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aroaceleovaldez · 3 months

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i hope this doesn't sound like a silly or weird thing to send you, but i'm autistic and have long thought of nico and a handful of other riordanverse characters as autistic and i love your posts about why nico in particular seems intentionally autistic-coded. but i've been thinking, if rick did intend for any of his characters to be autistic, why wouldn't he say so outside of the text at least? i can't think of a good reason why not, when he goes out of his way to be explicit about so many other characters' various marginalized identities and has confirmed things like reyna being asexual outside of the original text. so it gives me this nagging sort of doubt that maybe rick just made nico come off as so extremely autistic coded by accident, somehow. if it wasn't an accident i do kind of wish he'd say so because there's next to zero explicitly stated autistic representation in, like, any media so it'd be nice to have here even if not strictly necessary. either way though, like i said, i love your posts and i agree with you 100% about autistic nico! some others i like to think are autistic are annabeth and leo.

(Most of this is gonna be kind of a tangential ramble to your point and i apologize in advance just bear with me)

This actually touches upon something I've been meaning to do a write-up on recently, which is: depending on the coding, that is our explicit statement. In most coding, actually, that's kind of the point. (Also something something Death of the Author.)

You may have noticed a recent trend across media of characters saying things directly rather than expressing them in a natural way, and often this includes incredibly stilted dialogue of characters explaining things in very politically correct, wikipedia-esque descriptions and terminology that make absolutely no sense for the characters' personalities or mannerisms. This is born out of the idea that if something is not stated in explicit terms, no amount of evidence below an outright direct exact statement will ever count - if two characters of the same gender have an explicit kiss and wedding on-screen, it doesn't matter because they never said the word "gay," etc etc.

In PJO, prior to more recent books, we get plenty of examples of characters explaining parts of their identities without direct statements. Percy never needs to say in outright terms that he has PTSD from Gabe - and it doesn't make sense that he would! He's 12! He's never been diagnosed for that. He probably doesn't even know what PTSD is really. But we, the audience, know without a doubt he has PTSD, because it is clearly expressed to us. That is coding. Tyson is coded as having down syndrome. Nico is coded as being autistic. It doesn't make sense for Nico to turn to the camera and explain that he's autistic and what that means, because he definitely never got diagnosed for it and probably doesn't know what that means cause the diagnosis literally did not exist when he was growing up - and heck, autism terminology was still kind of getting sorted out back in 2007 when TTC was published, so it's unlikely we could have feasibly gotten any exact terminology wink-wink-nudge-nudges short of something like how Percy outright mentions other students called Tyson the r-slur in Sea of Monsters. And in fact we see that same exact style of coding with Nico later on in the series. Nico never turns to the camera and says word-for-word "I am gay, I am mlm, here's me wearing my exact pride flags" (until TOA/TSATS, which... did the exact thing i mentioned about characters speaking like theyre trying to get a good grade in therapy, or giving a powerpoint presentation). But it is never unclear that HoO is telling us outright that Nico is gay. It's not just hinted at. It's there, in your face. But entirely because no one ever outright says "gay" specifically it's technically still only coding. We know he's gay, we know the characters have trauma/ptsd, etc etc. We don't need it spelled out - that's just kind of condescending. It's like if you said describing a character with "eyes like moss" means they were "green-eye coded."

Nico being autistic-coded isn't hidden. It's not a secret. It's very overt. If you know what autism looks like, well, yeah, there he is. Even if you only know very vague 2007 media presentation of autism, Nico in TTC is easily recognizable enough as autistic because that's the point. Tyson is easily recognizable as being coded as having down syndrome and it's very clearly very intentional! It's just never spoon-fed in exact terms to the reader because it's not necessary! You've already been told the information necessary to tell you what is up with this character, so just plainly going "oh they're [x] in exact terms" is very much telling-not-showing and feels redundant. And while there are places for that kind of thing, most of the time it's very unnecessary. Sometimes coding is subtle, sometimes it's obvious, and yeah there are times where writers code characters unintentionally, but the textual evidence is there, and that's the whole point.

And that's what Death of the Author is about - it doesn't matter what the author intended at the end of the day, because if it's in the text it's in the text. You can look at author intent to try and figure out what that text means, but the text is the text. A Separate Peace is a very classic example - author John Knowles denies there being homosexual subtext, and meanwhile one of the protagonists living in 1942 puts on a pink shirt while saying he doesn't mind of people think of him as gay. What the author says after the fact doesn't matter - if it's there, it's there. So Rick saying anything outside of the books is completely irrelevant. And Rick talks about this a lot - he actively tells people that his statements outside of the books are just his own thoughts, but what's in the books is what's in the books, and if the text supports it then that's all the evidence you need.

Nico specifically is a case where yeah, he's clearly autistic-coded. It's very obvious and very obviously intentional when he's younger, and as the books progress it remains a background trait of his but is still notable (except for when it gets forgotten in TOA/TSATS like everything else, including the adhd/dyslexia, but i digress). It's a clear pattern within the first few books that Rick is intentionally including. It doesn't make sense, especially for the year the book was published, for the reader to be directly told in explicit terminology that Nico is autistic, because the reader is already being told that Nico is autistic.

And yeah, Rick doesn't mention Nico being autistic-coded outside of the text, but he also doesn't mention Tyson being coded as having down syndrome. He also said one time that Percy doesn't have PTSD at all, which is very incorrect starting from book 1. Again, Death of the Author. Whatever Rick says outside of the books does not matter, because he already said it in the books. And there's plenty of other stuff in the books that Rick doesn't touch upon, particularly relating to character identity - did you know Leo is Native? Sammy mentions that the Valdez family is Native in Son of Neptune but we don't get any specifics and then it's like never brought up again anywhere. That happens all the time in the series - and outside of the series - Rick can't possibly address every single point to confirm/deny everything from the books. That's what analysis is for! And that's why my blog exists 👍

#pjo #riordanverse #nico di angelo #autistic nico #analysis #ask #Anonymous #long post //#tone indicator just to be sure cause i know i used a lot of italics: this is all non-agressive/not mad i prommy #im just very passionate about this topic (coding & fandom concepts surrounding ''canon'' + death of the author)#also controversial opinion cause i know some people have talked about wanting the use of the r-slur in SoM censored #but i think it should stay because. well. yeah no that was still very commonly used in 2006 #trust me i heard it a lot. i was there. in fact it was commonly used after that point. for awhile.#it wasnt until like a bit into the 2010s iirc that campaigns started to go ''hey maybe. dont use that word.''#like that was RECENT #and yeah! these books are not old! TLT is only just coming up on 20 years. thats not super old for a book!#and yeah! that term was considered a-okay terminology to be used in a middle grade book in 2006! which is startling to think now!#but that's also why it's important to not erase that #because otherwise you forget that up until very recently that word was considered Perfectly Acceptable #and in SoM it's even specifically acknowledged to be used in a hurtful way! Percy is actively condemning it!#like. dont put it in the show or whatever. obviously. replace it with a different indication/coding to explain Tyson's struggles #not that i think Disney would put the r-slur in their show. but like. dont erase it from the book??? from 2006??????#i am frightened to see how the show will handle tyson though. its not gonna go well i can feel it in my bones #anyways man i should post that excerpt from A Separate Peace though #just cause that scene has lived in my brain rent-free for years

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yanderemommabean · 1 year

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Last post got be thinking about that silly trope where a hitman/assassin/murderer has to suddenly take care of a kid and all the shenanigans involved with trying to be nice/preserve their innocence despite the fact that they... You know... Kill people for a living.

Anyway thoughts about OCs and suddenly having to take care of a kid?

it's been on my mind, I had to make a small post to feed the worms eating my brain.

I think Jasper would be trying to preserve any innocence he could, he loves kids, he wants the world to be good for them for as long as possible. His childhood was ruined early but that doesn't mean he wants anyone else's to be broken apart either.

Lee would have tired dad energy the entire time, but he'd still love them and be sure they're safe and eating correctly. "Do your work yet? Did you brush your teeth and shower? Alright then, come here, let me show you some neat science experiments"

Grey would be a bit awkward, as he's terrified he might accidentally hurt them, he doesn't want to turn out like the family he barely remembers. So he'll chill with them, play games, try to be a good role model, but he feels like someone else would be better qualified

Dexter would be over the moon and wouldn't be capable of leaving them alone. He's always so proud of anything they make, if its a stick drawing he says it's better than Vincent and Picasso. Major Proud Dad Energy

Ezrol would be indifferent in the beginning. Annoyed and not wanting anything to do with the brat. But slowly he lets his heart melt and starts giving into small things such as silly cartoons or weird art projects they wanted to try. He acts like he threw away the "junk" but it's very clearly kept in his room on his dresser or wall. Always checks in on them as they grow up, wanting to cry like an actual parent as time passes because "They grow up so fast"

August is the cookie cutter perfect dad who makes sure to use manners, be polite, be kind, and clean up. He'll have his more strict moments sometimes, but he's a real loving father figure who wants to be sure the kid is happy healthy and knows they're safe and loved no matter what. Also a really good cook at BBQs. Wears the "best dad" aprons all the time.

