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#and trying to make sense of the injustice that took place

vaspider · 29 days

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So I need a more adult persons take on this. Is it wrong to ask people to tag gory/graphic images from gaza? I'm not trying to bury my head in the sand. I don't want to block mention of palastine but god these images are triggering the shit out of me and it isn't making me more aware or more empathetic, I'm already angry and heartbroken and praying and donating what I can.

It is never wrong to ask someone to tag something for any reason. I've asked people to tag animals that I have a phobia of, and mentions of Laika (the first animal in space), because Laika was a good girl and she didn't deserve what happened to her. It was cruel and horrible and it upsets me in a way that I recognize is out of scope for the death of a single dog seventy years ago. That person may decline to tag things for whatever reason, and if that's the case, it isn't wrong for you to unfollow them, block them, add their username to a filter list, whatever you need to do in order to curate your online experience. Without talking directly about the topic you brought up, 'cause it's something I don't do, as I've said about ninety squintillion times -- I used to reblog/post pretty disturbing images of human bodies out of a misguided sense of justice. I have been online for a really long time, and a lot of the stuff that was posted as 'necessary education' Back In The Olden Times were images of police and/or mob brutality visited on Black & brown bodies. Out of a sense of white guilt and a feeling that I should be 'bearing witness' rather than turning away, I perpetuated some of those images, until -- very kindly and gently, I think, for the scope of what was happening -- it was pointed out to me that:

it is unkind to subject the people who have been or might be subject to that sort of racialized terror to images of bodies broken by it, and

it is almost invariably the exact opposite of what the families of those people want, and

it does nothing to actually make me a better person or to advance any sort of real justice, and instead

it simply acts as a grotesque sort of terror tourism or war porn for people who can simply turn off their computer or phone screen and go about their lives.

I am really grateful to the person who took the time to gently shake me. They didn't owe me that, and I'm glad they thought I was a worthwhile investment of time and energy.

Whoever is posting images of bodies or gory images of victims from any injustice like that, especially without appropriately tagging the images so that people don't have to engage with that? They may be motivated by the best of intentions, but as long as they are engaging in that sort of casual, continual terror tourism, they're ... not helping.

There was a great article about this back during Ferguson that really flipped a switch in my head about the subject, where it basically said this is just another way that dominant cultures, Americans especially, seem to treat the bodies of people they view as Other as theirs to consume. There are ways to talk about whatever is going on which do not require people to utilize the bodies and blood of the dead as tools of persuasion (or emotional bludgeoning, tbh), as symbols to show how Righteous we are by "not looking away," and at the cost of those who have been or are more directly affected by the images.

Doing that sort of thing isn't a good idea in the first place, and you're not wrong to ask anybody to tag anything, or to disengage from those people if they find themselves unwilling or unable to tag that content so that you can care for your own mental health.

#gore mention

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abattre · 3 months

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It's actually so disappointing that Naruto's narrative took the route that it did. Kishimoto created an incredibly interesting world and premise, and ruined it by having everything amount to a shallow message of forgiveness that undermines almost every meaningful element in the story. And it's like,, I want to appreciate the world outside of the plot, but the moral framing of the story makes it virtually impossible because of how disingenuous it is. It completely undermines the audience's understanding of the tragedy and horror of the world so that Naruto becoming Hokage and being the most powerful person in the world by the end doesn't come across as distasteful as it actually is.

Like it's made abundantly clear throughout the story that the village system, and Shinobi society as a whole, is incredibly flawed. Kishimoto goes out of his way to show us that Konoha's council is made up of objectively horrible people. We see first hand how the council's short-sighted ideas of what 'protecting the village' means results in devastating tragedy for people both in Konoha and outside of it. It's clear in how Danzo and the rest of the council act that their atrocious behaviour is them just blatantly abusing their power to maintain their authority. The council has no remorse in anything they do; human experimentation, genocide, slavery, and blatant exploitation is all fair game to them if it preserves their status quo. And instead of maybe, like, addressing Konoha's skewed morality in a sensible way and setting the village up for reform, the narrative just tries forcing the audience to perceive Konoha's genuinely heinous actions as necessities. Which, you know, will work when you're like 8, but once you've grown up and developed some reading comprehension and critical thinking,,, it just feels annoyingly manipulative.

At its core, Naruto is a story that attempts to deconstruct morality. Like this is abundantly clear in how Kishimoto is constantly paralleling the dichotomy of good and evil literally every chance he gets. In the end though, this dichotomy just doesn't work in the context of the Naruto story because the narrative framing of the village being the good guys is just hysterically ridiculous. Konoha is an awful place, that does awful things, and is run by awful people that refuse to change anything because it benefits them for the village to remain awful forever. To anyone with a developed sense of media literacy the village cannot in any way be framed as morally good, so when the story resolves itself with Naruto becoming next in line to govern Konoha under the same unchanging authoritarian regime, with the same council supporting him because of his sheer physical prowess and complete dedication to their twisted ideology,,, it's honestly just an incredibly underwhelming conclusion to a story that made itself out to be more profound than it actually is.

If I had to guess, I imagine Kishimoto just didn't think through how negatively the world he created would reflect on the plot. Ultimately though, you can't write a moral story that's so deeply entrenched in real world social inequity and decide halfway through that because you don't know how to fix these things your story's going to have to be about how they're actually okay to be doing and perpetuating,,, like that is awful and also a terrible lesson to impart on an audience of children. With how serious the issues are in Shinobi society, trying to resolve things with the power of friendship was always going to fall flat. These broad scale injustices can't be brushed aside in that way without undermining their severity and diminishing the understandable impact they had on the characters that experienced such extreme oppression. That's essentially the trap that Naruto's conclusion falls into though, and so the story just ends up feeling incomplete and unfulfilling because none of the issues brought up are actually addressed or discussed with the gravity they deserve.

#i guess kishimoto was hoping the aliens would distract us or something #i love the naruto world but i can't stand the pro-konoha rhetoric like it's just so bad #anti konoha #anti naruto ending #anti shinobi system #pro uchiha #pro sasuke uchiha #pro neji hyuuga

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lifeiskentastic · 10 months

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pls pls pls i need more sebastian fics hes my babygirl

as you wish ;)

Sebastian visits the bartender gn!Reader

Gif by @cinematicsource

A/N: I'm only happy to write more about this man (he's just everyone's bbygrl);

Summary: Every evening, Seb visits a bar where the Reader works as a bartender. The real reasons for his constant visits have never been known to the Reader, but it looks like they will finally be revealed today;

Song I recommend: Stray Heart by Green Day;

Words count: 640 word's;

Thanks for the request!

Sebastian sank heavily into a stool at the bar. You could see drops of sweat slowly trickling down his temples. Well, sometimes he looked even worse after a whole day of job with piano, so you wouldn't be surprised (especially after the time he came in with a vinyl player and scared the hell out of the customers with his jazz. I mean, who comes to a bar when they're already drunk?!)

You smiled kindly, wiping down the glass for your regular. You did this every night, something as routine and ordinary as brushing your teeth or turn off the light before going to bed.

"As usual?"

Seb's head hit the table with a thud, and he mumbled something unintelligible right into the table surface. You innocently laughed at your unfortunate friend, ready to listen to another story about the injustice of this world, music, obnoxious bosses, movies, music in movies and movies in music... The topics of your conversations were limited only by your linguistic abilities.

"You drank already, aren't you?"

Sebastian looked up at you sluggishly, putting his hand under his chin as if he were going to fall asleep right there in the bar (which, to be honest, had happened several times before).

"No, no... I'm just really, really… Really tired. I'll have the usual, if you please."

You quickly took out the golden whiskey you had prepared especially for Seb's visit and filled a clean glass with it.

When the drink appeared in front of Sebastian's face, he must have used all his last remaining energy to push the alcohol down his throat.

At such moments, you didn't understand him. He doesn't need to come here every night, especially when he's in such a bad state. And you're not going to hold a grudge against him for one missed visit!

"Why do you come to me every night? I mean, literally every single night."

Seb thought for a moment, but he was obviously overacting.

"It's just that this place inspires me."

You looked at the client in front of you in disbelief. And from your expressive gaze, it was easy to tell that you would never believe that someone could be inspired by old, shabby walls, one customer in a few hours (and it was usually Seb), a constant draft, and ancient, flooded furniture. There wasn't even a stage for musicians in this feeble bar!

However, Sebastian seemed to realize that he didn't sound convincing at all, so he continued:

"Just looking at this bar, I know for sure that my future club will be better in any way."

You both laughed. Now that was more like the truth.

Seb's eyes, exhausted but still somehow full of enthusiasm, were fixed on you. Which made perfect sense, because looking at anything else in this awful place was unbearable, and it was the only explanation for Sebastian almost falling over the bar trying to get as close to you as possible. At least that's what you thought.

"And as well... I come here to imagine a skilled bartender like you working behind the bar in my establishment."

You were a little confused by this sudden statement and decided to make sure you understood it correctly. It couldn't mean what you thought because it would be…

"Well, then I hope you find someone as good as me."

Seb smiled playfully.

"I don't think I need to look."

... Too good.

You were puzzled, surprised, and excited all at once, and you just couldn't decide which one was more important. However, you knew for sure that your guest's words had made your cheeks involuntarily flush.

"Well, you open it first... But, uh, I have to admit, I wouldn't mind if you invited me to work there."

"You bet I will."

You smiled at each other, believing with all your heart that you two would succeed.

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idkaguyorsomething · 5 months

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The Problem of Susan Fic Recs

For many reasons, The Last Battle is probably the most contentious addition to the Narnia canon. The standout, though, has to be the infamous Problem of Susan, wherein the Pevensie children are all killed in a train crash and brought to Narnia 2 Electric Boogaloo aka heaven, then declare that Susan is no longer a friend of Narnia because of her interest in “lipsticks and nylons”. Hardly any time is spent on this, but the implications have been the ground for a lot of argument and discussion. What exactly would happen to Susan, and should it have happened? Over the years, dozens of fic writers have thrown their hats in the ring and weighed in on the subject, making the Problem of Susan almost a prism for the fandom: everyone shines through it a bit differently, resulting in a wide spectrum. Here’s some of the highlights under the cut.

http://shedletsky.com/blog/the-god-who-loves-you

Starting with the fic that coined the term, written by Neil Gaiman himself, this fic is a reflection and deconstruction of the idea that Susan would be able to find Narnia again by delving into the trauma that the experience of losing all her family at once as well as the social injustices that a young woman of her time would’ve faced, something that the narrative of The Last Battle never really addresses. It took off for a reason, as it presents a lot of good food for thought, but it’s also got some pretty weird shit that can feel like it’s conflating adulthood with edginess. Well worth a read for all the points it raises, but if you’re fond of canon you probably won’t like the way it takes a hammer to it.

Now this one is exactly what you’d want to read if you wanted some feel-good time. This story is probably the closest to how C S Lewis would’ve written Susan’s return to Narnia, detailing her rediscovering all the things she put away as well as what led up to her rejecting Narnia in the first place. It falls more to the end of being almost uncritical of canon, with the focus on Susan basically having the same sort of religious rediscovery that C S Lewis himself had in his life. Because of how she was treated in canon, that can be pretty frustrating, but the ending feels nothing short of joyous.

Swinging back to the other end of the spectrum, this fic is very critical of the idea of The Last Battle being a pretty happy ending for everyone, unambiguously stating that life is always worth living for all the Pevensie kids. It explores what their lives could’ve been like if they didn’t die, being a rebuttal of C S Lewis’ themes rather than a continuation of them while feeling equally as happy as the fic directly above.

And this story feels like a midway point between the above two. It dives really deep into the emotional damage that Susan would’ve suffered before and after the train crash in some absolutely gorgeous prose, showing both her and Aslan with great sympathy while maintaining that what happened to her is not a punishment in any way. Bittersweet and very, very good.

