#anyway i think a dangerous amount about these two and this family in general

[midnightdemonhunter]

i love you, jack.

[theresattrpgforthat]

i want to go treasure hunting with maps n traps. any recs?

THEME: Maps, Traps & Treasure.

Hello friend, you seem to be in the market for a dungeon game. I have good news for you: there are many dungeon games!

For most OSR games, the book might come with some rules on how to make your own dungeon, rather than coming with pre-written maps. If you don’t want to create your own dungeon, there are oodles of pre-written dungeons that should be pretty easily convertible for whatever OSR game you choose to play. I’ll list a few below!

Dungeoneering, by Grinning Rat.

DUNGEONEERING is a quick-and-dirty tabletop role-playing game where players explore dungeons, gather treasure, and fight monsters. Game Masters are encouraged to use the sample dungeon within, or generate their own with the creation tools, to facilitate these dangerous delves.

Dungeoneering feels like a quick one-shot type experience about gathering as much loot as you can inside a dungeon run. The amount of treasure you gather is also a measure of how well you did - a “score”, if you will. The game states that it is best built for exactly 4 players, each with a different character class and skill-set. For the dungeon master, the game has instructions on how to build a dungeon, complete with roll-tables for dungeon types and layout. You’ll probably do well enough with a grid map and some markers, although the creators of the game have a few supplements available: Catalysts, which expands character options and Wanderers which not only provide two new roles, but also gives you more dungeon options and loot.

Errant, by Kill Jester.

You have no home. You have no job. You have no friends. You have no family. You have no prospects.

What you do have are a handful of pennies, a blithe disregard for your own life, and a particular set of skills. The kind of skills that make respectable folks avoid you. 

Out there, beyond civilization, lies danger: monsters and magic and  ancient ruins pregnant with treasure. Death is likely, but what did you  have to live for anyway? At least out there is the chance to make  something of yourself, and maybe even get back at those who wronged you. This is no life for decent folk, but you’re not decent folk. You are an Errant.

What is Errant? Errant is a classic fantasy role-playing game in the vein of the first few editions of that role-playing game and its many imitators and descendants such as Knave, Into the Odd, and The Black Hack. It is freely compatible with material for all those games as well as the newest edition of that role-playing game, with conversion guides provided within.

With over 200 pages of rules, Errant provides detailed instructions for all kinds of things that could happen in play: travel, magic retainers, exploration, combat, and more. The players will create a map as they play, filling it in according to what they understand - and importantly, not necessarily accurately. The GM’s map may have many more secrets or truths that the characters will likely have to work to discover.

Errant happens over the course of different kinds of turns, which have a different procedure depending on what is happening in the game. There is a process for Exploration, for Combat, and for Downtime, which might provide you with the structure to move from one part of the story to the next… but it also might be a bit slower than the kind of game you’re looking for.

If you want content for Errant, it’s certainly out there! Kill Jester has an adventure called Tomb Robbers of the Crystal Frontier, as well as a module called The Curse of the Ganshogger, to get you started.

Crowns, by Ward Against Evil.

Humanity hides in sheltered villages. Monsters prowl the wilderness.  You are the few foolish enough to leave safety. Find your fortunes in the dungeon. And try not to die.

Crowns is a simple enough dungeon system with advancement tied to the amount of gold you acquire - so I think it meets the treasure requirement for sure! There are very specific rules for line of sight, doors, lighting, and creating your own openings in the cracks and nooks of the dungeon, which can help make the dungeon feel alive and exciting - although definitely not safe.

As is typical in the OSR style, you won’t find a fully fleshed out dungeon in the rules, although you will find rules on how to make your own. If you want some extra bits to play with, Crowns does have some interesting supplements, such as Season of Crows, a war-based expansion event, and Armies of Man, a bestiary that looks like it works rather well with Season of Crows.

Crawlr: Basic, by BLK Feather Press.

From the Black Sludge seeping from the lip of the Primordial Cauldron crawls the descendants of dead men. YOU are born from that sludge, and when you die, you shall return to the sludge.

CRAWLR is a table-top role-playing game where you and your friends take on the role of adventurers, cutthroats, profiteers, and even heroes all in the collective imagination of your minds. All you need is pen, paper, and 2d6.

Crawlr: Basic is rather lightweight, but it has rules for changing the dungeon as you go, and a neat little mechanic for timing how long a torch lasts, which might heighten the danger of the dungeon. It also has a table for creatures’ reactions upon stumbling upon you, and a d66 table for useful items that you might pick up. When it comes to traps, I think you might have to get ideas from other modules, but the creator looks like they might be releasing an “Advanced” version in the future.

You can also get blank monster cards and character sheets for free!

.dungeon remastered, by snow.

Welcome to the ruins of Annwn. The once populated hills of this massively multiplayer online game are now void. They call it a Dead MMO. A polygonal mess of PS1-era graphics, empty plains, and dungeons that grow and grow and grow from the inside of the planet's wounds. Up above, the eye of the sad god glares its chromatic light down upon the remaining players, while its tormented hand contorts into magical shapes, rarely crossing paths in their messy orbit. When they do, the shadow magic that powers the game explodes with its ancient might.

In .dungeon, you play through character creation as if it was a game of its own, with each step formatted like the room of a dungeon. You generate the world using dice rolls, while the game itself is played using a hex map. You can run an adventure like a hex crawl, which generates interesting encounters and scenery every time your characters move to a new hex. You can use elements from the book to generate a hex crawl, but it looks like there’s also a “tutorial” level that your characters will encounter directly after character creation.

.dungeon is also fantasy-ish: it takes place in a video game, so your adventurers are likely to run into a few places or things that have something a bit more sci-fi in nature. I think that overall, the layout of this book makes the game easier for the group to learn how to all play at the same time, which might be good for a GM who wants to spread the responsibility of game knowledge a bit more evenly. I’m not entirely sure how a hex-crawl would map onto a dungeon, but I think that a lot of the vibes carry across.

Slash Hex, by Danielaurence

Slash Hex is an adventure role-playing game in which players will use their creativity and imaginations to explore a wild and dangerous world, hunting for treasure, defeating monsters, and engaging in other mostly heroic exploits.

This game is heavily inspired by giants that have come before, most notably in name by the /X side of the original B/X books, but also Basic Fantasy, Knave, White Box, and The Black Hack.

While it is inspired by the aforementioned games, Slash Hex has morphed into something that has a footprint of its own, while still remaining largely compatible with classic modules.

What I think Slash/Hex has going for it is the list of fantasy monsters - typical monsters, but there’s a lot of them - as well as the well-detailed list of magic items that you can pick up and use while exploring a dungeon. Most of the focus of this game is on character abilities, so if you want a more unique character, you might like this game. The downside is that the game as it is has little to no advice on how to create a dungeon; I’m thinking that perhaps the creator is relying on you to find other established dungeon modules and use their rules to run through those.

Dungeon Crawl Classics, by Goodman Games.

You’re no hero. You’re an adventurer: a reaver, a cutpurse, a heathen-slayer, a tight-lipped warlock guarding long-dead secrets. You seek gold and glory, winning it with sword and spell, caked in the blood and filth of the weak, the dark, the demons, and the vanquished. There are treasures to be won deep underneath, and you shall have them. 

Return to the glory days of fantasy with the Dungeon Crawl Classics Role-Playing Game. Adventure as 1974 intended, with modern rules grounded in the origins of sword & sorcery. Fast play, cryptic secrets, and a mysterious past await you: turn the page…

DCC RPG is a fast-paced, open-feeling rules set allowing for epic game experiences without unnecessary tethers. It uses modern game-play while paying homage to the origins of role-playing and the fun that it inspired.

Dungeon Crawl Classics is one of the largest, most popular OSR titles, with more than just fantasy up its sleeve. You can find the same rule-set in its sister products, such as Mutant Crawl Classics (post-apocalyptic), or X Crawl Classics (dystopian fantasy). There’s also oodles of content built for this rule-set, which will give you a story or adventure ready to run right out of the box. This is traditional dungeon-crawling, complete with treasure as a reward, and plenty of puzzles and traps to work through.

You can get the free Quickstart rules here, and I’ve heard that the fanbase and creative community is also very supportive!

Some dungeon modules to consider include:

White Scales, by 1pagedungeons, which introduces a low-level dragon.

The Valley of Flowers, by Phantom Mill, which was Ennie-nominated this year!

Trouble in the Gladden Brook Reservoir, by AoSmiles, a short tri-fold adventure about a body of water that refines crude magic.

Candleberry Jam by GLASS/CUTTER, a murder mystery on a sleepy island!

Other Notes….

You might also like Cairn, by Yochai Gal, which has a 1st and a 2nd edition, both of which are free. There are many many supplements for this game, and it often matches well with Into the Odd adventures as well.

I’ve also talked about Sojourn in the past, as a dungeon-crawling game with some solid high-ranking reviews.

You can also give me a tip by donating to my Ko-fi!

[markov--chains]

Kasane Teto headcanon masterpost [remake]

[ don't tag as kin/me/etc.]

Gen lore post for my teto design you see on my profile sometimes!! Figured it was a good time as ever to remake this since the original post has some very dated cringe old info that is still up via reblogs so I think it'd be better if i remade the whole thing LOL. Created in late 2020 when I drew teto with more beastly chimera features and this specific design stuck with me!! I've accumulated a decent amount of xenobiology headcanons related to her specific species of chimera since then. behold my little beastie. Funfact she kinda behaves like a sona/mascot therefore she ages with me!! So at the time of writing this post, she's in her early 20s.

