#this is about a lesson in vengeance which i read on the way back from my writing program and hated with a passion

[etchedstars]

favorite thing ever is to go on goodreads and search up the names of books i hate to see if Everyone Else has the same opinion on it

#they usually do #this is about a lesson in vengeance which i read on the way back from my writing program and hated with a passion #today on i hate pretentious mcs who have literally every privilege and treat poc/enby ppl to further their own growth #also ik this is dark academia but literally why the fuck do they drink hard alcohol so much #when its not alcohol its black coffee like ok. what the fuck #i love complex characters but they were both pretentious -> traumatized -> manipulative -> hatred just switching up the order #then theres . 'my dormmate wants to be skinny soooo bad she does everything to be skinny well IM skinnier than her and she wants to be me' #'my doormmate is black and has been ostracized from her sorority cult for having a personality :((( well IM white and i was ostracized for #KILLING MY GIRLFRIEND' #like there is a clear difference. plus that character was only ever there to further the mcs understanding of race which . bffr #this couldve been fine if it wasnt for the mc who is The pretentious dark academic white girl trying to pretend shes not like the other #pretentious dark academic white girls #'and then theres me. who like REAL literature and wears tweed blazers' like youre aware this is literally the starter pack for every 13 y.o #person who thinks this will make them Cool right . like you do know that . #wow. anyways #the overdue asteroid strikes again #i am in fact a hater

[literary-illuminati]

2024 Book Review #16 – The Saint of Bright Doors by Vajra Chandrasekera

I grabbed this on a recommendation I now forget the specifics of, but which I am incredibly glad I listened to. Not a perfect book, but a beautiful one. It really does immerse you in a capital-w Weird setting in a way I haven’t gotten to enjoy in a while, and might the best in years at really weaving it in with a sense of the mundane and the bathetic. Pacing and character development and plot are a little all over the place, but still a great read.

The story follows Fetter, the only child of the Perfect and Kind, anointed messiah of the Path Above. His mother tears his shadow off of him at birth, and forever after he must choose to remain tethered to the earth and not float away into infinity. He is raised from birth as a tool to take vengeance on his father by committing each of his five unforgivable sins – culminating, of course, in holy patricide. His childhood is spent in indoctrination and murders – and oh, he’s also the only one he knows who can see the monstrous devils who share the world with humanity.

So anyway, all that gives him a lot to talk about in therapy.

The actual book follows Fetters’ life as an aimless young adult in the city of Luriat, with its layers of impenetrable government and byzantine system of castes and races inherited from successive colonizers, its regular pogroms and plagues, and its tendency for any doors left closed and unwatched for too long to instantaneously become permanently shut portals to Somewhere. Over the course of the book, he is dragged into a revolutionary conspiracy, learns his father is coming to the city, learns deep metaphysical secrets, is a pretty terrible boyfriend, becomes a suicide bomber, and learns to fly.

To start with the negative, the pacing of the plot is...okay, maybe not bad, but it’s really not trying for the things I’d expect it to. A whole act of the narrative is spent meandering through an absurd purgatory of refugee/prison/quarantine camps Fetter has been consigned to. Lovely writing, thematically important, does eat up a lot of page count which then leads to rest of the book being things happening very quickly one after the other with very little in the way of buildup or reflection. Time is enjoyably spent just detailing the experience of Fetter’s day to day life, but much of the supporting cast feel more like plot (or thematic) devices than characters. The book ends with the protagonist loudly reciting the big lesson he’s learned from the events of the book. So yeah, less than perfect book. Still, I found all the sins very easy to forgive.

As mentioned, this was the first fantasy book I’ve read in a while that felt properly fantastical, like it was created from first principles rather than being the latest in a hoary old lineage stretching back generations. Which might be complete bullshit, I don’t know – not like I’ve read a great deal of other South Asian fantasy to compare it to – but it worked for me. A big part of which is how very modern it is. This is a secondary world with prophets and plague-bearing anti-gods, forgotten timelines whose ghosts leak into the world, and a whole plethora of almost- and not-quite- messiahs. And also one with cellphones and UN-administered refugee camps, labyrinthine bureaucratic politics and scandals over inappropriate allocation of imported medical devices. It all feels like a reflection of the present and its own concerns rather than the thousandth-generation pastiche much of the genre does, I suppose – which is something I really did appreciate.

The world of the book – or, at least, the little slice of it the story is concerned with. There’s clearly grander and stranger things happening off in the distance – is one intensely concerned with caste and class, race and religion and breeding. Luriat is weighed down with the architecture and high culture of successive waves of colonialism, and its elites organize and govern the population according to a syncretic mix of all of their ideological castoffs. Politics – and in particular the use of plague and quarantine on one hand and sectarian pogroms on the other to control the populace – is pretty key to the whole book. It’s also just about entirely beyond Fetter. Not that he’s dumb, just that he’s apolitical, in the sense of treating government like an inexorable and inevitable fact of life to be worked with/around or avoided, not something you can understand or change. Which makes for fun reading as there’s clearly a whole Les Mis thing happening like 0.5 degrees to the left of the book’s plot.

Anyway, I’m still sad Pipra didn’t get more screentime, and the whole ending feels almost comically rushed, but absolutely a worthwhile read.

#book review #the saint of bright doors #vajra chandrasekera #sff

[howtowhumpyourhiccup]

As for Hiccup's downward spiral in the post-Httyd 2 comic trilogy, really makes me think back to Stoick instilling the message in Hiccup to not seek vengeance in RttE's "The Longest Day."

"I won't lie to you, son. A good measure of vengeance can go down a treat-- But that feeling is short-lived and the violence only gets worse-"

This is what Stoick tells Hiccup in that episode and these words come from a man who has led himself be taken by vengeance. To the point even that he was almost named Chief Stoick the Vindictive.

And then a little later in that same season, in the episode "Shell Shocked: Part 1," when Stoick is face to face with Viggo for the very first time, his first instinct is to strangle him.

"You come after my son. You come after my home. Now you get to deal with me!"- Stoick

"Dad, wait! Revenge is not a plan. Remember." - Hiccup

"That was for you. For me, it goes down a treat." - Stoick

That is the interaction between father and son as Stoick is seconds away from dishing some of that famous cold dish on Viggo after bringing both his son and his people harm. It's very obvious that these lessons Stoick has been instilling into his son don't seem to count for him.

And probably for a good reason, too. Stoick makes a comment that Hiccup "is just like his mother" when it comes to stubbornness, but I would make the unsurprising argument that Hiccup takes just as much after his father as he does his mother.

That sense of duty to his village as he grows older? His father. His patience and ability to hold back? His father. His pride? His father. Even Gobber says during the battle with the Red Death; "Every bit the boar-headed stubborn Viking you ever were." So while Stoick likens Hiccup to his mother, Gobber likens Hiccup to his father.

So what about that vindictive streak in Stoick that has popped up in Hiccup from time to time in the franchise?

Tl,dr: Hiccup has a history of getting back at people in some way or other and does it more often when he's under stress. Stoick knows about this side to his son. This side of him gets cranked up to 11 after his father's death.

The long story is under the "keep reading."

RoB

The very first example that comes to mind is; "In Dragons We Trust."

In this episode Hiccup and the Riders have this exchange:

The episode then cuts to the next scene and, lo and behold, Astrid is wearing a sash that says "Dragon United Monitoring Brigade," a.k.a "D.U.M.B." A name a Berkian woman points out, to which Astrid says "Yes, that is correct. Not my idea." and this is then followed up by Astrid giving the woman to instruction to yell "DUMB" at the top of the lungs in case of dragon problems.

"Permission to shoot first and ask questions later!" - Ruffnut

"Permission to skip the questions!" - Tuffnut

"We're just patrolling! Nobody is shooting anyone." - Hiccup

"Okay, I have a question; what's fun about that?" - Tuffnut

"It's not supposed to be fun it's a Hiccup idea." - Astrid

"Exactly- What?!" - Hiccup

So after calling all of Hiccup's plans boring, he got back at her by having her wear an embarrassing sash and give out embarrassing instructions.

Want more evidence? Then I suggest you look back at that episode and see who's actually wearing the sash.

Astrid, we've already established that. Snotlout, but Hiccup always finds a reason to be upset with him at this point in their friendship.... And that's it. Fishlegs, Ruffnut, Tuffnut, Hiccup himself? They're all on patrol, but only two of the six Riders are wearing a sash that says "Dumb."

Then there's RoB's "Portrait of Hiccup as a buff young man," in which Hiccup's search for Hamish's treasure is entirely because he wants to prove that skinny smart Hiccup is better than buff Portrait!Hiccup. He even asks at some point; "How's that for a Hiccup?"

You could make the argument that's what Httyd 1 is all about. Hiccup proving once and for all that he's just fine the way he is, that he doesn't need to be their ideal of a Viking, but that was about acceptance and not vindictiveness.

In this episode, this feels very much more like a "oh, I'll show you!" type of thing specifically because of that line and because Hiccup chose to one-up his father in something he failed to do. A.k.a find Hamish' treasure.

Then there is the famous "Thawfest" episode, which is entirely Hiccup getting back at Snotlout for past Thawfests during the dragon portion until Snotlout's fears of failing in his father's eyes snap him out of it.

Another episode that comes to mind is "When Lightning Strikes," in which Hiccup gets himself hurt in a desperate attempt to prove Toothless' innocence when Mildew has everyone convinced that he's to blame for the recent massive storms on Berk.

This is more of an act of vengeance on the part of Snotlout and the twins as they blame Mildew for the harm that befell Hiccup. They were the ones to come up with and enact this plan, but Hiccup certainly didn't stop them from getting it. He just gave them a "I'm not sure that's what my dad had in mind, guys" and just leaves it at that.

Another good example is "Defiant One," in which Hiccup is once again getting back at Snotlout, this time for getting them crashlanded inside enemy territory and for doing everything in his power to be a nuisance. And what better way to get back at him than to give him a bowl of Toothless' spit and tell him that Night Fury saliva has healing properties after Snotlout has a reaction to eating berries? Again, this is reminiscent of "In Dragons We Trust."

And then there's a part 2 to this particular example as Hiccup brings it up three years later in RttE season 2's "Snotlout Gets the Axe."

"What about flying us into the waterspout and crashlanding us on Outcast Island? That was terrific." - Hiccup

So yeah, great at convincing people to let things go, not so great at letting things go himself.

And who can forget "We Are Family, Part 2," in which Alvin's heckling of Hiccup convinces both him and Toothless to attack him, almost ruining their escape as an ambush was lying in wait. And the specific comment that did it was "That's what I would expect from Stoick's little runt," referring to leaving their business unfinished.

Interestingly enough, it's once again Stoick who tries to stop Hiccup from going, reminding him that they got what they came for (saving Hiccup and Toothless) and that they should just leave. He even tries to stop Hiccup before he even made a move to climb up in Toothless' saddle, because he knew Hiccup was going to go after Alvin for that comment.

Alvin makes his comment, Gobber says "Oh boy," followed immediately by Stoick looking at his son and calling his name. Stoick knew.

