#but also she just wanted to recreate the label

[degrees-of-fuck]

I wanted to draw them dressign up.................

#My art #DoL PC #Clara (DoL PC) #Robin the Orphan #Degrees of Lewdity #Clara sells her breast milk at a crazy markup in lonlon milk bottles #to ze/lda enjoyers #terrifying business woman #but also she just wanted to recreate the label

[insert-content]

a summar(ule)y of 196 culture

since the tumblr veterans have been kind enough to introduce us newbies to their site and culture, i think it is only fair that we explain the culture of our glorious former home to any tumblr users who might be interested in the #196 tag. keep in mind, all these things are based on my perspective of the situation.

first of all, some general information (that you might’ve already heard):

196 (r/196 on reddit) was a subreddit with only one (official) rule; "post before you leave." it was mainly a meme/shitposting sub, but it cultivated a large queer and left-leaning community. in protest of the recent api chances in reddit, 196 has shut down indefinitely until reddit reverts these changes.

now for some culture/references that you might come across

spronkus kronkus:

spronkus is this yellow, rabbit-like creature.

they were the mascot of our subreddit. their appearance can vary from images to image, but as far as i’m aware, their full outfit consists of a bandanna in the colours of the trans flag around their neck, a gun labelled as such (other wise you obviously wouldn’t know what you’re looking at), and an axe also coloured like the trans flag.

r/place:

this is a rare event on reddit where the entire website gets a huge white canvas and can start creating pixel art on it. 196 participated by collaboratively creating our mascot, spronkus with "196!" written next to them.

this version of the pixel art was recreated by me as i couldn't find a nice image of it. there were some changes between the first version and the end result, so this might not be exactly how it looked in the end

post titles/"rule":

reddit forces it's users to title every post they make. as most of the posts on 196 spoke for themselves, many user instead titled their posts "rule", to indicate that they followed the subreddit's only rule. some people also tried to make puns with the word or tried to include it in words that shared some letters (example: wor(ule)d).

anarcho-stripperism:

as the amount of cropped porn jokingly posted to the subreddit increased, the moderators decided that porn would be banned from the sub, with one exception: anarcho-stripperism. she made food fucking videos, in which she jokingly tested the fuckability of different food items (fruits, pasta, etc.)

bigotry showcase:

bigotry showcase was a post flair (basically the reddit equivalent of tags) on the subreddit and was later restricted to only be used on saturdays. under this flair people posted instances of different forms of bigotry to make fun it.

eating babies/hungryposting:

at some point, the subreddit started to pretend to like eating babies, which started a variety of memes regarding the subject. even a post flair called "hungrypost" was added because of this

goblinhog:

goblinhog is the most prominent and well-known member of the 196 moderation team. besides this, on 196 he was mostly known for changing people’s flair if you enjoyed him enough about it.

flairs:

flairs are little tags that are displayed under your name in posts or comments, they are also subreddit specific. most subreddits give their users a palette of preset flairs and the option to make your own custom flair. however, in 196 you only had the option to customize your flair during special events. if you wanted to customize your flair outside of those events (which was basically the entire time), you had to ask a mod to do it for you.

punching nazis:

from time to time, the same gif of a person with a nazi armband getting punched in the face, and promptly falling to the ground, was reposted to the subreddit. this became a sort of tradition.

discourse/drama

wasp discourse:

the wasp discourse was a one to two weeks long heated discussion that generally divided the subreddit into two factions. one side said that they were justified in killing wasps if they were attacked by them, while the other claimed that since wasps are just animals, they aren't aware of what they're doing in the same way humans are, and therefore should be spared.

drama about the british:

there was a time when jokes along the lines of "ew, british" became pretty frequent on the subreddit. as a response, some user claimed that this was akin to racism and tried to get others to stop with the jokes. a debate over whether or not it was important or necessary to stop followed afterwards.

pillar discourse:

this was a debate over which type of pillar should be considered the best (ionic; doric; corinthian). i have seen the question "which pillar is the best?" being used as a sort of greeting between 196 refugees on here.

related subreddits

195:

195 was the predecessor to 196, and also was a social experiment with the same premise as 196 (one rule, post before you leave). as the creators of 195 ended the experiment, the community wanted something with the same vibe to continue posting, and thus 196 was born.

197:

197 is another part of the 196 ecosystem and is commonly understood to be the more politically right-leaning and bigoted as 196, as some people who were banned from 196 continued posting there. besides that, the subreddits were essentially the same in terms of how they functioned.

19684:

this subreddit adds a second rule which banned all mentions of sex (that’s why it’s name is a pun on 1984). some people took this as banning all discussion of sexuality, which resulted in a community that was slightly less accepting of queer people. it is currently still up and running as the 196 moderation team wants a way to stay in contact with the community.

amendments to the posts:

u/femboy_expert:

another well-known 196 user. as the name suggests they're an expert on the subject of femboys, with their flair on 196 reading "phd in feminine boys". as the subreddit was somewhat obsessed with femboys, it's no wonder that they became popular.

u/shitcum_backup:

this was the main account of a pretty popular shitposter on the subreddit. although i didn't see them as much in the last few months, i remember them sometimes having a unique speaking pattern, in which they referred to themself in the third person.

u/monko74:

this user commented "Every day I thank god for not making me a r/196 celebrity," which led to many users of the subreddit treating them like a micro celebrity. there are even a few subreddits solely dedicated to u/monko74.

691:

a sister subreddit that inverts the rule of 196, here you would be (temporarily) banned for posting. some time ago the members of this sub initiated a rebellion/revolution against the bot who performed all the bans (roomba).

u/Smart_Calendar1874:

this wasn’t necessarily part of the subreddit, but it was a pretty popular meme. and since it’s getting posted on here again, and i know enough about it, i’ll add it to the post. this user made a post to r/AskReddit titled "How would you get a small cylinder (5.1in length, ~4.5in girth) unstuck from a mini M&Ms tube filled with butter and microwaved mashed banana? [sic]" it was pretty clear that they were referring to their penis, yet they continued to claim "it’s a cylinder," in the comment section. this lead to comments like "it is imperative that the cylinder […] remains unharmed," in response to people’s advice of cutting the m&m tube.

it's going to be very interesting to see which aspects of 196 culture are going to survive the tumblr migration, and which aspects won't be applicable on this site.

i'm obviously not the ultimate scholar on 196 lore. if i’ve missed or left out anything, or said something wrong, please comment it.

#196 #spronkus kronkus #r196 #r/196 #196archive #tumblr migration #rip 196 #196 campfire #196 migration

[writergirl3]

4 Town x Pregnant Reader

I can't remember who requested this, but thanks for the idea! Hope y'all like this💜

Warnings; Mentions of pregnancy (obviously) and discomfort/pain. Fem reader, not proofread.

Taglist; @takemichiluvr @jessexselinalover @aaronzsbiggestsuperfan @4townlove @magicbratt @4townenthusiast @local-she-wolf @4townn (If I missed you off the list, or you wanna be added, lemme know!)

Robaire;

As is the case with all the boys and their partners, Robaire would put you, and his unborn child, first. No questions asked. There's a big important meeting to sign new contract with the label? If you're not 100%, he will not be attending.

Ro is definitely the type to do that cute headphones-over-your-bump thing, playing music to your child. And he mostly chooses soothing French tunes like 'La Vie En Rose'. Although he did joke about recreating the 'Baby Got Back' scene from friends. If you hadn't refused, he for sure would've played it.

He's definitely cool, calm and collected. And it's not even an act. He has faith in you and your strength, and in whatever higher being that's up there. He sees your pregnancy as an obstacle-ridden journey, but he treasures the highs and the lows.

Jesse;

Definitely becomes an expert on pregnancy overnight. You're already at an advantage with him being a Dad of two already, and he has so much good advice. When it comes to pregnancy, though? He has quite a lot to learn. He'd already broken up with the mother of his two kids before they were born, so he's lacking in that area. But, fear not! There will be a mountain of pregnancy books on his side of the bed, and yes, he does read them all before you give birth.

Because of this, he's amazing at helping you through the hurdles. He has the magic remedy for morning sickness, cravings, and cramps. And if you find your anxiety spiralling, or mood up and down? He holds you close and gently coaxes you through the rough patches.

He's as responsible and caring as Robaire is calm, but secretly, Jesse is flapping on the inside. Please make sure that you check in with him too. He often worries about how the dynamic will change when you become a family of five, despite being so excited for it all. Remind him of that, and pregnancy with Jesse by your side will be a breeze.

Aaron T;

Oh Lord. I won't lie, he's pretty clueless in every respect. It took him a while to cotton on to what a period is, so the idea of a human baby growing inside your belly? Yeah, it freaks him out.

I feel like the pregnancy may not have been planned, too. So, he was a bit of a panicked mess when you broke the news to him. But, nevertheless, he's always wanted kids and couldn't imagine going into parenthood with anyone but you.

He definitely uses your pregnancy as an excuse for things. But in the best possible way! Like, if there's a press conference or something that he really couldn't care less about, he will be getting out of it because 'he has to be there for his baby mama'.

But he means well. You may have to talk things through with him, or be uber clear about what you need, but he'll take it all on board in a heartbeat. Because he cares so deeply for you, and treasures you and his unborn child above everything.

Aaron Z;

Right, so you know how Z is super overprotective over you and will literally bark down anyone who directs any negativity your way? Well, when you're pregnant, that increases tenfold.

He's definitely pretty anxious about it all, and that manifests into his usual perfectionism. Often, he'll have what you need ready before you even know you need it. You can thank his amazing observation skills, and general adoration for you, for that.

I feel like he'd be quite similar to Jesse, but just a little more stern about it. But not in a bad way! Like, if he notices you wincing when you reach down for something, he will insist on massaging your back right away. And no, he won't accept 'no' for an answer.

But he's also very sweet and sentimental. Sometimes you'll just catch him watching you, maybe while you're balancing a plate of food on your bump while you watch TV, and he'll just have so much love in his eyes. And it's all because you're carrying his child, and he can't wait for a lifetime of memories with you and his little one.

