𝖜𝖆𝖘𝖙𝖊𝖑𝖆𝖓𝖉, 𝖇𝖆𝖇𝖞! 𝖇𝖔𝖔𝖐𝖑𝖊𝖙 𝖑𝖞𝖗𝖎𝖈𝖘

i would like to personally thank oscar wilde for the reminder that to define is to limit, tolkien for the reassurance that not all those who wander are lost, hozier for the promise that honey, there is no right way. you whisper that there will be a light, no matter the tunnel; you ease the burden of not knowing; you show me seeds waiting for spring where i supposed a grave to be.

Even though Calliope’s story was written in the 90s, man does it hold up for the current day, frighteningly so, post #MeToo where people are seemingly more willing to examine the canon “great [male] writers” and interrogate the ways they used, abused, and took advantage of the women in their lives. The way Ric Madoc doesn’t really think he’s done anything wrong because his abuse of Calliope has resulted in his best work yet. The way he uses progressive politics to further his image, (the name dropping during the interview, using the diversity of the staff for his movie as a marketing gimmick.) The way he calls himself a feminist, (and probably genuinely believes in it to,) and yet is wholly unable to examine the harm he has caused. Because you can care about and believe in pushing against harmful systems but still perpetuate them to reap the benefits they give you. The way the story decimates the lone genius archetype with one foul swoop, showing how it’s a poisonous ideal passed down through generations of men who care more of the quality of their art than that of their character. How the story itself is called “Calliope,” and continuously centers her pain, her humanity, refusing to give the spotlight to the wet napkin of a man who technically functions as the story’s protagonist. I could go on!!!

Art from: amordeveranostd

The first Lost Boy

ok but the hunger games literally did mention it All like… the use of propaganda by the elite as an attempt to divide the minority groups they oppress by making them perceive each other as rivals and prevent them from recognizing and uniting against their real enemy? check. criticism of the way we consume media with no consideration for other people’s privacy like we’re entitled to every detail of their lives and a lack of empathy for their pain because it makes good entertainment? yeah. realistic depictions and explorations of the effects of trauma, particularly that caused by conflict? hunger games has you covered. acknowledgement of the existence of and links between racism and classism, and that conventional standards of beauty are influenced by the societal elite, which people are encouraged to harm themselves in order to conform to (the fact that the weathier people in district 12 are white, blonde and blue-eyed while the coal miner families are mostly people of color; that the two poorest districts, 11 and 12, have majority poc populations; that most people, katniss herself included, consider prim to be prettier than katniss partly because she looks like her white, blonde, blue-eyed mother, who was from the wealthier part of the district; that the first thing that happens to the tributes when they’re taken to the capitol is they they’re “prepped” to conform to capitol beauty standards before they even meet their stylists in ways that literally violate their bodies permanently, and that many of the capitol residents have extreme body modifying surgery that can take a severe toll on their health and wellbeing in the long term)? none of this is accidental, and is both brought up and criticised multiple times throughout the trilogy. the sexualization of minors for adult consumption, especially young celebrities? the fact that politicians in positions of power and authority gain those positions through corruption and by considering anyone harmed in their acension collateral damage? the significance of propaganda and social influence in modern warfare? the misery caused by poverty, which is caused and intentionally maintained by the wealthy elite? the brutal and violating experience of living in a surveillance police state, especially as a member of a minority group and/or poor person? the inherently immoral and corruptive nature of warfare and the military and the unimaginable atrocities and suffering it leads to for ordinary civilians? every YA dystopia novelist tried so hard to be mrs collins but most didn’t even understand half of what went into her books that made them so compelling.

collection of posts for a very specific dynamic

Unicorns across the world

Whew, finally this is done! Different types of unicorns! I like different interpretations of mythological creatures, so I made a bunch of them at once. They're based on real animals, but I tried to design them a bit more otherworldly.

Okay but consider this- Elizabeth Swann. She’s a pirate nerd from the beginning. She’s fascinated. And by the time the Black Pearl blasts Port Royal she knows enough to defend herself- first with the iron, then with the Code. That nerd studied pirate law enough to quote it.

And not just pirates. Presumably she’s been on a ship once- when she comes over from England. But nope no piracy wasn’t enough for this kid no she did some intense studying of sailing too because why not. So when they’re being chased down who’s coming up with all these nautical maneuvers? Elizabeth fucking Swann, sea nerd extraordinaire.

Fast forward and she’s not just a nerd anymore. And she isn’t a pirate, either. She’s the Pirate King, doing battle with Davy Jones and the entire British navy, with every Pirate Lord and their crews behind her. No more improvised weapons, no more parlay- she commands every black heart that ever set sail. And then her bae becomes ferryman for every soul lost at sea.

So then what? Everyone just goes back to what they were doing? And Elizabeth just goes home to make a quiet life for herself as a single mum? From studious sea nerd to Pirate King and now suddenly she’s happier at home, waiting for Will?

Give me an epilogue where Elizabeth has her father’s estate and enough gold to keep her comfortable for a lifetime, but instead travels the world, her son at her side. Adventuring and exploring, in and out of the law. Tell me she calls up Calypso for tea from time to time and they talk about uncharted lands and the price of sugar. Tell me in some ports she’s recognized as the daughter of Governor Swann and wined and dined. Tell me in some ports she’s recognized as the Pirate King and gets barrels rum on the house.

Tell me even honest sailors whisper stories of the mysterious and elusive Pirate King, who rarely strikes at all but then vanishes for years at a time.

Tell me Elizabeth spends time aboard the Flying Dutchman, so she can be with her husband, and her son can be with his father and grandfather. Imagine young William learns to sail on his father’s journeys to and from the land of the dead. And when he finally captains his own ship, he’s learned to be both a respectable gentleman and a good pirate.

Imagine Elizabeth spending her life on the sea, sometimes with Will and sometimes not, with a wind from Calypso always in her sails, adventuring enough for lifetimes as a part-time well bred lady, part-time Pirate King.