Person: “Why are you wearing sweatpants?”
Me:
TWOTQ SPOILERS:
If you are worried about the joining please read the book first.
See for yourselves. Don’t listen to the other reviews about it.
Once you do you will see many things wrong with everyone complaining about the joining happening.
1. Kieran and Poppy were not a thing before they got Casteel. Kieran would comfort Poppy not flirt with her. He is affectionate towards her because that is his best friend/ ex bonded partners wife and heart mate. Because of those things he loves her in his own way. I do not personally think that it is sexually romantic. It is more that he loves her in a respectful awe inspiring way. They have a respect and love for each other through Casteel. Maybe because Casteel and Kieran were once bonded there is some connection to why poppy and Kieran feel so loyal to each other.
2. They did the joining out of necessity to keep Kieran alive. Did you all miss that? They did it for Kieran. While having the conversation poppy said that if Kieran found someone he wanted to be with they would go through the joining again. Which I think is foreshadowing Kieran finding someone he will end up with.
3. After the joining is done and they all separate we see that Poppy and Casteel have their own room without Kieran. They do things without Kieran. If they were going to be a throuple don’t you think that they’d invite him? If JLA wanted them to be a throuple she would have had them fuck again?
4. Yes we do see Kieran have feelings for Poppy afterward. We don’t know if they will escalate. We don’t know if they are carnal feelings. He could just simply be in awe of his queen/primal. I personally cannot see them being sexual. Just because they fucked during the joining doesn’t mean they will again.
5. Kieran Poppy and Casteel have cuddled before. You guys are making a friendship sexual when it doesn’t need to be. Like the 3 of them needed each other before the whole ending and that’s what happened. Also if they wanted to fuck again they would have then but Kieran told everyone to go the fuck to sleep.
6. Casteel and Poppy are heartmates so it goes way deeper and it means way more then anything else. I do not see JLA making Poppycas into a throuple I’m sorry.
7. JLA Literally wrote about the joining for the past two books and you didn’t see it coming? Like she even brought up a 3some in Willa’s diary. Everything JLA writes has a purpose. You look back in FBAA and you can see everything has lead up to this moment. And even the ending of this book.
If you stop reading the series go ahead. No one is making you read these books. JLA is the writer and she can do what she wants it’s literally her world.
What isn’t okay is taking away her creative freedom and making petitions to get her to rewrite a story she doesn’t have to write. She literally could have said fuck you all and killed Casteel to make room for Kieran but she didn’t.
LOOK AT THIS FLAWLESS TRANSITION!!!
Honest to Nyktos.
Kieran is like "why does Poppy ask so many questions" my brother in Nyktos you keep answering them.
Kayden and Kartein: Surprise! We’re having a baby!
Jiwoo: Wow! Congratulatio—
Kayden and Kartein, slamming adoption papers on the table: It’s you, sign here.
Relatable plus helpful.
My brain, having a meltdown like a toddler: I just can’t do it! I don’t want to !! I can’t!! Me, parenting my tired toddler brain: Take a deep breath, it’s going to be ok. We don’t have to do everything today that’s overwhelming you. Let’s pick the most important thing to work on, ok? What’s the smallest step we can do to work towards that? My toddler brain, wiping away tears: Um, I think we should…open up the important spreadsheet and look at the first row. Me, parenting my tired toddler brain: Great! Let’s do that, and then we can have a popsicle, ok? My toddler brain: *nods through drying tears, upset, but cooperative*
Alchemy of Souls be like, second lead syndrome is not enough, we will introduce the third lead syndrome...
after perusing twitter for a bit, i have stuff to say so have some more twotq content.
what we're not gonna do is be fucking racist because you don't like the joining. if you can't criticize it without using slurs, then shut your goddamn mouth.
what we're also not gonna do is twist canon around.
the joining was always implied to have sexual undertones. it just was. it was set up that drinking blood from someone can be a sexual experience.
casteel and keiran are basically soulmates. casteel trusts keiran with poppy. he always has. this idea that he walk cucked or betrayed is fucking stupid and degrading to their relationship.
poppy, cas, and keiran have been in sexual situations together.
keiran heard cas finger poppy in the forest, the night of the wedding, when poppy woke up from her assention. their dynamic has never not had at least touches of sexuality in it. it's simply a fact.
i mentioned it in another post but i really think that these ideas of monogamy as the only true form of love that are so ingrained in our society are really what's pushing this victimization of cas and it's fucking ridiculous.
all three of them wanted it, and their dynamic really didn't change afterwards.
a giant portion of the fandom is just blowing this so far out of proportion. it would be funny if it wasn't so frustrating.
twotq thought dump
it's not as if the bond between poppy and keiran came out of nowhere. they bonded over someone they have a deep connection with being taken from them.
i can't really say i understand the feelings around the joining because i think it was handled extremely well. i think that saying it's suddenly a poly ship is just factually untrue. let's remember they even said that if keiran found someone he wanted to live forever with them they would do the joining again.
i think that people upset with the post joining way they are are people who may not be able to get passed the monogamy-centric ideals of western culture to see that sex and love are a complicated beast.
it was a well done exploration of how sex and love come in all forms and i adored it.
i totally called poppy being a primal btw.
i love her powers so much, and it was so fun to see reaver and nektas again.
thank god isbeth is dead. fuck that bitch.