#( legacy to carry on | verse )

[fctedivided]

Faceclaims of Alice:

Currently, present verse;

Recovery phase, after forced transformation;

Future verse, Dragonborn;

Alternative verse, corrupted;

[dokuhai]

@keikakudori // continued from here.

RANGIKU WAS HAVING AN INCREDIBLY HARD TIME HOLDING HERSELF BACK. Just the sound of Aizen Sōsuke's voice was setting her on edge —--- a nails on chalkboard, grating sort of thing it was. His reply to her mention of poisoned tea came across as snide, and thus, forced her eyebrows to knit together as she regarded him. A romantic cliché, he had said... and while he seemed so sure that such methods weren't his style, Rangiku wasn't convinced. For how many times had his words been laced with venom? The confessions shared by her comrades used against them when the moment had been just right... not to mention the way he had poisoned Hinamori Momo; a romantic cliché all on its own, though perhaps not quite as literal as a lethal drop mixed into a cup of hot liquid.

The blonde had been there to pick up the pieces of the gobantai fukutaichō, even as her own heart was left broken in the aftermath of their betrayal. Momo had worn her heart on her sleeve... RANGIKU KNEW EVERYTHING THAT AIZEN HAD SAID TO HER, HAD DONE TO HER —--- was this man even remotely self-aware?

❝ You know what, you're right —--- you'd much rather do the stabbing yourself. Twisting the knife and making sure they hurt in all the worst ways... nothing impolite about that, right? ❞ Rangiku couldn't control the way she spat out such hostility; seeing him again had truly brought out the worst in her. A raging sun, she was —--- her heat blazing and oppressive as it worked to snuff out everything in its path.

There would be no shadows, here. No secrets, or doubts... not anymore. Not if she could help it.

Rangiku took a moment to steady herself. She would never learn the truth if she kept villainizing him... after all, a cornered animal was never quite eager to place it's trust in the one hunting it. With a slow, deep breath, Rangiku prepared herself for the more difficult aspects of this conversation. The topic of Gin had never been an easy one for her to discuss, much less openly to the one who had attempted to kill him. So much of their affair had been private... words left unsaid, unspoken, as they had poured their trust in one another. A trust that was left utterly broken, now, but that was beside the point.

She did not miss the way Aizen flinched at her mere mention of Gin's name. It almost seemed like the man had grown hesitant in response —--- his confidence waning as he stumbled over his words. It was so unlike him, Rangiku thought to herself... and upsetting, at the same time.

Gin had meant something to him, hadn't he? He was more than just a blade at his side, ready to kill for him...

Rangiku suddenly felt sick. Anguish churned in her belly, alongside the scorching heat of her anger, making its way up her throat like bile. She pushed it down as best she could, and worked tirelessly to slacken the balled up fists at her side.

She had avoided these truths for so long. She had known something was off, from the very beginning... and yet she never asked Gin what was wrong, or what he was hiding from her. She was too afraid of what he might say. Even now, as she stood upon the precipice of the answers she sought, she was absolutely terrified of what she might hear. But these answers weren't just for her own sake... they were demanded by Central 46, and the sōtaichō himself.

Rangiku sank to the ground, knowing fully well that she needed to be seated in order to carry on with this conversation. She crisscrossed her legs and grasped her knees as her gaze fell from the crucified man, only to seek out imperfections within the floor. Rangiku listened intently to the words he spoke, and noticed the way pain bled into each one —--- Aizen's tone utterly wrought with grief. Perhaps he had been tormenting himself, all this time... though Rangiku was hard pressed to feel any sympathy towards him.

'Will you believe me?' he had asked. 'You must be willing to accept what you will hear.'

❝ I'm not willing to accept anything but the truth, ❞ she replied quietly, though still unable to meet his gaze. What she hadn't anticipated, however, was Aizen's version of the truth... and how corrupted it seemed to be. His claim that he was not himself when he struck Gin down made her want to burst out laughing. Who else was there to blame for all of this? Did it make him feel better, to blame it on the corrupt power of the Hōgyoku? The one he alone had chosen to merge with? This was a self-inflicted fate; one Aizen could have avoided entirely, had he not been so hungry for power. At least, as far as Rangiku was concerned.

❝ —---You're still not telling me why. What caused you to turn on him? You say you weren't yourself, but how am I supposed to know what that means when I don't trust that I EVER actually knew who you were? ❞

[visionkept]

incoming big surprise hug to her older sibling figure !! uwu

          As the sun sets in, golden rays of an early spring morning brush over tousled sandy locks. The faint current of the forest feeds upon the mess it is, free yet tangled. However, Tomoya doesn’t mind, they are used to the WILDERNESS around them.

Having to bear to prevail, this wouldn’t be the first time they have found themselves living in these conditions ( nor would it be the last ). A camp set in the wild, where two tents made out of the cheapest materials offer them shelter, it’s not much but it will do for the time being. That’s the life of a wandering samurai and. . .  of a WANTED CRIMINAL.

Following their pending earrings, they take this time for themselves to get back on track, cleaning stained clothes from yesterday’s little incident. 

The moment is still clear in their mind; a humble miso soup cooked by theirs truly spilled all over their dear haori thanks to a certain brunette. After that, they had to share as there wasn’t enough to replace the one wasted. Although they didn’t get mad, Tomo had to hear her non stop apologies for almost five minutes. She would have gone on for an hour if Tama hadn’t found the remains of her soup in their clothes and tried to clean it off with small licks, breaking the tension in the air and making the two laugh out loud.

The memory alone brings a smile out from the samurai, hanging the real victim of such clumsiness, their scarlet haori, in the nearest tree they could find. This rather domestic moment is followed up by a hum accompanied by the chirps of awakened birds, a shared melody between those who coexist and HIDE within the natural walls of the Chinju forest.

