#The Long Night Had Come Again

[its-short-for-jackalope]

okay shhh I'm a teensy bit late in making this post but

holy shit, M.A.I.A. transmission 12???????

ohhhhhhh man. I am so psyched for TGOA tomorrow. I am also feeling extremely validated because I KNEW there'd be something spooky-ooky in M.A.I.A.'s room after the last transmission!!! 🤩😱💀🖤

if you've seen me post before you know that I tend to get wordy, so as usual I'll be rambling under the cut, lol.

Don't be scared of the dark, that is where the dreaming starts.

That's what we've been told, over and over, but the last few transmissions haven't been as reassuring. Especially when we have THIS fun little encounter to wrap it all up before the new episode airs...

Narrator: All of this adds up to a ghost story u̷n̴l̷i̵k̵e̴ ̷ a̶̺̰͓̟̙̦͑͂̕n̴̨̻̭̝̰̭͗ẏ̷̫̩͔̮̬̦̫̏̅͗ͅ ̸͓͚̖͊́́̈́̇͝��̞ͅ ơ̷̛̖̬̿̈́͊̉̒̿̏̌̒͗̇̌̄͆͌͊̈̆̈́̓͌̀̈́́̐́̽̃͌́̈̒̅̈́̽̂̈́̈́̍̇̋̇͌̎̎͐̚͘̕̕͘̚̕͝͝͝ţ̷̨̢̛͉̣̝̝̣̤͇̮̗̫̗̣̟̳̣̠̩̺̙̰̻̟̰̞̣̠̘͈́̃͐̏́̀͆͛̎̔̊̆́̆́̊̅͒͊͋̎̆̀͂̂́̃̒̔̓̓̄̿̂̀̿̃͊͛̔̕̕͘̕͜͝͝ͅͅh̸̝͚͇̝̟̖̋͆̊͒͂̔̌̓͊̎́̔̐̈́͌̓̄̄̐͒̔̏͊͛̎̄̒͆̓͋́̆͗̇̒̕̕̕̚͝͠͝͝͝͝ȩ̵̧̼̮̖͔͉̣̻̼̞̖͈̝̼̘̣̃̋́̂̔̍̈͗̈́͊̓̀͑̅̌͛͗̊̊͗̕͘ͅṟ̶̨̨̢̨̢̢̛͉̼̣̬̞̼̥͉̦̼̩͓̦̦͍̟͉̣̮̬̼͍̦̣̜͕͔͇̲̜͈͍̫͙͕͇̻̠͓͕̲̀͊́̓̈́̈́͗̇̾͗͗͆̓͗̇͆̅̈́̈́́́͆̓̀̂̄͌͋̍̍͆̇͋̓̊̓̅͌̀́̅̂̔͛̍̈̍͗̑͆́̿̃̀̄͐̐̈͛̕̚̕͘̕͜͜͜͝͝͠͝ͅͅͅ—̴̢̡̛̛͙̖̖̥̲̬̲̲̠̭̠̝̯̤̳̯̝̼̠̰͕̲̣͓̩̝̱̮͉̮̝̩̣̰̬͎̬̘̰̯̫̥̼͓̱͉͇̺̩͎͇̗̦͕̪͖̙̠̗̻̝̣̆͊̎́̒͗̄̽̔̇́̽̓́͊̏́͐̈̈́̍̇͛̉̽͊̀̆̓̀̀̀̓͗̎̾̉̓͆̀̈̓̎͌̓͌̂̀̓̉̐͊̈̌͘͘͘̕̕͘̕͜͜͝͝͠͝͝ͅ

Narrator: ...That was too close. You see, we've been in the light of day thus far, listeners—it was only a matter of time before night fell.