Tae Young;

He's for sure pretty anxious. Sometimes, it'll be you comforting him instead of the other way around. As is the case with T, I think your pregnancy would likely be unplanned, so he worries a lot about what his family and the label will say.

But once he realises what a gift your pregnancy is, he won't able to wipe the smile off of his face. He'll pepper your bump with kisses on a daily basis and spend his evenings off brainstorming names for you. I feel like he'd also start a scrapbook of your pregnancy so that you have it to look back on together.

Your pregnancy is a huge opportunity for growth and reflection for Tae. He knows that his parents probably won't approve, and being a father may not help his image as a boyband member, but he doesn't care. He's going to start a family with you and, in his eyes, that's one of the most precious of life's experiences. He vows to give your unborn child all the nurturing love that he needed when growing up. And he hopes that being parents will strengthen the love you share, too.

#4 town #4*town #4town #robaire #jesse #Aaron t #Aaron z #tae young #robaire x reader #Jesse x reader #Aaron t x reader #Aaron z x reader #Tae Young x reader #4 town headcanons #4*town headcanons #4town headcanons #4 town robaire #4*town robaire #4town robaire #4 town jesse #4*town jesse #4town jesse #4 town Aaron t #4*town Aaron t #4town Aaron t #4 town Aaron z #4*town Aaron z #4town Aaron z #4 town tae young #4*town tae young

[teawitch]

Wicca vs Witchcraft vs Pagan

It's not fair to enter the debate without posting my own definitions, is it? The below just scratches the surface of each of these. I could go on forever and keep in mind - I am a Gemini and will go on forever if given the chance.

Wicca  is a form of witchcraft as much as it is a religion. When Gerald  Gardner created Wicca his claim was that he was working with an ancient  witchcraft tradition. How much of what he had was truly from an old  witchcraft tradition is much debated (he borrowed liberally from various  sources). Wicca began as an initiatory practice, where a person joined and worked within a specific tradition. On a general level, rituals follow the Wheel of the Year and work with a god and goddess. Practices can vary with tradition and knowledge of practice can vary by degree within a tradition.

Witch is used as a very generic term, often to indicate any magic user. Which is not always correct. My grandmother practiced folk magic but would never have considered herself to be a witch. She was good Southern Baptist. Ceremonial magicians practice magic but don't identify as witches.

So the best way to consider witch is as a form of self-identification. Someone is a witch when they say they are a witch. Generally they would also be practicing some form of magic.

Now Pagan or Neo-Pagan gets a bit more complex.  Overall Pagan or Neo-Pagan is sometimes used to mean “A group of people that operates outside societies expectations”  with no indication of actual practice. I know the expectation is "pagans worship the old gods" but that isn't always true. Some do. Some, well, see "Party Pagan" below.

Within the Neo-Pagan movement, you'll find Reconstructionist groups who try to recreate, as much as possible, older religions such as Hellenic or Kemetic (ie Greek or Egypt) or Norse or Druidic. But you'll also find people who just consider themselves to be outside of Christianity with no specific structure.

Generally speaking,  Wicca and witchcraft traditions may be considered part of the larger  Neo-Pagan environment. Perhaps an easy way to see this is that if an  area holds a Pagan Pride Day, it may be the best way to meet people from  the local initiatory Wiccan covens as well as the local Druids,  Heathens and other groups. If an event was labeled “Pagan” it generally  just meant everyone was invited.

But the actual practices  can be very different. Hellenic and Heathen groups may or may not  welcome Wiccans or witches as members. They may practice ritual honoring  their gods but want nothing to do with spellwork. Though they may not  be as opposed to it as say, the Southern Baptists. Some Neo-Pagans  are  happy to attend a Wiccan ritual though they wouldn’t hold one  themselves. (There is also a term - Party Pagans - which is the crowd  that shows up to every ritual or event though no one knows what they  actually do on their own.)

Now a word of caution the term Pagan (Neo-Pagan) -  this is considered a reclaimed term, meaning we don’t call anyone a  Pagan unless they claim that term for themselves. So if you call your  Buddhist or Hindu friend a Pagan, they may become upset with you. This  is because regardless of any dictionary definition the term Pagan is  still used as an insult. The same with Heathen and Witch.

[konfizry]

Nefarious, anti-Zelink localization choices in TotK

I would argue that they are not a thing.

So what I’ve been seeing, is mostly discourse around The House. 

Mainly, that one line in Zelda’s diary, where Zelda refers to the house as “my house” in the English text as seen below: 

The argument seems to be that she does not say “my house” in the original Japanese. I’ve even seen people go as far as to claim she wrote “our house”. Aight, let’s take a peek then:

So indeed, there is no trace of  私の家 (my house), but neither is there 私たちの家 (our house). It’s just 家 (”house” / “the house”). 

As you know.  Pronouns aren’t nearly as pervasive in japanese as they are in English. I do think it’d be strange for her to use a possessive here, like, you know. Given that we know that it’s this here house she’s referring to, y’know. And she’s writing in her own diary, there’s no need to specify. Like, It’s the house. This house. What other house is there that she had an extra room built at? None, of course, right. Right. 

So anyway, what’s the correct translation then? ~I don’t know.~ If you wanna stick close to the original jp’s lack of possessive here, you’d say “the house”, i guess, but listen: “my house” is a perfectly reasonable option, as well. I know some of y’all hate that it makes it sound like she’s excluding Link here, and sure you’re allowed to feel that way but. I. don’t think it’s wrong tbh honest??? 

And “our house” would have worked, too, probably, but then it would have leaned a littttttle too heavily on the Zelink and I can sort of understand that they want to keep it at least a little nebulous. (because 1. that is what they do and 2. it’s more fun that way)

And unfortunately “our house” would have also contradicted another little piece of info found in the Japanese version regarding... the well, again. more specifically what the game calls the well. 

In English it is referred to as Zelda’s Secret Well. And that is what it is. It is very much the well that was built for her own purposes, and it is a secret chamber. No complaints here.

The well is labeled a little differently in Japanese, tho. The game calls it ゼルダの家の井戸, which could translate to "Zelda's house's water well" or "the water well by Zelda's house" (or whatever else you can think of that has “Zelda’s house” and “well” in it, probably, im just giving examples so u get the idea).

(click here if you’re on desktop and can’t zoom in but want to)

So, in fact, you could say that in Japanese, the house is clearly stated to be Zelda’s house. Woops, back to square one it is, then. 

But do you see? Are you seeing? While Zelda does call it “my house” in the English text seemingly leaving no room for Link, you could also argue that the localization team went out of their way to not call it “Zelda’s house” when they absolutely could have. By calling the well “Zelda’s secret well” instead of going for a closer-to-the-original “well outside Zelda’s house”, they recreated a little bit of room for speculation. Wow!!!! Cool!! 

And this is just like. One little tidbit I decided to focus on, but my point is:

There is no secret anti-Zelink agenda in the localization team. Translating means making choices, you might disagree with some of them, but that does not make them wrong or vile, I don’t think. 

And the siege mentality I’ve seen some people adopt regarding Zelink strikes me as very misplaced. We are eating good. There is food aplenty. Why are you digging for extra scraps that may not even exist? 

Granted, comparing the original text with its translations can be super fun (heck I enjoy it, to an extent!), but try to think about your own attitude as you do so. Try to go into with curiosity and humility in your heart instead of righteous vindicativeness. You might find that more satisfying. 

Now of course, sometimes translation errors do occur, and criticism is warranted, but try to take a step back and ask yourself if this really means the localization team are a bunch of buffoons who either have no idea what they’re doing or are actively trying to ruin your Zelda experice, or if, perhaps, instead, sometimes people fuck up. For various reasons that you may not be aware of.

(Rereading this i now realize that i am tone-policing and. Yeah. I am. deal with it)

One more thing, you don’t have to believe randos who claim “X is canon in Japanese and they censored it in English”, especially if they’re not elaborating or providing evidence. (You can choose to believe them if you want to, at the end of the day, but just be aware that you believed without seeing. So think before you spread the word around, right?)

One final, final thing, you can always set your nintendo switch to Japanese and experience the game in its original language, for yourself. Isn’t that the coolest? I wish this was possible for all games. Thanks, Nintendo!

#anyway i don't care about any of this #MY zelda is french and annoying neither jp nor us zelda are canon to me #Tears of the Kondom #totk #wake up bestiiiiies kon is posting discourse #discourse that she has no business sticking her nose in but hey its the internet #no but like seriously this whole #'oh in japanese it meant something else' #'oh in japanese that is a lot more emotional and spiritual blahblahblah' #i am tired #like im sure it is the case sometimes but #the japanese text is not a magical treasure trove where all your wishes will be fullfilled #sometimes tadaima just means im home and im home works just fine to convey the emotions its meant to #this is another debate entirely #just #idk #whatever peeps #Zelink #localization discourse #oh and uh #disclaimer: i don't know japanese actually

[in-pleasant-company]

Hello new friend,

I'm a 41-year-old white queer femme who has just recently retrieved my three AG dolls from the attic where I put them away before I went to college. I have Kirsten, and the original release Felicity and Addy. I brought them out to clean up and give to my daughter, but have found they have released a great deal of stored up energy, and I have been deep diving into the world of AG since I put it down in 2001. I have been working my way backwards in your Tumblr, and am in 2020 now. I want to thank you for your clear love of and dedication to American Girl, and I really appreciate your various thoughtful perspectives, especially as it relates to the historical PC and current Mattel relationship with race and ethnicity. As an Elder Millennial, I don't really know how to Tumblr, but you can find me on IG as quiltereina (my public account), so you can see that I'm not a total weirdo-in-a-bad-way - just a domesticated rebel with grandma hobbies living in a hippie suburb of my hometown of Washington, D.C.

I found my dolls, but not their clothes or accessories yet, which is a devastating. I received the dolls as gifts, but I earned all of their clothes through chores. I have already sewed more clothes for my girls (plus the three new ones I have purchased since Jan 1) than I had the entirety of my childhood, having leaned to sew in the intervening years. I am balancing the desire to recreate all of the clothes I had, using time-period appropriate prints and patterns, but in my own preferred color schemes (mostly pinks and purples), a sort of alternative history recreation for my own inner child, plus the desire to make fun and frilly costumes for my five-year-old's enjoyment. In these pursuits, I have not only saved the Pretty Dresses PDF from AGPlaythings, but have been searching for patterns that will as closely as possible replicate the Meet outfits for my girls; I have found Addy's from doll-princesse, and think I can wing Kirsten's from her school dress, but Felicity? Still searching.

