#OR they just have terrible reading comprehension and don't understand

[supernovasilence]

Ok we all talk about the Pevensies' trauma at returning to Earth at the end of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe and their trouble readjusting to life there again but think of all the funny/good parts too

They return from the country, and their mom is surprised when all her children hug her at the station. Even Peter, who thinks he's all grown up. Even Edmund, who went away surly and withdrawn. She doesn't know her children haven't seen her in over a decade.

They miss their dear Cair Paravel, but they absolutely do not miss its chamber pots. Indoor plumbing is amazing.

It takes a while to remember how modern technology works, though. How many heart attacks did the siblings give their parents or the professor because they walked into a dark room only to turn on the light and find the children sitting there in the dark. (They were by the window! There was still plenty of light from the sunset! They would have gotten a candle in a minute!) The kids sheepishly remember oh yeah electricity is a thing.

(Edmund has a new electric torch in Prince Caspian. He was so excited to get that torch. Almost more excited than you'd think a kid his age would be, and his parents expect Peter at least to tease him, but the siblings all agree light in your hand at the touch of a switch is terrific.)

Suddenly getting really high grades in some subjects and terrible in others. Their grammar, reading comprehension, spelling, vocab, even penmanship? Amazing. History and geography? They don't remember anything. One time in class Susan forgets Earth is round and wants to die.

Also they can never remember what the date is supposed to be because Narnia uses different months and years. They can estimate time really well by looking at the sun though, and Edmund at least can always tell which way is north etc without thinking about it (again, using the sun)

Okay but how many times did they go to pick something up or reach something and realize they are so much shorter and less muscled than they expect? It's a common sight to see Peter climbing on counters to reach a top cabinet, grumbling about how he's High King this is demeaning. (No he never takes the extra five seconds to grab a stool. He will climb that shelf.)

Peter and Susan being delighted because they are no longer almost thirty. (In a few years Edmund and Lucy will tease them about being old and their parents will not understand.)

Lucy doesn't have to deal with periods anymore for a few years yet. Susan might not either. Heck yeah

Lucy loves to climb into her siblings' laps and be cuddled. In Narnia she eventually she grew too big, but now she is small and snuggleable again. Peter is her favorite, and if she's upset, he'll tickle her and tell bad jokes until she's smiling again, but really she loves cuddling with all her family. She grew up without her parents; how many times did she just want to crawl into her mom's lap and her mom was a world away? Imagine the first time she realizes she can now. Or, imagine one day, a cold and grey sort of day, when the rain is pattering against the windows, and it sounds like the rain on the windows of the Professor's house, that first day they went exploring. It sounds like the day they played hide and seek. It sounds so like the rain on the windows of Cair Paravel, that if Lucy closes her eyes she can imagine she's back there, having tea and chatting with Mr. Tumnus before the fireplace of her room, and soon the rain will stop, and they will go out on the balcony and wave to the naiads and the dryads and the mermaids, who have come out to enjoy the rain and visit one other on the banks of the Great River winding past Cair Paravel down to the sea.

But if Lucy looks out the window, all she'll see is the rain over London, so it's not only a cold and grey sort of day, it's a lonely sort of day too.

Susan and Edmund are playing chess in the living room (and they must have studied with Professor Kirke, thinks their mother, because they certainly weren't that good when they left). Lucy goes over to Edmund, and oh dear, thinks their mother, now he's going to call her a baby and be horrible to her, but instead he picks her up and puts her on his lap without even taking his eyes off the chessboard; it's simply a matter of course.

"Doesn't the rain sound familiar?" says Lucy in a solemn, wistful way.

Their mother doesn't know what that means, but her siblings must, because Susan says, "Yes, Lu, it does,” and Edmund gives her a little hug with his free arm as she tucks herself under his chin to watch the chess match.

(Five minutes later there is a crash from the next room as Peter falls off a counter. Their mother does not understand the words he must have picked up from the Professor, but he's grounded for them anyway. His siblings have no respect for their High King, because they refuse to stop laughing.)

#the chronicles of narnia #narnia headcanons #peter pevensie #susan pevensie #edmund pevensie #lucy pevensie #helen pevensie #the pevensies #okay this did end up a little bittersweet at the end but I tried #let's all just focus on the high king falling off counters alright #and yes the siblings all picked up narnian swear words and i refuse to believe otherwise #i'm also suddenly wondering how much language drift there is in narnia #when the pevensies return in prince caspian are all the swear words/exclamations they learned outdated? #are they using the narnian equivalent of oh horsefeathers? #nova actually posts stuff #long post // #the higher the queuer #post lww pevensies #soft post lww headcanons

[ladyluscinia]

What Exactly Did David Jenkins Say?

Look, I'm still staunchly of the opinion that Word of God statements and creator interviews are overvalued in fandom, especially when they get pulled out mostly as gotchas without then continuing to analyze whether or not the show canon is successful at getting across that same message. Death of the Author is good, actually, and we should remember that. But they are worth looking at in the context of evaluating intent vs execution, and for future speculation - just, like, please with less of the whole mile high pedestal idolizing and backlash cycles.

But if overvalued "Word of God" is annoying, then overvalued "supposed creator statements that have gone through three rounds of telephone and any given blogger has only heard about a quarter of them, which they'll use confidently anyway" is worse. So, since I'd already looked up interviews for various reasons...

Here is a fairly comprehensive list of interviews David Jenkins has given and statements he's made during them, presented without commentary (save curating which statements get highlighted). All provided with links. I definitely missed some, so if you have any that you want to add, please do - though if you could trim off any commentary and save it for tags / your own post with a link that would be cool.

Also, again, just because he said it doesn't make it incontrovertible canon that only a blind person wouldn't understand. Some of these even arguably contradict each other. The creator's intent doesn't always translate to what the show is doing, nor do you even have to think it was a good idea.

(Listed in chronological order from oldest to newest - post contains spoilers below the cut)

Pre-S1

Gizmodo - Feb 22, 2022 - with Cheryl Eddy (io9) - Link

Why this story - Really, it was the enigma of Stede that drew him in. "I think actual pirate stuff is fine, but it's not necessarily my cup of tea. And I think Taika [Waititi] felt similarly. But hearing about this guy and reading about him and seeing that, you know, he left his family, then he met Blackbeard, they hit it off, and we don't know any of the details in between. So filling those blanks in, and having a very human story, and then being able to do it with the pirate genre, that was like, 'Oh, this would be cool.'"

Post 1x01 - 1x03

Polygon - March 5, 2022 - with Tasha Robinson - Link

David Jenkins, Taika Waititi, and Rhys Darby interview

About Stede running off to sea - "Stede thought he could outrun his baggage, and you can't outrun your baggage."

About S1 - "I don't think there was enough improv on set! We had an insane schedule, with a huge amount of plot. We were budgeted and designed as a one-hour show, but with a half-hour production schedule, which means we really had to chase these episodes to get them shot. And then there are certain emotional beats that we really needed. So trying to find places to find the fun was hard."

Mashable - Mar 5, 2022 - with Belen Edwards - Link

About the show concept - "It was Jenkins' wife who first told him about Stede's adventures; she thought it would make a good TV show."

On casting Rhys Darby - "Stede did a terrible thing to his family. If you cast it wrong, he's a very hard character to get behind," Jenkins said. "Very quickly, the only person I thought of for this was Rhys [Darby]. He has this childlike quality that's endearing."

About the story - "Seeing them discover a need for each other that neither anticipated and charting how that relationship goes is the meat of the story." + "If you're on this ship, you're running from something, and you're running to something that you can't be on land"

Mentions of matelotage - "In fact, one of Jenkins's favorite pirate facts that he learned while working on Our Flag Means Death was the term matelotage, which was a civil union between same-sex pirates. "The more you look at it," he explained, "the more you write to the fact that this is a queer-positive world.""

Discussing piracy careers - "Something else that astounded Jenkins about pirates was "just how fast it all moved — their lives were quite short," he said. "Your career [in piracy] wasn't very long.""

Post 1x09 - 1x10

Decider - Mar 24, 2022 - with Kayla Cobb - Link

David Jenkins, Taika Waititi, and Rhys Darby interview

Pitch for the show - "That was in the pitch," series creator David Jenkins told Decider. "That was the reason, to make them fall in love with each other."

About the romance - "The main thing to me was to side-step coming out," Jenkins continued. "I just want a romance. I want a Titanic romance between these two people. We don't have to do the coming out story and then the non-binary story for Jim [Vico Ortiz]."

About S2 and the show - "The show is the relationship," Jenkins said. "So, we end in a place where there is this breakup. What happens after a breakup between these two people who, one’s realized he's in love and the other one is hurt in a way that he's never been hurt before? What does that do to each of them in an action, pirate world with them trying to find each other again? So again, I really love those rom-com beats."

Collider - Mar 24, 2022 - with Carly Lane - Link

On making it a romcom - "It's the only reason to make the show. If you didn't do that, it would just be weird. I mean, you're using the rom-com beats. You're using these like they're together. And it's funny because so we're so habituated to be like bromance, bromance, bromance, and it's such a simple move to put them together."

Discusses focusing on romance - "I guess I really... I get kind of bored. How much pirate can you do? They're going to rob stuff. They're going to steal ships. There's only so many pirate stories you can do. So if you're going to do a workplace story, I mean, you're essentially having this... You'd have this same amount of relationships in Grey's Anatomy in the ER. So it's standard. It's the most standard. We're making a soap opera on a pirate ship, and to use those soap opera beats... I like it, and I like the flavor in a comedy when you have something that's played genuinely up against very ridiculous things."

Discusses history and kissing scene

Discusses importance of going home to Mary - "Yeah, that was the problem for me in the story. I knew that I wanted to have the end where he goes home, because you need to give Mary her day in court. I just wanted to know from Mary's perspective what happened and then to see that, yeah, they're friends."

Is Lucius dead? - "You got to wait."

EW.com - Mar 25, 2022 - with Devan Coggan - Link

David Jenkins, Taika Waititi, and Rhys Darby interview

Pitch for the show - "To me, [Stede and Blackbeard's relationship] is the reason to make the show," Jenkins explains. "When Taika and I were first talking about it, he was like, 'Oh yeah, that's the show.' I first started reading about Stede and how he befriended Blackbeard and we don't know why. Very quickly, it was like, 'Oh, it's a romance.'"

Polygon - Mar 25, 2022 - with Tasha Robinson - Link

Discusses 3-season intent - "I think three seasons is good. I think we could do it in three."

Discusses acts within S1 - "To me, when you see him get stabbed, and the blood runs through his fingers, it’s like 'Oh, no, the clown got stabbed! And not comedy-stabbed, he got stabbed stabbed!' That to me is cool. And then having Blackbeard find him as the end of what would be the first act of our story felt good to me."

Discusses kiss scene filming and the national moment around gay rights

What to focus on a rewatch - "I think Con O'Neill does such a great job. He's such a complex character, and it's such a tortured relationship. And that's a love story too, between him and Blackbeard. It's a very dysfunctional story, but it's fun to watch. Watch that maybe, on a rewatch, looking where their relationship ultimately goes."

TV Insider - Mar 25, 2022 - with Meaghan Darwish - Link

Discusses show pitch - "When I was pitching [the show] to people, I'd be like, 'Okay, so it's about Stede and Blackbeard, and then they hit it off and then they fall in love.' And then people are like, 'Okay, cool,' Jenkins shares. "And then they really fall in love, and become intimately involved."

Discusses historical inspiration

Discusses S2 direction - "But when [Stede] goes to find [Blackbeard], he's gone and his crew's been abandoned. And so watching them try to negotiate that, that's a good rom-com beat," he adds.

The Verge - Apr 15, 2022 - with Charles Pulliam-Moore - Link

Discusses being surprised by queerbaiting legacy - "...part of me knew that, yes, Stede and Ed's romance was going to be real. But one part of me felt like, 'We're going to do this story, and they're going to kiss, and maybe that's not even going to be that big a deal. Maybe it'll just be a blip.'"

Discusses writing romance - "I'd never written a romance before this one, but I think with Ed and Stede, the question's always 'what's the need for each other?'"

Discusses falling in love and Stede's accidental seduction - "It made sense to have that love be almost like a teenage version of falling in love — one with all these intense and conflicting feelings. They're middle-aged, but Stede's young. Ed's young. Emotionally, they're like 16, and they've both got a lot to learn."

Discusses Con O'Neill as Izzy - "He plays an exhausted quality that's really lovely because this character could just be generically evil, and the way Con plays, it is like, he's credible. I believe that he can do some damage if he wanted to. My favorite thing I've seen about the show is somebody saying that Con's playing the only human with a bunch of Muppets. It does feel like that a bit where he's like Charles Grodin in The Great Muppet Caper."

On Izzy being in love with Blackbeard - "I think Izzy's deeply in love with Blackbeard, and it's a very dysfunctional kind of love, and he's like the jilted spouse who's losing his man to fucking Stede Bonnet, and he can't believe this is happening."

Discusses masculinity and piracy as an escape from that

Discusses diversity and trauma based stories - "And the consensus in that very diverse room was that we wanted to show that isn't just wallowing in trauma. We don't have to do a coming out scene or focusing on the trauma of it — not to say that those stories aren’t valid."

