#<- my loves. but literally EVERYONE from tlt anyway

[decimateddreams]

"they should've been at the club" they should've been in my lab. i want to study them

[artiepoison]

Icorect PJO/HOO quotes from this website :https://perchance.org/incorrect-quote-generator

Thalia: You seem familiar, have I threatened you before?

--------

Nico: The only thing keeping me from running away and hiding from society for the rest of my life is spite. I could disappear forever, but there are some bitches whose downfalls I have yet to witness, and I wanna be around when that happens.

-------

Percy: So according to the cease and desist order I got, apparently you can’t ‘legally’ be a lawyer if your license is ‘cut out of a cereal box’.

--------

Percy: Pros and cons of dating me. Percy: Pros. You'll be the cute one. Percy: Cons. Holy shit, where do I begin-

------

Grover: Yum, thanks!

Kidnapper: *puts more tape over their mouth* I said stop eating it.

-------

Nico: My aesthetic is "would be suspected of witchcraft by small town citizens."

-------

Annabeth in TLT

Annabeth: *trying to buy a Father's Day card at Hallmark*

Annabeth: Excuse me, do you have any that just say "You are my dad?"

Associate: Well, I-

Annabeth: How about "You banged my mom?"

Associate: No...

Annabeth: You know what, I'll just get a blank one.

Annabeth: *writes* You are a father. This is a day. Here is a card.

--------

Leo: I'm a firm believer in "if you're going to fail, you might as well fail spectacularly."

------

Nico: You can't wake up if you never get to sleep.

-------

Piper, opening a Capri Sun: Guess I'll drink my sorrows away.

-------

Hazel: War is heck!

------

Jason: I have yet to encounter a problem where a sword didn't factor into the solution at least in some way.

------

Frank: Well, needless to say. Uh-oh Spaghetti-os.

-------

Will: Can we go to a haunted house?

Nico: What’s wrong with the one we live in?

Will: Wh-what?

Nico: Goodnight, Will.

-------

Percy: Shouldn't get stressed out, it's not good for the baby.

Annabeth: What baby?

Percy, crying a bit: Me.

--------

*The Squad is playing Chess*

Annabeth: *easily beats everyone because they know how to play*

Piper: *doesn’t know the rules, but wins anyway*

Leo: *doesn’t know the rules, and loses*

Jason: *knows the rules, but still loses to those who don’t*

Frank: Actually, you can’t do that, because I said so.

Percy: They named a board game after cheese?

--------

*when the Squad drops food*

Annabeth: Eh, oh well.

Piper: FIVE-SECOND RULE!

Nico: FUCK!

Jason: *just gets more food*

Percy: *drops to their knees and mourns the food*

Leo: *eats the food off the ground*

---------

Leo: Who else is hiding in the laundry room trying to listen to Hazel and Frank's convo?

Piper: Me. I'm in the laundry basket.

Percy: I'm in the washing machine.

Nico: I'm in the closet.

Jason: We accept you Nico. <3

Nico: No I'm literally in the closet.

Jason: Love is love. <3

--------

Frank: Are you trying to give me a frickin’ aneurysm?

Percy: Pretty sure we all are.

Hazel: I wasn't.

Leo: I was.

Jason: I was trying to stop them, for your consideration.

Nico: I just cause aneurysms naturally.

--------

Annabeth: Okay, I’m going to get the wedding cake.

Percy: Perfect, while you do that I’ll check on the ring bear.

Annabeth: ...

Annabeth: You mean ring bearER, right?

Percy: ...

Annabeth: Look me in the eyes and tell me you are not going to bring a dangerous wild animal to our wedding.

---------

Nico: I don't need to go to bed. I'm not tired, I'll be fine.

Will: But, darling, I'll be so lonely without you. Come curl up in my arms so I can feel whole again.

Nico: O-oh. Well. Are you trying to seduce me into healthy sleeping patterns??

Will: Is it working?

-------

BONUS MAGNUS CHASE

Mallory: Nothing in life is free.

Sam: Love is free.

T.J: Knowledge is free.

Alex: Friendship is free.

Halfborn: Self-respect is free.

Magnus: Everything's free if you don't pay for it.

The Squad: ...

T.J: Magnus, that's illegal-

Alex: No, let them finish!

sooooooo yep. Hope you enjoyed

[ma1dita]

Even though Luke doesn’t cheat on Trouble, I listen to Burn from Hamilton and imagine these two post tlt bc yes i like the pain,, no i don’t need therapy, officer 😀

girl the way this is probably canon anyway bc in the trouble!verse luke is a Hamilton Hater ™ and trouble was known to be singing songs from the musical with her ex-bf

im DYINGGGG but damn if you go to therapy hop in we can carpool

sidenote there's still a lot that can relate in the lyrics and im bored rn so lets feed into the delusion for a bit (guys I'm a fic writer who peaked in the 2010s in the age of bad youtube fan recreations of songs to fit their otps... i know how to work with scraps)

She said, "Be careful with that one, love , "He will do what it takes to survive" // You and your words flooded my senses, Your sentences left me defenseless, You built me palaces out of paragraphs, You built cathedrals // I'm re-reading the letters you wrote me, I'm searching and scanning for answers in every line, For some kind of sign, And when you were mine // The world seemed to burn, Burn

Mr. D warned her from the beginning about Luke, even silently in 'play pretend' because she was becoming more like her old self (reckless and crazy, just like him) when she was falling in love with Luke, and it isn't a bad thing but definitely takes away fro what her and Luke have been working at as THE counselors of CHB. Luke's always been good with words as a son of Hermes to the point that it even fools Trouble to some extent, there comes a point where her as an amazing actress can't tell when he's lying---and he learned that from her...

You published the letters she wrote you, You told the whole world, How you brought this girl into our bed, In clearing your name, You have ruined our lives // Do you know what Angelica said, When she read what you'd done?, She said, "You've married an Icarus, "He has flown too close to the sun" // You and your words obsessed with your legacy, Your sentences border on senseless, And you are paranoid in every paragraph, How they perceive you, You, you, you!

this made me giggle OKAY HEAR ME OUT LMFAOOOO ever since they got together (in the span of a little over a year before his betrayal), they always sleep in the same bed when they can as mentioned in 'now that we're older' because they barely have time to themselves in the day....when 'when the chaos is through' is posted, that's when Luke agrees to side with Kronos in his ultimate belief to protect Trouble from impending war and eventually give her a better life outside of CHB. (imagine kronos dressed as eliza schuyler and we're set because luke essentially brings him to bed with them for half of their relationship and she doesn't know LMFAOOOOO) and well yeah yall know his decline after TLT but he's in too deep to fall back

I'm erasing myself from the narrative, Let future historians wonder how Eliza reacted, When you broke her heart, You have torn it all apart // I'm watching it burn, Watching it burn, The world has no right to my heart, The world has no place in our bed, They don't get to know what I said, I'm burning the memories, Burning the letters that might have redeemed you // You forfeit all rights to my heart, You forfeit the place in our bed, You'll sleep in your office instead, With only the memories of when you were mine //I hope that you burn

The beginning part reminds me of the confrontation scene in 'love is a blister' where the counselors put Trouble on trial for loving Luke---the reality of it is they and everyone at camp only know what Luke & Trouble have shown them, but everything between them is private and their own. They didn't expect him to leave her behind. There are a lot of references throughout the series and especially in 'solipsism' where his last time alive as his waning sense of self he goes to visit Trouble who's fresh from visiting Annie in 'love is a blister' and he literally is burning through his old self as kronos overtakes his body. He couldn't imagine not being able to say goodbye before becoming true vessel and well in TLO, teeeechnically what happens and what i plan to write i--[GUNSHOTS]

me saying scraps and then copy pasting almost the whole damn song... ive said too much. this was entertaining, how'd I do?

[adolin]

OOOOH YOU'RE INTO TMA 👀 👀

what do you think john (tlt)'s entity alignment would be? for me its a cross between desolation and extinction. like, desolation flavoured extinction.

he starts out fearing for the death of earth, but with specific hatred and fear for who he believes are responsible (of course, the trillionares treatment of the earth could be likened more to a flesh/slaughter deal, because i doubt they had the personal conviction in ruining people's lives that the desolation requires, but so long as john views it as personal, it works)

this fear of irrevocable change to the enviroment paired with the fear of it coming who specifally wants YOU to suffer gives us a nice desolation-extinction combo.

then a myriad later, john is putting that fear into those trillionare descendants. and again, the way they view it is closer to flesh/slaughter because they dont know johns motivations, but its all cylical baby!!!

