#and I kept thinking about the ways in which both characters are punished for living in a fantasy and the different implications of their

[agalychnisspranneusroseus]

Insane how long the plugs are like those things are going into her BONES. Not literally bc what use would that have, but she definitely has ports and stuff in there, possibly connected to her nervous system. Gosh this kid is the definition of whump.

I legit can't stop thinking about the implications of what the core did to Marcy's body and how that is likely to do irreversible things that she will be affected by for the rest of her life. Like obviously the mental scars alone will be devastating, but I can't stop thinking about how the human body is just. Not compatible with being the host of an ancient being. Along with the fact that she was 13 years old and her body wasn't even done growing. And we still have no real idea what happened to her while she was possessed, because I doubt the core would stop whatever actions it was doing when Marcy's body felt pain or exhaustion. She was stabbed through the chest, kept in a tank for a long time, forced out, put in an electric chair to force the ancient being into her brain, and then had her brain and body modified to accommodate it. I understand the tank probably healed her a bit and she had the strength of her calamity gem, but genuinely there is no way she just walked away from all that and was physically fine. Disabled Marcy is REAL

[raymurata]

Just scroll (or go ahead and block my #dav critical tag) if you don't wanna read me whining abt Bellara's Archive choice again, but I'm not done with the salt.

What bugs me isn't that the choice to destroy the archive exists, it's that the game frames it, through its UI (which is the closest thing we have to a nonbiased narrator in this medium), as equally weighted against the opposite choice.

If they had worded it like this:

"Free the archive (the knowledge will be lost)" x "Keep the archive (the knowledge will be kept)"

With no extra commentary, then that would be better. If you got to be openly racist against the Dalish or openly in favor of the Dalish, period. Just like in previous games.

Bellara says "(the archive would help us) get back what made us who we were," and "With it, we could be that again."

Which is funny because... People don't study history to return to the past. It's fine if Bellara is idealistic and saying whatever unrealistic, grandiose dreams she and Cyrian had, but the Dalish would never (could never) become like the ancient elves again. For starters there is a Veil now. So what it would in fact do is help them understand where they come from, what they've been through, and trace the changes in their culture.

Of course our modern historians and scientists have tried to reclaim lost technology, too. They've figured out how the Romans made their extra sturdy concrete, and scientists in Brazil have long been trying to replicate the extra fertile Terra Preta from indigenous peoples that lived in the Amazon basin, and several South American historians would love to know how exactly the Inca used the quipu as a writing system aside from counting tool, etc... And that's super cool!!! And maybe (but that's a big maybe) the Archive could give the Dalish a technological edge to carve a corner of the world for themselves without the constant struggle with Tevinter trying to enslave them or Andrastians trying to subjugate them.

But I personally don't think anyone's reading Aztec accounts of human sacrifices to replicate the same practices in modern cults, or that there is an army out there utilizing Roman decimation as a method of discipline. We're using different horrific methods of control now, lol.

But let's say a modern general does decide that the best way to punish a battalion for one man's insurgence is to force every group of ten soldiers to violently murder the 10th man.... Do you really think that the fault would lie with the historian who unearthed that information and put it on Wikipedia? Or the insane general that decided to do this? Would modern morality and laws allow for that punishment to be executed? Do you think that the existence of that article online is inherently dangerous and controversial, and that it should be taken down? Do you think this general would have been a good and non-violent general if he hadn't ever read about Decimation? Or is it clear to you that violence and ingenuity are both inherent to mortals as a whole and can't be so easily blamed on the spread of knowledge?

Because it's not clear to DAV. The game (not Bellara, not Varric) words it very unambiguously as a dichotomy: The only safe way to deal with this Archive is to destroy it. Keeping it is inherently dangerous because the knowledge could fall in "the wrong hands."

What Bellara says is "Cyrian is gone because of what that thing knew," and "what about the bad side, the other things we did?" and "We stole the dwarves' dreams."

Again, she gets to say whatever she wants because she's a character and she's an anxious, idealistic mess. Love her for it. I like that she feels guilt here too because she has been established (through her way of dealing with Cyrian's first death) as someone who takes the blame for mistakes she didn't even commit (She certainly isn't responsible for Solas' actions). She's someone who drives herself sick cooking up the most horrific scenarios in her mind, and she's so compassionate she can't stand the thought of being the one perpetrating violence against innocents. Her misplaced guilt and dread are the emotions that lead her to consider destroying the Archive.

But no matter how guilty a young german may feel about the holocaust, destroying knowledge about gas chambers is not what will prevent other genocides from happening around the world. Individual guilt is barely productive.

Furthermore, Corinne Bursche says that DAV gives you a choice between "destroying" or "sharing" elven knowledge, which is not how the game worded it. But the point still stands even if the Veil Jumpers, for some condescending plot reason, completely lost control of this knowledge, or were so flippant as to put everything on Thedas' wikipedia without curing it at all.

Let's accept, too, that the Archive contains knowledge of how to build something equivalent to nuclear weapons, which one could argue is in fact truly dangerous, but... Well. Do you think it's fair that the countries that have nuclear arsenals are some of the most vocal about the dangers of other countries ever developing their own?

Because that's what it feels like, to me, when the game calls elven knowledge dangerous without ever allowing you to question -- what about Tevinter rituals and magic? Tevinter's millennium of slavery, still in practice at present day? Should we destroy all their libraries too to keep the world safe from dangerous magics? Why do we only get to tell the Dalish, the nomad nations severely subjugated in present Thedas (If you ever played the previous games and have the context, at least, since this game that happens in Tevinter somehow manages to completely gloss over racism against elves as if it never existed) to destroy a one-of-a-kind, ancient trove of knowledge? And have it be framed as good and safe? As "moving forward"?

If you choose to free the archive, Rook says "The elves deserve the chance to chart their own course" to which Bellara answers "Right. Define ourselves by who we are, not who we were," but once again that writing just makes me question Bioware -- Do they not understand the point of history at all? Do they think indigenous peoples are monoliths stuck in the past if they choose to study the history they lost to colonialism? What purpose do they think that keeping that history and culture extinct serves? Who do they think it benefits?

If you step outside of what the game is telling you as fact and think for yourself, with the context of the other DA games in mind, do you still agree that it's inherently dangerous to keep the Archive? Do you still think these are equally morally weighted choices?

Or would you agree that DAV has to subtly convince you, out of character, that keeping this knowledge is inherently dangerous to make this dichotomy make sense?

Again. This wouldn't bug me if they just owned up to the fact your protagonist can, once again, genocide elves/their culture, just like in previous games. And scapegoat present elves too for the sins of their thousand-years-old tyrants, now suddenly returned (it would make so much sense for characters in the narrative to scapegoat the elves, and for us as heroes to fight against that. But no, they don't even go there except through Bellara's guilt.). It's just bizarre to have an elven historian guiltily agreeing with destroying the Archive and then telling us "The Evanuris broke us and kept us broken" without anyone, either Rook or her, ever mentioning a thousand years of Tevinter slavery and several centuries of Andrastian persecution and subjugation.

No. The Evanuris are the be-all and end-all of evil and everything bad that ever happened in Thedas, ever, can be traced back to them.

[local-lamppost]

Maddie and Caitlyn and Piltover

Probably the most jarring twist of the Act was Maddie and Caitlyn's relationship. It seemed very sudden, until you take a look into the few lines from her in Act 1 and realize they all centered around Caitlyn. That Maddie was the first Piltie to 'dedicate her heart' to Caitlyn with Noxus. Maddie likes Vi because Caitlyn vouched for her and deems her 'one of the good ones' because of Caitlyn.

Let's talk about Maddie: she's an average young Piltie. She's Cait's age, give or take, and feels hurt both by the recent Zaun attacks and Marcus' betrayl. Caitlyn is the first person after all this that is trying to do something to fix the mess. Cait's a Kiramman, an inspiration, a fighter, and kinda sorta pretty. Maddie was starry eyed by Cait and couldn't see any problems with her actions or flaws because of this. When given the option to have Cait lead, she jumps at the chance.

Maddie is something of a trick with her introduction. She doesn't have a personal stake like Vi or Cait, isn't there to look after her new buddy like Loris (until told otherwise he is there just cause he is Vi's old man friend); she believes in combating Jinx. Peacekeeping in Zaun with gas and hextech weapons to go after one person, but oh isn't she so cute? Introduced in a halo of sunlight and being so sweet to Vi?

Maddie is a proud Piltie, who feels betrayed by Marcus and the Undercity, who wants to punish them and rebuild her home in topside. And yes, she feels betrayed by the Undercity, she consider's it a part of Piltover one way or another, and most topsider's are ignorant of why Zaunites are so upset with them. To Maddie, these attacks came out of left field.

What's interesting is that Maddie is anti-Ambessa, or at least pro-Caitlyn. You could see this as her being a moderate. She tells Cait that she can withdraw from Zaun and reestablish the council, but ends that statement by reaffirming Caitlyn as their leader, "The Enforcers, Piltover... I follow you". Cait and her military rule makes Maddie feel safe and proud in her city.

Onto Cait. Yeah, Cait's not necessarily using Maddie, but she is utilizing her. She's learned from her percieved mistakes/weaknesses and is keeping her work and personal life seperate. They have sex and talk about the state of the city, but Cait never talks about her feelings with Maddie as she did with Vi. Cait's an emotional person too. She was always quick to express herself to Vi, to Ekko, to her mother and father, to Jayce; but she is hurt and alone and can contribute both of those facts to her emotions (sans Jayce).

Begs the question of why Cait is sleeping with Maddie? But even that is simply her coping. It's her version of Vi drinking and fighting. It's stress relief and a quick way to at least make someone else happy. Cait also likes touch, so it stands to reason she'd find someone in her isolated state (Vi pushed away, father a living ghost, Jayce and Mel magiced away). Also, if Word of God is anything to go by, it's not out of character for Cait to find a pretty girl to fool around with.

Cait's main focus is still Jinx. Her mind is literally shown overlapping with her's. Maddie a tryst for the off hours, and even that's kept to the minimum as Cait would rather work than get any rest.

I do wish we could've gotten a scene of Cait replaying her interactions with Vi (think season 1 shower scene), but instead we have Maddie to contrast their relationship. Maddie is kind of the 'Piltover Approved' Vi; she's a red headed enforcer who loves her city, her council, the noble houses, and Caitlyn. She's safe and she's someone that Caitlyn doesn't have to put any excess energy into. Which must be gratifying for the surface levels of Cait's issues. Vi forces Cait to act better, to look inward and reflect, to consider other people and not just her own hurt (something season one Cait wouldn't have even needed another's help with).

