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saintsenara · 10 months

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pls can we have your takes on what dumbledore gets wrong/doesn't understand about tom riddle tysm

thank you for the ask, pal :)

i have received a flurry of asks about my main lord, lord voldemort, which form a neat triad, so this is part three of a three part meta on him:

1. what is interesting about voldemort's role in the series? [here] 2. how do i write voldemort in my own work, and why? [here] 3. what does dumbledore get wrong about voldemort?

i want to be clear that this isn’t intended as dumbledore bashing - i love that old man and i’ll defend him from a lot of the charges levelled against him in fanon [and, to be honest, canon].

it's just an analysis of how dumbledore, as a flawed human being like all of us… kind of fucks up in how he relates to voldemort. many of his mistakes are caused by personality traits which i think are fascinating: his ivory-tower detachment from reality; his projection of his own guilt and grief onto others; his tendency towards inaction in the face of the status quo; his own tendency towards being secretive and ruthless; and so on.

and, while i don’t think he can be blamed for voldemort choosing to become a terrorist kingpin, his attitude towards voldemort doesn’t entirely help the anti-voldemort cause, and perhaps he should have tightened up.

so...

what does dumbledore get wrong about voldemort?

in we go under the cut:

that voldemort is an unsympathetic victim of childhood trauma, but he is a victim nonetheless

there are no two ways about it, dumbledore and voldemort’s first meeting is disastrous and, even though voldemort doesn’t acquit himself particularly well in the proceedings [maybe don’t boast about all the children you torture?] the power differential in the relationship [dumbledore is at least in his late fifties, voldemort is eleven] means that responsibility for conducting himself fairly lies entirely with dumbledore.

however, i am going to begin this section with some dumbledore defence. i see a lot in fanfiction the idea that the young voldemort is profoundly traumatised by dumbledore setting his wardrobe on fire, which of course does seem like an incredibly cruel thing for dumbledore to do to a child who presumably has basically no worldly possessions [which is what harry immediately thinks].

the voldemort of canon, however, doesn’t seem to care that much:

Riddle jumped to his feet; Harry could hardly blame him for howling in shock and rage; all his worldly possessions must be in there. But even as Riddle rounded on Dumbledore, the flames vanished, leaving the wardrobe completely undamaged. Riddle stared from the wardrobe to Dumbledore; then, his expression greedy, he pointed at the wand. "Where can I get one of them?"

as we can see, any upset voldemort feels over the wardrobe disappears the minute he appraises magic’s ability to frighten, destroy, and control. similarly:

“All in good time,” said Dumbledore. “I think there is something trying to get out of your wardrobe.” And sure enough, a faint rattling could be heard from inside it. For the first time, Riddle looked frightened. “Open the door,” said Dumbledore… Riddle took down the quaking box. He looked unnerved. “Is there anything in that box that you ought not to have?” asked Dumbledore. Riddle threw Dumbledore a long, clear, calculating look. “Yes, I suppose so, sir,” he said finally, in an expressionless voice. [...] Riddle did not look remotely abashed; he was still staring coldly and appraisingly at Dumbledore. At last he said in a colourless voice, “Yes, sir.” [...] It was impossible to tell what he was thinking; his face remained quite blank as he put the little cache of stolen objects back into the cardboard box. When he had finished, he turned to Dumbledore and said baldly, “I haven’t got any money.”

while dumbledore’s behaviour here frightens and unnerves voldemort, he gets over it pretty quickly - and he then transitions into being unabashed at having been caught and planning his options for how to proceed [i am wedded to the headcanon that the "clear and calculating look" is him deciding not to return the stolen objects, and to test whether dumbledore will indeed know if he doesn’t], chief of which is his need to solve his money issues.

which is to say, dumbledore’s behaviour in this meeting undoubtedly establishes voldemort’s later dislike of him - although i think it’s worth noting that the voldemort of chamber of secrets treats dumbledore as a mere annoyance, rather than someone for whom he harbours a profound, traumatising hatred [voldemort's dislike of dumbledore transitions to hate, i think, following the fake job interview] - but i don’t think it’s the misstep many interpretations of voldemort and dumbledore’s relationship make it.

but dumbledore does make some decisions in their first meeting which i think are worth exploring more critically than they often are:

dumbledore’s failure to inform mrs cole that the young voldemort is a wizard makes his existence in two worlds impossible

we know that the families of muggleborn students are normally informed about the magical world during this visit by hogwarts staff in which their letter is delivered - and that this was the case even in the late 1930s, since myrtle warren’s parents are able to come to hogwarts after her death.

dumbledore’s decision not to mention voldemort’s magic to mrs Cole means that voldemort - whose sense of belonging to a family unit is already non-existent - must, then, become the only student at hogwarts whose legal guardian knows nothing about where he goes all year. potentially there are magical-legal reasons for this, but i can’t think of any particularly convincing ones.

dumbledore projects his own self-loathing onto the child voldemort and chalks his personality traits up to malice rather than neglect

dumbledore handles himself pretty well in the initial moments of his meeting with voldemort, keeping calm while he freaks out about whether he’s a doctor [as i’ve said in the previous part of this series of meta, voldemort’s fear of doctors - and especially whether it implies some deeper traumatic experience - is something worth thinking about].

his attitude changes when voldemort accepts easily that he is a wizard:

His legs were trembling. He stumbled forward and sat down on the bed again, staring at his hands, his head bowed as though in prayer. “I knew I was different,” he whispered to his own quivering fingers. “I knew I was special. Always, I knew there was something.” “Well, you were quite right,” said Dumbledore, who was no longer smiling, but watching Riddle intently. “You are a wizard.”

dumbledore will tell harry later in the chapter this is taken from that he thought voldemort’s immediate pivot to believing himself special was a red flag, indicative of the arrogance which will define his adult self.

his discomfort, although we don’t know this yet in half-blood prince, is evidently triggered by the fact that voldemort’s breathless awe at the potential - and especially the sinister potential - of his magical powers reminds him either of grindelwald or of himself.

but.

the young voldemort - a magical child surrounded by non-magical people - can do things which are objectively different and special. as he tells us:

“I can make things move without touching them. I can make animals do what I want them to do, without training them. I can make bad things happen to people who annoy me. I can make them hurt if I want to.”

the obviously violent implication of the last two sentences aside, these abilities would be understood by anyone as so bafflingly unusual that special is a reasonable word with which to describe them, particularly for a child who has only just been given the language to explain an aspect of his personhood he has clearly always been aware of, but never understood the cause of.

dumbledore’s immediate negative response to this statement, however, is the cause of his later assessment of the child voldemort as like his adult self:

“His powers, as you heard, were surprisingly well-developed for such a young wizard and - most interestingly and ominously of all - he had already discovered that he had some measure of control over them, and begun to use them consciously. And as you saw, they were not the random experiments typical of young wizards: He was already using magic against other people, to frighten, to punish, to control…his ability to speak to serpents did not make me nearly as uneasy as his obvious instincts for cruelty, secrecy, and domination.”

but, while the child voldemort’s cruelty is absolutely something dumbledore should have been made uneasy by - although, of course, he does nothing about it once voldemort starts at hogwarts, deciding to take a hands-off approach that harry clearly thinks is idiotic - his criticism of voldemort for being secretive [and also, later in this chapter, self-sufficient, independent, and friendless] is a bad-faith reading, based on his own loathing of the fact that these traits also describe him, of habits which are obviously caused by childhood neglect.

voldemort is secretive - as harry is - because he doesn’t have any trusted childhood confidants. he’s self-sufficient and independent - as harry is - because he has to be. he’s friendless as much because he’s a strange child with magical powers raised around other children who don’t have them - as, the text implies, is the case for hermione - as because he’s cruel.

dumbledore’s failure to have any sympathy for the fact that voldemort’s institutionalised childhood drives these characteristics - instead ascribing them entirely to deliberate choices made by an eleven-year-old in order to assert malign dominance over his peers - is a failing. indeed, it is one he will repeat with harry.

but the most egregious of dumbledore’s cock-ups in this bit of the story:

dumbledore completely fails to understand the way voldemort’s childhood grief manifests itself

voldemort - in one of the few bits of this chapter in which he actually appears childlike - asks dumbledore:

“Was my father a wizard? He was called Tom Riddle too, they’ve told me.” “I’m afraid I don’t know,” said Dumbledore, his voice gentle. “My mother can’t have been magic, or she wouldn’t have died,” said Riddle, more to himself than Dumbledore. “It must’ve been him.”

dumbledore seems to handle this quite sensitively. on our first reading.

but when we get deeper into the text, two things emerge which make this interaction - in my sincere opinion - the cruelest thing dumbledore does to the child voldemort.

firstly, when discussing with harry the teenage voldemort shedding his father’s name, dumbledore refers to merope as voldemort’s "previously despised mother… the woman whom, you will remember, he had thought could not be a witch if she had succumbed to the shameful human weakness of death."

but there is no implication in the above - surely the only conversation he and dumbledore ever have on the topic - that voldemort despises his mother. his statement reads like the magical thinking of any bereaved child - that his mother could have lived if she’d had supernatural powers, or there had been some sort of magical intervention, and so on. [a friend who's reading spare pointed out to me recently that prince harry was convinced for years that his mother had managed to fake her own death to escape a life she disliked, and that she would pop up any day to take him with her into her new reality. what voldemort is doing here is basically the same.]

dumbledore’s negative reaction to voldemort's words reflects his own relationship with death as ever-present - the spectre of ariana is clearly hovering constantly on his shoulder - rather than something which magic can dismiss or overcome, but voldemort choosing to think the opposite isn’t the behaviour of a pre-teen psychopath. it’s an entirely expected reaction for a grieving child, and dumbledore's response to it is unfair.

even worse though is this. when dumbledore is speaking to mrs cole, it is very clear that he realises that the child he is about to meet is half gaunt:

“And then she told me he was to be named Tom, for his father, and Marvolo, for her father — yes, I know, funny name, isn’t it? We wondered whether she came from a circus.”

dumbledore must react physically to hearing the name marvolo - who, since he can be presumed to be already on the wizengamot at this point, he is aware was sent to azkaban for defending his son's involvement in an anti-muggle attack - significantly enough that mrs cole notices it. in deathly hallows, voldemort himself is worried that dumbledore knew about his heritage from - since when else would he have learned voldemort’s full name - their first meeting:

An old unease flickered inside him. Dumbledore had known his middle name... Dumbledore might have made the connection with the Gaunts…

the child voldemort will then tell dumbledore that he is a parselmouth, a trait the gaunts must be known to possess, since marvolo and morfin both openly speak parseltongue in front of bob ogden. and yet dumbledore doesn’t mention at all that he might be able to identify a bereaved child’s - who we have no evidence at all even knows his own mother’s name - family line.

dumbledore overlooks voldemort’s grief at other points in the series - he doesn’t notice, for example, that the murder of hepzibah smith [who insults merope by suggesting she stole the locket] is clearly one of revenge, rather than gain - but it’s this sin of omission [later one of his most frequent missteps when dealing with harry] that always gets me.

that voldemort doesn’t just change his name because of his father

within five years of their first meeting, voldemort has stopped going by tom when with his friends. dumbledore will claim to harry that his decision to shed his birth name was caused by two things: his discovery that his father was a muggle and his desire to be seen as special. voldemort himself will emphasise the former in both chamber of secrets and goblet of fire - the latter of which also features his odd conviction that his father was the one who insisted on the name tom riddle.

dumbledore evidently believes that voldemort’s decision to no longer use the name tom is contemptible, and he - and later harry - will refer to him as tom whenever they come face-to-face. the narrative presents dumbledore as being unambiguously right to do this:

He raised his glass as though toasting Voldemort, whose face remained expressionless. Nevertheless, Harry felt the atmosphere in the room change subtly: Dumbledore’s refusal to use Voldemort’s chosen name was a refusal to allow Voldemort to dictate the terms of the meeting, and Harry could tell that Voldemort took it as such.

i am sympathetic to the idea that dumbledore should not be expected to refer to voldemort as "my lord" - although i don’t actually think that’s what voldemort is asking here - and i should say that i myself have written "voldemort" as being a mask the adult tom takes on and off at whim, and i think there’s space for those interpretations in fanfiction. but the evidence of canon is that voldemort lives exclusively as voldemort from the mid-1950s onwards and that he considers tom to be, without question, his deadname.

the name clearly doesn’t feel right to him even as child - he twitches "irritably" when dumbledore points out that he shares it with tom the landlord - even at a point in his life when he still feels positively towards the father whom he believes is a wizard as well. while dumbledore may be correct that he dislikes the name at this point because it’s not special enough, wanting a more unique name is not, in and of itself, a moral failing. voldemort calling himself voldemort is a completely neutral act. it is what he does under that name that’s the problem.

that dumbledore thinks it is a moral failing, however, can be explained by the backstory we learn in deathly hallows. elphias doge and muriel prewett both make clear that percival dumbledore’s arrest and imprisonment and kendra and ariana dumbledore’s deaths brought sufficient press attention that the dumbledore name was immediately recognisable and attached in the mind of the wizarding public to the various scandals which befell the family. dumbledore, who blames himself for much [or most] of what happened, clearly carries his name like a penance, and regards it as a dereliction of duty to try and escape the weight of one’s family drama by taking a new identity.

and this drives, i think, something which the doylist text doesn’t think is an issue, but which i think dumbledore is mistaken in when it comes to voldemort: that his background can be nowhere near as secret as dumbledore assumes, meaning that the only thing he rejects is a name which no longer belongs to him.

a significant number of death eaters clearly went to school with voldemort, the malfoys cannot be the only ones who have seen his teenage possessions, hagrid is seemingly aware that voldemort attended hogwarts alongside him, and dumbledore himself says in half-blood prince that people know what voldemort was once called and what he was like as teenager, but are just too scared to provide information about his life to the anti-voldemort cause.

this leads to my belief that many of the death eaters are aware of voldemort’s blood status - lucius malfoy in order of the phoenix is clearly unsurprised to hear harry say voldemort’s a half-blood; bellatrix is furious, of course, but maybe that’s what over a decade in azkaban does to you - and are also aware that his political aims, as described in the previous meta in this series, are not the establishment of a pureblood oligarchy, but what we might term magic-supremacy. indeed, dumbledore’s interpretation of voldemort as lying to his death eaters that he’s a great pureblood champion always sits uneasily in canon alongside the fact that voldemort is shown to have enormous support among non-human magical creatures and - given how lacking the resistance to the the government of deathly hallows is - swathes of the majority half-blood population as well, which suggests that his closest supporters accept that his concern is getting the magical of any stripe behind him in order to take on the muggle world.

which is to say, dumbledore thinks that lord voldemort is a mask a half-blood man called tom riddle uses to hide his true self from his pureblood supporters. in reality, lord voldemort is just that half-blood man’s name.

that voldemort thinks the job interview is real

voldemort doesn’t lose his temper in the interview scene until dumbledore reveals the meeting - which voldemort has travelled some distance for and apparently indicated his intentions for in advance - is fake.

