#what really is love?

[earthwormspaghetti]

Now that the Sherlock Holmes stories have become public domain, I’d like to add my own thoughts on the “are they in love?” discourse.

I’ve been a fan of the books for absolutely years, and have reread them all countless times. One thing I noticed is how many people note on the way Holmes treats his roommate (aaaand here come the “and they were roommates” jokes) Watson, which is with great affection, even frequently calling him “my dear” and trusting him enough to help with his independent investigative works, which he would normally do alone.

Watson also describes Holmes affectionately, quite enjoying his company and considering him an amazing friend.

Whether Watson’s thoughts about Holmes are platonic or romantic, we may never know. He married in one of the accounts he wrote, and still considered Sherlock a great comrade.

Sherlock’s feelings towards him, however, are quite complicated. On one hand, he seems to adore Watson with all of his heart and soul, but on the other, one must observe his outlook towards other things he likes.

Firstly, the thrill of the hunt. In “A Study In Scarlet”, he is compared to a foxhound sniffing for clues, ever-exited to learn more about a difficult case when he cracks it. His happiness knows no bounds when mulling over a difficult case.

Secondly, his love for the fiddle and music itself. He is said to be and avid player of the violin, playing tunes based on his fancy at the moment, be it sad and slow or jaunty and fast.

Thirdly, his love of the scientific arts. His adoration of new things to learn and experiments to be solved makes him act like a child in a candy shop. Also in A Study In Scarlet (where a lot of the things he enjoys are described while Watson gets to know Holmes better):

I probably will explain this pretty badly, but what I can see is that Mr. Holmes shows massive love towards things that make him happy. He’s described as being rather emotionally distant towards other, less important things, but he loves the things he holds dear with all his heart.

Such a level of adoration towards something you like is a beautiful thing to see, of course, but that also applies to people in his life. He loves Watson, with all of his heart. Same as he feels love towards doing something fun, same as he loves expressing his feeling on the violin, same as when he finally works out a difficult experiment.

This is a man who gives all his heart and soul towards the things he holds dear, and I think that such a rare thing is far more beautiful than simple attraction. To love a friend so much that you would trust them with your life, as Holmes definitely has, to share your home with them and respect their privacy with pleasure, to hold their hand in the dark to guide them so they don’t get hurt.

This is love that brings tears to the eyes, that prevails through years and years and still stays strong. This is love for the little and big things in life, because the only things that matter are the things that you refuse to hate. Because life only lasts for so long, but a love like this is eternal, even though the lover and loved may be long dead and forgotten.

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

License to Kitty.

[carouselcometh]

Devastating! Art museum gift shop doesn’t sell prints of specific and unpopular painting that struck a cord with you!

[sunbloomdew]

do you ever see a person and you are overcome with incredible fondness? and you just think "oh." but not in a romantic or sexual way you are just filled with warmth and it makes you happy, it just does. and you think "i'm so happy you exist. i'm happy you are somewhere out there in the world, doing your thing". it's love but also not entirely

like people are lovely and i feel it in my entire chest like a burning candle that smells like roses and a sunny day

[jell-o101]

I'm ignoring the part of the internet who is going "Oh no" at this.

BUT OMG BOWSER YOU HOPELESS ROMANTIC. YOU LOVE PEACH NO MATTER WHAT SHE TURNS INTO BAHAHAHAHAHAHAH

Bowser really is the type to love you if you became a worm lol

[jei-rifni]

Need I say more

[no-face-no-shame]

Locking in seconds before doing the most insane thing possible

[nouverx]

*proceeds to drink the whole bottle*

Yeah Alastor you're gonna be loved and appreciated wether you want it or not :)

[adriles]

when we’re done with our overwhelming grief we’ll eat i guess

[herd-reject-arts]

So I'm leaving work and something darts in front of me, maybe 10ft away, too fast for me to see what it is. Peek around the tree blocking my path and I see this

Just like... a whole ass hawk. Dude's gotta be about 1.5ft tall. Massive fucking bird. And it's just staring me straight in my soul like this, even as I try to move ahead. It didn't budge. And there's only this path back to my car unless I want to walk on a busy highway. So I have the option of Death By Raptor or Death By Truck.

