#I'm not saying stop posting information. I'm saying stop guilt tripping people | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

carriesthewind · 1 year

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would you be willing to produce a version of your post about the IA issue that doesn't contain a targeted guilt trip of any tumblr users who were taken in by the initial statement / didn't fully understand what was going on and were just worried about losing IA as a resource? It seems like a good and valuable analysis, but I have a firm policy of not sharing posts that contain meanspirited yelling at innocent bystanders whose only crime is not understanding the issues as well as you do.

Hello! Thank you (very genuinely) for asking.

But no.

I don't blame you or anyone for not sharing the post(s) I have made about the IA situation. I don't believe anyone has any obligation to share any post, period. And even beyond that, I 100% understand not sharing a post, even if it contains good or valuable information, just because you don't like some aspect of the tone or language and don't want it on your blog - I do that myself all the time!

And I understand any discomfort with the specific passage you are referring to. I normally try to write my posts assuming as much good faith as possible and would not include a passage like that. But I did include it, and now that it's out there, I'm happy that I did; and I will not produce a version with it removed.

And here's why. Quoting the part you are objecting to:

And bluntly? If you - not IA, YOU, tumblr user reading this - if you shared this bullcrap statement and told people to donate money to the IA because of this? If you told people they should steal more books in response (because it's the publishers fault, ignore the real authors who are actually harmed)? How DARE you. How DARE you pretend to be on the side of authors and writers.

As you say, this is targeted. Specifically, it is targeted at two (overlapping) groups of people:

People who shared the IA's statement AND told people to donate money to the IA because of the court case.

People who told others to steal more books in response to the ruling.

I don't think individuals in those groups are bad people. But I do think they did something harmful to real authors (who are also people), and they should feel whatever degree of shame or embarrassment necessary to make them stop doing it, and try to not do it again.

The harm of the people telling others to steal more from authors should be obvious. You don't need to understand the situation to know that's a shitty thing to do.

As for the other group, there is a reason I specifically targeted it to people who shared the IA's statement. There is a difference between sharing a post or article that contains misinformation, and sharing an extremely short statement with a line like, "It hurts authors by saying that unfair licensing models are the only way their books can be read online." Because that line is a massive warning flag. You don't need to know anything else about the situation to say, hey wait. This line seems like some real "for exposure" level b.s, focusing on how "their books can be read" rather than 'how authors can publish'. And if it's genuine, it seems to be saying that this case means that it's literally illegal for anyone to publish anything digitally unless they license with a publisher. If true, that's an astonishingly huge story - maybe I should check this out more.

If someone read that line and it didn't raise warning flags for them - or if they didn't bother to read the statement at all before re-blogging it - then yes, they messed up.

And here's the harm that mistake caused: not only did it spread further misinformation, it continued, however indirectly, the harm against the IA's victims.

Imagine, for a moment, that you are one of the authors whose works were stolen by the IA for their "Emergency Library." Maybe you spoke out at the time against the Emergency Library, maybe you saw the harassment others were receiving and decided not to. (And maybe you were harassed anyway.) Statistically speaking, you are not rich. Statistically speaking, you struggled financially due to COVID too.

And then you saw this decision come down. And then you saw this statement. This statement from the same organization that stole from you, that ignored pleas from you (or other authors like you) to stop stealing your work, that spread and encouraged the misinformation that caused people to harass you (or other authors like you). And this statement pretends that the organization is really on your side and fighting for your rights. (Not your right to be paid for your labor. Not your rights to your intellectual property. Just your "right" to be distributed for free by the IA (regardless of your wishes on the matter.)

And you see people (lots and lots of people) sharing that statement. And you see them telling people to give the IA money. (And they do give it money.) You see the same organization that stole your work raise money, quite literally, on the basis of the work they stole from you and their fight for the right to continue stealing your work. (And meanwhile, harassment against authors, even authors who publicly state they support IA, picks up again.)

Imagine how it must feel to be an author in that position.

I don't think anyone who shared that statement and told people to donate to the IA intended to spread information, or to harm authors. But they did. They were not innocent bystanders. I understand making mistakes and accidentally spreading misinformation. It doesn't make someone a bad person. And in this case, part of the reason I'm so angry with the IA and their supporters is that they've been spreading misinformation in a way specifically designed to cause worry and panic, and thus work to override people's critical thinking. But accidental harm, negligent harm, is still harm.

And my rage was and is not rage to hurt them (and I am sorry for their pain if I did hurt them, for more pain is never something to celebrate), but rage on behalf of the authors. Because what happened (is happening) to them is wrong, and I believe it is right to rage against it. And I will not rewrite my post to remove that rage.

#libraries #internet archive #author's rights #ask #anonymous

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lotusmi · 1 year

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I have something to say: shame on you anons for jumping on Lotusmi with your guilt tripping, trauma dumping, your self-entitled attitudes, and not to mention, we have people now pretending to be her friend just to get in the void?? I swear to god, You guys act like a bunch of fucking spoiled brats every single time a blogger wants to help from the kindness of their hearts. You're so desperate and stuck in the victim mentality that you would PRETEND to be somebody's FRIEND so that you can manipulate your way into trying to guilt trip her for the fucking void. Are you serious??

You guys refuse to take responsibility for being the creator of your reality, and you just want somebody else to blame when YOU are the cause of your failures. You're so desperate to reach this damn void that you refuse to get off your lazy asses and apply your fucking knowledge so you can manifest what you want! You guys don't need the void, you need a fucking wake-up call!

These bloggers pour their whole entire heart and souls to you with responding to same fucking question a million times even though you never take their advice. You only run off to the next blogger with the same fucking questions and you refuse to accept responsibility for your world, this generous blogger right here is creating a whole bunch of subliminals for you guys to listen to, she has informative posts to help you guys realize your power as God, but you never apply her advice! The second she says she's thinking about entering the void for people, you guys have to harass her and crowd her with begging and guilt tripping because you refuse to step out of your victim mentality and get your shit together! You anons are spoiled and self-entitled, be fucking grateful for everything Lotusmi already does for you! Apply the fucking information! You're too fucking lazy that you would rather somebody else do all the handy work for you because you want the bloggers to pity you and baby your victim mentality. This bullshit needs to stop.

You guys better not make Lotusmi run off because of your desperate obsession with the damn void , I actually fucking appreciate her posts and the helpful advice she gives and I'm applying the law!

I'm sorry for the strong language, I think you're a wonderful blogger, and I'm sick of self-entitled anons acting like children over the void and treating other bloggers like crap over it because they refuse to let go of their whole "woe-is-me" victim mentality.

Omg you so f right 😭😭😭

Tysm for thisss

#void state

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aroacemisha · 8 months

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|| About Me ||

Hi! I'm Misha (he/him), adult. I'm a queer Russian artist and writer [art & writing tag: #misha's creative stuff]. I'm also an atheist, and I'm pretty certain I'm neurodivergent.

I have original characters [tag: #misha's original stuff], and I have a second blog at @crossroadsofchaos dedicated specifically to my original work. The universe my original work is set in consists of our regular world, but with a secret extra island.

I also have a TOH AU called Retired Leaders AU [tag: #retired leaders AU]. It was created around early September of 2021 and was my main focus until the summer of 2023, where I shifted focus to my original stuff and wasn't really posting about the AU anymore. However, as of April 2024, I have revived the AU. An updated info masterpost is coming soon.

(Note: Do not try to look through the tag with the /chrono url addition thing, because the AU has changed a lot since its creation, and the information you'd get from old posts is likely to be inaccurate)

AU-specific character tags: #belos wittebane; #steven bellamy; #hunter wittebane; #kikimora volk. (In the old/pre-revival version, Kiki's tag was #kiki wittebane)

If you’d like to ask anything, whether it’s about me or my work, or if you just want to say something to me, feel free to send an ask!

Feel free to scroll through my "#positivity" tag as well, I reblog positivity posts sometimes.

(I try to tag triggers, at least ones I'm aware of. The format is "#cw: [thing]", like "#cw: flashing" or "#cw: blood", and a handful are censored like "#cw: sui mention" or "#cw: sa mention". If there's anything you'd like me to tag, feel free to send an ask.

Also, posts like "reblog this if you think x", "good luck posts" and other stuff like that are tagged with "#reblog bait". And I won't reblog any that are guilt tripping/claiming you're a bad person if you don't reblog, though if I ever have to make an exception for a post with important info, it will still have the "#reblog bait" tag)

A few more things:

Do not repost/reupload my work or any other artist's work without permission. And get that permission before posting, instead of posting and saying you'll remove it if they ask. Ask for permission, and if they say no, or they don't reply, don't post it.

Exclusionists are not welcome here. This includes label and pronoun policers, as well as those who complain about the word "queer". If you personally don't identify as queer, that's fine, but stop complaining about other people using the term.

Please stop reinventing the gender binary with all the "nonmen/nonwomen" and "tme/tma" stuff. The latter terms are also intersexist, and this post explains why. And I'd recommend reading this post by another intersex person as well.

Neurodivergent people are welcome here! And I mean it in the actual meaning of the term, which includes things like bipolar, OCD, psychosis, personality disorders, etc. The positivity tag I mentioned above includes positivity for these things.

