#I love that we got to have a full on anti war opening

[ynyaan]

𝙃𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙛𝙚𝙡𝙩 𝘾𝙤𝙣𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙩 ♡ | 𝐋𝐨𝐤𝐢 𝐎𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐭 ࣪𖤐

𝐍𝐀𝐕𝐈𝐆𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 | 𝐌𝐀𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐈𝐀𝐋 𝐋𝐈𝐒𝐓 | ♕

𝘼𝙣𝙭𝙞𝙤𝙪𝙨!𝙇𝙤𝙠𝙞 𝙭 𝙑𝙪𝙣𝙚𝙧𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚!𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧 | 𝙁𝙚𝙢!𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧

Summary: Loki is in the center of his conquest, worried that he has one last tie that could bring him to ruins. "If they threaten me with you, it WILL work." The once empty man is now a mess, all for you.

.ᐟ 𝙇𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩-𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙨𝙩 / 𝙛𝙡𝙪𝙛𝙛

Loki was always sure of his plans. He planned to take over the world, but to do that, he needed an army. You were both staying in Asgard as Loki began to form and arrange his plans.

"In a rush, love?" you inquired. Knowing full well his response. You looked at Loki, the man you loved and choose to ran away with, the man who you loved that convinced you to run, to rebel against Asgard and take what's 'rightfully' his. The thought of it terrified you, of course. But in all of the days you've come to love Loki, it was the first time you'd seen him so angry, so determined. Besides, you couldn't say no to him when he asked you to support him from the side. He was the man you loved, and to love is to fight.

"I know, darling. I'm sorry, but today is an important day. I'll finally be able to sign a treaty–a promise, with them." Loki sighed as he put on his signature green cloak. 'The Chitauri.'  The ones Loki hoped to form an alliance with, to help him with the war he was about to face.

"Be safe, Loki. I'll be waiting for you." Loki approached you and pressed his lips on your forehead, then your cheek. "I'll make it up to you, my queen." He whispered. A gold-like color illuminated Loki, and in a flash, he disappeared.

... "FUCK!" Loki threw his daggers down on the floor.

"What happened? Why are you yelling?" You rush to him as he shuts the door loudly. He buries his face on your neck, breathing your scent in.

You wrap your arms around his neck, embracing him back, finding warmth and comfort in his affection. "They ran off, annoying bastards. They vetoed being led by me, and when I got infuriated, they decided to attack me. Only when I slaughtered those damn big creatures did they retreat." He huffed in anger.

You ran your fingers through his hair and caressed him softly. "It's alright, Loki. You'll find a new army, I'm sure of it." Even though you were now firmly against his plans, you still offered him assurance.

Loki always seemed so.. Anti-villain, but to you, he was simply misunderstood—afraid. "Thank you, Love—your right. I'll try to bargain with those fools. If they refuse, I'll just kill them all." He grinned.

"There's my Loki." You kissed his forehead and pushed away from his grasp. "Let's head to bed, shall we?"

You wake up stretching your arms to find no one at your side. "Loki?" You softly whisper. You sit up to see Loki dressing in his usual working clothes.

"Right. Will you be back soon?" The lack of affection you both had lately was itching in your mind.

"I'll be back soon, darling." He replied, but his face was filled with slight remorse. 'Stay.' You wanted to voice out so badly. But you couldn't–you didn't want to foil or deter his plans. So you nodded and waved him off.

You stood up, deciding that if he wouldn't spend time with you, you'd spend time with yourself. You started putting on a fitted t-shirt, baggy pants, and a flannel with the ends tied together. You opened the doors to your room and went straight to Heimdall.

"Hello, Heimdall." You greeted him with a tilt of the head. "Midgard?" He asked. You chuckled softly as you nodded your head. He opens the Bifrost, and you walk through it.

You walk through the shops of Midgard. They have so much variety compared to Asgard. Walking through the streets, you find a shop that particularly caught your eye.

You walk over to it, and the doors jingle. "Welcome to Darcy's Jewels!" A loud greeting was offered as you went in.

"Hello! Do you have any Gold Vermeil rings?" You inquired. The girl that assisted you smiled and pulled out a selection of rings. There were different designs, such as: butterflies, crowns, gems, and more. A shining green light distracts you from your side, and you look upon a ring. It was a plain gold ring twisted into a braid, partnered with an emerald green jem all around. The girl assisting you smiled as you pointed to the ring. You paid for it and went out, waving away from the store.

You look at the little purple bag and the red box inside it. You smiled and decided to go back to Asgard. As you were walking, you suddenly stopped. You looked to your right to see an alleyway—you couldn't shake the feeling that someone, something, was following you.

Suddenly, a hand reached out to you in the darkness, pulling you by the arm. You yelped and held on tight to the little bag. You caught sight of the arm that grabbed you, and it looked rather..unworldly. It pinned you to the wall with the arm now covering your mouth. "Stay put, and you might live mortal."

...

Loki was in a dining hall, a tree-like table was flooded with chitauri soldiers on both sides, with Loki seated up front.

The leader of the Chitauri slammed its hand on the table. “Loki of Asgard, we refuse once more. We do not see you as fit to be a leader. Odin has refused you the throne for a reason.”

“Really? Well, I suppose we have no other way.” Loki took out his daggers and pointed them to the Chitauri Leader. The monster chuckled at the sight of the God of Mischief. Loki raised one of his brows slightly, but instead of inquiring, it's a How dare you? Type of eyebrow.

“You must’ve forgotten that you still have a weakness, aesir.”

Loki's brows furrowed, and his eyes laced with malice. “What did you do? What did you do to her?” The Chitauri laughed as they saw the God’s expression shift into a desperate plea.

You were stuck between a wall and a chitauri with one hand clutching your gift. ‘Just great,’ You thought.

You lifted your right leg to the chitauri’s chest and pushed him away. He grunts and launches himself forward, pinning you to the wall. You slap him with your free arm and bite his left arm. He groans, and you rush out of the alley, going thru the sea of people in the streets.

“HEIMDALL-??” You scream, a blast of rainbow begins to ascend you. You caught a glimpse of the Chitauri running away in the other direction.

You arrive in Asgard. Huffing and trying to catch your breath. “Thank you-“

“He is waiting for you.” You were cut off by Heimdall speaking without glancing at you. You wordlessly try to understand what he means, a lightbulb sparking inside you. “Loki!” You squealed, getting up and running towards the Asgardian Palace.

...

You open the doors to your quarters to find Loki standing ominously in the middle of the room. His hair was disheveled, and his face in anger. “Loki!” You run toward him, craving his warmth after what you have been through.

“Where have you been?” He asked. He held you by the shoulders as you stood before him, holding onto your gift tightly.

You look at him, surprised by his tone, slightly terrifying but assuring yourself that Loki would not hurt you by any means. “O-On Midgard? Listen, the Chitaur–“

“I KNOW. THEY TOLD ME Y/N. YOU COULD'VE BEEN KILLED OR TAKEN.” Loki hung his head as he breathed deeply in desperation and anger.

You were surprised at his sudden outburst, ‘they told him?’ You were so confused about what was happening but proceeded to calm Loki down first. “But I wasn't killed nor taken. I'm alive. I'm right here. I'm fine.” You say, not moving an inch from where you stood.

“(y/n). You we're lucky- just, please, stay here. Stay inside." Loki stuttered with his words, gasping sentence's like he couldn't breathe.

You just couldn't understand, why is he acting like this? you we're safe, is that simply not enough? must he cage you? "Loki, why-"

"Because if they threaten me with you, it WILL work.” Tears. Droplets of water fell to the floor. It was Loki’s. You sighed and dropped your gift to the ground. “Loki. I'm sorry to have been such a burden to you.” You felt like you we're weakening him, holding him back from being reckless, holding him back from his true nature.

Loki lifts his face, and you see his eyes glistering with tears. “Darling, no, no. That's not what I meant.” He cups your face and kisses your forehead. “I'm sorry, I'm so scared of losing you." He breathes out.

"You're the only thing keeping me sane. If I lose you, i won't be able to take it, i'd die without you (y/n)."

With nothing to say, you bent down and smiled softly to grab the gift. “Here, this is why I went out to Midgard.” Loki tilted his head as he took the gift from your hands. He puts his hand in and grabs the red box.

His expression shifted to awe as he saw the gift inside it. He took it out and slipped it onto his finger, raising his hand to admire the ring. “It's breathtaking. Thank you. Also, i’m glad you’re safe.” He hugs you tightly, a desperate hug, a plea to never leave him.

You sighed softly. You saw the state of Loki’s well-being and thought, ‘How poisoned this man is with my love.’

“I love you, Loki.” You whisper. “you have no idea.” He responds.

𝙒𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙥𝙖𝙙: Star (@_ynyaan) ───⋆⋅☆⋅⋆── 𝐼'𝓁𝓁 𝓈𝑒𝑒 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝓁𝒶𝓉𝑒𝓇 <𝟥

#loki fanfic #loki x reader #loki x y/n #loki fluff #loki x you #mcu loki #loki imagine #fanfic #loki laufeyson #loki of asgard #fem!reader #loki fanfiction #loki is hot #oneshot #protective #mcu fluff #angst with a happy ending #light angst #mcu fanfiction

[just-sp-in-inginthevoid]

Analysing Benkei & Wakasa's tattoos and clothes on their volume cover !

Starting with Benkei’s tattoo :

First, the Mitsudomoe, the spinning thingies the bulls have on their head/as their head. It is associated with samurai, martial arts and the God of War Hachiman. It can symbolize several things such as : life, water, protection, man-earth-sky, earth-heaven-underworld…

I couldn’t find much about cows/bulls in Japan. But there’s still Akabeko (‘red bull’) that I can talk about, although I don’t see how it can be linked to Benkei (maybe it’ll come to me later).

They aren’t popular animal in Japan, they don’t hold a huge cultural importance/influence (unlike foxes, turles, koi or cranes for example). They are associated with the god Tenjin, god of scholars, academics and learning. In Aizu, they are said to have saved the people from a smallpox epidemic.

And an important fact : it’s Ragnarok’s emblem.

He was barely 14 when BD was created. Actually, his birthday had been the week prior ! And he already got his tattoo, so he was 13 at most when he got tattoed. Probably when he became Ragnarok 3rd Generation leader, perhaps before ? We don’t know how he got into Ragnarok after all. And here’s the thing, 13 isn’t the oldest a tr character was when they got tattooed – Draken & Mitsuya where like 10 – but Benkei’s tattoos, 1. cover his pectorals and upper-arms, like some irezumi, Yakuza tattoo, 2. it’s Ragnarok emblems. The only other characters I can think of that got their gang/organisation tattooed on their body are Bonten members. And they aren’t 13 or younger.

