#and in general she has been shown to use (or attempt to use) her power as police chief one anyone who has slighted her even a little

[cuteniarose]

but what abt Lin

We like her because Hot Older Woman is Hot

We do not respect her because ACAB

[hells-wasabii]

here’s a thing you could try doing (if you want to) the Hazbin hotel gang with seraphim child reader who somehow appeared in hell after the ep 8 battle.

the gang now has to look and protect this child since others could use them for their own means with the power the kid has and for some reason they can’t go to heaven… almost like they have a purpose here in hell

A/N: This is probably going to get a part 2, I'm a little invested in where this could go! It's probably gonna get turned into a little series with a plot.

With a child seraphim i really don't see one knowing what hell even is yet. Sure, they would tell them about it, but definitely wouldn't know what it is. Or alcohol, or curse words or anything vulgar really. I hope you enjoy!

Character: General

Type: Fic (Nonromantic, Plot-centric,Hotel staff/residents with seraphim child!reader, General)

It was an honest mistake. You really hadn't meant to, but Emily and Sera were starting to argue again, something that had been happening often since that nice Charlie girl you had met at the zoo came and gone. So you had snuck away. You hated when they argued, they were your family. Family shouldn't fight, ever, you had decided early on.

Curious, you continue on towards the portal. You investigated, peering through to see a strange place bathed in red, you saw a broken building, something that reminded you of something one your brothers had shown you from the human world. War, you thought it was called. Something horrible that humans thought up to hurt each other.

You hated when people were hurt. You wanted to get closer and help anyone who might be hurt, even if your powers hadn't fully come in yet.

Then an idea came to your mind! You could ask your brothers to help! They would know exactly what to do! With this in mind, you attempted to return back through the portal, only to be pushed back by some invisible force.

Wait... What? Why wouldn't it let you back in?

Then it happened. You were still a young Seraphim, your wings weren't super strong yet, and as you peered down at the red place your wings gave out. Luckily, your brothers and sisters had trained you in case something like that happened! You were able to slow your descent, at least enough for it not to hurt when you finally landed.

So you started to make your way to the pretty, large building on the hill with a sign that read Hazbin Hotel. Though the building didn't seem quite finished yet, it was still really pretty. Odd, hadn't it just been all broken?

As you pushed your way in through the heavy doors, you saw three people over at a tall counter: A cat man with wings cleaning a really small glass, an angel, but she didn't have her wings out, and- Oh no! She seemed to have misplaced her halo, too! That wasn't good! And a pretty pink and white spider-man that was sipping on a pretty looking juice

The pretty spider-man looked over at you and did a spit-take, nearly choking on his juice.

"What the fuck is a kid doing here?" He exclaimed, gesturing at you, fuck? What kind of word was that? No one had taught it to you, and you couldn't remember any of your fellow Seraphim using such a word, either. This seemed to get the other two's attention as they turned to look at you, shocked expressions on their faces.

"What does 'fuck' mean?" You asked, head tilted in confusion looking between each of the strangers. The pretty spider-man looked like he was going to start laughing but the angel next to him hit him hard in the shoulder, only serving to confuse you more.

"Charlie!" Excited, you ran forward, using your wings to jump higher than you would have otherwise, right into her arms. The blonde non-angel caught you with ease.

The princess of hell's eyes widened looking up to find her companions looking just as confused and shocked as she felt.

This wasn't good, not one bit.

[hrizantemy]

Morrigan’s desire to become a Valkyrie seems misplaced, especially when considering how she’s treated Nesta. Throughout their interactions, Morrigan has done nothing but show disdain and condescension toward Nesta, making it clear she doesn’t like or respect her. The Valkyries are not just a group to join for status or power—it’s about the bond that Nesta, Emerie, and Gwyn have forged through their shared struggles, hard work, and trauma. They’re the ones who dedicated themselves to reviving the Valkyries’ legacy, and their achievements should be respected.

For Morrigan to step in after all that effort feels like an intrusion, as if she wants to take away something that rightfully belongs to Nesta and her chosen family. It reflects a broader issue with the Inner Circle, who often seem to dismiss Nesta’s accomplishments and try to diminish her in some way once she finds something of her own. This constant undermining of Nesta’s hard-earned progress is infuriating, and Morrigan’s desire to join the Valkyries feels like another attempt to strip Nesta of what she’s worked so hard to rebuild.

I wouldn’t have an issue with Morrigan joining the Valkyries if it felt authentic and wasn’t just used as a plot device. If she and Nesta actually had a positive relationship—where they could support each other, grow together, and overcome their past tensions—it could be something worthwhile. But that’s far from the case.

Morrigan has never shown any genuine kindness toward Nesta. In fact, she went as far as to say that Nesta belonged in a place filled with known abusers and victims of abuse. That kind of statement shows a deep misunderstanding of who Nesta is and what she’s been through. How can someone who has expressed such a damaging sentiment be part of something as sacred as the Valkyries, especially when Nesta, Emerie, and Gwyn have dedicated themselves to restoring that legacy? For Morrigan to join without having acknowledged or atoned for her words and actions would feel wrong and would devalue everything Nesta has fought for.

The Valkyries represent strong women who uplift and support each other through their shared struggles and triumphs. They forge bonds through trust, mutual respect, and the willingness to help one another grow. Morrigan has done none of that where women in general are concerned.

Morrigan is supposedly regarded as a queen in Hewn City, yet there’s no evidence of her using her position to better the lives of the women there. If she truly wanted to embody the ideals of the Valkyries—helping other women rise up—she would have already made efforts in her own realm. The Valkyries stand for unity and strength through compassion, qualities that Morrigan has yet to demonstrate to anyone besides who she deems acceptable.

[smalltowngunshow]

it’s so upsetting to me that the general public HATES Andrea like I do agree that she is annoying at times but it’s in such a real person way YK like my annoyance with her comes from a place of knowing she can and should be better bc you see how deeply she cares about others and how badly she wants to do good but she can’t bc she is so scared, and how so much of her fear comes from being a woman and the way that she sees masculinity as safety… time and time again she chooses the masculine person who doesn’t care about her over the more “feminine” person (Dale and Michonne) who obviously care very deeply about her. She obviously has some internalized misogyny that most likely stems from before the apocalypse as well as Amy’s death. Despite having very limited screen time Amy is shown to be rather childish in a very girl way, she likes unicorns and mermaids, this in turn with what Andrea has been taught by society her whole life leads her to see femininity as weakness. You see this in her obsession with learning to use a gun (a symbol of masculinity I need to make a post about guns and manhood in TWD bc omg there is sooooo much especially in the earlier seasons) and her coldness towards Dale who, despite being a man is traditionally more feminine (thinking with his heart, is more apprehensive towards violence, a peacemaker) and her betrayal of Michonne, both of these people did nothing but love and attempt to protect Andrea but despite this she still goes for the person that she sees as more safe and masculine (Shane and the Governor). The way that she try’s to secure this safety is also telling of her character, she has sex the with both Shane and the Governor not because she loves them or has romantic feelings for them but because she sees it as securing her safety and a transaction of power. She is such a tragic character because she is a coward up until her death, finally after everything she has done she realizes that she can’t live as a coward trembling in a man’s shadow anymore but it’s to late. Anyway I love Andrea so much and also she’s a lesbian but I could make a whole other post on that….