DESOLATION. ABSOLUTELY DESOLATION.

He was nearly the Extinction (btw. one of my main gripes with the ending of TMA is how they absolutely did nowhere with the Extinction! it was so cool! etc.) I mean, if there's ONE person more likely to be the frontrunner for Extinction Avatar it's got to be the guy who ended all life in the solar system in a misguided attempt to prevent the extinction of humanity and biodiversity loss.

Then he became a divinity ruled by wrath and a thirst for senseless revenge. There can be no forgiveness. Nothing satisfies me, nothing. He reforged humanity into an empire that runs on death magic to exact retribution; his (metaphorical) fingers reach all through the universe; he made his home a literal mausoleum. He wages a war that, as far as we can tell, doesn't have the purpose of destroying the enemy but 'just' to subjugate them and scatter them from planet to planet over and over, and an endless cycle of creating more refugees to ensure the war will go on. He is ABSOLUTELY the Desolation. Fire without the warmth. His love consumes all that he touches. He's ruled by fear and pain and so he inflicts them on everyone else.

Anyway. He's so !!!!!! babygirl 💀 evil 🥰

Harrow is an avatar of the Buried, of course. And look at this art of TMA Extinction that someone made for me :3

[iviarellereads]

Full TLT series to date thoughts on rereading Nona the Ninth, John 3:20 - Chapter 22

A probably semi-regular weekly bonus to my reread blog, since sometimes you realize things on reread that just make you need to yell in a full spoiler space.

Good ol' Chekhov's nuke. Introduce a nuclear bomb suitcase in act 4 and it must go off before the end of act 5… That's how that went, surely?

Still, it's heartbreaking to see the governments deliberately failing to listen, and the trillionaires lying their asses off for self-gain, as the world literally burns with North America's fire season well underway in this climate crisis that many people in positions of social or political power are still deliberately obfuscating for their own personal gain.

I wonder if I should go back and clarify somewhere that "PALAMEDES COMES CLEAN" was about him being honest with We Suffer, since the day's events are all in order and that's where that fits. Nah, soon enough any new readers will be able to read this anyway. Hello, welcome to full spoiler land!

I think what Pal thinks he knows about Nona is, he's still on his perfect Lyctorhood theory because he's so obsessed with finding it for himself and Cam. Paul's incoming shortly, so like, he was right about it existing, or at least, he made it come true. (I think there's a LOT more to the magic system's limits than is taught to us explicitly. I think this is deeply hinted at with Abigail's comments about the stoma and the world beyond the River.) Still, his personal bias is preventing him from seeing the truth: Nona is neither Harrow nor Gideon nor a spicy mix of both, obviously.

“Can one person even be two people? I feel like I’ve only got enough room inside for me, and sometimes like that room’s not even enough.” No, one body's never been enough for the whole soul of the Earth, has it?

Nona finding everyone pretty except Ianthe, who's just a pale imitation of Crown to her, will never stop making me laugh. Never ever. It's so beautiful a character device. Muir has promised us Ianthe will not see a redemption arc because she has no desire for one, and I love that for both Ianthe and Muir, and I especially love it for us, the readers.

The tension that Corona and Ianthe's reunion carries is so, mmf. Nona goes so far as to assume their interaction means they were lovers. Not quite, I don't think, but the intimacy, the beautiful horrible "I knew you once like the back of my own hand, like the other half of my very self" of it all.

I still feel so complex about "Guys as careful as me don’t have accidents."

Part of me wants to draw attention to Pash's comment about her line coming from someone bigger than her, because it's obviously a Wake line, no doubt about it. But, you know, some things are better left unsaid. I'm just gonna put it here so you know I know and saw it.

[cosmicallydivine]

AS PROMISED: THE ESSAY

i’ve been in the lightning thief (i was grover💚) and ive been think about this show non stop for upwards of five years now so HERE ARE MY BONUS TRACK THOUGHTS

ok so i’m a pick and side and try girlie. i understand why try was cut, it doesn’t fit in the show, the emotional beat doesn’t feel right; i’ve seen a lot of people say it’s much more of like a titans curse song and i def agree. also we already have lost AND drive which i love both dearly but two trio songs (almost) back to back has always felt awkward to me but i digress

but pick a side should’ve been kept in!!! here are my arguments:

story/structure arguments:

-it opens act two so so well, the cold open on the bus is clunky; i also personally think it’s almost always better to start with a song, especially with how epic (haha) killer quest is, opening on THAT LONG of a scene before the music starts up again feels weird

-bringing back camp at the beginning of act two helps ground the show and make it feel more connected to itself; act 2 is VERY trio heavy and this helps balance that out

-it very clearly raises the stakes of the impending god war

-it adds a TON of context to luke’s whole “join me” thing at the end

-i know the luke foreshadowing in pick a side is a LITTLE heavy but i actually think it’s still really good, and seeing that anger again earlier on helps us get from luke during their sign to luke during last day of summer in a way that feels even more natural you feel me

it’s all about continuity guys

-it just showcases the campers more and i think that’s really cool

-anything that gives us more selena + clarisse interaction is gold

and their parts here give a nice set up for their actions throughout the rest of the books which i know isn’t really important for a standalone musical but it’s really cool!!

-the show doesn’t have a time problem, it’s honestly shorter than a lot of major full length musicals, so there’s no reason to cut it for time

-luke’s riff at the end (this is its own point)

-the song just fucking slaps

more meta arguments, coming from someone who was in the show:

-luke’s stage time is WEIRD. he’s super in act one and then has a really awkward sized break until weirdest dream reprise. this doesn’t really affect the actual on-stage story but for the sake of the luke actor, having the act two opener would be really nice lmao

-it lets the selena and clarisse actors (and all the campers) do more!! (this is assuming community theater/high school productions that have more than seven actors and have split up the main roles) especially for clarisse, she has an absolute insane vocal track but only gets one big solo. you know that actor is gonna be a powerhouse, let them do more

also the ensemble in a community/high school production is definitely fun but it’s a little awkward just because of the original set up of the show; having another big camp song would be really good

-please for the love of god let the trio sit down during act 2. let me rest my legs. let the percy actor go to the goddamn bathroom. we literally do not leave the stage for all of act 2 it’s insane

-sick guitar line. end of argument

anyway thank you for coming to my ted talk, justice for pick a side❤️

(also just to be clear i absolutely adore lightning thief, this is not me trying to dunk on the show at ALL tlt is literally my favorite musical, i’m calling parts “clunky” to make a point but i genuinely think the show is incredibly well written and i could write a whole other essay on how snubbed it was by the tony board. ((everyone go watch the wait in the wings video essay on tlt right now!!)) the lightning thief musical is the best adaptation of any book series into another medium, literally nothing else understands its source material on this level ok ANYWAYS)

it goes so hard

[mayasaura]

Consider: Megamind AU with Heir!Gideon

When they were children (so old enough to remember each other) Glaurica cracked and blabbed about the Crêche Flu to her kin on the 8th. Jod pardoned most of the Ninth, barring the Father, Mother and Great-Aunts, but resettles its inhabitants. Meanwhile, in this process Gideon was discovered - in fact, let's say she stowed along to Harrow's audience with the emperor to argue for shutting the Ninth down completely - and became Kiriona Gaia.

Harrow was raised by an even more embittered Crux (who will serve as our Minion). They are outcasts on their new planet and target the majority of their ire at Kiriona, the Empire's darling.

No thoughts on who everyone else would be. Tbh this all sprung from rewatching Megamind with my tlt brainrot in full swing and going hm...legitimately powerful yet pathetic little goth with flair for the dramatic who never really wanted to destroy their rival...curious

Oh my god. No, this is greatest part: the versatility of this AU. They're both dramatic little goth shits who never really wanted to destroy their rival. No one ever paid enough attention to either of them for them to learn the difference between positive and negative kinds of attention. They both saw themselves as 'evil' or 'outcast' and decided to embrace it with both hands.

Like, we have to change almost nothing for Gideon to be Megamind. She doesn't look Ninth, she doesn't act Ninth, and she makes Not Being Ninth and having dramatic flashy clashes with the beloved superhero of the Ninth pretty much a core tenant of her personality. If you could get any closer to "Child raised in a prison cell for no fucking reason" than Gideon Nav, I'd love to see it. Then she gets away from the Ninth and finds out that most of what she was going for she doesn't actually want, because it was all about the chase. It was all about Harrow. Without Harrow to prove wrong, none of her schemes or goals or achievements actually fucking matter.