So I have one very specific question - a woman in a 18" doll facebook sewing group claims that there was 1992 Pleasant Company book of patterns released, which included Felicity's Meet Dress. I have searched the ends of the internet; she is not referring to the PC Pretty Dresses Patterns; there is no record in the AG Wiki or in the Library of Congress for this book. She said someone on Etsy was selling copies of the book and the FB poster got blocked for harassing the Etsy seller for selling a book still under copyright, but I cannot find the like on Etsy or Ebay. Have you ever heard of such a book? Or is _someone_ -lying- on the internet? And if you have any other deep-dive pattern suggestions (I've seen everything on Etsy, PixieFaire, Pemberly, etc), I'd be grateful, and also happy to compensate pattern makers/recreators.

If you've made it this far, thanks for your time reading this, and again for your insightful and informative Tumblr-blog.

Best,

LaLa

Hi, welcome! It's wonderful that you're giving some love to these old dolls once again!

As for the book with Felicity's pattern, it sounds fascinating. I will keep a lookout for it. It's possible the book was an internal, company only creation that was meant for creating the mockups before the doll clothes went into production in West Germany (and later in China). I will say that there was a set of doll patterns (or possibly multiple sets?) that were briefly available from Colonial Williamsburg that the person may have been remembering as Felicity patterns. It could also have been a pattern that was made available for special events at places like the Madison Children's Museum. I know of a pattern for Felicity's Bedding that is associated with the Madison Children's Museum.

The patterns available from Colonial Williamsburg were from Past Crafts patterns (labelled Evoking Period Style for Dolls), and I'm almost positive that there was a set of doll clothes patterns designed by someone who worked in the textiles department of Colonial Williamsburg, but I haven't been successful in tracking them down.

Edit: Could it be they were talking about the GIRL sized pattern for Felicity's Meet Outfit? It wasn't in a book but a paper envelope like commercial patterns.

Edit 2: I reached out on the AG Playthings message board and got some answers. Yes, the pattern does exist but it was never available for sale from Pleasant Company. I imagine it was an internal document that was somehow leaked/stolen. Mystery solved!

#felicity merriman #answered asks #sewing patterns #by the way please don't feel worried about coming off as 'creepy' the note in my pinned post was for a very specific type of message

[machinegrl]

tag game: bold the facts ! ☆

thank u for tagging mee! @simsonnet @siliconesims @nefarrilou🥰🤍

i don't have enough ocs for this game so i'm introducing some new ones! (inna's not rlly new i just haven't posted about them yet 😅)

you can also check out my other ocs: syera, lilith & dione

rules: tag people and name a character you want to know more about! If you want to let the person you tagged decide who to showcase, then don’t name a character and they can pick somebody. easy! the person who is tagged will then bold the remarks below which apply to their character &, if they want to, include a picture with their reply!

NOVA & INNA- cold-blooded henchman & the ferocious bounty hunter

[ PERSONAL ]

$ Financial: wealthy / moderate (both grew up poor) / poor / in poverty

✚ Medical: fit / moderate / sickly / disabled / disadvantaged / non applicable

 ✪ Class or Caste: upper / middle / working / unsure / other

✔ Education: qualified / unqualified / studying / other

 ✖ Criminal Records: yes, for major crimes / yes, for minor crimes / no / has committed crimes, but not caught yet / yes, but charges were dismissed (in exchange for her freedom nova was hired as a private secretary/henchman by a corrupt politician who took care of erasing most of her criminal records)

[ TRAITS + TENDENCIES ]

♦ extroverted / introverted / in between

♦ disorganized / organized / in between

♦ close minded / open-minded / in between

♦ calm / anxious / in between

♦ disagreeable / agreeable / in between

♦ cautious / reckless / in between

♦ patient / impatient / in between

♦ outspoken / reserved / in between

♦ leader / follower / in between

♦ empathetic / vicious bastard / in between

♦ optimistic / pessimistic / in between

♦ traditional / modern / in between

♦ hard-working / lazy / in between

♦ cultured / uncultured / in between / unknown

♦ loyal / disloyal / unknown

♦ faithful / unfaithful / unknown

[ ABILITIES ]

☠ Combat Skills: excellent (both are highly trained assassins but work separately) / good / moderate / poor / none

 ≡ Literacy Skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none

✍ Artistic Skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none

 ✂ Technical Skills: excellent / good / moderate / poor / none

[ HABITS ]

☕ Drinking Alcohol: never / special occasions / sometimes / frequently / Alcoholic

☁ Smoking: tried it / trying to quit / quit / never / rarely / sometimes / frequently / chain-smoker

✿ Recreational Drugs: never / special occasions / sometimes / frequently / addict / quit

✌ Medicinal Drugs: never / no longer needs medication / some medication needed / frequently / to excess

☻ Unhealthy Food: never / special occasions / sometimes / frequently / binge eater

$ Splurge Spending: never / sometimes / frequently / shopaholic

 ♣ Gambling: never / rarely / sometimes / frequently / compulsive gambler

[ BELIEFS ]

★Faith: monotheist / polytheist / atheist / agnostic

☆Belief in Ghosts or Spirits: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care

✮Belief in an Afterlife: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care

✯Belief in Reincarnation: yes / no / don’t know / don’t care

❃Belief in Aliens: yes (nova is part alien, inna has fought some) / no / don’t know / don’t care

✧Religious: orthodox / liberal / in between / not religious

❀Philosophical: yes / no

[ FAMILY ]

◒Children: had a child or children / has no children / wants children

◑Relationship with Family: close with sibling(s) / not close with sibling(s) / has no siblings / sibling(s) is deceased / unknown

◔ Affiliation: orphaned / adopted / disowned / raised by birth parents / not applicable 

[ SEXUALITY & ROMANTIC INCLINATION ]

❤ Sexuality: heterosexual / homosexual / bisexual / asexual / pansexual / (nova doesn't label herself)

❥ Sex: sex repulsed / sex neutral / sex favorable / naive and clueless

♥ Romance: romance repulsed (she's too busy plotting world domination) / romance neutral / romance favorable /naive and clueless / romance suspicious

❣ Sexually: adventurous / experienced / naive / inexperienced / curious

⚧ Potential Sexual Partners: male / female / agender / other / none / all

⚧ Potential Romantic Partners: male / female / agender / other / none / all

#c:nova #c:inna #tag game #sorry for any inconsistencies!! #i'm still developing most of my characters ><" #but i love how these two turned out so far #especially inna! i made them a while ago and i'm glad i could finally incorporate them to my main save's “story” #they're actually hunting lilith down #lilith has crossed sooo many people so i don't think inna would be the last one 🤧 #and nova 🥵 she's still an enigma to me but she's def one of the big bads >.> #ts4 #the sims 4 #immortal save

[loelett]

sorry if this seems random but a little rant in response to what u reblogged about the new tv show.

TBH IT MAKES ME SO MAD THAT THEY ADDED *FORCED* RACISM (and by that I mean Louis taking lestat calling him his fledgling as "slave" like stop thats not what vc is about at ALL?????) AND HAD TO MAKE ANTOINE INTO ANTOINETTE TO SHOW HES BI 💀 I feel like the writers missed a lot of important points about the book and WHY Louis stuck with Lestat and was infatuated with him but hated him at the same time. they really changed character dynamics in it tbh. dont get me wrong, its a decent show, but I just can't see it as the same Louis and Lestat compared to the 1994 movie which I think did a good job in recreating what Anne wrote.

anyway hi 😍🥰😇...

I'm not really sure what forced racism means in the context of the iwtv show ngl. I mean I've really only seen the show through one and a half times but I do know that even Louis himself in the books labels himself as a slave to Lestat's whim (Claudia does as well; she also calls him a slave to Armand) (Lestat also does this in respects to Himself so even he agrees hrejgh) so even in the context of the books I don't really think it's forced or ooc for this connection to be made. Obviously the intention is different considering Louis' blackness in the show, but since this is a theme the show goes with (meaning the racism that Louis experiences in his time period) I don't really have a problem with that wording. I'm not black myself so this is just my opinion by the way, but I've always been pretty interested in the way they decided to change show Louis' race and backstory. It's probably the most interesting change they made imo.

Um yeah the Antoinette thing still sucks, I really don't know why they decided to go with that ?? Idk i always forget abt her so I guess I'm a hater. Agree 👍. We never needed to prove Lestat was bi esp in the first book so wharever? go off showrunners i Guess?? idk bout all that

Loustat's dynamic is completely different in the show and it's one I've rlly never been interested in. I know a lot of people enjoy it and I don't wanna take away from that, so no hate there idk do what you love. I'm just not an enjoyer of the abuser/abusee thing they kinda have going on. Um and the cheating stuff it's all just really exhausting to me. I just really like Louis' reaction to Lestat's actions in the book ! They aren't canon BECAUSE Lestat is abusive and controlling and manipulative and they don't even kiss until book 2, let alone express emotional/physical affection. Show Louis goes back to Lestat even after everything that goes on in ep 5 and. As a self proclaimed Louis self insert I just can't ever see him doing that in the books, at least not with Claudia still in the picture. IDK!

I'm really not a hater of the show, and I want all the Louis fans out there to really think about the way they react to the changes in his character from book to show. There are personality changes that I don't agree with either, but this is a different story and the original one has already been told. I don't have to like the show to respect it and its fans, and the whole pick a side thing between book and show is exhausting to me :/ there r things I like and things i don't like about both versions !

Sorry I know this goes really off topic HGFSHg.. love love

#hiii anon! no hate to u either sorry for using you as a vessel for my words #asks! #idk i dont wanna compare book and show TOO much bc obvs they went off and did their own thing and comparing them too closely isnt gonna #do any good. but it IS the source material and the reason i got invested in the first place so ig it's not irrelevant. idk im just a guy #feeling very talkative today helloooo guys

[sevensoulmates]

is JCC the buddie writer?

