#We love the curator so why can we not play someone who looks like him?

[108garys]

Man I want one of the player characters in one of these games to be old, not Angela and Charlie in their late 40s old, not even Du'met being a few years shy of 60 old(those characters are are all classified as middle aged), why not Anthony Clarke old? Or the presumably several years older Vince Barnes, or hell the quarry depicts "two days shy of 82" Jedediah Hackett as active and capable and there for I see no reason why old age should be a disqualifying factor

On the flip side I understand a little more why not a playable child as acting/writing/capability is a little more questionable but there have been decent character's in these types of games under 18 for years so we know it's possible

Basically I woke up and thought to myself, meaningful stories/choices are not the sole domain of 18-40 somesthings

[scribeofmorpheus]

Why Dragon Age Veilguard isn't a "Cathedral"

Concept art by Matt Rhodes

"To disinherit the storylines of past games goes directly against the notion of building cathedrals."

What is inherent with Veilguard that keeps bothering me is the fact that the world's choices truly didn't matter--and it doesn't simply bother me from a player perspective, it's not simply a grievance borne of frustration to what I (as a longtime fan) have lost. It's about the very culture of the arts under capitalism's new media habituation cycle [x][x].

Yes, I spent hours of my life playing and replaying each instalment of Dragon Age. Yes, I painstakingly curated a 'canon' world state by replaying what came before in preparation for Veilguard. Yes, I am even more unsatisfied with the end product--time hasn't helped, it's just widened the divide. But, and I can't stress this enough, these very personal gripes aren't what hit home the most. It's the inherent disregard of legacy. A legacy that the previous writers and game developers were building towards.

In the DAV artbook, "cathedral" is the word used to describe the process of making a game. Matt Rhodes' exact words are: "One artist can make a painting, but it takes a team to build a cathedral." Cathedrals took centuries to build. The architect who drafted the first blueprints would likely never see his work realised, he had to rely on those who came after him, like-minded and passionate, to see it through--for the culture, for the future, for legacy. Painters took on several apprentices for this reason too--giant frescoes were not completed by one man's hand, even if it is one man's name that immortalises them. Similarly, if you weave a narrative around choice, what good does it do to take it away at the final act if not to fall to caricature?

To disinherit the storylines of past games goes directly against the notion of building cathedrals.

Late-stage capitalism and profit-margin-obsessed game producers forcing developers to churn out meager content, to make a known brand into something it's not, to chase a fad or a popular trend... o, how reductive and cliche you've been forced to become Bioware. We have lost the cultural thought patterns relative to Cathedrals. We know only of barn-raised churches--done in a day but unlikely to last the turn of the seasons.

And don't even get me started on the music of Veilguard either. From Origins to World of Warcraft to Everquest to Baldur's Gate to Dungeon Siege, you can hear the intricate interconnected weave of sounds inspired by the Dungeons and Dragons-esque fantasy genre. You hear it in the repeated use of certain instruments, in the harmonic weeping notes of a bard-like singer or the foreboding echoes of drums as if of war. In tavern songs. But then, rather than hire someone who loves these worlds and this genre, who is a hungry artist looking to make a name, a legacy if you will, for themselves with a spectacular score, you hire any already sated composer, one well-into the encroaching years of career fatigue, whose notes repeat in countless projects, who feels less concise and more uninterested with each new project. One who has long since cemented his legacy. Someone in it for a paycheck and nothing else! And, to top it off, you let him compose something so minimalist? I am offended actually.

Cathedrals! We should have witnessed the final tile being placed on the Dragon Age cathedral. Instead, some architects walked up, tore down the interior and installed IKEA furniture and called it authentic before having to call the previous architects to come and fix the "load-bearing issues", forcing them to rush and add a coat of varnish and a few 'aged' details for authenticity.

[multi-fandomfuckboy]

Stranger Than Fiction

Part 28: Games

Billy Hargrove x Reader (Slowburn)

Part 1,... (Masterlist)...Part 28, Part 29 (Coming Soon)...

AN: lol I'm back on my bullshit. Word Count: 3,874 Warnings: allusions to abuse

It’s a short ride. Neither of you speak, allowing the music to fill the space between you. It’s comfortable. You listen to each song as the cassette plays through the specific mix curated by its maker. Max had shown you a few of these ‘mixtapes' Billy had made the day you waited with her. You don’t fully understand how he’s able to get each song to seamlessly blend into the next despite the variation in artists and rhythms. 

Then a song comes on that grabs your attention. It’s the same loud tune, a guitar continuously strumming along with the beat of drums and bass. The thing that stands out to you are the lyrics. 

��People think I’m insane,  because I’m frowning all the time…  I need someone to show me the things in life that I can’t find I can’t see the things that make true happiness,  I must be blind.”

“Who sings this?” You ask, glancing sidelong at Billy. 

“Black Sabbath.” He tells you, keeping his eyes ahead. “It’s one of their older songs but it still holds up.” He explains pulling to a stop in front of his house. When he moves to cut the engine your hand reflexively grabs his wrist, stopping him. 

“Wait. I want to hear the rest.” You tell him, using your other hand to turn up the volume.   Billy doesn’t fight you, watching you in silence as you listen to the rest of the song. 

“Make a joke and I will sigh And you will laugh and I will cry Happiness I cannot feel And love to me is so unreal… I tell you to enjoy life I wish I could, but it’s too late”

Your heart gives an uncomfortable squeeze for a beat as the song ends. There is a tense moment before the next song begins where you notice Billy's pulse under your fingertips. You don’t know why you're squeezing Billy’s wrist so tightly. You slowly uncurl your fingers, sitting back in your seat. The lyrics bounce around in your mind as you sit there. Billy finally cuts the engine, ending the music as well. 

“You okay?” Billy finally asks, lifting a brow. You nod.

“Yea, it’s just weird. How something can sound so loud and angry but under it all it’s actually really sad.” You explain. “Like a cry for help.” Billy’s lips quirk up slightly.

“Maybe that’s what they were going for?” He says. “Music is just another way to tell a story. I’m surprised you’re not more into it.” He tells you, moving to exit the car. “If you thought that was good I’ll have to show you some Bon Jovi.” He goes on as you follow him out of the car and up the steps towards the house. “I’m assuming you have no idea who that is.” Billy says with a smirk. 

“Yea yea, save it. Max already thinks I’ve been living under a rock for the past 17 years.” You reply with an eye roll. Billy huffs a laugh. 

“That little shit wouldn’t know dick about music if it weren’t for me.” He says, pulling out his keys. His words are harsh but there is no heat to them. 

“Well this is a first.” You quip as he unlocks and opens the front door, stepping to the side to let you enter first. “A whole different experience than coming in though the window.” You joke, stepping into the house. 

“We can always go around back if you’d feel more comfortable.” He jokes back, following you in. You take a moment to really look around as Billy closes and bolts the door behind you. You’ve never been in this part of the house, only glimpsing at it through windows. It’s not a large space and it’s clear that 4 people occupy the small domicile. Bits and pieces of everyones lives are scattered around. 

“I think I’m good.” You reply. You notice that there is a clear clash in interior design through the house. The free weights contrast with the decorative rug under them. Beer cans stacked next to decorative shell decor on the mantle. Someone had tried to make this house a home, but there was something off. It felt like two personalities were struggling to mesh into a comfortable middle, it was unstable, chaotic. 

Billy moves around you to lead you deeper into the house but before you can move any further Max’s voice calls from her room. 

“Billy, I need to go to the arcade! Where did you-oh.” She stops short seeing you in the living room. For some reason it feels like you’ve been caught doing something you shouldn’t, a pit of anxiety taking root in your stomach. 

“Hey Max.” You greet, giving her a half wave. She just watches you skeptically. Her narrowed eyes dart between you and Billy. 

“What’s your malfunction?” Billy snaps after the silence lasts a moment longer than is comfortable. 

“Are you two dating?” Max asks bluntly. 

“What?!” Both you and Billy ask in unison. You share a confused glance before turning back to Max. Your face heats exponentially. 

“Mind your own business you little shit.” Billy bites at the same time you try to explain. 

“He’s tutoring me in history.” A smirk, eerily similar to Billy’s, spreads across Max’s face. 

“Is that what they call it these days?” She asks, crossing her arms and leaning against the wall, a taunting lift in her brow. 

“If you want a ride, I would shut the hell up.” Billy says sternly, narrowing his eyes at the redhead. 

“Jeez, learn how to take a joke.” Max huffs with an exaggerated roll of her eyes. She ducks back into her room, leaving you and Billy in the living room. Billy just shakes his head, clenching his jaw as he heads for his room. 

“I swear if her attitude gets any worse Neil is going to lose his shit.” He mumbles, pushing his hair back from his forehead. “Be ready in 20 minutes!” He yells after her. The only confirmation that she heard him comes in the form of a dramatic groan. 

“That’s how all kids are at that age. I was so argumentative my mom and I didn’t have a pleasant interaction for weeks at a time, and don’t get me started on Hopper. I’m pretty sure I took years off his life with my attitude.” You chuckle fondly at the memory of your painful growing years. 

“Sometimes being a kid isn’t a good enough excuse.” Billy replies calmly. Your stomach twists uncomfortably remembering how Neil had looked at his own son that night not so long ago. 

“Neil and Susan are in Indianapolis Christmas shopping, so I’m playing chauffeur for the day.” Billy explains, entering his room and heading straight for the bed, flopping down on it. 

“I don’t mind helping watch her.” You offer without much thought. You hover in the doorway, suddenly nervous about being in his room alone with him. It’s not like you had never been in his room alone before, you spent many nights sitting across from him on the bed pouring over history lessons, keeping your voices low to not wake anyone else in the house. But something about being here in the daylight, not sneaking around, it makes your stomach swirl. You glance around, his room looks the same as it always does. Bed half made, cigarette butts stamped out in the ashtray next to the cassettes on the nightstand. You do notice that there is now a small dent in the wall next to the mirror, but you can’t be sure that it wasn’t always there.

“Neil would kick my ass if he knew I pawned my responsibility off on you.” Billy explains, propping himself up on his elbow to see you. You absentmindedly skim your fingers over the outside of the doorframe.

“It’s not ‘pawning’ them off on me. We would do it together.” You reason with him. Your fingers catch on something cold and metal on the outside of the doorframe. Leaning back to glance at what you’re touching you see the latch of a lock. Glancing at the outer side of the door you see the other half of the latch. Something cold prickles down your spine.

This isn’t just a teenager wanting privacy, the way this latch is set up, it would function to lock the door from the outside. Why would anyone need that? Your mind struggles to make sense of it. 