But I love this Glaurica Blabs AU. Gideon is discovered at the age of about ten, and John disbands the Ninth House for baby killing crimes. I think he keeps the Reverend Daughter fairly close, because he wants to see what becomes of this powerful creation powered by the souls of dead babies. He's fascinated. But everyone kind of knows that the Ninth massacred their own children now, so Harrow is a persona non grata. She still has her loyal retainer, who hates everyone but her, but aside from that she's pretty much isolated. Her sole purpose in life becomes making sure being a godling doesn't go to the newly re-named Kiriona's head.

This is where it gets really Megamind, imo. Because like Metroman, Kiriona really has nothing against Harrow anymore except that Harrow keeps breaking her stuff and attacking her with skeletons. Her problems are mostly about being a Prince now and how everyone has Expectations of her when she's really just a lonely awkward girl with a sword. Fighting Harrow is a welcome normal distraction from all the new problems in her life now that she's, like, important.

Anyway, Dulcie is Roxy, with a keen investment in the drama and a zeal for digging in and getting to the truth of matters. There is no Hal because that part of the plot literally does not work in this scenario, but also Ianthe is Hal. Dulcie and Gideon aren't involved, but Harrow thinks they are and she's jealous. Ianthe is into Harrow, not Dulcie. Dulcie is into no one, but if she were into anyone she has some complete nerds in a turtleneck and glasses to go on picnics with. Yes, Cam and Pal are Bernard But Real.

So the plot is, Gideon cracks under the pressure and runs away, leaving Harrow under the impression she successfully drove her off, and the instant regret sets in. Obviously, because this rivalry is gay and obsessive in addition to being a substitute for the love neither of them had in their childhoods, Harrow can't just grow a new Prince to butt heads with. This doesn't stop Ianthe from briefly trying to fill the void. Harrow goes to shake down Dulcie to find out where Gideon went, and ends up on a rollicking adventure to retrieve a wayward Prince who does not want to be a Prince anymore, thank you.

[artsybookworms]

A pointless thread in which I rate the PJO book covers:

SPECIAL EDITION!

A little preface: These special edition dust jackets were a birthday gift from a friend. I absolutely love these covers,, like, I almost cried putting these on my bookshelf. They’re so beautiful and it’s just such a thoughtful gift (ily Sierra 🥺). The photos for each cover were taken by me!

If you like these too, you can get them from Nerdy Ink by clicking this link!! They’re a small business who makes beautiful designs like these!!

One more thing and then I PROMISE I’ll get to the ratings! If you’ve read some of my previous reviews, you’ll know that something I really love about the original covers is that they’re pretty somber and gritty for a children’s series. The covers I’m reviewing now are pretty much the opposite of that. They’re fun, graphic, and light—which just goes to show that you don’t have to have a grim cover for it to look cool! Unlike some other covers in the Riordanverse *cough* new HOO covers *cough* these covers have found a really good balance between being fun and bright, but not childish or uhh embarrassing to read in public (no I’m still not over the new HOO covers). Anyways, I adore the style and wanted to say that before I do the individual reviews so I’m not repeating myself 5 times in a row.

9.5/10: The color scheme is so beautifulllll. I love blue okay (Percy would approve ;) ). I think what I love the most about these covers is that you can tell it was designed by a fan. There’s just so many tiny details like Percy’s necklace, the wings on Percy’s shoes, the glowing trident above his head, the seaweed on the corners for Seaweed Brain like COME ON😭😭 So much love was put into these covers and you can FEEL IT. The ONLY reason I’m giving it a 9.5 is because nostalgia has me in a chokehold. I will always love the original TLT cover the most.

10/10: I love this one so much. It makes me so happy, and I think I’ve just realized it’s because blue/orange is my favorite color compliment ahaha. But seriously the trio is adorable (is that Tyson or Grover ?)!!! The composition is great and the atmosphere is fun and inviting.

11/10: ANNABETH ON THE COVER?? ARE YOU KIDDING ME?? No explanation needed. We stan.

7/10: If you’ve read my other reviews on the original and new covers for PJO, you’ll know that the BOTL covers usually get the lowest score. That seems to remain true here lmao. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still beautiful, but it’s not as interesting as the rest of the covers. Actually, it’s not even apparent that he’s entering a labyrinth in this edition unless you read the title. Interesting pattern… I wonder why BOTL seems to be harder to translate into a compelling cover?

10/10: Umm I just noticed that a bead gets added to Percy’s necklace (underneath the prophecies) in each new book?? The attention to detail I—

I know I keep saying this but if you’ve read my reviews about the original and new PJO covers, you’ll know that I always find the TLO covers underwhelming. This is the one exception. It’s exciting, dramatic, artfully designed… literally everything I’ve been wanting. All I can say is *chef’s kiss*

Everyone comment “Sierra is the best!” she’s the reason I got to review these lovely covers :,)

[transmasc-wizard]

What's your opinion on Luke Castellan?

ok ok uhhhhh

disclaimer! i have not read the books since.... early 2020, ish? so my opinion is skewed by my terrible memory, but:

i think he's a victim and a shitty person at the same time. He's what happens when the gods' uncaring attitude gets to a kid. He was manipulated, 100%, and he didn't deserve to be, but he was also a manipulator.

He was manipulated by Kronos, no doubt about it, and he didn't deserve for that to happen. His very sensible anger was easy to mold into making him a happy-to-serve soldier for the Titans. That was, on his part, something he probably did not realize and was a victim of.

But he purposely hurt and manipulated many, many people--most notably, Percy and Annabeth. Luke 100% knew what Annabeth felt about him (all extremely positive things) and used that to his advantage. He also lied horribly to Percy all throughout TLT. He then went on to be the right-hand-man of Kronos, which then caused him to hurt many people--and he did this voluntarily.

It's definitely important to his character that he switched sides at the very end. On a scale of 1 to 10, his redemption was probably, like, a 6.5 to a 7. I think the fact that he knew he was a bad person and died anyway--in a world with a shitty, shitty hell (and let's be honest, the gods did not let him into Elysium, not after what he did)--definitely gives him some moral points, but I would have loved for the impact he had on everyone to be explored in literally any of the later books.

I don't think he's a good person, but I think he's a compelling character; much better than some other author's attempts at redeeming a manipulative bastard. As a tool in the plot, he also is really good for showing the dark sides of the gods, what they can push people to. But again... he made his choices. Many of them were terrible, and a lot were from him being manipulated as a teenager, but they were his.

So. Yeah! That's my thoughts on him lol, I didn't realize i had this many

[momowoah]

The school years in Percy Jackson don't add up. (has like very minor tower of nero spoilers abt what percy and annabeth are up to)

He turns eighteen in TOA

He turns seventeen in HOO

he turns sixteen in TLO

he turns fifteen in BOTL (end)

he turns fourteen in SOM (end)

he turns thirteen in TLT (end)

he turns twelve before killing mrs. dodds

This means that if TLT is set in 2005, Percy's should've been born in 1992, and not 1993 like literally everyone including official sources say (please do the math right I'm begging you). But, according to this paragraph:

Percy was twelve years old a few months after Yancy. This makes sense if Percy wrote this before his birthday in August, but the use of the word few instead of couple (considering he left in late may/early june) is strange. But ok, this might just be a misunderstanding, it doesn't really matter. What matter is this paragraph:

Why? Because Percy should've been in Yancy during the seventh grade.

again considering Percy as being born in 1992 and turning 18/graduating around toa 5 bc it happened two years after tlo, we have the following scenario

pre tlo 04-05 seventh grade

tlo-som 05-06 eighth grade

som-botl 06-07 ninth grade

botl-tlo 07-08 tenth grade

tlo-hoo 08-09 eleventh grade (that he didn't actually have)

hoo-toa 09-10 twelfth grade

if he was on sixth grade during yancy, he would still have a year left before graduating in toa 5. this paragraph from BOTL is also an issue:

If he was in ninth grade after botl, he would've graduated high school in three years, which doesn't make sense (also im not from USA but why would you have an orientation in june when the school starts in august??? anyways)

I might not be making sense bc it's one thirty am, but either one of the books had a time-skip of over one year and I somehow missed it (doubt it bc I read this series like three plus times) OR rick riordan just like casually skipped a whole year but everyone knows he's bad with timelines (as exemplified by that whole dragon ants fourth of july side story that literally can't be really placed anywhere in the series and Nico's age and birth fluctuating throughout the books) so yeah not unexpected I just like to realize stuff

also mostly unrelated question but how tf did Annabeth get into UCLA? she had absolutely no ECs (it's not like she could put "redesigned the mt. olympus" in her application), probably missed a good part of sophomore and junior year (bc of titan war and looking for percy), and there's probably more stuff that I can't think of right now bc I'm tired and my brain is not working. But also how would she have the time to take standardized tests and advanced classes? How would she have been able to avoid any disciplinary actions considering monsters and stuff? How tf was she able to maintain a good enough GPA? nothing makes sense

pjo is full of random nonsense and I love to talk about it but it's two am and I have to sleep so goodnight. if you come up with any answers regarding annabeth pls tell me. that's it.