JCC is Juan Carlos Coto, he's been a writer for most of the show's run (season 2 onward). You can check here to see the episodes he's worked on so far: https://www.tumblr.com/911bts/743248556205408256/7x02-and-7x03-were-written-and-directed-by-the?source=share

You'll see that most of these episodes have a buddie moment or are heavily centered on Buck and/or Eddie. He's not the ONLY buddie writer, but he has been responsible for a lot of them, along with Lyndsey Beaulieu, Andrew Meyers, Taylor Wong, and, of course, Tim Minear. (You can find lists of all their previous episodes on @911bts).

We also have prominent "buddie" directors coming back as well, including John J. Gray (who wrote 2x04 Stuck and directed 6x12 Recovery ((ie. Buck falls asleep on Eddie's couch)), Brenna Malloy (who directed 4x13 Suspicion aka the gayest shooting scene on the planet), and Bradley Buecker (who directed 3x02 Sink or Swim aka Buck&Chris in the tsunami, 5x02 Desperate Times aka Eddie's comphet panic attacks, and 6x10 In A Flash aka Eddie pulling Buck UP after the lightning strike and "DO MORE!").

I was telling Zee yesterday the only time Juan Carlos Coto wrote an episode that I was less than thrilled with (at least when it comes to Buck and Eddie) is 6x17 Love is in the Air. But upon rewatching several times, I changed my opinion. Love is in the Air was interesting because it put both Buck and Eddie with Random Love Interests but also at the same time very much slapped the label of "THIS IS NOT THE RIGHT ONE FOR THEM" on it. So I'mma give him the benefit of the doubt because he had to adhere to what KR & Fox wanted and it really seemed like he did his best to adhere by what his bosses wanted while still putting several fail-safes in both Bucktalia and Eddiemarisol. He gave us all the red flags with Natalia, and also very clearly spelled out that Eddie wants to date Marisol for the wrong reasons (trying to recreate his last toxic marriage with Shannon, dating her just cuz she's there, and still feeling pressured to date in general). Man said I can't save this trainwreck of an almost-series finale, but the least I can do is give these characters fail-safes so the fans know these aren't their endgames even though it might SEEM like it.

Now, back under Tim, and with (hopefully) the green light from ABC, I'm thinking the writers/directors for season 7 can go absolutely apeshit on the buddie scenes. Maybe even sprinkle in a lil canon buddie just as a treat because we've all been such patient baby birds waiting for mama bird's backwash, ya know?

#ask #911 abc #buddie #speculation #this in no way encompasses all of the writers/directors who've contributed big time to buddie #just scrolling through wikipedia there are plenty of recurring/ guest writers/directors who have created some of the best buddie episodes #that just goes to show how much those who are responsible for creating this show care for buddie and work hard to develop them well

[ae-neon]

I have so many unpopular opinions!

I don't believe you necessarily have to be a terrible person to get blocked. I blocked an anti-Feysand (my people) just because she hated Nesta too and kept posting anti/critical posts of her.

Tamlin is literally not that bad. Anything he's done, the faves have done it more and done it worse, laughed about it over wine, never apologized for it, and patted themselves on the back for it.

Feyre being locked in a literal mansion where her every need was met to protect her is so unserious to me. Like honestly, I get where SJM was going with it, and I get all the other stuff, but THAT I roll my eyes at. The girl spent half her life (or three years, depending on which piece of canon you prefer) putting herself in danger just to scrape by with no one saving or protecting her. She spent the last three months going through horrifically dangerous and traumatic shit with no one to save or protect her. The idea that someone she loves says "don't go into danger, stay here in the lap of luxury not worrying about anything for a few months while I make sure our court is safe" gave her claustrophobic PTSD but almost getting trapped when stealing the Book of Breathings didn't? Recreating UtM in the Hewn City didn't? The Weaver's Cottage didn't? As someone who used to be homeless and starved on more than one occasion, I'd personally take temporary imprisonment in a mansion where I knew my next meal was guaranteed and people were there who cared about me anything else (and can we all realize that it very much was temporary? Tamlin was worried about things that he was ACTIVELY trying to take care of so he and Feyre DIDN'T have to worry about anymore).

Even GOOD people on this side of the fandom go too far with all the abuse talk. I've seen maybe four blogs telling people to dial it back. There is no way to make a supernatural fantasy story not "abusive" by our standards. We talk about it too much. Certain things (SA, grooming & manipulation, all of ACOSF), yes! All of the deep explorations of Calanmai and SA? Dial it back!

I have so many more but this is getting too long. I just really feel like I'm the only one with sense my line of thinking in this fandom (that was a joke if it wasn't clear).

Hello anon

I actually agree with wanting to pull off the abuse label on certain situations. I'm tired of moral grandstanding to justify why I like who I like Vs who I don't like.

It's fine to point out when doing critical analysis but why are we alwaaaays analysing. I don't want to sound anti intellectual but while it is that deep, we don't always have to engage at that level.

Maybe I just don't like Rhys not cause he's clearly an abusive manipulator but cause he's boring? He's just incompetent and I find that unattractive? Maybe I don't care that Cassian needs therapy, I just don't like his aesthetic? Frankly I think that should be reason enough.

Feyre locked away in the mansion is so real. It's not like she was torn away from her preferred property like Nesta. Like you're in your own house, just for the day, until he comes back and you can tell him to fuck off.

And of course nothing else in the next weeks where she was manipulated into humiliating or life-threatening situations would also trigger her PTSD. It's subjective. As subjective as SJM decides to make it.

According to SJM herself, her faves trauma is just not that deep. It disappears in weeks. It only ever comes up to remind the readers not to pick anyone else's side in an argument where SJM is losing against her own characters.

#anon asks #anti sjm

[seths-wife]

Can Alice build a black box????

So...apparently "Maria Moonlit"/Alice could build black boxes, as it's shown in the "clockwork lullaby" album booklet.

Kiril builds the model of the series' clockwork lullaby chart in the latter by using music boxes playing the "clockwork lullabies", compactifying them all with a black box system.

Upon arriving in the land of Angolmois, I was able to proceed with the compactification of the bb [black box] system, which was a long-pending problem, at once("clockwork lullaby" album booklet).

(I'm talking about this chart again, from the "clockwork lullaby" album booklet, by akuno-p).

Upon arriving in the land of Angolmois, I was able to proceed with the compactification of the bb [black box] system, which was a long-pending problem, at once ("clockwork lullaby" album booklet).

In the booklet's chart, the black boxes are the ones with the strange texts: "with him and her", "no god" and "no utopia".

In the same, we discover that the three black boxes have been made by three different characters:

Clockwork lullaby 06/capriccio farce

<turns clockwise–connected by 04 through the Alice bb>

[...]

clockwork lullaby 10/Banica concerto!!

<turns counter-clockwise–connected by both 06 and 07>

<connects further to the big gear through the Seth bb>

[...]

clockwork lullaby 12/song of the third period

<turns counter-clockwise–connects by 09 and 03 through the Sickle bb>

<and to the big gear> ("clockwork lullaby" album booklet).

Let's look at that a little bit.

"Capriccio farce" (the "06" gear in the chart) is linked to the "04" gear through the "Alice bb".

What is the Alice black box?

From the chart, the box connecting the gears "04" and "06" is the one labeled "no god". That's the Alice black box.

In a similar fashion, the "10" gear is connected through the Seth's black box.

From the chart, we can see that such a box is the one labeled "with him and her".

Lastly, the gears "12" and "03" are connected to Sickle's black box, the one labeled "no utopia".

I don't really want to get in a conversation about the roles of the boxes in the chart, rather trying to answer: "how the heck could Alice build a black box?"

Black boxes in the series are second period technology, starting from the original model (the type "e") that allowed the psychiatric examination of the "swap technique" for studying the "her" patient in the second period...ending with all the other models built by the other colleagues of Held that were based off it, afterwards.

In any case, no third period resident has ever shown to be able to build a black box.

Yes, in the series we do see some "third period" characters using black boxes throughout the series: Allen (after he dies, in the "fifth pierrot" bonus short story and in other places too), Gammon (in the "master of the heavenly yard" novel), Gallerian (as the character mentions in chapter 7, scene 5 of that same novel), Irina (in the "fifth pierrot" novel, when she uses the black-box type "s" in her cat body, part 2, chapter 3, scene 1 of the novel; also in the "oss: punishment" novel too)...

...but never building it.

Except for a character: "doll director".

There were schematics in the corner of her mind. Using them, she designed a black box ("master of the heavenly yard" novel, chapter 7, scene 2).

A "black box"? What can it do?

A few scenes later in the same novel, we discover that the box is able to wind the time of a character's back.

“[...] I can’t thank the ‘doll director’ enough. Because of the 'black box' that she created, my time was rewound just a little bit." ("master of the heavenly yard" novel, chapter 8, scene 5).

Or better, it does a "formatting". In chapter 9, scene 3 of the "master of the heavenly yard" novel, that is described as a sort of destruction of the character's "soul" (in the series, it's "spirit data"); after that, the formatting also "recreates" the character as a "new being".

Destruction...creation...does that ring a bell?

That is a "re_birthday", the action performed by a series' "irregular".

Later in the novel (chapter 11, section 2, scene 1), the different "re_birthdays" are described, pointing out the fact that the "creation" part of the formatting is different in each one.

In particular, the one of the neo twins consists in "recreating" the character of the series as it originally was: as if it was brought back in time.

Everything was restored to how it was.

They would do it over again once more, from the beginning. ("master of the heavenly yard" novel, chapter 12, section 2).

But, wait a minute.

That's also what the "doll director"'s box does: a "re_birthday".

But how did she learn how to create a black box?

There were schematics in the corner of her mind. Using them, she designed a black box ("master of the heavenly yard" novel, chapter 7, scene 2).

Schematics in the corner of her mind? Looks like a faint memory on how to build a black box.

Memory from which time?

Irina has used a black box before, the one of her chest cavity in the cat body, but she has probably never built one from scratch, as far as i know.