“He wouldn’t see it that way.” He tells you flatly. 

“Then don’t tell him.” You say simply, stepping fully into the room. “I’ll help you out today and I’ll be gone by the time they get home. “ you explain, sitting gently on the edge of the bed next to his legs. “Just like when we painted the porch.” You remind him. You watch something dance behind his eyes at the memory from this summer that feels like a hundred years ago. “Consider it part of my tutoring payment. I know the food isn’t a fair trade.” You insist. When he finally nods, giving in, you have to smile. 

“Fine. But only because the idea of dealing with a prepubescent she-devil by myself makes me want to stick needles in my brain… and leaving her alone is not an option.” He tells you, sitting up next to you. His thigh presses against yours, and the proximity sends sparks over your nerves. 

Remembering the promise you made yourself before leaving home you try to scoot away to put some distance between your bodies. Billy notices the movement immediately. 

“Oh sorry, am I making you nervous?” He asks, leaning in even closer, one of his arms going behind your back. He’s not touching you, but he’s close enough that you can feel him if you lean back even slightly. You struggle to hold his gaze.

“No.” You say simply, not trusting your voice to say more without shaking. 

“You sure?” He asks, lifting a brow. You feel him lean in even closer, you swear you can feel the heat coming off of him. You force yourself to hold his gaze and remain still, fighting the urge to pull away. Like a game of personal space chicken.

“I’m fine.” You practically whisper, your voice sounding too loud with how close he is. When he chuckles you can feel the warmth of his breath against your cheek. His eyes shift between yours. You can see the flecks of green in his sky blue iris. Your breath mingles with his and you smell his last cigarette mixed with spearmint gum. You swallow thickly, gritting your teeth together in defiance. 

“You can tell me if you’re not.” Billy insists, his voice just as soft. He’s flirting but you can hear the seriousness laced in his tone. He’s making sure you know he’ll stop, if you ask. Something about that knowledge eases the panic in you. Shifting slightly you tilt your chin up, watching him the way he always looks at you.

“I’m okay.” You say more confidently. You see his adams apple bob as he swallows, his eyes seeming to darken. His gaze flickers to your parted lips so quickly you think you imagined it. Your mouth suddenly goes dry, your stomach flipping at the memory of what his lips felt like against you-

“Right, that’s what ‘not dating’ looks like.” Max’s voice calls loudly from the doorway. You feel like a bucket of ice water has just been poured over your head as you pull away from Billy. Embarrassment floods through you as Billy leaps from the bed lunging towards the door. 

“Fuck off!” He yells, slamming the door closed. 

“I still need a ride!” Max yells from outside the door, pounding on it for emphasis. Billy’s shoulders are tense as he stands with his back to you, his arms braced against the door. You see him take a deep breath, then another, bowing his head as he lowers his arms, slightly adjusting the waistband of his jeans. 

“You sure you want in on this shit show?” He asks, turning to lean back against the door. Max pounds on the door again, shaking its frame. You manage a dry laugh, trying to shove all the mortifying shame you feel into the back of your mind. 

“Oh this is nothing. Try telling Mike Wheeler a campaign needs to end early. Kid turns into a gremlin.” You tell him, pushing yourself off the bed. Billy lifts a brow. 

“I’m more surprised that you know what a gremlin is.” He admits teasingly. You roll your eyes. 

“I do have a life outside of this room you know.” You tell him. You won’t admit that the only reason you know the plot of gremlins is because Steve insisted on catching you up on all the big hits you had missed while you were in the hospital, not that you had actually seen it in theaters. 

Billy watches you approach with a healthy dose of skepticism. 

“Come on Hargrove, put on a brave face. I hear they can smell fear.” You joke, clapping a hand on his shoulder. 

“I’m going to be late!” Max yells, pounding harder. 

“Be my guest Loca, I always knew you had a death wish.” Billy says with a smirk. Your heart pounds at the memory of your first meeting. It feels like a million years ago, like you were an entirely different person, and looking at Billy’s confident smirk, the teasing glint in his eyes, you wonder if he’s a different person now too. 

Without another word, Billy whips open the door to reveal a very agitated Max.

“Finally!” She exclaims, turning on her heel striding towards the front door, her bag already slung over her shoulder. Billy shoots you a look over his shoulder before following after her. 

“Hey, Max?” You call, slipping in front of Billy to catch up to her. She only glances at you, still heading for the door. “Do you mind if I tag along to the arcade?” You ask. Your words cause her to halt, turning to face you with the full force of her scrutinizing glare. You feel Billy come to a stop behind you, her eyes dart to him before returning to you. 

“Did he ask you to babysit me?” She asks indignantly. 

“No!” You say, throwing your hands up. “I just thought you could teach me some stuff. I’m not very good and I hear you kick the boys' butts on a regular basis.” You explain, hoping it comes off as genuine. She studies you for another beat, seeming to weigh the pros and cons of allowing you to come with her. Finally, she shrugs. 

“Fine. But don’t try to talk to me while I’m playing. It throws me off.” She instructs, turning for the door. When her back is turned you quickly give Billy an enthusiastic thumbs up, earning another eye roll. 

The three of you climb into the car, Billy turning the volume up to his usual bone shaking level as he whips out of his spot, speeding down the road. It’s a short ride into town, especially with how Billy drives. When he comes to a stop outside the arcade you climb out, pulling the seat forward to allow Max out. 

“I’ll meet you in there.” you tell her. Needing no explanation, Max jogs to the doors slipping into the dimly lit building. You can see the boys' bikes already lined up outside. “You coming?” you ask Billy, leaning back into the car. 

“Hell no. I can babysit just fine from here. You couldn’t pay me to go into that dork pit.” He scoffs. You roll your eyes at his stubbornness. 

“Oh come on, tough guy. Where is your sense of adventure and whimsy.” you ask, only receiving an unimpressed look in return. 

“Whimsy?” He asks, his lip curling at the word. 

“I’ll buy you a coke.” you offer, hoping that bribery will soften his resolve. Billy’s lips press into a firm line, you can see his jaw tick as he grinds his teeth. 

“Fine.” he says after a moment. “But I have to run an errand real quick.” He tells you. Thinking this is some kind of trick to get out of coming in, you narrow your eyes. 

“You promise to come in when you get back?” you ask, extending your pinky to him. He lifts a brow, a dry laugh escaping him.

“What are you 12?” He asks. When you don’t show any signs of joking he heaves a sigh, linking his pinky with yours. “Fine, yes. I promise I’ll come back and watch you be terrible at dig dug, dork.” He promises with a teasing smirk. 

“Good.” you smile, letting his pinky go and stepping back. “And I’m not that bad.” you clarify, closing the door and allowing him to pull away from the curb. 

It turns out that you ARE that bad. 

Max allows you to take the first turn, even offering you pointers, but by the end of your third turn she takes over explaining that she can’t stand watching you throw away quarters like that. You’re a sorry excuse for a gamer, your brain having trouble communicating quickly enough with your hands on the controls. It’s alright though, you have more fun watching Max and the boys take turns trying to beat each other's scores. 

The longer you observe the group of adolescents the more you note the change in dynamic among them. Max and Lucus are openly interested in each other but don’t seem to know how to navigate this new realm of relationship. Mike appears distracted, constantly glancing at his watch. You assume he’s anxious to see El. You know that Hopper has started allowing the two to hang out at the cabin and though you’ve pushed for El to have more social time, Hopper's old habits die hard. His paranoia is persistent. You can’t say that you don’t understand where he’s coming from. 

Dustin and Will seem more irritated than anything with the new shift in priorities within the group. 

After roughly 30 minutes of watching Max wipe the floor with the boys scores, you venture to the opposite side of the arcade. You want to give the group space but also stay close enough to keep an eye on them. You scan the games, searching for one that you can play without too much instruction. Ms. Pac-Man seems to be simple enough, and it’s located in a spot that allows you to watch your group bounce from game to game. 

Inserting your first quarter you begin the game. You’re able to keep up at first, but when the ghosts start to speed up you can't seem to evade them quick enough. After your 4th quarter your pride is stinging. 

“Fuck…” you curse to yourself as once again you are cornered by the little red ghost. Before you can insert another quarter, you feel someone approaching from your left, coming too close to just be passing by, tensing your hand itches to lash out but you stop yourself when you realize who it is.

“Hey.” Keiths’ monotone voice greets you. You know him from school, and to your knowledge the two of you had never actually spoken to each other. 

“Hi Keith.” you reply politely. You aren’t sure why he’s approaching you. You know that he works here so possibly you were doing something wrong. “What’s up?” you ask. Kieth seems to swallow past something in his struggle to speak. 

“I see you around sometimes.” he tells you, unable to meet your eyes. You don’t know what to say to that.

“Yea, I babysit so I come in to keep an eye on my kids sometimes.” you tell him. 

“That’s cool.” he mumbles “You know I could help you with some of the games if you want. Are you alone today?” He asks. You know he doesn't mean for it to sound as creepy as it does but you can’t help your slight cringe. 

“No, I’m actually with-” you move to gesture towards Max but are cut off when Billy appears next to you, casually draping an arm over your shoulders. 

“Me.” He finishes for you, keeping his eyes on Keith who looks like a deer caught in headlights. 

“O-oh, cool.” Keith manages to mumble, taking a step back. “Nevermind then” he manages to get out, obviously resisting the urge to turn and run. Understandable with the way Billy is glaring daggers at him.

“I’ll see you around.” you offer Keith a kind smile. He only nods sheepishly before retreating further into the arcade. Sighing, you swat at Billy’s side, causing him to drop his arm from your shoulder with a chuckle.

“What was that for?” he asks, doing his best to look genuinely confused. You see right through it to the self satisfaction he's really feeling. 

“Did you have to mad dog him? He was just saying ‘Hi’.” you tell him. Billy scoffs, moving to lean against the game. 

“Yea, right.” He says, sarcasm dripping from every word. “You didn’t see how he’s been eyeing you, trying to work up the courage to come ‘say hi’.” he tells you, throwing air quotes around your words. 

“And how long were you watching that?” You ask, crossing your arms over your chest. Billy shakes his head, his curls falling across his forehead.

“You’re missing the point.” He tells you, deflecting the question. 

“What point is that?” You ask, shaking your head as you dig a quarter out of your pocket and lean over to place it into the game. When you straighten up Billy has taken a step into your space. You could take a step back to give yourself some room, but you don't. You stand your ground, tilting your head up to meet his stare head on. 