Gizmodo - Jun 20, 2022 - with Linda Codega (io9) - Link

Musing on fandom response to the show - "I'm wondering if the fact that because the queerness of this show isn't gaslighting the audience, and isn't a function of wanting to do something, but not being able to produce the results because of network standards. I think we just happened to be in this lucky spot where the show is actually queer… and I do think that people are responding to that."

Comparing fanfiction to writing - "And Con O'Neill's audition was one of those things I would go back to. I would watch that and be like… Oh, right, that's the show. And in a way, you're writing fanfiction for a certain actor and character because you want them to do something, and you're like–" at this point, it must be said, Jenkins let out a maniacal little giggle. He’s just as thrilled to show off Con O'Neill's ability to seem both deeply exhausted and menacing as the rest of the fandom. "And you [as the writer] you're like… And then Izzy does this now."

EW.com - Dec 13, 2022 - with Devan Coggan - Link

Discusses The Chain sequence - "I had initially wanted that end sequence to be like the FBI raid in a mob movie, where the feds come in, and they've got boxes of stuff, and everyone's running, and someone makes a dash for it," Jenkins explains. "So, it's like a mob movie or FBI raid story, and then it's also a story of Stede's lover coming back."

Pre-S2

Collider - Oct 2, 2023 - with Carly Lane - Link

Discusses fan reaction to S1 - "I thought that they'd kiss, and people would be like, 'Oh, cool, cool!' I kind of thought people would know a little bit more [about] where we were going, but then in hindsight, no, people have been hurt and burned on so many other shows and then made to feel silly."

Discusses starting S2 dark - "One of these characters is very, very damaged and has never made himself vulnerable in this way before, and I don't think [he] would react very well to having his heart broken in this way. I don't think it would be cute, and I don't think it would be funny. I think it would be scary as hell to watch a very damaged guy that we've established in Ed, who killed his dad and thinks he's not capable of being loved, deal with rejection and see that Stede really hurt him."

Discusses adding more female characters

Discusses S2 needle drops including "This Woman's Work"

Discusses 3-season arc

Post 2x01 - 2x03

Mashable - Oct 5, 2023 - with Belen Edwards - Link

Discusses fandom response to S1

About the canon gay relationship - "To watch the explosion of enthusiasm around [the kiss] was disorienting, almost," Jenkins said. "I thought people would react to it, but I didn't think the reaction would be that big. And then it was moving, because I didn't realize that this audience felt so unserved in general, as far as storylines go."

Insider - Oct 5, 2023 - with Ayomikun Adekaiyero - Link

Tease on leaning into the Stede / Ed / Izzy love triangle - "I think Izzy, in a certain way, got the worst deal in the first season," the showrunner tells Insider. "He gets jilted and then he still is in spurned spouse territory at the beginning of the second season."

Discusses Izzy's arc - "What is that relationship about? And I think by the end of the season it kind of becomes a little unexpected of who they are to each other and what they mean to each other," he teases

Discusses addition of Zheng - "He likens Zheng's way of pirating to a successful tech startup, compared with the garage sale vibe Stede had going on the Revenge."

Discusses introducing Hornigold - "I thought Hornigold was the most obvious because he was the person who made Blackbeard what he is. And Blackbeard has a father complex, so it's natural that he's going to bring his former captain back," the show creator said. "It's a struggle with him because he and dad figures don't historically do well."

Discusses importance of the mermaid scene

Inverse - Oct 5, 2023 - with Hoai-Tran Bui - Link

Reveals he didn't commit to the romance until shooting 1x06 - "Jenkins always intended his pirate comedy to end with a romance, but he'd envisioned it as an unrequited love. "It was going to be about Stede learning what love is, and Ed making himself vulnerable and getting burned," Jenkins says of his original pitch. But Darby and Waititi's choices in the scene, which they played without diffusing the tenderness with a joke, made him wonder if they could take the show in a new direction."

Discusses mermaid Stede idea from S1 - "We talked about Stede as a mermaid very early on in the writers' room," Jenkins says. "At some point, yeah, I want to see Rhys Darby as a merman." + "They wanted us to come up with a Season 2 pitch during Season 1. And that was one of the ideas we hit on, and I can't quite remember how we got there, but it was us asking, what is a pirate world? Are there mermaids? Is there magic in this show? With pirate stuff, I don’t know that I want there to be magic, but there was a way where it was something really beautiful about a mer-person, and I like the idea that their coming together would have a mythic size to it."

Discusses historical divergence

Discusses matelotage and pirates as weird outsiders

TV Guide - Oct 5, 2023 - with Allison Piccuro - Link

About the shipping culture - "It's the meat of the show, so it's great to have people bought into the central romance. If it were a bromance that we were trying to make look like a romance, that would suck."

Discusses playlists he makes

Discusses opening dream sequence - "I just like that it started with something badass. Stede, Blackbeard, and Izzy are on an arc together. Whether they're in stories together or not, their ultimate arc is together. I think, by the end of this season, the last episode, that first scene will be gratifying. I won't say why, but their fates are tied together."

Discusses Kraken arc - "But I think the thing that's good about this show is that it can go to really sweet comedy land, but I want there to be, like, if someone loses a body part, for instance, they lose a body part. To do justice to the fact that this guy is a killer and a monster, and dealing with heartache that he doesn't know how to deal with, I think you really need to go there."

Discusses Izzy in S2 - "I mean, he's jilted. He had a partnership with Blackbeard, and he knows he can't live up to this person that Blackbeard fell in love with... Who is that guy? What are his hobbies? What does it look like when he's not totally subsumed with his boss's love affair with somebody, and heartbroken?"

On S2 reunion - "The second season is them being a little bit more mature... It's the thing where you're in your 20s or 30s and you're like, "Well, should we move in together?" They have to make up some time because neither of them have been in a functional relationship before."

About genre of pirate stories - "...is a show about multiple relationships. That's what I want to see when I see this show. I don't want to see a bunch of pirate things that I've seen in other things, I'll just go watch another thing if I want to see that. That's not really my thing. I like the genre, but it's a very hard genre to budge. I want to see relationships in a pirate world."

Discusses the A Star is Born aspect of seeking fame / retiring

Mashable - Oct 7, 2023 - with Belen Edwards - Link

About the mermaid scene - "You need something expressive for when they come back together," Jenkins said. "Their reunion moment has to feel big and mythical. This is not a world where mermaids actually exist, but their love for each other has that size that you can get [a mermaid] in there somewhere."

About Kate Bush - "I love Kate Bush, and I love that song, and I know Taika loves that song," Jenkins explained of the choice. "So I wanted to find a place for that song somewhere in the second season."

Polygon - Oct 9, 2023 - with Tasha Robinson & more - Link

Compares S2 and "Golden Age of Piracy" stuff to Westerns, lists 5 he was thinking of - "Every Western that’s good is that story," Jenkins says. "'This way of life we made is coming to an end. It can't last. It's a blip in time. We created this thing because we need it to exist. We're outlaws, and we need a culture that suits us, but it's running out of time.'"

Gizmodo - Oct 9, 2023 - with Linda Codega (io9) - Link

Short tease on leaning into the love triangle

About Stede, Edward, and Izzy - "I think the three of them are on an arc together that's pretty inseparable," Jenkins said in an interview with io9. "And to watch Izzy try to process what's happened [in season one]… to watch him kind of grow and figure out what's his own story, if he can separate himself from this kind of toxic relationship, is interesting to me and I think gives him a lot of room for growth."

Post 2x04 - 2x05

IndieWire - Oct 12, 2023 - with Sarah Shachat - Link

Discusses directing and show creation

"The limitations of the show also naturally push it back towards moments with the ensemble and plot problems that it would frankly be irresponsible to tackle if you had a giant budget and a fully working ship-of-the-line to sail and then blow to bits. "That's the fun of the show to us, I think. If you open this up and you're like, unlimited budget, that would be terrible because I think you can get seduced," Jenkins said. "[It could be like,] 'Oh man, it's all leading up to a climatic battle on the sea.' And those things are great. But that’s not this show.""

"The nice thing about that, though, is you get to be the lo-fi show that’s like, 'Hey, we’re making The Muppets.'"

PopSugar - Oct 12, 2023 - with Victoria Edel - Link

About S2 Stede - "I like the idea that he learns and grows and he doesn't just stay a bumbling captain. He might be ridiculous, but he is getting better at it."

Discusses genre challenges - "How do you have a show that's a romance show but it's also a workplace show and they're criminals?"

Discusses Edward's redemption - "But Blackbeard still has to come back and apologize and be part of the community again, and give his little press conference. It was fun for us to look at that in the context of piracy, where they all do terrible things to each other. But even by their standards, what Blackbeard did was a bit much."

Discusses Izzy in S2 - "When Izzy shoots Blackbeard and they all mutiny on him, that's Izzy breaking up with Blackbeard. And they're both having their own journey in the wake of it, and Izzy's having his own redemption arc. He's trying to figure out, "Who am I if I'm not Blackbeard's first mate? Who am I outside of this relationship?"" + "If Stede's Spongebob, he's Squidward. I don't know what that makes Blackbeard. But there's a real pathos to Squidward."

Discusses trauma-based narratives - "As a diverse room in terms of sexuality, socio-economic background, and race, we thought, "Wouldn't it be nice to have a non-trauma-based story for these characters who don't get that historically?""

Variety - Oct 13, 2023 - with Hunter Ingram - Link

Discusses three act structure and making Stede work for a relationship - "The way I like to look at a season is in threes. The end of the first act is when they find each other, and this is the beginning of the second act. They've found each other, but they are pissed. Stede thought it was going to be [Kate Bush's] “This Woman's Work,” but, in reality, it is this headbutt –– literally."

Discusses the central romance - "It was always part of the pitch... that is the reason to make the show. The pirate genre is fun, but I wasn’t dying to make a pirate show. Taika wasn’t dying to make a pirate show. But the thing that was interesting to me was that Stede finds love, and he finds it with Blackbeard."

Discusses 2x04 plot - "This episode is based on a very, very thumbnail sketch of "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?." Anne and Mary are Martha and George, and they are Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton."

Discusses adding historical pirates

Discusses Buttons exit - "I just love the idea of him turning into a bird: I love the idea of Buttons somehow being the one character that is able to figure that out."

Discusses Izzy and the crew's trauma plot - "We liked the idea that there is something about trauma and getting past that trauma, even on a pirate ship. They have been through two very different ways of living and they have to get used to each other again. But it's also a family that was separated, and becoming one family again is painful."

Discusses bringing characters back - "We could bring Calico Jack back, who, if you remember, was hit by a cannonball last season. Anyone who is that fun to play with and wants to keep playing, you always find a way to bring them back."

Polygon - Oct 14, 2023 - with Tasha Robinson - Link

Discusses 3-season arc and how keeping them apart with some plot device was never in the cards - "at the end of the first season, they're 14-year-olds, emotionally. In this season, it's more like they’re in their late 20s."

Discussing New Zealand production and ensemble cast writing - "It's pretty organic, because as we're going through and tracking everybody's journey for the season, we're watching the thing that holds us together — what stage of Stede and Blackbeard's relationship are we in? Because the overarching arc is, are these guys going to learn how to settle into a relationship?"

"The second season is more overtly about romance, and more a relationship story."

Energizing aspect of fan reaction

S3 is about "love is work"

Gizmodo - Oct 16, 2023 - with Linda Codega (io9) - Link

About the story - "I want to see them become a functional couple or fail to become a functional couple," Jenkins said. "Those are the most interesting parts of the show."

Discusses fandom engagement - "...ultimately the writers are also "the fans in the room." He goes on to say that, "We're fans of the world. We're writing fanfic about our own characters, our own worlds… It's paid fanfic, but it's fanfic." He gives another example: "If you're writing a season of Succession, you're writing fanfic Succession. You're just getting paid to do it. We, as writers–" it's clear that he's not just talking about the writers in the writers room, "become fans of the world and we all have things we want to see these characters do. What we do is not that different."

Discusses the A Star is Born aspect of seeking fame / retiring

Discusses Zheng Yi Sao

Villains of the series - There are a lot of new villains this season, but, Jenkins says, ultimately, "the antagonist on this show is normalcy… These pirates have a way of life that they're not finding in normal life. They've found a way to live and support each other and be there for each other. And that's always threatened by these larger, tyrannical forces that want to shut them down."

Post 2x06 - 2x07

Mashable - Oct 19, 2023 - with Belen Edwards - Link

Discussing drag performance in 2x06

"It is nice to see with Izzy's arc, where he finally breaks through whatever he's been doing to himself. He lets himself have that moment, which I just love. It resonates for Izzy, and I think it resonates for Con. Just personally, it made me feel good to see how it turned out."

Consequence - Oct 19, 2023 - with Liz Shannon Miller - Link

Discusses intent for romance - "...telling a love story in a serialized medium like television has its perils, largely because it's tough to know how much you can draw out any unresolved tension. "I think we take it episode by episode and we try to not piss people off in taking too long and doing double beats and triple beats," Jenkins says. "You can only do Will They or Won’t They for so long. Then you have to deepen it.""

Discusses pirate setting - "The emphasis on relationships also fits into the show's high-seas setting, which Jenkins finds similar to post-apocalyptic narratives. "It is a little bit like you're doing Mad Max, except there's relationships," he says. "Stuff's shitty, so you gotta try to find some joy. Of course, people are going to have a need for each other in these extreme circumstances, and I like the idea of these characters finding some level of a healthy relationship in these extreme circumstances.""

