#aah this was so fun

[raayllum]

could you talk about the bridge scene with the leaf falling over rayla

anon i was literally thinking about that specific shot just a couple days ago so THANK YOU for the opportunity bc it's soo freaking good like

I have a lot of thoughts and feelings about the four Banther Lodge bridge scenes (Rayllum twice in 7x02, Ezran and Aanya in 7x03, and Rayllum's final scene in 7x09). Bridges in fiction usually symbolize transition, thresholds, or unity, but none of these ideas are particularly present in half the scenes on said bridge. I do think we can see some overall arc though if we look at Rayllum's scenes together in 7x02.

Rayla is fronting with anger and frustration, since that's what she's always done with her sadness and guilt, particularly when she feels helpless. The fact that it's a beloved friend who's unexpectedly being an obstacle to her when this was never the case with Zym/Zubeia has also gotta sting. This is also Rayla in some ways at her least mature / most impatient (beyond the marginally better council meeting, even if Rayla is canonically terrible at explaining things).

We also know she's reacting emotionally (as previously stated, Callum is literally the only person Rayla can count on to be in her corner here whatsoever; without him, she has no one, whereas Ezran has the entire council + Zym and Aanya) since when Callum does offer to be on her side and actively help her, Rayla rejects it out of love for him and Ezran. She wasn't necessarily asking him to take a stand for her earlier on the bridge, but wanting to know that someone else understood her perspective (and he does).

This episode in particular establishes a strong visual language for the two (i.e. Rayla standing in the dark during the council meeting, Callum's chair being closest to hers, etc). The visual parallels between the bridge meetings, as well as set up for later in the episode, are no exception; I'll talk about the couple more I noticed in a bit.

And Rayllum does have a nice moment of unity on the bridge, even if it ultimately is supposed to be their goodbye for an unknown period of time. The last time they were on a bridge of sorts, it was the pathway Viren had carved with dark magic in 5x02: "But it's a bridge between our two worlds, and now here we are, crossing it together." "Maybe you're right. It's an old wound that's healing."

Now, they're being forced apart by their own choices / circumstances, and reopening an old wound of sorts in doing so because Ezran hasn't healed (and at this point, largely refuses to try).

With all that out of the way, we can actually talk about the shot(s) you requested! The most interesting one to me, I think, is the choice to frame it in water. Now it could just be a nice way to freshen up the shot, give us a different perspective, etc. Water reflections and such are present in the other bridge scene with Aanya after all, and are commonly utilized in animation, storyboarding, etc to make things look more interesting when there's an opportunity to do so.

Most of the time in TDP, even when including Rayllum, water shots are framed rightside up, accentuating but not dislodging the audience's natural perspective of things.

For example, even in Ezran and Aanya's scene on the bridge, we don't see this inverted perspective the way we do for Rayllum here.

Which begs the question why? I think there's one more likely / direct option, and another more beloved tinfoil hat version. The one I think they were actually going for (the first) is to invoke a sense of unnaturalness. Callum and Rayla separating feels fundamentally wrong to both of them, especially this time, and turning things upside down, away from how they should be, helps create that feeling.

The other more tinfoil hat one is that — in a season with an episode titled "Inversion" — we have seen this "upside down" thread in TDP before.

We have King Harrow's "there's a beautiful upside down truth" in 2x05, which doesn't really fit with the above (although maybe there could be a connection with "forgive me" / "i now believe true strength is found in forgiveness, in vulnerability, in love" etc).

More directly, there's the Key of Aaravos, whose repeated 'turning upside down' has been a segue to dark magic use routinely, specifically in 7x06's case at the "If you love her, you'll be the you that can save her." (More on that here, if you're curious.)

With this in mind, the tinfoil idea would be that the Rayllum reflection inversion is set up to further connect with 7x06, and highlight how much Callum wants to help her, is only willing to separate from her for her own genuine good, and that he'd do anything for her. ("You don't have to ask. I would do anything for you." / "If you love them, Rayla, Ezran, all of them, you'll do anything to save them.")

