#Any Malu Show

[thes-hitoverlord]

The official Cartoon Network of Brazil

[constellationcrowned]

((Finalizing and making the muse bios public is a ways off (I'm waiting for ch3 to release tbh, because there'll be a lot more to use, cover, etc) but when I do for the sake of accessibility not only will each bio have its own navi (which I can provide a sample of) I'll also list the notable tws associated with each character, primarily because they can be pretty severe and I don't skimp/water them down when writing. Safety is important y'know?))

[lu-is-not-ok]

So I'm going over some various Canto Finale Dungeon Events to look at check bonuses and maluses, and the first one of real interest is in Canto 3's. Linking to the wiki page that lists it: https://limbuscompany.wiki.gg/wiki/Branch_K-02/Floor_2

It's "A Rotting Corpses's Momento". Basically, there's a dead Inquisitor with something inside (a Seal you can spend later on). You gotta send a Sinner to root around and find it. Ryoshu (Loves Gore) and Rodion (willing to put in work for shiny stuff) get +2s, Sinclair and Hong Lu get -4s and if they fail, more SP loss.

Sinclair tracks. He's got a weak stomach for that kind of stuff, but I was wondering if you had any thoughts on Hong Lu getting a malus. He doesn't really have problems with violence, not like Sinclair, he's not offput by blood or gore. (If there's any more interesting Hong Lu bonuses or maluses on checks I'll send more asks later)

Oooh, now this is interesting! Let's see... I think I have two different possible interpretation. One that assumes this multiplier is fully genuine, and one which assumes it's not so much.

The latter idea is that the negative multiplier is one Hong Lu normally wouldn't genuinely have, but it's one he's acting as if he has based on his own read of Sinclair.

Consider this. Sinclair is thus far the only Sinner that is anywhere close to being of the same financial/class status as Hong Lu. He's the only other Sinner with the correct experience of being raised in a wealthy household, and as such he's in the unique position of being able to call bullshit on whatever Hong Lu might try to spin as his background.

Mind you, this isn't just my opinion - this is something that the story content following up after Canto 3 supports as well. In fact, Sinclair is shown to be one of the few people whose questioning of Hong Lu's demeanor and attitudes is a recurring thread.

Likewise, Hong Lu uses Sinclair as a springboard to make his story more believeable by implying that whatever knowledge he may have that differs from Sinclair's is just a silly little cultural difference, instead of what it actually is - him being way more knowledgeable than someone who claims to be sheltered would otherwise be.

Then there's also this moment in Canto 5, where after Hong Lu's story gets an extremely negative reaction out of Sinclair, Hong Lu appears to course correct and alter the story to be far less horror-focused.

Like, looking at the tone in which Hong Lu was telling the story before that last sentence, it's pretty clear to me how this ending is not what he initially meant to say. It's too abrupt, his tone shifts too much for it to be the natural conclusion, and everyone who follows up the story with their own thoughts and reactions makes it clear it was that odd of an ending in-character as well. It's a change he made because he realized he misjudged Sinclair's tolerance for this type of thing, and thus it could make him look bad.

All of this, to me, shows that Hong Lu is very much aware that he has to be extra careful around Sinclair when it comes to how believable his lies are. Not only because Sinclair himself has the ability to call his bullshit, but also because for the other Sinners, he's the only other person on the bus they can compare Hong Lu to. And if the two's reactions and tolerances for things start to diverge too much, this could cause the others to start asking questions he can't answer easily.

With all that laid out, I believe one of the ways to interpret Hong Lu's check modifier here is just that - him trying to align his own reactions and tolerance to that of Sinclair's. This is Sinclair's Canto after all, where every Sinner ends up with their attention focused on him and his circumstances. There's more spotlight on how Sinclair acts around things like bodies than there ever was before that point. To Hong Lu, it's the perfect opportunity to observe Sinclair and in turn affirm his position as an even more sheltered and naive person by following his example.

However, this is just one interpretation. I do have another, alternate interpretation - one that assumes the modifier is a reflection of Hong Lu's genuine feelings rather than a reflection of his act.

Because, as it turns out, there is something interesting going on here!

While Hong Lu shows no real aversion to blood and gore the way Sinclair does, and he appears to be outright immune to physical pain, he is depicted as having a very odd attitude to messing with already dead bodies.

This is primarily shown through the second log he wrote for the Pink Shoes Enchantee/Posessee enemies.

It's a very strange backpedal of Hong Lu to do. It draws attention to the fact that Hong Lu would in fact be interested in hearing things about the body itself, considering his initial instinct is to say he'd tell a servant to describe what it looks like.

It makes me wonder if it's a clue as to what part exactly Hong Lu considers to be "that gross sight". Is it really just the fact that there's a dead body, or is it more specifically the idea of messing with it and taking its things?

It would certainly explain why he'd have a negative modifier for this check. After all, if he does indeed consider the act of looting a corpse so disgusting that he would have looked away and made someone else do it, one can imagine that being told to actually do it himself would not be something he'd be happy with.

And, of course, there is also the option of the negative modifier being caused by a mix of both interpretations. It could be that it's his genuine feelings that he's further exagerrating and exploiting for the sake of making his act more believable.

[correlance]

Paradise Lost: How John Milton's 1667 work influenced "Hazbin Hotel"

I've been thinking about why the "fruit of knowledge" in Hazbin Hotel is depicted as an apple, as opposed to another fruit that would've been more accurate to the Middle East during the Fall of Man, as well as how Paradise Lost by John Milton (1667) influenced the show.

Per one source:

"Because the Hebrew Bible describes the forbidden fruit only as 'peri', the term for general fruit, no one knows [what exactly type of fruit it was]. It could be a fruit that doesn't exist anymore. Historians have speculated it may have been any one of these fruits: pomegranate, mango, fig, grapes, etrog or citron, carob, pear, quince, or mushroom."

Per Wikipedia:

"The pseudepigraphic Book of Enoch describes the tree of knowledge: 'It was like a species of the Tamarind tree, bearing fruit which resembled grapes extremely fine; and its fragrance extended to a considerable distance. I exclaimed, How beautiful is this tree, and how delightful is its appearance!' (1 Enoch 31:4)."

In Jewish and Islamic traditions, the "fruit of knowledge" is commonly identified with grapes. The Zohar explains that Noah attempted (but failed) to rectify the sin of Adam by using grape wine for holy purposes. Today, the "Noah grape" is still used to make white wine.

Furthermore:

"The association of the pomegranate with knowledge of the underworld as provided in the Ancient Greek legend of Hades and Persephone may also have given rise to an association with knowledge of the 'otherworld', tying-in with knowledge that is forbidden to mortals. It is also believed Hades offered Persephone a pomegranate to force her to stay with him in the underworld for 6 months of the year. Hades is the Greek god of the underworld, and the Bible states that whoever eats the forbidden fruit shall die."

So, how then did the apple become the foremost symbol of the "fruit of knowledge"? You can partly thank Paradise Lost by English poet John Milton, a work which the lore of Hazbin Hotel is based off of.

Milton published the book in 1667, a time when the hedonistic Restoration era was in full swing. The exiled King Charles II was restored to the throne as King of England in 1660, and was a party animal, with dozens of mistresses, and nicknamed both the "playboy prince" and "Old Rowley", the latter after his favorite lustful stallion.

However, the association of the "fruit of knowledge" began with a Latin pun long before Milton immortalized the association in Paradise Lost. Per the linked article above by Nina Martyris for NPR:

"In order to explain, we have to go all the way back to the fourth century A.D., when Pope Damasus ordered his leading scholar of scripture, Jerome, to translate the Hebrew Bible into Latin. Jerome's path-breaking, 15-year project, which resulted in the canonical 'Vulgate', used the Latin spoken by the common man. As it turned out, the Latin words for evil and apple are the same: 'malus'.

[...] When Jerome was translating the 'Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil', the word 'malus' snaked in. A brilliant but controversial theologian, Jerome was known for his hot temper, but he obviously also had a rather cool sense of humor.

'Jerome had several options,' says Robert Appelbaum, a professor of English literature at Sweden's Uppsala University. 'But he hit upon the idea of translating 'peri' as 'malus', which in Latin has two very different meanings. As an adjective, 'malus' means 'bad' or 'evil'. As a noun it seems to mean an apple, in our own sense of the word, coming from the very common tree now known officially as the 'Malus pumila'. So Jerome came up with a very good pun.'

The story doesn't end there. 'To complicate things even more,' says Appelbaum, 'the word 'malus' in Jerome's time, and for a long time after, could refer to any fleshy seed-bearing fruit. A pear was a kind of 'malus'. So was the fig, the peach, and so forth.'

Which explains why Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel fresco features a serpent coiled around a fig tree. But the apple began to dominate Fall artworks in Europe after the German artist Albrecht Dürer's famous 1504 engraving depicted the First Couple counterpoised beside an apple tree. It became a template for future artists such as Lucas Cranach the Elder, whose luminous Adam and Eve painting is hung with apples that glow like rubies.

Milton, then, was only following cultural tradition. But he was a renowned Cambridge intellectual fluent in Latin, Greek and Hebrew, who served as secretary for foreign tongues to Oliver Cromwell during the Commonwealth. If anyone was aware of the 'malus' pun, it would be him, and yet he chose to run it with it. Why?