It’s as if here, in the deepest part of the forest, there were no conflicts or wars to worry about, PEACEFUL was the word that could describe it the best. They couldn’t stay here for long but it bought them enough time to prepare their next move.

( We could go to Watatsumi ), they thought, ( I heard they are accepting refugees ). But then again, that means having to cross the bloodshed. . . ( It’s too dangerous, I’m not risking her ).

Ideas come and go, they were running out of places to hide. She doesn’t need to know that. It’s alright, it’s okay ! They will manage, they always do, they have to. 

( If I save enough mora, I could get a boat and maybe we could- ).

The sound of rustling bushes behind them had the ronin snap out of their thoughts. The crushed withered leaves with every step gave it away. Knowing Chihiro was sleeping in the tent ( away from danger ), slowly but surely they approached, there’s no katana in hand that would ensure their safety but even without it, they could give a good fight. 

       One step at a time, one second after the other, approaching what seems to be. . . .

❝ Meow. ❞ Tama ! ! ! You almost gave them a heart attack !

A sigh escapes their lips, they should really stop overthinking too much. . .  after all, they are safe here, SHE IS SAFE AND ASLEEP RIGHT NOW, and if someone comes they will────

                                         ❝ SURPRISE HUG ! ❞

A TRAP ! They have fallen on a trap, HER TRAP ! Tama was only a DISTRACTION, a cute white fluffy DISTRACTION. The yelp that leaves their throat is genuine and truth to be told, makes them feel a bit embarrassed after recognizing the small silhouette hugging their figure. What a rascal. ❝ Didn’t hear you approaching, well done. ❞ Cautious steps and a fitting strategy had gained her today’s victory. Well deserved. But most importantly, her stealthiness has drastically IMPROVED ( will come useful in the future ).

❝ You are getting quite sneaky, Chi-chan. ❞ Ruffling her hair, they reciprocate the affection. It’s a bit unusual to act so affective, so touchy feely with someone they haven’t known for even a year. Nonetheless, they had decided that CHIHIRO was the EXCEPTION. What kind of brother would they be if they acted all cold towards their own sibling ? ❝ Hungry ? Let me prepare some LAVENDER MELON STEW for the three. Try not to spill it though──  ❞ Hey, they are only teasing ! Kind of. ❝ Pfff, don’t give me that look ! I’m only messing with you, Chi. C’mon, help me pick some LAVENDER MELON. ❞

[r3loaded]

tags ( 2 )

verses.

﴾ the perilous road to the west. ﴿ ⇀ verse ; main.

﴾ the next turn on the wheel of life. ﴿ ⇀ verse ; modern.

﴾ the survival beyond the lament. ﴿ ⇀ verse ; wuwa.

﴾ the defiance that burns in mortal lives. ﴿ ⇀ verse ; d&d.

﴾ the lonely path at sundown. ﴿ ⇀ verse ; the witcher.

﴾ the star‑scatted legacy. ﴿ ⇀ verse ; star rail.

﴾ the earning of a name. ﴿ ⇀ verse ; witch's road.

﴾ the unyielding grey. ﴿ ⇀ verse ; dragon age.

relations.

﴾ i only sing sutras for survivors 『 smear your bloody hands on mine; i'll carry your life 』 ﴿ ⇀ recre8ed ; sanzo & hakkai.

[pctaldrunk]

@j1anghu asked : ❛   despite everything, i believe that people are really good at heart.  ❜   L.iang J.iuxiao for Su Xueqing

"...Right?" Perhaps the young woman doesn't even notice - but a small smile curves her lips as she murmurs, half to herself, gaze drifting over rolling hills and distant clouds, the lights and smoke and din of a world at dusk, populated by the people she loves and the people they love and people they don't even know - and then affirms, again, more concrete, "Right." They've survived despite their losses and their blunders along the way - not entirely intact, not entirely whole, and perhaps she did not and will never understand her master and his loyalties, perhaps she didn't yet know how they now fit into the broken world put back together - even still, it cannot be wrong to continue, when it was the good, the love in human hearts that formed THIS - the family that chose her.

Her eyes are a little WARM, and it's embarrassing - that her vision blurs with tears and smudges the color of the sky even further, touches her voice wobbly and hoarse. But when she blinks them away, they DISAPPEAR - like dragonfly tail dipping into still water, like a needle of light in the eye of the storm, like all ordinary moments in life, when something shifts, when a path diverges - leaving behind only gleaming gaze. "...Would you two like to stay for dinner?" Inhales - and she's smiling when she makes the invitation, and colors only a moment later, as if remembering herself. "...Well - it isn't much, I'll be honest, but it's fresh and hot. Auntie makes a mean turnip stew - and I'm pretty sure she just fried some snacks for the children. Even if you can't stay, you ought to take some with you."

[fctedivided]

@frznkingdom

★ 【おおね】 「 版権ごった 」 ☆ ⊳ asuna // sword art online ✔ republished w/permission ⊳ ⊳ follow me on twitter

[lovelytsunoda]

I’m just a man // lance stroll

part of the welcome to wherever you are verse

summary: on their way to circuit of the americas, the hutchence-strolls stop by california to pay pilgrimage to a place very close to y/n’s heart.

pairing: lance stroll x hutchence!reader

warnings: mentions of parental death (see the lore masterpost for more details about what happened to micheal hutchence)…the timeline is a little fucked but please just ignore it

authors note: posting this in time to celebrate ✨inxs day✨ on august 16 because I’m a music nerd

y/n.hutchence just posted to her private story!

y/n.hutchence posted to her private story!

lancestroll just posted!!

los angeles, california

tagged: y/nhutchence

liked by fernandoalonso, yn.hutchence, chloestroll and 3,589 others

lancestroll los angeles with my lover girl 🩷

see all comments

y/n.hutchence I know we aren’t here for entirely happy reasons but I love that I’m doing this with you and I’ve had a wonderful time so far 🥺

-> lancestroll there’s no one else I’d rather be here with, my sweet girl

user what does she mean not entirely happy reasons?