Teto is a species of humanoid chimera with moderate shapeshifting abilities. She's able to appear anywhere between her full chimera form (above) and a fully human form! Shapeshifting was a learned ability in monsters as both a mechanic to better hunt, and also a way to blend in with human civilizations as they progressed.

Teto and most chimera commonly shift to hide their wings to aid in stealth while hunting/stalking prey, and just for general ease of access. which is why drawing her with wings is optional!! I didn't wanna draw her huge wings every time cause thats a pain. Chimera have very large wingspans, so as a result they can sometimes struggle with taking off from the ground, often needing to fly from a jumping point. They're also capable of breathing fire, but only in small spurts, so it's more just used as an intimidation display than for actual attacking purposes.

Chimera are (obviously) fully sapient predator species like humans, but unlike humans, are obligate carnivores! Teto however, ignores this and loves eating non-meat human food and then complains that her stomach hurts all the time. Chimera are also much more in touch with their species's instincts than their human lookalikes, and human behavior is a learned trait. They can purr, hiss, growl, and roar to an extent, though it's more like the kind of roar you'd hear from a mountain lion or bobcat than a tiger. Chimera are also very long-lived, having a lifespan of 100-120 years, with records of lifespans even going all the way to 150! There are two types of chimera, venomous and nonvenomous, and they're physically identical except for their tails. Venomous chimera are a sub-species and are basically genetically identical save for their serpent tails, while nonvenomous ones will have harmless forked tails like Teto. Chimera venom is highly dangerous to humans and small animals, but a human can survive a bite if they seek medical attention within an hour of being bitten. All chimera are immune to their snake tail venom though, even the nonvenomous ones, though a bite will still cause some dizziness and shortness of breath for a short while. If one parent is a venomous chimera and the other not, their child has a 50/50 chance of being either.

The snake tails on venomous chimera are not alive beings, but are rather very intricate natural mimicry used to warn other animals to steer clear of the tail.

I also have designs for other members of Teto's family who I don't draw as often, Ted and Tei! Tei is Teto's cousin in this specific setting, and since I've gotten some questions about this in the past, Tei is not an albino chimera! She's just got white hair and pink eyes, but those aren't a result of albinism. She's teto's white trash cousin

^ last two are photos from my abandoned askblog i will revive eventually i swear to god. lmao. anyway thats about it!! This post will get added onto as I tweak general lore/biology stuff.

I just ask that people not use these designs in their own personal works, especially teto since she's practically like a sona at this point, but people are welcome to draw them if they like!! please tag me i love to see :3

[wuffgang-ameowdeus-moozart]

Another average day in Family Video:

You are another average midwest small-town teen. You are also completely and utterly fucked.

You lost the rock, paper, scissors game in your friendgroup and have to do the most terrifying mundane task there is in Hawkins: return a movie to Family Video.

For a moment you stand frozen in front of the doors. Unfortunately said doors are transparent, and you can already see the two monsters behind the counter whispering to one another while staring at you. You take a deep breath and enter.

You do not feel brave enough to confront them head on yet, so you browse a bit in the horror section. Your hands start shaking when you see The Exorcist. You had sworn to yourself that you would not rent anything, no matter what. That this would be the last time you entered this godforsaken store. But....The Exorcist man.

While you ponder this impossible dilemma you hear snickering. You swear you can feel two pairs of judgemental eyes staring at you, but every time you look up they seem to be busy with something. You look down at the movie you are here to return: The Shining. They eerily remind you of the identical twins.

You muster all your courage and walk up to the counter. As soon as they notice you they stop whispering.

"Have you read the book?", Steve Harrington asks when you return The Shining. You are pretty sure he has never willingly read a book in his life. You shake your head, no. Their expressions don't change but you get the feeling that that was the wrong answer.

"You didn't rewind the tape", Robin Buckley says as if you have wronged her personally. You curse Tommy under your breath, he had sworn up and down that he had done it.

"You should never trust men", Steve Harrington, a man, says.

You start regretting taking The Exorcist. This interaction could've already been over.

"Did you enjoy the acting?", Robin Buckley aggressively asks. Maybe she is still mad about the tape or maybe she is just an angry person in general. "Specifically Wendy."

"Uh, yeah. It was...really good."

Steve shakes his head in disappointment. You are not sure where you misstepped this time.

"You know this movie is by Kubrick, right?", she continues. You did not, but you nod anyway. "He treats his actors very badly. Especially the female ones. Do you agree with this? Do you think it is okay to jeopardize the safety and well-being of actors if it will result in "a better performance"? After all, actors die, but movies are forever"

You are not sure what the correct answer is.

"I would suspect that your answer is yes", Steve Harrington (who now apparently is also a movie connoisseu) says, holding up The Exorcist. "Considering that they put the twelve years old main actress in multiple actively dangerous situations"

"I...I guess. Dunno."

Steve Harrington and Robin Buckley exchange a long look. Finally, he names the price. The time it takes to search for the correct amount of money in your wallet is longer than both movies combined. You do not dare to look up while you shove the money on the counter and leave, The Exorcist in hand, without another word.

You exit Family Video. Your hands are trembling. You are regretting every life decision you have ever made. You swear to yourself that you will never enter that godforsaken store again. You look down at the movie you just rented. You sigh.

(more)

[familyagrestefanblog]

If the woman at the pool really is Amilie then from S6 onwards we will have 2 orphans in the main narrative: Adrien and Lila

That fact that it's these two is honestly weirdly giving me hope

and yes, Adrien is an orphan. Just because he doesn't live alone and has legal guardian/s and a girlfriend doesn't it mean he isn't an orphan anymore. Marinette holding his hands and kissing him is not undoing the fact that Adrien's mother died harshly of illness almost 2 years ago and he thinks his father now died because Ladybug was partnerless and Gabriel as the only adult member of the Resistance and as Adrien's father - Adrien, who was thought to have been kidnapped - filled in Chat's place to defeat Monarque.

The amount of death surrounding Adrien's narrative right now - if the woman truly is Amilie - is beyond concerning.

Add Adrien blaming himself for Monarque having been cataclysmed in "Destruction" to the mix, plus depending on how Ladybug will go about Monarque's defeat she may use as a cover story towards the world in a panic reaction that Monarque crumbled to dust because of the cataclysm, which would indirectly but very directly include making Chat Noir responsible for Monarque's death in front of the whole world which in normal Miraculous fashion Marinette probably only accepts 20 episodes later to sweep it under the rug because *sighs; unfortunately insert random excuse for why she's blameless*

And let's not forget the fact that Adrien still had to wittness Nathalie having been sick like his mother (though Adrien never saw Nathalie in her worst state) and he also knows that Nathalie and his father were very close to the point where he has already given his blessing in season 3 and in s5 Nathalie has worn his mother's ring.

And now Adrien has every reason to blame himself for his father's death.

Take a damn guess if Nathalie being his legal guardian is enough for Adrien to not be or feel like an orphan anymore!

Then there is Amilie being around who looks like his dead mother and most likely can't stand either of his dead parents

Or Félix being around who gave ShadowMoth the 15 miraculous' which made Monarque as powerful and dangerous as he was (that's an objective fact) which for Adrien also would have lead into his father's death which is gonna be awful when Félix bad mouths Gabriel with Kagami, Marinette, Ladybug or in general.

Depending on what everyone else thinks and remembers, Adrien's friends may bad mouth Gabriel as Adrien's father too since that's what everything has lead up to by "Representation".

And let's not even get into Lila now.

The way Lila at this point would have such alarmingly easy game taking Adrien from Marinette and the rest of his friends and family, and also Chat Noir from Ladybug and her team that has barely ever been his anyway - especially now that there are 4 people in Ladybug's team who know her identity and he will continue not being allowed to be included in any of that, because I don't know how realistic it is to hold onto any hope regarding this - is ... insane. This is absolutely insane.

I know hoping that the new villain will latch onto everything bad and unfair is a shitty and biased thing to do, but Lila's villain narrative will be all about her being an orphan (right? That makes sense with the whole mothers thing and her extreme attention seeking behavior while not having a home. Just dialed up to the worst 11) and now Adrien is one too after.. all of THAT and how Adrinette and especially Ladynoir are at risk because of all the lies and secrets Lila is perfectly aware of.

For me there is a difference between wanting a new villain to latch onto the unfair treatment of a character because of one's own personal biase and just straight up refusing to get out of one's denial to acknowledge it when a new villain not only as an established character but story wise too has every reason in the book to do that now.

Do what you want, but I'm not putting my TRUST into LILA for her to not be as stupid as Gabriel because that's "mean to Marinette/Ladybug"

[nevertheless-moving]

i very much enjoyed the eventual explanation for Vin's Whole Deal but i also spent a good chunk of book one and two, (and maybe also more than a few idle moments in book three) waiting for a reveal that she was also a feruchemist. Just. There were so many parallels between her and the lord ruler, you know??

just thinking about the au...

a nice alternate explanation to her unnatural-even-for-a-mistborn grace, strength and power, just a bit better than she should be, and has such wild swings of fortune during a few of her fights because she's unconsciously storing up than releasing corresponding powers in her internal flakes.

of course it's taking her so long to realize - no one wears actual amounts of metal, so she's constantly burning her stores before they get large enough to be noticeable.

she was able to sense sazed's feruchemical store when she burnt it why would that be an allomantic ability i'm still kindof mad we didn't see her even TRY feruchemy anyway au

sazed teaching her...bonding moments...family...

funny moments where sazed and kelsier get weirdly competitive over who's got dibs on the daughter-he-never-thought-he'd-have

I am a SUCKER for zero-dads to multiple dad's trope...

