#and yes that's how he phrases it

[softquietsteadylove]

So, I've got a prompt for you.

I love movies and tv series and they are all so different from each other but also have so much things in common. And there is one thing i can picture our beloved men from Eternals in.

I think at least one time in their whole time on earth, Ajak forced her children to spend time together, in groups. So while Ajak is dragging her daughters around, the group of men are forced to hang out with each other. And a full men group, hanging out, means normal conversations drifting to uncomfortable and awkward conversations (for at least one or two individuals.) So I'd like to ask you to write Kingo, Phastos, Druig, Ikaris and Gilgamesh (god i love him, malewife) in such a situation, maybe sparring together, drinking alcohol but the most important: talking about (their) girls! (or boys, or whatever preference our individuals have in a partner)

"This fuckin' sucks."

No one spoke up to agree with Druig, but certainly no one argued with him, either.

Ajak was with the other half of the Eternals, having brought Sersi, Makkari, Thena and Sprite with her to the beautiful natural springs just outside the palace grounds. India was so mild in climate, and they were still getting used to the place after arriving short of a month ago.

She had claimed it was mother-daughter bonding time, and encouraged they do the same. Gil and Kingo had certainly had their reservations, while Ikaris, Druig and Phastos had quickly asserted that they would rather let the villagers burn them on the pyre.

And yet here they were.

Kingo took a sip of his...whatever it was. He winced a little at it, staring into the fire they'd built simply for something to do and occupy their time. He was the most antsy, the rest of them having devolved into silence naturally. Which wasn't really Kingo's style. "Is anyone going to say anything, or...?"

"Just did," Druig barked at him from an entirely separate log bench all to himself, "sucks."

"Oi," Ikaris snarled at him, which did nothing to improve the atmosphere. He leaned on his knees, also sitting on a separate log bench.

Phastos was occupying himself with whatever, using his powers for something or other, ignoring them all deliberately. Also on his own log.

Gil sighed, staring up at the moon from where he had given upon talking and simply laid down on the ground.

Kingo turned around to look at Gil, lying down behind him, "what's with you?"

The Strongest Eternal shrugged, absently pulling up a bite of mango for himself. "I wonder what Thena's thinking about right now."

A round of loud groans hit the air, startling the birds in the trees.

"What?" Gil sat up with a frown at his band of brothers.

"Thena-this, and Thena-that," Phastos supplied readily, rolling his eyes the hardest at it.

"Oh, come on," Gil huffed, but he looked over as Druig barked out a sharp laugh at him.

"Gil, you ever heard yer own thoughts, mate?" the mind reader snickered, poking at his own temple as he said it. "Thena-this and Thena-that is exactly what you're thinkin'--always!"

Gil sighed, dusting himself off and sitting himself on Kingo's log properly. "I don't see the problem."

"You wouldn't," Ikaris snorted, and this time Gil took a little more offense to it. "You've got all that muscle and not a single one in your brain."

Gil picked up a rock and flicked it at the Soaring Eternal. For any mortal, it would have gone clean through their head like a bullet, but Ikaris snarled as it bounced off his forehead like a nut shell. "Aren't you supposed to be getting married soon? I'd expect you to have thoughts of nothing but your future wife."

Ikaris also soured at having his fiancee brought up. "Some of us can think of more than one thing at a time."

"Okay," Phastos held a hand in both of their directions, as if trying to soothe savage beasts. "No one has to talk about anyone's wives, y'animals."

"Let 'em have it out, Phastos," Druig laughed, picking up a pear for himself and biting into it with a disgusting amount of gusto. Chunks and juice flew from his mouth as he pointed, "I wanna shee what 'appensh!"

"Close your damn mouth when you're eating!" Phastos barked at the 'youngest' of them present.

"All that'll happen is Ajak getting mad at us," Kingo pointed out liberally. He patted Gil's shoulder, knowing that he was the more easily reasoned with between him and Ikaris. "Look Gil, I support you, and your gross, sappy romanticism."

"Thanks," Gil sneered at him and his 'support'. He turned his glare in Druig's direction, "I don't bring up you following Kari around, now do I?"

"Oi," Druig grumbled.

Phastos shared a look with Kingo, both of them entirely capable of disparaging their siblings in similar and opposite ways. Phastos wasn't opposed to the vessel, but needed the right soul. Kingo was proudly uninterested in everyone equally.

Ikaris also looked up at the moon and sighed. "What're they even doing?"

Kingo looked at Druig, "what did mother-daughter bonding mean?"

Druig snarled up one side of his nose and lips. "You think I'm in everyone's heads all the fuckin' time?"

"Kinda."

"Well, m'not," Druig shrugged, tossing away his pear seeds and reaching for a fresh one. "That'd be exhausting."

"Whose thoughts are the loudest?"

"Yours."

"I don't believe you," Kingo countered just as quickly as Druig had. He got a look for it but shrugged. "Maybe sometimes, sure. But it can't always be me."

Druig chuckled, bobbing his head in Gil's direction, "who'd you think? It's Mister Thena over 'ere."