-> user her dads grave is in Hollywood so I’m assuming she means she’s come to visit him

garygarrybeers my neighbour is wondering what happened to their dog?

-> lancestroll don’t look at me look at y/n

-> yn.hutchence are mr and mrs callaghan sure that salmon can’t come back to monaco with us?

user hilarious how everyone thought she was a gold digger at first until they found out she was literal music royalty

y/n.hutchence just posted!

liked by garrygarybeers, yourmom, lancestroll and others

y/n.hutchence I miss you, Daddy. I was just a little girl when you left us behind, and at the time I didn’t understand how much pain you were in. I took that greif and I internalized it and it made me rebellious, it made me stupid. Eventually I straightened out, and I’m sure you know that because I’m certain you’ve been watching me from up there with good ol’ Bon Scott and I want you to know that I’m okay. I’m surrounded by great family and even better friends, I’m married to a man that treats me like a princess and reminds me every day that I’m deserving of love. Growing up without you was hard, but I’ve carried you in my heart with me since I was a little kid, and I still feel you with me now.

I grieve for the moments you missed, the lost father-daughter dances. Paul is a great stepdad, and I’m glad mom found love again, but I can’t help but think that you should still be here.

I love you, Dad, and I always will.

comments on this post have been limited

kirkpengilly michael was one of the best friends a man could ask for….ill miss him forever

lancestroll I wish I could have met him myself. he sounds like an incredible person with an extraordinary legacy. I know he would be proud of you, sweetheart.

jonfarriss that man was one of a kind. rip, brother.

yourmom I hope you know how much he loved you, sweetie.

-> yn.hutchence he loved us both, mom

yourbestie sending you all of my love ❤️

[fctedivided]

@ancientforgcd

(continued from here)

"Yes, what is it Mare?" The Healer smiled at the other, deciding to pat her head. "Feel free to poke me if I don't react in the future, okay?"

The witch let out a yawn, hand covering her mouth while doing so. “How long have I been asleep…?” Her head was still in a haze, like she was being awakened from a very long slumber.

[pacing-er]

I've seen ppl talking about how Cherik may get a different name if it becomes more widely known that comic Magnetos birth name was Max Eisenhardt, but am I the only person who thinks that really won't need to happen? In the comic timeline(s) where he was called Max as a child, he still chooses to be called Erik Magnus Lehnsherr in adulthood. That is a name he chose for himself, not one imposed on him, which means he wants to use that name. Given that "Max Eisenhardt" would be very dear to him since his family would have known him by that name, I see the change of name as more of a "Max died"/loss of innocence symbology. He cannot become the boy that he was before Auschwitz, it has changed him in a way he can't come back from, just like he can never get his family back. He is a different person now, so he chose a new name for himself. Not that he would hate being called Max, I just think that he would feel more disconnected from it or not want it to be used by people he dislikes or doesn't care about. It would be something very personal with a lot of baggage.

Additionally, if the Magneto: Testament comics can be seen as applicable to the rest of the Marvel canon, he chose "Erik" because it was his uncle's name. Erich Eisenhardt was someone who Max had looked up to and seen as a courageous and strong person, so an adult Erik would want to wear that name to carry on his legacy. I think that is a beautiful name choice and I don't feel it's necessary to erase it by calling him Max.

(DISCLAIMER: of course I know the whole name debate originated from inconsistencies in the early comics, and that the movie-verse erased that particular origin anyways, but I think it is a beautiful part of his characters history and should stay)

[fctedivided]

@gravity-wall

Day 278.

2024-01-03.

Character - Grea.

Series - Shingeki no Bahamut.

Artist - Mumu Vosp

[many-sparrows]

I love you social justice oriented Christians. I love you Gary (my pastor) who presided over gay weddings before they were legally binding and before the church had come to a decision on it. I love you Conrad (old pastor I work with) for getting arrested for protesting the Iraq war and performing a lesbian wedding the minute it became legal for a couple who'd been together for decades. I love you Dr Donald Hertz for your sermons on Acts 20:27 and your life spent living out that verse and for causing trouble when you were still a student assigned to a segregated church in Birmingham and for spontaneously joining a grape boycott picket line outside of a Safeway in Berkeley because that verse says we cannot shrink away from our duty to each other. I love you Martin Luther's common chest. I love you Charles de Foucauld. I love you Oscar Romero. I love you Dorothy Day. I love you for giving me a legacy to carry on.

[voidpacifist]

potter-verse headcanons that I choose to view as canon bc fuck jkr <3

*I redid these bc james' lineage was pointed out to me in a previous comment and I don't wanna disregard it so I tweaked a few things to keep it true to the lore while also spiting the terf

this will be very long btw

starting with the marauders era (sorry this is basically an essay now)

adding onto that, I just would love to see his inner conflicts and hopes and ambitions and dialogue more flushed out, because I really don't think him being rejected by an old flame is at all cause enough for him to suddenly just hate children. even his rivalry and bullying with/from james doesn't feel like the push that comes to shove idk

severus snape is not an abusive man. in my opinion, the way that he's written makes him seem like a very cause to effect character without much complexity to him other than that he was in love with lily evans. in my mind, he's lily's closest friend and defender for most of their growing up together at hogwarts, especially after he begins unlearning blood purist ideologies. he tries to protect her from james potter, who's antagonistic of blood purists by nature, and also a massive troublemaker. thinking it will get lily hurt is what ultimately fuels his hatred of james (that and the fact that james is just kind of a dick to him the whole time they're at school together)

