#Naturally Roman resented that

[masquenoire]

While drugs account for a sizable portion of his criminal income, Roman absolutely hates the stuff and would sooner hand himself over to the authorities than use any of them. His mother got addicted to cocaine shoftly after he was born, a combination of undiagnosed postpartum depression and an unsupportive husband pushing her to ‘self medicate’ with the stuff. As a witness to the effects these drugs had on his mother, Roman takes almost malicious glee in flooding the city streets with narcotics - as far as he’s concerned, anybody who uses drugs and gets hooked on them deserves everything they get and to lose their wealth to him.

[stoutguts]

headcanon rambling/my personal hc for Johnny's backstory bc I think it'd be interesting also I like the idea of Ghoap where the both of them had a shitty childhood bc of an abusive parent and the both of of them hv trauma/I love angst 💕

CW: drug add\ction, s*lf-h*rm/s*icide, parental/child abvse

Soap was born into a big family in the Scottish countryside, being the youngest with 6 older sisters. His father was a deadbeat, and walked out on him at a young age, being effectively raised by his mom and big sisters. Having strong female influences on his life benefited him greatly in the long run, he grew up to be a very well-adjusted, kind, and respectful man (particularly towards women, as he is a staunch feminist (you go Johnny).

However, on the other hand the only true parental figure in his life, his mother, was a horrible person. She was mentally and emotionally abusive, as well as unstable. She would even get physical with her children at times, including Soap. Johnny was also raised Roman Catholic, though today he considers himself agnostic or a flat out atheist. His mother was incredibly homophobic and transphobic and would use religion to justify her bigotry towards him, leading Soap to hating himself and struggling with self-harm and suicidal ideation for years. Particularly, by cutting himself (he has s/h scars all over his thighs, arms, and shoulders). Has attempted at least 10+ times in the past. Not to mention, he did a lot of hard drugs during his middle and high school years to cope with his mother's abuse. (Particularly coke and heroin). He's come incredibly close to ODing on a few occasions. An addict and a total mess, until his sisters intervened and forced him against his will into rehab.

After 2 or so years he was clean and eligible for the military.

He still relapses from time to time (whether it's self-harm or drugs), and when he does its bad. He even still regularly smokes weed to this day, though it's not nearly as bad as some other substances. It's a wonder he hasn't been discharged, probably because he's too much of an asset.

Ghost is the one to bring him out of his slumps now. Not minding one bit, as all Simon cares about is Johnny's safety and well-being.

Needless to say, he could never see religion in the same light after that. He’s even quite apprehensive and wary of people whom are religious and religion in general.

He and his mother were never close and soon would never get along with each other, as he’s proud and not the type to even tolerate shit from anyone. It was an almost daily occurrence that he and his mom would fight, particularly when he finally reached his pre-teen/teen years, sometimes evolving into full-blown screaming matches.

Being the protective type of person that he is, most of the time he’d get into fights because of his sisters coming to him about how mom had hit them or made them cry (despite the fact he feels nothing but pure hatred for his mum, he has a very deep bond/connection to each and everyone of his sisters and loves them all dearly).

That was what pissed him off more than anything.

His mom could do whatever she wanted with him, frankly he stopped caring and her cutting words no longer held any weight or meaning to him at some point, and being hit was soon the equivalent to getting bit by a mosquito, he became numb. He didn't know when he stopped feeling, but he did. (He of course wasn't entirely immune, she'd eventually break him). But he was determined to stay strong for his siblings.

Bringing harm upon his sisters? No way in hell that was ever gonna fly, and he didn't care if she was his mother or not.

Johnny naturally grew to resent his mother, and to this day he still calls her a “witch” or a "cunt" instead of his mum. Eventually he’d had enough and couldn’t take his mother’s abuse any longer, (she is half of the reason he went into the military as soon as he possibly could, besides it being a lifelong and childhood dream of his).

He kept in touch with his sisters (and still does), of course, calls them everyday or whenever he gets the chance to let them know he’s alive and well and to see how their doing. Visits when he can or when he’s off duty. Though he completely cut ties with his mother after joining the military,—a couple of his sisters would keep him posted on what was going on with her.

Later on, his mother went to go on to be diagnosed with terminal cancer, and passed shortly thereafter.

He attended the funeral up in Scotland, but mainly for his sisters’ sakes. He actually ended up staying in Scotland for a while after that to provide support for his sisters, (emotional or otherwise), and to try to ease the grieving process. Even though she wasn’t the greatest mom or person in general, it was still a tough loss. Though Soap still didn’t regret cutting her out of his life,—it was fucked up but he was glad that she died in a way, and even visited her grave just once after the funeral, by himself, just so he could spit on it. Maybe even say some things he never was able to say to her, half as retribution and half to just get it off his chest.

Ghost is the only one who knows of Johnny's past and his abusive mother, and is incredibly understanding and gentle about it (as naturally it's a particularly touchy subject). On all official stuff regarding his background, the most it ever details is where he was born or that he was raised Roman Catholic. Not to mention, although Soap is a yapper and almost never shuts up, he’s a very private person and just simply doesn’t like others knowing his business (with the exception of Ghost of course).

Even though Johnny didn’t let his mother’s death bother him regarding the funeral and his prolonged visit to Scotland, when he got back he broke down completely.

He stayed strong for his sisters as he felt like he had to and just as he's always done, but the facade came crashing down once he was in Simon's arms again.

He hated his mum, she didn't really deserve his tears, yet she was still his mum. That fact still reigned true even after everything.

And Ghost was there by his side the whole time. Hell, if anyone knows what it's like to lose a family member, it's Simon "Ghost" Riley. Whether they be toxic or not. Simon's heart positively ached for Soap, and they couldn't help but get all misty eyed at Johnny's pure, unbridled grief.

Ghost had never felt so sorry for anyone in his life, and Soap was eternally grateful for Simon's patience, empathy, and it consoling him to the best of their ability. 💖

DADDY ISSUES GHOST AND MOMMY ISSUES SOAP MY BELOVED(S)

[witchhazelevesque]

Wait wait wait, so like in an AU where Hera is Leo’s godly parent, how do you think Zeus would react?

In The Lost Hero, Annabeth tells Piper that Hera is the goddess of marriage and doesn’t have kids with anyone but Zeus.

Would he be like “I don’t like my wife, but no one else is allowed to like her either”? She’d probably hide the fact, maybe pose Leo as a child of Hephaestus since like, Hephaestus had to get his intelligence from somewhere right? And Esperanza is gonna teach him all about engineering anyway so. Or maybe she hides it in a more blatant way and just plans for him to remain unclaimed until the right moment. 

But things always come out eventually- (she probably resents Percy and his requirement that the gods claim their children even more) would Zeus be angry like Juno was about Jason? Would he demand to be given the child? But it’s Zeus so he might just be like, “I don’t want to deal with a kid.” Maybe he wants to just kill him. Maybe he doesn’t care. Maybe he does demand the child but relegates the task of raising him to one of his subordinates. 

Also, I’m wheezing because that makes Jason and Leo step brothers. Like the weirdest, most unenthusiastic step siblings. Leo’s thinking, I finally have a brother and it’s him, who I can never live up to? Great. It’s not even a one to one comparison but Leo feels even more inadequate now. Thalia is 1) furious but 2) having the time of her life because she has something to hold over Hera’s head now. She tells Leo that it’s a good thing it was Hera and not Juno, because Jupiter wouldn’t have been as lenient as Zeus. 

But also like. Hera IS the goddess of marriage and it’s not like if the maiden goddesses had kids through alternate means, they aren’t bound to the same restrictions as Hera, this is literally antithetical to her very nature. She and Jason discuss why she doesn’t have demigod children and the ramifications of this at the end of TLH. She’s often abducted because she holds the Olympians together, imagine what kind of damage this would wreak, the way it would shake the foundation of Olympus. Yeah, Zeus probably can’t let it slide because of this. (The first great prophecy says ‘the eldest gods’ right? Because honestly this would fit great in a Leo Was Around Then AU and he could have been the prophecy child that could end the gods reign if the eldest goddesses counted)

And that’s not helping Leo’s belief that he’s a mistake and the cause of so many problems. If Leo doesn’t have his fire in this AU then Esperanza likely dies in some sort of attack from monsters or gods that were after Leo and of course he’s going to blame himself. 

Or maybe she doesn’t die at all because Hera is actually really proactive and involved in the lives of the demigods and her plan for the prophecy of seven does work so she can probably find some way to keep Esperanza safe.

