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alphacentaurinebula · 7 months

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I Forgive You: Queerness in Oppressive Systems

"How much trouble can I get into just for asking a few questions?"

There are a million ways to read Aziraphale's and Crowley's relationship and choices and I love them all, but one that struck me forcefully was the idea of different reactions to being queer in an oppressive (religious) system. The two of them are such different people (not people) from the start, and their different experiences of Heaven and Hell are entirely the consequences of their different personalities.

First let's look at Crowley. A happier angel you never did meet. His joy and absolute adorableness in Before the Beginning was one of the sweetest moment in the whole season for me, out of so many sweet moments. He is utterly himself, and can't imagine the idea that he should hide any part of his identity. He is odd, unusual, asks damn fool questions - and he can't see what's wrong with that. Just like a queer kid who grows up in a religious system and behaves outside of gender norms before realising that was something they weren't supposed to do, he can't imagine getting into trouble for his difference. And just like too many queer kids who can't/don't hide their difference, he gets kicked out of his home and abandoned.

Now, Aziraphale. He is a lot closer to Angel Behaviour TM, but it's clear that's because he understands there IS an expected behaviour, there IS a way he's supposed to act and think. He falls for Crowley, and is made to think about the questions Crowley is asking in a way that steps outside Angel Behaviour TM. But he instinctively understands how dangerous that is. He tries to pass that knowledge onto Crowley, to protect him. As he smushes himself into the Angel box, he ties himself into knots ensuring that he fits perfectly into the system around him, which he has identified as Good and Right and therefore anything different about himself would be Bad and Wrong. Much like a queer person trying to exist under an oppressive religious system, he has repressed those parts of himself that don't fit, and tried to sand off the corners and fit himself into the prescribed shape.

Carrying this analogy through time, the Crowley we meet in the present day has already been abandoned, which allows him to see the system that left him more clearly. But he has never understood Aziraphale's perspective, because he never tried to change who he was for any system - not Heaven and not Hell. Though he does now understand that he has to hide certain parts of himself to survive - thus his constant refrain of “I’m not kind”. Clearly a necessary concealment, given what happens at the end of the Edinburgh minisode.

Throughout most of the flashbacks and even most of season 1, Aziraphale is still trying to smush himself into the shape of an Angel TM, and is terrified of stepping outside of it. He does learn that he can push the borders, that he can maybe stick a toe out here and there, that he can even fully step outside it for a moment as long as he doesn’t get caught (ie Job). But what he never really learns or at least never really believes, despite a mountain of evidence, is that Heaven is not synonymous with Good and Right.

We can see it with Job, where Aziraphale is jumping through a million mental hoops to pretend to himself he is still doing the will of God even though he has been expressly told and seen evidence that God’s actual will is something Aziraphale would consider ‘wrong’. In Edinburgh he drops a heck of a lot of "ineffable"s trying to convince himself and Crowley that the heavenly system as it exists is just and right.

And throughout season 2 but especially at the end, he clearly still feels that some Angels might not be Right and Good, but Heaven is Right and Good, and if only the right Angel is in charge of it, it can return to its core essence.

He still believes that Heaven is inherently Good, and so he is still trying to fit himself into a system that would reject him if it really knew him.

And all that is where “I forgive you” comes from for me - or at least that is one of the interpretations that makes sense to me. That basically because he's still so determined to fit into that Angel Shape TM, still so determined to be what Heaven says is right, that he is forgiving Crowley for challenging that, for making him want something else for a moment, for making it harder for him to repress those parts of himself that are different and, in his/Heaven's view, wrong.

And that is why Season 3 must end with Aziraphale realising that Heaven is not Good TM and with the takedown of the Celestial system itself. Yes apparently I end all of my metas with this now.

#I am not a fan of religion perhaps you can tell #good omens meta #good omens #good omens 2 #ineffable husbands #aziracrow #crowley #aziraphale #ineffable idiots

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the-ineffable-dance · 3 months

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Throughout both seasons of Good Omens, I adore watching how Aziraphale and Crowley show their love for each other. They each have a different set of needs that the other knows about and validates... Crowley is big on giving Aziraphale Acts of Service. Aziraphale leans more towards Physical Touch.

But one thing that they both give the other is possibly the most important for our two man shaped beings... Words of Affirmation.

It's easy to see when Crowley does this for Aziraphale, and I think it's quite easy to see when Azi both needs those words and also how dramatically he responds to them.

He doesn't just enjoy Crowley praising him... he needs it. Heaven has been brutal to Aziraphale. They have never had a kind word for him... instead they belittle him and mock him at every turn.

Imagine that THIS is what you are given for thousands and thousands of years. No matter what you say, no matter what you do, THIS is the response. Nothing is ever good enough. EVER.

And then, you meet a demon. And he listens to your ideas. He sees you for who you are. And he never mocks you. He listens. He accepts you. And he tells you that you're doing good things, that you're smart, that you're clever. That you have value.

Look at that face!!! Look how much it means to him! Even with six thousand years together, Aziraphale is ready to be mocked, and when Crowley encourages him, it is everything!

Even waaaaay back, in the Garden. They hardly knew each other, and yet already we have this affirmation that Aziraphale desperately needs.

What might be more difficult to see is how Aziraphale gives Crowley Words of Affirmation that HE needs just as much. It's much more subtle, but Crowley needs them, and Aziraphale provides.

Crowley's entire existence is a delicate balancing act. Inside, he is at heart a good person. He didn't lose that in his Fall like many of the other demons. We can see his kindness in a thousand small ways... his concern for children, his love of Aziraphale, following Hell only as far as he can... But imagine. He's a demon of Hell. Surrounded by people who think words like kind, nice, love are "four letter words." And the punishment for that kindness is not just mockery, but it's physical, brutal. How easy would it be to lose those parts of yourself just out of pure survival?

And then, you meet an angel. And he sees you for who you are, deep down, all the little things that you had to hide away. And he says it out loud, so you know that he sees it and accepts it and appreciates it. And he helps keep those parts of you you cherish alive.

Aziraphale is the only person that validates those parts of Crowley. And even if Crowley reacts negatively to it either out of fear that they're being listened to or even just habit, he still hears it.

Okay, he reacts REALLY badly to it... but Aziraphale never stops saying it, either. He knows deep down just how much Crowley needs him to say it.

Kind, nice, these are the most common of Aziraphale's Words of Affirmation... but there is one that I think Crowley needs the most... the one that he himself brings up the least... the fear that as a demon he is truly unforgiveable. He is unreliable when describing his Fall through out the series, and I see that as a sign that it is something that eats away at him. No demon gets forgiven. Period.

But Aziraphale forgives him. Offers it to him over and over. (Ignore the final offer of forgiveness in S2... those circumstances are out of the ordinary).

And when Aziraphale offers his forgiveness, I don't think that he's limiting it to whatever the surface reason is. Look at him... that's the face of someone who is trying to put as much meaning behind his words as he can. To reach that core of self-doubt that Crowley hides away, and ease the ache that is there. "You can be forgiven. You are worth forgiving. I forgive you, even if no one else does." We see throughout the series the forgiveness that Aziraphale offers start off pretty broad, and moves more and more intimate... from "May God forgive you" to "May you be forgiven" to finally "I forgive you." He refines his words until he finds what Crowley needs.

For both of them, the Words of Affirmation that the other provides is such an important part of their relationship! I'm thinking that soon I'll take a look at some of the other Love Languages that they use throughout the series. Until then!

#good omens #ineffable husbands #aziraphale #crowley #aziraphale loves crowley #crowley loves aziraphale #aziracrow #anthony j crowley #mr a. z. fell #good omens 2 #good omens meta #ineffable love languages

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zeldasnotes · 1 year

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ASTRO OBSERVATIONS

-Real Life Edition-

• I have a friend who works as a hairdresser and she got the most beautiful hair Ive ever seen. Its like a lions mane, thick and huuuge! And ofc her husband is a Leo Venus.

• The most down to earth person Ive ever met had Venus in the 8th house, Virgo Moon and Aquarius Rising. She was sooo kind, honest and genuine. She had like this angelic aura surrounding her.

• The two most kind men Ive ever met both have Moon conjunct Venus. One of them got the conjunction in Cancer, can you imagine what a teddybear he is.

• I know 3 people who lie habituallly they cant even help it and they all have Neptune in the 3rd house. One of them got Mercury Square Neptune too. One of them showed me a picture of a less known actor and said it was her boyfriend💀😂.

• My archenemy from high school got her Chiron conjunct my Moon, My Chiron conjunct her Mars. Our Venus Square eachothers Ascendant. Her Nessus conjunct my Ascendant. Mars conjunct Mars. Moon Square Moon. Sun opposite Sun. We laugh about it today but we used to HATE eachother so intensely that we both would dream about eachother at night because all we thought about during the days was to win over the other. Yes we got a water mars

• Me myself got Mars conjunct Dejanira and Ive been in abusive situations with men my whole life.

• My dad got an Aries Ascendant and he have always been the one that family & friends call when they got problems or need someone to help them fight someone. People always call him for backup or just for him to come and scare someone. And he always gets in the car as soon as he gets the call, he never backs down from confrontation.

• I have Nessus in my 11th house and I was very abusive to my friends when I was younger. Still dont know why I acted like that.

• I know three women who are EXTREMELY beautiful like they would definitely get noticed if they went to hollywood. Two of them got Venus conjunct South Node and the third got Venus conjunct North Node conjunct Ascendant.

• I know two guys who had women they were not in a relationship with plot to have a baby with them. Both guys got Venus in the 5th house.

• My stepmother got Moon Square Lilith which is like THE placement of triangledrama and her parents are cheaters and she got involved with my dad when he was with another woman. (Not me spilling the tea about my family😂)

• The most shallow person Ive ever met in my entire life was a Libra Rising with Chiron in the 1st house, Venus Square Ascendant, Saturn Opposite Ascendant and Venus Square Saturn. She would hide her face when she saw a car drive by if she was out walking her dog without makeup. She was also OBSESSED with men.

• A famous person was having a Q/A on her instagram story and I was like disagreeing with all her answers. Like the food she liked I dont like, completely different taste in EVERYTHING. I had to check her chart and ofc our Moons are in Squaring signs. I could really feel how different we were at the core.

• My best childhood friend with Scorpio Rising and Cancer Moon was the one who always warned the friendgroup about fake people and didnt want to let anyone hang with us. We always thought that she was judgmental and bitchy, turned out she was right about all of the people she warned us about. Her intuition was SCARY. If she ever have children I hope they listen to whatever she says.