an earlier commenter pointed out to me that james' grandfather invented fleamont's hair potion, so the inheritance of that success would make james' family quite well off. and while he grows up with a very good home life and very loving parents, I imagine james also feels quite stifled sometimes, being that he's an only child with a lot of room in his house and a lot of legacy to carry. it's not like he has a complex about it, but he's sort of a steve harrington-esque kind of character. he's not a complete asshat, but he does experience a lot of growing pains and contentions to his worldview on multiple levels when he first becomes acquainted with lily and severus, and even when he first meets the other marauders. it adds a lot more interest than just making him the charming class clown, and james being desi adds another layer of complexity to him too. (I'm quite curious about how desi metaphysics are practiced, and how that would be a shift for him going from eleven years of his own household magic to hogwarts magic)

adding onto that, it's why he and sirius become such fast friends - sirius feels estranged from his own family, and james' only family are his parents and grandparents. they're closer than sirius and his own brother are. this does certainly make things strange and angsty when regulus takes an admiration to james that sirius notices, when sirius himself is constantly being compared to his more "ideal wizard archetype" younger brother his entire life

in fact, regulus' admiration of james starts as more of a scientific sort of reverence - he wants to understand how a pure blood can be so defiant of the ideas that suggest he's more worthy of practicing wizardry, let alone a pure blood who has come from so much. he learns quite a lot about james through sirius, and when he actually meets him for the first time, he's nothing like the troublemaker prince charming that everyone expects him to be. it's the first time reg experiences real endearment to someone who isn't in his own family, and even that kind of love is conditional at best (shout-out to walburga and orion black for their a-plus parenting)

it makes it that much more painful when he sees that james, while kinder and more considerate than he seemed at first, only thinks of him as sirius'-younger-brother-who-isn't-actually-that-terrible-perhaps; when he sees that james only has room in his heart for lily evans, who by black family standards isn't worthy to have any knowledge of the magical world, let alone belong in it. and he's trying to be better and to understand, but even the kindest blood purists are still blood purists, and it will take him years after this heartbreak to rectify that mindset - even as he's defying voldemort himself

lily grows up in scotland, and while her parents love her and petunia very much, they're constantly fighting. she and tuney often spend time together, and when lily's magical talents start to emerge, she at first asks her big sister, her protector, her closest friend, to keep this secret from their parents. so imagine the heartbreak when lily's owl comes in the mail, and instead of the magical announcement being a complication for their parents, the evans' are overjoyed. imagine the betrayal that petunia feels when, after years of borderline neglect to the both of them, lily leans into the praise and attention she's now receiving. and she tries to make it up to tuney - she even grows a flower in her own hand hoping to make peace with her only real role model in life, only to have it shut down by being called a freak. things only get worse as tuney is left at home with quarreling parents while lily gets the privilege of being away from all of it. the number of letters she sends to dumbledore begging to learn magic, then simply begging to see her little sister more than just during christmas, should be enough to convince the old man to have some leniency, but dumbledore doesn't

now let's talk about peter pettigrew. we all blame him for the downfall of james and lily that kicks off the tragedy of harry's childhood, which we should. but the why of it feels important to me, so personally, this is how I see his psyche playing a role: what if he grows up in a religious household? now I know how that sounds, but hear me out. peter grows up in a religious family because his parents carry some sort of shame surrounding their magical lineage. maybe it's because their squibs, maybe it's because of other trauma from being discovered by muggles, etc. regardless, he grows up discouraged from using his magic, but instead of suppressing it and developing an obscurus, he learns how to hide it. he practices his abilities in secret, until he's a very good liar with the worst case of people pleasing. so when his owl comes with his hogwarts letter, his parents are less than happy about it. he's sent to live with his aunt when he's not at school. in the meantime, he hides as much as he can about his family from the marauders. remus has his lycanthropy to worry about, and sirius already has an even rockier home life to begin with. so it's no wonder that peter latches onto james - ironically, james becomes a secret keeper of sorts for him. but peter is never close to him the way sirius is, or even remus. he's forgotten by his friends, disregarded by his parents, and written off as soft and submissive by his other peers and even the teachers. it makes him all the more suggestible when he's sought out by voldemort, who promises him a place of belonging, which is all that he's ever wanted since he was a child. he's hidden things from the people closest to him once before, so he can do it again, right?

until of course, voldemort actually physically manipulates him with an imperius curse. and all it takes is one curse for the dark lord to convince peter that his friends can never take him back, not when he's killed and maimed and cursed and destroyed lives as much as he has. "not when you're my most trusted servant, wormtail." in short, peter pettigrew is and always will be remembered as a coward. but before he was a coward, he was in pain. and voldemort used that pain to turn him against his only friends before his only friends could turn on him

speaking of other death eaters, let's talk about regulus again for a moment. in an audience-sparing plot, regulus lives. in an angst driven plot, regulus drowns. so for the sake of compromising realism for emotional lenience, let's say nobody actually knows what happens to him. there's all kinds of rumors about the missing black brother, but the truth is that regulus doesn't drown. he's badly hurt in his attempt to destroy the locket, because not only is that thing messing with him psychologically, it's also a pain in the ass to try and get rid of. brutally injured and looking for a place to hide, he enchants a supply cabinet in a muggle cafe to expand into his own flat, which looks to non-magic users like any old closet, even if they try to open it. kreacher is left the locket along with regulus' note, because he doesn't want to be found (great opportunity for him to make a sneaky little appearance in the first half of the deathly hallows though, when the golden trio are debriefing in a muggle cafe...)