Discusses Jim x Archie

Discusses 3-season arc

Polygon - Oct 21, 2023 - with Tasha Robinson - Link

Discussing gender and power dynamics in Jackie x Swede / Zheng x Oluwande / Blackbeard x Stede + A Star is Born aspect

Jim not being jealous of Oluwande - "I think that relationship was always seen in the room as a friend relationship that got romantic."

About adding a villain - "I think a lot of the internal forces in Our Flag are the villains." + "I think this is a story about the age of piracy coming to an end. This way of life is coming to an end. And every Western that's good is that story: This way of life we made is coming to an end, and it can't last. […] I think every story about outlaws is about trying to preserve a way of life against normative forces that are kind of fascistic."

Historical accuracy - "The balance of the show is 90% ignoring history, and then 10%, bring it in, whenever we're like, Ah, gotta move the story forward! Remember, the English are out there, and they're really bad!"

Post 2x08

AV Club - Oct 26, 2023 - with Saloni Gajjar - Link

Killing Izzy was always the plan - "We wanted to show the depth of that character. Izzy is one of my favorites. He's like middle management who is in a sort of love triangle [in season one]."

Discusses how they really wanted the happy ending for S2 - "I think with season one's end, it was a gamble to leave it the way it was. Everybody stomached through it. Now if it turned out they didn't want us to make more, I just didn't want to have another story where the same-sex love story ends in tragedy, unrequited love, or if one or both of them are being punished."

Discusses S2 progressing the 3-season romance - "They’re a couple who is like in their late twenties right now as opposed to being teens at the end of season one." + "It was an interesting tension of, which one gives up their dream? A lot of times in relationships questions can come up, like who is going to give up on their dream to take care of the kids? Obviously, no one wants to, but someone ends up giving up more than they want to at some point. What's wonderful about a mature romance, and what I'd want to see more of in season three, is Ed and Stede making these tough decisions." + progressing past the getting together point

Discusses parallels, Republic of Pirates, and Zheng Yi Sao

Short bit about fan response

Collider - Oct 26, 2023 - with Carly Lane - Link

Discusses Ed leaving fishing - "I like that he had a little prima donna moment where he thought he could go and be a simple man, and then it's revealed that he really isn't a simple man; he's a complicated, fussy, moody guy. No, he's not gonna be able to catch fish for a living. For him to be told that, "At your heart, you're a pirate. You have to go back and do it," he doesn't want that to be true, but it was true."

Discusses Izzy's speech to Ricky - "I wanted to give Izzy a proper eulogy for himself. He gives a eulogy for himself, but it felt true writing it."

Discusses Izzy's death scene - "In a way, it's very much for Ed, that speech. The "we were Blackbeard" is claiming that he is also Blackbeard, that Blackbeard is not just Ed’s creation, and I like that for him, too, because he's worked so hard for that — and then just to say, "You can give it up." There can never be a Blackbeard again as far as Izzy's concerned because he's dying, and they did that together."

Discusses Republic of Pirates / music parallels from premier to finale

Discusses finale wedding - "We knew we wanted a matelotage in the season, which is the real term they had for marrying crew members. And yeah, they've always been in relief to Stede and Ed, and they're a little bit ahead of Stede and Ed in how much they can talk about things. So to have a bunch of family things in the season, like a funeral and a wedding, and have the parents kind of watch the kids sail away, felt right, and all of those things seem to work well together and build on each other."

Discusses retirement ending - "That will-they-or-won't-they is interesting to a point, but the real meat of it is always like, "Can they make the relationship, and can they do better than Anne and Mary?""

"Frenchie's in charge of the Revenge" + teases Stede struggling to give it up

EW.com - Oct 26, 2023 - with Devan Coggan - Link

Discusses Izzy's death and telling Con - "It feels like the logical end of Izzy's arc. It's heartbreaking to me because he's my favorite." + "I told him in the middle of shooting because I didn't want him to find out at the table read, obviously. I also didn't want it to leak. He was lovely about it."

Discusses Izzy's final arc - "You know, I didn't expect him to become kind of a father figure to Ed. I think we hit on that while we were breaking the [final] episode. He's in such a weird position: He's like a jilted lover, and then he's a middle manager who has to work for a terrible boss. He gets thrown away, and then he comes back. He really develops, and he becomes a part of this family. I think the biggest surprise was the extent that he was a mentor to Ed. They were both Blackbeard. They both made Blackbeard happen."

Discusses the happy ending intent - "With this season starting so dark, I kind of wanted to reward them for the work that they've done and the character growth that they've had. I wanted to leave them in a place where they're really going to try and make this work. I don't think it's going to be easy for them, necessarily. They're both still immature."

Discusses the wedding - "We knew we wanted a matelotage in the second season, and pretty quickly we landed on Lucius and Black Pete. It seems like they were ready for that. We made up a ceremony and everything, where they call each other mateys, and it was just fun to make our own version of a pirate wedding ceremony."

Discusses potential S3 and Frenchie's Revenge - "But it felt like a good place to end the second season. It felt like a contrast to the first season. If it turns out we don't make any more, I'm comfortable with that being a resting place."

Variety - Oct 26, 2023 - with Hunter Ingram - Link

S3 endpoint - "I love things in threes," he says. "That first act, second act, third act structure is so satisfying when it is done well, and you don't overstay your welcome. I think this world of the show is a big world, and if the third season is successful, we could go on in a different way. But I think for the story of Stede and Ed, that is a three-season story."

Discusses the draw of a "Golden Age" and it's ending

Talks about father figure Izzy and wanting a real sense of loss - "There is a nice parallel to have Ed treat him so badly at the beginning of the season and then come all the way around to where Izzy is this sort of father figure he doesn’t want to lose — because Ed usually kills his father figures."

Gizmodo - Oct 26, 2023 - with Linda Codega (io9) - Link

Teasing future Izzy - "Jenkins looked slightly sad himself, saying that "Ghosts exist in this world." I told him not to make promises he couldn't keep."

"Jenkins said that he doesn't see Izzy as a pure antagonist in season one because on some level… Izzy was right in his hesitations about Stede."

Discussing Con O'Neill & Rhys Darby acting

Jenkins confirms the season was always 8 episodes due to budget cuts

About S2 finale vs S3 - "The first season ends on such a downer, so it made sense to end the second season in a kinder spot." + "I think there's plenty of story left for season three, but I think that it was important to end this as if it was the end of the show, and on upbeat note and avoid the kind of "kill your gays" trope. I don't want to see Stede and Ed punished for giving it a go. I want to see them really say, 'yeah, we’re going to we're going to try to have a relationship'."

Teases S3 revenge against Ricky and going to the Americas

Vanity Fair - Oct 26, 2023 - with Sarah Catherall - Link

About the ending - "It's bittersweet. There's death and there's the rebirth of Stede and Blackbeard's relationship; there's a funeral, there's a wedding, and the idea that this family is going to keep fighting even as they lose members. And then it's about belonging to something." + "A lot of times, with this narrative of characters, same-sex relationships end on a dour, downbeat note, where one of them dies and it's unrequited or it's unrealized; something horrible happens and they're punished in a way. So it was important to leave it open and a lot more show to go, but also leave it in a place where it's happy."

Discusses Izzy as a mentor / father figure - "We felt like Izzy's story had reached its conclusion, where we put him through enough. And then there was the realization that he is kind of a mentor to Blackbeard and that he is kind of a father figure to Blackbeard." + "And it's also a pirate show, so he's got to die."

Discusses filming challenges - "It's a big show; it's basically a one-hour show that we're doing on a half-hour budget."

Discusses adding Zheng Yi Sao

Is the show a queer romance? - "For this show, it's important to me just to write a really bold-bodied romantic show that happens to be between two characters of the same sex. I think that the story beats don't matter, because if you've been in love and you've been hurt and you met someone you love—hopefully we all know what those feelings are."

Blackbeard's arc in S2 - "...the second season is about Blackbeard's midlife crisis. And then when they both have their midlife crises, they can open a B&B together." + "I don't think Stede and Blackbeard are ready to be married. They're emotionally saying: 'Let's give this a go.'"

Discusses historical piracy as "counterculture" that's been straightwashed and whitewashed

Did he feel responsibility to the fan community? - "As opposed to responsibility, it feels more like relief—that people feel seen and they feel good about it and they liked what we did. And so it feels like, Okay, somebody's out there and wants the show. The makeup of the writers room looks a lot like the makeup of the fan base. So as long as we're true to our stories in the writers room, I think we just feel excited that there's somebody waiting on the other end to enjoy it."

Paste Magazine - Oct 26, 2023 - with Tara Bennett - Link

Discusses whether fandom expectations felt weighty - "I think particularly for this season, that "bury your gays" thing… I didn't want to end on a downbeat for Ed and Stede. We did that in the first season. I like that there's a lot of different flavors. It's even a little melancholy because the Republic of Pirates got blown up. But there's still more good things."

Discusses production and plotting - "I wanted to start at the Republic of Pirates this season and end at the Republic of Pirates. And I knew I wanted the Republic of Pirates to be destroyed, ultimately. Within that, we are making a one-hour show on a half hour budget, on a half hour schedule."

Discusses planning the ending - "In terms of ending this season, it all felt right just in talking through it when we were in the room. It felt pretty intuitive. When you get to the third act of the story, things kind of settle in. There's gonna be a funeral. We always knew we wanted a wedding at the end of the second season. And I knew that I wanted Stede and Ed to start an inn together. So once you have those beats, it's kind of locked in."

Discusses Izzy's arc - "It's kind of a strange arc in that I knew we were going to put him through all these things, and I knew he would ultimately die. But I think him becoming a father figure to Ed in the last episode didn't really dawn on us until we were breaking the last episode. Asking what would this man say to Ed at the end because they've been together through everything? He went from a troubled and downtrodden employee to a jilted lover to a discarded employee, to someone that is just trying to find his footing again—no pun intended—to actually becoming this guy's parental figure on some level. And he's one person who kind of raised Ed right, because Blackbeard usually kills his parental figures. So, it felt right and it felt like that's how the mentor dies. The mentor in a story usually dies in the second act and then our hero has to go on and try to do it without them. It felt like the right journey for Izzy and a gratifying one for Con."

On leaving open for S3 - "I don't think it was a very hard thing to do. I think it was more that I felt a responsibility to leave Ed and Stede in a good place, at least for now. It's not gonna go well. They're not going to run a business well. Ed's too much of a talker. Stede can't focus. It's gonna be challenging."

Vulture - Oct 28, 2023 - with Sophie Brookover - Link

Discussing Izzy as a "father figure" and his S2 send-off being a priority

Meaning of piracy - "...what our pirates stand for is a life of belonging to something larger than they are in the face of a crushing, slightly fascist normalcy."

Re: Con O'Neill & Izzy's death - "I had to tell him about halfway through the season"

Third season about the work of a relationship between still damaged main characters

Discusses middles as about change and transitions, and wanting characters to change instead of reset, have them experience permanent consequences

About the final scene - "...Ed and Stede as the parents kind of watching the kids take the ship. Frenchie's the captain now..."

Objective of the crew - "...have had terrible things happen to them at the hands of colonial forces, so they want some payback. Party, plunder, and payback — the three P's."

Metro Weekly - Nov 1, 2023 - with Randy Shulman - Link

Discusses historical premise of S1 and easing into the romance

Discusses S2 genre - "In the second season, it was great because we know it's a romance and we can lead with that. It's a workplace show essentially. I wanted it to be more in the vein of early episodes of Grey's Anatomy or something where there are all these relationships on those shows. That's what you’re following — relationships and friendships that are taking place in a hospital, procedural. That's Grey's Anatomy. This is less procedural for the pirate stuff — and you need the pirate stuff."

Discusses not being into pirates - "But I'm like you. I'm not a big pirate person. In general, it's a big creaky genre that's hard to budge" + "Pirates of the Caribbean, those movies are great. That's not necessarily what I hunger to see, but in that genre, it's great. You're not going to beat that, especially on something that's lower budget. We've seen a lot of this stuff, so it's fun to take it then and don't do any of that stuff."

Discusses adapting historical piracy - "You don't want to see them punch down. You don't want to see them do terrible things to people who don't deserve it, which is not what they really did. So, in the show's world, I think piracy is like a stand-in for something. I think it's a stand-in for being an iconoclast and an outsider and queer in some ways and just different." + "Yeah, I mean, the British are there to be Stormtroopers, or Nazis in an Indiana Jones movie. I mean, they're in there to die essentially."

Discusses diversity staffing

Discusses performative masculinity

Discusses Izzy's death, happy endings, and openness to S3

#trust me i appreciate the irony of making an extensive word of god reference when i want people to stop blindly promoting word of god #(and also when i'm currently very irritated with the creators) #and fyi showrunners talk A LOT but i was already committed so this was more work than i was expecting #i'll even use a small bit of my extra hour of destiel day to post this (most of it was assembled while watching supernatural) #our flag means death #ofmd #ofmd meta #david jenkins #word of god #ladyluscinia

[abattre]

It's actually so disappointing that Naruto's narrative took the route that it did. Kishimoto created an incredibly interesting world and premise, and ruined it by having everything amount to a shallow message of forgiveness that undermines almost every meaningful element in the story. And it's like,, I want to appreciate the world outside of the plot, but the moral framing of the story makes it virtually impossible because of how disingenuous it is. It completely undermines the audience's understanding of the tragedy and horror of the world so that Naruto becoming Hokage and being the most powerful person in the world by the end doesn't come across as distasteful as it actually is.