DoB

After that two-parter, I think Hiccup must've gotten a scare, because the vindictive streak that was very present in the first season is almost completely absent here.

You could make an argument for "The Night and The Fury"s "You don't need a lot of help with that, Dagur," in response to Dagur's "By making a fool? Out of me?!" But otherwise, very little avenging going on here.

As a matter of fact, I can't remember anytime in which Hiccup makes an attempt at getting back at Dagur, certainly not in DoB. That season he spends more time trying to delegate and even spends time trying to keep Astrid away from the Flightmare that ruined her family's name until she convinces him to help her cut them of before they reach Berk.

This is similar to how Hiccup was also the one to tell Toothless to leave the Whispering Death alive in the RoB episode "What Flies Beneath," long before his conversation with Stoick in RttE.

RttE

Three years later, Hiccup's streak makes a little bit of a return.

For example:

Astrid asks him what "he's up to" when Hiccup suggests they should all make a design for the dragon base and vote on it. Literally she asks him "what are you up to?" as she wasn't expecting Hiccup to agree to any of their ideas. Not a vindictive sign, perse, but definitely a sign that Astrid always expects him to be up to something.

He almost preferred to let the twins burn down their island just so they could see what it's like to be a leader.

He reminds Snotlout of the time he crashlanded them on enemy territory.

Almost takes out Heather for siding with the enemy, not knowing she's acting as a double agent.

Biting sarcasm, which was also very much present in RoB/DoB.

But all of this is pretty low-level, nothing like making a friend wear a sash that says "Dumb" for the entire village to read.

And then Viggo comes along and he gets to Hiccup to the point that he grows obsessed with the need to one him up and take him down.

The Riders call him out on it, Dagur calls him out on it, Stoick feels the need to give him that piece of advice in season 4 that I've stated at the top of this post.

Dagur even has a conversation with Hiccup about how revenge changes a person in season 3's "Enemy of My Enemy."

"Hmm. That stuff can kill you from the inside, Hiccup. Revenge. Anger. Obsession. Trust me, I know. It can make you do things you never thought you were capable of. Cause you to take chances, make mistakes. If that doesn't end you, it'll eat away at you slowly."

Dagur is basically telling Hiccup to let his obsession with Viggo go. But he doesn't. He certainly tries to lighten up when he notices that his obsession at getting back at Viggo causes him to work his friends to the bone. (Which they do. Because they love him and they can see what this obsession is doing to him.) But the need for vengeance doesn't disappear until Viggo's supposed death during the Shell Shocked two-parter. The only one he holds a grudge against then is Gruffnut.

The most notable episode left to talk about then is "No Bark, All Bite." In this episode, Stoick projects his frustrations with Johann onto Hiccup, who gets the brunt of it and who in turn gets frustrated and angry as well. At some point, he even calls his own father a complete idiot. Beyond this episode, nothing of note.

Httyd 2 and Comics

It's in the second movie that we can see that war after war has taken a bit of a toll on Hiccup. By the time he's 20 years old, he has ended four to five of them, so naturally, when Drago comes knocking and immediately proves himself a threat, all Hiccup wants is to avoid conflict as much as possible.

Unfortunately, this original path ends in Stoick's death, even though Hiccup implies a change of mind just before Drago's attack, a diplomatic approach as a last resort ended up fatal for one of his loved ones.

Interestingly enough, something Viggo warned him against in the RttE episode "Triple Cross." The ruthlessness to deal with his foes is there, but so is his goodness, his purity, and that inevitably holds him back.

Until after his father's death and Hiccup falls into a downward spiral in the post-Httyd 2 comic trilogy.

In "The Serpent's Heir," he burns Calder alive, a very brutal way of dealing with a comparatively harmless villain. He also basically shames the Nepenthe's young King Mik into actually working for his village by shoving a shovel in his hands.

"Dragonvine" comes along and when said Dragonvine poisons Toothless and Silkspanners attempt to eat the vine off him and suck the poison out, Hiccup is so petrified by the idea of losing Toothless again that he almost kills the very young Silkspanners in order to save him from more pain.

A clear-headed Hiccup most likely would've noticed what the Silkspanners were trying to do, but this Hiccup didn't. He's mourning his father, angry, afraid. And he is especially afraid of someone taking Toothless away from him like Drago did when he took Toothless' mind and turned him on Hiccup and killed his father.

In "The Fire Tides" it would turn out that Drago had survived when Hiccup is forced to face him once again and pretty much alone as none of the other Riders are there. I don't remember if the interview directly mentions what was going to happen (I think Richard Hamilton left that out on purpose in case the comic ever got published) but I know that whatever happened in this comic was going to be the conclusion to Hiccup's downward spiral following the death of his father.

Either way, Hiccup went from giving his friends dumb sashes and saliva bowls to get back at them to burning an ill man alive. Viggo knew that ruthless was in there and Hiccup sure found it after Httyd 2.

And just like Viggo noticed that, Stoick has been seeing this vindictive streak inside of Hiccup for a long time now. And it's probably a side he's very familiar with as it's one Hiccup probably inherited from him. This led to the lesson he tried to impart to his son in an effort to keep him from going down that same path, but whether that worked or not... Calder would probably say "no."

Anyway, I guess here is where I'll conclude my analysis on Hiccup's more vengeful side.

#long post #httyd movies #rob #riders of berk #dob #defenders of berk #rtte #race to the edge #httyd 2 #how to train your dragon 2 #hiccup haddock #stoick the vast #the haddocks

[kingedmundsroyalmurder]

Big ol' content warning for sexual assault and something very, distressingly close to pedophilia. If I can on mobile, I'm gonna pop this one under a readmore.

Oh, quick addendum before we start: I'm getting very tired of the running motif of 'Larry was x but Eric was even better.' The Williamsons liked Larry but they like Eric better. Larry was a good teacher but Eric is a better one. Please, Maud, I'm begging you, stop. Let Eric stand on his own, rather than tearing his friend down to make him seem taller.

Anyway, Eric knows he loves Kilmeny now and immediately starts treating her like a child. “I am sorry you were disappointed, Kilmeny. I couldn’t come last night. Some day I shall tell you why. I stayed home to learn a new lesson. I am sorry you missed me—no, I am glad. Can you understand how a person may be glad and sorry for the same thing?”

This is a schoolmaster teaching a lesson, not a man talking to an equal. I haven't previously been seriously creeped out by how Eric talks to Kilmeny, but this is quite gross. I fear the condescension is going to skyrocket.

“Yes, very thoroughly. It was a delightful lesson when I once understood it. I must try to teach it to you some day. Come over to the old bench, Kilmeny. There is something I want to say to you. But first, will you give me a rose?”

Again, this is not reading like a man talking to the girl he has a crush on. This is, like, a parent talking to their child about mortality or something.

So Eric asks Kilmeny to introduce him to her aunt and uncle and she panics. She says they will forbid the two of them from seeing each other anymore and that they would ban her from ever going to the orchard again.

And Eric, still in schoolmaster mode, does not offer understanding, he goes, 'I know better than you and this is what we are doing.' Remember back when they first met, and he had this habit of asking her questions that were actually just orders? Yeah, that's back with a vengeance. He asked if she would introduce him, but she is not allowed to say no.

"He pitied her for the pain and bewilderment in her eyes; but he took her slender hands in his and said firmly,

“Yes, Kilmeny, I do mean it. It is not quite right for us to be meeting each other here as we have been doing, without the knowledge and consent of your friends. You cannot now understand this, but—believe me—it is so.”

Like, he's not wrong that them meeting secretly like this is not great, but he is not once considering her feelings here. He is patronizing and superior and absolutely should not be pursuing her romantically if this is how he's going to treat her emotions.

He keeps telling her that she'll understand things later. Just pat her on the head and tell her she'll understand when she's older, why don't you.

Again, the narrative has called Kilmeny a child quite a bit up to this point, but this is the first moment where it really feels like Eric is genuinely treating her like one. This is really bad given that the thing that has changed is that he now wants to marry her.

"Two great tears brimmed over in her big blue eyes and splashed down on her slate. Her lips quivered like a hurt child’s. Eric put his arm impulsively about her and drew her head down upon his shoulder. As she cried there, softly, miserably, he pressed his lips to the silky black hair with its coronal of rosebuds. He did not see two burning eyes which were looking at him over the old fence behind him with hatred and mad passion blazing in their depths. Neil Gordon was crouched there, with clenched hands and heaving breast, watching them." Oh for fuck's sake, Maud.

"She allowed herself to smile, but it was a rather forlorn little effort. She did not cry any more, but her spirits did not come back to her. Eric talked gaily, but she only listened in a pensive, absent way, as if she scarcely heard him. When he asked her to play she shook her head."

Care for her feelings? From this man? Not a chance!

“Very well, Kilmeny. Now, don’t worry, little girl. It will all come out all right.” No really though. Eric did not start treating Kilmeny like a child until he decided to marry her. This is so gross.

And then he kisses her. And she jumps away from him, scared, and runs away. And Eric thinks this: "The sweetness of that involuntary kiss clung to Eric’s lips as he went homeward, half-intoxicating him. He knew that it had opened the gates of womanhood to Kilmeny. Never again, he felt, would her eyes meet his with their old unclouded frankness. When next he looked into them he knew that he should see there the consciousness of his kiss. Behind her in the orchard that night Kilmeny had left her childhood."

In the interest of fairness, it is "involuntary" because he hadn't meant to initiate it, not because she didn't want it (although she doesn't seem to have). But the rest of it? The part where he kissed her and she didn't want him to and she will never again see him without thinking about it?

Lucy Maud, I don't think you intended to do this, but what you have written is practically assault.

#kilmeny of the orchard #kilmeny readalong #In which i lose my entire patience with eric marshall #And this book starts to seriously earn its reputation

[loverssfevers]

guilty pleasures - terence higgs

Description: Everyone has guilty pleasures. Terence likes comic books and well, you like Terence. Warnings: none Word count: 1.2k A/N: some silly Cassius content at the beginning. I really missed writing for Terence and @lilyswh0re and I headcannoning Terence and comics made me wanna write for it heheh so dedicated to you bestie!!!

“It's really not that hard” Cassius sighs pushing your parchment of Arithmancy homework over to you from across the table.

“You get special tutoring you are not allowed to tell me this isn’t hard” you snap back running your eyes over Cassius's corrections on your attempt at an equation. 

You let out a small fake cry resting your head on the desk feeling overcome with disappointment. It was pure luck you got into N.E.W.T level Arithmancy after last years exams. You had remained on the passing mark all year and studied for this class ten times more than the others just to try and get a better score than usual. When your scores came back and you received an Outstanding you were so shocked you would have dropped a glass of water if you had one in your hand. 

Cassius had looked at you and said ‘I don’t believe in miracles but something of the sort definitely happened here’ You wanted to tell to shut up but he was right. Definitely a miracle. 

Everyday you attend the N.E.W.T level class you walk out more confused than you did walking in. You knew Cassius was getting sick of your questions and you were too. It was just too hard, too confusing and you considered dropping the class everyday. 

“Has Cassius depressed you again?”

You can’t see him but Terences familiar voice fills your ears making you take a deep breath in at his presence. 

