#I can't speak on behalf of others but at least for me anyway that's not my intent in the slightest

[lightandfellowship]

IMO the thing about Hoder is that her thoughts, feelings, motivations, and actions are left somewhat ambigious by the game, both due to how little screentime she gets and the open-ended nature of Kingdom Hearts' storytelling. Because of this, there are multiple ways that you could interpret her character, and I would argue that, for the most part, these various interpretations are all equally valid within the framework of what the game gives us (because after all, it's not like the game gives us a lot to work with in the first place.)

Is her professed belief in the inherent light of people's hearts a genuine representation of her thoughts, or something she said to ease the concerns of her bickering classmates, knowing full well that her declaration was overly-optimistic? When she snuck off to confront Maleficent by herself, did she have battle on the mind, or was she just planning to negotiate with her? Who instigated the fight, a righteous Hoder or an enraged Maleficent? When she tried to inform her friends that Baldr needed help as she died, was she aware that he had been possessed by darkness, or was it unclear to her what exactly was wrong with him? When she asked Xehanort to house her heart in his and transport her to Baldr, was it truly because she was worried about her brother, or because she felt it was her responsibility as his sister to put an end to his chaos? When she offered Baldr an olive branch upon reuniting with him at the end of the game, was she hoping that her kind words would convince him to stand down, or was it all just a ruse to get close enough to kill him? Who decided to turn on the other first? Or did they turn on each other simultaneously, both equally driven by distrust and paranoia? Heck, what was her sibling relationship to Baldr even like? Because the game certainly doesn't show it to us in any greater detail. And considering all the parallels the game draws between her and Eraqus, just how much of her personality and ideals can we glean from Eraqus'?

Personally, I love flawed and messy characters, especially if they're women. Extra especially if they're technically on the side of good. So while I do try to strike a balance with how I interpret her, I can't deny that I have a fondness for some of the darker possibilities, pun not intended.

[omarwolaeth]

thinking 'bout how the lads interact with what the bracelets represent, especially in their decks

[twst-drabbles]

Meleanor 1

Summary: You do not understand this egg's mother. On multiple occasions, with words or with silence, she has made her hatred towards humans clear. And yet, here she is with her egg in her arms.

(Ough, spent most of the day transferring my stuff to another writing program because my brain refuses to engage with the current one. Hopefully this one will be better for me. The interface is something I'm used to, at least. Also more time travel shenanigans because why not?)

When a guest is invited–or at least, allowed over by the pixies–the cluster of bells by your lattice windows would ring cleanly through the house, then would glow depending on how many guests there were. And if there was no guest but someone was coming anyway, all bells would ring at the same time and glow a sickly green.

It was a nice, a way to distinguish guest from intruder.

Only one ball bell glowed in this instance, a calm gold, but another one was hesitating, almost flickering in it's attempt to shine.

It was weird, until you saw the vine curtain pull back to reveal that faerie noble woman Meleanor with a huge egg in tow. Her smile, while clearly crafted from years of experience, did not fool you. You can feel the way her eyes regard you as a crawling, invasive bug.

"Hmm," was all the greetings you could muster out, because you didn't expect her to come here, nor did you want her here, but the egg was a pleasant surprise. It cancels out your need to give a dismissive/rude greeting into a neutral noise.

Meleanor, however, turned her eyes back to her egg. Her smile grew smaller, but gentler, as she rubbed her thumb over the raised grooves and ridges over the shell.

"Was that all you needed? You spoiled boy of mine. But fret not, I'll give you everything that you want, even if it means robbing the night sky of its every star just to give them to you."

It's… weird, knowing that Malleus was inside that very egg that Meleanor was so tenderly caressing. A growing fetus, alive and well, beating with a very tiny heart.

…oh right, you're supposed to receive this guest on behalf of the pixies. They can't do it themselves, on the account of how dense and volatile her magic is. Such sensitivity tends to make them agitated or fearful. And you, being a dull human with no magic sense whatsoever, would have to take the reigns.

"Sit wherever you like," you gestured to the whole scope of the room.

"And who gave you permission to speak, to gaze upon me?" She didn't so much as look at you, keeping her gaze upon her child, still so filled with fondness and love.

This song and dance again… Ugh, you're going to be so exhausted by the end of the day.

"A host that cannot gaze or speak with the guest is a negligent one," Meleanor not looking at you was a sign that she's not truly angry. She's just trying to mess with you in the way all faeries love to do. "You know this."

A prank to them, a danger to you. You fall for it or falter, and she will relish in punishing you however she sees fit. You're just lucky you have a good sense of when you're in danger or not.

"Haha," Meleanor lifted her head to laugh, mildly amused, "A host now, is it? Your manners are well-trained in you, for a human. Any less and I would have had you replaced. Surely the pixies will find another creature to attach themselves to."

"That's if they don't gather up their things and leave for other places," you dragged a chair and kicked back on it, "You would lose your stable seasons if you were to 'replace' me on your own whims."

Human etiquette in you tells you to go into the kitchen and make a drink or a snack. Faerie etiquette, however, told you to wait and quietly listen. You can't assume a request of a faerie guest. You could easily be accused of arrogance.

But, instead of requesting for anything or attempting to stab you with her sharp words, Meleanor took the seat on the other side of the dining table. She leaned her egg close to her belly and simply let time pass with a steady lullaby.

And, unfortunately, this meant that you couldn't do anything as well. You're forced to sit there and wait with her while she gets lost in whatever is inside her head.

Just as you were about to zone out in your seat, Meleanor finally spoke.

"It was only for a brief moment, but I'm more than sure that my son heard your voice. It was when Malleus and I were wandering around these very woods as a means of staving off my boredom. And just as I was about to craft a most impressive tower of thorns, I heard your voice, along with those playful pixies right by the riverside. And my son heard you as well."

"Huh," you tapped at your knee, trying to recall what she's talking about. You can't. "What does that have do with you bringing your egg here?"

There was only the lightest flare of green fire over the hem of her dress, but she reigned it in. She is a guest after all. She can't very well rampage inside this house just because the pixies gave the okay for her to visit. It's why you're letting yourself be a little more lax than usual.

Meleanor gave a sigh, letting just a fraction of her rage go. "Already, before he's even born, Malleus is rebelling against me. I would be more proud if it weren't due to your influence. But, I have no choice in this instance. What my son wants, I'll give. It is my right to spoil him, especially at this stage."

"…Give him, my voice?" That's not exactly something you want to do.

"Malleus wants to hear more of your voice," she spat it out, as though the words were disgusting on her tongue, "He'll reject most of my and my husband's magic otherwise. Honestly, of all things for him to latch onto, it had to be a human's voice."

Wow, of all things…

"That's unfortunate," you sighed out.

"On my end, yes. But for you, it is a blessing that no other shall receive, so best weep for joy at such a miracle. When I take my leave, that is. I don't want to subject my child to the grating noises of a sobbing human."

Meleanor is certainly hating every moment of this, isn't she? Guess you should be thankful that, no matter where you are in time, Malleus attaches himself to you quickly. How nice.

But oh boy, you hope this doesn't have any consequences when you finally figure out how to go back to your present.

[teecupangel]

Hiiii teecup!! How are you? Hope you're doing great, or ok at least :3c

Alrighty so I've been craving EziDes lately but I'm too busy to do anything and I have too many ideas so here it goes!

Childhood friends to lovers (god I'm such a massive sucker for this trope)

Now, I have a little bit of plot for this one, cuz this idea have been stuck in my head since 2023 🧍

Okok so it starts like usual. Desmond dies, isu bullshit, time travel, and he face plants right into Renaissance Italy. ALSO he got de-aged, maybe into his 6-7 year old self (I want them to meet pretty early in there lives :'3)

He wanders around for a while not really knowing what to do until a grumpy old lady sees him and how pathetic he looks and decides to hire him to work as her butler/caretaker (or something along those lines I don't really know at this point :'D)

And the lady's rich, not like filthy rich but rich enough. She's been living by herself for years and never got married or have any children (which I'm sure is frowned upon back then) and she's really grumpy, like 40 year old guy who just got home from a hard day of work kind of grumpy.

And most people find her very unpleasant and leaves her alone. So it was strange, downright disturbing to see a kid running around her estate doing chores and having conversations with her.

But anyways Desmond starts living with her, but he's plotting and scheming.... To save the Auditores and take care of the isu bs of course :D.

