Platonic Love and Sibling Dynamics · 5:47pm Mar 30th, 2022
Artwork from the lovely profile/Twitter banner done by CitreneSkys
Welcome to the second rant blog before Babscon, everyone! Today we're going to talk about brothers and sisters. I was going to do these every Friday up until the week before Babs, but I have two other blogs to post likely within the next week so things are gonna switch up a bit.
Why Siblings.
At surface level, the reason why I enjoy writing about siblings should be obvious, given my last blog. I enjoy writing about platonic love and non-sexual intimacy, and sibling relationships are one of the biggest naturally occurring instances of platonic love in humans, with the other being parent/child relationships.
But I vastly prefer to write about siblings than parents and their children, and this is where my personal influence pops in again.
I was a single child all my childhood. I had parents who divorced when I was a kid, and though they both got remarried with different people they've been happy with ever since, the initial split made my childhood hectic and scattered. I bounced around in a shared custody setup and didn't really understand why things were the way they were. It didn't help me form deep emotional connections with my parents either, something I'd already been struggling to do.
I remember thinking how much I wanted a brother or sister who could relate to what I was dealing with. An older sibling who I could look up to, talk to about things with, or just hug when I felt sad.
Years later, my remarried parents each decided to have kids again, and so suddenly I had step siblings. I love them very much, and the older one, a little under ten years younger than me, I try my best to stay in touch with, seeing as we're both nerds. But I can't deny that being almost twice as old as them has its chasms when trying to grow a relationship. I think I'll always lament not having a sibling around the same age as me when I was a kid, when I could have really benefited from it.
Anyway, back to cartoons and horses.
I started writing fan fiction at thirteen, and even back then I poured my desires into my writing. It began with depicting the brotherly relationship between Sonic and Tails, after seeing so much endearing artwork of them on the then-brand-new DeviantArt. I wrote about a protective, loyal role model who wasn't afraid to open up when their little brother needed it. I wrote about cute interactions, teasing, playing, and triumphing over the day's struggles together.
Artwork by geniefox
Sixteen years ago I found this artwork and others like it on DeviantArt, and that was my exposure to the internet's better half.
My focus on siblings carried into every fandom I've ever been a part of. Sonic and Tails, Mable and Dipper from Gravity Falls, Sasuke and Itachi from Naruto, the list goes on. But only in MLP has my knack for slice of life and wholesome interactions felt so at home. And so it, too, has now crossed three generations, going from Dash and Scootaloo to Thorax and Pharynx, and now to Zipp and Pipp.
I am fully onboard the G5 hype train, and it's almost entirely because we have siblings as core cast members this time. There's even more opportunity to explore sister relationships now, not just in dedicated episodes like in G4 but in snapshot glances throughout the shows/comics/media. It's very exciting for me.
How Siblings.
Protectiveness, teasing/playful bullying, sympathy/comfort, and role model lessons and values are the bread and butter of positive sibling relationships, at least how I write them. If you look hard enough you can find these in all the stories I write. Obviously, certain characters gravitate more towards one than others.
Protectiveness.
"Secondly," Pharynx interjected, lightly punching the crouched changeling in the side, "don't create dire scenarios from hypotheticals, Thorax. It feeds your anxiety. You know I can handle the hive just fine. More importantly, nothing will ever happen to you while I'm around. You know that."
Rubbing his shoulder, Thorax conceded defeat, locked eyes with his brother and salvaged his former smile.
~ Mine is Dorkier Than Yours
Teasing and playful bullying.
Pipp was cut off. Her thought had turned into desperate giggling and subdued flailing that shook the both of them. Zipp's wings, so precariously wrapped around her sister's sides, had begun to wriggle.
"I'm sorry, princess, I don't think you understand the delicate position you're in," Zipp bantered, grinning slyly. "Last I checked, we were having a breakthrough. Where's this sass coming from? I think you should’ve curled up and gone to sleep while you had the chance, sis. You would’ve been 'totes' cuter that way."
~ How to Hug Your Pegasis
Sympathy/comfort.
"Am I to assume this was triggered by talks with the ponies upstairs? Funny how they're causing you more concern than the omnipotent draconequus. C'mere, you big dork." Pharynx corralled the younger changeling with a motion of his hooves. "Take a deep breath and relax. The fate of the Changeling Kingdom doesn't have to be decided this afternoon."
Shaking like a leaf, Thorax put aside his status, expectations, and responsibilities. He let himself lay his head against his brother's chitin, and embraced the older changeling for the first time in a very long time. There was no backing away, nor were there scoffs of disgust that he'd come to expect. Instead, Thorax felt himself being held by a strong leg without fear of withdrawal.
~ The King of Love Bugs, 'Brother, My Brother'
Role model lessons and values.
“I can’t.” Scootaloo said suddenly. Rainbow’s look immediately soured into a ‘why not?’ face. "I don’t want to burden them. It’s not their problem. I can manage just fine in our clubhouse, plus…”
The orange filly fought back the urge to look Rainbow in the eye. She sure could look intimidating when she was confused and not understanding why something she thought was so simple, actually wasn’t.