“Yes” 

“I have not” Cassius defends tapping his finger on the paper below to put emphasis the homework.

“You have” You reply shooing his hand away from your paper without lifting your head. 

“I know what would make you feel better” 

You finally look up squinting at Terence as your eyes adjust to the bright room again. He’s holding a small brown paper bag and he smiles cheekily reaching in and bringing up the contents just enough to show the title ‘BATMAN’ 

You widen your eyes pushing yourself up from the chair “No way”

“Yes way” Terence replies back with the same enthusiasm jumping on his toes. 

“You are both ridiculous. We have magic yet you read about a man who uses muggle equipment to…” Cassius pauses frowning in confusion “What does he do again?”

“Vengeance” you and Terence say at the same time blinking at Cassius unfazed by he’s outburst. 

Cassius looks between you both waving his hand in dismissal partly annoyed. You take that as a sign that your lesson by Mr Warrington is over. You smile bundling your pieces of parchment together and shoving it into your bag. You fling it over your shoulder and run out of the library with Terence to his dorm to settle down and read the new comic together. You drop your bag on his dorm floor spreading out on his bed waiting for him to join you. 

This was the usual go, Terence closes his curtain shut, pulls out a packet of Fizzing Whizzbee’s and sits down so close to you, you can feel the heat radiating off his skin and onto yours. You can't deny that your heart speeds up whenever he’s that close to you. That you find his excited smile and comments about what your reading to be cute. 

Truthfully you hadn’t really cared about comics until you walked in on Terence pulling his little box filled with them from under his bed. He looked so embarrassed and ashamed of liking them that you blurted out you read them too. Which was a lie but the look of relief on Terences face would have you lie again and again if it meant he felt comfortable enough to show you a side of him no one else got to see. 

You fell in love with comics through Terence. Every time he brought one he would talk to you and at first you acted out the excitement and now you were genuinely interested. Because it was fun to read but also because it meant you got to be close to him. 

Sometimes you would both stay up so late reading through the old ones and pointing out content that related one to the other, that you’d fall asleep. Curled up next to his side or head rested on his shoulder. Finding yourself wrapped up in him. But in the morning you both get up pressing your hands against your clothes to iron out the creases of the night. Ignoring the feeling of familiarity, comfort and warmth in your chest. You just didn’t know if he felt the same and that scared you. 

It always feels like the minutes drag out when you’re around him. Holding your breath because if you breathe in you’ll become intoxicated by him and do something stupid. It was so easy at the start to pretend like it didn’t faze you. But months in and his touch burned into your skin and you felt it even hours after he left. Remembering him. Thinking about him.

Even with the comic before you right now you thought of him. You turn your head slightly to eye his features. The light freckles on his face and dark blonde curly hair sweeping around his face. The sharpness of his nose and curves of his lips- you stare a little too long at those. They twitch a little as he reads something that makes him want to smile. You smile too. Terence feels your eyes on him and he turns to look at you. 

“Is there something on my face?” he asks hand coming to scratch at his cheek. 

“What? No” you mumble clearing your throat looking away, the pattern of his curtain suddenly more interesting than the comic resting on his thighs. 

“Hey” Terence says softly bumping shoulders with you to get your attention “Whats up?”

If you look at him you might crack. You might tell him you like him. You might ruin the one thing that gives him comfort and you something to look forward to. You shake your head forcing a smile and saying “Nothing”.

You can hear the flipping of pages as Terence closes the comic and turns his attention to you fully grabbing your hand. You look at your hands together feeling a skip in your heart.

“Talk to me”

He wasnt going to give this up, Merlin he even stopped reading Batman for this. You cant take your eyes off the way his fingers are gently caressing your hand, seemly to comfort you but instead causing more nerves to shoot through your body. He didn’t even know he was doing it. 

“Terence” you whisper ignoring the fear in your chest “This feeling…” 

You pause squeezing his hand in an attempt to allude to something you cant even vocalise. 

“This feeling, its not just me right?” 

He stares at you for a moment letting the words process in his head. His eyes drift only to come back a second later 

“No, its not just you”

He smiles gently taking his free hand and squeezing your right cheek softly in affection. You pry his fingers away lips in a straight line whilst his are curved smiling at you. 

“You are incredibly annoying”

“Get use to it”

Taglist: @limerenze @ghostofscarley @lilyswh0re

#terence higgs #terence higgs x reader #terence higgs imagine #terence higgs scenario #adrian pucey #adrian pucey x reader #cassius warrington #slytherin boys #slytherin quidditch team #slytherin #cassius warrington scenario #graham montague #harry potter #harry potter imagine #harry potter imagines #harry potter scenarios #harry potter headcanon #hp headcanon #loverssfevers writing #writing

[floydsmuse]

Meggy my sweet, I'm afraid the Calvin bug's bitten me again with a vengeance!!! (lol).

All I can see is Calvin and wifey waking up on a Saturday morning as the covers at the foot of the bed start moving. Turns out, Baby Ellen crawled her way out of her crib at the foot of the bed because she wanted snuggles from momma and daddy (lol). Calvin's giving Six-Thirty "the look" and the dog gets real sheepish because Calvin knows Six-Thirty helped the baby and turned her into a little escape artist.

Oooh and Calvin bundling her up to go outside so she can play in the snow for the first time? She looks so cute in all her snow gear and you bet Six-Thirty's running behind her to make sure she stays safe sledding down the hill.

I'd imagine too that being the week of finals can be extra stressful in the house too. But as always, you and Calvin find ways to take a break or find something funny to break up the stress. You too sometimes are side by side in your bed but rarely get any papers graded because Ellen's crawling all over the two of you (lol).

Ooooh and on the days when you get to bring her to work? Those are some of the best. Cal of course doesn't bring her into the lab but the lecture hall is a different story. One time, you needed to give a lesson in pediatric nursing and you brought Ellen in to be a part of it and all your girls were squealing at how cute she was. You weren't sure if it was because of a long morning, but she was being extra fussy when Cal was giving a lecture on something to do with the periodic table. Since you happened to be sitting in the front row, he calmly took Ellen from you and continued the lecture all while putting her to sleep (lol).

Meggy it's not my longest thought/thot in the world, but I'm hoping some good came of it (lol).

Mary my darling ! hehe the Calvin bug has gotten to me too🥰 believe me! i’ve got some thoughts/thots brewing in my head as well! i can’t wait to read this one that you’ve sent in :))

~ oh my goodness! not baby El escaping her crib to get some much needed cuddles from mommy & daddy😭 also Six-Thirty helping her is such a funny thought ! i could picture it perfectly in my head🤣 Six-Thirty looks over & sees in the little bit of light that shines in from the moon outside into the room, that Ellen is up on her feet & is about to take the leap of faith, to escape the confines of her crib. Six-Thirty makes subtle movements & trots over to the crib, inviting El to climb onto his back & bring her back over to the bed. it surprises Calvin that Six-Thirty didn’t alert him about baby trying to escape, but Cal knows he can’t stay mad at his canine campaign & lovingly welcomes El into bed for some late night snuggles🥹

~ i could definitely picture Ellen in the cutest little snow gear & outfit, that Calvin happened to buy her :,) like i said previously i truly believe that Cal would be into styling her & just loves to dress her up! aww & just imagining her going on a sled with wifey or Cal. one of the them being behind her & she’s in the front, letting out a fit of giggles & feeling a rush of excitement from going down the snowy hill. i can picture a time too when Ellen goes down the hill with Cal & he lets out a woohoo! & shoots his arms up into the air like he’s on a roller coaster, which makes El let out even more giggles & Calvin would be laughing like a little kid too.

~ El just loves Cal & wifey so much🥹 i could definitely see you both trying to take some much needed time & stepping away from the work/stress, but Ellen always finds her way back to you & is looking for some lovin’ & attention from her mommy & daddy :,) which of course you two oblige & welcome her right into your arms!

~ aww wifey bringing Ellen into work & the students gushing over her is just soo sweet! i feel like all the students also would call themselves like unofficial “aunts” & “uncles” of baby El, which you & Calvin find hilarious but cute at the same time! i also love Cal being the one to calm Ellen down when she’s extra fussy. Calvin definitely seems like the type to have the “magic touch” & can put really anyone to sleep if need be🤣 he just has this calming nature & patience, especially when it comes to his baby girl :,) im so soft over this 🫠

Mary !! i loved reading these thoughts & don’t ever feel bad if a thought/thot isn’t long enough! there’s no such thing. everything you send in is amazing & i love reading it all🥰 i hope you liked what i added to this & i can’t wait to see what other Calvin thoughts/thots you come up with! i also can’t wait to keep reading your fics too💗💗

#calvin evans #calvin evans x reader #calvin thoughts/thots <3 #lessons in chemistry

[hiatuswhore]

♕ ᴛʜᴇ ᴘʀɪɴᴄᴇ ᴀɴᴅ ʇɐᴚ ʇǝǝɹʇS ǝɥ⊥—ᴀɴ ᴏᴠᴇʀᴠɪᴇᴡ

♕ Masterlist

♕ A/N: Hey so this is just an overview. Clearing up any confusion and explaining some fun little details about the story. Heavy spoilers for the story and the show so if you have not read or watched either I would not proceed below.

♕ FAQ

~ Q1. Did reader actually die?

So quite a few people have been asking this and connecting it to Arya pointing out the Septs conflicting versions of how this history is told. I’m so glad you guys are picking up on the final chapter having unreliable narrators. BUT, the only thing that is definite is she was poisoned at her wedding.

Now I have been getting messages of people saying it was Daemon’s order for several reasons. One being revenge for what Aemond did to Lucerys. This backed with the fact that Rhaenyra would never hurt reader but Daemon carries no loyalty to reader. Which the argument is solid,

Others are saying Otto organized the assassination. That Daemon would not betray Rhaenyra in that way and Otto used it to turn the realm against Rhaenyra. Also very solid argument.

I wrote the ending the way I did to leave it ambiguous. I enjoy stories where character actions and motivations can be debated. There are only a few things certain in this story. Aemond and reader were friends, whether that friendship turned to loved or Stockholm Syndrome (which some people have been messaging me saying) is debatable. I love hearing your insights on what you read and how you interpreted it.

~ Q2. What is the Blackwater Bay scenes in Game of Pride about?

In Game of Histories there are key things highlighted. More insight on Readers past is given. Pranar (her father) teaches her how to float in water at Blackwater Bay.

During this he teaches her that The Bells mean trouble and you may not get everything on the first try. I included these because they’re key to the readers character. The Bells represent something above her (Targaryens, Nobles, etc) and trouble which can be dangerous for low borns. Teaching reader to not give up plays into her perseverance. These lessons are dear to reader, bringing her comfort and guidance.

So as reader is slipping in and out of consciousness she hallucinates floating in Blackwater Bay bringing her comfort from the pain she’s enduring in reality. First her father is there holding her, a sign she may be dying.

Throughout the story Aemond and readers relationship is complicated. His feelings are not hard to understand but readers is not as simple. So when she is floating in the bay the second time the Dragon being up ahead is finally allowing herself to admit Aemond brings her comfort despite all they’ve been through.

