#he can't watch them die

[suchawrathfullamb]

Forever, irrevocably fascinated by Will Graham's love for Hannibal Lecter. You guys don't give him enough attention. I actually think he loves with more intensity than Hannibal. His love is not only sacred, but it's also kaleidoscopic, and visceral, and convoluted, and so fucking much.

#you deserve to suffer and die according to everyone but not me #not me not me not me #I will not let them kill you I will not let them have you #and I can't kill you or watch you die but I can't be without you but I will end the world with you #so I will end us both because wherever I'm going I'm taking you with me #it's easy to love Will everyone in the show does #but Hannibal's feared and either hated or just treated as something peculiar and worth probing but then Will #Will just loves and loves and loves #when he out of all people should hate so much #but he just fucking loves to the point of death #to the point of #and then that deleted scene of them in the church's mind palace #together and at peace #hannigram #nbc hannibal #hannibal #will graham #murder husbands #hannibal lecter #will graham loves so much so deeply

[skrunksthatwunk]

thinking about how eiji's a pole vaulter and how ash talks about eiji "flying" and how eiji's associated with bird imagery and how eiji's free (unlike ash) and how eiji comes in on a plane and leaves on a plane and how ash cannot fly, ash cannot be free, how nyc is ash's prison, and how ash is the leopard who dies climbing the mountain, unable to live at such elevation, how he was trying to reach the sky and be free but was always stuck to the earth, how he chose to die instead of climbing back down, how he chose to die where he could see the sky and hope and freedom almost like a bird with eiji's letter right in front of him rather than letting everything go wrong and ruin it once again, how eiji's a failed pole vaulter anyway, how a bad fall ruined his career and grounded him (physically and emotionally), how it took flying to america and meeting ash and needing to save him and skip for him to try flying again, how he landed hard and harsh and still the thought of that escape compelled ash to protect eiji at all costs because if he could fly that means something to him, even if he doesn't think he can fly, how eiji is the manifestation of his hope and how when he breaks and asks eiji to stay with him a while he folds himself over his legs and weighs him down and traps him and grounds him, how ash fights like hell to keep eiji alive not because he thinks he can be like him (hopeful, flying, innocent), but because he makes him forget the gravity of his situation, and so he can see eiji fly again. how he wants to see him escape. how eiji is a bird and ash is a wildcat and how ash never once saw eiji as prey. how eiji never saw ash as a predator. how it is eiji's naivete that first endears ash to him, how it is his freedom and flight and removal from darkness and his ability to leave that darkness that really roots eiji in ash's blood as something essential to him keeping on living in this hell of nyc. how it is that distance from the violence and that hope for the future that ash chooses to surround himself in as he dies. how ash dies in a dream because he feels more than anything that he can't fly like eiji, that he can never leave. how his violence is a part of him and will be forever, how it weighs him down. how he wants to enjoy the view from the mountainside rather than looking up from the ground below. as if they can both fly. as if he is with him up there and not grounded. eye-to-eye with what he can't have, seeing eiji's homeland: the sky. how he dies trying to reach the top because he couldn't take retreating and trying again. how ash, tired and tired and tired and convinced it will go on forever if he crawls back down the mountain, chooses to close his life deluged in eiji, in eiji's insistence that they can fly together, in eiji's hope for him and for them, in eiji's beautiful dream. how ash dies without trying to realize that dream. how ash, in dying, destroys it.

#banana fish spoilers #I'M HAVING A FUCKING MOMENT #mutual reblogged exactly one (1) piece of ash fanart and sent me on A Multiple Hour Long Thing and now im rewatching it lol #yes i am only on episode 2 yes i am still going to write big long analysis posts ANYWAY #whatever hope this makes sense. anyway #banana fish #okumura eiji #ash lynx #asheiji #hhhhh i can't believe i've only watched this twice in like what 5.5 years?? sheesh #anywayyyyyyy i care about them a lot ok. god #and yes i DO kinda have beef with the decision to kill ash off at the end but it really does say so much About his character #that he chose to die in the way that he did even though he's been throwing his life away since episode 1 #dying in peace in comfort in solitude rather than in some chaotic battlefield.... ough...... in the peace eiji alone could give him..... #anywayss i relate to ash a little more than i should so. this one's for us cool guy bottoms up #edit i uh.... i forgot it was a leopard.... in the story..... but whatever it doesn't really affect the symbolic meaning it's just embarras #ing that i forgot >;/