remus grows up in a really good home, but like james, he feels a sort of isolation. not because of his class status but because of his condition. as his body begins to mature in his teenage years, his lycanthropy also "matures," taking a bigger and bigger toll on his body until by the time his third year starts at hogwarts (between growth spurts and growing pains and the intensity of his transitions), he can't walk without using a cane. he's pretty sickly as a child anyway to begin with, so more often than not, he spends a lot of time in his bed in the gryffindor common room. this means when a lot of the pranking and troublemaking is happening, he's either in the background unable to do much more than try and dissuade his friends, or he isn't there at all. it isn't until a little way into his fourth year that he begins actively participating in marauders shenanigans, including helping with the construction of the map. I imagine he and sirius both have feelings for one another during this time, but these feelings cannot or do not go acknowledged until the later years (like, year six or seven)

when it comes time to meet sirius' family, sirius has already been disowned by his birth parents and is extremely distant from his brother and cousins. all of course, except for his cousin andromeda, who reaches out to him after the news of his erasure from the family tree makes it to her. this is actually how remus meets tonks in my mind - because during the whole "meet the parents" thing, he meets ted, his wife, and their daughter nymphadora

that's all I've got for now from the marauders era but the golden trio era is a whole different ballgame (and probably way longer sorry in advance)

let's start with harry. petunia is not near as strict with him as vernon is, but they're both abusive to him in ways that are physical and psychological. dudley, of course, is given everything by his parents to the point of spoiling, while harry is forced to feed off of the leftovers. and while he definitely inherits his father's "fuck around and find out" personality, he's a lot less likely to fuck around with the dursleys. in fact, he's much more quiet until he gets to hogwarts and blossoms. I also think his scar is much more noticeable and does much more alteration to his face. because it's the aftermath of the killing curse, it makes him much more likely to die just from a physical standpoint than from simply a plot device standpoint. voldemort is obsessed with killing him, and incidentally, he's a very easy person to kill

however, this doesn't make harry a weak wizard by any means. his magic is incredibly powerful and he's incredibly cunning with it. it's why the hat finds it equally appropriate to sort him into slytherin, other than the obvious connection that he and voldemort share. but this does mean that other people's perceptions of him are that he is weaker. draco thinks he can easily manipulate him. ron underestimates his understanding of the wizarding world and how to defend himself. hermione even has her moments, though hers are more a concern for his well-being as a target of all sorts of evil wizardry. even still, it's a shock and a half to go from being consistently neglected and abused to being coddled and handled with kid gloves all the time. it's no wonder his "fuck around and find out" attitude we see in the books and films also comes to life due to the way he's being mistreated - whether that's with good or ill intent

ron is not only his first friend, but also the first person harry is formally introduced to. he's harry's gateway to what the wizarding world looks like outside of school. of course, molly weasley immediately decides this makes harry her son as well as ron, and it's nice for ron to have a brother his own age. but as the youngest son in a family of seven kids, with one of the honorary offspring being famous in the wizarding world, it's easy for him to get swept up in the idea that he's the afterthought of his friends and family. as a result, he tries emulating harry's attitude towards the world, but whereas harry's is built up by his upbringing and those around him, ron's is built up out of spite. it creates resentment when they're horcrux hunting together, because ron not only hates that harry is refusing to be taken care of - he also hates that nobody's taking care of him

it's why I think he and luna lovegood make an excellent pair. luna is an uncommonly kind person by nature, and we already know in the books that she takes a shine to ron. I wish we'd seen more of them in canon, so it's my personal philosophy that they should have been together instead of ron and hermione. luna really softens the resentment in ron, because she takes so much in stride that it sort of rubs off on him. and ron brings out something very protective and fiery in her. if she weren't a ravenclaw, she'd make an excellent gryffindor, though honestly she's such a multitudinous character already that she'd do swimmingly in almost any house, in my opinion

more on luna: she and hermione were actually quite close as first years, but grew apart because while luna was accepted for her neurodivergence, hermione was singled out. there's not much difference between the two of them other than the two factors that luna doesn't mask her traits, and is a pureblood. at the time that they're both eleven, I imagine eleven-year-old blood purist logic would muddy a friendship rather quickly, especially when you're trying to seek acceptance from your peers. this isn't to say that luna is a cruel person by any means - it's just that hermione has to work harder for her fitting-in-ness. naturally, being in different houses and different circles of peers along with all the other factors, they grow apart. four years after they've met, luna is simply "looney lovegood" to hermione

hermione's parents are very eager muggles to integrate hermione into the wizarding world. the two of them meet in college, when both take an interest in metaphysical studies and the history of witches and witchcraft. though it starts as a scientific fascination, hermione's father turns out to be a rather superstitious man in the first place. when their daughter receives her owl, both of them are overjoyed at the possibility of there being a world where their fascination with magic and the occult is real. the only reason they both go into dentistry (and together at the same office, no less) is because they're ridiculously in love with one another and want hermione to have a stable childhood

snape ends up being a very protective teacher over harry. the reason he hides it is because he knows dumbledore is on the hunt for power and control, however much the man tries to disguise it as working for the greater good. the headmaster simply believes harry is the perfect conduit to attain those things, and rather than view him as a threat, dumbledore views him as a tool. snape is desperate not to see harry become a pawn, the way he did, but he also sees so much of james in him that it's hard for him to reconcile any outward respect for him. this makes snape a very cold man for harry to cross (and he's already cold enough for several other reasons), but in my personal opinion, it does his character a disservice to make him outright abusive. he's dismissive and intense and extremely aloof, but never does he use it to punish harry himself. snape's only seen as a shifty, mean person by harry because of how similar he is to petunia and her dismissal of harry at home so by god do those trust issues jump out between these two. it's by no means a father + son dynamic, but it's certainly a begrudging guardian + clueless guardee dynamic, if that makes sense

in fact, when snape realizes draco is also dealing with abuse in the home, he makes it a goal of his to do what he can to make sure their time in his class is as easy as possible. of course, true to severus snape fashion, he does this in such a way that it seems like he's going to single them out when in reality, he's only breeding an environment where draco and harry start having a tentative, mutual respect for one another. this is at first very confusing for hermione and ron, as well as draco's circle of friends. but these two are nothing if not stubborn, which means cycle breaking is what they're destined for

