#also it gets robbed fairly often

[killerchickadee]

So the RNC is going to be here next month and Trump made some nasty remarks about the city because of course he did. All the Milwaukee/Wisconsin Facebook pages are either making pro-Milwaukee or Milwaukee meme posts about it and

The Walgreens I go to is so notoriously awful that it's a meme lmao.

[nthspecialll]

i feel like dutch having the gang members sleep where they do, in dirty bedrolls that often get infested with bugs and water COULD be a sort of power move, especially with having the men outside in shady belle but i wanna know ur thoughts on that and if im just thinking too deeply on it!!

Oh there is definitely something. This kind of subtle act of placing himself up on a pedestal is something that Dutch does quite a lot but something that is actually fairly new for him.

We can see this in the fact that he lives in a tent that is beautifully decorated with wooden flooring lifted off the ground (or in Shady Belle's case he lives in the master bedroom), while the other gang members are sleeping on the ground. Though it is also a bit hiracy based as Lenny reveals when saying that he is "sleeping outside with the juniors."

I am going to return to the sleeping placement later, but there is also the fact that Dutch doesn't do small jobs, Dutch is there for the big gigs, he is there when he can make a face for himself. He doesn't go out and rob small houses or do small things, which is fairly new as we hear just five years ago when Javier joined the gang that he was out stealing chickens.

It is definately a way for him to put himself "better" the others, but it also creates a sort of distance between him and his people. We don't see him having emotional camp interactions sitting with the others, talking about his life and telling stories, we can't play poker with him or dominos, he is kind of on his own, isolated in a way. And it isn't like it has to be that way, Hosea is his right hand man yet there is a very big difference between the two. Hosea is down on the ground with the others, he is telling stories, playing dominos, going out robbing houses or people on the highway, and also, sleeping on the ground.

It is quite interesting to note that Hosea sleeps with the others. Dutch, Arthur and John have their own spaces, but Hosea does not up until Shady Belle where a lot of the others, including the women, have moved inside. He is down in the trenches with the other gang members, being one of them and not putting himself above them, and I think that is a conscious choice, I don't doubt that if Hosea said "I want a tent/a place of my own" he would be high enough in the gang to get it.

Other examples of Dutch placing himself above the others are: his girl not having to work, his clothing always being in better shape than the others even though he most likely is not making the money that he is using (I mean look at how few jobs he does, he is not making that money).

And thank you for the ask! :D

[runwayrunway]

No. 52 - Alaska Airlines Xáat Kwáani and Salmon-Thirty-Salmon Liveries

Did you think I was done with Alaska Airlines?

No, this is actually my last post about them for now (though, mark my words, you will be seeing a post about the Gold Nugget Jet in the not-too-distant future - I just feel like we need a break from nothing but consecutive posts about the same airline, and I have other things I want to cover). But it's something that's both requested and which I've wanted to talk about for some time.

In my last post I discussed the identity of the man on the Alaska Airlines tailfin. It wasn't a major part of the story, only taking up a small piece, but I did touch on how ChatGPT apparently will lie when asked about the background of the livery. Not only does it falsely attribute the livery to Fred Kabotie, who I'm sure had more important things to do, but it also falsely claims Fred Kabotie, who was Hopi, to be Tlingit. As it turns out, though, Alaska Airlines does have a livery designed by a Tlingit artist.

image: Brandon Farris

Crystal Kaakeeyáa Rose Demientieff Worl is a Tlingit artist known for large public artwork which heavily incorporates indigenous artistic traditions and visual motifs across many mediums. Some of her previous work includes large-scale murals in Alaska and throughout the world and guardrail panels at Juneau International Airport. She feels like the most natural choice possible to design an airliner livery, given the scale and diverse canvases she works with, and in May of this year the airplane you can see looming behind her was unveiled in a brand new livery that I, and a lot of other people, immediately fell in love with.

It's safe to say that this is one of the most ambitious and unique special liveries out there. Xáat Kwáani (which means 'salmon people' in Tlingit) is a beautiful and one-of-a-kind take on the often-noticed resemblance airplanes have to fish.

Salmon fishing is huge in Alaska, both now and historically. Today fishing is a major part of the Alaskan economy and something many people making a living off, but historically they were even more directly responsible for making the difference between life and death for those who lived beside them. A major source of food, they were literally life-bringing to indigenous societies, necessary to survival. Humans and salmon were part of the same ecosystem.

Independent of this fact, airplanes seem to lend themselves to comparisons to sea creatures. They may be called 'birds', but time and time again other people confirm that I'm not just imagining it, they do distinctly look like cetaceans and fish. Very early on in this blog the fact that 747s look like Humphead Wrasse was discussed. Amakusa Airlines, Japan Transocean Air, and Southwest Airlines have all leaned into this fish resemblance, and I'm sure over time my sea creature plane tag will continue to grow. This genre of livery will never cease to delight me.

I think it's fairly predictable that I always loved N559AS, the brilliantly named salmon-thirty-salmon plane. I was devastated when I learned that the livery was going to be removed. I mean...just look at her.

The salmon-thirty-salmon was a very unconventional take on the fish-plane, using a much more realistic drawing than any other attempt. It doesn't even try to transform the plane itself into the fish, which I think is potentially a smart way of accepting the limits of doing so. Instead, it fully displays the honestly hilarious and adorable face that salmon have while providing a nice canvas, a bit of water for the salmon to be carried on. At the same time it incorporates thoughtful details like the scales on the interior winglets, and the way the salmon's body is aligned with the empennage and nose feels very precisely done. It can create a somewhat uncanny doubling effect from a few angles, but by no means is it enough to rob the livery of its charm or elegance.

The salmon-thirty-salmon gets an A.

I've lived near the ocean my whole life. I love fish. I loved this plane. I was heartbroken when I learned the livery was going to serve its final milk run before rolling into the hangar for the very last time, coming out repainted and lost forever. It's always a bitter pill to swallow when airlines retire special liveries, particularly when it involves the plane being repainted into the standard colors. A lot of other people were sad to see this design go too.

What we didn't know was that this was not the end of the salmon-thirty-salmon. She was not lost, but transformed. When she emerged from the hangar again she was not wearing Alaska Airlines' default colors but something even more eye-catching, a livery honoring the same fish but with extra layers of meaning added by means of an intricate and beautiful new design.

Costs, materials, and man-hours used to paint an airplane vary dramatically from case to case, livery to livery, model to model, airline to airline. The numbers in my description are somewhat conservative estimates used for comedic value. Alaska Airlines actually gave some numbers for Xáat Kwáani - twelve days, 117 gallons of paint. The colors used are Midnight Blue and Atlas Blue for the background, White for the fish themselves, and Pink for highlights, and a clear coat has been applied over the top in order to preserve the livery. Alaska Airlines has every intention of keeping it intact for as long as possible.

The use of colors is beautiful. The waves of darker and lighter blue keep it from ever looking too light or too dark, adjusting to the lighting in order to always remain saturated and vivid, and the irregular wave pattern keeps any part of the livery from looking static. The use of the pink as a highlight is sparing but effective. The white, though, is what makes this livery so fantastic. A central tenet of this blog is a disdain for the dominant trend of livery design in recent history, Eurowhite - that of an almost entirely white fuselage. And there is a legitimate sense of general derision for white, but it can be so powerful as a design feature. There is no contrast more powerful than a stark and complete absence, a space carved out fully from the world and color around it. It is the color of bone and snow.

The balance of each color is just perfect, the blue never overpowering the white, the white never fully blocking out the blue, the pink subtly adding depth throughout, and the shapes of the salmon are placed perfectly, not feeling cramped or confined. They are free to wander the fuselage and they have an amazing sense of movement to them, as if caught mid-leap. I've seen salmon swimming upstream to spawn, and they are so startlingly large and vivacious. The fish on this plane, though stylized, perfectly capture the way that these fish look in motion.

Formline is a style of art historically created by indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest coast of North America. It was a common and versatile visual element, present in everything from painting to carving to weaving. It is defined by its use of continuous, curving lines which may change in angle, width, and direction but do not terminate. Though it was diminished in quantity by suppression of indigenous culture by US and Canadian settlers it never went away, and from the second half of the 20th century onwards it has been surging back as more and more indigenous artists are able to produce and display their work. Worl has worked with formline many times before. She is quoted as saying:

Every time I looked at an Alaska plane, I couldn’t help but visualize the salmon being in formline [...] I can’t help but look at things and see how to Indigenize them.