[theoperativeif]

The First Generation

The First Generation of Operatives... (Would love to hear your thoughts on this list ;) )

001 "The First"

Redacted

002 "The Second"

Redacted

003 "Hex"

Cheerful and hyper-violent 003, or Hex, as her siblings have named her is a master of deception. Utilizing a mix of traps, holograms, and stealth armor, she has already shown herself as a dangerous foe, even against her siblings. One of the oldest Operatives, she has also adopted a big sister role to some of her more outcast kin. She displays affection by utilizing ambush hugs and gift-giving.

004 "Shrike"

Unlike most of his siblings, 004 was nicknamed Shrike by the staff here at the lab for his propensity to impale his opponents on premade hooks and left to die or decompose slowly. Competitive and energetic, he has developed a friendly rivalry with 003, whom he always seeks to upstage and harass at every opportunity.

005 "Ari"

Redacted

006 "Mamba"

Smaller and much shyer, similar to his younger sister 013, "Mamba" earned his name from his siblings much later than the others. Weaker and less adept at combat than his siblings, 006 was assigned to frontline duty, hoping to become a good soldier. On the frontlines, sporting light operative combat armor Mamba began using various poisons along with his weapons, earning him a reputation similar to his more prominent and more adept kin.

007 "Stalker"

A hunter, first and foremost, 007 is an expert tracker, often paired with the Heartbreaker Agency and assigned to hunt down their targets. Cautious and slow to trust, he mostly keeps to himself, though he has often been seen spending time with 008. He was last seen nine months after the disaster at Paradise, attempting to track down an unknown target in Commonwealth space...

008 "Nightingale"

Loyal to a fault, 008 has shown herself to be as talented at saving lives as taking them. Always carrying around a medical kit, 008 is constantly on the alert to help her fellow soldiers. Her dedication to those around her has come at a cost, as she will throw herself between those she cares about and danger. She is littered with old scars, including a robotic leg and metal plating in her back. Devastated at the loss she experienced on Paradise, Nightingale or Gale has become a shallow husk of her former self, shutting herself off from others, including her close friend 007.

Currently under observation at the lab.

009 "Mad Dog/ Maximillian"

One would not expect the words of a gentleman to fit the large and equally terrifying Operative. But 009, despite being an expert in messy close-quarters combat, is similarly interested in reading and studying the arts. Assigned as Prince Vasily's guard, the two are unusually close.

010 "Nyx"

Redacted

011 "Ceto"

011 or Ceto, is an expert in aquatic warfare, sporting a unique bright blue combat suit capable of diving into the depths of the galaxy's most dangerous water environments. Relatively friendly and calm, Ceto is loyal to the people of the Empire, above all else. She always professionally presents herself, making it easy for her to integrate with military personnel.

012 "Griffin"

Charismatic and manipulative, Griffin is as power-hungry as he is cruel. Appearing as an average human, 012 has shown themselves capable of manipulating those around him. A smooth voice and innocent smile have earned him many allies in the military, with most viewing him as a grand hero of the Empire. His siblings and those at the lab know the true face hidden behind his hero façade.

013 "The Doll/Little sister"

One of the smaller Operatives, 013, is a proficient hunter and tracker, preferring to let the enemy come to her. She sets traps and carefully scouts positions to fight in. Sporting an oddly flashy personality despite being one of few words she does like to show off when her older brothers and sisters are around, as well as collecting pieces of armor to add to her own, giving off a strange mix of color and armor types. Her armor possesses a form of audio mimicry, allowing her to mimic the voices of her opponents.

014 "The General"

Towering over most on the battlefield, 014 appears as a large shining knight with bulky, heavy armor and a large sword. Charismatic and friendly, this honorable knight has been given the rare honor of receiving an official rank within the army. He has an odd friendship with 015.

015 "Wendigo"

Seeking to finally create a true equal to 001 and 002, the Emperor forced 'Mother' to recreate the original recipe used on the first two. The result was 015. Sporting advanced close-quarter combat armor, this Operative was given the callsign Wendigo by the military and deployed to areas devoid of friendly forces. 015 has exhibited concerning tendencies. When first deployed, they modified their armors mask to have a sort of robotic jaw, which they use to 'consume' their victims ritualistically.

015 is affectionate to those they deem as worthy while mostly ignoring others as if they don't even exist.

[dranathedragon]

I’m a D&D nerd, who is currently obsessed with Dead Boy Detectives, so of course the “What class would everyone be?” thought has been tickling me. I’ve seen a few other people post their thoughts on it, and I’ve been reading the amazing “Messrs Payne and Rowland’s Adventuring Agency” by @terresdebrume whenever it updates. Seriously, it’s really good, highly recommend. So I figured I’d throw my hat in the ring and see what anyone else’s thoughts are while I’m at it. Just doing the core four in this post.

So let’s get the easy one out of the way first, Crystal. She’s 100% a sorcerer, her power comes from her bloodline, she was born with it. Because she’s psychic based I’d say she’s specifically an Aberrant Mind sorcerer, without all the deep space tentacle monster baggage. Though she does have disembodied floating eyeballs in her psyche so MAYBE!

Next up is the second easiest, Edwin. He’s a wizard, everyone knows he’s a wizard. What KIND of wizard though? I’m going with Order of Scribes. He loves that little notebook so much, it gained sentience. How awesome would it be, if in this D&D version of the show, Edwin’s notebook didn’t follow him to hell because it was his sentient spell book, and it stayed behind with a purpose? It stayed behind because it KNEW Charles would never leave Edwin there and he would attempt a rescue. It KNEW Charles would go, and it KNEW it had to stay behind to help him. It showed him the things he needed to see, the information and maps that would reunite him with their wizard. I just love that.

Next up is Charles. He was a little tougher. I’ve seen quite a few posts saying that he’s a barbarian, and at this, I must object. At least with the criteria I’m using I suppose. Charles’ power doesn’t come from his rage. The one time we see him using his rage to fight, Edwin’s horrified and worried reaction pretty much confirms this was wildly out of character for him.

Just as an aside, I’m a firm believer of when Edwin said, “That was extreme”, he wasn’t talking about knocking the night nurse off the cliff. He was talking about Charles’ reaction in general, it was an extreme REACTION. He’d never seen Charles act with that much anger, hate, and violence before. He’s not an attacker, he’s a defender. It scared him, but he was scared FOR Charles, not OF him. Our wizard just isn’t great at people’ing. That’s a discussion for a different post though! Back to the topic at hand!

So, if I don’t think he’s a barb, what is he? Well, I’ve got two possible options. One thing that’s said quite a bit in the show, is how charismatic Charles is. And let’s face it, he is. So, using that logic, I’d say he could possibly be a Paladin. Specifically, an Oath of Devotion Paladin. I mean, come on, his power would so come from his extreme devotion to his favorite wizard. That would be a fun one, but there’s my second option which I find slightly more plausible.

It’s shown multiple times in the show, that while Charles claims to be just the brawn, he’s actually very clever and capable of thinking outside the box. Not to mention, he’s all about magic items. Bag of holding, enchanted cricket bat, enchanted jar/paper weight, enchanted lullaby ball, the disguises, the list goes on. So he’s smart and specializes in magic items, that screams Artificer. I’d say he’s a Battle Smith Artificer, some of their specialty spells are based around defending/supporting their allies, and you can’t tell me he wouldn’t find having a little robot pet, sorry STEEL DEFENDER, completely aces. He’d also name it like “Steve” or something and treat it like it was his and Edwin’s child, fight me on that lol. (Jk, don’t fight me I don’t like conflict!) Update: Charles’ lock picking has been mentioned and it just added to this for me as Artificers get expertise in thieves’ tools. How did I forget this?!