[kazumahashimoto]

you're colder than i remember

#that's right everybody xander's drawing zack angeal hug again #this time with lazard!!!!! #like man. Man. you've already been seeing your mentor's cold dead face on all these monsters and then his corpse starts walking around #talking about how he's been trying to find you and how he used to crave revenge but now he just wants to protect you #because literally to the core of who angeal is he loves zack. to the point that it bleeds into his clones. ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!!!!!!!! #AND ZACK HAS TO WATCH EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM DIE. EVERY ANGEAL IS DESTINED TO ROT AT HIS FEET. #BECAUSE ANGEAL LOVES HIM. I FEEL SICK #did you let me die in your arms in the timeloop esque #GRRRAAAYUYUYHGHYUHHYYHH I HATE THEM!!!!!!!!! I CAN'T STAND THEM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! they mean everything to me. #ff #ff7 #ffvii #zack fair #angeal hewley #zack #angeal #hh art #lazard deusericus #ALSO APPARENTLY LAZARD'S NAME MEANS GOD HELP HIM? DEAR CHRIST? HELLO?

[doverstar]

actually I love Tentoo and he is the Doctor and it was the only ending for Rose that worked and it is a huge gift to be able to have the man she loves grow old with her, they were always heading for that, y'all be quiet. I 100% understand the angst but it's okay, they're okay, good ending-

#did you want her to...not end up with the doctor? #she ended up with the doctor. she ended up with the doctor and they get to AGE together #they get to have a real honest relationship the way they both always genuinely wanted #it's hard that the full time lord version has to carry on without her but that is the way that character's story ALWAYS goes #the doctor does not get to keep ANYONE. it would be a different show if he did #meanwhile there is a version of that same face of his - the one that was MADE for love? particularly born out of love for ROSE? the one 1/2 #2/2 that always wanted a FAMILY? and stability? and a normal life? the tenth doctor longed for that specifically because of rose #now he gets to have it AND be part-human so he doesn't have to watch her get old. he gets old WITH HER #and they're canonically growing their own Tardis so you don't even have to be sad that they're not adventuring in time and space as usual #because they ARE. it's the kindest ending for either character. and if the full time lord hadn't left without either of them- #-he would have had to lose them eventually. lose Rose because she's human? hello? painful? but instead he was selfless and left her- #-with a proper happy ending. which she CHOSE to have so you can't be like “he tricked her!” she chose to kiss one of them and it was Tentoo #they are the same man. Rose won in this scenario. #and I GET IT I am with Billie Piper I think it will always feel a little off that she was left with Tentoo and not the full time lord #I understand. it still makes me a little sad. but I know it's a good ending writing-wise. really the ONLY ending. #yes I know about the popular idea of Immortal!Rose or Bad Wolf Rose or whatever and that's cute and all BUT - it's not a GOOD thing #it's not PREFERABLE to be immortal. Rose doesn't want to live forever. she wants to be with the man she LOVES forever. #she doesn't want to not die or adventure for all time. she wants to be there to hold his hand. and when Tentoo is born she gets THAT! #Immortal!Rose is tragic. the Doctor would not wish the burden of immortality on the woman he loves HELLO #anyway #I ship timepetals. that includes Tentoo/Rose. because he is the doctor #so there #I have more thoughts on Tentoo specifically but I digress #maybe if provoked in an Ask or something idk #doctorrose #timepetals #opinion piece #tenrose #tentoo #handy

[katabay]

this tweet & this scene from the mystery of the abyss movie

#comparatives tag #<< for non art posts where i connect the dots with various things #dmbj #heihua #reunion mystery of the abyss #like what the fuck!! what the fuck!!!! #both of them were so 'im going to die for you' this entire movie i have never been more stressed out watching something in my life #if you are unfamiliar with dmbj: there are multiple layers to how upsettingly tragic this is #i keep trying to summarize it in the tags but honestly all im getting is 'you're in a car with a beautiful boy and you're both #trying to die for each other.' #like you want him to live so so badly because he's SUPPOSED to outlive you #and he can't stand to have you die in front of him as long as he's still breathing! im clawing at the fucking walls guys

[mochiajclayne]

Kurama and Sukuna watching their respective vessels interact with their homosexual shounen rival and say silly goofy gay statements™️ like carrying burdens and dying together and/or not affording to die because the other will kill them if they die again.

