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sporksaber · 3 years

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Ok, I love the role swap concept with zuko and azula, but I feel like they switch their abilities and personalities a bit too and I think itd be more fun without that. Where Azula is an antisocial and unstable genius who wants to gain power and zuko still struggles with being the less powerful and extremely empathetic sibling. So here's how I'd do it.

(Note, this is just for fun. I'm not saying anyone else's version is bad. But I've though about this so much and need it out of my head before I go off cuz make a whole comic and I do not have the time, i need to work.)

First off, Azula wouldn't call out in concern for the men like how zuko did. In my version she's allowed into the meeting because of the aptitude for strategy shes shown. She speaks up because it's an inefficient plan that uses up too many resources when there are other options. This enrages her father and leads to the agni kai. Azula is terrified and feels betrayed but has no idea how to handle any of it. She fights back during the agni kai, but in her panic she sets off a bolt of lightning. Ozai finishes the match and severely burns on her lower back. Azula is banished for her use of lightning on the fire lord (bc ozai fears she will no longer be easy to manipulate and might plot his death) and is forced to leave the next morning.

Some things to note: azula is eleven at this point. I changed the placement of the scar bc I think zuko's is very symbolic in a way that doesnt suit azula. Zuko's scar being over his eye and close to the light chakra shows the way his view of the fire nation and honour obscures his vision and how he is unaware of the truth of the world under fire nation rule. I set azula's over her spine because that chakra is based on survival and blocked by fear. It also represents trust which will fit into her arc with the gaang. Finally, she doesnt have Iroh to guide her. One of the things that bothered me was Iroh writing her off as evil despite her being a mentally unstable child. She did have to be defeated, but the way he talked about it was too dismissive. (Personally I think he was projecting his views of his brother and his perceived failures with him onto her.) Azula isnt sent to capture the avatar so she isnt given soldiers. She's completely alone without an advisor to look to or keep her calm.

Azula is given a manned ship with a disgraced soldier and an attendant when she leaves. The way I see it the soldiers zuko had were probably more irohs than his. The soldier is relieved to not be executed but hates being demoted to playing babysitter to a child at sea. The attendant views it as a punishment and hates Azula for it. Eventually the attendant will betray her and be killed for it. Azula never trusted the soldier and he eventually leaves to start a family in an earth kingdom colony. Azula doesnt miss him, he was no longer useful. The loneliness does get to her though.

Azula is obsessed with getting the underhand, so she had been successfully building connections and planting spies where needed.

(Zuko has been acting as a respectable crowned prince. He holds a zealous loyalty to his nation and father. He still faulters as Iroh tries to steer him from tyranny, but his sights are set on his father's approval and that alone. Afterall, if his prodigy could be discarded who's to say what would happen to him if he failed?)

This brings us to the start of the series. Like Zuko Azula witnesses the trap on the old fire nation battle ship go off. She investigates and finds that an air bending avatar is living at the south pole village. She decides she wants to speak with him.

Azula didn't believe the avatar existed before this point. Hiding didnt add up to her knowledge of the morality of airbenders, so she assumed the air nation avatar from the start of the war would be dead. She would know if one had appeared in the water tribe, as the south had all its benders killed and the north was compacted so close together it would be impossible to hide. Earth would be harder, but they were most likely to fight back and out act. And if in ba sing se they'd be used as a weapon or gotten rid of to preserve the peace of the city. Once the culcle progressed to the fire nation it would either be used to take over the other nations or enf the cycle for good. After all, there hasn't been an air bender for a hundred years even if the rumors of some acolytes surviving were truthful.

Azula kidnaps aang with far more ease than she should of been able to. Once he stops struggling she calmly offers him tea and promises to release him once their discussion is finished. He takes the tea and drinks it without question and besides a wary glare shows no more hostility. She thought him a fool, the tea could have easily been poisoned and promised are nothing but words. His naivete makes her job easier though.

She finds out that he was suspended frozen in the avatar state the last 100 years. And so, Azula informs him of the war and the fire nations crimes, advising him to master the elements if he wants to prevent all his new friends and the avatar cycle from certain destruction. Aang is conflicted, he never asked for any of this. Azula just gives a bitter smile. "The hands of fate were never designed to take requests, they move without regard to any life dependent on it. Dont waste your breath when there is nothing you can do."

Azula wants to see Ozai fail. If helping the avatar is what it takes then so be it. When his friends appear to save him she let's them leave without a fight. Theyll be useful in the future.

As the gaang's travels kick off she sets out to find out if the rumours about the acolytes are true. In this she finds a traveling circus. The youngest daughter and an old friend of hers was eager to escape and found Azula's life exciting. She didn't hesitate after being invited along, insisting that traveling would be easy for her and that she'd pull her own weight.

She encounters the gaang a few times as time goes by. The relationship is reluctant on the water tribe siblings part, they dont trust her and hold a decent amount of fear towards her. Her cold and calculating demeanor was unsettling, but the unhinged way she fought was terrifying. Her form was perfect and her attacks were precise, but the bigger the fight the more lost she became as she laughed and shrieked and occasionally snapped at someone who didnt seem to be there. The only worse reaction was when she zeroed in on one opponent, picking them apart both mentally and physically as she drove them to the ground. )

Things that'll happen as I move through an episode list:

Azula doesn't have her ship attacked do she diesnt run into zhao while doing repairs, instead going straight to ty lee.

Azula learns that the gaang is on kyoshi island and heads ther after them. She has been keeping track of the avatar as they move. Ty lee gets along well with the kyoshi warriors while azula buts heads with them. They dont want her there and azula hates it when people get in the way. Zhao appears to try to capture aang and Azula dips at the same time as the gaang. She tells ty lee she can stay but she insists on sticking with azula. This puts her on edge.

Ty lee gets captured by earth benders, when she escapes on her own she cements her usefulness to Azula.

They run into zhao trying to capture the avatar and azula tells him she'll capture him first. They both attack aang during the solstice, though azula's attacks are all purposefully set to miss and trip up zhao as much as possible. Aang is the best way to prove her father wrong and she's not going to lose that.

They rob the pirates that try to capture the avatar. Azula needs the resources and it gives her leverage over the gaang.

After almost killing ty lee for scaring her by popping up behind her Azula tells her why she was banished. (In more of a "my own mother thought I was a monster" way than an opening up about trauma way.)

Azula learns that zhao has captured aang and frees him. She then sets to reworking her information network as not all of them are scared enough of her to not fail her. She remedies it quickly.

Azula learns that zhao is plotting her assassination and decides it's the perfect moment to fake her death.

Azula enters the north pole to defeat zhao and gain any information she can. Ty lee rades a library during the confrontation. Zhao is surprised and infuriated to see her alive, Azula smiles as she sends him to his death knowing that she is not only helping the avatar but also that he gave her a perfect way to hide from the fire nation. (When news of his sisters death reaches hum, Zuko doesnt know what to think. She was always cruel to him, but she was still his little sister.)

The crown prince of the fire nation is sent to capture the avatar. Azula follows him as he begins his search. (Zuko begins to think he's going insane as he keeps catching glimpses of his recently deceased sister out of the corner of his eye.)

Ty lee keeps running into a girl she slowly befriends. She's gloomy and sarcastic and ty lee thinks Azula would like her. (Zuko's fiance Mai tells him that she thinks his sister is still alive.)

As Azula notices ty lee become more and more distracted as she absorbed herself into the cultures that surround them she decides it's best for them to split up. Ty lee diesnt agree, but Azula leaves anyway. She has work to do.

While traveling alone Azula cant escape the thoughts of her mother. Of her fathers betrayal. Of the life she lost because the idiot elders had no grip on proper strategy that even a child could create. She meets a boy that reminds her far too much of zuko with a mother far to similar to theirs. When she sends the bandits controlling the town running she knows it's more than just controlling a territory that compelled her. But at the same time she doubts not following through on the whim would have bothered her.

Ty lee meets toph and chat for a bit. Ty lee tells her about azula and how she left. When toph tells her she should forget her she insists that azula didnt really ditch her and that they're still friends. They talk about their friends and childhood.

Ty lee finds Azula and immidiently jumps at her, which she does not enjoy. Ty lee insists that she still wants to travel with her and Axula sighs as she let's her tag along to the next location, ba sing se.

Azula slips through guards and protocols as she tries to gain any information she can to help her once they reach the city. Ty lee befriends a guy named jet and his group, the freedom fighters. When he tries to get more than friendship she turns him down and it becomes much more awkward.

Ty lee becomes a street performer and chames everyone she meets as Azula researches the dai lee and how they keep control. After lashing out in frustration ty lee drags her out to enjoy the city's night life.

Azula learns of the presence of the avatar and location of appa. She frees him and sets to work taking control of the dai lee. She let's herself be briefly captured but her plan shifts when katara is thrown in with her. Katara is pissed just being around her and azula plays up a cool kind of annoyance. Katara briefly catches sight of the burns on Azula's back and offers to heal her, only for Azula to freak out and yell at her to stay away, backing against a far wall in a fighting stance. They are saved by the rest if the gaang and ty lee shortly after.

Azula goes back to try and salvage her plan only to be caught off guard by the appearance of her brother and his offer to return to the fire nation. Not willing to lose all possible advantages, she agrees. They battle the gaang, and when they are almost captured azula sends a bolt of lightning at aang, causing them to retreat. Katara can heal him more easily than she can maneuver them out of an execution.

Azula returns to the fire nation with her brother, mai and ty lee, starting the beginning of a large power play between her and her father. They are sent to lo and li beach house. The relationship between the siblings is tense, zuko has always been the child born with nothing who gained everything when his blessed at birth sister lost it all. Azula has always been cruel, but he cant help but let his heart catch on the moments when she's not. ("My own mother thought I was a monster, My father thought i was too difficult to keep around" "Don't let their words blind you, you need to be more careful, zuzu." "I learned the hard way to never turn your back to anyone, and the scars will always be there as a reminder if I need it." )

Azula runs into iroh, who is very disapproving of her presence. He warns her to stay away from zuko and to watch herself while at the palace. Later, zuko comes to her asking about their great grandfather. Upon being pressed he admits that he was sent a mysterious letter. He thought she was going to burn it when he handed it to her but instead the heat from the fire revealed a hidden ink. "Honestly brother, did you ever pay attention at all during lessons?" They find a autobiographical scroll of their great grandfathers life and the secret that their other great grandfather was roku. Azula scoffed at the idea of bloodlines deciding fate and quickly left. But Zuko remained conflicted.

During the day of the black sun Azula confronts Ozai. As iroh and Zuko fight the avatar. She learns that her mother left for zuko's sake and that she was never going to be fire lord. Azula tells him she'll be somthing even better and leaves the palace.

Azula and ty lee follow the gaang to the western air temple. Katara immidprntly attacks but is quickly rendered unable to bend by ty lee. Azula tells them that the only way for them to of gotten out was for Aang to be incapacitated, and she knew katara could heal him. Aang decides they can stay but have to stay distanced from everyone else.

Azula tries to teach aang fire bending but is slowly growing sick while aang is barely able to produce a puff of smoke. Unable to sleep and constantly on edge, it soon affects her bending, sending her spiraling as she loses control on the only consistent power she's ever had. Her and aang journey to find the true source of fire bending to try to help their conditions.

Still sick, Azula is itching to do anything away from the temple. Finding sokka trying to reach the boiling rock to find his father, she decides to go with him as she knows the prison well. Sokka declines but she goes anyway. They dont find his father, but they do find suki. Azula formulates a plan but they postpone when sokka's father arrives.

Azula comes up with a new plan, now reluctant to include sokka. He tells her to trust him but she insists she has no reason to. Her sickness has been getting worse and he tells her she needs to trust him, making her angry. Only when he catches her while they're escaping dies she finally begin to accept trusting him, if only slightly.

(While they're away ty lee tries to convince

Azula goes with Katara to find the man who killed her mother. Azula has no concept of why katara is so upset, which causes her to get angry. But azula tracks the man anyway.

Ember island players- azulas character has the scar across her chest. She's absolutely insane and "not entirely inaccurate, but I'd never come up with such a dumb plan." Shes also heavily implied to be more than close to ty lee, which azula has no reaction to even as the others freak out.

I havent decided the ending, zuko will probably turn to the gaang's side. I'll add more later and maybe write or illustrate a bit.

#avatar the last airbender #atla azula #firelord azula #azula deserved better #atla au #role swap au

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mrsjadecurtiss · 3 years

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The thing that we won’t have a roose chapter it’s kinda sad. Like we will never know if doing certain things (like the red wedding) didn’t minimally affect him or otherwise. Like we can’t forget that he doesn’t EXPRESS his feelings not that he hasn’t any. I know Brabrey said this specifically but as wise she is she can’t read others mind. I’m not justifying any action I’m only saying it would be interesting finding out he actually “gives shit” about things he did. And I know the probabilities of this being true are very low, but as a person myself who has difficulties to express my emotions and seems apathic to others while I feel emotions with the same intensity as everyone I was curious.

Oooh now that you sent your second ask the original one appeared! My reply got a little long; I will use quotes from your ask as “chapter headers” for the different topics so it is easier to understand.

“We will never know if doing certain things (like the red wedding) didn’t minimally affect him or otherwise. [...] I’m not justifying any action I’m only saying it would be interesting finding out he actually “gives shit” about things he did.”

I don't think Roose feels *bad* about the red wedding - he didn’t have to do it after all, it's not like he was under coercion or threat of his life; arguably the entire thing wouldnt have worked without having a strong northern traitor. While Robb's cause was a losing one and this influenced Roose to turn cloak after weighing the alternatives, Roose was not in danger under Robb and his betrayal appears to have been about both minimizing his waste of resources in a losing cause as well as the advantages he can get from this new alliance and what Tywin offers.

Roose appears to fundamentally be a selfish man, who decides his actions after what will give him the most benefit at the smallest risk to his own person. Any regrets i imagine he might feel (this could be what you meant in your ask) would be not on a moral level, but rather about mistakes he made that led him into a position that might not end well for him, and the danger he has gotten himself into.