CEO would be the spoiling type, but only after you've earned it so to speak. If you do your work you'll be rewarded. Might also really love wearing the dad outfits they pick out to match. I'm talking atrociously colored and doesn't even match but it's their outfit choice for him, so to him it's a great fashion statement.

Victoria is used to handing care off to nanny's and what not, but she'd try. She's so business oriented the CEO would love to hire her. she's a more strict mother figure, but it's so the kid can get ahead in life when they can. Thinks kids are gross personally but isn't going to be a bitch if asked to house and care for one, she'll just take a while to warm up and be a good influence is all.

-Mommabean

#jasper my oc #dr lee my oc #doctor lee my oc #dexter my oc #grey my oc #ezrol my oc #August my oc #victoria my oc #yandere CEO #my ocs #yandere scenarios #yandere imagines

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duckielover151 · 1 month

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The One Piece Diaries

Episode Count: 450

Holy shit, guys... I'm back. I took another several months-long hiatus from One Piece... Mostly unintentionally... (I've been bouncing between a lot of other fandoms these past few months but have been brought back by the live action.) Where to start...

We've been in Impel Down for most of the last 40 or so episodes since my last update post. And not to go off on a tangent, but you know... I've noticed One Piece lumped in as one of the shows that's swamped with filler. And that really hasn't been my experience so far.

What I have noticed is that, around this point, the pacing gets pretty atrocious. There's a lot that happens in the journey to try and break Ace out of Impel Down... But is there 40 episodes worth of stuff? I have to argue no. It gets to the point where the first third of the episode is all recap, and barely anything is actually getting accomplished each episode. So that is a little off-putting.

But! There is a lot of good to be found in this arc too!

Okay, admittedly... Buggy was never my favorite... (outside of some brilliantly written fanfiction by stereden on AO3) And I would have been content to never see Mr. 3 again... But it is really cool to meet back up with so many of the old villains who only met their downfall and ended up here because of Luffy and to have them be on our side now. Really puts into perspective the morality of it all. Luffy's always fighting for the right things... but in the eyes of the government and greater world, he's a villain as well.

I've finally met Jimbei... (Jinbe? Jinbei? I've seen all 3, but Crunchyroll's subtitles use the 'm' spelling, so that's what I'm going with.) I haven't seen a lot of him yet, but I like him so far. He's tough, clearly, but also almost goofily polite, in a way that really complements Luffy's general blunt insensitiveness. I think it's still a while before he joins up as the last member of the crew, but I'm looking forward to getting to know him better.

This arc makes it really clear how Bon Clay came to be as beloved in the fandom as he is. And there's a lot that could be said about Ivankov... A lot that would very quickly derail this update and which I'm not totally, personally qualified to weigh in on...

Listen, One Piece's portrayal of queerness isn't perfect. But it's a hell of a lot better than the way so many other shows handle it, especially given the time this aired. (The Impel Down arc was originally adapted throughout late 2009-early 2010. Frankly, the 90s often included more and better handled LGBT+ characters than the 2000s era anime did, up until pretty recently.) Just the fact alone that this group is so out and proud about it and undeniably allied with and wholeheartedly accepted by the main protagonist is a fucking statement all on its own. It's beautiful. I can't underplay that by nitpicking the places the representation fell short by today's standards in a storyline that's 15 years old now. (I know there's a lot of shit in the future that goes down with Sanji in particular... So I may have less generous things to say later, but that's where we stand right now.)

And as for the arc's villains... Magellan's okay. This last episode particularly, the venom demon attack was pretty badass. (That image of the mushrooming skulls as it formed it was so good.)

And Hannyabal... Okay, there were some early moments that made me laugh. The gag about how he's clearly lusting for the warden's job and not great about hiding it could be pretty funny. But by the time he's defeated... and the anime starts in on a dramatic backstory for this asshole, trying to make him sympathetic... All I could say was, 'You've gotta be fucking kidding me...' I know it's kind of One Piece's thing to try and redeem everyone, but I was so bogged down by the pacing at that point... I did not have the patience for it. Good riddance to that dude in particular.

Episode 450 ends with our ragtag group officially making it out... And man, it's cool to see some of these older characters again, but I already miss our crew so much... Especially knowing what's coming...

I'm sure I've already mentioned that I know the bigger Marineford spoilers... But I'm still not sure I'm ready to see it firsthand.

Wish me luck.

#one piece #impel down #Episode 450!#lgbt anime #queers never die indeed #anime update

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samijami · 1 year

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Sigh… you assholes will never learn that wishing death on people you hate is absolutely stupid. No matter how much you say that you wish her misery and angst, JKR will always be known to all the world as an amazing woman who stood up for the rights of both genders, all races, all sexualities, and the validity of biological sex 🥰 You’ll never shut up about your shit opinion of her and you’ll harass her amazing supporters and HP fans. Bye bye you’re invalid 😘

I'm sorry I posted reblog bait about a lego and that it so dearly offended you,

But it is not my problem that you feel that way.

I never wished death upon her, I'd never wish death on anyone. I'm not like some people, or entire political groups. I'm just a teenager on the internet.

And also, by your 'statement' here, you are pretending that: biological sexes are disregarded and majorly viewed upon as invalid and I was saying that, there are only two genders (use of 'both genders'), biological sexes are the minority and not transgender people, JK Rowling is not being openly misogynistic and sexist by being a TERF who states that transgender woman are more stronger than 'regular' woman and cannot participate in woman's sports because, by the fact that her biological sex was a man, she is stronger and therfore better in sports than a biologically born woman. JK is also, to you, clearly a human rights advocate who's such a Goddess to mankind! And totally not denying the basic human rights we, as transgendered peoples, deserve as much as cisgendered peoples.

Now, as you decide to shove words into my mouth and make very based assumptions on the small statement 'Everytime this gets reblogged, JK Rowling steps on a lego', you give me my opportunity to actually be serious. Thanks for turning a joke into both a political and basic human rights violation argument.

From a 15 year old.

I've never harassed anyone, for one, I made a joke. Some people laughed at it; so sorry you can't handle the internet.

And she's not known as an 'amazing woman who stood up for' blah blah B U L L S H I T. She's denying basic human rights and campaigning against them. She wants trans people to be obsolete; gone.

How'd she feel if she was the minority? Which she is NOT.

Also, I never said anything about Harry Potter fans, but allow me to get into that!

Supporting Harry Potter = supporting JK.

JK stated that an enemy in Harry Potter (I don't remember who the group was), who murdered people and 'hid their true selves for a long while' or whatever, and were really bad people in the story; and murderers for that matter, were direct representations of transgender people. She said transgender people are all just murderers trying to shove their identities on cis people, when in truth, we just want y'all to let us have human rights and to stop fucking killing us.

The amount of dehumanization of transgender people and even just neglect of LGBTQIA+ in general that is presented in HP is enough to say, I don't like nor support HP fans.

I will not harass anyone, and I will not argue with anyone for simply liking the series. But when they spout this shit is when I know, all of you HP fans are the same. Praising your Goddess JK Rowling and claiming transphobic statements-acting as if you're completely in the right for your own shitty opinions and calling ours shitty. Being hand in hand with those wishing death and conducting genocide on minorities, then telling the minority that is what they are doing to you. Being the first to harass the other and claiming they're harassing you.

Just being a bitch and trying to use your own gaslighiting to make the minority look as if they're in the wrong.

Is that what you all do?

That's rhetorical. I don't need an answer. I already know.

Stop hiding behind your anon.

And please block me if you share this shitty opinion of yours. Please fucking block me.

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kdramaxoxo · 10 months

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i think the thing that's not working for king the land is the plot not really plotting?? like much hasn't happened in terms of an actual development in arc but the love story has started - which i think is not very common in other dramas. usually by the time our leads properly fall for each other, and admit their feelings (especially when it's opposites attract or a soft enemies to lovers) we have more of an idea about where the plot is headed? i don't know if this makes sense or if I'm just missing something as an international viewer relying on subtitles but i think the progression in the love line actually highlights that much else isn't really happening in the show.

both sarang and gu won feel like passive characters outside of their romance plots because they don't have any clear obstacles, and they don't even seem to have any goals - not really. sarang is clearly quite complacent and unambitious (which is realistic and i quite like that tbh! not everyone needs or wants to be a girlboss) people are mean to her but no one's really being a hindrance to her work or life. yes gu won is looking for his mom but that frequently takes a back seat to him pining over sarang and he's clearly not interested in the company politics.

so honestly yeah - i think that's where the gap comes with king the land. it could work better if they focused a bit more on the other leads' problems in their lives - like that glimpse into da-eul's family life was really intriguing and well done, and so was that scene with pyeong-hwa and the slimy pilot. the show really just needs to hit that balance and I'm pretty sure that would be enough to make it genuinely good instead of just nice, y'know?

so sorry for the dissertation! feel free to ignore please i just needed to put down my thoughts haha.

hope you're having a great day and taking care! love your blog and i love dropping by everytime i open tumblr to learn your takes on the most recent dramaland shenanigans and look at pretty gifs 💕💕

* Posts this ask and backs away :P *

I also have thoughts about King The Land, but I am desperately trying to catch up to The Kiss because there is NO way I'm missing that! I like to finish dramas before I make official statements about them but listen...I might not get to the end of this one if I'm honest.

