#and THINKS that he might be in love with her but he isn't and that's my insane obsession

[syngularitysyn]

It's all fun and memes to joke about how Caitlyn immediately switched sides the moment she hears Vi call her cupcake again. And I do it too. But to me, the switch wasn't abrupt at all.

From the first scene in episode four, Caitlyn already says that the martial law has been going on much longer than she wanted. In the next scene, you see her standing up to Ambessa, using her words back at her, for which Ambessa calls her fearless. It shows that Caitlin has not given up control and is not being puppeteered by Ambessa. She's in control still, but her singular focus is still on Jinx like it was in act one.

Vi was right that Caitlyn is behaving like Jinx, but it was probably the worst thing Vi could have said to her, no matter how true, cause Caitlyn was too deep in her quest for 'justice' in her grief. That's why she reacted so violently.

Jinx is the target of her obsession, or her in her mind for justice, even though what she really wants is vengeance, and being compared to Jinx cut deep. Vi had noticed the similarity before in season one, but that was before Jinx kidnapped Caitlyn and wanted her dead.

In the beginning of episode four, she feels that it's been going on too long, but even after all those months her obsession is still stronger. Her obsession with getting vengeance, finding Jinx, killing Jinx, is still stronger than her moral compass, which she has abandoned to avenge her mother and fill her mother's shoes.

But over the course of the second act before she sees Vi again, there are multiple things that happen that make Caitlyn understand she has to stop, that what she's doing isn't right or justifiable.

Some of these were not initially clear to me when I first watched it. but one thing I realized today while I was working out is that one crucial moment for Caitlyn's arc in act two is with Singed.

Taking her singular focus off Jinx for a moment, Caitlyn does what she does best and figures out who Singed is, and what he's responsible for. She uncovers that Singed is actually the formerly revered alchemist Dr. Corin Reveck, who used to work with Heimerdinger at the academy. Arcane implies he is from Piltover and became a Zaunite after being kicked out of Piltover. He helped build up Piltover to what it is, and now he is ravaging Zaun with shimmer, weapons and monsters.

When she calls him a monster and asks him "why do all this?", he tells her he did it 'for love'. Out of love for his deceased daughter.

And I think that that is one of the crucial moments where Caitlyn starts to realize that what she is doing is not very different from him.

She's doing things her old self would never have approved, of out of love and grief for her deceased mother.

When she sees Vi again, she doesn't suddenly switch sides, she's already been doubting her chosen course of action. She initially says "you can't be here", because Caitlyn is trying to believe she's doing the right thing still, and knows Vi is a threat to that belief/lie.

Vi calling her cupcake though, is one of the last drops in the bucket. She left Vi to do what she thought she needed to do, what her mother might have done. What she's doing out of guilt for not saving her mother when she had the chance. She even tried to be with a girl her mother would have approved of.

When Vi calls her cupcake, all the feelings she's been trying to stuff away come flooding back. She snaps out of this self-imposed love-deprived state she's been in, and she can no longer deny she loves Vi.

When Vi tells her that she's trying to save her dad, I think that is the moment she actually switches sides. That was the last drop. That is the moment where she realizes there are still people she loves, who love her, who are still alive and they need her help, and that is more important than her horrible campaign for vengeance out of grief, otherwise she's no different than Singed.

[scintillyyy]

anyways. cliff notes version of my "connecting leslie's story in war games to the evils of child soldiers & utter hatred of batman/bruce as the root of the problem and violence in gotham" doesn't understand her

i mean everyone knows the obvious of. leslie would never intentionally cause harm to prove a point, but that is the big one, yes

but even within that. i do think the point of the big one is that you need to understand that leslie is an absolute dogmatic nonviolent pacifist and would absolutely disagree with the use of any sort of violence to teach someone their violence is bad. retribution and personal revenge is off the table for her & is to be condemned in others.

leslie fundamentally disagrees with *all* of their choices to be vigilantes & use of violence to solve problems, not just bruce, but even the kids. she doesn't necessarily see them as hapless victims to bruce's ultimate will of violence. she wants them all to choose the better, nonviolent path & wants to teach any vigilante the option of nonviolence is there. she would hold bruce responsible for his choice of violence yes, but she would also hold them all responsible for their participation. she also has never shown a significant issue with children being vigilantes--she's might not love it, but she's been fine enough with working with several children as robin with little qualm about their age--her argument isn't that children in particular shouldn't be vigilantes or that children are in special danger here, it's that nobody should be vigilantes and problems should always be solved nonviolently.

which is my next point--there is absolutely cruelty within leslie's pacifism for those who can't meet her standard of nonviolence. she does think cruel things about bruce for his choice to be batman. she would absolutely think cruel things about all of them in her attempt to push them to be better. this doesn't means she hates them personally however

this is because a lot of the cruelty comes from leslie's loving disappointment in those she cares about. she is essentially bruce's mom after his parents die--her anger at him is not borne out of hate for what he chooses to do, but love & disappointment in her feeling he should be choosing a better way (her way) and does not. she dislikes his choices, but never him--she loves him. and she's always trying to save him. the point is never to punish those who haven't yet learned, it's to continue to try and teach them better. she might be frustrated and be angry at batman and the choice to be batman, but she cannot hate bruce. the point is that one day maybe bruce will finally learn that he can choose to be everything she knows he can be.

leslie & steph should frankly get along like oil & water because leslie would absolutely be judgmental of steph even in her desire to save and care for steph, just as she is judgmental of bruce even as she loves him. she would be kind, yes, but leslie's commitment to nonviolent resolution no matter the circumstance would absolutely clash with steph's feelings that personal retribution is justified under certain circumstances would absolutely clash & neither would be willing to budge. like. batman chronicles #18 where leslie does everything in her power to save zsasz at all costs vs detective comics #796 where steph went in for the kill on zsasz to protect herself and batman and questioned why not kill him. think about it.

anyways war games boiling her pacifism down into "batman commits violence and gets kids hurt ergo he's bad & i think he should be punished" completely loses the nuance that is that leslie loves despite her disagreement! the power of her is that no matter how angry and disappointed she might get in someone she is still dogmatically committed to saving them. she objects to the violence criminals commit and would still go out of her way to save them despite what they might go on to do. she saved zsasz. she would save the joker if he were dying in from of her. her devotion to her ideals is commendable, but can also be a flaw that hurts those she loves due to her strict adherence. batman is a part of the problem. batman deserves to be saved, just as all others who commit violence do.

[johanna-swann]

We've analysed the Bucktommy break-up to death, but I keep seeing the "pedestal" thing popping up and I have thoughts about that.

Because in my opinion, the "Buck put Tommy on a pedestal" explanation doesn't really hold up all that well. Buck found out about Tommy and Abby right before that break-up. He found out about one of the worst things Tommy ever did to another person - letting Abby fall in love with him, getting engaged to her, leading her on for over 2 years and then leaving her to take care of her sick mother alone even though he knew right from the start that he would never love Abby like that. And even though he really had no room to judge anyone's dating behaviour after that stunt, he called out Abby for her rebound and in the same breath (unknowingly) called Buck a himbo to his face.

After that Buck, understandably, spiralled a little bit. He really did seem shaken up, especially because it seems he forgave Abby for the way she left him and he feels protective of her. But instead of making any impulsive decisions he sat with that information and thought about it, acknowledged what Tommy did, then got advice when he didn't come to a satisfying conclusion by himself. He thought it through and realised: That was then and this is now.

Now he's not worried that Tommy might do something like that again. Now he thinks that despite this complicated past they somehow share he and Tommy could have a future.

He knows Tommy isn't perfect. He knows Tommy has hurt people. He still admires Tommy because Buck, in some ways, has a similar past. He has also hurt people he loved to protect himself (hello lawsuit arc) and he has learnt and grown a lot over the years. And he knows that this journey of self-improvement must've been much harder for Tommy who had a lot less support than he did.

But admiring a person despite their flaws is not the same as not seeing those flaws. I think it's possible Tommy thought Buck wasn't seeing him for who he really is, but Buck very much took a look at that relationship and said "Stop. What am I doing here and do I want to continue this?". That's what his fieldtrip to dispatch was about. Buck made a very conscious decision when he chose to move forward with Tommy.

Buck's mistake was, as usual, to jump all in too fast with the big steps and a definite lack of diplomacy. Through Tommy's eyes that might've looked like the same thing, like Buck was still wearing the rose-tinted glasses, but I think moving too fast and going in blind are two separate issues and from Buck's side only one applies to the situation.

[kwillow]

Mail time. Theo clearly isn't the best candidate to lecture people on "good manners" but that's not going to stop him.

Also using this as a header for more LORE RAMBLES: THEO EDITION, because again I have more interesting asks about Theo than I can answer with drawings -- so REAMS OF WORDS it is!

Questions and answers under the cut...

Well, Theo isn’t terribly fond of the guy. He’s never met him, of course, but from his research into Old Kingdom history, he thinks of Ambroys as a conceited, shallow, disloyal, cowardly liar – and he’s not exactly wrong, ha.

If they met in the past, when Ambroys was his cocky, younger self, I think Ambroys would take advantage of Theo’s poor social skills and unpopularity by bullying him for some cheap points with other people who would find amusement in that. Ambroys wouldn’t have much use for him otherwise. Theo would spend far more time seething about Ambroys and plans for his revenge on that POMPOUS POPINJAY than Ambroys would spend thinking about Theo at all.

If they met in modern times – well that’s something we’ll address eventually, but Theo and Ambroys would not get along much better. Present-day Ambroys does not like mages one bit. Also, he is quite used to being literally worshipped. A little hater like Theo would not be looked upon kindly.

Thank you!! Now you too are present in a lore dump!

Theo is indeed a fan of the performing arts, and art in general (though he is, predictably, very particular in his tastes). Opera and such was performed during Ambroys’ time, and much of it was likely lost during the apocalyptic era between the time of the Old Kingdoms and the modern day, but I imagine some scant examples of the genre (and traditional plays by the likes of Furry Shakespeare, because Shakespeare is one of those people who just exists in every universe no matter how bizarre) would still survive into the Theo’s time.

Theo’s hometown of Northcrest would be too small and rural to have a real theatre, so experiencing “proper” performances would be rare treats for him, when he followed his mother on business excursions to the rich districts of Ironfrost. I love that you picked up on the fact that he would want his own private box, haha. He wants to observe, not be observed!

You’re right that musicals would probably still be in their vaudeville and burlesque era, and Theo would find them to be distasteful, vulgar pap suited only for the soft, feeble minds of the unwashed masses, not a refined intellectual like himself. (Which is funny because I think a real-world modern-day Theo would like musicals because in some ways, he is a theater kid without the charisma or confidence to actually perform.) While his mother did not enjoy theatre to the same extent he did (her tastes were more in feats of choreographry and human/anthro excellence like ballet), they would bitch about the decline of society together if they saw a poster for one of those terrible, gaudy cabaret catastrophes. In general, Theo hates anything modern and likes anything old-fashioned, and that shifts according to the decade he lives in. An Amaranthine Theo would hate swing music, but a real-world modern-day Theo would like it. Embarrassing!

Also, he will memorize and quote his favorite soliloquies at people for the faintest of reasons. Don’t test him.

No, I don’t think Hyden has strong enough arms or a sturdy enough back to lift an entire person, even one as little as Theo. Hyden might be large but he’s not as powerful as his height and bulk make him look. I think even Theo is more physically adept than Hyden is (and that’s not saying much).

Also, while he would learn to tolerate it from someone like Hyden (in the same way your cat might begrudgingly tolerate you grabbing their little feet), Theo does not like being picked up by people. I can speak from experience than when you’re a short person, people love to pick you up randomly to establish dominance and it’s not a very dignified experience. Theo has a hard enough time being taken seriously even without being lugged about like a wheezing sack of flour.

Theo would be the first to inform you he is not the person to consult on romantic matters. At the same time, he would still give his advice: stop being a fatuous little fool and turn your efforts to matters of greater importance, like work or supporting your family or collecting every edition of your favorite encyclopedia or hitting your head against a wall. All would be better ways to spend your energy.

(I think you’re alluding to a person with a crush on him – God knows why such a person would exist in his universe – asking him for romantic advice, but I feel compelled to specify that the message he’d give a man seeking instructions on how to deal with a lady would be akin to “GET A JOB. STAY AWAY FROM HER”)

(Or maybe you mean someone Theo has a crush on? Well, the answer would be the same. Theo isn't duplicitous enough or proud enough to try to swindle someone towards viewing him as a romantic prospect. But he sure wouldn't suggest they get with someone else. NO ONE IS ALLOWED TO BE IN LOVE. STOP IT, HE SAYS.)

Yes, those are self-inflicted injuries. He’s had a compulsion to bite and scratch himself ever since he was a kid. Sometimes as a punishment, sometimes as a ritual to quell distressing thoughts, sometimes out of the need to replace distressing sensations and events that are out of his control with one that is in his control, no matter how painful.

He does not particularly value his body nor its integrity. However, he is aware the scars are alarming, and finds them somewhat embarrassing reminders of his flaws in self-regulation. He deals with both the sight of the scars and the urge to harm by wearing his gloves, which is something he started doing in his late teens – they cover the marks and help redirect him by replacing the sensation of flesh with fabric when he goes to bite down.