On the other hand, the "clockwork lullaby album booklet" does mention of a black box built by Alice.

Therefore, I suppose that's where the memory comes from.

Since "black boxes" are a second period tech, the most realistic explanation as for why Alice could have built a black box is for a second period character to have taught her.

But which one?

We know that Alice has been in contact with Levia and Behemo, in the series, through their "glass bottle" communications or hearing their voices.

But...I don't believe it was either of them.

The reason for this is what Levia has said, again, in the "master of the heavenly yard" novel.

This “formatting” function—the idea itself had been conceived, but never put into practice.

And the person who came up with it…was Levia. In other words, me. And…i had torn up the plans without showing them to anyone else.

It was something Levia had proposed to improve upon the management of souls—spirit data–but the other researchers had opposed it.

…So then, who had created that flying box?

The only possible person would be someone who had been in a position to read my thoughts— ("master of the heavenly yard" novel, chapter 5, scene 6).

This dialogue wouldn't be consistent with the idea of Levia teaching Alice of the idea of formatting, in the series' oss era; otherwise, why should she be wondering so much about who built such a black box?

Levia didn't teach that to anybody both in the second or third period of the series, otherwise she could have told: "oh right, i did teach Alice about that".

Therefore, I don't think it's Levia...and neither Behemo, at that point.

There are several reasons for that too.

In their time trapped in the climb one, Levia and Behemo were basically stuck together and communicate with each other and with Alice (in the novel "muzzle of nemesis", you can see that in chapter 7, scene 2). Therefore, I assume Levia would have known that Behemo taught Alice about "formatting" and "how to build a black box", in case.

2. Behemo is not specialized in the building of black boxes in the first place, in the series.

So...which character taught Alice how to build a black box? Which character could have possibly "read Levia's mind" and teach Alice about "formatting"? Can there be an accurate novel explanation for this?

As we know, Alice has basically lived in isolation, since becoming queen: never showing up in public and the only character that is allowed to meet her is the head senator, Miroku.

So...who Alice could have met with the knowledge of "black boxes"?

Well, about the "doll director's" black box...that has been pointed out to be similar to a certain "black box".

The one [black box] floating in the air just then was—

It’s unlike the type "e", as well as the type "l" that I made. The closest I can think of is…the type "s"! ("master of the heavenly yard" novel, chapter 2, scene 3).

Mmmh, the "type" 's' black box, the one built by Seth.

Now that i think about it, Seth was also Miroku's retainer.

Seth also visited Alice to throw her children in the river...("oss crime" novel, chapter 4, scene 4).

They may have met before in other instances, I don't know.

But after that...Seth did brainwash Miroku multiple times ("oss crime" novel, chapter 4, scene 4), to the point he thought he was Alice ("oss crime" novel, chapter 3, scene 10).

Therefore, it is indeed also possible for Seth to have met Alice while the head senator's state was declining.

Even more, I think he must have done so...otherwise how could he have put Alice in Irina?

I really think Seth can have been be a believable candidate to teach Alice how to make a black box.

Otherwise, I don't have a lot of other second period characters which involvement with Alice can be backed up by novel information.

I thought of Luna at one point for several reasons, but she is not the kind of character that wants to interfere too much with the evillious world.

Luna is more likely to experience the third period like a game without too much interference, more than teaching Alice how to build a "character-formatting-box" in the series...which can have consequences in the evillious world, as we see in the "master of the heavenly" yard novel.

On the other hand, Luna has always been against "proactively managing the third period" in the series...

So...I think Seth can be the only character in the series that could have taught Alice how to build a black box.

But how did he learn about the formatting function, since Levia has shown such to no other character of the second period?

Well, in the series, Seth was in his mask form in the second period. In that form, he could read thoughts of his host or of other people too. Maybe Levia has worn him for a time?

The scenario Levia poses in the "master of the heavenly yard" novel (of someone reading her thoughts) is not so impossible, then.

Or maybe, Seth has managed to find the "torn up plans of formattation" of the false goddess and use them. Hence we have the scene 1 of chapter 5 of the "master of the heavenly yard" novel of a second period character building the black box.

Would it be Seth, though? Seth strongly believed about spreading "hers". Why would he build a black box to supposedly "eliminate it" in the series?

It's also true that his vessel "grim the end" in the series has the specific purpose of killing contractors or to destroy the "evillious' demons'" influence, in the various installments.

So, it wouldn't be that strange, after all.

Those questions are very difficult to answer because there is not a lot of indulging on the "second period" backstory in the novels or songs of akuno, neither we know what exactly happened to Alice, so...

...what do you think?

#evillious chronicles #evillious #alice merry go round #seth twiright

[paperbunny]

S2, E1: The Arrival, Pt. 2

Not a meta, just a tribute.

[Starting at 22:22] Ep 1, Pt. 1

('Allo 'Allo 'Allo) Muriel is perfect and I am so happy that everyone instantly loved her.

(General Omens) The matchbox says "Out of his mouth go burning lamps and sparks of fire leap out." Job 41:19 This is interesting because it doesn't seem like it applies to Gabe or Jim, unless the sparks are the prophesies that he says, which seems redundant since those were pretty clearly prophetic and don't need any extra hints. Crowley as Aziraphale did shoot flames from his mouth, though. The extended passage is all about the Leviathan which could be a reference to Crowley the Serpent but I hope it's a more interesting forewarning of Guardian!Aziraphale when he gets to work upstairs. It could just as easily be a warning about the power of God as wielded by the Metatron though. Important but not clear to me where to point it.

(General Omens) The coffee cup on the wall of the shop outside (above the outdoor seats, near the "or") has orange flame-like whisps instead of white or light grey that one would expect to signify steam. Ominous coffee business. The coffee shop is blue whilst the record shop is orange. Opposing colors.

(Nina the Mirror) Interesting that the coffee shop is called Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death, considering the lack of liberty Nina clearly has in her personal life. Nina and Aziraphale both taking up for others whilst trapped themselves. Sure, Az is technically unemployed, but he's certainly not free.

(General Omens) Not sure if there will be more to the story about the coffee shop being essentially USA-themed, such as a Greasy Johnson tie-in, but for now it just seems like another little UK joke about things getting set in the US or otherwise America-coded for the sake of mass marketing.

(Aziraphale the Comfy) He wants Crowley to be calm, he wants himself to be calm. He's also not familiar with the effects of espresso. And neither he nor Crowley are acting like it's at all unusual to be hanging out together, though they've not been together in this shop it seems. Eccles cakes? *pointed look at Crowley* Some eccles cakes please. He's just as nervous to show Crowley as he is about the problem itself, but not telling Crowley isn't even on the table. Because Crowley is there allll the timmmeeee and is an integral part of his world, too, of course.

(Nina The Shit Stirrer) How's your naked man friend? NINA. You know that this little book man has never brought this slinky goth fellow into your shop and you have no idea what their business is. But you just HAD to mention the naked man in front of Aziraphale's man-shaped friend. And she was so happy to do it. Has she seen the Bentley and Crowley coming and going? How much does she suspect? Is she poking that situation because of the volatility of her own?

(General Omens) "You're a dark horse Mr. Fell" First Dark Horse mentioned, of at least three.

(Aziraphale the Comfy) Immediate embarassment! Where was that embarrassment when it was the WHOLE NEIGHBORHOOD? But no, in front of Crowley suddenly you're shy.

(Domestic Moments) The tone of "go back a long time" is so sweet. They really aren't trying to hide much at this point, despite aggressively refusing to Address The Situation. And how nice that Crowley gets to be introduced. No "friends" no obfuscation. No labels, either, but there's a real tide change even so. And Nina does a cute little curtsy-ish move in response. Maybe she has a sense about how long "a long time" could be.

(Crowley With A Purpose) He's so happy that he has actual news. Is he happy that there's something to do, or that something bad might be happening to Gabriel? Both? The IMMEDIATE interest in getting into the bookshop. I can't imagine that he thinks Aziraphale would be harboring a recreational naked man for sexy reasons, but he certainly isn't laughing about it either. He asks Aziraphale if he can help, and poor Az seems to have had whatever his plan for a soft launch of the problem was completely obliterated by Nina's bomb dropping. Also that coffee cup was SO EMPTY.

(Domestic Moments) Despite Az clearly getting his plan for easing Crowley into the problem messed up, they are off to the shop. Whole plate of eccles cakes in hand, and no "after you" needed at the door. This is a well oiled partnership opening doors and holding things as needed. Nina watches them steal her plate. Why is the closed sign stuck on with tape? It's like he's not even trying to pretend he is ever open.

(Maggie the Strange) She stops Mr. Fell to thank him, while he's clearly in a rush, and he tries to give her eccles cakes. No intro for Crowley this time. Was her purpose just to make sure we noticed the Eccles Cakes? Because we did. Everyone is upset that he just stole the whole plate. People need to slow down on the "not going to parties" and "not being that kind of teenager" meaning that she's some inhuman being, because some of us were also not that teenager. More talk of names. Maggie gives her a record because it's the same name, Nina hasn't accepted Maggie giving her name yet. She's still Skinny Latte.

(Aziraphale the Comfy) (Domestic Moments) Why are you closing all the blinds, sir? Jim!Gabe has been in here for awhile with the blinds open, so maybe it's more about the reaction of Crowley that's concerning? Crowley who has his own place for his glasses, who seems entirely at ease in the shop, and who says "Do we know a Jim?" we! I love that we. And the casual conversation. Go on and guess. I know a storm comes later, but we really did get so many soft, romantic moments.

(Heavenly Scandal) (Domestic Moments) So much of the Jim!Gabe is scandal but also tied up in the sweet domesticity. Crowley is pissed and scared but neither lashes out at the other in a real way. Aziraphale isn't scared of him, just worried about the whole mess. Jim!Gabe already trusts Az enough that he looks to make sure there's nothing wrong when Crowley first confronts him.