“The point is that you’re playing a game you don’t know the rules of and guys like that-” he jerks his chin in the direction Keith had run off. “Will take advantage of that.” he tells you, his voice low. You know he’s too close. That you should take a step back. That the way he’s looking down at you is too personal. That either one of you could close the distance between you with a breath. 

“I’m not really good at games.” you admit, feeling the heat rushing to your face. Still you can’t seem to look away. Billy’s sharp gaze seems to soften slightly at your admission. 

“I know…” He says softly, his eyes shifting between yours. “I just watched you die 4 times and not even make it past the first level of Pac-man.” He says, his teasing smirk overtaking all the gentleness that had once been in his eyes. Finally, you pull back shocked.

“You stalker!” you accuse, Billy just chuckles turning to face the game. “And I was multitasking.” you try to defend your abysmal performance, gesturing to the group now huddled around galaga. 

“Sure, sure. Let me show you how it’s done.” he says confidently, starting the queued up game. 

“Hey! That was my quarter!” You protest. Billy only chuckles again.

“I’ll get the next one, crazy.” he tells you, keeping his eyes fixed on the screen.

AN: sorry this took so long... again!

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[avelera]

To add onto your point about Viktor pushing people away I think this is shown a lot through his interactions with Sky. When they first meet as kids she clearly takes interest and wants to talk but he looks down to gesture to his boat when she is called away. He believes that it is his destiny to be lonely. Shortly after when meeting Singed, Singed asks “why aren’t you playing with the other kids,” and Viktor steps out from behind a rock to show him his leg. Singed’s response is a double edged sword because he says that “loneliness is often a byproduct of a gifted mind,” on one hand he is calling Viktor intelligent and implying that his disability isn’t what makes him lonely, however Singed still essentially reinforces the idea that Viktor is inherently going to be lonely because of his mind.

Later (in life, technically it’s earlier in the show) she flirts with him and he surprisingly refers to her by her last name only despite knowing each other for so long. This act pushes her away, especially at a time when he probably did need to ask for help as he had just coughed up blood earlier in the episode and passes out not long after she leaves. While I do not think he harbors any romantic feelings for Sky both the way she shows interest with him as a kid and as an adult proves Singed wrong. She doesn’t find his intelligence isolating, she admires him for it and wants to get closer but Viktor has put up a wall because he’s already internalized that loneliness is a byproduct of his existence.

She also does not even hesitate to try pull him off the hexcore when she has no idea what it is.

Viktor is often shown with themes of loneliness but it is contrasted with the fact that he is constantly around people that would move heaven and earth for him if he asked. This really shows that the internalized loneliness that makes him push people away and refuse to be selfish is also tragic because he and Singed are wrong. He does face a more difficult time being a disabled zaunite in Piltover for sure, but pushing out those who wish to be close is a fate he curated himself since he believes it’s how it has to be.

I think you said it very well!

One thing I love about having the full Arcane story with S2 is that we can really dig deep and analyze who these characters are now.

I'd argue Viktor came across as pretty... flaw-free in S1. He's still complex, but most of the problems he faces seem to come from issues outside his control, like his disability and his terminal illness.

I think S2 brought into focus what Viktor's flaws are, including his intellectual tunnel vision and, as you noted, his tendency to think himself lonely when he is the one constantly pushing people away, perhaps as a result of that awful line Singed fed him when he was a kid. (Silco and Singed are both great examples of damaged adults trying to help the children in their life, teaching them the lessons they learned, but in so doing scarring those children with their own issues and pain because their situations actually aren't parallels.)

So much of what Viktor does in S2 revolves around loneliness. Normally, I think such loneliness plots would be about someone finding love for the first time, or learning to love themselves despite it. But the strength and quality of Viktor's loneliness story, what I think brings it closer to a more realistic story, is that it takes two to tango. He's projecting rejection onto others like Jayce that isn't there. He's thinking he needs to isolate himself and even as a child to play alone, even though Sky was right there taking an interest. He was just too obsessed with his work (admittedly, work that would save him from a terminal illness so like, I feel him on this) to see that he was letting the life he had pass him by, or that there were people trying to help him, who were actively helping him if he just looked around.

He does it in 2.02 to Jayce too, by the way. Regardless of Hexcore influence, he chooses "the Mission" of securing a legacy over the friend who is right here beside him, offering help, who has come back to Viktor after Viktor chastised him for leaving his side. Jayce listened and he's back now, but Viktor is now so consumed by guilt of the other person he ignored that he's missing the loved one he's ignoring right now.

Viktor then builds this commune of people that sure as hell looks like a wall he's building against loneliness. He speaks with their voices, they are of one mind, they share their emotions, and yet Viktor still self-isolates there, spending his time with the hallucination of Sky, set apart from the other cultists in his giant bubble on the hill, making them look up to him like angels singing praises to God. And that too is lonely. It's not true connection. And by making everyone into One, it's still loneliness, it's still his old patterns. Combining everyone into one person with one will so they can never leave you (no one is ever shown leaving the commune, btw, all foot traffic flows inward) still ends up with him alone in the homogenous soup of everyone he turned into him.

Wizard Viktor is another example of this behavior, the ultimate conclusion of it, why he needs Jayce to get through to him. Only Jayce can show Viktor that his loneliness is in his own head, it's a product of his own behavior, he is pushing people away and ignoring them and then being upset when they're not there, and then when they come back he pushes them away again in favor of "the mission" in favor of "legacy", and even if it's in favor of finding a cure for himself, he pushes away people who are trying to help him with that. And he doesn't let Jayce in on the fact he's dying which is another example of not letting people who love him help him with his most important mission of saving his own life.

This is getting way too long lol but ok:

TL;DR One of Viktor's flaws is self-imposed loneliness that still makes him lash out at others and ultimately leads to some of his most heinous crimes like the assimilation of the cultists and attempt to make everyone into One Being, which is still the same behavior of self isolation, and that's why only Jayce can get through to him that he was loved the whole time and he's only lonely because he keeps ignoring his loved ones and pushing them away.

[potions-of-dark-devotion]

Gotta Get This off my Chest

Severus Snape & HBO Series

Alright first off, I know you are generally expecting well thought out essays from me but here I’m going to Ramble Freeform. You’ve been warned.

I don’t know how I feel at all about another actor attempting to play Severus Snape. JK Rowling is the main producer and honestly this worries me a lot considering the amount of hatred she has for LGBTQ people and the amount of hatred Severus has gotten in the last years. This space is bad sometimes but generally we have a fantastic community of people in this snapedom who love the character as he is written positives and negatives. I for one liked Snape from the first book I read and the first movie I watched.

I’ll be the first to admit that my image of him is very much wrapped up in Alan Rickman, and tho I greatly respect other peoples images of snape and I love the fan art they make, the thing that made Alan such an amazing character actor for the part was the unabashed love he had for the character. Look at any interview of him about Severus and you will see that he went to bat for him at every turn. What if we we are given someone who sees Snape through the eyes of the marauders fandom? What if they erase all of Snapes goodness or heaven forbid write extra scenes of cruelty to Lily that didn’t exist, or have him creep over her, or physically attack her, or characterize him as the aggressor with James when we all know it was the other way around? These kinds of fears keep me from being excited about the new series and instead leave me anxious.

For one thing, I wish they had focused more on a different period of wizard history, or a different part of the 1st wizarding war or even marauders/young Severus era, because there is so much to explore. I would have liked to explore story lines that really could use more fleshing out, and if JK Rowling is going to be a part of this she could have easily written new passages or short stories to suit this new narrative. I also worry about the fact that yet again because she is a producer there will certainly be no LGBTQ characters in the narrative and that’s a waste to me. We already have a fantastic interpretation of the books, and if they are doing a redo why not cast people of color or trans or any LGBT characters in the mix? It will be the same story just perhaps fleshed out more? I’m not sure what this series will bring to the table that the movies did not unless they radically change some things.

Yet, with this interpretation we may see many thing in the series that we don’t see in the books. Severus has two big scenes at the end of POA and GOF that were totally left out of the movies, and if this was left in and the “prank” was explored more in depth we could get to see an even more complex narrative than Alan was allowed to portray in the movies (largely due to directorial choices).

Severus as we all know is a complex character that can be different or difficult to understand without a trauma informed lense and the last thing I want is for them to shove him into a gross stereotype, or give him attributes that don’t exist in the books in order to cater to certain fandoms. I’m genuinely worried about the prospect of this. I also don’t want our fandom safe spaces that we’ve spent years curating to be over run with Snape hate again just because of the series. I could be being pessimistic. It’s just been on my mind lately.

No hard feelings it’s just…Severus Snape is my comfort character and I don’t want the idea of it ruined by people who don’t really understand him or who wouldn’t bat for him the way Alan did. Please understand me. Does anyone else have mixed feelings this way?

[zepskies]

Never Say Goodbye - Epilogue

Pairing: Dean W. x Female Reader 

Summary: The first time you and Dean sensed each other’s thoughts and feelings, you were just kids. It would take years to realize that you both were bonded for life, and even longer to finally meet. [Soulmate AU] (Rated M for eventual scenes – 18+)

AN: Song inspo for this chapter is “Sweet Time” by REO Speedwagon! 

Word Count: 2,200 Warnings: Fluff overload!

Epilogue

Seven months later…

Dean settled his hands on your waist as he sidled up behind you in the kitchen, this time in the apartment you shared with him.

You jolted a bit in surprise, but your spine still tingled pleasantly when he enveloped you from behind.

You had gotten ready so quickly this morning that you hadn’t even greeted him yet. He was reminding you of it now as he pressed a kiss behind your ear. 

“Gooood morning, Vietnam!” he joked. 

He could call you and Sam nerds all he wanted, but Dean loved a classic movie reference.  

You smiled and grabbed one of his hands.

“Hey, baby. How do I look on my first day as Senior Library Curator?” You turned and showcased what you were wearing. 

Dean took in your long black pencil skirt, dark red blouse, and your “I mean serious business” heels with a low whistle, and he twirled you by the hand for effect. Dean himself was already dressed in his work uniform.

“I always like you in red,” he said, briefly focusing on the hint of cleavage, then down the curve of your waist before his gaze fell to your heels. His grin deepened. “I’ma need you to keep those on tonight.” 

You laughed and grabbed onto his arms. “I will cook for you in nothing but these heels, but I just need you to do one thing for me.”

Dean’s brows raised as his grin edged into a suspicious smirk.

“I’m listening,” he said.

“I need someone to come pick out the flowers with me this weekend,” you said. “And the plates at the dinnerware rental place.”

