Tumgik
#EITHER YOU ASSUME IT'S GOING TO MAKE ME WEIRD BECAUSE YOU KNOW EXACTLY HOW AND WHY
anaalnathrakhs · 1 month
Text
it's rlly fun how my parents just straight up. do not care. about the disordered eating. we had all this talk back when i went through a big suicidal crisis a couple months ago, i explained what was really difficult for me, eating socially, restaurants, not choosing my food, etc, and now it's like. okay it didn't exist actually.
mother i am not going to order you around, either you accept that i'm gonna have difficulty dealing with "normal people behavior" or whatnot and you stop looking at me like :/ anytime i am anything but ecstatic at the idea of eating anything anytime anyhow, or you adapt your behavior to avoid the results you don't like to see. i'm only doing my best to handle things from my side, and i am certainly not going to try measuring for you how important family social eating occurences are to you.
#''we should talk abt it uwu'' WE TALKED ABOUT IT. STOP COMPLAINING THAT DOING STUFF THAT I CAN'T EASILY HANDLE MAKES ME WEIRD.#EITHER YOU ASSUME IT'S GOING TO MAKE ME WEIRD BECAUSE YOU KNOW EXACTLY HOW AND WHY#OR YOU STOP DOING IT IF IT'S SO UWU HEARTBREAKING UWU FOR YOU TO WATCH#i'm not happy about how guilty i am too of that specific brand of ''oh this is so sad *continues doing nothing*'' form of ''compassion''#they just want me to perform anorexia recovery for them#so they can feel okay we're doing a good job at raising a normal child#they don't give a shit as long as the compusive eating is my mom's meal at the dinner table#just like they didnt care when i had roughly the same problems but not as bad before i had a restrictive phase#i cannot compromise because then WHAT im just hurting my parents for a situation that doesnt make me any happier either?#i do not want to live with them. i do not want to go place or do activities with them.#i dont want to talk to them most of the time and im perfectly willing to handle the times it could be cool to.#but it's really hard to start developping a life of your own when you first of all need like two weeks of total life-reset#quiet at home#and ''at home'' there's your parents who will simply not stop trying to pull you into going random bullshit places#and i can't say no. because the places ARE interesting and time-limited. and it makes them happy. and what am i gonna do anyway?#keep doing nothing on the computer and wait for them to come back to keep doing only the shittiest parts of this unsatisfactory routine?#try to do some work in the house or go out. for them to see that something happened?#i dont know how to live like a normal person#literally not once in my life have i been able to think ''oh i need to do X'' and then just. do X. prepare what's necessary for doing X.#go out and do X. i have to keep stuck at this computer or in this room or with this book.#because there is a million different obstacles to every single thing i'm trying to achieve and half of them are parents-shaped.#everything hurts holy shit#broadcasting my misery#vent#ed tw
2 notes · View notes
createserenity · 6 months
Text
I won’t leave you on your own.
Right, this might be controversial, or I might be the only one who sees this moment in this way, but I need to talk about this now. It’s really sweet when Crowley says this, except what happens afterwards isn’t sweet at all. And can I just add right now that I love both Azirpahale and Crowley, they’re both wonderful and also brillianty flawed, I don’t hate either of them. But as far as I’m concerned Crowley behaves really stupidly here.
Tumblr media
GIF by ladybokatankryze
C: I’m going to get the humans out of here and then I’m coming back. I won’t leave you on your own. A: I know.
Oh dear, Crowley. Why did you leave him on his own after saying this? Why did you let Aziraphale down? Why does no one talk about the fact that you did? You walked out that bookshop and Aziraphale was so confident you would come back that he expressed this confidence to the humans and then defended his reliance on you, “Crowley will have a plan,” “Rescuing me makes him so happy.”
But you didn’t come back, Crowley! Why? You left the bookshop, spotted Muriel and then in some super weird ADHD* move just left Aziraphale to sort out the demon problem on his own whilst you went off to heaven. Whyyyyy?
Now okay. I admit, Crowley was working towards the ultimate goal of finding out what the heck had happened to Gabriel, which was something that needed to be done. He spotted the opportunity, knew it probably wouldn’t come up again and so took it. He did what probably needed to be done. He also did it expecting that the demons wouldn’t ever be able to enter the bookshop because Aziraphale was never going to say they could come in. It’s not his fault Maggie is an idiot. I still love him and so does Aziraphale. Also Aziraphale is perfectly capable of defending himself in some ways and we see this after Crowley leaves…
BUT. What a mistake.
He basically left Aziraphale on his own to fight the demons. An Aziraphale who trusted so absolutely that Crowley would come back, and that Crowley would know what to do, that he hadn’t bothered to come up with the whole plan himself. He didn’t have to. Aziraphale and Crowley are a team, they work together and they don’t let each other down.
Except this time Crowley did.
It’s unclear exactly how long Crowley spent in heaven watching the trial etc but since the ball starts at 6.30pm and the demons seem to turn up not that long into the evening, we can assume it’s a really long time. By the time he comes back it’s very clearly morning again, the entire night has passed. Maybe Crowley didn’t intend to be away that long, maybe he expected his jaunt to heaven to be quicker, or maybe this is because time passes differently in heaven and Crowley had no way of knowing exactly what time he’d return to earth, but whatever the reason, he leaves Aziraphale alone for a really long time, after explicitly stating that he won’t leave him on his own.
By the time he does turn up it’s long after the battle is over and long after Aziraphale has been forced to take an action he really didn’t want to take in order to defend himself and the bookshop.
Just look at Aziraphale’s face when Crowley returns, he isn’t super delighted to see him, he's sort of happy, but more looks like he can’t believe Crowley is actually there.
Tumblr media
When he says, “You came back!” he sounds kind of surprised and also perhaps relieved. Why? Because he’s given up on Crowley coming back by that point. He has no idea what has happened to him or why he let him down so badly.
I think we can fairly safely assume that Aziraphale and Crowley can sense at least to some extent where the other one is when they are both on earth if they try to do so, and it’s probable that at some point after sorting out the demon problem Aziraphale had wondered where Crowley had gone and tried to sense him, so likely he knows Crowley has been away from the earth. What he doesn’t know is where he’s been or whether he went there willingly (at least until he turns up with a bunch of angels, at which point he’s intelligent enough to work it out).**
So now he knows where Crowley went, but he doesn’t know why or what he discovered. He’s still in the “Crowley let me down,” space at this point. Then Crowley asks what happened to the demons and Aziraphale has to tell him he blew up his halo. Crowley finds this delightful and he laughs, but for once they aren’t laughing together. This is only the second time that we have seen Crowley laugh at Aziraphale (the first is when he mocks him about thinking he’s a demon after the Job thing, which he quickly stops doing and switches to being kind when he realises how upset Aziraphale is). When he laughs about the halo he doesn’t mean it to be mocking, it’s actually the same disbelieving reaction that he does on the walls of Eden about the flaming sword, except magnified, he doesn’t just do a single “you what?” of disbelief and amusement as he does in Eden, he properly laughs because he knows Aziraphale better and thinks their relationship can take the laughter.
Usually he’d be right, but the problem is he’s just let Aziraphale down. So while he isn’t really mocking Aziraphale, because he loves that Aziraphale does these unexpected and wonderful things, Aziraphale doesn’t like the laugh at all. Look at his face. He glares at Crowley and his look very much is one of, “if you’d come back like you said you would, if you hadn’t let me down, I probably wouldn’t have had to do it at all.”
Tumblr media Tumblr media
Then since Crowley rather stupidly doesn’t read the reaction and stop laughing the look changes more to, “I’m really upset about all this, please, please don’t laugh at me, you’re hurting me.”*** It's only shown briefly so it's difficult to capture, but you can just catch this in his expression before the camera cuts back to Crowley, and then again for a second when it recuts to Aziraphale, just before he reacts to the arrival of the demons.
Tumblr media
Basically, Aziraphale is really fucking pissed off and upset with Crowley at this point. (Side note, Maggie and Nina look less than impressed by the laughter too – even they know it’s not the right reaction.)
If you need anymore evidence of how annoyed he is, look at how far away he stays from Crowley whilst he’s laughing. Aziraphale never stands that far away from him!
Tumblr media
Luckily for Crowley Aziraphale is very good at forgiveness, and also very much likes it when Crowley takes charge of a situation and thankfully Crowley finally steps up. Whilst Aziraphale worries about what he’s done (look at the tension in his hands) Crowley categorically declares there will be no war and the demons react by listening to him. You can see Aziraphale start to reconnect with Crowley, his eyes flick back to him and then once Shax is up and awake his hands relax and he closes the distance between him and Crowley, angling his body towards him and standing close to him again.
Tumblr media
Crowley is going to sort things out and Aziraphale’s faith in him is easily restored, although without doubt it’s suffered some damage underneath.
So what does this all mean? Well, firstly Crowley hurts Aziraphale deeply here and doesn’t realise he’s done it (and this is the second hurt he’s caused him within the space of a few days). Aziraphale forgives him pretty quickly, because Crowley unknowingly repairs things and Aziraphale is so full of love that it will take more than this one transgression to break their bond.
What it does mean though is that Aziraphale has just had a reminder of the demonic nature of demons shoved in his face. Crowley has just hurt him in several different ways in the space of a very short time. I doubt he consciously sees this as demonic because by this point I don’t think he really even thinks of Crowley as a demon on a day to day basis, but I do think he is responding to that hurt in a very human way.
Look, if your partner left you in a sticky situation and told you they would be back immediately and then didn’t turn back up for hours wouldn’t you be pissed off? Even if nothing happened (if Maggie had never let the demons in for example) you’d still have a few things to say about your partner’s hours of absence – yes, even if they had just unveiled a huge clue about why the whole situation was happening in the first place. That wouldn’t undo all your thoughts about how they let you down really badly and left you on your own in a terrible situation.
Another issue is Shax’s demonic nature – specifically how Shax has hurt him during the attack on the bookshop. If Crowley had been there there’s no way Shax would have had even half a second to get in her jibes to Aziraphale, but he’s not there and Shax gets her chance. What she does is play on Aziraphale’s fears about Crowley’s feelings for him (right at a time when Crowley is letting him down) and also remind Aziraphale of some of the ways in which he is a less-than-stella angel (as a side note I find it really interesting that Shax seems to have this ability to look at people and see their worst fears about themselves – do all demons have that or does every demon have a slightly different ‘power’?) So now Aziraphale has been let down by Crowley, which has directly led to Shax hurting him, and had his worst fears about his own nature brought to the forefront of his mind.
