you actually plan anything?

PM7: Ummmmm, no.

PM1: In truth, we weren't sure what Wukong could do, so we just spitballed ideas.

SWK: Well, I think I can do those things. Don't know about all of them in one day, but I'm up for any of those things!

PM2: We can go to the mall! They have all of that and more there!

All the PMs: YEEEEEEESSSSSSS!!!!!

~~~

Turns out that getting anywhere would be the biggest challenge of the day. Just getting into the van was a hassle.

PM3: Little sister, do you happen to know how the thing to make Wukong's chair detach from the wheels works?

PM6: I think you just have to pull-

*SNAP*

PM6: Oh no. That doesn't sound good.

SWK: It never made that noise before.

PIF: *exasperated* What did you do?

PM6: I'm sorry! I didn’t know-

PIF: For fucks sake!

SWK: Um... so change of plans?

PM3: Can you still move it?

SWK: I can try. *tries* *can go forward but not backward*

SWK: Well, that's a bummer.

PM2: Maybe we can put Wukong in without his seat and put him back in the chair when we get there?

SWK: Fine by me.

Wukong unbuckled herself from the wheelchair and put her arms around the shoulders of two peach maidens while a third grabbed her oxygen tank. With the maidens' help, Wukong walked to the van and climbed in his seat. She was able to buckle herself while four of the maidens put the wheelchair in the back with Princess Iron Fan's supervision.

~~~

PM5: So how much longer are you going to need that oxygen tank anyway?

SWK: Well, I was supposed to be weaned off it by now, but my lungs haven't been improving as fast as the doctors anticipated, and that was before the hypothermia.

PM4: Why weren't your lungs improving?

SWK: I don't know if it's due to environmental reasons or if we just underestimated the severity of the damage.

PIF: Environmental reasons? What sort?

SWK: Um... you're not going to like this...

PIF: *gently* Wukong. What's going on?

SWK: So... you know how you and your family live by a bunch of lava pits and volcanic ash and stuff?

PIF: WAIT. So, the environment that my family lives in is causing you harm?

SWK: Potentially! We don't know for certain yet. I have a doctors appointment in two days, and they're gonna take a look at my lungs to see for sure.

PIF: For my husband's and son's sakes, I hope not.

SWK: They're not gonna take it very well if that is the case, are they?

PIF: Not in the slightest.

SWK: But, hey, at least my mobility is improving! They'll be happy to hear that.

PIF: Indeed they will be.

~~~

Upon arrival, the girls tried (and failed) to get Wukong's wheelchair out of the vehicle properly.

*CLONK*

PM3: So that's the lever that detaches the wheels!

PIF: *facepalms*

~~~

The shopping part of Girls' Day went without a hitch, thankfully. Wukong needed some help trying certain pieces of clothing on, but it was nothing PIF couldn't handle.

SWK: I think Red Son would really like this peony dress!

PIF: Huh. I was unaware that my son liked such clothing.

SWK: Oh! Have you... ever seen Red Son wear any dresses before?

PIF: No... does he do it often?

SWK: Not really, it's usually for certain occasions. Fancy ones, usually. Though sometimes he'd wear them when playing dress-up with my kids when he was little.

PIF: Awww. Sounds like he had fun.

SWK: Yeah, he did.

PIF: I didn't know Red Son liked wearing dresses. I wonder why he never did it in front of me.

SWK: Yeah... I wonder...

Wukong doesn't actually wonder she just didn't realize Red Son was still closeted about their gender.

~~~

All of the ladies were very happy that Wukong was getting better at feeding herself. Even if she accidentally made a bit of a mess, they didn't mind cleaning her up afterward.

~~~

PM4: How were we supposed to know that the spa was at the top of an escalator?

PIF: THIS. IS. WHY. WE. PLAN!

SWK: Oh, boy.

~~~

They may not have been able to get their nails done, but the girls called the day an overall success (though PIF was very close to disagreeing). Wukong made it home safe, though her wheelchair was a bit beat up.

Nezha: What happened to your chair?

RS: It looks like a bear attached it or something.

PIF: No, it was just our sisters.

SWK: They broke it while trying to load me into the van, and then they dropped it.

PIF: Twice.

RS: I can fix it up, given time.

SWK: Thanks.