Heading back towards the more critical end of the spectrum, this fic presents a Susan who is not interested in finding Narnia again, only her family. She is very much a character straight out of an ancient myth rather than a teen trying to make sense of a senseless situation here, filled with determination as much as desperation. It’s probably the closest fic on here to having something close to a plot as well as a character study, with the exception of The Queen’s Return and one other:

Being a crossover with what’s pretty much the antithesis of the Chronicles of Narnia, His Dark Materials, it’s probably easy for you to guess which side of the spectrum this story falls on. It’s more of a HDM story than a Narnia one, but the two worlds blend together surprisingly well, and it gives us a rare look into a Susan who’s lived decades of her life when the story picks up. She’s pretty much the Professor and it is fascinating, as is everything left to interpretation by this gem of a fic that is ambiguous yet deeply satisfying.

¡And here’s Susan as a Doctor Who companion! This isn’t directly a Narnia story so much as it is one about two people much older than they look mourning the loss of their worlds, with a Susan who is a queen wise beyond her years. Reading it is like taking an ice shower. It doesn’t hold back on the grief, and as a result it manages to feel honest as it reaches a warm ending.

http://archiveofourown.org/works/24311

Despite also being a crossover, this is in some ways the opposite of touch the sky with two arms. Susan is more of an everyday young woman than a queen, and [SLIGHT SPOILERS] Narnia itself does feature directly. But y’know, that’s part of what makes fandom so interesting. Not everyone is going to have the same take on everything, and the ending of this leans more happy than melancholy.

¿A shipping fic that’s also a crossover with Peter Pan that features neither Neverland or Narnia? Yes, this one probably has the least to do with Narnia or Aslan, but it tells a very compelling story about living life and growing up, something that isn’t perfect but can be good if you find someone you want to spend your life with. Susan Pevensie and Wendy Darling are a really good couple, pinky promise.

Technically more a series of ensemble oneshots, but Susan features very prominently in a lot of them, and they will make you feel every feeling that everything else on this list might’ve given you. Satisfaction, devastation, simple joy, just go give it a shot.

#phew that’s probably just barely scraping the surface but those would be my top recs #feel free to add on any others that you know about #the tournament will go up soon btw #narnia #chronicles of narnia #the chronicles of narnia #susan pevensie #the problem of susan #the last battle #his dark materials #hdm #tcon #pevensie siblings #wendy darling #doctor who #fic rec #ao3

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dangermousie · 4 months

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And now we know what causes her to seek vengeance and I find it so interesting because he doesn't kill her clan - he doesn't even kill her and the gamblers and courtesans (her BFF dies but it's because she was tortured before; she was not ordered executed, or even tortured after he took over.) But it makes so much sense for her character's idealism and absolutism and the fact that this is her first hero worship AND first love meeting a dose of realpolitik brutality.

When she sees him she hopes...

She tries to speak up...(side note, I love the irony that under the past king, they were tortured into a confession to implicate Jinhan and under Jinhan, their sin is that confession. Commoners really can't win...)

And his reaction. And her face at that OUCH!!!!

It is so interesting to me. Because he does what the assistant asked him (it's a return for the favor of betraying the minister of war) and they are all punished "severely" but - pretty impressively - as I said none of them are ordered to be executed; they are exiled for hard labor for 3 years and to get a whipping which sounds like a brutal amount of whipping but is still not death penalty (and is delayed until they get to the border so they have time to heal.) By the standards of a feudal society, it's a downright merciful punishment. (Yes, they had done nothing wrong, but in that society, being in the wrong place in the wrong time is a crime in and of itself.) This is Jinhan doing his patented thing - paying back favors when he has to but trying to minimize suffering while keeping within the bounds of what will not cause trouble. This is EXACTLY what he did in Qing - I mean he fought (!!!!) on the side of Qing in battles and made buddy-buddy with their royalty ie people he loathed (like he made buddy-buddy with assistant here) and he made things marginally better but he couldn't fix the injustice just mitigate it at the corners (he was able to make sure ransoms on captives didn't rise, but not that they were abolished.) He knows exactly what he can do and what he can't.

And ultimately, despite his cruelly abandoning words, if you look at what he does as opposed to what he says, the punishment they get DOES spare the courtesan's life - ie what FL asked for. Hell, they aren't even making her walk to the border, they are transporting her in a cart. She dies because she was tortured badly before; now she may have lived if she got a doctor, who knows - but at best, it's an indirect sort of thing.

BUT!!!! Here is where their difference in age, life experience, and personality comes in. He's done his best to keep all the competing factions satisfied but she's not a person who can think through that - she is terribly young, she's frighteningly idealistic and absolutist (she was willing to be tortured to death rather than say a false thing, her whole schtick with baduk playing itself was an example of it too.) And more importantly, she fell in love with him but not the real him, not truly, but this perfect paragon of selflessness and perfection she made him in her head. He's a good man and a smart man in an impossible situation, trying his best, but he's not a patterncard of perfection because nobody could be and survive. She herself earlier seemed to have understood that his actions when a hostage weren't a sign of betrayal but survival and making the best out of a terrible situation but when it comes to her and her friend, she's too personally enmeshed (understandably so) to allow herself to think the same. And so she vows vengeance.

The thing is - I think she had some sort of an idealized vision that he'd be able to save everyone and rule everyone without anyone ever wrongly suffering and it's impossible. In his position, she'd perhaps rather die than do what he did and take the throne (or compromise with assistant minister in terms of punishment or w/e else) but with that attitude, she'd have also died in Qing captivity and got a bunch of people killed or less of them freed due to higher ransoms. She is unable to compromise and he's nothing but compromises and it's a collision and I love it so much!

PS As far as we can see, the only people who came close to dying were her courtesan friend who died from prior torture and FL during her escape attempt.

PPS preview shows she will want to work with son of minister of war and ummmm that dude was one who allowed his dad to torture your friend so badly she eventually died. BRAINNNNNN PLS!!! But she doesn't feel betrayed by him I guess because she expected nothing.

#cdrama #shin se kyung #jo jung suk #sejak #sejak: charmed deceit #captivating the king

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its-the-sa · 5 months

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Different anon. God just boiling down the slugcats to 'animals' angers me in a way I didn't think I could be angry. Yes, they are animals, but by all means they are cognitive and understand complex emotions, communicate with a supposedly complex language, are able to be taught to do things. Why else would the iterators use them as messengers constantly? It's not like they're messenger pigeons where it's just going from point A to point B, they understand exact instructions. If this was just some random animal, making groans and grunts, they wouldn't be able to understand what Five Pebbles even meant when he was explaining how to ascend. Even with the mark, could you imagine if he told a lizard this? Artificer, arguably, is a prime example of this. Just an animal would get over their fallen children, sure they'd grieve but in the end they'd just make more. Arti not only is so enraged by their death, that she is physically incapable of ascension, but also swears vengeance upon a whole other species. This isn't just some animal who lost her children, this is a mother who is enraged at her children's murder. Sure, they aren't on the same level as humans are. Like obviously. But I'd argue it makes sense that a scavenger and a slugcat could fall down the path of enemies to lovers. Especially when you consider the fact that death isn't permanent in Rain World's universe. That would definitely change one's perspective on it. I dunno if I make sense, I'm juggling like three things at once, but I had to say what I needed to say. Wording bad, slugcat smort.

tbh it took me a minute to figure out what this was even referring to, because honestly I don't think that anon meant to use the word 'animal' to dehumanize arti in the first place. it sounded to me like they were just using it as a non-human equivalent for 'person', like "why would anyone fall for a person who committed hate crimes against them?" which is a valid question. it never even occurred to me that they could have meant it in the sense of calling her an inferior creature.

that said... you ARE 100% right and you should say it, lmao.

I very nearly got into this exact argument once, bc i saw some comments from a guy scoffing at the idea of arti showing mercy to baby scavs. because by his logic, 'she is just an animal, so she isn't bound by human morality. in the wild, animals kill any young that don't belong to them without hesitation'. and it just pissed me off so much, because not only was it such an edgy "mercy is for the WEAK!" alpha-male bullshit take, it was also just factually wrong. many animals can and do adopt the young of other animals, even other species, especially when they've just lost their own. and like you said, they can grieve, but then they move on. they keep surviving, and making more babies. they don't dwell on injustice, or let rage consume them to the point that it becomes a hindrance to their own survival. they don't go on single-minded revenge quests. they dont try to justify their own violence by demonizing entire species, and they dont end up plagued by guilt in their sleep. those are very, very human things.

and yeah, i see a lot of people theorize that it's the mark of communication that grants the slugcats higher intelligence, but I don't really buy that either. i think the mark just lets them understand the iterator's language. they must've already had the capacity to understand it, or else it wouldn't work at all. it'd be like trying to install windows on a calculator. also, even without the mark, slugcats are obviously shown to communicate with each other. they have their own culture, they tell stories and make art, and they're apparently able to understand karma and the nature of the cycle at least enough to be able to ascend. so like... any creature thats capable of spiritual enlightenment must at least be sapient, right??

it seems like in the absence of the ancients, both slugcats and scavs are beginning to move in to their niche in the ecosystem

#in other words #[holds up a slugcat] BEHOLD A MAN

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picturejasper20 · 3 months

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Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur Molecular Man character analysis

Molecular Man is a main antagonist that is introduced in the Season 2 episode ¨The Great Beyonder¨. While not having much appearances in Season 2 A, his episode debut manages to leave an important impact on Lunella’s character and Beyonder’s in part.

In this post i’m going to analyse his motivations and character in the episodes his appears and how he is tied to the themes from Season 2 A as a whole.

Let’s begin:

On the surface, Molecular Man is someone who seems to be quite reserved, serious and intelligent. He doesn’t play nor joke around, always taking what he is doing seriously. From what it explained by the Beyonder, he used to be once a person who had a lot of power and influence in the galaxy and his planet was a very well known spot before it got destroyed by a meteor shower accidentally by the Beyonder.

Before the meteor shower event, Molecular Man used to be someone who was rejected by others in his own universe. So he looked for a place where he could feel safe and built his own planet that would later become a touristic spot for other alien species to visit. He deeply cared about it and took him a lot of work turned into a place that later became respected by others. Based on flashbacks, he used to be a caring and welcoming man, allowing aliens from all kinds to come to his planet.

In all, he used to be someone who felt like an outcast, wanted a place to be in the universe and posibily for other aliens were in the same situation as he was. He didn’t look to cause any harm to anyone and stayed living on his own corner.

After the meteor shower event, his planet became a deserted wasteland. Almost everything got destroyed, making Molecular Man lose what he built for years if not decades. He was deeply affected by this loss and defined him for the rest of the years that came after that. He was traumatized by this event, as seen how he gets flashbacks of it during a moment in his fight against Lunella in ¨The Molecular Level¨.

He became consumed by rage and a sense of great injustice. He spent many years for Beyonder to return to his planet. He used his wand to desactivate Beyonder’s powers and catch him defenseless, that way he could get his revenge for the great loss he suffered. It seemed it was the only way for him that he would be able to be ¨at peace¨ considering that he rejected Beyonder’s offer return his powers and allow him to rebuild the planet.

In ¨The Great Beyonder¨ Molecular Man attacked Lunella without showing any mercy, probably just because she was associated with Beyonder or he saw her as Beyonder’s friend. Trying to make Beyonder go through the same pain as he did by taking someone he cares about.

Before he was able to finish Lunella, Beyonder stepped in to get the wand and stopped Molecular Man. Beyonder transformed Molecular Man into a baby and escaped from the planet along with Lunella. However, Lunella was traumatized by her encounter against Molecular Man, having almost died. This is something that haunted her for a while until she was able to overcome her fears in ¨Suit Up!¨ episode.

Even having being able to trust in her own abilities again, the battle was one of the reasons Lunella started to question the idea of hiding her superhero identity from her family, as it was becoming too much for her to handle it on her own and to keep lying to her parents and grandfather about it.