He’s been let down, mocked and emotionally wounded, and he goes into the conversation with the Metatron carrying that hurt, only to hear the Metatron singing his praises and telling him he’s, “the perfect angel for the job”. The Metatron deliberately soothes Aziraphale’s worst fears about himself in order to manipulate him. I’m not saying Aziraphale doesn’t see through it or that he is completely taken in by it or that this is his motivation for accepting the job, I think there’s more to it than that, but well… something to think about?
Mainly though, Crowley acts in a bit of a daft way here. His jaunt to heaven is funny and useful for moving the mystery along, but in terms of his relationship with Aziraphale it's an absolute disaster of a move. I'd want the "I was wrong" dance as an apology for that one if it was me. Just saying.
755 notes · View notes
paper-starz · 9 months
Text
WELCOME HOME THEORY 2: The Theory Strikes Back
Good evening, gentlemen, gentleladies, and gentlethems,
Or Good night
Or even good morning,
Whenever you are, I humbly come to you all with another theory.
This time, its our favorite morally questionable sentient house, Home!
So strap in, buckle up, cause I have STUFF TO SAY.
THIS WILL BE VERY LONG AND IT WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS FOR THE UPDATE!!
Alright, so to begin, what the HECK is going on with Home?
They are one of the most mysterious characters in Welcome Home, we don't know much if not anything at all. And what we do know... wellllll......
Tumblr media Tumblr media
Yeah definitely not menacing at all.....
The only thing that we do know of Home is well… ^ This and the fact that it and Wally are sentient.
Ok, let’s backtrack. HOMES SENTIENT???
Yep! While it was implied in the first update that it was aware of us, this handy-dandy audio clip confirms that Home (like Wally) is aware of “You” (Whoever this “You” person may be. Either literally us or the Question Answerer).
Now, what exactly Home is saying is still up for debate. Some say that it’s “Help Me” while others say it’s “Hello”. (It’s incredibly hard to know what’s exactly dots and dashes with Homes banging) but one thing is for sure, Home is communicating with us.
“AHHHH HOW SCARY! THE CREEPY DEMON HOUSE IS GONNA KILL US” D:
And that’s where you’re wrong, dear viewer. While Home is clearly morally dubious and incredibly suspicious, like Wally, I don’t think it’s necessarily evil.
Take for instance this link right here. It’s an honestly cute lil audio of Wally singing to Home. But while that is adorable, it’s the ending that I really wanna focus on.
Wally: …Do you like it? Home: *Creaks* (it’s Morse code again! Spells out IDO) Wally: Thats good… I think…
Ok why did I bring this old little clip up? Oh ya know… no reason… OTHER THAN THE FACT THAT WALLY CAN’T UNDERSTAND HOME ANYMORE!!!
Ok, I know whatcha thinkin’ “Why not anymore?”
Take a listen at another audio clip, this time it’s a secret one!!
The clip is about Barnaby and Home having a conversation with one another! But if you listen real closely… Home is not speaking in Morse code! It’s their own lil Home language, still consisting of creaks and bangs… yet Barnaby doesn’t seem to have any trouble understanding Home.
So how come Wally can’t understand Home and yet Barnaby can?
It’s because Wally’s sentient now. He’s getting more real. More human. Cartoon logic does not apply to Wally anymore! To us, Home is speaking in gibberish! Since it’s gibberish to us, then it’s gibberish to Wally!
And Home knows that, so it does the next best thing and tries using another language to hopefully communicate better. Now that I’m listening to the first audio clip again (so-below), it makes sense why Home is “speaking” slowly. It’s not used to communicating that way. It’s hard to tell their dots from their dashes, their bangs from their creaks, and it’s pauses are sometimes too long and too short at the same time! In a weird way, Home kinda has an accent when speaking in Morse code.
It’s kinda sweet just how hard Home is trying to communicate with Wally and us. Makes ya forget that Home has a weird portal and a flesh heart inside of them.
“WAIT WHAT?!?” (<- That’s you)
Yeah, remember when I said the more sentient something gets the more “real” they get?
Yeah, it’s also been happening with Home too. Go on any doodle audio file, and you can hear assumably Home’s heart beating away. You can hear it very clearly in this audio right here! I doubt the Playfellow Workshop made Home with a literal BEATING heart, but hey, Home is where the heart is I guess…
And now, the portal thing.
“Since when did Welcome Home ever had a portal??”
Oh since the very beginning actually!
Tumblr media
First updated “portal” picture
Many people (including yours truly) theorized that this swirly spiral was a portal to the real world. It seems that we have more evidence to support this theory too!
Tumblr media Tumblr media
First updated portal (shown left) and second updated portal (shown right)
Hey…. Wait a second…. Is it just me or it the portal getting…. Bigger?
The first update it was small, even the black goo wasn’t as bad… on the second picture, the spiral is INCREDIBLY large, and now the goo is coating the trees.
Well, isn’t that ominous.
"But wait. If Home has a portal... where is this portal even going?"
Tumblr media Tumblr media
Both portals have the same black goo surrounding it, the same white eye in the center and the same swirl.
It's going to the Restoration team. And look at where the portal is placed. It's on the ceiling. "As above"
and the one in Welcome Home is "So below"
So perhaps the portal in Home is on the floor... This CANNOT be a coincidence I swear!!
Tumblr media
With weird goo covering everything. And like, thats not all!
If you compare the items that the Restoration team uploaded onto the site in the first update and on the second update, you'll notice that the items have grown significantly larger.
At first, it was just envelopes with paper crammed inside of it. As if the person was trying to cram in as much information as possible. It isn't neat.
Tumblr media
About us page: All of the paper materials tucked away inside the envelopes we have received are usually crammed together and covered in paint and ink.
Now, in the second update, the items have grown larger.
Tumblr media Tumblr media
These items are much larger than mail, and I believe it also has something to do with how much bigger the portal has gotten.
Pretty soon, we might have full-grown puppets jumping in. But now that begs the question... Why is Home doing this?
Well, I think it's because Home really wants to help Wally.
As you inspect the website, there's a bunch of evidence that Wally is growing increasingly desperate for some other kind of sentient connection. It's been growing so much that it starts to get worrying...
Let's go back to the conversation between Home and Barnaby, notice anything weird? Not really? Well, I noticed that every bug audio file was in the perspective of Wally. Here, Wally is just staring at his half-finished painting, even Barnaby comments on this and finds it odd that Wally stopped painting.
It looks to me that Wally was dissociating. There, but not really there. He's been disconnected from reality because it feels unreal to him.
And Home sees that. As soon as the conversation turns to Wally, Home goes dead silent. When Wally still does not respond, Home releases a series of quick creaks and bangs to try and get Wally's attention. It doesn't work. Once Barnaby says Wally's name, it snaps him out of his dissociative state.
And Home is worried about Wally.
Tumblr media
It gives a whole new look to the infamous "so-below" image.
Home isn't looking at Wally, it's looking straight at us. Eyes shaking as Wally seems like he's begging. Home doesn't look malicious here, Home looks like it's begging us to do something to calm Wally down because it physically can't anymore.
Home and Wally don't have a lot, if not any facial expressions at all. And shaky eyes in cartoons are a good indicator that someone is scared.
And if Home (in this link) is saying "Help Me", then no wonder! Heck, even the freaking disk is shaking!
Home is reaching out to us for help because it can't comfort Wally anymore and I don't know about you but that is SAD.
Two puppets that recently gained sentience can't even get the comfort out of each other because they can't communicate anymore :(
So, all Home can do is wait and watch Wally.
Tumblr media
And if help won't come to you, well, having a handy-dandy portal is very helpful!
You can go to the help instead.
471 notes · View notes
suzukiblu · 5 months
Text
Day twenty-nine of fic NaNoWriMo, obligatory sugar daddy Tim/sugar baby Kon AU.
Kon disassembles his sand castle back into the original pattern without looking, Tim experiences multiple internal crisises, and someone passes by with a tray of hors d'oeuvres. Tim, in self-defense, grabs a couple of the little crostini things on said tray and offers one to Kon, who looks pleased about it. 
“I dunno, does this count as a party?” Kon asks, glancing around with a little grin before popping his hors d'oeuvre into his mouth. Tim does the same, then remembers this means that now he knows what Kon’s mouth tastes like again. Dammit. 
Kon’s mouth currently tastes like ricotta and roasted grape, which isn’t even necessarily a taste that especially appeals to Tim, aside from the part where it’s how Kon’s mouth currently tastes. Why do people even roast grapes? Why is that even a thing? 
Why does Kon look so attractive in slightly smudged eyeliner he put on for him and clothes he bought him? Like–Kon always looks attractive, it’s an incredibly unfortunate curse on the world, reflexively checking out his ass in spandex literally did get Tim thrown off a roof once, but this attractive? This is several new layers of “attractive” and Kon is wearing all of them like a second skin. A very tight and fitted and well-tailored second skin, to be specific. One with cutouts and short-shorts involved. 
This metaphor may be getting away from him. 
“Technically I think so, though maybe not the usual kind,” Tim says. “I mean, it’s sort of a party, it’s just mostly an event. Maybe they want donations or something, I don’t know. Museums usually do.” 
He assumes that’s what the ticket money went to, or at least a fair chunk of it. They were pretty expensive tickets, considering, but since it’s an adults-only special event that isn't obviously themed in either a rogue-baiting or rogue-planned way he hadn't really questioned it. Getting overcharged by a probably-underfunded art museum isn't exactly enough to trot out his inner Bat or inner future supervillain for. 
Well, as long as nobody on staff annoys or insults Kon, anyway. Because in that case he will be financially destroying this place. Like, obviously. It's a little early to be planning his supervillain calling cards, but “you know what you did” is an increasingly tempting option. 
Anyway, that's just a contingency plan. Totally unnecessary as long as Kon has a good time. 
“What’s over there?” Kon asks, peering towards another station. Tim wonders why he’s asking, since he assumes he can feel it, though in retrospect “feeling” whatever it is doesn’t necessarily explain the purpose or point of whatever it is. 
“No idea,” Tim says. “Why, does it feel interesting?” 
“Um.” Kon . . . hesitates, then glances back to him, looking oddly–embarrassed, almost? Weird, Tim thinks, repressing a frown. “It’s, uh . . . kinda, I guess. I dunno. Wanna check it out?” 
“Sure,” Tim says, peering towards it. It looks like a series of boxes with holes in them all stacked on top of each other, though he can’t see what’s actually inside them–there’s curtains or something built into them. He’s not really sure what the whole setup’s supposed to be, honestly, but if Kon’s interested . . . 
They head over, and it turns out the whole setup is basically the same theory as those haunted houses where they make you stick your hand in a box full of peeled grapes and cooked spaghetti and tell you they’re eyeballs and brains, although Tim is hoping peeled grapes and cooked spaghetti won’t actually be involved. 
