#and how the bonds and memories we make with others define us

[rotomicity]

JP fgo’s valentine story event this year,,,

[novaursa]

The Blood We Choose

- Summary: Gwayne brings you to Dragonstone, to your sister. But it is Daemon who awaits you both.

- Paring: Gwanye Hightower/targ!reader/Daemon Targaryen

- Note: reader is referred to as Y/N, is younger sister of Rhaenyra and was bonded with Silverwing. These events happen right after Where Banners Fall. If you want to read parts before this one in chronological order, visit my blog. The list is pinned to the top.

- Rating: Mild 13+

- Word count: 4 356

- Tag(s): @deniixlovezelda @duck-duck-goose2 @aadu2173 @sachaa-ff

The scent of salt and brine clings to the air, sharp against the faint undertones of decay and blood—a constant reminder of the battle left behind at Rook’s Rest. You can still feel the memory of fire scorching your skin, the cries of Silverwing echoing in your ears as she fell from the sky, taking you with her. 

Your body aches, every breath a laborious effort as you sit propped against the rough-hewn wall of the small cottage. The village is a quiet one, nestled by the coast, far from the eyes of any lords or soldiers. A place where neither banners nor blood oaths hold sway. Here, you can pretend, for a brief moment, that the world is not consumed by war.

But it’s a fleeting delusion. The searing pain that courses through your side is a constant reminder of how close you came to death. Silverwing’s warmth had shielded you as much as she could, but nothing could stop the might of Vhagar. You know that if it weren’t for Gwayne, you would have perished alongside your dragon, your body left among the ruins.

Gwayne Hightower. His name lingers on your tongue, filled with both bitterness and something else you dare not name. He betrayed his own for you—forsook his House, his loyalties, everything that defined him as a knight of the Greens. For you. The memory of his desperate voice calling your name as he found you below Silverwing’s wing is fresh, a rare vulnerability exposed beneath his normally composed demeanor.

“Y/N,” Gwayne’s voice, low and rough, breaks through the silence of the small room. You look up, meeting his gaze from across the dim space. He’s seated near the hearth, his own wounds not fully healed, a dark bruise blooming along his jawline and his side still tightly bound. 

“What is it?” you rasp, wincing as the movement strains your ribs.

“You should eat more.�� He gestures to a small bowl of fish stew beside you. The smell is unappetizing, but you know he’s right. You need strength if you’re to survive this war, if you’re to return to Dragonstone—to your family.

You give a small, reluctant nod, dipping the spoon into the lukewarm broth. The taste is bland, the texture thick in your mouth, but it’s enough to soothe the gnawing hunger in your belly.

“Daemon’s been searching,” Gwayne says after a moment, voice hesitant. “Caraxes was seen flying from Harrenhal. He’ll come for you.”

There’s a flicker of something dangerous in his tone, a tinge of possessiveness that makes your chest tighten. Daemon. Your husband. Your son’s surrogate father. You hadn’t told Gwayne about the child until that morning when pain had stripped away all pretense and left only raw confessions in the dark. It was the first time you saw something break in his eyes, something beyond duty or loyalty. Gwayne is a man forged in duty, yet in that moment, his loyalty had been to you, and only you.

The silence stretches between you both, heavy with unsaid words, unshed tears, and the tangled web of emotion that neither of you are willing to fully confront. How could you? You were always meant to be Rhaenyra’s little sister, the one whose role was to support, never to lead. Yet here you are, a thread woven into a tapestry that binds you to two men who could tear each other and you apart.

“If Daemon finds us…” Gwayne starts, his voice trailing off.

You lower the spoon, your hand trembling slightly. “You’ll run.” It’s not a question. You know what will happen if Daemon catches Gwayne with you, the traitor Hightower who saved his wife instead of leaving her to her fate. Daemon would kill him without hesitation.

His jaw clenches, eyes darkening with a mixture of anger and resolve. “And leave you alone? I think not.”

You shift, ignoring the pain lancing through your body. “This was never supposed to happen,” you murmur, mostly to yourself. You close your eyes, picturing Silverwing’s brilliant wings and the sight of Dragonstone on the horizon—your home. You ache to be back there, where the sea winds carried the scent of salt and freedom, where you could be Y/N Targaryen again instead of a broken remnant.

Gwayne’s presence is a steady warmth in the room, a contrast to the cold reality of the war raging beyond these walls. You want to hate him for making you feel something other than loyalty to Daemon all these years, but you can’t. Not after he’s saved you, cared for you, and stayed by your side despite the danger. Even now, with your heart and mind divided, you know that whatever he feels—duty, love, or perhaps something in between—it is real. And it terrifies you as much as it comforts you.

“Why did you do it?” you ask, barely above a whisper.

His gaze locks with yours, unwavering. “Because I couldn't let you die.”

Your breath catches. The simplicity of his answer is profound. No grand declarations, no lofty promises, just the brutal, honest truth.

Before you can respond, the sound of footsteps crunching on gravel outside the cottage makes you tense. Both of you are on edge, the brief sense of peace shattering like glass. Gwayne moves instinctively toward the door, hand resting on the hilt of his sword. 

It’s only the fisherman, his weathered face peeking through the gap in the door. “Tomorrow,” he says quietly. “The boat’ll be ready at dawn. The tides’ll be with us.”

You nod in gratitude, relief mingled with apprehension. Dragonstone is so close now, but you know the return will be fraught with more dangers than those you’ve already faced. 

As the fisherman retreats, Gwayne turns back to you. “We’ll get you home,” he promises, though there’s an edge to his voice that betrays his own uncertainty. 

Home. But what awaits you there? Daemon’s wrath? Your sister’s grief? And what of your son—your son whom you’ve not seen in so long, raised by a Targaryen father who knows nothing of the man who just saved his mother’s life?

For now, you can only rest, listening to the steady rhythm of Gwayne’s breathing across the room as you both try to find sleep in this fleeting calm before the storm resumes. You close your eyes, letting yourself drift, even as a part of you dreads what dawn will bring.

The sky above Dragonstone is dark, heavy clouds gathering as if reflecting the storm brewing within the walls of the ancient castle. The great red dragon, Caraxes, lands with a furious roar, shaking the stones beneath his claws. Daemon slides from the saddle, his face twisted in rage, eyes burning like molten steel. Every step he takes towards the Great Hall is filled with barely-contained fury, the kind that simmers just below the surface and waits for the slightest spark to ignite into violence.

He bursts into the hall, his armor still stained with ash and soot from his fruitless search. Rhaenyra stands by the fire, her arms wrapped tightly around herself as though seeking warmth. She turns as Daemon strides in, but before she can say a word, his voice cuts through the silence, sharp as Valyrian steel.

“You sent her to Rook’s Rest? You sent her?” His words are laced with venom, each one a dagger aimed directly at her heart.

Rhaenyra flinches, but she holds her ground, lifting her chin defiantly. “She volunteered, Daemon! She insisted. It was her choice.”

“Her choice?” he spits back, stepping closer, his anger radiating from him like heat from a forge. “She’s no warrior, not like Rhaenys! You sent her to die, Rhaenyra! To die at the hands of Aemond and that wretched beast of his!”

Rhaenyra’s composure cracks then, her eyes shining with unshed tears. “I trusted her! She’s my sister—our blood! I thought… I thought Silverwing—”

“Silverwing is dead!” Daemon’s voice thunders through the hall, a raw, agonized sound. “She fell, trying to protect her rider from Vhagar and Sunfyre. And Y/N? She’s gone, Rhaenyra. Taken by Gwayne Hightower. A Hightower! You might as well have killed her yourself.”

At that, Rhaenyra’s tears break free, streaking down her pale cheeks. “I never wanted this! I would never—”

“Spare me your tears,” Daemon snarls, his eyes narrowing in cold fury. “You speak of choices, yet you chose war over your sister. You sent her out to face death while you remained safe in your castle, protected by your crown. Do you know what it’s like to watch the skies, knowing that the one person who never turned her back on you is likely lying dead, or worse, in the hands of our enemies?”

Rhaenyra’s sobs wrack her slender frame, but Daemon is relentless. He steps closer, so near that he could reach out and touch her, but his hands remain clenched at his sides. “You sacrificed her for a battle that did nothing but weaken us. Aegon still holds King’s Landing. Silverwing is dead, Luke is gone, and now Y/N… she was the last thread of innocence left in this gods-forsaken war, and you ripped it apart.”

Rhaenyra shakes her head desperately. “I thought—Daemon, I thought she could reach them. Convince them to surrender before more blood was spilled. She believed in it too.”

“And now she’s paying for that belief with her life,” Daemon hisses. “Do you understand? Her life, her blood. And for what? Nothing.”

The hall falls silent, the air thick with tension, with grief and fury that neither of them can fully articulate. For a moment, Rhaenyra looks utterly lost, her shoulders sagging under the weight of all the loss that surrounds her. “What am I supposed to do, Daemon? Tell me. What can I do now?”

Before he can respond, a new voice cuts into the fray, youthful but tinged with urgency. “What’s happening? Where is my mother?”

Daemon stiffens, turning slowly to face the boy who has entered the hall. He’s just shy of manhood, tall and lean with the unmistakable features of House Targaryen—silver-gold hair, sharp cheekbones, and the stubborn fire in his gaze. But his eyes, those striking eyes of clear blue, are not Targaryen at all. They are Gwayne Hightower’s, and they haunt Daemon every time he looks at the boy.

The boy’s name is Vaeron, the son raised by Daemon as his own, the boy who never knew the truth of his parentage. Vaeron looks between his father and his aunt, sensing the tension, the raw pain in the air.

“Where is she?” Vaeron’s voice trembles now, the bravado slipping. “Where is my mother?”

Daemon’s expression softens, if only by a fraction. He crosses the distance to his son, placing a hand on his shoulder, gripping it tightly. “Your mother was ambushed at Rook’s Rest,” he says, each word carefully measured, as if they’re knives he’s forcing down his throat. “Aemond and his dragons brought her down. Silverwing is dead.”

Vaeron’s eyes widen, disbelief and horror written across his face. “No,” he breathes, shaking his head as if denying the truth will somehow change it. “She can’t be dead. Mother can’t be—”

“She’s not dead, not yet,” Daemon cuts in, his voice harsh. “But she’s missing, taken by Gwayne Hightower. And I’ll find her, Vaeron. We’ll find her together.”

The boy’s gaze sharpens, anger and grief mixing with determination. “I’ll go with you,” he says, the words coming out more like a plea than a declaration.

Daemon nods, the cold steel of his resolve hardening. “You’ll mount your dragon, and we’ll take to the skies. We’ll search every inch of the realm if we have to.”

Vaeron swallows hard, the weight of what’s being asked of him sinking in. He’s still so young, yet there’s no more room for youth in this war. He nods, determination etched across his face. “For her. For my mother.”

Daemon’s grip on his son’s shoulder tightens for a moment, the only hint of the fierce protectiveness he feels beneath the layers of rage. “For her,” he agrees.

As they turn to leave, Rhaenyra reaches out, her voice breaking. “Daemon… please… I’m sorry…”

Daemon doesn’t look back. “You can’t afford to be sorry, Rhaenyra. Not now. Not ever.”

The boy’s eyes meet Rhaenyra’s for a moment before he turns away, following his father out into the cold winds of Dragonstone. They leave her behind, standing alone in the dim light of the hall, tears streaming down her face, a queen weighed down by guilt and grief.

The dragons will soon take flight again, this time driven by fury, by a father’s desperation and a son’s determination. And neither Daemon nor Vaeron will rest until they bring her back—no matter the cost, no matter the blood they must spill.

The small fishing boat creaks under the weight of the sea’s relentless pull, the salt spray clinging to your face as the wind howls around you. Each dip and rise of the vessel feels precarious, the threat of capsizing ever-present. You cling to the rough wooden edge, your body still weak and aching from your injuries, but your eyes remain fixed on the silhouette of Dragonstone on the horizon. The ancient fortress looms like a jagged tooth against the darkening sky, its towers piercing the clouds.

Gwayne stands beside you, his gaze scanning the skies as if expecting danger at any moment. His face is shadowed, exhaustion etched into the lines around his eyes, but there’s a tension there too—an unspoken fear that you both share.

The fisherman grumbles curses under his breath as he wrestles with the sails. He’s an old man, his hands gnarled from years at sea, but his sharp eyes occasionally flicker toward you, a mixture of recognition and pity in his gaze. “Prince Daemon’s got the skies set ablaze with his searching,” he mutters, his voice rough like gravel. “And now that boy of his—Merothrax near sunk me last time they flew overhead.”

As if on cue, the air vibrates with the distant sound of wings, a deep thrumming that sends shivers down your spine. You glance upward and catch sight of them—two dragons cutting through the sky like living shadows. Caraxes, with his serpentine neck and blood-red scales, moves with a terrifying grace, his roar echoing across the waves. Beside him is Merothrax, Vaeron’s dragon. Sleek and deadly, the young dragon’s scales are a deep, shimmering indigo, laced with streaks of silver that catch the light when he dives. His wings are larger than one would expect for a dragon of his age, giving him a natural agility in the air. His eyes, a piercing shade of gold, scan the sea below, hungry and watchful.

The boat rocks violently as Merothrax swoops low, his wings stirring the water into frothy waves. The fisherman shouts a stream of curses at the sky, clutching at his hat as the gust from the dragon’s wings nearly tears it from his head. “Damn Targaryens, more fire and madness in them than sense!”

Gwayne’s hand is suddenly on your arm, steadying you as the boat pitches. “They’re looking for us,” he says grimly. “Daemon won’t stop until he finds you.”

“Or finds you with me,” you say, your voice quieter than you intend. There’s a deep tension in your chest, not just from the pain but from the knowledge that each moment brings you closer to facing the storm you left behind. 

Gwayne doesn’t respond immediately. His gaze is distant, lost in thoughts he hasn’t voiced since you confessed your secrets that day—secrets you had buried for too long. The memory of that confession hangs between you both, a reminder of how fragile this moment of safety is.

“You’re thinking of Vaeron,” Gwayne says softly, finally breaking the silence. “Of what happens when he sees me.”

You nod slowly, your throat tightening. “He’s never known who you really are. Daemon raised him, taught him to ride, to fight. Vaeron idolizes him… but he deserves to know the truth.”

Gwayne’s jaw tightens, and his hand drops away from your arm. “I knew of the boy. Rumors reached me—stories of the bastard prince raised by the Rogue himself. But I never… I never thought he’d…” His voice cracks at the end, and you hear the quiet grief in his words. The grief of a father who never had the chance to be a father. 

You turn to him, your heart aching for what you’re about to say. “He’s yours, Gwayne. He always has been.” The admission is heavy, laden with all the years you’ve kept the truth locked away. “Daemon knew from the start. He saw it in Vaeron, even before the boy could speak. But he accepted him anyway, for my sake, and for Rhaenyra’s cause. He never let Vaeron feel unwanted, never let him know he wasn’t his own blood. But those eyes… they’re yours.”

Gwayne’s expression is unreadable, but you see the storm behind his gaze—the battle between duty, regret, and a father’s yearning. “I should have been there,” he says hoarsely. “I should have been the one to raise him, to teach him. Instead, I’ve been chasing ghosts and loyalty that never truly mattered.”

“You would have been hunted down if you claimed him,” you remind him, your voice laced with the bitterness of harsh reality. “Your House would have disowned you—or worse. You would’ve been executed for treason.”

“And now I’m here, having betrayed everything for the woman I…” Gwayne stops himself, the words strangled in his throat.

You don’t push him. The truth lingers between you like a wound too fresh to be probed. You lower your gaze to the churning sea, feeling the boat rock again as Caraxes circles back toward Dragonstone. “He’s a good boy,” you say quietly. “Stubborn, with fire in his blood. But he’s kind, too. He has your strength, even if he doesn’t know it.”

Gwayne’s hand finds yours, squeezing it gently, the roughness of his palm familiar and grounding. “I want to meet him, truly meet him. But what do I say, Y/N? That I’m the man who should have been there, but wasn’t?”

Tears sting your eyes, but you blink them away. “You tell him the truth. Vaeron deserves that much, even if it’s painful. We both know there’s no easy way to face it, but hiding it any longer would be a greater cruelty.”

The boat jerks violently as they begin their final approach to Dragonstone’s rocky shore. You see the shadow of the fortress loom closer, the narrow docks already in sight. The fisherman mutters another curse as Merothrax’s tail lashes the air overhead, nearly capsizing the boat. 