[musicallisto]

Ψ — 𝐩𝐮𝐬𝐡 𝐦𝐲 𝐥𝐮𝐜𝐤; (percy jackson x reader)

~ 2021 start of the year event ~

@jorjawrites​ requested: Hi! Your 2021 event seems like a really interesting idea! Can i request number 13 with Percy Jackson? Im so excited to see what it is☺️

song: lilianna wilde - grind me down (jawster remix) | 𝄞

summary: A delicious smell of lotus flowers and unbridled debauchery came to your senses each time the bass pounded from the speakers... and your friends had manifestly noticed it too. “We’re never leaving this place, right?” “Never.”

author notes: I’m sorry this is really not as good as I wanted ughhh I hope you still like this!

word count: 1.5k words

warnings: we are collectively assuming Percy & everyone else are 18+ in this, despite it making no sense in the context of Camp Half-Blood, because the song is SAUCY and drugging kids is NOT my kink. pardon my approximative recollection of TLT’s events. + this is based on the lotus casino episode so gambling, and ... magical drugs?

“𝐒𝐎... 𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐀𝐑𝐄 we doing tonight?”

“Is sleeping not enough for you? Why do we need a purpose?”

“Shut up, Seaweed Brain.”

“I don’t know. We could ask around, look for some clues? Maybe someone knows something.”

“Oh, great. Now, if I were a lightning thief on the run hiding Zeus’ magical lightning bolt after stealing it from the literal Olympus, where would I keep it? Yeah, this random Las Vegas casino full of mortals seems like a great place.”

“You don’t sound like someone who’ll get blasted by Zeus in a week if they don’t retrieve this ancient and untraceable artifact, Percy.”

“Thank you, it’s all in the confidence.”

“Stop bickering, you two,” you interrupted, standing between your two friends as you followed the bellboy deeper into the hotel lobby. “We’ll get a good night’s sleep, and...”

Your words halted, just like your steps on the rich, burgundy velvet floor, just as the young hotel employee pushed open the large, white mahogany doors before the four of you. Your eyes widened of their own accord. You were certain that you heard Grover gasp on your right. Even Percy and Annabeth’s heads snapped toward the immense, domed room in front of you. Game machines and roulette and poker tables stretched as far as you could see underneath purple-colored neons. On each side of the hall, dozens of guests gathered at the tables, abandoning years’ worth of savings to the hands of a blackjack game, gritting their teeth in unparalleled concentration at the arcades, all while sipping colorful cocktails given out by smiling waiters scattered among the crowd.

“I hope you find the diversions to your liking,” the bellboy simpered with a smile.

The grin that crept on your lips was unbeatable. A delicious smell of lotus flowers and unbridled debauchery came to your senses each time the bass pounded from the speakers... and your friends had manifestly noticed it too.

“We’re never leaving this place, right?”

“Never.”

And so you never left.

It was never about never to you, at least. Time simply ceased to matter, as though the vibrant colors and dulcet smells had annihilated all concept of hurry and dread. All that mattered then to you was to see if Grover could hit the jackpot.

“Come on, you stupid thing,” he hissed through gritted teeth, giving the slot machine a few irritated taps. “I just want three cherries. How hard can it be?”

Surely enough, the colored symbols turned and turned and turned... until they settled on two cherries and a palm tree.

“Of course.”

You had kept track of his number of attempts, initially... but couldn't remember when you had lost count. Nor how many lotus-shaped petit fours you'd eaten by that time, for that matter.

“It’s alright,” you reassured him with a pat on the shoulder. “It’s not like you’ll run out of money anytime soon.”

How nice of the Lotus Hotel and Casino to give you unlimited access to the vastest sums of money you’d ever seen to spend on their games... and what a revolutionary business tactic, you might have added had you been a little more alert.

But you weren’t, and merely walked away from Grover with a soft and somewhat shaky smile.

“Can I treat you to another flower?”

She had emerged from nowhere in an instant, carrying a tray of pink and white delicacies and a few of those bubbling cocktails you had been eyeing all night. What an exuberantly fast service, and how keen were they on making sure every guest was content and fed at all times, you would have thought had you been more attentive.

But you weren’t, so with a radiant grin, you grabbed one more flower and savored the sugar and its liquid aftertaste on your tongue. The corners of your vision blurred ever so slightly with each step you took, somehow getting more purple... but you paid them no mind when you saw Percy at a roulette table off to the side of the main hall.

“Any luck so far?” you asked as you walked up to him, steadying yourself on his chair, your hand a little too close to his shoulder. Clearly, the heat and moistness of the packed room were getting to your head...

“Luck? Y/N, this is sheer skill.”

“It’s roulette, Percy.”

He clicked his tongue, and a smile made its way onto your face as your heartbeat sped up. Of course, Percy and his infamous detachedness and snark, exactly the ones that attracted you so much despite your better judgment...

“Details, Y/N, details. What do you think? Red or black?”

He lifted expectant eyes at you. Inexorably, you leaned forward.

“All on fourteen.”

Percy raised an eyebrow and a corner of his mouth.

“Really?”

“Trust me.”

He did, without question. Appraising you lengthily for one more instant, he slid all his chips to the croupier, before resting his hand right next to yours on the table, almost to appease himself. Your breath hitched in your throat, head pounding from the music and the swirling spirals in the corners of your vision, as you eyed the wheel spin and spin and spin... until the ball landed on a red square. 14.

“There you go! That’s what I’m talking about!”

In a deafeningly triumphant motion, Percy grabbed his winnings from the table and leaped to his feet, right by your side. You could hardly contain your laughter then; but you fully burst when he shot you the most radiant smile you’d ever seen on his face, arms full of lotus-stamped chips and pure, unbridled adoration in his eyes. There was the childish enthusiasm you loved so much about him, and it was entirely thanks to you; your heart soared at the thought.

“Did you get a prophecy or something?”

“Just a hunch,” you mischievously retorted, your grin mirroring his.

You both had mindlessly stepped away from the rest of the hotel guests, who were all too absorbed to even notice the pair of teens and their outrageous amount of money. Beneath the secludedness of a marble arcade, cloaked in pink and purple lights, you both counted your blessings... each your own; Percy the chips between his fingers, and you the colorful hues in his sea-green eyes.

“So, what do you want?”

“What?”

“You technically won this money, so it’s technically yours. Or at least half of it. I’m not going to keep it all anyway. I want to give you a little gift.”

“It’s not a gift if it’s paid with my money.”

“Don’t start it! One Annabeth is more than enough!” he laughed, and your chest whirred to the same vibration.

“I don’t want anything, Percy. I’m happy with what I already have.”

Despite the dizziness that still shook your head, despite the bright, blazing gashes spanning your vision like pulsing veins, despite the sounds and music coming to your ears in stroboscopic and unequal waves, you felt more peaceful than you had for most of the quest. Percy’s gaze was surprisingly tender on yours, as though he discovered you for the first time right then and there, far from the hustle and bustle of monsters and Camp and cities... only his eyes on yours and your hands imperceptibly brushing together, closer and closer.

“It’ll be a surprise then.”

“I didn’t think you were the type to give surprises. I’m not even sure you can keep a secret.”

“Oh, excuse you, I’m an excellent secret-keeper.”

Closer and closer...

“I bet that I can make you spill all your secrets.”

“Bet all you want, I’ll be tight as a clam.”

“Really? Because I think I can guess one already.”

Closer and closer... his breath fanning over your mouth, your hand scraping the collar of his shirt...

“Percy! Y/N!”

A thundercloud passed between you two, killing the lights in a second. You jumped back as though struck by lightning, cheeks flaming hot and eyes elusive. Annabeth, striding towards you with purpose, alarm, and just as little disequilibrium as you would have expected from her, was enough distraction to ignore Percy’s erratic breathing by your ear.

“Percy, Y/N, gods above, why’d you run off like that? We need to leave. This is bad.”

The blond girl grabbed you both by the sleeves and dragged you into the light and agitation; and despite the newly growing nausea that rumbled in the pit of your stomach, some part of you was grateful for her decidedness, enough to hide your fuming cheeks.

Of course, you should have known better than to push your luck too far with the gods watching - and most probably laughing at your heartened hopes.