Desmond didnt plan on meeting with Ezio because he didn't want to mess up the timeline more than he already has...... and then Ezio come waltzing into life.

I don't have any clear idea of how the two would meet but it's I imagine it as extra cute :3c

Desmond is mature for his age..... A bit too mature and he's knows things that most children shouldn't,. All in all he's an odd kid.

Like mistress, like caretaker am I right ¯\_( ͡❛ ͜ʖ ͡❛)_/¯

Desmond cares about Ezio very much, everyone can see that, and he gets Ezio out of trouble. They're always together, rarely to be seen without the other.

On Desmond's busier days (when he have too many chores to go out) Ezio would come to the lady's estate to chat with him and even help him with some of his chores. He stays out of trouble when Desmond's not with him.... But sometimes he just can't help himself lol.

The lady and Desmond develop a parent child bond and judges people together.

And the rest is up to you because my brain is jelly. (You can name the lady. I don't have any ideas on it LMAO)

(You can also make her an important character or not, I just love her too much to cut her out of the plot)

(SHE ALSO HAD A GIRLFRIEND THAT SHE WANTED TO RUNAWAY WITH BUT SHE DIED AND NOW THAT'S WHY SHE'S GRUMPY ALL THE TIME. Do what you want with this info :3c)

(this turned from an EziDes ask to the lady lore dump, apologies)

I’m doing alright. It’s been a busier month than I expected hahahaha

So, for this one, I’m imagining Desmond’s mistress (as he likes to call her) / adoptive mother to be a collector of sort. Making her a collector of the art seems a bit too easy so we’ll pick something a bit eccentric.

She collects dolls.

Dolls aren’t all that popular during that time and, even when they were, the dolls that is more or less considered ‘acceptable’ are dolls describing the nativity and other religious centered dolls.

But she collects ‘strange’ dolls from foreign lands.

This gives us an excuse for Desmond to speak in other languages, sometimes talking on her behalf to foreign merchants who shows her dolls that she may purchase on a whim.

She knows how to speak some of the languages and it’s not like Desmond knows all the languages as well but she prefers to let Desmond do the talking with merchants she hasn’t dealt with before. (the whole “let’s see if they start talking shit about me because they think I don’t understand them” is a common setup between them)

She and Desmond also like to talk in foreign languages when they want to fuck with other people. They rarely badmouth anyone, talking about the most benign thing while their tone and body language can be misunderstood.

She also only speak in foreign languages when the Auditore boy visits. She calls him ‘Desmond’s boy toy’ or some other equivalent of that and Desmond can’t even tell her that he’s so wrong because then he’d have to explain why he knows that word in the first place.

Their home is filled with dolls of different origin and make. Some are even dolls so old Desmond feels like they should be in a museum in the future.

Ezio doesn’t really like entering their home because he feels like the dolls are watching his every move.

He’s pretty sure that the house is haunted.

Desmond doesn’t help the entire thing because, yeah, he also thinks the house is haunted.

To fuck with Ezio, he tells him that someone died in the house and she still haunts its hallways.

Desmond doesn’t know but someone did die in the house. The lady’s grandfather who used to make wooden dolls for her to play with. That’s where her fascination with dolls started.

She also commissions artists to make her dolls and no one knows where she got her money.

It became normal to see Ezio Auditore with the eccentric old lady’s ward(?)/adopted son(?)/secret grandchild(???) when he’s out for his chores. Ezio Auditore learning how to pick the best vegetables or meat was not something anyone had on their bingo card.

This is a super slow burn kind of deal for EziDes because Ezio started out as thinking of Desmond as his super smart and mature best friend while Desmond started out thinking of Ezio as someone he looks up to and wants to protect.

Really, the old lady is the one who clocked in that yeah, these two are gonna fall in love with one another because that was how her love life started.

Best friends to…

Well…

She just hoped his ending was a happy one.

(If you let me name her, Imma name her Renne and she'll spend most of her time teasing Desmond about his 'nonexistent' love life)

[jerich0two]

Hi! I don't know if your ace or not, and if this question makes you uncomfortable ignore it, but is it possible for ace people to like, stop being ace if they find the right person? I just feel rlly guilty about reading alastor fics knowing that he's ace and ig this would make me have peace of mind or smth?

I am ace! But I can't speak on behalf of all aces, since everyone's experience is different. There aren't any “rules” to live by as an ace person. Honestly, you can do whatever you want and still be ace. You can also use the label and then find it doesn't fit you anymore, no harm done. That being said… the idea that asexual people will “stop being ace if they find the right person” is a very dodgy one. From what I've seen/read, it tends to be used to invalidate the ace identity. People on the asexual spectrum can and do take partners, and some people end up feeling sexual attraction (demisexuals and grey-aces, for example), but that doesn't make them any less ace.

(more thoughts below the cut-off)

  I'll throw in my personal opinion here (since this is my blog!): with Alastor specifically, canonically he seems uninterested in sex at the very least, and maybe even sex-repulsed. I don't think the people writing Alastor fics or drawing ship art are being malicious, and the same goes for the people consuming that content. Go right ahead and read those Alastor fics if you want. Personally, I don't care. I've seen some posts on here from other (aro)ace people endorsing the writing and reading of that kinda thing! But IMO, it’s been disappointing to see Alastor's canon identity thrown out so frequently in favour of making shipping/sexual content. There are so many other characters you could be shipping! And I don't think the vast majority of people are thinking to themselves, “he's ace, but there are so many different ways to be ace, and I'd like to explore that for his character”, they're just using it as an excuse to ignore his identity and give him the same treatment as the rest of the cast. But again, I don't think (most) people are being malicious. Just (maybe wilfully) ignorant.

  Anyway, sorry for the ramble! If you really feel guilty about reading Alastor fics, find fics with other characters you can comfortably enjoy. I reckon that'd be a better time for everyone haha /lh

(And do keep in mind that this is my personal opinion. Other aces might feel differently! If you think I've spoken out of turn here, feel free to let me know – I'm not used to talking about my identity online ^^”)

[antianakin]

@theneutralmime

I think there's probably NUMEROUS reasons fans have for disliking the Jedi.

I think some people might dislike them because before the Prequels came out there was this alternate perception of what the Jedi were/had been that was primarily dictated by Legends which seemingly based them far more on European Knights than anything else, something which clearly appealed to a lot of people and was familiar and fun as an archetype. People became, ironically, attached to this version of the Jedi that they'd grown up with and so when the Prequels came out and they were NOT in fact European Knights with laser swords and magic powers but Buddhist Monks with laser swords and magic powers, it was jarring. So I hear, at least. I had no concept of Legends and I saw the Prequels first anyway, but I'm told this was apparently jarring for people. So it's just a lot of "Well these aren't MY Jedi from my childhood" going on.

And adding to that, I think some people just disliked the Prequels as a whole and so one way to sort-of reinterpret the Prequels in such a way that they felt they could enjoy them more was to decide that their dislike of the Jedi was the intended reading of the film. It's not that they were misinterpreting it or that Lucas had somehow done it wrong, but that the Jedi being unlikable was the whole point. And this is the ONLY way they can see the Prequel films as enjoyable or worthwhile, so they're not going to accept any other explanation. Either the Jedi are supposed to be the bad guys and the films did exactly what they were meant to do, or the Jedi are supposed to be the good guys and the films failed because they didn't get that across TO THESE FANS.

And when you dislike something that much, it's VERY VERY DIFFICULT to turn that opinion around, even after you see other people make arguments on its behalf. As someone who has pretty strong negative opinions about things, I can speak to that from experience. I know people liked the Ahsoka show and even thought it was genuinely well-written and well-acted, I've seen some of their arguments for why they believe that. But none of those arguments are ever going to mean anything to me because my experience of it was so negative that I don't particularly WANT to like it or have my opinion changed. To me, it's just bad. I can't just force myself to understand it differently than I do at this point, even though I recognize other people don't share my opinion.

So some of those people who just had really negative experiences of the Prequel films and the way they depicted the Jedi might just be in a similar position. No amount of knowing other people interpreted it differently, no amount of arguments in defense of the Prequels and the Jedi, no amount of quotes by George Lucas, is every going to take away from the fact that these fans had a really negative experience with these films that will likely always color their opinions of them.

Some other arguments I've seen about why they dislike the Jedi in particular seem to stem primarily from their feelings about Anakin and the way his relationship with the Jedi was depicted in the films. Some of it might come from people having the hots for Anakin and so they just... don't care about anybody BUT him, but some seems to come more from how young Anakin is in TPM and the way it really changed their perspective on this character who had only ever been a villain prior to that film.

