#even sun has to agree but obviously has his critics | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

zvtara-was-never-canon · 3 months

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https://www.tumblr.com/burst-of-iridescent/740787422094376960/i-love-how-aangs-fans-want-so-badly-to-defend-and

Your thoughts?

Let's go through it by parts

"Aang is a monk, he shouldn't date/get married/have kids"

Aang is the LAST airbender. The LAST air-nomad. Even if he had made some vow of celibacy/not having kids/not getting married (which was never confirmed or even hinted at by the show), he made it under the assumption that this would affect solely his life, not result in the death of his entire culture once he passed away.

Much like he was given a pass to kill Ozai, he would also be given a pass to break his celibacy vow - which the show never says he made in the first place.

"The Air-nomads are not one to one with Tibetan monks, it makes no sense to get hung up on the pacism"

They are not one-to-one, much the other nations. But the Water Tribes are still indigenous people living in the poles, the Earth Kingdom is known for a great wall and there's a "made in Earth Kingdom joke", the Fire Nation has sun imagery everywhere, and air nomads are even meant to visually resemble tibetan monks.

More importantly, the show made sure to highlight that, to the nomads, pacifism IS a big part of their culture and belief system, and that Aang feels very conflicted over wanting to save the world but not liking the way he's expected to just disregard everything he was taught his whole life.

Comparing "Aang is a (tibetan) monk, therefore he is a pacifist so killing would be against his beliefs" to "Aang is a (tibetan) monk, therefore he shouldn't be dating" is absurd because, yes, Avatar did choose what parts of tibetan culture would be carried over to the story, and only ONE of these made the cut.

When people complay about "People are disgarding the fact that Aang was raised to be a pacifist when they expect him to just be cool with killing Ozai" they are not saying that because "Well, a tibetan monk wouldn't do that", they are saying it because CANONICALLY, Aang's air-nomad culture would be against it.

"Being critical of the air-nomad culture is not the same as disrespecting Tibet's culture"

This one is only truth depending on the circumstance.

Obviously being critical of something the air-nomads do, but the tibetan monks don't, is not racist against real people, nor is it racist in the first place if the criticism isn't fully based on "That's not how MY culture does things, therefore it's bad."

Being critical of something both air-nomads and real life tibetan monks do is automatically being critical of both, though obviously there's a difference between "I don't agree with this belief" and "I hate this entire group of people" (for exemple, saying "I hate the Fire Nation's imperialism because of all the suffering it caused, which was clearly inspired by Japan's imperialistic past that was also attrocious" is very different from saying "I hate japanese people").

Being "critical" of something both air-nomads and real life tibetan monks do because you're going out of your way to misrespresent their beliefs, and you talk about the air-nomads the way people who are prejudiced against Tibetan culture talk about them (which a lot of people in this fandom do without even realizing) IS very fucking racist against a real life group of people.

Again, to make the distinction clear, there's a difference between "I dislike this character who happens to be black" or even "I dislike this black character because the writers were racist, intentionally or accidentally, and thus made him an objectively poorly written character that I don't like seeing on screen" and "I hate this character because he is (insert racist belief against black people here)."

So yeah, A LOT of the hate towards Aang, especifically regarding his pacifism, comes from people being genuinely racist, and pointing that out is not absurd just because "Well, he technically isn't a Tibetan monk. He just looks like one, has plenty of the beliefs and traditions of one, the narrative largely treats him as one, and the audience is clearly excected to see him as such."

#anti zutara #pro kataang #pro aang #atla fandom problems #fandom racism

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fyeahnix · 8 months

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okay I gotta talk about Cyberpunk 2077

I really really wanted to play this game on launch back in 2020 but it was just...not ready so I avoided it. I also know the game was criticized for some things and a bunch of people made thinkpieces about how you shouldn't play it and all that. and like...sure have your opinions about it, that's fine. I was disappointed at the launch, but content wise I wanted to play the game for myself. so I waited until it went on sale for 50% off this year and bought it on GOG (which, if you're interested, that sale happens at least like twice per month).

before I went on vacation to Europe at the end of June, I finally started it. and I was....kinda in shock????

(keep in mind this is pre-2.0 patch so some of this might be out of date when that comes out)

(major story spoilers below)

first off the character creation is......not amazing? like there's plenty of nice preset options but it's limiting. V's gender being tied to their voice is FUCKING AWFUL, and I do not agree with that direction in the slightest. tbh I think that might be the absolute worst part of the game, where it would have been much easier to just...give you an option for pronouns?? like why was that not the direction wtf. and also having your voice and body type be a prerequisite to romance options too?? I just....UGH there's work to be done here.

past that tho, I love how much personality V has and I love the acting. I went with female V with a Street Kid background. it was really nice seeing how she came back from Atlanta to start back up in Night City and how her relationship with Jackie quickly blossomed. and man these two together were so great. imagine getting close to killing someone and getting arrested and then being like "bruh that cop was a fucking asshole and I'm hungry, let's go get some food bruh" and then I saw The Montage.

man....man oh man that fucking Street Kid montage of V doing jobs with Jackie? with the music in the background? I ended up watching that like 2-3 times (because the game crashed) but i genuinely did like it a lot and it really set me up with for the overall vibe of Night City. I dunno maybe I'm easily entertained but it was...just so cool?? I think it really lends itself to the animation and acting in the game overall. while most basic NPCs are nothing special to talk about, the ones who are, who clearly have some mocap going on with their facial expressions, are a fucking treat to watch regarding body language and subtle facial changes.

I somehow avoided all spoilers of the game for nearly three years (also do not have experience in this IP) so I had no idea who Johnny Silverhand was and his significance to V. I wasn't a huge fan of him in the beginning but I quickly grew to like this asshole, especially as the game progresses and you learn more about him and his ideals and his very flawed perception of the world. I really really wanted there to be a solution where he and V live happily in the end, but ofc this genre does not allow happiness lol. It was very cool to hear his input during some jobs even if I thought they were ridiculous sometimes or he was jumping the gun a bit, and it was nice to get to know him better. I eventually came to see him as a bit of an older brother figure for my V. not perfect and offered "sage" advice when he felt warranted. obviously he has some self interest in keeping V alive because that means he stays alive, but it was very sweet to see him change over time to wanting to genuinely help V out.

by the end, I chose the route to storm Arasaka with Rogue because....why the fuck not, it's not my definitive playthrough. Aaaand I got The Sun ending. Rogue died. and I hated that. but more than that I wasn't happy with my V and her situation, but I'll get back to that in a bit. that brings me to the romance option.

again, I somehow avoided all spoilers for this game and while I vaguely remembered seeing Judy in one of the initial trailers from like...3+ years ago, I couldn't fully remember her role in the story or even what she looked like. all I can say is.....fucking love at first sight.

ok so like...I'm a bit of a simp for nerdy girls. and techy girls. and alt girls. and artsy girls. so to have her be nerdy and techy and alt and artsy and also have hobbies outside of that? man....the second I went to her apartment and learned more about her hobbies and interests, I was fucking smitten. it was super nice to be able to see regular people shit out of a romance option in a major game. and on top of that. her drive and interest in standing up to injustices is admirable. I love her, seriously. she's such a great character.

the romance. man.....I wish I had more words for it, but the way it progresses through the questline, the little hints you get about her own interest in you (Johnny mentioning the way she looks at you and you liking it), the way her texting towards you starts to change over time. I feel like it was paced extremely well within the confines of the game. and then....Pyramid Song happened.

at first, I approached this as any other romance in any other RPG. "oh yay, I can fuck the romance option yaaayyy" but nah. this quest fucking....ruined me in the best way possible. it was beautifully done. the acting, the emotional impact of the lake dive, V and Judy's minds melding into one, learning about Judy's past and hearing her memories... even writing this paragraph now I am near tears because that romance was so fucking well done. like yeah the eventual sex scene was great, but everything leading up to that was absolutely fantastic. to have seen this in a game, especially as a lesbian interacting with a character who ALSO is a lesbian, was just.....ugh it meant so much and I know there's no way a straight man wrote this lmfao.

I also love how after the relationship starts, Judy continuously texts you for A WHILE afterwards. She tells you random things, brings up her thoughts, and eventually tells you how much you mean to her. It is unbelievably cute and I couldn't stop smiling when I read every new text. I really hope they expand this in the update. And if not....well...I may consider doing this myself in a mod or something lmfao.

I also went through Panam's questline and tho it sucks that I couldn't romance her, I did develop a headcanon for V's interactions with her that I made a post about previously. like idk after seeing and meeting her in her quest, she was not at all who I thought she'd be. I was expecting some like....extremely femme prissy woman like...idk Loba from Apex Legends or something who couldn't break a nail or she'd fuss about it (remember I avoided all spoilers of this game lol). but NAH, def not her. she's more like "hey V, how many tons of dynamite do we need to wake up an entire Wraiths camp?" and you know what? I fucking love that shit.

which brings me back to the ending. I had a headcanon for my V that basically goes like this:

V is a Street Kid merc from Night City who comes back from Atlanta to restart her life. She meets Jackie and they quickly become best friends. All the shit about Arasaka happens and Jackie dies. V starts to have second questions about whether or not reaching the top of Night City and becoming the best merc is really what she wants. She's seen death plenty but Jackie's death has haunted her and now she herself dying. In the midst of doing jobs to survive and figuring out how to fix her situation with the Relic, she meets Panam and quickly becomes friends with her. She was a little interested at first but Panam was not. V respected that and did not persist, but they did become very close friends. V eventually meets Judy as well, and while they started off a little rocky, she ends up liking her and eventually they start a relationship. But having that conversation with Judy at the lake about Judy wanting to leave Night City really gets V thinking. But she carries on. Blah blah blah, story stuff, she becomes close to Johnny as well, but eventually I had it in my head that V really loves Judy as a partner and really loves Panam as her best friend so why not live out the rest of her life traveling with the Aldecaldos? She can leave her merc life in Night City and start fresh with her newfound family, best friend, and life partner.

And what do you fucking know, this is actually possible as an ending lmfao. I only just read the endings right after finishing my playthrough and this will be my ultimate goal the next time I play this V in my....prob 3 or 4 playthrough by then.

anyway, enough story. time for gameplay.

so I usually do stealth builds in these types of games. I chose to go with a stealthy throwing knife build (very fun!) after deciding pistols and bladed weapons that aren't knives weren't really for me this time around. I haven't played a ton of stealth-based games, but generally what I've noticed is that they tend to give you routes/pathways to follow if you pay enough attention. like NPCs will have predefined walking routes, the environment will have certain openings/paths available to navigate and either avoid or kill incapacitate these enemies quickly and quietly. I don't feel like I got that sense in this game here? I dunno if it was poor stealth design, but I do think it was this:

this game really REALLY wants you to utilize a cyberdeck, it feels like. interacting with the environment, whether it's creating distractions or blinding enemies or whatever, seems to be the goal with really working with stealth. I can't say that I hate it, esp since that's a part of the game world, but sometimes doing stealth feels more difficult than it should be because of this perceived expectation to...create your own routes and pathways so to speak. the last like...10-15 hours of my playthrough, I ditched the cyberdeck and went with a sandevistan but had invisibillity cloaking to make up for the lack of a deck. still fun but it did feel like I was using cloaking as a crutch to get out of LOS when spotted lol.

I have no opinions on guns and gunplay in this game as I haven't use them yet, but I'm sure I'll have thoughts for 2.0.

text messages were really cool lol. I know they are bascially just predefined messages but I still liked that and I loved how you can talk to characters on holo instead of visiting them in person. idk I'm a sucker for stuff like this.

the perk system is not great, I oftentimes felt confused on what perks to even get because a lot of them were underwhelming and felt more like Fallout 3's "numbers go up" options. the overhaul 2.0 patch will apparently give us more options to play with in terms of changing gameplay so I am hoping the changes will be reminiscent of going from Fallout 3 -> New Vegas in perk style.

Cyberware is great and this is where I feel the game really opens up in playstyle compared to the perks. I'm happy to see this is being extended and armor will be tied to cyberware instead of clothing in 2.0.

vehicles are cool. I like the variety in them but I feel like there could be more. additionally there's so many of them available for free that it almost makes no sense to buy them unless you're just doing completionist stuff. the handling is fucking awful and I hope that improves in the patch.

Night City is absolutely fucking gorgeous in a dirty and grungy kinda way. I've lived in a major city for most of my life and it def gave me that....really raw inner-city feel with people walking fucking everywhere, cars that nearly won't stop til they hit you, stores and shit everywhere, gang members hanging out on the corner or in front of stores, police stopping someone for questioning, etc. I just love it. a lot of it is window dressing. you can't go into like 99.99% of the stores and whatnot in the game. that might bother some folks, and that's understandable, but I'm completely fine that it's all for show. It helps the atmosphere.

I suppose I could talk about how well this game presents the genre as a whole but...I can't. I don't have the background history and knowledge of the IP itself or the genre to really talk about it in detail. If this game comes across as "baby's first cyberpunk experience" or doesn't go too hard in the punk direction then....fine, I guess? Whatever? I still enjoyed it lol. I would like to experience more cyberpunk as my experience so far has been limited to Shadowrun Returns and Dragonfall, "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?", and Blade Runner. But yeah I'm not an expert here so I mainly just wanted to talk about the gameplay and presentation.

anyway I think that's about all to talk about really. this was more just...stream of consciousness and rambling than anything lol. I had a really awesome time with the game and thought, despite the shitty launch and character creation thing about gender, that it's def worth checking out. can't wait for the DLC and 2.0 update because I will likely eventually talk about stuff that may or may not have changed. this is gonna be the game I focus on heavily for the next few months until I get sick of it. then I might start exploring with mods.

#Cyberpunk #Cyberpunk 2077 #Johnny Silverhand #V #Cyberpunk V #Panam Palmer #Judy Alvarez

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aslket · 6 months

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So I know I read something like this back in high-school on LiveJournal or something, but I reblogged a post about Camilla Hect reading Harrow's letter and I was reminded of Legolas

Because Legolas' dad got asked by Gandalf and Some Ranger to look after this horrible little creature right? Keep it locked up but alive, because it might know about something important. How they acheived this is anyone's guess, because Gandalf wasn't at all forthcoming about what that knowledge was. But however it's done Thranduil agrees, and Thraunduil's a king of his word, so they are apparently going to incarcerate this thing indefinitely. And it's an awful thing, it's so shriveled and cringing and weirdly small? Like a goblin-sized extremely old addict, who's been eating toddlers mind, but who Gandalf just literally tortured. Keep in mind, real goblins exist and the wood elves don't try to rehabilitate them, so they could presumably perceive that he wasn't 100% evil

Anyway this horrid little not-goblin can't eat real food, can't stand the sun, and obviously hates being locked in their cellars for over a year. So they let him out on the darkest nights to climb a tree in a clearing under gaurd. Wood elves aren't monsters, and this small being is clearly suffering, and they'll mitigate that if they can. Right for all sentient beings but orcs, Sauron and Rignbearers says Thranduil

But then. Then that little shit manages to communicate(?) with someone(???) while up a tree in the middle of a clearing gaurded by archers in the dead of night, and a bunch of fucking orcs bust him out. Or even worse, he didn't and they have a critical security crisis on their hands, instead of only an extremely severe one. This is not a great look for Thranduil, and now he's gotta let Gandalf know ASAP what went down because, as previously stated, the reason he agreed to house this weird sounding pitiable creature was presumably because Gadalf gave him some extremely incomplete and alarming info about why it was so desperately important he be safely imprisoned

Regrettably, nobody can ever fucking FIND Gandalf, which makes letting him know kind of difficult. A wizard is never late, because you can never actually pin them down for a fucking RSVP. So Thranduil grabs his son, after all the tracking and reapprehension of this fugitive has failed, and tells him to go to Rivendell and leave a message for Gandalf and That One Ranger with Elrond

This is a shitty job. Legolas' home just got attacked and a bunch of his people killed, and now he's gotta travel over the misty fucking mountains to find a hidden bloody valley and tell a literal 1/16th angel, on behalf of his people, that they've completely fucking biffed it. Jury's out on if Legolas has ever really left Mirkwood before, boy's never even been to Lorien, which is just across the river. The only sliver of a bright side to this is he won't actually have to tell Gandalf himself. If he shows up in Mirkwood looking for the afwul ittle guy, his dad gets to tell him what happened. The chances of "the grey wanderer" HAPPENING to be visiting Rivendell during the same day and a half Legolas spends there, probably just handing off a letter and mooching some supplies in a properly diplomatic fashion, approach zero

Then Legolas actually arrives.