Benkei got a full Irezumi, although with rather tribal art/not traditional japanese art/not how Irezumi commonly look (and also i don’t think he got anything on his back) at age 13 or younger.

The ‘why’ lies in his backstory which we can only make suppositions on (since we don’t have it ofc). He (and Wakasa) could have been around delinquents (notably, the previous Ragnarok leaders) as a child. And if that happened before 1992 and the anti-gangs laws (which were really anti-yakuza only), then, yes, he could’ve gotten a full-irezumi that young, thinking he’d become a yakuza someday (which Ragnarok leaders 1 & 2 probably did)

Ragnarok should mean a lot to him to get such imposing tattoos on his body.

Now, about Wakasa.

The only visible thing are the flowers. They’re don’t seem to be camelias like he has on his Brahman uniform but rather peonies or roses (take that with a pinch of salt, I’m not a flower professionnal). Peonies symbolize honor, bravery, courage, good fortune, wealth, prosperity. It’s is nicknamed ‘the queen/king of flowers’ as well as ‘the rose without thorns’ and is a common filler in irezumi. Roses symbolize the same things as they do in the western flower language – to name the best-known, love and passion.

And then there’s this thing

And I’m going full instinct and say it’s a komainu. Because it’d make SO MUCH sense for Wakasa (and it would for Benkei too!) to have one.

The important things about Komainu for this post are : 1. they’re guardians of sacred places in Japan (such as Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines), ward off evil spirits, are deities’ protectors, and are always in pair 2. most of the time, one has its mouth open, the other has its closed. do you see where i’m coming from and where i’m going.

I don’t need to extant on the first point, you all get it, and the second, I think you do too but –

Wakui really just decided to always make Benkei grin his teeth and Wakasa always (?at least mostly) has his mouth shut. Because. Because they’re Shinichiro’s (and possibly Takeomi’s, most definitely BD as a whole) guardians.

Wakui Ken is a very funny man imo

About their volume cover now, Wakasa keeps his peonies, and add plum or cherry blossoms. I’ll stick with plum, since cherry blossoms are Senju’s flowers. Plum blossom symbolize good fortune, herald of spring and ward off evil spirits.

Benkei is the one to have (opened) camelias (or peonies ! Opened peonies look like that, too, althought with more petals) this time, among waves. Waves symbolize movement, strength, fluidity, life. It compares life to water ; both can be strong and swift but also gentle and calm ; power and resilience.

He has several Mitsudomoe as well which come with Raijin and Fujin (one of the rare things I’m 100 % sure of).

Wakasa was meant to represent Fujin and Benkei Raijin. 1, those two are rivals and fight for the control over the sky 2, Raijin has Mitsudomoe and Fujin wears clothes made of leopard skin 3, Raijin has a red skin – Benkei was nicknamed Red Cliff because of that one time he walked out a fight covered in blood.

Futhermore, Fujin is the god of wind – Wakasa’s fighting style is light and fast – and is nonchalant ; apathetic (as he can be both the calm wind and the storm) – which fits Wakasa’s own personality. Raijin is the god of thunder and owns hammers – like Thor. Both Fujin and Raijin cause troubles but aren’t evil spirits.

And since by analysing Benkei’s tattoos I analyse Ragnarok emblem, have the only thing I figured about to Kodo Rengo’s :

It looks like a raising sun with its rays. The triangle is most likely Wakasa, while the rays (there are 12 of them) are each of the gangs that make up Kodo Rengo. The sun is the source of all life and light and has cleansing powers, yada yada, they were made to rivalize Benkei’s Ragnarok. Plus, the rays kinda look like spears ? You know, to push Ragnarok back ? And it’s also Japan/Japanese Imperial Family/Japan ‘main’ godess, Amaterasu‘s symbol. Wakasa is never beating my those young-master-from-a-yakuza-family allegations. Never.

#also i cant see what is tattooed on benkei’s chest and it’s pissing me off #is it another part of the body of the bulls ? #tr #tokrev #tokyo revengers #tok rev #No wonder Wakasa and Benkei are called living legends. Men were both inspired by Benkei and Yoshitsune no Minamoto + Raijin and Fujin #tr wakasa #tr benkei #tokrev wakasa #tokrev benkei #wakasa imaushi #arashi keizo #arashi keizou #benwaka #black dragon #black dragon first gen

[alfredsolos]

I don't like how some writers bash or exaggerate the other batkids' behaviour and personalities in order to whumpify their favorite batfam member.

If Dick Grayson is the main character in the fic, then every other batfam member are suddenly incapable of doing the most simplest tasks and ask Dick to help them. He solves every single problem of his family because he is the 'eldest'. And he always puts a smile on his face and let's them treat him like shit.

Yes, it is true that Dick has more responsibility compared to his siblings. Not because he is the eldest; but because he has to keep an entire city safe all by himself, mentor teen sidekicks, lead the Titans, go on missions with the JL and so on. And he does this not because he has to, but because he wants to.

Also he may be more emotionally open than rest of his siblings, but thats just it. Compared to his siblings. Nightwing says puns and jokes yeah, but he is not at all can be classified as emotionally vulnurable. Dick led and mentored so many teams, and you can't do that while being light hearted and smiley all the time.

Dick is serious and firm when needed to. He doesn't baby any of his siblings (especially Damian), or act like an angel all the time. He has anger management issues and does not take bullshit from anyone. Not even his family.

He lives in Bludhaven to get away from the craziness that is Gotham. He loves his family, but he simply does not have the patience to deal with them all the time.

When the fic is about Jason, most of the plot is about him being dead and how Bruce betrayed him by replacing him. That Dick threw him in Arkham and everyone treats him like a monster.

Well firstly, Jason is not all about his death. He doesn't really bring it up unless he wants to make a point to Bruce.

Jason doesn't hate Tim because he replaced him. Jason hates Bruce, for taking in another Robin when the first one actively get murdered because of it. He beat Tim up to prove to him and Bruce that taking in a child, and making him his partner is seriously wrong. Jason hates the idea of kids becoming soldiers for a war they didn't start.

Another point is that after Jason came back from the dead, he wasn't an anti-hero. He was a full on villain that tried to kill most of the Batfamily. And no I'm not talking about him beating Tim up in the Titans tower (It was to send a message to Bruce) or cutting his throat (which he didn't. It was a small scratch):

I'm talking about Battle for the Cowl, when he beat Tim up badly because he refused to be his Robin. Jason thought Tim was dead at the end of their fight (Tim slowed down his heartbeat). And this is his reaction:

And yet again in Battle for the Cowl, he shot Damian. Which resulted him getting more than 70 stitches:

Also this was his reaction when a nuclear powered supervillain blew up Bludhaven:

He poisoned 82 inmates while 'Dick sent poor Jason into prison :('

Now does this mean Jason is a bad character? Fuck no! Infact he is one of my favorite characters. Jason is such an interesting character and sometimes you can't help but condone his mistakes no matter how bad they are. Even I do this.

So what I mean is that, we should stop babying him and see him as the flawed character he is. Every single character has their own flaws and that's what makes them special.

Jason was a hero, then a villain, then an anti-hero, then again a hero.

Also he doesn't get pit episodes. The only time he got one was right after getting out of the pit. Lazarus pit did not made him violent and it's not the blame for Jason's past actions. Jason was awake and aware of the things he did. And he feels guilty. But he learned to forgive. Both himself and Bruce.

Our next member is Tim Drake. Fanon Tim Drake is a coffee addict, he is thin and small, is quiet and doesn't believe he is apart of the family. Dick stole Robin from him and gave it to 'evil and cruel' Damian who bullies him every time they interact. Jason always calls him replacement and threatens to kill him most of the time. Dick is a monster that tried to lock him up in Arkham.

God I cringed writing this. Anyways firstly Tim is, in fact, not a coffee addict. I'd say he is more of a tea person and only drinks coffee to stay awake.

Tim is not short and all skin and bones. He eats properly and is very muscled. Especially around his back and biceps. He is also not short either.

Tim is quiet, yes. But not in a shy way. He is cold and calculative and sometimes a little apathatic. He isn't scared to do what's necessary and is always ready to sacrifice himself for the sake of the mission. He also definitely sees himself apart of the family.

Another really misunderstood point is that Dick took Robin from him, when it was actually Alfred who gave Damian the Robin suit.

Yes, Damian tried to kill him multiple times and it was very traumatising for Tim. But they do get along most of the time. In fact Tim may be the second closest to Damian among the family. Because no matter what happens he loves his little brother. As it was shown when he hallucinated and hugged Damian after he died.

Jason and him may be at odds from time to time, but Jason gets along with him more than most of his siblings.

And Dick most certainly did not try to put him in Arkham. Bruce was dead and Dick saw Tim. How devastated he was, so he offered him to get therapy. Like a good brother would do.

Last but not least is Damian. I think most of the time Damian centric fics manage to represent him properly. But let's start with the ones that are the most cliche-d and wrongly written.

Damian talks the Queen's British and is spoiled. Dick Grayson is his actual father and Bruce always insults him. He trains all day and goes to patrol at night. He hates his mother, always gets his ass handed to him in a fight. Tim Drake treats him horribly and everyone calls him Demon or Demon Brat. Jason is the best brother in the world and him and Dick always protect him from Bruce's wrath. Alfred annoyes him and Damian doesn't really care about him. All of his personality is summed up with: "Yes, Father."

In actuality, Damian is most of the time sassy or straight up mocking. He uses slangs and isn't scared of disrespecting Ra's or Talia and Bruce (in fact he may be enjoying it a little).

Dick Grayson is in fact not his father figure. That title belongs to Alfred, who was always there whenever he needed him.

Damian plays video games and his favorite one is cheese vikings.

He also loves his mother and forgives her even through all does horrible things she does to him. He is most likely conditioned to feel that way. Because it's not normal to treat someone normally after they murder you. He is also an exceptionally good fighter.

Tim Drake is possibly his second closest sibling. They banter and fight sometimes, yes. But they still very much care for each other. When Tim was thought to be dead, Damian was shown to be holding his bo staff and mourning.

Him and Jason were never close. Jason tried to kill him and so did Damian. They don't know each other well and Damian does not want to; since at the time he was Robin, Jason was a villain that actively tried to hurt him and Dick.

I don't think anyone ever called him a Demon Brat. Or if they did it was probably like one time, since I couldn't find any panels that refer to him that way.

Damian is the most rebellious and hot headed Robin. He doesn't shy from saying what wants or stepping up to Bruce. In fact those two are the ones who fight the most in the family. Even more than Tim and Damian.

And Bruce doesn't always insult or bench him. He just straight up ignores him or his needs and always puts him in second.

There are obviously way more than these, but I'll stop for today. No hate to the creators, this is just my own opinion.