I think people saw the Council scene with this fairly small child in the middle of a room full of adults whose job it is to decide his future and really related to his fear and nervousness and defensiveness far more than they related to the Council being put into a difficult position and trying their best to be objective but not unkind. And while you are SUPPOSED to relate to Anakin here to some extent, you're also supposed to be able to recognize that just because Anakin's fears are valid doesn't mean the Council are wrong to see that he's not prepared for this life and that being a Jedi is likely not going to be the right path for him. That second part seems to elude a lot of people because all they see is a scared little boy and so they insist in the same breath that the Jedi stole Anakin away from his loving mother AND that they should've just let him join the Order no matter what. And so when Anakin starts making bad decisions and killing people and being arrogant, they don't blame Anakin for it, they don't trace it back to Anakin's mistrust and dishonesty, they just decide it was the Council's fault for not giving him everything he wanted immediately and causing him irreparable trauma as a result.

People also I think ended up relating a lot more to ADULT Anakin than they do to the Jedi because Anakin is INTENDED to be relatable, he's got all of the character flaws that are causing the entire story to happen, while the Jedi are primarily side characters who have completed their own character journeys and are now there just to guide others. They're the moral compass of the films, delivering many of their themes and messages, but they're not the HEART of the story the way Anakin is. I think this led to a lot of protagonist bias in some ways where they like Anakin and so they just proceeded to come up with every excuse under the sun for why he was right instead of understanding that even though Anakin was the main character and the heart of the story doesn't mean he's not also a cautionary tale of what NOT to do. That's truly it. It's a very long, very complicated fable for children about the consequences of selfishness and greed.

But people these days OFTEN feel like if they enjoy a character then they cannot also be problematic or do problematic things, so if they enjoy Anakin, despite all of the objectively horrific things that he does, then Anakin just cannot be the one at fault for it. It MUST be someone else's fault. And of course the opposite also ends up true where if someone dislikes a character, then they must come up with a reason for why they're problematic to explain it. And thus we also get the Jedi then becoming the scapegoat for Anakin's choices. They didn't like the Jedi, but they liked Anakin, so of course then Anakin was right and the Jedi wrong all along.

And more and more people who see the Prequels this way are the ones creating new Star Wars content, so we keep seeing more stories that emphasize this idea that the Jedi were wrong and Anakin was right. It's obviously in the Ahsoka show, it's in Rebels, it's in Tales of the Jedi, it's in the Cal Kestis video games, it's in the High Republic novels, it's definitely come up in several of the other Star Wars novels, it was (to some degree) in the Sequel Trilogy, and we know it's going to be in The Acolyte. And of course it's just VERY popular in the Star Wars fandom in general. Most fans aren't going to be looking up George Lucas quotes or watching his audio commentaries and researching what he meant by attachment, so they're just going to consume the content that's available and that content at this point is pretty consistently sending the message that the Jedi were wrong and Anakin was right. It's almost entirely inescapable these days. So I don't necessarily even blame most fans for being Jedi critical, I just personally can't stand it anymore.

[geekcat]

Gaz/Tenn Propaganda

With the Invader Zim Rarepair Tournament coming up, this seems like the perfect time to put out some propaganda for one ship that speaks to me: Gaz/Tann (or GaTR/alt GATR)! ( @iz-rarepair-tournament)

Now, normally this is only seen as part of the Gaz/Tak/Tenn throuple (as far as I can tell, at least), which, don't get me wrong, is a great underrated ship. But right now, we're focusing on just pairs, so I'd like to focus on why the Gaz/Tenn pairing could work, even if these characters haven't interacted before!

Cue the raw rambling:

According to one line of "The Dookie Loop Horror", Tenn holds the high score in an alien DDR game. This implies she, like Gaz, enjoys gaming and gives them something in common.

Of course, maybe the exact genres of games they enjoy most don't perfectly intersect, but that just makes it more interesting! The two of them can explore exactly what games they both like, and both get to expand their usual game libraries by trying what the other favors.

Picture: the two of them tearing through levels of a shooter together, cackling as they carve paths of destruction in their wake.

Now picture: them cuddling up to each other on the couch, quietly playing something more relaxed like Animal Crossing.

(Side note: imagine them working to create their own game that mixes the sorts of games they like most. Some mix of fighting game, rhythm game, and roguelike, perhaps...)

After the...incident on Meekrob, I imagine Tenn has a little bit of trauma surrounding SIR units, or even robots in general. Just imagine her initial nervousness around Gaz's security robots...only to feel reassured when Gaz programs them to not respond to her, a sign of trust...Tenn slowly getting exposure therapy due to Gaz's hobbies...maybe she won't feel completely safe around SIRs, but she can reach a point where being near them doesn't turn her into a shaking mess.

Also, based on her panicking reaction and trying to get help during said incident, that might be her default reaction if something goes wrong. Gaz, on the other hand—would totally be willing to get mad on her behalf if something happens. Tenn thinks it's sweet when Gaz promises brutal revenge on those who wronged her. It's so terrifyingly beautiful.

Of course, we can't forget Tenn is still a trained Invader. She could give Gaz tips on how to fight using her unnatural strength as efficiently as possible, they could spar without too much fear of injuring the other (they're both pretty durable), they can use Tenn's advanced technology and Gaz's skills to build things to strike fear into others...

One scenario that works if Gaz dates any Irken: Dib freaking out that his sister is dating an "alien menace" and trying to be a protective older brother.

But, with Gaz dating Tenn specifically, there's another element to it. Tenn looking similar to Zim (Dib's greatest (possibly ex)-enemy) would be even more likely to cause Dib to freak out over her dating his sister. Maybe enough to give him an aneurysm.

Anyway. A lot of Tenn's character is up to interpretation (due to her few appearances), but that just means there's a lot of potential ideas/stories there! And I think her being with Gaz opens up a few interesting ideas.

[desultory-novice]

heya dess!

about ten million years ago i sent you an elaborate ramble about galacta knight's moral status. this isn't calling you out for not answering (i literally sent you a wall of text) and my opinions have since changed anyway, but i remembered this recently and got morbidly curious about your own take on gk's moral status. dw though... if you don't want to answer this one either, that's ok!

I pride myself on liking every Kirby character. That said, I never loved Galacta Knight. Curse of the over-hyped character? He was too cool. Too beloved. "When's Galacta going to become canon??"

And, just to be petty/salty for a moment, that he had no concrete persona except "See something; kill it" but has been frequently (?) made into the softiest, gentlest woobie amongst the cast next to Kirby (also his existence influenced a lot about Kirby's portrayal in the fandom, ie: "When's he gonna get HIS wings???", and he and Meta together became the template for what everyone's Knight-sonas would look like, meaning that being a cool orb in armor became more commonplace than rare) just caused me to get bored with him real quick, I think? </SALT>

COUGH!

...But I did some looking back at Galacta for this ask and... I can see the charm! I still don't see the "wooby" part (Which I assume has something to do with the "wrongly framed" theory) but I'm growing to respect Galacta as a character of interest. With that out of the way, let's tackle some of the things you brought up in your old ask as well as my own feelings on where the Aeon Hero sits as "a hero!"

...

It's all very interesting, isn't it? One thing that stood out to me, doing some research on this matter for this ask is that Hyness's speech implies (at least, it implied to me) that one of Galacta's other great deeds alongside helping seal Void was defeating Nightmare.

("Nightmare of a Galactic Crisis" just seems too potently worded for me to believe otherwise. The Japanese even matches up.)

But if Galacta defeated Nightmare... what the HELL was Parallel Nightmare thinking by summoning him to fight on his behalf?! (Ignore the fact that Galacta immediately destroys him. The key is that Nightmare either thought he could control the Aeon Hero or that the Aeon hero would share his goals. Which is FASCINATING~!)

I can't help but think that Galacta's story has some serious twists...

There's another thing, that may be referring back to the "destroy a planet or two" thing and that's Galacta's sealing. He's sealed in crystal and of course some people have made the connection between Galacta's crystal cage and the fairies of Ripple Star. (Usually with the queen of the fairies having a MUCH bigger role than anticipated.)

But like, there's a thing I just realized was in his Planet Robobot flavor text that isn't in the English version. (I know it's a matter of the pause screen text not having enough room for the twice-as-long English but why's it always gotta be Planet Robobot XD )

"Records remain of his being sealed in many different eras."

