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#but erasing it is dumb as hell and fundamentally changes them

hello-nichya-here · 2 years

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You said that despite all of Iroh's hipocricy and flaws you like him. What do you like about him?

First there's the very thing you mentioned in your question: he is a deeply flawed character. I REALLY like complicated characters. Hell, even characters I don't like get points if they feel like real people.

I've said that Iroh was better as a villain and I meant it, but not in the sense of "He is fundamentally a garbage person, will never change, and doesn't deserve happiness."

Iroh in book 1 and for the first episodes of book 2 was a genuinely well written character. The writers were NOT scared of showing us that he had a an evil side - we see him taunting warriors of Ba Sing Se, bragging about how he got the name Dragon Of The West, and we see him joking about burning a city to the ground.

They also weren't afraid to show that he could be ridiculously clueless sometimes. He changed course of the ship during an important mission just for a piece he needed for his game, he tried making tea with what he knew could be a deadly plant, he firebended in public while undercover, and he thought that "Why would he banish you if he didn't care about you?" was going to cheer Zuko up AND was a reasonable thing to say to an abused child.

He also felt genuinely guilty stealing Song's ostrige horse after she and her mother helped him and Zuko, but did it anyway. He was disappointed in Zuko for stealing even when it wasn't a matter of survival, but still couldn't bring himself to actually berate him for it and call him out for being unfair, cruel and selfish. He wanted to protect his nephew, but did nothing besides look away in pain and shame as Ozai burned him. He didn't really show how much of a badass fighter he was until Zhao pushed him too far and tried to kill the moon.

Iroh was a funny, likeable guy, with a truly monstruous side. He did horrible things, but also had lines he would not cross. He was a wise man AND a dumbass. And he wanted to be a good person, a good uncle, and a good father - but he had no clue how to do that because all he was taught to see as normal and good his whole life was evil. All the Saint!Iroh bullshit that started in book 2 and got a billion times worse in book 3 don't erase the good writting that was there before, just like the comics (and the flaws of book three) are not enough to ruin the show for me.

And on a more personal note, there are two things about his dynamic with Zuko that feel a bit like my relationship with my parents: My mom loves old popular sayings and uses them in conversations all the time, which confuses my autistic brain, and I sometimes have to talk some sense into my dad when he is being a dumbass (old people can be as dumb as children, I swear to God)

Plus, there's the nostalgia factor. I watched the show as a kid, and I loved Iroh because I didn't understand that some of the things the show was framing as good (his blatant disregard for Azula, his unwillingness to see the bad in Zuko, and him just fucking off to Ba Sing Se and leaving his nephew with the responsibility of fix all the damage their nation caused) were actually fucking awful. I have too many fond memories of the character to truly hate him even though I see the problems with him now.

I've said it before, but the best word to describe uncle Iroh is UNCLE. He's an old fucker who can be wise, but can also be too stubborn and set on his ways to notice that his behavior is often not the best... but I spent enough time with him to know he is not all bad, and can be truly loving. He just needs some therapy and someone to hold him accountable for his fuck ups.

#asks #iroh #about me #iroh deserved better

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jayyrayy90 · 4 years

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I'm so angry and disappointed. I'm so frustrated with my own self too bc no matter how hard I try I can't even force myself to hate you. I have numerous reasons to hate u but I can't. I guess I'll never be able to.

What's so fucked up to me is how you can just erase me like I'm nobody to you. How you can flip a switch in your brain and I've suddenly become your enemy. How you so easily can make so many promises to me, how you can look me right in my eyes and lie to my face so easily, and how you act like you've done absolutely nothing to me or act as if the things you done were something insignificant and dumb and I'm just being overdramatic about them. Like the shit you did shouldn't matter just bc of shit i did 5 years ago or simply bc u hated me so those things were justified.

To this very day you have no respect for me and treat me as if i meant absolutely nothing to u. I don't think you will ever understand how bad that hurts me Jasmine. You, of all people in this entire world, broke me down piece by tiny piece until there was nothing left of me. You drained me of my last bit of sanity, hope for love, and I will never let another human being get close to me again as long as I'm here on this earth. You took all of that away from me so effortlessly, carelessly, and easily. I never meant anything to you and I wish like hell I knew exactly what made u hate me so much that you'd even consider doing the things you've done to me.

In some sick and cruel way, I believe u got some kind of enjoyment out of watching me fall apart. You enjoyed knowing you could go do whatever you want and come back to me whenever you got ready bc like a dummy I'd always be there waiting. I was so stupid and foolish to even think any of your promises were sincere. What made me look even dumber was the fact that I believed you and in you. I had faith in you. I was so gullible and blinded to believe that the person you used to be was still somewhere inside of you. That loving, honest, sincere, faithful, and LOYAL person u used to be had been dead and gone years ago and you kept showing/proving that to me. Yet i kept fighting to bring her back. I kept praying, hoping, and wishing that someday I'd get my baby lovey bear back. I failed to even try and believe the things you were so effortlessly trying to tell me with your actions. You've been trying to tell me that you didn't love me anymore for so many years. I was trying so hard to be/say/do everything you wanted just to make you love me. I pushed the things you were doing to me so far in the back of my mind that i allowed myself to become blinded. I just kept telling myself that you were lost and didn't know what u were doing at the time, every time I would think about the things you did.

