#as well and come to the conclusion that they both are extremely depressed and are slowly self-destructing

[moonlight-stalker]

# 107 DcxDp

The new boy is sitting at the table that Damian and Jon sit at, Damian is going to tell the boy to pick a different table but Jon walks up to him and starts talking.

They learned his name was Daniel (Danny) and is from a small town known as Amity Parker he had moved to Gotham with his godfather after his family had died. Damian and Jon have learned that Daniel likes space and making things, over the next couple of days Damian starts to notice things like how Daniel will often come to school injured and will not eat anything during lunch. Every day Jon offers to share his food with Daniel, and he always refuses saying that he can't take Jon's food. This went on until one day Damian brought an extra lunch with him gave it to Daniel and told him to eat it or he would force him to, Damian had done some research and found out that losing someone can cause a person to lose their appetite.

This routine went on for a couple of weeks before he and Jon found out how bad it was, Daniel had come to school late with bandages over his head and many new injuries and had claimed that he had fallen down the stairs before leaving his house, neither Jon nor Damian believe it but let it be. At lunch, Damian had Daniel his lunch and he ate in silence, he had decided that he needed to research Vlad Master and figure out if he was harming Daniel. After finishing lunch they all went to throw away their trash when Daniel tripped, Jon helped him back up, and once Daniel was up he told them that he was going to the bathroom before class and left. Jon pulled Damian to the side and told him that he thought that Daniel's injuries were much worse than they seemed and explained that he had heard several snapes that he thought were stitches.

Damian told Jon that he would go check on him to see if he was okay, When Damian got to the bathroom he heard Daniel throwing up, and when he opened the door he saw Daniel on the floor holding his side that was bleeding.

As halfas Danny and Vlad still need to eat human food but it needs to be infused with ecto. If they try to eat food that's not infused then their bodies will reject it and if they force themself to keep the food down it will start to rot and make them sick, and weak.

They can't eat out in public/front of people because the amount of ecto they need is enough to bring the food to life, and it can be extremely toxic to humans.

So the night before Damian found Danny throwing up and bleeding in the bathroom was the day that his and Vlad's food had broken out of its containment and started a war with them both that went on until morning, by the time Danny and Vlad had won and had both treated the injures it was time for them to go to work and school neither had time or energy to get more food to prepare and eat. So when Danny tripped he not only ripped some of the stitches but also almost caused himself to throw up the food he was trying to keep down.

#My post #Dc/dp #Dp dc crossover #Dc x dp fanfiction prompt #Can be #Dead serious ship #The bats think Vlad is hurting Danny #But they see that Vlad is also often injured and not eating #as well and come to the conclusion that they both are extremely depressed and are slowly self-destructing #Both Vlad and Danny are depressed but it's not as bad as the bats think it is #In reality #Vlad and Danny have to fight and catch their food every morning before school and work #and when they come home #The bats think they are helping by going over to their homes and constantly inviting them over for food #They don't realize they are making them sick and starving them by accident

[plusvanity]

Yesterday, I wanted to say that people who blocked me did the wiser thing, but today, I want to touch on a recent issue, a hugely (intentionally) misinterpreted and degrading problem.

The controversies that people started to spread about me literally make me sick to the stomach.

They don't give a fuck about my countless explanations of how this ship is my comfort ship, designed to help me heal from severe abuse, self hatred, body dysmorphia, depression and anxiety.

I try to switch from unhealthy coping mechanisms to something that is both productive, helpful and most of all, harmless (because it's imaginary).

They felt the need to turn something that I created as my own personal fictive escape into a gross sadomasochistic, abusive and extremely toxic 'excuse' for 'why is this ship and not that?'. My guts twist for seeing such cruel assumptions when I have one thing that makes me happy (a story, a healthy narrative) viciously turned into a gruesome scenario that is not what it is at all.

The fact that they accuse me of shipping fair-skinned, blonde people is also the biggest hypocrisy that they could come up with when they themselves forget that Øystein's natural hair is blond and his eyes are blue in their own double-standard ship.

The fact that accuse me of romanticizing self-harm while they themselves 'like' (I have proofs) and approve art of EuroDead self-destructive romanticism shows their duplicitous and impostor nature. This is not to be taken as an insult, but an obvious fact concluded by their behavior.

My ship has little to do with physical looks and everything else to do with the in-depth psychology. It's not me, PlusVanity who says that there's a gigantic overlap between highly-autistic traits and trauma response (in personality disorders), it's Freud, Jung, Lacan's teachings and many other's scholars, neurologists and psychiatrists came to this conclusion many many years before you and I were even born. If you, dearly-opinionated friend, think that you can prove to these honorable psychoanalytical figures (and me, of course) otherwise with credible and well-documented research and not your 'I don't like that just because' synthetic opinion, I will gladly listen to what you have to bring up. I am well-versed in the philosophical and psychological domain, and I can provide solid arguments to everything I claim.

It's more than just unfair to point the finger at me, accusing me of a ludicrous sadomasochistic and 'subliminal racial element' in my art just to satisfy your late frustration with an ' good-enough explanation' for something that you never even bothered to look into because otherwise you would know that you are wrong. I'm not spiteful, I'm just pointing your flaws in logic as straightforwardly and inconsiderable as you seem to point mine, but it's not like you will actually try to understand what I'm saying because this must imply 'admitting defeat' and a kick in the ego, so you don't even bother with my transparent explanations. That's alright.

This message is for the people who are open and mature enough to read the motive behind my art and writing. This monologue is not for the ones who blindly accuse me of horrible things or a hidden agenda that I don't have or try to promote.

If you think that you know better than me, you simply don't. Why might that be? Because I am the author, because you don't think with my brain and you have no access to what I stand for, other than my words and actions and neither my words or actions stood for any type of abuse or political extremism.

You also put words into my mouth by calling me a fan of Varg, when I'm most certainly not, but I mean you hate me, of course you will say such things. Everyone who's following me knows that I not only hate Varg, but mock him daily for his spiteful persona.

I do not engage in any drama, I am not here to fight anyone.

I will only have civilized conversations (if openness exists). I am here to be and share with my friends the one thing that makes me happy. To subjugate me for simply having a different view than yours is tyranny and black and white extremism.

Pairing real people is morally bad, but this includes all real people. Not just Varg and Pelle, but Øystein and Pelle too. Doesn't sound fair now, does it? I understand why.

Anyone is free to believe anything, but a conspiratorial opinion will never compare to the ultimate truth that only the author can provide.

Please block me if you wish for. This is a far more mature approach than lurking here or sending hate. I hope this is constructive.

To sum it up, I'm beyond hate and ingoing frustration. I will gladly wish my late-proclaimed haters a wonderful day even if they roll their eyes. 🖤

You cannot change options, you can only provide your insight.

