#please no follow up questions

[muffinlance]

Wait, what’s going on with Embers???? That fic has been on my read later list since 2021, what’s happened with it???

Brief overview, then I'm likely never touching this topic again, because this is not a Drama Blog:

Context: Embers is a super old AtLA fic that was written during the early fandom days, read widely at the time, and was the origin of the widely-used fanon name of "Wani" for Zuko's ship (kind of by default that it was one of the first popular fics to give his ship a name, I think?), even though most fic writers don't seem to realize it's from there anymore.

"What's Going On": I used to include a link in all my stories to it, because I believe in crediting other writers for borrowed elements, and I was using "Wani" in all my fics. But BOY did I not want to be sending readers that way anymore, so I've adopted a new name for Zuko's ship, and removed all Embers links.

None of the criticisms about Embers itself are new; I'm assuming they date back to when the fic was being written, because this isn't an "it aged badly" thing, this is an "actually yeah this gets worse the longer you think about it and I shouldn't have ignored my bad feelings just because some of the worldbuilding was interesting" thing.

An Incomplete List of Why I Made the Change:

I don't actually like the story that much anymore, and don't want to rec it

I tried to re-read it recently to see if some things were as bad as I remembered and it turns out they were So Much Worse Oh Yikes. More specifically, the treatment of Katara and Aang and their respective cultures has... rather a lot going on. One example: The Fire Nation and Air Nomads are both given multiple backstory elements in an attempt to make the average Fire Nation soldier's participation in the genocide/war in large part the fault of the Avatar and the Air Nomads themselves, and also fully justified from the Fire Nation perspective. And I do mean fully. One of its core tenants is "People from the Fire Nation (and only people from the Fire Nation) who don't follow orders Literally Die, therefore murdering pacifists and babies and continuing the war (and their regularly scheduled war crimes) is the only thing it is physically possible for them to do". I cannot emphasize enough how literal that is.

Also the name "Wani" means "Alligator" and is... objectively a pretty lame name for Zuko's ship? Where's the personality, where's the deeper meaning, where's the resonance with Zuko's themes? @tuktukpodfics initially thought I was calling the ship "Wanyi", and that's what I've switched to, because it is Objectively So Much Better. In their words: “Wànyī (萬一): Literally ‘one in ten thousand,’ ‘perchance.’ Used grammatically in Chinese to mean ‘what if’ or ‘just in case.’ I think a ship called ‘The Perchance’ is perfect for a boy clinging to false hope.”

TL:DR; I don't rec Embers anymore, because I don't actually like the story anymore, and there are things about it that get worse the more I think on them. I've removed links to it and renamed Zuko's ship to "Wanyi" ("The Perchance") because our boy deserves a ship name that reflects his character arc.

#for the record if you ever find something kind of rancid in my fics #do please let me know #EX: I've rewritten scenes to be better Actual Blind Rep for Toph based on blind reader feedback #and I'm debating how hard it would be to ignore/re-write the canon issues of Water Tribe sexism (for the Southern Tribe at the least) #because that is a common complaint I see from the people who's RL cultures the Water Tribes was based on #probably I can do more interesting things with that going forward #in other words justice for Hama and Hahn #at least the show itself made Hama excellently complex #anyways back to doing actual writing #please no follow up questions #though I will say anyone who wants to update their own fics to use Wanyi (or any other name): go for it! #all you need to do is plop your chapters in a word editor and find/replace the ship name! it took about 40 minutes to do literally #all of my fics and I had some other editing to do besides! it'll be even quicker for you! #let's sink the Wani #avatar the last airbender #atla #Zuko

[themirokai]

now I wanna know- why isn't drinking water free in the US?

Hi there friend! Thanks very much for taking the bait from this post. Buckle up, this is a long one.

If you want to put out a cistern and collect rainwater and use that, congratulations! Your water is free! Plus the cost of maintaining your cistern and keeping it clean. If you’re lucky enough to live somewhere with a high enough water table to have a well, then your water is also free + the cost of the well and well maintenance.

But if you want water to come out of your tap on demand and you can’t or don’t want to maintain a cistern and you can’t or don’t want to have a well… you need public water!

How do we get public water? Well, a government entity (usually. there are some private utilities, but that’s a different post. I have strong feelings) has rights to take water out of a river or a lake, or they have a reservoir, or they have access to an aquifer. Then they have to transport the water out of the source. This generally requires aqueducts or massive pipes, which are expensive and need to be maintained, which is also expensive. The pipe leading out of one of my utility’s reservoirs is 12 feet in diameter.

Does the water go directly from the source to your home? Nope! It gets piped to a water filtration plant! The process of modern water filtration is complicated but it involves both physical and chemical treatment to make sure the water isn’t carrying any parasites, harmful bacteria, or pollutants and it has the right pH. Not only are these filtration plants extremely expensive to build and maintain but the process of operating them is extremely expensive, both in terms of hiring skilled staff and having appropriate materials for the filters and chemical treatment.