[he handles dumbledore deadnaming him pretty magnanimously, for example.]

dumbledore’s decision to lure him to hogwarts simply to assert his dominance over him is clearly the final nail in the coffin of their relationship, and it's another example of how dumbledore’s automatic bad-faith reading of decisions and desires which are clearly more complicated than just "i love evil" [after all, dumbledore himself acknowledges that voldemort regards hogwarts as the only place he has ever truly felt at home] is the cause of voldemort’s hatred of him, rather than that hatred being the result of voldemort being afraid of dumbledore’s goodness or perspicacity or skill, as the pre-deathly hallows text likes to imply:

Voldemort sneered. “If you do not want to give me a job -” “Of course I don’t,” said Dumbledore. “And I don’t think for a moment you expected me to. Nevertheless, you came here, you asked, you must have had a purpose.” Voldemort stood up. He looked less like Tom Riddle than ever, his features thick with rage. “This is your final word?” “It is,” said Dumbledore, also standing. "Then we have nothing more to say to each other.”

that voldemort has a very strange - but very pronounced - sense of honour

as i have noted in the previous meta in this series, voldemort has a remarkably well-defined sense of honour. for a murderer.

his often-repeated hatred of liars, hypocrites, and cowards appears to be genuine and - for narrative reasons, since he's often required to provide exposition for harry’s benefit which dumbledore and snape can’t if they are to maintain their characterisation - he is rarely shown outright lying himself in canon, even if we’re told he's a pathological liar by other characters.

that he considers dumbledore in particular to be a hypocrite is clear in many of their interactions, especially this - which i always like - from order of the phoenix:

Dumbledore flicked his own wand. The force of the spell that emanated from it was such that Harry, though shielded by his stone guard, felt his hair stand on end as it passed, and this time Voldemort was forced to conjure a shining silver shield out of thin air to deflect it. The spell, whatever it was, caused no visible damage to the shield, though a deep, gonglike note reverberated from it, an oddly chilling sound... “You do not seek to kill me, Dumbledore?” called Voldemort, his scarlet eyes narrowed over the top of the shield. “Above such brutality, are you?” “We both know that there are other ways of destroying a man, Tom,” Dumbledore said calmly, continuing to walk toward Voldemort as though he had not a fear in the world, as though nothing had happened to interrupt his stroll up the hall. “Merely taking your life would not satisfy me, I admit — ”

at this point in the story, the reader doesn’t know that dumbledore is taking this merciful approach because he is aware he can’t kill voldemort.

we do, however, already suspect that dumbledore’s dishonesty with harry about the prophecy is a direct cause of the chain of events which has just led to sirius’ death - as dumbledore himself will shortly admit to and as the death eaters are evidently aware of [lucius malfoy pointing out that voldemort is baffled that dumbledore didn’t tell harry about the prophecy always sends me].

voldemort’s statement - "above such brutality, are you?" - is ironic, and is a criticism of what he evidently believes to be dumbledore’s hypocrisy in performing mercy in public while regarding his men as expendable in private [and, especially, as expendable to protect harry - who he maintains right up until the end of deathly hallows has been hidden and pampered from the reality of war by a procession of cannon fodder].

it’s worth saying i think this is unfair from voldemort - dumbledore makes decisions which any general has to, and they will of course be messy and difficult; and voldemort’s characterisation of harry is always unnecessarily harsh - but it is indicative of a belief expressed by voldemort at other points in the series that dumbledore is a hypocrite, that he is a coward, that he is dishonourable, and that he is dishonest. and he isn’t entirely wrong, as the conclusion of the series reveals.

dumbledore obviously thinks exactly the same things of voldemort. and, of course, he’s not wrong either. but, as always, there is projection from dumbledore of his discomfort with the performance and concealment his own life requires onto voldemort. and voldemort clearly picks up on it.

that his view of love as sacrificial can’t be understood by someone who has nobody to sacrifice anything for

what it says on the tin, really.

dumbledore’s past - especially his profound guilt and grief over the fact that his embrace of desire, carnality, and other "selfish" aspects of love caused his sister’s death - is the cause of his view of love as, in essence, something defined by sacrifice and loss. dumbledore always discusses love in terms of the nobility of suffering, and he never throughout the canonical series [except maybe, obliquely, at king's cross] suggests that love can be comforting, self-indulgent, restorative, uncomplicatedly pleasurable, and fun.

we see, after all, that harry has to give up a love which is all of those things - his relationship with ginny at the end of half-blood prince - in order to pursue dumbledore’s version of the concept/

harry’s own pathology - especially his enormous saviour and martyr complexes, as well as the circumstances of his own orphanhood [as i have had voldemort point out on several occasions in my writing, harry’s mother could be bothered to live long enough to die for him, voldemort can’t relate] - makes him amenable to the concept of love-as-sacrifice.

voldemort, in contrast, fears sacrifice and vulnerability because he fears powerlessness - and he fears powerlessness because he’s an orphan who would have nothing without his power [under which umbrella, of course, comes his immortality].

this is what he means by:

“The old argument,” he said softly. “But nothing I have seen in the world has supported your famous pronouncements that love is more powerful than my kind of magic, Dumbledore.”

and:

How stupid they were, and how trusting, thinking that their safety lay in friends, that weapons could be discarded even for moments.

and:

“Is it love again?” said Voldemort, his snake’s face jeering. “Dumbledore’s favourite solution, love, which he claimed conquered death, though love did not stop him falling from the tower and breaking like an old waxwork? Love, which did not prevent me stamping out your Mudblood mother like a cockroach, Potter — and nobody seems to love you enough to run forward this time and take my curse. So what will stop you dying now when I strike?”

and:

To tell Snape why the boy might return would be foolish, of course; it had been a grave mistake to trust Bellatrix and Malfoy: Didn’t their stupidity and carelessness prove how unwise it was ever to trust?

as he tells us in philosopher’s stone, there is only power and those too weak to seek it. everything can be done on one's own. it is foolish to rely on other people.

sacrifice is a concept which cannot exist within this world view.

but i think voldemort could be made to understand the idea of love-as-pleasure. after all, he is clearly someone who enjoys things - when harry is able to pick up on his moods in order of the phoenix he is happy as often as he is angry - magic chief among them. he likes shiny objects and, therefore, presumably understands sensory pleasure. he conceives of himself as someone who is generous and who gives gifts.

his relationship - whether you see it as sexual or not - with bellatrix in canon is surprisingly tender: he allows her to be physically very close to him a lot of the time, to touch him, to talk to him in a way which undermines his sinister vibe, and to be visibly pregnant with his baby [if you accept that, and i understand why basically nobody does]; and he is clearly known to spend a great deal of time in her company by the other death eaters.

he appears to genuinely like several of his minions, particularly snape. he obviously misses his mother, but nobody external to him ever acknowledges that grief. he is obviously as lost as all orphans are in a world which places a great deal of emphasis on lineage, and that is again never acknowledged.

he is someone who had a childhood which was sufficiently lonely and deprived that the concept of giving up anything he has for himself is something he can’t compute. but perhaps he could have hoarded bits of love in his little shoebox. if dumbledore could have seen why that wouldn’t have been such a bad thing...

#asks answered #asenora meta #albus dumbledore #tom riddle #lord voldemort #i'll defend that old man #but i'll tell him off too #basically self-loathing isn't a great trait for a teacher to have

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commsroom · 1 year

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the "big picture" - whether that refers to some detached, calculated greater good; ruthless ambition and progress for the sake of progress; or even the dear listeners' cosmic indifference - as an antagonistic force in wolf 359 is so fascinating to me because of the way eiffel as a protagonist is set up to oppose it, just by nature of who he is. eiffel retains his humanity even under the most inhumane circumstances. his strength is in connection, and with that he's able to reach others who share his core values, but he's operating under a fundamentally different framework from the show's antagonists. he can never understand where they're coming from or be swayed by their points of view because, for better or worse, he can only see the world through a close personal lens.

it's an ideological conflict he has with all of them, but notably with hilbert: "you talk about helping people, but what about the real, live people around you? [...] that's your problem. you're so zoomed out." eiffel will never, ever see that "big picture" because he is so zoomed in. at his best, he puts things into perspective and grounds the people around him. at his worst, his perspective narrows so drastically inwards that he becomes blind to everyone and everything else. his failings are deeply, tragically human - they're personal, they're impulsive, they're self-destructive. they're selfish. no matter how much he might try to narrativize or escape from himself, he's still left with doug eiffel: "it's taken me this long to realize that running from everyone else means that you're alone with yourself." eiffel could never be convinced to harm others on purpose, but he has hurt people, and it's never been because he didn't care. the very fact that he cares so much, that he's incapable of reconciling the hurt he's caused with the things he values, is what keeps him from real growth for so long. where many of the other characters in wolf 359 will justify their cruelty in service of something they consider more important, eiffel is so caught up in vilifying himself and the fear that he's always going to harm the people he cares for without meaning to that he shuts himself off from the people who care about him and perpetuates his own self-fulfilling prophecy.

#wolf 359 #w359 #doug eiffel #someday i'll finish my essay about the big picture as an antagonistic force. it's only been on my list of things to do for uh. ever #eiffel really cannot be convinced by Big Picture ideology in any form because he's so. unambitious and inwardly focused #he's not self-reflective at ALL but he is self-centered #and in some ways that's genuinely a good thing #but it's interesting. that he vilifies himself and tries so hard to. externalize his redemption and see some humanity in others #as proof he might be able to be better. when if those people consider themselves villains at all then they consider it necessary #i'm not sure if i'm phrasing this the way i want to but his worldview is just. fundamentally incompatible.#when i think about eiffel i think a lot about. how self-loathing is also a kind of exceptionalism. considering yourself uniquely bad #is its own way of avoiding accountability.#idk. it's complicated. it's a lot. it's interesting that lovelace talks about the 'big picture' when she's briefly a sort-of antagonist #but her 'big picture' is personal and emotionally driven in a way no other use of the phrase is #and then of course you have hera in am i alone now. such a big big universe etc.#when she betrays that perspective immediately and directly by talking about it through such a narrow personal framework #one of the most direct examples of 'big picture' thinking vs. personal connection in that contradiction. but that's another post maybe.

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moe-broey · 7 months

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I need like. A Don't Make Me Tap The Sign about Alfonse Fire Emblem specifically about his character and how he's perceived sometimes. Like Book 7 Chapter 12 he's just like that. He's always been like that.

I feel like I've def said it more eloquently before probably in Book 5 (regarding Reginn and Fáfnir), where like. He Will try for and favor a peaceful solution, but if it's clear there's no way out without violence and killing the threat/adversary. He won't hesitate. He won't falter. Crit line literally references this actually, "Above all, the mission".