~~~

Princess Iron Fan went home, and the others started putting Wukong's shopping haul away before making dinner.

SWK: Oh! Nephew! Before I forget, I got you something!

RS: Ooh! What is it?

SWK: *pulls out peony themed dress* Tada!

RS: Oh! This is lovely! I have to try it on.

SWK: If it doesn't fit, we can return it and get one in your size.

RS: Thank you, Uncle. *goes into the bathroom to change*

SWK: I would've gotten you one, Daffodil, but I didn't know you wanted the ladies to know you like wearing those things.

Nezha: Yes, thank you. I would not have liked that information getting out. In the safety of our house is one thing, out there is another.

SWK: Been finding that out the hard way, haven't we?

~~~

"What do you think?"

Red Son's peony dress was a modest floor-length dress that flowed beautifully as they walked. It had short sleeves and a bow at the waist. Red Son did a spin to show it off. It fits perfectly.

SWK: *clapping* You're so beautiful, nephew!

RS: Thank you, Auntie!

Nezha: It's beautiful. Do you plan on wearing it out, or do you only wear dresses at home?

RS: I usually wear dresses anywhere but home! I... I don't tend to wear such things in front of my parents.

Nezha: Oh. I'm sorry if this is a sore subject.

RS: I'm fine, really, it's just... I'm not sure if my parents would be too approving of my identity or how I like to present myself.

Nezha: I face a similar issue. Self-expression isn't always as easy as Wukong makes it look.

SWK: It's not easy. I've just gotten used to the stares and people thinking negatively about me.

Nezha: *puts his hand on Wukong's*

SWK: Also, that reminds me. I kind of... mentioned to your mom that you like wearing dresses.

RS: YOU WHAT????!!!!

SWK: It was an accident!!!! I didn’t know she didn't know! I don't know if she knows about your gender identity, so I at least managed to avoid that topic, but yeah, I kind of let it slip that you like to wear dresses when I showed that one to her.

SWK: I'm sorry...

RS: It's okay. *hugs Wukong* I guess I haven't really talked to you about such things before. Especially in the context of my life with my parents.

SWK: *hugs him back* I think they'll love you regardless. I know I do.

RS: Thank you for that. I'm glad to have someone who loves me like you do.

SWK: And I'll never stop.

Part 45:

Masterpost

@weaverpop @istopaskingmemate @ainnur @starrclown @cutvdo @swkbiggestdefender @fruit-fight

[pulsedmaggot]

let me sleep tonight ☣

whumpril part 2 - prompt: hug | words: 588 | warnings & tags: withdrawal, past addictions, mentions of alcohol & drug use, hallucinations/bad trip, anxiety attacks & depressive spirals, jd & munky can be read as romo or platonic, hurt no comfort if you squint | summary: the thing about quitting is that not everyone does it, and jonathan's trying to, but it's hard. really hard.

ao3 link

It’s a trip but it’s not a trip.

A trip is the beach, a shoreline and an ice cream cone. The movies. The game.

Tour isn’t a trip, more like working abroad. There's movies and ice cream and games, yeah. Kid stuff, fun stuff, real simple stuff that no one else gets. It’s travel, it’s mandatory, not a trip.

Jonathan is tripping, hard, and he doesn’t want to call it a trip. His hands are too cold and his face is too hot for it to be a fun trip. The kicker is he didn’t take anything. It's the exact opposite, where he’s trying to wean himself off, and in the process he learns that when he isn’t high he’s himself, and being himself sucks when the air hits just right. When it’s just himself, it’s memories. Rat poison for dinner. Toddlers with purple lips and broken necks. A smack, a hit, a hit of smack, and smack from behind, from below, from across.

A trip would be the beach, the south bay, where sandals are buried in white and towels are twisted up around beer bottles. A trip would be standing in the shallow tide, sun hot and wide blue inviting. Jonathan's trip is more strapped to a boulder in the middle of the ocean, arms tied away from him, a whirlpool engulfing his vision, voices whipping at his ears like the biting cold waves are. In real life he’s hiccuping in his bunk, vision spotty, stomach empty, tears so sticky they might as well be snot coming from his eyes. He's trembling, wishing he could join the dead bodies that frame his vision when he blinks. If this trip is himself, if this is all he has when he isn’t smoking or shooting or snorting, then this isn’t worth it. He mumbles it to himself, that this isn’t worth it, over and over, and he flinches when the curtain to his bunk opens.