One could argue that it's all the same sealing but why would multiple different eras need to record the same guy getting sealed if he were only sealed away ONCE. So, that's interesting. Galacta's seal was never permanent.(1) In fact, it seems to be frequently un-permanent. So they have room to cause villainous havoc between freeings.

(For a borb who looks like an angel, he's doing a really good job acting like your classic "Sealed for 100 years but never destroyed 'Demon King.'" I guess that's what makes him and Meta Knight such interesting compliments. The noble devil and the demonic angel? Well, we still haven't decided if Galacta's demonic yet.)

And speaking of the strength of Galacta's seal, I found a weird little detail looking up his fight in RtDL DX. (I had to watch a recording because I spent my whole fight with him screaming in terror and spamming guard because I had exactly one HP left and didn't want to die before reaching Magolor Soul. Thank you, Sand ability!)

In RtDL, the Crystal descends and Galacta slowly opens one eye and then the other. But this changed for DX! Galacta descends with both eyes open. Which shouts consciousness to me.

...I'm rambling away from the topic of whether Galacta is a hero or not. Don't mind me. I'll try to pivot back in good time.

Actually, let's pivot back a little now, because in USDX, he's not summoned from his crystal state, he's just summoned. Which makes sense because like... going entirely by the cutscene, it looks like Galactic Nova actually transports Galacta through time to fight Meta Knight. Like, Galacta in the middle of their villain phase!

We do see Galacta sealed in crystal immediately after this image is shown, but the Nova doesn't bring the sealed Galacta before Meta Knight. Star Dream does. I wonder if that's a difference in power between the two clockwork stars? But I think this "where Galacta was snatched from" is probably the real reason Gala utterly demolishes Star Dream but doesn't attack Galactic Nova. The Gala that Star Dream summons has already been sealed/betrayed/etc.

They don't trust anyone. The Gala that Nova summons is at the height of their "feared across the galaxy" phase but has not yet been captured or has reason to fear capture/re-capture.

...And then you have the Galacta that Morpho Knight absorbs. What's funny about that Gala, and kind of tragic, is that Gala seems to be the calmest of the three. I say this because they actually pause when Morpho comes near. They even look...cutely (!) confused.

So, did Hyness summon a Galacta that was even earlier in his timeline than the one Nova summoned? Which was earlier in his timeline than the one Star Dream summoned?

Although where in Gala's timeline is RtDL?? Galacta appears before us in crystal, is then released, and actually FLIES OFF after defeat without being resealed. Is this the Galacta that "destroys a planet or two?" The opening of the RtDL rift after the crystal prison reforms suggests that it was the Planet Robobot Galacta that would go on to appear in RtDL, who then flies off and... maybe it's that Galacta that appears in Star Allies, to meet his end at Morpho's hands...

By the way, I totally forgot that Morpho does the "friend heart"/"friend move" thing to Galacta before absorbing him! (Dess is beginning to think that maybe the reason I didn't have strong feelings for Galacta Knight is because I just never stopped to pay attention to all the little things that make them interesting!)

So Gala has an interesting timeline and we can see that their level of aggression really depends on where in the timeline you find them. I don't think they were a planet destroying monster when they were first sealed. At least, their most "murderous" incarnation (Robobot) is implied to have gone through some ~stuff~ even AFTER the sealing.

But the fact that (Parallel) Nightmare considers them a potential ally suggests that they were...hmm, "problematic" to certain people toward the tail end of their "Aeon Hero" phase. Those people probably being the Ancients.

La la la~ I smell a cover-up~ la la la~

And so, we're back to the "Galacta was framed?!" theory. To be honest, I don't know what was up with the image Galactic Nova shows us above of Gala in the smoking wreckage but it's important to note that we don't see WHAT it is that Galacta has destroyed.

And while the Magolor epilogue implies Halcandra was destroyed in a great meteoric firestorm of some kind, I would just like to note that Halcandra at that point would have also been potentially ruled (?) by a monarch who quite possibly wore The Master Crown. An object that has been as much as stated to have been poisoning/poisoned by the previous bearers so, yeah. I don't think Halcandra would have been in a good place, if a crown-bearer sat on the throne.

(And wouldn't killing a king and destroying their country/planet be considered something worthy of taking Galacta's title of "hero" away from them and labelling them a galactic level threat?)

So, yes. I think Galacta's "moral" status depends on where in the timeline you are. I don't think they were ever "evil" but I think they probably a dangerous sort of "good-hearted extremist" era in the past and in their later years, that devolved into an aggressive and paranoid "As far as I'm concerned EVERYONE is an enemy and you'd better believe I'm not letting them strike the first blow!"

There's some Gala thoughts to chew on!

Happy Birthday, Galacta Knight!

--

(1) Honestly, I wonder if the crystal thing is less of a "seal" and more of a curse? :Dess's mind hears "fairy curse" and starts vibrating: It could be something that affects them intermittently? We've seen Galacta be "destroyed" in USDX (amusingly, their wings "pop" off. Although that is the only time that happens so could be retconned) Anyway, it's not their destruction that causes the seal. Sometimes they just fly off after defeat too! (To destroy more planets??)

This implies there's another trigger for when they become crystal...

But speaking of the "crystal," RtDL DX in Japanese specifically mentions that their seal is actually made of "gem" - the same "gem" used in "Gem Apples." Which going by the Magolor Epilogue, gem apples appear to represent either a) magic power b) the soul or c) the Master Crown. I don't think it's made clear which exactly, because all three are kind of muddled together in Magolor's case. But the fact that there ARE those connections with "gems" + Galacta's "gem" seal activating intermittently is all just VERY interesting to me.

Now go and speculate away, my pretties~!

[cult-of-the-placeholder]

Uhhhh so. I can't draw, so please don't throw rocks at me 😅 is anyone gonna see this? DUNNO. But I'm throwing it into the void anyway

Behold: 4 cute babies for me to traumatize with my War on the Lamb AU

This AU wouldn't exist without @heketsbroodau and their amazing fics. Go read them! Literally right now! All of them! Every single one!!!!!!!

The general idea this WotL AU works with goes as follows:

- The demigod children of the bishops (cousins), quailing and listless in the wake of their parents' slaughter, decide to counter attack and wage war on the lamb for ruining their lives and killing the family they loved so dearly

- In each brood, one was voted amongst the siblings to take up the Crowns to use their power to lead the vengeance quest (because the crowns are at least partially sentient, I imagine that they vanished when their bearers died to keep themselves from being ceased)

- The children have mostly been raising themselves since the lamb destroyed... literally everything

- They're planning to essentially use one of themselves as a sacrifice: taking up the Red Crown and agreeing to be locked away in eternal banishment to prevent it from ever causing trouble and strife again

Though their ages when each Bishop died varies, they are in order: Adami, Ylindri, Phereo, and finally No Name. When Shamura dies, their ages go as follows: 19 (Adami), 14 (Ylindri), 12 (Phereo), No Name (9). When the story kicks off they'll all likely be in their 20s but I haven't decided fully yet.

Adami:

As the oldest amongst the cousins, she feels it is the duty of her and her siblings to look after the younger ones. She loves them all very much, every, single, one. She and her dad were really close, and though she didn't have his aptitude for magic she was a born scientist at heart. She was always tucked away in the temple labs, fussing with bacteria cultures and scribbling in her notebooks. Thoroughly enjoyed Kallamar's genetics hobby, and still has the the very first genome they ever wrote together memorized

When he died, she and her siblings all felt it. They heard the commotion and tried so, so hard to get to him, but Kallamar had cast a magic ward on the temple's inner sanctum, preventing his children from entering or even coming near, not trusting that Narinder's appetite for destruction wouldn't extend to his little ones. He was right, and only after he'd been dead for several hours did the barrier fade

Adami wrote her own speech for his funeral but was crying too hard to deliver it, so it fell to her older sibling to speak on her behalf. She was very much a daddy's girl, and prays at his shrine almost every day, wishing for a peaceful afterlife for him, begging her uncle to be kind (though she knows he won't be)

She splits the Blue Crown with one of her siblings: she's the best scientific mind they've got and is therefore excellent for inflicting biowarfare, but she's got -3 magical ability and so whenever there's need for mass healing or protective magic, it goes to her sibling

Would've probably become a very sweet, bubbly person if not for losing Kallamar. She's a lot more reserved these days, but is still generally pretty peppy when excited about something