After the treated water (called “finished water” in the biz) is ready it does get piped to your house.

If you use public water, do you know where your local water filtration plant is? No? That probably means it’s not in your immediate neighborhood, which probably means it’s several miles or more away. To get to your house, the water needs to travel through an extensive pipe network. These pipes are smaller but they have to remain pressurized so that no contaminants can get into the water on its way to your house. But pipes break! Especially if you live somewhere with a freeze/thaw cycle. Maintaining this pipe network is, you guessed it, expensive! It requires materials and extremely skilled workers who perform in very very difficult conditions. Plus lots of engineering to keep the whole system pressurized even when one part of it breaks. Oh, and you know what lots of pipes were made out of in the early 20th century? Lead! So all around the country utilities need to make extensive and costly infrastructure upgrades because now we know lead pipes are really freaking bad.

Okay, so you get the basic picture. And I haven’t even gotten into Safe Drinking Water Act compliance, but most of that happens at the filtration plant. Oo! Or desalinization because some utilities pull their water from the sea and need to take the salt out. I know basically nothing about this except that it is likely complicated and expensive to do at scale.

This is essentially why I get frustrated by people who argue “why should we pay for something that falls out of the sky?” Because finished water doesn’t fall from the sky and it sure as hell doesn’t fall from the sky into your faucet. (Side note: as a public utility official I have been screamed at by the “it falls from the sky” people. A thing I like about the private sector is that people scream at me a lot less.)

Now, there is a very strong argument to be made that because water is necessary for human life, it should be provided by the government for free to everyone. And just like the costs of roads or public education, this should be part of the public budget and paid for by taxes and no one should have a water bill. I don’t disagree with this. I’m sure that’s how it’s done in some countries.

I don’t have a well-researched answer on the history of water utilities but I do have some facts and some (very) educated conjectures. Water rights in the US are complicated (another separate post!) but they’re based on private ownership. Ever since white people came to this country people have been claiming ownership over water and charging each other money for taking water out of rivers or lakes or the ground. You can measure how much of it someone uses and charge them for it. Water is treated like a commodity because unlike other public goods, it *can* be treated like a commodity and then, you know, capitalism. Again, I’m not saying that’s right.

But as a society, if we believe that no one should have a water bill, then we need to figure out how to pay for all the very expensive steps in the process I outlined at the top. Could that just be taxes? Sure, if you have a system that supports taxes at that level. Do I believe that public funding of water infrastructure would be a fuckton better than a lot of things we use taxes for now? Absolutely! But that requires massive institutional change and this isn’t generally an issue that people know enough about to demand change.

If you read this far, congratulations! You now know more stuff about drinking water!

#hey if you enjoyed reading this consider reblogging it #it took me a while to write up #and I love educating people about this stuff #also if you have follow up questions please send them along #miro does asks #miro irl #drinking water #public utilities #water utilities #public water #long post

[featherlouise]

Some tidbits about my Lamb!! I've been calling them Noori

Subject to change bc I'm VERY new to this fandom sjxbnxkcc

Transcript of my bullet points bc I've been told my handwriting is illegible lmao:

Beginning - Post Kallamar Fight

- Fueled by rage + spite

- Would NEVER direct their rage at their flock

-- Heretics are another story however

- Always looks vaguely pissed off

- Can put up a good front of 'peace' and 'perfection' to the flock tho

- (not all of them fall for it tho)

- First follower dissented

- The guilt led them to pay more attention + take better care of their flock

- Fleece was cut choppily by heretics for easy access to their neck

Silk Cradle Crusade - Nari Fight

- Forced to kill one of their followers by Shamura

- ENRAGED

- Beginning to realise that killing the bishops won't automatically make everything ok (i.e. they'll still be the last sheep)

- Being angry for centuries is taking its toll

- Their 'perfect leader' front is now IRON CLAD

- Only their disciples can tell something's wrong, and even they have no idea how to help

- Tired.

- Absolute MANIAC on crusades

- Keeps (most of) their fleece short

- One horn ring per marriage

- Most of their weddings have been to keep faith up in their flock

-- Their partners do get to see a more vulnerable side of them though

Stopped helping out w/ chores

- Focussed ONLY on crusades

- Can't keep this up forever (lmao bonus bullet point)

First Few Centuries of Godhood

- Tired of being angry

- Started helping out round the commune again

- Horns finally grew in!! (Late bloomer (+ stress didn't help lmao))

- Calmed down A LOT

- Their 'persona' is a lot more genuine nowadays

- There always used to be something behind their eyes (something that would light prey animals' instincts up like a BONFIRE)

-- Nowadays the have an effortlessly comforting aura about them

- Happy, despite everything

- Trying out this whole 'forgiveness' thing

- Nari does NOT make it easy

- Can't quite bring themselves to rescue the bishops yet

- ONE tantruming former god is plenty tyvm

#if u have any questions or points u want me to elaborate on PLEASE ASK #asks give me LIFE #ill elaborate anyways bc I'm insane about them sjdhjcjc #their personality is still a little up in the air as I figure out their backstory (and my fave followers' personalities) #cotl lamb #cotl #cult of the lamb #my art #the lamb cotl

[raycatz]

I'm not including a situation where someone might be injured because in that case I'm thinking the bed goes to them by default or they are nominated for it. anyone who wants to be chatty goes to join the living room floor gang.

