#Like I *genuinely* need to be around her. This isn't an obsessive thing its because I have attachment issues

[idledreams4]

hmmmm... Eating nothing until dinner three days in a row probably isn't a good thing

Time to play the "is it anxiety or depression that's making me not hungry" game I guess

[yanderes-galore]

Yandere rivals between Vaggie and Angel dust who both grown attached to overlord reader ? Platonic please and hcs if possible 

I was a bit unsure how to do this at first... but I think there's some interesting dynamics between characters to explore here.

Part of me wants to write something separate for the dynamic you, Angel, and Val have in this. That seems good enough on its own to explore. ALSO! So sorry it got complicated... I had too many thoughts I lost the plot half the time.

@okchijt helped me enrich the rivalry portion near the end.

Yandere! Platonic! Vaggie vs Platonic! Angel Dust with Overlord! Darling

(FT. Alastor + Valentino + Charlie)

Pairing: Platonic - Rivalry

Possible Trigger Warnings: Gender-Neutral Darling, Obsession, Stalking, Overprotective behavior, Trauma, Violence, Abuse (Angel and Val), Unhealthy coping mechanisms, Implied Manipulation, Dubious companionship(s).

At first it's a bit difficult to see where you can place another Overlord.

Vaggie would naturally struggle to trust another Overlord based on the ones she's seen/interacted with.

Same thing with Angel due to the fact his soul is owned by an Overlord.

So, both of these characters obsessing over an Overlord is... strange.

The only thing I can think of is you're an Overlord supporting the hotel.

One thing the two share in common is their care for Charlie, no matter how ridiculous her ideas are.

So maybe you're an Overlord who's investing in or just interested in the hotel and its inhabitants.

You'd often come to the hotel to speak with Charlie, not usually going out of your way to have soul deals with anyone there (as per an agreement with Charlie).

This could be a way to get you on good terms with the two.

HOWEVER, This ALSO creates unique relationships between you and Alastor/Valentino.

I imagine Overlords tend to have a territory.

They don't typically want free Overlords in their space or touching their property.

Which means, a new Overlord would catch the attention of Alastor and Val.

First of all, Alastor will notice you often around the hotel and Charlie.

While his role is being a defender of the hotel and yours is simply supplying it, Alastor may feel a bit threatened... or even interested when it comes to your presence.

There's a good chance you can actually get along with Alastor if you aren't a threat... maybe.

When it comes to Val, however?

None whatsoever.

Val would hate you interacting with Angel.

Especially when Angel gets attached.

So, I feel a rivalry like this might come off as complex.

Even more so with the fact you're an Overlord.

Vaggie becomes close to you because you both care for Charlie.

You're seen as an ally and she respects your abilities.

Plus, you're more respectable than most other Overlords here.

She's always found Alastor... shifty.

Vaggie comes off as an overprotective yandere, even if you're a strong Overlord.

Actually, that fact alone makes Vaggie want to protect you due to Alastor.

Alastor no doubt wants to make a deal with you due to your power.

Power is his end game and he isn't sure if Charlie would even need you to be an Overlord.

He can handle it, so why not make a deal with him to give over your power?

Vaggie is often the one trying to keep one (or two) Overlords off your back.

It's originally because she doesn't want Charlie to stress or worry.

But later it's because she genuinely cares about you, Overlord or not.

Angel is a bit more dependent when attached.

At first he pays you no mind.

Oh great, another Overlord to force their way into things.

As if Alastor and Val aren't enough.

He tries not to pay you any mind, often ignoring you.

However, maybe you comfort him after an argument with Val.

You notice him covered in marks and become oddly attentive.

He originally tries to push away, telling you off while he tries to isolate himself.

He finds the idea of an Overlord being caring odd.

Even Alastor does it to get his way.

Yet... You appear to be genuinely concerned...

He hates that he enjoys it.

What may solidify his attachment is you standing up to Val or something.

That or just defending Angel in general.

With you he feels less... guarded.

He knows being around you pisses Val off.

At times Angel gets concerned for your well-being because Val can be dangerous as a Vee.

Yet you try to reassure him you're alright with it.

Even though Angel tries to distance himself for your sake... He can never stay away for long.

Oof... Things just get messy when Angel's attached.

Mostly because Val is erratic and temperamental.

ALL OF THAT and I have yet to discuss Vaggie and Angel actually fighting.

See what I mean by this is more complicated than I thought it would be?

Vaggie and Angel can agree on one thing... you're helpful, sweet, and important to them.

The two also tend to keep you away from two other Overlords.

You're meddling where you shouldn't, even if you don't mean to, but these two act as good allies to you.

I don't imagine their rivalry gets too violent.

They wouldn't try to end one another, mostly it's just arguments on who cares for you better.

But it's not like you're all that vulnerable.

No, you're an Overlord, most of the time you're caring for them.

You help Vaggie be more confident in helping Charlie and even give helpful suggestions and supplies to Charlie herself.

With Angel you often try tending to his wounds, talking to him, and trying to help him cope in a less destructive way than vices (Alcohol, Drugs, Smoking.)

He doesn't listen all the time but he does somewhat appreciate the sentiment.

The two fighting is mostly due to you being occupied with the other or the Overlords upset with you.

Vaggie tends to blame Angel for Val's actions towards you.

It's often a heat of the moment kind of thing, she doesn't entirely mean it but it slips.

Meanwhile Angel thinks Vaggie only cares about you due to Charlie.

Angel may even say Vaggie couldn't defend you from Alastor or that you're being used in some way.

It's all mostly petty but it ruins the bond between them.

Much to Charlie's dismay.

Alastor may comment on their behavior with you.

He muses that they act like lost children in your presence.

He finds it all very amusing.

He also finds it strange you managed to get them to both like you... even more so to this point.

He may even ask if you have ulterior motives, which you don't share.

Motives or not, the two probably would still care for you if they bicker this much over your "care".

Val just seems to get aggressive with you.

He claims you're stealing Angel from him, to which you decline.

You're merely helping Angel, which makes Val more frustrated.

The Vees are never good with their temper.

It's so easy for you two to fight.

You may even come back to the hotel with wounds, leaving Vaggie concerned and Angel guilty.

You help the two in many ways.

Be it from actual care or benefiting yourself... it yields the same result.

Charlie congratulates you for befriending them and helping the hotel...

Yet she is concerned about them at times.

Charlie often has to prevent the two from fighting.

She'd also be concerned about you and Val's fighting.

Both yandere are mostly overprotective.

Angel may also be clingy when he's vulnerable but he tries not to be.

This rivalry, as petty or light as it is, comes with many moving parts.

You're less concerned with Vaggie and Angel... and more concerned about the other bonds they have and how you complicate them.

I don't know, I no doubt overcomplicated the request, but it's genuine thoughts and concerns I have when thinking of these two.

Overall, I feel their rivalry is more petty than anything.

They themselves wouldn't hurt you as you're an Overlord... but the two end up hating each other.

It's a bit difficult for me to see them fighting though... as due to how complicated these dynamics are, the two would probably just learn to share.

You help them both, they help you, they may not need to fight.

Even if they shared though... I can see arguments occurring due to Alastor and Val.

The two wouldn't be able to kidnap you or manipulate you too much.

Murdering people for you? Sure, I can see that.

They're both protective and capable... but would they need to?

Lesser demons don't come near you and they can't kill Overlords.

Oof... you having the Overlord title in general makes this complicated too....

Vaggie is protective and isolating, wanting you to focus on the hotel more than Angel to make Charlie happy.

She makes herself your personal assistant, ushering you to focus on her, Charlie, and the hotel. Not Angel or Alastor.

To her, this is how you two bond.

She doesn't mind sharing with Charlie... but she tries not to allow you any more time with the others.

Angel is not only protective and clingy, but possessive.

He loves it when you just come to see him because you're concerned.

It gives him an ego.

He likes the attention so much that he'll lie to make you stay longer.

He's never felt more comfortable... and he uses this time to mess with Vaggie.

He's a distraction and he enjoys it.

Vaggie thinks Angel is hogging all of your attention... You have other things to attend to.

Meanwhile Angel accuses Vaggie of boring you and not giving you a choice on what to do.

You have your work cut out for you at the hotel, especially with these two so close to you...

All I have to say is this... Good Luck.

[callsignfate]

Valeria Garza HC's

(These are random hc's in no particular order, I would say mainly relationship hc's. Enjoy)

♤~♤~♤~♤~♤~♤~♤~♤~♤~♤~♤~♤~♤~♤

♤She is and will use anything against you. Shorter than her? She's going to 100% use that against you. Scared of spiders or the dark? She will make fun of you for it. It will be in a slightly mean way, but its kinda her love language.

♤You can't tell me this woman isn't SMOOTH. She will say the most beautiful and flirtatious thing in Spanish.. even if you don't know Spanish.

♤If you don't know Spanish? She will speak to you in Spanish in hopes you'll slowly learn it. Not that it helps or teaches you. She will make fun of you for it.

♤She's very transparent when you guys first get together that you'll now be a target and that you are now basically her willing prisoner. She will take you out and do things with you, but only with her. She doesn't trust her men to keep you safe properly. 100% believes that if you need to get something done right, she has to do it herself.

♤This woman is in control. Take that as you will, but she is. She doesn't change that fact for anyone. Control makes her comfortable. You ask her to let you take the reigns? She will laugh at you and shut that down immediately. This woman gives off "fuck around, find out" and boy will you find out.