Floating on water throughout the entire story is a comfort for reader. It reminds her of her father but also symbolizes where she is in life. In some chapters in her baths she keeps her head above water but not her body while relaxing, others she’s dunking herself beneath the surface. All of it connected to what’s occurring around her.

- Q3. Further explain Helaena’s mumblings.

The first is in Game of Truths, at Dinner she says, “For only water can withstand the beast. Pride will drain it dry.” This was the first nudge to reader dying. Water representing reader being a Kings Landing bastard, (Y/n) Rivers. The beast is Aemond, his pride not allowing him to see reader would be safer away from him and his family drama which ultimately drains (kills) her.

The second is in Game of Revelations, Helaena visits reader and says, “An eye for an eye. Pride for vengeance.” At that very moment is when Prince Lucerys is killed. Like a domino effect it sets in motion the need for the Greens to gain the people’s favor. This is another nudge to readers death, once again saying Aemond’s pride will get (Y/n) killed.

The final one comes in Game of Pride, reader is braiding Helaena’s hair. Helaena says, “Ablaze be the city as the bells ring, surrender leaving only the river.” This references Daenerys torching city in the future. Leaving only the river is a nudge at bastards which I think of Jon’s bastard status despite him not actually being a bastard. I did this to tie in GOT to this series. The whole idea of the Bells meaning trouble for low borns I created because of the episode in GOT, The bells. This story is set several years before the events of GOT and I wanted them to connect. In this story some characters believe The Bells means trouble and it does, (reader being killed and attacks on the city etc). Which makes the bells ringing and Daenerys torching the city another connection to the bells meaning trouble. In the final chapter the book about reader it says The bells rang that of the swan song. The swan song is the metaphorical phrase for a final gesture or goodbye. For what we have in the show I like using the bells to symbolize bad things coming which is ironic.

- Q4. What was the alternative ending you considered?

At one point I really started rooting for Aemond and Reader. I do like their chemistry and complicated relationship. So I considered still following the original story without reader dying.

Aemond would still die at Gods Eye but they would have one child. That child would marry one of Rhaenrya’s younger sons and bring the end of the war. In the final chapter reader would still be noted as a notable figure and one of the only major players to survive the war.

I loved this idea, I really did but it would make all the references such as the bells, Heleana’s mumblings, and little nudges to the ending mean nothing.

- Q5. Would you do anything differently?

I wish l better developed the platonic relationship between Ser Harwin and Reader more. I did write it enough to which you can tell they somewhat care for each other, I definitely should have done more. Same with Cayde. I am working on making better developing side characters. I feel like I did okay with Taliya and Daltis but I’m not sure.

- Q6. What’s Aegon’s relationship with Reader?

Aegon’s a drunken manchild with no impulse control. While writing him I wanted to capture that he can be a scary individual. Also while showing readers assertiveness.

While writing I wanted to show over time Aegon’s somewhat came to respect reader. He enjoys watching her humble annoying lords and defy Alicent/Otto. In another life where he isn’t a rapist and not a complete ass they definitely would’ve been friends.

- Q6. What inspired or made you want to write this story?

I really love the song Revenge by XXXTENTACION. If you look at the lyrics I feel it makes me think of how I’d picture Aemond in love. I imagine he’d very intimidating but aware that he wants to try to do right by his lover. Continuing with the lyrics despite hurting their loved one they will still seek revenge even if it kills themself and who they love. Dooming both themselves and their lover,

♕ TAG LIST: @jasontoddorjasongrace @luluga @mizfortuna @ellathefriendlyalpacaaa @out-of-life @dark-night-sky-99 @graykageyama @lepoulpe-blog @s0urmarvel l @singitoutgirl26 @buttercup-beeee @omega-horus @linkpk88 @millies0bsimp @ly17 @hydrationqueensworld @skinmittensgoblin @herfantasyworldd @burningshewolf @reneehillary69 @minttea07

♕ I would love to hear more of your interpretations and answer more questions! You can comment it, if you want to send it move privately direct message me etc!

[survivalove]

in regards to the hama ask, imo as a native person, I don't think it's wrong hama got punished. thats kind of a hot take, but my issue comes with how she was punished and that we never saw anything more. katara was right to not want to continue the cycle of revenge, just like hama wasn't bad for wanting revenge. personally i don't have a problem with what she did lol BUT i also think people refuse to acknowledge native people can be bad and angry and want revenge even if it takes form in horrible ways. hama should be a lesson on what happens when your nation do these things- she shouldn't get away with it, but keeping her in the fire nation defeats the purpose of what she's meant to show. someone so blinded by hatred they don't really care about ending the war or their own people, just hurting the people who hurt them. but you can't expect someone who became this way to see the wrong in hurting people by keeping them in the prison that kickstarted their desire for revenge. idk if this is worded right but I don't think hama being punished is inherently bad and I get annoyed when people say she didn't do anything wrong bc yes she did! and that's great! it just could've been handled better in the aftermath

Thank you for sending anon! Yes everything you said was basically the meta I read that I couldn’t find. UPDATE: I found the meta

I agree hama going back to the fire nation prison was really the only part I personally disagreed with. Putting Hama back in the situation that caused her to become to so angry and vengeful seemed to defeat the whole narrative of the episode which is Katara’s right to not want to continue the cycle of vengeance because Hama is right back where she started. Also logistically if Hama broke out of prison once what’s to stop from her doing it again? lol

Like I said, I did read that Hama (along with any water tribe/earth kingdom was prisoners) was sent home so that’s good. I think an interesting story would be Hama’s return home and how the Southern Water Tribe would decide how to deal with her as a threat.

Not that Hama would hate her tribe but as a community full of nonbenders especially if there are any persons like Sokka who seems to actually hate her, there could be those who don’t trust someone with that kind of power. This could lead to the issue of nonbenders vs benders because even tho Katara didn’t agree with Hama, she can understand what having that power feels like and maybe advocates Hama’s rehabilitation. And then how would the tribe react to hearing about this ability? Would it make them treat benders like Katara differently? Would they sympathize with Hama or trust her to re-integrate back into society? So many avenues to explore

#atla #katara #hama #my asks #southern water tribe #sokka

[teddybeirin]

so many stories i read about revenge fail to be compelling in their "revenge bad" moral lesson because they fail to capture the driver and the goal - if it's vengeance, and not the kind of anger that can be lessened, if it is not the kind of enmity that is built on misunderstanding, or that could ever hope to be resolved or reconciled... death the only goal, destruction the only driver, mutual destruction is the point if you have nothing left. if it is that at the core, there is no coming back from it by means of chastising about "you'll only kill yourself toooooooo!" - and you won't win over any "where you are welcomed, i cannot be" by trying to welcome both into the same place/community. if there is any possibility for reconciliation, it is fundamentally different. so much of this is only meaningful in social context anyhow.. the metaphor of fabric falls apart at this point, in speaking of tearing, it implies that either the one tearing is an outsider ie not part of the fabric, or else that a successful resolution would be where the two halves of fabric are sewn back together in such a way as to be "the same as before". it is not a good enough metaphor for such times where the fabric was dyed in cruelty to begin with - where "before" was already deeply wrong, and a return would be to be destroyed anyhow, and a successful resolution might look like "totally dismantle and start anew". it's the edge of the knife - between revenge where you are driven on to your death so as to kill what killed you and be done with it and destruction is the only point, and destruction so that you can exist - where your continued life and the presence of another with every intent to destroy you are mutually exclusive outcomes, destruction is for the sake of life rather than something which you pay for with yours just to enact it, and in this to deny the reality of need for defense and the creation of safety is to choose the initiator, here "revenge" is conflated with "anger" and "want to live free of harm", so as to maintain the comfort and legitimacy of violence enacted by and for the initiator, and the onlookers.

#amy.txt

[lesfeldickbiblestudy]

  Through the Bible with Les Feldick LESSON 3 * PART 2 * BOOK 77 CONNECTING THE DOTS OF SCRIPTURE – PART 46 Genesis – Revelation (Eternity) Okay, it’s good to see everybody back after a break. We’ll go into program number two for this afternoon. We’re going to continue connecting the dots of Scripture.  Those of you joining us again, we want to thank you for your prayers, your letters, your financial help, and everything.  And for those of you here in the studio, my, how we appreciate you coming in every month. Now again, we’re just going to pick right up where we left off in the last taping.  I think Jerry has titled this one “Eternity.”  When I review the programs, I think sometimes I waste too much time, so we’re going to get right back into it.  We’re going to start in Revelation chapter 19 at the Second Coming of Christ. Now, if you remember, for the last several programs we were talking about the Tribulation and the horrors of it.  And how by the end of the Tribulation, all the wrath and vexation of God will have utterly destroyed planet Earth as we know it.  Out of that will come, then, a renewed Garden of Eden-like planet that will be made ready for the millennium, or the thousand-year reign of Christ.    We’re going to look at that a little bit this afternoon.  But the millennium begins, of course, with the Second Coming of Christ. Oh, by the way, Iris wants me to let our television audience know we still have some of these Q & A books.  I don’t mind advertising them, because they are a blessing.  Everybody that gets one just loves our Question & Answer Book. It’s still available. It will be the best $11.00 you will ever spend.  They make wonderful gifts. All right, Revelation 19 and we’re going to begin at verse 11.  Now, before the guys flip the board, remember that this is what we’ve been talking about for the last, oh, I don’t know how many programs. That this parenthetical period of time that we had in our last half hour program is made up of these various doctrines of the Apostle Paul – what he calls the Revelation of the Mysteries.  That’s why we’ve left it on the board.  So that if you haven’t caught them all, you can at least be reminded that these mysteries are only found in Paul’s Epistles and nowhere else. That’s why I’m always emphasizing Paul’s Apostleship, and 90% of Christendom never reads Paul.  They never look at his letters, and that’s where we find the message for salvation and the Rapture of the Church and all the other mysteries concerning the Body of Christ! I can tell from our audiences that they never get to hear Paul’s letters in Sunday school and Church.   They say, “Why don’t we get anything from Paul?”  Well, get on your Pastor.  Tell him to get to where the things are really meant for us, but they won’t do it.  I’m aware of that. All right, Revelation 19—the Second Coming is going to be the final event of those seven years of wrath and vexation and will usher in the thousand years of Christ’s reign.  Verse 11: Revelation 19:11 “And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.”  In other words, God never does anything out of anger or getting even.  No vengeance, as such, it’s simply the result of man’s rejection of His offer of love and mercy and grace.  Verse 12: Revelation 19:12-13 “His eyes (speaking of Jesus the Christ at His Second Coming, now) were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written that no man knew, but he himself. 13. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped (or sprinkled or splattered) in blood: and his name is called The Word of God.”  Which, of course, is a perfect fit with John’s Gospel chapter 1. Revelation 19:14-15a “And the armies who were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.  15. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations:…”  Now as I’m reading, I’m thinking.