What are your thoughts and headcanons? Do you have thoughts on how the boys tend to approach assigning beds in inns? Who do the chain choose to sleep near when camping and why? What are their dynamics like when settling down for the night and getting ready for the day?

In "Mirror Vs Open Closet Door: Fight!" by Gintrinsic (here) Four refers to the chain's decision on how to split up between inn rooms as the "Link-per-room ratio" which I find very funny. He, Sky, and Time also talk about their thought process behind why they do or don't want to sleep in a room with some of the others which I find fun and interesting.

So! If you have thoughts and want to share them! *gestures to the post!*

#linked universe #linkeduniverse #alrighty! now for my answers- #for the ranch question I think it varies which is why I'm asking in a poll. What do you think happens most often though? #each answer is a fun scenario so it's difficult to choose #but I think they'd try to act politely around Malon and Time for the first couple visits with straws or rock paper scissors #or showing generosity by offering the bed to someone else. (I bet Malon saying they're charming is quite the incentive #for more possible compliments. The chain as a whole would want to prove her right xD ) #Once they're more comfortable in the house though I can totally see Wind and Legend making a mad dash for it while Wars yells after them xD #Wind probably ends up sharing with Four a lot since they're the littles #or Wind snuggles in with Wars Legend Wild etc #Wild and Twi/Wolfie have claimed the spot on the floor by the fireplace. #For inn rooms / castle rooms / camping - I tend to group them by how they're grouped a lot already #but a lil mixed up #Time - Sky - Wars are the good rest trio. they want a good night's rest please let them get their beauty sleep. often joined by Four #Wars goes between this group and wherever Legend is depending on how chatty he is that night. #Twi - Wild - Hyrule are snuggle/proximity buddies #Legend is attached to Hyrule's hip or sets up near Warriors to gossip and gripe. I can also see him setting up near Wild #in the eye of the storm as it were or just an interesting place to be. Wild and Hyrule can get to chatting about everything and anything #so if Legend wants background noise (Hyrule and Wild podcast omg)- #or a conversation he can be half a part of and jump in and out of while getting ready for the night or in the mornings- #this is a good place to be. add Wind and things get a bit more chaotic. #Wind gravitates to Wars and Legend too when curious and chatty. He gravitates towards Time when he wants something calmer. #Four tends to be near Sky or Twi or to Legend's group for the same reasons #I can see Four and Twi having a little book club going during downtimes where they talk about what they're reading. Sky likes to listen. <3 #Wind thinks they're nerds but so is he and he can't resist a good story so he orbits and sometimes settles in and peppers questions. #it's funny that Time Sky and Wars want to sleep the most but Legend follows Wars to chat (and ends up bringing people with him xD ) #there could be some conflict there oooo #Twi is by Time #it's almost a circle but with clusters of sleeping bags near on top of each other and filling the gaps

[wutheringmights]

can i ask for the hot mess commentary plz?

sure

Before we crack into this, take a moment to read what I said about the neck thing. I write that up a long time ago, but it provides some important context and is a good refresher on the secret history of Spirit's bi awakening.

Also, the director's commentary for this chapter is here, in case you want to review that.

Good? Okay, let's go at it.

So.... they had sex. Yay. Insert jazz hands.

I feel like I actually have way less to talk about here than I did for the neck thing. Granted, a lot of the neck thing is behind the scenes stuff. I guess that's a good place to start.

You may recall the informal hiatus CTB went on after Spirit came back to Warriors's era. I used a lot of that time to actually work out how to end CTB and what character/plot points I would need to hit to have a satisfying conclusion.

During this time, I was listing out things about Spirit and Warriors that I need to return to. Spirit had his codependent histories with the greenhorn and Zelda, or really his strategy for offering himself up as a means of feeling more in control, that needed to be explored. I needed to do some kind of follow-up with Warriors's latent attraction.

The two topics were similar enough to make me want to tackle them at once. But the moment I did, my brain decided that they should hate fuck. (I definitely was also thinking about my old concept of Spirit's unrequited crush-- I still write the characters like that happened, even if it never actually made it into the story.)

Why hate sex? Honestly, it would be kinda funny. Plus, it's a good writing exercise to ask yourself what would happen if your characters in conflict did (not really).

