#you are more than beautiful

[noknowshame]

why is religious Christmas imagery all so joyful and pleasant? where is the inherent horror of the birth of Christ? A mother is handed her newborn child, wailing and innocent. Her hands come away sticky. Red. Simply by giving her son life she has already killed him. He is doomed from the beginning. Her love will not save him from suffering. Because the thing cradled in her arms is not a baby, it is a sacrifice: born amongst the other bleating animals whose blood will one day be spilled in the name of what demands it. the night is silent with anticipation. Mary, did you know? That your womb was also a grave?

#instant conversation enders for my multiple youth pastor cousins #don’t say it (I’m gonna say it) #The Child is The Price #but i mean come on #as someone who isn't actually even christian the real-life historical version of this is still cursed as fuck #i mean we know that jesus was a person who existed. whatever circumstances he was born in #its terrifyingly ominous to imagine being so unaware of the affect your child will have on the future of humanity #time itself will one day be counted around your birth of him #and all because he will suffer an excruciatingly painful death that you will not be able to prevent #not only that. but regardless of his or your intentions #regardless of whether there is a god #for millenea unfathomable millions will have blood spilled and will spill blood in his name #atrocities will be committed that you cannot even conceive of #and all on his and your behalf #you love your child. its beautiful. but there's horror in what you've done. because everyone else will love him too #and what's more dangerous than that?

[loriache]

"I've been waiting for ages for somebody to unmask them."

This moment tends to elicit negative reactions in a first read through, and I've got some opinions about why where Kabru is coming from here actually makes a lot of logical sense. So I thought I'd elaborate on that.

I think people hear this and go, "He thinks they must be hiding something because they gave money to someone? What a cynic." Or "he dislikes them because they did charity?? What's wrong with this guy!". And obviously, a lot, a lot is wrong with him. But I think this makes more sense than it seems at first glance! What people evaluating this judgement miss is why Kabru is paying attention to Laios and co to begin with.

Kabru knows of the Touden siblings because (he's a little bit of a stalker-) he is keeping an eye on all the relevant parties in events developing on the island, in order to be able to guide them to his preferred outcome. This includes adventurers because they are the ones actually exploring the dungeon! He's well aware that something as minor as internal tensions between party members could be key to the historical events that are developing. (He would love the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand.)

His desired outcome is that whatever the rewards are of breaking the dungeon's curse, whether that's kingship or the ancient elven secrets of dungeons, are claimed by:

A) a short lived person

B) Someone who will be a good, effective leader and/or use those secrets and the power they carry wisely, with foresight, and to establish a political bloc for short lived people.

The person he can best trust to do this is, of course, himself. But due to his PTSD regarding dungeons and monsters, he's not able to develop the necessary skills to conquer the dungeon. Once he realises this, he starts looking for someone else who he can support to that end.

But most of the adventurers don't have any intentions of conquering the dungeon, don't have the skills, or are unsuitable in other ways. In fact, it seems like some potentially suitable people are the Toudens. There are a lot of good rumours about them going around - they actually seem to have a very positive reputation! That's what Kabru means when he says "unmask".

So when Kabru is observing something like them giving money to an old comrade from their gold-peeling days, he doesn't consider it a problem because "they're giving money to this person who doesn't actually need it" or because they must have some dark secret if they act superficially nice. I think he actually understands this situation and what it implies about Laios (in particular) perfectly well.

Laios and Falin gave money to an old comrade who got injured and couldn't work. That person then healed up but kept taking their money. Then he used the money to start smuggling illicit goods to the island.

The key is that for Kabru, the problem here is the same as with the corpse retrievers - people using the dungeon's resources to fuel dangerous, selfish, or violent pursuits cause problems for the island, attract more criminals and people with motives other than breaking the curse, and increase the chances of the whole situation ending in tragedy.

Kabru is willing to work with the Shadow Lord of the island if it gets him to his goal - he isn't scrupulous - but the criminal element of the island increasing is something he sees as a major issue.

Also, when you're evaluating someone as a candidate for power, riches, secrets, potentially kingship - then being curious about how the money you give to people is going to be used is kind of a relevant trait!