  A lot of these things come up, and I really don’t intend to do.  But, you see, there is a difference of opinion, and I don’t mind that.  I don’t mind that people disagree with me.  And on some things, I just sit on the fence.  In fact, my answer with people is getting more and more, “Hey, let’s wait until we get there!  And then we won’t have to argue.  We’ll know.” Now, the question that is coming up more and more is—Is the Body of Christ going to return with Christ at His Second Coming, or will we be eternally set in the heavenlies?  Now, of course, there is a large group of people that think we will be strictly heavenly bound and heavenly abode; and yet, you see, when I come to a verse like this—this is why I had to stop.  When I come to a verse like this, I have to think that maybe we will be with Him at His Second Coming, even though we may later on go back up.  Because don’t forget, when we get into the eternal state, time will mean nothing. In other words, when Jesus went from Earth to Heaven, and He came back, He ascended again to Heaven. Well, was that millions and millions and millions of miles that He had to traverse?  Well, if it was, He did it instantly.  So, never confine yourself once we get into the eternal that, oh, it can’t happen.  Oh, yes, it can.  All right, now here’s what made me stop.  I sure didn’t plan to do this.  Verse 14: Revelation 19:14 “And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.”  Now think.  Who can be the armies in Heaven?  I think (this is why I’m on the fence), I think this is a reference to the Body of Christ.   Not angels. It can’t be the Old Testament Saints, because they’re not going to be resurrected until 75 days later, remember.  Here’s what puts me in a dilemma.  On the one hand, yes, I think we’re going to be with Christ at His Second Coming, and I think that we may have something to do with the Kingdom.  Now, I know that’s going to rile a lot of people.  But I just tell them, hey, disagree with me lovingly, as I’m not setting it concrete.  I’m not being obstinate.  I’m just saying, now wait a minute, we’ve got to think these things through. Come back with me to Romans. This is another portion that nobody that I read has ever addressed to my satisfaction. And again, I’m not going to claim that I’ve got the answer, because a lot of these things are debatable.  No doubt about it.  We have that freedom.  And when we get there, we’re going to find out who was right and who was wrong.  All right, but in Romans chapter 8, here’s another portion of Scripture that I just can’t throw aside and say, no, that doesn’t mean us, it means somebody else.  No, it means us. Romans 8 verse 18, now Paul is writing, so he’s writing to us members of the Body of Christ. Romans 8:18-19 “For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in (or to) us. 19. For the earnest expectation of the creation (That is all the animal kingdom, the birds, and everything on creation.) is waiting for the manifestation of the children of God.”   Well, now go back up to verses 14, 15, and 16.  And let’s establish—who are the Children of God that Paul is talking about?  Well, it’s us, see?  It’s us!  Verse 14: Romans 8:14-17 “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the children of God. 15. For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. (Because we’re His child.) 16. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: 17. And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.”  All right, now back down to where we were in  verse 19. Romans 8:19 “For the earnest  expectation (of all) of the creation (At the end of the Tribulation and the horrors of it, what are they waiting for?) waiteth for the manifestation of the children of God.

”  That’s us.  Well, how else could we be manifested except to be with Him at His coming.  Now, that’s the way I have to look at it.  All right, read on: Romans 8:20-21 “For the creation was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope.  21. Because the creation itself shall also be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of (Whom?) the children of God.”  Who were the children of God?   The Body of Christ.  Now, I can’t separate that.  But kind of leave it.  If you read an article tomorrow that refutes what I’m saying, don’t get angry.  Just say, “Well, that’s one way of looking at it.” Now, I have to give you another one, if I can find it quickly.  I’m thinking of all this while I’m talking, you want to remember.  Back here in Revelation 19—it’s not only here that I have a question, where the armies which are in Heaven are clothed in fine linen.  Well, that can’t be anybody, I don’t think, except the Body of Christ.  Now, I’m not going to take time to look for the other one.  Like I said, this is all off-the-cuff anyway.  But come back to Revelation 19, at least I want to get people to think.  You don’t have to agree with me, but think. Revelation 19:14a “And the armies which were in heaven…” And I just can’t see that as angels, then it would have said angels.  It can’t be the Old Testament saints, because like I said, they’re not resurrected until 75 days later, remember.  That’s Daniel chapter 12, in case you have to look it up.  All right, verse 15: Revelation 19:15a “And out of his (that is out of Christ’s) mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: (And remember that Hebrews tells us the Word of the Lord is a what?  A two-edged sword.  So we’re not talking about a metal sword here.  We’re talking about the spoken Word that will come from the mouth of the Lord Jesus Christ at His Second Coming.) and he shall rule them (future—in the coming 1,000 years) with a rod of iron:…”  And then coming back to the final days of the Tribulation which we looked at in a previous program.  When I feel He will use the 100 pound hailstones, you remember, to crush those millions and millions of people gathered in the valleys of Israel.  All right, then verse 16: Revelation 19:16 “And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.”  Now you see, there’s His full title.  And He’s going to set up His Kingdom.  All right, as a result of the horrors of those closing months of the seven years of Tribulation, come on up to verse 17. Revelation 19:17 “And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, Come (Now these are birds of prey—the vultures and the eagles and what have you.) and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God;”  Now, do I have to compare Scripture?  Yes. Come back with me again to Jeremiah chapter 25 and drop in at verse 31.  Because I sometimes think when I read these verses that people just—well….maybe….but maybe not.  This is what is coming.  And I read an article again the other day of all the thousands of nuclear weapons that are just waiting to be exploded.  And we’re getting closer and closer to it every day. All right, by the end of the Tribulation I think they’re all going to be used, just like a string of firecrackers.  And this will be the end result.  Verse 31: Jeremiah 25:31-32 “A noise shall come even to the ends of the earth; for the LORD hath a controversy with the nations, (All of them.  Not just Israel now, we’re dealing with the whole.) he will plead with all flesh; he will give them that are wicked to the sword, saith the LORD.  32.  Thus saith the LORD of hosts, (The same Lord that we’re reading about at His Second Coming.) Behold, evil shall go forth from nation to nation, and a great whirlwind shall be raised up from the borders of the earth.” Jeremiah 25:33 “And the slain

of the LORD (By the millions, beloved, millions, billions are going to be losing their lives.) shall be at that day from one end of the earth even unto the other end of the earth: they shall not be lamented, neither gathered, nor buried; they shall be dung (or road kill) upon the ground.”   Everywhere you look, dead bodies.  It’s going to be awful. All right, back to Revelation.  And you know one of the amazing things of the last few years, and I’ve had more than one person call some of the wildlife people to see if this is true.  All around the planet, there is a great increase in the birth rate of these birds of prey.  The first one I read about, probably about 10 years ago, was one of the vulture types, I think, that was in the Middle East.  They normally had two eggs in their nest, but were now having four.  And same way here in America, a lot of the species that we call vultures and birds of prey are increasing by leaps and bounds.  And, of course, they are under protection.  Nobody can kill them.  And it’s all for a reason. And now here we have it in Revelation 19.  He calls all the birds of prey together that they can come for the supper of the great God.  All of this death and destruction, verse 18: Revelation 19:18-19 “That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and great. 19. And I saw the beast, (that is the anti-Christ) and the kings of the earth, (who have been subjected to his demonic rule) and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army.”  Of course, we covered that several programs back, but now this is a new part that I hadn’t covered before—verse 20. When the Tribulation has run its course, and it’s over, then those two men who were primary in the leadership of planet Earth—the anti-Christ in the political and economical and the False Prophet, who will be the religious leader of that time—two men, and here they come. Revelation 19:20 “And the beast (the anti-Christ) was taken, and with him the false prophet (Or the religious leader, whoever it is.  I’m not going to put a name on either one of them.  These men--) that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them who worshipped his image. (All during these seven years.  Now both of these men--)These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone. Now, I know we all shrink at the thought of an eternal hell-fire.  And nobody wants to even preach it or teach it anymore.  In fact, I had a letter just the other day where the guy was angry.  What kind of a God is it that would cast people into such a place?  I’ll tell you what kind of a God He is.  He’s a God who paid the price for every one of them if they would have believed it. They don’t have to go there.  And that’s going to be one of the awful things of eternal loss.  They’re going to regret for eternity why they rejected their free pardon out.  They don’t have to be there.  So, don’t ever blame God for preparing such a place, because He suffered far more alone than the billions of mankind will in unison.  So, don’t ever take anything away from God in that department. All right, so these two men, the anti-Christ and the false prophet, who had been the leaders of the last seven years, will be the first human beings to go into what we now realize was the eternal Lake of Fire.   All right, I’m going to take you on over into chapter 20.  The Tribulation has ended.  The Kingdom is now ready to be brought in.  Verse 1 of chapter 20: Revelation 20:1-2 “And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.  (Not an iron chain.  Iron won’t hold a spirit being like Satan.  But it will be something that God can use to confine Satan.) 2. And he laid his hand on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years,”

Now, this is the first time in Scripture that we have a time frame on the Kingdom.  All through the Old Testament, the Kingdom is merely promised as being forever and ever.  But never is it signified as 1,000 years.  But here in the Book of Revelation, we now have it simply defined as that period of time.  All right, reading on in verse 3. Revelation 20:3 “And cast him into the bottomless pit, (Not hell, not the Lake of Fire, this is a separate place that God has prepared to hold Satan for these 1,000 years.) and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, (But what’s the next word?) until (See, there’s another time word. He’s not going to stay there forever, yet.  He’s only being confined for that 1,000 years of the Kingdom rule and reign of Christ and then--) the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.”  Now there again, we don’t know how long a period of time that will be after the 1,000 years of the perfect rule and reign of Christ over planet Earth.  It’s going to be Heaven-on-Earth for all the inhabitants.  I maintain the 1,000 years are a dispensation.   Now, I’m going to exercise your thinking.  Remember what a dispensation is?  I hope you remember.  A period of time during which God deals with the human race in a particular way or under a set of instructions.  That’s a dispensation!  (Note the seven dispensations listed below) Adam and Eve were in a dispensation in the Garden of Eden. It was the dispensation of “Innocence,” and their instructions were simple—don’t eat of that tree.  The next 1,400-1,500 years they were under the dispensation of “Conscience.” Their instructions were to bring a blood  sacrifice. Well, conscience didn’t cut it, so they reaped the punishment of the flood. Then after the flood, they under the dispensation of “Human Government,” and they went through the Tower of Babel and the scattering of the population. And then God did something totally different.  He called out Abraham, and for a period of time he was under the dispensation of “Promise,” where God promised Abraham several things in Genesis chapter 12.   All right, then after Abraham had established the Nation of Israel, they became a Nation down in Egypt.  Then in 1500 B.C., God brought them out, and He put them under a new dispensation that we call what?  Law.  He gave the dispensation of Law, and that carried on from Moses until Paul.  And that dispensation has its set of instructions—how to respond to sin and how to keep the Law and so on and so forth.  It was a dispensation.  A period of time during which there were specific instructions. All right, today we’re in the  dispensation of “Grace,” in which it covers the mysteries of Paul.  But what are our instructions?  To believe Paul’s Gospel—which is believing in your heart for salvation that Jesus died for your sins, was buried, and rose again—plus nothing else.   Believe the Gospel.  And once we become a believer of the Gospel, how to walk the Christian life.  Those are our instructions.  It’s our dispensation. But when the Church goes in the Rapture, this dispensation ends, and the world goes back under an extension of Israel’s Law in the Tribulation.  But now we come to the final dispensation of the  Kingdom.  It’s a period of time during which those people will be re-populating at an amazing rate, remember. And what are their instructions?  Be obedient to the King.  That’s all.  Recognize that He’s the King.  He’s the God of Glory.  And as long as they’re obedient, they’re in God’s Grace. All right, now in order to exercise the instructions of a dispensation, you have to have two choices.  Think about it.  You’re either going to follow the instructions, or you’re going to disobey them.  Now, I stop once in a while to make people think.  In this Dispensation of Grace, the world is faced with two alternatives – believe the Gospel or reject it.  It’s that simple.  Believe it and have eternal life.  Reject it and go to an eternal doom.  Now, you can’t get it any simpler than that.

