#like genuinely at this point it's just cruel how much trauma they put him through

[lolhex12]

i'm probably extremely late to the party but i just realized how deep Andrew's sacrifice and Aaron's betrayal go when it come to the Twinyard's dynamic like??

Andrew, after having spent years alone in the foster system and suffering through the trauma that comes with it, he finally found Cass, a woman who genuinely cared about him and wanted to be his mother - someone he was willing to sell his soul (and body) to the devil for and endure the abuse Drake put him through bc that was just the price he had to pay for Cass' love, care and kindness. all bc he dared being selfish and wanting something for himself for once. he loved her and wanted her love back so bad to the point he would cut himself to cope with being in that house when Cass wasn't looking.

after accepting this new reality of his and resigning himself to the pain (psychological, emotional, physical and self-inflicted), he found out he had a twin brother who looks EXACTLY like him yet got to live a (to his knowledge) stable loving life with their birth mother. that Andrew got thrown away while his carbon copy had everything.

he hated the revelation so he put it out of his mind, went back to Cass' where Drake found out abt Aaron and ran his mouth abt having both twins for himself and... it's not like Andrew hated nor loved or felt any kind of attachment to his brother (who was still basically a stranger to him), and yet he knew, bone-deep, that 1) no one deserved to go through what Andrew had (especially someone 'untouched' (so to speak) who looked like him; as in, the picture in Andrew's mind resembled a young, still innocent, 7y/o Andrew who had not yet fully grasped or learned how to deal with just how cruel the world could be when thinking abt Aaron in the same position), and 2) he didn't want to give Drake the satisfaction.

so, Andrew, after having endured however long Drake's abuse in Cass' household and cutting himself to cope with it, all for the right to stay with her, he gave it all up when he received Aaron's letter asking to meet and rejecting the offer with a 'fuck off' bc he could not risk Aaron getting too close and going through anything remotely similar. he didn't owe his brother anything, nor had they made a deal by that point, yet Andrew, despite not really knowing Aaron, could not risk getting him into his own shit. and so, all those years of pain and sacrifice Andrew had to endure went down the drain bc he wanted to protect a stranger wearing his face, out of his own volition.

Andrew then did sth that landed him in juvie and thought everyone's safe now bc Drake can't get to Aaron anymore, until Aaron visited Andrew in juvie and Andrew noticed the bruises on Aaron's arms and Andrew realized Aaron might not be as safe as he'd thought after all.

ALL that pain and sacrifice thrown away to protect his twin and the fucker still wasn't safe?? mother dearest count your days.

so he got out of juvie early on good behavior (which was a bitch to manage but what was he to do when he had to leave to protect his brother?) and adopted into the Minyard household to see who was hurting his stranger of a brother, for whom Andrew has already given so much up?

Aaron, as we know, agreed to Andrew's deal, not expecting his brother to commit matricide bc of it. a deal which to Andrew seemed simple enough: 'l'll protect you and help you get into med school and become a doctor and all you have to do is stick together with me' (aka not let anyone (women in particular) get between us).

so, after all that sacrifice, after sacrifice, after putting his life on the line by participating in Tilda's car accident, getting his brother clean, curating his friend group to a drug-free environment (later also putting his own reputation with the team on the line by violently getting matt clean for the same reason), getting him a scholarship to get into med school and become a doctor (as agreed), THIS FUCKER could not even hold up his own end of the deal while Andrew literally checked every box and then some for his idiot ungrateful brother.

meanwhile it took Aaron seeing Andrew get sa'd, killing his abuser, and years of joint therapy to begin to comprehend just how much Andrew endured, sacrificed, risked and overall did for him without Aaron even realizing. bc Andrew doesn't do what he does for recognition or gratitude, he does it bc that's what's been agreed to.

---

this is not meant to diss Aaron's character but simply put the entire situation into perspective from Andrew's POV. like, no offence to Aaron but Andrew legit bent over backwards for him and Aaron's response was just "ure a psycho, i choose Katelyn" (or at least that's how Andrew viewed it)

all that being said, Andrew definitely could've communicated the situation and his intentions better, or at least explain how much those deals really meant to him, but unfortunately he wasn't quite there yet (if ever) <- in other words: it wasn't Aaron's nor Andrew's fault. shit's just shit sometimes ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

#i'm really late to the party but i never thought abt it like that or this deeply #like. from Andrew's pov Aaron is just too stupid or doesn't care enough to realize just how much he did for him #aftg #all for the game #andrew minyard #aaron minyard #twinyards #meta #aftg meta

[wakeupthemembersofbylernation]

Just say you hate Eleven don’t beat around the bush with listing all the reasons Will deserves a prize. “deserves the boy he loves” right and where does Mikes feelings coming into that exactly? So far I’ve learned there two sets of fans the ones who fancy finn and want to see him kiss boys as some weird fantasy and the others who adore Will and feel he deserves what he wants without thinking of the other party.

Only in the ST fandom can someone take a reasonable sentence like, “After four seasons of trauma, Will deserves a happy ending” and utterly twist it to mean, “I hate El and want her to be alone and miserable grrr.” It’s also wild how you can glean “Will deserves a prize” from my words when that’s not at all what I said. I don’t see Mike as a “prize” for Will. That’d be ridiculous. I see them as equals- because that’s what they are: lifelong best friends who’ve been through so much, consistently put each other first, and have made multiple beautiful promises to each other.

“But you said, ‘Will has suffered so much and deserves a happy ending with the boy he loves.’ How is that not proving my point?” Yes, I did say that, and I would say it again in a heartbeat. Will has suffered so much. Here’s a refresher on just some of his trauma. Given the context of everything, given the significance of Will’s sexuality to both his coming-of-age journey and the 80s, it would be genuinely cruel to not give him a happy ending. And it’s not Byler shippers on the Internet, but the show itself, that has consistently tied this happy ending to Mike. It’s been reinforced in every season, and the writers and filmmakers doubled-down on it in Season 4 through the van scene and through aggressively inserting Will into every Milkvan scene so that he’s always on your mind. S3 brought up their hypothetical question of the future through the rain fight, and it also had Will very specifically saying, “I’m not gonna fall in love.” This was not placed in the show so he could be proven right in S5 when Mike iNeViTaBlY rejects him. Be serious.

As I said in my post, this has nothing to do with thinking unreciprocated storylines don’t serve a purpose in media. Obviously they do! Stranger Things has given us a few: Dustin and Max, Steve and Robin, and Steve and Nancy (after they broke up). It is also given us another which I will talk about in a second, although this one comes with a twist. Dustin was crushing on the attractive new girl in school, as was Lucas. Max chose Lucas and fell for him. Dustin was sad about it, sure. The Snowball dance emphasized his general sadness as well as his unluckiness with girls at the time. Narratively, dancing with Nancy was the healing moment he needed to move on. It propelled his character to his Season 3 glow up, where he surprises his friends with news that he is dating Suzie. Dustin liked Max, but he wasn’t in love with Max, built upon a lifelong friendship. The situation is just structurally different.

Steve and Robin? Well, you know the story. Steve developed feelings for Robin (after Dustin pushed him in that direction, I might add) over the course of S3. But Robin was like, “Psyche! I’m a lesbian. Let’s be best friends,” and platonic Stobin was born. Notice there was no grief on Steve’s part. Steve was shocked, sure, but he wasn’t heartbroken. He bounced back in a heartbeat and fully accepted her sexuality. And then the season ends with their friendship shenanigans at the video store. Again, this was a crush. And it had a very interesting plot twist at the end of it. And it served a very specific purpose in Steve’s journey.

In terms of Steve and Nancy, there was more heartbreak involved, since they were actually dating. And in S4, it’s clear that Steve has never fully gotten over Nancy, or at least he thinks he hasn’t gotten over her. But narratively, this just serves a fundamentally different purpose than the situation between Mike and Will. Steve believes he needs romantic love to be happy, so his arc is accepting that he doesn’t. Also, as a presumed straight character (even though I love the bi Steve HCs), he doesn’t have the same kind of existential crisis that Will, a sad gay boy in the 80s, does.

The fourth unreciprocated storyline is an interesting one cause it’s not actually unreciprocated at all. It just seems that way. And of course, I’m talking about Robin and Vickie. Robin has feelings for Vickie, but when she sees Vickie with her boyfriend Dan, she assumes all hope is lost. But alas, all hope is not lost! Vickie is queer too and has feelings for Robin as well. You just have to take off your heteronormative glasses to recognize it. Sound similar to something else?

I bring this up because while Byler shares surface-level similarities to these other unrequited storylines, it visually parallels the situation with Robin and Vickie. So don’t be surprised when Mike, like Vickie, turns out not to be straight. And character wise, it’s deeper than all the other examples by miles. Dustin got over Max, Steve got over Robin, Steve is just looking for any girlfriend tbh, and S4 showed Robin getting over Vickie before the plot twist. Will and Mike are lifelong best friends, and a slow-burn rejection arc would not only make no sense, in-universe it would structurally derail Byler’s powerful connection and interrupt key plots already in motion during the apocalypse.

You forget that these aren’t real people. They are characters. In real life, sure, sometimes you don’t get what you want. Sometimes gay kids fall in love with their lifelong straight best friends, get gently rejected, and then life goes on eventually. In real life, saying, “But I have suffered, so you must love me back,” would be insane. And Will agrees. The homewrecker allegations need to stop. In the context of the show, Will doesn’t think that Mike loves him back. He doesn’t think love can be for boys like him. It rips him apart and tears him inside for sure, but all throughout S4 he’s the one trying to repair his bestie’s relationship while being madly in love with him. Will thinks he will be forever alone, and your argument is that he should be proven right?

Of course, I adore Will. He’s my favorite character, and I’m a proud member of the Willuminati. The shoe fits, and I will wear it. But I saw this Tweet today that I had to screenshot, and it applies directly to the subtext of your ask:

No one should find it strange or delusional or creepy that people ship Will with the boy he’s into. Calling it a “weird fantasy” in any context is inherently homophobic and weird behavior. You simply would not say that about any other ship in the show. Admit that you find queerness icky. Don’t hide behind faux concern for El.

Lastly, I must directly respond to your question,“Where do Mike’s feelings come into that exactly? Why do Bylers feel Will deserves what he wants without thinking of the other party?”

What are you even saying? Accusing Bylers of not thinking about Mike is the strangest accusation considering there are 50 essays per day posted on this app diving into the psychology of Mike. Mike’s feelings are powerful. Mike’s feelings are important. I could just as easily have written a post that said, “After everything Mike has been through, he deserves a happy ending with the boy he loves” because Mike clearly loves Will. It is overflowing out of him. If you analyze and “think of the other party” as you put it, it becomes crystal-clear where Mike’s feelings come into play and what his happy ending is. Hint: it’s not with the girl he can’t even write ILY to.

I could have written about Mike, but my post was about Will, who is canonically gay, deeply traumatized, and whose sexuality is not in doubt. Will deserves a happy ending. “But El is also traumatized, and she deserves a happy ending as well.” Agreed, but her happy ending and the overall trajectory of her character arc simply do not center Mike. El’s arc is rooted in her independence, and I could do a deep-dive analysis comparing and contrasting Will and El and explaining why romantic love is central to Will’s endgame but not to El’s. But I’m sure there are fifty of those already on this platform. I want Mike, Will, and El to all have happy endings.

Anyway, Byler endgame.

#byler #mike wheeler #will byers #el hopper #stranger things

[corvidcrybaby]

Hello, friend! I just stepped into Hellsing this past weekend and through my scrolling for blogs to follow, I came across yours. I found you through your posts about your OC. Based on what I've already read from you, you seem like a highly thoughtful, kind and knowledgeable person, and I've got every intention of reading your stories and commenting on them!

If it pleases you, I'd like to ask you some questions about Hellsing and your relationship to it.

1. What first drew you to the series? And is it best to follow the manga, anime, or OVA in terms of interpreting the story?

2. If it was up to you, what would you change about the story?

3. What's your take on the overall dynamic between Alucard, Integra and Seras?

4. I see the story takes quite a few artistic liberties with the lore from Dracula by Bram Stoker. Why do you suppose Alucard tried to turn Mina? Do you suppose it was for similar reasons as those for why he turned Seras?

5. I've been doing my share of research into vampire lore as of late and have come to learn that the lore Bram Stoker borrowed from for and added to through his novel contains antisemitic undertones. As a Jewish individual and a fan of the Hellsing series, how do you navigate this? (Disclaimer: I am not Jewish, which is why I did not recognize this myself until recently.)

Thanks so much for your time and attention. Happy Holidays!

First of all, oh my gosh thank you so much for the kind words! This ask made my whole day - I hope you enjoy my works, I feel like you can physically see my sense of writing develop over time but I put a shitload of heart and soul into them so I hope it shows. <3 As for your questions, I'm going to get into some major spoilers, so reader be warned beneath the Read More.

