#Bro literally appeared in ONE comic and was later mentioned only TWICE

[purp1eashes]

Since DC doesn't want this man anymore I'm taking him.

Edit: I just realized he appeared in issue 69... I love him even more now.

[ardenttheories]

Thoughts on JuJus? They seem to be able to make players (oftentimes, players with the related aspect to their effects) embody aspects act as a kick-starter or booster to a player's abilities- (Jane with the trickster-mode JuJu, spreading it by "creating" it, Lil Cal as a JuJu and taking control and angering Gamzee, the Retcon JuJu (as stated by Rose as a JuJu in epilogue) that John touches to gain his retcon powers and would that mean horrorterrors may be JuJus as well? (by grim-darking players)

I just did a little bit of reading on JuJus, and from what I can tell, they’re ultimately just… weird as all fuck. 

Before I get into the meat of it: 

Having not read too far into the comic, I wasn’t aware of the circumstances surrounding the Ultimate Treasure (the white SBURB house JuJu). It can only be used twice; it was used one by Caliborn to trap one version of the Beta Kids inside (who have yet to come back out); Vriska believes the JuJu contains warriors who are capable of destroying Caliborn; because Caliborn used it to aid him, it is now destined to destroy him. 

So, reading the comic to its end, as it turns out, is absolutely vital to understanding the Epilogue - because it looks like this JuJu is the vital plot hole that hasn’t been filled. John’s going to have to go back into canon, get the four trapped Beta Kids out of the JuJu, and take down Caliborn with their help. More on that later, maybe. 

As for my general thoughts on the JuJus themselves…

There’s a lot more items in canon that are considered JuJus than you’ve mentioned here, and that makes trying to figure this out a bit more complicated. Just based on the wikia - which is pretty comprehensive, and always the best place to start when you’re researching Homestuck stuff - the main JuJus are these:

Lil Cal (or potentially just his eyes)

The Suckers (one red, one green, belonging to Caliborn and Calliope respectively)

The Treasure (representative of the story’s narrative)

The Chess Set (belonging to Calliope and Caliborn; theorised by Meenah)

The Felt’s Effigies (back in the Intermission; the white plush things with hats on them)

The Felts’ items (back in the Intermission, incl. Die’s pins and dolls, Eggs’ timer, Biscuits’ oven)

Lil Cal’s a tricky one, because he doesn’t adhere to any set JuJu rules (since he appears in multiple places at once in some scenes, and because he’s often in every universe at once, though in some cases it technically shouldn’t happen) and because he’s a container for several souls (which both change him drastically, and make it hard to figure out how much of him is his actual JuJu powers and how much is the souls). 

I think the importance of Cal in relation to Aspects is to look at who he predominantly preys upon: Heart and Rage players. Specifically destructive Heart and Rage players (as the vessels for his actions). For as much as he fucks around with everyone else, there’s still that ongoing theory that Cal controls both Bro and Gamzee by kickstarting their abilities by twisting them into something rancid (turning Dirk’s desire to make his friends stronger into Bro’s outright abuse, and being one of the main reasons for Gamzee’s Bardic Splits across most universes; it almost always begins in the presence of Lil Cal, or once Gamzee has looked into his eyes). There’s a definite connection to Heart (in the fact that his eyes are almost always referenced; the gateway to the Soul, which Heart embodies) and Rage (which seems to be what he causes in other people), perhaps related to his mixup of souls, or entirely due to himself. It might just be that it’s easier to prey upon destructive Heart and Rage players. 

The only thing that trips that up, however, is his clear connection to Time. Cal hates Dave - it’s one of the more on-the-nose things in Homestuck - likely because he’s a Time player, and one that uses Exploits to Protect his session. Dave’s one of the main reasons the Beta session doesn’t end in immediate failure, after all - and although that benefits Lord English for his creation, I would harry a guess to say that he’s probably not very happy that someone could beat him at his own game. Cal is clearly intrinsically connected to LE (in part due to his connection to Doc Scratch), and I think that might be why he’s so important to Caliborn. All requirements to make LE aside, Cal is as much a harbinger of LE’s will as anything else (and often Ends doomed timelines through the use of Gamzee). It would be suffice to say that his temporal fuckery is what gives him such a destructive connection to our redblooded cherub, and why he’s so vital to make LE in the first place.

So, in the case of Cal, I’d think probably! The connection to Cal as a Heart/Rage/Time-based JuJu seems to have an ongoing effect on the players he preys upon or ends up most empowered over, as well as over his general abilities and how being in his control effects them. 