All right, now in the Kingdom, it, too, is a dispensation. It is where God has given them the circumstances so that all they have to do is be obedient to the King.  But, there has been nobody to trigger the opposition.  Satan is locked up.  So, in order for people to have the unction to make a choice, God has to bring Satan back for a period of time. Now, I hope that answers a ton of questions, because it comes all the time.  Why bring Satan back if He once had him off the scene?  He’s got to give those new generations of people who have been born during this 1,000 years the opportunity to be obedient or disobedient.  To make a choice like we had to make.   So when Satan comes back in that period of time, we don’t know how long it is.  Like I said in the first program, time means nothing to God.  It could be awhile.  But it’ll be long enough for those millions upon millions of new inhabitants of planet Earth to be confronted with the options—remain loyal to the King or follow the adversary.  And what will most of them do?  Like they’ve been doing for 6,000 years.  They’ll go after the adversary.  Unbelievable.  All right, let’s pick it up in verse 7. Revelation 20:7-8a “And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, 8. And shall go out to deceive (Just like he’s been doing through this 6,000 years.) the nations…” That’s why several programs back I pointed out, who comes in at the front end of that 1,000 years? Well, a remnant of the Nation of Israel, who’ll be the largest of any nation.  But there will be a sampling of all the other nations on the planet who have survived the Tribulation as believers (Matthew 25:31-32).  They’ll come in on the front end and start having families and reproduce.  It’s going to be just like Israel in Egypt.  My land, how fast do you think the Jews reproduced in those early years in Egypt?  Why, like flies.  You know, they probably had multiple births.  They never lost a child.  You remember what the mid-wives said, Why, those Hebrew women are so lively, there’s no way of putting their babies to death.   It was a population explosion.  Well, you’re going to have the same thing in the Kingdom.  This 1,000 years is going to be a population explosion like the world has never seen, because there’s nothing to refrain life.  There’s no death.  No sickness.  No weakness.   All right, so now Satan comes back on the scene. Revelation 20:8-9a “And shall go out to deceive (all these repopulated nations) the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.  9. And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city:…” In total—just like it was 1,007 years earlier. They come back in total rebellion against the King, with the idea of overthrowing Him.  But this time God doesn’t fool around.  He speaks the Word, and the whole mass of them will be wiped off, except those who remain true to the King. Revelation 20:9b “…and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.” All right, now in a quick half-a-minute.  What in the world will Satan use to deceive people who have had Heaven-on-Earth for a thousand years?  Well, the Bible doesn’t specifically say it, but I think it’s implied, and I’m comfortable with my opinion.  He’s going to offer them, just like he did Eve in the Garden of Eden – why be content to be under God?  Why don’t you just be God?  And that’s Satan’s lie.  And it’s going to just take all those billions of new people, and they’re going to follow after him, and they’re going to go to their doom.

[hotchley]

🐨 Hello hello! Hope you’re doing absolutely wonderful, my favorite Internet sister. Granted, also my only Internet sister, but that just makes you all the more special.

I’m hanging out here, doing the school stuff. I somehow have an A in Calculus, which amazes me, so I’m very happy with that. Got a test tomorrow, but my friend and I meet up during the hour before since we’ve both got a free period and I bring us both Starbucks and we review together. It’s a great little tradition. Also hella amusing to anyone else in the room, since we’ve been doing math together since we were literally 11 (me) and 12 (her), and the chaos only increases with time.

My journalism class is great fun! I get to run around with one of those spiral reporter’s notebooks interviewing people. People tell me interesting gossip and say “off the record”. It’s awesome. Totally feels like something out of a TV show.

I got a new book yesterday! And the day before that. The book with the lovely dedication I was telling you about the other day is A Lesson In Vengeance. It’s a dark academia type thing with witches and lesbians. I’m not finished yet, but so far it’s cool! I got a books called Icebreaker, which was a rivals-to-lovers YA novel with a bunch of queer rep and mental health discussion. I listened to part of it on the way to Montana for that karate trip, but I’m horrible about audiobooks so I ended up getting myself a print copy and finished it in a day. And now I’m working on The Winners by Fredrik Backman. It’s the third book in a trilogy called Beartown. He’s one of my favorite authors. His style is so distinctive and lyrical and beautiful. Everything ties back to central themes in the most satisfying, poetic way. Highly recommend. The subject matters get a bit dark though, so be careful if you ever end up reading. And he’s Swedish! The books get translated into English before they’re released in English-speaking countries. I don’t know who translates them, but the fact that they’re still so amazing in another language is so cool to me.

I’ve been enjoying having my driver’s license! Most kids here get theirs when they’re 16, and I was nearly 17 and a half, so I took a long time. But Im starting to get more comfortable driving. It’s fun to just drive by myself and listen to my music and jam. And the freedom is nice. I’ve been getting a lot of coffee.

Still working on poetry, too. I haven’t written a ton of new stuff lately and I need to get on that. But I’ve been plugging away trying to get published in various literature magazines. I’ve been accepted once, but rejected like twenty times and am waiting on a bunch of other decisions. Which is just the life of a writer, from what I understand. It’s cool how the community is so supportive of each other. One of my best friends and I both got accepted for the first time within a month of each other, which was really cool. She does flash fiction and I do poetry and the occasional short fiction.

That’s all the updates I’ve got! I hope you’re doing well. Even when I forget to send you messages, I still keep track of your blog. I’m glad to see that stuff with Uni is mostly going well. I hope you get on well with your classmates and flatmates. Living away from home could be kind of cool, too. Like an adventure! I have this quote from a book on my wall that goes “Stars shine brightest in the dark, so take this opportunity and supernova the shit out of it”. That makes me think of you. All this change is terrifying, but you’re gonna do great things. Seize the day!Supernova the shit out of it!

Hehe I'm your only one :))

That is amazing! I don't know what calculus is but it sounds hard so well done! Awww, that's nice!! There's a Starbucks in my student union so I got one yesterday and then I sat in the law library which is ancient and I felt very cool :)

Do you guys have a specific order that you stick to?

Ooooh that is fun and those books seem really interesting! I just started reading A Good Girl's Guide to Murder and it feels quite funny reading it because I'm now a law student. And there are British Indian characters so they touch on racism and I feel seen!

SIXTEEN? I'm eighteen (oh wow) and I haven't even sat in the driver's seat beyond this one time I accidentally turned the hazard light on when I was hoovering it but I then couldn't work out how to turn it off so my dad had to take over haha.

I'm so glad you're enjoying poetry. I was also having a block and then I was walking home in the dark so that understandably caused some inspiration to hit.

I'm actually okay! The work is an excellent distraction from the distance haha. And I'll hold onto that <3

Also journalism class sounds like so much fun I'm glad it's going good!!

#people talk to me #koala kate #🐨anon

[alyjojo]

Love Reading 👰🏽‍♀️- June 2022 - Aries

Singles:

Overall energy: 9 Wands

How you will meet: 5 Pentacles rev

How they will treat you: The Hanged Man

Long-term Potential: The Hermit & 8 Swords

What I get from this, especially with their card of “You’re my best friend”, is this is someone you have feelings for that friend zoned you. You met them at a time of financial crisis, maybe they lost a job or didn’t have a lot of money, maybe you helped them out. You definitely helped them in some way, in a platonic way. You seem to be friends, maybe even coworkers. It’s been very difficult for you because you’ve just been kinda waiting around to see if they catch some feelings for you too, and they don’t seem to be doing that. That energy could also be switched and you’re the one that’s not interested, or in some other relationship which is possible with these too.

One of you is leaving the other one hanging and finds any kind of flirtation or romantic sort of feelings a burden. They’re flat out not interested. It looks like that’s you, because the long term potential is you completely cutting off this person and taking control of the situation, you want no part of it. I say you because The Emperor clarifies, and that’s Aries’ card. It can also indicate a married person or a husband. Idk why this kind of energy would be coming out in a singles’ read, but I’ve gotta take what comes out, it’s for someone. You’re not interested, period. You could even be blocking this person.

Messages -

Your side:

- Homebody

- 💕 Commitment 💕

Their side:

- Spiritually Dead Inside ☠️

- You’re my best friend.

Signs you may be dealing with:

Sagittarius & Taurus the most, Aries, Gemini, Virgo & Capricorn

Couples:

Overall energy: The Empress

Current: Page of Pentacles

Challenge: 9 Pentacles

Potential: 7 Cups

One of you is coming up as The Empress, and I’m not sure which because the other person isn’t shown, could be either of you. Someone whole, fulfilled, beautiful, creative, could be a parent, they’re focused on growth & expansion in their life. You two seem to be separated, for now, whether emotionally or literally (for some of you it’s literally), and the current energy is an apology has already been made towards some sort of movement away from the connection (could be the literally leaving part for those that resonate).

It looks like you two had a spat, one of you acted out and maybe packed a bag & left, and the other one said “and stay out!” But then didn’t change their mind. Because the challenge is this independent “fuck you” kind of energy, taking a break, not really communicating, not really all that interested and feeling better off on their own possibly. Or at least enjoying their independence. Could be either of you. The other person wants to apologize and fix the situation, but The Empress has a lot of fears, worries and anxiety about which path is best for their own growth and they’re taking this quite seriously. It may have been a temporary temper tantrum, which Aries is known for, could be you, but they don’t see it that way. They’re looking long term 💯

The potential is positive however, after considering all of the options available and some clear cut communication, you two seem to be manifesting a new cycle between you in order to come back together and work out your issues. Maybe you’re establishing some better ground rules for interacting or even disagreeing. There is a very mature “wake up” energy here, one of you is definitely teaching the other person a lesson. Seems to be them.

Messages -

Your side:

- Long-Term Potential

- I can’t change 💯

Their side:

- I knew the moment I met you.

- I need a break from this.

Oracles -

Your side: Quit obsessing about whether you’re a good enough mother, father, or any other family member. If your motive is pure, God knows your heart.

Their side: Vengeance can only hurt you. Let the universe and God deal with this situation.