"What do you mean they're loud?" Gil crossed his arms in his defense.

"Just what it sounds like, Gil," Druig offered at least slightly more amiable than he had been before. "S'not like shoutin', I guess. But they're...they're loud and clear. All the time."

"Like wh-"

"Thena," all four other Eternals answered for him simultaneously. Gil pursed his lips, feeling his cheeks warm. But at least the others were smiling and laughing (even if it was at his expense).

Druig slapped his knee in glee. "It's always 'where's Thena?', or 'wonder what Thena's up to', or 'I miss Thena' from you."

"Okay, okay," Gil sighed. It wasn't as if he had a correction to make, or even a defense to it. Those certainly sounded like his thoughts.

"Her too."

"Huh?" Gil blinked, hearing a much softer follow up from Druig.

The solitary Eternal was looking down at his pear, toying with it in his hands as the truth of his words made him quieter. He offered Gil a smile. "She's the same way--if you somehow didn't know."

"Thena?" Gil blinked.

"Yeah, Thena?" Kingo repeated from next to him. "I mean, I don't doubt it about Gil, but I figured T was...harder to read."

Druig grinned, shaking his head. He became a little more sheepish, but shrugged. "Most'a the time, yeah. But when it's about Gil here...she's clear as a bell."

Kingo just nodded, taking another sip of (whatever). "Wouldn't have guessed."

"First time I caught it I thought I was fucked," Druig shook his head. "T doesn't take kindly t'me pokin' around, 'course. But this thought just--it shot out like an arrow."

"What was it?" Gil asked, unable to resist.

Druig looked at him, offering a much more genuine smile, "Gil."

He just stared, "yeah--I'm asking."

"No, that's it," Druig chuckled, shaking his head again and ruffling his hair for good measure. "Just Gil--she walks around with your name in 'er head like the breath in 'er lungs. I had to learn to block it out--s'like a clock, tick-tick-tickin' away in the background."

Gil looked like he could burst with joy.

Ikaris cleared his throat faintly, already ruddy cheeked when the others looked at him. "Does, uh, Sersi-"

"Don't know, haven't checked."

"Okay!" Phastos stood, clapping his hands together before Ikaris could pick up Druig and throw him clear across the Ganges. "Why don't I reach out to Ajak and see what they're up to?"

Druig rolled his eyes as a loud and clear I want to see Thena floated into his mind. Gil was like an unchecked faucet--sometimes dripping, sometimes on full blast, but always leaking in some way.

"That's a good idea," Ikaris growled as he floated back down to his log, fists still clenched and eyes still glowing.

"Well," Kingo sighed as he set down his nondescript beverage. "What an unproductive discussion."

"Speak for yourself," Gil chuckled, nudging his most jovial brother's arm.

#I do think this is exactly how a conversation like this would go #because first of all #these five in particular #do not want to all hang out together #Even malewives extraordinaire Druig and Gil #don't want to talk to Ikaris let alone about the loves of their lives #Kingo thinks it's all very boring #unless it's funny and then he loves to get the gossip #even if it's about his brothers and sisters being in love #and yes that's how he phrases it #much to all their distress #Phastos is like I hate each and every one of you I hate this family #but he is the responsible brother in charge of every camping trip #and of course Gil is just moping around like I wish my wife were here #and listen...Thena's the same way #she's over in the springs with her sisters and their Prime #She and Sersi are braiding each other's hair while Ajak and Makkari are making little flower crowns #Sprite is lying face down in the water trying to achieve drowning #and Thena is sighing every five seconds until they're like jesus what the fuck is it??? #and she's like what? #obviously she misses Gil they all know that #but Thena's like that's silly I know where he is and that he's unharmed #I don't miss him #I just want to be near him and feel him next to me and breathe the same air as him #like babygirl is down bad HORRENDOUS #Thenamesh...themed? #Thenamesh AU #let's say

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

Business comes first! Drinking is the job!

[First] Prev <–-> Next

#poorly drawn mdzs #mdzs #wei wuxian #lan wangji #It's finally outfit change time! Third time for wwx and second for lwj! #I'm always a big fan of when characters change clothes and it's fun to change it up. #this scene once again emphasizes how much wwx acts in a reactionary way and gets *so thrown* when someone goes ‘yes-and’ #‘no lan zhan- you arent supposed to *agree*’ #there’s also a lovely gentleness to how he phrases it. Lwj just wants wwx to be happy. Bonus if he gets to be in proximity #wwx’s hedonism is a very interesting topic for another analytical rant #pre-burial mounds he’s a creature of pleasures! Post burial mounds? He doesnt feel alive enough to warrent enjoying life’s pleasures #i guess you could say both lwj and wwx have struggled comparing and contrasting two versions of each other

[wolfofcelestia]

I'll Be Home Soon - Zayne x MC

──────── °∘❄️∘° ────────

“I just finished my last operation of the day. I’ll be home soon.”

Zayne stared at his phone after sending the text message, seeing the familiar “MC is typing” being displayed on his screen.

But this time, it was different. There was no immediate answer, but the message “MC is typing” continued to be displayed.