#damian wayne #dc comics #batfamily #batfam #tim drake #bruce wayne #jason todd #dick grayson #fanon batfam #canon batfam

[notmaplemable]

Weapons of Summer Love Part 5

Summer aimed Rosepetal. Exhaling slowly. Firing.

The grimm which she fired at snapping back violently as the round ripped through it. Tumbling to the ground and being trampled by the grimm behind it. Tripping up one of the larger grimm.

STRQ had managed to dig themselves into a position where the grimm would have to funnel themselves through a narrow opening to get to them.

Raven and Tai were positioned near the opening of the funnel. Raven cutting through dozens of grimm as Qrow ran interference. Shifting in and out of his corvid form harassing and slowing down the waves.

Tai took up his usual position as the big grimm hunter. With a single punch cracking and breaking away the think armor of most any grimm. In this case a goliath.

Summer set herself up in an old watch tower. Overlooking the battlefield as well aimed shots rang out every second or so. Qrow's chirps and whistles, barely heard over the firing, telling her to fire at specific targets as her partner continued his harassment.

Summer loaded her last full magazine into Rosepetal as the horde appeared to be thinning out. A high pitched whistle came from Qrow. War-

A arm covered in thick bone plating crashed through the watch tower. In the place where Summer was a cascade of white and red rose petals burst from the destroyed building. Summer reappearing in another burst of petals yards away from the destroyed tower.

Landing on a nearby roof Summer teleported from roof to roof. Taking crack shots at the grimm who had destroyed her previous lookout. A geist that had possessed some of the debris of the town. Essentially turning itself into a walking, not quite talking, certainly trying to kill her, house.

Not that she could do much damage with the mask covered. Rosepetal could pack a punch, but she wasn't an anti-material rifle of anything of that sort. No, this problem was best dealt with, not with precision, but with power. And on team STRQ there was only one man for that job.

Summer: Qrow! Keep that thing in one place!

Qrow: On it!

Taiyang: What's the plan Sums?

Tai said as Summer landing on the ground near him and Raven.

Summer: Diving Phoenix.

Summer pointed towards one particularly tall building in the abandoned village they were fighting in.

Taiyang: Been awhile since we did that one.

Raven: I hope you've worked on you landing strategy since the last time.

Raven teased as Summer grabbed Tai. Teleporting from building to building as they finally reached the top of the taller building. Tai jumping off the building as Raven opened up a portal underneath him. The other being directly over the geist.

Tai crashed down on the geist with a loud crack. Exposing the mask. A quick shot from Summer doing the rest of the work. Tai, having apparently not improved his landing strategy, landing flat on his rear end as the former grimm collapsed.

Taiyang: That kill counts for me Sums!

Summer: I got the last shot in! Now get off your butt and help!

Taiyang: Yeah yeah yeah. But that only counts as one!

------

Summer exhaled slowly. Looking at Ruby and Jaune, who were sitting on her bed.

Summer: The first thing that I want to say, is that I'm sorry for kissing you Jaune. I was very emotional and... I shouldn't have done something like that. I'm sorry.

Jaune: It's okay Summer.

Ruby: I still don't like it, but... but I understand that you were having a moment and Jaune was there to help you through it. Like the great guy he is.

Summer: Thank you for being so understanding. The last thing I would want to do is damage your relationship with Jaune or with me.

Summer: But that's not the only thing I need to apologize for.

Ruby: I-I heard all those things you said about yourself mom. So if you're about to apologize for being a bad mother, don't even think about it! You're a great mom! The best!

Summer: ...Thank you dear, but I wanted to apologize for something else.

Summer: You see, I've always been a very reserved person. I've always tried to keep my feeling in check and not tell people too much about myself. I repressed myself. And it's very difficult for me to open up to people.

Summer: But that's not fair to you or Yang. There's a lot about me that you don't know. That you really should.

Summer: Where I grew up. About my parents and my sister. There's so much of my story that I've kept from you. Things that not ever Qrow and Raven know.

Summer: Your father was one of the few people who could ever really get me to open up. To let go. To be truly vulnerable with someone.

Summer: He made me feel so protected. So loved, even before we got together. Like there was someone in my life who would always support me and have my back.

Summer: And when I lost him I just closed myself off to everyone again.

Summer: I never thought that I would meet anyone who could make me feel that way again.

Summer: ...That was... Until I met Jaune...

#rwby #weapons of summer love au #jaune arc #ruby rose #lancaster #summer knight #greek fire #rosebush knight #taiyang xiao long #raven branwen #qrow branwen #summer rose

[consistentsquash]

Author Love Letter! Perverse Idyll!! <3

Actually not just an author. Also Podficcer. Also artist. Also reccer. Also mods a subreddit. Also writes the best comments! Literally incredible how insanely talented and generous @perverse-idyll is.

It blows my mind how PI is super consistently good about treating folks nicely no matter what is going on. Antis, weird asks, folks who don't really own their kinks. PI is super respectful and goes out of her way to help them with recs/ideas/discussion. PI is the total opposite of Snape. Anti Snape. Idk why I love PI and also PI's Snape but it do be like that sometimes! <3

Going to love on new PI fics this time because PI has been super amazing and gave us a lot of new fic in 2023. Also of course everybody should definitely read the old fics which I talked about in 2022 Love Letter

  Candles Lit Against the Dark

Pairings - McGonagall/Hooch + Snarry Hints.

Read it because - this is really the retirement you want. You are going to cry because of the soft/good/happy/healed retirement our big war survivor cast gets. They deserve it. Esp McGonagall who is in the middle. It's her story and she's got the best happily ever after ending possible <3 Definitely not fluff the way we are used to thinking about it because of the undercurrents of the war/trauma in their lives. But you know this is the best fluff I have read because it's like drinking hot chocolate in winter. Literally like candles lit against the dark <3

  Coda to "Soft Touch"

Pairing - Snarry

Read it because - we really need to know what happened after their so totally unethical massage therapy session. It got a soft touch coda actually. Snape and Harry still got their emotional angst going on but it's softer. Definitely more optimistic/hopeful.

  Social Lubricant

Pairing - Snarry

Read it because - Harry is Snape's social lubricant :D It's an out-take from Warm which is a really emotional pwp ~~with rimming~~. PI really spoiled us with loads of soft/gentle moments this year <3 lovelovelove.

The truth was, this "violation of Harry's personal dignity" (according to a mortified Hermione, who'd once had the misfortune to catch them at it) was the reason Harry had invested in full-length formal robes and why he cheerfully accepted every invitation the Ministry peppered him with. Inflict enough boredom on Severus Snape, and the only thing that seemed to compensate for his inability to Incendio everything in sight was unlimited (if undercover) access to Harry Potter's arse.

  The Afterlight

Intense smutty plot with complicated feelings. In another words, Snarry by PI!!! <3

[...] his skin marked by a lifetime of mistakes and sacrifices, broken fingernails and potions burns and brushes with death. It was a map of his existence, and without a doubt Harry was inscribed on it somewhere. Probably all over, to be honest.

also

Harry would definitely, definitely fuck that again.

Gosh, I love PI's Harry POV. Just the Snape descriptions in his voice!!! <3 It's everything. Also this fic got me to ship Snamione. But we don't need to talk about that :D This fic is my goto for new Snarry needs.

  The Threefold Death; or: the Lost World (long version)

A mild, repetitive clack grows louder somewhere ahead. The path slides through the trees, and the garden unfolds, vivid in the silvery light. Like a toy in the hands of a bored child, the unlatched gate bounces aimlessly back and forth, clacking against the fence post. Harry pushes it open and steps over the line dividing the garden from the rest of the world. He's vibrating inside, eaten up with incompatible hungers. He doesn't know if he's choosing weakness or strength. Doesn't know who he's betraying more, only that he's making others pay for his mistakes.

Also an intense fic! I love the really strange and beautiful magic in this fic. It's hard to explain the plot but IMO they should just take this to replace Cursed Child canon because I love the relationship Harry and Al have + the fic is 100x cooler and scarier :D It's like PoA and you are discovering Dementors for the first time through Harry's POV. The perfect Halloween fic.

  Year of the Thestral

This is an intense fic. Also the one fic you should read from this fandom in 2023 if you don't have time/spoons to read anything else. Because this fic not just captures the spirit of the books but also adds a lot more emotional weight/complexity to the DH book. I started this fic for Snape. But omg the McGonagall characterization really, really won me over. A really heavy fic but more in terms of the emotional heaviness. Super sensual, brilliant characterizations, the sex is erotic but also dirtybadhotwrong, the ethics questions are so messy. Like this fic forces you to live with ambiguity/no closure. We get to see the best and worst sides of humanity. It's incredibly, incredibly messy and frightening. But always human. A lot of it really hit me like The Schindler's List. I know that's a pretty out there comparison. But I feel this fic goes somewhere fics don't normally go in terms of showing the horrible compromises, emotional stakes, real horrors, personal motives. I feel this is probably the most intense/direct/intimate take on judgment/forgiveness/war commentary I got from a PI fic.

Victory was the prelude, grief the main theme, and hard work the sequel. A firm believer in such things, Minerva had thought she was ready for it.

#author love letter #perverse idyll #lovelovelove

[dailycass-cain]

The DCeased universe concluded "for now" with DCeased: War of the Undead Gods #8.  Was it a good closeout? Did it do a decent job with Cass in the end?  Well, here are my thoughts...

The opening to this issue just felt so different from the last one. Like, I was on the edge of my seat with the prior issue with it being the "big battle" and so many of the heroes were on death's door (or being infected).

It added to the "OH MY! How are the protagonists gonna win? ARE THEY GOING TO?" Because in the back of my mind I keep thinking of the DCeased: A Good Day to Die #1 had Booster Gold and him fading from time because well, I figured a BAD END was coming.

But on the other hand, this isn't Marvel Zombies which can be darkly depressing, comical, or both at the same time. But there's usually a negative bit to it. DCeased has always that bit of hope at least.

Not to mention Superman being Superman (until he was infected) and other characters finding new avenues to rise up and save folks (Dinah being a Green Lantern, Cass getting Shazam powers, Alfred becoming Spectre, and Vic getting a Brainiac upgrade).

That's why I enjoyed this alternate horrorfest more because writer Tom Taylor balanced the depressing with the light. Mainly with Ollie/Dinah and Barda/Scott.

To that degree, we got that in this final issue with Damian Wayne stepping up and pulling a prep-time move and beating the odds so heavily stacked against him that his Dad would be proud of.

I loved that. I loved the callbacks to the first series and giving us that bit of closure with the main cast from the first (the Ollie/Damian stuff?  Alfred, at the end? *chef's kiss*).

To that degree, the series achieved and went out on a highlight. HOWEVER--

---That's the tiny problem.

Tom Taylor expanded so much and added so many characters (whose lives changed majorly) and-- we got nothing with them.