Gwayne leans in close, his breath warm against your ear as he murmurs, “No matter what happens when we land, I’ll be by your side. If Daemon tries to take him from me, or if he tries to strike me down for what I’ve done, I won’t back down.”

Your heart clenches at the promise in his words, at the weight of everything that lies ahead. The shore draws near, and you steel yourself for what awaits—a reunion not just with Daemon and your son, but with all the truths that can no longer be avoided.

Above, the dragons circle, their roars echoing through the skies like thunder. The war rages on, but now it’s not just a battle for the throne. It’s a battle for the lives torn apart by secrets and the relentless march of fate. And as you prepare to step onto the stony shore of Dragonstone, you know that the hardest fight has only just begun.

The small boat bumps against the dock with a dull thud, the sound lost beneath the howling wind and the distant crash of waves against the jagged rocks. The air is thick with tension as the fisherman throws a rope to secure the vessel, muttering prayers under his breath, his eyes wide with fear as he glances toward the two dragons perched on the ridge above. Caraxes and Merothrax sit like twin sentinels, their eyes gleaming with the predatory awareness of beasts ready to strike at the slightest provocation.

You step onto the dock first, your legs trembling beneath you, both from the strain of your injuries and the weight of what’s about to happen. Gwayne follows closely, his hand hovering near his sword hilt, though you both know it would be futile if it came to a fight. The wind pulls at your hair and cloak as you move forward, each step taking you closer to the confrontation you’ve dreaded.

Ahead, you see them—Daemon and Vaeron. Daemon’s expression is cold as stone, his eyes narrowed and lips drawn into a hard line. Beside him, Vaeron stands tense, his gaze fixed on you with a mixture of worry and anticipation. He’s grown so much since you last saw him, more a young man than a boy, but the flash of relief in his eyes when he sees you tells you he’s still your son, still that child who would run to you for comfort.

But before he can take a step toward you, Daemon’s hand clamps down on his shoulder, holding him back. “Stay where you are,” Daemon orders, his voice as sharp as a blade. Vaeron’s brow furrows, confusion and frustration evident in his eyes, but he doesn’t argue. He simply watches as you and Gwayne approach, his gaze flicking warily between you and the man who saved you.

The tension in the air is palpable as you reach them. Before you can speak, a detachment of royal guards emerges from the path leading to the castle, armor clanking as they fall into formation around Daemon. The commander steps forward and bows deeply. “Prince Daemon, we stand ready.”

Daemon’s eyes never leave Gwayne as he gives the command. “Seize him.”

The guards move forward, hands reaching for Gwayne’s arms. He doesn’t resist, but you see his jaw clench, muscles tensing as iron manacles click shut around his wrists. Panic flares in your chest, and you step between the guards and Gwayne, your voice rising in desperation. “No! You can’t just lock him away! He saved me, Daemon—he saved my life!”

Daemon’s eyes flash with something dangerous as he looks at you, his expression hardening further. “He’s a Hightower, and a traitor to his House. His loyalty to you doesn’t absolve him of that.”

You take a step closer, your voice trembling but determined. “It does when it’s a debt of blood. He risked everything for me—for us. He’s not the enemy here, Daemon.”

But Daemon’s gaze is unyielding, his anger a simmering force barely restrained. “The enemy is anyone who serves the Greens, no matter the reason. You think I care that he chose you over his House? That only makes him more dangerous. He’s already betrayed his own; what’s to stop him from betraying you, or Vaeron, when it suits him?”

Gwayne meets Daemon’s gaze, holding it without flinching, though you see the strain in his eyes. “I gave up everything for her. I’d do it again. But I know what I am, and I don’t expect your forgiveness.”

Daemon’s lips curl into a sneer. “Good, because you’ll get none from me.” He turns to the guards, his tone cold and final. “Take him to the dungeons. I’ll decide his fate once I’ve had time to consider what to do with him.”

The guards tighten their grip on Gwayne and begin to drag him away. You move to follow, but Daemon’s hand catches your arm, stopping you in your tracks. “Enough, Y/N,” he says quietly, his voice a mix of anger and something softer—concern, perhaps, though it’s buried deep beneath his rage. “He’s done what he thought was right, but it doesn’t change what he is.”

You jerk your arm free, glaring at him with all the defiance you can muster. “You’ve lost sight of what truly matters, Daemon. Gwayne’s no longer a pawn of the Greens—he’s here because of me. Because of Vaeron.”

At the mention of Vaeron, Daemon’s eyes flicker, but he remains resolute. “And I’ll not have him jeopardize our son’s safety, not for some misplaced sense of gratitude.”

Your heart aches as you watch Gwayne being led away, the clink of his shackles echoing in the quiet that follows. He walks with his head held high, shoulders squared, but you can see the brief flicker of pain in his expression as he passes by Vaeron. The boy says nothing, but his eyes track Gwayne’s every move with a curious intensity, as if trying to understand the connection between the man being led to the dungeons and his mother’s desperate pleas.

When Gwayne disappears around the corner, swallowed by the shadows of the castle, Vaeron finally breaks the silence. “Mother… who was that man? Why did he save you?”

You swallow hard, forcing yourself to meet your son’s gaze. “He’s… someone who once served the Greens but chose to protect me instead. He’s no longer a threat, Vaeron.”

Daemon releases his hold on your arm but keeps his eyes fixed on Vaeron. “He’s not to be trusted. Remember that.”

Vaeron nods slowly, his eyes still lingering on the path Gwayne was taken down. There’s something in his expression—curiosity, perhaps, or a flicker of recognition that he doesn’t fully understand. But he doesn’t press further, sensing that there are answers he’s not yet meant to know.

Daemon turns to you, his voice softer now, but still laced with frustration. “We’ll speak more inside. You’ve been through enough, and I’ll not have this discussion out in the open.”

With that, he leads the way toward the castle, the guards following closely behind. You fall into step beside him, though your thoughts remain with Gwayne, locked away beneath the stone walls of Dragonstone. Vaeron walks beside you, his young face set in determination as he tries to piece together the events swirling around him.

And as you approach the darkened halls of the castle, you can’t shake the feeling that the truths left unspoken will tear at the fragile peace you’ve only just regained.

[novlr]

Hi, how do you write a healthy sibling relationship?

I have a really bad one and I want my characters to get along, but still fight sometimes

Any help would be great

Sibling relationships are the first and often the most enduring bonds we form in life. They shape our identities, define our roles in the family, and teach us how to love, fight, forgive, and grow alongside another person.

For writers, capturing the intricacies of sibling dynamics can infuse stories with authenticity, depth, and emotional resonance that keeps readers turning pages. Here are some tips for how to write healthy sibling relationships:

Make them unique characters

Establish each sibling’s unique personality and role.

Give each sibling their own distinct personality, interests, strengths, and flaws.

Show how their personalities complement and contrast with each other.

Establish the roles and dynamics between the siblings (leader, peacemaker, rebel, etc.).

Avoid stereotypes and allow the siblings’ personalities to evolve over time.

Develop each sibling’s unique voice and communication style.

Give them contrasting but complementary skills and strengths.

Develop their relationship over time

Show how the siblings’ relationship strengthens as they grow up and go through life changes. Maybe they grow apart for a while but then reconnect later in life.

Give their relationship a story arc, showing how their bond matures and changes over the course of the story.

Explore how the siblings navigate major life events together, like the birth of a new sibling, a family move, losing a loved one, or a parent’s divorce.

Depict milestones and rites of passage where the siblings support or challenge each other, like learning to drive, graduating high school, starting college or a career.

Show how the siblings’ communication and conflict resolution skills improve (or deteriorate) over time. Perhaps they learn to express their feelings more openly, fight more fairly, or establish healthier boundaries as they mature.

Give them shared history and inside jokes

Build strong backstories into their characters with shared childhood experiences.

Show them laughing over inside jokes and funny memories only they understand.

Use shared history to show their bond, even when they’re fighting.

Have the siblings reference shared childhood possessions or special objects like a beloved stuffed animal they both cherished or a secret hideout only they knew about.

Show the siblings using a private language, code words, or shared vocabulary that only they understand.

Have them reminisce about funny or embarrassing childhood stories.

Let them learn from each other

Show the siblings teaching each other important life lessons.

Have them learn from each other’s mistakes and successes.

Show how the siblings challenge each other to step outside their comfort zones and try new things.

Depict moments where the siblings offer each other wise advice or a fresh perspective on a problem, demonstrating how well they understand and support one another.

Show how the siblings inspire each other to pursue their passions and dreams.

Depict the siblings’ learning to appreciate their differences and see them as strengths

Show unwavering loyalty and love

Depict the siblings standing up for each other in the face of adversity or conflict. They have each other’s backs, no matter what.

Portray the siblings making sacrifices for each other’s happiness or well-being.

Show the siblings being there for each other during tough times, like heartbreak, illness, or failure. Highlight how they offer comfort, encouragement, and unconditional support.

Illustrate the siblings’ fierce protectiveness of each other. Show them defending each other against bullies, naysayers, or anyone who threatens their bond.

Depict the siblings forgiving each other after arguments or misunderstandings. Show how their love helps them overcome hurt feelings and find understanding.

Portray the siblings expressing their love and appreciation for each other through both big gestures and small, everyday acts of kindness.

[jolieblack]

Something finally came to me! (I usually can’t write to prompts to save my life.)

May Prompts 2024 by @calaisreno

May 24th: Imperfect

We've always done things the wrong way round.

We moved in together at a time when we knew no more than four or five facts about each other. Significant facts, granted, such as John being a war veteran and me having no patience with idiots, but neither of us could have claimed to have had anything even close to the full picture at the time. I sometimes wonder what would have happened if either of us had. Only on my really bad days, though.

I don’t have all that many of those any more, luckily. And when I do, I have plenty of good memories to help me pull myself up again. Take the ones of how we confessed our love to each other to a beautifully decorated room full of people in festive dress and in even more festive spirit, to much applause and cheering and well-wishing. Yes, you heard that plural right. Those are two separate memories, years apart and in two different places. I got to go first, and it wasn’t even me who was getting married at the time. That’s another thing that most couples would do differently. Coordinate it a bit better, at least.

The second time around, as a lot of you will remember well, it was John's turn to talk, and I‘d been told in no uncertain terms to keep my mouth shut and say nothing, not even to correct his grammar, till he was done. I can now attest that it is true that the groom never gets to have a say in anything at his own wedding. Someone got his late revenge there. And believe me, that doesn’t depend on whether it’s one groom or two. Yes, and I know there are still people out there even in this day and age who feel that it’s not normal to have two grooms at all. They can all go away and never show their ugly faces again where I can see them, or smell the foul breath of the bigoted filth they’re spouting. That’s not the wrong way around, that couldn’t be more right for both of us.

But we did other things the wrong way around, too. In most romantic stories, killing someone to save the person you love is usually the culmination of long mutual trust and dedication. It‘s supposed to be the crowning glory, the final sealing of a bond that has long been in the making. It’s not supposed to be the starting point. And John is usually the more patient of the two of us, but when it came to this, he could barely contain himself for 36 hours after our very first meeting before he did it. Ever heard of timing and pacing, Doctor, I hear you people wonder? And he’s supposed to be the one with the talent for good storytelling. The timing was good, though. The timing was excellent. There’s another 'what if' for you that is no fun to contemplate at all.

There is killing out of love, and - I have to say it, I can’t not, I‘d be lying by omission if I didn't - there's also dying out of love. I doubt, however, that there’s anyone out there who has ever put a more elaborate effort into pretending to die out of love than I have. As far as I‘m aware, that’s not really a romantic convention, either, and I sincerely hope I haven’t started a trend. I honestly can’t recommend it. Effort is well and good, and I dare say the execution in my case was flawless, but I can’t deny there was a certain lack of forethought as to the emotional impact on both parties concerned. Don‘t try this at home, folks.

People also usually date first, then start cohabiting, then get married, then raise children together. Please don’t ask me to define at what time in our lives exactly John and I were dating and when we weren’t yet. To this day we have never been able to agree on a definition for this mysterious activity that emphatically, according to John, for whatever reason, does not encompass two people who like each other going out together and having fun. But it is an undisputed fact that we had been raising a child together for a good while before we got married. And we have been going out together and having fun for years uncounted now. Crime scenes never fail to work that particular magic on us. Oh wait, no, that was another example I had on my list for what most other couples do differently. Hang on, do I see a certain Chief Inspector of Scotland Yard raise his hand in objection? Raising both hands, actually, showing us… what, seven fingers? Is that the number of couples working for the Metropolitan Police that you know personally who have met at crime scenes? Or are you reminding us of the number of times John and I were actually kicked off a crime scene because we were enjoying ourselves entirely too much, and were told not to come back till we could behave like adults? I could have sworn those were more than seven occasions, but I‘ll take your word for it.

Talking of raising a child together, I‘m sure Rosie will say a word or three about that herself later, but I have never understood why most of you had doubts about the practicability of that particular endeavour. Let me just tell you that a baby carrier is entirely compatible with a cashmere scarf, or didn’t you know cashmere can absorb up to a third of its own dry weight in liquid? And it got only easier from there when Rosie grew older and stopped affectionately drooling on whoever enjoyed the happy privilege of holding her and carrying her around. She hasn’t demanded being carried around in a good while now, and I don’t know what our poor old backs would say to that these days. But we were talking about happy memories, weren’t we, so there’s another. And at least in the metaphorical sense, I hope you know, Rosie, that you’ll be held and carried for as long as you want and need, as long as we both live. You were my daughter even before I was your father’s husband, and that has been one of the greatest honours bestowed on me in my life.

Because this is who we are, isn’t it, our crazy little family, where nothing is as you’d expect it to be. But we still wouldn’t have it any other way, topsy-turvy, weird, flawed and utterly imperfect, but also utterly us, unique, one of a kind. I don’t know if it was fate that threw us together, or if it really was just a whim on the part of the comfortable, corpulent, bespectacled gentleman sitting at this table over here, smirking with his trademark benevolence. But there’s a debt of gratitude to be paid there, and today is a good day to do it. In this at least, we’re doing the conventional thing, but who’s to say we’re not allowed to do that at least once in a quarter-century.

So, ladies and gentlemen, dear friends and family from far and wide, I give you: John Watson, the man of my life, the man at my side for over thirty years, and for exactly twenty-five years in the legal sense on this very day. Please raise your glasses with us to the next twenty-five. And for God’s sake stop snivelling like that, Mycroft. You’re embarrassing the whole room.

[rin-and-jade]

Job Roulette.. or Not: A Post about Alter Roles

Roles like Hosts? Protectors?.. maybe a Cleaner? an Academic?.. why is there an alter who comes out only for driving?! What about these other alters who don't really do much--they got to have one right??

--Are probably what you might be thinking when this topic comes up. But, there's something more into it,, it's not all about what job or how the role is assigned to an alter only.

Well, for this post, lets talk EVERYTHING about how roles work, what kinds exist, why it's there?? And especially, why are some more task specific, multi-role, or even... none? Bowl straight to the point, let's roll out. Haha punny

Ok J, spill. What are they?

Hold on. Im pulling out this dictionary definition of it--ah!

"defined positions that are associated with given responsibilities and are usually allocated according to the position or ability of each person."

To put it in system terms, it's how different parts can do something that others couldn't, or, feel a sense of responsibility in one particular aspect. That's making sense right? But oh.. you still want to know why they're there at the first place. Fine, follow me!

Yeah, show me why!

As aforementioned, this disorder boxes up our different parts of selves with amnesia and weaker bonds of connection which really sets us back on easing our 'modes' for different situations.. not only that, a part's moods and state/personality can greatly affect what kinds of jobs they get, it's not so random as you'd thought.

So, thing is, because some alters have a distinguished ability capable in doing something, depending what fragment or pre-existing knowledge/experience it holds, that can become it's very own job task.

They can be hereditary (upon split or formed), gained (fuse or passed traits), or even learnt (by its own commitment, without any prior skills). Roles come from many origins, and none of them are so different.

But, some are more complex..

I get it, some can have more than one, have ultra specific ones, or literally just don't have any. Now it makes you think--if it was from predisposed strengths each alters naturally have, then why are some more niche? or like, anything else? I know why:

Our brains are complex alright. We both can think maybe we can do (even if we don't like it) and not do something, and these are all compartmentalized in each alters, so basically its part feelings, part acceptance of such trait, and part commitment as the formula. Even confidence or the call to action affects this outcome!