Truth is, you knew exactly what you were doing. You knew exactly what risks u were taking. U knew exactly what u were jeopardizing. You knew. Yet you still did it anyway. You didn't care and still don't about what happens to me or my life. You have no idea the amount of pain that causes me. Its honestly like I'm loving the shadow of a person who never existed.

The way you left me, I would've never left you like that, even if i did hate you. All those years we spent together and you just leave me like that knowing I was broke. I would've never in a million years plus some, NEVER left you like that. I would've bet my entire life that you wouldn't have ever done that to me.

When you came back in my life, the one thing you would always say was, "The way I left you last time was fucked up and I know it. I got my karma. I'd never leave you like that again." Something similar to that anyway. But guess what, you left me even worse than you did the first time Jasmine. And u don't even care. How can you not even care?!! I have no words to even describe the pain. Words couldn't even come close..

In the beginning i wasn't much of the person I should have been. I had issues and addictions. I wasnt really worth your time. I put you through hell and for that I will forever be sorry. If im being honest you terrified me, no one had ever saw me the way you did. No one had ever wanted me the way you did. No one had ever made me feel the way you did. I had walls that had always kept me safe and kept me braced from the world but you... you somehow made them fall over time with your undying love for me, even when i was awful. You saw me through the worst times of my life. If not for you i wouldnt be here today. you saved me.

To me, we had a beautiful bond and an amazing love. You were everything i ever wanted and i couldn't believe you were mine. Maybe looking back that is where the trouble started...I had such guilt for who i was and how i treated you at the start and i felt so lucky to have you that i started to compromise on the things that were fundamental to me. I started to give way more then i received and i started to let you think things were okay that honestly weren't. I let you start to walk all over me and looking back maybe if i had stood up for myself then, instead of just feeling like i owed it to you for sticking with me then maybe things would be different today..

I stood by you, i did any and everything for you. I let you take out your anger on me. I would pretend to sleep until i knew you were asleep so i could just make sure you were okay. I was watching you hurt in a way i couldnt fix. I didnt know how to help, so i decided to just be everything and anything you needed. I put my entire life aside and made you my priority, my world. I dont regret it, you needed me and i was there without question.

This is where it started to go downwhill, you were changing into someone i didnt even recognize and the worst part is you couldn't even help it. Our life had become one full of fights and make ups only to fight again shortly after. You were pushing me away and i didnt know why. I dont even think you knew why, so i took all the hateful words, the poor treatment, the lack of time invested and the lack of love being shown and made it into excuses for you because of what you were dealing with. Looking back i dont think this helped you the way i thought it did. It taught you that i was always going to take it. I was going to let you walk all over me and i was going to apologize when i didnt do anything wrong simply to avoid a fight. It didnt help, you left me in such an agonizing way. i was shattered, my entire life had just fallen apart and i was lost. You were my world and you were just gone!!

I was your friend. I was your family. I was your lover. You are a person that could have been any number of things to me. Heartbreak plays no favorites when it chooses people in life to let you down. I really always had faith in you. I trusted you and the promises that you made to me. I believed in your aspirations and disregarded your ambiguity. I let you in, against my best wishes. I relentlessly defended you. I saw the beautiful parts of who you were. I made plans with you and kept them in my head like a guaranteed magnificent destination. I loved you. I gave you all that I had and now I am left feeling empty and cheated. But do you know what the strangest and most unbelievably frustrating part of all of this is? I forgive you.

Your betrayal shook my foundation. Not just the foundation of us, but the foundation of everything I thought. All that I believed about love was up in the air. I wasn’t sure about anything. It wasn’t just about you. I was now questioning everything.

The truth is, you didn't really love me. Maybe you loved the idea of me. Maybe you loved having me around because I would have done anything for you, but if you really loved me, you wouldn't have destroyed me the way you did. That's not love.

I loved you so much that I lost sight in everything else, especially myself. I glued myself to you so tightly because I was so terrified of losing you. Lets be honest though, you were never really mine to lose, were you?

You always treated me so coldly, and I couldn't ever understand why when all I ever did was love you. Sometimes the harsh words you used still stay inside of my head.

I was never good enough, or at least that is how you would treat me. I was always wrong, I was the crazy one after the break up, it was never you. It was always me. You were poison to my heart, and I wanted so badly to save you, but I couldn't. You destroyed me mentally and emotionally to the point where I can’t even feel emotions anymore. To the point where I am literally completely numb to feeling anything or having real true emotions towards anyone or anything.

When I met you, I knew. I knew in some way, shape, or form, you would hold incredible significance to my life. I knew you were going to be a constant. I knew you would change me.