Dean tipped his head back and groaned. That was so not “just one thing.”

You rubbed his arms.

“Please?” you asked. “I’ve already got the silverware picked out. I just need some help deciding on a few things.”

“I’m really not the one you want to take. I’m good with anything, seriously.” 

You pouted at him. “You can’t be serious. You really don’t have any opinion on this stuff? This is our wedding, Dean.” 

He gave you a measured look. 

“Listen,” he said. “I don’t care if you want a Mariachi band with little sombreros on every drink. I just wanna get married.”

You laughed, but the sentiment behind his words made you smile. Your hands slid up to his shoulders as he pulled you in closer. A new silver ring, this time with a small shining stone, glinted on your left hand. 

One of the few things Bobby had saved of Aunt Karen’s had been her wedding bands. He’d seen no better use for her engagement ring than giving it to his almost-son, for his almost-daughter. Dean was grateful, and you were honored to wear it.

“Okay, how about this,” you said. “I’ll ask Ellen and Jo to come with me to pick the flowers and the plates. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is creating a music playlist for the DJ.”

Dean perked up at that. Since the Roadhouse burned down, Ellen and Jo had moved up to Sioux Falls. Last he’d heard (yesterday, from you), Ellen had all but moved in with Bobby. 

“But no ACDC,” you warned him. “And I’ll be approving the list when you’re done.”

Now it was his turn to pout. “Killjoy.”

At the puppy-dog downturn of his eyes, you rolled yours. You knew he was playing you, but somehow you were always weak for it. 

You made a sound of exasperation. 

“Okay, fine. One ACDC song.”

Dean flashed you a grin. “That’s why you’re my favorite.”

“Mhmm.”

“And, just so I know, are we still on for the naked cooking?” he asked. 

You scoffed.

“Oh, no. That’s for men who obey me. You, sir, just welched out of every request I made.” You emphasized this with a finger pressing into his chest. Dean chuckled. 

“Touché,” he said. “Okay, here’s what I can do for you. I will…take you out for dinner on Friday.”

You crossed your arms, waiting expectantly. Knowing he hadn’t hooked you yet, he amended.

“Tomorrow?” he said. “We’ll get sushi. Come on, we never get sushi.”

Mostly because Dean didn’t trust raw fish. But if he must, he could get some fried breaded shrimp if it made you happy. Plus, there were all those dipping sauces.

Dean liked dipping sauces.

“Dancing,” you said. “Tonight. Sushi after. Tomorrow, I promise I’ll cook for you…with the heels, and very little but the heels.”

Dean thought about it with an undecided hum. He wasn’t working late tonight, so he supposed he could go out. He almost grimaced at “dancing,” but you were gentle in pushing him past his comfort zone with stuff like this (and teaching him how to dance, slowly but surely). 

Still, it was worth it to see you get all dressed up. Naked cooking was also very worth it.

“All right, I think I can make that work,” he said. 

You smiled brightly, and he realized it was already worth it.

“Okay, I just have a few minutes before I need to get out of here,” you said, taking a breath. 

You were a bit nervous about your first day in your new position. You had just been promoted after almost a year. While you were comfortable in your job at the museum, overseeing the rare books library, you’d never been a manager before. You would now have two new hires under you, and it was your responsibility to train them as well. 

Dean felt your nervousness. He rubbed your back. “Hey. You’re gonna be great, baby. You know what you’re doing.”

With a grateful look, you braced your hands on his chest and smoothed out his black Sioux Falls PD uniform. He filled it out well.

“Gotten used to having a real uniform yet?” you asked. “Hope my dad’s not driving you too crazy.”

Dean grinned. “Nah. I’ll admit, he kicked my ass a bit in the beginning, but he’s a lot like Bobby. Soft in the middle.”

In fact, Jack was the one who’d recommended that Dean try out the police academy to begin with. 

“You’ve got the instincts,” Jack had told him. It was their first time sharing a beer, about a month after Dean returned to South Dakota permanently. He’d been struggling to find a job that would fit him (and his lack of professional experience).

“What you lack in discipline now, you’ll make up for in knowin’ how to read people,” said Jack. “Being solid under pressure. Good at running down leads. And who knows. Maybe you’ll make detective one day.”

Dean smiled at the idea, but he still cocked his head uncertainly.

“I don’t know. I’m not exactly used to grabbing a warrant before I pick a lock, ya know?”

“Well, I know this.” Jack pointed at him. “You’re a shark, Dean. Sharks can’t stay still, they’ve gotta keep swimming.”

“Okay, meaning?”

“Doing construction, working on cars, fixing people’s houses…after a lifetime of being under fire, are you really gonna be content doing any of those?” Jack asked.

Dean was grateful for that conversation. While there were things he missed about his old life, he was able to build a new one. And he didn’t have to hang up his gun to do it.

Dean let go of you so he could twirl his keys around his finger and clip them to his belt in one smooth motion. “Just you wait. I’ll be runnin��� this town in no time.”

“That’s a scary thought.” You laughed. “Oh hey, has Sam called you? He’s supposed to tell me if he’s bringing a plus one to the wedding.”

Dean smiled, despite a rueful twinge. Sam was halfway through his first year in law school—over in New York. He came home for the weekend whenever he could, but if Dean was honest, it was hard letting Sam run back to school.

What made it easier was that Dean wasn’t alone this time. He had you. You were also understanding, and you insisted that Sam stay here at the apartment whenever he came home. 

“Yeah, he was gonna tell you in person this weekend, but…he found her,” Dean said. 

 You gasped. “No, he did?”

“Yeah, he really found his soulmate. On the subway of all places.”

You laughed. “That must’ve been a fun ride.”

You could only imagine the chaos of starting to hear your soulmate’s thoughts in a New York City subway. You were so happy for Sam. 

You clapped your hands. 

“Oh, I’m so excited to meet her! This is going to be so awesome! Is he bringing her this weekend? What’s her name? Is she going to school too?”

Dean laughed and calmed down your onslaught of questions. That, at least, hadn’t changed.

“Okay, come on. You’re going to be late for work,” he reminded you. “Your first day as head boss lady of dusty books.”

“Excuse me. Rare dusty books,” you corrected with a playful slap to his chest. “But this is too important! Ugh, I’m calling him right now.”

“No, you don’t. He’s in class, and now we both need to get to work. Come on, get those perky buns movin’.”

He ushered you out by lightly spanking your butt. You sighed, but you were still smiling as you grabbed your purse and let him guide you out the front door. You lived on the first floor, so it was a quick walk to where both your cars were parked: the sleek black Impala and a blue Camaro, side by side. 

Before you forgot, you reached out and grabbed Dean by the collar. 

“All right, Officer. Have a good day today,” you said.

Dean smirked and tucked a strand of your hair, freed from your clip, behind your ear. 

“See ya, beautiful. Don’t dust off any suspicious lamps.”

“I thought you said genies weren’t like that in real life,” you quipped. You leaned up on your toes, and he met you there with a kiss that was sweet at first, but then it lingered and deepened. He held you to him close. 

These were the small kinds of moments that he liked to savor with you. Because it reminded him of a time when he never thought he would have this—a life outside of hunting. A life after hunting. 

It wasn’t perfect, but it was a real life with you, where Sam was still an important part of it.

“I love you. You know that?” said Dean. 

And he meant that, deep in his bones. 

When he gave you that ring a few months ago, it finally hit him that what he felt wasn’t just part of the “cosmic bond,” as you’d once called it. The two of you had scraped and fought hard to find each other, and even harder to stay with each other. 

And he hadn’t protected you just because he felt responsible for your safety. He’d done it because the idea of losing you had scared him worse than dying himself. 

So when you smiled and kissed him again, Dean breathed in your perfume and reminded himself that those darker days were in the past. Your airy laugh reminded him.

“Yeah, I do know,” you replied with a wink. “I’ll see you later.”

He tugged you back by the hand. “Uh, uh. If I say it, you gotta say it.”

“Oooh, I see. My bad,” you nodded. You took his hand—the one that wore his mother’s ring—and you kissed his knuckles. “I love you. I love you, and I love you. Be safe out there.”

He grinned and finally released you. You got in your car and watched him leaning against Baby with his arms crossed and his sunglasses on. In his police uniform, he looked like a scene out of Bad Boys. 

You beeped the horn at him twice before you pulled out of the driveway. Dean watched you go with a smirk. When he realized he was pushing it for time himself, he climbed into the Impala. He stroked the leather steering wheel.

What do you know, Baby. We’re respectable.

Jack was definitely going to ride his ass for being late. Today, that was all right.

Dean never thought this would be his life, but he had a feeling that his dad would be proud.

He would be, he heard you say in his mind, through the soul bond. He is.

Dean smiled. 

Focus on the road, he reminded you. He sensed the equivalent of you rolling your eyes. But a few minutes later, he heard you jamming out to REO Speedwagon. Another rock wannabe, in his opinion. Only you would listen to that crap.

Baby, we can take our own sweet tiiiime. And spend it when we want to ‘cause it’s yours and miiiine, you sang, and not always on key. 

Let our love come easy and we fiiiind…~

Dean shook his head, despite a fond smirk. 

…Well, he thought, maybe this one wasn’t that bad.

We can make it. And we’ll take our own sweet time. 

AN: *sniffs* Who's peeling onions?

But seriously, thank you so much to all of you who read and enjoyed this story! It's been one of my favorites to write in a long time.

And I will say, if I do get requests, I will return to this AU and dabble some more. I love early seasons Sam and Dean, and this world is a special one to me!

Read the Sequel:

Ready for some bonus chapters? Here's a three-part sequel:

Summary: You and Dean are just weeks away from getting married, but when you find a questionable book at work, it spirals into one last hunt for you all.