Like I feel like the difference between Alfonse just doing Alfonse things (most recent chapter Seidr having to kill Kvasir, no way out of it -- plus also even considering killing Seidr herself, if that were to end Gullveig) and the Letizia moment was like. The Letizia moment was a BOLD gambit he played, which is WHY it was so shocking in the story and as an audience member, and why I think it left such a deep impression. Still very in character for him and the way he thinks/problem solves on the fly, carefully evaluating the situation and what would be the best move with the highest rate of success. (THAT LAST BIT ACTUALLY........ he'll do this even with low rates of success, out of sheer stubbornness as well. Which is why I still stand by him being rash at times, a LOT of his rashness is disguised as "calculated risks" and he just has the willpower to pull it off. The worst-best type of guy to me LMFAO)

Going back a bit though, the Letizia moment also stands out as an example of how far Alfonse is willing to go to win, especially if his back is pushed against the wall. It gives you a FASCINATING glimpse into his character and into his mind. A lot of times Lif would be an enigma to me, beyond the basics, character wise. Like yeah I guess that would fuck up a guy. But his methods (working and making contracts with gods when especially as Alfonse he knows better than that??) would be inscrutable to me. But everything absolutely finally clicked when Alfonse made that gambit, playing to Letizia's personality and whatever preconceived notions she may have, that maybe Alfonse could find a weak spot in and take advantage of. Lif is doing the exact same thing. His judgement is maybe a little worse for wear on account of, well *gestures vaguely to all of him* but he's still very much doing The Same Thing.

LIKE. I'm def straying from my point which is. Alfonse isn't shy about having to resort to violence. It Is a resort. But if it has to be done, it will be done. Any damage control (such as Sharena's feelings -- she has CLEARLY been extremely upset these past chapters) can be resolved later. (This.... is also fascinating to me..... bc it's always been clear to me his loved ones are the people who ground him, who stop him from losing himself, from becoming cruel in his practicality and tendency for detachment. There Is his morality as well -- but his loved ones are a huge part in what keeps him kind.)

I guess what I'm really trying to say is. Hit me up next time Alfonse is playing 4D chess with the enemy or throwing himself in a ditch on purpose just to indulge his baby sister's current pet project. THOSE feel like standout examples of Alfonse Off The Shits (but still completely in character for him tbh), while like. The rest is just par for the course for him. Just another (especially traumatizing) Tuesday.

#i'm. vaguing and i am so sorry for commiting the sin of vaguing.#but i do want to make it clear i'm not actually mad or judgy that would be silly #but like that aspect of alfonse specifically is what draws me in so completely...#it's a fascinating study and also. feels like one extreme opposite to my own.#and it's actually really nice to have it be an extreme bc it's easy to pick out what tracks where it frays #and where it crosses a line and becomes hurtful and/or harmful for the parties involved (including the self)#like... i absolutely use both alfonse and sharena as autistic proxys. to help me conceptualize/recontextualize/process info.#things that don't come naturally to me or things that feel beyond me and out of my grasp.#which is to say alfonse's practicality is actually something that is sooooo personal to me LMFAOOO #which is why. i've got to tap the sign. he has ALWAYS been like this it is a HUGE CORE PART OF HIM‼️‼️‼️‼️#his greatest strength his biggest flaw. ect. the reason why i'm constantly chewing on his arm.#WHATEVER.....#fe alfonse #again i do want to emphasize i'm not mad or judgy LMFAOO i'm just devastatingly autistic about him.#if anything the autism was just. aggro'd. you know how it is.

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transingthoseformers · 4 months

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I love Megatron being a good mom, but sometimes I just want to play around with different takes, you know?

Like Tarn being obsessed with Megatron and gaining his favour because Megatron is his carrier and, quite frankly, not a very good one.

He has a tendency to see his offspring as nothing more than instruments, and the better they perform, the more attention they get. And pretty much all of them crave it desperately, and those that don't? They joined the Autobots. Their siblings wouldn't think twice about selling them out if it meant Megatron would reward them with his favour.

I was thinking of this as IDW at first, but then I started thinking about that fic in which TFP Damus is Megatron's kid and I kinda love that.

Why not a tfp / idw blend?

That would be fascinating to see how his various kids deal with their carrier's detachment from them

Especially since i too have played around with the idea of tfp damus in the parent & child context above where Megatron refuses to acknowledge their familial connection. Because considering Tarn, always the fanatic, is trying his best to get Megatron's attention and praise and all that nice jazz because he sees their dynamic as so much more than Megatron does.

It'd be super interesting to see how the autobots react to one or more of Megatron's kids defect to the bots, and how what they learn will change their perception of him.

I vaguely remember a fic where the phase sixers plus Tarn were megastar kids and that would be interesting to explore because the phase sixers were handpicked— nepotism??? Some sort of calculation based on Megatron noticing how his kids are turning out and going "i can use their issues that i gave them to my advantage"??

Also what stops us from making up more phase sixers? I've been thinking a lot about that for oc reasons

There's this slice of text on tfwiki in regards to that

There are a couple of suggestions that there have been other Phase Sixers before the three named above—at least one of whom met their end at the hands of the Decepticon Justice Division. In a conversation on Garrus 9, Shockwave informs Overlord, "You're not the first phase-sixer to bait Megatron". And later on, when Tarn ends Black Shadow's life, he first laments Phase Sixers' "tedious tendency to rebel" and then shortly afterwards tells his team, "Stand back, everyone. Phase Sixers have a tendency to -" just as Black Shadow goes VOMF. If he hadn't taken a Phase Sixer down before, how could Tarn know what would happen? Later issues established the existence of the Warriors Elite, the modified soldiers Phase Sixers were chosen from which included Heretech, one of the names crossed off The List.

#maccadam #transformers #Megatron #mtmte overlord #idw shockwave #tarn #mtmte tarn #damus #kinda same guy #idw heretech #idw black shadow #I'm just thinking

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multismileee · 8 months

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Ranking OF Characters + their relationship because I need to rant before I combust :)

Wow what an episode this past one was… down below I’m going to break down my personal feelings and thoughts for each character so enjoy I guess & feel free to lmk if you agree or disagree.

Mew: I have mixed feelings about him, there’s no better way to explain it. He’s entering his villain era which ngl I love for him, they need to stop messing with the nice ones and expect them to stay quiet and sane. However, I have a bad feeling about him going to deep in his revenge against Top and Ton, and losing himself. He’s actually such a mastermind, the way he gets revenge is so satisfying. I truly don’t think he loves Ray like that and instead he thinks well maybe he’s who I need to, because at least I know he’s in love with me. Which explains why he said “perhaps the one I should love is you.” I don’t blame Mew, I think he’s genuinely confused rn, especially since Top was his first relationship. I just hope he's not using Ray, and he actually wants to explore how that goes. I just have this weird feeling that Mew is smarter than he looks, and he is purposely giving off a naive look to get away with things. UPDATE: I just saw this tik tok about how Top shared his trauma about fire with Mew (I actually completely forgot about that) and that’s why Mew decided to burn the paper / memory… that would explain both of their expressions, I NEED AN INHALER, THESE THEORIES ARE TOO GOOD.

Top: FRICK THIS MAN. Deserves everything that’s coming his way fr (#1). I felt bad for him slightly but that’s only because I do think he was slowly becoming better because of Mew. However, if he was insecure about Mew and Ray, he should’ve just asked. Instead he let Boston (I’ll get to him soon) of all people talk him into believing that more happened that night. Then, sleeping with his bf’s best friend to ‘even the playing field’ was so disgusting. I give him like half kudos, actually more like 1/8 kudos for stopping Boston in the elevator (the bare fricking minimum but it’s a lot for him) but he should’ve just owned up to what he did and talked to Mew. Instead he had the nerve to be jealous of Mew and Ray, even going as far as to accuse Mew of sleeping with Ray EVEN AFTER he got revealed for cheating. I also hate the way he says stuff like “I will make you fall in love with me again” he always sounds so conceited and arrogant. I hope he realizes that Mew is the best thing to happen to him and grovels to his feet.

Boston: I’m in awe of how awful this man is, like just when I think there’s no way he can be worse, he proves me wrong. Deserves everything that’s coming to him fr (#2). (Side note: can we talk about how talented of an actor Neo is??? He’s so good at playing Ton!!! I think he is narcissistic because I don’t understand how he can be so oblivious or ig non-caring of everyone else’s feelings. Even when it was discovered that he slept with Top, he turned it all around and told Mew that without him, he wouldn’t have been able to get Top… THE ABSOLUTE NERVE OF THIS MAN. Mew was so real for kicking him into the pool and punching him, because he needs it beaten into him. I also find his character fascinating, I noticed a couple of times how he will purposely change his calculating expression to one that is drunk and oblivious to everything. There was the time they were at the bar and he calls Ray a burden (I need to make a whole new post if I wanted to rant how much I hate that they call him that), and again when they were celebrating Mew's birthday. I do think that some of this detachment and not caring stems from the fact that he wants to move to pursue his photography, so he thinks "why care, if I'm leaving it all behind"

Nick: He's another confusing character, I just don't know how to feel for him. I mean at first I felt bad for him because he genuinely likes Boston for whatever reason, but seriously the way he goes about EVERYTHING is so wrong. Firstly, his interest stems from him snooping in Ton's phone and then proceeding to j*rk off to him like... that's so messed up. Then he takes a photo of himself, and okay that leads to them sleeping together. No matter how much I dislike Boston, he did say from the beginning that he wasn't interested in a relationship, he made it clear. Therefore, really Nick didn't have any reason to do the things he did. THE TAPE????? That was so so messed up. He not only recorded him without his consent, he then shared that with Sand. I can't even feel bad for him anymore, he's just so delusional and lost, and I just want him to find someone else and realize there's better out there then Boston. I wanted him to stop trailing over Ton like a lost puppy. Also side note: the way he said "I'm nasty too" when talking to Top, okay Nick go off ig. I need him to have his "idc" era so Boston will be the one beginning for him instead.

Ray: I was literally defending Ray since the beginning (still kind of am) but honestly, I'm so disappointed. There's so much more to his character then what meets the eye. I firstly want to say this and get it out of the way, FRICK RAY'S FRIENDS... every single one of them. It was obvious from the beginning that he had drinking problems, and yet it doesn't seem like anyone has tried to talk to him, to help him realize he's struggling with alcoholism (I know Ray is an adult, but addiction is not always easy to see, if a friend of mine was obviously struggling with something, I would help however I can). And before anyone goes "But Mew was there.. blah blah" I will shut that down rn. I appreciate Mew being his emergency contact, I really do but the way he acts sometimes sounds condescending. DON'T GET ME STARTED ON THE CONVO IN THE BATHROOM ON MEW'S BIRTHDAY: Him saying "You're going to die before 30"???? How could you say that knowing he was/is su!c!dal. (Sorry I went on a tangent when I was supposed to be talking about Ray's characterization). Anyways, I feel like since he's never had a genuine friendship or someone who wants him not for his money, he latches onto Sand. (I know their "relationship" starts off of money but later it's more). Another reason I say this is because at Mew's birthday, he tells Sand "If you want money, sleep with me" which I think is from his insecurity that Sand doesn't actually want him, and that he would end up alone again. His mom is dead, she was never comforting or close to him. His dad (frick him) only cares about the car and didn't care that he was in hospital. (I'm still curious what he asked Sand to do). However, I think this shaped him to start taking advantage of Sand. Just like Boston, Ray did make it clear from the beginning that this was in no means a relationship so he's not technically in the wrong. It just sucks, because you can tell he is at least attracted (it actually runs deeper, I know it) and I truly think he only loves Mew as a friend, and because he was just so glad someone was there for him when he needed someone the most.

Sand: BEST CHARACTER OF THE WHOLE SHOW FR FR. He deserves the whole world, and I will defend him until the end, he can do no wrong. (Okay so it was wrong how he manipulated Ray into exposing Top and Ton but honestly, it needed to be done.) I love how he was just minding his own business, living life until Top made him angry.. Then he woke up and chose violence, causing everyone's dirty laundry to be aired. I really felt bad for him and Nick in the scene when they were hugging because they are literally two feathers of the same bird, they are in the exact same situation. I love him and I'm glad he knows his worth (I say this because in the preview of ep 8, he says "I'm not your rebound") IKTR SAND, YOU TELL HIM!!

Cheum: Girly needs more screen time fr :( They need to show more of her and April, I loved that they showed them communicating their issues. I also think it's hilarious how she tries to stop fights, like she screamed for Boston and Mew to stop fighting but didn't jump into the pool LMAO or when she sprayed everyone with water when Top came to see Mew at the hotel. I think she knew about Ray's feelings for Mew, or at least she found out at the party for sure. Either way, sometimes she needs to think before she says stuff, but I still love her anyways.

RELATIONSHIP RANKINGS

Ray + Sand -> even though Ray is on time out right now for the way he keeps hurting Sand, I still want them to be endgame. I truly think Sand brings out the best in Ray, and Ray understands Sand is a way that others don't. I do however want Sand to make Ray jealous so he will open his eyes and realize that Sand is the one for him. (Side note: I need the sad edits to stop, why does every freaking romance song fit them???) Traitor by Olivia Rodrigo and them >>>>> (that's literally their song, don't try to fight me).

Cheum + April -> cuties that haven't done anything wrong yet, and just love each other. I NEED MORE SCREEN TIME OF THEM THOUGH!!!

Ray + Rehab -> This would also be cute <3 I want this along with Sand and Ray, a throuple if you will.

Nick + self love -> he just needs to first learn his own worth before he can get into a relationship. I'm hoping the guy in the promo for next episode is an ex, and that they end up being good for each other. I do not want him with Boston, that's for sure.