Roose Bolton said nothing at all. But Theon Greyjoy saw a look in his pale eyes that he had never seen before—an uneasiness, even a hint of fear. - aDwD

Roose to me represents the worst of feudalism, and the epitome of how someone turns out who is raised at the top of this society and with an unchallenged privilege. He has no respect for the autonomy of the people below him in hierarchy, and sees politics and the power at his hand as a tool to benefit himself first and foremost.

“We can’t forget that he doesn’t EXPRESS his feelings not that he hasn’t any.”

Agreed - for all that he is evil and callous i believe it is shown that he has feelings and emotions, which he generally hides under a mask.

Roose Bolton's own face was a pale grey mask, with two chips of dirty ice where his eyes should be. - aDwD

We know he feels fear about his crumbling political situation, he feels fondness for Walda, he appears to talk about Domeric with affection, he is amused enough by Arya not to punish her, he refuses to break the taboo of kinslaying, and something drives him to keep Ramsay around even though it is not advantageous rationally. He has his wants and needs, he has societal expectations he adheres to (like the expectation to continue his family line), he has a distaste for being disrespected...

As an example of him showing emotion, in the Red Wedding itself i believe grrm intentionally contrasts his behaviour with the prior Jaime chapter: where in his dialogue with Jaime he seems relaxed, talks a lot and is shown enjoying his food, in the Red Wedding he is quiet and doesn’t eat much while exchanging subtle threats with Lord Walder. This appears to show that he was indeed stressed in this high-stakes situation and aware of the danger he was in. Note that the quote from aDwD about him showing fear also explicitly points out that he says "nothing at all" in a time of stress, paralleling his lack of dialogue during the RW chapter. (Catelyn is depressed and so probably not talkative, but he also doesnt engage in dialogue with his wife despite her “chatter”).

I wont expand on it too much in this post for length's sake, but i think it is also likely that Roose shares traits with Ramsay in terms of emotionality (which he then hides under his “mask”, as opposed to his openly emotional son); For example his behaviour of not tolerating disrespect and taking what is "his" in the event with the miller's wife. Some i also briefly touched upon in this meta.

“I know Brabrey said this specifically but as wise she is she can’t read others mind.”

In “The Prince of Winterfell”, Barbrey has a long paragraph about her opinion on Roose. As this is her first longer scene, it is my opinion that her entire long dialogue scene with Theon is meant not only to show insight into some of the characters she talks about, but also about her own character; since the way someone talks about people shows how they think.

The negative way she talks about Roose ( “Roose has no feelings, you see.”) seems to be informed by several things:

- Obviously, his callous and selfish personality and lack of morals

- The fact that Barbrey and Roose clearly have history. Considering that Roose now has Ramsay as his heir, and Barbrey loathes Ramsay for what she believes is his fault in Domeric's death, Barbrey likely harbors some resentment against Roose for this move. This likely boosts her opinion that he is completely emotionless and only "plays with [people]" without caring for them. Her line "He does not love, he does not hate, he does not grieve" seems to contain a certain bitterness, and i believe it at least partially refers to their personal history (one could try to continue her words: he does not love [Barbrey], he does not hate [Ramsay], he does not grieve [Domeric].).

- Barbrey calls Theon's heart "craven and cringing", she calls Wyman Manderly "craven to the bone, that one", and she holds a grudge against Eddard for what he did to her without presenting much understanding for his side of the story. I believe she has a tendency to have a slightly superficial view of people or at least to talk badly about these superficial aspects, informed among other things by their appearance (Ned and Roose are plain, Theon and Wyman have physical deficiencies) and presentation (the colder Roose/Ned vs the outgoing wolf-blooded Brandon), and by the slights she perceived they did to her. She also has a tendency to scapegoat people to cope with grief, like hating on Rickard’s maester for Brandon's marriage.

So while she is right about Roose' callousness and moral bankruptcy and has some correct statements, as a fallible character (as opposed to the all-knowing author) she likely somewhat designs her view of him to fit her own narrative and worldview. So while she is an enticing source since she is close to him, her view on him should be taken with a grain of salt the same way she is not 100% correct about people like Ned or Wyman. Some things she says can be argued with through character analysis, and some things we have concrete quotes we can contrast: For example while she says "I think [Roose] would be pleased if the fat man attempted some betrayal", we know that Roose is in fact worried and bothered by the prospect, and in his dialogue to Ramsay it reads like he describes the unfaithfulness of his allies as threatening instead of an amusement. She also theorizes Roose wants to be king in the north, which seems like an impossible plan in his current political situation and nothing we had any hints towards so far in his scenes (I sometimes like to muse it might have been a reference to grrm's plans for the five year gap).

So basically what i would love a Roose PoV for is turning all the "apparently"s and "maybe"s from my metas into either confident statements or to deconfirm them... Showing some more of his view on the world, some more of his past, how he really feels about people without filtering it through dialogue and political goals... His worries, his anger, his happiness, raw and unfiltered... His long scene with Theon in Reek III practically doubles as half a PoV chapter because of the insane amounts of exposition in his dialogue (Theon barely talks or thinks for pages while Roose talks), but it is still filtered through Theon's impression of him and the agenda Roose might have behind his spoken words to present himself in a certain way.

I like to analyze his character from his lines in the book, and what few quotes I find by grrm in the So Spake Martin collection round out my impression of him well, but I would love to have a view inside his head to really get to the meat of it, and get a view of his true personality without the help of assumptions and implications.

#asoiaf #roose bolton #asoiaf meta #asks #Anonymous #i also relate to what you said about a difficulty expressing emotions and appearing closed off to others #its why i think people shouldnt see roose' closedness and coldness as his entire personality... seems a very onedimensional way to view him #people who are really just 100% unfeeling and aloof usually pretend they arent

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idealnreal · 4 years

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Maruki Palace over-analysis (pt.1)

Thank you for @appleyjuiceboy for helping me out with this and entertaining my brainrot. and to @goalexstark for requesting this :D Now buckle in, put on gentle madman, and a whole lot of insanity under the cut

So the best place to start is outside the palace. Specifically, the external architecture of the palace. It’s clearly very contemporary even futuristic in its design, while holding an organic form. It’s design reminds me of rotating tower concepts with the way the first half of the tower curves and twists. And the palace itself does seem to rotate and shift, especially the components in the top half -- accentuating the organic and dynamic futuristic design. However, in comparison with most contemporary and organic architectural designs, the external architecture isn’t minimalist. There are various components, that make the design seem chaotic and even Extra. Of course this is a palace, and we should expect that.

The middle section of the palace is a twisting glass ‘stairway’, surrounding a golden almost ‘woven’ like structure. There is an elevator shaft running through the middle of it. This elevator leads to the garden of eden section of the palace. While the peak is a hologram of a globe, surrounding an amorphous golden form -- that seems to be the source of the light. Strangely enough we don’t see the tree of eden from outside. That would’ve been neat. But alas. The we come to the rotating rings, bound by these golden ‘wires’, and have these camera lenses attached to them.

So, the architectural style of the lab is futuristic, organic and dynamic -- and completely whack. This reflects how he thinks that his new reality is also effectively a new way, a new future -- breaking past the confines and rules of even the most contemporary of architectural design, and breaking past the confines and rules of life and reality.

All throughout the exterior of the palace there are these limelights and cameras, rotating about, focusing it’s lenses. This alludes to how he gives each patient his full attention, to be the centre of attention, to be in-focus. Alternatively, it could also suggest an over protective, surveying/ supervising mental state -- ever watchful for anyone in pain.

The entrance’s design, in comparison with the rest of the exterior, seems very straightforward. If you take away the glass atrium, the grey structure in the middle would actually be very imposing. The gold ‘wires’ arcs also surround this area, giving it an organic and dynamic design. Note that these aren’t doors, but an elevator. From the get go, Maruki is taking patients up, above ground.

Stepping out of the elevator, from the dark and up a flight of steps, into the light, we are greeted by a flight of doves-- accentuating the idea that the entrance hall is an open-aired space despite being indoors. This becomes a theme across the palace, going back and forth from high-ceiling and open-aired sections, to very closed and claustrophobic corridors. There are also those golden ‘wire’ arches decorating the ceiling of this entrance hall. In contemporary architecture, big atriums and open-aired spaces are meant to promote airflow and natural light, to give visitors a sense of ease and relaxation, while also being a respite from any harsh conditions outdoors. The sound of the doves taking flight add on to the peaceful and calm atmosphere.

Like all information boards, Maruki is showing people the benefits of his research, how it works, and most importantly, evidence that it does work -- that it is for the best. The amount of detail and the number of charts on these boards suggest that he is being transparent with his research -- and that it is scientifically proven. Of course, no one real (beyond the phantom thieves, shibusawa and the professor) has read this research. The people outside who’s cognitions he had changed, did not need to read this research -- they only needed to wish for happiness. Even so, these boards reflect his belief that if people know about his research, about how it works, they can be convinced into accepting his help. The cognitions who talk in the entrance hall also tell the PT to give it a try, and were understanding of any hesitance and were reassuring.

Also notice that the walls of the hall are lined with flower-beds, specifically wildflowers -- Calling back to Rumi’s love for the wild-flower field and Maruki’s youth with her. It also fits into the open-ness of this section that these are not potted deliberately arranged plants, and it would seem that these flowers just grew out in the patch of dirt and grass left for them.

Here, we come to the reception hall, where there are a few components to note. The first is probably the huge fan topping off the very high glass ceiling -- again, adding to the idea that this palace is all about natural light, air circulation and a breezy peacefulness. Then we have those golden wires/cable things (they actually remind me of computer cables), wrapped around these cameras and helping to prop them up and move them. THese cameras are also propped up by these black thin wires -- and the gold and the black -- hinting that there is more going on here. On the huge cameras themselves, now they seem more like surveillance cameras than the camera lenses outside. Adding credence to the idea that this is a big brother type situation, but one that is just reALLY keen on making sure everyone isn’t suffering and is happy.

The design of the reception itself is well organised, with lined benches and the calling numbers on full display. When i first played this section i thought that this was more like a hospital -- not a lab.

The next section is this green house looking area, with a tree and a garden in the middle and four TV screens. We don’t know if these screens are meant to play memories of anyone who comes by but that’s what we see-- Sumire walking in as her father is crying over Kasumi’s body. Importantly, after this section we see a cognition of Kasumi who sees and waves at Sumire, and then once we meet Maruki, he shows us another video from Sumire’s POV of the accident. Also the room we see the cognition of Kasumi and meet Maruki is a gymnastics arena.

This is important because we know that this is Maruki’s palace, and not Sumire’s. How is it that these POV memories are in this palace, and that Maruki would have a cognition of Kasumi? Of course one can argue that he created these memories and the cognition of Kasumi based on what he knows of Sumire/Kasumi -- and was doing this to manipulate her. But this definitely isn’t the case. He has never met Kasumi, and from what we can tell, he only had one session with Sumire, who didn’t really give any details of the accident itself to Maruki, or speak of her father to him. I doubt that Sumire as Kasumi would’ve spoken to Maruki about the accident after -- as she was more concerned about her gymnastic performance.

Perhaps this will get to personal headcanon territory, because the game doesn’t give us any answers on this. So Maruki is definitely an empath, and while that doesn’t give him the affinity to gain other people’s memories -- I believe that with Azathoth’s power and with this palace, it does. We know that he can see into people’s minds and know their pains and wishes -- which would very likely come in the form of memories -- whether it be persona users or mementos dwellers. Also, being an empath means that he can feel what another is feeling. Or rather if i can describe it -- letting someone walk through the door and change the furniture around. This is Maruki’s palace, and yet he is allowing Sumire to walk in and see her own memories from her point of view. Therefore, while i think that Maruki has access to some of these memories, they’re supplemented and brought into focus by the presence of Sumire. At least that’s what my hc is.

Speaking of the gymnastics arena, we arrive at our first colour switch of this palace. Dark purples and violets. It doesnt look like the walls or floors are purples/dark -- but instead some purple light, and that the big lights aren’t turned on on purpose. Like discussed before, this seems very much like Sumire’s section of the palace -- and Maruki allowing her to ‘move the furniture’

Something else to note thanks to juicedup14 from twitter for these translations of the banners, tickertape/crawler text, “We’ll watch over you always” “ The ideal reality you haven’t seen is waiting for you” “ May the world be a happy place where no one suffers”

And these posters, translated “ Let’s keep our hearts healthy”.

After a week we return to the palace and head to the Auditorium. This time, this is definitely Maruki’s section of the palace. Unlike the Arena, the Auditorium is a circular and bright hall, flanked all around with seats and podiums and screens for presentations. Yes, Maruki’s cognitions of people are fuckin creepy, but this is where they are the creepiest. They’re all sitting in rows, faceless and happy -- and have their hands together clapping. There is also a hologram of the globe topping off the ceiling -- like the hologram globe outside. This is where Maruki’s research will and has gained global recognition -- presented to thousands, and seen as the panacea to all ills and suffering of the world.

I went into more detail in my analysis of the shadows, but tldr; the cult-like vibe this palace, and especially this room, gives. However this ‘religion’ is founded on research, factual and scientific evidence. Which is why we have those presentation screens and all the information boards in this first third of the palace. And given how his research has been suppressed and ignored for years, it makes sense if those cognitions are his converted detractors, his followers, as well as his ‘patients’. Maruki doesn’t deny wanting his research to be recognised, and this is what this room is dedicated to. But like he says, and ultimately what the rest of this palace will show -- Maruki wants to heal the world at whatever the cost.

And with this i’ll probably close this off here. I reckon this will be one of four or five parts, kinda split to how the game splits this palace. This will be a long and wild ride ladies gents and enbees. Oof.