This can apply to who can handle more than one jobs, or for those who are more specific or lesser known roles. In fact, roles do not have any limits, they are specifically tailored for your functionality so don't fret if you have an alter who's job is only to sleep, or anything else 'silly' !

What about the ones without.. roles?

Do you think it feels wrong to not have roles? While it is true that roles are needed, they're not actually a required standard for everyone to have a job task. Mainly, ANP's are the one who usually have roles, but EP's can too.

If they do not have a role, they might be disinterested or think they don't have any potential, or sometimes they're only there to hold memories / don't have the qualified skill sets, and thats okay! You can take proactive action in anyhow you'd like, just remember, every parts aren't forced to contribute, you know? It doesn't make them useless, maybe more on passive support/back ups.

I've also seen some systems who don't really have roles because the alters are all well-rounded, as in pick up other's tasks and that they're not assigned/compelled to do a particular job at all times, like being flexible. everyone's different!

Make sense, anything else?

Well, that we are not bound to roles, they do not define us, and that we can lose, or change roles according to our growth. Have anyone ever mentioned that?

Im aware that we tend to put too much emphasis on having jobs and being contributive, but the most important thing to keep in mind is that we all in this together, and to help each other, in a way or another.

Never forget that you're more than your job! Maybe try to enjoy other parts of life, yeah?

--

Thats the end of the post. What will you do if you find a new alter with no impressions of having a role? How do you see roles in your own pov? What's the first thing you'd do if you were to be free from your job task, if any? Feel free to let me know, i hope this has been informative, im willing to add anything if something's missing!

- j

[onaperduamedee]

As a character, Lan is defined by lack of agency.

He was born to be king, but his nation dies out and he becomes the living embodiment of a lost people. New Spring shows that people keep on projecting ambitions on him, expecting him to rebuild Malkier or at least to uphold its culture. To him, the only escape is a futile death in the name of his nation, not even for himself.

Over the course of the books, his character is shown to be rather passive: Moiraine deprives him of his agency by compelling him to live, he is bonded by force to Myrelle, Egwene orders him to go to Nynaeve and Nynaeve herself has to trick him to distract from again dying a futile death in the name of his nation. 

Even his mentoring of Rand is presented by himself as a consequence of Rand's ta'veren pull rather than assertion. Now, this might not be what is actually happening because we see that Lan does disagree with Moiraine's course of actions on other occasions, but that's how he argues in this instance: he's explaining away an attempt to seize agency by saying he in fact wasn't completely in control. According to Lan himself, he is not in control in his own life and he shouldn't be.

So his story is fraught with characters denying his agency. When Nynaeve tricks him, not once but twice, to get him to not die alone in the Blight, with the baggage he has with Moiraine, the fact that it's business as usual for Lan is frustrating for the reader who hoped that at least Nynaeve would be more respectful of his agency. Yet it is consistent for his character to accept that this is how people who care about him (or don't) will treat him because that's what he got with Edeyn, Moiraine, Myrelle, even Bukama to some degree. Obviously, all of these violations do not happen on the same level but these instances are still denial of his agency.

The question as to why he seems to be so accepting of this repeated transgression is not really explored in the books but the reason can be easily inferred: trauma from losing his family and people so young, from being burdened with carrying the memory of a dead nation since infancy (he's described like a memorial more than a person), from embarking on a lifelong rather hopeless journey with Moiraine, from war, naturally. It is what makes him a compelling character, albeit a frustratingly static one.

He changes very little from the beginning to the end of the story, if one considers the beginning to be New Spring. He started the story by wanting to ride into the Blight to die and ended up the story by riding into a fight against Demandred (I have to stop calling him Demi in my head) to die. The tension of his story, for me, is that no matter how much Nynaeve sparks hope in him and even desire for a future, trauma is incredibly strong a pull and will draw him toward seeking death nevertheless. 

There's a sort of nihilism to his character, a death drive, that's consistent with his baggage as a war veteran and trauma victim. It's not far-fetched to read his arc as an exploration of the fact that love (Nynaeve) and duty (toward Malkier and Moiraine) aren't enough to heal and survive on his own.

That's why the culmination of Lan's arc, for me, isn't when he rides to Tarwin Gap or fights Demandred (because it's the same old death drive disguised as abnegation), or even when he dons Malkier's crown (because it has been his responsibility from birth), but when Agelmar calls him selfish: 

« Lan stopped, eyeing the aged general. “Take care, Lord Agelmar. It almost sounds as if you are calling me selfish.”

“I am, Lan,” Agelmar said. “And you are.”

Lan did not flinch.

“You came to throw your life away for Malkier. That, in itself, is noble. However, with the Last Battle upon us, it’s also stupid. We need you. Men will die because of your stubbornness.” »

[...]

« Some men,” Agelmar said, “are destined to die, and they fear it. Others are destined to live, and to lead, and they find it a burden. If you wished to keep fighting here until the last man fell, you could do it, and they’d die singing the glory of the fight. Or, you could do what we both need to do. » - A Memory Of Light, Brandon Sanderson.

Agelmar calls Lan selfish because, like Tenobia, Lan is wriggling out of duty toward his people by seeking a heroic death, but Agelmar is mainly challenging the notion Lan has been touting as his mantra for decades: "Death is lighter than a feather, Duty heavier than a mountain".

What Agelmar is implying is that Lan has been misinterpreting this saying to justify evading his responsibilities. Agelmar refers to his responsibility toward Malkier and the world as his duty; Lan sees his long pursuit of death (for Malkier in the Blight, for the DR with Moiraine) as his duty. Dying for the cause was the goal - in his mind it is what he can offer and what Agelmar is pointing out. It's less about being selfish and more about Lan being self-destructive. His war against the shadow is a war against himself.

It isn't exactly a revelation for him because although Lan is shaken by Agelmar's words he later rides into battle to die at the hands of Demandred, with Agelmar and all the other generals out of commission. 

What is interesting narratiely is that at this point Lan gets exactly what he wants: at last no one is stopping him to ride and die into battle. He gets to be only a man, not the herald of a dead nation, a man who can die at that. Yet, death denies him and he survives, somehow.

We don't know exactly why and how he survives the death blows Demandred deals to him. It could be that the Wheel needed him alive so he survived when so many died (in New Spring, Lan is a target for the shadow because he is suspiciously lucky), it could be that Demandred was just a man himself after all and Rand's sealing the DO (with Moiraine and Nynaeve) happened just in the nick of time for Demandred to be stopped from re-ascending to more.

The narrative treats the why as of no importance: Lan is forced to live, yet again, except by the Wheel itself. The natural follow-up is that he will live, he will reclaim Malkier, he will grow old with Nynaeve. His crowning moment with Nynaeve at his side is presented at the end as a fait accompli, as the obvious next step in his survival.

But I cannot help finding this conclusion to his arc inordinately sad. He didn't choose life. He didn't choose Malkier. He chose Nynaeve but tragically it wasn't enough to get him to choose living: it isn't before the very end that he sees Nynaeve as more than a widow. And even then, there's a discrepancy between his thoughts and actions: he can envision a future with her, yet he doesn't make the decisions that could spare him.

One could argue that he chose future by giving the Aes Sedai a chance of success in going against Demandred, but fighting Demandred IS a senseless and desperate decision only leading to death because it's how Gawyn and Galad's fight against him is described as. Lan went in expecting to die, knowing he would deprive his people of a leader and Nynaeve of a husband and warder (just as Gawyn dying right in the middle of battle is a selfish act in regards to Egwene, Lan doing the same to Nynaeve is just as selfish). He chose death, again and again, and it was denied him. 

When I think of Lan, I cannot help going back to Verlaine's famous poem about Kaspar Hauser, here translated by Peter Low (https://www.lieder.net/lieder/get_text.html?TextId=136604)

I came, a calm orphan,

with no wealth but my peaceful eyes,

among the men of the cities:

they did not find me clever.

At age twenty a new turmoil

- it is known as amorous flames -

made me find women beautiful:

they did not find me handsome.

Though lacking a homeland or king

and not being very brave,

I wanted to go to war and die:

death didn't want me.

Was I born too early or too late?

What am I doing in this world?

Listen, all of you, I am in deep sorrow:

say a prayer for poor Gaspard.

I see little triumph in him surviving the Last Battle as he remained passive to the very end, carried by the Wheel and what it had planned for him, relentlessly pushed to seeking death and clinging whatever reason he could muster to justify to himself dying nobly (Malkier, Moiraine, the Dragon, etc...). He's fundamentally adrift long before meeting Moiraine and the journey to Merrilor did nothing to ground him.

More than the technicalities of rebuilding a nation that's been buried for 40 years, I'm fascinated by what life, a simple, quiet life with his wife and friends, would do to a man like Lan: he spent his life replacing one reason to die with another and although Nynaeve and a nation to rebuild can be a reason to live it wasn't enough before the Last Battle, which left him probably more traumatised. 

What does life look like to Lan? Is he prepared to experience it and more importantly to be an actor in it rather than an object? I'm not sure the books could have provided an answer because veteran's mental health is a delicate matter and the therapy Ajah isn't really a thing in the books but the conclusion of his arc on his surviving as a punishment almost is worth interrogating.

[tanginawrites]

The Marauders didn't stop bullying Snape after the prank. It actually got worse.

A lot of people are surprised to realize that the scene in Snape's Worst Memory happens after the werewolf prank. When first reading OOTP, people generally assumed that SWM showed escalating tension between the Marauders and Snape that up led to the prank. But in DH, we see Snape and Lily talking about the prank before SWM. This means that the Marauders are still singling Snape out and targeting him after prank. Why?

My theory is that the bullying actually got worse after the prank. Because the only way to hold their friend group together was for the Marauders to double down and rally around blaming Snape for what happened.

Think about it: How did that incident not tear them apart? Sirius not only exposed Lupin's secret – he also attempted to use Lupin as a weapon against Snape, and he could have gotten James killed in the process. That's a huge betrayal.

But Sirius isn't mature enough to take responsibility for it. Lupin isn't self-confident enough to confront Sirius about it. "James would-consider-it-the-height-of-dishonor-to-mistrust-his-friends Potter" isn't going to be the one to lay blame on Sirius or break up the group. But it's too big an issue to ignore. The only way they can get over this is to put it all on Snape. It was just a joke, and Snape is an idiot, and James is a hero.

If you compare the two incidents that the books show us of the Marauders bullying Snape, you can see that totally different dynamics are driving the bullying. This shows how and why the bullying got worse after the prank.

The first bullying incident we see is on the Hogwarts Express, when James and Sirius engage in verbal bullying of Snape, with one small attempt at tripping him up as he leaves. This bullying is a form of bonding for James and Sirius and forms the basis of their friend group. This is an example of bullying driven by Peer Group factors (source), and this sort of bullying is generally done to:

to attain or maintain social power or to elevate their status in their peer group.

to show their allegiance to and fit in with their peer group.

to exclude others from their peer group, to show who is and is not part of the group.

What we're seeing here is that the soon-to-be Marauders are in new environment and they're defining their peer group and establishing social hierarchy, trying to establish their status. The Marauders continue in this pattern of Peer Group bullying throughout their school career, as evidenced by the detention records Snape has Harry transcribe in HBP. The Marauders seem to have thrown out hexes in a scattershot way to establish superiority over other students and look cool. This casual, incidental sort of bullying is likely what Snape experienced for the first several years of school.

But what we see in SWM isn't bullying to maintain Peer Group dynamics. This bullying isn't just flinging a single insult or a clever hex. James and Sirius hunt Snape, they deprive him of his wand and ability to escape the situation, and they repeatedly hex him until Lily (temporarily) stops them. This incident is extremely personal. This is an example of bullying driven by Emotional factors, and this type of bullying is done when the bullies:

have feelings of insecurity and low self-esteem, so they bully to make themselves feel more powerful.

don’t know how to control their emotions, so they take out their feelings on other people.

may not have skills for handling social situations in healthy, positive ways.

What we're seeing here is all the fraying edges of the Marauders' friendship. Sirius has just damaged their group, but he can't apologize or address it without accepting blame, so he has to take his emotions out on Snape. Punishing Snape is a way to exorcise his guilt. And it's actually imperative that he bully Snape into silence, because he is the one who has revealed Lupin's secret to Snape and put them all in jeopardy. Lupin can't confront Sirius about the betrayal of trust, and likewise he can't confront his friends here. Not only does Lupin not have the emotional security for handling this situation, he also can't risk putting himself in front of Snape in this moment, lest Snape scream "Werewolf" instead of "Mudblood." James is here trying to work through his own insecurities – in bullying Snape he is defending his friends, but James is also trying to get Lily's attention. James offers to change his ways if she'll give him a chance, because James needs to reassure himself that he is chivalrous, that he is a hero.

Looking at the way the bullying dynamics change and escalate in those two scenes, I think it’s clear that Lupin’s line, “Snape was a special case. I mean, he never lost an opportunity to curse James so you couldn't really expect James to take that lying down,” is an understatement.

Snape was a special case because he knew Lupin’s secret, which would always make him a potential threat. The Marauders would always take any opportunity they could to reinforce that Snape was powerless to do anything to them. And they’d continue to take out all their emotions about the prank on Snape rather than confronting each other.

[theoneprecioustome]

Aigis' S-Link: Platonic & Romantic Route

P3R (finally!) introduced the option to stay just friends with the girls, and Aigis wasn't the exception. I think there's a lot to be said about the way both routes were handled, especially in regards to the rooftop scene, so I wanted to share my thoughts about it while the game is still fresh in my mind lol

First things first: No matter what route you pick, Aikoto truly are the cutest. Just look at them! Their bond is truly phenomenal regardless of how you choose to interpret it.

From what I've seen, the rooftop scene remains the same whether you romanced Aigis or not. Which is logical, because the rooftop scene has been the same since Vanilla, back when Aigis didn't even have a Social Link. It is not influenced by whether the player chose to romance Aigis or not, because it's mandated by the main story rather than by optional choices.

In other words, whether you choose to interpret it romantically or not, Makoto's bond with Aigis (and the strength of it) has never been optional.

That said, now that we have a "platonic" and a "romantic" route to compare, I feel like P3R makes it even more obvious that the rooftop scene we all know and love features an Aigis who is in love with Makoto rather than one that just sees him as a friend 😂

Beware of spoilers for the entire game and Episode Aigis - The Answer!

Let's begin chronologically. In P3R, you can avoid having to reject the girls by simply not giving them any reason to confess to you in the first place. For Aigis, this happens on Rank 8 of her social link, where we get this choice:

If the player chooses to tell Aigis that what she feels for Makoto is just friendship, Aigis will accept it and focus on becoming Makoto's best friend (more on that later, because there's a lot to be said about that, too). If the player tells Aigis that what she feels for Makoto is love, Rank 9 and 10 of her Social Link happen just like they did in FES and P3P (unless the player rejects her, of course).

What is really interesting here though is the way the Social Link Cards choose to describe Aigis' mindset in each route. During the platonic route, we get a very general description telling us that Aigis has "shared her thoughts on the significance of finite things such as life..."

Meanwhile, if you go for the romantic route, you get the following description:

"She's decided to cast her doubt aside and share her true feelings with me..."

There's no description like that in her platonic route. This is also true of the way Aigis chooses to "confess" her wish to Makoto.

In the platonic route, Aigis says: "I have to tell you my feelings..."

While in the romantic route, she says: "Even if this wish of mine is to never come true... I still want to tell you my true feelings..."

So, the game itself describes Aigis' romantic feelings as her true feelings.

With that important distinction out of the way, let's go back to their platonic route:

As you can see, it keeps the parts of Aigis' Rank 10 speech that (retroactively) tie it to the rooftop scene. The lines are just modified so they work in a platonic context. This is achieved by including the rest of SEES into the mix, and by having Aigis define herself as Makoto's "best friend".

However, aside from Aigis promising that she will always be by his side, there's no mention of Aigis wanting to protect Makoto, or of the fact that being by his side is what's most important to her. The Rank is focused on Aigis remembering Makoto and being able to carry her memories of him & SEES forever, and this is what is highlighted in its description.

Now, let's compare this with the romantic route we've always known:

And what do we see in the rooftop scene?