I think the general aesthetic was what drew me to the series at first. The dark, edgy and mysterious elements blended with pulpy action hero shit and campy horror form a really unique beast in terms of art, storytelling, everything. I saw someone refer to Hellsing's approach as "aesthetic maximalism" and tbh that is everything I love about it - all this, plus the surprisingly heartfelt messages about war, trauma and being human kept me coming back for more. As for which version is best to follow, I personally lean towards the manga as the main reference point, but Hirano was plenty involved (to my knowledge) with Ultimate's development since it's the adaptation that's faithful to the manga. The Gonzo 2001 anime has some fun ideas and cool moments but it's basically fanfic, including some major changes to the characters from their original versions (Integra is outright cruel at times in 2001 and way more dogmatic, Alucard is more brooding and mysterious, and Seras has more to do and feels more mature but her personality got flattened). Oh, that and BDSM as a narrative device. Love that shit.

I would make a couple of changes, personally. First and foremost, I would make it a little clearer why Alucard decided to shoot Seras before then turning her. It's never explained if he did this out of selfish desire to have a companion, or if there's some other reason - from our perspective it seems like he really did just murder Seras to make her his pet. It seems totally plausible for him to have shot the vampire holding her hostage without hurting Seras. Right now, it basically looks like a glorified abduction. However, this kind of clashes with how their dynamic develops over time, and that's clearly not the kind of relationship that's meant to be portrayed between them, as they do have a certain sort of genuine affection for one another, but it isn't delved into as much as I would like. I think making it clear one way or another would dispel the uncertainty. I would also expand on Millennium's origins and personal motivations more, and at least make the references to their crimes against Jews more overt. Beyond that, there is little I would change.

BDSM polycule. No. Literally. I don't even mean this to say that they are canonically a throuple - that misses the mark. BDSM is often sexual, but it does not need to be (plenty of dynamics exist where a dominant and submissive engage in a power exchange without ever touching one another for mutual benefit). The characters call those who direct their actions 'Master' for a reason, and it's because Hellsing is rife with themes of dominance versus submission, and how the act of bending to someone else's will is not necessarily a bad, damning thing that makes you weak. Alucard knows he is not a moral person, so he gladly allows Integra to give him orders on who to kill, who to destroy, and so on. Seras is a fearful person who has long struggled to feel a sense of agency in her life, and lacked authority figures to guide her growth. Alucard and Integra both provide her that push - and it's scary, and it hurts, and she puts up a fight all the while because she's frightened and uncertain of herself. Everyone likes to act as though Alucard hated her for this, but that seriously misses the mark. Especially in the manga, Alucard is surprisingly patient with her refusal to grow, telling her to take her time as she adapts to being a vampire. But at no point do either parties let Seras forget - growth is not optional. Eventually, she will have to accept what she is. And she ends up finding solace, belonging, and fulfillment in her service to others in this way.

I doubt it was for these reasons. Personally, I think Alucard’s affiliation with and interest in Mina Harker is often overstated by the fandom - of Dracula the novel, and of Hellsing. I view what he did to Mina as a cruel, strategic crime of opportunity, a means of striking at the heart of the team of vampire hunters that were pursuing him. That, and a means of keeping an eye on them. Nothing more, nothing less.

Aaahh that's a spicy meatball. So first and foremost I think it is important to note that a great deal of tropes in literature from the Eurosphere have some level of antisemitism baked into them. As one of the oldest forms of bigotry, it's just a fact of life. If you're Jewish and engaging with media whatsoever, you run into it. It just happens. Now, having said that, I would say two things. One, Alucard is far tamer in appearance than Dracula is in the novel. No small beady eyes, no retracted hairline of messy-fluffy hair, and while he does have an aquiline nose, it isn't this grotesque-looking oversized Zeppelin of a thing as most antisemitic caricatures would portray. That, and his negative personality traits are more than of a general brute, rather than this small-minded, vindictive, greedy miser. Having said that, he does still use seduction as a weapon, he does drink blood (blood libel), and so on. That in mind, I think where I fall is that you cannot divorce the vampire from its origins as an antisemitic trope, but you can point to the elements of the trope that aren't necessarily anti-Jewish in nature as well as say that Alucard is departed enough from these roots to be largely divorced from them. Largely, keyword.The other part to this is that antisemites in Hellsing are consistently portrayed as the villains. Indeed, it is perhaps the only usage of the Nazi Vampire trope that I think does it justice. By having the bigots that would normally insist that Jews are blood-drinking monsters be the actual monstrous enemies who kill and plunder just because it's fun for them (and that they did this as humans long before they turned to boot), it gives the impression of commentary on how Jews are often scapegoated for the crimes of actual bad actors, in the same way that Jews get blamed for the economy being bad instead of the rich corporate oil barons who sit in their ivory tower ruining shit for everyone else. That, and general commentary on warfare. Warmongers gorging themselves on the blood of innocent people that their conflicts spill is a classic allegory of the vampire - hell, for that matter, think of how many Confederate vampires there are in fiction. It isn't a coincidence (and come on, we've all seen the thumbnail for that one YouTube video essay on this, LOL). Beyond this, I also want to draw attention to two things: Tubalcain Alhambra's name, and the Captain's death. First off, the fact that Hirano named the Brazilian collaborator with the Nazis after the Alhambra Decree, a watershed moment in European antisemitism which expelled, forcibly converted or murdered all of Iberia's Jews (Sephardim), boggles my mind and to this day I think it's the coolest fucking detail about Hellsing. It links the bad guys both with religious persecution and with violent antisemitism in an unmistakable way. That, and his name, Tubalcain, being named after the son of Cain. It's all very pointed.

Second, the fact that the Captain gives Seras the tools needed to kill him and it's a silver tooth? That Pip specifies comes from a death camp victim and makes it crystal clear for narrative purposes that it represents the crimes of the Nazis coming back to bite them? That's powerful, to me, IMO. It, too, links Millennium with their antisemitic crimes against humanity in a way that you really cannot make excuses for. I've spoken about this with fellow Jewish Hellsing fans, mind you, and my take is more charitable than most. If you want to be specific with it, the widely agreed-on way to properly discuss Nazism is to show point blank that their victims were primarily Jews, first and foremost - and in that, Hellsing falls short, as there isn't a single Jewish character in the series, named or otherwise (which is a gap I wanted to fill through my fanfiction). Having said that, I personally think that as far as depictions of Nazis in anime goes, it's one of the better ones out there - but it isn't perfect, and the style Hellsing is written in (it's basically opera, after all, Bertolt Brecht forgive me) kind of made that a forgone conclusion. Make of that what you will.

Thanks for the questions!!!

#hellsing #hellsing fandom #hellsing fanfiction #hellsing oc #hellsing ultimate #hellsing headcanons #my headcanons #antisemitism #alucard #seras victoria #sir integra

[noellashes]

hiiiiiiii! feel free to ignore this ask but what do you like about noelashe? :0 I really like them too but I don't exactly know why myself... the parallels perhaps? the care? the potential? either way, I'm asking you how you feel about them! And I hope you have a wonderful day! :)

so so sorry for the late response but

anon you don't understand how long ive been waiting for someone to ask me this exact question

this may be extremely long depending on how much i feel like talking about so i apologize

spoilers inbound after this point!!

there are many, many reasons ive fallen in love with them and their dynamic, but ill try to condense them into a more readable format

the sections will be as follows:

 their parallels and how they compliment each other

their kindness and affection towards each other

how they treat the other differently to the others in the mansion

more surface level dynamic things i like

the things that got me attached to them in the first place

parallels!

i feel like every noelashe fan understands their parallels somewhat but im insane so im gonna go in depth

they match and contrast each other in so so many different ways, down to even design (i actually made a post about that before it shouldnt be too hard to find)

their personalities are one thing, energetic and tired, extroverted and introverted, loud and shy, cruel and kind, fake and genuine, manipulative and naïve, i could go on but thatd be WAY too long so i'll just mention these

but thats just on the surface, they actually match each other a LOT more than you think

how ashe is more introverted than what meets the eye, not liking people out of distrust, and noel being tons more talkative and social, adoring people and barely being able to hate anyone

noel being smarter than he appears, willing to lie and manipulate for what he wants, and ashe being really easy to fool sometimes, immediately believing anything he thinks can bring back his family

and of course the obvious, their wishes

the same wish, the same pain, they go through such similar trauma with different ways of dealing with it

or so you think, their coping is very similar and this is acknowledged in sirius's conclusion, the only real difference being if theyre violent or not. noel, has sworn off harming people but he's still not above using backhanded methods for his goals. ashe, despite doing awful things for his wants, still has noble(ish) reasons for why he does these things

neither are entirely innocent, but neither are completely guilty

they both just want the people they care for to live peacefully, alive

but both do some pretty fucked up things for this wish, noel lies to sirius and uses dorothy as a ploy, ashe well- i think we all know. ashe commits multiple varied crimes that range from theft to murder and noel's own negligence can be considered a crime in some cases.

they have an understanding no one else does and it creates a lot of interest towards them and develops them as individuals too

kindness

they care so much for each other its insane

noel has trouble seeing ashe as anything but kind and ashe cant help but feel attached to noel even if he doesnt want to, which makes them get close each time and it makes them feel for each other a LOT more than they need to

the times where noel is sick and ashe takes care of him, ashe saying he lied so noel wont feel bad, noel letting ashe confide in him and ashe even trusting him enough to say his worries in the first place, the list goes on

they just have an instant bond bc they want someone to care and help them (even if both have trouble admitting it) and they want to help each other, which just makes them care more

it always ends in kindness between the two and it's one of the ways we get a happy ending

special treatment

i could put this in the kindness section but i think it deserves its own section bc its so damn cute

it does have a little less to go over tho as it doesn't happen much

im also gonna start adding screenshots and such

noel seems to really admire ashe and his abilities so much more than anyone else its adorable

hes so amazed by him literally just cooking and he doesnt comment on anything to do with precise stuff that isnt smth ashe does, i may be wrong but i dont think ive ever seen him comment on smth like sirius drawing talismans which is highly specific but will ALWAYS think about how impressed he is with ashe

he also just

treats ashe in a similar way to claire, like he just casually says ashe saved him which is such a strong word to him with no thought and he LITERALLY SAYS HE TRUSTS HIM UNCONSCIOUSLY BC HE REMINDS HIM OF CLAIRE if that doesnt say smth i dont know what does

and ashe always opens up to noel so much more than anyone else like noel has gotten ashe to talk about himself unlike anyone else, the only other character he talked to about things was claire (technically sirius too but he was drunk off his ass so im not counting it) and that was like once he doesnt even say anything that isnt surface level

ashe also just refuses to harm noel and i dont think anyone has noticed this before

it makes sense if his killings are during the day bc noel literally just isnt there but some other times he has no excuse

HE MOVES TO THE SIDE HERE EVEN IF WHERE HE WAS STANDING GAVE HIM A CLEARER SHOT TO CLAIRE YOU CANT TELL ME IT WASNT SO HE DELIBERATELY MISSES NOEL

ALSO HE COULDVE TRIED AGAIN OR GONE AFTER HIM BUT NO HE JUST GOES "missed one!" AND CALLS IT A DAY IF THATS NOT PROOF HE DOESNT WANNA HURT NOEL I DONT KNOW WHAT IS

surface level things

as much as i love the incredible lengths of their relationship, i also like more simple things that im just gonna put into a little list

theyre so sun and moon guys

BLACK CAT AND GOLDEN RETRIEVER BFS

their color palettes look nice together

babygirl and wet cat

loves to cook and fucking awful at cooking

smartass x dumbass

mutual healing

their symbols being hearts and stars those look so cute together

"i care about you!!" "why??", mutually

little bitch and sweetheart

both are affectionate but neither can handle it

emotionally repressed x the one who wants them to grow again

bfs who rant about their interests

same trauma

very strange guy x doesnt care

"im a disgusting monster" "HOW?"

the black and white good evil thing is very aesthetically pleasing for them

angel and devil (kinda)

why i fell in love with them

theres a lot of reasons why i love them but theres a few very specific things that got me attached

most obvious is that theyre both my favorites, im extremely attached to ashe and i loved him from the start, i didnt start liking noel until a tiny bit later but he very quickly gained my love

i also relate to them both heavily so seeing them care so much for each other gave me comfort

its a huge pattern that most of my ships are of the character i got immediately attached to and relate to and other character i relate to who cares about the first character

the fate line. its just so gay i was like "thats kinda gay" and while i didnt always think of it like it was super important it always stuck in my head like "yeah i could ship them"

but the real thing that started this all was the wine scene

its when i realized how much they cared for each other and then the floodgates opened, and here we are now!!

its still by far my favorite scene of the two it just makes me so happy its so adorable

conclusion

i have an extreme love for noelashe and just seeing them can make my entire mood better

i dont think many people have analyzed them as much as me so its sad to see how much stuff with them goes unnoticed

theyre genuinely so great for each other, platonic, romantic or anything in between, they deserve to be happy with each other

im so sorry for this being so long and maybe really hard to understand but i adore them so much

if you read this all thank you so much!! have a great day

#uso rambles #witchs heart #ashe bradley #noel levine #noelashe #im so insane for them #noelashe the world

[aaron-m-geist-ff]

Content: dark fantasy, yandere behavior, polyamory, enemies to lovers, corruption, loss of innocence, pure consent, slow burn

Summary: The Shadows of Hema are a guild of assassins which commit sacrifices in honor of their goddess. They have been searching for the prophet which was promised to them in ancient legends. The two leaders of the cult, Kaine and Sedaro, are shocked to find that their esteemed prophet is a morally decent mage who practices healing magic and doesn’t have the strength of an assassin. Joshua is seemingly weak and harmless, and yet he bears the mark of the dark goddess Hema. Perplexed by the confirmed existence of their chosen one, Kaine and Sedaro decide that it is best to abduct Joshua and keep him hostage within the cult’s headquarters.

🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤

Josh was startled by his tone. It made him shake even more, but he somehow managed to stand his ground. He held his head up high. This was probably the only time that he would actually be taller than Kaine. The man was standing on land, holding onto Josh’s wrist with a death grip. Meanwhile Josh remained on the boat with every ounce of stubbornness he had left.

“I…I’m not kidding!” Josh threatened. He tried his best to make a stern glare, but it didn’t seem to fool Kaine.

The man scoffed.

“I just saved your ass!” He argued. “Literally.”

Josh gasped. He was absolutely appalled that Kaine would make such a lewd implication. They both knew what could have happened back on that ship with the drunk sailor, but there was no need to point it out verbally. Josh blushed at the insinuation. He didn’t even want to think about something like that happening to him.

“What do you want me to say? Thank you?” Josh shot back. “I won’t be thanking you for anything, and I’m not going with you! I would rather die!”

He had to take a moment to breathe after he finished yelling. He hadn’t experienced such adrenaline in quite some time.

Kaine had so much anger in his eyes. He seemed genuinely offended by Josh’s words.

He uttered something under his breath. Josh couldn’t make out exactly what he had said, but it was nothing nice.

Josh attempted breaking free again. He tried to pull his wrist back, the boat rocking slightly from the movement. He was suddenly beginning to realize just how weak he was.

Kaine rolled his eyes. He let out a disgruntled sigh before reaching forward.

Josh yelled desperately as he was hoisted into the air. Kaine had grabbed him by the waist, slinging him over his shoulder with ease.

“Shut up,” he muttered coldly.

Josh kicked and squirmed, beating his fists against Kaine’s back. He wanted to scream for help, but the town was too far away. They were nearing the edge of the forest with every large step that Kaine took.

Josh could practically see his life flashing before his eyes. He refused to accept his fate so easily. He kicked and thrashed, just like he had done with the captain. His life was at stake this time, not just his dignity.

Kaine made a noise in the back of his throat. He slid his hand across Josh’s back to get a better grip.

“If you keep struggling like that you’re gonna fall off.”

Josh groaned out of frustration.

“That’s the plan,” he said with that same stubborn tone.

He hated Kaine. The man had been so cruel that night in the torture chamber. He was mocking and making inappropriate jokes about Josh’s mother. That could never be forgiven.

“Put me down!” Josh demanded. He beat at Kaine’s back some more, though it was beginning to seem utterly pointless.

Kaine was acting like some kind of soldier, pushing onward as if to fulfill a duty. He was unfazed by Josh’s protesting. He didn’t so much as stumble as he walked through the forest.

Josh was exhausted. He had been through so much trauma in just a few hours. He wanted everything to calm down, but he knew that was impossible. His story was just beginning. He could feel that in his soul.

The sun was done hiding. It brought a soft light to the forest, illuminating the early morning fog. Dew drops had formed on the plants which seemed to happily welcome the sunlight.

Josh was trying his best not to panic as he was carried through the woods. He became uncomfortably aware that his backside was close to Kaine’s head. He had never been carried on someone’s shoulder before. It was definitely an odd experience.

Kaine was being unusually silent. The bastard always had something to say. A sarcastic remark or a quick jab to Josh’s ego.

Kaine shifted his hand’s placement. It slid down to Josh’s lower back, holding him there firmly.

Josh could feel his face heating up from embarrassment. Kaine’s hand was rather big. He was holding Josh in place, and it seemed that he was being careful not to touch him inappropriately. His fingers were long. They dug into the fabric of Josh’s robes for a better grip.

The birds were whistling again. They seemed to have awoken along with the rest of the forest. Josh went limp in Kaine’s arms. He had come to terms with the fact that he could do nothing to change the current situation. He would just need to deal with things as they came. He glanced downward, watching the back of Kaine’s boots as he walked. A thin layer of fog still lingered upon the forest floor, swirling around the man’s shoes.

Josh wiped his nose with the sleeve of his shirt. He felt like he was going crazy. The idea of dying was beginning to sound better and better. At least then he wouldn’t have to deal with all of his problems.

At some point they had gone through the force field. Josh felt numb and dull. His spark was gone. Every bad thing that could have happened with his plan became a reality. He had been certain that the captain would have allowed him to accompany the crew to Whistfeld. Of course the man had to be a rapist. It was exactly Josh’s luck.

Josh looked down at the grass. It was the same soft grass that he remembered from the castle grounds. He hated the sight of it. He had wished never to see the castle ever again, yet there he was being carried against his will. It was torturous.

Josh was expecting Kaine to let him down once they had reached the castle. He had been wrong to make that assumption. Kaine continued to carry him through the foyer. The man had even opened the front door with one hand. His strength was no joke.

“Where are you taking me?” Josh asked quietly. He surprised himself by how flat his own voice sounded. He truly was beginning to lose his motivation.

“Don’t worry about it,” Kaine said.

He didn’t sound as angry as he did earlier.

Josh could smell blood still. The scent had clung to his clothes. It probably didn’t help that Kaine also had some dried blood which definitely didn’t belong to him.

Josh watched as they passed through a number of different corridors, some of which he had never seen before.

“…My room is the other way,” Josh murmured. He was hesitant to try correcting Kaine, but he was beginning to feel apprehensive. He didn’t like being so unaware of his surroundings.

Kaine tightened his grip on Josh’s back.

“We’re not going to your room,” he replied.

Josh’s heart skipped a beat. He didn’t like the sound of that at all. He couldn’t imagine where Kaine was taking him. The man was so secretive. He had to know that he was driving Josh mad, but he didn’t seem to care.

This area of the castle was darker than the rest. There were a few torches here and there, but the atmosphere was definitely eerier.

Josh’s breathing was shaky. He tried to calm himself, but it was pointless. His body was constantly on high alert. He was convinced that he would never feel safe again, no matter what he did to better his situation.

Kaine stopped walking.

Josh’s whole body froze as he listened to a doorknob being turned. After a moment, Kaine stepped inside of a room.

Josh grunted softly as he was placed on the ground. His legs shook as he stood there, looking around nervously. The space looked to be some type of office. There was an extraordinary desk placed in the center. It was made of the finest wood, carved with all sorts of engravings to give it an elegant look. Scrolls and papers were placed upon it, along with a few writing quills.

There was a large chair as well. It had maroon colored cushions and it was made of that same fine wood. Josh felt as though he had stepped into the headmaster’s office back at his college. Whoever owned this place was clearly in a high position.

Kaine stepped around the desk. He cleared his throat, shrugging off his cape as if he had just returned after a long day of work.

Josh could practically feel the blood pumping through his own veins. He was terrified. Kaine was behaving so calmly. The man had even brought Josh into his private office. This couldn’t be good.

Kaine pulled the chair out, taking his time to sit down properly. He ran a hand through his disheveled hair, closing his eyes as if to gather his thoughts.

Josh held his arm awkwardly. He didn’t know what to do, he hadn’t been given any orders. He was afraid to do anything on his own. Kaine seemed like the type to dislike a lot of things.

He truly did look like a leader while he was sitting behind that desk. It made Josh feel inferior in a way that he wasn’t used to.

Kaine looked up at him after a moment.

“Sit.”

Josh jumped slightly. He hadn’t expected Kaine to speak, and he sounded very stern.

Josh hesitantly took the chair on the opposite side of the desk. It was smaller and less expensive looking. It felt as though no one had sat in the chair in a very long time. Josh folded his hands in his lap. He looked around anxiously, attempting to look at anything else except for Kaine.

Josh had never felt so intimidated in his life. He could feel Kaine’s steady gaze watching him, even though the assassin was remaining entirely silent. Josh simply refused to make direct eye contact. He couldn’t. Instead, he became very interested in the wall beside them. He studied the few cracks in the cobblestone bricks. His hands shook in his lap. Kaine would not stop staring.

“…I am tired, Josh.”

Kaine sighed as he rubbed his eyes. He leaned back in his chair.

“I have been gone for three days. It was an exhausting mission,” he added.

Josh blinked several times. He didn’t know why Kaine was speaking to him in such a way. He stopped staring at the wall, instead looking down at his own lap. Kaine was shamelessly continuing to stare as if he knew that it made Josh uncomfortable.

“I returned hoping that I could fall into my bed and rest. But, do you know what I found when I arrived?” He asked calmly.

Josh fiddled with the hem of his shirt, attempting to distract himself from his anxiety. He wasn’t sure if he should answer or not.

Kaine remained silent, as if he expected a reply.

Josh shifted in his seat awkwardly.

“…What did you find?” He whispered.

Kaine’s voice remained completely serious.

“You were gone,” he said simply.

“You left, and I had to go find you.”

Josh let out a slow breath. He attempted to calm himself again, continuing to stare down at his own lap as if that would solve his problems. He wanted to blend into the chair and disappear. He couldn’t handle Kaine’s leveled tone. The man was usually cursing and behaving out of anger. Josh was waiting for the bomb to drop.

Kaine exhaled slowly. He poured himself a drink in a short glass. It smelled like a type of alcohol.

“Apparently you need some clear rules to follow,” he began. He took a long swig of his beverage, before setting the glass down firmly against the desktop.

Josh flinched at the sound of it. He immediately straightened his back, trying to pretend that he hadn’t been afraid a few moments ago.

Kaine drummed his fingers against the desk. He stared at Josh without an ounce of shame.

“You will not try to escape again. If you do, then I will find you. It doesn’t matter where you go. If you walk, ride a horse, or take a boat, I will track you down. Even if you flew away on a goddamn bird, I would still manage to find you. Do you understand me?”

Kaine didn’t stutter. He spoke calmly and clearly, not taking his eyes off of Josh for a second.

Josh wanted to cry. He couldn’t handle this anymore. He knew that what Kaine said was true, the man certainly wasn’t the type for bluffing. He seemed powerful. Every word which left his mouth was etched with authority. Even his eyes seemed to be all knowing.

“I…I understand,” Josh whispered. He could hear the quiver in his own voice, and he knew Kaine likely heard it as well. Josh sounded as though he was on the verge of tears. Kaine didn’t seem to mind, he simply continued with his apathetic tone.

“You may be considering suicide,” he said plainly.

“If you dare to take your own life, I will target your loved ones. Your mother lives on the edge of Berzhind in a small house. She likes to visit the market during the day to try and sell the vegetables from her garden. Your friend Fin is of a dying breed. I am sure that his race won’t be around long enough to miss him anyway.”

Josh’s head shot up at that. He stared at Kaine with clenched teeth, his brows furrowed with anger.

“You wouldn’t do that-“ Josh started with disbelief. He was absolutely horrified by the threat. He couldn’t believe how much knowledge Kaine had gained. He didn’t even know how the man had learned such things.

Josh’s face fell.

Kaine had likely been stalking them to learn about Josh’s weaknesses. This was manipulation in its finest form. Josh felt utterly powerless. He couldn’t even escape his situation through death. That would be incredibly selfish. Kaine knew that Josh would never do anything to hurt his loved ones. He was playing the game well, and he was winning.

Kaine smirked.

“I would.”

_______________________________________________

#dark fantasy #m/m #mlm #yandere #polyamory #enemies to lovers #book recommendations #smut #corruption kink #slow burn

[jakowskis]

Day 8 - Are there any scenes (or even full episodes) that you can’t stand? If yes, and you could go back in time and rewrite them, how would you fix them?