Whatever happens, we'll fight it together.

quick aside: Jackie's art is freaking incredible. After seeing the reruns for TGMH & TBS and these little teasers in the transmissions, I cannot wait to see what pretty & spooky scenes she's got waiting for us in TGOA!!! 🤩

Now, a few thoughts I've had after watching this transmission several times how:

OH MY GOD, I HOPE M.A.I.A. IS OKAY. can the shadows corrupt or damage her??? are we going to see that happening during the broadcast??? are the storytellers no longer safe from the story???

ough, just the way the shadows move, the texture they have, the visible weight of them. they look so tangible, like they have an impact on the world around them, like if they touch you, you'll feel it. It makes me think of falling sand, almost, or a real gritty, heavy smoke that'll mess you the hell up if it gets too close. No wonder M.A.I.A. starts freaking out when it shows up, I would freak out too!

It's definitely time to be scared of the dark—something's happened each time our trusty narrator tries to remind us not to be. Someone wants us to be scared, and I think that someone is probably the mysterious Kal, especially after his portrait reveal. He does nooooot look like he's gonna be up to any good, lmao. very excited to meet him. if he's got control/influence over the shadows, I think it's fair to be worried. (Sorry, Matt! 😬)

then again, the Narrator sounds more weary and resigned than afraid—maybe we can take that as a good sign. He knows more than we do, so if he's not looking forward to this darkness but also isn't hopeless in the face of it, then maybe our heroes don't have to worry too much...? (Of course, I also love whenever it's like *creepy shit happens* *character just sighs and looks annoyed* "ugh, not this shit again" lmao so even if I'm a little scared, I'm having a good time!!! aihsbsnwjwanssjhsbshz)

I think that's all my coherent thoughts for the moment, so bye for now. oh, and

LESS THAN 24 HOURS UNTIL TGOA PART 1!!!

[somegrumpynerd]

Cross has trouble getting to sleep alone in his room and goes looking for a distraction, but ends up finding a solution for both of them

[here-comes-the-moose]

Crosshair: I’m sneaking out tonight to meet with a guy, I need you to cover for me to Echo.

Omega: Sure.

Wrecker: No problem.

Hunter: Alright.

*later that night*

Echo: Where’s Crosshair?

*all responding at the same time*

Hunter: Sleeping.

Omega: Practicing.

Wrecker: Pooping.

Echo: …

Hunter: …

Omega: …

Wrecker: …

Tech from beyond the grave: …

Echo, sighing: Honestly I’m not even mad I’m just disappointed in how bad you all are at lying.

[mysticalcats]

ok fellas this post is really different from my other stuff so i'm putting it under the cut for people who don't care and also because i'm slightly embarrassed

ok so. is it unusual for a girl to want to have a deep voice and a flat chest and a more square face and also feel slightly jealous of men and want to sound like them and look like them

and also is it unusual to want to be all that, but also simultaneously not be very bothered very much by how you look right now or by being referred to with she/her except for sometimes when you think about it too much. because i usually don't think about it except for sometimes where i suddenly just get really sad about being a girl or i'll always have this faint feeling that i am just unhappy about it

and also is it unusual to try to ignore it and go about your life being unbothered by it even though deep down it does kinda bother you but you can't really. like. say anything to anyone because your family won't react well and neither will your friends because they'll think it's weird and uncomfortable. i feel afraid to ever feel this way because i know the people in my life won't react well to it

so like. genuine question please lmk wtf is goin on because i'm unsure if it's normal and i've felt like this for a long time and it's confusing me and i don't even know what i'm going to do with the information once i know i'm just sort of lost LMAO

[gl1tch-whaa]

2 lil whiteboard doodles

[littlelightfish]

As I said I would, I drew my oc with yours my beloved @clawdouobit

My pretty girl likes to infodump your pretty girl about the smallest things. She's like a reel, talks a lot but most of it is meaningless.

Close ups and more info because I can't shut up ehtier under the cut <3

20 years old and engaged to a half-foot. They're waiting to gain some more money to get married and leave the dungeon. Note: they're best friends but idk if what they have going on is truly romantic love or just a very good friendship.

Quite skilled at upper levels, but wouldn't go to lesser levels. She isn't skilled enough to make her party survive there.

Her race is a mix between gnome and half-foot. Idk if that's possible but I don't think it's not.

If I had to guess, she's 13/14 on half-foot standars. It's unclear whether she's an adult or not, but she's preety mature most of the time. Most.

Flushed cheeks always. Also very pale.