So that leaves Niko, who is kind of the wild card. I saw at least one post saying she’d be a bard, but I don’t think that’s accurate. Bards are all about attention (well mostly, I guess whispers would be an exception but she wouldn’t be a whispers anyway) and the whole sprite possession thing seemed to kinda make her uncomfortable with it. Idk, it just doesn’t really fit right to me. On the same thread though, so far in the show, Niko’s only real power is to see the dead. That might be expanded if we get a second season (🤞🏻), but for right now, that’s all she’s got other than being a good friend and excellent reading comprehension skills (which I might revisit this using that last one later). That said, since she got that ability (technically) because of the sprites (more because they almost killed her, but also they’re with her in the igloo so this still might work!) I’d say Niko is a Warlock. Just by the by, I hate that the class is called “Warlock”. That’s a word that came from an old English word meaning “oath breaker or he who breaks their oath”. Warlocks are all about MAKING not BREAKING pacts. Just a weird choice but MOVING ON! Since the sprites seem kind of Fey, I’d say she’d be a Pact of the Archfey. Nothing to do with the pact’s skill set, since we’d have nothing to compare it to, just because they seem fey to me.

So that’s what I’ve got so far. I might think of other characters’ later, like what would Jenny be etc. What do you guys think? I like to hear other people’s opinions on this! It’s fun to bat around!

[a-goumang-ripoff]

My Thoughts on the Character Writing of Nine Sols

Alright, it's finally time to autistically rant on this account to my heart's content because HOLY FUCK I LOVE NINE SOLS!!! It has such amazing gameplay, and I don't think I could ever forget the Lady Ethereal fight in my life, easily one of my favorite bosses ever (and I love how she's written but that's a rant for another day).

I think my favorite thing about Nine Sols is the fact that it's such a densely packed game where literally everywhere you look you can find some kind of underlying message, even in small areas. And every Sol has its own underlying message and you bet your ass you'll be seeing rants from me on probably every one of them eventually.

For now though I'm sticking with rambling about the general writing of the game because I love it but also hate it sometimes and I love this game so much that I need to rant about how much the parts I despise piss me off. Before I start ranting off though, I should preface with this: if you aren't aware, RedCandleGames is a Taiwanese game company whose previous game, Detention, contained an easter egg which mocked a member of the CCP, I think it is safe to say that Nine Sols can easily be interpreted as a massive hate letter to China wrapped up in a beautifully gruesome story with amazing gameplay.

This isn't something that screamed out to me when I first played, but I had a suspicion something like this might pop up because of the storyline with the humans, they're shown to be livestock to these Solarians with only Lady Ethereal objecting to them being harvested for their brains (and eventually Yi but it was also his idea). They're treated as lesser beings, subhuman if you will, that are feared, hated, and stereotyped, but shown by the game to not warrant any of that treatment and be entirely capable people. Something was going on but I was quite unsure what it was.

It wasn't until the Fengs, who I fought after Ji, that it really set in what a lot of these messages I've been noticing could be about. I am very well viewing all of this through a specific lens and I don't think I'm right about everything but I am certain to say that the Fengs are absolutely a hate letter to Chinese nobility, between the Fengs' lack of care about anything besides profit/entertainment and the fact that Nuwa has clearly endured the horrors of foot binding (mishappen feet + entirely unable to walk) while still being a spoiled brat, not to mention the incest.

Everything after that kind of fell into place, it's not all about Chinese culture and government, but things definitely started falling into place when I started thinking back on everything. It started to make sense why they made Goumang a fascist who quite literally owns slaves before giving her easily the most disturbing fate in the entire game.

I do really love Nine Sols for all these little messages, but I also feel like sometimes they entirely give up on writing a unique character in order to send a message with them. Yanlao, Goumang, Jiequan, Nuwa, and Eigong are all very basic tropes that either lack deeper character, or their deeper character motivations don't seem to line up with their character.

And what do I think these characters all have in common? They're all being used to send a message about culture and/or government. Yanlao's demand for respect and power just because he's old, Goumang's fascist ideologies, Jiequan's dynastic bloodline, Nuwa's wealthy apathy, and Eigong's drive for immortality and tendency to lie or bend the truth. It feels like their characters were made secondary to the message they were attempting to send. I can say this about Yi as well, he's a very typical edgy protagonist trope I see a lot in East Asian media, though his character development is really well written so I can overlook that.

Another thing I've noticed is that the characters I think aren't sending as strong of messages, or at least not messages geared towards criticisms of government and aspects of East Asian culture, seem to be a lot more well written, and a lot of the stuff I've seen in the Nine Sols community confirms that. People tend to love Ji and Lady Ethereal and enjoy Kuafu. Ji and Lady Ethereal are so amazingly written in my opinion, maybe it is just that I relate to them a bit too much, I just feel like their stories are really enjoyable and make you feel something other than "what the fuck just happened." Kuafu I feel is just inoffensively written, he's not super tropey, but he's not amazingly written either, so he's kind of just this inbetween spot that makes him enjoyable.

Also note that I haven't talked about any of the non-sol characters, most of them I have not thought about nearly as hard (except Heng but I will break down and sob if I ever try to talk about her in length lmao) and thus don't feel like I can safely comment on them with the same confidence as I've had for the sols.

I am not saying that RedCandleGames should've forgone writing the messages into their characters that they did write, I just feel like there could be more effort put into the actual characters themselves and going about these messages in different ways to majorly improve the experience of this game, not that it isn't already amazing. Well now that that's out of my system, I'm probably gonna be making more rants about different parts of Nine Sols because I love this game and I also enjoy ranting about the parts I dislike lmao, easily one of my favorite games ever.

[halfratsalready]

“No-one’s perfect, but mom says we’re not trying hard enough.”

Some thoughts on Jack’s legendary avatar quote and its implications.

Everyone is super curious about who the “we” in this quote is, but when I first read the quote, I actually didn’t think of it as referring to a third person. Essentially, I think a lot of people interpreted this as Jack saying that Night Swan said something like “you’re not trying hard enough.” But when I read this avatar quote, I interpreted it as Jack saying that Night Swan herself said “we’re not trying hard enough.” Obviously, I could just be interpreting it wrong, but I don’t think I’ve seen anyone talk about it in this context, so I thought I would throw my thoughts out there.

(This turned out way longer than intended so there is a TL;DR at the end!)

I’m not saying that Night Swan would actually be referring to herself in saying “we aren’t trying hard enough,” which sounds weird at first, but lemme give you an (admittedly kinda unrelated) example.

When my cat would do something he wasn’t supposed to do, I didn’t just tell him “no.” Obviously, cats don’t understand spoken language, but I think we as humans tend to talk to pets like we do children and I don’t have children so this is the closest personal example I have. Basically, if my cat got his claw stuck in something, I didn’t say, “you don’t put your claws in things.” I would say “we don’t put our claws in things.” I don’t have claws and this sentence clearly doesn’t apply to me, but I still used the words “we” and “our.”