Keep Reading: Bonus Track #1

Series Masterlist

Dean Winchester Masterlist

Main Masterlist

@curlycarley @buckywenal24 @jamerlynn @iprobablyshipit91 @globetrotter28 @deamus-liv @irgendwas122 @deans-spinster-witch @dogbarkbark4445 @my-proof-is-you @vera0124 @deans-baby-momma @lacilou @samanddeaninatrenchcoat @theonlymaninthesky @spnexploration @itzabbyxx @cevans-winchester @imagineteller1 @icequeen1371 @tiredqueen73 @bitchwitch1981 @abbigaleelizabeth @ohgodthebogisback @where-the-river-bends @loveprof6 @shadowcrowsworld @thespnlover @this-is-me19 @stevenknightmarc @leigh70 @pallographsunspot @syrma-sensei @brain-has-left @jassackles @hobby27 @ashbatz @zaratahir @lokisnumber1whore @saranghaey @jori21 @lillyrob @adoringanakin @agirlwithdemonblood @mimaria420

[emin-folly]

Maybe this is a stupid question, but what do you think Eobard does in his free time? Like, does he have a daily schedule? A color-coded calendar with reminders how to fuck with Barry? Is he still a professor? Like, what does he DO when he isn't actively fucking up someone's life? Sry, I just got interested in him very recently, and the comics are chaotic lol

Hello~! I'm very happy to be the first to welcome you to Yellow Rat hell <3 He's such a fascinating, tragic, horrid gremlin of a man, and he definitely deserves more fans aha. As someone who reads comics, I can confirm it's not you, they can be very confusing and all over the place xD

And no, that's not a stupid question, not at all! He is shown not to always be around to bother Barry for months at a time, so it's entirely reasonable to wonder where he goes a lot of the time~ Some ideas of what he could be possibly doing are but not limited to:

Tending to his beloved museum. Aside from Barry, this is one of the very few things he treasures deeply. It's his pride and joy as well as his home. We all know he's established to be the curator of the museum and has provided tours to the public, but it's very unclear if he continued with that after becoming Reverse Flash. While he might've, I feel like there's too many reasons why he wouldn't. One being that the Renegades know his secret identity and I'm pretty sure that would ruin a lot of business for him lol. Plus with Eobard's mentality, I think he would be just too distracted, too frantic with his need to focus on Barry to do his day job

Now this is more of a fun headcanon my friend, Ftl were talking about that I since adopted where Eobard likes to pop back into the past, right before a major event or disaster, whether just as a bystander or a instigator. And of course, he always manages to run into Vandal Savage, so much to the point now that Vandal now associates him as a omen for things to come

He is canonically shown to go and bother/mess with Thomas Wayne a handful of times. This is significant as normally he really doesn't go out of his way for anyone that's not Barry/Flashfam member more than he absolutely has to. He doesn't even go after Hal. The only people he seems to be genuinely interested in and fixated on are those who have (willingly) killed him. Thomas may not rank as high as a priority as Barry, naturally, but he definitely counts as a hobby at least

There was also that time in Flash Age, where Eobard got to play the role of savior of Central City in his own era. He genuinely seemed to enjoy being the hero but, well, if you read to the end, you'll see why that most likely won't be happening again heh

Now this one is a lot more jokey, but in a DC Holiday Special, there's one panel in the last story that shows Eobard enjoying a game of poker with the Anti Monitor along with some other characters, so take from that what you will~

Now, as for your question about him still being a Professor, that's also really not explained in depth. They never really cement exactly what he's a Professor of, but considering him, it's most likely history and/or the Speed Force. In some comics he does have students, in others it works mostly as just a title and then sometimes it's not referenced at all, but it's safe to assume he still is one aha

I also don't really see him having a daily routine. The way I see it, Eobard is so far removed from being human, he doesn't really need to eat, sleep, or do personal hygiene lol But I really love your calendar idea! It would definitely look something like: "Fuck with Barry" "Fuck with Barry" "Fuck with Barry" "Fuck with Barry/Visit Daddy Bat" "Fuck with Barry/Die" "Askdhsgkdbjk" "Poker night" 😂

Also, I know it's not really canon but I really enjoy the idea of him painting. Eobard is a gifted child and a genius, he can master practically anything he sets his mind to. IDK why painting of all things, but it just kinda seems right. Bonus points if he uses it to replace original paintings in the past with his LOL

Overall, sadly, we don't get to see all the mischief he gets up to when not tormenting Barry, only tidbits. But hey, that just gives us some creative freedom to come up with fun ideas ourselves~

[lily-alphonse]

what if... shane and mr. qi

Bro what 😭 I know absolutely nothing about Mr. Qi. BUT I have like 2 or 3 more asks with him in it so it looks like Im gonna have to build a characterization for him real quick lol. I love him though. Love a weird little cryptid man and the fanart is so good.

What interest would he have in Shane I wonder? Maybe it's an AU where Shane is the one to take over the farm and everything so he's secretly special. OR... Mr. Qi just enjoys watching a dumpsterfire. There's no TLC in Stardew Valley so what better reality TV content than to watch the town drunk? Maybe even make things a little worse for him sometimes just for funsies.

You know how in the Sims, if you have an unlucky Sim they can cheat death because Grim either pities or is amused by their shenanigans? That's the dynamic I think. Shane is so unlucky that Qi finds him endearing over time.

Qi would start to leave notes for him, trying to send him on adventures or test him. Shane would have none of it, crumbling the weird notes and suspecting someone was playing some kind of prank on him. Qi gets annoyed about it. Enough to even reveal himself, but he picks (what may or may not be) the best time because Shane is so drunk he doesn't even care.

Mr. Qi almost blends into the darkness by the dock, except his cape shimmers with moonlight and catches Shane's eye. He approaches him when he's discovered.

"Shane," he says in greeting.

It makes Shane wonder if he knows him. Then he wonders if he should be worried about this random shady character approaching him. But he also looks kinda silly, a wide hat and sunglasses obscuring his face, and the most obvious answer is that he’s finally snapped.

Shane narrows his eyes at him, trying to decide what to name this odd figment of his imagination. "Mr..." he starts, and Mr. Qi is almost ready to be impressed until Shane settles on "Hat."

Qi isn't sure whether to laugh or disappear in a rage.

A sort of scoff comes out instead and he sits next to him on the dock. 

"Where did you come from?" Shane asks.

"I come from everywhere." 

"Figures," Shane mumbles into his beer can. He downs another drink. "You're not gonna be some kind of like... conscious that talks in riddles or something are you?"

It feels appropriate, almost making them equals, for Shane to see him as an imaginary friend. It makes up for the way Qi had started to see him as a pet. 

"Not a conscious, though I might speak in riddles occasionally."

“Dammit. Tracks I guess. Can never make sense of any of the shit up here,” he mumbles, gesturing to his head.

Qi had been planning to ask him about the notes, maybe even scare him a little. But here he was being handed the golden opportunity to see into Shane’s mind, and that was even better.

Actually, being an unknown, an enigma, had always been the goal. Short of that,he was forced to keep a carefully curated reputation of mystery, which was not at all the same. Meeting in this way turned out to be a blessing.

“Why do you think you’ve summoned me here?”

“I'm drunk.”

“I can see that.”

“I dunno, I'm pathetically lonely," he says with an exasperated sigh, "Obviously.”

Qi feels a twinge of something unnameable at that, though it's still pretty amusing. He likes the blunt way Shane speaks, especially when he puts himself down, its pure dark-comedy gold. It feels different when directed at him personally though. Like some long-dormant human urge within him makes his heart ache to match Shane’s.

“Are you?” he asks simply.

"D'you have eyes under there?" Shane slurs, looking at him more closely.

"Would you have made me without eyes?"

"Good point. The fuck are we talking about? Who are you?"

"Mr. Hat, apparently."

"Right."

Anyway, they continue to meet like this, with Mr. Qi as his supposed imaginary friend, and Mr. Qi begins to genuinely enjoy the connection they have because no one has ever treated him like this. Everyone he meets is intimidated by him, afraid of him, or looking to screw him over. And beyond that, when he was younger and more human, it was always people wanting to know him. Always so many questions.

His goal was always to be unknown.

He gets that with Shane, under the pretext that he does not exist. It’s freeing, and paradoxically allows him to open up. Any perceived oddity about him only gets turned into a reflection on the darkness in Shane’s mind. In this way, Shane might know him in a deeper sense than anyone else has in a long time. Plus, Qi doesn’t laugh this much with anyone else.  

Shane wants to be unknown too, in his own way. But he starts to hate himself a little less, after these late night talks to ‘himself’. Weirdly he starts drinking less and the hallucination stays. 

I think there would be quite a dramatic falling out when he finds out the truth, but in a way, Shane would also be relieved that this was a real person he could potentially be with.

This ask is a part of the (now closed) SDV Rarepair Challenge! Check out the other answers here, and make sure to boost your favorite so it can appear in the final fic poll! More info on that here.

[kimbapisnotsushi]

here are some more miscellaneous post-ts headcanons but this time we're not going pro teams we're taking a walk on the side of your average working adult let's go!!

okay let's be real do we REALLY think lev is in charge of his own social media accounts bc i feel like that's a dumpster fire waiting to happen

i'm going to say yes because it's funny as hell

he tweets things like "lol i worked with [insert older veteran actor here] today i had no idea he was such an asshole" and gets frantic phone calls from the pr team like three seconds after posting

his instagram is also full of like. really blurry casual pics and just doesn't look professionally curated at all but the fans love him for it

i'm actually super curious as to whether he gets typecasted a lot and if so i'd love to know what it is

i want to say goofy comic relief side character?? so when he gets selected for a serious drama role nobody is expecting him to blow it out of the water but he does!!!!!!

also another thing lev does that gives his pr team a heart attack is when he posts anything vaguely related to his love life. which funnily enough are the only quality non-shitposts he does himself

like you've got the aesthetic silhouettes against a wall, the hands intertwined on a candlelit table, the vague tweets of "so lucky to wake up next to you. wish it would never end <3" and everyone's going WILD trying to figure out who it is

(and, well, nobody is going to notice shibayama yuuki liking the posts amidst all the other pro volleyball players who do, right?)

shirabu's got a rep in med school for having the worst fucking bedside manner of all time

well not really i think he's like. the kind where fellow/older colleagues and such judge him for it and they think that he could stand to be a LITTLE bit nicer but if he works with kids or whatever i bet the kids would actually really like him.

he's dry and straightforward and calm and takes them seriously and treats them like adults. the only thing he does to baby them is dumb down the medical jargon into an explanation they can actually understand

ugh shirabu actually makes me really soft for what an asshole he is

oh but if you're a bitch ass bastard for no reason he'll try to be as snarky as he can be without like. getting reported to hr or whatever

sorry i know this probably isn't how medical professionalism works irl once again i just think it'd be really funny

also can i just say that i think it's the funniest fucking thing that komi became an actor. like where the hell did THAT come from

i feel like he got thrust into doing a role for a class play during cultural festival season and got hooked on it probably? because literally when else would he have the time to get into/practice that kind of shit

that's probably a fun fact he drops during a magazine interview or something LMAAAAO

"yeah volleyball practice took up most of my time, and i never really thought about doing anything else. but then things changed in my third year of high school when i got cast for cinderella . . ."

