#{ evil like none other; tobias }

[bots-basket]

[....]

[ "Did you miss me~?" ]

[raccoondude]

Creepypasta Sexuality/Gender HCs For Pride Month!

This is my first semi-writing post lmao, I write for a lot of creepypastas, so they'll all be listed here. I will say that this is for my main fic that I'm working on and has yet to be posted, so they can change from fic to fic or one shot to one shot. For any requests, they don't have to follow my headcanon.

Also quick note: I do write for Sally, but as she is an 8 year old child in my head, I'm not giving her a sexuality or including her here.

Slenderman (The Operator):

Gender: Technically none, but is male presenting

Pronouns: He/it (doesn’t care)

Sexuality: AroAce, he's a straight up demonic, god-like entity, he doesn't feel romantic or sexual connection

Tim Wright (Masky):

Gender: Male

Pronouns: He/They (Prefers he, but doesn't mind they)

Sexuality: Def Bi king

Brian Thomas (Hoodie):

Gender: Male

Pronouns: He/Him

Sexuality: Pansexual

Tobias (Toby) Erin Rogers:

Gender: Male

Pronouns: He/They (Prefers he)

Sexuality: Pansexual

Jeffery Woods (Jeff The Killer):

Gender: Male

Pronouns: He/They (Secretly prefers they)

Sexuality: Bisexual but prefers women

Heather Marshall (Rouge):

Gender: Female

Pronouns: She/her

Sexuality: Demi-sexual/Demi-romantic and genderblind

Eyeless Jack (EJ):

Gender: Male

Pronouns: He/They interchangably (Will go feral if someone calls him it)

Sexuality: Demi-romantic, asexual, sex is just a chore for him, he doesn't have a repulsion to it, but he's not exactly pouncing on an opportunity for a bang sesh

Ann Lusen Mia (Nurse Ann):

Gender: Female

Pronouns: She/Her

Sexuality: Lesbian, asexual, rarely has a sex drive

Laughing Jack (LJ):

Gender: Technically none, but he’s male presenting 

Pronouns: He/They/It  

Sexuality: AroAce, no interest in sex or romance, just tormenting souls forever, how sweet

Jane Tod Richardson (Jane The Killer):

Gender: Female

Pronouns: She/Her

Sexuality: Oh definitely a full lesbian, no one can convince me otherwise

Benjamin Lawman (BEN/Ben Drowned):

Gender: Male

Pronouns: He/Him

Sexuality: Major bisexual/demi-romantic vibes

Liu Woods (Homicidal Liu):

Gender: Male

Pronouns: He/Him

Sexuality: Gay

Kate Milens (Kate The Chaser):

Gender: Female

Pronouns: She/They (Prefers she)

Sexuality: Bisexual but a preference for women

Nina Hopkins (Nina The Killer):

Gender: Female

Pronouns: She/They (Prefers she)

Sexuality: Bisexual, prefers men, specifically Jeff, but wouldn’t mind women

Cody (X-Virus): 

Gender: Male

Pronouns: He/They interchangeably

Sexuality: Pansexual

The Rake:

Gender: None

Pronouns: It/its

Sexuality: None, like c’mon it’s basically an immortal wild animal bro

Helen Otis (Bloody Painter): 

Gender: Genderfluid, but typically presents as male

Pronouns: He/She/They (Normally goes by he or they, indifferent to she)

Sexuality: AroAce, but wants a platonic relationship with cuddles and forehead kisses

Jason Meyer (Jason the Toymaker):

Gender: Male

Pronouns: He/Him

Sexuality: Demisexual/demiromantic with a preference for women

Kagekao:

Gender: Male

Pronouns: He/him

Sexuality: Gay

CandyPop: 

Gender: Male

Pronouns: He/They (prefers he)

Sexuality: AroAce, no interest in sex or romance, just his evil plans to build an army

Dr. Smiley:

Gender: Male

Pronouns: He/Him

Sexuality: Demiromantic, asexual, he’d like a romantic relationship with someone he’s close to and cares about him, but doesn’t want sex

Jonathan Blake (The Puppeteer): 

Gender: Male

Pronouns: He/They

Sexuality: Pansexual 

Zachary Gibson (Puppet): 

Gender: Male

Pronouns: He/They 

Sexuality: Bi-curious

Quick note about this guy, he’s one of The Puppeteer’s proxies/puppets, yes I went down a massive rabbit hole when looking up creepypastas

The Seed Eater: 

Gender: None

Pronouns: it/its

Sexuality: None, again what do you guys expect, it’s a forest creature with nothing on its mind other than tormenting its prey and eating.

Anastasia Morozov (Ani the Wight): 

Gender: Female

Pronouns: She/Her

Sexuality: Demi-romantic, straight, she’s canonically straight, but I feel like she’d be demi-romantic at least

Sadie Marie Bennett (Suicide Sadie): 

Gender: Female

Pronouns: She/her

Sexuality: Bisexual

Rodrigo Ortiz (Cat Hunter): 

Gender: Male

Pronouns: He/him

Sexuality: Bisexual

Rachel Marget Downs (Arcane): 

Gender: Female 

Pronouns: She/Her

Sexuality: Pansexual

[slavghoul]

Want to know what weird? Henrik Palm was in a band called In Solitude and they sound like pre-lawsuit Ghost. Why can’t Tobias Forge come clean about the ghouls involvement with Ghost?

Just of curiosity, how do you expect me to respond if you come here making statements like this? Like are you trying to shake me up? Do you think I'm gritting my teeth here typing this out? Well boo hoo, unfortunately for you I am a very patient person :-)

Yes, I guess there are some similarities between In Solitude and early Ghost (and a dozen other bands, duh) but they cannot possibly stem from Henrik because he simply wasn't yet involved with Ghost during the time Opus Eponymous or Infestissumam were made. He joined in March 2015 during the recording of Meliora at the recommendation of Klas Åhlund, so I'm not sure if he and Tobias even knew each other prior to that. He was in the band for a little over a year. If you happen to hear any similarities on Meliora, it most likely comes from the fact that Henrik laid all of the lead guitars and bass on that album, and every guitarist has their own unique way of playing. The extent of his involvement isn't a secret, it's not forbidden knowledge guarded by the evil Tobias Forge. He was a valued member of the band, literally so - he had the highest salary from all the ghouls, probably because Tobias knew what an asset to the band he was. He is a very skilled musician and there is also no denying that Meliora would not have sounded the way it does if it hadn't been for his contributions in the studio as the guitarist. But he did not write any of the songs. He played them according to the demos prepared by Tobias and Martin, and based on Tobias's instructions, which he made very clear had to be followed exactly the way he explained them, and no diversion was allowed. As a matter of fact, there was an instance during the recordings when Tobias got pissed about someone changing something, and it had to be re-recorded the way he intended. It was a minor thing and if such a minor thing put him off balance, how do you imagine he'd allow actual significant changes to his work?

How come none of the lawsuit-ghouls' claims pertained to music ownership and royalties? How come none of them came forward with a claim or evidence that they are the rightful creators of song X, Y, or Z? Simple, because they did not create them. Those who were involved, anyone who actually collaborated with TF on the writing of the music, had been properly credited and is getting their royalties every month. By the way, does it not speak volumes that Martin Persner, the only ghoul who had an actual, palpable impact on the band (musical, visual, and other), did not sue Tobias and speaks of him highly to this day, despite their personal differences?

Listen, I actually have no issue discussing the lawsuit as it is part of the band's history and I understand it piques people's curiosity, but man, it's been almost 7 years. It's over, the case was settled meaning they reached some kind of an agreement. So let's move on maybe.

[wandringaesthetic]

Some Animorphs thoughts, and some general violence in media thoughts:

So the majority of yeerks the Animorphs have to face, have innocent slaves as their hosts. So, taking Animorphs as a metaphor for IRL wars, KAA is communicating that many people fighting in a war simply aren't there by choice and also that collateral damage in war almost inevitably hits some unambiguously innocent people.

BUT ON TOP OF THAT

You have the yeerks, who have very limited senses and mobility in their unhosted state. There's a species on their home planet they can parasite into, but their capabilities are not so great either, and they're not very numerous. (Though, as I'm writing this, I wonder if the Yeerk distaste against Gedd hosts is more of a social thing cuz it signals low status or if this is maybe even the result of propaganda) If they want to have full sensory experiences and if they want to go to the stars, they're going to have to enslave other races.

(or..... Do something more complex, like some bio-engineering, but that's going on a tangent)

Early in the books, the yeerks are perceived as unnuanced evil. From at least #19, you get their perspective, which imo doesn't make them justified, but it does make them understandable. If they want to see and hear and run and feel the wind on their face, if they want that for the majority of their peers.... Let's find a low tech alien species with a central nervous system and enslave all of them. Add to those desires, pressure from your imperial/extreme meritocracy government where the "merit" is determined by people who are empire-pilled....

Understandable.

AND THEN YOU ALSO GET VOLUNTARY HOSTS

The books don't really elaborate on this aspect much, because I think it got into some territory even KAA was uncomfortable with tackling for juvenile readers.

Some of these are "voluntary" in the sense Tobias was in MM4, i.e., he didn't really understand what he was getting into and was like "oh God no" and then it was too late.

For the others.... You gotta ask yourself why a person would choose to give their lives over to a brain slug, and my answers for that are various situations of desperation: addiction, severe mental illness, severe poverty etc. But I think a few were probably promised, well, something like illuminati membership, and found even what they actually got to be acceptable. I make none of my own decisions and am a passenger in my body, but I *am* living in wealth and comfort!

The Animorphs view these people as traitors to humanity and basically incomprehensibly evil, and there's SOME of that happening imo, but I think mostly not. I think, maybe if you are living on the street and you get a brain slug but you are no longer living on the street some would see this as acceptable terms.