I knew immediately it could only end badly for everyone involved. But I knew I needed Warriors to hit an emotional low point to motivate him to do his Castle Town plan. I knew I wanted Spirit's big speech to come at a time when he and Warriors were emotionally connecting again, and that the response to that speech needed to push him back to Time.

Shit, I thought. This might be what they do.

But, like. I love protecting my peace. I have been skirting around the edges of homo eroticism with Spirit and Warriors as much as I dared. I didn't want to invite angry anons. But then.... did I really care? I understand where people are coming from, but at the same time... this is such a minuscule non-issue. Truly, and with emotion: who even cares?

First off, we already established with the neck thing that whatever fucked up thing these two have going on does not count as shipping. And second, if it does count as shipping, then fine! It's shipping then. This is what the plot is. I've been working on this story for too long to compromise now. I'll reap the consequences, whatever they may be.

I decided to keep it on the books, half believing I would change my mind once the chapter came up.

I was feeling very confident about my choice, up until the day of posting. That was then I got slammed in the face with regret. Luckily, there hasn't been any issues. I may have overestimated as much the general populous care about CTB. If there was ever any confirmation that this story has the world's most niche audience, this is it.

And you all have been great. There's been a lot of encouragement and kind words from you the readers, after you all stopped yelling, of course.

(Though I was prepared to be an obstinate jackass to anyone who tried to complain. I found a loophole and was ready to exploit the hell out of it. I was so ready!)

Funnily enough, everyone's reactions to the past few chapters helped to reassure me the most. There was been a lot of jokes about Warriors and Spirit having the world's worst situationship (lol).

So them having sex turned into an important character and plot moment. Warriors and Spirit got built up and tore down in self-destructive ways. This experience becomes the wake-up call Warriors needed to decide that he was ready to stop being the hero and get his life back.

A lot of people expressed surprise that Warriors and Spirit would go through with it even after talking it out. To be honest, I was a little surprised too! I was half convinced that Warriors had grown enough to stop the self-destructive cycle and turn Spirit down. But when looking at the scenes leading up to them being alone-- from Twilight denounce his friendship with Warriors, Toto turning him away, and Warriors generally in an emotional rut over his intellect and lost beauty--I realized that Warriors was already in the middle of another downward spiral. He would go through with this, if only to feel valued. It was the war all over again.

Also, apparently half of you guessed that Warriors would get cigarette burns from Spirit eventually. I hope you all were happy with the results!

When I posted that snippet from the chapter, apparently all of you knew that a kiss was coming. Ooops. I'm a little glad I surprised all of you with what happened next afterward.

On to funnier things:

I meant for there to be more compare/contrasts between Warriors's nights with Icarius and Spirit. The only one I really managed to do was Link being unable to sleep next to Icarius vs Warriors falling asleep easily.

Because this chapter and the last were supposed to be one, this scene was supposed to come out around Valentine's Day. Could you imagine?

I had the silliest time trying to figure out how to get Warriors and Spirit alone in a room together. I had this grand plan about them needing to get a room in a different inn from the others, whether because they were too tired to walk home after dancing or because they were too drunk to remember the way. Then I realized that Ganondorf could just give the Chain enough money to get more rooms. I realized this way later than I should have.

If you're wondering.... they switched....

I wrote that Warriors thought that sex with Spirit felt like an argument. That is because they are both the bossiest motherfuckers in bed. They both want things done their way or else. It's combative. Unfortunately, they both like the challenge.

I did have an idea for how to end this whole matter in a funny way, both involving someone from the chain finding out.

In my first idea, Time barges into what he thinks is just Warriors's room, in the middle of some kind of rant. Then he sees both of them sitting in bed, pauses, then promptly walks out. Warriors and Spirit quickly get dress before there's a knock on the door. When Warriors opens, Time walks in casually and starts his rant again while pretending none of this had happened. He would wait until Warriors was alone to be like WHAT THE FUCK!!!!!!

My other alternate scenario involves Warriors and Spirit getting a room in a different inn. In the morning, Spirit is hurriedly trying to leave when there's a knock on the door. This time, it's a few members of the chain asking if he's seen Warriors anywhere. He says no. All but one walk away. The one who stays (probably Legend) would lean and discreetly tell him that he knew the room was under Warriors's name, so if they were done, could he tell Warriors to get his ass outside? Cue Spirit burning up in embarrassment.

EDIT: I actually had a third silly scenario idea. Similar to the others, Twilight barges in to talk to Warriors about Midna (they're still friends in this scenario; this was an idea from a long time ago). Warriors is still in the bed, but luckily Spirit is in the bathroom. Warriors tries to have a normal conversation without alerting Twilight that something was amiss. And it almost works until Spirit just walks out of the bathroom, waves, and goes to put his clothes on. Cue Twilight's 404 error.

So, yeah! That's the Hot Mess. As always, it's been really fun to see everyone's reactions. Warriors and Spirit are both extremely polarizing, and I love hearing everyone's hot takes.