♤Valeria's bed is the bland. Two pillows and a bland blanket. This woman prioritizes function over everything else. Her room is bland too. Barely any furniture and MAYBE a TV (that is covered in dust because she never uses it.)

♤She. Is. Possessive. She doesn't have to leave hickeys or anything on your skin. She doesn't have to. Her men know who you are and that you are hers. Do not try to leave hickeys on her skin. She will not be happy. She 100% feels like they are something horny teenagers do.

♤Valeria's way of showing love is picking on you endlessly. If she sees you actually struggling, she's not stupid and will tone it down or stop. She can be loving and soft if needed, although you tell anyone, and she will deny it.

♤She obviously has an attitude. A big attitude. She wins most arguments 100%. She might compromise by letting whatever you argue about happen if she thinks on it and realizes she was in the wrong. Do not expect her to admit she was wrong. She will take that shit to the grave.

♤ Hate someone? Don't tell her about it. She would kill for you. Once she loves you, she will move heaven and earth for you. Devoted. This woman would be DEVOTED to you.

♤She knows your insecurities and won't make fun of them, but she will tell you in her own way that she likes them. Now, if you're ever insecure about your relationship or worried that one of her men likes her? She would 100% degrade that person and tell you how much she genuinely doesn't like them or hates them.

♤She knows what she does to you. She loves to know you're obsessed with her in every way. She will 100% figure out every little thing about you and what you like about her and use it against you in any way possible.

♤I feel like she struggles to say that she loves you. You say it? She will 100% say "and I, you" or something to get around saying the exact words. I feel like she may say it in Spanish.

♤Nicknames? All of them are somehow mean in a loving way. All of them are in Spanish as well. If they make you melt, she will only call you by them. (Will call you idiot in Spanish as a nickname)

♤She can cook, and she likes to on days that weren't particularly long or busy (which is rare). If you know how to cook, and you cook for her, she will eat it. She will tell you things that were wrong with it if she finds any.

♤Valeria is blunt. Straight to the point. She will tell you if you are doing something wrong, call you stupid, laugh at you, then she will call you a cute nickname and help.

♤Do you wanna dress up for something or some reason? Go right ahead. She won't. She will wear the same style and type of clothes. Pants and a shirt. I feel like she 100% feels more comfortable and confident in pants and a shirt. I think she almost prefers it because she needs to make sure she's ready for anything.

[poppy-metal]

i need art to drop a bomb on reader for sperm donor!au and cut tashi the fuck off. she can’t just check out of the relationship when it’s convenient for her😭 we don’t have the same luxury. she can be happy with patrick— but not at the cost of us or our baby. i’m all for leaving her toxic ass. perhaps even for our baby daddy!

(but this is 100% my vengeful, petty side coming out)

unfortunately, i think reader is so in love with tashi she really would forgive her if tashi wanted to work things out - her self worth has been SHOT since annabellas birth - she just wants to be a good mom, so badly she genuinely believes its her fault for slacking on being a good wife - part of what made her and tashi work was how much of a devoted acolyte you were - at tashi's beck and call. now if she wants to go on a date you have to bring the baby, she can't bring you to events because anna will get fussy, you dont go on morning runs with her anymore because your body aches too much lately. its kind of insane really, you'd think she'd realize all this change would happen - but even tashi doesn't know everything. she just wanted to make you happy. she didn't know it'd mean so much would change.

in my head in this au tashi is her full selfish self that the film was too afraid to let her fully be - she likes being the center of someone's world. she liked the fact that she married you, picked you, but had art and patrick still in her orbit. she liked that she barely had to push art at all before he agreed to give you a baby. she never cheated on you before - but it was a kind of emotional betrayal nonetheless. when annabella was born and your devotion shifted - and arts did too, he didn't look at her with that awestruck loopy boy in love gaze anymore. he was always wanting to be around you and the baby. patrick was the only one left fully obsessed with her and only her. falling into bed with him was easy.

she feels alot of guilt. just because she's selfish doesn't mean she's evil - she still loves you. thats why its an affair and she's keeping it from you. she doesn't want to leave. you still love her, she knows you do. she doesn't know how it will end - if she'll have her fun and end it with patrick when shes ready to settle more, or if she'll always keep him around to fill a bed with her when you're not around. she doesn't know and she doesn't want to dwell on it.

patrick is simple because hes really just fully in love with tashi - always has been always will be. doesn't care how shitty of a person it makes him to sleep with her behind your back, doesn't matter that he likes you as a person, if tashi calls, he's there, period.

and if art tells you - isn't he just doing that for himself too? thats why he's hesitant to let you know. he doesn't want to come across like he's happy it happened - he doesn't want to be in annabellas and your life that way. he wants you to fall in love with him like hes fallen in love with you. he wants you to want him to be your partner. not just choose him because everyone else betrayed you.

[songsofbat]

what's the use of feeling what's the use of feeling oh what's the use of feeling blue (or, mun feels like writing corus but they're already in a roleplay..)

There's someone in their mind.

Corus-Calla-Corvus is... aware of that. There's something wrong and they can feel themselves flicker in and out of consciousness.

It's their minds eye that leads them onwards, stumbling blindly so they can grip onto hand rails and get rid of their mistakes.

Their flaws.

But every now and then they sort of...stop.

Stare at their phone. Or the wall. Not quite the wall. The emotions on it- crawling, crawling, ever crawling. A web.

They track their hand over twisting strands.

They're so tired.

There's so much to do.

Poda's going to make sure Signal doesn't... stop them, they suppose. So at least they won't have to worry about that.

"I don't understand." says the thing that sounds like a funeral dirge. "Why are you checking on people? The only one who wants you around is the white haired child. He doesn't seem to need you around."

It doesn't say Ceph doesn't care, at least. Maybe ignoring its words and burning it had given it the hint.

Their body flicks through different screens. The other people who went by Corvid. Vice. The bats. Carnival. Morgan? No, the same. The same.

"You're quite odd," it continues, and there's an upturned quality to its face, a vague widening to the eyes that almost seems like genuine interest. Maybe it is. Maybe it's not.

Emotions around it are.. faint. Hard to feel.

"You do not interact with her because she does not want you around. Yet, you watch over her. What exactly do you gain from this? You clearly have no intentions of interfering." They want to throttle it.

So they do.

It stares at them with eyes red like (her) hair.

It doesn't stop.

It won't shut up.

"You're the same as I am," it prattles on. "Wouldn't it be logical for you to either not care about her entirely, or do something about it?"

Why can't the dirge be playing for it?

"It's quite easy to change people's minds, you know!"

Disgusting.

She doesn't want me around, they say, perhaps. Their mouth isn't moving. I'm not like... (Jacyn? Not like you? Not like some obsessed stalker? ) I'll respect that.

I annoy her, they continue. She was tolerating me. I should not disturb her.

...somehow, those emotionless red eyes feel judgemental.

They don't know why they're talking to it.

...maybe because it looks like them. Corus-Calla-Corvus-Corvid, shifted off.

Red eyes. White skirt. Not quite them.

Requiem's fragment stares.

Not quite a fragment.

Something worse, perhaps. Sinking into their consciousness and refusing to leave.

Poda says it refuses to be removed- but that's okay. When they do a proper fixing this time- they'll drag it down with them.

It's okay to talk to it. It's okay to humour it.

It's just... keeping it occupied. Until Poda can get Signal to leave. Until they finally get to fix this mess of a mind.

"You're being quite illogical."

How so.

"You aren't friends."

...and?

"You wish to be friends with her."

Selfish.

"But you want, anyway."

Doesn't mean they have to act on it.

"You wish to be friends. It is causing you...quite some despair. Would it not be easier to simply cut off those feelings?"

If they cut off emotions for other people, they wouldn't be able to protect them.

"Your friendship with her was detrimental to you."

Scroll, scroll. They don't care.

"Forgetting her entirely would be wise. She doesn't care for you, after all."

No more forgetting. No more running. The truth burns, and they'll let it.

"Are you harming yourself?"

The truth is needed. It allows them to make the best possible decisions.

"Are you harming yourself?"

The truth is useful. They can shut off the emotions when they've fixed themselves.

"Are you hurt-"

Shut up.

"Are-"

Shut up.

" Shut

up.

Shut up. Shut up. Shut up.

Corus-Calla-Corvus-Corvid doesn't deserve to exist.

They're doing what they must.

They're not going to run from the truth.

Gotham doesn't need Corvid as a hero.

Gotham needs tools. Weapons. Shields.

Useful things.

( Once upon a time, there was a Gala. And you learnt how to smile just right, even if you didn't mean it. Once upon the time there were galas. You learnt how to be soft around the edges, pleasant and good. Once upon a time, there was an actor. They were capable of convincing people to not waste their time on them. )

" ?", it asks, and the question sounds unreal.

Because you never hear anybody asking that question in real life.

[becausegoodheroesdeservekidneys]

I liked Kieran, maybe only because he reminded me of myself as a kid. Constantly feeling left out and being both harassed for everything you do do and never being trusted with anything to even proof yourself capable, like the knowledge about the truth about ogerpon. I still am, working on that, but was way more jealous of other people hanging out with my friends simply because I had so precious few. Idk how much it would have fucked with me if my verbally abusive older sister (I do also have one of those) simply decided that one of my friends was now one of hers instead and kicking me out while my friend isn't saying or doing anything to be like "no, actually I want to spend time with [anon] too".