She's 109 cms tall, a lot more than avarage on haflings, but lot less than avarage on gnomes. Since she hangs out mostly with haflings, she's a giant woman. This gives her some problems with traps so her BMI is 18 due to diet.

Fwens with Shahad. Who knows why tho. We gotta figure that out ;}

[acourtofquestions]

Rowaelin Chapter 41 Kingdom of Ash:

She'd rebuild it—what she had been.

Perhaps one last time, perhaps only for a little while, but she'd do it. If only for Terrasen.

Rowan swooped from the mast, shifting as he reached her side at the rail. He surveyed the night-black sea beyond them. "You should rest." She slid him a glance. "I'm not tired." Not a lie, not in some regards. "Want to spar?" He frowned. "Training can start tomorrow."

"Or tonight." She held his piercing stare, matched his dominance with her own.

"It can wait a few hours, Aelin."

"Every day counts." Against Erawan, even a day of training would count.

Rowan's jaw tightened. "True," he said at last. "But it can still wait. There are ... there are things we need to discuss." The silent words rose in his animal-bright eyes. About you and me.

Her mouth went dry. But Aelin nodded In silence, they strode into their spacious quarters, its only decoration the wall of windows that overlooked the churning sea behind them. A far cry from a queen's chamber, or any she might have purchased as Adarlan's assassin.

At least the bed built into the wall looked clean enough, the sheets crisp and stainless. But Aelin headed for the oak desk anchored to the floor, and leaned against it while Rowan shut the door.

In the dim lantern light, they stared at each other.

She'd endured Maeve and Cairn; she'd endured Endovier and countless other horrors and losses. She could have this conversation with him. The first step toward rebuilding herself.

Aelin knew Rowan could hear her thundering heart as the space between them went taut. She swallowed once. "Elide and Lorcan told you... told you everything that was said on that beach."

A curt nod, wariness flooding his eyes. "Everything that Maeve said." Another nod.

She braced herself. "That I'm-we're mates."

Understanding and something like relief replaced that wariness. "Yes."

"I'm your mate," she said, needing to voice it. "And you are mine."

Rowan crossed the room, but halted a few feet from the desk on which she leaned. "What of it, Aelin?" His question was low, rough.

"Don't you..." She scrubbed at her face. "You know what she did to you, to ..." She couldn't say her name. Lyria. "Because of it."

"I do know."

"And?"

"And what do you wish me to say?"

She pushed off the desk. "I wish you to tell me how you feel about it. If…"

"If what?"

"If you wish it wasn't so."

His brows narrowed. "Why would I ever wish that?"

She shook her head, unable to answer, and stared over her shoulder toward the sea.

It seemed like he would close the distance between them, but he remained where he was.

"Aelin." His voice turned hoarse. "Aelin."

She looked at him then, at the pain in his words.

"Do you know what I wish?" He exposed his palms, one tattooed, the other unmarked. "I wish that you had told me. When you realized it. I wish you had told me then."

She swallowed against the ache in her throat. "I didn't want to hurt you."

"Why would it ever hurt me to know the truth that was already in my heart? The truth I hoped for?"

"I didn't understand it. I didn't understand how it was possible. I thought maybe ... maybe you might be able to have two mates within a lifetime, but even then, I just ….." She blew out a breath. "I didn't want you to be distressed." His eyes softened. "Do I regret that Lyria was dragged into this, that the cost of Maeve's game was her life, and the life of the child we might have had? Yes. I regret that, and I wish it had never happened." He would bear the tattoo to remember it for the rest of his days. "But none of that was your fault. I will always carry some of the burden of it, always know I chose to leave her for war and glory, and that I played right into Maeve's hands."

"Maeve wanted to ensnare you to get to me, though."

"Then it is her choice, not yours."

Aelin ran a hand over the worn wood of the desk. "In those illusions she spun for me, she showed me variations on one more than all the others." The words were strained, but she forced them out. Forced herself to look at him. "She spun me one dreamscape that felt so real I could smell the wind off the Staghorns."

"What did she show you?" A breathless question.