Mew + therapy -> I feel like he's going to need some after dealing with Top and Boston, I hope he finds someone way way way better than Top.

Boston + detention center -> someone get this man and let him isolate to himself. Since he's so narcissistic, this shouldn't be too bad, he can listen to himself talk all day <3

Top + no one -> Since he thinks everyone wants him, I hope he ends up alone and realizes that he sucks, and how he treated everyone was not okay.

#only friends the series #ray x sand #top x mew #boston x nick #cheum x april #only friends spoilers #ray x mew #top x boston #spoilers ig #gmmtv

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maytheoddshq · 1 year

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Miller Brick (he/him). Trainer. 130 Victor. Twenty-Four. Alex Fitzalan.

The quintessential spirit of District 2 was sculpted in the Bricks—or at least in the Brick patriarch. As a young man, Clayton Brick had inherited a large share of a profitable mine from his father, but it was his ambition that had moulded the enterprise into what it was now; not just a single mine but complexes of mines, not just engaged in masonry but also arms manufacturing. The corporation firmly stood with the Capitol during the rebellion, supplying the weapons that helped quell it and the stones for the rebuilding afterwards. This effectively put Brick Industries and the man at the helm on the map, which sated his appetite for a while, leading him to turn to pursuits more personal in nature. He married a woman of similar standing and character, colder though not as brazen, and together they decided to build a legacy.

Miller was born their first child, their pride and glory, or rather what they hoped would become their pride and glory. They wanted him to be everything they were and more; the product of what they believed were their best traits, the shining trophy to display on their shelf, the heir that would elevate the Brick name to even greater heights. Perhaps some of those wishes had stemmed from love, but if that was the case, the love was buried so deep that it was impossible to see, concealed under Clayton’s severe hand and Paloma’s quiet detachment. Nevertheless, Miller did his best to do everything his parents wanted of him, chasing after their affection and approval at every turn.

He did find love and support from his family, but only after his brothers were born. They were all different in nature, but they bonded over the coldness of their home and the weight on their shoulders. With Smith and Mason around, Miller imposed upon himself yet another responsibility, which was to keep his brothers out of trouble and to protect them. It was a responsibility he assumed gladly and freely, with the genuine hope that his brothers—who showed no interest in building that legacy their parents were after—would not have to go through everything that he had to go through.

A large part of winning their parents’ approval was to become Hunger Games victors, so the three boys grew up training in District 2’s career academy. Miller excelled on most fronts; brutal but disciplined, bold but calculated, and always ruthless. His talents and confidence made him popular among his trainers, peers, and friends alike, though some might argue just how much his last name played into that. In any case, by the time Miller turned 23, the academy and his parents all believed him to be ready. So, he did the only thing that made sense. He volunteered for the 130th Games.

During his time in the Capitol, he stuck mostly to the manual in his mind that had been cemented by years of training. He listened to his mentors, he secured alliances with the other careers, he charmed in the parade and the interview, and he even got to talk himself up to a few sponsors. In spite of the disciplined nature of his upbringing, he had always had a certain carefree charisma about him, and that, coupled with the confidence he projected, made it easy for him to win favours.

Understandably, though, not everyone was charmed. There were sponsors who were set on supporting other tributes from the start. Sponsors like the Odairs. The renowned family, together with their victor son, naturally meant to support the District 4 tributes. Miller was hardly surprised. Besides, it was not their sponsorship that was most enticing to him about the Odairs. It was instead their eldest daughter. Medea, with her effortless magnetism and refreshingly quick wit, fascinated him like no one else, certainly more than anyone he had ever taken an interest in. He did not manage to win her family’s favours, but he did end up falling into bed with her. Though their connection felt immediate and charged, it could not last, of course, if only because he had to be launched into the arena, potentially to die.

The tributes found themselves in the middle of the desert with archaic-looking structures around them. Over the following 12 days, one after another, plagues wreaked havoc on the arena. Miller did not recognise it for what it was, which was ancient—or rather biblical—Egypt, but he did well enough once again just by sticking to everything he had learnt from his years of training. Well enough, bruised and battered all over but with no overtly life-threatening injuries, until the tenth and final plague rolled around.

The mutts seemed to attack at random in the pitch black, chasing after certain tributes while ignoring others. Stranger still, they did not go for the immediate kill. Just a bite, a sting, or a scratch, then they disappeared back into the darkness. That was proven to be more than enough, though. The fever set in quickly. Tributes who had suffered the attack of the mutts fell into a weakened and delirious state, appearing to be suffering from some sort of infection. Stiffness and seizures followed. As the hours crept by, it became apparent that those tributes were not going to survive the night. They would only be saved if given a particular medication that could only be obtained from sponsor gifts. It served as a reminder, perhaps, that everyone was ultimately at the mercy of the Capitol.

Miller was unfortunately among these tributes. His mentors had sent him quite a few gifts until then, but none of those items could save him now. Another parachute eventually did float down again, which he barely registered, so close to death, bringing exactly what he needed. Not long after he swallowed the tablet, his fever broke and his mind cleared. When light finally illuminated the arena again after 3 days of darkness, he read the note that had come with the gift, expecting to see one of his mentors’ names, only to find that it had come from an anonymous sponsor. The curiosity only bugged him for a short while. He went on to finish off the other remaining tributes, with the callous detachment that had carried him through since launch, and be crowned victor that day.

The first thing that he did upon returning home was to invite his parents into a negotiation. Now that he had won, now that he had fulfilled their wish, he asked that they grant him something in return; spare Smith and Mason from ever having to volunteer for the Games. His father promised to consider it, under the condition that Miller began to take an active role in the family business, which had always been planned for him. He understood it for what it truly meant. He would stay under his father’s thumb, forced to toe the line with his brothers being held for ransom. But what choice did he have? If that was what it took to potentially save his brothers’ lives, he had to do what needed to be done.

It feels impossible to be honest with himself, to admit that, even as an adult and a victor, he is still without his own agency. Admitting that would mean admitting defeat, admitting helplessness, and that is completely inexcusable in their household. There is always something that can be done. There always has to be a way. Still, the truth eats at him from the inside, and the suffocating powerlessness, on top of the exhaustion from everything he has done to get this far, drives him in search of an escape whenever he can get it, a semblance of freedom in scattered pockets of moments.

There is the drinking, there is the partying. Perhaps less tasteful than either is his habit with women. Even before his victory, Miller has been known to move on from one pursuit to another rather quickly, never staying with any one of them for long, but now the speed with which he flits through them has doubled. His status as a victor only facilitates and occasionally sensationalises this. When he is not shadowing his father at work, the vices keep him occupied one way or another, which leaves little time to see his brothers anymore. What he justifies as something he is doing for them seems to be slowly driving a wedge in their relationship instead.

As is expected of him, he has routinely returned to the Tower for the Games following his own. The first time he did, memories of a certain Odair floated back to the forefront of his mind, but seeing as she did not return during the 131st, the memories quickly floated away again. Miller decided to take up the role of a trainer at the Tower, hovering about the training centre disengaged from any one team. It feels good not to have to be responsible for anything or anyone even just for the short periods that the Games last. Though he is willing to help where he can, he does not usually care much about the tributes. All he really cares about is that his brothers are safe back home and away from the trappings of the arena. But while they are still eligible for reaping, whether or not that safety will last remains an open question.

(+) assertive, bold, personable. (-) erratic, haughty, uncompromising.

PENNED BY: Cee

#oc rpg #oc rp #literate rp #literate rpg #thg rpg #miller #bio

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the-sun-and-the-sea · 2 years

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TBOSAS Thoughts (Chapters 1-3)

It’s so interesting to be reading this book again! There are already so many small details I’d forgotten, and I read it in such a hurry last time because I was so excited. I hope you enjoy my thoughts on the first three chapters.

I love learning about the earliest days of the Games and immediate condition of the post-war Capitol. They are still recovering, and Snow’s family is struggling, but he’s not letting anyone see it. This is one parallel that I found very interesting; Snow is starving, just as Katniss was (will be?), but they live in very different societies with different rules. He’s trying to make himself appear affluent even when he’s far from it, just because of the ramifications it would have on his family name and his future if it were to get out that he’s poor.

This leads me into my next point: I had forgotten how much Snow analyzes every decision according to how it will be perceived. I knew he did this, but I didn’t think he did it so often, or for such small things. He contemplates how to handle reaping day when he has nothing to wear, ultimately deciding that calling in sick would make him look “spineless,” wearing his uniform shirt would be “disrespectful,” and wearing a shirt he’d outgrown would be “poor.” I love this part. Not because I love Snow, but because his thought process is fascinating, and it’s thoughts like these that will be the foundation for his more monumental actions later on.

Going along with this, I also love how he manipulates and controls every conversation. His talk with his mentor Satyria on page 16 feels more like a business transaction than an actual conversation. Even his conversation with Sejanus, which is a little more friendly, still has a calculating edge to it.

Moving onto chapter 2, seeing Lucy Gray for the first time was wonderful. She’s clearly enrapturing both to Snow and to the rest of the Capitol audience. I found it really interesting how Snow mentions that brute force tends to outperform other qualities, so I love the idea of Lucy Gray setting the precedent of the Games being more of a spectacle.

In chapter 3, Coriolanus meets Lucy Gray and the other tributes. The tributes are compared to animals either directly or indirectly throughout the course of the book, but it’s very prominent in this chapter. Upon seeing the conditions of the train that transported the tributes (one for cargo rather than passengers), Coriolanus wonders if the tributes had been “fed or let out for fresh air,” a phrase that may indicate some compassion (or perhaps just curiosity). Despite this, it still has a very detached feel and implies that the tributes are animals. And, of course, housing them in a literal zoo for Capitol spectators to gawk at them through the glass draws that very clear comparison as well.

I love the cliffhanger at the end of chapter 3. As I was reading the first time, this was one of the turning points in the book, where I felt like the action was starting to speed up. I really enjoyed it the first time around, and it’s still exciting even though I know what happens next. And I’m endlessly fascinated by the evolution of the Games, which makes every new thing we learn about them here exciting for me.

One final thing, I know versions of the songs on YouTube that I love, so I’ll be linking them in the post about their corresponding chapters. For these chapters, I listened to Gem of Panem (I absolutely love this song) and the reaping song (Emma Lee’s versions are my favorite so hers are the one’s I’ll be listening to, but feel free to recommend others.)

What did you think of these chapters? Are there any thoughts you want to share?

Thanks for reading!

#tbosas reread #tbosas #coriolanus snow #lucy gray baird #I don't really know if anyone's doing the reread with me #but I did say I'd post my thoughts on Saturday #so here we go #this was fun lol #the ballad of songbirds and snakes

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funkymbtifiction · 2 years

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Me and a friend are debating a K-drama character's type, and I'd like to hear your thougts on it. We both agree on xSTP since Ti/Se is pretty obvious. He argues she's ISTP because she's highly critical of other's irrationality, and can detach pretty well from her emotions when making decision's (at one point she brings up her best friend during an investigation-she's a cop- after she notices things that could link him to the crime). I argue she's ESTP because those traits he mentioned are present in both types, and because the character is also critical of other's "bad Fe": she points out how they're awkward, don't know how to present themselves, are unexpressive and therefore boring, don't show enough affection in a couple etc. ISTPs are described as either oblious to these things or at least disdainful, so why would they care about lack of Fe in others? My friend claims the criticism of other's Fe is because when inferior it's rigid, so it criticizes.

What about the rest of the functions? How good is their foresight and how often do they listen to their 'hunches' and trust them? ISTPs are somewhat aware of Ni and use it fairly well, but they also are fascinated by it. ESTPs listen to Ni far less and trust unconscious hunches a lot less, because Ni is so foreign to them. Do they think before they act, or act before they think? ISTPs filter the world through logic so they make decisions that are calculated, like Indiana Jones choosing to leave his girlfriend tied up in the enemy's tent, knowing that releasing her would reveal his presence in the camp. Thought before action. ESTPs leap into things bodily and are fully present in the moment, assuming they can handle whatever happens, which means they often act before thinking about the consequences (secondary Ti and inferior Ni). What's the whole picture of this character? Look at them entire, Don't get stuck on one or two functions.

#question #estp #istp #mbti

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sepublic · 3 years

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SEASON 2 OF THE OWL HOUSE!!!

RUHGISN/LIFNALARNGLIENARE

Onto business first and foremost! We get twenty-one episodes, an extra one to make up for the rather odd, nineteen-count from the first season! That’s forty episodes in total! Then Season 3…

OH, Season 3… I love it but it hurts! The Lord giveth and taketh away, it’s confirmed, but it’s only THREE 44-minute specials! By my calculations, that’s about the length of SIX normal episodes… THE OWL HOUSE IS SO DANG POPULAR AND THIS IS WHAT YOU DO DISNEY?!?!! First Amphibia’s finale gets screwed over, THEN this?! But at least Amphibia gets its full third season… At least I assumeit does, oh for the love of Titan if it doesn’t…

It is extremely imperative that we petition Disney to let TOH’s third season be full-length! Because Dana herself admitted that the main reason she left Twitter was to cope with THAT news, and… OH MY GOD POOR DANA you fought SO hard against all odds to give us this show, this previous love-child of your mind and heart and spite, for this!? But it might not be too late- If we assault Disney with our demand, they MIGHT just change their mind! SO GET ON WITH IT! Let the cartoon community rally AGAIN!