And the idea has now come to life in this absolutely unforgettable livery. I wish I was within the range of the 737-800 from Alaska Airlines' hubs so that Xáat Kwáani could pay a visit to my home airport, because this is among the most beautiful planes in the world right now. And beyond just nice colors and pleasing shapes it represents something important - indigenous artists being given a 40-meter-long flying platform on which to honor fish which have provided countless centuries of life to the people who live beside them.

Worl's work is above and beyond what I would have ever expected for a custom airplane livery. Even the 'Alaska' wordmark is neatly incorporated into the formline, blending into the background to the point it's hard to notice in a good way.

Most liveries are designed by graphic designers and branding firms. Landor Associates design liveries and logo, but they aren't building monuments or putting their work in galleries. I don't mean to diminish their work - obviously I'm passionate about it, I have a blog about it - but it's just fundamentally different from what Worl does. It has different priorities, a different philosophy, and a different level of personal investment.

From my perspective Xáat Kwáani feels less like branding material and more like a piece of artwork. This isn't something designed to go on letterhead, to be put in a press kit, to be widely reproduced. It's something to be looked at, thought about, and remembered. This is a mural that flies.

I mean...A+, obviously.

There is just about nothing else in the sky which has the same visual power as Xáat Kwáani. As far as I'm concerned, every gallon of paint was worth it to give us this flying tribute to the people and wildlife of the state Alaska Airlines takes its name from.

[moth-related-inquiries]

Hi! I read your oneshot involving Micah and fem child reader and absolutely loved it! I never thought i could see Micah ever taking on the role of a parental figure but you did such a good job tying his character into a role that i thought would never fit him! I was wondering if you could expand more on their dynamic afterwards and how reader would interpret his ‘cull the weak beliefs’ do you think teaching her these would ever come to backfire on him later especially if used against him?

Micah Bell and Fem! Child Reader Pt2: Knives Out

Warnings: incredibly angsty, Micah Bell, you're gonna hate this if u love Micah LOL, lots of murder, terrible beliefs, graphic description of murder, and child death.

tldr: Micah Bell's teachings came to bite him back in the ass. :( Nobody close to him can be happy.

A/n: Hi, Anon! Thank you for the req ♡♡♡ I'm so glad you liked my last fic! I hope you like this one, too. Feel free to send any more requests you might have :p

Listen while you read?:

Today was your third month of 'bonding,' as Micah liked to call it. You'd slowly progressed from being as terrible of a shot as Sean Macguire to being fairly good at your shots. Of course, you weren't as good as Micah, but he congratulated you on your significant progress. Unlike the others, Micah has been surprisingly patient with you. There were a lot of things he had to teach and show you, and you seemed to learn best when you were in the middle of action.

Not only had you become a better shot, but you'd also become a more malleable tool. When you finished your first robbery, Micah decided that from now on you weren't going by your old name. The Bell family had a very specific practice they used when choosing names. For the first time in a long time, he flipped open a Bible and scoured its pages for a suitable name. Eventually, he settled on Elisabeth, the technical grandmother of Jesus. Not because she was a humble or remarkable woman, but because she was stubbornly faithful. Like a dog.

He hoped that, since he'd earned your trust, you'd follow him like a dog to the ends of the earth. And that you did. No matter what he did, where he went, or who he killed, he stayed as your role model. Beyond that, he was also your new father figure. Sure, you liked Dutch and Hosea, but they never saw things from your point of view like Micah did. The Dutch, for one, insisted on the dramatics constantly. He'd make up schemes to entertain himself and some big wig bastard, then steal the money. Which probably would've entertained you if you had the patience. And Hosea, well, he didn't enjoy the 'thrill' of murdering and robbing the same way that you did. Meaning that he liked making a fool of himself and then leaving with a small sum of money.

Not to mention that Micah secretly found both of them to be fools in their own ways. You thought, at first, that he saw you as a fool too, but he assured you that you were anything but. He called you his 'kinfolk.' His kid. You found it odd. He claims to be so strong, yet he practically creates his own weakness. With this idea in mind, you began to dissect some of his flaws.

When the two of you were in camp, you noticed that he was anything but pleasant to the other members. He often harassed and berated many of the women in camp, too, which you found odd. Even odder was the fact that he berated Jack, which made you curious. Was he perhaps jealous of John and Abigail for their achievements? It seemed so. You guessed that he was jealous because he too wanted a family, no matter how dysfunctional. Though he hadn't had much luck considering that, like the stupid man he is, he took his anger out on all the women around him.

Micah Bell could never score a woman, and he knew that very well. And now, so did you. And all you had to do was watch him like you normally do. Every time you did, he'd lean over and whisper in your ear about how someday he's going to get a nice and fine wife, and these floozies are going to be sorry. You knew better. Every time he'd provide some weird back-handed compliment, you wondered if he knew it only made him look weak. He had all bark and no bite. Which, in many cases, he did. All talk until Dutch struts over, then suddenly he's acting like he's a holy deity sworn to do nothing but good.

That was one major weakness you'd noticed about him. His one big fault. Micah seemed to assume that being a snake oil salesman made him a man. A man fit for survival in the natural world. A man who could do whatever he wanted and whenever he wanted as long as he still had his silver tongue. And it did, for a little while. He could go around murdering families and sleep like a little baby the night after. That is, until he met you.

See, Micah Bell had done himself dirty when he began 'training' you. Because, unlike Micah, you shut your mouth, and you watched everyone really well. You waited for someone to come to you, and you didn't, no matter how tough it was to resist, let your guard down. Yet Micah Bell had shown his since the day he decided to mentor you. Sure, you were unaware of the impact of his actions then, but he'd taught you well. He'd gifted you a higher consciousness without even knowing it.

So, after three long months of needlessly long interaction, you put his teachings to work. You woke up bright and early to listen to the birds chirp their jovial toons. It was nice to let the weak be, just for a moment, because sometimes they end up surprising you with their entertainment. Your steel gaze turned to Micah, who was fast asleep on his bedroll, facing the cliffside. He, too, was nice when you left him be. When he did sleep, it looked peaceful. And, for a moment, you decided to let him be, too.

You grabbed your satchel, one that Micah had bought for you, and opened it. From it, you produced a jagged stone that you'd found back in Strawberry, after the pair of you (and Arthur) murdered an entire town. You originally picked it up in order to execute whoever was holding Micah's precious revolvers, but he beat you to it. And, with savagery and cowardice, he murdered another family right in front of you. It was eerily thrilling when you first experienced it, but now? Now you feel nothing but guilt. Not for the town you'd helped murder, but for Micah.

You looked down at him, staring at his greasy forehead. As you lifted your stone, you teared up as you remembered all the times that he'd slipped up. A terrible feeling sank into your chest as you thought about your first robbery. How he wiped your tears away after you'd committed your first murder and rubbed your back like the father you never had. You'd given him your weakness, and he accepted it with unknowing tenacity. From then on, you gave him your weakness, and he allowed you to piggyback off of him like a little parasite.

For such a morally corrupt man, Micah had always done his best to assure your safety, no matter what. When the two of you were low on rations, he let you have the last. When the gang was ambushed, he made sure you were never there. When the two of you were caught in a rock and a hard place, he always made you run back to camp while he distracted the bastards following you. It's your fault that he turned into something he never wanted to be.

It's your fault that he became so weak.

Your brows furrowed, and your face twisted into anguish. You lifted the stone up above your head and, with all your might, sent it crashing down upon his skull. It made a sickening crunch, like a pumpkin being dropped, but Micah did not move. You repeated the action over and over again until his head finally caved in. Once you were done, you walked over to your horse, one that he had gifted you, and shot her, too. Baylock was smart enough to run off.

From then on, you decided that, out of the four of you, Baylock would be the strongest. He was the survivor because he ran like hell instead of sticking around to die. Finally, you walked back to the cliffside and erased the last remaining proof of Elisabeth Bell's entire existence.

