#outside of the mean parts

[luxaofhesperides]

For ghostlights: baby Ellie + tired Danny + Duke the baby whisperer?

He has no idea how his parents did it. 

Babies are exhausting. Toddlers more so. Any infants in the strange stage in-between? Doubly so. 

Ellie is wonderful and sweet and cute and such a terror that Danny genuinely has no idea how his parents managed to raise not one, but two kids. For all their eccentricities and absent-mindedness, he and Jazz turned out pretty well. Ignoring the whole halfa thing because that’s more his fault than theirs even if Jazz says they shouldn’t have created the dangerous environment in the first place.

That environment is exactly why Danny refuses to let Ellie go to his house in Amity Park. His parents say they’ve disabled all the weapons and ecto-sensors since he’s had to reveal himself as Phantom, but he knows that things slip their minds and if they can’t guarantee that the house is safe, then Ellie isn’t going in there. Simple as that. 

This means that they live somewhere else now. Danny had thought about it, during the hours Ellie was asleep and he was awake, exhausted and worn down to his bones, and took Jazz’s advice to accept Vlad’s offer of buying a house for him. Except he argued Vlad down to an apartment in a city of his choosing where he wouldn’t stand out too much and he would be safe, or as safe as he can be, from anyone trying to hunt down ghosts. 

So here they are. Standing in the empty living room of their new apartment in Gotham. 

Gotham may not be very safe as a city, but it’s good for two ghosts trying to pass as normal. 

Danny sighs yet again, and looks at the space he’ll need to fill. At least Vlad is footing the bill. It’s the least he can do for creating Ellie. Frostbite was the one who was able to stabilize her, though it was almost too late and resulted in her reforming as a baby, just one and a half years old. Jazz is the one who’s choosing most of the furniture, thankfully, so it’s something that Danny doesn’t need to worry about it.

It’s a new start to their lives and it feels so empty. So overwhelming. How did his parents do it? How do any parents do it?

Ellie smacks a small palm against his cheek and babbles lightly.

“I know, Ellie,” Danny says, giving her a tired smile. “Don’t worry, we’ll have this place looking good in no time.”

He adjusts her in his arms, then heads towards the bedroom. It’s the only room that has any furniture, and all that’s there is a bed, a crib, and a bookcase. There are a few boxes on the floor, labeled ‘bedroom’ and ‘clothing’ and ‘books’. Most of it came from his bedroom in Amity Park, but he’s pretty sure he caught Jazz sneaking a few things in before they closed the boxes and loaded them up into the car. 

“Can you be good for five minutes?” he asks Ellie. 

She babbles again and smacks his shoulder.

“I’m taking that as an agreement. Just let me open these boxes and start unpacking before you start causing trouble, okay?”

Ellie makes another sound, but it seems agreeable so Danny carefully lays her down in the crib and gets to peeling off the tape on the boxes. The opens the one labeled ‘bedroom’ first, finding blankets and sheets folded and stacked in vacuum sealed bags. One of them is his old childhood blanket, the one he carried around everywhere that was faded with age, barely blue, with white bunnies decorating it. 

He was so small when he had this. It makes him oddly emotional to unpack it and pass it on to Ellie, draping it over her so her pudgy little hands can grab at it. 

This is no time to cry, though! He forces himself to focus and makes his own bed, shaking out the sheets and fluffing up the pillows. He’ll worry about washing everything later; Vlad made sure to get an apartment with an in-unit washer and dryer, which means he was actually sensible while apartment hunting for Danny. 

He doesn’t mean to flop onto the bed once it’s made, but he ends up there anyways. He’s barely gotten a full six hours of uninterrupted sleep since Frostbite deemed Ellie healthy enough to leave his care. The drive up to Gotham was long and wore him down to his bones.

He doesn’t mean to fall asleep, but he does, drifting off as he wonders, distantly, when Jazz will be back from getting them dinner.

Ellie wakes him up at dawn with a loud cry. Danny jolts awake, heart pounding in his chest as he panics because Ellie isn’t here, she’s supposed to be in his arms, where is she? And then he sees the crib, where Ellie is staring at him through the bars, and he nearly collapses with relief. 

“Morning, El,” he says, voice rough from sleep, as he picks her up. She just stares up at him, then leans forward and rests her head against his shoulder.

It’s quiet moments like these that make his heart melt. Ellie’s had a hard life already; he wants to give her a better one, this time around. 

A quick check of the time on his nearly dead phone shows that it’s barely past six in the morning, and Jazz texted him a few times. All about furniture, saying that she didn’t want to wake them and that food is in the fridge. 

It’s only the mention of food that makes him realize how ravenous he’s feeling. Danny makes a beeline for the kitchen, ignoring everything else, and pulls out the boxes of take-out Jazz left stacked in the fridge. He devours it like he’s been starving for weeks, then gives Ellie her Ecto-Jello, the only food she’s allowed to eat until Frostbite gives the okay for solid, human food. 

Once he’s got her burped and cleaned up, Danny looks out of the kitchen and realizes that Jazz was very productive while he was asleep. The living room isn’t empty anymore; a dark green couch is against the wall, a low, rectangular coffee table made of dark wood in front of it. Two armchairs are on both sides of the couch, and a television has been installed, fixed into the wall. 