LITERALLY HAD TO PUT THIS UNDER THE CUT TOO BC ITS SO LONG FJSDHFKJSDFHKDSJFHKDSJDSHFSDKJFHK I HATE THIS FUCKING SHOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

im not gonna rlly propose fix-its, i just like to bitch. haha. anyway, in no particular order…

the owen & jack jail scene in dmw. it’s sooo frustratingly underwhelming. they had the perfect chance to explore some really interesting stuff with jack + his relationship with his immortality, and to explore the parallels drawn between the two of them, and jack suddenly having someone who might also "live" forever to keep him company… and then they Didn’t. it’s suuuch a let down. and the first half of that scene being ‘light-hearted’ and gross is so irritating and disrespectful to owen. absolutely the wrong tone. that ep pisses me tf off.

i have a lot of issues with owen & jack’s relationship in general. in aditd, when owen tries to drown himself + finds he can’t, and jack’s reaction is to 1) throw a soulless flirty line at him, and 2) ask him “how long he’s gonna do this for”... that scene bugs the fuck out of me. like what the fuck. what a monstrous way to react to someone who’s suicidal. and i’d like it if the show ever bothered to explore why jack seems to view owen’s suicidality with such disdain (because it’s a consistent thing; he’s also callous in combat), like that could also provide insight into his character - but they don’t! ugh! so it just makes him look like a fucking dick and makes me resent him. especially when he’s a lot more sympathetic to john in out of time. like why is he so nasty to owen in particular. fuck knows, they don’t bother touching on it. missed opportunities!!!

and, returning to the way dmw treats owen, i hateeee how he’s treated once he’s dead, by the characters AND the writers. everyone on the team is cruel towards him during his undead arc. they warm up again to him later, but the show itself decides he’s no longer relevant after that + seems to act like all his angst went away and he’s fine again. torchwood SUCKS at emotional continuity. the only time it comes up is that they REPEATEDLY have the antagonist of the episode make a point to remind owen + the viewers how pathetic and useless he is now that he’s dead (the nostravite + the ghostmaker both do it). and it’s just.. corny, and disrespectful, like come on.

actually dead man walking as a whole... i just hate that episode. i talked about it more here, it’s just….. ridiculous, and bad, and embarrassing 😭 i had to skip the fucking fight scene at the end i didn’t have the strength i get secondhand embarrassment too easily HFDJKSHFKDJS. the concept isn’t terrible it’s the fucking execution its sooo… idek how i’d fix that mess. i don’t like it. blegh. and like i said, tw does emotional continuity so poorly, like i don’t really have a question i can fully bitch about this on (well? maybe. we’ll see) but the way they go through significant traumas every ep and the emotional weight of those events is never touched on in the following eps... like the shit in dmw would’ve been a lot for owen to deal with but by aditd he’s got other problems. it’s just… ugh.

and if dmw is the second worst use of bad cgi, we must talk about the first… abaddon. i love end of days so fucking much, the interpersonal shit going on between the team is FASCINATING and so good, the mutiny scene is so good, them all being haunted by their past (aka the events of the past 12 episodes) is so good, for torchwood it’s a GOOD episode - and then there’s this fucking ridiculously embarassing terrible monster from the depths of hell stomping everywhere and roaring and i literally cannot describe how hard i was laughing when i first watched that ep. genuinely hysterical. especially after getting gut-punched like thirty times throughout the rest. and whatever jack did to defeat it... so fucking bad. SO fucking bad. idk what the fuck that was but it was a MESS. and the worst possible way to wrap up the “something’s coming out of the darkness O.O” bullshit (which, they didn’t, that continued into owen’s arc, like cmon…) it was just a shit show. see it’s hard for me to hypothesize about how they coulda fixed that bc it’s so bad but it’s kind of iconic. im kind of glad it’s there bc it’s just… torchwood wouldn’t be torchwood if it wasn’t fucking awful. but also. shudders.

ok ok i swear ill stop complaining abt owen-specific shit but ofc thts what i take most issue with, and a lot of my complaints abt the others are less about specific scenes and more generalized things, so ill talk about them when i talk about their characters… ill talk about this more in owen’s section, but i have… problems with the end of days ending, with the hugs. i like that scene a lot, the connotations are fascinating, but the way owen and jack are framed in it is…. eugh…. and most people miss the fact that it’s ‘eugh’? a lot of people see it as a sweet scene and that’s… oof… again i’ll get into it more later but i wish it was framed differently. torchwood could never make up it’s mind on how it saw the characters, lmao.

adjacent subject… the way jack’s return is framed. i HATE the way they just bounce back to normal once jack comes back. like, him leaving would’ve been fucking traumatizing. and the show doesn’t properly give closure to any of them. (it does a tiny bit to gwen + ianto, but like… owen’s abandonment issues are a consistent theme in the show, esp s1. his ‘did he fix you?’ line is unnecessarily sooo heartbreaking. what do you mean ur not gonna give a single moment to those two. Okay.) tbh a lot of these complaints are about the fact that i desperately wish torchwood was a show that cared about the emotions + mental health of their characters when it simply Is Not. tw is, regrettably, not the character-focused show it should be. and i hate it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

a few last owen specific things…. i hate the owen growling at the weevil scene in combat. like what was the deal with that. they don’t rlly explain it in the commentary either it’s just. ?? but again it’s one of those things thts like. i can’t imagine a world where this show was actually good + didn’t have random weird cringe shit sprinkled in HFKSDJF it’s part of the charm. sigh

also owen & mark shouldve fucked. combat should’ve been gayer.

captain jack harkness should’ve been LESS gay. the excessive tongue kissing was fucking gross FSHDFJKDS like. i know that scene’s important to a lot of people + i respect it as an important moment in queer television + the way it’s framed as this big romantic moment, but the actual kissing is just. gross. why did they have to kiss like that. there are better ways to kiss. sincerely, someone who’s very picky about kisses + still covers my eyes like a kid at like 60% of onscreen kisses. 

tkks stopwatch scene. ianto why are you flirting w the man who killed ur girlfriend four episodes ago. fucking evil. like ok lmao 👍thats not bad writing whatsoever to never explore that in-show and only do it in an audio 10 yrs later. sure.

all of them randomly having empathy for the alien whale in meat has always driven me crazy. i thought we were gonna find out that the whale had like, empathy-enhancing powers or telepathy or smth bc i couldn’t understand why any of those assholes cared sm. like, in tkks we find out the glove is fueled by empathy + that’s why none of them can use it. like, these are people who aren’t naturally empathetic. nothing wrong with that, i’m like that lol. so i was really thrown off when they randomly all deeply cared about an alien creature. especially owen. like, i get randomly being moved by something, happens to the best of us, but the way it affected all of them + so profoundly felt ooc to me and has always bugged me a little. s2 tried so badly to humanize a group that s1 painted as absolute assholes, and i personally LOVE that they’re assholes. i am not the biggest fan of s2, lol.

a lot of tosh scenes bug me, bc the show generally has very little respect for her + her capabilities, but ill get into that more when i talk about her as a character. specifically some of the tosh & owen scenes fucking INFURIATE me. he’s so nasty to her. the end of adam (‘i dont do apologies’ and the smug little smile), and laughing at her when he agrees to the date in reset, and ‘in your dreams, tosh’ in countrycide all stand out. ive complained about it before + ill do it again; idk wtf they were trying to tell the viewers with tosh/owen. i like the concept of the ship, because it has potential - i absolutely HATE it within the context of the show. every ‘towen moment’ just works to humiliate tosh. it’s awful.

killing beth. im sure other people have done essays on the way torchwood treats its poc, esp its woc (although, knowing this fandom, maybe not lmao), and the lisa sitch was enough of a mess… the beth sitch could’ve been done differently. her essentially committing suicide by cop was fucking awful. ugh.

also the twist that suzie was evil + ten steps ahead could’ve been done much better. that should’ve been better written. 

as i said, i dont even like tosh/owen, but the fact that you never see them dance in something borrowed was just plain mean tbh. u can see like a millisecond of a frame if you pause in the right place, but still, why not include a fraction of a nice moment between them. cmon. something like that might’ve actually made me like them more

i hate the blowfish confrontation in kkbb it’s corny. cmon

i bitched about adam a lot the other day (again, here)… idek how i’d get that episode up to my standards. im petty about s2 as a whole and ive been meaning to try to put thought into what would fix it for me for months and i haven’t gotten around to it cuz its such a daunting thought. grr. i think i’d just completely redo the way adam influences them all. i literally don’t like what any of their altered selves offer. there’s no insight into them i find worthwhile. ig the shit abt jack’s past is worth keeping but i’d redo it completely bc i hate the gray arc. i’d have to find some way to keep the conference scene though, or get that new character info + vibe elsewhere. bah

#tdot #txt #hey im posting this one in the afternoon instead of late at night! woah!

[brandwhorestarscream]

A question that came to me just now (but you don't need to answer it right away)

Considering what has been established about TFE Jettwins, how did Megatron realize how wrong his more intimate "relationship" with Star was?Consistently, the others don't know and they (especially Dot) wouldn't allow him near the younger Terrans/Maltos if they knew.

I don't know when exactly he got an eye opener, but I'm assuming it was after stepping down as the leader of the decepticons. It's not like it was something that just happened over night, people don't usually reach that point of violation and abuse with no precursor or build up. At one point I do think he and Starscream were, at the very least, mutually attracted to each other and intimate to blow off steam, if nothing else. It's definitely more insidious if it started off as a genuine romantic relationship and twisted til it was unrecognizable over time, but that's not the point right now

As we've seen in canon, he still has incredibly violent tendencies toward Starscream. He didn't try to speak to him or offer him gentle punishment as we've seen him do with previous decepticons--he immediately assumed the very worst, and fell back on old habits alarmingly quickly. He had no problem beating the shit out of Starscream back then and that clearly hasn't changed. He's extremely comfortable putting his hands on him, but it wasn't always that way. Someone doesn't rise to power being violent and cruel: they rise to power, in his case, by putting charisma and good will behind a genuinely good cause. It started sweet but turned sour over time, and by the time it got really bad Starscream was no longer able to walk away.

I think Megatron's treatment of him slowly got increasingly worse, from a combination of extreme stress from the war, internalized hate, and a desire to always be 100% in control due to past trauma. Mix it all together with another very extreme personality and you get a noxious concoction that's streamlined for disaster. Starscream was the perfect target: someone always close by, and even better, someone he had a reason to brutalize. Attempted assassination, even just once, would get a lot of people killed. I firmly believe Megatron would kill anyone else that tried half the shit Starscream did. No one in the decepticons were willing to stick their necks out and disagree with his methods of punishment. It was considered a mercy to let Starscream live at all

On the more sexual side, he was already used to Starscream's body and, at some level, felt entitled to it. It's nasty and horrible and he was so deep into the role as the merciless and cruel decepticon overlord it became frighteningly permissible in his mind. It's a lot more common, a lot easier than you might think, to get so deep in your own head when you're under such extreme stress for so long to crack and start considering things you never would before, excessive violence, lethal force, even such heinous assault. It's a hideous and wicked thing, a pervasive flaw of the psyche. Only after being entirely removed from that role and managing to scrub himself of the conditioning was he able to look back and realize he definitely went too far.

And yet, he was so quick to fall back on old habits. It was on sight when he saw Starscream. He would've gone much further and snagged him even worse if Hashtag hadn't thrown herself between them. I think that's what finally, truly got through to him on the deepest level: to have a child who previously only looked at him in adoration to look up at him with only disgust and fear. He's seen that same expression before, on Starscream, but now on someone who may as well be his granddaughter. It's jarring, and really, really makes him think. That's how he realized just how wrong he was with Starscream, to answer your question: that pivotal moment with Hashtag.

#megatron #hashtag #god. this was tough to chew through. ive been thinking about it for awhile #hes such a deeply flawed and complex character and its so fun to dig into this stuff #tfe jettwins

[thranduel]

let’s talk about will and why the dismissal of his feelings and shoving him to the side is cruel and unnecessary

i am so tired of people overlooking will’s trauma, forgetting about everything he's been through and acting like he's "getting in the way" of mike and el or that he can “just move on and find someone else” when he has known mike for most of his life and actually loved him FIRST. mike has always been his safe place, and trying to shove will to the side when he doesn’t deserve any of this pain isn’t okay at all. he is the most kind, gentle, loving and selfless character on this entire show that always puts other people before himself and spreads so much love even though he rarely receives it from others.