He raised an eyebrow at this but figured she must have gotten distracted, being scatterbrained as she was. He left his phone on the table and started packing papers and files into a suitcase to get ready to leave the office.

Whatever she wanted to tell him, she could tell him in person.

It was on the drive home that he finally heard the special ringtone he set specifically for her. But, being behind the wheel, he knew better than to take his eyes off the road.

He’d be home in a few minutes anyway.

When he parked his car in his driveway, he picked up his phone to see a simple message, one he’s received often from her but now, with how out of place it was, brought on anxiety, fear, concern, and worry.

His demons crept up from behind him, wrapping their murky, shadowy claws around his throat, squeezing tighter and tighter, and showing him visions of one worst case scenario after the other.

“I love you.”

Zayne rushed to the door, fumbling with his keys, and ran through the living room, the kitchen, the bedroom, everywhere, calling her name with increasing desperation.

There was no answer.

#lowkey inspired by the phrase “messages i couldn’t send” from that oracles account but I don’t get how they operate so #also this was supposed to be fluff but then #hi it’s me again #:’) #zayne love and deepspace #love and deepspace #elara writes #scenarios #yes he did call the police after this

[teruel-a-witch]

they really were insane for this. the common trope/joke is that men don't even remember their wedding anniversaries, let alone the exact day they met their 'best bro', how is this not deservingly considered one of the most romantic moments in history? THIS LOVESICK FOOL HAS BEEN COUNTING DAYS SINCE HE'S MET HIS DANNO.

#mcdanno #mcdanno was canon all along #couple's therapy #h50 5x01 #h50 memes #h50 text post meme #h50 text post #steve mcgarrett #h50 season 5 #and yes this is exactly how danny chooses to phrase that #h50 #hawaii five 0 #myh50 #h50edit #steve talking about how he likes Danny's sense of humour and personality like describing a date lol #love at first punch

[hammerhead-jpg]

When you're trying to read a redacted fic that has asher in it but it's like this every paragraph:

"Asher tossed his luscious golden lemon cream saffron citrine school bus yellow 2A fine locKs back with his arms that were so thin a person could mistakenly floss their teeth with them, trying to style his hair back into the squilliam eyebrow esque hairstyle he usually fancies. The way that the sun hit him made his blue orbs shine like sapphires, and his pale Caucasian skin glimmered like snow blindness. He looked exactly like a 18 year old TikTok thirstrapper."

#yes offense #redacted audio #redacted asmr #redactedverse #redacted asher #redacted asher talbot #btw in my mind the last line is a reference to how in my immortal you have phrases like 'he looked exactly like Joel Madden'

[funishment-time]

(more miuposting) thank you all for

being mature and understanding that just because some of my faves are the Problematic Girls doesn't mean i think it's good they behave that way or that we should all put up with people who behave that way etcetera. i'm so traumatized by Twitter Tactics still ha ha.

anyway

it seems we've all come around on Toko but i know a lot of folks still shy away from the golden girl Iruma Miu. and i get it. i would never say you Need to like Miu, nor am i offended when people dislike her: she is extreme in a way that i think even surpasses Toko.

Miu is selfish and Miu crosses boundaries and Miu is really horribly rude at the worst times. however, Miu also, canonically/semi-canonically:

has psychotic breaks/delusions and depersonalizes (Shuichi FTs)

is so excited someone's paying attention to her that she doesn't mind if it's a fight/negative (Kaede FTs)

admits that her personality is an act (Love Hotel)

is so lonely she's willing to have a baby just to ensure her partner doesn't Leave (Love Hotel)

doesn't have Friends (Kaede FTs/Summer Camp)

is actually quite bothered she has no Friends but Toko does (Summer Camp)

acts surprised that Kaede is worried about her (Kaede FTs)

admits no one pays attention to her Inventions very much (Shuichi FTs) and invites Kaede for a sleepover the moment Kaede does (Summer Camp)

gets provoked by Kokichi for no reason, constantly, in a weird sexualized way (most of her English interactions with Kokichi - i'm told it comes off differently in Japanese)

continually talks about how no one understands her (every FT ever)

immediately falls in love with Shuichi in an Obsessive way because he acted like any person would and stopped her from self-harm (Shuichi FTs)

is genuinely sad when she thinks Shuichi doesn't want to be near her (Shuichi FTs/LATU scenes)

this is all unsurprising to me, because most people don't even try to talk to her like she's a Human Being, and when they do, they immediately get mad/aggressive and won't de-escalate. no, i don't expect Therapist Talk out of DR characters, but man, fucking...of course she's a weirdo who thinks she's a cyborg, when you even have Shuichi saying it's creepy when she's happy:

in her mind, he only ever Cares about her when she's having a breakdown! he considers her Pube Blood Food a sign of a "genuine" love confession! Miu's behavior makes total sense to me.

this does not Justify how she is, no. but i see a lonely and alienated girl who decided to act out in an attempt to get some attention, even if it's bad. Miu reads as severely mentally ill to me and just because her mental illness isn't cute, aesthetic, or quiet doesn't mean she doesn't deserve healing.