Be kind, be open, be alright 🖤

I wish this post can be shared so a lot of people can read this 🙏

#my ramblings #pelle ohlin #varg vikernes #burzum #per yngve ohlin #true norwegian black metal #dead mayhem #mayhem

[hatchetc]

Fionna and Cake Final Episode Thoughts

Or Alternatively, How A Series Full of Women Managed To Fumble A Story In a Misogynistic Way

Hello everyone, I just got done watching the last few episodes of Fionna and Cake. I haven’t had a chance to rewatch the final 2 episodes out of pure shock, but I have reanalyzed every other episode and have discussed + concluded how/why the finale flopped in the way it did.

Do not get me wrong, I enjoyed a bits and pieces of Fionna and Cake and this is by no means a hate post. But as someone who grew up as an avid fan of both Betty and Simon’s story, I was left unsatisfied by their conclusion. It wasn’t necessarily because they went their separate ways in the end or anything of that nature.

Instead this post will attempt to address the contrasting facets of their relationship in the original series v. Fionna and Cake, the implications of their writing, and how narratively it does not fit in with the rest of the characters or the narrative as a whole. I ask that this is read with nuance + through the perspective as someone who has presented as feminine throughout their life and consider why this story misinterpreted woman characters as a whole.

In addition, I also want to articulate how this series misrepresented Simon as both a character, and how this misinterpretation perpetuates toxic behavior in men across society.

Also, it’s 5 am and I am extremely tired, so I apologize if I gloss over some other things! Feel free to add your own thoughts.

Foremost, the first thing I want to address is how Fionna acts in relation to Simon throughout the beginning of Fionna and Cake.

In many instances, she is shown to be quite apathetic towards Simon’s situation.

Granted, she doesn’t know him. Her first impressions of him are…do not showcase his best qualities either.

Which is fine! It’s quite obvious that it would make narratively more sense for Fionna to feel more empathetic towards Simon as they proceed on their journey together.

Most notably, this line right here foreshadowns the most character growth.

Except…the contrast of this point falls flat in comparison to the tons of other terrible things that Ice King has done as a character.

He

1. Has comparatively more depressive/manic episodes than this

2. Acts comparatively more selfish AND dangerous at other points throughout the series

3. Was a genuine threat to others at one point, especially women

Although the attempt to frame Ice King’s delirious breakdown as the catalyst to Fionna’s sympathy tried to play…

the writers missed an incredible opportunity to showcase just how bad Simon could be as Ice King. Instead.

Instead, it frames him as embarrassing at most.

I’m not a huge Fionna fan by any means, but I think she would have had way more emotional depth if she had been showcased really empathizing with Simon when he was at his worst. It would have made 1. Their relationship more meaningful 2. It would have been nice to see her reflect on how poorly she treated Simon at the beginning of the series. There was a lot of room for emotional growth there.

Which brings me to another point.

I know that as a fandom the general consensus is that Simon is a sad wet cat, and many people hc him as anything other than cishet. But ultimately at the end of the day the writers are trying to portray him as a cisgender heterosexual male.

Which is a big issue when it comes to both him and Betty’s relationship throughout the series.

It’s important to note here: Within the original series, it is well established that Simon is an incredibly selfless man who is equally passionate and obsessed with Betty. Enough to create a time portal see her again, enough to capture princesses as a manifestation of his love for her.

Yet…

Their relationship is framed in such a way that contradicts any of these established traits of their characters.

Simon is incredibly selfish towards Betty. Not only in his actions, but in his words. Which is INCREDIBLY contradicting to his character, as he is shown to be quite selfless throughout the series.

Not only this, but they are BOTH incredibly dismissive throughout the finale!

Why isn’t Betty allowed to get angry at Simon? She not only gave up her life for him, but her agency as well. Not only this! But she infantilized the fuck out of him! She had to literally place him in the shoes of a child for him to understand how much she devoted herself for him.

And this is not her fault as a character! This is a deliberate choice by writers! They chose to write her character this way.

Also despite the fact that Simon is just as passionate as Betty throughout the original series, she is somehow framed as the obsessive one. Even though Simon’s obsession with Betty LITERALLY MANIFESTED IN HIM CAPTURING AND TRYING TO MARRY WOMEN.

And of course the implications of these scenes also makes the exchange between Winter King and Simon about Betty even more fucked up!

The fact that that line about Betty being the “dead one” was never fleshed out sort of implies that the writers only seen Betty as a way to propel Simon’s character development forward.

And it’s done in the most lukewarm way possible. The way that this series was building up, the fact that Betty sacrificed everything, it would have made sense for her to be pissed.

Instead she just lets him go.

And this wouldn’t make me so angry. Except….

Gary sacrificed his entire career to support Marshall. And this is framed in a positive light.

But when a woman does the same exact thing she is punished for it…

It’s not fair.

Now that we’ve established this can we stop pretending that it’s okay for male characters in fiction to get away with acting like children? I’ve said this before, but Simon’s development throughout Fionna and Cake feels on par with Adam Sandler’s Click. Except, to quote @tezzaa “Click actually made me cry”.

Which is incredibly sad, because I love Simon as a character. But it’s clear to me that Simon was not written with an ounce of nuance towards women, even though the majority of the cast is largely female.

It’s sad to see what has been done to this character.

Anyways. Those are my thoughts. I’m sorry if you disagree. I don’t want to debate this, I just wanted to point out how these characters are treated from a feminist’s standpoint. Thank you.

edit: i want to note that i do realize that betty and simon are toxic as a couple, i just don’t think that their writing reflected their toxic tendencies in an accurate way in accordance with their characters

#fionna and cake #fionna and cake spoilers #simon petrikov #betty grof #adventure time

[miraclechatbug]

In Animaestro, Adrien said, "Well, I'm more of a dog person myself."

He could be lying to protect his identity... but I like this theory too.

Since the Ladybug and Black Cat miraculouses are meant to represent yin and yang, I believe the same thing applies to Marinette and Adrien.