It’s Munky, and he clearly isn’t sober, as the rest of the band have been partying and Jonathan has been twitching through his chills hot flashes, and Munky would be the only one of them to wonder why Jonathan isn’t having a good time when they all are, because they’re like that with each other. Munky is cooing but the words don’t reach Jonathan's ears. He's reaching, extending warm fingertips, and Jonathan is cowering, reeling, backing away, until they’re both in his bunk.

Munky is holding him, hand on his face, chest under Jonathan's head, and he’s telling him it’s alright, it’s okay, relax. None of those words make sense to him, as nothing is okay and there’s no way for him to relax. Munky is hugging him from behind, telling him how good he’s been doing, how they’ve been doing, but Jonathan can’t focus because Munky’s breath smells like ripe ale and it’s sickening, it makes him shiver more, tremble more. It makes him wish he could suck the taste right off his tongue.

Jonathan keeps saying it isn’t worth it, sobs harder when Munky says he’s here for him. Jonathan says he isn’t worth it, and Munky insists that he is. Nothing comes from this, even when Munky starts to whisper that he loves him, cares for him, is right here, won’t leave him. Jonathan doesn’t know when he passes out next, but he knows he has a nightmare involving giant hands swinging at him from dark storm clouds, and when he wakes up there’s no one else in his bunk.

[mehakzz]

What's the right age to start preschool

Most inexperienced parents are confounded about the right age to select youngsters for a preschool program. While the choice to enlist kids is not entirely settled by a few factors, the most significant ought to be youngster status.

A neighbor's youngster began preschool at age two, while one more companion demanded self-teaching until four. Most unseasoned parents are confounded about the right age to select youngsters for a preschool program. While most of preschools concede kids at age three, a rising number are conceding youngsters as soon as 1.5-2 years. The choice to select kids is not set in stone by a few factors, for example, a mother's need to get back to work. Yet, the main element ought to be youngster preparation.

The perfect opportunity

Most schools utilize ordered age as the rule for school preparation and confirmation. Nonetheless, it's more critical to guarantee that a kid has the accompanying abilities prior to beginning pre-kindergarten class.

• Kids ought to be latrine prepared and ready to impart to a grown-up when they need to utilize the latrine.

• Ready to dress with the exception of fastening shirts and tying shoestrings.

• Ready to stand by for brief periods.

• Prepared to invest energy away from guardians/parental figures.

• Equipped for conveying needs and paying attention to other people.

• Should be weaned from the taking care of container a couple of months preceding beginning expertly regulated youth care and instruction (ECCE).

Benchmarks of a decent preschool

While choosing suitable pre-primaries for their kids, guardians ought to check the accompanying boxes:

Security. Check in the event that the school is truly, genuinely, and physically alright for your kid. Actual well-being covers cleanliness and neatness of learning spaces, latrines, and play regions. A few schools will quite often put resources into low-quality plastic toys and materials that could be poisonous.

Profound security includes cooperation among kids and educators and how the last option manages testing conduct, fear of abandonment, and postponements and deviations in learning. A great preschool program is non-upsetting and doesn't rashly force scholarly learning with kids permitted to commit errors and learn at their own speed. Assuming educators use dangers, pay-offs, and discipline, it's not genuinely ok for youngsters.

To guarantee sexual security, investigate the school for 'dim spaces' that can be utilized by victimizers and furthermore request that the administration lead severe historical verifications, everything being equal.

Assuming there are warnings in any of these three well-being benchmarks, striking the school on your shortlist is prudent.

Framework. Aside from the scholastic foundation, guardians ought to check in the event that there is adequate light, natural air, and outside play regions including a very much kept up with sandpit and exercises to animate investigation. In the event that a preschool works in an indoor space with restricted regular lighting or is "completely cooled", reconsider picking this school. A decent preschool gives sufficient chances for indoor and open-air play.