#(( sorry the screenshots are a bit all over the place #(( i took them from youtube letsplays and a few from jester #(( i still need to reach maruki's palace again on my NG+#(( hopefully the next few parts i will have better content <3 #takuto maruki #c: the self #f: notes #persona 5 royal #p5r spoilers

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voidselfshipp · 3 years

Text

The Bells Of New York

Cw:mentions of a woman being harrased,implied sexism (cause its 1700)

A/n: much singing cause you know,cannon Is a musical

~~~~~~~~~~~

The horn of the boat blew as it was tied to the docks the plank fell and the servants went down it with the language of two very important guests.

Jerico jumped down the ramp holding her umbrella in one hand her father,Raymond dragged his feet to his daughter, who was looking around the place.

Suddenly a sound distracted her,the chime of the church bells.

--Father,isnt this beautiful?

Mildly annoyed her father said--yes my dear

--Do you see the snow around Us?--She sang-- Do you feel the peoples Will to change?

Oh look at them living their lifes, every day hearing the bells of New York square coming to life?

Jericos dad took her hand and stops her,singing--I see the desire in your eyes my dear but we have one hundred Years for our Revelation, we cant draw any attention

A is Woman getting harassed on the street,jerico goes to save the day to be stopped by her father

--This is unnacceptable look at all of this!--she sang with anger--This place needs some change, te digo yo que si!

--We have to wait,theres not time yet

--This town needs change

And that ill bring my way.

For I am the revolutionare

In the streets of New York! Get ready world cause i am here

And with me i bring change

To The sound of the beautiful bells

Of New York!.

Raymond sighed taking her into the carriage.

The Manor they stayed at was big enough for jerico to run around the place.

Before she could however her dad gave her a dress, not her style.

--AND a corset too?this is bull--

--no no,no swearing

--what is this all about?

Her dad sighed taking her hands-- im sorry dear but we need to act as it is normal here, the world is not yet ready for where we come from..

Jeri stormed off into her room upstairs bregudgingly putting on her dress.

--whats the matter dear?--vica, her helper said, putting on the corset.

--I dont enjoy getting my lungs crushed....

Vica laughed and nodded--it is quite challenging but after all the wars youve been through, I think this is nothing compared to you and your armor

Illa came in with the traditional terran dress,she put it on smiling at the familiar feeling of the lightweighted green fabric, the exposed shoulders and the turtleneck.

Sadly for her she also had to put on the cumbersome Pink dress of the eighteen Century.

--This is so annoying!--jer slammed her hands against her desk, while vica did her hair--I get to Keep my hairbun...at least

And so she heard the trotting of horses, she peeked through the Window to find two men stepping out of the carriage,she gasped softly and ushered her helpers approach.

Vica and illa leaned in,--who are they?-- she asked.

Vica smiled fixing their suit--alexander Hamilton and marquiss lafayette, your dad is helping them with the revolution, they catched your eye?

Jerico shook her head with bright Pink cheeks,and a knock on the door informed her that it was time to go to the dinning room--anyway we should get going,come on guys

Vica and illa transformed into cats,vica a black cat and illa a white one.

As jeri Walked down the corridors she couldnt help herself but to sing--would you look all around us, this luxury they gave us, just because.

The red carpets that cover the floor, all this Marble pillars and Stones,the biggest of mansions its all white and enormous, but with it they come prices to pay.

Like this stupid Pink dress...!--she went down the stairs picking up her cats--but at least our guests are quite the catch, wonder what they Will bring for us...--she stops singing entering the dinning room.

--Mr Hamilton, monsieur lafayette, my beautiful daughter, jerico.

Raymond put an arm around her shoulders and Walked her to sit Next to him.

Hamiltons breath hitches when their gazes meet, she had the deepest of green eyes he had ever seen.

He trips and falls over his words, trying to explain their plans for the revolution,lafayette wasnt of any help as it seems the beauty of their acquaintances daughter was making him nervous.

Raymond wasnt pleased with the two men after his daughter,who seemed to be rather amused by the mens behaviour.

But thank god, after a minute of trying the plan came across rather well, and with dinner everything calmed down a bit.

There wasnt Many places where jerico could add her own point of view, as part of her fathers "fit in" plan she wasnt allowed to add in conversations she was allowed to back in her home.

So right after she finished eating she excused herself and went to the big garden where she took off the dress and hung it in a Bush.

--Finally free!--she sings-- finally me!, can you feel the breeze blowing in the trees?!--Her cats walk closely-- do you see the clouds passing by in the night Sky?no rules to follow no stupid plans to act by, its me, myself and I!...--she twirls and falls to the Grass-- every small being, working day and night, the animals sleeping and stalking around?.

Oh how I miss being free, no stupid rules to follow,no plans to act by, just me...myself...--she made a pause- And I...

She sighs putting her knees against her chest and her arms around her legs.

Vica purss against her side--I cant wait to go back home...I cant Belive dad would make us act as something we arent,I dont like those dresses,I hate being diminished for the gender I was asigned at birth..I hate those corsets and I hate to act pretty and shy so the men arent scared away!

Suddenly a Man offers her his hand,he looks up.

Hamilton smiled softly--Then why obey by something that makes you feel so bad?-- he said helping her up.

--youre not supposed to see me like this..--she said gripping the sleeves of her dress that gathered at her wrists.

--See you by how you truly are?

--yes...--she sighed looking away.

He takes a few steps closer--if I may--he takes her hand and she meets his eyes-- I think youre very beautiful just the way you are, you shouldnt abide for something that tells you you shouldnt be you..

--The whole situation is serious,and we cant risk it..

--but that doesnt mean you should Hamilton licked his lips and offered his arm--let me take you for a walk

She took his arm--if you think you can change my mind,youre wrong mr.hamilton

He chuckled softly--can I try?

--youre welcome to

And so they Walked through the garden, the quiet chatter being interrupted by soft laughter and terrible puns.

When it was time for him to leave he escorted her back to her room,and smiled.

--Will you come to tomorrows meeting?--Hamilton asked.

-- I dont think my father Will let me

--Then lets make a plan, ill leave the meeting early and ill meet you at the gates of the mannor,ill take you to town and ill give you a tour

--youre insane--she said with a small smile--i like that

She pressed a soft kiss against his cheek--good night, Alexander --and so she closed the door changing into her night gown, and falling on the bed.

During the ride home Hamilton couldnt stop thinking of her.

And she wasnt able to fall asleep thanks to the thoughts of him that plagued her mind.

Somehow someway they knew they were meant to be.

#self insert #self ship #my f/os #self shipping #f/o x s/i #romantic f/o #f/o #f/o community #✊the revolutionare✊#f/o fic #hamilton tag pending

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fmstevie · 4 years

Text

* ╰ waddup y’all ruby’s back 2 annoy u all w a lil british fuckboi action . here’s stevie , inspired by matty healy n thinkin she’s a god among men . i don’t recommend u read on but in case u do i pray u forgive me enough 2 want plots w that like button . 🤡

new york’s very own 𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐕𝐈𝐄 ‘ 𝐆𝐑𝐄𝐘 ’ 𝐆𝐑𝐄𝐘𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐍𝐄 was spotted on broadway street in doc marten smooth leather chelsea boots . your resemblance to diana silvers is unreal . according to tmz , you just had your twenty - second birthday bash . while living in nyc , you’ve been labeled as being 𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐭𝐨𝐮𝐬 , but also 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐞 . i guess being a cancer explains that . 3 things that would paint a better picture of you would be erudite inclinations informed by a god complex , melodrama as your magnum opus , & the world’s most secretive love life . ( i had a secret marriage that lasted 6 months but ended due to my fear of my family’s mafia ties getting in the way . ) & ( cis female & she / her )

𝒏𝒂𝒎𝒆 : stephanie charlotte greystone 𝒏𝒊𝒄𝒌𝒏𝒂𝒎𝒆𝒔 : primarily stevie , although her stage name is ‘ grey ‘ which has caught on as a go-to nickname . takes little to nothing else wilingly 𝒂𝒈𝒆 : twenty - two 𝒛𝒐𝒅𝒊𝒂𝒄 : cancer 𝒐𝒄𝒄𝒖𝒑𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 : professional musician with a voiceclaim of lorde , on temporary hiatus to write grey3 . casual photographer 𝒈𝒆𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓 𝒊𝒅𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒕𝒚 / 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒏𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒔 : cis female / she her hers 𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 : pansexual w strong female pref but tbh if u can handle her energy she’ll b down WKERWJER 𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 : 5’10 🤤 𝒍𝒂𝒃𝒆𝒍𝒔 : the hedonist , the aesthete , the opaque , the vainglorious , the prodigy , the intangible concept 𝒔𝒐𝒏𝒈 𝒊𝒏𝒔𝒑𝒐𝒔 : rhiannon - fleetwood mac / WHAT U CALL THAT - chase atlantic / iceberg - borns / UGH - the 1975 / boss bitch - doja cat / elephant - tame impala / black hole sun - soundgarden / black madonna - cage the elephant / this charming man - the smiths / swim - chase atlantic / 1999 WILDFIRE - brockhampton

tw drug mention

𝒊. 𝒅𝒊𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒕𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏.

there is perhaps no more a formidable surname in the organized crime circuit in all of europe than greystone , a name risen to fame through countless court cases and highly publicized trials . dubbed ‘ el chapo of the old world , ‘ liam greystone makes his reputation known as a ruthless and conniving leader of a million dollar cartel business , distributing to most of the UK and eastern europe . it’s perhaps an even greater shock to find even as public enemy #1 , he takes a welsh wife by the name of marissa and weds her in a lavish and very public ceremony , surmounting crowds not unlike those of the royal weddings . such a decision is a clear power move on his part , flexing the pure influence it would require to have such a public family life with no fear of repercussion from rivals or enemies .

it’s several months following their wedding that james is born , with nicholas taking a few years after . elite prep schools in the most posh london neighborhoods were abuzz with equal parts curiosity and concern to be sharing streets with the most feared mafia family in their whole country , though the elite nature of liam’s new societal presence meant he took to his ‘ dealings ‘ with a but more subtlety than before his rise to power . something of a media frenzy , it’s the talk of the town when marissa falls pregnant another time , nearly a decade after nicholas’s birth , this time with a baby girl , something that’s all the sun and mirror can seem to post about in their celebrity tabloids section for weeks on end . her birth raises questions of immense speculation : what will the world do with a greystone girl ?

as it would result , they’d worship her . stevie found herself raised in a world that sought her out at every turn , cameras pointed towards her at every outing . james and nick , now teens by the time she enters primary and just as big of terrors as their father , view their lavish lifestyle as the result of some bigger destiny for greatness , as their father had always fed to them , something they passed on to their baby sister who took it as her mantra . one of the earliest manifestations of a rather intense personality , stevie takes this to an extreme , turning her unwanted stardom into a fuel for an ever-increasing god complex to develop . the apple of her father’s eye and every bit as quick , her instructors note a dedication to perfection and an obsession with accomplishment , along with a natural intelligence that leads her to blast through her studies with relative ease .

she’s just 16 when she completes her schooling and already has a reputation that will precede her , just as her surname had before . relaxed and observant , her voice never peaks higher than a low alto with her charming londoner drawl , a facade never cracking from her knowing poker face . there’s something about being so above everyone ( even if it is a self-imposed superiority ) that leads stevie all but to the brink of isolation , finding solace only in the words of a self-deluded father and her own scribings in a leather bound notebook . piano lessons since early childhood lend themselves to melodies following melodies , and before she’s even able to legally drink , she’s released her first album under the moniker ‘ grey ’ titling it pure heroine as a cheeky nod to the inevitable accusations of it being her family ties that got her a record deal . but as streams of the melancholy tunes begin to pick up fans worldwide , the album’s themes of isolation , abandonment , and wasted youth hit harder than ever anticipated from the youngest greystone . she leaves home to tour the world with the album reaching #1 in countless countries , forging her own path with a maturity beyond her years and a vision beyond this world .

the tour ends and she’s smitten by the charm of new york , opting to move to continue to pursue her music away from the tangled complications of family life in england . barely 18 and perhaps intoxicated with the loneliness of a life spent in the watching eye of others , the semblance of privacy is something she takes to like an addict , exasperating prying paparazzi with her notorious refusal to comment on details of her personal life . she builds a wall between herself and the world , keeping out prying eyes with a tight - lipped grin . its at this time that she lets the first person into her life perhaps ever , a whirlwind romance so intoxicating it results in a courthouse marriage done in secret . never to be seen together , never a word spoken to anyone else , stevie relishes in the secret which is soon to sour upon the passing of their honeymoon phase . with her brothers expanding their reach into the US for their unsavory dealings , it’s not long after her marriage begins that the conflicts reach a breaking point , an annulment following barely 6 months after they had traded ‘ i do’s . ’

she takes to the studio with a new resentment of the concept of love and even more sequestered heart , producing melodrama which takes the world by storm , snagging her a grammy win for album of the year . fatigued from the constant go-around of keeping her secrets her own except for when they’re taken to radio streams , she does a limited tour for melodrama and lands herself right back in new york at 20 , putting grey3 on the backburner as she takes to all the hedonistic engagements she had indulged herself in during her time on tour . she’s kept herself busy between mindless flings and days-long benders with hobbies such as photography and writing , the former of which is building her a rather impressive reputation in the arts world .

𝒊𝒊. 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒆𝒒𝒖𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 .

if y’all ain’t tired of me yet god bless u . .. . bc i straight up b tired of myself :/

anyways dis is stevie , also accepts grey the same way ppl talk abt lorde n switch between ella n lorde ! she’s not picky :~)

major inspos are matty healy from the 1975 n hayley kiyoko if she was less of a try hard . little bit of kristen stewart in there , big 2016 ruby rose energy n brie larson top me tomfoolery as well !

basically da ��fuckboi of ur dreams .. .. . lil devilish londoner who stays thinkin she’s the closest thing to a god on this green earth !

notably , she’s incredibly intelligent and profound , tends to take on a rather patronizing and condescending tone bc she straight up b thinkin she’s usually the smartest person in the room ( how annoying )

so laid back n observant , rlly has no need to raise her voice ever bc her arguments b runnin circles around ppl ! imagine the way harry styles talks low n slow n calculated. . . . . cameron from love is blind ,. .. . kristen stewart lowkey sometimes .. .. .. das grey . sexy ass alto monotone 🤤🤤

i dont wanna use chaotic bc she rlly isnt the WILDEST bitch but that god complex means she deadass thinks she can get away w what she wants n she usually does ? less of a chaotic evil n more like a neutral evil lmao she can follow rules just fine she jsut prefers whatever suits her better

on that note — OBSCENELY self obsessed . follows her own natural whims n impulses bc that’s just what appeals to her . is inclined to follow rules if she calculates itll work in her favor bc she also doesn’t like to look sloppy !

super secretive and OBSESSED w her presentation . every movement is calculated n she doesnt want anyone seeing a side of her that she hasn’t designated for them ! she doesn’t care what other ppl think but she DOES care abt what she sees herself doing n her vision . doesnt fit the vision ? will NOT happen in her book .