I will say this: King The Land is not a BAD drama imo, but is it GOOD?? Then again the leads are stunning and the ladies friendship is amazing so there's that! I also want to add that I don't need a fluff fest rom com to be like perfect at all - it's just lacking a lot of depth and feels a little uneven so far.

I think that's all I'll say until I'm caught up to episode 8 ;-)

#king the land #kdrama #it's fine #kdrama thoughts #sometimes I really enjoy parts #and then others are a huge long boring eyeroll #ask #its a mixed bag i think

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soloh · 1 year

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I haven't made a YouTube video in years, but I'm very tempted to do a "video essay" type rant about the whole "Royal Academy of Dance and Sophie Rebecca Vs ignorant transphobes who don't know how ballet exams work" debacle. Every lie I see being spread by transphobes is pissing me off more and more, and as someone who ACTUALLY took RAD exams as a child/preteen (unlike the terfs who are claiming they did but clearly based on their lack of knowledge of the syllabus did not), I really want to see a mass callout of these people for spreading blatant lies- including inventing a dance academy that doesn't exist- because they're upset that a 40 something year old woman has been allowed to take ballet classes and exams at one of her local dance studios.

Imagine calling the queer community snowflakes and then being so upset with what an adult, who just happens to be trans, does with her spare time that you start making up dance academies and entrance exams that don't even exist. That seems like some real snowflake behaviour to me.

Anyway, I'm also aware that as a cis woman I shouldn't be the loudest voice in this conversation, but every trans person I've seen so far across instagram, facebook and twitter who has politely tried to correct/call out any lies and hate thrown at Sophie has been attacked for also being trans, so I'm also in a safer position to be calling out the bs (and I have left a few snippy comments, fuck being polite to transphobes lmao). Undecided about the video. Will update if I decide to do it, but also it's after 3:30am and I've only had this entire situation brought to my attention in the last hour because the Royal Academy of Dance's statement was the first Instagram post I saw when I checked my phone after being woken up at 2:30, so in the proper morning, when I should actually be awake unlike now, I'll have to have a look and see if there are any videos already made by trans people that I can elevate first, rather than jumping straight into making my own.

#personal #sophie rebecca #sophie rebecca dancer #transphobia #terf bs #anti terf #anti radfem #ballet #royal academy of dance

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poetessinthepit · 1 month

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You express your thoughts so clearly and in such a way that’s so easy to follow/understand. It’s impressive. I’m curious, did you take debate classes or something similar, or is that something that just comes naturally for you?

Thank you so much! I really appreciate the compliment.

I'll answer your question by revealing a little about myself.

I've always loved to read and write. My childhood dream was to be a professional writer, and while that dream never came to fruition, it led to me to refining my writing and speaking skills during my formative years.

I never participated in debate club or took classes, but when I was in high school, I participated in a YMCA program called Youth in Government. For this program, you had to learn parliamentary procedure, research your state laws, and write a bill. Your hardwork would culminate in a trip to the state legislature where you'd spend the weekend with other students, acting as a mock legislature and debating bills. It was total nerd shit. I think many of the kids who participated had an interest in politics. I was already completely disillusioned with the political system at 16 and mainly just wanted to argue with people in a formal setting. I won "best first year legislator" my first year, and it's probably because I spoke on nearly every single bill. I would never turn down an opportunity to get on a microphone.

When I was in high school, I was generally known for always raising my hand and getting into debates, not only with classmates but with my teachers. It got me in trouble a few times, and I think my classmates found me annoying.

I did write for my school paper, but I don't think I ever wrote about controversial topics; I was more interested in covering the arts and signaling to everyone that I had "good taste." But mostly, I loved editing more than I liked writing articles. In English, I actually enjoyed classroom activities where we'd have to swap essays and make edits. Whenever these activities commenced, I was over the top with the amount of corrections and suggestions I would make to the essay of a fellow student. I would hand back their paper, and it would be covered with red marks. I remember sighing in a disappointment when my only note would be needing to add a coma. I was ridiculous. I cannot emphasize enough that I was a total fucking nerd. I was simultaneously down on myself and full of myself in the way that only a teenager can be.

When I was a senior in high school, I took a class called Contemporary Issues that focused on current events and involved a couple debates but nothing as formal as what I participated in with the Youth In Government program. I also remember my teacher in that class also made some crazy statements like one about extreme leftism being associated with terrorism. It definitely wasn't a very good class, and it didn't teach me much about debating.

In college, I majored in communications, but I never finished my degree. I still learned a lot from the classes I took, and I use the skills I developed in my career today, even though my career is in a totally different field.

I don't think that I'm the most gifted orator or writer, but I have long been obsessed with writing the perfect sentence, crafting the perfect argument, and being as precise as possible in the way that I word things, sometimes to a fault, and I think that obsession carries through even in junk I'm posting on social media.

Anyway, I know that was an unnecessarily long and detailed answer, but I hope the few followers who bother to read this enjoy learning a little bit more about me.

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docholligay · 1 year

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Misc: Ep 2

Hello! This is about up to Episode 2 of Yellowjackets, and ONLY episode 2 of Yellowjackets. I have not seen beyond the second episode, at all, and know NOTHING about this show. Please do not spoil it for me. Things that are spoilery in nature, for me, include: saying things like “Just wait!!” confirming or denying anything I put forward, outside information about the cast interviews or creator statements, leading questions like “Do you think “blank moment” means anything?” etc. Remember that Y’ALL HAVE SEEN THE SHOW AND I HAVE NOT. This informs the way you talk about things relating to the show. Just be really careful is all I’m asking. Also: If there is LITERALLY any stance I could take on this show or character that would make you upset, please just fucking block the tag

If you WOULD like to discuss the show and my takes on it, the Discord is right here! I don’t go there, so it’s a great place to get every emotion out.

Please thank @sailorsunspot and @moonlight-frittata for backing this odd way of doing a liveblog, and remember my tip jar is always open

Full credit to the pilots for flying all the way to the scene of the crash, as they say, like you’re supposed to as a pilot.

The crash scene is anxiety-producingly well done.

How DID Van get out, anyhow? I hope we find out.

I find it interesting that Shauna tries to dodge responsibility in the car crash, when it is…absolutely her fault. I wonder if that’s going to materialize into things from the wild.

Also, back to Misty, my god, that “you think I’m ugly” thing. Boy, Misty doesn’t GET that she is, at core, unlikeable, does she? She doesn’t get that the problem is not outside of her control. It IS her.

There wqas no way I could make this into its own post, but let’s all note that the symbol was there when the girls crashed, so whatever it is about has something to do with where they are not them (or both I guess) leading to some light hope that there genuinely is a paranormal component to all this. I would be DELIGHTED if there was some kind of almost…synthesis, like the horrors are real but the horrors are also turning us horrible instead of just being victiims. I think that would be very exciting. CLEARLY, it’s something they end up taking for themselves, and that’s what leads to the postcard.

I am not surprised that Jessica is not a real reporter, and so, does she work for whoever is sending the postcards? WHo is trying to draw out this stopry? I actually would not be shocked if it ended up being one of Taissa’s political rivals, maybe. Juicy as fuck story.

I am somewhat relvied that we seem to be leaning into the whole “No, please don’t think nat is cool and the only ‘real one’ she is also a huge fuckup who can’t get it right and not in a neat way’ I’m not FULLY relieved but feeling much more chill about it. I was right so far to have faith.

Speaking of, so we’re doing a Nat/Travis thing huh? The idea that a solid chunk of these girls would be gay according to my knowledge of soccer teams aside, I wonder if they don’t all just take turns with Travis as “only available boy”

LOVED the fucking imagery of the Yellowjackets banner over the dead body. Just, great. This idea of pride and tribalism and it all comes to simply cover tragedy, what a brilliant summation.