• I know a woman who is the kind of woman you can call in the middle of the night and she will jump out the bed to come and get you and ofc she got Moon in Cancer. Such a wonderful woman.. Its square pluto in Libra tho so dont betray her.

• The two most argumentative and competetive people I know got Mercury conjunct their Mars. They think everything is a competition.

• I know someone who I suspect to be a narcissist. I cant diagnose someone im not a doctor but she got all the signs. Both her daughters got Lilith in the 4th house in their natal charts and her husband got Chiron and Pluto in the 7th house in his chart…When I see someone with Lilith in 4th Im careful with their mom.

• A girl I went to high school with who I still talk to sometimes but she moved to another country, she was HATED by other women. She was seriously like known in our town. When I used to hang out with her people even messaged me asking me why I hang out with her and that shes disgusting. She got threathened by girls she didnt even know. Slutshamed in a way that was horrible and abusive. Yeah she got Lilith in the 1st house in Libra conjunct Moon in Libra.

• The people I know who have a dad whos in prison got Sun aspecting Pluto.

• My sister with Moon in the 10th house is a preschool teacher.

• The women I know with any kind of dislike towards children got Lilith aspecting their Moon or/and had Virgo placements.

#astro notes #astrology #astro observations #astronotes #ascendant #lilith aspects #astrotidbits #asteroids #birth chart readings

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r--kt · 12 days

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Where actually was this betrayal line for Obito that Kakashi had crossed?

about the whole "anyone got Kakashi, but not Obito" thing that @komihoyinsblog said. I remembered where the culmination of this theme was. no, like, this whole topic is real!

let's talk about the scene after when Jubito was defeated. here I will analyse kkobkk relationships and Obito's arc specifically.

contents | context · meaning of the scene · where's a mistake and where's a betrayal

CH. 655

Context

during the battle with the shinobi alliance, Obito came face to face with a deeply repressed desire for another life, which he did not realize due to his position as the only one who can fulfill the tsukuyomi plan. the battle itself as well as the conversation with Naruto reminds Obito of the aspirations and values dear to him that he had to sacrifice. all this has noticeably hit Obito and now he is disarmed and stripped of his armor, which is metaphorically reflected in his half-naked body (and cuz fans love men's boobs).

CH. 652. god, look how happy he is, I'm sobbing. love the way he never regrets about his scars, they're with him even in his imagination, that's a reminder of his core values.

structurally, in Obito's arc, this scene is the Collapse point and the end of the second act. here, the previous methods (the tsukuyomi plan) have shown their inconsistency, and the goal (peace for everyone and for him, too) has not been achieved, and he must find a new way to achieve this goal. at the beginning of the scene, he is confused, defeated and not ready to face the consequences.

why isn't he ready? he's lying there, seemingly resigned. yeah, not exactly. here, he accepted the impending death, and it's even not bad to die by Kakashi's hand to some extent. another question is, is he ready to talk to him, is he ready to accept the defeat and find the strength to continue the journey?

Meaning of the scene

once again, it is important that the battle with the alliance and the conversation with Naruto influenced Obito, but did not convince him. it was Kakashi who did it.

in fact, this conversation with Kakashi is a crucial reason for Obito to return to his ideals. before that, he was in doubt (the second act is a reflection of the character, as if hesitating from one side to the other), and after that he takes the side of the alliance. what did Kakashi say that made Obito come back?

three questions Obito is asking.

how can you be sure that Naruto won't fail on his way, unlike me? [pic 2, above]

why are you so attached to Naruto, what's the difference between him and me? [pic below]

why are you willing to help him (and not me)? [pic below]

they don't talk about different paths here. Kakashi emphasizes that Obito's path is not exactly wrong, so that's not the deal. it's about Obito and Naruto as people, and, more, about Kakashi's opinion on Obito.

finding out why he is not the one whose path Kakashi is ready to defend is essential for Obito. he wants to understand why Naruto (aka Obito's previous self, too) is closer to him, why Kakashi does not support the actual one for whom he grieved so much. why, even recognizing the possible correctness of tsukuyomi, Kakashi refuses to support Obito in this, prefers to go the same way. and also look at how damn emotional he is at this moment, his feelings go from anger to anxiety in a couple of frames. that's what happened when the central conflict "I'm never good enough to be loved" is raised.

Obito's questions are a subconscious appeal to Kakashi — "why don't you choose me? I could make you happy. what's wrong with me again?!" he thinks that the reason Kakashi doesn't take his side is not because of the correctness of his path, but because of Obito himself. subconsciously, he thinks that it's because of Kakashi's personal dislike of this "new" Obito, and he is very afraid of this might be true. just look at his face at the bottom of the page, he's really worried about hearing Kakashi's answer. oh, and it's actually the same meaning as "I thought, maybe you could love me like you used to, even though I'm different" [ Jinx's quote from Arcane, yes, I like to compare these two sometimes ].

what Kakashi says in this situation means "let me help you." Kakashi said he would be ready to help Obito if he let him in, if he allowed him. this is literally the only condition (which is important to mention here) under which Obito did not pass, because of his desire to reject Kakashi's help, believing that he must put his life on tsukuyomi plan and cut off all ties. but this does not mean that he wanted Kakashi to cut off this tie in return.

Obito was an individualist, and he only scoffed or got angry at Kakashi's offer to help/sympathize. now they're in a situation when Obito finally hear that Kakashi said "you've made mistakes, but that's okay. I can be with you, if you need me to, and I'm okay with you continuing your life and reaching peace. I accept you and I believe in you." and I want you to appreciate that this is the tipping point of Obito's arc.

so, that's why Obito changes his way of acting. Kakashi shows that he accepts Obito the way he is, and thus significantly reduces Obito's need to prove his worth through his own hardships and overcoming difficulties. yes, Kakashi had already said similar things before, and it didn't work, but here this line is resolved precisely because of this deep conversation they had.

Where's a mistake and where's a betrayal

oh, maybe Rin's death was a thing Obito considered a betrayal from Kakashi's part? everything's much less trivial. would he offer to help Kakashi if he thought he was a traitor? and well, he offered.

CH. 630

no, look at his face on the bottom right, why would you say that with such a gentle face to someone you consider a traitor? what is it, a genuine smile? so something happened besides that.

the betrayal was that Kakashi preferred his other ties to the connection with Obito. here, betrayal is not about killing Rin, and not about breaking a promise — all these are mistakes that Obito is able to forgive.

all the moments when Obito says something like "you had the opportunity to kill me, but you didn't do it", "you can't deal with me because of guilt?", "still blaming yourself for the broken promises?" - all this is an attempt to increase his own value, to show the importance of Obito for Kakashi. and it's also a projection. Obito says, "you had so many opportunities to kill me, but you..." although he does the same. like, why would he leave Kakashi alive after the kamui battle? intentionally inflict a non-fatal wound on him and leave him in a dimension that only he and Obito have access to? "I don't care if he's alive or dead," but at every opportunity he chose the option "alive", even if it's less profitable for him. my baby loves to deceive himself so much.

all this time, Obito believed that he was striving for their common dream, and therefore the condemnation from Kakashi (there should be a couple more frames from the manga) feels like the most painful blow for him, especially when Kakashi says that Rin would not want it either. before that, Obito had compared himself and Kakashi a couple of times, put them on an equal footing, and after being rejected by him, that's where Obito feels really lonely.

the point of no return was precisely the fact that Kakashi shows with his own words that he does not accept the current Obito and everything he's been striving for years. all this, taken together, he considered a betrayal, as if he's not enough, as if he fucked everything up again.

therefore, their conflict is resolved by the acceptance of one person by another, this is in fact exactly what Obito's heart wanted — to hear that he could be accepted after all that had happened. the same thing happened after his death, when he finally met Rin, by the way.

hope the text is not that messy. oh, and! that kkob video I've made with mitski's song. this fits the topic so well. love these guys

#obito uchiha #kakashi hatake #naruto shippuden #naruto #kakaobi #obikaka #team minato #kakashi #obito

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justauthoring · 4 months

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orphic.

*orphic: mysterious and entrancing; beyond ordinary understanding

a/n: listen i just cannot stop imagining different scenarios with these two men... and vampire aus make me weak :) i promise next post will be naturally!

warnings: dubious content, drugs, alcohol, ...sucking blood?

It’s bright.

A mixture of blues and pinks and purples that warp your vision, blending together to create a sense of euphoria that makes your heart feel like it’s singing.

You’d lost your friend in the crowd of dancing, drunk, high people long ago—if you were being truthful, she wasn’t on your mind anymore than anything else was. You felt completely blissful, head thrown back as the sweat pours down the skin of your neck in waves, head lost in beat of the music that radiates through your entire being right to the center of your soul.

The hands that drift across your waist feel like heaven.

The lips against your neck feel orgasmic.

“I’ve not seen your face here before.”

Geto’s voice is husky, low but heard clearly above the base that swallows the room completely. You can’t hear the sounds of those around you, everyone else is completely drowned out except for him.

“It’s my first time,” you whisper as you spin, moving so you can run your hands along his chest, gripping at the silk material acting as a barrier from his skin. Your hips continue to sway beneath his grasp, feet shuffling in rhythm with his own as you press your face to the crook of his neck, taking all of him in.

As you pull back, dipping your head back as your eyes fall shut, you let out a giggle; “my friend had to beg me.”

“Oh?” He questions, pinching at your waist. “Why’s that?”

You let your eyes flutter open, meeting his eyes as you grin; “would you believe me if I said I wasn’t much of a party person?”

His eyes narrow, darkening as he smirks down at you, leaning forward. His long dark hair falls around him like a curtain, making you feel like it’s just the two of you in that room and not a single other person.

“Not really,” he shrugs teasingly. “Can read it on your face, darling.”

You pout, reaching up to wrap your arms around his neck, pulling him closer as you slur, clearly inebriated. “Am I that obvious?”

“A little,” he admits, responding to your touch, letting his forehead fall against your own. The tips of your noses press against each other as lets his fingers run small patterns across your skin, just ever-so-slightly dipping beneath the edge of your blouse. “But see… that’s what I chose you.”

The edges of your lips turn up at his words, letting your eyes fall shut as he presses a kiss to your cheek. “Mmm…”

“You’re perfect,” he whispers and his voice goes straight to your core, feeling suddenly a lot warmer than you had seconds prior.