On your question about Theo’s body-image: no, he does not care for how he looks. He likes that his eyes are grey (like mother’s) and that his fur is monochrome (like mother’s), and if pressed he might say the eyebrows aren’t bad, except for the parts where he’s pulled the hair out of them, but that’s it. He hates that he’s not just short but dwarfish, he does not like his heavy-set build, he would not choose to be born a rat, he despises his face, his teeth repulse him, he at least can make peace with the fact that he can’t grow facial hair because he’d never want a mustache like his father’s but it’s still somewhat emasculating, and on and on and on with the insecurities. He definitely feels physically inferior to other males. Your average man is not only much, much taller than him (and the world is cruel to a short king), but stronger and more classically virile as well. But he makes the best of that by dismissing those physical qualities as consolation prizes afforded to males who are obviously inferior to him intellectually, morally, and spiritually. He doesn’t care for brutes, but he doesn’t highly value machismo anyway… He thinks of himself as a gentleman whose best qualities reside in his mind and actions. A man who is reedy and petite but smarter or more charismatic than him is much more threatening to his ego than the bulkiest bruiser. (However, he will still try to fight both for dominance, either physically or verbally, and probably lose.)

Theo is highly offended and disgusted by nudity, both other’s and his own. Even states of mild undress are distressing to him, hence why he looks away when buttoning Hyden’s shirt. He’s willing to stomach some discomfort when it comes to helping a loved one, but only if it’s strictly necessary. He would pointedly not look and scold someone, even someone he was more comfortable with, if they were “too underdressed,” and freak out if they came into his vicinity in the nude. I think it would take years of gradual desensitization to lessen his negative reactions to nudity. It’s not just him being fussy, it borders on a phobia.

(Haha this shows how long I sit on asks before I get around to answering them SORRY...!!!!)

I don’t talk about it a lot because while the character’s sexual orientations do inform their lives and development, romance and sex are not usually at the top of my priority list when it comes to my stories… but I’ve alluded and mentioned directly that Theo is “canonically” bisexual (always feels weird to say “canon” about my imaginary friends, ha). But he is in denial/in the closet about it. Of course, he wouldn’t be aware of the concept of “bisexuality”, nor would that exact label exist in his world, so it’s not like he would identify that way even if he wasn’t repressing hardcore.

He is revolted by sex and intimacy, but that’s more due to his psychological baggage, his perception of his parent’s relationship and his cultural mores than something necessarily inborn or inherent to him.

(Hyden is actually Also Straight, possibly even straighter than Ambroys if we’re measuring by “creator’s admittance that character may be bi-curious one day.” I have a track record.)

Only if it’s karmic in some way, involving a person or persons he’s already predisposed to hating. Granted, dying of one’s own stupidity would be a form of justice in his eyes, but there’s limitations to that. Hearing about, say, an incident like Nutty Putty cave would not be amusing even though he would argue it’s the cave explorer’s “own fault” for going in there because it was such a gruesome and prolonged end, far outweighing the punishment Theo would find fair for such hubris. Of course, if the same cave explorer bullied him in prep school, then yes, it would be hilarious.

I don’t have a character named Herbert, so I am assuming you mean Theo here, from context. :’D

I’d like to draw Theo practicing his fencing some day! It’s on The List along with, er, fifty other drawings, ha. There’s just so much I need to make and so little time…

But besides that, Theo is not a particularly sporty guy. He doesn’t tend to enjoy competitive sports, either participating or watching. Physically he’s just not suited to them, and his schoolboy days did not endear him to them.

He does enjoy taking walks and admiring picturesque landscapes. He also hunted with his mother. One of the duties of the Norths is (or was, before he started shirking all his duties to focus entirely on his madness quest) to eliminate monstrous predators lurking on the outskirts of their territory before they could terrorize the mundane locals. Mages can sense magic, and thus are more capable of tracking down and felling corrupt magical beasts than your average person. Also, sometimes one wants a pheasant for dinner on special occasions. So, he grew up learning to hunt, and he’s decent with a rifle. He doesn’t go out to do much anymore, though. His mother’s death and subsequent self-imposed isolation exacerbated his already present issues with social phobia and paranoia, so he doesn’t feel safe outside his house. Someone could see him out there, and Something could happen. (He isn’t sure what exactly, but surely nothing good.)

During the course of Amaranthine’s story he is, of course, forced to go outside again and travel, so he’ll rediscover his hobby of killing animals again. …Good for him. I suppose.

(This is in reference to the tags I put on my post of Theo's romance meme: #ok one piece of commentary: brain problems + highly repressed upbringing = where i put theo on the kinky slider. it had to be there #you should think less '50 shades' and more '50 year old guys waxing poetic about quicksand scenes in old adventure films' for that one #he's not a quicksand guy. but that's the vibe.)

Hahaha, I appreciate your curiosity, but I’m not sure if it’s a terrific idea to share Theo’s “quicksand” equivalents. Alas, I don’t want to encourage the perception that my characters exist to be romantic or sexual wish-fulfillment, instead of the dysfunctional little narrative fidget toys they are, by going too in-depth too often on their hypothetical sex lives. Also, I get my (un)fair share of fetish-mining asks, and if I mention certain kinks, the senders of those asks might think they can wheedle that kind of smut art from me, which… is not the case, even if I did like the things Theo is partial to. Frankly, I don’t have time to draw smut art when I have so many comics of my characters angsting at each other that I ought to be drawing instead!!!

Anyway, complaining over. But I do know what Theo’s “interests” are, and don’t worry, they are suitably cringe. I find amusement in giving embarrassing proclivities to all my favorite characters, even if it will never come up in their stories. It keeps them humble.

The Theo befriending scenarios are becoming more elaborate…!

Magic can’t really do that in Amaranthine (it’s more limited than a lot of people think)! But even if you could, I think Theo might realize something was off eventually. Granted, he is blind to a lot of manipulation when he trusts someone, and for his own stupid reasons he trusts Hyden, so that alone would provide cover for some time. Being nice to him in Hyden’s guise might even fulfill some boyhood dreams of his, so that helps too. Still, I don’t think anyone but Hyden could manage to act like Hyden forever.

Theo abhors liars, manipulators, and traitors (I know, this is very funny considering I just talked about how Theo likes Hyden – again, Theo is not a great judge of character). While he would be mortified at his own gullibility, it’s not like he’d spare you any judgment for being the one to take advantage of his hospitality in the first place.

So, in attempting to befriend him, you would have 1) caused harm to someone he has charged himself with protecting by kidnapping Hyden, 2) committed the sin of deceiving him and 3) wounded his ego by exposing a huge vulnerability in his psychological armor. These are not crimes he is likely to excuse. Among Theo’s many faults are his capacity for spite and appetite for disproportionate vengeance. In other words, he would want to hurt you very, very badly.

Anyway, in summation, this is not a great way to try and win Theo’s affection. If befriending something hostile is what you’re after, I’d recommend purchasing a pet cobra or something, it would be more rewarding and less difficult to manage.

Ooh, this is another one of those “it depends” sort of questions… an Amaranthine Theo is completely unsuited for parenthood because he is just totally off his rocker and devoted to an impossible, nature-impugning, corruptive madness quest, so there’s not really much space left in his brain for any of the tasks involved in parenting.

Also, how well and in what way he would approach parenting would depend on if he has a partner and who they are, if the kid is biological (and therefore an extension of the North line) or adopted (and therefore might be spared some of those expectations), and what the kid or kids are like.

But, I’ll try to speak generally. He does put an importance on family so he would not be neglectful. In fact, I think he’d tend towards being smothering, way too over-protective. He would have high expectations for their academic career (despite flopping in his own) and would be upset if his children didn’t share his interest in intellectual pursuits. He lacks a lot of knowledge about life, and so he wouldn’t be able to pass that on to his children, despite desiring that they be self-sufficient and capable. He would try and keep them from being romantically involved until they could marry, which he wouldn’t think would be difficult considering how he himself is, but I think he would be disappointed and frustrated by the fact that most people (and therefore probably his kids) aren’t so averse to macking on other teenagers in their school days. His tendency towards being neurotic and temperamental would be an issue, and I think even if he tried to control his explosive tendencies around his children, they’d still pick up on it and be afraid of his moods. I think, with his immature development, he would have a lot of difficulty not descending to a teenager’s level of petty sniping if his teenage child did what teenagers do and started challenging him.

So… this is not painting a rosy picture. Don’t get me wrong, he’d try his best, and he would aim to be a good, supportive, and loving parent, but the man has issues. He wouldn’t be perfect. He might not even be good. He is Theo, after all.

Speaking of parenthood, let's get into some...

Family Matters

NO, they did not like each other. Their passive-aggression is as genuine as it is petty. They were the most divorced people to still technically be married.

Love was never in the cards for these two. The marriage was purely strategic, and all parties were aware of that. Leonard would have liked to have his wife love him, if only because it would be much more pleasant and convenient for him, but it wasn’t a requirement. He could seek love elsewhere if need be. He was always an opportunistic fellow that way.

Jo never held fondness for Leonard, either before or after their engagement. The marriage was at the behest of her father, and Jo had always put her duties to her family line above whatever selfish wants she might have had. She was willing to tolerate Leonard, which is about the best you could expect from her. However, he tried her patience too often to maintain even that level of camaraderie.

Leonard liked how Jo looked, and he liked the idea he had of her personality. Because Jo was deferential to her father, he assumed she would be similarly deferential to him. Hahaha. Not so. After her father passed, she inherited the Barony and thus, in her mind, the right to dictate the use of her family’s assets, the alliances she would forge with her noble connections, and the future of her estate. All her plans conflicted sharply with Leonard’s ideas of what he was going to do with the North’s influence, and he thought himself the keeper of their assets by patriarchal right. They clashed often and they both were too proud, power-hungry, and conniving to reconcile.

Leonard stayed because giving up the marriage would be giving up his avenue to social power. If he wanted to appear like he held the reins to potential allies and business connections, he had to stay in the manor, stay in Northcrest, and keep that ring on his finger. But he did take a very “I just live here” attitude to his home life. Jo stayed because her family’s long-held values maintained that it was her duty to do so, and to falter in her duties would be a permanent black stain on her good name. Also, it proved her superiority to the clearly weak-willed, dissolute Leonard, and that was an ego boost she wouldn’t pass up.

AHAHAH. THEO PEGGED FOR INBRED.

Yes, well, as you intuited, the Norths are one of those inbred noble families, like those you mentioned.

They’re a mage bloodline, and in the old days, mage nobility was a separate form of titled aristocracy from mundane nobility. Legitimate heirs had to have magical ability. If a mundane Viscount produced a mundane child, that was the end of the line of inheritance. Hence, noble mages in the Old Kingdoms only married other mages, to try to ensure their offspring could inherit their titles. While not all practiced inbreeding, it was a practice some families employed to try to “enhance” the magical ability and purity of their line, or just keep their wealth and power within their family (the Hyden family is another infamous example).

However, most magical lineages were wiped out during the fall of the Old Kingdoms, and those that survived were scattered to remote areas of the continent. Very few mages still exist, and the North family is one of the only lineages to survive “intact” to the modern day. They cling to their family’s history and their magical bloodline as their source of power and would never risk a union with a mundane. Like many other old traditions best left in the past, the Norths clung to the old ways, marrying within their line, inbreeding like an endangered species (which I suppose you could argue they were).

Of course, as the North’s numbers declined, the marriages shifted from pairing distant relatives to being cousin-cousin pairs. That level of consanguinity isn’t great for your offspring’s health or fertility, as it turns out, and further diminished their numbers (and options) until it came time for Jocosa to make their dying lineage limp along for another generation. By the time she was of age, there were no branches on the family tree left to harvest a husband from. Thus, the Norths needed to go further afield of the stagnant gene pool they’d been festering in.

Because of that, Theo is arguably a bit less inbred than previous generations of his family. The damage was already done, though. The fruits of the North’s unfortunate marriage practices have garnered them a deserved reputation for weak bodies, sick minds and dying young, and so far, Theo is two-for-three. We’ll see if he gets the triple.

Related to the above: if you haven’t realized already, the Norths are fucking freaks. Especially in the modern day of Amaranthine, caring about matching species in a marriage is seen as hyper-traditionalist, bizarre and absurdly impractical. But, well, the Norths are all those things. Jocosa’s parents were a stoat-stoat pair, their parents were stoat-stoat, and so on up the family tree, with maybe some rare exceptions where you might find a few polecats or minks scattered about in amongst the other long pointy-faced carnivores. Jocosa’s parents really would have preferred to have another mustelid marriage rather than wed their daughter to a rat.

But, that was a preference, and magical ability was a necessity. When Jocosa needed to marry, there were no other magical stoats, weasels, or even an otter for them to choose from.

That’s when an opportunistic young rat caught wind that there was a beautiful noble girl in need of a husband, just when he needed a rise in social station. Leonard was reasonably wealthy, and more importantly charming, quick-witted, and not afraid of lying his ass off to close a deal. He befriended Jocosa’s father and was able to delicately pick his way around or find loopholes in the Norths’ strict rules for marriage. Importantly for the Norths, Leonard had magical ability, albeit extremely weakly. You might say he was a sparkler while Jocosa was a flamethrower (in this analogy, in his prime, Hyden was an atomic bomb). Not ideal, but Leonard had enough magic to count as a mage for heir-producing purposes. Ultimately, Jocosa’s parents saw Leonard as the best option in a bad situation, rat or no. Preferable to dying out altogether, at least.

...