Aigis echoes the same sentiments she expresses during her romantic S-Link, in which she is confirmed to be in love with him. Coincidentally, it is her Romantic S-Link's description that deliberately gives focus to Aigis' promise to be by his side in his last moments, even though this promise of hers is present in both routes:

So I feel that the addition of this Platonic Route and its contrast to Aigis' usual S-Link has helped prove what most of us have been saying along: Aigis falls in love with Makoto through the course of the game, regardless of whether you do her S-Link or not 😭

It is not a coincidence that Aigis' speech to Makoto is very similar to Chidori's speech to Junpei. As I've mentioned before, the only thing missing is the "I love you", but Arena explains why Aigis refrained from saying it:

Which begs the question, what about Makoto?

Unlike in FES, P3P and especially Vanilla P3, this time the player does have a choice as to whether Makoto reciprocates Aigis' feelings or not. If the player allows Aigis to confess to Makoto during her S-Link, they can even reject her outright.

That's why Makoto's behavior during P3R's rooftop scene stands-out even more than usual. After all, while some of Vanilla/FES Makoto's reactions to Aigis' weren't reproduced in P3R, his behavior towards her in the rooftop scene remained intact.

And the rooftop scene shows him being intimately close to her in a way that he isn't shown being to anyone else in the game.

We see him laying in her lap, reaching out to wipe her tears away, smiling at her as she confesses that she wants to stay by his side. Most importantly, she is the very last thing he sees and yet he still passes away with a smile on his face, looking perfectly at peace.

When P3P gave players a choice as to who Makoto should have by his side during his last moments, this choice was described as being Makoto's "precious person". I'd argue that the way the rooftop scene is executed in P3R implies that Aigis is still meant to be that person for him, even in this new iteration of P3 where he is much closer to everyone in SEES.

Even if you choose the platonic route, the game makes sure to establish that Makoto and Aigis are supposed to be really close, to the point that she is the only one, out of the platonic social routes with the girls, that can be called his "best friend".

If you choose "that's a beautiful wish", the scene ends the same way, with Aigis thanking him and declaring them best friends. So even in the platonic route, Aigis is established as being particularly close to Makoto.

So, technically the rooftop scene could work within that context, right? Aigis is Makoto's best friend, who just so happens to realize she's actually in love with him during the fight with Nyx. It fits and doesn't stop Makoto from being in love with whoever the player chooses for him.

But... whoever the player chose to date instead of Aigis isn't there, yet Makoto doesn't look like he misses them.

Truth be told, he doesn't look like would rather be anywhere else than right there with Aigis lol

Another interesting little detail is that P3R itself tells you that whoever Makoto is dating is supposed to be his strongest bond. A bond that is "far stronger and different from the others."

So even if Aigis is his best friend in the platonic version of her S-Link, whoever Makoto has feelings for is supposed to have an even stronger bond with him than her according to this.

And that doesn't quite add up with The Answer, where Yukari acknowledges that Aigis was the one who felt the strongest about Makoto (or even the one "closest to him", if you consider this official side-story as canon).

You know what does line up with The Answer, though?

"And the bond you share will deepen even more, entwining their fate with yours..."

Aigis' is the one whose fate was inexorably tied to Makoto's, to the point that she gained his Personae (the ones that come from the sea within his soul), his Velvet Room and reached the same Answer to Life that he did.

(Granted, I'm basing all of this on The Answer as we know it. It is entirely possible that the P3R Team will rewrite it and come up with a new reason as to why Aigis gains Makoto's Persona, so that P3R SEES are all equally close to Makoto now 😂)

So personally, I'd say that just like Aigis' feelings for Makoto are the way they are regardless of player input, it's fairly easy to assume that the Makoto we see at the end of the game reciprocates her feelings regardless of player input as well 😭 But of course, this all just my opinion!

[accirax]

I think I remember you making a theory about who would die and when in Eden’s Garden. Now that the title of chapter 1 has been revealed, (and the title usually at least loosely relates to the themes/victim/culprit of the chapter), have your options on who might bite the dust this chapter changed?

Project: Eden's Garden Chapter 1 Killer/Victim Theory

Ooh, an Eden's Garden ask! It's been a while since I've gotten to talk about this game, so, thanks :D

Funnily enough, the inciting incident of this ask isn't actually real. I haven't made a full death prediction for P:EG, mostly because of how little information we have as to the characters' full personalities and, perhaps more importantly, their bonds with each other. Your memory might be a combination of my mastermind ranking (and its update), that one time I rambled about different fangan writing styles (including the logic behind a first victim), and some off-the-wall speculation about what a ch2 victim Eva might look like in another meta discussion post mostly focused on DRDT. I made some offhand comments about potential victims and killers (especially in the early game) in all of those posts, so given my history of discussing DRDT's death order, I can see how that post might have formulated in your mind. Alas, it does not actually exist.

Still, with the first chapter of P:EG coming out soon (ish), I'd be delighted to spare some speculations as to who might be on the chopping block for the first chapter, least! My usual apologies for this taking so long, but this time, I also wanted to replay the prologue since I was kind of hazy on what actually happened in it. However, this extensive writing period has given me additional time to think of what I want to say, and hopefully come up with a convincing theory as to what may happen.

(Spoilers for Trigger Happy Havoc, SDR2, and V3, as well as some very minor spoilers for SDRA2 Chapter 2. You only need to worry about them if you wanted to go into SDRA2 completely blind.)

The Title

The first step here is obviously to take a deep dive into what the title could actually mean or imply. I keep wanting to think that the title refers to death, but that phrase is "beyond the veil," not "beneath the veil." "Beneath the veil," as far as I can tell, isn't a commonly recurring phrase. Plus, it's not like saying that there's going to be a death in this chapter is anything mind blowing, nor does it help us narrow down who would die.

So, let's take a step back. "Beneath the veil" implies that somebody is hiding something, because there's a piece of fabric concealing their face, and therefore their true intentions. However, it's not necessarily a super successful concealment, because (according to a quick google search) most veils are transparent. The character(s) this title refers to may only be partially concealing their hypocrisy from the group, as opposed to being fully undercover. Notably, veils are often (in Western culture, at least) associated with weddings. The choice of the word "veil" could implicate our local Matchmaker as the beholder of the hypocrisy.

Speaking of hypocrisy, I think that's the key word in this title that can help us pin down the central characters and themes of this chapter. As defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary, hypocrisy is "a feigning to be what one is not or believe what one does not, especially the false assumption of an appearance of virtue or religion." In simpler terms, it's lying about or double-crossing something that you believe in to make it look like you have the moral high ground.

Therefore, in order for a character to fit the themes of this chapter, they have to have something they're actually hypocritical about. Take Ulysses, for example. In what way is he pretending to be better than the others around him? What core beliefs has the game shown us that he has that could be weaponized against others? I don't yet see anything compelling, and therefore, he might not be super important to this chapter.

Combining the title with the way the prologue ended, I definitely think that this first chapter is going to be about Damon's point of view being proven correct. Meanwhile, the rest of the students will secretly struggle with morality and their desire to kill while pretending that everything's cool. You know, like how most killing games start! (Other than the protag being such a downer.) It'll be interesting to presumably witness this typical group dynamic from the perspective of an outsider. Being someone who's used to tearing others' arguments apart, I wonder if Damon could be better than the average person at finding the hidden meanings and opinions behind others' words. I just think it'd be super funny if he were listening in on a breakfast conversation and it was just like--

Ingrid: Keep your chins up, everybody! If we can keep our heads on straight and trust in one another, I'm sure we'll start figurin' out how to get out of here! Damon: ("We'll start," implying that no progress has been made thus far. Combined with that if clause, Ingrid's frustrations that no one is thinking clearly and she's found no one to trust become obvious.) Eloise: Right...! It's like my dad always said: "in union, there is strength." I'm sure he'd be happy to hear that all of us are on the same page. I wish I could tell him... Damon: (Sounds like someone has been obsessing over the thought of going home.) Wolfgang: There's no need to worry, Eloise. I won't let any of the despicable killers in this academy keep us from our families. You can count on me. Damon: (Jesus Christ.)

Anyways, victims and culprits! I'll be discussing the top 5 most likely students that I can see filling each role.

The Killers

As much as I'd like to talk about the culprits second for the sake of drama, it'll be a lot easier for me to talk about potential blackeneds first. I think I've said this somewhere on this blog before, but who a victim is really depends on who the killer is. After all, the victim was only targeted because of the killer's rationale. A victim can be random, but a killer is pretty much never random. So, who could be filling our first blackened spot?

#5: Diana

Despite her placement as #5-- AKA, above 11 other students that I won't be talking about in a role as the killer at all-- I actually don't really like putting Diana here. To me, her fears and hopes for the future read as genuine. And, while a character who starts off fully sipping the hope Kool Aid can obviously come to murder in the end, for Diana, I don't think it would happen so fast. If she isn't secretly evil, I think it would take at least one murder to make her crack under pressure.

However, I can't argue that Diana has a compelling argument for the title of hypocrite. Simply put, she's the character in the prologue who seems most invested in everyone working together and being friends, without any personal power-seeking agendas. Therefore, if the veil in question is that of promoting friendship, Diana would be the most extreme example to use to prove the point that friendship in Eden's Garden Academy (at this point in time) is a fruitless endeavor.

#4: Wenona

After discussing my reasons for suspecting Diana, Wenona might come as a surprise. Does she really fit the theme? Out of all of the characters who could be hiding behind a guise of teamwork and being a good person, is she really the best fit?

Well, while I think it's likely that the main crux of the hypocrisy this chapter will be about remaining unified and trusting one another, that theme can always be interpreted in multiple ways at once. We could have characters who are hypocritically pretending to be nice while harboring ill intentions, and characters who are hypocritically pretending to be meaner than they are looking down on the nice folks while secretly being soft inside.

That's more of what I'm getting at with Wenona. If she were the blackened, I think the hypocrisy would be "pretending to be strong and better than other people while actually being just as weak as the rest of them." As the Ultimate Entrepreneur, Wenona seems to take a lot of pride in herself and her skills. She has the same sort of snobbish demeanor that Damon has when it comes to assessing the less academic of the talents recruited to Eden's Garden Academy.

Wenona is a cutthroat genius when it comes to social politics and financial practices. Even if this killing game wasn't in her initial plans, she'll obviously be able to crush it. She isn't trapped in here with Tozu; Tozu is trapped in here with her. That's what she wants everyone to think.

But, if she does become the blackened... how much of that attitude is really real? I'm imagining a scenario in which Wenona's reason for killing is less "fuck this shit I'm out" and more genuine fear for losing her life at the hands of the killing game and/or never returning to her regular life. When asked why she killed the victim, she tries to fake ruthlessness, but in the face of her execution, the clear truth is that she was just afraid of dying. Thus, Wenona would spend the majority of the daily life hypocritically sneering at the "weaker" students like Toshiko or Diana for not being tough enough to cut it in the killing game, before ultimately proving herself as the weakest link in the end.

#3: Eva

From the Prologue alone, we can already tell that Eva is a character who easily has strong enough opinions to potentially become a hypocrite. But, wait-- wouldn't her killing someone actually line up perfectly with the argument she made?

How is that hypocrisy?

Well, although Eva is certainly of the opinion that someone will kill, she acts as if she's above it herself. If it's been a while since you've seen the Prologue, that could be easy to forget. However, after she makes her initial statement that someone here will kill because they have too much to lose, she starts talking about how pretending that everything is fine will only make people more vulnerable to being killed. She directly accuses Wolfgang of doing this purposefully in order to better his own chances of succeeding as a blackened.

Most of her statements use the pronoun "you," which, whether referring to anyone in the group or Wolfgang specifically, does not include Eva herself. You, Wolfgang, are making a mistake that will lead others towards their deaths, murders that will happen by your guys' hands. Me, though...? (I'm tight as fuck!!!)

After criticizing Wolfgang so harshly, Eva would be the biggest hypocrite if she was actually the one to be the first killer. Even though Eva was doing the other students a favor by telling them the harsh truth, she did so in a way that put herself above them. She's let everyone know that she's smarter than them for immediately seeing straight through the killing game, and for not falling for Wolfgang's obvious manipulation tactics. If the rest of the students then learned that Eva played directly into the killing game's hands by becoming its first killer, I think they'd have every right to call her a hypocrite.

As for Eva and Damon, I think that making Eva the first killer could be really interesting for Damon's character. That's because, whether he'd admit to it or not, I think that Damon does align with Eva more than anyone else at this point. They were working together to promote the idea that pretending that nothing is wrong is dumb at best and harmful at worst. Damon doesn't seem like the type of protagonist who would be super vehemently against the idea of killing another student himself.

Thus, if Eva did become a killer, it would give him a startling window into what he would look like if he had decided to forsake this academy and kill. Every assertion he's internally made suddenly sounds flaky and desperate when coming out of the mouth of someone on death row. And, now that he's been betrayed by Eva too, why do some of the counterarguments the other students are making against Eva's claims sound more and more legitimate...? I think Eva's death as a killer could be the perfect wake-up call to Damon that his cold and calculating demeanor might not be as perfect of a plan as he acts like it is now.

However, much like Diana, I do think that Eva's reactions are genuine-- in this case, genuinely coming from a place of wanting to save the other students as opposed to wanting them all dead. Even if it would be compelling if Eva turned out to be some massive hypocrite, that doesn't mean that the setup for that being the case is actually there. We've seen so little of all of the characters so far that it's hard to provide textual evidence as to why I think this is the case, so unfortunately we'll just have to rely on my gut feeling. Every day I have to remind myself that it's okay to say "it's just my opinion" in the Just My Opinion essays. Sigh.

#2: Wolfgang

I feel like (as compared to something like DRDT) I have so little of a finger on the pulse of the P:EG community in terms of knowing what's popular opinion and what's not. Is Wolfgang's placement here a surprising take? Are people surprised to see that I have Wolfgang listed as a potential early killer as opposed to a final boss antag/survivor? Are people surprised that he's not #1???

Anyways. Hypocrisy. Wolfgang. It's so obvious that I feel like I don't even need to say it. I mean, I already did say it in this very post. Eva has already called Wolfgang out for hypocritically claiming to protect everyone while actually increasing the odds that someone could be taken advantage of. Wolfgang claims to be a defender of the people, but as soon as he hits the Trial Grounds, he seems to fixate on proving his viewpoint correct over all else. In the Chapter 1 demo (really mild spoilers for that, I guess), the literal last thing we leave off on is Damon calling out Wolfgang for being a hypocrite when it comes to investigating the school. Wolfgang Akire, Ultimate Laywer? Nah, I only know Wolfgang Akire, Ultimate Hypocrite.

Going back to my analysis of how early deaths work (here's the link again if you didn't read/refresh on it before but want to now), if P:EG is a project that wants to make their early deaths out of characters that are really visible, then Wolfgang is perhaps the best choice for that. The only other possible rivals he has in that regard are Damon or Eva.

Given how visible Wolfgang has been, it feels inevitable that this chapter will revolve around his hypocrisy somehow. The question is whether that would result in him dying or not. And, part of that question for me returns to what I mentioned at the beginning: how much does the fandom expect that it would result in him dying?

Make no mistake, this isn't an effort to people please by going along with what most people believe to be true. It's an effort to deduce which option would read as a more surprising and satisfying answer to a mystery posed in this mystery series. If the fandom is really caught up on the idea that "Wolfgang is P:EG's Byakuya/Nagito/Kokichi antag character, and that character MUST make it to the end after opposing the protagonist all the way through!!!", then it would work as a successful subversion to have that character die early, and leave the audience questioning who will come to fill the void in the story that Wolfgang left behind. However, if the audience has already broken free of those expectations and see Wolfgang as someone whose biases and neuroses could easily lead to him snapping early, then actually making him the first killer could turn out kinda boring.

I think I'm of the latter opinion at this point, although I could obviously just be biased in thinking that others share my opinions because my opinions are the main ones I've heard. Even if Wolfgang is a really obvious fandom's favorite edgy antag archetype, I can't deny that there's a lot of really good thematic setup in the Debater vs Lawyer department that I feel like the writers will want to reap the payoff from. It would be a shame to let whatever twisted worldview Wolfgang is cooking on "go to waste" by having him exit the story so early. But, I'm also always a fan of riffing wildly and unexpectedly off of the preconceptions of a killing game that Danganronpa fans have built up in their minds, so I would neither be too surprised nor mind at all if the writers did wind up letting Wolfgang flame out early, as long as they have a plan for what happens next prepared.

#1: Jean

Despite what I was just complaining about in Wolfgang's section, I'm almost certain that this will come as a surprise to people. Does that make me a hypocrite, too? Yay, how thematic!

Jean does not seem like the typical first killer. He's way too silly and entrenched in his theming. He's an oddball character! Accirax, weren't you literally the one who said that oddball characters don't die in Chapter 1?!

