#i didn't actually mind this episode too much but i live in fear of the fact that the valentines episode will be next after this human final

[spinetrick]

dehumanizes your aliens

#solar opposites spoilers #solar opposites season 4 #solar opposites #jesse #yumyulack #terry #korvo #being self indulgent here #i did mess around with the idea of making human redesigns but ultimately i just want them to be their googly-eyed regular selves #i didn't actually mind this episode too much but i live in fear of the fact that the valentines episode will be next after this human final #surely they won't respect continuity... that would be too cruel..

[griffonsgrove]

Hiiii!!! See your doing writing requests for Hazbin, Its my hyperfixation so I am in need of more content 👀 so I'd like to request maybe Vox general or NSFW headcanon ( either one is good lol-) with a afab reader maybe? This is my first time requesting something like this so sorry if I'm a little nervous or bad at requesting. I think this is how people are supposed to request? XD

General Dating Headcanons | Vox

a/n: You're totally alright dear! You said everything just fine! As I've stated before, I got early access to the first two episodes, and it's been so interesting to analyze vox's character! I hope I can do him justice!! He's starting to grow on me now. I'm gonna stick with a gn!reader just because these are general headcanons and I want them to be suited for anyone!

fandom: Hazbin Hotel

wordcount: 1299

cw: SPOILERS FOR HAZBIN HOTEL, swearing, vulgar content, stalking, death and mentions of death/murder., toxic/absuive relationships.

(PLATONIC):

Vox’s got eyes EVERYWHERE in hell. There is no escaping his line of sight unless you go completely off the grid. Which is pretty difficult to do when the entirety of pentagram city is covered head to toe in VoxTech.

However, if you don't pose a threat to him, he really doesn't give a shit about you otherwise, and won’t pay that much attention to your life.

When you first fell into hell, you were mostly confused as to how you wound up here in the first place. That quickly subsided into fear as you noticed the large variety of demons and sinners casually walking down the sidewalk like it was an average tuesday. 

You’ll never forget the sight of seeing a demon gnaw off the arm of another and swallow it whole, like it was an all-you-can-eat buffet. 

You wander aimlessly down the streets, keeping to yourself and being very cautious of those around you. Your clothes were in tatters, and you didn't have any form of money whatsoever, what were you to do??

You had two options: Somehow find a job in this new horrific realm, or, die.

You didn't care too much for the latter.

This is how you stumble across one of the largest studios/clubs in hell, owned by probably the most feared overlords in pentagram city. The V’s. 

You get hired to be nothing more than a waiter/waitress, to serve the patrons of the club, mostly serving them their drinks.

You weren't too fond of the work uniform either. It left nothing to the imagination, and exposed alot of skin, far too much to your liking. The job actually paid somewhat decently though and it was enough to be able to sustain a living. You were quick to rent out the nearest apartment.

One day, while you’re out on the main floor, making your rounds, your eyes briefly lock with the TV demon across a sea of sinners. Call it cheesy, but it was almost like a spark went off the moment he laid eyes on you. Which is something that doesn't happen often with the tech-savvy overlord. Who were you??

He lazily beckons you over with a claw, to which you obediently follow, although it doesn't hide the sheer nervousness written all over your face, He gives you his drink order in that sultry, velvet voice of his, eyeing you up. You gulp slightly and are quick to bring him his order. He thought you were so cute trembling for him.

He begins to stalk observe you closer after that. If you have any electronic devices he’ll watch you through your screens, trying to get a glimpse into what your life was like outside of work. The things you enjoyed doing in your free time, favorite shows, foods etc.

He def goes through your search history.

He would start showing up more in the sections you worked at, oftentimes minding his business, but occasionally striking up a conversation with you.

You did have to admit he was quite the charmer, his smooth voice was hypnotic to you.

OBSESSIVE TENDENCIES. If he notices some creep won't leave you alone while you're working, he’ll take care of them personally, it’s never a pretty sight afterwards. He cant have anyone taking what's his.

You're oblivious to his stalking and possessiveness, you don't think much of it, maybe that's because he puts on a friendly face when you’re around him.

But after some time of getting to know you, He’s the one that eventually asks you out on a “date”. You’re skeptical at first, but decide to accept his offer. And also partially because you were afraid of what would happen if you said no.

(ROMANTIC):

Ngl it’s kind of a situationship in the beginning.

Vox is a busy man, it’s constant work maintaining the studios (especially valentinos temper) and managing the entirety of hell's technology. So, he may ghost you at first.

That being said, He will still keep an eye on you. He often watches through your phone while you sleep, just to make sure you’re safe. Hell is a dangerous place after all.

Speaking of, you’re now under the protection of the V’s, so that’s a plus! You never have to worry about another demon laying a finger on you. They usually never get close enough to anyways.

He very easily gets jealous. He won't show it on the outside because he has an image to uphold, but you can tell every time from that crazed look in his eyes.

Vox is a possessive lover; he wants to keep you all to himself. If he could, he’d keep you locked up by his side all day.

CONTROLLING. He HAS to know where you’re at, at all times, and who you’re going to be with (lest you face one of his tantrums). Also dictates what you wear, He likes to dress you up to his liking, like you’re his own personal doll.

Insecure much?

Say goodbye to privacy btw. He constantly has you in the back of his mind and a watchful eye on you. It can be kind of suffocating at times. The two of you have gotten into a few arguments because of this.

Valentino gets jealous of you too. How dare you take his boy-toy away from him? He’s often giving you the stink eye and will threaten you behind vox’s back. You’re too scared to tell Vox, because you don't want to face Val’s wrath.

You know briefly of his and Val’s “relationship” it all had seemed very one-sided and completely unhealthy.

You're often having to calm Vox down. The man has a very short temper and is easily provoked. 

Imagine you pressing little kisses to his screen after he found out about Alastor’s return. He remains stoic, but secretly enjoys your affection.

Some of the pet names he loves to call you include; Doll, Dear, Darling, Sweetheart, Babe.

Pretty old-fashioned ik, but he's a classy man alright?

He tends to be pretty touchy, always having a clawed hand on the small of your back, or an arm wrapped around your waist. It’s more of a possessive trait of his, to keep what's his close.

He loves having you sprawled on his lap while he’s in his screen room, you stay nuzzled into his side, often taking naps while he does broadcasts.

He TOTALLY spoils you btw. He’s one of the most powerful overlords in hell, ofc he has the money to show it. Whatever dingy apartment you had before, forget about it bc this man has you living in a penthouse suite in one of the most expensive apartment buildings. He sees you looking at something in a store or online?? Boom, it’s yours now.

He loves buying you clothes, as I’ve said before, you're his “doll” and he loves playing dress up with you.

And if you buy him something?? He’s taken by surprise at first, he’s never really been on the receiving end of that affection, so whatever it is you give him he’ll cherish it.

If you ever have someone bothering you, or want to get rid of, you just say the word babe. He’ll be feeding them to his sharks >:)

The man is emotionally constipated, ok?? All he’s ever known from relationships is what he shared with Val (and trust me that was a train wreck). He’s rough around the edges, short-tempered and isn't always easy to get along with, and he’s incredibly possessive which can be suffocating to deal with at times. This probably stems from him not wanting to actually be alone, He doesn't want you to slip out of his grasp, so he keeps a tight leash on you. But underneath all these flaws, he really does love you and care about you. At the end of the day, He just wants someone that will stay.

#hazbinhotel #hazbinhotelxreader #xreader #gender neutral reader #vox x reader #vox #vox hazbin hotel #hazbin hotel vox #hazbin x reader #headcanons #dating headcanons #hazbin hotel vox x reader #hazbin

[aangarchy]

Netflix atla live action review ep 4-6

So, they completely ruined Bumi. Spoiler warning.

The more episodes pass by the more confused i get with the choices that were made. I wrote down commentary for the episodes and the thing that i wrote down the most was "why does this happen?". The writing is incredibly confusing and messy, feels too rushed in some spaces and too slow in others. There's just... so much going on and so little at the same time. They brought in elements that in the OG don't get introduced until later in s1, s2, the comics, or even the legend of Korra. The reason these things get introduced so early here is not clear at all, because they don't serve any purpose other than to be an obstacle to Aang, Sokka and Katara on their way to the North.

Mai and Ty Lee are.. there. They get introduced earlier but they don't serve any purpose at the moment other than stand around, watch Azula train, ask questions so that Azula can give us the answers the viewer needs. My guess is they only got introduced for the audience who watched the OG to go "oh we know them!". We get the secret tunnel story earlier too, but it has absolutely nothing to do with love. Somehow "love is brightest in the dark" now correlates to the badgermoles being able to sense a human's emotion. It's a waste of a storyline, doesn't teach us anything about love, gives us Omashu lore which is useless bc neither Sokka nor Katara actually use love to escape the tunnels. Also Oma and Shu are lesbians now, but you only know that bc they changed Shu's pronouns. Wow, so progressive! We have lesbians in the story now! Boy do i feel represented as a sapphic!

We get Koh early on as well, but his entire gig got changed. Now suddenly he doesn't steal faces but he "feeds", and hunts using the fog of lost souls (which is tlok lore mind you) as a tool to trap humans. We introduce the mother of faces (comic book lore!), or rather pendant of her that Koh owns. There's no reason for her to exist in this story though other than to be an easter egg to everyone who read the search (Not even the majority of the fandom!) and to offer a solution to this problem we've created, which is Koh capturing our friends in order to eat them and us not being able to convince him into letting them go. There's no feeling of dread in the Koh scenes at all because the whole problem of not showing emotion is just not a thing now. No suspense, no fear, just a weird cgi clown face worm. The worm doesn't even menacingly circle around Aang to invoke a feeling of being surrounded, it just sits there. I also just don't understand why Koh is here already bc now who is going to give us information about Tui and La?

This decision also creates a problem that Hei Bai's story just isn't about Hei Bai anymore. We get fed a few lines from a talking fox about how the forest spirit got hurt, but there's really no solution? Aang buries a pinecone in front of the statue and tells him not to give up hope but he didn't even really need to do that, because Hei Bai wasn't the one kidnapping villagers! It was Koh. Why did we appease Hei Bai if Koh was the real villain? Hei Bai/Koh's story leads us to Roku, but Roku is completely useless. All he does is undermine Kyoshi's advice to Aang, tell Aang about the mother of faces pendant so he can appease Koh, and then we leave. I knew in advance Roku wasn't going to warn Aang about the comet here bc Albert Kim already told us working with a deadline like that with child actors is just impossible. But with Roku suddenly not being Aang's main Avatar guide he just gets nothing to do. There's no suspense in this part of the story either, bc the time limit of the winter solstice isn't a thing here at all. Aang also ends up flying over Fire Nation borders without issue, and gets led right into the sanctuary without the puzzle of figuring out how to open the door, and without the problem of Zhao's soldiers waiting for him when he comes out. It creates this issue of there not being any excitement, at least for me. I genuinely am getting a bit bored with the show, which was never an issue with the OG for me. There's a reason all of this extra material didn't get introduced until later on. There's too many characters and they all get too little time to really do anything useful, they're not fleshed out, the stories aren't thought through and it ends up getting very confusing and boring. I'm genuinely curious for the perspective of people who have never watched the OG cartoon, bc i wonder if they're even able to follow along without prior knowledge of this universe.

Bumi is just... not Bumi. They completely changed his character to be this bitter old senile man that resents Aang for abandoning the world. This doesn't make any sense because in this version of the story Bumi shouldn't know that Aang is the Avatar at all, because Aang was told right before he disappeared! So why does Bumi immediately know that Aang is the Avatar, and why does Aang immediately recognize him? Also the original point of Bumi's tests is to get Aang to approach fights and puzzles from a different angle, so he can learn versatility as the Avatar. But here the tests are just happening because Bumi is mad at Aang for leaving and wants to get back at him for being gone so long. He says some lines about Aang having to learn to make hard choices and you can't rely on your friends, but Aang ends up proving him wrong in the end! What is even the point of Bumi's part in the story now, except for him just being another obstacle on the way to the North Pole?

There's a lot of instances where I feel like the bond between characters gets completely lost. We barely spend any time with the side characters like the mechanist, Teo, Jet and the freedom fighters, and the people in the spirit village. It makes some scenes feel very out of place. These storylines all happen at once, and they don't get their individual moments to shine. We have no room to feel betrayed by Jet or Sai, because we barely got to know them to begin with. Jet and Sai only spend time with One member of the gaang each, but when their betrayals come to light the rest of the group acts devastated, as if it was their dear friend. Sokka also gets really mad about the Jet thing, but he only met Jet once when he smuggled them into Omashu, and Jet didn't even tell Sokka his name. He said it afterwards when Katara met him again. It makes absolutely no sense why Sokka is yelling at Katara for trusting Jet only bc she finds him attractive, when Sokka wasn't even there during all of that!