Yes, we had our disagreements, but we always made our way back to each other. I always felt you in my heart, there was nothing you could do to make me that upset for long. I already needed you. I knew, the second I held you close to me, I knew, that this was it for me. You were it. All I wanted, and all I would ever need.

You have issues, my love. Internal struggles with yourself, external issues with your family and others around you and it weighs you down. I never have held that against you. But the struggles you faced made it impossible for you to love me the way you wanted to, the way I needed you to. Still, I held on, praying you would stay with me, praying you would get better. Through all the fights, the petty disagreements, and the abuse, I stayed. Why?

I loved you blindly of course. I loved you without restrictions, and without caution. I loved you wildly. In my head, I knew you could be better. I wanted to see that happen for you. I wanted to help you get to where you should be. I believed in you. I loved you so deeply, I would have, and did do, anything on Earth for you.

The truth is, you are not who I once loved. That person is gone. That person took some of the deepest parts of myself with them. I will always love them.

Had you tried for me, love, had you tried for you, we would have been in love forever. But you didn’t, and sitting around waiting for you only made things harder on me. I’ve accepted the fact that the you I once knew is gone.

I didn’t want to move on from you. I hoped in the deepest cell of my heart that you would come back and sweep me up and make things better. But eventually, I chose to move on. I chose to heal myself. I chose to fix what you shattered. It didn’t come easily, and nearly everyday is a struggle… but I have to. You are the love of my life, but you are long gone now...

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daresplaining · 6 years

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Matt: “Daredevil told me how all this happened. You’ve got to know you were just a story, right? Something I did when I was young and dumb. I never had a brother. It was just me and dad.”

Mike: “All I know, Matt, is you got one now. I’m trying to see any reason it matters how I got here, or what I remember and what I don’t. Far as I can tell, I’m alive. The rest... I’ll worry about later. But I need your help, or there won’t be a later. Your buddy Daredevil’s chasing after me, trying to sic that Reader guy on me-- They want to, I dunno, unmake me. You gotta make ‘em stop. You talk about dad... good old Battlin’ Jack Murdock. Maybe I got more of him in me than you ever did. Seems like you’re just gonna lie down and let Daredevil and his creepy buddies take away the only brother you ever had. Well, not me. I’m gonna fight. Just like Dad would’ve.”

Reader: “Okay. That’s enough. Signal or no signal, this is over. [...] Now step back. You guys are pretty similar. Wouldn’t want to accidentally erase the wrong Murdock.”

Matt: “No!”

Daredevil vol. 5 #608 by Charles Soule and Phil Noto

I’d resigned myself to the fact that this issue would be the end of this wild experiment, but thankfully, Charles Soule came to the same conclusion I hope we all did: Mike is just too good a character to scrap. And so Matt decides to save his “brother’s” life after this odd-yet-touching conversation.

Over the course of this issue, Mike starts to become normalized. The situation is still patently absurd, but the way people behave toward Mike has started to change. This is particularly notable regarding Foggy, who has finally entered the story. He has no idea what the hell is going on, but it doesn’t take him long to decide to just roll with the fact that Matt’s fake twin brother is apparently now real. Mike is so in-your-face about his realness that there’s just no other option, and so Foggy quickly starts treating him like a person instead of an oddity. After a fun sequence in which Mike builds the beginning of a relationship with Foggy (not necessarily a good one, but definitely a relationship), Matt confronts his “brother” in civvies for the first time.

Up to this point, Matt was still looking at Mike from Reader’s perspective: as a blip in reality that required correction. But Mike’s obvious and dangerous desperation convinces him that he needs to meet Mike on his own terms and humor him. He decides to at least explain the situation to Mike, and do him the benefit of giving him what he wants before destroying him. But over the course of their conversation, Matt’s perspective changes. Earlier in the issue, Foggy has an unexpected bonding experience with Mike over Karen Page’s death, which gives them a shared history and hints at Mike’s humanity. And here, Matt experiences something similar when Mike starts talking about family.

Matt is very, very good at reading people, and Mike’s sincerity and fear are likely apparent to him throughout this conversation. No matter what the nature of reality may be, Mike sees Matt as his brother, the only family he has, and he is relying on that perceived connection to save him. He reaches out to Matt for help, and then he brings up Jack. Last issue when Mike mentioned his dad, Matt’s reflexive response was to punch him in the face. Here, now that Matt has a better understanding of Mike’s identity and mindset, he actually listens. It becomes clear to him that-- again, reality aside-- Mike has fond memories of Jack Murdock. And just as Foggy briefly connected with Mike through their shared mourning of Karen, Matt is able to finally sympathize, if not empathize, with Mike through their shared love for their father. Matt is able to glimpse Mike’s reality-- a reality in which this guy is actually his twin brother, with whom he has an established relationship. Family is a sore spot for Matt. He doesn’t have much of one, and mostly associates that kind of relationship with loss. As weird as this whole situation is, Mike has appeared in his life as a possible new family member, and that’s really significant for someone in Matt’s position. He flips from seeing Mike as a figment of his imagination to seeing him as his brother, someone who shares a fundamental piece of his own past, and is faced with losing another part of his family. And so he can’t bring himself to let Mike die. It’s wacky. It’s psychologically twisted. It’s oddly touching. And I love it.

