#(I'm not here to take my villains and blame others for their actions. Other people may have contributed to their behavior)

[brucewaynehater101]

i'm gonna be real idk if your the right person to go for young justice core four headcanons but you give the best replies by far so heres my own idea idea

I was listening to the Roblox Soundfont remix and now the og Gone Angels and now I'm thinking . . .

Tim became Robin to prevent Batman from ceasing to be the symbol of heroism and good he started off as

The symbol that spiraled into destruction of even the self with Jason Todd's death

imagine a world where Red Robin becomes the very thing he swore to destroy with his own death

he dies along with Bart and Kon. Cassie due to this and maybe other factors fucking looses it, Batman post-Jason's death but pre-Tim becoming Robin style

or maybe instead he dies but the rest of the core four lives. either way Cassie still looses it, by herself or with her other teammates

And maybe, just maybe, they get nobody to be the Third Robin to their Batman, no Third Robin to Tim's Second Robin

likely improbably in canon but the idea of Cassie and maybe even Bart and Kon having a villain arc (maybe Black Silence style) is too good of an idea not to share

(Side note; imagine a Gone Angels cover where the survivor(s) sing and for the itallian lyrics in the midway point the deceased sing)

((extra side note: imagine this is what gets Batman and maybe the other Bats to reflect on the time before and after Tim become robin, post Jason's death; seeing their history repeat with Young Justice))

((hell maybe the Justice League realizes as wells))

"you give the best replies by far." Thank you. Sometimes, it takes a bit to reply to asks cause I'm taking a few hours to really answer the prompts/ideas/questions people pose. I also sleep at random times, so apologizes in advance to any asks that take a while!

My image of YJ is a codependent platonic polycule. They are Young Just Us because they didn't receive proper support from their mentors. This is part of why Cassie and Tim fell apart after Kon and Bart died. This is why, in their own weird ways, both of them tried to get a form of Kon back. Tim tried the scientist cloning avenue, and Cassie tried the cult.

If you want Tim's death to inspire Cassie and YJ to go evil, might I suggest Tim sending proof of Bruce being alive in the timestream and then succumbing to his spleen injury (perhaps an infection)? This would create a delicious amount of angst, anger, and mental breakdowns.

Cassie, the only nonretired YJ member alive at the time, didn't believe Tim about Bruce being alive. This was in part due to the cloning stuff but also in part to trusting Nightwing (or Batman at the time). If Tim didn't make it out of that alive, Cassie may be desperate to find anyone to blame but herself for that. She was a kid, she was lost in her own grief, and Tim should have had the support of literally any other hero.

The entire hero community turned against a teenager in his time of need that he resorted to conspiring with the LoA and ended up losing his life. Whether she chooses to be mad about nobody believing him (Tim's possibly a better detective than Bruce and people have revived before, but his evidence at the time was flimsy), she can be very pissed that not a single hero offered to help him. They didn't even need to trust in Tim's decision. They could have just accompanied Tim until the teen gave up or proved himself right. They could have treated it as a grief road trip while Tim found himself.

Anyways, losing the last nonretired YJ member that way may cause her to just snap. The JL was already on thin ice with the YJ for their lack of support to her generation of heroes. Them failing YJ enough that two children died in the field and one died as a direct result of their actions? She would, rightfully, loathe the JL. On top of that, she does already not trust the government for what they did to Secret. If she can't prosecute the JL, she'll become their enemy.

Cassie lost all of her main polycule. She wants revenge.

After Bart and Kon come back, they see how JL left Cassie and what they did to Tim. Cassie is part of their ride or die, and she has been treated so horribly. Tim has died. They obviously join her.

Now, with Bart there to give evil ideas (Bart is the scariest member of YJ and you can't convince me otherwise), YJ is a force to be reckoned with. Maybe some of the other members come out of retirement, maybe not. They would be unstoppable with Tim helping them, but that's the problem. They don't have Tim. Tim isn't there to help them nor hold them back. That's why they became "evil" anyway.

I like to imagine someone, probably Nightwing, screaming at them from across the battlefield. "This isn't what he would have wanted! He became Robin to stop Batman from destroying everything. This is the antithesis of why he became a hero!"

For a split second, YJ would pause. There's merit in those words, after all. Cassie would recover first as she shakes her head. "He became a hero to be the leash to Batman's rage. He's not here now. He's not here to temper our rage, and you did that. You abandoned a child." She plants her feet more firmly and points her sword at Nightwing. "We won't let you do that again."

It's dealers choice on whether YJ win the battle or not. Also, I do believe YJ would be obsessed with trying to bring Tim back. Perhaps some of their evil deeds truly stem from them trying to find ways to bring back Tim. They are incomplete without him just as they were incomplete without Kon or Bart and would be without Cassie.

Now, is Tim actually alive or does he stay dead? Did Ra's revive him using the Pit? Did Ra's lie or misguide the Bats while keeping Tim hostage? Will Tim come back, either after being brainwashed by Ra's or escaping, to find his platonic polycule has officially lost it and turned evil?

#cassie sandsmark #dc comics #dc universe #young justice #young just us #let yj be evil #tim drake #bart allen #kon el superboy #thank you for the ask!!!! #yj can and should take over the world for the greater good

[emilybeemartin]

A whopping, like, 2.6 people have expressed interest in my recent adventures in watching Bean films, which is all the encouragement I need to present to you:

An Incomplete Guide to Sean Bean Roles (Investigation Ongoing)

Our guy has a vast filmography, and I'm not even close to being halfway through it, but I've watched a lot of his significant ones in the past few weeks thanks to a perfect storm of illness, injury, and lapses in client work. Crucially, I have created superlatives for a variety of them and present them here for your benefit. Disclaimer: many of these films are violent! Or have butts and/or tits! Some have dick! Some have dated bits that didn't age well! So, if you have triggers or are watching with young viewers, do your research first! Also, these are just the opinions of one solitary millennial! Nothing is objective! Nothing is real! I care not!

Okay, CYA done, let's begin. I'll get the two most obvious ones out of the way up front, otherwise they'll dominate half the categories:

ACT I

Greatest Bean: Fellowship of the Ring. I've said it before and I'll say it again, he achieved more pathos with Boromir than a lot of his other roles have allowed for, and every note he hits just sings. No debate.

Best Bean for Your Buck: Sharpe. For the best confluence of quantity, quality, physicality, emotion, humor, and action, you can't beat Richard Sharpe.

Favorite Dramatic Bean: Time; he earned that BAFTA fr

Softest Bean: The first date scene in Stormy Monday, where Brendan shyly gets to know Kate, slow dances with her, lends her a shirt and strokes her back after she asks if they can just go to sleep instead of have sex.

Most Dashing Bean: Vronsky in Anna Karenina, that uniform cuts, damn

Swooniest Bean: I know I'm supposed to say Chatterley, and he is undeniably sexy as Mellors, but there are parts where his character is actually kind of off-putting. I'll lay a good chunk of the blame on the weirdly ominous score, the very of-the-time depiction of dubious consent, and Joely Richardson's tendency to look like she's having the worst time of her life while shagging the hot gamekeeper. No, I'm giving this category to Stormy Monday again. He's just so gentle and genuine in this one, without some of the obligatory "heartthrob" overtones of his nineties stuff. He never raises his voice at Kate or manhandles her. He really does feel like some kid who just wants to be sweet to his girlfriend.

Laddiest Bean: When Saturday Comes, specifically the strip club and bathtub scenes.

Favorite Sad Bean: As a collective, he has some great grief scenes in World on Fire, but! The railroad track scene in When Saturday Comes?! That was RAW.

Favorite Mad Bean: Black Death; there are plenty of movies where he doesn't smile at all, but unlike some others, his grimness and anger felt proportionate to the story, rather than just rage because he's good at rage.

Favorite Bad Bean: There are so many great Bean villains (Goldeneye, obvs), but I think my favorite is Patriot Games. Bonus points for all the different hairstyles he has in this film (long locks-shag-shag ponytail!-buzz-wet spiky buzz). Also HUGH FRASER AAAA

Favorite Dad Bean: Wolfwalkers, where Bill Goodfellowe literally turns his own convictions and beliefs upside-down in order to protect and support his daughter.

INTERMISSION

A note on GoT: I haven't watched it. When season one was first coming out, it was during a time where I really couldn't handle watching any kind of sexual assault onscreen, and while I have a higher tolerance now, I just... don't want to. I like seeing gifs of Ned Stark and appreciate that it's one of his great roles, but I just can't make myself take the plunge.

ilysm you grizzled dead wolf man

ACT II

Favorite Costumed Bean: Odysseus in Troy: curls, leather, thighs.

Favorite Un-Costumed Bean: He strips in quite a lot of his films, so let's give it to Lady Chatterley for sheer screentime, exertion, and the bonus of being naked and wearing a flower crown. Honorable mention to When Saturday Comes for the totally not homoerotic amount of butts and also dick in the locker room bathtub scene.

Hurtin'est Bean: Bravo Two Zero. Oof, don't watch this one if you have an aversion to seeing pain, although---you're a Sean Bean fan, and we all know one of his MOs is being GREAT at pain. This one was directed by Tom Clegg, who directed Sharpe. Also lol at the sickle-shaped wound on his shoulder, which is covering his 100% Blade tattoo (he gets a lot of sickle-shaped wounds on his left shoulder).

Best Inside References: The Frankenstein Chronicles, where he plays a former Peninsular soldier, and every reference to his service is a reference to Sharpe, including shots of his greenjacket, pistol, sword, and flogging scars. Honorable mention to The Martian for the Council of Elrond line.

Most Unsettling Bean: Cleanskin for moral grayness, The Frankenstein Chronicles for body horror

Most Inefficient Use of Bean: Black Beauty. Despite getting high billing he's only onscreen for about two minutes and I'm convinced the long shots are a body double. Criminal.

Biggest Missed Opportunity: We were robbed of a Sean Bean Odyssey. R o b b e d

Funniest Bean: Deploying Bean for comedy is woefully underused, but he made full use of his ~15 seconds in The Vicar of Dibley ("Spring" episode). He's also hilarious in Wasted, though I haven't watched the show, only the clips he's in on YouTube, where he plays a mock version of himself serving as a spirit guide for a stoner. IMO, though, Sharpe gives him the most room for humor.

Favorite Character Quirk: In World on Fire, when Douglas is having WWI flashbacks and really coming apart, he kept putting his hand to his mouth. My modern brain first read this as talking into a phantom radio, but of course that wasn't right, and then I realized--he was reaching for a phantom gas mask. CHILLS. AMAZING. (Honorable mentions to the Mouth Rub and the Tongue Thing [pictured above]).

Most Nostalgic Bean: National Treasure. The concept may be utter silliness, but you have to admit, this is a fun movie to watch.