So anyway, my point is the majority of hosts and at least a significant minority of the yeerks would not be on earth trying to enslave all humans if they had better choices. So with each controller killed, you're killing one innocent and one "well, they made their choices (sort of)"

And through this all, I want to reinforce that while the Animorphs sometimes make some questionable moral choices, their overall fight is always portrayed as just. And I would argue that it is. Earth is being invaded. The stakes are most life on earth and the freedom of all humans. Worthwhile to crack some eggs for that omelette. Some of the moves Cassie makes towards some reconciliation with the yeerks were incredibly strategically dangerous. Ended up being key to ending things! But risky! My point is, some of the "good" "morally pure" choices, while ultimately portrayed as correct, got people killed!

VERSUS

More common and acceptable portrayals of violence. Bloodless displays of violence . Violence where there is a clear good guy and bad guy. Our society (especially, if that's, yanno, US Americans) does not disapprove of violence. We quite approve of it, actually. Violence is all ages entertainment. We disapprove of realistic or even semi-realistic portrayals of it.

Most fantasy violence, Especially fantasy violence in children's media, isn't ugly, and moreover isn't messy. There isn't friendly fire. Either the bad guys are inhuman monsters or they're ostensibly human but faceless (like stormtroopers). And don't get me wrong, some media that I love operates like this. There are good guys who do violence and they are mostly held up as heroes for it. Not always in universe, some superheroes have complicated or negative public images, ....but definitely they are portrayed as Unambiguously just to the audience. Versus IRL, where even for justified violence, someone is probably going to be mad at you about it.

Is it more damaging to portray an ugly, fucked up violence? Or a sanitized violence? Nearly all irl violence is messy and I'm not just talking about gore when I say that.

[a-french-coconut]

Part 4 (Will Solace)

Will Solace wakes up in the infirmary.

His supersonic whistle worked then ! His siblings must have found him and brought him back.

Fortunately for him, they're not currently present and he's alone. Otherwise he'll sure he would be chained to his bed the second he set his feet on the ground.

He finds himself in front a mirror.

Which would not be a problem except for the fact that he remembers really well punching this specific mirror one year ago in a fit of despair.

He really did not take well becoming Head Counsellor and main medic.

Did he replace the mirror ? Or his siblings maybe ?

Maybe he did replace it and just doesn't remember it. It wouldn't be the first time he forgot he did something. His brain is too occupied with fatal injuries and what ungodly morning hour he could wake up his boyfriend. In other words, this mirror is the last of his concerns.

Will

He turns around abruptly and but doesn't see anyone.

Why didn't you save me ?

It's not Raz, not her voice he would recognise it. Another spirit then.

Not a spirit, Solace. Just an old friend you let down.

An old friend ? None of his old friends have the capacity to pull this trick.

Except Travis maybe but Travis is in college.

"Why did you let me die ?"

There is a girl sitting on a bed.

Grey eyes that seem like they know all your weaknesses, red curly hair surrounding her face.

"Why did you let me die Will ?", says Justine, daughter of Athena, who died in the Battle of the Labyrinth.

"I didn't let you die, I gave everything I had to save you !" he protests because it's true. She was the last alive demigod injured they brought to the infirmary. Despite Lee's death on his mind, he tried his best to save her but she was brought in too late.

"Ah sorry, you misunderstood me." She stands up, blood dripping from her gash in the stomach, and marches towards Will.

She stops so close he can see the freckles dotting her nose.

"Why did you let me die in pain ?"

"What ?"

"You knew it was worthless. There was no way to save me and yet you made me endure two hours of endless suffering when you could have just killed me."

His dead friends usually accuse of letting them die. Not one has ever been angry with him for not killing them.

"Killed you ? And how exactly ! A quick snap of the neck ? A dagger through the heart ? Do tell me Justine, how the fuck do you suggest I coldly murdered you !"

"Oh I don't know ! I'm not the one with the fucking plague powers !"

Will staggers back, his back hitting the mirror .

"How- how do you know about..."

"Did you really think your little secret would stay hidden for long !", she laughs, specks of blood splattering his face.

"Everybody knows the monster you are Will. They all know you let their siblings die in pain because you were too selfish."

Tobias from Cabin 5, punctured lung.

Daphne from 11, extremely long blood loss because of a severed leg.

Victor from 9, covered so badly in burns Will didn't not know it was him until he heard his voice.

So much demigods counting on him to save them.

Only for him to fail them even in their death.

"Please stop this"

Justine pays him no mind, morphing into every demigod who died under his care, all looking at him with betrayal.

(We are not evil Will)

(No matter what you do, they'll blame us either way)

(So don't blame yourself for being a good person. Already enough people will do it for you)

"I didn't let you down."

Will looks in the eye of each demigod appearing in from of him.

"I did my best to save you and I failed. But if you think I regret for one second the pain I made you suffered in your last moments you are wrong. That pain meant there was still a chance for me to save you. And I will never abandon one of my patient."

He is standing in front of Justine again.

He's feeling rather light, like a burden was taken from his shoulders.

He supposes it had, watching Justine smiles at him with gratitude.

"Thank you for never abandon me old friend", she whispers fading in the light of the infirmary.

(Time to go back in the living world Will)

(I think we owe the campers we got sick to come back and heal them)

You did that Raz, as far as I am concerned, I took no part in it.

(Delusion can only get you so far Willy)

Don't call me that.

Will punches the mirror.

He really should have known it was a dream.

Kayla would have never let him without supervision.

The moment he opens his eyes, he regrets it, the bright light burning his eyes and causing him to groan.

"Will ! You're awake !"

His sister rushes to his side.

"You're alright ?"

"Yes Kayla, I'm fine."

She lets out a relieved sigh and then proceeds to hit him in the stomach.

Multiple times.

Every punch a little meaner.

"Ouch ! Oh my gods Kayla you can't hit an injured demi- Ouch ! Stop this !"

"Don't ever disappear like this again ! I thought you were dead when I found you !"

"Oh Kayla..."

She hugs him hard, crushing his now bruised torso, and Will hugs even harder.

Nico was right. Three days are an awfully long time.

His arms are constantly covered in some salve, the freshness doing wonder for his burned skin, and he is prohibited from doing anything requiring magic. His new hairstyle is proof he needs to rest and gain back a lot of energy before starting to use it again.

But Will can't just stay in bed all day while the rest of the campers are still sick. However Kayla is well aware of his mother-hen nature and doesn't let him out of her sight.

Hey Raz ? Up for a little trip ?

(Will, we are going to be unstoppable !)

The dryads and Chiron are too busy to notice a little girl going bed to bed, eyes flashing green and tendrils of smoke dancing on her fingers.

Within the week, there is not a trace left of the illness.

Within the week, Will did not leave his cabin and when Kayla barges in, asking him how the Hades he managed to heal the entire camp, he just shrugs and tell her it must have been dad feeling a little gracious.

He was, after all, confined to his bed and took his little sister's orders very seriously.

He can hear laughter from his open window.

He is still weak, especially after his little trick with Raz, and is not allowed to leave his bed.

He doesn't mind, really.

"Stop moving amore mio, I'm trying to sleep here"

Will smiles at Nico di Angelo, the son of Hades sprawled all over him as if he was in his bed in Cabin 13.

"You missed quite lot, running around doing your father's requests. I have a lot of things to tell you."

"Can't it wait until tomorrow ? I'm very sleepy."

Will smiles fondly at his boyfriend and hugs him tighter.

"Yes it can. Good night my little ball of darkness."

"Good night tesoro"

"Call me like that again and I'll set the Cocoa Puffs on you."

"They love me !"

"Shut up and let me sleep Solace."

Will lets out a little laugh, kiss his boyfriend on the head, and closes his eyes.

Kayla's outrageous gasp when she found out in the morning that Nico had an impromptu sleepover was even more worth it.

"You're grounded !"

"I'm the Head Counsellor Kayla. You can't ground me."

What a better way to start the morning that waking up in your boyfriends' arms and pissing off your sister ?

Nico and he bolt out of the cabin snickering, arrows passing straight over their heads.

"Come on Neeks, there is someone you need to meet."

"I know them ?"

"You could say that, yes."

And this is the end of this little story !

Hope you enjoyed it !

[seattlesea]

Every Copia Antichrist Theory Detail (That I Know Of)- Part One

So there's a theory going around that Papa Emeritus IV/Copia is going to become the Antichrist and have an 'evil' era after the Re-Imperatour is over, and honestly, I believe at the least that Copia is going to become the Antichrist. Here's every detail I've found and complied so far-

1. 666. In some of the stained glass windows that depict Copia, he has a 666 tattoo on his chest. This number also appears on his blue Papa robe and in the Call Me Little Sunshine music video. Normally, 666 is simply a number to represent evil, but in the Bible it's actually used to represent the upcoming Antichrist. This is probably the most solid piece of proof that Copia is going to become the Antichrist and what got me hooked on this theory in the first place. While 666 is stereotypically an 'evil' number, judging by how precise and knowledgable Tobias is, it's highly unlikely he added this number three times to Copia's character just for the aesthetic but none of the other Papas.

2. The Unholy Trinity. The 'Unholy Trinity' are the opposites of the Holy Trinity- the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The Unholy Trinity consists of Satan, the Beast aka the Antichrist, and the False Prophet. I and many others believe that Jim DeFroque of Jesus He Knows Me is the False Prophet giving his entire character is about giving people false hope and turning his back on what he preaches. So Satan is himself, Jim is the False Prophet, and Copia the Antichrist.

3. A Pale Horse. Copia is often depicted on a pale white horse. Especially in the Rats video, this is very obviously a reference to one of the four horsemen of the apocalypse- Death. Copia isn't just seen on a white horse in the Rats video but also on official Ghost merch as well. To top this off, the first three albums depict the birth, rise, and reign of the Antichrist. Opus Eponymous is about his birth, Infestissumam is about the presence of the Devil and the Antichrist, and Meliora is about the absence of God and the reign of the Antichrist. Then we get to Copia's first album Prequelle and it's about the Black Plague and death, aka the first horseman of the apocalypse. Then his second album Impera which is about the rise and fall of empires which takes place in modern day. So all the previous albums were about the birth and rise of the Antichrist, then we get to Copia's albums and it's about death and the rise and fall of empires, not centering about the Antichrist. Most likely because Copia, being the upcoming Antichrist, isn't writing and singing songs about himself.