For fandom people, please, tag your ships. People who like the ship can find your stuff easier, and people who dislike it can filter the tag and avoid it. This includes OC x canon ships (please tag the specific ships as well), and x read3r (I'd even say tag any read3r/audience insert tbh, even if it's not ship)

Lastly, gtfo if you treat p3do and inc3st like lighthearted shipping tropes (pr0ship/c0mship/whatever else you call yourselves), I block on sight.

[This post gets updated sometimes]

#misha's text posts #oh look it's misha #info masterpost

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frog-plague · 5 months

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Ranting because I'm pissed again

I fucking hate guilt tripping posts "rEbLoG tHiS tO sAvE a LiFe" shut up. Just shut up. Nobody is obligated to reblog anything shut up

And don't even get me started on the "You're a bad person if you don't reblog this" DON'T FUCKING SAY THAT

It shocks me that I even have to start to explain why that's a horrible thing to say to someone who you don't know you don't know what's going on in this random person's life shut up with that shit

I hate it when people reblog a post with actually useful information in it with "reblog!" "REBLOG THIS TO SAVE A LIFE" "REBLOG REBLOG REBLOG" and there's so much that you're scrolling for 15 minutes to find the fucking reblog button and there's more info in the reblogs so you can't just delete them all

Why do that this is why I stopped reblogging most of those posts

They get reblogged from time to time but in the vast majority of it all I've just stopped

I think it's called "reblog bait" and I hate it sm

And shit about body types. Ugh I hate them because WE HAVE A FUCKING EATING DISORDER

I AM LITERALLY NOT IN THE MENTAL PLACE TO DRAW FAT PEOPLE FUCK OFF WITH THAT FATPHOBIA SHIT I HAVE AN EATING DISORDER I'M ACTIVELY SUFFERING FROM CASUAL FATPHOBIA

#-Ryan #tw rant

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bluemoondust · 2 years

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Yandere! Danganronpa OCs ::Part One::

I wanted to finish these up and finally post them, so here's part one of these guys. After I post both parts, I'll probably make a post on who'd be the worst and better yanderes to have. Honestly, you all can share your thoughts on that! Hope you enjoy them!

Warning(s): Obsessive Behavior/Thoughts, Possessive Behavior/Thoughts, Manipulation, Jealous Behavior, Aggressive Tendencies, Talk of Violence (not towards Darling), Insults and Mean Behavior (towards others and sometimes Darling), Instinctive Gaslighting/Guilt Tripping, Hints of Mental Break/Meltdown (in Masahiko's part), Slight Controlling Behavior, Slight Belittlement, Stalking (more on Yue and Hisashi's parts), Hints of Kidnapping

Ohara, Tomoko (Ultimate Reporter)

Kita, Etsumi (Ultimate Cosmetologist)

Having Tomoko as a yandere pining for you is a tough one to go up against if I'm being honest; though it's not like you'll ever find out. She's extremely cunning and knows how to clear her tracks, always looking like the good guy in any situation where your friends suddenly start to hate you. She's an obsessive/manipulative yandere and gathers any sort of information on you before she approaches. Tomoko plays the whole thing carefully and calculated, because she knows that aggressive tactics or suffocating behavior would just drive you away. No, a plan had to be made. Being a person of her skill set, she knows how to observe people and how they react to situations, what makes them tick. Her observations on her darling prove very useful, but she does do this out of how much she loves you. On the manipulative part, it does include her darling but this mostly is done with the situation. It's upsetting to have your friends hate you, but she can assure you, they would have hurt you eventually. Tomoko states that she knows how people work and the selfishness they possess, but she isn't like them. She knows you and what you truly need. So just keep relying on her, okay? Tomoko may seem extremely calm on the outside/in the beginning, but if you push her buttons and keep questioning her reasoning/methods, she'll snap at you, "BECAUSE I SAID SO!" It's very firm and shows she means business since she rarely yells at people when getting her point across. Pissing her off will only make the situation worse.

Beesho, Hayate (Ultimate Airsoft Player)

Oh goodness. I can confidently say she is one of the top three most obsessive yanderes out of this bunch. She was already a little odd with her habit of wanting to touch people's hair and hands, but with a darling, she can be considered clingy. Etsumi is always looking for ways to spend time with her darling and you know, being close to you. As the Ultimate Cosmologist, you wouldn't be too put off when she asks what sort of products you use for yourself and just chock it down as it being related to her profession. In reality, it's just to be able to closer to you in a sense. Now she can smell like you! It really gets her giddy inside and she mostly acts like a typical lovestruck girl. Oh and she'd love to paint your nails with her own nail polish, just to return the favor. Adding on, she is rather delusional and always takes your gestures towards her seriously. If you accidentally brushed your hand against hers, she's over the moon and believes you're trying to show you feel the same. Jealousy with her comes from somewhere different. To explain, I mean that Etsumi doesn't get jealous over simple things such as people spending time with you or if the person is much more attractive than her or not. No, where she gets jealous is when people give more to you. Etsumi is not from a rich family, surprising, so whenever she witnesses that someone can offer more for you, it deeply upsets her. That's when she has to make the person stop or else you might choose them over her. Nothing too drastic: maybe soil their image, give them food poisoning, or even cause an accident.

Inoue, Yoko (Ultimate Ventriloquist)

There was a certain thrill to some of this, to him. It scared him at first because of how wrong these feelings were, but it soon turned to a rush he always wanted fulfilled. Hayate knows crushes are supposed to feel like this, so what's so bad about it? If it feels this great, it wouldn't hurt to indulge into it some more. Though if he were to be accused of only hanging around you for the rush of adrenaline he gets, Hayate will say that they're dead wrong. It's because he loves you so intensely that causes his blood and heart to pump so fast! He slowly grows delusional the longer this goes on. At some point in time he will straight up start stalking you just to see if you would ever notice. Makes the whole ordeal exciting to him. Outside of that, Hayate loves hanging out with you and devotes so much time to spend it just on you. Surprisingly, he doesn't get jealous over the people you hang out with but does get protective if anyone tries to mess around. I will say that he is one of the more safer yanderes, unless someone truly tried to hurt you. Then that someone is going to have to lose their knee cap privileges. Hayate is a fun person/yandere who always motivates you but of course with what I mentioned, some things may have to change after he's dealt with the problem. Perhaps staying closer to you will suffice?

Sugimoto, Katsumi (Ultimate Majorette)

Along with other yanderes (like Bakugou and Fuyuhiko) she also counts as a tsundere as well, but she knows how to mellow it down. Still, even so, she does get a little mean now and then with her darling but does apologize if she goes too far. Yoko cares a lot for her darling and she'd get pissed off if anyone talks badly about you. She's a bit possessive of you, especially if you've been really kind to her and stuck around. It's mostly due to her not wanting you to leave her, so she will make sure that doesn't happen. Yoko is the type to drive people who she deems unworthy of you away with her outbursts and harsh insults. They do not deserve you. They just want to hurt you. Though beneath all that, she is extremely caring and feels guilty any time you witness her outbursts or even worse, blowing up on you. She will be quick to apologize and she really hopes you will forgive her. Yelling had been something she used to cope with her emotions when they become too much, especially when she used to live with her mom. Yoko wants to do better for you and that is especially so when she wants a family with you.

Yoshida, Masahiko (Ultimate Ballet Dancer)

Romance is something new to Katsumi in real life. Sure, she's seen it in the novels she's read and the movies she's watched, but this is reality and it flusters her to know she has gained feelings. In the beginning, it's pretty normal in her eyes: getting the butterflies in the stomach everytime you're around and wanting to spend time with you. Basic stuff. When things get more complicated, this is where Katsumi pauses to take a step back and think about what's happening. She's beginning to get more possessive and throwing passive aggressive insults at those who try to get too close. Though, they probably did deserve it anyways. Looking at every bit of unhealthy behavior she is displaying, Katsumi doesn't really see too much wrong with it, so she shrugs it off as her worrying about nothing. So, you'll experience her inviting you over as much as possible as well as her reminding you to always come to her if anyone is bothering you. She will take care of them, she says.

Nakamura, Yuuma (Ultimate Pastry Chef)

Ack, a cluster of insecurities and emotions is what he is as a yandere. Masahiko presents himself as a charismatic individual (despite the fact that he's a little shit when it comes to people he dislikes or is rivals with) and wouldn't be surprised that he caught your attention. Once. One glance is just enough to have him wonder about you. Oh? He's noticed your gaze. Are you perhaps charmed or intrigued? That's fine, he'll indulge in your curiosity. As time goes by though, he grows more and more obsessed with you. It's even worse if you show kindness towards him. Now let me just say, this man gets petty as hell and jealousy comes quick if people show interest in you. He can be marked down as a really possessive yandere for this because he literally will tell you so many reasons why you shouldn't associate with them. Masahiko is also a really good manipulative yandere and will unconsciously gaslight his darling if there's an attempt to point out faults on his behavior. Despite it being a way to manipulate you, he will be on the verge of tears at one point and yell out that you're trying to leave him because he is such a disappointment and stupid person. Or worse, he could pick off every bit of yourself that you hate and completely make you feel like you're inferior in order to appease his own inferiority/superiority complex. It gets bad if he has a breakdown too, his insecurities piling up and too much to bare for him. He'll just have to take you to ease his mind.