Unbeknownst to me at the time, this is actually part of a parenting method called positive discipline, where scolding is rephrased to become more like a lesson. Something as simple as replacing “you can’t do that” with “we don’t do that” actually has profound psychological implications that make children more likely to act on the things they are told.

There are several studies that have been done and many more that are ongoing into the power of word choice when it comes to personal pronouns (I, you, we, etc). Using the word “we” implies a shared experience and can be more persuasive. Other studies have shown that children better learned how to play games when they were taught the rules using the generic-you or we pronouns.

According to Harvard Business Review, many leaders and higher ups in the business world use “we” in place of “you” because it implies community and makes the person being spoken to feel like they’re part of something as opposed to being singled out.

All of this is to say that saying “we’re not trying hard enough” could be a manipulative choice of words on Night Swan’s part. By using the word “we,” she would be implying a sense of community that could make Jack more likely to strive to try harder than were she just to tell him outright to try harder (and none of this is to say that she still couldn’t be referring to others in addition).

TL;DR, I interpreted Jack’s quote as coming from a direct quote from Night Swan, along the lines of “we’re not trying hard enough, are we?” Not only is it reminiscent of the way we hear adults speak to children, but it also has psychological implications that could be an attempt on her part to make him work harder at trying to achieve perfection. Saying “you’re not trying hard enough,” whether it’s just to Jack or to him and others, comes across like an attack, and while I don’t think that Night Swan particularly cares about hurting feelings, I do feel like she’s smart enough to know that her choice of words is important, especially to a child who is very easily influenced by words alone.

I’m not saying that I think this is the right interpretation, but I thought I’d share it because I haven’t seen anyone else talk about it this way :)

[greybenjii]

SPOILERS FOR CLSSS OF 09: FLIPSIDE... !

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i am ngl a little confused on why everyone is so insistent on saying Nicole is completely OOC in Class of '09: The Flip Side when this type of behavior has been shown to us repeatedly in the games??? Now I am all open for an open dialogue about this so feel free to comment but here is my general take... Nicole is proven to be a sociopath within the games aka someone who consistently shows no regard for right and wrong and ignores the rights/ feelings of others. Throughout the two games, we see the world from her perspective and we as the player are expected to blindly trust her viewpoint as we are aware of certain things other characters in the game are not. However, Nicole has proven to be the type of person where if a certain thing doesn't go her way or if she want's something, she will go the extremes to reach whatever petty want she has and attempts to justify it.

For example, in the "Cheating" ending we see that she is willing to ruin Megan's entire relationship and go through elaborate lengths to home wreak a relationship to get Megan's boyfriend to want to cheat on her with Nicole... Why? Because Megan was a serious bitch to Nicole. It’s more of a biased view since we see it through Nicole that it’s called sweet revenge on her side, so in this case both parties were wrong and I do feel bad for Megan. Next, in most other endings, Nicole’s antics come off as humorous because they’re so far out there and the person involved usually has it coming in some way. But in the "Abusive Exes", Nicole straight up psychologically abused a gay teenager who did nothing to upset her into confirming to heterosexuality purely for the sake of sadism. She gained nothing from this experience other than to exert the power she knows she had over Ari and simply did not care. In this ending, she actually gets confronted by Jecka who basically makes her reflect on her actions, asking her what was her excuse this time. Nicole's punishment in the end is she gets hated by Ari for the abuse she did (though Ari still actively tried to engage with her as we see in the text messages after the ending), but also it is implied that she loses Jecka's admiration and friendship. Nicole by all means is reminded to us, the player, that she is NOT a good person. So it should not be surprising to any of us that she would even hurt Jecka the way that she did during The Flip Side. If you so happen to cross Nicole in any way that she thinks is violating her, she will send it back tenfolds. From Jecka's perspective, we know that Nicole is not a good person at all and we do not see Nicole's rational, if she even has one at that. From Jecka's perspective, Nicole needed to exert that she has more power in the situation despite Jecka refusing to let Nicole partake in the business. She did what she intentionally because she knew it would hurt Jecka. Nicole knew that Jecka's Dad was attracted to her and her family situation, so she used it against her in the sickest way possible, to prove to her how little she means to her. Granted, I am sure she didn't mean to cause Jecka to commit self deletion but she carries no little regard to how Jecka felt. Nicole is not a good person and we need to stop pretending like Jecka will be the exception.

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THANK YOU FOR READING!! this was a fun breakdown to do at like... 12 in the morning meow

[bubba-draws]

Hello, could I ask you for some Radiant Vessel Hollow AU stuff? What's the general lore behind that, how did those two end up as they did and just general brainrot on the idea?

Anon this is the best birthday present ever bc i've been thinking about this au for a while now AND I WANNA TALK ABOUT IT AAAA

SO pretty much the au was born from the idea of "Wouldn't it be fucked up if Hollow ended up joining Radi?" partial inspiration comes from this song as well!

(There's a bunch of subtitles in different languages but I'm going with the english one)

To summarize, after years of fighting Radi inside their mind prison, Radi changes tactics and attempts to make Hollow join her, she promises to give them all that was taken from them, the life they deserved

Hollow doesn't fall right away of course, they try to ignore her, fight her, but after years of the same dance and song they start getting tired, no matter how hard they try Radi is never fully gone when they fight, their void not strong enough to rip her apart, and being the only one with them (The dreamers are also in Hollow's mind prison, but they're not anywhere nearby these two) they can't help but lean on her company

The closest thing I could get to describe their relationship at this point is an odd sense of solidarity, in a way both of them were done wrong by the same guy, and while it does take a lot for Hollow to understand this, deep down they knew there was a bit of resentment towards PK, one that grows in intensity the more these two spend together, and it erupts when they succumb to Radi and she turns them into a vessel for her

It's kinda like what Grimm and the Nightmare heart has going on (or at least the general HC most people got) Hollow made a deal with Radi, she will lend her powers and energy to Hollow for them to call anytime they want, to go back so she can see the world through their eyes (disclaimer: not all the time btw ASHFJKAS just when its necessary/Hollow calls her) there's no cycle of rebirth or anything here though, she's also no longer limited to Hollow's mind, she can see the whole Dream Realm now

So yeah, once Hollow is used to their new powers (and body, they got some changes in appearance) they take down the dreamers, escape the black egg, their presence making the infection spread like a wildfire and take down PK :3 (WL escaped, the knights... yeah they dont make it)

There's still some ideas I gotta clean up after this point, but I talked about this with some people and got the idea that yeah, Hollow does take over Hallownest and its people, everyone is infected to some degree? makes them more agreeable to what's going on but its not enough to make them feral anymore, some of the bugs that got modifications through the infection stay like that and while still a bit volatile, they can think enough to understand things

As for their relationship??? It's odd as fuck KJHSDFJKAH there's nothing romantic, that's for sure, it is definetely more similat to a Lord and their subordinate, but theyre like??? very close?? almost familial, when there's no job to do or Hollow needs reassurance Radi becomes the closest thing to a motherly figure they could get (Even if WL loved them there was no way she couldve shown them that) but its not enough for them to call each other family

as for the game events it would completely change, Ghost would arrive to a completely different Hallownest, where everyone is happy and nice, but the more u progress the game u realize shit's fucked up, Hornet is there as well and she came back to Hallownest to seek revenge for her mother

As to what happens to the abyss and pile of dead siblings, i'm still a bit unsure, part of me thinks Hollow wouldnt want to get rid of it but part of me knows Radi wouldnt let them have it open or even go in there, while still void the light she bestowed upon them would present a threat for the shades living there

and that's most of what I got! I still need to think of other things, but if u guys got other questions or ideas I would love love LOVE to hear them!! :D

have a quick doodle of them :3

[heliphantie]

¡Feliz cumpleaños, Dolores!