“So there’s literally zero surprises here for you, I’m guessing,” Tim says wryly. Kon looks sheepish. 
“We can go do something else,” he says. 
“I mean, I’ll be surprised,” Tim points out. “So up to you if you’re interested or not.” 
“Okay, point, I guess,” Kon says, laughing a little and rubbing his arm self-consciously. “I dunno.” 
“Tell me which one to try?” Tim suggests, smiling at him. Kon laughs again, ducking his head to hide a grin. That continues to not be as effective as he probably wants it to be, given their height difference, but Tim has no intention of pointing that out. He doesn’t want to make Kon more self-conscious, and also it’s fucking adorable. 
Bastard. 
“You sure about that?” Kon says, his grin turning sly as he glances back towards him. “You don’t know what’s in there, babe.” 
“I’m willing to live a little dangerously,” Tim replies with an easy shrug. Kon laughs again. 
“Okay, but don’t say I didn’t warn you,” he teases.
Tim quickly regrets letting Kon pick which boxes he should stick his hands in via trying said boxes, but also Kon just looks so fucking cute laughing at the different faces he makes for every one, so it’s hard to actually get annoyed about it. Also, Kon admittedly did warn him. 
Although he might’ve rather put up with the peeled grapes and cooked spaghetti, honestly.
Seriously. Those are some textures, ugh.
227 notes · View notes
moodywyrm · 1 year
Note
omgomg i’m thinking abt an “innocent” virgin reader having a little diary & writing abt their crush on abby,,
abby doesn’t normally snoop bc she’s quite respectful but she just couldn’t help herself cus ur diary was just RIGHT THERE,, so she READS IT and it’s all about the inappropriate things you’d want her to do to you. and it’s like hella descriptive and AHH
so then later that night she does exactly what u wrote in ur diary. teasing u endlesslyyyy, making u beg and feel embarrassed, mocking ur sounds to make u feel embarrassed even MORE,, making u move on ur own just to show how bad u want it, then ending with overstimulation,, omg
and during it, she’s all like “and here i thought you were so innocent,, but you wanted me to fuck you all this time, didn’t you?” and “don’t get embarrassed now, princess. you wanted this” EEEE
ok so I don't always like it when reader is depicted as like hyper-innocent in smut fics, just because it makes me kinda uncomfortable. so I almost didn't write this. but then I got to thinking. reader who is thought of as innocent purely because you don't ever really talk about sex or suggestive shit?
so the salt lake crew, including abby, just assume you're naive? and you're really fucking not, because every night you're stuffing your hand down your panties and playing with your clit to the thought of Abby and her muscles and the way she grunts when she works out or the way she's always so fucking careful and caring with you. because she likes you. but you don't know that. and you write about it! how you want abby to hold you hands together above your head with one big hand, because she could, and play with your clit. maybe fucking her fingers into you, maybe making you cream on her strap. how you want her to press your legs to your chest and go to town, either with her mouth on your cunt or her strap fucking into you so hard it makes your head spin. how you think she could hold you up against the wall and fuck you like that, chest to chest and face to face. and your personal favorite. how you want her to spend hours between your thighs, sucking and spitting on your clit while her fingers press into that gushy spot you can't quite reach with the angle your hand gives you, trying to see if you can squirt. you write it all. and then you fuck up (or don't).
you and abby are having a sleep over in your room, and you run down to the kitchen to grab some snacks your friend had set aside for you in exchange for you taking some of her tasks. but you left your diary, held open by a pen, on the same table that Abby was sitting at, waiting for you. and she got curious! she knows it's wrong, knows she shouldn't, but honestly you've been acting kind of weird around her lately and she's dying to know if you have a crush or something. and she finds something. so much better.
fuck. abby and I are having a sleep over tonight and I feel like I'm gonna combust. we were working out together earlier. well, she was working out and I was spotting her which meant I could see her arms working so hard and her thighs all spread out on the bench and whenever she would rest they would do the thing where they get broader on a flat surface. i want to sit on her lap so bad. want her fingers inside me, grinding up into me. I wonder if she'd ever bring a strap on to my place, if she knew how much I wanted her. does she even have a strap on? want to grind against her thigh and have her tell me I'm her pretty girl. I wish I was her girl, in the first place. I don't know how I'm gonna get through tonight, but we'll see.
by the time she's done reading, her head is fucking dizzy man. she does, actually, have a strap on. it's just in her room. across the hall. she could just go and grab it. but right as she's about to close your diary and get up, the door opens and she pauses. you two stand there, staring at each other, not knowing what to do. you're the first to speak, heart beating so hard you can almost hear it.
"did you... read that?" Abby just nods, closing it and walking over to you. she grabs the snacks from your hands and sets them down on the counter, turning back to see you looking terrified.
so she grabs your face in both hands, forcing you to look at her. "How long have you wanted me, baby?" and you're shaking.
"So fucking long." and the second those words leave your lips, abby is on you, kissing you like a woman starved and grabbing at your hips, pulling you flush against her. you're nervous, because while she may not be your first kiss, you have a feeling this is gonna go farther than just kissing. abby pulls away for a split second, foreheads pressed together, eyes never leaving yours. "Are you okay with this?"
You give her a little nod, verbalizing it with a whiney little "mhm" before she's back on your lips, guiding you to your bed and pulling you onto her lap. Your thighs are bracketing her hips and she's running her hands up and down them, enjoying the squish and give of you under her palms. she's really fucking moving now, pulling your shirt off, moaning at the lack of a bra, and stuffing her hand down your panties, breath hitching at the sheer amount of wet coating your pussy, making you slick and warm, all for her. she's toying at your clit now, bruising your lips with her kisses and pinching at your nipples, pushing you towards an almost embarrassingly fast high. she slides a little lower, pushing one thick digit into your tight heat, thumb rubbing at your clit, causing you to whine for her. and she gets Mean.
"uh huh, that feel good baby? you're not so innocent huh? everyone thinks you're so innocent and sweet but that's because you never fucking say anything huh? no, you just write it all down for anyone to read. or did you leave it out for me so this would happen? pretty girl, could have just fucking asked"
and her fingers, now two thick digits stretching you open, are so fucking deep and rough and pressing against that sensitive lil patch inside you that you snap, clenching wildly around her digits as she fucks you through your orgasm, cooing at you n mocking your moans.
"Oh, ohh, that's it, there's my pretty little slut. just needed to be fucked, didn't you? I'll fuck you nice and hard baby, just give me a second"
She helps you down from your high, giving you a few seconds to calm down while she practically sprints to her room and grabs her black strap, not caring if anyone sees her dashing between the rooms like a fucking mad man. Once she's back in your room, she's stripping with maximum efficiency and it takes everything in you not to moan when you see her naked. clearly, your all is not nearly enough because the second that harness is around her waist and and she's back between your thighs, a little sweaty and disheveled, pretty tits and pectorals on display, you're whining and reaching for her, begging her to lean down. she doesn't, the meanie, instead lining the tip of the strap up with your pretty lil hole and slotting it inside before she leans forward, lips barely touching as she begins to push in.
she sees the tears well up in your eyes, sees how you relax under her hands and get used to the stretch, before she starts fucking you in earnest. she's not going fast, but she is deep and a lil mean with how she's grinding into you, stimulating her clit in the process. she feels you shaking under her, clawing at her back and leaving marks for her to show off, and the way you're moaning makes her head fuzzy.
"Mhm, that's it, my pretty girl just needed to be fucked. that feel good baby? you like it when my cocks nice n deep in your cunt?"
She's moaning, getting closer and closer as she fucks you open, but what tips her over is the way you start talking back, after only sharing lil phrases and whines with her. no, now you're being fucking filthy, really bringing that diary to life.
"fuck, please abby, your cock feels so fucking good, you're so deep, can feel you in my tummy. please baby, are you gonna cum for me? gonna make me cum if you cum for me, please baby, wanna watch you fall apart for me, so fucking pretty when you're fucking me," and your voice so breathy and whiny and slutty, abby never stood a fucking chance. she starts shaking, pushing as deep as she can and grinding the base of the harness into both of you, pushing you over as she falls apart, moaning into the crook of you neck. you're whining, shaking under her and clenching your soft thighs around her waist in a way that makes her feel fucking primal. it takes you both forever to come down, panting and clinging to each other for dear life. when abby pulls out and flops next to you, she immediately pulls you into her.
"I should have read that diary so much sooner. ya gonna let me read the rest of it?"
who wrote that.
520 notes · View notes
bird-inacage · 8 months
Text
Only Friends: Episode 5 Preview (A walk in Sand's 'Rough & Dusty' World)
I'm really looking forward to where Episode 5 is taking us with Ray and Sand's storyline. This almost feels like the proper start to these two as a 'couple'. Having seen more to Ray last week, we're now getting a better insight into Sand's life, which looks peppered with sweet and spicy moments throughout.
We start with breakfast at Sand's. Can we safely assume this is a morning after scene, which means they slept together again? (How adorable does Ray look whilst he peeks into the kitchen? He's an actual child, I weep).
Tumblr media
At the end of Episode 4, Ray seems to have arrived at the conclusion that he's now open to the idea of welcoming Sand into his life, and being more sincere about their (cough) 'friendship'. And with that, he intends to make more of a conscious effort, to show he has taken on board what Sand said.
So Ray suggests they spend the day together, "Can I stay with you? I wanna get to know you better." (A nice parallel to Ray's usual 'stay with me') It's an immediate indication that someone is starting to take you seriously, because they are initiating opportunities to see your world, to understand your perspective - to better appreciate all the things that make you who you are.
Tumblr media Tumblr media
So far, Sand has mainly operated in Ray's world when they've crossed paths. Ray knows very little of Sand's life, other than his job as a bar singer. The fact that Ray is taking an active interest is a huge step. This isn't 'I'm paying or begging you to spend time with me' (aka Ray wanting Sand to keep him company), it's 'I want to spend time with you' (I'm keeping you company). That's a very notable distinction.
This request also means that Sand will be leading the day's activities, with Ray following along. That's another role reversal of how their dynamic has played out so far. Ray is the one who dictates what he'd like to do, and he persuades Sand to agree. Giving Sand full control is another example of Ray welcoming his opinion and preferences. It's a sign of moving towards more equality and balance in their relationship.
(How powerful is Sand in the leather jacket? The whole riding a motorbike together screams boyfriend energy).
Try to stay sane folks, because we should also be getting THIS notorious scene. It looks like they're in a changing room but who knows, maybe Sand has a weird privacy corner in his flat? The shirt Ray wears for the rest of the episode is hanging on the wall. We get Sand changing Ray (because his role as Ray's caretaker reigns supreme), and whilst doing so, he goes in for a cheeky fondle.
