re: this reddit post i found that discusses the idea that bedelia was too focused on being safe from hannibal, and that she neglected to consider the danger of actively provoking will (and his jealousy), who is just as dangerous. she did this by taunting him about how she was hannibal's wife, and with him "behind the veil" unlike will. OP says that bedelia seems like will's primary post-fall target because of this, and mentions the end credit scene of bedelia in TWOTL. (i really recommend reading their whole post! it was a very interesting observation and theory)
i am going to work with this idea that will is jealous of/angry at bedelia for her being in italy with hannibal instead of him (because will was supposed to be the one hannibal ran away with), and that the end credit scene of bedelia is reality.
i think there is significance to the fact that bedelia specifically had her leg (and most likely the rest of her limbs) cut off, cooked, and eaten by will and hannibal.
who is the only other person we have seen killed this way? gideon. why did hannibal want gideon dead in the first place? because gideon was effectively stealing hannibal's identity as the chesapeake ripper.
both gideon and bedelia were living lives that were not their lives to live. gideon falsely living as the chesapeake ripper, and bedelia falsely living as hannibal's companion, "behind the veil," in will's place.
i also thought it was interesting that in antipasto, the episode switches between the b&w flashback of hannibal cooking and eating gideon's limbs, and hannibal and bedelia's life in europe. i thought this could've been some subtle foreshadowing — as bedelia is living a life that wasnt hers to live, we see what happened to a man who was living a life that wasn't his to live.
as hannibal and gideon eat together, gideon learns about the real chesapeake ripper ("you were determined to know the chesapeake ripper, gideon. now is your opportunity"). i imagine that will and hannibal would do the same thing to bedelia. explaining their life together post-cliff, which what was supposed to happen post-mizumono, to bedelia who was in will's place, living a life that wasn't hers to live.
even further, i noticed that the painting changes in the room bedelia is in from the last time we see her in TWOTL (when will tells her his plan to fake hannibals escape) to the post-credit scene, which indicates that time has passed. so, they didnt instantly go to kill bedelia after the cliff. this time between the cliff and the post-credit scene could be the story of will and hannibal's life together that they explain to bedelia
so, bedelia gets the same treatment as gideon. they both get to see how it feels to (literally) have a part of them, their identity, their lives, taken from them. as they learn about the life they were stealing from the person whose life they were stealing. the divine punishment of a sinner mirrors the sin being punished.
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all bets are off [1/3]
Lucemond High School AU drabble [part 2], She’s All That (1999)
“Am I a bet? Am I a bet, am I a fucking bet?”
“Yes.” It comes out quietly, which makes it all the worse. Luke would have expected Aemond to sneer and look down his long nose at him like the Hightower side of the family had for most of their lives. Luke wishes he would. It would have made it easier. Aemond’s face reflects no relish, or even satisfaction. Instead, it is pale and unreadable. Fitting, perhaps; as it turns out, Luke had read him wrong this entire time.
“Would you have told me before it was over? Before you humiliated me in public?”
The silence speaks for itself.
“Alright,” he scoffs, “that’s it, then.” The bitterness in his voice has an unfamiliar edge, and it sounds mean even to Luke, but it’s right. That’s how he feels. “You played your little game, you had your fun. I get it. It’s over.”
“No.”
“No?”
“It’s not over.”
“It is if I say it is. I don’t want anything from you, and you—you can shut up about debts, or what I owe you. We don’t have to know each other after this.” It’s true; they don’t have any classes together. They run in the same circles but that’s nothing some convenient maneuvering and strategic avoidance can’t fix. Their sides of the family voluntarily meet up for a miserable dinner once every three months and holidays. Luke can make it work.