speaking of fukurodani. yukie and kaori my beloveds

i skipped out on them during my managers post which i regret deeply and dearly so here they are!!

full disclaimer i don't know how sports promoters actually work i'm assuming they promote whatever sports games they are assigned instead of just sticking to one sport only? which means that whenever kaorie gets her hands on something that isn't volleyball she gets a dozen texts from bokuto moaning about betrayal and treason and all that

when kaori gets with someone she meets through work (so someone on a pro sports team) the rest of fukurodani are like "okay but he's a BASEBALL PLAYER" as if being a baseball player is the most atrocious thing a person could be

kaori's like "guys come ON i told him all of you were cool!" and everyone's like "now why in the world would you tell him that"

yukie has a decently popular cooking channel that is loved not for her yummy recipes or her aesthetic filming but because none of her kitchenware matches

she just collects whatever she likes + a bunch of shit that's been gifted to her and while it should make her kitchen look cluttered it's all just very cozy and lived-in

like. all her pots and pans are different colors and themes. no pair of chopsticks are the same. she has a ladle shaped like a dinosaur and a teapot glazed with magnolias on the side

her recipes DO slap tho she and osamu collab a lot

UGH i love them living nice fulfilling adult lives i wish that were me

[middenway]

The colour of Turning Red – Part 1

Turning Red is among my favourite Pixar films. This weekend I finally got to see it on the big screen and I just want to talk about something I really love about it—the way it uses colour to communicate its story. The key colours to watch are red, pink, and teal. Red is the colour of the panda, the unrestrained self. Pink is a muted version of this, a lightly curated version of the self, and teal is the restrained version of the self. This is how Meilin is introduced, all in pink; she's comfortable with who she is, but there's still a level of curation.

Did I say all in pink? Not quite. There is conspicuously a teal hairclip restraining her hair. And that's very important, because the hair is very important in this film too... but we'll get to that later.

Very early on, the film starts to establish teal as a kind of "responsible" colour, with Mei bragging about being practically an adult as she boards the bus, which is predominantly teal, and then she sits down to do her homework.

Note how in that second image how the bus's seats are pink, but all of them are up or hidden in shadow except for Mei's. She a hotspot in the centre. Also note that her homework book is teal.

At the opening title, Mei's by herself and unrestrained, so obviously the lighting is pink.

When Mei arrives at school, the overall palette is teal, but with pops of colour. This is a place where she has to curate her identity a bit, but there's still room to be a freer version of herself.

And here are her colourful friends, Miriam (green), budding goth Priya (yellow), and Abby (purple).

You'll note that Miriam is green, very close to teal, but distinct from it. There's a good reason for that and it speaks to her relationship with Mei. She's Mei's best friend, but she curates herself for her. After all, she thinks Mei's a little brainwashed, but she wouldn't say that to her face.

And then there's Tyler, coded purple, which is not traditionally a masculine colour, a hint about the self that he's hiding from everyone, and why he's jealous of someone like Mei who can be a fuller version of herself. Note that the basketball court, the space most associated with him at the school, is also heavily defined by teal.

OK, on to the flute scene!

This is the scene where I fell totally in love with Turning Red. The energy here is fantastic. Note how saturated Mei's pinks are here. They are so close to red.

Here's Mei leaving school...

...notice how pink begins to dominate the palette more. She's freer here, more herself when she's alone with her friends. Now's a good time to point out the gentle pastel lighting in Turning Red. It's a comforting look, and the contrast gets ramped up in moments of heightened emotion.

When we get to the Daisy Mart, we see Devon. This character is a budding story element, so the interior is teal, because it's a place where Mei would curate herself more, but we get pops of pink on Devon, a hint at how this character is going to evolve in Mei's eyes. (But mostly this location is coloured teal because of the role it plays later.)

OK, this is off topic, but I love this face.

4*Town fantasies are obviously very pink and very saturated for obvious reasons. Fun fact: Domee Shi calls this scene "Man Mountain" (from the director's commentary).

Another aside, but I love the way Miriam, Priya , and Abby often move as a unit. Each has their own distinct visually identity and quality of movement, but in most scenes they function almost like a single character, expressing slight variations on a central emotion.

How could anyone not love the lighting choices when Mei is presented with the 4*Town's '99 Australian Tour CD?

Now we get to the panda temple, and I love this because it's a combination of red and teal. It's important to understand that teal is not a bad colour in Turning Red. It is a perfectly valid way to express yourself, but it's not right for everyone.

The temple also is a space where Mei is curating herself for her mother and visitors to the temple, but in she can also let other aspects of herself come out, and we see that in the way she has fun with her mum while sweeping. It's a really cute way to express this duality.

Note the mirrored colours in Mei and Ming. Mei is all pink with a hairpin that's teal, while her mother is all teal with a red pendant... That red pendant is a really big part of Ming, but we'll go into that later. (Also, I love the round shapes of Mei against the sharper lines of Ming.)

Now we go to Ming's home, which is a mix of teals and pinks, but it's mostly white. This means that it takes on the colour of the lighting, so that in different scenes this space serves different functions. Jin, Mei's father, is likewise predominantly white, reflecting his mild character and role as a neutral party.

Then we have Mei in her bedroom doing her homework. Note that this is her room and yet it is almost completely teal. There as just a few spots of pink, like the heart, the discman (which is playing 4*Town music). This is an environment where she's the ideal good kid doing her homework.

This is also a good time to note the relationship between the music and the colour, because all the self-expression here comes out in how her movement is defined in relation to the music. But she's wearing headphones. This aspect of herself is internalised.

The animation in this shot was the best animation I saw in 2022. The little jaw movement from Mei before she says "fine" is so great. You can see the competing versions of self as confronts a side to her that's unfamiliar and intense.

Notice the shift in the lighting here. Warm lighting coming up from the page. It makes no sense literally; it's completely subjective lighting.

And I'm bumping up against the image limit, so to be continued in Part 2.

[misscammiedawn]

would love to hear more about the twist hidden in the character playlist!!

Okay. Out of respect for the privacy of my tablemates who are no longer in my life I've decided to only discuss my portion of the campaign and not link to any art. Which is a shame as there's a lot of really good art.

The too long didn't read version is "the lyric says "oceans away from the dawn, oceans away from who we really are" and was picked to foreshadow we would cross an ocean into Arcadia and be confronted by the original version of the character, Tyler Dawn.

Also. Why not. Let's make this a story time, if only to see if I can still do Tyler's character voice. (CW: fake American accent - also we are WAY out of practice for it and when we try to unsuccessfully switch to Honoria voice our grip on it falls apart)

"Hello, my name is Tyler and welcome to "Ask Tyler", question today is "what was the hidden twist in your character playlist?"

Okay. Well. Our first campaign was a Mage The Awakening campaign that lasted about 4 years of weekly sessions. Three player characters and a GM. There's another story time segment that gives the full story here but the original plan was to play a female character named Camden Dawn but due to spouse veto we went with her younger brother, Tyler instead.

This is the Tyler voice, by the way. I sometimes like to joke that he transitioned after the campaign to become Taylor Dawn.

Religion plays a big part in his backstory being raised by strict catholic parents in a rural town but I want to skip the small details for now.

So Tyler starts the campaign as a career student wannabe fantasy author who is kidnapped by a high society mage who runs a tass empire. He likes to claim newly awoken mages and lock them in his mansion under the guise of teaching them sheltered from the world that would do them harm. His true intention is to curate their education and grow dependency upon him so when they are brought out into the supernal Fallen World they'll remain loyal to him.

There's more to it than that but that's not my story to tell.

During their captivity some former apprentices who have a grudge against him try to make contact when our party are out on missions and use us as moles to get to the big man himself. Which leads to Tyler being selected to pose as a tass dealer from Wisconsin. She's designed to look like someone from the teacher's past. The goal is to seduce him and earn his trust.

This leads to Tyler being given the disguise of Honoria. The day we played Honoria for the first time was an eye opening experience for everyone at the table. I legitimately don't know if the rest of the story was planned prior to that or not.

But after Tyler gained Honoria as a cover he got to go on dates with the teacher that lead to a gala being held by the Vampire Prince of Chicago (circa 2012) in which Queen Titania of the Seelie Court of the Fae showed up and instantly saw through Tyler's glamour and decided to play a prank on him.

Titania would end up becoming Tyler's "nemesis" character, every player character had a god tier villain assigned to them outside of the campaign villain.

As part of Titania's prank and payment for a poorly worded agreement Tyler made before understanding how Fae Contracts work, she took Honoria out of Tyler's heart. Stole her away to Arcadia.

Glossing over a lot but the season ends with a huge dungeon event and part of the event has the teacher, who Tyler and another PC are deeply fond of by this point, being claimed by Titania for reasons that escape me.

By the way, Tyler has a REALLY bad memory. His sister, Camden, is in the story as a therapist who is worried about him and a lot of Tyler's connection to his childhood comes from her reminding him of things. She gets him to write constantly in a journal. Something I adapted well enough that I have detailed notes of most of the campaign on my hard drive.

Anyway.

After season 1 we get our image CD.

I do not have the jewel case with the explanations any longer but these are the songs.

More Than Fine by Switchfoot was the song with the spoiler in it.

More than oceans away from the dawn More than oceans away from the dawn More than oceans away from who we are More than oceans, more than oceans, yeah

So. Season 2 required the party to travel to Arcadia to get our teacher back. In trying to meet with the Changeling community of Chicago to get information on how to find The Hedge Tyler starts scaring some people and Changelings are either skittish or hostile towards us. Though some take pity on Tyler in specific. Especially if he mentions what happened with Honoria.

The spoiler is that Tyler is a Changeling. The real Tyler Dawn is "oceans away" in Arcadia and being held as a chess piece on the board (chess was a big motif). He was kidnapped from his bed by Titania herself when Tyler was just a child, replaced with a version of him who was a little bit off and would have act like a fox at times.

Camden, who witnessed the kidnapping but is not attuned to the supernal world, rejects the truth of what she sees enough that she is convinced her brother suffers a severe dissociative disorder and that what she witnessed was likely obfuscating a darker truth that she gets a headache if she thinks about too hard.

But that's only a part of the truth.

Tyler is a Changeling. That much is true. But he is also a prison for a Fae. A fox king who once held the title of Good King of Arcadia. Titles in World of Darkness (at least as we played it) are entirely separate characters created from legend. They can occupy the same body or be split, though splitting power divides the Fae's ability. The big thing is that by adding a human into the mix there is a division of soul that goes into it. Tyler has the ability to feel emotion (rather than emulate it) and can create. Honoria has this whole thing about learning to write and cook while in Arcadia and managing to gain a lot of clout and thus power by doing so.