(btw this gets pretty long and these are just my own opinions!)

people have been so cruel and ignorant towards will and he started getting more hate after it was confirmed that he likes mike and after volume 1 got released. people are saying ridiculous things like "he's getting in the way of mike and el", "byler can't happen because mike and el has been built up since the start", "will can find someone else" and many other things and it’s bullshit. it really hurts because they don't understand anything about this character at all and they don't even seem to care. people really need to think about everything he's been through (childhood trauma with bullies and an abusive father, struggling with his sexuality, the upside down, being kidnapped and mindflayed and controlled, being excluded and forgotten about, etc.) and they also need to understand how important mike is to will and how they've known each other since kindergarten.

i also think it's important to note that i love el and i genuinely think she would be happier without being in a romantic relationship with mike. i'm not dismissing her feelings or shoving her to the side like a lot of people do with will, and i’m not just saying this because i love byler either. i'm actually considering what she's been through, and season 3 made a point of how she can be happy without being in a relationship with mike when she dumped him, and it actually allowed her to grow as an individual person and discover her own likes without someone telling her, which was so important for her. i’ve also watched this show so many times and i actually know how to pay attention to character behaviour, relationship dynamics and what’s good for the overall story and character development. mike and el just don’t make any sense to me in a romantic relationship and i just don’t like how they change when they’re around each other. their friendship is beautiful, and i believe that they love and care for each other so much, but the romance was rushed and they show no signs of character growth or development when they’re together. in fact, i think their characters become worse when they’re together and i’m not trying to sound harsh when i say that but it’s true (and the other characters in the show would agree because literally no one has said anything positive about their relationship. they’ve only called them out and encouraged them to break up). mike and el pretend to be people they’re not when they’re with each other. they lie to each other, they dodge each other’s questions, they don’t trust each other enough, they can’t be open and vulnerable with each other, they’re never on the same page, they can’t be themselves when the other is around, and one thing that really bothers me: they literally exclude their friends and don’t pay attention to them because they get so consumed with each other and it’s just so immature and unfair (like when dustin just returned home and they immediately ran off from the friend group to be alone, and when will was all alone at the ice rink and they were just holding hands right in front of him and didn’t talk to him or include him… like come on man it’s just selfish.)

and yes, they’re just teenagers, i get that, but they’ve shown no sign of individual character growth or development while being in a relationship and i’m tired of it. it’s the same thing every season and it’s boring and ridiculous. it’s like they’re being forced to stay in a relationship when they don’t even want to be in one. and i’m so sick of mike being reduced to el’s boyfriend and having no other personal storylines because his character is so much more than that but we barely know anything about him or his struggles because they don’t allow us to. it’s just always about el. and it’s annoying because el is so strong and doesn’t need to depend on mike for happiness but so many people act like she does even though she was the happiest she had ever been right after she dumped him. both of these characters are absolutely wonderful individually, but when they’re in a romantic relationship, it ruins so much.

also, i personally believe mike is struggling with his identity, has repressed feelings for will and is forcing himself to be someone he's not whenever el is around, so i obviously don't think that's fair to anyone. i don't want el to be in a relationship with someone who can't give her the love she deserves, i don't want mike to force himself to be someone he's not and i don't want will to suffer and be excluded like he is every season. based on what i've observed, mike, will AND el (and even other characters) have all been hurt or annoyed in some way because of mike and el being in a romantic relationship. it's clear that there hasn't been any growth or maturity over the past few seasons between them and it's getting repetitive at this point.

but anyways, i don't care if people ship another couple. the point is, mike is one of the most important people in will's life that he's known for 10 years and experienced so much with, and will is also important to mike. you don't have to ship byler but you cannot deny that mike and will have the most history and build up and they have a relationship that no one else can replace. trying to take mike away from will and acting like mike belongs to el and saying "will is getting in the way of them" or "will is selfish because el is his sister" when he's the one that knew and loved mike first is just selfish and unfair. and i'm not saying mike automatically “belongs” to will either just because he knew him first, mike isn't an object and he's his own person, but i constantly see people acting like el owns mike and that will is getting in the way of them and it's pathetic. mike and will were best friends long before el came around, and el has only been living with the byers for less than a year anyways. mike doesn’t view will as “his girlfriend’s brother” and will doesn’t view mike as “his sister’s boyfriend”. stop with that bullshit and stop using that to try and make them feel guilty. they are NOT connected through el. they were best friends first and that’s how they see each other. el has nothing to do with their own personal relationship. in fact, the only reason mike met el in the first place was because HE WAS SEARCHING FOR WILL. so stop invalidating will’s love for mike and stop acting like "he can just move on and find someone else so that mike and el can stay together" and admit you don't care about will at all. it’s actually disgusting how people just shove him to the side and act like his relationship with mike doesn’t matter when it does.

you also need to remember how much harder it is for him to be gay and struggling with his sexuality in the 80s, especially after being so heavily bullied for it from when he was a child and experiencing so much trauma. everyone is so concerned about him “getting in the way” but they have no idea how difficult this situation is for will. he doesn’t fit into society’s definition of “normal” because of who he is and he can’t just “move on from mike and find another boy”. that’s not how it works. he can’t live a normal life like most kids because of this cruel society and homophobia, and he even thinks that he'll never get to experience love because he doesn't think mike would ever like him back.

before he was kidnapped and taken to the upside down, will had always suffered from being bullied and abused by his own father and school bullies, and they would call him homophobic slurs and make fun of the way he dressed. this is absolutely heartbreaking and i just hate thinking about it. he was just a little kid when it all started and he has always been so kind, gentle and loving towards everyone around him. i will never be able to understand how people can be so cruel and horrible. he also had to watch his parents constantly argue and deal with his father's abuse when he was at home. for so long, will had no friends either and the only people that were there for him were joyce and jonathan. but then one day, on the first day of kindergarten, when he was sitting on the swings all alone, mike came up to him and asked him if he wanted to be his friend. if he hadn't, will probably never would've found any friends or walked up to anyone on his own, because he's always found it difficult to make friends. but mike was his very first friend, and they've known each other for 10 years, so they have so much history together and they've experienced things that they haven't experienced with anyone else. this is what i consider proper build up (since so many people act like they don't have build up) and a beautiful, genuine relationship that no one else can replace.

mike became a safe place for will. he was the reason that he no longer had to be alone and then they ended up sharing the same interests and hobbies, such as playing d&d. getting invested in fictional worlds and playing games was an escape and distraction from the real world, especially for will, who came from a broken family that was struggling financially and also because of his abusive father. he would go to mike's basement to escape home so he wouldn't have to hear his parents arguing or get yelled at, and he remained close with the party, as they were his only friends. will is also extremely passionate about art, and he draws things that mean the most to him. mike keeps all of his drawings and he looks through them whenever he thinks of will. we also know that in season 4, will paints something special for mike.

in season 1 and 2, you can see how much mike cares about will and how worried he gets when he's in danger. he took care of him all the time and he would always stay by his side. you can imagine how much this would mean to will, but what makes it even more heartbreaking is the fact that we now know that will likes mike too, but he probably thinks mike will never love him back. will fell in love with his best friend and he's struggling with his own sexuality in a time where being gay wasn't accepted, and it would've been even more traumatising and scary for him because he was targeted with homophobic slurs from a young age.

now try to imagine how it feels for will to see his best friend get a girlfriend and become so consumed with her that he forgets all about him. and yes, lucas, dustin and will have all confronted and called mike out for being too consumed with el. it's not healthy and they missed when their friend could actually be himself instead of acting like someone's he's not.

in season 3 episode 3, mike and will had their first big fight and it ended up triggering an emotional breakdown for will. the only other times we've seen him cry is when he was struggling with the mindflayer and upside down, and when mike and his family were talking to him when he was possessed. but other than that, he's never broken down like this. he was angry, hurt, overwhelmed, upset, heartbroken, confused, lost, alone. this was everything bottled up inside him for so long and it eventually reached the point where he just couldn't keep it in any longer. the thing that made will storm out in the first place was the fact that mike had become so consumed with el. not only would it hurt to see your best friend forget about you, but it would hurt even more when you're also in love with him and think he'll never love you back. the moment mike started talking about growing up, getting girlfriends and no longer playing d&d, will realised that his safe place that he's known for most of his life was finally moving on without him.

will wasn't ready to grow up due to all the trauma from his childhood and the upside down, and also because he was struggling with his sexuality. growing up meant that he wouldn’t be able to stay safe in his comfort zone, which was being with mike and the boys. fiction was their escape and their distraction. mike was not only his best friend, but the boy he fell in love with, and will realised that mike no longer had time for him because he was too busy with his girlfriend and he thought that he would never care about him like he used to. he also realised that he would never be like all the other boys and he doesn't fit in with society's definition of "normal". will is struggling with his sexuality in a time where being gay wasn't accepted and he already faced so much bullying and abuse and homophobic insults. he would've felt even more overwhelmed hearing the words "it's not my fault you don't like girls" directly from mike. this fight resulted in him having an emotional breakdown and then destroying castle byers, another safe place that he’s always used for hiding and escaping. he also ripped the photo of him and the boys as well as his artwork.

compare this to the mike and el break up an episode earlier. it was made to look humourous with bright lighting and music, and when el dumped mike she was actually happy, free and learning to be independent and grow as a person which was so good for her and something she really needed (even max said it). mike didn’t even seem to really care and he didn’t go running back to her apologising. but when mike had a fight with will, it hurt will so much that it literally triggered an emotional breakdown for him, revealing how much losing mike can affect him and how it hurt hearing those words from the person he’s been so close with for most of his life. mike was will’s first ever friend and would always be there for him whenever he needed support and comfort. mike was also the first person other than joyce and jonathan to actually make will feel loved and accepted because he had absolutely no one else. he experienced childhood trauma because of bullies and his abusive father and he got called homophobic slurs, and to this day he’s still struggling with his sexuality and feelings for his best friend in a time where being gay wasn’t accepted and he thinks his best friend will never love him back. when their fight was happening, the colours were dark, there was sad music and it was raining. then mike rode his bike in a storm to try and apologise to will because he can never leave him without making up and checking that he’s okay. these scenes reveal so much about both relationships.

i think people are also forgetting that will had to watch his best friend get into a relationship with the girl who (unintentionally) opened the gate that resulted in him getting kidnapped and traumatised for the rest of his life. el obviously didn’t mean to open it but the point is that she still did and it changed will’s life forever. and then the only reason mike and el met was because mike was searching for will! imagine having that constant reminder of your trauma and heartbreak as you watch that same girl and your best friend date each other while you’re still suffering and getting excluded. don’t even try acting like you know “what’s best for will” or that “he’ll be okay and he can find someone else”. mike and will started the show and connected everybody together. THEY are the ones that have been built up from the start and they are so special to each other. i’m not saying that will needs to be in a romantic relationship with mike in order to be happy but he certainly needs his best friend in his life because he's so important to him, and we already know that can’t happen if he’s still in a relationship with el, because mike changes so much and forces himself to focus on her and then will just gets hurt over and over again. i also think mike is struggling with his own identity and repressed feelings for will which is why i don't think it's fair to anyone that he's forcing himself to be in a relationship he doesn't want to be in and he's pretending to be someone he's not.

so don’t ever say that “will can just easily move on and find someone else” just because you feel threatened that he’s “getting in the way” of mike and el, because that’s absolute bullshit and it's just selfish. none of this is easy for him, and no one even considers how much harder it is for a young gay kid who probably feels so alone and scared and out of place from everyone else around him. he’s watched all of his friends have romantic relationships while he never has, and he thinks he’ll never be able to either which is absolutely heartbreaking.

after everything will has been through and all the teasing about byler, i will be absolutely devastated and furious if they don’t make them canon, or at least heavily imply that there’s a chance for them. will never should’ve been involved in this “love triangle” if they were planning to make mike reject him. that would be so cruel and unnecessary. so many people already treat this character like a joke and shove him to the side, and i’m sick of it. he doesn’t deserve to suffer again. the cast, writers, products and netflix accounts have also teased byler so much and told people that they’ve been building them up, so you can’t blame people for getting excited. we aren’t the ones being delusional here when we’re constantly having things shoved in our face. and in volume 1, they kept mike’s feelings ambiguous towards both will and el. if mike was just gonna run back to el, what’s the point of all that? why did mike and el have a big dramatic fight? why couldn’t mike say “i love you” even when el was crying and practically begging him to say it? why did they confirm will likes mike if it was going to be unrequited? why was mike awkward with will at the airport even though they left on good terms? what was the point in all of mike and will’s emotional scenes and the tender emotional music? why was mike nodding when will was talking about how it’s hard to say how you feel especially to people you care about most because what if they DON’T like the truth? mike already knows what el wants to hear, so why would he be agreeing with what will is saying? why have they made this plot so dramatic if it’s just gonna end up the same way as it has every season and none of the characters have any growth or development? if they chose to get will involved in this just to hurt him, that wouldn’t be okay at all, and people really need to stop dismissing his feelings and think about everything he’s been through.