Best Dismount from a Horse: Henry VIII, he goes pshwing out of the saddle

Best Swordplay: You may think there's no possible answer to this, but there is---two moments, specifically: the preparatory sword-spin he does at Balin's tomb just before the goblin attack in Moria, and the four lunges he does at 1:26:22 of Sharpe's Battle. It's just facts.

Prettiest Bean Film: Wolfwalkers, hands downnnn

Favorite Bean Death: All right, you knew we had to eventually end here. It's Boromir, obviously--- nothing tops that. But if we're looking at other roles, I think Patriot Games is my favorite, followed by Goldeneye.

So! That concludes this installment of Bean films, though I'll be continuing the labor, and I hope you will, too. What are your favorites?

#sean bean #fellowship of the ring #lord of the rings #sharpe #stormy monday #lady chatterley #patriot games #world on fire #goldeneye #bravo two zero #troy #wolfwalkers #black death #national treasure #anna karenina #time #gifs #flashing gifs

[spirantization]

"Wild Blue Yonder" dealt with some of the emotional fallout of the Flux, so I want to rewind a bit and look at what that means for the Doctor.

I know that the Timeless Child and the Flux are contentious topics. I'm not here to argue either way. But now those storylines have decisively not been retconned, and with both of these fresh in my memory, I feel the need to offer some context for anyone who may not have seen it, and to recontextualize it for myself and anyone who has.

NotDonna: You don't know where you're from. The Doctor: How do you know that? How does anyone know? How does Donna know?

In "The Timeless Children", we find out that the Doctor was discovered as a child alone under a wormhole, and adopted by a woman named Tecteun. There was an accident where the Doctor fell from a cliff and regenerated, and subsequently Tecteun performed "experiments" on them to try to understand regeneration. The show minces words about this but she killed a child a whole bunch of times is what happened. Her experiments created the Time Lords and allow them to engineer their regeneration properties. The Doctor has no memory of any of this, and only finds out via the Master and information stored in the Time Lord Matrix.

The Doctor, predictably, doesn't tell anyone about this revelation. She makes a speech to the Master about how this makes her more, we get a single shot of her looking a bit tired in the TARDIS, then she immediately gets thrown in prison.

Ultimately, the Doctor doesn't know where they're from or who their parents are. And the very fact that they're not from Gallifrey is information that no one in the universe should have. Everyone who knew is now dead.

NotDonna: I saw it in your head. The Flux. The Doctor: It destroyed half the universe because of me. We stand here now, on the edge of creation, a creation which I devastated, so yes I keep running, of course I do! How am I supposed to look back on that? NotDonna: It wasn't your fault! The Doctor: I know!

A fun fact about the Flux is that the Doctor did not cause it. So why does he blame himself? Because the person who caused the Flux was Tecteun.

The reason why Tecteun wanted to destroy the universe is because the Doctor interfered with things too much. Too much morality. Too inspirational to people. She calls them a virus. So her solution to the problem of the Doctor is to destroy the universe, with the Doctor inside, and take her ship to a different universe to start fresh. She also was the one to steal all the Doctor's memories of previous lives in the first place. She's dismissive and patronizing and clearly does not care about the Doctor on an emotional level at all. Tecteun is a piece of work, and the implications of her actions and how they've shaped the Doctor have the potential to go deep.

Thirteen doesn't get too much of a chance to react to any of this, because there is plot going on. And shortly after they reunite, Tecteun gets killed by a different villain. So there was no emotional closure in the moment, and there's now no possibility for the Doctor to make sense of her actions. The Doctor does not tell any of her friends about any of these events. She keeps promising to tell Yaz but does not.

"Wild Blue Yonder" is the first time we, as the audience, hear the Doctor discuss the Flux. And their perception of events is skewed at best. The Flux wasn't caused because the Doctor made a mistake and a lot of people were killed, which is what you can argue for many other situations. The Flux and the devastation of the universe was caused by their mother, who promptly turned around and told them it was their fault for being such an interfering nuisance. We know that the Doctor is often an unreliable narrator, but this is beyond that. These are the words of an abused child who has internalized the narrative that the abuse was their fault.

So the Doctor being able to talk about this with Donna, who has seen what happened, who knows him, and tells him that it's not his fault — it means so much to him. He wants it to be her so badly. And then NotDonna laughs in his face. You can see the devastation. He thinks for one moment that he can finally talk about this with his best friend, and it's snatched away from him. He gives himself a moment to break down in the corridor, and then you can see the walls rebuilding as he suppresses it all again.

At the very end of the episode, back in the TARDIS, he's trying very very hard to be nonchalant. I'm curious. The NotDonna could remember all these things that happened to me while we were apart. Can you? Just wondering. Things happened, but I'll be fine. In a million years. It's not a joke.

He wants so badly to be able to talk about this. You can see it in all the lines of his body language. He's keeping himself together but is prepared to fall apart in an instant. He doesn't want to actually tell anyone, but if Donna just magically knew already, and could tell him it wasn't his fault — well, that would make the world of difference. But she doesn't know, and he can't bring himself to tell her. And so the cycle continues.

#doctor who #dw spoilers #wild blue yonder #the flux

[night-market-if]

Spoiler Ask

So I'm going to address it all here under the cut because I've gotten a few asks in that are pretty similar and I'm sure I'm going to get more. So I thought instead of answering the same thing over and over, I'd just do a response below. Warning, spoilers for the end of book 1.

Full disclosure. I am sick. We are going through a lot of family things at the moment. My patience is probably thin.

For everyone that says MC is already too forgiving of Milo. Milo has not even come into the story yet. You've only observed memories of him. If you feel like you need an inner dialogue to tell you how angry you are over this "betrayal" or "death", I don't know what to say here. Because MC is literally just observing things at the moment. Any options that have been put forth to comment on Milo and what has happened, have been more to lay ground work and to also give a scope of the type of emotions that will be offered in the game. But literally, Milo has not even shown up yet into the story in a real capacity. So please stop sending me asks about how you are upset that MC has "forgiven" him because there has literally been no real interaction between Milo and the MC.

As for this betrayal and death thing. I am going to state this now for those who aren't going to like where my story is going so you don't need to read if you don't want to. As the Night Market, you knew you were going to die. You gladly came down and wanted to experience death. You looked at what Milo (a non magic user) was doing, and said "hey, this would be a cool experience" and then you came down here. So, yes, you are going to feel the full range of emotions that come with it. But you are also going to need to take some personal accountability for your actions. That is what is going to be explored in this book. An entity that didn't realize what emotion actually meant, came down thinking it wasn't going to be a big deal to die, and it turned out it was a big deal. A big fucking deal, in fact and that by doing so, they actually hurt people they loved. So, don't forgive Milo. I'm not forcing anyone to. But, I will not be writing an MC that puts all the blame on him. Because guess what? The Night Market would have died if he didn't do what he did. So, everyone also saying that he killed the MC? No, he literally saved the MC and billions of people. And I don't care what way you spin it? One person is never worth a billion souls. And with the MC being someone that literally cut themselves open over and over again to save most of the people living within the world, I would think they would probably not be too keen on Milo sacrificing them so they could die together in some bullshit Romeo and Juliet act.

Now, I am all for exploring how an MC comes to terms with the feeling of betrayal along with the feeling of needing to take responsibility. I am all for exploring an MC that goes "holy shit this emotion thing is way bigger than I thought and I'm angry and confused". I'm there for it. I'm excited to write it. But, I will not be writing a willfully ignorant MC that doesn't take into account that they did this to themselves as well. And yes, if you choose to not acknowledge it in game, others are going to acknowledge it for you. If you want to not read because you can't become a villain, rock back and forth in a corner and weep, or violently get mad at someone who saved the world? That's cool. I'm not offended by someone not reading it. Anyone coming into my ask box and saying "I just am not going to read now because you aren't doing xyz" I wish you a good night and hope you find something else for you because there are thousands of stories out there.

I am not interested. Nor will I ever be interested. In writing a story where I add to the plague of ignorance that is this world. Aren't we kind of all struggling enough with that in our own lives? MC is a being of compassion. They will always be a being of compassion. That is going to shift and change based on circumstances and there are going to be moments where that compassion can fall into question. When it comes to Milo, it is going to be a messy bit of confusing emotions because there is so much more than just the black and white strokes of "OMG he killed me" that seemed to be the rhetoric on here. Now, you don't want his character around? Alright. Other than when you have to see him for Gatekeeper purposes, you probably won't.

To all of you guys complaining or sending me ask after ask stating how you don't like what I am doing. I am going to tell you this and it will not ever change. If you don't like reading this, then don't read. I am not here to write a story for you specifically. You don't like the direction of a work and can't ever broaden your scope of fiction to give it a shot? Then please don't. But to have this kind of messages coming through when literally we are a chapter in? Seriously. The instant gratification is bullshit. I'm going to suspect this is coming from the younger half of my audience who is way too accustomed to a confirmation bias internet algorithm and who has had a very small scope of real life. This is of course not all of the younger crowd but it's starting to seem like a pretty good amount.

I love having conversations with everyone. My discord is always open but most of you anons hide because you are far too scared to come at me with your user name or engage in a conversation feed where more than just me can answer. I mean, you guys send me asks, citing others user names, to call them out through me. It's laughable at this point.

I love having discourse with all of you but I'm not going to keep answering the same thing over and over again and justifying my work when it doesn't need to be justified. This is a small little bit of fiction in a vast sea.

If I sound pissed, it's because I am at this point. And I'm sure I'll get more asks in that are stating they are jumping ship or that they are disappointed in me or what not. I'll delete them and move on with my evening.

To all of you who are here for the ride and just want to experience what I'm writing? Thank you. Fiction is just meant to be a form of entertainment. I am not writing anything profound. To anyone that is looking for something more, move on. I'll see everyone who wants to get mad or saying I'm too harsh, in my inbox, I am sure. Thank god you can block anons.