The encounter also introduced another theme in Season 2 A, which is about Lunella learning that the world is more complex that it seems and how people who do bad things often have their reasons to do what they do and how they can fall into a bad path and make regrettable choices. Molecular Man acts as a set up for this since he has more than legit reason to feel angry to Beyonder, the issue is how he decided to approach his loss in a very innappropiate way.

Between ¨The Great Beyonder¨ and ¨The Molecular Level¨ Molecular Man became a lot more enraged than he already was. Consumed by hate and anger, his body structure started to mutate and gained the ability to control matter itself. He tried looking for Beyonder in every place he could think, only to not find him anywhere. (Thanks to the events from Wish-Tar leading to Beyonder to ¨disappear¨).

SInce he couldn’t sastify his desire for revenge, he tracked Lunella’s location down using a piece of material from her stealth suit she lost in ¨The Great Beyonder¨. The main reason being because he knows that Beyonder cares about Lunella and he wanted to make him lose something that was important to him, just like he did when he accidentally caused the meteor shower.

In ¨The Molecular Level¨ he shows up at Lafayette’s deparment house and begins to chase both the Lunella and the family down. He explains to Lunella how he was able to find her and why he is after her after not finding the Beyonder. He spends most of the episode trying to hurt the Lafayette and fighting against Devil, destroying a good part of the department complex.

This keeps going until Lunella manages to get her battle suit thanks to Devil. She asks her family to escape and prepares herself to have her rematch against Molecular Man. Molecular Man tells to Lunella that his planet was a place where he finally could be accepted by the multiverse and ¨that meant the world¨ to him. Since he lost everything, he didn’t care if his desire for revenge got him destroyed in the process because ¨he didn’t have anything to lose¨.

Unlike their first encounter, Lunella ends up defeating Molecular Man after a hard fight. However, once he is at her mercy, Lunella stops herself from delivering the finishing blow. Molecular Man doesn’t get why Moon Girl spared him, to which she explains she understands the pain he went through after the loss of his planet as she would have felt in a similar way if wasn’t able to protect her familly and friends. She feels really sorry for what happened to him.

Molecular Man then apologizes to Lunella for having destroyed her home and attacking her, admitting that he let himself be so consumed by his own pain that he wanted others to feel the same he went through. Seeing that he deeply regrets his actions, Lunella gives him a piece of her suit, that is self repairing, and allows Molecular Man to heal himself.

Feeling better with himself, Molecular Man realizes that he could have used his new found powers to rebuild. He uses his powers to quickly repair the damage he caused in Lafayette’s department and to heal Pops’ broken arm as a way to make up for his previous actions. He thanks Lunella for understanding him, stating that not many beings have that ability. He opens a portal back to his home planet and tells to Lunella that he would try his best to rebuild it before going through the portal.

In some ways Molecular Man acts as a foil to Lunella, representing someone she could turned into if she lost someone she cared about and wasn’t able to save them. It could also be what she could have turned into after her first terrifying battle against Molecular Man if she had chosen to be herself be defined by anger and revenge. Molecular Man represents what happens when a person chooses bad ways to cope with their own pain and trauma and how they can hurt others and get themselves destroyed in the process. But, at the same time, what to do when someone makes mistakes like this and realize how you hurt others in the way.

In all, Molecular Man is a character who wanted to belong and be accepted by others, only to have that be taken away in an instant. He assumed that getting revenge and making others ¨feel his pain¨ was the way to deal with his loss when what he really needed was someone else who could understand what he was feeling. This is what leads him to change his ways and to choose to repair the things he lost instead trying to take away things from others.

#moon girl and devil dinosaur #mgadd season 2 #Mgadd molecular man #lunella lafayette #the beyonder #character analysis

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harmonysanreads · 2 years

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ON MY KNEES FOR YANDERE ALHAITHAM PART 3 😫😫😭😭, got me blushing and shi

iwillnotwriteforalhaithamagainiwillnotwriteforalhaithamagainiwillnotwriteforalhaithamagainiwillnotwriteforalhaithamagain —

ugh. screw it.

Delirium

yandere alhaitham x reader

cw: yandere, captivity, implied mind break

Click.

The window pane stepped aside for the chilly night air to waltz through, albeit lacking the cool of one ; the glass structure swayed, the timbre of its brazen dance howled throughout the dead of the night. Goosebumps rose on your exposed skin, all of your senses eager to relish in a bygone, snatched luxury.

You took a deep breath as if to remember, accumulate all injustice enacted upon you— as if to gather the merciless, unfair cutting off yellowed and spotted leaves and perceived hostile thorns by a gardener expecting nothing short of perfection, by your husband ; so that all that'd be left is a beautiful rose, to be admired as however the gardener pleased and so incapable of defense, stripped of its natural charm, waiting to wither away —and you breathed out to rid yourself of the burden, the filth.

If you had not been the human that you were and instead a songbird perhaps trapped likewise unfairly—no, you are that songbird at the face of freedom, blinking and making sure this was not a ploy borne of its captor's boredom, too distrustful due to its period of captivity or much worse, a distorted delusion. However, as much as you're like that hopeless songbird, you're also not, because you broke your own cage instead of the entrance opening itself ; an action that rises the suspicion of its existence but you're too caught up in your victory to nurture that now.

A parallel paints itself : the songbird takes one step towards the cage door with faint hesitation, you swing your leg over the window's lintel and grab onto a glitching place you think is the ledge itself to establish support and when the edges of grass tickles your toes you're more eager than ever to take a full leap to freedom's embrace, the songbird's pace speeds up and the distance to the open entrance shrinks, it unfurls its wings and the feathers straighten with excitement, with hope. It jumps in full preparation to take flight, promising a better tomorrow to itself and no mercy to its captor, it sees the light and it can hear the wind's calling just a breath away as the entrance slams shut.

(A force too strong to promise good snatches you back from freedom's longing embrace, again.)

Adrenaline and senses mix and merge in an incomprehensible miscellany, they stay static to a momentary dark and then blurrily reveal silver light. You try to blink away the dampness clinging to the corners of your eyes and gain control over your breathing, recognizing the inability to do so by the iron clasp around your body and you being firmly pressed to a solid thorax.

It takes you two seconds to process the reality and another two to confirm Alhaitham's uncomfortable hold.

Right.

He must've sensed your restlessness, bringing you even closer if possible and shifting his head to your nape, his gray locks tickle your skin and you hear a faded mumble of something — confirming that this was, in fact, the reality and the exhilarating experience of breaking the cage a delirium borne of your crumbling sanity.

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farfromstrange · 1 year

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Hello! I was wondering if you could do a Matt Murdock x reader one-shot?

If you aren't comfortable writing this, that's okay! Basically the reader in an abusive relationship with an older man and she meets Matt in a bar. They flirt over drinks and the reader goes back to his apartment with him in a lapse of judgment. The reader is enjoying herself, cracking jokes and pretending nothing is wrong. Because of Matt's extra sensory abilities he can tell there is something wrong with her though. She’s recently been injured and he can hear and smell some of her injuries.

She thinks he won't know she's injured because he is blind and they start making out at his place, but when he takes off her shirt he starts subtly checking her injuries. When he gets to her ribs he stops and questions the reader because he can feel that a few are broken. She insists it's nothing and tries to laugh it off and encourages him to keep making out with her. He tells her no because she’s hurt and she gets embarrassed and tries to leave. Matt can sense her panic and soothes her. He convinces her to stay and lie down so he can take care of her injuries and he comforts her as she cries and promises her boyfriend won't ever hurt her again.

Hello, lovely! I'm sorry it took so long for me to respond to this. Thank you so much for your request. Since this is a very sensitive subject, I tried my best to convey it in the right way, and thank God, I managed to finish it! I hope you're doing okay and that you like how I interpreted your request. Thank you again and take care of yourself <3

Narcissist | Matt Murdock x Reader

Masterlist

Pairing: Matt Murdock x Reader

Summary: Trying to catch a break from your abusive boyfriend, you find yourself seeking refuge and a drink at Josie's in the middle of the night. It's where you bump into Matt Murdock, a charming stranger with the promise of a night of fun. Little do you know that the seemingly normal stranger has a much better perception. After taking you home with him, it doesn't take him long to discover the dark nature of your need to escape.

Warnings: ANGST, description of domestic violence, abuse, description of injuries, kissing

Word Count: 7.5k

A/n: This request probably hits very close to home for some of you, so I want you to take care of yourselves and proceed with caution. There are resources for victims of abuse that you can turn to. I've found this page for victims of abuse that's available in 115 languages: Home « HotPeachPages International Don't hesitate to ask for help if you need it! Remember, this is a work of fiction and does not represent real life. Take care of yourselves <3

18+ MINORS DNI

The crowded bar around him is bustling with noise. The distinctive smell of cheap beer and vodka clouds his senses. The balls on the pool table keep clanging against the corners and sliding into the holes. Conversations start to overlap.

Josie’s has always held a special meaning to Matt. As uncomfortable as it could sometimes get, especially on Friday nights like this one, the chaos makes him feel at peace. The noise inside cancels out the sound of injustice that reaches his ears from the streets of Hell’s Kitchen, and sometimes a break is all he needs.

He finds himself nursing a drink at the bar, listening to the condensation of his beer bottle hit the wooden counter. Lost in thought, he only lifts his head when the door opens. The bell attached to the frame rings out softly, barely tuning out the sound of fun that has started to dominate the room.

Matt hears the steady sound of your heartbeat first. The muscles in your body are tense, and while your breath sounds calm, there’s a certain edge to the way you move and order your drink only a few inches apart from him. He can hear the sound of your voice, the smile that is undoubtedly fake but makes Josie smile too - and she doesn’t smile often because the clientele simply doesn’t deserve her kindness. You, however, seem to strike a nerve with your attitude.

He can’t deny that there is a light surrounding you, but that light is about to be consumed by darkness. He can’t explain why he gets the feeling that something might be wrong; he doesn’t know you. He doesn’t recognize the distinctive smell of your perfume or the unique rhythm of your heartbeat. You’re a stranger and yet his mind instantly starts to circle what lies underneath the person you pretend to be. You’re not fake, he would never suspect that. You try to be yourself, or the version of yourself you want to be, but there seems to be something that is holding you back, something that is dragging you down and keeping your soul in a knot.

The many eyes he feels turning toward you and the uptick of a few male heartbeats in the bar tell him what he already suspected; you’re attractive, and your smile captivates people. From what he can hear in your voice, you must be a comfortable character to be with, and as you say something to Josie that makes her laugh and he hears your laugh, Matt’s attention is on your entirely now. He’s intrigued.

His head is screaming for him to leave it be, to leave you be, but he can’t stop himself. When Matt Murdock has his mind set on something, he needs to have it, and at that moment, it is you he wants to get to know. He can’t deny it; as curious as he is about who’s hiding behind the almost painfully obvious mask you put on - to a man with his heightened senses, at least - he is also attracted to you. Judging alone by the way you carry yourself, the sweet sound of your voice, and the way your laugh resonates, he can’t help but feel drawn to you. It’s a mix between curiosity, attraction, and concern that motivates him to grab his beer bottle and approach the chair you’ve seated yourself on, sipping on your vodka martini alone. No olives, he heard you tell Josie. You told her that you hate olives.

“Mind if I join you?” he asks.

The moment your eyes fall on him, your heart skips a beat. Your jaw loosens as you eye him more carefully, your cheeks flushing, and the oxygen gets stuck in your lungs for a little too long. At least the attraction is mutual, he thinks, and your exhale carries a sense of determination.

He holds his breath. Your eyes roam over him again, a different aura surrounding you now. “Sure,” you say, your voice almost hoarse, but he ignores it.