Namely, I wanted to see Vic and Darkseid have a proper end as they along with the Black Racer were the catalysts for the Anti-Life virus spreading.

And everyone but Vic feels like a footnote.

I mean the whole Damian twist with Vic was a good one. It just feels a bit empty. I was expecting either Anti-Life to win or see a full-on "happy ending" to those who survived.

We sort of got that with Barda/Scott reuniting with their kid. Kara reunited with her parents.  

But... it is the eternal problem with DC Comics as a whole when it concerns itself with Cassandra Cain.

She's the only Bat Family member to survive this series. What we get in DCeased: Unkillables hits HARDER now when the realization hits you only Alfred and Cass walked away from this.

But we never see her reaction to Damian's death. She's not there with Alfred, and I get it to a degree. But on the other hand, the inner fan in me is screaming, "YOU STILL HAVE CASS!!"

But I digress, there was a lengthy period between Unkillables and DCeased: Dead Planet. Cass's family veered into with Marvel's (Mary), Gordon (Jim), and being there for Rose with her/Jason's kid. But we never saw that.

So the ending feels a bit-- flat to me. Like I'm happy Cass survived and left me all:

But I feel no satisfaction in that thought. Plus I feel a tiny bit but I feel like the ending could've hit more if Cass was there.

But... that's too much of  post-'09 DC world with Cass. She isn't "Family".

Again it just rings hollow because I got no ending with Cass.

Nor with Lobo getting his end. Or Darkseid with the realization he was but a pawn in a larger scheme.  Then there's Cassie Sandmark too losing Diana and now Damian.. um never mind that icky stuff.

But also Superman (Clark) too. Like we got no finality for Clark/Lois/Jon for me. I mean we sort of got it in #1 of this series, but I just want more finality.

Then there's also the fact that well... we got no real conclusion to the Talia/Steph subplot from At World's End.  Or heck the Flash Family (save for Barry and Max).

Like why I hate I'm so split because I loved the end but also felt disappointed by it. Because there's still WAAAAAAAAAAAAY too much left on the table here. Plus I dug this universe. I feel there are still A TON more stories that could come from it. Before or after this series.

For Cass, she had a few good moments (being one of the heroes to defeat Anti-Life Darkseid) was a nice surprise.

Likewise, somewhere wherever Lady Shiva's spirit is, she sure be smiling that her daughter be upping her teaching game to now Kryptonians.

Ironically, I figured the 1:50 variant (that I used to kick off these tweets) would be the ideal ending. That one generation of Justice League heroes was lost due to the Anti-Life virus, but another rose up and hope was restored across the galaxy. It feels more-- poetic.

These are just my thoughts currently, and I know they'll change. I know Taylor admitted he left A LOT on the table and had to cut so much out from this.

But I think it shows WHY he did an exceptional job.

As a reader, I care so much about this world Taylor and all the artists DC got for this series I WANT that ending. I want to see an older Harley/Ivy are up too. I want to see these things we cannot see in the current DCU play out here.

To that degree, I hope he does one more series to give this universe a "proper" end.  Cause he really built an amazing one and truly deserves to close out EVERYTHING he had in those notes.

Again, I'm grateful cause this series stuck so much more a landing over so many issues that I'm at least more satisfied with than say DC vs. Vampires which I could care less if we ever got a sequel again.

That's the sign of a good writer. That they hook you in so much that you're left wanting SOOOO much more. Taylor excels so much playing in the worlds outside the main DCU with Injustice, Dark Knights of Steel, and here.

Even if he'll break your heart. That urge is there.

I'm still grateful for the ride the creative teams gave us and for this Cass to reach this point. I just like any fan WANT MORE! 😅

#dc comics #cassandra cain #my thoughts

[faeymouse]

Hey, a fellow Tron fan in 2023?!

I'm glad my favorite childhood franchise is getting some love. Tron Legacy actually got me into programming and computer science as a kid, and all these years late, I'm still programming! Granted, there are a lot less light cycles and disc battles in C++ and Python than I had hoped for...

I know a lot of Tron fans are not extremely happy about the current state of a third movie, but I wanted to ask you: What would a perfect Tron sequel be like in your mind?

What characters from any part of the franchise should make a return, what kinds of new ones would you want introduced, and who would be a good hero/villain?

Assuming the grid ran on early 90s hardware and that a modern PC is thousands of times faster, do you think modern tech like the Internet should be addressed, or should the story take place in a closed-off system?

Would you want the visuals to be like Tron 1, Tron Legacy, a mix of the two, or something entirely unique?

What kinds of new light vehicles or weapons could they introduce?

And finally, should Bit make a return?

I'm sorry that my question has like 20 sub-questions, but anyway, I just wanted to say thanks for all the art and stuff you share. It's nice to look back at Tron and how it changed my life, so thanks!

Hell yes, and hello! I’m glad to have the chance to help give it some love, and to meet all the awesome, dedicated people in this fandom that make it all the more fun to enjoy. I love hearing stories like your’s; it’s such a nice reminder of the impact fandom and media can have on someone.

Thank you for your nice words about my art and stuff. The Tron fandom has been so welcoming and so inspirational, I’ve been having a blast creating stuff for it! Also, I love getting asked questions. Especially lots of questions. Thanks so much for this! I’ll go one by one under a read more:

What would a perfect Tron sequel be like in your mind?

One that incorporates Tron, for one. You can’t have a Tron movie with Tron. They can do whatever else they want, but a sequel can’t be perfect unless Tron’s there. Played by Bruce Boxleitner. He’s like the James Earl Jones of this franchise: he plays the character and no one else. 

That being said… would a continuation of Uprising be too much of a cop out? Don’t get me wrong, I’d like a legit expansion like Identity, but I’d also like for the stories we already have to come to their full conclusion. Sure, Uprising is a prequel, but it has just enough unanswered questions that it feels like an open wound. 

What characters from any part of the franchise should make a return, what kinds of new ones would you want introduced, and who would be a good hero/villain?

Kinda sorta already answered this one in the previous question, but I can keep the thoughts going! I’ll repeat Tron again because leaving him out would probably be the one thing that could possibly make me dislike Ares enough not to go see it. I’d also love for it to get the Star Wars treatment and bring some of the animated characters to the big screen. Beck? Dyson? Cyrus? Mara? How about just everyone from Uprising? I’d also love to see Yori again, or at least find out definitively what happened to her. OH AND ALAN. And I’d love to see what Sam and Quorra are up to (and if the movie will go for the low-hanging fruit and make a rollercoaster joke). Also, as far as returners go, I’d love to see Flynn again. I know he “died,” but it just won’t feel the same without him. Maybe he’s literally become part of the Grid and comes back as a big MCP-looking face. 

That being said, one of the points that got me particularly excited for Ares was the inclusion of a female human main character. The description lists her as: 

Eve- Female lead, Asian, 30-40. Human lead of the story. A tech genius, focused and full of Open heart, analytical and observant. One of the worlds best programmers. Reclusive, anti social, the way she connects with Ares isn’t romantic but sympathetic connection. Someone who has an attractiveness

I think the Tron movies are due for a non-Flynn to take the lead, and I think done right Eve could be a fantastic successor. I appreciate that she’s not a teenager or in her 20s, that she’s still described as attractive, and that she’s being set up to not be in a romance with Ares. ALSO UM… CHECK OUT THIS DESCRIPTION FOR ANOTHER CHARACTER:

Athena: Female lead, 30-50. Imposing, cold and officious, driven solely by an innate urge. Open to fulfll any directive she’s given without question, Athena is a member of an elite special forces unit and second in command. When Athena senses her superior has strayed from their assignment, she reports him without hesitation and quickly assumes his leadership role, intent on destroying him and fulfiling the directive at all costs. With incredible power and the inability to fear or doubt, Athena is a nearly unstoppable force, and a tragic figure. This role requires significant physicality, fight skills area plus…

Already shipping Eve and Athena, ngl. You can’t hand me a reclusive genius and a battle-hardened bitch and expect to not immediately want to see them bring out the best in each other. Calling it now, they’re gonna be the power couple of the Tron Ares fandom.

Last but not least, who would make a good hero/villain? Eve sounds like my perfect protagonist, so let her be the hero. As for the villain, it seems like it’s gonna be Dillinger Jr. which means it’ll probably be some form of the MCP, which… mmmmmm. Again, if they do it well I’ll be ecstatic, but it could easily turn into a “Somehow, Palpatine has returned” situation so I’ll tentatively say, sure, Dillinger and the MCP can be good villains, but on god make it interesting and worth it.

Assuming the grid ran on early 90s hardware and that a modern PC is thousands of times faster, do you think modern tech like the Internet should be addressed, or should the story take place in a closed-off system?

I think that instead of addressing the Internet, they should address the possibility of separate Grids being able to communicate and interact with one another. That’s two birds with one stone: it’s a nod to changing times, but it’s also just distant enough to keep it feeling like a different world.

Would you want the visuals to be like Tron 1, Tron Legacy, a mix of the two, or something entirely unique?

Tron Legacy, but I hope they go back to the greyscale skin. Blame that hope entirely on Uprising combining Legacy and 1982 aesthetics perfectly. I want it recreated!

What kinds of new light vehicles or weapons could they introduce?

I’d love to see a car, like the one they have in that one episode of Uprising. Some sort of skateboard-type vehicle might be cool, especially if it can go in the air. Other than that, I’m happy if they just stick with some cool light cycles. You can’t go wrong with them.

As for weapons, I’d love for them to – again – take a clue from Uprising and grab some weapons from there, like the lightstaffs or Dyson’s disk-on-a-string or Tesler’s glowing fists of death. I also wouldn’t say no to cool glowing claws! They could give them to Athena!

And finally, should Bit make a return?

110% definitely. Yes. It should even be revealed that Bit rescued Tron from the Sea of Simulation. They should release Bit plushies. I want animated shorts that are just focused on Bit. I need him to get the BB8 Grogu treatment asap.

#tron ares #tron #impulse-nine #babbles

[solarpunkpresentspodcast]

Mashing Solarpunk and Cyberpunk to Wage War Against War in The Creator

I saw the movie The Creator last night, which turned out to be a brooding love child of cyberpunk and solarpunk. I think we need a name for that genre mashup because there’s some interesting threads there to mine. The Creator also made me wonder, when did films get so beautiful. Every last frame of this film is a work of art of exceptional composition and clarity. And the sound... just wow, from the stirring yet perfectly integrated musical score to the map of sounds happening around you as the action progresses. If nothing else (and yet much more), The Creator is exactly why we should be fighting for the lives of our movie theaters. It breaks my heart to think of all the young’uns out there who are going to watch this film on their phone and will never have any idea what they’re missing by not having seen it on a big screen with a top–notch sound system. Even watching a film like this on the best HD TV you could hang on your living room wall would be like looking at a print of a Picasso instead of seeing its power in person.