A/N: i hope people like this :p i know child death is a very sensitive topic, but I think that this is how it would go in the eyes of a child. I tried to make it a little confusing so that we could really understand how uniquely this kind of situation would affect someone as vulnerable as a child versus an adult.

[culpeppercheckers721]

Turn Week 2024– Day 3: Encounter with Another Time Period

Apologies for my tardiness to respond to this prompt! Though I’m unsure if the original idea for this prompt was time travel, the first place my mind went to was a classic, good old modern AU, so here’s a shitty collage of lovely cast photos to capture the vibe! ;)

[Once again feat. Townhull vibes in the bottom row because of who I am as a person, complete with brown & blue color schemes because that shit matters to me]

So, for lack of a better response to this entry, I hit you with some silly little modern AU headcanons!

- Ben is an objectively good driver, but he’s always very high-strung and stressed while he’s operating a vehicle. Perhaps he’s just always better suited to riding on horseback.

- Caleb strikes me as the type to order pizza to his house and then try to form a bond with the arbitrary DoorDash/Uber Eats drivers (can’t explain why)

- Abe thoroughly enjoys spamming Rob’s phone with texts even if he has nothing important to say (which I guess you’ve already garnered if you’ve read any of my modern fic lmfao), though he will in theory blow up anyone’s phone

- Mary is always on top of keeping her phone charged because it matters to her that she can always keep track of her family and friends (especially when she knows her friends are prone to do dumb shit when unsupervised)

- Anna is probably pretty successful on social media not because she’s anything akin to an influencer or a model, but because she just gives good advice on how to run a business (& how to deal with idiots, perhaps)

- Robert is probably often the designated driver during a night out, not because he’s entirely abstinent from alcohol, it’s just that he can handle his liquor unlike some (Abe & probably Caleb are both too busy laughing cacophonously & continuously to drive)

- Ben ends up in cycles of a) spending time on a meticulous hair care routine which keeps him looking as amazing as always and b) slapping on like 5-in-one shampoo/conditioner shit in the span of 3 minutes

- Also: Ben & Caleb might be “closet” Taylor Swift enjoyers??? ((If I have to think about that, so do you))

- Rob, similar to the canon time period, also probably refrains from dressing in overly colorful, intricately patterned clothing— he’s not dressed in all-black every hour of the day, but he’s usually in more neutral tones

- Maybe not totally modern-specific, but Mary is unintentionally very good with animals (not to mention kids)??? Idk can’t explain it

- Abraham (fairly) often has to fix basic technical problems that Richard runs into and it’s always a very awkward process because he KNOWS that Richard would DESPISE to admit that he needs help from his son because Abe knows how to work an iPhone better than him. 💀

Also bonus Townhull-specific food for thought:

- Rob & Abe have a petty debate about where everyone should get dinner and out of nowhere Caleb, becusse he had read online that this phrase can ‘end any argument’, goes “I think other forces are at play.” and just. Refuses to elaborate.

This is once again incoherent but I hope you enjoyed it <3

[bubblegumflavor]

Johnny Lawrence is a character that is always pushed down. Him being physically stronger than Daniel doesn't help his mind being constantly challenged. He enters the Karate Kid with his mind strong, with the will to make it better, to make it work. Yeah he beats up Daniel a lot and worse than excusable, but he just wanted to talk to Ali and Ali is pretty mean to him, promising she will talk but then just plays the music again... Daniel sucker punches him first. Daniel humiliates him at the Halloween party and yeah, they beat Daniel up but Mr. Miyagi.. an adult.. breaking a teenager's arm? (Tommy) instead of acting like an adult and de-escalate the situation? Well..

While Daniel is provoking Johnny constantly, Johnny leaves Daniel alone until the tournament, where he again, gets manipulated, humiliated, loses his father figure, gets robbed of his chance to win fairly, still has the courage to get up and give Daniel the trophy, saying he's alright which is an apology, I don't care what other people say. Then outside him getting beaten and humiliated continues with Kreese almost killing him for ending up second place.

And in Cobra Kai it continues... I mean it's also funny and entertaining but it also hurts me to think about how often Johnny is forced to take charity from Daniel, how he can't stop drinking, how everything is always his fault, how he just feels worth of Carmen's affection after performing miracles for her, how he wanted Ali but Amanda says hahah not on my watch, remember Carmen and he's like oh yeah... right then I must love Carmen, I figured it out! (But it was Amanda actually... lol)

I was just watching season 1 again and especially that scene where Johnny is literally on the ground to get his beer and Daniel shows off his dominance because he has the money, it hurts. I wish we had seen Johnny not taking the beer because Daniel paid it or something. Just walking out. Let the man have some dignity!! (I could go on forever I really feel like it got worse in the show to the point where his whole purpose is to fulfill Carmen's dreams but I am rewatching atm and see if I just made it worse in my head, I at least was able to enjoy season 1 again and thats a personal win since I wasn't able to rewatch after s5)

Johnny paying back Sid and finally cut him out of his life is so satisfying to watch, I'm so glad they did that.

I know he has some wins too like I feel equally sad for Daniel when Cobra Kai overpowers his Miyagi-Do presentation and Daniel was so excited for it.. I love watching them get back at each other and all just some nuances leave a bad taste in my mouth when I'm overthinking it.

I love Johnny so much.. He is my comfort character and thinking about all of this hurts me physically. So I try not to. A lot of this in Cobra Kai was done for comic relief and gave us hilarious moments and if I don't think too much about it I can enjoy them all but I, personally, will never enjoy content where Johnny is portrayed as weaker as Daniel or submissive to Daniel or anyone else. (Which doesn't mean he can't have weak moments and Daniel be the one comforting him, that is sth different and I love that!) (I don't enjoy Daniel being 'babygirled' either but that's a different story, lol)

Just some thoughts I needed to get out of my system with my sunday morning coffee =)

[the-ghost-bracket]

The Snatcher propaganda:

"[spoilers for the game's story] the ghost of a prince whose wife left him in a basement to die because she was jealous of him hanging out with another woman. he tries to be scary and terrorize the main character but is actually just a sweetie deep down who makes you run his errands for him. by the end of his levels you force him to sign a bff contract

he's also voiced by luke sizemore/yungtown who is a musician i love and who kindly directed me to one of my fav games of all time <3"

"Cringe ass naenae lawyer. He was a prince now he just traps anyone who walks into his forest to steal their soul. Also a divorce victim."

"Snatcher is an evil ghost dude that is the king of Subcon Forest. He steals souls and makes you do his chores basically. His design is top-tier and he has a kickass boss theme to go along with him. He's also divorced and pretty much adopts the main character, hat kid, lmao"

"just a real bastard tbh. a slight scallawag. Also he tries to murder Hat Kid (the protag) throughout the entire story then basically ends up semi-adopting her but refuses to admit he cares about her at all. he is literally described as a tsundere by Hat Kid in the Steam trading cards which is still wild to me. Also, like any good ghost, he has a sad backstory, which is about being locked up in a basement and slowly frozen to death over a misunderstanding with his wife (or girlfriend? unclear). which is why he has trust issues and doesn't want to care about anyone else again. He's even got a legion of evil minions he sends stolen mail to to make them feel cared about, which is of course couched in a thick layer of insults to distract from the fact that he clearly cares about them a lot if he goes through all this effort for them. anyways, he's goofy, he's evil, and I want to both hug him and punch him at the same time. What more could anyone want?"

"The mysterious, soul-stealing, shadowy apparition of Subcon Forest who ropes any unsuspecting victims unfortunate enough to step into his traps into completing his contracts… which are really just his chores he doesn’t feel like doing (including but not limited to: cleaning out a well, cleaning out a toilet, robbing his ex, delivering mail). Despite his immorality, he’s fairly jovial about the whole “being dead” ordeal, often cracking jokes about his own mortality (and the high mortality rate of his contractors).

Worth noting that, despite being technically invulnerable, he gets beaten up by an 11 year old who then deems him her best friend solely to piss him off. A Hat in Time is a great game."