So there's DWARVES here, and the son of the Steward of Gondor, and That One Ranger AND Gandalf. Apparently a council is happening, and Elrond's hosting. You guys didn't get an invite, which is pretty insulting, but apparently NOBODY got an invite and everyone just got up independently and decided to come here because bad shit was happening in their individual corner of the world. That's basically unprecedented, and not a good sign, but this is also a great opportunity for Legolas, and phenomenal branding on Elrond's part, really. All these people ended up here with news, and he's gonna make sure they all leave on the same page, and Legolas gets to take all that info back to Thranduil.

The only wrinkle in Legolas getting to be actually present for this once-an-age get together is that Gandalf and That One Bloody Ranger are ALSO here, and that's a little embarrassing, really. Sucks to advertise the you couldn't manage One Job in front of the DWARVES. But at least it's just that you lost track of one gross little creature, who's probably been eaten by orcs or something by now, so its not the diplomatic disaster it could be.

So everybody gets together, and Gandalf shows up with a pair of hobbits. Obviously Legolas has heard of hobbits, but its perhaps occurring to him at this point that they're Suspiciously small. He's only met one other non-goblin creature that size.

The council starts, and the fucking dwarves go on, but everybody covers the basic situations at home and they're pretty universally Not Great. But then Elrond says ok, now that we're all on the same page, we're gonna cover the important secret stuff. Legolas, at this point privy to state secrets of elves, men and also dwarves, might be puzzled here. Especially when Elrond proceeds to give a lesson on ancient history, starting three thousand years ago. That is a long time ago even for elves, and he's covering what, the fucking rings of power and the last alliance??

Actually, he's covering specifically one ring of power, and it whereabouts. And also that Gollum had it, and it comes up that BILBO did too (what the fuck??) and oh, also, That One Ranger is the lost King of Gondor. Cool. This is fine. Now everyone is talking about how glad they are that Gollum's under lock and key and can't cause any more problems, and Legolas literally leaps from his seat at this point to mention with considerable concern that he's actually not

This is real bad news for all of five seconds, but then Gandalf blows it out of the water when he drops the Saruman's-a-fucking-traitor bomb. And eventually this leads to Legolas agreeing to go on a crazy quest to MORDOR with four hobbits, a wizard, a king, a steward's son, and a dwarf. Literally everything Legolas thought was a huge problem has been revealed to be minor annoyances leading up to the apocalypse

And that's what I love about Camilla reading that letter. She thought she was dealing with some shit. She thought she was going to impossible lengths. She had NO IDEA

#the lord of the rings #legolas thranduilion #one of my favorite thing to do in fiction #is see a side character realize the plot is happening #the locked tomb #camilla hect

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pepsi-maxwell · 10 months

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more premier league cmjf au, because i watched that ted lasso segment where roy drags jamie out for 4am training and obviously my first thought was these two idiots

first part here

word count: ~1200, rating: t

Punk steps out of his car onto a quiet, tree-lined street south of the city centre. He looks up at the house in front of him. Semi-detached in Hale; a typical footballer’s house after graduating from the typical city centre penthouse apartment. Closer to Old Trafford than the Etihad, too, something he makes a mental note of. Punk thinks even he’s closer to the City training grounds than Max is.

There’s a Lamborghini Huracan in City blue on the driveway, as well as a slightly more practical Bentley GT in matte black. He glances inside the Bentley as he walks up towards the doorway, rolling his eyes at the custom plaid check upholstery.

Ugly, tacky, and so incredibly, predictably Maxwell.

He’s aware of the cameras tracking him. Fairly standard fare, but he’s got every right to be here, even when it’s half five in the morning, and the sun is just about considering coming up on what’s no doubt going to be an unseasonably warm September morning.

He makes his way up the three steps to the porch and rings the doorbell, pushing the button again immediately after it’s stopped.

It doesn’t take long for Max to answer.

“What do you want,” he yawns, too over the top to not be put-on.

Punk’s eyes flit down the length of his body critically. Bare chest, silk boxers, ridiculously fluffy slippers matching the ridiculously fluffy Calico rubbing herself between his ankles. Max crouches down, scooping Piper up into his arms with a smirk.

Punk’s gaze travels back up to Max’s face as he taps his wrist.

“Training started half an hour ago, Max. Why aren’t you at the grounds? Do we need to get you a new alarm?”

The grin drops from his face and he looks at Punk like he’s grown an extra head for a moment. “I don’t train before the sun comes up, Punker,” he says, making a one-handed shoo-ing gesture. “So jog on. Go look after the rest of those massive cash-wastes, and on Wednesday night, when you need your star player to come on and score five goals for you, you’re welcome by the way, I’ll be there.”

He moves to shut the door, but Punk moves forward, shoving his foot out to keep it open. “What the fuck are you playing at,” he hisses, kicking at Punk’s shoe as Punk gets his shoulder in the gap, forcing him back until he’s in Max’s foyer, the door slamming shut behind him.

Piper jumps out of his arms and Max stands there, looking on-edge, and nowhere near as confident as he had about thirty seconds ago.

Punk, similarly, feels the frustration drain out of him now that he’s inside Max’s home. Doesn’t know what to do with himself when he’s in the perfectly normal home of the world’s worst-behaved premier league superstar.

��Get out before I call the police for trespassing,” Max says after a moment, his voice strangely thick. There’s a kind of wide-eyed nervousness to him that Punk has never seen before, and it makes him want to push at it, dig his fingers in until Max gives.

“I’ll get out once you agree to get in the car and come to training,” Punk offers, folding his arms across his chest, unimpressed.

“You’re going to make me go to training today, of all days? You know it’s a holy day for my people, don’t you? And you’re gonna make me work? That’s antisemetic of you,” Max tries instead, pouting disapprovingly, but Punk holds his ground.

“And which holy day is that,” he retorts, eyeing Max down while he fishes his phone out of his pocket, ready to search. “Tell me. I’m all ears.”

Max looks away with a frustrated sigh, crossing his arms over his chest defensively, hunching his shoulders to make himself look small. Privately, Punk thinks if the football thing hadn’t worked out, he would have made a great actor. “Look, I didn’t wanna say it in case everyone made a big deal, but… it’s actually my birthday today—”

Punk cuts him off with a shocked burst of laughter.

“Max, you got into a fight in Santorini on your birthday. You made the front page of the Sun, and that was six months ago. It’s closer to my birthday than yours.”

Max rolls his eyes and yawns again, loud and obnoxious, making no attempt to cover it. “Mazel tov. Why don’t you take the day off as well, go do something about those ugly bags under your eyes.”

Punk runs his tongue across his lips. It’s a subconscious motion because he’s only had one coffee this morning and he’s parched, dying for a second, but more interesting is the way Max’s half-lidded, half-awake gaze zeroes in on his mouth with a sudden alertness.

It’s not the first time Max has reacted to him in an... interesting way. Punk’s composing quite the list of occurrences in his head, even if he has no idea of what he’s actually going to use it for yet.

Bribery isn’t entirely off the menu right now.

There’s a split second where he debates offering Max a handjob as incentive, but whatever reason Max has for looking at him the way he does sometimes, he thinks that they’re probably not at that stage yet.

“Actually, I had another thing in mind. My birthday present from my biggest fan,” Punk says, with a nasty smile of his own as he takes a step towards him. Max gives him a baleful glare, backing up into the kitchen. “You get in my car and come to training, right now.”

“I don’t need to,” Max hisses. “Already told you, most goals scored in a single season, won the treble—what the fuck are you pulling that face for,” he adds when Punk tuts sympathetically.

“Domestic treble,” Punk corrects, relishing in the ugly twist of Max’s expression in response. “I know you don’t give a shit about the Carabao cup, Max. There’s only one treble you care about, and that’s… god, who was it who won that? Back in 99? It’s on the tip of my tongue—”

There are hands crumpling the lapels of his club jacket, shoving him against the wall, knocking the wind out of him.

It takes him by surprise, if only because he didn’t think Max would have plucked up the courage to lay hands on him already.

It sends a frisson of excitement down his spine. Max is a global name now, bigger than Punk, perhaps, and yet Punk still has this kind of effect on him. He can mould him, he thinks. He can train him into something perfect, somebody completely unstoppable.

Punk holds his hands up, palms facing out. “Come to training, Max,” he murmurs as persuasively as he can. “You want that European cup win? You want to be part of the first English team to win the domestic and the continental treble?”

He can feel Max’s breath fanning across his face, uneven and frustrated. Sees his pupils dilate even as his eyes narrow.

Max shoves him harder against the wall, pushing himself away. He storms off up the stairs, slamming doors, stomping around loud enough to wake the neighbours. Piper, oblivious, rubs her face against his shin and he scratches behind her ears until she purrs.

Two minutes later, he shoulders past Punk in full kit, football boots in hand, swiping his keys off the hook by the door.

Punk follows him out in silence, unable to hide his smile.

#cmjf #godiva writes

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freckledsunshin3 · 9 months

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SM rlly needs to manage groups better. Renjun nearly passed out on stage and Mark was obviously concerned for him, but SM didn't even frigging let him rest.

yes i completely agree! nct is so overworked and as someone who loves renjun with all my heart, it's not okay how they treat nct.

but remember nctzens! no matter how much we disagree with sm overworking, whenever a unit releases something, it's better to encourage and support the members than complain and beg sm for rest. yes, us being loud could be a way for them to hear, but it's gotten to the point that nct members themselves have made comments

haechan himself has said he'd rather be encouraged then asked to rest. and as someone who admires haechan, i can see where he's coming from. he's probably EXTREMELY tired but still works hard on all of his projects, and i would understand how discouraging it might feel to have comment sections full of people begging sm to let them stop working and resting.

tl;dr, it's a grayscale. there is no right and wrong, like most issues. i say best is to support nct and their wishes, but still criticize sm for poor management.

REMEMBER! your advocating for better treatment does not mean you can't still support the members and activities they do.

your favorite nctzen, sun

edit 1:

after posting this, i realized i had some more comments on the situation.

there is no reason a member of nct should have a health accident or be in the hospital every other week. period. that is non-negotiable. when i say support nct, i mean while they have active contracts.

if nct ever got into a time where they were contesting their contracts and fans started a boycott, i would, even if it was painful, 100% boycott nct so sm would not get more money off of them while they tried to get out. but currently, nct is still functioning under sm with no current public fighting to end their contracts (as of 7/28/2023). nct dream is currently on promotions for istj, dream and 127 alike are both doing 7th anniversary promotions, wayv is doing fansigns in asia, and taeyong & wayv are scheduled for kcon la 2023. there is no reason we should stop support currently. even if it gives money to sm who is notorious for not paying artists fairly, a fraction of that money still makes it into nct's bank accounts.

it's also a morale thing. nct dream has just come back with 3rd album istj after completing the dream show two. they're probably extremely tired (ie haechan going to the hospital, renjun almost passing out at the 7th anniversary event, etc.) and it would be devastating to see a lack of support or comments instead of encouraging and supporting them for the comeback (which by the way, is absolutely AMAZING and I'm so proud of them as someone who has listened since the 1st album repackage) telling them to rest. not to sound rude, but they can at some point take care of themselves as adults, even if it's difficult for them.

tl;dr, support the boy's activities. it's the least we can do. as much as i think they deserve the break, they're clearly not going to be getting one, so we should just support them to boost morale. if there is a day where nct does fight to end their contracts and leave sm, then we'll deal with it when it comes

your favorite nctzen, sun!

#nct #nct 127 #nct dream #nct u #haechan #renjun #mark lee #mark zuckerberg #sm treat nct right #stop overworking nct

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xanas-eye · 1 year

Text

I've seen some people call Sun a "covert narcissist" despite the fact that his major goals in the story have revolved around helping or protecting Moon. His behavior doesn't fit the narcissist criteria:

• Self-centered?

Obviously not. ⬆️

• Constantly thinking about himself?

No. Other people tend to be on his mind. E.g., Moon, Eclipse, Bloodmoon...

• Focuses on getting his own needs met (often ignoring the needs of others)?

"I don't need therapy right now. I have something more pressing, matters [saving Moon] to concern myself with."

No. Sun's currently in a bad mental state because he couldn't help Moon.

• Sense of entitlement or superiority?

No. The guy constantly insults himself.

• Feels that he's always right?

No. Someone who thinks that way wouldn't have said this: "I don't know if what I did [killing Bloodmoon] was even a good idea. I mean, they were right. Maybe they could have been redeemed..."

• Feels that he's better or deserves better than other people?

No. Sun considers himself a screw-up. What's more, his Bloodmoon-shaped inner critical voice told him he should be called a "failure."

The hallucinations are him punishing himself because he feels that he deserves it. This is not someone who thinks he "deserves better than other people."

• Lack of empathy?

No.

• Manipulative or controlling?

No. Sun is not a schemer.

• Uses emotions to manipulate people?

No.

• Tendecy to be extremely jealous and controlling in relationships?

No. Sun doesn't keep Moon from having other friends, nor tells him how to live his life.

• Strong need for admiration?

No. I think Sun does want some praise (he doesn't get enough of it from the people in his life), but not to such an extent where he'd take things too far.

• Demands admiration and praise?

No. Doesn't ask for it, and tends to accept the criticism he gets.

• Likes to be center of attention?

No. For instance, Sun enjoys doing the show with his brother. There was the time he had a chance to do a few episodes alone, but he had Glamrock Freddy join him for a Teardown episode.

• Difficulty taking feedback?

No. He accepts it and learns from his mistakes.

• Overreacts to criticism?

Doesn't enjoy hearing it, but again: he accepts it anyway.

Sun accepting his own self-criticism:

Bloodmoon Hallucination (inner critical voice): As far as you know, he's dead. And it will be your fault.

Sun: It won't be my fault. It... It would be my fault.

• Has a hard time admitting when he is wrong?

No. He is constantly feeling guilty about/apologizing for his mistakes.

• Quick to feel hurt or angry?

No. Sun tends to let people get away with their bad behavior toward him until he's had enough and blows up at them.

But in the end, he usually forgives the people who have hurt him. Moon, Lunar, Monty, Roxanne... Lets bygones be bygones. Hell, he even tried to work things out with Eclipse back then (Sun Meets Eclipse). Not anymore, but still: Sun was willing to potentially forgive the person responsible for — from his POV; he didn't know about Bloodmoon — what happened on July 16th, and making Roxanne break his heart.