AND ON THAT, UH, HAPPY NOTE: thanks for reading and thank you all as always for sending questions about my little guy and being interested in him, even with all his slimy, weird, unpleasant foibles and flaws!

[maddiethedogstories]

Her Own Worst Enemy

This is my entry into yet another writing competition with @baby-erica and @destinedfordiapers. Go vote for who made their target the blushiest here!

Erica absolutely adored Mads. He was tall, strong, handsome, and dominant.

Every word he spoke felt like an order. It sent shivers of pleasure down her spine to comply to his ever whim.

That's why she wasn't surprised when one night, after particularly amazing sex, Mads disclosed to her that he was domming another woman online. He told her that the other woman's name was Eri, the Erica's nickname as a child, that she was Erica's age, and that she got off on being Mads' pathetic, diapered, little cuckquen.

Mads told Erica that he spoke to Eri like a child. He ordered her to wear and use diapers. He also told her about all of Mads and Erica's sexual escapades, taunting Eri's face with details of sexual encounters that she would never have.

As Mads explained his relationship with Eri, Erica's pussy started to throb. She couldn't help but start rubbing herself. The idea of some pathetic women rubbing her pissy diaper to the thought of Erica's wild sex set her slit on fire. She felt like a porn star in all of the best ways.

"Um, Mads?" Erica asked her boyfriend coyly as he watched her pleasure herself to the thought of domming another woman, "Do you, uhhhh, think I could help you… mmmm… tease Eri…. gah… too?"

Mads grinned, crawling onto the bed next to Erica and replacing her hand with his own.

"I thought you'd never ask," he responded as his fingers darted into Erica's wet lips, bringing her to a quick, yet marvelous orgasm.

Over the next few months, Erica took an active role in domming poor little Eri. Although Mads never let Erica see or speak to Eri herself, Erica constantly teased Eri via video.

Erica recorded herself riding Mads, Mads taking her from behind, sucking Mads off, and Mads sucking on her tits. She memorialized each sexual encounter with her dream man, as she taunted and teased the diapered woman on the other side of the camera.

"Mmm, Eri, I bet you wish were being filled up with Daddy's cock like me, instead of filling your pants like a fucking baby!"

"Oh, Eri, don't you wish you got to suck Daddy's big, hard cock like me, rather than just that silly little paci?"

"Mmm, Eri, if you had big girl tits like me, maybe Daddy would want to… Mmm…suck yours instead of… fuck, Mads…. mine. To bad you're nothing but a silly baby… fuck… not a… mmm… real woman like me."

"Fuck… Eri, if you weren't so pathetic…. ghhhh… you might be bouncing on Daddy's cock… ffff… like me…. gah… instead of bouncing in your loaded…. fuck… pampers."

Each message Erica recorded got progressively meaner and more degrading. Mads urged Erica's sadism at each turn, begging her to be more ruthless in her naughty recordings as time passed. Mads swore that Little Eri was begging to be degraded and talked down to more with each passing day.

Erica loved it. The power, Eri's humiliation, the mind-blowing sex, it was all so intoxicating.

However, as time passed, Erica found herself wanting to become more involved in Eri's submission. She began to press Mads to meet, or, at the very least, to speak with the other woman.

Each time she broached the subject, however, Mads denied her.

"Eri is shy."

"Eri isn't ready to meet you."

"Eri is too embarrassed to introduce herself yet."

Time after time, Erica's requests to meet Eri were shut down.

That was until, one day, Mads finally relented.

"Erica, you're right, it's probably time you met Eri," Mads said with a sigh as he lied naked in bed next to Erica after a particularly wild love-making session, "but, to meet Eri, you need to understand her situation better first."

Erica swallowed nervously at Mads' last statement. She didn't like the sound of that.

"What do you mean, 'understand her situation better?'" She asked hesitantly.

Mads smiled. "Well, sweetie, before you can meet Eri in person, you need to spend some time in her booties first. If you agree to spend some time in the nursery, I'll arrange for you to meet Eri."

Erica turned on her side and shuddered in both pleasure and fear.

She had never seen the inside of attached to her boyfriend's master bedroom. The nursery always locked, and Mads never let her inside when she asked. She had wanted to see the inside of that room for months now, but not in the way Mads was suggesting it would happen now.

"Like," Erica licked her lips nervously, "Really spend time in the nursery?"

Mads responded quickly, "Yes, baby. ~Really~ spend time in the nursery. I've thought about it, and you can't truly meet Eri until you experience her life a little."

Seeing Mads' determination, Erica knew she had no other options if she ever wanted to meet her boyfriend's diapered pet. So, reluctantly, she agreed to spend some time in the nursery.

The next morning, Erica found herself stripped naked and led into the babyish . Her eyes grew wide as she took in the giant baby furniture, adorned with cuffs and straps meant to detain any unwilling occupants.

Mads led Erica by the hand to a giant changing table and lifted her up on to it with ease.

"Let's get a diaper on that tushy," Mads said, popping a pacifier into Erica's mouth before she could protest.

Erica's cheeks turned bright red with embarrassment as she was expertly lotioned, powdered, and diapered by her boyfriend. In fact, Erica was so embarrassed, she didn't notice Mads slip a suppository up her backside as he taped her into the infantile garment.

"Now, let's complete the look."

Mads helped Erica down from the changing table and immediately began to dress her in a onesie that, somehow, fit her perfectly. He then grabbed some ribbon and quickly tied her hair into two neat pigtails on either side of her head.

"Perfect!" Mads announced as he tied the second bow in Erica's hair, "You look adorable!"

Nervously sucking the pacifier she was given, Erica demurely let herself be lead to the crib and restrained inside with both wrist and ankle cuffs.

"Some time strapped in the crib will really let you know what it feels like to be Eri," Mads said, kissing Erica's forehead.

Erica blushed, wishing this would be over quickly, while at the same time beginning to feel a burning sense of pleasure growing within herself from the humiliation.

As she laid in the crib, Erica noticed a strange object covered by a cloth hanging from the ceiling spanning the length of the crib. The woman was unable to determine what it was. Erica also noticed a large television hanging on a wall nearby.

"Ok, baby, I'm going to let you get settled. Don't worry, Daddy will be back soon," Mads said, leaving the room.

With Mads gone, the suppository inside of Erica worked quickly. The small woman began to thrash in the crib futilely before ultimately giving in and loading her diaper for the first time as an adult.

Erica was softly crying as Mads walked back into the room. Erica was both humiliated and incredibly aroused by the horrifying situation.

"What's wrong, baby? Did somebody make a stinky?"

The mocking made Erica sob harder as Mads walked over and caressed her cheek.

"Hush, baby, I know what will make you feel better. I think it's time you meet Baby Eri!"

Erica watched in horror as Mads pulled the cloth off the object hanging above the crib, revealing a full length mirror. Erica stared at herself, hair in pigtails, strapped into a crib, sucking a pacifier, wearing nothing but a onesie and messy diaper. A horrible realization dawned on her.

"Erica, meet Baby Eri!" Mads said cheerily, "I think you're going to find you have a lot in common!"

Erica turned her head to the side as she heard the television click on.

"I'm going to leave and let you get to know each other. Have fun!" Mads said as he pressed play on the remote and left the room.

Erica, or Baby Eri as she had now become, couldn't help but release a small stream of urine into her thirsty padding as she saw her own face fill the large screen.

Soft panting filled the air before Eri heard her own voice ring out.

"Mmm, Eri, I bet you wish were being filled up with Daddy's cock like me, instead of filling your pants like a fucking baby."

Eri's pussy throbbed in pleasure as she realized what was happening. Not only had she become a diapered cuckquen, but, she was being cucked by herself.

Even worse, Eri thought as she tried to free her hands from the cribs cuffs so she could rub the front of her messy diaper, she couldn't deny this is what she really wanted: To be nothing more than Mads' pathetic diapered plaything.

[irisbaggins]

This isn't going to be as in-depth as my other meta (I am too tired after Uni and thinking about different literary theories), but I've seen some folks point it out and wanted to add my own two cents:

From the way I view Evan's behaviour since the killing of Philtrum, I read it as him becoming defeatist towards his own nature. He truly believes he's a bad person, who doesn't deserve love nor happiness. He chafes against any assertion that he's loved or cherished, and he clashes with anyone attempting to assert that he's valuable and loved just the way he is. The only person who he doesn't outright clash with is Sam, and that is - I believe - only due to the fact he saw and experienced her emotions and feelings, and therefore cannot quite dispute them. With Jammer and K he can, because he doesn't have that insight into their true feelings. He can make assumptions, then, and run with that idea.

Why does this matter, then? Well, I've noticed how Evan pushes back against the three, and how it differs with each person. Because he does clash against all of them, just differently depending on the person. With Sam, he doesn't outright deny her claims, but it's clear he doesn't believe her fully. He just doesn't say it because it makes her sad and, after every kindness she's shown him, he doesn't think she deserves to feel like that. With Jammer, we've seen him either outright challenge him - how he's mentioned to Jammer's teammates and the lack of talking about his inherent magic - and we've seen him doubt and distrust Jammer's overt affection - not believing they're family, despite Jammer's insistence that they are. And with K, Evan has never truly believed himself worthy of love, but he doesn't quite understand that that's the issue K has with him, and therefore thinks K just wants to "change him" to fit their worldview (instead of being that K wants to "fix him" in terms of his self worth etc.).

Evan clashes with all of them, and I argue that it's because he doesn't see himself as worthy of their compassion. I would have to re-watch the first few episodes of the season to be sure, but I have the distinct feeling that Evan's refusal to believe in his friends' compassion started after killing B2, something he did without hesitation and without direct remorse. And I think that's the core issue, here. I believe that's why Evan is so adamant in his position, in his belief of his unworthiness, in his desire for power and control; he truly believes he became what he always feared, and he's both accepted this and is also denying it. He pretends everything's fine, yet he also cannot escape the feeling that he's doomed. He called himself heir to the evil house, something he's always denied. I think that alone is an insight into Evan's mindset; he thinks himself evil, which places him in direct opposition to his friends who he believes to be good.

I talked about K and control, and how they can - in their attempt to pretend - be hurtful in what they say. I argue the same is true with Evan, but instead of being directly self-sabotaging with his speech, he's doing it indirectly. He's placing himself as someone they shouldn't trust, and he himself might not be consciously aware of it. He's self-sabotaging, at least from the way I read his actions, especially in light of K's conversation with Tabby. He doesn't trust that the affection of others is genuine, and therefore will treat it as if it weren't. And he's only gotten worse, I think. Yes, he can throw out affection and "I love yous", but receiving them? He doesn't know how to handle that, and will either just go along with it quietly, or question it directly.

Evan's trapped within a negative feedback loop, and I think this is only heightened with his conflict with the Qohlye, and his conflict with him. Specifically, I'm thinking about the ways in which Evan refuses to actually understand why he was given the book, and why it's a horribly sad thing to happen to him. Not because the Qohlye thinks Evan is only meant for sadness, but because the Qohlye understands and knows that the book will only lead Evan to a darker place in a desperate attempt to keep control. The Qohlye is sad, I think, because he knows Evan will happily walk a path he himself doesn't want just to keep his friends close - something that will, in the end, only lead to great sadness. Just take his near sacrifice when saving K from death in the first season, or killing B2 in this season. Evan is a self-fulfilling prophecy, and the Qohlye sees this, and sees Evan refusing to attempt to understand it. That's the sad part, I think. That's where that grief comes from. It comes from seeing a bright and kind kid destroy themselves because of them believing themselves unworthy of love.

I could go on with this topic, but I think I'll end my rant for now by concluding with this: Evan hasn't acknowledged the demons directly since he discovered they had returned, and I am very worried with what's going to happen in the last two episodes. Especially with the references to "kill your dad" and all. Evan is such an interesting character to analyse, especially since he's such a flawed and complex character. Often, what I've noticed with him, is that it's what he doesn't say that leaves the most impact. And him not acknowledging his own emotions and his own fears regarding his nature is quite telling. Especially as he's positioned himself as a wizard killer. I'll probably write some more meta at a later date regarding him - as well as meta on K, Jammer, and Sam, as I find all of them so incredibly fascinating. But I shall end the post now before I fall asleep typing, because I am dead on my feet. So, if this post makes no sense, really sorry about that! Will probably refine it later when I'm dodging writing about my thesis.

Also, just wanted to add: If anyone has like, any points, disagreements, or just general thoughts about this post and my takes, I'm happy to hear them! I'm always up to hear what others think of my takes, especially if you disagree. It always fascinates me to hear what others think about characters and a story, so please do not hesitate to interact if you have your own two cents!

[animeyanderetalker]

I think this will be a Gojo/Geto/Sukuna thing. If the Darling is insecure about her looks, they will fuck her infront of the mirror/s and forcing her look at herself. Maybe even fuck her, when she is leaning on the window or even Infront of their followers/minions.

Tw: Nsfw, non-con, dub-con, mirror sex, humiliation kink, power display

I 100% agree with Sukuna for the point of fucking his darling in front of his minions. It's just such a power display for him, knowing that he can bully his cock inside of you and have others watch as he rails you into the ground all whilst knowing that no one dares to speak up or voice their uncomfortable feelings with the situation.

I take it one step further and say he'd even fuck his darling in a bloody battlefield of his enemies or even other women who threw themselves at him, offering themselves in hopes of mercy, protection or simply to seduce and use him. If he were to consider you ugly and worthless you would have ended up like the dead bodies around you, dismembered and severed with limbs scattered in all directions.