After the above shot on the bridge, Callum begins to walk away, a reversal of earlier where Rayla left first. In doing so, Callum passes behind her, being totally covered up by her like they are one person. This is again to reinforce the pain of being potentially separated and how unnatural it feels, especially because this feeling of Callum-and-Rayla as one entity is going to be further reaffirmed in the finale (wherein unlike Viren's heart and body/life being sacrificed together unto himself, Rayla's heart and Callum's body/life would be sacrificed together).

Then the leaf pops up, obscuring Rayla's face/head — but this isn't the first time we've seen this framing. We actually just saw it earlier in the scene!

There's a few reasons, I think. The first is to accentuate division and absence. They're going to be separated, Rayla is going to be gone, anchoring us a bit more to Callum's thoughts/feelings accordingly. I also think there's an element of outside, externalized forces more so being the reason for their separation (i.e. everything with Ezran) rather than it being something either of them actively Want, either. There's also an element of erasure, reminiscent of Ghosting erasing not an elf's body necessarily within the spell, but their faces as a sign of the banishment. The boys and Katolis have been Rayla's second default home, but now everyone (except Callum) is against her, refusing to acknowledge her pain or perspective (although she hasn't done a great job at acknowledging Ez's, but she also doesn't have Power over him the same way he does in this situation), and she feels compelled to turn against them this time to do what feels right for her family.

Then we have the closing shots of the scene with the leaf.

The leaf causes ripples (which is loaded as a concept: Rayla causing ripples by chucking rocks at her still floating Lotus; her "ripples of mercy" in sparing Marcos in S1 that have not yet stilled; Aaravos' fascination with ripples as laid out in the TDP short story of the same name). We do know presumably that Callum's choice to go with Rayla to the Silvergrove (and help her father) was somewhat set in stone, since if Astrid had flown to Katolis she would've just found ruins, wouldn't have known to go to the Banther Lodge (or gotten info there since nobody knows who she is), so Kosmo must've told her where the Mage and the Warrior would be ahead of time. Very 'fated' in some ways.

The ripples also lead to distortion. This can convey impact (threaded back into the tinfoil lens) or Rayla being further obscured (negative). The leaf moves further to be a 'physical barrier' between the two on the bridge, as Callum leaves Rayla standing alone (but still, she's gone before he turns around).

I do think the choice to set it on the water is a nice piece of possible setup for water (the boat, aided by Callum's magic) being their successful (positive) getaway later.

Another little piece of symbolism I love this episode is their hands, specifically how they reluctantly part with Callum's lingering in their goodbye on the bridge, and how the hands are used to symbolize being reunified after he comes to her rescue.

[satsuha]

style inspired by nina matsumoto's new official merch!!

prosecutor and detective dynamics they could never make me hate you...

[lucdoodle]

Based on a meme

[zan0tix]

Any general thoughts on/relating to the Brobot?

Have my half awake scrawlings...

I really love the brobot!!!! People really misconstrue it and also leave it out in a lot of dirkjake talk? Its a big player in not only how dirk expresses his affection/desire towards jake but also in their multi year spanning unspoken game of gay chicken 😭😭(all of dirks splinters are but Not about them rn)

It was sent yknow under the pretense that jake loves wrestling and wished so bad to have somebody he could wrestle with. But at the same time it protects jake from the horrors of hellmurder island (seen before they strife), pushing jake into the Damsel in distress role he wasnt expecting to play even before all the shit in the game, with Dirk being his hero.

Jake says he keeps it on a high difficulty because apparently in the Novice mode he says their interactions become "too tender" and doesnt want to elaborate, Friendly reminder! His convo with jane on the SAME DAY dirk pulled off that big romantic overture and the kiss happens and him and dirk begin "dating".. is the same day he asked jane if it didnt make him weird for wanting to date dirk. And he also says hed joke around with dirk about how theyd soo make a great couple if dirk were a girl haha.