And if Gaea does try to kill her to break Leo, oh just imagine Gaea versus Hera, the previous mother of everything against the current queen of the universe. I’m already of the mind that there should have been something there burning between them in canon, they were the ones scheming, add to it all this context?  Let’s go.

Also, if Drew was willing to use Jason because he was prince of the universe then she’d probably be willing to do the same to Leo since he is also a prince of the universe and that’s really funny. And I have a head canon that Drew genuinely respects Hera for securing her power when there were so few options for her, so there is something like real admiration for Leo and that could lead to an actual friendship.  

But there is genuinely a lot of resentment and hurt feelings and envy going on between Leo, Jason and Thalia. It’s the sort of emotions all the enemies in TLH wanted to stir up to get the Greeks and Romans to turn on one another, and since Aphrodite told Piper that she’d be the deciding factor of what happens when Greeks and Romans meet, well that’s some material for the lost trio to contend with. 

And Leo wants to resent Hera and he does, but he also is so, so aware of how much she must have loved his mother to break her marriage vows, even if just emotionally. If Esperanza is still alive and Leo sees them together? Oh he would not know how to handle that. Because it’s clear his mom loves Hera, but she’s not expecting or even wanting to rekindle things, she just wants what’s best for Leo. 

And since she does know, she does understand the importance of Leo’s role in the prophecy, it might actually be that she had him not out of love, but out of necessity. Like she saw that he needed to exist (in this context she sees that she would be the immortal to bring him about, not Hephaestus) and yes it is the antithesis of what she is, but it must happen. There is power in that choice itself. They talk about how much of a gamble she took in shaping the seven of prophecy, this would be the gamble.

And either way- Leo is the literal embodiment of broken vows, add to that that those vows were probably the only ones ever kept in the Olympians’ world. He is the sins of his godly mother, and much like Jason was predestined to be what the gods shaped him into, the journey Leo would go though because he’s the one destined to fulfill an oath with his final breath that has been prophesied for millennia? He does it in part for atonement, not because he believes he’s at fault any longer, but because it’s what has to be done. 

That juxtaposition? That irony? That goddamn growth and tragedy? 

Hera did consider making him immortal when he was a baby. She knew she wouldn’t, the world needed him to be a hero. But she also knew the kind of life her child would have and she didn’t want him to suffer that pain for the sake of pain itself. If he was immortal he would suffer it for eternity. He’d be bound to follow her husband’s orders in a way that demigods didn’t have to, even though they should. 

He would take commitment incredibly seriously. Take his canon loyalty and selflessness and add to it this visceral, integral awareness  of the consequences of going back on one’s word. 

The dynamics he could have with the rest of the main characters. Percy’s the savior of Olympus and Leo’s the potential key to its destruction. There might be bad blood on Percy’s side at first because of the way Hera’s treated his friends, but it wouldn’t last long because he knows Leo isn’t at fault.

Annabeth is not so quick to let go of her resentment. It’s irrational but it’s what it is. The Romans would be even more appalled than they were about Annabeth’s existence. He wouldn’t even need to be possessed and attack New Rome, his presence is enough.

Thalia would likely be the one to understand him best because she struggled so much with the temptation that came with being the child of the last great prophecy and became a hunter to take herself out of that narrative. Leo doesn’t have that option or anyone to take his place because there’s no role or job or quest, it’s just his identity.

And them being close makes Jason envious because in TLH he felt like Thalia didn’t have room for him in her life. If Leo is Jupiter’s by his demands then it’s Jason and Leo belonging to one another’s parents and that is complicated because they don’t want to be in the others place but still- there’s a degree of belonging that the other doesn’t have with their own parent.

By the end of TLH, Jason is talking to Zeus’s statue telling him he understands why Zeus has to keep his distance and that Jason is going to try and make him proud. Leo being acknowledged by his father even in this way when his father can’t do the same for Jason is hard to deal with. He knows Leo’s not at fault, he knows Leo doesn’t want this, but that doesn’t erase how it feels.

Nico is both deeply unsettled because he has respect and understanding for the ways of their world and completely unfazed because he knows what it is to be shunned, and he has to look at the bright side here because he has never been treated with such blatant hostility.  

I’m gonna have to make a part 2 for this

[olympeline]

Some talented author needs to write a fic or a comic needs to be made or something about the Italy brothers meeting the other young European nations after Rome conquered them.

I mean, to Feliciano and Lovino their grandpa is just that: Grandpa Rome. A figure of kindness, stability, and paternal love. Someone to play with, ruffle their hair, pick them up when they’ve fallen and scraped their knees, crack funny jokes, and tuck them in at night. They’ve probably heard of his greatness but it’s more an abstract concept to them. Vague and far away beyond the city’s marble walls. Little kids don’t know much about the jobs their parents or guardians have out in the “real world.” The twins are sheltered in every sense of the word.

Then, one day, grandpa starts bringing others like them back to their house. Strange, scruffy children with odd clothes, garbled speech, tear stained cheeks, and wide, frightened eyes. Grandpa Rome is smiling as he lifts them off his horse and tells his grandsons he’s brought new friends to live with them. New little brothers and sisters to play with. Hispania, Gallia, Britannia, the list goes on. One by one, Rome brings them all back to the capital. New friends for his boys to look after. Look after and teach. They’re silly and backward and don’t know how to live well or even speak properly yet. What grandpa calls “barbarians,” poor things. But they can learn if they watch how it’s done in Rome, yes? Grandpa’s good boys will help them learn to be good too.

Feli and Lovi eagerly agree. They love grandpa and want to make him proud. But these odd children are so strange and difficult. For a start, they can’t even look at grandpa without cowering. Some of them hiding their faces and bursting into tears when he so much as enters a room. Feli is disheartened, Lovi is angry, both are confused. Why would anyone be afraid of their grandpa? Grandpa is kind and brave and his laugh fills the room: merry and infectious. Everyone in Rome loves grandpa. What is wrong with these strange, backward children that they act like he’s some terrible monster to be afraid of? Some of them start to come round eventually. Start to become more affectionate to Rome and maybe even begin calling him “grandpa” too. Yet, under it, conflict. Under the newfound love, a guilt and self-loathing that the twins can’t understand. Even sweet natured Feli starts to feel a little resentful at how ungrateful they are. Grandpa has adopted them and made them Roman, the best thing in the world to be. Everyone says so. Even their sort-of brothers and sisters have to admit there’s nothing in their lands that can hold a candle to the splendours of Rome at its peak. So why are they still being difficult? Why do they keep trying to run away so grandpa has to ride out and bring them back, over and over? Why won’t they love grandpa the way he loves them?

Young and innocent, the twins never noticed the bruises and bloodstains. Never questioned the whip marks. Never saw the chains.

[somewhereincairparavel]

An in depth analysis on Jiper - Why it was much more toxic than we realize.

okay. I know Calypso is known for her horrible treatment of leo, but hear me out, Jason grace was in a toxic relationship without even realizing it. I've recently reread Hoo, and I can't believe that it only just struck me how much of a red flag Piper was in the relationship. I made a whole analysis on this, and I'm going to put it here.

If you are a fan of jiper or Piper Mclean in general, then, this might be triggering for you to read, so I recommend you not to. You can agree to disagree with my analysis, just be respectful about it. I don't dislike Piper, I just dislike the way she is written, so no harm intended on her character.

so let's begin.

♦ She obsesses over him for a long time and then complains that he doesn't give her attention, like mf, he's trying to save the world here. She compares their relationship to percabeth wishing jason wasn't so serious all the time, when she was the one who claimed she liked his rule following nature and chose to date him. Before she got him, she complained that he would never like her, after she got him, she complained that he is too uptight.

Like, him being a rule follower is a part of his personality, take it, or leave it. She really doesn't like him for who he is and seemed very intent on wanting to change his morals. Like wanting his to trash the rules for her, she puts unrealistic expectations on him and gets disappointed when he doesn't meet them.

This highly contrasts Jason's treatment of her, when she vocalises her jealousy of Reyna being so "pretty, powerful and Roman" and jason says that he only wants Piper to be Piper, not anything else. Jason knew better than anyone else what is was like to pretend to be someone he's not.

♦she claimed jason as some kind of prize to drew, I physically cringed when the other Aphrodite kids cheered for her when she when she said jason was her boyfriend and he just didn't know it. Like. Jason said it himself, to Hera, "I belong to no one". If only he'd heard what she said about him behind his back lol.