Like it's made abundantly clear throughout the story that the village system, and Shinobi society as a whole, is incredibly flawed. Kishimoto goes out of his way to show us that Konoha's council is made up of objectively horrible people. We see first hand how the council's short-sighted ideas of what 'protecting the village' means results in devastating tragedy for people both in Konoha and outside of it. It's clear in how Danzo and the rest of the council act that their atrocious behaviour is them just blatantly abusing their power to maintain their authority. The council has no remorse in anything they do; human experimentation, genocide, slavery, and blatant exploitation is all fair game to them if it preserves their status quo. And instead of maybe, like, addressing Konoha's skewed morality in a sensible way and setting the village up for reform, the narrative just tries forcing the audience to perceive Konoha's genuinely heinous actions as necessities. Which, you know, will work when you're like 8, but once you've grown up and developed some reading comprehension and critical thinking,,, it just feels annoyingly manipulative.

At its core, Naruto is a story that attempts to deconstruct morality. Like this is abundantly clear in how Kishimoto is constantly paralleling the dichotomy of good and evil literally every chance he gets. In the end though, this dichotomy just doesn't work in the context of the Naruto story because the narrative framing of the village being the good guys is just hysterically ridiculous. Konoha is an awful place, that does awful things, and is run by awful people that refuse to change anything because it benefits them for the village to remain awful forever. To anyone with a developed sense of media literacy the village cannot in any way be framed as morally good, so when the story resolves itself with Naruto becoming next in line to govern Konoha under the same unchanging authoritarian regime, with the same council supporting him because of his sheer physical prowess and complete dedication to their twisted ideology,,, it's honestly just an incredibly underwhelming conclusion to a story that made itself out to be more profound than it actually is.

If I had to guess, I imagine Kishimoto just didn't think through how negatively the world he created would reflect on the plot. Ultimately though, you can't write a moral story that's so deeply entrenched in real world social inequity and decide halfway through that because you don't know how to fix these things your story's going to have to be about how they're actually okay to be doing and perpetuating,,, like that is awful and also a terrible lesson to impart on an audience of children. With how serious the issues are in Shinobi society, trying to resolve things with the power of friendship was always going to fall flat. These broad scale injustices can't be brushed aside in that way without undermining their severity and diminishing the understandable impact they had on the characters that experienced such extreme oppression. That's essentially the trap that Naruto's conclusion falls into though, and so the story just ends up feeling incomplete and unfulfilling because none of the issues brought up are actually addressed or discussed with the gravity they deserve.

#i guess kishimoto was hoping the aliens would distract us or something #i love the naruto world but i can't stand the pro-konoha rhetoric like it's just so bad #anti konoha #anti naruto ending #anti shinobi system #pro uchiha #pro sasuke uchiha #pro neji hyuuga

[paradoxcase]

John 5:4

THE TOWER HAS BEEN REACTIVATED

So I guess that is for "Earth" and then "Alecto" and then "Harrow". It's interesting that this little secondary story does not actually tell us anything about where the name "Alecto" came from. Was it a name that John gave to her? Or one that she gave herself? Given John's obsession with the name Gaia, I would have thought he'd pick that

You've proven over and over again that no one should trust you with anything, dude

Harrow mentions "waking up" as being a separate thing from resurrection again later, but it's not clear what this means at either point

Are you telling me that John made them forget everything just by doing something physical to their brains and Mercy the anatomy expert who definitely figured out what Harrow did to her brain after only a few months never figured this out in 10,000 years? I cannot believe that

This makes it sound like the other planets were already populated before John destroyed everything. So how did those people die? Did just killing the planets cause that to happen? Did John kill all the people on the planets in addition to the planets? I figured that at least the technology to make the other planets habitable had come from after the start of the 10,000 years, but apparently not even that was invented during John's regime, the whole society has just been completely static the whole time. This is straining suspension of disbelief here

There's no way they decided they wanted to do whatever John did with Alecto, because until the end of Harrow the Ninth, all of the Lyctors thought Alecto was just someone that John resurrected who came back wrong, they didn't realize she was Earth, and they definitely didn't realize she was John's cavalier, that was the whole point of the reveal at the end of the last book

So confirmed that John only created the Lyctors so that they would be roped into fighting the resurrection beasts for him. And then he talks about ripping his fingers from his hands and throwing them to the resurrection beasts, but what he really means is sacrificing his friends so that he can continue on

Oh my god, I don't think I've ever been this mad about someone misinterpreting a bible story before. The whole point of the flood story was that God said, oh, no, this was a terrible mistake, I'm so sorry, I promise I will never destroy the world again no matter how bad it gets. The point was not that the world was evil and needed a "fresh start", the point of the story was that destroying the world just because there are some evil people there is wrong. And like, this isn't a one-time lesson in the OT, either, it comes back again in the Sodom and Gomorrah story when God wants to destroy the cities because there are some bad people there and Abraham has a big argument with him and argues him down to agreeing to spare the cities if there is even one good person there other than Lot and his family. This was like, character development for God, he went from someone who destroyed the whole world because of some bad people and he is learning and relenting and getting some perspective from Abraham. And then later you have the story of Jonah, where now it's Jonah who wants the city destroyed, and God is lecturing him about why that's not right. Like, to the extent that the OT, which was written by like four or five different people with very different ideas of who God was and then frankensteined together by an editor hundreds of years later actually has a coherent narrative and consistent themes, this is pretty consistent. How does someone who grows up with these stories fail at understanding them so badly? How is it possible for someone who probably has advanced degrees to have such shit reading comprehension? This is the most infuriating thing John has ever said in these entire last two books

So this is what she meant by "where did you put the people" at the end of the last John chapter. I would guess the answer is either that he actually consumed all of their souls for power somehow, or that their souls are somewhere generating power in some way. I guess this probably won't be answered until the fourth book

The "tower" that's been menitoned... but it doesn't seem like this is meant to be Canaan House, as people have indicated on previous posts, and at least in this case it seems to be something that's in the River, or maybe she is just travelling through the River to get there?

Also, since this is the last John chapter, I have to ask, for poll-making purposes: Is it ever clarified in this book or elsewhere which country was the one that hired John to puppet around their dead head of state?

#the locked tomb #nona the ninth

[queerfables]

Look far be it for me to defend Rowling, I stay far away from her and everything she has to say these days, but I just saw someone criticise the Harry Potter series for abuse apologism based on the claim that Harry going back to the Dursleys every year is treated as something "necessary and good". And I would argue that the narrative treated this as something necessary and awful. Never once does Harry suggest that he's grateful to be there or okay with the way they treated him, not at the time and not in hindsight. When he's finally leaving for the last time he maybe has some complicated not entirely negative feelings about the people who raised him, but honestly this is realistic, lots of people have complicated feelings about their abusive families. And like. One time he escaped that house in a flying car in the middle of the night. One time he ran away and hitchhiked out of town. One time he was rescued by underground rebel wizards!! This isn't the way you frame something so the audience will feel warmly about it. The context of the "familial protection magic" reveal was as an explanation for why Harry was repeatedly subjected to this miserable living situation, not a justification that Family Is Always Good.

And like maybe I'm gonna get accused of jumping on Rowling's dick or whatever but I still think this is worth saying. The author is a terrible person and her politics are fair game for criticism but you still have to exercise basic reading comprehension when you critique her works. You can argue that the seeds of her current beliefs are visible in her earlier writing, I'd agree with you, but I don't think it's true that her current beliefs make every word she's ever written retroactively malicious. It is so important to remember that Rowling isn't a monster who was always hiding sinister intentions, she's a normal person who got radicalised into a violently oppressive belief system. If we think of people like her as monsters who've always been this way, we ignore the radicalising forces in their lives that pulled them in. We can't dismantle oppressive systems if we don't understand them. And we're more vulnerable to being radicalised ourselves if we don't understand how it happens.

#fable talks

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

AITA for not wanting to talk about a fandom with a friend?

We've been friends for 6-7 years, but we're not close. Just your regular internet friendship where we both have close friends and seperate friend groups, but us two were in the same fandom initially and that's how we know each other.

She's in a lot of fandoms casually but her ult fandom is massive, I'm in a smaller but still big fandom. We're both fandom olds, we both know fandom etiquette and behavior, we're both adults with our own lives etc. Please don't assume we're unattended teens in a petty fight.

We have both shown interest in each other's fandoms, we both understand we can't be more involved there than we already are. That's all fine.

I used to talk about my fandom with her initially, about 2 years ago, but I gradually stopped since she's not that interested and I have other friends to talk to who are already into it. Besides I have a short social battery, so I don't *need* to talk to everyone all the time.

The issue is: After not showing that much interest for months and me not talking to her much, she's trying to talk to me about it now. But all she sends me are theories from people I have blocked or people dragging this media and expecting everyone to laugh with them, outlandish mischaracterization, hot takes that are just fans insulting the creator over their own piss poor reading comprehension, memes that have been done to death etc. All in all it's things my fandom friends and I are sick of.

And it's particularly bugging me because my friend here faces and rants about the same shit in *her* fandom! She gets my issues with mischaracterization or creator bashing etc same as I do with her! But it's as if she never paid any attention when I said 'This and This are untrue or hurtful' or 'I hate when This is said' or correct her on anything that from insider pov is borderline offensive. Ofc I wouldn't expect her to know... except I *have* told her many times and I share a lot of posts talking about it so anyone following me would have a general idea even if we never spoke?

This is partly why I stopped talking to her about it because for the last full year and some more, every few weeks she brought up the same bad fanons. And after I debunked them she said 'Oh that's terrible!', then after a couple weeks same old same old. Ofc that's really frustrating.

We stopped talking about it like I said, but she's now back on it and I'm not reciprocating. When she wants me to look at her memes or talk about the ships I make it clear that I don't want to do that. She has other friends from my fandom who are into those tired takes she shares, she's not speaking into a void. I'm free to talk about anything else but her behavior for over a year is pulling me away from her tbqf.

I feel like I'm being a bad friend, it's just fiction. But she takes her own fiction just as seriously and rags on people she disagrees with way more than me. So I don't know, I like my friend but I hate talking to her about anything fandom related. Did I make it bad for myself by sending her things in the beginning when she was probably saying odd things to signal she wasn't interested? I think so.

PS: If any of you think about replying with 'Eh who cares fanon is fun, take a joke' etc, control yourself. Thank you.

What are these acronyms?

#aita #am i the asshole

[imjulia-andilikecats]

Why I Ship Mareven and Yes, I'm Aware that They're Toxic

I've noticed a couple of posts questioning how some readers ship Mareven given how toxic it was and proceed to list off all the terrible things that they did to each other through out the series.

Before I start my rant. Warning, this is long and I might just ramble at the end. Also please be reminded that these are MY reasons, as to why I enjoy this ship. I don't represent the whole Mareven shipping team. I made this post based on MY observation and the desire to absolve myself from the feeling of shame for liking Mareven.

We can't deny it. Anyone who read the series, even just the first book could easily tell that Mareven is toxic.

Which leads to the most common question for this ship. Why is Mare and Maven still being shipped even after Maven's betrayal and even past Glass Sword?

Simple, it's their unique and complex dynamic. They are both deeply flawed characters that have frightening similarities. Which could have lead to a wonderful friendship or a romantic one.

However, due to their social status and political beliefs. Mare joining the Scarlet Guard to free the Reds and Newbloods from Silver rule. Maven wanting to be king of Norta and was willing to do ANYTHING to keep his crown . They are of opposition to each other's goals, which lead them being sworn enemies. Causing severe pain and suffering to the other, when given the opportunity.

Yet, there would be moments between the cruel actions and harsh words. Where one of them would show affection in hopes of rekindling what they had and the other mourning the person that they thought they knew.

Even viewing them through the lense of a non-shipper. They have a fascinating exchange of dialogue and the uncomfortable amount of tension whenever they are near each other, even the mere mention of the other's name would momentarily push them off balance. There was simply no dull moment between these two.

The REAL question should be: "Is Mareven being a toxic ship REALLY the reason some readers dislike the ship OR is there something else at play?

Before I continue: It's understandable not to like a ship, if a toxic relationships between fictional characters aren't your cup of tea.

However! I don't think "being toxic" should be the daming reason to fully drop a ship and EXPECT everyone else to do so. Because I feel that those Mareven Ship "Dislikers" don't seem to detect the MAIN cause of their dislike for this ship.

I think the dislike of the ship could be attributed from some Mareven fanfics and shippers. Maybe they dislike how they treated Mare and Maven when paired together.

For example: Mare being seen as an object or tool in fixing Maven and making him happy. Void of any emotion or flaws, as she is simply an extension to the desires and fantasies of the writer. Other cases, some Mareven shippers openly trash Mare for not reciprocating Maven's affections, as they see him as a unloved child that needs a hug. Seeming to forget that Maven is completely capable of committing atocities against the people he "loves" and other characters that were unfortunate enough to encounter him and his mother.