The little detail of Vi not calling Cait a cupcake until episode 6 is also telling. At first it's likely Vi realizing the seriousness of everything, but it could also be that she disapproves of Cait's actions. Cait doesn't have that sweetness in her, or at least isn't allowing herself to act on it. When Vi does call her cupcake again it's not an endearment as it was by the end of season one, but a call out to what Cait has become.

Going forward, what's next? Vi and Cait aren't back together, but are together. They have to fight the Noxians (which was hinted at by Maddie herself) and help with the Arcane.

I kinda want Jinx to be the one to spell everything out to Cait; to tear her a new one. Jinx kept an eye on Vi during her pit fighter era, saw the drunk, broken mess that her sister became; a sister she is now on tentatively good terms with and will likely be a bit protective of after Isha. Something like, "I saw what happened to Vi after you guys split, she destroyed herself like you destroyed the city. I always thought I would be the one to break her, but you did a bang up job! Two of us have that in common, hurting Vi, but I'm trying now. So what does that say about you? None of this was Vi's fault, all she was trying to do was keep you from acting like me, ya know, deranged and violent? Huh, Vi-olent."

So in Act 3, Cait needs to be the one to get a kick in the ass and have that conversation with Vi. She needs to own up to her mistakes. How she was guilting Vi into the enforcers, how Vi was right about her loosing control and almost shooting a kid, maybe even for using Vi's affection for her against her. Vi will forgive her, she's Vi and has the self worth of a pebble, so long as Cait takes accountability and starts acting on any promises to change-again, why a shovel talk from Jinx could help set their relationship in the right direction.

[ziploc849]

Alright I’m back on my TMA bullshit welcome to the circus. This is a long with many episodes worth of thoughts so strap in

62. Holy FUCK. Mary fucking Keay is here and she’s killing people and putting their skin in a book to. Summon them again??? I have truly no understanding of the implications of this but what the hell man. Also Gertrude is either fucking crazy or knew waaaay more than we do (or both. Both is a solid option at this point) cuz she took everything very well. Also when asked who the book was from, Keay just said “The End”??? Like fucking Minecraft???? Idk what the hell this lady is talking about.

(Also I feel like I recognize the idea of a “The *blank*” in this series. I can’t remember if we’ve seen it before or if I’ve just collected some knowledge after being on the outskirts of the fandom for so long but. Whatever it is it’s fucked and I’m intrigued)

63 What is up with this fucking architect guy what is his deal???? Why does he keep building fucked up places where fucked up things happen??? Also weird that the people in the church seem to know/want to cover up something is odd. Also also the end with Melanie King coming back was an interesting lil thing, of all the characters I expected to be recurring I was not expecting her. Don’t like that she got saddled with Not-Sasha though, hopefully it’s nothing or there are at least other witnesses to her leaving cause otherwise she might not be as recurring anymore. Idk what Not-Sasha’s deal is but I Do Not like it

64. ARCHAEOLOGY MENTION FUCK YEAH. I could honestly go on a whole rant about just how much I dislike Gwynne based on her ideals when it comes to archaeology, as someone who wants to be in the field myself, but I digress. I am curious about the fact that this is someone clearly long dead who still was conscious in some capacity? Clearly they didn’t want to continue as they were. It sounds sort of similar to something one of the officers mentioned in an episode they were giving statements (can’t remember which). One of them mentioned being called to a scene where someone who seemed like they should’ve been dead from a suicide attempt kept trying to reach for the gun. The moment where the skeleton was trying to stab themself in the chest gave me a very similar vibe in the worst possible way.

65. I am following maybe 3 of the words this woman is saying in the first 7 or so minutes. But also the stuff she mentions with the man eating the computer is so unbelievably unsettling, and the stuff he was saying is fascinating. “The maze is sharp on my mind. The angles cut me when I try to think” especially reminds me of all the variations of endless mazes or places we’ve seen in the show so far. Jon reaching out to specifically tech savvy people is also super smart, and it’s sick that he has access to Gertrude’s laptop now. Tim and Jon fighting felt like listening to parents fighting. Im glad Jon is both getting a stern talking to and Tim is getting some sort of understanding of where Jon’s coming from. The fact that they both mention they can’t quit/can’t fire the other is interesting especially. I know stuff like that has been mentioned before, I’m pretty sure after the first encounter with the worms Martin mentioned something about “why don’t I quit?” But regardless it’s just another weird fuckin thing going on

66. Mikael fucking Salesa, what is your problem. I honestly don’t have a lot to say about this episode, definitely another example of weird extradimensional spaces, and some mentions of the weird, unexplainable heat, but also the way he mentioned the box “punishing him” as if it was a living thing was interesting. I also have a lot of thoughts on the stuff mentioned about Gertrude, and I’m really fascinated by all the stuff Jon mentioned about stopping asking about who killed her and focusing more on the why. As we’ve actually gotten to hear some of her recordings, esp the one with Mary Keay where she’s incredibly nonchalant about the murder and skin book, I think it’s an interesting idea that she may have been more suspicious that we thought.

Finally I think her lil shopping list was interesting, but honestly it’s the more mundane stuff rather than the Leitners that interest me, but I’ll probably make a seperate post about that cause it kinda rolls into a theory I’ve been sitting on for a little bit now

[darkpoisonouslove]

Griffin and Valtor's backstory is so fascinating because Griffin is still alive.

Think about it. She was literally attacked by the Ancestral Witches as she was escaping, then she kept fighting in the war against them and Valtor, whom she'd just betrayed, and she survived all the way to and past the final battle while all of them plus Marion, Oritel and Domino's population were imprisoned. Now I know this is mostly because the backstory was, in fact, added later but the trope of a former villain sacrificing their life as redemption was successfully avoided. She got to live/had to live depending on how deeply you believe she regretted her former servitude of the Ancestral Witches and/or the time period (as I think all remaining CoL members were devastated right after the final battle on Domino). She got to build herself a new life, independent of her previous mistakes only to then - almost two decades later - be forced to face the man she betrayed again.

The fact is that no one but Griffin herself ever attempts to justify her betrayal. No one. Not even once. When she confirms to the Winx and Mirta that she was a member of the Company, her previous affiliations are never mentioned. She is allowed to be an equal member of the Company that's never treated as lesser because she was initially working against them; she gets to share in both their victory and their failure (an entire planet perishing is hardly a real victory but they survived and the culprits of the devastation were imprisoned); her past is never held against her to imply she might not be trustworthy. Her course of action is understandable if poorly motivated in the minute this backstory gets to be explained. She is also never exonerated for betraying Valtor, though, which is, frankly, more nuance than you'd expect from Winx Club of all shows.

But then there's the flip side of this whole situation, which is even more intriguing. Just like she's forced to live with her betrayal, so is Valtor. Again, she is alive. Not only did she run away from him, but she also survived any subsequent attempts at revenge on her and remained at large while he was imprisoned. Whether because he still cares for her or his power simply wasn't enough to grant him his vengeance, he has failed to punish her. And failure is a rarity for Valtor.

With the might of the corrupted Dragon Fire, he is so powerful that none of the characters that have handled threats of universal magnitude before are able to stand up to him for longer than a minute. He's also smart and cunning, always knowing what to say to get on top of the situation. As such any failures he endures are far removed from one another and temporary. Really, most of his schemes during season 3 were initially successful and later only failed due to lack of direct involvement from him as he would leave the execution to his pawns - either Cassandra & Chimera, Diaspro or the Trix. The things he personally oversaw in their entirety did always succeed up until the very end.

His one colossal failure - allowing to be imprisoned - was hardly a bigger challenge than anything else he faced and would have eventually failed to contain him even without the Trix' intervention. For one simple reason - he is effectively immortal. He had all the time in the world and no one that could kill him, considering that Marion and Oritel would have probably done that rather than simply imprison him if they'd been able to. Sooner or later something (like the Trix coming across him) would have happened and he'd have been roaming around stealing magic again, his defeat barely registering except... for Griffin.

She is right there, his failure - in the flesh - staring him in the face. There is no way to rationalize this away. She betrayed him and joined his enemies. Either he allowed her to play him for a fool or his charm and power weren't alluring enough to keep her by his side. He can pretend she was too weak-willed to achieve greatness beside him but that is still a lapse in judgment on his part since he had deemed her worthy of being his partner. In fact, despite anything else he may say, he still speaks highly of their joint abilities so he definitely believed her to be a good match for him.

He fucked up. There is no way around it. And to differ from all his other failures, including his imprisonment, this one is not going away. In fact, he only temporarily succeeded with taking revenge on her by imprisoning her in turn and taking over her school and her students' minds but that barely lasted a few episodes. Before he knew it, she was free and running around again. His one permanent failure that he cannot get away from, that's been haunting him for literal decades now since she left him.

With how overpowered Valtor is, introducing such a permanent reminder that even he makes mistakes that he can't always fix with a snap of his fingers is ingenious. Granted, they don't really explore any of it but the fact is that that is the only long-term failure that he has to deal with aside from his subservience to the Ancestral Witches. The implication that the soured relationship between him and Griffin is the only thing that is even comparable in any way (as a blow to his abilities and self-image) to his slavery to the Ancestral Witches makes me mentally unwell.

Regardless of the nature of their partnership, Griffin is the only person that has managed to force him to look past his self-importance and egomania, which could have very well been traumatic in light of his lack of agency where his bond to the Ancestral Witches is concerned and has never been framed as the right thing to do on Griffin's part. It adds layers of complexity both to Griffin's morality and to Valtor's image and self-image (or at least would have if they'd explored it a little as forcing him to acknowledge failure would have added more dimension to him and tamed how overpowered he is). It's the perfect ground for headcanons and fanfiction examining the complexities of the characters and their relationship to thrive.

[logansgaar]

So I've seen a couple people now say they're not sure why fans are against Bucky being in the senate or think he must be being forced to somehow, considering we've already seen him as the Secretary of State in What If...? and I wanted to explain why I personally would find it extremely out of character if he's willingly a senator in Thunderbolts*

For the sake of ease I'm going to refer to Earth-82111 Bucky as Secretary Bucky and Earth-19999 Bucky as Primary Bucky.

Based on everything we know about Primary Bucky, I don't see how he'd have any reason to WANT to be there and it feels very contradictory to the path they've set him on ever since Civil War.

It all pretty much comes down to the fact that Secretary Bucky and Primary Bucky have led two entirely different lives since the war, around the time there was a divergence in their lives. Their experiences from around the age of 26 onwards have made them into separate people, despite being technically both Bucky. Sebastian Stan's even said he was surprised by his lines as Secretary Bucky because they're so different from the Bucky he's used to playing.