♦She guilt tripped him so hard till the point he promised her that he would never go to camp Jupiter unless she came along, that's like the biggest red flag ever… Camp Jupiter was like his only home, his sister is busy, his mom is dead, and he wasn't even supposed to go there?

♦she got jealous of Reyna, annabeth and Thalia without any context, simply because they are acquainted with him in some way. Even after all the war chaos, jason reassured her patiently like twice that he only had eyes for her. She got jealous when he spoke about camp Jupiter, is he not allowed to talk about his home, the place he's grown up in for 12 years? She controlled jason like a puppet and took advantage of the fact that jason is very passive and had abandonment issues. If you read into their dynamic, Jason was in an unhealthy relationship without even realising it, because he clung on to anyone who gave him affection, it's honestly sad. He hadn't thought that anything was wrong in their dynamic because of his sheltered upbringing in camp Jupiter and lack of experience in love. His sister was lost for years, his dad is a douche, his mom is dead, so you really cannot blame him for not wanting to leave Piper.

♦ Also, in TOA, she was absolutely despicable, We see that jason is still very confused about why she broke up with him, and didn't properly understand why she dumped him bc he thought that they were still going strong, so we can get the hint that piper never exactly gave him a proper reason or anything and just ended it abruptly. Despite all this, he still respected her choice without any resentment against her, and chose to die so she could have more time with her dad. Fucking thoughtful and selfless.

♦ She doesn't voice out her concerns on their relationship to jason. Only the jealousy thing, but other than that she never seemed to tell jason about her issues she has with their dynamic, jason is more of a blunt kinda guy, so her lack of proper communication really hinders their dynamic in many ways, this is clearly seen in the fact that jason was deluded into thinking that their relationship was going great.

♦ She was also quite cold about their breakup, when Grover asked her why, she said stuff like "you thought what? That we'd be together forever like Percy and annabeth?" Like that's so cold and for what reason?? She ended stuff with him, and was acting like she got dumped.

[Take this single paragraph below with a grain of salt, since this one can only be derived out of assumptions, since it wasnt really confirmed properly, as there seemed to be a LOT going on]

♦ coach hedge and mellie thought he dumped her, so it can be implied that she might have dramatized the break up, if that is true, then she practically victimized herself in front of them. She drew so much attention to herself after the breakup, but then gets all cold when people ask her about it. Leading everyone to dislike jason for the breakup. If she did indeed tell mellie and hedge an aggravated version of their break up, then you can't tell me she did all that "unintentionally". I may sound harsh here but it seemed to me that she just wanted sympathy and attention, it's not all surprising either, considering how she chopped her hair off so that her dad can pay attention to her. So we can see a pattern here, she does go to great lengths to gain everyone's sympathy. I honestly don't know if she does it subconsciously or not. But take this paragraph with a grain of salt, since we dont actually know what she told hedge and mellie, so only strong assumptions can be made.

♦ Mellie treated jason which such hostility that even self absorbed Apollo could take the time to notice it. Jason asked apollo if piper told him that he dumped her or something, so even jason sensed that people were blaming him. he didn't even complain about it either. on the contrary, he literally said it was okay if mellie blamed him and that it was better that way.

”One more thing,” I blurted out. “About Piper. It’s just…you seem like such a good power couple. Did you really—did you break up with her to make it easier for her to leave LA?” Jason stared at me with those azure eyes. “Did she tell you that?” “No,” I admitted. “But Mellie seemed, ah, upset with you.”Jason considered. “I’m okay with Mellie blaming me. It’s probably better.”“Do you mean it’s not true?” In Jason’s eyes, I saw just a hint of desolation—like wildfire smoke momentarily obliterating a blue sky. I remembered Medea’s words: The truth was enough to break Jason Grace.“Piper ended it,” he said quietly. “That was months ago, way before the Burning Maze. Now come on. Let’s go find Caligula.” ‘ ~The Burning Maze, Chapter 23 Last Page

♦ Don't even get me started on how she found someone else weeks after her ex boyfriend whom she was with for a year died for HER. I'm sorry, but I couldn't even think of dating someone else for a long time if I were in her position. It's canon that literally even annabeth cried herself sick when she heard about his death and they weren't even close, and Percy couldn't even mention jason without breaking down, Percy and jason barely knew much about eachother. Heck, even hera, a literal goddess who only saw jason as a pawn, started sobbing at his death. So compared to those, piper literally had the reaction of a stale bread. I'd expected her to react in a similar way to nico, just genuine devastation and anger. Now she is using someone else as a rebound when she isn't even emotionally healed?

Connecting all of these points, it's such a shame how jason got taken advantage of for his passive nature. It dawned on me how jason was SO trapped in the relationship with only Piper as the centre of his world. I know Piper was just a teenager herself, but that doesn't make me feel any better about her treatment of him tbh, she's also seemed to have lots of internal misogyny, bringing down the other girls for ogling at jason as if she weren't the one who did the same like 5 minutes ago. Any thoughts? Rick really fumbled the bag with Piper imo, especially in the trials of Apollo.

[chocfrog-enjoyer]

Name-play and symbolism in Harry Potter

Sirius Black: Dog Black the black dog ( Sirius is a star in the Canis Major // Big Dog //constellation, the star is commonly known as the “Dog Star” ). A dog is a man’s best friend ( unlike Peter, the rat, who ratted his friends out )

Remus Lupin: basically just Wolf Wolf ( Remus - roman hero raised by wolves. In Latin lupus means “wolf”, and lupinus “wolf-like” )

Rubeus Hagrid: In Greek Mythology, Hagrid Rubes is a giant who is banished from Mt. Olympus by Zeus and has to take care of animals. Hagrid is expelled from Hogwarts and becomes the groundskeeper- later on he starts teaching Care of Magical Creatures.

Sybille Trelawney: Said to be a descendant of the legendary Cassandra, in Greek mythology Cassandra was a woman with the ability to foresee future and a curse, that no one believed her prophecies. Here’s my post on why Sybill isn’t a fraud.

Xenophilous Lovegood: Xenophilius's name comes from two Greek words: Xenos "strange" and -Phile "love" -> one who loves the strange

Bellatrix Lestrange: Bellatrix means “female warrior” in Latin. She was one of Voldemorts most fierce and loyal followers.

Nymphadora Tonks: Nymphadora translates as "Gift of the Nymphs.” A "nymph," in Greek mythology, refers to "a member of group of female 'spirits' found in different types of nature.” They had the ability to transform/shapeshift" They are further classified by where they were found. In Latin, “nympha” translates to “bride, mistress. young woman” referencing the fact that Remus married Tonks, who’s 13 years younger than him.

Minerva McGonnagal: In Roman Mythology Minerva was the goddess of wisdom, war, art, schools, justice and commerce.

Dolores Umbridge: The word umbrage means offence or annoyance, and the Spanish name Dolores has its roots in the Latin word "dolor," which translates to "pain" or "sorrow."

Fenrir Greyback: Fenrir is a monstrous wolf in Norse mythology. Fenrir represents the forces of evil and chaos.

Gilderoy Lockhart: The Levels of Processing model, created by Fergus I. M. Craik and Robert S. Lockhart in 1972, describes memory recall of stimuli as a function of the depth of mental processing.

Merope Gaunt: In Greek mythology Merope is one of the seven Pleiades, daughter of Atlas and Pleione. Merope is the faintest of the stars because she was the only of the Pleiades to have married a mortal. One myth says that she hid her face in shame because she had an affair with a mortal man. ( Replace mortal with muggle and we have Merope Gaunt )

Lucius Malfoy: Lucius deriving from Latin words, meaning light/bright/to shine. “Mal foy” means “bad faith” in French. Draco is latin for “serpent/dragon”

Lily Evans ( later Potter ) and Petunia Evans ( later Dursley ): Lilies are often associated with purity, renewal and transience, and Petunias symbolize anger and resentment

Alastor Moody: Alastor, an epithet of the Greek God Zeus, according to Hesychius of Alexandria and the Etymologicum Magnum, which described him as the avenger of evil deeds, specifically familial bloodshed.

Quirinus Quirrell: In Augustan Rome, Quirinus was an epithet of Janus, as Janus Quirinus. Janus is the god of beginnings, gates, transitions, time, duality, doorways, passages, frames, and endings. He is usually depicted as having two faces.

[jeannereames]

Conversely, if you and Alexander talked only once, what do you think he’d ask you? I guess he wouldn’t be surprised to find out there are professors studying his life and reign more than two thousand years after his death - but what do you think he would ask you about the history of, well, himself?