The sense of family between the gaang that we get from the original also just doesn't happen here. Especially because these characters so far have spent more time apart than together. Aang constantly gets separated from Sokka and Katara, leaving no room for them to bond. We get Katara and Sokka bonding, but they shouldn't need those types of scenes because they're already siblings (which isn't very clear in the show either btw!). I ended up forgetting that Sokka and Katara were trapped by Koh, bc we spend so much time away from them (a whole episode, which is now an hour!).

I have little to no criticism for the Blue Spirit story. Want to guess why that is? Bc they left it pretty much untouched. We even get a little bit of an extra scene, with Zuko and Aang talking while Zuko recovers after getting hurt during the escape. I liked this choice, especially bc it highlights how conflicted Zuko is.

This is where we get Zuko's backstory. I have one question here: why did they make Ozai more sensible and less ruthless? Was that a Daniel Dae Kim decision? Bc it feels like a Daniel Dae Kim thing to do. They're very on the nose with the way Ozai is abusing Zuko and Azula, but then they turn around and make this man visit Zuko after he burned him and praise Zuko about finding the Avatar. I understand that they did this to show how Ozai uses Zuko's accomplishments in order to push Azula, but even if it were to do that: the original Ozai would NEVER. The problem here as well is that they don't let the viewers draw any conclusions themselves anymore. They're holding the viewer's hand through the whole thing, leaving no room for nuance or doubt.

I just finished episode 7 and 8 and I have Things To Say. None of which are good. Writing it down is challenging so it might take a day or two.

#atla #avatar the last airbender #avatar #netflix atla #atla netflix #natla #netflix #atla live action #atla live action spoilers

[darlenicy]

Darcy and Riven – their story and why I ship them

In January 2023 I found my way back into the Winx fandom - more precisely, I created this Tumblr on January 28th, 2023 and since then I have been constantly passionate about this show from my childhood. Most of all, of course, for our three favorite witches. Accordingly, this year I have given a lot of thought and HCs to the Trix and their relationships. Today is the day that I'm going to write down all of these HCs and thoughts I have and tag them properly so that they're easier to find in my jumble of posts, reblogs and crazy fangirling. Well, have fun!

I got my first anon ask about Driven headcanons (hcs most of the time now) in march and therefore tried to order my thoughts on this topic as well. It actually became something of a definition of their relationship and how I see them in the show: This is how my bullet journal looks:

Riven is pretty badass. That's why Rivusa doesn't make much sense because ego-wise he would have gone after best-girl-Bloom. Or Princess Stella, but more Bloom, simply because Brandon (Sky) obviously found Bloom interesting.

Then there is Darcy. Not only is she the complete opposite of the loud, glittering fairy gang, but she also forms a stark contrast to Riven. She is powerful, yes, but above all she is calm, goal-oriented and come on in 1x8 we see how cute she is. Of course, Riven likes her power-talk in 1x9 but he surely is keen on her because she is a totally different type of girl than Musa or Stella.

Oh, and an important thing that just came to my mind while supervising what I wrote and putting it into a post: DARCY DID NOT MIND-CONTROL HIM IN CANON!

Her glowing eyes meant that she formed the connection with Riven, so that he could contact her mentally later on in the show!

It's fkn 4kids who came up with the mind control because they tend to downplay everything for all American kids' sake. - Ok back to the post:

In terms of type, if comparted to the fairies, Darcy is mostly like Flora, but in contrast to the nature fairy, she has a much more self-confident demeanor. She is also the first to respond to Riven as a person and his needs (power, being recognized). Then of course there is the matter of rescue. Firstly: Thanks for saving my life and secondly: The woman can ride this flying motorcycle like a guy. Where can you find something like that? And unlike the Winx, who are constantly in trouble, Darcy (and her sisters) is beyond competent (in Season 1 after all, we know how the writing goes down, *sigh*). So, we have Darcy: a beautiful, competent badass BB who just saved his life and looks like an angel that fell from heaven - all in the specialist uniform too - sexyyy. So, it's an extremely attractive girl who also knows guy things and cares about him and really sees and perceives him as a person. She's not a self-centered good-time girl who makes him clean, so she doesn't have to endure her punishment alone (looking at you, Winx....)

But who exactly is Darcy? (she's my girl, my bb, my queen) Out of the Trix, she is probably the one who is least behind the world domination plans. Of course, she is still a member of the Trix - and of course not less power-hungry than her sisters. But she would be the one most likely to give up everything to live a quiet but fulfilling life with the person she loves. Isn't she? She is definitely the first to panic and to make mistakes as a result. We remember episode 1x5, where she immediately panicked when everything didn't work out as planned. She thought she would find Stella's ring in no time, that wasn't the case. Instead of keeping a cool head like Icy would have, she freaks out and starts attacking Bloom. Is it fear because she is running out of time and doesn't know what to do if her disguise is exposed? In any case, Darcy would have been expected to wear a more confident disguise. But in the end, she's the one most likely to panic and this episode shows that perfectly. Maybe that's also the reason why she has clever ideas, but often doesn't think them through. In episode 2x10 she tries to get Icy to put the feather in the scales, fearing that she might have made a mistake and get wiped just like Stormy, who had previously hit the scales with brute force. Icy states very correctly: You’re a backstabbing coward, Darcy. And I love you for that. And with that she the nail right on the head. Darcy is certainly the first of the Trix to get nervous. She certainly has a tendency to overthink, whereas Riven strikes first and thinks later (at best).

Mind control is her specialty. She knows how to get into the minds of her victims to confuse and weaken them. At the same time, she also knows how uncertain and dangerous feelings can be. When it comes to having deep feelings for someone else, she is more likely to be the one who is insecure and cautious. Precisely because feelings are so uncertain, she probably tries to make decisions with her head rather than with her guts.

Their love story is iconic and cute. Basically, we have good girl and bad boy, but the good girl is one of the bad guys and the bad boy is ultimately one of the good guys. They haven't really fought against each other yet. Riven only knows that Darcy is one of the most powerful witches in Cloud Tower and that she and her sisters hate the Winx. Since Riven is skeptical of the Winx himself and has no deeper connection to them, he has little to do with this antipathy from both sides and perhaps only hears about it in passing from Brandon or Sky. So in 1x7 he doesn't pay much attention to the Trix. The fact that he turns on the light and exposes the Trix is once again Riven being Riven. He wants to be the cool dude and doesn't really care about the situation. He simply has no interest in the Winx's affairs and is only pissed when he becomes personally involved with Musa being thrown into his arms by the minotaur. Maybe that’s where his inner hero speaks? But first and foremost, he wants to praise himself. The first time he really notices Darcy is in 1x8, where she represents to him the complete opposite of the fairies, one of which had just shown him up (Bloom).

Darcy, on the other hand, is already interested in Riven in 1x7 and hides the whole thing behind the talk about the Prince of Darkness (seriously, WHO is the Prince of Darkness? Why is that never clarified?). One episode later, she's extremely worried that something might happen to Riven with Icy's, admittedly delicate, plan. bb obviously already has a crush on him. And no one can claim that Icy doesn't know this and is actively using it for her plan. I think that Darcy's feelings didn't matter to her at all, thinking she'd get over it sooner or later. But the fact is, even Icy sees the spark fly between them.

So you could say it was love at first sight for both of them. It is also important for Riven that after all the disappointments and constant criticism he was exposed to at Red Fountain, someone finally recognizes him and his talents. While the Winx, especially Stella, just complained about him, Darcy supported what he was. Partly because she can take advantage of his ambitions, of course, and partly because she simply likes him. I think there are some things Darcy does simply for herself and not because it's part of the plan to rule the Magic Dimension.

From Riven's point of view, what probably also speaks for Darcy is her maturity. She's not a little fairy to save. The opposite is the case. She is probably more experienced in other things too - but that always depends on the respective HC. Darcy can be a bad bitch and cute bb - both are accurate. For me though, she gives more bb vibes than bitch vibes. However, she appears much more mature and confident than the fairies. Speaking of bb (she's one, look at her!) -

she's the type most likely to develop romantic feelings. Icy is too calculating and Stormy is just there for the passion (if you get what I mean). In 2x2 we have this scene "*sigh* To be young and in love...".

She's also the one of the Trix most likely to feel something resembling remorse, if only for her time with Riven. On the other hand, in season 2 we have Riven, who immediately sees through Darcy's attacks - because he knows them. Very well. There is probably still a connection between the two. There could have been more hints about their relationship besides “cute” and “not cute”. There could have been one or two longing looks. I FELL ROBBED.

That’s basically how I interpret their story and why I ship them. I’ll come up with some headcanons these days as well. Stay tuned :3

#a bunch of Driven thoughts! #winx club #winx #winx club thoughts #winx trix #winx darcy #winx riven #winx darcy and riven #trix #darcy x riven #riven x darcy #winx driven #winx darven #driven #winx ships #hc #headcanon #driven hc

[these-emo-thoughts]

Last Twilight Episode 11 thoughts

A lot of people are hating on Day right now but I get him. I do. And if you haven't watched episode 11 yet, maybe skip this post as it revolves around a major part of the plot. If you've watched the ep, you probably know what I'm talking about. More detail is under the cut.

Warning, this is a long one, lol. Apologies for any mistakes, I'm a bit sick and didn't read over it 🤣

If you've seen it already, I'm going to explain why I think Mhok and Day's break-up had to happen and why it is the best thing for them right now.

Mhok's fear of losing another person because he isn't there to help or pick up the phone is absolutely valid (and so real and relatable that I feel personally attacked). He doesn't stay with Day out of pity, which has been established multiple times throughout the series - but the trauma of what he went through with Rung and the fear of possibly repeating that again with Day has made his anxiety cloud his judgement and his heart. It's not a healthy way to live - constantly worrying about your partner, to the extent where you cannot live for yourself, is not sustainable for a relationship (I also find this quite ironic because up until this point Mhok has been on his own for a long time now). We saw the manifestation of this fear in episode 11 multiple times too, with Mhok leaving in the middle of the shift to check that the guest that was hit by a car wasn't Day, and then when he was freaking out when Day wasn't answering his phone. Imagine going through all of that, but this time, your partner is 15 hours away by plane.

Day choosing to break up with him is, in my opinion, more complex than just "he lied to me and pitied me". That's part of it (and will come back at the end of this post), yes, and he does have the right to be upset that Mhok lied to him. Again, it's not healthy for the both of them if they are going to continue a relationship. I also want to point out that Day is at a disadvantage here because while he is capable of living his life independently as a blind man, he can't actually see the emotions on people's faces when he talks to them and that's can be important for picking up what others are putting down. Day can't see the changes in Mhok's expression when his smile fades, he has to rely on the other to talk to him when something is up, so lying is a BIG no-no here (as it would be for any relationship). So far, they've done a great job at communicating, so this is presented as new issue - but, it's a big one. So yes, the lying is part of it, but it's not ALL of it.

"But what IS all of it!?" I hear you scream into the Tumblr void. Well, by now, OF COURSE Day knows that Mhok truly loves him and KNOWS that the other doesn't pity him - he's said so many times. So, Day must realise at this point - of which the timeline is probably at a year of them knowing each other, give or take - that Mhok is deliberately holding himself back from good opportunities because of that love. It must hurt like hell, knowing that you're the reason your partner is self-sabotaging, but there's nothing you can do to change their mind because everything is out of your control. It's so much easier for Day to say "Mhok pities me and lied to me and that's why I want to break up" instead of "I'm the reason Mhok won't go".

It's heartbreaking, but what's the solution here? Long distance? Sure, maybe - but that's not going to stop Mhok from worrying about Day and being distracted from his job. It's not going to stop Day from feeling like he's a burden to Mhok. Not only that, with timezones and such a huge distance, there are even more complications to worry about. Plus, let's say something DID happen to Day while Mhok was in Hawaii - it goes back to exactly the problem that Mhok had which is what can he do about it? Long distance is a solution, but how long will they last living like that?

"Okay emo, so why doesn't Day just go to Hawaii with Mhok? Then they can be together and Mhok can fulfil his promise to take him there and they don't have to break up and they'll live happily ever after." I see you!! But... that's a BIG decision. Mhok and Day's trip to Songkhla may have been a test to see how they weather the storm of living together as boyfriends, but it was only for a few days. And Day - for most of it - was alone in the room while Mhok was working. That's not a way for Day to live, and it still won't stop Mhok from being worried, probably even MORESO now because they're in a whole other country.

