You say no human would reply to a forum thread about Tom Bombadil by writing and editing hundreds of words of text, complete with formatting, fancy punctuation, and two separate uses of the word 'delve'. Unfortunately for both of us, you are wrong.
Disclaimer [Explained]
Transcript Under the Cut
[A Cueball profile picture is shown next to five paragraphs of illegible text, which contains varied punctuation marks and two square-bracketed citations.]
[The last paragraph in the essay is separated from the other paragraphs by a line with three dashes. Its single sentence is highlighted, and lines connect that illegible sentence to a box with an enlarged, legible version of the sentence.]
Enlarged text: Not ChatGPT output—I’m just like this.
[Caption below the panel:] I’ve had to start adding this disclaimer to my messages.
Steve Rogers was disabled before the serum, but I think there’s a fair argument to be made that he was still disabled after the serum, too.
Like sure, he’s not disabled in the sense that he’s able bodied and average height and has working lungs and no chronic illnesses, but he’s disabled in the sense that the world is not built to accommodate super soldiers. He needs extra rations. He can’t take normal pain medication. Gym equipment and daily appliances aren’t built to accommodate his super strength. And what about when it comes to exerting non-lethal force? Can he still do delicate fine motor tasks? Stretching a little further into headcanon, one could even argue that Steve’s eidetic memory and super senses are also potentially disabling. Sure, they’re useful for battles, but I bet it’s overwhelming, too, to be taking in so much information all the time. At the very least, his experience as an “enhanced” person is an interesting allegory.
He’s also disabled in the sense that the government has way too much interest in controlling his bodily autonomy, but I digress
I think I need a minute, to figure out what is, what isn’t ⏳
What was happening on ☀️’s side of the story last night— not the headlines, not the clips, not what people want to project — but what it probably feels like to be absent while 🍁 is up there holding an award, thanking “the one who doesn’t want to be perceived” in this oddly dry, careful tone… and then turning around and talking about ☀️ like the warmth accidentally slips out of him. So I asked the cards, straight up: what is ☀️ sitting with in the aftermath — his connection to 🍁, the emotional breakdown of hearing that speech, how it lands in his body and his pride, and what it does to him knowing 🍁 is balancing two lives in public while ☀️ is basically forced to exist in the “not there” space. I’m reading this one in order, like a timeline of what he clocked, what he swallowed, what he refused to say, and what he’s privately asking himself now that the night is over and the uncertainty is starting to feel less romantic and more exhausting.
1) 8 of wands → Ace of Cups → Temperance
This starts with speed + feelings + restraint.
☀️ feels like something about last night moved fast — not necessarily “a huge announcement,” but that vibe of news traveling at light speed, either through social media, mutuals, a clip, a quote, a photo, or just that gut feeling of “oh, it happened.” And the Ace of cups right after? That’s the part people underestimate: the love/softness is still there. Even if ☀️ is quiet, even if he’s acting like he’s fine, there’s still a tender place in him that reacts to 🍁 like a bruise reacts to pressure.
But then Temperance comes in like a lid on the pot. This is ☀️ consciously regulating: “I’m not going to embarrass myself. I’m not going to explode. I’m not going to give anyone a clean screenshot.” It’s him trying to keep his emotions from spilling into the wrong room.
Translation: “I feel it. I’m not showing it.”
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2) 10 of swords → King of cups → 6 of cups → 5 of swords
Here’s where it gets painfully real.
10 of swords is the moment where ☀️ looks at the whole situation and thinks, “This is the part that always kills me.” Not necessarily “the end,” but that sharp, humiliating sting of not being chosen publicly, not being present, being the warm mention from far away.
Then King of cups is literally ☀️ trying to be the adult about it: composed face, controlled voice, no messy posting, no impulsive reply. It’s pride, self-respect, and emotional discipline.
But 6 of cups makes it clear why it hurts: there’s real history/softness there. This isn’t a random crush. This is the card that says, “I know who you are to me. And you know who I am to you.”
And then 5 of swords is the bitterness creeping in — not even necessarily at 🍁 as a person, but at the game around him. This is ☀️ thinking:
• “Why does it always have to be like this?”
• “Why do I have to swallow my dignity to keep the peace?”
• “Why does everyone else get to stand next to him except me?”
This is where ☀️ can start feeling like the connection keeps costing him something, even when he’s trying to be noble about it.
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3) The moon → King of swords → Queen of swords → Queen of cups → 7 of cups → Judgement → The world
This whole row is the big red flag of:
uncertainty → boundaries → deep emotion → spiraling scenarios → wake-up call → closing a cycle
The moon is the fog: ☀️ doesn’t fully know what’s real and what’s performance. He doesn’t know what’s being said behind closed doors. He doesn’t know if 🍁 is happy, trapped, performing, appeasing, or genuinely trying to juggle two worlds without dropping either. The Moon is literally “I can’t trust what I’m seeing, but I still have to react to it.”
Then king of swords + queen of swords is the emotional shutdown turning into logic. This is ☀️ putting up mental walls and going: “Okay. Facts. Patterns. Consequences.” It’s self-protection through detachment. It can also show him talking to himself like a lawyer: “What is the actual reality here? What does this mean long-term?”
But then queen of cups shows the truth: even when ☀️ tries to be cold, he’s not. He’s deeply feeling. He just hides it well.
And then — 7 of cups: ☀️ looking at different scenarios and asking himself how long he can hang inside uncertainty. This is the mental slideshow:
• “Does he actually want me or just the idea?”
• “Is she permanent or temporary?”
• “Am I being kept as the soft place to land while someone else gets the seat next to him?”