So I walk in the poison ivy filled patch off the sidewalk. Guy still isn't moving. Still staring me directly in the eyes. And I do this thing when animals are behaving strangely where I'll talk to them, so I'm just like, "Hey, man. I don't know you. You don't know me. This feels really threatening. I'm just trying to get to my car, dude. Can I get some space please? You're a big fucking bird. I see those claws. You could kill me right now, but I'd appreciate if you didn't, ok?"

It didn't move until I was about 2ft away. Again: I'm as far from it as I can be without walking into the street. It clearly wasn't going to budge. I walk past, thing flies up (silent, btw. Scary) and lands on a brick wall a little further ahead

Anyway. Weird guy. Nearly shit my pants when I noticed a bird big enough to carry off a fully grown cat was just... there, staring me in the face, unwilling to move away from me, a human, something it should see as a threat. I watched behind me the whole rest of the way to my car, just in case this bird decided to help me shed this mortal coil. 10/10 experience. Super cool guy.

[coolerdracula]

saying “visual style" because, for example, if you would swap your current wardrobe for an identical, ethically made counterpart, there would be no visible change

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

Expertise can't help you here.

[quirinah]

she dun on my geon till i meshi

[ronanlynchbf]

tshirt that says NO LIVE ORGANISM CAN CONTINUE FOR LONG TO EXIST SANELY UNDER CONDITIONS OF ABSOLUTE REALITY

[inkskinned]

in internet posts it is easy to cut them out of your life. they are hurting you! they aren't listening to you!

they held your hair back. they lent you lipstick. they held your hand at the train station and got you home safe. they rounded on your bully, got loud, said get fucked, spitting-mad in your defense.

they also cut the hair off again. told you that you should really think twice before wearing something like that. took you for granted. took your insecurities and threw them in your face again.

you know logically it should be easy. all the internet advice comments always read it will feel better. like an equation - if a person is rotten, you just remove them. you pull the tooth that's hurting.

but it was never a big flare-up moment. you don't live in a sitcom. they never tried to take your boyfriend or steal from your apartment. they showed up to birthdays and they wrote songs about you and bring you water without you asking. once you found out they carry an emergency inhaler for you, even though you haven't had an asthma attack in years - just in case.

where is the line? people fuck up. sometimes they fuck up badly. sometimes people have raw personalities, like a powerline, and being around them is dangerous. addicting. sometimes they can't help themselves, but you know they're trying. sometimes they are just rough-around-the-edges. sometimes they don't even realize how they sounded when they said that. sometimes it's just - you've both loved each other for so long now, the way this thing hurts goes back to the root.

and that's the fucked up part. you have pushed your fingers against the sweetheart of memory. things these days are electric, tense, harrowing. they didn't used to be. there were a lot of good days in there. sometimes you want to just close your eyes and say can this be over yet? do we still need to be fighting?

doing that would give up any chance you get of getting an apology, but you don't always know that you need an apology, you love them. once they flaked on your birthday party. once they told you to get over it, people are always dying. they also let you crash on their couch for a week after the breakup, handfeeding you when you were so sad you couldn't eat. they are also judgmental about everything, occasionally react to banal statements with an attitude that is weird and fiery. they also love you like a lighthouse sometimes, so strong they cut the storm like lightning.

but the problem is that you might be storm. you might be the thing that needs breaking. what if you are two forces who are desperately, horribly drawn to each other, shaped by the other person's passions, and both good for each other and bad in equal measure.

what if you're both just people, and you're no saint neither.

just cut them off! swallowing the saltwater, you catch yourself in the mirror. you've been shaking more than usual. there's an ache in you that is oblique, loud, impossible to soothe. is this what it looks like? when life is "easier"?

your mouth will always have a hole, is the thing, if you remove the tooth.

[chloesimaginationthings]

The tragedy of being William Afton’s daughter in FNAF..