Appelbaum says that Milton's use of the term 'apple' was ambiguous. 'Even in Milton's time the word had two meanings: either what was our common apple, or, again, any fleshy seed-bearing fruit. Milton probably had in mind an ambiguously named object with a variety of connotations as well as denotations, most but not all of them associating the idea of the apple with a kind of innocence, though also with a kind of intoxication, since hard apple cider was a common English drink.'

It was only later readers of Milton, says Appelbaum, who thought of 'apple' as 'apple', and not any seed-bearing fruit. For them, the forbidden fruit became synonymous with the 'malus pumila'. As a widely read canonical work, 'Paradise Lost' was influential in cementing the role of apple in the Fall of Man story."

To tie this back into John Milton's relationship with King Charles II of England, as mentioned, Milton originally served Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector of England, and the English Commonwealth, which was formed with the overthrow and execution of King Charles I on 30 January 1649, following the bloody English Civil War (1642 – 1651).

The King's two sons - the newly-christened King Charles II, the elder, and James, Duke of York (King James II), the younger - fled into exile on the European continent. However, with the death of Oliver Cromwell on 3 September 1658 came the 2-year-long dissolution of the English Commonwealth, and the restoration of the monarchy.

As for Milton himself, we can look to an article by Bill Potter.

Milton, born on 9 December 1608, was around 51-52 years old when King Charles II was restored to the throne. He attended Christ's Church, Cambridge in his youth, and mastered at least six languages, as well as history and philosophy; making him, perhaps, the most knowledgeable poet in history. He spent more than a year travelling across Europe, conversing with and learning from intellectuals, linguists, poets, and artists, including the famous Galileo Galilei.

However, Milton was a controversial figure of his time, being unafraid to criticize institutions of authority; arguing that "divorce was Biblical", for which he was routinely condemned; joining the Puritans; penning the Areopagitica, a treatise on liberty in favor of Parliament and the Roundhead rebels, during the reign of King Charles I, arguing that the King must be held accountable by the people; and agreed with and justified the murder of King Charles I, for which Parliament hired him in 1649 as a propagandist and correspondence secretary to foreign powers, on account of his fiery manifestos against "the man".

The collapse of the Commonwealth with the death of Oliver Cromwell in 1658 did not deter Milton from continued political writing against the monarchy and the new public sentiment that brought about its Restoration under King Charles II in 1660. On the contrary, Milton - now totally blind, having lost his eyesight by the age of 44 in 1652, a decade earlier - began writing Paradise Lost in 1661, and spent the next six years dictating the work to transcribers.

A supporter of regicide, Milton was also forced into exile himself, and faked his own death, as Charles refused to pardon - and sought to execute - any of those directly involved with his father's murder. Milton's friends held a mock funeral for Milton on 27 August 1660, just months after the coronation of King Charles II on 23 April 1660.

King Charles II commented that he "applauded his [Milton's] policy in escaping the punishment of death [execution for treason] by a reasonable show of dying", but insisted on a public spectacle nonetheless by having Milton's writings burned by the public hangman.

After eventually obtaining a general pardon from King Charles II, Milton was imprisoned, and released, likely due to political friends in high places. He died, aged 64, in 1674. His theological views were sometimes considered heterodox by the best Puritans, and his political views came close to getting him executed on several occasions. His poetry, however, has endured as some of the greatest works in the English language, especially Paradise Lost; much of his greatest work was written during his 22 years of complete blindness.

One of the main factors in King Charles II deciding to grant a pardon to Milton was, ironically, Paradise Lost. While originally written by Milton as a scathing criticism of King Charles II and the monarchy - depicting Lucifer Morningstar as a sympathetic rebel against God, with King Charles II claiming that is right to rule came from "divine ordainment" - Charles II enjoyed the work, and authorized its publication on 20 August 1667. We know this because a 1668 copy of Paradise Lost in royal bindings by Samuel Mearne, bound lovingly in a fine red leather made of goat skins tanned with sumac, and stamped in gold with the royal cypher of King Charles II, was found. The endpapers bore a watermark with the royal arms of Charles II.

Per one Miltonian scholar: "The most single important event in Milton's life was the event against which he struggled most: the Restoration of Charles II, [and his relationship with the King]. Had it not come, we might have never had Paradise Lost...certainly, we should never have had [it] in [its] present power and significance."

Milton followed up Paradise Lost with Paradise Regained in 1671, three years before his death, with advice for King Charles II, urging the hedonistic Charles to "reign over himself and his passions":

"For therein stands the office of a King, His Honour, Vertue, Merit and chief Praise, That for the Publick all this weight he bears. Yet he who reigns within himself, and rules Passions, Desires, and Fears, is more a King; Which every wise and vertuous man attains: And who attains not, ill aspires to rule Cities of men, or head-strong Multitudes, Subject himself to Anarchy within, Or lawless passions in him which he serves." - John Milton, Paradise Regained, Book II, lines 463-472

To summarize: "If we must have a King back again, my Lord, please try to be a good man, unlike your father, who fell to his pride, [which was also the downfall of Lucifer]."

To quote another source: "Though the passage begins by noting that the office of a King is to bear the weight of public concerns, it is the control of one's private concerns that truly set a King apart as a virtuous character. Indeed, so important is self-command that any wise or virtuous man who attains it is like a king; any king who does not practice [self-command] is nothing more than a mere subject, ruled by anarchy and lawlessness."

Milton's words, too, echo a work written by Charles' grandfather, King James VI/I of Scotland and England: Basilikon Doron ("Royal Gift").

Per Wikipedia:

"'Basilikon Doron' (Βασιλικὸν Δῶρον) means 'royal gift' in Ancient Greek, and was written in the form of a private letter to James' eldest son, Henry, Duke of Rothesay (1594–1612). After Henry's death, James gave it to his second son, Charles, born 1600, later King Charles I. Seven copies were printed in Edinburgh in 1599, and it was republished in London in 1603, when it sold in the thousands.

This document is separated into three books, serving as general guidelines to follow to be an efficient monarch. The first describes a king's duty towards God as a Christian. The second focuses on the roles and responsibilities in office. The third concerns proper behaviour in daily life.

As the first part is concerned with being a good Christian, James instructed his son to love and respect God as well as to fear Him. Furthermore, it is essential to carefully study the Scripture (the Bible) and especially specific books in both the Old and New Testaments. Lastly, he must pray often and always be thankful for what God has given him.

In the second book, James encouraged his son to be a good king, as opposed to a tyrant, by establishing and executing laws as well as governing with justice and equality, such as by boosting the economy. The final portion of the Basilikon Doron focuses on the daily life of a monarch.

All of these guidelines composed an underlying code of conduct to be followed by all monarchs and heads of state to rule and govern efficiently. James assembled these directions as a result of his own experience and upbringing. He, therefore, offered the 'Basilikon Doron' ('Royal Gift') to his son, with the hope of rendering him a capable ruler, and perhaps to pass it down to future generations.

Overall, it repeats the argument for the divine right of kings, as set out in 'The True Law of Free Monarchies', which was also written by James. It warns against 'Papists' (Roman Catholics) and derides Puritans, in keeping with his philosophy of following a 'middle path', which is also reflected in the preface to the 1611 King James Bible. It also advocates removing the Apocrypha from the Bible."

King James VI/I further instructed his son and grandson:

"A good monarch must be well acquainted with his subjects, and so it would be wise to visit each of the kingdoms every three years."

"During war or armed conflict, he should choose old-but-good captains to lead an army of young and agile soldiers."

"In the court and the household, [a royal] should carefully select loyal gentlemen and servants to surround him. When the time came to choose a wife, it would be best if she were of the same religion and had a generous estate. However, she must not meddle with governmental politics, but perform her domestic duties."

"As for inheritance, to ensure stability, the kingdom should be left to the eldest son, not divided among all children."

"Lastly, it is most important...that [a royal] would know well his own craft...to properly govern over his subjects. To do so, [one] must study the laws of the kingdom, and actively participate in the council. Furthermore, [one] must be acquainted with mathematics for military purposes, and world history for foreign policy."

"[A royal] must also not drink and sleep excessively. His wardrobe should always be clean and proper, and he must never let his hair and nails grow long. In his writing and speech, he should use honest and plain language."

King James VI/I further supplemented Basilikon Doron with a written treatise titled The True Law of Free Monarchies: Or, The Reciprocal and Mutual Duty Between a Free King and His Natural Subjects.

"It is believed King James VI/I wrote the tract to set forth his idea of absolutist monarchism in clear contrast to the contractarian views espoused by, among others, James' tutor George Buchanan (in 'De Jure Regni apud Scotos'), [which] held the idea that monarchs rule in accordance of some sort of social contract with their people. James saw the divine right of kings as an extension of the apostolic succession, as both not being subjected by humanly laws."

Milton's own Areopagitica was a follow-up on De Jure Regni apid Scotos by George Buchanan, and also to The True Law of Free Monarchies, as well as the idea of the "divine right of kings". It takes its title in part from Areopagitikos (Greek: Ἀρεοπαγιτικός), a speech written by Athenian orator Isocrates in the 4th century BC.

Most importantly, Milton also wrote on the concept of free will: "Milton's ideas were ahead of his time in the sense that he anticipated the arguments of later advocates of freedom of the press by relating the concept of free will, and choice to individual expression and right."