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
Sand continues to open Ray's eyes through music at a gig, which is a nice continuation of the lovely scene they shared at the record store. They also return to the go-go bar, where Ray publicly serenades our resident singer?
And we'll bear witness to Sand falling more and more visibly in love by the second. It's just as Mew called it - Ray should be a ray of sunshine and that's exactly the way Sand looks at him. That gaze is full of warmth and awe. Sand is completely aware of Ray's faults and bad habits, because he saw those first and upfront. And yet he sees Ray beaming underneath, despite all those things.
(As a side note to Ray - the superficial attention of many doesn't come close when compared against the all-encompassing attention of just one. Do you see how that man looks at you??)
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
After a long day out of playing actual boyfriends, they have a quiet, steamy make out session on Sand's balcony. Having had Ray accompany him all day, there's no doubt Sand is even more head over heels now.
If they did indeed sleep together the previous night and were gunning for 2 in a row, I really don't think you can shirk that off as 'friendship' anymore. I don't care how deep or convincing you think your denial is.
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
Aaaand OH. It was only a matter of time before this inevitably happened. Either Sand would walk in on Boston/Nick wildin', or they would catch him and Ray doing the dirty. My worry is how Boston is going to react, because not only has Top given him the cold shoulder, Ray is swiftly veering off his plan and how he ideally wanted to manipulate the situation. In a desperate bid to clutch at straws, I really hope Boston doesn't try to stir shit up with Sand instead (in regards to that Ray and Mew kiss).
Boston, you better steer well clear of our unproblematic couple. Let them be happy without the fuckery that is your mind games.
Tumblr media
(Ray's expression cracked me up. He looks completely out of it 'Huh? What's happening? Who dis?' Boy was so consumed in kissing Sand, he forgot who he was).
253 notes · View notes
meanbossart · 2 months
Note
I was wondering, how did DU Drow took to Orins betrayal? To her being the one that stabbed him in the back, and so how did his infatuation and imprinting on her changed or twisted? Did he feel anything when he saw her again? Did his body or mind remembered how he felt about her once? Also do not worried for long replies because I’m a sucker for them 🧛🏻‍♀️
You know, actually I like thinking about the very moment of the betrayal a lot and the rollercoaster of emotions DU drow would have experienced LOL I don't know EXACTLY how Orin managed to get away after mushing up his brain (and him being immediately rendered unconscious sounds a little boring to me) but I assume, wherever they were at the time - probably mindflayer hideout at Ketheric's I believe - she lured him somewhere where she could make a quick get-away and leave him behind either locked away or stuck when he inevitably reacted to what she did, before his mind started drifting away.
Which is just to say he would have had a few minutes of consciousness left immediately after-the fact. Orin got a head-start because he simply could not believe what had just happened: lots of "what did you do? what did you do? why did you do that?" followed by unbridled anger as reality settled in. He assumed he was going to die, so, If he could have gotten to Orin in time DU drow would have killed her. Instead he was left alone in what was probably the most terrifying and anxiety inducing few minutes he ever had in his life before his body and brain just gave out lol
POST the tadpole he remembered nothing. He had no feelings of sadness or mourning when he saw her, just a lot of rage. The weird "imprinting" he does on people was reset when his brains got scrambled, and he felt no love or affection for her from that point on. That said, I think he found something a little gross in the satisfaction he felt upon killing her, like he finally "got her" - if you catch my drift.
What's a little ironic (and kinda sad) here is that it's thanks to his affection towards Astarion that DU drow could even begin to understand concepts like consent and boundaries - these would have been key to realize that the position he put Orin in for years was profoundly uncomfortable and unfair, and perhaps with that in mind he *could* have somehow reached out to her and maybe even spared her of her own fate (I'm not entirely sure about this because of how faithful she was to Bhaal - but it would have at least raised the chances THE TINIEST BIT), but since the relationship was only possible BECAUSE his memories were erased, leaving nothing but resentment towards her, that became an impossibility. You can't have both; his infatuation with her either ceased and he completely forgot he ever cared for her and hence had no motivation to save her, or he remained utterly obsessed and never developed the relationships necessary to understand his role in his own demise.
In that later scenario the best he would have been able to do by the time he got to her was insist they go rogue, fuck Bhaal and fuck this, come with me and lets go be crazy [together] somewhere else and of our own accord - but obviously, Orin would have had no interest in the offer lmao and things would have ended up the same as they did in the main campaign - except now DU drow is a slightly worse person and doesn't have Astarion to hone him in. Even after she died I don't think a relationship between them could have sparked either, likely BECAUSE his obsession with Orin would have skeeved him away entirely.
81 notes · View notes
ashironie · 2 months
Text
I don’t have a good feeling about Celia
I tried to post this earlier but it got deleted so fuck
But from so many standpoints she just irks me
-She has the same character archetype as Alice. Many have pointed out their similarities and while this by itself isn’t much (as is everything on this list) with everything else it makes me weirded out
-She just came out of the blue. We had no warning in the episodes before no build up. We were introduced to the concept she was coming and then she came with little fanfare.
-Her introduction to the rest of the cast is a lot different than Sam’s. A lot understated. Maybe Jonny and Alex just didn’t want to do the same thing again but it felt really rushed and weird.
-I cannot see how she can possibly contribute to the plot in any meaningful way if she is just another victim coworker. She was introduced too late to have her death feel like anything but fridging (when you make a character just to kill them for momentary character drama), once again she shares a character archetype with Alice so the only thing that they could give Celia could be given to Alice perfectly fine, and she once again feels forced
-Celia was also too comfortable too quick for me. She just instantly trusted none of her coworkers would report her for talking shit about their boss. She seemed too genuine about everything even though she was in a completely new environment. And she was just so laid back with everything, like sure she might not know the full scale of things but she seems like she’s been their for as long as anyone can remember (something that might be due to the fact I associate this trait with Alice who has been there a long time)
-idk if I’m reaching or going crazy with this one but Alice seemed off. She moreso just said “I’m Alice” and and Aliced all over the place. But as soon as Celia left she said ‘yeah’ sorta suspiciously? Maybe I’m crazy. Then she’s back to herself replying to Gwen, who we can assume is only less interested in what Celia has to say due to the situation she’s found herself in during ep 4 was it? with Lena. The only time we really get to know her thoughts about Celia when she isn’t in front of her is when she’s bugging Sam about his crush on her, and also literally all conversation she has with Celia she also has with Sam and shifts the conversation (aside from just meeting Celia) to Sam (imo). The only time we get her opinions on Celia away from other characters is the little ‘yeah’.
-We don’t see Colin’s reaction to Celia either, which would mark the third episode in a row where Colin is only mentioned (to my knowledge). Though we don’t have any mention that he’s been hostile to her. The only characters that truly talk to her and that we can see their reactions to her are Alice and Sam. One who I’m convinced is suspicious of her and the other who’s ’in love’ with her (I was completely caught off guard by this due to not even thinking about any of that in the very beginnings of a horror podcast, I’m autistic and demiromantic, and because I was half listening the first time I listened. I sense it more but it still feels like a stretch to me before Alice mentions it though makes a lot of sense due to Sam’s reaction to her mentioning it)
-I feel like I’d be amiss to not mention the fact this is the episode we truly have an Avatar in it. Needles is the first avatar we tma enjoyers know as an avatar (in Norris’s statement in ep1 we have the maybe scammer but it’s unclear weather that’s an Avatar, someone being possessed, or something else entirely). Thematically, this would be a great way to establish a connection with Avatar and Celia. She was introduced exactly when Avatars were. Also the episode name could also be a reference to the fact we are having our “introductions” to Avatars thought this episode, but that’s unrelated.
-People has also pointed out Celia is in Tma, same name and same voice actress (so no Michael situation or helen and Mel’s therapist situation [I think I remember them having the same voice actress and that being a problem] here). Although I don’t know what the could mean but that’s actually the reason I decided to rewrite this mini-notsomini-rant.
I could be wrong about all of this and am prepared to be wrong but still, needed to get this out there.
104 notes · View notes
edenfenixblogs · 3 months
Note
Hi, I have a question and you seem like a really balanced person, so here goes: I want to join a drag king collective, and I’m so excited about it, but the king leading it has some Interesting views. It’s the kind of thing where it’s constant “fuck Zionists” and what feels like extremely performative activism (Palestinian flag in bio but no actual fundraising/peace efforts, posting misinformation/irresponsible rhetoric etc.) I’m scared that if I join it I’ll be treated different, and even more scared that my friends will think the antisemitism justified (they aren’t great at understanding what antisemitism looks like these days). Idk what to do about the fear of someone being antisemitic because I don’t want it to stop me from doing what I want, but I also know it’ll devastate me if it does happen. If you can offer any insight I’ll be very grateful.
Hi friend!
I'm really glad you reached out to me. Not because I pretend to know all the answers, but because I love that we can all rely on each other during this time.
Unfortunately, whether you sign up for this is ultimately a matter of your own personal priorities and how you are prone to handle confrontation.
Personally, if it was me, I would join. I'm not afraid of defending myself (but I very much used to be, so no shame if you're not there yet). If I wanted to explore my gender identity through performance (if indeed that is what you are doing. I've never been personally drawn to perform drag, so I cannot pretend to know exactly why one might start. But I don't think I'm out of line to assume that it involves some kind of exploration or critique of gender both personally and societally) I certainly wouldn't let antisemites be the reasons I didn't go for it.
If the Anti-Zionist jerk starts coming at you, you can simply say "OK, great. Real quick question: What's a Zionist?" And watch him squirm to say anything real or substantive other than "a Jew." He might say, "They're basically Nazis!" or "They're people who want Palestinians to suffer!" or some other confidently incorrect hyperbolic statement. If he does so, you can say, "Oh! Well, then that's definitely not what I am," and move on.
If he says something slightly more substantive, like, "They're people who think Jews should get to take land from Arabs/Palestinians in order to have a Jewish ethnostate!" You can use the same response as above. But you can also say, "Oh, weird. That's definitely not what I thought it was. Which Zionist Jews have said this, exactly? Cuz I heard it was something completely different." Remember, their goal isn't actually to educate you or help anyone or even to provide limited but factual information. The goal is to shame you into aligning with their self-righteous point of view. That is not an effective tactic when you respond with QUESTIONS instead of outright CORRECTIONS. Making people explain themselves is a great way to defang a bad faith accusation like that.
Finally, they might say, "It's someone who supports Israel." In this case, either of the above methods will work. Or you could question even further. Here's an example of a chat:
You: Supports Israel how?
Jerkface: They want Biden to use our tax dollars to fund a genocide!
You: Oh, well then I'm definitely not a Zionist.
Jerkface: No, you don't understand! It's people who think that Jews can only be safe in a settler colonial apartheid ethnostate that justified its existence by crying about the Holocaust.