#i imagine i may get Shit for this #and i get it #a lot of people point to Miu's treatment of Keebs & Shuichi & Kaede as proof she's irredeemable #i get that too #i have a Lot of thoughts on that #but i don't know how to phrase them rn #i still think she deserves to heal. be held accountable by other characters yes but also heal #Kaede fully admits she worries about Miu over multiple pieces of media and i believe Kaede #things like this make me wish we had Kaede POV Love Hotels incidentally #btw i don't hate Shuichi at all #he tries his best #danganronpa #miu iruma #iruma miu

[moobrvoobl-moobmoob-oobmpoobroom]

I just find it mind-boggling that some people will reblog things like “Anakin didn’t care about Rex and his men, he wouldn’t listen to Fives just because he was friends with Palpatine” and then in the next post be gushing over Rexwalker/Rexanidala like???? so you agree. Anakin does care about Rex?

#some people will literally hate on either Anakin or the Jedi council for reasons that explicitly contradict the point of the prequels #and then YOU'RE either toxically positive or condoning abuse for liking all the characters and having a nuanced view of things #the takes I mentioned in the body of this post literally wiped out the fact that Palpatine groomed and manipulated him for Years just so- #-they could say “wow the clones didn’t deserve what that horrible guy Anakin did to them” #me: okay. so you’re saying they didn’t deserve for him to show kindness and friendship and help reinforce the mindset of individuality they #-already had and that the majority of jedi encouraged because they are a group who treasure individuality and have compassion on everyone & #-all things??? #Anakin could be a shit person but he wasn’t to the clones and I will die on this hill #“he enslaved them” you’re pinning that on ANAKIN. a literal former slave. not the Republic or the Kaminoans? #he would have 0 reason to enslave them because he knows what that’s like. he’s been through that #why. WHY do people blame Anakin or the Jedi for 100% of everything going wrong instead of Palpatine. #you can blame Anakin for the choices he made and the Jedi Order for the oversights and legalism they started to have during the war #but enslavement of the clones??? not listening to Fives because of Palpatine??? #if you want to blame Anakin for the clones being slaves you have to blame the rest of the Jedi too #and we all know how rare it is for ‘Anakin antis’ to also be ‘Jedi order antis’ #quotation because there is a certain connotation and generalisation that comes with those phrases these days #I just don’t understand why Anakin is to blame for that specifically. blame him for being angry and violent and obsessive and turning to th #dark side logic+morals be damned to save one person yes but slavery??? he didn’t know about the chips and if he did you bet your ass he- #-would hate them just as much as the slave monitors on Tatooine #anyway #I want to see both sides of the debate i really do because some people have really good points on character motivations etc #but it’s getting ridiculous at this point. I always try to be a calm and positive space but some of y’all’s takes are contradictory bullshi #Fandom salt #swift talks #Swift rambles in the tags #vent #Jedi positive #meta #ish? #jedi positivity

[enhanced-operatives-division]

Points at you. 10 and/or 11 for starstruck?

Two starstruck asks,,,,,,joy of joys,,

Part of an ask game linked here.

#10. What's an au you have for them?

Since them meeting at all is technically an AU i have 3 different ways that they do meet up. There's the one where Juniper ends up with the agency/adjacent to and ends up working with Reggie (have written a fic with this). The next one is Juniper surviving but basically going stealth and living as normal of a life as he can and ending up meeting Reggie through chance (most recent fic I've written). And then there's my personal favourite where Reginald "You're lucky my tracking skills are still up to snuff" Crane keeping himself busy after Phoenix was MIA and finding Juniper still alive (fic I want to write but haven't started mainly because it may end up multi chapter).

In terms of more AU canon bending taking them and putting them in a completely unrelated situation...I have a guilty pleasure Warrior Cats AU for IEYTD in general. Both JJ and Reggie have perfect warrior cats suffixes in their names already (Juniper and Crane) so they're called Junipersong (charcoal bengal) and Craneflight (tabby Norwegian forest cat). It's very silly but the amount of scenes I have in my mind for it...good lord...

#11. How was their first kiss like?

Augh my friend Imp wrote an absolutely excellent fic about it (tragically in the realm of unfinished Google docs) and I'm shaking their hand about it so hard. Basically Juniper kissing Reggie but he like wasn't ready/fully expecting it and Juniper absolutely panicking because he thinks he's misread every interaction between them both since they got closer. The second one is much sweeter though,,