straight up a WHORRE lmao she likes 2 fill the void left by a lack of human connection w sexual intimacy n then is like nice imma have u leave now love LMAO . does not discriminate and is rlly inclined to follow any sexual impulse

this was implied but her relationships are super messy ? does the leonardo dicaprio thing where she will never fuckin discuss her love life in interviews or anything so ppl just gotta SPECULATE . she lets ppl post all they want abt her but she wont say a WORD abt them JWHEKJWH her socials r basically just abt her n her music we said SELFISH lads . she’s bad @ bein tied down n is probs polyamorous as it stands but im p sure she has cheated on every single person she has ever been with lmao

lowkey a shit friend most of the time lMAO she can b really unreliable bc u guys can have plans n then she takes someone home n misses yalls plans n then texts u 4 hours later after all ur missed calls n is like my bad bruv i got tied up AS IF THAT FIXES IT KWEJKWJEKWE

chain smoker n its nastie but lowkey sexy somehow :/ , will ONLY wear outfits that r equal parts thrifted n designer , always has her hands in her pockets n if her jacket has a hood its UP like a big ole homo , is rlly annoying bc shes good looking n KNOWS it so she uses it to her advantage , wants 2 get her motorcycle license , judges u based off the music u play in the car , judges u on everything tbh.

#wealthyhq:intro #* ╰ . 𝒔 . 𝒈𝒓𝒆𝒚𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒏𝒆 . › introduction .#sorry 4 dis trash hittin the dash 🥰#just COULD NOT wait n format any longer

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mysmedrabbles · 5 years

Text

RFA Reacting to MC Growing Up an Orphan

requested: by anonymous

a/n: oof this actually turned out really cute so here ya go lads! enjoy!! if you’d like to buy me a coffee click here

warnings: light alcohol mention, but filled with fluff and comfort and kindness (saeyoungs delves more into abuse and emotions)

-somft mod alex

Jumin

-its a semi drunken night when you tell him, you’d finally gotten Jumin to loosen up after a long workday, and were now on the couch together, Jumin’s head on your chest as you ran your fingers through his hair lazily, letting the alcohol dull your mind as you listen to him rambling about his childhood

-it must have been an offhand comment you made that sparked his attention, making him rise from the comforts of your lap as he stares at you incredulously. you sheepishly tell him your story, and although he’s sensitive with you as to not upset you, he’s horrified to learn that you were constantly neglected in your childhood, growing up without a place you could actually consider a home

-he listens to you, quietly concerned as the alcohol hits him hard, and the next thing he knows he’s passed out on your shoulder.

-when he wakes up he has only a faint recollection of you telling him of your past, but he doesn't bring it up; partially because of a raging headache and partially because he didn't want to upset you, you looking so at peace reading something on your phone, a loving smile forming on your lips as you sense him watching you

-he’s not one to go in full steam ahead (well- he is, but he reAlly wants to be subtle with this) but he tries his best to make living together feel as homey as possible

-he talks to Yoosung, the Professional at all things Family, and realizes that he should tone down the money spending to ensure your comfort and instead use that time to do things together, bond over small dumb things.

-knows that as much as he would want to go back in time and fix your childhood, give you the love you deserved, find you a home, the past cannot be changed. so instead he opts on building the sense of family between the two of you

-he takes you to ikea (Saeyoungs idea), and the two of you find new furniture, something that fits your tastes as well, to redecorate the penthouse.

-imagine jumin trying to assemble ikea furniture

-he gets frustrated with having to do things like a commoner, but bless him he’s trying his best to do it for you, and the way your face lights up whenever the two of you do something “domestic” or “familial” makes it all worth it. it’s a learning curve for him too, and despite his protests he cant help but admit that he was missing a lot from his childhood too but it brings him peace knowing he’ll soon be building a family with you ;^)

-he’s not willing to get rid of the giant aquarium pillars, however he lets you get them some cool aquarium furnishings and plants

-goes grocery shopping with you more often, and overall spends more time with you, even telling chef to take the weekends off from now on, opting to cook together instead, and even though most of the time things end up burnt or tasting weird, all that matters is that the two of you have fun

-everyone thinks he’s lost his mind, including for the RFA, who's in the corner crying because “What happened to our cold emotionless Jumin Why Is He SO Domestic”

-teaches you to waltz

-the day you make an offhand comment about how you consider him your family, he stops and starts tearing up, pulling you into a tight hug as you confusedly kiss his cheek, only slightly worried about him

Jaehee

-it was one of the first things the two of you really talked about, a kind of bond forming over past trauma and losing a part of your childhood.

-she’s a very action forward woman, knows that she can’t change the past, but she sure as hell can help you heal from it.

-she takes you to show you all her favourite sweets from her childhood, and takes you to spots she loved sitting in as a kid, trying to share these experiences with you

-she challenges you to a race to see who can climb to the top of a tree the fastest, and it’s one of the few times you see her truly free, giggling as she watches you struggle up the branches, meeting you with a kiss when you finally reach the top, and with her it feels like nothing else in the world matters, that in that moment the only ones that exist are her and the sunset, making her smile shine, casting an ethereal glow on her face as she caresses your cheek lovingly.

-tries to take more breaks to spend more time with you, building more memories in places that most people deem “kiddie places”

-yes im saying she takes you to SkyZone and/or a ball-pit

-she gets lost in the ball-pit, slowly sinking lower and lower as you have to dramatically rescue her

-diner dates, sharing a milkshake and relaxing together after a long day of work, and although none of it can bring back the past, her devotion to giving you fu childhood related memories lessens the pain, and the memories that you build with her of course will always last forever

Yoosung

-he’s always so excited about meeting your family, about joining two families and building a new one- with this boy its always about family, so how the hell do you bring up that you dont actually have one?

-when you do finally tell him, he stops in his tracks, trying to process how that could be

-he’s a good listener, bless him, and he listens to your story, how you were mostly in and out of orphanages and foster families and grew up a child of the System.

-at first he doesn’t know what to do with the information, and feels the deep pangs in his chest when he realizes that you missed out on so many things growing up, things that he took for granted

-you already view him as family, (frankly its hard not too, his general attitude towards you, the constant loving gazes, the way the two of you were always there for each other, mixed with the annoying comments of the RFA on how the two of you are “so married” making it hard not to), but he still sets out to make you feel like his family is yours

-this means he introduces you to his family.

-he knows how nervous you are the day before, and calls ahead without you knowing and tells his family to take it easy and not overwhelm you

-however they still do- overwhelm you with love i mean

-his grandma is immediately sizing you up and telling you to eat more, asking what size sweaters you wear and his dad is making silly jokes at your expense, yoosung holding your hand as him and his dad go back and forth one teasing, one protecting you. his mum is smiling, holding a wooden spoon as she steps out of the kitchen, calling yoosung to help her with the cooking

-his sisters dote on you, introducing you to their husbands as their children run around in the background screaming in happiness, yelling at you to join them in playing tag, and their gleeful laughs draw you in. stopped by yoosung as you run into him, almost making him drop the mashed potatoes, and the look on your face is priceless, making the whole day worth it

-you get along with his oldest sister spectacularly, and you have your time to joke about yoosung as you ask his grandma for embarrassing stories of yoosung. (you enjoy watching his get increasingly flustered as he tries to hide in the crook of your neck)

-you and his parents have a long chat, ending in them hugging you and telling you just how much they appreciate you and the way you’ve made his son grow. the two of you seem so happy together, perfect even.

-it’s almost one in the morning when the two of you start heading home. as the two of you walk to your car, he colds you close to his side, placing small kisses on your cheek as he watches you smile softly.

- “mc i know, i know that you,, may not have had a family growing up but know that,, know that you always have a family in us, you’re a part of my family now, and you’ll always have us. we’re not going anywhere.”

Seven

separate post [here]

Zen

-he’s a good listener, and listening to you talk about growing up poor and alone breaks his heart

-he can empathize, he had to grow up too fast, but he can’t even begin to imagine what you had to go through

-he’s there for you, always trying to make you feel better, and even though you never had a true family, he always lets you know that you’ll always have a family in him, even though you aren't legally married yet, nothing can stop him from calling you his family

-he’s not one to go all big and grand, he knows that logically you can never get that time back, but that doesnt mean you dont deserve that same childish delight that most people get

-he’s one to treat you closer than ever, like true family, constantly reminding you that he loves you and protecting you from everything he possibly can, doing everything in his power to make sure that you’re protected from pain

-carnival date!!!!

-he takes you out to the carnival, playing all the booth games with you, making it a competition who can win more (the winner being no one)

-you get your face painted, a cliche green butterfly under your left eye, zen getting a matching red butterfly under his left

he ends up just buying you a large teddy bear, unable to have actually won you one (he’s extremely ashamed of himself but its the thought that counts)

-the two of you go on a carnival food spree, buying a little bit of everything as you walk hand in hand to the ferris wheel, (eating with a view amirite)

-please know that he’ll always do anything in his power to keep you safe and make sure you know you’re loved. you’re his family and, along with the RFA he’s yours.

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aspiestvmusings · 4 years

Text

Personal, unpopular opinion on grief [ZEP S1 EDITION]

TRIGGER WARNING FOR SENSITIVE TOPICS: GRIEF & DEATH OF LOVED ONES. DO NOT READ IF YOU THINK YOU MIGHT NOT HANDLE READING ABOUT SUCH TOPICS.

This post was inspired by ZEP (”Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist” & the Season 1 storyline...that is related to Zoey’s dad, Mitch & what’s we all knew would happen..soon/in the S1 finale. His death. And the grief.., other characters feelings about what’s to come and (now) what’s happened.

In this post I will discuss some of the things related to grief that the show/storyline (creator, writers) talk about, and that the cast talk about. How they talk about grief. And I will discuss some of the things related to death & grief...from my personal experience.

But first, I'd like to start with a few important points:

1. All humans (and all fictional characters) are different. So we all process things differently & act differently...in same/similar situations. This also applies to grief and grieving, and feelings about life & death. These characters way of dealing with grief is “valid”, and so is mine. But its just strange that only one POV seems to be represented on the show...mostly (and yes, we see it all through Zoey’s eyes, so it’s her POV that dominates)

What would have worked better on ZEP... IMO:

What I would have appreciated from the show is for them to show both sides more. To have characters express different views on grief, and death. More, and longer than they did with Deb in 1x11 & Howie’s speech to Zoey in 1x12. It would’ve been more believable if not everyone was seeing it the same way...if there’s been counter-arguments.

Like...regarding the idea that only someone, who has had the exact same experience (lost their dad/husband), would understand you/your grief. They really hammered that “truth” with Zoey/Simon grief connection. And even a bit with Zoey finding another widow, Deb, to talk to her mom...cause she herself hadn’t lost a husband of 30+ years...so she would not understand (but, really, it’s more about her inability to deal with/express her emotions, and hiding them, and needing help with understanding others emotions...which her new sperpower is supposed to help her with]. They also had the whole family deal with it all pretty similarily.

Just have one character tell Zoey that she doesn’t need someone with the same experience to have them understand her, and support her, and help her through this. That having the same experience does not automatically mean “instant connection”. Because...every death/experience is different, and so are Zoey’s & Simon’s...so it doesn’t even make sense to me that they’d automatically connect cause both lost their fathers. Why did no one point that out to her? Why did no one ever pose a counter argument?

And why does she/the show seem to think that no one else has the same experience and/or would understand? I mean...most adults have lost someone by the time they turn 25... so if we’d get to know the characters more, we’d probably learn all of them have lost someone (maybe not a parent, but perhaps a grandparent?) They did that...a bit..with Joan & her mom story in 1x10. But again... too little, too “late”. She would’ve really needed to hear those things...sooner. Realizing that she can connecct to others...and others can connect to her. That all it takes is someone who wants to help her...and be there for her... whether they have the same experience or not. (maybe Tobin has lost someone, and it would’ve been helpful for Zoey to connect to him/talk to him?

This made it really hard (read: impossible) to “get” their grief bond, or take it “seriously”: Because the idea that no one questioned this just seemed ..strange. Sure..Zoey definitely believes this to be true, but... for no other character to question the validity of it... just seemed... too... strange. And since I personally don’t think that one needs to have the same experience to understand other person, and be the shoulder they lean on...but that instead it just takes someone who knows you and wants to be there for you... it was difficult to buy the whole “grief bond” they were selling.

Which is probably why I never got their “connection”. And only saw it as lust from both sides, and just her/them displacing their greif...and nothing more. So that...and the fact that as human as having feelings for someone else while youre engaged is, I DO NOT support the storyline which tries to say that just because Simon is hot it’s ok for him to have an emotional affair with Zoey while he’s engaged. That somehow the hotness factor makes it OK, cause it’s “very human”, and “grief made him do it”. Nope...I’d quote Mo here, just replacing “powers” with “grief”. Mo’s words to her “Don’t blame the powers grief. This one’s all on you.” apply here...IMO. They both need to do better!

And I also had a hard time “believing” that a brain-person like Zoey (she’s a coder, problem-solver) would be so irrational, and even though she’s also presented as “a hot mess kind of person”, her irrationality & behaviours just seemed not something I’d expect from someone like her. I, too, see world s black & white. So this is why to me two options remain: either she is just shouting cichees & lies to others OR she is out-of-character (by choice, not cause of grief or powers). I mean... she understood issues with grief and gave great advice to Simon since ep 1...yet she herself did the opposite. She made all the mistakes he had made (not learning from him, but choosing the same wrong route, not taking her own advice: talk to someone..etc).

For me, personally, I cannot “connect” with the characters (Clarke family...or the showrunner, whose said that his experiences/feels are represented by the characters) and their grief, even though I’ve had similar exprience (with my dad ... though it wasn’t a rare disease, but cancer). But no two people, not two different deaths are similar. And I guess I (and my family) are less emotional & more logical...when it comes to topics of life & death. Our (and especially mine) view is more like the other option Howie, the caregiver, presented to Zoey as they ate ice cream and talked about what’s to come..in the S1 finale.

I have, in general, a hard time buying the show, because I’m just too logical and brain person, and this is still a TV show...even if it’s based on real life events. It’s still adapted, and fictional elements have been added...to fit it for screen. So... since it was hard for me to believe that in all the prior months...ever since Mitch had been diagnosed... no one had really done any of the things they all suddenly came up with...