Aelin had to swallow before she could answer. "She showed me what might have been—if there had been no Erawan, if Elena had dealt with him properly and banished him. If there had been no Lyria, none of that pain or despair you endured. She showed me Terrasen as it would have been today, with my father as king, and my childhood happy, and..." Her lips wobbled. "When I turned twenty, you came with a delegation of Fae to Terrasen, to make amends for the rift between my mother and Maeve. And you and I took one look at each other in my father's throne room, and we knew."

She didn't fight the stinging in her eyes. "I wanted to believe that was the true world. That this was the nightmare from which I'd awaken. I wanted to believe that there was a place where you and I had never known this suffering and loss, where we'd take one look at each other and know we were mates. Maeve told me she could make it so. If I gave her the keys, she'd make it all possible." She wiped at her cheek, at the tear that escaped down it. "She spun me realities where you were dead, where you'd been killed by Erawan and only in handing over the keys to her would I be able to avenge you. But those realities made me ... I stopped being useful to her when she told me you were gone. She couldn't get me to talk, to think. Yet in the ones where you and I met, where things were as they should have been ... that was when I came the closest."

His swallow was audible. "What stopped you?"

She wiped at her face again. "The male I fell in love with was you. It was you, who knew pain as I did, and who walked with me through it, back to the light. Maeve didn't understand that. That even if she could create that perfect world, it wouldn't be you with me. And I'd never trade that, trade this. Not for anything." He extended his hand. An offer and invitation.

Aelin laid hers atop his, and his callused fingers squeezed gently. "I wanted it to be you," he breathed, closing his eyes. "For months and months, even in Wendlyn, I wondered why you weren't my mate instead. It tore me up, wondering it, but I still did." He opened his eyes, and they burned like green fire. "All this time, I wanted it to be you."

She lowered her gaze, but he hooked a thumb and forefinger around her chin and lifted her face.

"I know you are tired, Fireheart. I know that the burden on your shoulders is more than anyone should endure." He took their joined hands and laid them on his heart. "But we'll face this together. Erawan, the Lock, all of it.

"We'll face it together. And when we are done, when you Settle, we will have a thousand years together. Longer."

A small sound came out of her. "Elena said the Lock requires—"

"We'll face it together," he swore again.

"And if the cost of it truly is you, then we'll pay it together. As one soul in two bodies.

Her heart strained to the point of cleaving. "Terrasen needs a king."

"I have no intention of ruling Terrasen without you. Aedion can have the job."

She scanned his face. He meant every word He brushed the hair from her face, his other hand still clasping hers to his chest, where his heart pounded a steady, unfaltering rhythm.

"Even if I had my choice of any dream-realities, any perfect illusions, I would still choose you, too."

She felt the truth of his words echo into the unbreakable thing that bound their very souls, and tilted her face up toward his. But he made no move beyond it.

She frowned. "Why aren't you kissing me?"

"I thought you might want to be asked first."

"That never stopped you before."

"This first time, I wanted to make sure you were ... ready." After Cairn and Maeve. After months of having no choices whatsoever.

She smiled despite that truth. "I'm ready to be kissed again, Prince."

He let out a dark chuckle and muttered, "Thank the gods," before he lowered his mouth to hers.

"You're my mate." Her words were a breathless rush. "And I am yours."

The world might have been burning around them for all she cared, all he cared, too.

"Together, Aelin," he promised, and she heard the rest of the words in every place their bodies joined. Together they would face this, together they would find a way.

Together we'll find a way, their mingling breaths, the crashing sea, seemed to echo.

Together.

[leslieseveride]

i'm not gonna lie you guys, i'm starting to think i ship bucktommy more than buddie now.

[4ce-of-2pades-inkwell]

< Last / Next >

[jrueships]

guess whos not going in at all this week, actually

[kaythefloppa]

Anyways, I headcanon that Victor demanded Shuriki made him and Esteban malvagos during his reign to ensure their position of power, but this actively went against Shuriki’s ban on magic save for her own, and his frequent demands made her realize she was a threat so she banished him and his family whilst Esteban remained because he was already too scared of what Shuriki would do.