Oddballs tend not to die in Chapters 1 or 2. This is because oddball characters are generally created to supply a very niche kind of comedic relief[...] Any character deemed worthy of being included in a fangan occupies one of 16 highly contested slots. So, if you include a character for the purpose of making jokes with them, you'll want to get your bang for your buck! It’s hard to fit every joke you have in mind into only a chapter or two. The best example I could come up with for a (canon) oddball who dies early is Teruteru. In his case, the writers likely anticipated that his hyper-flirtatious nature would get tiring if it continued on for too long, and thus, exhausted all of the jokes they wanted to make in Chapter 1 before his exit. An oddball who dies this early has a limited shelf life, and is likely accompanied by other oddballs who can pick up the comedic slack.

Why, I sure did! Thank you for remembering that one niche argument in a really long post about a completely different series, imaginary person. However, that logic is why I initially wasn't suspicious of Jean either. With a bit of investigation, however, I've landed on him as my most likely choice.

Let's start with the hypocrisy. Although not necessarily the loudest voice on the subject, Jean, too, is someone who has strongly advocated for unity and friendship in the face of the killing game. It was easy for me at least to forget, but he has a bit of a leadership position in the Prologue, a bit behind Wolfgang. Even Damon can surprisingly attest to the command he can wield when he needs to.

It makes sense that, as a Ship Captain, he's all about getting people to work together under his leadership to accomplish amazing feats. Therefore, while not as obvious about it as Diana or Wolfgang, Jean would also be someone who could only commit a murder hypocritically.

Like, you can't just say this and then selfishly try to win the Class Trial to protect your own life. Well, not without speaking from beneath the veil of hypocrisy, anyways.

However, as I just admitted three sentences ago, the argument for Jean fitting the hypocrisy theme is weaker than someone like Diana or Wolfgang. So, what chose me to pick him over those two, or someone else at a similar level? Well, for that, we'll have to go over my...

Project: Eden's Garden Chapter 1 Murder Theory

HA HA! You thought we were merely conducting narrative analysis, but we're taking a look at evidence as well! It is a bold choice to try to predict who the blackened will be based on the murder committed when said murder hasn't even been committed yet, I'm aware. However, it's the choice of location that made me lean towards Jean. And, while it's no guarantee...

... I find it really likely that this will be the site of the murder. It screams murder location to me. Why the hell is there all this water on the floor if it won't be relevant in some way somewhere down the line? It's also locked in as the first area that you investigate closely. This doesn't have to mean that a murder will happen here, obviously-- none of Makoto's classroom, Hajime's beach, or Kaede's classroom become murder locations-- but it still does mean that this location will leave a lasting impact on your mind. The first time you ever get to wield the controls in this fangame is to investigate this room. And investigate it, we did.

I feel like locations that become murder relevant are often investigated in a much more specific way than ones that aren't, especially in cases where aspects of the room are critical to solving the mystery. This often includes them having CGs and/or cutscenes to illustrate the location's functions at work, and potentially be art used for a truth bullet in the future. Off the top of my head, I can remember a couple of times this happened in v3.

To use a fangan example, it also happened at least once in SDRA2.

(translation by Johnny Youngster)

The P:EG basement area was investigated to hell and back during Eva and Damon's first introductions. Like, can't you imagine this being truth bullet art?

Anyways, down in this basement that no innocent student has any good reason to visit, there's a conspicuous vent we've investigated in detail that looks over the Dining Hall, which several students are inclined to visit at various points in the day.

It has gaps in it that are wide enough to see through, and perhaps wide enough to use a weapon through. Even beyond something like a poisoned spear or the like, if you could shoot a gun through these slits, it could be enough to take someone out. Damon has very conveniently already removed one of the grates in the way, which will make it easier for the killer to do their malicious deed, and perhaps even make it easier for them to figure out that they could remove the other vent as well.

Now, it is true that Damon and Eva had to work together in order to reach this vent, which could make it difficult for the killer to utilize. However, it's obviously not impossible. If the killer were tall-- say, six feet tall, an entire half foot taller than Eva-- then it's possible they could access it on their own anyways, especially if they possessed any sort of climbing ability. The killer could also have an accomplice with which to create the same sort of setup Damon and Eva made (although, to Jean's credit, if this were the case, he'd probably be the one on the bottom -> not the one holding the weapon -> not the actual blackened). Or, they could use the cardboard boxes and duct tape that have conveniently already been identified in this room to make some stairs.

Although, that raises a problem, doesn't it? The entire floor of this room is covered in water.

A cardboard box would likely have structural issues if you put it in the water and then tried to stand on it. Maybe it could work if you put several cardboard boxes inside of each other...? Or if you just quickly used them as steps to hop up before fully leaning your weight on the generator. Regardless, we have other problems. Even if Eva has proven that the water won't electrocute you if you step in it, it's still an issue. If you step in the water with your shoes on and then try to quickly flee the scene, you'd leave wet footprints and damning damp ankle evidence behind. You could take your shoes off and roll up your pants like Damon does, but that could cost you precious time.

If only there were someone out there who was already wearing waterproof shoes...

... and maybe even a cloth or sash of some sort to wipe them off with before leaving the room.

Even Jean's character conception makes sense to me from this perspective. For your first chapter, you need a character who can be a kind and friendly leader type whose betrayal will rattle the more friendship-inclined of the group, and you need them to wear waterproof shoes. Leader plus waterproof shoes... well, that could be a ship's captain, couldn't it?

In this case, Jean's oddball nature is actually a boon to him in pretty much all manners. Despite relying so much on the gimmick of "I'm not a pirate!", Jean does seem to have a serious side to him. That duality gives him some clearly articulated character depth, even if it may not be explored much in the main plot. The striking nautical gimmick makes it harder for him to fade into the newly introduced crowd. He's quickly recognizable at a glance, making it easier for the casual viewer to remember him in the long gulf between chapters.

Speaking of being memorable, Jean is placed right in front of the tree when the characters in the Tree of Knowledge room are introduced.

He also stands there before the 0th Class Trial.

(Using this screenshot even though it's blurry just to show that these are different points in time.)

It's not as memorable of a spot as Eva, Grace, Wolfgang, or Toshiko (who go around and introduce themselves with Damon and thus get top billing), or even as Eloise and Desmond (who at least get their own room), but it's still notable. Between my own playthrough and others', I've seen people go around the circle with Ingrid first or Ulysses first, but everyone always talks to Jean right after they enter the room. The dark trunk is a great contrast against Jean's bright orange design, so he's really striking standing against the door. When I think of this room, I know exactly where Jean is, while the others are... somewhere back there. If I'm right, it's a subtle way to make sure that all players have at least some connection to Jean before he dies, and possibly even to make the first post-Trial gathering feel a little emptier with that super-highlighted spot empty.

I do want to touch on the narrative again, though, because that's more important than the murder plan that may or may not just be my own invention. I maintain that, right now, Diana or Wolfgang make more sense as someone who would illustrate the hypocrisy of pretending to be friends while actually murdering for their own purposes. However, depending on how Chapter 1 plays out, I think that Jean could be just as good as them, if not better. There's been some foreshadowing that Jean might take on a leaderly role in the group, but at the moment, it's been pretty focused on Wolfgang alone. However, if Jean starts to take on any sort of leadership position, even if it's mostly in the background or as the heart to Wolfgang's brains, I think he could work just as well as Wolfgang.

So, that's my prediction for now! The most likely blackened is Jean, with Wolfgang and Eva as backups, and Wenona and Diana as backups after them. But, in the case of any of them being the killer, who would they kill? Obviously, the answer may differ slightly depending on which of them (or someone else) it is, but I'll try to come up with a good aggregate answer.

The Victims

While my victim ideas will still be roughly ranked in order of likelihood, know that there's a lot less difference between #1 and #5 here than on the killers list. And, along that line of thinking, I'm a lot less confident in these predictions than in the killers', in the sense that I would be less surprised if the victim was none of the five characters discussed below than I would be for the killer. But, at any rate: the five most likely victims.

#5: Kai

I could definitely see some personal bias coming in to me placing Kai here. Not because I dislike Kai-- actually, he was quite possibly my favorite character coming out of the Prologue. I love a funny pathetic drama queen. I just remember, after first playing that Prologue, having the fear that Kai would turn out to be the first killer, thus eliminating my so-far favorite from the game. Obviously I've since removed him from my likely killers' catalogue, but I still can't shake the feeling that he could be an early death.

Kai is an easily recognizable and memorable character. You know who he is near-instantaneously-- take one look at him and you're already saying, "oh god, the influencer." He's really talkative, already having taken up a lot of screen time in his "arc" of being terrified by the body to being too lazy to participate in the Trial to eventually blabbering his way through it anyways. He also already has a defined dynamic with Damon. Even if I can't necessarily say that Damon would be sad to see Kai gone at this point (sorry Kaimon shippers), he'd have to have some sort of personal reaction to it. I could see him eventually recognizing something along the lines of, "it's weird to not have Kai around bothering me anymore."

It's no surprise that Kai is a popular character in the fandom, because he has all the traits to take on a role like that. However, that sort of characterization is a double edged sword. When considering the killing game as a whole, it's hard to come up with a first victim who will still be remembered and celebrated by the end of the entire saga (assuming that's what you're going for). However, despite not being a super critical character to the story*, I could see Kai continue to be featured in fanart and included in fanfiction due to his humor and pretty boy appeal long after his demise.

(*I'm not saying that Kai couldn't be a super relevant character if he survives Chapter 1, I'm just saying that, if he is the Chapter 1 victim, I don't think it would be in a Mukuro/Twogami/Rantaro Early Mystery kind of way.)

Kai is definitely one of those characters that I see in a crux position, where they're either going to be a super early game character or a super late game character. And, to be honest, despite what I've said here and what I believed after playing the Prologue, I actually now think Kai might have the legs to go long game. Although he could just be a bit of a cowardly funny guy who can't handle the circumstances and instantly drops dead (sort of like what was originally planned for Hiro in THH), Kai does seem to have a lot of... issues. While I originally thought those might just play out in his FTEs-- which is still theoretically possible-- I think the story might take more time to dive into them. There's also a clear arc before him of initially not rising to the killing game's challenge, but eventually being forced to take things seriously and give it his all.

There're also the comments that Grace made in Kai's introduction about him a dictator. From what we've seen of Kai so far, that label seems really hard to believe. If his character ever needs to rise to that dictator status, he'll probably need more time to do it.

I'm also applying some... meta knowledge here. I'm pretty sure I remember from watching some of the San Japan interviews that Kai is at least one of the writers' favorite characters, which is a bold take if he does die literally first. Also, I just learned from trying to look up what Kai and Damon's ship name is that apparently three of the staff artists ship Kaimon. Could that indicate that Kai and Damon might survive together...? I could definitely just be looking into things too much with both of these, but it's hard for me to not consider all the evidence at hand.

Anyways. Kai could really easily be taken out first, or he could have a major role to play yet. In either case, I'm sure this speculation will be fun to look back at in the future.

#4: Toshiko

Hey, maybe I can make that wedding veil thing have meaning after all.

Part of what I was considering when coming up with my list of potential victims is what sort of rationale the killer would have when choosing who to kill. Obviously, with the method I described in Jean's section, it's possible the criteria would be "whoever walks into the Dining Hall alone first," which is essentially random. However, that doesn't give me much to work with, so I tried to assume something more specific than that. However, I also didn't want to make it too specific-- like Peko targeting Mahiru in SDR2 Ch2 due to a prior conflict-- because that forces me to pin down my killer too hard, and might rely on information I simply don't have.

Instead, we're looking for a broad category, like "Sayaka wanted a manipulable man." Honestly, the "I want to kill but I don't have a specific image in mind of who" apparently doesn't happen too much in canon, but I think it's a really useful one to consider. Would the killer want to target an unpopular person so that anyone could have a motive to kill? Would the killer want to target the smartest person around so that they'll have fewer hurdles to deal with in the Class Trial? Would the killer take out the weakest and most vulnerable target because that's all they could manage, or even because they want people to believe that's all they could manage?

To go along with the hypocrisy theme, I think that the killer taking out an easy target for simplicity's sake is a very plausible option. Especially if the killer is a strong person like Jean, there's that added injustice of, "dude, you couldn't even pick on someone your own size?"

If that is the case, Toshiko is an obvious choice for someone who's small and easy to beat in a fight. (Kai follows these guidelines too, to an extent.) Other than her small size potentially making her harder to hit, I could imagine anyone being able to overpower her with relative ease. This part is more of a shot in the dark, as we haven't seen any daily life play out yet, but I wouldn't be surprised if Toshiko's notably younger age leaves her with few friends around the school. Thus, she might more often be found alone, making her easier to ambush and giving the killer more time before somebody realizes something is wrong.

Toshiko is also in the group of Eva, Grace, Wolfgang, and herself who got additional focus via conducting introductions with Damon in the Prologue. Including the first victim within that group would be a great way to give their character with the least screen time a bit more before they die off.

However, I also have my doubts that this will happen. It's just... such a bold move to kill the literal child as you're drawing first blood. Like, obviously I picked it for the hypocrisy-themed chapter because that kind of thing would make you look like a monster, but, would anybody really bite?

I also just kinda get the vibes that Toshiko is set up to be more than the first victim. While uniquely making her a child could be intentional, if the first killer is meant to look extra heartless, I don't understand where the Ultimate Matchmaker talent would have come from in that case. I guess she could matchmake or otherwise psychoanalyze people in the Chapter 1 daily life before she dies...? Maybe the killer could be worried about her figuring out how they're feeling and want to silence her. Actually, okay, that's convincing enough.

Picking Toshiko goes against my gut instincts of where Eden's Garden is headed, but I can't deny that there are sensible arguments behind Toshiko dying first as well. Or, maybe I'm just delusional. I'll leave that up to y'all's judgment at this point.

#3: Diana

Uh, kind of the same things that I just said about Toshiko, as well as my arguments for Diana being the killer. Diana also appears to be pretty weak, so it wouldn't be too hard for others to overpower and kill her. I also didn't forget that she too is a child, although she appears much more mature than Toshiko due to 1) being a high school senior as opposed to a high school freshman and 2) having an industry job rather than however Toshiko's business functions. You could still use the argument of "why would you kill someone who still has so much life left to live," although it might feel a little awkward when characters like Mark are only one year older than Diana and Toshiko is (presumably) still standing right there.

Really, though, the main reason why Diana ranks this high is because she's so darn nice. Even if people might see her as a little ditzy, I still feel that she'd have the most unilaterally "why did you choose to kill such a sweet person" response across the board. Depending on who the killer is, that choice could be hypocritical. If it's someone like Jean or Wolfgang who had been trying to convince everyone to work together and shaming those who didn't conform, eliminating someone who was happily following along with your plan could be considered hypocritical.

However, I still think that Diana is more primed to have a surprisingly deep run than a surprisingly short one. If Diana died first, then her character is "nice girl," and that's it. What about all of that weird mastermind coding?! My new theory is actually that Diana will be killed at some point because people think she's the mastermind, even though she's actually innocent. (That, or The_Humbugg is right and Diana has autism, and the mastermind coding is a galaxy brain method to ensure that viewers are wary of her for reasons that are entirely not her fault, much like how neurotypical people might instinctively find autistic people unsettling/shifty even when they aren't trying to be. I love The_Humbugg's video everyone should watch that.)

I was actually at first worried for her in Chapter 1 for that reason, until I remembered that (currently, at least) the students haven't been told that there's a mastermind among them. (Assuming there even canonically is, I might add.) Obviously, they could learn about that in Chapter 1, but at that point, just put it in the Prologue. Then the fandom could be sure in the long hiatus that speculating about a mastermind had a point, and potentially start thinking about how a killer could react to that information.

Still, Diana's extreme friendship stances make it easy for me to fit her into the hypocrisy theme in either the killer or victim position. But, if she can use her chameleon skills to fade into the background for just one chapter, I think she might have a long life ahead of her.

#2: Wolfgang

Anybody think this dude is just... flying too close to the sun?

Perhaps this placement is a remnant of the past: when my sister and I were first playing through the Prologue, we totally thought that Wolfgang gave off first victim energy. Except, funnily enough, we thought it was because he was kind of a bland, friendly character who clearly didn't have much going for him, if he was burning one of his voice lines on "Miss Madison!". We were fully taken aback when he popped off in the Prologue trial, and agreed that he wouldn't be a first victim for those reasons anymore. However, he could still die first for other reasons.