4. White eyes. Everyone knows that the Emeritus family have one white eye and one green eye- a genetically inherited trait from Nihil. White eyes are symbolically used to represent power, heaven, supremacy, wealth, and leadership, and what's interesting about this is there are many hints pointing to Copia gaining two white eyes. First, the promotional artwork for the Imperatour and Re-Imperatour. The France, Europe, official Re-Imperatour, and the Kia Forum artwork all show one white and one green eye as normal. But then you get to the South America promotional artwork and his white eye is on the wrong side. It's on his right rather than his left as usual. Is this an artist's mistake- which, if it was, why would Tobias use it as often as he did on Instagram and not fix it- or is it showing two white eyes rather than one, considering you can't see the left side of his face in it? Second, Phantomime. The Phantomime cover shows Copia in a corpse-like pose with two glowing white eyes. This could again just be an artistic take, but it seems like an odd change nonetheless. And third, the Escape the Ministry game seems trivial and just like fun, but it actually holds many clues (more I'll go over later). For this point, the ending has a 'Thank you for celebrating Phantomime with us' note with a drawing of Papa IV in which he has two white eyes yet again. Once is an artist mistake, twice is a coincidence, but three times? Three different times Papa IV is shown with two white eyes instead of one? Very very odd. And why is this so important? Well, in the Infestissumam cover, the baby that represents the Antichrist has two white eyes.

5. Sister Imperator. In Chapter 3: Back On The Road, the three Emeritus brothers are killed- ordered by Sister Imperator- because they were doing unsatisfactory and so Copia could become Papa. She wants Copia to become Papa obviously because he's her son, but then goes on to say that she 'can't' call him Papa because of Nihil (and in 'Tomb It May Concern' calls him C). Is it really because of Nihil, or is it because she doesn't want him to meet the same fate as the other Emeritus brothers? Would she try to make him or at least encourage him to become the Antichrist in order to save him and so the Ministry can't kill him? She is the one, after all, to proudly announce to him that he's performing at the Kia Forum in Chapter 16: Tax Season, the show many people believe Copia is going to die at because it's the last show of the Re-Imperatour, recording is not allowed, and the line 'When the summer dies, severing the ties/I'm with you always, always' from Darkness at the Heart of My Love (and September 11th is days before the Fall Solstice, signaling the end of summer). Why would Sister sound so proud and happy of this if her son was going to die? Wouldn't she be happy and proud if her son were to say gain more power or survive the Ministry's- especially Nihil's- attempts to off him? Also, there's a line in the song Witch Image (from Prequelle) that goes 'But like a mother would save her own child from digging a grave'. Sister Imperator is trying to save Copia, not kill him. Becoming the Antichrist would seal his immortality and save him from the Ministry.

6. Alternatively, Saltarian. In the same chapter Tax Season, Saltarian is grinning at Copia while pushing the glass coffin. Saltarian for the most part has acted kind of aloof and hostile to Copia, except for in Chapter 13: The Beach Life where he invites Copia to his beach house, has some laugh with him, and talks to him about his European Summer Tour. Then in next chapter Road Trip, he tells Copia he 'knows when his time is up' which is very odd considering no one really knows who the Saltarian is. All we know is he's in the Clergy and works close with Sister and Nihil (and his name derives from the Italian word 'jump/leap', Saltare). But what I really want to focus on is the game Copia is playing in Tax Season. He's playing a driving game called Driving Miss Daisy which isn't a real game but a movie. The description of said movie is: "Daisy Werthan, an elderly Jewish widow living in Atlanta, is determined to maintain her independence. However, when she crashes her car, her son, Boolie, arranges for her to have a chauffeur, an African-American driver named Hoke Colburn. Daisy and Hoke's relationship gets off to a rocky start, but they gradually form a close friendship over the years, one that transcends racial prejudices and social conventions." Sounds kinda like Copia and Saltarian. So did Saltarian smile at him sinisterly and knowingly or did he smile at him because he wants to help him (from who I don't know- could be the Clergy or Sister if she wants Copia dead for whatever reason).

More to come but this is getting too long :P

Part Two

[handoverthekawaii]

Siren Song

This is a random one-shot from 2018 that I unearthed from my computer and wanted to share! Timing-wise, the story was written to take place after Episode 2x15, so there are season 2 spoilers. Hope you enjoy.

TW: drug abuse, drug addiction, angst, very dark themes

​Spencer Reid knew that he was making a grave mistake.

​It was 4:07 a.m. He sat in his apartment at the kitchen table, the light over the sink illuminating the bowl of cereal he had been halfheartedly eating. An infomercial was blaring from the TV in the living room.

But none of these things drew Reid’s attention as strongly as the vials of Dilaudid sitting neatly in a row at the table’s edge.

​Just six hours ago Reid had been the hostage of Tobias Hankel, a serial killer with multiple personality disorder who had tortured him for his purported sins before God. Hankel expressed three distinct personalities – that of a father, his son, and the archangel Raphael. Hankel the father was intensely religious and beat Reid until he confessed his sins, most notably the committing of his mother Diana to a mental institution for her paranoid schizophrenia.

Raphael was a judgmental observer, urging Reid to choose a side in the battle between good and evil outlined in the Book of Revelations. But Hankel the son was the personality who had the most damning effect on Reid. A drug addict, he had “treated” Reid for his injuries by injecting him with Dilaudid.

Reid killed Hankel with his own gun as the man forced Reid to dig his own grave. But as he left the scene with the rest of the BAU, the siren song of the Dilaudid called to him, and in the end Reid could not resist its temptation.

​He had already undergone the horrors of detox in the hospital, and at the moment he was drug-free. The rational part of his brain insisted that it would be best to stay that way. He knew that doing anything other than throwing the vials of Dilaudid into the garbage would be a cruel error.

​But oh, how burdened he felt.

​Reid thought of his mother. As he had confessed to Hankel, he had had her institutionalized and rarely visited her. Freshly graduated from high school, he had not felt capable of caring for a fully grown adult with a debilitating mental condition. But had he truly considered the feelings of his mother?

Had he imagined the betrayal she must have felt being torn from her home, her possessions, and the life with which she had grown so familiar? Had he accorded her the proper respect when he signed paperwork that forced her to take medication against her will? Had he done right by her when he moved across the country for college, sparing her only the occasional letter or phone call? How neglected she must feel, he thought, and looked at the Dilaudid.

​He thought of his father. Mr. Reid had walked out on the family when Reid was ten, and Reid had never seen him again. Mr. Reid must have been himself quite burdened by his wife and son. He had not so much as called or written a letter when Reid graduated from high school, earned his doctorate degree, or joined the FBI.

For all that Reid knew, his father may have another family in some other part of the country whom he loved better than Reid. Mr. Reid had disabused Reid, discarded him, like he was worthless. The thought made Reid feel empty inside, and his fingers twitched for the Dilaudid.

​He thought of himself. His mother had schizophrenia, and statistically speaking he knew that he was predisposed to the condition as he neared the age of thirty. Sometimes as a teenager, Reid had heard voices in his head, and they had even been able to assist him with his mathematical deductions and research. Unlike his mother, he had always been able to dismiss them as the work of an overactive imagination. Reid was secretly terrified that he would be unable to similarly discern reality and fantasy as he aged.

More generally speaking, he knew that he did not truly fit in among the other members of the BAU team. He often misunderstood their jokes or got upset when they rearranged the items on his desk without asking. He knew that his behavior was not quite normal, but it was simply who Reid was. He could not change it, but with the Dilaudid he could forget it.

​Most of all, he thought of JJ. Only Gideon knew how much Reid truly thought of her. He had admired her from afar for months, daring to do no more than bring her a cup of coffee once in a while or to comment on the weather. She was radiant, with blonde hair like a golden field of grain and eyes like starlight. When she smiled, Reid couldn’t help but smile back, no matter how grim a case they were working.

He longed to tell her how he felt, to take her into his arms, to whisper sweet nothings into her ear… But JJ didn’t love him. When she looked at him she saw only Dr. Spencer Reid, Reid the Genius, The Guy Who Can Read 20,000 Words a Minute….and he knew it all too well.

​Reid reached for the Dilaudid. [AO3]

[gathersroses]

ELEANOR LOVETT.

* mrs. lovett is not a good person. i will not be romanticizing her actions on this blog. she has committed atrocious acts and is incredibly selfish. it shouldn't have to be said, but it's here anyway: i do not support any of her actions. aside from making out of character jokes or mentions of it, i will not be portraying any cannibalism/things to do with the pies because it makes me uncomfortable. i will tag this very liberally.

GENERAL.

NAME.   eleanor lovett (nee evans)

ALIASES.   nellie

AGE.   42

BIRTHDATE.   october 23, 1806

GENDER.   cisfemale

SEXUALITY.   bisexual

STATUS.   widowed

ETHNICITY.   white

NATIONALITY.   english

BIRTHPLACE.   london, england

RESIDENCE.   london, england

OCCUPATION.   pie maker

PHYSICAL.

HEIGHT.   five foot nine

WEIGHT.   146 lbs

BODY TYPE.   curvey

SKIN TONE.   pale

HAIRSTYLE.  curly/frizzy, usually pulled away from her face. it falls to her shoulders on the rate occasion it’s down.

HAIR COLOR.   brownish-auburnish 

EYE COLOR.   brown

SCARS.   several

FACECLAIM.   helena bonham carter

PERSONALITY.

TRAITS.   nurturing, loyal, warm, friendly, manipulative, selfish, overly needy.

HABITS.   tba.

HOBBIES.   tba.

FEARS.   tba.

RELATIONSHIPS.