The Sucker JuJus are still something I don’t fully understand. They’re seemingly harmless when divided, but united provide the irresistible urge to go buckwild and tip anyone who licks them firmly into the Sweets theory of creative writing - all the fun fluff that has no meaning on the plot, but is still enjoyable to read. I’d question why this is the effect of two JuJus representative of Time and Space, unless the implication is that Time and Space together allow for metaverse effects, but I somewhat doubt that. 

Regardless, Jane definitely creates it, but I’d almost say it’s to the detriment of her and her friends. Life is about Growth, too - and Trickstermode actively stalls their character Growth while they’re stuck in it. They’re too hyped out of their minds to go under any meaningful developments until they’re out of it. Which could perhaps be seen as a Maid defining what Growth is? It’s because of Trickstermode that Dirk breaks up with Jake, and a lot of his development and mellowing out follows after this moment of being confronted with his Emotions (actively standing up for them, being Emotional, rather than trying to be Rational and Logical; it’s what stops him from so fervently Ghosting Mind).

So… depending on how you read Classpects, I think there is an argument here for the combined Sucker JuJu to have an effect on Jane’s Life powers - something that kickstarts her, although to an initially negative effect. It’d be interesting to see what would’ve happened if Jake had figured out the code first - they only had one half of the code each, after all - and whether or not it had to be Jane to make the JuJu work to begin with. Or, even, if it would’ve worked with anyone, but had different effects. 

The Chess Set we just don’t know enough on. I admittedly don’t feel entirely confident commenting on it. 

The Felts’ items, though, are easy enough to figure out. The Leprechauns are Lord English’s minions, and therefore associated with Time. Deeply imbued with time, even. The fact that their JuJus are always Time related is just entirely logical here; even if they’re not explicitly Time players, they’re the handymen of the literal Lord of Time. It wouldn’t make sense for them to be unable to use something to do with Time considering their entire existence revolves around Caliborn, his session, and his eventual rise to power as Lord English. So, the Felt having JuJus intrinsically related to Time that then amplifies what seems like their already Time-related abilities (if we take someone like Trace as an example)? Perfectly suits this theory. 

I already spoke a bit about the Treasure, so I won’t go too into detail about it here, but I think it’s interesting that Vriska, the Thief of Light, is the only one capable of finding it. The literal canon-changing JuJu is found by the one character whose purpose is to Steal Canonicity and Importance? Iconic. 

It thus makes sense as to why John can use it, and why his abilities so thoroughly fuck up the timelines. The JuJu is entirely Light-based - it’s a literal plot hole, a portal into Canon that completely ignores all laws of Time and Space and Paradoxes - and provides whoever uses it with a boost to their Aspect in a Light-based fashion. It’s like a more even influencer. John’s Aspect allows him to be Free; therefore, the Treasure gives him the ability to be Free from Canon. It amps up his powers to completely meta levels, though thankfully keeps him within the general influence of the story. This, when I think about it, is why John has to be the one to use the Treasure, and why he’s the one who has to take the burden of all the Retcon abilities. Since, as you say, JuJus tend to influence the Aspect of the person using it by amping up their powers (although, as we’ve already seen, other JuJus tend to naturally end up in the hands of players who have Aspects that already align with what they’re meant to do), for the purpose of changing the Timeline without the restrictions of Time and Space, it had to be a Breath player. Someone who perfectly embodies Breath - perfectly embodies Freedom and Disconnect - could be the only person capable of using the JuJu to its best ability. 

This probably means that, had someone else used it, they would’ve done so to drastically different effects. Still usable, but definitely not beneficial to the situation they were in. 

So, to bring a very long story short:

Lil Cal, a JuJu that tends to most predominantly exude Time, Rage, and Heart, often ends up in the hands of Time, Rage, and Heart players, and amps up their respective abilities (though to drastically negative consequences).

The Sucker JuJus are a bit weirder, being both Time and Space together, and representative of Light - but combine all that into one moment that allows for Life to continue the Growth of the character. Would it have worked for anyone else? Maybe. But it’s interesting that it’s our Life player who ends up creating it, considering our Hope player was just as likely to make it as her. 

The Felt’s JuJus are just obvious in and of themselves; Time JuJus that amplify the powers of Time-related minions, and provide Time-related powers to characters that aren’t Time-based (though to their detriment; looking at The Midnight Crew here).

The Treasure is entirely Light-based, and gives whoever uses it an incredible Light-based boost to their pre-existing Aspect and power set. In our instance, that means John, as the Heir of Breath, is capable of being Free from Canon and the restraints of Canonical Lore regarding Time and Space when creating the new Timeline. 