I imagine the brobot and well. Getting physical like that with a robot that supposedly looks like dirk probably gave jake his internal gay awakening at 13 but he just never wanted to actually confront it and instead just wanted to brush past everything 😭😭 (See: every single time sexuality or romance comes up in relation to jake he is literally always thinking about dirk somehow and he never directly talks about his attraction to men or how that reflects/contradicts on his self image of the Movie Star Hero guy)

and jake doesnt actually hate the thing either, he tells jane he thinks it genuinely did improve his fighting capabilities (Which we see it did in collide! he beat basically the whole felt with guns and fisticuffs alone, no hope powers.) Which serves as a pretty evident parallel to dave who also is good at fighting, even if he doesnt want to be. (see dirk + dave convo)

This one comes from hussies authors notes in the aradiabot and equius scene (which equius imagery being invoked with dirk. something i could totally rant about another time haha) but yeah. Jake was being selfish asshat in that log forcing jane into a corner and wringing what he wanted to hear out of her, and also not giving a shit about the brobot (Which served as his protector and only other semblance of human connection since he was 13 and was a BIRTHDAY GIFT FROM DIRK) KILLING ITSELF? But hes so preoccupied talking about dirk. THE REAL DIRK. And immediately after jake loses the dirk splinter that protected him, HE (AND DIRK) CREATE A NEW ONE FOR HIMSELF USING THEIR COMBINED POWERS/?

Hussie is lying.. somebody Does care about dirks feelings. a whole lot to the point they activate their powers unwittingly Because of it. and its jake. but jake just cant admit that himself. (He cannot admit his real feelings until given permission to, dirk would have to concede the game of gay chicken first using his words and not just actions)

ANYWAY. hussie is so right its so easy to get sidetracked times one million talking about this comic. BUT AHH!! BROBOT. his existence.. tragic.. Jakes really smart in knowing that all of dirks splinters enlighten aspects of himself he doesnt oft share, and the brobot served as another dirk action on the pile of dirk actions he engineers to signify his deep immense care for jake, where he lets these grand gestures and implications sit out in the open without ever actually saying what they mean and where his feelings lay.

EVEN IF ITS SUPER OBVIOUS. The d man cant use his big boy words to actually describe his feelings despite how much a yaps! so jake doesnt know if hes even allowed to say anything about his own. Fellas: Is it gay if you labour for supposedly an extended period of time to create a custom robot in your own image to ship in pieces to your best bro guy crush who is HUNDREDS OF YEARS IN THE PAST because you cant be there yourself?

I think this hal message says enough about how bad dirk wished he could visit jake 💀💀

[entelodante]

lil diagram for a pentapod lung! this is the basic settup for all terrestrial pentapods, Whorls included! More detailed info below!

First off, the lung is located right against the shell atop the back and is about the same length as the bone girdle that supports the other organs and leg anchors. The lungs basic structure has two bone pieces at either end, a 'nozzle' which holds open the airway, and the 'butt' which just helps maintain structure. The main support comes from four rings of cartilage, which prevent the lung from fully sucking closed on exhale! This is because the lung is open and closed by way of tendon! Four main tendons are anchored to the girdle and bottom wall of lung, the muscles associated with these tendon contract to pull open the lung and draw in air. Running through the lung itself are smaller tendons also connected to that bottom wall. These anchor to the shell and pull upwards to push air out of the lungs. While both sets are able to fight against the other, the lower tendons have a lot more tension and so the 'default' position of the lung is open.

But for Whorls, breathing is a pretty much involuntary process, think how you can choose to hold your breath but most times don't even think about needing to manually breathe. Aside from right now! At least they don't have to worry about manual blinking, could you imagine?

All in all though, this is just the basic layout and I'm thinking secondarily aquatic pentapods may even be able to fully collapse the lung. And that many pentapod species (not whorl) make noises by contracting different portions of the lung and making weird honks and barks. Much to think about!

[mortiscausa]

✨It's the final few hours of the kickstarter for @novaandmali's A Hitchhiker's Guide to Art History book, so here's my piece for the book in full! I took great liberties in transforming this piece of illumination from hildegard von bingen's scivias into a fun little sci-fi adventure✨

if you want to see more pulpy sci-fi adventures check out the kickstarter linked above and help us get this project over the finish line! we are so SO close!

[shkika]

I'm literally buzzing with excitement for the Wind comic thing :> I've been coming up with my own theories of what it could hold, and even making a video based on those theories! Tho, it'll take some time to finish XD It's like...A big project. Love your works!

This ask made me so happy I blacked out and this appeared on my screen.

I have the comic planned and sketched out with placeholder dialogue between the rodent sisters I just need to finalize it when I can!