The Creator takes place in an alternate timeline where we dove into AI and robotics with such gusto so early on, there were AI robots in spacesuits in space missions on NASA’s Space Shuttles (circa early 80s to early 2010s), not to mention acting as mother’s little helpers in the kitchens of the 1950s (if my memory is accurate of the “news reel” that rolled for the rocket ride that is the film’s opening montage). In short, The Terminator films clearly not existing in this timeline, humanity made the mistake of leaving the AIs in charge of defense systems and Los Angeles got nuked. And that’s just the first 75 seconds of the film (more or less).

Despite the fact that hardly anyone one who doesn’t live in Los Angeles cares a whit about the place—in fact,lots of folks actively fantasize about its demise (I’m thinking, most recently, of Kim Stanley Robinson's meanly gleeful and scientifically inaccurate drowning of the LA basin within about the space of a day via atmospheric river storms in The Ministry for the Future)—the USA goes full post-9/11 and declares war on AI. This means hunting down and mercilessly exterminating hotbeds of AI development in “New Asia.” Cue violent raids into New Asian countries by squads of American commandos with mind–bogglingly mighty tanks; a permanently airborne war station that locates targets, coordinates attacks, and launches savage missile attacks; and the most arrogant, single-minded, and cruel military characters imaginable.

That is, except for the protagonist. Sure, he’s an elite commando, but (SLEDGEHAMMER OF A METAPHOR) he’s a little bit robot himself, with all those bionics to replace limbs lost (in combat, presumably, given that his more innocent explanation sounds like an evasive lie). He fell in love with and married a New Asian woman while infiltrating her “terrorist” troupe of AI developers. This splits his sympathies. Considerably. Still, the top brass puts him in charge of re–infiltrating New Asia to seek and destroy the AI “weapon” the “terrorists” have developed. But this “weapon to end all weapons” turns out to be the AI equivalent of a human child who holds the key to the protagonist reuniting with the protagonist’s seemingly terrorist wife. As well as maybe also holding the key to world peace. Meanwhile, the child AI needs the love, protection, and guidance of a parent to survive and develop deeply human emotions. (Because, you know, emotions. They’re what make people do good things, right?)

Movies being movies, a lot of people and seemingly sentient machines are going to have to die in splatters of gunfire and spectacular explosions before we can find out who wins: the US military meanies or the AI robots and their friends, who just want to live free in peace and harmony.

Thematically, there’s a lot going on in The Creator. It’s very anti-colonialism, for instance. It also wonders how sentient robots will feel about being, essentially, slaves. It wants to tell us that maybe AI will be good for us. Instead of wanting to exterminate us—we who are actually the violent ones who refuse to see the humanity in others—maybe AI will want to be our friends and partners. Maybe AI will help us to develop the humanity lurking somewhere within ourselves and make us better human beings.

But for me, the overarching theme of The Creator is rage at America’s arrogantly militaristic habit of seeing things in black and white (US vs them, good guys vs terrorists, humans vs AI) and of annihilating the enemy at all cost, including that of the lives, livelihoods, housing, and villages of the civilians we don’t see as mattering. Watching this bitter rebuke to “shock and awe” was especially moving right now, on the brink (at least at the time of this writing) of Israel’s potential offensive into Gaza that will be Israel making the same mistake America made after 9/11. We could have taken the world’s sympathy and support (for we had it!) and used it to make the world a better, more equitable, more peaceful, much less impoverished, and more just place. Instead, we spent decades extracting bloody, violent revenge for a single terrorist act. Yes, our pride was wounded, and yes, nearly 3,000 people died as a result of the 9/11 terrorist attack, but the damage and death we caused in response with our mighty military machinery and soldiers gained us nothing, not even satisfaction. All it did, besides kill people and destroy their homes, was take the world into a dark, unstable place where there are now so many sides (within societies and between them) and they all hate each other. We all hate each other and this is ripping the fabric of our societies apart and making life more horrible for everyone. Rampaging like a million Godzillas on methamphetamine might feel as good as smashing glass when you’re mad, but it’s not right. It’s what evil empires do and it has terrible geopolitical repercussions. Especially when you wrap up your claim in the mantle of morality that you don’t actually have.

Of course, few movies are without their flaws. A lot happened in this movie that strained all credibility... and for the most part, it wasn’t the speculative elements. If the plot consisted of a lot of interlocking threads, every last one of them went full circle and tied itself into a tidy little bow by the end, which was ridiculous. Related to this, foreshadowing struck often and always like a sledgehammer. And there were far too many implausible events... characters who just happened to stumble in the right direction to end up in the right place at literally exactly the right time to make exactly the connection (that had gotten set up in another implausible and convoluted set of circumstances) that was totally unexpected (but that you saw coming 30 minutes previously because of the sledgehammer foreshadowing), etc. The AI child has extraordinary powers over machines when the plot needs it to but doesn’t have those powers when the plot needs it not to. The US military people are all such hardcore, single-minded, murder–all–the–AIs–at–all–cost lunkheads that the tragic backstory they give at least one of them to excuse it just comes across as laughable. Also, come on. Los Angeles gets nuked and only a couple of million people die? Does the alternate timeline not know that nearly 20 million people live in the Los Angeles megalopolitan area? Also, why barrage AI hot spots with bombs and missiles, doing so much collateral damage, when a great bit electromagnetic pulse would be far more effective while simultaneously sparing human beings and their homes?

Despite this, the movie is a moving spectacle. And it felt new. Which is not easy to do, as anyone who has sat down to try to write sci–fi could tell you. Sci–fi is so far beyond the first flush of its youth, unless you're really good, that just about any story you come up with has been written several times before. Despite the clunkier aspects of the plot, whoever wrote The Creator is really good. This sci–fi movie broke ground.

These days, I rarely stay for the credits of movies, but I felt compelled to for The Creator. It was so magnificently made, I’d found myself wondering how you would even go about writing a prospectus for a film like this. It was filmed at so many different places around the world and it had so much excellent CGI, there was only one moment in the movie where I was like, oh, that’s totally obviously CGI (and normally I scoff all the time at CGI). How would you even begin to figure out how many people you’d need to make a film this epic and detailed, much less how to coordinate their efforts. How could you begin to calculate how long it would take to make a movie this ambitious or how much it would cost so that the end result was excellent? (Turns out, the cost is $80 million, which is between a quarter and a third of the cost of a typical Marvel movie.)

My best guess—before and after watching the extensive credits—is that it took at least a thousand person-years to get this film made. There were so many animators. And they all seem to have done a painstaking job.

So, kudos to The Creator, the art with which it was made, and the themes that it tackled. Now get thee to a proper movie theater. In fact, the shiniest, newest, most up–to–date movie theater you can find. Movie theaters need our help to survive in this world of streaming, and spectacles like The Creator need to be seen on a big screen.

[yellowtomb]

one year of full-scale war

is today. for the last year I (and many many other ukrainians, no doubt) have been through a lot of states. half year ago I was really afraid that i will be mobilized and sent to front, since than Ive been trying to embrace this possibility, as I am already have served in 2016-2017 so its is not a surprise. 

after a year i mostly feel nothing, winter was the hardest. every day had the same atmosphere of dread. in 2022 I mentally prepared myself that i might not be alive next day. than - that I may die before 2023, than - before spring and so and so. now the spring may come, war is still going and will go on, we know that. there is no quick solution although we fight like no one would believe. at this point I am glad the spring is right behind the corner but also - I accepted that I still may die somewhere on the dusty field of my country - somewhere in central or south Ukraine, which is actually the place of birth of both of my parents, their families. I am the child of the same place which is a battlefield right now, that burning land in the centre of europe and the literal central of this conflict. I am still afraid, not gonna lie. 

and fear is the only thing that I want to to defeat right now. I know I am not a soldier - no one is. I know I can do something what i must and can, and save some life just by destroying as many of those, who want to take this life. it is that simple. and its is not fair for anyone to turn his/her life to this. and yet it is happening. and I accept it, and I can not accept living in fear my whole life.

I truly love these people and this land, this concept of  a country, built by runaway serfs, this rebel state, I lived through Maidan and I live through 9 years of war (1 year of full scale). I love this birth place of many cultures, religions, ethnicities, communities.

I consider myself leftist. I am glad I have been raised the way I am, I am glad I got into punk/hardcore scene in 16 years, it opened the world to me and gave me tools for alternative worldview. I know that I am pansexual from the age of 10-12 (I didnt knew the term obviously, but I never had problem with recognizing it).  But I was afraid of showing that. I am 30 right now and until last week I have never been on a date with a man. And now I have, and its wonderful and new and I am regretting all those years I have been hiding some parts of my personality. 

there is so much geopolitics and dirt and speculation and propaganda around this war, and the hardest for me is the leftist ignorance, the squeal of old school communists and sovietphiles under the boot of modern russia and its 'soviet anti-imperialistic' legacy. and if I live after all this and some westerner will start preaching me on those - the less I may do is spit in their faces. I do not care for someone educated opinions on this war - I live in it, I know the history of my family and the history of this land. I know what I stand for.

this blog was never really personal, but is so humane to want to be remembered I guess. I want this post to be about me as one the millions ukrainians in this war. So bellow is my photo from this autumn, during one of 680+ air raids in Kyiv

death to all empires

death to russian federation

glory to Ukraine and fallen ukrainian soldiers and people

__________________________________________________________

donate to this fund and help us deal with it, read the webpage for details, you can donate only to humanitarian causes, but, honestly, we need aid to fight, there is no shame in killing russian fascists

#war in ukraine #russia is a terrorist state #death to russian federation #death to russia #ukraine #ukrainian resistance

[isaackuo]

I'm loving Mando!

I'm so delighted by the latest Mando episode, Guns for Hire! Droid rights! Democracy! Blade Runner vibes! I have spoken!

Droid Rights

I've been wondering if Star Wars was going to ever address droid rights ever since Brasso treated B2EMO with respect like a fellow human. It prompted the question - what about everyone else? Why can't everyone treat droids with such respect?

The Bad Batch really dove deep into clone rights. There was this line ... something like:

"We're not like droids. We make our own decisions."

I was so upset by that line. It's like ... you're really going to strive for rights by stepping on fellow slaves? Really?

But the TBB fandom just lapped up!

VINDICATION!

Finally, Star Wars addresses droid rights! And it fits in perfectly with themes that The Mandalorian has set up since season 1 ... the way IG-11 was reprogrammed ... Din Djarin's anti-droid prejudice ... just perfect.

Sure, the story was basically Zootopia, but in a good way.

Democracy

I was surprised by last week's episode, The Pirate. It showed a contrast between an open democratic decision making process (Din and Paz) with a creepy closed authoritarian fiat decision (The Armorer).