Other than Damon, it's hard to argue that any character gets more of a spotlight in the Prologue than Wolfgang. Hell, he might even beat Damon in that regard. It may just be the fandom's penchant for fawning over pale, skinny, antagonistic men, but Wolfgang certainly felt like the most after-the-fact-discussed character to me. However, it's possible that Wolfgang is being set up as a huge figure in the Prologue and Chapter 1 daily life because that's all the time he has to shine. It's possible the Prologue trial was conceptualized under the rationale that the Ultimate Lawyer should have to attend at least one Trial.

While Wolfgang isn't necessarily easy to overpower, it's easy to see how any killer would want to off him so that they don't have to face him in the Class Trial. Even if Damon did a considerable amount of heavy lifting, the majority of the Class sees it as Wolfgang's skills that got them through the Class Trial. He certainly displayed how ruthless he was willing to become against those who spat in the face of what he called justice. If I were becoming the blackened, I'd be worried about facing off against him in the Class Trial. One easy way to prevent that from happening is to cancel his attendance.

Also, while I said I didn't want to get too into the details of any killers in particular, should Jean be the blackened, things could get extra spicy. If I'm right that Jean and Wolfgang could come to lead the group together, then killing your co-leader because you're afraid he could properly bring you to justice is just extra salt in the wound.

But, now it's time for the counterarguments, naturally. Everything I said about the lost potential of having Wolfgang cap out at first killer is probably even more true if he's the first victim. The whole "lawyer versus bargain bin" thing would only actually be applicable to one Trial, even if the memory of Wolfgang's Trial prowess would probably hang over Damon's head for a while. More decisively, if the game is going for an ethos/logos/pathos thing, I have a hard time seeing who would fill the ethos shoes quite as well as Wolfgang did. I guess Damon could eventually step into that role, coming to embody all three...? However, it might be a little early to set that arc in motion.

Again, maybe it's just an inability to shake my initial assumptions, but I still have the vibe ingrained in my mind that Wolfgang will be a shockingly early death. Well, shocking to some people. Not me or Venus, though. But, I won't be shocked if he lives, either. Wolfgang will be a narratively important character, we just need to see how exactly he'll go about it.

#1: Eva

Wow, Eva gets to be the third character included who introduced themselves alongside Damon and the third repeat character from the killer's list! Unfortunately, it seems like I'm not predicting that she's going to make it even as far as the third death in this killing game. Tell me that statement's a lie...!

I think I'll actually start out with some of the counterarguments this time, because they relate to things I've said about other characters. Like Diana, I did initially call Eva to mind because I thought people would think she's suspicious, and perhaps kill her under the assumption that she's the mastermind. However, that's once again probably not going to be the case, because the students don't currently know whether there's a mastermind among them or not. Also, going back to the ethos/logos/pathos thing, I think there's a pretty decent chance that Wolfgang will be ethos, Damon will be pathos, and Eva will serve as logos. There are... probably better options for a replacement logos (including Damon just double wielding with truth and pathos bullets) than a replacement ethos, but Eva is probably still be the best fit. Given that no one trusts her (ethos) and everyone thinks an emotional argument would be a lie (pathos), all she has to convince people is the cold hard facts (logos).

Also, you can't ignore that Damon, Wolfgang, and Eva could just be a really obvious protag/antag/support trio that will all make it to Chapter 5 or whatever. I'm hoping for something a little less vanilla than that, but, hey, that's just me. It's their game and they can do whatever they want.

However... The_Humbugg comes in clutch once again! I won't fully reiterate all of their points, but basically, they bring up a lot of solid arguments about how Eva might have additional information about the prior killing game in which Cara died. Even beyond the possibility that Tozu might stack the killing game in a way that could subtly target Eva, unlike Kai, she does feel like she's being written as the Early Mystery. Also, if she's the one bringing up information about the prior killing games, it's possible another student could "connect the dots" themselves and assume she's somehow behind this one.

Beyond those more far-reaching speculative points though, I do also think that Eva being a victim would fit with the themes of hypocrisy. Specifically, the veil part. Given that the killer is (probably) "beneath the veil of hypocrisy," they aren't just hypocritical, but they're hidden beneath their hypocrisy. They might not even know that that veil is there. So, essentially, killing Eva-- the one who's been directly calling people out for their poor assumptions-- would be the killer succumbing to vice and doing anything to shut up the nagging voice that's accusing them of wrongdoing. They can't come out from under the veil of hypocrisy and confront it face-to-face, so they wind up only furthering their hypocrisy in an attempt to hide from it.

Eva is also in the top three most highlighted characters of the Prologue, between introducing herself alongside Damon (bonus points for meeting Damon first and in special circumstances) and her little speech at the end of the Class Trial. Even more than Wolfgang, to me, her heightened involvement in the Prologue feels like an inclusion to get her more content before an early death, rather than setting up a major character with other relationships and plot threads down the road. That's just my gut instinct, though.

Final Thoughts

And with that, Eva's section is over. I do want to make quick mention of Cassidy, though, because I know a lot of people think that she'll be the first victim. I think it's because of where and how much she's appeared in promotional material...? To be honest, I don't really see it, but I probably would have listed her sixth for lack of other ideas. She is another character whose jokes made her very memorable after only one chapter, and I could see her getting on someone's nerves enough for them to choose to strike back against her. Again, won't be super surprised if it is her-- because, to reiterate, I don't have incredibly strong feelings about who the victim will be-- but I didn't have much of my own to add for Cassidy speculation.

Well, you askers have done it again (/pos). You got me to ramble for way too long about Fangan Possibilities. It's fine; I think that geeking out over various fangan theory essays is important for my account and my personal ecosystem. Perhaps next time, I'll have a bit more evidence to look over if the first chapter is out by then. Or, maybe I'll have a thought of my own after rewatching/replaying the prologue again, or somebody will send me another ask that I take WAY too long to respond to.

Thank you again for the ask and your patience, @thefandomenchantress! I hope you and everyone else enjoyed. Until next time!

[your-local-simp-writers]

Unbreakable Bonds

Word Count: 642

Warnings: None

Miles Morales x Fem! Reader ︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶

The sun was beginning to set over the city, casting a warm golden glow on the streets below. Miles and you had spent countless evenings like this, exploring the neighborhood they had grown up in. They were inseparable, their friendship forged in the fires of childhood mischief and shared dreams. They had witnessed each other's triumphs and supported each other through challenges, forming an unbreakable bond that would stand the test of time.

As they walked along the familiar streets, Miles couldn't help but feel a sense of comfort in your presence. She had always been the goofy and sweet one, with a contagious laughter that could brighten even the darkest days. Miles admired her ability to find joy in the simplest things, and he cherished every moment they spent together.

"Remember that time we built that makeshift rocket out of cardboard boxes?" Miles chuckled, reminiscing about one of their many adventures.

You grinned, her eyes sparkling with nostalgia. "How could I forget? We spent hours trying to make it fly, only to crash land right into Mrs. Johnson's rose garden!"

They both burst into laughter, their shared memories washing over them like a warm wave. It was moments like these that made their friendship so special.

As they continued their walk, they passed by a small park, the sound of children's laughter filling the air. Miles noticed a familiar twinkle in your eyes.

"Do you remember when we used to come to this park every summer?" she asked, her voice filled with a mix of longing and fondness.

Miles nodded, a smile tugging at his lips. "Yeah, we'd spend the whole day here, swinging on the swings, climbing the jungle gym, and getting ice cream from that old truck."

The memories flooded back, and for a moment, it felt as if time stood still. They could almost hear the echoes of their laughter and feel the warmth of the summer sun on their faces.

As the night grew darker, they found themselves sitting on a bench overlooking the city skyline. The lights twinkled like stars, illuminating their faces with a soft glow.

"You know," Miles began, his voice filled with a mix of vulnerability and sincerity, "I'm really grateful to have you in my life, (Y/N). We've been through so much together, and even when we're apart, it feels like you're always with me."

You turned to him, her eyes glistening with unspoken emotions. "I feel the same way, Miles. It's like no matter where we go or what we do, our bond remains unbreakable."

They sat in silence for a moment, their hearts speaking volumes that words couldn't express. In that stillness, they knew they shared something special, something that went beyond friendship.

Suddenly, Miles reached out and gently took your hand in his own, intertwining their fingers. The touch sent a jolt of electricity through both of them, as if the universe was aligning their paths.

Without a word, they leaned in, their lips meeting in a tender kiss. It was a moment filled with the weight of unspoken feelings and the promise of something more.

As they pulled away, their gazes locked, they knew that their friendship had transformed into something deeper. It was a connection that couldn't be easily defined, but they were both willing to explore it, one step at a time.

"I think I've always known," Miles whispered, his voice barely audible but filled with certainty.

You smiled, her eyes reflecting the love and affection she held for him. "Me too, Miles. Our bond has always been something extraordinary."

In that quiet moment, as the world continued to spin around them, they knew that no matter what challenges lay ahead, they would face them together. Their friendship had blossomed into a love that was as unbreakable as the bond they had shared since childhood.

[ananke-xiii]

“Regarding Dean” is an okay episode, the perfect episode to place between “Lily Sunder has Some Regrets” and “Stuck in the Middle with You”. It feels filler-y but it’s totally not because it shows us where Sam and Dean stand as far as s12 main themes are concerned: family&love.

To the surprise of probably nobody, we find out that Sam is struggling a lot when it comes to how he positions himself within his family and around the people he loves. Dean, on the other hand, is walking on a much safer ground (which seems like a joke since the ep is literally about Dean slowly losing his memory but I’ll get there), he’s ready to move on to the next chapter of his life, a chapter where his relationship with his brother is not his only&main focus.

Who are the other members of Sam and Dean’s family? This episode tells us it’s Mary and Cas. Even though, so far in the season, Mary has come and gone, Cas has spent a considerable amount of time with none other than Crowley and the brothers have spent a couple of months in prison, the episode explicitly highlights multiple times that Mary and Cas are their family, no matter the amount of time they all actually spend together: what matters is the infamous bond between them.

And who’s feeding this bond? Who’s actually keeping in touch with Mary and Cas? Who’s the primary point of contact? Dean, of course. At the beginning of the episode, when Sam meets Dean at the waffle joint and realizes Dean is maybe drunk and his smartphone is dead, he says: “All right, well, I'll text Mom, make sure she knows to get a hold of me in case of emergency. And Cas, in case he tracks down Kelly”.

So it’s safe to say (and it is because we’ve already seen in past episodes that Sam is definitely not the one playing games and texting with Mary, nor the one calling Cas or receiving calls from him: people in this family know who to contact and it’s not Sam) that Sam is somehow detached from this family dynamic and, we’ll later discover, doesn’t really know what to make of this.

After Sam discovers that Dean is not hangover but hexed, the first thing Dean says is: “Look, we could figure this out, okay? Don't go callin' Mom or Cas with this”. Mmmm, interesting. We’re back to Mary and Cas. Again. And why shouldn’t Sam call them? And, maybe more importantly, why Sam doesn’t call them anyway? So maaany questions :P

The last time Mary and Cas are mentioned together again is in the mirror scene. Dean is regarding himself in the bathroom mirror, trying to remember who he is and he defines himself as follows: “Ahh. Okay. My name is Dean Winchester. Sam is my brother. Uh, Mary Winchester is my mom. And Cast—Cas is my best friend”. So Dean defines himself based on his relationship with the different family members: brother, son, best friend. Once he starts forgetting who these people are he also starts forgetting himself:

“My name is Dean Wi—Winchester.

My name—My name is...

My... My... I don’t know”.

This is crucial. The scene is quite tragic but it’s telling us an important truth: what matters to Dean, what’s important to him to the point that it defines who he is, is his relationship with his family, with the people he loves. I said that it’s quite tragic because, at least to me, it’s a bit bleak that Dean doesn’t know who he is without other people. But I’ll come back to this point later.

So who is Dean? The reply comes right after the mirror scene from Rowena’s mouth: “Oh, you're a killer, Dean Winchester”. And this is super interesting because  just before we had this dialogue:

Rowena: You can really remember nothing, can you? What a gift not to recall the things you've done.

Dean: What have I done?

Are people the things they have done? Rowena could’ve said “You kill people, Dean” but no, she says “You are a killer”. And okay, the use of the verb “to kill” can start a debate on morals&justice&law (what’s the difference between killing and being a killer etc) but not the point here. The point here being that Rowena, regarding Dean, is confusing being and doing but Dean is not. He replies: “Wait, I... I kill people?”.

Rowena continues in her “misunderstanding”:

Rowena: But... but... though you may be a stubborn pain in the arse with the manners of a Neanderthal and the dining habits of a toddler, everything you've done, you've done... for the greater good.

Dean: Oh, and that's supposed to make it okay?

Rowena: I wouldn't know. You help those other than yourself. But me, I've done horrible things, and I told myself it was fine. It was the price of power. And power's what matters, right?

Then I met God and his sister. The two most powerful beings in the universe, wasting it on squabbling with each other. I thought, if—if they can't be happy, or at least satisfied, how can there be any hope for me?

Okay, so now we maybe have a clearer picture of who Dean is: he’s a killer (or he kills people) but he does so for the greater good. To help people other than himself. This is not exactly news to us, I mean, this episode is not telling us anything actually NEW about Dean but the catch is that it’s not about him, it’s about regarding him. How people perceive him and how he perceives himself. The last being the most important thing, we’ll have the answer at the end of the episode.

Rowena also drops the “happy” bomb. She’s talking based on the assumption that she must do things in order to be happy, even if these are horrible things, things she tells herself she's fine doing them because it’s the price of power. We’re starting to see the old theme of the “price of happiness” and Rowena thinks she’s paid it but she’s still unhappy and she’s becoming hopeless.

(Cas' love declaration in s15x18 echoes Rowena's dialogue, apart from the Dean thing (you're not a killer aka you're not how your enemies regard you, you're the most caring man aka you're how the people that love you regard you etc), Cas' words circle around the same concept: happiness is not in the having, is in the being or, maybe even more importantly, is in the giving oneself permission to be your true self)

Now we need to talk about Sam. While Dean is having an existential crisis in the bathroom, Sam drops another fucking bomb: “You know, I've seen my brother die, but watching him become... not him... This might actually be worse”.

Excuse me, sir? I mean, this is a very very loaded thing to say. To Sam Winchester seeing his brother dying might be better than watching him become not him. Which is also incorrect, because Dean is not not becoming him, he’s just Dean without "the weight" of the past on his shoulders. (btw, will somebody please give a hug to this giant man who's lived a life where death is o-kay and what's worse is living and not knowing how to move on? Please??? He needs it!) I think this says more about how Sam feels about himself than about how he feels about Dean and his relationship with his brother. And I think I’m right because at the end of the episode Sam explicitly says he was jealous. Sam really should be the one regarding himself in the mirror (and it’s a fucking shame that we didn’t get something like this for Sam because god, it’d be bomb) trying to remember who he is because Dean might be losing his memories but Sam is totally lost and in the dark.

He doesn’t call Mary or Cas because ??? but he does call Rowena for help, Rowena magically teleports and immediately arrives (okay she has an agenda but she does come super quickly, let’s give her that), she agrees to help them and to all of that Sam says: “I obviously don’t trust you”. Which, to be honest, fair, Sam I approve your long-lasting distrust of everything that has to do with Crowley because you have real reasons to do so. But it’s also time for you to learn to create meaningful connections and you cannot do so if you’re not willing to trust people. (important: Rowena tries to steal the Black Grimoire in this ep, the same book that she’ll try to steal in s13. Sam will then give her the one page she needs for her spell, so, you know, way to go Sam! It takes him one whole season to trust Rowena with one only page of the book but, progress).

Okay, time to wrap this rambling up with the final scene. We have this dialogue right here and it’s so gooood:

Sam: So how you holding up after the spell?

Dean: That thing kicked my ass.

Sam: You know, I gotta be honest. I was actually, uh, a little jealous at first.

Dean: Of what? The curse that nearly killed me?

Sam: No, just, you know... some of the things we've done, we've had this weight for... forever. And seeing it gone, uh, you looked happy.

Dean: Huh. Well, look, was it nice to drop our baggage? Yeah, maybe. Hell, probably. But it wasn't just the crap that got lost. I mean, it was everything. It was us, it was what we do, you know? All of it. So... that's what being happy looks like? I think I'll pass.