Signs you may be dealing with:

Virgo 💯 Libra, Cancer, Scorpio & Aries

#aries tarot reading #love reading #couples reading #singles reading #Aries #tarot #june 2022

[the-library-alcove]

So a while back, a fairly left-wing friend of mine was shocked at the thought of Left-Wing Holocaust Denial, asking how it could even be possible, how can the Left even deny the Holocaust given everything (quote: "why would the LEFT be in denial? After you read Elie Wiesel, you can't deny any of it. Same with Maus, Frieda Appleman-Jurman's memoirs, and all that. Also, Lois Lowry won a Newberry medal for Number the Stars"). So I've been chewing on this for a while now.

First, Right-Wing Holocaust Denial is straight up "denial that the Holocaust happened"--often with an undertone of "But we wish that it had and it was a great idea". They deny the number of deaths, or excuse the Nazis, or say that the Jews had it coming, or say that it didn't happen at all, that sort of thing. It's a very blunt, straightforward form of denial.

Comparatively, Left-Wing Holocaust Denial takes a different, more sophisticated form that functions on multiple levels--with an undertone of its own along the lines of "the Jews are exaggerating to try to portray themselves as victims"--and to talk about this form of denial, I have to explain what the Holocaust was.

So this gets a bit long, because what is being denied is long, but I will ask you to bear with me.

But, TL:DR:

Right Wing Holocaust Denial denies the body count and the atrocities...

Left Wing Holocaust Denial denies everything that built up to it, the centuries of Othering and murders, and the aftereffects.

The Holocaust, 1939-1945, was the culmination of literally centuries of anti-Jewish hatred from Christian Europeans, dating back well over a thousand years.

For one example, there were anti-Jewish riots in France in the 1020s in misplaced vengeance for the Islamic destruction of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in 1009 CE. Decades later, the Crusaders butchered 99% of the Jewish population of northern Europe, beginning in 1096 and continuing for centuries, such that a population of nearly 100,000 in 1050 CE was reduced down to less than a thousand in 1350 CE, as genetic studies show.

Jews were vilified as "Enemies of Christ", and various forms of attack to whip up mobs against Jews became common enough to get names of their own: Blood Libel (the accusation of Jews stealing children and murdering them to use their blood) and Host Desecration (the accusation that Jews were stealing consecrated Hosts and "torturing" them in order to attack Jesus), among others. These resulted in thousands of Jews being attacked, harmed, killed, and expelled.

Pogroms, massacres, and expulsions were just part of the pattern; Jews were effectively second class citizens at best, confined to marginal parts of cities (the original ghettos), subject to ritual humiliation (there was a part of Carnival in Rome that featured "The Running Of The Jews" where the Jewish population of the city had to race and be beaten by the Christians and there are designed-to-be-humiliating carvings of Jews on churches), and so forth. Jews were the scapegoats of choice--a powerless minority made to do the dirty work (such as tax collection) by the powerful and then liquidated when the lower classes got upset, as a distraction (King: "It's not my fault you're hungry!" *motions to table laden with food* "It's the fault of those greedy Jews who I force to work as tax collectors! Go kill them instead of me!"). And that cycle further entrenched the hatred.

Martin Luther took this to new heights during the Reformation; initially, he was "nice", saying that the Christians should treat the Jews gently to get us to convert... and when we didn't, he got nasty, writing a book titled "On The Jews And Their Lies" where he outlined a "how to persecute Jews and make their lives utter hell so they'll convert" prescription of behavior.

And this all became deeply baked into the culture of Europe, in plays, architecture, pop culture, stories, and conspiracy theories over the centuries. Even after the ghetto walls were torn down in the early 1800s by Napoleon and Jews were allowed to integrate into mainstream society, that hatred did not go away. If anything, the resentment grew, culminating in outbursts like the Dreyfus Affair, where a French-Jewish artillery officer was made into the fall guy for another spy, because he was Jewish.

There was a "Jewish Question" in the countries of Europe. A political National Question that went, "What shall we do with these Jews who live in our lands who we do not want?" And many of the Jews desperately wanted to prove that they were Good Model Citizens, but it didn't matter. Some of us, seeing the writing on the wall, and that the Europeans would never accept us, started agitating for political separation and independence--Zionism.

During this time, the old religious-based hatreds were being ostensibly phased out, and it was the era of "scientific racism", so a new word was coined--"antisemitism", to replace the old "Judenhass", to sound more "scientific". More anti-Jewish accusations were created, such as the "Protocols Of The Elders Of Zion", which is a Russian-made forgery that is supposedly the record of a meeting of Jewish elders in their master plan to control the world; it was written to distract hatred away from the Czar and onto a scapegoat. (Essentially just an updated version of the kings' tactic of scapegoating the Jews from centuries earlier)

So the hatreds stayed, regardless of what new clothes they wore. After World War One, when the Nazis said that the blame for the loss and subsequent humiliation and economic collapse of the Weimar Republic was because of the "Jews stabbing us in the back", there was a massive population of people who were already primed to hate and resent Jews and just needed that excuse to focus that hatred. They passed laws that specifically stripped citizenship from the Jews on racial grounds, instituted blood purity laws--again, on racial grounds--and built up to the Holocaust, where the Jews were not seen as human, but as vermin, out to contaminate their pure race.

In the process, they killed nine out of ten Jews who lived in Europe. Their hatred to the point that they diverted efforts to fight the Allies just so that they could kill Jews. Local people hated Jews so much that they collaborated with their own conquerors, just so they could kill Jews. Because they hated us so much, had hated us for centuries. Their "Final Solution" to "The Jewish Question." This part is what the Right Wing denies.

And then, in the aftermath, nobody wanted the remaining victims. Literally, the British said, "We'll carve off part of our Empire to give to them rather than let them come here."

So, after centuries of hatred and marginalization, Europeans gave into their hatreds that they had been raised with and murdered us in our millions, and we were traumatized.

And some of us went to the USA--the few that the US was willing to take in--and many more, not having any other place to go, went to British Mandate Palestine with the hope of self-governance in the future Jewish territory... having learned that they could not trust non-Jews.

That is the Holocaust and what led up to it, and some of the aftermath of it.

Left Wing Holocaust Denial erases all of that, except for the Holocaust itself, which is taken out of context as a moral lesson.

The Left Wing Unofficial Narrative Of The Holocaust is that the Nazis arbitrarily picked several groups of fellow European Whites, the Jews being just one of them, agitated against them in order to make an Enemy, and then killed them in order to cement power. Thus, in this narrative, the Holocaust was thus an aberration brought about by demagoguery and propaganda. Thus, it is imperative to remember "Never Again", because it can happen to anyone.

According to this narrative, "Jews" are just White Europeans who practice a different Abrahamic Religion, and who played the aftermath of the genocide for undeserved sympathy points to get a colony of their own where they could become oppressors in turn, and that they are getting special treatment that ignores the other victims of the Holocaust.

In doing so, the Left needs to ignore...

...the racial aspects of the Holocaust and the decades and centuries before it--the blood purity laws, the specific "racial science" that Othered Jews, and so forth--in favor of a "Jews are White" narrative.

...that the Jews were specifically targeted by the Nazis for extermination, to the point of irrational, self-defeating fixation, whereas only the Roma were as targeted for complete eradication alongside the Jews--in favor of a "But what about the other victims too?" narrative.

...the Nazi obsession with hating Jews (which has not gone away) as a fundamental part of their ideology, and pretending that the Nazi hatred of Jews is no different than the eugenics and political oppression that other groups were victims of--again, in favor of a "Other people were victims of the Nazis too!" narrative.

...the centuries of hatred and victimization that preceded the Holocaust and culminated in it--in favor of a "Jews are just European White People" narrative.

...the trauma that happened when you've lost your homes, your families, your way of life, and your society, and nobody made any efforts to help you, and how it becomes apparent, after trying to fit in and integrate for decades, that you can be Perfect Citizens and the Christians will still hate you so we need to defend ourselves for our own sakes--in favor of a "Jews are oppressors and didn't learn the right lessons from the Holocaust" narrative.

So, TL;DR:

Right Wing Holocaust Denial denies the body count and the atrocities...

Left Wing Holocaust Denial denies everything that built up to it, the centuries of Othering and murders, and the aftereffects.

[bobbinalong]

How do you think battinson would be around Dick? Oh and what about him with Jason?

Whelp, sorry this took me a second to answer. I first read it while half asleep and then completely forgot about it. Though I will warn you that this answer is all Dick and no Jason, because I know absolutely nothing about Jason.

So, assuming Battinson!Bruce adopts Dick fairly soon after the end of The Batman:

Bruce is trying very, very hard to be a functional human being. Somebody who doesn't give off "I wear sunglasses indoors" vibes. He's trying to engage with the people of Gotham as Bruce, which is hard, he wants his mask back.

And I think that would somewhat apply to how he's around Dick, as well. At least at first.

He's doing his very best to be a responsible father figure to this eight-year-old, chandelier-climbing menace, but it's difficult, because he's ill-equipped to raise a traumatized child and he sees a little too much of himself in the boy at times -- that's part of why he took him in in the first place, after all.

He's just learning to deal with his own emotions, so around Dick, he holds back a lot at first. He wouldn't want to overwhelm the kid. He's prone to handing him off to Alfred at times, because at least Alfred has some experience with this; he semi-successfully raised Bruce, after all.

He'd also be very indulgent. Cornflakes for dinner? Well, you haven't been eating well, anyway, so I guess that's fine as long as you eat something. You wanna go out to avenge your parents? Fine, but I'm coming with you and you need a costume and you're learning a lesson while we're out there. No pants? I mean, ... I suppose that's alright ... if it makes you feel good, I guess?

(Alfred does not approve of any of this, but he's outnumbered now.)

Once they've gotten used to each other, I think Dick is one of the few people Bruce is really relaxed around. The kid makes it easier to go out -- he's young, he needs to see the world and socialize, and it's a little less difficult when Bruce is doing it under the pretense that he's doing it for Dick. He's still an awkward man, and he awkwardly shows affection -- there are a lot of stiff head pats before Dick properly hugs him for the first time --, but he does try, and it doesn't take too long before Alfread finds them both passed out on the couch in front of an age-inappropriate movie, Dick cuddled into Bruce.

He paints Dick's eyes like his own so the mask appears to fit perfectly. They bicker about which music to listen to in the Batmobile -- Nirvana or the soundtrack of the latest Disney movie, pick your poison. Dick climbs the chandelier at a Gala and Bruce contemplates if it'd hold him as well until someone asks him if he's going to get his new kid down from there. Bruce paints his nails black and Dick likes the concept of that, but he wants colours, so Bruce has to go out and buy colourful, sparkly nail polish. Dick likes to cook with Alfred because it's something he did with his parents and so Bruce joins them in the kitchen, where he probably's never stepped foot in for more than coffee before.

I'd really like to think this Bruce would be a good, if very flawed father. By the end of the first movie, he's learned that he needs to be more than Batman, more than Vengeance, that's there's different ways to help, and what better way to do that than help out a child as lost as he once was, a boy who'd have otherwise probably gotten lost in the system like Edward had.

He's good with Dick.

Still a weirdo, though.

Alfred's not amused the first time he finds them sitting in the dining room with matching sunglasses. Though it is kind of endearing. The way Bruce rights Dick's glasses when they slip down his nose certainly is.