[sendme-2hell]

Ranking the books I read in April

aka just ranting about the books I read in april pls ignore me

1. The Space Between Worlds - Micaiah Johnson 

I cannot believe this book wasn’t nominated for a Hugo! I like the Hugo list (of the books I’ve read) but cmon. This book is like if you combined the social commentary in The City We Became and the queerness of Harrow the Ninth. Seriously this book had everything I wanted: parallel universes, great character development, social commentary, woc sapphic slow burn, satisfying ending. Also I feel like the title is paying homage to W. E. Dubois which is cool. “Between me and the other world, there is ever an unasked question: How does it feel to be a problem?” Like there is just this very cool idea of talking about other worlds as in literally other universes but also different worlds due to social and racial hierarchies. 

2. Plain Bad Heroines - Emily m. Danforth 

Horror, Hollywood, boarding school, everyone is gay, the narrator talks directly to the reader and it is hilarious, copious footnotes, have I mentioned how many sapphics there are? It’s hard to keep track. Plus polyamory. I just really loved this book and I felt it all came together in a way that was worth it. 

3. Steel Crow Saga - Paul Krueger 

This godamn book. I loved this book so much. I was so ready to yell about it on tumblr and tell people to read it. But apparently the author is someone who has harassed a lot of women so...uh...yeah. Nevermind I guess.

 I do want to say it is the most accurate depicition of a Sherlock Holmes superfan that I have ever seen in media. 

4. The Tiger’s Daughter - K. Arsenault Rivera

What if we went on a long trip on horseback and we were both lesbian warriors...jk unless…

Yeah so I loved this book so much. A lot of it is about navigating familial responsibility, fighting literal and metaphorical demons, fighting the patriarchy, fighting your anger, fighting tigers, etc...and yet I kept thinking to myself “this is the most romantic book I have ever read” and honestly I am gonna stick by that. It also has the “you think me a monster so I will become one” trope which is great. It is set in an Asian-based fantasy world and I did read a goodreads review that said it was as accurate to the countries it draws inspiration from as Leigh Bardugo’s Grishaverse is to the Russian and Scandinavian cultures it takes from. So that’s not great. 

5. Six of Crows - Leigh Bardugo

Speaking of! A few months ago I tried to read Shadow and Bone in preparation for the tv show and I could not finish it. The writing was...bad. Anyway I really liked Six of Crows and even though, yeah it’s tropey (I’m looking at you, Helnik backstory), there’s a reason those tropes work. Plus you cannot go wrong with a heist. About halfway through I did realize that there are six mcs and three couples so its kinda just like a giant triple date, which really changed how I read the whole story.

I’m very glad I did read it before seeing the tv show because I was able to be appropriately excited for the Crows and catch the Wylan reference and everything, but I also got to see the Alina stuff without having to read about it. 

6. Crooked  Kingdom - Leigh Bardugo 

I think I somehow liked this even more than Six of Crows, but for narrative simplicity I’ll put it after. I really like it when you put people in an impossible situation and see how they figure it out. Especially if they get out in a clever and reasonably possible way that ties together many different plot threads and has a few good fake-outs. This did all of that, and also developed every character in a way I found satisfying (except [redacted] *cry emoji*). 

Kaz pulls a Baru Cormorant with some money stuff and now I wonder if they would be friends. 

I read this after watching the show which was good because I knew who Zoya and Genya were but bad because there is a point where Nina is like “here is how shadow and bone ends.” She’s just talking to Mattias and casually spoiling everything for me. So there goes my dreams of living spoiler free until the end of the show. 

7. The Miseducation of Cameron Post - Emily m Danforth

My expectations for this book were....very different than it turned out, and I’m glad for it. After reading Plain Bad Heroines I shouldn’t have been surprised at how well written it is. I really appreciated how nuanced it is. It doesn’t spell out its ideas or themes and therefore lets you really sit with them. I would rank it higher but I don’t really enjoy reading about high school. 

8. Foundryside - Robert Jackson Bennett

I love a good found family, especially if at the beginning of the book they are on opposing sides. Enemies to friends = best trope! Also it’s sapphic that’s always good. But the best part of this book was the worldbuilding which was so cool. 

9. Malice - Heather Walter

Remember what I was saying about “you think me a monster so I will become one”? This book is the definition of that trope. Women becoming unhinged after being treated like shit, we love to see it! Especially if it’s gay. I do have to say, authors who write duologies where the first book ends on a cliffhanger, I see what you’re doing but yes, I will be preordering the next book. 

10. Fugitive Telemetry - Martha Wells

I don’t have much to say because Murderbot is so consistently excellent.  uh why is it so cathartic when xenophobes disrespect Murderbot and it’s humans step in and shut that shit down. Gets me every single time. 

11. Queen of Coins and Whispers - Helen Corcoran 

This book was like half romance half politics and unfortunately I did not find the politics that interesting or well written. But the romance was A+. It reminded me of Priory of the Orange Tree a LOT. Though significantly less dragons and I’m taking many points off for that. 

12. The First Sister - Linden A. Lewis

I wanted to like this book a little more than I did. There was just maybe too much body horror for me. Interesting characters and world though. There was  a location named Cytherea that they mentioned a lot and it was very distracting. I guess I still have tlt brainrot. 

13. Shorefall - Robert Jackson Bennett 

I think this book was well plotted out but it didn’t quite have my attention like Foundryside did. Also yet another book where a woman’s girlfriend ends up in her head. This time no one had to die so that’s nice. TM and SD take notes! 

14. The Deathless Girls - Kiran Milwood Hargrave 

Ok I LOVED the Mercies by KMH so I was a little disappointed in this Dracula retelling. It got interesting in the last 50 pages, but unfortunately that is not enough for me.

proud of myself for not reading a single straight book this April 

[callonpeevesie]

Things that bother me about Percabeth

Warning: this is going to be long and I'm not even sure if this will make sense. Also don't read this if you aren't open to criticizms of Percabeth.

Percabeth is a good ship, or at least has potential as one, but it has many legit flaws (this and this go into the flaws. By the way, go check out @takaraphoenix's Riordan crit) and I have some personal grievances. I'll write this out to understand my stance better because I need to get this off my chest.

I believe most people wouldn't agree with me on all this, but this post is entirely self-indulgent and I'm doing this for catharsis, so don't come at me. This isn't an objective analysis, just me trying to clear my thoughts. But feel free to share your opinions if you want.

Evolution in PJO

This is a pretty general point. I love the evolution of their dynamic in pjo. Their bickering, them opening up to each other and becoming so important to each other, the slow and steady buildup, it's great. Heck, I love slow burn. They have some good moments in pjo: Annabeth opening up to Percy on the zoo express, the scene with the sirens, Percy doing everything he did to save Annabeth in ttc, their conversation after Annabeth took the knife for Percy in tlo. (The underwater kiss is not one of my favourite moments, I'll come to that later.)

The romantic evolution, though, I'm not sure. I enjoyed it in ttc, there were small subtle hints like Aphrodite's scarf, or Aphrodite looking like Annabeth to Percy. But it became kind of tiring in botl onwards. Annabeth was extremely possessive and awful to Rachel. And in tlo things became a bit over-the-top.

I think Rick tried to establish them as the Most Important Person to each other. I don't like that. This is more apparent in HoO. I'll come to hoo later, but there is one instance of this in tlo: Percy seeing Annabeth in the Styx. Like one of the posts I've linked above says, it's shippy nonsense. It comes from the idea that one's romantic partner must be the most important. It doesn't make sense. I think Percy should have seen his mother in the Styx. It would make sense for Sally to be Percy's anchor, considering how much she means to him.

In short, their enemies-to-friends evolution was great, their friends-to-lovers evolution started out fine but became too much for me, and their friends-to-Most-Important-Person-to-each-other evolution was unnecessary and forced.

Luke

Luke and Annabeth's romantic subplot didn't need to exist. This isn't exactly Percabeth, but I'll say it here anyway. First of all, there's a seven year age gap, so Luke returning Annabeth's feelings is creepy. And it seems pretty unnecessary to me. It's also a bit of a mess. In tlt Annabeth blushes when Luke is around, and Luke says 'She's like my little sister.' In tlo Luke asks Annabeth if she loved him, and she says 'You were like a brother to me.' This part feels like Rick trying to add last-moment tension to Percabeth by making Luke a potential 'rival' to Percy. In the Staff of Hermes Percy says Annabeth had a crush on Luke, and as she got older, Luke had a crush on her too. Just ... Why?