Jazz is asleep on the couch. Her legs hang off an armrest and she’s drooling slightly. 

Her phone is charging on the floor, so Danny takes it and snaps a picture of her for later teasing, then sends it to himself and writes a note to her that he’s going out with Ellie to explore the neighborhood.

He’s finally feeling more settled, energized from sleep and food.

In the warm dawn light spilling in through the windows, Danny looks down at Ellie and thinks that they’ll be just fine after all. 

. . .

Four months ago, Danny had hope. He was optimistic. 

Gotham was a fresh start, a new lease of life for Ellie. It is Danny’s attempt to be a single parent, sacrificing college for Ellie, and he’s planning to go out and beat the gangs black and blue if they start anymore shootouts in the next year.

He had just gotten Ellie to sleep. She was actually peacefully taking a nap.

And then a drive by shooter raced down the street, gunshots echoing down the road, and Ellie work up crying. She still hasn’t stopped, despite how Danny rocked her, soothing her as best he could.

They had been outside when Ellie fell asleep, her head on his shoulder. He had been catching up with Sam and Tucker when the car drove by, people ducking and crying out to avoid the bullets. Danny instinctively covered Ellie and made them both intangible, saving them from any stray bullets, but they ruined her nap and he needs to make them pay for that. 

“Shh,” he soothes, “You’re okay. We’re both fine. It’s okay, El, it’s okay.” 

Her little hands clutch at his back, twisting the fabric of his shirt, and she lets out a heartbreaking wail. He pats her back, hurrying down the street to get back to his apartment building, ignoring the looks people were giving them as they passed by. 

“I know it was scary, but you’re alright. You’re always safe with me, El.”

Ellie’s cries down down a little, but they don’t stop. She whimpers, burying her face against his shoulder as he finally reaches their apartment building.

The door’s locked, which wouldn’t be a problem except Danny can’t get his keys from his pocket. He knows he has them! But his pocket refuses to relinquish them and he has to stop every few seconds to pat Ellie’s back, trying in vain to calm her down. 

“We’ll be inside in a second,” he tells her, trying to keep the frustration out of his voice, “as soon as I can get these freaking keys!”

“Hey, you alright?”

Danny startles, whirling around so fast it makes Ellie go quiet, clinging to him so she doesn’t get flung into the air. There’s a guy standing before him in a gray hoodie, looking at him with clear concern. It speaks to Danny’s level of constant exhaustion that he hadn’t clocked someone sneaking up behind him. 

The guy offers an awkward smile. “Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you or anything. Um, do you need me to open to door? I live here too.”

Danny wonders for a moment if this someone dangerous, someone hoping to hurt Ellie, but she starts to cry again and he steps to the side. “Please. I can’t get my keys.”

“I’m Duke, by the way. I don’t think I’ve seen you around here before.”

“Danny,” he replies, watching as Duke pulls out a large key ring, jangling with the amount of keychains on it, and easily opens the door. “I’ve been here a few months, but I’m usually inside. Or walking around in the mornings with this little monster.”

“That would explain it,” Duke says as he holds the door open, letting Danny in first. “I’m usually in classes at GCU, but I decided to take a mental health day after my lab, so here I am.”

Danny walks in and waits for Duke to follow, making sure the door closes properly behind them. “Thanks. How is GCU? What do you study? I was thinking of going there myself once she gets a little older and can go to school.”

“Oh, I’m majoring in English and Human Services.” He goes to say more, but Ellie wails again and Danny winces.

“I’m so sorry. That drive by woke her up and it’s really rattled her.”

“Hey, no need to apologize. I get it, Gotham is rough to kids.”

Danny tries rocking her back and forth, but it doesn’t help. He resigns himself to another hour of her crying before she exhausts herself, and makes for the stairs, going up to the fourth floor. Duke holds open the door again, then follows after them. It makes Danny wonder if Duke is planning to do something to them, then decides he can beat Duke in a fight, so it’s fine.

Duke doesn’t try to hurt them or steal Ellie away. He opens the door to their floor and stops before they do. “I’m in here,” he says, “If you ever need me to open more doors.”

“Thanks. Um, actually, I might need help opening mine?”

Duke just smiles and makes his way back to them, following them farther into the hall until Danny stops in front of his apartment. 

“If I could just get my keys,” he starts.

“Here, let me hold her for a second so you can get them,” Duke offers. Danny wants to insist that it’s fine, but Ellie cries directly into his ear and Danny, at the end of his rope, passes her over. 

Like magic, Ellie settles as soon as she’s in Duke’s arms. She sniffles and hides her face away, clutching to Duke’s hoodie, but she stops crying. They both go still, surprised, and stare down at her. 

“Seriously?” Danny says as he finally pulls out his keys, “Are you trying to say that I’m the problem?”

Ellie babbles lightly, and Duke turns his head to futilely hide his grin.

He grumbles as he unlocks the door and pushes it open. Ellie is acting as if she’s never been upset before a day in her life, making herself at home in Duke’s arms. 

“I can’t believe this. Betrayed by my own blood.”

Duke laughs as he follows Danny into his apartment, lightly patting Ellie’s back. “It’s always the smallest, cutest ones that do this.”