Matt: “I don’t understand this, and I’m not sure how I feel about it. But... he’s my brother. Family. I chose family.”

Obviously, this sibling dynamic was never going to be functional, and Mike ends this chapter feeling betrayed by his brother and making some really dumb life choices in response. But hopefully the events of this issue mean that Mike is here to stay, and that we can look forward further development of the Murdock twins’ beautifully bizarre new relationship.

#Daredevil vol. 5 #Mike Murdock #Daredevil #Matt Murdock #Commentary #Mike Murdockalypse #This is EVERYTHING I WANTED. I can't properly express how excited I am.

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secretagentspydetectiveninja · 6 years

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The Misadventures of Prince Kim - chapter 55

Wow, a rare chapter in which Kim doesn’t actually do anything stupid!

Also on AO3 as always where you can read this giant ridiculous thing from the start if you have a lot of spare time

Max sat alone in his room at his desk, hunched over his homework. He had been trying to solve this question for almost an hour now, and yet his answer never matched the one in the textbook! Why? What was he doing wrong? Usually he was supposed to be good at schoolwork!

Erasing yet another wrong answer, he wondered if he should just give up and go ask someone for help with it. But no, he couldn’t do that – he was Prince Max. He had a reputation to keep up. The smart one, the one who everyone else asked for homework help, the one who was clever enough to solve any problem. That was, fundamentally, who he was as a person. For as long as he could remember, that was what he was always referred to as. The smart one. Being smart was pretty much his entire personality.

Then why was he finding his schoolwork so tough these days?

He just put his pencil down and put his head in his hands, his brain too frazzled to concentrate for any longer. This couldn’t be happening. Schoolwork had always been easy for him, right from when he was a little kid and his tutor had proudly informed his parents about how talented and amazing he was. All through his life that had just been reinforced, with constant high test results, and learning new information easily compared to other kids his age. And here at school, he had just shone.

But it wasn’t happening now. Over the past few months things had been getting tougher and tougher. Why? How could someone just stop being smart like that? It simply wasn’t logical!

There was a loud knock on his door. Judging by the volume, that must either be Kim or Alix. Looking at the clock, he could also judge that it was highly likely to be Alix – Kim was too busy preparing for the summer gala later that day, wanting to “impress Max” apparently, whereas of course Alix cared very little about the summer gala. Max pushed his homework aside and said, “Come in.”

Sure enough, it was Alix who entered, looking oddly cheerful compared to how inadequate he was feeling right now. She ran right over to him and waved her arm in front of his face.

“Maxy-Max! Look! My arm’s healed now and they took the cast off!”

He forced himself to look happy about it. “That’s excellent news.”

“Exactly. I can go rollerskating again, finally! In fact, I’m just gonna skip the stupid summer gala thing and go do that instead, it’ll be way more fun. And I won’t get into trouble for dropping any more chandeliers…”

Max was almost disappointed to hear that. The chandelier thing had been very, very entertaining, enough to actually make the spring dance fun somehow. But at least the summer gala was informal, so it wouldn’t be anywhere near as dreary. He couldn’t fully remember what it had been like last year, other than knowing he had spent most of it drinking away his woes with orange juice. This year was bound to be much better.

“So what’s up with you?” she asked, a little less hyper now. “You’re going to the summer gala, right? I just went to see Kim and he yelled at me for interrupting him when he was trying to do his hair, so you’d better go and appreciate his efforts.”

“Of course I will!”

“Are you gonna get ready too? You can’t go in those pyjamas. Well, I guess you could actually. I went to the thing in January in pyjamas.”

“I’m not going to wear my pyjamas! I was just…” He sighed. Part of him didn’t want to say anything, but it would be good to confide in someone. “I was working on a homework problem that I was finding quite tough.”

She looked surprised for a few seconds. “Really? Which one?”

“This one.” He pulled the sheet out and handed it to her.

“Ohhh, friggin’ calculus. I hate this stuff. Why are they even teaching it to us? I have no idea how this is gonna help us rule a country.”

“They are teaching us similar curriculums that our commoner peers would be learning right now,” Max said, “so that we have a roughly equal level of general knowledge. The royalty lessons we have on top of that are what makes this school any different from a normal one.”

“Huh, okay.”

“Anyway, I can’t do it. I’ve already been trying for an hour and haven’t got anywhere. It feels very… unusual.” He clenched his fists. “It may sound selfish, but I really can’t understand why I’m not finding this easy. It’s like I’ve been losing brain cells over the past few months.”

Alix sat up on the desk. “You kinda remind me of Jalil, you know.”

“Really? Why?”