(and thinking about how there HAD to be some feruchemy in the ska population, since the terris people weren't always so separate from the general population)

in addition to noblewoman, thief, mistborn, ska urchin - here's ANOTHER burden, ANOTHER heritage, ANOTHER identity - some pressure to be a Keeper, at least store the books, even if you do nothing else -

imagining reen as a feruchemist, constantly running from town to town because for some reason him, totally ska him, he can do things, things like a misting, but even more obvious, and allomantic vials just make him sick

unconscious feruchemy leading to mental instability (her mother). What happens when you store memories or mental attributes , but never get them back? you're just losing time and strength and willpower to the metal in your groundwater...and it's gone, passed through your body unless you happen to be an allomancer who can burn it back...

duralium-esque shenanigans during book two trying out the lord ruler's youth combo and accidentally making herself into a child. it's resolved eventually but there should have been AT LEAST a few chapters of 11 year old Vin mowing down assassins

HULK PEWTER VIN! HULK PEWTER VIN! FINALLY SHE ACTUALLY LOOKS AS DANGEROUS AS SHE IS! FIVE FOOT NOTHING HULK PEWTER VIN FIGHTING HAMM!!!!

infinite free health combo (somehow? i don't quite understand the mechanic, perhaps it's revealed somewhere else in sanderson books. is it just storing up health? seems like getting flayed would fuck that up. look, we know the lord ruler figured it out, since it's part of his whole Canon that he can't die, a Lot of people have tried)

ANYWAY I am also a fan of "unkillable" character trope where person starts getting too reckless during fights while enemies panic and their loved one's look on in horror because they're still getting hurt

All of the above does NOT help with the whole worshiping thing

staying awake for WAY too long with bronze earring...come on sanderson i know my girl was double deity op but consider if she was even MORE

FERUCHEMY IS OF BOTH PRESERVATION AND RUIN COME ON Y'ALL THINK ABOUT IT

...if it turns out there's an annotation in one of these books that she was actually a feruchemist but it never came up i don't know if i'd be more angry or more vindicated...if there is...okay people can spoil this one (1) thing...

aaah alas - it could have been so sick - feruchemist mistborn fight scene my beloved who shall never be...unless...

[cartograffiti]

April '24 reading diary

This month, I finished 9 books in a whole bunch of genres, some of which were fab!

I read a lot more nonfiction than usual this month, starting with On Looking: Eleven Walks with Expert Eyes. Alexandra Horowitz recorded her conversations with a variety of experts as they walked through neighborhoods looking for examples of their interests, from bugs to typography to whatever attracted her toddler son. Like some reviewers I saw, I was disappointed that not all the walks were in the same neighborhood, which had appeared to be the premise. I also strongly recommend listening to the audiobook, as I did, because some of the conversational wording transcribed from her recordings is unnatural or repetitive written out. Anyway, a lot of the chapters are interesting, and the general theme of appreciating different things about your area by choosing to key in on a thought is great. A pleasant book.

Two great nonfiction books about clothes: Cally Blackman's 100 Years of Fashion, and Behind the Seams by Dolly Parton with Holly George-Warren and Rebecca Seaver. Both books are about fashion in the 20th century and a little bit beyond, and both are huge, heavy books full of the most glorious, well-chosen photographs. Blackman's is nicely organized around themes and not strictly by year, showing not only high fashion, but also the clothes of counterculture scenes and working women. This is a great resource. Parton's book, of course, is about her own stage costumes, and some other clothes people have made for her. It's also a memoir of her changing style and the professionals who contributed to it. Lots of fun.

The best nonfiction book I read this month (and possibly in the past year) was Africa Is Not a Country: Notes on a Bright Continent by Dipo Faloyin. His written voice is exceptionally strong, able to explain large amounts of historical context without it ever feeling dry or overwhelming. Faloyin makes powerful breakdowns of historical misconceptions and contemporary stereotypes, includes a hugely funny "how-to" guide on writing an awful movie set in Africa, and draws memorable comparisons between political corruption in Western and African nations. There is a description of young men striving not to allow anyone outside their friend group to hold the highest offices in their country, phrased so that the final punch line is that they were talking about the United Kingdom that I think is one of the most effective freeform arguments I've ever read. I very much hope other people will pick this up.

On the fiction side, Dial A for Aunties by Jesse Q. Sutanto has been on my radar since it was new. I understand why it was such a hit, but I was disappointed! The book was advertised to me as a murder mystery and romance, neither of which I'd say is true. It's a family screwball comedy! It does that very well, but I got tired of the number of plot beats that required someone to be very silly indeed, and I was never sold on Meddy's logic in multiple plot threads. I don't think I'll read the next.

The short story collection Filthy Animals by Brandon Taylor is a mixed bag, like every short story collection in the world. I think he's very skilled on a technical level at creating characters with complete lives and histories implied in a short space, and some of them have interesting things to say about how people reach out, lash out, struggle with guilt and illness, and the problem of kitsch (not in the sense of knickknacks, but of the denial of shit). I do find the stories pretty bleak, and I was very unimpressed with the interconnecting elements. The stories that link are about Lionel, a test proctor who recently survived a suicide attempt, and several dancers, two of whom he begins a poly relationship with. Except for the first, these stories neither stand alone well nor build on each other as a sequence. The relationship is written with a dangerous, taboo edge, largely because these people never properly have any conversations about it, which I found irritating. I'm glad to be familiar with Taylor's work now, but I think he gets in his own way trying to shock in all of the weaker stories.

I also read a single Edith Wharton short story that I didn't realize wasn't a novel until I opened the ebook. It's the wonderful "Xingu," in which a ladies' intellectual lunch club finds themselves at a loss trying to talk to their superior and unfriendly guest, until their least popular member pipes up to ask a question about Xingu. They all follow her lead, trying all the while to infer what, exactly, Xingu is. Great little satire of how people want to look current more than they want to enjoy things.

I grabbed Heartstopper vol. 1 because I needed a banned comic for a challenge, and that's almost synonymous with being a popular LGBTQ+ comic for young people. Frustrated hand gestures. Anyway, this is very sweet, would be totally appropriate for middle schoolers as well (it's sold as YA), and I somehow hadn't realized before that Alice Oseman is the same person who did a webcomic about a band I used to read from time to time when I was younger. I would have liked this a lot more when I was a teenager myself, but it's nostalgic and happy, so I may read the rest.

I'm still reading Lymond and in early April I finished the 3rd of 6 books, The Disorderly Knights. I had a very messy response to this one! I did in fact enjoy it tremendously, and it's technically excellent, full of things that grabbed me and kept me excited to read more every night. I love my problematic bestie Francis and many of the people around him. It also most sharply of the series so far shows upsetting attitudes of Dunnett's by participating in '60s rape culture and Islamophobia that I went beyond being critical of to angry about. It simply wouldn't have been published like this now. I still gave it four stars and I may even go up to five when I have a better sense of how it fits in the long arc of the series. In a thinner or less tailored to me series, these feelings couldn't coexist, but they do, and that's very much shared by everyone else I've been talking to the books about. I'm really glad I have people to talk to them about! It's a long-standing but not very Online^tm fandom. I'm already halfway through the next book.

[the-darkness-does-not-bargain]

oh all the talk about ava & lilith and how they don’t think they need to talk about things but need therapy anyway (that isn’t feasible because of the reasons you’ve mentioned) is convenient because i’ve been rotating a bit avalil’s relationship with beatrice and some of the problems in it, and idk the amount/degree but i feel like there’s a bit of a problem because they’re either too hovery, not hovery enough or usually both at the time

avalil are used to accommodating for each other for literal centuries, and often only for each other because while they probably have a ton of contacts and friends either had very few or didn’t have any actual close friends or family and/or life stuff kept them seperated and unable to contact others often, especially with diego’s shadow hanging over ava, and lilith’s general *waves*

so yeah, saying ava & lilith are used to it mostly just being the two of them and the other being the only person in their life that they had to consistently account for is a massive understatement and whike they’re trying and learning to accommodate for beatrice, ava & lilith are ava & lilith so they often tend to veer into one direction too much. and the fact that beatrice is relatively young, super new to the supernatural stuff, and is a werewolf who’s new to being a werewolf which reminds ava of diego a tad too much at times definitely doesn’t help things.

and it’s a bitch because while things are obviously a lot better and more genuine with avalil, their behavior reminds beatrice too much of her parents and family sometimes

semi related (or maybe not at all related, who knows), i’ve been picturing mary and/or shannon as being concerned for beatrice and really wary of avalil at least initially, because of how often the immortals who appear and/or are mostly or completely human or obtained their immortality through shady means. mary and/or shannon are especially shady probably because vincent is or tried to become immortal and manipulated mary & shannon to do so

and depending on if and how vincent is connected to adriel, finding out about lilith’s connection to adriel doesn’t help, along w any problems they might have unwittingly gleamed, guessed or heard from beatrice about her friendship & relationship w ava & lilith

See, what I realized is that they just need to engineer a Lucifer situation where they find an awesome therapist like Linda Martin who can they tell about their immortality. Easier said than done but I have faith in them. Well, I have faith in their friends' ability to find such a therapist, not their ability to attend sessions.

But yeah, they know each other's coping mechanisms and have rearranged everything around them. They don't make comments, they avoid hard questions, they dance around the issues for literal ages. Ava doesn't ask Lilith about what she does when she occasionally runs off, Lilith doesn't ask Ava why she's scared of mazes and won't use the magic she inherently possesses.

And they don't mean to repeat that song and dance with Bea, but it's a tough habit to break. Maybe they come off as unavailable when Bea needs someone to talk to, when really they're just used to not asking upsetting questions.

And I'm sure the others are wary of Ava and Lil, probably especially Mary and Shannon, whether Vincent was involved or not. One or both of them might be old enough to have met another immortal or heard stories about them, and so their danger senses are immediately activated by these two ancient weirdos who have seemingly beguiled their friend.