You: Well then I'm still not a Zionist. I don't know why you're assuming these things about me. But people should generally cry about the Holocaust. It was really bad thing that people did to Jews. Do you not think the Holocaust is a big deal?
Jerkface: Of course I think it was a big deal. That's why we all have to condemn THIS genocide. The Jews are the Nazis now.
You: I don't know. I don't think that' show Nazism works. But I definitely don't like genocide. If liking genocide makes a Zionist, then I'm definitely not whatever you're accusing me of.
Jerkface: No! I'm just saying that Zionists don't want a ceasefire. They're trying to kill all the Palestinians.
You: I don't know what to tell you then. Because that's still not me. Of course I want Hamas and Israel to both stop bombing each other.
Jerkface: No, Palestine is JUSTIFIED in bombing Israelis because of the oppression.
You: I think its weird that you're conflating Palestinians with Hamas. Are you saying that Palestinian civilians are bombing Israel as as a protest tactic? I thought for sure that Hamas, a terrorist organization, was the group responsible for Anti-Israeli violence. Personally, I've always though that most Palestinians just want to live in peace and don't support terrorism and violence. I don't know why it would harm Palestinians to suggest that both Israel and Hamas should end this conflict diplomatically rather than with violence.
Jerkface: Right! That's why we need to tell Biden to call for a ceaseefire!
You: OK, but I still don't know if you're saying Israel should just stop firing or that Israel and Hamas should stop bombing. I definitely want everyone to stop bombing each other. But I'm not really sure why Hamas would care about what Biden says.
etc...
I call this the "Rabbi method," because when you go to a rabbi, they never really give you an answer to your question. They answer with other questions designed to get them to see their own answer.
Either Hamas is a terrorist group unfairly targeting Israeli civilians and launching bombs into civilian territories--something that is clearly bad and which makes average Palestinian civilians innocent victims (this is the truth btw) that require both Hamas and Israel too lay down their arms. OR Palestinians and Hamas are interchangeable terms and the ongoing oppression of Palestinians have driven them to violent, offensive, armed resistance--which you may or may not agree with as a revolutionary tactic (To be clear, this is NOT TRUE OF PALESTINIANS. PALESTINIANS ARE NOT TERRORISTS AND DO NOT DESERVE TO BE BOMBED). Palestine IS NOT HAMAS. Hamas is bombing Israeli civilians.
Israel is retaliating with extreme force and prejudice against a terrorist organization in a way that is devastating the lives and futures of Palestinian Civilians, who very much deserve for all sides to lay down their weapons and address their mutual grievances diplomatically and responsibly. What is occurring right now is a messy, ugly, brutal war that is killing and traumatizing all civilians in the Levant. And a one-sided ceasefire leaves the side that ceases firing dead. A ceasefire means that EVERYONE must cease firing.
Unless Jerkface has a plan for how to ensure the safety of Palestinian civilians from Hamas that also includes Israeli safety from Hamas, asking for Israelis to simply lay down all their weapons without any guarantee of safety is asking for a nation of mostly Jews to die without putting up a fight. And wanting Arab Israelis and also Jews not to die is not what Zionism means. It's not even what pro-Israel means. That's just called not being violently antisemitic, actually.
Israelis aren't mindless Zionist Nazi Monsters who get off on killing Palestinian babies. Palestinians aren't Noble Savages who have never done anything wrong as individual people and who are inherently morally superior to every single Israeli because they were born Palestinian. Both Israelis and Palestinians are complex, global micro-minorities who have both perpetrated tremendous harm to one another over the course of several decades, and neither group is going anywhere. Neither group deserves for its people to die. Neither group is only "worth helping" if western onlookers categorize them as "innocent" and "good." If someone's activism isn't geared toward respecting the inherent dignity of Palestinians and Israelis regardless of either group's history, then that person is not engaging in activism. If someone is asking you to support that cause because their chosen cause involves perfect cinnamon rolls being targeted by pure evil enemies, then they are not asking you to join them in activism. They are not even asking you to join them in a political reality. What they are asking is for you to join their toxic fandom.
And reducing this conflict down to simplistic fandom rhetoric is not going to help anyone and is frankly offensive to all Jews, Israelis, and Palestinians--all of whom deserve to be seen for the traumatized, suffering, imperfect people they are.
People don't earn support by being good. They inherently deserve support, because they are people.
All that said, maybe it's not emotionally useful for you to engage in this group. Maybe this type of conflict is too much for you. That's OK, too.
And while I would never let antisemitism take away an opportunity for me to fulfill a dream, I will say that my experience of Antisemitism during this time is 100000000% responsible for making me realize that the dreams I had before this experience need to evolve. I no longer wish to be in the town where I live. I wish to be home with my family closeby, because when the chips are down, that's who matters. The idea of moving back to my home state was unthinkable to me before October. Now? I cannot get out of here fast enough. There's nothing I want that is exclusive to my current location anymore. The community I thought I'd built for myself is gone. And while antisemitism didn't take them from me, it sure as fuck showed me that I never had it in thee first place.
If you're going to join this collective, be sure its worth the fight. And if it's not worth the fight, then look for a place that is. Exploring your gender identity freely should not come at the cost of living your ethnic and religious identities openly. Ever.
Don't trade one closet for another. You deserve more than that. We all do.
hope that helps @kit-chaos-doodle
75 notes · View notes
fractualized · 6 months
Text
Tumblr media
Alright. Let's break down this "oh" of an ending. NEGATIVE NANCY, COMING THROUGH
Spoilers, ho!
Ending a story is hard, if they're long or short. Whether you wrap up key threads or leave them open, you want some kind of takeaway that puts a period on things. Even in comics, where we know these characters will go on and on, ideally a story will end in a way that just... fits. Even amateur fic writers have loads of WIPs just sitting there because exactly how to end this damn thing eludes them.
I don't know if Rosenberg had an ending in mind when he started The Man Who Stopped Laughing. I don't know if he decided he'd figure it out by the end of it's year-long run. I don't know if DC Editorial lets people do that; it sounds insane, but if you've been paying attention to their current level of editorial "oversight," which I imagine is supposed to make concurrent titles mesh together reasonably well, I wouldn't be shocked if they let people wing it. Or, more likely, perhaps DC Editorial swooped in and made Rosenberg change the ending he had planned and that's why the result falls flat.
In any case, after 11 issues of enjoying myself, I'm left feeling deflated.
But let's start where #12 does, with the Joker who's been told he's John Keyser, a toxin'd henchmen that the real Joker made into a doppelganger for funsies. He approaches a hotdog vendor.
Tumblr media
I'm stuck on "Hello. I've been looking for you"?? I didn't catch that on my first read. Joker has a favorite hotdog vendor? lol
Tumblr media
Shut up, Waffles!! All we have is your word for it!!
In any case, hey, Keyser Joker has already been Jokering this long, so yeah, why not keep going? And why not with help from poor woobie Jason, fresh from nearly getting himself killed in Gotham War?
Tumblr media
Bruce did not fix Jason at the end of Gotham War, so his adrenaline is still triggering fear in his brain. But Keyser Joker has a solution for that!
Tumblr media
It's a tiny dose of Joker toxin to take the edge off of Bruce's programming. Joker makes a point of saying that the effects are only temporary, though. (And like, I assume this is just the quick-fix solution Rosenberg came up with to pull off his own ending when told Bruce's plans for Jason over in the other titles.) Jason is skeptical of this "help," naturally, but Keyser Joker brings up their matching interest: getting rid of the other Joker.
Tumblr media
Jason, why you gotta ruin Albert's good time? 🙄
Cut to Red Hood dragging a clown henchman through the streets of Gotham.
Tumblr media
But "his" face being blacked out and some of the dialogue clue the reader in: things aren't what they seem.
DERAIL TIME: what is up with this batmobile?
Tumblr media
Like from some other angles, it looks sportier, but in most of the panels it looks like an old Buick? lol ANYWAY.
Tumblr media
With the flaily way this person jumps off the bike and runs, I was sure that this was Keyser Joker and we might see Batman interact with him. Alas.
Tumblr media
It's Ravager, who survived last issue's explosion. She's helping Jason 1) distract Batman and 2) get Albert out of harm's way, far from Keyser Joker's plan.
Tumblr media
Naturally Keyser Joker is planning something more destructive than he's led Jason to believe. Also like…
The idea that Keyser Joker really is this John guy, not the real deal, is still not sitting fucking right with me. Seeing him here in another costume, with a goofy death train with mismatched eyes just like his, it feels like a signal that he actually is Joker and Waffles is either lying or mistaken somehow. Like compared to the other Joker, who we haven't seen in a costume? Who left Gotham for weird reasons? I really thought there was going to be a reverse reveal.
And since it doesn't come, I guess it's a good time to mention that! There is no reverse reveal of who the real Joker is. Things get a little muddy later, but…. hrm. HRM.
That said, the other Joker does something pretty dang Jokery: he shows up in a dirigible with his face on it.
Tumblr media
Killer Moth and a bunch of clown goons (that aren't supposed to be available because of Gotham War but WHATEVER) attach the dirigible to the train and it's pretty chaotic!
Tumblr media
I love when villains are like, "Look I may kill people, but an endangered gorilla?! Get outta here!" 😂
Jason also arrives in style.
Tumblr media
I guess he was observing Ravager's distraction?? Which feels like it defeats part of the purpose of having her do the distraction. But then he couldn't have this cool entrance in which he bludgeons people with a motorcycle. Trade offs!
Meanwhile, Real Joker makes it to the front of the train to confront Keyser Joker. One of Real's goons offers to shoot Keyser, but Real Joker wants to make this personal and kills the poor hench so he can do it himself.
Tumblr media
Jason coming in like YEEEEEAAAAHHHHH 😎
Then he gets the bad news.
Tumblr media
Keyser is as casually suicidal as your average Joker! Also "Real" Joker never acknowledges Red Hood's identity, afaik. It's always Keyser Joker. Details like this got me thinking that reverse reveal was coming, AND YET.
That aside, next comes a fun comedy beat.
Tumblr media
Real Joker going right for the hair!
Jason isn't going to let this be the end of it, of course, and once again Killer Moth must suffer at his hands.
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
Jason shoots so many clowns. Just never the one he wants. 😞
Tumblr media
Waaaaaaaaaaaaaait wait wait. You're telling me that Bruce knew about the imminent TWO JOKERS situation. But he decided to prioritize a report of Red Hood dragging a clown through the streets. When in the same breath he's saying there are other people coming to the scene with him, so he obviously could've sent someone else? On the same day Batman #139 is like "oooh Bruce is totally onto Joker now"? This is what you're telling me?? Augh.
Well, we can't rely on Batman right now, clearly, so it's up to Jason.