Obviously his obsession with ogerpon and the following Drive to get stronger is pretty hyperbolic but I did also have a bit of that. Just rejecting everything, throwing everything back at everyone since it was, or at least felt, like its always my family and the people around me just throwing shit at me too. Did I overreact a bunch of times? Oh yeah for sure. Teenage tantrums will get ya, but I really did need that. Without it I don't think I would have ever learned to call out my family's abuse and other people treating me poorly. Since as a kid that just radiates low self esteem you seem to get treated like shit from just about everyone.

Anyway all that is to say, throwing around things like "I think this kid would shoot up a school if only he had access to guns" isn't, imho, great. And I don't even really particularly care about your instance rn, like it's a fictional character in a Pokémon game who cares. So sorry for being the one who got my rant lol. It's just something I've been seeing more of lately, people throwing "they'd shoot up a school" not only at fictional characters but actual human beings. Which I think is fucked. Thankfully no one ever said that to me, but I cannot imagine how hurtful that must be, like if we ignore all the other negative effects it has for a second, when your actual school life was hell enough to make you consider ending your own life, like it was for me, to just get thrown another brick at your head that people think you would be monster enough to murder people.

...well there's a lot to unpack here.

So first up, you have my genuine condolences for your extraordinarily shitty school life. You clearly had the very rough end of the stick, and it's clearly still hurting, and that sucks.

However. I am not thrilled that you just trauma dumped in my inbox because you over-projected onto a fictional character, and I'll ask you not to do that again. Particularly when your "rant" is explicitly aimed at trying to make me feel bad for criticising a fictional character that you, once again, have over-projected onto.

Like listen, I too had an extraordinarily shitty school life, and I also had very few friends (and at three separate extended points, a combination of Literally No Friends At All, AND Being Actively Targeted For Bullying; the first time around, the bullying was led by the class teacher, even.) I have very much been there, done that and got an entire t-shirt shop. But I still didn't come away from that feeling that I was entitled to other people liking me or wanting to be friends with me, because no one is obliged to like or be friends with anyone else. I may have occasionally felt jealous, but I didn't throw tantrums and demand perfect loyalty from the few friends I did make, because that would have been abusive as all hell and would have justly made them want nothing to do with me. And, crucially and relevantly to the fictional character in the fictional world that we are discussing, I did not fixate on someone I wanted to be my friend, see that they were afraid of me and wanted to be friends with someone else, and then throw such a tantrum about it that I physically fought that someone else for the 'rights' to that friend regardless of their consent in that matter, apparently with the intention of abducting them if I won. And on losing that fight, I did not storm off and start amassing a collection of stronger and stronger weapons so I could take over my school and prove my dominance over them, emotionally abusing anyone who couldn't keep up with me because of family problems along the way. I presume you did not either!

And if I had, then the trauma and loneliness I received would be irrelevant - actions borne of trauma are still actions, with real world consequences, and you are still responsible for them regardless of how bad you felt.

(I mean, not to put too fine a point on it, but school shooters are people who are also lonely and often bullied. It's very interesting therefore that you dismiss them as "monsters" while demanding that all behaviour from such people up to the shooting be excused. But the issue with such people is the entitlement they feel and the abuse they therefore dish out. Shootings are just the most extreme symptom of that - they're far from the only symptom.)

I cannot stress this enough - you are not the fictional character of Kieran in the game Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. You did not make his choices, or perform his actions (I assume). Criticism of him is not criticism of you. No one is accusing you of being about to shoot up a school. You state that you don't care that he's a fictional character, but I'm afraid you very much should, because that is the crucial difference. I am sorry that you're seeing a lot of people accusing real life people of being school shooters, but that is not what has happened here, is it?

You're welcome to write back. But I'll warn you very clearly - I am absolutely not at home to you trauma dumping further, or trying to make me feel guilty for talking about a fictional character because you have over-projected and therefore are taking it personally. That is a You Problem, and I will block you without reading if you do.

However, I am going to finish by reiterating my very genuine sympathies for your school experience. It truly was an appalling time for me, and it seems like it was for you, too. I hope you can process that trauma now, and find peace.

[adamnablelittledevil]

What did you think about that moment in chapter 24?! I'm dying to know!

(The part that starts "I looked down on Lestat, who was unchanged...")

Hey! I'm sorry I couldn't answer it immediately and you had to wait, but I wanted to give this a proper answer with all my thoughts, so I hope this was worthwile and and makes up for it. 😉🙃 Anyway, here we go… I already knew what was going to happen, so, I was counting the pages to finally get to the chapter. And when I did, man, it did not disappoint.

Obviously, that wasn't romantic, but it was such a meaningful, intimate, delicate and tender moment that it felt even more powerful to me. Yes, part of the reason Armand went there was to get answers and try to quiet the anguish in his heart, but most of it was genuinely love. Which is why he returns, approaches, touches and shows Lestat affection again, even after drinking his blood. And it speaks volumes how Armand had all the reasons to keep a safe distance and yet he didn't flinch or even hesitate. And not only he approached Lestat, but also touched him, multiple times, and kept getting bolder and bolder with those gestures and 'pushing his luck'. Whether Armand was willing to take the risk of Lestat having a negative/defensive reaction or knew he would allow it by mere instinct, this is a proof of how deep their bond goes and how far they have come in their relationship. And from Lestat's side as well, because Armand was the only person he gave his consent to get near at the time and that was a huge thing. It was overall a really big and turning point in their relationship. And it's one of my favorite Lesmand/The Vampire Armand/The Vampire Chronicles moments as a whole.

And as if it isn't enough that it's such a monumental event on its own, it's so poetic too. The fact it happens in a chapel, they are both silent, Armand's tear falls on Lestat's cheek… It's all about the aesthetics, the body language, facial expressions etc. The imagery is so delicate and beautiful. The wording is stunning as well. Specially for this line:

"I tried to keep my heart absolutely pure of pride and pure of anything but love. It was not differentiated or defined, this love, but only love [���]"

This has become one of my favorite quotes ever, maybe even my ultimate favorite from The Vampire Chronicles. I absolutely love the idea of a love that can't be classified, nor separated in different boxes, but instead defies all definitions and simply transcends. And when she wanted to, Anne Rice knew how to execute the concept brilliantly on her books. She even knew how to elevate and still manage to make it better almost two decades later. When she went on Facebook to further elaborate on it from Lestat's point of view, it just made my heart ache in the best way. I mean, the screenshot below speaks for itself.

Plus, if the show does that in the future, in any shape or form, it would be incredible. I'm such a sucker for scenes that are more complicated and primarily rely on the talent/chemistry of the performers and the actors need to work twice, three times as hard to execute them. Silent, scenes where the actors don't touch, phonecalls where they can't look at or feed off of each other in any way… I like to call them 'raw scenes' and they're usually my favorite on any show/movie I watch, including Interview With the Vampire. I can see it being a mix of Aragorn taking care of Eowyn after she was wounded

and Lizzy and Mr. Darcy dancing,

filmed and edited in a way that makes the people around them disappear for a moment and slowly reappear at the end, just like the way Armand described how the situation felt here:

"There was no chapel then for me, or outraged sighs or reverential cries. I heard nothing, and yet knew what was all around. I knew it as if the substantial place was but a phantasm, for what was real was his blood."

I'm personally obsessed with that trick and find it so sophisticated and mind-blowing that it frustrates me how it's barely used? So, I always appreciate it whenever I see it. And I also just know that Assad would be phenomenal at that, because he's already been doing that kind of acting for two whole seasons now. I can see him being soft, gentle and even somewhat tragic and I just know the affection and pain in his eyes would kill me in the best possible way. I could even see it becoming part of my top 5 moments on the series, maybe even my number #1. Right now my favorite clips are the 1x01 church sequence, the 2x08 loustat reunion and armandiel's last scene on 2x05. However, considering how much I love this moment and pretty much all things lesmand, they can easily become just as big of an obsession, possibly even bigger in future seasons (they already are my #1 on the books). I mean, the scene they have alone already makes my heart skip several beats because the chemistry was magnetic and irresistible,

that eye contact was *INTENSE* and I felt the sparks all the way over here. Felt like I was witnessing something that I shouldn't lol, but I was happy to invade their privacy because it was simply mesmerizing.

Anywaaaay… Hopefully, that will happen on the show someday, even if the context and circumstances of it may differ. Still, regardless if they do a version of it or not, that will remain a wonderful part of the book and that gladly I will never move on from.

[pastrydragon]

What do the rogues smell like? ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

I know you probably asked this as a joke but I thought deeply about it anyway so here you go!

Riddler:

Lemon and lavender soaps.

Edward's dad was a hoarder and so Edward has a thing about his space being clean.

when he got his first apartment he kept it obsessively clean and as a side effect of this the place always smelled like the lemon and lavender cleaning products he'd scrubbed the place with.

And since this was the first place Edward ever felt safe, he ended up associating those scents with safety.

So all his soap and cleaning products to this day are either lemon or lavender scented, so he inevitably ends up with a near permanent air freshener like scent.

Scarecrow:

Pumpkin pie now but used to smell like chemicals.

Harley got him a basket of pumpkin spice everything as a gift for his birthday one year after he developed a toxin variation that was particularly pungent and he wasn't gonna waste perfectly good hygiene products!

And he has a genuine love for pumpkin taste so he keeps cans of it around to put in his pancakes every morning.

So yeah, The Master Of Halloween smells like thanksgiving.

You can still smell the chemicals if you get close though.

Mad hatter:

“Iris Poudre” by Frederic Malle, he doesn’t care that it’s a women’s perfume, he wants to smell like a sexy flower garden and everyone else can mind their own business.

Under the perfume he smells like whatever tea he drank that day and possibly like whatever sugary treat he baked to go with it.

