Hello People Of Tumblr, I Have Brought Food For The 5 Xara Fans Out There!

Random excerpt that I really liked from an MCSM fic I'm writing :

(companion to this fic: https://archiveofourown.org/works/53703352)

Flashes of lighting and thunder rumbled in the distance. She wondered how that was possible, considering she was underground, before realizing that it’s the Admin, he can do whatever. And she couldn’t stop him.

And Jesse couldn’t stop him. 

And that’s what scared her the most, because Jesse . . . Jesse was invincible. They–the New Order of the Stone–had all been invincible after they’d found their footing in the world of adventures, but they’d slowly left that behind, building new lives. But Jesse had always managed to keep a foot in both worlds and she was darn good at it. But their new enemy was powerful, so much more powerful than any they’d faced before, and Jesse had put on a brave face. 

But it was her fake brave face, the bravado she used when the world was ending and she had to be the one to keep it all together because who else was going to? (Nobody, that’s who. Jesse took the world on her shoulders and the rest of them just let her, let her think she was responsible for it all, for all of them.) 

au where everything is the same except mabel and dipper have been going to gravity falls every year before the show takes place since like kindergarten.

its a pretty simple premise that derives mostly from my desire to explore interpersonal relationships and the ways a place and people can change from a young child’s point of view. it doesn’t change canon that much either, admittedly, i just wanted to draw childhood friends stuff LOL. ill call it uhhhhhhhh every summer au.

I'm a bit of a character outfit/costume nerd and I was wondering if you had anything to share about what went in to making the outfits for The New Order's season 2 outfits? I can tell that Lukas and Petra keep the more "hero" appearance because they are still active adventures, while Axel and Olivia have more casual clothes becuase their focus has shifted from being adventurers to being leaders of Redstonia and Boomtown respectively. (Also whoever decided that Axel should wear a flannel and a skull shirt was so right and deserves cookies.)

The goal for season 2’s costume design were to reflect two things:

1. How things had changed in the characters’ lives since the first season - Lukas is still an adventurer, but a new one focused on stories and exploration, hence his new (frankly, anime-inspired) outfit. Petra is still clinging to the past which is why her armor is still the same one from the portal arc, just endlessly repaired and cobbled back together. Axel and Olivia have traded adventuring for running their towns, so their clothes reflect that… and then of course Ivor is a ninja now. Naturally.

2. How the server/world on the whole had changed and evolved - Something we never got the chance to show is that Beacontown is a hub city connected to every other town by a complex subway and mail tube system. It’s even connected to worlds within the portal network thanks to complicated and well-organized use of the enchanted flint & steel + the atlas of the old builders. This means that people from all over the world(s) are coming together in Beacontown to make it a melting pot of all kinds of styles and appearances. Characters like Radar in his hoodie + tie combo, Jack’s urban pirate look, Stella’s power suit.. these are some of the looks meant to reflect the increasing diversity of Jesse’s world and move the art direction away from some of the semi-medieval/fantasy vibes that were still hanging around.

block people stop whiny man from throwing destructive temper tantrum

“if THAT’S a sin then EVERYBODY is going to hell” yes, you are beginning to understand

One thing I don't really see anyone talking about with regards to Gravity Falls is the parallel's between Ford's apprenticeship and Mabeland. Many, many times, the question has been raised 'should Dipper have accepted Ford's apprenticeship', but no-one ever argues 'should Mabel have stayed in Mabeland', for obvious reasons, the show portrays one as a no-brainer and the other as a complex decision. But I think the two situations parallel one another nicely.

For Dipper, taking Ford's apprenticeship is definitely the more attractive option. He doesn't appear to have a lot of friends in Piedmont, has been historically bullied and may still be, and Dipper generally doesn't want to deal with the trials of growing up. Ford meanwhile, basically treats Dipper like an equal, not like a kid, encourages Dipper, and allows Dipper to pursue his interests to the fullest. However, to take the apprenticeship, Dipper will be cloistering himself in an environment in which he never has to do the things he's scared of, he avoids confronting the realities that he doesn't want to deal with, and he'll miss out on going through life with his sister.