The concept of free will, too, was a major topic explored in Paradise Lost. Per one source: "In 'Paradise Lost', Milton argues that though God foresaw the Fall of Man, he still didn't influence Adam and Eve's free will. [...] God specifically says that he gives his creatures the option to serve or disobey, as he wants obedience that is freely given [or chosen], not forced. Some critics have claimed that the God of the poem undercuts his own arguments; however, Milton did not believe in the Calvinistic idea of 'predestination' (that God has already decided who is going to Hell and who to Heaven), but he often comes close to describing a Calvinistic God. God purposefully lets Lucifer (Satan) escape Hell, and sneak past Uriel into the Garden of Eden, and basically orchestrates the whole situation so that humanity can be easily ruined by a single disobedient act. In describing the Fall of Man before it happens, God already predicts how he will remedy it, and give greater glory to himself by sending his Son [Jesus Christ] to die, and restore the order of Heaven."

In Hazbin Hotel, Adam also describes the Calvinistic idea of 'predestination', and that "the rules are black and white":

However, "This possible predestination leads to the theory of the 'fortunate fall', which is based on Adam's delight at learning of the eventual coming of the Messiah [from his bloodline]. This idea says that God allowed the Fall of Man, so that he could bring good out of it, possibly more good than would have occurred without the Fall, and be able to show his love and power through the incarnation of his Son. In this way, the free will of Adam and Eve (and Lucifer/Satan) remains basically free, but still fits into God's overarching plan."

However, there is one major flaw with this, and that is that we don't know if Jesus Christ exists within the Hazbin Hotel universe or not. Yet Charlie Morningstar, the daughter of Lucifer Morningstar and Lilith, and the "Princess of Hell", is depicted as a savior-esque figure within the show who, like God in Paradise Lost, encourages lowly sinners to choose obedience to God out of their own free will. More interestingly, Charlie does not come from Adam's bloodline; yet, while Lucifer decries 'free will', Charlie supports 'free will' instead.

Perhaps is is merely because Charlie, being the daughter of Lucifer and Lilith, claims to want to fulfill Lilith's "dream" of humanity being empowered in Hell ("The mind is its own place, it can make Heaven out of Hell, or Hell out of Heaven" - Lucifer, Paradise Lost); however, I think it also stems from Charlie having a genuine belief that 'free will', and people choosing to do good instead of evil, is "good" and "Godly".

True to Paradise Lost, this is also in fulfillment of God's plan; and, according to one fanfiction, why God allowed Charlie to be born to Lucifer and Lilith, so that sinners may be redeemed through Charlie.

For more on differing interpretations of 'free will', I suggest reading: "Free Will and the Diminishing Importance of God's Will: A Study of Paradise Lost and Supernatural" by Kimberly Batchelor (2016)

Excerpt: "'Paradise Lost' –and Milton’s purpose for writing the poem— is rooted deeply in postreformation Arminianism and this is apparent in its employment of free will. Chapter 1 argues that Milton turns to free will as a tool to justify the actions of God. Freedom of choice is God-given, and sets up a morality in which right and wrong are dictated by God. Chapter 2 shows that in 'Supernatural', free will is not given by a higher power; and, in fact, free choice functions as an act of defiance against God's will."

This raises the question: Is 'free will' given by God, using Lucifer as his vessel, in Hazbin Hotel, as in Paradise Lost? Or is 'free will' not given by a higher power; and, in fact, an act of defiance against God?

This brings us back around to our first question: Why is an apple, or 'malus', used to depict the "fruit of knowledge", especially if 'malus' means 'bad or evil', whereas Milton depicts 'free will' as God-given?

Well, for one, Lucifer still chooses to associate himself with apple symbolism and imagery, despite being skeptical of free will:

Based on the introduction to Episode 1, Charlie also views 'free will' as a gift (Miltonian), whereas Lucifer appears to view it as a curse.

However, Charlie also notes that it was through the 'gift' of free will that the "root of all evil" entered the world, for if mankind could choose to be good, then they could also choose to be evil ('malus').

John Milton states in Paradise Lost: "Of Man's First Disobedience, and the Fruit Of that Forbidden Tree [malus], whose mortal taste Brought Death (evil, malus) into the World, and all our woe."

Thus, the use of an apple specifically is likely a tie-in to what others have been speculating about a character that series creator Vivienne Medrano (Vivziepop) alluded to a while back: "The Root of All Evil".

However, "Roo" itself is depicted as possessing the body of a human woman, presumably Eve, the first one to eat the "fruit of knowledge":

Thus, we can discern that "Malus" likely refers to this character. (Also see: "Maleficent", a name that also uses the root word "mal", "evil".) As for Roo's intentions, if Charlie is "good" - and, if, in fact, Alastor was sent by "Roo" (Eve) - then they may want for Alastor to work on their behalf to "corrupt" Charlie, or make sure the hotel never succeeds.

This is because demonic power is tied to human souls, and there are "millions of souls" in Hell, which likely fuels the great power of "Roo". The more souls there are in Hell, the more powerful "Roo" becomes. The Overlords also get their demonic power from "millions of souls".

The deal between Eve and "Roo" might even be the first contract, or deal, between a human soul and a demonic entity; in exchange for 'free will', and the knowledge of good and evil, Eve allowed the "Root of All Evil" to inhabit her body, and to escape the void or prison it was confined to by Heaven (Hell?). (For one cannot be 'all-good' unless you attempt to 'eliminate' or 'ablate' evil; and, in Greek mythology, Zeus imprisoned the Titans in Tartarus for all of their evil deeds.)

Another possibility, brought up in an article by Gillian Osborne, is that Lucifer sees the "fruit of knowledge" as an apple, but it may appear as different fruits to different people, depending on how they view it. This also fits with Lucifer and angels being able to easily shapeshift.

In Paradise Lost, only Lucifer describes the fruit as an "apple" (malus), as he associates malus with "bad, evil", while the narrator also describes the fruit as "a mix of different colors" and peach-like. This then begs the question: "Did the fruit of knowledge of good and evil become 'evil' because Eve harbored resentment towards Adam?"

Quote: "Lucifer (Satan) gives Eve yet another hint that this tree may be more complicated than he wishes her to believe: although elsewhere in Milton's poem Eden is heady with its own newness, sprouting spring flowers left and right, the tree of knowledge is already old: its trunk is 'mossie'. Nevertheless, Lucifer claims to wind himself around the tree 'soon'; the quickness of his reported arrival stands in contrast to the timescales required to cover a fruit tree with moss (PL 9.589). Placing Lucifer's winding body between these two timescales—an easeful present and the inhuman scale of natural history—Milton suggests that there is something dangerous in entangling the past with the present. Yet, 'Paradise Lost' also makes deep biblical history feel like present politics for its readers. When Adam and Eve wander out of Eden at the end of the poem, they famously make their way not only into an earthly paradise, but also into the present. Eden's mossy apple tree therefore represents the pitfalls of conflating nature and history, of seeing any action in human history—even Eve's eating of an apple—as natural, if by nature, we mean inevitability. For Milton, history, unlike nature, is directed by humans, progressive, and, like the reading of 'Paradise Lost', hard work. While trees may inevitably collect moss the longer they live, Adam and Eve's labors in the garden, and our labors of reading, require agency and effort. Milton's poem refuses mourning the loss of Eden, [and the perfection of Heaven], in favor of a perpetual, melancholic, recreation of paradise: a present perfecting."

To quote Twisted: The Untold Story of a Royal Vizier, which also draws inspiration from John Milton's Paradise Lost: "It's an unfortunate situation...but you do have a choice [i.e. free will]."

[bg-brainrot]

Hugs for a Vampire (Astarion x GN!Reader) - Chapter 3: After the House of Healing

Chapter 3: After the House of Healing

Each chapter can be read as a standalone hug.

Pairing: Astarion x GN!Reader (Rogue!Tav)

Genre: Fluffy, Filling in Canon

Rating: Teen

Tags: Gender-Neutral Pronouns, POV Second Person, Act 2, Canon-typical violence, cw: House of Healing, cw: Astarion's past

WC: 1.4k words, 3/18 chapters

Summary: Tav has realized their feelings (covered in Failed a Dex Save and Fell for You) and Astarion has caught them. We're looking at a cautious little half hug, where Tav knows more about him, but isn't quite sure how to comfort him yet.

Ao3 | [Hug2][Hug4] | Hugs for a Vampire Masterlist

You stand in the center of the large auditorium, dumbfounded. What in the hells just happened?

Mere moments ago, a mad surgeon was waving various sharp implements at you, his students slowly surrounding you. Now, they all lay dead, by their own hands, their bodies a gruesome mess. Your entire team stands there, frozen, as if not sure how else to proceed.

“So,” Karlach breaks the silence. “That was certainly…”

“Yup,” you say, still stunned.

“Are we positive they were Shar worshipers?” Shadowheart hazards.

You turn back to look at her, “I’m afraid so.” 

Her skin shines paler than usual in the Moon Lantern’s glow. “Well.”

As you’ve gotten into the habit of doing, you turn to your vampiric lover for his take. He’s always only too willing to provide, but this time around Astarion stays uncharacteristically quiet. He seems deep in thought, staring at the bodies littered around you all. “Astarion?” you probe.

“Hm?” he lifts his head to yours, eyes narrow and cold. Your heart drops in your chest at such a reaction, but you let nothing show. You will fully admit to yourself that you feel real, genuine affection for this prickly man, but you refuse to waste energy on the idea that he may never feel the same toward you. Besides, his eyes are staring through you at this moment.