Does this count as toxic yaoi? Not until I see an AMV to "Numb" by Linkedin Park. Luckily, Warriors and Spirit will never do this again. Probably.

#same rules as last time: please keep this out of the main tag #it's been fine so far but let's not tempt fate lol #feel free to ask follow up questions as well #me rambling #lu ctb #ctb lore #ctb spoilers #the hot mess #ctb commentary

[comradekatara]

if it's not too sensitive a topic to ask for your beautiful atla modern au, how do you think the gaang would respond to the genocide that israel's currently inflicting on gaza? thanks!

it’s not that it’s too sensitive a topic, it’s that i find it quite insensitive to attach discussions of current ongoing genocides to a question about cartoon characters from a nickelodeon show. i think that’s in poor taste, and i generally wouldn’t respond to such a question. that said, did anyone else see that “katara and sokka would be z!on!sts” post because i do genuinely think that’s the worst atla post i have ever seen in all my years, and you should know, that’s a VERY EXTREMELY high bar. and i was willing to simply never mention that post to anyone, because it had very few notes and was honestly so heinous that it wasn’t worth responding to, but this ask just made me remember that. despite the fact that this is kind of an insane thing to have to say, um, no, katara and sokka would not be z!on!sts, obviously. they are in the most literal sense anti-imperialist guérilla revolutionaries. whether you think the show handles those politics well or not is a different matter, but that is what they are. it’s important to remember that it’s not a coincidence that zuko gave that speech to ozai on an american tv show during the same administration that invaded iraq under false pretenses. no, it’s not a politically perfect show by any means, but anyone who can’t discern the very basic question of what stance katara (and co) would adopt here is an idiot.

#asks #10000dandelions #NO FOLLOW UP QUESTIONS PLEASE

[wellhalesbells]

I dropped my bagel cream cheese-side down, I ask for your understanding at this difficult time.

#i will not be taking any follow up questions #i appreciate your patience as i navigate this new position #also #i'm sad as fuck y'all #my dog is pleased but me? i mean i'll probably never smile again #uh oh i've found the keyboard again

[found--family]

cas coming back in any kind of spn reboot is a given, we know this. he'll interact with dean and we might even get dean addressing the confession. and i know jackles will be the driving force behind any reboot but his history with addressing dean's feelings at cons is like a damn yoyo - is2g if dean doesn't reciprocate and destiel doesn't kiss on screen i'm not watching it and it will join the annals of not-canon along with 15x19 and 15x20 and the canon divergence attempt at a fixit that was dean in spnwin. no destiel means spngate 2.0.

#spn reboot #thoughts #he's made great strides these recent years and is so proud of 15x18. but i just rewatched that con question where he says #dean should've said he loved cas too and hugged him - and everyone fucking cheered! and he felt he needed to follow that up #with: and i know people will try to romanticise this brotherly relationship.... sir please. you gotta know we want dean back #but if you don't let him have cas romantically (and sexually) then honestly why even bother? you've seen the fandom these past 3-4 years #you know what we want. we want cas back. we want dean alive. we want reciprocated destiel. we want them to be together. #we want a happy ending. that doesn't mean you need to tie up every loose end but it does mean you gotta give the story #- not just the audience - what it deserves which is a destiel reunion and dean's own love confession for cas. or else just show #them as already together. that's what we want. that's what the characters want. that's what would make me watch. anything #else isn't giving the characters or the 12year long relationship and 15 year long plot what it deserves.

[presidentofthelipglossclub]

my last post about the rescue bots' origin did well and someone asked me to continue so ofc i GLADLY will

ok so continuing on the whole genetically engineered thing, i think rescue bots were originally created by primus, and then adjusted by the senate/primes to fit specific jobs. this is because as far as we know, the rescue bots have no natural alt modes. they can scan any vehicle mode, no matter how much it doesn't fit them (blades) which no other cybertronian can.

also, the no natural alt mode means they can't fit into functionism, like at all. if they don't have a natural alt mode, they can't be assigned a proper job. any bot made this way would become a rescue bot, but after that they had freedom over their career.

of course, that kind of freedom would go against the status quo, and could potentially uproot society. of course the senate couldn't have that. this is why the rescue bots all spent so much time in space/on other planets. they were all also equipped with personality dampeners, to make them more obedient. being so far out in space where no one can watch them was also a huge risk, so the senate wanted to make sure they were being obeyed.

this is a large part of why the rescue bots never chose a side. new avenues of society were being explored, but they couldn't do anything except follow orders. after the senate and reigning prime was murdered, they had no one to listen to. gradually they began to figure it out, and as rescue team leaders had weaker dampeners (to make choices while on missions), they took charge of the faction. it was sort of like their own council.

when other bots realized they basically maintained a functioning society where everyone was treated as an equal, people got jealous. this would eventually lead to the deaths of the last rescue bots.

or so everyone thought. sigma 17 was in stasis, waiting for a priority prime message to wake them up. now, why would optimus prime be able to wake them up if they didn't choose a side? simple. the rescue bots helped EVERYONE. obviously both optimus and megatron realized this could be a useful tool in winning the war. however, the rescue bot ships were all constructed before the war broke out, and they were equipped to receive orders from the prime. sigma 17 hoped that the other rescue bots would realize they were gone, and send a message to everyone. well, the rescue bots did realize, but no one answered their messages and calls to help their waiting friends.

and that brings us to earth!