#will byers #byler #may or may not have cried over will again but what’s new!! #i’m just so sick of people hating on him #he's done nothing wrong #he's the most kind gentle and sweetest character on this entire show #people constantly overlook his trauma and shove him to the side #it's so frustrating and it hurts to watch

[winns-stuff]

(this is likely going to be suupeer lengthy,so my apologies in advance)Hello,What's up?Hope everything's just fine!Ya know since the new chapter seems to be focusing on demeter presumably(I haven't read it nor am I giving half a quick bother since I don't have the heart to watch her be berated and bashed by overstretched , mutant blue felonious gru)I thought I'd come here and discuss a thing in regards to the fandom and her that's been pushing my buttons for quite some time! From the very beginning of demeter's character introduction , fans would compare demeter to mother gothel and would be associating their characters with one another , and let me tell you something!It bothers the hell out of me,to this very day! Like...Don't get me wrong!I'm not going to pretend demeter hasn't made mistakes in regards to parenting persephone, and one thing she did have in common with gothel, was that she lied to her daughter about her identity(the whole fertility goddess jazz),that along with her keeping persephone sheltered, (though not nearly as much as mother gothel). and that IS something that she should be held accountable for!but...MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS IN GOD !!!DO YOU KNOW WHAT PERSON YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT MOTHER GOTHEL???you're talking about the woman that's outwardly been neglectful/ dismissive of her biological daughter cassandra, abandoned her,kidnapped another child for the sole purpose of leeching off said child's ability in order to keep herself young and beautiful again,NEVER genuinely felt love and affection towards her and NEVER let her have ANY connections to the outside world ,to the point that she was thrilled to touch grass!(this sounds kind of funny when you look at it through the modern definition of the phrase lol)Demeter always genuinely adored persephone with all her heart and always wanted to have a companion. Furthermore, given how the gods have constantly exploited young women within the comic's canon,it makes sense that she would be a bit more on the paranoid/protective side (not justifiable,but understandable nonetheless) to avoid her only child to be mistreated by a cruel,unjust system . Also, persephone wasn't COMPLETELY STRIPPED OUT OF COMMUNICATION WITH THE OUTSIDE WORLD,I'm tired of fans acting like flower nymphs, hermes and hecate weren't there to keep her company and given that scene where a younger kore is at a party with hera,I'd assume they still kept in touch with olympus to some extent.Overall, though similar in a few ways to gothel,demeter is ultimately a much more complex, sympathetic and loving character than she is.Hell,if demeter should be compared to any maternal figures in mainstream modern animated media , it should be alma from encanto and also ming lee from turning red, all of these women had noble, sympathetic intentions and loved their families dearly , all of them unintentionally ailienized their families and put quite a lot of pressure and expectations on them and also, all of these women had to deal with generational trauma!But nooo! Demeter is a selfish, narcissistic bitch that deserves to be mocked and get her s**t kicked in !

Phew, Sorry this was super long!I'd love to hear your thoughts about it, and if you wanted to respond, take your time for answering it as much as you want !

Goodbye🌸🌺👋🏻👋🏻

hi hi! everything’s pretty good, and I don’t mind long responses! they’re fun to read! but I once again agree with all of your points. I’ve seen dozens of comments get mad at Demeter because they think she’s going to use Persephone as an item, honestly if anyones going to use Persephone as an item it’s going to be Hades. he’s only ever wanted a wife because his brothers had one, which is why he wanted to pressure Minthe into marrying him even though she told him multiple times how she didn’t want to. I feel like Persephone is only supposed to be there to prove something, she’s only there as an accessory so that Hades won’t be alone and he can be more like his brothers, that’s what their relationship is giving. I just don’t understand why people would think that anyways, when has Demeter ever used Persephone as an item? she clearly loves Persephone and wants the best for her, which is why she wanted her to go to Olympus to study. not flirt around with Hades to the point that she basically dropped out of school, like honestly everyone was just fine with that? leaving all of your ambitions and your friends behind just for someone you met a few weeks ago? Demeter was just supposed sit around and let it happen? genuinely if any one of those fans had a daughter and they were in that situation they would’ve never wanted her to be with him. also, i’m glad you brought up the communication thing because Demeter did not completely isolate Persephone from everyone, we know that she had dozens of nymphs for company and other gods (like hermes, hecate, and artemis) as company as well so it’s not like she was locked up in some island with no one, she wanted to branch out and do her own thing which is fine but Demeter has seen first hand just how predatory and exploitive the kings can be. that’s literally the main reason why she didn’t want to be in Olympus like honestly think about it. I’ve been commenting in so many comment sections that are just filled with people taking Hades’ side and saying how she deserved it and good on him and it’s just filling me with so much unbridled rage because these people are not understanding that Hades is the one who deserved it, he treats all of his staff like absolute shit and he’s never once apologized for it. why is everything he does “hot”? that’s so stupid if you really idolize a person so terrible that you’re willing to embarrass yourself on his behalf I think it’s time for you to do some real self reflection and figure out why you enjoy him being an asshole so much. I’m so sick of this whole “guy was asshole till he meets girl, girl changes guy but only asshole to everyone else”, it’s the dumbest and most toxic trope ever. take it from me, as someone who’s friends with a girl whose boyfriend literally insulted and discriminated me and my friends to point that we had to confront them both just for her to tell us that he’s changed and he’s not like that, it will indeed chase people away from you. no one wants to be around a person who’s a jerk only because you’re not the person they’re with, like we learned this in kindergarten use the damn golden rule because in the long run you’re only going to isolate your loved one and keep their friends at bay if you continue to just be an absolute dickhead towards everyone. there’s so many people who project when it comes to Demeter, they say things like Demeter abused Persephone and how she’s just such a terrible character all while stanning literally all the actual problematic characters. stop being delusional and a hypocrite those are two very bad combinations, pick one. and the mother gothel comparison, well you’ve said everything I was going to say and I agree that Demeter is a very sympathetic motherly figure, she’s raised hundreds maybe even thousands of nymphs so everyone saying she isn’t a good mother is absolutely invalid because she’s basically the mother of the land, she provides love shelter and care for everyone even guests (as seen with Hades’ bitch ass when he decided to get wasted in the mortal realm) while they’re in her care.

#lo critical #anti lore olympus #anti lo #lo demeter #lo hades

[hurremshiv]

what are your in depth thoughts on Mahidevran?

She's one of the most complex and well written characters in the series. And she is overly hated. Especially in the YouTube comments section. #StopCallingHerMahidevil2k23

It's interesting that while a lot of the same criticisms and defences of her actions apply as to Hürrem, she fits a different character archetype. She's not based on the 'girlboss villain' archetype but more of 'wronged woman who was set aside' type of character. Which is not really a character that I'm predisposed to being as drawn to, since the narratives that those types of characters are in do tend to hold them up while putting down the 'other woman' who replaces her. This tends to manifest in the dichotomy between the martyred and suffering 'set aside' woman and the catty and vulgar 'other woman'. A good example of this is, as much as I like some things about Six the Musical, it definitely treats Katherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn with this framing at Anne's expense. I think played completely straight and with nothing else to complicate it, this framing is harmful because it perpetuates misogynistic attitudes and the pre-existing social bias against the 'other woman'. So this was the bias that I had going into the series. That said, it would be deeply unfair to hold this against Mahidevran as a character. Because in these situations, it is far more the misogyny of whoever is writing the series that is at fault. Besides, we get a good sense of both the perspectives of both Hürrem and Mahidevran throughout the show. As they each take the protagonist and antagonist roles at different points in the series. And viewing Mahidevran through only the lens of that archetype would not only be extremely oversimplified and reductive, but it would be so inaccurate that it would be misleading.

In the first 2 seasons Mahidevran is more in the antagonist role than Hürrem is, but the show still treats her fairly sympathetically. For her flaws and misdeeds, there is still complexity. While it’s tempting to see her beating up or poisoning Hürrem as pure malice, there is a lot more to it than that. This is a hurt woman who is dealing with a miscarriage, a breakup, and an increased risk to her own son’s life since Hürrem became pregnant. So she is taking it out on an easy target, and someone who is easy to blame. Which is something that happens in these types of toxic systems. People higher up in the hierarchy take out their anxieties and traumas on the people below them. While what she does is wrong, she is not evil for this. She certainly doesn’t have the genuine malice of someone like Ibrahim. And the show takes the time to show us her feelings and her side of the story. And if anyone comes out looking bad it’s Süleyman. Since he is cruel to both her and to Mustafa. It’s also worth pointing out that while she has the political and practical support of the Valide Sultan, she doesn’t have much emotional support. Since she’s just told to repress how upset she is and to get over it.

An interesting deconstruction of the ‘martyred woman put aside’ and the ‘catty and vulgar other woman’ tropes is the fact that Mahidevran is petty and catty towards Hürrem early on (because hurt people hurt people). And Hürrem takes on these traits as a defence mechanism because of the verbal harassment she was the target of early in the show. Most media that covers these types of love triangles doesn’t explore this angle. Instead, this dynamic is more fleshed out. And rather than just condemning one or both of the women, it also explains why and how they act like this. Why does Mahidevran target Hürrem? Because she’s hurt and she sees her as a threat. Why does Hürrem learn to give comebacks (many of which do contain internalised misogyny)? To defend herself from being targeted. It’s not something to condone, but it is deeply human.

I wasn’t the biggest fan of Mustafa as a character. Not because he’s a bad person. I just found him uncompelling as a protagonist. Particularly due to the amount of blatant authorial favouritism that he got. But it can’t be denied that Mahidevran looking out for him and giving him genuinely good advice as his mother was definitely touching. And I do think that certain parts of the fandom are far too harsh on her as a mother. When she gives him advice, it is usually sound and in the best interest of his safety. And her reaction to Mustafa’s death was upsetting to watch and Nur Fettahoğlu acted that moment brilliantly.

The way the show approaches the ‘wicked stepmother’ trope is relevant to Mahidevran as well. Even though the show’s ultimate ‘wicked stepmother is Hürrem, Mahidevran arguably can fit this character type as well. She is willing to kill Hürrem’s children in episode 55 if Süleyman dies. Although in her defence she is doing this in order to look out for her own son. And she kills Mehmet in episode 103. While the show is aware of her guilt (re. the sin mirror), the way Mehmet’s death is treated is interesting. On the one hand, Mahidevran killing him fits right into the wicked stepmother trope. On the other hand, the show all but forgets Mehmet’s death and even blames Hürrem more than it does Mahidevran come season 4. So Mehmet’s death is Mahidevran’s cross to bear but it is Hürrem’s sin for sending Mustafa to Amasya. And the show not only subverts the wicked stepmother trope for Mahidevran here, but turns it back on Hürrem. Reinforcing her status as the show’s wicked stepmother. So it feels inconsistent. How Mahidevran processes her guilt is interesting though. Because she clearly feels guilt. She feels uncomfortable when Mustafa says he’s going to name his son Mehmet. But she can never verbalise it. I think that her sense of guilt clashes so much with her self-perception and trauma that it’s something that she can never say aloud. Because saying aloud would mean having to confront it in a way that she just could not do.

I did enjoy Mahidevran’s arc across the final three seasons of coming more into her own as she became more distant from the toxic environment of Topkapi. One of my favourite moments is in season 3 when Süleyman and Hürrem are visiting Manisa and she proudly tells Hürrem that she is being referred to as Valide. It’s very indicative of the potential that she had grown into even by that point. And she only grew as a character from there. Her and Fidan judging Süleyman as he flies into a rage at someone in the marketplace was an iconic moment. My one issue with this arc is that the show conflates criticising Süleyman (for being manipulated and corrupted by ‘wicked’ Hürrem) with criticising power and the hierarchy itself. Which just is not the case. I have already tried to make the case that the show wants to have a ‘fight the power’ aesthetic while also buying into the source of that power. And that definitely applies here. So as good as her arc is, unfortunately her telling Süleyman that ‘The Sultanate is just an earthly struggle’ falls flat for me. Because that ‘Sultanate’ and the schemes and politics are all upheld by conquest - something that the show not only does not criticise but glorifies. And the show celebrates the empire itself. Saying that the system would work if only the right person (in this case Mustafa) was in charge does not constitute a true critique of that system in my opinion. Although this could be applied to how the show portrays Team Mustafa. and Mahidevran is not the character the most affected by this in the slightest.

So my overall conclusion I guess is that I enjoy her as a character, but I struggle with the way in which the show frames certain characters and conflicts. And that affects how I see Mahidevran.