FATHER.   john paul evans (deceased)

MOTHER.   martha matthews evans (deceased)

SISTER.   martha mary evans (younger by a year; deceased), emily evans smith (younger by seven years; alive)

BROTHER.   william john evans (older by two years; alive), george “georgie” evans (younger by three years; alive), paul william evans (younger by four years; deceased)

SIGNIFICANT OTHER.   albert lovett (husband; deceased), benjamin barker/sweeney todd (pining for; alive)

SON.   tobias ragg (surrogate son; alive)

DAUGHTER.   none

EXTRA.

MBTI.   esfj

ENNEAGRAM.   3w2

ALIGNMENT.   lawful evil

HISTORY.

— SHE WAS ALWAYS THERE, REALLY. little lucy averley. their parents were acquaintances, but there was always somewhat of a divide between their respective families. the averleys were somewhat better off than the evans. the averleys had four pretty little girls, all yellow hair and bright smiles. meanwhile, the evans had sickly children and alcoholism running through every vein. despite this, nellie and lucy got on well growing up beside each other. lucy didn't need nellie. lucy had other pretty friends to entertain her. nellie watched lucy grow into her beauty. somewhat awkward limbs were graceful with every movement. she was perfect. meanwhile, nellie was lanky and too tall for most of the men they knew. lucy could have anyone she wanted. but nellie was getting desperate. twenty-three years old and no husband in sight.

eventually, nellie met albert lovett at the fish market. thank goodness for him. there was no love between the couple, but he needed a wife and she needed a husband. he proposed. she accepted. the wedding was simple. she found a nice enough sunday dress to wear. it was brown, as if she was a widow getting remarried. lucy was one of her bridesmaids. she put some rogue on her cheeks and lips. nellie looked almost pretty. the wedding night was more like a handshake. more formal than passionate.

albert moved them to london. he liked her cooking, baking even more. his mother used to own a pie shop. so they set up the business. they were moderately successful. though, that might have been due to albert eating more of the pies than actually selling them. to earn a little more money, they began renting out the rooms above the shop.

that was when he moved in.

benjamin barker. the barber with his brown hair and bright eyes. suddenly, nellie was no so thankful she found a man to settle down with. she wish she waited for mr. barker upstairs. she laughed at each one of his puns and he did the same with her. they were meant for each other, nellie realized. but it couldn’t be until after albert passed that they could be married.

mr. barker was invited to a dance one night. he came home whistling. albert complained. nellie fawned. he told nellie in the morning that he met someone. the girl that he knew he was going to marry. nellie’s whole world crumpled in that moment. whoever this girl was that was taking mr. barker from her, nellie hated her.

she didn’t actually meet the soon-to-be mrs. barker until after the couple was engaged. then, as nellie was hunched over a slab of dough, she heard her name called. upon turning around, she saw her. lucy averley. her best friend. her jealousy. nellie hated her.

lucy asked her to be her maid of honor. maid of honor! that was an even higher ranking than bridesmaid. but nellie stared at her yellow hair, her green eyes, her pale face, the ring on her slender finger … she said no. nellie never wanted to be apart of her life. never wanted lucy at all. obviously hurt, lucy stopped calling her by her first name. it was as if they had never been friends.

at mr. barker’s invitation, the lovetts attended the wedding. they left before the brunch. lucy moved into mr. barker’s apartment. a year into their marriage, the barkers announced they were having a baby. when johanna came into the world, albert complained about the fuss and all the crying. nellie didn’t care. jealousy took control of her. she sat albert down and told him she wanted a baby. they made a few attempts. that ended in sighs, a few tears, and blood. nellie would never get that baby that she wanted so desperately to prove mrs. barker wrong.

then mr. barker was arrested. mrs. barker disappeared one night and returned with a bottle of poison. nellie barely understood what happened, but she had the gist of it. mrs. barker went mad. johanna cried. the judge came back & took the remaining barker women away.

it was just her and albert. until albert’s leg gave out with gout. until albert died one morning.

nellie rolled up her sleeves and continued on. her business was failing. taxes went unpaid.

when benjamin barker returned. not exactly the same man he was before. he was sweeney todd now. but nellie liked sweeney todd even more. he wanted his revenge, she needed her business to improve. plans were made. delicious plans. she took in a small boy called toby. loved him like the child she never had. she made a new life for mr. todd, a new family. yet he never looked her way. he only moped around the house. pining for lucy. nellie understood why he wanted to get johanna back, but in time, she started to hate johanna, too. she was too much like lucy. too much of a distraction. mr. todd had her now. her and toby. it was the new life.

his mrs. barker was still alive, although nellie told mr. todd she swallowed poison. it wasn't really a lie, now, was it? the night the mr. todd finally got his revenge on the judge, was the night he found out the beggar woman was his lucy. in his rage, mr. todd told nellie that he loved her. she was not a stupid woman, but she danced with him. until she was thrown in the oven and burned to death.

[pimpernals]

ELEANOR LOVETT.

* mrs. lovett is not a good person. i will not be romanticizing her actions on this blog. she has committed atrocious acts and is incredibly selfish. it shouldn't have to be said, but it's here anyway: i do not support any of her actions. aside from making out of character jokes or mentions of it, i will not be portraying any cannibalism/things to do with the pies because it makes me uncomfortable. i will tag this very liberally.

GENERAL.

NAME.   eleanor lovett (nee evans)

ALIASES.   nellie

AGE.   42

BIRTHDATE.   october 23, 1806

GENDER.   cisfemale

SEXUALITY.   bisexual

STATUS.   widowed

ETHNICITY.   white

NATIONALITY.   english

BIRTHPLACE.   london, england

RESIDENCE.   london, england

OCCUPATION.   pie maker

PHYSICAL.

HEIGHT.   five foot nine

WEIGHT.   146 lbs

BODY TYPE.   curvey

SKIN TONE.   pale

HAIRSTYLE.  curly/frizzy, usually pulled away from her face. it falls to her shoulders on the rate occasion it’s down.

HAIR COLOR.   brownish-auburnish 

EYE COLOR.   brown

SCARS.   several

FACECLAIM.   helena bonham carter

PERSONALITY.

TRAITS.   nurturing, loyal, warm, friendly, manipulative, selfish, overly needy.

HABITS.   tba.

HOBBIES.   tba.

FEARS.   tba.

RELATIONSHIPS.

FATHER.   john paul evans (deceased)

MOTHER.   martha matthews evans (deceased)

SISTER.   martha mary evans (younger by a year; deceased), emily evans smith (younger by seven years; alive)

BROTHER.   william john evans (older by two years; alive), george “georgie” evans (younger by three years; alive), paul william evans (younger by four years; deceased)

SIGNIFICANT OTHER.   albert lovett (husband; deceased), benjamin barker/sweeney todd (pining for; alive)

SON.   tobias ragg (surrogate son; alive)

DAUGHTER.   none

EXTRA.

MBTI.   esfj

ENNEAGRAM.   3w2

ALIGNMENT.   lawful evil

HISTORY.

— SHE WAS ALWAYS THERE, REALLY. little lucy averley. their parents were acquaintances, but there was always somewhat of a divide between their respective families. the averleys were somewhat better off than the evans. the averleys had four pretty little girls, all yellow hair and bright smiles. meanwhile, the evans had sickly children and alcoholism running through every vein. despite this, nellie and lucy got on well growing up beside each other. lucy didn't need nellie. lucy had other pretty friends to entertain her. nellie watched lucy grow into her beauty. somewhat awkward limbs were graceful with every movement. she was perfect. meanwhile, nellie was lanky and too tall for most of the men they knew. lucy could have anyone she wanted. but nellie was getting desperate. twenty-three years old and no husband in sight.

eventually, nellie met albert lovett at the fish market. thank goodness for him. there was no love between the couple, but he needed a wife and she needed a husband. he proposed. she accepted. the wedding was simple. she found a nice enough sunday dress to wear. it was brown, as if she was a widow getting remarried. lucy was one of her bridesmaids. she put some rogue on her cheeks and lips. nellie looked almost pretty. the wedding night was more like a handshake. more formal than passionate.

albert moved them to london. he liked her cooking, baking even more. his mother used to own a pie shop. so they set up the business. they were moderately successful. though, that might have been due to albert eating more of the pies than actually selling them. to earn a little more money, they began renting out the rooms above the shop.

that was when he moved in.

benjamin barker. the barber with his brown hair and bright eyes. suddenly, nellie was no so thankful she found a man to settle down with. she wish she waited for mr. barker upstairs. she laughed at each one of his puns and he did the same with her. they were meant for each other, nellie realized. but it couldn’t be until after albert passed that they could be married.

mr. barker was invited to a dance one night. he came home whistling. albert complained. nellie fawned. he told nellie in the morning that he met someone. the girl that he knew he was going to marry. nellie’s whole world crumpled in that moment. whoever this girl was that was taking mr. barker from her, nellie hated her.

she didn’t actually meet the soon-to-be mrs. barker until after the couple was engaged. then, as nellie was hunched over a slab of dough, she heard her name called. upon turning around, she saw her. lucy averley. her best friend. her jealousy. nellie hated her.

lucy asked her to be her maid of honor. maid of honor! that was an even higher ranking than bridesmaid. but nellie stared at her yellow hair, her green eyes, her pale face, the ring on her slender finger … she said no. nellie never wanted to be apart of her life. never wanted lucy at all. obviously hurt, lucy stopped calling her by her first name. it was as if they had never been friends.

at mr. barker’s invitation, the lovetts attended the wedding. they left before the brunch. lucy moved into mr. barker’s apartment. a year into their marriage, the barkers announced they were having a baby. when johanna came into the world, albert complained about the fuss and all the crying. nellie didn’t care. jealousy took control of her. she sat albert down and told him she wanted a baby. they made a few attempts. that ended in sighs, a few tears, and blood. nellie would never get that baby that she wanted so desperately to prove mrs. barker wrong.

then mr. barker was arrested. mrs. barker disappeared one night and returned with a bottle of poison. nellie barely understood what happened, but she had the gist of it. mrs. barker went mad. johanna cried. the judge came back & took the remaining barker women away.

it was just her and albert. until albert’s leg gave out with gout. until albert died one morning.

nellie rolled up her sleeves and continued on. her business was failing. taxes went unpaid.

when benjamin barker returned. not exactly the same man he was before. he was sweeney todd now. but nellie liked sweeney todd even more. he wanted his revenge, she needed her business to improve. plans were made. delicious plans. she took in a small boy called toby. loved him like the child she never had. she made a new life for mr. todd, a new family. yet he never looked her way. he only moped around the house. pining for lucy. nellie understood why he wanted to get johanna back, but in time, she started to hate johanna, too. she was too much like lucy. too much of a distraction. mr. todd had her now. her and toby. it was the new life.

his mrs. barker was still alive, although nellie told mr. todd she swallowed poison. it wasn't really a lie, now, was it? the night the mr. todd finally got his revenge on the judge, was the night he found out the beggar woman was his lucy. in his rage, mr. todd told nellie that he loved her. she was not a stupid woman, but she danced with him. until she was thrown in the oven and burned to death.