So... what's left?

Day's decision to break up with Mhok is heartbreaking, but is probably the only solution that makes sense to me. Mhok CANNOT live a life like this. He can't. It's already debilitating him and it'll get even worse if he's constantly prioritising Day over himself in every aspect of life. Of course a person should think about their partner, but not to the point where it becomes unhealthy self-sabotage. Day also cannot live happily like this. He's come to terms living with a disability and already is aware of how different his daily life is to that of a sighted person - but the little voice in the back of his mind, the one reminding him that he's the reason Mhok is not living his life to the fullest, is making the entire process more difficult for him (and the lying really doesn't help).

So... yeah. A necessary evil that unfortunately to many will be written off simply as the "episode 11 curse". An evil that has people already saying that Day is stupid and immature, when I really believe this is the most rational he's been. I know even the actors have said it's about the lying but this is P'Aof we're talking about here - he's a brilliant story-teller, and there's always more to his art than what we see on the surface. It's happened in other shows he's directed, which is why they rate so highly. Last Twilight is no exception, and the complexity of the love story between Mhok and Day is nothing short of a masterpiece. That's how I see it, anyway.

Would love to hear other thoughts and perspectives!

#last twilight #last twilight the series #last twilight episode 11 #character study #mhokday #jimmysea #backaof noppharnach

[voidedsoul5]

OKAY HERE WE GO, ANALYSIS AND THEORY TIME.

Spoilers for the new TMP episode (Ep 8)

NOT ONLY did we get my babygirl back (Who definitely has something going on with him but we'll go back to that later) we also got another hint about one of my other working theories about Celia and this universe... I am losing my mind rn and I need someone to talk to about this even if it's just screaming to the internet void. More below cut. Split it because it's a semi-long post.

I think Gertrude is for SURE coming back at some point, literally no reason for her not to especially considering I don't think TMP team is going to pull the 'But this time she's actually just an innocent old lady' thing. It's cheap, and she likely knows stuff that will come up later when (I believe) she still has worked at the institute before it burned down due to her age. Plus, someone had to have cleared out those files.

Gerry is happy and it makes sense. Gerry in TMA was trying to be a kind person, but he'd witnessed too much and seen too much to be able to do that. In this world, if the fears didn't exist Mary would've likely not been AS deranged. OR mary might not have existed at all given Gertrude claimed Gerry as his grandson. Removing Mary, Gerry really doesn't have a reason to be so reserved and abrasive. HOWEVER. I think there's a possibility that isn't his actual personality. The happiness (as mentioned in the unofficial transcript) is maybe a bit too played up. I wouldn't mind if this is just how he was, a slightly erratic messy artist. But pairing him specifically WITH gertrude in this universe stood out to me. So here's my mini theory.-I'm not saying it's drugs, or Gertrude is casting black magic or something, but I do think she's doing something to keep Gerry out of this 'mess'. Even if that's just living with him and helping him have a normal life as a painter. Gertrude has always had a soft spot for gerry in TMA, in this universe where she's probably not as battle-hardened, trying to keep him safe and out of it all isn't out of character. Mostly, this idea just came from the fact that she tried to brush it off, then seemed disappointed when Gerry spoke about the gifted kids program, despite him being well enough able to speak for himself. She probably doesn't want him involved. This however all relies on the context that Gertrude knows stuff. Honestly, she might just be his grandma that he now lives with either for rent reasons or because his parents might be dead. It could honestly be that simple, I just like rattling off ideas.

CELIA KEEPS DROPPING HINTS OF KNOWING SHIT. SHE KNOWS SOMETHING. SHE KNOWS THINGSSSS. I have another post about my TMA theory of these reoccurring characters from TMA beginning to remember things from the TMA world. Its so incredibly on the nose for her to immediately start asking questions about the 14 fears WE KNOW, ask about alternate universes, AND BE THE ONE WHO PUSHED SAM TO LOOK INTO MORE STUFF ABOUT THE PROGRAM (Sam said it was her idea at the end of Ep 8) I don't know exactly how thisll work, but I get more and more convinced each episode that this theory has some merit.

And this is a small one, but blah blah Norris reading a paper about loneliness, isolation, and hostile architecture blah blah blah metaphors symbolism blah blah you get the jist

I rlly just wanna talk about this show to anyone, I don't have friends who've seen TMA or TMP so my only option is talking about it here. PLS feel free to talk about your own opinions and ideas in reblogs and shit. I don't care if they counter mine I just wanna talk about this show I love it sm </3

#tma #the magnus archives #tmagp #tmagp spoilers #the magnus protocol spoilers #the magnus protocol #sam tmagp #gerry keay #gerry kaey #tmagp theory

[creationsofimaginationsblr]

Black shuddered violently as he stared at the creature in front of him. Whatever it had once been was gone, replaced in his mind by this….thing.

  It was a tall thing now, something he can't imagine had once been that way. Too tall, and so willowy,  like a sickly tree barely holding on as the cool of winter tries to tear it away. It swayed, a faint rhythm leaking into his head, nearly pulling him into the pulse as his breathing tried to slow to follow it.

  It leaned towards him, the movement making the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. It rustled, sounding like a thousand pieces of paper slowly being folded into paper cranes with the volume cranked up to eleven. His teeth filled with static as the top of the creature flowed down, gentle waves dripping these awful bright cyan and pinks, making his stomach churn as it dripped down something flat.

It had no eyes.

  He didn't know why that frightened him so much. Maybe it was the weeks of following eyes he had slowly gotten used to, maybe it was the fact he had slowly been opening his own eyes to the true form of his world, but it didn't have eyes. This….this thing had none, and yet it stared right into him.

   It suddenly twisted, a violent but graceful movement as it twisted so its "body" (for lack of a better term) now face sideways, as though to mimic a sort of…curiosity? He watched as it slowly began to bubble, body starting to split down the side. His teeth started filling with static, a sensation that helped him resist the urge to cry out as the thing pulled a long spindly piece of its form away, then splitting that again. And again. And again.

  In a blink those hours of cracking suddenly stopped, leaving a sharp thin appendage of sorts jutting from the smooth thing. The wound dripped a dark ink, drying just as quickly as it tried to flow out. But, more distracting then that, was the shimmering. This newly seperated piece shimmered, a kaleidoscope of colors drawing his eye into it. It made his heart ache, gently knocking at the door in his head.

  It felt like his mind was set on fire, a door he didn't even realize he had being swung open but from the inside, not out. It was a million memories pulled from his mind and reflecting right into his own eyes, yet so alien and distant. It showed him everything had seen before, all he wished for, what he clawed so desperately for, and yet politely remained blind to it all, turning away from the flooded door.

  It was too long before it reached out towards him, fear flooding his senses as this vile thing reached closer, closer, he needed to move why couldn't he move just movejustmovejustMO-

"Black!"

He gasped, shaking violently under a warm and reassuring grip. "A-arthur?" He mumbled. His voice was raspy, like he had been screaming for years for now. Maybe he had. "Are you okay? Why are you crying?" Black slowly blinked, raising a trembling hand just in time to catch a hot pink tear as it fell. When had he started crying?Instead of asking he only looked around, trying to take it all back in. The eyes were back, but they didn't seem as predatory now. No, this was no longer entertaining to them. Now they seemed…quiet. They watched, waiting. Just patiently waiting.

If our sonas are like a concentrated form of our creativity, then what's to say they actually look like us? Who's to say that if we stripped back our personal illusions, that they would look anything like a person at all? Maybe all it would be is a shambling approximation of a human shape, filled to bursting with the lingering taste of experiences and the things that shaped us and our art into what it is.

You didn't think I forgot about this au, did you? Welcome back to episode three of our Broken 4th wall Lovebug featuring Black, @blackkatdraws2 narrator and the form of an artist that even we artists can never see! I'm sure he's fine after staring right into the face of a living memory unraveling exactly what he is. I'm sure that won't make him question himself and his existence even more.

#galix #my art #tsp #tspud #narratorverse #eldrich horror

[sassrubyexists]

Lil rant

Why do so many people make suns issues seem like nothing? I see much people constantly saying: "sun just has [insert issues]". No. Sun has alot more than that. His life was made a living hell because of who? Moon. Sun had to see the murders, clean them up, feel pain with every moons move when he took control, fight for control and god knows what more. That has been going on for what? More than 9-10 years (Sun confirmed from a year long episode that hes tehnically 9 years old). Don't get me wrong, moon has trauma from it too, having to deal with a killcode, being trapped in the mindscape without his body ect. Though, people are still dismissing suns trauma from this. Sun was TERRIFIED. He kept begging moon, but it didn't help. Some people think that its alright because sun still had confidence and was happy after they seperated and that ISNT correct. This piece of trauma gave sun a big affect on him. Such as being afraid of the dark. It may not seem too bad, but just imagine what was going on in suns mind when it was dark. It doesn't matter how much of a "stupid" fear is that, it still has a reasoning on why its there. After seperation, he also got abused by moon. Moon would always threaten him when sun made a joke. Especially with the whacking stick. The whacking stick was seen as a joke and it wasnt serious in many eyes, though just imagine being in suns shoes. You're making jokes like siblings do and oh! Guess what. You get threatened and hit for it. See what im trying to say here? Moon also used to put sun down alot. That may be normal in a sibling relationship, I have to admit that. Yet, sun eventually started believing those words because of others who would do the same. And when moon was doing the same, sun started believing in that. Sun probably also started being convinced by it since everytime he tried to help, he couldnt. This obviously led to this sort of mindstate. Whenever sun was talking about his issues,moon would ignore them and replace it with his own (Episode example:sun and moon BREAK UP in VRCHAT or whatever the name was). Sun always had to take care of moon and moons issues too. sun felt like he was useless so what other better was to cope than to help others so you feel useful. This is extremely unhealthy. Sun forgot to help himself. Plus, people always push suns feelings to the side. For an example, monty said that sun would get over it and that it was just a phase. Moon was too scared to go talk to sun! And guess what. Sun went out to kill eclipse! He also gaslighted and manipulated sun into doing what HE wants. For an example, you know when sun was in that one state of mind when he went to kill eclipse? Instead of trying to help sun with feelings and stuff, HE LOCKED SUN INTO A BUNKER WHERE THE ARGURMENT HAPPEND, and put a magic box giving sun barely room to stand. Because he wanted sun to be like hes "supposed to be", the voice of reason. See whats wrong with this? He also would pressure sun into telling him things sun didn't wanna talk about. Example, july 16th. In the argurment, he started pressuring sun into telling him what happend until sun actually did. Another example, when sun killed bloodmoon, he also started pressuring sun into telling him what actually happend, though, sun didn't do so that time. This aint a way to deal with thse kind of situations. If someone doesn't wanna talk about something, we shouldn't force them. Yet people are still so confused on why sun doesn't open up! I wonder why! Do we need a damn detective for that. I see people saying that its because earth and moon are basically strangers, althought it really isnt. Sunny thinks everything is his fault. He thinks eclipse existing is his fault, even if sun wasnt the one who put a goddamn left behind code. Its moons fault. Sure, he didnt know that would happen, even so what did he think was going to happen. "Omg it'll be such a good idea if I put a left behind code that i dont even know what it is!!" Like please. Who knows what that leech- I MEAN. Eclipse said to him.

Its no big suprise sunny turned out this way

#sams sun #Sams #the sun and moon show #Tsams #Sun

[kerubimcrepin]

Episode 9: The Legendary Unikron

The post where I finally make the naming format of this blog more sane

This is the same place as the one, where in the episode "Heads for no Tails" it will be revealed that Kerubim obtained the legendary, life-draining Heads for no Tails restraint while pissdrunk. Y'know. The one meant for an Ondine created by Djaul to trick the dragon Aguabrial into creating a Dofus.

Yeah, I will not think too much about the fact that it is flipped. To me, they're The Same Place. I guess he's been drinking here for decades. Kind of cute.

And yeah I guess it means the Ondine named Ondine, from the episode Like a Snapper in the Water is literally just named "Siren the Siren". I guess her mermaid parents weren't very creative. I'll mention this when I liveblog that episode too, but I would feel bad, if I didn't mention this here too.

We will talk about my feelings on Kerubim leaving the legendary demon-killing life-draining shackles somewhere Joris, in his shelf-climbing corridor-running wisdom, could reach, later.

We'll get there when we get there.

Glad to know there's a reason Kerubim and Joris live in a bad neighborhood. And that reason is that Kerubim wouldn't be tolerated anywhere else.