Tanji, Yue (Ultimate Roleplayer)

Kind of a controlling yandere, but he always puts a reasoning for that. Unless you believe otherwise. Yuuma is not one to concentrate on matters such as romance, but sometimes he ponders on it. Once these new and unhealthy feelings arise, he's not a happy guy to say the least. Yuuma at first believes it was an innocent little crush that may or may not develop into something more, but as time went on and his behavior growing more... Out of place, he knew something was amiss. Those traits? Sometimes he'd get really pissy when other people take your time when obviously you were here to receive assistance from him on a cake or he will push for things to go his way, but making it seem like more of a suggestion that you agreed to. All of this makes him glare at the ground and deeply ponder on what to do. The conclusion was to just let it be. I mean, you've brought about these feelings so I guess you're going to have to deal with repercussions if they do come about. It's not that he fully blames you, Yuuma knows that he is responsible for his actions. However, he is a possessive yandere and having you unknowingly take responsibility is his way of keeping you close to him. You can't possibly turn away from something you're partially to blame right? That's just careless of you. But don't worry, he will make sure to serve as a reminder.

Tanji, Hisashi (Ultimate Occultist)

Very delusional, unfortunately. Yue has shut herself out from others (besides her brother and parents) and preferred a life of imagination/fantasy to the point where it messes with how she views interactions/relationships outside of home. Sure, she has a very small friend group, but they're mostly online friends she made and occasionally meets up with in person. Yue has a set of expectations of how things in life play out, though deep down she knows that at some point in time she'll be disappointed if she expects too much. Because of that, she tries to face the world with a charismatic, protagonist like persona since she deems those type of people as fearless. Unlike her true self. Why this matters is because when you take an interest in her and genuinely don't make fun of her for the talent she has, Yue is automatically hooked. Whatever you say or do will effect everything since she, being the delusional yandere she is, will take everything either seriously or the wrong way. After you showing you're interested in getting to know her, Yue allows it while still putting up her persona. Telling her that you want to know the real her digs you a deeper hole. Yue is a big stalker and will follow you around since in her mind, it should go both ways in getting to know one another. She deems it as a wonderful way to show you that she's dedicated to you; her undying loyalty. Just be careful not to take advantage of that... Or else you'll have her very pissed off twin on your tail.

Similar to his sister, he's the type of yandere to stalk his darling. However, he is extremely upset for even doing so at all; makes him feel like some sort of creep... This is what sets apart from her, since he is more lucid than delusional while Yue is full on delusional. While Hisashi is an obsessive yandere, he again feels bad for acting this way even though his darling is completely unaware of everything. He loves you so much, so he does little favors for you to make up for his behavior and you're none the wiser to why he does this. Going back to the stalking, it will only start off as just conveniently bumping into you every now and then, to coincidences of running into him on your way home or doing errands, to absolutely knowing where you live by heart. He convinces himself that this would be good to know in case something were to happen. In a way, you could have him do stuff for you; only as long as it's nothing too drastic or to the point you're using him. Despite how obsessed Hisashi is with you, his judgement will not be clouded if you're doing the latter. It will disappoint him deeply and even more unfortunate, get his twin involved as the two do share details of their darlings to one another. Having either of the twins as a yandere is bad news since they both will assist each other in any way possible.

#yandere imagines #yandere x reader #yandere danganronpa #yandere danganronpa x reader #yandere oc #yandere oc x reader #yandere danganronpa oc #yandere x you

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mogaiwiki · 2 years

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Another Update (3/24)

1. Kris has either been removed, or stepped down from r/XenogendersAndMore (yay!)... Unfortunately, he made a guilt tripping and passive aggressive post again (unyay!). TW for mentions of hospitalization and eviction. (https://archive.ph/r6FoW)

2. He's restricted his Instagram to people 25 and older. He isn't 25 yet by the way. He's probably just seeking privacy though so I don't really care.

3. He sent us (this blog) a big whole submission earlier. No, I am not posting it for the sake of others. It's mostly guilt tripping. He did explain some of the things that he's been doing, and why he's doing them, however: The reason why his Tumblr accounts and the like are still active largely due to queues, and having backlogged work he wants to put out before he leaves. He told us he wants privacy, which I think is funny when he tried to "expose" me as someone else a few days ago, DMed a random person about a form without their consent, and has generally not let people have their own opinions on this situation without blowing up at them.

Overall, I'm not shocked. Whenever Kris has gotten into drama before, it's turned into this. I'd always been a little worried for him in the past, discourse wise, considering it just doesn't seem like he can handle this sort of stress, even though he tended to be the one to start it. If he hadn't been such an ass to us, I'd feel worse. But, he kinda treated us like garbage, so I don't have it in me right now. Maybe when he apologizes in a way that isn't laced with guilt tripping.

He's also saying that he's "trying" to be civil "but" it's hard when we're "archiving him", when he hasn't been civil At All this entire time and that is why I'm so pissed, so this is just ironic. Goodness, it must be so hard to be civil to the people you've already been an asshole to? Furthermore, we're not archiving him except in the sense that people in this community deserve to know if he's a mod in a giant community of three thousand people where he has executive control of the narrative. That's a safety risk for others, not you, Kris.

Once again, I have a hard time taking him at his word when his actions are very clearly so different. Were I to know nothing about this situation, I'd feel a lot different about what he sent, but with the context, it's embittering. It's hard to listen to someone talk about having breakdowns while also knowing he's caused that for multiple other people, including his old friends.

It just makes me a tad bit angry that he wants us to worry over his mental health when he hasn't considered the health of others this entire time, even when directly making it worse by, well, being an ass. it's also odd he's acting like part of this is our fault, when the only reason this really began is because he was being a dick to other people, and probably would have gotten away with it scot free if people didn't bring it up. When he stops Being A Dick, there will be little reason to continue this discussion. I don't post about Kris for funzies.

I am going to keep my focus on the people who were hurt. Not how much the person who perpetrated it is having a hard time for doing so. As far as I'm concerned this is not about Kris, it's about keeping the rest of the community safe and informed. Maybe this will change when the people get a proper apology- no guilt tripping and making it about himself required- but that has yet to happen. And that is a bare minimum.

#mogai wiki #mogai #mogai community

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i-love-hobbies · 3 years

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My happiness with Eda kinda not being rude towards Lilith (ft. Hunter)

I already praised this but I just realized, I should have more!

In this essay I acknowledged everything bad Lilith has done, so I'm not doing it here, but you DON'T need to read it to understand this post!

Here I forgot something really important.

Lilith was in a cult!

We all know about the people that tell cult members stories of how they have sacrificed people to satan and then laugh about it.

They're laughing about someone being genuinely scared for their life!

This is a threat to them!

Sometimes people that run cults use this to make sure their members are scared from the people outside the cult.

They also make them try to "save" others so it gets even worse.

I'm really happy that Eda's answer to "You look like some sort of a trash collector. Oh wait, you are!" wasn't "I was told by wild magic to sacrifice the person that says this to me at midnight! The last time this happened It felt so relaxing! See you then!"

This repeated a few times in my opinion would have stopped Lilith from saving Eda in episode 19, because if she doesn't join the coven she is beyond saving plus Lilith is risking to become just like her. And later on Lilith would have probably had even more mental health issues. I don't want to imagine Luz, King and Hooty.

Disclaimer:

I can't find a way to continue without saying how I think this should be handled. So I should say I'm not an expert.

I'm an atheist, the last supernatural thing I believed in was fortune telling, chakras and so on. But I realized how easily this can be used to scam people.

My parents buy this tea from this people, that say every doctor except for surgeons can be replaced.

Luckily my parents don't believe in everything.

I wouldn't say I have a lot of experience with this as I'm not sure if what I described is called a cult, honestly. But I've seen some stuff.

Like the fear in my mom's eyes, when I don't take tea, cause it "helps with my tics, adhd and mental health".

How did Eda handle it?

We don't know much about how Eda decided to not join a coven or how much she has heard of other people stories.

But we do know at one point she stopped believing in Belos.

Season 1

She never really talked about Belos with Lilith.

I think this was a good choice, cause all she would get is Lilith telling her how clearly in the wrong she is. Plus Lilith is tired, she can barely process new information and everything in her life is about the coven.

I've heard some people suggest that Eda should have broken into the coven and gotten Lilith out of there. This is a horrible idea. It would only scare Lilith and she would try to run away.

She shouldn't be kept captive. This will traumatize her even further. At this point she'll try to kill herself so she doesn't become like her sister.

So what did Eda do? She put on a show for Lilith to enjoy, full of nostalgia.

She gave Lilith what she needs, a break.

She was showing her that things haven't changed.

When Lilith opened up a bit in episode 11, she showed that it isn't dangerous.

When Lilith came to her house, she played a game with her.

The only time she did something resembling her "I'm gonna steal your tongue." jokes was "If anyone is putting you down it's gonna be me."

Which considering what just happened was clearly not gonna be taken seriously and gave Lilith even more nostalgia.

If Belos didn't give Lilith a timer she was on her way out of the coven.

The problems I have with Eda here are her laughing at Lilith for thinking she'd join the coven as if anyone in there is an idiot, making Lilith defensive.

Also her lie in episode 17 which made the game way too important.

Don't get me started on what would have happened if she lost or when Lilith realises she was lieing.

Episode 18/19

Now in episode 18 Eda lost it. She tried to talk Lilith out of it IN THE MIDDLE OF A FIGHT.

She was trying to hurt Lilith the whole finale, both physically and emotionally.