#the night market #interactive fiction #answering your asks #writers rant #i'm done with this shit guys

[atlasdoe]

hello, i am bored. here are some unpopular opinions that may very well get me cancelled if i posted this on tiktok

do not read if you know youre going to get mad if i say something you disagree with

the over feminisation and over-aggressive characterisations of sirius and remus are so left field it makes my eye twitch. like if you wanna write them like that then fine but don't tell me that one scene of sirius wearing something nice and one scene of remus throwing harry up a wall (while he's in the middle of like a twenty year war with all of his friends dead mind you) means that they were as people are interpreting them in cannon

the fandom isn't misogynistic. you just want everyone to care about the same characters the way you do despite the fact that very little of them (especially the girls really besides lily and the black sisters) have any character/story to care about to begin with

on that same note, it is not wolfstar and jegulus' shippers job to write dorlene and marylily fics. there are over 6000 fics tagged under dorlene and over 2000 for marylily which is really impressive and a really big number for ships containing two people who don't have any connection to one another

we cannot blame every death on dumbledore. dumbledore was manipulative and not a very good person but he wasn't out here deliberately getting all the people on his side killed

this fandom is obsessed with tragedy so much that tragedy has now become repetitive and boring. i love a good sad story but what is the point in taking every single character and making them live the worst life possible. its like yall are only capable in caring for a character if they have literally the worst ending ever

the marauders weren't child soldiers. They were young but they weren't children.

on the same note just because barty, evan and peter (and any other death eater) was young does not excuse them of their actions. I'm 20 and I know that i wouldn't betray all of my friends or help torture new parents into insanity

deciding that pandora somehow had to be a part of a death eater family was the worst thing this fandom did to her character

it pisses me off when the fandom will bend over backwards to try to connect the same 12 characters to every headcannon imaginable when there are so many other characters that you could use

despite this tho i hate the whole "ravenpuff" thing. As someone who actually cares about Emmeline, Edgar, Fabian, Gideon, Amelia, Benjy, Caradoc and all of that it annoys me to no end when the only time people post about them is to shove them all into the two least cared about houses and decides that they were all friends while giving them the most uncreative name out there. if you dont care about them then dont post about them

marlene is the most overrated character in the fandom

james and marlene being childhood best friends is my least favourite headcannon

mary obliviating herself is the worst headcannon

remus lupin is a bottom

sirius black is tall

marlene being in ravenclaw > marlene being in gryffindor

this fandom really needs to remember that barty and evan were villains. if you like them then that's completely fine but stop trying to make them secretly good

i can only ship sirius with remus but i can ship remus with literally anyone (so long as they are actually his age or older. for some reason i cant ship remus with people who are over a year younger then him)

i dont think its fair to say that if you like regulus then you cant shit on snape stans but it is utterly unfair to stan barty and evan but shit on snape stans

fancasting and commenting on normal peoples tiktoks is stupid and embarrassing. we are HATED by other fandoms and is it because we are unable to stay in our lane. stop getting into other peoples buisness by commenting "REMUS LUPIN" under a Spiderman edit

james would not have stopped talking to sirius after the prank. He'd be mad at him and he'd tell him off but he wouldn't stop talking to him. If James had to pick between Sirius and anyone he's picking Sirius

on that note i think the only people who weren't talking to sirius after the prank was remus and lily. mostly because i dont think anyone other then the marauders and lily would even have known that remus was a werewolf at the time

ALSO evan, barty and regulus would not befriend remus after the prank. firstly they wouldnt care and even if they did they would be more likely to abuse the fact that they know about him being a werewolf

im sick of seeing people try to shame others for shipping wolfstar but not marylily because "theyre the same ship." theyre literally not. just because YOU hc mary and lily to have a similar dynamic as remus and sirius doesnt mean that theyre the same and doesnt mean that everyone else should think so to. Same with literally every other ship that gets compared to another based on headcannons

this is getting really long so imma leave it there

#i originally was going to write massive paragraphs explaining my points #but then i realised that no one would read them #so if you want an explination ill give you one if you ask nicely #also please excuse my bad and inconsistent grammer im lazy #the marauders #harry potter #the marauders era #wolfstar #jegulus #james potter #remus lupin #regulus black #sirius black #marlene mckinnon #marylily #dorlene #lily evans #evan rosier #barty crouch jr #rosekiller #pandora lovegood

[readychilledwine]

do you ever feel awkward writing for Eris? I saw your poll about doing an SJM bad guys week, so I'm guessing not.

Warning - This is going to become SJM critical. Please know I am not anti any of these characters. I am, however, critical of SJM as a long-time fantasy reader.

You answered your own question in your ask there, friend.

I do not have issues writing for Eris. The main issue the fandom has with him is the situation with Mor, and here's my stance on that:

We have an issue with the timeline around this incident, so I will make my judgement call when SJM does her eventual retcon and fixes it.

We know Eris is younger than Mor and Rhys, who are around the same age. Mor was sold to Autumn as Eris's bride at the tender age of 17. When Helion is giving us his gorgeous monolog talking about his love for Momma Autumn, we find out that she and Beron were married young and had barely been married for two decades around the start of the first war. Meaning Eris was around 19 at the time.

This passage from Rhys is a little hazy and unclear, but from how I and several other people took it, he was around 28 at the start of that war, meaning Mor was also around 27 to 28. That makes Mor at least 8 to 9 years older than Eris. Meaning, he potentially was a LITERAL child when he and Mor were engaged. He would have been around the age of 7 to 9 and already had the mindset to fear Beron.

This where I am going to look SJM critical. She is great at a few things, creating plotholes by retconing, and fucking up timelines due to her retconing.

Let's say she retcons to correct that issue. We still know Eris is younger than Mor by a year or two. So, let's say he was 15 to 16. At 15 to 16 years old, I want you to think about what you would have done in this situation:

You are a young prince or princess. Your father is a known abuser and racist. You all have just found out your betrothed has sullied themselves with a person your father considers below all of you, and you know it was done to get out of a marriage she did not want to be in. You and your men find her on the border of your father's court, beaten and with a nail in her womb. Here are your options:

1. You take her back to your father, the known racist and abuser. Thus making her, in reality, his problem. You have witnessed how your father likes to handle his problems. You also know he's angry and embarrassed this female made the choice to sleep with a lesser born bastard Illyrian over marry his high fae princeling.

2. You cannot risk touching her, so leave her somewhere her friends can find her without risking her or them having to enter Autumn. This will allow her to go home, where she is safe, and heal.

In both scenarios, Eris could not win. He either took Mor to his father and risked her death and was blamed for that, or he left her knowing her friends were more than likely coming and be blamed for that as well. He was now the villain in Mor's story regardless of what actions he took, and he was that villain as a teen. A literal child. As a child he picked to allow Morrigan life. To allow her to live without being trapped the way he and his mother are.

Eris, in theory, made a selfless choice. He made the choice to damn himself and his reputation for the sake of Mor and as he says, it cost him..

As for me being willing to write other SJM bad guys-

It is perfectly normal and acceptable in every other fandom to be attracted to the bad guys and to write dark fanfiction about them. You see it all time in Tolkien, Harry Potter, and (grossly since they are all children) it has resurged in the Percy Jackson fandom. Please have several seats and let me, and the several other people who are excited for it, enjoy my little story about Pollux, my reader, and his heavy cock that sways to and fro.

It's also, as someone pumping out the amount of content I am right now, really nice to get to write a dark fic with a villain here and there for a change of pace, so thank you to everyone who is supportive and open to me doing that.

#send anons #send asks #send questions #elizabeths.updates

[calliesmemes]

RANDOM DIALOGUE PROMPTS, ACT II

ASSORTED QUOTES FOUND IN FILMS, TELEVISIONS, MUSIC, AND LITERATURE.

CHANGE gendered words as needed.

SPECIFY muse for multimuses.

“   A great force is asleep in you. ”

“   All I ever think about is you. ”

“   All I ever wanted was to know what to do. ”

“   Am I a good man? ”

“   Are you going to kill me? ”

“   Becoming the villain isn’t the answer. ”

“   Can you prove it to me? ”

“   Did you really think that I would ever let you go? ”

“   Do you regret taking the vow? ”

“   It was like a switch was flipped. ”

“   Fear cuts deeper than swords ”

“   Forgiveness is different from absolution. ”

“   Have I explained away any part of my guilt? ”

“   Help me. Remind me why I am here. ”

“   How many have died because of my actions? ”

“   How often will you repent? ”

“   How strange this is! What is the meaning of it? ”

“   I appreciate your concern. ”

“   I am beyond repentance. ”

“   I am destroying myself so other people can’t. ”

“   I am doing no injury to anybody but myself. ”

“   I am nothing if not merciful. ”

“   I am so glad to see you! ”

“   I believe you are perfectly right. ”

“   I can’t help but give in. ”

“   I cannot agree with you there. ”

“   I doubt I will be pleasant company. ”

“   I doubt everything, even my doubt. ”

“   I feel as though I have been living a long, long time. ”

“   I fought so hard to free you… ”

“   I have betrayed everyone and everything I know. ”

“   I have survived, but I have not been spared. ”

“   I have this grief and I don’t know why. ”

“   I will do whatever you ask. ”

“   I will not be a caged bird. I will fly free. ”

“   I played my part in the plan. ”

“   I pledge myself to your teachings. ”

“   I’m like a collection of paradoxes. ”

“   I’m sorry you were not truly loved and that it made you cruel. ”

“   I’m not too gone to be healed, am I? ”

“   I'm not everything I want to be, but I'm more than I was, and I'm still learning. ”

“   I’m restless and harsh and hopeless. ”

“   I’ll do all that I can to make things right. ”

“   If I cannot be loved, I must be feared. ”

“   Is everyone in danger as long as I’m alive? ”

“   Is this fair? Is this just? ”

“   Is this what you wanted? ”

“   It ends as it began. ”

“   It would be impossible, I know. ”

“   It’s not my fault — I’m not to blame! ”

“   It’s been a long time since I’ve been me. ”

“   I’ve started this storm; gotta stop it somehow ”

“   Money can only give happiness where there is nothing else to give it. ”

“   My intentions were not always wrong. ”

“   None of this is your fault. It’s me and my head. ”

“   No harm will come to you! ”

“   Life is full of tough choices. ”

“   Please remove your blade from my throat. ”

“   Pity comes too late! ”

“   Save me from these evil deeds. ”

“   Sorry is not enough. Sometimes you actually have to change. ”

“   That behavior is quite inexcusable. ”

“   The end justifies the means. ”

“   The path of hate is a dangerous track. ”

“   This can only end one way. ”

“   This is why you never should’ve left. ”

“   There’s a revolution coming. ”

“   There’s trouble for all when there’s trouble for one. ”

“   They are not to be trusted. ”

“   What do you mean? ”

“   What is this fighting all about? ”

“   Where were you when I was still kind? ”

“   Why are they all trying to make me into a saint? ”

“   Why can’t you see me? ”

“   Would you like to punish those who wronged you? ”

“   You can’t trust a single thing I say. ”

“   You can’t run from this! ”

“   You changed me. You should remember me. ”

“   You did not mean to be cruel. That does not mean that you were kind. ”

“   You don’t have to make a sound. ”

“   You have been loyal to a greater cause. ”

“   You know what’s best for me. ”

“   You were born for this. ”

“   You’ll always be a slave. ”

“   Your offer is meaningless. ”

“   You’re the one that I need. ”

“   You’re not as brave as you may seem. ”

“   You’ve gone too far! ”

#askbox meme #askbox prompt #rp ask meme #roleplay sentence meme #sentence starters #ask box #roleplay prompts #roleplay sentence starters #* sentence meme

[beautifulpersonpeach]

Hello! Reading your comment about Gr@mmys, I thought of something that makes my head spin.