[bots-basket]

Ooooo it is takeover time isn't it

["OH yes~! It's been fall too dull around here. I'm up for some mischief and bad situations."]

[monstrousgourmandizingcats]

Okay please tell me about this animorphs stuff because it seems like a WILD ride

Animorphs is an extremely moody and morose series of serialized mid-grade novels from the late 1990s (opinions vary on whether or not it's moody and morose enough to count as grimdark). They were everywhere when I was a little kid; you'd walk into an elementary school classroom at the beginning of the school year and there'd be six or seven Animorphs books already lying around, as if they'd spawned from the walls and floor or something. Unfortunately, they were produced in a very disposable, one-and-done way, and they're now out of print and semi-difficult to find as hard copies; for that reason, the author, K.A. Applegate, has explicitly advised fans to just pirate them. I've been finding a lot of them at public libraries instead, though, because I greatly prefer hard-copy reading when at all possible.

Applegate was a Midwestern housewife who co-developed and co-wrote the bulk of the series with her husband, Michael Grant. In addition to Grant, the later half of the series employed a bunch of other ghostwriters as well, although Applegate retained creative control and regularly vetoed what the ghostwriters were doing.

The premise of the books is that a group of five ordinary-ish teenagers stumble upon a crashed alien ("Andalite") spaceship and are given the ability to "morph" into different animals, subject to a two-hour time limit. They use this power to fight a guerrilla war against another alien species, the Yeerks, who are little grey slug-like creatures who take up residence in the brains of larger species and override their free will. For the bulk of the series none of them is sure who in their own families is and isn't a Yeerk; they know for a fact that at least two of their loved ones are. There's an atmosphere of paranoia that leads to increasingly toxic codependency as the Animorphs slowly lose the ability to trust, take any interest in, or care about non-Animorphs, although they do keep fighting for humanity as a whole.

The Animorphs are:

Jake. The leader of the group. "A dumb jock trying to play General Eisenhower." Likes basketball and the Offspring (which he just refers to as "Offspring" for some reason). From a secular Jewish family, although not completely secular since they light Sabbath candles. His brother, Tom, is known to be a Yeerk.

Rachel. Jake's cousin. A skinny blonde shopaholic and semi-serious hobbyist gymnast who develops worse and worse rage issues as the series goes on. Is she a brave soldier for humanity, or a violent maniac who gloms on to a good cause so she can avoid confronting the darkness within her? Neither; she's explicitly, textually both! She's my favorite.

Marco. Jake's best friend. A typical "funny" late 90s/early 2000s teenage boy with all the tastes and interests we generally associate with that--video games, South Park, Howard Stern. All that's missing is Family Guy. Of ambiguous sexuality and appears to be in love with Jake. Able to suddenly get incredibly serious, even ruthless, when he has to. His mother, Eva, is not only a Yeerk but an incredibly important and high-ranking one. Eva is Mexican Catholic but Marco doesn't appear to be religious.

Cassie. Rachel's best friend and Jake's love interest. From a middle-class black family that lives in a big farmhouse on the outskirts of town. Both of her parents are vets; her dad runs a wildlife rescue clinic and her mom works at a shitty for-profit zoo. The idealistic pacifist of the group, although she's a "kill 'em and then cry over 'em" pacifist and gets regularly dragged for this in-universe. Appears to be Catholic and at least semi-serious about it.

Tobias. Rachel's love interest. A mopey bully magnet with an unbelievably toxic and chaotic home life who accidentally-on-purpose gets stuck in morph as a red-tailed hawk in the first book and retains that as his default body for the rest of the series even once he regains morphing ability thirteen books in. A dreamer who's able to use his own ambivalent identity to build bridges between all sorts of different groups, but also has almost as much of a killer instinct as his girlfriend and occasionally makes calls that are even more coldhearted than Marco's.

A few books in they're joined by Aximili, an Andalite cadet trapped on Earth whose storylines alternate between goofy fish-out-of-water comedy and dark military psychodrama. For this reason, it's difficult for both the other characters and the reader to understand how they're expected to react or respond to Ax. Ax is technically Tobias's uncle since we find out Tobias's missing dad was an Andalite who became stuck in morph as a human.

As the books go on the morality is complicated significantly; the Animorphs resort to more and more repugnant tactics, and we find out that although the Yeerks' government and military brass are pure evil, a lot of individual Yeerks are just folks who've been dealt a crummy hand by evolution and have fallen for propaganda that they're justified in overriding other species' free will to "solve" this. There are Yeerks who believe it's wrong to take unwilling hosts, and Yeerks who wish they could find a middle way between being conquering slavemasters and "slugs beneath the Andalite hooves". Unfortunately, not many plotlines focus on them.

So that's Animorphs.

[maxdibert]

We don't know what he was allowed to do at home and what he wasn't allowed to do. We only know that his parents argued a lot and that his father didn't like much. What we also know is that he knew more spells as a first-grader than other seventh-grader - why do you think? His mum was a witch, she was the one who made sure he could go to Hogwarts. The rest is pure speculation. I know many believe that Sev has become "evil" since J.K.R. posted the "Tobias was violent" argument online. I don't believe anything an author says about their work after they've published it. If it had been important enough to know that Sev was beaten up by his father to explain Sev's "evilness", then it would have been in the first published work about his character, because that's where it would have made sense. But since J.K.R. didn't include it in her works, it was either not the case that he experienced violence at home or it was commonplace (like punishment at Hogwarts), so it was logical and affected everyone including Lily, but was irrelevant to the character explanation. For me, it was always much more exciting to know that Sev didn't have an ideal home (who does?), but one to return to in the summer and not run away like Sirius. Nevertheless, Sev has become "evil". Why? There are deeper, more complex reasons than "...and by the way, he was beaten by his father."

First of all, I never said that Severus became a bad person because of his situation at home. In fact, I don’t believe that having a terrible home situation makes you a bad person, nor do I think that being attached to someone is synonymous with being a bad person. If we stick strictly to what is shown in the books, we know that Tobias was indeed a violent person. Whether that violence extended to physical abuse isn’t explicitly shown, but it is strongly implied that the relationship between his parents was quite dysfunctional. Add to that the fact that he lived in Spinner’s End. Petunia refers to Severus as "the Snape boy from Spinner’s End" in a rather derogatory way, and combined with the description of his street and environment in the sixth book, we can infer that, within an industrial town like Cokeworth, Spinner’s End must have been a pretty rough area. On top of that, when he meets Lily as a child, he’s clearly wearing his mother’s old clothes, so it doesn’t take much insight to conclude that he came from a very poor and unstable background. With that alone, he already has all the odds stacked against him to develop serious attachment issues.

And again, having attachment issues doesn’t make someone a bad person. It’s actually quite common among people raised in dysfunctional environments, especially those who develop anxious or disorganized attachment styles.

I don't believe that Lily had that. Her sister was jealous ... why? If the Evans were a functional and stable family as you point out, jealousy would not be there - it would have been understanding and respecting.

Lily seemed to have all the attention from her parents and was the golden child. If anyone suffered in that dynamic, it must have been Petunia, as we can infer from the resentment and comments she makes about her sister. It seems likely that her parents focused all their attention on Lily because she was a witch. Regardless, it’s more than obvious that Severus was poorer than they were and came from a more troubled environment. For that reason alone, he might have interpreted that Lily had something he didn’t. And I’ll stress again that none of this implies a negative judgment of Severus or his behavior.

I can't believe this - first I don't see Sev as an emotional deprived person, second he has other people in his life, he hangs out with as Lily points out in his memories.

Well, on that point, I actually disagree quite a bit. I do see him as someone who was quite emotionally deprived during his childhood. It seems that Lily was his only friend during that time, at least from what we know, and cognitively, our attachment styles are solidified during our early years and become more apparent in adolescence. Supposedly, he hung out with other Slytherins, but where were those friends of his when he was being bullied? The only one we ever see standing up for him is Lily—just her. We could speculate all we want about Mulciber or others defending him at some point, but if we stick to canon (as you pointed out regarding Tobias), all we know is that, flaws and all, Lily was the one who defended him. None of his supposed housemates are shown to do so.

I don't get what you mean, where did Lily "hinted that the bullying he endured wasn’t such a big deal"?

When Lily essentially insinuates that at least the bullying from the Marauders didn’t involve the Dark Arts, or when she says he should be grateful that James Potter saved his life, or when she dismisses his speculations about the Marauders by suggesting he’s obsessively fixated—that’s not something you’d say to a true friend about the people who constantly torment them.

So, because you work with such people makes you see Sev like such a person? Do you have evidence in the booktext that Sev as a schoolboy had severe emotional traumas or serious mental health disorders?

I never said he had mental health issues. However, he does have quite a bit of trauma—that’s undeniable. I mean, why deny the obvious fact that the guy has trauma? He literally comes from extreme poverty and endured bullying throughout his adolescence. How can you deny that? WTF.