#tfrb #rescue bots #transformers #transformers rescue bots #transformers aligned #i did get off topic of the biology thing but i really wanted to talk about their societies because that has been consuming my mind #i'll probably make a follow up post on the biology aspects of their lives #ask me questions about this stuff please i love worldbuilding

[rriavian]

According to your universe, which feeling Corinthian feels most towards Dream? Is it Desire or devotion or anything else?

And which feeling Dream feels most towards Corinthian? Is it affection? Or Desire? Or possessiveness or something else?

It is not necessary to mention one answer only. You may write a paragraph on what range of feelings they have for each other

Jessamy, my dearest—you have been incredibly patient thank you so much for this question! I’ve been thinking about this for weeks (it’s been sat in my drafts since before I went on holiday) but spent a while trying to get the wording right. I hope you enjoy my answer <3

I do think it’s love! Just perhaps not a human love.

The Baiting the Trap ‘verse works on the premise that after hundreds of years of sexual tension the Corinthian finally gets the chance to act on it as well as his anger at his creator. He was pretty certain Dream was going to destroy him afterwards so decided to just go for it. He’d been cool and collected for far too long and the lid was not going back on that box now it’s open. Dream is no less interested (he did initiate after all) but though far more unhinged when it comes to love/jealousy his sexual desire is a bit more chill. Idk, maybe it’s because I’m ace but I see him as being like ‘eh, depends on the sex so you better make it good’ when it comes to taking someone to bed.

It’s the devotion in observable/tangible actions that I think reels him in, that I think is the real lure, the single minded focus of another all for him is something Dream doesn’t bother trying to resist. He'll never see it as a weakness either. I think it stems partly from a unmet need to feel entirely accepted, entirely wanted, when so often there are parts of him that others find too extreme.

Too sharp.

So Baiting the Trap is still only just entering the second ‘arc’ which means there’s a lot more to some but…

The antagonism, the extremes, the spectrum of morality and the acceptance/competition of each other’s sharpness…it’s always going to be a large part of their relationship. Though I would add that I think the Corinthian’s greedy possession is a grounding force, which I’ve mostly implied up to this point but there will be some more explicit confirmations coming up in the series. Dream likes how fiercely he’s claimed, how intent his nightmare is on knowing him. Yeah it's the Corinthian figuring out weaknesses too but…it’s looking beneath. Trying to see him as he is.

It’s wanting to.

And it’s wanting to put his fingerprints all over him.

Dream made the Corinthian (which gives us all the wonderful facets of a creator/creation dynamic) but…to him there is something unique about being chosen. About laying the bait and having the Corinthian decide to take it every time. Even if Dream knows that he will, knows that he can offer himself, he isn’t forcing it. As much as that prods at the Corinthian’s desire for agency, stings his pride, it also gives to it. In a way BTT Dream is soothing the original wound of the Corinthian’s betrayal for them both. He rebelled by turning away, by leaving, but this is him deciding to act that frustration out while also no longer denying how much he wants Dream.

So just by being so obsessed with defeating him in such a deeply personal—up close and incredibly intimate—way, the Corinthian is effectively giving Dream all the attention he could ever want.

Promising a constant supply of the devotion I think Dream requires to feel satisfied by a lover.

Though it’s by no means one sided. The Corinthian gets a taste of looking at the bigger picture, at Dream’s responsibility for the larger scale, and that’s compelling to him in this context because understanding it allows him to enjoy what it means for his creator to turn away for even a little while. Disgruntlement over Dream’s commitment to his responsibilities has always been (and always will be) a source of tension in their relationship. But this is also a manifestation of the Corinthian’s canon need to prove he was made right—that I also tend to interpret as his wish to prove he is the most worthy believer, the only one to do it correctly—so now he dares blasphemy so he can worship without distance.

While Dream is enjoying the novelty of being the singular object of another's focus, the Corinthian gets to enjoy moments of having what is essentially a universe stare him down without blinking. And that fulfills his own need for attention, his own desire to feel wanted. It’s like sauntering right up to a god busy answering prayers and grabbing them by the hand.

It’s saying ‘reply later I want you now’.

Of course possessiveness and obsession often appear alongside an additional dynamic of ownership that borders on objectification. But with these two I’ve always seen it differently.