Tumblr media
Meanwhile, Keyser Joker has told the other one that he actually does have a secret way off the runaway train safely. After they fight some more, the tune starts to change.
Tumblr media
Alright so, this "deal," which would sort of start them back at square one, doesn't bother me because obviously it's on shaky-ass ground and one of them is definitely killing the other before this issue is over. What does bug me is the "franchising" line, for two reasons:
1) Is this supposed to imply that Real Joker is the one who was behind Joker Incorporated in the Batman Incorporated issues, not a third one?
2) I was just SO SURE it was another indication we were getting a reverse reveal. Joker absolutely does not love the franchising idea. That's kind of been the point of this whole series. The genuine Joker in Keyser Joker's hallucination/memory said that having two Jokers around is stupid. HRRRRMMM.
Anyhow, they leave the train together, though the escape plan is literally just jumping off, which has more issues than they bargained for.
Tumblr media
So do you think, assuming the Gotham War writers actually communicated at least a little, that Zdarsky asked Rosenberg what he needed Jason for at the end of TMWSL, and Rosenberg was like, "oh I need him to heroically crash a toxic blimp and almost die?" And then Zdarsky was like, "er, I need him to heroically fly a plane into a magic meteor and almost die?" And then they just shrugged and closed the Zoom?
But yeah, the blimp crashes, and I'm sort of confused because I thought that earlier Bruce was saying that even if the toxin gets into the water, it'll still make it's way to the city. So for one thing, it's still exploding in the air and it's still gonna drift. And the parts that dissolve in water are still gonna drift. There's a part to the equation missing here.
But these two are just thrilled at the excitement.
Tumblr media
Until the sudden yet inevitable betrayal.
Tumblr media
BUT WHO WAS JOKE
Shortly after this, Ravager shows up with Manhunter, who also survived last issue's explosion. (It just doesn't come up at all. Like it doesn't have to, I guess, but it's just weird that there's not a word or wound about it.) Ravager dives into the water looking for Jason, because she instinctually knows he did something grand and dumb. She finds him among the clown bodies and brings him to shore.
Tumblr media
Nothing can kill this man! He came back from the dead with nine lives! And also maybe that Lazarus resin from TFZ is still helping, I dunno.
Elsewhere along the shore, what's left of both Jokers' crews find themselves waiting in the same spot for the Joker they expect to be triumphant.
Tumblr media
You know what. I'm soured on Waffles now. Leave him.
And then, from the water…
Tumblr media Tumblr media
And that's it. That's how it ends. With a sort of snide cop-out?
Like, it's Joker's POV, so yeah, you could say the dickish tone is just him. But following this story for a year, and then seeing it end with simply the old "you'll never know which Joker prevailed," it doesn't feel clever or whatever this is going for. It just feels obnoxious.
Honestly, it feels like the same takeaway as freaking Three Jokers. 😐 That it doesn't matter who Joker is. All the lead-up to this, where maybe we get a tiny bit of depth and development, even if just in this story, eh. Doesn't matter! We're ending this with blah payoff.
On the other hand, the part of about about there being more questions, about this ending not being tidy, makes me think that this is leaving open the possibility that Keyser Joker actually was the real one. After all, we don't get a flashback to the actual events. The events we see are part of a hallucination, and Keyser never said he had clear memories of being the real or the fake one. He just went from assuming he was the real one to taking Waffles' word for it that he was the henchman.
Also, Keyser Joker was always the Joker giving narration. And the narration boxes for the Final Joker at the end remain in his style. So it seems like we actually have a huge indication of which Joker prevailed-- unless we're meant to assume that if the other Joker prevailed, he merely took over the narration.
I mean, this is what we have. So if I can just choose what I want to believe, I'm going to believe both that Keyser was actually the real guy and that he won. But it puts a real sour taste in my mouth to be super engaged with a story and wanting an ending that says something about Joker's character… and the ending is just that one murders the other and you don't know who, neener neener. It's anticlimactic. It's a predictable direction that I thought SURELY Rosenberg wouldn't go in. It feels like a dick move.
And... what else is there to say? So ends my year of consistently buying a comic, I guess. Nothing else has really grabbed me like TMWSL did, though City of Madness looks promising. After the multiverse and Gotham War stuff, I'm not about to start picking up Zdarsky's Batman. #139 had plenty I should enjoy, but it's soured by Zdarsky deciding to bring a canonical take to the three Jokers concept for some ungodly reason.
A new three Jokers take feels extra stupid after a year of a story about two Jokers. And the second Joker in TMWSL isn't even taken into account in Zdarsky's story. Based off that #135 scene, it really looks like he's going to say that Darwin Halliday accidentally copied TKJ Joker somehow. lmao Why. Why do we have to do this. Why can't this just be one of the things that gets retconned away. I just want my murderclown to be fun.
I need to get back to my list of unread older comics. Or read One Operation Joker! I didn't think I was interested, but I think a random goofy premise is actually just what I need.
140 notes · View notes
eisfreiesspeiseeis · 2 months
Text
My Wakfu Season 4 Head Canon / Theory / Manic ramblings
I don't know if someone else already made a post about this, if yes, please direct me to it, anyway strap in:
So, what has always bothered me about the MMO Eliotropes was their weird skin tone and markings.
Tumblr media
Remember, they were added to the game(s) before season 3 and the OVA were even out and all we knew about them was this blurb:
Having appeared via a freak accident, Eliotropes are but mirror images of their creator, the King-God.
I don't know wether this was confirmed back then, but we all just accepted that Yugo was the King-God. He was the King of the Eliatropes, he was a demigod, it made sense. We just didn't know what exactly this accident was yet. And that was the first time I got way too hung up on their skin color. (Some people might claim they don't see color, but not me.) I came up with 2 explanations: Explanation 1: This was how Yugos God-King-Form would look like
So in Season 2, when Qilby gets the Eliacube, his skin color changes and he gets these black markings;
Tumblr media Tumblr media
While Yugo just gets these glowing tattoos in his "Eaxalted" form, which do, however, look kinda similar. Also during his transformation, Qilby's tats would glow at first, just like Yugo's, before turning black.
Tumblr media Tumblr media
This let me to assume (all these years ago) that Qilby's transformation (which the Wiki calls "Lobotimized" for some reason) was the more evolved form of Yugo's. I basically tought while Yugo just unlocked Super Saiyan, Qilby could go Super Saiyan 2. And at some point, Yugo would archieve a similar form too, which would be when he became the God-King, and that was why the Eliotropes all had white skin and blue markings. (I just thought Yugos tats would turn blue instead of black because ykno, color schemes and stuff.)
Also there was this Krosmaster Mini called Yugo unleashed, so I thought this was the direction they were going:
Tumblr media
Explanation 2: Their skin markings look like Adamai's
You know, this guy. With the white skin / scales and the blue markings.
Tumblr media
In hindsight the easier explanation. Adamai is Yugo's twin brother, so it would make sense if the Eliotropes had an imprint of Adamai. Or maybe Adamai helped in whatever accident created the Eliotropes. The brothers already combined their powers a few times to do BIG MAGIC, so maybe that would also be the case for the "accident".
Then the OVA came and Yugo got the six Dofus
It all made sense in my mind. With the six Dofus, Yugo was more powerful than a god, so this would be when he reached his King-God-Form and...
Tumblr media
It kinda just looked like his normal "Exalted Form" with different markings. Okay, I thought, so it has to be the Adamai explanation, right?
Then Season 3 and the Oropo OVA came and...
Tumblr media Tumblr media
These guys don't look like the Eliotropes we knew until that point at all.
Okay,
maybe they changed the designs so Amalia would recognise Oropo as Yugo?
maybe as more Eliotropes died, they started to look more like Yugo/white people?
Either way, it's super weird that we have never seen a game-looking Eliotrope in the show or even in the OVA.
Also, aside from Oropo the other Eliotropes we see seem to be super variant from Yugo, with some missing the head-thingies and others not even able to create portals, it seems (Repulse dies because he gets thrown off the tower. I think he would have saved himself if he could). In the game however, the Eliotropes seem to be pretty much just reskinned (ha!) Eliatropes with all the same, maybe watered down powers.
Okay, so the rational thing would be to just accept that they retconned the Eliotropes for the show a bit, as there was quite a long break in production. Or just accept it as one of these wird things, like Osamodas evolving to have blue skin in at most a few hundred years.
Tumblr media Tumblr media
Ankama has changed designs drastically all the time between media, they really don't like to enslave themselfes to esthetics and and hard lore and really if you think about it does that not give them so much more potential for creat
AND THEN CAME SEASON 4
Spoilers up til episode 10, I guess And the season starts with a reminder that the Eliotropes were created because Yugo did not have perfect control over them and who gets their grabby hands on all 6 (six) of them?
This guy
Tumblr media
Notice how his markings are blue now? Hmmm...
"But Qilby should have far more control over the Dofus than Yugo, that's his thing, he has so much experience!", the strawperson said. Yes, but Qilby is also mentally unstable and hyper traumatoze, which he says himself.
He repeatedly has episodes, even while he is using to the dofus.
Also, attuning to the Eliasphere was super taxing and clearly outside of his abilities (as he says himself), so what I want to say is:
there were multiple occasions where he could have slipped up and created his own "accident".
Qilby is the King-God of the Eliotropes from the MMO.
Yugos accident resulted in the creations of eliotropes because
Tumblr media
AND QILBY'S GREATEST FEAR IS TO BE ALONE, so it would make sense that his "wish" would also create more "family" for him.
This would also explain some of the differences between show Eliotropes and MMO Eliotropes:
Obviously, the MMO Eliotropes look far more like Qilby's true(?) form, with snow-white skin and blue markings.
Yugo did not really have a great idea what his people were actually like, which explains why his Eliotropes would have so much variance in appearance and power between them. In contrast, Qilby has the most perfect memory of the Eliatrope people in existence, arguably better than the Goddess' herself, considering her millennia-long absence. So it would make sense why his Eliotropes would basically be perfect copies, sans the skin color. Also, despite his mental health, he is still far more skilled than Yugo, which could also explain why his copies are closer to the real deal.
Also, Yugo's Eliotropes (mostly) have his memory, which seems like a thing that would like... come up? Like, at all? And it would make sense that Qilby's "wish" would include for his Eliotropes to be blank slates memory wise, since his recollection of his former lifes is literally the cause of all his suffering.
I rest my case.
In all honesty, this is all probably just a case of Ankama being all loosey-goosey with their lore, especially between the show and the games. But this theory presents a way for the MMO Eliotropes (or Qilby Eliotropes, as I will call them from now on) existing in the same canon as the show, which otherwise is probably the biggest canon "problem". Also, I like the Eliotropes, I like their design, and I like to have a reason to believ they will continue exist somewhere in this funny world some horny frenchmen made up. So, yeah this is my headcanon. First post ever on tumblr, after lurking for over a decade, please be kind to it. See ya when I have to vent my next crackpot theory. Or when I remember interesting parts from the MMO that might interest show-only folks.