[oscartullyofriverrun]

A Friendly Duel: with @thedaringprince

Oscar had quickly found his favorite place to be was in the training yard of the Red Keep.  The armory was stocked with a variety of weapons that were open for all the nobility to use and due to the amount of people currently staying in the Keep, there was always someone around for Oscar to spar with.  At least, that was usually the case.  Today, the weather was misty and the air held a hint of a chill unusual for summer.  Very few people had braved the nasty weather to train, though Oscar had managed to spend much of the morning helping a young squire from house Grafton learn various disarming techniques until he’d been called away to attend to his lord.  Now, Oscar was alone running himself through drills, determined to keep moving and ahead of his thoughts.  He needed to go inside and write a letter back to his mother about the problem of a small group of bandits that had been robbing the villages of the Riverlands, but every time he sat down to write it he couldn’t focus.  The only thing that kept his mind slightly ahead of his anxieties about his father was making himself so exhausted that he fell into bed unable to do anything but sleep.  

Oscar paused for a moment, reaching up to brush his hair back from his forehead.  As he did, he caught sight of a figure across the training yard and he couldn’t stop himself from staring as a jolt of recognition went through him.  He’d seen Daeron Targaryen in the training yard before, but they’d never spoken to each other.  Usually the prince would train with his friends, but today there was no one in sight but Oscar.  He felt nervous to approach him.  Many of the ladies of the court were consistently whispering about how attractive Daeron was and Oscar could secretly admit to himself that they were right.  Beyond his typically stunning Valyrian features, the prince also had a kind smile and warm eyes.  Oscar was fairly certain he might make a fool of himself if he attempted to speak to him.  More pressingly, he wasn’t quite sure how to train with a prince.  Would Oscar get in trouble if he accidentally hurt him?  

But there was no one else around.  Training was often more effective when one had a partner to spar against and Oscar didn’t want the prince to think Oscar was ignoring him.  So, he sheathed his sword and strode over to where Daeron was standing.  “Hello, my prince.  I’m Oscar Tully, the second son of Lord Elmo Tully.  I was just practicing some drills, but I would like to spar against you if you’re open to it.  I’ve heard you’re quite a formidable opponent.”  Oscar smiled a bit nervously, but he reminded himself that despite all the trappings that surrounded the royal family, they were all people just like him.  Oscar himself hated it when his bannerman became awkward or nervous around him because of his position and he hated the idea of doing the same thing to the prince.

[allthatmay]

thoughts on shanks/mihawk?

I love Shanks/Mihawk. They're great from what little we see of them together, especially in the live action. The 'divorced dad' vibes are very strong.

In my head—and in my Shanks/Ace universe—Shanks was romantically involved with Mihawk (and with Buggy to a lesser extent; they were only young, after all). I believe his experience and his failures (self-perceived or otherwise) with Buggy informed his relationship with Mihawk. I imagine that Shanks and Mihawk started out as rivals, fighting all across the Grand Line, then they became true equals, and then lovers.

Mihawk is somewhat of an isolated person by choice (putting it lightly), so his relationship with Shanks was bound to be distant in some ways—but I think that wasn't helped by the fact that Shanks learned to put his goal above everything (he's such a martyr). Shanks may have also looked at what went wrong with Buggy and decided that he shouldn't get too close to Mihawk, for both of their sakes.

(Unrelated to Mihawk, but Shanks' friendly demeanour is connected to this; it lends the appearance of friendship where there may be none. That way, he doesn't actually have to get close to people. Also means people underestimate him. The older he gets, the more he realises the importance of relationships—the sheer trust he has in Benn is something that helps teach him that—but I think, after Roger's death and Buggy's departure, Shanks felt like he couldn't afford to have too many people close to him. He has a small, fairly weak crew that he protects. I feel like he's always known the importance of bonds to other people, but has often neglected them for "the greater good" or something like that.)

Of course, Mishanks love each other, they do. But things take a wobble when Shanks disappears for a fucking year, having robbed the Gum Gum Fruit from the Marines, and returns without his arm—his dominant sword arm. Where Mihawk and Shanks used to be perfect equals, they are no longer—or, at least that's how Mihawk sees it. Things are weird then, because they still love each other, but it's not the same. Mihawk's a pretty simple guy, cares mostly about swordsmanship, whereas Shanks has always had bigger plans. They decide they make better allies than lovers.

Years later, Ace comes into play with Shanks. At this point, Shanks is preparing for Luffy's (Joy Boy's) arrival, so a lot of his part is over for the time being. Ace is someone he can see feasibly having close to him (for a lot of reasons) without compromising himself, his crew, or his goals.

Meanwhile, I could see Mihawk getting with... Well, Zoro, honestly. (Wouldn't that be funny? Mishanks both get much younger boyfriends and meet randomly at sea one day. Hah!) He could get with anyone (looking at Crocodile and Buggy), but Zoro and Mihawk share a very passionate interest in swordsmanship; it's the most important thing in the world to both of them. They could totally get together. (And their relationship could totally end with Zoro killing him for his title.)

Having said all of that, I'm also a sucker for stories where Shanks and Mihawk end up together. But, geez, sorry for the rambling! Hope this was the kind of thing you were looking for?

[brighterdaysarebeforeus]

Still Hobie!! (^.^) side note, we’re just gonna have lots of Peters, hahahaha. We’ll use the Spider nicknames to differentiate. (^.^) also, Ham is an actual like…person in this. They’re not running with a random pig, hahaha

Ok enjoy!!

@hobiesgender @royallydivinelesbian

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

The rendezvous point was on the abandoned pier, by the dried up portion of the river. There was a boat, a foot or three below the wooden pier, still tied off to it like the thing would float away on the dirt. Nobody ever came out here, because there wasn’t much out here aside from a long abandoned boat and the depressing sight of the riverbed; it was the perfect hideaway, and honestly sometimes Hobie thought it would be easier if they could stay on the boat full time and not just meet up there every so often.

Only issue was, he had spent his entire life looking over his shoulder for guards; he couldn’t stay in one place for more than a night or two before he started getting paranoid and twitchy. Best to keep on the move and save this place for a backup location when needed.

“He’s here!” Peni yelled down, waving at Hobie from the top of the sails. She liked climbing all the way to the top, despite multiple warnings of slipping or falling or the mast breaking, and she was the perfect person to ensure he hadn’t been followed by anyone. If he had been, she wouldn’t have said anything, but there were calls they’d agreed on to indicate followers. Hobie waved at her, ducking through the cloth they’d hung in place of a door.

“Thought you’d finally got caught.” Gwen said loudly when Hobie made his way onto the boat. She was in her look out corner, facing the doorway and staring pointedly at him as he entered.

“Who, me?” Hobie pointed at himself and grinned proudly, pulling the hoodie off of his head and tossing it at her face. She squealed in surprise when it hit her, and she yanked it away from her with a gag as soon as she could. “Nah, Miguel would never. My guy can only dream of catching me one day, a dream that will never come true.”

“That’s what you say now,” Margo said from her post; she was on the ceiling, sitting on a ledge that stuck out partially from the wall. It was long enough for her to lay down if she wanted to, but only just low enough from the ceiling for her to sit. Her buns were pressed flat against her head, but she didn’t move from where she was leaning and staring down at them. “But one of these days, Hobie Brown, your luck is gonna run out. What are you gonna do then?”

“My luck ain’t gonna run out.” Hobie called back, flopping over onto the couch in the center of the room. Ham was curled up in the armchair, staring at him with wide eyes. He was a somewhat newer addition, snarky and quippy when he wanted to be but still fairly quiet and shy. He usually tended to stick with Peni when he could, though Gwen was a close second for him. “If it does, I’ll be dead and you lot will have to figure out how to carry on without me.”

“Not funny, Hobie.” Gwen jumped over the back of the couch and landed on him, making him grunt and wheeze as he tried to get her off. “Here.” A bagel landed on his chest, and a muffin, and Hobie lifted an eyebrow at her right as he shoved the top part of the muffin in his mouth.

“You rob a bakery or something?” He asked her. Gwen shrugged.

“Ducked through someone baking shit on the way here.” She said. “Thought you would’ve been smart enough to grab your own food, but I guess not.”

“Not my fault.” Hobie said, even as he leaned back to offer the bagel to Ham. The kid looked at it for a moment before snatching it from his hand and ripping it in half. He bit down into one of the halves, watching them both with wide eyes. “Kid and his mother got kicked outta their home. Had to give them something.”

“I am also a kid that got kicked out of their home.” Ham said. “Does that mean I gotta give up my food to strangers all the time too?”