#realised i phrased all the fics ive written like those ghosts that haunted scrooge #ah yes the fic of starstuck past #the fic of starstruck present and the fic of starstruck yet to come. it's so dumb #and uhh for the warrior cats thing um. of course they aren't purebreds minus Juniper who used to be a kittypet (housecat) but - #- it was moreso for easy description #reggie is fluffy but he's not quite maine coonf fluffy...norwegan forest cat was a nice middle ground...still gets big guy points too #also um side note roxanix in that au um. they adopted a kit as a stand in for robutler in that au...... #also solaris is a VERY grumpy warrior turned medicine cat annnnd thats about all I have fully hashed out in my mind for it so far #im so torn abt also having triple threat.....extra large polycule where phoenix is just intimidated by the others prism is dating lmao #ANYWAYS ENOUGH ABOUT THE WARRIOR CATS AU #can you tell I have a special interest in cats/warrior cats. oh how I miss drawing cats. but I must learn people. for the brainworms...ouuu #i don't have much else to say on that second question other than....AUUUUUUGH they're so. there's so much pent up stuff. #like for JJ it's the first time he's let himself actually love another man the way he wants to while for Reggie it's a lot of - #- realising JJ is trying to be a better person while still ackowleging the fact that he did bad??? basically second chance yada yada #man. i love these two #ik im a broken ass reccord but I've never proactively posted abt them outside the last couple months and it's been so theraputic #ty for the ask it was fun :3c #ieytd #starstruck #junicrane #ask game #not tagging them specifically I don't wanna clog up tags too much #god WHY do i have such an issue eith that. mental issue. anyways

[everythingsinred]

Family and the Institution of Alice Academy

Was thinking about this ever since someone (I forgot specifically who, sorry) posed a question like this in the GA discord, asking about (I think) Natsume's extended family or something like that. It was a really interesting concept that I've been thinking a lot about since it was brought up, so here are the thoughts I've accumulated. I'll try to be concise but I have a LOT of thoughts and my brain is messy.

My general opinion at the end of all this thinking I did is that I don't think Academy students typically have very close familial ties after graduating.

I think the most apparent reason for that would be that students are expected to graduate when they are twenty years old. Our main four are exceptions to the rule, coming to the Academy pretty late in life. Most children are taken early, as toddlers or even babies. Natsume, Ruka, and Hotaru's families did all they could to avoid Academy scouting. Mikan was entirely accidental--if she had never met Hotaru, she might have never even found out she was an Alice to begin with. That being said, most kids were separated from their families at a very young age, only to be allowed to reunite with them once they're already adults. For many students, they've been away from their parents for close to two decades.

On top of that, the Academy doesn't allow visitations or phone calls and severely restricts letter communications. Only one child from each class is allowed to return home for one week each year, and that one week does not do much to make up for all the time spent at school.

My point is that by the time students are allowed to see their families again, that familial bond has already been severed, for all intents and purposes. That feeling of closeness and protection no longer exists. Students will feel more closeness and connection to their classmates and even to their teachers than to their parents or siblings, and as a result, I can imagine many graduates not even bothering to visit their families.

While I was pondering this, I made the connection between Academy students and the real life example of a similar situation with Janissaries from the Ottoman Empire. Basically, Janissaries were children stolen from the subjugated people under Ottoman rule. They were taken for the purpose of a "child levy", also known as a "blood tax." Some children were even willingly given by their families due to the possibility of socially advancing, and because the children were promised first class status (sound familiar?). Essentially the children were taken, forced to comply with Ottoman standards and traditions (including forced conversions and circumcisions), and then trained for military service. These soldiers would actually end up being incredibly loyal and efficient, despite likely never seeing their families again.

(Edit: forced circumcisions are particularly heinous when you consider that the children were typically at least 10 years old at the time they were taken.... so.... uh.... not pleasant.... But also interesting that the Janissaries were typically much older than the Alice children at the time of being taken.)

That level of separation doesn't endear ties; it severs them. These Janissaries--very often forcefully taken from their families--ended up growing up with very little connection to their parents or siblings. The feeling of belonging to their previous communities was gone. Absence does not always make the heart grow fonder. This was done as a means of creating a strong military force but also to disillusion subjugated communities and tear away their hope. Their children could always be taken; their communities could always be crushed, even without the use of physical force. It's a very effective tool to oppress a group of people.

(There's actually a lot of similarities between Academy children and Janissaries beside the separation of children from their families. They were also paid for their service and were high ranking; the Academy students are given an allowance and many of them, despite being stolen from their families, have a sense of superiority over non-Alices. They feel like they are treasures, and are of higher value and rank. Additionally, Academy students, especially in the DA class, are highly trained and efficient child soldiers, much like the Janissaries. Janissaries are actually a super interesting historical topic and are worth looking into!)

We can even see the effect of this distance when Yuka escapes the Academy and runs away to her family. Yuka was essentially sold to the Academy, with her parents trading her in exchange for money and status. She was very young, far too young to really understand that her parents had abandoned her. As a result, she romanticized her bond with them, and the longer she was separated from them, the more that bond became fantastical. She made many attempts to escape the school to reunite with her parents and she fantasized about seeing them again. When she finally is able to, it's nothing like she imagined. They're cold, and unfamiliar. They don't recognize her. She doesn't know her brothers. They're related, but there's no real connection.

"I shouldn't have come here."

Yuka's is an extreme example, but I'm sure she's not an exception. For most Academy students, the almost 20 years of separation from their parents would be too much to ignore. They would not recognize each other, or be close. I'm sure many parents did not sell their children like Yuka's family did, but the bond between child and family had not been nurtured the way it should have been, resulting in coldness and distance.