They and Thalia were each other's first friends. Annabeth looked up to Luke and Luke was fond of Annabeth. That is enough reason for Annabeth to be hurt and for Luke to care about Annabeth. That is enough to set up their post-betrayal dynamic. The romance thing was completely unnecessary.

Rachel

I absolutely hate the way Annabeth treated Rachel. If there is one thing I despise about romantic subplots, it's justifying bitchiness with romantic jealousy. I guess it's okay to feel a little jealous or even possessive, and I can kind of see where Annabeth was coming from, but treating someone like shit because of that, especially in the middle of dangerous quests, is not okay. It's petty and immature. (It could be argued that Annabeth was mad because Rachel got to lead her quest, but let's be honest, she wouldn't have been that mad if it were anyone else. She specifically treated Rachel like that out of jealousy.) It was never called out and Annabeth never seemed to regret it. This bothers me so much. Fanfiction is a good coping mechanism, I suppose, but I'm here to complain about canon, not cope with it.

Speaking of Rachel, Perachel could have been a good ship. A demigod looking for a normal life and a mortal with clear sight. This elaborates on that pretty well. At the end of tlo it really felt like Rick had to get Rachel out of the way to make way for Percabeth.

Annabeth seems to be too demanding

Annabeth's attitude towards Percy bothers me sometimes. She's a good character and has a strong dynamic with Percy, but she's a bit tiring with regards to Percy (in a romantic sense; she's fine as his friend). I mean look at this quote from tlo:

I can't pretend I hadn't thought about Rachel. She was so much easier to be around than ... Well, than some other girls I knew. I didn't have to work hard, or watch what I said, or wrack my brain trying to figure out what she was thinking.

Percy feeling that way about Annabeth - his best friend of four years - just doesn't sit well with me. Percy straight up admits he's more comfortable with Rachel than with Annabeth.

There's more: Annabeth punching Percy when he asked who he should dance with in ttc, the way she treated Rachel, the way she behaved towards Percy regarding Rachel in botl, judo flipping him in moa. It's pretty tiring in general. Now that I think of it, this wasn't a thing before the romance showed up. Their dynamic was better in the earlier books in general.

Also personally I'm not a fan of Annabeth constantly calling Percy Seaweed Brain. This and this nicely sum up how I feel about that. Annabeth making fun of Percy's intelligence even after getting to know him makes no sense, especially as he was insecure about his intelligence. (And yes, I know she thought he was intelligent, as she said in the Demigod Files, but that doesn't cancel out the million times she called him stupid to his face.)

They became too couple coded

I've seen people say that Percabeth is better as friends than as lovers, and honestly I agree, and I've done some thinking to figure out why. I think it's because of the way they were written after they became a couple. They could have been fine as a couple, if they were written differently.

They started out not being able to stand each other, then gradually, they went through a lot together, got to know each other, learned to work together, and became a team. That was a great evolution, like I said before.

And like I also said before, everything I dislike about Percabeth showed up with the romance. Annabeth became catty and possessive. They became a couple. And it was as if the friendship wasn't there anymore, just the romance. They became like a cliche unreasonable girlfriend and clueless boyfriend. This is especially obvious in the beginning of Percy Jackson and the Staff of Hermes. Where's the friendship? Where's the comfortable bantering? Where's the known-each-other-for-years soundness? Hoo Percabeth just doesn't live up to pjo Percabeth at all.

(Also this is a personal bias of mine, but I'm partially romance repulsed. I can't stand cheesy romantic coded stuff. I only like lovers if they're also friends. So I guess I'm kind of pissed about Percabeth becoming so couple coded after becoming a couple.)

Their HoO dynamic

This is a related point. Like I said, hoo Percabeth doesn't live up to pjo Percabeth. All they care about is each other. They literally don't think about anyone else at all. Percy loses his memory and he remembers Annabeth. Why? Does Hera ship Percabeth? If he remembered anyone, it should have been his mom, like in the Styx. The only reason Percy remembered Annabeth, i.e Annabeth was made out to be more important to Percy than everyone else (including Grover and Tyson and Sally 'best person in the world' Jackson) is that she was his romantic partner. Again, it's shippy nonsense.

And there's this reveal that Annabeth had a crush on Percy all along. Are you kidding me? It completely retcons the enemies-to-friends development. Are you telling me that the Percabeth evolution in pjo where they learned not to hate each other was a lie? That Annabeth gradually opening up to Percy and coming to appreciate him was her acting out of a crush? I'm not believing that, no way.

I'm probably not making any sense, but my point is that Percabeth in hoo in cheesy and can't go one day without each other and people love it but I don't. It kind of messes up their previous dynamic, which is a shame because I liked pre-hoo Percabeth.

Rick seems to go overboard sometimes

I'm about to get a little controversial here. Many of the Percabeth posts in those tumblr screenshots going around social media are about the campers shipping Percabeth, or Arachne making Percabeth fanart, things like that. My theory is that part of the reason Percabeth is so popular is that the characters ship it. And Rick kind of goes overboard with that - not just with the in-universe shipping, with the ship itself.

Prime examples of going overboard are Percy seeing Annabeth in the Styx and remembering Annabeth when Hera took his memory, which imply that Annabeth was objectively the Most Important Person to Percy. I've already ranted about these above so moving on to the part about the in-universe shipping. Like I said, I'm not a fan of the underwater kiss. It's because of the situation involved. The campers just won a war and lost their friends and siblings, Clarisse just lost Silena, you'd think they'd have other things to care about than Percy and Annabeth kissing, at least for one day. And why did Arachne make fanart of that? How did she even know? There was also the matter of moving to New Rome - them wanting to move halfway across country to live together, away from New York, doesn't really make sense to me. This post elaborates on that and suggests better alternatives.

Of course, the author has complete control over the narrative, and the author wants you to believe they are making sense. And when the characters believe that too, it becomes harder for readers not to. When all the campers ship Percabeth, it's enough to convince half the readers to ship it too. (And of course, the pjo fandom has an unhealthy thing with canon ships.)

It's pretty much kept up by the fans

While we're at it, let's talk about the out-of-universe shipping. The fandom has always shipped Percabeth, partly just because they are the male lead and female lead of a series. Percabeth was set up to happen, so when Rick introduced Rachel, who actually made Percy feel good about himself and let him be himself around her, and whom Percy was interested in, he had to get her out of the way. I'm not sure I can explain it, but the Percabeth ending in the first series feels very fan service-y to me.

Platonic Percabeth vs romantic Percabeth

I think everything I've said above just explains why Percabeth worked better as friends. The had a great friendship arc and became two friends who know each other inside out, butt heads a lot but love and respect each other deeply. And then when the romance happened, Annabeth began to show these romanticized but actually toxic girlfriend stereotypes - being jealous and possessive, expecting Percy to read her mind and getting pissed when he can't, etc.

The fandom thinks those traits are okay, because they are normalised in society. People think that's how couples should work (it's not). And so the reasons I don't like Percabeth are the same reasons many people do. The date in the beginning of Staff of Hermes makes me cringe, because they were friends first and friends don't work like that. But no doubt there are many people who find it cute because society loves to romanticise the unreasonable girlfriend and clueless boyfriend trope. There are plenty of people who romanticise Annabeth judo flipping Percy or treating Rachel like shit, because things like that are normalised but I personally can't stomach them at all.

Anyway, those toxic traits come with the Percabeth romance as a package deal and there's no getting rid of them. That's why Percy and Annabeth worked better as friends, and why I feel things would be better if they just stayed friends. There was none of that tiring crap pre-romance. I can't stress this enough, I really loved their friendship in tlt or som. But when their dynamic evolved to romance, it messed up their friendship. There was a specific moment in botl when Percabeth began to feel off for me.

'She will calm down,' Chiron promised. 'She's jealous, my boy.'

'That's stupid. She's not... it's not like...'

Chiron chuckled. 'It hardly matters. Annabeth is very territorial about her friends, in case you haven't noticed. ...'

I don't know why this moment specifically, but this kind of marked a change for me. This is where Percabeth became seriously romantic, and I didn't like the related developments. This was the beginning of Annabeth's jealousy.

So what would I prefer?

I'll be honest, I shipped Percabeth for a while, probably because I love some friends-to-lovers. So I was going to make a list of things I'd change about Percabeth. I wanted to make some self-indulgent UAs (universe alterations) to fix the things I don't like. But then I started writing this thing and read up on other posts and stuff and I realised the list of things that bother me is huge and I could never make Percabeth work for me without messing everything up. So I just gave up shipping it entirely.