I don't think, he was in love with Lily in any way. She was his childhood friend, s.o. like home, s.o. who grounded him, s.o. he felt loyal towards her and he could protect her. His very protective nature is often forgotten. Only since the films has Severus been explicitly portrayed as a lover. In the last book, first Voldemort and then Harry think Sev is a lover - the latter without giving the reader any reason as to how he came to this conclusion. I suspect that because of his past, his age and because he was in love himself, Harry could only see love as a reason to sacrifice himself for someone else, even though he had previously sacrificed himself for all the Hogwarts fighters - possibly unconsciously.

Well, I’m sorry, but without being a fan of Snily as a romantic pairing, I think we have to acknowledge that there’s a subtext clearly suggesting he was in love with her—whether it’s because we’re seeing it from Harry’s perspective or because Rowling herself confirmed it. That we might interpret it differently and many of us have concluded it was purely platonic or that there was maybe minimal adolescent attraction is another matter, but if you cling so strongly to the canon, you should stick to all of it. Because while this idea is more explicit in the movies, it’s present in the books too—let’s not play dumb at this point.

In any case, I don’t understand how your view that it was purely platonic is incompatible with my view that it was also purely platonic but rooted in the fact that Lily was clearly his attachment figure. If that weren’t the case, it wouldn’t make any sense for him to have tried so fervently to maintain their friendship, delusionally ignoring the fact that it was deteriorating almost irreparably.

Do you think Snape had romantic feelings for Lily? What do you think about how main part of fandom associates his story only with his «undying love»?

I’m somewhere in the middle between those who think it was romantic and those who think it was platonic. I believe it was both, because the two can easily get confused.

To put it in context, I work with people who not only had terrifying childhoods and youths but, in general, pretty horrible lives. On top of that, most of these people have severe mental disorders like schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, borderline personality disorder, or similar issues where severe emotional deprivation has been a major conflict in their social and emotional development. That said, one of the things I’ve learned (because my boss is amazing and pays for training courses for the whole team so we can better understand the people we work with) is that people with severe emotional deprivation tend to choose, throughout their lives, one or more individuals as their “attachment figures.” Usually, it’s just one person, though this can change over the years since these relationships often fall apart. This attachment figure isn’t necessarily someone they have a romantic or sexual relationship with, but rather someone they unconsciously choose as the object of their affection. All their emotions are directed at this person: all their attention is on them, and they are willing to do anything for them. They always talk to them, are always attentive to what’s happening to them, always worry about how they’re doing, always share everything with them, and always count on them.

But because this attachment is completely excessive and unregulated (since these people don’t know how to regulate themselves due to not having been taught, nor are they capable of forming healthy emotional bonds because of terrible role models and deep emotional wounds), it also works negatively. In other words, if you are someone’s attachment figure and suddenly stop responding to their messages, they will demand an explanation. If you hang out with other people, they will demand an explanation. If you make plans without them, they will demand an explanation. Being the attachment figure is a substitute for the emotional role model that wasn’t provided in childhood, like parents, so you’ll face tantrums like those of children feeling they’re not the center of their parents’ world. To these people, you are the center of their world, and unconsciously (because these kinds of attachments are entirely irrational—it’s super important to understand that this isn’t something they do on purpose), they want to be the center of yours. When they realize they’re not, they explode. They don’t know how to handle it because their insecurity and fear of loss and abandonment are so overwhelming that they feel they’re about to lose their attachment figure. Since they can’t control their emotions, their response is always incredibly anxious and aggressive.

With that in mind, I think that for Severus, Lily was his attachment figure. I believe that during his childhood, he saw her as his first equal (a witch), someone he could share things with that he wasn’t allowed to at home, someone with a functional and stable family, someone who treated him kindly and was good to him. I think that, because of this, she unconsciously became his emotional reference point. I think he was entirely dependent on her attention, as many people with emotional deprivation are with their attachment figures. I also think that, because this happened during his adolescence, and because she was a girl, was beautiful, and was loved by everyone, he probably confused it with love, a crush, or something like that. Let’s remember that Severus had no idea what healthy or functional romantic relationships were because the only example he had was his parents’ relationship, which was probably a complete disaster. In fact, that’s why I think he never questioned many of Lily’s attitudes toward the bullying he suffered—because in his home, the normalization of violence was justified, and contempt between partners was the norm. So, when she hinted that the bullying he endured wasn’t such a big deal, it probably seemed normal to him compared to how his parents treated each other.

In my opinion, it was both platonic and romantic, but not romantic in a deep sense—more of a deviation from the concept influenced by adolescent sexual awakening and the fact that she was the closest thing to someone he cared for. But primarily, I think Lily was his attachment figure from childhood. And as often happens in these situations, the attachment figure doesn’t feel nearly as strongly or intensely in return. It’s not reciprocal—not because the attachment figure is bad or inconsiderate, but because this is something that only develops when there are severe emotional deprivations, which Lily didn’t have. Honestly, this theory fits much better with the idea that feeling even slightly responsible for her death was something that paralyzed him for the rest of his life. It wasn’t just about being responsible for someone he might have felt romantic feelings for, but also for someone who was like a sister or even a mother to him. For people like this, the attachment figure is all those things—they are everything. And it also explains why, when begging for her life, he didn’t consider anyone else—because, in reality, no one else mattered to him. For people with attachment needs, only their attachment figures matter. This can be complex to understand for those without severe emotional traumas or serious mental health disorders, but it’s quite normal if you regularly interact with people like this.

So maybe during his adolescence, he thought he was in love, because such an intense feeling toward someone of the opposite gender is always culturally justified as romantic love under the heteronorm. And he was probably sexually attracted to her, which is super logical and normal because, well, teenagers, hormones, and all that. But if we get to the root of the matter, I don’t think it was that kind of love. I think it was actually a more platonic feeling, one of pure emotional and affective dependence on her.

[mcx7demonbros]

September 29. ~ Dedication of St. Michael the Archangel

Archangel Michael defeats Satan, by Guido Reni, c. 1636

From the Sermons of Pope St. Gregory the Great, 34th on the Gospels

We say that there are nine Orders of Angels, for, by the witness of the holy Word, we know that there be Angels, Archangels, Mights, Powers, Principalities, Dominions, Thrones, Cherubim, and Seraphim. Nearly every page of the holy Word witnesseth that there be Angels and Archangels. The books of the Prophets, as is well known, do oftentimes make mention of Cherubim and Seraphim. Paul, writing to the Ephesians, i. 21, counteth up the names of four Orders, where he saith: "The Father of glory raised (Christ) from the dead, and set Him at His own right hand in the heavenly places, far above all Principality, and Power, and Might, and Dominion, (and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come.)" And the same, again, writing to the Colossians, i. 16, saith: "By (the Son) were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be Thrones, or Dominions, or Principalities, or Powers; (all things were created by Him and for Him.)" If, then, we add the Thrones to the four Orders of which he spake unto the Ephesians, we have five Orders; and when we add unto them the Angels and the Archangels, the Cherubim and the Seraphim, we find that the Orders of Angels are beyond all doubt nine.

But we must know that the word Angel is the designation, not of a nature, but of an office. Those holy spirits in the heavenly fatherland are always spirits, but they may no wise be always called Angels, (which is, being interpreted, messengers,) for they are Angels only when they are sent as Messengers. Hence also it is said by the Psalmist: ciii. 5, Who makest spirits thine Angels! As if it were: Of them who are always with Him as spirits, He doth somewhiles make use as Messengers. They who go on the lesser messages are called Angels they who go on the greater Archangels. Hence it is that unto the Virgin Mary was sent no common Angel, but the Archangel Gabriel. For the delivery of this, the highest message, it was meet that there should be sent the highest Angel. Their individual names also are so given as to signify the kind of ministry wherein each is powerful. Michael signifieth: Who-is-like-unto-God? Gabriel, the Strength-of-God, and Raphael, the Medicine-of-God.

As often as anything very mighty is to be done, we see that Michael is sent, that by that very thing, and by his name, we may remember that none is able to do as God doeth. Hence that old enemy whose pride hath puffed him up to be fain to be like unto God, even he who said, I will ascend unto heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God. I will be like the Most High, Isa. xiv. 13, 14, this old enemy, when at the end of the world he is about to perish in the last death, having no strength but his own, is shown unto us a-fighting with Michael the Archangel, even as saith John, Apoc. xii. 7: There was war in heaven Michael and his Angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels. Unto Mary is sent Gabriel, whose name is interpreted the Strength of God, for he came to herald the appearing of Him Who was content to appear lowly that He might fight down the powers of the air. Raphael, also, as we have said, signifieth the Medicine-of-God, and it is the name of him who touched as a physician the eyes of Tobias, and cleared away his blindness.

Prayer to St. Michael

St. Michael, the Archangel, defend us in battle. Be our defense against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him, we humbly pray; dnd do thou, O Prince of the heavenly host, by the power of God, thrust into hell Satan and the other evil spirits who prowl about the world for the ruin of souls. Amen.

Chaplet to Honor St. Michael and Nine Choirs of Angels

[anntoldst0ries]

None shall sleep (Ethan x MC)

Book: Open Heart 3, post Chapter 5 Pairing: Dr Ethan Ramsey x F!MC (Dr Noelle Valentine) Word Count/Rating: ~1.8k, T Summary: In the privacy of the diagnostic's office, Ethan & Noelle reflect on recent changes around them. Category/Warnings: Fluff, None Trope: And there was a bit of Hurt/Comfort

A/N: This chapter reminded me of things that have never been addressed... so this is a story of how things left unsaid all collided in my head. Hope you enjoy.

Also - yes, Ethan Ramsey can sing arias. Is anyone still truly surprised by the fact that this guy can do anything?

There is something mesmerizing about watching the lights of day go out, overpowered by darkness, ablaze with colours - from the depths of blue, through indigo, navy and all the way to pitch-black.

About how, in a sense, it washes away all the bothers and allows you to start anew with the next rise of the almighty sun.

Ethan Ramsey was hoping for this exactly, maybe more than ever, but all the signs showed it wasn’t in the cards for him.

Or at least not today.