...

Look, Sun and Moon are both flawed individuals. I think we can all agree on that. However, it seems like people bring up Sun's flaws more than Moon's. In fact, I've done it as well! I have a post pointing out Sun's similarities to Eclipse in the works. It touches upon Sun's flaws and his asshole moments.

But that aside, why does pointing out Moon's flaws get people so worked up?

#the sun and moon show #tsams #sams sun #sams moon #my posts #tsams discourse

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foreveranevilregal · 2 years

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How about its Felixs birthday and everything is perfect except one thing because the shop owner as Pepas ex has a grudge against her but as we know Pepa is a bad ass so she scares him into getting her way and Felix as love sick as ever thinks its the best birthday ever

Here you go! Hope this is what you wanted! It’s kind of long, so I hope that’s okay!

I don't necessarily agree with Pepa's methods here, but they were effective.

It was the morning of Félix’s birthday. November 11th. The date used to mean nothing to Pepa, used to be just another day in November, but ever since she met Félix, the sun shone a little more brightly on November 11th.

She had been running around preparing for tonight’s party for two weeks. The list of things that needed to be done was no longer as daunting, thanks to her siblings and mother pitching in to help. One by one, they’d managed to get almost everything they needed to give Félix an amazing party.

Juicy steaks from the butcher, promising Pepa the best cuts of meat in exchange for favorable weather on his wife’s birthday. An assortment of baked goods from the baker: pillowy, freshly baked bread, cookies, and the pièce de resistance- an enormous tres leches cake, absolutely soaked in sweet milk, thick dulce de leche oozing down the sides.

Of course, Julieta had offered to do the baking herself, but Pepa immediately waved away the suggestion as ridiculous. Julieta was expecting a second child, and she hadn’t slowed down one bit. But her poor sister was so swollen by this point that she looked like she was constantly toting around a watermelon. She seemed ready to pop at any moment. Obviously, there was no way Pepa would ask her to stand on her feet just to prepare food for her husband.

Succulent steak, fresh crusty bread, indulgent desserts…Pepa checked the items off her list. The rest of them were pitching in to get the rest of the food ready. Although Julieta was relegated to bedrest, she wasn’t fully out of commission; instructing the others on how to prepare all of Félix’s favorite dishes. Pepa had tried to help out in the kitchen, but she’d ended up even more hopeless than Agustín when it came to cooking. Turns out, even her rain wasn’t enough to rescue the charred remains of her culinary attempts.

So, she decided to leave the cooking to the far more capable hands of her mother and brother and instead work on the decorations. She’d gotten some lovely flowers from the florist and was arranging them into bunches to place around the table. They were all so colorful, with bright glistening petals. Pepa placed one of every color into each bunch. Félix gave her rainbows every day; it was only fair she returned the favor.

“I help?” Isabela had toddled over, grabbing at the flowers Pepa was holding. Much to Pepa’s surprise, Isabela’s touch was delicate. She didn’t even damage the petals. She looked at Pepa expectantly with her big brown eyes.

Pepa chuckled. “Sure, Isa. Come here.” She patted the ground next to where she was sitting and separated out some flowers for Isabela to play with. “You want to help me decorate for your tío’s party tonight?”

“Uh huh.” Isabela’s brow furrowed as she focused on matching her arrangement to the ones Pepa had been working on, choosing just the right flowers. “Like this?” She held up an arrangement almost identical to the ones Pepa had been making.

“Yes, Isabela, just like that!” Pepa took the bunch, stunned. She added the few flowers Isabela had been missing and set the finished bunch aside. Isabela really had a knack for this. She could actually help Pepa out. Deciding there wasn’t any harm, she pushed the rest of the flowers closer to Isabela. “Can you help me finish making the flower arrangements?”

Isabela nodded solemnly, reaching out to pick up some more flowers in her chubby little hands. “Pretty flowers,” she commented, turning over the flowers in her hands. A few of the petals got crushed, but Pepa held her tongue. She didn’t want Isa growing up criticized over every little thing the way she had been.

“They’re very pretty, right?” Pepa smiled, glancing at Isa over her own bundle of flowers. Her precious sobrina concentrated on picking out just the right flowers. “Which one is your favorite?”

Isabela frowned, pausing to think. Her tiny tongue poked out of her mouth. “All of them!” she exclaimed, beaming.

Pepa laughed. “They are all pretty, aren’t they?” she agreed. Isabela seemed to really enjoy the flowers. Maybe she could convince Julieta to let Isa join her in the fields come springtime.

Thanks to her adorable little helper, the flower arrangements were done sooner than she anticipated. Food, flowers… Pepa ran through the list in her mind. The musicians were coming tonight. All that was left to do was… A leaden feeling sank in her stomach. Decorations. She’d left the decorations last, hoping to delay the inevitable misery, but the moment had arrived. Closing her eyes, she let out a frustrated groan.

“Tía okay?” Isabela reached out a hand towards her cheek, concerned. That child was as perceptive as her mother.

Pepa nodded, swallowing and affixing a smile to her face. “Yeah, Isa, I-“ Fortunately she was saved from having to come up with an excuse by Agustín, who was holding a very sleepy Dolores in his arms. “I’m just sad that you need to go take your nap because I had so much fun with you.” It wasn’t exactly a lie; she did genuinely enjoy working on the flower arrangements with Isa.

“No nap!” Isabela insisted stubbornly. “Not tired.” But her yawn betrayed her.

“Are you two girls done with the flowers?” Agustín bounced Dolores in his arms.

She valiantly fought sleep, but little fists rubbed her sleepy eyes. Succumbing to her tiredness, she snuggled into her tío’s chest.

“We are.” Pepa stood up and held up a flower arrangement. “What do you think?”

“I think they’re beautiful!” He cooed, crouching down to Isabela. “But not as beautiful as mi flor pequeñita.” His free arm made its way down to tickle her side, causing her to erupt in giggles.

He had really taken to being a girl dad. Pepa hoped their second child would be another girl. “Are you ready to join your prima?” Pepa addressed Isabela, who was clinging to her hand, unwilling to go to her father because it would mean ending their fun.

Isabela struggled with the decision, her eyes darting between her and Dolores. As much as she loved her tía, she loved Lola more. “Okay,” she acquiesced. Letting go of Pepa’s hand, she reached up towards her father.

“Come on, Isa.” Agustín scooped her up with surprising strength, balancing her in his other arm. “You need to rest so you can stay awake at your tío’s party tonight.”

“Party?” Her eyes gleamed excitedly.

“That’s right,” Agustín affirmed. “But you need to sleep now so you can stay awake later.”

Her mouth opened to fight him, but tiredness overtook her and instead she joined Dolores in snuggling onto his chest.

“Thank you,” Pepa mouthed towards him as he took the girls away for naptime.

Now she was left by herself to contend with the decorations. She wanted to get streamers and sparklers for tonight, maybe even some fireworks if she was lucky, but unfortunately, she and Osvaldo had been on a few bad dates many years ago, and he still hadn’t gotten over how things had ended. There was no way he’d want to do anything nice for her, especially not if it was meant for her husband.

And that really rubbed Pepa the wrong way, because Osvaldo holding a grudge against her was one thing (look, it wasn’t her fault she didn’t want to date a bad kisser, okay?) but taking it out on Félix, the nicest most agreeable man in the whole encanto (no she wasn’t biased) was taking it too far.

What she needed was a way to get the decorations from Osvaldo without bringing up any drama. Her unexpected solution appeared in the form of a disheveled Bruno stumbling out of the kitchen towards her. His hair appeared to be smoking.

“Did you get kicked out of the kitchen too?” Pepa snorted.

Bruno wiped a smudge off his face. Pepa didn’t even want to know what it was. “Still made it longer than you, hermana.”

Pepa rolled her eyes. When would they stop bringing up how bad she was in the kitchen? Cooking wasn’t her thing. They all knew that by now. Get over it. But focus, Pepa; you need him. “Yes, Bruno; you’re a better cook than I am,” she gritted out. The words tasted bad, but she needed to butter him up.

He looked at her strangely. “You feeling okay?”

She sighed. “I need your help, Bruno.”

“With what?”

“Remember how I put off getting the decorations for Félix’s party until the last minute?”

“Yes…?”

“There’s a reason for that. Guess who’s selling the decorations now?”

Bruno scratched his head. “I don’t know. I don’t even remember what I had to eat this morning and you’re asking me to remember who’s selling something we don’t use every day.”

Pepa resisted the urge to snap at him. “Osvaldo Ortiz,” she answered, as calmly as she could.

Bruno shrugged. “So? Osvaldo’s a nice guy.”

Pepa glared at him. “Not to me. We went on a few dates ages ago and he still hasn’t gotten over it.”

“Ah.” Bruno nodded knowledgeably. “He’s one of the ones you dumped for a stupid reason.”

“I didn’t dump him for a stupid reason,” Pepa defended herself, outraged.

“Why did you dump him?”

“Because he was a bad kisser.”

“Which isn’t stupid at all.” Sarcasm dripped from Bruno’s words.

“It wasn’t his fault. I was his first kiss, and he needed someone to teach him how to do it right.” Pepa crossed her arms. “That person wasn’t going to be me. I didn’t have to deal with that.”

“Naturally.”

Pepa huffed. “Are you going to help me or are you just going to stand here and make fun of my dating preferences?”

“Okay, okay.” Bruno held up his arms in defeat. “What do you want, me to go get the decorations for you?”

Pepa shook her head. “No, I won’t give him the satisfaction of thinking he got to me. Because he didn’t.”

“Clearly,” Bruno muttered under his breath.

Pepa kept going, pretending not to have heard him. “I just want you to come with me to diffuse the tension.”

“That’s all?” He narrowed his eyes at her suspiciously.

“That’s all,” she promised.

“You’re going to owe me.”

“I figured I would. But please, this is for Félix. It’s not for me. Think about that. He’s your favorite cuñado.”

“You’re so lucky Agustín is upstairs and didn’t hear you say that.”

“I don’t hear you denying it.” She stared him down.

He tried to return the stare but crumbled. “Fine, but I’m not talking unless I have to.”

“That’s just fine, hermanito.” If she was lucky, just his presence would be enough to make Osvaldo reconsider being rude to her.

They walked over to the market together. Pepa filled Bruno in on what she wanted for Félix’s party.

“Streamers, sparklers, and fireworks?” Bruno let out a low whistle. “That’s a lot, especially considering Osvaldo hates you apparently.”

“He doesn’t hate me,” Pepa corrected him, hurt. “He’s just…” She paused to find the right words.

“Not over you; got it, Pepa.” Was he rolling his eyes at her? Brothers…

“Focus, Bruno; we’re doing this for Félix. This is about him, not me,” she insisted.

“Of course it is, Pepa.” Bruno sighed, exasperated. “Fine. Not like I can help in any other way anyway.”

“You don’t have to talk, just be there for moral support,” Pepa reminded him.

“I thought I was there to diffuse the tension.”

Pepa rubbed her temples. Really he was there as insurance that Osvaldo would give her the decorations, but she wasn’t about to tell Bruno that. “Right. That.”

“Are you going to lie and tell him I had a terrible vision about him so he gives you what you want?”

She shot him a scathing look. “Of course not, Bruno; don’t be ridiculous.”

He still appeared wary. “Okay. I hate it when you do that.”

“Don’t worry, Bruno.” She patted his shoulder. “Ah, here he is.” They’d reached Osvaldo’s stand.

Bruno gulped, seeming to regret his decision. “Okay. I’m going to go be not here.” He then immediately ran away.

“So much for support,” she hissed out after him, seeing him disappear into the winding rows of stands. “Hola, Osvaldo,” she greeted the man, infusing unfelt friendliness into her voice.

“Pepa.” He didn’t feel it necessary to do the same. “What are you doing here?”

“Well, today is Félix’s birthday…” She tucked a fallen strand of hair behind her ear nervously, noticing the man’s attention waning. Bad start, Pepa.

“Is that so?” He asked, disinterested. He had gone around the back of the stand, arranging a bundle of pinwheels in its box.

“Yes, I, uh, was wondering if you had any deco…” Her voice trailed off mid-word as he turned to look at her again. Smooth, Pepa. Of course he has decorations, they’re right in front of you. Gathering up her confidence, she finished her thought, “I wanted to get some decorations for his party tonight.”

Osvaldo grunted, not showing any trace of interest in the matter. “And you thought I would help you? Sell you decorations to celebrate your husband’s birthday? At a party I’m not invited to?”

Pepa let out a disbelieving noise. “I didn’t think you’d want to come! Not after… I thought I was doing you a favor!”

“A favor! Like how you did me a favor by dumping me during lunch break in front of everyone?” His ears grew red.

“Are you going to sell me decorations or not?” Pepa demanded, getting frustrated. The nerve of that man! When was he going to get over it?

He sighed. “Yes, Pepa, I will.” He pulled out the most pitiful pinwheels, their edges curling and drooped, as well as some faded banners. “Here you go.”

“Seriously?” She raised her eyebrow, unimpressed. “That’s the best you can do?”

“For you, Pepa, yes. Take it or leave it.”

“It’s a good thing I didn’t invite you to the party!” she retorted. A devious thought sprang up in her mind. Taking a moment to collect herself, she continued, “Bruno’s going to be there, you know, and he’s had some nasty visions lately. He looked shaken up the last few times he had one. I think he mentioned your name, too…” She let the implication hang in the air. “Oh, there he is now! Bruno!” She waved him down.

Bruno wandered over, holding a half-eaten arepa. “Did you get the decorations, Pepa?” He asked, munching on his snack casually.

“Not yet.” She tapped her foot impatiently, glowering at Osvaldo.

Wanting to diffuse the tension, Bruno spoke up. “Oh, hey, Osvaldo. Nice stand.”

“Thanks, hombre.”

An awkward silence permeated the air. Pepa’s storm clouds weren’t helping matters either.

“Is there any way you can give my sister the decorations so we can leave?” He asked bluntly.

Osvaldo shrugged. “Sorry, Bruno. She’s being a pain.”

Pepa opened her mouth to protest, but Bruno covered it with his hands, pushing her back. “You know how she gets.” He chuckled apologetically.

Pepa clenched her fists, seething. How dare he? He was supposed to be on her side!

“Maybe you can sell them to me instead,” Bruno suggested, shooting her a look to shut up. “I’m not being a pain.”

Osvaldo shook his head. “They’d still be for Félix, so no can do. Besides, I wasn’t even invited to the party. Why would I want to help?”

“That’s too bad, it’s gonna be a great party.” Bruno finished off the arepa, licking the crumbs off his fingers. “These arepas are really good. I’m going to go get some more,” he announced to Pepa and Osvaldo, who were now having a staring match.

“Oh, I love them!” Osvaldo exclaimed. “I get them every day, they’re so good.”

“Every day, huh?” Bruno sized him up and down. “Careful there, buddy. Those pants won’t keep stretching forever.”

Osvaldo frowned, looking down at his pants. “What do you mean?”

But Bruno had already walked away in search of more arepas. “I could bring you some, but you should probably go easy on them,” he called back.

Osvaldo looked at Pepa searchingly. “Was that…?”

Suddenly, Pepa snapped her fingers as if realizing something. “That must have been the vision he had! You’re going to get fat!” She patted his stomach affectionately. “How embarrassing. It would be a shame if everyone in town found out that’s what your future holds.” She fixed him with a determined look.