Unless he's been in his lab all day, then he smells like metals and plastic.

And once in a blue moon when he needs to do some intense testing, cool ranch Doritos.

Except he never brings food down there with him so how....?

Mr. Freeze:

His condition causes him to have a permanent fresh snow smell which he was pleasantly surprised by.

Like the other scientists on this list carries a kind of "laboratory smell" with him.

His suit smells... weird. Like you can smell that a person was there but there's no sweat smell and its honestly a little off-putting. Luckily he cleans it very regularly.

He used to wear “Angel’s share” by Killian because Nora has good taste and wasn’t gonna let her husband smell like detergent and nothing else.

He'll start wearing it again when she wakes up.

Penguin:

“Tobacco Vanille” by Tom Ford mainly. The man wants to ooze class.

He also wears it because he always has a cigar after his lunch and dinner so he needs to wear something he knows won't clash scents with his Arturo's.

And if you're thinking that smell is strong, that's on purpose.

Oswald has a small group of birds in his atrium that he cares for personally out of affection, and because of that if you get right up close to him you’ll smell bird cage. Not great.

He might also smell like seafood after meals but not really in a bad way, more in a "Well fuck, now I'm craving Red Lobster!" way.

TwoFace:

“REPLICA jazz club” Because before he was Twoface he was a snazzy lawyer who wanted to smell like how big band music sounds.

There's also the medicine he puts on his acid burns which smells exactly how you’d expect it to.

The two mixing together isn't unpleasant but it is a bit confusing to get a whiff of if you don't know who it's coming from.

It smells kinda like an expensive hospital room.

He might also smell like Bloody Mary's if he's had a bad day.

Harley:

“Tutti Fruity Candy” by Bath and bodyworks

Unless she’s going to one of Oswald’s fancy parties, Then she wears “Into The Night”…. Also by bath and bodyworks.

She also smells a bit like bubblegum.

She smells like how a slumber party feels I think.

Just smells like fun!

Catwomen:

Has accumulated an impressive collection of expensive perfumes as gifts from various gentleman friends over the years and uses them almost at random so literally no one knows until she shows up.

She also smells a bit like cats.

Poison Ivy:

ROSES

Like a very aggressive rose smell.

Like you aren’t allowed to wear rose scented perfume in Gotham because it makes people try to evacuate the area.

Ivy could smell like any flower she wanted of course.

But who doesn't love roses?

Bane:

Harley strikes again and got him Dr. Squach products because he's Mr. manly man and she thought it was funny.

He shares John's "waste nothing" philosophy and used all of it, then bought more because he liked it.

His favorite scent is alpine sage but he changes it up sometimes.

He also smells like 24 hour fitness, because obviously.

He might also smell like peanut butter protein shakes.

Bookworm:

Musty dusty book smell.

He smells like a socially awkward moth eaten carpet.

He smells like an old arm chair with a cat sitting in it.

He smells like cocoa butter because he is an ashy bitch who needs to be moisturized.

Please buy him some cologne.

Killer Croc:

Waylon's home may be in the sewer but his home also happens to be beachfront property, so he smells like ocean mainly.

With all his free time between heists and such, Waylon often takes on elaborate cooking projects with a focus on BBQ and smoking meat. Which means he smells like a plethora of kitchen spices, smoke and herbs.

Maybe it's the alligator skin, maybe it's the jackets he wears, but he always smells a little like leather.

So the entire effect is "Bar and grill by the ocean with those really nice leather booths"

Please make him into a cologne.

Music Meister:

He avoids scented products to avoid irritating his respiratory system in any way.

So He just smells like a clean human.

Possibly lemon and honey from trying to soothe those vocal cords with weak tea.

Joker:

Is also a basic bath and bodyworks bitch, he wears “Among The Clouds”. 

He does class it to the roof for formal events though and switches to "English Promenade 19" By Krigler.

If you catch him without any scent on he smells slightly acidic and some other rogues would describe him as smelling "sickly". He's not physically sick as his doctors can attest, in fact his chemical bath raised the PH across his body so he can't even get most diseases anymore.

Because of this he can tend to overdue it on the scent to hide the sickly and chemical smells.

Like Jervis, Joker often smells like his baking projects. (Except the project is almost exclusively some sort of pie.)

[firedragon1321]

Thinking about how Matt isn't as important to the entire group's survival in Adventure compared to Tai/Izzy/Sora (especially when he's 100% focused on TK). But he's absolutely necessary on a meta level because of his search for growth and- at the end of the day- an identity separate from being TK's guard dog.

As early as Episode 18 at least, he notices the others are changing for the better. As he talks to Izzy, he reveals A- he's emotionally/psychologically more sensitive than he first appears and B- he wants to grow, too.

Now the thing is Matt has also made protecting TK his number one concern. By comparison, his own physical safety is somewhere like the thirty second most important thing. This holds him back. He doesn't know it. But his obsession with keeping TK safe prevents him from finding an identity outside of "TK's big brother".

Matt was lost emotionally- half due to the divorce, half due to being at the age where people start to develop unique identities. He essentially latched on to the first identity he was presented with- being TK's brother. Even if- at the time he formed it- he was just a child. It was a role made from a desire to just be with his brother again.

A desire for things to be normal.

Because the Digital World not only extended Matt's time with TK, but constantly put him in danger, his identity as "TK's big brother" evolved into "TK's protector". This is his drive in the early competition for leadership- to protect TK the group.

But by Episode 18, the battle for dominance is over. Tai won, though nobody says it. Even if he's on shaky ground due to SkullGreymon. But even there, Tai acted out of a (corrupted) sense of responsibility. To genuinely protect everyone, without a disclaimer regarding one individual. So he made a mistake. And not only does he understand that, but he regrets it. He's maturing from the kid who smacked Izzy's laptop for fun.

Matt sees this. He sees Sora slowly come to accept Biyomon- and by extension, herself, because Biyomon is a part of her (more on that later). Izzy has become a bit more social. They're not at their final forms yet- far from it. But Matt sees the writing on the wall. He wants in on that.

Yet, he's trapped by his own trauma and the armor he made for himself. He's a warrior, a protector. Everything bad needs to stay away from TK because he can't lose his brother again.

Matt sees himself as the sole catalyst for TK's safety. And as the series goes on, that becomes less and less true. TK is protected by others, such as Sora. Matt also comes to protect and support people other than TK, such as Joe with the whole Digitamamon debacle.

Matt is great at noticing the growth of others. Just not himself. To be fair, it's only an extension of his role as "knight". It extends beyond TK now, but Matt doesn't yet see it.

After Puppetmon's mansion, TK proves he can protect himself. This shatters Matt to the point that Cherrymon has little trouble sliding into his skull. Because in Matt's eyes, he hasn't grown like he wanted. What he doesn't see is the stuff holding him back.

I went through something similar. I made the core of my being "staying safe", And it, too, robbed me of opportunity. The armor welcomes nothing but danger. It is rigid. It does not allow growth. So it's completely understandable to me that when Matt finally realizes what he must do to form his own identity, his fear and despair have to be unavoidably shoved in his face.

The nature of the cave- like much of Digimon Adventure's lore- is steeped in mystery. All that seems clear is that it's a manifestation of negative emotions. It's physically the same as a mental rut, going in a single direction with no branching pathways. It doesn't allow Matt to move past his feelings by its very design. It also whispers of failure. Not only has his identity revolving around TK proven useless, but so has his search for himself.

And so like Cherrymon, it easily consumes him.

The only lifeline he has is Gabumon. His Digimon partner. A piece and reflection of his own soul. So really, Matt can only rely on his own inner strength to escape. In a way, it's the "Naruto telling you to brush your teeth" meme. Sometimes you have to get a little unwell to get better. And that may involve talking to yourself. And "yourself" may be a dog lizard.

Matt wanted no-one to see him cry. Especially after the Digital World. The identity he took on has zero room for tears. Only after escaping the cave does Matt finally shed that identity. He's not just TK's protector or the group's knight. He's their friend. And not only can they rely on him, but he can rely on them.

It's not an independent identity. But seeing he's not alone and he can accept support from others is an important step in the right direction. In putting the useless armor aside, he also begins to heal from the divorce. And in doing that, he not only sees that he has grown, but opens up new opportunities to evolve even further.

Matt is an encapsulation of Digimon's themes of positive growth. Through his own introspection and growth, he captures what makes Digimon unique. And that's why- even if he does less in Adventure than Omnimon would have you believe- he is absolutely essential.

[rachelsshowerthoughts]

I had the most hilarious Aware AU thoughts:

OK, so everything leading up to Origins is the same as discussed.

When Adrien stops to help Fu he's almost caught but Chloe was waiting outside & jumped in when Nathalie showed up and made a sufficient enough spectacle that Sabrina could grab Adrien and they bolt into the school.

Argument over seats ensues, Adrien & Nino making tentative friends.

Kagami is probably around but maybe not in this class. Gabriel is irritated but also figures that an Akuma attack is a good reason to force Adrien out of going to school & keeps Nathalie waiting. So he can't even head out to the arcade across the street.

This is all a big red flag to Nino when he hears & sees that yes, Adrien's bodyguard & his fathers assistant have basically parked outside the school to obsessively watch them all day.

Stuff happens, Ivan becomes an Akuma & in the chaos Adrien, Chloe & maybe Sabrina, grudgingly agree to go to the Agreste Mansion cos it is at least very heavily fortified. Minor argument with Nathalie but time is dead bodies with a giant rock monster around.