She happens to appear in my fanart quite frequently… Hardly underrated character, and I can see why. She’s an expressive, fairly “toony” character, very Disney kind of supporting heroine (while not as significant, I’ve compared her to Charlotte La Bouff once). Though, as with many Encanto-related things, she’s more interesting due her potential and conceptually, than what we got of her in completed movie. For one, she was supposed to be a wallflower and lot weirder than she appears in the end, but it was, presumably, toned down to not take from Bruno’s status as misfit, for him to stand out more drastically, I guess? Even then, I’ve found things to appreciate about her with that little material that is out there.

To be honest, I’ve never found convincing that popular fan theory of her covering Bruno all that time, it always appeared to me she was just genuinely startled with being able to hear him somehow (or having impression of such), as a sign of his mysterious supernatural presence, nothing more (naturally, it was debunked by director eventually – too big misconception to leave it vague, it seems). Heartfelt idea, probably, but there is other thing in canon to judge her good will: she is briefly shown to be friendly with Isabela, and even despite having valid reason to keep grudge against her – she *was* actually about to take away from Dolores something she cherished – she never seems to act hostile to her cousin, openly or not, or was hinted scheming against her, or badmouth her, even though she seems to have taste for a gossip. Compare to our protagonist. (Every time I have to address Encanto, it has to come down either to subject of Bruno, or Mirabel dissing.) Nevertheless, I like hypothesis I’ve seen once, about Dolores using the secret of prophecy to her advantage, as means to (somewhat justified) sabotage Mariano’s proposal, as it become the last straw to hold onto in the face of terminal loss of faint hope. You can’t blame her, as what was awaiting her is much worse than regular failure in love: not just getting unable to recover and move on, but oversee (and overhear) her beloved one set in relationships with another before her very eyes for the rest of foreseeable life. Enough to drive one crazy, and being doomed for it, she seems even more benevolent and humble toward her rival. But what with said sabotage and that small scene of her little addendum to Mariano’s words she quotes about him wanting “five kids”, just to see Isa losing face for a moment upon hearing it? This, I think, is evidence she knows her cousin far better than younger generation does (again, Mirabel who’s in the dark for beginning of the story), and aware about her keeping façade at all times and having lot of bottled free will and emotions. She, most likely, knows or realizes reluctance on Isa’s part in all that situation with marriage, even as it’s not clear if either of them has been open about it. So, she occasionally attempts to crack that façade and get Isa to deal with her honest feelings. And compare the messed-up proposal with the story of Pepa’s wedding (which recalling, probably, not by accident precedes the matchmaking dinner and leads to it). Even natural (well, kinda) disaster wasn’t enough to call off marriage arranged out of true love, and Mirabel (in honest case of fair reasoning) wisely notes the ruined engagement is *not* a legit reason to state Isa’s chance for marriage is failed. It’s just forced interruption in predetermined process that launched her powers out of control, and then they manifested her denial to go through with it, for once confirming she lives a lie. That way, actions of Dolores seem to come across as these of trickster, not unlike ones by Bruno (judging by Pepa’s story, anyway), ultimately setting record straight and for better. (And, as it’s hinted and ultimately confirmed by director, the strength of miracle is fueled by unconditional love, so one can wonder what a damage an involuntary marriage based on unrequited love may occur.)

The romance of Dolores herself is something I wasn’t looking deeply at originally, as it seemed to be a footnote to me, last minute hook-up to tie all dangling ends together in record time. Mariano himself is something of “McGuffin” character, and a joke on archetype. The development is brief, and we get just a short summary of it (I assume as with all musical numbers, it’s an artistic license and in “reality” there was more time for relationship to blossom). So, nothing really of substance to chew on. Until I realized the love match does, in fact, not need much of development because it’s foreshadowed by another one shown through the movie. As many noticed, there is certain semblance between Isa and her Tía Pepa: powers of both are influenced by their emotions, both are bottling up their emotions to keep said powers under control and maintain pleasant façade, both have thorny relationship with younger sibling… But it seems, if we look at Dolores, she also has personality similar to that of her Tía Julieta: she’s soft-spoken, caring, gentle, and both niece and aunt have heart symbol somewhere in their costumes (Julieta’s apron embroidery and Dolores’s earrings) to signify their empathetic personality. And their respective love interests both are men of tall stature, implied to be quite intelligent, well-mannered, and somewhat accident-prone. Maybe, comparison is subtle (and arguably not even intentional, to be fair), but can be used to justify one match over another as more natural, fateful one. At last, it’s also implied that Dolores is only one who sees value in Mariano’s good qualities (hence her empathetic core), his kindness and intelligence, while at first it seems only the status of his family and his looks do matter for anyone else (we don’t get proper impression, but it’s what can be taken from what is shown). And probably, she, as somebody to whom vision is not main or trustful canal of perception, doesn’t even care what he looks like, but who he is on inside, which falls into the central theme of the story: looking deeper with your heart to find true connection with loved ones.

[saunne]

HSR Theory - Bailu is set up to fail by her Preceptors

or "we may have an ongoing political overthrow attempt"

Okay, I'm relatively new to HSR but I've been going through lore pages up and down for almost 8 hours now and I need to talk about it.

I started by looking into Dan Heng lore (obviously), which of course led me to the whole Dan Feng + Blade + Jing Yuan + High Cloud Quintet etc mess... and you get the general idea. And there are several things that struck me as odd.

And these things make me think that Bailu, the adorable little Vidyadhara supposed to inherit the title "Imbibitor Lunae" formerly carried by Dan Feng/Dan Heng is currently set up to fail by the same Preceptors supposed to guide her.

A bit of Vidyadhara politics

Each ship of the Xianzhou Alliance has at the head of its Vidyadhara community a High Elder, a Vidyadhara who has developed "more draconic features such as horns and a tail" (Only special Vidyadhara can turn into dragons). They are responsible for the well being of their people (Source).

Those High Elders, when young, are tutored by Preceptors, senior Vidyadharas. Bailu is currently under their tutelage, while Dan Feng was tutored by a certain Lady Xuepu.

However, while the High Elders are the rulers, the Preceptors still have some political clout :

In the case where the high elder cannot lead, the Council of Preceptors assume governance in their place : "The Preceptor Council is a stop-gap measure for when the High Elder position is vacant or governance is untenable" (Source)

The Preceptors have the power to strip the current high elder of their name and power and elect a new one in their place should the circumstances deem fit to do so.

Imbibitor Lunae

This title belonged to Dan Feng / Dan Heng before what was named the "Imbibitor Lunae Sedition" the exact details of which are still unknown.

After the Sedition, Dan Feng was captured, and his punishment was carried out: he went through the rebirth process and his subsequent incarnation, Dan Heng, was held in the Shackling Prison for a period of time before being exiled from the Luofu. 

This leaves the seat of High Elder vacant, and thus puts the Preceptors in position of power.

However, Imbibitor Lunae's position is particularly important within the Luofu, as they are the ones tasked with watching over the seal of the Ambrosium Arbor.