But, right-

The first half of episodes for Season 2 is going to be TEN episodes, the second half will be eleven! Already better than the first season, but as a reminder, that’s what we’re getting so far before our mid-season hiatus! And on THAT note…

We have confirmation for the first FIVE episodes, which will begin airing just a mere FOUR WEEKS from now! We have Separate Tides, Escaping Expulsion, Echoes of the Past, Keeping Up A-fear-ances, and Through the Looking Glass Ruins!

These episode titles spell out “SEEK T”, presumably “Seek t(he)”, so we can already guess the next two episodes after TtLGR! That leaves fourteen more letters for the Season 2 message; The last one was “A witch loses a true way,” so perhaps this season is advising Luz to seek something that will help her get back home? Something that will help her confront and defeat Belos? A little bit of both?

Separate Tides is the season premiere! Luz is feeling guilty about the loss of Eda’s powers, poor girl, so she’s going to set sail for a lucrative bounty? Interesting… Perhaps a real Bloom of Eternal Youth? Something magical and bile-related? More lore on the nature of magic and its origins???

Escaping Expulsion… hoo boy, THAT’s what we’ve all been looking forward to! Odalia and Alador get Luz, Willow, and Gus expelled?! No rights for them, even if that was already obvious but WOW. But more importantly, Luz strikes a deal with the two?!? What do Odalia and Alador want from Luz, to get her back into Hexside?!?!

Dana mentioned how Season 1 had more focus on Hexside at Disney’s request. Given how Season 2 is more her style and freedom, we might see Luz and the others remain expelled from Hexside, if only to detach them from the coven system for the time being as their rebellion grows… And give focus to OTHER things as well! Which is going to suck a LOT and I’m going to hate Odie and Al even more for this, taking away not just Luz’s opportunity but also Willow and Gus’… Especially Willow since they DID follow through on that threat, holy shit, Amity and Willow must be hurt and traumatized from this!

But what do Odalia and Alador want from Luz? Do they want to use her as leverage against Belos? To use her FOR Belos? I’m suddenly reminded of that idea I had about Odalia and Alador being interested in Luz as like, an actual suitor for Amity… GOD my Lumity heart would actually love it if that were the case! Obviously in the long run it’s bad and for THEIR purposes, but the idea of Luz learning to be more proper for them, for AMITY really… Oh man, this is reminding me of my speculation of Luz and Alador parallels! We might just see what makes Alador so interesting to Dana in this episode, and just the SECOND one of Season 2, no less- Right into the story meat!

ECHOES OF THE PAST! King lore! KING LORE!!! Even better Luz, Lilith, and… HOOTY… go to a new island?! An island related to King’s past? Is Eda sticking with King to make sure he doesn’t do anything, or god, did King’s antics get her into trouble again? And Hooty… HOOTY is coming with Luz and Lilith???! I’m grateful for Luz and Lilith interaction, we might get to see them talk things over, but how is Hooty…? Is the house coming along?

Dana mentioned two spoilers and a lie, one of them was Hooty leaving the house! I guess this is one of them… The others were Camila beating someone up and Gus getting a growth spurt, which we’ll get onto later; So I think Camila beating someone up is the lie! Dang it… But a dangerous new island, could this be related to the various pieces of Titan bones mentioned in The Unauthorized History of the Boiling Isles, scattered throughout the boiling seas, all alluding to another incomplete Titan?!

Are they KING’S REMAINS??! And his bones are incomplete because he still has his SKULL!!!!

Keeping Up A-fear-ances is pretty obviously Gwendolyn. Screw you, Gwen, and the confirmation that her presence is causing strain for everyone… YIKES. Hopefully we’ll get Young Eda and Lilith backstory, and see how they transitioned from the YBOS flashback to present-day! Perhaps Gwendolyn DID help Eda when she first transformed… Either way, I do not like her. But she’ll be fascinating to see!

Through the Looking Glass Ruins! As I said before, Gus gets a growth spurt, and he’s trying to impress kids from Glandus… Which YES GLANDUS, more schools lore! But uhh… If they’re at Glandus, is it because they didn’t get back into Hexside after all, and they’re moving to a different school? Luz and Amity are exploring a dangerous library there, which, Lost in Language flashbacks! But why is AMITY there… Oh Titan, does SHE choose to leave Hexside at the end of Escaping Expulsion, as a means of defying her parents’ will, to go with the friends she loves! If so… YEAH AMITY! That, or she’s out on a visit. Will Amity run from home and live with the others, or maybe Willow and her dads? Gus and Perry? Or will she still be at the Blight Manor… Dana wasn’t kidding about Emira and Edric being distracted from Grom!

Maybe Amity works something out that gets her expelled from Hexside, and Glandus is the new school for her, who knows? Perhaps it’s because of Belos, and so Odalia and Alador are furious, but they want their kid at a school regardless, so Glandus it is! The Hexside Banshees lost their best captain… Not that she was even playing so it doesn’t matter, but still! THIS would be quite a shock and change for Amity! And Luz, Willow, and Gus… Dang, they’re just losing a lot huh?

If they ARE going to Glandus and enrolling there, then maybe the episode will end in a failure, or maybe they’re pretending to in order to access the library, maybe a library incident will get their enrollment cancelled! I’m interested in seeing Glandus’ location, we know it’s on an island elsewhere… I kind of want to see the principal of Glandus, will they be cool like Bump? Have a rivalry with him??? Hexside lore??? FORBIDDEN SHIP BETWEEN BUMP AND GLANDUS PRINCIPAL??!?!

But yeah, those are the episode synopses, and they promise a LOT! It seems each episode so far is just pure character or plot stuff… Not to dunk on ‘filler’, which I think is misused for a lot of episodes honestly, but I like it! I guess Dana and crew have to make the most of their time thanks to Disney’s weird thing with Season 3, screw you Mickey… But yeah! I’m definitely gonna say more stuff and talk about the intro, but for now, I AM HYPED!!!

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stormyoceans · 2 years

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love your ideas!! I would kill only to have Jay helping them find Kuea and spend time with Foei even if just for a second. Tbh I see their relationship as a lost opportunity since it'd be so easy for them to meet and have at least a friendship. Jay is Lian's business parter so I bet he and Foei had at least talked on the phone?? or be in the same room for any type of legal document??? Wish they would've given us something like that T_T -🌻

im so happy you liked my ideas, anon!!! and okay im gonna give an INCOMING RANT WARNING because believe it or not i do try to keep my jayfoei feelings on the down low most of the times but i AGREE WITH YOU SO MUCH and need to get some stuff off my chest now that the show is ending, so save yourself while you still can!!

the thing is.. this show will always remain dear to my heart for a couple of different reasons, but i also think it has A LOT of wasted potential, and jayfoei is definitely a big part of it. even if we don’t consider them as a pairing, but we just take their characters separately, i feel like the show could have done so much more with them, and i know im biased, but i do really believe they are two of the most interesting characters in the story and also have a place in it that it’s very unique and no one else has, which is knowing both lian and kuea and what is going on between them, but not being overly involved with it in an emotional way, and i honestly think they could have done something very interesting with it??

like i know they confined foei into the comic relief role, and he is still lian’s employee, so he couldn’t have done THAT much, but they also clearly have a relationship where foei is allowed to tease lian to a certain point, so it would have been nice to maybe have him give some more serious advice to lian about his relationship with kuea, especially since foei took care of moving the keerati’s properties under lian’s name. speaking of which, it’s so weird to me that they never made kuea even just consider the idea of using foei to find out what lian was doing? maybe im just.. a bad person because i know it would potentially put foei in trouble, but honestly kuea trying to squeeze some information from literally the one person who knows EVERY LITTLE SECRET about lian and his business would have made a lot of sense to me (how much of a bad person i am exactly if I kinda wanted a scene with kuea and diao trying to get foei drunk to get some info out of him and jay being like ‘why must you do that in MY PUB’)

and the same goes for jay tbh. once again, it’s so weird to me that they took the time to give us a pretty long scene about jay and lian becoming business partner, and then literally did nothing with it. i really expected at least some amount of drama to come from it, maybe kuea finding out and getting mad with jay, or maybe kuea thinking about giving up his singing career, which would have caused jay some major losses since they said multiple times the gemini barely makes an income and it’s mostly thanks to kirin. jay in general is such a fascinating character to me, because he is cunning and calculating, but also a dork who built a business from scratch all on his own, which is something that could have made lian relate to him, so i would have loved more scenes between them

and okay, because i AM biased and a bit bitter, i WILL say it: jay and foei as a romantic pairing would have made THE MOST SENSE out of all of them and i will die on this hill. like, don’t get me wrong, nuea and syn are my favorite canon couple so i would NEVER (let me repeat it, N E V E R) give them up, but i also think you can easily see how their storyline suffers from the fact that yes, they are kuea’s friends, but they’re not involved in the major drama with lian in any way, so they feel pretty detached from the main story, which also means it can be hard to integrate them in it without making their screen time feel out of place. with jay and foei they wouldn’t have had this problem AT ALL, because they are deeply connected both with kuea AND lian, and making them meet would have been SO EASY. like you said, lian and jay are now business partner. am i really supposed to believe they NEVER met or spoke to each other at all??? when foei literally takes care about every single part of lian’s business??? do you know the betrayal i felt in episode 5, when jay went to the pentagon to talk with lian, and i was SO SURE we were about to get a scene with jay and foei, just to then have some random guy show up to take jay to lian??? i was like WHO IS THIS DUDE WHERE IS FOEI.

anyway.. sorry for using your ask as a chance to talk about my feelings for them and the show. just like you, i also really wish they would have given us something more with them, because i feel like it would have made sense and would have been easy to write it in the show, so it’s a pity that they didn’t BUT THAT AIN’T GONNA STOP ME FROM SHIPPING THEM

#oh god i just now realized how long this is i am.#SO SORRY #anon please let me offer you all the cookies as an apology #hope you're not gonna hate me too much ;;;;;;#also how cute it is that you sign yourself with a flower PLEASE THAT'S ADORABLE #anyway sorry again and i hope you're gonna have a wonderful day!!#cutie pie #cutie pie the series #jayfoei #m: ask #im gonna go hide somewhere now

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ladykissingfish · 3 years

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Under the Mistletoe with the Akatsuki // Part Five // Kisame

Kisame

Ah, this. He goes to stand under the little plant, feeling mildly apprehensive. Who in their right mind would want to lock lips with someone (some creature) like him? Still, everyone else is a good sport, so he figures he needs to be one, too.

Konan

Kisame blushes fiercely when Konan walks up. He doesn’t have romantic feelings for her, not precisely ... but she is a woman, a beautiful woman, one who is his friend and who doesn’t ever seem frightened or disgusted by a person like Kisame. She approaches him and stands there quietly, her face slightly flushed. He takes a deep mental breath and then bends down (quite a ways, as their height difference is significant), gently cups her cheeks, and gives her a very soft, light kiss on the lips. He has to remind himself to be careful; Konan is no doubt a tough woman but at the same time, she feels so delicate and breakable. He notices, as always, how warm she is, how velvety her skin. When the kiss is over, they both pull back from each other, smiling.

Pein

By this point, Pein (Nagato) is getting a bit tired of this game. He understands that it’s normal for “parents” to kiss their “children” to express love; but he never had that growing up, so this all seems foreign to him. Still, though, as is the case with things such as this, he doesn’t want one child to feel as though he’s being neglected. So he very quickly kisses Kisame’s cheek, and invites him join him later on a walk (the Pein body needs exercise to keep it vital, and Kisame goes for long walks in his spare time).

Deidara

Kisame is one of the first people within the Akatsuki that Deidara made friends with. He reminds the blonde of his own partner Sasori, in that both are older and carry an air of maturity and wisdom. But there’s a big difference between Sasori and Kisame: the shark-man has a surprising (and extremely well-hidden) sense of humor. Unbeknownst to the others, Kisame has actually helped Deidara pull off numerous “pranks”, including super-gluing Hidan’s scythe to the wall while he was out, and “being artistic” with a paintbrush on Tobi’s mask when he was asleep. Deidara walks up to Kisame, and Kisame lifts him off his feet (wondering why everyone around him seems so damn tiny) and plants a smacking kiss on his forehead. When he sets Deidara back down, both burst out laughing, unable to help it. “Your lips are freezing, old man, hm!” “When’s the last time you washed your hair, kid? There’s enough oil in there to fuel an entire village!” They laugh so hard that tears roll down their faces, until eventually Deidara wanders away, still chuckling to himself.

Sasori

Like Pein, he’s grown quite weary of this game. But he rather likes Kisame; there’s only about a four year age difference between the two, and Kisame is a calm, quiet somebody for Sasori to talk to in an organization that often lacks either trait. Kisame bends down to him and Sasori kisses his forehead. He notes the difference in temperature between this one and the other, full humans. As he goes back to his room, he wonders if there’s any possible way he can ask Kisame, without offending him, if he could take a vial of his blood to study. Kisame and his hybrid heritage fascinate Sasori, and when something peaks his interest, he can’t rest until he’s examined it in full. What were his parents like? How does Kisame respond to various human diseases? Would Sasori’s poisons gave the same effect on him as they would on other members of the Akatsuki? A lot to think about, and something that stays in the back of Sasori’s mind for some time to come.