53 notes · View notes
hxney-lemcn · 6 months
Note
i wanted to ask if you could do brett hand x gn! reader but angst? like stuff with his family and its getting worse. hope its not a bad idea
have a good night/ day hun!!
Tumblr media
summery: reader tries to cheer Brett up. They find out just what is making Brett feel down and fluff ensues.
tw: toxic family relationships, hurt/comfort
a/n: ...teehee, so I'm pretty sure this was requested like...a year ago...uh...sorry for the late upload?? LMAO! If you're still interested here you go 💀
wc: 1.2k
Master List
Tumblr media
I couldn’t focus on the shitty 80’s movie playing when I had Brett curled into my side. I noticed he seemed to be down at work, and offered to host a sleepover. Yes it may be childish, but after learning about Brett’s shitty family and how he never really had a childhood, I thought it would be nice. 
Brett didn’t hesitate to agree. Although his demeanor was enthused, his brown eyes still showed unhappiness. Which led to our current situation. Watching classic 80’s movies and cuddling on the couch. I kept sneaking glances down towards the brunette, his eyes glued to the tv. His head rested on my chest, and my arms wrapped around his back.
At one point, his eyes started watering, which led me to pausing the movie. Clearly something was eating at him and I wasn’t gonna just watch him suffer. 
“Why’d you pause-”
“What’s wrong Brett,” I said, interrupting him. I wasn’t gonna let him bat around the bush.
“N-nothing, why do you ask?” He deflected, eyes darting all over the place. He was a terrible liar.
Bringing a hand up, I ran my fingers through his hair, which made him relax almost immediately. “You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to,” I soothed. “But I don’t want you to hold it in either. You can talk to me.” He fell limp, admitting defeat as I gently scratched at his scalp.
“It’s…” He stuttered slightly. “I-its my family.” I tensed when they came up. I’ve only met them once, and it was not a pleasant meeting. I mean, Brett literally took a bullet for his brother and he’s once again on their shit list. Which I could never understand. Brett was the sweetest man I had ever met! He listened, he cared, and he’d do anything to make his friends happy…well more like anyone happy (clearly coming from his family trauma), but still! He was an absolute sweetheart. 
All in all, I did not like his family. In fact, you could even say I hate them. I couldn’t tell Brett that though, as he still loved them dearly. Something they did not deserve. 
“What did they do this time?” I asked, trying to keep myself from letting my distaste show in my tone. 
Brett nuzzled further into the crook of my neck, “Just the usual, called me a disappointment and I never deserved to have even been considered for the 1st ranked sibling. How they don’t understand why I even bother to show my face around them anymore.”
I took deep breaths, trying to calm myself down. I know family is important, but if my parents did that, I’d be out the door and never come back. I have no clue how Brett could be strong enough to endure his parents' neglect and emotional abuse. I know his family is important to him, but there's a certain point that people should just cut ties.
“Oh Brett,” I muttered, nuzzling the top of his head. “My sweetheart. My sweet little boy.” Brett’s hold on me grew a little tighter at the nicknames, and I felt tears hit my neck, but I paid it no mind. “You deserve so much better. They should be the ones begging for your love and attention, not the other way round. You are so accomplished, loved, and overall amazing. You’re a boss at the shadow government, you’ve got a team who loves you! …in their weird little ways of course. Not to mention that you are just a caring and loving person.”
Brett sniffled, “Then why are they so mean?”
My heart churned, feeling my own eyes water at just how beaten he sounded. 
“I’m not exactly sure of their history, but I assume it’s because that’s how their parents treated them,” I replied, trying to think how people could be so cold to their own children. “That and a mix of them not having the capacity to actually care for you and your siblings. When they look at you, they see a commodity, not a person.”
I winced as Brett let out a sob mixed with a whimper. Did I make it worse?
“But you’re not a commodity,” I muttered, pressing a kiss to his temple. “You’re an amazing, beautiful person who deserves the love you get and even more. I know you care for your family, but I think the best thing you can do is let them go. I mean you have a work family who do care for you, who want to see you succeed. I hope I’m not overstepping, but I feel like your family is holding you back. I know you can grow so much more if you learn that their affection and approval isn’t worth the pain and hurt. Because there are other people willing to give you that affection and approval.”
Brett let a sob escape him, his arms squeezing the life out of me, but I wasn’t gonna stop him. He was babbling things I couldn’t make out, but I think it was things of gratitude and love. I didn’t need to hear what he was saying to know that he was grateful. I was just glad I seemed to have gotten through to him.
“Th-they found someone to m-marry me off to,” He stuttered. “A-and I didn’t want to disappoint them, b-but I don’t want to marry them! I want to marry you! A-and I told them that, and that's when they started t-to insult m-me.”
My eyes widened at his bold proclamation, my hand halting its ministrations in his hair. They wanted to marry him off? I guess that wasn’t out of their reach. But he actually said no? Because he wanted to marry me?! I felt myself fluster at the thought. I couldn’t help but picture us standing at the altar, or podium, in front of the sea? Maybe in the woods? I wasn’t sure where, but a beautiful place, with us exchanging our vows of love, and then becoming wedded. 
I snapped out of it when Brett’s teary eyes met mine. They were big and watery, almost like a sad puppy. He seemed to be freaking out, eyes frantically searching mine.
I cupped his jaw, brushing my thumb over his cheek, “I would be honored to marry you.”
His eyes widened, cheeks warming under my touch, a bashful smile gracing his face. A tear fell down his cheek, and I wiped it away.
“I would be honored to marry you,” Brett emphasized. 
I chuckled, feeling elated, “I guess we’d be honored to marry each other.”
Brett giggled back, the brightest smile I’d ever seen on his face, “Yeah.”
Pulling his face down, I littered his face with kisses, causing his giggles to continuously fall out of his mouth. I nuzzled our noses before leaving one last kiss to his lips. He hummed in content as I wrapped my arms around his neck, the kiss being a slow, passionate, loving one. 
“Do you wanna continue the movie?” I asked after we pulled apart.
Brett’s eyes were glued to my lips, “Could…we do that again…please.”
I blinked, an explosive laugh falling from my lips, “Brett this isn’t our first kiss.”
Tumblr media
99 notes · View notes
mobliterated · 3 months
Text
Okay me angy here I go getting riled up again! If I see any more pisscourse about ace/aro not being part of the queer community, queer is a slur, men are inherently evil monsters, I’m just gonna assume you’re a TERF. Ace discourse back in the 10’s is exactly how TERFs started their rise to power.
Start out by drawing a line in the sand that (awful) people agree with. Now there’s proof that you can start boxing in certain identities. That means (general) you can start making specific definitions for things.
Queer is now a slur again. Queer actually hasn’t been reclaimed. People agree with that. You’ve just torn down an umbrella identity that everyone was able to gather under and unite behind.
LGBTQIA+ is actually the Correct Way to talk about the queer community. Actually we need to drop QIA+ because queer is a slur, intersex isn’t a sexuality/gender and is just a weird medical condition, and A stands for allies (instead of aro/ace bc we already decided that they aren’t part of the community) and we don’t want those sick CisHets infiltrating our community.
LGBT is now the proper accepted term. That means you must be Gay Lesbian Bisexual and/or Transgender to be part of the community. If you aren’t doing LGBT correctly then you are trying to infiltrate the community and steal resources (and those resources are never defined). Only LGBT people are safe.
Oh, except bisexuals. They’re dirty cheaters bc they get to pass as straight and thus aren’t Oppressed Enough like us Pure Gays. How dare they be into men. Only Good Gays get to be into men. If a lesbian ever thought about a man in any vague romantic/sexual way then they are Impure. Men are the true evil of the world bc patriarchy. The only type of man you’ll be safe with is a gay man bc they don’t want to SA you when they see your shoulders/ankles.
All men are the root of all evil, except our good example gay men, who coincidentally are usually white and follow the good gay stereotypes, which are feminine in nature. Femininity is Good and Safe. You can trust anyone who is Feminine, and you can distrust anyone who is Masculine. Men only exist to take advantage of women. Women must be protected at all costs.
Wait. We allow transgender people in the community. That means either a Dirty Evil Man is cosplaying as a woman, or a Pure Innocent Girl got taken in by the evils of masculinity and patriarchy. Trans people are bad since they are being taken over by Evil Men, and/or trying to infiltrate the community, which we already decided is bad. Trans people aren’t Pure. The T in LGBT gets dropped.
Also if you’re nonbinary someone pulled the wool over your eyes. It’s just a phase and you’ll fall into Woman Lite soon enough. There’s no such thing as an amab nonbinary person. Men are evil, and nonbinary is Woman Lite. If you dress in any way that’s not feminine or androgynous then you are doing it wrong.
Congrats, you are now a TERF.
And before you say “that’s not what happened!” I saw every single one of these talking points come out in real time. It was slow. It wasn’t sudden. It was pushing the boundary little by little until you boiled the frog. And now with acecourse coming up again I can all but guarantee that this cycle will happen again. So! Some things to look out for and deprogram.
All men are not inherently evil. All women are not inherently good. Masculinity isn’t inherently evil. Femininity isn’t inherently good. Queer is not a slur and is an extremely useful umbrella term for those who don’t know which label they fit under, or who don’t want a specific label. Yes, queer can still be used as a slur (I have been called queer in a derogatory way) but it is one the community has reclaimed. Trans people aren’t trying to trick you. Amab nonbinary people aren’t “lesser” than afab nonbinary people. Nonbinary is not Woman Lite. There is no such thing as a morally pure sexuality. The queer community is welcome for all who identify as queer; yes, even that person. Policing and oppression olympics is not a litmus test for “pure enough” for joining the queer community. The queer community is for Everyone. That’s it. That’s all.
56 notes · View notes
thefearisoneself · 6 months
Text
Jax might be one of the creators?
I could be totally off base here but here's some thoughts I've been having
Our first introduction to Jax outside of his place in the intro is him asking Caine "Is this one of your NPCs, or is this a new sucker? Because if it's a new character, we're going to have to redo this whole theme song."
Now first off, since as far as we and assumably the characters know, Caine is an autonomous AI, the question of 'Is this one of your NPCs?' especially in the way it's said strikes me as if there's an oddly familiar relationship between the pair. If Jax did create Caine and this game his particular flavour of befuddlement at Caine's possible NPC generation would make more sense IMO.
Secondly, Jax seems weirdly invested in the theme song's completion? He doesn't seem annoyed they have to do it in general like Zooble, just that they have to do it AGAIN.