#mahidevran sultan #magnificent century #answered #zeldaxviii

[nonclassyparty]

from an objective point of view i do think san is a bad person. or at least was! having an explication for it doesn’t make up for the fact that he knowingly hurts people and manipulates them for his benefit. also, at what point do we stop calling it self sabotage when it includes hurting everyone around you in the process?

sure he has been clear with from the beginning that he doesn’t date. but he knew she loved him and chose to keep on hurting her and stringing her along for an entire year just so he could keep his “favorite girl” by his side, which she only was because she was the rich and unreachable pretty girl and he managed to have her wrapped around his finger. he watched her go through hell and he didn’t care, let her be insulted by yeosang on a daily basis and never once stood up for her while she took it and stayed quiet because she loved him so much. he called it friends with benefits but never took an interest in her on a personal level and basically treated her like a sextoy. obviously yn should’ve walked away at some point but i think san is also to blame. telling girls “i don’t date” at the beginning of the arrangement doesn’t opt you out of treating the girls you sleep with as human beings with feelings who deserve respect.

and then going back to her after he broke up with that girl because he knew she would just cave in and take him back, then acting like “well maybe i shouldn’t have c come to your house but you shouldn’t have let me in”.. like knew she would let you in and fuck you because you know she loved you and couldn’t resist

and what he did to yeosang was just so fucking sad. how can you call someone your best friend and then go and knowingly use their feelings so you can manipulate them and get what you want? i’m glad yeosang finally put his foot down and stopped talking to him. i think he told san that he wasn’t worth the effort it takes to love him? and as cruel as it may sound he was right… san needs to go to therapy and grow up. i understand he has daddy issues and that your trauma isn’t your fault but the way you treat people is still your responsibility

i really hope he’s coming back as a better person after these two years!

hhmmmmmmmmmmm those are all great points but they're from y/n's point of view and not an objective one 😭

he fucked up with yeosang (besides betraying y/n's trust and telling her secrets to his friends, thats his other fuck up imo). it was a horrible thing to do, there's no further explanations or defenses there. him betraying her trust in the end and using ys' feelings to his advantage at times are the worst things he did in this story but is he a bad person with no redemption possible for it? would that mean that people aren't allowed to fuck up? 😭

"sure he has been clear with from the beginning that he doesn’t date. but he knew she loved him and chose to keep on hurting her and stringing her along-" lets stop right thereee 😭 "he knew she loved him" and what? if yunho told y/n he had feelings for her while she considered sleeping with him just a fun silly little thing would that make her responsible for his feelings? no, bc they're both consenting adults who know what they agreed on. it sounds harsh but objectively, thats just the way things are. "choose to keep hurting her" when? if anything he was keeping his relationship with boyoung a secret from her bc he was trying to not hurt her and just let her down gently by ghosting her😭 even tho yn deserved to know the truth, he thought he was doing her a favor bc knowing u got dropped bc he actually decided to commit himself to another girl despite saying he doesnt date would hurt a lot more. "stringing her long" when? when did he ever genuinely give her hope that their relationship could grow into something more? "let her be insulted by yeosang" hmm yea that is shitty, even if he doesnt care about her it would've been nice to defend her bc hes the one that brought her to their table in the first place. "never took an interest in her on a personal level" bc friends with benefits is always just tiptoeing around what the relationship is actually about, which is SEX. they agree on being actual friends much later and after that they actually DO begin to learn about each other and with that his demeanor towards her begins to change.

when he's standing at her front door she literally says something like "if i told him to leave i know he would" because their relationship was never san trying to keep her tied to him but it was her latching onto HIM. a nice guy would've probably said "ok u have feelings for me which i dont reciprocate, lets end this bc u are hurting yourself" but san said it himself, he never deemed himself an honorable guy so in his head its like "even after telling u i wont ever love u and that u should've slammed the door in my face bc getting back together is a bad idea, you STILL want to fuck me?" that was on y/n. he's not the bad guy but just a guy thinking with his dick 😭 can he really be blamed for playing off of her decisions? it was always on y/n to decide when to finally let go of him and that was not something he could do for her because at one point she was so far up her delusions that even if he said "hey lets break this off" without boyoung in the picture, she still wouldn't have given up.

san will always be a bad guy if we look at him through y/n's eyes but if we detach ourselves from her feelings a little bit.......😭

[snarkylinda]

I always thought he acted more happy in SuMo

I guess this is regarding my last ask about wanting Ash to suffer because in JNs he is too happy-

Yes, in SM he IS more hyper and overall happier (but that is mostly regarding the comedic nature of the show) but I don't have an issue with him being happy, I love my sunny son, what I have an issue with him is being JUST happy.

Except for the Bea arc (That I.....don't like) Ash hasn't show struggling with other emotions much. Sure there is a scene on early JN where one of the TR agents take Pikachu and he feels clearly devasted, but that is it really. I like Ash because despite being an optimistic he is also quite sensible, and even OTHERS'S Problems can affect him badly, case in point:

(when Dawn losses at the first round for a second time is a better example since it shows his face directly, but I don't have the frame rn lmao)

Mostly he tries to be strong for his friends and don't let it show, but even then we have glimpses of his inner turmoil over seeing them upset. The closest thing we have of this is on a later PM episode where he looks sad over Goh being left behind by his competitors. And that is really good, but I want MORE of it. MORE of how his empathy bites him at the-

Now back to SM, where he is happier because, quote: "this is a paradise!" Ash's expressions are even MORE apparent due to the more expressive animation, so we have gems like this ones:

this scene is legit so good. We don't SEE Gladion's face as he is yelling at Ash in that part, but based on his body language alone (from submissive to defensive) and his expression the audience can yell that it musn't be pretty. Ash never says anything back because he KNOWS Gladion has every right to come for his throat after he WARNED HIM. THIS shit has WEIGHT on Ash. He doesn't look sad, or worried, he looks DEFEATED. And I am not touching other big hitters like Stouland''s death, Nebby and Poipole leaving, Nanu's arc, the Minior scene, Guzma, SM100-101, the finale....Cause that is very obvious and you get my point.

Hell, you don't even have to touch subjects like trauma or death to show your main character showing weaknesses, here, a petty conflict:

(he is adors) he literally spent all ep worrying over disappointing everyone in school cause Rotom was forcing an academic presentation on him, ad Ash being Ash, failed completely. His desperation is mostly played for laughs but this moment here is genuine and shows an inner insecurity about...you know, Ash not having the most articulated speech.

SM has lower stakes for Ash as a trainer because there is not time limit for him to pass all trials (there is but he doesn't know this until, again, Nanu's arc.) before the league and even his edgy rival is really nice to him (*covers with a blanket the scene I posted before* I mean he is not unnecessarily cruel) so while losing to him MOTIVATES him, it doesn't affect him since Gladion is a great guy and it doesn't hurt him on the personal. Again the exception to this are Nanu and Guzma, but they were moments instead of an overarching plot.

But as a person- well.....my boy was put through SOME REALLY messed up shit.

So yeah, Ash can be as happy as he wants to as long as I don't have to wait for like 50 episodes to see something else from him.

[traumasurvivorshelpingsurvivors]

Hi! I'm the justice/revenge anon again. I think I'd like to vent a little, and give a bit of an update.

(tw's are: emotional abuse, stalking/harassment mention, smear campaign, victim-blaming/DARVO, and the frustration of when there's just no justice in sight, at least in the conventional sense of it. But also I feel...hopeful??)

So, my abuser was ditched by the "Someone New" (SN) that he was love-bombing. I don't know what happened, and I think it's better that I don't know, but all I know is that SN left after he hurt them, just as I had feared, but since all I know of is because SN is a friend of a friend of a friend, all I hear are the echoes of it through social media.

I got curious, and decided to have a look at what he did in the aftermath (bad idea).

My abuser blames *me* for what *he* did, because apparently he was "profoundly triggered" when SN enforced boundaries, since it reminded him of his "trauma" (of how me leaving because he was abusive to me was "traumatic" to him--I am not one to invalidate but how he uses this to excuse/justify himself deeply disgusts me), hence why he lashed out at the Cool Person.

Then he flips and claims that I abused/harassed him, accusing me of the very things he did to me. I did no such thing. Then he calls himself names in public, claims he's going to go to therapy and that he's going to retire from social media until he figures himself out, then deletes his accounts.

Then less than two weeks later mutual acquaintances now have this new social media account following them (it's obviously him) and this guy just wants to... start over. He's already been confronted by people who recognized him, and he claims he changed, and he claims he wants to "prove himself to the people he hurt so they can find peace".

It's frustrating. And pathetic. My abuser infuriates and disgusts me, but for some reason I also feel pity towards him. He's reaching his 30's but he's profoundly immature, and knowing his patterns of behavior all I can do is quietly watch as he keeps going from person to person and unravel their lives. And he was already a very lonely person when I first met him, and as he grows older and pushes more people away he'll only get lonelier.

My urge to out him has simmered down, because I know he'd immediately use the opportunity to flip the script, but also because I realize that I don't owe him anything, let alone any or energy I'd have to spare if I were to out him.

I feel for the people he crosses in his path, and I still wish he'd rot, but I don't want to let him live rent-free in my head anymore. I'm moving on -- although I think if he were to rear his head in my life ever again I would not have the strength to hold back my urge to expose him.

But I think on some level he knows that I would put him on the spot if I ever saw him again, and he's one of the most cowardly people I ever met (he's practically allergic to accountability, to the point of faking not one, not two, but four suicidal episodes as responses to being called out for his behavior, and he would spontaneously get better if you dropped the matter or did what he wanted), hence why he's finally left me alone, after harassing me for literally years after I tried cutting him off.

Maybe "my revenge" is simply the knowledge that my abuser lives in constant self-inflicted misery, unable or unwilling to see how his abusive behavior is the reason he always ends alone. And I think that that is a much more cruel "revenge" than anything I would ever be capable of doing to him. In a just world he would genuinely take the steps to become a better person so he never hurts anyone the way he hurt me ever again, but that seldom happens.

I don't think I need to out him anymore. I just need to focus on evicting him from my head now, and the first step to do so is by letting go of my fixation on justice and revenge. I'll also heal faster if I don't let myself steep in my bitterness; I wasn't a bitter person before all of this happened, and I don't want to become a bitter person because of someone like him.

Thank you for your advice and responses on my previous asks, here's hoping this is my last update about this guy 🤞

Hi anon,

It sounds like you've done a lot of processing and healing from your experience, and you've arrived at a point in your recovery where you want to prioritize evicting your abuser from your head. I'm proud of you for coming such a long way and having the strength to reach this mindset, as even I am trying to get there.

Hope you're doing well. Please let us know if you need anything.

-Bun

#mod bun #trauma talks #justice/revenge anon #tw abuse #tw emotional abuse #tw sui

[flintsjohn]

i’m not letting another alien die. not until i get some answers. not until i know the truth.

#michael guerin #roswell nm #roswell new mexico #rnmedit #rnm spoilers #long post // #torture cw #why. did they have to put him through this. WHY!!!!! #like genuinely at this point it's just cruel how much trauma they put him through #i hate this!!!! i hate it!!!! take it back!!!!! #hmmmm the stuttered lines.........kill me. end me #all of the prison scenes were too yellow and im too tired so. bnw it is #roswelledit #my stuff #my gifs #my edits #edit200 #edit500

[uwuwriting]

Affectionate moments with the Todorokis

Request: Can I get some Todoroki fluff and when I say todoroki I mean all of the todoroki children thank you very much- anonymous

Okay now we can proudly call Dabi a Todoroki. The waiting is over, we’ve won this war ladies and gentlemen. I need some soft Dabi right now so I’m happy to oblige. Love ya. 💖💖💖

masterlist

rules

warnings: fluff, maybe some angst if you squint

Dabi/ Touya Todoroki 

-He isn’t the most affectionate person both in private and out in public. 

-The maximum effort he will put while out in public might be just a hand on your lower back to ground you when things are kinda spiraling out of control. 

-But apart from that nothing. 

-Now when you were just fuck buddies he couldn’t care less about affection.

-He was just here to have some fun and then he was out the door. 

-But when things change drastically between the two of you and he realizes that he really can’t stand the idea of losing you, his demeanor changed. 

-He had come to see how important you were and how dependent he had become of your presence. 

-Boy really couldn’t function without you around. 

-So he changed his antics around you. 

-He no longer left after your shared nights and he would even go as far as to hold you or help you clean up. 

-You thought that that was the most you were going to get from him, that he had nothing else to give apart from those moments of affection. 

-You were wrong though. 

-After a rather hard mission he would come and cuddle you  out of nowhere. 

-He would bury his face in your neck as his torso lay between your legs while you gently stroked his hair. 

-It would help him fall asleep most of the time but on the rare occasion he could manage to stay awake he would talk to you. 

-Those conversations weren’t of any value; it was dumb stuff that came to mind and he just felt like sharing. 

-Then after one too many close calls he would begin to tell you your importance. 

-After witnessing you almost getting killed time and time again, making his heart almost come out of his mouth every time you nearly dodged an attack he couldn’t hold back. 

-He would pepper you with kisses as he would flip you over so you were on top of him, your head tucked into his neck while his rough cheeks would rub on your plush ones. 

-It always hit him hard when he couldn’t protect you. 

-He wasn’t *that* stupid, he knew his job wasn’t to protect you and that you could handle yourself better than anyone in that dumpster fire of a league but he couldn’t stop himself from worrying. 