“Are you alright?” you ask, trying not to sound as worried as you feel.

“Yes,” he says, almost mechanically. “I’m fine.”

You decide not to push, leaving him to his ruminations. Having learned more of his history, you’ve resolved to make sure he has his moments to think, to be himself– or at the very least, relearn to be himself.

In an attempt to give Astarion his space, you gather Karlach and Shadowheart. “Alright, let’s focus. Split up and search through these bodies for any valuables, try to avoid the blood and guts. While you’re at it, look for any clues about Art’s visit here.”

Both women nod, looking at Astarion out of the corner of their eyes, but knowing better than to say anything. You all disperse in the big room, lighting torches as you go to repel the Shadow Curse.

At first, you had ignored the state of the building, focusing on getting in, dealing with Malus Thorm. Now that you’re actively looking, this place is grisly. The floor is sticky with blood, the walls covered with overgrown plants– even the surgeon’s tools are old and rusted. What kind of monster lived here, worked here, and ultimately died here? you wonder.

Your team is absorbed in searching for a while, finding various odd tinctures, far too many weapons for a House of “Healing”, and even a lute that must be Art’s. However, in all of your finding, you’ve lost track of Astarion.

“Go get him, soldier,” Karlach says, concern plain on her face. “As much as he could use a big ol’ group hug, I think you’d be the only welcome one.”

You scoff. “He cares about you both just as much.” They exchange a skeptical look. “He’s just not great at showing it?”

“Let’s go with that,” Shadowheart says. “Either way, please do hurry. This house is deeply unpleasant.”

You head off in search of your missing vampire, following the trail of light required in this dreary place. Before too long, you find yourself up in the rafters, in an attic of some kind. The trees here have reclaimed a chunk of the building, and the metallic smell of dried blood doesn’t quite reach here.

You hear him before you see him, a litany of annoyed curses and thumps of books falling to the ground. Walking through the area, you see Astarion in a corner of the room, fastidiously searching a shelf.

“Astarion?” you say, approaching carefully. 

He gives a slight jump, head clearly somewhere else entirely. His body visibly relaxes at the sight of you, but the scowl never leaves his face. “Oh, it’s you, my dear.” You try not to let this bother you– again, you know it’s not because of you. Despite your efforts, your face must fall because he’s immediately walking toward you, glare softening. “Is something the matter?”

“No, no,” you quickly try to recover. You’re here to support him, not the other way around. “I was just worried about you.”

The scowl returns and he stops moving toward you. “Did I not already say I’m fine?”

“You did,” you say, walking forward tentatively to finish closing the space between you. “But I wanted to double-check. Also, I’m afraid your beautiful face might stay in that glower forever. You would be inconsolable then.”

Despite his sullen demeanor, he gives you a wry smile at that. “You’re right, I can’t let these evil bastards have the satisfaction.”

Nodding, you step directly in front of him. “So will you tell me what’s wrong?”

“There’s nothing wrong,” he begins, eyes turning to look at the floor, away from you. “I just didn’t like that ‘doctor’.”

“Mmm, yes. He was quite unpleasant,” you frown, recalling the revulsion Malus inspired in you only a short while ago.

“He was more than unpleasant.” Astarion bristles at the word. “He was just like Cazador– utterly insane,” he spits, his hackles raised defensively on instinct, hyper-aware of an enemy that’s no longer there.

Your heart aches with the sudden realization that this madman, this situation, those poor women, are recalling memories of Astarion’s own personal hell with Cazador. “We made sure he can’t hurt anyone else now. He got exactly what he deserved,” you say vehemently, as if practicing for when you may be able to give a certain vampire lord his comeuppance.

Astarion seems shocked out of his own anger at the venom in your voice. “Yes,” he starts, looking at you now. “You’re… you’re right. Thank you for dealing with him so brilliantly.”

“If I knew that creep bothered you this much, I almost regret letting him off that easily.” You place a hand over his arm and gaze back into his eyes, trying to muster as much ferocity as you can in your next words, “I won’t let the next one off easily. At all.”

Eyes locked, you can see the exact moment that Astarion’s gaze softens, his large, red eyes swimming with an emotion you haven’t been able to name quite yet. All of the defensive tension leaves his body and he hangs his head, resting his forehead heavily on your shoulder. “I know you won’t,” he whispers, almost too quiet to hear.

At first, you’re not sure what to do, with this shock of white curls in your face, his body slumped in front of you. But Karlach’s words chime in your head, ‘he could use a big ol’ group hug.’ Positive he wouldn’t appreciate that, you settle for what makes sense in the moment. Using the arm he’s not currently using as a perch, you wrap it around his shoulders, squeezing ever so gently.

He freezes at the gesture, but doesn’t remove himself from your shoulder. Instead you hear a soft sigh, and feel his hand come to rest on your elbow, as if bracing himself. 

You’re not sure how long you both stand here, just leaning on each other in a decrepit attic, but your companions come calling before you can completely lose track of time.

“Oi!” you hear Karlach’s booming voice yelling up. “Are you two decent up there?”

Astarion lifts his head up, his expression now calm and looking more like his regular self. He smirks at you before answering down the hall, “I’m never decent, darling, but I can be even less decent if you’d like!”

You’re relieved to see him stand up straight again, his eyes crinkle with that familiar mirth of having said something naughty. “Please don’t,” you say, shaking your head and heading back toward your companions. “I’d like to get out of here first.”

He raises a teasing eyebrow at you before following. “First, you say. Planning on being indecent together later?”

You laugh at his over-the-top flirting and look back at him. “Like I said, let’s get out of here first.”

The two of you head down to meet your companions, and, while they certainly notice, neither of them say anything to the mused curls on Astarion’s head.

[animentality]

Can I just bitch about Baldur's Gate 3 for a second-

JK, I'm not fucking asking.

So Ketheric Thorm...got an entire fucking act basically DEDICATED TO HIM.

The Shadow Cursed Lands suck because of him. Everything in that zone is fucked because of his nonsense. Every enemy you fight is either related to the shadows or the Absolute plot, which, as far as you know at that point, is tied directly back to him, and him alone.

And every fucking person you meet, rounds him out in some way.

Thisobald, Gerringothe, Malus, these are all unique looking and fun bosses. And they all round out Ketheric Thorm, showing us his fucked up family, and how terrible their impact has been.

Balthazar, Z'rell, even Aylin and Isobel- all thematically and narratively tied to our Shar/Myrkul worshipping bitch.

Even Halsin and Thaniel, Minthara and Shadowheart...all of them have ties to Ketheric.

And that's great and all. That's probably why I, unlike many others, actually enjoy Act 2 a fair bit.

But then. We get to the dreaded Act 3.

Which is a bloated, disorganized, incoherent mess.

But worse than that is... Gortash and Orin are our next big bads, yeah? And they have a kind of fun intro, that makes you think ooh, the next big bads...

And then.

And then what happens?

You can kill Gortash immediately, pretty much at the beginning of Act 3. No build up. You can just do that. Sure, you can do the Steel Watch or the Ironhand Throne quests...but tell me.

Could you just go up to Ketheric Thorm and kill him at Moonrise? The answer is no. Even if you skip a lot of content, you still have to go through a million other tasks before you can face him, AND the big boss battle at the end is entirely him and Myrkul. It's EARNED.

But Gortash? Well, fuck, he's fucking dead before you can even face the final big boss.

And Orin? Sure, you have to collect a bag of hands to get into the Temple...but so what? That's maybe two or three quests, but you can circumvent them. Besides, as soon as you kill her, she vanishes from the narrative and doesn't matter. She's a somewhat easy boss battle, but the actual build up isn't intricately tied into the narrative of Act 3...because there is no inherent narrative to Ac 3.

Act 2 was about an insane man's descent into villainy after losing the people he loved most.

It was tragic, but at least thematically consistent.

The fuck is happening in Act 3?

Gortash is committing war crimes because he's tyrannical, and Orin is murdering indiscriminately and just for funsies.

at least Ketheric's entire thing is about defying the gods, using them for his own gains, and similarly, being used by them.

But Orin? She has one sympathetic scene, and then she dies immediately after.

Gortash you can just kill and then he doesn't matter, or you can side with him, and then he just dies, and doesn't matter.

It's utterly baffling and mildly infuriating.

I know Act 3 was hit with the cut content rush and all, but I feel like you could've spent your time actually bothering to build them up the way you built up Ketheric. You could've given us political quests or world building quests with Gortash, especially given how manipulative he is, or given us more madness and shadows and underground labyrinths and spooky monsters with fucking Orin.

Instead of garbage quests like the Wavemother, Mystic Carrion, Stop the Presses, and Lady Jannath's Torture House, you could've given Karlach a quest related to fixing her heart, which would've tied into Gortash's plots, or given Gale more to do than simply go to Sorcerous Sundries, or tied Cazador to some kind of patriars plot, or had Wyll's father do more than be kidnapped and then later saved.

You could've given Halsin literally any fucking quest, instead of bringing in Jaheira or Minsc. But most importantly.

I just don't get it. Gortash runs Baldur's Gate. You could've easily tied him to a lot more quests, and made him far more threatening or hard to take down. You could've also made Orin feel like an actual threat, and not just a mild nuisance.

It's just kind of...it irks me.

Not just as a Gortash stan, but as a writer, because it's so odd, to have 3 perfectly decent villains...and only flesh out one.