Anyway this means Adrien has company when he finds Plagg.

Fortunately the Kwami of Destruction is all in favor of teenage rebellion "Fuck yeah, stick it to the old people!" & has no issue ignoring that Chloe knows Adrien's identity, though they do work to cover it up a little bit when needed.

But, but, but, here's the fun part.

Chloe also becomes Chat Noir.

Not all the time but when its impractical for Adrien to do it she dons the ring. Both already having many aesthetic commonalities and a familiarity with each others personalities, the way the Glamour works & mild physical form changes when transforming and... No one notices, not even Fu!

Also both flirt with Ladybug, a lot.

This also helps keep a bit of a divide going once Fu is discovered, because Adrien shares details on the book with at least her, or potentially the entire "Shitty parents club". & this leads to knowing about Fu earlier and a more contentious relationship.

IE, he wants to take Plagg back, Plagg does not want to go back, they do not want Plagg to go back & they have enough information to make Fu's entire operation very fucking difficult.

Also the book may be found or stolen earlier.

Like Bubbler is a great time/excuse to trash the mansion for funsies ya know?

Obviously Marinette is not a fan of this whole... Everything, even if she doesn't get all the details or learn IDs, she respects authority figures and seniors, & though she might not want to lose Chat she doesn't think turning it into a contest of wills is the "Right" way to fix things.

Also I think Kagami might be Marinette's first pick for an extra ally which might happen sooner as Fu would want someone else more in line with his thinking on side.

This isn't a dig at Alya, but in Aware Marinette as technically known Kagami longer. Sees her as very respectful & dutiful, and has 100% seen her bravely try to throw down with Akuma to keep people safe.

Meanwhile the bee, or perhaps snake or tiger can still end up lost XD

Chat: Me, knowing the location of the Miraculous no one told me was missing? Its less likely than you think! Also Chat: Hey, new hero, we should definitely 100% accept this person & not question their identity!

One big difference between Fu & the other shitty adults, is that he's much more like Roger. IE, he is trying to do the right thing, genuinely does not want to bring anyone pain. He is just intensely paranoid & overly cautious tot he point where it can become harmful.

So, first of all, this is hilarious to me. Yes, absolutely, all of this.

second, I see your "Kagami is chosen by Marinette first", and raise you "As a body double". Like, I think part of why Alya gets picked to be the Fox was proximity - the Akuma was her little sisters, it was the middle of the night, she's already aware of the situation, Marinette trusts her and needs a teammate, boom, Alya gets to be the Fox. However, for Kagami, you're right, she does know her longer here, so probably trusts her more. So, I suggest learning about the "Cat Siblings" (this is Marinette's best guess, if she doesn’t have their identities, that the Chat Noir duo are siblings) gives Marinette ideas. Like, yes, Fu is clearly against it, but part of Marinette probably thinks "dammit, that’s such a good system, though!". How many times has she been screwed over because she had to be Ladybug, and completely fucked up her schedule? There being TWO people to be Cat Noir, while not ideal, is still better for Cat Noir in general. Not that Marinette would EVER do something like that, once the Guardian makes his stance clear! Oh no, absolutely not!

Which, uh, doesn’t mean she hasn’t THOUGHT about someone else to let borrow the earrings in an emergency, OR that she hasn’t thought about Kagami specifically, OR that she hasn’t quietly discussed it with Tikki (in hypotheticals) what to do if she's taken out! So (my best guess for what happens) when Marinette comes down with a particularly nasty flu, and can't even stand up without feeling dizzy, she actually doesn’t think that long before calling up Kagami, like, "uh, hey, weird question, do you think you could take over being Ladybug for me? I can taste colours, and not in the fun way."

Of course, Kagami does it, and because she's VERY different from Marinette (personality-wise) while the public is fooled thanks to the Glamour, Cat Noir is "uh, excuse me? Who are you???", and Kagami has to awkwardly explain that your regularly scheduled Ladybug currently has a fever of one hundred and four, and can't really leave the bathroom right now, so she's filling in. After it’s all over, she quickly leaves to give Marinette the earrings back (maybe drop off some medicine?), and Cat Noir(e) is left feeling, like, "ha, maybe the old man will get off our backs now, Ladybug clearly agrees with us!"

Which. Uh. Yeah, no, that doesn’t really happen. Maybe Ladybug's just better at explaining it, (or Fu is just a little prejudiced against the Cat in particular, I imagine the Order weren’t Plagg’s biggest fans, Fu probably internalized a lot of their shit), but he's . . . not OKAY with Ladybug sharing her ID and position with another person, but much more understanding. If Marinette was really that sick, then going out as Ladybug would have been seriously detrimental to both her and the fight against Hawk Moth. And there NEEDS to be a Ladybug in every fight, to purify the Akuma. Yes, Fu would rather she hadn’t done it, but it was clearly the right decision at the time, so Fu will trust Marinette on this. He still doesn’t recommend doing it too often, but a back up Ladybug is clearly a good idea.

Well, this means that Back Up Cat is good too, right? Nope! Still salty about them, still thinks one of them should knock it off, still thinks he should take the Miraculous back!

Yeah, you can imagine how this is going down with the Cat Noir(e) Duo. ESPECIALLY because this is the Aware Kids. It’s every instance of favouritism, of "unexceptional", of "not good enough". Congrats Fu, you just got knocked into "Adults we DO NOT trust"! You already had a foothold, now you get a proper seat!

On the flip side, I see this as where Marinette starts questioning Fu a little more. Because for all her black and white mentality, all her naïveté, the double-standard is GLARING. She's spent the past few months watching the battle of Wills that is Cat Noir(e) Vs Fu. She was expecting a HELL of a talking to once she wasn't throwing up her stomach. Instead, she gets mild disappointment at the SITUATION, general understanding, and even gets COMMENDED for her reasoning and quick reaction to the situation. Which makes her go "waitwait,wait, wait, hold the FUCK up", because what? What the HELL? Why is it ok if SHE does the thing that Fu's been railing against, but not Cat Noir(e)? Good grief, shouldn’t it have been a worse decision? The Cat Noir(e) Duo at least started at roughly the same time. They've been training and getting better alongside her. Now that Marinette's no longer fever-fogged, she's thinking it honestly would have made more sense to have Tikki take the earrings, and go find one of the duo to be a replacement Ladybug. They would have at least had some idea what they were doing! But no, instead she sent a friend, who had barely any idea, to do the job. And that's . . . . fine? What? And DON'T say it’s cause Ladybug needs to be there to purify the Akuma, Marinette knows she NEEDS back up! If anything, the Cat Noir(e) Duo was always kind of a comfort to her, cause she knew she was always likely to have SOMEONE there to support her. Fu so clearly showing favouritism is a hit to Marinette's view of all authority figures being kind and reasonable, making her start questioning him a bit more. Which, ya know, is probably needed.

On Fu himself, yes, he is very much like Roger. I'm not sure on how the particulars work out, since we have no idea what Roger's home life was like as a kid, but I've been operating under the adage "nothing exists in a vacuum". Roger didn’t spring forth fully formed with his opinions on "serving the public (toxic)", he had to learn that somewhere. Someone taught him those views, which he's passing onto Sabrina. And we SEE, at least partially, Fu getting taught his paranoia - if not from the Order itself, from the incident that took the Order away, which Fu probably feels a lot of guilt for. Which, as far as I can tell, he's managing by doubling down on the few teachings he had. Don’t give out IDs. Always put the Miraculous back in the box, don’t let them out. Don’t let the Kwami know any secrets.

Unfortunately, much like Roger, I feel like Fu also needs to see his stubbornness blow up in his face before he realizes he's fucking up.

[mdhwrites]

Thank you for defending Amphibia S3A!!! You don't know how many times I've had to read people saying that Anne should've had an angst arc like Luz did in TOH over what happened in True Colors. That kind of take completely ignores that a.) Anne is her own character who responds to things differently (by compartmentalizing and trying to fix what she can), b.) Amphibia was trying to preserve its essential Amphibia-ness and not become a dreary angst-fest, and c.) Luz's arc wasn't even good lol so why compare it to that? I think there are a couple story things that could've been streamlined in 3A but overall it is a perfectly good entry into Amphibia canon and it wasn't "filler" or "pointless" by any means. (P.S. I would love to hear your thoughts on Commander Anne since I also think that's a really strong episode!)🦎

Send me another ask about Commander Anne because that is one of the episode fragments in Amphibia actually dense enough for me to talk about on its own. For now, I'm actually carjacking this ask to talk about trauma reaction in fiction using Anne, Sasha, HOP POP and Luz with Hop Pop and Luz being the extremes you need to avoid and then talking about both where Anne falls and why she's so good.

Though with any discussion of this, I do actually just want to quickly mention that I did a whole teaching blog a good long while back about Fantasy Trauma and why Luz's just plain sucks. I'm not going to talk about the event here but more the reaction but I still think it's worth mentioning that fantasy trauma like what happens to these characters is a trope in and of itself.

Also, welcome Amphibia fans, I like to use asks as a way to teach and your show lets me be POSITIVE while teaching for once which is a nice change of pace... But let's start with the bad.

Or let's start with some defining. See whenever you have a major event happen in your story, there's a pendulum of reaction. On both ends of the pendulum, you have equally bad reactions to it but in different ways. Those ends where either:

A: You don't react at all. Despite the fact that the event should have had an effect on you, you're seeming to be mostly fine and yourself. It often can make the character come off as callous or stunted in some way if they just don't even seem to be needing to cope with it in someway. Stuff like Sprig focusing on being a part of the family and Polly focusing on Frobo stop them from quite getting to this extreme because they're more genuinely interacting with the new world they're in and their problems. Hop Pop is the problem one here but we'll get to it.