By all means, sweet-talking and Sukuna are two words that do not belong together and he would certainly degrade you verbally just as much. However, if he tells you that your looks are alright you will stop moping around like a bratty kid and if he has to fuck you to hammer that into your brain he will gladly do it.

Mirror sex I can see most realistically see with Gojo. He would never expose his darling to the eyes of others, especially when she's naked and vulnerable beneath him. Now, considering that Gojo attracts people left and right it is not unsurprising that you might start to get insecure about your appearance because you realise that theoretically Satoru has a lot of choices besides you.

Gojo, as a response when noticing your insecurities, would amplify his affection tenfold. That's when mirror sex probably comes in and with the shit ton of money that he has I wouldn't even be surprised if he designs an entire room filled with mirrors and then makes love for you for hours in that room and no matter where you look, your reflection will always look back at you.

Whilst he wouldn't ever let anyone see you naked I can imagine that in case someone attempts to seduce him and convince him that they're better he makes an audio the next time he makes love to you and then plays it to the other person, clarifying that they could never elicit such sounds from him like his darling.

Geto is kind of tricky because he really struggles to accept the fact that he is in love with his non-sorcerer darling. Similar to Sukuna he isn't the kindest with his words either as he actively tries to put you down so that you feel like the worthless monkey that you are. As his followers share his beliefs I do not believe that he would fuck you in front of them.

There could be a point made for him doing the dirty deed with you in front of other non-sorcerers because to him they are disposable and even more worthless than you are. However, even that is rare and would most likely be used when he really wants to humiliate you or punish you in which case the non-sorcerer being forced to watch might be someone far too close to you for his liking.

At one point he would switch his feelings as he is forced to embrace his feelings more and more. He still is far away from a Prince Charming for obvious reasons as he will never view you as an equal to sorcerers but you are no longer in the same category as the humans he views as monkeys. Then he would be more confrontal if you were to harbor insecurities because he still chose you, meaning that you should at the very least realise that you are more special than other non-sorcerers.

[gunpowder-gemini]

Hi I have many many thoughts on Dandadan and where specific characters are going in the story, so incoming ramble posts lol. I've got thoughts on Okarun, Turbo Granny and Kinta specifically.

WARNING: SPOILERS FOR THE MANGA THROUGH CH. 175

First up: Okarun!

So obviously he's lost his turbo granny powers bc he's a good boy who keeps promises, but him having yokai curse powers is like, half the concept of the manga right? (The other half being Momo getting powers due to alien abduction). So clearly, he's gonna get them back because we can't just have one of our two main characters permanently sidelined. The question is just HOW.

I'm pretty sure Turbo Granny is gonna come back, she's a major supporting character and she had a whole little montage panel of Reasons To Stay despite her saying she has none but I'll get into that in a different post lol. HOWEVER! I don't think she's gonna give Okarun her powers again. I mean, they're HERS. And she just spent all that time getting them back why would she give them away again? So Okarun can fight? She can use her powers way better than he can, so if they're needed SHE'LL use them.

I think Okarun is gonna develop his own spiritual powers like Momo's.

In the recent chapters it's gone out of the way to highlight how ridiculously fit Okarun is now. Like, SUPER fit. Most obviously in the fitness tests, where he blew everyone out of the water:

But also in the fight against the pygmies he easily kept up with Aira, who was in her yokai form at the time.

Which I mean, it makes sense that he got fit - he's been fighting for his life as an after-school hobby lol. Obviously continually training to handle Turbo Granny's powers AND fighting things would result in him getting incredibly fit. But they've like REALLY emphasized it these past few chapters. It feels like they're really calling attention to it, you know?

But that in and of itself isn't the real reason I suspect he's got his own spiritual powers. It's actually because he can enter Empty Space.

So per the Serpoians, Empty Space is something aliens create that only pulls in humans with high spiritual power so the aliens can capture and study them. It's why once Aira got her acro silky powers she could enter Empty Space.

Okarun's high spiritual power wasn't his, it was Turbo Granny's. He was able to enter Empty Space because he had her power, but without it he's just a normal kid. So once he gave it back he should be unable to enter Empty Space. And yet:

He's gets pulled into Empty Space to fight the pygmies. He himself calls that out as strange! He shouldn't be able to! He doesn't have Granny's power! But there he is! So he must still have high spiritual power!

I think he spent such a long time with Turbo Granny's full power inside him, utilizing it so frequently, that it changed him. Either it awakened latent spiritual power within him or left behind an imprint of itself, I'm not sure lol. But I think he's developed his own version of Turbo Granny's power. I think it'll be a bit different from her, but still similar (I don't think they're gonna give him a completely different power ya know?). I suspect it'll come with a cool form change to his yokai form, like a costume upgrade lmao.

Furthermore, I think this happened because of the Danmanra arc. During that arc, in the final fight against the Fairy-Tale card, Okarun went all out three times.

He's never been able to do that - it's been kinda implied it would kill him. But through the ~power of love~ he managed to pull it off, and I think it is going to have an effect/consequences. I think this moment here changed him in some way, and it might be the catalyst for him developing his own version of Turbo Granny's powers.

Further to that point is Count Saint-Germain. He cornered Okarun, got him to yield and clearly intended to take his powers, but didn't.

I suspect it's because he wanted Turbo Granny's powers, but Okarun no longer has them. I think he either doesn't know Okarun has his own powers, or he does know and is waiting for Okarun to properly awaken them before he takes them. I'm like 90% sure the Empty Space in the pygmy fight was caused by him. Empty Space is pretty clearly outlined to be an Alien Thing and while the pygmies are spirits/yokai/whatever, Count Saint-Germain is probably an alien given his affiliation with the Kur. AND he was the one who gave Keiko the knife and the mission to steal Momo's power. Since Okarun got pulled into that Empty Space, if pretty boy here didn't know Okarun has some hidden spiritual power, he sure does now.

Either way, Okarun yielding to him here is definitely a Chekov's gun that's gotta fire at some point, and I've got theories on that but I'm gonna save them for my post on Turbo Granny lol.

Anyway TLDR; I think Okarun has his own superpowers like Momo now and we're gonna see them awaken in this arc.

Thanks for reading!

[plounce]

my scion animal assignments (aka the daemon au that lives in my brain)

alphinaud: fancy rat (very smart and social, a little scurrying guy, busy little hands, can learn tricks, good to ride around on a shoulder, prey animal)

alisaie: coati (clever little omnivore with prehensile tails. females are very social with each other and form lifelong social ties (and also have bigger frontal cortexes than the males!) (my original thought was ocelot/margay although im veering away from that bc kit miqosquat @sunquail pointed out those are rather solitary critters. they also suggested magpies or woodpeckers? i also admit i have some biased fondness for coatis since they were in a local zoo when i was growing up heheh. this one might change - luckily in a daemon au we can sort of fudge when the twins settled. i think alphinaud settled earlier than alisaie.)

minfilia: luna moth (i knew i wanted a moth bc of flying towards light, the mythological tie to death, and the fleeting life - adult silk moths (which luna moths are) live an extremely short adult lifespan and literally cannot eat in their adult bodies. i went with luna moth because they're very striking and pretty)

yshtola: some species of pit viper (venomous, and an ambush predator. the duality between the venom and the association with healing. pit vipers (rattlesnakes, for example) have very poor vision but have extremely good heat-sense and sense of smell. y'shtola to me is someone who waits for the right time to do things and then does them very dramatically. snakes are also just sort of occult.)

thancred: coyote (has to be SOME type of canine. scrappy little scavengers who are so good at thriving under pressure. seen as a pest. evolved as a secondary predator. canis latrans = talking dog. social patterns can vary and adapt throughout an individual's lifespan - solitary, in a pair, in a pack. i have more coyote facts if you want them)

urianger: bearded vulture (so augury was a roman practice of divination through birds (also the source of the words 'auspicious' and 'inauguration' - and augurelt!), and augurs were the people who read the will of the gods through birdwatching. so it has to be a bird. vultures were a majorly important bird in augury, and i like the parallel you can draw between a scavenger of carrion and the hvw and shb gambits urianger was part of. i settled on bearded vultures bc i also wanted to pick something visually suitable as well - bearded vultures have a head of feathers, and have a sort of gawky golden elegance that suits urianger well. hey wikipedia also just told me that in ancient egypt vultures were associated with motherhood - i always win and i NEVER lose.)

ryne: cheetah (a lightning-fast predator who is also extremely anxious and needs companionship. the emotional support dogs from zoos also ties nicely to thancred being canine. her unsettled forms were mostly small little prey animals - rabbits (baby birch by joanna newsom), little songbirds (for the cage association - nightingales and canaries), lambs (sacrificial slaughter), and a lot of trying to force her daemon to be butterflies/moths to match minfilia.)

graha: meerkat (a funny little clever guy who builds a big city and needs to be in a group of people and also he can fight a poisonous viper. ballsy. the sweetest of the mongooses. to quote kit: "they're weirdly possessive over Their people. like they're cliquish kinda, they're extroverts and love to hang out with people, but they have THEIR special people also. who are favoured")

tataru: potbelly pig (extremely intelligent and cute. and PINK! my reasons are simple but effective.)

estinien: [placeholder] (i haven't put much thought into it bc my main thoughts for a daemon au would be about ryne settling during the events of shb and he isn't in the scions for that. has to be some type of predator that can survive in harsh conditions and isn't very social. a few of you are saying hunting bird, which is intriguing... like a heron or a cormorant. maybe an albatross? i'm also thinking snow leopard maybe, but also :/ lord asriel from hdm :/ )

krile: mourning dove (migratory. i think she'd be a domesticated animal, and they're close relatives of passenger pigeons. my main theme i identify for krile is constantly being the lone survivor/arriving late to the grief (minfilia, the isle of val, eureka story choice, the ninth). the colors also suit her. and there's a certain melancholy calm to her... also there's a huron/wyandot story about mourning doves guarding the entrance to the underworld that made me go HEY. OKAY LET'S GO)

[superpowereddonut]

Sirius Black x Reader

This came to me in a dream and I had to write it down! I've never posted any of my own works anywhere, but figured it's a short little one-shot that I may as well put out there even if no one ever reads it! If I feel inspired I might turn this into a proper fic, but idk yet.

Pairing: Sirius Black x Female!Reader (No use of Y/N)

A/N: set at Hogwarts, fake dating trope

Warnings: Swearing, Sirius isn't gay (even though Wolfstar is obviously canon lol)

Word count: 1401

*****

Barely catching her breath enough to mutter the password, the Gryffindor girl rushed into the common room, all windswept hair, flushed cheeks and wide eyes. She spotted the Marauders all lounging by the fire (except Peter - he was always off snogging Dorcus in a closet these days) and made a beeline straight for them. Remus was squashed awkwardly in an armchair, a book open against his long legs where they were draped over one arm and his back resting against the other. James was sitting up on one end of the adjacent couch, his transfiguration homework in his lap, with Sirius sprawled at the other end, legs stretched out in front of him, head tipped back and eyes closed, listening to the music emanating from the record player nearby.

She felt a twinge of regret when the cosy atmosphere broke as she stormed over, her gaze flicking over each of them before settling on Sirius, who had cracked an eye open to look at her, now standing on the carpet in front of the fire.

“Black, I need you to be my boyfriend.”

James and Remus both snapped their heads up at that, and Sirius’ eyebrows rose. “Excuse me?”

“Lucas Davis just asked me out again!” The three boys in front of her seemed to let out a simultaneous groan. They were almost as sick as she was of Davis, the irritating Gryffindor two years above them who had been hellbent on wooing her for almost four months now. Unlike James, who had been smitten with Lily since they were eleven and asked her out at least once a week, Davis was aggressive - cornering her in half-empty hallways only to speak over her, invading her personal space whenever he got the chance, and making creepy sexual innuendos anytime a teacher was out of ear-shot. At this point it didn’t even seem to be about her. He just liked the chase and enjoyed making girls squirm. Even girls who hated his guts.

“Just tell him to piss off”, James suggested with a shrug

“Oh jeez, thanks James! Why didn’t I think of that?” She rolled her eyes, “I’ve told him to piss off a hundred times, in a hundred different ways! But he’s relentless- convinced I’m playing ‘hard to get’ or some bullshit like that. The only thing I think would actually get the misogynistic bastard to leave me alone is if he thinks I’m already seeing someone. So,” she said, turning again to Sirius, “can you just pretend to be my boyfriend, Black?”

“Why me? Ask Remus - you two already spend all your time together, surely dating isn’t that much of a stretch!” She shook her head impatiently, “He’s gayer than Bowie and everyone knows it!”. The boy in question huffed a laugh, “Cheers, love.” She ignored him.

“Get James to do it then!” Sirius exclaimed, and the messy-haired boy next to him opened his mouth, sitting up straighter. He probably would do it, she thought, because he would do just about anything for his friends. The noble idiot.  “Oh please, you think anyone would believe that this lovesick fool has moved on from Lily?” She retorted, making a vague gesture towards James, who just grinned ruefully and relaxed back into his seat, nodding his head in agreement.

“And you think anyone would believe we are a couple?” She paused for a second, unsure of how to answer. Although she and Sirius had always been… sort of… friends, it was largely only because of her friendship with the other Marauders - mainly studying with Remus and playing quidditch with James. While they inevitably spent a lot of time together due to their mutual friends, it was true that they were at each other’s throats more often than not, she supposed. Remus was complaining just last week about their constant bickering and their incessant need to outcompete each other in every little thing. 