To wrap it all up, then - no, I don’t think the Horror Terrors are JuJus. Though they’re perfectly imbued with Void, I think they fail to meet a lot of the requirements that make JuJus what they are. The Horror Terrors are something similar, but completely separate; incredibly powerful and definitely only attuned to Void-based powers (of which grimdark is only one), but more living and real than JuJus. Feferi’s able to talk to them, after all, and reasons with them to make the Dream Bubbles - and her Lusus is definitely a Herror Terror, which proves for a fact that they’re creatures rather than things. 

[neruran]

How to Be a Matchmaker Dragon

A/N: This was inspired by the combo of this little comic by @saisai-chan​ and the news that in the third light novel Kirishima has been confirmed to be the dragon Bakugou’s riding in the fantasy AU ending. While I do like KiriBaku, I also ship Kacchako and I adore the idea of Kirishima helping his emotionally constipated bro out. And of course, since Kirishima’s a half-dragon and can fly, he’s Bakugou’s wing-man. Pun very much intended. Sorry not sorry.

Anyway, please reblog, comment, and/or leave a kudos if you enjoy this!

(Read on AO3)

“Cosmic Meteor Strike!”

Eijirou watched in awe as giant rocks came shooting from the sky, crashing down on the demons Ochako had been fighting. He’d always felt an instinctive sense of respect and fear towards magi for the feats their magic could perform, but Ochako was a whole other level even if she humbly insisted she was still learning. Powerful as she was though, he didn't feel uneasy around her like he did with other mages thanks to her kind and open spirit, and he was certainly glad to have her as a companion and friend.

Of course, he knew he wasn’t the only one who was glad. He glanced beside him where his friend (technically master, but Eijirou felt they’d travelled and fought together long enough that their relationship was more familiar than master-servant) Katsuki also stood watching the magical onslaught in amazement, cape blowing behind him in the wind kicked up by the impacts. Then again, Eijirou could tell that the levels at which the two of them appreciated Ochako’s company were not quite the same. Katsuki may call him a carefree idiot a lot, but Eijirou was not a complete idiot and he liked to think he knew Katsuki pretty well. Katsuki very evidently felt some inkling that went beyond mere admiration and respect for Ochako, because his expressions and body language around her were rather different if you knew what to look for.

Eijirou was happy for him, honestly; his friend wasn’t exactly the most social person, preferring to fight anyone to prove he was strongest in all the land and claiming things like friendship and romance were a waste of his time and effort, but Eijirou knew no person is an island-- wait, island didn’t seem right, because there were plenty islands that were rather populated and fun and easy to get to, like that one he flew to once that had this really delicious meat dish--

He was getting sidetracked.

Anyway, point was, he knew deep down Katsuki was perfectly capable of ordinary human feelings even if he denied them to the heavens and underworld and back, he was just very, very bad at processing them. Eijirou understood that, and was sure Katsuki had his reasons for being that way, but it didn’t mean he had to stay that way. People said it got lonely at the top; Eijirou thought that it only felt lonely if you let it feel lonely, and he certainly wasn’t going to let that happen to Katsuki. Ochako would be good for him; she was gentle but also challenged him, made him think twice both in combat and conversation with her spells and surprising quips, called him out when he was going too far and empathized with him when he was upset. Their group had only been travelling together a short time compared to how long Katsuki and Eijirou had been companions, and already she seemed to understand him on much the same level Eijirou did, if not moreso. He also thought Katsuki would be good for her, pushing her with earnest respect while also being a strong, solid shoulder for her to lean on when she’d had enough (figuratively and literally; Eijirou knew those muscles of his were not just for show), fiercely loyal and protective when it counted, and not to mention funny once you saw past his bluster.

Problem was, Katsuki was Katsuki, and he obviously wasn’t going to get anywhere on his own. He needed a little push in the right direction. So with a sly grin, Eijirou leaned down and nudged his friend to get his attention, glanced to Ochako pointedly once Katsuki’s gaze had turned to him, then looked back to meet Katsuki’s eye, his brow arched in teasing suggestion. He snickered as Katsuki went red with the realization he’d been caught staring, the warrior huffing and turning away put on a hasty cloak of aloofness, but Eijirou knew him too well.

Too caught up in their wordless exchange, neither of them took notice of the debris that began to rain down after being launched into the air by the impact of the meteors. It started with dust and small pebbles, but soon larger rocks the size of a person’s fist clattered around them, and not a moment later Eijirou’s snickering cut off with a yelp when a larger stone hit him right on the top of his snout. It certainly smarted, especially since he hadn’t been expecting it and therefore had no chance to activate his inborn magic to make his scales harder, but he’d had worse. But, it did give him opportunity, or more importantly, Katsuki opportunity. So he played up the injury, letting out a whine and collapsing, forcing tears to well in his eyes.

Katsuki, unsurprisingly, kicked up a fit.