I'm imagining that however Ava became immortal was accidental. I really do think she might have swallowed the philosopher's stone, meaning that someone else (Reya, perhaps? 👀) was probably trying to become immortal and she foiled them. Maybe Adriel (and by extension Vincent) have and/or are trying to do the same thing with horrifying consequences.

[hyperfixation-tangentopia]

Hello

Wanted to ask

Favorite pizza toping?

Also, any OC lore for your current obsession [shows]?

I like sausage, or good ol' reliable cheese

YOU HAVE ACTIVATED MY TRAP CARD MWAHAHA

ROTTMNT OC TIME I WOULD LIKE TO INTRODUCE ALL OF YOU TO THE APOCALYPSE TWINS

So, I was thinking the other day, oozesquitos can mutate pretty much anything biological, right? Plants, Sloppy Jo, etc. And Donnie describes the Krang stuff as "some kind of Krang bio-growth".

And so...

The Apocalyptic Twins were born! This would be set in the Apocalyptic timeline, where basically I made a couple Krang Mutant OCs and shoved 'em in there.

Neither of them have names (yet, I plan on giving them some soon). The first one I usually call "Chaotic Ebny" (or just Ebny for shorthand) and they go by they/them. They have three eyes and an unnecessary amount of tentacles :3.

They have their own lab dedicated to researching Krang stuff (they're a little obsessed with it) and are usually mistaken as a Krang by the infected/Krang Hounds, so they will walk straight into a Krang camp, grab what they need, and bounce without even telling anyone. ...This also means they're mistaken as a Krang by the Resistance pretty frequently and have almost had their head taken off many, many times for it. They also try to mimic people to put them at ease (copy a smile in a show of friendliness, etc.) but it's always like...in the creepiest way possible, completely on accident. (The brothers blame a mix of Donnie and Casey for this one). They also will climb around on the walls and ceilings and chill out like a spider, and don't come out of their lab that often, so they're pretty universally regarded as a freak and plenty of rumors drift around about them. They're aware of it. They don't give a shit.

They run on the mentally of "they're never gonna accept me anyway, so I'm just gonna do my thing and ignore anyone who decides they have something to say about it" and can be kind of unpredictable, but to the people close to them they care very deeply and feel very strongly for. ...This usually manifests in threats of violence, death, and oddly creative torture on anyone who dared hurt their friends or family. To few people's surprise, they're very close with Casey and April, and the three of them love pulling pranks on the Resistance or doing the weirdest shit just for other people's reactions. They also frequently drag Casey Jr. on dangerous trips into Krang Territory (which definitely has backfired them once or twice or...a few dozen times) and will loop Donnie into experimenting on Krang stuff with them in their lab, but while they can be careless with their friend's safety sometimes, they often end up pulling allies out of the way of enemy attacks because their third eye gives them a better range of vision.

Ebny: I forget you're so...squishy.

Casey Jr.: You're literally made of squishy Krang skin!

The second one I call "Tired Transmasc" (or Transmasc for short) and go by he/they pronouns. Also yes, they get to be little trans Krang I don't care. How does that work? Fuck if I know! They have the little frills and can do that mystic nullification shriek, and can also do that Kraangification thingy. The discovery of both of these abilities were...fun ones.

He's generally pretty quiet and prefers to sit and observe, and is more often the picked on one of the two since he's around Resistance members more and has a harder time standing up for himself or brushing off any comments. They're pretty sure everyone in the Resistance dislikes or hates them because they're a Krang Mutant and they're not entirely wrong, and they ended up getting really insecure and watching everything they did really closely because of it. His tone control and reading of social ques is also crap, so he ends up being too harsh with people on accident or his tone making him sound angry when he's more likely just tired, which doesn't help anything.

They're very much the friend that makes sure everyone takes care of themself, which is very much needed in the case of their sibling (who will literally hole up for days because they can last longer without food & water n stuff), but is also really bad at taking care of themself and stays up until 3 AM dwelling on how bad of a person they probably are instead of sleeping. He makes connections quickly and deeply and is very protective of the people he cares about, to the point that he will jump straight into the line of fire to defend someone (even those he doesn't care about them to try to prove he's not a monster), and has gotten hurt in the process many, many times. They frequently find some comfort in Raph and will just perch on Raph's shoulders (a habit they picked up very young) while Raph is doing stuff, in part because it's a good perch for hearing everything and hanging out and in part because absolutely nobody will dare to openly mock them while Raph is around. (It happened once. It didn't happen again.) Raph affectionately calls him his "backpack" or "new shell".

Sooo I was gonna go a bit more in here but. Um. I didn't realize I'd ramble so much sooo yeah. I'm sorry lol trap card activated. I hope you like them :3 sorry this wasn't LMK but like. Ya follow where the hyperfixation takes you lol.

I will provide more like. Backstory (like how they ended up with the Resistance and all that). Laterr if anyone wants it. I know this was a TON to read (and I'm sorry! Ish!) so here's your reward! Little Toddler Krangs! (First time drawing them alright, I'm figuring out exactly how I want them to look).

Your reward for making it this far ^^

[persoj]

People have entered and exited this café since I started running it. Most look terrified as they enter, wary of this new environment. I find the best thing to do is smile, sit them down with a cup and explain the whole thing to them. I have a script for it now, almost fully memorised. Usually goes a little like this:

"Here, have a cup. Sit down. My name is Ava. I run this café. Right now, you're not quite alive. You're not dead, don't panic yet. But here is where most come before they pass on. Most people who come in here usually make it out alive, though. At the moment, there's probably someone trying to save your life in a hospital or something. Imagine that! Or maybe you've been put in a coma. Like [Name] over there, they've been here for [Amount of time]. Why don't you go and talk to them? They can probably answer some of your questions."

At the moment, the person who I usually refer them too is Jamie. He's been here for about 2 weeks. Keeps to himself for the most part, unless I send someone over. Then he opens up a bit. He told me that he finds comfort in knowing that he'll probably never meet these people face to face. And even if he does, they won't know what he looks like. That's the fun thing about this place. You don't ever look like yourself, not unless you really want to. I think I've changed my appearance about 70 times since I opened this place. Can't even remember what I looked like. I'm pretty sure I was blonde or brunette or something, but I can never be fully sure.

It's been about 10 years since I opened the shop. I've seen lots of people come and go. Some older people (the older ladies are always so nice), some middle aged, some who look too young to be dying. That's the saddest part. Seeing the smaller ones. Teens, little kids, toddlers, even babies. Everyone feels sad when a child comes through. The whole café sort of just quietens, and everyone comes to talk to them and comfort them. The babies are always held and rocked, and everyone gives them a hug before leaving them with me. I have a room in the back just for the babies. The toddlers will usually play with each other, or just the adults in general. Usually puts a smile on people's faces. It can also really help when a new person walks in. Jittery, jumpy, and shaking. Then a toddler approaches them, asking them to play with toy cars. It's always very cute, and the person calms down almost immediately. The kids always seem a little scared. Stranger Danger makes them wary, as it should. But they learn to trust you eventually. Once you've talked to them, gained their trust and handed them a lollipop or chocolate bar or two, they calm down. The teens are easy enough. They're old enough to be told what's happening to them. You sit them down, explain things whilst you bend at their knees, answer what few questions they may have, then leave them in the corner with a drink. They tend to just sit and contemplate. Most young adults do, as well.

Some try to ask me about my story. I rarely tell them. Only if they end up somehow staying here more than a month. After that time frame, they've earned the privilege. I tell them about the accident, the large truck that rammed into me. I tell them about the coma I've been in for the last ten years. I tell them about the people who come and go, and about my family. My parents, my wife, my brothers and sisters and friends and just everyone I can think of. Just because I rarely tell the story, doesn't mean I don't want to. I tell them everything. My entire life, from start to near-finish. It's always liberating.

Anyways, there's a new customer coming in. I think I'm going to give them a blue cup.

Thank you for reading this far if you did :) I'm very new to tumblr and to writing, so any tips are appreciated!

You run a café on the edge of life and death. Souls who have been departed from their bodies temporarily, such as in comas or near-death experiences, can relax in your quaint cafe for as long as they need before they can either return to their bodies or begin their journey to the afterlife.

[jeremy-ken-anderson]

It's Gotten Worse

I've given up on The World After the Fall.

Back when Game of Thrones was starting to get big as a book series, I got to the Red Wedding in book 3 and I gave up on it. My take on things was that the emotional center of the series was "will the Stark family reunite?" as a question, and that question had been answered in the cruelest way possible about four times in a row by that point. A resounding, "No." *whack* "No." *whack* "No." *whack* "No." *whack*

Imagine George standing at a table with a cleaver, saying that, and bringing the cleaver down on something that crunches wetly just out-of-frame.

Anyway.

It felt to me as if the premise of the series as laid out in the first book wasn't still at all where it was going, and didn't care to invest emotional energy in new tissue-paper humans who would be ripped apart in the author's hands and thrown in the garbage at a moment's notice.

The characters - (except the witch, seriously I feel like I misread something, she was a main character and then just got written out of the story; I don't even remember a goodbye or a death or a "no, it's better if I don't find her again" or anything) - have proven a little more durable in The World After the Fall...but I have a lot of the same sensation. The comic is up to its third or fourth premise; its third or fourth new vibe, and I don't think the author realizes how much it costs the comic every time it changes gears that way.

The genie was let out of the bottle like two years ago in the comic, and the author's been trying to shove it back in for the entire time since, and the genie's not going back in the bottle but it is getting more and more ugly and squidging around the author's hands in much the same way as this metaphor's squidging around mine.