#sasunaru #itafushi #yes I've been watching jjk for like a while now #imagine being alive for thousands of years and witnessing your vessel pining for their black haired crush #naruto #naturo shippuden #jujutsu kaisen #like I just know these two would drink tea together and bitch about naruto and yuuji lmao #kurama: your brat is whipped too huh #sukuna: bold of him to say he can't afford to die as if I DID NOT RIP HIS HEART OUT #but like imagine them talking shit about sasuke and megumi #kurama: the brat can't even handle me as hatred incarnate lmao the audacity to say he'd save that uchiha brat from his hatred #sukuna: (jjk manga spoilers) lmao I stirred the pot between them so let's see if their gay love can beat the king of curses #mochiajclayne.txt

[wildflowerteas]

the red camellia is undeniably soukoku's flower to me. they bloom in the cold, through snow and winter chill. they're at their most beautiful in the harshest conditions when everything else is dormant or dead. they're a symbol of perseverance and strength and passion. but at the end of the line, they 'behead' themselves when they die, refusing to drop petal by petal, choosing to go when they're still beautiful, refusing to compromise the rest of the tree by rotting on the branch.

#idk they just remind me of how chuuya willingly puts himself through hell for those he loves #corruption is breathtaking but its not sustainable ( obviously ) and #camellia trees open many buds in succession #because they die so quickly ultimately putting great strain on the tree for the sake of securing a successful blooming cycle #they're extremely susceptible to rot and root disease #the 'beheading' #symbolized a noble death to samurai and warriors #who would choose death over showing weakness and dishonor #camellia flowers drop from the rest of the tree #like they can't bear to die a slow death #and bring down the beauty of the flowers that surround them #like dazai #who puts himself in isolating #and dangerous scenarios #because even if he doesn't succeed ( he always does ) at least he'll go out of sight and out of mind #he faces enemies alone #even when he doesn't have to #argh #<- guy who is really normal about watching the camellia tree outside of their window bloom and die over the last few months #rare instance of niko yapping enjoy it

[mettywiththenotes]

Crazy how All Might is about to die here yet Tomura's eyes aren't even on him, they're on IZUKU. Like he's waiting to watch the moment he fully breaks

#i can't get over them wtf #for someone who would have usually delighted in watching all might die or at least making sure HE was the one to do it #he's more focused with just watching izuku's reaction instead #observing his hero as usual #bnha #bnha manga spoilers #bnha spoilers #bnha 403 #shigaraki and midoriya #tomura shigaraki #mettys posts #metty posts

[star--anon]

Minewt is so very very important to me

Minho, who is strong and confident, but not emotionally, someone who shies away from more delicate moments, squirms when it gets emotional, will do something nice for someone else but will not make eye contact as he does so

Newt, who is strong and confident, especially emotionally, someone who will grin as they accept help, someone who will willingly die to help someone else, someone who will hug someone in public and not show a hint of shame after, someone who will cry and not care if they're seen

Minho falling head over heels for that sense of safety, for that confidence, for that unabashed vulnerability. Meanwhile Newt is utterly clueless

while Minho is doing things that are the pinnacle of romance to his "affection is awkward" mind, Newt is just like "hey Minho left me a snack! he's been really nice lately :D"

#remember that Kung Fu Panda 2 scene? where Tigress hugs Po and says ''I can't watch my best friend die'' #and she's like. the strongest character out there. super aloof and stoic and powerful and brash #she's strong physically. and it's in that scene where you realize she's strong emotionally too #she's vulnerable and open in front of 7 people. and she just casually walks away afterwards. no shame or embarrassment #the whole movie is Po suppressing his trauma and refusing to acknowledge or feel it #and then there is Tigress. someone who he's kinda jealous of (remember their Fists Of Steel moment on the boat?) #someone who is powerful and strong and everything Po wants to be. AND someone who is willing to feel. #to be afraid. to care. to love. #anyway I was thinking about that while I wrote this #I probably don't have to spell it out but Newt is Tigress and Minho is Po #they are both very strong characters but only one of them is strong emotionally #and while I do like Tigress and Po's dynamic #the fact that Minho and Newt are BOTH confident (albeit Minho a little arrogant) makes the dynamic SO MUCH more fun #there is Po who is insecure and afraid and then there is Minho who is confident and afraid #someone who will kill without blinking but will flinch at a hug #just. AHHHHHHH #anyway #tmr Minho #tmr Newt #Minewt #I don't take constructive criticism because I'm not wrong