(Domestic Moments) The warm yellow-ochre walls. I thought people were exaggerating the yellow thread through the story but no. That's pretty intentional looking. I don't know if it's Az's favorite colour, but it certainly seems to be a color that makes him feel at home. Is there more than one room up here? Is this the room that Jim!Gabe ends up staying in? No bed up here it seems, though I don't know if our collective hearts could have handled A&C standing alone in a room near a bed. Az doesn't seem against the idea of getting rid of Jim!Gabe at first, just unsure of what to do. Crowley immediately is ready to dump him in Dartmoor. Az can't bring himself to not help. Would he go to Gabe to help him? Likely not. But once the person-shaped-being is in your care, is it your fault if harm comes to them?

(Husbands at War) This fight is well-trod soil. Neither seems legitimately angry at the other, but rather they fall immediately into defending their side in well-worn territory. Az wants to stay and help/fight/fix, Crowley wants to not make themselves a target/save their peace/refuse to get involved. There's strong arguments for both sides and we have our seeds of future conflict. Az tells him if he wants to leave he can, and that reaction from Crowley, "Is this how you want to do this?" as though this is one of a few versions that the argument takes.

(Bookshop Omens) The eccles cakes. Four of them. Next to a horse. Four horsemen? What are the cakes about!?

(Existential Crisis Crowley) His peaceful existence is at risk. He's so mad he's recognizing his own lack of control and tries to self-regulate. Did you learn that from a Richard Curtis film, Crowley? Or does Az have a self-help section?

(Nina the Observant) She sees Crowley smoking before the people on the street seem to. Everyone stops and watches though. There's no way that there isn't some kind of low grade miracle on this street that prevents these strange events from sticking in the brains of the passersby. Man smokes and yells and then is hit by lightning. Everyone watches and no one seems to retain it except Maggie and Nina. Also Nina I'm pretty sure those aren't auto locks. There's no sign of anything auto about the regular looking deadbolt.

(Heavenly Scandal) Why do I like Uriel so much? Michael does have the best claim to be Supreme Archangel Pro Tempore, as Duty Officer. I love the bureaucracy. It's great. Micheal is basically pulling a Dwight Schrute move. Saraquel is the one Muriel went to. Is Saraquel not an Archangel? Or are they just a more approachable one? It doesn't seem like they have a dog in the fight over who is the next SAAPT.

('Allo 'Allo 'Allo) Muriel is a scrivener, which immediately makes me think of Bartleby the Scrivener. I've been told that the job of scrivener comes up in games and stuff enough that it might not be a direct reference but it seems pretty pointed to me? Maybe it's just English Nerd Brain. The story tracks though, potentially, for where Muriel could be headed. From google, about the meaning of Bartleby: "...as the narrator is forced to admit, “Nothing so aggravates an earnest person as a passive resistance.” Refusing to kow-tow to the demands of his employer, and working to his own individual rule, Bartleby represents a challenge to capitalist, corporatist ideologies." Part of Bartleby's problem, from what I remember, is living in a place with no joy or interaction, and realizing that he can actually say no. Isn't that eerily similar to Muriel?

(Heavenly Scandal) Uriel looks at Micheal like, you want to be in charge so you get to touch the Material Object. Michael is not thrilled.

(Existential Crisis Crowley) He's sitting in that street, in his car, looking like the Saddest Boy-Shaped Husband. He's not having a good time, and now his little corner of peace is in high danger. He looks SO SAD. I didn't notice how sad he looked on previous watches. It's interesting to me that C always uses the honorific for Beeze. Lord Beelzebub. He also slides riiiiight into being cool and collected as soon as he realizes he's not actively in trouble. It's not a kidnapping, it's an offer. Watching him squirm immediately when he realizes this is about Gabriel is pretty fun. Crowley the suave, chill snake is just a flimsy cover for Crowley the clingy movie dork who uses affected disinterest as a defense mechanism. He's still one of Hell's best (ex)employees though. He's not suprised that Beeze wants to use his talents, but he is surprised that it's coming with an offer of a reward. "Doesn't seem like the kind of thing you're likely to say". Neither of them actually say anything solid. Hell is clearly better with contractual language.

(General Omens) Crowley says Extreme Sanctions don't exist. Beeze says they do. This remains to be seen.

(Nina The Mirror) More being mean to Maggie for no reason, then trying to make it up.

(Maggie The Strange) Maggie doesn't drink. That isn't weird. The "No Judgement" that feels awkward is a little strange. Especially since she waits til Nina is in the middle of a sip to say it.

(Maggie/Nina) They have a *moment*. It's a nice little conversation but doesn't seem very weighty. Not what you'd expect from a meet-cute.

(Husbands at War) I liked the use of Loverboy here. I seem to be in the minority. I hope it comes back again in S3, but I thought it was sweet. He's hauling ass to get back to his Angel. When it comes down to it, he's a good old fashioned loverboy. He always comes back.

(Eldritch Tendancies) I know things were a bit different in S1 but there seems to be NO concern about hiding from the human folk. Just explode on the street and then magically power-on the whole cafe. No big.

(Maggie The Strange) (Nina The Observant) Why doesn't Maggie seem to have the same level of awareness that Nina has? Also, one of Lindsay's texts says "I'm a real person. I Matter. Why don't you care about me?" Is someone not real? When the text is on the screen, the camera is on Maggie. [38:53]

(Domestic Moments) Aziraphale you petty bitch. He is just sitting in the chair waiting. Crowley sails in (does he have a key or did Az leave it unlocked for him?) and then suddenly Az puts on his glasses and starts pretending to look at his random papers. Our stage is set for the Dance of the Repressed and Afraid. This scene is so much funnier now that I've noticed that Az is clearly being a bitch on purpose. And that he is possibly delighted to have the chance to make Crowley do the dance, since Az clearly has done all the Dances lately.

(Husbands at War) The dance erases the tension and lets them move on without actually resolving the fight, but that's not really an issue here because Crowley has new intel. They immediately shift into planning and figuring things out. When it comes down to it they are both always on eachother's side. Az is nervous about doing a miracle, and it does sound like they've never done one together. Why they do it together this time isn't totally clear upfront but I guess it keeps the power used smaller on each side and shielding him from the other side helps prevent red flags being raised.

(Jim!Gabriel) He and Crowley don't like eachother, in this moment. Crowley is being "nice"-ish. But they make great faces at eachother.

(Husbands at War) Az suggests splitting the miracle and Crowley listens. Later we see Crowley not listen and steamroll Az. Unfortunately this isn't a great argument for listening to Az, since the teeny tiny miracle does NOT fly under the radar. There's a lot of wide angle or fisheye lens used here. And the chair Jim!Gabe is sitting in is on top of the portal. That might be a red herring, might not. Portal isn't active, but it could explain why alarms went off in heaven but not hell.

(Good For Me) I noticed the portal being under the chair. Also note that the rug is currently a general faded beige-y rug. Also Jim!Gabriel offers his hands crossed, left offered to Az and right to Crowley. They look distasteful (?) about it and awkwardly reach across to take the "correct" hand.

(Husbands At War) Crowley tests the waters, so to speak, and pokes at the air to feel the miracle. Az is happy that things seem to have worked. He reassures Jim!Gabriel and Crowley is still only in the fight to protect the Oasis, not Jim!Gabe.

(Heavenly Scandal) Michael seems to be ignoring the klaxon alarm on purpose? And Uriel is like, if you want to be Assistant To The Regional Manager, then you need to fix this. The miracle shows up as pink, and Saraquel is the one operating the globe thing. They refer to Aziraphale as a former angel, and there's no reference to Crowley. I really don't think that heaven or hell knows or understands much about the Az-Crowley situation. They clearly know there's something odd there, but I don't know what their impression of it is.

End Ep 1.

Ep 1, Pt. 1

#ineffable husbands #good omens #crowley #aziraphale #good omens 2 #good omens season 2 #good omens spoilers #aziracrow #ineffable idiots #ineffable dumbasses #meta #good omens meta #metatron #meta tumblr

[bjorkspartaremix]

possible meaningful development for misty from nat’s death: she questions her ableism and ethics as a nurse. she was so smug about how conveniently she was able to cover up jessica’s death by making her look like a fentanyl addict, which she easily got from work. she laughed at how visibly crazy travis was (so ofc what else could his death be), and then at lottie’s followers even as she recognized herself in them. it’s lucky for misty that natalie is a known addict, found dead at a cult founded by a committed schizophrenic.

it was also lucky for her that kristin fell off a cliff right before a storm, and immediately after finding about the transmitter. her treatment of ben may have even been brushed off, once the girls realize he’s a prep who doesn’t get them. all of those circumstances helped misty escape consequences as a teen, and continue to now, but for what? she killed her best friend again.

as a hospice nurse, misty is able to regain that feeling of power she had in the wilderness. she can fucking kill you, so it’s especially kind when she heals, and her violence is also all justifiable bc it’s practical. everyone is near death and needs her. that’s how she’s most confident. but she wants a life outside of work and being a yellowjacket (she was so flattered when walter called that the “least interesting part” of her). so she needs more than this persona and the reassurances it gives her.

lottie and van can tell themselves that nat’s death was necessary. misty scoffed at how ready they were to justify killing somebody, and then she was the one who ended up doing the killing. she knows her usual reasons don’t apply here. if misty is willing to question herself, she can admit that those reasons could never apply, because she’s been recreating the wilderness, the It, just like they have. the factors behind natalie’s death and the subsequent cover up- her addiction, her and lottie’s mental illnesses, misty’s access to the right kind of drugs- should never be convenient. nat rejected lottie’s designation as “It’s favorite,” has rejected everything that idea entails her whole life, no matter how it could’ve eased her conscience. misty can learn from her by rejecting her own label as a closer. she can lean into her empathy (which she fucking has okay) for others’ pain instead of using it against them

#yellowjackets #yellowjackets spoilers #i rly liked a lot of what they did w/ nat's character as a recovering addict who's the most upfront of them all about her whole deal #and i hope they still touch more on that #instead of having no meta awareness and just straight up use her as the most convenient choice #over the more outwardly neurotypical characters who have family and etc

[justsome-di]

Nobody Ends Up Dead in a Bathtub, Everyone Keeps Their Organs: Chapter 27

Summary: Alex is an ordinary, highly-introverted office worker. He clocks in and out and goes home to his little apartment he shares with his younger sister. He hasn’t dated in years by the time his co-workers set him up on a blind date.