Osvaldo closed his eyes, defeated. “Tell me which decorations you want.”

She paused, pretending to think. “I’m not sure how much money I have with me.”

He waved off her comment hurriedly. “Just promise not to tell anyone and I’ll give you whatever decorations you want, free of charge.”

“Whatever decorations I want?” Her eyes sparkled with possibility.

That night, the Madrigals were enjoying the party. Everything had gone according to plan. The table was laden with all sorts of delicious foods, including the cake, which was almost gone. Music was booming thanks to the band playing that evening- all lively tunes, just like Félix liked. Thanks to Pepa’s ingenuity, their casita had been decked out in the most lavish decorations: banners, lights, streamers, even some things Pepa hadn’t thought of that Osvaldo had thrown in after being properly motivated.

But the best part was the fireworks. They exploded in the night sky; a brilliant display of colors splashed across the darkness.

Pepa watched them, leaning on Félix’s shoulder as they sat and ate their cake. “Do you like it, mi sol?”

“Like it?” He asked incredulously, bringing another forkful of cake to his mouth. “I love it! How did you get fireworks? I thought they were sold out.”

She pooh-poohed the question. “Nonsense, mi amor. Whatever mi esposo wants for his birthday, he gets.”

He gazed at her adoringly. Even though they’d been married a few years now, the lovestruck expression never faded from his face. “Thank you, mi vida.” He gave her a sticky kiss on the lips. “This is truly the best birthday ever.”

Seeing the pure unadulterated joy on his face, Pepa had to agree.

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autumnlassitude · 1 year

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Hey! Welcome to Tumblr!

I'm sure you didn't realize, but in one of your recent Ed pieces, you drew Ed white, which is a bit offensive.

[just thought I'd let you know, since I'm certain you didn't mean to whitewash Ed! You're a great artist and this is something easy to fix]

https://at.tumblr.com/autumnlassitude/edward-teach-on-his-way-to-seduce-your-estranged/ p9p21xwo724y

Hi, I appreciate getting feedback and welcome criticism, but it this case personally I don’t really agree. Taika is a fairly light skinned indigenous man with a pretty variable skin tone; when he has been getting a lot of sun he can have a much deeper golden tan and sometimes he is much paler. As a white passing Native person, this is a situation I am familiar with.

Here is my reference photo; I did my best not to just colorpick without consideration of his skin tone. I don’t think I’d really figured out how to draw light and shadows yet because it was my second piece of fanart I’ve ever done, so it looks a bit flat and loses some of his dimension (the left side should be in way more shadow), but I really don’t think it looks white. At a technical level, the drawing could improve, but I don’t think one could argue there is much difference between the skin tones here idk.

Tbh Ive been talking with some friends about this for awhile, and I think some of the dialogue around Ed’s skin tone is a bit skewed by people overcompensating. I see Ed drawn way darker than he is all the time and callouts of art well within his skin tone range. Indigenous people come in all skin tones, sometimes even the same person at different times of year, and it doesn’t make them white or invalidate their indigeneity. This isn’t like wah wah light skin tears, because obviously Natives with darker skin face significantly more violence, but there is an issue of erasure and tbh I think the way people talk about Ed’s/Taika’s skin tone can be part of it.

I really do appreciate you taking the time to send a nice message and think whitewashing is an important issue. I also think there needs to be a bit more acknowledgment of for variations in real peoples skin tone ranges and a some space for amateur artists to have a beginners grasp of lighting (within reason). Yeah, this Ed looks like he has a ring light going, which is a little silly and not very skillful, but I still don’t think he looks white.

Also I’ve been on tumblr since 2013 lol, but thank you for the welcome.

- edited this because I responded while at work and looking back it’s a little terser than id like. Hopefully you see this anon!

#anon

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lunaastoir · 3 years

Text

fluff/relationships w the mondstadt crew

characters included: diluc, kaeya, and jean

gn! reader as always <3

tw: fluff??? domesticity??? crack??? ideal relationships w people who will never be real??? also mentions of alcohol!

an: so i’m back w a sequel to my “fluff/relationships w the liyue crew” since you guys seemed to really like it <3 thank you my heart is literally melting 😩 this post was getting too long so i excluded some of the characters but expect a part. 2 (more like part 3 but part 2 to the mondstadt version)!

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

diluc

man. this MAN.

that’s it, that’s the headcanon.

he would literally be the most doting lover in the softest ways

SUCH a soft romantic like you thought you knew love??? nah this man will show you what love is

will constantly leave you things around the winery to convey his silent thank you’s and appreciation for you putting up with him being busy for most of the day

it’s always the most thoughtful things ever too like-

you mentioned how nice it would be to have some fresh lemonade with the hotter weather outside but it was too late in the day to actually go to the market in search of fresh lemons

the next day you walked downstairs only to be greeted with a pitcher of cool lemonade with a side of lemon bars

there was a note attached to the handle of the pitcher <3

“i recall you mentioning how lemonade would be perfect for the warmer weather so i decided to make some for you this morning. i hope it’s still cool by the time you drink it. love, d”

pls sir your hand in marriage

he secretly loves it when you usher him to bed after waking up in the dead of night to see him working by candlelight on reports

soft hands on his cheeks gently whispering about how, it’s been far too long and come to bed, darling and there will be time for this in the morning

his protests are light given the dark purple hues under his crimson eyes but he’ll still make a little fuss

don’t let this man fool you tho he’s so so touched that you care enough to check up on him and drag him to bed!!

sometimes on the days he has a bit more free time, the two of you will quickly grab your dinners and race to the highest spot in the winery to watch the setting sun

these moments are always filled with laughter, something you’ve found you’re easily able to pull out of diluc, simply because it’s you

uncontrollable sobbing

he would let you paint his nails black like the angsty man he is

frankly he would let you do anything to him if it makes you happy <3

ok but wait diluc w bLACK NAILS?? AND RINGS??? i would die on the spot ⚰️

on the topic of makeup, this man is surprisingly really good w it

i like to think he learned after practicing on kaeya when they were younger bc kaeya was really into makeup

you found out after babysitting klee one day and trying failing to draw eyeliner on the sweet girl after her “big brother ‘bedo!”

you hastily grabbed some wipes, gently wiping off the messed up design before attempting to dive back in

diluc however, had some down time so he decided to check up on his favorite chaotic duo

only to be met with a pile of dirtied makeup wipes, your frustrated expression, and klee’s growing jitteriness

swiftly moving to your side, he quietly asked if you needed help

you glanced up quizzically before handing him the eyeliner, already looking around to find more makeup wipes when this inevitably goes wrong

to your utter surprise tho the eyeliner is perfect??? two perfect winged lines??? in less than a minute??? WHAT

you just stood there like 😦 before diluc got back up and handed you the eyeliner

you were short-circuiting, klee was ecstatic, diluc was worried about you

ok last thing abt diluc

crack! warning but the both of you like lowkey pranking kaeya

for diluc it’s revenge on his annoying brother; for you it’s good - natured sibling rivalry fun

every time the two of you see kaeya, one of you always swipes something of his

small things really, it could be a pen or a handkerchief

one time, diluc swiped kaeya’s spare eyepatch and from the looks of it, kaeya’s only spare black eyepatch bc he was frantically looking for it yk he’s desperate when he even asked diluc if he saw it

the two of you spent an hour nearly laughing your asses off

all in all, life w him is so sweet

kaeya

pretty boy? pretty boy.

while i can’t guarantee stability, life would never be boring w this man that’s for sure

piggy back rides 🗣 piggy back rides 🗣 piggy back rides

he LOVES it, the feel of you on his back while he’s walking around mondstadt most likely carrying you to your commission

he finds it comforting especially since he can hear the rumble of your voice against him while you recount stories, or just babble on about everything under the sun

he is SO dramatic so obviously when y’all reach the site of the commission he has to kill all the monsters even tho the both of you agreed to split it up evenly

he makes quick work of his set before stealing some of yours much to your chagrin

you scold him but can you really be mad at him when he looks drop dead gorgeous freezing the hilichurls the answer is no, no you cannot be

oh my god ok wait-

he does this thing where he tries to spook you in public

so say you’re getting groceries at the mondstadt general store

you round the corner just minding your own business, looking around, taking in the sunshine

and suddenly you just hear someone drop in behind you but before you can register anything you hear a soft “boo” and hands circle your waist

you jump SIKE let’s be honest you shrieked

meanwhile kaeya’s just laughing his ass off

you can hear his rich peals of laughter while you attempt to regain your bearings

he does this so often you SHOULD be used to it but you really aren’t bc mans is SNEAKY-

he cards his fingers in your hair whenever you’re speaking

he doesn’t know why, it’s just a cute habit and he finds the feel of his fingers in your hair soothing

oH on the topic of comfort, kaeya really likes resting two fingers on the back of your neck???

ik he seems like the type to throw his arm around your shoulder which yes he totally is but during more serious conversations his hand automatically seeks out the warmth of your neck

your neck feels amazing especially during the warmer months due to his chilly fingers contrasting with your warm skin

he likes that he’s able to access such a vulnerable part of you and you would willingly let him

HE GETS YOU MATCHING OUTFITS

no i will NOT take criticism on this i just kNOW he’s that type of guy

it would be those stupid “i’m his” and “they’re mine” sweatshirts like BYE

it’s so cringy but for some reason it’s oddly adorable and you truly despise it but you can’t seem to say no whenever he asks

you pretend to ignore the look of pity diluc throws your way whenever he sees you like this

kaeya really loves accessories so i think he would be the type to give you a promise ring or something similar to show that he truly does care for you

he would brush it off, flirting a little like usual before handing you the ring

with the way his cheeks softly darken though, you know he’s being genuine

TICKLE FIGHTS ik i mentioned this for childe but shhhh

he has tickle fingers??? his hands just loOK like they’re itching to tickle someone so you’ll most likely be the unfortunate victim

he will not show you mercy. at all. he’ll tickle you until there are tears streaming from your eyes, your face is hot, and your voice is hoarse from laughing so damn hard

it gives him such a rush of serotonin its SO CUTE

i feel like this goes without saying but he’s super into pda,,, anything and everything is on the table

hand holding? duh. ass grabs? ofc. carrying you bridal style around mondstadt? why not

ik he’s typically very playful but once the relationship reaches a certain stage, he’ll slowly start to let down the walls that surround his facade

very very slowly show you the more realistic parts of him

the real, damaged pieces of his soul

he’ll be carefully monitoring your reaction though, any sign of fear or disgust will have him recoiling within himself again and you most likely will never see his true nature ever again

SO BE CAREFUL 👹

once you’ve seen the parts of him he’s offered to you, the hushed whispers of his past, and the uncertain lines of his future, he will take off his eyepatch

pretends like he’s not super nervous but he’s SWEATING-

the prettiest thing you’ve ever seen though hands down

you can understand why he covers it up but you would like it if he felt comfortable enough to take off the eyepatch occasionally when he’s with you

also!!! sleeps with his eyepatch side facing you (in the event he wears it to bed)

if this happens you KNOW he trusts you bc it’s his blindside <3

anyways life w kaeya will never be boring but he is a very complicated man

stay with him though, i promise it’ll be worth it

jean

the key to jean’s heart is coffee and food

GET HER COFFEE AND FOOD

i am begging you she deserves it 😭

the poor woman works so hard bc the knights are so mf understaffed, this is literally the best way you can ever show her your love and appreciation when she has work

she will MELT if you have a hot shower and dinner waiting for her when she inevitably returns later than she promised

will completely refuse at first with, “you did not have to do this, it’s too much” but shush her as you shOULD bc she deserves the entire world

she’s the definition of “you do something for me, i’ll return the favor ten times grander”

you leave a flower on her desk bc it reminded you of her??? you’ll wake up to find a whole bouquet of the prettiest windwheel asters you’ve ever seen the next morning along with a thank you note

she’s so sweet BYE

she gets flustered extremely easily so you obviously use this as an opportunity to tease her

when you’re in public rest your hand on her waist and inch it higher until your hand is underneath her shirt and in contact with her warm skin

she’ll actually short-circuit its quite adorable

sometimes y’all will be cuddling and you’ll hear whispers of her insecurities

“am i a good grand master? will i ever be as valiant as vanessa?”

reassure her!!! tell her that she doesn’t need to be like vanessa, she’s already amazing as jean

if you haven’t seen her in awhile, track her down and schedule a lunch date

she never misses appointments and if it’s for you, she’ll gladly make time to see you even if she has to stay up even later than usual

OH-

GIVE HER MASSAGES

she has so much tension and the sorest muscles from hunching over papers and running around on errands

if you sneak into her office and quietly stand behind her before gently pushing down on the sore tendons of her neck, she’ll genuinely fall over on her desk

so make sure you steady her 😀

after you feel how tight her muscles are though, you drag her to barbara bc she needs a healer asap 😭

while most of your time is spent in her office - you helping out in the ways you can while jean is overseeing knight duties - you still have your fair share of life outside of the favonius headquarters

jean never likes to sit still so whenever you have free time, the both of you head off looking for monsters to clear

bouken da bouken???

adventuring w jean is seriously the funnest thing you could ever do

it’s just non-stop you accidentally getting into trouble and her having to come help you

even tho the both of you are dead tired after fighting, what? 20 hilichurl camps now??? the laughter and joy in your eyes shows how you both truly loved every minute of it

it’s both a stress reliever, good fun, and a work-out <3

you’re definitely prone to getting dragged to angel’s share w kaeya

kaeya and jean sometimes hang out after work at the tavern so inevitably you’re dragged along too

all three of you are drunk out of your minds which just makes everything a MILLION times funnier

kaeya slurring over his words makes the two of you start cackling endlessly while diluc just shakes his head making sure to not give you more wine despite your pleas

angel’s share ft. kaeya and bartender diluc are always the best times fr fr

life with her literally feels like y’all are married

so much domesticity it’s so NICE ALJDKSFH

your house is always so clean and the color scheme is impeccable bc jean has such a good eye

you have a chore schedule 😎 but it almost never works out bc jean ends up doing everything without you knowing-

you always confront her abt it and she’s like 😁 “i had some time so i did them! no worries tho” like i- time??? where bitc-

oH- she has amazing style so you can bet shopping w her is literally the best experience

she takes you to all of the hidden gems some places lisa recommended and helps you pick out things

will 100% get really blushy if you come out in something and ask her for her opinion tho she’s literally the cutest

basically jean is a sweet girl who deserves the entirety of teyvat that is all.

thanks for reading! if you have any requests don’t hesitate to send them in <3

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icollectyoursins · 3 years

Text

Jotaro Relationship Head Canons SFW

Because I’m a self indulgent little shit and just love to ignore all of the work I have to do, have some Jotaro head canons. I am but a humble simp, and love this man. So much.

Update as of writing this. Somehow, it got very angsty, so... yeah. Sad man vibes. Also rambly. I just kinda kept going.

Wanna know what I’m willing to write? Rules here!

Have a character, but no idea? Prompt list here!

Looking for more? Master post here!

WARNINGS: None, just angst, but nothing too serious.

Word Count: 2,985

Jotaro’s type is... I mean, it depends, like most people. I don’t think he’s super picky over appearances or things like that, it’s more whether or not he gets along with you and how long he can put up with you. He’s polite (well, as polite as he can be) and courteous, but probably a little more apathetic when you’ve first met. Once you’ve been around for a while he’s more relaxed and almost a little more critical. Mostly because you’re his friend now and he expects more from his friends.