I didn't know whether they would continue exploring that theme, but this episode really made things more explicit. Navarro is a great home, but look at this place! Domed city ... thriving economy ... it's better than home.

Blade Runner Vibes

The visual style and themes draw inspiration from Blade Runner, but with a less dystopian twist. Not much to say here other than it was really cool.

I have spoken

Come on, folks, it was so touching to hear Din talk about Kuiil.

Okay the Darksaber

I think maybe people aren't "getting" the deal with the Darksaber. As Moff Gideon explained, it's not some magical property of the Darksaber, it's the story.

So what does Din do? He concocts a convenient story, that is a lot more convincing than the full truth. Bo-Katan does NOT look enthusiastic about this gambit, but she's got no other plan in mind so she shuts up and sees how it goes.

This is the second time in two episodes that Bo-Katan has a huge decision thrust upon her rather than acting upon her own agency.

I need fellow fans to understand ... Bo-Katan doesn't want this. And Din's gambit isn't going to make her any more enthusiastic. She remembers the last time she was given the Darksaber and she reluctantly accepted it. She feels the same vibes, even if the others see it as different.

#the mandalorian spoilers #the mandalorian #star wars #thoughts

[megashadowdragon]

Fornicarii Delendi Sunt @scsimodem · Jan 26 Lincoln was told reinforcing a fort promised to SC would start a war. It's what he wanted, to the point of having ships with invasion orders already in transit before the first shot was fired. Fearing being conquered and all that comes with that, the CSA raised an army. Fornicarii Delendi Sunt @scsimodem · Jan 26 The war was so unpopular that Lincoln had to arrest critics, including the entire Maryland legislature, to keep the Union from falling apart. The deadliest riot in US history was an anti-draft riot in NYC that Lincoln put down with military force. Fornicarii Delendi Sunt @scsimodem · Jan 26 Even with this much raw force, he nearly lost the 1864 election to a guy who promised a peace treaty with the South. General Grant, who secured the Mississippi and finally won enough victories in the east, had great respect for Lee and despised the bloodshed, Fornicarii Delendi Sunt @scsimodem · Jan 26 …to the point of regretting military moves he made because of how many men died on both sides. The general tenor of the soldiers fighting was reconciliation and camaraderie. Punitive measures were, for the most part, imposed by civilians who knew nothing of bloodshed. Fornicarii Delendi Sunt @scsimodem · Jan 26 Then comes Sherman. Despite what you're taught in school, he had nothing to do with the South surrendering. His only contribution was taking Atlanta, which may be all that saved Lincoln's 1864 bid. Prior to that, he was an abject failure who nearly cost Grant the West. Fornicarii Delendi Sunt @scsimodem · Jan 26 Having gained an upper hand, handily outnumbering all troops in the area, Sherman went on vengeful tear across the South, slaughtering civilians and starving women and children. Not one CSA officer surrendered to him until word got out that Grant beat Lee, but… Fornicarii Delendi Sunt @scsimodem · Jan 26 …we have to maintain this myth of the necessity of what was done to avoid facing the horror of it. The record is there, though: Fornicarii Delendi Sunt @scsimodem · Jan 26 Sherman's memoirs are among the most stomach turning reading material one can find. He enjoyed the slaughter, probably pent up frustration at his prior losses, but his wife was sexually aroused by the thought of a full Southern genocide, down to the last child. Fornicarii Delendi Sunt @scsimodem · Jan 26 He was so brutal that he and Sheridan were tapped based solely on their scorched earth campaigns against civilians to bring the natives to heel. It was his policy to drive the buffalo to extinction and also to negotiate a truce, then violate it as soon as the Indians disarmed.

Fornicarii Delendi Sunt @scsimodem · Jan 26 Now, we have a whole nation of Shermans who, out in the open for all to see, salivate at the idea of the mass slaughter of their own countrymen (not by them, of course, because they're not peasants). I don't see a good end to this. Be prepared to protect the ones you love.

#history

[pouringmeout]

11/17/22

My Grandpa Shander and I used to visit alone without my mom and dad in the room, or brother and sister, usually Grandma Shander wasn't around either.  In the other room visiting my mom in the kitchen.

I was a loner and writing music and film stars on Instagram and making films and screenplays for YouTube and my hard drive.

Sending out materials and not getting much back.

Toby Kebbell had an agent or manager in London actually reply.  She said if you find a producer or backing we would love to read the screenplay you queried us for.

I never officially found the backers.

I wanted him to play Arc, or ARKMIN in my screenplay I finished in February of 2013, the year after I discovered the writings of the late Dr. Hunter S. Thompson.  A feature film to be my first movie director job for the cinema about the "Phenomenon of Psychedelics" and other drugs.  In the early drafts Arc had a cocaine problem and gets help.  I ended up changing that as a way to tell young people to not mess around with that stuff.  Cocaine is very bad in my opinion.

So back to what I was writing before about my Grandpa Shander....

Oh yeah, it was not an Anti-Drug movie, the way Full Metal Jacket was supposed to be not a Paths of Glory 2 or another Stanley Kubrick anti-war film.  He wanted to capture the "phenomenon of war," not be a repeat of the World War I Kirk Douglas picture.

So "Arc & Cyl In Skunk Zoo" was about Mushrooms, LSD, Weed, and booze, and going out with friends to a regular spot with free live music, not DJ's or just turntables, but bands who didn't make any money yet doing it.

My Grandpa told me all sorts of stuff when we visited in my early and middle 30's.

He liked seeing me, and everyone else in the family, did not visit as often as I.  My mom and dad were going down to the Heights to visit often.

Once a month or so.

So I recently put on the Irishman, directed by Martin Scorsese and photographed by Rodrigo Prieto, ASC AMC for Netflix.

The woman in the movie that I remembered was I thought "Shandolini" the "mob royalty wife, who was from the same town in Sicily as the Bufalinos, Came over on the Italian Mayflower,"

My great uncle supposedly married an Italian or maybe even a Sicilian mobster before our side of the family told them to go to hell.

We never met Al's side of the family as children, this falling out happened before my dad went to medical school at Loyola, (not University of Notre Dame like the rest of the family, mostly) married my mother and I was even a thought.  

They were angry at us.  My Grandma and Grandpa Shander received a sum of money from the will, earned at a Wood Shop Factory they owned in the Heights after my great Grandfather Otto Shander Junior died in the 80's.

No, I think my Grandpa Shander's (J.R. Otto Shander) brother, my great uncle Al Shander-died in the 80's and we got an old upright ancient piano.  It was dark wood like an off black and not even a dark brown looking thing.  I thought it wouldn't sound good, and I guess my mom said we got it tuned and fixed up.  And I played after lessons every two weeks or so on it.

One of my teachers was just down the road from here, two houses off Sunset Drive, no joke.

I played for my Grandpa when he came to visit from the South Side of Chicago and he sat right next to me. 

"Steven play something for me," he said.

I was like ok Grandpa, this one I don't even have to look at the notes, this one's called "Greensleeves."

I put up the book of songs, opened the page and it was like when I was showing off my free throws or my lay-ups in the driveway to the my neighbor's moms and dads taking out the trash in the 80s.

Hey Mr. Buchanan I can make a three pointer now, watch...

Ok Steve, good job, wow.

Megan home?

No, she's out at the gym.

Oh gymnastics, ok.

Wonder why they call it that Grandpa?  

What's Green-Sleeves?

All the other songs I had to read the notes, the sheet music in front of me, that one I could do without even having my eyes open.

Like I was an expert at this one song, but all the others were harder and needed attention to the dumb fucking treble and bass fucking clef, this shit... 

I was in first grade or second I think, maybe younger.

He was so impressed with my skills as a little boy at the dumb and ugly looking Shander inherited piano.

I don't remember him saying much, but the look on his face was so great, like he loved me, like he saw me doing something he was proud of.

I wasn't going on "His List" for that shit.  

No I was eating all my food off my plate and not wearing a ball-cap at the table, no elbows on table, no cuss words, I was kicking some first grade ass with that stupid fuckin' song!

Wonder what is means?  

Dad?!

Wow, when I fund out about that context, I was like What the Literal Fuck.

Made me shiver and I had the chills like the Boogey Man was back, and Freddie and Jason, the guy from Pet Cemetery 2 (in the window with that drill-bit in the tv preview) and Pinhead were shitting their pants all the fuck over again.

I hated going to piano lessons, but it was like Sunday school, I had to go, no choice, do it Steve, just do it little Shander boy!  

And thank you God I had to go, and thank mom and dad for making me go-you stricter than heck Jesus-Loving-Monkeys.  It really was a blessing in my life you guys-holy shit, thank you.

Usually he was grumpy and very strict and kind of mean, like a pissed off drafted NAVY guy who never got off the aircraft carrier, when the Bomb turned them around in the South Pacific in World War II.

Panama Canal?

Ok Grandpa, not all the stories are coming out today, but they should soon.

I miss you man.  You had your moments of mean comments, but this shit is insane man.  You weren't kidding when you you showed me with your hand and fingers-the width of the glass at Al Capone's apartment complex in your neighborhood as a little boy.  It was extra thick to prevent bullets from the street sweepers or other dangers to their outfit.

Chicago....

I learned music first on that piano.  I do not believe I know the truth about my family secrets for very serious and also very dangerous, reasons and/or details to my safety and literal human body's lifespan.

The family on the other side wanted the money for starting a business, they didn't want to go to get an education.  The will said on my Great Grandpa Shander's wishes, that it was money for school only, College or University, maybe even vocational stuff.

I could be hearing a load of bullshit on this one too.

I doubt that.

My Aunts and Uncles all went to fancy colleges or universities with the money from that will.

I found one of these cocksuckers online, Facebook.com, my family name, and he was a MAGA hat wearin' fool. 

So if my relatives on the Uncle Al Shander side are really all that I think they are, boy are they suspect in this fucking story. 

Maybe not, who knows? 

Mahalo Mother Fucker/ (thank you in Hay-Why, whoever you are...)

I do not fucking love you.

I love my family, my fans, my people on the pen pals service.

Keep your head up you guys, it's fucking cold as a mother fucker and we all don't clear the medical for the Frozen Tundra down there on the Ice, The South Pole Ice....

Means you don't get medically cleared to go there.

The Wilderness Left

[taylastudio2022]

REFLECTING ON “THE LOVING STITCH” - Progression of sculpture:

The Loving Stitch: A History of Knitting and Spinning in New Zealand, Book by Heather Nicholson

Reflecting on The Loving Stitch further in relation to the progression of my practice: 

KNITTING IN RELATION TO SPACE/DISRUPTION OF SPACE, BLURRING THE DOMESTIC/PUBLIC 

This reading has really got me thinking more deeply about space, and the disruption of space, a sense of quiet rebellion or gentle rebellion, as the text says. Debbie Stoller, Maura Kelly, and a few other key authors I have done research also explain this idea of domestic/public space, and how knitting outside of the home challenges these settings. 