Love his scary and off-putting behaviours.

Okay, rant incoming:

Firstly, this is a customary french drink bowl, to stop any wondering from the non-french aware readers. It's normal for French people to drink coffee, milk, and tea from a bowl, soup-style, in the morning and in the evening. So this part is normal.

Now onto more sillywhacky part of this: What the fuck is Joris doing here, exactly?

As we can see, his Bowl of Liquid is steaming even before he starts pouring the chocolate milk into it. Is he adding chocolate milk to hot milk? Is he adding chocolate milk to cocoa or hot chocolate? (I will fight people who don't differentiate between them, they're two different things, you heathens.)

Is he, mayhaps, adding it... to tea?

We will never know, yet the question is haunting.

Interestingly, it seems that one of Simone's jobs around the house is polishing swords. Also, her being here so late means that, quite predictably, she is a live-in maid.

(You can see that like, 50% of this blog is me paying to random details that could only be useful in like, extremely faithful fanfiction, and 50% getting whacky with this show's storytelling.)

I love Simone so, so much. Truly, she is Joris's cooler aunt.

No comment besides this image.

Joking. I do have a comment, actually. Imagine me putting on a tinfoil hat here, btw.

I think it's kinda telling that Joris's main fear, the one that re-occurs a multiple times during the show, and always, without fail, makes him break down in tears, is Kerubim dying.

The facts that are important to keep in mind are: They've been living together alone for Joris's entire life, Joris knows he's adopted, and Kerubim himself is an orphan, which he doesn't really hide.

Which leads to multiple conclusions, which all coexist:

1. Joris is a kid who's very aware of the mortality of parents/guardians, and that, above everything else, that he is lucky to have a home and a semblance of family. That if Kerubim wasn't there, he may not have had that.

Which is uh... a pretty stressful thing for a kid his age to know, I suppose!

Especially considering the fact that Kerubim is an old man riddled with back pains, and for 7 years had such a level of post-lou-divorce post-battle-with-julith depression that he could not figure out how to get them into a clean, non-shitty non-hazardous home.

And now that their home IS clean, still can't make it non-hazardous.

2. Joris and Kerubim are much closer than most parents and children, because they literally have no other relatives, and Kerubim has pushed away most people who would consider him a friend in the past. Only relying on one another isn't the best or healthiest idea, but what choice do they have?

You can't just show up at home, be like "i would be dead, if it wasn't for you giving me water, my jojo <3" and not expect to inflict some eldritch horror levels of psychic damage onto your son.

Especially considering the fact, that he KNOWS, from your own shitty stories, that when you're gone, and it IS a when, because you're an old man who's constantly complaining about his health, he's going to be fending for himself all alone.

It's pretty obvious, then, why Joris would put Kerubim on a very high pedestal and, as will be shown later, prioritize the man's feelings over his own. Kerubim is his best friend, his role model, provider, guardian, AND the only one family member he has.

Besides depending on him, Joris knows papycha is a very, very lonely and sad person, — and who is he, not to try and make the life of the one person, who's most important to him, better?

If Kerubim isn't always happy, both in general and with Joris, then that's the worst thing ever, and if Kerubim isn't amazing, all-capable, and Not Going To Die Within The Next Couple Of Years Due To Being Old As Fuck, then their life is Over.

So Joris has to put in a lot of work.

This analysis isn't even picking apart the nitty-gritty of Kerubim being an orphan and having abandonment issues, or the way those things make him latch onto Joris the same way Joris latches onto him — as if this child is his Only Hope and Savior, Who Won't Leave Him Like All The Others.

And how that might lead to him REALLY liking Joris idealizing and putting him on a pedestal, despite the guilt he might feel knowing that that's kind of a... not-good parenting tactic.

...Man this post isn't even a rewatch liveblog anymore, it's just an analysis post, innit? 💀

#ep9 #wakfu #dofus #krosmoz #ro liveblogs dofus #joris jurgen #kerubim crepin

[damn-stark]

Chapter 6 Love is a burning thing

Chapter 6 of Stargirl

A/N- Hope you guys like it!!

Warning- angst, fluff! SLOWBURN, long chapter.

Pairing- Steve Harrington x fem!reader, male!oc x fem!reader

Episode- between 2x09 & 3x01

(Let me know if you want to be tagged)

————

Why is it happening? For the past month since the nightmare with the Demo-dogs happened, since you died for a few minutes, nightmares have been haunting you. Demo-dogs lurk in the dark corridors of your mind.

The doctor said nightmares are normal after getting shot. But this?

They haunt you while you’re awake too, they lurk in the shadows, now since that day, those beasts are all you can think of after fighting the nightmares and bad memories away. And it seems to be like you alone deal with this.

Nancy and Steve say to just forget, the memories fade soon enough, but are they plagued by visions of them too while they’re awake?

So much for a jolly holiday in an actual home….this sucks.

“Y/N?”

You look away from the colorful Christmas lights that make the green tree glimmer, and see Zion walking inside the parlor room.

“Zion,” you greet happily and fan away the smoke before turning the cigarette off and sliding off the couch. “You made it!”

Said man glances at the smelly smoke slowly crawling to the ceiling and then looks at you. “Yeah,” he nods. “Dad wouldn’t miss it. You look nice.”

Receive a compliment? Flirty smile, and act like you already know you’re what they tell you, but don’t make it obvious.

You swallow thickly and plaster on your best flirty smile like Steve advised, and try to be as smug as you can. But not enough to make you seem egotistical. “Oh…thanks.” You smirk. “I like your Santa hat. Cute.”

That sucked.

“I brought you a present,” he says, but there’s nothing in his hands.

“Really?” You probe and look around him. “Where is it?”

Zion slowly begins to smirk. “Outside. Left it in the car….”

Oh. Outside where the Demo-dogs lurk in the shadows?

“…I just thought perhaps it wouldn't be fair considering the only present we were supposed to bring was our gift exchange.”

Now he’s trying to flirt with you.

Try to get them alone for the best form of success. And Zion is doing it before you could, well the second parlor you’re in was empty, but you can hear the commotion of the party, and people wander close, so it’s not really alone.

“Well then,” you play along. “Let’s go. I love presents.”

Zion shoots you a smile, and you lead him out of the house. When you’re outside, away from all the noise you break your silence.

“I still can’t believe your dad is one of the police men of this town,” you muse. “Why didn’t you tell me when we met?”

Zion scoffs. “Some people think it’s weird. They would make fun of me in school. Didn't want to scare you away.”

You snort. “Funny.”

Zion sighs softly and then interjects. “Why weren’t you with the rest of the party?”

“Simple,” you answer somewhat truthfully. “I didn't want to hang out with a bunch of old farts.” You giggle. “I didn’t want to isolate myself either so I just kind of secluded myself.”

“In your fifth living room?” Zion teases.

You roll your eyes and shake your head. “Second,” you correct him. “It’s a parlor room by the way. Slash sunroom.”

Zion looks at you with a smile before he begins to chuckle. “Wow. That’s how you know you’ve made it.”

You shrug. “I won’t deny it.”

Zion flashes you a half grin whilst he reaches the car he came in with his dad. It’s in the short silence that you’re reminded of the terror.

Since you’re far from the front porch, the light doesn’t shine bright this far out on the driveway. You’re surrounded by darkness…Okay…

You shift closer to Zion as he gets the present out, and avoid looking around you even if it feels like you feel their presence all around you. When Zion turns around he backs up in surprise to how close you are. “Whoa, hey.”

You push back your fear, and blink to meet his dark eyes. “Hi,” you redirect sweetly.

Zion doesn’t question you and pushes a big box towards you. You beam at him and take the present.

“Open it,” he encourages your desire.

You don’t need to be told twice, you approach the hood of the car to open the present. The moment you manage to get inside the box you pull out a red helmet. A helmet.

“Wow,” you feign excitement as you’re actually very confused. “A helmet.”

Zion nods eagerly. “For when you ride on my motorcycle with me. I didn’t have a second one last time, so I bought you one…and this,” he leans over and reaches for a silver chain bracelet dangling from the chin strap, you didn’t notice before.

“Oh,” you react with more excitement. “Cool.” You lift the helmet to study the bracelet better and notice that theirs a single charm with your first initial on it. “That’s really nice Zion, thank you. I love the present.” You put the helmet back in the box and embrace him.

Zion seems surprised at first, but he gently returns it.

It’s sort of awkward though, you didn’t get him anything. You’ve been stuck at home, busy recovering and trying to ignore your nightmares that you completely forgot to buy him a gift. The only people you did get presents for were your dad of course, your mom because she's living with you, Eleven as one of your many apologies, Nancy and Steve. You totally spaced on Zion though. Damn.

You don’t even address it, you leave it as it is. And thankfully as you pull away from the embrace, headlights shine from the driveway. You walk over to the front porch with Zion and your gift, and your eyes glued on the approaching car. And when the person finally comes to view, you spot Steve.

“It’s Steve!” You point out happily.

When said man parks, and before he can turn his car off, you run over to him with a happy smile.

“Steve.” You wave at him even if you had just seen him.

Your friend gets out of the car with a long rectangle present box, but no name on the card. “Hey, don’t try and cheat,” he complains.

You stick your tongue out and step back and continue to smile. “You came back!”

Steve glances past you and finds Zion, they shoot each other a stiff wave before Steve nods at you. “Yeah, well you basically made me.”

You scoff and proceed to walk back inside. “Yeah well you commited, so unless you wanted to look bad in front of my parents, you had no choice.”

Steve huffs as he follows you at your side. “Both your parents like me so I’m good. But well there was nothing better to do.”

You drift your eyes over to him and can’t help but smile at him since you know he’s just being smug. “Sure, whatever you say.”

“What you got there,” Steve points to your present.

You lift the box and grin brightly. “Gift from Zion.” You glance at said guy following at your other side, but drift your attention back to Steve, and find yourself meeting his gaze.

His smile falters, and he sighs before he smirks. “Cute.” He mutters.

You hum in agreement, but find his reaction strange. Why is he so weird when it comes to Zion? It’s so sudden too…

Hm. Weird.

——

*LATER*

“What, what, what?” Steve says in a hushed tone as you pull him outside all by yourselves.

“I need help. I-I don’t know what to do in there,” you point inside.

Steve squints his eyes and knits his eyebrows together in confusion. “I don’t get it? What’s wrong?”

You groan and point to the front door. “Me with Zion. I can feel how much I suck. I need help. You said you would, so I'm asking for your help.”

“Oh,” Steve gasps softly and licks his lips while he rests his hands on his hips. “Okay…uh.”

You grab both of his hands and plead in a sweeter tone. “Please, Steve. I need help, okay? Just help me. Give me tips.”

Steve drops his head and lets out a deep breath before he rolls his head to the side. “Fine,” he mutters. “Yeah. I mean I’ve already given you tips, but sure.”

You smile brightly and let his hands go and wait patiently.

“Okay first,” he continues almost lazily. “You’re…wearing lipstick.”

Oh?

You clasp your hands together in front of you and nod.

Steve sighs and slowly meets your gaze with those big brown eyes of his. “Bring attention to your lips. Reapply lipstick as you’re talking. Guys are driven crazy over that.”

“Okay,” you breathe out. “Next? One more tip.”

“Laugh. He says a joke, laugh. It’s an ego thing.”

You frown and shake your head. “I don’t know about that.”

Steve lifts his eyebrows and looks at you with a pointed look. “You want to be single? It’s just for this first phase. After that you can disagree. So let me hear it.”

You let go of your hands and look at him surprised. “What? You want me to laugh now?”

Steve nods.

This is ridiculous. But he is the expert, so you awkwardly share a dry chortle.

Steve crosses his arms over his chest and furrows his brows. “No,” he stifles a laugh. “What was that? You’ve laughed better come on. Giggle.”

You groan but after an exhale you share a sweet giggle.

Steve smiles but it’s brief because he then nods. “Better.”

You laugh again, a haha laugh, and he begins to chuckle.

“Oh, you said something funny.” You snort and begin to laugh for real.

Steve laughs harder, and you can’t help but do the same. The front door then opens and your dad stops under the door frame confused. “What are you two doing?”

Both Steve and you stop laughing and you just shake your head at your dad before you probe. “What’s up?”

Your dad hums and then points inside. “Gift exchange time. Come on.”

You clap gleefully and skip over to grab your dads arm and walk back inside with him and Steve trailing behind you. When you step inside the parlor room where the tree and gifts are Zion is the first person you see; you smile at him, and he offers you a softer smile. When he looks at who’s trailing behind you he sits up straighter and averts his gaze quickly.

