crazy how everything about mcd is so much more insane when you apply what i call the dog rule and that is when they are all dogs now in some way shape or form: an analysis.
when garroth is purebred, a hound made to serve, that does not know how to do anything but heel. he has purpose. he is sleek and well-groomed because he has to be, because he has always been tended to. a dog that falls into desperate spiral when that dynamic shifts - because who is he, without someone to follow, protect, love? a dog that becomes flea-bitten and hungry when he runs because he was never taught to take care of himself, to be his own master. he falls apart. he needs this, he knows, but what is he without someone to own him? a dog that cannot lead any kind of pack or family because it is afraid to understand the kind of animal it is if not in submission. if a parent, a teacher, he is promptly punished by his students as cruel reminder that he is not allowed to find joy in anything other than what his makers intended. a dog so desperate that it offers up its own leash to whoever will take it when things crumble - even if it means turning back to distasteful company. as long as it is held at all. time and time again, he tried to tend to the younger, weaker. he tried to feed them and lick their wounds - and time and time again, only to be mauled in turn. no more, he thinks. life was simpler when he was mindless, just four paws and a purpose. if that was what he was bred for, what business does he have pretending?
when laurance is a stray but made out of love. his coat shines thanks to the love of his family, his sister. he is sleek and well-groomed with them. the nether breaks him in, turns him a little wild. gives him cause to show teeth when threatened. when he bites, he mauls. there is something wicked in his animal eyes. he goes for the kill. when he bites, something in him wants it to hurt - whether his prey or himself, he can't tell. a part of the dog believes the suffering is natural because its maker declared it so. the pain wanes in and out like the cycle of the moon; life is unpredictable. he is braced to survive, sometimes with teeth already bared to expect the suffering. constantly on edge, pacing, waiting for the next disaster. a loyal, desperate pet that will follow to the ends of the earth - a desperation that borders on obsession. he will eat you alive, if only you would stay with him, inside of him, never leave him. never look at anyone else the way you would him. don't put him on a leash - let him choose who to lope after. his leash, in fact, is in tatters. he can't be collared. he merely follows, hungry at the heels of who fed him. his sense of duty is not of obligation but of love, a sacred need to stay at the side of those who treated him with kindness and them alone. and worse, he is burdened with the constant fear that if left untethered for too long, that obsession might turn carnal - that if wronged, he may not kill to eat and feel full, but kill merely to feel the blood on his teeth, just to feel the pain. feel something. anything. that he might enjoy the taste of his loved ones. maybe a leash is the right thing. maybe he needs to be caged. he can't bear either thought.
when they both bite the hand that fed them. when they bite each other. when they are dogs and kind of made for each other.
dante is a dog. aaron is a dog. aph is a dog. katelyn? oh you fucking guessed it. ivy. jeffory. zane. yeah. all of them are dogs. welcome to the dog rule fuckers its exactly how it sounds. are you sick of the word dog yet.
“Why don't they want me to see what I already know now—that the world is broken.”
― Veera Hiranandani, The Night Diary
A hopeful and heartwarming story about finding joy after hardship, Amil and the After is a companion to the beloved and award-winning Newbery Honor novel The Night Diary, by acclaimed author Veera Hiranandani
At the turn of the new year in 1948, Amil and his family are trying to make a home in India, now independent of British rule.
Half-Muslim, half-Hindu, twelve-year-old Amil is not sure what home means anymore. The memory of the long and difficult journey from their hometown in what is now Pakistan lives with him. And despite having an apartment in Bombay to live in and a school to attend, life in India feels uncertain.
Nisha, his twin sister, suggests that Amil begin to tell his story through drawings meant for their mother, who died when they were just babies. Through Amil, readers witness the unwavering spirit of a young boy trying to make sense of a chaotic world, and find hope for himself and a newly reborn nation.
How did Garroth NOT receive repercussions for betraying the town? I don’t give a SHIT if he was controlled or manipulated, the fact nobody screamed at him or yelled at him when he came back is astounding to me.
You’re telling me Aphmau didn’t silently blame him for being one of the reasons she lost FIFTEEN YEARS OF HER KIDS LIVES?
You’re telling me Levin and Malachi weren’t angry it was because of him they believed their mother didn’t want them?
You’re telling me Donna didn’t chastise him and call him an idiot?
Garroth should have received repercussions. That man should have doubted his place in the town for a hot minute.
They don’t know specifics, the bitch didn’t say shit. You’re telling me they would not blame him? I love Garroth as much as the next person, absolutely- but my god- my guy- how did you not get in trouble?
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making aphmau more creature than human bc what part of a woman being birthed by the ground (first wording that came to mind, not accurate, but fuck you) screams to you 'perfectly well adjusted individual'
If some amnesiac woman with weird powers came from a crater in the ground, she would probably eat worms. and she should be allowed to. let her eat her little wormies.
BOOKS WITH THE MOST CROSSOVER FANFICTION ON FANFICTION.NET (2009-2022)
To make this bar chart race, all series titles in the Book Crossover Section on November 29 (or the closest date to it) of every year were copy-pasted from Wayback Machine to Google Sheets, rearranged according to number of fanworks, and then inputted to Flourish to turn into a bar chart race.