Matt smiles, almost relieved, and sits down next to you. “Can I buy you another drink?” he asks. He knows yours is still full, but he can’t tell you that he can smell the liquor clinging to the glass, and how it always smells heavier when it’s full than when it isn’t.

You frown, a cute little crinkle forming between your brows, and then you giggle. Your giggle is even sweeter than your laugh, and the blood rushes to your cheeks again. Your heart races. Though this time, your laugh is genuine. It sounds genuine, at least. He revels in it for a little too long.

“Um,” you begin, and your voice cracks as you try not to laugh. “I just got a drink. I’m usually not the glass-half-full type, but in this case, the glass is half-full. ‘Cause that’s the appropriate amount for a vodka martini.”

He chuckles. “I’m sorry,” he says and tips his glasses. “I should have thought about that question before I asked. I didn’t see… well, I can’t see.”

He listens to your heartbeat. There’s a moment of hesitation before you laugh, noticing he’s waiting for a reaction. You laugh and it’s genuine again. The concern he had before flies out of the window and what’s left at that moment is this feeling of pure awe when he imagines the kind of person that is sitting next to him, and that he managed to lighten some of your darkness with a joke he often uses.

“So, you still have a drink and I know Josie well enough that I shouldn’t recommend her cheese fries. That means I don’t have much else to offer you except-” Matt extends his hand, “I’m Matthew. Matthew Murdock.”

He raises his hand and you lean back a little, swallowing and considering twice what to do with his introduction. He frowns. Your reaction seems odd, and he sees the darkness sparkling again. Slowly, he lowers his hand again and offers a comforting smile.

“You don’t have to talk to me,” he says. “I didn’t mean to come off too strong. I just heard that you were alone, as weird as that sounds, and I thought you’d want some company because, uh, I’m also here alone.” He tips his beer bottle in her direction. “If I’m making you uncomfortable, just say the word and I’ll leave.”

You swallow again, eye him, then exhale. Your shoulders slack and you turn toward him, your attention not wavering. When he finally hears your name come out of your mouth with gentle shyness, he smiles brightly again. You even offer him your nickname and it relaxes him to know you’re not as uncomfortable as you had first seemed.

“Nice to meet you,” he says.

You return the favor, “Pleasure’s all mine.”

“Just to check in,” he smirks, “Is your drink still full?”

He hears you giggle again and he joins in. “It’s half-empty,” you say.

“Oh. Well, mine’s too.”

“Then maybe we should just keep drinking and you can buy me another one after that?”

Matt smirks. You’re bolder than he thought. He sets the brim of his bottle to his lips and says, “Deal,” before taking a long swig.

You do the same.

At the beginning of the day, you would have never suspected you would end up in this position. If you’re being honest with yourself, it seemed like an impossibility before. You woke up to the same nagging feeling in your stomach. You woke up just to be torn down. But every person reaches their breaking point eventually.

Over the past two years, your days have looked the same. Every morning, you’ve dreaded waking up the same way you’ve dreaded going to bed at night, knowing that hell would start again in the morning. It has become a downward spiral that has gotten out of control.

Every morning, you have to wake up before sunrise to make breakfast or you know your first conversation of the day would be a fight. You have to pack lunch and you have to give a proper goodbye. You go to work, and you get a few hours of break, but every hour, after every meeting, you have to send a message to the one person you even dread getting back home to now. You have to account for your whereabouts, you can’t go out after work and you can’t have friends. You need to cook dinner or your night will end in more fighting and pain, and you would wake up in the morning twice as uncomfortable. Most of the time, you have to serve your body on a silver platter to finally make the night end, and if you as much as slip up once, you’re going to have to suffer the consequences because as a woman and girlfriend, it’s your job.

At first, you were blind. You met a nice guy, you went on a few dates and it seemed like a dream come true. You were happy. The quirks he started to show a few months into the relationship were red flags, but you were young and so in love with a man older and more experienced than you, you ignored the signs. You believed him because he’s always made sure to tell you he knows better. The things he asked of you, you did out of love, but the more time passed, the more you started realizing that you’d gotten yourself into quite a predicament.

The red flags you hadn’t seen before are clear now, and you know that the life you’re living is no real way to live, but whenever you get a moment of clarity and want to leave, it’s the smallest display of affection that makes you fall right back into the trap. Your daily routine has become a standard. Your relationship feels like a job and it hurts, more often physically than mentally, but his words are scarring all the same. You’ve tried fighting back, but it has always ended badly for you.

Tonight though, something snapped in you. You were frustrated and in a moment of strength (or weakness) you decided to leave. That’s how you ended up at Josie’s, a bar far away from the apartment you share with the man you fell in love with but hasn’t been the same ever since your relationship became official. You stormed out and you walked the dark streets until your feet hurt and you couldn’t wait for an unhealthy amount of liquor anymore. Your goal had been to get drunk.

Never in a million years would you have thought that someone like Matt would walk up to you, let alone offer you his company. If you came home that night and he found out, you know for a fact you would have died. Though as the clock keeps ticking and you keep talking with this stranger that is starting to feel less and less like a stranger, you don’t want to go home. The feeling of being listened to is alien yet comfortable, and you can’t help but feel drawn to him. He’s compassionate, he’s kind and he’s funny. He is the kind of man you thought your boyfriend was before he turned around and stabbed you in the back, and he’s kept you there ever since.

Though when Matt turns his head to you, making sure you know you have his attention, there is a faint flicker of hope you had once thought dead hidden away deep inside, and it’s starting to show. Just for tonight, you decide, you shut the part of yourself off that you can’t even seem to understand. For tonight, you decide, you’re going to pretend everything’s fine and that you’re not stuck in a cycle made by the devil himself. You decide to have fun. And you haven’t had that kind of fun in a very long time.

He’s a lawyer, he tells you. He’s his own boss, he works with his best friend and he only helps those who can’t help themselves. He prefers justice over money. He’s catholic. He’s everything your mother once told you to bring home, and while they like the man you’re with, they would hate him if they knew the truth. Most people would. It’s only human to hate a man like that, especially for the things he did and continues to do. You know you’re supposed to hate him, and deep down you do, but love is a fickle thing and you can’t help but need him, even after all he’s done to hurt you. And that, in your head, is fucked up enough to get another drink.

You get so enthralled in another conversation that you almost fail to notice Josie’s glance from behind the bar. Her eyes carry a look of concern that have you wondering what you did wrong. That’s when it dawns on you.

You touch your cheek, noticing how some of the sweat from your forehead has started to dissolve your concealer. You’re not allowed to buy expensive makeup, so you settle for what seems the most natural, and it does little to cover bruises because you’re not allowed to go out most of the time anyway, and you’ve never had the most obvious bruises on your face before. Today, that is different.

For a second, you’re relieved Matt can’t see the obvious blue discoloration of the skin around your eye, then you meet Josie’s eye and the panic settles in. You touch your cheek and flinch when you apply too much pressure to the fresh bruise, trying to hide the shivers that adorn your skin.

Matt looks confused and at the same time concerned, reaching out to touch your back and ask, “Are you okay?” He calls your name and it’s the softest sound you’ve ever heard.

You don’t deserve it, you think. You lied to him, you told him you were single and that you were simply at Josie’s for an after-work drink. You laughed with him and you allowed him to flirt with you. You don’t know what’s worse, the fact that you’ve lied to him or that you’re still lying to yourself by thinking any of this is okay.

His hand brushes over a particularly sensitive spot just above your spine and you flinch. The sharp pain shoots straight down through the bone. It’s not his hand that lays on you now, it’s someone else’s. It’s the hand that bruised the skin. You know it’s not Matt’s fault, he doesn’t know what you’re hiding, but the anger inside your chest begins to bubble up. You’re agitated, and you know this is all on you. It can’t be on anyone else because you’ve put yourself in this position.

You hastily scramble for your bag.

“Where are you going?” Matt asks. “Did I say something wrong?”

You are quick to assure him, “No, not at all, I just… I gotta use the bathroom real quick. Excuse me.”

He follows you with his hearing alone, confused and concerned at the same time. Your steps retreat toward the women’s bathroom. The wood falls back into its hinges behind you. He can hear you placing your bag down on the sink and searching for something. The squishy sound of a tube of concealer fills his ears as you take out the sponge and apply some of it to your cheeks, rubbing the color into your skin.

What you don’t know, he’s heard the hitch of your breath and the uptick of your heartbeat whenever a bittersweet lie has slipped past your lips. He could smell the fear radiating off your body. Whenever his hands brushed your skin, you grew uneasy but at the same time aroused by the simple action. You’re stuck in a weird middle space between attraction and anxiety and he’s starting to piece the puzzle together.

When you flinched when he touched your back, he knew. He could feel the bone under your skin shift and the blood pooling in one particular spot. The nerves stretching over the muscle are inflamed, he noticed, and the fear that has suddenly spiked your heartbeat and prompted you to storm off into the bathroom set off the alarms in his head.

Inside, you’re trying your hardest not to cry as you pat the concealer onto your skin. The bags under your eyes look so much heavier in the artificial lighting. The bruise is starting to sparkle a bright purple at the edges and the veins in the corner of your eyes are redder than usual. The vessels that burst only a couple of days ago still haven’t recovered.

And your mind begins to reel; you wonder where you went wrong. Deep down, you know none of this was your fault, but as you look at yourself in the mirror and the ghastly picture on your right eye imprints in your brain, you begin to wonder if there was something you could have done better.

Usually, your days turn into a blur, but today remains a vivid picture in your mind. You once told yourself that if you stick to the rules set for you, you could be somewhat happy. Last night, you forgot to think. Your work day had been rough and when one of your colleagues asked if you wanted to grab a coffee with them, you were too exhausted to say no. A crowded café sounded better than the hell awaiting you at home. You lied and texted your boyfriend that your boss dropped another load of paperwork on your desk, and at first, it seemed like your lie worked.

The people you work with are all around your age - some of them are even fresh out of college, and there is this guy, Louis, who’s simply a joy to be around. It was just a cup of coffee and a small stroll around New York, but when you came home and noticed you were still wearing your colleague’s jacket, there was not much that could hold the man you share a bed with back from unleashing his anger on you.

You lost count of how many times you apologized. You didn’t cry, you simply let him have his way with you. As twisted as it may sound, you thought you deserved it. His hands and his words made you feel so incredibly small, you searched for the fault within you. You thought you did something wrong by accepting a friendly gesture, by doing something for yourself, and by being human. He’s always had a way of making you believe what he believes, but last night, he went too far.

You’ve often been incapacitated by his punishment, but he left you completely humiliated, bloody, and bruised to sleep on the couch with bruises that still bothered your back from his outburst a week ago, and you found yourself crying yourself to sleep. It didn’t stop there. This morning, he barely paid attention to you, and for every word you said, he made sure to tear your pride down even further. By the time he left for work, you were late and crying and the kitchen was such a mess, he threatened to make you regret it if you didn’t clean up right this instant. So you stayed behind, you cleaned up, you put on the concealer that has become a shield from the prying eyes of the world, and you went to work.

The last straw came when you arrived home long after him and he didn’t get the dinner he required. This time though, when he raised his hand and continuously beat down on the bruise around your eye, you didn’t lay down and cry. You waited until he was done and tucked into bed, grabbed your bag, and stormed out. What compelled you to make the decision, you aren’t sure, but it seemed to have been the right thing at the time.

Though you know that if you decide to come back home in the morning, a black eye and a few broken ribs will be the least of your problems.

You’re angry. You’re angry at him for making you doubt yourself and the life he’s forced you to abandon so many times before. You’re angry at him for taking your pride and turning you into someone too afraid to stand up for themselves.

You make a decision, and it’s a decision you should have made a long time ago.

Matt lifts his head when he hears you approach. There seems to be something different about the way you carry yourself. It’s an angry determination, a thirst for revenge, but at the same time, he can tell from the way you move and look at him that the attraction he has caught before has not once wavered.

“Do you want to get out of here?” you ask him.