“Okay! Now that my daughter is here let’s start this thing,” your dad addresses the party.

You grab your present from under the tree and sit down next to your mom since that’s the only seat available.

“Okay the person starting this thing is Mayra,” your shares and steps back.

Your mother grins happily and claps softly before she pushes herself off her seat and stands in the middle of the gathered circle. She looks around at all the faces gathered around with her present in hand. “I got,” she teases the group. “Now let’s see…Steve Harrington!”

Everyone looks disappointed that the rich actress didn’t get them, but Steve looks shocked and then a bit smug. When he takes the gift from your mom he gives her half a hug before he begins to tear the nice shiny gift wrapping.

When he takes out what was inside the bag, he finds a coat. Since there was a budget it isn’t luxurious, but it still is a nice brown cargo jacket with flannel lining.

“Now it’s your turn Steve,” your dad interjects. “That’s how it will go, the person that got a present gives theirs next. And so on. Got it?” He claps. “Yes. Good.”

Your mom sits down and passes you a small giddy smile before you focus on Steve in the middle of the group with his present. He of course grins as he sticks his gift out.

“Well I got someone very cool,” he says and spins around and faces you. “I got you, y/n.”

Your eyes widen, and a grin spreads on your lips. Without leaving him waiting you squeal and go up. You give Steve a quick hug and then excitedly open your long rectangle gift.

And once you tear off the gift wrapper there’s a black box. “A velvet box,” you share and show the guests to get them excited.

Is it a necklace?

It’s too heavy for one though.

You giggle and share a brief excited look with Steve before you open the box, revealing two pink wooden drumsticks. He remembered your goal. “What?” You gasp in awe.

You pick up one of them to show it off, but you freeze as you see the words, “Rio.” carved on them. “Oh my gosh!” You exclaim. It’s your inside thing. “I love them!” You throw your arms around Steve. “Thank you!”

He’s caught off guard but he hugs you back gently. “I thought it could be your first pair since you want to learn or what not,” he says as you pull away.

You don’t have drums yet—well not officially, you saw a huge gift box in the garage with your name on it, so your dad got them for you. You just haven’t opened it.

“Let me see,” your dad says.

You walk over to him and show him the drumsticks. “Look. Aren't they cute! My first step to learning how to drum!”

Your dad blinks repeatedly and points to the name. “What’s that mean?”

You smirk and blow him off. “Don’t worry about it, it’s an inside thing.”

Your dad hums and doesn’t investigate, so you all move on. You got one of your dads friends, so it doesn’t really matter whatever everyone else gets after. Zion unluckily is one of the last people to go, and he ends up gifting to his dad, which is quite a coincidence. And his dad then ends up getting your own dad, the exchange ends after that and the party rages on.

Now to do what Steve advised. Yes!

Oh maybe you’ll take Zion under a mistletoe for a first kiss!

He’s by the fireplace, by himself. Now is your time.

You walk towards him, but stop as you get nervous. You talk to him all the time, he’s come to visit you in your recovery, you talk on the phone, but this is different. You’re flirting, actually trying. Fuck. Okay.

Exhale. Go….

No.

You turn away and see your dad talking to your uncle, they’re saying goodbye it seems. You should—no, no! Exhale, go.

You slowly turn back around on your heels and slowly approach Zion. When he sees you approaching he stands up straighter and his lips perk up to a smile.

“Waiting for someone?” You tease hlm.

Zion scoffs. “Black boots, white beard, jolly demeanor,” he says.

You hum and slowly clasp your hands in front of you. “Ah, well it seems you’re gonna be waiting for a few more days.”

Zion shifts around to face you completely. “So you want to learn to play the drums?” He query’s.

You nod. “Yep. It’s my goal I need to accomplish. I want to join a band. Maybe I’ll become famous.”

Zion chuckles softly. “A band?”

“Yes?” You answer hesitantly. “Why is it strange?”

Zion shrugs. “You don’t look like the type.”

Is that offensive? It kind of makes you uneasy.

“Well,” you chuckle nervously. “Then you should get to know me better.” You sigh and think about bringing the lipstick out, bringing attention to the lips, but you hesitate.

Zion continues to talk, but his words get drowned by your thoughts.

Do you really, truly like him? You did when you first met him, you were ecstatic to get to know him, to go out with him, but now?

It’s been a month, neither of you have tried anything because you’ve been injured. You've been unable to see him because you’re stuck at home while he is at school or at work. And…whether you like to admit it or not, since the events of the Demo-dogs, you’ve been different. And there's been people who have snuck up on you, dug themselves deeper in your heart. And now that they’re single, there might be a chance.

Yeah that’s right, there might be a chance…

You look over at him by the snack table and he’s busy talking to your dad. He’s smiling. He has a nice smile.

And while you’re staring at him, Steve glances over at you and catches your stare, so you quickly look away and instead look out the back door.

However, that’s a mistake because you see them again in the shadows. A demo-dog. It’s there, staring at you. No, no—

You blink repeatedly and return your gaze back to Zion. He’s smirking at you, still talking, so you nod softly in comprehension. He brings you a form of peace right there and then.

That’s it. The same thing happened when you were outside getting the gift he gave you. You didn’t see the illusion of the demo-dog. He can bring you peace, fill the void?

You look into his eyes and get lost in them. He has nice dark eyes. He’s sweet.

Thus you pull out your lipstick and while he continues to talk you reapply some. And just as Steve said, Zion sneaks glances at your lips, he finds himself stammering.

It works!

“Maybe we can have that date now?” Zion asks as he drops whatever it was he was rambling about. “You’re better. You can go out. I can use my moms car so the wind doesn’t hit your chest.”

You snort.

“Maybe on Monday? We’re on winter break, I have no work that day, I can pick you up at…”

“3,” you add for him without debating this time. “3 is fine.”

Zion smirks and nods along slowly. “I’ll pick you up at 3.”

You smile at him and glance to the side, Steve and your dad aren’t there anymore, the party is busy talking amongst themselves. There’s no mistletoe though….

“Come with me,” you say sweetly before you take his hand and take him to the parlor room, near a large window that overlooks the lake behind your house, and under the mistletoe that your mom placed for fun she said. “Mistletoe,” you point up.

Zion lifts his eyes, and then snickers as he looks back at you. “Smart,” he compliments you.

You shrug smugly, and before anyone could come you lean in give him a small kiss on the lips. It’s your first kiss.

When you pull back Zion's smile is sheepish, but his eyes are soft. Albeit he then surprises you by cupping your cheek and leaning in to give you a deeper kiss you return slowly.

“Perfect,” he whispers softly as he pulls back.

Your face is burning and you giggle.

Wow. Your heart is pounding. Like very, very fast. You want more, but you must resist.

You can’t wait to tell Nancy.

——

*LATER*

The party has ended, everyone has left the house a mess that you’ll have to clean up, well everyone left except for Steve. He’s still lacking behind.

“Are you sure you don’t need help?” Steve asks as he comes to a stop inside the parlor room near the large window that overlooks the lake.

You nod. “Yeah. My dad can clean. He’s a semi-retired man now, so he’s got nothing but time. Besides, I think my chest hurts.”

Steve scoffs in amusement. “You should keep slacking off.”

You feign a laugh.

Steve smirks albeit he does respond. “There. That’s the laugh. That one is perfect.”

You giggle this time for real. “No that’s…that’s bad.”

Steve smiles faintly.

“Thanks,” you tell him and begin to fiddle with your fingers. “For the drumsticks. They were nice. When I get good, I’ll have to give you a show.”

Steve gently nudges you with his elbow. “You better. I'll be your first judge.”

You smile but you then sigh as something comes to mind. “Do you think I look like the type to be drumming?”

Steve’s gaze just squints slightly in confusion. “What do you mean?” He asks.

You shrug and sway to the side nervously. “I don’t know. Like me, is it weird that I want to drum? I mean…me.” You meet Steve’s gaze with a nervous look that he holds for a moment with a bit of pity.

“I think you can be what you want. I mean I don't think people can judge what you want to do based off your appearance. There’s no specific look that you need to have to do something.”

You let out a relieved sigh and nod softly. “So I shouldn't paint my nails black and dress punk?” You ask lightheartedly. “I mean It’s a cool fucking look. I'm jealous of the girls who can pull it off.”

Steve shakes his head. “No. I like your—this look,” he says and waves his hand over you.

“Good.” You grin and stay quiet for a moment just looking at him before you remember. “I finally scored that date…because of your tips, so thanks.”

Steve blinks repeatedly and hums. “Hm? Really?” He asks and crosses his arms over his chest.

You nod eagerly. “Yeah. I did it. So I will need more of your help. I mean if I want to, you know, have a successful date.”

Steve lets out a deep sigh, and swallows thickly before nodding quickly. “Yeah, sure. Cool. Cool.”

“Great!” You exclaim happily. “Oh! By the way,” you add on now that you’re excited. “I know I’ll see you beforehand but I’ll tell you regardless. You're invited to the New Year’s party my dad is hosting. This time more people will be invited, so it won’t be that boring, I can invite people too so it’ll be fun. Come!”

Steve shrugs. “I'll have to let you know.”

“Steve,” you insist and grab his arm. “Come on please.”

Steve meets your gaze and thinks for a moment before he sighs deeply. “I’ll try. How about that.”

You roll your eyes but nod hesitantly. “Fine, let me know.” You let him go and step back, Steve shifts back too and you both grow quiet.

He probably should’ve found his way to leave now, but he stayed a little longer, and you stayed there with him. And it’s at that moment, as silence lingered that Steve’s gaze wanders up and finds the mistletoe.

He keeps his eyes up there for a second too long, so you follow his line of gaze and see the same mistletoe, one you completely forgot about. Now you’re both standing under it. He knows that. He looks at you, and you slowly lower your gaze and meet his.

It’s not obligatory to kiss under a mistletoe, but you…want to. Because that’s how you wanted it, you wanted to find yourself under a mistletoe with Zion by accident, but you had to bring him here. Not Steve…

But no you can’t kiss Steve, you want to go out with Zion. You told Zion you’d date him, you can’t just kiss Steve.

Even if Steve makes your heart race, and causes your face to get all warm. No you can’t kiss him.

So you slowly avert your gaze and find yourself looking out the window. That’s when you spot what’s starting to fall from the sky.

“Oh my god,” you whisper excitedly. “It’s snowing!” You take Steve’s arm, and pull him with you as you run outside.

“What the hell did I say about running!” You hear your dad exclaim. You ignore him and when you’re outside you step past the porch, and stand under the soft flakes of snow that fall from the sky.

They're so gentle but cold. They’re fluffy and light. They’re quiet, peaceful and beautiful.

Yes they’re beautiful little snowflakes.

You tuck your hands in your pockets and smile sweetly. No Demo-dogs haunt you, no fears scare you. It’s peaceful even if darkness lurks beyond the lake.

Steve is near you so he watches you watching the snowfall, and exhales softly as he feels his eyes soften at the sight of you admiring something so mundane.

However, he still does sass you. Just to poke fun at you. “This is what you’re happy about?”

You turn away from him and keep looking up at the dark white sky, and close your eyes and clasp your hands together. “Quickly make a wish.”

“What?”

Besides wishing this paralyzing fear to go away, you wish to quickly get good at drumming and have your future band be successful.

“Hey, can you explain what you’re doing?” Steve steals your attention back.

When you finish you slowly open your eyes, and turn to face him. “When I was a little girl, my dad said that when I saw it snow for the first time, I thought it was stars falling to the ground, so I made a wish. He thought it was cute, so, after he made it a thing. Now everytime we see it snow for the first time we make a wish. That’s what I’m doing. Did you wish?”

Steve scoffs. “No. Its just snow. I didn’t know that was a thing.”

“Now you do,” you quip. “Make a wish. Do it.”

Steve shakes his head. “No. It’s not a me thing.”

“Steve,” you press. “Do it. One wish.”

“Tell me what you wished for first,” he argues back quickly.

You shake your head. “No. Just go.”

Steve groans. “Fine. Fine! I wish…ugh, to graduate.”

You laugh softly and clap. “See! Now your dream will come true.”

“Yeah,” Steve mutters. “I hope so.”

You walk to him and take his arm. “You will. I swear. I’ll help. And you help me.”

Steve exhales, but you don’t catch his annoyance that has taken root since he saw Zion at the hospital waiting for you. He knows he shouldn’t be jealous, you’re choosing to stick with Zion, and you’re his friend so he needs to be happy for you. But how can he put up with helping you be with another man?