Because of that, I doubt most students even bother seeking their families out, or even if they do, it's to visit a few times before starting a new life with a career. That familial bond, now broken, is difficult to repair. The connections people often feel with their families or hometowns is something Academy students instead feel with each other. They are all Alices, all in the same boat together. That feeling of superiority that many kids feel means they view each other as on the same level, and I'm sure that could interfere with family connection as well.

Thus, I don't think there's many multigenerational Alice families out there with close bonds. I don't think families like Natsume's have strong ties with grandparents and aunts and uncles and cousins. Even the sibling bonds at the Academy are stunted, with the Imai and Shouda siblings being the prime examples of that.

The Imai siblings have a significant age difference, yes, but additionally the Imai parents had a very different approach to Hotaru after seeing what happened with Subaru. They refused to hand her over as easily, wanting to show her important things in life and build happy memories for as long as they could. Even when Hotaru does enter the school, it's more than six months before she even comes across her brother, since the high school and elementary school are not integrated with each other and they do not belong to the same ability class. Similarly, the Shouda siblings are in different ability classes but they have a much smaller age gap. Despite this, Sumire refers to her brother very respectfully, indicating that there isn't a particular closeness.

The Imais fight against this divide, and put in genuine effort into rebuilding their relationship, but it's a difficult process, and one they struggle to admit to for a long time and for various reasons. Familial closeness is not encouraged, not even within the Academy.

(Though Natsume's bond with Aoi is exploited and the school does rely on him caring for her to take advantage of him, but ultimately he is kept from seeing her. Thus, that bond is also severed despite being exploited.)

Additionally, it would make sense to me if many Alice graduates decided to, upon having children, avoid scouting, like Natsume's parents did, and thus ended up moving around a lot to escape Academy notice. Moving around like that and laying low means that you're not going to be hosting huge family reunions or inviting relatives over often, even if all the other points were moot.

Finally, I think all this creates further obstacles for Yuka's wish to "have a family." At some point she says that, for normal people, the desire to settle down with someone and start a family is a pretty modest goal, but for Alices it's almost impossible. Escaping from the school, or even graduating, is a struggle. And you can have a kid, but it's likely that child will be taken from you, just as you were taken, and by the time the child graduates, they will have no connection with you. Wanting to be a potential grandparent, for example, might seem like a definite impossibility, since being a real parent is impossible.

It's even more proof that the Academy exists as an institution to subjugate and undermine Alices, as children and then as parents. Ultimately, an Alice never has control, not as a child and not even as an adult. The pain doesn't end once you've graduated; in fact, it never does.

#gakuen alice #ga #my meta #ga meta #azumi yuka #hyuuga natsume #alice academy #yes there are kids who lose their alices and thus leave early #i think those kids might find more luck reestablishing familial bonds #also there seem to be a few powerful and intergenerational families within the alice system #but those families seem rather to be in control of the school... theyd be the puppetmasters essentially #and thus might not be as victimized as normal families like natsume's.... he clearly has no power or control in the alice world AT ALL. #so yes i think those big and powerful families are exceptionally rare and thus not as relevant to this post #theyre not 'subjugated' like most other alice families are... idk how else to phrase that #feel free to hmu with ur thoughts on this topic! its super fascinating to me as yet another example of the academys many atrocities #and one i hadnt even properly thought of to this degree until recently! #its so very fun to discover and consider new aspects of ga lore or implications in the story! i love it so much! #i just cant see myself ever getting tired of analyzing this manga #i didnt actually narrow in on any one character but yuka seems to be the best example of my points so i focus on her the most #if u want we can talk abt other characters and families and discuss how the academy affected those bonds! #what an interesting concept.... im having a blast thinking abt all this rn

[variousqueerthings]

ok we’ve reached the point where I’ve gotta say it... maybe I’m just projecting gender onto hawkeye pierce

#ah not another one lads #hawkeye pierce #im watching MASH #MASH #i was talking to my partner today (one leg draped over the other at my usual fond exaggerated angle when i do drape them) #about how he makes me feel less self-conscious about some of my mannerisms #because yes i love my mannerisms but you know... also feel intensely self-conscious about how my particular masculinity #is hyperactive and exaggerated body movements and it's like #that post about how secretly wearing your mother's clothing #when you were a kid #always felt like subversive gender (because your gender was never girl) but to the outside eye it doesn't read as subversive at all #because they're not reading your masculinity -- they're just pleased you're finally conforming #(the post phrases it better) #anyway... hawkeye pierce youknow.... what a guy

[22degreehalo]

Man, I know this isn't really anything new to anyone who's in the right audience and is going to be entirely incomprehensible to anyone who isn't. But I really am just enjoying 100 Kanojo ('The 100 Girlfriends Who Really Really Really Really Really Love You') lately, and I really gotta echo that it's a surprisingly great example of positive polyamory!

The last episode of the anime really impressed that on me, that it's not *just* about being poly-positive insofar as it supports the harem. When Hahari talked about still being in love with Hakari's father, I was really expecting some cliche advice about how he'd want her to move on and be happy, blah blah blah. But no: Rentarou tells her there's no reason why she can't love both him AND her ex all the same!!