“It’d be nice if ya could.” Hobie said. “Gotta look out for ours since no one else will.”

“There’s a whole royal family who’s job it is to look out for us.” Gwen reminded him, and Hobie met her gaze with a raise eyebrow. They had a silent stare off before Gwen cracked, snickering into the palm of her hand. “Ok, ok, that’s fair.” She leaned back against the couch, staring up at the ceiling. “Any other plans for today aside from running from the guards?”

Hobie thought about it for a moment, swallowing his food so that he wouldn’t get lectured from Gwen for talking with his mouth full.

There were several soup kitchens he knew were open. Mrs. Aguilar down the block from the library who probably needed help with groceries or her heating; woman was always needing something, but she had no one else to look out for her and so they stepped in where they could. Miguel was likely still organizing the guards to find Hobie again, especially since they’d gotten so close to catching him today.

“There’s lotsa stuff that can get done today.” Hobie said finally. “What’s the time?”

“About 1:45.” Margo called from ceiling.

“We got time.” Hobie said. “Let’s make a game plan and get to it.”

[lycaonthropy]

this is kind of a wishlist but also just me throwing out ideas & dynamics i wanna explore so i can point back to this for plotting with people in future

if anyone w muses mentioned here ever wants to write something like this with me i will die for you promptly

this is very generalised but one of the things i’m most interested in digging into with nick & dylan is their trauma & the lingering effects of the game’s events — it follows them into college & their futures & impacts them heavily, both physically & mentally. i’m super interested in writing with other quarry muses in general in the sense of being able to discuss & bond over what they all went through, but even with non - quarry characters it’s something people would notice about them eventually or with any level of closeness, so it’s entirely likely it would come up with others too ( even if they can’t tell them exactly what happened )

nick / dylan — aka …. writing with a nick as dylan or vice versa. i ( obviously ) love both of them a lot & one of the things i’m sad we didn’t get to see more is their friendship and banter from the beginning of the game, i really wanna focus on that some more & explore their interactions during camp season or being close post - game. i think often about evan evagora being asked who nick’s best friend at camp is & answering that he looks up to jacob but is most himself with dylan

ryan — i’m always interested in exploring his dynamic with dylan & where that has the potential to go after everything, especially since i feel like the game dropped the ball with them once the radio shack sequence was over. with nick i’m also curious about their dynamic during camp, considering they’re both fairly quiet in comparison to other counsellors & how quick ryan is to haul ass to help nick

kaitlyn — i love kaitlyn & dylan’s friendship. everyone loves them ! they play off of each other so well & i 100% see them staying in touch after the game no matter what & regardless of whether anyone else does. give me dylan - kaitlyn healing from trauma via movie hangouts & takeout dinners & late night facetimes

emma — god i have so many thoughts about emma. with dylan they’re such mirrors of each other, both of them dialling up their personalities to project a more confident, impressive version of themselves, both living by faking it is just being yourself but louder. we were robbed of seeing them talk properly & i genuinely feel like they have so many surprising similarities deep down that threads could capitalise on. as for nick i really want to explore how they would act with one another & respond to everything afterwards — the kiss & guilt over what it caused , the fact that nick’s love interest is emma’s best friend & emma’s is ( occasionally ) nick’s & how they’d feel about how their friend was treated by the other, the fact that they were isolated from the other counsellors & Going Through It alone for most of the night, there’s so much potential for conversation there

obligatory block break for tumblr character limit

jacob — i wanna write out nick & jacob’s friendship so bad. it’s so interesting & nick has such complicated feelings about him : admiration, jealousy, competitiveness, annoyance, amusement, genuine fondness, respect, derision, very repressed attraction ? . jacob is ( part of ) why he thinks & acts the way he does, what he ( thinks he ) aspires to be, who he wants to impress, why he hides certain things about himself & who he’s always comparing himself to. the potential is SO TASTY i am chewing on it there are so many ways it could go !! i have way less in - depth thoughts about dylan & jacob but y’know what the jock & secret nerd dynamic is always fun to play around with they could be a surprising vibe

abi — nick has intense guilt post - game no matter what but a huge part of it comes down to abi. i feel like there’s a lot to dive into there with the difficult conversations they probably need to have, trying to make up for what he did & regain her trust while also reconciling that it wasn’t him ( but it was his face & his hands & his voice ), his gratitude for her saving him & where their relationship goes after everything, whether they can mend what was there or settle into a real friendship or if it’s all just too tainted

[allwaswell16]

✨ Twenty Questions for Fic Writers ✨

I was tagged by @reminiscingintherain to do this (thanks Roni!) and I loved reading her answers to these!

How many works do you have on ao3?

105

2. What's your total ao3 word count?

1,083,820

3. What fandoms do you write for?

One Direction and Harry Potter (Drarry)

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

I Didn't Fall For You (You Fucking Tripped Me) 3,949 (ooh getting close to the next thousand. I have an anon who comes and asks me for more of this fic every time I get a milestone # on this one, so I'll maybe be talking to you again soon, anon lol)

That's How I Know 3,443

Consequences 2,631

If I Loved You Less 2,387

Waiting 1,803

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

Yes! I do! Every single one! I get pretty anxious if I don't answer them fairly quickly to be honest. Sometimes I get behind, but not by more than usually a month or so. I really loved getting a response from writers to my comments especially when I first started reading in fandom. To be fair, I left a lot of unhinged comments lol. They probably stood out a little. But I loved having that connection to a writer, so I try to have it in return with anyone reading my fics.

6. What is a fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

For You I'd Bleed Myself Dry

I don't write unhappy endings, so this isn't exactly an unhappy ending. But it's a turning vampire fic so. Becoming the undead is angsty-ish, right?

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Until (series)

Probably this one because they end up having two weddings in the time stamp lol They're ridiculous and I love them.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

Not very often that I can think of. I can only think of it happening once off the top of my head and it was someone who hadn't even read the fic so.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

I doooo! I wouldn't say I love writing it, but I write it when the story seems to go there. I am not really a pwp writer though, and I haven't written fics where the main point is the smut. And the only reason for that is because I just haven't had an idea that called for that!

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?

I've written a couple of Potter Direction ficlets. But probably the weirder ones are the Louis/Rob Pattinson ones lol. The weirdest of those is probably: Interview with the vampire

I'm also writing a Peaky Blinders crossover right now actually.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

I have, unfortunately. I ended up making a Wattpad account for the sole purpose of reporting my stolen fics.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Yes, I allow translations so there's a bunch out there now.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Wine Not?

I have! Once! It was a giant group of us lol I made some great friends from writing that fic! And actually @taggiecb and I just started talking about writing a mystery fic, but who knows if we'll ever write it

14. What's your all-time favourite ship?

OOF. I am a great lover of ships hence my running a rare pair fic fest. There's really something about Draco/Harry or Louis/Nick Grimshaw...I guess the enemies to lovers vibes of it all. The bickering. The drama. sighhh so good.

But I don't know that I can really say that I love any more than my OG Louis/Harry.

15. What's a wip you want to finish, but doubt you ever will?

I am NOT linking it. But I have an unfinished wip out there on ao3 that haunts me. If I ever can figure out what to do with it, I'll finish it.

16. What are your writing strengths?

Maybe humor as evidenced by my more popular fics, I guess. Dialogue maybe just because I find that easy to write. taggiecb is always having to tell me to add more of what the characters are thinking because all I want to write is them talking lol

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Some of the things I've worked on specifically over the years are: writing meaningful smut, writing more vivid sensory details, and having strong characters.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

I probably wouldn't. I have a vague memory of using another language once. Italian? I'm pretty sure I set a fic in Rome and had a bit of Italian in it. But I had an Italian friend translate that bit for me. So I'd say have a native speaker help with that.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

As Roni said in her answer...technically I wrote Bill/Ted fic with a childhood friend when we were little kids but we had no idea we were writing fanfiction. Purposely written fic would be One Direction.