“Plus…it’s not what you would do. You would make do with what you had, wouldn’t you? You’d build your own home or find some way to brave it out. So, I gotta do the same. I don’t have a home, so I make do.”
~ My Sister, Loyalty
MLP is unlike any fandom I've been in when it comes to sibling relationships. A decade later, I'm still happy to be here, honing my writing and engaging with a fun, creative community.
Thank you for reading this, if you've come this far! Next week, my final blog will go over the origins of my username.
See ya!
Now this is a pretty nice completion of siblings which I love it
Awwwww! Wookit dat cute picturee!
Also, I honestly have to thank you-the explanation for why you like writing siblings kind of made me realize why I love Thor and Phar so much. I'm also a child of divorce, and while I don't have any step-siblings (except...well, no, I don't like her so she doesn't count), I always wanted a younger or older sibling, and I used to imagine that the reason why I kept switching back between my mom and dad was because I had a secret sibling they were rotating on a reversed schedule. Your explanation helps me realize that I feel much the same way you do-I longed for a sibling relationship, so I built on the first couple ones I truly felt resembled something I wanted (Scoots and Dash, Thor and Phar, and even Soarin, Spitfire, and Fleetfoot, though they weren't related)
I do really like this blog for what it's about too, not just because of that!
Aww, now I need six appendages to hug everyone in that picture
I can relate to your wanting a sibling so much, though my situation is a bit different. My parents didn't divorce, but I was bullied in school and emotionally abused at home, and I avoided talking about the latter because my mom (the abuser) is well-respected in
ourmy former town and super-well-mannered in public, and I could tell that no one really believed me. I sometimes wished I had a sibling so someone would see what's happening (dad had a habit of pretending not to notice anything when mom had her episodes) and hopefully care enough to stand up to her or at least provide emotional support. I never got one, but at least things got much better after I moved to college and especially after I started practicing martial arts in my free time (I have a theory that mom became afraid of what I might do to her if she pushed me too hard lol), and now I guess I see Thorax as the brother I needed but never got. Oh well, there's the huggable plushie at least5647325
I'm glad we've all come out the other side of our situations a bit better than before.
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You both have been a constant presence with my works for the past few years, and it's so heartwarming to learn about why my stuff speaks to you so much, now—or at least, one aspect of why.
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Cheers, to us!
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Apologies for what you’ve gone through, bud. Must’ve been real hard wanting someone to know what was happening, so they could reach out and help. Kudos for practicing martial arts of all things. That’ll probably teach ‘em to back off.
Platonic hugs for EVERYONE!!! Seriously, after the last two years, you have NO IDEA how much those are missed.
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Not your fault (as one of the book characters I know would say), and thanks
It already has! You should have seen the change in mom's behavior when she found out
I don't train anymore because I moved to a different city in the meantime and haven't found anything I'd be interested in training here (which isn't to say I won't if something comes up), but what I learned during those 7 years and the happy memories of hanging out with fellow trainees will always stay with me
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Cheers to that!
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Glad to hear.
My situation is pretty different, but I can relate all the same. I'm the youngest of six, but the gap between me and the second-youngest is 6-7 years. Setting aside the baggage of my parents' previous spouses, I've never really gotten close to any of them, even after some of them grew up and became actually decent people. I watch some of their kids for them sometimes, but I'm not good with kids and I can't really say I'm close to my actually law-abiding sister. And while the second youngest of us wants to be close to me, and we have bonded a bit, we're more kinda-friends than actually even just friends, let alone truly healthy brothers.
My parents are good people who had to put up with five jackamules and a shy rabbit for kids, and at least two abusers each before they finally found each other and to this day they have a mostly healthy relationship. Communication issues on my dad's part aside, I can't really say anything bad about them.
All that to say, the circumstances are different, but I feel much the same as you for most the same basic reasons.
Though I also just write and read about tween animal siblings and friends for the simple and perhaps shallow reason that tween animal people are inherently adorable and so healthy interactions, especially hugs, are even sweeter and cuter.
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Cheers and hugs for all of you!
images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/7d6870c3-a0d3-4d76-ba52-122eff508d16/d5lm0oh-e004cbe0-db9c-48b9-bb97-1a372fedef29.png/v1/fill/w_900,h_634,strp/pony_hugs__fixed__by_artpwny_d5lm0oh-fullview.png?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7ImhlaWdodCI6Ijw9NjM0IiwicGF0aCI6IlwvZlwvN2Q2ODcwYzMtYTBkMy00ZDc2LWJhNTItMTIyZWZmNTA4ZDE2XC9kNWxtMG9oLWUwMDRjYmUwLWRiOWMtNDhiOS1iYjk3LTFhMzcyZmVkZWYyOS5wbmciLCJ3aWR0aCI6Ijw9OTAwIn1dXSwiYXVkIjpbInVybjpzZXJ2aWNlOmltYWdlLm9wZXJhdGlvbnMiXX0.W-VJOV_i9FvCSD6hC-_2IcB2BihachU6x3k082he0qc
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Yayyyy!
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*hugs back*