It's not the sort of thing usually associated with polyamory, but I've seen it brought up in poly circles as an example of toxic monogamy, that current partners are supposed to *despise* their partner's exes, and that people are supposed to never have any relationship with their ex or it comes across as 'unfaithful.' I've even seen widowers saying they relate strongly to the poly community even if they're technically monogamous, because they can only ever love another person *in addition* to their old spouse, and any new lover will just have to be okay with that.

And then it goes even further when Rentarou meets the ghostly spirit of Hahari's old boyfriend (or maybe it was just a dream~?), and once again, Rentarou shows not so much as a lick of jealousy or possessiveness. Rather, he clasps hands with him as a comrade, as someone who made Hahari very happy back in the day, and as someone he still would like to make proud alongside, working together to keep making her happy! (And then the spirit is so satisfied that he has no earthly connections anymore and ascends from ghosthood... which is a bit convenient but which is also funny in context, so. Well!)

But honestly, even aside from all that... I'm reading the manga now, and it's just so. Refreshing. To see a romcom like this where everyone is just so happy and in love all the time...? Harem manga sorta have a reputation for everyone beating up on the protagonist, and of course all the silent angsty pining that lasts unendingly for hundreds of chapters because the 'plot' can never actually be resolved until the story is over. But in this story, everyone really does win! And that doesn't make it less interesting: it's still so crazy and weird and dumb, and just seeing all of these characters bounce off one another and be themselves is entertaining enough without the need for external stresses.

And that all just makes it so... almost wholesome? Everyone is so happy!!! And it isn't boring at all!!!!! Everyone really really really really Really loves each other (the protagonist even more than the girlfriends, if anything), and they gush over romantic stories and get really excited about kissing their boyfriend/girlfriends and love and support their entire family, and it fills me with such warm and fuzzy feelings that I really can't think of anything else to compare it to!

It's just so nice. Characters who really, genuinely love and like each other and work hard for one another and get what they want. And also, truly wacked-out comedy that has made me laugh aloud just reading it.

It's just great. It's so, so nice. :)

#don't know how to express myself here hahahaha #just woke up this morning like. yknow what???? im gonna make the post #so im probably phrasing this all badly but WHATEVER #they just really love each other!!! including the girls!!!!!! #are there things to be said abt how the girl/girl friendships and even maybe romances are more easily respected #because girl/girl relationships aren't seen as a threat to m/f ones? #or the way Papari disappears before he can really continually exist alongside Rentarou and interact with Hahari? #yes #BUT ALSO #HAVE YOU CONSIDERED #it's just sosososososo happy and loving and sometimes it is okay to just enjoy that :) #hyakkano #100kanojo

[coffeeandcalligraphy]

feeding habits fanatics will remember the original chapter 10 was called swan song and was the original novella length chapter that was supposed to end that novel welllll I was wildly insecure at this time and cut it all out but have found a place in sunless ground to put one of my fave dialogue lines of all time and I uncovered it alongside THIS???

#he died I died we both died together is his best dialogue of all time and it is IN A TRASH PILE DOCUMENTTTTT #18 yr old Rachel served here this is great lol #like yes it took me several days to write like 2 sentences but wowww #I miss Lonan’s voice like this like why wasn’t hallowed bodies like this lol #ignore the bold that’s how I indicate a phrase might be a good title lol #I’m sorry to Lonan but his prose serves most when he’s psychologically tormented :( what do I do with this #redacted btw bc I don’t want to explain all #of that lol

[gibbearish]

its been fun watching the hbomb subreddit try very very hard to stick to the "if anyone harasses james on my behalf they wont see the light of heaven" by imo overcorrecting to "any time anyone mentions somerton ever it's because you're obsessed with him and want to pick on him because he's the villain of the week" bc its like. yknow actually i dont think people keeping an eye on his various attempts to weasel back into the spotlight and keep doing his same old shit over the last /two months/ is the same as harassing him because it's hip and fun. i think maybe those are not the same thing

#and like obv yes its possible to do both but idk #im just kinda like. 'dont harass him' and 'ignore him completely even if hes continuing to do shitty things' are um #different. those are different #origibberish #i will say though that subreddit is very good for gauging if im getting weirdly parasocial at him #like i still have yet to do that at a celebrity i like afaik because i just. Dont Like Celebrities usually #so now that i have one (1) that autism brain has finally decided to look up to im like Uh Oh Is It Finally Time #and then i see posts on there sometimes and im like. ohhh ok no i get it now #and i mean i can see why they feel that way‚ its the hbomb subreddit and Thats The Most Recent Hbomb Video #and it had yknow. immediate and impressive results #so of course people are going to a) talk about it a lot and b) talk about the aftermath as it happens #and if youre in the 'only talking about this one guy' group and that one guy has only talked about one other guy in the last Year #like. yeah . youre mostly gonna be hearing about that guy #oh parasocial abt hbomb not abt somerton i just realized how the phrasing there was weird jwhfksbfk #that being said i literally made a post like two weeks ago abt how i didnt actually know his first name so like i think im probably good #my scope of knowledge about him extends Exclusively to whats In His Videos #or well and i guess to like. patreon posts too but i tend to just dismiss patreon notifs without reading them a lot KENFKSNFMDB #like yeah yeah this show i follow posted their podcast i dont follow early for patreon subs i dont care get out of my way