Interesting question. I think it would be difficult for him to know what TO ask. While it’s possible to forecast a little way into the future (science-fiction authors do it all the time), the further into the future we look, the further off-base we get. Unsurprisingly. Things come out of left field that even the most foresighted can’t anticipate.

For Alexander, I do think he realized that he died too soon, and his empire wasn’t established enough yet. Ergo, one of his first questions would likely be, “So, how fast did it all fall apart and who came out on top?”

He might even be weirdly happy to hear the answer. (Not long.) Why? It proved they couldn’t hold it together without him—which underscores his own uniqueness. I realize that’s self-centered on his part, but don’t all of us, deep down, kinda wanna know we’re irreplaceable? How much more for somebody raised in a society where kleos (glory) and timē (public recognition) were so important? An older king might have been more concerned with his “legacy” after ruling for decades. But Alexander was still young. He didn’t have much of a legacy yet to protect, other than his remarkable success. That nobody else could match it would, I think, have pleased him.

Would he have asked about his family? Probably. But I think it’d be part of the larger question of what happened next and who came out on top.

He’d LOVE that Rome named him “the Great.” In his own day, he was known as “the invincible” anikētos; “the Great” is Roman.

Yet I don’t think he’d have seen Rome coming. I expect he’d predict Carthage as the dominant Western power. Remember that, in his day, Rome wasn’t especially notable. This was still the Early Republic. Plebians were relatively new into the Senate, Rome was nowhere near in control of all the peninsula and just starting the shift from a Greek- and Etruscan-style phalanx to what would become the legion.

Reputedly, Alexander of Epiros (before his death in 331) resented Alexander of Macedon’s early successes, claiming he (Alexander of Epiros) was fighting real men in Italy while his nephew “waged a war against women” (e.g, barbarians). That’s a typical Western-centric view.* At the time, however, Persia had the most powerful army in the world. Whatever Livy claimed, had Alexander brought the Macedonian military machine west instead of east, he’d have mowed through Italy, just like in Greece, Thrace, and Illyria. It took another hundred-plus years of Roman military development to result in the wins at Magnesia or Cenoscephalae. Italy/Rome at that point was just no match for Macedon, much less Macedon under Alexander’s command.

But hoo-boy, he’d want to know about the legion, even if he wouldn’t know enough to ask directly. He might ask about future military innovations.

Also…he’d be PISSED that more people in the West today recognize the name of Julius Caesar than Alexander of Macedon. 😉 “Why didn’t Shakespeare write a play about ME???” But he’d be tickled there are more stories about him in more varied world cultures than there are about Caesar (true fact). IOW, Caesar may be more famous in the West, but Alexander is more famous in the larger world (thanks to the Alexander Romance).

Last, he might ask me about my world. If we assume he knew I was 2300+ years in his future, I think he’d naturally want to know what life is like in my time. I mean, wouldn’t we ask what life would be like 2300 years in our future? He’d probably be fascinated by the changes, although perhaps not the ones we’d anticipate.

Long ago, on a drive from Kentucky back to Nebraska, my son and I had a fun conversation about a fictional interview between Alexander and Stephen Colbert (Ian’s favorite talking-head person at the time). Stephen Colbert would ask Alexander what were the three most surprising things he’d found about the future? Would it be medical breakthroughs? Computers? The rise of democratic states? Flying through the air (and into space)? Etc.

Nope. The three things I think would surprise him the most are:

1. Near-instantaneous speed of communication 2. Easy availability of information (even if it may be wrong) 3. Changes in the importance of religion (at least in some places)

It was such an interesting conversation, I turned it into what’s now the opening Power-point in my World History I class! Ha.

————

* This supposed claim of Alexander of Epiros may not even be real. It’s recorded by Roman Cheerleader Livy, where of course the West is more powerful than the weak, decadent Oriental East.

[whencyclopedia]

Council of Chalcedon

The Council of Chalcedon was called in 451 CE by the Roman Emperor Marcian (r. 450-457) to settle debates regarding the nature (hypostases, "reality") of Christ that had begun at two earlier meetings in Ephesus (431 CE and 439 CE). The question was whether Christ was human or divine, a man who became God (through the resurrection and ascension) or God who became a man (through the incarnation, "taking on flesh"), and how his humanity and divinity affected his essence and being, if at all.

Shortly after Emperor Constantine's conversion to Christianity in 312 CE, an Alexandrian presbyter, Arius, applying logic, had simply taught that if God created everything in the universe, then at some point he must have created Christ. This caused debates and even riots throughout the cities of the Roman Empire. If Christ was a creature, then he was subordinate to God. Seeking empire-wide unity, Constantine I (r. 306-337 CE) called for a council meeting at Nicaea in 325 to settle the matter.

The First Council of Nicaea produced what became known as the concept of the Trinity. This concept expressed the belief that Christ was of the identical essence of God, who had manifested himself in the earthly Jesus of Nazareth. It produced the innovation of a creed that dictated what all Christians should believe. The Nicene Creed was now enforced by the legions of the Roman emperor, and Arianism was condemned as heresy. However, those who sided with Arius continued to incorporate his teachings in their communities. One of Constantine's sons, Constantius II (r. 337-361 CE), was an Arian Christian.

With the beginning of the barbarian invasions in this period, Christians were urged to be patriotic Christians, in line with the Imperial Church. However, the Antiochene and Alexandrian communities continued to debate which emperors had such authority (legitimacy), depending upon their views of continuing Arianism at their courts and other topics. The other problem was that the Council of Nicaea only addressed the relationship between God and Christ but said nothing about his nature.

Struggle Among the Sees

For several centuries, Christian bishops had competed with each other in relation to who had the authority to dictate beliefs and rituals for all Christians. The major sees (dioceses) of bishops were Jerusalem, Antioch, Alexandria, Constantinople, and Rome. The First Council of Constantinople in 381 elevated Rome above all others (as the site of martyrdom of Saint Peter and Paul the Apostle). Alexandria, which had several Christian schools of philosophy, saw this as an insult to their prestige. Antioch resented it because they claimed their community was the first to be called Christians (from Luke's Acts of the Apostles). Jerusalem was the most insulted, as this was the site of the trial and crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth and his resurrection. Thrown into this mix were three more heresies that ultimately required more imperial anathemas and dictates: Paulinism, Novatianism, and Nestorianism.

Continue reading...

[mysticstarlightduck]

Unusual Associations Tag!

Thanks for tagging me @kaylinalexanderbooks (here)!

Rules: pick an OC and describe what you associate with them in each category

I'll go with Jack Tithus, Valen Cassidy, Kye Thalax, and Quince Warren! (Those characters are from my WIPs Supernova Initiative - Jack & Kye - and Scrapyard Boys - Valen & Quince).

Jack Tithus

Seasoning - Cocoa (he loves chocolate)

Weather - A sunny day in the middle of spring

Color - Bright orange, red, salmon pink

Sky - The night sky is filled with stars

Magical power - He doesn't have one but I think that if he did have one it would either be Fire Manipulation (he has a very energetic, 'fiery' personality and has a generally fire-coded color scheme) or Shield Creation/Force Field Creation (he is fiercely protective of those he loves and would do anything to keep them safe and shield them from harm)

Plant - Snapdragon ("The snapdragon is a fiery and fierce flower that symbolizes strength, courage, and defiance. It is often used to ward off evil spirits, bad luck, and negative influences. The snapdragon can also express the determination and resilience of a person, a group, or a cause.")

Weapon - Stun pistol (traditional laser pistol, set to stun not kill)

Social media - He probably would have really liked Discord

Makeup - Vanilla lip balm?

Candy - HOT CHOCOLATE

Fear - 1. losing his sister &/or failing his friends/being unable to protect his loved ones, 2. being helpless, controlled, or trapped, 3. insectophobia (fear of insects)

Method of long-distance travel - Spaceship

Art style - Sketching

Mythological creature - Phoenix ("A universal symbol of resurrection, whether representing a character’s spiritual resurgence or their literal return from the grave. Also featured heavily in royal heraldry, the mythological creature is said to stem from Greek and Roman mythology".)

Stationary - Spray Paint

Celestial body - Red Supergiant

Valen Cassidy

Seasoning - Carolina reaper pepper

Weather - A heavy rainstorm with drastic winds and the constant crash of lightning

Color - Deep yellow, neon blue, pastel yellow

Sky - A dark stormy sky, streaked with yellow or blue lightning

Magical power - He actually does have powers and his superpowers are Electrical Conduction, Electrokinesis, and in extreme cases Storm Manipulation.