Aemond’s remaining eye widens and his mouth thins. His face is readable now, at least; he’s livid. In a second, he lunges forward and grabs ahold of Luke’s wrist, trying to drag him back towards himself, to reel him in like he had all those months ago. Luke digs his heels into the ground instinctively, bracing away from the pressure. Luke used to like how big Aemond’s hands were in comparison to his own—the encompassing warmth, the difference in size—but now his grip tightens and locks like a handcuff, squeezing Luke’s wrist to the point of crushing. It hurts. He’s hurting him. Aemond is older and bigger than Luke, he always has been, and now he presses in like a storm cloud blocking out a clear sky.
“Luke, it wasn’t—it started like that, alright? It was like that in the beginning, but not now. It’s different now, I’m not—just look at me!” There’s something frantic in his words, the way he hovers over Luke like his shadow alone will cage him in. This isn’t the first time Aemond has struck the flight instinct in him, or the urge to fight, but it resonates through Luke’s core nonetheless. There is too much of him near. “I would’t have told you because there’s nothing to tell, not anymore.” Luke cranes his neck to peer over Aemond’s shoulder, searching out the best escape route. “It’s not over. You don’t mean that. We just…this is a rough patch, that’s all. It doesn’t matter how it started, it matters what it is. It’s good now, isn’t it? I’m good for you, I can be whatever you need, I’ll keep you happy. You like me, right? I know you do. I know you like me. Just get in the car, and we’ll talk about this later. Not now. Not like this. Look at me, don’t—don’t be like this. Luke.”
“I’m going home.”
“No. It’s late. You’re going back with me.”
“Let go.”
“Not until you listen.”
“Get off of me,” he snarls, launching himself backwards and ripping out of Aemond’s grasp. “Don’t touch me.” Aemond rears back at this rejection.
“Who else is going to do it? Lonely little Luke, eating lunch alone. Stupid, useless, weak. Can’t play sports, can’t speak in Debate Club, Mommy pays his tuition. He almost wets his pants when someone pulls the fire alarm. Who else is going to touch you, other than me?” Aemond’s mouth curls into a grin; he’s done it before, all sly and cruel. It looks ugly. He never changed, did he? How did Luke never see it before? “You didn’t fuck, didn’t drink at house parties, didn’t go to the beach past bedtime—hell, you probably never rode in a car without buckling the seatbelt. You were so eager for it, and I took you so easily. No one else could do that. No one else can touch you now, not like I can.”
It would have been true five months ago. Poor, common-looking Luke, who blended in with the walls, kept his head down, and startled at car alarms. That Luke was surrounded by gems, by brothers and uncles and friends who excelled at something, who carved names out for themselves. The Luke from five months ago would have balked at this, would have shrunk into himself and cowed to the truth. That Luke thought no one watched him, but he would’ve known if he just looked up. The Luke from now knows what the truth is, for the first time, and it’s nothing that comes out of Aemond’s mouth. Luke knows himself better than he ever has, and knows Aemond like he never wanted to before.
“I don’t think that’ll be any trouble, Uncle. Don’t worry about me,” Luke snorts out without thinking. “If I need someone to give me a ride, it won’t have to be you.” It doesn’t. It won’t. “I can buckle my own seatbelt; better yet, someone else can buckle it for me.” The uncle in question stills.
“Say that again.” He blinks, a curious expression settling over his features. “Say that again.”
“I said, it doesn’t have to be you. Other people will touch me. You’re not the only one around here with a working dick and something to prove. You lost an eye, not an ear. I should’t have to repeat myse—” before he can even finish the sentence, Aemond grabs him again, fingers curling over his shoulders like talons. Luke’s breath stops in his throat. Aemond’s face is so close they could kiss. Instead of leaning into it like he might have a few hours ago, Luke cringes backwards. Never again. The wounded expression on Aemond’s face gives him some satisfaction, but then his mouth morphs into a snarl and Luke would bet anything—his mother’s money, his own life, or whatever Aemond must’ve taken when he made that bet in the first place—that both of his eyes are glowing right now. The prosthetic below the patch shines like a jewel in its socket anyway, but the working eyeball in his head works furiously, searching across Luke’s face for something.