He needs to tell you something. Something that might change your mind, or that will make you not seek his help anymore. Unless you see his annoyance towards Zion yourself soon.

Will you through? Will you notice Steve’s jealousy?

.

.

.

.

Tagged- @middle-of-the-earth @x-theolivia @redskull199987 @lilyhw1 @5sosjay

#fanfiction #damn-stark #stranger things fanfiction #stranger things #Stargirl #chapter 6 #steve harrington fanfiction #steve harrington series #steve harrington fanfic #steve harrington x reader #steve harrington x y/n #steve harrington x you #steve harrington x fem!reader #steve harrington #oc character #Jim hopper #stranger things season 2

[copperbora]

Introduction

Here be mine list of information sources that I often use for arguing with people who genocidally hate wolves (and other wildlife,) based on misinformation, anti-wolf propaganda like 'Smoke a Pack a Day!' (yes, wolf haters literally say inflammatory hogwash like this,) and centuries of uneducated fear based upon the very few times in history (actual accounts forgotten) that (likely largely habituated) wolves have been less than friendly to humans. (And I was going to include a picture of one of these 'smoke a pack a day' things but urgh... honestly they make me want to vomit.)

🐾Please note that I will be constantly adding to this list and updating it as I find new ammunition - er, sources, with which to argue with/informationally support my ongoing work on my science-based graphic novel, Knife Edge. (Which I haven't worked on much lately due to my need to work on my shop - where you can buy all kinds of wolfy art by the way - instead.)

⚠️Important to note: wolf scientists can be a bit hard to talk to at times due to the fact that some of them have literally received death threats from wolf haters and people in the livestock industries who erronously believe based upon hearsay (i.e. no actual science,) that wolves are a threat to their top dollar. That's why the typically great podcast Ologies had trouble finding a wolf scientist for its lupinology episode - because people who hate wolves tend to hate people who say that they need to stop killing wolves because how dare they be wrong. (I'm still peeved about how bad that lupinology episode was by the way; it didn't even mention trophic cascades. Sigh. (That's why I haven't linked it here, and why I hope that Alie Ward will redo it someday, or that the podcast Science Versus will do a wolf episode instead someday.)

I myself am not a wolf scientist, (although this was my dream as a little girl which I gave up on due to painful dyscalcula,) but I am striving to be as expert about lupinology as much as a non-scientist can be, especially so that I can do wolves proper justice in my story Knife Edge as well as other future wolf advocacy projects that are percolating in my deranged little mind. My stunningly crappy brain for math may have prevented me from studying to become an actual wildlife biologist studying wolves in the field but it isn't going to stop me from helping wolves with my art by attempting to educate and dispel misinformation about them. I can do my best to be a science communicator and do wolf outreach through my work. Hopefully I won't get lynched for it.

Please feel free to use the following links should you decide that you need them. This post is linked in my pinned post so that it can be more easily found especially by me.

Why I Advocate for Wolves

- Because it's the right thing to do: wolves are sentient, highly social beings who live in closely knit family groups much like our own human families complete with parents who impart generational knowledge - such as tactically how to specifically hunt particular prey (for example: elk) - upon their offspring who either go off eventually to start their own families or stay put in their natal pack with their parents, helping to raise their younger siblings. No animal has been more horrifically scapegoated over the centuries of our coexistence than the wolf, which some people are still trying to eradicate even though no science supports this.

- Because I dream of a world where predators are protected, where all killing of them is banned, because they are simply too important to our planet to destroy. They are deeply critical to rewilding our planet and helping our own species survive, because where wolves are, wetlands and forests thrive, helping cure drought, prevent wildfires, facilitate natural carbon capture through the bettering of these ecosystems, and clean the water that we humans also drink, all by preventing cervid species like deer from overgrazing and destroying baby trees. Wolves cause trophic cascades which promote the survival of hundreds of other species from charismatic scavengers like bald eagles and red foxes to the freshwater trout that anglers love to catch whose health is aided by the beavers which are able to create expansive water meadows whenever deer are prevented by predators like wolves from eating all of the beavers' food.

- Because unshockingly, killing wolves greatly damages their genetic diversity, hindering their ability to survive as a species. (I can't believe that there are actually people surprised by this.)

- Because before we ruined everything, the presence of wolves and lack of human interference meant that pre-colonial biodiversity was unimagineably greater than what we see today and I for one would like to see this amazing biodiversity explode again within my lifetime.

- Because wolves and humans have a lot in common; they too mourn their dead and exhibit joy at the introduction of new babies to their families. Recognizing this isn't anthropomorphism; we too are animals, afterall.

"We have doomed the wolf not for what it is, but for what we deliberately and mistakenly perceive it to be – the mythologized epitome of a savage ruthless killer – which is, in reality, no more than a reflected image of ourself.” - Farley Mowat, Never Cry Wolf.

🐺Wolf Specific Citations

- Wolves as scapegoats for human evil.

- No statistical support for wolf 'control' (culling) and maternal penning as methods for helping endangered caribou in British Columbia. (Actually, erase the word culling - what they really mean is wolf genocide.)

- The plight of wolves in America (features an absolute textwall of citations!)

- New document suggests British Columbia is using Judas Wolves for aerial wolf cull.

- Account of use of Judas Wolves in British Columbia

- BC Wolf Cull: documents reveal cruel methods of killing wolves. (You can bet your butt that I am furious at my province for this.)

- Wolves do not require human 'help' to control their numbers.

- Wolves are extremely important for environmental health as they cause trophic cascades.

- A wolf, abruptly noticing a human, runs away in fear. (Example of typical human/wolf interaction.)

- Are wolves dangerous to humans? (Spoiler alert: they're statistically not.)

- Killing wolves is unnecessary: wolves naturally limit their own numbers.

- Wolves are not a significant threat to livestock. What is a genuine threat to livestock generally? Free roaming dogs (in fact, farmers in Scotland are allowed to outright shoot dogs who they notice bothering their animals,) dystocia (birthing complications,) and inclement weather - issues which could be aleviated at least a little if ranchers would just use some range riders - aka, cowboys.

- US government data shows that wolves have a negligible effect on livestock losses.

- Killing wolves actually leads to more livestock losses, not less.

- Alberta Rancher Using Non-Lethal Predator Control (hasn't 'had' to shoot a wolf in years)

- Livestock Guardian Dogs Reduce Losses by 11-100% (utilized correctly they are extremely effective)

- Livestock Guardian Dogs Reduce Predation (according to Texas A&M University.)

- Please note that the wolf ranking terms 'alpha/beta/omega' have been debunked and are no longer in reputable scientific use. I wrote a thing about it here. Wolf packs are families, not militant groups of marauding monsters.

- All about why we don't use the wolf ranking terms alpha/beta/omega anymore which is why I depict Larch's natal pack in Knife Edge without these terms.

Recommended Books & Films About Wolves

- The Homeward Wolf by Kevin Van Tighem (a great account of wolf behaviour including detailing how wolves have generational knowledge and typically only hunt what their elders have taught them to except in rare circumstances such as in the case of a melanistic male in the Canadian Rockies who started hunting mountain goats instead of the elk that he had been raised on.)

- The Last Wolf by Jim Crumley (goes over the extirpation of the wolf from Scotland and over the misinformation surrounding wolves in great detail; an inspiring read.)

- In the Shadow of a Rainbow by Robert Franklin Leslie (a novel telling the story of a remarkable friendship between a man and a wild wolf which also gives evidence to lupine pre-genocide culture.)

- Island of the Sea Wolves published and streamed by Netflix, which gives an interesting account of a wolf family that has two breeding females in it, who amazingly help each other raise their pups!

- The International Wolf Centre's wonderfully long list of wolf books and media. (Doesn't include everything though.)

Other Wildlife Citations (Mostly About Cougars, Honestly.)

As a wildlife advocate you have to pick your battles so most of my focus is on predators, particularly wolves, cougars, coyotes, and sharks with a small measure of focus on spotted hyenas. I do also have a soft spot for beavers, however, as they are personally sacred to me and also extremely important to the environment, being an unusual keystone species that is a herbivore rather than a predator. Generally predators are the most influential animals in a habitat but beavers - and bison - are novel exceptions. (And actually, squirrels are too. Every animal is an important facet however without natural predators ecosystems crumble. Humans are not a replacement; compared to predators like wolves humans typically do an outlandishly terrible job of positively influencing the ecosystem.)

- The importance of predators (many more useful citations!)

- Why We NEED Predators (ScienceNews)

- Unmasking the myth of wildlife 'management.' (Yet more citations.)

- USDA's war on wildlife (again super well cited!)

- Cougars are NOT a threat to public safety (and more facts about these adorable large dog-sized purr machines.)

- Cougars also cause trophic cascades (in fact many predators do this.)

- Cougars are actually extremely social.

- Cougars are TERRIFIED of human chatter!

- Cougars are the bigfoot of cats. (Also as they are technically 'small' cats - and they honestly are very small compared to actual pantherine big cats like tigers and lions - we need to stop calling them big cats.)

- Want to solve wildfires and drought? Leave it to BEAVERS!

- How beavers restore wetland in deserts.

- Coyotes under siege and misunderstood.

- Why killing coyotes doesn't work.

- Starving bear mercifully euthanized; autopsy reveals plastic impaction in its intestines.

- Disease precautions for hunters.

- The ecological effects of livestock guarding dogs (LGDs) on target and non-target wildlife.

- Impact of clear-cut logging on forests.

- Ojibwe Spirit Horse - here before colonization? Plausible, yes considering horse remains found in the arctic.

- Is shark repellent a real thing? (Yes it is, and it's being developed in modern times to save sharks from humans.)

- To underline how very little top predators want to hurt us much less eat us, watch this video to see a tiger shark (one of the most infamous species of shark,) happily cuddle with her human researcher friend and recognize him after not seeing him for years!

Other Wildlife Books & Films

- Lethal Control, produced by Predator Defense (an organization which does an amazing job of thoroughly listing their information sources) and is a film about M-44 cyanide bombs which kill wildlife and pets alike.

- American Coyote by Dan Flores (be warned, some of the information in regards to wolves is incorrect but it is still an extremely interesting and illuminating account of the coyote, Canis latrans.)

- California Mountain Lions: The Legends of California by One Health Institute (ecology of cougars and why they are threatened.)

Favourite Information Sources & Organizations to Support

- Predator Defense

- International Wolf Centre

- Wolf Conservation Centre

- The Fur-Bearers

- Raincoast Conservation Foundation

- Northern Lights Wildlife Wolf Centre

My Silly(?) Pet Peeves About Wolves

- How many Etsy stores flatout copy that silhouette of Kiba from Wolf's Rain howling with the moon behind him in their designs. Damnit, learn how to draw!!

- The whole moon association with wolves - no, they do not howl at the moon, they howl because it's fun, to communicate where they are/where prey is, to mourn, to locate family members, to express hunt victory (or alternatively "Come and get it!") Wolves probably do not give a damn about the moon.

- When people call baby wolves 'cubs' instead of 'pups' or 'puppies.' No. Wolves are a species of wild dog and baby dogs are puppies, therefore baby wolves are also puppies. Grr. 'Cub' to me implies a baby bear, or, heaven forbid, a pantherine kitten like a baby lion or tiger. Maybe hyenas too.

- Wolf haters, and how ludicrous it is that they've made something so simple so political. Wolves, like human uteruses, should not be political.

- Trophy hunters.

- How every wolf story is extremely fantastical instead of based upon any science.

- How no company ever makes accurately patterned wolf plushies.

- How cartoon wolves rarely look at all like real wolves.

- The fact that their common name is 'grey' wolf when at least in North America they commonly come in black too. I propose 'timber' wolf as a much more accurate name, as they are usually found in forests.

My Silly(?) Pet Peeves About Other Wildlife

- Trophy hunters. Please find a different way to prove that you have disposable income and that you are manly.

- When people call cougars/pumas 'mountain lions' because cougars are only very distantly related to real lions - they're on opposite sides of Felidae. Their closest relatives are jaguarundi, followed by cheetahs. Lions belong to Panthera along with tigers and leopards while cougars belong to the genus Puma. Additionally, cougars and puma are indigenous names while mountain lion is colonial. (Pumas are found in South America, cougars live in North America; same species but different subspecies due to differing habitats and prey.) 'Cougar' is derived from an indigenous Tupi (Brazil) word, çuçuarana.

- When people misuse the word 'cougar' to describe women. Ugh. Stop.

- The name 'black bear' because black bears come in a whole rainbow of colours including whie (spirit/kermode,) glacier (it's like blue roan for bears,) cinnamon, blonde and chocolate.