Was it what happened with J!m!n and F@CE that got us out of the OT7 utopia “seven exact and equal slices of the pie” for each member? I expected to see differences, problems or competitions during this stage but I feel that F@CE was a before and after, at least for me. Now, I could yell at my "me" from the last concert in Bus@n, how naive and overly positive I was being.

I understand the factors that made this reality. I don't know the internal agreements between them and their company. For me Jungk00k's debut only shed more light on topic (he's not the villain of the story, blaming him is just easy way out) Family = seven = equal. Wasn't that the driven narrative? From my place I see how the members go out of their way to demonstrate healthy competition among themselves but the label does not accompany them with their actions/decisions. Actions that make me see company as inexperienced. Did they really have no way to avoid these conflicts? Shouldn't they take care of every detail of career of the artists they represent?

This has nothing to do with the decisions of each member. Some armys force too much -members decide everything- speech and frankly to me it feels like a re-victimization and the removal of responsibility from their representatives. Even if we look at this as a team it seems like someone isn't doing their part. May I disagree? I'm a different person. If everyone says that BH is a great company, I will tell them that it should be even better. The company where my father works has often not fulfilled its duties as an employer, but he will tell you that it's the best job, and I proceed to respect it. Just like that i feel

Whose responsibility is it really that everything has gotten to this point? From company and its silences, from fandom that allowed solo stans to grow, from everyone? Is it just the natural course of things?

There is something in this chapter that gives me the feeling of improvisation. Or was I just too used to everything being calculated and perfect in the B/T/S world?

If you had to give a prognosis for the next chapter, what would it be?

***

“Family = seven = equal. Wasn't that the driven narrative?”

No, actually.

Listen, I hear you and I get you completely. OT7 literally means love the members equally right? And that’s the agenda the company has been pushing and should show right? Well, not exactly. What I’m about to say is going to be very unpopular, but it’s genuinely what I think.

People have a very narrow idea of how many things can look, and when they run up against a reality that looks very different from how they expected it, many people don’t know how to deal with that very well. And oftentimes what happens is that they turn to vilifying whoever they think is responsible for preventing them from getting that imagined outcome. It never once crosses their minds that maybe they had the wrong assumptions to begin with. It’s always the thought of maybe someone is gaslighting them, rather than, you know, maybe they were just wrong. For that context and for that group’s actual goals.

There’s one post I wrote a long time ago that I think made me fairly popular with Jimin biases here, it’s the one where I talk about some of the ways Jimin contributed to BTS that might not seem obvious at first. I prefaced that post by saying many in the fandom underestimate Jimin not because they dislike him or anything, but because they have a narrow idea of what ‘meaningful contribution’ looks like for a group like BTS. All I did in that post was point out things that perhaps were not framed in the right way to show how much Jimin contributes to BTS that’s more than songwriting, producing, or others. It’s the same thinking in recognizing that while SeokJin isn’t the strongest dancer or vocalist, he’s served as the stable emotional support in the group, he serves as the key hinge in maintaining the uniformity in their choreography, and that without him in the group, the members would certainly clash very destructively. It’s not ‘equal contribution’ in the way a lot of people envision, but I think it’s perfect for BTS.

Granted all I’ve said so far is in terms of contributions, not rewards which is what you’re talking about. You’re saying the company should facilitate things so that each member is meant to get equal rewards each time. Well, that would be dandy and possible for the company. Maybe. But it’s also not weird, bad, nor does is spell sabotage for a company to allocate different resources and use different strategies after consulting with the members for their direct input, and to pursue asymmetrical results for BTS at certain times. The understanding is each member prioritized will vary in different years and eras. And I’m personally looking forward to all of it. Since July 2022, all the members have put forward a good first step with their debuts. Jungkook is the member getting a solid push now and I love that it’s him. I’m secretly hoping he tours a bit too, maybe solo or with vmin, and maybe/not go to the military before 2025. Who knows?

A lot of things didn’t work right for all the members' debuts. Jimin’s performance was impacted by far too many though, and many were issues the company simply needs to get their shit together on. Period. BTS makes a shit tonne of money for that company and the least they could do is go the extra mile and then some. I’m convinced HYBE already does this for BTS (recall how HYBE navigated extracting BTS from that Jamboree concert disaster, though public opinion was also on their side), but they could always do more. And I won’t stop anyone from saying that.

But for anyone who thinks what they’ve seen so far is Jungkook / BTS / HYBE betraying their trust or going back on their principles or whatever, I want to say that they’ve done no such thing. This time around your bias wasn’t prioritized the way you wanted. That’s it. Am I being naive and delusional by thinking the guys are literally taking turns for this kind of focus? Possibly. But I also know there’s a Pharrell collab somewhere in the vault. Rina Sawayama too (her Le Sserafim remix is really good. Please listen to it). And that the guys have very grand plans. All of them. They’re focused and driven and will always get what they ultimately want. Every member is like this. They've put too much skin in the game to walk away for less.

Or lol, maybe I'm just being a company stan. I just hope it's clear I'm not dismissing your concern or care for Jimin, Anon, it's that I disagree with your conclusion. But I know I'm in the minority here anyway.

“Whose responsibility is it really that everything has gotten to this point? “

The fandom, mostly. For reasons that are very obvious. Such as most of the fandom claiming they actually like the whole group and trust their bias, but rather kinda see the other members as background characters for their bias. Fandom is like a pressure cooker, so nobody ever really stays 'normal' if they move too far off-center - people who heavily biases a member in an unhealthy way will never remain an ARMY, for example, they’ll eventually break off into fringe parts; people who dislike a member, only grow to further hate the member. Neutral is rare.

If BigHit wanted to make another try for a Grammy this year, Seven would’ve likely been envisioned with all the members as a project to pursue, because a win for any of them is considered a win for the group. Especially considering the competition this year. And given BH already had a formula with the PET, they went with that same mediocre candy floss of a song that’s guaranteed to get the nomination chances, as in the past. Experience has taught the company Korean tracks will likely not be given fair consideration soon. So they went with Seven. Also, after that Billboard hit piece, Jimin’s chances with Like Crazy are close to zilch. If by some miracle he gets recognition, I hope he wins. But yeah, that debacle with Jimin is one in which the fandom (meaning his akgaes, biases, and the wider/whole fandom) bears some blame. But at the same time, Billboard has never been a friend to BTS and they were likely going to change the rules again anyway. And that’s something they can keep doing.

"If you had to give a prognosis for the next chapter, what would it be?"

I have no real idea, tbh. What I want more than anything, is for all seven of them to be able to continue putting out dope, interesting music that they take joy in. Seeing Bangtan have fun has extended my life by several years I'm sure. That's what I want for them in the prognosis. I'm sorry I'm taking your ask about a serious topic and going all sentimental on it Anon, but rather than chart placements that they don't really need to prove, I want BTS to still be comfortable making the music they want to make. More Arson, Dis-ease, All Day, Change Pt 2, Snooze, HUH?!, Amygdala, Like Crazy, SMF Pt 2, Rainy Days, Seven, The Astronaut.

I hope the people who remain in the fandom core are able to last and tough it out while the fandom regroups. Because even though there'll be chaos and the number of solos will likely triple, they won't ever leave. Nobody who comes in contact with BTS ever really moves on from them. They'll say they're taking breaks, calling it quits or whatever, but give them 6 months tops and they're back. I see it happen all the time. And it makes sense tbh. I mean, have you seen Jimin? After knowing someone like him exists, how can you just go back to your regular life pretending he's not real? Like his existence doesn't mandate you looking at him and caring for him and his art. At least, that's how Jimin makes me feel. And the other members to varying degrees.

If we disagree please don't send me follow-up asks on this topic. It likely won't be productive.

#bts #jimin #jikook #jungkook #yoongi #hoseok #seokjin #taehyung #namjoon #bts chapter 2 #bts army #bts fandom #army fandom #fandom behaviour #bang pd #bangtan

[birgitte-on-fridays]

We need to stop fighting.

So I just joined tumblr (kind of, I've had this account for a while but I've never been active before. All that is beside the point though.) I knew tumblr was having some... issues but I really just needed to get off reddit for the sake of my own mental health.

Anyway, I got here and, pardon my language, what the fuck is happening?

I've seen posts by transfemmes accusing transmascs of being part of the mass reporting effort that got predstrogen banned. I've seen posts by transmascs accusing trasfemmes of not believing that transmascs suffer transandrophobia/transmisandry (I'm not entirely sure of the nuance in how the two terms differ.) It makes me really sad to see the community split like this, especially so soon after Nex Benedict's murder.

However, I haven't actually seen anything that would indicate that either transfemmes' or transmascs' fears about the other have any solid foundation. So why is this happening? I think I have an explanation. It's TERFs.

See, when I was first getting my bearings here on tumblr, I stumbled across a post from a TERF blog. I quickly blocked the blog, but I remember what it said well enough. As TERFs tend to do, the post infantalized transmascs and villainized transfemmes, insinuating that this recent infighting was caused by transmascs coming to some sort of realization that transfemmes are somehow tricking them into being trans. This is obviously super gross and transphobic, but more to the point, the blog was celebrating. The TERFs are happy about this conflict, which leads me to believe that they are the ones who created it in the first place.

I don't have any concrete proof for this, so feel free to call me crazy, but I'm going to walk you through my thought process:

predstrogen gets banned, TERFs see that the blame for her ban is largely being placed on them

They see an opportunity and start spreading rumors that transmascs were involved in the mass reporting of predstrogen’s account that led to her being banned from the platform

This leads to discussion among transmascs about transandrophobia

The TERFs again take advantage to make it look like transfemmes are deriding the idea of transandrophobia

The trans community becomes split, the TERFs are happy because they revel in our suffering

Now, for the sake of fairness, let’s say I’m wrong. TERFs had nothing to do with anything. There really were transmascs involved in predstrogen’s . There really were transfemmes harassing transmascs regarding transandrophobia. What does this change? Well, nothing.

These were the actions of individuals, and they are not representative of the groups they are a part of.

Okay, so this was a long post. I don’t have anything insightful to add here at the end. I’ll leave you with this message instead: be kind to each other. Understand that other people have had different experiences than you. Don’t allow yourself to close your little section of the community off from the rest because of the actions of a few individuals.

Oh, and if there are any TERFs still reading this, fuck off. You’re not welcome here.