“Yeah? Do you work with a lot of kids or something? Used to being betrayed by the little ones?”

“I don’t work with kids per se,” Duke says, “But my foster family is a hot mess and the youngest of them likes to keep us all on our toes.”

“Family,” Danny says in a tired, fond tone.

“Family,” Duke agrees.

With his door open and Ellie calm, Danny’s ready to just lay face down on the floor for the rest of the day and not deal with anything else. He moves to take Ellie back, holding his arms out, and Duke tries to pass her over.

The key word being tries. 

Ellie tightens her grip and kicks at Danny. She refuses to be taken away from Duke, making him awkwardly try to pry her off his hoodie. Danny really hopes Duke doesn’t notice how she goes slightly intangible to make his hands fall through her arms and legs. It shouldn’t be noticeable, but it’s hard to focus on anything but a kid that clings to you, so Danny holds out for Duke’s goodwill and silence.

“As nice as it is to meet you, you need to go back to your… parent?” Danny nods when Duke looks at him in askance. “You need to go back to your parent. Okay? Come on, kid, he’s waiting for you.”

Ellie shakes her head, makes a frustrated noise, and then turns and reaches out a grabby hand towards Danny. 

She still refuses to be taken from Duke when Danny tries to pick her up again, so he settles with just letting her hold two of his fingers. 

“I’m so sorry about this,” he says to Duke, face burning. This is why he hasn’t been going out and being social since he moved in; Ellie is a handful even on the best days, and Danny doesn’t want someone to judge him as unfit to parent her and have her taken away.

Duke shakes his head, stepping closer. “It’s all good, man. I don’t mind. It’s not like I had any plans today. I’m already skipping my classes, might as well spend it with you two than sleep all day.”

“Are you sure? I’d be happy to invite you in, but I know Ellie can be a lot and not everyone wants to spend their day off with a baby.”

“I’m sure. Besides, I’d just be down the hall anyways. It’s no skin off my back, man.”

“Well,” Danny says, stepping to the side to give Duke full access to his open doorway, “Come on in, then.”

Ellie keeps them connected, one hand in Duke’s hoodie and the other holding Danny’s fingers, and though her cheeks are still red from how hard she had been crying, she’s calm now with her eyes shining with mischief. 

As the door closes behind them, Danny realizes that this is the first time someone he’s not related to has been inside his apartment. Not even Vlad has come in, always choosing to invite Danny and Ellie out for lunch instead. 

It should make him nervous, but Duke is calm and easy going and kind. 

He’s making silly faces at Ellie to make her laugh, completely at ease with her in his arms, as if he’s done this a thousand times before. 

Gotham is a second chance at life for Ellie. It’s a sacrifice for Danny, to be alone and without friends or family around. He’d been ready to give up everything for Ellie, to focus solely on raising her, but with Duke filling his apartment with laughter, he thinks that he can make a life here too.

All he needs to do is take that first step, reach his hand out, ask Duke to stick around.

He can do this.

#ghostlights #dc x dp #dp x dc #dcxdp #dpxdc #dc x dp fic #prompt fill #my writing #i really love writing about characters struggling to be parents v suddenly and thru unconventional means #so here's danny a year out of high school living on his own for the first time w baby ellie #and duke who needed some space and independence while he's in college. bruce pays for the apartment while duke works part time for grocerie #and ellie who had been fully developed but unstable is now a halfa baby who remembers stuff but is also. yknow. a baby. #she absolutely latched onto duke to force danny to have a life outside of her. but also she can sense that hes kind and calm #which danny needs bc he is Stressed (tm) #this leads to duke bringing over food for them and looking after ellie while danny goes shopping or naps #both of them ignoring how duke has to leave suddenly for Hero Related Reasons and how danny and ellie have Powers #it's a v delicate balance they keep for the sake of keeping ellie safe #yeah they're gonna co-parent and realize they're basically dating after MONTHS of pining #the bats have bets on who gives bruce a grandkid first and literally no one bet on duke but here he is lol :) #thanks for the prompt!!

[jestroer]

I love being a part of hermitcraft fandom, not a single normal person in sight, I think sometimes am i being too weird and then i see my mutual being absolutely fucking insane on dash and think ah no im fine actually 

#MEAN IT IN THE BEST WAY POSSIBLE I LOVE ALL OF YOU #but yea sometimes i go outside into some other fandom or just you know outside and i remember that not all the people are like that #i love seeing that post about mumbo period with a comment from connor at the end like what the fuck is happening in hermitcraft fandom #some things are sure happening in hermitcraft fandom brother #i become so normal with some stuff and then I go into other parts of internet and remember that its not actually this normalised anywhere #having a unique insane experiece in here it sure made me worse #love yall #shitpost #hermitcraft

[canisalbus]

As I sit here tending to a nosebleed I think about how that was the first picture I saw of your characters. His open, almost casual self loathing resonated with me. So much of people with "gross" physical traits seeking love is explored only in metaphor, but here is art that shows it without shame.

Your dogs make me feel like a real human being. Thank you.

.