What I would prefer is an AU where Percabeth stays platonic forever (@elf-loving-dragon has been encouraging that idea as well). They were great as friends and I want that back. It would be so refreshing to have the male lead and female lead not end up together. Annabeth could end up alone, and still get her something permanent with her friends and camp. It would be so beautiful if something completely romance-free was specifically stated as permanent, because friendships in media deserve as much love as romance.

As for Percy, he could end up either alone or with Rachel. I don't ship him with anyone else rn. While I have made it obvious that I like Perachel, I still don't know if I actually ship it, and the idea of Percy ending up alone is not too bad either. (Update: I stan platonic Percabeth and qpp Perachel now.)

I promise I'm done now. Whew. If you've made it to the end of this long repetitive introspection, congratulations. If you agree, feel free to tell me, and if you want to argue, go ahead, I wouldn't mind listening to others' opinions. If you read this and hate me because of this just keep that to yourself. I have no patience for people who attack those who don't agree with their ship. K thanks, bye.

[gingerbreadgodofhyperdeath]

I posted 11,703 times in 2021

608 posts created (5%)

11095 posts reblogged (95%)

For every post I created, I reblogged 18.2 posts.

I added 576 tags in 2021

#mutuals <3 - 197 posts

#school - 92 posts

#emlyn’s asks - 64 posts

#yonkityyy <333 - 51 posts

#emlyn’s shitpost - 46 posts

#fierreee <333 - 40 posts

#gracieee <333 - 27 posts

#crush - 22 posts

#save for later - 19 posts

#prev tags - 18 posts

Longest Tag: 140 characters

#i’m probably gonna regret this but i’ve got nothing better to do and summer break is going to end soon and i’m not ready to move up in a new

My Top Posts in 2021

#5

Thinkin about percabeth/annercy and how cute they actually are because they knew each other since they were 12 and at first Annabeth was so sure they wouldn’t get along because of her mom’s relationship with Poseidon but instead they ended up becoming best friends to lovers. I mean Percy literally travelled the continent to save her. Annabeth took a poison knife for him. And don’t even get me started on the Tartarus fall. I mean the realistic progression of their relationship and stubborn denial from both of them is just *chefs kiss* The way they never stopped their banter and only became closer to each other when they got together is something I love so much. The way both of them fit each other’s wishes(?) (see tlt musical lol) where Percy just wanted to be good enough for someone and not labeled as a bad kid like everyone always does and Annabeth wanted to be noticed and remembered after being left behind by practically everyone she loved. OH and they both denied immortality for each other. Another thing is Annabeth kinda looked up to her mom so much and wanted her approval, so much so to the point she tried to think like her with the whole Athena-Poseidon rivalry thing but she was able to realize she doesn’t have to be her mom to be great and recognized that this Percy kid who stumbled into camp then passed out and seems to be the chosen one of the prophecy can actually be a great friend. All in all, they’re dynamic and relationship is just so great and though there are some parts that got messed up in hoo (but what hasn’t been) they’re both two complex characters who are able to be part of a great ship and still be the characters themselves

105 notes • Posted 2021-09-14 12:02:29 GMT

#4

Do ever get that feeling where you’re kinda tired of your phone like your just going through Tumblr and refreshing but don’t really feel like it so you try to find something else on your phone but there’s nothing so you just shut it off knowing you should be doing something off of your to do list yet you just sit there anyway and you’re begging yourself to get up at that point but you just can’t and it’s like pushing on a door that says pull?

118 notes • Posted 2021-10-02 15:08:34 GMT

#3

Oh. My. Gods. Oh my gods oh my gods.

Guess what I just got.

MFS I JUST GOT A FUCKING KNIFE/DAGGER THING

AND EVEN BETTER GUESS WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE.

FUCKING RIPTIDE.

FUCKING. RIPTIDE.

FROM THE BOOKS. YEP. THE BOOKS.

I SAW IT AT A MEDIEVAL STORE AND I SAW THE TRIDENT ON IT AND WAS LIKE IS THAT WHAT I THINK IT IS AND THEN I PICKED IT UP AND SAW IT HAD ANKYLOMOS (I DONT REMEMBER THE GREEK NAME BUT IT WAS IN GREEK ON THE SIDE) AND THEN THE LADY WAS LIKE “do you wanna know where that’s from? That’s from the Percy Jackson series. I believe it’s more from the books than the movies.” AND THEN I PRACTICALLY SHOUTED “I KNEW IT” AND MY GRANDMA WAS LIKE DO YOU WANT IT SO SHE GOT IT FOR ME AND MFFFSSSS I CAN NOT STOP SMILINGGG LITERALLY BOUNCING AS I WALK RN

252 notes • Posted 2021-10-10 19:52:38 GMT

#2

So in history today this kid in front of me said something about me being a girl and I impulsively was like “not a girl lol” and he was like “wait what” and I was like “yeah I’m using he/him but I change since I’m genderfluid but yeah it’s he/him rn” and he was like “oh alright sweet man. Does this mean I can call you bro?” And it was honestly really sweet and made me super happy especially since he’s kinda like the dude bro of the class and he’s like that one kid who’s super laidback and does sports and is popular and stuff like that like he has that vibe, know what I mean? So yeah anyways that happened and that was great :)

267 notes • Posted 2021-11-11 00:46:45 GMT

#1

Did I do it right?

319 notes • Posted 2021-09-08 02:09:31 GMT

Get your Tumblr 2021 Year in Review →

[thejudgingtrash]

My unpopular opinion: Chiron is a horrible teacher, protector, whatever. He’s as bad dumbledor. He often manipulates children and put them in danger? Also is RR really trying to tell me not one single demigod from before percy’s generation made it to adulthood? Not even demigods of minor gods? If not then why haven’t we heard from them, why weren’t they called to fight in the war so that literal children didn’t have to? I have more but I’m not brave enough to post them lol

Fuck, I gotta check my asks more often. Too much stuff laying around and oh please people! Send your stuff in! Don’t be shy! It’s so interesting to see what’s on your mind! Let’s have that conversation and ask me!! :D I mean a bunch of people agreed and disagreed with my stances (Part 1/Part 2), let’s see how I feel about yours!

Anyway HERE WE GO BOYS! LET’S GO LESBIANS LET’S GO! 

LET’S HAVE THAT WHOLE DAMN ESSAY!

Chiron is clearly a self insert from Riordan. I mean come on…

That’s a solid Chiron if I see one. Which is pretty ironic as Chiron’s the shitty teacher who we all know and love. Got something to admit, Riordan? You as a former teacher? HMM?

Hiding incompetence under the disguise of the gentle old wise teacher is definitely something that Dumbledore and Chiron share. Chiron is the old centaur who lived for aeons and helped out the most famous heroes of their times, so shouldn’t modern times be considered to be an easier job for him? He’s barely present, highkey vague and has absolutely no problems with tossing children literally out into the open across the entire fucking US and A to clean the gods’ bathroom messes.

Had the heroes been in their 20s like in the original myths (or even older) it would’ve made more sense to let them find their own ways. It would be rude,  but somewhat okay. You could expect adults to find the way and connect the dots. But this is just messing with a bunch of 12 year olds because you can at this point.

Chiron is that supposed sweet teacher that just fucks up. We all had one, you know the one. Seems gentle and nice and but has clearly chosen the wrong job. Don’t know if that’s the trauma of living that long and/or seeing kids dying constantly that’s hitting him in the back of the head.

I have the feeling that people are projecting their teacher fantasies on to him just like step-father fantasies that include Paul. Because we want a guide who is trustworthy, we want an authoritative figure that we can share our concerns with and who guides us to solid solutions without betraying our trust.

But like I said, he’s essentially sending out kids to deathly missions and encouraging deep traumas. Yes, we can partially blame Chiron, but most of the blame goes to the gods who enable and encourage this weird dynamic. Would all of them straight up cut the bullshit and mostly resolve their own issues without using their children as pawns, it would’ve been easier for everyone involved. Additionally, there are many kids in camp to keep busy, look after and care for. I don’t know how many there were pre-TLO but I’d assume the number was in the hundreds? Of course, in larger cabins are camp counsellors that help out and guide next to camp schedules. But since Percy’s the only kid in the Poseidon cabin I guess that thought went south? Percy being the special kid would actually mean that there should be a focus on him unless you’re going for the “I’m neutral” spiel. Chiron knew from day one that Percy was walking Poseidon seed, come on.

Also like I somewhat implied, seeing people die left and right might have impacted Chiron to make him feel indifferent/despressed (could also be a stretch, who knows). Which isn’t an excuse, but might explain some takes. Explaining the same stuff for millennia in its essentials is probably getting tiring.