Sam and Rowena were a little jealous at first. Because Dean showed them life without the weight of the things they carry, the things they’ve done. Dean looked HAPPY. We can infer that Sam and Rowena are not happy, they do feel the weight of the things they’ve done and they would like OUT. They still have a long walk ahead of them to discover who they are apart from what they do and decide what’s next, what they decide to do, who they want to be and what are the actions that can lead them there.

But Dean, Dean is almost there, people. He’s not lost at all, even though he was the one with the brain almost gone. “It was us” and “it was what we do”. The distinction for him it’s clear. And he has weighted the pros and the cons and he has decided that IF that's what happiness is, if happiness is just forgetting about the crap, forgetting about the past, he will pass. He’s not willing to pay the price for a happiness where he doesn’t have a connection with his family, where the people he cares about (and for whom he does very bad things) are not there. The price for the supposed happiness is not worth Sam, Mary and Cas.

Earlier I said that I thought it was bleak, you know, not knowing yourself apart from other people. But the last scene where Dean is riding Larry (and he’s not yet under the spell so he’s Dean-Dean there) gives a lot of unexpected hope.

The song in the background is nostalgic and, frankly sad:

“So dream on, little Broomstick Cowboy

Dream while you can

For soon, you'll be a dreadful thing

My son, you'll be a man”

But it’s appropriate. Dean has accepted that, for him, caring for the people he loves is what constitutes his happiness. He has accepted that “horrible things” have been done and maybe will be done in their names. Acceptance is key: he’s on the right path to discover new parts of himself. He doesn't want to lose "the crap" because losing it means he'll also lose the people he cares about. And without the these people, without Sam, Mary and Cas, he doesn't yet know who he is. But he wants to find out. He wants to move on. And he wants to move on with the people he loves, doing "the good and the bad", not alone, oblivious and fake-happy. It’s bittersweet as all changes are but it must be done. He’s ready to grow up, ready to be a man, ready for love, ready to start a family, guys :").

(unfortunately it'll all go to pieces when Cas dies and Mary disappears in the AU (OF COURSE Dean will lose his will to live after that, because he was still in the process of differantiating himself from others, but he was SO there ffs) so thanks for nothing s12)(s14 "Lebanon" thankfully comes back to this theme and there Dean finally says, again and out loud for the people in the back, that he's okay with the choices he's made because they resulted in this crazy-ass, totally weirdo, supernatural family and he loves it and he's good with that. PERIOD)

[cloudsspoke]

La Scaloneta is a...

It’s clear that both fans and players share the same sentiments toward La Scaloneta. “ An incredible group that was put together. When you are at the club sometimes you say, how long is it until you go to the national team? You are happy to be there ”, this is how Paredes defined the squad.

- The 'infamous' Players' Group Whatsapp

Paredes is the one who was in charge of creating the group chat. “ We were following the World Cup group drawing through Whatsapp. No, it’s not called La Scaloneta. The coach doesn’t like the nickname, sometimes we tell him jokingly. We left it (the Whatsapp group chat's name) at ‘Copa America’ because it was created when we play for Copa America ”

(Lautaro and Cuti confessed that a day after the World Cup Final, Paredes renamed the group chat from 'Copa America Champion' to ‘World Cup Champion’).

Another story Paredes told about the group chat was, “ We always talk. Every time one of us has to play we try to watch and talk after the game. There are many times that we have to play at the same time and we can’t, but we always try to look at each other ”

- A lot of times they have to become rival for 90mins, but let's pray for this squad to remain as a "Brother" for a very long time 🤞

- The way they take care of each other

Paredes took a trip down memory lane to the first moment he and De Paul broke the ice with Messi. He said, “ It was during an afternoon when we still had 2 hours before training and didn’t know what to do. And Rodri said, ‘That’s it, let’s grab the cards, mate, and knock on Leo’s door’. The idea is that simple; to play truco, drink mate, listen to some music, and hope he would receive us in the best way. We were lucky he opened the door to his room for us and everything has worked well since that moment "

De Paul on Messi: Having him, everything is easier. On a club level, I only had contact with him once, at Valencia vs Barcelona. Apart from that, I didn’t know him. Given everything he lives through he could be a reserved character, so he surprised me (as it turns out) he enjoys having a mate, listening to a song, and playing truco. We do warm-up games, and I say: ‘Leo, I’ll take you on!’, he loves that. That humanizes him. You can see him like he's from another dimension, but he’s just a person.

Furthermore, De Paul describes his role in the National Team as a ‘spare tire’. I have no problem putting it like that. And I’ll do anything to wear this jersey. With my role, we can cover Paredes and help Messi, everything comes in its own time whether it’s to help Messi to attack, or hold back to cover Paredes. You compliment them.

Messi's praise of De Paul

Between players, it has been well-known that the secret to make Leo (Messi) happy is by treating him normally. However, Cristian Romero said in reality it worked the other way around.

Cuti: Since I joined the National team, Leo always treats me like I am one of them, he made me see how simple it is beyond everything he has won in his career. 

"Rodrigo De Paul desde el primer día lo protegió, lo abrazó y lo apadrinó." - Molina's father told the story about how De Paul took care of his son when Molina first time played abroad for Udinese

Molina: I was at my house when Rodri with Correa were the first ones to call me and said ‘Congratulations! You deserve it! I hope you don’t flatter yourself (note: in a joking manner)’. I didn’t understand it until they told me that I had been summoned by the National Team.

Paredes to De Paul: How well we raised these 3 (Cuti-Licha-Moli)

Meanwhile, long before acting as Molina’s ‘godparent’, Rodri was the ‘little brother’ of Ota back when the 2 of them played for Valencia (and they’ve been a roommate since Brazil's 2019 Copa America). Take a look back at their Instagram, there are so many photos of them together both on-off pitch, even after Ota moved to Manchester, the friendship still continued.

- Players' bonding time with Asado

Love how the young ones 'take advantage' by making the elder do the cooking

- Their attention to the injured ones

Players' support for Gio; before, during, and after his comeback from injury

Mac Allister about Garnacho: I'm sure Licha is working on it (persuading Garna to join Argentina) right now

Licha: I'm taking him with me to Argentina

It’s like a cycle of them taking care of each other, one another 💕 Just like how Ota took care of Rodri and Rodri took care of Molina in return. Gio’s presence helped Cuti to adapt when they were both in Tottenham even for a little while. Tagliafico helped Licha while both played for Ajax. Leo welcomed Paredes in the NT and later Paredes (together with Di Maria & Ney) helped Leo adjust to a new life in Paris, and now it’s Licha’s turn to be ‘the old brother’ of Garnacho.

Meanwhile, so many people against Garnacho join the Argentine side, mostly because they are afraid this kid’s personality will ruin the ‘harmony’ within players and all those bullshit talk about him idolizing Ronaldo. Well, in my opinion, I am 100% sure that the second Garnacho misbehaves (if ever), Licha will be the first to reprimand him. For real though, I don’t think there will be bad individuals inside this NT as long as there are players like De Paul, Paredes, and Dibu.

And yes, like Kun said, wish that the more Garnacho spends time seeing Messi play, the faster he will realize who the real GOAT is,

although imo it’s not a crime to choose CR7 over Messi? if Messi can be best friends with Neymar and Suarez (both are Argies’ rivals), then why can’t Garna choose CR7 over Messi? It's only a matter of preference (not loyalty), anyway.

Meanwhile, Haters had a field day over Garnacho's injury news. Too bad we can't see Licha really taking Garna to Argentina.

- The 'dont-touch-Leo-or-I-will-kill-you' movement:

Throwback to Kun's reaction seeing the UCL drawing when PSG, Juventus, and Benfica were in the same group.

Meanwhile… Di Maria (& Messi himself) be like.. 😂

- Different interviews were conducted at different times, but these players shared the same stories about the squad

To quote Paredes: none of them makes a bad face if they have to be corrected, while Dibu said: ‘Acá nadie pone mala cara’

Dibu: One fell and the other ten help him to get up Licha: If they touch one (of us), we all go (to defend him)

De Paul said ‘Everyone knows what they’re expected to do’, similar to Paredes’ statement ‘Each one knows what they have to contribute’

Throwback to September 2019 during the match against Mexico. Argentina got a chance to score a goal via a penalty kick after Lautaro’s shot touched the hand of Mexico player. It’s understandable for Lau to think that he should be the player in charge of the pen kick since he already scored a brace and aimed for a hattrick. But somehow after Lau took the ball from Ochoa, Paredes demanded the ball from Lau and kicked the penalty himself. Paredes eventually scored & celebrated the goal with Lau, and 6 mins later Lautaro succesfully scored a hattrick. After the game, Lau posted a photo of him and Paredes with a playful caption to quickly shut down any rumor about an ‘altercation’ between him and Paredes during the penalty kick.

As for now, for me, it is ironic how people assume bringing Garnacho to the Scaloni squad can bring ‘dressing room drama’. No, it’s not. It’s the fans' ‘toxic’ culture that could destroy this family. The way people start to compete players against each other or criticize players’ World Cup performance while disregarding their roles in the previous tournaments. Yeah, everyone has their own opinion, but acting like they have the right to decide who should join the NT or play as a starter is truly ridiculous.

Paredes was one of the ‘undisputed starters’ on Scaloni’s squad but quickly lost his place after the loss against Saudi Arabia. He accepted his role as a substitute player and helped his teammates from the bench. “ I didn’t arrive in the best physical way and I was aware by not being 100% gonna cost me a lot. The group was above everything and luckily the great teammates (Enzo & Mac Allister) appeared as they played enormously well. I was surprised and very proud of them. ”

Dybala interview with Marca: I needed some time after my injury and I was not yet in the best condition. I wanted to support, be positive with the best energies, and never put an angry or frustrated face for not being played. I made the team feel like they could count on me. And so it was, I felt better and Scaloni trusted me in one of the most important moments.

Lautaro interview with espnargentina: I have discomfort with my swollen ankle and I had to play with painkillers. It’s not the World Cup that I expected (because the injury made him underperform), but Juli’s arrival made me very happy. He’d give the team what I couldn’t give.

I’ve seen many people questioning why then Scaloni didn’t choose a 100% fit player if he knew Dybala, Lautaro and Paredes weren’t 100% fit. The audacity for these people to think like that, because despite their injuries, during the crucial moments, all the 3 of them stepped up and executed their roles perfectly.

What's next?

Scaloni's interview on March 21st: I thanked the players again for winning the title, now it’s time to celebrate but this goes on. And it’s going to cost us more than ever because they are going to want to beat us much more. We need a lot more energy from everyone because everything will be more difficult.

In regards to the national team:

“A new process begins. Those who are world champions don’t have an advantage. The most important thing is that the players don't feel like the owners of the National Team and that the coach is always watching. There are also kids who are going to grow and play at a high level and fight for a place (in the NT)."

Say, we, supporters, love this team. We'd love to see Messi to win more trophies alongside these Muchachos. The closest is that we aim for a Copa America back-to-back champion. This time it will be 10x more difficult because other countries will proly want to beat Argentina just out of spite, just for them to be able to say "WE BEAT THE WORLD CHAMPION, WHERE IS MESSI? WE POCKET HIM, etc etc", like Scaloni said, this squad needs a lot more energy from everyone, and imo that includes US, the supporters.

Why? As I said earlier, fans' toxic culture could destroy this team from outside. What supporters don't easily grasp is the fact that Scaloni can easily kick any players out once they don't perform well and there's better replacement. This fact, the players are fully aware as they said in numerous interviews "In this squad, there's only 1 player who's irreplaceable. Other than Messi, we always have to fight for 1 spot". Specifically, De Paul said this, "I'll do anything to be able to wear this jersey, but if one day I don't play, it's because there are others who play better than me.",

Well, I think it's safe for us (supporters) to love all players equally and love them based on their performance on the pitch. That way if Scaloni decides to drop them from the future squad list we won't be so upset or displeased with that decision because we know that it's because there are other players who (according to Scaloni's better judgment) play better than our faves. If the players can accept the consequences with big hearts (like Lau, Dybala, and Paredes) then supporters need to learn to be respectful toward Scaloni and just pray for the best.

⭐⭐⭐

📌 Bonus gifs+pics

Lovely place, with good feelings, and a happy squad. The return of the KINGS 👑

Because Tumblr can only have up to 30 images in a post, I can't say anything more about this squad, but if you enjoy reading this post you can also click here to similar posts I have already made:

(1) Little Things I love from La Scaloneta

(2) Hilarious & Heartwarming stories about La Scaloneta

(3) Crackhead Muchachos

(4) Full thread about AFA's Tournament de Truco

(5) Full thread about Players' room arrangement (¿Quién duerme con quién?) + more gifs about Messi and the gang

🇦🇷🏆

[thelunarfairy]

Holiii, For a long time I have thought that JSHK's ending tells us or makes a metaphor for the end of the story.

So I decided to do a quick analysis of what the ending can tell us :)

First we see Nene walking and how she leaves her friends behind and how the further she goes things get worse, as if something bad was going to happen, because even though they are on the surface they are not safe.

In the next scene we see Tsukasa and Hanako walking towards where the other is, they get together and there is something bad, a problem, a catastrophe, as if in the place where they are both everything goes wrong.

Then there is the scene where Kou encounters Mitsuba but he disappears, while Kou remains on the surface and continues moving forward, which from my perception tells me that he will move forward with his life and will only be left with the memory of Mitsuba.

Then Nene is left alone and begins to join Hanakp, going deeper into the other side, giving what seems like a kiss with Hanako.

But they begin to sink and get deeper into this.

Nene transforms into a fish and leaves Hanako's hands, watching as Nene gradually moves away from him.

He takes it again to get it out of there, wanting to take it to the surface.

But it doesn't reach the surface, Hanako can no longer do anything but watch as she sinks deeper to the bottom.

Nene reaches the sky, he cries and there is a sun, but neither Hanako nor Nene are present.

What I understand is that Hanako made a new attempt to save Nene, but again it doesn't go well, he sees that Nene is in danger and tries to get her out of where she is with him, but she dies anyway, which will be a hard blow for him, that's why he sinks or maybe he sacrificed himself for the good of Nene's soul but that means he will cease to exist.

Another theory I have (that you already know) is that Nene will sacrifice herself for Hanako or to reverse the catastrophe that is happening.

There is a lot of symbolism in the ending, I would like you to give me your vision of what the ending can say :)

In fact there is a video in Spanish explaining certain ending things.

Is called: Teoria sobre la muerte de Yashiro nene, It's on YouTube and it's from the user Me No.

It seems to have a direct relationship with the day of separation.

Right at the beginning we see the sun and moon completing each other, then they are covered by clouds that rain in reverse, yes, the raindrops go up instead of going down. This could mean the return of time, or travel from it.

The near bank and the far bank, they oscillate at certain times, keeping this in mind, let's define that the light part is the near bank, life, and the red part is the far bank, death.

Yashiro is the only one who has a white reflection on the red part, representing that she will die soon. When the banks waver and the light part becomes dark, we see Nene being represented by a fish, showing the bond she created with Hanako and that she becomes a type of supernatural.

Following that, we have the twins part. Both are being represented in life, but for some reason, the margins are backwards, the light part is at the bottom and the red part is at the top. Perhaps this could mean the distant past (a hypothesis)

Or, a situation where both were alive but were already supernatural. The union of the twins results in a kind of large hitodama, as if the four were united, at the same time as two flowers (?) bloom on each side. They are also shaped very similar to a heart, so it is open to interpretation.

The moment this happens, the margins change again. We have the red part and the black part, inverted compared to Nene's.

Perhaps the flowers represent the twins and the hitodama the creature that is linked to them both. Assuming the two come together when the seal is removed, not just Tsukasa's but Hanako's as well, something could happen. And it doesn't look good. Both going in opposite directions.

We see Kou meeting Mitsuba, who after death becomes a camera that follows Kou, it's self-explanatory.

Then, we have Nene crossing to the far bank, where Hanako is.

This is where the key is.

The moment of the kiss

Nene went to the far shore to find Hanako and save Aoi. When the two reunite, they kiss. Just like what happened to them at the end.

Then Nene becomes a fish and Hanako throws her away, then sinks.

At this moment we can see a representation of previous events. There are two birds and two fish, they change positions simultaneously between the banks, which could mean the exchange of Aoi's life for Nene's.

Hanako pushes Yashiro away, throwing her into the clear part, part of life, it could represent the moment in which he saves Nene's life, leaves and closes the gates of the supernatural world.