So, Marinette is a cat person and Adrien is a dog person! :D

Other things/headcanons:

- Adrien is an early bird; Marinette is a night owl

- Adrien is always described as sunshine or the summer sky; Marinette is described as moonshine or the ocean

- Adrien is very tidy and organized; Marinette is chaotic and disorganized

- Adrien is more quiet, a listening type; Marinette is the type to overshare and give lots of advice

- Adrien prefers classical music; Marinette is more into contemporary- though they both like Jagged Stone

- Adrien is very calm and thinks about his words before he says them; Marinette thinks at a mile per minute and doesn't have much of a filter

- Adrien is a very internal thinker, meaning he processes things internally which is why he's able to develop a persona like Chat Noir very easily; Marinette is more of an external thinker, she processes things by talking to people and asking questions and needs to be surrounded by activity to process better

- Adrien is very unsure about his future and place in the world; Marinette has a lot of ideas about what she wants to do in her future

- Adrien might take a more calm and relaxed approach to life as he grows older; Marinette is more goal-oriented and ambitious

- Adrien may be good at being creative, but he draws inspiration from other artists and people; Marinette always has a unique flair in every one of her designs

- Adrien avoids confrontation whenever he can even when someone tries to encourage him; Marinette will stand up for herself and others, especially when she's given encouragement

- Adrien might not always want to talk about his feelings or talk about his issues, used to process things on his own; Marinette might want everyone to talk it out, the type who wants everything out in the open

- Adrien is extremely forgiving when he is wronged, to the point that it could be harmful to him; Marinette is more stubborn, it takes her more time to see herself in another persons shoes if she doesn't relate to them- she doesn't forgive or forget easily

- Adrien is more of the type to get sad and depressed; Marinette is the type to get anxious and worried

- Adrien is more of a follower, go-with-the-flow type of person; Marinette likes taking the lead and charge when no one else seems to

- Adrien is optimistic, and always tries to think about the best-case scenarios; Marinette is a bit pessimistic, always thinking about the worst-case scenarios and catastrophizing

- Adrien has very few, close friends and prefers it this way; Marinette always ends up making friends with a lot of people

- Adrien prefers to focus on the practical matters and issues on hand; Marinette prefers to dig deeper and understand the bigger picture

- Adrien is more comfortable with an unplanned, spontaneous approach to life; Marinette wants plans, schedules, and well-defined procedures in place

- Adrien's very graceful and can move with ease; Marinette is clumsy and lacks a good hand-eye-coordination

- Adrien finds happiness and freedom in being Chat Noir; Marinette finds it stifling and constricting at times

- Adrien refrains from making judgments about people too quickly; Marinette jumps into conclusions too quickly

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

There's more, but I can't think anymore, and it's like 3am haha. I don’t mean to say that they are opposites of one another, they're actually really similar in nature and have similar values, they just might come at it differently. I just wanted to write down the differences I could think of, the contrast between the two.

"Creation and destruction are the two ends of the same moment." "Without order, nothing can exist. Without chaos, nothing can evolve."

They're a beautiful balance of each other, two sides of the same coin

#miraculous ladybug #yin and yang #analysis #sorry if there are typos #miraculous analysis #mlb #adrien agreste #marinette dupain cheng #ladybug #chat noir #ladybug and chat noir #mircaulous ladybug #animaestro

[demodraws0606]

You know I think there is something interesting to say in terms of where the fuck WxS is going because like

I think WxS is the only unit where the end goal or overall progression is probably the most unknown out of all of them ???

MMJ and VBS are extremely obvious, they both have the most explicit goals that are said to us in a straightforward way

25-ji, in the end we know the main goal at the end will be for all of the characters to go over their hurdles with Mafuyu finally being able to find herself and move forward

Leo/need is probably the closest in terms of vagueness but we know the end goal is clear for them to grow as a band, probably ending in a big concert or something along those lines

But with WxS...like I guess the closest thing I can see to an end goal is all of WxS preparing a show together with everyone playing their part but that definitely doesn't feel like something you'd build up for an entire arc and definitely not something that feels fitting after the emotional turmoil that was the disbandement arc ???

In terms of physical achievements as well they literally revived an entire parc through one gigantic show, so it just comes into question what they can do now.

Then you look at their first few event for this arc considering usually the first event kinda set up what will be planned for the future but it's...weird.

Yeah, Tsukasa and Rui's events set up they're inexperienced and how they will grow in the future but also there is this weird feeling of something feeling off ?

The plays/scripts all are strangely depressing, the play in Tsukasa's event being about a failed writer planning to drown himself (which I believe is one of the only undeniable explicit description of suicide ever in the game?????) and the second being someone whose given up on life meeting their estranged sister only for her to become ill.

We even have Emu's side story in Rui's event where they watched the movie Rin was watching during the event made by the same producer and Emu herself note how depressing the story is (meanwhile the main character of the movie clearly parallels Rui)

We don't see the conclusion of these in-game stories as well, lingering on their worst moment never really seeing the presumably happy conclusion.

THEN we also have Emukasa fes which....again strangely different in tone from what you'd expect a WxS fes card, they're not really all that conclusive either. Tsukasa never aknowledges how he relates to the brother in the story and Emu doesn't really get a conclusion on her grief.

Then we also have Rui's entire fuckign event with the cards and his cyberpunk deadbo-YOU SEE WHAT IM SAYING

The closest we fucking have to knowing what WxS's fucking endgoal towards the story is, is fucking WL which....TELLS US NOTHING

At least with VBS we know that they're goal is to go even further beyond and conquer the whole world, that is a developpement of their goal.

What I'm saying is I don't know what the fuck colorpalet is cooking wiht WxS but I feel like i'm a fucking twilight zone reading the way they're writing WxS now because I can't be the only one feeling insane at how weird all of this is

#wxs #wonderlandxshowtime #project sekai #pjsk #prsk #wxs prsk #wxs pjsk #reading this fucking unit feels like i'm stuck in a strange hell dimension where everything just feels like foreshadowing or some kind of #fucking wink colorpalet is oding at me like it's not the first time they've done insane foreshadowing with wxs #in fact its the norm #i wish i could know what goes on in their head when they write these clowns cos i swear i can't understand what the fuck they're doing #like with other units i can geyt like a general idea #but like WxS ???? #they could go literally anywhere with them #i guess going to broadway could be like a huge goal but like ????? #it doesn't FEEL WxS yknow ? #especially after the disbandement arc which we technically haven't gotten really a conclusion for because...Emu's still gonna come back ?? #So like what do we do when Emu comes back to Pheonix Wonderland ????????????? #Cos I do think WxS would want to come back to perform but ESPECIALLY nene's dreams are kind of incompatible with that #cos we know she wants to perform all over the world like her idol #It's just #I guess I'm waiting to see what kind of unholy bullshit colorpalet has for us after the pain that was the disbandement arc #i was also tired while writing this so if this seems extremely rambly thats why #i'm just losing my mind

[g0nta-g0kuhara]

Do you think if Gonta kept his memory he could have won trial 4?

Okay I've thought about this for a little while, and I've come to the conclusion that he probably still couldn't have.

It kinda comes down to the fact that the whole "Killing Game Busters" plan was never meant to succeed to begin with. Kokichi was never going to let himself die in this trial, and I believe that even if Shuichi hadn't lied about him to his face, eventually Kokichi would've brought everyone to the true culprit of the case. He wanted to both "turn Gonta into a murderer" to make himself look more like the mastermind, as well as to break the spirits of everyone else to discourage them from seeking the truth ("This is the truth you all wanted SOOOO Badly!") so he could try to break the killing game with his plan written in his ch5 script.