[bylertruther]

society if the duffers had gone through with their original plan to have mike go to the upside down in s1 to find will

#byler #it's enough for me to know that he WOULD but i still would have liked to see it........ but i guess there's still s5..... sniffles n cries #when will's ankle gets caught in a vine n vecna goes YOINK n u just see mike's eyes go crazy wide as he starts sprinting after him faster #than he ever has tripping stumbling falling in a very mike fashion but he keeps going n he doesn't make it in time but it doesn't matter #it doesn't matter bc he's NOT going to lose will again he's NOT going to lose him on HIS watch a-fucking-gain he won't he CAN'T #and maybe it's a party affair so he looks back at lucas n dustin who are almost there and they're screaming after #him BECAUSE MIKE WAIT STOP MIKE WE DON'T HAVE THE RIGHT WEAPONS but mike just furrows his brow and goes in #bc he's the heart he's the paladin he's going to lead them and he's going to save will because will needs him but also he needs will #and. and um. well. then i fucking die of course #OR COULD U IMAGINE IF will goes on a solo mission and he thinks he's managed to sneak away but mike pops up like 'what are you doing? 🤨' #bc he always sees will and he always knows when something is up and it's a crazy plan but they did say crazy together and that they'd be a #team no matter what and that they would kill vecna so liek. do u see what im saying are u seeing my visions are u feeling my insanity rn . #they get surrounded or trapped somewhere and will casts fog cloud n saves the party like he did in a previous campaign. etc etc #dustin is their bard who has snacks n keeps things lighthearted mike leads the way n will is at his side n lucas is their eyes n ears n it' #almost like one of their campaigns bc the show started with that and those were their roles when will was missing and now it'll end #like that and so on n so forth. nods mhm mhm #takes deep breath ok back 2 studying i go byeeee

[highfantasy-soul]

So I've seen some (I assume) show-only people really, really upset about Hopper's death. Like, calling the show runners sick, awful, disgusting people for it. So, insane as it is, I'm here to defend the murder of fluffy canines.

Wolves in the Wheel of Time world are not cute little companion puppies that are just so sweet and innocent and perfect. Killing a wolf is not killing a helpless creature that is relying solely on human kindness to survive, nor is it done just for shock value.

Wolves would be VERY UPSET if you viewed them this way! They are just as independent and capable as any of the human characters - they have their own society, lives, and beliefs. They fight in battle.

Hopper wasn't just standing next to Perrin as his little dog on a leash and then was murdered out of the blue - he chose to join the battle and attack an enemy. The enemy then killed him as he was seeking to kill one of them. Hopper died in battle just like any human would have (and did many times over in the story).

Yes, the Whitecloaks and people at large do only view them as animals - dangerous animals that can kill them - not as equals to humans, but Perrin does understand their importance as beings in their own right. He was reacting to Hopper's death not as a 'you just killed my pet out of the blue!' but as a 'you just killed a member of my family (pack)'.

Does it suck to see canines killed on screen? Yeah. Does that mean that if a story includes the death of a canine that means the writers are disgusting, sick, cruel people because 'killing the dog' has gotten a bad rep in media? No.

Including wolfbrothers means including their role as beings who are also fighting against the shadow. That means some are going to die in battle. Just as Uno's death was significant and meaningful to our characters, just as Rand's mom dying was meaningful, Ingtar's death, Karene and Steppin's death, etc, are all meaningful to the story and the characters, so is Hopper's death.

If the death of a canine is triggering to you, I get it. Torture scenes and graphic depictions of violence are triggering to me. But that doesn't mean that I thought the showrunners were disgusting, sick people for having death in the show, or lingering on people's last moments and giving them their due rather than brushing right past the death.

If the death of any being other than a human - especially canines - really gets to you, then The Wheel of Time probably isn't for you as the wolves play a very important role in the fight against the Shadow. They're warriors just like the people are which means they're going to fall in battle too.

I know this post is probably only for a very tiny fraction of people who watched the episode, but I felt it needed to be said. Calling writers bad people for wolf death is just wild to me.