I'm not calling Eda a bad person, this is how humans react, she went through hell, but this was a mistake.

She should have tried sneaking or something and if she got caught only force to the point of getting out. No name calling.

Season 2

It took her less than two weeks to stop guilt tripping her.

They worked on their competitiveness problem in the second episode.

They could trust each other with physical stuff like the other putting themselves in danger for them.

Lilith is in a safe space, wether she believes so is debatable, though.

I'm impressed by Eda except for the guild tripping but again she's "human".

She deserves praise for this impressive response to Lilith being in the coven. It's not perfect but knowing the average person, it's godlike.

Hunter

After episode 9 I think she might try to help, but so far she hasn't.

She threatened him and then got humiliated.

She made fun of him even after seeing Hunter obviously being hurt by it.

"Don't you recognise that annoying voice?"

"Why does everyone say that?"

"You must be fun at parties!"

No wonder Hunter doesn't respect her at all. He has only seen her the episode after the finale and one episode after Eda's requiem.

The last line was after he was trying to help her.

The only good thing is that, she isn't talking about Belos.

I died from second hand embarrassment watching both of these episodes.

#toh #the owl house #eda clawthorne #toh eda #eda the owl lady #edalyn clawthorne #the owl lady #toh lilith #lilith clawthorne #toh hunter #toh golden guard

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larkace · 3 years

Text

Robber Claws

hi guys! i've read a bunch of your fics and got inspired so i wrote a thing! enjoy ;) also, it's pretty long so...buckle up! love yall <3

The criminals lurk in the mist, invisible, but Sofiya Pavlichenkov knows they’re there.

She’s perched in the Lookout’s nest of her Warship in Fourth Harbour, pretending to read the documents her first mate, Kastor, has just handed to her. But her blue coat is flapping in the wind and her papers keep jostling and she’s being watched, all of which is rather uncomfortable.

Idly, Sofiya wonders what the criminals might want. A smuggling, perhaps? Out and away from stinking, crawling, loathsome Ketterdam?

Sofiya hates this city. His city. She misses Ravka, her homeland- the Little Palace.

I miss my bloody Kefta, Sofiya thinks darkly as another bought of wind spirals harshly through the Harbour. The blue coat she wears is a subtle nod to her Tidemaker status, but it’s a sad, thin piece of cloth compared to the grandeur of the Fabrikator-made Keftas. But Sofiya can’t wear her Kefta, not if she wants to blend in in Kerch- a lesson she learned long ago…

Old enemies, Sofiya. Old enemies, but not withered grudges.

Huffing out a sigh that would make Zoya Nazyalensky proud, Sofiya rises gracefully to her feet.

They’re coming. She can feel it; they’re making their way towards the ship. They don’t have to be rowdy to intimidate, that’s for sure - or to make a crowd of Merchants and Thieves part like the sea almost immediately.

Sofiya reaches up behind her head and loops her hand around a piece of knotted rope; takes a deep, steadying breath.

And she steps off the platform into the open air.

For a moment, she catches on the air as if a Squaller has caught her on a buffering breeze, but sure enough, gravity kicks in.

Sofiya welcomes the feeling of her stomach in her throat as the fall takes hold, zipping her past the sails. It's good preparation, anyway, for the three dark figures moving up the docks towards her.

As they near and Sofiya lands lightly on the deck, she confirms what she already knew: these were criminals. Her criminals.

The trio stops in front of her. They're all wearing black and gold - not a uniform exactly, but it’s a solid way to show your allegiance. None of their hands were visible, but if they were, Sofiya would find the Robber Claws emblem branded cleanly onto the backs of their knuckles. Their hoods are drawn up over their faces, but Sofiya can tell from their posture who she’s dealing with.

"Ah, Iseut," Sofiya says serenely, "To what do I owe this pleasure?"

The girl in the middle pulls down her hood, revealing shining blond hair, dark eyes, full lips. She doesn’t smile.

"Where have you been, Sofiya?" Iseut asks coolly.

"The Wandering Isle," Sofiya answers immediately, "I stopped at Os Kervo on my return to pick up some supplies. I'm only three days late, Is. Cut me some slack."

Iseut sighs, and suddenly looks less the badass, fake-waitress man-killer, and more the tired mother of a delinquent child. Sofiya feels a flicker of guilt.

She had stopped at Os Kervo for more than one reason. The "supplies" were crates upon crates of commandeered Fjerdan weapons and traps, intercepted by the First Army on their way to the Front Line. Sofiya had paid nothing to take them off the hands of the Ravkan soldiers, who honestly had no clue where to send them. What good were jerky Fjerdan guns to a sophisticated, well-oiled Second Army legion?

Sofiya could picture Zoya's face at the sight of the sad little weapons. Disgust and disdain, unshakable beauty - and perhaps just a little bit of pride that her friend had been the one to collect the Fjerdan cargo. Sofiya would work on selling it all later. She'd dump the Grisha traps in the ocean, though. Drown them like they deserved to be drowned.

"I am sorry, Iseut," Sofiya says, and her words aren’t mistruths.

"Don't apologise to me," Iseut says dismissively, "It’s your friends that were barely able to sleep the past few nights. You should talk to -"

"Destry," Sofiya's words mist the air like a fine rain, "I know."

One of the tall figures stood behind Iseut lowers her own hood. Lyra. Ly.

It made sense that the Robber Claws would send their best Bruisers to Fourth Harbour. Sofiya knew by the other Robber's posture that beneath the hood, she would find the face of Winter. But Winter wouldn't lower her hood in front of so many people, so Sofiya was content with what she could get.

"You really had Destry worried, Sof," Ly says, chastising.

"Destry can handle me being gone for weeks on end," Sofiya crosses her arms. She will not be guilt-tripped, "This job was half a week, and I was only a few days off schedule. I did tell Cherry that I'd be late." The words come out as a question.

None of them say anything.

Another flash of worry courses through Sofiya. Cherry Vlasova is a Heartrender, and one of Sofiya's closest friends. The message that Sofiya had forwarded was simple and concise: I'll be a few days late. Stopping at Os Kervo. Don't worry, no Fjerdans. Tell Destry -S.P

Had something happened to Cherry? She was an avid gossiper; her post box was always full of tip-offs (a useful source of information for the Robber Claws) but Sofiya was reliably informed that her letters were always placed on the top of the pile. Marked "URGENT."

"What happened? Is Cherry alright?" Sofiya demands.

Iseut holds up her palms, and they are callused and grease-marked. Sometimes Iseut is so well put together that Sofiya forgets she's a barmaid.

"Cherry is fine. But all our Grisha are shaken. Whilst you were away, there was an attack on the East Stave."

Sofiya's heart stops and restarts and stops again.

An attack. On the Grisha. And she wasn’t there to - to help, to defend-

"Destry," Sofiya breathes, "And Cherry - and Adali, Roza, Linnea, Yan, Anya- oh, Saints, was it the Fjerdans?"

There are many Grisha members of the Robber Claws. It was one of the reasons that Sofiya wanted to join them in the first place. If the Fjerdans had attacked -

"Everybody is fine," Ly says lowly, "We had Freya and May fixing people up as soon as we heard- and Lita, of course, but behind the scenes."

Freya and May- and even Lita, whose powers most of the gang didn't even know of. Grisha Healers. So people had been hurt.

"What. Happened." Sofiya growls, and Ly glares at her challengingly, fists clenching. The water beneath the decking froths and bubbles as Sofiya brings her own fists together, power surging pleasantly up her arms. If Ly wants a fight, she can have one.

"Calm down, both of you," Winter's smooth voice projects from under her hood. Despite the heavy fabric, her voice is clear and commanding. Sofiya takes a breath to compose herself.

"To answer your previous question: no. It wasn't the Fjerdans." Iseut says, "We don’t know what they were."

Sofiya's brow creases at the chime of fear in Iseut's voice. She's never seen the golden-haired barmaid afraid before.

It begins to rain softly, the pattering of droplets quiet against the wooden decking of the docks.

"We should go back to the Queen’s Head, Iseut," Ly suggests, referencing Iseut’s place of work. Iseut nods once, swiftly, and glances over Sofiya's shoulder at her warship.

"Do you need to...?"

"Yes."

"Go on, then."

"KASTOR! IM GOING FOR A ROUND OF DAY-DRINKING!" Sofiya yells over the shoulder of her rain-splattered coat. She hears Ly chuckle as Kastor's scruffy head pokes out from a window.

He nods at Sofiya when he spots her, and she waves, assenting. Kastor would keep everything safe whilst she was gone. It was their unspoken agreement, unchanging and unwavering since the day they'd become crewmates.

Sofiya turns back to Iseut, Ly and Winter.