WHY DOES LOTTIE ONLY HAVE FIVE DAYS OF PILLS ARE YOUR PARENTS STUPID THAT WON’T EVEN COVER A FLIGHT DELAY

#Doc watches Yellowjackets #Yellowjackets S1 E2

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mitskiesques · 1 year

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as an eldest sibling yourself, do you prefer jinx or azula and why

short answer: jinx > azula. long answer well here it goes.

my first instinct is to say jinx no question. it's clearly an emotional response so where do we go from here??: relatability.

they both have very real struggles and problems going on so it comes down to what you personally see yourself more in. golden child vs underdog, rich ppl problems vs poor ppl problems, physical discipline vs creative intellect, sibling dynamic of competitiveness and rivalry vs sibling dynamic of protection and pseudo-parenting, aiming for perfection/fear of imperfection vs aiming for strength/fear of weakness (each that come from what their respective environments value btw), and so on.

since u asked me personally allow me to say this. the years have passed since atla came out and still i have to find a single thing about azula that i relate to on a personal level. not that azula isn’t relatable At All bc you take one look at her deranged superfans and you can tell there’s some projection going on there so she clearly IS relatable, she’s just not relatable To Me bc i have different problems different perspectives different personalities different experiences with siblinghood etc etc.

jinx though i see a lot of myself in her despite the fact that half her personality is also delusional little sister and the fact that half my personality revolves around my eldest sibling status and behavior. and that IS because jinx is poor and oppressed thus anything she does is a bit more justified not in my eyes but in my heart. i love azula and her dyke drama but she’s simply too much of a privileged colonizer princess (tm) to me and my personal sense of empathy and though she is an abused child in mental distress and obviously i feel for azula on a humane level there’s a taint to it that i don’t feel with jinx.

and it’s not about violence either bc jinx is literally a terrorist. but mostly i think it’s because her crimes and general Evil Deeds come from In General her status as a victim to the actions of people like azula. azula feels righteous in her murdering bc of imperialism, jinx feels righteous in her murdering bc she has been screwed over by these people since birth. there’s a political statement that i relate to within jinx’s character that goes beyond what caters to me on a personal level wrt my experiences in life i guess. i can’t really help how i feel about it my apologies to all irl delusional little sister princesses i guess.

from a more objective and actually analytical point of view: they’re both great tragic characters masterfully done and they manage to pull off most of the things they are each meant to achieve and still i do think jinx is slightly superior because jinx is more or less one of the most complex interesting and layered characters written perhaps... ever???? it's definitely not the right post to elaborate too much but where azula is clearly defined as a villainous antagonistic character, jinx has literally a double narrative as hero and villain At The Same Time. where azula is a straight up masterfully written tragedy, even in jinx’s full on corruption and revenge there’s a sense of triumph over her oppressors. it's not that azula is bad as a character it’s that azula is Very Good Very Solid character but jinx is just. mindblowing.

anyway. it’s a fair if a little obvious comparison to make. they are similar in some ways but the differences are just so relevant to their characters and so interesting to talk about as well even moreso than how they are alike so i felt like this mess of text and text and text was worth writing if anything to at least get it out of my brain lmao.

#the one interesting thing that azula has that jinx does not is the aforementioned dykedrama #but that’s okay bc that’s not what her story is about #jinx's level of complexity & nuance is closer to aang than azula in my opinion #not that the jinx-azula comparison is unreasonable they Are very similar characters #but speaking on a deeper level. yeah #asks #anon #n #arcane #atla

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felixstudios · 8 months

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LONG RANTY ASK AHEAD; SORRY IN ADVANCE

I think people who go “oh you can’t like cogs they’re capitalists and colonizers” are… lame? I guess? I mean yeah they’re fucked up, but toons aren’t sunshine and rainbows and complete innocence: toons regularly kill cogs, albeit temporarily, unless we’re talking about Clash. Because a toon KILLED a suit in Clash. That is an important event. TOONS landed the first casualty within the Clash continuity. And even outside of Atticus, Toons regularly assault and destroy cogs! Idk if it’s the case in other private servers and continuities, but in Clash, you as the player are regularly asked to kill specific cogs to HARVEST THEIR BODY PARTS. Toons aren’t fully innocent, and Cogs aren’t complete demons. At least Cogs don’t actually kill Toons, they just make us really sad for a while! And hell, most of the time, Toons are approaching Suits first, initiating battle usually on our terms. I’m 99% sure that buildings aren’t a thing outside of Clash!

Speaking of which, to elaborate a little more on Clash Toons and their crimes, since the post that got me riled up about this was bashing Clash for having interesting characters (none of the toon npcs except Tumbles are even remotely interesting)…

Besides from Atticus actually literally dying, toons have done at least one other extremely fucked up thing. Winston is a prisoner of war. The things the Elders did to him definitely violates the Geneva Convention, mostly pertaining to the treatment of POWs like him. No matter what anyone does, SOLITARY CONFINEMENT is always unethical and fucked up. Flippy and Lowden clearly know about and seemingly SANCTION it, allowing the Elders to just… keep a man caged up in absolute isolation?! Fucked up! And that’s on top of us pretty much POACHING Suits! Taking parts of Pencil Pushers for purposefully bad pies, taking springs to shake seltzer water, toons clearly have pencils and springs of their own, and yet we get asked to kill cogs for this stuff???? And that’s just a few examples! In Daffodil Gardens, you get asked to seek out and take the bones of sellbots! Suits can be rebuilt, sure, and even flunkies get rebuilt. But that doesn’t mean that it’s not absolutely fucked up that we are killing suits to take parts of their bodies.

Also, saying someone can’t like a character because they’re evil is like… really stupid? We aren’t glorifying and romanticizing colonization or capitalism, we just find COGs more compelling than Toons. That’s how it is with villains. But it really pissed me off how they brought up all this stuff about Clash, then disregarded all the horrible shit Toons do.

Hey anon, I think this is a pretty well thought out argument. Not the most politely worded, but your point does come across easily. I'm not going to make a public statement on this topic since sharing any of my beliefs is a good way to start drama and conflicts that I don't wish to partake in.

That being said, there are exactly two objective facts I would like to point out.

In TTR and also in several of the original TTO tasks, you as the player are indeed tasked with taking parts from Cogs on several occasions. As for other servers, I couldn't say because I haven't played them.

If you're talking about Cog buildings, those have been a thing since TTO. They are not a Clash exclusive feature.

Obviously you made this ask anonymously, but if you made a blog post about it and sent it to me then I'd be more than happy to read it! I'd recommend conducting yourself professionally if you went that route because people are otherwise more likely to get very emotional and make a big deal over everything {and I personally find arguments written in a calm, professional manner much more convincing}, but it's your blog so at the end of the day it's really all up to you.

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trixree · 1 year

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so... this claim about XY sex chromosomes but phenotypically female development (you made it on a post) ....... I have 2 thoughts there. 1 is that this occurs because specific genes, like SRY, that are critical to male development in humans can be absent/nonfunctional on that tiny Y thus rendering the person actually X- (single X) in terms of gene expression, which leads to being female but often with health complications. That is an important distinction to me... just from a intersex/DSD health and research standpoint. Not only does it not produce hermaphrodism (there is no true hermaphrodism in humans) ... it isn't someone "magically" having XY and being female out of nowhere. The "being female" part happens for a reason, and that reason isn't gender/society-culture related. It's a unique genetic event with very specific causes. And it's reasonable that a lot of people don't know about it or skip over it in casual discussion, and it still means functionally, if you have a functional Y, you develop male. My 2nd thought is I just don't get what disorders of sex development have to do with gender to you. It's its own thing.

Hi! I don't know exactly what post you're referring to, so I can't make direct reference to it.

I'll answer your second question first, cause that speaks to my answer for the first question!

I bring up disorders of sex development often when discussing gender broadly because disorders of sex development help complicate the binary model most people are working off of. It's an important starting point when many folks are coming at issues of transition and gender from a foundational knowledge that says "there are two distinct ways of being, male (XY) and female (XX) and anything else is a rare aberration". Historically, it is actually intersex people who shaped our models of normative human sex/gender; and I take care to say "sex/gender" here because at the turn of the 20th century, it's important to note that these concepts were not distinct - "gender" as we think of it didn't really enter the scene scientifically until 1940 and was popularized in 1970). Challenging this fundamental misconception that this male-female sex binary is both natural and discrete - it was not natural nor discrete, but constructed out of experimentation on intersex bodies (usually of children) as a project of normalization - is important foundational work for understanding parts as seperate from people and identity.

Which leads me to this statement you made, that "there is no true hermaphrodism in humans" which is simply not correct in the way that hermaphroditism functions as a meaningful political and medical category. While "true" instances of hermaphroditism are rare (OVO-DSD or XX-intersex), hermaphroditism historically has meant broadly anyone with ambiguous sex organs, which today would cover all intersex conditions (of which OVO-DSD/XX-intersex is one) This broad category crucially helps us renders violence against ambigous bodies (often queer and trans bodies) more visible, both in our present moments and in our history.