While I was writing this I sort of realized that he could be aromantic. Maybe it’s just my own aro tendencies coming through, but I thought it sort of lined up with his personality. Or at least from my experience with romantic attraction.

Eventually, though, he’ll admit he cares about you a little more than he cares about others. It comes through in little almost compliments. “You did good. Keep it up” or “good job, dealing with this” are common phrases that sound nice on the surface, but it almost feels like he’s trying to pressure you to do more, which is far from the truth.

If it’s not awkward compliments like that, it’s awkward gifts. Always something you had briefly mentioned wanting or stared at a minute longer than you usually do, wrapped in a paper that’s your favourite colour or pattern. Sometimes, though, it’s something you’ve never mentioned that he somehow guessed would be something you wanted.

At the same time, though, he’s oblivious or at least acts like he is. There may be times when he goes home after you said something exceptionally sweet to him or that just means so much and he’ll just take a moment sitting at his desk to mull over what you said.

With a grunt, Jotaro rolled back into the armchair with a cup of tea in one hand and today’s newspaper in the other, since he didn’t get to read it this morning. It’s late with the sun almost completely set, giving his room an orange hue. He tries reading the first column, something about a cat being saved from a sewer grate, but after about a minute, he catches himself drifting away, sort of staring blankly at the paper.

He blinks hard, taking a long sip from his coffee. He must be tired. Another attempt is made at reading, this time the comics. They’re not his favourite thing, but short enough that he can focus on them. Or so he thought.

He zones out again, face suddenly feeling very hot.

He was thinking about you. Or, rather what you said.

It was something so simple, so mundane.

You had been talking about family together, exchanging drama, if you will, and he had brought up how his father had left his mother when he was very young. It didn’t bother him, he had said, after all, it was years ago and if he was being honest, he didn’t really need a father. Then, you gave him this look. It wasn’t pity or something like that. You put your hand on his knee, staring deep into his eyes.

“Jotaro,” you said, voice soft and sweet. You struggled to say the next words, opening your mouth, sighing, then finally: “I’m not leaving you.”

“Why would you be leaving?” He said, confused, taking it literally. Or, he pretended to be confused. It had made his heart warm with affection.

What Jotaro hadn’t noticed at that moment was that his eyes seemed to gloss over with wet tears while talking about his father. He wasn’t over it, you understood that. How could he be? He was so young then, he probably didn’t understand what was happening or why and now that he’s a father himself, there had to be so much guilt about being the same way. It was only now that he was realizing how much you had an effect on him.

It didn’t make him sad, by any means but... loved. He’ll say thank you tomorrow with a gift or some flowers. He hadn’t planned on meeting you for the rest of the week because he was busy, but work could wait, right? Yeah. Tomorrow.

God, it would take so long for him to get you to move in together. He’s so used to living on his own that I think he’s a little self-conscious about it. He’s not a slob by any means, but certainly a bachelor. I mean, he lived (assumedly) on his own from probably around or earlier than DiU right up until Stone Free, so it’s been a while and he’s certainly comfortable with his mess of clothes lying on the floor in the corner, but you won’t be. He cleans up before people come over, obviously, but how many times did he actually invite someone in?

When you start staying around more, he starts cleaning more, which makes him a little frustrated both coming to terms with liking someone enough that he’s actively cleaning for them once a week and also discovering that he’s a lot more gross than he thought. You would not believe how stained the counter was from coffee or how gross the filter was on the coffee maker. He takes his coffee very seriously. You begin to notice how clean everything is, well, how consistently clean everything is and it even starts to smell nicer, more floral and fresh. He bought a lavender air freshener. “It’s supposed to be calming,” he’ll say with a hint of annoyance. It’s not a bad smell to him, better than vanilla air fresheners, but it does give him a headache when he first sprays his place. You seem to like it though, so he’s willing to put up with it.

I honestly believe this man can cook, but nervous when cooking for other people. His food when he was a bachelor was good enough for him and I’m sure Holly would have shown him a lot too, but it’s not the best food. He definitely steps up his game when you’re over and even more so when you move in. He’s better with dishes that have pasta or noodles because it’s easy, but he’s not too bad behind the grill either.

When you guys finally live together, he tries to keep the cooking even, with you cooking some days and him doing the rest, but I honestly feel like unless you are a hazard in the kitchen, you would do most of it.

Jotaro would be like that with most things around the house partly because he doesn’t want you to do all the work if you don’t want to but he enjoys having a little more time to himself to either do work or... yeah, it’s just work. There are a few things that he’ll never make you do because it’s either too hard or he’s built up a routine of doing that thing a certain way and he’s convinced no one else will do it right. Like his laundry. He won’t let anyone else clean his clothes. He tried once and nothing dried right, he swears that his jacket is still damp to this day. You can fold his stuff or hang it up, but he’s running the washing machine and dryer. Also picky about how his office is cleaned.

If you asked and gave a legitimate reason for not doing a certain chore, he’ll do it, but be prepared with an excuse as to why you can’t wash the dishes or fold the laundry. He’s especially resistant if he’s working whether that be gathering information for the Speedwagon Foundation or editing his latest Marine Biology book.

Actually, can we just talk about how much this man hates folding laundry? It’s so pointless to him. Why fold it and put it into neat little piles when you’re just gonna rummage through the drawer and mess everything up? Sure, it looks nice, I guess, but not for long. He was for sure a floordrobe kind of guy, especially in his early years. He knows which ones are clean, it’s fine, just leave it. Of course, he would get better the longer you’re at his place, but still. It’s not that he’s lazy, he’s just busy and putting clothes away takes way too fucking long. (which, honestly, agreed.)

Date nights with Jotaro are... rare. I mean, you live with him, why would he want to go out and pay for something when he could do the same thing at home? They’re nice, of course, but it’s more common for him to take you out to dinner while you guys are on vacation or in a location other than home, because he doesn’t feel like cooking and it’s more special when you’re supposed to go out. Eventually, it clicks in that you are supposed to make each other feel special and will surprise you with an expensive dinner or a short cruise. If you suggest the aquarium he’ll think you’re just saying that because he’s into aquatic wildlife, but honestly doesn’t put up much of a fight and will answer any questions you or anyone else has about the fish.

He does enjoy a good relaxing movie (or documentary) night at home, though. It’s so nice to finally be finished work, settle into your super comfy couch and just chill until he gets tired. Even better when you’re lying on top of him with your head just under his chin. There’s something so soothing about smelling your perfume, shampoo, conditioner, cologne, etc. To just smell you so close to him and feel your weight. Aaah. So nice.

The microwave beeps faintly from the kitchen signalling that popcorn was done. You trailed out soon after, tossing the bowl to mix around the butter. You smile sweetly at him, leaning down to plant a gentle kiss on Jotaro’s lips before settling into his lap, nestling your head just under his while stretching out your legs. His arm instinctively moves from the back of the couch to drape over your back, rubbing circles into it with his thumb.

He sighs; relaxed, finally. He allows himself to kiss your forehead, closing his eyes for a moment, just basking in your comfort. When he opens his eyes, he pulls you closer to him, feeling your heart beat almost in time with his. It was moments like these that eased his panic of losing you. You were here in his arms, safe and sound and vice versa. He was safe in yours.

Yeah, he’s a little angsty. But, can you blame him? He’s getting better, though. With help, of course. With you being around so often (and being very adamant that you’re not going anywhere) he’s able to let go a little. He’s not perfect, by a long shot and progress is slow, but it’s the little things like these that makes you proud of how far he’s come.

PDA is common, but a little restricted. When you’re out together, Jotaro’ll always have his hand on your back or shoulder. Hand-holding isn’t really a thing for him, but he will make sure you know he’s there. He’ll kiss you in public, but it’s not nearly as intimate or special as when you’re at home. Still, it’s a sweet reminder that he loves you, seeing as words of affection aren’t really his thing.

I mean, he can express himself just fine, but he still gets a little nervous saying things like ‘I love you.’ It’s more along the lines of ‘I care about you.’ Or, well. “of course, I care about you. You wouldn’t be here if I didn’t.” Which... thanks. I think.

Kissing him is so nice, so you’re not too mad about him doing that instead of words. When Jotaro kisses you it’s full of a mix of emotions. Mostly caring, but on his rough days, there’s something else there. It could be worry or whatever the emotional equivalent of never letting you go is. You can always tell that he wants it to last a little bit longer. There’s something in the sad look in his eyes when he or you has to pull away. Sometimes he’s overly gentle like he’ll break you somehow, especially if you’re not a stand user or fighting-inclined (whether physical or otherwise). It’s not patronizing, or at least he tries not to be patronizing, he just prefers you safe.

It started out simple enough. You and Jotaro were just sitting at the table, eating dinner when he got this... sinking sort of feeling. There was something in the silence between you that just sent his mind spiralling. Thoughts of you someday dying too soon for whatever reason or leaving him because he’s not there enough, stand users, car crashes, divorce. They all started to flood into his mind, fabricating that you would somehow be taken away from him.

“Jotaro? Are you okay?” Your voice rings through; a bright light breaking the storm. He’s been staring at his plate for a while now, his eyes are dry and itchy. He looks at you and tries to say something, but the words don’t come. Is he okay?

You stand up and walk over to him, cupping his face gently. You rub the dark circles under his eyes while kissing his forehead. Jotaro slowly wraps his arms around you, letting his face fall into your hands. You’re pulled into his lap after a few minutes, running your fingers through his hair next. Finally, he sighs, burying his face in the crook of your neck.

“Thank you,” he mumbles and though you’re not quite sure why, you still say a quiet you’re welcome, silently soothing him through whatever happened.

If you couldn’t tell, he needs a lot of reassurance. Not so much words, but actions like the snippet above. I mean, he can be as strong as he wants but we all know he’s got some baggage and while he’s able to put it aside, for the most part, I think when you’re at home he’s just a little more vulnerable.

Now, onto happier things! If you like coffee or tea, he will always make you a cup in the morning. Jotaro is a very early riser except on the weekends, so he usually gets that done while reading or watching the news and when you come down, he’ll ask if you want breakfast then make it for you seeing as he’s more awake.

He loves coffee. So much. He might have a caffeine addiction, honestly. At all times of every day, you can see him with a black coffee in hand and a book or phone in the other. He will switch to decaf at some point, but you might have to switch it for him. He’s forgetful when he gets busy.

Sleeping in on the weekends is like heaven for him. The two nights (or more on holidays) that he gets a full nights rest, breakfast in bed and a warm soul to cuddle into. He’s usually big spoon with a hand just resting on your side, but please, for the love of god make him the little spoon once a week. Will never admit it or vocalize wanting it. He just grabs your hand and drapes it over him with a “good night” and then promptly passes out.

He’s a heavy sleeper but doesn’t sleep often. Once he’s out, there is nothing that could wake him up except the fire alarm or something like that. It just takes a while. Not because of trauma, but more just internal clock is delayed.

Not a bath guy, strictly showers ‘cause they’re quicker. Most of the time he’s in and out before you can invite him into yours. When you do he’s “reluctant” but showers with you are a favourite of his. He gets his hair washed for him (if he bends down), he can wash you. It’s great.

I don’t think he would want more kids. He’s getting older, busier and just doesn’t think he has the time to care for a baby, even with help. Plus, if they were anything like Joylne or god forbid him when he was younger, he might start greying sooner than he thought. Joylne is a great kid, but... she’s definitely got some of his defiance in him. One kid is fine.

He doesn’t really like pets either, hates when there’s fur on all the furniture. But, if you came home with a stray cat or two, he’s not gonna put up a fight if you say they’re not going to the pound. “Just as long as you take care of them yourself.”

You got him a betta fish once because Jotaro. Fish. Makes sense. He thought it was a little pointless at first. You can’t pet them or play fetch (not like he does those things anyway). All a fish does is sit there and look pretty. You were a little disappointed, but whatever, you’ll take care of it. Then he comes home one day with a 30-gallon tank, freshwater plants and fancy lighting to help them grow which he quietly sets up in the living room. He spent at least a half-hour deciding on where to put it.

A week later, after he’s pleased with how it looks and the tank has been cycled he puts in an order for more fish then lets your betta acclimate to the tank. “There, he’ll be happier in here. The idea of bettas not enjoying or panicking in larger tanks is a myth. He won’t be alone for long anyway. He also won’t kill everything in the tank.” Well, he hopes he won’t, each fish is different. Thankfully, the small school of tetras get along with your betta just fine. From then on, he’s in there once a week, cleaning everything, trimming the overgrowth. It is officially his tank.

#Jotaro is probably my biggest comfort character and the first one I really fell in love with out of jojo so this had to be done at some poin #jotaro kujo #kujo jotaro #jotaro kujo x reader #jotaro x reader #jotaro headcanons #sfw prompts

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sleepy82louih · 2 years

Text

My first thoughts on Harry's House

Please note that this is my personal opinion and my personal interpretation of the album, which obviously includes Larry.

Favourite songs of the first listen are marked violet.

As It Was: Harry being afraid of changes once again for our viewing pleasure. Also called Character Development, because he comes to accept it, in a way.

Boyfriends: As a girl, I know he speaks the truth. Good job, Harry, you seem to be experienced in dating boys– Oh wait. You only ever dated one. Oh, and it also doesn't help your case that this song is probably about him and you both being the 'boyfriend'.

Cinema: I present you with yet another song version of "Louis is a great person to just... sit and admire what he's like."

Daydream: Listen. Touring and working is hard on the Lover Boy. He loves his spouse to bones, he loves to love him. You gotta give it to him, he misses him. I don't see y'all dealing any better with missing Harry's spouse. Honestly.

Daylight: We hate it when they fight, or are far from each other. Harry still loves him through and through. He's a sweet blue bird, after all. And also a drama queen. While Louis is the honey. But what's new.

Grape juice: I love how it feels like he's on the phone. My God, this feels like a lazy evening of them just being them, to me. How Harry creates the atmosphere is beyond me. Also, 1982. Lol, Hazza, L fucking OL.

Keep Driving: Someone's been reminiscing. He feels so... fetus in this song. I just... I can't. This song makes me feel so nostalgic. He has no right to do this. I can see 1D days flashing in front of my eyes. I can see his love life flashing in front of my eyes. This song is too personal. Oh my God.

Late Night Talking: Huh. Okay. So, Louis stubs his toe on the regular, Harry once broke his camera, they have sleeping issues, Harry knows he's a goner, he knows we know he doesn't like change, and Louis lives in his head rent free 24/7, apparently. Good to know. Wbk

Little Freak: Sweet Creature 2.0 in the flesh. Harry's so in love it's embarrassing, y'all. I just... What the hell, Harry. Waxing poetics is one thing, but this? This is plain romance. This is them, from Harry's point of view. No no, not just Louis, them. He's talking about them as seperate and also a pair. Makes you wonder, really. It's so pure it makes you wanna cry. Just... Stop. Too much. I can go on forever.

Love of My Life: As if we didn't know. Yeah, wax more poetics, it's for free. Who's keeping track anyway. Talk relationships in the most romantic way possible and just straight up confess your love. Who's the wiser? It's not like you're gonna leave a fandom bleeding or anything. It's all cool.