You press your lips against his own, your desperation overruling the commonsense you normally had when sober. All the red flags you would’ve noticed by now and would’ve run away from drive your every action that night, feeling desperate and warm and craving something sinful even if in the back of your mind you know you’ll come to regret it tomorrow morning. Truthfully, none of that matters to you in that moment as you press your lips against his own, the sway of your hips slowing to instead press your chest against his chest, fingers brushing against the ends of his hair.

His hands splay against your back, large and comforting as he responds to the kiss, guiding you every moment.

And then, just as you press for more, he’s pulling away. You whine at the loss, eyes fluttering open to question him, until you meet his eyes already staring down at you, smirking.

“Come with me,” he orders, stepping back to instead extend his hand out to you—his palm is held up, inviting you and it only takes a single glance before you’re following his lead blindly. “I have a surprise for you,” he promises, pushing his way through the crowd.

You can barely see anything in between the mass of bodies and behind his broad shoulders, putting all your faith in him completely as he weaves you around, grip tight on your hand. He’s reassuring, thumb stroking your hand, easing any worries you might’ve had but truthfully, there isn’t a single ounce of worry in your mind in that moment (whether that be from the alcohol, the drugs you and your friend had taken earlier or simply, him).

He leads you up a set of stairs, the noise of the party drowning as the lights become yellow and fluorescent. You feel less claustrophobic as you stare at the long, dark hallway in front of you, only briefly meeting his eyes before stepping just a second behind him.

He stops in front of a dark, wooden door with the number sixty-nine on it.

You have to crane your head up to meet his gaze, and you watch, puzzled, as he offers one more glance down at you, before pushing open the door, a familiar creak swallowing up the silence. His hand slips from your own and you have to hold back the whine that threatens to fall from your lips at the loss of his touch, instead opting to follow him inside. You take in the room, dark, plain, eyes drifting across another door (you assume it’s the bathroom), a desk, before settling on the bed right in front of you.

On it lays another man, shirtless, with white hair, the edges of it a hue of purple, and the brightest, most striking pair of blue eyes you’ve ever seen.

Your eyes fall back on Geto, baffled but he’s already crossing the room, back turned to you, not paying attention.

The white-haired man stands then, crosses the short distance over to you, and grins—it’s wide, too wide and his eyes look manic, but you barely notice.

“Hello there, pretty,” he greets, fingers brushing back a strand of loose hair. “You’re late.”

It takes you a second to realize his last words aren’t directed at you.

“Took a minute to get rid of her friend,” Geto calls over his shoulder, fiddling with something. “Suck it up.”

The white-haired man laughs, loud. As his eyes focus back on you, you find yourself suddenly breathless. “My name's Gojo Satoru, baby. But we can skip the pleasantries and you can call me Satoru. I think we’re beyond that.”

You want to say something, lips parting, but no words leave your mouth.

Gojo frowns down at you, but it’s almost mocking the way he offers you pity. His fingers dance across your cheek, touch soft and gentle, but there’s no sincerity in his gaze as he frowns down at you. “You know your name, baby?”

Slowly, you nod; “Y-Y/N…”

“That’s a good girl,” he eases, nodding. “Tell me, Y/N, do you know where you are? How did you get here?”

Another nod. “My… my friend—it was her friend's party and she-she dragged me here. But… but I don’t know where—!”

“Sh. sh.” He cuts off, sharp but gentle as he shakes his head, moving to cup both of your cheeks. “Your friend’s fine, pretty, okay? So I don’t want you worrying about her anymore.”

And oddly enough, even though you shouldn’t, you nod again.

“What’s his name?” He sticks a thumb over his shoulder in Geto’s direction.

“Ge–Suguru…”

He smiles, bright and genuine when you listen to his look and call the man you’ve only known for an hour by his first name. His smile is pretty when he means it, beautiful really. It makes his eyes light up and his face look softer, friendlier.

“Suguru made you feel good, didn’t he?” Gojo asks just as said man comes up beside him, a glass in hand. Your eyes flicker from Gojo to Geto’s, numbly taking the glass from his hands when he offers it to you.

“Yeah,” you mumble, taking a sip. “He did. Really good.”

Geto grins.

“We wanna make you feel like that all night, pretty,” Gojo explains and your eyes snap to his at that. Your mind is still hazy and your mouth feels heavy, tongue dry and gross, but you’re positive you’re hearing what they’re saying correctly. And honestly, none of what they’re saying scares you either. You’re a little confused, a little numb, but… but Geto has made you feel good—more than that—and Gojo’s voice is so… delicious to listen to.

You want more.

“We want you to be ours,” Geto whispers in that soft, husky voice that had made you feel wet before, sending shivers down your body as you jerk in response. He notices and smiles. He reaches forward, hand falling on your shoulder before drifting down the bare skin of your arm. “All night. We’ll make you feel things you’ve never felt before. Show you things you’ve never seen before.”

Gojo grasps your chin, tugging your gaze back on him. “Would you like that?”

Lips parting, you nod, slowly.

“We need it in words, baby,” Geto calls, voice demanding. “I want to hear you say it.”

“Y-Yes,” you utter, voice shaky, barely audible. Blinking, you swallow the lump in the back of your throat and nod, more eager; “yes.”

They both grin and then, suddenly, they’re on you.

Hot, sweaty, hands dance across your entire body, pulling, tugging, never relenting and never stopping. Your world spins, everything a haze of pleasure and bliss as you let yourself fall, relishing in their attention both completely on you.

But then you’re on your back, naked, on their bed, both of them over you, hovering, and there’s a sharp, excruciating pain in your neck and your arm, pulling a scream from your lips. Your hands fight against them, bewildered, suddenly scared as you try to push them away.

Surprisingly, they let you.

You blink, once, twice, trying to see through the fog of everything, until it registers in your mind that there are fangs poking out of the teeth, sharp and long, and there’s blood—your blood—dripping from the corner of their lips. Their chests are rising and falling, rapidly, heavily, and their eyes are on you, only you, focused solely on you, naked, the perfect prey beneath them as you stare up, feeling like you’re imagining things…

It’s fangs, real fangs, in their mouths… fangs that have bitten into you, hurt you, and it's your blood dripping from their mouths right now.

“I told you we’d show you something you’ve never seen before,” Geto calls out, voice low, as he leans closer, braving the distance you’d created before them. You jump, at first, instincts telling you to run, but all you do is shift and then stop, eyes dancing between him and Gojo, the latter who continues to smirk at you, licking at his lips. Geto closes the distance, face before your own, eyes wild as his fangs poke out threateningly. “Didn’t I?”

“What… what are you?”

“Isn’t it obvious,” Gojo calls, arching a brow as if your question is the stupidest thing you could’ve asked. Then, as you stare at him, blankly, he laughs, leaning towards you. “Vampires.”

“That can’t…” be real, is what you want to say. But you can’t. Not when the evidence is staring you in the face, arguing against every bit of common sense you thought you had. Not when you reach to your neck and feel two holes where Geto’s mouth had been and see the same thing on your arm, where Gojo had been.

Not when they sit before you.

“It hurts at first,” Geto whispers honestly. “But it’ll feel good, too.”

“Trust us,” Gojo adds, without missing a single beat. “Let us show you.”

You should say no. You should be screaming and crying and running because they’d hurt you… because they were vampires.

But, if that was the case, you never should’ve followed Geto up here. You never should’ve let him take you down a dark, isolated hallway. You never should’ve let him lead you into a room where another man was already waiting.

You never should’ve gone to this party in the first place.

“Come on,” your friend's voice echoes in your mind. “Have some fun for once, please?”

It’s too late now.

And, once again, you nod.

The sun blares into your face, a groan falling from your lips as you slowly blink yourself awake, body aching as you shift, moving a hand to fall across your face.

But, you can’t.

Your eyes snap open, the memories of the night before flooding through you as you try to sit up only to be stopped similarly to your arm. A glance to your left and right gives you the reason why, seeing both Geto and Gojo sprawled on either side of you. Gojo’s leg is over your own, while Geto’s arm is wrapped around your waist, equally holding you against the both of them.

And then, it isn’t just the sex that comes to mind but the—fangs…

“Mmm,” Gojo groans, shifting slowly, head turning to face you as his eyes glance up at you lazily. “Mornin’.” He smiles.

“Morning, indeed,” Geto calls out from beside you, clearly having already been awake as he smiles brightly up at you the second your eyes snap to him.

“But… but—” Your attention falls on the window and the sun blaring through it—if dracula had taught you anything it was that the sun killed vampires. “The sun—”

“A myth, pretty,” Gojo mumbles out, voice still thick with sleep. “It’s a tad uncomfortable but won’t kill.”

Your eyes squint, shaking your head. That was… this was all just—

“We’re not lying, we are actually vampires” Geto calls out as if having read your thoughts. (Was that a power he had?!) “And now, I can’t read your mind,” he snorts, “like I said last night, your face says it all.”

You just stare at him, wide-eyed.

“I thought you’d be a little more worried about… well…” His voice trails, eyes drifting below your face and rather on your body.

Panicked, your glance down at yourself, still very much naked as you hold your arms out before you, seeing the bite marks across your arms, bewildered.

“We made sure not to take too much,” Geto assures, sending the worry flooding through your entire body. “Just small bites and not very much blood, but, well, it’s just…—”

Gojo pops up behind you, arms wrapping around your waist, pulling a squeal from your lips as he pulls you into his lap. “Your blood is addictive,” he whispers against your ear, causing you to jump in response. His grip is tight though and he keeps you firmly pressed against his bare chest. Oddly, he’s warm. “Just like I thought it’d be.”

Geto rolled his eyes, “I’m the one who had to do all the work about getting her.”

“Yes,” Gojo huffs, “but I’m the one who found her.”

You’re absolutely baffled.

“I… what…”

Both Geto and Gojo glance at each other, before the former speaks up; “sorry, darling. We forgot to tell you last night. We were, well, just so excited to finally have you in our arms we got a little caught up in all of it.”

You blink; “tell me what?��

“You’re ours.” Gojo whispers possessively, squeezing you as your lips part.

Your now very much sober mind is screaming all the red flags you’d decidedly chose to ignore last night and dear god, just what had you gotten yourself wrapped up in?

“Satoru,” Geto hisses, “you’re scaring her.”

Frowning, you turn to Geto, body rigid.

He smiles gently. “What Satoru meant is… we’ve been watching you for a while and you’re the one.”