“He used to find school really easy all the time and never bothered putting in any effort, ‘cause he didn’t need to. And then when he was about this age, his natural talent burned out and he actually had to start working hard to keep up.”

“Are you saying I don’t work hard?”

“I dunno, do you?”

Max was about to give a rather indignant reply, before he stopped himself and actually had a think about it. Did he work hard at school? He certainly got all his work done on time, and he easily understood new topics taught to him. But that… that wasn’t hard work, was it? That was just him being good at it without trying! He barely needed to use his brains to get the best marks in class. It all came to him naturally.

The other kids didn’t have that, or not quite to the same extent. Kim usually spent a lot longer working on his homework, getting Max to tutor him, trying to understand new concepts. He certainly worked very hard at it indeed. A lot harder than Max ever needed to. It wasn’t unusual for Kim to spend hours and hours stuck on a single question before admitting defeat and getting help with it.

Which was exactly what Max was going through right now.

He barely even revised for exams. He never asked for help. He never got questions wrong. He wasn’t used to having to work to get things right. It should always be easy!

“I never need to work hard,” he admitted. “I’m smart. Well – I thought I was…”

Was he not smart anymore? If his natural talent had finally come to an end, and he was at the same level as everyone else now – if he wasn’t the smart kid, then who was he?

“I’m not smart anymore,” he said, almost in a whisper. The concept was just so… so horrifying! It made him feel all cold and hollow inside, made his brain feel static, like he was dropping IQ points by the second.

“Of course you’re not smart, you’re dumb as hell,” Alix said. “You always have been.”

“But I used to be good at schoolwork!”

“Pfffffff, you’re logical and like thinking about stuff and you have a good memory. You’re not, like, proper smart. You don’t even know how to cook an omelette or load a washing machine.”

“Well neither do you!”

“Hey, I didn’t say I was smart either. We’re both dorks. You’re just a dork who’s good at school stuff.”

Max looked down at his textbook, disappointment weighing on him. “At least, I used to be… What do I do now?”

“Just start working hard, I guess. That’s what Jalil did. I mean, you’ve still got an edge. You grasp new concepts easily and tend to enjoy learning about new things, even going out of your way to do it, so it’s not all doom and gloom.”

“You sound a bit like a teacher…”

She rolled her eyes. “Listen, Jalil used to vent at me about this stuff for months on end, so I’m an expert at this. Trust me when I say you’re gonna be okay.”

The weight on his mind lifted ever so slightly. He did indeed trust her, and if she said it was going to be okay, then hopefully she was right. Logically speaking, if she knew a lot more about all this than he did, then it made sense to listen to her.

“Thank you,” he said, pushing a smile onto his face. “I suppose I’ll have to start working harder from now on. Especially if I want to carry on tutoring Kim…”

Wait a second – Kim! How many times had he gushed to Max about how smart Max was, and how much he admired it and loved him for it? How crushed was he going to be to realize his sweetheart wasn’t anywhere near as smart as he thought he was?

He thrust his face in his hands. “Kim loves me for being smart – what am I going to tell him?”

To his surprise, Alix just laughed. “See what I mean? You’re dumb as hell! If you really think Kim only likes you ‘cause you’re a nerd, then honestly you’ve gotta have a little more faith in yourself…”

“I’m just being realistic! He has a very strong admiration for my intellect. It’s something he mentions very often. He really seems to care about it a lot.”

“Let’s see about that, shall we?”

She flicked open the lid of her sceptre and started tapping something into it.

“Wait – are you calling him?” Max asked. “You don’t need to–”

“Too late, it’s already ringing!” She pressed the speaker button and set the sceptre on the table in between them both. Kim picked up almost immediately.

“Alix, what is your problem?! I told not to interrupt me when–”

“Your boyfriend is having a bad day and needs some support,” she said, “so I’m pretty sure your hair can wait.”

Kim’s tone changed immediately. “Oh, you should have said so before! What’s wrong?”

“Just normal existential crisis stuff, whatever. Max is right next to me – tell him why you love him.”

Kim didn’t even need to think for a second. “Oh Max, you sweetie! You’re the awesomest person ever, that’s why! You’re always so nice, and really cute, and so much fun to hang out with and talk to and – hm what else – oh yeah! It’s so cool that you’re so different from me! All rational and logical and calm, it’s really inspiring. And you’re really cute. Did I mention that already? And I love spending time with you so much, and…”

He carried on for a few more minutes at least. The whole time Max half wanted to sink right into his chair and melt away, half wanted to jump through the phone and hug him. All this kindness, all these compliments! Being the sweetheart of a person like Kim meant that he got this a lot, but it wasn’t something he could ever really get used to. It felt so special every single time.

And Kim hadn’t even mentioned Max being smart at all.

Logical, rational, yes, and even saying “you make me feel smart because you’re always teaching me stuff!” But he never outright said it.

Something stirred in his memory – the day of the Cupid Festival, when Max and Kim had got together in the first place. They had said a lot of things to each other that day, things that they hadn’t said before. And something that Kim had said suddenly stood out to him.