#wildlife advocacy #wolves #wolf #cougars #pumas #beavers #sharks #wolf advocacy #wolf advocate #wildlife #citations #cite your sources #my argument ammo

[kinardscoffee]

But what if Chris just breaks? He just sobs over Buck's body, and no one knows what to do?

And a nurse whispers to Eddie, "Is that his son?"

And Eddie just nods. Because, yes, that is Buck's son. The Diaz boys are his found family, and it's in that moment that Eddie realizes his feelings for Buck just might run a little deeper than friendship.

I think he'll have discussions with various people about this feeling. Not necessarily saying that it's Buck, but he'll definitely want opinions.

Maybe that leads to these "dates."

Also, remember in Season 2 when that girl got her head stuck in the tailpipe and all the girls thought Buck and Eddie were hot?

Eddie said that they weren't his type. Honestly, I get it. They were clearly way too immature for him, but also, he could have said, "sorry, I'm married."

But he didn't.

And sure, maybe he didn't want people to know, but it would definitely be a valid excuse.

Also, Eddie mentions in one episode (it's late, and I can't remember when, lol) something about how he wasn't ready to get married or have a kid. He was in the military, and we don't know for how long, but I can totally see Eddie's dad saying that you marry someone if they get pregnant. Period.

We've heard references from Eddie that his dad was always saying things like, "Man up!" Or "don't be too soft."

A kid living with this his entire life would naturally want a job where he would both 1, seem manly and tough, and 2, create a safe distance between them. His dad wasn't around much so in Eddie's mind, being a "man" means having a wife, having kids, owning a house, and ultimately working your life away for those things.

I can't imagine how scared little Eddie might have felt knowing he was attracted to both men and women. Knowing he actually enjoyed cooking. Playing video games. Watching Soap Operas.

All of those things he does now.

And isn't it odd we barely saw Eddie kiss Shannon or Ana? He didn't even kiss Shannon or hold her when she died. He was upset, absolutely. I do believe he loved her. But he wasn't in love with her. He tries to make it work for Chris and the potential new baby.

Then there's Buck.

Who I honestly believe is Pansexual. Falling for the person is so Buck it's unreal. Notice he doesn't really approach Taylor in a flirtatious way until he believes she withheld the information about Bobby. As soon as he realized it wasn't her choice and she would have ran it, he shuts down pretty quick.

He clearly finds Eddie attractive. He basically said so when Maddie thought Chimney was cute, and Buck assumed she meant Eddie.

Then there's also that poker night with Maddie, Josh, Chimney, and Buck. Josh mentions that he thought Maddie was trying to set him up with Buck. Buck never says anything to have us believe that he wouldn't date a man. And Josh is an out gay man. Gay men know... they just do.

There's the situation where Buck loses Chris during the tsunami, and he's so upset. Not just because he lost Chris but also because he fears that Eddie will hate him. Buck calls Maddie absolutely devastated because he can't tell Eddie that he failed. And I think that this is an important moment becausee Buck has done things to upset multiple people, and he has never been afraid of the consequences. Only when it comes to Eddie does he panic.

I honestly don't know where I was going with this but in all seriousness, if they weren't always going for Buddie to happen in canon, they've been making some really crazy decisions when writing and filming. Like, I've watched a lot of shows that have close guy friends and their relationship dynamic is just completely fucking different than what 911 is doing.

So, take your own advice 911 writers, and man the hell up!

Give us Buddie or stop writing a fanfic slowburn. Your stan is showing.

#i don't know where i'm going with this #but here have some thoughts #911 spoilers #911 on fox #911onfox #911 fandom #911 buddie #evan buckley #911 fox #911 speculation #buddie #eddie diaz

[firespirited]

NOPE 2022. Review with spoilers under the read more

Nope didn't quite work as horror for me but was a decent action flick, I'd have enjoyed the experience better if it wasn't under "sci fi" and "horror": spent the time expecting something else instead of properly being in the moment - I was tired, had specific ideas about what might happen, then immediately wanted a rewatch because I'd missed the good stuff looking for other stuff (will do that rewatch as soon as possible)

It didn't work (as sci fi horror) partly because I'm a know-it-all/super nerd who gets all the sci-fi references and knows all the tropes and partly because Peele really doesn't do subtle.

Entertainment chimp chaos + ufo + horse wranglers = space chimp chaos, it was clearly a people and horse eating creature from jump so no build up there. I'm totally used to aliens being either creature based or beyond our understanding.

// or that wonderful balance in between that films like Arrival and Annihilation (or Evangelion) found where there's a logic but it's larger than we are, we're space dogs compared to their space humans.

That's my jam. The existential horror/wonder of encountering something advanced enough we can interact but to understand it? That's beyond us: might blow our minds or change us forever or leave us without answers because we're just not good enough. Yeah. Tangeant over lol //

- The second very specific thing is the sound of screams. I have trouble telling the difference between good and bad ones, I have had dissociative freezes at fairs and theme parks looking at people clearly enjoying themselves. For some reason that I cannot rewire or logic away, my brain assumes 1 of the people on the ride must be in genuine distress. Occasionally it happens with playground screams too. It's something I've had to work on as I lived close enough to hear fairgrounds every summer from age 15 - 30. I've heard them on the wind in july here for ten years. I cope well nowadays, a brief shudder then it's fine.

Anyway, Nope also didn't work as horror for me for two very specific personal reasons:

-the first that I won't really expand on here is trauma turned into a good story: dealing with something bad (and also very much NOT dealing with it) by having a good story to tell. The fact that this story dropped that into the narrative then didn't follow up meant that I briefly thought there might be something to break my heart in two... but that wasn't the point being made, the point clearly was a childhood exploitation turning into a pattern of exploiting everything.

// If you know of stories about trauma turned into a story to avoid confronting it directly or giving a good end send me reccs I'm ready to pick at that wound (okay okay maybe not 'I May Destroy You' final episode levels of ready, Michaela Coel is too powerful). //

So I was looking for that and it didn't happen.

So I knew exactly what the opening sound was, what the faint sound in the wind was. So the only reveal was that it wasn't mimicry or psychological tactics by the alien (i was still in the mode of thinking of various sci fi beings who used/enjoyed fear instead of just a wild creature. I was primed to puzzle solve and there's no puzzle just layers of meaning).

But I did love OJ the cowboy hero and his sister Em on the motorbike. They had very believable sibling energy despite one of them being in a deep funk at the start. And yeah the Akira bike slide was awesome. I really liked the alien design, starting with something we think we know but actually more of a sand dollar then popping into the jellyfish form but with the non-organic, not quite working within our physics square.

If it's an action film, it takes its time to really start which is why I was stuck on slowburn dread sci-fi mode for so long but that could be western film pacing. I honestly have no understanding or knowledge whatsoever of westerns: the whole genre stank as ahistorical attempts at myth making.

// It's one of the reasons I don't watch war films, often about myth making, post hoc justifications, glamorising a life of 95% boredom 5% hell. //

But yeah my expectations were a little too high: it hit me way too late that it was a 1:1 chimp metaphor not a more vague tampering with something we can't control and really thought the creature would be playing with fear or have somehow been formed by fear (like the boar in Annihilation having taken on its victims traits).

Also suffered from way too dark syndrome. I loved the well lit final action, if it'd been well lit during the creature choking over the house scene that would have been so much cooler. I have a low tolerance for ooh it goes bump in the dark for half the movie, I'm just squinting and cursing you for padding the film with anything but character moments in the aftermath or in dread that would make the human impact feel more real.

Solid action flick: We need dashing Daniel Kaluuya on a horse in more films. Keke Palmer is a scene stealer I look forward to seeing more of her. I liked the emo tech guy. Film dude was wack without being funny. Why did they give him so much screen time? Steven Yeun does what he can with what little he had. I would have liked to have lingered a little longer on his conflicting relationship to fame.

My review? No yet rated. Gonna rewatch it as an action flick in the dark and enjoy it for what it is. Something tells me it's very rewatchable! And... I need to stop making assumptions based on genre expectations.

#saf #Movie reviews #nope 2022

[imagonista]

MOTH finale rambling: warning, this is long, and basically a brain dump. Proceed with caution

Oh gosh. I'm may not be physically crying, but mentally, I'm kind of numb. Not in a bad way, I want to be clear, this is just how I process certain types of emotional stories, and it may take some time for me to recover from the finale. Also the fact this is probably the first time my emotions have made me feel like I'm going to throw up, which is good in the sense that it means the storytelling was effective, but bad in the sense that I have emetophobia, the fear of vomiting, sooooo XP

If there was a word to describe the ending, it would be catharsis. Every character, both the speakers and the listeners, experience some form of catharsis, and get closure after all their trauma. Amazing storytelling.

I have so many thoughts, so many emotions, but I don't have the words to describe them (and I don't think *unholy bird screeches* count). There's so much to talk about...

The realization, adding from the previous episode, that Makkaro and Zed aren't that different. Both of their arcs revolve around them putting their respective listener on a pedestal, and all the harm that caused.

That the Guardian is GONE gone, and the effects that will have on the world. On one hand, the Guardian didn't do their job in the first place, mostly just staying alone in their arch angel until Zed showed up. But in the AU where the Guardian dies, it was stated how while magic doesn't go away, things start to feel less...magical, if the Guardian were to die. Does the Guardian leaving from the world in general mean the same thing? I'll guess we'll find out with Nosferatu (which took until actually spelling out the name to realize the importance of that name and its association with the original Dracula book. And since he was turned into a vampire... very clever!)

As much as I was hoping for Zed and the Guardian to end up together, it wasn't much of a shock when they didn't. Neither of them were ready for a relationship, and the Guardian just has too much emotional baggage to ever love again. And I'm glad it was Zed who did it; it really shows his character growth, his realization that it wouldn't be a fair or healthy relationship.

But my emotional juxtaposition:

*Darlings POV switching to Guardians POV*

Me: YES!!!!!

*Section titled "Shy Wizard let's you go")

Me: NO!!!!!!!

The title of the series being the title of (probably) Y'narri's favorite romance novel?!?! Genius! I'm also honestly glad that the meaning of Magic of the Heart wasn't the whole "you had the power inside yourself all along" type of story. Basically, that Zed would find the magic inside himself and then not be weak anymore, yada yada. I think it was only recently (probably within the last few years) I discovered how ableist that narrative can be. So having "Magic of the Heart" be about love, not "magic" magic, works a lot better.

Makkaro and Darlings ending was just beautiful! On one hand, it does kind of feel like Makkaro is getting off a bit too easily for murdering thousands (or had it gotten to millions?) of innocents. On the other hand, he did lose his necromancy, and had severe emotional trauma from the entire experience. But either way, I love how he and Darling are just gonna live happily together, and while they may be secluded/hidden from society, they finally get the peace they deserve.

Mini musical theater thoughts because of course my brain thinks about musicals; "That Would Be Enough" from Hamilton, Eliza's lines are so Darling coded

"I don't pretend to know, the challenges your facing,

The world's you keep erasing and creating in your mind.

But I'm not afraid,

I know who I married,

So long as you come home at the end of the day,

That would be enough."

And

"If I could grant you peace of mind,

If you could let me inside your heart.

...

Let this be the first chapter,

Where you decide to stay,

And I could be enough,

And we could be enough,

That would be enough."

I could probably write an essay about how Makkaro is both Hamilton and Burr, but nobody needs that.

The animation walk cycle at the end with the fanart?! It's basically an anime ending credits sequence, and I loved it! Magic of the Heart anime when?

On a lighter note, Zed calming himself down after going off about how the heck he was still alive, I couldn't relate more to him. That shock, the surprise, then mini celebration (and then realizing he was celebrating a bit too much); so relatable.

Now thoughts on the future: I am both nervous and excited to see what happens to Zed. I know if that he's gonna be more grown up in the future, he may lose being "shy," and "smol," which I selfishly don't want him to lose. To sum things up, my favorite male archetype is the nervous, shy, bumbling type; ever since my brain was able to accept that even as a female, I was allowed to have male favorite characters, that's always what I drifted to. Why? I don't know; probably something about vulnerability and having men not being jerks. It seems silly, but I struggle with characters changing (which is probably why my two favorite shows, The 7D and The Cuphead Show are my favorites; since they aren't crazy plot heavy and focus more on comedy, the characters are consistent). That's not to say I'm against character growth; I love character growth! And I want Zed to realize his own personal strengths and worth (which as we can see, the process has at the very least started). I don't know. While I hope Zed grows, I hope he's still, himself, for lack of a better term.