Ylindri:

As mentioned above she's the most unbalanced of Shamura's children: meaning, while their domain is wisdom and war, she skewed heavily toward the first one. The majority of the spiderlings (eleven of them in total) are right in the middle, wielding their brains and brawn as one. There's only one other severe skew like Ylindri: her older sister, who's very skewed toward war

A scholar first and foremost, she spent countless days studying medicine and old divine texts trying to find a way to help her Lifegiver's brain damage. She regularly helped change their bandages

Worried they might forget them all, Ylindri wove her Lifegiver a special band of spider silk, which each of their names and a prayer for health delicately woven in. Her hope was that their love would stay with Shamura easier, and might help them feel better. Shamura wears it on their 4th wrist

In public Ylindri calls Shamura her Lifegiver, in private they are Ama

Very softspoken, and thoroughly heartbroken by Shamura's death. Tried to stop them from going to meet the lamb in the sanctum, but their mind had slipped again and Shamura didn't truly recognize her in that moment

Phereo:

Leshy's thirdborn child and second daughter. Is the only girl to have wings but has sworn off flying after Leshy's death

They were really close, and Leshy actually died while the children were in their first chrysallis (they're demigodlings. They undergo multiple metamorphoses in their lives), so when she emerged she and her siblings were greeted by the sorrowful Witness and the earth-shattering news that they had been orphaned

They preserved Leshy's remains so that his childreb could attend the funeral, but Phereo didn't go. She couldn't bear the thought. She was so terrified to make her chrysallis because everyone knows that girls don't have wings, and the only thing that got her to start spinning was her father's promise to be ready to recieve her when she'd emerged, and the whispered secret of, "You're just as I was. You'll be fine." After that, she doesn't want to appear in public, doesn't want anyone to see her, and spends all her time locked in her room mourning the loss of Leshy

She's got hardcore depression in wake of her dad's death. Everything is unstable and scary and she feels so lost and out of sorts. Years pass and her mental health stabilizes but doesn't improve: when the cousins start planning their war and how to defeat the Red Crown for good, she offers her body to the cause. She'll hsve to be banished and locked away, for all eternity. If it will avenge Leshy's death and let her go to a place where she can forget that she exists, then she's happy to do it

Someone get this worm therapy smh

No Name:

Someone seriously help me name him I've gone through like 5 names and none feel right 😭

The smallest, height wise and age wise. He hates it

This froggy is a MAMA'S BOY. He was very, very close with Heket, and loved her more than life itself. She was his mother, after all--there was no one in the world he loved more. The whole gaggle of froglets found Heket's still cooling corpse in the Temple sanctum, and just. Basically did Simba and mufasa. Just kinda snuggled against her and begged her to get up, to heal, to be ok

I don't have a whooole lot of development for him but he's generally pretty quiet and brooding. Very angy. Late teenage angst when thebwar starts but also his mom was murdered by the guy they're waging war on so  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Regardless. He's not having a good time. Eats his feelings a lot and is quietly hoping the war kills him

Was voted among his siblings to bear the Yellow Crown and he despises it. It feels so wrong, like the desecration of his mother's memory, to have him stand in her place and wear that which rightfully belongs to her and no one else. Prays to the crown every morning before he puts it on, asking his mother's forgiveness and hoping to serve her memory well

[22degreehalo]

Actually speaking of which

So, the library I'm volunteering at opened up applications for a casual library officer!!!!!

This is the same place I've been helping out for like?? Two years??? More????? at this point???? But last year when I applied they didn't even give me an interview. Like I was literally doing almost the exact same thing I would be doing if I worked there, and I hadn't had any complaints, but they wouldn't even consider me.

I was REALLY bummed and considered giving up this path altogether, but thankfully I did get hired by another library, where I'm working right now!!! And I found out afterwards that another guy who was also volunteering alongside me ALSO applied for that other job where we were volunteering and ALSO didn't get considered (and now ALSO got a job at this new library, thankfully).

I talked to the librarian I'd been assisting and she was really mad on our behalf?? Said she'd heard something about how they were looking for people with retail experience specifically, which is... strange. Like, are they TRYING to run it like a business instead...?

I've still kept volunteering with them, though (albeit I quit part of what I was doing because the schedule turned out to conflict with my new job too much; it was very sad tbh), because they need people, and it's an important role that apparently doesn't get many volunteers, and it's only two hours every other week, and it's still my local council so. It's the most convenient to get to and all. I still hoped they might reconsider hiring me.

And, as I began this all, now they've opened up applications again. So I applied.

But. I don't want to *stop* working where I am; it's genuinely a really great place and I've even become a bit attached to the other people there!! (not something that happens easily hahaha)

Apparently it's normal to have multiple casual library jobs at the same time. So that's been my goal for a while.

But... could I really do that? I'm already not the most organised just with my one job... I know it's normal, but I am neurodivergent... I need to remember that that is a true thing about myself that I can state as a fact...

I don't know. Obviously I could just keep working at this current place until I can get a permanent position somewhere... Though I still don't really feel qualified to do any of it... ugh.

Is it really okay if things just stay as they are...? I've said before that this is an okay minimum, or something like that. I don't *desperately need* to change anything. But is it okay not to even especially try...?

I could go back to TAFE... but part of me thinks that I should go back to uni instead and study cataloguing, because that'd definitely help me get a position, and I'd love to have a part in shaping the non-fiction sections specifically... (god, just walking through the non-fiction shelves is soooo refreshing to the soul <33) But that'd be really expensive, and I already have two degrees I'm basically not doing anything with...

Ugh. Again it feels like giving up on the goal of moving out. But there are already a lot of question marks around that.

Welp. They might not want to hire me anyway. If that happens, I might just finally give up on the volunteering... or at least consider volunteering somewhere else. My library hires people to do the thing I'm volunteering for there (in fact, *I* am one of the people paid to do the thing I'm doing as volunteer at my local library!!); they should consider that, too, if they can't find anyone after me.

idk sorry this is such a long post. I'm not sure how to feel about it all right now...

[hopeymchope]

i agree with your opinions about mikan and hyoko, but would you also agree with me about mikan being kinda poorly written? in my opinion it wasn't written with the victims in mind and they just tried to fit it into a trope (kinda like yandere) instead of showing a person victim of abuse and bullying and how that can affect our view of everything, the fanservice scenes reinforce my point of view. Anyway, I would like to know your opinion about it! :)

I don't really think she's that badly written, but then I'm a HUGE mark for Kodaka's writing (or the collaborative result of the DR Team's writing, if you prefer) in general. Just... a total goddamn sucker. And I own that. :P In fact, I've written before about how she's more complex a character than people often give her credit for being. Which is something DR generally excels at; Ibuki is another great example of being more than what she first comes off as.

But I concede the point that you're likely correct about Mikan not being written with the victims of such bullying in mind. She's just another in the genre of "weird, quirky, layered" characters without really considering how such a person would come off in similar, real-life circumstances. That's not how I myself would've handled such a character, but... I also know that bullying is a much bigger issue to me than it is for many people. And I ALSO-also know I couldn't have written any of these Danganronpa games. Not even a single goddamn chapter. So I kinda feel like I don't have much right to complain when I love what they do so much AND know I couldn't do better? :)

The biggest issue I have with Mikan's overall writing/narrative is one that's come up from other Asks on this blog: It's that when she blames the others for not ever giving a shit about her suffering in the third trial... she's right? And nobody really reacts to that or seems to feel guilty, either? It comes off to me as though maybe we're NOT supposed to think she's correct (although I can't really be sure, ofc). Which seems... pretty off-base.

And although I admit that it's a little insensitive to make a recurring gag out of how Mikan is the anti-fanservice, I gotta respect the hustle. I'm not really a fan of fanservice images/scenes, so the fact that Mikan is just... constantly falling into fanservice-with-no-fanservice feels like a playful 🖕 to how commonplace panty-shots-and-whatnot are in Japanese media, frankly. I've never seen another anime or manga or visual novel or game do ANYTHING like Mikan, which to me makes it very much The Point (TM).

....which in turn makes the sexualized portrayal of her execution feel tone-deaf. That's probably my second and final major complaint with Mikan's portrayal. YES, I know the backstory: The team at Spike Chunsoft infamously "outsourced" the execution concepts and animations for DR2 and were not totally satisfied with the results, yet also felt they couldn't justify the time/expense of having them redone. With that knowledge in mind, maybe I can't/shouldn't pin the blame for that scene (and DR2's executions as a whole) entirely on the DR Team. But... Kodaka and Company still ultimately chose to sign off on it and run with it, so I kinda-sorta CAN still blame them for it, too. You feel?