"Let's be on our way," she says, and lets her fellow criminals lead the way along the Harbour, her warship disappearing into the mist behind her.

~~~~

The mid-day slump of customers meant that the Robber Claws had the Queen’s Head pub all to themselves.

Iseut- who did not own the pub, but had put more work into it than the real owners ever did- had immediately trekked behind the bar and poured herself a whisky.

"Want anything?" She asks, directing the question directly at Sofiya despite the equal presence of Ly- and Winter (who had lowered her hood slightly now that she was back on familiar ground, with familiar faces.) Bruisers didn’t drink on the job. It slowed reflexes.

"The story," says Sofiya firmly, "It a joke about the day-drinking. What happened?"

Iseut pours herself another whiskey and the quartet take a seat at a shady little circular table in a quiet corner. The murmurs of other Robber Claws members is enough to shelter their conversation from the group- despite Sofiya being sure she was the only one unaware of what had transpired the days she’d been gone.

As Iseut begins her story, with Winter and Ly regularly interjecting with additions, Sofiya feels horror and fear clamp down on her heart like a Fjerdan Grisha trap.

Iseut’s alluring voice weaves a tale of Komedie Brute actors in bloody masks, rose-painted rubble from an impossible explosion, and worst of all: Grisha. Dead Grisha, killed by creatures with screeching metal wings.

“Only a few of our Grisha were hurt,” Iseut sips her drink solemnly, “We took your advice of keeping them anonymous and undercover. We have Erin and our other spies out searching for answers at the embassies. I’m sure you’re just as eager to find out about the winged creatures as we are.”

Sofiya nods, “I am. Thank you for filling me in, Is, really. And to you, Ly, Winter. I know you don’t like going to far from the West Stave.”

The last comment was directed purely at Winter. It’s not a lie. Winter runs a dojo for training Kerch’s women to protect themselves from Barrel bosses and scum alike; she didn’t want her clients finding out about her… Robber side. Being a criminal wasn’t the most unintimidating, friendly persona to have when speaking with vulnerable women.

Sofiya respected Winter and her clean profession. It was hard to be so kind in the Barrel. And men were rarely kind to women at all.

Sofiya knew that first hand.

Shoving away the memories- blue eyes, dark hair, gorgeous smile, charming words and sharper wounds- Sofiya stands in one fluid movement.

“I’m going to find Destry,” she says. Iseut stands, Ly and Winter falling back to flank her again, and smiles. She’s beautiful, that is undoubtful, but the attacks- the sleazy men at the Queen’s Head, the strain of the city- it’s all gotten to her. Sofiya can see it.

This city is poison, thinks Sofiya as Iseut takes her hand and shakes it. Poison and rot.

“Destry will be in her rooms,” Ly supplies, and Sofiya nods at her once.

Sofiya grins brightly, hoping it covers her own weariness, and recites, “Fair winds.”

“Bright stars,” chorus her friends. Sofiya waves over her shoulder as she slips out of the bar and down an alley. Above her, a storm brews in the clouds.

Perhaps the stars would be out that night. It didn’t matter. Nobody in Kerch saw the stars anymore.

~~~~

On her way to Destry’s apartments, Sofiya ran into more members of the Robber Claws.

Malcolm and Firefly, who lived together in shared housing in the Anvil, were shopping for new blacksmiths’ equipment. They each provided invaluable services to the Robber Claws, crafting flawless weapons second only to that of Fabrikators. They greeted her with a wink each. Sofiya moved on swiftly after trading them a Wandering Isle-crafted staff for twenty Kruge.

She picked up some baked goods on the way. She would need them. Destry- who had been her closest friend since she arrived in Kerch- was an Inferni. Fire-bringer; with an even fierier temperament. Rumour had it- and Sofiya knew the rumours were true- that Destry had been attending the University of Ketterdam when she’d heard a boy make a lude comment during an exam and lit the paper on fire with her mind. And that paper had been thrown. At the boy’s face. Ouch.

Sofiya had been nursing a whiskey in a tavern when she’d first heard the story recounted. She’d leapt up from her seat, slithered into an alley and held the recounter at knifepoint until he’d told her Destry’s name.

They’d become fast friends upon meeting. Sofiya had been in awe of someone so rebellious, so brave as to set fire to an exam paper, and Destry- well. Destry had laughed for hours when Sofiya had told her how she’d first come across her name.

But now, staring up at the ornate windows of Destry’s apartment, Sofiya feels unsure. She didn’t mean to worry her friend. Iseut had explained that her letter must have gotten lost during the riots. Sofiya cursed the post offices. So there was a deadly storm- your motto is still “We always deliver.”

Despite her trepidation, Sofiya’s feet were swift on the stairs. She had a key to the apartment, and didn’t hesitate to unlock the door and slip inside without a sound, content to watch Destry whilst she worked; even if only for a moment.

Leaning against the wall, Sofiya’s brow creases as she surveys her friend. Destry’s hair is plaited carefully into two loops at the nape of her neck, hazel strands freeing themselves gently against her light brown skin. She’s stood facing away from Sofiya, arms circled in rings of fire. The shirt she wears is Fabrikator-made; the flames don’t take to the papery material.

Sofiya takes a step forward, and pointedly drops her bag of confectionary on the floor. It lands with an audible thump.

Destry whirls, the fire at her wrists whirling into an inferno ready to strike- until Destry sees who is at her door.

“Shouldn’t have hesitated, Des,” Sofiya said weakly, “I could have put a knife in your back.”

The shock on Destry’s face dissolves. Her face splinters down the middle. Licks of fire at her fingertips wilt into ash in a pile at her boot-clad feet.

“You would have put out the flames with your water, I’m sure,” Destry says, and then flies across the room towards Sofiya, wrapping her in a tight, smoke-smelling embrace.

Sofiya would normally pull back. “Don’t be too open with your heart, Des,” she’d say, “People use your loves against you here.” But Sofiya couldn’t bring herself to say those things. The weight of the week comes crashing down on her head like a tsunami.

Fjerdan traps on my boat, attacks on my gang, tensions in Ravka boiling over… where’s safe anymore, except here?

Destry pulls back slightly to scan Sofiya’s face. She has a smear of oil on her cheek. Destry’s eyes are filled with fire, burning like an ember beneath onyx waters.

“Where. Have. You. Been.”

“Destry-”

“Don’t you make excuses with me, Pavlichenkov,” Destry snarls, “You didn’t warn us you were late! I couldn’t sleep- neither could Cherry!”

“I-”

“We thought you’d been caught, Sofi,” Destry cries, “We thought the Fjerdans had got you! I thought you died.”

The word is ugly and big in the room, choking Sofiya’s response. Death. Dying. Dead. And by Fjerdan hands. It wasn’t so rare for travelling Grisha to be caught and sent to the pyres.

“I’m sorry,” Sofiya says, because it’s the only thing there is, “I wrote- I really did, don’t look at me like that- according to Lyra, there was a storm in the True Sea. The letter sunk with the ship.”

“You’re a Tidemaker,” Destry huffs.

“Yes, which means I manipulate water,” Sofiya says, “Not stop it from overturning ships with important letters on them. Destry, I’m sorry. I brought waffles.” She offers the last sentence like a defendant on trial with the Stadwatch; one final piece of evidence to prove her innocence.

Destry brightens immediately, “Well, in that case.”

The pair of them set to work, shoulders just brushing in the cramped kitchenette. Sofiya’s array of pasties are laid out over two plates, which they lay on their laps. Destry’s job for the Robber Claws is, in few words, that of the logician. Papers are scattered all over her apartment, covered in detailed blueprints and scale drawings of buildings all over Ketterdam, Fjerda and even- rarely- Shu Han. There were no drawings of Ravka.

If Iseut had ever commissioned a robbery in Ravka, Sofiya didn’t know about it. It would be…unwise to hit out at the Ravkans, with so many Grisha in the gang.

But Destry’s job was essential, so Sofiya couldn’t complain about the lack of trays to put their plates on. Such things were useless for such an incredible mind as Destry’s.

“So,” says Destry conversationally as she lights the fireplace with a casual flick of her wrist, “How were the Wandering Isles?”

Sofiya says nothing, massaging her temples lightly. Destry manages a laugh.

“Your silence is telling, Sofi,” she warns.

Sighing quietly, suddenly feeling very tired, Sofiya says, “It was crawling with our Fjerdan friends from the North. ‘Peaceful’ Fjerdans.”

Destry spins, and she is outlined with the fire. We’re opposites, Sofiya thinks. Fire and Water.

“You didn’t-” Destry begins, horrified.

Silently, solemnly, Sofiya raised her palms to face the ceiling. Destry reaches out.

Her gentle fingers trace the scars there. Deep and painful and barely healed, the scars run red against Sofiya’s pale flesh.

“Sofiya…” Destry breathes.

“It was the only way to push my power down,” Sofiya whispers. She’s rarely so emotive, but Destry is someone she trusts with everything. It was a weakness, some would say, but they were each powerful Grisha. They were Gods in a world of men. And they would not kneel “If I hadn’t, I would’ve been caught. It was a price to pay.”

Grisha shone like lighthouses around people. In Kerch, in Ketterdam, it was safer for them- especially ones loyal to a gang, as Destry and Sofiya were. But in the Wandering Isles; where Fjerdans passed through on their way to Novyi Zem, where gang affiliations mattered less than the colour of your eyes… Sofiya tells herself she had no choice.

“Sofiya, you’ve opened up old wounds here,” Destry says, tracing the marred skin of her palms again, “You need a healer. Freya, Lita, May-”

“Wouldn’t understand,” Sofiya finished, pulling her hands out of Destry’s and placing them carefully in her lap, obscuring them with her coat, “They’re healers, Des, not warriors- they’d go to Iseut.”

Iseut. Their unofficial leader, the founder, the lighthouse in raging seas. All of the Robber Claws seemed to be caught in her gravity. She was their sun. And Sofiya… well, Sofiya was the moon. Iseut would send her to a healer, one who would stop her travels. One who would commandeer her Warship, and Kastor… health of the mind was important to Iseut.