“...we female knitters are the descendants of long lines of ancestors who..keep spinning and knitting at every opportunity” (Nicholson 7). 

“During the 1970s, some opinion-makers decreed that public knitting was anti-social.” “Critics saw knitter’s busy hands as symptoms of neurosis, anxiety and an inability to give others their full attention” (Nicholson 7). 

Nicholson speaks how knitting in public and multi-tasking is a key part of the craft, but also how knitting in lectures and meetings has caused endless conflict (8). And this act of carrying on - created a tiny rebellion (8). I think this has some reflection in my work - to how delicate and fragile people perceive my sculptures to me, and that the work is actually rather malleable and can hold its own. The text goes onto explain how there became a set a rules - around knitting  - knitting it public had become a nuisance, the protocol includes “keeping the elbows in and working on a plain, small project, held inconspicuously in the lap and with ones eye on the speaker, One must learn to knit without looking” (8). 

I think that this reference is especially relevant when thinking of the development of my practice. It can act as a challenge to this. This knitting project will demand attention not hide away from it . Be big in scale, and engage the space and people in the space. Perhaps bringing knitting into the art context is enough to break these rules - but with a focus on disruption of space - which seems to be a common theme through knitting/feminist research - will further challenge this. Scaling up, considering space and how the work is presented in the space - I’m thinking suspended/hung from a celling or something more elevated than on the floor - will emphasise this sense of revaluing that is a key aspect of my intent - and give the craft confidence, presence, and respect I feel it deserves.

In connection to the wider world:

As well as going into depth around knittings role in world wide events such as war and politics, this text has opened my eyes to consider the state that the wider world is in, in relation to my art practice and mediums, processes, concept etc. 

I have briefly spoken about/written about the works ties to covid - Think that I’ve realised now the significance of that in terms to my practice and the nature of the work itself. When I first started this project I myself was in isolation with Covid, and think that the process of knitting really comforted me, and gave me something to do that really held my focus and attention. Think that the domestic elements of the work is emphasised when thinking of this. Over the past 2 lockdowns we have gone through during my time at university, I feel like there has definitely been a feeling of unease to disconnect from home completely. 

I mean, I have spoken about this to some peers too, if feels sometimes too risky to put all our eggs or energy into something public or something away from the safety I guess of home.  I think that my gravitation and connection to knitting is a result of this. It goes without saying that covid had a massive impact on everyone.

I think there is a clear connection/impact of this in the materials/mediums/processes of how I make art. Subconsciously even, there was this turning inwards. And knitting, or how I knit anyway is a very personal process, its physically close to you and connected to you when you are in the process of it. You are able to do it from a couch, desk, bed, floor... 

This phenomena of turning inwards makes me think of the 2021 exhibition - Crossings (a group show about intimacies and distances) that was shown at the Adam. 

[guyinlovewitheremika]

Oooh could you expand on why you liked the op?? I honestly don't know what to make of it yet, especially since it felt so different from other ops, but I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Absolutely will do!! This took longer than I wanted cause everytime I sat down to write I started getting distracted from the OP and just listening to it on repeat lmao

To start this off, I should add that throughout the week leading up to release date, I was following a couple of leakers on twitter who did drop some info on the OP; mainly that Shinsei Kamattechan were returning, the title, that it wasnt gonna feature any characters and instead be a metaphor for the “cruelty of war”. Knowing all of that had me pretty excited but also gave me the right expectations, so it wasnt too jarring to see at first. 

But, to jump into this, first of all, I just loooove the visual style in general. It mostly just being static shades of white and light grey, with these very washed out colors exploding and flowing onto the image...it’s absolutely gorgeous! Like I just really dig this color scheme. And it’s highlighted even further by the gorgeous, fluid animation...these explosions look so good! I’m also just a big sucker for familiar characters/entities being represented in a sort of timeless way...be it a portrait, a statue, a monument, whatever (think smth like this), so seeing Eren and the other titans at the end there was just an absolute treat. Whatever that thing is, I want some kind of print/purchasable piece of merch of it because that heap of titans looks amazing. 

The song also just bangs tbh. It’s such a weird agglomeration of instruments and vocals but I find it comes together really well. The childrens choir, the piano at the beginning, the distorted vocals and most importantly that E-violin!!! so fucking good! Honestly I just love the way this song sounds and Im more hyped for the full version than the ost release atm (even tho I love what we heard so far from that too). The combination of the visuals with the music too is great here...I’ve never seen a flamethrower used in combination with the beat of a song before (outside of mad max fury road I guess lol?) but goddamn its just such a cool fucking combination I cant get over it. 

I have some thoughts on the imagery and the symbolism and my interpretations of it all, and I wanna get into those too, but really, the main thing I absolutely love about this OP is how different it is. Just as the marley arc is probably the most different of all in the manga, just as the new studio has made a show that, in many ways, looks feels and sounds vastly different from the old Attack on Titan, the OP encapsulates all of that by just being this new thing and succeeding at it

I love WIT’s OP’s, I love Linked Horizon’s work on the show. But honestly, the “Linked Horizon hype OP” genre pretty much peaked with Guren no Yumiya for me. I still like all the others, but overall, OP 1, 2, 3 and 5 just feel a bit too same-y for me, especially given that I honestly don’t think any of the follow ups surpass the original. Heck all these other songs even reference GnY in some capacity--I cant help but feel like they could never let go of Guren’s success and never tried something else. Except for Red Swan of course, which is also my 2nd favorite WIT OP. It’s slower, it’s sadder, it’s melancholic, and vastly different from all the others, and I really appreciate that. It tries to be its own thing and it succeeded for me. And “My War” even more so feels like it has a very distinct, unique vision, goes all out in that way, and it just works beautifully.   

And it’s that distinct, unique vision that I wanna dig into lastly here, because, just as the marley arc does for this manga, I find that out of all the OP’s, My War most explicitely depicts and visualizes many of the core thematic ideas of Attack on Titan and brings them directly into the forefront. I’ve seen a bunch of cool interpretations of the song at this point, and someone may have somewhere already said all this, but I wanna throw it in here regardless

After countless battles, sacrifices, victories and losses, Eren and the survey corps were able to win the war against the titans that their walled world was stuck in for a hundred years. Their gigantic enemies were defeated, and freedom ought to lie ahead. But no, beyond the shores is just more...more oppression, more war, more death and more sacrifice. The history their king to from them is one of war and oppression, a never ending cycle of violence, spanning back 2000 years, continuing forward. One oppressive regime falls, only for the next to take its place. This has been the history of mankind since the dawn of man, and it continues on and on and on. 

This is what this episode shows us, another military battle around another walled encampment, and this is what this opening shows us...a world perpetually at war. Man’s hatred for one another leads to conflict, to war: it’s continued existence in history and continued technological advancements are the perfect visual representation of this. Man’s capacity for war breeds more war, and it takes lives and it takes freedom and it doesnt stop, it just keeps consuming. 

The Opening starts off with battleships, artillery fire, mortars, flamethrowers, nuclear explosions and a titan spine forming among them all, until the birds of freedom fall dead out of the sky. Neverending armies of soldiers march the streets, airships rule the sky, but all the soldiers, all the military craft, the marleyan military and the paradisian soldiers all fall to pieces and get destroyed. War and conflict rage on and all the pieces fall to the ground, littering the earth in nothing but death and destruction. And at the end, atop this mountain of corpses and mayhem, the titans arise, reaching forward, attacking. They are born from mankinds neverending cycle of destruction, the physical manifestation of our inner demons that lead us to kill each other. 

I thoroughly believe that this sequence of events most perfectly encapsulates all of attack on titan. Look at the marley arc: the years of their attempts to wipe out Paradis island lead the island and the attack titan straight to them, delivering a terrible blow to them during their declaration of war. 2000 years ago it was the warmongering, slave hording king fritz who had a girl hunted for sport who brought about the era of the eldian empire, creating a system to eternally maintain the titan’s ability to wage war and rule the lands that would wind up ripping humanity apart. Look at the final arc: all of humanities hatred towards the island devils birthed the final attack titan and his horde of demons who have come to trample the world underfoot. The titans have always arisen as the consequence of man’s tendency towards conflict and death. Eren’s titan first formed from inside a titan who just killed him, his last titan was born out of his own death yet again. Titans are man’s desire to kill given shape, and the more man kills and fights, the more titans arise. 

It’s a bleak and terrible look at the cruelty of the world, that I think the OP highlights immensly well. It’s a gorgeous looking and sounding 90 seconds, and despite its contents being essentially horrifying, its fun to look at and listen to. Isayama once said about Eren’s attack in marley that “what eren does here is the worst thing. but if you were able to feel just a little bit of excitement from it, then it was worth drawing manga all this time”. Somehow, one way or another, we’re drawn to conflict, despite how terrible it is. And I think this opening manifests this beautifully 

#waaaayyyy too long of a tangeant there but #yeah this basically #I love that we got to have a full on anti war opening #its perfect #and it bops hard #attack on titan #snk #my war #snk the final season #anonymous #answered #Anonymous

[skimblebaby]

Attention guys, a very important post.

You might know that I’m Russian.

You might also know that Russian troops attacked Ukraine 12 days ago.

What you might not know is:

- Russia and Ukraine are closely related by blood, millions of Russians have Families in Ukraine. Parents, siblings, children, friends! My friends call their families there sitting in the basement unable to get out, we are all trying to connect them to services and volunteers who can help, there’s constant work with information exchange. Hundreds of Russians spend their days on the phone calling cars to help Ukrainians leave dangerous regions, volunteer giving up work and school. Others collect clothes and supplies for Ukrainian refugees who come to Russia. Russians who live abroad move to Poland to help accept the Ukrainian refugees. At first we donated money to Ukraine as well, but we had to stop and I’ll tell you why a bit later. IT’S OUR FAMILIES! OUR LOVED ONES! BEING KILLED FOR OUR TAXES! No one asked us!!!!!!!