Plant - Petunias ("The petunia flower does not hold positive and happy sentiments. It displays deep feelings of resentment, anger, and trouble. They also symbolize perseverance and an unwavering spirit")

Weapon - Baseball bat, switchblade, fists (punches)

Social media - Valen doesn't really like social media but he does enjoy his setting's version of Spotify/Youtube

Makeup - Eyeliner

Candy - Cupcakes

Fear - 1. being weak, failing, being forced to comply by arbitrary rules, 2. aichmophobia/trypanophobia (fear of needles/fear of proximity to sharp, needle-like objects), 3. being worthless

Method of long-distance travel - Cars, trains, planes, motorcycles, bikes, etc. Most of our modern means of transportation but make it slightly more futuristic and cyberpunk.

Art style - Embroidering

Mythological creature - Sea Serpent (Sea serpents represent the eternal cycle of creation, destruction, and renewal, emphasising the transformative power of nature. Resilience and Adaptation: Sea serpents symbolise resilience and the ability to adapt to challenging environments.)

Stationary - Neon markers

Celestial body - Quasar

Kye Thalax

Seasoning - Rosemary

Weather - A cloudy day where the sky is covered by white or grey clouds but it isn't raining yet, preferably in winter

Color - Off-white, ice blue, pitch black

Sky - Cloudy

Magical power - He doesn't have an actual power in the story but if he did have some kind of superpower I think his would be either Poison/Acid Generation (he is a master of poisons and lethal chemicals in this story and his preferred method of killing his enemies is by poisoning them, so it makes sense his power would be that) or Mind Control (he has a tendency to be quite unreadable and will use people to get what he wants, as well as is an expert liar)

Plant - Burgundy Dahlia (This kind of Dahlia is typically associated with sorrows, death and a warning of betrayal. In general, Dahlias can also symbolize finding inner strength.)

Weapon - Poison, chemical grenades, pistol

Social media - Kye would probably really like Tumblr and would love having an art blog

Makeup - Foundation, mascara

Candy - Coconut Candy

Fear - 1. being unable to enact his revenge and get justice against those who commit terrible wrongs, 2. being unremarkable 3.athazagoraphobia (fear of forgetting someone or something, as well as a fear of being forgotten.)

Method of long-distance travel - Spaceship, hoverbike

Art style - Watercolor

Mythological creature - Siren (Sirens in Greek mythology were infamous for their captivating and melodious voices. They used their enchanting songs to lure sailors and voyagers. These melodies were irresistible, drawing sailors towards treacherous rocks and inevitable doom. The power of their voices was such that no human could resist their call, leading to many tales of shipwrecks and lost lives. The sirens symbolized temptation and the dangers that come with it.)

Stationary - Fountain Pen

Celestial body - Magnetars

Quince Warren

Seasoning - Cinnamon

Weather - A warm summer night in a cyberpunk city-scape

Color - Dark grey, crimson, violet

Sky - Night sky lit up by colorful neon city lights

Magical power - He actually does have powers and his superpowers are Blood Manipulation + Body Heat Manipulation, meaning he can control the blood inside people and even make people implode by boiling their blood from the inside out.

Plant - Astrantia (Astrantia, also known as masterwort, is a delicate flower with star-shaped petals and a spiky center. It symbolizes strength, courage, and protection. It is said to have healing properties and to ward off evil spirits. In the language of flowers, astrantia means “I have your back”.)

Weapon - Taser, his powers, gun

Social media - He doesn't really get social media really well but loves movie streaming platforms

Makeup - Lip gloss and perfume?

Candy - Pancakes

Fear - 1. being a monster, unlovable, broken 2. being sent to the Spectre Academy/Agency, or his sister being sent there 3. aviophobia (fear of planes, or flying in general)

Method of long-distance travel - Similar to Valen (Cars, trains, planes, motorcycles, bikes, etc. Most of our modern means of transportation but make it slightly more futuristic and cyberpunk. )

Art style - Music

Mythological creature - Vampire (the whole blood-related theme and his ability to use humans' blood against them, vampires feed on the living to remain immortal and Quince later discovers a facet of his power that is much like that - Energy Draining Capabilities. Vampires are also often transformed into monsters against their will, much like Quince believes his power did to him)

Stationary - Post-its

Celestial body - Black Hole

Tagging (gently): @sleepy-night-child, @kaylinalexanderbooks, @smol-feralgremlin, @oh-no-another-idea, @littleladymab,

@winterandwords, @eccaiia, @sarahlizziewrites, @illarian-rambling

@agirlandherquill, @anoelleart, @ray-writes-n-shit

@the-golden-comet, @writernopal, @anyablackwood, @unstablewifiaccess, @forthesanityofstorytellers

@i-can-even-burn-salad, @topazadine

@lassiesandiego, @thepeculiarbird, @clairelsonao3, @memento-morri-writes, @starlit-hopes-and-dreams and OPEN TAG

[darkmaga-retard]

The English Civil War raged between the Catholics and the Puritans between August 22nd, 1642, and September 1651. It included the beheading of King Charles I on January 30th, 1649. On August 22nd, 1642, King Charles I raised the royal battle standard over Nottingham Castle, thereby declaring war on his own Parliament. This war was brewing as part of the Protestant Reformation, which was funded by aristocrats who wanted to enter the banking industry, which was the monopoly of the Jews. In Christianity, the Sin of Usury prohibited lending money for interest. For decades, the workaround was to not call it interest but to effectively agree to terms that would specify a different price for a commodity. This would become the Gold Clauses that the United States Supreme Court had to nullify when FDR confiscated gold in 1934.

The English Civil War was very much part of the Protestant Reformation, which is usually considered to have begun on October 31, 1517, with the publication of Martin Luther’s Ninety-five Theses. However, there were others before him that really began as an objection to central power rule. As I have explained, there is a cycle of power concentrating and then being dispersed throughout history in the separatist movement. Indeed, state policies of centralization will inevitably lead to violent responses by the peasantry, which we are today from the political view above. Yet, not all centralization policies are the same. Historically, the structure of centralization varies, and based upon the style of how centralized power is wielded, it results in different responses.

These different types of centralized control rest entirely on the very core nature of state resources, culture, and, most importantly, how the state deals with society. If we look at the Roman Empire, they allowed each province to retain its culture, and the Romans tended to absorb the best of each society. A centralized state that tries to control and influence society with decisions made far removed from the local communities in the self-interest of the state runs the risk of revolution, which can spring from resentment typically over economic conditions and taxation that fire appears as civil unrest.

[blueiight]

I was reading your tags to dre's published ask. Do you think while writing about these blood sucking monsters, Anne deliberately made one of them a former slave master? I mean the way this man during his mortal times had benefited by preying on the black race and the reflection of it in his fate where he is now in literal terms an entity who survives by preying on people? Or is it like twilight ( movies) where Jasper's past as a confederate soldeir is just dropped as if it's the most casual thing to shrug away.

( something is up with vampire media and all of them being connected to slave trade my god. Either it is a social commentary or people really do not have any self awarenesses?

i dont know about twilight book or movie to make a meaningful comparison to louis’s book counterpart. i wish i knew. and tbh, its hard to prescribe authorial intent on a dead woman who wrote a sprawling epic of 20+ books for 50 years , especially with shifting perspectives , namely pivoting away from louis to lestat as her MC bc of what fantasy/POV was more interesting to her. but i think in the first book there was some intention there, i cant just say how much. lestat wants to hunt the runaway slaves along the freniere plantation, and louis discourages him from doing it not out of compassion for enslaved people (which would be condescending and abysmal writing for a slaveowning character), but for his proximity to the freniere’s as fellow planters. ive talked about it a lot how its really interesting in the first 2 books that the american planter is created both literally + vampirically by the european aristocrat.. and theyre both parasitic beings in relation to the enslaved people, eventually draining them+ burning the plantation down. iwtv early book louis is resentful of lestat in part bc he thought lestat wanted his plantation, but when he learns who lestat is + where he came from, the power and will he has. hes far more genial to him. its a very dark book, and i think the fact that these characters are so vicious + melancholic is intentional on the authors part. i dont know how much race based chattel slavery is meaningfully explored from the perspective of the slaveowner, but book louis thinking of people in his captivity as fixtures, as creepy ‘things’ more proximate to the supernatural bc of their ‘african nature’ (that had yet to be ‘trained’ out of them) is a very probable, chilling, and haunting perspective of a former slaveowner to take even a hundred and some years removed from it. or if we take it as book louis immersing himself in his perspective @ the time. either way. and its pathetic when fans try to flatten book louis into ‘he was a good slaveowner’ cuz at that point theyre just conflating the movie with the book. i kinda joke that book louis is the vampire it girl bc he was such a terrible mortal LOL. im still indeterminate on the exact mode or purpose, or how much it was just about the aesthetic of gothic horror (re: the earth’s a savage garden). especially bc later books fixate on very discrete modes and metaphors of servitude/subjugation ‘being a slave to the blood’ is a recurring motif running antiparallel with the motif of ‘purifying the african/asian/foreign’ (through ‘admixture’ with the ‘european’) (s/o poacher bro gabi + talamasca bro dave ig) and in later works, theres the cycle of slavery through marius & armand.. marius, whos mother was a slave, purchases armand. chattel slavery took inspo from the romans in the idea of maternal based slave caste inheritance.. idk. idk. ive had very long rambly convos w ppl on here in the past (& im still a bit embarrased abt it) on this, but i think the reasons why fans dont rly get into it is cuz most ppl got into these books at a young age + was just into the cool lore or the queer shit and were able to handwave things as just aesthetic/era/quirky anne things etc. idk.