(P.S. Furthermore, I sadly can't say the series as a whole is consistently anti-fanservice. Because that's... clearly not the case. But at least they chose to playfully avert making the character who is heavily implied victim to be of sexual abuse be the target of any such scenes, because..... that'd be fucked up.)

I definitely never blame Kazuichi for not standing up on Mikan's behalf. That's just not in his character. We know well how his own experience led him to do everything he could to avoid being targeted by bullies. He's not someone who'd put himself directly in the path of more bullying/abuse if he could help it. He'll keep his head down and only speak up if it's to defend someone he either A) deeply cares about or B) is unhealthily fixated upon for other reasons. And he never really gets to know/bonds with Mikan during before she's executed, so... yeah.

[innocentimouto]

To me it's just so infuriating, that the narrative says that all the dead Survey Corps members would definitely, unequivocally, vehemently, unanimously be against the Rumbling plan, and that they'd allegedly condemn those members who don't want to stop it, when in actuality most of them would be happy for them that they can live a long life. Hell, if anything, a lot of SC members would've wound up as Yeagerists that are very much in favor of the Rumbling plan. It is so unfair of Hanji to pontificate about the right thing to do while speaking on the behalf of the dead, not knowing how they, as individuals with separate ways of thinking, would react to the fact that it weren't mindless man-eating monsters who have been their enemy all along, it was their own kind.

A whole lot of things were mishandled in the end, but using what we know:

Many of the veteran characters were not really written outside of being soldiers, so knowing them on a deeper, personal level, is hard to say.

2. The idea of humans outside the walls was known to Erwin, Levi, Miche, Hange, Nanaba, etc. And it's very obvious some people outside the walls wanted them dead. But they didn't know the whole world hated them and would eventually want them gone.

3. They were all driven for humanity's sake. They chose to continue fighting the titans for years despite overwhelming loss and zero answers for humanity's sake and to make the lives of the fallen soldiers matter. But as far as they knew, they were humanity.

4. To then face an enemy that would invalidate all those sacrifices, the REAL enemy, it's really hard for me to believe that every member of the SC would oppose the Rumbling. I don't even mean that they would gleefully and happily support it. I mean more in line with Jean. Realistically, their choices are limited. I also think more than just Eren should have been horrified/depressed at finding out the rest of the world wanted them dead, that after all that sacrifice, they still can't rest.

(Levi has 2 moments of thinking about loss of hope and the dream they shared of a joyful world. In both of those times, Eren is the main issue, but in reality, I can't understand why Levi or Hange or any other character wasn't hit with this feeling once they read the journals or saw the rest of the world.)

5. I think sticking most members of the Survey Corps on the opposing side of the Yeagerist is heavily influenced by how they beat down Shadis and allowed members of the military police and garrison turn into titans. Erwin was willing to make a lot of sacrifices for humanity's sake, but allowing humans to TURN into mindless titans? I think that's a level none of the sc would be okay with.

The idea of supporting or at least not opposing the Rumbling is usually muddled with siding with Yeagerists whose actions I myself didn't like either.

The thing about saying "genocide is bad, end of discussion" is that not fighting back will allow genocide to happen anyway. And the usual response is that "well it's less lives."

Yeah, but it's STILL genocide. So stop trying to end conversations with "genocide is bad" when your argument also allows it. Have your argument, it's your opinion. None of us, at least not me, are advocating for genocide here. Personally I could never be okay with allowing millions and millions of people to die. But I am also not in the world of aot and have not watched thousands of my people be killed which would now be for nothing and knowing my people have been made into mindless beasts for years for a senseless war.

All that pain, fear, and suffering, all for actions thousands of years ago, caused by people I didn't even know existed.

So yeah, I totally get opposing the Rumbling. But frankly most of us have not experienced what characters have in aot and sitting back for the sake of the world that wants my people dead would also completely invalidate all the suffering of hundreds to find the truth.

Anyway the following response is that they don't want the genocide of Paradis, but there's no good option.

And that's the same for people who support/don't oppose the Rumbling. No other option was given (though it should have been, my argument here is only using what we were given of the characters in s4. Otherwise NOPE, there were other options, none of which would lead to complete peace. But that's unachievable anyway. I think there would have been a way to make powerful allies with other nations, but by s4 things were just...lazy. Tangent)

But the whole point of introducing the Rumbling is not to stand and make a statement that genocide is right or the world deserves death. I took it to mean that THIS is the consequence of years of war, oppression, racism, greed for power, enslavement, child soldiers, etc. This is the worst possible thing someone could do, but because of years of war, this horrific decision is actually on the table for some.

To me, the Rumbling was never something to be celebrated. It was always meant to be horrible. But the intent behind it is to show how far humans are forced to go when senseless wars and oppression continues. It's a warning. You can't oppress a group of people for years and years in the name of them oppressing you for years. The cycle has never ended. There will be consequences.

Had Paradis been wiped out, the Marleyans would have become another Eldia in time with how willing they were to use titans in warfare. And soon the cycle would continue. I find it hilarious that Eldia gets so much blame for atrocities in the past when Marley is literally turning people into titans as a form of warfare. I half wished a character would tell a Marleyan "so how many years do we need to wait until we can call you the monster?"

Seeing the SC just plan to stop Eren after being stagnant the whole season and then admitting they don't have an answer and they may be wiped out... it's so unsatisfactory. If world wide genocide was going to be written in a story, how could you skim over SEARCHING for alternatives? One episode wasn't enough. There had to be groups of people on their side.

The Survey Corps was always known for being in the worst possible situations and finding some solution that's still awful but it's a solution. They didn't find anything. That one flashback episode was not enough for me. The Tyber family was right there. The "Island Devils Are Evil" and all Eldians are evil because of what their ancestors did, yet the Tyber family gained respect. Turns out, the Island Devils were the only ones who had an ancestor that OPPOSED what King Fritz started. If we're going by that logic, the Tyber family are frauds, and Paradis are the only ones who actually atoned for the actions in the past.

All this talk about years and years of oppression, so they must suffer when in reality it should be they must do something to undo the past and NO ONE did this but Paradis. Tyber family would HAVE to fall in with Paradis if they came out to the world leaders with that, or they'd lose their status. Turning Marley into the villains would have been easy with how they use titans as weapons against many other nations. It would also prevent the impending attack on Paradis.

I just feel they sat around and did nothing beyond a tiny search for allies. In public. Of course they wouldn't find any. Felt really lazy and like the Rumbling NEEDED to happen for the plot.

Hope this makes sense. I can't seem to organize my thoughts about aot and everything ends up really long.

[fuckingfinwions]

to speak or act on another's behalf

Some elves desire to be in a relationship, but have obligations that keep them far apart. To limit the pain of separation, they find a discreet proxy, to convey the sex from one to the other.

Maedhros sat by his fireplace with Fingon. Perhaps he ought to have given up the rooms along with the crown, but Fingolfin had insisted that it was not necessary, with Maedhros still recovering. Maedhros was at least as hale as he had ever been in Valinor, but he supposed a few months' delay would make little difference in the end.

Fingon asked, "Won't you get lonely in the east?"

"I don't expect so. My brothers are traveling with me for the first hundred leagues, and I'll have a whole fortress of elves to command as well."

"So there's no need for me to plan a visit for next summer then."

"I didn't say that! I'll miss specific people, but hopefully most of them can visit."

"Not going visiting yourself though, the Lord Commander of the East can't leave it unattended?"

"It's a very big job, and will likely have a lot of urgent crises. I don't mean to insult the work it will take you to guard Dor-Lomin, but your father and brother are close at hand for any absences."

"So anyone you want to see short of the high king will have to come to you."

"Unfortunately, yes."

"I don't mind the trip." Fingon sipped his wine for a moment. "What about him, though?"

"I'm not going to be so prideful as to refuse a royal summons. It would've been better not to yield the crown at all, then."

"But you're not going to visit just for the pleasure of his company."

"Your father is a skilled conversationalist, but I can still cross wits with him in letters."

"That's not all you want to cross with him."

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"I don't think I could be much clearer. My father is accounted very beautiful; an excellent form made stronger by the ravages of the Ice."

"Fine. I admit that I know what you're implying, but I don't see the insinuation worth engaging with."