- Many Russian soldiers are basically Stolen and sent to Ukraine secretly. Their mothers don’t know where they are. The government doesn’t tell them. It also hides bodies and doesn’t tell us how many soldiers have died on our side, how many surrendered etc. Parent comities have been trying to get any information for almost two weeks now. No results

- MILLIONS of Russians do not support what the Russian government is doing. We are PROTESTING. Hundreds of thousands of people protest EVERY SINGLE DAY since the 24th of February in different cities all over the country. The biggest protest so far took place on the 6th of March. Do you think peaceful demonstrations here are safe to attend? No, there’s Violence, protesters get thrown on the ground, beaten up, their bones broken. Over 13 000 Russians have been ARRESTED during protests. ALL the detentions houses in Moscow and St Petersburg are FULL, the police takes people to those outside the cities. When you protest you can get fired or kicked out of a university. In prison people are getting Tortured! Those who can’t protest send money to lawyer organizations who help arrested and imprisoned. These organizations do not have enough people so many lawyers volunteer to help, even students who study law join them to support the protests. Beside all this, we are signing petitions, writing open letters, sending Piles of papers to the government asking them to stop the military action. The man who initiated the biggest anti-war petition (1,196,697 signatures when I’m writing this post), Leo Ponamaryov, got arrested when the petition hit 1000000 signatures.

- it is now illegal in Russia to send money to Ukraine, supporting the ‘enemy state’ is officially considered TREASON. it is now forbidden to distribute “fake information” and to call the military action in Ukraine a war. If you say it’s a war and not a ‘military operation’ you get 15 years in prison. All the independent media resources who post anything rather than official information got closed! TVRain, Moscow Echo, The Novaya newspaper, Znak, The BBC, dozen of others are now blocked: their social media and websites, they are now fleeing Russia as fast as they can to protect their families and not to get imprisoned.

- Mr P he-whos-name-you-shouldn’t-say does Not listen to people. We have AUTOCRACY, we have DICTATORSHIP. Mr P has been president for 22 years now with an only replacement by a puppet staying a prime minister at the time. I have never had a different president, I was born in 1999. It’s always been him. He’s had no right to be in power for another term after many years but he CHANGED THE CONSTITUTION in 2020. All our elections are FALSIFIED.

- Life of Russian citizens has been pretty hard, getting harder every year. You can’t be publicly gay, if you’re a media and you have coworkers in other countries you are considered a FOREIGN AGENT, people get IMPRISONED for reposts on social media. You remember Yulia Tsvetkova, you remember the Khachaturyan sisters who asked the police to help them for years and they did not do anything. Four students (DOXA editors) have been under home arrest for a year now for making a video supporting protests in which they revised the Constitution. The Constitution exists but doesn’t work here by the way ;) a priest got arrested yesterday for saying killing other people is a sin. Come on guys, we don’t have basic human rights. Do you think we have a voice?

What I am writing this for?

- please donate to Ukraine if you live abroad. You can do it, we can’t

- if you send me a receipt of your donation of any sum I will draw you a sketch.

- if you live in Europe go to countries bordering Ukraine. Help them accept refugees.

- TELL YOUR GOVERNMENTS TO DO SOMETHING! I’ve donated all I fucking could, I only have 3k roubles left and it’s 21,53 euros you guys. YOU HAVE MORE POWER AND MORE VOICE! DONT LOOK AT ME, DO SOMETHING I BEG YOU

- if you want to support Russian protests (if you think we don’t do enough) donate to OVD-info, Apology, other helping organizations. If you need links, I will provide

- if you think I am personally guilty in killing Ukrainians please read ‘1984’ by Orwell, ‘US’ by Zamyatin and maybe revise what an autocracy is.

[chudleycanonficfest]

Dorkus Maximus

Day 20, Story #1 is by @honouraryweasley12

Title: Dorkus Maximus Author: honouraryweasley12 Pairing: Harry/Ginny Prompt: Slice of life Rating: PG

The locker room door slammed open, and a frustrated raven-haired witch marched in, a sporting bag slung over her shoulder and a broom in hand. She marched to where her teammates were sitting and threw her equipment down in a huff.

"What's with all the press? It's only an open practice. Bloody nuisance, they are."

"Good morning to you, too, Reena." Edith replied, giving her friend a wry smile.

She groaned. "I know this is the first full season since the end of the war and everything, but it's mental out there. I guess people are really excited for Quidditch to be back."

Edith scoffed; her face unable to hide the surprise. She glanced around at the other women who were staring at Reena and murmuring indistinctly. All but a redheaded witch sitting at the far stall.

Reena glanced around, confused by the reactions of her fellow Harpies. "What, what did I miss?"

"Have you met the new Chaser? She just graduated from Hogwarts."

Reena shook her head. The redhead stood up and strode across the room, holding out a hand.

"Hi, I'm Ginny."

Reena shook her hand, still unsure what the new chaser had to do with the number of reporters at their usually quiet practice. "Nice to meet you, I'm Reena Kumar. I guess we'll be chasing together."

Ginny smiled. "I'm looking forward to it. I've been watching you play for the past few years."

"You must be quite a sensation to draw all that attention."

Edith interrupted. "Her full name is Ginny Weasley."

Reena's eyes widened. "Weasley? As in the family of war heroes?"

Ginny blushed. "It wasn't just us, so many people fought."

"No wonder there are so many reporters outside. I guess we'll have to get used to it, having a celebrity on our team."

"You're already celebrities," Ginny replied.

"Sure, amongst some people. But everyone knows of your family now."

Ginny shrugged. "I have your poster up on my wall. That goal you scored on Wimbourne in '96 was amazing."

"Well, I see you're a student of the game. Just ignore those tossers outside and concentrate on the practice."

"It's fine. They follow my boyfriend and I everywhere. He hates the attention, but I've gotten used to it, being with him."

"Oh, who's your boyfriend?"

The rest of the team howled with laughter, as Ginny's face flushed a deep red.

Edith piped up again. "I know you're a fanatic about your training in the offseason, Reena, but you can't be serious. Have you not looked at a magazine or newspaper in the last year?"

Reena bristled defensively, facing her teammates. "What the hell is the matter with all of you?"

Edith laughed, clapping her friend on the shoulder. "Ginny here also happens to be the girlfriend of Harry Potter."

Reena spun back around. "What? THE Harry Potter?"

Ginny nodded, smiling. "It's really not a big deal."

Edith sat down heavily, fanning her face in jest. "He's so dark and mysterious, running off on secret missions to save the world. Fighting off evil at every turn. So brave and heroic."

It was Ginny's turn to laugh, drawing the attention of the rest of the women, who were unable to resist listening to gossip about the famous Harry Potter.

Edith looked affronted. "What did I say?"

Ginny shook her head. "He's not like that at all. He did what he had to do; he didn't want any of the burden he's lived his life under. You've been reading too many gossip rags."

"What's he like then?" Reena asked, unable to hide her curiosity.

"He's… a dork," Ginny replied affectionately.

A loud roar of indignation rang out from the rest of the team, unbelieving of her description of the most famous wizard in the country.

She held up her hands. "I'm being completely truthful. He's nothing like the stories make him out to be."

The sharp voice of team captain Gwenhog Jones suddenly rang out, silencing them as she entered from the trainer's room. "Enough with the chit chat. We hit the pitch in five minutes. Kumar, Leech, and Weasley, you'll lead us out."

The team nodded and got back to their usual routine. Ginny couldn't help adding one more thing. "Judge for yourselves when you meet him."

A few minutes later, they were lined up, brooms at the ready. Edith threw an arm each around Ginny and Reena. "Let's go."

~*~

Three hours later, the locker room was almost empty. Most of the team had showered and left after a hard first practice, one which had been flooded by the flashes of cameras as reporters tried to get a first glimpse of Ginny Weasley, current media darling.

It had been so bad at one point that Gwenhog almost crashed into the stands, sending them all scrambling.

The only players left in the locker room were Reena, who was busy stretching, and Ginny, who was trying to come up with a gameplan on how to avoid the questions and photos. The Anti-Apparition jinxes on the locker room were proving to be an annoyance.

There was a soft knock on the door, so Ginny marched over and opened it a crack, ready to ream out the reporter she expected. Instead, she was greeted with nothing.

"Gin, it's me."

"Harry!?"

"Yeah, can I come in? No one is changing or anything, are they?"

"No, come in." She pushed open the door slightly, allowing him in before shutting it again.

He whispered a phrase, lifting his Disillusionment charm, before quickly pulled her into a long snog. After they broke apart, he stepped back.

She looked him up and down, bursting out in laughter. "What are you wearing?"

He was decked out from head-to-toe in the signature green and yellow Harpies colours, including a kit with Weasley across his back. He had a glittery green pom-pom in his left hand, and his face was painted with the Holyhead logo. He even had a hat on with an animated chaser throwing a quaffle through a hoop.

"I came to see your practice! You were great!" Harry exclaimed, rather loudly and enthusiastically. He mimicked flying and waved his hands wildly. "That one move you made where you faked to the middle, then threw it through the far hoop was outstanding."

A voice called out. "What's the commotion. Is everything—"

Reena froze as she rounded the corner, coming face to face with Harry.

Ginny smirked, and gestured to her boyfriend. "See, I told you. Reena Kumar, meet Harry Potter."

Reena laughed, seeing the look of confusion on Harry's face. He shrugged his shoulders and stuck out a hand. She stared at it in awe for a second, before taking it.

Harry shook her hand energetically, still buoyed by his exuberance over Ginny's practice.

"Nice to meet you, Harry. My friends and family will hardly believe it!"

"Nice to meet you as well. Oh!" His eyebrows suddenly raised in recognition. "Gin's shown me some of your highlights. You're an amazing chaser!"

"Thank you." Her voice was halting, still somewhat taken aback by his bizarre appearance.

"Did you see Ginny? Wasn't she fantastic? You looked like a veteran out there. Just incredible!"

"Harry, calm down, it was one practice."

He bounced on his heels. "But you were so great, love. All of you were. You're going to be at the top of the table, I can feel it!"

Reena shook her head, stunned that the saviour of their way of life was indeed as Ginny described. After an awkward second of silence, she addressed him. "From what I've read, you're quite a good Seeker."

"I'm alright," Harry responded.

"Don't be modest." Ginny turned to her fellow Chaser. "He could've played in the league if he wanted to."

"She's definitely surpassed me since I last played at Hogwarts. Wasn't she great for her first time with a professional team?"

"He does have a point, Weasley. You were pretty good."

"See, Gin?"

She waved him off. "Thank you, both. Where were you, Harry? I didn't see you."

"I was planning to surprise you, but there were too many reporters. I hid myself in the top corner of the stands. I also may have planted a rumour just now that you had snuck out already, that's why no one is here."

"It's almost like you've done this before." Ginny added wryly.

Harry grabbed her hands in his. "We should really get going. Your mum planned a big celebration dinner and most of the family will be there. It was really great meeting you, Reena!"

He practically dragged Ginny to the doors as she waved goodbye to her teammate, flashing Reena a look of humoured exasperation and rolled her eyes.

Harry kept babbling on as they exited the room. "Ron really wanted to come, too, but he had too much work. He and Hermione will be there, as will George and Angelina, Percy—"

The doors shut behind them, cutting off the sound. Reena simply shook her head and smiled. Dork didn't even begin to cover it.

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