[kwillow]

This thought kept occuring to me but I finally realized that Theo reminds me a bit of Stuart Ullman from The Shining (the novel version)

Stuart Ullman (novel version) is not a character one would usually think to make a reference towards and I love you for that. I completely see your vision from this first paragraph.

This too. Theo IS a bit of a bastard. Thank god he's a broke hermit NEET so he doesn't have any employees who have to deal with him.

[chidoroki]

August 19th - Happy (belated) Birthday Kiryu

(with one Kiryu from almost every chapter he appears in)

[metamorphmigus]

Another lovely colab by @cherry-207 and I. These two are always so dramatic! Scriabin and Edgar come from Vargas by @zarla-s go read and enjoy!

[mismatched-sockss]

can't get over the fact that Hotch loves his team so much and has such a strong instinct to protect them that he was able to fight against Scratch's manipulation

[keep-calm-and-drink-caf]

“He was a Punk, She did Ballet Bharatanatyam”

A Hobie oneshot

The idea for this oneshot was based almost completely off of @hobiebrownismygod ‘s post here! <3

Pairing: Hobie Brown (Spider-Punk) x Indian!Reader who does Bharatanatyam

Word count: 1.7k

Warnings: Uses of Y/N, reader pushes herself past her limits a little bit?, reader’s just a teensy bit rude to Hobie at first, my ✨interesting✨ attempts at writing Hobie’s accent and slang

A/N: I wrote the reader to be Gayatri’s cousin because I thought it might be interesting to look through the perspective of someone who knows Pavitr from Gayatri’s side! And partly because I used to be in a similar situation - my younger cousin would always randomly call me and spill all the tea of whatever had happened in school :) (she still does haha. mwah i love you my little butterfly xx 🫶)

Originally intended for it to be romantic but it I think it could also be interpreted as platonic!

(he’s so gorgeous akdjsbcjdbcjcnd i love him sm <333)

——————

It was late.

Late enough that you should’ve been packing up and heading home, not inside an empty dance studio practising your steps till your feet ached and your legs felt like they were liquefying slowly.

You were trying to perfect the fast-paced jumps and footwork, pushing yourself ruthlessly despite being on the brink of exhaustion, and now your heels hurt from the force with which you were slamming them into the ground. The ghungroo bells that were strapped around your ankles jingled almost tauntingly as you kept going off-beat.

Letting out a frustrated sigh, you sat down on one of the benches placed on the side, sliding your ghungroo bells off your ankles and stuffing them into the side pocket of your bag. You were about to gather the strength to get up and go home when you heard the door swinging open and your gaze darted toward the sudden creak.

“Oh, hey Y/N. What are you doing here?”

Pavitr stood in the doorway, looking completely soaked to the bone and struggling to open an umbrella.

Gayatri was your slightly younger cousin, so naturally you knew Pavitr quite well since she would call you and gush about every little thing he did that she found absolutely adorable. Initially you had been frosty and skeptical towards him and he found you downright terrifying, but over time he had managed to charm you with his sunshiny personality and deep affection and respect for Gayatri.

“Hi, Pav. I was trying to practise my bharatanatyam but I think I should call it a day,” You responded, stretching your sore legs out and squinting through the glass panels of the door. “Is it raining?”

“Yep, we got caught in it while-” He cut himself off with a yelp as the umbrella opened suddenly in his face and he instinctively moved it behind his shoulder. You heard a soft ‘mmph’ come from someone right behind him who he had accidentally hit with the sharp spikes of the opened umbrella edge.

You tilted your head to look behind Pav as the person who had been hit stepped forward into the light, his hands out to prevent any further attacks from the umbrella. He flashed a charming smile at you, the studio’s warm light glinting off his piercings.

There was something slightly… odd about him that you couldn’t quite put your finger on. It wasn’t his large wicks that were, somehow, completely dry though he had clearly been with Pavitr in the rain, some drops still sliding off of his spiked vest. It wasn’t the small, silver-spiked red fabric sticking out of his pocket either that he tucked out of sight the moment he saw your eyes drift toward it.

His outline - if you could even call it that - appeared to be in constant motion, seemingly shifting and changing colours every few minutes. You blinked a few times, simply chalking it up to your tired brain playing tricks on you.

“Oi, watch where you’re pointin’ that thing, mate. Y’might jus’ take someone’s eye out.”