#wot show spoilers #wot on prime #wheel of time #I can't believe i felt the need to defend the murder of the bestest boy #but being true to the wolves as characters - they'd be pissed at us calling them good babies!!!!! #i don't want Hopper to die either but like - story stuff and letting others be heroes too and all that!! #killing the dog gets a bad rap but with the worldbuilding here I see it as much much closer to any other human's death in battle #also like you're not supposed to like the fact that he's killed #you're supposed to be pissed at the whitecloaks for it - especially since they go out of their way to kill wolves (like lots of people in #the real world) #but to say the showrunners and writers are disgusting people for it is way too far imo #including hard topics like that doesn't make an author evil or sick - it's a part of telling a story #if you don't like that content just watch something else

[ioannemos]

the particular bad guy of this episode, a little apprehensively: the audience wants to see me die?

nate, with more sincerity than anything he's said to anyone in her presence before: like you wouldn't believe

#and he's not wrong #leverage #my favorite #tv shows #watching the stork job and the way that parker instantly goes 'we have to bail' after seeing the kids has me Feeling a Certain Way #bc i think it's partially like. i think she knows the feeling of 'the known sucks but at least it's the known' #how many times was she let down? was her hope that things would get better left to die? #i know she goes to save them all later but maybe at the time she was just thinking... 'don't give them false hope' #her insistent use of the phrase 'we can't save them' is just. augh. parker bb no #and eliot saying to sophie 'he's right' re nate's sticking to the plan of saving one vs trying to save all of them on the fly is smarter... #just ouch. reminds me of the fishing job where eliot's goal is 'GET HARDISON OUT' and the very clear reluctance with which he tells hardiso #'yeah. i have an idea what they're gonna do. it's gonna be bad. are people gonna die? probably' #bc he doesn't want that! he doesn't want to leave people in the lurch! but GET HARDISON OUT takes precedent for him #and he's doing the same thing here. GET LUKA OUT is taking precedent. he doesn't like it any more than sophie does #i just. ghenghnehganf. i have a lot of Thoughts and Feelings about eliot's priorities and how they intersect with his job as the hitter #he's the physical guy. he has to be not just realistic he has to be the pessimist bc if he doesn't plan well enough? he friggin dies man #eliot's always thinking of 'what can a human being survive' bc AS THE HITTER that's HIS weakest point #GHENFGHENFGGHGHEWLAFHGGLRHGI #i have normal feelings of normal intensity about eliot spencer #and parker for that matter! very normal #eliot spencer #parker #you pierce my soul #personal #abbie needs a twitter

[sskk-manifesto]

(´･ᴗ･ ` )

#I really like the “We're the bad guys' enemy” line. For someone I generally despise Dazai has all my favourite lines in this show… #Idk I can't really vibe with the unbalance that there is between s/kk. #Like when push comes to shove‚ Dazai has the power to keep Chuuya alive or let him die. #I understand why they make a compelling dynamic in their complexity‚ but it just doesn't do it for me. #I'm a little sad my opinion on them hasn't really changed since I watched the anime for the first time... #Also; I really can't vibe with Chuuya allowing Dazai to kill Q. Yes I know Chuuya cares about his comrades deeply. #Yes I know it can be interpreted as Chuuya seeing himself in Q as a living weapon and being disgusted by it #(though I honestly don't think that was intentional of the author). #Yes I know Chuuya is a mafioso and kills people. No I don't think your personal issues justify you being a dick to other people I'm sorry. #Back to my main annoyance with the episode: I must have already talked about this but I hate hate hate the narrative #“the mafia works for the city” “the mafia deeply loves the city too” it's so so sickening and insulting please stop I'm begging. #Please visit any actual city with a rooted mafia presence for once in your life (signed: someone whose hometown was destroyed by the mafia. #The writers really don't know what they're talking about and‚ politely‚ it's offensive.) #Also b/sd keeping being extremely nationalist with Mori (who's largely depicted unsimphatetically for the first part of the episode)– #bringing up western thinkers and subtly mocking Fukuzawa for not knowing them– #and Fukuzawa (the righteous man. the noble spirit and just soul in this episode and Mori's antithesis)– #stepping forward to say that he knows strategists from the east (because who else would he need?) #I don't know if it's meant to symbolize the conflict with an hostile and invading foreign power (the Guild). #But it does come across as. A very isolationist way of thinking. #I know it's subtle but it's really evident for me. And I didn't want to talk about this any further… #But by bringing actual examples of this I hope I can better explain why I think that b/sd holds nationalist views– #and that I'm not just making it up out of nowhere. Otherwise I fear I'd only come off as pettily hostile to b/sd in everything #That's it. I feel like I've been losing a lot of mutuals over my main recently due to not shutting up (sorry) #so I suppose it's only fair I lose them on here too pffttt. #Tune in next week for more bad takes #random rambles