The only issue is he and his date are not on the same page. At all.

While Alex thinks it’s a normal date, Damián is under the impression Alex is a client who paid to be there. No-so-quickly, they realize something is up. It’s all a prank. Damián is a sex worker Alex’s co-workers hired as a sick joke.

After reassuring that they’re both okay, Alex decides he wants revenge for both him and Damián. The plan is to use the stigma of sex work and start a 6-week, scandalous fake dating scheme with a big finale at the office Halloween party. Alex’s co-workers will be too horrified to try to prank him again. At least, that’s the plan.

You can also read this on AO3. If you don’t want to wait for new chapters, the complete story is on Patreon for only $4 with bonus stories! If you’re enjoying the story and want to support me in other ways, consider dropping me a message in my inbox or reblogging this post!

“Here we are! MoSex!”

Damián took Alex’s hand. It was sweaty, and Damián knew it wasn’t because the Uber driver kept his car boiling. He at least knew that that wasn’t totally why. He got their tickets scanned and got their pamphlets on current exhibits.

“What do you want to see first?” Damián asked, flipping through everything quickly. “They have vintage sex toys in the front.”

“Do you want to see the vintage sex toys?”

“I’ve seen them before.”

Alex smiled. “And you want to see them again, don’t you?”

Damián nodded. He loved the vintage sex toys. He loved seeing the proof that humans had always coveted heightened satisfaction. The relics that showed how deeply ingrained sexual pleasure was in all of mankind. Alex took his hand—and wow what progress that was. Damián’s tummy fluttered.

“If we go through the exhibit with the sex toys now, we can also cut through to their new installment. This says it’s on loan from a pretty big gay artist,” Damián said.

Damián waved his pamphlet stating so. Alex let him lead the way.  

It was like any other museum except all of the artifacts and paintings and sculptures were about fucking. Damián took them into a room with walls lined with glass cases. Inside each case was a different toy.

It started with an empty gourd. The label next to it said Cleopatra put bees in a hollow gourd to use as possibly the world’s first vibrator.

“It couldn’t have felt good,” Alex said. “And you’d think she’d worry the entire time about the bees getting out.”

“Maybe she was into it. Maybe it made it more exciting.”

There had to be a fetish for that, Damián insisted. Alex reasoned that a fetish for everything had to exist and bees couldn’t have been the weirdest thing that someone was into.

“It could be more like the fear of bees is what got her off,” Damián said. “Which makes sense. All that adrenaline. There are people into that. Just not so niche.”

He didn’t voice it, but he thought about how thrilling The Wicker Man would be for those people.

They looked at a steam-powered vibrator, a Victorian butt plug, and a recreation of a dildo that was supposed to be from the Ice Age.

Labels and a long timeline told them that the toys might have served other purposes in the beginning. The phallic-shaped stones could have been used for corpses while they were being prepared for funerals or could have been used to sharpen knives. There was no way of knowing for sure.

But Damián entertained the idea that they could have been used for multiple purposes. Humans were lovely curious creatures, and there was always some guy in every era that had to have looked at some everyday object and thought I want to stick that up my butt.

It was beautiful! Humans never changed.

Stepping forward closer to the present, there were more vibrators from the mid-century, clunky things with heavy batteries. Damián’s favorites were the vibrators that were sold as beauty devices in the first half of the century but were clearly being used for alternative purposes.

Alex commented on the marketing. Original packaging was displayed next to the products. There was a picture of a woman holding the device that was for “blood circulation.” It was large and had a wire that could be plugged into a wall. Alex wondered out loud if the people making it knew what it was really being used for. Damián said there had to be someone that had to have had a clue.

They hit the 1980s with the first modern-ish toys. Finally, people weren’t so prude. They accepted that women wanted vibrators and sold vibrators as vibrators. No more beauty bullshit just lovely, bulky, retro vibes.

Alex made a comment about the overlap of waves of feminism with the embracement of female pleasure. Damián thought he was so smart for making those connections.

There were newer models. The famous Rabbit of Sex and the City fame. A smaller clit stimulator that slid on your finger. Ribbed vibes that were designed for anal sex—that Damián was very pleased to know that he also owned for business purposes! After they saw their final strap-on, they hooked right.  

Standing eight feet tall in the middle of the room sat an erect dildo. It was painted with holographic glitter. The lights above it and below it made the gradient of rainbow shine.

“It’s a commentary on gay sex,” Damián said, looking at the plaque next to it. “And gay pleasure. This says, ‘The size of the dildo is intended to make the imagery of gay sex prominent and contradict its cultural taboo. The viewer is forced to notice it, representing how mainstream society cannot turn a blind eye to the growing acceptance of gay sex forever. The choice of the dildo itself is symbolic of the independence and detachment of swinging gay men.’”

“Hmm.”

Damián whispered, “It’s a bit on-the-nose. He could have added something. Like maybe some lube. Rainbow lube.”

“What’s the metaphor there?”

“The lube? There’s no pleasure in going in dry. I don’t know. I’m not a good art critic.”

Alex’s hands were shoved in his jacket. Damián tilted his head. He looked so tense and upset.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

“I don’t know. The detachment line. Sex for sex’s sake,” Alex said.

“Well, yeah,” Damián said. “Sex can exist on its own. It doesn’t need justified with stings attached to it. It’s a really beautiful thing that exists on its own. It’s pleasure at its most raw form.”

Alex nodded, but he didn’t look totally convinced.

“Think about the clitoris,” Damián said. “The only purpose it serves is to give sexual pleasure. It offers nothing to reproduction or the urinary tract. It exists only for orgasm. I think that’s great. I think it’s one of the greatest marvels of human anatomy.”

Damián loved the fleeting moments of orgasm, when climax was being approached, and then all of a sudden it hit. And then everything settled, and he collapsed on a pillow to gather his senses. The lingering sweat, sensitivity, the fading euphoria. It was all part of the brief greatness that was casual sex. Sex for sex’s sake. Pleasure for pleasure’s sake.

“But doesn’t sex also provide—I don’t know companionship?” Alex asked.

“Sometimes.”

“But isn’t your whole thing about companionship? You always say you provide companionship to people.”

“I do. But sometimes it’s not that. I also have clients who hire me just to hook up for a night. I mean. My job is very no-strings attached. I can’t go around catching feelings for everyone I sleep with. That wouldn’t be good.”

Alex’s face was twisted. He turned back to the giant dildo.

“Can we leave?” he asked.

“Yeah,” Damián said. “I promised ice cream.”

“I think I’d rather just go home.”

“Oh.”

“I’m sorry.”

“No! If you’re ready to leave, we can leave.”

They left the dildo and wound their way past the first editions of dirty magazines and yellowed photographs of nudes. They pressed their backs against the outside wall while they waited for their Uber, not saying a word to each other.

Damián wanted to ask Alex if he was okay, if he just got overwhelmed, if he felt any differently about sex and sex work now that he had been surrounded by shrines to sex. No matter how desperate Damián was to get Alex’s thoughts, he wouldn’t ask.

They climbed into the Uber together. It was freezing. The driver had his window cracked. The air had a crisp chill to it now. Damián shivered in his seat the entire drive back to his apartment.

Damián offered a goodbye to Alex and a promise to send Eve back home safe, but it was accepted with a quiet, sorrowful, “goodnight.”

#nobody ends up dead #writblr #writeblr #original writing #writing community #neud #queer fiction #writing #original work

[thestobingirlie]

Okay but also about Nancy being seen as motherly to max it’s so weird to me considering that all Nancy does is ask max if she’s okay after a traumatic experience. Like Nancy did the absolute bare minimum and robin isn’t even close to max at all. She’s way more close with Dustin and erica and people just like totally ignore that. Idk it just seems like they do the bare minimum and they get established as “Max’s mom” which again they are maybe 18 and being treated as parents. And max has a mom that is interesting to see about their dynamic as a whole but people just ignore that. But it’s even more weird cuz max would not see them as her “moms” at all like at most she may look up to them but she definetly does not see them as her mother figures. Also like we already established - she didn’t even give them a letter! That’s sooo important to max and the story that she only gave a letter/write a letter to Steve! He was the only teen that max felt close enough to write a letter to. Like idk it’s just so odd to me how people assign robin and Nancy as Max’s moms when they’ve barely interacted outside of group settings. Like max and Nancy were more around each other in season 3 however they were barely even together in a situation that wasn’t anything to do with not saving the world. Meanwhile yes it is slight but max went to see Steve with el at scoops ahoy and it’s clear that the younger teens have gone out of their way to playfully annoy Steve at the beginning of season 3 when none of them are in danger. Idk it just drives me a little bit crazy honestly because max doesn’t really even open up to Nancy and robin at all and she isn’t around them much. But also I could just hate the whole “mom” thing that people have started to do. Anyway those are my thoughts and I’m glad that other people are annoyed that robin and Nancy are now seen as “Max’s moms”

max and nancy literally had like one scene where they spoke to each other one on one, and people immediately dove for it. “nancy is max’s mom!” like… this fandom is just so fucking weird and obsessive when it comes to labelling teenagers as younger teenagers parents.

and with robin, i literally was gonna say that! like if anyone is robin’s ‘kids’ it’s dustin and erica! (but people love to erase erica for some reason…)

i think in a lot of fiction parents just aren’t there much, so you don’t have to think about them, and a lot of people attempt to recreate that dynamic in stranger things, but it just ends up looking kinda silly because there’s like ten kids that now don’t have parents even though they have parents. all because people can’t be arsed to think about adults lmao

and yeah! max gave steve a letter! literally the only person outside of her direct family and friend group. the only older teen she wanted to have something to remember her by when she died, and had something to say to. and people just like to write over it. i think sometimes people underplay the importance of those letters. it’s everything max wants to say to these people before she dies in. and steve gets one! not nancy, not robin. steve.

and i didn’t even think about that! like, yeah max often gets paired with steve when the upside down comes back, but she and the kids do also just hang out and bug steve, like you would an older brother.

but yeah. the weird parental thing this fandom is so insanely obsessed with is weird, and they should try and let it go a bit lol.