You shake your head; “the one?”

“The one for us,” he explains. “Our soulmate, if you will. Your blood is the sweetest we’ve ever tasted and you make me feel…”

“Euphoric,” Gojo whispers in your ear, smirking.

You tense in his grasp.Geto smiles, reaching forward to take your hand in his own. “You’re the one we’ve been looking for,” he adds, “the one we’ve been searching for years.”

#jjk #jjk x reader #jujutsu kaisen x reader #jujutsu kaisen #satosugu #satosugu x reader #gojo satoru #gojo satoru x reader #getou suguru #getou suguru x reader #geto suguru x reader

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sahonithereadwolf · 11 months

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Can I tell you about the very queer game I made this Pride?

In A World That Hates and Fears You, Living Becomes an Act of Rebellion.

Exceptionals is a game inspired by X-Men about and for the spaces and communities marginalized peoples make for themselves. Play as a Geno, one of little less than 0.5% percent of the population that has gone through a mysterious process called Claremont-Simonson mutation, as you try to navigate a world that won’t make room for you. Exceptionals is a game about what the mutant metaphor means to you and the different lenses through which we view it. Punch back and build something of worth together in this narrative tag-driven tabletop role playing game. 🧬Features Open-Ended Character Creation🧬 Mix and Match between (23) open-ended but guided protocols. Answer questions to create high concept and unique super powered characters where the only real limit is your imagination. Get invested in who you make as a whole person, and not just a set of powers. Build a Community 🧬Create a living and dynamic community space full of colorful characters. 🧬 Grow your base as an anchor for other geno and help fill it with the resources they and you need. Understand how your actions effect others and gain trust through the bonds mechanic. It’s a game where you get stronger by growing your community and heal by being part of it.

🧬Comic Book Storytelling 🧬 Play as a creative team of writers and editors working to tell the best version of the story you can over time and storyline-based experience to model changes of the status quo and creative direction. Enjoy panel based action pacing and the ability of characters of all power levels to coexist and carry the same amount of story weight.

🧬Not Pain Tourism 🧬 While Exceptionals offers a number of places to push back, we understand and recognize that the most important part of a punching bag is that you choose to hit it, even if it’s not at all. We recognize not everyone gets to set the issues that the mutant metaphor is used to talk about down when they leave the table and offer many ways to tell stories outside of a lens defined by pain. We also put an emphasis and mechanical weight on the importance of joy and celebration. 📚You can buy the Core Book here:📚 https://bramblewolfgames.itch.io/exceptionals 📚You can buy the Expansions here:📚 https://bramblewolfgames.itch.io/exceptionals-expansion-bundle 📚You can buy the bundle with everything here:📚 https://bramblewolfgames.itch.io/exceptionals-expansion-bundle I didn’t go out with the intent of making this a very queer game. Not explicitly. I started making games because I got frustrated waiting to feel seen or acknowledged. Another game got me mad about using my peoples stories to be transphobic, to be racist, to be ableist. Nevermind my people have more than two genders traditionally and faced a genocide. That was too much for me. I said this was enough and the quite indignities I suffered to feel included wasn’t worth it. I could do better myself. So I set out to make a superhero game. I hated just about every comic book game on the market. It never seemed to capture what I did like about big hero comics with high concept storytelling and powers and couldn’t care less on a mechanical or narrative level about who this person was outside the mask. More focused on bashing action figures together and golden age pastiche that doesn’t really reflect the decades of character and genre developments that have happened since then. I later found games that do it better, but I was dissatisfied... I chose x-men for the homies. I’ve always been an x-men fan. A lot of people my age were. My first action figure was one of rogue I got at a garage sale, where she then went on to fight many a play-dough monster. But for many of us it was the first place we were allowed to be heroes. There are no natives on the 90′s x-men team. But I had uncles and older kids all too eager to tell me about Forge and Warpath (I hate that name) and my favorite Dani Moonstar (I ain’t the biggest fan of that name either, but she’s the closest thing mainstream hero comics have to a good NDN).

After that, things just kinda flowed from there. The X-men have such a focus on community. It’s “comics greatest soap opera”. It can be messy, complicated, beautiful and life-affirming all at the same time. They take the time to play basketball, go to the mall, and have birthday parties as they grow. Two of my favorite x-men comics aren’t about fighting at all. One is framed around a sleepover some students have, and another is about a wedding and framed around everyone filming their part of the wedding tape.

So I started thinking about the communities I’ve been a part of. A big core of the game is informed by my time and the people I met in these sort of spaces. As a native, as a queer person, as a disabled person I’ve been both someone who needed them and someone who gave back.

Which suited x-men just fine. X-men has cared about that sort of thing from about X-men #3 with the first appearance of The Blob, establishing it’s tone of sympathy and mutants as a minority analog.

I just kept going and I didn’t stop. And apparently I did a good job. Someone out there has been using my game as game-therapy and community outreach in a gender health center out in California. I got a lot of kind words for the game too (which is good, because I spent 3 years on it).

KUDOS

-As featured on; io9/Gizmodo, Kotaku, Listen to Theses Nerds, Team-Up Moves, Yes Indie'd Pod, Team-Up Moves, and The Voice of Dog -#1 Best Seller and Popular on Itch.io in both Analog & RPG Games, Sept 2021

Listen to the Team-Up Moves AP Here!: https://teamupmoves.com/runs/exceptionals "Exceptionals is a beautiful, brilliantly designed superhero RPG. It's truly a masterpiece, and if you haven't checked it out, do yourself a favor." -@PartyOfOnePod

"This thing COOKS, Sahoni doesn't just tap into the queer/minority readings of mutants, but also ties in the weirdness that really gets my mind racing when it comes to X books." -@froondingloom

"A refreshingly different game, that strikes a good balance between unlimited player freedom and solid guiding handrails. Really gets at the full potential of what the ;mutant outcast heroes' genre should be about: found family, building communities, and lives lived to the fullest despite being lived in defiance." -@guywhowrotethis

"The whole game oozes love for its inspiration while also going further than they dared...." -@Phoenix24Femme

"Astonishing! Uncanny! All-New! And all other X-Adjectives available. This book gets why one would want to play the Mutant Metaphor in an RPG. It cleverly weaves the power fantasy of powerful individuals with the drive to do good for one's community. It's well-researched, well-written and, well, so much fun to play! This is the superpowered game I've been wanting for a long, long time. I can't wait to tell an Exceptional story of my own!" -@Kokiteno Team-up moves even made a recommended comic reading list. It has some of the best x-men has to offer and then some. It even includes that New Mutants comic with the sleepover. They read me for filth and I love it.

I hope you play my game too. I hope you like it. I hope you tell queer stories and build community around you. I hope it’s messy, complicated, beautiful and life-affirming all at the same time. Thank you for reading this. Please reblog if you can as well as share it with x-men and rpg fans in your life.

#exceptionals #Indie TTRPG #ttrpg #comics #X-men #pride #mutants

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lucabyte · 6 days

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obligatory ramble about postcanon loop ask

also your art is amazing

Hiiiiiiiii :D thank you :)!!

and thank you for the excuse to post the. just absolute wall of text that i truncated down to form the tags of that post. (i did,,, hit the tag limit. i forgot tumblr had one of those...) so let me just paste that and tidy it up a bit...

I am putting this under a readmore because it's a bit long. but:

This is like. The General Context for all* of my postcanon doodles? (Except AUs obviously) Like this is the base idea I've been drawing them all in. So, feel free to backread with this in mind. I've basically had this 'postcanon' timeline set in my brain since finishing the game...

My general thoughts are that I like the idea of Loop (even if through dubiously ethical means) being able to slowly reintegrate with the party as a whole new person, because they are, in fact, their own person.

It's a muddle of thematic threads im pulling on and "wouldn't it be fucked up if", but. (at its core, it's powered by the fact that like, while narratively isat's theme of 'the only person who can truly take the first step to help you is yourself'. (wrt: loop helping the party help siffrin in act 5) which i LOVE AND IS GREAT NARRATIVELY…. would be super fucked up irl to learn that your friend 'learned as a lesson' while you stood by kinda uselessly. I know i'd be upset about it. but thats mostly background here. doesn't really come up. at least not until loop has to explain who they are and the party realises they had to fall back on literally themselves again for help, but i digress,)

The real core concept is: Occam's razor. It is like, inherently, a buckwild thing to accuse a person of being somehow a clone or copy of your friend. Even if they start vaguely alluding to a backstory it's far more likely they were some other person before all that. (I still think Odile has that theory in the back pocket but she's rational enough to know it's a really long shot without a solid explanation. and i think Loop deep down knows this, and would, if cornered into confessing, turn the situation around to go J'ACCUSE and make HER explain it instead. Ever longer dodging being direct with their emotions...)

And the party are nice! And if someone has changed and wants to keep stuff secret it's kind of not their business? (Though it's hard not to speculate… see: the main joke of the doodles) And they seem important to Siffrin so they just try to accept them abrasive quirks and all. And eventually the question of their prior identity just fades away since, well, they're Loop. Their friend Loop.

but yeah. personal headcanon is that a few months/weeks after picking up and getting aquainted with Nille** (since that was presumably the IMMEDIATE TASK postgame), Loop reappears (either after a literal period of nonexistance, or just spending a few months wandering the french countryside alone being attacked by wild dogs). Since Siffrin has had a while to be therapised by the party they're doing mostly okay, but Loop showing up and still being agitated/aggressive pulls them both into a bit of a backslide behaviourally and puts the party on the back foot again.

Hooowever, I do think that due to no longer being literally stewing in the worst pressure cooker of all time together, the two do mostly actually sort themselves out with productive conversation. (Via a cycle of: genuinely distressing argument -> weeeird lovebombing -> ok we're good -> repeat, that gets less intense over time)

Thus, allowing the party to just. Integrate loop as a new person. They and Siffrin shuffle into different ecological niches (Loop taking over stuff Siffrin is now too squeamish for, etc (see: hunting, mostly)), and while it's not exactly what Loop wanted they generally get that beggars can't be choosers and it's a pretty good deal. And the rest of the party does straight up just like them as a friend, especially when Loop quits trying to actively antagonise them after a few weeks of being around them, since they just can't keep up being mean to people they like forever.

As for how I think the truth eventually drags itself out. This is where I invoke The Isabeau Torment Nexus™. So its gonna get shippy here for a bit hold on.