The reason this matters is because the alibi evidence used at the end of trial 4 to finally convince Kaito that no one else except Gonta could've commited the crime is extremely damning. Every single person has an alibi for Miu's murder except Gonta and Kokichi, and Kokichi has that extra rule that he would freeze if Miu touched him. That leaves Gonta as the only suspect. And with this and Kokichi actively working against him, this would've made it very difficult to get out of.

The reason why it's not "definitely not" is because I still think there is a chance you could pin it on Kokichi. I always thought there was a bit of a hole in the idea that Kokichi couldn't have strangle Miu with the toilet paper because he couldn't touch her. I think he *could have*, it just would've been very difficult and he would've had to have been very dexterous about it. This makes it Gonta's word against Kokichi's. Gonta lying and Kokichi telling the truth.

Rather than being disoriented and half-accepting (as in, being confused about but not immediately outright denying) whatever accusation Kokichi threw at him, he could insist that he was searching for the Truth of the Outside World outside the mansion, and suggest that Kokichi is lying about being in the parlour and pointing out his agility/dexterity in the past that he could've used to strangle her. Plus the fact that they had made plans to meet in front of literally everyone.

It makes me wonder what Kokichi's plan would have been if Gonta hadn't lost his memories. It wasn't part of his plan- he couldn't really have known that 1. Gonta would cross the wires and 2. the impact of that mistake would have been memory loss. I think the trial would've been a different kind of painful for Gonta if this had happened. Instead of Kokichi suddenly accusing him and everything spiraling from there, I think Kokichi would've decided to "give up" part way through the second half of the trial and "admit" their plan because he and Gonta cared about everyone So Much and that they just wanted to help them. That everyone else should've Never pursued the truth of the outside world to begin with, and now both Miu and Gonta were going to die because they HAD to see the trial to the end. Even if never seeing the truth and accepting a mercy-kill would have been Better For Everyone.

Outside of trial logistics, I do think Gonta would've had it in him to manipulate everyone to try and reach the mercy-kill. I imagine he was feeling this very painful mix of depression, despair, and determination. He'd failed to protect every single person who had died before, so now was his chance to help them all. In any other headspace, a mercy-kill would not have been seen as a kindness by Gonta, but he was in a really terrible place mentally. I think he would've also not have wanted Miu's death to go to waste by losing the trial and killing her for no reason. I think he would've tried really hard to win.

We don't have any extended conversations with Gonta in the virtual world after he sees the Truth of the Outside World, but in the few that we do get, to me he seems a bit more reserved. It's also possible he would just not have been able to keep up the facade of his normal personality during the trial because of what he saw, which would have made him suspicious. If Kokichi did try to throw him under the bus, his panic at trying to win the trial may come across as panic in being accused, so maybe it would've cancelled out?

Regardless, because of Kokichi never actually being fully on his side to throw the trial, and because of the really strong evidence in everyone's alibis, I think it would've been very very hard for Gonta to win trial 4 even if he still had his memories.

Thinking about this did give me the mental image of almost everyone voting for Kokichi, and the results coming back that they were all wrong, and Gonta had just successfully gotten away with being the blackened. I think he would've just completely broken down. He would've apologized to everyone over and over again, both relieved that he managed to do it, and anguished for what was about to happen next.

#pluto answers #drv3 spoilers #I actually do have a ''gonta wins trial 4'' song on my gonta playlist #check out Last Living Buffalo by Being Dead its a very good song #I hope I did a good job explaining my thoughts here

[bruhstation]

Can you elaborate more on ten cents feelings towards captain Star?

I understand ten cents wants to have freedom and independence like his older teammates. But does he feel like captain star doesn't trust him to make decisions on himself?

Does ten cents feel like he needs to prove himself?

pretty much. ten cents does love captain star and does whatever he is told but because of his firm stance on his personal agency's importance and no-nonsense attitude, he often questions if working under captain star's watchful eye is going to be his fate for as long as he imagines. "is this how I'm going to live for the rest of my life?" "when will things change?" "I'm so bored. there's nothing fun to do."

ten cents is mostly content with the life he has but he wishes he could at least know what it feels like to live a "normal" life like boys his age (going to school, taken to restaurants with their family on sundays, playing in the afternoons, drinking and dancing and going out at nights). he wants to know what it feels like to not be questioned everytime he spends his own money or goes to other places or meets people outside of the star fleet (zip and sometimes boomer) without telling captain star beforehand.

captain star trusts ten cents.... most of the time. the thing is that he has a habit of jumping to conclusions when he gets concerned or too tired to think rationally. he's critical of ten cents' wellbeing and wants him to live a honest, compliant, and disciplined life (and also his own because he rarely talks about his past) because being a ww1 veteran, captain star has seen firsthand how uncertain and depressing the futures of many children and young adults were and doesn't want the same thing to happen to ten cents. however, captain star is not equipped to take on the role of a ""father figure"" to ten cents and often comes off as authoritian rather than fatherly or patient in ten cents' eyes.

ten cents views captain star's questioning attitude and quickness to jump to conclusions as slightly endearing at best and extremely annoying at worst. captain star has good intentions but his ways of doing it don't sit well with ten cents. both captain star and ten cents are equally as stubborn and VERY firm in their personal beliefs on freedom/lack thereof which overshadows their care for each other. "I'm trying my best and doing this for your own good. can you try to understand me." vs "I get it already so can you stop nagging me. can you try to understand me". truly the healthiest "father-son" relationship in bigg city port, just below captain zero with zip+zorran

#asks #isjssjsjshuuuuuuuuuuuuyyyyyyyyyy #this is tugs #tugs captain star #tugs ten cents #fortezza bigg city #now this is where the themes of youth and freedom plays! #tldr: #captain star believes that to live a safe honest life is to live in compliance under those who are above you #ignorance is bliss type of stuff #while ten cents disagrees and thinks that it's too limiting for someone as young and curious as he is #they don't see eye to eye in this different ideologies. captain star even thinks ten cents is making this hard for him #they care for each other. it's just really not very smooth #captain zero's ideals are quite similar to captain star's (in vastly differing ways)

[chainkeepustogetherr]

BROKEN DOWN N’ HUNGRY, JEFF BUCKLEY ONESHOT

synopsis: in which, it simply isn’t too late to pay your ex-lover a surprising visit.

genre: angst i think? lil bit of fluff as-well!

IT HAD PRECISELY only been a matter of weeks, but it sure as hell felt like months since you and your now ex lover amicably decided to end things. Needless to say, you regretted it almost simultaneously. The lack of warmth on the left side of the bed every morning seemed to materialise it.

You woke up each morning with a sense of misery, almost emptiness within each pass of sunrise, day in and day out.

To make matters worse, the weather soon became rather drowsy and depression enduring, which seemingly added to your sense of blues, considering rainy days tended to be you & Jeff’s favourite kind of days to spend together, often humbly wrapped up within each other, simply devouring every savouring moment you two would spend together.