this paves the way for draco and hermione to be in each other's circles. mutually indifferent to one another at best. detestable to one another at worst. very much enemies to lovers, until hermione bests draco in a dueling practice and draco gains some respect for her. he learns that she is a very well schooled person when it comes to traditional witch traditions and rituals; that she recognizes the holidays that christmas and halloween are bastardizations of; that she does in fact "respect her betters," because she respects her magic as the sacred gift that it is. at that point, does it become allies to lovers. and when the second wizarding war rolls around, he does everything he can within his power to play the roll of double agent. snape becomes his mentor in that regard in more ways than one (he has to kill dumbledore and he has to outsmart voldemort, homeboy is stressing)

hey speaking of pairings, the only original pairing that I tend to keep the same within the golden trio is ginny and harry. it is the sole good pairing that jkr brought to the table. I still have a few notes on it — I just wish there was more development with them. I wish there was more canonical tension than "brother's famous best friend," because while ginny is a wonderful character on her own, she doesn't seem the type to be besotted by someone because of their fame. in fact, an enemies to lovers hinny would almost make more sense to me. they're both incredibly stubborn, it's a wonder they don't butt heads more during canon events, with the fact in mind that ginny is quite soft spoken around him. she's very do-no-harm-take-no-shit, and I wish we saw more of that in their interactions. in my head, their pipeline is as follows: younger sister figure -> academic rival/enemy -> allies during the order era -> confidants -> lovers. if this makes sense. I know it's similar to the canon pipeline for them but please I need tension I need depth I need conflict

I also have got to talk about cho because first of all, what the fuck kind of name is "cho chang" for the only visibly asian character in a franchise? said it once and I'll say it again: fuck jkr. she didn't put thought or depth into this character even one bit other than making her ditsy and boy-obsessed and I hate that shit! with all my heart! in fact, all of the POC women in this series she writes specifically to be obsessed with harry, and that makes my blood absolutely evaporate because they could be so much more than one dimensional figures. I digress

as I see it, "cho chang" isn't her real name at all. it's chao-xing zhang, and the first name means morning star. she hails from a family where her father is chinese and her mother is irish. if I had to give her a middle name, it would be siobhan. she grows up with strong roots in both her irish and chinese heritage, and she's the pride of her family, since she's the only child her parents are able to have. when she arrives at hogwarts, she is quite shy and reserved. but she's brilliant, so of course she's in ravenclaw. but it's in an atypical sense that she is brilliant, not in the I-come-fom-an-asian-family-so-I'm-clever kind of way (I think giving her the gift of clairvoyance would add a really good layer to her arc). she tries to fight off visions of harry potter dying, but she cannot shake them, so instead she vows to fight with him, especially after voldemort kills the first person to show her love and affection for who she is, not for the "cho chang" that her peers think she is. it's only natural for her to take a shine to harry when he's the one who saw cedric diggory murdered

while we're on the topic of horseshit naming, parvati and padma aren't called parvati and padma in my personal mindscape of the potter-verse. they're instead named drisana and salena, meaning "daughter of the sun" and "moon" respectively. not only are they fraternal twins, they also have entirely separate personalities and magical gifts. they're as different as the sun and moon are different, but they also both reflect each other's gifts quite well, just like how the full moon is an expression of both itself and the light of the sun. of course they're both enamored by the boy who lived and his best mate, and of course they say yes to them when they need dates for the yule ball. but to say either of them are actually in love with or interested in either of the boys isn't true by a long shot - salena much prefers her own company and drisana has been eyeing the pretty ravenclaw, chao-xing, for as long as she can remember (I also think they would take harry under their wing and help him reconnect with his desi culture because I can't imagine being raised by the dursleys gave him too much opportunity for that tbh)

now onto more world-buildy types of things

in fact, I'd say the only stereotypical twins at hogwarts are fred and george, and even then they only play into it for the bit. they think it's wildly funny to confuse anyone who doesn't know them well enough to tell them apart, which is a very small number of people (I mean come on, even their own mother doesn't always manage to tell them apart). one of them is probably just a little bit fruity, and the other one is either none the wiser or not the least bit surprised. they pretend like they're carefree people, but they both feel the pull of the war on their morale, even before the war truly sets in motion with the death of dumbledore. they don't have any older sibling figures present as far as we read until bill becomes part of the plot, but I like to think he and charlie are the ones they go to when they're needing someone to talk to about the state of the world. even then, they have to be careful about it in their correspondences.

and while I like to think that molly and arthur are all very present in the lives of their children, I also believe that arthur's work in the ministry keeps him quite busy, and molly can't always be there for each individual child without totally burning herself out. long story short, the weasleys are there for one another as much as they can be, but mainly as a whole. and of course, every weasley brother would level london for ginny if the need arose for it, since she gets little sister treatment (as she should, we love her for it)

it is in my humble opinion that each house has some elemental magic attached to it. some of these are more obvious, for instance, gryffindor would likely have many ties to fire magic, whereas with hufflepuff's patron being the badger, they'd have many ties to earth magic. ravenclaw and slytherin were a little bit harder for me to parse out, but a raven for me would signify air/weather magic while a reptilian, cold blooded patron would be symbolic to water. and while of course, any magical student can have a proclivity for any element of the four, many gryffindors will have a higher aptitude for fire magic. it's why (in my opinion) seamus finnegan is so talented with pyrotechnics in the first place - it's no accident that gryffindor is where he was sorted with that level of fire magic