The point of divergence in their lives is of course the train. Secretary Bucky never fell from the train and lost his arm, he was able to be rescued by Captain Carter, so he didn't go through any of the experiences that Primary Bucky has that would make his character detest the idea of being in government.

Secretary Bucky stayed the light-hearted Bucky we met in early CATFA. He never woke up during a horrific surgery to instal a bionic arm where he'd had his real one torn off in the fall, he never experienced decades of torture, brainwashing, forced assassinations and dehumanization. We can't say for sure how much Secretary Bucky knew about Isaiah Bradley and the men of his squadron, but we do know that Primary Bucky knows about them and withheld that information from Steve, which is huge. Primary Bucky knows which governments and organizations (like SHIELD) are corrupt and in what ways, has stood against the American government both as the Winter Soldier and by his own volition, he was framed for an event that led the world to agree on mandatory registering of a specific demographic of people I wonder where he might've seen that before, and has teammates who were kept on the Raft. He saw his own government, the American government, violate their own citizens the way HYDRA did him; injecting them with unknown substances that irreversibly changed their bodies, then punished Isaiah for doing the same thing they hailed Steve as a hero for, and further violated Isaiah by taking his blood without consent and creating more soldiers from him. Primary Bucky was a victim of HYDRA, the clear bad guys, but Isaiah and his brothers-in-arms were victims of the supposed "good guys", and on that fact alone I cannot see any way Primary Bucky is anything other than disgusted and mistrustful of them, if he doesn't outright hate the government. Primary Bucky has also learned a lot from being friends with Sam, how it wasn't Sam's fault for putting down the shield when the government and the country they're in put him in an extremely difficult and impossible situation out of pure racism, about how their country views heroism and its very white standards for it, and how it's not as simple as it was for Steve or John Walker for Sam to have the shield and be Captain America. He saw the US government make one promise to Steve's memory and then immediately disrespect it.

Secretary Bucky seems happy to serve his country and does so by choice, and like I said, we don't know how much he knows about SHIELD's corruption or what the government he serves did to Isaiah and the men of his squad but it's safe to say the different lived experiences he's gone through make him view his government in a positive light and he's very likely never been a number 1 enemy of the state, while Primary Bucky looks completely miserable having to wear that pin during the entire trailer.

Of course you could argue that Primary Bucky has become a senate as a way to try and change things, but the thing is he also knows better than most what goes on in the shadows and I'd say has a very grim perspective on how realistic his chances would be. He's seen and experienced how futile bureaucracy in their world is for making significant change, and idk it just doesn't feel like Bucky's style considering he chose vigilantism over "proper" processes with dealing with HYDRA remnants and the Flag-Smashers.

I'd say it's in character for the Bucky of Earth-82111 to go into politics and end up where he is, he led a completely different life that was never shaped the same way as Bucky from Earth-19999. It feels extremely out of character for Bucky from Earth-19999 to go into politics, echoes of each other or not, their initial 26 years of shared life experiences wouldn't overrule the catastrophic changes 19999's experiences would make to his mind set and opinions because people's loyalties and thoughts change depending on what information they have. Primary Bucky knows and has seen things Senate Bucky has not, so his opinion has been changed and updated from where they were at 26.

80 years is a long time for a lot of deeply impactful things to diverge them further away from each other, even if they all echo one another, regardless of how identical the first quarter was. That's just my opinion.

[vasito-de-leche]

;R1999 PAVIA - General Headcanons

Compilation of headcanons and analysis on Pavia as a character and other related things.

the post about Pavia's love languages and how he shows his affection got a lot of love, so I'm doing a lil more thinking into his character to rlly flesh out how I see and write him before getting to write the second part of that post <3

just a heads up, its preeeetty fucking long. but all of my posts tend to be lmfao

On the subject of Pavia, loneliness and trauma.

In this post talked about the concept of showing affection (not exclusively romantic but just in general) and the relationship Pavia has with his reputation, both as a lone wolf and a skilled mercenary, which affect the way he interacts with those he might deem close for better and for worse. So it's only fair that I do that again in a more general context.

Let's get this out of the way. One cannot talk about Pavia without mentioning or alluding to his solitary lifestyle in some way or another, we've all read his 02 Story, but to only read him as someone who fakes this aura of confidence and who feels deeply insecure and lonely 24/7 is an obvious disservice to his character.

Pavia is defined by a strong sense of self which, yes, originates from isolation and neglect. And you may read this as an active choice for survival, a coping and defense mechanism or the natural progress of someone who has had no one to rely on but themself - all of these readings are valid and can easily coexist! But I would like to insist that Pavia as we know him is confident and comfortable in his own skin, happy to live as an outlier to conventional norms and behaviour.

And that's because he's weaponized loneliness into a strength and a shield. He's outgrown that small, neglected child in the basement.

Hell, in his interview with Pandora Wilson, he mentions the fun of "causing pain" onto others, in the context of his presence being used as a "punishment" for others. He's surrounded by people he considers stupid, and he has fun at their expense when they try to bring him into their shenanigans. Pavia is a confident asshole, it is not a façade for a sad boy.

One quote in particular comes to mind when discussing this aspect of Pavia.

Go back to Rome, where the wolves were born. Said my former boss. He knew I was born in Rome, but didn't know I was raised in Piemonte. He was such a fool, even tried to kill me. So I only kept his tie clip. I didn't tell him that as long as the night will come, everywhere I live is Piemonte.

This line in particular, from my reading on it, speaks volumes about how Pavia has reclaimed the night - alluding to the one place he was forced to live in for his entire childhood, a dark and isolated basement, the concept of loneliness itself - as something that defines him and should inspire fear into others. His wolves are made out of darkness, his Ultimate in-game shows him manifesting out of a dark fog on the ground. And the context of that quote is hostile, it's Pavia's former boss telling him to go back to Rome, and Pavia mentioning that no matter where he goes, as long as the night comes, he's home.

One could argue that the quote is meant to be read differently - instead of Pavia reclaiming something that hurt him to now empower him, he's haunted by it. No matter where he goes, he'll always be in Piemonte, in that dark and isolated basement, with no one to pull him out. And that's fair! To each their own, both are banger readings on that dialogue. I just personally think the former fits better with the character as a whole.

The former reading is also supported by his 02 Story, where he describes the wolves that his Arcanum abilities manifested as "friends he found in the darkness and would never leave him".

One wolf hid behind another, and the pack surrounded him in the darkness of the night. They held each other's heads and tails and coiled together like snakes, bringing with them warmth and restful sleep. These were the friends he found in the darkness, ones who would never abandon or leave him, and who would forever watch over him.

In his Cover profile, his Afflatus is also "Mourning of the Feral Pack [Beast] Night View".

And when you check Pavia's small description in the Role Garment menu, his main garment and the one unlocked at Insight II form the following phrase:

He's always alone, both in the basement and on the street. It doesn't matter now, though. He will never be "alone" from now on.

His Afflatus, his Arcanum abilities, every small detail - everything points towards Pavia owning the night and the darkness that used to hurt him so much as a child. Because it cannot hurt him now that he's made friends with it, in the form of shadow wolves who will never leave him. He's not stuck here with you, you're stuck him with him. (that Insight II quote will be relevant again later when I talk about the lack of? Humanity? so to speak? in Pavia's character)

But anyway! This doesn't mean that the discussion on Pavia and loneliness/isolation should stop there.

After all, his Afflatus also says "Mourning of the Feral Pack" - mourn what exactly? A lost childhood? The family he could've had if his mother hadn't been admitted to an asylum? The young and innocent child that died in that basement so that the current Pavia could exist?

Who knows! Talk about it, it's fun and I love to read other people's takes! <3

On the subject of trauma specifically, I do see Pavia as someone who lives in the present and doesn't think much about the past - he only mentions his parents once in a seemingly disinterested manner, stating that he never visited (and most likely will never visit) his mother. Piemonte is where his abusive aunt raised him, but he shows a certain pride in his city anyway.

It's not that he's overcome and healed from his trauma, it's that he doesn't even register the things that happened to him as traumatic experiences due to the distance and recontextualization of everything.

The fandom portrayal of Pavia as a deeply lonely person often comes hand in hand with him being touchstarved and the experience of feeling any semblance of genuine human connection for the very first time - but I would like to offer an alternative, explained in the next bullet point.

On the subject of Pavia, conventional society and his pack of wolves.

Pavia's official description, as seen in this tweet made by the official global account of the game, is the following:

An independent mercenary lacking in collaborative skills. Employers are content with his excellent abilities, but can't stand his work ethic of ignoring his coworkers.

This, along with his other quotes and the interview with UTTU, point towards how the world sees Pavia as a nuisance of sorts - a punishment, we know this - but it also points towards Pavia's rejection of conventional society.

The way Pavia behaves, the way he insists on maintaining the barrier between himself and conventional society, the pleasure he takes in making others suffer just by BEING THERE NEXT TO THEM, the stress he puts into being alone - it leads me to think that THIS is the result of his trauma.

It's not a deep seated loneliness, it's not yearning and secretly wishing for genuine connections, it's not a fear of the dark or enclosed spaces - it's an absolute and total rejection of the world that failed him.

Pavia cannot feel or grasp loneliness on the same level as other characters might because there is not a single person in this world he would rather spend his time with other than himself. The details of how he got out of the basement and began a life of crime haven't been revealed yet, so I won't theorize about it, but I like to think that everything that Pavia is and represents is one big "fuck you" to a world that left him to rot in that basement.

It all loops back to the previous point - by rejecting mankind and society as a whole, Pavia becomes the opposite: a beast who acts on his own accord rather than the rules that make up polite society. And in doing so, grows closer to himself and his pack. In doing so, he allows his humanity to slowly slip away.

The Insight II quote I mentioned before is a great example of this - the change in his sprites shows Pavia's eyes changing, now with black sclera and sharper teeth, darkness (and two of his wolves) surrounding him. He will never be "alone" from now on because he is now ONE of the pack, because this is where he belongs.

The medium for his Arcanum (not the "wand" used to cast spells and magic, those are different things from what I understand) is "Beast Teeth". Compare this with other characters: Zima's medium are poems, Dikke's medium is the law, Sonetto's medium is curiosity. An arcanist's medium seems to be a concept or object that represents who they are and what they believe in, something that is essential to their life and dear to their core. Pavia's is beast teeth. He's a beast Arcanist.

I like to think that Pavia based his behaviour, knowingly or not, on his pack of wolves. After all, he's the one who conjured them, it makes sense to me that he would subconsciously latch onto them. This would explain his more animalistic traits that show just how disconnected Pavia is from what a regular human being should be.

You guys freak me out when you sleep. What kind of people needs such a long sleep like that? Fall in a coma like a crispy critter, and wake up 8 hours later. …Only god knows how you can do that.