Looking out the small window located on your door, you observe the hues of grey and black painted on the clouds outside, delicate falls of rain cascading down below those very clouds. You stay seated and ponder on the fact that maybe you both were simply just too young to keep your love from going wrong.

You begin to wonder where Jeff is and how he's doing, if he could be missing you anywhere near as you are him. You'd heard through the grape vine that he'd been back out around town, seemingly carried away in his own world having his fun, a stark opposite of yourself who seems to spend most of her days pondering on the rather daunting & thought inducing would've, could've, should'ves this situation poses.

You wonder, what would happen if you simply returned? If you knocked on his door, what would come of it? Would a sense of shame wash over you as you realize he simply doesn't care anymore? Or is it not too late to rekindle things?

Although, little do you know, Jeff has been experiencing the exact same in return. Although he has been seemingly out and about, he often spends most mornings discomforted due to your absence. He spends most of his nights in despair, constantly tossing and turning due to the lack of sleep he faces. He imagines your silhouette smiling softly against him, the scent of comfort and vanilla overwhelming his senses. The fantasy constantly brings him to the verge of tears, simply wishing he had you with him. He feels as if he’s broken down and hungry for your love, yet feeling as though theres no real way to feed it. He ponders, wondering it he will ever feel the bliss of your sweet return.

It feels as if you've been gleaming out the window, looking for some form of metaphorical answer to your unresolved queries for hours and hours on end, but in reality, its only been about half an our or so. You come to the conclusion theres simply not much you can do, considering you remain unsure of if you're willing to deal with any negative consequences if you were to knock on Jeff's door, the humiliation seems too much for your currently sheer broken heart.

You decide to simply go for a drive, hopelessly leading to no where in particular in some form of effort to clear your head of any trace of Jeff. Yet, you feel yourself driving through a rather familiar road, though your mind doesn't seem to register what exactly you're doing & where exactly you’re travelling to.

Within minutes, you pull up to the familiar house that you've spent hours upon hours in, finally realising just where you are. You stay seated in the car for several seconds, realising you had no exact plan on what to do, nor say.

“Fuck it" you whisper under your breath, deciding to simply wing it and air out whatever thoughts previously on your mind earlier in the evening.

You slowly step up the stairs of Jeff's home, letting out a small unsteady breath you weren't aware you were holding in. Knocking three times, you begin to feel a swarm of anxiety take over your stomach, comprehending the fact that this could go extremely right, or extremely wrong.

The door steadily opens, a disoriented Jeff stands before you, a sense of weariness and lack of sleep apparent within his chocolate tinted frames.

His mouth slightly agapes open, his eyes widening slightly in a display of shock, it seemed. “Oh uhm... hello" he speaks, rather softly, yet cautiously.

“Can we talk?.. please?" you say, attempting to hinder the urge to formulate tears from cascading down your face.

“Yeah, yeah of course, come in, the place is a bit of a mess" he replies, a slight hint of embarrassment presented in his voice.

Though you simply nod in silence, unable to find the correct words to say.

"Do you uh, want a tea or a drink? or anything?" he asks, attempting to find a trace of emotion within your face, hoping and praying he isn't dreaming this current moment, due to his lack of sleep.

“No, I'm okay, thank you" you say.

"I think i understand why youre here, but i think i need to hear the words and phrases come out of your mouth, n’ not give into the thoughts that my mind is practically screaming right now " he says, anxiously laughing towards the end of his sentence.

"Yeah, well i just" you pause, attempting to find the right phrase to say without attempting to come off in a hasty manner. "Im just, having a real hard time with this, you know? I really, like really fuckin' miss you and i, just don't know what to do about it anymore”you speak, holding your head within the palms of your hands to hide any trace of emotion painted within it.

“I know i shouldn't come here and i know i should just let it go but i cant. I feel like pure shit everyday, especially when everyones telling me you're doing fine without me n’ i'm sitting in bed, unable to pin point what exactly went wrong" you continue, praying to god you haven't stated your emotions too strong.

A strong, rather unsolicited pause soon follows, allowing you to contain your thoughts in some sense of the word. Though within each growing second, the silence begins to haunt you in a manner, causing your stomach to undergo several different twists and turns, in a similar sense to a rollercoaster of the sorts.

“Don’t believe all the bullshit stories people feed you, okay? Look at my eyes, i look a mess, no? Like i haven’t slept in days?” he rhetorically speaks, not exactly anticipating a response. “I spend my nights awake reminiscing on the times we shared, reminiscing on you. I spend my nights writing endless amounts of poetry, journal entries and songs about you, and god, when i finally do get an ounce of sleep within my system, my dreams always revolve around you in one shape or another” he explains faintly, feelints of passion, yet great sadness oozing from within his tone.

“I consistently think about us and how much i regret the decision we made, its like it fucking haunts me, n/n” he furthermore continues as minor formations of tears begin to brim within the corner of his eyes.

“I really, really, truly did and do love you, you know? Honestly, i believe a fragment of me always will, no matter how close or far set we are apart” he formulates, withholding a strong gaze.

You bite down on your now shaky lip, both attempting and hoping to suppress any tears of your own from manifesting.

Though, a strong sense of relief soon overcomes all five of your senses, a feeling of existential bliss soon following as you ground yourself down to reality, realising Jeff’s words are true and arent a figment of your imagination somehow.

“God, i love you too, Jeff. You’re ‘boutta make me cry, asshole” you playfully jester, wiping away the newly devised tears.

“C’mere sweetheart, wouldn’t want that, would we?” he retorts, inching closer towards you, soon following by wrapping his delicate arms loosely around your frame in a tender manner.

“We’ll sort all this out in due time, okay? No rush, it’ll eventually unfold. I love you too much to let you go this easily, to let this go too easily” he enunciates, though the volume becoming slightly muffled due to his cheek being positioned in a scrunched manner alongside the tip of your hairline.

He furthermore places a delicate kiss along your shoulder, the feeling causing several fragments of goosebumps to arise upon your skin levels as you nod in response to his prior confession. The warmth of his kiss upon your body, the delicacy of his embrace and the scent of him sending a dizzying effect to your mind-frame, the only thoughts occupying your mind being ones of relief, bliss almost. You truly missed the raven haired, chocolate eyed boy beyond belief, beyond words could truly and coherently verbalise.

#jeff buckley fanfic #jeff buckley angst #jeff buckley fluff #jeff buckley oneshot #jeff buckley imagine #jeff buckley fanfiction #rock fanfic #90s rock fanfiction #rock fanfiction #rock oneshots #rock imagines

[esmiara]

It's so funny that yes I am well aware of chapter 107's existence but refuse to talk about it in details. I'm still waiting for the next chapters to draw any conclusion as we are on a very steep cliff right now.