But Sofiya was not damaged, as they would tell her. She was not broken. Her mind was sound.

I did what I had to do, to survive.

But Destry can see through it all. Through the mask, through her eyes, right to her bones. Through to her lying, treacherous heart. We’re all broken in the end.

But.

Oh, Destry, Destry, please…

“I won’t tell her,” Destry promises, “But I’d like you to know that I think you should. Tell her, that is- Iseut. She might help.”

“She might ship me back to Ravka,” Sofiya grumbles, biting into a toasty croissant.

“Oh, she wouldn’t.”

“You never know.”

“She’ll want you to heal, that’s all.”

“Yes,” Sofiya rolls her eyes, “But these wounds are of the flesh. The scars on my heart will never heal, not in this life Perhaps there will be mercy in the next, even for my rotten soul.”

“You sound like you’re auditioning for the Komedie Brute,” Destry laughs.

“Mother, Father, pay the rent!” Sofiya crows.

“I can’t my dear, the money’s spent,” Destry choruses instinctively.

Sofiya wipes away an invisible tear, “Gorgeous! We’ll make an actress out of you, yet, Destry Clements.”

“Oh, you most certainly will not,” Destry huffs.

Their laughter fills the air, and Sofiya thinks that maybe there is hope for her rotten soul, after all.

~~~~

The man returns late from the pub wearing only one shoe.

A bottle drained halfway of mauve liquid dangles limply from his pale fingers. The veins in his foot are blue in the half-moon’s light.

He slurs a broken melody. She catches a few words as he passes below her on the street.

“Hmm… perish… light… air… fire… hell… hmmm…”

The man’s name is Danyl Harrop. And he is going to die tonight.

“Hmm… shadow… devil… rot… earth… sun… burn… lose….”

Harrop continues down the road, heedless of the mud on his bare foot. He'd be blackout drunk in the morning if he survived.

He wouldn’t.

Silent as a breeze, steps as soft as downy feathers, she leaps from the streetlight where she was perched.

She strikes.

She is ash and shadow. She is a storm of fire. She is vengeance.

She is death.

Harrop yelps as she pins him against the tree. His face is as white as the moon, with eyes like black craters.

“What’re you doi-” he slurs dazedly, but she silences him with a wave of her hand. He blubbers like a fish on land as he tries to shout for help.

“For King and Country,” says the girl. Stepping away from Harrop, she lets her power hold him against the tree, keeping his muscles upright. She surveys him like an artist would their unfinished masterpiece.

The girl whispers, “Sleep tight, Danyl.”

Flicking her wrist, she snaps his neck. He’s still alive, barely, so she latches on to what little of his mind there is left and strips it like an onion. For a man who is out so late, so drunk, on what the girl remembers as a work-day, he knows too much.

Secrets. They feed this girl, nourish her. There is a skip in her step as she turns away from Harrop; without her supporting his muscles, he collapses against the tree. She leaves his mind just as it goes dark.

There is no need to hide in the treetops upon her return to the city. It gleams just half a mile away, most of which is roiling seawater. As the girl wanders along the road back to Ketterdam, she finds Danyl Harrop’s shoe in a puddle of mud. The girl laughs at the sky. She flips a coin into the shoe, whispers a heartless prayer to her Saints, and moves on.

Back to Ketterdam. Back home.

~~~~

Ok, so that's that! I left it on a bit of a cliffhanger... I may have created a whole plot... so there might be some more coming soon!

all these excellent characters (save Sofiya, Danyl, Kastor and the girl at the end who kills Danyl- who has no name... yet *wink*) belong to the following:

Iseut is @littlegirldorothea's

Destry is @finnick-annie's (I may have made them besties👀👀)

Cherry is @brekkercookie's (they are ALSO besties👀👀 we have a trio omg)

Winter is @cressjacquine's

Lyra is @no-mourners-at-my-funeral's

Malcom is @blackpheonix’s

Firefly is @ask-shadowbon’s

Erin is @lightningboytytonjesper’s

Adali is @apple-bottom-jeansx’s

Roza is @vampire-rights’s

Linnea is @alonlyfangirl's

Yan is @lucentcorrigan’s

Anya is @queenlilith43’s

Freya is @smol-evil-gremlin’s

Lita is @the-whispers-of-moonlight’s

May is @saltyfortunes

and the "Fair winds, bright stars" motto as created by @spicy-tomato-sauce's

oh and the whole Grishaverse is the wonderful @lbardugo's <3

if I missed anyone or you want to tag anyone go ahead!

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wondereads · 3 years

Text

Personal Review (09/19/21)

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

Why am I reviewing this book?

I first read this book in freshman year when it was the only book my entire book club liked. Now, it's really grown in popularity and a TV show has come out, so it seemed like a great time to reread it (because I didn't remember a thing) and finally finish the duology.

Plot 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Six criminal teenagers pull off a heist to break someone out of the most secure prison in the world for a prize that could solve all their problems. They are lead by Kaz Brekker, a thief so ruthless he verges on urban legend, and consist of Inej, an acrobat-turned-spy paying off her indenture, Jesper, a sharpshooter with a gambling addiction, Nina, a heartrender who'll flirt with anything with a pulse, Matthias, a disgraced witch hunter in it for a pardon, and Wylan, a demolitions expert with no field experience.

The plot is so incredibly fast-paced. Even at the beginning, when the scene is being set and they're just preparing for the trip, gang stand-offs and long-standing grudges keep the story moving. The heist itself is one of the most ingenious, chaotic things I've ever read, and then it ends with a horrible cliffhanger that will make you instantly pick up the next book. In case you can't wrap your mind around it, the Ice Court Heist is so clever it takes me a moment to understand how the characters get from Point A to Point B, and yet I never once stopped in confusion because things were explained as they went.

My only complaint is that it relies a little heavily on the worldbuilding established in Shadow and Bone. For example, Nina's powers, while exemplified throughout the book, are never really explained. I remember when I read it for the first time that I had no idea what a Grisha was, and I kind of just had to pick up context clues because there is no definition given.

Characters 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

The character development in this book is impeccable. Each of the six gets their own arc (complete with a tragic backstory), and their development is worked into the plot, which forces them to face their troubles straight on. Buckle in, this is a long section.

Kaz, everyone's favorite, heartless, teenage mob boss, who starts off so unemotional at the beginning, gradually begins to allow himself to feel again. It's only for Inej, not everyone, but it's a start. His backstory is absolutely horrific, and, even though he is the self-titled Bastard of the Barrel, you find yourself rooting for him.

Inej's revelation in the incinerator shaft (yes, that is an actual part of the book) made me want to cheer. After so many aimless years, I was so proud of her to have established a clear goal for herself, and such a badass one too. I also appreciated that she set some clear boundaries with Kaz since a lot of YA romances tend to just throw away those sorts of reasonable concerns in favor of ~true love~.

Jesper makes me hurt. I really feel for him; he's the prime example of a kid in too deep, and I think if any of them got their money I would want it to be him so he can fix his past mistakes and start again. Besides that, he's a funny character that isn't reduced to comic relief, and I like action best from his perspective.

Nina is a walking easter egg for fans of Shadow and Bone. I didn't realize it my first go because I hadn't read the original trilogy, but the number of times she name-drops a character or event from there...I loved it. She's a levelheaded, badass woman who's comfortable in sexuality but not oversexualized. I do wish she'd gotten some more attention here, but I do know that the bulk of her arc is in Crooked Kingdom.

Matthias grew on me. I didn't like him much, but he presented an interesting dilemma–loyalty to love or loyalty to home. I liked watching the struggle between his beliefs and what he's been taught and the new friends he's made and their contrasting lifestyles. I also appreciate that he is the #1 simp for the girls in the group.

Finally, Wylan is a bit tough. There are no chapters from his perspective in the first book, which makes sense because he's got some information that would spoil everything. Still, he was absolutely hilarious in my opinion and his gradual corruption through his time spent with the crows was great. I mean, this fifteen-year-old kid wanted to wake up guards so Jesper could kill them guilt-free.

Writing Style 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

The writing is really good. It shifts nicely between the more serious and humorous scenes. I think the romance is written very well. There's quite a bit of it and yet it never overpowers the plot. I never had a moment of "please dear god we get it you're in love let's move on now", which is something that plagues YA.

As for the humor, it was really good in this book. There were points I had to hold back a snort because I was in class, and each of the characters, even Kaz and Matthias, got a chance for a fun one-liner or sarcastic quip. "My ghost won't associate with your ghost."

Meaning 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 N/A

Be gay do crime. I'd say I'm just kidding but this book pretty much says breaking into a prison for a bounty is okay if you and your friends really need the money.

Overall 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

This book was great the first time and amazing the second time. It was well written, it was fast-paced, it was funny, it made me feel, it was all the things a good book should be. It's probably one of the best YA adventure books out there, and any adult would probably be able to read this and enjoy it. There's a reason it's so popular! I would recommend this book to people who enjoy heists, three-dimensional characters, and morbid humor.

The Author

Leigh Bardugo: 46, Israeli-American, Jewish, also wrote Shadow and Bone and Ninth House

The Reviewer

My name is Wonderose; I try to post a review every two weeks, and I take recommendations. Check out my about me post for more!

