#autism Geralt is real

[nullio]

Modern-day things that I think Geralt would actually murder to have

1. A pair of foam earbuds

2. A burrito/swaddle blanket

3. fidget cube

4. A jar of Vaseline

5. A label maker

6. Baby wipes

7. Pair of sweatpants

[waterflowing-under-ground]

The emotional gut-punch that is A Shard of Ice (short story in Sword of Destiny in the Witcher/Wiedźmin book series), upon re-reading it after many years away from the series, on a day where I need to stay on task and be emotionally stable. Suppose it's better than trying to read it tomorrow when I have to concentrate on work. 😭😭😭🥺🥺🥺

I know Sapkowski wasn't intending any allegory on autism (although it surely is an allegory for people being cruel to those deemed the "other"), but the "you have no capability to feel human emotions no matter what you think" allegations levied at Geralt all the time, repeatedly, to the point where he feels utterly defeated and even internalizes them to a degree despite knowing that he DOES feel a full range of emotions, plus what actually happens in the end (which I won't spoil) hit home in the worst way today.

[vesemirsexual]

An interesting point relevant to your post about TWN and how the fandom translates Witcher lore into them being idiots and incapable of most things is that its actually a direct reflection of how they perceive and try to represent people who are more introverted, socially repulsed or have conditions like autism.

I'm autistic, and the traits I share with Geralt as we see him in the show are almost dumbed down and considered bad, weird, animalistic, ect by the fandom. How people treat me in real life is very similar to how fandom treats Witchers in fanfiction.

Changing their behaviors and understandings for certain plot points and story themes is fine, but this kind of thing irks me most in meta-focused fanfiction and analytical posts. Especially those pretentious posts where people with absolutely no education in behavior or psychology analyse the show and its scenes and spit out all this glittered turd that borders on ableist and offensive.

Sorry for the slow reply to this, I've been sitting on it because I wanted to formulate a good response (unfortunately my brain sucks though)!

It's really interesting you say that, because I have ADHD and PTSD and I often find the crossover of symptomatic behaviour often gets the same response. I think a lot of people identify with the ally label when behaviour can be packaged into a cute little funny anecdote or online meme, but when it's in a greater context people don't know what to do with it, or don't identify it as the same thing. I've seen people talk about autistic Geralt before, and I would really love to see someone do a thoughtful analysis/breakdown.

It's definitely irritating though. I think Geralt is one character in particular that has definitely been taken out of his original context and altered so many times that I see an interpretation and I'm not even sure that's the same guy. Fandom culture really loves to choose specific characters that become everyones favourite Guy that they project on, while forgetting that when you put it back into context it sometimes is a lot uglier than you may have intended it to be.

There's a handful of really popular tropes that make me wince, and range anywhere from uncomfortable to actively making me raise an eyebrow. It's...an interesting thing to try and discuss or unpack.

[incupeach]

𖤓 𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨 ↝ 𝘴𝘤𝘪𝘻𝘻𝘪𝘦 - 𝘢𝘲𝘶𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘤 𝘢𝘮𝘣𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦

✰ lukalai or laceyˏ queer writerˏ autism creatureˏ literally jaskier incarnate ↝ nsfw/kink DNI please! still a semi-WiP

✰ heya there! i'm lukalai, a queer disordered writer with a passion for mlm / mlnb works! i'm intersex and am both a tboy and tfem, although i prefer masculine pronouns! feminine in nature neos / xenos are ok as well, just no she/her, por favor! i'm black and mixed with german, and i also have a diverse ancestry, so most characters i make will be one of those ethnicities for comfort reasons! no specific dni, just basic stuff + proshippers and nsfw blogs! have a nice stay ♡

✿ snitches get kisses ↝ mlnbˏ monster x human (WiP)

✿ sticks and stones ↝ mlmˏ monster x human (WiP)

✿ what goes bump ↝ mltmˏ monster x human (WiP)

✿ little red ↝ mltmˏ monster x human (WiP)

✿ spark plug ↝ mlnbˏ cambion x human (WiP)

✿ who should i call?! ↝ mlmˏ monster x human (WiP)

✿ cup of joe ↝ mltmˏ human x human (WiP)

✿ play, little lark ↝ mlmˏ geralt x jaskier (WiP)

✿ go, white boy, go ↝ mltmˏ monster x human (WiP)

✿ bite me ↝ mltmˏ monster x human (WiP)

✿ what happens in erebor ↝ mlmˏ thorin x bilbo (WiP)

✿ between 2 vamps and a hard place ↝ mmltmˏ monster x human x monster (WiP)

✿ parfait, anyone? ↝ mlnbˏ monster x cambion (WiP)

✿ nāga can't love mouse boys! ↝ mltmˏ monster x monster (WiP)

✿ come here often? ↝ mltmˏ human x human (WiP)

✿ i'm into dumb guygirls ↝ mltmˏ human x human (WiP)

✿ finding heaven with a hellhound ↝ ili*ˏ cambion x cambion (WiP)