He’s taken aback. The rational part of him screams that you’re in no state to make such a decision, but the rational part is also the concerned part and he knows that if he says no, you will find someone else to take you home and you probably won’t be as safe as he wants you to be. With him, at least, he knows you’re safe.

So Matt makes a decision too. Unbeknownst to you though, he has a different motivation in mind when he says, “Let’s go back to my place.”

Your eyes light up and your lips curl into a smirk. “I’d love that.”

Your bold question inevitably leads you into a mouse trap. One second, you’re admiring Matt’s apartment in the heart of Hell’s Kitchen and the way the Billboard’s green color illuminates the brown furniture, the next you have discarded the coffee he made you and find yourself seated on his lap.

He’s a good kisser. Not that you have much experience in that arena, but as soon as you decide to kiss him - because in your life, hardly any decisions are ever yours - you get lost in the soft feeling of his plump lips moving effortlessly against yours. It’s as if he studied how to kiss.

His hands on his hips are gentle and steady, yet he keeps you pressed to him as if he’s scared of losing you. You tangle your hands in his hair. The brown locks feel like heaven under your fingertips and you sigh into his mouth. His tongue slips between your lips and he makes sure to taste every last inch he can reach.

You can feel his cold fingertips on your bruised skin underneath your shirt, but you don’t mind. Maybe it’s because he can’t see that you’re not scared of his touch.

When he calls your name softly and asks, “May I?” as he attempts to take your shirt off, you’re taken aback for a second. The way he asks leaves room for you to make a choice. With a soft smile, you nod and he slides your shirt off.

Leaning back down, you capture his lips once more. He smells like rain and sandalwood. He reminds you of a beautiful day in fall, the sun shining down on the still-wet ground as the leaves sway in the wind. His calloused fingers send shivers down your spine, but his touch has never been gentler.

You know what you’re doing is wrong, but the sin of his lips tastes sweeter than heaven, and if wanting him was such a bad thing, you would gladly go to hell. Matt is a stranger, yet he makes you feel more alive than anyone else ever has. He sets your body on fire with a single touch, his lips dancing to a choreography that is now etched into your brain. He holds you close, he keeps you safe, and the pleasure that ripples through you is a new sensation that makes you feel so alive - for a moment, you finally forget about everything else. You forget about your boyfriend, you forget about the bruises and you forget about the fear and the pain that seems to follow you everywhere you go. You don’t feel the need to hesitate; you just want him.

You get so lost in the taste of him, you misjudge the placement of his hands as sexual intimacy. It’s only when he pushes you away ever so softly that you open your eyes, pupils blown wide, cheeks flushed, and lips swollen from his vicious attack on them with his teeth. You look at him, your eyebrows furrowed.

“What’s wrong?” you ask, your voice barely above a whisper as you try to regain your breath.

The green light reflects off his brown irises, his unfocused eyes carrying a sense of concern as they roam your face. He reaches out to touch your cheek, his other hand staying on your ribs. His thumb traces circles over the obvious bruise that adorns your right side, and he manages to find the bruise you’ve covered on your face with ease. Your mind is hazy and you can’t find it in yourself to question his actions. Your heart drops to the pit of your stomach and you watch him closely, the concern multiplying with each stroke of his fingers.

His voice is soft yet hoarse when he speaks up. “What happened?” he asks.

You frown. “What do you mean?”

“You’re hurt.”

Your heart starts beating faster. “It’s nothing. I’m okay. Let’s just keep going…” You lean back down to kiss him once more, but he stops you.

“Sweetheart, your ribs are broken.”

At first, you wonder how he knows, but your curiosity is quickly replaced by the need to shield yourself.

“I’m not going to take advantage of you while you’re injured. I need to know,” he says softly, “who hurt you?”

You pull away suddenly, climbing off his lap. You find your shirt on the floor and put it back on. Your heart races. His question runs circles around your head. Your hands shake as you get dressed again, and Matt whimpers softly at the loss of your warmth.

He calls your name. Your silhouette is burning with fear and he is half-convinced that you might get a heart attack if your pulse doesn’t slow down. He knows he’s hit a nerve. The suspicion he’s had before becomes clearer, but he doesn’t want to assume something without hearing it from you first. Judging from your determination though, he needs to act fast or you will get yourself in danger as soon as he lets you out of the door.

“This was a mistake,” you mutter under your breath, your voice quivering.

You would be lying if you said this was the first time someone asked you this, but it wouldn’t be a lie to say that this is the first time someone has been genuine while asking, and it’s that part of his voice that breaks your heart and urges you to run. You made a mistake, you’ve meant what you said, but you’re not sure if Matt is the problem. If anything, spending time with him has proven to you that the mistake is sitting at home, waiting for you to come back and beat you into submission over and over again.

Matt cares and the fact that he does hurts so badly because now you realize how stupid you’ve been ogling for a love that has been built on violence and manipulation from the beginning. Your boyfriend has never loved you and he probably never will, and realizing that hurts even more than the fact that you’re about to push someone away who seems as if he just wants to help - and help is what you need, but God, do you hate admitting it.

You should have known Matt wouldn’t let you go without a fight.

He reaches out to catch your arm. “Wait,” he calls out for you softly. “Don’t go, please. I’m sorry, I just… I’m worried about you. I feel like you’re hiding something and I’m afraid that if I let you go now, you’re going to get seriously hurt. So please… please, talk to me.”

“You don’t even know me,” you snap, a pathetic attempt at keeping your heart safe from the vulnerability. “You don’t get to do this.”

“Someone’s hurting you.”

You swallow. The tears are threatening to fall. You’ve had a rough couple of days - no, you’ve had a rough two years and you’ve been waiting for a lifeline for so long, you eventually decided to give up. But there he is, Matt Murdock, holding out his hand for you to take. The lifeline is so close yet so far away, only because the fear that has seeped into your soul keeps you tied to the ground, unable to fight back. Oh, you want to fight back, but you’ve never learned how. You want to reach for the lifeline he’s throwing you, but you’re afraid of what it might mean.

Matt tugs at your arm again. He says your name and you listen. The soft sound is about to snap the invisible string that keeps you detached from reality in two, and the tears are about ready to fall.

“I know I don’t know you and I have no right to ask about your personal life, but I can tell that you’re scared. I can tell that you’re hurt. I won’t force you to stay, I’m not that kind of man, but I also don’t want you to leave. Just tell me, are you safe?”

You open your mouth, but the words won’t come out.

“Are you okay?” he asks again. “If I let you go now, are you going to return to a home that is safe for you to stay in?”

So many questions and only one right answer. He doesn’t need to hear you say it to know what your answer is going to be.

He lets go of your hand, albeit hesitantly. You don’t move. He expected you to run out, but instead, you stay. You stand there and don’t move. It’s as if your heart has made a decision that your mind is still arguing with, but he can tell that you’re not going to move.

Once again, he calls your name. “Are you going to be okay?”

The invisible string snaps. “No,” you whisper.

Matt tilts his head. He doesn’t push you, he simply holds out his hand again.

This is the first time in two years you say it out loud, but it sends the stone rolling down the hill and the tears start falling. “I think I need help…” You suck in a sharp breath, but it’s too late. The dam has already broken.

He nods softly, opening his arms to you and you take the hug without hesitation. When was the last time someone has hugged you? You’re not sure. It’s been a while. You’ve been detached from the real world for so long, you almost forgot what it’s like to be human, to receive affection, to live your life the way you want it, and make your own decisions. You forgot what it’s like to breathe.

Violent sobs wrack your body. You feel yourself shaking in his arms. His touch offers a sanctuary for you to release your anguish, and you do so plenty. The tears cascade down your cheeks, wetting your shirt and his. He only holds you tighter, making sure you don’t collapse.

Every inch of your body is trembling. Fire spreads through your muscles, and the tension within them starts to dissipate. It slips off your shoulders and shatters to the floor like fragile glass. You realize that you’re just as fragile. Your foundation has taken so many hits, so many cracks, and you’ve tried everything to keep yourself upright. You developed methods of survival, but you’ve never truly lived. You’ve spent the past two years caged in, not even allowing yourself to cry because he considers it a sign of weakness.

As Matt holds you close to him, the sickening feeling of loneliness is still there, but you no longer feel alone. You feel listened to. You feel comforted. It’s almost overwhelming. You find yourself unable to breathe while at the same time breathing better than ever before. Your body quivers again, and his grip tightens. You can feel his lips on your scalp, his fingers painting a pattern on your skin through your clothes.

You’ve been scared and you’re still scared, but with Matt, it seems a little more bearable. There is something about him that just won’t let you go, but you mean that in all the best ways possible.

As the waves of despair crash over you, you find solace in the warmth of his embrace. His steady presence and compassion create a haven amidst the chaos.

Gradually, the storm subsides, leaving behind a sense of catharsis. With tear-stained cheeks and a trembling voice, you gather the shattered fragments of your story, ready to share them with someone who truly listens, understands, and cares. You need help, you know that. You can run, but you can't escape on your own. And in Matt's unwavering gaze, you find the courage to speak your truth.

Silently, he guides you to his bed. He lays you down gently, encouraging you to take off your shirt. You’re not sure what the ointment he brings into the bedroom is made out of, but your tears make it impossible to speak.

“This might sting,” he mutters.

It wasn’t a lie. The scent alone stings in your nose, but as soon as the salve hits your skin, the cooling effect tunes out the pain of it all. You let out a trembling breath.

“I’m sorry. You’re doing great. I’m almost done.”

He covers every last bruise you point out with the ointment. He cleans the concealer off your face and presses an ice pack against the bruised skin. He doesn’t speak. His ears are focused on the sound of your calming heartbeat and the comfort displayed in your body language. He listens to your breathing. He focuses on the signs that tell him that you’re alive and that you’re safe with him. He focuses on the feeling of your skin beneath his fingers, the jump of your pulse, and the way you reach out to hold his forearm as he pays close attention to the scrapes he finds on your arm.

On his way up your body, he catches a single tear that has slipped your eye and started running down your neck. He strokes along the wet trail until he reaches your face. His thumb brushes over your cheek and he smiles, his brown eyes warm and focused.

You look down at where he’s kneeling next to the bed, his hands still gentle, his touch never pressuring you into something you don’t want. You shiver. The ice around your heart has melted, leaving you behind naked and vulnerable, and your defenses are finally gone.

He catches another tear. “Who did this to you?” he asks.

You gather all of your strength to answer. “We’ve been together for two years,” you tell him.

“So he’s your boyfriend?” There is a different sound to his voice now.

You nod.

“He did this to you?”

You nod again.

“Regularly?”

“Yes,” you say.

“Jesus Christ,” he curses under his breath, and you swear you saw him grab the cross necklace that is dangling off his neck. If he’s praying for self-control or your safety, you’re not sure. Maybe both.

You take a deep breath, the weight of the past continuing to drag you down, and your boyfriend's voice loud and clear in your ear, threatening to hurt you. But not this time, you decide. You're stronger than that. In a short amount of time, you've seen how much better you deserve, and how much better you could have, and you want to learn how to breathe again. You want to make your own decisions. You don't want to be fueled by revenge or afraid to be hurt; you just want to live. That's all you've ever wanted. To live and to be in love, there has to be another way because what you've been shown up until now has been anything but genuine love.

"It started small,” you begin, your voice still shaky, and the tears continuing to run, “insignificant things at first. He would get angry over the smallest mistakes or things that didn't go his way. But then it escalated... his anger, his violence. It became a pattern, a cycle that I couldn't break free from. He had these rules… I broke ‘em. I broke ‘em a lot, and whenever I screwed up, he would…” You swallow, the words too painful to utter.

Matt understands. He knows what you want to say and he squeezes your hand, offering his support in the only way he knows how to. His touch is gentle, a kind of touch you’re not used to but want to get used to more than anything because it’s a touch like this that you’re craving.