Matilda: MY COMFORT SONG. This is a masterpiece. Matilda deserves all the love in the world. Take all I have. Everything. Just stay with me. This work of painful beauty. I will NOT take criticism on this song. I'm way too biased for it. (Also, hail to 1D tradition to use random girl names for God knows why)

MFASR: Long name for a song, Harry, my God. He has a knack for ba-ba-ba's this time around. I'd say he's been drunk while writing this, but... This is Harry. He's always like this. I have no bloody idea what this song is (I mean he is trying to eat stars), so I'm gonna label it as 'Drunk Holiday Love Confessions Somewhere in Tokyo' or something.

Satellite: Harry Styles agreeing with this fandom on Louis being the sun and all of us being satellites. I approve. Communication issues. Harry hopelessly adoring Louis. Louis being the sun– I mean, Louis.

Conclusion: Harry Styles loves Louis Tomlinson. He's been reminiscing. He's been doing some deep thinking and light drinking. Fights and tours been happening. The kids aren't alright, yeah. Harry is reflecting on it all, in a spectacular way. I love this album.

This my instantaneous reaction to the album, I wrote as I listened. This is, in no way, a deep analysis.

#harry's house #harry styles hs3 #hs3 #hs3 spoilers #harry's house spoilers #larry af #larry stylinson

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narutakijune · 3 years

Text

About ATLA Relationship Arcs

So, this is me, finally trying to write some meta after lurking in my little tumblr corner for months! Hi!

Although I’ve tried to tag properly, if you are a Kat*anger and just want to enjoy your favourite couple in peace, this might not be the post for you. I am not trying to bash characters but I do have a lot of critical stuff to say about the writing.

Anyway, you have been warned and here is my story about my personal first Atla experience: I watched the show this year for the first time, and after the end of Book 1 I decided to look up spoilers, because after what happened to Yue, I wanted to make sure that Zuko and Iroh would be ok. So I knew what was going to happen: Kat*ang endgame and absolutely no Zutara at all. Still, by the end of Book 3, I was convinced that I had read wrong - that there would be an epilogue with a different ending or at least that Aang would only get together with Katara post-show- in that Korra series or something - because anything else wouldn’t make sense- right?

….

After I got over my shock and surprise, I went online and found out about that decade-long aggressive passionate ship war and how even the showrunners got involved.

And then I really worried that I might have missed a few points. Apparently ”Aang and Katara were the DNA of the show”, according to the creators themselves, and “Zutara could never have happened”.

Another popular anti-ZK argument I found was: Why do you always go on about Katara and Zuko? Just look at Zuko and Aang! They are the hero/ anti-hero and each other’s foils, their relationship is much more meaningful!”

So I tried to find out what it was that I apparently couldn’t see.

(Another disclaimer: I love analysing stories (like many Zutarians apparently) and this will get long and rambly. If you get bored to tears when people start talking about “narrative structure” you will probably not like this.)

Talking about narrative structure, I do believe that, in order to let your story, your characters and their relationships really shine, a good basic structure is important. There should be a recognizable development and individual parts of the story that build upon each other and lead to consequences and change, until there is a completed arc - because it is all about the journey that takes you to a satisfying ending, right? So that’s what I tried to do, with my personal Kat*ang vs. Zutara take, I tried to look at the structure and development of their relationship arcs.

The argument that threw me off track for a while is that compared to Aang and Zuko, Zuko and Katara’s relationship is not supposed to be that relevant for the plot. After all, Zuko is the foil, the anti-hero, the deuteragonist to Aang, who is the hero protagonist.

This is all true of course. But then why is it that in every finale, Zuko’s main opponent (and later ally) is not Aang but Katara? Why is it that their sun/moon, red/blue, fire/water dichotomy is so obviously highlighted?

I think one reason why Zuko and Katara are paired off so frequently in the story - as opposite elements, as opponents and as allies - is that they BOTH are Aang’s deuteragonists. While Zuko also acts as antagonist and Aang’s foil/mirror, Katara takes over the more traditional deuteragonist role of confidant / best friend/ narrator.

Protagonist Aang is what connects them, although they are on opposite sides: Both need Aang because he represents their hope to save their world. Very simply put, Katara protects him, so he can make the world a safer place again, and Zuko wants to capture him, so he can go home and be safe again. That rivalry between them is already established in the first episode, even before they meet each other: Katara, who hopes that the Avatar will return (as she tells everyone in the intro), and Zuko, who seems to be obsessed with finding him for more sinister reasons.

And just to make sure, I am not talking here about the characters’ feelings and emotions! This is just about the abstract roles they have been assigned within the narrative.

When regarding Zutara’s special connection to Aang and their rivalry with each other, it makes absolute sense to stress their “same but different”ness as well, visually and metaphorically: Red and blue, fire and water, sun and moon, arguably Painted Lady/Blue Spirit, and, when you put into account their story arc, also Oma and Shu.

With this basis, which puts them together and sets them apart simultaneously, their relationship already becomes very dynamic and interesting, even before you consider any romantic potential.

And here’s another thing, Zuko and Katara also have their own story arc within the main plot. Although they don’t have many scenes together before Zuko joins the Gaang, when they do meet there is always a new shift in their relationship and in quite a few cases their interactions are important for the main plot as well. If you just look at their “end fights” at each book’s finale, there is an obvious and consequential build-up, like any decent story arc should have:

Book 1 starts with Zuko as the powered-up enemy and Katara as the weak newbie waterbender. Both are battling over Aang. At the end of Book 1, they are finally established as equally powerful fighters but still fundamentally different (You rise with the moon, I rise with the sun!)

In CoD at the end of Book 2 happens the next step: they realize that they are not different at all! But Aang still doesn’t represent the same for them and they end up on opposing sides of the war again.

In the Book 3 finale, when Zuko has completed his own (anti-) hero's journey and Aang represents the same “hope” for both of them, they do not only join forces: Their “same but different”- traits make them such a uniquely suited match that they are even able to save each other’s lives during their fight with Azula (who in turn happens to be Katara and Zuko’s antagonist/mirror/foil).

And in addition to their own story arc they even get an individual recurring theme, which also appears in every book whenever their relationship status changes: The lost mothers, especially Katara’s mother.

In Book 1, Katara’s necklace (the symbol of Kiya) plays not only a major part in two of Zuko’s capture attempts, it is the reason for their very first one-one one encounter in the story.

Their first friendly connection in COD in Book 2 happens because they start talking about their mothers. And in Book 3, their final reconciliation (sealed with a very cathartic hug) happens after their life-changing trip which is, of course, all about Katara’s mother.

Again, I am not even trying to analyse their characters and motivations within the story - there are many metas that have already done that much better, more detailed and with screenshots. This is just dry structure and tropes and themes. But I think people recognize and connect with a well-structured arc, even subconsciously, which is one of the reasons that makes Zutara such a compelling couple. They complete and contrast each other, their relationship dynamic constantly changes, builds up, falls apart, reconnects. Such a setup is the perfect playground for a lot of creative takes on what-ifs and alternative scenarios and of course, shipping them romantically is extremely tempting - think of all the possibilities! It’s no wonder that the Zutara fandom is still so active decades after the end of the show. And it’s also no wonder that the Zutarians are known for “over-analysing everything”. You can only over-analyse if there is anything that gives you enough food to analyse to begin with. Which brings me to

KAT*ANG

I just go right to the top and take the quote from Br*yke themselves:

Kata*ng was in the DNA of the thing from the start…. [Zutara] was just dark and intriguing.

If you read this quote and then start watching the show, I would (grudgingly) agree that:

Aang and Katara understand and complement each other really well. Aang gives her the chance to have fun and go on adventures and in turn, Katara is his fiercest supporter from the very beginning, something that he really needs after he lost all his people AND has to find out that the world thinks the war is sort of his fault. In turn, the journey to the North Pole is as important to Katara as it is to Aang, because it is her dream to learn waterbending properly. That’s what she literally says when Sokka & Co try to banish Aang: (Sokka: Where do you think you’re going? Katara: To find a waterbender. Aang is taking me to the North Pole.) In that way, they are friends who give and take equally and are equally taken care of. They even have the last Airbender/ last Southern Waterbender status that connects them. The few times they have a fight, Aang does something in the end to redeem himself (perform some heroic feat) and Katara sees that she is right to believe in him.

Aang has this very sweet crush on her and it will be very sweet and wholesome when Katara will return his feelings at the end of their adventure after he has hit puberty. On the other side, there is also some heavy shipbaiting with Zuko: I save you from the pirates. The betrothal necklace. June and her excellent shipping taste. But in the end they are enemies, they barely know each other and, come on, it would be too dark and intriguing! There is no real threat against friends to lovers Kat*ang, the soft heart of the story. It’s very straightforward and there are a lot of simple “the hero saves the day” scenes for Aang but that’s fine! It’s not really my kind of ship but that’s not the point, it works for the story they want to tell.

End of Book 1.

In my - probably harsh- opinion, everything you really need to know about the Kat*ang relationship has been told by this point. If you want to be really mean, already by Book 1, episode 3.

That explains maybe why many (not all! but many) pro-KA arguments sound as if their shippers have not watched Book 2 and 3 at all. The Book 1 synopsis also perfectly sums up Bry*ke’s quote above. But then Book 2 and 3 are still there and I don’t know what happened but it seems as if they somehow decided that the Kat*ang story does not need any new and lasting input. Maybe because they were afraid that too much new development and change would stray too far away from their original Kat*ang vision. But there are still 2 more books and more adventures and Kat*ang somehow has to be kept apart until the finale.

So the tension in their potential romance is based largely on the question whether or not Katara will return Aang’s feelings. In general I don’t have a problem with that will-she-won’t she-technique. It works well in books where the love interest is not a POV or in shows/ movies where the love interest is not one of the main characters. But Katara is not only the female lead but also arguably the narrative voice of the whole story! As a result, this kind of writing makes Katara look as if she doesn’t have any agency in their relationship, which is not surprisingly a very popular anti-KA criticism.

Additionally, since her dream - learning waterbending - has been fulfilled by the end of Book 1, the relationship work becomes a bit one-sided. Of course Aang is the hero and his journey is the heart of the story. But in order to highlight their special connection it would have helped to give Katara another personal agenda, which Aang could have supported in some way. She is still the last Southern Waterbender and he the Last Airbender but this is not really explored in the Kat*ang relationship. And her other personal agenda, her mother, is already reserved for the Zutara arc.

Instead, in Book 2 and 3 the Kat*ang story is somehow all over the place. Of course there is new conflict and a few romantic scenes as well. But obstacles are either introduced too late or just dropped when not needed anymore, conflict is not resolved and their flirty, romantic moments never lead anywhere- and if they do, they lead to more conflict that is not resolved (yes, I am looking at you, EIP Kiss!).

Take for example Katara’s very sudden argument that they cannot be together now because there is a war going on. We hear her saying that for the first time in the very last episode (EIP) before the 4-part finale. That is too late to have any impact! That she has these kinds of thoughts was never even alluded to before. Not once.

Or the pattern Aang runs away/ is flaky - Katara is upset - Aang comes back and does his hero thing - Katara is relieved. In regards to their relationship arc, nothing changes here between Book 1 and the finale, only the stakes for Aang’s heroic performances get higher.

Or Katara being the one who is able to calm Aang down when he cannot control the Avatar state (which, in my personal opinion, is neither romantic nor healthy). This is also connected to the problem with the seventh Chakra, that Aang needs to let go of his attachment for her. I will be angry forever with how they wasted this for a possible relationship development! That Aang has to decide to either do his duty or save his forever girl (because let’s be fair, he did try to let go and only ran when he had the vision of Katara in danger) - that’s a fantastic setup!

But no, it doesn’t have any real consequences for Kat*ang at all. Instead there were only half-baked attempts – Aang does lie about his failed practice with Guru Pathik but the ultimate reason why his chakra is blocked is Azula, not his decision to run. Aang does try to let go of Katara for a little bit but then Azula shoots him. Nothing in Book 3 shows any change in his feelings that could have been a result of his instant let-it-go. If anything, he gets weirdly obsessive - which could have been used as a side effect of his blocked chakra but – again, no, nothing happens.

I suspect the whole thing was just introduced to create temporary drama for poor Aang, but it is never explained why Katara holds him back, what aspect of the attachment is blocking him or what would happen if he did let her go. Maybe they tried to make a statement about how love is more important than Avatar rules – which would have been fine but it’s also never properly explored. Instead, as soon as that plot point becomes inconvenient it’s simply dropped like a random rock™.

Compare all that to the Zutara arc, where both characters’ feelings about each other are always very much in the open, and where every interaction causes lasting effects in their relationship. Yes, it is unfair to compare that to Kat*ang, because up to the end of Book 3, Zuko and Katara almost never meet, while Aang and Katara spend almost every episode together – of course they cannot do meaningful things all the time. But on the other side, with Kat*ang, there would have been a great chance to show a subtle, gradual build-up instead.

It also doesn’t help that the Zutara arc seems hellbent on sabotaging every romantic moment Aang is allowed to enjoy:

There is Kat*angs first maybe-kiss in the dark before the background of the Oma and Shu legend. But it does not lead anywhere. Instead, Zuko and Katara almost reenact the legend itself in the Book 2 finale as two real enemies to almost-friends, including a glowy rocks-backdrop and the right costume colours, just so nobody misses the message.

In Footloose The Headband, Aang and Katara have a really sweet dance together, and everybody can see how they almost intuitively know each other's moves. This could be a great hint on how well they will fight together in the finale. But is it plot-relevant? No, because the final tag team is Katara and Zuko! While Aang gets paired off with random rock™.

Then there is Aang’s riding off to battle- kiss in DotBS, which Katara is not even allowed to enjoy, because keeping her feelings vague is apparently more important than character development at this point. It is the only romantic moment that gets mentioned again, but in a way that sinks the former cute and wholesome ship into the deep ocean, and the reason is - Aang is jealous of Zuko!

If all of this was only done for the sake of shipbaiting, then it really went out of control at some point.

In the end, the showrunners still had their reasons to choose Kat*ang, maybe because that corresponded more to their own vision, and there are still enough people out there who agree with them. Which is absolutely fine! In the end, what matters most is how you personally connect to the characters and nobody needs to defend their personal taste. But the typical anti-ZK claim, that all the Zutarians with their crazy analysis and rambling meta essays are reaching and delusional and that they desperately try to construct something that isn’t there, is not only a very lazy argument but simply not true.

And I’d claim that in spite of the canon choice, Zutara is technically the better written relationship. By far.

#zutara #antikataang #anti kataang #anti-kataang #atla critical #atla writing critical #long post #atla meta

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firelxdykatara · 4 years

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ppl love to forget that katara: 1. has her own taste, 2. developed around aang, he needed her for his development and vice versa, 3. ZUTARA IS SHIP BETWEEN AN OPPRESOR X OPPRESSED!!! Ignoring all of the development they had with their respective partners and the trauma Zuko caused Katara!!

In the infamous words of one Luke Skywalker: amazing. every word of what you just said was wrong.

It’s actually kind of ironic that you bring up Katara’s taste, since, throughout the show, we have examples of the guys she likes, to greater or lesser extents in canon--Jet (explicit romantic feelings on her part, word of god that jet was her first kiss--a kiss that would have been consensual, incidentally, something you should keep in mind for later) and Haru (she denies the crush, but that could just as easily have been because of the abomination he’d been growing on his lip rather than denying those feelings ever existed), both of whom have much more in common (in terms of both emotional and physical maturity, and physical appearance) with Zuko than either of them has with Aang.

Zuko’s book 3 hairstyle is almost exactly reminiscent of Jet’s, even, if not quite as floofy.