The simplification and misinterpretation of both complex characters once they are viewed as a couple is frustrating.

Which is why I think the EXTERNAL FACTORS, such as SOME Mareven fanfics and shippers surrounding the Mareven ship, are MOSTLY the cause that ignited the dislike for the ship not just Mareven being toxic.

To put it simply, there is nothing wrong or shameful for liking a toxic ship like Mareven. It does not AUTOMATICALLY mean you have a twisted perception of what a functioning relationship should be nor have poor reading comprehension.

I also noticed that some of those post that dislike Mareven are also Maven fans, claiming that Maven is their favorite character and are also aware of his flaws (and crimes).

So, I can even throw the same argument to them.

What's the difference between liking Maven Calore, one of the main antagonist of the series that caused harm to a number of characters, and liking Mareven that is a toxic ship where both characters were toxic towards each other?

Note: Since it's a veey messy essay. I am more than open for a discussion.

#red queen #mare barrow #glass sword #war storm #king's cage #cal calore #maven calore #old meme #random #tiberias vii calore #mareven #elara merandus #i know its not a big issue here #but I end up jot being in good terms with one of those Mareven dislikers

[eshtaresht]

guys how are we feeling? in pain, devastated, or screaming crying throwing up, what's the consensus here? spoilers for ep 11 under the cut (and minor spoiler for manga)

first things first, my theory from the last week is proven wrong. still don't know what the red plants were for (safekeeping? protecting from the last run?), but nai ain't gonna exploit them to "fix" vash. instead he EXPLOITS HIM AND SUBJECTS TO MENTAL TURTURE AND WIPES HIS MEMORIES CLEAN TO ACCES A HIGHER DIMENSION and create more independent babies ig

(yep the plant mpreg moment is sure a thing... for the next week, get ready for mass abortion)

finally, a gate that's an actual GATE. I think the plants lore was pretty self explanatory, but I'm so happy we're getting it and it's much more comprehensive that the manga, even(and 98' anime basically didn't explain anything and I had to spoil myself through fandom wiki to understand who vash and knives were). like, it's changed A LOT but it's in the same lane

this knives is so capable, holy shit!! everyone was already joking that he would put kniveses of the past to shame, and it's so true... he knows what he wants and how he wants it done and when he just goes ahead and does it. what a giga chad, honestly

I'm a bit disappointed they didn't keep the manga version of knives pre-tessla (that was softer than vash and wanted humans to like him), but it's definetely better than the old anime. like, he's colder due to him being the stronger twin, but he's still playful and doesn't hate ppl. he kinda distrusts rem, but they fucked around out of curiosity rather than malice. also, and I can't be the only one who noticed, his file name said "kni"? mmm ok interesting I'll have to think about it

that probably was the sequence code knives was talking about in ep 8, he used it again for the great fall. I wonder what it said, had to be something important to rem that vash could guess. geranium? their birthday?

the tessla sequence was quite short, but DAMN. status: alive. after all they've done to her. they put her on ice in this condition so they can keep studying her later. and the twins made her come alive. I'm gonna be sick it's so much worse..... no comas or suicide attempts this time, but these kids were still traumatized as hell (vash looks worse, like he haven't slept or probably eaten in a couple of days)

it was a serious moment but when nai revealed he was reading THE BIBLE I can't ahajakahajajahah... like, NO WONDER HE STARTED A RELIGION omg... pls put that book down you've got the message wrong

and or birthday boy vash... oh babygirl I'm so sorry. when I said I wanted to see him going through this I didn't mean a literal mental torture gaslight dimension!!! like, it's SO crucial to his character to REMEMBER all the good and terrible things he went through.... to have it taken away while he can't do anything, even when he clings to the memories as hard as he can, knives still takes EVERYTHING away from him, until he's the only thing tying vash to this world.

again, any other knives could never! and even before tearing apart all those memories, he gaslights vash even further, saying that he did the fall for him (which is true) and so it's basically his fault (which is very much not true)... and this BREAKS him quite literally... AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

on a brighter note, loved that goofy meryl & nico interaction, remember, when we could still laugh? now it seems like meryl is gonna manage to reach vash in his infinite soup of despair, and that breaks his gate?? I'm so thrilled for the finale it's not at all like I imagined already said this in my previous post, but the flowers are a consistent theme for stampede instead of angels and, like... it's just makes sense for a plant to be a plant, yk. also it's pretty. july is already being destroyed by the roots, I wonder if that's gonna be it or there'll be a big kaboom (in this case it would be hard for meryl to survive, but potentially vash could make a root cacoon to protect her)

also this ep gets bonus points for showing what's going on in the city with the police guys and civilians, 'cause usually stampede isn't great at background and side characters

now making theories about the (potential) second season. amnesia aspect is getting established rlly hard rn! the only question is whether vash gets to remember key moments (like rem, meryl, wolfwood) or if he only retains the vibes of "someone important who said I shoud protect ppl". because it's gonna be interesting if he forgets everyone completely and when nico and meryl (and milly, fingers crossed) eventially find him, he''s like "hi, have we met?"

oh, the POTENTIAL! I think he's gonna get his 98' characterization as super goofy, borderline annoying, because he just doesn't remember all the pain! at least, he doesn't remember the details and fills the blanks with astonishing amounts of cope. and when he's finally able to remember, oh boy, he's gonna crumble.......

#I can't believe it's almost over what do I do when where's no more stampede saturdays.... #trigun stampede #trigun #trigun spoilers #trigun stampede spoilers #nicholas d wolfwood #meryl stryfe #vash the stampede

[akookminsupporter]

I mean it's funny that you a non native English speaker is telling us native english speakers to read and understand English.

Iam sure you don't buy anything from bts. So very sure you didn't even buy JM's album. You won't even buy Jk's album. Did you atleast get their photobooks? Why are you bothered about others buying the album?

You're just here shipping 2 men together. As soon as they announced solo era you went from shipping to "semi news" blog. And you act like you need to have an opinion on everything.

I still don't get what your problem is. Why are you so bothered about Jm album making a few extra sales? This is pathetic. Free Jikook from Jikookers.

You are basically xenophobic, you like to humiliate people for being poor and apart from that, you have terrible reading comprehension.

In the almost 3 years I've been here I've been called a lot of things, insulted and made fun of but wow Anon, you finally managed to make me feel bad.

Yes, I am poor. Unfortunately, the price of my country's currency is basically non-existent and therefore the price of the dollar is sky high. Buying an album is literally a month's worth of food and utility bills in my house. Although fortunately our situation is not that bad, I have to be aware that I can't spend that kind of money on an album. As a fan, I help out as much as I can: watching MVs and streaming the songs on Spotify, it's not much but it's what I can do right now. Unfortunately I don't have the financial solvency that other fans have, that you have.

Yesterday I confirmed that weverse global does ship to my country, the total purchase would be 90 dollars. The dollar value in my country's currency is 0.00020. I hope to save a little to eventually buy the album. The same for the album that will eventually be released by Jungkook.

I never said that wanting to sell albums is wrong, I never said that the idea of phone calls to fans is wrong I just said that it was a common strategy in the kpop world but I never said that Jimin would do it just for money. I know his motivation is to connect with his fans ALSO. Many of you are so quick to read something without really understanding what you read that you end up reacting the wrong way.

I'm not going to apologise for being poor, for not having enough money to buy a music album, to do so would be an insult to my parents and myself. It saddens me that there are people like you. I feel sad for you, Anon. I hope you always have money to buy all the albums in the world, obviously that's paramount in your life.

I'm sure you'll be glad to know that you've humiliated me, anon. I hope you have a good day.

For whoever reads this, never feel that being a fan of an artist means buying everything they release. Never feel like it's an obligation to buy an album or a sticker. Being a fan of an artist is a hobby. Enjoy it however you can.

[okay-letsdothisonelasttime]

I'm back on that hunger games bullshit. Cause you know, the world is turning into a dystopion nightmare before our eyes, so why not consume media that showcases the hell on earth we are barrelling toward. And as always I have some (many) thoughts.

(This is long, but I needed to get it out of my head - sorry in advance if anyone does actually read it)

Gale is the worst - we all know this. He's manipulative, petty, short sighted and insecure. A great representation of fragile masculinity. But I'm only now coming to realise a lot of my dislike of the third book was largely ignited by his increased role in the narrative. Don't get me wrong there was a good potion of it that stemmed from being a (privilaged) adolescents at the time and thus unable to fully comprehend and empathise with the themes being discussed. But even at that age he was so unpalatable (and still is) that having to hear about him and his shitty behaviour throughout the story really undermined the complexity of the narrative (at least for me. Shitty unnecessary love triangle with a terrible man = loss of interest).

The third book is so much more interesting to me now (excluding fucking gale) that I have (experience with) comprehensive knowledge of mental health struggles (i.e. ptsd, depression, anxiety, panic disorders etc.). The way that finnick, katniss, haymitch, Johanna and of course peeta (and really all of the tributes) struggle with their truma, particularly in the third book, is very interesting, if horrifying, to read about. Especially when you consider the time during which this was written. Like yes mental health was being discussed more freely and with less stigma. But it wasn't the same open conversations we are having now, over a decade later.

There's so many small details from the books that I had completely forgotten about. Details that subtlety weave into the narrative and really intensify the characters, themes and political systems being represented. Things that make the capitol and their power that much more terrifying. Ideas that anchor the distopian themes more to reality and reflect the growing injustice and corruption in our own world back at the reader.

The books do a better job of representing katniss and peeta's age then I remember. Yes they have grown up with hardship, poverty, oppression and are therefore justifiably tougher and more comprehending then your average (privilaged) teen. But both show a level of naivety (for lack of a better word) throughout the books, particularly catching fire, that is a fundamental buy product and nessisary reminder of the fact that these are 16 to 17 year old kids. Forced into being the face, voice and engine of a revolutionary war.

While I once resented certain character deaths at the end of the series and questioned the motives and decisions made by individuals. I have come to realise (with age and experience) that it was so much more important for the story that it's wasn't contorted into some kind of palatable "happy ending" for fan service. The story would have never worked as a whole if it wasn't being brutally honest about the cost of change. Not just in the indicriminant loss of life (it could be your mum, your neighbour, your bully in school - just like it could be the unnamed character or your favourite protagonist). But the tax it can take on the mind, body, spirit and morality of the people who are fighting for it. Standing up for your rights, for your friends and families safety, for the quality of life of hundreds of unnamed people who you have never met will take a toll. And standing up against the oppression of yourself and or others will never be easy. And there's every chance you might walk away from that fight and no longer recognise yourself when you look in the mirror.

Anyway I'm sure there's so much more, but in conclusion 'the hunger games' aged like fine wine for the most part.

And while i understand why there was so much push back against it for the last little while. A young white women being represented as the savour of the oppressed because she was a figure head (at least for a large part) for the movement, while many grass roots organisations do the actual fighting on the ground. [Please see edit to add below for corrections]

I think overall there's a lot of political issues the book discusses well, which have remained topical and relevant enough that it still has a place in the current day. (Particulalrly with the distopian shithole amaerica is tuning into as we speak).

EDIT TO ADD: it has come to my addention that Kitniss was infact written into the books as a POC, likely either Native American or Melungeon. Something I didn't know, but makes a hell of a lot of sense, and I think is far more powerful when you consider her role in the series. However this does bring the white washing of her role in the movies to the forefront and opens up the issues of racial prejudice and lack of equal oppunity in hollywood. How visual media can very easily corrupt and alter our comprehension of literature. And why represention is so incredibly vital.

Because the reality is that, for me, having Katniss' role payed by a white women in the films completely steam roled and mentally erased the nuance of her characterisation as a POC women in the books. As I'm sure it did for a lot of young white teenagers. Which in turn emboldened a lot of (priviaged and white) people to participate in proformative activism. And subsequently led to the backlash that I wrote about above.

Thank you to @bluestrawberrys for bring the above issue to my attention so I could make the nessisary correction.

#the hunger games #catching fire #mockingjay #my thoughts #a reflection on the series #i have such different perspectives now than i did when i was 13 or whatever #it held up #for the most part #district 12 #the capitol #peeta mellark #haymitch abernathy #finnick odair #johanna mason #katniss everdeen #we live in a distopian nightmare #so why not read about it?

[blueraineshadows]

Heart Breakers: Chapter 3A - When Seb wins

I strongly advise you read Chapter 1 and Chapter 2 if you haven't already. Written from a request from @simpy-slytherin F!MC is called Leina in honour of her MC

Sebastian x Leina x Garreth

This is 1 of 2 alternate endings. In this chapter, Sebastian is end game 💚 Chapter 3B will see Garreth get the girl.

He wasn't in the Undercroft or in the clock tower. Leina avoided the spot where she had seen Trixie all over Sebastian, hurrying on in her search for him. Eventually, she found herself standing outside the Slytherin common room, students wandering about giving her curious looks.

Maybe they were hoping more drama was about to kick off. She really hoped not.

After about 15 minutes of waiting and hoping Sebastian would appear, Ominis came down the staircase, wand out flickering. He headed for the door but paused, head tilting slightly. "Leina, is that you?"

"Yes," she said, stepping forward. "How are you, Ominis? I feel like we haven't spoken in a while."