Instructional method/theory. Each youth training teaching method has it's in addition to focus. Assuming you are enthused about sending your kid to a school that follows a specific ECCE theory, invest energy in exploring it. A portion of the well-known youth instruction methods of reasoning incorporate Montessori, Reggio Emilia, and Waldorf. Pick a pre-essential that you accept will assist your kid with getting significant and pleasant ECCE.

Educator/staff quality. A great preschool guarantees that its educators and staff are thoroughly prepared in at least one ECCE teaching method. Really focusing on and showing small kids requires extraordinary abilities and preparation. Check with guardians of now-enlisted youngsters to grasp the nature of understudy educator intelligence.

Evaluations and discipline. Preschool educational plans should be age-proper with no pressure forced on youngsters to learn. Evaluations of learning results ought to be a record of steady improvement as opposed to a grade of dominance accomplished. Notwithstanding evaluations, check in the event that the school has a decent strategy for discipline. Educators who utilize any type of discipline — dangers, pay-offs, or whipping could make your youngster learning disinclined forever.

Ailment and crises. Check whether the school executives have planned cycles and arrangements to manage crises and disease. Rumored preschools as a rule have a medical caretaker or thoroughly prepared instructor to give emergency treatment during crises.

[twilightmalachite]

Altered - Angels and Devils 12

Author: Akira

Characters: Hiyori, Eichi, Tsumugi, Nagisa

Translator: Mika Enstars

"You’re obscene. I’m not happy you’re fond of it, Eichi-kun. It’s like finding a dead frog inside my birthday cake."

Season: Spring

Location: Yumenosaki Academy Auditorium (LIVE)

⚠️ This is an import from a unproofed Twitter Livetweet!

One week later, at the Yumenosaki Academy auditorium, fine’s debut live…

Hiyori: I have a feeling I’ve been completely set up!

Look’s like the Five Eccentrics have been invited to fine’s debut live as a guest!

Eichi: Do you have a problem with that? You seem very dissatisfied.

Hiyori: To look so happy in the face of a losing battle, you must be a fool or idiot, or a traitor who is getting along with the enemy.

Eichi: Oya, do you lack the confidence to win against the Five Eccentrics? Preparing to lose even before the fight, are you?

This isn’t like you to be saying something like that, who’s always bursting with confidence and claiming to be the best of the best.

Hiyori: I came here in the first place instead of running away because being provoked like that pisses me off so much.

Which is exactly why I feel like I was set up. You’ve always been this way, Eichi-kun.

Is it fun to play with others in the palm of your hand like this?

You are vile.

Eichi: Fufu, despite being constantly deceived and humiliated by me, you never fail to take me up on my provocations, though.

Does that make you a very dumb person, or perhaps even a very good-natured person?

Hiyori: I should be there for this “pathetic child” of a companion at the very least.

If anything, me being here for you is what’s preventing you from poisoning any other innocent person who doesn't know any better.

I’m doing what I can to protect everyone. It’s my duty as a noble.

Ah, how wonderful I am! To step up to be a sacrifice myself to the evil monster!

Eichi: I truly applaud you for that. You have the ability to do anything you put yourself to, and yet you’re always giving yourself up to somebody else. Whether it be to me, or your big brother, huh?

A benevolent protector of his people, a way of life truly worthy of being called a noble.

Not one akin to a dignified knight, but a life more like a princess from an old-fashioned fairy tale.

Like sacrificing yourself for your house. Very antiquated.

Hiyori: What’s wrong with devoting yourself to what you love? If anything, I pity you who cannot find a companion to devote yourself to in such a way!

Eichi: Fufu, that’s right. You’ve always been the only one who’d feel sorry for me.

Me, the heir to the Tenshouin Zaibatsu, one of the worlds largest mega-conglomerates.

You see through to true natures and pity, even if you despise them.

The clarity you have of it all is sometimes too advantageous for me to bear.

Hiyori: You’re obscene. I’m not happy you’re fond of it, Eichi-kun. It’s like finding a dead frog inside my birthday cake.

Eichi: Okay. I fundamentally hate you as a person. There, feel better?

Tsumugi: How can you guys carry on such a vicious conversation with such cheerful smiles on your faces?