I think this is the third time that I mentioned it on my blog but showing and telling are the most powerful story telling concepts/fundamentals and you see Rowling and Riordan constantly failing at that which is concerning. Instead of Chiron (or Dumbledore) just simply getting down to the point and telling and explaining stuff briefly, he only eludes, vaguely formulates and it is simply confusing especially for a child in a brand new environment who just lost his mother (if we’re speaking about TLT). This does nothing but add more stress in such a fragile situation especially when a new and bigger threat makes its way.

There’s also the discussion on how much of Greek myth Percy actually gets. He has the basic/ obvious knowledge which many tend to forget. He doesn’t come in with no knowledge. He had Latin classes back at the academy, he studies with Annabeth, he knows some of the monsters. What he simply doesn’t know, is the magic of it all. That is the most confusing part for him.

The actual magic is not explained, which it doesn’t have to be in all of its entirety, but needs to be addressed somehow and gradually.

Percy asking a simple question like how the camp stays sunny and covered 24/7 and how the wardens work and Chiron casually sitting here like you a stoopid one

doesn’t help.

What many people forget: Magic doesn’t erase logic. Even in a magical setting, unless clearly stated, there has to be some kind of logic to connect the dots. It doesn’t need to be a clear cut A to B, but it should be comprehensible for both the readers and the characters in a particular situation. And that’s just not happening for Percy as the character. This also sets up the premise of Percy being ”stupid” which he isn’t. He is surrounded by incompetent teachers and staff that don’t bother telling him how things work and assume that he’ll just manage.

Yeah. Both Dumbledore and Chiron are awfulness in a sweet calm disguise.

Onto part two of the ask. I have had so many talks with people on that exact problem. It simply boils down to one issue:

Rick Riordan‘s inconsistency in world building and setting. The story telling doesn’t make any sense.

So kids are dying like flies before 18 but many are also super famous and in powerful positions? Many are historical figures that made it well over 18? Make that make sense. Also was WW2 supposed to be kicked off by some 12 year olds with that logic? The biggest man made catastrophe of the modern era boiled down to a bunch of fighting kids? No. We all know it. Just simply no. I actually don’t mind the WW2 background but Riordan should’ve given it another thought and be a bit more sensitive…? Like the whole fascist gang being team Hades? Uhh… sure…. nope.

Also the same logic applies to Civil War? You’re telling me a bunch of kids were supposed to have started this stance? Who was for and who was against slavery then? What in the actual fuck? Using children as child soldiers to stand in for these large complex historical issues that stretch over years and show many of humanity’s horrifying sides is just….eh.

No. This whole thing about campers dying as soon as they reach the magic number of 18 are either bedtime stories to scare the kids or toughen them up orrrr my guess, Riordan actually managed yet again to fuck up his own lore.

It’s the same logic with New Rome. You have a whole city full of adults but have a few kids run that bitch? You did your ten years of service as a child soldier and then do one of these?

As if adults magically exit this world. Like is that the reason why Percy’s been 17 for a whole damn decade? Because otherwise he gotta hand riptide in and all of the boys scout medals he has collected so far? Adults would’ve had the experience and expertise to win those fights but it would break the magic and charm of the books that a bunch of kids are saving the world for the younger demographic. Let’s do not forget that the targeted audience of the books are middle schoolers. Makes somewhat sense with PJO but with HOO Riordan really shot himself in the leg. He should’ve matured the OG characters at least.

(Also speaking about the actual myths again. A good chunk of them died in their 20s/30s/40s. Odysseus guided as an old man. The heroes weren’t twelve and dipping by the age of 16. The Trojan war went on for 10 years for example. So whereas the real Perseus lived a longer life and had a somewhat happy ending in comparison to his peers, he wasn’t the only one that made it into adulthood.)

Riordan mixing up his own lore is just a shame. Yes, it’s human and he already gets a lot of flag for other stuff. I also get it as a writer with my fanfic where I really have to scroll up to search tiny details that I’ve embedded and not noted down. Perhaps it’s my inner capitalist speaking, but for I’m way more forgiving towards a free product, a gift like a fanfic, rather than something I’ve paid actual money for when it comes to this. The process of publishing a book is large. You mean to tell me that there was no editor at Disney that bothered to fact check? Riordan got a check from us all and doesn’t even bother looking up his own stuff. A little bit more effort, Ricardo. Please. You have an entire damn wiki you could use to check for free if you’re too lazy to read your own books/don’t use authors softwares. Like what?

It’s stupid. You know it, I know it. And as you can see, I fully agree with you.

[greatneedtotakeanap]

i binge read

episode 5 - the last olympian

this one took me a bit longer than expected but BOY do I have some THOUGHTS.

I am legally obligated to always begin with Nico when applicable so I will. This boy’s perseverance was everything. Even after he sold Percy out, and Percy subsequently almost killed him - he never stopped trying to convince Hades, just followed him around like an annoying talkative shadow. We see glimpses of this through Percy’s dreams. He literally never stops talking, even after all three adults present make it clear they’re annoyed with him - and it works! Hades joins in at the end.

Also, I know this was kind of the point of the book, but the fact that forty teenagers (plus the Hunters) held down an entire city for that long, after repeated monster attacks, was incredible. It was simply fantastic to imagine. Manhattan isn’t small, too. They covered a lot of ground for such a tiny group of people, and they didn’t even have the Ares cabin.

(Side note on the Ares cabin. I think we can all agree that up until the very end Clarisse was being incredibly selfish - there is a WAR happening. People are dying and you’re worried about cabin recognition? You refuse to fight for your fellow campers’ lives because of CABIN RECOGNITION? It’s so childish I can’t even wrap my mind around this.)

Speaking of Ares - Silena Beauregard. She deserved better. It was genius, the way she dressed up as Clarisse to go against the drakon. Shame she had to die in the process. And speaking of Silena Beauregard, Charlie Beckendorf!! He was one of my favorite if not my favorite side character my first time reading the series. I cried when he died. It was the FIRST CHAPTER, just hit you out of nowhere. I get that was kind of the point, but still. Ouch.

Ethan Nakamura annoyed the hell out of me throughout both botl and this book, but I couldn’t help loving him at the end, even though the way he died was kind of stupid because he didn’t know where Kronos’ vulnerability point was so he just charged him for nothing lmao. Still. I couldn’t help feeling sad for him.

And now, the inevitable discussion of Luke Castellan. Half of this book, the quests Percy went on to May’s house and the dreams he had, was to humanize Luke. The point was to make the reader sympathize with him, and hooo boy did it work. I never liked Luke, not really, but I always pitied him. May makes me very sad though. Her story, the very specific way she went insane... it’s tragic. And the way it affected Hermes was well portrayed. He knew the whole time, but was forbidden to interfere. Luke did the right thing in the end, which was great I guess, and the way the prophecy came true was genius. I probably would have been a pretty hardcore Luke stan if it wasn’t for the whole Lukabeth side plotline. I know it’s been said, but their age gap heavily grosses me out. Like at the end while he was dying and he asked Annabeth if she loved him I was recoiling, because... why?? Brought the whole rating down a LOT.

Of course, I can’t talk about The Last Olympian without talking about Percabeth, so let’s get into it. Firstly - the scene at the River Styx. (Side note - is Percy still invincible?? He never reversed the curse.) But anyways. The thing I love most about Percabeth is that it’s a slow burn done right. In their every interaction you can see exactly how they feel about each other, from friendly banter in tlt to mutual comfort in som, to Percy going BALLISTIC in ttc while she was gone, etc etc. And I think it all came to a t in this scene in the River Styx. He had to hold one to the one thing that made him mortal, and he didn’t choose Annabeth. He didn’t specifically think of her before he went in - but she found him anyway. And this is the moment that I think he realizes exactly how he feels about her. This is a theme that comes back in this book (yay!), Annabeth being the thing tying him down to the mortal world, at the end when he makes the decision to give up immortality. That part is fairly obvious. She’s literally the thing keeping him there. The best part about the ending of this book, for me, was that I could see it in my head. Every single second. I could see them eating cake, their conversation, the kiss and everyone jumping them afterwards, Percy making a bubble at the bottom of the lake. It was all just so adorable. I know, I know, we all love Percabeth - but for good reason.

One last thing I just realized - the kids from hoo? Piper and Leo (and Hazel I think but I can’t quite remember)? They were unclaimed kids who never found their way to camp. They got to Camp Half-Blood as a DIRECT result of Percy’s decision at the end of this book. I didn’t even realize that until I read the scene where he gives up immortality over again. Pretty interesting.

First series is done. Two more series to go. Wish me luck!