This dialogue implies that Pavia cannot wrap his head around a normal sleeping schedule - which is extremely ironic, considering that wolves sleep a LOT. But I'd attribute this more to the dissonance between him and conventional society than Pavia trying to larp as a wolf. We have to understand that he spent most of his days sleeping away the hunger, that he went on to reject the company of other people - it makes sense to me that he wasn't taught or didn't get to see how a normal person should behave in theory.

Despite this rejection, we can clearly see that Pavia enjoys a very hedonistic life - going on clubs, having a sweet tooth, wearing fancy clothes, shopping, films and whatnot (He's literally wearing Louboutins, guys. The soles of his shoes are RED). He plays the role of mercenary quite well, too. But it doesn't strike me as a writing inconsistency or hypocrisy from his part, Pavia is known for doing whatever he wants, one of his hand tattoos spells "LIBERTA" or freedom in italian, so this tracks. It's hard to be a hypocrite when your moral compass is all about being a wildcard.

I mentioned this in my first Pavia post, but the items attributed to him are all said to be cheap, fake or crudely hand-made.

His glasses are a copy of an actual Italian brand that no one would ever think of mistaking for the real thing, his bracelets and rings are dented and damaged, Pandora Wilson even goes as far as calling it junk. They even describe his earrings as rough workmanship. And yet, Pavia brags about his clothes and enjoys shopping. There's that small dissonance again - he enjoys bragging but does not know (or care) about the actual value or authenticity of his material possessions. (Pavia wears fake Louboutins, this is my headcanon, thanks for coming)

He plays the role of mercenary quite well, too. I'd also argue that the more violent aspects of his personality have to do with his line of work. This tweet confirms the majority of Pavia's tattoos and what they say - the one on his arm is "La Cosa Nuova", the sicilian mafia for those who didn't know. I won't go in-depth about the real life actions of such group, but it's clear that Pavia is or has been part of it within the world of Reverse: 1999.

Entering headcanon territory.

The two bullet points from before were mostly just analysis on how I read Pavia based on all evidence in-game, but now I get to talk about personal headcanons I have about him <3

I've explained pretty much everything I wanted to say about Pavia for now, so these are just gonna be rapid fire headcanons.

First of all, Pavia is a light sleeper.

The lightest sleeper you'll ever meet, even a soft whisper could wake him up - but this isn't because of some hidden fear of waking up back in his aunt's basement. Because he had nothing to focus on but the sounds within that basement, he greatly developed his hearing and his Insight II development further heightened his senses. Pavia is used to dark, silent spaces, so any unknown noise will put him on edge and wake him up. Sometimes, he pretends to sleep to get out of doing work.

Contrary to popular belief, he doesn't move at ALL when sleeping and tends to stay in the same position throughout the night.

This is something he learned, rather than something that comes naturally, because he tends to sleep with the pack and there's little space to move without accidentally kicking Andrea or Leon in the face.

Next. Pavia doesn't know that he resembles his mother a lot.

As for his mother, there are two possibilities: One, she's truly dead and he doesn't know, based on his 02 Story where his aunt confirms that Pavia's mother died a few years later, as well as Pavia's dialogue in which he talks about his mother as if she were alive. Two, she was alive the whole time and Pavia found out years later that she was committed to an asylum and his dialogue about his parents is correct.

Regardless, I like to think that he never saw her again once he was taken into his aunt's care, and that she never told him that the reason she put him in that basement was because he looks so similar to her "deceased" sister. Since they weren't there to raise him and he didn't hear anything about them from his aunt, Pavia holds no resentment and no love towards his parents, because they're total strangers to him.

Next. His wolves' names are interchangeable.

Pavia cares for his pack, and the wolves care for him in return - they were created for that very reason after all. Their dynamic and relationship is a mystery to everyone and it's much too complex to even put into words, but because they're still magical constructs he creates, their behaviour and individuality relies heavily on Pavia's skills as an Arcanist.

There are days in which it's very easy to confuse them, and there are days when it's very obvious how to tell them apart. He's had years to perfect them, to "raise" them if you will.

While the pack might not be around 24/7, they're always in the back of his mind. He can also communicate with them because of it. They don't mind if Pavia confuses them, but if someone else does it? Prepare to get bitten to death, I guess!

[yuseirra]

Before anything new drops, I think there's high chance that kamiki does love his kids.

So why, then, didn't he approach his kids all this time? There are a few speculations I have about that, too.

He didn't think he had the right to face his children after what's happened to Ai (for he had contributed to it in some way)

Showing up was risky (the president of Ai's company and Miyako were watching over them and how'd he explain himself after the loss of Ai)

He was doing his own thing (if this IS about bringing the dead mother back for his kids, it sort of makes sense for him to try to get that done before anything...he might have felt he shouldn't see them before he "made things right" enough)

He knew Aqua wanted to avenge him and thought he deserved that so he left him be (seeing that's what's given his son some strength to keep on living/Like Aqua, he hates himself and he's depressed so he wants to punish himself by being hated)

He's either going to die or face certain kinds of trouble when he sees through that mission he's doing in 3, so he didn't want the kids to get to learn him and/or become attached. He'd be a goner anyway. As long as he gets to bring Ai back, he doesn't really care about what happens to himself afterward. Whether he wants Ai back for his children or himself is actually ambiguous if that's really his motive(seeing how desperate he is about her, you'd infer the latter but.. you'd have to be alive yourself to stay with whom you bring back..the lyrics of Mephisto actually suggest otherwise if that is his mentality. I don't even think kamiki thought he deserved to be with her. He thought Ai didn't love him back, so what he wants, I think, is just to bring her back from the dead and take her place or smth. He doesn't care about his own life. Which COULD.. have induced the shocked face he's having in 154. He never expected her to feel that concerned about him. He'd just die in her place and everything will be fine after that. That's how I'm starting to take this)

He could have been supporting them or have at least kept a watch on them somehow from afar all along.. he did choose to sponsor the movie his son was trying to make when it lacked the funds. This may not be his first time doing something like that?

So why did he choose to appear near them now?

What he's been trying to accomplish is almost fulfilled and he's going to "rot away", so he's choosing to see his children before that happens one last time

He was pretty sure that his own children hated him(esp. Aqua) at this point so he went to congratulate and even bless them for bringing him to his demise (again, he's very depressed.) He's convinced that he won't be missed, so he sort of wanted to talk with his own children before he has to go

Yeah.. I'm looking at him at a really favorable light right now and he might not be a character that's worth sympathizing with(the little kid that was his past WAS though)

but he's the guy Ai's requested both her children to help save together with her. He's the one person who she's really wanted to love (and actually had, so much.. she just didn't realize it but she even predicted she would figure it out and find out it is...)

there's no way this guy isn't "worth saving" one bit. He's probably someone that needs to be helped. Ai is smart. She cares about the choices she's made regarding her children and wanted the best for them. She wanted to be a good mother. If she wants to raise her precious kids with kamiki, it means he's capable of loving them as much as she is. I trust her takes on him the most because she's the one who'd understand him the most out of anyone in the entire world. And she chose to love him, as someone who craved and longed dearly for a genuine relationship and feeling of love, that's a whole lot coming from her. He was good enough in her eyes! Just really fragile when she chose to distance herself from him. I doubt that she'd have been wrong about choosing who to love. I believe in Ai on that regard so I really want to believe that kamiki is a worthy guy for her (for the time being, I am sure he DOES love her a whole lot, even more than his own life). and if he does, I believe he'd care about the children he'd had with her too. They're his as well as hers and proof of what they had between them. He never seemed to be that hostile to them, ever. He WISHES them good luck. I'd be surprised if he didn't care, actually. He doesn't show up a whole lot and he was a terrible dad for having never been there but well, he probably couldn't, too.

So yeah. I actually think he'd have been a pretty good father if things weren't as messed up as it is. Like how Ai's pictured it to be, they'd have been a sweet, tender family. I trust Ai's guts. She's probably right about him. I can always be wrong but that's the idea I've been getting.

[happypopcornprincess]

Call It What You Want (Chapter 2)

Note: The story is set somewhere in 2018, pre covid, before Yei won the world champion. A lot of Oyei, Yak and Cher's backstory has been my own creation. Also some new characters are also purely fictional.

Please do not repost or reupload this story as your own.

a/n: I imagined Ice being played by Aye Sarunchana [Torfun from ATOTS] and Lita being played by Sara Legge [Paan from Theory of Love]

TW: anxiety, PTSD, mentions of assault

Series Masterlist

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One Week Later

Ice and Lita had basically held him up at their place for a week, refusing to let him go unless he willingly ate something. Ice stayed glued to him the entire time, and even though Cher never said it out loud, she knew he didn’t want to be left alone. It was a throwback to their teenage sleepovers, filled with rom-coms, junk food, and the comforting presence of a best friend. But this time, the laughter was replaced by a heavy silence, a shared understanding of the trauma he'd endured

And true to her word, Lita had pressed all charges. Attempted kidnapping, robbery, assault, and harassment. Cher had told her everything when she came back from the station, and she assured him not to worry as they have both proof and witness. “They’ll go to jail. I’ll make sure of it.”

He was grateful to have them, and even more grateful about the fact that they didn’t let this out to Cher’s mother. He knew she would want him to move in with her and would stay paranoid if he kept on living in his apartment.

He should be happy, right? His assailants are going to get punished, he’s got support from all his friends, he is safe. He should rest and get back on his feet.

But why can’t he rest?

The memory of his helplessness during the attack replayed on a loop in his mind.

How easily those men had overpowered him, the terror that had left him frozen. He could have been dead if it wasn’t for Yei coming to his rescue. He couldn't rest until he felt a semblance of control again.

As Lita dropped him off at his place, a flicker of determination sparked in Cher's eyes. He may have been a victim that night, but he wouldn't be one anymore. “Lita,” he began, his voice firm, “do you have any way to contact P'Yei?”

===

“I’m sorry for the mess, we just moved in, I didn’t have any time to clean up.” Yei was embarrassed by how messy everything was. He led Cher to the back of the warehouse and into their home. “Please, make yourself…” Yei kicked yet another box out of his way, “comfortable.” He led Cher to the back of the warehouse and into their home.

Cher, the boy from that night, had turned up at his warehouse out of nowhere. Turns out he lived nearby and judging by how his lawyer friend acted at the station… he was rich. The clothes he wore right now; classic brown trousers and loose white shirt, screamed upper class Thai money to him.

Which let him wonder what was he doing in the neighborhood late at night.

Cher took a seat in his living room/bedroom/dining area, Yei saw him looking around the place, crates of things everywhere, the gas stove in the corner still on cooking soup for lunch. Half of the rooms were in dire need of a reconstruction after years of neglect. He slept in the living room and gave the least damaged room to Yak, he knew how teenagers are with their privacy.