• “Is this ever going to become simple?”
Then Judgement hits: a realization. A threshold moment. The energy of: “I can’t keep pretending this doesn’t affect me.” It’s not necessarily a breakup energy from ☀️, but it is a decision point in his heart. A line being drawn internally.
And The world as the last card of that row is huge: it’s the emotional posture of closing something so it doesn’t keep bleeding. It can read like: “I’m not going to keep living inside an unfinished story.” Sometimes The World isn’t “it’s over forever,” sometimes it’s “I’m changing how I participate.”
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4) T he high priestess → The tower → 10 of cups → The devil → 3 of cups → The emperor → 7 of swords
This is the row that tells us what last night did to ☀️ internally:
secrecy → shock → longing for the real thing → attachment → triangle fatigue → power dynamics → hiding/withholding
The high priestess is ☀️ keeping it private. Not talking. Watching. Feeling everything internally but not giving anyone the satisfaction of seeing him crack.
Then The tower is the hit: something about tonight triggers him. It could be a clip, a speech, a mention, the way 🍁 thanked her vs the way he spoke about ☀️, the way the room felt, the way the story is being staged — whatever it is, it lands like a punch.
10 of cups is what ☀️ actually wants. Not drama. Not “maybe.” Not crumbs. He wants the real alignment. The “we’re good and we’re together and it makes sense” version.
Then The devil is the painful part: even if ☀️ wants to detach, he’s attached. That bond has gravity. Devil isn’t always toxic — sometimes it’s obsession, longing, magnetism, the inability to stop caring.
And 3 of cups is the triangle card in the most literal way here.
This is exactly the inner energy: ☀️ is tired.
It’s not cute anymore.
It’s not “mysterious.”
It’s exhausting.
The emperor adds that “two lives” structure: rules, image, control, hierarchy. Somebody is trying to run this like a controlled system. And 7 of swords right after is the part where ☀️ starts feeling like the truth is being handled sideways — like there are half-moves, omissions, strategic silences. It’s not that ☀️ thinks 🍁 is evil; it’s more like: “This situation makes liars out of everyone.”
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5) Page of Swords + 7 of wands (bottom of the deck)
Page of Swords is ☀️ watching. Checking. Pretending he’s not, but he is. Reading the room through a screen.
Siete de Bastos is ☀️ protecting himself. Defending his position internally. Trying not to get pushed out of the story by other voices, other people, other narratives.
This is where ☀️ can look calm externally but feel like he’s fighting for his dignity on the inside.
————
These choices and voices, they’re all in my head— sometimes you make me feel like crazy 🆘
I can pull ☀️’s reaction to 🍁’s speech out of this spread, because the whole thing is basically “I watched it, I felt it, I swallowed it, and I’m trying not to lose my mind.”
The way I read it is:
When 🍁 called her “the one who doesn’t want to be perceived” and even used “partner,” I don’t think ☀️ felt jealousy first — by the cards he felt that weird, cold click of reality. Like High Priestess / Moon / 7 of Swords energy: oh, so we’re still doing the hidden-life language… we’re still doing coded wording… we’re still doing “I’m acknowledging you but keeping you half-invisible.” And the dryness in the tone is exactly why 10 of Swords + Tower shows up in my mind as the internal reaction: not because “it’s over,” but because it stings in that humiliating way where you can feel the structure of someone’s life while you’re standing outside of it. It’s the moment where ☀️’s brain goes: this is what he’s choosing to maintain. This is the container he’s staying in. He’s still hanging on for dear life to this concept of stability. And that hits like a brick even if ☀️ tries to be calm about it.
But then… the second 🍁 mentioned ☀️, and the warmth came out? That’s where the spread flips into Ace of Cups + King of Cups + 6 of Cups — and it’s almost worse, emotionally, because it confirms something at the exact same time it breaks your composure. The vibe is: he can’t fake it when he talks about me. It’s not “polite.” It’s not “PR-friendly.” It’s soft. It’s the kind of tone that betrays the truth before the words even finish leaving his mouth. And that’s why ☀️ feels bittersweet instead of satisfied: because hearing that warmth doesn’t magically fix the situation— it just proves the bond is real while the setup is still messy.
So if I’m writing it plainly, the spread makes ☀️’s emotional sequence look like this:
• First half of the speech (the one who doesn’t want to be perceived/partner): “Oh. So we’re still doing that.” (Moon/High Priestess) + a private hit to the chest (10 of Swords/Tower) + immediate self-control (Temperance).
• Second half (🍁 saying ☀️’s name warmly and dedicating half of the award to him): relief + recognition + heart-reactivation (Ace of Cups/6 of Cups)… followed by that sharp edge of, “if you feel like this, then why is everything still built like this?” (5 of Swords / 7 of Cups / 3 of Cups energy).
Note: Remember to take all of this with a grain of salt. I might be wrong. This is for fun and creative writing purposes only. I'm not making promises of absolutes. If this doesn't satisfy your ideals, wants, likes or expectations please don't shoot the messenger and also don't come to my ask box to treat me as a punching bag. Be assertive and have common sense. I'm not sharing this to convince anyone.
Yablunovsky: Right, because you’ll notice that in the monologue Connor did it perfectly. It was very beautiful and very touching. I was touched on set as well. But he said, “Ya tak SIL’no tebya lyublyu,” you know? He put this stress on, like, on the “somuch”: “I love you so much.” And he put this stress in Russian, and the “сильно” is, like, “strongly”—you know, “so much” is what it means—he knew perfectly what he was doing. (Scientific American)