Which is, I think giving them time before Loop reappears long enough that Siffrin and Iseabeau actually manage to become established, Isabeau has to be the one to nudge the pair of them and go. "Hey. You know we're in Vaugarde right. I'm okay with polyamory if we all communicate." Before Loop and Siffrin actually even acknowledge that whatever the fuck they have going on kinda looks a lot like a relationship of some kind. (or have already been agonising about that via fighting and arguing, depending) (Obviously this comes after Isa "Emotionally intelligent enough to keep a lid on the jealousy" Beau has managed to use that big brain of his to Not just go Scream somewhere on the daily because oh godddd they keep talking like theyre suicide-baiting each other jesus chriiist. is it overstepping his boundaries to bring that up?? god)

This, taking a bunch of the tension out of Loop and Isabeau's relationship (Since I imagine Loop is a. being weird for the obvious reasons and b. feeling kinda guilty about 'getting in the way of' Siffrin and Iseabeau), allows them to actually get close in a normal friend way. (I think an interesting turning point could be Isabeau actually taking Loop's side in an argument vs Siffrin, which would absolutely break Loop's brain. Especially if it's an argument that matters. Like what do you mean he isn't just going to play favourites. What?)

Then Isabeau, just actually open minded and charmed by Loop (and maybe even somewhat at Siffrin's suggestion?) tries to close the final open side on the polyamory triangle here and that's the final straw for Loop on "This lie by omission is too unethical to keep up, this is just actually sick and wrong. I can't do this while he doesn't know who I am." Though. Obviously it probably goes. Very poorly with emotions high like that. And the added element of several months of deceit. Getting dark here for a second but that dagger is going MISSING and so are THEY for a hot minute.

Then yaaay everything works out in the end 👍 yippieee!! all it took was maybe a lot of harrowed recontextualisation of all the weird shit your new friend said and did when it turns out they're your old friend. It's fine.

But yeah. this is basically the context all of my postcanon doodles have existed within? And those exist to give other people something to chew on. So this does too.

I suppose TL;DR: Imagine if sloopis almost fucking happens before isabeau knows who loop is. can you fucking imagine. can you imagine having to navigate that. nightmare.

*Yes this includes the implied cannibalism comic. Uhh. Comes part and parcel with headcanoning that Loop went way off the deep end similar to A5 Sif But Maybe Worse before giving in. Add weepy half-asleep confessions to murder wherever you see fit in your mind palace. 👍👍👍

**Re: Nille footnote. I don't have anywhere to put this besides here! I have some thoughts on Loop and Nille having an odd dynamic. I don't imagine Nille to be super gung-ho on trusting a bunch of adults (even if they are majority around her age) given their implied backstory. It's probably a big shock to the system, especially since Bambouche is a good couple hundred Kilometers up north from Dormont and these guys don't seem to have trains. She would've been unfrozen and without Bonnie for some time....

Which is to say: I think she's suspicious of them. I think she may be looking for excuses to distance herself, keep Bonnie safe. SO.... A new guy showing up? And antagonising the party? What do they know that I don't...? I should find out.

And since... Loop didn't ever know Nille, they have no ammunition or real reason to be cruel. Plus, if they're trying to stay on Bonnie's good side (SINCE... if Bonnie thought Loop was cringe they may as well kill themselves. In their mind.) they SUPER have no reason to antagonise Nille.

Mostly, they might be able to open up to each other easier than they can the rest of the party?

I feel like this resolves with Loop feeling compelled to apologise for what they and Siffrin let happen to Bonnie, though... Hmm... Depends on how you interpret Nille that they'd be glad nobody else had been told about that yet, or furious it had been secret this long. I lean toward the former.

#PHEW THIS IS LONG. i wrote some extra footnotes and tidied it up a bit. but uh. here you go! my personal headcanon baseline for postcanon.#i could probably elaborate more but that would get unwieldy. like i have opinions on loop's dynamics w each party member but. LONG POST...#lucabytetalks #isat #isat spoilers #in stars and time #isat loop #isiloop #sloopis #WONT be tagging everyone thats absurd. loop centric post though with a chunk about nille at the end #isat act 6 spoilers

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mari-monsta · 6 months

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It honestly really baffles me when people say adrien is a boring or simple character, I don’t understand where that comes from at all. Because I think the main reason he’s so compelling are his complexities, but in the same vein those complexities I think make him someone very easy to relate to. Like it’s fine if he’s not likable or relatable to everyone but saying he’s not complex is really just ???? To me. Just looking at how DIFFERENTLY he acts around different people and situations is so fascinating to me. Of course everyone takes different personas and highlights different aspects of their personality around different people but adrien is the king of doing it around the same people to the extent of which having his two personalities be the same is laughable to those who know him personally in his everyday life.

But it’s not out of no where, seeing his home life and the kind of person he’s made out to be by his situation it’s not hard at all to understand that he’s a person who is immensely self conscious. He’s constantly gauging others perception of him and whether or not he is “safe”. What’s more fascinating is the entirely different way this comes out in chat noir. Because adriens personality as chat noir is also deliberate to a certain extent but it’s deliberate in the way that that’s how he wants others to see him. He wants to see self assured and larger than life because in his everyday life he feels small and self conscious. The fact that this dichotomy is so easy to follow in his character but creates such a black and white image in his two personalities is so interesting!

Another thing I find completely fascinating about him are his high empathy and how that actually fucks him up more often than not. He’s acutely aware of how other people might be feeling and can easily sympathize. At the same time though he has a hard time understanding certain social cues and situations and seems very out of his element. I don’t think these things conflict at all. Adrien is someone who easily puts himself in other peoples shoes and can imagine and have sympathy for their situation, but that doesn’t mean he’s going to pick up on the social complexities of every interaction every time. Emotions aren’t the same as communication and when it comes to the later adrien works best with simple and straight forward interactions.

In the same vein because of his aforementioned situations he’s also a character who has a lot of repressed anger and frustration that has been building up for a very long time. In his everyday life, he feels powerless, small, and insignificant. He doesn’t have faith that anyone would listen to his thoughts and feelings and actually take them into account, because by all of his experiences no one really has. This creates a defense mechanism where he shuts himself out before he even gets to the point of sharing how he really feels. We see this really easily in his relationship with Nino. He loves Nino DEARLY, but there is something that we have seen in him constantly putting up walls emotionally. He won’t tell him when he doesn’t find something funny, he won’t tell him if he’s unhappy to do something even when it greatly affects his life because he is at his core afraid Nino will not validate those emotions.

As a result, all the frustration he’s built up from feeling powerless in his everyday life we see just. Randomly bursting out of him in inopportune moments as chat noir. It’s not that adrien is such a violent or angry person normally. But he’s so used to repressing and modulating his emotions regularly that when he feels somewhat safe to express any frustration ALL of the anger he feels constantly bubbling under the surface all of the time just suddenly rushes out, like a dam holding back hundreds of gallons of water. This happens repeatedly, and then as soon as he’s realized he’s let himself get out of control he immediately feels immense guilt and he stops the dam up even tighter. This is obviously not a healthy feedback loop but it’s fucking FASCINATING!!!!

A common thing that I feel like I see fans often misinterpret about his character in my own opinion is just how PRIVATE of a person adrien is. Adrien loves sharing his love and appreciation for those around him because he knows how it feels not to know, not to be sure of that affection. But in the same token, Adrien rarely if ever actually shares his real feelings with those he’s close to. He doesn’t like people prying into his life or his feelings and he is very private about most things. We don’t see him talking about what he likes, we don’t see him sharing with his friends his anger or frustration. And in the end Adrien is the one character who has kept his secrets most closely held to his vest. This is all despite being so grandiose and loud mouthed as chat noir. Even as chat noir, adrien rarely is entirely open about things going on in his life.

To me Adrien as a character isn’t interesting or compelling because he is shy or cute or sweet, but because there are a number of different facets to his personality that I can easily see reasons for and understand where his feelings come from. He IS sweet, but not without misplaced anger, not without repression, not without mistakes and messy emotions. Not without pain that we can both easily see the roots of but also have a wide spread variety of consequences from. We see how his formative experiences affect every aspect of his life even in ways he audience wouldn’t necessarily expect, but make complete sense. That’s so fun and interesting to me!!!! Let characters be messy but try their best anyways!!! Let characters hurt each other and try to put the pieces back together one shard at a time. People have complicated emotions that come out in ways we can’t always foresee or help, people make mistakes because of that. But despite everything adrien is a character who cares deeply for those around him and tries to do right by them despite all the rest of it, and despite sometimes not really knowing how.

It’s things like that that keep miraculous being an extremely engaging and compelling story to me. Most of the general things about adriens character are also things that I find interesting about marinettes as well! Of course the intricacies of her character are completely different, but the general hows and whys and complex motivations for her actions while maintaining the best of intentions are what make them both so interesting to me. So this is just a little love letter to adriens character because I wanted to talk about that and why I find him so engaging!