Thank God that boy was at school because his room was on a whole other level of messy.

But to Yei's surprise, Cher didn't seem disgusted. Instead, he looked around with a curious gaze, like an artist studying a blank canvas.

“So let me get this straight,” Yei begin, taking a seat across him, “You want me to train you for boxing.”

“Self-defense.” Cher answered with complete seriousness.

Well, this was going to be weird.

“Cher, I understand why you’re asking me to do this but…” Yei took a deep breath, “I am actually  thinking about retiring from boxing.”

"What!" Cher exclaimed, his eyes widening in surprise.

Yei did his best to explain his situation. "I have a younger brother to support, and boxing championships only bring in a little money. I don't have any sponsors. How can I keep going like this? I need a stable job," he blurted out.

It felt strange to say it out loud, after keeping it bottled up for so long. Cher took a deep breath, his expression unreadable.

"So you're just going to give up boxing?" he finally asked.

Yei offered a sad smile. "I don't have much of a choice, Cher."

Cher remained silent, his shoulders dropping as he took a look around the house and out the main door at the warehouse. Cher kept looking at it, los in his thoughts as Yei was left wondering what he was thinking about.

“Is that warehouse empty?” he asked after a while.

Yei hesitated, unsure of where this conversation was headed. 'Yes,' he finally said, 'it hasn't been used in a while.

"What if I told you there was a way for you to keep boxing and make money?" Cher proposed, a glint appearing in his eyes.

===

Next Day

“This is a crazy idea, Cher. You hardly know this guy!” Ice looked at him holding her bottle in a tight grip. They were having brunch at his house when Cher explained his plan to help Yei build a Muay Thai training center in his old warehouse and teach him self-defense, Ice looked like he had grown two heads. Lita, on the other hand, just smiled and started investigating Yei on her tablet.

“It is a good investment Ice, believe me.” Cher said, sipping his beer in his living room.

“Holy shit dude, you were right.” Lita blurted out, slamming her food down and shoving the tablet towards the center of the table. There were countless articles about Yei Phadetseuk, a national-level champion and renowned boxer with a string of tournament victories under his belt. A household name in the Thai boxing scene.

“How the fuck is he unemployed?” Ice grabbed the tablet, scrolling frantically through articles.

'His dad left the family for another woman, taking his sponsorship with him,' Cher explained. 'His managers did a lousy job promoting him, and his mom recently passed away. He has a younger brother in high school and no income. That's why he hasn't had any fights scheduled.'

Lita shot him a curious glance, “well someone did their research.”

Cher nodded. 'I've seen him fight, Lita. He's got incredible potential. With proper support and training, I'm confident he can reach the world championships.'

Ice chuckled, “Also; he’s kinda hot.” she added, pulling up a photo of Yei in the boxing ring – shirtless, glistening with sweat, and undeniably ripped.

Cher swatted her shoulder playfully. 'He's a good man, and he saved my life. This is the least I can do for him. He has the talent; he just needs someone to help him showcase it properly.'

'Are you absolutely certain about this, Cher?' Lita asked, a hint of concern in her voice. 'Take your emotions out of it for a moment. Analyze this as a businessman, then decide.'

“I am saying this with a sound mind Lita. I won’t jump to conclusions without having a plan, I promise.” He assured his friends.

Cher understood his privileged upbringing. Witnessing all the entitled, two-faced heirs around him, he knew he never wanted to become one of them. His skills in management and renovation were the reason his mother had allowed him to move out after college. He was confident in his ability to help Yei and his brother out of this predicament.

“Have you talked about this with him?” Ice asked him.

“Yes, I have. He said he’ll think about it, but I’m sure he’ll accept. He gets to keep boxing, all while earning money. It’s a win win situation.” Cher smiled.

While Ice and Lita shifted off to a different topic, he couldn’t help but look out of the window, thinking of the kind man with golden eyes and his gentle smile.

He had saved his life, and now it was his turn to do the same.

To be continued...

/---/---/---

Masterlist || Part Three

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Taglist - @seoulmates98 @randomia-in-wonderland @fandomforever369 @nitorem

Comment down to be added to the taglist.

---/---/---

More Thai BL Fanfics

Tangled Fates: The Sign Series Fanfic A Phaya x Tharn fic about their past life as Sapuna and Wansarut.

[yuikomorii]

Heya! In which of the boys route do you think Yui was broken/hurt the most?

I always wanted to know which would be the worst scenario (route) for like.. an avarage girl irl . I know most girls would not survive there😅 but just wanted to know your opinion which of those 6 doors you would never open. Or 13 if we count all the characters.

// Since it's an otome game, it goes without saying that there will be a lot of plot armor and that the love interests can't really harm the heroine seriously throughout the route, regardless of what she does, because the plot would go nowhere like that. Most characters are jerks but not really that hard to handle, since they were known for scaring Yui rather than letting her get genuinely hurt. However there were certain Diaboys who were very scary, as it felt like they had no feelings of remorse or empathy.

Laito:

Can’t say that his HDB route is the worst thing Rejet has ever written (because it’s definitely not) but it baffled me how he was so okay with Yui breaking like that to the point where she lost all her will to live and only wanted to be set free from him. I mean, she literally tried to commit and he was just there not even intending to stop her bleeding veins despite being the one who cut them?? It’s true that in the Vampire Ending she doesn’t turn out that bad but after all, this is just because it’s fiction.

Kanato:

He was easier to understand than Laito because at least you were able to know that he had a soft spot for sweets and Teddy. Nevertheless, it was a bit too much how he kept stabbing Yui with the fork and a few chapters later, I’m pretty sure he stabbed Yui with a knife in more places as well. Still, it’s surprising how she turned out worse in his route, considering the fact that in the afterstory she kills innocent people—

Kou:

I love Kou but he was a literal demon in MB. I really hated how he made his fans bully Yui JUST FOR FUN. It wasn’t even any sort of punishment, he merely wanted to make her suffer. Another thing I couldn’t stand was how he kept putting Yui’s life in danger, only to make her prove her love. I understand wanting to test someone but it would have been way better if he actually saved Yui after seeing her do something dangerous. That way it would have proved that he cared for her yet he continued to watch her get hurt for him over and over again, without feeling any empathy. He was sorta redeemed at the end but yeah, most of his route was big yikes, especially since you wouldn’t have expected a cheerful and friendly idol like him to be such a wicked person.

Carla:

I like the Tsukinami family's desire to preserve their lineage but sorry, I must say that I find it repulsive that a 17-year-old would be forced to become pregnant out of the blue with strangers. I understand that Yui was partially to blame for Carla's anger and subsequent dungeon scene but that moment grossed me out sooo bad. She lost her will to live but Carla literally jumped on a depressed girl and was on the verge of rap€ing her, if his Endzeit didn’t kick in. He gets gradually better throughout his route but this scene left a sore taste in my mouth.

Kino:

Look, Kino is a great villain and a lot of fun, but his LE route was trash. Kino killed a child, mistreated Yui, abducted both Yui and Ayato, planned to sell Ayato to the church for execution, manipulated Yui and tortured Ayato. The pain he caused them both was immense and although I appreciated Yui calling him out, it's so sad that she was brainwashed. While it's true that Kino can be quite cute when he wants to, their romance was so rushed and forced because they didn't give us any reason why Yui would fall for him other than manipulation when Ayato, who was seen to care more about her than for himself, was right there. I wish they developed Kino’s feelings better, given that he straight up blackmailed Yui to become his, otherwise Ayato would had been killed, therefore Yui had no other choice but accept the situation. That’s why his CL route is way better.

I only mentioned 5 instead of 6 but that’s mostly because no other character came closer to them in terms of bad scenario. The rest of them felt decent in their routes for a game called Diabolik Lovers, lol.

[starogeorgina]

My dearest love

Warnings: Major spoilers for the show and book, main character death, mentions of SA

Pairings: Jacaerys Velaryon/reader

Notes: This story will contain major spoilers, including character deaths in future House of the Dragon series and the book the show is based on, fire and blood. Please do not read this if you don't want it spoiled for you.

“You’re certain about this?”

You tilt your head to the side as you look directly at your husband and king. “I am, and I wish to speak to our sister one last time before she’s to be executed.”

Aegon thinks about it for a moment, his gaze moving between you and your mother, who would most certainly disagree with your decision. “If you wish it, I will allow it; however, a knight will be with you at all times.”

Your mother cleared her throat from across the table with her hands clapping in front of her. “Now that’s sorted, we have another issue to tend to. Rhaenyra’s only living son.”

“It’s already been dealt with.”

“We need to evaluate the risk.”

“The decision has already been made that the young boy’s life is to be spared, and when he’s of age, he will be sent to the wall to become a man of the night’s watch. That way there won’t be an issue with him having any heirs who will try and claim the throne.” Your mother opens her mouth to argue but you quickly cut her off, “my husband has already made his decision that he will not punish a boy for the sins of his mother.”

“Your husband, of course,” she says quietly. She disapproved but couldn’t argue against the king’s decision.

“Aegon, please” you reach out and take his hand in yours. “Think of Jaehaerys; he was innocent just as Rhaenyra’s youngest son is. Please spare him. Spare him, and I’ll forever be in your debt.”

“I’ll spare his life; consider it a wedding gift.”

“Well, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to visit Rhaenyra.”

Aegon winced as he stood up, and you kissed his cheek before turning to leave. Your mother kept her head down. You suspected that deep down she knew the real reason you were going along with this sham of a marriage, but she would never dare say it out loud.

—

“You!” Rhaenyra’s eyes burn with tears of rage as you approach the cell she is locked in. She grips the black metal bars, her knuckles turning white as she seethes, “You poisonous traitor!”

The knight behind you clutched the top of his sword. Rhaenyra was behind bars and chained to the wall by shackles, she was no threat to you. “Leave us,” you order. The knight remains in his place. “Your queen just gave you an order.”

“The queen?” Rhaenyra lets go of the bars and backs away from you, her hand resting against her chest. Her tears flow freely now. “My son trusted you, he... he loved you.” Her hand shakes as she wipes away tears. “You killed him; you're the reason he’s dead, and now you've come here, but to what end? To gloat? You took my eldest child from me, then married the man who stole my crown.”

“Rhaenyra…”

“I know what you did. I know what happened!”