#thank you for your sweet words! #I don't mean to sound sentimental but it does mean a lot for me to hear #that there are people who relate to Machete and his multiple insecurities and weaknesses #in this case your body behaving in a way that is outside of your control is simply part of being a living being #if that makes sense #I hope you know you don't deserve to loathe yourself #I've struggled with the same thing and loathing yourself benefits no one #I hope you're doing well today anon you deserve good things #answered #anonymous

[ryllen]

Look what came through the mail today! The letters & ( •̀ω•́ )σ 3 little gremlins from letterstoear.

Just wanna say i adore the flower stickers on the letters too much, they are that much worth mentioning.

#letterstoear #nui #twst #twisted wonderland #sebek zigvolt #malleus draconia #twst grim #mod posting #okay but i love squishing the bears with my thumb; they just have the right thickness to be pressed on #i really like the flower stickers; they look like romantically artistic wax seal #the letters are pleasantly nice #i love the part where cheka personally request for an audience with yuu thru sebek 🥺🥺🥹🥹 too cute hnggh ....... #sebek becoming our little mailman for our little invitation aw 🥹 for those who wanna know the context of the letter; #i requested a letter from sebek that he sent home while he was away accompanying malleus on other country duty #my other favorite part is just him simply opening the letter with 'My love' #i'm sealed 🥹 the first paragraph is written so sweetly #i enjoy reading the letter slowly outside in peaceful afternoon today; i ran it through together with sebek nui #this will be my treasured keepsake from now on 🥹; it seriously made me miss letters and wish i have someone to send this kind of letter to #it was a bit funny how the envelope sebek's letter came from is sticked with the guys from free! sticker fhsdsh 🤣😂 #and me with the white haired guy like WHo are u?? fsjdsdjsd (´つヮ⊂); but it's a really nice service #the thank you letter came with such a cute and yummy folding paper; thank you for the stickers too #i feel like there's a bit whoopsie on grim's winky eye fshfh like i think the sharpie just blurs the separating space '<' supposed to have #and just combine it all together into one angry eye; and sebek bear's eyes are just a little bigger than i expected it to be #but the more i look at them i think they are just having a little individuality & still cute #i embraced it all together while knowing the fact none of handmade thing would always be the same one with the other; hehe sebek nui has fr #i kinda forget that there's this kind of clip earring fshd; because i always get the ones that work like screw from aliexpress #i know that the literal clip one would just be literal meaning of pain fsh; just like the magnet one my father once got me when i was a kid #it was painful but pretty; tho i lost it quickly bcs magnet easily get loosed once one part of it moves around when u touch ur hair or face #anyhow i had a pleasant day because of this; thank you very much ! sebek nui said 'thank you' too! ‧₊˚❀༉‧₊˚. ❀ ✿ 𖤣…

[puppetmaster13u]

Prompt 263

Once More, we return to Tiamat prompts. 

It was a wonderful idea, really! If one of them couldn’t break the barrier, then surely their combined might would do it! And it had! It had worked, even if their remaining humanity was sacrificed. They’d done it, they’d made it where everyone could escape, could leave!

… Except for them. Someone had to close the portal. And it all would have been fine, if not for the remnants of the GIW. One last hail mary from the imbeciles, they all supposed. Trapping them here within the Zone. 

Separated from their families, from the pair of children they had agreed to raise. At least their siblings would watch over Ellie and Jordan. Kyle could hide them, make sure they were safe. Jazz… Jazz was gone, the final straw in this plan. 

They screamed, they raged, they destroyed in grief for those that didn’t make it, and for those who had but had nowhere to go. No portals opened, even as they tore at the green around them. They fought, any that thought they were weak, that they were merely a beast, an abomination trapped in chains of science and gold. 

There was nothing that could be done, Frostbite had said, sympathy in his voice. No way to turn back the clock with how entwined they had become, Clockwork had explained. The only thing they could do was wait, Pandora had tried to sooth, despite it doing nothing. 

They wrenched open the coffin in a hazy fury, tearing apart armies like it was blades of grass. Their maws devoured dead who had lost themselves and become mere husks and thralls, lashing tails ripping through armour like it was nothing. 

And then as titans, they clashed with the one who had once stolen the city here. There was no desperation from them this time, no armor besides scales unbreakable as flames and storms and ice and thorns ripped islands apart. There was no desperation besides that of their opponent’s. 

There was a pleasure in their victory, before it was wrenched away. What use was a crown when their family wasn’t there? When their daughter, their son, their children were not there by their side? 

Paulina laughed, hysterical as ectoplasm dripped from her maw as Kwan howled. Their body was covered in it, their rampage that had no use, no reason leaving a trail of destruction behind them. Is this what they wanted? 

No. 

Danny raised his head from the dissolving corpses to look towards the obliterated roof of the Keep, once so terrifying now turning to dust like the crown. The crown reforming above their heads, heavy and almost choking. 

They would carry this weight together. Would restructure things, would do what they had wanted to do for Amity before the Barriers. They’d work together to rebuild the Realms, make it safer, make it safe for those newly dead. 

No matter how long it took, no matter how hard it would be to fix the destruction they had wrought in this meaningless battle. (“Danny, you’re the spokesperson,” Sam spoke up, thorn-like scales ruffling. “You’re most familiar with the realms thanks to the Infinimap.” Fair. “We’ll need allies, we’re only nine people.”)