#books #reviews #six of crows #leigh bardugo #grishaverse #fantasy #ya

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schizononsince · 2 years

Text

@tired-and-healing sorry it took me awhile to respond, I was busy with family. I'm posting this because it's a lot to respond to via replies. This will be a long post.

" there are entire towns that are mostly totally dependant on nearby prisons for jobs / economic support "

YES! The prison I worked for ( that I cannot disclose legally ) was actually nearby a small town- almost in the town. And the town relied on the prison to keep things going. The prison money even was devoted to buying and making an entire park for the area. I'm not sure if they made the inmates work to make the park, but I do know that there was no jobs available at this prison. Only orderly* things.

* orderlies are inmates or offenders that are tasked with helping CO's with daily functions; as well as tasked with chores around the prison.

" What is the dynamic between CO's and incarcerated people? "

There is no dynamic, simple as that. The inmates aren't your friends, and if you're an inmate, the guards aren't your friends. It's encouraged to not trust inmates because they will manipulate you into doing things for them. And they will. I'll give an example:

Let's say an offender stops you during count time or while you're passing out trays. He wants you do simply heat up his food in the pods microwave. He makes the task sound easy enough and even tries guilt tripping you.

In this situation, I personally tell the offender that he can ask the orderly provided to me for that task. Now why would I do that?

Because, let's say you do take the food and heat it up in the pods microwave. Well, then you try to move to the next guy, now he wants you to also microwave his food. So you do, but by the third or fourth guy, you're running way behind on feeding time and you have to tell him no. He threatens to stab you next time you're on his unit because you didn't heat his meal. Now you're in a situation over something as small and simple as a friendly task or act of kindness you showed one or two guys. Best case scenario, you get haggled off that pod. Worst case, the guys you heated the meal for are affiliated and now the whole pod assumes you're working for that gang. Which you don't want. So being friendly with inmates is discouraged. Now, that doesn't mean I personally treated them like animals, I still respected them ( though most my coworkers did not ). And i still stroke up a conversation about their day or about sports. But I never did any tasks outside of my job description for them because of the situation I explained above.

So as far as dynamics, there isn't one. I'm the guy with all the power and you're the guy whose gonna do jack about it. It's unfair as all get out, but it's how prisons these days work.

" How do people connect with each other and form friend groups in prison? "

During my time as a CO ( which was short lived ) I made pretty much no friends at that prison minus one guard who also said ' fuck this place ' and dipped.

Inmates make friends by mingling. They're just people in a situation that's unfair to them. They're all victims of a fucked system at this point and, for some of them, there is no getting out. That's not to say every inmate is trust worthy. A lot of them try to extort other inmates financially, sexually, physically, you name it. Some of those guys, they're crazy. You look at them and they're psychopaths that need mental help, kot prison. There's some nuts in there that you don't want to mess with. It all depends on who you are and who you run into.

Now, the guards? At this particular prison, where messy as hell. I mean messy, always gossiping about eachother. Always. You don't want to make friends with the other guards, because if they're talking about each other, you can guarantee they're talking about you too. And it's dangerous, because offenders know how to get information out of you about other guards. Guards talk, and inmates listen. You can slip up and tell an offender where your coworker lives without even realizing you did. And it's a dangerous thing, inmates know people outside. Some of my coworkers were followed home by cars after offenders threatened to put a " KOS " * on them.

* KOS is kill on sight. It's where offender's tell their connections outside the prison to kill you on sight.

" I think isolation is one of the worst things that can be done to a person. " - regarding punishments.

Cruel and unusual punishment is a thing. I'll never forget seeing that sergeant punch a fully restrained and riot gassed offender. I'll never forget seeing a OC gassed inmate stripped to his underwear and binded down to a metal operation table where he had sat for days. I won't forget that stuff. It's sick. It's fucking sick how they ' punish ' these guys.

And yeah, they do some bad shit. Inmates will put fecess on a shank to stab you and get you infected. They'll dash* you, they'll throw a home brew of acid on your face. But you have to stop and think, whats causing these guys to do this? What phycological horrors do they have going untreated that cause them to act this way? What fucked up oppressive system has them feeling like they have to do this to get by? It's sick. But cruel and unusual punishment isn't going to make them stop. Nor is it right.

* dashing is when the inmates piss in a bottle and throw it on you. Sometimes they let the bottle sit for long periods of time to allow the amonia to brew, sometimes they add bleach.

" I want to also know how the punishments effect CO's "

Depends on the CO. I've only written one or two RVRs in prison, one on an inmate who threatened me for being trans, and one on a guy who I was forced by my sergeant to write a RVR on. Otherwise, i never wrote one. I hated the idea of RVRs.

RVRs are basically like referrals you get in school. It's a report on you. A write up. RVRs can take / freeze your convensary and can also land you in the hole.

As far as how CO's took punishment ? It depends on the CO. Some loved writing RVRs, others did not. Some CO's are on a sick and twisted fucked up power high.. others are not. Depends on the guard.

" Do you feel like having the ability to dole out to people who can't structurely relate changes people / your co workers? "

It absolutely does. I personally didn't abuse my power in a way I knew of. But there were some guards just itching to take away your whole convensary, or to throw you in the hole*. I felt sick one night, watching a coworker stand there and brag about her power. She went as far as saying she loved the high it gave her, and the power she had was just so amazing. I couldn't relate.

I hope this helped and that you learned something from my responses.

#tw prison #tw corrections #ama #prison guard

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brandstifter-sys · 4 years

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Projections

Word Count: 2530

Characters: Patton, Deceit, Remus, Virgil

Rating: M (not smut)

Warnings: Suicide Attempt, Self-Harm, Self-Hatred, Sutures, Angst, Hurt/Comfort

Patton is fed up with himself because of how strangers online see him. It takes three unlikely sides to save him and help him work through things.

The following is not an attempt to critique the fandom in any way. This is a vent fic and I was working through my own shit via Patton. I hesitated to post this for a long time out of fear that it would blow up in my face.

Patton stood in the bathroom under the artificial light. The only part of his room that was free from clutter and the one place he could see himself as he truly was, the bathroom was the only place he could go where the memories couldn't reach him—except the ones at the top of his head.

Manipulative…

Strict…

Overbearing…

Abusive…

Tears streamed down his flushed cheeks as he thought about the recent surge of hate. He stared at the flushed yet pallid face in the mirror and shuddered as bile crept up his throat. He couldn't bring himself to fight the voices in his head, screaming at him.

Did he split Creativity all those years ago? Was it his fault that Roman was insecure and that Remus was unhinged? He couldn't tell, they were all just toddlers. Even so, he knew he was to blame for the divide in the mindscape. No matter how hard he tried to lessen the impact, tried to see value in the gothic sides, tried to make amends slowly but surely, no matter what he was still to blame.

Strict…

Overbearing...

He had been strict recently, he found that out the fun way. But at least it was Logan who said it, not the other side who knew early on. He wanted Thomas to be a good person and a good friend. He wanted to be there to guide Thomas, but he was so confused! Right and wrong shifted and he lost his footing. He should have said something, but no he buckled down and tried to force the morals he knew back into place. He hurt everyone with that decision, especially Thomas. He failed at his job.

Manipulative…

He leaned over the sink, tightening his grip around the handle. Maybe this next step was just a new way to weasel some pity out of the others, a threat for attention. He overstepped his bounds in terms of influence and with his family. How did Roman forgive him for the guilt trips? Why would he? Because of morals. He manipulated everyone by existing.

Abusive…

Was he abusive? The theories and stories he read painted him as a monster. Was his own perception skewed so badly that he pretended to be a good guy while being the real villain?

"Patton, you messed up everything!" he growled at his reflection, "You fucked up so bad! It's time for Thomas to have a new, better morality!" He dried his eyes and pressed the blade to his wrist, pressing until red oozed from the wound. The joyful catharsis that filled him only grew stronger as he opened his arm. It was time.

"Patton!" two familiar voices yelped. In an instant he was being held to one side's chest while the other took his box cutter. He squirmed in the tight grasp and fought with all his might.

"Remus hold him still!" Deceit ordered as he conjured a suture kit.

"This is going to hurt. Bear with me." Deceit said flatly to Patton as he tied a tourniquet around his upper arm to stop the bleeding. Patton's eyes widened and he squirmed in Remus' grasp. They were not going to take this away from him! It was the only service he could provide for the mindscape and he would see it through!

"Hey!" Remus hissed when he was kicked in the shin. He shared a look with Deceit as if asking a question. Deceit nodded as he cleaned away the blood.

"Hey Pattycake you should skip the Crofter's in your next batch of cupcakes—ocular fluid would do a better job."

"There won't be a next batch!" Patton wailed, "Let go!"

"No? I was gonna offer you my eyes too!" Remus giggled. Deceit internally groaned at the duke's attempts and lifted a free hand while he threaded the needle.

"Why the hell are you—?" Virgil grumbled low and peeked inside the bathroom door.

"PATTON!?" he shrieked upon seeing the fatherly side with blood oozing from his arm, clearly miserable—and not because Deceit was holding his arm still or because Remus had him pinned to his chest.

"Virgil, thank you for your prompt arrival." Deceit hissed, "Be a dear and paralyze Morality with fear, he has to stop moving." Virgil swallowed thickly, and nodded. He was scared enough that only the slightest touch could freeze Patton in his tracks.