Interpersonally, Kabru's actually very easygoing - I mean, Mickbell isn't exactly an upstanding guy, is he! But Kabru likes him and they get along well. These traits wouldn't be a problem at all in a friend, or a comrade, or someone Kabru was confident he could use. But he can't get a handle on Laios, and Laios is someone who has the potential to be a major player!

On Laios' end, this is the same as with the marriage seeker who joined their party. She kept asking for things and he gave them to her, because he tries to be nice to others. He even gives her money! It's the exact same thing.

That's fine, but it became a problem because he basically wasn't interested in her motives, didn't notice she was trying to manipulate him, and it also didn't occur to him that the other party members would notice or be affected. We can assume the situation with the gold peeler is the same. When Kabru says that "It's not that they're bad people, they just aren't interested in humans," he isn't wrong.

The extent to which this is true of Laios is linked to his autism imo, (because it isn't just disinterest - he genuinely isn't able to notice nonverbal cues that people are lying to him or have ulterior motives) but to a greater or lesser extent I think it's a very common trait. Most people aren't actually that interested in other people who aren't close to them. Kabru is the weird one here. It isn't an issue except as a leader - which is why we see an immediate comparison to the Island's Lord, because that's how Kabru is evaluating them.

And disinterest in/lack of ability with people to the extent Laios exhibits it, it does, actually, make him a worse leader... it's just that as we see in the story, people can help him out. The rest of the party tell him the marriage seeker is taking advantage of him so he tells her he can't give her special treatment anymore. They're pissed and it's a crisis point - he couldn't have recovered their trust without Marcille and Falin - but that's exactly the point. With Marcille and Falin, he was able to recover their trust.

And he has other good traits that make up for it, such as his intelligence, strategic knowledge, open-mindedness and sense of fairplay.

Kabru doesn't disqualify Laios as a candidate based on what he sees about him from afar, though - he still tries very hard to get close to him, obviously hoping that if he manages he can steer Laios to defeat the dungeon and make up for his lack of people-skills in the aftermath. (Which... he does eventually achieve that goal!) He completely fails until the events of the story, so... definitely I think "They just aren't interested in humans" could also partially be a stung reaction to Laios' complete disinterest in him.

Anyway, that's my read on what exactly Kabru's "issue" with Laios is. Obviously, once he does find out what Laios' true nature is like - about his love for monsters - he develops an entirely new set of fears about Laios' priorities. But since Laios kept that a secret until the start of the story, he has no idea of that yet.

Given all that, I think it's interesting that he says that he doesn't think that the Toudens are suitable to defeat the dungeon, and that he's hoping they'll turn out to be the thieves. As some of his few potential candidates, people who he thinks may play a big role in the island's future, you'd think he'd hope they would be good people!

I suppose it's better, in his eyes, because it means that he's involved in something "interesting". They haven't just had their stuff stolen by regular criminals (boring, puts them further away from his goal) - they've been caught up in the beginning stages of "a historic event". The desperate and dwindling group forgetting morals in their quest to retrieve their lost comrade probably appeals to his sense of melodrama. Because he also just... loves drama.

Despite it being "uglier than anything he was expecting", he still pursues Laios as the person he wants to conquer the dungeon pretty much as soon as it becomes clear that he won't be able to do it himself and they are out of time. That's because... well, to be fair, there aren't any other options. And he fits standard A: he's short-lived!

and Kabru still hopes he can fit standard B, too, and be persuaded to use the power he wins for good. No matter how many nightmares he has about Laios, or whether he thinks about killing him. He doubts him, but ultimately he puts his faith in him and seems happy after the manga's ending that he made the right decision.

#dungeon meshi #dungeon meshi manga spoilers #dungeon meshi meta #kabru of utaya #laios touden #labru #laios x kabru #dunmeshi #og post #kabru is such a big picture thinker. and he evaluates people more than he judges them imo #the hater jokes are funny but the people he judges most harshly arent laios and co. they're people like the island's lord. #but you don't see that as clearly because he isn't interested in the island's lord. he understands him. finds him contemptible but useful. #whereas laios lives in his brain rent free because he WANTS to understand him but doesnt quite. #even though he sees the elves as a major threat to his ultimate goals and dislikes the way they treat short lived races #he still understands and evaluates mithrun as an individual based on his own merits #he's one of the characters who is least judgemental in that sense because while he's always making judgements and evaluations #he's also constantly revising them whenever he gets more information #my beautiful machiavellian prince <3 #it's genuinely a really laudable way of understanding others imo. #the only problem is that because he's driven towards his goals by his PTSD and survivors guilt #he pushes himself into situations (the dungeon and also interpersonally) that trigger him or even just upset him #without regard for what he authentically wants or his own wellbeing.