“None of this is your fault,” he says. His voice is gentle and affectionate toward you, but you don’t miss the unbridled rage hidden away inside.

You don’t blame him.

"I mean, I know. It's not like I don't know what abuse looks like, and I know it's wrong whenever I'm lucid, but then he looks at me and I just... I used to blame myself, and think I was the one who caused it. But deep down, I knew it was wrong. I just... didn't know how to escape,” you say. “So I played along because sometimes, he'd be the man I fell in love with and I wouldn't hate him as much, and he'd make me believe I needed him. He made me believe that serving him is all I'm good for, and I truly believed it. Sometimes, I still do. I feel so stupid now. God!" You sniffle, and the next sob breaks free from your throat.

He shushes you. “It’s still not your fault and it never was. Men like that… they thrive off of power and there is something seriously wrong with them, not with you. Please, believe me.”

“Then why didn’t I run?”

The helpless sound of your voice breaks his heart. “He made you dependent on him. He forced you into submission. It’s co-dependency. It’s not your fault.”

The more he repeats the same four words, the further they settle in. They break through your mindset with a hammer, find a free spot in your mind, and manifest.

"I understand, I really do," Matt says. "You deserve to be loved and understood, not used and abused. Leaving an abusive situation is never easy. But you took the first step today, acknowledging that you need help. That’s something you should be so incredibly proud of…”

You wipe your cheeks. “I just feel so empty,” you admit and he nods.

“Yeah, I get that.”

“And I’m scared I’ll go back to him. I don’t want to. Please, don’t let me go back to him.”

Your arms reach out and he doesn’t hesitate to hold you close again. Rubbing your back as you sob, he whispers soothing sweet nothings into your ear. You cling to him, you cling to the lifeline he offers and he makes sure to keep your head above water this time. He won’t let you drown.

“You’re not alone anymore,” and he says your name with the utmost conviction. “I’ve got you. We’ll find a way to keep you safe, okay? I promise.”

“I was so scared,” you sob.

“I know.”

“I was so scared no one would believe me. I feel so foolish now.”

“I know, it’s okay. You did the right thing. Don’t blame yourself. You didn’t do anything wrong,” he says.

It’s not your fault.

You repeat the same four words over and over again, and they manifest even deeper. You need to believe them, you want to believe them.

He continues to hold you until your sobs have subsided and you can breathe again, looking at him, and he smiles back at you.

Wiping your tears with the back of your hand, you ask, “Matt?”

“Yes?”

“What do I do now?”

“I’ll keep you safe,” he says.

“But how…”

“Trust me, I’ll find a way.”

You look into his eyes, and almost as if he can feel it, he comes closer. “You know, I’m not that good with trusting people,” you say, your voice soft and almost bordering on a whisper.

Matt smiles and brings your hand to his lips, kissing each knuckle individually. It’s a simple display of affection that has your heart doing cartwheels. You feel warm inside. You haven’t felt so warm in a while. He’s found the key to a hidden part of you, a part you’ve been forced to bury, and he’s made it his mission to unlock it - and it worked.

“I’m not that good with trusting people either,” he says, almost as vulnerable as you, “But I care about you and I want to help. I’m going to help. There’s always a way, and I’m a lawyer, I know people we can talk to to make this guy suffer for what he did to you. I promise to keep you safe, you can trust me on that, whatever it takes. I'm here for you. You've been through so much, and I want you to know that you're safe now."

You sniffle. "It's just... it's been a long time since someone cared enough to ask if I was okay. I didn't think anyone would believe me if I told them. This is so overwhelming, and it feels too good to be true." A sad smile spreads across your face. He reaches out to trace your features, gently trying to memorize every last crevice, painting a picture of you in his mind, and it's not just your soul that is so tragically beautiful.

He smiles softly, keeping his hands on your face, a silent way of grounding you, of being close to you without pushing boundaries. He wants to be close to you, craves it, he wants to protect you and keep you safe - and he wants to make the man who hurt you so deeply to suffer. "I believe you," he says. "I want to help you heal. I want you to get the justice you deserve. You don't have to face this alone anymore. I know we don't know each other, but I would never leave you hanging, especially not in a situation like yours."

Fresh tears spring into your eyes as your sad smile turns almost grateful. You close your eyes and lean into his touch. "Thank you," you murmur.

“Anytime,” he whispers back. “You deserve to be loved and cherished. You’re a good person.”

“I forgot what it feels like to be loved…”

Grabbing your hand, he squeezes it gently. “I know,” he says, “But you’re going to remember. I’ll help you remember if that’s what you want. ‘Cause you’re too good to be used like that.”

You chuckle, a tear sliding down your cheek. “That sounds nice, actually,” you admit.

“Do you have anywhere to go to?”

You think for a moment; your family lives out of town and you don’t have any friends. You’re completely and utterly alone and the realization strikes you hard.

Matt hears the change in your heartbeat and his face softens further. “I take that as a no,” he says.

You look away. You know you don’t want to go back, you can’t go back, he promised you wouldn’t have to go back, but you also have nowhere else to go.

But then he is there and he grabs your face with both of his hands, underlining what he had actually meant to say. “You can stay here,” he says.

Do you want to stay with a stranger? You contemplate. You’ve asked him for help and you appreciate the way he makes you feel so secure, but there is this dark part of you that is afraid of what might happen if you do and suggest to not put up a fight and go back home. You need to choke out that dark part of you.

“You deserve better.”

And you hope you can remember that.

“He can’t hurt you here, so I want you to stay with me. Just for tonight. Just until we’ve figured out a way to keep you safe permanently, okay?”

The look in his eyes in genuine. “You mean that?” you ask. You’re not sure why you trust him so much, or why you don’t even consider questioning how he plans on protecting you because something tells you he knows what he’s talking about, and maybe that’s because he’s one of the most expressive men you’ve ever met. There is not a lie that could have slipped you.

“I swear on my life,” Matt says.

In desperate need for a break, for safety, for solace, you nod. “Okay,” you say.

He leans forward to press a kiss to your forehead. “Thank you.” Though it is you who has to thank him.

Matt Murdock just saved your life and you don’t quite know how you could ever fully repay him for not giving up on you like most people in your life have ever since you were born, and for the first time, you truly believe that you don’t have to return to the same hell you just escaped from. He’s got you, you trust him on that, and as you lie in his bed that night, trying to fall asleep, a sense of safety settles in that finally reignites that glimmer of hope that had gotten lost on the long, rocky road to where you are now.

#tw: domestic violence #matt murdock x reader #matt murdock #daredevil #matt murdock angst #hurt/comfort #matt murdock x you #no y/n #matt murdock x f!reader #matt murdock x gn!reader #request #matt murdock imagines #matt murdock fic #daredevil fic #matt murdock fluff #one shot #lizzi answers

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unnervinglyferal · 1 month

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Lost my shit at the grocery store today. Baby's first trip outside without her mother, me and her great-grandma took the baby along to get groceries to give my girlfriend a break and some peaceful alone time. So I had the baby in the stroller right next to me at the store, picked up a jar of sauce from the shelf and tried to read through the ingredient list to see if it's kosher enough. The stroller was in my blind spot for maybe five fucking seconds. And I look up and some old hag has her entire fucking head in there, reaching for the baby.

And I don't fucking have strangers touching my fucking child.

So I told her to get the fuck out of there and I'll be honest I was not fucking nice about it. Immediately she started wailing that she's never done anything wrong in her life and that she wasn't even doing anything, and didn't seem to register that lying right at my face wasn't helping shit. And since we were both yelling, that startled the baby and she started crying too.

Security guy showed up to see what the fuck this is about and the old hag kept wailing on top of me about how nobody has ever been this cruel to her, while I was trying to explain that this bitch shoved her whole fucking head in my child's stroller, and the baby was still sceaming too so obviously he couldn't make sense of any of it. When I reached for the stroller to pick my daughter up to calm her down, the security guy took half a step and raised his hand like he had wanted to stop me. If he had put that hand on my shoulder like he meant to, I swear to G-d I would've fucking bit him.

My girlfriend's great-grandma had apparently heard the cacophony as soon as the security had, but being 84 it took her a bit longer to reach us. Fortunately she apparently knows this bitch and got her to calm down and shut the fuck up for long enough to explain to the security guy that she knows me, the stroller is ours and the baby is mine, and this aquaintance of hers has a habit of sticking her head into places it doesn't fucking belong.

The security guy looked a bit incredulous about the baby being mine, but dropped the smug look as soon as I got to pick my baby up from the stroller and he had a proper look at her. My daughter's eyes have started getting darker and her baby hair is growing in dark and curly. White finns' babies don't look like that. Even if he hadn't believed that this is my daughter, he'd have no foothold to dispute it. The old hag started lamenting again about what an unfair injustice it was to be so rude and mean to her.

The security guy looked both at me and the hag who had harassed us and told us both to stay away from each other for the rest of our respective errands or he'll have to remove us both. She started again with the complaint that she hadn't done anything wrong, at which point my girlfriend's great-grandma interrupted her, telling her to shut the fuck up - if she keeps walking up to strangers' dogs and kids like that, obviously it's just a matter of time before someone bites her.

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acti-veg · 5 months

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I can’t help to see my friends differently after becoming vegan. We are all very far left borderline communist, we could go on endless conversation about topic like black life matter, LGBTQ rights and feminism all with full support.

We would make fun of conservatives for there stupid and incoherent arguments and ideas. But when it comes to veganism and animal liberation I suddenly will get the same conservative almost religious reason thrown back at me on why it’s ok to exploit animals.

I felt very hurt when one of my friend just straight up said she don’t care about any harm done towards farm animals. She went on to say that she care more about saving a 1.5 dollar on milk than do oat milk. I can’t believe she think that a cow is not even worth 1.5 dollars to her. That kind of blatant speciesism leaves me so disappointed and frankly disgusted in her

They should know better shouldn’t they? Makes me wonder if they truly believe what there preaching. I still love my friend and it’s the best friend group I have had and am not thinking of leaving but I will purposely try to avoid the vegan topic holding my tongue on my true opinion. But I can’t help tho to feel a sense of betrayal and disappointment, I feel am starting to grow a kind of resentment toward them and it make me feel bad. I guess am asking how to deal with feeling like this? Am I just being mean and selfish for feeling like this?

This is something that every one of us can relate to, and you’re completely justified in your feelings here. You’re not mean or selfish, it’s a natural, exasperated and angry response to the people around you supporting injustice.

I’d just say that it is important to remember that there is enormous social pressure and vast propaganda apparatus in place to keep people eating animals. It is unique among all forms of oppression because it is quite so socially accepted and almost ubiquitous in most communities. Those years of habit forming, conditioning and belief reinforcement takes time, effort and a great deal of introspection to unravel.

It is likely your friend is does care, she just doesn’t show that care in her behaviour. It is easier for her to just pretend she doesn’t care because she knows there is no responding to that for you, and no reckoning with her own values and how her behaviour does not align with them for her. True apathy or amorality are extremely rare, for most people this is just a defence mechanism, albeit a horribly selfish one.

Keep advocating for animals, keep being honest about your opinion, but try not to let it sour your relationship with those you love. The longer you have been vegan the harder it is to understand how other people aren’t, but try to remember what it was like for you, the excuses you made and what it took to get you where you are now. The most important thing is that your friend knows that if she decided to reduce or elongate her consumption of animals, you wouldn’t judge and you’d be there to help her out.

#ask #vegan #vegan problems

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religion-is-a-mental-illness · 1 year

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youtube

Andrew Doyle asks: Remember when the pride flag made sense?

Remember when the pride flag made sense?

It was designed by an American Artist called Gilbert Baker in 1978. It was originally an eight-stripe rainbow but was soon refined into the six-striped version that was the norm for many decades.