Like realizing there are ways to communicate with Mitch ( or...try to communicate with him)...even if he can’t really speak or move. Suddenly Zoey has an idea to create a computer programme which lets her dad type his messages. Like..she’s smart, and tech savvy...and in no way do I find it believeble that she’d not thought of this before she got her superpower...and was motivated only by hearing his thoughts. Did no doctor inform them about the details of her fathers condition? Did everone claim he is already unable to understand speech etc...with 100% certainty? Did none of them just try to talk to him...etc...without being sure he can hear/understand...still? You know...like they encourage talking to people in coma, for example.

Like...coming to the idea of a chairlift...before Mitch actually fell..while being helped up the stairs. What did they do all the prior months? When he’d already lost the ability to walk? When he still was able to talk? For a family that is so close, I find it quite unbelievable that they never talked about...anything. Even if they touched upon this in episode 1x11 when Zoey asked Maggie why they didnt do any of the planning sooner, she claims none of them expected it to happen so fast. Like...their doctor seems OK, so how are they so uninformed? When we know that Zoeys style is to read up on all the topics she wants to know about. She would read all the research there is...so she’d know... quite a bit.

Like them thinking that a temporary improvement means a “cure”. None of them are clueless, they’re all smart, so I don’t also buy them not knowing that this is progressive, and there is no cure, and after the person loses as many abilities as Mitch had by the time we met this family (hard to swallow, no speech...), then they don’t have much time left. Same with these smart people not knowing that based on several observations... most people report that dying people usually become “alert/more responsive”..just before the end. So... Mitch having a good day the day before he died was a clear sign he’s about to die.

Like...if we actually analyse it, it seems as if they “stood still” for months...ever since Mitch was diagnosed. And then suddenly...”thanks” to Zoey’s superpower, they start getting ideas, and do stuff, and talk to each other... which doesnt seem to have happened...at all... during all the prior months. How?

It just seems too much “done to fit the TV format”, and it doesn’t seem to make much sense...actually...

MY OWN EXPERIENCES:

I lost my first grandfather when I was a kid & he was only in his 60s (so quite young). That was an unexpeted & sudden event that no one saw coming (example: heart attack, stroke). I lost my other grandparents when I was in my 20s (they both lived a full life: 84 & 92...and were ready to go) & I lost my last grandma last year (she was almost 89...and outlived her husband by around 25 years)...after her health had been declining... for a while. And I lost my father about 3 years ago (he was in his 60s)... knowing he had max 6 months left by then.

I will talk, a bit, about my dad, who died 3 years ago, in 2017, and my finnish grandma, who died last year...just a month before her 89th birthday.

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With my dad... I had kinda lost him once before, because 5 years earlier he had a serious health issue, and his heart stopped on the operating table. But he was revived. And though he was in a coma for over a week, he did survive, and had no permanent damage. He had to go through extensive physiotherapy and learn to walk properly again, and hold a spoon again (fine motorskills), but his mind/brain/memory was unharmed. But...nonetheless, I sat beside him while he was in a coma, and I sat beside him after he had woken up...

That health issue lead to his cancer diagnosis though...cause without it he’d never gone to see a doc on his own, and wouldn’t have known, probably. He was stage 3 when diagnosed, and though he tried all kinds of different treatment options, it progressed to stage 4 (that’s what lifetime of smoking does to your lungs!), and by 2016 he had metastasis in his spine..etc, and it was clear he had months/max a year left. It was a guesswork though how long exactly.

But his medicine cabinet was more impressive than Mitch’s by the end. It got more serious at the end of 2016, and he basically survived with extra oxygene (help from a “ventilator”) & “morphine”. He probably would’ve kept himself alive for several more months, but he had a health issue in January 2017, and his body was just too weak (from chemo, from treatments from...) that he didn’t make it this time. And though I/we had longer than a year to “prepare”, these fictional characters also had time...

Yet, for me, personally, that death was not as hard. (in all honesty, I’d been expecting his cancer diagnosis since I was in highschool... I honestly couldn’t believe he had any lungs left...with his heavy smoking)

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For me, personally, the hardest was my other grandma’s end of life.. The one who died last year. But not the death...but her last years instead. And though my first grandma (who died almost 15 years ago) had memory issues during her last years, cause she’d had 2 stokes & she kept mixing up people & events (calling people by wrong name, mixing us up), she had my grandpa by her side...til the end. But with my other grandma... whose health had been declining...step by step..over past 5-10 years, it was different. To the point that my aunt/her daughter was her guardian, cause she wasn’t capable of making her own decisions anymore... even if at times she had a clear mind. And one of those times was her last, 88th Birthday in 2018.

She never vebalized it...never was able to say the words (though she did talk... a bit), but I could see it in her eyes/look... she wanted to go... but “modern medicine” was keeping her body alive. And for me it was hard, because I am a supporter of a persons choice to choose assisted ending, but I’m the only one in the family who really supports this. And since she never actually said the words, and since I could not be 100% sure that what I thought I “read in her eyes” was what she was actually thinking, I could not be sure. But I considered her last 1-2 years of life just torture for her. So... as sad as I was, I was relieved when I got the call a year ago, on May 26th (exactly one month before her next birthday would’ve been)...that she’d died, I was happy that she “didn’t have to suffer anymore”. We scattered her ashes one month later, in last June, on what would have been her 89th birthday.

If my mom and aunt, who were there with her during her lasts days, would have told me the day before how “perky” she seemed the day before she passed, I would’ve known that it’s about to happen. But they told me when they called after it had happened.

Death has never been something to fear in our family. My grandparents (their story is like a fairytale, where after she was gone he had "no reason to hold onto life anymore”, so he went just 4 months later...) even prepped everything themselves. They were prepared, though Mo on the show is more prepared. They had everything chosen & organized & planned (the plot, the main details), so everything was done according to their “notes” basically. With others it’s been more general...like where (which cemetary) they wanna be buried and/or cremated.

Yes, there is a lot under the (and etcetera)...from dealing with subsciptions on the persons name... to the bank... to job related stuff... next to the actual “burial event”. And while a good funeral home helps you a lot... and does a lot of the work for you (transportation...etc), then there is a lot that you/the family have to do before/after all this. But still... it’s not that difficult to get it all done. I did half the work when my dad died (lots of calls, emails, visits to offices/banks...etc).. to deal with all the paperwork and more.

I understand that I may sound like a cold person to many, but in my experience death & funerals have never been “end of the world”...like they’re often done on TV. Cause in most cases they only show death & grief in one way on TV.... as “end of the world drama”. When we need more POV’s like the other option Howie represented to Zoey. (and then the characters can choose which was is their way)

So...honestly, I have a hard time “connecting” with the ZEP season 1 grief plot....the way it was done. Even though I can draw many parallels between Mitch(’s health) & my dad(’s health). We knew that he had not much left, but he ended up going faster & “unexpectedly” so he was gone about a month after his health took a turn to the worse...and we had known that all there was left to do was to wait...

And yet, based on most of the online comments, reviews, etc..I’ve seen online, most find it easy to connect, and “feel the same way” and I seem to be alone in my “weirdness” and different look at the grief and greif storyline.

AM I ALONE IN THINKING THIS WAY? (MOST LIKELY)

Did anyone else find it hard to believe the Zoey/SImon “grief connection” they tried to establish?

Did anyone else find it hard to believe that such a close family had just been sitting & waiting for months (ever since last year, when Mitch was diagnosed), and not done anything....until Zoey’s superpower makes them magically start taking all sorts of steps?

Did anyone think that the focus was not enough of the family, da/daughter, and grief...and too much on the love triangle? (even if the two storylines are connected...strongly)

#ZEP #ZOEY'S EXTRAORDINARY PLAYLIST #ZOEYS EXTRAORDINARY PLAYLIST #ZOEY'S EP #PERSONAL #UNPOPULAR OPINION #GRIEF #DEATH AND GRIEF #ZEP SEASON 1 #ZEP S1 #SEASON 1 #MY THOUGHTS #ABOUT ME #I WISH I WOULD NOT ANALYSE AND DISSECT EVERY DETAIL ON TV SHOWS...#IT IS WHAT IT IS #LONG POST #TEXT POST

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mamusings · 4 years

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Supernatural Season 3 thoughts

At the end of this season I was left thinking maybe I just dont understand the show. Maybe I'm reading it against the grain. Or I dont like what its actually saying and trying really hard to fit it into something else. Its infuriating.

The clear main season challenge is how to save Dean. Underneath that is the worrying question of is Sam still 100% pure Sam.

The opening episode is clever in that it does two very necessary things. The first is it demotes the boys standing again. The show needs them as downtrodden outsiders for the narrative to work, so all that regard we were seeing in s2 is pesky. And it's a slick move to use them opening the cage as a reason for hunters to look down on them. That way we still appreciate them as the audience, but have a convincing reason why they arent held in similar regard by their peers.

The second is necessary thing is the switch from a hunting paradigm into a war one. It's a shift in scale that requires different qualities and strategies and it gives the boys something to struggle with. Episode one achieved that smoothly by having the released demons be different. So we are going to need more than book research to know what to do.

The war footing also changes the moral compass in a way that many viewers see as an inconsistency, but I think actually isnt one. With hunting the idea is to lose no innocent lives. In war, it's about weighing up potential losses. It's a new calculus and the key episodes in this season struggle with it. Jus in Bello and No Rest for the Wicked are both centred on this difficulty and I think in both cases are intended as instances in which the boys get it wrong. That feels like a hard one to call, but I think each time the show is actually saying that by not making the harder, less black and white decision, we end up with a less favourable outcome (more casualties and Dean dies).

In terms of the brothers and their relationship we get to see Dean go uber Dean for the opening episodes. It's fun, but sort of frustrating in a way that's seems intentional because it reflects Sam's frustration with him. It lasts until Sam pleads with him to be his brother again in Fresh Blood. After that we get to see Dean be scared. And both of them trying to deal with the prospect of his death and the options for preventing it.

More subtly we see Sam be scared of losing Dean. We see him trying to prepare for life without him. Trying to be more like Dean. Its ambivalent because we wonder whether what we are seeing is a darker Sam - remember we arent clear on the is Sam ok question. The fact that the spector of a dark Sam is raised by him emulating some of Dean's traits puts the family thing in perspective. Fresh Blood highlights again the weakness of 'anything for my family' as a moral baseline - because everyone is someone's family. The vampire is looking to found family and is mourning his own family. It echoes season 1 in that Dean killed Azazels family. Bedtime Stories shows the need to let go of family. When we arent focused on the Winchesters, Supernatural seems to take care to show that "family above all else' needs to be approached cautiously.

While we are on the subject of moral compasses it's worth noting that this season has several moments considering what the value of life is given that Dean's life is running out. The penultimate episode shows us Dean isnt willing to do anything to stay alive. But Dean's wallowing in pleasure also falls short for him. Lisa is introduced to indicate he wants more than hook ups. Bella introduces the question of whether hunting is about more than vengeance or thrills. Her character is an interesting Dean parallel. They are both joyfully amoral in quite different ways, linked to problematic childhoods, with hellhounds coming to collect. What this highlights is a desire to be and do good in Dean, that Bella lacks.

From a more series perspective what's most interesting is the introduction of a more complicated universe. Demons may come in different flavours, if Ruby is to be believed, and that's still a dilemma at this stage. Alongside that we meet a number of creatures for whom we have sympathy, as well as a human going to great lengths to explain away acts that are undoubtedly evil (the Frankenstein doc who only carves up people cos he needs the parts but it's ok cis he only kills when it's necessary..). The message seems to be that good and evil isnt about humans and non-human. But even when it comes to what you do and why you do it, the lines get tangled up and it's hard to know what's right. More than that, moving onto a war footing, Sam is alert to the need to go beyond the hunting approach. He sees the need to find allies, seek information. He knows its slippery and dangerous, he doesn't trust Ruby (certainly not yet) but he understands that without her he can't make any headway against the newly released demons as he has no way of knowing what they are after. It's a big departure and one that marks him out as a leader in my view. But it makes everything very murky.

So it feels jarring by the end to have Dean falling back into the hunter rules he got from his Father. Dean even calls it a 'black and white' approach. Its Dean's choice how to do this one and Sam rightly backs him. But it's a step back. Just as it's a step back that Dean declares that "the only person who can save me is me" to which Sam is reduced to tacking on a solitary "and me"

So we seem to have left behind the moral of solidarity I took as the point of s2. I was left thinking I have to totally misunderstood this show? But I think the fact that Dean loses and dies is supposed to show us that this approach is not enough. And by the time we get to Swan Song I think that's confirmed.

The solutions in Swan Song are all in the grey area. The message seems to be that its about choice. Sam chooses to try to save the world. Dean chooses to love him through it even when Sam is transformed into something Dean has been trained to hate and to kill. Its emphatically not about brotherly love or bromance in the sense of doing anything for each other. Sam chooses to save the world not for Dean, but because he is responsible for letting Lucifer out and he is the only one who can do it. Note also that its this episode gives us the big line that family doesnt end in blood from Bobby. So it's not that Sam and Dean are brothers that's key here. Nor is the point that they love each other. The point is that they are brotherly in their love for each other in the sense that their love for gives them solidarity and support. They support each other to do the right thing, not anything. Without that Supernatural may be entertaining and/or cool, but it would be vacuous.

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e8luhs · 5 years

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btw got this ask on my classpecting blog (which is basically super dead because i rarely ever have the time/energy to get around to posting on it) but since its cb related and were on a spree here, i wanted to put some info here because well... you know me :3c

yes i made the base of the characters personalities with their classpects in mind. obviously they still developed past that point (quite a few of the characters ended up completely different from how they were when i originally wrote them (rivian, crylus, vergas) because of the original writing being more based around classpects)

also ill write some real quick classpect descriptions for all of them under the cut since i dont want this post to get too long. i dont really want to say exactly why the puzzle pieces fit together because i think its fun to hear about other peoples opinions and also show w/o telling but i also really love classpecting and just some baselines doesnt really count as spoilers i dont think