In March 27 2009, FFN launched support for crossover fanfiction. Before this date, authors either posted their crossovers in just one category (such as Naruto) and noted that it was a crossover in its summary, or posted them in one of the generic crossover categories in the Misc. section (such as X-overs or Anime X-overs). There wasn’t a filter to screen all crossovers of specific fandoms back then.
Originally, the fanfiction list was sorted alphabetically, but was changed to number of fics at around early 2013.
Interestingly enough, the crossover sections don’t seem to be suffering from a total fanfiction discrepancy, unlike the sections for non-crossover fanfiction.
Please refer to this post for more bar chart races.
Thanks for understanding and hopefully I didn’t mess up anywhere! 🙏
the urge to make my other hyperfixation/special interests canon in my rewrite is rotting my brain actually
like yeah Gerald exists in the mcd universe why do you ask?
hiccup and toothless and the entirety of Berk? yep berk is actually an island in Gal’Ruk
like obviously they’d be separate versions of themselves to fit the laws of the mcd universe. like maybe Gerald is a Shadow Knight instead of a Witcher idk
am i ever going to write abt them in this universe? nope! they just kinda exist
do anyone in the main cast know about them or ever interact with them? also no! :D
i hate this guy [one million photos of him fall out of my wallet] wait
UM nothing special to say just been thinking about warren again. still in my weird al hyperfix too so just... shoves my interests together. in my head warren would flirt like this and i cant decide if i love or hate it. both...
dude. xerith. idk if you saw my reblog of madcatlad’s post, BUT. they cooked. the issue on the table: nether withdrawals. i’m insane about this.
very much exploring the idea of the calling being more about fighting the addiction that is the nether itself for shadow knights, rather than purely the aggression part.
thoughts? musings?
Oh Cinn, oh Cinn you've brought my attention to something beautiful.
Little known fact about me because I'm still pretty decent about over sharing on the internet, addiction is something I've actually thrown hands with before. The idea of the Calling as an addiction to the Nether?? Now that's a concept I can latch onto.
I think that there could be ways to satiate withdrawal, but not in an exactly helpful way. The Calling is in Shadow Knights brains like "Oooh you wanna kill your loved ones and come back to the Nether soooo bad." But minor acts of violence and arson can make it shut up. Enough bloodshed, such as what happens at the Werewolf Wedding, is enough to make it so a knight isn't drawn to the idea of killing their loved one anymore because the urge for blood has been answered. Of course... Most Shadow Knights fighting the call aren't exactly happy when something like the Werewolf Wedding happens to them.
As for the urge of the Nether, they could always try to answer that with things that are like the Nether or remind them of it. Sitting by a fire, setting things on fire, sitting in a pool of hot water that can at least try and simulate lava, setting things on fire, existing in the bitter dry heat of an Arizonan morning, or setting things on fire. The Calling always responds best to the most violent solution, and even while trying to satiate it, it's still pulling at the mental strings of a knight to make the most violent decisions possible.
That idea of being able to sit by a fire instead of setting something ablaze really sucks for Knights who might have been traumatized by the Nether and struggle to be around fire for very long as a result, Laurance.
A lot of moments of a premature Shadow Knight lashing out aren't necessarily because the Calling is making them want to kill, it's because it's making them want to go back to something they know is bad for them. It's a drug that they've overdosed on and are trying to run away from still present in their veins and urging them to take another dose, regardless of its lethality. That kind of mental gymnastics and battle wears down at a person even when they aren't actively fighting. Even if they aren't in their head fighting the Calling and it's urges, it's still there. They still think about it.
Laurance doesn't want to go back to The Nether. He would rather die again than go back there. But when he sees the frame of a portal, when he's nearby one that's unstable, he has to fight. He has to fight his body and its urge to go back to that hell. Just one hit will make him feel better. Just a chance to touch netherack and breathe that ashy air will soothe his worries. Because being reminded of the Nether, even if it causes a trauma response, does cause a part of his brain to feel good. The Calling sees fire and gives him a shot of dopamine and excitement.
Wouldn't it just be so nice if he went back? If he didn't have to feel this constant drain? If he was in the Nether then the Calling would shut up, right? Wouldn't it be so amazing to just feel this good all the time? He's already dead, what damage can be done to his body afterwards?
Of course the Calling has two components, both addictive. One is of course the urge to go to the Nether. The other is that urge to kill your loved one and gain immortality. Doing one only makes the other feel stronger. Oh, you sat next to a Nether portal and made it so you're now comfortable in the over world? Bet you wanna kill your lord right about now, huh?
What's that, you actually killed your lord? Well, don't you just wanna come home to the Nether where you're surrounded by people who have all done the same and won't hate you for it? Go on, you know you want to.
Like everything else, it comes down to the Shadow Kings need to control. If he can make Shadow Knights into addicts of stuff directly associated with him, they'll be more loyal. They'll serve him to get a fix of bloodshed and hell fire. They'll come running back to him after ruining their lives for his enjoyment, and they'll fall at his feet for the chance to become a higher up in their army. He deprives them of everything they ever could have had and calls it freedom.
ive joked about having a tube worm fursona and i still have no idea what the fuck that would look like . and i do not have the confidence in my art abilities to draw one . so .