It's still a really pretty comic, I appreciate the "fight against a broken world" vibe the author's currently trying to run with as the plot's core, and I do feel like it has better legs than the things he bounced from to get where he is...but I find I can't get over those first stories and the consequences he's trying to ignore from them.

And, like, boy do I get it.

I was writing an isekai and it ran like,

Chapter 1: Dude wakes up in his magic tower with his magic generals and starts trying to figure out how dangerous the new world he's in is.

Chapter 2: Something - probably the same force that shoved dude into the body of his videogame character among his magic generals that he'd made up in the videogame - decides that dude having a tower full of magic generals is unsporting to the rest of the world (almost certainly a reactionary opinion to my having recently watched Overlord at the time) and puts them all into stasis and de-powers dude.

Chapter 3: Dude goes into town and accidentally kills the reprehensible nobleman's son by scratching said son with his own magic soul-sucking dagger, then uses mind magic to MIB "flashy-thing" the bar and make his escape.

Chapter 4: Dude turns himself into a kid to preserve mana and gets picked up from the street by a caretaker at an orphanage. He finds out about a plot to use orphaned kids as mana batteries through a program that sends them to a school from which they don't return. Which isn't suspicious yet, because they haven't been gone from the orphanage that long, except to our dude because he's from our world and therefore very genre-savvy.

Chapters 3 and 4...There's the start of a plot there! There's a character at a reasonable amount of power - interesting magic, limited mana pool, a problem-solving style that is much more about finesse than force (which makes it kind of a bad match for Shounen manga but while that's often how I picture such stories in my head I'm not actually a manga-ka), and a threat that can continue to scale with our hero's capabilities (dealing with the nobleman whose son he killed, then the guy who commanded him to start taking orphans, then the entity or group that set up the entire scheme)

Chapters 1 and 2 have nothing to offer the story except limitations, rules that are hard to live up to, goals that will contradict or seem like they should override the goals of the mainline plot, and a whole lot of "why doesn't he just" questions that I honestly have no answers to. If I'd been writing this as a serial manga and releasing it, I'd be in the same position when I came up with chapters 3-4 of my idea as the author of the manhwa I'm dropping is in now.

When I say I get it I mean I really get it.

But that's not a reason for me to keep reading.

I don't want to yuck your yum if you like the series. The art is seriously impressive. And - perhaps the hardest part to say, for me, because it sounds mean - while I don't like the writing personally due to what feel to me like structural flaws, I also get the sense that the author cares about writing well. It's not a sure shot for success for the series' continuation or conclusion, but it's a hell of a lot better than an author who doesn't, right? There's a much better chance that the writing will continue improving. I wish the author felt free to make a clean break and just start a new series with the ideas he now has clarified, because I think that story would be better for being whole, just as I will start my story with "chapter 3" if I ever try to get it out of my head and into a real publishable format.

[myafterlifeisbetterthenyours]

How would IMP, The Goetia's and whichever Hazbin characters you want react to their SO being a clumsy, dense, idiot who messes up in nearly everything except expressing their love for them

With a clumsy, dense, idiotic S/O that loves them oh so much.

Blitzø

Blitzø doesn't really care how clumsy or dense you were, I mean the idiot was an idiot himself, so he didn't really care if you were as well.

And sure, he had to be very specific with you and couldn't keep breakable objects near any edges and sure you weren't the brightest. But neither was he.

And he was awesome.

But Blitzø didn't care about any of that.

He loved you for you.

And sure it was frustrating when you accidentally broke something, or when he was forced to explain to you something a dozen times before you got it. But you always tried your best and that's all he could ask.

Plus, when he got mad at you, you got all sad and you being sad is like, the sadest thing he'd ever seen.

But no matter how frustrating you could be, you absolutely made up for it with just an overwhelming amount of love.

You wwre constantly telling him how much you love him. Leaving him love letters, drawings, and just giving general physical affection.

Kisses were your favourite.

Surprise kisses? Even. better!

Youd pop out of nowhere, giving him a smooch randomly throughout the day.

He loved this of course, the Imp a total sucker for your goofy, spontaneous romance. Always eating it up like the tastiest thing in Hell.

Millie

Millie just loved you.

You may have been a ditz, and not the sharpest blade up her sleeve, but you were her favourite person in Hell.

She just loved your clumsy, lovable and admittedly dim intellect.

Now, it could be difficult to deal with you, not being the brightest bulb and all that, but she also wasn't above admitting she did like being the smarter one in the relationship.

Not that that would have changed her wearing the metaphorical pants in the relationship.

She absolutely loved your affection, you being a hopeless romantic. She absolutely loved your affection.

The woman herself was a loving momma bear and just ate up your affection, the two of you just hopelessly in love.

Funnily enough, her family had a mixed opinion of you. On one hand they saw you as a ditzy, air headed and rather clumsy. A dangerous combination on Wrath.

But they also saw you as an honest, hard working and straightforward person that didn't shy away from hard work, aaand you could take a joke, a respectable combination on for the in-laws, Millie parents eventually warming up to you.

This only making Millie love you even more.

Moxxie

If you were anyone else, Moxxie likely would have despised you.

Your laid back, careless nature. Your ditzy, airheaded behaviour, the way you think everyone is a potential friend and your seemingly supernatural ability to knck things over.

It was infuriating.

But with you being his S/O, it was different.

All those thing that would normally make him want to tear his hair out, he just found them endearing.

Your ditzy bumbling behaviour was cute and lovable the the thespian. You were like a big puppy.

Your clumsiness was something he always attributed to bad eye sight, and your being dense, well... he didn't need sarcasm anyway.

And sure, you weren't good at much, but you loved him. And you made sure he knew.

If he ever needed anything, you were on it in a second, suddenly the sharpest and most competent Imp he'd ever seen until you finished what he'd asked for.

You loved affection. You'd often hold him close, petting, nuzzling, kissing. You loved any type of affection. You being excellent when he got stressed out, holding him close, doing your best to calm him down.

You were his favourite Imp in hell and funilly enough, if you were anyone else, he'd hate you. The man having a little chuckle over that from time to time.

Loona

Loona wasn't a picky person.

She was emotional, hormonal, moody, and often time violent.

And yeah, she hated most the shmucks in this literal Hellscape, seeing them as a fucking bother.

But... as much as she hated to admit it. She had the biggest soft spot for you.

Sure you were a ditz and couldn't not knock something over to save your life, but... all things considered, you were probably one of her favourite people in the world.

You were blunt as spoon and sure, you often said the wrong thing at the wrong time, but you were honest about everything.

She wasn't even sure you could lie, you were just too damned dense to make things up.

And yeah, that could be an issue, like the time Blitzø had asked where you'd been all day, and you without missing a beat just Blurted out that you'd snuck away to make out.

And sure, that was fucking annoying.

But when you saw you'd upset her, you did your absolute best to make it up to her. Going out and getting that chocolate cake you knew she loved. You bluntly apologising for being so stupid.

That being when she stepped in, making you stop. Telling you you aren't stupid, your just dull, and she couldn't blame you for that.

Youd end up, curled up together on the room, eating the cake together, curled up in a surprisingly romantic little moment together.

Stolas

Oh, Stolas just loved you!

Your simple, ditzy nature was just so endearing for the man. He just loved how straightforward you were.

Granted, much of that came from being as dull as a busted light bulb, but he loved that none the less.

Granted, some of his more witty remarks went well over your head, but that was a small price to pay for the refreshment that was your company.

It didn't matter what it was, if he asked a question, he got an honest, straightforward response. Always.

Now sure, most would likely take offence to many of your answers. "does this make me look fat?" Or "do you like my hair cut?" Being a question you'd answer brutally honest.

But to the prince, whom has lived his entire life surrounded by people that would either kiss his ass, or do everything in their power to destroy him.

But you, you were honest because, well, that was who you were. You told him the truth, good or bad, and he loved you for it.

And in the bedroom, well~

Brutal honesty could be extremely arousing. You telling him exactly if you thought he was attractive, usually in brutal detail.

And well, you always told him how you felt, if ever the relationship was in turmoil, you'd tell him exactly the problem.

And the affection!

Oh how he loved your affection.

From the hugs and kisses, the the Lewder things you'd do in private, like taking the man when you felt like it, Stolas making it clear he was DTF 24/7. And well, you weren't dense enough to not know what that was~

You were what he needed. Brutally honest, a little air headed and absolutely gushing with affection. You were the light of his life and no matter how frustrating you could be at times, he loved you more then life itself.

Stella

Stella was something of a perfectionist.

And normally she'd expect as much from her partner.

But you... you were a clumsy, dim witted, moronic and dense as lead.

But by Lucifer, she loved you.

She was so used to everything being perfect, dealing with people who she could never tell what they were thinking. Her fellow Bluebloods always conniving, always with an alternative motive.

But with you... she always knew what you were thinking. Always knew what you wanted or how you felt.

And sure, you had no spacial awareness and wouldn't recognise sarcasm if it smacked you in the face.

But again, that's what she loved.

And you loved her.

And you made sure she knew it.

Mostly because you were constantly telling her. That always making her swell with emotion.

The woman so happy to have you in her life.

You were her safety blanket. Something she could always count on, you absolutely showered her in affection.

You gave affection like Nobles gave insults, you were completely unashamed to tell her you loved her more then anything in the world, anywhere, any time.

Your favourite was coming up to her, calmly asking her lean down.

And when she did, youd give her a big smooch, before walking off, happily going about your buisness.

And yes, you could be frustrating at times, but so could everything else in her life, the woman was just glad she had something to give her some happiness in her Hellish Royal existence.

Here, to tide you over until season 2 is finally out.