The other two might as well be optional mini bosses.

[oathkeeper-of-tarth]

hello, your datamining posts are fascinating! i was wondering if you came across any info on the other thorm family members and exactly how they're related to each other?

Hi, and thank you! Glad you're enjoying the posts. Here's another excessively long one, because I love contemplating the disaster that is the Thorm family.

To start with, a quote from Isobel that isn't in the game anymore, from when you could have a conversation with her post-abduction and post-tadpoling:

I grew up in the village below here. A place built by Thorms, with aunties and uncles and cousins down every laneway.

So there was a whole lot of them. And it sure did rub some people wrong that the Thorms had the cushiest jobs around Reithwin. Sadly, on the matter of the Thorms' actual family tree, the answer is going to be disappointing, I'm afraid. I haven't found anything much about them that isn't in the game, and the game itself stays vague. (Bonus: writing this up when I've just gone through Act 2 in my honour mode run so this is nicely fresh in my mind.)

The Thorms are but collectors: collectors of coin, glory, blood, and more yet.

The only relationship that is explicitly defined is that Malus Thorm is Ketheric Thorm's uncle, as the head surgeon bemoans his displeasure with his nephew and the way he seems to favour now-openly-practicing necromancer Balthazar in the Tissue and Organ Register.

As for Thisobald, the one I, along with I imagine most other people, am most curious about - not much luck with EA stuff. A model for the "Brewer" shows up mid-2021, as seen in this datamining thread (note also the "Necromancer" who is very recognisably our gross ol' pal Balthazar). That's about it. There's files in the current game that explicitly describe him as Ketheric's son in the meta info bits, which have no reason to be untrue:

In Town in Act 2 we meet the Brewer that is son of Ketheric and shadow-curse mutated. This one is played when we defeat him. The brewer was once an ordinary person, but has been twisted by the shadowcurse and is now a huge, bloated monstrosity. He speaks in fragments, and is menacing but with an air of melancholy. He wants to drink until he forgets everything, and would like to bring everyone into oblivion with him.

As does he himself, beyond all those "Father Ketheric" references that I've seen explained as a potential title for a religious figurehead:

Son of Thorm. Sot of Sword Coast. I am Thorm. My father's tower grazed the new moon. Yours means zero, nothing, naught.

So yeah, a real head-scratcher, that one. Unacknowledged/mistreated bastard son before Melodia is something I've seen suggested, which might work. But then, he's very adamant and proud and pretty open about being a Thorm. If you choose to tell him about the owlbear mother as one of the tales to impress him, he only offers this:

[SUCCESS] Mothers. Commiserations. This place is my mother. Its teats are copper. Its milk is barrel-aged. [FAIL] We all have owlbear mothers. Mine was a lush. Unimpressive.

So was his mother an unnamed local drunkard, or is he speaking metaphorically again? Isobel, I am begging. Please explain.

What we do know is that they were all three alive and contemporaneous with Isobel's death and Ketheric's war (much love to the BG3 Wiki for having pretty much all of the in-game book/documents graciously transcribed, btw), and are in fact not ancient Thorms raised during Ketheric's Myrkul days and his "desecrating my family's mausoleum" phase, as I've seen theorised.

Gerringothe was banned from the Waning Moon (SHE KNOWS WHAT SHE DID). She was also in her secret logbook complaining about Ketheric's brewing war ruining her profits.

Malus is interesting - he has the big, extra-pointy elf ears (and so does Thisobald?) and he seems to be really old. Reithwin Necrology has him listed as the head surgeon in 986 DR, which is a little over 500 years before the events of the game take place, and so about 400 years before Ketheric's fall. Interestingly, the document lists the casualties of a battle between Dark Justiciars, Selûnites, and even a druid. I wonder if this might be a conflict taking place during the original Sharran occupation of Grymforge, which lasted for 800 years - and perhaps this is how Ketheric came to know of its existence. We also get to hear about some of Malus' atrocities thanks to sister Anna Lidwin, a tragic figure in her own right.

The Waning Moon: Consignments, written by Thisobald, is an extra spicy bit of text, talking about the entire family, and the way they operated before it all became an open conflict:

The ale she fed me was poisoned - and by my own hand! My truth serum was all too effective. I professed the lot: the poisoned drinks, Malus' 'treatments', the interrogations - all of it. She means to reveal our 'schemes' to the Baldur's Gate authorities. Unless, of course, I grace her palm with more gold than Gerringothe could muster. Father would have my head if he knew - or worse yet, donate me to Malus.

The document concludes with this very, very interesting bit:

The Harpers came too close - they poisoned Father Ketheric himself, yet he professes no ill effects. Malus insists it a fluke. Doctor he may be, but he is no less a fool for it: Father has achieved that of which I can only dream: immortality. I have long suspected. I can guess Father's purpose, but I cannot fathom the means.

If you beat all of the checks while drinking with Thisobald a century later, it turns out he did find out the means after all (and Ketheric was aware, threatening him into silence):

Player: What can you tell me about Ketheric? Thisobald Thorm: Father. Father is father. Eternal, invincible, forever, except not. Player: What do you mean? How can I defeat Ketheric? Thisobald Thorm: No, must not, can not, will not mention her. You want father's personal mysterious - (secret) - secret. No, not, never! Father said, ordered, commanded. Don't say it, don't say it! The cage. Her cage. Talk and… perish, die, buried. Buried in Thorm tomb. Father told me. I can't perish - no, nay, neither. Too strong, too…

After all, he does describe himself as a collector of "that which holds the most value: information".

Going back to Early Access, the quests leading to lifting the shadow curse evolved a lot, with one iteration being you needing to find "anchors" for the curse. Madeline (now of He-Who-Was quest fame) was a long-dead Harper and the sister of another Harper character called Callie you could meet. She died fighting Ketheric and, disillusioned with the Harpers as an organisation, hated that she'd inspired her sister to become a Harper too.

Madeline? But she died back in Ketheric's day. Madeline. Her name was Madeline. And she died fighting Ketheric with her last breath. But that's not enough is it? Madeline didn't want Callie to be a Harper. Nothing. What you saw was the truth. Madeline died hating the Harpers - and her darling sister Callie has no idea. Indeed. Madeline died realising she was just a name on a tally, and she hated the Harpers for it. Indeed. Madeline died hating both the Harpers and herself - for she led Callie down the same path.

She - or a keepsake of hers, her Harper pin - was one of the anchors for the shadow curse. You could also "witness her last moments" somehow, which I assume grew into the post-mortem "trial" we have in the game now.

The darkness emanating from that... it must be an anchor for the curse. What, I know not, but it torments this Harper. The memento is the key - the anchor. Do you have the fortitude to retrieve it? This Harper's soul is trapped in an endless cycle of pain, fear and regret. Her soul is trapped here - and a memento she gave you is doing it. If you give me that pin I'll put her soul to rest. I promise. But I don't know you. And I'm not gonna trust you with Madeline's Harper pin. So be a good egg, and bugger off.

It seems you'd do something like this several times. Isobel and Halsin were the main NPCs involved here - you'd find the anchors, and then presumably one of them would do something with them.

I've been studying the curse ever since, searching for answers. Trying to restore the damage my father has wrought upon this land. My life is devoted to unravelling the torment Ketheric inflicted on this land. So please, find the anchors, and bring them to me. I spent years researching the curse, trying to put an end to it. Nothing has worked - yet. The Shadowfell itself pours through this place, but there is no single portal or anchor. Ketheric was a brilliant general, but not a mage. He must have anchored this corruption and opened a path for Shar. This cursed land is ripe with grief and regret. Find the dead filled with such agony - find what anchors them here. The anchors would be infused with Shar's blessing, concealed where the curse of the Shadowfell is strongest. |Please do. For now, focus on finding the anchors, it's the only way we can understand the curse.| These are both anchors. Yet I believe there must be more. Bring back another anchor, and I will tell you.

You would progress after gathering all the anchors, and learn that you needed the "blood of a Thorm":

Yes! The anchors alone are not enough to end the curse. We need blood from the Thorm family line. That makes sense. A Thorm is the one who made it. How do I get the blood of a Thorm? By bleeding Ketheric. The rest of his family... is long dead.

I bring all of this up because at one point the anchors became the "Bones of Contention", and "the Thorms" were what was sustaining the curse. This is also where we get the full trio of "Distillery boss", "Hospital boss", and "Tollhouse boss", who you'd need to defeat to get the bones. A great writeup of this version of the quest, highlighting Halsin's part in it, can be found here in a post by @merrinla. And as you can see in the post we once again have Isobel on research duty. These are from Patch 6:

How do the Thorms sustain the shadows? [NEEDS FLAG]

Interestingly enough, that line survives to release, and is now answered by Thisobald during the drinking game with "the spirit of the land".

|Please do. Come back to me after the night, hopefully I'll be done researching the bones you brought me.| |We know about the bones and we know we need the blood of a Thorm...|

I also found these tidbits that seem to imply a "sacrifice Isobel" option was at least something that you could discuss in the game:

But you have all the bones. Can't we end the curse at Moonrise? Does that mean your death could end the curse? Perhaps. I fear my sacrifice alone may not be enough. / It's possible I may have to sacrifice myself. But this is my father's crime.