For Mabel, staying in Mabeland is the more attractive option. There's an apocalypse raging outside, her brother is growing away from her, she's going to have to leave friends that it's implied are the best she's ever had, and we know that she too, has been bullied in the past, and may still be, and Wendy's well and truly terrified her about the concept of growing up. In Mabeland however, Mabel can continue to live in a charmed reality, surrounded by the things she's interested in and in an environment where she's constantly being enabled, and any dissenters are ejected. However, to remain in Mabeland, Mabel is cloistering herself in an environment where she never has to do the things she's scared of, she avoids confronting the realities she doesn't want to deal with, and she's pushed away one of the most important parts of her life: her brother.

During Dipper's trial, we as viewers see Mabel's change of heart as Dipper shows her that despite the trials the real world has thrown at both of them, that they've always had each others backs, and Dipper realises that too (there was a really good essay on this a while back by @cryoalliums ). Even though they're both scared, and both wanting to avoid the reality of adolescence and high school and unpredictability, they both realise through Dipper's trial that by burying themselves in their respective fantasies, they'll lose the one person who's always had their back: each other. Whether or not it's bullies or a giant robot, the twins have always had each other as a support system, and an ally, and they both realise during the trial that they'd rather fight by one another's side than hide from their problems.

So sure, Dipper could have taken the apprenticeship. He could have chosen to take the tailor-made, one-on-one advanced education that allowed him to pursue his interests to the fullest. But Mabel could also have chosen to stay in the world surrounded by her interests, where she was safe from the things she wanted to avoid. I think it's interesting that these two situations are so paralleled, and yet it's rarely discussed.

Potentially a hot take but I think Dipper might be the most emotionally intelligent out of both sets of Pines twins, but in a very specific way.

Ford really isn't overly concerned about people's feelings; it's just not something he really tends to think about or prioritize. And when he does think about it, he tends to only view people's emotions based on how he would feel about the situation.

Stan is skilled in knowing how to handle people and quickly grasping their intentions. He's a con man that understands crowd mentality and how to play it. Overall, he just knows what people tend to want to hear and gives it to them, so quick with a lie. And because of this, he's wary of when people tell him what he wants to hear. He's a con man that recognizes a con, and knows a person's intentions and desires are important so he looks for them. But he doesn't really know how to interact and connect with people genuinely and openly. He wants to have genuine connections, specifically with his family, but for all of his life he's either delt with people that didn't care for him and made it obvious (his father), people who didn't seem as invested in having a relationship with one another as he did (Ford), or people he's had to constantly lie to and thrown on a persona to survive (his years being homeless and being Mr. Mystery). Because of this, genuine feelings and connections are difficult for him to navigate and articulate, or even really understand.

Mabel, out of all of them, definitely cares the most about other people's feelings. She spends time thinking about others feelings long after the fact, considers them carefully, with the end goal of everyone being happy. But she can get so caught up in what she thought would make everyone happy, that it can be difficult for her to take a step back and look at if what she's trying to do is really the right thing for people.

But Dipper is the one that tends to just, like, quickly grasp the heart of an emotional situation and just points it out. And, unlike Mabel, he doesn't really prioritizes everyone being happy, so when he points it out he tends to be very blunt about it. He also, surprisingly, is the first to take a step back and look at a situation, and what the right thing to do is, even if it's not what he wants, something Mabel and Ford have difficulties with. He also doesn't get upset if he's the one in the wrong, able to admit it easily once he realizes it and immediately has a desire to amend what he did wrong. However, he too has a blind spot, as does everyone. This blind spot being his paranoia; if he doesn't fully know about the situation, the conclusion he'll end up at will always be the worst one (stan portal situation). Dipper very rarely takes previous loyalties into consideration when trying to figure out what's going on; if it's someone he knows and loves he'll try to find out proof that go against his suspicions, but if he doesn't immediately find any he'll jump to an answer that speaks to his paranoia (opposite from Mabel, who is predisposed to firmly see the best in others even if there is evidence proving otherwise).

HARPVOR ENJOYERS!! I MADE A THING

I heard the song and immediately knew what I had to do

Leaves on the Stream-Aurelio Voltaire Ft Alissa White-Gruz

Tulip portrait as I try and figure out how to post photos to Tumblr!

I really like how this turned out.

I would love to read anything you write about them!

I was going to lament the complete lack of longer fics centered solely on Dipper and Mabel's relationship, before realizing that I have, in fact, read one story like that. However, Dipper was so traumatized he acted pretty different.

This is also the story that convinced me I shouldn't read main character death.