And when he found Shuriki in the forest, he knew that he could strike a deal with her to become a wizard without the threat of banishment, which they did, but both of them planned on betraying the other once they took down Elena.

[butnotbubblegum]

using the tags to vent my current emotional state into the void bc ig story feels like a bad plan for this, read at your own risk.

[forcedhesitation]

this is... interesting. If I'm not mistaken, the list of people banned from the waning moon is supposed to be a bunch of devs, but gerringothe thorm obviously isn't one, and the "unknown elf" sounds far too much like astarion to not be him.

if you have a companion interact with the magic mirror, they have unique wishes they can share. the first wish always seems to be their deepest desire, past all the fear, pride, anger, regret, etc. that they may feel. wyll's, for example, is wishing to see his father extending his arms in forgiveness to him (wyll. pleeease pleaase pleease your dad was the one who was wrong T____T).

astarion wishes to see his home. his real home. after reading this line, I was reminded of the note in the waning moon...and well...what if astarion's real home was originally reithwin town? or somewhere nearby it? the timeline checks out, the shadowcurse has been around for about 100 years, according to halsin. astarion's been a spawn for around 200 years...

the only thing I can think of that might contradict this is something mr. stephen rooney (his writer) said in an interview, about not being sure what direction to take astarion's story in act 2. but given that this was said of the astarion made for the 3 act story we know, and that there still exist many remnants of old ideas since reworked in the live game, it's not impossible that the original story might have included something about astarion's real home being the shadowcursed lands.

sad too, because if it is true, it means that it's very likely that his family was lost to the shadowcurse. and his family wouldn't have ever known that they lost their son to the shadows long ago....

[mctreeleth]

It has been a lovely evening of building a complicated spreadsheet to help score a silly little game I set up for my co-workers. This is what being 35 is all about.

[henrysglock]

S4 Victims: Story by Proxy?

Okay so. In spitballing with Em...something stuck in my head.

So we all know how serial killers leave crumbs because deep down they want to be caught/want the truth to be revealed? Well what if the Duffers, or even current Henry, are doing the same thing. That is, leaving breadcrumbs.

This mainly has to do with the S4 victims, their stories, and the order in which they're chosen.

So, it goes like this:

Chrissy: Abusive mother who resembles Virginia

Fred: Eaten alive by the guilt of being responsible for the accidental death of an innocent.

Max: Suicidal over guilt about Billy's death and her response to it. Billy, who died saving her/while she was saving herself from the Fleshflayer, a regenerated form of the Mindflayer.

Patrick: Abusive father, not much else told.

Max (again): Suicidal Ideation, dies, soul taken, but was revived by El. She's now in some limbo-state, where her body lives but her identity/mind is elsewhere. She will likely be brought back entirely by El in S5.

It almost feels like a story by proxy if we piece it together.

So, let's piece it together:

Person with an abusive mother...feels responsible for the death of an innocent...a sibling who was killed while this person was trying to save themselves from a monster which came from Hawkins lab, which leaves them suicidal...and this person lives in a situation with an abusive father figure. This person becomes suicidal, and their suicide attempt was not entirely successful. They were revived by El, and end up in a limbo state. They may or may not be brought back by El later.

Now, let's collect details about our serial killer:

Abusive mother? Check. (No matter how we frame it, Virginia was not a good mother.)

Innocent died? Check. (Henry has nothing bad to say about Alice, which we know he would if she were not innocent, since he does this with every other victim.)

Sibling died as a result of saving oneself? Check. (The Creel massacre was a situation where Henry was, with whatever intentions we may assign for the other family members' deaths, trying to save himself from Virginia and by extension the lab.)

Ended up with an abusive father figure? Check. (Well...an abusive Papa, one might say.)

Brought back by El multiple times? Check. (El was the one who took Soteria out and brought Henry back from being powerless. El was the one who put Henry in the UD/limbo state. El was the one who opened the gate for his return to the RSU.)

IT ALL ALIGNS. So let's put it together with all the feelings involved:

Citations (I guess? Explanations?) are in the tags listed by number!