20. Favourite fic you've written?

Hmmm this is hard. It changes on a whim but maybe Consequences because it probably has the best plot I've ever written. But I don't reread this one because it brings back weird memories for me. Like I dreamed up the plot twistyness on the way to my pulmonologist and immunologist appointments FUN TIMES. So in a way it reminds me of when I was very sick. Whomp. Okay now I've brought down the mood. Let me try and steer this in another direction...I love both If I Loved You Less and Ace of Spades because they are set during the Regency era and I have just now realized they both involve a kidnapping. Read the first one if you want Louis to be kidnapped and Ace if you want Harry to be kidnapped. THAT DID NOT HELP THE MOOD IM SORRY

I'll tag: @kingsofeverything @disgruntledkittenface @voulezloux @tommokat @loveislarryislove @alwaysxlarrie @larry-hiatus and anyone else who wants to do this just say I tagged you!

[eievuimultimuse]

@eyeknowmayhem LIKED THIS FOR A STARTER ( from stockfly, for leatherhead ) !!

     “ JUST OVER THERE should do, thank you, “ the father says to his child. Though he has two smaller arms with which to point with  ( his primary pair preoccupied with lugging a fairly hefty piece of machinery over his shoulder ), he nods his head towards the empty space on the floor of his labs to indicate to them where they could place whatever apparatus they’d taken from that warehouse.  ( It still takes some getting used to, remembering that he has these extra parts now to assist him; he’s spent over 50 years with two arms instead of four, so who could blame him. )  It still seems so SURREAL, performing these numerous heists. He’d shocked even himself whenever he robbed TCRI of their property and fled for the hills to start a new life, nearly 15 years ago; he certainly never expected that it would become a semi-regular routine.

     ( But, if nothing else, he’s a man of PURPOSE. All of this — what he was doing — was for a GREATER GOOD. In the grand scheme of life, this chapter will eventually close, and by the end of it, everything will have been worth it. So he keeps telling himself anyway. )

     Baxter carefully removes the machinery from atop his shoulder and places it on the floor with a small clunk. As soon as he does, he stands upright, arching his back with one hand placed on the small of it, wings twitching as he stretches it out. “ Really need to start warming up before these things, “ he mumbles, mostly to himself. Once he’s done that, he unsheaths an empty canister from his coat  ( oversized for him normally; perfect for him while he’s like this ).  “ It can do a number of things, but it can’t hammer out my creaky back for me, “ he jests.

     ‘It,’ of course, being the OOZE — the substance that created his children and also the same substance that transforms him into the fly mutant that he currently is. Often, he would enter their target areas as an unsuspecting human — then, when they’d least expect it, he’d change, catching them off-guard. This recent warehouse trip was no different.

     At his workbench, he stands the empty canister up beside several others  ( evidently, he’d have to make more at some point. Ah well, wouldn’t be the first time. Running out of mutagen is comparatively less concerning than the alternative ). Beside it, there’s a rack of other canisters with layered liquid. Pressing a button on it, the rack started spinning them; the liquid swiftly began adopting an azure hue.

     He exhales a small sigh while he waits, though green eyes find themselves wandering towards Leatherhead. He usually didn’t involve his kids for little more than an extra pair of hands, though there certainly have been times where they served as worthwhile BACK-UP. He usually makes an effort to avoid the latter, but it can’t always be avoided. And those moments were never NOT concerning for him, being a father and all, but it was fair to say that, given the WIDE ARRAY of creatures he was dealing with, some of them were more concerning than others.

     Leatherhead was one of them. Just…not for the same reason as others. Nothing had escalated when they were out — actually, it was incredibly TAME, all things considered. Probably because they’d been there. Turns out, the threat of JAWS is far more intimidating than that of an insect. But— aw, hell. He can’t help the feeling of GUILT. This simply wasn’t what Baxter WANTED for them. Which was why he was going to such GREAT LENGTHS in the first place.

“ . . . And how was that for you ? “ he inquires gently at first. Then he simply asks what is on his mind: “Are you okay ? “

[wantedbythemasters]

Aster Morrow | The Silvering Thief

Image from here

Age in 1902 (or the 3rd 1899): 37

Gender: Male, he/him

Height: 5’11’

Weight: 157 lbs

Sexuality: Gay

Race: Indian

Love Interest: May, but who knows what they actually are together

Factions: Criminals, Revolutionaries 

Open to RP: Yep!

Open to Shipping: You can try but it’ll probably take a while for him to warm up

Past Epithet: The Mercurial Thief

Desc:

Aster is a fairly successful criminal with feats such as robbing the Bazaar. He has tons of aliases, but most criminals who know him personally know him as Aster or Aster Morrow. He also lost his mind seeking for a while and ended up with a strange connection with Salt as a result. And he learned silvering from May who he has a complicated relationship with.

He’s trying to be a better person than he has been, but it hasn’t been easy for him. He tends to be pretty deadpan and pretends he doesn’t really care about anyone a lot of the time, even when he does.

He’ll probably go east eventually, but he's not in a rush. 

Parabolan Self:

In Parabola, Aster is known as the Eastbound Pirate. He often controls water and forms it into various weapons. He also has a ship called the Herald. Sometimes it has sails, and resembles a traditional pirate ship (like, with sails) and sometimes it has wings instead and flies. Aster also sometimes has wings on his Parabolan form.

Appearances:

The Star and the Candle - Major character

Tea Time - Major character

Flirting with disaster (in a different way) - Major character

There’s also an nsfw one that I’m not linking but it’s on AO3 ;)

Timeline:

1865-1869

Aster was born in the Neath to very irresponsible parents. He was often neglected while they partied and gambled. When he was about 4, his parents abandoned him at a church and an urchin gang took him in, but they didn’t treat him well.

1878-1887 

They cast him out earlier than usual, when he was around 13. But he quickly joined the Gracious Widow’s gang, and also met Maria, who he often ended up working with. Due to his past, though, he found it hard to trust her or anyone else.

Over the years, Aster also found work with the Topsy King and Cheery Man and became acquainted with their gangs as well.

In 1887, Maria told him she’d be leaving the Widow’s gang to work at the Parlour of Virture, and Aster was really upset about this and felt that she was using being a criminal as a gang and now she’d get to move on with her real family and a normal life, and he’d never be able to. She told him she viewed him as a brother and asked if he also wanted to be hired and he said he didn’t want a sister or to work with her, so she told him off. That was they saw each other for quite a while.

1898

In his early 30s, he began to experience strange feelings and visions and found himself seeking. The criminals and a certain hotel manager tried to help him break free, and seemed to be successful for a few months where Aster lived in the Flit and became close to the raggedy people, while learning silvering from May in an attempt to make it less likely he’d be tricked by Eaten again. However, Aster still had some of the same impulses and began steadily being pulled deeper into seeking, which the silvering lessons ended up exacerbating. Eventually, Aster ended up having the Shapeling Arts used on him to change his face, while Mr Eaten had him forget that anyone else had cared for him and hid his presence in Parabola so he could collect the candles with no one interfering. 

Meanwhile the actual Mr Candles, who’d been trapped somewhere in Parabola and who was REALLY TIRED of constantly being reminded of his trauma was also trying to stop this and managed to free Mr Mirrors who directed Aster in a slightly different direction which led to May finding Aster in Irem and Aster asking about Salt at the Avid Horizon.

Also, in Irem he saw a vision of the Neon Future, where he collected information for the criminals and revolutionaries to stay ahead of the masters and ensure that the Seventh City was here to stay.

[dontbotherwiththepronunciation]

You asked about personal experience and background in the poll. I don't know if many responders filled it out, but if so, were there correlations to certain preferences?

I am very sorry for how long this took! You sent this almost a week ago and I've barely had time to log into Tumblr and make the post, but yes, there were! And some of it was clearer than I expected.

I couldn't find strong tendencies in each group, but under the cut are some things I found remarkable.

Also overall warning for this being a mix of opinions, some you might strongly disagree with. If I could keep down the bitterness for more than a month, so can you. Read, but please be mindful of how the people quoted here can't defend their positions. Don't take advantage of that. Bitch about it with your mutuals if you really need to. I encourage that! I highly encourage bitching to your mutuals instead of writing aggressive vague posts about things that can't be debated fairly by the author of the text. If you want to criticise my wording, that's fair, I tried to limit myself but I might have been more lenient than I should.