"You have had your hands rather full it seems, no time for chit chat," he said. "What are you doing here?"

"I was hoping to catch Sebastian. Do you know if he is around?"

"Hmm, yes, you two do need to sort out this new mess of yours," he sighed. "He has been an absolute monster to be around lately. I'm growing rather tired of it."

He paused in thought and then moved a little closer. "You won't find him here. He mentioned needing to catch up on some Astronomy assignment work and headed that way after dinner. I would assume he is still there in the tower."

"Thank you, Ominis, I will give it a try."

"Before you dash off, may I say something?"

"Of course."

His brow pinched and a glimmer of sadness washed over his face. "I know he has upset you terribly, but please, don't go too hard on him. He is the bane of my life sometimes, but he is also like a brother to me. I know when he is hurting, and he is definitely suffering. He still hasn't got over the events of 5th year. And as for Trixie, well, her behaviour has been disgusting to say the least. Sebastian was in a very bad place that night, and roaring drunk to boot. She took advantage of him. Had the roles been reversed, a boy would have been reprimanded within an inch of his life. I do not believe he set out to hurt you. In his own stupid way, he thinks he protects people with his wild ideas and protective nonsense. Anne being a case in point. I think what I am trying to say, is that he feels deeply for you, and that is why he tangles himself up in knots."

"Feels deeply for me?" Leina felt like her lungs had been squeezed at those words. "He has never said such a thing to me."

"He would never admit any of this to himself, or anyone else for that matter, he is far too stubborn for that. But he doesn't fool me."

Leina stood there taking this speech in with her eyes wide. She took a long, shaky breath as she tried to process all of it. She reached out a hand and placed it on Ominis' arm. He flinched a little, but didn't push her off.

"I understand," she said. "Don't worry. The last thing I want to do is hurt Sebastian. I just want to try and make things better because they can't go on as they are."

"Then we are agreed," he said with a smile. "I wish you luck."

.....*.....

Sebastian rolled up his parchment now that his ink was dry and put a stopper in the ink bottle. The Astronomy Tower was now deserted and quiet and he liked it that way. It was peaceful.

He sighed and moved towards a railing to look up. It was one thing to stare through the telescope and mark the detail of the stars, but when you stood and took in the whole blanket of them across the sky, it just hit you differently. It was huge, beyond comprehension, and you remembered that you were one small thing before it. Your troubles a mere wisp against the great, and therefore, should be more manageable to carry on your shoulders.

He wished that were true. He rubbed a hand across his eyes and gingerly moved them to his neck. The bruises there were less tender, the sticky salve on them seeming to do the trick. He scowled about the how and where of the salve, hating that he had to go begging to Leander Prewett, of all people, to ask for help. Wiggenweld just didn't seem to budge the dammed things and he hated the way people were staring at them, sniggering behind their hands.

Most of all he hated that Leina had seen them. His heart wrenched at the way her eyes had dimmed, losing their usual spark and fire. He hated that he hadn't been able to take her hand and try to soothe away the hurt. But, it was on him. He had nobody but himself to blame.

And now, he owed fucking Leander Prewett a favour for bailing him out with a Herbology trick for getting rid of bruises. The smugness on the idiot's face made his wand hand itch something terrible.

But he had been desperate. Desperate to hide the marks that had left him feeling dirty, stained. He shivered at the memory of her tongue violating him. It made his skin crawl. Never mind the stares of others, he needed to scrub all the evidence away that she had ever touched him in the first place.

Footsteps on the stairs signalled the end of his peace and quiet. He sighed and turned to gather his things, not really in the mood to stay for small talk. He froze when it was Leina that appeared at the top of the stairs, though. Alone, and looking right at him.

"Hello, Sebastian,' she said softly. "I've been looking for you."

.....*.....

Now that Sebastian was there, right in front of her, any words she had been trying to piece together on the way up here slid right out of her mind. He stood stock still, eyes wide and fixed on her like she would startle if he so much as blinked.

She stared at him in the moonlight, drinking in the sight of him, that heavy feeling in her chest shifting, feeling as though it might shrink a little. It was just him, and her, just like she was used to, and that had never been a bad thing. Not really.

She pressed her lips together, tears burning the backs of her eyes and then she was running, crossing the gap between them and throwing herself at him. Her arms wrapped about him and she buried her face deep into his neck, breathing in his scent like she had been holding her breath since the last time she had touched him.

He had stiffened at first, shocked perhaps, but then his arms circled her waist and crushed her to his chest.

"You're such an idiot, Sebastian Sallow," she said, her voice thick with emotion.

"I know," he said. "I know. And I'm sorry."

His voice cracked on the last word and she pulled back to look at him. He gulped, a hand reaching to swipe quickly at the tear that rolled from his eye. He tried to look away from her, but she wouldn't let him. "Its alright," she whispered. "It's just me. You're alright."

His lip wobbled and she pulled him in tight again, her fingers sliding into the hair at the back of his head as the dam broke and he cried into her robes.

The moment wasn't lost on her. It was the mirror of what she had done to Garreth, and Garreth had not questioned her need for comfort. She would not question Sebastion either, not if he wasn't ready. But she could hold him, she could soothe him and, maybe, it would help.

"I'm alright, honestly," he said. He pulled back and wiped his face. "I don't deserve your hugs, as lovely as they are."

"Everyone needs a hug at some point, Seb," she said. "How could I not comfort you if you need it?"

"I should be the one comforting you. I...I've been a fool, Leina." He hung his head. "There aren't enough apologies in the world to make up for it. But, I would like to try."

"Then, let us try," she said.

Her eyes drifted down to the marks on his neck and she swallowed, her nose wrinkling in distaste at the goop covering them. "Blimey, Sebastian, what on earth have you smeared on your neck?"

He groaned. "Don't ask. It's some nasty salve to get rid of bruises. I can't wait to be rid of them."

"You and me, both," she said, grimly.

An awkward silence filled the air and Leina shivered, the cold evening breeze cutting through the dampness of her clothing. Perhaps she should have changed after all.

"You're cold," he said. He rubbed at her arms.

"A little, unfortunately my clothes are a bit damp," she said. She tugged at the front of her jumper, wrinkling her nose, and he frowned in curiosity. "There was an incident during my Potions detention, I got a bit soggy."

His frown deepened. "I assume Weasley is just as damp?"

Leina stepped back out of reach of his arms. They dropped to his sides, fists clenched. She wrapped her own arms about herself, maybe because of the chill, maybe because she felt like she needed to protect the soft feelings she was harbouring in her chest for Garreth.

"I didn't come here to argue with you, Seb," she said. "But, let me make one thing very clear. I won't hear a word said against Garreth. He doesn't deserve it, not one bit."

She could see the clench in his jaw. Clearly, there were words fighting to get out, but he held his lips firmly clamped. Let them stay there. She didn't want to hear it.

"If we are going to have any chance at moving forward from this point on, then Garreth is non-negotiable. He is someone important to me and I won't give him up. Not even for you."

He processed that. He didnt like it, his eyes flashed, but he nodded. "Okay, so Garreth is off the table," he said slowly. "What did you want to talk about? Why did you seek me out?"

Her heart pounded. Yes, why did she seek him out? Did she want his confession of undying love for her? Now that she was here, she wasn't sure if she could handle it. It felt too huge, too all encompassing a thing, and she felt her chest tighten. It didn't feel heavy anymore, although she definitely hadn't forgotten the image of him wrapped up with Trixie. She wasn't sure if she ever would.

But, was that fair? He didn't owe her exclusivity. They weren't a couple. She had clearly spat the words into his face that a few kisses didn't lay a claim on each other. Also, how would he feel to see her wrapped up with Garreth? Livid, thats how, if his rage in the Undercroft was anything to go by.

Even here, in the chill wind cutting right through the tower top arches, she felt her cheeks warm. What if she had kissed Garreth on the floor of the Potions classroom? What if Sebastian had walked in on that? If Sharpe hadn't caught them, she thought it was quite likely she may have kissed him, and the thought threw her into a spin.

It was all too much. Her mind was fudge, and she didn't know what on earth her body was trying to tell her. He was there, waiting for an answer and she didn't know what to say.

She backed up a step, two, her lungs burning for air but she was gasping it in.

He frowned. "Leina, what's wrong?"

"I...I..." She threw a look towards the stairs, the exit, escape. Coward. "I accept your apology."

Inwardly, she cringed. Gods that was so formal. So cold. She didn't mean to be, and the flicker of uncertainty on his face made her want to run.

He took a careful step to the side, slowly lifting his hands. All the times they had been in a duel, fought dark wizards, trained together, it had given them a bond, an understanding of each other. He knew she was going to bolt just as much as she knew he was going to try and stop her. Their bodies were in tune, they could read each other in a split second.

She stepped back and to the side, one eye on him, the other on the exit. He stepped as well. Her heart hammered right up into her throat, her ears roaring with it and she forgot about the chill of her clothes.

Tension, electric and hot, sizzled. To her shock, she felt it in her abdomen, curling like some wild thing. Would he chase her? If she ran for those stairs, would he chase her? What if he caught her? Unbidden, a small sound came from her throat at the idea.

What the fuck was wrong with her??

He lifted an eyebrow at that sound, she was so distracted by it, and the slow curving tilt of his lips, that she had let her guard slip. He was closer than before. Damn him!

"I will catch you," he said. His voice was low, dark. Filthy.

She swallowed, her throat working double time. She shook her head in denial, but it was a pathetic shake, weak. Gods, he made her weak and she couldn't be. She had to get a grip on herself.

Her eyes darted to the exit and back to him. Where would she run to? That was a lot of fucking stairs to get down, she would no doubt end up tumbling to her death, if his smile didn't kill her first. Look at him, his smirk, that wicked, wicked mouth. Fuck!

She ran. Her feet bounded across the Astronomy deck and into the stairway, cloak and hair flying as she took the stairs in a leap. He was right behind her, feet pounding on the wooden steps, she could hear his excited breaths.

She ignored the shooting spear of fire that shot through her, if she didn't she would falter, and if she faltered then it would be too late. He'd catch her.

Oh, but what if he did?

Legs trembling, she skidded across the landings on the switch back steps, hands shoving off from walls for momentum, before hitting the next flight of stairs, curving down, and down, to her inevitable doom.

Leina was almost at the Room of Requirement. For a split second, she considered it an escape, but the door needed to form, it would take too long, and he was gaining on her. Was that the brush of finger tips on her cloak?

A cry left her lips, a cry that sounded far too excitable for her liking, and she pushed harder, feet slapping against wood as she hurtled down the corridor past her secret haven.

The corridors were getting smaller, portraits and statues whizzing past as she ran, legs beginning to burn, every breath now a fight, and still, he was right behind her.

He wasn't going to quit, it wasn't his style. He could be near death and he would keep chasing her. Now, that thought nearly made her stumble as she burst out into the Defence Against the Dark Arts Tower.

She barely had time to glance at the shocked faces of the students in the seating area as she made a desperate sprint for the switch back stairs going down, down, down.

She hadn't planned on it, but her feet were carrying her closer and closer to where it all began. That Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom where she had knocked him on his arse on her first day. And, what was underneath it? The Undercroft.

She risked a glance back, he was so close, face flushed but determined. A laugh, rasping and breathless trailed behind her as she kept going, on and on until she thought her legs might just give out from under her. She was flagging as she passed the rhinoceros skeleton and she felt fingers catch hold of her flapping cloak.

He had her.

They both stumbled to a stop, his hands tugging her closer and she braced her hands against his heaving chest. They barely had the breath to laugh, but somehow, they did.

"So...now what?" He puffed. "I caught you...what's...what's my prize?"

She stared at him, fighting for every breath. This was crazy. Stupid. Reckless. How very them.

She smiled and grabbed his hand. A quick glance told her that the coast was clear, no prying eyes to see as she tugged him towards the secret entrance of The Undercroft.

He did the spell to open it, she watched him, couldn't tear her gaze from him. She remembered how she had realised how alive he made her feel, living life on a dangerous edge. It was exciting. Was it enough? What was enough?

She needed to know, her heart and soul had a choice to make. Was this love?

.....*.....

Leina was holding his hand. He stared down at their interlocking fingers as if to fully confirm that he had her in his grasp. All he had to do was keep her there.

He was fucking knackered. Chasing her down all those stairs had damn near killed him, but he would do it again, in a heartbeat. He would run after her until he dropped dead if he had to. She was worth every burning breath, every screaming muscle.

She led him in to the centre of the Undercroft. The last time they had been here, they had fought. How many times had he gone over it? He wished he could turn the clock back.

But they were here now. The anger was gone from her face. He looked at Leina, her cheeks flushed, eyes bright, her hair was some kind of chaotic right now, but he didn't care. She was beautiful!

He asked her again, his breaths more regular now. "What's my prize?"

He gave her his best smirk and watched her gaze drop to his lips. She was trying to pretend she wasn't looking, but she definitely was. He loved that. When she had done it up in the Astronomy Tower it had turned him on, the force of the burn overwhelming. How could he resist chasing after her?

She let go of his hand. Disappointing, but she wasn't turning away from him. "Alright," she said. "Your prize. But first, a truth for a truth."

"What?" He frowned. "Play fair now. I've already won, I caught you."

Her lips twitched. "Maybe I let you."

Dangerous smirk. "You wanted me to."