He slunk in next to Deceit and pressed his trembling hand to Patton's throat, letting it become enveloped in black smoke. For a second, Patton hoped Virgil would choke him to death to finish the job. He was wrong. His muscles tightened and his breathing became shallow.

"Oh dear," Deceit tsked, "I have to use quite a bit of grafting material. This could take some time. It will be as pleasant as Remus' fingers."

Remus shoved a surprisingly clean hand in his mouth and growled, "Bite." Patton did, and it was unpleasant.

"It's gonna be okay, Patt." Virgil breathed with tears welling in his eyes. Patton doubted that as the needle went through his vein. He screamed and bit down hard on Remus' hand. Virgil cringed at the muffled sound. Deceit blocked it out and continued his work, using all six hands to make sure everything was perfect.

"Did you do this to yourself, Patt?" Virgil asked, lip trembling. Patton's eyes watered and he averted his gaze. The sorrow and confusion were agony. He didn't deserve pity.

"Yeah, with the sharp knife on the ground." Remus answered for him as he screamed.

"Why?"

"He believes he is only causing harm." Deceit grunted and carefully moved as swiftly as possible, "Unfortunately that is a lie and I was summoned."

"And I showed up because he was having some fun ideas. And then I realized that they weren't just passing fancy and I got scared." Remus frowned.

"So why didn't I get summoned when you were scared?"

"I'm always scared! Have you heard the shit that comes out of my mouth?" Remus giggled awkwardly as a muffled "language" escaped Patton between screams.

"Is there a way to numb him or knock him out?" Remus grunted when Patton's teeth broke through his skin.

"I can," Virgil said, "But we need to lay him down."

"Do it." Deceit ordered "And keep him down. Remus we're going to the lab, don't think about holding him like a baby when he's out cold." Patton shrieked and argued, his vision blurred with tears. Virgil moved his hand to the back of his neck...

And everything went black.

Patton blinked and glanced around the room. He was in the common area, but not his usual commons. The walls were too dark and the air was too cold. He could smell something tomatoey and delicious cooking in the next room, but his stomach was not interested.

He tried to sit up, but he yelped and fell back against the couch. He lifted his arm and stared at the dark stitches running along the underside—that nightmare was real. He was so close! He couldn't even die right!

"Morality!" Deceit gasped and hurried into the room. He was surprisingly without his hat and gloves. In fact he was dressed in black sweats and a yellow hoodie, not at all his usual attire.

"Deceit?" Patton groaned as he tried to sit up again, his head spinning. Deceit hurried over and gently pushed him back.

"No, stay right where you are. You lost a lot of blood and you need to rest." he said and sat on the edge of the seat, studying his face.

"Why?" Patton breathed as two more sides entered the room without saying a word.

"Why did we save you?" Remus asked and shrugged, "Because we need you, Daddy—oh! Daddio!" He rubbed his shoulder where Virgil punched him and pouted.

"But Thomas could make a new, better Morality. A Morality who wasn't the scum of the Earth."

"Pat, what are you talking about?" Virgil questioned and sat next to him on the ground.

"I'm bad. I caused a huge rift in the mindscape, I manipulate the people around me, I'm abusive and strict, and I—"

"Abusive?" Remus questioned, "Since when?"

"Since I caused you and Roman to split. Since I valued one twin over the other."

"You did nothing of the sort. You couldn't have, if you could, Anxiety would be Fear and Vigilance, separately. I would be Self-Care and Deception, in the same way." Deceit scoffed, "Sides split themselves based on Thomas' development."

"I'm the demonstration. Roman is the inspiration. He might not remember what the King planned but I do." Remus explained with a regal air the Patton never expected from him.

"Too bad he was a kid with no foresight with no way of knowing that we'd be so different. He had no idea I would be plagued with intrusive thoughts, violent urges, and a nearly manic state of being that could cause the entire mindscape to implode, splattering side guts against collapsing walls." Remus continued, losing that dignified aura. Patton winced at the implications.

"Hey, Douche, zip it. Literally." Virgil hissed and shifted to his knees to run his fingers through Patton's hair, just enough to ease his tension.

"Patton, you aren't the only one who caused the rift. That was all Thomas as he was growing and learning. You're as much a product of that time as we are." Deceit sighed.

"Besides you weren't the only one forcing the divide, Deceit and I are just as guilty." Virgil added.

"What gave you the idea it was all your fault? Who told you that you were abusive and manipulative?" Remus asked. Virgil shot him a look and Remus zippered his mouth shut, with a cartoonish zipper.

"Well, I kept seeing all these theories and stories and—" Patton began.

"They're absolutely right, a character who they're projecting onto without all the information has to be exactly as they invision." Deceit droned sarcastically, cutting him off.

"You can't please everyone, you have to focus on the people who matter most." Virgil said, "And those things that a bunch of strangers say aren't necessarily the truth. Take it from us."

"But those things have to come from somewhere!" Patton sobbed, "And what if they're right?"

"You can choose to believe me if you want," Deceit sighed, "You are not the exaggerated character in most stories—abusive, or stupid, or naive, or without bias. None of us are merely common tropes, despite the way the series is scripted. Sometimes people need a character to use as a stand-in." He averted his gaze an inhaled slowly.

"Deceit?" Patton whimpered. And that's when Remus unzipped his mouth.

"They made him abusive, murderous, conniving, the scum of the earth, a victim of abuse, suicidal, a soft little baby, a skeezy flirt, and the villain only I could come up with, all after appearing one time!" Remus cheered. Deceit and Virgil glared at him but that didn't stop him.

"They like to make me an obsessive, out-of-control, homicidal maniac who wants Roman to suffer—I mean that's not entirely inaccurate, I have my moments with Princey and I can get pretty manic, but they don't know me! Some of them make me a deranged puppy, suffering from horrible thoughts and isolation. And don't get me started on the shit they put Virgil through!"

"No! Not you too Virge!" Patton cried. Virgil zipped Remus' mouth shut again and sighed.

"Pops, you know I'm not a soft little innocent baby. You know how I'm mean and judgemental and I make threats. There's fics and theories about me being abusive too and fics that make me out to be a shy timid softie. Fics that make me the villain to make these two look better. But you don't believe those, or anything about the rest of us that you haven't learned first hand." Virgil replied.

"Yeah, you have a point there," Patton pouted, "but I can't come up with an outsider perspective for myself."

"You rely too much on how others perceive you." Deceit hummed, "In both positive and negative lights. Take it from any of us, falling for the diverse opinions of strangers is harmful."

"Especially when they're so varied." Virgil added.

"mphhhhh hmmm mmmm mmmph!" Remus grumbled enthusiastically. Then paused to banish the zipper.

"We all get shit, but only the finest compost is allowed in." he chuckled, "Think you can sort out the critique to let your garden bloom?"

"That was incredibly well thought out and positive." Patton commented all too soon.

"And then you'll have your choice of poisonous plants to play with and make the people in your way suffer an agonizing death!"

"There it is." Virgil grunted.

"Well at least the first part was uplifting." Patton pouted.

"Indeed. And if you find it hard to sort out the truth from the projections, my door is open." Deceit said, offering a half smile, "I know how hard it is to let them have their catharsis and keep a sense of self."

"For better or worse you have the three of us." Remus smiled, "The sly, the mad, and the stinky!"

"Pops, you have a whole lot more family than you think." Virgil added, and stood up,

"But right now I gotta go, teach Remus how to be you."

"Why Remus?" Patton questioned.

"Deceit is busy." Remus shrugged, "Byeeee!!" Then he and Virgil sank out. Patton was confused but oddly comforted. Deceit was watching him with concern and a certain fondness.

"After all I did to you, why did you come running?" Patton questioned and tried to sit up, "Why not get Roman and Logan?"

"Neither of them are quite equipped to handle that situation, not when Roman would blame himself and doubt his capability as a prince, and certainly not Logan, who's been bottling his feelings for far too long, seeing you like that would break him."

"But what about you and the other two?"

"Fight-or-flight is an instinctual protection, I am self-preservation, and Remus is a far more hands-on creativity, thinking on the fly and worming his way out of danger as quickly as he finds it," Deceit answered, "We shadowlings are here to protect Thomas, all of him, as prevention and damage control. We care about all of him, even if we don't see eye to eye."

"But Princey and Lo care about him."

"Despite his insistence on being a heroic knight, Roman is not a form of protection. Logic can provide some insight, but overall he is a guide, the three of you are."

"You have it all figured out." Patton pouted. Deceit shook his head and returned that pout in earnest.

"I don't." he sighed, "I'm not going to pretend that I do, unlike a certain educator. But I do know one thing for certain."

"What's that?"

"Thomas needs all of us, especially his emotions and morals. He needs you, Patton, no matter what anyone says."

"How do I know you aren't lying?"

"Actions speak louder than words. Who was it who stitched you up and made pasta for you?"

"You made pasta?"

"With your secret ingredient." Deceit chuckled.

"Cumin." Patton said with a knowing grin.

"Yes." Deceit responded, flashing a snakey fang.

#sanders sides #patton sanders #remus sanders #janus sanders #virgil sanders #suicide tw #suicide attempt tw #blood tw #gore tw #self-hatred tw #patton angst #angst tw #hurt/comfort #sandyscribed

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