Moving away from this initial moment, he's also the one to suggest the adventure for Pomni. While he's annoyed with what the Gloinks end up being, he again isn't annoyed by the adventures themselves like Zooble, which you'd kind of assume a character like him might be, but if he was the one to set up the idea as the game's developer it makes some amount of sense he'd be amused by these antics because he made it like that to some extent, and he does seem to have fun on the adventures once they get into it as well.
Then there's of course him having keys to everywhere when Ragatha suggests he literally shouldn't be able to do that. Silly joke that the asshole character can do basically whatever he wants? Probably, but it could also be hold over from his abilities as the game's developer.
He's also easily the calmest and most put-together character of the cast, going with the flow of everything and having no real urgency to do anything but enjoy the ride and watch the other characters suffer at Caine's unintentional hands.
Somebody else also noted that Jax is weirdly upset about abstracted Kaufmo being put in the cellar. This could either imply they were friends, or that Jax has a personal grievance with what happens to abstracted people. If we assume it's the latter for the sake of this theory, I can imagine it would be pretty frustrating to have your playerbase go through this game-breaking bug and the only way to 'fix' it is just to sweep it under the rug.
Another thing that could easily be a throwaway but for the sake of this theory is Jax' last line in the pilot "Sheesh, lay off it, since when are you an expert on the digital world?" would also make sense if he's the actual creator of said digital world, it would be a personal offence to suggest Kinger knew more.
On top of everything, if we assume that Jax is telling the truth about having been there for years, that implies some interesting things. We know from Goose's Q&As/Tumblr/Twitter that Jax is the youngest member of the cast, being only 22, along with Zooble.
But Zooble is also the most recent character to join the circus before Pomni, while we don't know exactly how long before, it at least exempts them from the weirdness that this timeline creates in terms of Jax.
If Jax was stuck here for any more than 4 years, he wouldn't have even been an adult yet, which seems pretty suspicious given the ages of everyone else when they presumably would've gotten stuck in the program.
Of course headset aside we don't actually know the circumstances of how anyone else got stuck in the game or for how long, but it does give me pause to consider that detail about Jax.
So ultimately I could see it being revealed later down the line that Jax was some kind of tech revolution prodigy who created Caine and this world, but being young as he was had no real idea of the ramifications of what he created or ultimately how to manage it. I have no clue how he got trapped, or ultimately if he even is, but that's theorizing for when we hopefully have more to work with.
Regardless, take all this with a grain of salt, I fully recognize all of this could just be connections I'm making of nothing, but it's something that's been plaguing my mind and I'd be remissed if I just let it sit and never put it out there if it did end up being true in the end.
Hope you guys enjoy my massive overanalysis of Jax' actions in the pilot and hopefully we get to see more from this gang in like 3-6 months' time.
91 notes · View notes
bagopucks · 1 year
Text
Blurbs
Quinn Hughes x Reader
You guys know like.. how some porches are closed in? With either like, screens or they’re fancy with glass? I live for those. So yeah.. this isn’t exactly dancing in the rain, but it’s dancing on your enclosed porch in the rain, cuz Quinn’d be damned before he was getting wet for no reason.
“She’s Always A Woman” - Billy Joel
✄————————————
She can kill with a smile, she can wound with her eyes
“Babe?”
I looked up from my book, spotting Quinn standing in the open doorway. I glared. He flinched, catching sight of the novel in my hands.
“I interrupted?”
“I’ll allow it. Step into my chambers, Quinner.”
That natural frown on his lips quickly turned upwards into a smile. Though a crack of thunder caused his smile to falter when he noticed the way it made me jump.
And she can ruin your faith with her casual lies
“Watcha reading?”
“Our love story.” The joke, however senseless, made him scoff out a laugh.
And she only reveals what she wants you to see
She hides like a child but she's always a woman to me
“Hand it over.”
I watched him approach, and I was quick to shove the book beneath my body, effectively sitting on it.
“What the hell?” Quinn’s smile widened as he tried to move me off the novel. I swatted his hands away.
A rumble of thunder interrupted our game, and my head turned to look out one of the many windows on our porch. I gasped and laughed when Quinn practically pushed me onto my side, slipping the book out from beneath me.
She can lead you to love, she can take you or leave you
She can ask for the truth but she'll never believe you
“Quinn! Give it back!” I shot up from the chair to reach for my book. He held it high above his head.
“Only if you kiss me first.”
And she'll take what you give her as long as it's free
I rolled my eyes, swift to lean forward to press a kiss to his lips. Then without warning, pulled away and hopped up to snatch my book from his hand.
Yeah, she steals like a thief, but she's always a woman to me
Quinn reached for me before I stepped out of his grasp. I took swift backwards steps behind the wicker porch couch I’d been sitting on, Quinn standing on the other side with a calculating look on his face, accompanied by that contagious smile.
Oh, she takes care of herself, she can wait if she wants
She's ahead of her time
“Quinn! Just leave it alone. It’s a stupid romance novel.. alright?” I tried not to laugh at the absurdity of our childishness.
“Come on! This has to be one of your weird sex books.”
Oh, and she never gives out and she never gives in
“It is not!” Another crack of thunder made me jump
“Is too!”
She just changes her mind
“Maybe it is!”
My response caught him off guard, but Quinn always told me that’s why he loved me so much. I was unpredictable. In a reasonable way.
“Let me see it!”
“Would you just forget about the book?”
Quinn rolled his eyes and held his hands up in defeat. I was slow to make my way back around the couch.
And she'll promise you more than the garden of Eden
Then she'll carelessly cut you and laugh while you're bleeding
But she'll bring out the best and the worst you can be
Blame it all on yourself 'cause she's always a woman to me
I was cautious. He could tell. “Just put the book down. Okay? I’m done.” Quinn insisted, so I trusted him. I carefully placed the novel down on one of the cushions. He seemed to have assumed I let my guard down, because he was swift to try and slip by me. I grabbed ahold of both his hands and spun him around to face the opposite direction of the couch. When I let him go, Quinn turned back to me with an incredulous look.
He only acted like this around me. That eldest sibling behavior didn’t apply in our relationship. He was able to be a kid at heart when he wanted to.
“Give up yet?” I taunted.
Oh, she takes care of herself, she can wait if she wants
She's ahead of her time
Oh, and she never gives out and she never gives in
“Okay. I’m really done this time.”
She just changes her mind
“Good.” A flash of lightning lit up the dim room. I jumped, and Quinn finally closed the distance between us to wrap his arms around my body. Protecting me from a silly fear. One that he realized he could not distract me from with funny games.
She is frequently kind and she's suddenly cruel
“I’m fine.”
“No you’re not.” He tried to sway us.
But she can do as she pleases, she's nobody's fool
“Quinn, I’m fine.” I always felt embarrassed, perhaps a bit tense when Quinn felt he needed to take care of me at times like these. I resisted his attempts to loosely slow dance with me, adamant on pulling away.
“Just let me hold you.”
And she can't be convicted, she's earned her degree
“Quinn.” I wiggled my arms between us to push at his chest.
“No.” He held onto me tighter, his chin coming to rest on top of my head.
And the most she will do is throw shadows at you
But she's always a woman to me
“Fine.” I huffed, melting at the way Quinn began to continue to sway back and forth. I followed his movements this time, my hands ceased their pushing to rest softly against his chest. Quinn hummed along to the tune of the song in the background, playing through my phone on the table. No matter how out of tune he was, I enjoyed his voice, and the warmth of being in his arms. We swayed in endless circles, until finally Quinn pulled away and guided me inside, holding onto my hand.
“Let’s go to bed.”
246 notes · View notes
deramin2 · 1 year
Text
All Clothes Are Handmade
As a sewist with access to a lot of fancy commercial-grade equipment, I think about this a lot. People have this idea that there's a lot of automation in making clothes, that robots do most of the work. They do not. Very low-wage humans do.
The machines can make fancy stitches, but they can't guide them. Cloth takes fine dexterity and constant adjustments to work with. Any sewist who's tried to sew a straight line but had their thoughts stray know how fast it goes tits up. The 2+ pieces need to be carefully pinned together (expert sewists can use very few pins, but still need some), and then carefully guided and managed so they stay exactly together as the same tension without wrinkles. And if there's any kind of curve, it takes great skill to do all of that while turning at precisely the right angle at the right time while keeping everything together. And then a human has to detect the end and change the stitch appropriately to secure the ends.
And then there's fabric management. A the front the fabric bunches in your lap and tries to fall down at weird angles. At the back in bunches up and tries to pull at weird angles. So you're constantly having to manage where all that fabric is going that you aren't currently sewing. And if you're sewing in the round (like putting on a sleeve), you have to manage bringing the back around to the front. All of this twists the entire garment, which has to be managed even when most of it is sitting next to you. In home sewing this is sometimes a 2-person job.
A machine cannot do any of that that. Automating clothing manufacturing is a holy grail people have been working on for a couple hundred years and are nowhere close to achieving. It takes the kind of very precise and constant adjustment with a sharp mind and keen eye that humans are very good at and machines are very bad at. Machines only sew in straight lines.
But people look at fast fashion prices and assume robots must be making their clothes. But they aren't. Highly skilled human beings in horrific work conditions at breakneck speed and brutal hours are being paid pennies to make even the cheapest and most low-quality garment. The entire commercial and consumer chain has simply dehumanized them into "must be robots."
This red swimsuit is selling for $10.99 from Walmart. It probably cost $2-$3 to produce.
Tumblr media
This striped swimsuit is selling for Beefcake Swimwear for $99. This is the fair price for a swimsuit made with ethical labor.
Tumblr media
Beefcake is a small Portland, Oregon company that uses local labor, local materials, and doesn't have a high markup. They cost $49 to manufacture (maybe more now with inflation). (With business expenses, trust me that margin is really slim.) Beefcake talks about "The real cost of American-made swimwear." Half the cost to produce is labor costs. I'd wager half the cost of the fabric is also labor costs. This is why clothing isn't typically made in the US, except using prison labor that's pretty literally slavery.
This is the true cost of a product that attempts to not exploit its workers. It's a luxury most people can't afford because the entire labor market exploits workers to the point of being unable to afford anything but exploitative goods and services. Fast fashion has convinced people they greatly benefit from supporting the worst of that exploitation.
These swimsuits were made on similar machines with similar materials by people with similar skill. The same degree of automation went into both of them. But the Walmart manufacturer sewists got paid less than a dollar to make that one and live in abject poverty, and the Beefcake sewists got paid $22, which is livable.
But robots didn't make either of these. human hands did. Human hands made every single piece of clothing in your closet. Think of how to cherish and care for their work.
542 notes · View notes