#trans rights #transfem #transgender #trans #transmasc #transmisogyny #transandrophobia #transmisandry #lgbtq #i’m hoping to make some more lighthearted posts in the future lmao

[vbecker10]

Loki's Little Secret (Part 3 of 3)

Part 1 here / Part 2 here

Pairing: Loki x female reader

Warnings: fluff time (as promised)

Summary: You and Loki have been dating for three months and you've kept your relationship a secret from everyone... until now

Based on this Ask:

Dividers by @harlequin-hangout

(LOKI POV)

"Can we speak inside, please?" you ask hopefully and she nods in agreement.

She takes a step back and let's you go into the apartment first. You walk nervously to the couch and take a seat on one end. You look down at your hands and try to take a deep breath when Y/N chooses to sit at the opposite end of the couch. You can't blame her for being so distant after everything that happened but you wish she was closer.

"Loki," she says softly, putting her hand over yours gently. You hadn't realized you had begun rubbing your hands together again until she prevents you from doing it.

You look up at her and she says, "Please talk to me. I'm sorry I didn't listen to you before but I want to understand what happened."

You take another deep breath and begin to tell her what you should have told her when you first began dating. "I wanted to keep our relationship a secret in the hopes that anyone who meant to harm me would never think to come for you," you say.

Her hand squeezes yours lightly and you can't help but shift to sit closer to her. She moves a bit as well, closing the gap between you both. Every small action gives you hope that your relationship isn't completely lost.

You continue to explain, "As you know, the Avengers have an ever growing list of enemies both from Midgard and other worlds. Hydra and Midgardian criminals, Thanos and his army, dark elves from forgotten realms, anyone who has ever met Tony Stark."

She giggles lightly at your last example and although you are half joking you have to admit a disturbing number of people you have fought felt they had been wronged by Stark in some way. Her smile fades quickly as her eyes met yours, you can see worry replacing the brief moment of laughter. You continue to hold her hand tightly but move your other hand to brush a few loose strands of hair from her face. Your fingers brush against her ear softly as you tuck the hair away then you trail your fingers down her cheek. You let your hand fall slowly from her cheek, your eyes dropping to the hand that she is still holding.

"We are constantly being attacked and threatened as a group and as individuals for trying to protect this realm and I- I have more enemies then most," you tell her. "Fury and the Captain have made it clear to me that there are still many who see me as the villain who attacked this city. I will most likely never be able to change the opinions of those who lost loved ones during the Battle of New York, no matter how long I work with the Avengers. I am also painfully aware that there are several agents in SHIELD who feel as if I do not belong here. They do not trust me and would rather I had returned to Asgard. I imagine the only reason they do not express their disapproval of me more obviously is because of my brother and how much they value having him on the team." You hang your head knowing if it wasn't for Thor, you would never have been allowed to remain here. You would have been sent back to Asgard and the cell that awaited you there.

"I had no idea you were so worried about this Loki," she says quietly, letting go of your hand slowly as your heart sinks in response. "Why didn't you just talk to me?" She looks at you with a mixture of hurt and sadness.

"Honestly..." you start slowly and she nods. "I was afraid that if I told you the truth, you would leave me. I know that was selfish but I just thought... I thought I had it handled. I didn't realize how much pain I was causing you by pushing you to keep everything a secret. You deserved the chance to make your own decision about our relationship... if it was worth staying with me despite the potential dangers," you say as you lower your head in your hands.

"Gods, everything would have been so much simpler if we were on Asgard," you say quietly to yourself.

She touches your knee lightly, causing you to look up and responds by saying, "I would have still chosen to be with you Loki."

"You- you would have?" you ask, almost in disbelief and she nods with a small smile.

"Of course," she says and you feel like a fool for ever doubting her, for creating all of these issues out of your own fears. She reaches for your hand and you call feel her fingers entwine around yours. "I will always choose to be yours. I...," she pauses for a moment and you wait anxiously for her to continue. "I love you, Loki," she says.

Your eyes lock on hers as you bring one hand to her cheek. She leans into your touch and you tell her, "I have loved you since the moment I met you, Y/N." You feel your whole body relax as a warm smile spreads across Y/N's lips, a smile you were unsure you would ever see again. You run your thumb gently along the soft skin on her cheek and say, "There is one more thing you should know."

Her smile falters and she tries to look away from you but you keep eye contact with her. "This is not the first time I've told you that I love you, but it is the first time you've heard it," you tell her and her expression changes from worried to confused. You laugh lightly and say, "Every morning, before I would leave, I would kiss you softly so as not to wake you and I would whisper you that I love you more than anything in the nine realms."

Her smile returns, "I heard you once... but I thought I had dreamed it."

You shake your head no, still unable to stop smiling as you feel your relationship being back on track. Your hand moves from her cheek to the back of her neck, slowly pulling her towards you. She finishes closing the distance and presses her lips to yours. You put your arm around her as you lean back against the couch. She moves with you, pulling your other arm around her as she curls up against you. She closes her eyes and you kiss the top of her head lightly. "I love you," you whisper and she snuggles as close to you as possible.

After a few moments of comfortable silence she sits up and turns to face you. She bites her lip and you can tell she is thinking, you can't help but be worried about what her next words will be.

"I guess I have another question," she finally says quietly. "You said... things would have been simpler on Asgard, what did you mean?"

"If we were on Asgard, everyone would have known you were mine from the start, there would have been no need for secrecy," you say. "I would have asked you to move into the palace with me not only because I can't bear to be apart from you but also to keep you safe. You would have been under my protection and that of Asgard's army and the royal guards, no one would dare touch you."

"So... if you're solution on Asgard would have been to keep me closer in order for you to watch over me and keep me safe-," she pauses as if she is thinking of what she wants to say next.

"And because I love you," you add, pulling her close to you again. She giggles and kisses your cheek lightly before continuing.

"I just mean, why couldn't we do that here?" she asks and you raise your eyebrow curiously. "Wouldn't I be just as safe at the Tower, surrounded by SHIELD agents and the Avengers?"

"Yes, I suppose you would be," you answer, unsure of why you didn't think of this before.

She smiles but you can see the nervous energy rising in her, "So, maybe I should um..."

You keep one arm around her waist while your other hand slides up her back then begins to run through her hair slowly. She looks up at you as her words trail off and you finish her thought. "Y/N, would you move in with me?" you ask and she nods quickly causing you to laugh.

(Y/N POV - the next morning)

"Good morning my love," Loki mumbles sleepily, his arms pulling you closer to him.

"Good morning Loki," you reply as you open your eyes slowly. He starts to kiss the back of your neck and shoulders lazily as you rub your fingers up and down his arms.

The two of you lay together quietly for a few minutes then you decide you are thirsty enough to try to pry yourself from his arms. You try to get up, shifting away from Loki but he doesn't release you. His strong arms hold your back flush against his chest.

"Stay," he whispers and you giggle softly.

"I just want to get a drink, Mischief, it'll take one minute," you tell him, trying to slide away from him again.

He doesn't respond, instead he waves his hand and conjures a glass of water onto the nightstand with a green glow. You reach for the glass but it is just beyond your fingertips.

"Loki," you say with a laugh, "This doesn't really help much."

He sighs and relaxes his hold of you so you can sit up and take the glass. As soon you you rest your back against the headboard, he moves to lay with his head in your lap. You play with his hair gently while you drink the water. When you finish drinking, you set the glass back down and say, "I had no idea you were this cuddley."

"I'm making up for lost time," he responds and you kiss the top of his head. He sits up just enough to kiss you and you kiss him back.

Pushing him onto his back, you curl up on his chest and he wraps his arms around you. He runs his fingers up and down your back slowly and you close your eyes.

"I can't wait to spend every morning like this," Loki says.

"I'm going to be late for work a lot," you laugh.

(THOR POV - later that day)

You sit at the island and check your phone, you haven't seen or heard from Loki since you arrived at the Tower last night. You thought he was going straight to his room but he wasn't there when you stopped by this morning. You hoped that meant he was at Y/N's apartment and not hiding somewhere else.

You put your phone back into your pocket and ask, "I'm sorry Rogers, what were you saying?" as you rejoin the conversation.

The whole team was crowded around the island talking while Wanda, Bruce and Sam finished cooking dinner. You weren't sure what they were making but it smelled amazing.

The two of them walk into the kitchen and you can't help but ask, "Loki, anything you and Y/N wish to tell us?"

A few minutes later, Bucky stops making a joke mid-sentence and everyone in the kitchen goes quiet. You look over towards the doorway and see what the distraction is. Loki and Y/N are standing at the entrance to the kitchen, holding hands.

Loki and Y/N exchange excited smiles and she nods to him. He let's go of her hand and puts his arm around her waist, pulling her closer to him. He looks at each member of the team then directly at you. "Yes, brother, there is," he answers.

@michelleleewise @ace-of-gay @high-functioning-lokipath @poetic-fiasco @soubi001 @lokisninerealms @lulubelle814 @lovingchoices14 @theaudacitytowrite @klaushargreeves420 @coffeeorsomething-irl @lokisgoodgirl @xorpsbane @avoliax @talesofadragon @lokiandbuckysdoll @animnerd @juulle987 @lokiprompts @javagirl328 @kats72 @lokisasgardianvampirequeen @mochie85 @princess-asgard @holdmytesseract @lokixryss @peaches1958 @lokidbadguy @hopefuldreamers-world @wheredafandomat @silverfire475 @goblingirlsarah @muddyorbs @tessathechild @huntress-artemiss @coldnique @sulthaaan @vickie5446 @cabingrlandrandomcrap @lokiswife-dark-fox-queen @marvel-love24 @moonlightreader649 @almosttoopizza @foranythingandeverything @nikkitc0703 @my-love-of-books @marvelboy27 @feltonswifesworld87 @ronanthesimp

Let me know if you want to be added or taken off the list 💚💚

#hiddlestoners #loki #tom hiddleston characters #loki laufeyson #tom hiddleston #twhiddleston #loki x reader #hiddlesarmy #loki odinson #loki x y/n #loki x f!reader #loki x female reader #loki x you #loki x reader angst #loki x reader fluff #loki x reader fanfic #loki requests #loki x original character #loki fanfics #loki fanfiction #loki fanfic #avengers fanfic #avengers fanfiction #marvel fanfic #marvel fanfiction #loki thor #thor loki #loki & thor being brothers #loki reader #loki reader insert

[sky-fire-forever]

So. A lot of people think those of us who dislike Izzy's death just hate character deaths or tragedy or whatever. I am here to say that that is ABSOLUTELY not the case. Not for me

I fucking love tragedy. I am a known tragedy enjoyer. I love it when my favorite characters die and I get to be sad about it. I have loved tragedy since I was a child. A Series of Unfortunate Events was one of my all time favorite book series. I love it when important characters die and the story makes you sad about it!

I am going to use a comparison here that I haven't seen anyone else use

So, for a long time, my favorite television show ever was BBC's Merlin. It's a silly comedy with dramatic elements, but it is first and foremost a comedy. Just like Our Flag Means Death. It's ridiculously goofy and silly and 99% of the time, the characters are just joking around and things that would kill people in real life are brushed off as jokes. It's fun!