In this book, I use the general term "hermaphrodite" for all so-identified subjects of anatomically double, doubtful, and/or mistaken sex (that is, supposedly mislabeled sex). But I do this not because I think the category 'hermaphrodite' is self-evident or because I think it forms a clearly bounded, ontological category that cannot be disputed [...] I use hermaphrodite to refer to my historical subjects first because it simplifies my narrative. A single so-called hermaphrodite could, in the scientific and medical literature of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, go from being officially labeled male, to female, to hermaphrodite, to a subject of mistaken sex, to a subject of doubtful sex [...] it is simplest to use the word hermaphrodite for anyone whose 'true' sex fell into question among medical and scientific men. Hermaphrodites and the Medical Invention of Sex, Alice Domurat Dreger (1998) - From Chapter 1, Doubtful Sex

It's important to know that in many cases of intersex children, the cause of the intersex condition is never known, which begs the question is the particular diagnosis ("true hermaphoritism" vs other intersex conditions, which can be much more ambiguous) especially meaningful in terms of ones' daily life?

Your example regarding Sewyer syndrome (the non-functional SRY gene on the Y chromosome) is correct, but I'm not following your reasoning that this constitutes an "important distinction". Why is that an important distinction? You say, it's not "true hermaphroditism" and it isn't "magically having XY and being female", "being female happens for a reason, and that reason isn't gender/society-culture related." Again, I don't know the original post you're referencing, but I'd agree with you that this isn't "magically being female"! We do understand the mechanism of this genetic anomaly. However, the reason that a person who develops female secondary sex characteristics (i.e., looks female), regardless of their chromosomal sex or the presence of any sex anomalies, is most likely to be raised female. This is, quite literally, the way our gendered society is intended to work.

So, when we uphold the uncomplicated binary model of sex, when we don't talk about interesex people in conversations about gender identity and queer/transness, we obscure the complex nature of gender identity and ones' sex assigned at birth. (While simultaneously erasing a history of sex that was literally build on the bodies of intersex people as living laboratories.) This history is intentionally made obscure and the voices of those intersex people silenced in their own records and in our own queer history.

Now, anon, if you're still with me (and I hope you are!) I'd like to tell you one of these stories of a real intersex person - a child diagnosed as a hermaphrodite in 1915 who was treated by leading professionals in the field of sex development and endocrinology at the Harriet Lane Home at John Hopkins (emphasis added):

In his memoir, Young describes a 'case that did not end happily' to introduce [Robert] Stonestreet. As Young remembers it: 'A boy was brought to us years ago for operation on account of a genital defect. Dr William Quinby... discovered that the patient was a girl, and advised the father allow him to carry out operations to make his child normal." Like Young, Quinby was most interested in the possibility that overactivity of the adrenal glands from fetal life on had resulted in the masculinization of Stonestreet's body, leading to his assignment as male at birth despite his having "female" gonads. Stonestreet had been raised without question as a boy for ten years and unambiguously understood himself to be a boy. Indeed, when the Stonestreets brought their child to the Institute, the reason was "hypospadias and undescended testicles", not hesitation over his sex.

Young and Quinby undertook an external and internal physical exam, followed by radiographs, a urine test to establish kidney function, a syphilis test, a blood pressure check, and a blood count [...] Finding nothing out of the ordinary, aside from the appearance of the genitals, they moved on to an exploratory laparotomy. Finding 'an infantile uterus with tubes and ovaries of normal appearance,' Young and Quinby were faced with a contradiction. According to a gonadocentric paradigm, the presence of ovaries would trigger a diagnosis of 'female pseudohermaphorditism' and sex reassignment as a girl. 'The sex of an individual must always be determined by the nature of the gonads, regardless of the presence of other abnormalities either of other parts of the genital system or the secondary sexual manifestations of the body as a whole [...] Consequently, this patient is of the female sex; and this in spite of so many secondary sexual characteristics of the opposite, male sex.'

According to Young, when Quinby advised Stonestreet's father 'that the patient was a girl', the response was 'that he had six girls and that this boy, although only ten, was a valuable worker on the farm. He refused to have another girl added to the family and departed.' The Stonestreets might have also recognized their child's self identity as a boy as real, choosing to reject the medical model.

Twenty one years later, Stonestreet returned to the Brady Institute. Now in his thirties, he had lived his whole life as a man and was engaged to marry a woman. Their priest, however, had refused to perform the ceremony because Stonestreet's father had told him about the childhood hermaphroditism diagnosis. Stonestreet now demanded that Young provide medical proof that he was a man, not a woman. 'After a careful study I had to tell him,' Young claims, 'that no mistake had been made. The two left in tears.' Three days later, Young was summoned to the Institute. He found Robert Stonestreet there, on his deathbed. An autopsy found that he had committed suicide by taking a lethal dose of mercury. Young took advantage of Stonestreet's death to verify his theory of adrenal hyperplasia during the autopsy. A few years later he published photographs of Stonestreet's autopsied adrenal glands in his memoir.

Histories of the Transgender Child, Julian Gill-Peterson (2018) - From Chapter 2 - Before Transsexuality

Let me ask you this: what matters more, the way that Robert understood himself to be (unquestionably male) and the way that he lived his life (as a man) or the diagnosis of hermaphroditism that rendered him "female"? That rendered instutitions, like medical and marital ones, incapable of seeing him as he actually was? I'll ask you directly: do you know your chromosomal configuration? Do you know your full genome, every condition or aberation in your body? No! Even the most highly medicalized among us (those living with multiple diagnoses, chronic illnesses, disabilities, or otherwise in close proximity to medicine and medicalized life) would contest the idea that our most fundamental biology matters most, that we can (or even should) know everything about our genes, or even that this information has great bearing on who we become. But I'm certain still, without having the full sequence of your sex chromosomes in front of you or without submitting to a medical examination of your genitalia, you already have some understanding of who you are. Our genetics are not reflective of who we are and who we understand ourselves to be; they never have been a reliable picture of who we will become.

#tw: eugenics #tw: suicide #trans tag #intersex #queer history #trans history #sex and gender #asked and answered #trixree speaks

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cavity-core · 1 year

Text

Satisfying Salad

Chapter Seven

I post a lot of different stuff that is totally consumable for minors, but this space is not intended for minors, so if you fall in that category, please navigate it responsibly and respectfully... on that note.. keep scrolling to the next post kids. ^ ^

Despite the tag, this is not Kaebedo, I’m shipping Kaeya with the Fellflower because I’m an absolute psychopath... I call it crack but it’s my otp idk what’s wrong with me, cryo sugoi.

It is still updating but you can read the full fic here.

Wowow it’s Dorian. I mean Joserf. I hope I’m still posting these in the right order…

As the fake Albedo headed up to its office, blissfully ignorant of the hole it just dug Kaeya into, he wondered… would faking his own death be an appropriate way to up and leave the country? Whether Jean failed to catch onto that implication or whether she was just being polite was neither here nor there when Lisa had clearly picked up on the nuance of the whopper’s statement… or more specifically, who she believed to be Albedo. Albedo who would be returning to Mondstadt soon, very soon if what the mimic had told him yesterday was actually true; that he’d only returned one day early. How was he going to explain himself if word did make it back to Albedo via some circulating rumours, it was highly unlikely the alchemist would believe for a second that Kaeya had been completely fooled by some lookalike.

Worrying over how to deal with the consequences of his many poor decisions starting last night was how Kaeya spent most of his day. The guilt over the events of last night had also remained with him since the arrival of the whopper in his apartment once more, but the monster hadn't given much indication that it remembered anything more sordid about their encounter, and it had been heavily under the influence of alcohol that night. It seemed possible that it didn’t know what happened at all, which meant that maybe the both of them could simply forget about it all. Despite the heavy implications its comment in the hall had made, they could’ve meant anything as far as a WhopperFlower knew, right?

Since Jean hadn’t needed Kaeya in the office today, he’d instead decided to patrol around the outside of Mondstadt city. He didn’t have any particular leads regarding the Abyss Order or any suspicious treasure hoarder activity after having been so preoccupied with this impostor Albedo, and there weren’t any meetings scheduled for today at the Goth Hotel with the… foreign diplomats. Naturally there wasn’t a lot to see so close to the city walls though, and it wasn’t doing much in the way of helping take his mind off of things either. In the end, he’d ended up back in the city, entering through the path closest to the Angel’s Share without even thinking; it was nowhere near the end of his shift, but perhaps it would be worthwhile to see if anyone of note was hanging around.

Charles was the one who greeted him from the counter, it seemed Diluc wasn’t working at the moment. Since it was still early morning, there were far fewer customers and it was the middle of the week so he probably hadn’t headed back to the winery just yet. This time of day it was normal that he would still be upstairs, Diluc often worked the latest into the night. … still, his lack of presence really dulled the atmosphere.

“Did you run into the Traveller?” Charles asked as Kaeya stepped up towards the counter.

“The Traveller?” Kaeya reiterated. “I thought the Adventurer’s Guild was holding an event up on Dragonspine.”

“Yeah, I think they are,” Charles agreed, “but I heard the Traveller and Paimon were back in Mondstadt earlier this morning, I thought you might’ve bumped into them on your rounds.”