Over the course of the campaign Tyler gains a few different titles including Sionnach the Fox King, Good King of Arcadia, Mr. Fahrenheit, Captain Sionnach and of course Honoria (Baker of the Rising Dawn). Honoria herself has a few of her own titles but we're way off topic.

The reveal of Tyler being a Changeling or Fae was a big deal in season 2 and though heavily foreshadowed it did not really get revealed until we reached the White Queen's palace and found Original Tyler waiting for us, desperate to get his life back from us. He was a blot of ink with the word "REVENGE" appearing all over his body.

Anyway. I think the question has been answered by now. I thought it was pretty cool, anyway.

[shinakazami1]

hope tsp is an option but stanley or mariella for the character ask thing !! dont know if i ever heard ur thoughts on mariella :-)

I'LL DO BOTH. SQUOOTE I LOVE YOUR WORK YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE GAME EVEN WHEN I'M NOT MUCH IN THE FANDOM WEEEE jumping around u

MARIELLA (ladies first)

How I feel about this character

This bestie is in just one ending and got the whole fandom do great yuri. Slay queen. Slay.

Serious though - the fact she's representing the need for normality. The way she's so caught up in judging Stanley instead of checking if he's okay. She just accepts he's dead. She CANT check. That would disturb her schedule. It would ruin the routine. She has to reinforce herself as The normal one.

She's the good one. She has the morale. Others don't understand life as much as she did. She is good. She's okay.

Doesn't that sound familiar?

Both her and Curator judge their counterpart because they need to be better. They need to be OK.

In the Bucket version, she projects her sanity onto the Bucket. It's representing order, control, good mindset. The backflip is just the way we sometimes feel when someone else's life seems worse. Yes, yours in comparisment looks better.

But the fact right before that, Stanley is stuck in a looping hallway, losing his mind, feels like that's what's happening with her, too. She has to be in control, otherwise, she spirals.

Search for order and normality.

All the people I ship romantically with this character

I said so before but - romance,,, eeeh. I like Curiella, don't get me wrong, but it's not an OTP.

In my Jester AU - each of the members has fake memories of their life. Mariella had ones about being Stanley's ex wife. I wanted to make it so that the search for normality is in the wife stereotype. She doesn't love Stanley, but she doesn't understand why he doesn't love him. What she has done wrong fitting the role she was supposed to play so well. She had an image of being so perfect and she can't confront stanley about it, as anytime he comes close, he dies.

My non-romantic OTP for this character

I like sometimes making her concious of 432 since she spends time with Curie. I also think her and Stanley's relation could be interesting.

My unpopular opinion about this character

Again, dunno what's unpopular. But here are some headcanons

- Mariella is stuck in a loop like others. Depending on my Aus, she either uses the time well for herself or spirals out of control outside of it.

- She knows she only resembles a human but isn't one. That's another 'normality' she searches for.

- she loves her outfit a lot. Feels proud of it.

- mentioned earlier but I headcanon she was the one who was supposed to play the role of wife, before she got scrapped to Insanity.

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon

Again - I love the writing in the game, it's hard to even ask for something more. She plays her role well.

===

STANLEY

How I feel about this character

Lort. A lot. Truly a lot and squoote , you're one of folks who made me respect him even more through your interpretations of him being his own. The trailers esp, bucket escape pod when he's in a cutscene, being himself. He is more than a vessel and yet, he's stuck with us. He has a mouth yet he can't scream.

Anyone having their Stanley see a version of themselves in him. I know two main ways of looking at him, either very silent bland guy, or very opposite to the Narrator.

I'm Team - inhumanity. You can see it in my writing often. I consider him as a model that knows he is not a human. That in a way, he accepts his fate. He's okay with playing his role, he lets you control him. And yet, there is a lot of anger. Resignment. Hatred. Sadness. Freedom.

I adore protagonists like him. Looking bland but having lots and lots to offer.

All the people I ship romantically with this character

NarratorxStanley and 432xStanley. But well, in my aus,,, love is an interesting thing.

With the Narrator - they are in the front. They're both seen. They both live the story the most.

With 432 - he talks to us but he used to be an employee. I like to write universes where player left and all that's left are them. I hope to write one more fic for them cus I been insinuating this relationship for a while and not long ago wrote an epilogue for a fic.

My non-romantic OTP for this character

BucketxStanley. Cus Bucket represents the Narrator. And objectum freaks. It's silly.

My unpopular opinion about this character

- he DOESN'T hate Narrator nor loves him. It fluctuates. They both do. They have to play a role, they're coworkers.

- He can form his thoughts but we can't hear them. He observes how we play as him.

- he roams around when we are not looking. It's his right to do so. People think of Not Stanley ending as the normal Stanley. I think of it as him playing his role. He is a vessel but, what happens in his mind, is his. And none of our business.

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon

Nothing again. Davey Wreden wrote a wonderful story and I respect it.

[cerberus253]

Okay, i have a certain question, i know you probabbly might be getting annoyed with the jca asks but, what if tso lan had a child? Like- a moth-like demon with a element of possibly ice or something related to their father's element.

I not exactly going to specify, but we could use a silk moth as a example for the type of moth the child is.

And also, just like the father having more of a emotionless demeanor, but secretely having a personality that could make her get along with hsi wu and xiao fung, with her maybe being a mischievous child but also smart and knowing how to do the right strategies for her pranks or plans to work smoothly.

And also, maybe they liking to play pranks on drago just for the fun of it but also knowing how to hide evidences that it was her. (Heh, a little criminal)

Tho, a example of a question i think she would have to tso lan would went like-

Moth child:hey dad...who is my mom?

Tso lan:and why do you wanna know..?

Moth child:cause i had noticed some stuff.. most mortals seem to have a mother, but me and drago don't.. like.. i know we are demons and also being more superior than those pesky mortals but that we also aren't simply just mindless beasts with sadism of loving torture and destruction and being monstrosity that would make us hate-ables and the most threatening thing for mortals and be seen like absolute monsters and evil beings.. well, we are evil, but we sure have limits, and with that thought, i came here to ask you about who is my mom, and maybe also discover who is drago's mom..even though there's the chance she probabbly died when doing the deed cause of uncle shendu's height and size of being bigger than humans.. but yeah, do you have answer to that?

Tso lan:...i think you should quit being nosy about mortals and focus more on helping me out in the moon..

Moth child:..okay..can i have saturn? I wanna see if i can male life grow there to help you out so you don't run out of supplies.

Tso lan:..i'll think about it.

Like, the moth child could possibly be not that talktive, but maybe able to say something pretty dark and just go on like it's not that much of a deal

(Also, you can answer this if you want, but also know that i honestly don't want to stress you or end up bothering you, and i really worry for you even though we don't know each other, but, be sure to not over-work yourself, drink water, take some breaks from tumblr and have a amazing weekend, and i hope you stay safe this year.)

Hmmm, in the very small chance that he did have a child, and yeah I can see him having a silk moth daughter, I think he would really put her to book work, curation, cataloging, record keeping, scribe, etc. Due to the strict environment, she would grow up selectively mute, shy, curious, observant, perfectionist, anxious, hardworking, dainty, and heavily expressionless. I would also like to think that she also has a monotonous voice like Tso Lan as well as his cold demeanor.

While I agree she might get along with Xiao Fung due to her curiosity and his wide variety of interests tat may seem questionable to the others, she might also get along with Bai Tza due to their similar traits of determination and straightforwardness. She may not like Hsi Wu all that much because he would definitely use her ignorance with jokes and pranks against her. Heck, she may not even understand them and Hsi Wu would have to explain, making it not funny anymore. He could also use her sense of pride against her with her knowledge on the other Sorcerers to plan some Mischief against them, quizzing her to coax some info out of her.

Maybe if she did want to try pranking, they would either be simple things, like calling someone and asking if their refrigerator is running so they better go catch it, or Ding Dong Ditching, or something more psychologically torturing like placing items that look like the items that imprisoned the Demons away in noticeable spots just to freak them out a bit (might get in trouble for those ones). So it's either harmless physical pranks, or dark and cruel psychological pranks basically.

Honestly, I think Tso Lan would just straight up tell her who her Mom is/was and the process that which they made her. I don't see him really hiding that kind of stuff unless it was something highly dangerous or something that Demons in his position are only allowed to know, like the Book of Ages. I can see her looking into who the mortal woman (or other demon?) is/was out of curiosity and just the overall need to know. If she's alive and against the Demons, she must be stupid to not accept their specially chosen womb to have a Demon Lord's child, or if she's dead, how'd that happen? Was it her Dad? Was it another Demon? Was it herself (I headcannon Drago's Mom killed herself after not wanting to live after what she bore), or was it the humans? If it was humans, they should be killed for their transgressions. I feel like despite the Moth's knowledge about the world and it's contents, she's rather ignorant and blind about the deeper emotional connections between others, especially on how humans have the same rights to living and being free and happy just as much as Demons do.

The Demons Sorcerers decided that they were better than mortals, hinting that at once they saw them as equal, but the Moth was raised to believe in that fact, not being given the choice to believe it or not. That would have a heavy influence on anybody, and you can even see it today. A lot of kids were raised a certain way and told about how the world works while their parents were either raised the same way by their parents, or they came to their own conclusion and passed it down. Shendu probably did the same to Drago, but treated him more like a tool than another fellow, albeit inferior, demon. In another words, Shendu told and raised Drago to be a certain thing, but never told nor treated him as if he belonged.

[dirtydragonthoughts]

Transformers Yuletide Literary Fest - Day 2

Welcome to the Transformers Yuletide Literary Fest! I'll be recommending one or two fics every day until Christmas. Feel free to join in if you'd like (I'm using the tag #tylf2023 for this.) All fics are complete!

(If I can easily find a Tumblr account for the author I'll tag them. If you know of an author who has a Tumblr account and I didn't tag them, please let me know so I can add it! )

Fics in my recommendations will come in two different flavours: tangy and spicy. 😄 As always, curate your own online reading experience, and mind the tags if necessary for your own safety. ♥

Tangy

Title: You Hold the Weight of Every Moment

Author: @decepticonsensual

Rating: Teen

Wordcount: 2798

Summary: After the destruction of Cybertron and the end - perhaps - of the great war, Jazz takes refuge on a hill under the stars outside Washington, DC. There, he meets up with an old friend, and discusses some hard truths about what brought them to this point. Jazz has played a lot of games in his time with Autobot Special Ops, but honesty is a new one... and maybe the most dangerous. (Post-Optimus Prime #25, with major spoilers up through that point.)