B: You ONLY react to the ONE event. The rest of the story and your character DON'T MATTER now. You are only your angst arc. This actually works well for VILLAINS because the single minded obsession and refusal of logic is actually usually useful for justifying them going to such extremes. The problem comes when a character should theoretically know better, the level of reaction is unwarranted or you can point out that they're just wangsting (whine/angsting) because they have sunshine and rainbows around them they're blatantly ignoring. This is Luz's side of the problem.

This is technically an Amphibia ask though so let's start with Hop Pop. For some very, very minor proof I'm not a contrarian: Hollywood Hop Pop is easily the worst half episode in S3A. There's something to be said about there being about two episodes before the mid-season finale that are kind of janky. The problem isn't just with Hollywood Hop Pop.

Hop Pop has a lot of internal issues with danger, change and worry. A new world should panic him in some way. This is actually the greatest sin of Hollywood Hop Pop because the lesson from that one feels at best like an over correction to... The majority of S2A's characterization of Hop Pop. Similarly goes to him just enjoying being a house guest. Even if yes, this is his adopted daughter, he should have an episode segment dedicated to being worried about the new world they're in, trying to protect Polly and Spring, etc. like that, especially since his old world just turned inside out. SOME sort of reaction would be warranted... And we don't get it.

Instead we get him being overly trusting and thus getting scammed, his stuff about making the Boonchuys hating him is good but it's entirely disconnected from the trauma you would expect of the character and then he honestly takes the BIGGEST risk of them all, even using his actual name instead of a codename like Sprig does for Spider Sprig.

It genuinely feels like he is treating coming here like a vacation, not helped by that explicitly being a part of one of his episode segments and that's bad.

So what's the good version of this side of the pendulum? Well, if this side represents underselling the reaction to trauma, the good version is subtlety and that's what we get with Anne and it's done really well. It mostly is in the first couple episodes in S3A when the wounds are most fresh which makes sense. As she processes it privately, she can return more and more to who she was.

The biggest thing here is that Anne is overloading herself. She is burning out from the second Andrias stabs Marcy. Not even once she's home, but even by the final trauma having just been overloaded. She's 13 after all. 15 if you want to go off of what seems to have been the original intent for her and the rumors that Disney forced the trio to be younger.

A 13 year old CAN handle death. They CAN'T handle seeing one of their BEST FRIENDS die and the other one likely doing so too, let alone right after she assumed her third best friend also died, even if he didn't. True Colors is a TIME for Anne. Anne is a very simple girl after all. Stakes like these are not what she is capable of even processing at that point. She's never seen anything that bad.

And her trying to recap and summarize it shows it EXPERTLY. Even trying to actually think about what just happened tires her out and has her constantly having to correct herself because she doesn't want to admit that not only is she powerless, it's also too much for her to handle on her own. And that's WITHOUT acknowledging the high probability of her friends being dead, something that was on her mind since her reaction to seeing Sasha is disbelief/relief that she's ALIVE.

Then there's the other elements where Anne is the one pushing research the hardest, the fact that she's brushing other things off to find answers that will make her less powerless, her protectiveness of those around her and then yeah, the one episode segment that has her burnt out and dead tired because she's working herself to the bone.

And this is all in character with Anne's arc. She's grown to do things. To want to help. To not just coast through life and just as she was getting used to the idea of that... She now can't do anything. So we see her doing what she can which is just not a lot.

Alright, let's move on to the other side of the pendulum though. I often talk about Luz in the second half of The Owl House as "In her angst arc" because that's how it feels. She may as well have put on a dark brown hoodie, flattened her hair and declared everything sucked. None of her optimism, none of her enthusiasm, little of her care and complete distrust of EVERYONE.

OH WAIT THEY DID THAT! They made her as close to her BETA design for S3 Ep1 as possible to finish out that miserable attitude for her. And I'm not going to say all of it is unwarranted. Just like Hop Pop caring about being a good house guest is in character, Luz getting more serious to match the stakes of the show is theoretically a good thing. It needed more of a real transition (Hi Commander Anne as a good example of this) but there is a nugget of a good concept in it.

One that's stabbed repeatedly by never letting it end or be affected by anything. Stuff she'll say to Eda and King she will act like will kill her if she tells literally anyone else no matter how much more justified it is for her to be honest to them, she CONSTANTLY lies to the point where she breaks her word several times and part of why Amity theoretically likes her is just GONE and then we get the theoretical conclusion to it which is "I want to be understood."

When the fuck haven't you been? This is the true crime of this side of the pendulum. Part of the reaction requires the character to entirely forget and actively ignore the actions around her. Those friends who have constantly forgiven you and backed you up? Didn't understand. That supposed found family who constantly told you you weren't at fault and to take care of yourself? Didn't understand. Your mom, who supported your interested until you backed her into a corner by accidentally assaulting people, including your principal, with wild animals? Never. Understood. You.

And even then, she still doesn't break out of it after the first TWO times in S3 where she is forgiven and she makes a statement about moving on. She just throws a dreamstate pity party and doubts herself until GOD tells her she has never done anything wrong in her life.

It's too long, the resolutions are too contrite or eye rolling for the amount of time and pain spent with it and they also rarely have anything to actually do with the trauma itself. It feels like the character is reacting to something BAD rather than something SPECIFIC which robs it of its bite just as badly as not reacting to it at all. And that's if it even feels like the character and Luz in the second half of TOH, especially S3, just doesn't feel like Luz. Period.

You know who does feel like herself? Sasha. By the time S3B comes around, she's had to deal with too much to really still be dealing with the trauma (and she still is to some extent with her constantly worrying about her relationship with Anne, obsession with second chances, etc. like that but that's more rounding out her arc to me) so it's really just her one segment in S3A that needs to be examined.

Except we actually have to roll back first. All the way back to Reunion. Sasha's reaction to this all starts with the end of Reunion. That moment when, just for a second, she decides Anne is worth more than herself. That "maybe you'd be better off without me," and letting go. S2 handles the fact that Sasha dying actually made a REALLY bad inner conflict for her, let alone once news of Marcy being fine without her too got to her, but that's the fun of character arcs. They SHOULDN'T be a smooth curve. *coughs at Amity and Hunter*

Keeping on track though, we have Sasha not only facing the end of her at her most powerful but also the potential end of her friendships. She betrayed Anne again and while they fought together, that was for survival, where are they now? Worse yet, Marcy almost died in front of her and she was POWERLESS. All that talk of trying to do things so they all could be happy, that she knew best... It was all ash.

So she at first doesn't know what she's doing. She emotional and ready to lash out but she doesn't know what her target is. She just knows part of it is her fault and unlike in S2, she can't ignore it now. It haunts her until Anne shows Sasha what having been a good friend could have gotten her. What they could have been.

And so now, it's time to make good on her word. To become a protector and try to see a bit more in people than she assumes. This is ALL a reaction to True Colors primarily. It is addressing it all VERY bluntly minus Marcy's lie (I have complicated feelings on Marcy at this point) but it's still working within the frame of the character. This is still Sasha and we know enough about her to genuinely follow her train of thought while also getting to enjoy the character we have grown attached to. She isn't gone... But she's changing and if this side of the pendulum represents replacement as its bad extreme, change and introspection like what Sasha goes through is the good medium ground.

I want to finish this by saying that you CAN use the extremes well. Someone reacting to a teammate's death with indifference can genuinely turn a character who seemed a little cold to being seen as callous or like they believe the ends justify the means, no matter the sacrifice. Someone letting an event consume them can actually be a great start to an arc where the point is to criticize their reaction, instead of trying to invoke sympathy through it. That they are going too far and letting this be too much of who they and they need to find balance. They need to properly introspect. These are not hard rules by any means but there is a spectrum. A pendulum.

And as always, the best thing a writer can do is recognize where on that pendulum they're writing and use it as best as they can.

======+++++======

I have a public Discord for any and all who want to join!

I also have an Amazon page for all of my original works in various forms of character focused romances from cute, teenage romance to erotica series of my past. I have an Ao3 for my fanfiction projects as well if that catches your fancy instead. If you want to hang out with me, I stream from time to time and love to chat with chat.

And finally a Twitter you can follow too!

[lady-bluebird-luv]

Youre making me want to pick back up acotar lmfao

Welllllll if you do, you'll have at least one friend you can talk about it with. :)

I don't know how similar this is to your experience, but I actually wasn't a big ACOTAR fan when I first read it in 2017-ish. I thought the first book was OK, got obsessed with ACOMAF, got frustrated with ACOFAS, and didn't think about the series again for years. I had gone down a manga rabbit hole and started writing SnK fic around the same time, so I directed all my fandom energy at that.

Last winter, I got nostalgic and re-read a lot of Cassandra Clare novels. I studied world literature, so I read a lot in my day-to-day life, but that winter was when I remembered how nice it is to read unpretentiously. Romantasy was my original bread and butter, and not everything has to be high-brow, award-winning Literature with a big L. Then I re-read ACOMAF, and one thing led to another.

I'll be the first person to admit that ACOTAR has its fair share of issues, and I don't adore SJM as an author or as a person. But ACOTAR is still meaningful to me. It brought me a lot of joy at a time when I needed it. It inspired me to write fic for the first time in a while. I don't think it's good for all the reasons why SJM intended it to be good. Like, SJM doesn't understand how morally grey some of her protagonists are, but they are morally grey, and I love them for that. One of the best things about fandom is that you can give canon/authors' interpretations the middle finger and do whatever the fuck you want.