The Traveller was already back then, meaning the whopper’s alleged master had failed to remove at least one of his targets… unless the Traveller who showed up was a fake as well. How many WhopperFlowers with that level of mimicking capability could really exist though? Not that there was any way to check, the Traveller never hung around one place for very long and it was highly unlikely this would be any exception either. If he were to work under the assumption that was the real Traveller, especially having been accompanied by Paimon, that did put the whopper’s position at risk.

Leaving the fake in Albedo’s office for him to come back was definitely some kind of trap… but for who? It was just as likely for one or the other to be injured in that encounter should it turn violent, and why shouldn’t it? The whopper’s master had failed though, there was no reason for it to remain in Mondstadt any longer, so the easiest solution was to simply find it and inform it of this change of plans. He could only hope that interaction would go so smoothly…

“I see… Actually, there is something I could use their worldly input on,” Kaeya mused. “I’ll have to see if I can’t catch up before they make off again. I’ll see you tonight, Charles.” Kaeya excused himself from the tavern and set a brisk pace back to the Knights of Favonius headquarters. He had been away for a few hours but he hadn’t expected silence to greet him at the office door.

There was no answer to Kaeya’s knock. “Albedo~” he called instead. “It’s me..” Still no response. Vainly, he knocked again though with more urgency this time. Surely Albedo hadn’t already come back… even if he had, he couldn’t have disposed of the imposter that easily, could he? If he had though, wouldn’t that be good? Why was Kaeya so worried about it then? Why was he so nervous about what was on the other side of the door?

He held his breath as he pushed open the door, greeted by something closer to what he’d been expecting yesterday; books and papers pulled from their shelves and knocked from tables to litter the floor, and the impostor nowhere to be seen. Cursing under his breath, Kaeya paced across the room to the window. Surely the archons had blessed him today with the blonde head of hair he saw heading in the direction of the stairs down to the square, they must have missed each other coming from opposite directions… but he couldn’t tell from here which Albedo it was.

Moving swiftly away from the window, Kaeya shut the office door behind him and hurried back outside to pursue whichever Albedo he’d seen. The impostor most likely, as while he was heading along the overlooking railing he spotted him; Albedo, returning with two people from the camp near Dragonspine, which meant both Albedos were about to run into each other in the middle of the square.

Surely he received some strange looks as he suddenly sprinted over to the stairs, hopping the railing part way to catch up. By the time he could get close enough to grab the imposter, he was hidden beneath the shadow of the Cat’s Tail’s overhanging balcony. Kaeya could quite easily tell which Albedo this was by the immediate Cryo reaction, burning the exposed tips of his fingers and forearms where he grabbed it.

It continued struggling but it at least calmed down enough to ease off the elemental output when it heard Kaeya’s voice. After the initial shock and some reasoning, it seemed to calm down enough that Kaeya could let it speak… and announce to him that its master was here in Mondstadt. Kaeya’s first assumption was that it was the Albedo who had just walked in, it would make sense after all if they were trying to replace the original, but he was corrected and pointed instead to the man with them. A man Kaeya recognized as someone who had gone missing on Dragonspine. What would be the gain of looking like him— or was it the real deal? He had vanished for a long time… no, there was no sense in theorising wild conspiracies now.

If the whopper was so set on meeting with who it claimed to be its master, then Kaeya would gladly facilitate it. He was highly interested in finding out if this newcomer in the city was as dangerous as his affiliation with Albedo’s impostor implied. Kaeya was also curious if Albedo was aware either… but he was slightly less enthused about having to approach him now after all he’d done. In the meantime though, he needed to hide the whopper again. Not only was it unlikely to leave Mondstadt now that its master was here, but he’d need it to extract that information from this so-called master as well.

The whopper seemed to noticeably perk up when Kaeya suggested it stay in his apartment… whether it remembered or not, he should’ve probably been more concerned about the attachment it seemed to be developing. Kaeya only hoped that he wouldn’t return to his rooms in the same state Albedo’s office was left in… Albedo’s office would no doubt be found by the real one soon enough in its trashed state. Kaeya needed to hurry back to work.

He lead the whopper back to his apartment and locked up again in record time to set out on his search for the whopper’s master.. that is to say, the man who looked like Joserf, and somewhere to host their meeting… which would of course have to be the Angel’s Share.

There was still a chance that the WhopperFlower was wrong, that it had mistaken its master. Smarter than the average house plant didn’t boast much in the way of intelligence… That being said, on the chance that it was the wrong person, the whopper couldn’t show up looking just like Albedo. They’d have to make some changes to its appearance… he wasn’t sure how well it could conjure up unique appearances, or any other humans aside from Albedo, but he could at least do smaller things like… change the hairstyle perhaps, maybe change up its clothes? Kaeya didn’t own anything that would fit though.

Another pressing thought on his mind was, now that Albedo had returned, he may need to dispose of the whopper himself. So far it was quite docile, around him at least, but who knew if that would hold up around others, or for anyone should this meeting go south. Frankly, there were a lot of ways in which this meeting could go poorly, either one could lash out at the other or the whopper could have an adverse reaction to finding out its use has expired… possibly worse still if it turns out in its favour and the plan is still proceeding. The best case scenario might be getting the wrong man after all, but would the whopper insist on continuing to wait then? No, it couldn’t be left at that. Should that happen, they would have to confront Albedo about what happened on Dragonspine.

There was no need to start interrogating him yet, but Kaeya needed to ask Albedo about Josef’s whereabouts before he could get any farther in his plan. Albedo wasn’t at the alchemy bench so that meant he must have already returned to his office.. the trashed one. Hopefully Kaeya could casually play it off like he knew nothing about the incident as he’d been patrolling all day, and keep suspicions at bay for the time being regarding his involvement with the impostor. He was sure getting his leg work in today with all these trips up and down the stairs between the square and the Knights of Favonius headquarters.

Thankfully there was no one to stop him in the hallway this time either, and he was able to make a quick ascent to Albedo’s lab. Kaeya knocked twice before creaking the door open a little. “Oh, mister Chief Alchemist,~” he chimed as he leaned in.

Sure enough, Albedo was there, knelt on the floor where he was gathering the fallen books.

“Oh my, what happened here?” Kaeya asked, looking around as he feigned… some degree of surprise.

“I was about to ask you that,” he answered, he sounded tired.

“I’m afraid I’ve been out all day so I didn’t see anything,” Kaeya explained, looking around the room. “I could spare some time to help you clean up though.~”

“No need,” Albedo replied, shooting him down without missing a beat.

Kaeya suppressed a sigh, though he was used to this by now. “In that case, I did come here looking for you,” Kaeya continued.

“For work or leisure,” Albedo asked, not looking up from his organizing.

“Hmm, let’s call it curiosity,” Kaeya suggested, and Albedo did not suppress his sigh. He continued anyway. “I saw you returned from Dragonspine today with some company, who were they?”

Albedo finally paused and looked up to meet Kaeya’s gaze. “Joel from the camp and his father, Joserf. I believe you know of them,” he answered.

Kaeya raised his eyebrows. ��Joserf,” he reiterated. “I thought that man was presumed dead.”

“So did I,” Albedo agreed, standing up with his books to begin slotting some back into the shelves.

“How fascinating,” Kaeya commented. “Are they moving into the city now?”

“I don’t know.” Albedo’s answers were getting more curt but it was hard to tell if he was being cagey or just getting tired of being pestered… at least it seemed like he hadn’t been confronted with any strange rumours yet.

“I’d be interested in hearing that man’s story, surviving so long up on Dragonspine and still making it back in one piece,” Kaeya mused. “Where is he staying now?”

“He was found on the mountain with no recollection, now he is spending time reuniting with his family. I suggest you refrain from bothering them.” There was some finality to Albedo’s words… it didn’t seem like he was interested in giving Kaeya any more information. Was that suspicious in itself or did Albedo just want him out of his hair?

“I see, then I’ll let you get back to your cleaning,” Kaeya excused himself. He’d probably made himself out to be unnecessarily suspicious in that interaction, but he could just as easily be read as having an interest in what strange newcomers were entering the city for its safety. It was only a matter of time before stories began failing to line up among the townspeople who already witnessed Albedo returning from Dragonspine the day before though.

The alchemist’s reluctance to divulge much about Joserf’s whereabouts did little to hinder Kaeya’s search. Of course Albedo’s account would have brought him the fastest results had he been willing to share, but the Chief Alchemist alone did not have the authority to move someone into Mondstadt. Other administrative figures should be in the know too, if not Jean then Katheryn. Kaeya would find a way to his information, he always did.

Judging by what he’d seen of them entering the city, Kaeya was doubtful that they had stopped to speak with Katheryn. His best bet was asking around here and seeing what he could find out from the knights then moving on to see who was still about at the Adventurers Guild headquarters and what they knew of the rescuing of this man who, as far as anyone knew, was supposed to be dead. The conspiracies could wait though, for now he wanted to ask Jean about where their lodgings were so he could approach Joserf himself.