And spoiler alert for a show that ended like a decade ago:

Characters die in Merlin! Despite it being a comedy at its core, really important characters die. Characters we like die and so do villains, be them sympathetic or otherwise. A lot of characters we grow to know and love die and they die tragically.

But I fucking LOVE Merlin and it's still one of my favorite shows ever. Because whenever a character dies in Merlin, their death is FELT. They get deaths worthy of their characters. You feel the loss and the show takes time to stop being a comedy for a moment to let the audience and the characters mourn.

We see Merlin cry over Lancelot, burdened by the grief of knowing he sacrificed himself for him. We see Gwen grieve the deaths of both her father and her brother. We even get to watch people grieve over Uther, a villain who has gotten in the way of so much, because the narrative acknowledges he was a person who people loved despite his cruel actions.

All of this in a show where the main characters call each other "clotpole" and where Arthur doesn't notice levitating keys right above his head! It's a comedy! A silly, silly show. But death still MATTERS when it happens and I actually adore the character deaths in this show! Even when it's my favorite characters!

Izzy doesn't get the respect the characters in Merlin did when he dies. It's glossed over, rushed through. Even at his funeral, no one seems genuinely sad. There is no time to slow down and watch anyone actually process his death because we have to hurry on to Pete and Lucius getting married.

I do think the show being cut is to blame for this. With more time, we might have had more room to breathe, to grieve. We could have time to process and to let the characters process

But we don't get that and it's a shame! It's a shame that Izzy's death feels so pointless and undeserving and meaningless! It's a shame we get no time to process his death! It's a shame the characters barely react to his death outside of the scene in which he dies! It's genuinely such a shame that Izzy's death leaves me feeling hollow instead of sad. If I felt sad, I'd like Izzy's death a lot more. But I'm not sad. I'm just so disappointed that that's how it played out

I wish I could feel sad over Izzy's death because I genuinely enjoy feeling sad over characters. But I'm not.

#izzy hands #our flag means death #ofmd #ofmd critical #our flag means death critical #ofmd s2

[tropicalcryptid]

"Tigerheartstar gave up territory to Skyclan when no one else did!" He also kicked them out and later ignored the fact his deputy was poisoning them?

So like I'm not really interested in WC discourse, and I haven't read all the books in OotS/AVoS so I'm not the expert here, but:

Tigerheart/star is the leader of a non-ThunderClan clan, and therefore is contractually obligated to be at least a part-time villain in order for plot to happen (see Leafstar, Mistystar, Onestar, etc.). This does not make me like him less. If he does a warrior-cats war crime and becomes an asshole (Leopardstar, most previous SC leaders), I will reevaluate.

He only considered kicking out SkyClan when cats were starving, because Bramblestar is the worst and refused to compromise. He was still the only one willing to even give them a chance.

When shown proof that Juniperclaw, his nephew and deputy, was doing a bit of poisoning, he stripped him of his rank and would have punished him further had Juniperclaw not run away. I do not blame him for not immediately believing his trusted family member was trying to kill people.

Basically all warrior cats characters are a little bit terrible because the books are just not that well written. I love them, but they're written very quickly by multiple different people. On the whole, I like how THS is characterized and how he is proactive and thinks outside the box. He takes action in a way that is fun and refreshing to read about. He steals medicine for kittens when the other Clans refuse to share. He wants to invade other nations for their own good. He's a very naughty boy! Bad kitty! But he's fun to read about and a completely different kind of leader from any cat since Firestar in my opinion.

Lots of people love Blackstar and think he was a great leader, and he did just so much murdering you guys. Let people enjoy characters. They don't have to be morally perfect to be likeable.

#warrior cats #Wc #tigerheart #tigerstar #shadowclan #Asks

[evelhak]

Feeling daring today - Haizaki for the character and ship bingo ;)

Your takes are much more interesting, so there may not be anything illuminating here but I tried. xD

*Non-sarcastically normal. Haizaki is a pretty neutral character when I think about him by myself, I just don't have that special connection to him.

*However I love him when you talk about him and I'm sure I would love him more if I just had an incentive to write about him. But I don't feel anything like that because you're already giving him justice. My brain doesn't really work unless I feel like I have something substantial to contribute, which I don't.

*Haizaki definitely still gets a lot of unjustified hate, because he was framed as a villain and people then interpreted his every action as coming from the worst place imaginable, while other characters' actions get understanding just because they can see those characters' sides but can't see Haizaki's since he wasn't written in a sympathetic way. On one hand, that's fair to me, if your fic needs a villain it makes sense to pick a character whose motivations were not discussed deeply, so you can turn him into as much of a villain as you want, because you have no need to think about that particular character so deeply. However, the rate at which this happens to Haizaki perfectly exemplifies how the same dynamic happens in real life, especially at schools. He has the outward characteristics of the person who is always the easiest to blame. Not that there isn't stuff to blame him for, it's just that when he gets blamed for more than his share, it becomes a vicious cycle. Not to say it would affect his likability to me even if he never grew less violent or got his shit together, because my like and dislike for fictional characters is not based on morality or whether or not I would like that character in real life. 😂 I didn't pay that much attention to him solely because I just overlooked his story as pretty been there done that. Any character depth he has is implied at best, because he's a side character. I would much rather see an actual depiction of the dynamics that get projected onto him. And you are doing that, so, I'm not complaining.

*I do think Haizaki is pretty silly, he's so macho but he's also kind of wishy-washy about it. Like, one minute he can be thundering on like any of the other macho characters but then his line for changing his mind and going like "you know what, not worth it, actually" is much lower. And somehow he gets depicted as pathetic for that, even though it may actually just be common sense and self-preservation.

*Honestly I need to remind myself that Haizaki exists, sometimes. I'm sorry. He just wasn't that compelling to me initially. I didn't demonise him (I'd like to think that I don't demonise anyone) I just wasn't interested enough. I knew there were reasons he acts the way he does but I didn't make actual effort to find out. You've done some good to me, reminding me that my perception is more limited than I would like, because I tend to pride myself for considering everyone's viewpoints. (Not 100% possible, but I try.)

*Well you said it, Haizadick is not an inaccurate term, no matter what way you look at it.

I didn't ship anyone with Haizaki because I didn't think about his life much before talking to you, so...

*Congrats, your Haizaki and his relationships are now basically canon to me. : D

*I just put that second tier text there because I imagine it's where the relationships that last a bit longer would go, and I think Haizaki just has many short relationships before maybe ending up with his end game.

*I mean I assume he has had fun short relationships with many girls.

*And probably many one-night stands.

*I literally just got it in my head that maybe he experimented with a guy once, while I was making this. He seems like a curious type even though I'm kind of assuming he's straight.

*Yeah, I theoretically get why these are ships but no I don't really get it, I would be lying if I said I truly deeply understood it.

I know my shipping tiers are a mix of "I actually root for it" and "I just sort of think it would happen" but that's what you get from me. : D

#knb #character bingo #ship tier #haizaki

[sokkastyles]

So, this is a post for another fandom, but the discussion of Azula and Zuko came up in it, and OP revealed themselves as an Azula apologist. Thought you might be interested.

What's so funny about this is that before OP goes on their rant (so tired of people misusing feminist talking points to excuse abusive behavior) they themselves actually hit on, then immediately dismiss, the reason why people like Zuko more than Catra.

"just because her redemption arc wasn't as good"

Like, that's it. That's the thing. It doesn't matter what actions Zuko did that might be worse (although given what OP later writes, I would seriously question that statement). We're talking about stories, so the character who has a better written arc is going to be liked more, and that's that. It has nothing to do with gender at all. It also has nothing to do with who did what when they were a villain, because if the redemption isn't believable enough, it doesn't matter. Zuko has a better written story and in the land of fiction, that is always going to be more forgivable.

You could argue that there is misogyny in the fact that we don't get enough female characters who are as well-written as Zuko, but I'm a feminist who reads enough fiction that I don't need to pretend something is a good story just because it's female-led. I think a lot of people wanted the She-Ra show to be good for that reason, but in the end, consuming media isn't activism. And from what I've seen of the relationship between Catra and Adora - hell, from the way people talk about Azula, too - a LOT of people will forgive shitty behavior if a woman is doing it on the grounds of "feminism," and that's not only not feminist - how many women suffer because of Catra and Azula's actions? - it's extremely dangerous because it perpetuates the idea that women cannot be abusers.

You want good female representation? Maybe read a book instead of putting all your money on one or two popular cartoon series.

Now that I got THAT out of my system, there's a lot wrong with what OP says about Azula.

None of what OP says to defend Azula is feminist. Like, they don't even attempt to back up this claim the way some Azula stans do, they just say it like they think declaring themselves a feminist makes it so. And then they spend most of the post bashing Ursa, natch. OP will not explain why defending Azula is feminist (because it isn't), but I can explain why bashing Ursa is misogyny. Because you're taking a female character we know barely anything about other than that she was a mother and that she was fridged for the main characters, and insisting she must have been a bad mother based on minimal evidence. Even though we know why her children acted the way they did and we know it had to do with the negative actions of their father. Blaming Ursa for Azula is misogynist because it is shifting blame from a male abuser to a female character who was his victim, and focusing the blame on how she was a bad mother, with very little evidence that she was. But reducing a female character to motherhood and criticizing her for not being saintly is absolutely misogyny.

Where is it "expanded on in the comics" that Ursa gave up on Azula? Or that Azula acted out for Ursa's attention?

Here we see Ursa spending time with both her kids. Azula hangs back because she sees a flower in the garden that isn't as pretty, and waits until Ursa's back is turned to burn it. Then, when Zuko tells on her, she burns Zuko. Azula isn't trying to get Ursa's attention here. She waits until Ursa isn't looking and is mad when she gets negative attention from Ursa because Zuko told on her. She did not want her mother to notice her burning the flower. But when her mother does notice, Azula explains why she did it. Because it wasn't as pretty. It's very obvious what's going on here. Azula is acting out, but not because she's being neglected by her mother. She's acting out in the ways her father groomed her to act out, because her father taught her that if something isn't the best, it's worthless and deserves to be hurt. She then applies this to Zuko, who she thinks deserves to be hurt because he told on her.

And this is a pattern of behavior for Azula that we see not only in the comics, but the series itself. In "Zuko Alone," far from acting out to get her mother's attention because she "gave up on her," we see Azula lie to her mother so that she can get Zuko to play with her, with the purpose of playing a mean prank on Zuko.

Azula appeals to the fact that she knows Ursa thinks she and her brother should get along. If Azula was desperate for her mother's attention, if Ursa gave up on her, Azula would not be able to successfully lie to her mother this way.