Eichi: Aristocrats have to be capable of separating their innermost thoughts from their surface. Isn’t that right, Hiyori-kun?

The life of a noble is but an endless masquerade, where we exchange extravagant rhetoric while masks hide our true faces.

Tsumugi: I may not fully get it, but it sounds like even the rich have rough times…

Just, let’s not be so tense. Not only is it our propitious debut live, but Nagisa-kun is frightened too.

Nagisa: …Mhm. I’m, a little scared.

…Sorry. I’m, not used to such raw emotions, from other people.

…I’m, a tad dazed. I mean, a little disoriented.

Hiyori: Ahh, I’m sorry, I’m sorry! Everything’s okay, alright, Nagisa-kun? I just want Eichi-kun to die early is all, I don’t mean any harm towards you one bit, ‘kay!

Eichi: Isn’t it because you pamper Nagisa-kun like that his personality will remain the same like an infant, never weaned from his mother?

Hiyori: I will not forgive you for bad-mouthing Nagisa-kun and I!

Eichi: You guys are as close as ever.

Eichi: (And that’s why I can move Hiyori-kun, and Nagisa-kun will move following suit, and vice versa.)

(Not only that, but while I do not know if it is a blessing or a curse… To me, Hiyori-kun is a childhood friend, who I have known for many years.)

(I know exactly where to hit him, and how he will react. Hiyori-kun strives to be someone of simple design, and he adheres to that character of his.)

(He will not bend his way of life for the sake of his pride.)

(He has no flexibility. But that is exactly the vulnerability I need to manipulate him, someone who is greater and smarter than I am to begin with.)

(Yes, at first I wasn’t sure how it would go, but fine appears to work exactly the way I wish it to.)

(The problem is however, that the Five Eccentrics are out of my control. No matter what angle I look at it from, I don’t think I can manipulate them…)

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[thiswaycomessomethingwicked]

Hello! So, I mean, this might be out of the blue, ambiguous and crazy to answer (but it's something I think about a lot, and you touched upon it in a previous ask and would love your further perspective on!) but let's say, at the end of The Return of The King, Grima lived! What do you personally think his journey and path would look like from there?

Grima asks are never out of the blue - I always want them <3 Thank you so much for asking!!

--

man ok - well Grima at the end of ROTK is in a really dark place. Frodo, Gandalf et al first run into Grima and Saruman on the road near the misty mountains as the make their slow return journey from Gondor. 

As they (Frodo, Merry, Pippin, Gandalf) came out again into the open country at sundown they overtook an old man leaning on a staff, and he was clothed in rags of grey or dirty white, and at his heels went another beggar, slouching and whining. 

[...]

‘Get up you idiot!’ he (Saruman) shouted to the other beggar, who had sat down on the ground; and he struck him with his staff. ‘Turn about! If these fine folk are going our way, then we will take another. Get on, or I’ll give you no crust for your supper!’ 

The beggar turned and slouched past whimpering: ‘Poor old Grima! Poor old Grima! Always beaten and cursed. How I hate him! I wish I could leave him!’ 

‘Then leave him!’ said Gandalf. 

a man who has never been in an abusive situation in his life, clearly. 

‘One thief deserves another,’ said Saruman (to Merry), and turned his back on Merry, and kicked Wormtongue, and went away towards the wood. 

Great guy, Saruman. 

And the famous scouring of the Shire bit that everyone on here misremembers when it comes to Grima’s whole situation: 

But Frodo said: (...) But I will not have him (Saruman) slain. It is useless to meet revenge with revenge: it will heal nothing. Go Saruman, by the speediest way!’ 

‘Worm! Worm!’ Saruman called; and out of a nearby hut came Wormtongue, crawling, almost like a dog. ‘To the road again, Worm!’ Said Saruman. ‘These fine fellows and lordlings are turning us adrift again. Come along!’ 

[Saruman tries to stab Frodo as he leaves and Sam gets ready to shank a bitch. Frodo stops him saying: ‘...He is fallen, and his cure is beyond us; but I would still spare him, in the hope that he may find it.’ ...]

He (Saruman) walked away, and the hobbits made a lane for him to pass; but their knuckles whitened as they gripped on their weapons. Wormtongue hesitated, and then followed his master. 

‘Wormtongue!’ called Frodo. ‘You need not follow him. I know of no evil you have done to me. You can rest and food here a while, until you are stronger and can go your own ways.’ 