All in all, congrats GBA for an amazing series finale!!!!! And Im very excited for Gen 3!!!Apologies for this long ramble, for those who lasted this long

#good boy audios #magic of the heart #magic of the heart spoilers #ramblings

[nekobami]

HUGE SPOILERS. (Screenshots I took w some comments & thoughts - not too hight quality however)

Oh wow. Long text.

I mean, finding out that everything was a plot fanficed by the demon and Morty's mind alone couldn't have been a better plot, I mean, It's really funny how Morty sees the random and insane things that happen to them.

Even though it's always something really out of the ordinary, I don't know how to explain it, but... Like, I can't help but feel like everything is too convenient. Because the focus is on fear, I mean at the end, it's an unconscious fear-focused narrative built using Morty's worldview as bricks. So that he didn't even know that this was really his fear at the end of the day.

But I'm surprised he doesn't even suspect how convenient and quick everything is. Like, "HOLY SH#T, A YOUNG RICK JUST ENTERED THE LIVING ROOM BURNING TO DEATH HOLDING A DIANE." JUST LIKE THAT. IN THE SAME SPEED YOU RED IT

But in parallel, I love how Morty sees the partnership between him and Rick. In the end, despite all the lore, all the narrative burden that should separate Rick from this family, Morty still sees them as the two weird friends who isolate themselves to talk to each other when something sinister happens. I also felt something in Rick's expression during this episode, but I talk about that in the screenshot

(( Marriage working out sounds ))

I also loved the "anti-aging thing" and the "Dad, stop! you're traumatizing her." I mean, For Morty, everything is so convenient for Rick that he can simply inject a blue liquid into his vein and become young again. CASUALLY. Not that it doesn't exist. It's probably something exactly like this.

WAKE UP, SUNSHINE! YOU HAVE A VIRTUAL EXISTENCIAL CRISIS TO LIVE!

By the way. I agree with other opinions I've seen recently. All of this is completely set up from the beginning, and it certainly wouldn't be so easy for Diane to simply ignore her grandchildren and her thirty-year-old daughter just to casually hang out with Rick. I mean, it's part of it. But bro. I'm sorry, I know Rick is a silly and romantic guy when it comes to it, even more so with HIS WIFE, the woman of his life, BUT, a breakfast bot? It still sounds too much like Morty's vision of Rick's flirting skills to me. Anyway. BREAKFAST BOT.

OHHH yeah, look at them. They're not real, but will make you feel good.

Oh, also. About this... this... thing. Like, I have to agree that it was a very wise choice to have only Morty go into the hole. Like. That demon devours your fears clearly means he enters your mind, he knows you by what you fear. He will use everything you know to taste your fear and suck everything out of you. He won't kill you, I guess. He was probably just making fun of Morty about his fear thing being able to actually kill someone. But he is a demon. Supposedly that's what he does. Unless maybe he has adapted to feed himself without actually needing to kill someone, or if he casually lets people live just for the sake of it. I don't know... I can't help but feel like this guy never needed them to go into the hole to build the narrative.

He's already managed to find out about everything Morty knows about Rick. Now imagine what we would have seen if he knew everything Rick knows about himself and others? I'm sorry, but it would obviously be too heavy. I know, it hurts. And you cannot compare the extent of people's fear, after all it is completely individual. But, my friend, imagine what this guy would discover about the multiverse as it is, just by getting into Rick's mind? The recourse he would have in this here is above tolerable. HOW DAMN POWERFUL CAN THIS GUY ACTUALLY BE? Hihi. Fear hole demon. I'm totally not attracted by him.

Also. Holy sh#t.

Cursed as f#ck, damn, ew, it wasn't even necessary, please don't do nothing similar to this, I'm begging you. I can't see this again in any context.

About Rick's expressions. (Yes. Yeah, yeah, the whole narrative load of this interaction between them, and Rick coming back after hearing that Diane was there, Morty afraid of Rick hugging him still being a hole thing, Morty afraid of being replaced, Rick coming back to put up Morty's photo, photo of Morty in the wallet, yes yes, extremely nice, lots of cool stuff, of course. But I would like to point out something.)

I could be wrong, after all I didn't watch the episode again. Like, I know Rick being with his wife must have exacerbated that factor, but throughout Morty's fear-centric narrative, Rick's features are softened, I don't know how to explain it. But in that moment, when Morty comes out of the hole, what really is Rick as an individual comes in, and not just the Rick built with Morty's vision of him and their interactions. Like, he just got that totally tired annoyed-like expression, since, after all, he's still affected by the recent events, and his face... Uh, I can't explain it perfectly, but around him is still heavy, while in Mortys narrative, things seems... lighter, since they've SUDDENLY, VERY CONVENIENTLY got another worries. And even if he was romantic with her in the narrative... I can't explain, but he was still very... cold and insensitive at times. Something that I find very difficult for Rick to do, as an individual and being extremely affected by all his experiences.

Anyway. Nice episode. Definitely. Merry Christmas too. HAHA. Christmas.

#rick and morty spoilers #screenshots #S7E10 #thoughts #Fear hole demon

[jaskiersvalley]

This is GENUINE SERIOUS BUSINESS ANON HATE so you better take it seriously you Letho cosplayer bot you! You're just a moist sock and deserve all this hate for being way too funny and smart!!

Ooooh! Some 'serious' anon hate going on here XD This has been sat in my inbox for far too long because I was having too much fun laughing at everyone else's 'hate' and their responses then promptly forgot I hadn't replied. But long enough has passed now that I look foolish now rather than just super late to the party. I can live with that. And, as always, an ask gets a ficlet in reply. But an ask like this? It gets "rewarded" with dubious morals, questionable medical knowledge and some bittersweetness.

Choose a Different Path

Whatever it was that Tissaia had done to Cahir, it had left some permanent marks. At first it hadn't been obvious, the fainting spells and funny turns chalked up to being on the run, to sleepless nights, to not having enough to eat, to having lived through horrors beyond most people's imagination. It wasn't until Geralt took his ragtag group to Kaer Morhen that it became apparent more was at play than trauma and lack of physical care.

At first they thought things were getting better. The instances where Cahir's movements slowed to sluggish and clumsy before sinking to the ground unresponsive were fewer. He hadn't passed out at all in Kaer Morhen, even seemed to be able to smile again.

Eskel had a lot to do with the smiles. For reasons he wasn't going to question, Cahir had taken quite the shine to him. And Eskel was never going to reject affection, not even when Geralt glared at him while Cahir was slumped against his shoulder and softly snoring away. In a way Eskel found Geralt's near enough fatherly attitude endearing. He'd seen the way Cahir and Ciri bickered, teased and generally terrorised each other. But while Ciri was more like a niece, childish in her youth, Cahir had lost that attitude years ago. Not to mention that Cahir was the one who initiated the start of whatever it was between them.

Of course it wasn't all sunshine and rainbows. Eskel had more than once watched as Cahir, for seemingly no reason, stumbled or slumped over, eyes glazed and unresponsive to touch. Each time he came back, he was upset, confused and sometimes defensive to the point of lashing out. Yet after a while he began reaching for Eskel for comfort, mumbled "what's happened" and "where am I" were tearfully asked into Eskel's chest. It was rare for Cahir to remember what had happened in the run up to such an episode, mind completely blank, not even the odd whisper of memory to help clue them in to the cause.

As quickly as they had fallen in love, found solace and comfort in each other, things were just as quick to falter. Cracks were appearing, Cahir was much more inclined to stay by the fire while Eske itched to be out of the keep. They clashed over whether the cold made old injuries hurt more, just because Eskel had more scars didn't mean his opinion on winters not actually making things worse had more weight to it than Cahir's experiences. Meanwhile, Eskel grew fearful of losing Cahir who was only a fragile human after all. They were doomed from the moment they met, Eskel had come to realise. If he didn't die first on the Path, Cahir was sure to succumb to old age eventually.

Arguments became more frequent and, with that, Cahir's dizzy spells increased too. It didn't take a genius to work out that stress was what set him off yet Eskel was powerless to protect him from it. Especially as he seemed to be the source of so much of it. He loved Cahir, he really did, but he didn't know what more he could do to prove it.

In the end he didn't have to. They were in their shared room but Cahir was pacing, throwing his belongings into a pile on the bed, not that there was much in the way of that.

"I can't do this," he seethed. "I'm not some child to coddle, not some pet to pamper. I love you but you're suffocating!"

Conflict had never been Eskel's strength. His bulk and general appearance meant that he looked imposing enough that few people picked fights with him and the few that did usually used their fists instead of words. Most considered him too much of a brute to be a worthy opponent in verbal sparring.

"But you're so young. And fragile!"

Whirling around, Cahir looked downright murderous. "Looks, as you well know, can be deceiving. I don't make decisions for you. And you don't make them for me."

"I don't though."

"You do!" Cahir yelled in frustration. "No training because it is cold. Should have a bit more food because I look like I needed it even though I said I was full. You put more wood on the fire because it was colder than what humans tend to like. And that was all just this morning!"

"I did it all for you!" Voice raising, Eskel ran a hand through his hair, ready to tear it out. "I love you and I want the best for you."

Suddenly Cahir deflated as he looked at Eskel with sad eyes. "Do you though? Or do you love and want the best for what you want me to be?"

"You! It's always been for you and your needs." Tone shifting, Eskel felt the argument slide into something beyond annoyance.

Sadness tinged the air as Cahir shook his head. "I can't do this. Sorry." Before Eskel could ask what he meant, Cahir held a hand up to silence him. "I'll move my things into a separate room. This is your home, don't feel you have to skulk around and avoid me. I won't make life difficult, I promise."

"This is it?"

"Yeah. I'm sorry I couldn't be what you wanted."

Just like that, Cahir walked out of the room. Eskel watched his back, rigid like that of a soldier going into battle. Except there was no battle, Cahir wasn't a soldier anymore. Lost and at a loss for what to do, Eskel followed a minute later. He couldn't be there when Cahir moved all his things, left Eskel's room how it had been before the winter.

Noises from the Great Hall drew him in. Desperate for a distraction, Eskel shuffled in, shoulders hunched. Lambert was kneeling on the ground, yelling at Geralt to get something soft while Ciri stared wide eyed. Cradled in Lambert's hands was Cahir's head, his body rigid as another of his spells wracked through him. It was worse than they had seen before but Geralt didn't seem overly worried. He trotted back with a folded throw.

"He hasn't had one like this in a while," he commented idly.

Uncertain whether he was allowed next to Cahir, Eskel kept his distance. He watched as Cahir was rolled onto his side as his muscles relaxed. Eyes which had been rolling slowly blinked and tried to focus, only tears were quick to blur his vision as Cahir came to. It broke Eskel's heart.

"Esk?" Cahir's voice was a wobbly croak as he blindly reached out.

Resolve to keep his distance breaking, Eskel sank to his knees next to Cahir and cradled him against his chest. After everything, Cahir still called for him.

The usual, teary question of "what happened?" was met with broad strokes across Cahir's back and the reassuring rumble of "you took a funny turn. You're okay now." Eskel couldn't help himself. "What do you remember?"

A head shake and a sad whine was the first response. "I don't- I don't know. We went to bed. But we're not there now. Where am I?"

Distressed sobs were buried into Eskel's soft shirt. His mind was spinning. Cahir didn't remember that morning. Didn't remember the final couple of straws that broke their relationship. Didn't remember breaking up with Eskel. If Eskel was a better man, he would have been honest. But he was only human, he saw a second chance at happiness. And this time he could probably get it right. As long as Cahir never found out, never remembered that morning.

"You're safe in Kaer Morhen. Vesemir is bringing you a warm, watered down cider. While you drink that I'll go make sure our bed is setup, okay?"

Slowly, Cahir untangled himself from Eskel's shirt. Wiping at his eyes, he nodded and accepted the drink Vesemir was holding out for him. Standing, Eskel didn't run but he hurried back to his room. Their room. Swiping everything off the bed, he made it look like they were in the middle of having a tidy, adding his own clothe to the pile with Cahir's. Bed ready, he raced back to the Great Hall where Cahir was bundled in the throw, empty tankard on the ground next to him.

"Come on, I'll get you back to bed, okay? Then we'll see how you're doing after a nap, yeah?"

Meekly, Cahir nodded and allowed himself to be picked up, feeling so much like a weak kitten in Eskel's arms.

"Thank you," hu murmured, eyes closed.

"No," Eskel replied. "Thank you."

#eskhir #eskel/cahir #eskel x cahir #eskel #cahir mawr dyffryn aep ceallach #the witcher #tldr: cahir and eskel break up but they don't