Hidan and Kakuzu

“Ah?! It’s bad enough kissing you bastards but now I’ve gotta kiss fish-breath too?!” Hidan is somebody that Kisame really doesn’t care for. He finds the man to be too brash, unpleasantly loud, and he abhors those heathen-like “prayer rituals” of his. If all of that superfluous blood and gore is necessary for immortality, then Kisame is happy to stay as he is. Hidan’s complaining only gets louder, the closer he gets to Kisame. So he pretends to lean in to kiss Hidan’s cheek ... and instead uses his teeth to bite Hidan’s ear clean off. Hidan is so startled that he flinches backwards and falls, landing on that damn scythe of his. Kisame laughs so hard that he nearly chokes, and he apologizes to Kakuzu who comes out of his room upon hearing all the swearing (as Kakuzu is the one who needs to sew Hidan’s ear back on, and give him stitches from the scythe-wound in his back). Kakuzu just shrugs and says that Hidan probably had it coming, and while he’s there he decides to get his turn over with. It’s odd; Kakuzu reminds Kisame of his own father (or what little he can remember of him, anyway). He’s always looked to the old man as a friend and mentor, and Kakuzu trusts him to the point where he’ll lend him money with no questions asked AND without charging interest, which is truly a rarity. But kissing for these two would just be too damn weird. They both feel it, so Kakuzu opts for a firm handshake instead. Hidan bitches about this to no end, but Kakuzu only tells him to shut up or else his ear is going to remain permanently detached.

Zetsu

To Zetsu, Kisame looks (and smells) like a scrumptious seafood delicacy. Zetsus never been much one for fish, but Kisame’s half-humanness provides enough of a temptation to thoroughly entice the plant-man. But Zetsu is nothing if not calculating, and he knows that in a fight, it’s more than likely that Kisame would be the victor. The closest Zetsu can get to devouring him is to kiss him, so he does. He strides up to him, grabs his face, and plants a kiss on the guy’s lips. Unable to help himself, he uses his tongue to lick the inside of Kisame’s mouth, which startles the latter and makes him quickly pull back. A good thing he did, too; because Zetsu was mere seconds away fro throwing inhibitions to the wind and trying to eat the man. Zetsu apologizes and goes away, leaving Kisame relieved (and a bit digusted: Zetsu tastes like how wet fertilizer smells).

Tobi

Although Kisame would never admit this to anyone, Tobi legitimately scares Kisame. Being part animal, he’s learned to distinguish different types of scents from those he interacts with. Tobi walks around all day acting the fool, but ... he has the sharp, deadly odor of a predator. Because of this, Kisame firmly believes that Tobi is much more than he presents himself; and he’s the Akatsuki member that Kisame would be least likely to turn his back on. Still, though, this is a game and everyone is playing; and Kisame can’t very well let on his true feelings. Tobi approaches him (“Guess its Tobi’s turn, eh, Kisame-san?”) and, as he had done with Konan, moves his mask to the side so that just his lips are exposed. He smiles, and something about his smile makes Kisame’s heart beat a little harder than normal. And Samehada growled, something that rarely happens. Tobi seems unnerved by Samehada’s reaction, and he hurriedly kisses Kisame’s cheek and pulls his mask back into place, uttering something about being hungry and shouting for his “Senpai Deidara” to help him make food. Kisame breathes out a sigh of relief once he’s out of the room.

Itachi

Itachi Uchiha. When Kisame first met this kid, he was meeting somebody strong, talente, highly intelligent ... and an absolute emotional wreck. A trait that never showed to the others, only Kisame, and only subtly. Teary eyes when discussing families, a look of remorse when sent on missions that would destroy human life ... and then there was the sickness. Kisame doesn’t think Itachi knows that he knows that he’s ill, but he does. It’s in everything, from his blocked chakra channels to his trembling hands, to the deep coughs he emits when he thinks everyone else is asleep. Likely he feels his sickness is atonement, of a sort, for the crimes he committed against his own clan and his family. But still ... Kisame doesn’t believe he’s ever met somebody warmer, or somebody that he’s more honored to call his friend, than the slim young brunette standing in front of him. “Itachi-san, if this makes you uncomfortable, you know you don’t have to kiss me.” Itachi tilts his head, studying Kisame’s face with those damn eyes of his. Under Itachi’s gaze, Kisame becomes a person. Not a freak, not some abomination, but a person. Itachi steps forward and cups Kisame’s cheeks, leans up and gives him the softest, most gentle kiss that Kisame could ever imagine. But his hands are cold (cold even to someone with a low body temperature like Kisame) and his breathing labored. After the kiss, Kisame, done with everybody now, puts a hand in Itachi’s shoulder, guiding him back to his room. He’ll make him tea, he’ll sit with him a while, maybe read to him until he falls asleep. He doesn’t know how much longer Itachi will last but he does know he intends to be by his side as much as possible until that dreaded day comes.

#the akatsuki #under the mistletoe #kisses #kisame #itachi #konan #pein #hidan #kakuzu #deidara #sasori #zetsu #tobi

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sunder-soul · 3 years

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OK WOWWW

I've been meaning to write again, and I agree with you on your opinion of Tom. Personally, after researching on psychopaths a fair bit (for one of my own OCs), I feel that—at surface level—Tom can be classified as one. But nevermind that now, bc I absolutely LOVE the way you write him.

Which brings me to...

WHITE DOVE O.M.G.

KING YOU ARE A BLOODY GENIUS ISTG. Part 6 was so damn well written. Like hOw?? I can't even properly write while sober, never mind drunk. You are so so talented, and I can't wait for the next fic you post (and maybe(?) a sequel?? )

The imagery of Tom just pleading and breaking down was just... pure fucking perfection (and I mean that in the best way possible lol). Keep writing King! You're amazing at it that's for sure. :)

Two-part super long response discussing Tom Riddle and psychopathy beneath the line!!!!

But also omg thank u for your lovely compliments on white dove, I really really loved writing that series so it's super gratifying to get all the positive feedback!!!! Hell yeah I'm geared for a sequel and it's just absolutely full of my fave fanfic tropes I am ready to self-indulge once more.

Pt. 1. I don't see any issue with headcanoning Tom as having a sociopathy/psychopathy personality disorder, I just really dislike when people don't do what you have done and don't actually research what that actually means. I think general media has been 'fascinated' by 'psychopaths' for the last few decades and have created a really weird cultural conceptualisation of what someone with that disorder looks like/acts like.

People will have Tom committing genuinely horrific acts of violence for his own pleasure, fucking with people for fun, and engaging in lots of different taboo kinks and then explain it by simply being like 'he's a psychopath' and it's like oh... 😬

Idk I find that specific trope lazy in terms of story-telling, shallow in terms of character interpretation, and damaging in terms of real-life consequences for normal ass people with personality disorders.

Pt. 2. All that being said, I (personally) disagree with you in terms of Tom being able to be classified psychopathic!

I'm aware that some people distinguish between 'primary' psychopaths (those with genetic predisposition) and 'secondary' psychopaths (those who develop the disorder from environmental factors, sometimes called sociopaths) though it should be noted that this distinction isn't really agreed upon across the field and is under debate lol. But I feel the need to address both since I'll probs get anons "calling me out" me if I don't haha.

Premeditation before acts of violence, severely diminished emotional responses, and a lack of anxiety are traits characterised to primary psychopathy, and at first glance I can kind of see a case for Tom here. But... some of Tom's/Voldemort's biggest character beats revolve around him being impulsive, hyper-emotional, and extremely reactionary (like just killing an entire room of his own followers and goblins after finding out Harry knows abt the Horcruxes, or freaking out about the prophecy and murdering the Potters for that matter, or even duelling with Dumbledore in the Ministry etc. etc.).

Like I know he can be super calculating and set up long-arching plans and shit, but I've never really read Tom as being that 'premeditated' in what he does. He's ambitious, yeah, but to me I see him setting his eyes on a goal and doing everything he possibly can to reach that goal in a sort of perfectionist-driven, covetous desperation where if he just pushes long enough and hard enough and far enough, he'll prove that he can do fucking anything and everything in spite of everyone else and fuck everyone who said he couldn't - rather than this detached, cool, logical premeditative flow-chart of decisions.

On the other hand, the reasoning behind Tom having secondary psychopathy reads as more logical for the character for me - being an orphan in war-time England and having to essentially self-prioritise to the absolute extreme to survive could all be strong environmental stressors that would result in learned lack of empathy. Crimes committed by those with secondary psychopathy are also (apparently) more emotionally driven, more reactionary, and more impulsive. But.... Tom does still set up these long-arching plans, ya know? He's not acting solely on impulse, and he's also still very emotional outside of his acts of violence. Plus he's also never struck me as particularly anxious (which is a trait often used to distinguish secondary psychopathy). He's both impulsive and premeditated at times, just like how most ppl act both impulsively and premeditated at times.

The point I'm trying to make, lol, is that I think it's a misread of the character to consider him 'unemotional' or detached from others bc I've always thought of him as like the most extremely emotional character in the whole series. Canon demonstrates him to be highly emotional but just very very controlled/performative most of the time. He's shown to have bouts of hugely expressive rage, and he acts very vindictively which suggesting he takes things super personally, but he's mostly able to hide these emotions around people he doesn't trust. This might make him manipulative but it does not make him psychopathic/sociopathic.

In summary, I don't read Tom as having a personality disorder, I read him as being selfish, jealous, emotional, egotistical, covetous, self-aggrandising, suspicious, and manipulative. He's a dick, your honour.

#tom riddle #tom riddle headcanons #green anon #ask #white dove

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aphrodite-would-be-proud · 3 years

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@ava-sr said: EE i do apologize that this is late, but maybe a small request because of my moblit-brainrot. which dates he would like to take you on? maybe like one of those guided painting classes? aGh all i know is that man is the absolute sweetest and i love him with all my heart

Types of dates with Moblit pt.1

{ Moblit x reader | tw:none | fluff | modern }

{ "Vanitas Still Life" 1662 by Edwaert Collier c. 1640 - after 1707 London or Leiden }

Ideal dates : these are dates he plans up ahead, makes sure they go smoothly and you're both are having fun. He really looks forward to these dates, they're like an event for him. He saves them up for important occasions like your anniversary, valentine's day, birthday.

I. Cuddling for hours at a time

you have to understand that in Moblit's overworked and stressful life, moments of respite are rare and far. He's so deprived of touch and love that it's a miracle how he has managed to function without even a beep. The thought of having someone to warm his bed, cradle his worries and put them to rest by simply combing through his hair, never crossed his mind despite having a hundred thoughts running through it per minute.

Some days he manages to forget your existence even, not out of some selfish desire or to belittle you, but out of disbelief, after all it's too good to be true.

You're too good to be true to him.

Your tender words pull him back each time he blindly steps closer to the edge, a never-ending spiral of self-destructive work tendencies awaiting him at the bottomless abyss. Your warm embrace shutting out the swarm of nagging voices meant to guilt him out of rest, to act as if the key to curing his sleep deprivation was to not acknowledge its existence, that fatigue symptoms could be erased by his own homemade placebo remedies.

As if your mere touch could turn anything to gold, and in his case, it did.

It was what made the difference between an anxiety inducing catastrophic day, and a mere rough stepping stone he could easily manoeuvre around leaving his pace steady and undisturbed.

Reminding that it's okay to fail, to give something your best only for it to crumble to dust. It's a process of trial and error, it takes time and patience.

You don't get to choose how well things end up working out, it's not up to you nor is it your place.

And that's why for him, his ideal place in the world is in your arms, to simply let the rise and fall of your chest lull him into comfortable numbness. His features softening as the oxytocin levels rise, courtesy of your warm embrace, soft skin providing just the right pressure against his own.

Laying on your shared bed together, the soft breeze coming from the open windows moves the thin curtains. Moblit is Holding you close as one of his arms sneak around you, fingertips tracing shapes up and down your back. Face buried in your shoulder as yours rests on top of his head, stray hairs almost tickling your nose when you brush against them.

The passing of time does little to his cotton filled mind, occasionally attempting to pull you even more closer as if it's possible. Legs tangled with yours under the heavy blanket despite him hogging most of it.

Every now and then, when a certain amount of time passes, he'd look at you with half-closed eyes, a lidded look of satisfaction before murmuring in his sleepy voice.

"Do you want to get up?" And despite his sincere words and warm tone, his body makes no move to detach itself from your side.

Does he know the soothing effect of the circles he keeps drawing up your back? Or how much him talking with his lips still pressed against your neck makes you melt just a bit.

Whatever it is, Moblit seems confident in his ability to keep you snuggled against him, tucked underneath the warm blanket and fluffy pillows almost muffling your answer.

II. Visiting a music bar

Preferably something with soft yellowish lights, small enough spaces not meant for dancing but to create an intimate atmosphere akin to a music venue.