[a-small-batch-of-dragons]

This Distance Between ‘Probably’ and ‘Certainly’

Ok, here's an idea (sorry in advance if this is too long!): A fic about the ordinary (or, as ordinary it ever is) day-to-day of the Mindscape. Except... We're following a self-aware Janus. – amateurmasksmith

Janus is happy right now. Everyone has been accepted, issues are being healed and fixed. He's friends with the light sides, he got Virgil back and Remus hasn't left him. Janus is genuinely happy...And it scares him. He's waiting for the other boot to drop. He's waiting for the one thing to take his happiness from him like what always happens. He's flinching at every disagreement, freezing at every mistake he makes, and holding his breath when things get quiet or when Thomas has a bad day. He knows something is going to take his happiness away and he's scared. But the others notice and are there to reassure him that they're not going anywhere. 💜- insanitori

Read on Ao3

Warnings: none!

Pairings: none!

Word Count: 1594

You know what they say: if it seems like it's too good to be true, it probably is.

No one knows that better than Janus. Come on, he's Doubt, Deceit, whatever you want to call it, it's his job to know when something's afoot. Even when the lie is perfect, undetectable even, he'll know. He was made for it, after all, it would be quite a feat to be able to get something past him. He's fairly smug about it too, able to do everything from tell who ate the last muffin—Logan—to who spray-painted dicks all over the Imagination door—Virgil—to who's been telling everyone they're fine when they're actually on the verge of a mental breakdown—everyone.

So when there comes a time that everyone is just…happy, it sends a chill up his spine.

There are no arguments. No barely-hidden resentments. No double meanings behind words, no thinly veiled threats, no glares at backs when the others aren't looking.

Everyone's…fine.

Now, it's not perfect. There are still things that need to be fixed and problems that need to be solved, a few of them are…testier when alone together as opposed to with the group, and there are still rifts and rough patches that lead to people needing to go calm down before it can be properly resolved.

But it's…good. It's really good.

Which means that it won't stay good.

Nothing lasts forever, especially nothing good, and the fact that they're all on an upswing means that when it inevitably takes a turn for the worse, the fall will be all the more devastating. Admittedly, this is a tad dramatic.

Janus snorts. "You would be equally as dramatic, you know."

"Huh?" Patton turns. "What was that, kiddo?"

"Nothing, nothing." Janus smiles—must not have been quiet enough. "Don't mind me."

Patton gives him a bit of a strange look but passes it off as just Janus being Janus and turns back to the conversation. They're all in the living room, talking about what they're going to watch for the next movie night. Roman and Remus are advocating for one of the new Disney movies, Logan is asking for a nature documentary, Virgil said he'd be fine with anything, and Patton, well…

"Patton doesn't have an opinion."

"J?" Virgil nudges him. "You gotta speak up, bud, otherwise we won't hear you."

"No, no, just talking to myself."

"Do you have an opinion?"

"Yes, as a matter of fact: you should embroider ACAB on your hoodie."

Virgil snorts. "Okay, I will, but I meant about movie night."

"Oh. On that, no, I don't, as long as we get to snack while we watch."

"Snek gotta snack," Remus says as Roman nods seriously, "them's the rules."

"Speaking of rules, have we checked content lists for everything?" Patton shudders. "I'm not in the mood for nightmares tonight."

"Aw," Remus whines, "but those are fun?"

"What? No, they aren't!"

"Yes, they are!"

"They are not!"

Roman just whacks Remus in the face with a pillow and Logan rolls his eyes. "We won't get anywhere if you start derailing us at this point, Remus, I—Janus, what are you staring at?"

"Oh, just the wall."

"I see that. May I ask why you're staring at that particular wall?"

"No reason."

Sure, Janus, sure.

His mouth tugs up into a smirk and he turns back to the conversation. "Logan, you should know better than anyone that we rarely stay on the rails at the best of times. That's not why people watch these."

Logan frowns. "Watch what, Thomas's videos?"

"Those too."

"He's being cryptic again," Virgil stage-whispers, "just let him do it."

Logan just shakes his head and moves on—smart. "I've taken the liberty of looking up the content warnings, yes, and…well, I've seen this one already and—Remus, I think you'll be more alright with it than you think."

Remus narrows his eyes. "Go on?"

"Oh, hey, wait," Virgil says, scrolling through something on his phone, "is this the one where the dude is basically in love with an octopus for like, two hours?"

"Sold!" Remus scrambles onto the couch and crouches there like a little hellion. "We're watching this."

Roman, the only other proponent for the Disney movie, is too busy laughing his head off to make any sort of convincing argument.

"Well, then," Logan says, looking entirely too pleased with himself, "I'd say we're in agreement."

"If Remus starts trying to recreate parts of this at two in the morning, L, I swear to god I'll never forgive you."

But the threat is empty and Logan knows it, chuckling and reaching out to ruffle Virgil's hair. Virgil lets out an indignant squawk and flails out, making Logan laugh more.

See? Everything worked out fine. If this had happened before, it would have boiled down to a screaming match with insults being thrown left and right and eventually, everyone settling down to watch whatever it was while quietly stewing in resentment that someone made it so hard to just get along.

But they're here now. They made it.

Janus scoffs. "Yeah, for how long?"

Of course, the problem with holding a hammer is that everything looks like a nail.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

If a reflex becomes too ingrained, it runs the risk of being applied to situations where it has no business being applied. The brain is like a muscle, after all—

"It's an organ, not a muscle."

—like a muscle, like one, where habits can form just as easily as your body instinctively turning to walk down one path as it's where you always go.

"That's a stupid metaphor."

Metaphors, unlike similes, are when you directly state that something is something else, unlike a simile, where you compare something to another thing using 'like' or 'as.'

"Oh, aren't we smug."

"Janus?" He turns, raising an eyebrow at a very confused Roman. "Who are you talking to?"

"Oh, no one important."

"That's the second time you've done that," Patton says, frowning a little, "are you sure you're okay? You can talk to us, you know."

It occurs to him in this moment that often believing that something will happen can slide very quickly into behaving in a way that makes it happen.

"Oh, fine," Janus mutters under his breath before raising his voice, "I'm…worried."

"About what, the documentary?" Logan shifts his weight to face him properly on the couch. "It's got plenty of perfectly sound science and the cinematography is beautiful—"

"No, not about that. I, um…" This is much harder out loud. "Shush, you, I'm—I'm worried about…us."

"Us?" Virgil nudges him. "Say more?"

"We're…we're all getting along," he mumbles, hiding his face, "and it's—it's good. We're not fighting, we're talking, we're…it's good."

"I think so too," Patton says gently, "what about it is worrying you?"

"…what are we going to do when it isn't good anymore?"

The room is quiet for a moment. Then Logan lets out a slow breath.

"Janus," he says quietly, "can you look at me, please?"

Janus looks up.

"Thank you." There's a soft smile on Logan's face. "It's not going to be easy. We're imperfect, as everyone is, but we're trying. Do you…you do want things to keep being good, don't you?"

Does he?

"Yes, of course I do."

"That's good. So do we."

"Logan's right," Roman adds, smiling a little at Janus's look of surprise, "it's going to be work, I'm not saying it's not, but…we can do it. Right?"

"Come on, J," Virgil teases, nudging him again, "don't be all doom and gloom. We get to watch Remus laugh at stupid people, that's always fun, right?"

"That is fun."