At a time when gay people couldn't hold hands with their partners on the street, this flag served a useful purpose. It meant that you could easily find gay pubs or other places where no one had to pretend to be something they weren't. The rainbow symbol was a simple and effective concept that conveyed positivity and unity.

And then some activists came along and said hang on a minute, why are there no black or brown stripes in the rainbow flag? See, for some reason they were under the impression that the gay flag was a literal representation of the range of skin colors that are acceptable in the community. And so we got this.

Okay then, I mean, well, there weren't any white stripes in the original one either. But most people understood that it was symbolic with that we were all included already, irrespective of our race.

But then after this, trans activists came along and said, why aren't we in there? So we got this one. And this was the chevron with the pink white and blue, which was based on the trans flag.

But surely this eyesore couldn't get any worse, could it? Well, it could, because activists were then concerned that it was excluding intersex people, so they added this symbol.

Okay, it's getting a bit out of control now. But then last year, some bright spark added a red umbrella to represent sex workers.

Now, if you thought this was getting out of hand, last year then we had Microsoft. They designed a new version to incorporate all the other multiple sexualities and genders that have been invented over the past few years. Let's have a look at that.

I mean, what the hell is it? It looks like a space ship going at warp speed through a Care Bear's bum hole.

Identity politics in its current form is an ever expanding beast. Pride used to be just one day. Then it was a month. And now Pride events have been scheduled all the way from March through to September. As one sign in a shoe shop pointed out Pride never stops. If only it would.

The initialism as well that's expanded too. First we had LGB, and then it became LGBT, then LGBTQ, then LGBTQIA. The Canadian government currently favors 2SLGBTQIA+, although even its prime minister finds that a bit of a mouthful.

Similarly, Pride started out as an important protest against injustice. When the original Pride March took place in London in 1972, homosexuality had only been legal for five years, and the prospect of gay marriage or even an equal age of consent, seemed impossible. Only 2000 people turned up to these protests.

But by contrast, the Pride parade in London in 2022 attracted over a million. And of course, most of those people aren't even gay. It's become a family day out, a huge party.

And what's so wrong with that, you might ask. And that's a fair question. If people are celebrating and having a good time, that's great. Except that's not necessarily what's going. Increasingly, gay people no longer feel welcome at Pride. I spoke to a representative from a lesbian group on this show last year who had been moved along by police when trying to protest at Pride. But isn't Pride meant to be a protest, not a party? What's going on?

The answer is that pride has been hijacked not once but twice.

First by avaricious multi-billion dollar corporations who are able to pose as virtuous by posting the pride flag. Only, they don't do it in the branches in countries where homosexuality is still illegal. After all, you wouldn't want to fly the flag anywhere which might actually make a difference.

I'm old enough to remember that corporations were certainly not celebrating Pride quite so openly before section 28 was repealed in 2003, or before the age of consent was equalized in 2001, or before the decriminalization of homosexuality in Scotland in 1980. So, these corporations' commitment to LGBT rights apparently only manifests itself when it's likely to make them a profit.

And then there's the second hijacking. See, whereas the original Pride was about agitating for equal rights for gay people, it's now been taken over by activists who are obsessed with group identity and who believe that gender is more important than sex.

That's why the British library, to celebrate the advent of pride month this week, posted a thread on Twitter about the sex life of fish, and how some species have been known to change from male to female.

I mean, what's that got to do with Pride? Why have Librarians seemingly forgotten that human beings aren't the same as fish? Now, they've since deleted those tweets, because well, you know they're bonkers. And although we might laugh at that kind of nonsense, the ideology it promotes is actually rather sinister, particularly for gay people.

See, in her book, "Time to Think" by Hannah Barnes, she found that between 80 and 90% of adolescents referred to the Tavistock pediatric gender clinic were same-sex attracted. Studies have long confirmed a correlation between gender non-conformity in youth, and homosexuality in later life. At the Tavistock, staff used to joke that "soon there would be no gay people left." Somehow the medicalization and sterilization of gay people has been reframed as progressive.

Even Stonewall, the UK's foremost LGBT charity has redefined the word "homosexual" on its website and promotional materials to mean "same gender attracted." Its CEO, Nancy Kelly, has claimed that women who exclude trans people from their dating pool are akin to sexual racists. There's been an intense resurgence of old homophobic tropes online from gender ideologues that believe that "genital preferences are transphobic" and that lesbians who don't include men in their dating pool must be suffering from trauma.

Gay rights were secured by recognizing that a minority of people are instinctively attracted to members of their own sex. And the new ideology of gender identity rejects this notion entirely, and actively shames gay people for their orientation.

So, when you see this flag, try to understand that many gay people consider it to be a symbol of opposition to gay rights, Women who are concerned about their rights consider it a symbol of misogyny, because it promotes an ideology that denies the reality of sex-based oppression, and yet most people, gay people included, haven't even noticed this transition from the pro-gay rainbow flag to this anti-gay imposter.

And that's because it all happened so quickly, and activists are playing on good intentions of a public who don't want to be seen to be on the wrong side of history. Well, I would suggest that upholding the rights of women and gay people and protecting gender non-conforming children and opposing the hypocrisy of corporations is the truly progressive approach.

Anyone who spends any time on social media would have seen that homophobia is clearly on the rise. It's coming from the reactionary elements of the right, who are now holding gay people responsible for sexualized drag shows for children, and the proliferation of sexually explicit books in school libraries. But of course, they've fallen for the trick. This isn't gay people. That's gender ideologues who've convinced everyone that the LGBTQIA+ movement is one big happy family, when it isn't.

And we know this because homophobia is also on the rise among gender ideologues themselves, who frequently go online to tell gay people to kill themselves. Some of them have said that they celebrate AIDS as a good thing. And this isn't just a few mad activists, there are thousands of examples of this if you've got the stomach to look them up.

So whether it's coming from those who consider themselves right wing or left-wing, anti-gay sentiments are back in fashion. And the best way to combat this is to remind everyone that that Progress Pride flag, and the corporate orgy that accompanies it, is not in the interests of gay people.

And if it's too late to reclaim the original Pride flag, we can at least ditch the new one.

#Andrew Doyle #Pride month #pride flag #rainbow flag #progress pride flag #ideological takeover #impostor #anti gay #homophobia 2.0 #woke homophobia #gender ideology #queer theory #same sex attraction #gay rights #religion is a mental illness

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northsealight · 5 months

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Hey, when you said RHATO Jason is the worst version on your last ask, were you referring to the first comic, second comic, or the Webtoon? (Honestly annoyed the Webtoon took that name, makes things even more confusing)

I have problems with all 3 (Webtoon most of all for sure, with the second and first switching places behind it based on what characters or plots I’m thinking about tbh), but I was just curious haha

oh. oh. oh you're not ready for this. I've been trying this entire week to find a good time to air out my thoughts:

so! in my opinion (again, this is not shaming anyone for liking what they like! if you happen to like RHATO!jason all the more power to you! dont read this!) all three reiterations of RHATO!Jason .. are not great. the one I think might have potential to be salvaged is the second one with Artemis and bizarro! (although roy harper is in my heart of hearts)

the way Jason is written in rhato... the rhato written by Scott Lobdell anyway, (who is actually a sexual predator and when you start to think even a LITTLE about how the women are written in RHATO makes so much sense) portrays Jason as yet another cookie cutter anti-hero-deadpool-esque personality who's mainly confined by the narrative restraints of his character.

I say this because hes so.... the way he goes about his vigilantism is so .. shallow. It's like the narrative is finding excuses to make him violent so the reader can be stimulated with Michale Bay explosions lol. You hardly see any stories in there where Jason is an actual champion for the people, and you hardly see his background as a street kid come into play... its like... he became... a vigilante because....he knows how the system can fail those... alienated and forgotten by those sworn to protect them... and thus channels his energy into said people through acts of radical protection... (also because the whole bruce thing yeah I know)

I keep thinking about injustice!Jason's monologue where he literally says something along the lines of "while bruce and clark were fighting I fought for the people who were being caught up in the whole thing" like if that doesn't just tell you who he is idk what will! and sure, injustice isn't Jason source material, so look at under the red hood! he literally becomes a drug kingpin TO CONTROL crime ... and then instead of getting these immense shows of care he has for the community in RHATO, we get panels like this:

like ok get it I guess 😭😭😭😭

this is the new and improved Jason!! he's suave.. hes American... he's... just like every other antihero now!!

I don't know how to explain it without sounding like an idiot- best bet is to read the comics yourself to kinda get what im saying! but even rebirth Jason is (kind of) getting what RHATO Jason doesn't-- he's a product of his huge heart. rebirth Jason has countless stories where we see how Jason ACTUALLY operates as red hood, and what his symbol means to the citizens of Gotham!

if you pour too much grit and "edginess" into Jason, then you kind of miss what he's all about- he can still be silly and sarcastic! in fact, one of my favorite Jason moments is from red hood: lost days, a series where he's portrayed as an edgy, "misfit" ruffian:

like. hello this is hilarious. and we can still have moments like these while balancing his emotional range as a vigilante that's motivated by his big fat heart! (ignoring the fact that he slept with Talia in the next issue 😭 Jason fans can't have shit 😭)

but anyway! ill likely add more when I'm not feeling so tired, but god!! is it so hard to show Jason's propensity for kindness!! is it so hard to realize that his character to the core is revolved around a deep understanding for others based on personal experience!!

there's a reason why DC (in the rare moments when they know what to do with his character) always writes stories with Jason consoling children, or Jason being good with kids in dangerous situations!

it's because he's been there before. he's felt the grief and confusion of being helpless in a situation of his control. he's felt the consequences of adults who were supposed to protect and raise him! he's been killed for daring to cling on to the notion of trust even after all he's been through!

and I don't know, I think his dedication to the people, children especially, is his way of forgiving himself- his way of telling little Jason that it wasn't his fault.

#I went a little crazy midway through but I hope this answers your q!#and I hope it makes sense. I swear im more coherent when I have my thoughts together #the last panel actually makes me sob god above what the hell is that and why are my eyes sweating #Jason robin :(((((#Jason todd #vee's soapbox #asks #thank you for the question btw!! I love answering qs like this #batman #red hood and the outlaws #under the red hood #red hood lost days #red hood

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forjongseong · 2 years

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night night // jay (ENHYPEN)

pairing: secretary!jay x CEO!fem!reader

genre: office!au, fluff // warning: none at all // wc: ~1.2k

previous chapters:

part 1 - carmesí part 2 - mi reina part 3 - millones part 3.5 - hasta los dientes part 4 - vente conmigo part 5 - tusa part 5.5 - apaga y vámonos part 6 - versos de placer minisode part 1 - cuando nadie ve part 6.5 - yo te quiero más minisode part 2 -la niña de mis ojos part 7 - aeropuerto minisode part 3 - falling autumn

next chapters:

click here for the masterlist

summary: you had piles of documents to review and an important presentation to make for an upcoming meeting. naturally, the best solution you came up with was to invite your secretary to work with you at home.

author’s notes: minisode part 4 except this takes part within Part 1 (after Jay learned how to do his job properly, but BEFORE the two started sleeping together!) also take a shot everytime I say PART so please don't get confused!

as for part 8, stay tuned because I am 8k words in, and if all goes well and I reach 10k soon, I will then post it! are you ready for some jealousy, jealousy?

taglist: @jaylaxies @thots4hee @nyanggk @end-hyphen @jayked @yoursjaeyun

(those who have not been interacting with the series have been removed from the taglist. send in an ask if you want to stay in it.)

“Park, can you pass me the red Sharpie?”

You had your head deep in papers when you said this, but when you heard no reply, you looked up.

“Park? Oh my god.”

Your personal assistant was with you for the night to go over documents and plan the presentation for an important meeting you had in two days. However, he had fallen asleep on top of his pile of papers, his head tilted to the right and his pen still uncapped.

“You’re gonna dry my Sharpie…” You reached over the coffee table and put the cap on Jay’s pen, which, by surprise, woke him up. You quickly pulled your hand towards yourself.