(“Let me talk to the egyptian afterlife,” Tucker sounded exhausted, hood folding back. “I’m most familiar with them… Star, Paulina, you’re both Princess Dora’s favorites-”)

(“We can do it. Just give us time.” “Maybe a to-do list.” “Clockwork. We need to talk to Clockwork, he’d be most familiar with this.” “Rest first, nerds. We’re all… exhausted.”)

(Valerie laughed tiredly, blades melting to heal a broken horn. “Time isn’t linear here Dash. You know that. I know that. For once we’re the ones with time to spare.” It would take years to get things up to snuff. Make things Safe for when they could bring their families here.)

Their eyes opened as the now flimsy chains shattered, a smile stretching across the shared face of their humanoid form. Soon. They could return to the mortal realm soon. Just a little more, and they could see their little ones.  They'd waited a thousand years, they could wait a few days more.

(also have sketch)

@fairy-lights-and-blobs @radiance1 You both seem to enjoy my Tiamat prompts/Aus lol

#DCxDP #DPxDC #Prompts #dp x marvel #The Class Pulls a Tiamat #Ghost King Danny #But Not Really it’s All of Them #Reminder for who is part of the Ennead: Danny/Dash/Sam/Tucker/Val/Paulina/Kwan/Star/Wes #They adopted Dani & Dan #Why yes there is a couple of “cults” from people from Amity #Liminality causes increased lifespans but those who were merely contaminated are long dead #This is also a bit of another Au #Ghost Kings have subconscious influence on the Realms (hence why all the ghosts were so fighty) which means~ #Ghosts are Dragons #At least now they are #People outside the Realms aren’t aware that Pariah is no longer king thx to the large amount of destruction #Some poor hero or vigilante is going to try and stop this Portal thing #And end up in the throne room to their instant regret #The Ennead’s shortest form is still like 15ft (4.6m) & in dragon form is far above 200ft #Kyle is able to hide the truth while the truth can’t be hidden from Wes #Why yes the Ennead have been removed from their humanity a bit over time #it's been a while for them

[qqueenofhades]

Okay, sort of on that note: I know we are all thoroughly enjoying the Bird App's destruction and drama and firing shots in the air to keep our property values low and complaining about Twitter users moving here and all the rest. But I'm gonna be real with you for a second and offer a Hot Take that might well get my Tumblr elder credentials revoked:

As long as they are willing to play ball with us and understand the rules of the road and etc (and lbr, we have plenty of absolutely idiotic Disk Horse of our own, that will never go away), we should a) actually be glad that they're coming here and b) recognize the far more sinister aspect of Twitter's slow motion Jenga collapse. Because it's all fun and games until the massive human rights violations and democracy destruction starts (or rather, continues). Why is that? Well:

As noted a few weeks ago when this insanity started, the second-biggest investor in the Twitter takeover, apart from Musk himself, was the Saudi government. Now, I have a friend whose PhD dissertation in sociology I have been copy-editing/proofreading for the last few years (he is originally from Saudi Arabia but doing his PhD in the UK). A huge part of his research is about how ordinary Saudis use Twitter HEAVILY, and as a replacement for the freedom of speech they aren't allowed in any other formal aspect of their country, despite many cosmetic reforms and plans for greater international investment and openness. The Saudi government, while tolerating this newfound criticism on the surface, has also routinely jailed these citizens for one critical tweet about them, including those made while the person in question was not in the country. In other words, they're not nearly as happy about this as they like to pretend, even if they're putting a good face on it, and especially during the Arab Spring and other attempted uprisings/calls for reform in the region, Twitter was a hugely effective way to circumvent government narratives and get out community information. After all, it is the biggest communication platform in the world, and anyone can instantly use it.

So, enter Musk: a petty alt-right billionaire who pals with dictators and can do anything he wants by burning ungodly amounts of money. He partners with the Saudis. Two weeks later, Twitter is going down in flames, its entire top legal team has quit, Musk is braying about bankruptcy, advertisers have fled, it's 50-50 whether it survives the year. And yes, this could be because Musk is a sociopathic idiot, since he is. But if you consider that this one evil prick can literally destroy half of the world's only medium of quasi-free speech and community organising just by throwing $44 billion at it... well... that's a lot more sinister than just him wanting to make "free speech" for all the absolute dregs of the Internet who adore him. In other words, it starts to look awfully deliberate, and Musk is anything but a fan of democracy, community organising, and all the rest.

Anyway: Tumblr doesn't function the same as Twitter, we don't want it to, and we are able to laugh at its burning corpse because many of us don't rely on it as our one and only place of meaningful speech and ability to criticize the government. But if Twitter DOES go down in flames, it will be a huge and irreparable loss in a real sense, and in that case, if you see a Twitter user poking their head in here, give them some rules of the road, advise them to change their icon, and otherwise let 'em stay.

#hilary for ts #politics for ts #yes twitter is garbage in many ways and i want it gone or at least massively revamped #but the function it plays for those outside the west is also real #and basically i am starting to agree that musk bought it just to destroy it for his fellow sociopathic billionaires #including him #who don't like anything mean said about them ever #if tumblr can somehow fill even a small part of the information-sharing ecosystem on social media #imho that would be nice

[crystallizsch]

who is your favorite fearless hero?