(This is probably in part because of Jet’s function as a foil of Zuko within the narrative, particularly given their book 2 encounters, which I think just further solidifies my point that, were it not for extenuating circumstances [like the fact that Zuko was introduced as an enemy and they had significant obstacles to hurdle before they could be friends], Zuko would have been exactly Katara’s type. Had they met under different circumstances, she could have been the girl he went on a date with in Ba Sing Se. Just something to think about.)

So, yes, we’ve established that Katara has her own taste. Her tastes seem to be boys with great hair who are taller than her, the same age or older, and of a similar maturity level.

Aang falls short (heh, short) on all counts. So it isn’t Katara’s taste in boys that led her to be interested in him. Hm!

Next, you claim that Katara ‘developed around Aang’--that she was necessary for his development, and that he was necessary for hers.

Let’s take a moment to examine that, shall we?

I will absolutely grant you that Katara was necessary for Aang’s development--only to a point, of course, but we’ll get to that later--but was he really necessary for Katara‘s growth? I suppose I could grant you this on a generous technicality--he did, after all, provide her with the means to finally leave the South Pole and find a waterbending master to teach her (although she wound up largely self-taught anyway). But that had nothing to do with his relationship to Katara and everything to do with the structure of the plot--Katara and Sokka find Aang (and he never would have gotten out of that iceberg without Katara’s own righteous anger, so even that leads back to her own power), and then they go on a quest to find teachers for the Chosen One and save the world.

The story could not have begun without first finding Aang and then providing means for the other main characters to travel with him (or, in Zuko’s case, chase him), but this has nothing at all to do with Aang’s relationship to Katara. Aang was not a mover in Katara’s developmental arc--if anything, he acted as an obstacle more often than not, his actions ranging from innocent but obnoxious (playing and flirting with girls rather than helping with chores like picking up vital supplies, leaving Katara to do all of the quite literal heavy lifting and keeping her stuck in the role of caretaker that she’d been thrust into following the death of her mother), to deliberate and harmful (hiding the map to Katara and Sokka’s father, a truly selfish action, regardless of his lack of malicious intent, and one for which he never actually apologized), to somewhere in between (”she didn’t really mean that” he says to the man refusing to train Katara because she’s a girl, when yes, she very much did mean that, and Aang was no help in finally getting the old codger to eat his words--Katara had to shove them down his throat her own damn self).

While Katara’s overall arc wasn’t exactly big and dynamic (like Zuko’s redemption arc), or in-your-face (like Sokka getting force-fed Respect Women Juice and his eventual growth into a tactician and leader), it was very much present and woven into her character--and Aang had almost no part in it. He provided her with the means to get to the North Pole, but left Katara alone to fight the patriarchy herself. He messed around while Katara took it on herself to do the chores and keep the Gaang alive, but he did almost nothing to decrease that burden so she could grow out of the caretaker role. (Contrary to popular shipper claims, Aang didn’t actually teach Katara to have fun. She already knew how to have fun. But she couldn’t indulge, because she had a responsibility to her family and her tribe, and later to her brother and Aang and Toph, and Aang goofing off and trying to get her to do the same only added to her burdens rather than subtracting from them.) He provided Katara with the necessary motive to learn to heal herself, but he certainly didn’t seem to learn from the experience of accidentally burning her, preferring instead to claim he was never going to firebend again, despite already knowing, at that point, that he was going to need to master fire along with the other elements to become a fully realized Avatar and defeat the Firelord.

He didn’t help Katara keep them alive during The Desert. (In fact, he ran off, leaving her to desperately try to keep Sokka and Toph from succumbing to the heat while worrying for his safety.) In The Painted Lady, Katara makes the decision to stall the Gaang and do what she can to help the Fire Nation villagers on her own--Aang agrees to help her when he finds out, but he wasn’t actually instrumental in her making that choice. The Puppetmaster was, again, Katara finding a master of her own, and having to deal with the fallout from that. And in The Southern Raiders, Aang was--perhaps unknowingly, if I’m being generous, because he is a child and could not reasonably be expected to fully understand the implications of what he was asking her to do or why it was impossible--actively impeding Katara’s development! She desperately needed closure, something he could not understand and actively belittled and dismissed. The only reason he relented in the end (but not without a condescending ‘I forgive you! Does that give you any ideas???’ parting shot lmao) was because Katara was planning to take Appa anyway, and letting her go (and hoping she’d just magically wind up doing things his way) was easier than trying to fight her on it.

While Aang’s existence was necessary for Katara to start down her own path, she needed neither his guidance nor his approval to follow it--and absolutely nothing would change about Katara’s arc if you removed their romantic relationship entirely.

Possibly because the only changes needed to do so would be to remove the two times Aang kissed Katara without her consent (which, hopefully, no one would actually miss), and the epilogue kiss (which was awkward and unnecessary to begin with, since ending the entire show on a romantic kiss as the final shot kind of missed the point of the story to begin with, but that’s another discussion). None of these kisses (which are the only moments in which Katara’s feelings for Aang are so much as addressed; do note that addressing them, or hinting that they needed to be, is not the same as saying she exhibited any sign of reciprocating them) altered anything about Katara’s behavior, her personal arc, or (and perhaps most critically) her relationship with Aang.

It’s that last point that is really damning, as far as ‘Katara obviously had feelings for Aang, she kissed him in the finale!’ goes. Because she didn’t ‘obviously’ have feelings for him. And the fact that he kissed her before the invasion and then she forgot about it (she literally had no idea what he was talking about during the play’s intermission until he reminded her that he’d kissed her) is pretty clear evidence that she didn’t actually have feelings for him. Not the kind he had for her.

I’ve been a teenage girl. I know what it’s like to be surprise!kissed by your crush. And I absolutely for a full fact know that I had not completely forgotten about that kiss three months later and had, in fact, spent most of my waking hours thinking about it and remembering it and trying to talk to him about it. Now, granted, I was not in the middle of a war, but even if I had been, I doubt I would have needed reminding about the fact that the boy I’ve supposedly been developing feelings for had kissed me and showed clearly that he had those feelings for me too.

At the very least, if Katara was harboring feelings that she was worried about approaching until after the war, her relationship dynamic with Aang should have shifted. But it didn’t. She acted the exact same way with him after the Day of Black Sun as she did before it--that is, as a mother figure and a caretaker, responsible for his wellbeing. (And it’s clear she never took him down off the pedestal she needed him to occupy, either--let it not be said that the unhealthy aspects of their relationship only went one way.)

And book 3 is, incidentally, where Katara went from being vital to Aang’s development to being detrimental to it--or, rather, Aang’s refusal to let go of his attachment to her (despite ostensibly having done as much at the end of book 2) was. Because despite having been told by, perhaps, the greatest authority left in the world on Air Nomad culture (even more than Aang, who had left his temple with a child’s understanding of his culture that was never able to mature because he got stuck in the ice berg while his people were wiped out) that he had to let go of his possessive attachment to this girl who never even expressed the possibility that she might harbor romantic feelings for him to begin with, after Azula killed him and Katara brought him back, he went right back into the mindset of Katara is mine, it’s just a matter of time.

And the narrative validated him for it.

Notice how, during Ember Island Players, Aang says the following (emphasis mine):

“We kissed at the invasion, and I thought we were gonna be together. But we’re not.”

First of all, if you go back and watch the scene, it’s clear it wasn’t a mutual kiss. Aang sprang a surprise kiss on Katara, which left her shocked and unhappy after he flew off. (The decision to have her looking away and frowning was a deliberate one on the part of Bryke, who wanted Katara’s feelings kept ambiguous. Heaven forbid you allow the animators to make it clear that this fourteen-year-old girl who was just kissed without her consent by someone she’d never once demonstrated romantic feelings toward might actually have some. Heaven forbid she have a little agency in her own romantic narrative. But whatever.)

Second, he says he thought they were gonna be together.

He thought.

He never once even asked Katara what she thought--or even how she felt. He just assumes. He assumes that if he kisses her, she’ll kiss him back and they’ll get together. He assumes that she must have feelings for him, even though her body language is closed off and she told him with her words that she did not want to talk or think about this right now, and kisses her regardless of those signals, upsetting her and leading her to storm off.

And the narrative rewards him, because despite the fact that they don’t have a single significant scene together after that second disastrous kiss, Katara just decides off-screen that she Does Love Him Really and walks onto the balcony to make out with him.

The upshot of all this being that, while Katara was indeed instrumental to a lot of Aang’s early growth and development, Aang was not necessary for her own arc, and their romantic relationship (such as it was) actively hampered Aang’s development in book 3, while removing it would change absolutely nothing for Katara (except saving her from some painfully embarrassing memories).

As far as your third point, I’m simply not going to get baited into explaining how reducing Zutara to an ‘oppressor/oppressed’ relationship is not only insulting to interracial couples irl (not to mention any other couple with a potentially unbalanced dynamic of societal power, since there are many more axis of oppression than just racial), but demeaning to Zuko and Katara, their personal arcs as well as their relationship development together.

However, I will point out that Zuko was not responsible for any of Katara’s trauma. She did not find violence and fighting in bending battles to be traumatic--in fact, she reveled in it. She enjoyed fighting against Zuko at multiple points (especially noticeable in their battle at the end of book 1), because she wanted to fight--she always had--and once she had the ability, she was ready to throw down with anyone who gave her the slightest reason. (Including, by the way, her own potential waterbending master.) Aang’s death at the end of book 2 was Azula’s doing, and while I think that contributed to Katara’s extreme reaction to Zuko joining the gaang, it was not something for which she actively blamed him, and it wasn’t something she believed would be repeated--she let him go off alone on a journey to find the original firebending masters with Aang well before she chose to forgive him. So she already trusted Zuko’s intentions and that Aang would be safe with him.

Finally, because this has gotten long enough already, I hope you now understand that Zuko and Katara getting together would not require ignoring any of their development with their canonical romantic partners. We’ve already established that Katara’s arc wouldn’t change in the slightest if all of Aang’s romantic advances were removed, and I haven’t even gotten into how Mai meant nothing in the grand scheme of Zuko’s development because I’m pretty sure that’s just self-evident. I mean, the video compilation put together by Nick showcasing Zuko’s journey throughout the series doesn’t include a single scene with Mai, though it does include several with Katara, and even Jin makes an appearance--because Katara, and even Jin, played key roles in Zuko’s personal journey, while his relationship with Mai happened entirely off-screen and her only real function was to showcase just how unhealthy trying to force himself back into the role of the Crown Prince was for him.

What development, exactly, is there between them to even ignore?

At any rate, I’ve gone on long enough--I hope you enjoy the fact that you activated my wordvomit trap card right when i was about to go to bed, anon, because I just spent two hours writing this instead. In case you’re interested in the TL;DR: at the end of the day, there was no meaningful, mutual development in Kataang’s romantic relationship, and those romantic feelings that did exist were largely one-sided and ultimately detrimental to Aang’s development in the final third of his overall arc. Meanwhile, Mai meant nothing to Zuko’s journey--rather like Aang’s romantic overtures, she could be removed from the show completely and nothing about his story would change--while Zuko and Katara were both vital to each other’s overall storylines, arcs and development. This, coupled with the fact that Zuko never actually traumatized Katara and, in fact, helped her achieve closure from the biggest source of her own trauma, means that Zuko and Katara have better and more believable build up that could potentially lead to a romantic relationship than either of them have with their canon romantic partners.

So no, anon, I didn’t forget anything--I think you may have, though. Perhaps a rewatch is in order? Make sure not to close your eyes for the back half of book 3 this time.

#atla #zutara #zuko #katara #aang salt #kataang salt #maiko salt #salt for ts #just trying to cover my bases #asked #Anonymous

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elareine · 3 years

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Tim realizing that since Jason has been in the pit, Jason is always cold. He cant get warm. Tim throws himself into working this out, there has to be something to warm Jason.

Hi, anon, thank you for your patience. I… took the sappy route with this. Since this got longer than 1k, I posted it on ao3, too.

Attempt One

“How’re you doing?”

Tim eyes the bundle in front of him critically. Jason dropped by his safe house thirty minutes ago, teeth chattering after an encounter with Mr. Freeze, and he only looked marginally better. The chattering stopped; that can be a good sign or a very bad one.

Jason gives him a weak grin. “Alright. No danger of turning into an icicle any time soon.”

Hmm. Tim will see that for himself.

When he moves, Jason lifts a hand in protest. “Hey, no—“

Tim completely ignores Jason’s protests—he’d feel worse about it if it wasn’t the only way to handle injured Bats—and sticks his hand between the isolation blanket and Jason’s neck… just to flinch back. “Holy shit!”

“Nah, it’s—“

“It’s hypothermia, is what it is!” Whatever bullshit is coming out of Jason’s mouth, Tim is not listening. “You’re going into shock! We gotta get some extra heat in here, or maybe actually call the hospital; I’m not equipped for this—“

Jason’s hand closes over his mouth. Tim gives him a second to remove it, then he licks it.

Jason just grins. “As I was trying to say: It’s always like that. My body temperature never went back to normal after daying.”

“Nnr?”

“Never.” Jason shrugs. He looks completely unbothered in a way that leaves Tim incensed. That’s just stupid. Did Jason just accept the fact that he’s in constant discomfort as if that’s not a thing there should be—should be—multiple solutions to, what the fuck. Tim is gonna fix this, so God help him.

Tim is so busy coming up with 315 possible solutions that he even forgets to bite Jason’s hand for a moment.

(Only a moment, though. “Ouch!”)

Attempt Two

“I’m not sure how you think piling more blankets on me will help me raise my core temperature.”

“Of course it’s not.”

Jason raises an eyebrow at the three blankets currently on top of him. “Right. Silly of me.”

Tim rolls his eyes. Men. So ungrateful. “Your core temperature is obviously affected. That’s why I brought heating blankets.” Many, many heating blankets. Jason ends up looking somewhat like a disgruntled duck by the end. Tim has pictures to prove it.

Thirty minutes later, Tim takes Jason’s temperature. Still way, way too low for a human. He sighs. That would’ve been too easy, huh.

“You know,” Jason waggles his eyebrows, “there’s a rather more traditional way of warming up under the blanket.”

Tim swats his head. “Keep it in your pants.”

“Even if I wasn’t, you wouldn’t be able to tell under all these blankets,” Jason tells him mournfully.

Tim decides that retreat is the better part of valor. For today. Just until he can stop imagining what Jason could do to… warm up.

Attempt Three

“A hot bath.”

“…you think I haven’t tried that?”

No. No, actually Tim doesn’t, and his expression must adequately convey that cause Jason throws his hands up. “Okay, no, I haven’t, not really. My place isn’t that fancy.”

“It certainly doesn’t have this tub. Now shoo, get out of these clothes.”

“Why, darlin’, you only ever had to ask.” Without ceremony, Jason pulls off his shirt, then begins working on his belt. “Alright, tell me: What makes this tub special?”

“From observation, I conclude that your resistance to high temperatures has also increased,” Tim begins in an excellent mad scientist voice, just to drop it right after. “Or you wouldn’t be able to wear that fucking jacket in summer. So I engineered a tub that will slowly heat up to a temperature just above 50 degrees Celsius.”

“I sure hope so,” Jason grumbles as he climbs in, unabashed in his nudity, “cause right now it’s really fucking cold, babybird.”

Funny cause Tim thinks it’s definitely getting hot in here.