[uncanny-tranny]

I think it's incredibly important to remind folks on testosterone or folks who want to reverse patterned baldness about their options, but man, does it sometimes suck wondering how much of our insecurities about our hair stem from backwards beliefs that to strive towards beauty is not only preferable but "makes you good."

As someone with a rather masculinized body pre-medical transition, patterned baldness has always seemed neutral. Hair is incredibly important (hell, much of my own energy is spent on my hair because I like it), but the pressure to have hair, to have hair the "right way" is something that I absolutely loathe.

I'm not here to judge people who don't want patterned hair loss or baldness, I'm here to say that those traits will never make you lesser. Not only is it neutral, but it is also just as worthy and beautiful.

#trans #transgender #lgbt #lgbtq #ftm #mtf #nonbinary #this especially goes for folks who may be transfem or trans women experiencing patterned hair loss/baldness #i love you and think you are gorgeous<3 #i mentioned trans folks going on t because that's a lot of my own experience #i already had a somewhat masc hairline before t and now it's just settling in... #...i found that i'm fortunate in that way for having an already masculine body and i think that's why my changes are more... #...like unpacking your house rather than moving to a new home if that makes sense #but i find that the beauty culture around hair adds even more unnecessary stress for those who want or value their hair #i am beauty culture's number one hater

[nonasbirthday]

If you were going to make a character that was the soul of planet earth in a human body you might think to make her motherly. Wise. Forgiving. Mother Earth cares for us, she provides, right? But Tamsyn Muir wrote Nona the Ninth and said YES planet earth is loving but also she is SO SO ANGRY and HURTING. And actually she cannot care for others right now she needs to be cared FOR.

Also she wants to eat pencils and she thinks flowers are sexy.

#I just think that the very specific ways the 'mother earth' thing is followed vs. the ways it is inverted are very interesting #she's beautiful and monstrous. she's desperate for a champion. she's hurt. she's powerful. she's not ready to forgive. #she needs to be loved. she needs to be cared for before she can heal #i try to tell people about TLT and it's like well it's about necromancers and identity and forgiveness and CLIMATE CHANGE #it's about imperialism and stagnation and homestuck references #but more than anything it's about gay space juggalos #but the climate change piece is definitely there you know. #nona the ninth #the locked tomb #alecto tlt #nonasbirthday #sticking this on the fridge

[canisalbus]

gothic lolita machete came to me in a dream

.

#HHWAH #but he unironically kind of makes it work though?? #I never realized that the leap from what he normally wears to gothic lolita would be this small #basically the same thing just a lot more lace and frills and embroidery #loving! the pomegranates! #it always makes me ecstatic when people find a way to include them or his other... symbols? motifs? objects of significance? #it's nice you kept the red gloves and red heels #the little crosses on the capelet and the stockings too hah #and the massive bow where the fascia would go #I support genderfuckery Machete by the way #his design and mannerisms have always been somewhat androgynous or at least that's what I've been trying to aim for #despite his sharp angular form he's supposed to have an aura of elegance and delicateness #at least on his better days when he's not in full rat man mode #given the choice he'd rather be called beautiful than handsome I'm pretty sure #folks have been mistaking him for a goth lesbian a whole lot lately so I can't be too far off #thank you this made me grin like an idiot when I opened the inbox #gift art #aggiepython #own characters #Machete

[nerdpoe]

Headcanon that Damian can make absolute Masterpiece works of art in terms of cake art. Tim...Tim fucking cannot. But Tim is the better baker.

It drives Damian up a fucking wall.

Damian makes a cute little cake that looks like a hedgehog?

Tim makes an...eldritch monstrosity with spikes and jagged approximations of fangs.

But Tim's always tastes better.

Damian cannot for the life of him figure out how the fuck he's doing it! He follows the recipe, he does everything right!