(not yuusha she is a girlfailure)

sigh boob window 😮‍💨 anyways- MASQUERADE OUTFIT FOR YUUSHA

still not 100% sure about the colors and the overall design but i’m pretty content with it right now

(i also need to give her more clothes she can’t always be wearing that ugly ah hand-me-down school uniform)

#THE MASK I FORGOR #THE MAIN PART OF THE MASQUERADE OUTFIT #THE MASK SPECIFICALLY MADE FOR THE OUTFIT #THE OUTFIT'S MASK #fhjddjksks i dont know what design to do for mask anyway 😔 #yuusha my beloved you’re just gonna have to deal with your face being perceived during the dance #twisted wonderland #twst #twst art #twst yuu #i have more sketches of her i should share ;;; #she needs to exist outside of --the love of her life-- i mean jamil #head in hands #save me #now im thinking about glomas scenarios hgndshd #★'-art #(💜) yuusha #glorious masquerade #phantom bride

[haunted-xander]

BBS is a tragedy in many ways, but one of the things that gets me is that the catalyst, the one big thing that caused this mess to begin with, is so avoidable.

Like, the story starts primarily because Terra starts to fear himself (because of the darkness he has unwittingly 'used') and this causes a spiral of doubt and obsession. A spiral which he could've escaped from or maybe not even started if he just 1) had been taught the balance between light and dark properly (that darkness is more than just unquestionable evil, that light is more than unquestionable good, that they can and should co-exist in balance), and 2) had consistent socialization from more than the same 3 people.

Like. BBS is a cautionary tale about what happens when people aren't exposed to a wide enough variety of people and, therefore, end up naive and overly trusting because they never learned that people have ulterior motives. Terra is consistently manipulated and used by people literally everywhere he goes, because he can't see that they might not have the best intentions! He can't see the red flags because he doesn't know there are red flags to look for!

Xehanort knows this. It's why he targeted Terra to begin with: because he would be susceptable to his words. The main reason he couldn't use Aqua is because she was too confident in her own values, she didn't have the seed of doubt that Terra had. It's the only thing that prevents her from being used the same way he is, even though she is just as naive and trusting as he is.

Ven probably has it the worst socialization wise. Unlike Terra and Aqua who, presumably, has/had a family and life outside of the Land of Departure prior to beginning training there, Ven doesn't remember anything before then (not that he had much he'd be happy to remember anyway). And since he's the youngest and most 'fragile' one (due to being in recovery for most of his time here), he gets somewhat coddled and shielded by everyone else. Not to mention the way Eraqus completely forbid him from leaving and never intented for him to ever see worlds outside the Land of Departure. Sure, Terra and Aqua aren't typically supposed to leave either, but at least they'd be allowed in certain situations. Ven wouldn't.

Ven isn't allowed to interact with anyone outside of home. He's not allowed anything that involves the outer worlds. (He and Naminé are a bit alike in that sense. Though at least the people he's stuck with are nice to Ven and do genuinely care for him, unlike Naminé...)

BBS happens largely because Eraqus failed as both a teacher and a parental figure to all of them, but Terra most of all.

#started bbs again and had feelings. not sorry #so much of the story in general (but ESPECIALLY terras part) happens the way it does bc eraqus was a flawed man with flawed values #he taught his pupils a rigidly black and white worldview that doesnt work when put to practice #and he isolated them from the outside world meaning they lack so so much necessary knowledge and exposure #its why they were so much more susceptable to manipulation and misdirection than someone like sore #who is also largely trusting #but he has had proper socialization and exposure to different people as he grew up #that he can tell good and ill intent apart #but its also like. #at the point where the story starts its already too late #because the damage is done #they cant undo the flawed teachings and under-exposure in an instant #eraqus failed to see the consequences for his teachings- that by demonizing darkness he makes it a source of fear #and as he himself said: fear leads to obsession and obsession feeds the darkness #and obsession he unwittingly stoked by creating said fear #also just to be clear this is not meant as eraqus hate he is a complicated man who made mistakes #but nevertheless meant well and could never have forseen just how badly his teachings wouldve made things #OUGH its a complicated situation and none of them are really at fault! #(except xehanort) #(he is very much directly at fault) #terra #aqua #ventus #eraqus #kingdom hearts #kingdom hearts birth by sleep #kh #kh bbs #xander rambles

[eruscreaminginthedistance]

#why tho :'(( #does that mean i'll have to wait until a potential PoE3 to make another godlike? #i understand that the cultural makeup of the aedyran empire is a certain way #but that's not stopped the PoE games from letting you be whatever from wherever however much sense it makes :( #i'm guessing the vibe is to go with making you a traditionalist outsider #hence being the two most privileged types of people in that part of the world #but even as an elf player it kind of makes me sad #hope this means you get deeper customisation options for your character regardless #anyway godlike gang for life #pillars of eternity #avowed #obisidian

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

Lan Wangji Goes To Lotus Pier AU: Part 4: Deranged Bedfellows

(Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4.5)