Above I mentioned Dream finding the Corinthian’s possessive nature to be a grounding force, and this is really just a continuation of that point because the Corinthian feels the same way about Dream. I don’t think dehumanisation/objectification really works the way we’re used to conceptualising it with characters that have never been human in the first place. We can’t take humanity away from them but what we can take is personhood. Which I think is something both Dream and the Corinthian value incredibly highly. To be honest, I think that in many ways they both use what we might see as objectification to affirm identity in/to each other, to affirm personhood.

It’s a return of self, not a denial of it, humanity the real box when the Corinthian and Dream have always been Other.

It might sound odd but I see a lot of their relationship through this lens. The Corinthian is a ‘thing’ in the same way as Dream is, an object of the same kind, with a function and a role, but that doesn’t deny a sense of self. They don’t need to be in conflict.

So I suppose in BTT that’s really what it’s about. How their relationship supports a reaffirmation of both of their identities. The Corinthian is Dream’s creation, his nightmare, his masterpiece, but that doesn’t mean he’s just a thing to him. To me the creator/creation dynamic adds identity, adds agency, contributes to the fullness of character rather than taking away from it. Neither of them have to scale themselves down. They don't have to make themselves smaller. So that's another part of what these characters can find in each other, part of the balance I like to write, part of how they ground themselves while also enjoying testing their own extremes.

It’s love and possessiveness and you help me keep my balance. It’s I can be me to the fullest, it’s no part of me is ugly to you. It’s nothing will make me look away. It’s I will fight with you forever and you will let me, you won’t burn out, you can take all that I am.

You want all of what I am and that is love.

#corintheus #dream of the endless #the corinthian #thank you for the ask! #I do love talking about these two!! #if you have a follow up question please feel free to send another ask #i promise i won't take so long this time!! #Sandman meta #fic meta #about my own fic #but hopefully still interesting

[ineffable-gallimaufry]

(please i am morbidly curious okay indulge me here)

#fionna and cake #DO NOT QUESTION MY MOTIVES #i just want to know if this is a weird opinion or no #do not ask follow up questions please

[altruistic-meme]

if you could... describe aftg in 5 words

oh this is not as easy a question to answer as it should be akfhsdkf bc like. i could describe its plot, or my thoughts on it as a fan, or how it makes me feel, or just make a joke, or or or and bc idk why you're asking it makes it harder :'))

but let's see...

plot: gay sports mafia found family.

fan: drama, familiarity, trauma, comedy, home

feelings: love, understanding, chaos, joy, comfort

joke: you know, i get it-

(as you can see, i couldn't pick which one to go with, so choose whichever 5 words you want lmao)

#anyway the hard part is cus like. if you're already a fan then you KNOW it's plot #and i would go with either feelings or joke probably #if you aren't a fan you won't understand joke and maybe want the plot to see if you'd want to read it #in which case getting my feelings or thoughts on it could also help you decide #especially bc 'gay sports mafia' is something it has been described as OFTEN #and thus you wouldn't necessarily need ME to tell you that #anywya #i spent WAY TOO MUCH TIME thinking about this so ya know. i do hope you see this kshdfhsd #i know how it can be sending anon asks #especially if you don't follow the person you sent it to like MAN rememebring to check in and then scrolling the blog to find it???? #so sorry i never shut up here #anyway if you ARE someone who hasn't read it yet and are interested; please feel free to reach out to me with any questions!!! #aftg contains a lot of potentially triggering material so it's good to have some understanding of what you're walking into! #(i did not but thankfully i'm not easily triggered by most things lmao but it still is nice to have that warning) #aftg #askers #anon #shh ac #also if you HAVE read it please appreciate my joke. i think im very funny.

[punkeropercyjackson]

And are the atrocities Hunter needed to redeem herself from doing while working for Belos in the room with us right?

#ACCIDENTALLY TYPED HERSELF INSTEAD OF HIMSELF BUT I VERY MUCH VIBE WITH TRANSFEM HUNTER SO IT STAYS DJSJDJFHF #but yeah point is guys WHAT 'evil deeds'????hunter was 16 not an actual field agent all they got to do was get trained for the future #same with 'idolizing willow' willow never put up a facade in s2/s3 she's ACTUALLY a super cool strong/tough softgirl none of that's pretend #can y'all please be serious you sound like pick mes💀women like that actually exist it's called being autistic woc it's literally our norm #how do u guys treat your younger siblings btw just as a follow up question #hunter noceda-deamonne #hunter defense squad #huntlow #t4t huntlow #pro huntlow #trans hunter #autistic hunter #hunter is disabled #adhd hunter #hunter has anxiety #grimwalker dad and plant mom #pro noceda siblings #pro noceda-deamonnes #< qpp darimila #pro dadrius #pro hexside squad #toh #toh spoilers #💌 #summerposting

[bookwyrminspiration]

I don't wanna sound ignorant, but how do we use your pronouns? I don't know how to use neopronouns and I'm sorry for that, but please explain. "no/it/whatever pronouns" -written on your bio. I hope I didn't offend you. That was not my intention. I was curious.