#max mayfield #steve harrington #nancy wheeler #robin buckley #stranger things #asks #lovefrom-theother-side

[apocalypticavolition]

Let's (re)Read The Great Hunt! Chapter 38: Practice

While this particular picture was of course taken by Entertainment Weekly, it comes to me by way of "hotzxgirl.com" and was labeled "Eye of the Tar Valon | Hot sex picture". Spoiler alert! Unless you have a lot of very specific fetishes, this is not a hot sex picture. It also doesn't even depict anything that happens in this chapter, but that's not going to stop me is it? What might stop you if you don't like spoilers is the knowledge that if you keep reading, you consent (in a hot and sexy way?) to get all sorts Wheel of Time spoilers from all over the series.

This chapter has a Flame of Tar Valon icon now that we're back in Tar Valon. It's been awhile! Four or five in-world months and like... fourteen chapters, I think?

She knew how easy it was to touch saidar now. She could always feel it there, waiting for her, like the smell of perfume or the feel of silk, drawing her, drawing her. And once she did touch it, she could rarely stop from channeling, or at least trying to. She failed almost as often as she succeeded, but that was only another spur to keep on.

Untainted, saidar is naturally a much bigger draw for channelers than its twin. It's also a great mindset Egwene has as a student, especially since she is also a bit concerned by her growing addiction as well. Unlike Rand, she knows damn well she's going to be a daily user.

Three short paces took Nynaeve from wall to white-plastered wall; Nynaeve’s own room was much larger, but since she had made no friends among the other Accepted, she came to Egwene’s room when she needed someone to talk to, even as now when she did not talk at all.

This is such a mood.

“Else was making calf’s eyes at Galad today while he was working with the Warders,” Min said, rocking the stool on two legs.

It's funny how Min so naturally recreates the described conditions of Emond's Field for Egwene, being the latest eyes-and-ears reporting on a woman's movement towards the gentleman Egwene has picked.

It's also clear build-up for that pairing that Jordan abandoned later on down the line in favor of Egwene/Gawyn and Galad/Berelain. It's nice and somewhat more realistic though, that unlike most of the other main characters, Egwene doesn't find her true suitor immediately.

He’d hurt a person because he had to serve a greater good. He wouldn’t even notice who was hurt, because he’d be so intent on the other, but if he did, he would expect them to understand and think it was all well and right.

This is the thing that separates Galad from being an actual fucking saint, the way his big picture focus hides him from the little details.

War in Cairhien. War on Toman Head. They may have caught the false Dragon in Saldaea, but there’s still war in Tear. Most of it is rumors, anyway.

A nod to the Gospel of Matthew, which says that a sign of the end times is wars and rumors of wars. Guess this is just what you have to expect from all the comings of Rand.

She had not dreamed about him in months, now, not the kind of dreams she had had on the River Queen. Anaiya still made her write down everything she dreamed, and the Aes Sedai checked them for signs, or connections to events, but there was never anything about Rand except dreams that, Anaiya said, meant she missed him. Oddly, she felt almost as if he were not there any longer, as if he had ceased to exist, along with her dreams, a few weeks after reaching the White Tower.

Obviously it's a bit silly to talk about abandoned ideas UNDER abandoned ideas, but one wonders if Jordan had originally intended for Egwene to stop being a dreamer at the end of the series, the way her initial foray here is so intimately tied to Rand's presence in the world.

That sent a chill through her, as it never failed to do, the thought of Rand being gentled, Rand weeping and wanting to die as Logain did.

Here the reader is reminded that though there's Mirror Worlds out there where Egwene gentles or kills Rand, they're not her true self and in any case those Egwenes were probably just as devastated as the real one would be to be backed into such a corner.

“I’m sorry, Min,” Nynaeve said in a tight voice. “Sometimes my temper. . . . I can’t ask you to forgive me, not for this.” She took a deep breath. “If you want to report me to Sheriam, I will understand. I deserve it.”

A nice bit that shows that Nynaeve's a good person who just has some issues, but it's also funny to note that Nynaeve is demonstrating she's exactly the sort of person Galad assumes everyone would be under the circumstances.

With murmurs of “forgiven” that sounded meant on both sides, the two women hugged.

Gosh Nyneve and Min are fun together. It's a real shame they won't really get to hang out much until Rand's practically having his Sith armor made.

A man who drove oxen as hard as they drive us would be shunned. I am tired all the time. I wake up tired and go to bed exhausted, and sometimes I’m so afraid that I will slip and channel more of the Power than I can handle that I. . . .

I expect that training in the AoL was still rigorous but nowhere near as exhausting and that much as battlefield first aid is the only kind of Healing still left, the only sorts of instruction that survived through the Breaking were something like the Hell Week stints before final examinations. And then naturally they never bothered to see if there was a less grueling method.

“The Traveling People are tempting,” Nynaeve agreed, “but wherever you go, it will not change what you can do. You cannot run from saidar.” She did not sound as if she liked what she was saying.

Somewhere far away, Moiraine is laughing and she doesn't know why.

Min shifted on her stool. “I don’t like reading friends,” she muttered. “Friendship gets in the way of the reading. It makes me try to put the best face on what I see. That’s why I don’t do it for you three anymore. Anyway, nothing has changed about you that I can. . . .”

Poor Min probably's been burned once or twice with a friend she thought she could trust with the secret of her power, only for the thirst for knowledge to overcome any actual relationship. It must really suck now that her friends aren't just channelers, who always have omens, but specifically the plot relevant ones.

Before she reached it, though, a dark-eyed Aes Sedai with her blond hair done in a multitude of braids stepped into the room. Egwene blinked in surprise, as much at it being any Aes Sedai as at Liandrin. She had not heard that Liandrin had returned to the White Tower, but beyond that, novices were sent for if an Aes Sedai wanted them; it could mean no good, a sister coming herself.

Especially not since the danger omen probably triggered specifically the moment Liandrin set out to the rooms.

“Do you have some word of Rand?” Egwene asked eagerly. Liandrin arched an eyebrow at her. “Forgive me, Aes Sedai. I forget myself.” “Have you word of them?” Nynaeve said, just short of a demand. The Accepted had no rule about not speaking to an Aes Sedai until spoken to.

1. Egwene why would you think a Red showing up to give you news about Rand is something to ask after eagerly?

2. Nynaeve would have acted exactly the same way she does here even if she were a Novice.

“Someday, I am sure, you will serve a cause, and you will learn then that to serve it you must work even with those whom you dislike. I tell you I have worked with many with whom I would not share a room if it were left to me alone. Would you not work alongside the one you hated worst, if it would save your friends?”

I wonder which Black sisters in particular Liandrin doesn't like. Are the 12 who run off with her included? Any non Red/Black combo?

(Also by "Someday, I am sure, you will serve a cause," she means "Next Tuesday at the latest you'll be slaves", just saying.)

You two come from their village. In some way I do not entirely understand, you are connected to them. Beyond that, I cannot say.

Surprisingly, all of this is entirely truthful. I mean, yeah the first sentence is obvious, but the second sentence means "I am not able to question my masters as to why you're important but they say you are" and the third sentence means "I'm bound by the Oath Rod not to betray their secrets anyway".

“You have my permission. Tell no one. No one at all. The Black Ajah walks the halls of the White Tower.”

Speaking of being bound not to reveal secrets, there's three options for how she pulls this off:

1. The straightforward one is what she says below, that with Tarmon Gai'don approaching this can't be denied any longer. Presumably this would be an executive decision by Ishamael or at least Alviarin and not something Liandrin is able to decide on her own.

2. Her explanation is merely a way of hiding her allegiance. The truth is she knows that Siuan and Moiraine know about the Black Ajah and possibly others and thus she no longer considers the Ajah's existing a secret that has to be held close.

3. As above, but instead of Siuan and Moiraine being the catalysts, Liandrin feels that the certainty of these girls dying as damane, utterly cut off from any way to spread the knowledge, still counts as holding the secret close and thus she can disclose it. As this is the closest to traditional "villain monologuing to a hero caught in a death trap", it's my preferred one.

“She is Aes Sedai,” Nynaeve said dryly. “I’ll wager my best silver pin against a blueberry that every word she said was true. But I wonder if we heard what we thought we did.”

Quite possibly everything she said was true, which means that the Black Ajah has been getting ahold of any letters Moiraine is sending to Siuan in confidence. Pretty alarming how deep the rot goes!

I can’t even go for a walk without the Amyrlin herself popping out and asking me to read whoever we see. When that woman asks you to do something, there doesn’t seem to be any way out of it. I must have read half the White Tower for her, but she always wants another demonstration.

Siuan is probably trying to get a handle on what's going to happen in the Tower in the lead up to the Last Battle, though unfortunately Min's symbols are far too esoteric for them to make any sense of at this point - and don't show up until they're set in stone anyway. Whatever hopes she had of Black Ajah hunting by this method must be roundly dashed by now.

I’ll bet we won’t either of us cry ourselves to sleep on an adventure.

And here comes dramatic irony with the steel chair!

I can see the danger around all of you more clearly, now. Not clearly enough to make it out, but I think it has something to do with you deciding to go. That’s why it is clearer; because it is more certain.

I think Min's on the right track but missing a little bit here. The certainty is tied to the vector of danger: Liandrin and the Seanchan. If the girls did refuse, ran to Sheriam, and told all, they might not leave the Tower at all (at least not Elayne; maybe not the others if Sheriam's out of the loop about Liandrin) and would instead have the uncertain danger of the backup plan of the Black Ajah looming over them instead.

However much she might argue beforehand, once a course of action had been decided, Nynaeve always went right to the practicalities: what they had to take with them, and how cold it would be by the time they reached Toman Head, and how they could get their horses from the stables without being stopped.

Being Village Wisdom, the only way to be effective is to worry about the practicalities, even if the woolheads on the Village Council have decided to do something stupid and won't listen to you. It'll be a trait that helps her out later too, when she's a queen.

#let's read #wheel of time #wot #robert jordan #wheel of time spoilers #wot spoilers #egwene al'vere #nynaeve al'meara #min farshaw #elayne trakand #liandrin guirale