#I feel like I see people act like #oh adrien is just a white male character what is so interesting about him #when it’s. like. just a characters baseline identity does not . dictate if they are interesting #I’d also argue that adrien as a white male character that falls into so many feminine females character tropes is also FACINATING #BECAUSE he is a white male character #being a white male character doesn’t make a character interesting by default either tho obviously #any character should always have the depth and work behind their story to make them compelling no matter what #adrien is particularly interesting to me because of his dichotomy #but the same could be said about marinette #she deserves praise for being an engaging and compelling character just as much #ANYWAY. IDK WHY IVE BEEN RANTING SO MUCH LATELY.#THIS JS MY SECOND MIRACULOUS INSPIRED RANT IN THE LAST 24 HOURS

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carpedzem · 2 months

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under the cut i want to talk a little bit, maybe overshare as well. ill try to keep it short (rereading nat here. i didnt). its a sad post, might make some of you angry but not for the reasons you think

i was staying away on purpose, but a few people asked about me so i wanted to let you know that hey, im lurking, im waiting to see what happens. maybe some things will change in the future but im putting it out here so its all in one place

i think i want to start with saying thank you again for sticking around, supporting my art and my thoughts and having discussions with me. i really opened up about myself and what I created here. im very anxious person and it influences my life on every level, so being heard, seeing people laughing at my jokes, loving my art has been so so important to me

about the situation, the gogcident if you will, i logged out as soon as i saw things going down and been getting updates though different source. and while situation is still on going and i dont know where it will go, as how it ends, theres two or three things im firm on that will always be true for me:

i really hate how believe all victims turns into believe everyone who speaks first, no matter what they say, no matter context, no matter proof. the first statement made in this case was untrue in a lot of important details and while i dont think caitis feeling are wrong or invalid i think her first statement made this situation into something it isnt. i think every victim should be heard but attacking everyone who was accused right away is not a solution

i do believe that everyone who was accused of anything has every right to defend themselves. the way its constantly taken away from dteam is not lost on me and its insane and upsetting

you can be traumatized by the events that werent in its core meant to be traumatizing. sometimes people act shitty and leave scars on you and sometimes you can do the same to other people

edited note bc i want this to be here as well: guilty until proven innocent is a crazy mindset and i cannot imagine situation that i would allow it. some idiots dont even realise how dangerous rhetoric that is. including accusers not being obligated to provide any proof of their claims

twt is the worst thing to deal with any discourse, misunderstanding or any delicate situation. i think no ones there cares for any victims period. i wish that place the worst

okay so what now. i havent decided yet. georges and dreams moves so far confirmed for me that no matter what happened it wasnt with malicious intentions. ill wait to see how this plays out and then ill decide about my next steps. one think i did for sure is i uninstalled twt from my phone (and that already bit my ass the moment dream started his space…) that part of fandom, both people who like (liked?) and hate dream is so damn self-destructive, toxic, manipulative and performative it wasnt worth it anymore. for here, i dont know yet. i dont hate dteam, i think this is very unfortunate and sad and complicated situation that left people very deeply hurt. and i wish it wasnt this way and im pretty sure dteam also wish that. but they cant change it and i cant change it even more

now this is something i dont really know how to tell you but let me try. i never mentioned this bc when i had those realizations, it was too late, everyone moved on and i felt stupid for dwelling on this. i feel stupid now, typing this. the thing is, drituation left me quite traumatized. fucking pathetic, i know. the sudden explosion of fandom left me really badly hurt. i lost a lot of people i genuinely believed to be friends with, and i miss them dearly. i felt, fuck it, still feel deeply betrayed by some of them. i dont want people guess who is who thats not the point, those people moved on long time ago. but that hurt has been really difficult to deal with, especially since realistically i know its quite stupid. crying over some people who were following me back for a few months? but i tried to let myself heal and grow love for this community again and i thought we will be okay. drituation felt like the end of the world but we got through it and I thought we are smarter. and well. im not trying to blame anyone or even a whole community, idk maybe i want to blame the universe for putting me here or society for working this way i dont know. but im hurting and i need to find a better way to deal with things going the wrong way. and it deeply upsets me but im afraid that i have to learn how to love you all less. and i honestly dont know yet what that means, how moving forward will look like. i dont have to make this decision now so i let myself stay away from social media for a while still and then go with presented situation the best i can. i dont try to make anyone responsible for my wellbeing i want to make this clear. im just trying to share my feelings and give you context for whatever happen in the nearest future. no matter what i need more healthy relationship not even with ccs but with community itself (and if you see me rebloging hazbin hotel fanarts. spare me...)

in this place i do want to state that no matter what i dont think dteam are bad people. im not closing myself at possibility of participating in the fandom, probably less though things i mentioned earlier. but if any of those things make you uncomfortable in any way, feel free to unfollow/softblock

im leaving my askbox open if anyone has anything to say, add, or idk, scream at me. not sure if i answer any tho. also if i delete this post in the next 10 minutes out of embarrassment then well, haha

on the final note i want once again thank you all for supporting me when i needed help for my cat. you all did something amazing, something i will never forget and i wish to hug everyone of you in person. thank you

see you around. one day. maybe tomorrow maybe in 10 days. idk

and if you are moving on in different direction, if we ever meet again, dont be a stranger

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essaytime · 4 months

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I think the main thing that absolutely infuriates me about the "Romeo and Juliet were just dumb, horny teens" take is this implication that because they were so young, their relationship had to boil down to them being dramatic and inventing some great romance to moan about, or lust and hormones. As a teenager, it makes me want to tear the speaker apart with my bare hands. Interchangeably with stabbing, maybe.

When you look at the text, you can clearly see that there is some emotional connection between Juliet and Romeo. Their first conversation is literally a sonnet - which already indicates some sort of understanding and mutuality, and it's also beautiful poetry. They are the only characters in the entire play that they are really fully comfortable talking to. The adults are caught up in the feud, Nurse loves Juliet, but cannot understand her (and makes a dirty joke at her expense in Act I, which for a person Juliet's age would be awfully unpleasant), Romeo's friends, though I Iove them, don't get his sensitivity - Mercutio laughing at it and Benvolio worried by it - which Juliet, in turn, appreciates. They speak of each other with respect and admiration, quite unusually in Verona, where all is conflict and even Juliet's own father insults her: look at the sonnet, the balcony scene, Romeo comparing his sweetheart to the sun or a jewel (in contrast to his earlier quotes about Rosaline, which are literally a compilation of clichés stacked on top of one another). Even when Juliet awaits their wedding night, in a speech clearly centered on sexual matters, there is a visible softness and affection with which she treats Romeo ("cut him out in little stars"...). She waits for the night because it's him, not "I want to sleep with someone because I want to sleep with someone". The two genuinely care about each other, and are fond of each other. Of course, we can wonder if this love would last if they were given an opportunity to grow older, but when the play takes place, this love is there, and it's beautiful.

(Off-topic, I'd also like to note that this is an Elizabethan play that takes place in even earlier times, presumably late medieval - early renaissance Italy. They wouldn't live in the modern world where you can date many different people and settle well into your thirties or fourties. The average marriage age for girls in Shakespeare's time was about twenty, in fifteenth century Florence it was eighteen. Both of them were from wealthy families, so they'd likely be expected - even if Juliet's parents did not force her into a marriage with Paris - to marry earlier, for financial and political purposes. There couldn't be a "growing older" like we imagine it. Even their hypothetical different relationships would be early relationships for today's standards)

And it makes my blood boil when the visible genuine bond between these two is reduced to just "dumb kids being horny". The motive behind these words being partly, of course, the high-school-acquired All Required Reading is Nonsense edginess, but also a deeper issue - the inability to comprehend the fact that teenage love is also often real love.

Being capable of having deep and meaningful romantic relationships does not come baked into your birthday cake when you turn eighteen or attached to your first ever bill. Not every single feeling a teenager might harbour is at its core shallow lust and wanting to get laid. Of course, there's lots of cases of shortsighted infatuation where the pair really have nothing in common! I could name at least a few examples I have seen personally. But still, on every street and every corner of the world, and often a few metres from these pointless infatuations, teens fall in love because there's something more to it. Because they find they have a lot in common, because they get along well with each other, because they are able to see the good in the other person - their kindness, their intelligence, their enthusiasm, you name it. "Teens" including the younger teens, from thirteen to fifteen. And this love is a deep emotional bond. Sure, in most cases it will not last until death (and to be honest, relationships not working out is not really a teenage-specific phenomenon and a sign that young love of all is inherently doomed and it has to die so the curse of growing up is fulfilled), but it doesn't make it less of a love when it still remains, and it includes all the things love is about. Young couples go on dates, and have fun. They confide in each other. They support each other through hard times, they show care, they sometimes make sacrifices for their loved one's good. As any person in love does, at any age.

When I fell in love four months ago, I did not fall in love because I wanted to sleep with someone so bad. In fact, I do not want to - not for the next several years. I realise it's something I might want someday, but it's not today; and above all, I'm way too young. If anything, what I want is to kiss someone, or run my fingers through his hair, or read with his head in my lap - but it's not something I'd go out of my way and date a random person to get, come on. I fell in love because he is actually the first boy that reminds me of myself so much, the first I can understand so well. Because I also have a penchant for history and writing, I also tend to use formal and flowery language in very informal situations, I also enjoy people's attention (though I seem to worry more about being a potential inconvenience than he does), I also believe that we should judge people as individuals, because there's too much nuance in one person to make proper statements about large groups - and I find in him so many things that I can relate to, though of course I can't say I know him well enough to speak much for sure. Besides, he's simply a wonderful person, not flawless, of course, but he has a good heart. He is always kind, and well-mannered, and intelligent, and you can laugh with him. He would care if something bad happened, no matter if he says that he wouldn't. I think I know him well enough to say this at least. And if he loved me back (a thing I consider unlikely for now, but not entirely impossible), would we stay together forever? Heaven alone knows! Maybe not! It is up to the higher power. But even if we broke up, that wouldn't erase the fact that I loved him, and I would have done a lot for him, and we were able to have meaningful conversations. Just because a love isn't forever, doesn't mean it was never there.

Because - what the "dumb kids" people don't seem to grasp - teenagers are also human beings with a functioning, even if not fully developed, brain, capable of having complex feelings and thoughts just like an adult. Note that Shakespeare's leads, at least Juliet, actually do that - hence the pre-wedding night monologue, the "deny thy father and refuse thy name", her statement (I don't know the English original of that one, to be honest) that she is too soft and loving towards Romeo already, but it's because she has such profound feelings for him she can't even pretend to be strict. It's noticeable that she has some emotional maturity, at least - she shows some critical thinking abilities, she understands the consequences of many actions, she is able to see that the feud is pointless and a name is just a name. She's a teenager, and someone in their teens is also a Homo sapiens specimen, not a being from a different planet. Teens think and feel. It might not be the same reality as the adult one, and they don't deal with emotions with such ease as an adult would, but that doesn't mean they are unable to truly love and care, to enjoy talking to someone and want the best for them, like grown-ups do - as developing an affection for someone that makes you happy is a very human thing, and I can guarantee you a thirteen or fourteen-year-old is a developed enough human being to experience it.

So, to sum it up, if I hear any "Romeo and Juliet were just dumb kids being horny" on my watch, the author of this statement will presumably be mercilessly killed, and then I'll do as Fulvia allegedly did to Cicero and stab something through their tongue, except instead of a hairpin, I'll probably use one of the darts my little brother got for Christmas. They are very sharp. We have several holes in the floor already.