He stared into the void, interwoven by occasional human figures passing by through the front lobby. No voices of the day were able to reach him on the 7th floor of his kingdom. Behind the glass wall, he was almost in a different world.

It had been yet another day that brought him more gritted teeth, holding himself back and resigned sighs, than actual satisfaction from helping those who counted on him. All these ‘activities’ were not only annoying but also highly energy-consuming.

Bringing the index and middle fingertips to his pulsating temples, he started to compress and massage them in small circles, trying to soothe the pounding inside his skull. He could hear the blood rushing through the highways of his veins, the sound almost drowning out all external stimuli.

But there were certain sounds his expert ear was trained on, the ones he would’ve recognized even in his sleep.

Like the one reaching his ears right now, the sound of the door handle being pressed.

With his back facing the door, he couldn’t see who was trying to impose on his much-needed solitude. But since the unexpected guest did not precede their ministrations by knocking, the possibilities narrowed down significantly. There were only two people on the premises of Edenbrook who could invade his personal space without a modicum of manners.

“Can I help you?” He modulated his voice to ensure the tone was expressing two things: annoyance and irony in the otherwise polite question.

“I’m sorry.” From all the voices, this one he did not expect to hear now. A melodic tone was joined by a scuffle of retreating steps. “Do you want me to go?”

Ethan curled his lips in a tiny smile. They both knew she wasn’t apologetic and that he wanted anything but her to leave.

“No, it’s just that there are only two people in this hospital that wouldn’t bother knocking and I thought it was one of them paying me a visit.”

“Let me guess… Zaid and Baz?”

“No, but in terms of concept, you were actually close…just another type of evil ‘twins’."

“Oh, you mean his majesty King Bloom & his annoyance Dr Carrick?”

“Even as a joke, it sounds creepy and horrible.”

“Well, count me as a third now. Heads up though, I will only stop knocking after twilight.”

It was clear as crystal Ethan’s already specific sense of humor had less than ever space for amusement.

“I brought you this.” She put a brown paper bag on his desk, which immediately revealed the aroma of something delicious. “I figured you’re probably gonna stay here all night, so I thought I’ll pop over and check on you.”

He didn’t say anything, staring into the darkness. Not because he didn’t want to - he simply didn’t know what. This simple gesture was very touching and filled him with gratitude. But he was lacking the right words.

Then, for the first time since she’s interrupted his train of thought, he turned around to look at her. Tired and with puffy eyes, she’d still put everyone else to shame. Even on the worst of days, the light radiating from her turned heads and made the room brighter.

She extended a hand and when their fingers touched, he felt this weird, tingly feeling that has traveled from his palm, through his arm and neck, and then straight to his core.

Pressing him gently against the edge of the desk, she took his glasses off. Then loosened his tie and nonchalantly disheveled his hair. Ethan wouldn’t let anyone else in the world touch them, let alone put them in a state of such disarray.

With her, all the rules existed only to be broken.

“Do you want to tell me what’s going on in this big brain of yours?”

“Smart move, Valentine. You’ve pacified me so that now I will have no choice but to tell you whatever you want to know.”

“You always have a choice, let’s just hope you’re gonna make the right one.”

Ethan nodded, no sound escaping his lips. She knew she’d have to take it upon herself to get any information out of her stubborn converser.

“So, how are you holding up? I want an honest answer."

“I’ve been better.”

“I thought so.”

“It’s just that… Tobias is driving me crazy. His presence really tests my patience… I don’t know if I would’ve stopped myself from punching him had it not been for you.”

“Why thank you, I didn’t know my therapeutic services were that good.”

“They are.” Ethan cleared his throat. “But it’s… not just that.”

Dead silence lingered between them and he knew he had no other choice but to continue.

“The only reason why I haven’t wiped this ridiculous smirk off his face yet is that whenever I look at him, I… I see you in that room with Travis. I’m trying to remind myself that, as much as I hate to admit it, he was crucial to finding the cure on such short notice.”

“Ethan…”

“I already told you” - he interrupted her as if not to stop the words from flowing, afraid they may be trapped forever otherwise - “that there was so much more at stake last time Tobias set foot in Edenbrook.”

She took a deep breath, her eyes going slightly wider.

“The truth is, for me… everything was at stake. I would’ve done anything he’d asked me to, I’d have forgiven him if it meant saving you.”

Elle turned still, all her body movements, her breathing and even her blinking ceased.

It was one of those moments that mean so much but leave you with so little to say.

Using the power of non-verbal communication and their deep affinity, she bestowed on him the most gentle, loving and grateful expression her face could muster after yet another exhausting shift.

Ethan extended his arm and before she realized it, her back was gently pressed to the older doctor’s chest. Having wrapped her slender frame with his broad shoulders, Elle inhaled his familiar aroma. He smelled of comfort and felt like a safe harbor. He nudged her hair with his nose and placed a featherlight kiss on the crook of her neck. She smelled of calmness and felt like coming back home from a long journey.

“So,” - he murmured directly into her ear - “whether you like it or not, I am using you to soften the blow every time I look at Tobias’ face.”

“I think I can live with that.”

“But I can’t guarantee it will always be enough, he is a cocky son of a bitch.”

“Let's make a deal then. I see how much it costs you and I’m not telling you to trust Leland or forgive Tobias, I still believe you should be cautious. Let’s just wait and see where this goes, I think we’ll know sooner rather than later. In the meantime, we should focus on what matters the most, our patients.”

“Where is the deal part?”

“If it turns out you were right, I will hold Tobias and you will punch him. Deal?”

“I believe it should be the other way round. Declan Nash’s face told me your right hook is exquisite, Rookie.”

They both laughed at the memory which seemed so distant now, almost as if it's happened in another lifetime.

But Ethan went quiet again and she felt his body tense up, his arms tightening gently around her. It wasn’t very obvious, but she knew. It still came as a shock how well she actually knew him.

“Ethan? What is it?”

“Nothing.”

“Ethan.”

“I’m sorry, I am not the most cheery companion today. You’re probably better off not spending too much time with me before you turn into a cynic.”

“Dr Ramsey, what a pathetic attempt of trying to get rid of me. You’ve never been the most cheerful type and I’ve survived your gloomy companionship, hell, I think it grew on me over time. So I should be ok today, too.”

It looked like silence was very much their third companion today.

“I’m thinking about Francis.”

“Yeah, me too.”

“I’m thinking about how hard it would be not to see. So many beautiful things, colors, all turning into nothingness.”

“I take it you mean the opera?”

“That too, but let’s just say I’ve learned to appreciate things that are right in front of my nose… literally and figuratively.”

The butterflies started somersaulting in her stomach.

“I didn’t want to add more to your plate at the time, but I’ve already felt this way… when we diagnosed Caroline and Leland.”

It was funny that, despite his obvious animosity towards Bloom, whenever his wife was in the picture, he spoke about both in an almost affectionate way. His doctor’s instincts were kicking in, because first and foremost he was a doctor who had his patients’ best interest at heart.

“The thought of not being able to touch you…it reminded me of touching you through the layer of hazmat suit. And now with everything Francis has been through, I just can’t be bothered to think about anything else but you. This is my true personal connection to this case.”

It was her turn to be speechless.

Ethan tightened his grip over her once again, this time protectively rather than out of stress. Slow hum started filling the air, the melody soon joined by lyrics, which he sang in fluent Italian; a private concert, performed for her and her only.

Tu pure, oh Principessa

Nella tua fredda stanza

Guardi le stelle

Che tremano d'amore

E di speranza**

She remembered their patient’s face, which seemed calmer once Ethan started singing the aria before the depths of illness contorted it with pain.

Francis' husband's words echoed throughout her head.

Even though the man holding her in his arms didn’t say it, there was no need.

She knew.

He will always be here.

And she will always be here, too.

-----

** Lyrics - aria "Nessun Dorma" (‘None shall sleep’) from the opera "Turandot".

Translation:

Even you, oh Princess,

In your cold room,

Watch the stars,

That tremble with love

And with hope.

Tag 🔖 list: @starrystarrytrouble @genevievemd @sophxwithers @maurine07 @lovingramsey @iemcpbchoices @oldminniemcg @schnitzelbutterfingers @archxxronrookie @jamespotterthefirst @the-pale-goddess @queencarb @fireycookie @qrkowna @coffeeheartaddict @utterlyinevitable @gryffindordaughterofathena @xxsugarplumfluffsxx @wingedhairstylemusicweasel @mrs-ramsey @tsrookie @fayeswiftie @mercury84choices @lisha1valecha @lucy-268 @stateofgracious @danijimenezv @alina-yol-ramsey

@choicesficwriterscreations @openheartfanfics

[seattlesea]

Every Copia Antichrist Theory Detail (That I Know Of)- Part Two

Continuing from my previous post:

7. Live shows. There's a lot of weird stuff going on in the live rituals. For starters, the Ghouls are acting weird. Swiss/Multi has been literally going feral, grabbing his head, falling to the ground, clawing at his mask, looking like a choking cat (and some people believe that Swiss was the one who killed/injected the Emeritus brothers in Chapter 3). Is he going to go full feral and attack/kill Copia at the Kia Forum, or is something happening that he knows about that's driving him crazy? Sodo/Dewdrop is normally a very energetic, active, aggressive, and bouncy Ghoul, but during Respite on the Spitalfields (whose lyrics I'll go over later), he plays the guitar solo after the first chorus standing still in one place with his head down, which is very unlike him. Does he know the meaning/nature behind the song, and if he does, is he sad because he knows Copia is going to die, or is he sad because he knows Copia is going to become the Antichrist and 'evil'? Furthermore, the songs they play live are also interesting. During the Imperatour- which everyone was convinced Copia was going to die at the end of- they played 'Prime Mover' which is about the anti-Virgin Mary carrying the Antichrist in her womb. In Re-Imperatour, they replaced this song with Respite on the Spitalfields, which includes the lyrics 'We will break away together, I'll be the shadow, you'll be the light. Nothing ever lasts forever, we will go softly into the night'. Does this song reference/predict the death of Copia, or his death to resurrect as the Antichrist. They played two other songs from Opus Eponymous- which is, again, about the birth of the Antichrist- Ritual, which is about sacrifices to Satan, and Con Clavi Con Dio which is about the Clergy's goal (to spread the news and love for Satan) which references the Antichrist a couple times ('O you rebel chief destroyer of the earth' and 'Sathanas, we are one, out of three, trinity' which is a reference to the Unholy Trinity I talked about above and the Antichrist). The only song off Infestissumam they play is Year Zero, which is all about the rise of the Antichrist and how he will destroy the earth. They also play Jesus He Knows Me, which again could be about the False Prophet, another member of the Unholy Trinity.