Tim, meanwhile, isn't too keen on all that icing art shit; but he understands chemistry well enough to know how to make a kickass cake with a few alterations from the original recipe.

Damian...Damian doesn't necessarily need to know that he's altering the recipes they use.

It's funny watching him get pissed off.

inspired by this.

#batman headcanon #batman #robin #red robin #tim drake #damian wayne #tim makes cakes you would kill for #damian makes very beautiful cakes that have more place in an art showroom than a dining table #tim's just using a little chemistry and spice knowledge to make the existing recipe better #damian doesn't know he's altering the recipe #and is just infuriated #let them be brothers

[dimeadozencows]

This came to me in an early morning queer haze

Kissing my medics good morning (I am your husband heavy and I love you)

#tf2 #team fortress 2 #heavymedic #i know its super annoying for everyone when the sole medic on the team keeps pocketing heavies so as a heavy main i will say this. #to the medics in the chat: i dont expect you to pocket me and in fact you shouldn't. i suck. but! if you would it would be cool and gay and #and i will kiss you abd love you and give you yummy food and protect you like my life depends on it i will be your meat shield because you #are amazing incredible for picking medic despite the horrors. i will do everything in my power to help u. but don't pocket me i suck #i meant for that to be more meaningful and like giving advice but it got gay. but i meant all of it #when i see a medic healing me i immediately switch to shield mode my life is no longer mine i exist to protect the beautiful man behind me #thank you medics👍🏽 if u play medic i hope you have a wonderful day today everyday 👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽❤️❤️ #edit: i am gayer for heavy than i am for medic- but since i main heavy i am automatically attracted to medic and so this shitpost was born #so many people that play medic are apparently gay for heavy...... i feel so seen and understood

[mintytrifecta]

Sorry but if you say you're "being realistic" or "seeing the world as it is" and then only spout of the negatives then you're not being realistic and your worldview will devour you whole. Pessimism is not realistic. There is no world void of joy and to believe that is to ignore the goodness in the world and only see things in an unrealistic, cynical perspective that is not and never will be how things are. Find some joy in the smallest of things or perish.

#Pessimism is not realism and optimism is not naiveté #Optimism is seeing the world for it's positives in spite of its negatives and striving to make more of it than just giving up #What is realistic about putting your hands up and saying the world sucks all the time??? #What is realistic about ignoring all the joy that got you here???? #Where's your wonder. Where's your sense of fucking whimsy. #Be astonished by the beauty of the world or fall to it

[andy-clutterbuck]

requested by Anons

#there was no saving this lighting but it think it looks fine all things considered #now HE looks MORE than fine #Rick Grimes #The Ones Who Live #* #rg #S I R #excuse my wild cropping but i hate credits #sad you can't see the fuzzies because they're there in the closeup before he sits up #the slope of his shoulders..... #is that weird #i don't think it is and even if it was it's not like i care anymore #i'd say hey nice torso but then i'd sound like hannibal lecter #...biting him anway #michelangelo could never #the artist sculpt something this beautiful...not the turtle #nice rack rick #still want to blow raspberries on his belly #hid the t h i g h s so i wouldn't entirely go off the deep end #bed head 💜 #god he just the perfect level of fit #stab me with an entire home depot section of rakes

[justafriend-ql]

I've never met anyone like you. LOVE FOR LOVE'S SAKE (2024) Episode 4

#love for love's sake #love for love's sake the series #love supremacy zone #myung ha x yeo woon #lee tae vin #cha joo wan #melgifs #is this flirting? yes #but it's more than that too #it's yeowoon saying: “i'm starting to like something i didn't before (me) because you like it and show me all the beautiful things about it #also “i've never met anyone like you” (read: someone who gives a damn about me) </3

[waitingawhile]

super loose sketch but. I have so many writing ideas about dsmp characters and religion from c!wilbur’s perspective. (I hc him as an athiest or agnostic who’s closest peers are people of faith and he tries so hard to understand but cannot connect with religion, fears he can’t understand this piece of them, like an outsider to faith and that peace in their features when they talk about it. c!tommy with lady prime, c!quackity with something akin to Catholicism that he can’t remember the origins of, c!techno a pagan/pantheist acting with several deities, c!phil a pagan). inspired by this and this and @ghosts-and-blue-sweaters . Something something mirroring the behaviors of his closest friend that bring him comfort to see if anything will work at this point. Taking it seriously at first and then getting embarrassed with himself when he doesn’t hear a voice back. Getting frustrated and pretending to himself that he never tried and it was silly. going to limbo. idk.