#and today I live up to my URL and write a full-blown essay #romeo and juliet #shakespeare #classic literature #my Romeo and Juliet rants

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mayajadewrites · 25 days

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Sweet Secret (Levi Ackerman x Reader)

Pairing: Levi Ackerman x F! Reader CEO Levi Ackerman coming in hot. I've been wanting to write a CEO Levi/Sugar daddy Levi story for a hot minute. Enjoy! Summary: You needed a job. Ackerman Inc was hiring for an in house assistant for none other than the CEO: Levi Ackerman. He's known to be essentially the worst to work with, you decide to take the job and take on the challenge that is Levi Ackerman. Will your relationship remain professional, or will their be monetary value added to the stakes? Or possibly even... love? ao3 Chapter Eleven: Lucky

It's the last night of vacation. Or should you say, 'conference'. You and Levi have kept from touching each other for both of your sanities. He only had one nightmare within the last couple of days when he had his arms around you.

"I can't believe we have to go home tomorrow morning." You zip up your luggage and prop it up against the wall. "I'm gonna miss the sun."

"We can always come back." Levi sipped his 3rd tea of the day. "Besides, our client has been happy with our work so far so I don't see the deal falling through."

You nod, sitting on the edge of the bed. You've been able to be a completely different person here. Soon, you'll be back in reality. Back to being the assistant to CEO Levi Ackerman.

"Hey." Levi waved his hand in front of your eyes. "What's wrong with you?"

"Sorry." You snap out of whatever trance you were in. "I'm just not looking forward to going back to New York."

"You act like I give you a ton of work." Levi sat next to you, his thigh touching yours.

"Not at all." You giggle, your head leaning back. "It's not like you don't pile on enough work for me to be busy for 2 weeks."

"You must have a different boss then. That doesn't sound like me at all." Levi's voice vibrated from his throat.

"Yeah, he's a lot hotter than you." You turn your head to look at his face. His side profile was carved by Renaissance artists. His skin supple from the moisturizer he just put on.

"Damn." He chuckled, watching your face as you lean back. "He's lucky he gets to look at you all day."

Your eyes find his as you sit up, holding each others gaze. You held your breath as Levi inched closer to you, his hand resting on your cheek. His hands felt hot on your skin - like his touch was taking your breath from your throat.

"What color is the light?" Levi's lips ghosted in front of yours.

"Green." You whisper, your eyes fixated on his mouth. "Green light."

Levi's minty breath kissed your lips before his lips did. He kept his left hand on your cheek, moving his thumb back and forth softly. You lean forward, letting the straps of your tank top fall off your shoulders, your full breasts now on full display.

Levi's other hand snakes to your waist, his large hands pulling you into him. You moan at his touch which gives Levi the perfect in for his tongue. You press your hand on his thigh, letting your nails drag against the fabric of his sweatpants.

You feel the palm of his hand slide up your body - pasts your breasts, to your neck. As he kisses you, he wraps his hand around the front of your neck - squeezing gently. You moan softly as he squeezes, your tongue dancing with his. He then moves his hand to the back of your neck, pulling you into him. "God, I've been thinking about that mouth of yours for days."

"What about it?" You whisper, moving your hips to straddle Levi's waist. This is the first time you took charge while being intimate since Levi always seems like the more dominant one. "Tell me what you love about my mouth, Levi."

"I love how swollen your lips look after kissing you. I imagine them wrapped-fuck," He says as your mouth wraps around his tongue, sucking on it gently. "I imagine how those lips feel wrapped around my cock."

"Is that so?" You feel wetness in your core. You can't help but be turned on by him fantasizing about you. "Well, let me make that your reality." You push your right hand on his chest gently, letting his body fall onto the plush bed.

You hook your fingers on the elastic of his sweatpants and pull them down to his ankles. Next, you slide his briefs down, revealing his long, girthy cock. You hear it slap against his stomach as your eyes watch in amazement. You've never seen a dick like his before. You're not sure if he could even fit inside of you.

Levi's breath hitches as your fingertips touch the base of his cock. You're now on your knees, your doe eyes boring into his half-lidded ones. He watches as you grab the base of his cock, leading the tip to your lips. You give it a quick kiss before sliding your tongue along the slit.

"Fuck." Levi's breath is shaky as he watches you pump his cock with your dainty hand. You don't break eye contact as you take his cock inch by inch into your mouth. His hands travel to your hair, gripping it roughly as you take more of him, quickening your pace. You close your eyes as you start to feel tears in them. But his cock feels so good in your mouth, and the look on Levi's face as you suck his soul out of his dick is so rewarding.

"Just like that, take my cock in your pretty little mouth." Levi peered through his eyes, watching you drag your tongue along his length, massaging his balls with your other hand. You feel his cock twitch in your mouth before he pulls out of you quickly.

"Why did you stop?" You watch Levi as he sits up, patting the comforter, seemingly looking for something.

"Do you have a condom?" Levi says with a low tone.

"I don't. Usually men keep those around."

"Let me check my bag." Levi got up, grabbing his backpack. To be honest, you want to feel all of Levi. But this is the first time he'll be fucking you, he'll be inside you, so it's better to be safe.

At least that's what you tell yourself.

Levi sits on the bed, a condom between his index finger and middle finger. "Found one. I brought only one, just in case. And for self control."

"I haven't slept with anyone else." You look down at the wrapper.

"I believe you. But, lets be safe."

"You have way more clothes on than I do." Levi said huskily, throwing his t-shirt on the floor.

"Let's fix that." You grab the bottom hem of your shirt, sliding it over your head and revealing your plump breasts. You kick your shorts to the side, crawling towards Levi on the bed.

"I like the view from here." Levi's voice is low, his mouth curved into a half smile. "I like when you crawl to me."

You glance at Levi, then his mouth, then his cock. Your core is throbbing with need. You watch his hand slide the condom on his length as he pulls your arms closer to him.

"Light?" He whispered.

"It's green. Green as in go." You press a kiss to his lips as his arms wrap around you tightly, flipping you on your back.

You stare at Levi as he lines his cock at your entrance. His eyes are locked on yours as he caresses your cheek with his index finger. "You are so beautiful, you know that?" Levi smiles.

"You're beautiful, too." You kiss his nose, trying to distract yourself from your throbbing core. "I need you, Levi."

"Impatient are we?" Levi plans kisses down your ear to your neck. "We talked about that, didn't we?" He growled.

"Levi, please." You wrap your arms around his neck, bringing his body closer to yours.

"I really created a spoiled brat." Levi pressed his tip against your soaked pussy. He almost slid right in, but he stopped himself. His hand dipped to your slit, your arousal coating his fingers. "So wet for me already, princess?"

"Yes." You moan, digging your nails into his skin. "I want you inside of me, Levi."

"How can I say no to that?" Levi pushes his entire cock into you, a loud moan escaping your lips. Levi watches as his cock disappears inside of you as he thrusts in and out of you.

"You feel so fucking good." Levi cages your head between his arms. "This pussy was made for me."

"Just for you, baby." Almost inaudible noises leave your mouth. You didn't mean to call him baby, but it just... came out. Levi liked the sound of it though because he started thrusting faster. You felt his bicep against the side of your face as his dick reaches places in your pussy that you didn't know existed.

"Right there, Levi." You moan as he hits that spot. "Keep going." You press your palm to the back of his head, your fingers lacing in his jet black hair. You cradle his head in your palm, gently caressing his scalp. Even while he's fucking your brains out, you want to take care of him.

"Fuck, princess." Levi's pacing got quicker, and sloppier. You felt your walls pulsate around his cock and your eyesight going blurry. "I want you to come first. Can you do that for me?"

You close your eyes and nod as you feel yourself come undone under him. The lining of your eyes went white and you saw spurts of rainbow as you reached your high. Levi pounded into you as you came, his own high coming soon. You pull Levis bare chest down to yours as he reaches euphoria, a moan of your name leaving his lips.

You're both panting as you come back down to earth, not wanting to move. Levi is still on top of you, the sweat sticking you together. You open your eyes and see Levi is already staring at you, his hand caressing your hair. "Are you okay? Was that okay?"

"It was more than okay." You nod, kissing his nose. "I've never came like that. So fast."

Levi only nods, lifting himself off of you. "Go shower." His tone was back to being cold as his back is to you. You sigh and get up to the bathroom, your legs slightly shaking. You turn around and watch Levi stretch, his back covered with marks of your nails dragging on his skin. You watch the muscles contract before he turns to look at you. "You really have a bad staring problem."

#levi ackerman #levi ackerman x reader #levi ackerman fanfiction #levi x reader #levi ackerman fanfic #levi ackerman smut #attack on titan #aot #levi ackerman attack on titan #levi x you #levi ackerman x you #ceo levi ackerman

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fairuzfan · 2 months

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it's quite a dishonest framing that you say hussein was "regarding you with suspicion" baselessly even though you've publicly state on your blog how you believe zionism is an "intracommunity" discussion.

they at no point even mention that they blame you for "israel's actions". they assumed you were talking about zionism because of previous pointed statements you endorsed where you say zionism should be only discussed by jews. its not imagined, you straight up said this? and you claim that hussein is antisemitic for assuming you're saying the same thing again just with more inclusive language? And it coincided a few days after me posting that tributary post about "defining yourself as zionist or antizionist"? So he assumed that it was in relation to it? sure you might not have meant it about zionism this time, but with previous statements you've made/endorsed you don't exactly have the right to act like you have no idea why they would assume that and misconstrue this as an antisemitic attack where he's conflating zionism with judiasm when you literally agree that zionism should only be discussed by jews, which means you yourself are conflating zionism and judiasm.

but ok, i guess, they were just taking your words out of context because they're "antisemitic". I even saw this ask last month and assumed you were talking about zionism in your recent post because of this statement you published and told him privately thats what i assumed you were talking about. Not because of you being jewish. But because i remembered this statement you agreed with because i was so offended reading it. And yeah it's a really bad statement that I'll remember because of how antipalestinian it is so sorry I don't think you get to claim the moral highground???? You didn't exactly disagree with any part of this person's statements?????

And like I would have left this alone but hussein often gets called antisemitic by people you associate with and reblog from, and it really shows how little compassion you all have for Palestinians (which btw as I say over and over, we have a right to point out harmful rhetoric that impacts us) who have a "knee-jerk reaction" to these things when we quite literally see our communities call for the deaths of our friends and family by starvarion and bombing in the name of zionism and when we call it out irl we get called antisemitic. You could have like sent an ask or publicly clarified your intentions but you just jumped straight to calling him antisemitic. Which the onus of responsibility is on YOU because of your previous statements. Why would we assume you mean something different based on past experiences???