Hoping his face doesn’t heat up—haha—, he looks down at his phone and activates the heat settings on the tub. “At least,” he says thoughtfully, “we don’t have to worry about accidentally causing a heart infarct or anything like with normal freezing victims. I think.”

“I’m gonna pretend I didn’t hear that.”

“We’ll take it slow, anyway.”

Almost two hours later, Jason’s skin is red and wrinkled and covered in glitter from Tim’s bath bomb. He’s still cold to the touch.

Attempt Four

“Tea? Really?”

“You like tea.” Jason has been hanging around Tim’s place often enough that the younger man knows. (If there’s a corner of the top shelf just dedicated to Jason’s favorite blends, well, they don’t talk about it.) “And anyway, this tea is special.”

Jason put down the cup. “Tim.”

“Yes?”

“Tell me you didn’t get this from Ivy.”

“I didn’t get this from Ivy,” Tim recites just a little too dutifully. Truthfully, he hasn’t—it’s of his own creation in the lab—but seeing Jason squirm is just too funny.

“The things I do for you, babybird,” Jason sighs and exes about half of it. When nothing obviously terrible happens, he drinks the rest in small, careful sips.

“Nothing?”

“A hint of chamomile—I get that one, soothing—and… bergamot?”

“Yeah, that’s your favorite, right?” Tim’s taking down notes and is only half-listening. “How do you feel? Any warmer?”

When Jason doesn’t reply right away, Tim does look up. “Jay?”

The older man has a slight smile on his face. “A little warmer, yes.”

Tim brightens and jumps up. Jason lets him stick the thermometer under his tongue without any objection. Tim is a little disheartened when it climbs up to 33°C and stays there, again, though he tries to stay focused on the positives: “I guess it’s a start, though. After all, the perception of warmth is just as or more important than the objective temperature.”

“Uhuh.”

“Also, you didn’t turn green, so that’s good.”

“Tim!”

Attempt Five

“Okay, if this doesn’t work, I don’t even know anymore.”

“Please tell me you’re not hooking me up to electrodes.”

“Sorry, that’s too dumb a lie even for me.” Tim is about to demand that Jason takes his shirt off again—an unfortunate side effect of this type of experiment, really, how terrible that he has to ogle those pecs and abs again—when he pauses. “Wait. Is that… a bad thing?”

Which is terrible phrasing for Is this something that was used to torture you? but Jason seems to get it cause he shakes his head. “Nah, just didn’t know you’re into that.”

“I’m not!” Tim isn’t.

…at least, he doesn’t think he is? There’s certainly something to be said about the inherent homoeroticism of applying gel to another man’s skin and attaching electrodes. He’s so caught up in the entire thing—and the way Jason’s muscles jump and twitch when Tim applies his own brand of stimulant ray to them—that he doesn’t notice how quiet Jason is, too.

However, in the end, the thermometer still reads 33°C.

“Fuck,” Tim mutters. “I really thought I had it.”

“Guess I can put my shirt back on.” Jason makes no move to do so.

“Yeah.” Tim is looking at his notes again, trying to figure out where he went wrong. His joking words at the beginning aside, there are still options, avenues for him to pursue. It’s just that these are the most promising ones, and Tim can’t bear the thought of failure. The idea that Jason will just—will just have to live like this, forever cold and disconnected—

He lifts his face when he hears Jason putting his shoes and jacket on. “You don’t have to leave. I can still—“

“Nah, it’s fine. There’re only so many sex jokes I can make before even I can take the hint,” Jason sighs. “Thanks, though, Tim. I really appreciate the effort.” He turns toward the window.

It takes 4.7 seconds for Tim’s brain to catch up with that, and then another 2.4 for it to convince his body to move.

“Jay! Wait!”

The Solution

The afternoon sun throws golden rays into their bedroom. Tim can feel her rays tickle his face, his eyes, so he turns further into the embrace that’s been offered to him all night. Jason doesn’t wake up, just snuffles out a slight snore and pulls Tim half on top of him as if his boyfriend is some sort of overgrown teddy bear.

Tim snuggles into the crook of Jason’s neck contently. In his opinion, there’s no better place to be: His lover underneath him, chest rising and falling with every breath he takes, warm and alive and here for Tim…

Wait.

Warm. Jason’s warm.

Tim scrambles up and frantically reaches for his bedside, where the damned thermometer has a place of pride after the last time he got sick, and Jason returned the favor by taking his temperature every five minutes.

“Babybird…?” Jason’s voice is rough with sleep. Tim feels a little bad about waking him up, but: !!!!

The thermometer climbs. And climbs. When it stops, it reads 36°C degrees.

“That makes absolutely no sense,” Tim whispers, awed.

“Nope,” Jason agrees amiably. “You’ll figure it out, though. Can I have some more snuggles first?”

On the one hand, Tim is dying to look this up in the literature and maybe talk to someone who knows Lazarus Pits better. This doesn’t make sense scientifically, so there has to be some magic involved, right? Perhaps the pits are more into metaphors than they thought, or—there are so many possibilities, and Tim can’t wait to explore them.

On the other hand… Jason’s looking soft and warm, opening his arms for Tim, and he’s smiling. It’s no contest, really.

Tim presses a kiss to Jason’s cheek and sinks back into his embrace, scientific pursuits forgotten.

#elareine writes #jaytim

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falloutjay · 3 years

Note

Stan x anxious/compassionate reader (kind of has a little canon divergence)

After giving up on Wendy (around Season 12), Stan and us start dating, we were always worried about him (no we weren't dating him out of pity, we were just a very anxious person). Some people find of clingy, others find us adorable but We've never left his side:

Ex: We were by his side helping with whales (Whale W)

We were the only one who didn't leave him when he got depression (You're Getting Old/Ass Burgers)

Next to Heidi, we became social pariah because we didn't want to dump Stan (this even made Wendy guilty)

But him moving, really gets to us, the coronavirus makes it worse. We get worried about him, then we start getting worried about everyone else as everything falls apart (Kyle, Kenny, Eric, Butters, Tweek, Craig, Scott, etc.) And we pass out of stress. About waking up in the hospital, we find out, everyone was worried about us. And Stan is the most worried of all, he spends the whole day with us. We tal-no vent about all the happened to the both of us. By the end of it, we agree that whatever happens we'll do it together.

Guess whos back! :D

Well, while it's not my best work, in my humble opinion, I sure hope you enjoy and like it. Again sorry for the delay! ಥ_ಥ

And if it's not that clear, because I know I can write a little cryptic, there is a time skip. You can either have all the show events happen when they are children and have the time skip between Covid and the memories or between you getting together as kids and the memories. Choose however you like! ^^

_________________________________________

Stan x anxious!compassionate!Reader

Tiny eyes watched the scene unfold.

Normally, Wendy was the one to break up with Stan, but not this time around. Stan was actually telling Wendy that he had no interest in her anymore.

“What changed Stan?” Wendy asked, obviously confused.

“I think I like someone else… I don’t know yet…”

Wendy gave him a smile.

“I wish you all the luck Stan, say if you need anything!”

“I will.” And with that, Wendy took off to be with her friends, while Stan turned a corner and told Kyle and Kenny how it went.

Cartman was there too, but he only wanted to know if she cried, because “she would deserve it.”.

You closed your locker and felt your heartbeat like crazy. Ever since you changed school a few months ago, Stan captured your little ten-year-old mind.

He was kind and showed you around when you had no idea where to go. It was a little crush you developed, and you never felt as scared and excited as now, since that Stan had broken off with Wendy.

This newfound feeling almost made you dizzy but you quickly snapped back into reality when you heard your name.

“Y/N?” Stan asked and waited patiently for his answer next to you.

“Oh, sorry, I was thinking, what did you want?”

“Would you maybe like to hang out some time?”

Stan almost got a heart attack when you suddenly squealed but was happy when you managed to get a high-pitched “YES!” out.

“Okay, what are you betting Kenny? Some Pennies or a dead rat?” Cartman almost fell from his chair laughing about his shitty joke, while Kyle and Kenny rolled their eyes.

“Don’t you think it’s weird how clingy they are?” Kyle asked his blonde friend, while they kept watching you and Stan, who were seated at a separate table at lunch.

“Honestly, I think it’s pretty cute.” Kenny said with his muffled voice.

You held his arm and hugged him from the side, while he happy kept on eating his lunch.

Eric, who had now calmed down from his laugh attack eyed the couple critically. “I’m giving them a month max.”

He said lazily and looked around. “I say longer than a year.” Kenny said, throwing a crinkled five-dollar note on the table.

“You two are horrible.” Kyle shook his head before he threw 10 dollars on the table.

“Four months.”

Kenny was a happy man after a year, because despite everyone believing you two would eventually break up, you never did.

You were always by his side, no matter what.

His desire to desperately save whales with the help of a braindead ship crew?

You were always right by his in the interviews he gave.

His horrible depression that even drove Kyle away? No chance, you stood strong and helped him through the whole thing and even help reuniting the gang.

Even during the protest against Skanthunt42, you chose to sit this one out, despite you absolutely hating that the troll photoshopped a dick into your mother’s mouth.

At least you and Heidi got close due to you guys both becoming social outcasts. When Wendy heard this, she was impressed by your dedication and felt somewhat guilty for obviously not trying as much in her former relationship.

Everyone admired your patience and endurance. No matter what obstacle came, you managed to get through it.

“You don’t need to be sad, Y/N. I won't be that far away.” Stan said, holding your hand.

“B-But it's outside of town. You need ages by bike to get there and vice versa.” You said, holding back tears.

Randy walked past you and you desperately pleaded to him.

“Please Mister Marsh, please stay in town!” Randy put the box he carried into the car, before turning to you.

“Real sorry, dear Y/N. This town is…How do I put it… Absolute shit and I really want to get away.”

He patted you on the head and went back into the house to get more boxes.

“Told you, you cant talk to him.” Stan said and shrugged.

“But it’s unfair. We won’t see each other as much anymore.” Stan pressed a kiss onto your cheek, which made you blush intensely.

“Don’t. Worry. I will make time for you.”

With that in mind, you didn’t feel as sad, when the car with the Marsh Family in it left for their new home.

“I will make time for you, my ass.” You mumbled while you sat at a bench near Starks Pond. Letting out a deep sigh, you leaned back and just enjoyed the warmth of the setting sun.

Covid was one hell of a bitch and just had to have this big impact on everyone’s life. Stan and you now saw each other less and less.

It was just a horrible feeling that tainted your heart and made you worry a lot.

Maybe he was feeling just as bad as you are, maybe even more?

Maybe he just didn’t want to tell you how he felt?

Were you maybe a bad partner? Your mind began racing and your train of thoughts became unrailed.

So many bad thoughts manifested themselves and it made you almost gasp for air.

“I need to check on him.” You mumbled getting up from the park bench.

You began walking and you kind of hoped that maybe just the walking would get your mind in check, but sadly it didn’t. Involuntarily you had to think about all the other stuff that happened during this horrible time.

The precious Broship was more fragile than ever. You had become such good friends with Kenny, Kyle and Cartman over time that it hurt you a lot too.

You also saw Covid take a toll on your other friends, like Craig and his group, who now took Cartman into their gang after the split up.

However, that came to be…

The girls were also pretty divided, so hanging out with them meant picking sides which wasn’t your thing, you kinda just want them to get along again.

Everything felt like it was falling apart. Your parents had fights ever so often, all your friends had problems and your beloved boyfriend was stuck on that stupid farm.

God how you hated that stupid farm and Randy.

When he gave you one of those plushies that looked like him, you functioned it into a voodoo doll. But sadly, it didn’t seem to affect him, no matter how many needles you rammed into it.

Your heart felt heavy, and it seemed hard to breathe, but you brushed it aside.

You had already reached the busy streets of South Park and mingled between the newly vaccinated people.

Everywhere you looked, the people seemed happy.

Everyone was happy except you and the people around you… Maybe…You were the problem?

You shook your head. No, you didn’t allow those kinds of thoughts.

You much rather think about Stan. How you miss him and how amazing your dates were.

Oh, how much effort he put into all the small things… Well… At least he did.

Now that you thought about it when was your last date?

It feels like it had been ages. It has been ages. Everything had been ages. Going out with him, hanging out with your friends, your family not fighting… How long has this been the new normal? You can’t help but wonder.

Your heart clenched again. “Stop it, stupid heart.” You mumbled under your breath.

An exhausted sigh escaped your lips when you thought about how you maybe had to walk all the way up to the farm… It would take ages, but you really craved being held by the person you adored so much.

So, you continued walking down through the street when an elder lady stopped you.

“Excuse me, but you look rather sickly, are you alright?” Confused you raised an eyebrow. Did the vaccines make them delusional?

“No, I’m fine.” You answered, somewhat snippy, even when you didn’t know why you were so agitated.

“But you look rather pale, maybe you- I am fine.” You interrupted her and continued your path.

Were all people in this shitty town stupid or- The thought could not be completed, due to you suddenly losing consciousness.

When you woke up again, you immediately recognized one of the Hells Pass Hospital rooms, once your eyes had adjusted to the bright lights. Around the bed were your parents and more importantly Stan and his mother.

“Thank God, you’re awake again!” Your mother said when she went for a hug.

Confused you asked why you were here.

“Well, seemingly you were so stressed out, that your body basically shut down.”

Somewhat shocked you looked around. Was it really a surprise to hear that? Not really, but it still felt odd knowing that it happened.

“Well, I’m glad you’re fine, Y/N.” Misses Marsh commented and smiled warmly at you. She had always liked you and you felt the same. She was always nice to you and you felt like she was the only one with a brain in the family…

Feeling a sudden sensation of warmness on your hand, your eyes darted down to it. Stan held you hand while answering something your dad had asked him.

“Well, Sharon, you wanna accompany us to get some hot chocolate for us all?”

Your mother said with an odd wink, which made you and Stan roll your eyes.

The three adults left the room chatting happily. Stan looked at you with a stern expression, which kind of surprised you.

“I swear, whenever I think I couldn’t get more worried about you, your parents call me, to tell me that you’re in the hospital.”

“Worried? About me? I should be worried about you?” You laughed to which Stan shook his head.

“Listen, everyone has been super worried about you since you seemed so down and just exhausted. Like, Kyle already called me earlier to ask if you’re awake again. I don’t know why you worry about me; I am really fine babe. Promise.”

With that said, the door opened, and your parents came back inside.

“Y/N, the doctor said they would like you to stay the night, so they can check that you’re really alright.” Your father informed you and you were immediately annoyed.

Well, you had no choice but to oblige. Your parents left after an hour, wanting to get you some clothes and other things you’d need.

Sharon also bids her goodbye and so you and Stan were left.

And just like you wished, you got to cuddle with him. He held you close, and you vented to him, how worried you were about everything and everyone, while he told you just how worried all of your friends had been since you were acting so out of character.

“Even Cartman?”

“Yup, even when he would never admit it.” Stan laughed. He held your hand tight, and his content smile never left his face.

“I think we should talk more about feelings and being worried and all that. I know I’m not all that good at it, but I don’t ever wanna have to visit you in a hospital again.” Stan said, giving your hand a squeeze.

“That sounds good. But you gotta accept, I worry a lot, because I care a lot about you, okay?” You said sternly and Stan nodded. You two looked fondly at each other and just enjoyed the time you got.

“Together forever?” You asked and he whispered “Forever.”, before he pressed a sweet kiss onto your lips.

#south park x reader #stan x reader #stan marsh x reader

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