I'm new in ACOTAR fandom spaces, but the culture is definitely different from SnK. IDK if the ACOTAR fandom can be so negative because it's starved for new content, or what, but I've never seen "pro" or "anti" tags to this extent. It also seems like there are a lot of people here who aren't familiar with fandom netiquette. I hate the moral policing, although that problem isn't ACOTAR-specific - I got off ereri Twitter to avoid the harassment/doxing that people were getting there. That all being said, there are also some lovely, insanely talented people here who inspired me to create my own ACOTAR content, and I definitely want to stay to connect with them more. I'm trying to avoid the bickering discourse and just reblog pretty fanart on my silly little blog.

I would be psyched if you joined us, but if not, no harm no foul. The series and fandom is whatever you find in it. Either way, I'm genuinely flattered, and thanks so much for the ask! Sorry that this got a little rambley.

[bronx-bomber87]

No better way to end a Friday than with a review. We are in the home stretch of s1 still crazy to me. Excited each time get to write up my reviews. So thank you all for your interest and support as always. Lets dive in to the third to last ep shall we?

1x18

Homefront.

After having a non Chenford ep always happy to have them back together. Loved dissecting Lucy and having insight into her family life but I missed them. They don't have a ton of content in this one. Pretty Talia driven one but what they do have is really good. Underrated moments in this ep for them IMO.

Our first shot of our fav duo is at the hospital. They’re visiting a released convict they were assigned to check up on. Tim makes a comment about filling his hours when not studying. To him it makes the most sense to fill his dead time with work. Lucy is immediately all over that comment. Because Lucy don't play around at all when it comes to Tim. She knows that isn't healthy for him. She starts probing as to why he doesn't have a hobby. She's genuinely surprised he doesn't have a way to decompress/recharge.

His first answer cracks me up it’s so Tim. Also how he adds in for her not to give him shit cause it has 'work' in the title LOL He knows her so well. He tries to combat her answer before she even says it. Lucy doesn’t deny she thinks that anyway. Goes on to say he needs something for himself. A way to decompress. Maybe even have a little fun. Gotta love her for trying to get him out of his comfort zone. He’s a creature of habit and doesn’t like that to be upended. Lucy is very aware of this and can't help herself but to challenge him on it.

The eye roll she gives him is primo. She knows this is going to be an uphill battle per usual. Tim fights her on it because its his natural first instinct. He always fights her on it and she always ends up seeping in. Jolting his system and POV on things. I do love him opening and holding the door for her. Ever the gentleman even when they’re arguing hehe

This shot is just because they're so pretty just standing together haha. That's it really. I mean look at them. Their Tall/Small thing never ceases to make me happy. Also Tim's stance pretty damn appealing tbh. I mean look at dem biceps. It's a wonder Lucy gets any work done haha

They respond to a call at a paintball place. A guy named Jimmy has lost it and impaled another player with a piece of wood over the game. Go on to tell them he plays there every day. He'll be hard to find. They head off to find Jimmy. Lucy does not waste a second before she is giving him more crap. So damn sassy with him. Using this guy's obsession to prove her point about why its bad to be focusing on one thing too much. They were married long before they ever dated people haha Lucy is so smug in this moment. Makes me happy haha

Tim defaults to what he usually does when’s she got him dead to rights. Clams up. Tells her to shut it cause that’s the best come back he has at the moment. LOL The smile on her face when she says ‘Yes sir’ Lucy knows that ‘shut it’ is just him annoyed he has no witty comeback. Lucy is reveling in the fact he can’t fight her on this one. No leg to stand on and he knows it.

They start searching the paintball area for their suspect. Lucy makes a comment about it would be easier if everyone wasn’t wearing camo. Tim gives her his company line about this job isn’t meant to be easy. She instantly disregards it and asks him if he’s ever played paintball? Trying to peak his interest. His reply cracks me up. Not a doubt in his mind he would crush these people at this. Her face is what kills me the most. That’s the wifey face. Placating him like ok babe....

I also love her blowing past his TO line earlier haha Very early on Lucy would’ve said yes sir or nodded. We’re long past those days even in s1. Especially at this point in time. That rapport and comfortability has come to stay. She’s on a mission to find him a hobby to help him relax. Bypasses Teacher Tim without blinking.

Tim starts to explain why he would straight destroy these people at paintball. Using one of the players as an example. Also Timothy there is no need to lean so close when explaining strategy to her sir heh But he does it anyway and she’s grinning like a fool. I’ve always loved the magnetic pull these two have between them. Whether they’re aware of it or not. Personal space is word not found in their vocabulary. Clearly passionate about what he's telling her so he gets closer. I love it.

Look at the way she is looking at him. Goodness girl you are working. That look on her face. You know she’s indulging him right now. Letting him ramble about how everyone is amateurs. How he would go about it. Tim has no idea he’s giving her fuel to get him to play. Always looking out for him even when he doesn’t have a damn clue she is. Taking care of him and putting his needs first. I can not with them. I love it so much.

They end up going to higher ground where Jimmy would be. They find him and Tim is sexy af stopping his escape. Grabs a players gun and easily decimates him with paint. Don’t tell me she wasn’t the slightest bit impressed with him nailing that guy with the paint gun. But it’s also reinforcing her idea about paintball for him.

That little smirk of hers before she hooks Jimmy up. Just like in 1x15 Lucy is all smiles and heart eyes for him in this ep. She is also a little bit wifey like in her reactions. Like yeah he’s an idiot but he’s my idiot. That second gif above says it all for that for that.

Ahhh the hanging out, outside work begins ❤️ Look at her dragging him outside his comfort zone like only she can. I bet you she pitched it one last time to Tim as a hobby. Something he could do to destress/relax. That it would be fun. He probably didn’t have to twist her arm too much to join him. That he would only do it if she came with. I could see Tim doing this so he could show and or prove to Lucy he could smoke everyone at this like he said. A little flex on his part. Coming in armed with a plan ready to execute it with her.

He looks so happy. She did that. It's written all over Lucy's face how happy she is that he's enjoying himself. That little smile on his face as they’re gearing up to go in. My heart. He’s so excited to do this. It’s why Lucy is beaming. She got Tim outside his routine and into something she knew he would love. He’s smiling and ready to have some fun. Not that he will say as such but everything in his body language does. Once again that beautiful silent communication of theirs is a sight to see.

His half hearted 'No' has Lucy smiling and laughing. She is beyond pleased with herself for this. Anyone looking at them without context would be able to see how she feels about him. I saw this great post by relentlessescapsim had a collection of Lucy unabashedly looking at Tim. Being as transparent as she could be. It said ‘She’s a ten but she’s terrible at hiding her feelings. ‘ I died laughing cause it so friggin true. You just watch her entire body language around Tim and you know. You just know he’s far more than her T.O. to her. I mean its clearly her day day off and Lucy is spending it with him. She's doing his new 'hobby' with him. I love it sfm.

Lucy challenges and pushes Tim same way he does for her. Been saying this all season his growth is incredible. Look at this puppy of a man playing paintball with her. Once again doing something he wouldn’t have for any other rookie. Incredible. He's continually allowing her to influence him which is huge in itself. Its constantly seen through out the entire season. This was her challenging that bubble of his that rigid routine. Lucy pushed because in the end she knew he would benefit from it. What good it would do him. She was right.

Tim says 'No' when really he's so glad she got him to do this. He can't say it just yet but his actions scream it. They balance one another out so well I could not adore their dynamic more. Damn I just love them so much haha. How good they are for each other. The fact that it dates back to s1 for multiple reasons is amazing.