#dc #the batman #the batman 2022 #batman 2022 #battinson #bruce wayne #dick grayson #batman #robin #robin!dick

[clarrissanewt]

Broken Strings

read part 1 here!

Pairing: Kaz Brekker x fem!reader

Warning: fictional violence, angst, soulmates!au

Summary: your enemy's name is on one wrist and soulmate on the other. No clue which is which. You have the same names. Kaz Brekker.

Kaz Brekker wasn't the one who'd agree to come across anyone looking vulnerable. And that's what he was trying to do as he limped his way towards the crates. His investment in danger meant his deal of four million kruge in danger. And Kaz Brekker wasn't the one to put anything bottling down to money and vengeance in danger.

The thundering scowl plastered on his face was enough for the sparse number of Razorgulls and Blacktips to wet their pants. By the time he had stepped into the crates, the pain of his bad leg felt like coursing through every vein of his body.

Of course, anything involving the Blacktips happen, Y/n L/n had to give an appearance; there wasn't any other way fate had marred both their wrists with the other's name.

Several impromptu plans flashed before his eyes. He could avoid chances, attack you from the back and have the Wraith back. But he knew that if Inej was lying in your mercy, it wasn't exactly mercy.

A panicked streak passed your vision as you felt Inej's wavering pulse. Blasphemy for the fact you both were at opposite ends of Katterdam, opposite sides of loyalty, but never in your canal rat life in the town you could dare to use arms against the Wraith.

You always wished that the Suli girl remembered your favours; you hoped she remembered the number of times you had saved her from the monster Heleen. Slashing a piece of your jacket, you wrapped it around her arm. Oomen be damned for trying to kill her.

You sensed the knife from your hand halted by another force, and in the course of a wild adrenaline rush, you aimed a kick at who ever the hell was holding you back, just to be pinned under the grip of Kaz Brekker himself.

"No one touches the Wraith," his voice was steel cold, his grip turning torturous as you felt his bad leg quivering beside your waist.

"Hello to you too, Kaz Brekker." You had willed yourself long before. If the mark of him can't gift him your loyalty, his gods of fortune be maimed; you had nothing to be afraid about. He was just another pigeon disguised in the feathers of crow.

You could tell by the primal look of his bitter coffee eyes, he loathed the very idea of you, and if this was how things had to be pretended, you were ready to blow your strike.

Kaz Brekker knew everything, but this kick you landed where ever you could feel his contact, you just wished that he wouldn't be able to calculate. You winced as he tightened his iron grip, only his grunt enough for Fahey to pick Inej and stay at safety, while you had to fend yourself at the mercy of Brekker. And every tale swarming in Katterdam had only one lesson- Kaz Brekker doesn't show mercy.

"Head's up this time? " He knew you would never rat out the stinky Blacktips, maybe just the right pressure, the right crevices manhandled would make you open up; nothing in the world was apart from the little trudgery of lockpicks. "Geels? Or another pigeon rustled its feather? "

You squirmed under the blocking pressure on your windpipe, feeling the ridges of the fine slits of his gloved hand. Even the slight touch without touch was unbearable for you.

Brick by brick, you heard the forced mumble above you, brick by brick.

His demeanour didn't show that he wanted information. His pragmatic glare wanted answers, answers that why had you turned him into your worst enemy.

"I wish- ah," your eyes fluttered close at the sensation of air gushing into your lungs, "i wish we weren't here, but you left me no choice, Kaz Brekker."

The clocks had been ticking, and the prospect of an impossible heist set all hells break loose for Kaz. Just a single blow of your head to the surface had shut you down. Willfully or not, Brekker had another few hours without stressing about an enemy.

You lurched forward, somehow feeling bound, your sight fuzzy as you gritted your teeth at the sharp pang of throbbing pain in your head.

It was night, the sky dozing with a touch of amalgamated black and grey. The air smelled like salt and sea. Your breath hitched at the gush of old drearies. Sea had always been your kryptonite; the slavers, the stench and the marred past; everything had its roots in the sea.

Another harsh wave hit the ship, and Kaz Brekker came into your view, his shirt stained with blood, the cane held in his grip which tilted your head, towards the faint flicker of moonlight.

His eyes were plastered somewhere above your vision,  your wrists itching at his touch.

Kaz retrospected what could be done. Either you had to be left bleeding from head here on the ship or dragged into the heist, teach you on which side your loyalty should be. He wasn't a heartrender on jurda parem, but he could hear the rhythm of your wild heart.

Lub, dub, lub, dub.

No, he shook his head faintly, it was thump, thump, thump.

He could see the shimmer of raw fear as your pupils dialted, almost looking black. This was his chance.

"Geels thinks you are dead."

"I'm aware." You voice was small, quivering with pain.

You watched as his cane was withdrawn, his pale face in your level, and if there would be another lurch of the ship, your lips would be on his.

You dismissed the wild thought.

"Calm down, your heart is fucking racing," he scowled, removing his gloves.

You laughed bitterly. Was it the first time he ever felt it?

"And what about you, Brekker?" You challenged, quite not afraid of the consequences. "Why...why is that damn heart of yours threatening to beat faster?"

Because of you, Kaz wanted to say.

"Stop looking at my hand," he snapped. "What did you expect it to be."

You kept shut, not having the heart to tell him that you expected your enemy, your soulmate to atleast have claws or something scary as the tales told.

"Geels thinks I'm dead," you repeated his words, you heart fluttering at the prospect of a different life. "And you feel ashamed to have my name on your wrist."

"Time to change that."

You caught the slight smirk on his face as he stood up, signaling Rotty to bring you a cup of fresh water as he walked away.

You knew you had to fight for him to change your sides. Maybe strings won't be broken for long.

Taglist: @fedorable-killjoys @izasharky @kazscrow @brekkers-desigirl

You can message to be added!

#kaz brekker x fem!reader #kaz brekker x you #kaz brekker x reader #kaz brekker x y/n #kaz brekker #kaz brekker angst #kaz brekker soulmates au #six of crows #also please i can never think of a part three #kaz brekker imagine #kaz brekker blurb #kaz brekker oneshot

[drawingducktalesducks]

#I LOVE THE WAY YOU PORTRAIT THEM#you saw how the show gave a little to no personality to Violet and you decided you would take this matter inte your own hands#good for you#dt (whothehe)

*vibrates* ok so, Violet got very little screen time in the show, but what she DID get was BRIMMING with personality FIGHT ME

Examples paraphrased from memory off the top of my head in no particular order-

Violet “I volunteer to shoot magical lasers at my new friend / adopted older sister… purely for research purposes~”

Violet (comes face-to-face with Magical DeSpell) Violet(spiritually unimpressed)

Violet “WEBBIGAIL WOULD YOU PLEASE STOP SEEKING VENGEANCE FOR LENA LONG ENOUGH TO FINISH DEFEATING THE DANGEROUS FOE I AM LITERALLY HOLDING AT BAY WITH STRING???”

Violet (has a room full of books, skulls, scientific diagrams, mystical paintings, plants, and fairy lights, which she may or may not share with Lena- the living shadow she takes in as part of her family) (the skulls, lights, and plants either match Lena’s own decorations in her own hideout or are things she brought with her)

Violet (physically taking notes of all the things Lena’s magic reacts badly to)

Violet “Maybe we (mainly Lena and Webby) should just stop having sleepovers.” Webby “Maybe you should rethink that sentence.” Violet (smiles serenely as Lena steps in to save her from vanishing into a 6ft deep hole somewhere on the manor grounds)

Violet “Greetings new friend. I brought pie. What Do You Know About Shadow Magic And Evil Sorceresses.”

Violet (uses artifact of magic to blast something) (Beams with glee)

Violet “The fact that we are in competition for something I have deeply desired to achieve after years of failure does not mean I am willing to abandon the core principles which makes this achievement special to me.” Violet “Which is to say, of course I will help you. That is what being a Woodchuck is all about.” Violet “… loser.”

Violet (does not know how to talk smack) (happily if awkwardly embraces Lena’s lessons on it)

Violet "I hate to interrupt your hug but the hungry spirits of the shadow realm are getting closer"

Violet & Webby (so focused on reading and interpreting meaning from the individual rune tiles in front of them that they fail to notice how Shadow!Lena has arranged them into Actual Words) (nerds)

Violet (helps Lena give May and June their new friendship bracelets at the end of the show) (May and June aka the ones who sparked Webby and Lena's first real fight and fall out, where Lena again reacted very badly to the idea of anyone getting between her and Webby, aka something Violet has seen her struggle with and overcome before)

Violet (Doesn’t hold Lena’s bad initial reaction to Webby having a new friend against her, helps Lena save Webby using their friendship for her, is sad when Lena appears to be sacrificing herself *again* for her friend, is so happy to be included in their friendship, is the final link that allows the friendship magic to bring Lena back from the Shadow Realm)

Violet (casually twirls Magica's magical pendent around on her finger while Webby gives Lena a pep talk and Magica stands there with her sad little stick)

Lena presumably “So… we’ve got some costume makeup. Wanna have me make it look like your face is melting off?” Violet (internally probably) “My sister now.”

------conclusion-----

Violet's a great foil for both Webby and Lena (and them for her).

Her and Webby are both nerds, big on languages, numbers, sifting through small details to make larger connections, uncovering mysteries- But Webby's in it for the joy of discovery, while Violet has a need to understand and process new information so it can be put to use (her notes on Lena's magic, her proactive research into the amulet she found)

Her and Webby are physically active in their own ways, Webby has her combat skills, her spy training, which is either just normal for her because of her Granny or comes from her hero worship of Scrooge and his adventures. Violet is a Woodchuck, practicing practical and survival skills, but she values being a Woodchuck also for the self-improvement and community it offers, and is not daunted by her own long stretch of failing to become senior Woodchuck.

Her and Webby are socially awkward or out of touch sometimes, but for Webby that means awkward laughter, blurting things out without meaning to or without noticing how odd it could sound, and constantly wondering if she's missing out on the joke or not hearing the sarcasm in something. For Violet it means being bluntly straightforward with things someone else might have eased into and not showing a hint of nervousness about it, never hesitating to point out the inconvenient facts about a situation, and being aware of her lack of knowledge about some social things but mostly in a way that leaves her curious to learn how to mimic them properly

When it comes to Lena, there's the magical shadow person sorceress who lived her whole life with magic and resents how much trouble it's caused her and her friends so much she sometimes wished she could throw it away- but later started taking pride in it when she could share it WITH her friends and use it to help them... and there's the perfectly mundane person studying perfectly mundane things who suddenly finds out magic is real and embraces it completely, but chooses to seek more knowledge of it WITH other people and use it to find friends and even a new family member.

And look, someone who got a failure badge and still didn't give up has a lot in common with the girl who keeps failing to be the friend she thinks Webby deserves but never wants to stop TRYING to get better at being.

Violet is very cool. Somewhat scary. She looks like the reasonable one but she’s just as (if not more) recklessly adventurous as Webby. She cares a lot and I love her.

#Ducktales (2017) #Violet Sabrewing #Sabrewing sisters #Lena #Webby Vanderquack #Personal Analysis of Characters #This trio plays off eachother so well THATS why I love team magic