[readyplayerhobi]

Queen of Ice | 07

; Bodyguard!Jungkook x Princess!Reader

; Genre: Angst

; Warnings: Character death, violence

; Word Count: 2.6k

; Synopsis: Jeon Jungkook is the best water magic user of his generation, so it made sense that he was given the prestigious posting as a royal bodyguard. His position puts him close to you, the Crown Princess of Sejong and the only ice magic user in history. Jungkook is great at protecting you from danger, but not so much at protecting his own heart.

; A/N: So, I’m not used to writing fight scenes and it’s been a while...I hope you enjoy this! A lot happens in a short amount of time so...please reblog if you enjoyed it! Please also leave a comment or send me an ask with your thoughts about the plot and the characters, I can’t wait to read it :D

; Previous - Next

-

The kingdom was in mourning.

Your father, the man who had ruled over the land and the people within it for over forty years, had finally succumbed to his illnesses. For a man who had often ruled with an iron fist, his end had been remarkably quiet, passing away to his second life silently during his sleep. One moment he was alive, and the next he was gone.

Unsurprisingly, you hadn’t shown an ounce of emotion upon finding out the news. Part of it was because of the fact you’d known he was slowly dying for years now, another part was the antagonism you’d engaged with your father and the final part was simply that you weren’t a hugely emotional person. Not that Jungkook had ever seen, anyway. 

The two of you had butted heads repeatedly over the years, so Jungkook wasn’t surprised at the lack of reaction. He knew it unnerved people around you, though. But when did you not make people feel uncomfortable, even if you didn’t mean it?

Either way, the king’s funeral procession was today and you were expected to lead it. The plan was simple; you would walk somberly behind your father’s coffin as it was carried towards the necropolis where all royalty and those who could afford it were buried for the last few centuries. 

You walked with your head held high, the traditional mourning colours of white and purple adorning your funeral clothing whilst the sun shone down through a clear sky. Jungkook’s only experience with the funerals of royalty was when your mother, the queen, had died. People had sobbed behind the line of guards as they’d watched the coffin roll by, the sound of the carriage horses hooves drowned out by the grief of the people.

Your mother had been beloved by the people whom she’d ruled over, her warmth almost visible alongside her kind smile. She had helped to soothe the ragged edges of the king, calming him into something that almost resembled a normal man. It was the only time Jungkook had ever remembered hearing your father laugh and smile. That had all ended when she’d died.

For Jungkook, he’d already been thinking of all the things that could potentially go wrong. Your coronation would be soon and you’d finally hold the title of queen instead of crown princess. He felt pride for you, but also worry and concern. You were in a vulnerable position, about to take on the rulership of an entire kingdom by yourself.

No family to rely on, no backup in case something was to happen to you. The kingdom was weaker than it had ever been, whilst also being stronger than ever. It was an odd dichotomy but something he was sure you would rectify.

Despite your protests to your father, Jungkook knew that you would eventually take a husband and produce an heir. 

His stomach twisted at the thought of you full with child, the future of the kingdom resting within your womb. A child that had been implanted by a man worthy of you and your time. The two of you hadn’t discussed what had happened in the library, though he had noticed that you liked him to spend time with you inside a room instead of standing guard outside of it.

He would almost consider you friends, though that felt a little presumptuous. 

Jimin's hand flew up suddenly, pulling Jungkook’s attention immediately as he spun to face the direction Jimin was facing. His eyes were already tracking for whatever threat his fellow guard had spotted. There was a brief flare of fire, burning so bright that it was a blue-white instead of the more familiar orange-red and Jungkook realised that it was an arrow, burning up so fast that it became ash before it could even reach the group.

The clatter of the metal arrowhead hitting the floor was muted against the overall noise of the crowd but Jungkook could see the superheated metal as it melted out of shape on the floor. Someone was firing at them, or more importantly, firing at you.

A sudden flare of light brought his attention back and Jungkook searched for wherever the attacker was. Somehow, Jimin had spotted someone and was actively defending you. There’s no time for Jungkook to curse himself for not noticing, but it wouldn’t matter anyway. The whole point of Jimin also being there was to protect you.

"Down!" Jungkook hissed, his hand pressing against your shoulder and pushing with his weight. You've spotted the burst of flame as well and stumble forward from the pressure he applies, hands reaching out to stop yourself from falling too harshly.

Whilst he’s pushing you down, his head swings around to look at Hoseok. The other guard is automatically scanning around for other threats and his arm swings up suddenly, causing a geyser of earth to erupt from the ground and send a man flying through the air. Screams from innocent bystanders begin, some of them showered by falling dirt that Hoseok can’t avoid.

“Jungkook!” You scream, bringing your hands up to cover your head as dirt falls on you as well. Given how he’s practically crouched over you, he would’ve expected to be almost deafened by how loud you’d been. But at the exact moment you scream, another burst of flame roars from Jimin’s hand toward the original attacker, the sound so loud that Jungkook swears his eardrums have just burst.

“Stay down, don’t you dare get up!” He hisses into your ear, leaning so close that his nose is gently brushing against the delicate skin of your temple. Maybe he’ll think about this moment later, maybe he’ll remember how you smell so close. But for now, all he can think about is protecting you.

Pressing a hand on your shoulders, he pushes once more to keep you firmly on the ground before rising and shouting out Hoseok’s name. He looks over immediately, his black hair remaining out of his eyes as they glow a rich brown from his power use. 

Jungkook points down towards you.

“Cocoon, now!” 

A brief nod from Hoseok is his only reply before his hands move in an intricate motion and Jungkook feels the ground beneath him begin to soften. Backpedalling away, he keeps a close eye on you as you begin to sink into the earth. You howl in protest but once you’re far enough below the road, Hoseok causes the ground to arch above you in all directions before sealing. 

It’s something they’d practised many times before and Jungkook feels a moment of pride in his friend for how well he’d done under pressure. The new walls surrounding you are solid, but he spies the strategic holes along the floor that provide you with air to continue breathing. Protection was the goal, not accidentally suffocating you.

“Jungkook! Get over here!” Jimin calls, his voice strained from the effort of using his magic so intensely. It’s only then that Jungkook realises that the attackers have given up using traditional weapons and are instead fighting with their magic. Which would be fine, except Jimin is in an intense fight with another earth user. His sparring with Hoseok over the years has helped him, but fire isn’t strong against earth.

Jimin’s feet have sunk into the ground, his opponent destabilising him and not allowing him to move efficiently. It was a tactic that Jungkook would approve of if it was his guards doing it. He didn’t like it being done to one of his own though and he frowned in annoyance.

Narrowing his eyes, he concentrates on the ground around Jimin’s feet and increases the amount of water. Some people thought that magic users created their element out of nothing, but it was more a case of taking the element out of what was already there. Whilst the ground itself appeared dry, there were tiny molecules of water hidden deep within and it was that Jungkook pulled forth.

Within moments, the ground was muddy and Jimin managed to stagger out, almost falling backwards until a gust of wind from a fellow guard kept him upright. The carriage with the king’s coffin had already disappeared, the horses being encouraged to run towards the necropolis instead of walking calmly as before. Many of the general castle guards had moved to evacuate the civilians whilst some had gone with the carriage. A few had stayed to help Jungkook protect you, though it annoyed him that so many had left.

His attention is once more on the attackers when he feels the air around him change, the fine hairs on his arm rising and causing him to shiver whilst his nose twitches. The scent of the air is different, overwhelmingly sweet and Jungkook knows what that is. He doesn’t even get a chance to call out a warning though, a flash of light so bright that it blinds him momentarily and then it sounds like the world has ended.

Crying out, he falls to the ground with one hand covering his eyes and the other blindly reaching out for…something. He doesn’t know what. It’s only then that he realises he’s not reaching for anything, but that his hand is spasming, his brain unable to make it work properly. The electricity from the lightning strike that’s just hit has managed to hit him too, though he’s thankful that he doesn’t seem to be suffering anything worse than a cramping hand right now.

Laying on the ground, Jungkook groans out loud and notes that he can’t hear himself. Blinking a few times, he brings the sky back into focus and notes how clear the sky is. There are no clouds, so the only answer was an extremely powerful lightning user. Stronger than Jungkook had ever seen. Electricity was a secondary magic, an off-shoot of fire and usually quite weak in comparison.

That didn’t mean it couldn’t be lethal though, the weakness of the magic was directly related to the user and electricity could be deadly with even a small voltage. Someone who could create a lightning bolt as strong as this one on a clear day was far deadlier than he liked.

Rolling over, he manages to stagger to his feet and feels oddly vulnerable. The world sounds muffled, and a hand to his ear brings back blood. It’s then that the pain sets in, causing him to wince.

A sudden touch on his arm has him spinning around, his senses reaching out to all the water he can find nearby to protect himself but it’s only Hoseok. The man he’d been fighting is lying on the floor a few metres away, clearly dead. Hoseok’s face is full of concern for him, but Jungkook’s eyes slide past him to another man who has suddenly appeared, his hands visibly sparking with electricity.

Grinding his teeth, Jungkook simply stares at the man and watches as the sparks disappear. Unlike when he’d done this with your father, Jungkook doesn’t let this man go, instead holding onto every molecule of water in his body like a vice. Instead, he twitches his fingers and the man…explodes. It’s the only way to describe the forceful expulsion of water from his body, but it’s fast and efficient.

Coughing harshly, Jungkook moves towards the cocoon of earth that still holds you, hoping that you’re just as safe as he’d intended. A movement from Hoseok has the earth retracting slightly, letting him see your furious face that quickly transitions into concern at the blood leaking from his ears.