Wormtongue halted and looked back at him, half prepared to stay. Saruman turned. ‘No evil?’ he cackled. ‘Oh no! Even when he sneaks out at night it is only to look at the stars. But did I hear someone ask where poor Lotho is hiding? You know, don’t you Worm? Will you tell them?’ 

Wormtongue cowered down and whimpered: ‘No, no!’

‘Then I will,’ said Saruman. ‘Worm killed your chief, poor little fellow, your nice little Boss. Didn’t you, Worm? Stabbed him in his sleep, I believe. Buried him, I hope; though Worm has been very hungry lately. No, Worm is not really nice. You had better leave him to me.’ 

A look of wild hate came into Wormtongue’s red eyes. ‘You told me to; you made me do it,’ he hissed. 

Saruman laughed. ‘You do what Sharkey says, always, don’t you, Worm? Well, now he says: follow!’ He kicked Wormtongue in the face as he grovelled, and turned and made off. But at that something snapped: suddenly Wormtongue rose up, drawing a hidden knife, and then with a snarl like a dog he sprang on Saruman’s back, jerked his head back, cut his throat, and with a yell ran off down the lane. Before Frodo could recover or speak a word, three hobbit-bows twanged and Wormtongue fell dead. 

A sad end to a very sad life. 

-

So that’s the canon ending, obviously. A very neat, pat ending where all the baddies are dead, everyone who is broken will disappear into an asylum and/or die take a boat to the grey havens and life will move on. 

How nice. 

-

Alright, now for the speculation! My favourite thing. 

Assuming Grima lived, god knows what his journey afterwards would look like. He’s mentally (and physically) in a bad way after having been physically (and emotionally) abused and starved by Saruman for the last year/two years. Saruman may have lost his powers, but he’s still terrifying force to be reckoned with. I don’t know how much Grima would be capable of on his own in terms of survival. 

That said, Grima’s made it this far. He’s clearly got something in him that’s keeping him alive. Something in him wants to live. It might not know how to go about doing that, but it’s there, and that’s important. 

So he’s stabbed Saruman, A+ work. The hobbits don’t shoot him. The question is then: does he take up Frodo’s offer or does his fuck off into the wilderness. 

I can see him going either direction, honestly. But I suspect, given that he’s starving and in a bad way physically, I suspect he’d stay for a time. Now, considering what’s happened to him in the general vicinity of Bagend, I’m not sure how long Grima will stay, but I do think he’d rest there for a short while. Get a proper meal or two in him. Take a bath. That sort of thing. 

From there he could go to somewhere like Bree or Dale, take up a new name/new life and try and move on, as much as a person can in a world that has absolutely no support networks for people who have gone through bad shit. 

If he stayed for a longer period with Frodo? I could see Sam putting him to work. 

‘I need someone to help me garden.’ 

‘...I know about horses?’

‘Plants are easier, trust me.’ 

‘....Are they though?’ 

Considering the fact that Grima has been dehumanized (Worm; like a dog; cur) and treated as worthless/unworthy by one of the more powerful beings in Middle Earth - and one who was once Great! Who was once wise and wonderful! I suspect he’s going to have a difficult time accepting kindness? 

Frodo, of course, would be generous and understanding, because it’s Frodo and that’s the measure of man he is. Truly one of the nicest and most forgiving and tender people in the series. 

Aragorn said of Grima that if he walked out of Orthanc alive it would be too good for him. 

(Everyone is a lot meaner in the books. Funnier, yes, but also meaner. Then there’s the weird Faramir moment where he’s all up on that “Numenorian Blood Quantum Is Important” nonsense (tell that to your brother who has no blood of the Westernese in him...) There’s a lot of Oooof moments). 

Frodo, though, Frodo is one of the genuinely kind and loving people who would never think such cruel things about anyone. 

But back to Grima, I think the line Gillian Flynn wrote about how when you’re weaned on poison, it makes kindness seem like a cruelty is very relevant here. The first step to healing is allowing yourself to admit that you deserve to be healed, that you deserve love. That’s a very hard thing to allow, to acknowledge is something you are worthy of having. 

And so it would be difficult, for him, to accept kindness and gentleness from Frodo, or anyone else. But if he was doing something to “earn” it, that might make it more palatable. 

