I Was Gonna Draw Something More Serious But Sometimes U Just Gotta Draw Memes

THANK YOU. Finally someone says it!

I can’t even count the number of fics and hp theories I’ve read that completely ignore this fact. 

I honestly think the reason why so many people forget this is because the characters themselves never acknowledge it. And the fact that most of the people Harry surrounds himself are firmly entrenched in Magical Society. He has a lot of Pureblood allies and friends for example. I don’t think many of them understand just how deep discrimination can go. Nor do I think they understand the difference between being called a blood traitor vs a mudblood. It’s the difference between being sympathetic to muggles rather than actually being related to one and that shit matters. 

They associate anti-Muggle sentiments with Voldemort and the Death Eaters. In their minds, as soon as they’re defeated everything will go back to normal! Normal just being more subtle and unspoken discrimination that can be waved away by the few well-meaning but ignorant Purebloods, “Oh Sally from accounting said something to you? You must’ve misunderstood! I know her very well, she’s no Death Eater.” 

I’ve lost my point, if you can’t tell I’m really interested in the politics behind hp discrimination, I’m very sad that there aren’t more fics about it pre and post-Voldemort. But back to Tom. 

Another factor is the fact that Dumbledore canonically theorizes Tom had a gang of Slytherins following him called the Knights of Walpurgis (KoW) during school. I think that bit of canon is absolute garbage and I hate it because as you said: he’s perceived Muggleborn. I swear every time I read a fic with this ‘gang’ that isn’t a crack fic I want to scream. 

You’re telling me that this man worked in customer service for years voluntarily? When he had like 5 Sugar Daddies on speed-dial? Honey, please. Magic I can rationalize but KoW is just straight up unrealistic. 

Also, fun fact Dumbledore 100% knew Tom wasn’t a Muggleborn because of his Parseltongue abilities (or at least suspected). This man let Tom be discriminated against and did not say a WORD. Nor did he attempt to help find Tom’s family. And poor feral baby Tom probably didn’t tell another soul about his ability to speak to snakes during school because of Dumbledore’s reaction when he told him. 

Considering his Catholic upbringing in addition to Dumbledore’s response to learning about his in-built Snake Google Translate, Tom was probably like “Ok so the Magical world also has bad associations with snakes. Good to know.”

And then Tom probably found out Parseltongue was an indicator for Slytherin ancestry during the Chamber fiasco and flipped the fuck out. Because that meant his elitist-ass housemates were disrespecting him in what was essentially his own fucking house??? I’d be mad too if I went to school somewhere where the students worshipped the ground the founder walked on and used the founder’s beliefs to try and prove I didn’t belong. And then discover that I was related to the founder they would use as a reason to bully me? The audacity. I’d implode on the spot. 

(In answer to your last query, I headcanon that his hiatus from Britain was so he could re-brand himself. Tom Riddle was the bullied Slytherin Muggleborn. He had to disappear. Voldemort was the messiah-like cryptid who emerged from the shadows with all of life’s answers. He just needs your first born.)

Tom Riddle, aka, Voldemort was canonically perceived to be a muggleborn for many years before he found out about Merope Gaunt. Because only for muggleborns does a teacher visit the parents/guardian/orphanage. Harry was simply given a letter even though he lived in the muggle world, while McGonagall visited Hermione.

In the same vein, Dumbledore visited Tom’s orphanage to inform him about Hogwarts. 

where am i going with this?

the sorting hat put a perceived muggleborn in Slytherin. Don’t try to tell me that oh no, the sorting hat knows who or what you and your ancestors are. No it doesn’t. It reads your mind. it’s very much possible (and by that, i mean i’m certain) that the gaunts did not attend hogwarts.

He might’ve turned out to be a half blood, but at the time, he was considered muggleborn, both by magic and by himself-even though he hated the thought of it.

there are muggleborns in slytherin.

slytherin is cunning and ambition. not blood purity.

(also, i do not understand how people like the malfoys and the blacks and the lestranges and other blood purity fanatics followed a perceived muggleborn. like did voldy tell them that oh no, i’m a half blood? or was it because he was so charismatic that he made them forget that essentially, he was not a pureblood?)

Amorpho Whomst? (DC x DP)

Everyone knows that King Phantom's appearance fluctuates based on his mood and the task ahead.