Jacaery's plan to send his younger brothers to Pentos to be fostered by a prince until the war for his mother's throne was over was derailed by your grandsire, who made a deal with the Triarchy to move against House Velaryon's fleet. Aegon the III managed to escape on his dragon stormcloud to only be captured along with his mother; however, Viserys didn’t make it off the ship in time and was presumed to have been killed when the ship he was on went down. Along with four other dragon riders, Jacaerys flew to the gullet to try and save his brothers, which resulted in a battle with him obliterating many of the greens' warships. When the news of your grandsire’s plan reached your ears you immediately flew to the Gullet just as Vermax crashed into the waves below with Jacaerys on his back while both of there were being fired upon with crossbows.

However, the story is that Jace survived the fall until you ordered dragon fire to rain down on him.

“I’m not here to gloat.” You wanted to tell her the truth—the whole truth—but you couldn’t with your knight still within ear shot. It was obvious your own mother had no trust in you as the knight she personally appointed to guard you slowly made his way out of the cell.

She began to hiccup while more tears fell from her bloodshot eyes. With a hint of mockery, she asks, “Then to what? Beg for my forgiveness?”

You press your head against the cool metal bar and sigh, “Yes. I want your forgiveness because I am unable to spare you from what is about to come.”

“Aegon is going to have me executed.”

You nod.

You knew of Aegon’s plan to kill her with dragon fire, but you withheld that information. Her last remaining hours shouldn’t be filled with Sunfyre’s rage. You couldn’t stop her death, but you could ease some of her pain before she died. You simply needed to find the courage to say the words out loud.

“I was unable to stop this, but I was able to spare your child's life. I promise you no harm will come to your precious boy.”

“Aegon?”

“I promise I will treat him as if he were my own; I will keep him safe.”

Her voice was weak as she spoke. “He will never truly be safe, not while our brother sits on the iron throne.”

Her throne.

“I give you my word, nothing will happen to him.”

“You know nothing about keeping your word,” she spits. “You stood in front of me and Daemon in Dragonstone and swore you loved my son and would pledge yourself to our cause. Instead, you lied to us and betrayed us.”

“I never betrayed you, nor would I lie.”

She scoffs, “How long have you been planning to usurp me and become queen?”

“I never wanted any of this. It was my mother's idea, and truthfully, I went along with it because I was scared.”

“Alicent, got you to marry Aegon?”

“Yes, with my husband and sister dead, she said it was the only way to keep our house united.” You try your best to hold back tears of sorrow, but she sees right through you. “I do not mourn my husband like you do yours; in truth, I thought Aemond’s death was a chance for me to escape, but I mourn for our sweet sister Helaena. She was so kind and innocent.”

There was a day just before the war between House Targaryen where you sought comfort in your sister's company after having an awful dream, but that night you left her to find a different type of comfort in Jacaerys. It was the last time you ever saw Helaena, and leaving her will always haunt you.

“The war will soon be over; my brother will no longer sit on the crown, so your son will be safe.”

She gives you a look of disgust. “You would slay your own king? Your own husband?”

By now Rhaenyra was leaning against the bars again, but she was not as aggressive as she had been before; she was exhausted instead. You reach for her hand through the gap and place her hand on your stomach. “No amount of good deeds would ever make up for the sins I would commit to protect my family.”

She gives you a look of confusion before understanding what you're alluring to and lets out a gasp of shock, “Aela…”

“If I had refused to marry Aegon, he might have seen me as a traitor. It doesn’t justify my staying here, but I was truly afraid. After the Gullet, I only came back for Helaena, but by then it was too late. Everything happened so fast, and before I knew what was happening, I was married to another man I didn’t love.” You let out a shaky breath and said, “If my child is born with strong features, Aegon will have them killed. I can’t let that happen.”

Her palm rests against her forehead, “Strong?”

You understood the confusion in her voice, as you had been married to Aemond for over two years, although you had only slept with him on your wedding night. You had laid with Aegon several times since being married out of fear, but after discovering you were pregnant, the silver lining was that you were able to manipulate him with sex into giving you what you wanted, and what you wanted was to save Rhaenyra’s youngest son.

It gave you hope knowing that your child was made out of love.

“Jace is the father.”

Her eyes fill with tears again, and her chest starts to heave heavily as she takes deep breaths, trying to process what you just told her. Your body shakes as you lean in, so your lips are practically ghosting her ear, petrified that the knight outside would hear. Your voice is barely a whisper. “Jacaerys is still alive.”

“No, no, you're lying,” she says, shaking her head. “He died; he died in battle. You killed him.”

“Jace survived Vermax’s fall. He's badly wounded but alive.”

“How is that possible? The other riders swore they saw you burn him.”

“Amethyst set the ship Vermax hit going into the water on fire; when the smoke clouded his vision, we flew down and got him. I promise you, Rhaenyra, he is alive. I only let others believe he was dead to protect him; otherwise, he would have been hunted down. I am in love with him and would do everything in my power to keep him safe.” When she looks hesitant to believe your love for her son, you pull a handkerchief from the sleeve of your dress and hand it to her. It was violet with a three-headed dragon and seahorse sewn into it; the stunning embroidery was stained with blood. “He had matching ones made for us.”

“The color,” she mumbles to herself while studying it. You named your dragon Amethyst because of her glimmering violet scales, a beautiful sight that only Jace would show honor to. “House Targaryen and Velaryon combined.” Her eyes suddenly widened. “You must go to him! He's alone and vulnerable!”

“Shh,” you say, pointing toward the door, and resume whispering. “During the hour of the owl I will leave with Aegon, we will go to Jacaerys on dragon back then leave the seven kingdoms.”

“Where will you go?”

“Somewhere, the name Targaryen doesn’t mean anything. At least until Jace is well enough to make the decision for himself if he wants to return home or stay gone.”

For a moment a ghost of a smile plays on her lips but it quickly fades, “he doesn’t know that I’m here does he?”

Your voice breaks. “He’s been taking the milk of the poppy daily while his wounds heal. Otherwise he would have killed himself trying to get to you, and in truth, I’m not sure he will truly forgive me for not being able to save you.”

The castle was swamped with loyal Team Green supporters, knights, and people afraid to go against your family. If you thought there was even the smallest chance of Rhaenyra getting out alive, you would be trying to break her out, but it was already a gift from the gods that you got to speak to her one last time.

“Tell my sons I love them.”

You reach for her hand through the bars that separates you. “Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen, you will always be the rightful heir to the throne.”

—

As you promised Rhaenyra, you snuck out of your shared bedchamber with your brother, who hours earlier fed her to Sunfyre in front of her poor, terrified son, but as you promised, no physical harm came to Aegon the III. Using your authority as queen, you dismissed the knights guarding the tower the young boy was held in and quickly snatched him into your arms, then ran.

Amethyst was saddled and ready outside the dragon pit waiting on you; once you mounted her, you took off. You gave thanks to the gods that your dragon remained silent and didn’t make her usual shrieking noises as she flew off to where your injured beloved was waiting.

Panting, Aegon rolls onto his back with a boyish, smug look on his face. Despite being severely injured during the battle at Rook’s Rest, he still had enough strength to climb on top of you. Of course you let him, as saying no wasn’t an option, and even if you did try to refuse his advances, it wouldn’t have mattered to him anyway.

You handed him a chalice of wine that was laced with a sleep aid. You needed Aegon to be in a deep slumber so he wouldn’t hear you leaving. You kissed the crown of his head, saying goodbye not to the monster that lay beside you but to your older brother, whom you once adored as a child, as you knew this would be the last time you ever saw him.

You flew for what felt like hours before your destination finally came into view. You let out a deep sigh as Aegon clung to you tightly as Amethyst got closer to the ground. “Things will be okay now,” you coo. “You’ll see Jacaerys soon.”

The small boy looked up at you with tear-filled puffy eyes, his lips trembling as he struggled to find words to say. His voice quavering, he manages to say, “Jace.”

—

Jacaerys remains silent, his face stoic as he stares at the blank wall in front of him. You thought he would cry or yell when you told him about his mother's death, but instead he remained silent.

You leave to check on his brother, who is asleep in the next room. Unsurprisingly, the young boy was still awake. “Are you cold?”

He nodded, and although you knew the morning rain wouldn’t be the only thing keeping you awake, it was something you could help with. You placed another blanket over him before singing him a lullaby in High Valyrian.

When Aegon finally fell asleep, you slowly moved away from him, being careful not to make any noise. When you reached the other side of the doorway, you came face to face with Jacaerys.

Rage radiated off him.

Without saying a word, he turned for the door leading outside and walked into the oncoming storm. “Jace!” You call after him as he marches in the direction of your sleeping dragon. Fear cuts through you. “Jace, where are you going?”

“Kings landing.”

You catch hold of his arm and say, “Don’t be ridiculous. Amethyst won’t let you mount her without me.”

“Then come with me.”

You stroked your thumb across his face as raindrops dripped from his hair onto his long lashes. You really hoped your baby had his features. Sighing, you shake your head and say, “We would both be killed.”

“He killed my mother! Aegon! Her own brother! He fed her to his dragon! He can’t get away with it!” His voice began to crack. “He needs to pay for his crime. She’s gone because of him.”

“I promise you he will pay, if he hasn’t already.”

Jace blinks at you, confused, “What did you do?”

“Nothing; I did nothing. I overheard Larys Strong conspiring to have Aegon killed the night your mother was captured. He predicted what would happen, and the decision was made that a kin slayer wouldn’t be fit to sit on the iron throne.”

Between Lord Larys Strong being known as the master of whisperers and his strange relationship with your own mother, you knew deep down he wanted you to hear his plan. Why? You weren’t sure. Perhaps he expected you to try and intervene or help kill Aegon. In a way, you did it by doing nothing.

“How?”

You rest your forehead against Jacaerys and say, “Please don’t go; I couldn’t bear it if I lost you.”

“I won’t leave for King's Landing today.”

—

You study Jace’s bare chest as your eyes flicker between his newly formed scars as he sleeps. He had been struck twice in his left shoulder and lower abdomen by crossbows at the gullet. He had spent the previous day running on fumes full of anger and grief and fear over the best way to protect his younger brother. You felt relief when he finally collapsed into bed at nightfall.

He must have sensed you were awake and tightened his grip around your waist. “Morning.”

“How are you feeling?”

“I honestly don’t know,” he confesses. “I just don’t know where to go from here. My mother and Daemon are both dead and so are all my siblings aside from one. And I still feel Vermax's absence. You and Aegon are all I have left.”

You pressed soft kisses to the side of his face, “I must confess I’ve withheld some news from you.” You watch as his face twists assuming it was something bad, “soon we will have another child to watch over.”

He stares at you in shock. His dark eyes travel down to your stomach, “you sure?”

“The Maesters in the red keep confirmed it. I haven’t bled in three moons.”