"Come on, we've always talked about crushes, whether or not we two were lovers that decade. Which I'm open to; the scars give you a rather dangerous look."

"Thank you, and I suppose now there's less of an issue of command - you're distracting me. I'm not going to talk about my crush on Fingolfin because I don't have one."

"Really? So your only thoughts when kneeling for him to take the crown were of cold politics?"

"Yes."

"Bullshit. I could see that you wanted to lean forward and part his robes while you were down there, not stand and recite a speech. I know you; you were thinking about how the King of the Noldor could order absolutely anything at that moment, and you'd have to go along with it for the sake of peace."

"Fingon! He is your father."

Fingon shrugged. "You listened to my fantasies of Mahtan working me like iron; what kind of friend would I be if I didn't do the same for you?"

"It's not the same at all! I mean, because I don't have any secret feelings for Fingolfin."

"I think it's mutual."

"What?"

"He keeps talking about how strong you are to keep going, how noble your surrender of pride for the good of our people, how gorgeous your hair is."

"Really?" Maedhros pulled a lock of hair forward. Its red would look quite good against Fingolfin's black, so similar to Fingon's...

"He generally cuts himself off around there, but I'm sure he has more compliments in store. He just thinks it's inappropriate to talk about his desires with his son, even if I am a man grown. But it doesn't stop him from watching you in the training yard."

"He's there to make sure I don't pass out from not knowing my limits."

"Maybe he was for the first few days. But you obviously know what you're doing, and he keeps watching. In exactly same way you watch him."

Maedhros sighed. "It wouldn't last, anyway. We'd have to keep it secret, or else my brothers will say I've sold the kingdom for a quick lay, and everyone else will say I'm suborning him. And as we just discussed, I'm leaving."

"That's what a proxy is for."

"Who though? Proxies for a public marriage are one thing, but for a secret affair, who could - or would - keep it secret?"

"You'd need someone who could easily travel between here and the East, with a ready excuse for the journey, and so high ranking that no one dares question him wasting time traveling rather than fighting. Who, even if one member of relationship was discovered, no one would ever suspect of touching the other. Who has an excuse to go into private conversations with the high king."

"Do you have someone in mind."

Fingon leaned back in his chair and grinned, crossing one leg over the other in a way that drew the eye to his crotch.

"No." Maedhros refused to consider it.

"Yes."

"You can't be serious."

"Why not? As I said, you are my father are both handsome elves."

"He is your father though."

"And you're my cousin. Besides, it's not really incest."

"You'd be having sex with with your father, how is that not incest?"

"No, you'll be having sex with Fingolfin. Legally, I'm just a messenger, no more indecent than if I was carrying a paper love note."

"You realize if it gets to a legal battle and everyone knows, that's already terrible."

"Yes, but I think I can get the king to rule in favor, given the circumstances."

"If he even wants a proxy - even wants me, I'm still not convinced of that."

"But you're definitely interested in him."

"Fine, yes. And if he wants me back, I'll have at least a night with him."

"There's the spirit."

"I'm not bringing your idea up to him. I'll say I have a volunteer, sure, but you can explain that it's you in person."

"Fair enough."

"After tomorrow night though. He won't take kindly to you debasing yourself such, and I don't know how much he'll like me for going along with it."

"It's not debasing, to be the lover of two kings. But I do see our point."

"Thank you."

[harmonyckrs]

Give Me Back My Wife, Grim Reaper - Part 7

My psychic powers sometimes gives me a glimpse of events from different timelines. A lot of them always vary, but one thing always remains the same - Celeste disappears, for one reason and another, and Aktu gets abducted by aliens.

Why exactly did the Watcher want this to happen? It's always Aktu. Never me, never Zoya, and never one of our other seven siblings. The world always feels as though it's revolved around him.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not resentful. He's always been the golden child. The sun that everything and everyone seems to revolve around. I'd like to say that we were best friends, but I don't think he ever forgave me for that fight we had when we were teens.

That was the first time that I had beaten him in something...but also the mark of when everything started to go downhill...

"HARPER! COME QUICK!"

Those were the words I had woken up to, the same words uttered by Zoya as she caught Celeste and her ex-husband Gabriel in bed together.

The very same night that they had died.

Zoya: Hamza, this is Inigo Montoya. He claims he has information about Aktu. I've got to get to work, so you go talk to him.

Harper: (That's definitely a fake name.) You woke me up early for this?

Inigo: Do you want information about your brother or not?...also, I come on behalf of Sita and Sana, as well. They want to join your investigation.

Harper: Sita and Sana?...they've never been interested in that kind of stuff. I guess it wouldn't hurt to let them try. Where are they now, exactly?

Erin: I can't believe there's another psychic! This month is, like, totally my month! We're going to be besties!

Sita: Yeah! This is going to be AWESOME!

Sana: So, um...have you ever watched sumo wrestling?

Chloe: Nah, I'm more familiar with a different kind of wrestling. I acn show you in the room with the queen-sized bed.

Sana: You're hitting on me already?...we literally just met...

Lola: This is a mess. As if you three weren't enough to deal with already...

Kristen: Excuse me? You're the one who keeps blabbering about secret missions and inviting that one guy over. I keep to myself. Don't act like I'm being a burden on you.

Lola: I invite Ajay over for important business. It's the same reason why you spent all of your time outside kicking a ball. I assume you, Little Miss "Here Only for My Career," would understand.

Kristen: You couldn't just go to his house instead? He literally lives alone. The way you two speak, it's like you're asking to have all of your government secrets uncovered.

Lola: At least I'm making progress in my career.

Kristen: Ouch.

Harper: ...Well, Sita and Sana aren't exactly known for their competence. I'm sure it won't be hard for them to find something small to do...how exactly did you find out about us, anyway?

Inigo: I have connections to Aktu. I was traveling alongside his group, like daisies gathered together in a field...before they were forced into battle with the Divine Harpist, and sent me here.

Harper: The Divine Harpist again...I wonder what her deal is.

Inigo: I wish we knew. At the moment, she just seems to be a woman who can see people's fears and insecurities are, forcing them to live through them...

Harper: Yikes. So, Aktu and Vi...shoot...that one guy who's related to Pascal and Lazlo.

Inigo: I don't know who you're talking about, but I can tell you about Aktu instead.

Harper: Yeah. Do that.

Inigo: He was one of the first in the group. We were training to fight for a future where people wouldn't have to follow their fates, without risk of causing the collapse of the universe.

Harper: Where people wouldn't have to follow their fates...

Inigo: Exactly what I said. You see, some of us have fates that aren't good. Mine was like that, before the aliens dropped me off in the wrong dimension and gave me the chance to start anew.

Harper: Are you not worried about your loved ones?

Inigo: Oh, I'm sure they'll live without me. If my fate came true, I wouldn't have any left.

Harper: Sounds dark.

Inigo: Sure was. But as long as I continue to avoid them, it won't happen. The controllers of fate have started becoming desperate, taking control of people's bodies in order to do their bidding.

Harper: Taking control of people's bodies, huh?

Inigo: Yes. Victims are forced to watch their bodies go against their own wills...that would've been me, if I hadn't left my hometown.

Harper: (I wonder if that means Celeste and Gabriel were innocent. They did seen really confused and apologetic about what happened, so maybe...) Were there any fates about cheating?

Inigo: Yep. My ex has a similar fate...I'm not sure how she's doing, though, and I have no plans of checking.

Harper: ...Well, then. I guess I owe Celeste and Gabriel an apology...I should probably work harder to get that Resurrect-O-Nomitron.

After this conversation, Inigo asked out of the blue if he could stay with us, which we agreed to. We tried to press Inigo for some additional information, but he wouldn't budge.

He was being a bit coy about it, unlike Lazlo. Oh, and speaking of Lazlo, Zoya and I tried calling him, but Crystal ended up picking up instead.

Crystal: Hello! It's great to talk to you again! What's up?.

Harper: Nothing much. Is Lazlo available to talk? We heard he heard moved in with you.

Crystal: Yeah! I guess he finally caught wind of how awful Pascal really was and wanted to get away. Either way, he'll be safe with me...but no, he's at work. I can pass along a message?

Zoya: That's fine. We wanted to talk to you, too. Do you know a man named Aktu, by any chance?

Crystal: Aktu...oh.

Crystal: ...It's about time you two asked.