Funnily enough, behaviour scripts for Aylin and Isobel that are still in the game include references to the bones, such as:

[Nightsong] "Stand with Isobel while she's researching the Bones of Contention"

receivedBonesFlag = Flag([[SCL_ShadowCurse_Event_GiveBonesToIsobel_26c0ec08-561f-411f-9053-458341c6a7e9]]) finishedResearchFlag = Flag([[SCL_ShadowCurse_Event_BonesResearchProgressed_91936c5f-a3f6-741a-3f1f-ac956ee649f5]])

But I haven't found much beyond that.

And with that, I'll conclude this giant word soup. Hope it was at least slightly interesting!

[ponyglows]

GLOWVERSE MANE 6 BIOS (Part 2 of 3) :] !! Rarijack !! 🍎💎

Rarity Malus - Transmare, She/Her, Bisexual

Late 20s at beginning of Glowverse

Only slightly younger than Fluttershy

Marries to Applejack with 4 kids

Still the founder and a share-holder in her brand "Rarity for You" but does very little in the management now. She visits Sassy Saddles, Coco Pommel and Yona occasionally to check on them, help with designs etc

Enjoys making custom clothing for others at affordable prices from her small home studio - Money isn't an issue so she runs a sort of "pay what you can".

Applejack does not let others take advantage of her generosity - She will give you an earful if you offer pennies despite being rich!

They live near Sweet Apple Acres in a large converted farmhouse with a small holding

She now has a huge love for gardening and takes great pride in her flowerbeds

Opalescence is getting on in her years - She enjoys hissing at Winona or swiping at any rowdy children.

An almost perfect example of a "traditional" unicorn. (Tall, cloven hooves, extra fur on legs, ears and chin) however her lack of an elongated tail and long, pointed horn show she is not pure unicorn.

Prefers having a full tail to style!

Has Earth pony ancestry - Applejack loves reminding her of this

Strained relationship with her parents

Fusses and dotes over her kids constantly due to her childhood (and because she's very proud of them)

Tallest of Mane 6

Does monthly date nights with Applejack - Alternating who plans it

Applejack proposed to her with the bracelet

Could drink you under the table! (but only drinks wine or champagne)

Mostly wears hair natural and in a bun now, but still styles her tail

Parents: Magnum Flanks, Betty "Cookie" Flanks (prev. Crumbles)

Siblings: Sweetie-Belle Flanks

Applejack "AJ" Malus - Mare, She/Her, Lesbian

Late 20s at beginning of Glowverse

Married to Rarity with 4 kids

Granny Smith left Sweet Apple Acres to her and Big Mac, however Applejack gave her share to Applebloom

Gave Bright Mac's hat to Applebloom too

Still owns lots of hats but doesn't wear them as often

Granny's scarf has become her "main" item of clothing now

Lives nearby Sweet Apple Acres and is over everyday being a general helper/farmhand

Her, her kids and even Rarity all pitch in during Applebuck season

Has a small holding where she grows fruit/veg - Mainly apples but she has a couple of pear trees, some tomato plants and carrots

Long-time rodeo champ - Has been asked not to compete anymore to give others a chance to win

Is an honorary judge for big rodeo events though

Various nicks/scratches from farm work

Scarily strong and beefy

Winona is now retired and chilling with Applejack as she is a very old girl

Loves cooking and baking - Makes enough to feed an army so often shares with friends/family

Her, Applebloom and Big Mac visit granny and their parents often to tell them all that's been happening

Very protective

Has been in a few bar fights (usually justified and she always wins!)

Rarity tells her off for swearing too much "Language, darling!"

A hopeless romantic for her tall, beautiful wife

Melts when Rarity tells her how handsome she is

Parents: Bright Mac Malus, Pear Butter Malus (prev. Pyrus)

Siblings: Macintosh "Big Mac" Malus, Applebloom Malus

Rough size comparison below! :] !!

[otterronpas]

MALUS PUMILA AU

I started writing some things about Mistilor's world, and I thought I'd share it here as well! Info will be under the cut, as I did write a lot JSDH Feel free to ask me anything about the AU! I'm still developing it, but I've enjoyed working on it a lot!

What is the Malus Pumila AU?

In this AU, Magolor (who I often refer to as Mistilor) has been possessed by the Master Crown. During the fight with Mistilteinn, the crown planted a seed in Magolor’s head that allowed it to take control of his body and wreak havoc whenever it pleases. Think of it like a sort of Jekyll and Hyde situation, or like Dimentio and Mr. L in Super Paper Mario.

This is the basic gist of the AU, but the world of this AU is drastically different from the Popstar we know. This world’s Dreamland is a traditional Japanese-styled town, where yokai are known to live amongst the townspeople. Magolor was once an ordinary fox, but after putting on the Master Crown, he became a kitsune. In addition, this world’s Kirby is a Baku, who eats the dreams of others as a result of not being able to have dreams of their own.

So what about the rest of the Dream Team?

Dedede, rather than simply being the king, is actually the emperor of Dreamland! As laidback and carefree as he is, he’s pretty well-loved by the townsfolk. He tends to stay in his castle, but when he does make appearances in the town, he makes himself well-known and is happy to put on a show for the people.

The emperor, despite being the emperor, doesn’t actually hold any political power. Instead, he serves as a ruler chosen by the heavens. So that leaves the question: who holds the political power?

That power falls to Meta Knight, the shogun of Dreamland! As the military leader of Dreamland, he is very strict and hardworking in order to make sure no harm befalls the land. Some say he rules with an iron fist, but he really is just heavily devoted to protecting the land he loves dearly. However, sometimes his devotion ends up taking over his mind, and he’s unable to see how strict he is on others, especially those he cares about.. As a result, half the town respects him out of admiration, while the other half respects him out of fear. And that brings us to the last member of the Dream Team, Bandana Waddle Dee! Bandee is the right-hand man to the emperor, always found by his side and working hard to support him. While serving the emperor, he is also in training to become a ninja! He is heavily devoted to his training, so much that he has even taken a vow of silence in order to further dedicate himself to the work. When he’s not training or helping the emperor, he can often be found playing with Kirby and entertaining the townsfolk. As dedicated as he is to his work, he still finds time to enjoy his childhood to the fullest.

That's all I've got for right now, but more is soon to come! Be on the lookout!

[blackjackkent]

I just realized that I never went to the Mason's Guild, so decided to swing by that quickly before going to deal with Malus since Rakha was already outside. I didn't really recall there being much of anything that would particularly resonate with her, and I was pretty much correct. (Hector, once again, was much more bothered by/interested in the place because it's the endpoint of the "Investigate the Selunite Resistance" quest, but Rakha doesn't have a lot of interest in the SCL's history except insofar as it helps her end the curse or find Ketheric Thorm and separate his head from his body. )

One thing did strike me as interesting, though!

This pile of bones pings a perception check when you walk past it, and I was pretty baffled by it on Hector's run. The plaque next to the table reads, "Here lies the Grand Mason, his bones and lies exposed." Investigating the bones, however, reveals: "A pile of crushed bones of varying shapes, sizes, and... creatures."

There's no further available information here to indicate why this is important or why it got a perception check.

Like many things about the Shadow-Cursed Lands, this crystallizes a lot more on a second playthrough. The reason this is notable is that this skeleton is NOT the Grand Mason - we MEET the Grand Mason in the House of Hope later. He was one of the last remaining Selunites in the town, as we learn in the mason's guild basement, and he was also the one who made a deal with Raphael to bring in the forces of the Hells to drive out Ketheric's initial occupation. (This is also the reason for all the references to the Grymforge Sharran installation being shattered apart and full of sulfuric residue.)

If I understand the timeline correctly, Ketheric then left the curse behind him as a sort of scorched-earth response to his loss to Raphael's forces. (And, one assumes, this display of the "grand mason's bones" was meant to be a warning about the costs of defying Ketheric/Shar - and also to hide the fact that he didn't actually have the Mason's body to display.)

I do love that some of these details show some interconnected things that aren't really apparent until you come back through a second time.

Anyway, Rakha didn't really care about any of this, but I do. :P

[thes-hitoverlord]

art by ChivitaSan

[michellemisfit]

🚑✨Weekly Tag Wednesday🪄💫

Look at this super fun tag game @deedala made!! And thanks for the tag @lingy910y @energievie @tanktopgallavich @mikhailoisbaby

🚑 Get in bitch, we're going on a mystical adventure through space, time, and reality. (in ian and mickey's ambulance of course) ✨

Name: Michelle

Zodiac Sign: Pisces ♓️

Personality type in enneagram, myers-briggs, or both: I’ve done all of these quizzes and I can NEVER remember what I am. Whatever that personality type is where the answering paragraph literally told me I couldn’t be an EMT because I am incredibly studious and hard working and great in a crisis, but I am also convinced that literally anything going wrong is my fault personally, and it would kill me. That. It me.

Before we hit the road, what snack are you gonna bring for our trip? Normally I’d say POPCORN but @deedala is already bring that so I’ll go buck wild and say crudités & hummus, because road snacks can be yummy AND healthy!

Navigator gets to pick the music so what song are you turning on? I’ve got a whole road trip playlist, and I hope we’ll listen to most of it, but this should always be played in a car!!

💥 What is a universe from a fantasy tv show you would like to visit? The Golden Age of Albion, ie. BBC Merlin

And what about a fantasy movie? Fuck Rowling, but Harry Potter’s a pretty good world.