Which is a shame, since if there is anyone who understands the power and allure of the dark lord/Saruman etc. and how that can mess you up and contort you into someone you don’t recognize anymore, it’s Frodo.

-

Would Grima go back to Rohan? I don’t think so. Unless there were some wild, unexpected circumstances that brought him there, I truly don’t see him returning home. He’s torched that bridge pretty successfully - at least, I’m sure that’s how he sees it. 

Now if he did. If something Bat Shit happened - and he went back. It would be wild and very emotional.  

A Rider of Rohan, lost in the shire: I’m looking for a Mr Baggins? I understand he might know where Gandalf is? We sort of need some magic help in Rohan. 

Hobbit: Turn left at the end of the lane, go past Grubby Harold’s llama farm, stop at the intersection with the red sign, take the third exit of the roundabout, turn right, turn left, turn left again, take the second switch back up the hill, at the crest of the hill, take the path that turns left at the big tree that someone carved Fuck Lobelia into and that should get you close. 

Rider: 

Rider: Right. 

Rider eventually shows up, Grima’s out front updating Sam on some shit that Pansy Fielding said to Fardulf Braceblower, an ongoing war that has existed since the Dawn of Time. Sam is like “Please never stop telling me all the gossip, I live for this shit.”

Frodo: How did you hear about this? 

Grima: I might have set up an informant’s network but it’s solely to trawl for entertaining gossip.  

Rider approaches: Oh dear gods. 

Grima: 

Grima: Go get fucked, Gundahar. 

Sam: Friend? 

Grima & Gundahar: No. 

Anyway. The rider tells Frodo that he’s after Gandalf because XYZ is happening in Rohan and Eomer-king is annoyed and “wants it dealt with, preferably yesterday”. Grima knows what’s up because you know, resident Spook Master also he was spending a lot of time around a lore-filled Wizard. Might as well get something for the years of mistreatment. 

Gundahar: He’s not coming back to Rohan. 

Frodo: We’re going on a road trip, Sam. Let’s get packed. 

Sam: I’m so ready for this. 

Grima: But I’m not going back to Rohan. 

Gundahar: He’s not coming back to Rohan. 

Frodo: Too late, he’s coming with us. Neither of us can be left alone for too long or we go weird in the head. 

Merry: Oh we’re going to Rohan? Well, as a member of the royal court I’m coming. 

Gundahar: .... How is this happening? 

Grima: Hobbits, they move in herds. 

Pippin: WAIT FOR ME! 

Gandalf is UPSET that he has to travel with Grima. Grima says it’s mutual. He doesn’t like wizards. Especially wizards in white. He gets weird about hoarding food when Gandalf is around. 

Grima then has to visit Theoden’s grave and have a lot of emotions about everything and it’s a Lot.

I don’t think he’d stay, though. Either he’d go back with Frodo or he might go on to Gondor or out east or something. Travel for a while. 

- 

I’ve gone off on some tangents here. Ahem. 

But in general, I see his journey going in one of two directions: one where he fucks off after murdering Saruman and takes up a life somewhere else like Bree, or wherever, probably drinks too much and is miserable until he dies. 

The other is where he accepts Frodo’s offer and either just chills in the Shire being the resident gossip-monger and mischief maker (Frodo: NO MISCHIEF. Grima: we can make a little mischief .., as a treat?) or he accepts the offer, stays for a while to get back on his feet and shake off some of the darkness, then goes off to travel around. Maybe he settles somewhere, maybe he doesn’t. Regardless if he stays or goes, it is a better ending to his life than he probably hoped for or expected. 

And it shows the power and importance of kindness and love. Healing only happens if there is love and gentleness. And it’s terrifying - of course it is - but it’s so necessary. 

-

Ok I am so sorry for my dissertation on Grima. I love talking about him so much.  

Thank you!! <3 <3 

[flutewield]

i am not saying tayuya knows the taste of dead flesh, but she might. there are untold horrors in those prison cells. deep in the dirt. i speak a lot on hunger & tayuya is very hungry. for more than food. for soul, for feeling, for more, for that freedom sacrificed. i am hungry too as i write  a girl too insignificant for a full story to be told. we are not sad for her, for what her life was & whether or not she had to eat scraps.