He doesn’t hear you properly when you talk, and Jungkook feels so vulnerable at being unable to hear. Twisting his lips, he places a hand on your shoulder and looks back towards Hoseok, tilting his head in question. His fellow guard gives a nod back, indicating that there are no more attackers. It had been a quick blitz attack, obviously hoping to kill you fast. They just hadn’t anticipated the Jimin would be so quick to spot them.

Soft skin presses to his cheek and he turns back to look at you, noting the worry in your eyes as they scan over him. His hand moves to cup yours, his disorientation making sure that he’s reacting in a way that he would normally be mortified over, before giving you a tense smile. He tells you that he’s okay, though he guesses that he was being a little too loud given how you wince slightly.

Then you look away from him, towards where Jimin had been engaged in his fight. His attacker was dead, half of his body burnt to a crisp whilst another two are in much the same way. Jungkook feels a sense of pride at how well his guards had responded, how they’d succeeded in protecting you.

But then your hand tightens slightly on his cheek, fingers suddenly ice cold and he flinches away from them. Following your gaze, he sees a fourth body lying on the ground. At first, he assumes it’s another attacker, yet another victim of Jimin’s lethal fire but then he realises that they have electricity burns instead. Maybe the electric user had accidentally killed one of his people?

But then he spots the familiar uniform, the hair he’d grown so used to seeing over the years. His head is turned away, giving them the grace of not having to see him in death, but Jungkook knows that it’s Jimin. That his fellow guard, his closest friend, is dead.

Hoseok is knelt next to the body, gently pressing two fingers to his throat before he looks over at Jungkook and yourself with grief on his face. A slight shake of his head tells you both what you already knew; Jimin had given the ultimate gift. He’d sacrificed himself to protect you.

Now Jungkook isn’t shivering from pain or electricity, but from how cold the temperature has dropped. His breath comes out in puffs that you only see on the coldest of days and his fingers almost ache with the temperature. Glancing down, he notes how the ground begins to shimmer as frost spreads across the ground with the speed of fire racing along spilt oil. 

Your fingers are dug into the loosened soil, clawing at the ground uselessly whilst the expression on your face makes his heart tighten. Not in awe or anything romantic, but in fear. Because your lips are almost non-existent from how firmly you’re pressing them together, eyes a cold white with just a tint of blue and your brows furrowed together. There are so many emotions crossing your face, and it takes Jungkook a moment to figure them out.

Hoseok is moving towards you now, his movement obvious in the corner of Jungkook’s eyes but he slips on the icy floor and almost goes flying. It’s then that Jungkook realises that your magic has reached the nearby trees, their branches tall and delicate. Ice drips from them now in deadly icicles, each branch bowing down from the weight of your anger and grief at the loss of Jimin.

For the death of your father, you had shown no emotions. But for the death of Jimin, a simple guard, you mourned and raged as Jungkook had never seen. Not a single tear fell from your eyes though, but as the tree became heavier and heavier with ice, he knew that the ice on the tree was the tears you couldn’t let out.

[wonkyreads]

I used to write reviews here instead of just Goodreads. I’m hoping to going back to that, but to be honest, I moved last year and don’t have space for my books. This means I stopped taking pictures for the BPCs, so I stopped taking pictures of my recent reads, so posting here felt pointless. I like ranting here, though. Next year, I will attempt to keep that up.

For this year, take an end of the year top worst and best. (And keep in mind these are obviously just my opinions! This list also doesn’t reflect the books I DNF’d because I don’t consider them read personally.)

Top 10 Worst Reads of 2022

10. The Themis Files by Sylvain Neuvel

- So this is a sci-fi trilogy where a girl accidentally discovers a giant mecha hand buried deep underground and grows up to be a scientist and studies/digs up all of these mecha pieces. The first book is genuinely good, but the arguments and plot lines the author decided to take with the rest of the series progressively pissed me off more and more, though. Not a bad series, just ultimately not one I enjoyed.

9. A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara

- I feel I’m gonna piss a fair amount of people off with this one, but it won’t be the last time in this list. With how popular this book is online I don’t feel the need to explain what the plot here is. The writing of this book was beautiful, definitely, it was the content I couldn’t stand. I’m a fan of angst. This was not angst. This was throwing a shelf’s worth of terrible things into a sack and shaking it up to see what happened. This was actively attempting to make people feel things in a way that felt so over the top and transparent that I found myself hardly caring at all. To me, this reeks of romanticizing queer trauma and just trauma in general. I’m just not here for it. Show me redemption or healing, they’re harder to write anyway since it seemed all Yanagihara cared about was the mechanics behind the story and not the story itself.

8. The Kite Runner by Khalid Hosseini

- This book is kind of a modern classic and it’s just… I’m not sure how I was supposed to sympathize with the main character. This is the story of Amir and Hassan, two boys in Afghanistan in the 70’s. Hassan’s father works for Amir’s, but the book spends a large amount of time trying to guilt you into feeling bad for Amir, our main character. That’s kind of the whole plot (without spoilers) as I remember it if I’m being honest. The writing was fine and I’ve liked Hosseini’s books in the past, I just disliked the main character so much it kind of ruined everything. I disliked feeling guilty for not liking him. It all kind of got in the way of the message for me.

7. The Bodyguard by Katherine Center

- Hannah’s a bodyguard and Jake’s a down-to-earth movie star who seems to have a stalker problem. I adore the concept, but I think my main problem with this book is that I hyped it up for myself and told myself I’d love it. That and the premise felt like a promise of some kind of danger and by the time anything actually dangerous happened it was so ridiculous I laughed at it. It’s the over-the-top kind of romance I tend to not like, though. I fully admit to skimming the epilogue because I also kind of hate romance novels that do that.

6. We Are the Brennans by Tracey Lange

- Sunday Brennan gets into a drunk driving accident and then must swallow her pride and move back to New York where her large Irish Catholic family pretends they don’t need her either. This book is about family secrets, but all I really remember about it is that it did this really bad, gimmicky thing where every chapter ended with the same exact sentence, usually dialogue, that the next chapter began with. When it’s done a couple times to show that we’re in the same scene we just left only in a different perspective, or better yet the two perspectives don’t hear the dialogue the same way, it’s fine. But it was every single chapter. Every one of them. I’m also super picky about domestic drama books like this. Hard pass for me.

5. A History of Wild Places by Shae Earnshaw

- Honestly, I’m not sure how to some this up without spoilers so I’ll just say it’s a cult-y mystery told in multiple time lines. This is the second book I’ve read by Earnshaw and both were promising starts with disappointing developments for me. For me, the book was too predictable to be satisfying and, worse, often it felt like the most boring option was constantly being chosen. The concept was originally very promising, but the closer I got to the end and realized the twist wasn’t going to be fun or interesting, the more reading the book started to feel like a chore.

4. There’s Someone Inside Your House by Stephanie Perkins

- Oof. I don’t know how I picked this book up and didn’t expect it to be a teen slasher. I’ll watch a slasher any day of the week (including the movie made from this book), but reading them is kind of boring. You know the tropes, so when they’re followed it’s anticlimactic. I also found some of the character interactions hard to believe, which didn’t help raise my opinion any. I’m just harsh on thrillers and any books involving “small towns.”

3. Summer Sons by Lee Mandelo

- When his BFF Eddie, and definitely not his boyfriend, dies of apparent suicide, Andrew moves into Eddie’s old house with Eddie’s friends to find proof that Eddie’d been killed. There’s also some supernatural stuff and dark academia themes. This is another opinion I feel will make enemies, and it’s one I’ve actually posted here before. I read this book so early in the year that I’ve forgotten most of the specifics about it. What I remember disliking the most, though, was along the same lines as A Little Life. So much felt like it was just there to romanticize queer pain and what was left outside of that was a disappointingly slow mystery that didn’t really surprise or scare me. I think the conversations this book attempted to have were interesting, I just also think it failed to pull it all off. I didn’t believe or feel these characters. I didn’t care for how much it read like Ronan (of The Raven Boys) fanfic. I was consistently annoyed with smart characters avoiding the plot line or making idiotic choices. Also, I’m still traumatized by how obsessed literally everyone was with Eddie, I’m genuinely avoiding books using that name now. All around, absolutely wasn’t for me.

2. Dating Dr. Dil by Nisha Sharma

- Romance is not my genre. Romance that is so over-the-top crazy unrealistic is super not my genre. This book follows Kareena and Dr. Dil in a retelling of The Taming of the Shrew. Kareena is supposed to get married before her younger sister and her family is pressuring her, also her dad is selling her childhood home. Dr. Dil hosts a TV show and wants to raise money for his community clinic. I disliked Dr. Dil so, so much and Kareena was so inconsistent. The book felt so unedited and contradictory that I was constantly annoyed with it. The balance between show and tell was nonexistent; you can’t tell me what these characters are and not back it up and expect me to like them or believe them. People’s reactions were crazy over-the-top sometimes and if I have to ask of people actually act like that in real life, I’m already frustrated. I adore The Taming of the Shrew. I could watch 10 Things I Hate About You on repeat. I wanted to love this book so, so badly and was so utterly disappointed in what I got.

And last, but certainly least:

1. Verity by Colleen Hoover

- Verity was one of my most recent reads (I, regrettably, listened to it while icing sugar cookies for Christmas) and it follows Lowen attempting to write the end to a book series she’s never read before by snooping through the original authors memoir manuscripts. Or something. I have never read a Colleen Hoover book before and bought this one through audible years ago because everyone seemed to love it so much. This book has a 4.4 rating on Goodreads. I would just like to know how. Honestly. Talk about unbelievable characters! There were so many unnecessary gratuitous sex scenes in this book and just.. laughable suspense. A lot of the “twists” in this book were so predictable, but I do have a few questions; namely, how the fuck did Jeremy’s milquetoast ass get two women to become so obsessed with him so fast? Also, do people actually think like Lowen does? Holy shit. No really, I have SO many questions and I’m fairly certain none of them are the kind Hoover intended for me to have. I could go on for hours but I’m attempting to avoid spoilers and also it’s a fairly loved book and I don’t want to verge into the territory of yucking someone’s yum or anything, I just genuinely don’t understand. 4.4! Jesus Christ!