[secondscion]

I have so many thoughts about Joshua and his father and the way his father died but the problem is whenever I try to put them into writing I explode

#ffxvi #joshua rosfield #joshua's obsession with protecting the people he cares about but insistance on keeping some distance from them #the way his father's last words were Elwin trying to protect him #just like. how traumatizing it would be to witness your dad suddenly get Ned Stark'd right in front of you at the age of ten #the way he clearly cares deeply about jote but sends her away #away to safety and happiness (he hopes) but also away from him #because he's playing games with a god and he can't stand her getting caught in the crossfire #he stays away from clive for five years presumably to protect clive #i think he projects a confidence he doesn't actually really feel tbh #i think part of him is still the ten year old who was buckling under the knowledge that everyone will look to him for hope and protection #and i think he's really really scared to watch anyone else he cares about die #anyway. rotating him in my mind #what i'm saying is i think he still has blood in his eyes

[erumai-maadu]

you know, i think tenten will also give them good luck charms for protection like how she gave her tsunade-sama one in sd.

she totally would, with her penchant for fortune telling, she’d handcraft three good luck/protection charms and give them to each of them.

I like to think she gives them to each of her team at different times.

Lee gets his first, after Tenten overhears him telling Gai-sensei about how he has almost lost hope in his dream to beat Neji.

“Perhaps just hard work isn’t enough,” he sobs to Gai-sensei as Tenten walks away, her heart heavy. She hands him a little good-luck charm at training the next day, a carved dragon, quietly telling him that he should never lose hope.

Neji may be a genius, but Lee is a genius of hard work, and she will protect his boundless hope until he achieves his dream. Perhaps it comes from a place of selfishness. After all, Tenten is no genius herself, and Lee’s hope is her hope too.

Or maybe it’s not selfishness, but relatability.

Whatever it is, Lee thanks her with a huge hug and many, many tears. Tenten protests loudly, but deep down, her heart swells.

He always keeps it in the hidden pocket of his jumpsuit, and never forgets to take the charm out before washing it. He shows it off with pride to everyone, much to Tenten's chagrin.

Gai-sensei receives his next, after both Tenten and Lee end up in the hospital after the Chunin Exams.

After Tenten is healed, she finds her sensei standing over a sleeping Lee, tears rolling down his face. He immediately puts on an act when Tenten walks in, but she knows what she saw, and it weighs on her.

The next day, when Gai-sensei pops into her physical therapy to check on her and offer some good old Gai-sensei encouragement (motivational shouting), Tenten pulls him aside. She hands him a small charm she’d made the previous night, a little wood turtle carved with the symbol for luck.

“Don’t worry sensei, the people you care about will always be okay!” She smiles brightly at him as she sets the charm in his hand. “It’s for protection—”

Gai-sensei’s thanks is also in the form of many, many tears and shouted declarations of his sweet lotus flower’s kindness and compassion. Tenten’s response, as usual, is loud and embarrassed protests, and a secret smile muffled in Gai-sensei’s broad shoulder as he hugs her tightly.

Gai keeps his charm in the safest pocket of his jounin vest, going as far as to ask Genma to give him a seal to make sure it never breaks or gets damaged. After all, his lotus gave it to him so he could protect her and her teammates, and he would rather die than let her down.

Neji is the last to receive his charm, after his fight with Naruto in the final round of the Chunin Exams. He sits in the hospital room and tells her about everything, his clan, his uncle apologizing to him, his restored faith in the future.

"I will change my clan," he insists to her. "I will better it, for all of the Hyuuga."

The next morning, through the rubble of a torn-apart and betrayed village, in the wake of the Sandaime Hokage's death, Tenten walks to the Hyuuga compound dressed in her mourning clothes and deposits a small carved phoenix charm in his hand.

"What's this for?" he asks, turning the charm over in his hand and studying it.

"Good fortune, protection." Unlike the rest of Team Gai, Tenten always keeps her stories to herself. For some reason, she finds the words tumbling out of her. "My mother used to make them for me. They were for protection and good luck."