Rhetoric like "zionism is an intracommunity issue" is stuff that has literally led to death of our loved ones so of course we have "kneejerk reactions" when there is literal proof of you saying these things before. We are not doing this because you're Jewish, we are doing this because we see and experience first hand this rhetoric and youre perpetuating it blatantly and you have people who follow you who look to you for perspective on "israel/palestine". It's so disingenuous to claim he's an antisemite when he's literally finding common talking points zionists perpetuate against us and call it out. And saying "I don't support the likud government or Westbank settlers" means nothing to us because our families were expelled from palestine before likud and settlers happened. Trying to separate modern day zionism from its colonial roots from the 1800s is at its core anti-palestinian, no matter what other conversations you want to have.

Again like the only reason this matters is because people follow you and look to you for perspective AND you reblog/interact with people we have pointed out as harmful. I literally would not care enough to make this post if i didnt see your posts spread enough times around here. So it's not because you're jewish and framing it like that is really dishonest when the person pointing this out was a palestinian who lost family due to zionism throughout multiple generations of their lives.

#not making this rebloggable because i dont want this to be a big thing but like #the way this circle of people refuse to interact with ideas about palestine outside of like. standing together or #“israeli/palestinian peace groups”#just shows you guys are more concerned for your own circumstances than any actual liberation of palestine #like come on. you say zionism is an intracommunity issue and then get mad at people who “misinterpret” you #based on past statements.#like be for real #why would we care about you if none of us have seen your posts around #youre perpetuating zionist ideology and WE are the antisemites. ok.

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summershouto · 1 year

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baby 5 & sanji- the role of gender

I’m definitely not the first person to say this but Sanji’s women obsession is very similar to Baby 5’s need to please and I wanted to expand on it more bc the thoughts keep bouncing around in my brain

Sanji and Baby 5 have the same core need to find love and it effects their actions- especially in matters with romance/the opposite sex. While both of their fixations are often treated as jokes, they still reflect underlaying issues tied to their backstories.

The way they act on this romantic drive is somewhat different, as they both assume the traditionally expected roles in accordance with their gender. They’re putting on a performance, behaving over-the-top in effort to please, while still varying in how they portray their love-sickness to remain a model man/woman. these differences set them apart, and I feel in Sanji’s case it can result in his behavior being brushed off as simply a weird quirk (unlike Baby 5, who’s actions remain lighthearted but are recognized as a trauma response).

They both have the same reaction to potential interest/attention, but remain strictly on the opposite ends of the spectrum of Man vs Woman in a conventional relationship.

Baby 5 maintains a caretaking, flattering-focused obsession of the opposite sex rather than transforming into having pervy gags. She wants to be needed but she also enjoys (and sometimes imagines) being swooned over.

Looking at Sanji in the beginning, before the annoying nosebleed/creep gags became more prominent, he was also rather romance driven rather than motivated by lust. He, similar to Baby 5, saw many as potential suitors; a hopeless romantic at heart. While Baby 5 strikes at the first sign of interest from a man, Sanji equally treats every woman as someone he needs to look after .

Baby 5 jumps into the role of a caring wife. She blushes like a schoolgirl and assumes that every man who is kind is showing interest in her. Meanwhile Sanji, filling the role of a traditional man in the relationship, seeks to provide. He wants to aid women in any way possible- whether thats with cooking or actual physical protection. His pervy gags could also be read as a way to fit this norm- as a man it’s more societally acceptable to be lust driven- (and in some cases, lust/sex is a way to “prove” ones manhood). This is especially prominent after his time apart from the crew surrounded by people that challenged his notions of gender.

Overall their use of these traditional gender roles are safe; an easy way to get attention. People in real life often use romantic attention as means of fulfillment, and I read their actions as the same.

Baby 5 and Sanji are both people pleasers. Baby 5 is named as such, noting she can’t deny anyone anything because she longs to be needed. Sanji’s lack of self-worth causes him to always put others first, even at the cost of his own wellbeing. They see themselves as existing to fulfill a needed role, bidding their time until the moment arises.

Other people have noted how similar Baby 5 and Sanji are in this way, joking that it’s good Sanji and Baby 5 never met because they’d get married instantly. I think it would actually be very interesting if they had met. Two people pleasers in a relationship is a recipe for disaster, especially with people as passionate as Baby 5 and Sanji. Their way of dealing with conflict would be to.. not. Neither would ever want to say the other is at fault. Their approach towards romance is seeking a sense of fulfillment, which would create an interesting dynamic with their exaggerated swooning.

Now there are some people who truly are greatly motivated to pursue relationships, but with Sanji and Baby 5’s backstories revolving around a lack of love, it’s safe to assume that it’s a bit more of an inorganic reaction for them. Especially when looking at the situations their love gets them into, such as when Baby 5 fell head over heels for a man because he was kind to her once despite not showing any prior attraction.

Sanji is on the opposite side of the spectrum, finding /every/ woman beautiful and himself unworthy. Where Baby 5 aims to prove her worth from any one person and seeks a reason for her receiving kindness, Sanji places himself below all the women he meets and grovels in attempt to please as they stand on their pedestals.

Sanji was raised by Zeff- someone who had a strong influence in how Sanji perceives and treats women. Sanji’s hunger for love was enhanced by the teaching of strict gender roles and emphasis on chivalry. While Baby 5 longs to be the helpful wife, Sanji becomes the pursuer- acting like a white knight as he sought women’s attention. That’s not to say his attraction isn’t real, but his extreme reactions to women reflect his desperation to please.

Sanji also has the added factor of the men vs women in his life prior to Zeff, with only his mother and sister showing him kindness. Women were safer; and Zeff furthered this belief through his teachings.

They’re both self-sacrificial to a dangerous degree. To them, their lives are indispensable; meaning if someone needs to die for the greater good then that’s the role they feel they were made for. Their life IS other people.

This is also interesting to consider in the perspective of non-heterosexual relationships. Sanji has a complicated past with gender/sexuality, so his aggressive actions towards men reflect what he feels a “real man” should be. Feminine attention is good, acceptable to enjoy, but male attention is something to scorn.

For Baby 5, we don’t really see her react to the kindness of a woman. She grew up around predominantly men and men appear to be the ones who most often take advantage of her. It’s curious to consider if meeting another woman with good intentions would allow her to be more sincere.

I guess in conclusion I often see Baby 5’s actions being recognized as a response to her past, but I don’t often see Sanji’s explained similarly. Personally I think Sanji’s behavior is greatly effected by his starve for love, and he throws himself into it just like Baby 5. However, the way theyre perceived is greatly effected by their gender and their according behavior to fit the norms. Regardlessly, he and Baby 5 both rely on other people to find their worth- and the quickest way to do that is to turn to romantic love.

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lilbagdermole · 11 months

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Why Katara's Acts of Kindness towards Zuko differ from others

I recently received a reply on one of my posts where I stated that Katara was the first person (besides Iroh) to show Zuko genuine kindness and compassion, in the 'Crossroads of Destiny' when they were down in the Crystal Catacombs.

The comment state that Aang was the first person to show Zuko humanity (Episode 13, The Blue Spirit; Episode 20, The Siege of the North, Pt.2) and even brought up other characters that we see throughout Zuko's journey such as: Song and Jin.

And whilst yes, these characters did show Zuko concern, care and warmth, it differs greatly to Katara's own.

Let's begin with Aang:

Aang's character is motivated and driven by the Air Nomad teachings, philosophy and morals and one of his core principles that he follows is "all life is sacred'. In 'The Siege of the North, Pt.2' - he saves Zuko because he cannot allow another living being to die, especially when he can prevent it by simply saving him from the winter cold. It's part of Aang to save people - no matter how much wrong they've done.

In 'The Blue Spirit' - Aang once again saves Zuko - and not only because of his moral compass because Zuko had saved Aang from Zhao. They have a moment to talk once Zuko awakes, and Aang questions if had the circumstances were different between them, could they have become friends. Aang, in this part of the story, is very childish and believes that everyone has good to them; he's also someone that seeks friendship and attention - and it plays into his character that, as he mourns his lost friend Kuzon, he thinks of a potential friendship with another firebender: Zuko.

So Aang's compassion and kindness comes from a place of morality and of loss.

With Jin and Song - I won't reflect too much on their acts of kindness given that, in that moment of Zuko's journey, he was secluding his true identity. In both of these womens' perspective, Zuko wasn't the Fire Nation Prince. He was Lee, an earth kingdom refugee, a victim of the war, someone like them. Had they known Zuko was a member of Fire Nation Royalty, I'm certain their reception wouldn't unfold as it did.

Now with Katara...

Katara knows Zuko. To Katara, Zuko is the face of the enemy, the face of the opposing side of the war, the face of evil. In that precise moment, Katara had her mother's necklace "stolen" by him; had her home ambushed by his fleet and her grandmother threatened by his very hands; she'd been chased down by him and they had fought multiple times before. They relationship at that point is hostile, fueled by hatred.

And Katara is also a character that doesn't forgive quickly. Unlike Aang, Katara doesn't follow the same moral compass and she doesn't seek out friendship in the enemy that took her mother; the enemy that led her Father to fighting in the war and abandoning his children; the enemy that tried time and time again to kidnap/burn/kill her friend and the Avatar... Katara's unforgiving with Zuko because:

Katara: It's just that for so long now, whenever I would imagine the face of the enemy, it was your face.

Yet, despite all that, when Zuko reveals his loss and empathizes with Katara's own loss of her mother; once he reveals himself more vulnerable, small and defenseless than he has ever been before... Katara shows him compassion, apologizes for her outburst and offers to heal Zuko's scar. Because, though it's in Katara's nature to hold a grudge towards the enemy, it's not in Katara's nature to hate blindly. She's a caring, loving and patient person - and she quickly shows Zuko all those attributes.

It's the first moment in the story that Zuko has received unadulterated humanity and sincerity (despite all the hurt he'd brought to Katara and her friends).

Katara was the first person to forgive Zuko. It was the first glimpse into the start of his destiny to bring honor and forgiveness towards the Fire Nation.

And that is why I believe that Katara and Zuko's destinies were linked to one another. Katara would have never dispelled the demons and trauma of her past had Zuko not aided her in searching for Yon Rha; And Zuko would have never become Fire Lord and uphold his responsibilities and destiny - had Katara not fought beside him and showed him that he could be forgiven.

#zutara #zutara long post #zutara analysis #anti kataang #anti bryke #does this even make sense #I ramble a lot and sometimes that means my ideas don't stick or my points don't connect #hopefully I get the general idea across #IDK man #I just love Zutara's connection and relationship

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