Their mastery of cloudhymn magic (Dan Heng's shown ability to split Scalegorge Sea in half) is obviously an important part of that and Bailu showed some talent in cloudhymn magic : "since the high elder has already demonstrated her powers of calling lightning and commanding the waters" (Source).

Bailu's character stories also tell us directly that she is meant to inherit the position of Imbibitor Lunae : "Only after her coming-of-age ceremony will the Preceptors confer the title of Imbibitor Lunae on her."

So, what's wrong in this whole story ?

First Problem : Dragon Transmutation

Jing Yuang is the first to tell us about the "dragon transmutation", a certain power that Dan Feng supposedly possessed that should have passed to Bailu, but didn't.

By logical association, we can assume that this "dragon transmutation" has something to do with the "Transmutation Arcanum": "It is apparent that either her dragon heart is in some way damaged, or the "Transmutation Arcanum" has not been carried through in full."

In the Preceptor Assembly Chronicle Fragment, it is said : "Our solemn responsibility is to confiscate the Transmutation Arcanum and the Orb of Abysm from Dan Feng to uphold the continuation of the Ichor Lines."

Ichor :

The Vidydharas are called Long's Scion because they are their descendants : "It is commonly thought that the source of Vidyadharas' immortality is different from that of Xianzhou natives and Foxians. The Vidyadhara race did not gain immortality from the Plagues Author. Instead, as the descendants of Long the dragon, the majesty of the Permanence flows in their blood." (Source)

However, the two objects mentioned are important, because we learn their use in Bailu's character story : "All past high elders, after receiving the "Orb of Abysm" and the "Transmutation Arcanum", will re-experience the events of their dragon ancestors' lives in dreams. [...] Although such dreams tend to be fragmentary and difficult to understand or interpret, it is after all the only way our kind have of coming close to the Permanence."

Meaning: The High Elders can dream of heir ancestor's life, Long's life, tand thus come closer to their Path, The Permanence.

Also, there is another instance of "transmutation" present in the Vidyadhara's history : "Teacher says that back then, we could use our powers derived from Long to change the form of any creature, as easily as children playing with modeling clay." (Source)

Imbibitor Lunae is known to be a title passed down from generation to generation and there's a strong possibility that it's always been Dan Feng and his previous incarnations, given the statue looking very much like Dan Heng (March even asks if it's of our brother) that we see at Scalegorge: "High Elder Yubie, bearer of the Azure Dragon's legacy, spreading clouds and rain to bless all living souls. Unstunted by 90 rebirths, just as the Alliance remains strong after 300 years." (Source)

This could indicate that the goal of the High Elders could be to recover access to this power granted by Long (which could have disappeared with Long, which would have made the Vidyadhara's home world uninhabitable)… or even to transform one of their High Elder in a new Aeon of Permanence.

Second Problem : Bailu's Power was Sealed

Bailu's particularly draconic appearance is important, given that she has both horns and a tail. Which is an extremely obvious symbol of her power as Vidyadhara (Only special Vidyadhara can turn into dragons).

However, we learn that this power was sealed : "I have instructed one of our finest crafters to make the Dragonhorn Pilory to shackle her tail, to prevent a loss of control over her powers and a repeat of the disaster of the Sedition of Imbibitor Lunae."

But if High Elders are expected to commune with Long's Path, it seems like a terribly counterproductive decision.

Third Problem : Bailu's Growth

Then comes the problem of her growth. As indicated somewhere above, the title of Imbibitor Lunae will only be entrusted to her by the Preceptors when she comes at age.

Except that Bailu is not growing :

"It is the same as regards my own health. It is now six or seven years since I first sprouted horns, but I have not grown taller in that time." (Source)

"Still no physical change in the high elder. She has not grown." (Source)

Which leads to the following statement : "The gist of my reply was that Lady Bailu is still young and in need of the assistance of the Preceptors." Preceptors who, as a reminder, are in power as long as the seat of High Elder is vacant.

This lack of growth is not considered to be of concern "as slow development is common among Vidyadharas", but I'm just going to take the opportunity to slip an idea. I'm sure you've seen Dan Heng's theory of de-aging rather than reincarnating properly ? I will make a post dedicated to this whole de-aging thing but one thing to say :

And if it was not Dan Heng who had rejuvenated, but Bailu who was prevented from growing up ?

Fourth Problem : Preceptors Monitoring

Bailu herself gives us her feelings about the way the Preceptors control her and we can say that she is not really happy about it : "I am sure it is because I have those horrid Preceptors watching over me all the day long. If a child does not get out to run about, how will it grow tall? Healers who read this case study, when will you release me? I am not some truly wicked ne'er-do-well. Why am I so closely guarded?" (Source)

However, there is one sentence that strikes me even more strongly as the Preceptors are deliberately setting up Bailu for failure :

"Are you trying to waste my talents?" (Source)

According to Jing Yuan Characters Story III and IV : Dan Feng, the most recent Imbibitor Lunae, joined the High-Cloud Quintet and together they accomplished many feats: drove out the Borisin invading Thalassa, destroyed the alliance between the Houyhnhnms and Wingweavers in the Abundance Axis, rescued the Xianzhou Yuque and defeated the living planet Ketu Mirage, becoming one of the most prolific Vidyadhara of his time.

While Bailu on the other hand seems to be guarded very closely, restricted to her activities as a healer with her powers sealed and the impossibility of inheriting her title unless she undergoes a growth spurt, which is still long overdue.

Final Problem : Preceptor Assembly Chronicle Fragment

I don't think it can be any obvious than that, honestly. It is said clearly in the text.

"Therefore, I propose that the Luofu Vidyadhara should temporarily move away from the rule of the high elder and instead submit to rule by the council of Preceptors, to ensure [Missing]"

"Xuepu's message rings loud and clear. She wants to take advantage of [Missing] being cut off to completely replace the High Elder position with the Preceptor Council."

"I am in agreement with you. The High Elder system is an outdated one, handing over power to a single chosen one. This has caused countless tragedies in the history of our kind."

So we have at least two Preceptors, Xuepu and Fenghuan, who actively wish to overthrow the solitary rule of the High Elders and instead institute "power to the people" (or in this case the Preceptors).

And with the power vacuum caused by Dan Heng's exile and the fact that his possible successor, Bailu, might not have been born yet/still a tiny child…

Yeah, I think we're seeing a discreet ongoing political overthrow.

Addendum : The Ten-Lords may be involved in the whole scheme (as well as Jing Yuan, which puts certain things said to Dan Heng in a whole different light)

"The elder's voice is youthful, but it sounds weary and emotionless" : The term elder here could refer as a Preceptor instead of a High Elder since they are the "senior" Vidyadharas. I have the feeling that it could be the same people talking with "Unfeeling Voice".

Also, "if you can complete this I can assure you a seat in the council of Preceptors" ?

PLEASE.

[itsclydebitches]

The amount of times RWBY wants us to feel scared for the safety of characters while conveniently forgetting Aura exists is staggering. Neo attacks Ruby with the intent to kill but her Aura is still active. James almost shoots Marrow with the intent to kill but his Aura is still active. Watts hacks an Atlesian Knight to run towards Qrow, Robyn and the Ace Ops with the intent to explode but their Auras are still all active. Sure the attacks would hurt like hell but they're not gonna kill, why should I fear for their safety?