rivian: witch of void, typically witches are quite a bit more fun and optimistic and generally just all around more Expressive than rivian is but like... youll understand when we get to it. witches are also just Incredibly Stubborn and i think thats quite a rivian thing.

witches have their aspects permeate throughout their life, and manipulate their aspects actively; they bend their aspects to their will, either by going totally against the notions and boundaries of their aspect or by simply modifying it to suit their needs. they thrive in environments where theyre able to go along with their own organized chaos and sense of structure.

void is about secrets, irrelevance, the enigmatic the mysterious et cetera. i think void is also about hidden interpersonal knowledge. its working on the sidelines and in the background. void players always seem to do the hard work, but are in someone/something elses shadow.

lyreni: sylph of time, honestly lyreni is still basically The Definition Of A Sylph. shes caring, very aware of her surroundings, acts according to what she deems is important, shes patient shes exacting... but she can be a bit meddle-y and pedantic and pushy due to her own anxieties.

sylphs analyze and heal their aspect. they find where people and where their session is lacking in it and essentially poke and prod and go about whichever way they possibly can to fix the lack of their aspect. theyre very opinionated about their aspect and what it means to them and what it should mean to others, and therefore sylphs need to learn to wield these ideas and use them to help others.

time is about time itself and the flow of it, death, progression, etc. not only that, but its about order and structure, singleminded focus, all of which selfimposed. time is more like a chain of events that needs to be kept in order than it is about inevitable events that are out of your control.

kapreo: rogue of rage, i usually say rogues follow two different archetypes (1. they either start with an abundance of their aspect and need to find a comfortable balance, or 2. they start with a percieved lack of their aspect and need to accept it into their life. either way, once both of them grow into those second stages they then redistribute their aspect to others). kapreo is a v2 rogue. rogues also as a whole are very friendly and generous, passionate, determined. though on the other hand, rogues can sometimes have the tendency to isolate themselves from others when they face stress and other struggles.

although both types of rogues have different types of deeprooted insecurity when it comes to their aspect, v2 rogues in particular lack in confidence comes from the fact that they could never handle their own aspect. therefore, they might have difficulties ever allowing themselves indulge in their aspect even when worse comes to worse. as stated above v2 rogues need to learn to accept that their aspect CAN be a part of who they are, and that they CAN handle it.

rage is about skepticality, defiance, boundaries, intense feelings, adrenaline, its putting your foot down and not taking anymore bullshit. its about putting yourself first. rage is also just a very like... sensory aspect. its the burning feeling in your chest that you get when youre in those states of passionate, unrestricted emotion.

sebran: knight of space, You Know Why Lets Be Real Do I Even Have To Say It. knights are boundlessly loyal, committed, reliable and nuturing people, however obviously they have a tendency towards the Emotional Constipation and are constantly concerned with their own sense of usefulness and competence.

knights essentially have to unlearn their obsessive facades and sort of... perfectionism when it comes to the way they come off and the way they interact with their aspect so that they can exploit and wield their aspect. basically knights have to put the metaphorical shield down and take out their sword instead. their facades usually tend to reflect their opposite aspect due to their insecurity with their actual aspect.

space is about creation, lack of bounds, infinite possibilities, the universe, isolation, loneliness. making something out of nothing. everything is at the universes whims, its unable to be contained. theres kind of a lack of any sort of structure or stability when it comes to space.

crylus: prince of doom, now hold your fucking horses before you say anything okay i know a lot of the times princes make everyone go “Oh god oh fuck” but i can promise you that crylus is a GOOD prince. princes can be incredibly capable and confident, goal oriented, helpful players. on the other hand though YES they can be a bit impulsive, arrogant. princes also tend to be a bit hypercritical as they hold people to high standards but they hold themselves to even higher ones (see dirk) a lot of the time.

princes ghost their opposite aspect and either just straight up destroy or destroy WITH their ACTUAL aspect, as they have strong internal brewing anger and hatred for their aspect and what it stands for. for the most part, princes need to learn how to channel this energy towards only flushing out the genuinely NEGATIVE parts of their aspect, as destruction sometimes isnt inherently a bad thing. in fact, sometimes tearing things down to make new ones is necessary and part of the process. but princes are REALLY high risk/high reward.

doom is about order thats outside of your control. its pre-established rules, guidelines, fate and futility and inevitability. similar to the death card in tarot though, even if doom is about the unavoidable end of a cycle, its also about the beginning of a new one.

vergas: bard of blood, i think its pretty easy to understand Why. originally he was going to be a bard of light which youll still see some remnants of that when his land comes up. bards are faithful in their beliefs and can be very committed to those ideas... but due to that faith they can be at their best just kind of annoying and stubborn to at their worst, antagonistic, unaccomodating, and dogmatic.

its kind of hard to explain, but bards ghost their opposite while destroying THROUGH their aspect. i usually say that to mean that bards use their own aspect as a sort of vessel of destruction. theyre also incredibly unpredictable players, as if their convictions ever waver theyre likely to go totally off the shits. i usually call that their Bardly Revelation aka when a bards world views and ideas about their aspect are finally challenged. a bards challenge then is to figure out how to take these challenges in stride and become open to new perspectives rather than letting it consume them whole. (hint: a lot of bards have a very hard time doing this. you can kind of figure what im getting at here).

blood is about bonds, strength, unity, responsibility, society, norms. i relate blood also to expectations, and relationships but more like… in the sense of working together as a team. commitment.

hopefully thats vague but informative enough for you to get why i picked their classpects out. as always im really excited to get deeper into the story and actually really Show like Why they fit rather than just give some overly wordy explanations

#cataclysmalbound #ask #technically? i guess?#long post #juuuust in case the read more fucks up on mobile . you know the deal

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ascalonianpicnic · 5 years

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1, 11, 20, 23 gimme the sweet lore on Roanna and Azin!

1. What race are they? How does it affect their personality and views, if at all?

Roanna’s a human. She’s grown up with a war with centaurs and a war with charr that is only recently being resolved by a peace treaty. She’s always ready to fight and defend people around her and wanted to grow up to be a hero because of that, and now she is one. Azin is a sylvari and leaving the grove and joining the priory gave him a new perspective on where he could fit into the world. Knowing he didn’t have to be just a dreamer or courtier left too much room for him to just do what he wanted.

11. Do they have any family? What’s their relationship like with them?

Roanna has two dead parents and an older sister. She’s pretty close to her sister, the two share a lot with each other and support each other however they can. Azin doesn’t have anyone he would consider family.

20. Who do they consider their best allies? Their worst allies?

Roanna’s best ally is, of course, her mentor and best friend, Aqun. Those two have been working together for years and trust each other absolutely. The sunspears are also high on her list of allies. Worst allies are probably Lord Faren, a childhood friend who is going to get himself killed like this, and Lace, who she does not trust do to their criminal background. Azin’s best ally hands down is Tenor, not that that’s public information. If actually asked, he’d name his partner, Mint, instead. Worst ally is Orias, who he hates working with and doesn’t trust, but who is also a good resource and a good scapegoat. He’s not fond of his coworker Fhariem, who keeps scaring the shit out of him when he works late, which happens a lot.

23. Give them an AU, any AU.

Roanna gets a superhero AU. It would suit her well. Azin can have a role swap AU, it’s what he deserves.

#foxholemonster #my characters #roanna mersereth #azin #featuring good daughter and that bastard

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dominationtheory · 6 years

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The Purdom Postulate 0.1 Ruff

Do homosexuals cause hurricanes? Did Elvis fake his own death so he could sneak away to Mexico and eat chilupas for the rest of his life? Is there a vast Reptilian conspiracy hell bent on world domination and turning frogs gay? Where do I get my Soros bucks? At this point you have to be asking yourself who would believe this stuff. You are also probably thinking of people who do. By the end of this post you will have a better understanding of how things like fake news and conspiracy theories have become such a problem. You will also gain a better understanding of how unthinkable tragedies like genocide or the holocaust can occur. These things all come to be due to the imperfect fashion in which we develop as human beings. Everyone is governed by the fatal flaws that follow. Do you think you are above bias? Do you think anyone is above bias?. In the Purdom Postulate you will see yourselves and others in ways you could have never imagined. You will be aghast at the mistakes others are making. You will be triggered at the suggestion you are making the same mistakes. You will want to turn away. You will get angry. You will be shocked. You will be in disbelief. This is all part of the process. There is no perfect or fair way to present these points. Everyone will be more likely to accept the mistakes their rivals make and defensive about the mistakes that their respective cultures make. All these mistakes fit the same pattern though. You don’t have to accept your own mistakes right out of the gate. This process takes time. Learn these insights and you will be able to make powerful predictive observations that will give you an advantage in any social situation. Those who can make these observations will have an advantage over those who can not.

The Purdom Postulate is a combination of widely accepted and understood from the fields of psychology and philosophy. Understandings of Defense Mechanisms, Cognitive Biases, In Group\Out Group Dynamics, Realistic Conflict Theory, Social Identity Theory, Identity Protective Cognition, Post-Modernism, Structuralism, and Post Structuralism are helpful but unnecessary. This list is provided for people to do their own research. What I am about to suggest will sound radical. With the background information provided you will see that the assertions of The Purdom Postulate are within the ballpark of contemporary understandings in the fields of psychology and philosophy at this time.

Animals across the kingdom have developed a variety of defense mechanisms to navigate theor damgerous environments given these universal instincts. The role that these instincts play in human development have been overlooked. By understanding how these insrincts inflience human development you will see a window into the soul. You will see things about yourself that you didnt see before and you will understand what everybody doesnt want you to see. The fact these flaws hsve been overlooked is so predictable it os almost humorous. It would be more humorous if the results were not so tragic. This is am introductiom to the purdom postulate. A radical new view of human development and identity. With these new insights I believe you may find hope that humanities most plaguing problems may one day have a solution.

There are a variety of instincts that have enabled life to thrive with limited cognitive abilities. The basis for most of these offense/defense mechanisms is the perception of strength and weakness. These instincts influence the behavior of all life and they have their roots in predatory behavior and mate selection. There are a few behaviors that are widely understood that can be seen in all forms of life and they influence human development in ways that is not commonly understood. Here are a few of what should be a growing list of behaviors that are stimulated by the perception of strength and weakness.

1. Freezing- It is well known that a dear will freeze when struck by headlights. Life accross the evolutionary spectrum exhibit this behavior

2. Proweling- We are all familiar with the way a cat crouches ready to pounce. It is important that life is able to act in an unthreatening way. In so we are eager to deflect any interpretation of our actions that may be perceived as threatening.

3. Feign Strength. When a cat feels threatened by a dog it will make itself big. It does not want to look like a small weak easy target. Similarly in an argument someone will stand up taller, make their chest bigger, they will also speak more loudly.

4. Standing Your Ground- Similarly to freezing we instinctually avoid showing weakness. When confronted by a threat we will refuse to make any concession regardless of how vulnerable our position. We have all met someone who can’t admit that they are wrong. We can all be that person. This is because we understand that if we show weakness we will open ourselves up for an attack from life which is cued to act aggressively when weakness is perceived. Try it. Next time you are in an argument concede where you are wrong. Watch your rival latch onto that weakness and focus only on the error rather than the issue at hand. They will tend to maintain focus on the vulnerability. They will push the area they feel they have an advantage rather than maintain a conversation that may reveal their own vulnerabilities.

These instincts that relate to the perception of strength and weakness are the basis of Cooperative Bias and Competitive Bias which help define the limits of The Purdom Postulate. Moving forward it is imperative to understand the definition of an In Group and an Out Group.

The In Group is the popular group, and often a powerful group. We all see ourselves as part of one cultural In Group or another. In groups can be based on nationality, ethnicity, gender, religion, music, arts, or a million other sub cultures. Each of these cultures have their own ideals which are held in near absolute value. Any criticism of these ideals can trigger aggressive and destructive defense mechanisms. In group out group dynamics are at the core of cooperative and competitive biases.

Cooperative Bias -We can only say good things about the in group. We can only speak to the strength of the in group. We feel compelled to defend the ideals and members of this in group. Critisism is not allowed. Those who are critical of the in group or their ideals are characterized as traitors or threats. Some degree of critisism of these ideals is permitted if the critic is seen as a strong member of the respective in group. Critisism of the ideals of the in group can be met by destructive aggression, and demonization if they are mentioned by the out group. Critisism from the In group and critisism from the out group will be handled differently even if it is the same critisism. Some critisism may be characterized as the musings of out group members and be dismissed outright.

A. The clearest example of this bais can be seen in the religious community. Religions have earned a reputation for violently opposing people who are critical of their religion. Today Muslims are the most notorious. They are known for killing people who are critical of their religion. The same pattern holds true among the most brutal dictatorships. Countries like North Korea are known for killing dissodents. China is also known for restricting critisism.

B. Every country has their nationalists. It can be common for nationalists to get angry when critisism is mentioned. For example America is considered a global leader. At the same time a large number of countries outperform America educationally. Mention to a nationaist that other educational systems are outperforming America and they can get triggered. They may something like "If their educational system is so superior why don't you move there."

Competative Bias- You can only say bad things about the out group. You can only speak to the weaknesses of the out group. If someone says something good about the out group or otherwise defends the out group, they may find themselves characterized as a traitor or a threat.