She was saved from answering by James. “Actually, a Ravenclaw in our charms class - you know, Macmillan? - asked me if you two were dating a couple of weeks ago.” 

They both turned to look at him, shocked, and he just shrugged, “he said he wanted to ask you to Hogsmeade but wanted to make sure nothing was going on between you and Sirius”. Before she could unscramble her thoughts enough to answer, Remus piped up from his armchair. “A girl in the year below asked me something similar recently. Thought she might have a shot with Sirius, but wasn’t sure. She said something about you two having ‘chemistry’ at that party after the last quidditch match.” She fought the blush that spread across her cheeks at the memory. They’d thrashed Slytherin last month and she’d gotten pretty drunk at the party in Gryffindor tower afterwards. She always got a bit flirty when she drank, and Sirius was a shameless flirt even when he was stone cold sober. They’d traded a few harmless remarks early in the night, and later, though she couldn’t really remember how it happened, she ended up dancing to some ABBA songs with her back pressed against Sirius' chest, his arms around her waist and his hot breath on her neck. It hadn’t led anywhere - in fact she had been pretending it never happened - but she still felt a burning pit in her stomach whenever she thought about the way he had felt pressed against her, or the way he had grinned and licked his lips when she turned around and they danced chest to chest.

She shook herself slightly and forced herself to look at Sirius, who was frowning at Remus. “Plus,” she said bitingly, “you’ve established a pretty solid reputation for fucking anything that moves”. Sirius scowled at her before roughly shoving himself up from the couch and strolling past her to the record player that was now sitting idle, the last track having finished. She watched his tense shoulders as he carefully selected a new record and switched them over. She softened her tone, “I’m sure Davis will move on and start pestering some other poor girl before long. I just need you to play the overprotective boyfriend role until he backs off.” She shared a glance with Remus and James when he still didn’t respond. “Please,” she finally relented. When Black still didn’t answer, now decidedly fiddling with the tuning knobs on the record player, she sighed. She’d have to find another way to deter Davis and it’d have to be soon - she didn’t know how many more times she could hear his sleazy “hiya sweetheart”, before she’d resort to hexing him. And that would probably just make him re-double his efforts.

She barely noted the sound of the gryffindor portrait opening to let someone into the common room, but then- “There ya are sweetheart! Bin lookin’ all over for ya!” She gritted her teeth, turning around to see Lucas Davis stalking towards her, that stupid fucking smirk on his face. “Can’t think why, given that you saw me an hour ago and I told you to ‘leave me the fuck alone’”, she snapped. She could see both Remus and James tense in her peripherals, probably preparing to tell Davis to ‘fuck off’ themselves, but Sirius remained silent behind her. Davis either didn’t notice the two boys glaring at him, or didn’t care, and he only smiled wider, “aw come on princess, don’ be like that!” He whined, “I think you just need-” 

But she never found out what he thought she needed, as Sirius suddenly stepped up to her side, casually slung an arm around her shoulder and drawled, “You heard my girl, fuck off and leave her alone.” Davis visibly recoiled, and she might have laughed at his shocked expression had she not been entirely preoccupied by Sirius' comforting warmth as he leant against her. “Your girl?” He sputtered. 

“My girl.” Sirius repeated, and she could hear the mocking smile in his voice, “Girlfriend, paramour, lover, whatever. The point is: fuck. off.” Even Remus seemed to be hiding a grin as Davis stood there, dumbstruck, his eyes darting between her and Sirius as though stupefied. She relaxed into Sirius embrace and intertwined her fingers with his where they hung over her shoulder. “Bye Davis”, she crooned, with a smug smile. He seemed to struggle for another moment before turning on his heel and striding out the door without another word.

[saintsenara]

thank you very much for this, anon!

the diadem is probably the most interesting horcrux narratively, because it's the only one which doesn't connect to the narrative arc of one of the series' main characters, which is also why it's the only one which is destroyed indirectly - as collateral to goyle burning down the room of requirement, which means there's fiendfyre present for it to be yeeted into - rather than by somebody directly.

as i've said above, the the trio each destroys a horcrux which they have a particular narrative connection to. the same is true of the other three horcruxes which are actively destroyed.

the ring

dumbledore - whose narrative role is to teach harry about understanding what is true [which is what the series thinks the power of love is - love is the universe's one great truth] - destroys the ring, which serves, across all of its canon appearances, as a metaphor for the corrosive power of wishful thinking, seeing what you want to see, and refusing to accept the truth.

in the tale of three brothers, the resurrection stone drives the second brother - who has refused to accept the truth that his lover's death is permanent and she won't come back - mad with grief, causing him to take his own life. marvolo clings on to his ring as a symbol of the gaunts' former grandeur and influence, using it to claim that bob ogden should regard him as his superior, even though he's a violent, squalid man living in a rotting shack. dumbledore puts on the ring in a desperate attempt to apologise to his sister, convincing himself that - unlike the second brother - he'll meet the real ariana, that his desire to use a hallow in this case isn't connected to his and grindelwald's earlier obsession with them, and that voldemort won't have left anything nasty on the ring which might kill him.

harry - who internalises the lesson that "it does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live", who is remarkably free of the shackles of his past, who doesn't tend to get bound up in trying to reclaim things which are lost - drops the stone in the forest, causing it to be lost forever.

the ring-horcrux's creation is also connected to this corrosive wishful thinking. voldemort clearly travels to little hangleton expecting to find his maternal line living in ancient luxury - harry hones in right away on the fact that he looks "disappointed" to find morfin living in filth. voldemort also undoubtedly believes - since his view, expressed in his first meeting with dumbledore, that a parent who doesn't matter would be dead - that his irrelevant muggle father isn't alive, and he's not pleased to hear morfin reveal otherwise.

[since - of course - this hammers home that his dad abandoned his mother, never wanted him, and never tried to find him.]

he's also not pleased to hear morfin say that he looks near-identical to tom riddle sr. - which is another way that the books, which tend to have all members of pureblood nuclear family units look alike [hence why narcissa malfoy is blond while her sisters aren't - it's to emphasise her connection to lucius and draco], show voldemort's inescapable connection to the muggle world.

and so he wipes out his paternal line, sheds any connection with or affection for his identity as "tom riddle", and vanishes behind the mask of "lord voldemort" who is free from such messy human experiences as "wanting to be loved by your father".

but the entire arc of the series is about how he can't outrun his humanity, his heritage, or his former identity. just as dumbledore can't outrun his past mistakes, he can only seek to be forgiven for them. in destroying the ring-horcrux - and then passing the resurrection stone over to harry - dumbledore is doing what voldemort never does, and recognising that the things he did in the past were wrong and he's sorry for them, but that they nonetheless shaped who he was and he should acknowledge them, instead of trying to suppress them.

the snake

neville destroys nagini, who demonstrates voldemort's descent from slytherin [since the locket, as noted above, is primarily about his grief over his mother - and his immediate heritage - rather than his distant ancestry].

nagini is made a horcrux after the adult voldemort - in a frightening, inhuman form - returns to his father's house, with his relationship to it completely recontextualised. any grief, humiliation, or anger he felt towards tom riddle sr. when the ring was created is now completely irrelevant to him - the riddle line has been eradicated, the riddle house is rotting from the ground up, frank bryce's loyalty to the riddles means nothing to him. voldemort takes over it by force - he's not the son and heir coming to meet his father, he's a superhuman stranger, who has no emotional connection to the riddle family whatsoever.

[this is why he's happy to use his father's bones in his resurrection ritual - he no longer thinks of them as related by anything other than a technicality, his dad's grave is nothing to him except a tool.]

nagini is destroyed - just after voldemort has announced that the house system will be disbanded and all students forced to be in slytherin - by neville pulling the sword of gryffindor from the sorting hat. this proves him to be - along with harry - the series' "true gryffindor", which transforms him from someone who spends the earlier books as comic relief [awkward and a bit cowardly, unlike the trio; a character the child-reader is supposed to see themselves as braver, smarter, and cooler than] into a chivalric figure, who encapsulates all the virtues [courage, loyalty, steadfastness, faith, defence of the lowly, purity of heart, and so on] which the doylist text values above all others.

and which it exclusively associates with gryffindor and gryffindors, [hence dumbledore claiming that snape demonstrating courage is evidence "we sort too soon", rather than assuming that sytherins could be courageous as well...] - in destroying nagini, neville destroys voldemort's belief [which the doylist text regards as empirically wrong] that slytherin is the superior house.

the boy

voldemort himself destroys harry, thus allowing the prophecy - and, especially, its line that "the dark lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the dark lord knows not" - to be fulfilled, via his failure to acknowledge and respect the power of love [which saves harry from death but condemns him to it], the thing he has spent his entire life committing evil in an attempt to outrun.

the diadem

the diadem, in contrast, is associated by the text with independence and solitude.

[hence why it's the only horcrux which dumbledore doesn't identify.]

voldemort learns of its existence by getting close enough to helena ravenclaw to manipulate her - which is presented in canon as no mean feat, since she keeps apart from all the other ghosts, is clearly disinclined to chat to students, and isn't particularly visible in hogwarts as a social structure.

he then travels to retrieve it alone - and he does this after he's also separated himself off from society by leaving his job, fleeing the country, and [presumably] abandoning his social circle - and we know nothing from canon about what he does during the ten years he spends away from britain.

we don't know when he finds the diadem or who was killed to create it [as with the locket, jkr has said that he used a random murder - that of a family of albanian peasants - to make it, which again contradicts dumbledore's statement that he tends to use murders which are significant to him].

voldemort brings the diadem to hogwarts on the night of his job interview, when he definitively rejects any alternative path [and, in canon's eyes, rejects any chance of doing "good", since he rejects dumbledore's way] and strikes out alone as the singular embodiment of evil. his separation from group society is heavily emphasised throughout this scene - dumbledore calls him a liar for claiming the death eaters are his friends ["i was under the impression that they are more in the order of servants"], his appearance is starting to become inhuman ["he was no longer handsome tom riddle"], and he no longer wishes to be known as tom riddle [and, as i've said before, we do need to recognise that what dumbledore does is deadnaming... especially given who jkr is...].

and he hides it in the room of requirement, which is similarly a place of separation and solitude - it's where things which aren't wanted or needed are hidden away - and which he believes [nonsensically] he is the only person to have discovered.

[although it is worth saying that dumbledore doesn't know the room exists - voldemort's belief that he alone knows about it is basically canon, pretty clumsily, drawing this distinction between someone who's part of society and someone who's separate from it: the castle's headmaster, who is integral to its functioning as a social system, doesn't know something which the self-made outcast does.]

and on the basis of this, i suppose we could say that the diadem is the least social horcrux - the version of voldemort least interested in exploiting the human desire for socialisation, the object which would be the least successful at manipulating somebody who comes into contact with it. which would even make it possible to say that the diadem is the least dangerous horcrux, on account of lacking that desire to take advantage of people.

we could also say that the diadem is the horcrux voldemort thinks of as least important to him - he lacks any personal connection to it, chooses it as an object primarily for completionist reasons, checks on it last when he works out that harry is destroying his hoard, and doesn't hide it somewhere of any real significance to him.

[because - yes - he hides it at hogwarts, his beloved castle, but if he'd wanted to create somewhere elaborate and special to hide it, as he does with his mother's locket, i can see no reason why he wouldn't have put it in the chamber of secrets.]

but i think we can say something much more interesting about it...

that it doesn't represent freely-chosen independence, separation, and solitude. it represents unwilling isolation.

after all, the initial presentation of helena ravenclaw's separation from the rest of the castle as being because she's a bit up herself is revealed to be wrong. she refuses to answer questions about the diadem because she's ashamed of stealing it. she doesn't like socialising with the castle's other ghosts because the man who murdered her is one of them.

and she also says that her separation from society in life wasn't a deliberate choice. she is forced into hiding because the baron is hunting her down. when she attempts to refuse him - to make a free choice either to be alone or to form other relationships in which he doesn't feature - he kills her. while the mechanics of where ghosts spawn isn't entirely clear - my assumption is that she ends up back at hogwarts because she has so much unfinished business with her mam - her death also separates her, against her will, from something which is precious to her: the diadem.

while i don't think we need to throw the baby out with the bathwater - i never think, for example, that the teenage voldemort was bullied by his fellow slytherins - we also know that he stood out from the crowd the second he arrived at hogwarts, for both positive [his looks, his talent] and negative [his secondhand possessions] reasons. the text is explicit that he never had any relationships with his cohort which were equal, and while it presents this as a deliberate choice on voldemort's part, since he understood himself as superior to everyone else - dumbledore's description of him as a "gang leader", or harry's observation that he "was by no means the eldest of the group of boys [at the slug club], but they all seemed to look to him as their leader" - we don't have to take this as fact.

indeed, despite dumbledore's insistence that voldemort has never wanted a friend, he does seem - throughout canon - to be someone who's quite lonely, and who would value a relationship which provided him with some sort of peer experience. it is entirely plausible, then, to imagine that he manages to worm his way into helena ravenclaw's confidences because they have a shared experience of being separated - against their will - from something they desire.

similarly, while we know nothing of voldemort's first time in albania, we know something significant about the second one - that he thinks about it as a miserable period of isolation, spent hiding from social connection ["i dared not go where other humans were plentiful, for i knew that the aurors were still abroad and searching for me"] which took place very much against his will, after his death eaters abandoned him:

"I remember only forcing myself, sleeplessly, endlessly, second by second, to exist... I settled in a faraway place, in a forest, and I waited... Surely, one of my faithful Death Eaters would try and find me... one of them would come and perform the magic I could not, to restore me to a body... but I waited in vain..."

and - therefore - perhaps his first stay in albania was somewhere "other humans were plentiful". perhaps he had friends and connections there which he valued, but which aren't important to the narrative of the doylist text and therefore aren't mentioned.

after he turns the diadem into a horcrux, voldemort then brings it "home" - he reunites it with hogwarts. i don't think for a second that he did this for helena ravenclaw, but i do think he did it because he would understand the founders' relics as being pair-bonded to the castle [with himself, or possibly the basilisk, standing in for the locket as slytherin's relic]. in bringing it to his job interview - which, i think it's worth emphasising, he really does seem to think is genuine [however ridiculous that is] - he's involving it in his long-awaited homecoming.

the fact that he places it in the room of requirement lends credence to this. after all, the diadem-horcrux is almost always mentioned - in both half-blood prince and deathly hallows - alongside something else: the broken vanishing cabinet.

and what is the entire point of the vanishing cabinet in the latter books of the series?

to be reunited with its pair.

and so the diadem should have a mirror-character, like all the rest of the horcruxes.

and this mirror-character should be someone whose separation from the narrative arc of the horcruxes' destruction initially appears to their choice, but is then revealed to be something imposed upon them against their will.

someone who's lonely; who is - perhaps - popular but doesn't seem to have any actual close friends.

someone who has spent years wanting to be perceived as an equal by a specific person - and who longed for that person to recognise that they'd changed from the person they were as a child.

someone who was excited to go to hogwarts, only to discover that they stood out from their peers because of their secondhand possessions.

someone who had a formative relationship which was entirely transactional - even if they were the person being manipulated, while the pre-teen voldemort's experience is as the person doing the manipulating.

someone who, like helena ravenclaw, attempted to flee the person hunting them down - and nearly died as a result.

someone who panics at the thought of being separated from a precious object.

someone whom the text understands as part of a pair, but who is still kept at arm's length by their other half for the vast majority of the series.

someone who bravely accepts the ending of a relationship, even though they're not given a choice in the matter, so that the more important narrative of the horcrux hunt can begin.

someone who's not only excluded from the horcrux hunt [and, indeed, isn't told anything about the horcruxes full-stop], but is excluded from the fighting when the battle of hogwarts begins [the only main character this happens to].

someone who is excluded from the fighting by being told to stay - on their own - in the room of requirement.

someone who - therefore - is kept so separate from the narrative of voldemort's destruction that they don't even get a chance to destroy their horcrux-mirror.

that is to say...

ginny.

One thing I find really compelling about ronmort is that the horcrux which targets ron is the one most "maternal"-- tom's mother's locket, which you so cleverly pointed out was also the one which he erected a complicated defense for in a place that was meaningful to his childhood. Everything the locket says to Ron just feels so charged? Wym you've seen his heart and it's yours? Wym you've seen his dreams and his desires? The fact that Ron can hear the locket's heartbeat before anyone else... I don't know how to explain it except that the locket's antagonism of Ron feels almost intimate in a way. The shenanigans would be sexy. Not least because Ron can apparently do a passing imitation of parseltongue (hot).

that each of the trio destroys the horcrux which most connects to something fundamental about themselves is a detail which obsesses me.

the diary

harry - an orphan, desperate to meet someone else who can understand the strangeness and isolation of his experience; searching for the truth about himself, and what in his life is inherited, but unable to ever fully uncover it - destroys the diary, not only the sole horcrux which is an explicit link to lord voldemort's upbringing as an orphan in the muggle world, but also a metaphor for the state of orphanhood itself.

the diary is a quasi-palimpsest - an object which has to be written in; an object in which a layer of text is written and then overwritten by another; an object in which these layers of text can be stripped back until only the original layer remains only with extraordinary difficulty - just like the orphan's search for meaning, trying to decipher the layers of themselves which were inherited from their parents, but only ever being able to see these partially, with the text missing or corrupted.

voldemort's creation of the diary-horcrux is explicitly connected in canon to him coming to learn who about himself, his parents, and his heritage - and, connected to this, to him refusing to sit with the grief of orphanhood, refusing to understand his parents as whole, complex people, and refusing to embrace his "real" identity [which, as the text understands it, is that of a half-blood named tom marvolo riddle] by creating a fake one [that of lord voldemort].

harry destroys it after rejecting voldemort's self-constructed view of his own exceptionality - "the greatest wizard in the world is albus dumbledore" - his refusal to acknowledge the complexities of lineage and orphanhood, and his refusal to embrace his muggle heritage - "my mother died to save me. my common, muggleborn mother". he does this using a tool directly connected to voldemort's rejection of all but his slytherin heritage - the basilisk's fang - in a location similarly connected to voldemort's rejection of his muggle blood - the chamber of secrets.

the cup

hermione - an outsider, whose place in the wizarding world is unstable - destroys the cup, one of the horcruxes to which voldemort has the least personal connection, but which he selected to hide his soul because of its historical significance, anchoring him to a millennium of wizarding history and culture he was otherwise brought up disconnected from.

voldemort's creation of the cup-horcrux comes at the end of a period of his life in which he is disadvantaged in wizarding society purely on the basis of his name and background. he rejects the ministry jobs which would have made him dependent for the rest of his life on slughorn's patronage - and, therefore, pressured him to do what slughorn wanted - and ends up, as he himself puts it, as "a poor shop assistant". hepzibah smith is a pureblood, who is also descended from one of hogwarts' founders - yet she doesn't make use of this superiority ["all sorts of powers it's supposed to possess too... i just keep it nice and safe in here..."], and she doesn't realise [and he can't prove to her and hope to keep his job] that voldemort is someone she should think of as her equal [or even superior]. she - as harry observes - essentially treats voldemort as doll she can play with, posing him with her treasures and pretending his glacial politeness is really repressed affection, she speaks to him like he's an idiot, and she evidently considers him to be her social inferior.

hermione destroys the cup after seven books in which the discrimination she faces on account of being muggleborn are explicit. obviously, she's the victim of violent bigotry - she's petrified, she's called a mudblood, she's the only one of the trio who also has to worry about the muggleborn registration commission - but she's also the victim of seemingly benign, genial bigotry too - the muggle world is treated as a quaint side-show, even by characters like the weasleys; she's praised for her intelligence by slughorn, but this intelligence is still considered in some way unusual for someone with muggle heritage. she gets spoken to by many wizards in ways which aren't far removed from the way hepzibah speaks to voldemort.

as a result, she - like voldemort - spends a lot of time trying to acquire enough knowledge of the wizarding world that she appears to be native to it [this is why she's so obsessed with hogwarts: a history]. but - unlike voldemort - she then embraces her heritage and refuses to hide it - "mudblood and proud of it!".

and - shortly after this - she destroys the cup, in a place - the chamber - and using a tool - the basilisk's fang - which are both directly connected to the bigotry she experienced, since they're part of slytherin's belief that people like her should be driven out of hogwarts and out of the magical world more broadly, and therefore send a big "fuck you" to voldemort's blood-supremacy.

the locket

and ron... whose greatest desire is to be recognised for his individual achievements, who has a complex and uneasy relationship with his place in his family [simultaneously longing to be something other than "one of the weasleys" and fiercely loyal to his parents and siblings], who is the only pureblood of the trio, whose childhood we hear the most about in canon, and whose childhood appears to have been happy...

destroys the locket, which is voldemort's only link to his mother, and the only horcrux for which he constructs an elaborate defence in a place meaningful to him from childhood.

we don't actually know who voldemort kills to create the locket-horcrux [jkr has said in interviews that it was a muggle tramp, although this contradicts dumbledore's statement in half-blood prince that voldemort created his horcruxes from murders which were significant to him], which is a neat metaphor for how little he knows about merope - since he doesn't know morfin's name, for example, we can assume he doesn't know hers; everything he ever tells harry about her is something he's invented [especially his belief that his parents' marriage was consensual, and that tom riddle sr. abandoned her because she was a witch].

the horcrux attempts to torture ron with his insecurities about being a mammy's boy who's always been afraid that he's a bit of a flop at the task - especially when compared to siblings like ginny, bill, and percy. and ron is so susceptible to it because voldemort is also an inherent mammy's boy [ronmort nation, rise up] who never got a chance to have a mam, and who responded to the grief this caused him by suppressing it, pretending it never existed, and convincing himself that the only viable thing to be is unique.

ron destroys it after he returns to the trio - having attempted to strike out on his own [the thing he's wanted since philosopher's stone, when he sees himself standing alone in the mirror of erised] - and accepts his place as part of a group. he does so using the sword of gryffindor, which again represents him embracing not being exceptional - his entire family have been in gryffindor, something he's shown to feel simultaneously proud of and uneasy with right from his first appearance.

[agentem]

Three of Pentacles

I keep hearing people complain that the "sisterhood" of the Coven in Agatha All Along was a sham because they only exist to support Billy, the lone male.

But that's not true. *stamps foot angrily.*

They are Lilia's coven. In her reading, the "reason for her quest" is community. They are the reason she is on this journey. And she is the one who writes the names down and choses the team (although maybe she should've reconsidered writing Alice's name since she dies but what exactly happens when she writes the names down--and the lights flicker--seems to be differen than the time gaps. It also happens when she sees what William will become. It seems almost involuntary? Also Lilia mentions the "path behind" are lessons learned so Alice dying might be important to Lilia accepting her own death? She mentions the path behind is "lessons learned." And that might have something to do with the repeated "Death comes for us all" line. Not sure.)

Anyway! TLDR, she's the Nick Fury of these Witch Avengers.

I think she needs this group (Agatha, Billy, Jen and Alice. Rio and Sharon are not included on the list) to help her through her end. To accept her fate. And he's important to that, to helping her think outside of herself. But he's "the windfall" the thing that might happen, but only if Agatha's trauma can be overcome. Jen is the guaranteed "path ahead."

Agatha's lines about not being able to divine when Death will come, heal Nicky or protect him suggest that she also needs a Coven. But she never embraces this particular group like Lilia does when she tells them she loves them. Agatha does show growth by sacrificing herself for Billy and then joining him on his quest. (The reason for his quest is The Sun/Reunion and it isn't achieved by the end of the series.)

Although I do get that the ending feels a bit... unfinished and some people are unhappy with that. Lilia is the only one who completes her "quest." But I don't think Marvel wants to be done with Agatha or Billy yet.

[ltash]

Englufed by passion

Slowburn, angst, death..

SimonGhostRileyxfemalereader

In the dance of death, their shadows bled,

Love turned to ruin, a bond misled.

He held her close as her breath grew weak,

A kiss of the blade, no words to speak.

The corset fits like a second skin, the delicate fabric caressing every curve, each tug of its ribbons accentuating the shape you've worked so hard to conceal. The halved top frames your figure, a deliberate choice that hints at vulnerability. Your fingers smooth over the material, lingering on the way it clings to your waist before you force yourself to look away. The clock ticks. Time isn't on your side, but then again, it never is when it comes to Simon "Ghost" Riley.

Your heart beats faster at the thought of him, your enemy, your equal, and tonight, your accomplice. You lean into the mirror, applying a sheer gloss to your lips. The applicator glides smoothly, leaving a subtle sheen that catches the dim hotel lighting. It's a small act of vanity, perhaps even indulgent, but necessary. Everything about your appearance tonight is designed to disarm, to beguile. Not because you think you can manipulate him, you're not foolish enough to underestimate Ghost, but because you want to see if he can be shaken.

The Glock on the dresser gleams under the light, fully loaded and ready. Every bullet is a promise, each engraved with his name in your mind. The thought should steel your nerves, but instead, it stirs something else, a dangerous cocktail of anticipation and dread.

The sound of the door opening snaps your focus back to the present.

There he is.

Ghost fills the doorway like a shadow come to life, his presence overwhelming in the small hotel room. The tactical gear hugs his powerful frame, every strap, and buckle a reminder of the lethal man beneath it. He wears no helmet tonight, just his black balaclava, the skull design barely visible under the muted lighting. His weapon is in his hand, silencer attached, the barrel pointed low but still commanding attention.

His dark eyes lock on you immediately, sharp and unyielding.

"Heard you know Makarov's whereabouts," he says, his voice a low growl that sends a shiver down your spine. He doesn't bother with pleasantries, his tone slicing through the air like a blade.

You inhale deeply, steadying yourself. Vulnerability is your weapon now. Tilting your head, you meet his gaze in the mirror. "I might," you reply, the words soft but edged with defiance.

The silence that follows is electric, the kind that makes your pulse race and your skin prickle. He takes one step forward, just enough to close the distance slightly, and the room seems to shrink around him.

"Five minutes." His jaw tightens beneath the mask, the slight movement enough to hint at his frustration.

Your lips curve into a faint smile, a calculated expression meant to taunt. "So impatient, Mr. Riley." You turn away from him, reaching for the ribbons of your corset. "Do you mind?"

Your fingers work the laces deliberately slowly, tugging just enough to feign difficulty. You catch his reflection in the mirror as you twist back toward him. He hasn't moved, but his eyes burn with an intensity that makes your stomach flip.

"I thought you'd be a gentleman," you tease, your voice dipping as you tug again. The corset bites into your skin, a slight sting that you welcome. "Considering we're on the same side now."