Jean didn’t stir much from her work when Kaeya opened the door, seemingly too engrossed in whatever papers she was pouring over at her desk to notice him entering. “Knock, knock, master Jean~ I hope I’m not disturbing you too much,” he announced himself with a lightly teasing lilt.

“Ah, Captain Kaeya,” she looked up immediately when he addressed her. “No, no, don’t worry, I just got too focused is all. Did you need something?”

“I was wondering if you knew anything about the man Albedo brought back from Dragonspine, Joserf,” Kaeya explained. “I hear he and his son are supposed to be staying in Mondstadt.”

“Yes, that’s right,” She confirmed with a small nod. “The accommodations are quite temporary at the moment though, I don’t think they’re planning to stay in the city for too long. Why do you ask?”

Kaeya shook his head. “Oh, nothing. I was merely interested in hearing his tale, he was thought to be dead after all. How he managed to stay alive in the harsh conditions of Dragonspine sounds very interesting, wouldn’t you agree?”

“I… guess it does,” she agreed slowly, though sparing Kaeya a suspicious glance.

“Oh, come now, don’t look at me like that. It’s true, I’m genuinely curious,” he insisted. “Besides, if he’s been trapped up in the mountains all this time, what better way to unwind back into society than an evening at the Angel’s Share?”

Jean scoffed softly at him. “Alright, alright. This is the address, but they only have a room there,” she explained, scribbling the information on a slip of paper and sliding it across the desk for Kaeya. She kept her hand on it a moment longer as he reached for it. “Don’t be too hard on him, an experience like that was difficult for him, I’m sure.”

“Of course.~” Kaeya took the paper from her with a smile and slipped it into his coat. “I should be getting back to work then, don’t strain yourself today.” Jean waved him and his nagging off as he stepped back out the door, pulling the address out again as he closed it. They both knew he wasn’t going back to his patrol before he’d finished exploring this little mystery, so he made straight for the location on the paper… while also pointedly avoiding the street facing window of Albedo’s office. He didn’t want to draw excessive suspicion right now.

The place was in the suburbs as expected, though still upper town as it was an actual ground level home as opposed to the kind of apartment style homes where Kaeya lived. Even though he was told that they only had a temporary room here, it was Joserf himself who answered the door when Kaeya knocked. The owner of the house must’ve been at work, but that conveniently saved Kaeya a few steps in his plan.

“Hello… can I help you? If you’re here looking for the master of the house he’s working over at—“

“No, no,” Kaeya cut him off. “I came to see you, Joserf,” he clarified.

“Oh… Do we know each other? Forgive me, I’ve had some severe memory problems since my return from Dragonspine,” Joserf explained.

“I see, so it’s just as the Chief Alchemist said,” Kaeya mused. That fact didn’t remove suspicion though, if anything it added to it. “Not to worry, we didn’t particularly know each other. I am Kaeya Alberich, the Cavalry Captain of the Knight of Favonius, a pleasure to make your acquaintance again.” He held out his hand and Joserf shook it sheepishly.

“Yes, likewise Captain.”

“Now then, I came to ask if you would join me tonight at the Angel’s Share.”

“The Angel’s Share? That’s the tavern, isn’t it?”

“That’s right,” Kaeya replied. “I have a friend who’s been dying to chat with you since your return.”

“Really?” He seemed surprised. “Ah.. I really don’t remember anything, I’m afraid they’ll probably be disappointed.”

“Perhaps, but this particular friend believes this meeting might jog a memory or two, so do join us this evening.”

Joserf frowned thoughtfully. “Jog my memories…? Well, I guess it could be worth a shot,” he finally agreed.

“Wonderful, then we’ll meet you outside the tavern tonight.~”

Everything was falling smoothly into place, regardless of Albedo’s reluctance to offer him any information. Kaeya’s progress had hardly faltered… but now he had to get back to his real job, catching up on the work he’d been slacking off on while he was distracted by Joserf’s appearance in Mondstadt and the real Albedo’s return. That is to say, he was running a bit later than he’d meant to be by the time he was finally clocking out for the day and heading back to his apartment where he could stop wondering if the whopper had stayed put like he’d instructed.

That troubling question was quickly answered by the faint aroma that greeted him the moment he unlocked his front door, only growing stronger as he moved closer to his bedroom. The familiar fragrance from last night made it quite clear that the whopper was still in the apartment… but didn’t it also mean that it was… well… There it was curled up on his bed half as dressed as Kaeya had left it, staring back at him wide eyed and flustered.

“K-Kaeya I—“ It stuttered out, cheeks only pinking more.

“I’ve arranged our meeting with your so-called master, we really… should be heading out as soon as possible…” Kaeya trailed off realizing they wouldn’t be getting out of the apartment on time when the whopper cut in.

“I’m sorry, I was bad! I didn’t wanna wear the clothes, and I tried to take them off, and it was too hot, and I— I…” it stuttered to a stop, tears on its cheeks. “Don’t send me back yet, I have to see— I… y-you’re.. gonna let me meet master?” It asked, sitting up a little but still keeping a hand wedged firmly between its legs.

Kaeya sighed, looking over the state of the mimic on his bed. “Well, you certainly can’t go like that,” he commented, which only prompted the WhopperFlower’s waterworks to start back up again.

“I’m sorry, I tried to be good!” It sniffled. “But I… I have to meet master, otherwise.. he’ll throw me away.”

“I never said we weren’t going,” Kaeya sighed, taking a seat on the edge of the bed. “There’s no need to get so worked up.”

“But you said—“

“I know what I said,” Kaeya cut in. “Come over here before I think better of this..” he muttered. He had so many reservations about all this until now, and yet here he was… did the whopper’s pheromones really have such an intense effect on humans?

Kaeya remained facing the wall so he did not see the mimic get up but he felt the mattress dip as it moved across the bed towards him, making its proximity clear with a hand placed gingerly on Kaeya’s shoulder. “I… I couldn’t take them off,” it admitted softly.

“Stand up in front of me,” Kaeya instructed. He assumed that by ‘them’ the whopper meant its bottoms as they were among the few clothing articles it was still wearing. As he had come to expect, the whopper was still highly obedient to Kaeya’s instructions now and crawled off the bed to assume its position standing before him, worrying the hem of its shirt with both hands as it waited for Kaeya to do something.

Kaeya brushed the mimic’s hands away from where they were slightly covering its straining erection as well as of course its fly, flicking the button open and slowly dragging the zipper down. “Tsk, look at what a mess you’ve made,” Kaeya teased, glancing up at the whopper’s flushed and teary face, an entirely foreign expression on Albedo’s features. He tapped lightly on the obvious dark spot that had formed in the front of its leggings where its arousal had soaked the fabric. “You won’t be able to wear these pants.” Perhaps having the whopper wear only its shorts would help a little in concealing its identity? Probably not, but Kaeya was interested in seeing what Albedo’s body would look like so underdressed regardless.

He pulled the shorts all the way off and coaxed the mimic to step out of them, the leggings however, he left on. The thinner, elastic fabric giving way to the lewd outline of the whopper’s erection straining against the damp fabric. Kaeya brought his hand up to rub his fingers over the twitching silhouette, earning himself a gasp from the mimic, its fidgeting hands immediately seeking purchase on Kaeya’s shoulders instead. “T-take them off.”

“But they’re already a mess anyway,” Kaeya pointed out, still squeezing and rubbing its length through the fabric. “Why bother?~”

The whopper whimpered, its hips still pressing forwards into Kaeya’s hand… still clearly enjoying the activity despite its complaints. Technically it was wrong to use creatures like this for sexual pleasure but… it seemed clear as day to Kaeya that this creature was nothing if not consenting. The alcohol may have influenced it the first time but now it clearly had its own interest in the activity… or had Kaeya merely conditioned it? At the end of the day though, it was still happy to do it regardless… so was it really such a big deal?

Apparently Kaeya’s pace had slowed while he wandered off on that train of thought because he was snapped back out of it when his wrist was suddenly grabbed with a vice grip and yanked towards the whopper’s crotch. This wasn’t the first time it had shown aggression when it came to soliciting sexual acts from Kaeya but he continued to brush it off for now, pulling the mimic closer by its ass and kneading the flesh though the leggings while his other had continued to work it’s dick against the fabric.

“Ah… Kaeya.. more..” it groaned, leaning heavily against his shoulders, legs trembling and breath heavy. The sweet scent of pheromones seemed to come off it in waves and Kaeya had to fight the urge to let himself be swept away by them.

It was early enough that the neighbouring apartments were probably still empty as their inhabitants were likely out getting dinner at this time, so it wasn’t such an issue when the whopper got louder. Last night Kaeya hadn’t been able to really relish the sounds of Albedo’s voice making these lewd noises at the mercy of Kaeya’s hands… then again, he couldn’t exactly allow himself to fully enjoy it this time either, not when they both had somewhere to be. Kaeya had always been so punctual before this too.