Please don’t think I only like you ‘cause you’re smart. I like you for a whole lot more than that.

It wasn’t something that Max had paid much attention to at the time, being too overwhelmed at Kim actually liking him back to really take anything in. But there it was. Right from the beginning, Kim had already told him what he needed to hear.

Oh, thank goodness.

“Thank you Kim, I feel a lot better now,” he said finally, really meaning it.

“Aw, I’m glad! Well do you need anything else?”

“I’ll be alright. I was simply being a bit… irrational.”

He couldn’t help but smile. Something about Kim always made him feel irrational. Usually it was a good thing. Occasionally it wasn’t, like just now – how could he honestly have considered that Kim would be disappointed if Max struggled a bit with a homework question?! – but that could always be sorted out.

“Seems like my irrational-ness has been rubbing off on you, huh?” Kim said, the flirtiness practically audible through the phone. Max grinned even more.

“The word is ‘irrationality’. But yes, I suppose it has.”

“Max, I love you a lot, you know?”

“I do know. And I love you a lot too.”

“I can’t wait to see you later!”

“Me too, I’m looking forward to it…”

“That’s enough,” Alix said, snatching the sceptre away, though she was grinning too. “If you guys are gonna be mushy then use your own phone, thanks. I’m gonna hang up now and you can carry on doing your hair for another 2 hours or whatever. Or does one of those hours involve admiring your own reflection?”

“Of course not!” Kim snapped. “I wouldn’t spend an entire hour – 10 minutes maybe, but not–”

“Whatever.” She hung up and shut the lid of the sceptre, then turned to look at Max. “You good now?”

Max nodded. “Yes. Thank you for that.”

“No problem. If I’m being honest, you and Kim are, uh… actually kind of adorable. I hope you guys have fun at the summer gala. Doing your scientific research or whatever.”

Max was aware of his face warming up – he knew perfectly well what she meant by scientific research. Usually, though, he was a little too lovestruck to think about actual science on the odd occasion Kim kissed him for more than a minute at a time.

“The summer gala is, uh, probably not the most ideal place for that,” he said quickly. “But I’m sure it’ll be fun. And I hope you enjoy rollerskating. Make sure to take care, as even with your arm out of its cast it might not be fully up to its usual capacity and–”

She poked him in the arm with the sceptre. “Whatever, nerd, do your homework.”

“You should do yours too!”

“We’ve only got a few more days of school until the holidays, who cares? Not me. But you have to work hard, okay? Don’t be a hypocrite like me.”

He grinned, taking the homework sheet and putting it back in front of him. His brain felt much readier to take on the task now. “I know perfectly well that you work very hard too, as much as you pretend not to. But I will certainly try not to be a hypocrite.”

“Good. See you later – and have fun!”

Taking her sceptre with her, she left the room. Max picked up his pencil again and looked back down at the sheet. There were no shortcuts to this, were there? He really would just have to work at it. Just like Kim did. Yes, that was a good source of inspiration – to be a hard worker, just like Kim!

Feeling much more motivated now, he put his head down and got on with it.

Max arrived at the hall of the summer gala to see Kim waiting for him already. For once he was wearing a more European style of formal clothing, and he looked just as stunning in it – and of course, his hair was done immaculately.

“Kim, you look wonderful!” Max said, running over to him and taking his hand.

“So do you!” Kim replied, leaning down to give him a quick kiss on the cheek. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you in red before.”

Max smiled, looking down at the red robes he had decided on for today. “It’s your favourite colour, so…”

“Well it looks super awesome! Almost as good as me, I’d say…” Kim winked at him, sending flutters through his heart. “Anyway, my amazing wonderful sweetheart, are you feeling better now?”

“I am, don’t worry. It was just something a little silly. I was having trouble with the homework, and I’m so used to finding it easy that I wasn’t exactly feeling pleased with myself. But I managed it in the end, in part thanks to your encouragement.”

Kim gave his hand a squeeze. “Good work – I’m happy for you!”

“Thank you. I know now that I have to work harder from now on, just like you do. In fact, I’d like a bit of advice. These holidays I really want to intellectually challenge myself. What do you suggest I do?”

“Oh, um, what do you mean? Like, should I tell you to build a robot or something?”

A robot! That would be perfect!

“That’s exactly what I meant,” Max said, hardly able to hide the huge grin on his face that always appeared when thinking about robotics. “This summer I’ll build a robot. In fact, when I was younger I did indeed make a very simple automaton, so I could probably upgrade that one.”

“Is that the one you said you kissed once?”

Oops, he had forgotten he’d told Kim about that! It was so embarrassing to think about that he tended to keep it to himself. “Maybe…”

“That’s adorable.”

“Says the guy who has a habit of kissing pillows.”

Kim blushed bright red. “I haven’t done that in a whole, like… two weeks! I’m over it. I mean, I’ve got you now, so I don’t really need the pillows…”

“And I don’t really need the robot for that either now. But I’ll certainly have fun programming it. I kind of wish I had a computer of my own sometimes…”

“What’s a computer? Isn’t it one of those massive machine things that can do maths on its own?”