-Those shared moments of pure domesticity and normality between the both of you made it hard for him to deny that he was indeed falling in love. 

-And he hated it because he knew that at some point, when push comes to shove, he would have to choose between you and his goal. 

-And he wasn’t so sure what he would decide to follow. 

-When you broke the news to him that you were expecting, around the time Shiggy was putting his grand plan into action, he knew what he would choose in an instant. 

-But you wouldn’t budge; you knew what his dreams meant to him and you wouldn’t let him throw it all away for you. 

-He could have this new life after the battle, after the dust had settled and all had been revealed. 

-So, with a camera in hand, you helped him make the masterpiece that would show the world who Endeavor really was. 

-And you couldn’t be prouder of your lover. 

Fuyumi Todoroki

-Ahhh soft girl hours. 

-Okay now Fuyumi is the type of person to go all out for their significant other. 

-So PDA is on the table even if it makes her a little uncomfortable at times. 

-She’s kind of a people pleaser so as long as you are happy she is happy no matter how uncomfortable she might feel at the moment. 

-But like the great girlfriend that you are, and because you would kill for her, you push her to tell you what she really thinks about certain situations.

-And the moment she tells you that PDA is kinda meh, you yeet yourself away from her. 

-Holding hands wherever you are is a must, a request or rather a demand made from the queen herself. 

-She just likes feeling you next to her and what better way than holding your hand? 

-Apart from that demand of hers she never ever asks for anything else in that department. 

-Like girly believes that you have to earn your love and others won’t just give it to you. 

-That you need to prove yourself as useful so you can get affection. 

-An effort-reward dynamic. 

-And you can safely assume that we can’t have that here. 

-THIS IS A LOVE INFESTED HOUSEHOLD GET YOUR ASS HERE AND TAKE SOME OF MY LOVE.

-When you ask her to move in with you, she sees that as her opportunity to shine, to show you that ‘oh I’m not useless’. 

-Baby will try doing all the house work and such. 

-You legit have to call her to cuddle. 

-You’ll be working on your laptop, sprawled on the couch when you see your girlfriend just mopping. 

- “Fuyu come here.” 

- “But I still have to-” 

- “Forget about that, you’ve done enough I just want to hold you.” 

-She just flushes bright red before putting the mop away and moving to settle in your lap.

 -Her head is on your shoulder while she plays softly with your hair, her legs stretching across the coach as you continue to type mindlessly on your computer. 

-You give her the occasional forehead kisses while she nuzzles your cheek. 

-Last we have chaotic girlfriend hours when she’ll straight up straddle you and start doing your makeup. 

-You both burst out laughing every five minutes because you get overwhelmed due to the fact that she’s a) straddling you and b) she’s too close to your face and you can’t help but want to kiss her. 

-I want a girlfriend…..

Natsuo Todoroki 

-College boyyyyy.

-He is in general a neutral person. 

-I mean he will give you a kiss on the cheek while he is leaving for his class but he won’t full out make out with you in front of others. 

-So things are pretty chill between you two. 

-He has almost the same mindset as Fuyumi so at first he would try to prove himself to you so he would be worth your love but once you caught on you smothered him. 

-Now baby loves his kisses. 

-He needs them to function okay?

-Every morning he will wake up and if you have slept over he will wake you up with nuzzling his nose in your neck and softly tracing shapes on your stomach.

-Then after his kiss good morning and his first I love you of the day he is ready to go. 

-If however you are in your dorm/apartment, he will sulk until he sees you. 

-He has that puppy love. 

-Natsuo suffers from trauma from his family. 

-It’s common knowledge. 

-He hates looking weak, especially in front of you, so whenever he has a fight with his father or Touyas’ anniversary rolls around he tends to become distant.

-Try as you might, you can never truly get him to speak to you about those issues and let you help you. 

-You weren’t part of his childhood, you don’t know what it was like but you can try to make him feel better. 

-In reality you were ready to devote your every waking minute to him if he let you. 

-But that Todoroki pride gets in the way and he doesn’t let you see him like that.

-Until the villain attack when his father saved him. 

-Endeavor looked so genuine when he talked to him and all he did was scream at him. 

-Was he too cruel? 

-So he made his way to your apartment and without missing a beat he attached himself to you and finally, finally, letting himself be vulnerable. 

-After his break down you started to rock back and forth before turning on your stereo and putting on a slow song. 

-Taking his hand you started dancing in the middle of your living room, Natsuos’ arm wrapped around your waist bringing you flush to his chest as his head stayed buried in your hair. 

-You would hum the tune as you moved around. 

-This became somewhat of a ritual whenever things got bad inside his head. 

-You would just put on that song and calm him down. 

-And that was the best thing someone has ever done for him. 

Shouto Todoroki 

-Ah poor baby.

-He is touch starved like very touch starved. 

-My mans is out there longing for someone to tell him it's okay since the age of five. 

-Anyways. 

-He really doesn’t know how to communicate his needs though so you’ll have to figure out on your own what he wants. 

-He might recoil at first but don’t be disheartened. 

-Baby has been abused ever since he was born so of course he will be reluctant to let anyone touch him. 

-Subtle things are the go to at first. 

-Linking your pinkies under the table or maybe sitting closer to  each other.

-Kisses are rare and far apart but they exist. 

-Now things change after some time. 

-Depending on his relationship with his parents that is. 

-When his dad starts to try and redeem himself and he wants to be an active part of his sons’ life *GET THE FUCK AWAY BITCH*, Shouto is really conflicted. 

-Especially when he doesn’t get his hero license on the first try. 

-So that’s when his touch starved side comes into the light. 

-He’s stressed out of his mind and he needs comfort but of course he doesn’t know how to convey that to others. 

-You pick up on it and start giving subtle reassuring touches. 

-Squeezing his hand when you notice him spacing out. 

-Giving him a quick hug before he enters class in the mornings. 

-And as time goes by you peck him on the cheek before he leaves. 

-He becomes addicted and soon enough he’s initiating things on his own, giving YOU kisses each morning and coming to your dorm for “study” dates turned to cuddle sessions. 

-You guys have a ritual for whenever things get extremely bad; when he can’t seem to stop flinching away from sudden movement, when he can’t recall anything about his older brother or when Endeavor says something again about his friends/you. 

-He will come to your room with a pillow and some snacks if he remembers them. 

-You’ll put on a movie and he’ll just sit in between your legs, his head tucked under your chin as you run your fingers through the soft strands. 

-He might break down, he might not, it depends each time. 

-But he knows that this time he doesn’t have to face anything alone, that he is loved and cherished and that you’ll be there to pick him up when everything seems meaningless. 

TAG TEAM AY:

 @the-arcana-fan-fic @angelwritings @axerrri @reinyrei @dnarez @bemorefiction​

#shouto #shouto todoroki #shoto todoroki x you #todoroki x reader #todoroki x you #todoroki x y/n #shouto x reader #shouto x you #shouto x y/n #shoto todoroki x reader #shoto todoroki x y/n #dabi x reader #dabi x you #dabi x y/n #touya todoroki #dabi is a todoroki #bnha touya #natsuo x reader #natsuo todoroki x reader #natsuo todoroki #natsuo todoroki x you #natsuo todoroki x y/n #fuyumi todoroki x reader #fuyumi x reader #fuyumi x you #fuyumi x y/n #bnha #bnha x you #bnha x reader #bnha x y/n

[sepublic]

Luz understands Lilith

           “Oh… my GOSH,”

           Obviously Luz is pretty shocked at Lilith’s progress in a good way, but I also have to wonder if she’s also taken aback by Lilith’s reverential manner towards her?

           Like, two weeks ago this was someone who looked down upon her as a human ‘pet’, almost killed her, treated Luz like garbage beneath her, was terrifyingly so much powerful… And yet now, Luz is getting to see this actual side of Lilith, a Lilith that’s operating in a happy, comfortable environment and isn’t rigid to the façade placed by the Emperor’s Coven;

           And like… It’s kind of a little unnerving? A bit adorable, but also a bit unnerving, how Lilith is clearly latching onto Luz as a positive authority figure and source of validation. How quickly she’ll change everything and use Luz, who she once looked down upon, for that kind of guidance, because Lilith literally knows nothing else.

           I think it’s sinking in to Luz just how, well… Stunted Lilith is. Just how damaged she’d been on a developmental level, emotionally and mentally scarred and traumatized, that she’s basically regressing- Assuming this isn’t just how Lilith always was, and I can honestly see it that way.

           Luz is realizing just how messed up Lilith is, and I think it causes her to feel a bit more understanding and sympathetic towards her now… Obviously it doesn’t make up for the curse nor trying to skewer Luz, but now Luz can see how easy it is for someone like Belos to take advantage of Lilith, brainwash and coerce and threaten her into doing things for him. And Belos no doubt knowingly contributed to a lot of Lilith’s issues and dependency as well!

           I think this better understanding of what Lilith is ACTUALLY like, how she really is just damaged and lonely and in need of actual validation and unconditional love… It’s giving Luz a newfound appreciation for Lilith and for what she went through, and why she did all that beyond some sort of cruel, petty spite. I think Luz is beginning to see Lilith’s side of the story this way, and it’s helping her understand how to handle Lily and her issues from here on out, and feel a little more forgiving.

           It’s honestly a really cute and sad moment, but I think it opened Luz’s eyes quite a bit, to see the kind of person Lilith ACTUALLY is, not necessarily some spiteful monster or whatever. It might remind Luz of herself or even Amity, Amity especially because that girl is clearly on her mind, and Lilith DID mentor Amity… So if Luz understands Amity, she might understand Lilith better, and be able to better sympathize and realize how to help Lilith, and where things went wrong for her, how she made those mistakes, and so forth.

           And, I think that understanding is only going to increase when Gwendolyn visits… Assuming Luz is around when this happens. But yeah, I think Luz is beginning to genuinely feel sorry and sad for Lilith here, and it might influence her treatment and how she handles Lily from here on out- Obviously Luz would always be happy to hand out gold stars, but seriously, with how Lilith so eagerly lays herself out as a doormat to anyone who can show her kindness and make her feel good, that obviously doesn’t bode well for her, and makes it clear to Luz that she really was manipulated in so many ways.

          Lilith was always looking for guidance and was starved of that as a kid, never given the chance to really grow as a person, and Belos definitely sought to prevent Lilith from developing any sense of independency and self-worth. I think it’s really sinking in for Luz that this woman was abused for the vast majority of her life, if not ALL of it, because again, Gwendolyn. 

          And she’s now reaching an epiphany that will better help her approach Lilith with nuance as not this cruel, spiteful bully necessarily, but at the very least, quite a bit more than that, all of it stemming from a damaged core that doesn’t deserve this.

          Which, Luz was able to connect with Amity when she saw the person she really was inside, Luz is naturally compassionate… So I have hopes for Lilith here, especially with Hooty helping as well! With how easy this lady cracks, I think Luz can really relate to a whole new degree, and that’s such a quiet, succinct way of showing the compassionate understanding between the two develop, as Luz recognizes the common ‘humanity’ (for lack of a better phase) they have in common.

          It’s just a subtle yet major Aha moment for Luz, to pile onto all of her other thoughts with Amity that day as well. This was no doubt a VERY exhausting episode, both physically, as well as mentally and emotionally for Luz, with plenty of complicated feelings, about Lilith and especially Amity. 

          I think Lilith is still going to pick herself back up based on what we see in Echoes of the Past, but these brief glimpses where she kind of lets herself go are no doubt insightful to Luz. Again, just a very quiet yet meaningful and succinct way of having Luz realize who Lilith really is, very cleverly and efficiently done, a moment that shows Luz everything she needs to know and figure out from there. 

          Just the very weight and meaning behind Lilith’s sudden shift of authority figure, her need for validation and respect, the genuine work she puts in, but also her clear passion and effort- It really is very impactful, a single sentence worth an entire book in my opinion. Luz doesn’t necessarily need Eda or Lilith to spell out all of the abuse and trauma and history, just this brief interaction tells her everything, and I think that’s kind of brilliant. 

          Lilith bared her soul to Luz, and that alone already says a lot, but the fact that she chooses to do this with Luz of all people, when not too long ago she looked down on her from a petty sense of elitist pride, because Lilith genuinely needs to feel good and at times better than others… That, too, says a lot. Lilith happily handed over all of her trust and everything to Luz, invested it all and forfeited her sense of self to this other person to decide for her, like of course she’s supposed to devote all of that at the drop of a hat!

           And Luz’s reaction low-key amounts to; “Welp- THIS explains quite a bit!” Such an understated, easy-to-miss, yet SO to-the-point scene that effortlessly lays the groundwork for everything that Lilith and Luz need to work things out, just like that. It leaves open so much space and time for everything else, and I appreciate that a lot.

#the owl house #the owl house lilith #lilith clawthorne #the owl house luz #luz noceda #analysis #meta