#poorly drawn mdzs #mdzs #mdzs au #lan wangji #nie huaisang #Yungmeng Jiang training arc AU #This is the *first* part of what was supposed to be a much longer comic (LWJ's morning routine in full). #I'll finish the remaining part as a reblog to this post! I just think this is the funnier chunk. #Lan Wangji absolutely is the kind of person who has a perfect internal alarm clock for when it is time to get up. #He already has a dedicated sleep schedule. He is accurate within 10 seconds of 5am every day. #I think the Jiang disciples are most likely used to waking up around 6:00-7:00am #But the allure of having a guaranteed time keeper getting you up in the morning is worth the earlier hour. #I imagine they started outside lwj's door and slowly moved closer as the weeks went on. #Now LWJ has to cope with being way too warm in the night from all the extra body heat. #LWJ is not a fan of this but they scamper off immediately after he wakes up and they at least show initiative to follow routine. #NHS joins in only because he is a chronically heavy sleeper and needs this level of intervention to get up early. #His boldness would be a death sentence in the cloud recesses but here? Whole new game. #Yungmeng Jiang isn't a lawless land. It's just a land with different laws. #And one of those laws is to forcefully domesticate the catboy coded Lan boy through any means necessary. #Completely different tangent: I drew the thumbnail for this before I did comic 134. I then realized they had the same visual gag. #So I had to space this one out so it didn't seem like I repeated the waking up joke. That's my secret and all of you have to keep it. #And in my land the law is that snitches get itches (telepathically transfers hives onto your body)

[aerialworms-art]

Spocktober + Trektober Day 20 - Soulmates

They love each other really! They've just had a long voyage home...

Thanks to @stellucis for giving me the idea of drawing them with the red string of fate!

(Please click for quality! ID under cut)

[Image ID: A black and white drawing of Jim Kirk, Spock, and Bones as seen in Star Trek: The Voyage Home. They are all older than in the Original Series. Spock is wearing his white Vulcan robe and no shoes. Jim is wearing his maroon suit, and Bones is wearing his beige and brown jumpsuit. His cravat is untucked from his neckline and the ends are floating. Both Jim and Bones' trousers are flared and they're wearing simple boots.

Spock and Bones are floating against a starry backdrop, connected to each other and Jim by thin threads attached to each of their wrists. Both of their threads connecting them to Jim are floating, relaxed and looping. However, Bones has grabbed the thread connecting him to Spock and is hunched over, attempting to chew through it. Spock is watching this with detached curiosity. His posture is more relaxed and his left arm is being pulled towards Bones because Bones is pulling on the thread.

Jim is standing in the middle, feet edging over the border of the drawing. His hands are on his hips, and he is looking up despairingly at his soulmates, saying "Can't you two just get along? Please?"

Above the drawing is written "Trektober" and "Day 20 - Soulmates" Below it is written "@aerialworms" and "Spocktober"./End ID]

#star trek #spocktober #star trek fanart #star trek the original series #trektober 2023 #mcspirk #star trek the voyage home #spock #james t kirk #leonard mccoy #soulmate au #i mean. is it really an au when they're literally three parts of a whole #the string of fate thing is the au part mwahahaha #this is gonna be my last trektober/spocktober post from the 2023 prompt list btw #outside of october it's just not as fun #i still have several pieces i want to do inspired by the prompt list though! they just probably won't be the exact same b/w style #anyway. rounding out the year with my favourite grumpy old men #the triumvirate #my three grandpas. and yes they smoke weed #HAPPY NEW YEAR #Oh also everyone better appreciate the detail on their outfits. i loved doing that it was so fun #especially bones'!! such a fancy jumpsuit i love it #i'm genuinely so proud of this one #and of finishing 20 whole pieces *and* posting them!!! #anyway yeah happy new year!!! live long and prosper!!! 🖖🖖🖖

[commsroom]

it's meaningful to me how much of eiffel and hera's relationship exists on the show's periphery. we see significant moments, and enough to know how much time they spend together, how much they care for each other and serve as each other's safest place in a deeply unstable environment, but i think there's also something in the privacy of what we don't see. knowing how much time they spend together, how many conversations they've had about... nothing, really.

which is also to say, it's meaningful to me what scenes don't exist simply because they have no reason to. hera would've seen eiffel place that picture of his daughter under the console, but she doesn't say anything when minkowski & lovelace inquire about it. she never brings up his past. if they ever spoke about it at all, it wasn't a point of conflict. who eiffel has been doesn't matter to hera; it doesn't factor into how she feels about him at all. all that matters is who he is to her.

... and there's the line near the end of ep 16, where hera tells minkowski, "i've been able to direct eiffel to the directories containing emergency code alpha victor and he's deleted it." that she feels safe in his hands, with these vulnerable parts of her, that he does not have the knowledge to use it against her even if he wanted to (and that he never would), and that - even after three days without sleep - he put enough attention and care into doing this for her right away that it happened without incident, and can be contained in a single line.

#wolf 359 #w359 #doug eiffel #hera wolf 359 #eiffera #still sick. i'm just thinking about them #do you know what i mean like. obviously this is true to an extent of all things in a story. that we only see the relevant parts #and the characters' lives outside of that we can only infer. but it's about what exactly we can infer. to me.