Henry had an abusive mother who was at least trying to have him shipped off to the lab, if not actually trying to kill him outright. This situation builds and builds, him wanting to be left alone (1), putting out subconscious and conscious cries for help (2), and her targeting him about it, until March 25th, 1959.

Virginia starts it, attacks, and this time she's out for blood (3). Henry defends himself (4). Virginia, being the parent with powers (5), doesn't actually die (6). Victor, Alice, and Henry go for the door (7). Virginia's on the stairs (8). She's got to finish what she started, since her original plan was botched (9). Henry puts his energy into trancing Victor (10), protecting him from Virginia, since logically two people can't occupy one person's mind.

This leaves good, innocent Alice to fend for herself, standing directly in front of the staircase. She's a loose end (11). Virginia kills her, but can't kill Henry or Victor while the trance is occurring. She figures Henry's going to run himself into the ground (12). She figures she can call Brenner in to collect Henry, like they planned (13). If she disappears, she figures it'll go into the news something like this:

"World War II veteran kills entire family in deranged fit of insanity. Wife missing, presumed dead. Son dies in hospital."

And on both counts, she's essentially right. It does basically go into the papers that way. Victor is taken in for murder, and Henry is taken by Brenner, but not before he sees that Alice was caught in the crossfire (14).

Henry ends up with Brenner, the abusive Papa. He's got the guilt about Alice's death, something that makes him sad and angry. Brenner, maybe, decides to push this in order to increase Henry's powers, but it backfires. Henry's powers increase, but he does...something. He lashes out, he snaps, maybe he even tries to kill himself. He's Brenner's prized pet, though, so Brenner can't let that happen. He seals Henry's powers away with Soteria. It's a death for Henry's entire identity, so far as to have him under the name Peter Ballard. Then comes along 011. She removes Soteria from Peter Ballard...and revives Henry Creel. She then exiles him to the Upside Down in 1979, only to eventually bring him back in 1983 when she opens the Mothergate.

All this to say: It could be his own story, told through the stories of his victims.

Breadcrumbs, or maybe...obvious things, which nobody by any chance ever observes.

Below the cut is where I speculate into motivations for his actions after Soteria's removal, so...not required reading for this particular analysis.

Years of MKUltra torture warp Henry's guilt about the situation into a bastardized, violent, brutal, unethical savior complex based in the notion that he's a predator by nature, but a predator for good. He "saves" the lab kids from a future like his own, filled with nothing but torture. He "saves" El from her ignorance about the lab and intended to have her join him, thereby attempting to "save" her, technically his little sister, from the lab entirely.

He "saves" his s4 victims from their guilt and suffering, which so closely mirror his own, which no one saved him from. I could even go so far as to say he was "saving" Will, who is set up to be so much like him, from a world of horrible people who (from Henry's viewpoint based on his lived experiences) would only serve to abuse and betray him.

This of course isn't to say any of it is right. None of it is right or good...but it makes sense. It follows a pattern. It coheres. The math...maths.

[miraclespin]

Sometimes I get notes on a post or something, but when I go to look at it, it's as if it isn't there. The number goes up and everything, but I can't see who liked the post or whatever was done. If this was my other blog, I'd assume it was a note on that one post that I used XKit to block notifications for since it was clogging my feed. I can still see a notification, but I can't see the actual note itself. I sometimes see the time slot when this happens, though.

I don't have any posts that I've done that with on this blog, though, so I have no idea what the cause of it is. I have a couple of guesses, but that's about it:

The note came from a person who I had blocked on my main, but for some reason neglected to properly block on my sideblogs.

The note came from a person who blocked me on my main, but not my sideblog, for some reason, even though you can tell who owns my more active sideblogs because I literally put my main in the description, and usually link back to it somewhere on the blog itself. Though admittedly, I don't really know who pays that much attention to that; I feel like a lot of people here don't pay attention to a lot of the things I try to say that don't relate directly to the fandom, most notably my pinned post with relevant BYF links and a DNI statement writ in bold letters...

So yes, sometimes I'll get what I refer to as "ghost notes", and I wonder about them. It's a little stressful, due to the probable reasons I cannot see them that I mentioned.