“What the fuck?!” he roared at Eijirou. “I can’t believe this! You’re a dragon, you wimp, you can take a puny hit like that!”

Just as Eijirou expected, Ochako passed by not a moment later on her way to reconvene with the rest of the group, pausing when Katsuki’s yelling caught her attention.

“Ah!” her exclamation caught both their attentions, the two of them turning to her as she rushed over, frantically apologetic. “I’m so sorry, Eijirou! I didn’t mean for you to get hurt!”

Katsuki, ever quick to use anger to disguise some other unwanted emotion (Eijirou guessed this time was the fact Ochako’s sudden approach made him flustered), immediately turned his ire on her. “Y-You!” he snapped with an accusatory finger pointed, cheeks flushing in what he’d probably later claim to be anger. “Stay away you fucking witch-- and watch where you’re aiming!!”

Ochako barely acknowledged him, walking up to Eijirou with single-minded determination.

“Take some responsi-- Oi! Are you even listening?!”

She evidently was not, interrupting Katsuki’s ranting to call out “Healing spell!”, lifting her staff into the air.

“Stop ignor--...” Katsuki trailed off as Ochako began to murmur words that he and Eijirou knew to be the language of spells but neither had any understanding of, watching in stunned silence as she shut her eyes in concentration and lifted her staff higher.

The bulbous tip where her magic concentrated began to glow with a soft warm light, and the boys stared in amazement as the bruise on Eijirou’s snout faded then disappeared altogether. Healing magic was always a sight to behold, and it was an infamously difficult magic to learn, so Ochako’s precision and speed was definitely something of note. Cautiously Eijirou reached a talon up to poke at the spot where it had been, lighting up when not even the slightest ache remained, and turned to Katsuki with a proud and happy smile. “Look at what she can do! She’s so impressive!” he thought, silently willing Katsuki to understand him and do something about it.

Ochako lowered her staff again as the spell finished, looking notably more weary than she had when it had started. She smiled tiredly upon seeing Eijirou healed, then began to stagger where she stood. The two boys jolted as she started to tilt forward, and Eijirou went to stick his nose out to catch her, but she caught herself with her staff before he could.

“Holy shit! You- You’re about to pass out!” Bakugou yelled, anger poorly disguising his worry.

“Hahh…” Ochako sighed, smile going wry with her fatigue. “Guess I pushed myself too far with those last two spells…”

Eijirou suddenly felt bad; if he had known that her meteor spell had taken so much out of her, he wouldn’t have played up his injury so much to have her think it warranted a healing spell. Magic exhaustion was dangerous, and he hated the idea of putting one of his friends in danger just for the sake of playing matchmaker. He crooned in concern and apology, but the noise was quickly drowned out when Katsuki started to yell again.

“Then fucking rest, you dumbass!” he roared (honestly, sometimes Eijirou had to wonder if he was the real dragon between the two of them). Then, to Eijirou’s surprise, he suddenly calmed, cheeks pinking as he glanced away bashfully, voice dropping to a mutter. “And...thanks. For healing him.”

Oh-ho, so maybe Eijirou didn’t need to help that much after all. Still, a little...extra push wouldn’t hurt.

“Haha, it was no prob--”

With Katsuki distracted and Ochako too tired to notice, Eijirou snuck his tail behind the mage and - gently enough to avoid hurting anyone but forcefully enough to knock her forward - shoved her right into Katsuki, startling both the humans so they tumbled over, Ochako on top of Katsuki. Eijirou snickered as Katsuki let out an impressive stream of profanity that was only half-intelligible in his sputtering rage, then smirked smugly as he left his tail draped over them, weighing the pair down so neither were able to get up. His amusement and pride only grew as Katsuki seemed to realize just what Eijirou had done, his face going nearly as red as Eijirou’s scales.

“WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT FOR, YOU--!” he started to snarl, but a groan from Ochako cut him short, making him look down in surprise. It seemed she’d truly reached her limit, and promptly passed out with her head pillowed on Katsuki’s chest. She really didn’t look well so disturbing her probably wouldn’t have been the best idea, and Katsuki appeared to realize this because he let out a sharp hiss between his teeth and reluctantly relaxed back, the glare on his face entirely ruined by the faint blush on his cheeks. “Fine. But when she wakes up, you move.”

Eijirou merely grinned in response, all too happy to agree. He made a point to turn away to give the two some semblance of privacy, flopping down to have a nap himself, kicking up a small breeze that managed to take Ochako’s hat off; he quickly caught it with the end of his tail so it wouldn’t get lost. If he happened notice Katsuki’s hand drift up to softly comb through Ochako’s hat-mussed hair, he would pretend he hadn’t and not tease him for it later.

Maybe.