What these scenes show is not that Ursa gave up on Azula or that Azula lacked attention from her mother, but that even at a young age (which was more like 8, actually) Azula was influenced by her father's cruelty and acted it out on others, and knew how to manipulate her mother in order to get what she wanted. Shifting blame onto Ursa for trying to teach her child right from wrong, for trying to protect her other child, is misogyny.

Also "Zuko let his insecurities get in the way of his relationship with Azula" is a weird way of saying that Azula deliberately played on Zuko's insecurities to hurt him. Like, you cannot ignore that the reason Zuko is insecure is, in large part, because of Azula, because she provokes his insecurites and then blames him for feeling insecure. This is victim blaming.

Also, the doll thing. I am so tired, y'all. If you automatically assume Azula getting a doll from her uncle is proof he doesn't care about her, who is the misogynist again? If the show wanted us to think this was a thoughtless, sexist, or even misguided gift, that would be shown. We would see Iroh ignoring hints that Azula does not like dolls. Instead, what we see is Azula getting a gift from a relative who hasn't seen her in years, and she burns it because it isn't exactly what she wanted, and then says she hopes her uncle dies. This says FAR more about Azula than it does Iroh, and it is meant to. The OP then goes on to say that Azula was right about Iroh when she mocked his son's death and said he should have burned Ba Sing Se to the ground, but then says he committed more crimes and bloodshed than her, conversely. What bloodshed? We're shown no bloodshed because this is a nickelodeon cartoon show. But we ARE shown Azula mocking Iroh for not being more violent. So don't tell me Iroh is somehow worse. Azula's coup on Ba Sing Se would not be bloodless if this was Game of Thrones, and overthrowing a city using deception isn't more moral than a siege.

Azula also was not "right" about Iroh in the way OP claims because they make it seem like she objected to Iroh ending the siege because she cared about her nation and people. That is not what she said. She said he should have burned the city to the ground to be "a real general." This, and Azula's other actions, such as giving irrational orders and making threats when they aren't carried out from her introductory episode, show that Azula has no real concept of statecraft beyond how to violently assert power, and we know who taught her that.

Also, Azula did not immediately apologize to Ty Lee after making her cry by slut-shaming her (how often the "feminists" forget that). She begrudgingly apologized, and then made it about herself and what Ty Lee should do for her.

Okay, okay, calm down. I didn't mean what I said. [Frontal view over Ty Lee's shoulder.] Look, maybe I just said it because I was a little ... [Whispers.] jealous.

I know people make a lot of this because it's a rare scene of Azula being accountable for her actions, but that alone should tell you something. It doesn't make Azula this kind and compassionate soul. It's not even a great apology. Sincere apologies do not begin with "Okay, okay, calm down." Azula just told her friend that boys only like her because she's easy. The fact that Ty Lee forgives her, especially after everything Azula did to her, makes Ty Lee a saint. And then Azula has a very difficult time admitting that she is jealous, because of course she does. And yes, I know, people make a lot of this because it's Azula, and yeah, it probably did take a lot of effort for Azula to admit that Ty Lee was better at her at something, but that is because Azula is egotistical and selfish and cruel to even her "friends."

And Mai...Azula does not get points for not understanding that she can't force Mai to murder her boyfriend for Azula. Azula asking Mai why she did it even though she "knew the consequences" again shows how little regard Azula has for even her friends, who she thinks she can control using threats. Azula thought she could use Mai to control Zuko and then when Mai's feelings were inconvenient, expected Mai to just watch Zuko die, and is so offended when that doesn't happen.

Also, Zuko never worked on his anger issues? It is literally a major plot point that Zuko says he doesn't want to rely on anger anymore and finds another way. And I've talked about this before, but this idea that Azula is so calm and collected is utterly ridiculous. You only have to look at the examples I mentioned above, but also many more, to see Azula fly into a rage at the slightest provocation, make threats, act out violently, and attempt to control others through fear to see that that is not true. The real difference is that Azula thinks she is justified in acting this way, and when that stops getting her results, rather than trying to change and learning to understand and value other people, she has a breakdown. You have to misunderstand Azula's entire arc to not get that. It is literally explained to us at every opportunity in the narrative.

Conclusion: if you claim to be a feminist, act like one and get to know some feminist theory. And just because you're a woman does not exclude you from being an idiot.

#azula #zuko #the discourse #abuse

[automeris-io-moth]

Hi!

Could I request part three of Rescue, please ? I'm super interested in seeing what happens next !

Love your writing, btw!

Part one; part two

“I'm truly sorry,” said Other Hero, interrupting the established silence that settled upon the room. “I didn’t know you were taken, if I knew…if I knew I would’ve come for you before.”

Hero lifted up their gaze, the book they were reading left resting between their open pals, a soft smile adorning their face as they looked at the other, how they looked downwards and played with their fingers down on their lap, perhaps ashamed of their actions, perhaps taking the blame of the other’s capture.

Neither would do, thought Hero, as they cleared their throat to speak quieting Other Hero’s nervous ramblings.

“I know,” they began, voice calm as if trying to soothe the other’s worry “you don’t have to justify yourself, you would’ve come for me the second you knew, isn’t that right?”

Other Villain nodded exaggeratedly, looking straight in the other’s eyes.

Most of the life in the caves was spent on the floor, they came to realise really quick, it was in the beds, the cushions in place of couches, the tables and all the decorations at the height of the eyes of someone staying on the ground. Yet, there, sitting over a silk lined pillow, lifting their head until their neck hurt just to meet Hero’s eyes when they stood, Hero’s, they always had to look down to reach them and then...

Before they finished their thought, Hero plopped down in front of them, legs crossed.

“I missed you,” Hero murmured, joining their foreheads in the middle “I thought I would never see you again.”

Other Hero’s eyes opened in surprise by the sudden declaration, their hands flying to cup Hero’s face, pushing against the other’s forehead, wanting, wishing, to grab them harder, to pull them close and hold them tight, yet, they abstained, for a moment the day before Other Hero thought they would keep their relationship secrecy, Villain could use it against them.

But Villain was not there, so, they accepted the other’s affection for as long as it could last.

“I missed you too, Hero,” they answered “I was so scared, I thought I lost you.”

“But you came for me, I’m here, you found me,” Hero continued, burying their face in the crook of the other’s neck “Now you won’t leave me again, right? You'll stay with me."

After a moment of hesitation, Other Hero nodded.

*

Familiarity was a difficult thing to beat, and in the deep dark of the caves, interrupted only by the soft glow of the crystals, Other Hero knew themselves at a disadvantage.

Villain mover freely, never worried about tripping or falling or losing their way inside the maze they made for themselves, how would they when their own talons had dug those very walls into existence, they knew every single place and spot in their home when Other Hero, after two sunrises of searching, could not find the exit.

They were starting to get desperate.

"I told Hero I would give you your space" Villain called once, provoking a small skip of surprise to the other, previously unknowing of their presence "but I thought perhaps I would help."

Incredulous, Other Hero twisted their head to look at the monster, meeting assured golden eyes in the middle.

"Help me?"

"You don't like being disoriented, you don't like feeling trapped" the monster explained "I don't like it either, I can show you around."

"I don't want your help," Other Hero spat back, "I want you to let us go."

Villain hummed in acknowledgement, answering nothing in return. Fuming for the lack of response, the lack of care, Other Hero turned around, on their way to leave.

“Traitors are not well received with your people,” the monster said, still looking upfront.

“I’m not a traitor.”

"You might not be," Villain said, almost too softly "but Hero…"

"Hero is not..."

"If you leave with them, I shall never look for neither of you again, you'll be free of me and my kingdom, I'll do nothing to stop you. There's a map of the caves on my desk, in the studio of the library."

They took a step forward, twisting the hero around, lifting their head by their chin.

"But if you can't, you'll stay, as Hero has."

"I surely trust your honour and honesty," Other Hero bit back.

And after a careful bump of their heads, Villain left.

_

Masterlist

Thank you so much! I hope you like it

#my writing #creative writing #short story #hero x villain #writing wip #villain x hero #heroes and villains #hero #wips #writing snippet #human x monster #monster x human #hero x monster #heroes and villains community #villains and heroes #hero x hero #hero/villain #hero and villain #villain/hero #villain and hero

[fierrochase-falafel]

Censorship and CQL: Overanalysing how The Untamed adapted the 'Dafan Wen'

I don't think I've seen people talk about this a lot, and I really do love CQL a lot, so I'm not going out of my way to hate on it and I certainly don't think of myself as claiming truths out here; this is just my own view of a concept in CQL. That being said, hot take! I don't like the 'Dafan' Wen. It's just that something irks me about having a whole community of people that conveniently did nothing wrong in the series, and have only ever healed others. A lot of CQL or (some) CQL fanfictions seem to hinge on the Dafan Wen being completely innocent; not like those other Qishan Wen who are evil! Which ties in to a broader point about CQL's censorship. And I know MDZS and CQL are both different media but I want to try to justify while I feel this way (in chapters ;)).

1: Wen Qing adapted

Where do I start? I think this is best started with Wen Qing, their leader, and a character I love no matter what media she's in. Wen Qing is already changed up a lot in CQL. Her circumstances involving Wen Ruohan are forced upon her due to his power. Her brother's safety is being actively held over her head by 1 villain, the ultimate evil villain. She is designed to be a much more sympathetic character, someone who doesn't have a choice because of Wen Ruohan specifically. There is 1 piece of leverage and 1 villain, meaning that her motivations are a bit less nuanced. She wants to protect Wen Ning and that's that, but when not bound by Wen Ruohan's orders or risk to Wen Ning's life, she helps Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng practically as much as she can for someone who barely knows them (especially in the dancing statue episodes). What CQL is trying to show is that she is a good person, and committed to what the show recognises as good regardless of her circumstances.

Contrasting her with novel Wen Qing though, I think the latter shows a less dramatised but more conflicting dilemma as to whether or not she can be considered 'good', particularly by the other cultivators. Wen Qing is Wen Ruohan's favourite niece, who respects her deeply for her vast knowledge and skills. Unlike CQL Wen Qing, she is privileged in her position prior to the Sunshot Campaign and is arguably complicit in the Wen clan's wrongdoings because she never spoke out against them, which is what the Jin clan argued. This argument being used against her makes more sense here because of the benefits she recieved because of the Wen clan's abuse of power- even if she personally did nothing (which she calmly and clearly states to Wei Wuxian) and her branch "doesn’t have much blood on their hands", she benefitted from not being attacked or hit by the effects of war like all the other clans. When this was used against CQL Wen Qing though, the argument can automatically be dismissed as untrue. She was even locked in a DUNGEON for helping the Yunmeng siblings! And that's the conflict I want to draw attention to: where in CQL something is outright false or unreasonable, MDZS has a point that can be argued for and against with no real black-or-white conclusion.