"Temporarily," he corrects, his tone clipped.

The air thickens, darkens. It's no longer just tension. It's something heavier, something primal. His gaze doesn't waver as he crosses the room, his boots heavy against the floor. Before you can react, his gloved hands brush yours aside, taking hold of the ribbons himself.

The first pull is sharp, precise, and you gasp as the corset cinches tighter around you.

"Not so tight?"

"Three minutes," he interrupts, his voice firm.

You swallow hard, your throat dry as he works his way down the rows. Each tug of the ribbon draws the fabric closer to your body, the pressure both restrictive and intoxicating. His hands move with an efficiency that is almost maddening, his gloved fingers curling the excess ribbon as he reaches the bottom.

Your breath hitches as he gives one final pull, the force of it sending you stumbling backwards. You collide with him, your back pressing into his chest, his arms steadying you instantly.

"You load those bullets with the intention of taking me out?" he asks, his voice low and dangerous.

Your head tilts slightly, your lips parting as you struggle to find your voice. "Each... and every single one."

His head dips, his masked face hovering near the crook of your neck. The heat of his breath seeps through the fabric, warming your skin in a way that makes you shiver. You feel his lips brush against you, the mask creating a barrier that only heightens the sensation.

"You shouldn't have melted," he murmurs, his voice a rough whisper against your ear.

You hated him, despised him, but the thought of being undressed by him, manhandled by him, was too much enticing.

Your hands twitch at your sides, instinct urging you to push him away, but you don't. Instead, you freeze as his hands slide over your waist, his grip firm and unyielding. He pulls you closer, his body flush against yours as he begins to move.

"This could be us," he says, his hips shifting against yours in slow, deliberate motions.

Your breath hitches, your head falling back slightly to rest against his shoulder. The words you want to say catch in your throat, silenced by the overwhelming heat of him.

"You can't even speak," he taunts, his lips brushing against your ear. "And I'm not even inside you."

Your nails dig into his forearms as his pace quickens, his movements both calculated and maddening. Your chest rises and falls with shallow breaths, your skin damp with a heat that has nothing to do with the room's temperature.

He groans softly, the sound vibrating through you as his lips trail lower, teasing the edge of your collarbone. Your eyes flutter shut, and for a moment, you let yourself sink into the moment into him.

Your lips part, a faint moan escaping before you can stop it, and his grip tightens. For a moment, you forget everything, the mission, the danger, the hatred you're supposed to feel. In his arms, you feel small, delicate, and undeniably feminine.

But Ghost is nothing if not unpredictable.

Suddenly, he releases you, stepping back and leaving you swaying on unsteady feet. Your palm shoots out to the mirror for support, your reflection flushed and breathless, a stark contrast to the composed woman you'd been minutes ago.

"Lie to me," he says, his voice sharp as a blade, "and it'll be the last game you play."

The door closes behind him with a resounding click, leaving you alone in the suffocating silence.

The derelict warehouse looms in oppressive silence, the air thick with the stench of rust and decay. You slip inside through a broken window, your boots crunching against shattered glass. The Glock in your hand feels heavier than usual, your grip tightening as you scan the darkened space.

He's here. You can feel him.

The faint glow of moonlight filtering through the broken roof illuminates a maze of abandoned machinery and forgotten crates. Somewhere in the darkness, Simon waits. Your chest tightens at the thought, but you push it down. Fear is a luxury you can't afford.

"Running late, love?" His voice rings out from the shadows, deep and taunting.

You freeze, your heart skipping a beat. He's close, too close. Slowly, you turn toward the sound, your Glock raised and ready.

"I was starting to think you'd stood me up," he continues, stepping into the faint light. His frame absorbs the room, all sharp edges, and deadly calm. The skull mask covers his face, but his eyes burn through the gloom, locked on you with an intensity that sends a shiver down your spine.

"Wishful thinking, Riley," you bite out, keeping your weapon trained on him.

He tilts his head, his posture relaxed but dangerous. "That's not the tone of someone who needs me, darling. And you do, don't you? For Makarov."

Your lip curls, but you don't lower the Glock. "Give me the location, and I'll be out of your way."

"Funny." He takes a step closer, the sound of his boots echoing in the cavernous space. "I was about to say the same to you."

The tension snaps taut as a wire, your breathing shallow as you prepare for what's coming. You know him too well-he won't give up Makarov without a fight.

And neither will you.

The first shot rings out, the sound deafening in the stillness. You fire, but he moves like a shadow, dodging behind a pillar. You curse under your breath, pivoting to track his movements.

"Come on, love," his voice calls out, mocking. "You can do better than that."

You dart behind a stack of crates, your pulse pounding in your ears. He's toying with you, drawing you into his web. But you're not some helpless prey. Not tonight.

You move silently, circling the room as you search for an opening. The Glock feels cold in your hand, a steady weight grounding you. And then, you see him, a flash of black against the moonlight.

You fire again, the shot sparking off metal as he dives to the side. He's fast, but so are you.

The next moment, he's on you, his body a force of nature as he knocks the gun from your hand. It clatters to the ground, and you lunge for it, but he grabs your wrist, twisting it until you gasp.

"Still think you can win?" he growls, his voice a low rumble against your ear.

You don't answer. Instead, you twist sharply, breaking his grip as you reach for the knife strapped to your thigh. The blade gleams as you slash at him, forcing him to step back.

His laughter is dark, almost amused. "That's more like it."

The fight becomes a deadly dance, the blade flashing between you as you trade blows. He's stronger, but you're faster, your movements fueled by adrenaline and sheer will.

You manage to land a hit, the knife grazing his arm. He hisses, but it only seems to fuel him, his eyes narrowing as he steps closer.

"Is that all you've got?" he taunts, his voice thick with challenge.

"Not even close," you snap, slashing again.

But he's ready this time, catching your wrist and twisting it until the knife falls from your hand. You struggle against him, your body pressed against his.

Your body twisted to face him, but before you could react, his hand clamped onto your throat, slamming you back against the cold concrete wall. Your chest heaved as you gasped for air, the pressure of his grip just shy of crushing.

"Game over," he whispers, his breath hot against your skin.

Your eyes burn with defiance.

"Simon," you choked out, your eyes wide with disbelief.

His dark eyes glinted through the mask, unreadable yet charged with something primal. He was close, so close you could feel the heat radiating from him, the rough texture of his gloves brushing against your skin. His free hand moved to his back, drawing a blade with a deliberate, almost sensual slowness.

"You lied," he murmured, his voice a low, dangerous rumble.

The cold kiss of the blade met your abdomen, the sharp tip pressing just enough to break the skin. Your breath hitched, your body stiffening against him.

"Simon," you whispered again, this time softer, pleading.

His masked face tilted, his gaze devouring your desperation. Then, with a sudden, calculated thrust, he drove the knife into your flesh. Your gasp was sharp, cutting through the air like a scream strangled in its infancy.

Your hands instinctively flew to his chest, weakly pushing against him, but he didn't budge. His gloved hand gripped the knife's hilt, and he twisted it, slow and deliberate. Your cry turned into a whimper, your body arching against him, helpless and fragile.

Your vision blurred as the pain consumed you, your breaths shallow and quick. Yet in your fading consciousness, you felt the way his body stiffened, his breaths growing heavier. The act wasn't just an execution; it was something darker, something intimate.

Your trembling hands found his wrist, clinging to him as if he were the only anchor in the storm of agony. Blood pooled between you, warm and sticky, staining the space where your bodies met.

Your head lolled onto his shoulder, your lips parting to speak, but no words came. You shuddered, your body going weak.

As your strength ebbed, your knees gave way, but he caught you. His arms wrapped around you, holding you against him.

He caught you, cradling you as you tremble in his grip. For a fleeting moment, it felt almost tender. "Shh," he murmurs, almost gentle. "It's over now."

You cling to the last threads of consciousness, your vision blurring as you look up at him. His eyes, cold and unrelenting, are the last thing you see before the darkness takes you.

Your final breath escaped as a soft sigh as your body went limp in his arms.

And as your body goes still, his voice echoes softly in the empty room.

"Game over, love."

For a moment, he remained still, holding your lifeless body against him. The blood beneath you was warm. It's a metallic scent filling the air. Slowly, he pulled out the knife from your abdomen, his movements almost reverent.

As he stood, he placed your body gently on the ground, his gaze lingering on your peaceful expression. The fight was over, but the war within him had just started.

[everlastingday]

rewatching the episode instead of working like a good employee and i think my favourite thing about the loft scene is actually how it is such a clear depiction of how different the strand vs reyes family dynamics are, and how different tk and carlos's individual relationships with their families are. and how even in a relationship, in a marriage, they are two distinct people.

on rewatch, it seems more clear to me that for tk, the question of taking jonah in isn't even a real question. we've seen the strands (i'm also including gwyn in this) drop everything, no questions asked, for their family members. it's the way gwyn packed up her life in new york to go live with her ex-husband and son after her son was shot (but already well on his way to recovery). it's the way owen, probably living in a new york apartment that is not big enough for two, forced tk to live with him after his relapse. it's the way owen dragged tk out to austin, even if it means that tk might resent him for it. it's the way owen, despite his ego, agreed to raise gwyn's unborn child as his own even though she never asked that of him. it's the way owen agreed to help his half-brother end his life after only having met him a handful of times.

for tk and his family, being ride or die for your family literally means that, and it doesn't require being asked to do it. it's just something you do, because that's family. so to me, it does make sense for tk to have assumed that carlos was on board. now i'm not saying it was right, or fair to carlos, but it makes sense for his character i think. and i think that for tk, it might not necessarily link back to their discussion about kids in 4x12, because this isn't about him wanting to be a dad. i'm not even entirely sure tk thinks of jonah as a brother-son yet. to him, that's just his little brother and he will do anything for him, even if that means upheaving his entire life.

so when carlos questions why he would think of taking jonah in when enzo didn't ask him to, i think there's a bit of an unspoken, "well why does he have to ask?", because that's how his family operates.

the reyes family just doesn't seem to operate that way, from what little we know of them. they LOVE each other, that's for sure. they have their weekly lunches, andrea is literally the most wonderful, loving mother, and gabriel might seem strict but he's actually a big ol' teddy bear that would do anything for his kids. but you can get the sense that carlos and his family love each other in a different way. he doesn't want to impose on them, or make their life more difficult than it has to be, because he loves them so much. the fact that he doesn't even think of his family to help with childcare is very telling of this - he doesn't not think of them because he's not close with them, but because he is.

i think carlos is 100% justified in being so critical and he absolutely is right to have expected tk to come to him first, but i also think that tk's desperation and defensiveness is so understandable and very on brand. and to be clear, there's no one right way to love your family. i think maybe that's also why i really loved this scene because i think it just highlighted how tk and carlos love in different ways, and it's directly a result of the way they were raised.

[sunkissedliterarylightofchrist]

HA HA HA YES

There are definitely irks I have with the show, some major (shaking my fist at the TV) some minor (eh, I would've done it like __) and I could critique quite a bit of it (mostly the writing sadly) and would be happy to do so, but this post is just a list of everything I like about the show.

First to set the stage, we have what I personally define as the Spirit of Tolkein: selflessness in the face of Evil, how virtue will overcome evil, the will to battle temptation, an emphasis on humility, wisdom and knowledge, the simple life, and strong relationships. All depicted through the beauty and wonder of the writing and the setting. (If you have a different definition.... ah, well, that's a different conversation. This is the conclusion I've come to.) Let me run through them and show how this show nails all of these. (also this is mostly spoiler free. I think. I'll try. Being vague does not come easily to me😅)

Selflessness in the face of Evil

Being selfless in the face of Evil is really important, and can be split two ways I think. A) Being selfless can be a smack back at evil in general, even if it isn't exactly an 'evil thing' you're taking action against B) Having to choose between Good and Evil and by choosing Good, is being Selfless, because often doing the Evil, selfish thing would be a lot easier and more beneficial towards you.

This is praised in the show again and again and again. Many characters have a choice presented to them: do x, the easy and good-looking thing, for their own self-interest, or do y, the harder and scarier and sacrifical thing that might hurt them but help others. And often as a smack in the face of evil. This kid is offered a change at practically unlimited power that is from an evil source, and allured by it, starts to stray down that path, realizes the consequences of his own actions, and pulls back, confesses the wrong that he did to save others. That's just one vague example, there are a dozen.

And characters who are presented with this choice and choose to be selfish, then as a byproduct or purposefully choose evil as a result, are, or will be in future seasons, punished. The one guy that encouraged this kid to choose evil and egged him on until the kid made the right desicion? He dies later.

How Virtue will overcome Evil

Virtue! One of Tolkien's biggest talking points ever! And how by being virtuous, it directly overcomes Evil, even if it seems like a small thing. Choosing peace (or righteous war, depending on the circumstance, that can be virtuous too), truth, compassion, mercy, loyalty, kindness, love, etc etc, and often when the other person doesn't deserve it, is so highly stressed. And all of these virtues and more are wielded against characters/circumstances that represent evil, and the virtue of those choices and moments overcomes the evil.

There are twenty million examples of this in the show. Big and small. You'll see it, the utter goodness is very apparent.