A. Trump's notorious Mexican comments. "When Mexico sends its people, they're not sending their best. ... They're sending people that have lots of problems, and they're bringing those problems with us. They're bringing drugs. They're bringing crime. They're rapists. And some, I assume, are good people," Trump uses exclusivley degrading terms to talk about illegal immigrants. Trump is degrading an out group to play to his base. He understands that his base will be sensative to anything good he might have to say. As a result he is gaurded when he says "And Some, I assume are good people." To characterize illegal immagrants in this way is unfair. Only a small percentage are likely to be involved in drugs and many who are involved in drugs have probably been cooerced. It is natural for human beings to seek a better life and being an immigrant does not exempt these human beings from this natural instinct

B. Kim Jung Un sent his sister to the Olympics. The media had a lot of good things to say about her. Her dress. Her pleasant demeanor. Conseravatives went crazy because good things were said about a rival. Conservatives went crazy because good things were said about an Out Group member.

These are not hard and fast rules. An individuals susceptability to cooperative and competative biases fall on a spectrum. Some are more triggered to aggression than others. It may depend on how much an individual commits to a certain identity. People with more traditional, religious or nationalistic identities may be more sensative. This could be for many reasons. These are the oldest and most long standing identities and are more likely to have been currupted by fantasy and exageration. There are also larger groups of people who play by these rules reinforcing the biases. Cooperative and competative biases will predict whom an individual will attack and whom they will defend.

Our sense of strength directs our development. It helps us determine who is like us and what advantages they have. Our sense of strength directs us to choose Role Models. We idolize and emulate the thoughts and behaviors of those around us who we feel have advantages.. Our sense of strength directs us to ideals that are important to those who's culture we are a part of. This perception helps us to determine who is strong, who is weak, what an advantage is, and what is a threat. Our unique battle lines are drawn based on these cultural premises.

Tribal signaling/Virtue Signaling is when someone emphasizes or exagerates their commitment to a group or value. The are posing as a strong member of a cultural group. This can be seen when someone praises god, wears a cross, or proclaims the greatness of their country or favorite sports team. A great example of Tribal Signaling can be seen at sporting events. Some fans choose to exagerate and showcase their commitment to the team painting their face or body in team colors. This is to signal to other people that they are a commited member of the community.

In Group Fantasy/Out Group Nightmare-The nature of genius and the heart of creativity

In group Fantasy-As I have mentioned above people expect their respective cultures to be praised without critisism. When critisized members of the culture may become triggered. They may get angry and feel compelled to defend their culture regardless of how valid the critisism. This is a system where critical thinking is not tollerated. What is more there is incentive to exagerate the the good of one's culture. To signal their commitment to the group and to showcase themselves as a strong member of the community. We are more likely to cooperate with people who share our culture. When someone signals strongly on behalf of their culture they increases the liklihood that other members of that culture will cooperate with them. This system can be all gas and no breaks. A runaway train, or a runaway brain if you will. This incentive to exagerate in an environment where critical thinking is penalized leads cultures to exagerate away from reality with nothing that can really slow them down. Our Runaway Brain creates a Cooperative Mythos. The most obvious situation where this happens is religion. Exageration of In Group ideals has taken on mythic proportion. At the same time every culture has it's own mythos. This Mythos emerges as a result of exagerating importance of the ideals of the group and penalizing critics. In group fantasy tends to assume the group has special privilages. That they are going to heaven for their beliefs. That their country is the most free or most just. That they have the best quality of life. For example people of religious faith can act as if they are the only ones capaible of acting morally. When someone expresses their contempt of religion they will ask something like "How can we expect people to act morally if they are not taught religion." The implication is that only religious people are capible of acting in a moral fashion. That a stable society is a special privlage that is earned by adhering to their Cultural Mythos.

Out Group Nightmare – People tend to only say bad things about their cultural rivals. Attempting to defend a cultural rival may be met with resistance. There is incentive to exagerate the threats that the out group represents. By exagerating the threat an out group represents an individual cal pose as a stronger member of their respecitve culture. Because there is incentive to exagerate and defense of the out group is discouraged a Competative Mythos forms. One of the most notorious forms of Competative Mythos is Conspiracy Theory.

The limitations and exagerations of Cooperative and Competative Biases paint a telling picture. They can be seen rather clearly through the Characteristics of Cultural Conflict

Characterisitics of cultural conflict

Exageration of Threats- In our mind size matters. Bigly. You can tell about where someone stands by what they describe as big and what they characterize as small. What is a threat, and what is an advantage. An example of a threat that is exagerated is that of Muslims. It is common for people to act as if all Muslims are terrorists. Although this is clearly false other exagerations are made about the threat they represent. For example many conservatives claim that Muslims are coming into the country and that they will impose the harsh religious Sharia Law. Religions are dated cultures and their future is limited. The liklihood that Muslims will take over the world an impose their religious law is about as likely as the Amish rolling in on their apple carts. Islam is an outdated culture.

Overgeneralization-Everyone has had some experience with stereotyping. We have witnessed and expressed generalizations that could clearly not be accurate in their absolute. We have all treated people differently because of their affiliation with a certain group and assumed that they expected a similar accomodation. For example in far left social justice cirles it is common to say that all white people are racist and men are sexist.

An Expectation of Unequal and Unjust Outcomes- We tend to believe that our cultures are entitled to unjust advantages. For example a Christian may claim that they are entitled to expect other people to live under their religious rules. At the same time the thought of living under the rules of another religion or culture terrifies them. It is hypocracy.

Singularity of Focus-Like a targeting system we can zero in on certain individuals or groups and blame them for certain problems. This can take the form of Scapegoating. For example some religious figures like to blame homosexuals or other rival cultures for things like earthquakes and hurricaines. They claim that calamity is god's wrath for failing to live by some set of cultural rules. Racism and sexism are great examples of instances where groups can be singled out. All the competative behaviors listed above can be used to find examples of unfair characterizations that have plagued minorities. Social justice movements can be guilty of exactly the same sorts of opporession. They unfairly single out men and white people for prejudices that we all participate in. They will claim that things are different because their economic opportunity is more limited. At the same time their economic opportunity is limited by the same prejudice they exhibit when they over generalize and exagerate calling all men sexist, and unjustly single out these groups. They have effectily designed their own oppressive cultures where minorities oppress the majority. In their dreams anyway. It is all of our dreams really because our development is driven by a desire for dominance.

When a cultural boundary is broken it is comon for people to be triggered into using Out Group Slurs

Out Group Slurs relate more to a cultural rival than to the meaning of the word. For example the word Kike was used to degrade Jews. Before people were literate they were asked to sign contracts with an X. Jews felt that this X represented the cross that Jesus died on. As a form of cultural defiance they chose to sign contracts with a circle instead. In Hebrew a circle is called a Kike. As a result when people wanted to desparage the Jews they called them a Kike. Now most people know that Kike is a slur for Jew. Most do not understand that Kike means circle. A similar example is the use of the word Nigger. Nigger was once used to describe people from Niger. White people ignorantly assumed that all black people came from this small country. Soon Nigger became a disparaging term for black people. Few people understand the origin of the word. Finally conservatives in America love to call their liberal counterparts Socialists or Communists. Socialism or Communism involves the government ownership of resources. Very few people on the left believe in such Nationalization of resources. America fought major wars against communists and socialists. What conservatives are doing is characterizing their rivals as our cultures ultimate enemy. The slurs relate to a cultural rivalry rather than the definition of the word. Out group slurs aim to encourage everyone to greet cultural rival with violent oppression and discouraging others from offering them any defense or support.

Intergroup Conflict. It is common for those who see themselves as lower status members of a sociological group to participate in intergroup conflict. They will insult members of their own culture. Often they express a fundamentalism and signal their identity by trying to define a real man, real woman, real christian, Muslim, or real musician.

Our ideals set the high ground in our mind. They designate who is strong, who is weak, what is an advantage, and what is a threat. Degrading and abusive behavior comes naturally after this point. It is not socially acceptable to be violent in this age. At the same time the same processes that govern our desire to degrade also direct us to more violent and destructive behavior. This is why every act of genocide will be rife with examples of degrading overgeneralizations, and demonization/dehumanization. We defend people who are like us. We attack those who are different.

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Move Over, Jony IveBiologists Are the Next Rock Star Designers

Here. Smell this.

Effendi Leonard smiles and pushes a vial of pale, cloudy liquid toward me, like a grandfather offering a plate of cookies. I unscrew the cap and take a whiff. The scent is earthy, a bit like rising dough.It smells like bread, I tell him.

He beams but doesnt say anything, then hands me another vial. And this?

This one smells sweet, like fruit, but harder to place. I inhale again and guess.Grape soda?

Were standing around a lab table at Ginkgo BioWorks, a Boston biotech company, playing Name That Smell. I was right. The second vial is meant to smell like grapes, though you’d never know that from its contents. There isn’t the slightest trace of grape in it. In fact, designers created it using “a regular bakers yeast,” says Leonard, an organism designer at Ginkgo.

To make something that smells like grapes without using grapes, designers inserted genes from various plants, including corn, into the basic yeast chassis to build a new genetic architecture. The redesigned genetic sequence gave rise to a variant of yeast that, when fermented,produces a chemical that smells distinctly of grapes. The sweetness, the tartness, the hint of dirt—it’s all there, emanating from a tube full of fungus.

Effendi Leonard is an “organism designer” at Ginkgo BioWorks in Boston. Maggie Shannon for WIRED

You could describe Ginkgo BioWorks as a biotech startup, a research lab, or a well-funded band of biohackers. Ginkgo calls itself an organism design foundry. Semantics, perhaps, but the wording is important. Throughout history, biologists have focused on describing and understanding the natural world. But a greater understanding of life’s building blocks has given them a greater proclivity for engineering and designing organisms.

This creative practice,which falls under the umbrella term synthetic biology, views DNA as something to be manipulated and rearranged. Proponents see a day when biologists can build organisms capable of anything imaginable with a degree of reproducibilitytypicallyreserved for engineering. In this new world where biotech companies like Ginkgo and Amyris and Craig Venters Synthetic Genomicsplay, biologists become designers working with one of the most powerful substrates imaginable: life.

In this new world, biologists become designers working with one of the most powerful substrates imaginable: life.

Advocates of this technology promise revolutionary advancements in everything from green energy to medicinetofood production. That has brought money pouring in. The so-called bioeconomy already generates $350 billion annually in the US, according to one report, with much of it coming from the creation of biochemicals, biological feedstock, and biofuels. Still grander ideas—eradicating Lyme disease or malaria, terraforming Mars, or resurrecting extinct species—underscore why the opportunities presented by this technology exhilarate, and terrify, people.

There are quite a lot of philosophical and ethical questions we need to explore rather than jumping right into designing biological systems, says Oron Catts, an artist who leads the University of Western Australias SymbioticA program, which explores the intersection of art, design, and synthetic biology.

Beyond the science lies the ethics and oversight. How can science and society ensure such technology is used for the greater good? How should it be regulated, and by whom? And what of the unintended consequences that inevitably will arise when people begin meddling with the foundation of life?Its a very complex issue, Cattssays. We need to be having a nuanced conversation.

That conversation,traditionally led by scientists, is drawing people from beyond the lab. Designers and artists are shapingthe future of synthetic biology by helping scientists understand the power of this technology. Their participation is vital, says Kevin Esvelt, an evolutionary biologist at Harvards Wyss Institute, who’s exploring how synthetic biologymight help eradicate diseases like malaria by inserting disease-resistant gene drives into some species of mosquitoes. Scientists, unlike designers or artists, are oftenhyper-focused in their research. Scientists are not scientists because they want to change the world, he says. Theyre scientists because theyre interested in increasing human knowledge, which may have direct benefits on changing the world for the better.

Esvelt believes synthetic biologists, perhapsmore so than other scientists, are in a position to think differently about their field. They can—and have already begun— to adopt a more holistic way of viewing their work, in no small part due to their collaborations with artists and designers who possess tools and ways of thinking that they themselves do not. It forces us to be philosophical in ways that other areas dont have to be, he says. And I think we should embrace it.

Foundry Of Life

MIT professor Tom Knight co-founded Ginkgo BioWorks seven years ago with a handful of his biological engineering doctoral students. It operates out of an old factory overlooking Boston Harbor in the citys Seaport neighborhood. I like to say that were the only startup with a better view than its lawyers, Knight says.

Knight is perhaps best known for his seminalwork in electrical engineering in the 1980s, though he—along with pioneers like Harvard geneticist George Church and biotechnologist-cum-entrepreneur Craig Venter—is regardedas one of the grandfathers of synthetic biology. It’san apt description—between his puffy white beard and warm-but-wonky demeanor, Knight comes across as something of a hybrid between Einstein and Santa Claus.

MIT professor Tom Knight co-founded Ginkgo BioWorks in 2008. Maggie Shannon for WIRED

Ginkgos headquarters is full of scientific ephemera: Turtles swim in a tub in the kitchen, a Ginkgo-emblazoned hazmat suit hangs on the wall, company T-shirts feature a Jurassic Park logoand the tagline There Will Be Dragons. Towering shelves line the entryway, packed with books withtitles like Culturing Life, Genetics: Second Edition,andMethods in Enzymology.

The team has 18,000 square feet of space, and a second round of funding—$45-million—from Viking Global, Y Combinator, and OS Fund has it looking to significantly expand BioWorks 1, the biological foundry that opened earlier this year into a second foundry called BioWorks 2.

The first thing you notice in the bright white lab are the robots. Theyre everywhere. Ginkgo has one for nearly every stepin the organism-synthesizing process—there’s a robot devoted to pipetting drops of DNA, arobotin charge of fermenting yeast, and another robot for analyzing the molecular composition of the yeasts’ fermentation products. But Ginkgo’s labor force isn’t totally robotic; biologists are also on hand to shuttle samples from one machine to the next.One of the dreams while we were building out the foundry was that maybe it would be totally automated; youd have robotic arms moving samples around, says Patrick Boyle, another organism designer at Ginkgo. It turns out that the way we put workflows together and do experiments in a lab, people are just more efficient at some of these processes.