 'A child weaned on poison considers harm a comfort.' -Gillian Flynn,  & that is true. she drank of poison, & it was only so fulfilling, as her true free life could not be lived. she repressed & held onto emotion--but it breaks through in anger & violence. she wants to love. the capability is there. yet, i think i speak of dust, dirt, cold damp spaces where she may have had to take strips of dead flesh & chew. & we do not wonder of the girl before who was not chained, her neck unmarked. remember, she was struck in the back. did they have her turn first & wait? it's a secret she will keep to herself--it's alright. she kept many untold depths within, carried them below & refused to play her songs again but for herself.

[cuddlebunny698-blog]

What is your current favorite song? Dramarama-Anything Anything  Do you develop severe withdrawal symptoms when you’re weaning off medicine? What are three of your favorite songs to sing? Dying for an Angel by Avantasia, Poison by Alice Cooper, and Fleurs Captives by Nicole Dollanganger  Have you been outside today? Yes, a few times  If you had to move to another country, where would you move? Norway What color are your Converse? Gray What color is your laptop? Black What electronic gadget would you like to get next that you don’t already have? I don’t know, a new Xbox?  Do you take a lot of pictures? Sure  What is your favorite ride at the fair? Ferris wheels, roller coasters, carousel  Have you ever made sand art at the fair? No  Would you ever marry someone who was lower class? Yeah... Do you have an afghan? No  What color is your recliner? Its various different colors  Do you have a balcony? No  Who do you write letters to the most? No one  Do you share your diary with anyone, or does no one ever read it but you? Nope  Are you jealous of anyone, even mildly? If so, who? 

Nope  What color are your favorite shorts? Black  Is there a guy you wish you hadn’t let slip away? *sigh*  Favorite magazine? Have you ever done a craft you saw in a magazine? Nope. Have you ever made a recipe you found in a magazine? Nope  Have you ever written to an advice columnist? Nope. Do you think you would make a good advice columnist? I don’t know  Which do you prefer: English or math? English  What color shirt brings out the color in your eyes? Purple  Which store do you want to win a shopping spree at? Spencers  Are you jealous of someone who has more money than you? I’m not jealous of anyone  What color is your teddy bear? I prefer my Dean Ambrose plushie over a teddy bear  Who is a singer that has given you chills? So many of them  Do you watch America’s Got Talent? No  Do you think you could win America’s Got Talent? Fuck that What act would you perform in a talent show? No  What area are you the most gifted in, do you think? Writing  Have you ever practiced yoga? No  Do you find handstands scary? No  Do you think babies are cute or scary? They’re cute What is your favorite thing to buy at the Farmer’s Market? Fruit or vegetables  Do you eat dessert every day? No Do you get carsickness? No  What color is the rim of your full-length mirror? Who do you have a crush on at the moment? Dean Ambrose  Did your Barbies get crushes on each other and go on dates? No  Did you ever play church with your dolls? No  What was the name of your first imaginary friend? I don’t know  What is your state’s bird (if you live in the US)? I don’t know  Which style of wedding dress is your favorite? Eh  What’s a good boy’s name that starts with the same letter as yours? James  Have you ever wondered what “Better in Stereo” means? No Do you sing into your hairbrush? No Green or red? Both Forgiveness or revenge? Forgiveness Do you wish on stars? Yeah Do you enjoy editing videos? No  Do you enjoy editing photos? No What photo editing site do you use, if any? None. Do you have Photoshop? No  Do you use iMovie? Nope. What is something you enjoy doing? Writing  Do you pray a lot? No Do you cry out to God in desperation frequently? Nope. Does your make-up stay on when you cry? I don’t know  Do you want to be friends with someone who doesn’t feel the same? I don’t know  If you had a twin sister, what would she be named? What is your birth order in the family? I’m the oldest. If you gave birth, do you think you would want it filmed? No  Are you a woman? Yeah Do you have too much clutter? Here and there Have you ever been to a counselor, and if yes, was it a good experience? Yeah Do you think it’s better to talk to a counselor or talk to a friend? Friend What is one thing you are really good at? Writing  What did you go to college for? Do you want to go back to school for something else? If yes, what? No  What would your dream job be? Author  Are you happy today? I’m alright  Favorite emoji? The heart eyes one  Best word to describe you? Weird  Is your life a nightmare or a dream come true? Its fine