The Will to Battle Temptation

Frodo and the Ring is one of the most iconic depictions of battling temptation of all time, point-blank period. The show carries this on too. The temptation for this one character to succumb to wrath and rage and having to beat it back with a stick (and mostly having other characters help pull her out of it) is a very big theme in the first season especially, and it continues in other ways as well. Season Two absolutely nails this with a character getting carried away by their hubris and want to create something great, but then at the end overcomes this temptation and wins the fight, even though they technically lose. It's so well done.

Humility

*screeches* I cannot emphasize enough how much they nail humility. Every good character has it in one way or another, and every evil character is prideful. Very clear morals and message. And one character starts out pretty prideful but then as the show continues is becoming more and more humble, and I predict by Season 3 they'll have had their full character arc and settle into their 'true self' if that makes sense.

Wisdom and Knowledge

Ah yes. The seeking and having of wisdom and knowledge is highly praised and sought after. Do not even have to explain this, it's Tolkien we're talking about here lol. One of my favorite moments is when Elrond risks his and Gil-Galad's life to prevent the Library of Celebrimbor from being destroyed. The preservation of knowledge is so cruical. Because knowledge and wisdom point back to the source of knowledge and wisdom.

The Simple Life

One of the really good things about The Hobbit and Trilogy is how the Hobbit's lifestyle (while some parts of Hobbit society are teased, or their complacency is sometimes frowned upon), is that the idea of a simple, hardworking life, is greatly loved. Doing hard physical labor by growing your own food, having close relationships with your kin, and celebrating every part of life and enjoying the gifts you have are all commented on and esteemed by other characters in other societies.

This theme isn't as central to the show's plot, but it'd definitely there. Especially with the dwarves. Even though it's a grand, Second Age show and story, with a lot of BIG stuff, they do weave some of these moments in and its very sweet.

Strong Relationships

THIS. THIS RIGHT HERE. PERFECTLY DONE IN THE SHOW. BEST WRITTEN-PARTS. ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS TOLKIEN DOES EVER.

We've got sibling-like best friend relationships, a found father-son relationship, strong parent-child relationships, healthy romantic (married!!!) relationships, 'normal' best friendships, relationships full of loyalty, honor, respect, hard choices, trust, love, tenderness, I could go on and on and on. This is the strongest writing of the show. The characters all have incredible chemistry with each other, and the actors play off of each other so well, I have just died with happiness so many times getting to watch all of these character interactions and relationships come to life. I need to make more posts gushing about my favorite ones.

I am so thankful that the show is doing this, because it seems to me in mainstream media today that broken relationships are the normal and its really disheartening to see such brokeness to be celebrated. But getting to see all of these strong, amazing relationships so well written and so well played out is just... the best.

And best part? All of these strong relationships point back to Christ. Which I'm sure some, or maybe all of that, is unintentional. I'm 95% sure that the actor for Elendil, Lloyd Owens is Christian/Catholic (I can explain why later), but besides that, I don't know if anyone working on the show is Christian. But that's the thing about incredible storytelling, isn't it? Good things naturally point back to the source of good, Jesus, whether its intentional or not. And every good relationship in the show points back to Him. And in a masterful way.

All depicted through the Beauty and Wonder of the Writing and the Setting

This is the absolute best part of the show, hands down. The sets, music, costumes, setting, and just overall beauty of the show are unparalled. They are even better than the OG trilogy. I mean, look at these! (ignore the bad quality on some of these please lol)

Settings (GORGEOUS)

Costumes:

And I cannot even begin to describe to you the beauty of the music. Bear McCreary has 10000% lived up to Howard Shore's legacy and every single track in the show is fire. He's used so many cool and rare instruments and is an excellent composer! Every soundtrack theme for each place and character brings them to life so much and its amazing. And the songs that do have vocals, whether choir 'ahs' or actual words, have gorgeous singing! (Fun Fact: he also composed they Percy Jackson show soundtrack!!! The theme for the Underworld, specifically the desert scene, uses the same instrument, a duduk I believe, and it sounds so similar and so cool! [I actually realized that he was the one who did it by watching the PJ show, recognizing his composing style from RoP, then frantically Googling it to then be thrilled I was right lol])

Beauty in Tolkien is so important. This guy's descriptions of places and people are some of my favorite writing ever and the style I eagerly took inspiration from as a baby writer when I first started out. And the Peter Jackson trilogy did a really good job at capturing the physical beauty of Middle Earth! Each time I watch those movies I am filled with nostalgia and a longing for it. (*cough* human heart longing for Eden *cough*)

Rings of Power has absolutely bumped it up. Having a lot more money helps lol. They've hired incredibly gifted people to work super hard on all of this. The sets, music, costumes, items, the intricate detail of every single thing is utterly beautiful and incredible to see. Almost everything in this show is practical, they've used CGI a shockingly small amount and it shows. It is utterly gorgeous. I have just been blown away with every watch and rewatch.

Beauty points back to God. And this show points back to True Beauty in every way.

Finally, here are a few extra bits that I really like about the show that don't quite fit neatly into the categories above.

Acting and Characters

The acting! Superb! Every one of these actors deserves an award. They are I N C R E D I B L E. I need to make an entire post talking about how each of these characters is acted to perfection. The face acting some of these people have??? It's amazing! The way they carry their characters differently after different events! So so so good. I am just blown away, they all need awards.

Now. I am going to say something very controversal that many people who I've told this opinon to Do Not Like. I think it is absolutely stupid that people are discrediting the show because of its 'forced ethnic representation'. Sorry.

Yeah, in Tolkien's work, there isn't much of anything said about black elves or dwarves or Mediterranean and Middle Eastern Numenoreans and Southlanders. But that doesn't mean they aren't there. And having a diverse cast doesn't automatically make the show bad. It does the total opposite I think. Every one of these actors deserves to be here and is incredibly capable. And it is true that we do need good representation in media- and we've got to do it well.

Amazon has done this incredibly tastefully. Some movie companies (*hem hem hem* DISNEY I'M GLARING AT YOU) have just black-washed characters, called it representation, and have moved on with their day having checked all the boxes. Sometimes I think changing a character's ethnicity when doing a remake can be good, if it is done well. There has been a couple cases Disney switched things up and I thought it was good. But for the most part, its forced representation and poorly done. And nobody likes that.

But that is NOT what Rings of Power is doing. The thing about how Amazon is doing it that I utterly respect is all of their diverse and incredible characters are their own original guys. And it adds a LOT of depth to the show, and it is GOOD REPRESENTATION. If they had made Galadriel, Elrond, Celebrimbor, or another canonical white character that is white because it adds to their character and is central to the plot had been made black, I've probably would've been pretty upset. Because part of what defines Galadriel is her physical appearance. If that had changed that it would've changed her character.

But they haven't. And that's my point. They are doing the diverse representation in the way that I think all adaptation people should do it! With their original characters in a way that adds to the story and with incredible actors. Not to mention that the acting from those characters is some of the best in the show. Rings of Power is quite literally what I think should be the gold standard of representation in media, specifically adaptations.

Anyway. That's what I think. I'll die on this hill. Moving on.

Practical Stuff and Cinematography

Like I've already said, almost all of their sets were actually built and actually acted in. There are very few scenes that a green screen was used on. And it shows! Everything looks so real and so fluid beacsue it IS so real and so fluid. I love it. Sets? Real. Stunts? Real. Lighting? Real. Everything is real! To my knowledge, the only things they've used much CGI on is the monsters! And even then, they have practical frames as the bulk, and the CGI is to just smooth things over.

The practical effects in this show are some of the most amazing things ever. LOOK AT THE ORCS.

THEY USED REAL PROSTHETICS AND IT LOOKS AMAZING!!!

LOOK AT THE STUNTS THAT THEY'VE DONE!!

(Sadly I can't find many good stunt RoP gifs but just trust me on this. I have gasped so many times over what hard work these guys have done for fight scenes.)

And the way that they've used cinematography and lighting and camera angles is just... masterful. I'll have to give so many specific examples later. It's some of the best filmaking I've ever seen, they've used the budget ~wonderfully~ You get sucked into the moment and it's amazing.

Appreciating the Story

Now I'm gonna be slightly blunt. I think a lot of people hate the show because they're, for lack of a better term 'purists'. Which isn't a bad thing! Having these people in every fandom is super important! Keeps its foundation solid. I'm one of these people in many cases.

But when looking at a work where the literal purpose is to deviate from some of what Tolkein wrote, and then get angry when it isn't a word-for-word recreation is silly. In Amazon's contract with the Tolkien Estate, it was a key condition that they could NOT reproduce anything from the Silmarillion except on a case-by-case basis that had to be approved by the Estate first. They bought the rights to the Fellowship, Two Towers, Return of the King, Hobbit, and Appendices. And they agreed with the Estate to make a Second Age show. This means that they have limited material to work with. They are REQUIRED to deviate from Tolkien's original story about those early tales in many cases. So a lot of people are angry that they didn't do x, but they literally are not allowed to. They have to take creative licence with many of these storylines. And the way that so many people are ripping every single little detail about the show to threads just makes me so upset. You are getting hung-up over the tiniest things! JUST ENJOY THE STORY. If you nit-pick the death out of everything of course its gonna die. You are holding RoP to an impossible standard.

This is another reason why many people didn't like the first season so much, but love the second a lot more. Because in Season 1, they had to set the chessboard and make a lot of stuff up and change quite a bit so they could actually have room to move. Then in Season 2, we have a lot more canon stuff that we see in stuff like the appendices, which they did SO WELL. With the writing of the show, you do have to hold a lot of the canon stuff loosely because you have to. But once you let go and sit back and enjoy this new story, it is utterly fantastic, and lines up with the Spirit of Tolkien at almost every turn, which I've already shared.

Huzzah. This is why I love Rings of Power. I've probably missed a thing or two but that's pretty much all of it. Please watch it. *bows*

It annoys me to no end with so many people saying that Rings of Power isn’t ‘in the spirit of Tolkien’ when they haven’t even watched it.

Seriously? There are things I do not like about the show and wish they had done differently, but almost all of it is utterly amazing. Every person who’s worked on that project has poured so much time and effort into it, and for an incredible result.

And by the way, when you say ‘spirit of Tolkien’ what do you even mean? How are you defining that? Because that show absolutely screams Tolkien by my measurement, not to mention his literal family is working on the project personally, and it 100% measures up to Peter Jackson’s work.

And you haven’t even watched it. Just watch it and try it. You watch enough bad media already just to criticize it, why not this? You’re gonna like it more than you think.

[milksnake-tea]

❀ ˎˊ- prompt: he was never allowed to grieve. ❀ ˎˊ- aventurine character study ❀ ˎˊ- wc: 545 ❀ ˎˊ- warnings: vent fic, spoilers for aventurine's backstory. got a little too personal but. yeah. really needed to get this off my chest (this is about my childhood dog btw, i didn't lose any person but... sighs i might as well have) ❀ ˎˊ- taglist: @sh0jun , @themoderatelyawesomeninja , @xphantasmagoriax , @rainswept , @lucensei , @akutasoda , @naraven , @scribs-dibs , @apathicace , @flurrina , @tragedy-of-commons , @cakechase , @kiiyoooo , @moineauz ❀ ˎˊ- img credits

When someone's sister dies, they cry.

That's how it's always been. Loss, tears, and grief all went hand in hand. When you lose someone, you ache. You become numb. You feel as if all the world's come to a halt, except it hasn't, because time goes on regardless of who dies and who lives, and the world keeps spinning even if you are lost, even if you are still, the sun will keep burning, the birds will keeping singing, and people will keep living.

That's how it's supposed to be.

But Kakavasha... never felt that.

He is stolen, taken from his homeland, and with it, he abandons time itself. His eyes lose their light, and he is caught up in the fight to survive, too scared, too busy to remember his family. He has no time to cry, and so he forgets altogether.

And before he knows it, he is grown, and his chains are no more.

And he thinks nothing of it.

Time passes, and the world turns. He meets many people, most of which he forgets and few he will always remember. He throws himself into the thrill of the gamble, clinging onto his godforsaken luck and praying, praying with one hand behind his back, that his mother, that tricyclops in the sky, is watching so that the last of her legacy isn't snuffed here.

And every so often, when he is alone in his condo, in his luxury apartment, when he is allowed to think, he remembers. He remembers sand and sky, rain and hail, he remembers tents and rags and shawls and the hold of his sister's hand in his.

He remembers, and for a second, that age-old grief begins to surface, and then-

His tablet pings, and he is forced to move on once more.

And it kills him. He loved his family, did he not? They had born him, raised him, nutured him, and adored him, and he had them. They were his everything, his past that no one would know, and they are what's left of Kakavasha in the new facade that is Aventurine.

And yet, he hasn't shed a single tear for them.

Did he not love them enough? Is he really so heartless, so indifferent that he would not cry for those who had died for him? What kind of cruel- What kind of son doesn't grieve their family?

He should be sadder- He has to be. If not for himself, then in respect for them, to honor them with the mourning they deserve.

But he isn't.

But then, one day, while on yet another business trip, Kakavasha catches sight of a family. A mother and a father, an older sister and a younger brother.

And they look so... happy.

And for a second, his practiced smile stills. And he watches. From the table outside a coffee shop, a newspaper in his hand, peering over his gold-rimmed glasses, he watches.

He sees the brother complain as the sister playfully bullies him. He sees the mother reprimand them both, and the father hide a smile at it all. He sees their smiles, so bright and untarnished. He sees the brother hold his sister's hand.

It isn't until the newspaper crinkles and dampens his hand that he realizes.

reblogs w comments are appreciated !!