[ratcandy]

do you think that zote ever gets bullied for having mismatched horns

I guess it would depend on how much symmetry is valued by bugs hDKHSG. which caused me to look things up and find a study that tells me Yes bugs can in fact recognize Symmetry/Asymmetry to some extent if trained to recognize it. So that's neat

ANYWAY your question. I'll go with a Maybe. I'm sure it gets pointed out often enough considering he's one VERY few asymmetrical guys around here. With the only other one coming to mind being Divine due to her mask

But I dunno if it would be as much bullying as it would be "hey why are your horns different sizes? did one break and you couldn't molt a new one properly" and he goes "YES I lost it in a great battle. It was a devastating blow no bug could've seen coming. But I did. Alas. The beast was too quick even for my nimble reflexes. it got a Lucky strike and I earned a heroic scar " or whatever.

i could assume it's commented on to the same extent that like. heterochromia would be commented on. Brain sees asymmetry and goes Woah that's Asymmetry that's Crazy

#again not sure if Bullying would be the term for it #save for like. Kids I guess. but like #I would assume it'd be seen as insensitive to some extent. especially if it is seen as a case of losing a body part #and being unable to do anything about it. but considering it's Horns and theoretically they serve little function outside of #what I can only assume would be mate selection stuff and/or competition #I mean. I dunno!!!!! bully him for being unsexy by Some Bug Out There's standards due to asymmetry. #I'm sure there's something like that out there #I dunno. Many possibilities. Ur activating my bug brain and I don't think you meant to do that. #clamtalk #zote

[dennisboobs]

some of you should not speak on dennis until you've rewatched sunny in full instead of just the macden-centric eps.

#literally not even a matter of like. different interpretations it's just some of y'all forget literal canon events that disprove shit #i get schooled by people abt den too i have my weaknesses w writing him #but like oh my god #some of y'all would be better off if you looked at him outside of a macden context #he's not evil incarnate #he's fucked up and he does awful shit #but that is a little boy wearing an adult face #to just make him evil for no reason completely removes any interesting bits of him. #one of the keys to sunny's writing is that #rcg always makes sure that motivation is understandable *in that character's eyes* #dennis has a very specific purpose for everything he does #he isn't just cruel for no fucking reason #he's 'brutally honest' because he thinks its his duty to break the news #he's absolutely entitled and arrogant and misogynistic #but he doesn't set out to be Mean just for the sake of it #den thinks he is doing good. he thinks he's in the right. its not him it's everyone else. #he's doing you a favour by saying you're ugly (and propping up his own decimated self esteem) #that being said he's also not innocent pookie either #but i would say its like. in a lot of ways he IS oblivious to the reality of what hes saying/doing #part of that is his privilege as a white man who grew up being supported by and continues to be supported by his parent's wealth #but the gang enables the shit he does just as frank financially enables him #they are so insular it's like impossible to break out of the gang and interact with normal people #because if they don't get it then dennis is going straight back to the gang to feel validated and to hell w everyone else #on some level he knows shit is unacceptable but he's never learned Why and never will because theres no reason to #like when mac is completely fucking shocked by den talking abt the implication dennis CANNOT let that go unchecked #he needs mac to understand him because he's realizing that it's *actually* fucked up. bc even mac thinks so. #and when dee calls what happened with klinsky Rape everything IMMEDIATELY crumbles for him #dennis is introspective but he will justify shit and compartmentalize until his friends challenge it #he looks to media; tv and movies where the protagonist gets away with shit because its schlock fiction #and dennis DOES see himself as a protagonist. it's all justifiable bc he's the good guy.

[musclesandhammering]

I need there to be an emotional scene in Secret Wars or Thor 5 or whatever when, after Loki’s out of the tree and the war is won etc, Thor expects Loki to stay in New Asgard with him, but Loki declines and says he’s returning to the TVA.

Something along the lines of “I’m not your Loki, your Loki is dead. This was his home, not mine. I’m sorry he never got to see it. But I have my own home, and they’re waiting for me by that time door. So..”

I just think it would annihilate me :)

#I love the idea of their reunion #but I also love the idea that they (especially loki) have grown into new people and have found their own packs so to speak #because a huge part of their codependency issues before was that Loki really didn’t have any connections outside of Thor #and now he does and he’s happier and better for it #and yeah I want to see the sun shine on them again #but ultimately THIS Loki HAS a family. and they’re a bunch of silly time cops #and he deserves to not have his happiness hinge on his family #the one he grew up with I mean #loki meta #Thor #Thor 5 #loki series #loki finale #brodinsons #loki and thor #avengers secret wars #kang dynasty #secret wars #avengers kang dynasty #loki #loki spoilers #loki finale spoilers #TVA #tva fam #TVA family #Mobius #sylvie #anti Thor #it’s not but apparently it is according to some angry repliers lmao

[goemon-fan]

Part 4 Episode 17: Lupin's Day Off

#to be honest i really dont like part 4 #it had a great intro and solid first episode but then it just...flopped #goemon's horribly out of character #what do you mean he doesn't say sorry?? #what do you mean he's not friends with lupin and jigen outside of work?? #part 4 goemon is a spit in the face to what he's supposed to stand for #lupin iii #lupin the third #lupin the 3rd #goemon ishikawa xiii #goemon #arsene lupin iii #jigen daisuke #daisuke jigen