Dynamic battle, working in a team to achieve the impossible? King Phantom is a young boy of 14, quippy despite the inherent sadness of a child ghost.

Showboating, standing in front of a powerful enemy to tell them that "No, Earth is already occupied." or to a ghost: "You've taken it too far this time." And King Phantom is a huge man with red eyes and hair that flickered like candleflame.

And if the mission was sabotage and espionage, sneaking into fortresses previously impregnable? King Phantom is a girl, even more unsettlingly young than the first.

Danny has no idea why everyone has so much trouble keeping the three of them straight - constantly referencing events that happened while he was on sabbatical from JLA work. However, Danny does appreciate that because technically all three of them are technically the same person that the King workload can be spread out a bit - those realms are infinite after all.

(separating this into its own post bc I need the validation of the radiostatic enjoyers)

Alastor absolutely believes that everyone else ALSO thinks that Vox is the most charming and attractive demon in hell, it's just an objective fact - just like how Vox is an annoying clout-chaser constantly trying to upgrade himself towards more and more validation

--

Like imagine, for whatever reason, Vox is at the hotel and he's bitching about Valentino, and Alastor is nearby because he doesn't like or trust Vox alone in HIS hotel.

Vox: And then the fucker said that he only sleeps with 10s AND Vox! That absolute bitch, how DARE he?! After everything we've built!

Alastor, confused: The distinction makes sense. I fail to see how THIS is the thing you take fault with, considering everything else lacking in the moth.

Vox, mortally offended that his rival-crush ALSO thinks he's ugly and trying to pretend he doesn't care about it: uh, FUCK YOU?!

Alastor, now both confused and offended: If he included you in the scale, no one else would rate a 10? Although I suppose it is true about what they say about television rotting the brain, if your offense is taken at a rare show of consideration and NOT the publicized and continuous cheating. Ha ha!

Vox is so caught off guard that his screen immediately glitches, and it's not until he does a full system reboot that he can even RESPOND to what Alastor just said.

Alastor is making fun of his flimsy technology when Vox comes to.

Angel is cracking up in the background, watching this entire thing go down.

Vox has no idea where to go from here.

t4t radiostatic. No one is safe from my projections.

(CW: gender dysphoria, internalised transphobia)

Currently obsessed with the concept of Danny 100% being the most Violent and youngest Wayne. I'm so sorry but the writing opportunity🥹🤌

Danny's rogues were all dead so they can't actually... Die again. Like— not in the normal way, that is. The only way that they could die is by crushing their core.

Cue Bruce Wayne and the whole family Finding out his extremely timid and closed off son/brother (yes, being ooc is the point here stfu😭) is arguably the strongest being in the universe and admitting that he has a tendency to have intrusive thoughts and horrible mood swings so he doesn't trust himself with doing the family's... 'business' (knowing damn well he could kill someone if he gets too agitated) and they're almost not convinced.

Emphasis on almost.

Once they watched as the youngest of them all completely threw down a weird eyeball (they later learn is an 'observant'), threw a green dagger right beside it, kicked it violently and threatened to gauge it's eye out and disintegrate it for interrupting their dinner.

He apologized to the family soon after the thing disappeared, back to completely timid and embarrassed.

Extra, Danny finding out about Joker:

News: Joker found dead in strange circumstances!

Bruce, turning to Danny: Danny....

Danny, who placed a bounty on Joker AND his soul in the ghost zone: *gasp* He died of strange circumstances? How unfortunate!

Danny: I didn't do anything, my hands are clean!

Bruce: *sigh* Chum...

Jason, in the background: Kid ilysm you're my favorite brother now

THIS exactly.

I’m curious to see how betty’s expedition is handled in the long term for the show, in the sense that it’s clearly meant to be symbolic of their relationship. I’ve seen some analysis which points to what I feel may very well be the direction the show is going — that Betty is always making sacrifices for Simon, and he lets her.

But the thing is, I don’t feel that’s a fair consideration of the events. She asks to go on the expedition with him, tells him she doesn’t want credit for their discovery, and — when he finds her at the bus stop — she doesn’t ask him to come with her.

And this pattern continues into the main series. She jumps through the portal of her own volition and proceeds to dedicate herself solely to saving Simon. The temple of mars episode really puts it best. She’s flat out shown how she does everything for him, and she says that’s how she wants it. That it’s what makes her her.