#deffo not me projecting my admiration for the love and devotion or religion and finding prayer beautiful as agnostic onto my kin character #it’s more likely than you think #dsmp #c!wilbur #ages ago I drew cTubbo and michael praying salah during Ramadan #never posted it bc I was afraid to accidentally mess something up/draw something disrespectfully #it’s just so pretty and beautiful to me fr #the act of ritual and prayer 🤎 #my beloved #aidey's art #aidey's tunes

[nanight-nat]

fifth moon

#vash the stampede #vash trimax #trigun maximum #trigun #trigun 98 #tbh i wanted to make one of those electric blue portraits of vash that look washed out and sun bleached #might mess with the style more and make smth more interesting than him brooding #but you can stare into his beautiful eyes until then

[arotechno]

not "love is just chemicals in your brain" as in "love isn't real and doesn't matter," but "love is just chemicals in your brain" as in "love isn't any more special or pure than any other emotion"

#love isn't any more unique than anger or joy or surprise or loneliness or or or #just because we attribute so much baggage to it doesn't make it inherently different #love can be beautiful and constructive but it can also be damaging and it can also just be mundane #it's for you to decide what you're feeling and what to do with those feelings! #might be better to consider love several different emotions but even so the point stands #op

[fauvester]

shang qinghua finds a demon-magic-plot device way to provide MBJ an heir to the throne. a dedicated advisor!!

#my king people are young to hear you saying that shit and get the wrong idea! #NOT with magical demon mpreg my king!! #not that that’s going to keep MBJ from trying #moshang #svs3 #in my mindpalace there’s the carcass of a magical deer involved. some raw meat eating and blood rituals. #some dual cultivating. n 30 days later boom you got a fresh baby! #i dont think mbj would be like. super stoked about having a baby. hes a demon (not exactly helicopter parent) AND he has Trauma #hes just passively like oh. well now my claim to the throne is more legitimate than my half brothers who have kids too. pog #thats why sqh did it too... does linguangjun have beautiful little demon heirs? I THINK NOT! #and besides like. a little breeding kink. as a treat. (I bet demons LOOOOOVE that shit)

[cocogum]

What do y’all have against Amalia, man???

First it’s Sipho who’s telling her how he’s genuinely confused that Yugo can love her and now it’s Qilby?? (even tho he at least admitted she was pretty unlike that ugly lizard Sipho). Literally what is going on??

Since when did people around Yugo think it was weird for him to like sassy flowers???

#the similarities are weird… #sipho is so ugly wth #i’m actually surprised Qilby had more decency than freaking Sipho #but then again anyone would beat an ugly ass lizard’s words #do I wanna repeatedly punch Sipho in the face? maybe #am i bashing on Sipho for being an asshole? maybe #when the guy who started a whole war and caused the death of thousands of his people can admit a person’s beauty then you know u suck shit #amalia stan #wakfu #krosmoz #ankama #wakfu amalia #wakfu amalia sheran sharm #amalia sheran sharm #amalia sheran sharm wakfu #amalia wakfu #wakfu qilby #qilby wakfu #qilby #wakfu sipho #sipho wakfu #sipho #wakfu season 4 #wakfu s4 #wakfu season 3 #wakfu s3

[rosepompadour]

NATALIE WOOD in WEST SIDE STORY (1961) I never like anybody disparaging anything Natalie did because | think she’s so wonderful in the role and the fact that it ended up not being her [singing] voice, to me made absolutely no difference. - GEORGE CHAKIRIS

#so i guess this is a bone of contention between george and rita hmm [sips tea] #rita is a queen but the fact that she shows ZERO grace towards natalie and her role in the film's legacy is so tacky and rude #i truly think she is convinced she carried that film by herself and that just drives me crackers because it's such a beautiful ensemble #and honestly if you think natalie wasn't good enough as maria go watch her final scene #then go watch rachel zegler in the same scene #there is truly nothing i can say that will speak more eloquently than that #natalie wood #west side story #filmedit #*