If we're being generous (I'm having a good night lol) I suppose we could read moments like James vs. Marrow as shocking not because it would be a one-shot death sentence, but because he's threatening - in general - to take Marrow down. Sort of the equivalent of an IRL person raising their fists. Is that an immediate threat to the person's life? No. Are you making it clear that you're willing to fight over this while also ambiguously leaving it open how far you're willing to take things? Yeah.

You're right though, too often RWBY relies on average action threats (a pistol, an explosion, etc.) to raise the stakes without taking into account that none of that should be very scary to our protagonists. Not until their aura breaks (and we have no sense of when that will happen, despite them all supposedly carrying Scrolls to tell them. Which I get because if RWBY introduced clear thresholds of when aura breaks they'd have to actually abide by that rule). I feel the same way about characters about to fall: Ruby hanging off the airship with Neo, Ruby hanging off the cliff while fighting Cordovin, Ruby and Oscar both going down in an airship. The very first technique we're shown is a landing strategy, so how is falling from a massive height - even while taking into account other factors like, say, snagging the farm boy who never went to Huntsmen school and might need to use you as a personal parachute - meant to be taken as a serious threat?

In this regard the void of Volume 8 is actually a GREAT idea. Suddenly your landing strategy doesn't mean a thing if you have nowhere to land. Suddenly a single hit can be a threat. Not because the hit itself would seriously hurt you, but because it might knock you off the edge. I actually love the concept of Yang falling at the start of that fight, RWBY just did such a horrific job of executing it that there's nothing left for me to enjoy. Why does Yang panic like that when, as established, a single hit from Neo is not going to kill Ruby, or even seriously hurt her? Why is she jumping in front of her sister at all when the entire POINT (supposedly) of her Volume 3+ arc was to learn fight smarter, rather than relying on emotional impulsivity? (I will seriously never be over how that moment is an exact repeat of Yang trying to save Blake and yet the show doesn't seem to realize that.) Why does only Blake have a reaction to Yang "dying"? Why didn't the whole team of talented fighters with various ranged weaponry/magic/speed make a serious attempt to catch her?

All of this isn't even taking into account how Yang, as someone who powers up via taking hits, should consistently be standing her ground like she did against the mech, knowing her aura will not only save her, but give her an advantage. She's the tank. If Yang had gotten in front of Ruby with a confident, calm expression that conveyed her understanding that Neo can't one-shot her aura like Adam once did, taking the hit both to spare Ruby's aura and power her semblance as a strategic decision (give her a smirk and a taunting line like, "Thanks for the boost" before knocking Neo back), then later falls some other way after her team tries and fails to save her... that would have been so much better imo.

Yang's lack of engagement with her semblance has been especially frustrating for me after her line about how Adam "cheats." If Yang thinks it sucks that she has to take a beating to gain an edge... show her actually taking a beating to gain an edge. You know, like the show once did. It would be so badass to watch Yang getting in the way of all the attacks against her team, toeing the line between safety and breaking her own aura, before finally EXPLODING with a massive attack she's been saving up for, making that sacrifice worth it.

(Also potentially devastating if she's taking those hits with turning the tide in mind... but then she falls before she can see her plan through.)

[snowblack-charcoalwhite]

I apologize in advance for how long this is but I've been so disappointed in this season and my only consolation is knowing other fans share my feelings. Going through your blog has been a relief. I honestly can't believe how badly they've mishandled Aemond this season.

I don't even think it's the plot itself, it's how they execute it that's so frustrating. If you insist on having these moments at least make them make sense for the character. I could see a rift forming between him and Alicent, pushing Aemond into being more cold and distant, but making that happen off screen makes it much less believable. Have him come home still shaken from what he's done and seeking comfort from the only person who's ever given him any. Only for that person to reject him in anger, forcing him to bottle up his own vulnerabilities. If you have to make him dismiss Alicent from the council, make it a misguided attempt to make it up to her, to 'save' her because she looks so miserable. A 'you can rest now mother, I will handle this' kind of thing. It's another form of the misogyny they tirelessly insist on pushing but it works better for his character. Make him try to bargain with Aegon for his silence, telling him that it's crucial for the stability of the realm if the truth doesn't come out, that Aemond only did what was necessary you see. It would be so interesting to see him try and pontificate while Aegon is just lying there whimpering and scared out of his mind. Add the threats in there but have Aemond provide some justification for his actions even though he once again let the monster in him take over in that battle.

I've always felt like the difference between Daemon and Aemond was that Deamon shamelessly pursued his own interests while Aemond had this angry righteousness to him. He felt slighted and mistreated all while seeing himself better than those around him. Seeing him try to justify his mounting cruelty while slowly spiraling and becoming more and more like his impulsive, selfish uncle would have been so interesting to see.

Alas, all we get is a shell of a once interesting character. It's such a shame to see him stripped of his only redeeming qualities. They've practically removed all the nuance from his character and I'll forever be disappointed by that.

Hello, and thank you for your message!

No need to apologize, I'm grateful to you for sharing your opinion - and glad that me doing the same on my blog could be of some help to you.

I loved the expression you used - "angry righteousness". In season 1 Aemond was built up as a dutiful son who is ready to do what is needed for his family in spite of his own ambition - that he has in spades - and that made his loyalty even more remarkable. I believe it would have been more in accordance with that characterization if Aemond had been actually shown to yearn for power because he truly believes he is the one that could wield it to the maximum advantage of his family. And the saddest thing is that it is exactly the angle Ewan has on Aemond's motivation, according to his interviews, but the script gave us nothing to support it with. Once again, the actor understands and cherishes his character way more and way better than the writers.

I also completely agree with you on the matter of poor execution. However much I dislike the fact of Aemond distancing himself from his family as a plot move (not giving any thought to Jaehaerys' murder, attacking Aegon, dismissing Alicent), the worst part is that his actions (or inaction) are kind of disconnected from each other - we can see the "what"- and we are kind of supposed to see the "why", I guess - but the pieces of the puzzle are not coming together. Aemond mostly remains closed off not only from other characters but from the audience as well, and the few vulnerable moments the script gave him work mostly thanks to Ewan's acting. And in general - there is not nearly enough of Aemond in this season where he was supposed to be one of the main characters.

Overall, this season is a huge disappointment (and not only because of what has been done to Aemond's character) but at least the acting has been top notch (from Ewan in particular and from pretty much everyone else) just as it was in season 1. It doesn't make up for all the flaws (if only in part) but I, for one, am going to take every crumb of goodness this excuse of a show will give.

[louhilainen]

Why King of Scars sucked, part 1.

So after finishing the duology a few weeks ago, I finally feel I’ve healed enough to rant about it, lol. I don’t have the energy to talk about everything I hated about the duology, because I don’t want to waste too much of my energy and time on the bullshit called King of Scars. But since I’m such a bitter bitch, I’ll talk about some issues I had with it. Mind you, I might remember some things wrong, and I have to admit that I don’t want to reread the books in detail, so this can be taken with a grain of salt. 

So firstly let’s talk about Zoya, and more specifically her past and why it failed me (and I think lots of other readers as well) to feel any kind of sympathy for her. So in the original trilogy we learn that Zoya had an aunt and niece in Novokribirsk, a town that the Darkling destroyed in an attempt to show off his powers to foreign emissaries. That made her ally herself with Alina, despite her being originally hostile and mean to her out of jealousy. No other information is provided about her past, and we do not learn anything about her aunt or niece. IMO Zoya was a fine side character in the trilogy. She’s bitchy, full of herself, but she’s not insufferable, and I liked the growing friendship between her and Alina. I will always remember Alina squeezing Zoya’s hand when Alina and the gang feared being buried alive in the tunnels. 