Okay, how about a scifi tv show? I don’t really watch Sci-Fi and the things I have seen… well, I don’t wanna live in Stranger Things world, or Humans, or Lost in Space, so… The Umbrella Academy? Mostly the normal world, and I can stay away from the weird shit? Maybe?

And a scifi movie universe? Again, don’t really watch Sci-Fi, and any I have seen I wouldn’t want to live in. Also there’s just too much fucking running in all of them. I’d be dead within 24 hours, let’s face it. Planet of the Apes? I might do okay there for maybe 72 hours… 🤔

Any other tv show or movie universes you'd like to swing by before we move on? Shadowhunters? Normal world with added magic and a fuck load of cool tattoos? Yeah, I’d do okay there. As long as I didn’t have to do the running bit lol

Okay hold on to your butts we're switching gears to fanfic universes. Tell me which fanfic universe we're visiting first? @deedala is spot on about cooperative gameplay by grayola for hours and hours of YouTube watching!! Also I Keep Going Over the World We Knew (Over and Over) by Mellacita, where Arthur Pendragon returns to solve the climate crisis with a lot of science and a little bit of magic. I would like to live in that world please.

Cool, do you have one more you'd like to stop at before we head home? Literally any and all of Ravenheart’s Magic AUs

Alright, on our way out of fanfic land you get to snag some tropes to bring home and apply to your own life, think fast! - - soulmates or enemies to lovers // coffee shop or flower shop // fake relationship or slow burn // amnesia or time loop // body swap or miscommunication // love triangle or arranged marriage // sharing a bed or drunken confession

Wow okay, hope those tropes work out for you!! Our adventure has finally come to an end, where in the world am I dropping you off? Can I please be dropped off in malu’s There Are No Gays in Football universe? Where Arthur Pendragon is the bravest puppy - For love, and a little bit because it is the right thing to do.

Thank you kindly.

Tagging @suzy-queued @mybrainismelted @too-schoolforcool @creepkinginc @heymrspatel @mickeysgaymom @mickeygifs @sleepyfacetoughguy @sam-loves-seb @look-i-love-u @loftec @callivich @transmickey @scurvgirl @sisitrip @celestialmickey @sickness-health-all-that-shit @darlingian @ian-galagher @iansfreckles @rutherinahobbit @palepinkgoat @whatthebodygraspsnot @gardenerian @metalheadmickey

[harrycosmo]

Fumito Ueda was inspired by… The King and the Mockingbird (Le Roi et l'Oiseau).

The King and the Mockingbird was clearly an inspiration for both Hayao Miyazaki and Fumito Ueda*. I've taken so many screenshots that look like scenes in The Castle of Cagliostro, Laputa: Castle in the Sky, Ico and Shadow of the Colossus that I can't include all of them in one post, so first I'm going to show you the ones that look like Ico. *In an interview for the 5th issue of Playstation Magazine (Italy) (July/August 2024), translated for a tumblr post by selene-lunette, Ueda named Paul Grimault as a source of inspiration. Le Roi et l'Oiseau has also been photographed on one of Ueda's bookshelves.

A chimney sweep and a shepherdess are the young couple escaping the castle, prefiguring Ico and Yorda. They come to life from paintings hanging next to each other and the reason they need to escape is because a painting of the king has also come to life, has got rid of the actual king, and is determined to marry the shepherdess.

The narcissistic king has winged servants who chase after the shepherdess and the chimney sweep like the flying monkeys of The Wizard of Oz and surely inspiring the shadow creatures in Ico. I wonder if their design might come from the caped policemen that the French (and British) used to have.

The mockingbird of the title looks after four hatchlings. One of them keeps getting trapped in a cage and on one occasion is freed when the cage falls to the ground and breaks open, just like when we first encounter Yorda in Ico.

Towards the end, the king is trying to get away with the shepherdess, who is his unwilling bride. He steps onto a balcony area which then moves away from the palace and is revealed to be the helmet of the king's enormous robot, so it's like a combination of the retracting bridge from Ico and Malus in Shadow of the Colossus.

Not long after, it is the king, rather than our hero, who gets hit by a falling rock as the castle crumbles.

The soundtrack - When we’re looking at the paintings of the shepherdess and the chimney sweep (at 16 minutes 30 seconds) we hear a harpsichord melody called ‘La Bergere et le Ramoneur’ that's strikingly similar to 'Castle in the Mist'. Also, whenever the shepherdess and the chimney sweep need the mockingbird's help, they call out ‘Oiseau’ (pronounced ‘Wuh-zoh’) the way Ico calls out ‘Ontwuh’.

Ico's horns - They don't feature in this animation but perhaps they should because.... The King and the Mockingbird was adapted from a Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale called The Shepherdess and the Chimney Sweep. It tells the story of a shepherdess who is told she has to marry a creature with horns and the legs of a goat (a description of a satyr).

Is it any surprise at all that a fairy tale as beautiful as Ico should turn out to be traceable all the way back to none other than Hans Christian Andersen?

[talesofthedm]

House of Healing

Play through #2, I'm 100% taking notes for fanfic writing purposes (the NOTES are 10k words. I love this game), and I just got to the House of Healing in Act 2 again. Love that area, demented as hell. Anyway, here's that section with some minor artistic liberties (I have to make my Tav a MC somehow, plus we need more soft Astarion).

Tav is Freya (she/her), Gloomstalker Ranger/Assassin Rogue who's traumatized as hell. There isnt any physical description for her in this section.

Goes without saying major spoiler warning for Act 2.

Excerpt:

The leathers of his gloves were soft and warm—thrumming gently with magic—as it cupped either side of her face. “Darling, look at me. Can you look at me?” He pressed his forehead to hers, making sure she had no place to look but his eyes. “Love.” Something about that name startled her, broke her out of whatever trance she was bound to just long enough to focus. He dragged his thumbs across her cheeks, smoothing away tears. “We’re going to get you out of here, alright? We’re going to get you out of here. We’re going to get you someplace safe and we’re going to get you cleaned up, alright? Can you say something, do something, anything so I know you can understand me?”

TW: Violence, body horror, PTSD, mentions of self-harm, death

“The objective of the scalpel, sisters, is to soothe. For the scalpel, indeed, is an extension of Shar.” The dull light glinted off his mirror and lenses, the purple sheen of them not dissimilar to the mirrors they found in the Sharran temple. A means of reflecting Shar’s radiance—of allowing her to watch such a blessed performance in her name. He was the priest. He was the clergy. He was the prayer and the offering itself. Malus was the altar, the operating room the church.

“See how the patient reacts when I but stroke the right nerve. Hear its comfort. Hear the very melody of mercy.” He raised a clawed hand—a contraption of bloodstained bronze or rusted metal. Repurposed forceps that had been turned and ruined and bastardized from a tool of healing to a cause for pain. Even to him—his hands sawed clean off below the wrist and metal rods forcibly drilled through the bone and into both his radius and ulna. Without medication, if the surgeon’s logs Freya had found previously were anything to go by. “Pray, sister, show us the extent of your beneficence.”

The man—it, as the surgeon had called them—gritted their teeth but could do nothing to stop the pain. Wrists bound in metal and legs held firm in stirrups. Bound and useless and forced to endure such pain as a dull blade ripping across blood spattered skin from hip to naval without so much as a splash of ale.

“Stop. Stay your hand,” Malus corrected with all the gentle, loving kindness of a grandfather. “For it slaps where it should stroke. We can hardly hear the patient’s sighs of solace.”

Freya should have punctured her ears when she had the chance.

A joke—a horrible horrible joke by a handful of bastards who had seen her fall apart once upon a time that now left her laughing and sobbing all at once. The bastards had seen her freeze. They had seen her crumple to the ground. Useless. She was then as she was now.

What they hadn’t seen was Thomas cart her off, all the patience in the world as she shuffled away with frozen limbs on uneven cobblestones. They hadn’t seen the way he nestled her into a corner where she would be safe and protected at his back while he took the time to rip through whatever made that noise that sent her spiraling in the first place… she couldn’t even remember. The bastards had only seen the she was helpless, stuck back in a distant moment as her partner did the job they were both to do.

And she was back there again, stuck in the furthest recesses of her mind. Frozen and cold and crying. The smell of burning oil. The sickening, glowing heat of the oven at her back. The screams—gods the screams. Incoherent and mindless and and—deafening— and— trapped.

Within her own body.

She was trapped within her own body in the worst way. Not there, not present, but stuck watching and suffering as her mind split in two and forced itself to watch two separate scenes unfold. One of past, one of present.

And Thomas wasn’t even there to console her.

“Perhaps it is our unexpected audience that makes you quiver.”

The pieces of her that remained in the present, stuck watching the scene unfold, could feel the others at her back. Waiting. She was a leader and one that should charge forward and command the room and stop this madness—either by blade or equally sharp tongue.

“Come. Step forward. You are no sister, but that matters none. Every student is welcome.”

She could hear Astarion’s voice, a long off echo drowned out by the ringing of her ears. There was anger. Disgust. A familiar voice that parts of her fleeting sanity hung on to for comfort despite every primal part of her whispering of the danger. She could feel the way the darkness shifted—the way her partner’s body shifted. Shoulders hunched as if to lunge forward with claws and teeth like some sort of wild, desperate animal. “He’s just as mad as Cazador,” he whispered.

The warm leather of his glove wrapped around her arm, forcing his way forward. She was staring at his back, blocking the image from view. His broad shoulders tensed—but not the way she would associate with a desperate animal. The side of his boot slid into hers, forcing her to take a step backwards and away from the scene. Protective.