“Thank you Aela,” he kissed the back of your hand. “Not just for giving me a babe, but for saving me and Aegon but for seeing my mother one last time. Did you tell her about…”

“I told her I was pregnant,” you confirmed. “The last thing she told me was that she loved her sons.”

“Just as I love you.”

“I was scared you wouldn’t, I thought you might hate me for marrying Aegon and not being able to save your mother.”

“I believe you would have tried to, and you had no choice but to marry him. They would have killed you and our unborn child if you didn’t.”

Tears threatened to spill from your eyes, you were so afraid that he wouldn’t understand and would resent you, but Jace was a forgiving person. Maybe, just maybe the life growing inside you would be enough to heal some of the damage the war had done.

—-

Tears of joy rolled down your cheeks as you held your newborn son to your chest. Aegon looked over at you shyly, fascinated by the screaming babe in your arms while Jace looked down at him proudly. The past months living in isolation had been difficult to adjust to, neither of you knew what had happened in kings landing until a raven from Cregan Stark arrived. You were unsure at first if it was wise to send him a raven first letting him know of Jace’s survival bit now you are grateful. Cregan passed on the news that king Aegon Targaryen was dead and Lord Larys Strong had been executed for it and the north would support Jacaerys claim to the throne. It also meant you and Jacaerys could legally live as man and wife without pissing off the faith.

But right now none of that mattered, the only thing that did was your family.

“What shall we name him my love?”

“Lucerys.”

You smile, it ‘twas sweet that he wanted to name his son after his first brother who tragically died by the hands of Aemond.

“I’m sīr proud hen ao,” Jace says before kissing the crown of your head. “One day when the time is right we will return home and with you by my side I will take my place upon the iron throne.”

I’m sīr proud hen ao - I’m so proud of you

[midnightstargazer]

Not to defend the overall narrative surrounding house-elves, but probably the #1 reason I'm so sympathetic to Regulus is that he didn't make Kreacher drink the potion.

House-elves are the lowest of the low in Wizarding society, and virtually nobody questions or objects to the way that they're treated. The narrative wants us to believe the Blacks were kind to Kreacher, but what we're actually shown says otherwise: his living conditions leave a lot to be desired, he harms himself as punishment for disobedience or failure, and then of course there's the whole beheading thing. I don't blame Regulus for any of this, because he was a child and would've had no say in it. But I think it's important to understand, where house-elves are concerned, his family wasn't that different from the Malfoys.

And yet, while I know some people do interpret his actions in a very uncharitable way (he was just upset that his property was damaged, etc.), I think there are signs that there was more to it than that. Kreacher himself states that "Master Regulus always liked Kreacher" (DH ch. 10), which implies that from an early age he showed him kindness and affection. Regulus described Kreacher's task for Voldemort as an honor for both of them; how many wizards would even consider whether or not something was an honor for their house-elf? And, while it's suggested he loaned Kreacher to Voldemort willingly, I don't think it's a coincidence that he ordered him to come home afterwards. He might not have suspected the task would be a death trap, but he knew it would likely be illegal and possibly dangerous. I interpret the order as an intentional precaution.

The exact reasons why Regulus turned against Voldemort are very open to interpretation. It could be he believed that making a Horcrux was going too far. It could be, as Sirius suggested, that he got squeamish about the reality of what being a Death Eater involved. But I do think protectiveness towards Kreacher must have been at least part of his motivation.

Why? Because he drank the potion himself.

This isn't an accident, either. It's emphasized by the narrative: Harry initially assumes Regulus ordered Kreacher to drink it, only to be corrected. It's portrayed as a shocking twist, and for good reason.

For most wizards, especially ones with Regulus's background, making the elf drink the potion would be the obvious solution. Hermione is right when she says what Voldemort did isn't that far outside the norm. Slughorn, who is generally one of the more positively portrayed Slytherins, used a house-elf to test wine for poison. The Blacks' family tradition is, specifically, "beheading house-elves when they got too old to carry tea trays" (OotP ch. 4) - so, they don't just preserve them that way after their death, they kill them as soon as they are no longer useful. Brutal physical punishments seem to be common, and their enslavement is accepted as normal and right by literally every character except Hermione. Wizarding society as a whole does not value the lives or welfare of house-elves.

But in the cave, Regulus prioritizes Kreacher's safety above his own. He drinks the potion himself rather than ordering Kreacher to do it, and once they've got the locket, he tells Kreacher to leave him behind. Regulus could very likely have made it out of the cave alive if he had been willing to sacrifice Kreacher, but instead, he ensured that Kreacher would be the one to survive.

Despite everything he had ever been taught about house-elves and their place in society, despite openly holding blood purist beliefs, despite it meaning the all-important family name would die out, he put Kreacher first. He kept Kreacher safe at the cost of his own life.

[orangeshipper]

Things I loved about Gemini: (it's looooong sorry)

Gelis and Nicholas. GELIS AND NICHOLAS. A whole book of them being gloriously MARRIED. More than indefinable "love" they demonstrate that they respect each other, value each other, recognise when the other needs space, they trust each other... They're such a TEAM and it's BEAUTIFUL.

Also the way they TEASE each other. Glorious.

They were in their own house, in their own room and nearly in their own bed. It had been rather precipitate. She said, ‘Gloucester agreed? You’ve got what you wanted?’

‘Not yet,’ said Nicholas crossly.

‘From Gloucester.’ She couldn’t breathe. Her anxieties fled.

‘He wouldn’t have been any good,’ Nicholas explained. ‘He doesn’t have those little –’

‘The meeting?’ she said. But she was just teasing now, and was punished for it.

Also

Below this artful translation, her husband had written: Be patient. I am not.

Also

She was good at codes, and hardly had to look up anything. It was one particular to themselves, so that she translated the last few lines first, which proved to be the only personal ones in the note, but which could hardly have been more specifically personal. She flushed, and choked to herself as she read them, because he would know very well the disturbance he was causing. She hoped he felt as frustrated himself when he wrote it.

Also that time near the end where Nicholas just wants to happily make out with his wife and the WHOLE GANG comes in, and he's like NO TOBIE THERE'S NO WINE GO AWAY (amid much other talking)

Like, their love just fits around their life and friends and it's BEAUTIFUL. (Lol except when he kept being late to things because of it. Snigger.)

JODI. I loved seeing Jodi grow up and becoming a man, so well tutored by his family and friends.

HENRY. OH HENRY. With your beauty and blond hair, but also your brown stubble and your height and your one dimple... The slow, grudging, gradual, hesitant edging towards seeing that families could have a healthy dynamic, that silliness and learning and skill and pride could be GOOD things... It broke my heart to see how damaged and messed up his whole worldview was. There was hope... He was finding common ground with Jodi...

Pause to shout out to this glorious line from Gelis in a glorious scene:

'Nicholas, if you don’t sit, I shall take Henry at his word and carry him off to the bedroom. And that will frighten him silly.’

BUT HENRY. It's a testament to DD's writing that I felt such profound sadness when he and Simon died. It was heartbreaking. How could I be so sad by the death of two characters who had been so irredeemably and consistently vile? It was beautiful and destroyed me.

Leading to another thing I loved - how grief is shown in the HoN. One of the most striking parts of the whole series was Nicholas's grief over Marian, then again his response to Henry and Simon BROKE ME.

The storm broke for Nicholas then. The black pillar of grief with its debris crashed upon him unawares, overwhelming in its ferocity; worse than the sorrow for his people at Nancy, for Godscalc or even for Umar and Marian; Felix; Zacco… reaching back beyond that, to a bottomless misery he could not remember; beating him down as he crouched. He wanted to scream. He could not keep silent. Anselm Adorne, hearing, set his lips but did not come near. Andro Wodman, forced awake, clenched his eyes to shut out the anguish.

It just touches so many characters, and that grief is allowed space to breathe and to be. I'm thinking Nicholas's raw distress in contrast to Adorne's quieter grief, the loss so deeply felt lingering from Will Rogers' death... etc.

Similarly, I loved seeing the lingering impacts of trauma following the battle at Nancy from Caprice and Rondo. They don't just get over it. Robin has life-changing injuries, which are dealt with sensitively, and he has to learn to live with them. John seems to have some kind of PTSD too, how aimless and lost he seems to find himself afterwards, how they both just need to talk about it but everyone is afraid to. They heal, but it takes TIME, and isn't just forgotten or brushed aside.

Seeing the dots appear that will connect to Lymond... RANKIN!!! (One thing I'm confused about - so, Sybilla is Jordan and Isabelle's child. I've seen the theory that Jordan's blame of Rankin for Margaret's death (HEARTBREAKING) was what led to them having to marry secretly. Really, though?? I just didn't pick up on lingering animosity from the epilogue, when the families still evidently hang out a lot? It seems like a stretch to me but I can't see any other reason.)

I have to comment also on JULIUS. THE PIG. I'd half seen a vague spoiler that he wasn't all good, and had thought him generally untrustworthy/a bit of an idiot/greedy anyway for quite a few books. So it wasn't a huge shock. I LOVED their showdown fight though. I know people herald the swordfight between Lymond/Richard in GoK as The Greatest but I have honestly preferred both this one and Lymond/Gabriel's duel at the end of DK. It was just so brutal and hard and desperate and bloody exciting to read.

Ok that's it off the top of my head. PHEW. I completed my self-set and entirely arbitrary aim of reading the full HoN series within a month, and feel a bit lost now!

Whoever said this series was a slow burn, TRULY. I only started to feel like I was beginning to understand Nicholas like... book 6 onwards. I loved that understanding dawning and developing. I ended with a big, stupid, contended grin on my face.

[jolieblack]

Jolie's notes on

The Three Students (Sherlock & Co podcast)

📖 🎓👨‍🏫 This case doesn’t seem to get talked about much… and I think I agree and I know why. I find ACD’s original Three Students story rather unspectacular myself. The setting is very picture-postcard English™️, but it is otherwise completely unexciting. A solid string of observations and deductions eliminates both red herring suspects (painfully red) to arrive at the *gasp!* solution that people may not be who they appear to be on the surface. Decent work, but hardly the stuff that made Sherlock Holmes a legend. Considering that this is what Joel was up against, I’d say he did rather well for the podcast! Because this isn’t a story about a crime now, it’s a story about identity and about belonging. (Once again. I love how this is a recurring theme of our show.)