You're 100% okay! For most of us, the most important thing is a genuine intention and effort. If you mess up or don't know, that's fine. There's a learning curve--but if you mean well, that means a lot :)

The pronouns in my bio are the different sets I use. For me, this means no pronouns are my most accurate pronouns--for instance, substituting my name or my initial in place of a pronoun (ex: Quil said Q/Quil was going to write a 30 page keeper rant about pants later).

However! I am fully aware that's a little awkward and inconvenient, so I personally don't mind people using others at all. My second preference is for it/its pronouns--which are used the same way you'd refer to a creature or object (ex: Quil keeps complaining about how much it would hate all the leggings in keeper; it seriously won't shut up about them).

Some people worry this is dehumanizing or offensive--but I have asked you to do it. It's not offensive, they're my pronouns. I actually quite like the inhuman aspect personally, as I don't feel connected to the concept of human gender. It/its acknowledges that

Finally there's the "whatever" part. This is basically saying you're not limited to no pronouns or it/its, you can pick another pair if you like and use those. If they/them is easier, use that; I use those irl all the time just for simplicity. And this includes other neos, too. Feel free to ae/aer or xe/xir me, I don't care.

What I don't have in my bio is that I'm not the biggest fan of she/her, purely because usually people who do that assume I'm cis, and I'm not. I may refer to myself (specifically my past self) with she/her at times, but generally I prefer others pick another pair.

This is quite the lengthy explanation, but I hope that helps! The way my "gender" works is that I don't have one, so by association I don't really have pronouns? So no set is 100%. but like. You gotta call me something, so whatever gets the job done

thank you for asking :)

#pronouns #quil lore #quil's queries #nonsie #also if you or anyone else has follow up questions please feel free to ask #i'm always down to talk gender :) #or sexuality #identity as a whole #you won't offend me with genuine curiosity and questions #or if you're confused #that's totally understandable #anyway. point is just pick a pair or a few (preferably not she/her) and use those and you'll be good #fae/faer are pretty good too. used those more primarily for a while

[onlyhereforpdfs]

thinking about it... ashfur got insanely lucky that he wasnt revealed to be conspiring with hawkfrost to kill firestar

hawkfrost gave brambleclaw the biggest hint as to who he was working with, yet brambleclaw had to clue as to who it was, despite there being only one cat in the clan who displayed public disrespect for him.

then theres the fact that birchpaw was involved. firestar was told by birchpaw that blackstar was waiting at the border but neither firestar, brambleclaw nor birchpaw ever remember this happening. birchpaw was told this lie by ashfur to bait firestar out, yet nobody thinks to question birchpaw about this.

#warrior cats #wc #sunset #ashfur #brambleclaw #hawkfrost #i can ignore the first bc brambleclaw was just plain stupid in sunset #but you cannot convince me that the cat who outed tigerstar could not ask an apprentice one question #the trail of fear ashfur left behind for squilf and leafpool to follow is believable enough because of what ashfur told them #but birchpaw... buddy... speak up for the class please

[lockandkeyhyena]

you've said a few times Titan is pretty homophobic, and I'm curious how she feels about Ruth.

did her opinion change any over the years since Goliath died?

what would she do if Ruth ever said she loved her?

how's she feel abt trans people

some of her bigotry is directed inwards and manifests more as self-hatred. she herself isn’t heterosexual and has a lot of complicated feelings about that, especially after goliath’s affair. i make jokes, but ruth is very openly a proud lesbian and doesn’t tolerate off-handed comments from titan (she’s probably one of the reasons hercules doesn’t hate himself more).

her queerphobia expresses itself outwardly as ignorant rather than hateful, and its something she doesn’t really consider until ruth points out her shitty behaviour. ruth is very lenient on a lot of things she probably shouldn’t be and cuts titan more slack than she deserves but she doesn’t stand for titan’s homophobia, especially around kids.

alot of her attitudes towards gay and trans people fluctuate and change alot along with the story so it would really depend on where in the timeline you put her.

tldr; its complicated.

#uhh ill tag jic #homophobia #yeen rambles #ask #sadboycats #titan beetle #i know its cliched to depict lgbt characters as being homophobic but its just an infinitely more interesting story to me than #faceless bigots #and i feel like we need more stories exploring that aspect from actually queer authors rather than straight people uncomfortable with the #thought that other straight people are homophobic #anyway. my point is i want to tell stories about genuinely awful people trying and failing and trying again to better themselves #and its been helping me work through my own shit lol #ALWAYS happy to talk about my ocs tho!! sorry this is heavier #many of the cats arent good people #if you have follow up questions please ask them! i know i didnt answer them all