“In my experience,” he spoke in careful, even tones. “Torture is usually more pain and less proselytizing.”

“Behold, sisters, the very face of ignorance—one who mistakes tenderness for torture.”

She could hear him swallow—his pride or his fear, she did not know.

“Go on. Acquaint the face of ignorance with the true object of our studies.”

The sisters stepped forward, one foot stomping along the broken tiles of the operating room as if it was more dead than the rest. “Absence,” she drawled, as if deep within a trance. Broken and lost—something Freya understood too well in the moment.

“Absence,” Malus praised. “No other word captures the heart of Shar so very perfectly.” He bent down, low over the operating table and out of Freya’s view. “It is the scalpel-led journey that leads from pain—” A single bronze finger crested over the top of Astarion’s head, the dull light of the operating lamp providing an exaggerated, eye-catching gleam. The tip of it drove down, sharp as any scalpel. “—to peace.” Again, the curved tip of what could only be called a finger raised up only to be brought down.

It wasn’t Astarion’s fault—he didn’t know. It wasn’t the sight, or the blood, or the horror, or anything that was within his control to stop. It was the sound. The sound of screams. Of blade delicately slicing through skin. Of talon-like claws teaching in and popping out the eyes of a hapless victim. If he had known, perhaps he would have commanded Shadowheart to curse her with deafness. Or punctured her eardrums himself.

“See?” Malus called. “What is the light of eyes but the cancer that causes one to witness the laceration of being.

“If light is the symptom, then darkness is the cure. For in light there is presence, but in darkness there is absence.”

“In light is presence; in darkness, absence,” the sisters echoed.

“But you: look how the succor of Shar eludes you. See how painfully present you remain… We do not wish to see you suffer so. Let us cure you. As the very presence of Shar has cured your friend.”

Astarion was slow, careful. Another press of his boot, another hobbled step back. Freya felt her back warm as she was pressed into Karlach. What would have otherwise been a comfort from the gentle giant only made it worse.

She was warm. Burning. Stuck listening and melting behind the stove while echoing screams filled the room and cooking oil filled her nose. Stuck behind a burning over in the dusty corner of a kitchen trying to hide.

There was a long silence, the rogue weighing his options. How many could he take? How many could he slaughter before they even blinked? How long until they went after Freya and deemed her in need of a cure that only they could administer? To be down one was one thing… but for her to be helpless was another. “The sisters aren’t ready.” A hint of desperation. A hint of fear. He couldn’t hide behind flippant remarks or alluring charm—that wouldn’t work here. “They’ll make me sick instead of curing me.”

 “Their incisions are, as yet, still streaked with imprecision—that much I must concede.” Malus’ words were laced with sorrow—disappointment. Not in the sisters, but himself. His own teachings had yet to fail, but had not yet succeeded. “How to steady their hands, I wonder…”

“They need a better subject to practice on first.” There was a calmness to him, Astarion. One she hadn’t heard, not in this way. A sickening, stomach curling, fantasy that had yet to come to life but he would take it where he could get it. “Not a student, but a master.”

“Yes… Yes. I see now. By example I must edify and quell the light that blinds us.” There was no malice in his actions, only name. Not even as his claws reached once more over his head and tore down into the man’s chest. A single incision, a single strike that pierced the heart and left it spurting in a final attempt to save its own body’s life.

Freya saw the body roll from the operating table, dull and lifeless and still in the most unnatural of ways.

“Come, sisters,” he commanded. “Soothe me.”

Her only saving grace was that there were no screams. A cure where there was no ailment, only the driving grunts and tearing of skin with dull blades that she could pretend was not there. Only a fountain of blood, spraying and spurting and decorating her hair in a delicate veil.

And then it was quiet.

She wasn’t sure exactly when she had crumpled to the floor, or when Astarion had taken a knee at her side, or when Karlach had lovingly rested her hand against her shoulder.

“Freya,” he whispered. “Freya, darling. It’s over now.” She was stuck staring into empty space—his shoulder, she thinks. Not that she could tell, the world was shifting sideways and upside down and right side up and mocking her with its summersaults and backflips—it could move, but she could not.

The leathers of his gloves were soft and warm—thrumming gently with magic—as it cupped either side of her face. “Darling, look at me. Can you look at me?” He pressed his forehead to hers, making sure she had no place to look but his eyes. “Love.” Something about that name startled her, broke her out of whatever trance she was bound to just long enough to focus. He dragged his thumbs across her cheeks, smoothing away tears. “We’re going to get you out of here, alright? We’re going to get you out of here. We’re going to get you someplace safe and we’re going to get you cleaned up, alright? Can you say something, do something, anything so I know you can understand me?”

It was an eternity in and of itself, fighting herself. In the end, all she could manage was a few stray tears and rapid blinking of her eyes and a hard swallow.

He pressed his lips to her forehead in something that couldn’t quite be called a kiss, more of an acknowledgement. “Alright, I’ll accept that.”

Astarion stood, slowly and carefully as if any sudden movement would startle her and send her reeling back into whatever distant thoughts had her trapped there. He looked down, offering both his outstretched hands. “We’re going to stand and we’re going to walk out of here, alright? All of us.”

Freya’s arms felt limp and swollen and useless, as if they were replaced in some hack surgery by a pair of sausages. Still, she managed to raise them, to put her hands in his. She managed to stand, albeit with all the grace of a drunken fawn. She managed to take a few, shaky steps on her own, too, even if she was leaning all her weight on her new hunting partner.

[eminsunnytoons123]

Heres finally the "class of 3000: back to the SING!" Characters list:

Main protagonists - Sunny, lil' D, philly Phil, Madison, Eddie, tamika, kim And kam

Main supporting characters - mila, cheddar man, Bianca, kaylie and mackenzie, tanya, Petunia Squattinchowder, Oliver Starz, Agathe Dubois, Ms. Rubystein, Valien the alien of the solar System, Margarette the Spider Queen, lucius, jan the janitor, Bullfrog Suggs (I may edit this)

The class of 4000 characters (theyre the Main supporting characters too): Moony Nights, Lil' T, Alisson, Paula, Dylanny Dylan, Gigi, Pim and Pam, B "Back" Agustin, Lil' Z, Malisson, Isabella, Tyleryn Tyler, Bibi, Sim and Sam, Raphael Sanchez, Malus Guy, Calvin Sun, Principal Blair, Cassandra seawaves, Olivia, Chloe and Zoe (I may still be editing this...)

Antagonists - Dr. Nefario, Salieri, lil' G, Freddie, Brooklyn Bill, Addison, Bambi, jim And Jam, Big D, Mr Yin And Mr Min, Tanya (often), kaylie And mackenzie (often), Sunil Roads, Mozzarella sir, Kitty Mc Bitty, Principal Luna (very often), Jared (very often), Dustin and Preston, Blob, B "Back" Agustin And his students (I added them in supporting characters just incase)

Minor characters (or characters that often appear but arent completely the part of the Main cast) - Enrique, ms noir and literally any other minor/non important characters I saw on behind the actors site And will actually appear in the reboot:

And thats finally the characters list, And this is a small treat for @iggyguyy @ducktoonz903707 @nightkit92 @cheezekennith @ghostytoastynights @classywinnerpeace And all my other loves ones in my tumblr family And even some class of 3000 fans here on tumblr =^.^=

And also, I'll draw the class of 4000 cast Today or tommorow =^_^=

And! Sunil, Mozzarella sir and Kitty Mc Bitty only appear once as Main antagonists for their own episodes ("Bridges or Roads?" For Sunil And Mozzarella sir and "Cutest Kitty in the world" for Kitty Mc Bitty) but may appear as some kind of easter egg characters

[vashito]

I love seeing the asks about the Zero-G wrestlers! Just wondering, do you have any headcanons (I guess they're just canon lol) about how the backstage dynamics are? Who gets along well and who doesn't, who are the responsible ones, if there's any pranksters among them, etc etc. What's that sweet sweet LORE hahaha

LOL I CONTROL THE CANON, I FEEL SO POWERFUL! YES, i feel like their personalities really come thru backstage, and some girls are friends and some not. Like STELLAR, CKO and Yuna all trained together so they WERE close, before Yuna got a big ego after she got popular, now she wants her own dressing room and all that so she doesn't have to change with the other girls, or even talk to them. It definitely rubs everyone the wrong way. But STELLAR and CKO got an apartment together during training, so they are buds and stayed close. Most popular in the locker room is Malu, for sure, she's everyone's favorite cuz she's so warm and friendly, always joking and giving big hugs. She's one of those people that you cant help but be in a good mood when they are around. She's super chill, calm, always brings a bluetooth speaker in the locker room and shares cold drinks she bought before the show. but with Tak, the opposite, everyone is afraid of her, all the scars and her sharp teeth and death metal tees make everyone keep their distance. No one will put in the time and effort to try to get to know her better Blue Corazón ONLY doesnt get along with Corazón Sombrio, they freakin hate each other, but is cool with everyone else. She only speaks spanish and cant really talk to anyone, but she's chill, they like having her around. She's most often snacking in catering. They probably all gossip about her when she's in the showers wondering if anyone has seen her face ever and then Dagmara is just all business and doesnt talk much, she is there to work, win, and get paid. It's nothing personal but making friends isn't a priority to her.