You raised your eyebrows as you heard the sharp cockney British accent.

“Yeh aadhmi British hai. Vah yahaan Mumbattan mein kya kar raha hai?” (This man is British. What’s he doing here in Mumbattan?) You asked in Hindi. You realised, the moment the words left your mouth in your mother-tongue, that you were being quite rude by talking in a language he probably didn’t know. His eyes darted toward you, studying you intently as if trying to understand what you were saying.

“Vah itna bura nahin hai, mujh par bharosa karte hain. Aur vah sirph… yaatra kar rahe hain.” (He’s not that bad, trust me. And he’s just… visiting.) Pavitr gave a sheepish chuckle, bringing a hand up to run his fingers through his rain-soaked hair. [I know that yaatra technically means travelling, but I can’t remember the Hindi word for ‘visit’ so if anyone could tell me how to say visiting instead I’d be very grateful!]

“‘Ello to you too,” He laughed it off, the smooth, rich sound filling the air. “My name’s ‘Obie. ‘Obie Brown. Nice to meet you.”

You assumed he was saying Hobie and gave him small smile, getting up to go over to them and shake his hand. “I’m Y/N. It’s nice to meet you, Hobie.”

Pavitr leaned forward to whisper quietly to you, his tone lightly teasing. “Hamne aapko kaanch ke darvaaze ke maadhyam se naachte hue dekha. Vah ghoorana bandh nahin kar saka.” (We saw you dancing through the glass door. He couldn’t stop staring.)

You felt your cheeks heat up slightly at his words and you scoffed, suppressing a smile tugging at your mouth. “Aur vah bilkul bhee daraavna nahin hai.” (And that’s not creepy at all.)

“Well, I was just about to head out,” You would’ve liked to properly get to know Hobie, but your vision was starting to swim in front of your eyes and his subtle flickering didn’t help.

“Careful. There’s a ‘ell of a lot o’ pleasure and pain out there.”

You blinked in surprise and glanced at Pavitr for an explanation, trying to understand what Hobie had just said but also not wanting to come off as rude.

“It’s raining cats and dogs out there,” Pavitr translated, snickering slightly at your confusion before your unamused eyebrow-raise shut him up.

“I have an umbrella. I’ll be fine, don’t worry. Besides, it’s just rain.” You took out your umbrella, looking through the glass into the rain. It was pouring quite heavily, but you’d just have to manage.

Pavitr got a gleam in his eye that told you he was plotting something. You narrowed your eyes with suspicion. “What are you thinking?”

“Ah, nothing, but we were headed that way anyway, for that padoka stall a little further on. We can come with you!” Pavitr gave you a grin and held his umbrella out in front of him, pretending to examine it critically. “The only problem is… my umbrella can only cover one person.”

Your eyes widened slightly as you realised what he was playing at. “Pav. Ab matchmake ka samay nahin hai,” (Now is not the time to matchmake) You hissed under your breath, giving him a death glare.

Pavitr simply ducked his head, giving you and Hobie a little wave as he moved to stand outside in the rain, the umbrella spread over his head. “Well, are you two coming or not?”

Hobie chuckled softly, turning to you. “Let’s go? I can walk in the rain if you want, I really don’t mind getting wet.”

“No, no, you can stay with me. Sorry if I was rude earlier.” You opened the umbrella more skilfully than Pavitr had done, angling it so it could shelter both of you as you stepped outside into the rain and followed Pavitr.

“Nah, you’re good. It’s nice ‘earin’ you and Pav talk Hindi, actually. How long ‘ave you been doin’… what’s it called?”

“Bharatanatyam.” You giggled softly at how Hobie’s eyebrows lifted at the word, his piercings sailing up along with them. “Quite a while. It’s almost like an Indian ballet, if ballet was more about fast-paced movement and quicker beats rather than grace and controlled technique.”

“S’different from what I’ve seen. More chaotic, but beautiful. Do y’always wear those jingly things around your ankles?”

“Ghungroo bells? Yeah, they just serve as something to accentuate the rhythm that we tap out with our feet so that the audience - and the dancers themselves - can hear it better.”