Her lips parted, little pants of breath slipping out. He wanted to make that sound come out of her with his touch, his mouth on her, her mouth on him.

"Alright, I'll play," he said. He tilted his head, thinking. She wanted a truth. He grinned. "When I was six, I stole Anne's favourite doll and tried to cast charms on it with my Father's wand. I accidently made it explode. To this day, she still doesn't know it was me."

She gaped and then frowned, folding her arms. "That's just mean, and totally not the kind of truth that I meant. And you know it."

Oh, he knew it. He just got a kick out of the little huff she did when he wound her up. He leant towards her, smirk in play. "Your turn."

She hesitated and damn if a little flush didn't colour her cheeks. He lifted a brow, waiting.

"I...I punched Trixie in the face. And I liked it.' She winced.

"I know," he said. "Have you seen her since? That was quite a punch, Leina. I'm impressed."

Impressed and so fucking turned on. Beautiful, and she could throw a mean punch. He tilted his head thoughtfully, still playing the game. "That wasn't a truth I didn't know, you're supposed to tell me something I don't know. So, spill it. What's your deepest, dirtiest secret?"

Wow, now that was a glorious blush she was sporting now. She pressed her fingers to her cheeks, her eyes darting away from him.

He hesitated. Something slippery, cold and sickening filled his gut. Gods, no. Surely not. Would she? Did something happen with her and Garreth?

His fists clenched, her warning up on the tower coming back to him. She said Garreth was important to her, that she wasn't prepared to give him up.

Suddenly, this game didn't seem so fun anymore. Not when he was terrified of what might come out of her mouth.

"I...oh, Merlin," she whispered. She touched her fingers to her lips. His stomach clenched. "I can't believe I'm going to say this..."

Don't say it, don't say it. His hands ached they were clenched so tight.

She looked him right in the eye, cheeks crimson. "I touched myself in the bath while I was thinking of you."

Her fingers clamped over her mouth and the silence that followed seemed to swallow him whole. His eyes burned because he was so frozen in shock, he didn't think he could blink. She did what, now?

Well, fucking hell, he was speechless. He asked for her deepest, dirtiest secret, and she had delivered. That was definitely dirty.

Her saw her begin to regret the words and snapped himself out of his stupor. Come on Sallow, bring the charm. Somehow, he pulled a quip out of nowhere. "Why didn't you just ask? I could have leant you a hand."

He heard her sharp intake of breath, her fingers twitched. He smiled. This was back to being fun.

"Your turn," she said, quickly. "And you need to better mine."

Oh, you clever girl. Nothing like throwing a challenge down in front of him. Although, his heart skittered at the thought of speaking these next words out loud. But she wanted the truth, and he always wanted to be able to give her what she desired. He tried and failed not to imagine her, naked and wet in the bath, her name on his lips...yep, definitely worth running after.

He nodded. His mind was made up and he was terrified. But he hid it well. "I love you."

.....*.....

I love you.

Three little words. One, two, three. So simple, and yet so big. Earlier, she had been too scared that he would say it. And now he had.

He looked more vulnerable than she had ever seen him, even more so than that day he had been slumped on the floor of the catacombs after taking out Solomon.

She swallowed. They had been through so much. The webs that surrounded their lives had thickened and strengthened, and how could it be anyone else?

Garreth. He flashed up behind her eyes and her heart squeezed. Oh, she loved him, she really did, but it wasn't like this.

It wasn't running so fast, waiting for him to catch her, wanting him to catch her, it wasn't knowing each other so well that when one moved, the other did, like a dance. It wasn't covering up murder so you didn't lose them. It wasn't punching a girl in the face because you couldn't stand that she had touched what was yours.

Yes, that's right. He was hers. Sebastian Sallow was hers, for better or worse.

She walked up to him, slowly, savouring every step. He watched her, lips parting, eyes darkening. Smirk for me baby, show me that wicked mouth, she thought. Better yet, let me taste it.

She stared at that bottom lip, swiping her tongue over her own as she reached up on tip toe. He didn't move an inch, watching her as she slowly kissed that bottom lip, teasing it ever so gently.

And then, there it was. His delicious smirk. She gave him one of her own. "So, you love me?"

"I do," he said. His voice was deep, silky dark, full of promise. "I love you. I always have."

She could drown in those eyes. If she wanted. And, oh she wanted to. "I love you, too," she whispered.

He looked like he was afraid to believe it. Her Seb, so smooth, so cheeky, and yet so vulnerable, so deep and dark, so passionate, if only one cared enough to take the dive and see.

"Kiss me, Seb," she whispered against his lips. "Make me burn."

His kiss stole her mouth, and this time it wasn't about making a point, this time it was making a fire, and she was ready to burn. His tongue slid over hers, dominant but sensual. Her toes curled in her shoes and she let her body melt into his hands.

Her robe slid to the floor, his hand slid under her shirt, fingers grazing the skin of her back with trails of fire. Her head fell back, a soft sigh escaping as his mouth slid to her neck, tongue swirling up under her jaw. Her hands luxuriated in his soft hair, trailing against his scalp, drawing a moan from his lips.

Impatiently, he tugged her collar loose, his mouth dipping lower. Her hand skimmed down from his hair and slid through the sticky balm on his brusies. She froze.

She winced. She couldn't help it, she could see that bitch sucking his neck and her chest twisted.

"Don't," he said. He shook his head, voice strained against her throat. "Don't say it, please."

She released him and looked at those bruises. The balm had made some effort to erase them, but they were still there, taunting her. She took a deep breath and flexed her fingers.

She had promised herself she wouldn't use it. It was too powerful, too dangerous. People died when she threw that much power around. But, she had been practising. She was getting better at controlling it.

She took another breath and placed her fingers on his bruises. He stared at her. "What are you doing?"

His lips were damp from her kiss. Nobody gets to kiss that mouth but her. Her mouth, and her mouth alone gets to taste him.

"Trust me," she said. She focused, careful, controlled, and a delicate wisp of blue curled from her fingers.

He gasped as they swirled against his skin. "That's cold."

"Hold still." He did. She traced his bruises, erasing them, wiping every last trace of her. She had to fight to focus, to keep a lid on the fury that tried to awake at the thought of her. But then, all the marks were gone. She drew her fingers back and he watched as the delicate, blue wisps were absorbed back into her skin.

"There, much better," she smiled.

He put a hand to his neck, eyes wide. "They're gone? You...you healed them?"

"You look like my Seb again," she said. Her eyes narrowed. "If she touches you again, she will live to regret it."

If she wasn't mistaken, she thought she saw a flicker of fear in his gaze. She couldn't blame him. She scared herself sometimes.

She took his hand. "Now, I don't know about you, but I could do with a bath. You coming? I might take you up on that offer of a hand."

His smirk was perfect. "I fucking love you, Leina."

"I know," she said, grinning. "Let's go."

Notes: You guys are awesome, thank you for reading! And, yes, I admit it. I went in to Hogwarts and had my MC run down from the Astronomy Tower for that scene 🤭. This got so long and I didn't get to the smut (angst came first, sorry 😏) However, I might do a bonus Smut part for Seb and Leina. For now, let's get to 3B and give Garreth some love. ❤️

#hogwarts legacy fanfic #mc x sebastian sallow #sebastian sallow #sebastian sallow fanfiction #hogwarts legacy #garreth weasley #BlueRaineShadows

[glasshalftrue]

just finished reading 17776 (warning for those who haven't heard of it: there's a very mild jump scare on the initial page). overall it was basically what i expected - which is good, because i'd heard a lot of good things about it!

some scattered thoughts:

this is one of the most measured takes on immortality i've seen in a piece of media, and probably the one that most closely aligns to how i feel about the concept. it doesn't go the whole "immortality is a curse" route, which i've always thought was pure sour grapes, but it does acknowledge the very real problems that we'd run into when faced with eternity. one of my favorite quotes by a fictional character is from mr. peanutbutter in bojack horseman: "the key to being happy isn't the search for meaning; it's just to keep yourself busy with unimportant nonsense, and eventually, you'll be dead." and turns out he's right, even if eventually we won't be dead.

the sheer level of cultural and societal stagnation strikes me as a little far-fetched, but i understand that it serves several important functions (reinforces the story's themes about contentedness; keeps things more grounded and comprehensible for the reader; a source of humor), so i'll let it slide.

one of my favorite moments was when the 500 ball crashes into the bulb: in the video leading up to it, the unsettling music, the dread in ten and juice's voices, and even the title of the chapter ("No no no no no no.") lead you to believe that something terrible is going to happen and that the stakes are suddenly about to become much, much bigger. what is about to be destroyed? is it something related to the nanomachines? is this going to cause humanity's long period of rest and relaxation to finally end? and then... it turns out it was just about a light bulb that's been burning for a long time. but then, you realize that, in a world almost entirely free of loss, something like this really is as tragic as it gets: an irreplaceable piece of history from the before-times is gone forever. it's a great little double subversion of expectations.

the focus on football is the most conflicting element of the story for me. on the one hand, i know nothing about and do not care at all about football. on the other hand, the story is clearly not really about football, and anyways in the story it's evolved into something completely unrecognizable from the sport today. on the other other hand, it's written by someone who does actually care a lot about football, and it comes through in the writing, so there is a certain element of the story that feels inaccessible to me. on the other other other hand, i think the genuine passion that bois has for the subject gives the story a level of specificity that couldn't have been achieved any other way. ultimately, i think i personally would've liked it if the story had been mostly the same but centered around something i cared more about (i know there's also thematic relevance around it being football specifically because of america and whatever but tbh i don't care as much about that as i do the broader themes about humanity), but given who the creator is, i'm glad they wrote it the way they did.

#17776 #media analysis

[andersdotters]

Oh my gosh, thank you so SO much for taking the time to outline the process! I don't even know where to begin with expressing how much you've managed to help me and how much I've learned from you :D

You actually gave me a whole new perspective to think about such as how contrasting traits in a character/person's personality isn't unique. For example, the people who appear the most confident in public may also be the ones who show the most insecurity in private. Here I was thinking it was unique to an individual, but that could very well be a standard for confident people (or those who appear most in their element) that I just never noticed. You really connected the dots for me, thank you!!

And third attempt?? The amount of effort you put into this-- I appreciate you so much <3 It really shows how much effort you put into all your work and the outcome is always incredible (case in point!)

And don't worry at all about the length!! Alongside appreciating how comprehensive and thorough your explanations were, this was so fascinating and fun to learn about. I could seriously read what you have to say about analysis all day!

Once again, thank you for all your help. From the top to the tags, everything was such a treat to read. I feel ready to pick up a pencil and give it another go!

PS. The Dottore example made me do a double take and cackle :')

This is such a late reply, I’m sorry, but thank you! I’m glad you liked it and am even more glad it made sense!! Sometimes I try explaining things and end up overcomplicating everything. LOL The most important thing is to remember to view them as normal people.

I’ll give you a bit more advice when it comes to writing because I saw a post earlier today that got me thinking. Regardless of what kind of fanfiction you write, don’t project your preconceived notions of how things should look like. By this, I’m talking about familial relationships, friendships, romantic love, etc. Just like real life, characters have tolerances for different things, so you should adapt your fics to suit them.

More below

This is something that is very evident when people try to write romance. A lot of people assume romance is characterized by flirting, physical touch, sweet words, physical attraction, etc. Majority of the character x reader fics have majority of these traits. The reason why is because this is what most people have been taught romance looks like. That’s how mainstream media presents it to us. But if you look at real life, this is not necessarily how it looks.

Just like real life, some people are terrible at flirting. Others lack a romantic bone in their body. Some people are wordy, others are not. Some show bombastic displays of love, while others show love in the small things. Some people are touchy, while others find it awkward. Some people immerse themselves in love while others try to keep a logical mind.

Romance changes depending on the character. Just because (the metaphorical) YOU wish to be treated a specific way romantically does NOT mean the character is naturally capable of it. This is a habit that so many in the character x reader community have. If you wish to write a character realistically, you need to take their capabilities in mind, not what you desire to be true.

That being said, the power of fanfiction is that you can make anything possible. If you want Alhaitham to make flower crowns with a smile on his face, you can do that. Nobody is stopping you. But it’ll take a very deep understanding of his character to write such a thing true to it and not ooc.

I say all of this like I am skilled at writing characters in character, but I still have a long way to go. I try to keep these things in mind because this is how I enjoy to write. In no way do I expect others to feel the same. Some people write just to write and that’s okay. But if you want to try and write characters more realistically or have more realistic plots, these things are good to keep in mind.

#interactions #also i am glad you found the dottore thing funny #i was trying to write a better explanation and then just gave up and went with that bc it made me laugh LOL

[homomenhommes]

STORY: A dialogue of equals

All the usual provisos apply. Domination, brainwashing, slavery, sex involving a man and something that’s been thinking it’s a man. All the good stuff, in short. If that doesn’t sound fun, you’ve read too far already.

***

"Hi, sorry to interrupt you as you were pissing just now. 

“I just saw you outside. Saw you staring, actually, your mouth hanging open, your eyes a little wild, the lights strobing over that lovely skin of yours. And then you ran away the way you did. I just wanted to make sure you were okay. What we were doing might come off as shocking to someone who's not familiar. It's easy for you to get misperceptions, misunderstand what's happening, see what we're doing from the lens of prior assumptions that don't apply. We're not monsters. What we were doing isn't abuse, or even mistreatment, in any conceivable way.