The resistance on his palm was growing as the fabric continued to grow wetter beneath it, no longer allowing him to glide easily against the dry fibers. Now they dragged against his skin thanks to the thorough soaking of precum they’d endured from Kaeya’s ministrations on the moaning and whimpering mimic.

“Come on now, we’re running out of time,” Kaeya coaxed, the side of his head rested against the whopper’s stomach as he looked up due to their proximity. “Cum for me, little plant, so we can go to see your master.~”

Its grip tightened on Kaeya’s shoulders as it really did finish, almost on command, cum beading and dribbling through the fabric where it failed to be absorbed. “Hm, right on cue,”

Kaeya hummed while the whopper came shivering down from its orgasm. “Good job, little plant.~” He could feel its dick still in his hand twitching out a few more drops. Was it the praise or the pet name it had a particular affinity for?

The leggings had at least absorbed the mess they’d have had to deal with otherwise, definitely cutting their time down. “Let’s get you out of these now,” Kaeya finally said, willing his own hard on down. Of course the whopper was incredibly compliant when it came to being allowed to take off more of its clothes, though it was still muffling whimpers as Kaeya peeled the soiled bottoms down and off, clearly still sensitive after their little activity.

It really did have a different feel to it… seeing Albedo standing with his bare, pale legs peeking between the hem of his shorts and the tops of his boots, the smooth skin which Kaeya knew from experience now was ever so soft to the touch. How was this somehow more erotic than just seeing him naked!? Kaeya needed to calm down… the whopper was dressed now, it just needed a few extra touches.

The cloak Kaeya pulled from his own closet to drape over its shoulders dragged on the ground thanks to the height difference, meaning that it unfortunately covered the deliciously exposed thighs… which was probably for the best. The removal of its braids and ponytail also made a striking enough difference to its appearance in helping it to look less like Albedo. They were similar, but it did not seem at all outlandish to declare they were different people now.

Its eyes were still a little puffy from crying but it was presentable. “Looks like we’re ready to go,” Kaeya commented, dusting his hands together. This meeting could end in its removal from Mondstadt… or even death. Kaeya had been steeling himself for this all day, even the mimic seemed quieter and more nervous with the knowledge of the impending meeting.

Despite its earlier eagerness, it took Kaeya’s arm around its shoulders propelling it forward before it started moving by itself. When they’d first met, the whopper had tensed at his touch, but now it almost seemed to lean into him. Was this comparable to accidentally domesticating a wild animal you took in? Not that Kaeya could necessarily claim that this monster was domesticated.

“What’s the matter, weren’t you quite eager to see your master earlier?” Kaeya asked as they headed out of the apartment, in an attempt to lift the tense silence.

“I have to meet my master, that is the next step of the plan,” it answered. Its words were a bit mumbled but its tone sounded matter of fact nonetheless.

“Why so nervous then?~”

The mimic was quiet for a moment, slowing enough to pose some resistance against Kaeya’s arm which was still pushing it forward. “The.. plan didn’t go right…” it slowly answered. “Master might throw me away after all…”

What did a WhopperFlower really have to lose in that scenario though? “Would you not simply return to your life on Dragonspine?” Kaeya asked, but he was only met with hunched shoulders and silence; a silence that continued for the remainder of their walk across town.

Regardless of where Kaeya put his arm or hand, he wasn’t able to physically distance himself from the mimic once they were outside again this time, it remained stuck close to his side with one hand going as far as gripping the fabric of his jacket to ensure he didn’t move away. Hopefully its vaguely altered appearance would be enough that no one mistook it for Albedo while the alchemist was actively in the city. The whopper’s silence had set an oddly tense atmosphere despite the peaceful evening air and gentle colours of the sunset still faintly painted the sky though it was quickly darkening.

When they were about a block from the tavern the mimic suddenly perked up and moved a more respectable distance from Kaeya. As they drew closer he noticed that Joserf was already standing outside. “Put your hood on until we’re in private,” he told the whopper softly, who obliged without a word.

“I hope you weren’t waiting long for us,” Kaeya greeted while his companion seemed to half hide behind him.

“No, no, it’s fine,” Joserf assured him. “I have to get back home to Joel soon though,” he added.

“No need to worry, I think this meeting should be rather quick,” Kaeya assured him with a quick smile. “Let’s head inside then.”

He led the way through the door and right up to the counter, motioning Diluc over as he leaned an arm against the surface. “We could use some privacy for this meeting.~”

Diluc took a key from under the counter and pressed it into Kaeya’s waiting hand. “Don’t make a mess up there,” he grumbled.

“Of course not.”

Obviously they wouldn’t be able to openly discuss this topic so a private room could be a necessary precaution to convince the whopper’s supposed master to reveal his identity. “Let’s head upstairs, we can talk alone there,”

Kaeya addressed his party now instead as he headed for the second floor. The key was to the door that led to the attic stairs where Diluc often stayed the night since a trip all the way back to Dawn Winery was far too long only to return again the next day.

Joserf’s lack of reaction to the whopper’s presence seemed to embolden it again… or do the opposite. Either way, it was gradually closing the space between it and Kaeya again as they went. There wasn’t much furniture in the attic despite it being rather spacious, it was only really used for sleeping after all. “My apologies, we’ll have to stand.”

“I have to admit, I thought we were going out for a drink,” Joserf said. “Now I’m a little nervous, what is this about?”

“My friend here says he knows you,” Kaeya explained, guesting to the whopper as it pulled its hood down.

“Yes, you did mention that but like I said my memory…” he trailed off, staring down at the whopper for a few moments. “There is something oddly familiar about him.”

“Well, he may bare some resemblance to the alchemist but that’s—“

“Now that you mention it, he does, but… no, that’s not quite it.” He shook his head.

“Master… you don’t remember me? You came back for the plan, right? So that we can do the next step. I’ve been doing everything just like you told me…”

“Hold on,” Joserf interrupted, raising his hands. “Master? I don’t know anything about that, or any plans.”

The whopper’s eyebrows furrowed in confusion, glancing between Kaeya and Joserf. “It’s okay, Captain Kaeya is nice. He helped me and taught me a lot, so you can trust him,” it assured him.

“It’s… not that I don’t trust him, it’s just that I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Joserf replied sheepishly. “I’m sorry, maybe it’s just my memory gaps, but I think you have the wrong person.” He took a step back towards the door. “I should be getting back now, I’m sorry that I couldn’t be of more help.”

“But master—“

“That’s alright,” Kaeya replied. “We’re sorry to have wasted your time.” Despite Joserf’s quick departure, Kaeya didn’t get the sense that he was lying. He could try and pry the man more for information but the news would likely get back to Albedo if he were to do that… it might anyway. Whether that was the whopper’s master or not, Kaeya felt inclined to believe his claims of memory loss. After all, he had still found it familiar beyond its physical similarities to Albedo.

Joserf left down the stairs leaving Kaeya alone in the room with the now dejected looking mimic. “If that really was your master, he doesn’t seem to remember you at all,” he commented, “what will you do now?”

“I don’t understand… why doesn’t master remember?”

Albedo had been cagey regarding information on Joserf, could he have been behind the altered memories? “If he doesn’t remember then you’re free to do what you like, aren’t you?” Kaeya pointed out. “I’ll even take you back to Dragonspine.” Could he wash his hands of this mess at last?

For some reason that suggestion only made the whopper look even more miserable. “What if master is in trouble?”

Kaeya heaved a resigned sigh and took a seat on the edge of Diluc’s bed. “Your master, if that is who he is, has a quiet life with his son now. If he’s living peacefully among the citizens of Mondstadt, maybe he doesn’t want to stir anything up now.”

“Master helped me become smarter and stronger, he taught me to walk and speak like humans so that I could blend in… so I could do it too, right? I can also be good and live a quiet life in Mondstadt with Kaeya, until my master needs me again.”

Kaeya raised his eyebrows at the whopper’s declaration. “With me? Didn’t it occur to you that I only used you to gather information on the situation,” he asked, as the mimic moved across the small room, rapidly closing the space between them again. “Don’t you think you’ve trusted me a little too easily—“ he was cut off by the whopper’s hands pressed firmly on his shoulders and its lips pressed boldly to his own.

“Kaeya taught me, helped me and made me feel good…” it muttered against his mouth. “I want to stay with you.”

Kaeya sat stunned with his hands at his sides. How did it get to this point? Did WhopperFlowers even have the capacity for emotions and attachments like this?? If he couldn’t force it to leave and he couldn’t convince it to leave… what was he supposed to do with it? How was he supposed to keep this secret from the rest of Mondstadt? Approaching Albedo for his help was seemingly his only option now.

#genshin albedo #albedo #kaebedo fanfic #keabedo #genshin impact smut #smut #smutty fic #not actually kaebedo #taru #genshin fellflower #fellbedo

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