“What did you say, you little shit?” Aemond seethes. “Is there someone else? You have someone else, you were thinking about someone else?” he hisses into Luke’s face and furiously shakes him like a child would a broken toy. “Who is it?” he demands, sounding desperate now. “When? Is it Stark? Aegon? Greyjoy, that waterlogged rat? Daeron? Did one of them touch you—did you let them? Did they kiss you? Tell me, you fucking bastard.” Luke tells him the truth.
“That’s not your business anymore.”
“Not my business? Not—hah, not my business?” He’s so angry he’s spitting. “Of course it’s my business. It always has been. You’ve always—always, there’s never been a time when—you little idiot. Don’t you get it? You’re mi—”
Luke slaps him.
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I see a lot of people complain that Zuko gets excused for toxic behavior for being attractive and thats the only reason people have a problem with Aang's toxic behavior, what do you think about that?
I think some people do that, but it’s more of a fanon thing than canon. Zuko is not loved for his toxicity; he’s loved for recognizing the problems in his behavior and taking it upon himself to fix it.
Honestly, the bigger problem here (both in the context of these characters and real life) is that men get excused for toxic behavior if they seem “nice.” Aang fans do this a lot; they simultaneously act like he’s very wise and mature, but also a poor uwu baby who didn’t know better. I’ve seen lots of the same accusations, with people saying Zuko gets a pass for being hot, but I see way more people excuse or even ignore Aang’s toxic masculinity because he put on a flower crown once. I’ve known real men who got away with some pretty terrible behavior towards women in a very similar way. We’ve all heard it before: “oh, he’s so friendly, he’d never do something like that” “oh I’m sure he didn’t mean it that way, he’s such a nice guy” “don’t be so hard on him, he just didn’t know better”… you get the picture. The fanbase coddles Aang the same way they coddle real men like him and I think that’s why women who have experience with these types of men are so over it.
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Been doing a lot of thinking about Shanks...
And the more I think about him, the more I consider whether he could be some kind of antagonistic force. (In my heart of hearts? I don't believe it. But speculation is fun!) This is a bit of a jumbled mess of thoughts, but I figure it'll be interesting to write it down and see how wrong I am at the end of the series.
So, here's two predictions I think are pretty likely:
Luffy will destroy Mary Geoise and, with it, Fishman Island and part of the Red Line—thereby creating the All Blue. (I think this is fairly self-explanatory considering Madame Shyarly's premonition.)
Luffy will find the One Piece, but Buggy will become the Pirate King. (Perhaps becoming the Pirate King has some greater meaning/responsibility that Luffy rejects? Whatever the reason, Buggy seems to be heading in that direction—he's essentially been used as a placeholder before, after all, as a Warlord and Emperor.)
When I think about Shanks' role in the future, it's very foggy. We don't know a lot about Shanks, obviously, but if Buggy is to become the Pirate King, then the way they've juxtaposed him with Shanks is interesting. Shanks and Buggy are, like, opposites in terms of ambition (by which I don't mean what they seek, but how they seek it, and how they feel about their ambitions altogether).
[Important note: There's some great posts (try here, here, here, and here) talking about Shanks and Buggy's history. The gist of it is that Buggy never truly believed in himself because of Shanks' obvious potential; that Shanks was a bit of a bully, intentional or not; and that Buggy set his sights on a lesser treasure, never aiming for the OP because of Shanks' existence—only for Shanks give up on heading to Laugh Tale, their dream, altogether.]
Shanks was always the one considered to be Roger's successor; he was the one who got the hat. He shared his aspirations with Buggy, promising they'd go to Laugh Tale together—and then gave it all up when Roger returned from Laugh Tale. Which, of course, hurt Buggy tremendously, alongside all of Shanks' other transgressions (such as the mishap with the Devil Fruit, and losing Buggy's treasure map).