Jay blinked a couple of times before yawning and then stretching, then looking at you. His eyes were met with your piercing stares.

“How long was I asleep for?”

“You tell me.”

Jay sighed and tidied up the piles of papers around him. He touched the mouse and his laptop turned back on, showing the presentation file he was working on. He looked over to your side of the table, you were already halfway done with reviewing.

“I don’t get it,” Jay’s voice croaked.

“What?” You answered while typing on your phone.

“You take pride in how you do stuff. You always finish things quickly. Speed is like… your thing. So why are you now pushing everything to the deadline and making me do half the work?”

You scribbled a note on a document and made a proud smile before looking at Jay. “You just answered your own question.”

You thought Jay’s eyes couldn’t get any smaller, but they did, squinting at you.

“I have you now, so I’m slacking off a bit.”

Jay felt a sense of injustice, but his barely offended feelings were clouded by your first few words.

I have you now.

“Gonna go make a hot drink, what do you want?” Jay stood up before you could spot his cheeks turning slightly red.

“There’s a fresh box of Vanilla Bourbon tea in the top cupboard. Boil water in my most used teapot, it’s by the sink, and the cups…”

“Are in the shelf by the fridge. I got it, Boss. It’s not my first time here.”

You chuckled. “I forgot you basically live here.”

Jay cleared his throat. “Speaking of that…”

“No, you may not actually live here, Park.”

Jay stared into your eyes, trying his best to make his eyes look bigger like that one puppy-eyed emoji he always used since you told him he looked like it. You were unfazed.

“Well, it’s worth a shot,” Jay shrugged. You shook your head as you scoffed and went back to reviewing documents. It took a while for Jay to finish preparing drinks and by the time he went back to his place, you were doodling on a blank piece of paper.

“You’re done?” Jay asked in a genuinely surprised tone.

You nodded. “I take pride in my speed, remember.”

Jay placed two mugs of tea in the middle of the coffee table. You pulled your mug towards your side. Jay sat down and blew on his tea.

“Can I finish mine tomorrow morning? I’m too unmotivated to do it now.”

You squinted your eyes. “You’re my assistant, you’re supposed to be more diligent.”

“Come on, please?” Jay had always thought of himself as a cool guy, but for some reason, in some cases, he’s willing to throw that image away and replace it with something cuter. Like what he was doing right now. You were having none of it.

“You know what,” you turned on your TV and opened YouTube. “I’ve got something that might wake us up other than this cup of tea.”

Jay watched as you typed in the search bar. “The… Fitness… Marshall?” he asked.

You came back to your spot with a wide smile and set your drink on the table. You made Jay do the same before you told him to stand up. Was it because of habit, or because he just respects you so much, Jay did as he was told.

The TV started blaring loud sounds.

“Arm to the right,” said the guy on TV.

You followed the movements. Jay just stared at the screen.

“Park, come on!”

“Left side, three times fast!”

The intro of Taki Taki played and the beat was about to drop. Jay made sure to move the coffee table a little further so the two of you have more space.

“Clean the window!” yelled the man on TV.

You calmly followed the steps while Jay burst out laughing. He was amazed at how you were totally in the zone and only made a slight smirk instead of completely losing it like he was.

“Keep on going!” you said, encouragingly.

After a rather chaotic dance workout session—with Jay knocking off a pile of papers from the table, you accidentally slapping Jay in his tiddies, and him almost faceplanting on the floor—the two of you sat down with your legs stretched out to the front.

Jay was still laughing and you were catching your breath as you stopped the YouTube playlist from autoplaying.

“I hope that woke you up,” you said, looking at Jay.

Jay shook his head trying to get rid of the sweat dripping down his face. “That was oddly intense and tiring.”

“It’s my favorite thing to do now.”

“I can see why.”

You laughed as you just remembered the funny parts a minute ago. Jay lied down on the floor and just seconds after, you came back with a clean towel that you threw on Jay’s face.

“Ow?”

“You can go shower in my bathroom. The guest bathroom is being torn apart.”

Jay grabbed the towel from his face and looked at you. “Aren’t you gonna shower first?”

You shook your head. “I didn’t sweat much and it’s gonna take longer if I go first, so you go.”

“Okay, Boss,” Jay quickly disappeared and you sat yourself down beside the pile of papers.

After an hour or so, of Jay taking a 10-minute shower and you spending almost 40 minutes, you two were back to work. At one point, Jay was the one who had to keep you awake as you mentioned that having taken a bath and being clean made you feel sleepy as opposed to feeling refreshed.

When you finally woke up from your sleep, having no idea how long you were out, you noticed that Jay completed his part and was now on the sofa, hugging your Siberian Husky plushie, seemingly deep asleep. You checked the time and went inside your bedroom before going out and placing a blanket over Jay.

You observed Jay’s peaceful face. His breath was steady and he didn’t snore at all. Strands of hair were being tucked the wrong way so you reached out to fix it very carefully, afraid of waking him up. He didn’t, though.

“Night night, Park,” you said under your breath. You turned off the lights, leaving the one in the kitchen on so that it was dark enough to sleep comfortably but bright enough to see if one wakes up.

As you closed the door to your bedroom, Jay’s eyes opened. He hugged the husky plushie tighter and shifted, also while burying himself properly under the blanket.

“Night night, Boss.”

-END-

read the next chapter: ambulancia

#writtenbynana #fic: night night #enhypen #jay #enhypen jay #jay enhypen #enhypen soft hours #enhypen fluff #jay soft hours #jay fluff #enhypen jay fluff #jongseong #park jongseong #jongseong park #jongseong fluff #jay park #park jay #nana secretary!jay agenda

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oswlld · 2 months

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oswlld's media wrap up: the oscars

note: i am trying something a bit different this year, so bear with me as i figure out how i want to format this. i wanted to spend more time sharing what i consume, beyond what i rb, and put my thoughts in one place. ✨ = personal fav

—

The Barber of Little Rock, YouTube (watched on 2/17) A sharp take on the economic injustice in the town divide of Little Rock. Very concise with its message, “A tree is known by the fruit that it bears. So, if I don’t see any fruit, I don’t see any impact. If you have money and you have wealth and you can’t create impact, what’s the point?” — Island in Between, YouTube (watched on 2/19) Loved the updated storytelling of displacement and crisis of identity when COVID-19 is thrown into the mix. I hope the families that have been torn apart due to COVID measures have/will be reunited soon. — Pachyderme, Vimeo (watched on 2/22) The medium matched the tone of the story wonderfully and the pacing was well executed. — The Last Repair Shop, Shortverse ✨ (watched on 2/23, pictured left) SPECTACULAR! Truly shines on every level. The only short that made me tear up in the end. — Invincible, Shortverse (watched on 2/25) The actor who portrays the protagonist is so talented! If he continues to nurture his acting, I can’t wait to see what he does next. — The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar, Netflix✨ (watched on 3/2, pictured right) I truly believe this deserved the win, it was magical from beginning to end. It makes me want to backtrack and see the other Roald Dahl shorts. — Ninety-Five Senses, DOC+ ✨ (watched on 3/3, pictured top) This one took me by surprise! Beautiful storytelling and utilization of the theme and medium to its fullest potential. Very much worthy of its nomination, bravo. — Ridder Lykke, Shortverse (watched on 3/6) What a delightful way to end the shorts journey. The most unique, original take on grief that left me smiling.

Watched Nai Nai & Wài Pó (review here) and Letter to a Pig last year.

—

Nimona, Netflix (watched on 3/2) I am a simple person, I see those big brown eyes and I buckle. What a wild journey it has been to follow the development of this film and I am so happy for Nate and everyone involved. — Rustin, Netflix (watched on 3/4) One of the very few instances where I really wished a movie was produced as a limited series. I want his story to be fleshed out more, I wanted to feel the full weight of what that march did for him and for history. Colman Domingo’s charm shines in this role. — Elemental, Disney+✨ (watched on 3/7, pictured bottom) If you told me this time last year that this movie would leave me sobbing at 1am, I would have told you you were crazy and to get some rest. What else is there to say that others haven’t said already. I am so happy that the younger generations have this alongside the likes of Moana and Turning Red. — Poor Things, Hulu (watched on 3/11) This was… a film. I did like the aromantic aspects of Bella Baxter and the dynamic she has with Max. Still trying to sort through my thoughts, but the fact that it still can make me think is… something. — The Holdovers, Peacock✨ (watched on 3/12, pictured top) I love me a great ensemble cast and everyone was on the top of their game with this gem. The director, cinematographer, production designer, and colorist work together seamlessly. Fantastic, truly extraordinary. — American Symphony, Netflix (watched on 3/20) I had this film on my radar before the Oscar noms were announced, so I anticipated tackling this movie hoping it was part of the doc category. In the end, I chose to tackle this movie despite its only nom under Original Song. Having tackled the Documentary categories, this would have been one of the weaker ones amongst the docs I’ve seen but still a very worthy story to tell.

Watched Barbie and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse last year; I hope to still catch Oppenheimer and Robot Dreams later this year.

—

Perfect Days, In Theaters ✨(JAPAN, watched on 2/15, pictured right) This was the only Oscar nom that I caught in theaters this year (whereas the majority were on YT/streaming). This movie will hold a very special place in my heart having experienced this in theaters with a great group of people. Wim Wenders deserved this nomination, this is one of his best. — Bobi Wine: The People’s President, Hulu (UGANDA, watched on 2/28) I am so glad I watched this movie. This is a true heavyweight of a film. So much passion, pain, and tenacity. — 20 Days in Mariupol, PBS (UKRAINE, watched on 3/6, DNF) I will be completely honest, I almost made it to the end but could not watch the last 20 minutes. During the Oscar speech, when the filmmaker said he wished he didn’t make this film, I felt every word of that. It is so, so hard to watch but NECESSARY. — El Conde, Netflix (CHILE, watched on 3/8) Of all the noms I had to catch up on this season, this was the only one that landed on mid for me. It is as advertised, a dark horror comedy, but it doesn’t challenge itself. The cinematography was its best attribute. — Four Daughters, Netflix✨ (TUNISIA, watched on 3/23, pictured middle) I’m positive this was the BEST thing I watched this Oscar season. I want to 🎶siiiiiiiiiIIIINNNGGGG all the highest praises🎵. I am obsessed with the way the filmmaker brings us a half step back behind the camera, showing all facets of the story in front of and behind the camera. I want to talk about it more but it’s better to go into this fresh. I’m obsessed, I’m obsessed, IM OBSESSEDDD. — Society of the Snow, Netflix✨ (URUGUAY, watched on 3/24, pictured left) If this movie came out ten years ago, my only wish is that hellsite would have obsessed over these boys the same way we did for all my Les Amis. The cherry on top was seeing that Michael Giacchino composed the score. What a way to end the Oscar watch journey this season.

I hope to still catch Io Capitano and The Boy and the Heron later this year.

—

Trigger Warnings for films mentioned :

INVINCIBLE : su*cide attempt (drowning)

POOR THINGS : medical dissection of the human body, su*cide (jumping)

BOBI WINE : illusions of torture, gun violence, hostage situations

20 DAYS IN MARIUPOL : graphic visuals of war tactics, amputations, child death, panic attacks

EL CONDE : beheading

FOUR DAUGHTERS : allusions to sexual abuse with a minor(s)

SOCIETY OF THE SNOW : graphic plane crash trauma, cannibalism

#oswlld 2024 wrap up #mine: edits #oscars 2024 #four daughters #elemental #society of the snow #the holdovers #perfect days #the wonderful story of henry sugar #the last repair shop #me stopping the first person i see when i leave my house :#HAVE YOU SEEN FOUR DAUGHTERS WILL YOU SEE FOUR DAUGHTERS #WHEN WILL YOU SEE FOUR DAUGHTERS

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