"It's gonna be okay, J," he continues, "we're okay right now, and that's what matters, yeah?"

"Just because something's impermanent doesn't mean it's not important!" Patton adds.

"…I suppose you're right."

"Of course we are." Remus claps his hands. "Now come on, I want to watch this thing."

"Right, right, here, let me help—"

"Patton, let's go to the kitchen, I think the snek needs his snacks."

"On it!"

"Hey," Roman mumbles as he comes to sit next to him, "it's gonna be okay, yeah? I get it, I—I'm not the best at this either."

"Yeah."

Roman pats his leg. "We'll figure it out, okay?"

"Okay."

If it seems too good to be true, it probably is. Then again, the distance between 'probably' and 'certainly' is enough to make a little home.

"Proud of yourself for that one, aren't you?"

"Okay, who are you talking to?"

"Don't worry about it."

General Taglist: @frxgprince@potereregina@gattonero17@iamhereforthegayshit@thefingergunsgirl@awkwardandanxiousfander@creative-lampd-liberties@djpurple3@winterswrandomness@sanders-sides-uncorrect-quotes@iminyourfandom@bullet-tothefeels@full-of-roman-angst-trash  @ask-elsalvador @ramdomthingsfrommymind@demoniccheese83@pattonsandershugs @el-does-photography @princeanxious@firefinch-ember@fandomssaremysoul@im-an-anxious-wreck@crazy-multifandomfangirl @punk-academian-witch@enby-ralsei@unicornssunflowersandstuff@wildhorsewolf @thetruthaboutthesun @stubbornness-and-spite @princedarkandstormv  @your-local-fookin-deadmeme @angels-and-dreams@averykedavra @a-ghostlight-for-roman @treasurechestininterweb  @cricketanne @queerly-fluid-fan @compactdiscdraws@cecil-but-gayer@i-am-overly-complicated@annytheseal@alias290@tranquil-space-ninja @arxticandy @mychemically-imbalanced-romance @whyiask@crows-ace @emilythezeldafan@frida0043 @ieatspinalcords @snowyfires@cyanide-violence@oonagh2@xxpanic-at-the-everywherexx@rabbitsartcorner @percy-07734@triflingassailantofmyemotions @virgil-sanders-the-gay-emo@cerulean-watermelon@puffed-up-bees@meltheromanstan@joyrose-fandomer@insanitori@mavenmush@justablah65@10paradox10@uhhh-hi-there-i-am-nervous@cutebisexualmess@bella-bugatti-frogetti-baguetti @ultrageekygirl  

[catominor]

🍩 and 💚 For Martinus, LFC, Poppae and Caecilia! (Excited to hear about their relationship to gender and sexuality by the framework of their society!)

🍩 - Who is your OC’s arch-nemesis or rival?

martinus: i don't think he really has an arch-nemesis. even politically he's an opportunist, not really someone with strong convictions which would cause him to have a real enemy. rivals sure; and there's definitely people who dislike him, but it usually doesn't run both ways - martinus is very easygoing.

lfc: i'm sure he has one or more political ones (the dastardly populares...) but of my characters? poppaea absolutely... he dislikes her deeply. for no reason too she never did a damn thing to him... (well. the reason is that he's very jealous of her and sees her as a rival for martinus' attentions, though it's mostly subconscious. with a twinge of misogyny too i think. he def sees her as stupid, frivolous and silly)

(putting a cut here because this is so longg sorry...)

poppaea: she is probably the more likely out of her and her husband to make enemies. she will go to bat for him among the other senatorial wives... manipulate things if she can to make things difficult for those who dislike martinus, etc... of my characters i don't think she particularly likes lfc or caecilia honestly. mostly because they both dislike her for stupid reasons & she isn't down with that energy...

caecilia: honestly i think she has a pretty oppositional relationship with all of the other three here... she's certainly resentful of martinus because of his relationship with lfc, who she loved but who never loved her back in the same way. she doesn't like poppaea because she finds her personality irritating (though part of it i'm sure is lfc's opinions about her rubbing off on her a bit) (she also is perhaps a little attracted to her and that causes a bit of discomfort too...) and lfc well... that's a whole thing. she hates him. she loves him. they're old friends. she thinks about killing him at least once a week. you know how it is

💚 - What is your OC’s gender identity and sexuality?

ooh i love digging into this topic with roman ideas about sexuality and gender... yeahh !!!

martinus: he definitely has the more normative relationship with gender and sexuality between him and lfc, but it's not entirely cut and dry. he's always fit naturally very well into the masculine role, and so he has a confidence about his place in it that lets him be comfortable bending the rules a bit. which is to say, he's not insecure at all, and so he is really just being himself. he's certainly not the ascetic, luxury-spurning vision of a traditional roman man; he loves his purple outfits and sumptuous feasts, but he doesn't feel a necessity for luxury either. he is at heart a soldier, after all, and he's also perfectly happy in a military camp where nothing is all too fancy. as for sexuality, the joke i made about him being the roman version of straight (a bi top) pretty much sums it up. although he did experiment a little in his youth, he likes being in charge, as a roman man was expected to. he has a bit of a sadistic streak towards men. though he's more attracted to women than he is to men generally; he also has pretty 'normal' taste in roman terms; he likes chubby, pear shaped women and beautiful twinkish young men. though he's also not very picky, and has had plenty of exceptions to his usual taste. however, another thing that would have been viewed as a little bit unmasculine about him is the fact that he's very unrestrained in his appetites (sexual and otherwise). he fucks. a lot... more than is considered dignified for a roman man, and he's very unabashed about it.

lfc: his relationship with gender and sexuality is. a whole mess... he has massive issues with his own masculinity going back to his childhood. although he does conform well to some aspects of roman masculinity ideals (eg restraint, dignity, avoidance of excessive luxuries) he also lacks things from it (military career, good health). he struggles a lot with not fitting into the masculine role in terms of public life; he feels obligated to rigidly control his image and is terrified of being seen as effeminate. luckily for him, he isn't seen as effeminate by most, but merely strange. as for sexuality; this is where most of his insecurities come from. he is. odd. he never slept around; before martinus the only person he had even tried to sleep with was caecilia, and it didn't really get anywhere. (the reason for this is partly the fact that he is very very picky and partly the fact that he did not want to risk anyone finding out about... well.) he is very much only attracted to men; i'm not sure to what extent he knows this, but i think he does know it on some level. but that's not really the issue for him; the issue is more that his taste in men and the kind of relationships he desires are quite transgressive by roman standards and would indeed quickly get him labelled as effeminate. he's submissive (and also somewhat masochistic); if people knew this about him, it would certainly ruin his reputation. especially considering his stoic and mos-maiorum abiding image that he's so carefully built for himself. also: martinus is basically the platonic ideal of his taste in men. his type is just a martinus-style man basically....

poppaea: i don't think she fits all that well into the matrona role. she doesn't particularly like things like weaving or taking care of her kids, and prefers to leave the kids to nannies while she hangs out all day with her friends. she does love her children, it's just... well... 7 sons is a lot to deal with. she's very feminine, but in a way that i think most roman moralists would see as undesirable; they'd look at her and say 'women be shopping' in a disdainful tone. as for sexuality; honestly i'm not sure. i know she's very much in love with martinus, but aside from that i'm not sure what her tastes are, whether she likes women or only men, etc...

caecilia: she would have been an ideal roman matrona if she'd had a different husband. she doesn't always fit into the mold perfectly; but generally she has the restraint, dignity, and mostly the right kinds of hobbies to fit into the role. she very much wanted to be a mother, and although i think she was always disappointed that she never got any biological children, when they adopted quinctilianus it soothed the wound a little. she's very much involved in his life and in parenting him, and is. a much better parent than lfc is lol. as for sexuality: she is attracted to both men and women. her taste in men is very influenced by lfc i think; she likes beautiful waifish men etc... i don't think she really entirely realizes her attraction towards women, but it is definitely there.

[rwby-encrusted-blog]

Trivia Vanile was a scared, and abused little girl. For all her Mother tried to help her, through arguing and making deals with her father, to reasoning with the girl to stop listening to Neo, even suggesting she bind her fin down, rather than having it removed as her father suggested.

For a long time Trivia Resented her mother for that in particular. The bindings hurt, and when those girls stole her clothes at the preparatory academy her secret got revealed, which made her even more of an outsider. It earned her more harassment just for being what she was, no matter how much she tried to hide it.

Neopolitan didn't have to deal with that. Roman had taught her how to turn shirts open backed without ruining them, helped her figure out how to get coats that hid her fin, while also allowing her to use it's suction ability to cling to walls or vehicles.