Hobie’s eyes - were they always that shiny…? - were on you as you talked, slightly wide as he took in what you were saying with the utmost attention. “Hey, lovebirds! The rain stopped, in case you didn’t notice. Y/N, you’re here.” Pavitr’s teasing voice cut through your thoughts, which were albeit a little foggy the moment you saw how pretty Hobie’s eyes were.

You put the umbrella down and, sure enough, the rain had almost entirely stopped, reduced to tiny droplets that drizzled pinpricks of water on the pavement. Well, that was Mumbattan weather for you. Pouring one second and sunshiny the next.

“I’m never making gajar ka halwa for you ever again if you don’t stop talking,” You warned as you heard Hobie chuckle slightly awkwardly at the nickname Pav had given you both.

“Nononono please— I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean that!”

You rolled your eyes and closed the umbrella, glaring at him.

“Fine, fine, just stop giving me that look. You’ll get your gajar ka halwa.” You softened your expression into a smile as you turned to look at the man you had just met. “Bye, Hobie. It was really lovely meeting you. I’ll see you around?”

Hobie smiled at you, dipping his head in a nod of farewell. “Yep. See y’around.”

You keyed open the door to your house, closing it behind you only to be greeted by Gayatri lying sprawled on the couch. You were used to her visiting unannounced, and your mother absolutely adored her, so you’d often come home to see her waiting for you, with new stories - whether they were scandalous gossip from the modelling agency, a few texts or actions from Pavitr that had made her lose her mind with how adorable he was being, or just random shower-thoughts she’d have (not to be confused with the ‘deep philosophical ponderings’ she had at 3am in the morning that she felt the urgent need to share with you straight away)

You could smell the sharp tang of spices wafting out from under the closed kitchen door as your mother cooked.

“Pav told me everything,” Gayatri giggled before you even had a chance to properly say hi to her. You groaned and flopped down on the couch next to her, moving her legs to rest over your lap so she didn’t take up all the space. “Brilliant. What did he say?”

Gayatri smirked up at you. “You met his friend Hobie? The one who’s visiting?”

You considered reaching for the cushion a few inches away on the floor, wondering if you could take it and throw it at her before she could bat it away. “Yeah, I did.”

Gayatri made her eyebrows jump up and down teasingly. “Do you think he’s cute?”

“Gayatri—”

“Oh, come on! This is totally like a rom-com. He was a punk, she did ballet — but make it Indian!” She mimed clicking a camera, now fully laughing, her eyes scrunched up mischievously. “Wow, and the guy’s British too. Who’d have thought? I think he’s here for a few more days, in case you want me to ask Pav to set up a date—”

You reached for the cushion, snatching it up and holding the fluffy patterned corner as threateningly as you could.

“Chhoti behen?” (Little sister)

“Yeah?”

“You know I love you.”

“Yep.”

“But stop talking.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

——————

Gajar ka halwa is a carrot-based sweet dessert pudding made by placing grated carrots in a pot containing a specific amount of water, milk and sugar, cardamom and then cooking while stirring regularly.

A pakoda/pakora is a fritter originating from the Indian subcontinent. They are sold by street vendors and served in restaurants in South Asia. It consists of items, often vegetables such as potatoes and onions, coated in seasoned gram flour batter and deep fried.

‘Pleasure and pain’ is Cockney rhyming slang for rain. (At least I’m pretty sure it is because I saw another website saying it’s ‘ache and pain’ so I’m not really sure which one it is)

Ghungroo bells are anklets that consist of small metallic bells (going from 50 to more than 200 bells depending on factors like the expertise of the dancer and the desired amplitude of the bells) knotted together. Ghungroo bells are used in many Indian classical dances such as Bharatanatyam, Kuchipudi, Lavani, Odissi, Mohiniyattam, and Kathak.

I don’t do Bharatanatyam, so some of this might be wrong. Please lmk if anything is incorrect! <3

[bakawitch]

The Ruinous Oak of Wisdom, Rooted Deep in the Heart of the Rook

"The Raven King? I doubt I'm the best person you could ask about him. He's quite the recluse, thus I haven't had the chance to meet him too many times. Shocking, I know, considering how old we both are. You'd think centuries would be enough for the two of us to run into each other more often. I only exchanged formal greetings with him once, but if the opportunity arose, I would not mind having a lengthy conversation with the King sometime. Mostly just to assess if he truly is as wise and righteous as they say. I don't consider Regelye my responsibility, but I don't wish for some eccentric moron to rule it to ashes."