However, I will talk a bit about some little things that seem to induce heavy anxiety in some people (that means 107's spoilers ahead!)

I don't trust Asagiri since Beast but no Dazai won't die. Of course he won't? It wouldn't make any sense in a narrative pov. We're not in the very last part of the DoA's plan and Dazai still has a lot to do: nullify Bram's ability for example. There is absolutely 0 reasons for the vampire apocalypse to stay and incapacitate nearly every characters outside of the ADA. So of course Dazai will have to do something. Or, well, this or Bram dying beautifully to save Aya and the others, this is a highly plausible possibility as well, though it saddens me. Chuuya won't kill Dazai either, come on why would he. BSD isn't a gory tale of infinite despair, despite being classified as a seinen. Maybe he'll attempt to hurt him but he won't go to the extent of killing him.

The only deaths we got in-series so far are either of characters we don't care about, or of extreme importance and were meant to change the whole life path of concerned characters (Odasaku and Beast). Dazai or Chuuya dying in the middle of an arc would mean one or the other falling into a dark pit of bottomless despair as they deeply care for each other (yes yes skk shipper I know blablablah but they still do, may you be displeased by it or not). And this would also mean destroying their whole development in a non redeemable way. By having one's final nail in the coffin being planted (may it be because of depression or just because he has some damn poison in his veins) and the other losing his only way to stay mentally stable during Corruption, thus destroying him as soon as he would use it. It's either both or none, so no we won't get that any time soon. Again, we're not in a gory tale of endless despair.

#bungou stray dogs #bsd #chapter 107 spoilers #bsd spoilers #kinda rambling there

[darkestprompts]

For all that it's flawed, I do enjoy Sarmenti's Hero Shrines. Yes, it makes it canon that all the bad stuff he did was due to an outside influence in the form of magic music, but I really enjoy the idea of what is essentially a magically-imbued mental illness that makes it so you're completely driven by your first impulse, while being aware of how terrible that can be for both yourself AND others around you. The way it is for a lot of people with mental health issues!

(Plus it then plays in the fun area of 'is a person responsible if they do something terrible, but only due to their mental illness going unchecked'?, which is always worth considering no matter what your conclusion is!)

Love to hear your full thoughts on the whole 'magic song' thing in Sarmenti's story, especially if you disagree!

I'll get to it in due time. Right now I'm struggling to keep up with asks and find time to make Alhazred's post. But to answer some of your question:

As expected, I don't like the reduction of Sarmenti's agency. But there are other problems as well. It's a complete shift in the narrative core of Sarmenti's story. His abuse became a secondary element to spooky magic.

I don't find the issue of autonomy under "magic mental illness" interesting for a very simple fact: he was ALREADY mentally ill. He's at very least suicidal and depressed (going off his barks), he went through a mental breakdown that drove him to multiple murders (probably has PTSD from the continuous torture). Making a definite outside force ultimately responsible flattens the much more complicated question of how much traumatized, mentally ill or neurodivergent people can control their symptoms and extreme reactions. You don't need to make a metaphor for disability and illness. Just let characters be disabled and ill. Writers everywhere, you can make a character suffer a psychotic episode and not make it aktshually come from a magic space monster or evil spirits. Pinky promise.

#darkest dungeon #asks #anon #i ultimately had to cut down a lot of this post because i dont want to snap at anon #but this is a sore spot

[catknifetime]

Some Wheel of Time thoughts: the way Aes Sedai treat men who can channel is even worse than it looks at first glance. No I’m not kidding.

I will be using severed instead of gentled or stilled in this post, I just think using 1 term is more simple.

So let’s start with some basic 100% true facts: 1. The men who are channeling out in the world are men born with the spark, they cannot help it. 2. Men who can channel will go mad, and 99% of the time end up hurting a lot of people with the power. 3. Even if men who can channel don’t kill other people or themselves with the power, they will inevitably die horribly of necrosis overtaking their bodies. 4. Severing men who can channel stops the madness and necrosis progressing. 5. Severed men become extremely depressed and suicidal, to the point that they almost always eventually starve themselves to death if prevented from committing suicide in a faster way.

The White Tower knows all of these things, as well as what happens to a severed woman.

Second collection of facts for my argument is what (as far as I can tell) The White Tower’s official plan of action for men who can channel is. And it is this this: 1. Find a man who is channeling, probably through an informant’s network. 2. Sisters from the Red Ajah go and capture the man, shielding him and bringing him back to the tower. 3. The man is tried in the court of The White Tower and severed. 4. The man is kept prisoner in the white tower in pretty nice conditions until he finds a way to commit suicide or starves himself to death. (Note: #4 may not be true for all men, I am primarily basing this off of Logain and he is definitely an outlier. But just letting them go is actually pretty much just as bad)

Now up until the source was cleansed, severing men who can channel was actually the best option to deal with the situation. Both for the men and the world. But the way they treat men after gentling is inexcusable given the information they have.

What is this information you may ask? That they know how to help a severed woman with the depression that comes after severing. In The Shadow Rising, after Siuan and Leane are gentled they either think about or discuss (I don’t remember which) that the best way to stave off the depression from severing is to find a new purpose that takes up all of your time and energy. The impression is that this is common knowledge about how to help a severed woman. I think they even mention some severed women being set up with families by the tower to try and keep them alive.

They do not help severed men. Not even a bit of advice like a “oh btw you should try and find a job or task that takes up a lot of your time, it’ll help.” (Assuming they do let most severed men go). And they sure as hell didn’t try to help Logain with the depression when he was being held captive in the tower. They basically just condemned him to a slow death. Like if you aren’t going to help the guy you’re keeping prisoner and who you know is so depressed he’ll eventually starve himself to death just execute him and speed things up.

So it’s not a “oh this is a tragic necessity, so sad these men just invariably die” like some Aes Sedai present it. It’s actually a “oh this is a tragic necessity, but we’re making it WAY worse for these guys because of the Reds”. Did I mention that btw? That this is all because the Ajah in charge of dealing with men who can channel culturally HATES them. Aes Sedai could reduce the harm of severing for men, but they chose not to. Because even within the Aes Sedai there is an incredible amount of fearmongering about, and among the Red hatred for, men who can channel. Even though they all logically know the men can’t help it, that the ones channeling have the spark, they still hold very uninformed-seeming and uncomplicated opinions on them.

I don’t really have a conclusion. I guess I’ll just say that this isn’t a plot hole, just another way the Red Ajah sucks. And that the more you dig into how the white tower works the more you see how it really doesn’t.

#the wheel of time #wheel of time #wot #wheel of time book spoilers #wheel of time meta #red ajah #logain ablar #the white tower #aes sedai #suicide tw #starvation tw

[i-need-some-advice-on]

I need some advice on if I should encourage my partner to transition.