We see Nene crying in the clouds, far from the banks, the drops fall normally, at the right time.

It suggests that it refers to the moment when Hanako tries to sacrifice Aoi and moves away from Nene, closing all the gates (most) to the distant bank. She cries about being away from him and her friend.

The only thing that is out of order is the kiss, considering that the ending scene is a kiss, if it is a hug, it fits perfectly, as they say goodbye with a hug before Hanako disappears.

If it's a kiss, it could just be the anticipation of the moment of reunion.

The order of events is not precise, so this opens up possibilities for discussions

[aetherialpiplup108]

How the Alchemy of Souls Season 1 Ending Perfectly Demonstrates Yeong's Guilt, Uk's Persistence, and the Beauty of their Bond

I should hate the ending of Alchemy of Souls season 1. Jin Mu's random contrived bells showing up and being used as a pivotal series-defining plot-point in the same episode drives me just as insane as it did Mu-deok. And it kills me to watch two characters who are defined by their ability to challenge the world and resist fate succumb to its pressures (note: I don't think this is a flaw in the series since it's simply a fraction of the overarching theme the story is trying to convey but boy did it hurt). I should have been so massively disappointed and yet the climax itself runs rent-free in my head a full year after I saw it for the first time.

First of all, we finally get sword-fighting Yeong again and in the absolute worst way possible. It creates this wonderful cognitive dissonance in your head where you're simultaneously crying in angst while cheering on Jung So-min as she puts on the performance we've been longing for the entire show.

Next, there's the behemoth stabbing scene itself. When Mu-deok regains consciousness in Uk's arms, there's a brief look of confusion in her eyes likely due to the gaps in her memory, the heaving of his voice, the desperate way his arms are wrapped around her, or maybe even the blood seeping between them. But the first thing she says even before processing everything is: "Jang Uk? ...Did I do this?"

Despite embracing the ruthless assassin lifestyle (a hard path she undertook due to the love she felt for her family and the immense grief felt in their loss), Yeong does care about other people. We know this through the way she slyly sneaks in affection towards Uk, helps Yul heal and let go of the guilt he's held onto since running into her as children, and offers Go-won an esoteric companionship they both come to value greatly. In season 2, through amnesiac!Yeong, we're given an even clearer glimpse at her intrinsic compassion through the unhidden empathy she shows to practically everyone she meets.

But the real Cho-Yeong spent years of isolation in Danhyanggok's cruel winters training, breathing, and living for revenge. Knowing only how to kill and draw blood, of course Yeong believed she'd end up hurting anyone stupid enough to come too close. It's why her first instinct is to shear off every potential bond she could make: to protect herself from any more loss and to protect others from her. When it became impossible to deny the love she and Uk shared, Yeong chose to wield it callously to avoid getting attached, to remind him and her that she wasn't round-faced Mu-deok who was free to earn and give affection. She was Naksu. Undeserving, dangerous, poisonous Naksu. We see this thought process and self-denial make a reoccurrence in season 2 when Yeong immediately distances herself from Uk the second she gets her memories back, even if it agonizes her, because she can't bear to hurt him again.

Rather than assigning blame to Jin Mu, she takes her sword through Uk's chest as mere confirmation of what she always believed: how could the ruthless shadow assassin that lives off revenge be allowed to love and be loved?

Yeong's guilt is especially ironic when paired with Jang Uk having no doubt in his mind that she's innocent. He gets stabbed and just pulls her close before he's even able to process what's going on because they'd been there before at Jeojingak when he had her hold a sword to his neck.

Jang Uk is the first and only person, really, to hold complete confidence not in Yeong's prowess as a mage but in her character and ability to care. And it means more because as her pupil, he's the person (aside from herself) that Yeong's been the harshest with. She continually put his life in danger whether through poison or overtraining or by inciting death matches, and hurts him again and again with words and actions (gambling the jade egg) meant to prod right at his insecurities. Yeong had thought this would be enough to keep him at bay, to force him into a transactional relationship where she wasn't afraid he'd run away too soon and yet wouldn't let herself build up hope that he'd actually stay when the terms of their initial agreement were met.

Except.

Uk had already seen glimpses of that lonely girl Yeong buried inside and actually tried to understand her, failing at times but doing his best to make sense of the way she thinks without judgement. In the process, he realized just how much Yeong values the people she loves, how much she wants to protect those who've shown her even the ounce of kindness she doesn't think she deserves. That's how he knows, instinctively, that she couldn't have stabbed him. It's how he knows she wouldn't even fight Dang-gu (although, I'm not sure if he was aware that she killed Cho-yeon's father before arriving in the forest). Because how could someone who's so grateful for the love they deem themselves undeserving of cast it aside so easily?

And finally, because somewhere along the way this post devolved from a loosely structured rant over one scene to a frantic gush over these two ridiculously endearing characters, the beauty of the climax is shown in the way Uk just watches helplessly as Yeong struggles and breaks down in a way so uncharacteristic of the stoic, emotion-swallowing woman who could only say "I like you" under copious amounts of alcohol. It's so unbelievably soft (idk, maybe I'm just a lunatic) when he slowly searches for her hand, using the last pieces of his strength and then some to lace their wounded fingers together, somehow managing to use his entire blood-soaked body in the last 2 minutes to show her that she has his entire heart, whether she deserved it or not, and there wasn't anything she could do that would make him leave.

of course, these are just my interpretations of the characters. Maybe I'm completely off or reading way too much into it.

tl;dr: I have a lot of criticism for certain aspects of Alchemy of Souls, but the relationship Jang Uk and Cho Yeong share is so powerful. Though tragic and shockingly reliant on plot-convenience, the finale of season 1 depicts their relationship beautifully by illustrating the depth of their trust and reliance on the other. Also, UkYeong has rooted itself thoroughly in my head. I've never been so invested in a ship, someone send help!!!!!

[bnhaobservation]

BNHA Observations, speculations and assorted info: Todoroki Mansion (Part 8: Butsuma room)

So, in order to write my fic, I spend much time observing canon scenes, comparing the manga and the anime version, take note of details, translations and info in them as well as finding out how are some things called.

Since what I noticed/speculated/found out can be of use for other fic authors I thought to share as well.

Canon resources:

Chap. 249 “The Hellish Todoroki Family” (地獄の轟くん家 Jigoku no Todoroki-kun-chi) Chap. 350 “Bound to a Fiery Fate” (エン En)* Chap. 356 “Regarding the Enemy” (敵について Teki ni Tsuite?)

Ep. 105 “The Hellish Todoroki Family” (地獄の轟くん家 Jigoku no Todoroki-kun-chi)

School Briefs V “Awkward Year’s-End Soba”

-* In Japanese the title is written in Katakana, making impossible to figure out to which Kanji it refers. The reading for ‘en’ belongs to the kanji that can be translated as “flame/fire” (the first kanji in Enji’s name) but also to the one that can be translated as “fate/destiny”, “bond/connection/family ties” and “hatred”. The English translation tried to put all those meaning together into a single sentence.

OBSERVATIONS, SPECULATIONS AND ASSORTED INFO:

For start, what's a Butsuma (仏間)?

It's the name of a room whose principal or exclusive function is containing a Butsudan.

Okay so what's a Butsudan?

Butsudan (仏壇 "Buddhist altar"), is a shrine commonly found in temples and homes which looks either a defined, often ornate platform or simply a wooden cabinet sometimes crafted with doors...

...that enclose and protect a Gohonzon (御本尊) or religious icon, typically a statue or painting of a Buddha or Bodhisattva, or a calligraphic mandala scroll.

Its primary use is for paying respects to the Buddha, as well as to family members who have died.

The Butsudan is commonly seen as an essential part in the life of a traditional Japanese family as it is the centre of spiritual faith within the household, especially in dealing with the deaths of family members or reflecting on the lives of ancestors.

Traditional Japanese beliefs hold the Butsudan to be a house of the Buddha, as well as of deceased relatives enshrined within it.

HOW ONE REACHES IT?

We don't really know but it seems to be on the ground floor and both the manga and the anime shows if you try to reach it from the kitchen you'll have to pass through the corridor on which you can see the round Shōji window of the dining room.

HOW DOES IT LOOKS LIKE?

We see very little of it but from what we can see we can observe some things.

The Butsuma in the Todoroki Mansion is a washitsu (和室), which means “harmony room” but which is the name used to mean “Japanese-style room”.

It’s a room characterized by a tatami flooring (Tatami (畳) is a type of mat used as a flooring material in traditional Japanese-style rooms)…

and sliding doors, be they Shōji (consisting of translucent or transparent sheets on a lattice frame) or Fusuma (vertical rectangular panels often painted)…

Specifically, this Washitsu has Shōji doors.

Generally, either the Butsuma is a small room connected to a bigger one or is the most formal reception room in the house.

In the manga the Todoroki seems to have a room specifically for it and they placed it on the right next to the entrance.

In "School Briefs" they refer to it as a side room.

The Todoroki Butsudan is a large and elegant wooden cabinet crafted with doors.

Its Gohonzon seems to be a painting of a Buddha.

Enshrined with it there's the memorial photograph or Iei (遺影) of Touya.

The Iei can be either a formal portrait or a snapshot of the deceased but normally the photo chosen is usually one in which the person is looking directly into the camera and if it's part of a larger picture, it is cropped to show only the head and shoulders. The landscape behind the photo is removed and replaced with a grey background. The chosen picture may depict the deceased as they wanted to be remembered, but more often than not depicts that person in a manner that reflects how the living wish to remember them.

We can see that's exactly the case with Touya.

By the way Touya is wearing a Gakuran (学ラン), which is the uniform for many middle-school and high-school boys in Japan. The colour is normally black, but some schools use navy blue. Touya's Gakuran is the one of his middle school.

The choice though might not be because the Todoroki wanted to remember him as a student but because the Gakuran is considered also a formal wear you can wear at cerimonies.

Anyway as it's Touya's photo that's enshrined there, for the Todoroki it means that the Butsudan is basically Touya's 'house', which is why in "School Briefs" Natsuo goes to the Butsudan and greets his brother and the story defines the room as "Touya's room" or why Enji talks directly with him when being in that room. To the Todoroki Touya is there.

The Butsudan should have been in the Todoroki house from PRIOR Touya's death as not only the Todoroki needed it for religious purposes before Touya died but, inside that room, there was also the photo of Enji's father, which is likely the photo that now is hung on the wall, near the Butsudan.

Long story short the Butsudan isn't placed in Touya's old room, proof is also that the doors are different from the ones which were in Touya and Natsuo's room and how it should be at the ground floor while the bedrooms should be all upstairs.

Along with Touya's memorial photograph, there should also be a Memorial tablets or Ihai (位牌) constructed of black lacquered wood.

I think it's the thing on the right, above Touya's photo.

The the vertically standing tablet in the Ihai is known as the fuda. The posthumous “precepts name” kaimyō (戒名) of the deceased is engraved in gilded calligraphy on the front of the tablet, with the age and date of death engraved on the back.

A person who has recently died is also referred to as a Hotoke (仏) and the living take care of it through offerings and regular interactions.

Offerings of food, flowers, incense and other things that the deceased might have liked (even beer, sake, whiskey, cigarettes, canned coffee, juice!) are regularly placed on the Butsudan, and candles are lit (though it seems it’s common to offer rice).

We see that Touya's butsudan has flowers and Enji brings him an offering of food, which in the anime seems to be fried chiken.

Canonically Touya didn't like fish but he might have liked meat, hence Enji offers it to him. In "School Briefs" Natsuo and Shouto will offer incense to him as well.

Eventually, after a number of years (commonly they range from 33 to 50), it is assumed that the Hotoke, no longer remembered by the living, is elevated to the status of tutelary ancestor, Senzo (先祖) and is believed to join the collective spirits of the generations of household ancestors and his photo is removed by the Butsudan.

33 years aren't yet gone by from when Enji's father died, so I don't know if his photo was removed from the Butsudan merely because Touya got the honor spot (the photo of the deceased can also not be enshrined in the Butsudan) or because they decided Enji's father became a Senzo early.

I'll go and assume they just gave Touya the best spot.

Enji's father is, after all, someone only Enji remembers, while Touya's memory is also alive in his siblings.

Next to the Butsudan we see that various objects are placed on a furniture (manga and anime of course not agreeing on the furniture's shape).

They likely belonged to Touya as objects dear to the deceased are placed near to the Butsudan. The manga has shoes, a toy car, a robot, a ball and plenty of books. Actually a couple of 'books are so tall they might not be books but canvas of paintings... though I can't tell for sure.

The anime keeps the car, the ball, the toy car... and I'll go and assume the blocks are meant to be books though I'm not sure. Still they're less than the ones in the manga.

From the drawing on the ball we can see it seems to be the same ball Touya and his siblings were playing with when Shouto was observing them.

"School Briefs" though, places that ball forgotten in a shed but hey, maybe the Todoroki kids had more balls (it can be each of them had one).

And well, that's all we know about the Butsuma.

[ffredmujkic]

wonderfully bizarre by bendigo fletcher is such a fish and chips song.

"And if I were to win for you the skin of a timbered snake - Would you consider me your comfort in danger?" it shows so much of gillions thinking that he could only be loved if hes earned it if hes able to show himself as someone useful.

"you could wear me like a ring" something something abt gil being status symbol. (the whole line in his, if u give fish a family, abt being adored but alone) going back to had habits (even if aware of their harm)

"You'd be the mercy under my cruelty- My revelation, bloodshed free" gillion's journery through out the campaign, his biggest change is being kinder. gentler. early campaign gil always chose violence, he saw that the only responsible action to take against a villian was to cut off their head. hes soften so much over the campaign. hes always been caring yet through his friendships with chip (and jay this just isnt abt them) he learns different methods to handling problems.

"Do you wanna get married at the Cherokee Cemetery?" he just wants to get married. hes unlearned at lot a LOT of toxic unhealthy things. but he clearly upholds marriage as still an important and loving act. i think that while their relationship is very anarchic, gil would still love a wedding. (purely my own headcannon tho)

"Where the blue grass creeps over deep decades of devotion. Warm underneath the frost" come on.

in the context of gillion though this can be further, hes incredible loyal to the undersea though it never cared for him in return. A country that made him harsh and serious despite his real personality when allowed to relax. the frost can be a strong yet harmful loyalty to the undersea. (it reminds me of that even if im stretching) his friendship with chip and jay allowing him to feel a genuine devotion which is beneficial too him, that is reciprocated.

"We can build a home in a bush of azaleas- Dress it up in true morale paraphernalia- You'll never be alone in your bad dreams- Because together we could never be lost"

gillion was taken away from his family at an early age. chip was an orphan with no memory of even his name, to than get his adopted family ripped away from him. his attempts to form a new one forcing him into a gang. the two of them have been alone for a very very long time with no family or even friends, no home of their own. gillion constantly failed in his training. chip is implied to have done things he didnt always want to do to make price happy. yet despite earlier bumps in the relationship, them clashing each disagreement helps to deepen their bond as they figure out whats okay with with each other. and they really are never alone after finding each other

"your eyes prescribe a meaning for everything I do. I even find myself believing most of the words I say as true" the most impactful moment for chip what enable him to grow into the person he becomes over the course of the campaign is the fight in epsiode 15. it forced chip to address his actions have hurt hurt someone he was growing to care abt. chip said he wouldn't lie to gil anymore and he meant it. theres times where he tries to lie and cuts himself off. they built a home with trust and communication

"We can build a home in a bush of azaleas" since the line is repeating ill only say, they feel so comfortable around each other. all three captains are each others home. but especially chip and gil the way they are always seeking each other, their friend's name always on the tip of their toungue.

"We can be defined by the things we want"

a major theme in the show (or at least grizzly is trying to make it into one) is desire. gillion while having a lot of autonomy, driving a lot of the plot. he is also honor bound to a internal law where he must always protect others. gillion never acts out of a true selflessness, his actions are born from being taught that this is simply how he should operate. Because he is inherently worthless than all those around him, he has been assigned to protect. Never does gil think abt himseld if it concerns another life. gillion must be selfless, he is never allowed to want for himself. which is wonderfully contrasted by chip who is always seen as a selfish bastard despite not behaving like it in a while.

"I'll be a life full of free haircuts from the one that I love" chip in his happiet dream imagines himself with all his crew and arlin hanging out happily on the albatross. chip always pictures himself doing this pirate thing forever, but he is only 19. and with the trauma that its brought him, the constant risking your life. i think its fair to say that what he actually wants is just a simple life with his friends