[norcalbruja]

On liminality, and the stuff Tony Stark says

Anyway, Tony seems to give me very Classic Comic Book vibes despite physically looking like Robert Downey Jr. This one time he said something like "Look honey, we're not really 'people' anymore, but we also can't be gods. We are what people WANT TO BE, and that is a very finicky place in the spirit-world."

Sometimes Tony just confirms my suspicions that "Superheroes are modern mythology."

...And then he says shit like "Come onnnnn, just ask me for help! Pleassssse!!!! I'm fucking rich, there are a LOT of ways I can help a broke writer!"

--

It seems you need a certain level of "standing" to be a LIKELY pop-culture spirit. The more prominent a work is in society, the more likely the characters start "answering calls." Ie, Marvel and DC.

There are HUNDREDS of media works out there and it seems spirits need enough "focus" to become egregores/embodied/"full spirits." I don't see anyone (admitting to???) meeting the Fullmetal Alchemist characters, but I HAVE seen at least one person who believes that they accidentally met Magneto.

Like, they did a semi-joking "summoning" ritual for the X-Men and they did not expect to MEET SOMEONE.

If that isn't the start to a horror movie, I don't know what is.

But given my current works dealing with colonization myself, if I met Magneto IN THE VERY FAR FUTURE, WITH NO SIGNIFICANT METAL AROUND, I would absolutely tell him that he has some great points.

And maybe it's not only "how prominent" a story is in general, but the nature of the story itself? Maybe the superheroes are more likely to get embodied not only because they're popular, but because their whole genre involves "helping people," so folks are more likely to "invoke" them. Meanwhile FMA is ultimately a war-story/series and like... nobody's "calling on" Roy Mustang.

--

Speaking of the Avengers, the rest of them showed up last night in the meditation. The moment Other-Thor came, I just lost it, hugged him, and started crying. Not sure if I was happy or sad, it was probably both.

The doofus just smiled and went "Well, this is a lovely welcome!"

Cap was laughing and went, "She didn't even cry when I came here the first time!"

Thor and Loki are going to be VERY important characters in the modern side of my Marvel fanfic, so maybe that's why I reacted like I did.

Or maybe it's because Movie-Thor has a recovering-from-depression arc?

Honestly, Thor is my PERSONAL favorite Avenger and I never could figure out why. Maybe because he and Cap are just NICE?

--

This one time I was YET AGAIN trying to sleep, so Tony rolled up with some spiritual-whiskey and gave me some shots. It didn't work, so when Spirit-Me wandered back to the Water-Spirit just completely shitfaced and crying, Hera got mad when she saw us and she yelled, "TONY! WHAT. DID. YOU. DO??? SHE'S A MESS!!!"

And Tony was like "She can't sleep. I gave her some shots, but she is WIRED, man."

So she ordered him to get out so I could sober up, but Tony just snapped at her, "Hera, I am not a god and I'm sure as hell not Greek! You have no power over me!"

And yeah, she couldn't actually make him LEAVE, unless she wanted to start a fight with a very drunk and squishy bard in the room, so she just settled for chaperoning me for a while.

--

If I had to lock down the superheroes as anything "properly spiritual," they feel a lot like intermediaries/intercessors. So many of them are human-turned-something-else, and their ties to humanity are a constant theme, plus there's a thin line between "invoking a spirit ON BEHALF OF a god" and "invoking someone AS AN ACTUAL GOD."

The Tagalog pantheon supposedly said that most gods were "agents of the supreme deity Bathala," but they all ended up being treated as deities by the time the Spanish came along, so I wonder if a similar confusion between "really powerful intermediaries" and "deities" are happening with the likes of Marvel and DC.

[div-divington]

Fun fact! This is actually addressed (albeit not canonically) in Star Trek Online.

Spoilers for the last quest in the Delta Rising storyline. It's a seriously messed up plot twist and if anybody ever has any intention of playing it I do sincerely encourage you to STOP reading now cuz it's genuinely shocking imo and is better experienced firsthand.

This disclaimer is aimed almost exclusively at one person who I know will ignore it.

Also spoilers for later episodes I think of Voyager. Or maybe earlier ones? I get the order confused occasionally.

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Anyway, in STO (about... 30-something years after Voyager returns to Earth) a gateway opens up to the Delta Quadrant and Starfleet naturally starts sending ships through to investigate. In Janeway's words, they're trying to make sure that "[everybody's] going to be very good neighbours". Basically just fixing some of the stuff Voyager (a name that sparks fear in multiple worlds at this point) broke on her journey.

One of the planets most central to the storyline is Kobali Prime, home of the Kobali. The species that resurrects dead people and forcibly mutates them into new Kobali in order to procreate. Which is in and of itself so monumentally fucked up and it's wild that the game only gives you the chance to call this out once lmao

In the final mission of the Delta Rising storyline, the player accompanies Harry Kim (now captain of the USS Rhode Island! he finally got a promotion!) to a temple on Kobali Prime filled with failing stasis pods from a different species. Whenever a pod fails, that new corpse becomes a new Kobali (to their credit, the Kobali do genuinely try their best to keep the pods online -- they don't just LET the frozen people die)

Harry discovers, however, that one of these new Kobali was human. And you're never gonna guess WHICH human.

Thaaaaat's right! It's the ORIGINAL Harry! He was found and had his corpse preserved for thirty years and then he was resurrected and the memory wipe isn't going as planned. He's slowly mutating into a Kobali, still has all his memories, and is desperately trying to contact Voyager because no time has passed for him and he thinks he's been abducted. Understandably, he's terrified.

Duplicate Harry tries to calm Original Harry (renamed "Keten" by the Kobali) down -- since if Keten actually succeeded in contacting Voyager (now captained by Admiral Tuvok) he'd unintentionally endanger her crew since they're undercover in hostile space.

There's a prolonged debate between Harry and a Kobali (who also was once a Voyager crewmember - I feel bad for forgetting her name) over the morality of forcing Keten to be Kobali. Is getting a second chance at life a 'gift' if you lose your memories and cease to be you? Is it better to remain dead? Who is allowed to talk on behalf of the dead? Can duplicate Harry speak for Keten in this instance?

Keten accuses Harry multiple times of "stealing" his life and sounds pretty close to crying when he says he just wants to go home (home in this case being Voyager, not Earth). Which got me sorta close to crying actually. He can't understand what's happening and thinks Harry is some kind of bodysnatcher or even a Vidiian accomplice trying to infiltrate Voyager.

Harry (the duplicate) is also extremely shaken by this, and begins to question if he even deserves the life he has if he's not the original Harry Kim. He tries justifying his own existence but doesn't sound convinced at any point. He sounds downright desperate as he frantically insists that he's just as much Harry Kim as the original one was.

Fortunately there's a... happy-ish ending where Harry helps Keten adjust to his new life and Keten starts the process of adapting -- asking Harry to tell him how Voyager made it home and how his family is doing (which is really the least Harry can do). The two seem to lean on each other to validate themselves and are able to coexist, and the Kobali say that after he's finished adapting, Keten is free to leave Kobali Prime if that's his choice -- he's even free to return to Earth and rejoin Starfleet if he wants to. So it's nice he keeps autonomy and agency at least.

Even as far as "happy" endings go, I personally found it just kinda harrowing. I was VISCERALLY unnerved throughout because the idea of going through that just outright scares me. Whether I was the duplicate or the original in this scenario, I don't think I'd ever emotionally recover.

So as weird and unnerving as that episode was, I'm pleased to say it gets even MORE unnerving decades later and severely impacts the emotional wellbeing of every character involved!

sometimes star trek is just so…

idek a word for it. unnerving? disturbing? messed up?

for example. the episode i just watched:

voyager becomes duplicated

on one voyager, harry is swept out a hull breach and dies. the ship is massively damaged. ensign wildman has her baby but the baby also dies

on the other voyager, everything seems fine.

the voyagers find out how the other exists and how to contact each other. they find out they can’t both exist for much longer

they try recombining. it fails, because no one on this show can have things go right

damaged-ship-janeway plans to self-destruct

undamaged-ship-janeway asks for 15 more minutes to think of an alternate solution

in those 15 minutes vidiians board undamaged voyager and like. harvest everyone’s organs

and I do mean everyone

everyone short of the captain and chakotay, at least

and so undamaged voyager is the one that self destructs, but not before sending harry and wildman’s baby over to the other voyager

like. what even. wtf. there is a version of voyager where everyone dies

harry from now on is arguably not the “real” harry because the real harry DIED and this is a phase-shifted duplicated harry