[tomoyajpeg]

White Brim | BATTLEROYAL/4

Time: That night

Location: At the “clamming” grounds, located on the Tenshouin family’s private property

Eichi: Now, then! Let the annual game for naughty little aristocrats with far too much free time on their hands, AKA “clamming,” begin...! ☆

Tori: Yaaay~...

Tsukasa: Clap, clap clap...

Hiyori: Aw, come on! You young kids should follow Eichi-kun’s example! Act like idiots and make some noise!

“Clamming” is an event where you blow off all that gloomy steam that’s been building up all year, after all!

Restricting yourself to acting like a well-behaved goody little two-shoes is the wrong answer, this time! Ahahaha! ☆

Tsukasa: I don’t think I’m able to keep up with your level of Excitement, onii-samas.

Tori: Same here. But, you know, there’s no way Eichi-sama and the rest are doing something wrong. Even if it looks like they’re just acting like idiots right in front of everyone, there’s definitely a deeper meaning to it—

Tsukasa: Yes. I believe that as well. Though, I’ve already thrown a bit of an unreasonable tantrum because I absolutely refuse to crossdress, so I’d say that I’m somewhat hesitant to voice any additional complaints.

Eichi: Well, it doesn’t really matter what clothes you wear. The important part is that, during “clamming,” we’re stripped of any and all “status.”

Everyone dressing like servants doesn’t have an actual purpose outside of making the premise visually understandable.

Wearing clothes you aren’t used to makes it hard to move around, and in this case it might actually be dangerous.

Tori: Wh-what do you mean? Are we going to be doing something risky? What even is “clamming”...?

Eichi: Fufu. As this is the first time the children will be participating, allow me to formally explain the rules of “clamming.”

To put it simply, “clamming” is a somewhat unique survival game.

It’s a game of make-believe. A hunting game, so to speak? No, it might be easier to understand if I present it as a game of tag.

Tori: ..........?

Hiyori: Just like always, Eichi-kun’s “easy to understand” isn’t easy at all!

Eichi: Shut up, you...

Anyway, “clamming” starts off by using a objectively fair lottery to divide the participants into the “hunters” and the “hunted.”

Depending on which side you’re sorted into, the actions you’ll take change.

Incidentally, there’s a difference in the number of “hunters” versus “hunted” - generally, it's a 1:9 ratio. The “hunters,” in the minority, will be chasing after the “hunted,” in the majority.

Inside the fortune cookies that got handed out at the party venue earlier, there were little slips of washi paper with words written on them, right?

If the slip of paper was red, with “fisherman” written on it, then you were assigned to the “hunters” side. If it was blue, with “fish” written on it, then you’re on the “hunted” side.

Tsukasa: Let’s see... ah, I have a red paper with “fisherman” written on it, so I’ll be on the side of the “hunters.”

Eichi: Wow, congratulations! Like I said earlier, the probability of being assigned to the “hunters” side is about 10%, so you’ve got pretty good luck— Tsukasa-kun. ♪

Tori: Snrk. Tsukasa, doesn’t this mean you’ve already used up all the luck you’re getting this year?

By the way, my paper’s blue and says “fish,” so I’m on the “hunted” side, right?

Hiyori: I’m also on the “hunted” side! We’re the same, Tori-kun! ♪

Tori: Ah, yes! I still don’t really get it, but I’m super happy to match with Hiyori-sama~

Eichi: ...When did the two of you get so close?

Well, let’s leave it at that. The “hunted (fish)” can run around this area freely for a certain amount of time.

Basically, the only thing the “fish” can do is run around.

Tori: Wow, it really is like a game of tag... Um, so if I get tagged– er, caught by the fisherman, does that mean I lose?

Eichi: No. You lose if the “hunter (fisherman)” kills you.

Tori: K-kills...?

Hiyori: Wait, what? I don’t know the details either, but is “clamming” like one of those death game things that are popular in movies and stuff?

Eichi: Of course, you won’t actually be killed. It’s just that the “fisherman” is provided with two weapons at the same time the chase begins.

A gun, and a sword.

The gun is handy for long-distance attacks, but it only holds ten bullets. Reloading is also prohibited.

It’s something like a water pistol that fires paint, so it’s not like it’ll hurt if you get hit.

And the swords are like the ones used for mock swordfights. [1] They’re made out of a sponge-like material, so they’re safe.

But, if you’re shot with the gun or hit with the sword, you’re “dead.”

It’s self-moderated, but anyone who’s killed has to obediently resign from the game and return to the mansion.

Unlike a game like Cops and Robbers, there’s no comeback for the losers. That should be obvious - they’re dead, after all.

In the end, when the “fish” have been hunted to extinction, it’s a victory for the “fishermen”.

If even one person on the “fish” side survives, then it’s a draw.

Hiyori: With rules like that, there must have been a lot of draws so far, huh.

If you decide on winners and losers, somebody’s going to end up holding a grudge, so it’s not really fitting for something that’s supposed to be light entertainment like this.

By the way, is there no way for the “fish” to win? It kind of feels like, even if one person’s still alive, they can only hope to force a draw.

Eichi: No, there is. The “fishermen” have to designate one among them as their general— their “king.”

Tsukasa: Their “king?”

Eichi: Yep. Even though the “fish” die easily and have no choice but to run away— they’re able to kill the “king,” and only the “king.”

If a “fish” touches the “king’s” body, the “king” dies.

If the “king” dies, it’s victory for the “fish.”

Tsukasa: I see... So it’s necessary for us, the “fishermen,” to be sure to escort the “king” so that the “fish” cannot get near them?

Eichi: That’s true, but there aren’t that many “fishermen,” so you have to consider how many you can spare to use exclusively for defense.

Keep too many from hunting, and you won’t be able to get all the “fish.” Since you only win when all the “fish” are eliminated, you might not be able to meet the victory condition.

Tsukasa: Hm... As you’ll need to keep in mind how to distribute your limited number of personnel, as well as what moves to make, it’s almost like a strategy used for Chess would be necessary. This is a surprisingly deep game. ♪

Tori: Nn~ In short, isn’t it just a really complicated game of tag?

Eichi: You’re not wrong. For wealthy and high-ranking people like us, this kind of simple game can be novel and interesting entertainment.

Tori: Yeah, I feel like I can kinda get that... Manga and other stuff that commoners use to entertain themselves are all pretty interesting.

But, hm~mm... tag, huh... We high-class nobles got together in the middle of the night just to play tag?

Originally スポーツチャンバラ, or “sports chanbara.” Chanbara basically means “sword fighting,” and is the word used for movies that are usually called something like “samurai cinema” in English - movies with a lot of sword fights, essentially. Sports chanbara is... swordfighting for sport, using airsoft weapons. It has tournaments and everything.

[frodo-with-glasses]

Hi, qiuck ask for the word game:

Feanor (ions) + passionate

(or, since you said you might not know that much about zhe silm)

Just anything Haldir related (if you need a word then "family"?)

Hope you're having a great day~

Thanks! I am currently writing this at the end of a pretty good day, so I hope that counts. ^-^

I do, in fact, know very little about the Silmarillion—the only info I can currently remember on Feanor is that he is The Source of All the Problems and a crap dad, and all the subsequent Feanorians are Very Messed Up and/or Super Dead, and I think at one point there was copious amounts of arson involved??—but even if my Silm knowledge weren’t so lacking, this is an LotR-exclusive blog, so I wouldn’t be able to comment on them anyway.

So! Haldir, and family!

It’s fascinating to me that although Haldir’s brother Rumil is mentioned by name in the book, he doesn’t speak once; unless he was the unnamed elf who popped his head up to hide the ladder and say “yrch” to Frodo. I think it’s a safe guess that Rumil doesn’t speak the Common Tongue—or at least not well enough to be conversational—so he lets Haldir do the talking, and seems content to follow his lead.

I wonder which of the two brothers is older. I would guess Haldir, but we can’t know for sure. I wonder if it matters. In a timeless land like Lothlorien, where every day is like a year and every year a day, would minute age differences simply cease to have any meaning in the endless march of unchanging centuries? When your parents and your grandparents and your great-grandparents live together in eternal youth, what separates the generations but memories? When you spend hundreds or even thousands of years in the same isolated paradise—where no one dies, few leave, and even fewer are born—wouldn’t you eventually learn every face, every name, and know everyone else with the same intimacy as your own family?

Now, I have my own opinions on Lothlorien and its self-important exclusionary apathy towards the outside world, but I’m going to put that aside for a moment and try to empathize with Haldir and Rumil. Because when all you’ve known for centuries upon centuries was peace and paradise, there is nothing more alarming than a threat to that status quo.

Suddenly, there is danger. Suddenly, there is a real and present threat to your way of life. Suddenly, enemies are crawling in the outskirts of your forests, and although you can deceive them and lead them away from your deepest strongholds, there’s always the niggling fear in the back of your mind that one day it won’t be enough; one day, something will go wrong.

Your brother has also been assigned to the outer forests.

Of course you tell yourself that he can take care of himself just fine. He’s trained hard, and he’s very skilled, just like you. You work together when you can, and when you can’t, you wish him well and go about your duties with vigilance.

You worry that one day he won’t come back.

You try to put it out of your mind.

(But you worry anyway.)

- - -

WORD ASK GAME!