(mixed-)Indigenous people of (former) colonies (8/105≈7,6%)

This and the demographic below (which intersected four times) were the clearest when it came to interpretative tendencies and preferences. As a mixed-indigenous person of a former colony and a third culture kid, it wasn't very surprising but it felt very validating. I won't deny that often I'd be reading through their forms thinking "I WANT TO BE FRIENDS WITH THIS PERSON". *sighs* the woes of not being in an ostrich farm filled with red diaper TCKs and indigenous people of the south hemisphere...

Theonsa & Throbb shippers were in the minority (only one of each) and were picked equally as the ship others liked engaging with the least (three votes each). House Stark tended to rank lower, with 5 voters giving it a 2/10 rating, 1 voter giving it a 5/10 the Theonsa & Throbb shipper giving it a higher ratings (8/10 & 10/10). The concept of Robb Stark being a gift was also somewhat debated with 5/8 being very rejecting of that idea.

The possible endgame of him somewhere in the North was also strongly disapproved, only 2/8 marking those as options they'd be content with.

In regards to whether Theon would have fitted in the Iron Islands, the answers were unanimously positive.

Yes! I think people would have gotten used to him being gay and fabulous, they seem like they can get used to most things, as long as they're an exception and not the rule. Would theon have been happy and fulfilled? Unclear, likely not. Would Balon have been fully satisfied in his son? Unlikely, but I don't think he'd go all Randyll Tarly on his ass. I think he would just be like "woe is me to have an effeminate son and a butch daughter. Oh well."

Barbrey Dustin was the leading MILF among this and the demography below. (WOOHOO)

All these factors were somewhat intertwined in my opinion. Again, linking this in case someone wants to hear about the Theon & children of colonialism experience through slam poetry.

While observing the results from this demographic I also recognised how the the majority of those who preference Dany over Sansa came from this and the TCKs, but among those who identified as "(mixed-)Indigenous people of (former) colonies" the feelings for Sansa were less negative.

Third Culture Kids (8/105≈7,6%)

Very much what I explained above with some small differences.

The "Robb Stark is a gift" concept was almost fully rejected. Only 1 person defended that idea. The House Stark average rating was the same as above and we only had one throbb preferring person among us, with no trace of Theonsa people, but three Theonsa-dislikers and four Throbb-dislikers. The reasoning was not quite that of an anti, but it was HIGHLY critical and often attributed the ships popularity to show made dynamics and scenes.

I'm really not big on Throbb, I know a really large demographic are into it, and it's all very aah 'Robb is a gift' and whatnot but I don't like it! Or, I don't like it how people make it (???). It's not that I particularly dislike Robb, though he is the most nothing out of the stark children to me, but how people always name Robb as a good boy who's done nothing wrong grates on me especially in relation to Theon (does the hunting scene from that Bran chapter in AGOT mean nothing to you?). He's also Mr Feudalism junior. Can we talk about that. Robb does nothing wrong goes hand-in-hand with the freeloader fuckboy Theon which I think is reductive of both. I really just prefer him as a sort of dead Lyanna 'absence defines the narrative where his existence never could' type where his memory is like a shrine everyone flagellates at; snowflakes-melting-in-his-hair couldn't-cut-the-head-off-Karstark-in-one-go fifteen-year-old-boy-we-view-through-his-mother's-perspective. There may have been something, but I think that's just typical best friend homoeroticism that wouldn't have come to fruition proper and would just have existed as a weird tension [...]. I think the show contributed a lot towards its existence and to be real Throbb shippers would be nothing without "I should have been there. Where was I? I should have died with him."

The idea of him being somewhere in the North as his possible endgame, regardless if as a ruler/advisor/peasant passing was fully rejected, no exceptions.

In regards to whether Theon would have fitted in the Iron Islands, one person didn't answer and all the other seven were unanimously positive.

Definitely! I know a lot of people subscribe to the notion that Theon was a soyboy infant and that his father smelled his weakness or some such, but we really have to think about how the environments we're raised in affect us as people.

The Dany standom was more prominent (only one person being somewhat accepting of the Mad Queen theory, but still being very hopeful for a Queen of the 7K/happy somewhere else Dany), while 7/8 of the voters were somewhat accepting of Sansa going down a darker and less happy path. None of them chose anything more pessimistic than that though.

Dany and Theon's struggles with rootlessness and the way they have been made to adapt to different cultures is something I find very touching and many of my irls who are also indigenous people and/or TCKs also shared this feeling among the more (maybe almost anti-)Stark critical views.

It's really hilarious how even his fans won't let him be free of the Starks. Forever chained to fan-made dynamics. Really Robb and him were inseparable? Who told you that? Bran who randomly hates him and also feels jealous? Oh yeah he was seducing Cat, of course...and who was your source? Rodrik Cassel?

was said by one of my irl friends who answered the survey and whose answers were quite similar to those described here but more radical and less apologetic. I hate admitting I've often thought similarly.

Victims of sexual abuse (25/105≈23,8%)

Warning: Rape

Sometimes I've seen people who feel appalled by Thramsay as a ship try to justify to themselves why someone would ship or at least be so invested in a dynamic like that and often they come to the conclusion that the shippers must be coping with their own trauma and sexual abuse, and that might be a possibility but it wasn't one that was reflected on the survey. Only 4/25's preferred ship was Thramsay and the rest were mixed pretty proportionately when it came to ships.

The opposite, on the other hand, was very visible and rather surprising. 18/25 chose Thramsay as the ship they liked engaging with the least and about half of them had a reasoning resembling that of an anti rather than a simple "it's not for me" or actual criticism to the fanon portrayal.

I feel people who like TheonxRamsay are probably mental ill and working through something.

They aren’t real Theon stans they’re just pervs

What really stood out for me though was a strongly polarised view in regards to Kyra, along with some relatively strong criticism of GRRM handling the character and narrative in ADWD.

He sent for Kyra, kicked shut the door, climbed on top of her, and fucked the wench with a fury he'd never known was in him. By the time he finished, she was sobbing, her neck and breasts covered with bruises and bite marks. Theon shoved her from the bed and threw her a blanket. "Get out." - Theon V, ACOK

As I read the answers about Kyra I categorised them between three options;

Apparent indifference: Didn't answer or left a small comment with little to say (8/25)

Comfortable with Theon as a rapist: Self explanatory. Didn't mind or felt guilty about Theon being a sexual abuser. Always saw Theon and Kyra's later encounter as sexual abuse, and was often dubious about the true initial consent because of Theon & Kyra's inherent power difference due to their social positions. (5/25)

Uncomfortable with Theon as a rapist: Also self explanatory. Was critical of GRRM's choice of making Theon rape Kyra and considered it "overkill" or "ooc", tried to justify or twist the narrative into convincing themselves Theon didn't (or at least didn't mean to) rape her, and/or admitted they wilfully ignore that part and don’t read it as canon. (12/25, out of which I am only allowed to quote five in regards to this question)

Ex. Comfortable with Theon as a rapist:

I'm not sure how I feel about the rape though. I lean more towards appreciating that GRRM included that though, because that feels more accurate to how violence is actually perpetrated in life. Having raped before doesn't stop you from falling victim to it, and having been raped doesn't absolve you from the guilt/crimes of what you've done in the past. It's not a moral statement on your character to have been hurt before. [...] I think GRRM very aptly conveys that rape is only ever a false way to seize power over another person, it doesn't prove any inherent superiority in you that you are able to enact this type of violence against another person, especially because this violence is indiscriminate, and happens even to the rapist.

Ex. Uncomfortable with Theon as a rapist:

It's just GRRM using rape as a trope again and it's way too much imo. Idk I don't see why Theon out of all characters in this story is made to rape his girlfriend when they never had a violent relationship before that. It's almost character assassination and lousy writing so I don't read it as canon. I also hate how some readers try to tell others the relationship was always dubious. She was glad to go to his bed when he took over Winterfell so it irks me the wrong way when they try to show her as his victim before the incident went down. It's unnecessary and Theon is always blamed for his actions more than any other character in this series

The majority of all the answers submitted in the poll would have fitted into the "apparent indifference" category. At the end of the day Kyra has little page time, doesn't have a strong characterisation, the only time I saw someone trying to hype her up as a character and obsessing over her it was just so they could juxtapose her as a good example of victimhood compared to Jeyne Poole, whom they hated, and she also happens to be the canon love interest of one half of ASOIAF's most popular M/M ship. She never stood a chance. In truth both of them share a lot in common in how they are narrative props for Theon's arc and have been mistreated and replaced by D&D and the major fandom. It didn't surprised me to see people not reacting to her. The 12 responses I got here did surprise me tremendously.