so then, liv, how does that explain dumbledore's weird water orb and voldemort's fire serpent featured in the order of the phoenix film? actually that's a quite easy answer - remember how I said not every gryffindor has fire magic tendencies? this is actually referenced with neville longbottom's talent for herbology. if anything, he's more inclined to work with earth magic. we don't see a lot of deviating from house elements at all in canon, but aside from the main main characters, jkr also doesn't divulge much on it to begin with. even then, neville still has the inner fire of a gryffindor. and even though voldemort's raw magic takes the form of a serpent on fire, we see his former self most comfortable with the basilisk, who lives in the dank underbelly of the hogwarts plumbing. water snakes, anybody? dumbledore's is a little trickier to explain, but I do think in his conquest to be more powerful than voldemort, he also ended up mastering all four elements. he does certainly favor fire though, considering his animal companion is a phoenix, and his raw magic is displayed with fire in the half blood prince film during the sea cave scene

beyond the elements and patrons of each house, there's also astrology, runes, divination, etc. basically magic that isn't necessarily assigned to an element, but the elements can be present in each practice. for instance, astrology is a very planetary practice, and it relies on the position of the earth itself in relation to the stars and other celestial bodies (or vice versa). the moon oversees the tides (water), the sun provides warmth (fire) as well as nurtures greenery and living things (earth). all three interacting in different manners affects the weather (air). runes can be written or carved anywhere, but are best written either with something fluid like water and inked, or etched into a solid surface such as wood or stone. divination, particularly scrying, is best done with a reflective surface, however tea reading involves some herbology when it comes to making the tea itself. I digress, the point is, different aptitudes mean some students will have a higher proclivity for one practice than another outside of their "inner element" or which element works best with them (also jkr why didn't you include something for the crystal girlies?? for the fellas who love the pretty rocks???)

onto the topic we all love (said sarcastically) the most: wizard racism. rowling really thought she could paint a complex narrative about blood purity and the differences thereof when her own writing is inherently racist? miss me with that horseshit, anyway here's my personal take on the whole blood purity smorgasbord:

the only difference between muggleborns and regular old muggles is that some have the aptitude and skill for harnessing magic, and some don't. I don't actually know the science behind it. maybe the stars aligned just right. maybe it's a distant genetic thing. regardless, muggles have a very whimsical view of magic itself. we have our holidays like christmas and halloween and easter, and our cutesy packagings of the aesthetic for each holiday. but the holidays that they originate from, such as yule and samhain, have been celebrated by pagans and witches long before this christ-ifying of them, and even longer before making them palatable to a consumer culture. meaning it is real culture that has been taken and warped and accepted by society as normal, when it doesn't credit the original practicers in the first place

and considering the salem witch trials and other witch hunts (some of which are still happening in places around the globe, mind you), it's no wonder that, taking the canon of harry potter into consideration, purebloods (in this case, those from pagan families who have kept the practices for hundreds of generations and have only married within magical bloodlines) are at least mistrusting of muggleborns. does it excuse the blatant mistreatment and alienation of muggleborn witches and wizards? absolutely not. does it at least explain the disparity? yes it does

it gives salazar slytherins perspective of only allowing purebloods into his house an entirely new layer as to why. if only he didn't go about hatching an ancient bloodthirsty beast to hunt down the muggleborn students!

it does also add a very archaic level to slytherin house culture, though - they're not only the most cunning house (and most misunderstood), they're also the most observant of traditional paganism. dumbledore is so dead set on the belief that slytherin breeds evil wizards and witches, however, that his favoritism to his patron house (which happens to have the opposite mascot and element, mind you) creates an environment where slytherins are either feared or outright disrespected by the other houses. here's a hot take: dark and light magic can exist within the same space and still not have any moral attachment to them. crazy, innit

which means that not only is dumbledore a more "accepting" headmaster of muggleborns - they too, are a means to an end in this vendetta he has against tom riddle; a vendetta he's had against a child since he realized this child (who mind you, was already isolated as an orphan and a wizard growing up surrounded by muggles) was the heir of slytherin. and while yes, this made him a threat to the safety of muggleborn students, dumbledore also ensured the creation of the thing that which he vowed to overthrow. his mission in life as a wizard with great power and responsibility was a self fulfilling prophecy

(enough said about albus dumbledore. I hate that man. no wonder jkr paints him as such a hero figure in the series though like damn)

more world building! I think it should be canon that a modified obliviate spell exists so that trans witches and wizards can erase the memory of a dead name from the minds of anyone who isn't them. use this headcanon how you must, it may be the biggest fuck you to the author I could come up with <3

phew! that was a mouthful, but on that note, those are all my thoughts/headcanons/other things that I've conjured so far. some of them may be based off of headcanons I've already seen (like, we've all basically confirmed james is desi at this point), but I did wanna drive a little deeper into those existing ones as well as add thoughts of my own. I am planning on using most if not all of these to write my own rendition of the potter-verse canon, but feel free to use any of them you see in here! I'd love to invite more dialogue, particularly about more thoughtful name changes (like seriously if y'all have anymore suggestions on that front please send them to me, I don't want to be totally ignorant or off base so any feedback is super appreciated)

[fctedivided]

She had a point. What was normal nowadays, since everyone had different perspectives and views about these meanings, so it hardly mattered in the end.

"I suppose you're right. I can't really judge what supposed to be right or wrong for the humans, nor for the other kinds, even my own. Not that I really care for that matter." The fallen angel looked away, staring in the distance where the moon and the stars were illuminating the night sky.

"Even I said my goodbyes towards my parents and brother, wanting to leave my sins and burdens in the past, am I truly free?" She questioned, but also to herself.

While Neo couldn't blame Lux for the questioning, the mute has been living for so LONG as an undead, that it was just the 'normal' for her. It didn't help that only a few years of her life were as a human, but even then, her parents were vampires that raised her for the day in which she was ready to be turned into one.

'I'm happy because I can do whatever I want. I'm free...and superior to those lowly human beings when gifted with these powers.' Giving the fallen angel a toothy grin, Neo chuckled softly to herself before humming softly.