– Shade Iridescence Rubik

◆ Name: King Corvinus Matthias

◆ Title: Wit of Raven Blood

◆ Righteous Raven King of Regelye

◆ Origin: Thermo

◆ Constellation: Corvus Diliculum

Despite his title, the God of Balance is a fickle one. No clear records remain of how he came to inherit the Throne of Regelye after the tragic passing of the Falcon King, and it seems the Court of Equilibrium would prefer to keep it that way.

For a king, they say he is quiet. He doesn't make enough noise in court. Yet those who spoke to him tell tales of a calm, balanced ruler with a kind smile, willing to lend an ear for their troubles. He sits, and he listens, passively so, willing to take and keep the burden of those who wish it.

The Raven King always seems to be in a good mood around his subjects, though he only speaks when spoken to. He seems to keep everyone around himself at an arms length, even the Wonderous Six Táltoses protecting Regelye alongside him.

He's not the type of person to seek company. On an ordinary day, he just locks himself in the Royal Library or his room and stays there, not even leaving for meals. It is not known what the Raven King does during his retreats, but whenever he leaves the room he spent his time in, he leaves nothing but destruction behind.

Torn paintings and broken furniture, slash mark along the walls, nothing ever gets spared besides his precious books. This has gone on long enough for the servants at the Turul Castle to stop bothering with complete clean ups and refurnishing the rooms beyond necessity.

"Are you mad, Your Highness?"

"I am not."

"Have we upset you, Raven King?"

"You have not."

With a serene expression, the King never tells, never explains himself, and the servants have simply gotten used to it over the long years.

Understanding the reasons of a God is impossible. There's no use trying.

˚　　　　✦　　　.　　. 　 ˚　.　　. ★⋆　　 . ✦　. 　　 　　　　

[sleepymccoy]

Can you do a little scene of Crowley and aziraphale together with Crowley in 8 and aziraphale in 1?

This was really cute!!

My take on this is they both bought each other flowers! How lovely!

Crowley bought them as a cover. He's in the park installing more bins to take up public servant time and be a general nuisance to the local government (and to help keep the park clean, but don't mention that). He got caught and flourished some flowers at Aziraphale so the park cop guy would think it can't possibly be the dude with flowers!

Aziraphale bought them because he's lovely :) he's so kind :) and generous :) and he's super behind on his good deeds quota so he's out doing good things in a rush. He actually didn't get them for Crowley and is pretty annoyed that Crowley accepting them has resulted in a net zero for good deeds

Crowley is insulted that Aziraphale tried to do a good deed on him. He's also pissed off that Aziraphale dobbed him into the park cop guy. Aziraphale is annoyed that he gave the flowers to Crowley. He's also insulted that Crowley used him for crime cover up.

They're going out for lunch together now to try and get the other to apologise

[superfruitland]

i uh... found this abandoned one off comic thing i never posted but i rly like it so you guys can have it

[cry-stars]

this sounds silly and dumb but I miss tumblr sexymen a lot. I miss that certain kind of character that everyone would go crazy over, and I'm sad seeing people today bash those characters or say that people were stupid for liking them. character tastes have shifted, and now everyone likes sad old man meow meows. I get it. but i just don't resonate with those kinds of characters.

i guess part of it is just me being nostalgic for being a teenager too. I was never allowed on the internet during early tumblr, even though I was old enough. I only got obsessed with the onceler in like 2016, and never got to participate in the fandom. My blorbo Clive Dove from professor layton was one of the lesser-known tumblr sexymen (created in 2010 iirc), and I only was able to write fics about him in 2020, because I didn't get to play around on the internet for long before then. I only got to see the very tail end of everyone liking him, before he turned into the character that people make fun of.

Idk. I just have weird mixed feelings about it all. I love categorizing characters and analyzing them, and I have so many thoughts and ideas for all the characters I love, including the tumblr sexymen kind of characters. I don't think i'm stupid for liking a character. but i don't know. I just feel strange about it. People say cringe culture is dead, and then they make fun of these characters and are like "how did anyone ever like them." it makes me feel like there's something wrong with me, or that i'm stupid for liking "something that should've been left behind last decade."