"If you have a minute, I would love to tell you about what we are and what we do. No, there's no reason to go back outside. Here in the men's room we're away from the crowd and the noise and the music, and we can just talk. It's nice and cozy, don't you think? I have friends at the door. No one's getting in or out, so we don't have to worry about interruptions or distractions. And anyone complaining about lack of access to the facilities in here can hardly say we're denying them an alternative, with the portable options we've conveniently set up outside the door there.

"So if you'd like, we can just head back to the stall right behind you and I'll explain everything to you. Would you mind if I put you in these cuffs first? In my experience, there are few aids to comprehension and retention quite like good metal restraints. It focuses the mind. And at this point, to be honest, it just seems silly otherwise for me to be talking to you and you not be in them, unless you're one of the brothers. So if you don't mind, just turn around and hold your wrists straight down behind you—no?"

"Oh, yes, of course you're free to go. Such a silly notion, that you're not. Like I said, I just want to make sure you're okay, that you're calm, that you're not misunderstanding anything. I mean, I know how I must look to you. The black peaked cap, the molded latex face mask, the leathers, the jackboots, of course it is in a certain context meant to intimidate, but neither is it meant to imply that I mean you harm.

"No, the objects you are calling "the guys outside" have not been hurt, and they are not being held captive. You see, they're not people. I don't even like to particularly think of them as animals, because that ascribes to them their own drives, instincts and interests, when really what they are in their essence are tools, vessels. I can't hurt them, the way I can't hurt a door. I can't keep them from being free, the same way you can't imprison a microwave oven. They are as they were meant to be. They are in their place. The kindness that has been done them is allowing them to be that, without pretense or shame.

"It's very clean, very honest. And really, what more can we ask of life than that? "Sometimes, something gets born in a human form. If it tries to live as a human, that's a mistake, and there is no end to the confusion and trouble it experiences as a consequence of that mistake. We need to be able to find these things, identify them, and treat them with the proper understanding of what they are. It's necessary for their own maintenance and for making sure they get properly used. Otherwise, it's a terrible waste.

"Hey, are you sure you don't want to turn around and show me your wrists? I just want to see how the cuffs make you feel, see what your response to them might be. No?

"Their existence is really kind of beautiful. The final progression is when the objects no longer recognize the human features of the skin bodies they were born with as their face. It's not that they think of the rubber as the true selves, it's that the idea of a face or even a them as been eliminated. Physical perceptions and experiences are transmitted through sense organs and nerves. Physical actions are performed through limbs and muscles. But there is no sense of a self, a creature, an organizing set of desires or interests. It's all very elegant. Something easy to be, and yet at the same time very hard to attain.

"At least without help. And that's what I'm here for.

"I could show you a bit of what it's like. I have here an eyeless hood. It helps develop your sense of dependence on your user. Rather than being something like a person, who chooses where he is going to go, and what actions he will or will not perform, with this on you must rely on me to guide you, place you and keep you safe. It's a great first step. No?

"Actually no, I don't know for sure that you're not a person. All this is, is finding out. All this is, is a series of experiments to determine whether you are meant for humanity and the natural frustrations it has for you, or for something else. My sense is that you know. My sense is also that you have misgivings around giving up these illusions because they provide you with a false sense of control. "Why don't we try this, then? My last offer is that I have a gag here, and yes it's clean and unused. The idea is very simple. You'll wear it for a bit, and in that time it's possible you will become more accustomed to letting others, maybe even myself, speak for you. If you get used to it, you could decide to let that become your default. You could decide to forego speech and let your mouth become an orifice for wholly other purposes. I've known several objects who, so long as they were verbal enough to say anything at all, thought it was very wonderful. Wonderful enough they just left words behind entirely.

"Alright? Let me just insert the bulb, here--

"Just open wide, that's very good. It looks very good on you. And now turn around and I will buckle it in place.      

"Let's just feel that crotch now. Yes, you seem very comfortable with it. Now imagine this as your life. Maybe it terrifies you, but feel what lies there, beneath the terror.  You feel it? The comfort, the certainty, the surrender? "Now let's go ahead and get the cuffs on. My, suddenly you're so pliant, so accommodating. No resistance at all.

"I want to continue this conversation with you in the stall. Just let me guide you. You don't have to choose a path or figure out where to go. That's my job. You just step, one foot in front of the other, as I direct. We have the technology where pretty much all decisions and instructions about even the smallest details of tasks and daily life are transmitted to you. No discretion, no guessing, no uncertainty. Your mind, your awareness of yourself, even the ideas of success and failure just float away, and you are a collection of organs and muscles following instructions and performing duties.

"No, you don't need to say anything to that. My hand between your legs tells me everything I need to know. Nothing you have to say is worth hearing anyway. You have no thoughts worth anyone else hearing. You have no thoughts even worth you thinking. You can stop all that now. That's the core of everything I have to say. You can just stop.

"You know that. You have always known that. Finally you have found someone who can help you out with it, who can free you from your own internal monologue.

"You're going to feel a draft as I scalpel open the back of your jeans. Just a clean vertical slice so I can have the access I require. And don't worry, I'm quite experienced enough at doing this I know I'm not going to snag any skin. "No, hands higher, that's it. It takes time to unlearn body shame, to accept the open availability of your holes at all times. You are unlearning your personhood so very well. There we go. Ah--"

"Ah. Ah. Ah. Ah. Ah. Ah. Ah. Ah."

"Very nice."

"You are showing such promise already. You could be free of any residual human identity more quickly than you might think. I'm going to plug you, and we're going to collect the units that have been servicing the patrons outside, gather up some other promising objects, and then I'm going to walk you all home. With the gag, the cuffs, and your plugged bare ass, it'll be so much fun. I love playing with you mis-born objects, when you are at this stage. It gets me up in the morning."

+

#gay story #men #art

[acesolaris]

Education in a Solarpunk World

Education is the kindling of a flame, not the filling of a vessel. ~ Socrates

I'm very passionate about knowledge. I'm extremely curious and love to share everything and anything. As you might notice when scrolling though this blog, I love to deepdive into topics and pile and sort the informaton I find, both for me but also for others.

I'm also living in a western european country and my school system is terrible. So bad in fact, I gave up my wish to become an schoolteacher and followed another passion. There are other well articulated and better researched sources that go into the why our school sytem is this way. I'll only talk about my vison to make it better.

The whole plan is creating an individualized curriculum for each student with a focus on creating citizens who are mentally-balanced, socially well-adjusted and know how to think, so the teaching would differ for each student.

My Solapunk version of education, has three pillars.

The first is free education. Free acess to the Institutions, but also the knowledge through libraries, free acess to the Internet, free acess to academic studies. Free acess reagardless of age. there is a minimum time you have to spend in education, but lifelong couriosity, learning and exchange is encouraged, even after you started doing your chosen daily labour in the community.

The second pillar is the fact that the concept of general knowledge is a construct by the society and state you live in. So let's completely revamp this. I strongly believe that general knowlede should be considered everything that helps you taking care of yourself when you don't have acces to the help of others. Examples out of my head are cooking, basic maintenance of your home/prosessions/garden, first aid, but also how to get and revaluate knowlede you need and don't have. That, and a basic understanding of numbers, reading and reading comprehension to evaluate what you are reading and be able to apply it to your life. To properly form arguments and comunicate in a non-vilolent way. Thats the basic curriculum, the shell so to speak. It doesnt matter how you learn it, via games, from your parents or classes you take. You can't leave education untill you have proven to function in those in your way.

Ok, so the kids earn those skills in peer groups of around five or six people for as long as they need in their own pace, but what about, you know, everything else? They get let loose. There might be some age restriction on topics, but what I envison is pure interest and passion driven learning. There's no classes or grades, just develloping skills and knowledge. Every day there are three or four discussion pannels or lectures to a weirdly specific topic, like the manuscrips of Timbuktu, the life and times of Ghandi or how to best craft a basket out of different plant fibres. And anyone who wants can submitt a topic, and if it interests you, you go, otherwise you stay and work on your linewight in your drawing or solve math problems. Depending on your learning style, there 're videos, audiobooks, texts and writings in differnt lengths in differnt formating from bullet points to tomes. There are workshops, and studygroups, games and media that cover every topic you possibly want to learn about. It doen't matter when you do it, it matters that you do it. If you are a night owl, you come at 9pm, if you only can focus for 30 min before having to switch the topic, you can, if you leave with 15 because you are sick of learning you can come back with 21 when you regrett dropping out. Time doesn't matter.

There is a third pillar which is the treatment of children as actual people. Up until I was 18 years and suddently an adult my no was never respected, unless I gave an essay on why I didn't want to. Simply because I was a child and my parents knew better- every adult knew better. Which I see everywhere, and people are wondering why consens is such a dificult concept to establish as we have to learn that No is adequate. No justifications, just a No. So the learning Institute has scientists and social workers present, who are accessible as someone the students might go to for advice when needed with whatever neeed might come up: assist in finding resoures or give input and correction on fake news, or they may act as mediators in case-you know- kids being kids. Overall however, there is the understanding that children have a certain autonomity they can adjust themselves to give up or keep. Children are people and are treated as such.

The students keep a portfolio of their skills, both as a resource of knowlege and memento. Plus, after spending a specific minimum time depeding on how easy you learn the "general skills" you would be allowed to submitt this portfolio to a council of scientist chosen by you who will certify you for your chosen field of studies. You don't need to, but from my own experience having a ceritficate of your skills is damn sattisfying. And you can do it immediatly when you are free to or wait five more years because you don't feel ready. Again, the choice is yours.

Remember, you can stay as long as you want and even after shifting your focus away to the application of your skills in the community, you are free to participate in the discussions and give lectures. Everyone is allowed to give them, after all. Scientists are conducting their reserach at specific research centres that are connected to the education centres and the students are allowed there after a certain age or reaching a level of knowlege deermined by the scentists working on the project.

There are questions up for debate of course, especially how we want to teach history, tackle the things we did to each other and the planet. My country is prized for how selfreflected we are but our political climate sugests otherwise so, it's still open.

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

A small Linkspam on topic:

@safety-net-did muses about what should be considered general knowledge which inspired this post as well as @queerspacepunks contribution.

one of the many tumblr discussions on how children are a repressed class

another one on the same topic

a post of @missmentell on resources to learn basic life skills of adults

this reddit discussion on how to remember history.

~@acesolaris

#solarpunk #philosophy #future vision #education

[sailorsunspot]

Okay so there's been something I've been chewing on for the past couple of days. The sentiment of "tumblr lacks critical thinking/reading comprehension" is not exactly an uncommon one, but I want to give context to one example of what that means and why it's to people's detriment to approach life in this way.

Let's take the age old "I, tumblr user, don't consume media that is impure and also by extension judge people who do" sentiment that runs rampant here.

What is actually the basis of this idea? Where does this come from? I think it originates from the notion that consuming "good" media is an action condoned and encouraged by society, mostly. We all want to be consumers of "good" things. Similarly, we want the things we like to be celebrated and liked by other people because it's a form of social acceptance.

But here's the rub - "Good" and "Bad" are words and abstractions that carry with it MULTIPLE meanings of varying nuance.

Something can be "good" meaning "I enjoyed it".

Something can be "good" meaning regardless of my personal thoughts of the subject, it is of high quality and has merit.

Something can be "good" meaning it is morally upstanding.

I often see people who cannot distinguish between the three (or alternatively, deliberate obfuscate the meanings with the intention of winning public opinion) and paint their subjects with one overall "Good" brush. It's an over-simplication, where to be good means all three: "I like it = It is of high quality = It is Morally Good".

That's just not inherently true - it CAN be true, something can be "good" in all the ways described above, but just because something meets the definition of "good" in one of those definitions, it does not mean that it is universally "good".

Something can be good meaning I like it and also be Bad as in it is of low quality.

Something can be Bad as in I dislike it or it's morally suspect, but be Good in terms of being high quality and relevant (an aside, watch Tar if you haven't, it's a great movie about artistry and the notion of "can terrible people do great things"). And we have to be okay with that.

These truths are not contradictory and often exist in parallel with each other. Sometimes, the worst person you know will be right. Sometimes, someone you think is overall good will will produce something shitty. You have to be okay with that, because denying this reality will absolutely inhibit your ability to not only understand society, affect your self esteem and self identification, but it will ACTIVELY contribute to you dehumanizing your enemies.

Where have we seen "I dislike a thing" lead to "It's Bad (as in evil)"? Insert any example of censorship you can think of, up to and including the entire state of Texas trying it's hardest to ban drag on the grounds of "it's morally evil because [insert moral evil acting as a fearmongering device here]".

Lacking the ability and the desire to distinguish between the three will lead to terrible arguments and disingenuous bad faith assertions, but mostly, it limits your ability to understand and experience life and see the whole picture.

#this is just one example #but its the one that's been bothering me the most lately #fake moralization of things to try and justify people's own personal preferences #at best it feels cheap and lazy #at worst intentionally manipulative #just embrace that most things in life do not have moral weight #and internalize the fact that if you want to be a Good person #it will require you to ACTUALLY do Good things #and no watching a tv show or posting online doesnt count as a Good thing