“It’s more complex than that, but essentially, yes. And when I make my robot, I will be making use of similar concepts.”

“That’s so cool,” Kim said, staring at Max with such an adoring expression that he was very tempted to engage in some scientific research right on the spot. Instead he changed the subject, deciding to save that for later when they weren’t in a hall full of people.

“So you’ll be staying at Queen Sol’s palace for the holidays, right?”

Kim nodded. “I’m gonna get to meet Princess Penny and Jagged Stone and everything. It’s gonna be awesome! You’ll be there for the wedding, won’t you?”

“Yes, I certainly will. I might bring my automaton friend along if I’ve programmed it enough by that point.”

“Nice!”

“Anyway, I should probably warn you that Jagged Stone has a pet crocodile and you will most certainly be introduced to it at some point.”

“A crocodile?” Kim’s face went white. “As a pet?”

“Nowhere near as dangerous as Alix’s pet cobra.”

“Yeah but… I mean, I’m not s-scared of crocodiles or anything, but…”

Max grinned, knowing perfectly well he was lying. “I’m sure you’ll be well acquainted with Fang by the end of the holidays.”

“Its name is FANG???”

Oh, poor terrified Kim. Max started laughing, unable to help himself. Kim had been afraid of the snake at first too, and he was perfectly fine with it now, so the crocodile was sure to end up the same way!

Hmm, the wedding was in August… would there be enough time to make a somewhat autonomous robot before then? Maybe, with a lot of hard work, it would be possible.

He made up his mind. He was going to do it.

Just outside the main hall, the setting sun barely still visible, Marinette sat stroking Plagg again. This cat just kept coming back to her, over and over again! And even weirder, it tended to always find her whenever she was thinking about Adrien in particular. It couldn’t be a coincidence. This cat was special.

“Kitty! I can’t believe you ran away again!” The cat’s owner was back, running over towards them now. “Stop annoying Princess Marinette, she’s probably got better things to be doing…”

“It’s okay, I don’t mind!” Marinette said quickly. “Really, I don’t. I promise. I love Plagg, he’s practically a friend of mine now.”

Plagg let out a little meow of affirmation.

“I’m glad to hear that,” the noble said. “Plagg really likes you. I still think you should keep him.”

That was what the noble had been saying every single time, and Marinette had constantly refused, not wanting to take a pet away from someone. But her resolve was crumbling. This poor cat… it really didn’t like its owner much. It seemed to want Marinette instead.

Or rather, it seemed to want Adrien…

“Are you sure?” she asked. “Like, really, really sure?”

“I am. I’ve had enough of this cat. I can’t stand to look at this thing for yet another long summer holiday! Just look how he looks at me!”

Sure enough, Plagg was glaring at the noble, hissing slightly, before curling back up into Marinette’s arms.

Well, she couldn’t just leave an unhappy cat with its unhappy owner, could she?

“Fine,” she said. “I’ll take Plagg home with me.”

I’ll take him to Adrien, she added silently.

“Really? Oh, thank you Your Highness! Thank you so much!” The noble crouched down and looked right in Plagg’s face. “Now you be good to Princess Marinette, okay? She’s a princess. No scratching, or biting, or clawing, or–”

Plagg took a swipe at him.

“Ugh, you little dipshit – I’m not gonna miss you at all!” He quickly covered his mouth with his hands. “Oh shoot, I’m not meant to swear around royalty, I’m so sorry–”

“It’s fine,” Marinette said, giggling a little. “Perhaps you should just get out of here before Plagg scratches you to pieces.”

“Good idea. Goodbye, Your Highness, and good luck with him!” The noble took to his heels and ran off.

Marinette picked Plagg up in her arms. He was so small and light, like a little ball of fluff. It was adorable. In fact, bringing a cat back home for Adrien to hang out with would be ideal for him. Pets were good for you, after all! Oh, she just couldn’t wait to see Adrien again. Only a few days left now.

Hang on a second… what even was the noble’s name? It occurred to her that she had never asked. Huh. Maybe Adrien would know?

#i know this is a bit late shush #anyway i'm pretty sure i haven't written anything more relatable in my life like i'm literally max here #aish writes #royalty au #random stuff #miraculous ladybug #le chien kim #max kante #kimax #alix kubdel #marinette dupain cheng #plagg #the misadventures of prince kim

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officialpoptates · 7 years

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why are you so bitter about moose? it's better than the abuser he is in the comics lmao

Before I get into why what Riverdale has done with the character bothers me so much, I first want to address the comics.

Your interpretation of Moose as an abuser is…interesting. I understand why you would say that. He is violently jealous whenever Midge so much as talks to another boy. If that’s all you see in his character, it’s easy to label him as an abuser. But here’s the thing about Archie Comics: everything is horrendously exaggerated. No one can actually eat like Jughead does. No one is as vain as Reggie is, really. No teenager is as smart as Dilton is. The entire triangle is unrealistic. But that’s kind of the point. You have to take most things in the Archie ‘verse with a grain of salt.