The following is a quote I categorised as "Uncomfortable with Theon as a rapist" when going over this due to the last sentence, but I also find my own categorising reductive when it came to it. I can't say I feel the same since I very deeply long for a fanfic in which Theon acts as the secondary/less threatening villain to Kyra's failed final girl and is rightfully seen as someone to be frightened of and I sometimes enjoy reading metas in which Theon is called out as a rapist, but I did found this response very honest and felt somehow touched by it. It didn't try to justify itself.

I would hope that when Theon sent for her after his conquest of winterfell it was at first welcome and joyful for her, but I think it was complicated. Being Theon's concubine was a bad and dangerous position for her from the start and I don't think Theon cared. I'm personally uncomfortable with Theon/Kyra as 'normal' pairing that went vaguely wrong, as well as with AUs where everything is fine somehow. I also struggle when they heroically escape or Theon acts as hero towards her in any way. I'm also uncomfortable with AGOT/ACOK prequels where it's a cute teen romance. However I also don't want to read people's fics that are about how much Kyra was hurt by Theon in ways that cannot be redressed nor anyone's Theon rapist metas or fics, even though I agree. In other words I cannot suffer any artistic attempts to make Theon 'look good' or but I also don't like reading about it generally. I guess I wished GRRM didn't do that to me...

I wonder if the overall situation regarding this demographic, this hesitance at accepting one of their favourite character as a rapist and rooting for one, comes from how real the abuse feels in comparison to other much more extreme characters in the story. A man kidnapping you, hunting you with dogs, raping and then flaying you sounds like something out of a gothic novel or a horror movie. A man taking his frustration out by having violent sex with his kind-of-girlfriend, even if she is crying and visibly hurt, and then throwing her from the bed is something a friend could tell you about her abusive ex during a moment of emotional intimacy. The abuse is less exaggerated, so it feels more real and is thus maybe more upsetting, something you want to ignore. However, this is all just my speculation and it might be as wrong as the myth about Thramsay shippers being overwhelmingly victims of sexual abuse.

Victims of domestic violence (20/105≈19%)

There weren't many strong tendencies between them that I could recognise, but maybe some minor things to remark on. Most and least liked ships were spread proportionately, there wasn't any strong criticism against GRRM and the overall Sansa over Dany preference was present here too, but not in a specially drastic manner.

A few things I found remarkable

The highest House Stark scores came from here (with an average of ~8/10 in this subset of answers)

There was a huge love for Theon III, ACOK and Theon IV ACOK. Both of these chapters were on the lower ends of popularity compared to the rest of the survey and I found it really curious to see so many in this subset choose them as part of their favourites (Theon III: 13 votes, Theon IV: 12 votes)

I wonder if at least when it came to Theon III, this might have had something to do with Dagmer Cleftjaw as (up to this point in the story) the only (not-biologically) familiar figure in his life that has treated him with warmth and affection. He warms my heart a lot, but maybe he plays a significantly more emotional role to people who can relate to the domestic abuse and overall lack of positive familial bonds.

11/20 of the voters strongly argued for Theon not having been able to adapt to the Islands had he stayed there or returned sooner. Many of them quoted Asha's description of him as a sweet and timid child and also Theon's own thoughts about Rodrik and Maron, but even more of those based this on Balon and overall Ironborn culture being perceived by them as more brutal, toxically masculine and restrictive.

I think it was his mother who said he had a too kind heart, except for Yara(Asha) the islanders are not known for their loyalty, and living as Balon Greyjoy’s heir wouldn’t have been it for Theon, he deserved his Stark side of that makes sense

no, he already didn't fit into the masculine, blue collar, "you're not a man until you've ripped someone's heart out" culture when he was a young boy, as evidenced by how he was picked on frequently by his brothers and preferred to play with his sisters. he either would've had to repress it and had it eat him alive or he'd just fuck off on a ship until his dad died

Again, I am very sorry for taking so long to answer. I finished writing this a few days ago and then I had to go over it many times. Thank you for your patience and have a nice time. If you have any other questions, please feel free to ask!

[firekitten830]

thinking about gio .... tell us more about him he's literally silly + i like him so much

YOUVE ACTUVATED . MY AUTISM

Makes a bulleted list

-full name Giovanni Morningstar, both of them chosen rather than given. Ooc I chose Giovanni because he is actually vaguely based on my pc from a different ttrpg, and that characters middle name is Giovanni. And Morningstar is a reference to The Devil. like from the bible dksgsjhd

-his divine blood specifically comes from Sharess, goddess of hedonism and indulgence that vanished when dnd 5e came out during the second sundering . So it is no surprise he is motivated almost entirely by hedonism

-he does not know this.

-he’s definitely not her only descendant but he’s her only descendant that inherited any of her magic

-he was not always a tiefling

-he didn’t always have access to his divine magic

-the previous two points were sparked by the same event

-he was born in waterdeep! Not baldurian but gets around enough to know some things

-wanted magic desperately but had absolutely 0 talent for it before his divine magic awakened so he learned the next best thing: stealing shit. Man has been conning and pickpocketing and just generally getting up to thievery and tomfoolery since he was like. 8 (charlatan background)

-folk hero background could fit him pretty well too! Before he got Tadpoled he sorta wandered from place to place helping common folks and robbing rich people blind. Sort of a Robin Hood type guy but he did also keep a good bit of money lol

-he’s a trans man :] no surgeries and he doesn’t want them, though he does take wizard testosterone or whatever it would be in dnd. Probably a potion or something

-queer and poly!! I imagine he has a couple lovers across the sword coast, some he’s going steady with and others he’s sort of off and on with. He’s so lucky he lives in a world where teleportation exists and is not that hard all things considered im so jealous fr (I’ve also decided that his dream guardian looks suspiciously like one of his boyfriends). Worm nerfing his magic has unfortunately made keeping in touch a bit harder but he’s been managing

-his blood is a pretty potent magical power source and several people have tried to abduct him to use him as a conduit for spells or rituals because of this. I imagine after That Scene™️ with Astarion he was like “oh shit I should’ve warned him about that. Oh well he seems fine” . In the moment he was too focused on there being a hot vampire straddling him

-his tattoos are tied to his magic and glow when he casts spells. You can tell which way he’s about to fucking get you because he’s conveniently color-coded

-may or may not be on the brink of turning into a mind flayer but I’m sure that’s like. Fine.

WAIT I just remember I made a dnd character sheet for him before I ever got bg3 and I wrote a whole background thing as well as a value/ flaw for him . I’ll put those under a read more tho this is already kinda long

this part is written ooc!!

“Sharp, charismatic, and hedonistic to a fault. He has a silver tongue and a knack for deception, able to lie his way into and out of nearly any situation. He’s been driven out of many towns for his infernal heritage, alongside the myriad cons and schemes he often pulls on the wealthy, though he’s welcomed into just as many as a minor celebrity, and in some cases, a hero. This suits him just fine, though; he’s always been one to dance from place to place anyway. He enjoys finery of all kinds, and is happy to trade fine food, drink, clothing and accessories for coin… though he much prefers to offer favors as payment. He does have many talents after all; a quick-fingered thief, an excellent negotiator, a ruthless conman, a somewhat formidable sorcerer, a gifted storyteller, and if it suits your fancy, an escort (though he does charge extra for events)… as well as some other things, of course~”

“It is fairly difficult to draw his ire;he’s more than willing to forgive and forget most wrongs against him. But it would be wise not to test his limits too much; his normally capricious manner becomes cold and relentless when he feels punishment is owed. People who hurt those he cares about often walk away with gruesome scars… if they walk away at all.”

And then I have a ummm ideals and flaw section written in character cause these are on his character sheet

Ideals: “The safety and happiness of those close to me matters far more than any laws, or the ‘greater good’”

Flaws: “I’ve been called self-serving on many occasions, and I’m always weak to a bit of liquor and a pretty face”

I am sure I will think of more things to say about him I inevitably always do but I’m a little sleepy so I’m ending this post now!!