That’s not to say Simon didn’t play a part. He’s certainly not particularly observant, and he’s much less prone to taking the initiative. But he clearly adores Betty and thinks she’s brilliant. He only ever opened the portal to apologize. He naturally would have wanted her to be happy and successful.

In the series finale, he’s the most content to be digested by golb. it seems like a natural outcome to him — and this way, they get to be together.

The two of them sort of work by the laws of physics. Betty is constantly in motion, making choices to propel them forward. And simon is at rest. He’s usually content with his fate, unless a strong force comes in to change his status quo.

Both of these features are taken to a detrimental extreme at times, but neither is more malicious than the other. sometimes, Betty makes choices without stopping to ask if it’s what he wants to. sometimes, Simon lets opportunities slip by that stifle them both. They’re human, and they didn’t really get the time they needed to learn how to communicate through these things.

I think to argue that Simon let her be self sacrificing disservices them both. Betty is fully capable of making her own choices, and Simon is more than willing to make sacrifices of his own. He did it for Marcy and Fionna. He’d do it for Betty too — but she never leaves an opening.

For better or for worse, they’re two halves of a whole. In the best of times that means they enhance each others best qualities. And, on the flip side, they wind up enabling the worst.

have these small previews of a “Proof of Concept” I’m currently working on. Originally, I was only going to do simple story beats w/o colors…. but I got SO into the story that I really wanted them as full colored thumbnails… so here we are.

me: haha oh god this is so bad im making so many unsupported claims and pulling all this analysis out of my ass

my prof in the margins: excellent analysis!

me: 

Anyway the history of orphanages in the UK and Ireland is a history of violence and in the 1920s, Tom would have been sent to a workhouse by about age 8 had he not been adopted (often this meant sold- sometimes over seas)

I think it’s really important when reading HP to remember that JKR is worse than just a terf. She erased a number of horrific, traumatic experiences (experiences that effected the ‘women’* and children she’s apparently so keen to protect) with how she wrote Voldemort’s childhood. In the 20s, orphanages still didn’t hold the babies, they were underfed and when they cried to much they were often quieted with Godfrey’s Treacle or similar products which essentially amounted to a sweet syrup mixed with opium. Many babies died and their bodies were often improperly disposed of.

At the time Orphanages would have been primarily religious institutions. Those that weren’t were for profit. State run orphanages did not exist. Some of these institutions literally stole babies from unwed/abandoned mothers like Merope. Some would even enslave the mothers in laundries. There are many horror stories of mothers begging for their children back even after their children had been homed, again often for a fee, because they were never notified about their children being placed with families. Children were beaten, dressed differently so they stood out, improperly schooled, shamed for the fact that their mothers failed them.

If JKR had written it according to actual history, it’s likely Merope would not have needed to die for her to be deemed unfit and Tom to have been taken. The reality is so much more horrifying than the happy orphanage in the books. And JKR still hasn’t looked into the actual history. She’s only visited modern orphanages and even that was enough to learn her this massive mistake.

These realities being as they are, it is hard to read HBP without feeling that Dumbledore is lying about Tom’s past, rearranging the facts to demonize him. The flashbacks even show Dumbledore antagonizing him like he’s a criminal for having maladaptive coping mechanisms from a traumatic childhood where he was even more different (autistic coded lbr) than the other kids and couldn’t manage to fit in within the orphanage let alone outside of it. And we see in that scene, Tom going from open and excited to closed off and recessed. He goes from thinking ‘this man is like me’ to thinking ‘this man is like them’. There is no way to ignore how Dumbledore immediately became part of the problem instead of offering a helping hand when it was needed most.

In conclusion, Dumbledore is an ass, Voldemort’s story is that of how trauma can ruin revolutionary thought, and JKR apologizing to the orphans/throwing money at them can’t make up for this massive mistake.

Historical fiction has a duty and a responsibility to accurately depict the horrors of the past. Please read Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell to see how this ought to be done in a low fantasy setting.

Something something Danny learns that Jason died and crawled out of his own grave.

Danny, to Jason: You actually got a grave?

Jason: Why? You want one?

He doesn’t notice how this could potentially sound like a threat from an outsider’s perspective.