So, Moose has a jealous streak and some anger problems. You know what else? There are countless stories where he tries incredibly hard to change those facets of his personality, for Midge’s sake. He’s taken etiquette lessons from Veronica, spoken in rhyme to appear charming, learned how to paint because he’s told that it will help him stay calm. He is aware of his faults and actively tries to fix them. And when he and Midge fight? He’s miserable and does everything in his power to make things right when he knows he’s messed up. He takes responsibility for his actions. That alone says to me that he is not actually abusive. He is deeply in love with Midge.

On top of that, when we see him outside of his relationship with Midge? He’s protective of his friends, he tries to do well in school even though it’s a struggle for him, and he studies hard. When the other characters call him “dumb” or “stupid” he doesn’t get angry, he just gets hurt. Because despite how hard he tries to learn, and how much he genuinely enjoys school, he’ll always be seen by others as a big, dumb jock. He puts a huge amount of effort to his athletics, because that’s the one thing he likes about himself. He considers Dilton to be his best friend. The big, ~scary~ jock considers the tiny, nerd boy to be his best friend. Moose is fundamentally a good person.

But what has Riverdale done with this character? He’s not as nice, even a bit of a bully, and he’s in the closet and outwardly homophobic. When he’s about to hook up with Kevin he says that it doesn’t make him gay, in a tone that suggests that being gay is bad and wrong. He’s basically Karofsky from glee, and I hate that. It’s a bad trope. It perpetuates this myth that people are only homophobic because they’re closeted, which makes it that much harder to call out more subtle forms of homophobia from straight people because how could they possibly be homophobic?? Everyone knows homophobic is just code for closeted. Plus, it gives people are reason to sympathize with homophobic bullies, instead of with the gay kids who get bullied.

And beyond all of that, where the hell is Midge?! Midge is more than just Moose’s girlfriend. She’s a good friend to Betty and Veronica, and she’s just…not there. They’re completely ignoring a character who’s been around since 1951, just because they don’t see her as anything other than “Big Moose’s Girl,” and this version of Moose doesn’t like girls.

Now, let me be clear, I have no problem with making Moose queer, or shipping Moose and Kevin, or Moose and any other male character. But the way they did it is the lazy use of a recycled trope, inconsistent with his character in the comics, erases a prominent female character, and is pretty damn homophobic.

#Archie Comics #riverdale cw #Moose Mason

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conversationsmystic · 7 years

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358 – Life's no-return policy

Low sodium soup needs salt.

But what happens when we add too much? There’s no turning back.

It’s such a depressing thought too, the no turning back … especially when we’d like to. How do I know a lot of us would like to go back in time and do something differently? I read it and hear it and sometimes feel that way myself.

“I should have traveled as soon as I graduated, instead of diving into the workforce. What was I thinking in my early twenties, making major decisions with an under-developed frontal lobe? Oh, why did I say that? Or worse, why did I write it?”

Here’s what I’ve noticed, rehashing the regrets changes nothing. It only makes us relive our dumb choices over and over again. So let’s stop.

Let’s just eat the soup we’ve made and start planning for dessert. OK?

The Mystic writes …

Cooking is a fabulous analogy for life! And, The Mom is right; once you add salt to a recipe, you can't take it out. You can add things to try and counteract it or put in more of the other ingredients to try and dilute the saltiness, but you can't take it out.

It's the same in life. Once you've invited something into your life and had an experience, it changes everything. From that point on, it's written in stone in your past. You can't erase it and you can't take it back, no matter what you do. (Cardinal Rule #1)

Our life plans are a lot like the technical challenge on The Great British Baking Show. We give ourselves the name of what we'd like the finished product to be; a skeletal description of theprocedures; and a basic list of ingredients. Beyond that and just like the bakers, any tweaks, surprises and out and out guesses we add or leave out of the concoction are completely up to our discretion. That's why the contestants all bring completely different baked confections to the judges' table despite the fact that they all received the same instructions and base ingredients. That's also why we all live unique lives despite our many similarities.

The day that The Mom sent me this idea for a post, I had an experience that illustrated this “once you put salt in, you can't take it out” truth in a funny, fundamental way. (At least it's funny now:p)

I have an injured tendon in that place where the back of your thigh suddenly becomes the bottom of your butt cheek. After three days of desperation and unsuccessfully searching for a solution to the relentlessly gnawing pain, I stupidly decided that, despite the precarious location of my injury, a little BENGAY at bedtime might work as a temporary diversion.....

Pay attention here, people! BENGAY anywhere near your crotch is a VERY bad idea!

There is absolutely no escaping the three hours of burning hell! You can't neutralize it! You can't wipe it off! And, you can't wash it off! (Adding water to the mix actually makes it worse.) Gah!

I hope you're laughing:)

Happy Wednesday! – The Mystic Hairdresser