John abandoning Sherlock, Mariana and their whole project for a wild night of student partying has been called out of character by some commenters, but while I was still at a loss to understand it myself at the end of the first part, by the end of the second part it made sense to me that this whole case is a story about fitting in, about being popular, about FOMO and what FOMO does to people. John didn’t recklessly let Sherlock down in pursuit of instant gratification in the alcohol or flirting department. What actually happened there was John being bowled over by either the memories of his student days and of how much he loved being one of the boys and having a gang to party with that accepted him just the way he was, which he subsequently lost after his army days and injury; or by the memories of how he never really had a gang to belong to, having struggled at university both academically and in the popularity contest, and is catching up to that lovely feeling now. We see the same thing mirrored in Mariana‘s backstory of wanting to fit in with the cool gang at school. Then it gets mirrored in the three students, too, and in what drives them. Even Sherlock isn’t immune from being called the best in his field and it being "cool" that he’s being invited to speak at Oxford. But he - unexpectedly, given his constant sense of being a misfit - ends up being the happiest and most successful of the whole bunch in this adventure, because he fully realises, quicker than anyone else, that has found his family (a doctor from Swindon and an accountant from Sociedad!) and knows exactly where he belongs.

I don’t suppose any of us were surprised that Sherlock’s awkward lecture would end up being the live solving of a case. (We all remember the BBC Sherlock’s wedding speech in season 3 of that show, after all.) Love how he took everyone to task though. Brutal. Fantastic. I knew there was a reason why I love this man.

Details that I loved:

Sherlock stealing everyone’s sausage rolls and framing Archie! 😂 The way Sherlock got demoted from best friend to "roommate" with very sharply enunciated consonants as a punishment cracked me up.

"when I am positively carbonated with the fizzing bubbles of resolution…" - I kept looking for the ACD story that quote comes from, but it’s apparently an Emory original! 👌

I adored John once again being Sherlock’s interpreter for social cues, and how much they’ve perfected their routine by now: Their super-quick "hyperbole or sarcasm?" - "affectionate hyperbole" exchange made me tear up with affection myself.

"I will merely emit a faint glow of intrigue for now." - Another quote that I could have sworn was ACD.

Things I did NOT like: The professor’s accent. This guy was literally painful to listen to. Oxbridge alumni in this fandom, please join me in confirming that Oxbridge professors do not typically talk like that.

So… like in ACD’s stories, we can’t and won’t always have high stakes, dead bodies and mortal danger, but that’s fine with me. These are stories about friendship as much as they are stories about crime, and in this one, insights abound in the former sense.

[pumpkincarriage3]

Ace Trappola Character Analysis

Ace is interesting overall, just because of how many theories revolve around him. The traitor theory in particular. Which, while an interesting theory, I think can't be farther from the truth. For if Ace were to ever betray his friends, it would be one of his most selfless acts by far -- and here's why:

We meet Ace during the prologue. Ace himself is the first proper student that we actually get to talk to in the game, someone that actually goes out of their way to talk to both Yuu and Grimm. Without Ace doing this, and his following taunts afterwards, we never would have gotten where we are. For Ace kickstarts it all.

Ace is a rather mischievous, charismatic, and blunt character. He's also selfish and has more than just a healthy-dose of self-preservation, but this is normal for most of the characters in NRC. Ace prefers to have fun with things, as he isn't one that wants to deal with a heavy atmosphere. It's why he approaches Yuu and Grimm in the way that he does.

Keep in mind, Ace actually does explain the Great Seven to Yuu and Grimm when he didn't have to. Sure, it was to build up to a punch line, but he arguably could have acted a whole lot worse. Ace at the beginning of the game, does admittedly look down on people who lack magic. And Grimm is a monster that snuck into the Entrance Ceremony and proceeded to set anything and everyone on fire. It wasn't just a case of Grimm going a little wild. It was played up for laughs, when Kalim was sat on fire, but keep in mind Grimm wasn't paying attention to where he was aiming his flames because he didn't care if he set a bunch of students on fire and they died.

The fact that all Ace did was taunt both Yuu and Grimm is amazing, and incredibly bold considering what Grimm did but Ace probably felt safe enough to do so because he specializes in wind magic. (This might have also been the reason he didn't seem to hold a grudge against Grimm for what he did and instead mocked him. Ace himself probably wasn't in any real danger during the Entrance Ceremony.) Of course, there's also the fact that Ace saw a bunch of kids being sat on fire, and people panicking, and he thought this was hilarious. Safe to say Ace's moral standards and version of comedy is a little morbid.

Actually, if you look at it from that perspective, Ace walking up to Yuu and Grimm on that first day reveals a lot about his character. (Admittedly, he might be a little bit of a sociopath.)

But, that's the thing. Ace wants to live his best life and wants to have fun while doing it. It's why he mocked Yuu and Grimm. It's why he was so willing to throw in the towel at the Dwarves Mine. Sure, being at NRC was nice, but it wasn't everything to Ace like it was for Deuce and Grimm. As far as Ace was concerned, if this was the punishment he got for something that wasn't even his fault, why should he bother putting this much effort into it? What would the rest of his school year be like then?

It's why he was so pissed off with what happened with Riddle collaring him. Ace could only see it as ridiculous. His brother had gone to NRC, so Ace had already had an idea in mind of what it would be like. Him nearly getting expelled and then Riddle collaring him was not it. Which is why he told Yuu and Grimm that he wanted to transfer over to their dorm. While he came to NRC to learn, he also came to have fun.

Which leads into him being so blunt with Trey. With why he was so put out with the way Riddle was acting. For, from Ace's perspective, there was no point in it. Ace is not someone that feels a whole lot of sympathy, added to him being collared, he had no sympathy for Riddle. He had none for Trey who kept letting Riddle act however he wanted.

Interestingly, we also get to see a glimpse in what type of friend Ace is by his reaction to Trey's actions towards Riddle. Ace himself says that Riddle can't control his parents, but Trey is his friend and Trey knows better, so he should call him out on it. In that conversation, Ace wasn't just upset at the situation and done with it overall. He was also pissed at Trey, because from Ace's perspective, Trey was being a bad friend.

Seeing Trey enable Riddle, which just further isolated Riddle pissed Ace off, because from Ace's perspective, if Trey actually cared about Riddle, he wouldn't allow Riddle to continue in self-destructive behaviors. Because that's the type of friend Ace is. He'll call you out on your crap. He'll be there through thick and thin, but he's not going to let his friends destroy themselves because they don't know any better. He's the type of person to drag his friend kicking and screaming towards the "right path". Of course, that is to say if that person even manages to become Ace's friend before that, because Ace isn't the type of person that will put up with such behaviors, he isn't going to coddle people.

That same grit to stick with people that are his friends though? It's the whole reason he punches Riddle when he starts insulting Yuu. Yuu has been nothing but kind to Ace, and while Ace does look down on that kindness, he's not going to let someone else walk all over the person that's helped him. Because Ace is extremely loyal.

It isn't really something someone would notice unless it was under precarious circumstances. Simply because Ace doesn't want to deal with heavy and drama filled situations. To Ace, no one is responsible for anyone's actions but themselves, so why should he get involved to help someone else? So unless that person is someone Ace has deemed a friend, he will not help them.

I can say this firmly because Ace does have a heavy sense of self-preservation. We see this in the Endless Halloween Event where he basically leaves Epel out to dry to deal with Floyd. No to say Ace doesn't like Epel, but they aren't close and therefore Epel isn't worth it to Ace to stick out his neck for.

Ace is also incredibly intelligent. He's an observant person, which I don't think he gets enough credit for. Most of his dumb decisions come from wanting to goof off and have fun rather than him actually being stupid. He's an exceptionally quick learner. You can see this in his Dorm Uniform Vignette where Rook teaches Ace to speak Mole in a short period of time to lure out a couple of hedgehogs.

But Ace is also a liar just as much as he is brutally honest. I don't think he's a tsundere, as much as some people betray him that way. I can see him being honest with his feelings unless he was under certain circumstances. What I mean by liar, is that Ace will lie if there is something he wants. Sometimes it's just to get into people's good graces, other times he actually wants something physical. Ace can pull this off because he's also exceptionally charismatic, we see this when he talks to the guard in the Coral Sea. He knows exactly how people work and want to say to lead to the best outcome, for him. Ace is actually one of the most observant characters in the entire game. He doesn't hold a candle to Rook, but he comes as close to that as humanly possible.

[fizzigigsimmer]

I also don't think Gator will die. He got his punishment this episode and it was brutal, but also pretty symbolic. It's a nice punishment, thematically speaking, you can tell a thought was put into it and the performances of both Joe and Jon just added to the absolute devastation that was the scene of Munch of bringing Gator to Roy.

If they wanted to kill I think this episode would've been a good time, but they still kept him in a story for a reason and in the promo for the next episode we see him wandering the tunnels. So, he's still alive for some purpose for sure.

The obvious purpose is either between Roy or Dot. My big hope is that he will have another scene with Dot and there's also a possibility he will "blindly" kill his father (like Oedipus) or spill information that would lead to his death, but the reason he's still in the story is definitely because one of those two characters or both.

I wanted to ask you if he truly does not end up being killed at all, what kind of ending do you imagine for him? I feel like Dot finding him and deciding to take him home with her is a bit far fetched, mostly because I'm still convinced writers want his story to end in tragedy.

He’s definitely alive for some purpose, and my fingers are crossed that he’ll survive till the end. If I could imagine any ending for him honestly it would be for him to do what Dot was hoping Linda and Karen would do. He would get Roy to do the one thing he always said he’d never do, and that would hurt the most to have to live with, surrendering. So Roy would surrender to his “weakling” son and the “inferior” woman he couldn’t break, and then they’d testify against him about all of his past crimes. That’s my perfect world scenario. I think it’s far more likely that Roy is going to die and if Gator doesn’t die with him he’s going to end up going to prison, likely getting time reduced for bearing witness to the FBI about all the illegal things his father and his network did. But I’d like to think that regardless Dot will be there for him helping him in the aftermath.

I don’t think that’s far fetched because we’ve seen consistently how she cares for him. She won’t let that get in the way of her survival and doing what she needs to do to protect herself and her family obviously (nor should she) but Dot sees Gator in his entirety. Both the dangerous and destructive man he became in the years away, and the abused child he was when she left. Her actions have also protected him in the past, which she pointed out to him herself. She’s had numerous opportunities to really hurt him and rat on him to multiple authorities. I don’t think there’s a single person not already on the ranch who could even say Gator had a part in her abduction unless Dot were to reveal that. Yes a big part of that is she didn’t think it would do her any good and she was trying to stay out of Roy’s clutches, but I believe there’s truth to what she told Gator in the barn/shed. If she can help it, she will try not to hurt him.

Dot is a nurturer at heart and we’ve seen that in action so many times. Even believing what she believed about Linda, she was still able to see both the good and bad in her. In her dream we saw that one of her biggest desires along with taking down Roy was to heal the hurt between them. She even offered this to Karen, although she probably knew Karen wasn’t likely to take it. So I believe that if Gator survives that Dot isn’t going to just forget about him.