[gregoftom]

mannnn who up tearing up over the sticker scene

#txt #i just starting thinking about how terrified greg must have been :((((( #he made a mistake and why would tom protect him now when he can pick and choose so much more freely who he wants #logically i'm sure he knows matsson is indeed pissed over what he did but he doesn't hate greg at least not enough to get rid of him #yet that kind of phrasing he believes in an instant bc he's in such a state of fear you can see it in his eyes in his movements #he's so afraid he's gonna go right back to being homeless to his last 20 bucks and no one will save him. no one will love him. no one will #care. but tom!!!!!! oh GOD tom!!!! says i got just enough capital!!!! i got you! and then says I GOT YOU AGAIN! just so greg didn't miss it! #you hear me? i got you!!! i'll keep you! #can i come with you nero? YES YOU CAN THATS NOT EVEN A QUESTION #and the sheer. like. shock. of being chosen like that. greg is just staring at tom as he plucks the sticker off #stock fucking still as tom puts it on even swaying slightly with the gentle force of tom putting the sticker on him bc he #can't quite believe it for a second #then he breaks into a dopey sideways smile and tom tells him gently again i got you. #you got me? even after everything? even after i made a mistake? even though i hurt you? even though i tried to make my way #and failed? even after i slapped you? even after i fought back in the bathroom? you still want me? #it just. man idk it hits me right in the kokoro....

[magentagalaxies]

thanks mother

#context: yes this is a real text from my mom #this was regarding a comedy monologue i wrote that referenced a drug popular in the 70s/80s #and the current placeholder was ''cocaine'' but like it didn't quite work for the joke i was going for #and my mom was like oh quaaludes is era appropriate and fits more with the vibe you're trying to give #but she deliberately tried to phrase it as suspiciously as possible lmao i love my mom #also as part of this same conversation i asked my mom if she knew what poppers are and she was like ''...yes?'' #my mom is such a sweet small-town librarian so hearing her make a joke related to drugs or gay sex is always so jarring #and that makes it even funnier #if you met my parents you'd probably think my dad's where i get my sense of humor from bc he's more extroverted/always doing a bit #and i appreciate that too #but i love how my mom is generally the more ''grounded'' of my parents #and yet sometimes she goes for a joke even i wouldn't make in front of her lmaooo

[leatherbookmark]

pretend to be shocked if you wish but i don’t even see mxy’s incestuous harassment of jgy as something like... Bad™, twisted or something that proves how Wrong In The Head he was. it’s just sad. chances are jgy was his first and last love, because -- how incredibly easy it would have been. i don’t think mxy was, hmm, mentally equipped to process “half-brother! off-limits!” -- he’s never seen this man before in his life, that’s a stranger! but what a stranger. he’s kind, respectful, capable and brilliant, hardworking despite the way he’s treated in jinlintai -- and mxy probably isn’t well-liked either, so even if jgy wasn’t also handsome, he would’ve gravitated towards this cool older dude who Understands. and hormones do the rest! and it didn’t even have to be immediate, or particularly sexual in nature, because i assume teens often don’t realize their crush is Obviously Showing. i’m just thinking about mxy who likes jgy so, so much and wants to be around him all the time, asks him about things, looks at him, catches a whiff of the incense on jgy’s robes as he walks past, blushes at the way jgy looks at a particular angle... just this sweet, innocent young love that’s so similar to the way jgy’s wife loved him before she was his wife So Fucking Doomed and mxy can’t even process it because he’s not even aware. :(

#of course i am myself so: forbidden passions sexy. desperate proper Harassment sexy. jgy taking a look at how his little brother #is looking at him with fire in his eyes and realizing how utterly fucked his life is? sexy #but: mxy just being head over heels in love with jgy :((((((( #but also re: the harassment #an interesting thing in jpn is that the text uses つきまとう which i'd translate as 'pester' and it's the same verb that jgs used #to bitch about how meng shi would totally pester him if he showed more interest in her and her child #that's one. and two: the person who brings that up to the reader's awareness is no one else but wwx. /he/ is the first source (for us) #of this 'rumor'. the fact that the jin disciples seem aware of it is something else but if mxy was complaining about the rumors #the text would phrase it differently. this is wwx interpreting the (difficult to read and understand but still) notes mxy left. notes that #we don't get to see. isn't this brilliant. we don't know what mxy wrote just what wwx understood from it #something something the loss of mxy's voice in the story starts with his sacrifice -- he mucked up the ritual and so wwx didn't even hear #his 'wish' he wanted wwx to fulfill -- but then it continues with the narration of wwx himself who Interprets his notes. eating my pen rn #anyway. yes #shrimp thoughts #liveshrimping #of sorts