8. Tobias. A couple things Tobias has said and done kind of puts things into place. First, Tobias/Ghost are well-known for doing the opposite of what everyone expects and surprising their fans (such as dragging Terzo off stage, Papa Nihil getting a heart attack and dying, killing the first three Papas, all the things that happen in the chapters, etc), so with not just everyone assuming that Copia is going to die but all the very obvious 'hints' that Tobias has been dropping such as the glass coffin in Chapter 16: Tax Season that Saltarian is wheeling around while Sister Imperator tells Copia on the phone about the Kia Forum ritual, Copia stares at the rolling coffin, and Saltarian smiles sinisterly then Sister tells Copia that it's a brand new coffin. The Darkness at the Heart of my Love 'When the summer dies, severing the ties' lyric. Copia waving at his ear during Cirrus's solo in Mummy Dust like he's batting away ghosts or whispers. Copia screaming 'No' after the line 'Never to return' in Rats, Saltarian telling Copia he 'knows when his time is up' in Chapter 14: Road Trip, etc etc. I feel like it's honestly too obvious that Copia is going to 'die'. That Tobias is building this up just for the fans to expect one thing only to do something completely different and shock them. Secondly, Tobias in an interview (I'll have to find which one, if you know please let me know), Tobias said that we're going to get a Papa in a way 'none of us expect'. So that could possibly mean an 'evil' Papa or an Antichrist Papa. Or it could mean the next Papa is going to be Tobias playing as Sister Imperator dressed in drag. Only Satan knows (cred to whoever made that joke btw it's hilarious).

9. Merch. Some of the official merch has honestly dug this theory deeper, such as the one depicting Copia on a white horse to represent Death and quite literally the Antichrist. But other than that one, two other merch pieces really stick out to me: the first being the 'Split Faces Raglan' that shows Copia with a half skeleton face with a glowing white eye and the right side of his face with a red eye. Why red and not green like his usual eye color? Could just be an artistic choice, but weird nonetheless. And the more important, telling merch: the Pietra pieces. These depict a skeletal Sister Imperator in a red cloak carrying a dead Copia with bat wings and devil horns which mimics the statue of Mary holding Jesus, 'Pieta' by Michelangelo (it even has the same name, so it's obviously based off of it). But since this is Ghost and Ghost is the 'opposite' or 'parody' of the Christian Church, the opposite of Mary and Jesus would be the anti Virgin-Mary and the Antichrist. Seems like a rather odd design choice considering all the other facts piled up. The Antichrist has the power to raise himself from the dead, but if Sister Imperator is trying to help Copia become the Antichrist for whatever reason, the Pietra pieces definitely depict that.

10. Escape the Ministry. The game seemed like just a fun, silly way to promote and celebrate Phantomime, but when you play it is says so much more (after all, everything Ghost does that seems 'silly' is usually foreshadowing to something much bigger and more serious). Spoiler if you haven't played the game yet: for starters, there are four Papa statues in the main hall, one for each deceased Papa. In the middle, there's an empty pedestal with the note saying it was to be filled soon. Is it for Copia (again going back to the 7th point about making it too obvious just to turn around and do something else) or is it for Cardinal Copia, or who he is before he turns into the Antichrist (considering the Antichrist needs to die before being rebirthed as the Antichrist)? Furthermore, the final code to the game is 'Evil remains all around', which is a mix of one word from four of the five covers off Phantomime. Obviously it was from Phantomime, as that's the record they're promoting in the first place, but those specific words and that specific phrase is suspicious considering the Antichrist is the embodiment of 'evil' and the rival of Jesus, and the first cover off Phantomime is literally about Jesus. There's one more thing about this game that struck me as very very odd that I'll go over in this next and final point.

11. Copia will not die. The main thing going around is that Papa IV is going to die and will be replaced, but there's actually a ton of facts that point to him not dying at all. The first thing to note which is very important is the fact that none of the former Papas actually died when the next Emeritus became Papa. Primo resigned/retired and both Secundo and Terzo got booted/fired for not sticking to the main goals and values of the Ghost Project and the Clergy, which was to overthrow governments and churches and to preach the name of Satan. Sister Imperator was the one who ordered their deaths after Copia had become the frontman because she didn't think they were doing a good enough job. Now with Nihil dead, she doesn't have to hear him constantly nag about how Copia isn't good enough. So 1. I doubt his own mother would order for his execution especially after the lyric in Witch Image mentioned before and how she avoids calling him Papa due to the past Papa's fates and 2. If the Antichrist theory is wrong, Copia doesn't even have to 'die' at all for the next Papa to take place, the same way Primo, Secundo, and Terzo didn't die for the next to take place. Second, in Escape the Ministry, there's a note about Copia's performance that goes like this: "Subject: Papa IV. Physical Appearance: 10. Fitness: 8. Musical Talent: Unmeasurable. Charisma: 8.5 Sticking to the Message: 9. Current Progress: Satisfactory". If his progress is satisfactory, why would they want to get rid of him? Also, they note that his 'Sticking to the Message' is a 9 out of 10. So he's doing his job as Papa and sticking to the goal of the Ghost Project, which Terzo and Secundo got fired for not doing and the three brothers got killed for not accomplishing. So the only canonical reason so far a Papa would be fired or killed is if they're not doing their appointed job well enough, which the Clergy is saying Copia is doing, even when he's dressing differently than a traditional Papa. So there is no reason for the Clergy to kill Papa IV. The only other reason I can think of that they'd want to kill him is if he's trying to become the Antichrist. Copia is a very naive, gullible, and exploitable person that the Ministry can easily manipulate and control, but if Copia becomes the Antichrist, he becomes extremely powerful, to the point of being able to rival Jesus himself. The Clergy wouldn't be able to control or stop him. That might be one reason they'd want to kill him (if they want to kill him at all). Another thing people point out is the glass coffin in Chapter 16: Tax Season that Saltarian is rolling around and Sister says is brand new. But it wasn't for Copia, it was for Nihil! In the very next chapter Nap Time you see Nihil in a brand new glass coffin. So: The Clergy has no reason to kill him besides if he wants to be the Antichrist, Sister Imperator is now the lone 'ruler' of the Clergy with Nihil dead and there's a slim chance she'd order the execution of her own son for no reason, even if Copia is being replaced, there's no rule that states he needs to die for someone else to become Papa, and Tobias waving the theory that Copia will die into fan's faces and heavily leaning into it so much makes it seem like it's actually less likely to happen.

And there we go, that's all the details, facts, and such that I've complied so far as to why I don't really think Copia is going to die, but rather die and come back as the Antichrist (the 666 tattoo on his chest, on his robe, and in his music video is what's keeping me so hooked on this theory cause it's just too specific and there). Is this all an intellectual, arguable theory, or just a crazed denial stage of Copia dying? Only Satan knows.

-A Nameless Ghoul

Credit to @billiesghost.snc on TikTok for most of these facts and theories, they're incredible!

[bots-basket]

“Tch.”

~ Tobias Looked on from his Seat as he watched the events transpired. Seems like The others were making a steady progress against his defenses. At least His testing has run its course with rather desirable results. His Kraken Chip worked for the most part, he just has to develop a technology to cloak it, and then it will be perfect.

And it’s taken them a lot longer to advance then expected- So his security isn’t a complete failure. Now all that’s left to do is Mass manufacture this and then move on to the next project- Figuring out something strong enough to displace Void technology.

He Stood up from his chair and began to gracefully make his way out, everyone worth being worried about was much too occupied fighting for their lives in the front and Back ends of his current laboratory to have the time to be bothered with him.. or so he believed anyways. ~

——

~Typhoon was doing their best to avoid any sudden blows given to them by the pangolin beast as it backed them to the wall. Just when they thought it was going to crack their cores, Holster came to the rescue. The Pangolin wasn’t expecting her return so quickly so it was safely taken off guard by her grabbing onto it and pulling it away from the winged mecha.

Typhoon let out a Sigh of relief as they covered themselves with their wings like a cloak and got into a defensive position to try to do their best in helping Holster ~

“We are Relieved you came back quickly.”

——

~ The Saber Snarled and hissed as it clawed and smacked at firefly, being as vicious and intimidating as possible. But as time grew on, it was clear that the Beast itself began to grow weary of the fight as its attacks slowed bit by bit. If firefly could outlast her- He could have a fighting chance in taking her down. ~

( @bots-basket )

“Burn it all down.”

A command was given, and a Chain of explosions went off in an supposedly abandoned factory district. The sound was so Loud and the flames were so bright that anyone within a 20 mile radius could see the spectacle...

Spark Case was in the area. Having been just driving around in the cool weather of the night. His window was lit up as he turned himself towards it. Pausing his drive as he began to reroute himself towards it. Transforming as he began towards the area. Walking through the dark forest, the cool wind breezing past him as well as sending a wave of a mixture of burning oil, copper, and some odd scent. something he couldn’t figure out on his own. A scent he never had encountered before in his life. One that made his face contort into disgust.

“What in the name of-?” His words were lost when he spotted the fire then the building. The building was on fire…then he saw something else, those humans on the sidelines…he transformed and began to make his way down. Beginning to make his sirens go off. Red and blue lights dancing in the night sky. He was ready to encounter these people. Hopefully it wasn’t the ones who started it…hopefully.