Why I love it: IDW1 left a lot of plot threads on the floor. And... Some of the deaths in the run-up to the end really hurt. So having this fic to fix some of the wrongs was just lovely. It's a nice and quiet denouement for Jazz and Mirage, letting them both unload some of the crap that happened to them.

Spicy

Title: My trust in your hands

Author: @blushlouise

Rating: Mature

Wordcount: 27,868

Summary: “I think you and I could be good for each other. If you’re willing to give us a chance.” Bluestreak leans closer despite himself. “What’s on your mind?” Skywarp just looks at him for a moment. Then he reaches out, touching the back of Bluestreak’s hand. “We’re both strong, just differently. We can lean on each other.” “I don’t know how.” The words are almost dragged from him. “I don’t know how to trust you.” “There’s… something we can try.” Skywarp sounds nervous again, and he’s looking down at where his finger’s drawing circles on the back of Bluestreak’s hand. “A way of being together. That’ll give you the control you need to learn to trust me. If I find someone to show us, will you try? Please?”)

Note: Available to logged-in registered users only.

Why I love it: I don't think it's a secret that I love Bluestreak, so I am so happy seeing a fic that a) pairs him with Skywarp, which is SUPER interesting, and b) allows him to face his traumas with a lot of maturity and strength. Throw in the excellent character growth for both Bluestreak and Skywarp, and a LOVELY look at exactly how BDSM-themed plug-and-play might work, and you've got a fic that I recommend unreservedly.

[ladylooch]

Since Mack and Lucie seem to really get on each other’s nerves like real sisters do 🤣 Can you make a blurb about times they actually get along

Do they do school dances in Switzerland? I have no idea but just go with it!

17 year old Lucie lays flat on her back, listening to her music while contemplating if she wants to ask her parents if she can go out with her friends tonight. There is technically a school dance, but it is none of the important ones, so her group of friends is planning on meeting up at someone’s house. But truthfully, Lucie isn’t feeling it. She talked to Lio earlier and felt sad after getting off the phone with him. He was going out with his rookie teammates in New York tonight. Apparently him and Connor got a keg to host the boys at their place afterwards. Lucie has an intense amount of FOMO.

“I can’t wait until you live here. Then you can come to our parties.” He had said.

“You mean clean up after a whole hockey team while you sleep it off? No thanks.”

A soft knock sounds at Lucie’s door. She rolls over, seeing her little sister, Mack, standing in the doorway. 

“What's up?” Lucie asks, popping an ear bud out.

“Can you help me?”

“With?” 

“Make up.” Mack nervously plays with her fingers in front of her. Lucie’s mouth drops open in shock.

“Seriously?”

“Don’t make it a big deal or I’ll change my mind.” Lucie laughs loudly, then bops off her bed. “Mackenzie Hischier, sit down. Lucie spreads her arms wide in front of her white vanity. Mack plops down begrudgingly. “So who’s the boy?” Mack blushes.

“Um.. there isn’t one.”

“Please. There is always a boy. It’s Nino isn’t it?”

“Yeah.” Mack sighs, confessing immeidately. “He asked me to the dance.” 

“Your first dance! Why didn’t you tell me? What are you wearing?”

“The blue dress.” Lucie nods in agreement.

“Okay, I have a cardigan you can wear over it. Otherwise daddy will not let you leave in that.” Lucie laughs. She combs through her make up, putting up different shades of foundation to Mack’s skin. “This one.” She taps the bottle. “Okay, what about your hair?”

“Straight.”

“Yeah that is natural for you. We will just give it a little curl to frame in towards your face.” 

For an hour, Lucie and Mack work on curating the perfect look for her big night. Lexi comes to check in, giving little nudges like maybe blue eye shadow is too much for a normally clean faced Mack. 

“Fair.” Lucie finally agrees with her mom, reaching for the mauvy pink and purples instead. 

“Okay, what do we think?” Lucie asks Mack as she hands her a handheld mirror. Mack is speechless. 

“That’s me?” 

“Yeah. Mack, you’re gorgeous. If you ever wanted to put more effort in the rest of us would be toast.” 

“She is perfect as she is.” Nico says from the doorway. Mack looks over her shoulder at him and Nico gapes at his middle daughter. “Baby, wow. You look so beautiful!” 

“Thank you."

“You too.” Nico murmurs to Lucie, giving her a kiss on her cheek after Mack. “When do you want to leave, babe?”

“Like 20 minutes? I need to get my dress on then I’m ready.” 

Mack heads back to her room, then comes to Lucie for the cardigan.

“I grabbed mom’s Jimmy Choos too.” She holds the silver boots up. “Heels dont make sense for you. Not your personality.” Mack grins, then launches into her older sister’s body. 

“Thanks, LuLu.” 

“I love you, Mack. Have fun tonight. Call me if you need something. I’ll be at home tonight.”

“Could you pick me up from the dance? Daddy really wants to take me, but I want you to drive me home.” Lucie grins, nodding.

“You bet. Text me when you’re ready.” 

With one more hug, Mack rushes out of the room, trampling down the stairs to her awaiting parents. Lucie grabs her phone, sending a text to her friend group that she has other plans tonight. 

For once, Lucie wants to stay home on a Friday night.

[kirchefuchs]

Hola Ceres :D

ANYWHO I HAVE RETURNED

*flips some papers open*

I saw someone on here say that the Endings of The Stanley Parable could be seen as a different way of divorcing or something (memories are difficult to keep track of hahahshsha)

But then, I thought about the Reassurance Bucket.

..So the Reassurance Bucket, right? If we were to take the roles of the divorce seriously, would that mean that the Bucket would've either been the cause of the divorce? The 3rd one who made it all happen?

Because if we take the Bucket with us and go to the door to the right, The Narrator gives the bucket a voice that sounds like it's meant to mock it. He makes it sound like the Bucket is the one who lead Stanley to each wrong decision.

And if we were to switch to Ultra Deluxe and fall to the bottom of the Mind Control Facility, there would be an ending where Stanley and the Bucket live in it happily.. until Stanley went insane (I think? I haven't seen the ending in a while but I remember some of it).

And then there's the Bucket Love Ending — where The Narrator soon wants the Bucket as well. But, remember, beforehand, The Narrator tried to tell us — tried to tell Stanley — not to press the next button.

But we did.

And The Narrator says that the Bucket is the one in charge of our decisions — in charge of Stanley's decisions.. as if he's talking like the Bucket is a sentient being. As if he's talking about someone only Stanley knows, which is why it is just a bucket — because The Narrator can't pin the blame on an unknown person. He can only make a bucket because he doesn't know who the other person was.

And there's an instance where The Narrator wants us to destroy the bucket. There's also another instance where The Narrator points out our obsession with the bucket.

why am I talking about a bucket so seriously wtff

anywho this is 🅰️non, just your local overthinker <3 /p

Ooo I lo e all of this. I don't hear enough people talk about the Bucket in a negative context. Like, I get it. The Bucket is funny, I agree. But also if you do take the time to overthink like us stillies, you come to notice that almost every single Bucket ending is sad.

When I was first playing through the game I had already seen a lot of hype for the Bucket, and I was super excited about it when I got my hands on it. But when I started doing the Bucket endings I very quickly realized that all of them left Stanley in a place where he could never be truly happy. Not a single Bucket ending makes Stanley happy. (This is why @m3ab and I play the Bucket out of bounds ending a lot, just to feel like we beat the Bucket. We truly believe it's evil.)

This is going to get long again

But look at this

Bucket Freedom Ending: They are left trapped inside the dark mind control facility for eternity

Silly Birds Ending: they forget about freedom and spend the rest of their days looking at silly birds (not so bad, but not fulfilling really. They are still trapped)

Bucket Bottom of the Facility Ending: they made a home down there but Stanley starts to realize that they are trapped down there and spirals in the regret of his decision. He should've listened to the Narrator

Bucket Museum Ending: Curator blames Stanley for cruelty against buckets and wants us the player to let him die so he can't hurt any more buckets

Buckets Press Conference: no one shows up to heat Stanley talk about the number 3 and he loses his friendship with the Bucket

Bucket Broom Closet: just being there with the Bucket causes tension between Stanley and his beloved broom closet.

See a pattern here? The Bucket is tearing apart Stanley from the things he loves

Bucket Destroyer Ending: everyone is clearly concerned for Stanley and the toxic relationship the Bucket has him in but the Bucket doesn't allow itself to be destroyed (I tried so hard to put it in the Bucket Destroyer) and it ends up killing the Bucket Destroyer in the process

Bucket Tape Recorder Ending: you clearly hear from the tapes that the Bucket has a sort of hypnotic influence on people before the man is supposedly killed by Gambhorratah (I don't think I spelled that right). It can be inferred that the Bucket lead the G man to the tape recorder guy

Bucket Appartment Ending: the Bucket tears apart the relationship Stanley had with the Narrator, and practically forces Stanley into this endless loop of a life where he truly has no one but the Bucket.

Bucket Joke Ending: the Narrator is left helpless and insecure if himself as he tries and "fails" (I like his dumb jokes) to make a good Bucket joke, to the point where he becomes kind of obsessed over trying to tell a good joke

Bucket Game Show Ending: this one isn't so bad except for the little Easter egg where if you answer all the questions right the Airport Man shows up in the audience and it's the creepiest thing in the entire game and I hate it

Bucket Out of Bounds Ending: it's revealed that the Bucket has a dark past with an evil sorcerer and had been the cause of the deaths of thousands of innocent lives, and the only reason Stanley doesn't become one of those victims is because he has the 7 seals of the sages and killed the Bucket

Bucket Escape Pod Ending: Stanley can't escape with the Bucket. There is plenty of room in that pod for the both of them but Stanley only puts the Bucket in there. He had no reason that I can see not to go with the Bucket and escape. What gives?

Guys even doing the door achievement with the Bucket! I was listening to a video of all of the Narrator's dialogue and hearing the two versions of the dialogue for that achievement was wild. The Narrator has significantly less enthusiasm when your doing the achievement with the Bucket, just having the Bucket brings down the whole vibe. Like the Bucket really dose have a dark power inside it, one that can influence those who hold it. It's terrifying.

Anyways, idk if I missed anything, but boy is the Bucket evil :)

I love it, but it's evil. I think I more like the idea of the Bucket than the actual Bucket in the game. I don't know, that Bucket does things to the game :/