'Humans also have restrictions, anyway. Almost every being does. They also have to eat and drink if they want to live, so is this any different?...the sun is a pain, more like an allergy, but no problem when we are the most active at night anyway. I was raised to be used to these, so I don't know what it's like to be 'normal'.' After making a pause, she laughed some more and stared at Lux from the corner of her eyes. 'What's really normal in this world, eh? Vampires have been controlling human society for the longest time, and yet...they think they are the ones in control. And most of the time live ignorant of the kind of creatures they walk among.'

[app1es0uce]

TLDR: Telemachus always sings high energy and doesn’t really change his energy level through the entire saga, while Antinous feels like he’s holding back. And though it may be unintentional, I think that’s fun characterization and fun contrast between the two characters

I don’t know if it’s intentional or just the way the singer does things, but I noticed Telemachus carries the same amount of energy through singing. Sometimes singers will start off chill or neutral and then hype up as the song goes on, but Telemachus, at least in Legendary, always keeps the same amount of energy through the entire song. Even as he sings the last verse, the music is softer and he’s singing slower, but it’s the same amount of energy as the beginning and middle and everything. The only time it’s any less is in “Little Wolf” when he goes “I don’t know how” but other than that, he’s usually evenly high energy throughout the entire saga.

This is contrary to Antinous who, again maybe it’s the singer himself, feels like he’s holding back. It’s strong, don’t get me wrong, it’s epic and so cool, but there are some moments like the second “wanna be a man then” before going into “die little wolf, die” where it sounds like his voice is almost wavering, not wanting to be too loud or powerful. 

I don’t know if this was intentional or not, or if this is opinion based and it’s just me and my  interpretation when hearing the songs. But I think maybe it’s a good reflection of the characters. In contrast, showing Antinous doesn’t care and doesn’t see Telemachus as a threat, so he’s chill and doesn’t get hyped up because he feels like he doesn’t need to waste energy on Telemachus. He’s just a little guy that doesn’t know what he’s doing.

While Telemachus still has that spirit inside him, a childlike personality so he’s always energetic and hyped up. He also doesn’t really have much grasp or control of himself and who he is, so he just attacks with everything he’s got, everything with one hundred percent and tries his best and pushes himself past what he can handle in hopes to live up to his father’s legacy. 

Again, maybe it’s just the singers style, maybe it’s a personal thing that only I hear, maybe it was unintentional, maybe it’s a mistake, either way, I like this little feature and little bit of characterization.

[copaganda-clobberfest]

WELCOME

TO THE FIRST ROUND OF THE COPAGANDA CLOBBERFEST!

“You know that trope? That one trope *Everyone* hates? The trope in which a well meaning antagonist to our heroes, one looking out for the good of a certain community, suddenly does something horrible and drastic to make not only them, but the ideology they stand for the most villainous of all?”

NOW IS THE TIME TO BATTLE THEM OUT! Like Ken dolls, fighting for survival! Like your Polly pockets discarded in the closet, we’ll see which of these bitches jumped that slippery slope harder! Whose character did numbers on y’all, and blew up a bunch of grandmas and babies and hospitals with it!

ROUND ONE

HAMA from AVATAR: THE LAST AIRBENDER vs AMON from THE LEGEND OF KORRA

Hama propaganda:

“A waterbender from the southern water tribe who was captured by the fire nation when they invaded her home. After being put through inhuman conditions to prevent her from waterbending, she learned to bend her captors’ blood instead to escape. She then lived undercover in the fire nation, for decades, before meeting the gaang. Then out of nowhere it’s revealed she’s behind the disappearance of a bunch of fire nation villagers and she tries to forcibly teach katara bloodbending so she can carry on her actions. And for what?? That doesn’t even make any sense!! She could’ve been at least targeting soldiers or officials but nope all of a sudden she’s actually the villain torturing innocents because she can and i guess that’s what happens after she goes through all that ???? ??”

“if iroh can get let off the hook for being a former fascist war criminal, hama can get off the hook for imprisoning people. hama was taken from her homeland, interned, and forced to watch all of her fellow waterbenders die in prison. the gaang's solution to her doing the same thing to members of the nation that wiped her people out? RE-INTERN THIS TRAUMATIZED ELDERLY SURVIVOR SO SHE'LL DIE IN PRISON LIKE THE REST OF HER PEOPLE. hama should be allowed to go home and see her few surviving friends and family again.

bloodbending wasn't just a cool evil new ability, it was a metaphor for generational trauma. that's why hama was so insistent that katara learn it: it was the final legacy of all those people who the fire nation purposefully exterminated, because it was the only thing that saved hama from that same fate. it was the only form of southern bending katara could inherit, because it was all that was left of them.”

Amon propaganda:

“his whole thing was that nonbenders are discriminated against in the avatar-verse, which isn’t all that wrong. except instead of fighting for something like more nonbender representation in government or, y’know, a n y t h i n g reasonable, he decides the way to solve this is clearly to take away people’s bending until… what?

honestly, I never was clear on if he had an actual plan

take away the bending of everyone in republic city? the world? stop at korra? who knows!

anyways. he decides it makes pErFeCt SeNsE that to solve the problem of nonbending discrimination (I honestly don’t think it was as oppressive as he claimed) by taking away peoples bending ability

which is akin to someone stealing your entire identity and for many, livelihood

but the real kicker is

the way he does it

IS BY BENDING

AND NOT EVEN REGULAR BENDING BUT A SUPER SECRET RESTRICTED ILLEGAL FORM OF BENDING

which is EXACTLY the kind of thing he fearmongers about when he says venders have too much power

so his whole platform of “I am one of you (nonbenders), chosen by the spirits to correct this inequality” is complete and utter baloney”

Always feel free to rb with more propaganda :)

[fctedivided]

A water witch's tears.

(Source.)