Remixing life is intensely physical. It requires mixing bits of DNA, often in the form of tiny drops of solution Ginkgo buys from sequencing companies. Stitching together a new genome is something you do by hand, if you don’t have a robot to do it for you—and cutting and pasting DNA is painstaking work. Youd spend two-thirds of your time putting DNA together, which isnt an interesting thing for a designer, says Ginkgos creative director, Christina Agapakis, of her time working in research labs. You want to see what it does when youre done with it.

Separating the design and creation processes has freedGinkgos crew to spend more time thinking about the design of the organisms it’s creating. Think of it as the difference between architects and contractors, says Drew Endy, a professor of biological engineering at Stanford and former MIT professor who worked with Knight. The architect comes up with a vision, and the contractors execute on that vision.He puts it another way: Jony Ive, how good is he at building a silicon wafer? Approximately, not at all.

By automating tedious lab tasks, Ginkgo can generatestrains at an otherwise unthinkable rate. Our design approach is to simply build as many prototypes as we can, Boyle says. You can fit literally billions of different prototypes on a petri dish. You dont want to look at them all, but you can generate that many.

Ginkgo BioWorks creative director Christina Agapakis. Maggie Shannon for WIRED

Ginkgo’s samples, which include live organisms and pieces of purified DNA, are held in tiny tubes labeled with a barcode; scanning these tubes reveals the creation date and genealogy of the sample. Lab co-founder Jason Kelly says the team sequences hundred of enzymes from a database that catalogs natures diversity to glean a better understanding of their behavior. We don’t just quickly screen these enzymes for the specific activity we’re looking for but rather test them more deeply to catch activities we might not predict,” he says. Ginkgo tracks all of this information in an enormous database, which is what helps the companys software generate what the designers hope will be increasingly accurate predictions of which biological partswork together to produce certain compounds. Thats really why you need that foundry scale, Boyle says. Because we dont know all the design rules yet.

Once those rules are more fully understood, the Ginkgo team will be able to design organisms more efficiently. I think understanding has to come before the manipulation, Knight says. In that way, designing organisms mirrors designing with more traditional substrates like wood or code: A deeper understanding of the material leads to better designs.

Ginkgo collects this infoin a Github-style Wiki. Software developers—who comprise one-third of the companys staff—translate that data into designprinciplesthat help the robots mix and match certain genes more efficiently. This allows the designers, as Boyle describes it, to shoot in the dark effectively, freeing up time for them to conceptualize and solve problems.

Nature relies on the glacial pace of evolution to dictate a biological solution, but Ginkgos designers must work faster—they have customers to answer to. In many ways, the company is like any industrial design firm. It has contracts for more than 20 organisms from customers that include Ajinomoto, a Japanese food and chemical company seeking a yeast strain for animal feed; a major beverage company that wants a new sweetener; and another looking for an organic pesticide.

When I visited the lab, designers were working through a brief from Robertet. The French perfume company wanted Ginkgo to engineer a strain of yeast capable of producing rose oil. The yeast-derived rose oil would be more sustainable and less expensive to produce than oil from actual roses, the availability of which can be inconsistent, thanks tothe unpredictabilities of things like climate and disease.It’s not a new idea:In the late ’80s, scientistsgenetically modified E. coli to synthesize chymosin, the enzyme used to turn milk into cheese. Most cheeses are now made with GMO-derived chymosin, which is cheaper and more reliable to produce with microbes than it is to harvest from thestomachs of baby cows.

Rose oil derived from genetically engineered yeast has all the complexity and nuance of the real thing. When you smell a rose, youre not smelling a single compound that is the rose smell,” says Boyle, “youre smelling all the different compounds that rose makes. Thousands of different molecules, he says, contribute to the fragrance profile of a rose’s essential oils.By comparison, a rose accord—a combination of compounds that approximate’s a rose’s scent—typically contains just three or four chemical compounds. Rose essential oil is like an orchestra or symphony whereas rose accord would be more like a string quartet, he says. You can play the same notes, but you dont get the same overall impression.

Maggie Shannon for WIRED

But the chemicals Ginkgo is making dont come from a rose, exactly. By selecting specific genes from roses and crossing them with yeast DNA, were taking the exact biochemical pathways from a rose and putting them into yeast,” Boyle says. The result is a genetically modified strain of fungusthat produces a cocktail of chemicals close to the one produced by an actual rose. By separating those chemicals from the yeast that produced them, Boyle’s team is left with a productthat smells remarkably like natural rose oil’s symphony of fragrance.

Ginkgo started in late 2008 with $15 million in funding from Darpa. Its aim was to design synthetic probiotics that could reduce gastrointestinal problems in soldiers. That project is still ongoing, but, according to Kelly, is in “very early stage research.”For now, the startup is focusing on fragrances and flavors like natural sweeteners (they just signed a new multi-million-dollar contract with Robertet to synthesize lactones, which impart a sweet, creamy scent to fragrances). Knight concedes thats not the most headline-worthy of ambitions, especially when you consider what’s possible with Crispr, a technology that allows scientists to edit genomes by cutting and pasting bits of DNA. My goal is to get into much more complex organisms, but I have no illusions about that happening anytime soon, he says. Theres a reason why were working with simple organisms; were having a hard enough time understanding what they do.

Thereare practicalconsiderations at play, too. Fragrance and flavors can be brought to market more quickly than, say, pharmaceuticals or biofuels, both of which are moreheavily regulated,have a lower return on investment, and can take decades to develop. Theres very little that is going to stand in the way of making short term profits out of this, Knight says. That money, certainly if I had my way, will be re-invested in the development of the technology and will make us able to engineer biology more effectively. Thats what its about.

Biology Goes Industrial

One afternoon, Knight is sitting in his office at Ginkgo BioWorks pondering how he might put the foundry’s additional space to use, once its finished expanding after its most recent round of funding. One thing hed like to do is build a cabinet of curiosities and fill it with scientific novelties—animals, fossils, and otherstrange or interesting things he comes across. Heres one of my favorite objects, he says, liftinga reflective sphere about the size of a grapefruit from his desk. This is my crystal ball. Most people have crystal balls that arent really crystals, but this one really is a crystal ball. Do you know what it is? he asks, turning it over in his hand. Its siliconpure silicon. This lets me see the future.

Biology, its said, is like an integrated computer circuit that can be programmed.

Before starting Ginkgo, Knight was a researcher and professor at MIT, where he taught electrical engineering. Knight sees many parallels between what he does today and what he did in the 1980s when he was miniaturizing transistors. Its common in the synthetic biology world for researchers to compare their work to the early days of computer programming. It’s ametaphor that makes the dizzying world of biology a little easier to grasp. Biology, its said, is like an integrated computer circuit that can be programmed; only instead manipulating ones and zeros, you’re tinkering withgenes, RNA, and proteins.

Organism designer Patrick Boyle. Maggie Shannon for WIRED

The silicon ball, then, is an apt metaphor for what Knight and his colleagues hope to achieve at the foundry: The purity of the ball is a feat of man, not of nature. “This silicon ball is ridiculously pure. It could never occur in nature, he says. Somebody had to go to a lot of trouble to make it as pure as it is now. Biology, like this silicon ball once was, is incredibly messy and complex. Knight believes that to make progress, biology has to be as simple as this shiny sphere, and that requires human intervention. A lot of what weve been doing over the last several years is intentionally making biology simpler, he says.

In 2001, Knight introduced this idea in the form ofBioBricks, a standardization system designedto helpbiologists assemble complex sequences of geneticcode. A DNA segment thatadhered to the BioBrick Standard was called a “part.” Each part coded for a specific biological function, and was catalogued in a registry. The idea was that biologists could pick and choose parts from the registry like bricks from a bin of Lego,and snapthem together intoincreasingly complex combinationsof genetic instructions (aka “devices”) that could later operate inside a living cell. Back when the BioBrick repository housed just six parts, the idea seemed pretty ridiculous. But today, the repositorycontains more than 20,000 parts. It’s also the officialregistry of iGEM, an international competition that challenges students to build novel biological systems out of BioBricks parts. Needless to say, the idea no longer seems sofar fetched.

Ginkgo doesnt adhere to the BioBricks Standard(it’stoo simplistic for Ginkgo’s purposes, and the company is looking to outsource more of its DNA synthesis), but Knight says they were animportant precursor to Ginkgo, because it changed how people thought about living systems. Its the enabler to the kind of technology you’re seeing here, he explains. Its the enabler of transitioning away from the artisanal craft of biology to the industrial scale.

Thinking Like A Designer

If biology no longer requires a hand-crafted approach, it frees up scientists to consider the applications—and implications—of the technology.In his class, Foundations for Engineering Biology, Endy no longer teaches undergraduate students how to cut and paste DNA because hed rather them think about what they want to design with DNA. Design in the scope of biology has a lot to do with judgment. Its not necessarily about knowing what to do, but knowing when to do it, he says. It turns out that once biological engineers are equipped with technical skills, theres an even bigger, and arguably more important, question to answer: What will they do with these tools?

Esvelt, of Harvard, thinks about that question often. Tools like Crispr are wildly powerful, but with power comes responsibility. We have never before had the power to pretty much unilaterally alter the shared environment, he says. Synthetic biology opens the door to more “specific and elegant” solutions to many man-made problems, Esvelt says, but hes not blind to the fact that this raises urgent questions about how such manipulations might affect other organisms in an ecosystem.Even if youre reasonably sure that there arent going to be side effects, how on earth can we decide whether or not we should use it and when we should use it? he asks.

Thats where thinking like a designer comes into play.Despite having trained as scientists, many synthetic biologists are slowly acknowledging that design thinking, in addition to technical understanding, is an essential skill. The evolutionary process is iterative, but it is mindless. The person who designs genetic architecture, on the other hand, does so with aesthetic, utilitarian, and social considerations in mind.

I believe scientists are not designers, and designers are not scientists, says Paola Antonelli, senior curator of design and architecture at the Museum of Modern Art, who has said that biodesign will be oneof the most important design fields in the future. What she means is that both disciplines bring a distinct set of skills that contribute to the advancement of synthetic biology, and aremost effective when they work together.

Ginkgo Bioworks co-founder Jason Kelly. Maggie Shannon for WIRED

Designers are drawn to the field of synthetic biology for the same reason scientists have begun to adopt design thinking—using biological matter as a material can lead to some wildly creative possibilities. Last monthin New York City, designer Suzanne Lee organized a day-long symposium called Biofabricate that brought together a few dozen designers, scientists, and artists who have been working with the medium of life. Leeis the founder ofBiocouture, a startup that’s investigating how synthetic biology will impact consumer goods, and the conference was a like a demo day for researchers and designers working in the field. There wereaesthetic works on display like scarves dyed with ink made from bacteria and a prototype for a self-folding shoe that reacts to humidity. But alongside visual designers there were molecular biologists, Harvard scientists, architects, and bioethicists. The field is beginning to blur the boundaries of disciplines, which is important says Agapakis, Ginkgos creative director. People are approaching the field and asking these really complicated questions like, what does it mean to design a living thing? she says. What does it mean to design a beautiful life form?

Using biological matter as a material can lead to some wildly creative possibilities.

In Synthetic Aesthetics, Endy, designer Alexandra Daisy Ginsberg, and a handful of other designers and engineers explore Agapakis’question. In the book, social scientist Pablo Schyfter explains that at its core, design is about making a series of weighted choices. Design doesnt happen for its own sake: It is always motivated by something. In that way, synthetic biology, with its commercial aspirations, ultimately comes down to a series of judgment calls. The best biologists Ive ever worked with are the best people at choosing what to work on and choosing when to kill projects, Endy says. And I think that has a lot to do with the design process.

Ginsberg, a designer who Antonelli describes as the goddess of synthetic biology, believes its the role of designers to ask uncomfortable questions of the technologists and scientists who are working in these fields. I think its a social issue, not just a technological issue, she says. I think imagining technology can solve our problems is kind of a techno-utopian view and I think its much more complex. Its about how we behave and build our societies, which technology can be a part of.

Synthetic biology would have a real-world impact on politics, employment, and land-use. Endy points to the creation of syntheticArtemisinin, a malaria vaccine derived from wormwood plants. If you were to start producing Artemisinin in yeast instead of through wormwood, which is now possible, what does that mean? On one hand, it sounds really good, he says. The synthetic variety reduces land use by an exponential amount, which in theory opens it up for food production. On the other hand, it looks like youre replacing the jobs of 100,000 people who grow trees with about a couple hundred people who grow potatoes. Who is talking about that?

Designers have in some ways become the ethical whistleblowers of the field, using the process of speculative design to ponder what a synthetic future will look like (see Ginsberg’s Designing For the Sixth Extinction).Rodrigo Martinez, a researcher at Ideo Boston who focuses on life sciences and synthetic biology, believes that theres a lot of room for synthetic biologists and designers to work together, and that this union will push the field not just forward but in the right direction. He and his team look at the future of synthetic biology by crafting stories around possible futures. This helps both scientists and the public crystallize how this technology could possibly be used in the coming decades. “Theres an opportunity for designers to not just help with the packaging of science or technology, but telling stories about what it is that it does and how it does it, he says. Especially in an area like synthetic biology where its not easy.

Martinez says we often tell stories about the world we want before it actually comes to into existence. By imagining possible futures, we’re effectively deciding what kind of future we want to create. And the fact is, weve barely started exploring whats possible with this technology. Martinez and his team are working on ways to extrapolate synthetic biologys impact into the future, to a time when it will have an impact on our children or grandchildren. It probably wont look like Jurassic Park or genetically designed offspring—at least not anytime soon—but rather as biology embedded into more nuanced moments of our daily lives. Things like bio-sensors that monitor air quality or at-home kits that allow kids to tweak living matter. Maybe, Endy says half-jokingly but with true optimism, well even be able to program a bush in our garden to grow into the shape of a unicorn. I cant imagine,” he says, “not being able to pull that off eventually.”