Being able to stick yourself to a wall to sleep when options were low was a neat trick, and a useful one at that. Though, her fins weren't designed to hold her weight up for hours on end, on actual Remora the water meant there was very little weight to actually hold up. She felt deeply sore and strained every time she did it, luckily for her ...

Mint was a student at Haven, visiting Beacon for the festival. Being a student meant she was around people with a crap ton of skills, including those that know how to massage the soreness out of people.

Jaune: Is this alright? Actually, if it wasn't you'd kick me or something.

Mint gave a thumbs up in return. Jaune had been a rather interesting find. Even if his fighting and social skills were 'lackluster' if she was playing nice and 'Atrocious' if she was being honest - though with how good his fingers were working the pain out, she felt like playing nice - He was pretty good at caring for people. A fellow faunus too.

She silently chuckled, A shark clinging to a Remora. Ironic.

Hopefully he'd survive what they had planned and retire to being a masseuse. She'd hate for such natural talent to go to waste.

[sunshinesmebdy]

The Emperor and the Stars: Decoding Caligula’s Rise and Fall Through Astrology

Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus, better known as Caligula, remains a captivating and controversial figure in history. His reign as Roman emperor was marked by both remarkable achievements and brutal excesses, leading to his assassination in 41 AD. While attributing complex historical events solely to astrological placements would be an oversimplification, exploring Caligula’s birth chart offers fascinating insights into the potential energies that may have shaped his story.

The Seeds of Success: Virgo Sun & Mercury

Caligula’s Sun sign in Virgo indicates a natural aptitude for meticulousness, organization, and service. He was known for his efficiency in administration, implementing reforms in the tax system and public works. The Virgo influence, combined with Mercury (planet of communication) also in Virgo, suggests his sharp intellect and attention to detail. These qualities likely shone during his early reign, as he tackled administrative challenges and established himself as a competent ruler.

However, the Virgoan focus on order and perfectionism could also manifest as excessive criticism and a tendency to micromanage. This could have strained relationships with advisors and officials, leading to frustration and resentment. Additionally, the Virgoan desire for structure and control could have fueled his later attempts to centralize power and exert absolute authority, ultimately contributing to his isolation and paranoia.

Emotional Depths and Attachments: Moon & Venus in Cancer

The Cancerian placements of both the Moon (emotions) and Venus (love, relationships) reveal a strong need for security and emotional connection. Caligula experienced significant childhood trauma, including the exile and death of his parents. The Cancerian Moon suggests an intense sensitivity to these experiences, which could have manifested as a deep longing for security and control in his adult life. He may have surrounded himself with individuals perceived as loyal, but this need for control could have also fostered a climate of suspicion and fear.

These placements also highlight his potential for forming deep attachments, as evident in his close relationship with his sister Drusilla. The loss likely triggered unresolved childhood wounds, potentially fueling his descent into paranoia and cruelty. Additionally, the Cancerian influence on Venus, governing love and relationships, might have manifested in possessive or manipulative behaviors, further isolating him from potential allies and advisors.

The Leo Influence: Mars in Leo

Mars, the planet of action and assertion, resides in Leo in Caligula’s chart. This placement points to ambition, leadership potential, and a desire for recognition. It aligns with his rise to power and initial attempts to be a popular and effective ruler. He may have possessed a natural charisma and used his Leo influence to energize the public during his early reign.

However, the Leo influence, when unchecked, can manifest as an overinflated ego, a need for dominance, and a tendency towards theatricality. As Caligula’s reign progressed, these negative expressions of Leo energy might have come to the forefront. His initial ambition could have morphed into excessive pride and a relentless pursuit of power, leading to increasingly erratic and tyrannical behavior. His desire for recognition could have become a desperate need for constant praise and adulation, ultimately driving him further away from genuine connection and support.

The Downfall: Unbalanced Energies?

While his placements offered potential for both effective leadership and deep emotional connection, an imbalance or negative expression of these energies could have contributed to Caligula’s downfall. The Virgo Sun and Mercury might have become overly critical or micromanaging, while the Cancerian Moon and Venus could have manifested as clinging behavior or emotional manipulation. The Leo Mars, initially fueling ambition, might have morphed into excessive pride, paranoia, and a thirst for power, ultimately leading to his demise.

Conclusion: A Tapestry of Influences

It’s crucial to remember that astrology is not deterministic. Caligula’s life was undoubtedly shaped by numerous factors beyond his birth chart, including historical context, personal experiences, and the choices he made. However, exploring his astrological placements offers a potential lens through which we can understand the underlying energies that may have influenced his personality, strengths, and ultimately, his tragic flaws.

[diammante]

 ⸺   THUS  I  CLOTHE  MY  NAKED  VILLAINY  WITH  OLD  ODD  ENDS,  STOLEN  FORTH  OF  HOLY  WRIT. 

NAME APOLLONIA HOLMES A COURT. NICKNAMES ONLY NIA TO THE SELECTED FEW ZODIAC ARIES SUN, ARIES MOON, VIRGO RISING. DOB APRIL 18TH, FORTHY-SEVEN. GENDER CIS WOMAN. PRONOUNS SHE/HER. PLACE OF BIRTH LONDON, ENGLAND. RELIGION ROMAN CATHOLIC. LABEL THE HEIRESS OCCUPATION SOCIALITE, INVESTOR, COO OF HOLMES A COURT INC. A JEWELLERY BRAND.

HEIGHT FIVE FOOT SEVEN INCHES. HAIR DARK BROWN, REGULARLY STYLED. EYES DARK BROWN, USUALLY NOT ENHANCED WITH MAKEUP. SCENT A MIXTURE OF AMBER, VETIVER AND HIACYNTH, AND OF COURSE CIGARETTES. INSPIRATION PRINCESS MARGARET ( THE CROWN ), CATHERINE TRAMELL ( BASIC INSTINCT ) HILDA FURACAO ( HILDA FURACAO )

FATHER DAVID HOLMES A COURT ( OWNER OF HOLMES A COURT JEWELLERY BRAND AND HOUSE ) MOTHER JOCASTA GREVILLE ( SOCIALITE, COUNTESS OF WARWICK ) SIBLINGS NONE. SPOUSE WILLIAM PHILIPPS ( VISCOUNT ST DAVIDS, DIVORCED ) / gif credit to mistressvera, edited by me.

the only child of david holmes a court, an american jeweler, and owner of holmes a court inc. and his wife, jocasta, a british socialite and noble woman. apollonia grew up between two countries and two worlds, always having one foot on british soil, while the other, she kept neatly on the streets of new york. childhood was an amalgamation of protocols, endless tutoring, and relentless scrutiny under the watchful eye of the press.

as a teenager, she found a lifelong friend in ignes, though certain resentment has built up over the years. it's at this tender age that she started to diverge from the norm, unwilling to play by every rule that had been set by those much older than her. it could be said that her parents enabled this type of behavior by spoiling her first, which ultimately only made apollonia's volatile nature stronger.

the press had been fond of following her to nightclubs, balls, countless celebrations, naming her 'the unconventional apollonia' in the process. she, on the other hand, both loved and loathed her life, but things took a turn in her twenties, when her parents set an ultimatum and promised her the key to the holmes a court empire. all she had to do was marry well, someone who would amplify their legacy.

she met william at the behest of her parents, and thereafter started a relationship with him. the heiress with vivid brown eyes never held any love for him, and instead, preferred the company of her lover. the marriage of william and apollonia was quick, flashy and grand, and she detested every moment, but with it, she had secured herself an entire future.

at a later date, she moved to new york with him, just so she could be closer to the headquarters of her father's company. four years later, she divorced william. she never had any children, despite wanting her own, and instead turned to arts and charity in order to feel something.

over the years, many stories and rumors and man-made myths were spread about her. from the notion that she bathes in milk and sleeps in silk sheets only with a diamond choker around her neck ( very true ), to the rumors that she does indeed have a child, are just some of them.

she doesn't design most of the brand's jewelry, but she did lend a creative hand in the process of creating a few dazzling pieces. she also has two named after her, one incredibly luxurious necklace and a diamond-studded choker.

can be rather charming and witty, but also brash and brazen. loves to gamble. drives a motorcycle just to spite her image but can also show up to any event dressed to the nines. is a woman that's made of polar opposites. always smoking. the scent of smoke has gotten under her nails and she can't wash it away. the one thing about apollonia that you can never forget is how she smells. the scent of her always lingers.