Neji nods. He runs a thumb over the carved bird's wing. "Protecting what?"

"My hopes, my well-being, whatever it was she thought needed to be protected."

Neji finally looks up at her, understanding filtering through his gaze. Tenten turns around, ears burning. "Come on, let's go. They'll kill us if we're late to the funeral."

Neji stows his charm in the pockets of his clothes and jogs after her.

Several years later, when Lee surpasses everyone around him, his taijutsu a shining beacon of his hard work and dedication, he is ever aware of the wooden dragon in his pocket, the way his hope is a reflection of Tenten's. He vows to work harder, to prove to her that she can do it just like him.

He will protect her hope too.

On the battlefield facing down Madara Uchiha, Gai quickly moves the little turtle charm to the pocket over his heart. To protect the village, to protect his precious students, he can do anything.

"Eighth Gate of Death, release!"

As medics work to stabilize Neji in the emergency tents, they find a blood-soaked phoenix charm clutched in his hand.

His full recovery is nothing short of a miracle.

#asks #tenten #neji hyuga #rock lee #maito gai #team gai #erumai writes fic sometimes #can't ever keep a consistent spelling of hyuga/hyuuga huh #yes the charms DO have symbolism behind them hehehehehe #this whole thing lowkey makes no sense but also. thats ok. #it's about the strength that comes from the feeling of someone else caring about u idk #cause each member of team gai knows what its like to be lonely. to lack love. #gai lives with the void in his heart from watching his father die #lee was bullied for his whole life about not being able to do ninjutsu and taijutsu and hes probably an orphan too #neji's clan doesnt give a shit about him except for as death fodder when they need to protect the main branch #tenten... we dont know anything about her but we can sense that her need for approval comes from a lack of love in some capacity #maybe shes an orphan too. i like to think she is #ANYWAY all of this team lacks love in some capacity. so when they get it it's gonna stick with them for sure #honestly i coulda thrown nart in here for orphan solidarity or themes or sumn but. this is about team gai. #they ARE each others family dont u see #im gonna shut up now lol

[sage-nebula]

I've decided to make my own post because I am not an idiot, but full disclosure that this post is 50% based on thoughts I was having while I was driving home from the auto repair shop yesterday and 50% a response to a post I saw just now that conflated "redemption arcs" (things fictional characters go through in fictional stories) with "community support" (things real life people offer to other real life people in real life) and how this relates to "fixing people" (making someone who mistreats or abuses themself or others not mistreat or abuse themself or others anymore).

Read my words very carefully.

In fiction, it is more than okay to like whatever type of toxic or fantastical relationship you want. If you like to read stories about toxic, codependent people who are absolutely horrible to one another and will never, ever change, you read those stories. If you like to read stories about a tortured man who just needs The Right Person to teach him to be better, and then he is, sometimes exclusively only to them though, then you read those stories. Sometimes you want to read stories where the main character says "I can fix him" and fails spectacularly, and sometimes you want to read stories where the main character says "I can fix him" and succeeds spectacularly, and either way, you read whatever stories you want, whatever makes you happy, I'm sure it's somewhere in this vast Archive that we call Our Own.

However, in real life?

First of all, "arcs" aren't things real life people have. An arc is something that has a beginning, a middle, and an end. Real life people don't have those, because our stories don't end until we die. Unlike a character, whose life presumably continues even after their story ends (except in circumstances where they die at the end but you know what I mean), we have to keep living day by day, with all the rises and falls that come with it. Now, this does not mean that a person cannot change, or that a person can't get better and learn from their mistakes; but it DOES mean that we can't have a "redemption arc" where we complete a checklist of story beats and then suddenly we're a better person who has experienced the necessary growth to be forgiven. First off, no amount of growth or change ever requires any victims to forgive. And second, that's just not how life works. That's not how change works. Change and growth are baby steps taken each day, and sometimes you go backwards, and you get angry with yourself, but then you pick yourself up and you try again the next day, and the next, and the next. It's an ongoing journey that does not end until you die. That's life.

But second and more importantly, the real idea that I think the original post was trying to get at, but missing the mark on was . . . okay.