In the duology… Well, we all know what she’s like there. She’s mean, but not in an entertaining way, but in an exhausting way. She loses her temper so often that whoever made her the general of the second army must have been out of their mind (Looking at you, Nikolai), yet everyone still gushes about how beautiful and competent she is (Despite there being no evidence whatsoever about her being a good soldier or a leader, expect that she’s kick ass strong Squealer I suppose.). Everyone fears her, but for some reason they love her. (Or so we are told by who else but Nikolai). 

In the duology Zoya’s tragic past is extended beyond the trilogy. We learn that she was a child bride, sold by her own mother to a wealthy and rich man, and her aunt saved her from being married and took her to Little Palace as her powers surfaced. Oh, she’s also half-Suli, but can pass as Ravkan. But I could not bring myself to care about Zoya’s sad past. I’ve tried to think about why that is, and I’ve come to the conclusion that it’s because Zoya’s past has no effect whatsoever on the story.

How her past/trauma is handled is a stark contrast to how Kaz's trauma is shown in SoC (Mind you, I have my own issues with Kaz and SoC, but let’s not go there). In the SoC we learn there’s something behind Kaz’s ruthlessness and drive in making money. We also learn he cannot touch other people with his bare hands and that there’s something going on with him and Pekka Rollins and it’s personal. All the hints make the reader curious about Kaz’s past and what exactly happened. Later on, it’s revealed that Rollins swindled him and his older brother out of all their money. Weakened, Kaz’s brother died to an epidemic and Kaz almost too. The whole experience molded him into what he was.  

(Excuse me, but this part of my rant may be foggy, because I cannot pinpoint exactly why I hated the way Zoya’s sad past was written, but I’ll try my best.) But Zoya’s tragic background isn’t shown like Kaz’s. It’s just told. Yeah, we already know Zoya had relatives in Novokribirsk, so there’s no mystery there like in Kaz’s case. But I argue that if the author could still have written in a more interesting way. As it is now, it just doesn’t work. Zoya’s sad past is just some kind of decoration, of which purpose is to make us feel sorry for her. I felt Zoya’s past didn’t explain or add anything meaningful about her character. If anything, it left me angry, because clearly I was supposed to side with her, but I couldn’t.

Kaz’s trauma is closely linked to who he is. If what had not happened to him, he would be an entirely different person. But all Zoya’s background offers her the reason to join Alina and to hate the Darkling. You could argue that it’s part of the reason why Zoya is so mean, because she doesn’t want to get hurt by caring about people (But she was mean before losing her family so…). But if that’s the case, then it was poorly written. As it is now, It doesn’t explain her behavior. If you took her sad past away from her, it would change nothing. (The only scene I remember making a difference was when Zoya got mad at the pilgrims, and made a storm that made her, Nikolai and Yuri to be trapped with the saints). So why even add it there? Who knows. My best guess is to earn pity points from the reader.

So I hope this makes sense. I really could have elaborated this more, but I just don’t want to, lol. But next time I’m going to talk about the holy trinity of the Darkling’s victims: Zoya, Alina and Genya. Amen.

[alymccart]

Ask du jour because I’m in a lot of feelings right now and need a diversion from them and because I stayed home for a mental health day and have time to ask: Back to First Time, I feel like there’s a whole analysis or chapter behind Charlie’s words to Vaggie about their connection.

“It's been a long time. And I... uhh, I've never had this kind of connection with anyone before. This is... more intense than I was expecting.”

I’d love to get into this more because here’s Charlie, who is this being that shouldn’t even exist- or it’s unimaginable that she exists- and is astronomically powerful and probably as wise as time and space due to her connection with the cosmos (even though the show never talks about that but it has to be true? Maybe? I’m overthinking? I mean, I can’t imagine one could live as long as Charlie has and not have some wisdom). And Vaggie’s just a dead woman, right? Just a dead human woman (who I fucking love so much, this isn’t a criticism). So for Charlie to feel a connection with someone so much “less” than herself and for it to shake her enough during intimacy, Vaggie must be powerful herself. Maybe not in the same way as Charlie, but damn. She must have some kind of soulmate-level power over Charlie. Like they’re written in the stars and, in this one instance, Charlie is meant to be completely powerless.

Makes me wonder, as I am wont to do, how Vaggie’s story will evolve both in your fic and in canon.

Anyway, I think that’s enough word vomit for today. But also thank you? You don’t know it but writing these thoughts helped quiet a small feelings storm in my head.

TT^TT Another fantastic ask.

I really REALLY do feel like there's more to Vaggie than the show has shown us so far, which is why I'm attempting to kinda-sorta foreshadow that in my fics. I have no actual idea what exactly that "more" is, and I may end up being way off base, but I want to believe. Although the alt version of their first time that's going to be in Hellfire goes a slightly different direction, the same general scenario still plays out.

I definitely agree with your assessment about Charlie's power. She's the daughter of the first demon in hell and a very powerful angel (in my fic I'm going to with Lucifer being a seraph, though that isn't confirmed as far as I know), so there has GOT to be more to her than what we have seen. I'm going to bet there's some angel qualities that'll crop up as the story progresses (maybe she'll get wings!?). I also feel like Charlie is treated like a child in the show way, way too much. Until it's confirmed in the show, we don't really know for sure that she's over 200 years old, but going on that assumption, there is absolutely no way she's as naive as people seem to think she is. Sheltered? Maybe a bit, but she's a busybody, so there's no way she spent all of her life cooped up in a palace or something. So, my fic/headcanon Charlie has been around. She wants to help, she wants to be involved, she wants to experience things; she wants to make Hell a better place and to do that she needs to learn everything she can about it. Considering the fact that she's a one-of-a-kind royal hellborn demon and more-or-less impervious to permanent/killing damage from just about anything around her (save for strong angels like Adam and angelic steel weapons, and Carmilla is not stupid enough to sell them to someone who wanted to hurt Charlie because Lucifer would shred her to pieces) there's not much reason for her to be overly cautious.

"Soulmate-level power" is one way to put it. I really feel like Charlie and Vaggie's connection was at least catalyzed in their mutual desire to see this whole "redemption" thing through. For Charlie, it's to help her people. For Vaggie, it's partly to prove that she herself is worthy of redemption and partly to help end the cycle of death altogether. Murdering all of those Sinner souls and only questioning it after thousands had died, then thinking she had done the Right Thing and immediately being mutilated and abandoned by people she trusted as a result really effed her up, imo, and she's obsessive about making up for it. I think after that initial spark, Charlie sees someone she can truly believe is her equal, if not in power, but spiritually, so she is willing to let her guard down. She's comfortable showing that side of herself to Vaggie, and Vaggie is comfortable with that side of Charlie, so, in the context of First Time, it ends up being harder for her to hold back (and maybe a bit of unconscious "I don't want to hold back" that she has to fight for fear of hurting someone she believes is a squishy Sinner demon).

I'll see how things play out as the fic progresses. I've got a general direction set, but things like to crop up and throw me off course as I write (which I love, tbh). Thank you for the thoughts! Getting to really mull this stuff over out loud is really helpful. :>