Okay, so I'm in a longterm, committed relationship with my partner. My partner can be best described as a closeted trans woman, but they have essentially decided that its "too late" for them to transition, they can never pass as a woman, etc, so they might as well live as a man. (As a side note they are comfortable with they/them atm)

Reasons why I feel like "closeted trans woman" is the best label for them:

1. They bring up their disphoria frequently, usually they have at least one depressive episode per month lasting around a week. The episodes are focused around "I would be happier with myself as a woman".

2. All of their OCs are women, every time they have a chance to express themselves via a character, it's a woman, and it makes them really happy.

3. Doing some traditionally femme stuff makes them temporarily happy, but is usually soon dashed against the rocks of disappointment when they start feeling like they look too masculine while doing it. (E.g. wearing femme clothes)

When I discovered this facet of theirs, I was essentially immediately encouraging of experimenting with femininity and accepting of them. However, all experiments ended with Point #3 where they thought they looked too masculine by the end of the experiment and got really disappointed and hurt.

After years of these swings between trying to "perform" as a man and experimenting with femininity, they came to a conclusion they could never be a woman who passes, and they should stop trying. I unfortunately see where they're coming from - they're extremely tall, very strongly built, masculine facial structure, receding hairline, and a LOT of body hair. Just to be clear, I find my partner extremely attractive and would continue finding them attractive if they would start transitioning. However, it seems their ideal vision of self is relatively traditionally feminine, and I do see how it would be challenging for them to achieve it with what they have to work with.

I never voiced it out loud, and was always openly supportive of them transitioning, reassuring them I would be attracted to them if they don't pass/look androgynous/look any way whatsoever, and so on.

Rn they seem to have settled on performing as a guy. They seem to be fairly stable emotionally for the last year or so and found an outlet through RP with me and OC development.

Would it be wrong of me if I keep nudging them toward transition thoughts, trying feminine things that make them happy, and so on? Or would I just be reopening a wound?

They say they're okay with being a guy and just living out fantasies, but I don't entierly believe them. Most of our sex life is built on various femininity-adjacent kinks and our OC fiction we work on together revolves around their character who transitions and builds a happier life for herself.

Some additional context:

They were raised very religious and are still dealing with unresolved religious trauma regarding other aspects of themselves.

We are currently in a very queer friendly state.

It's very likely both of our families would cut support to both of us and go no-contact if they transition. However, we plan to become entierly self sufficient within a year, which is when I plan to start bringing up transitioning again IF the general consensus is that it's something I could do without being a massive dick.

Thank you for reading!

.

[slymewitch]

Christmas Carol autism rant

Honestly of all the stories and songs and such that get oversaturated during christmas, I unironically enjoy how many versions of A Christmas Carol there are. Not only because its a good story in general, but because unlike something like Rudolph, every single version has a uniqueness to them. The simplicity of the plot allows for so much messing around with the setting, the timeline, the mood, its all so malleable. And then there are the characters. Scrooge, Marley, and the ghosts specifically are all fairly simple archetypes, but because of their simplicity, each variant of the story can expand on said archetypes however they want, heck they can even completely zigzag the archetypes and put something completely different in the slot of one of the characters. Especially for the ghosts. Usually they’ll just go with the archetypes of angel, santa, death, but every single version gives the trio their own flavor. An angel can be a lot of things, like a girl, or a candle, or a dirty taxi driver, or the Eleventh Doctor. But Scrooge himself is probably the most interesting. Compared to the other characters in the story, he’s the one that changes the least between each adaptation on the surface. Grumpy old man, hates christmas, greedy, bad childhood, bad friends, bad breakup, the works. These guidelines are mostly unflinchingly rigid, but the exact brand of bitterness, and the details of the events, are left up to whoever’s writing. My favorite version by far though is unironically the Muppets version. Unlike most other adaptations, Scrooge doesn’t seem that hateful in that version. He still does the same greedy and evil crap as the other Scrooges, but he isn’t as angry as the rest are. You don’t get the impression that he hates anyone, and he seems more depressed than anything else. Even when he outright says that poor people should die, he just sounds done. Like he’s only saying it because he doesn’t care enough to filter what he says. And of all other Scrooge’s he’s the most willing to change. When he’s shown his past he immediately brightens up upon seeing simpler, more familiar times. When hes with the ghost of christmas present and sees the cratchets and his nephew, he makes the least wisecracks of any other Scrooge, and seems genuinely hurt by how lowly people think of him. And when yet to come arrives, he goes with him willingly, knowing that this is something he must face if he wants to be saved. Oh yeah, if you can’t tell, the muppets version is my favorite, the Marleys scene solidified Statler and Waldorf as my favorite muppets and is easily the highlight of the movie for me. But for some close contenders, George C Scott’s version is definitely the creepiest version Ive ever seen and it gives a lot more context about Scrooge’s life than most others. The Ghost of Christmas present is surprisingly intimidating, and dear GOD yet to come gives me chills. It’s strange how much mileage you can get out of a creaking gate sound effect. The Doctor Who version is also a personal favorite for being both weird and clever at the same time. Weird because its on an alien planet where sharks float in the air and can be used to drive chariots, but still SUPER clever for how it screws around with the story. I dont want to spoil too much, mostly because I want an excuse to not explain how bonkers the story is, but the way they mess with the “past present and future” theming is genius, because of course it was this is doctor who we’re talking about. And of course theres Spirited which is also extremely clever with how it messes with the story, but is also just really fun and charming to watch.

I’ve already written so much that I do not have the energy for a well written conclusion so uh, my point is that Christmas Carol adaptations are awesome despite the fact they probably shouldn’t be, and um…stay hydrated!

#a christmas carol #christmas movies #christmas #long rant #autism rant

[ace-touya]

Parallels of Katsuki Bakugo and Dabi/Touya: an Analysis

The wiki already mentions parallels Katsuki has to Endeavour, but I’d like to raise another character who he’s just like. First off, something that goes without saying is obviously their appearances - both spiky-haired with eyes that seem to glow

But disregarding appearance, they also have a lot of similarities in their relationships with others. They name-call the people in their teams (e.g: Dabi calling Spinner “Lizard” and Toga “Crazy”, any of Katsuki’s nicknames for the 1-A kids), and they refuse to refer to those people as their friends, despite the fact we all know they see them as such (Katsuki insists him and Shoto aren’t friends, Dabi inisists he doesn’t care about “Shigaraki or the league”)

Furthermore, their attitudes also have similarities. Both wanting to be the best - for Touya, moreso when he was younger, whereas Katsuki never grew out it.

In some ways, Touya’s family situation seems like a ‘more extreme’ version of Katsuki’s. Both have one parent who doesn’t seem to understand them or appreciate them very much (Enji and Mitsuki) and the other parent doesn’t really do much against that parent (Rei and Masaru. This is definitely more of a Masaru thing but Touya absolutely believed that Rei was like this, though the audience know she was trying). While in Touya’s case we don’t exactly see evidence of Enji being physically abusive toward him, he is physically abusive toward other people in the household, and I wouldn’t be surprised if he was to Touya as well. Mitsuki, who hits Katsuki over the head at least three times in one scene, has this in common with Enji also - again, Endeavour is just a very extreme case in a very specific context.