It's why they’re so good in s5 once they get together. That beautiful base is already there and solid as hell. I love the idea of them playing paintball and having fun. Its lovely to see such beautiful depth and development for them. Such a good episode for them top to bottom. *chef kiss*

~~~~

Side Notes Non Chenford

Cute Wes/Angela stuff I always enjoy them so much.

Stuff with Jackson's dad was also very good. Watching him stand up to his dad was awesome.

Percy asking why Grey didn't stick Jackson with Tim. My god that boy wouldn't have made it without Angela. He has no idea. Tim would've washed his ass out so quickly. Hell Tim might not even be around cause of his bullet issues in the beginning. So very good he was not. Everything happens for a reason and all that.

Thank you all again for you likes/comments/reblogs. Every time I get a notification for them makes my heart smile for real. See you all in 1x19 :)

[royallygray]

incoherent as shit rant below, proceed with caution:

in the past 30 minutes I've become really fucking unhinged and like I'm releasing the darkness inside slightly more because I'm making statistically more jokes about techno dying which was and is a very traumatic thing for me and its definitely something when you literally do not properly express to other people that you are grieving so hard that your soul desperately hurts because you have one (1) person who is nearly as obsessed with dsmp as you were and you weren't close to them and it'd be weird to absolutely sob together because oh my god like

y'all this was supposed to be a post explaining why I should eat because I'm having more unhinged thoughts but genuinely we should also at some point address how Techno's death absolutely destroyed people

like

There are so many layers to it. Firstly, it's a content creator that you don't know in real life, so there's the weird parasocial thing going on there that isn't *that* socially acceptable but whatever.

Secondly, it was 2022 and we were like. *just* getting out of Covid restrictions

Thirdly, it was during the summer, where I had little to no contact with friends because I just fucking forgot they existed

and like I had friends that USED to be into dsmp but like. no one that had fallen so fucking hard. I feel so fucking hard. and the only one that had fallen half as hard as me I wasn't close with.

Also recently they've told me that they go by they/them which is the least surprising thing ever

honest to God it was surprising when they told me that their pronouns were she/her

Anyways.

holy shit okay I can't think anymore genuinely

this is

I don't expect anyone to see this other than Mysterious and Peri and honestly yeah

Um

like I have more to say about the god awful effects of Techno's death on me especially as someone who was a minor when it happened like ong it's so bad

just holy shit

but my brain gets more ADHD the more I like try to focus

it's like those movies or something where you try to focus on something but it turns into a bunch of puzzle pieces and then those puzzle pieces aren't actually a part of the puzzle but instead an association that are actually a whole NEW puzzle and you can attaxj that puzzle

I should delete this post

it's okay

is it

is it really

I'm fucking crazy holy hell I need food

okay. so

mission: get off bed

I had the thought this morning of doing a grwm but like on Tumblr through text right

and it was just "pants. where the fuck are pants. where the fucking hell are pants. ooh new pants. there's a tag. where the fuck is scissors. where are scissors. where are scissors" bro I spent about five minutes that I did Not have looking for those scissors

and then I was like "where bra. where the fuck is my bra- no not that one I want the other one because it's BETTER"

id be such a good grwm artist person

like

what do you mean you wouldn't watch that

I should be a comedian

Jesus christ

I actually sound high

not like I've ever--

actually I have

I have been around someone who was high

Jesus christ

also I'm gay as shit

I'm a chicken

bawk bawk

anyways I had to fucking tell this person that "no, edibles are not just gummies, they're literally cannabis. they're literally hard drugs"

in her defense she was getting over a bad breakup but eh like Jesus how did you

girly do your research

like I didn't know that edibles were made of cannabis but I knew they were literal drugs

anyways good on her for stopping when I told her

she was literally terrifying I was terrified for her she was not ducking okay like oh my god

anyways I gotta like. stop. doing whatever this is

so I'm gonna end this post

hi to anyone who made it to the end of this

say chicken waffles in the commentsif you made it this far

[a-pale-azure-moon]

I'm a day late on this, but happy 5th anniversary to FE3H, the game that unexpectedly rewired my brain chemistry!

I've been a Fire Emblem fan since I first played Blazing Blade back in 2003 (yes I'm old), so when 3H was announced, I immediately pre-ordered it. I purposely stayed away from rumors, leaks, and most official information about it because I wanted to enjoy it spoiler free. (Much of Fates got spoiled for me and I didn't want a repeat of that.) The most I indulged in was watching the trailers for the individual houses when they came out. And that trailer. You know the one.

So I got the game shortly after launch, once Amazon shipped it to me, and I had no idea which House I was going to pick. I was slightly leaning towards the Golden Deer, largely from Claude's design and how he seemed "different" from previous FE lords, but I was truly undecided when I started. It was really a coin flip between the Lions and Deer right up to the point where the game forces you to choose. What ultimately made me pick the Blue Lions was actually Mercedes; I wasn't aware that recruitment was a thing yet and her Live to Serve skill stood out as particularly useful to me. Healer who can keep herself healed? Yeah, I want that on my team!

If I'm being honest, I didn't find anything about Dimitri particularly special right away. I certainly liked him, mostly because of his amazing voice (thank you Chris), but I recognized him as a Marth clone right from the start, so a lot about his character felt "generic" to me at first. The tone around him was considerably more somber compared to previous lords, and I was curious about why that was so, particularly since the timeskip trailer had spoiled that he goes through a dramatic transformation later in the story. So I was paying close attention to him as the game unfolded, but it wasn't until his breakdown at Remire in chapter 8 that it hit me just how radically different he was compared to previous Marths. That's where I got super invested in his story and started sacrificing sleep to play the game so I could find out what happened next. By the time I finished, my whole brain had been transformed into this:

(I forget where I first saw this image, so my apologies to whomever made it.)

2019 was a difficult year for me; my mom was going through some health issues, and my dad wasn't being particularly helpful in the ways she needed, which left me to pick up the slack (my older sister lives out of state and was/is busy with her three kids). I was also still trying to break out of a festering creative slump that had gone on for way too long, but changing that mindset is hard, especially when you've convinced yourself that everything you write sucks (and that therefore you suck).

So 3H and Azure Moon in particular wound up being a great comfort to me through an emotionally draining year (and then the pandemic hit...). Dimitri's story and character arc resonated with me in all the right ways, and it lit a new creative spark inside of me, the likes of which I hadn't felt in a long, long time. I almost wish I hadn't picked the Lions first, because the other routes wound up being a big disappointment to me when they failed to reach the same emotional high. I think I would've become a Lions stan even if I'd saved their route for last. It left THAT strong of an impression on me. I mean, I became obsessed enough that I wrote a freaking book, lol.

I'll be the first to admit that this game isn't perfect; some of its mechanics are wonky, classes aren't well balanced, there's not enough map diversity, Maddening Mode was definitely not properly play tested, and there are genuine flaws in some of its writing. I won't even get into the trashfire that is 3H discourse (which is somehow still a thing after all this time). I don't even think it's my favorite overall game in the series, but it's in my top 3 with Awakening and Path of Radiance. But the impact the game left on me is difficult to understate. I'm so happy it's a thing that exists and that it helped guide me to my current path.

[esther-dot]

Hi Esther, I sent you an ask about Byronic hero Jon, and I'm soooo lucky you interpreted the ask the way I sent it, because I know anons can come off the wrong way and I realise it sounds like I'm ranting at you when I'm nodding along with you!!! 😭 Yes I sent you that ask because it's what you were already saying first, and you're completely right grounding it in Mr. Rochester terms and also of course you do have the famous Heathcliff. But I do think GRRM is doing his own thing with it, and to be honest the more I think about it, the more I wonder how it influences Jon's ending (or not). If anything Mr. Rochester's secret wife is more of a Rhaegar thing which Jon has to wrestle with, so I definitely think there's a mix of influences going on.

Although like you say, I think when you don't introduce this literary background you lose a lot about what is being said about Jon and Sansa (and Daenerys). I agree with people who say you need to understand fantasy of that era to really understand the tone of what he's going for, which is why I think GRRM is sometimes mean and sometimes writing one-handed, but I still think that background for Romantic characters is necessary.

It's no indictment on Jon if he has a long, moody face, and that's what I kind of love honestly. I think Rhaegar may have been handsome because he was both the crown prince and a Targaryen, and like Arianne expresses aversions to Targaryen features, it may have been divisive in its own way too, beautiful on the terms of conqueror-conquered. I especially enjoy the idea that Lyanna herself had that unusual wolf beauty to her, but beauty in women isn't a portent of safety after all; beauty is just another way girls and women are controlled, even if it superficially seems beneficial when attractive. So that there's some danger to beauty, and danger in Jon's face (Lyanna's, but maybe a hint of Rhaegar too?) hinting his ancestry but also disguising it through something that can be a comfort (Ned) for Sansa is really interesting to me.

(Continuation of this convo)

No worries, anon! For some reason, tumblr wouldn’t let me save, post, schedule for later, or add that post to my queue when I was writing it! I finally just exited the tab and when I got back on tumblr it would let me post an earlier, automatically saved version, as long as I didn’t try to edit it at all, otherwise I would have chatted more with you, because I had, in the version that wouldn’t post. 😅

I share your frustration with the fandom deciding that Sansa is shallow for being moved by beauty and then turning around and obsessing over poll results about whether or not their fav is pretty. I genuinely don’t care, but they clearly care a lot. 😂 I don’t like talking about the kids that way, I don’t think their appearance has anything to do with why we like them, but it just so happens that Jon and Sansa being very Stark and very Tully (look-wise) matters so here we are. And you’re absolutely right, Sansa has suffered a lot of unwanted attention because she is beautiful, so this isn’t exactly something Sansa fans take delight in.

We do get the different takes on Targ looks! For Rhaegar, I thought the emphasis was on his music as the thing that made people swoon? Martin has a thing with singers / someone singing a song seducing people that repeatedly pops up and that is the one thing we know about Lyanna’s feelings—his singing moved her. That’s a connection to Jon who reacts in a similar way to Ygritte’s singing.

I wasn’t even thinking about the secret wife thing being a connection between Rochester and Rhaegar, but bigamy was a popular trope in gothic lit and the sensationalist victorian lit that followed, so I definitely think that’s worth noting. As is the whole, family estate being destroyed in a fire, and of course, “madness.” That all would make me think the references are more about Rhaegar and Targaryen ancestry, less about projecting into Jon’s future, but depending on which spec you buy into, Jon could be in love with Sansa and forced into a relationship with Dany or potentially married to Sansa and still facing pressure from Dany to enter into a sexual relationship. If Martin wants to go dark, it’s possible the gothic “two wives” trope and the Targaryen two wives idea manifest in Jon’s own life with a twist. I still don’t see how the space for Jon and Dany to have much interaction so I’m not too fussed about it, but I certainly think it’s possible Dany sees Jon as an answer to her desire for someone to trust. 😬 Generally though, I don’t look at literary references as being a sure fire way of dictating how the story will go, but I think it’s fun to see how writers are knowingly or unknowingly influenced by certain things. I don’t know that Martin said “gothic lit has family estates burning -> I’m gonna send Summerhall up in flames” but nonetheless, there’s a reason why that would pop into his mind.

Thanks for the followup message, I enjoyed reading your thoughts on this!