So, the original OP of the post (and the person who replied to OP) got angry at the idea that the strawman they had invented (the person who had theoretically said "you can't fix him!") would deny support to someone who needs that help to grow and change as a person. The person who had replied in support of OP added that the strawman clearly believed in punitive justice over rehabilitative justice as well. On the surface, I can see where they are coming from. After all, on the whole humans are a social species and do need support networks in order to not only thrive, but survive. People such as drug addicts need support and assistance in order to get into better places in their lives, and the prison system has been proven to be far less effective at preventing repeated offenses than rehabilitative programs. This is all true.

However.

The reason why "you can't fix them" is still true, and needs to be said and understood particularly by those who are susceptible to falling into abusive relationships (e.g. people who have been abused before, particularly in childhood or adolescence) is because of free will. Specifically, the free will that each of us has, but specifically the other person. Person A can want so, so, so badly to "fix" Person B so that they stop being an abusive alcoholic 75% of the time. But if Person B doesn't actually want to stop being an abusive alcoholic (even if they say they do during the 25% of the time they aren't smacking Person A around), and refuses to put in the work that it takes to become sober and be a better person, then guess what? Nothing Person A does will ever make them be a sober, non-abusive partner. They will be unable to fix Person B. It doesn't matter how much time, energy, money, or commitment they pour into that person. It doesn't matter how much they genuinely, honestly, earnestly love them. Because unless Person B wants to change, and will put the work into doing so, then they will not change, and Person A, for their own health, safety, and sanity, needs to exit that relationship.

Now, does that mean that if, ten years down the line, Person B decides they are ready to put in the work to get their alcoholism under control, no one should help them? Of course not! They should absolutely be put in touch with sober counselors, support groups, medical professionals, friends and family who can help them. Person A could potentially forgive them, if Person A chooses. But that willingness to change and put in the work has to come from within Person B first.

I've been in the position where I've seen people in awful situations just tanking their lives, people I loved and cared about, people I begged to just listen to me and get help, only for them to not . . . and ultimately I had to accept that I couldn't fix them. I could be there to offer support when they were ready to fix themselves, but the core work that needed to be done had to come from within themselves. I couldn't provide that. Not because I was inadequate, not because I didn't love them, but because I couldn't force them to do anything they didn't want, or weren't ready, to do.

So at the end of the day, "you can't fix them" isn't about not giving support. It's about recognizing your limitations as a human being. It's about knowing that:

You cannot force someone to do something they do not want to do.

You cannot force someone to do something they are not ready to do.

Not being able to help or save someone is not a moral failing of yours.

Not being able to help or save someone does not mean you do not love or care about them.

Providing support should never come at risk of your own health and safety, physical or otherwise.

When you love someone, it can be really hard to accept this. You think, "I know I can make them want to try. I know I can inspire them to want to change. I know they love me, so if I just love them a little harder, they will want to change." Nine times out of ten, though, that is just not true. And if someone is abusing you, it is not worth the literal risk to your life to keep trying. You are worth more than that. You are more than just someone else's band-aid.

Keep yourselves safe in 2024.

#not an abuse scenario but: my mom died of covid-19 #it's relevant to this discussion bc she was a trump-supporting republican who refused to get vaccinated #bc the far-right propaganda shows she watched told her the vaccine ''wasn't a real vaccine'' #and i know this bc when i literally BEGGED MY PARENTS to get the vaccine my mother LAUGHED IN MY FACE and TOLD ME ''it's not a real vaccine #so anyway both my parents got it. my father almost died from it #my mom seemed like she was doing much better . . . except she CONTINUED to smoke heavily while both having covid #and recovering from covid #and once again i said hey don't you think you should not smoke cigarettes while recovering from a serious respiratory disease #and once again she laughed at me #anyway 2 months later her heart gave out in her sleep and she died #bc her body couldn't handle the stress of the cigarettes + alcohol (she was also an alcoholic) after covid had done its thing to her #she was only 56yo #so this was a case where i wanted to fix my mother. i tried so hard. and i've similarly tried to fix my father (who is still alive) #but i can't! my dad almost died and my mom DID die and my dad STILL won't get the vaccine #I HAVE BEGGED THIS MAN. WHO IS NOW 73. TO GET VACCINATED. AND HE STILL WILL NOT. #you can't fix people!!! you can't!!! you can offer them support if they want to fix themselves #you can help them fix themselves but you can't fix them. you just can't. no matter how much you love them #and in abuse cases it can be really fucking dangerous to keep trying. #anyway. that's my TED talk. thanks for attending or w/e it is they say