There’s absolutely more parallels that could be drawn between the two that I’m forgetting, so feel free to add on (if you do, please be mindful that I’ve only seen the anime). I also can’t come up with a clear conclusion or takeaway from this, other than the fact that I think the way Katsuki is might be how Dabi would have turned out if he’d not gotten into a depressive spiral that makes him seem unbothered about a lot of things, or if he didn’t burn up and had stayed in his childhood home.

#dabi #katsuki bakugo #touya todoroki #bnha #mha #boku no hero acedamia #my hero academia #character analysis #bnha analysis #mha analysis

[writingquestionsanswered]

i've been writing for a few years now, and i've come to the conclusion that the hardest thing for me is writing complicated emotions and reactions to big events. like, i can have characters go through a very traumatizing experience, but i'll never know how to have them react to what they just went through, so i usually end up just glossing over it when i'd rather explore them breaking down and processing everything.

tl;dr do you have any advice for writing characters dealing with extreme emotional turmoil in a realistic way without dragging it out and/or making it annoying to the readers?

Struggling to Show Character's Turmoil Response

Here's the thing... people aren't robots with a universal factory setting dictating how we all behave and react in various situations. Our personalities, behavior, emotional reactions... all of that is based on who we are as individuals. It's a culmination of individual physical and environmental factors, everything from neurological wiring to how we were raised. So, the only measuring stick for what's "realistic" is what you've laid out specifically for that character.

If you're struggling to write how a character would deal with extreme emotional turmoil, or if you're writing it but it just doesn't feel realistic to you, it's because you haven't taken the time to do the character development necessary for you--and the reader--to know what a realistic reaction would be for this character. The best place to start is with their backstory... what has this person's life been like up to the point when the story starts? That can tell us some things about how this particular character responds to emotional turmoil. For example, if they were raised by a military general who treated his children like soldiers, this person my have a very stoic response to any turmoil because they were raised that way. On the flip side, if they were raised by three very emotional, sometimes hysterical aunts, they might have equally big responses to turmoil. From there, think about their personality and any physical things about them that might affect how they handle emotional turmoil. For example, if they're a very upbeat, positive person, they might react to turmoil with a positive outlook. If they're someone who struggles with anxiety and depression, they might have particular coping mechanisms that affect their response.

It's also important to consider each individual situation, and more specifically, what's at stake for the character. When bad or scary things happen, a big part of our emotional response has to do with what's at stake. What do we feel at risk of losing and what does that loss mean for us? If the emotional turmoil is a friend who cancels tonight's plans to go dancing, and the only thing lost is a fun night out, that wouldn't seem to warrant a very big response. But if the thing lost is the character's opportunity to meet someone they've been waiting a year to meet, and that's the only opportunity to meet them ever again, those are much bigger stakes so a bigger emotional response might make sense for this character.

Ultimately, what makes a character's emotional response to anything feel unrealistic, dragged out, or annoying is when it doesn't make sense for the character. If the reader can't look at that response and see why it makes sense in that situation for that character, based on what the character development so far has laid out for this person to be like, then they're not going to feel like the reaction is authentic... and inauthentic can quickly become drawn out, boring, and annoying.

So, take some time to make sure you develop your characters, both inside your own mind as well as on the page. Doing so will ensure you (and the reader) will know what behavior and responses are believable for this character.

Have fun with your story!

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[your-resident-boat-person]

Hi! Great blog. I just discovered it. I was wondering if you could elaborate on the reasons White Star was failing in the early '30s and forced to merge with Cunard? Thanks!

So, the main reason White Star did so poorly is a bit complicated. Despite being one of the most popular and profitable shipping lines at the time, their death was unfortunately kind of a foregone conclusion. Lots of people blame the sinking of Titanic and Brittanic, both in terms of the public losing confidence in shipping, as well as not having 2 very large revenue earners. This is not the case. In fact, White Star Line broke profit records in 1913, being one of their most profitable years up to that point. In reality, even if White Star had all 3 Olympic class liners, and somehow made it through the war without losing a single ship, they were unfortunately already doomed. In 1902, J. P. Morgan bought the White Star Line in hopes of creating a monopoly of shipping lines. If not for the money Morgan funneled into the company, we almost certainly wouldn't have gotten the rest of the big 4 or the Olympic class. However, this was a double edged sword. Most of White Star Line's profit was siphoned off to support the smaller less popular shipping lines that Morgan bought out. So even though they were extremely profitable, possibly even more so than their rivals like Cunard, the funds they had were limited. If I remember correctly, White Star didn't even have the funds to finish Britannic. The British government stepped in so they could use her as a hospital ship. This planned monopoly was doomed to fail anyway, because Cunard wanted nothing to do with it. Then in 1926, Lord Kylsant purchased the White Star Line. He was the then chairman of Harland and Wolff. To put it kindly, he wasn't a very good businessman. Much like with Morgan, he sucked the White Star Line dry to support his bad business decisions, which only intensified when the great depression hit. Lots of his business crimes got found out, he went to jail, and this was the end of the White Star Line. Even though they were still technically extremely profitable up until the great depression. So in that sense, White Star wasn't really “failing” per se. It's just that they were forced to hand over all their profits to the businesses that they ended up stapled to as a result of the buyouts. They were attempting to come back hard with their planned 3rd Oceanic. However, as previously stated, funds were scarce. They scrapped a LOT of their ships to help fund the project. This backfires hard later. Despite all of the scrapping, they still didn't have the money to finish the ship, and they made an appeal to the government for help, which failed. The ship was never finished. Meanwhile, Cunard was building their own superliner, the Queen Mary. Much like White Star, the depression hit them hard and they were out of money. A few years after White Star's appeal to the government for assistance, Cunard did the same. The government agreed, but only under the condition that they merge with White Star. This would result in one stronger company that would represent Britain, much like the Italian, French, and American lines did for their respective countries. However, control over this new company was not split 50/50. It was determined by how much tonnage each company brought. Remember how I said scrapping all those ships would backfire? I haven't done the math, but it's very possible that if they hadn't done that, they would have been the dominant company in the merger. Although, Cunard had VERY strong ties to the admiralty and the royal family, so maybe they still would have ended up on top. Who knows. Anyway, Cunard had a larger share of the company, and under them, the Queen Mary was completed. Almost all of White Star's and Cunard's previous ships were scrapped to help fund the Queen Mary at this point. In 1949, Cunard bought out White Star's shares of the company, and White Star ceased to exist.

(Part 2 with more immediately after this)