Buggy's feelings for the hat, and for Shanks, sour and complicate as their lives go on, even as they find distance from one another. While I do think Shanks has a lot of regret for what happened with Buggy, he tries to look toward the future, hence the importance of Roger's legacy and the straw hat. Buggy, of course, knows the importance of the straw hat more than anyone—it's why he's so furious to see Luffy with it.
Keeping Buggy in mind, Shanks meeting Luffy becomes more interesting. He gives up the straw hat he loves (that Buggy loves) to a little boy he supposedly loves—but why? Because he sees Roger in Luffy, because he believes Luffy is The One, or because Luffy ate the legendary fruit? Would Shanks, in a universe where Luffy wasn't chosen by the Gum–Gum Fruit, give up his arm to save Luffy? Would he give Luffy the hat? A classic question. I mean, I like to think that he would—I think Shanks comes across as a sentimental, kind man, if a little rough around the edges—but I don't know so.
Besides, simply giving Luffy the hat could be construed as an antagonistic act, as it potentially puts a target on Luffy: the right people will know whose hat that is, and will wonder why he has it. Oda frames it as an inheriting of wills, but it's not like he's not retconned things before! Either way, the feelings Buggy must have when he sees the hat not on Roger, not on Shanks, not on himself—but on Luffy? Some random kid? Fuck.
Fact of the matter is that we all know Shanks saved Luffy, in part, because Luffy ate the fruit. But what if that was the sole reason? What if Shanks saved Luffy simply because he knew that Luffy, as Nika, was the only one who could find/use the One Piece? Perhaps Shanks' plan is to use Luffy to grab power for himself. In a story about governmental oppression and the corruption of those in absolute power, it doesn't seem too far off. Especially if Shanks' past and his mistakes have warped him a little.
Extrapolating from what little we know of Shanks, and of Joy Boy and the Void Century, I'm not sure what Oda will do. The basic possibilities, as I see them, are:
Shanks is an ally to Luffy and gives himself up for Luffy's sake. Perhaps he dies while helping Luffy, potentially before they've had a chance to meet again. (I can see him dying in the fight against Blackbeard or Mary Geoise, for instance.) Or perhaps Oda makes it rhyme: perhaps he's sick like Roger, or something, and he acts in sacrifice, the way Roger did in unleashing the Great Pirate Era.
Shanks acts as an obstacle for Luffy to fight in pursuit of the OP. I think this one makes the least sense because the only reason I could see Shanks doing this is to test Luffy, but he already knows that Luffy is Joy Boy, so there's no point. Then again, we know Shanks has decided to go after the One Piece now...
Shanks is antagonistic, but has a change of heart! By which I mean: Luffy does it again, folks! Shanks is using Luffy as a means to dismantle to world order, after which he can seize a lot of power for himself—but Luffy persuades him against it. (Look, this doesn't make sense with the Shanks I envision, but what do I know, huh?)
Shanks is the antagonist. I mean, I guess we don't know his background, do we? People have long suspected he's of noble birth, having been found in God Valley. Regardless of whether he's working for or against the World Gov, we have no idea how powerful Shanks really is. And, if he's got less than noble ambitions, a small, trusted crew makes sense, I suppose. Yet Blackbeard fills this role pretty neatly: a tale of betrayal in pursuit of power, playing the long game, etc.
Shanks doesn't die and everything is hunky-dory. Look, I don't want my favourite swashbuckling drunkard to die, but this sounds pretty boring, doesn't it? Shanks guides Luffy right to the finish line and everyone cheers! "The One Piece is the friends we made along the way! Yeah!"
SO, what do I actually think is going to happen?
I don't know. This is a mess. I have so many more thoughts but this is already too long. Send help.
(something about how shanks not wanting to become the king perfectly sets up buggy to take the position... something about luffy denying becoming king for freedom-related reasons... something about how shanks never got to give the hat back to roger, so it would make sense if luffy also can't return the hat, and thus gives it to buggy instead... something about buggy finally getting closure... )
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