A jazz club, maybe a brewery.

Dimmed sunlight seeping through the thin curtained window, shadow traces of people smoking outside while making small talk, cushioned bar stools placed around the long bar with a mirrored wall behind it as several aged bottles and fancy glasses with signatures decorate the wooden shelves.

The quiet chatter of people blurring behind the mellow music the band is playing on the nearby stage, smooth movement with relaxed postures as if they've done this a hundred times before, and they probably have.

You're sitting in one of the booths near the window, a private spot where you're far enough for people not to notice yet close enough to still hear the music flowing.

The beat is slow, hypnotising even that the minutes blur together.

Moblit giving you a smile as he comes back with your drinks, sitting opposite of you before handing you the cold glass, ice cubes clinking against each other as you raise the frosted rim to your lips, sugary sweet filling your senses, the cooling sensation of the drink slides down your throat.

There's a hint of citrus in it.

You've learned to trust Moblit's choice in drinks after being together for so long, he just knows what's going to taste good and which kind of drink you seem to need without having to say a word.

He seems comfortable here, even referring to the bartender by his name like they've been friends for a while, and maybe they have judging by the out-of-script welcoming he gave Moblit.

One conversation starts another and both of you find it so easy to talk to each other without boundaries or second thoughts, the smiles and occasional chuckles almost never leaving your features while nursing on your drinks.

He tells you stories from his work and about his co-workers. You find yourself entranced by his seemingly abusered line of work and the amount of chuckle worthy instances a single work day can offer.

That one time Hange knocked the liquid incense oils that someone Levi brought to freshen the place, well to their luck the oils fell directly on an open flame from the nearby scented candle which resulted in the fire spreading through the liquid alcohol between the broken glass.

And despite the feeling of dread, from seeing his files catch on fire this story brings him, the sound of your chocked laughter as you almost spilled your drink over your clothes, made it all worth it for him.

III. Antique shop

There was something to be said about Moblit's yearning for especially old looking things, trinkets, crumpled maps, tea stained letters and silvered mirrors.

You can't miss the gleam in his eyes as he opens the antique store door open for you the chime of the door bells following after. The smell of burning incense lingering in the air alongside the slow ticking of an old wooden clock.

The look on his face is of pure fascination, his eyes following the trail of the objects lined on the tables, from the old oil paintings with hand carved frames to the crystals reflecting sunlight next to the colourful stones. Observing as he carefully walks behind you through the narrow spaces between the tables and shelves.

Pulling your attention whenever he finds a particular curious thing to show you as if it's an offering, it can range from music boxes with a really familiar melody that you can't quite remember or a beautifully shaped rose quartz stone that feels cool against your palm.

Whatever he brings, it often manages to intrigue you in some way. Moblit could always notice things other people would skip over otherwise, scanning the tables was like a small treasure hunt.

He'd always pick one or two leather journals, almost filled to the brim with ink scribbled pages and tea stained spots, personal diaries dating back to the 90's and if he's lucky they might edge towards the 80'. He likes to read them, live in someone else's shoes even for a split second, puzzle pieces falling in place as he figures out what kind of person the author was.

Of course sharing his discoveries with you while having lunch later, not out of pride nor to show off, but out of genuine respect to other people's lives and their dedication for leaving behind a piece of their soul.

IX. Roadtrip

It's something he plans months ahead in advance, he genuinely wants to make the best out of the few weeks off both of you got to spend together. Making sure to plan a set of destinations, preparing snacks and food, packing your essentials and renting a big enough van.

A small getaway even, to completely leave everything behind and set out on a carefully planned adventure with the one he loves most, you.

Enjoying the fresh weather, the high sun and fast wind as both of you roll down the windows, fields of green and yellow meet you alongside the road the further away you move from the city.

Although be careful; the Moblit behind the wheel is a much much more different than the one you know, he's using all what remains of his self-restraint not to speed down the highway and swirl, the thought crosses his mind every hour or so and he's visibly agitated when you're forced to drive behind a particularly slow driver.

You might even have to remind him of the speed limit occasionally just so you don't end up with a pile of speeding tickets at the end of the trip.

It's like all his usually cautious and calculating demner evaporates into mist the second he touches the steering wheel, Temptations of just flooring it while high on adrenaline still linger in the back of his mind.

Beside that, the trip is a relatively calm one as you get to bask in all the new and different places you'll get to visit. Try new food and walk through different city streets, just the experience of something out of the usual is enough to satisfy Mobilt. Not to mention the fact he gets to experience it with you and just wander around without a purpose or care as long as you're together.

He'll definitely keep in mind what sort of things you seem to like, what intrigues you and the kind of reactions you show. He even started an album filled with mostly your pictures and the things you've seen.

It's most relaxing and filled with low stakes, nothing too fancy but nothing too boring either. Walking the thin line perfectly.

X. Visiting a museum

But not just any museum you see, one centred around natural history. Displaying everything from ancient fossils to full on skeleton displays of a 122 foot titanosaur, depictions of distant relatives of homosapiens and modern evolution trees of the current animals.

Moblit guiding you through the shiny tile floor and between the exhibits while holding your hand, eyes gleaming with passion as he goes on and on about each thing you glance at. Making all the trivial facts seem more fascinating than they have any right to be.

The squeaking sound of footsteps echoing on the too clean floors as four children pass you by, racing each other towards the iron suits of armour on display. They almost fall over the red ropes from leaning too close in, their caregiver seemingly busy talking with a security guard over the 'smoking not allowed' sign.

You spare them a final glance before following Moblit through the corridor leading to the world history & old inventions section. Soon enough he steals your attention again as he begins talking about the first airplane prototype that you can't help but be enamoured by.

Despite there being a sign framed on the wall that sums up the jest of Moblit's lecture, he manages to make it not only less boring but add his own twist and uncommon known facts to it that it feels less of a history trip and of an interesting conversation.

He has so much knowledge that he's so eager not to only share but hear your own opinion and take on it, valuing your view no matter what amount of knowledge you have over the subject.

XI. Painting together

It's an idea that you offhandedly suggested after your museum visit, after all spending an hour in the Impressionism era gallery did leave an impression on you. And so the suggestion of checking out an art store for some acrylics and a couple brushes left your lips on the way home without a second thought.

Well little did you know that the small suggestion managed to latch into Moblit's brain for weeks after, making him spend his free time searching and gaining information on painting and how to start, he even managed to find some really good classes having a limited time course sale

That's how both of you end up in a guided painting class, seated next to each other with aprons on and a pallet to mix paint tubes in. You'll find out how much of a fast learner Moblit is, so much that most of the class he spends guiding your hand through the steps and offering his help whenever possible, although he still remembers not to be overbearing and still gives you space.

Both of you are in your own bubble from the class, being with him makes you feel easy and more reassured. He's like your very own comfort corner that you seek in every party, except that he can walk around with you and always looks out for you.

And whatever you end up putting on that canvas, Moblit will cherish more than any renaissance painting, will even insist on hanging it somewhere in the apartment.

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sanstropfremir · 3 years

Text

ok this took way longer than i expected because i got sidetracked looking at paintings and reading poetry and just admiring the mv, but it's finally finished!! let's talk about

higher

✨

i'm going to draw your attention to a few things.

firstly, these verses from rime of the ancient mariner by samuel taylor coleridge, published 1834:

The harbour-bay was clear as glass,

So smoothly it was strewn!

And on the bay the moonlight lay,

And the shadow of the Moon.

The rock shone bright, the kirk no less,

That stands above the rock:

The moonlight steeped in silentness

The steady weathercock.

And the bay was white with silent light,

Till rising from the same,

Full many shapes, that shadows were,

In crimson colours came.

A little distance from the prow

Those crimson shadows were:

I turned my eyes upon the deck—

Oh, Christ! what saw I there!

Each corse lay flat, lifeless and flat,

And, by the holy rood!

A man all light, a seraph-man,

On every corse there stood.

This seraph-band, each waved his hand:

It was a heavenly sight!

They stood as signals to the land,

Each one a lovely light;

This seraph-band, each waved his hand,

No voice did they impart—

No voice; but oh! the silence sank

Like music on my heart.

secondly, this ivan aivazovsky painting, chaos (the creation), c. 1841:

and thirdly, the memorial of percy shelley, who drowned in a boating accident at age 29, in 1822:

there's a common conflation between the romantic and the pastoral in the general cultural consensus because the pastoral a) has been around as an art term longer than romantic, and b) romanticism does use some similar imagery. but there is a key difference: the pastoral is specfically an idealization of 'the simple shepherding life,' often for high class and urban audiences who have no conception of the details of this life includes. one of the more famous examples is christopher marlowe's a passionate shepherd to his love, published in 1599:

Come live with me and be my love,

And we will all the pleasures prove,

That Valleys, groves, hills, and fields,

Woods, or steepy mountain yields.

And we will sit upon the Rocks,

Seeing the Shepherds feed their flocks,

By shallow Rivers to whose falls

Melodious birds sing Madrigals.

And I will make thee beds of Roses

And a thousand fragrant posies,

A cap of flowers, and a kirtle

Embroidered all with leaves of Myrtle;

A gown made of the finest wool

Which from our pretty Lambs we pull;

Fair lined slippers for the cold,

With buckles of the purest gold;

A belt of straw and Ivy buds,

With Coral clasps and Amber studs:

And if these pleasures may thee move,

Come live with me, and be my love.

The Shepherds’ Swains shall dance and sing

For thy delight each May-morning:

If these delights thy mind may move,

Then live with me, and be my love.

whereas romanticism is a more pointedly specific movement that was active from around 1800 to 1850, primarily focused on intense emotion and catharsis as the primary experiential output of an artwork. which most prominently manifested in a deep fascination and glorification of the natural environment and historical nostalgia. the movement sprung from the german sturm und drang (literally storm and drive/stress) period of the late 1760s to early 1780s, which was a direct reaction to rationalism and enlightenment. romanticism had similar impulses; it was also a revival of medievalism and a reaction against the looming urban sprawl and mechanization of the industrial revolution. a typical romantic poem from one of the originators of the english movment william wordsworth, composed upon westminster bridge, september 3, 1802, originally published 1807:

Earth has not any thing to show more fair:

Dull would he be of soul who could pass by

A sight so touching in its majesty:

This City now doth, like a garment, wear

The beauty of the morning; silent, bare,

Ships, towers, domes, theatres, and temples lie

Open unto the fields, and to the sky;

All bright and glittering in the smokeless air.

Never did sun more beautifully steep

In his first splendour, valley, rock, or hill;

Ne'er saw I, never felt, a calm so deep!

The river glideth at his own sweet will:

Dear God! the very houses seem asleep;

And all that mighty heart is lying still!

this romantic fascination with nature was underpinned by the philosophy of the sublime, generally agreed to be first treatised by edmund burke in 1756, the theory was also written about by kant and hegel. in the simplest of terms, the sublime is a quality of greatness beyond calculation, imitation, and human comprehension. the sublime is twofold; the greatness of the ocean is beautiful, but its power is also terrifying, and the experience of the sublime is to feel those two at once. to be in awe and also to be horrified of its ability to sink ships and drown a life in a tempermental change of tide.

let's take a quick detour to talk about

clothing

in the present day we have become much more lax thanks to the aesthetic movement in the late nineteenth century, but back in the early victorian period there are still highly structured rules about when and what clothing one can wear in public. and the clothing itself is also highly structured. anyone with a passing understanding of the victorian era knows about the whole flashing of the ankle thing and corsets galore, and it is true that the general day to day garments cover a lot of area. for men in particular, this manifests in no less than three layers in public at all times: shirt, waistcoat, and suit jacket, with a coat or mantle overtop in colder temperatures. this also includes a variation of a neck tie (depending on what year), hat, gloves, and any other decided upon accessories (this can also include a corset and other padded structural underpinnings). an important tangent to mention here is that this is the uniform of the upper classes, although the rules do apply to the lower classes if they wanted to appear 'sophisticated.' the working man's uniform was also shirt, waistcoat, trousers, but the difference here is in the textiles themselves; the colours tended to be much more drab, with less complicated patterns. obviously due to the price fabric itself, but also due to the labour of laundry. an indicator of class here is the white shirt itself and its pristine implications. (there is a longer conversation here about the invention of neckties and detachable collars and cuffs, but that's for another day). the silhouettes are very important to note here in the higher mv, as they are directly referential to the 'romantic poet' archetype of loose shirt and tight pants that we see in popular culture. but as i've just said, the reality is that men of the era were not dressed like this out in public. this look is essentially underwear; the implications are salacious. so where did this come from? well, we can blame it mostly on lord byron, who by all accounts was the first western 'rockstar.' notoriously called 'mad, bad and dangerous to know' by lady caroline lamb (a married women he publically had an affair with), byron was openly bisexual and deeply hedonistic with a lot of questionable habits, but his poetry was so popular that he was known to have women following him in the street and gathering in large quanities to see him at salons. and this was close to three decades before lizstomania. his close friends and contemporaries included percy and mary shelley, with whom he lived with abroad in italy for some time (this living arrangement resulted in the writing of both frankenstein and john polidori's the vampyre). byron's reputation was so eclipsing that the image of the lush poet lazing in his undergarments has become its own genre of romantic, slightly removed from the movement byron was writing in. it's also worth it to point out that there are no official portraits of byron dressed like this from the time. the visual assumption is somewhat apochryphal. now let's get into some specifics. a.c.e is not unfamiliar to this silhouette; as previously mentioned in this post i wrote about their styling, the boxy loose upper and fitted lower is their general mode for their styling because of its emphasis on legs. cactus was the most extreme example of this, and to prove my point, this specific silhouette is extremely common in classical ballet:

1. vaslav nijinsky, giselle, 1911 2. nehemiah kish, george balanchine's ballo della regina, 2011/12

higher fits very neatly into this same category: we have an emphasis on the legs through tightly fitted garments and also through light reflective textile, as well as a secondary emphasis on arm and shoulder movements with looser fit shirts. plus, the shirts are made from fabrics that have good drape and flow, and mimic the visual effects of water:

there are also several instances of scale patterning and wetlook hair styles, further elabourating on the siren theme. and the jewelry is the same, purposefully cut clear stones for oceanic sparkle or pearls, the gem directly born from water, as highlighting accents to specific parts of the body - namely eyes, hands, and torso:

the body jewelry also serves a double purpose in addition to being sparkly; it gives a semblance of shape to their torsos so their movements aren't totally lost in the shroud of their shirts, and it also invokes some of that salacious element that us as a modern audience doesn't necessarily perceive in the same way when we see a man wearing only a shirt. all of these points are especially prominent in the stage costuming. concerning the veils, these are an aesthetic choice following the theme of depicting water without actually using water. the song has a very breathless quality to it, and the lyrics directly make reference to water and breathlessness, so it only makes sense to have a physical manifestation of struggling to breathe.

now let's talk about

mise-en-scène

unlike most kpop mvs, I would argue that higher is not a spectacle in what we normally see spectacle to be. the overwhelming visual saturation of goblin (and the goblin remix) is more in line with what we expect, but how do you follow that, top it? the answer is that you don't. you aim for something with a completely different feel, which is exact what they did with higher.

the performing arts did not escape romanticism. the very start of the movement, sturm und drang, is actually named from a specific play written by friedrich maximilian klinger that premiered in 1777. the plays of the brief period are characterized by extreme and passionate emotions, and were siblings to one of the most famous genres of theatre, the melodrama. meant to appeal directly to the emotions of the audience using sensationalist plots and stock characters, the melodrama was the predominent form of entertainment in victorian england and gradually developed a specific form of its own. in this period we also start to see the development of 'stagecraft' into the recognizable form that it takes today. footlights, limelight/spotlighting, the separation of house and stage lighting, fly galleries, elevator platform mechanics, and the first (purported) western use of rear projection are all innovations of the late 18th and 19th centuries, as melodramas were known to have very intricate and spectacular stagings. and to go along with these stagecraft mechanics we see the rise in designated stage crews, which were predominantly off-duty sailors looking to make money. the rope systems that made up the fly galleries were very similar to that on ships, and much of the terminology and supersitions crossed over: this is the origin of the term 'rigging' being used for suspending set elements, and also the origin of the 'don't whistle in a theatre' superstition. as sailors communicated with whistle patterns on ships, the same system was adopted for changing scenery, and therefore whistling a random pattern could potentially drop a setpiece on an unsuspecting victim.

so with all this backstory out of the way, what is the very first full location we see? a stage, complete with forced perspective via the painted fabric legs (the side panels) and borders (the wavy upper panels). we even have a flat painted backdrop with a projection screen and hanging overhead lamps. there's also a second interior set, a desk in what looks to be a study of some kind. bit self explanatory on this one, taking the poet notion on the nose.

the locations have a bit of an obtuse arc, but it's there when you look for it. it starts interior spaces, where the ideas of sublime attempted to be recreated for the viewer. then it moves to transitory spaces; portions of nature isolated from a whole environment, interjections of human architecture into natural spaces:

(the white hut structure in the greenhouse is reminiscent of a skene (literally hut/tent), which is the structure at the back of the stage in ancient greek theatre used for the actors to change their masks and costumes. it was originally temporary, but slowly transformed into permanent stage architecture)

and then finally outdoors, into the sublime itself:

jwm turner, crossing the bridge, 1815

lastly,

lighting

there's a very clear lighting pattern here, primarily in light and dark. the base colour story is fairly simple complementary pairs; there's a lot of purple/red and green, and blue and yellow/amber, with everything relatively on the same tonal level. there are deliberate interjections of heavily saturated red for specific effect. there are also, most notably, a 'dark' version of all the sets. obviously as a reference to the eclipse that we see in the mv and in the concept photo series, but also as a reference to that darker undercurrent of the sublime, the upsetting, the uncanny, and the terrifying:

And the bay was white with silent light/Till rising from the same/Full many shapes, that shadows were/In crimson colours came.

#a.c.e #ace w #kpop analysis #group analysis #me - a staunch defender of kpop as valid spectacle: actually this one is a melodrama its meant to hit different #this essay is otherwise known as the quickest and dirtiest history of romanticism ever #i really should have pointed out that when i say romantic i mean romantic with a capital r #that probably would clear up some confusion but i have an aesthetic to maintain do not @ me #this is potentially the most pretentious thing i have ever written i am so sorry if this makes no sense #some of these connections are so tenuous who let me have opinions on the internet #did i write this as an excuse to look at the percy shelley memorial because i am obsessed with it as a piece of art? maybe #anyways read tom stoppard's arcadia if you want to know more about that #you should read all this with the caveat that the sublime and romanticism need to be deconstructed through a postcolonialist lens #because these theories are super colonialist about 'unclaimed untameable natural spaces'#when in reality most natural spaces are specifically architected by indigenous peoples in order to preserve and coexist with the ecosystem #this is may be more obviously applicable to american subliminal painting than european but it still applies #since the british were notoriously good at fucking up every kind of expedition ever #because of their lack of respect for literally anything and everything #and their inability to listen to anyone other than another white british person #see: history of the northwest passage #im a bad theorist and not caught up so i didnt get that deep into it because counter to the wordcount #i am not trying to write another dissertation #this is not as well researched as it could be but also im not reading burke and kant again #also yes byron the shelleys and polidori did just bang out the foundations for all of science fiction and romantic vampire mythology #in like three days because the all got bored during a storm and want to try and 'outscare' each other #also by 1840 like every prominent romantic poet was dead either from their own stupidity or tuberculosis #with the exception of wordsworth that motherfucker started the movement and then outlived it #text

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k-s-morgan · 3 years

Note

Hi Kat, what do you think of Dumbledore? IMHO, he's one of the most fascinatingly morally grey characters I've ever read about.

A lot of fanfic writers love to bash him and portray him as an idiotic senile old man who likes to poke his nose in others' business. They conveniently forget that he outwitted the most Slytherin out of all of Slytherin House. Granted, Voldemort was amazingly short-sighted and JK could have written a more terrifyingly cunning Dark Lord.

Well, there was Dumbledore’s Wizard Nazi youth with Grindelwald. Perfectly understandable because Ariana's childhood was completely ruined and he learnt just how Muggles can be dangerous. I don't think he ever forgot this epiphany.

For a long time, I wondered how Dumbledore, knowing perfectly well how the Dursleys were pre-disposed to magic, would think they would welcome Harry with open arms. He must have known that emotional abuse and neglect could make Harry an Obscurial. No blood-protection could have ever saved him from that. It's only Harry's innate stubbornness and his contempt of the Dursleys that saved him from what Ariana went through. This is quite possibly the worst thing Dumbledore could have done, along with sending Tom Riddle back to Wool's during the Blitz. Even though it was Dippet who made the decision, he was heavily influenced by Dumbledore and could have, at the very least, arranged to have Tom live in The Leaky Cauldron.

Many times I wondered why Dumbledore didn't simply threaten the Dursleys to treat Harry better. Thinking about it, I could only come to the conclusion that the power disparity between him and the Dursleys made him uncomfortable. As it comes down to, he is a strong wizard who coerced Muggles to look after a child they didn't want.

Another fascinating thing about him is his fear of power. Dumbledore didn't trust himself to hold power and he extended the same mistrust to many others, making himself rather emotionally detached from even those who sincerely loved and admired him. I think Dumbledore trusted himself to do right by the Wizarding World as a whole but not enough for personal gain. Dumbledore was weak to temptations personally (keeping the Invisibility cloak for nearly 10 years and falling prey to the compulsions on the Gaunt Ring when he saw the Resurrection Stone). So I think the only person Dumbledore truly admired and envied was Harry who was strong-willed inna way Dumbledore and Voldemort could never hope to be.

Related ask: I'm very curious if you have any headcannons about grindelwald and dumbledore's relationship that you'd like to share. I've always been drawn to the grindeldore ship for similar reasons that i like tommary (ex: enemies/lovers, moral angst) and i've always been disappointed that so many tommary shippers resent dumbledore, so I really like to hear you talk about the moral complexities of his character (and to hear that someone other than me can sympathize with him lol)

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

Hope you both don't mind that I combined your asks because parts of them concern the same topic!

First, about Grindelwald and Dumbledore. I like the idea of their relationship, but for some reason, I'm not really interested in them, so I don't have any specific headcanons. I do enjoy the idea that they were It for each other and that they could have made it if given another chance, but both had to be more mature and less obsessed with their life goals. I also tend to think that Dumbledore locked himself away for a while after their duel and cried from heartbreak.

As for Dumbledore as a character: I understand what drives him, the decisions he makes, and I have respect for him and his brilliant mind. I can't say I like him a lot, but I also don't dislike him - in my eyes, his worst actions clash with his most vulnerable moments, and so they balance each other out and my attitude is neutral.

@anyariddle, I fully agree with you about Dumbledore being one of the most fascinating morally grey characters. I'm in awe at how excellent his long-term thinking is and how he's capable of calculating everything years, if not decades, ahead; how coldness co-exists with empathy and deep sorrow.

Personally, I have no doubts that Dumbledore left Harry with the Durlseys deliberately to break him down. He heard Minerva's concerns, he must have conducted his own research. He also had Arabella watch Harry for years, and she definitely saw the abuse and reported everything back to him. But this time, unlike how it was with Tom, I believe Dumbledore tried to make sure it's a controlled abuse. If Harry proved to be a sullen boy with dark displays of magic, like Tom was, Dumbledore would have likely removed him from the Dursleys early and tried another approach before it's too late.

But Harry showed the response Dumbledore had been hoping for: he was the perfect material just waiting for someone to show him love and acceptance, eager to give them all his fierce devotion in return. Dumbledore needed someone who'll be ready to sacrifice himself for humanity, someone who never had a home, who'll see Hogwarts and people there as the only light in his life, and who'll cling to it with desperation only lonely and neglected children could show. Dumbledore started early: all the letters he sent to Harry were meant to humiliate the Dursleys and make his first contact with magic pleasant. Harry started to laugh and feel a little bit more powerful; then he got a room, and he quickly linked the letters with something good and welcoming. After getting a home and meeting friends, Harry would die in an instance to protect them.

Every year, Dumbledore tested Harry to see if he'd be ready to sacrifice himself at the end. In CoS, I believe Dumbledore tried to remove the Horcrux from him via the fang, but it didn't work and he realized Harry would indeed have to die. I have no doubts it broke his heart because he was still harboring hope that one day, Harry would live freely and happily.

In regard to Harry, most his decisions were manipulative in nature, and it's horrifying. In regard to the rest of the world, though, it makes sense because if Harry's death helps save many other people, then it's worth it.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but Obscurials came later, in the Fantastic Beasts? I don't really consider these later additions canon - to be honest, there are so many plot-holes there that it drives me mad, and I have no doubts stuff like this wasn't planned from the start, so I don't take it into consideration in my interpretations and analysis. With Blood Magic, it's pretty ineffective as a whole. It doesn't protect Harry outside, and since he spends half of the day (if not longer) there, anyone interested could grab him. Him living at Hogwarts or with one of trusted Order Members would have been far more safe, but in my opinion, Dumbledore wanted a broken child with low self-esteem, and it affected his decisions.

At the same time, I have no doubts Dumbledore hated himself for this. He sacrificed people, but it was never easy for him. He was confident that he was doing the right thing, and this confidence helped him go on, but it tormented him all the same.

And I agree with you that he didn't trust himself with power and this affected some of his choices. He never became the Minister; he was wary of powerful people. This partly explains his mistakes with Tom: instead of helping a traumatized (albeit creepy) child, Dumbledore kept his distance and remained suspicious. He didn't lift a finger to help, not even when he could (and he had to know Tom was the heir of Slytherin after hearing about talking to snakes yet he still left him in he dark). I don't think Dumbledore hated Tom himself from the first sight, but rather he saw a mirror to himself and Grindelwald - someone young, powerful, and eager for public recognition. And it horrified him.

I think after Grindelwald, Dumbledore dedicated himself to protecting the world from this specific threat so thoroughly that he gave up everything for it. He sacrificed others, but he also sacrificed himself. I doubt he even hoped for Harry's forgiveness, but he still got it because that's who Harry is.

#albus dumbledore #personal #harry potter

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