If you were Wen Qing and you could either retain a comfortable position of privilege or lose everything to be tortured by your uncle, it's obviously more favourable to choose the former regardless of how you feel about the war! Especially if both your AND your brother's lives hinge on it! It's not a matter of the greater good: the fact is, Wen Qing's main priorities were being fulfilled in her position, and it's not like anyone was going to greet her with open arms on the other side, so did she really do anything wrong? I'd say she didn't, but that doesn't mean she wasn't voluntarily standing by as the other clans suffered as opposed to being threatened or locked up.

2: Considering some possible implications of Wei Wuxian saving the 'Dafan Wen'

CQL Wen Qing is absolved of any potential blame by making her initially morally grey actions explained away by being threatened and thus controlled by the villain. Similarly, CQL sets her family apart from the rest of the Wens by having them live on a different mountain and be treated poorly by the main Qishan Wen under Wen Ruohan. There is now a whole group of Wens who are 'special', effectively, for also suffering under the hand of the main Wen clan as much as the other clans- arguably more. This makes the treatment of the Dafan Wen one that is misunderstood, one that shows their allies (who saved them from Wen Ruohan's rule) becoming their enemies SOLELY by virtue of the Wen family name, and that is why Wei Wuxian protecting them is so important in CQL. Which isn't necessarily bad for a message, but one that is way less nuanced.

Wei Wuxian's complexity suffers from this- in the novel, I would argue a much more prominent reason he saves Wen Qing and the others are because Wen Qing and Wen Ning helped him in the past and he both wants to and feels obligated to help them particularly. Furthermore, he is angry that his personal wartime allies are having to go through this. Running off to the Burial Mounds was not on his radar exactly until he met Wen Qing again. It was partly due to his moral compass but partly due to his personal ties. However, if the Dafan Wen as a whole are fully victims and were never villains, then protecting them becomes a matter of righteousness at its core. Anyone complaining about it is being completely unfair to them and Wei Wuxian, and are just straight-up wrong. There's a difference between being ignorant and being wrong- where in MDZS the other clans show ignorance (definitely misguided but you see why argue what they do), in CQL the other clans are just wrong (come on, the peaceful Wen offshoot living on a whole different mountain can't possibly be unheard of by ANYONE at the banquet that night Wei Wuxian threatened Jin Zixun).

In CQL, one could also argue there's no room for Wei Wuxian to just-- not save the Wen siblings. They were some level of friends by that point, the Wen siblings had saved Wei Wuxian time and time again (even from a dog!) and their theoretically unproblematic clan had treated him well too. Him wanting to save them aligns his personal attachment to them with their 'goodness', making it impossible to not save them. In MDZS, Wei Wuxian both knows the Wen siblings less and does not have any special sense of justice attached because of their seperate branch, even if they didn't commit war crimes. This adds new dimensions to his reasons to protect the clan- even if he is protecting them out of care and justice, it shows Wei Wuxian's willingness to do anything for people if he believes he owes it to them. It also shows his willingness to help these specific Wens because of that, and his decision becomes less about justice for all Wens, as the only reason he is protecting these Wens over any other Wens is about Wen Qing and Wen Ning. It's not that these Wens were being subjugated by Wen Ruohan (they likely received similar benefits to Wen Qing) and thus deserved to be protected as 'good people', but that they were A) currently powerless and B) in the same group with and/or related to Wen Qing and Wen Ning. The unspoken implication of there being other Wens out there undergoing brutal treatment for remaining silent prior to the Sunshot Campaign is realistic and shows Wei Wuxian to be limited in who he has the capacity to protect and why he would protect them. It's never as simple as justice. I would argue that making the Burial Mounds Wens representative of regular Wens adds to the impact of Wei Wuxian's decision as a difficult one, and one much harder for the other clans to forgive.

Here's an alternate way to consider the implications. If the 'Dafan Wen' don't exist, then Wei Wuxian's decision is less about how 'good' the Wen clan (or any branch of it) are as a whole, and more about how unethical any Wens, Dafan or not, are being treated by the other clans. However, Wei Wuxian is 1 man with his own priorities and when he chooses who to protect, he chooses the affiliates of those who he knows were willing to help him rather than making any huge statement about unethical treatment of prisoners of war. He slaughtered many Wens on the battlefield after all, and he isn't about to save EVERY Wen who never helped him- this isn't feasible anyways and I feel like it also actively avoids the 'Wei Wuxian is the most righteous person ever' route it could've gone down.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------(DISCLAIMER:) It is important to note though that what crimes were committed by which Wen sect cultivators is an incredibly difficult topic to unravel. We know only some Wen sect cultivators were imprisoned due to their involvement in the war, but some innocent ones (who were initially free-roaming) like Wen Ning's group were forcefully taken too by cultivators like Jin Zixun facing no punishment or attention for doing so. I assume the latter happens a lot, and they were being treated like prisoners and labourers (as Granny Wen was) even if they were supposedly free-roaming before. None of the guards were surprised and referred to new Wen sect cultivators being sent there everyday- I feel like innocent or guilty in the war stops being a question. So we have all these questions about how fair is their treatment prisoners of war AND their treatment of other Wen sect cultivators. Much of said treatment isn't gone into detail as well, because I doubt the Jin clan or anyone else is particularly honest about it, and Wei Wuxian's own opinion on this is never physically said.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3: The moral solution

What I'm getting at, in this roundabout way, is that in CQL there is an easier moral solution: the Dafan Wen tried to help the other clans as much as they could and were being threatened by the main Wen clan, therefore they should be protected despite their name. The other clans argue they're Wens and thus should not be protected, but they're not like the normal Wens- they're different and peaceful. It is clear: the good action is to protect the good people. It's almost a cop-out from showing that just because someone was benefited by or on the side of the villain by choice does not make them necessarily evil or anything (and certainly doesn't warrant punishing them the same way their higher-ups tortured you). This also immediately places the Dafan Wen and Wei Wuxian on the side of 'good' while placing the main Wen clan and anyone trying to actively argue for the murder of the Dafan Wen on the side of 'wrong' (like Nie Mingjue- not necessarily evil but definitely wrong).

Wei Wuxian is the ultimate hero character for standing up for what is right because it is right, as opposed to a character who isn't always able to fulfil that. Wei Wuxian's cultivation is also changed in CQL so as to not involve any genuine resurrection or control of the dead (in ghost form or otherwise). This softens the outrageous or grave aspects of what he actually did, and once again removes an aspect of his actions that can be viewed as morally wrong in any way. In my opinion atleast, MDZS is a lot harder to interpret in 1 specific way compared to CQL because these nuances within the Wen clan's and Wei Wuxian's actions exist, and often there is no right answer at all. While in MDZS Wei Wuxian is still morally ideal in the way he sticks to his guns (unlike SO many other characters), he doesn't get away with being blameless, but his CQL counterpart kind-of did nothing wrong.

4: (Unsurprisingly) Censorship makes a difference

This being said, I know CQL did their absolute utomost to translate this story to a live-action in the best way possible. Many of the changes they made (having the whole cast be involved since the very beginning, for instance) served the web series format in the best way possible, getting viewers invested in them from the get-go in this medium. Even these changes I've talked about may not really take a huge amount away from the story; after all, Wen Qing and Wen Ning's branch were by and large not involved in all the Sunshot campaign killing in both versions of the story. I am perhaps just making a mountain out of a molehill. However, I'd say the difference between their portrayals is still significant enough to change the connotations of the story as a whole.

The main conflict in the past was Wei Wuxian's decision to stand up for the residents of the Burial Mounds, and the involvement of the rest of the cultivation world in his demise. The context to this conflict being changed also changes the takeaway from this conflict.

My takeaway from these changes is that this is CQL fitting in with censorship guidelines to avoid depictions of moral greyness or any seeming lack of righteousness in the 'good guys'. I'm no genius on censorship guidelines and I am not Chinese, so I'm going off of my limited somewhat-academic and online forum research, but any content "transgressing social morality" (wording taken from here) is prohibited.

A lot of people online who are opposed to CQL's changes regarding this are angry about the idea of villains needing to be hands down the main evil, and I understand. Even though I knew it was going to happen, I really was disappointed getting to the end of CQL where they go "Su She was playing the flute all this time! He was the one who got Jiang Yanli killed!" I appreciate that CQL only decided to really engage with this at the very end and not embellishing Jin Guangyao's role in Wei Wuxian's demise even more. Without watching the last 2 episodes, it was almost (key word: almost) as if they hadn't had to censor the original death scene at all. I also do think though, that the censorship of 'heroes' goes more unnoticed when talking about this show. The censorship in CQL of Wei Wuxian's morally grey actions or fatal mistakes for example, like by not having him inadvertently cause Jiang Yanli's death. There's also CQL showing him repeatedly talking about how he wants to stand with justice with Lan Wangji (which I'm pretty sure doesn't happen in the books), just to hone in on how righteous they consistently are. Referring to Jiang Yanli's death, when Wei Wuxian sticking to his personal code of justice has consequences that betray what he wanted to happen, it isn't easy anymore for him to be a hero. His decisions are harder- he didn't have his cultivation under control after all no matter how much he wanted to, he wasn't blameless no matter how well-intentioned his actions were. Like Wei Wuxian, I believe Wen Qing and her branch of the Wen clan are also censored by having them as part of the different Dafan Wen clan, again to show all of them as unquestionably good or blameless in the series when they aren't in the novel.

5: CQL, MDZS, and fan interpretation

Around when I was introduced to CQL (for which I can never thank you enough, @iliketodecompose), I remember being told told that the best way to watch CQL is as its own series as opposed to an adaptation of MDZS. I think this is a good way to perceive and love the series in light of its differences to the novel, because even little differences like these can change what the story says. Maybe some people agree with me and some think I'm reading too much into it / have misinterpreted the series entirely, in which case I'm glad to hear alternate opinions or justifications, but I do not want to engage with "you're 100% wrong about this piece of fiction" comments. Opinions about the clarity of how MDZS is meant to be interpreted range far and wide; there are bound to be whole groups of people who disagree with me for several reasons but that's just how it goes. Having looked into other people's opinions across the internet, I've expanded my horizons to other interpretations as well. I don't think we have to be bound to a single interpretation; I've found myself agreeing with many people's arguments even if they partially disagree with or come in from a different angle than my own.

In conclusion...even if I lost the plot a bit in the middle there, I hope I've been able to justify my point of view here as to why I'm not a fan of the idea of Wen Qing's branch being an identifiably different branch to the rest of the main Wen clan. Peace-!

#wen qing #wen ning #wei wuxian #dafan wen #wen clan #the untamed #cql #cql meta #mdzs #mdzs meta #posts originating from my brain #analysis time by me so I can track them in my tags