✿ dove's peak ↝ mltmˏ human x human (iTW)

i do: monster x humanˏ occasional requestsˏ sfwˏ angstˏ suggestiveˏ romanceˏ lgbtˏ slow burnˏ developmentˏ mlm / mlnb / mltmˏ complex gender identityˏ relationships w/ layersˏ anything safe sane and consensual。

i don't do: nsfwˏ anything illegalˏ anything nonconˏ whumpˏ proshipˏ anything hateful or demeaningˏ anything with harmful paraphiliasˏ anything with real people (actors i don't mind because it's the character they play)ˏ minor x adultˏ glorification of traumaˏ wlw / wlnb / wltf*ˏ character x y/n or reader。

notes: ili standing for intersex loving intersex, i don't write yuri because it makes me uncomfy for personal reasons (i do NOT hate lesbians so don't even try it. i'm literally an aroaceflux sapphillean like???)

credits to chilumitos for pinned header, and cafekitsune for dividers

[echo-bleu]

Hello. I have a question about these lines: he's constantly hearing everything at once. It’s worse for Geralt [...] or because he’s autistic, duh. It's an autisim thing? Hearing everything at once and not separating. It's driving me insane. If I have two people speaking at the same time (even if one is in another room), I'm hearing bits and pieces of both conversations and I have no idea what either of them is talking about. Hell, my canary can be singing and I'll struggle. Thank you (•_•)__♥︎

Hi Anon!

I'm not an autism specialist (just a well-informed autistic) and I don't know everything about it, but the short answer is yes, it can be an autism thing.

The technical term for it is Auditory Processing Disorder, or for the more general issue, Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD). I think I learned the name a long time ago in Myth's great Ask an Autistic Youtube series here and here. People who are not autistic can have SPD (especially other neurodivergent people) but most or maybe all autistic people have sensory processing issues.

It's an issue with discriminating sensory inputs. Most people can sort of tune out a noise (or another conversation) to focus on a conversation, for example, but SPD makes it difficult if not impossible. I know I can't understand anything if there's noise around. If two people are talking I'll hear neither of them. I need subtitles on everything (would be real nice to have them IRL) and I'll even have trouble processing audio input if there's, say, too much light.

It has nothing to do with how good your hearing is. I have very good hearing (and strong hyperacusis) and the other day I visited a friend who is hard of hearing, and we had the same trouble with chatting while the TV was on. We ended up texting each other from across the table 😅

You're not alone Anon!

The quote in the ask is from this headcanon post on Geralt and auditory processing.

[witchersgoldenbard]

High School AU Masterlist

in which everyone is neurodivergent, jaskier's besties are renfri and yen, vesemir has adopted eskel, geralt, lambert and ciri, everything is soft, and Jaskier and Geralt fall in love.

The Simplicity of Being Chaotic | read on tumblr 6k | WIP 1/? | T | fluff, adhd jaskier, autism spectrum geralt, vesemir adopted geralt, eskel, lambert and ciri, best friends jask & renfri & yen

Here's what happens when Jaskier, chaotic extraordinaire of sass, catches the eye of Geralt, the silent guy in the back of the class who never talks to anyone.

✨standalone one shots ✨

Fairy Lights | read on tumblr 1.5k | T | fluff, mild hurt/all the comfort, jaskier comes out as nonbinary, established relationship

Jaskier has been having a gender identity crisis and tells Geralt about it as they are sharing a soft, quiet moment in Geralt's room. Jaskier comes out as nonbinary, and Geralt is his usual supportive self.

Your Loving Touch | read on tumblr 1.4k | T | fluff, non-binary jaskier, supportive boyfriends in love, all the comfort cuddles, jaskier coming out as ace

There is one thing that Jaskier doesn’t love: sex and everything that comes with it. They have to tell Geralt, somehow. It goes better than expected.

Flower Crown Softness | read on tumblr 1.3k | G | fluff, soft boys in love, established relationship

Jaskier makes Geralt flower crowns and kisses his head. Geralt paints Jaskier's nail black and kisses his hands.

Essays and Cuddes | read on tumblr 2.3k | G | nonbinary jask, cat roach is the real mvp, soft boyfriends in love, good papa vesemir

Jaskier has been working non-stop on their essay and is in desperate need of a break. Geralt and his cat take care of them and make it better.

Tipsy Bestie Shenanigans | read on tumblr 1.7k | T | nonbinary characters, she/they renfri, he/they jask, best friends, tipsy shenanigans, early 2000s classics, renfri is aro but not explicitly

Jaskier visits his best friend Renfri to get his nails painted and his hair played with while they sing and dance to early 2000s emo classics.

series on ao3 | tag

[hanzajesthanza]

Triss Merigold

"didn't get enough screen time" + "they got too much screen time": her relationship with yennefer isn't developed enough to make her eventual betrayal really painful - imagine if yennefer and triss had even half the amount of development that geralt and dandelion did, and we still receieved that betrayal scene in ttos; however, i find her scenes in blood of elves with geralt unbearable, the writing equivalent of nails on a chalkboard, the only thing saving those scenes is ciri and geralt's relationship.

"wasted potential": triss is a great inverse to yennefer - despite her looks (immature disposition, giggly smile, warm chestnut-red hair) is illoyal, selfish, and cold-hearted. she gave ciri, who she claimed to see as a little sister, up to the lodge to be married off and her life controlled. i think it could be really interesting to see more into her decision-making because, after sodden, she features this true cowardice and flees to whichever side is winning. i feel like we could have explored her trauma from the war as it affected her later decisions. also, she's the youngest of all the sorceresses of the lodge which could be really interesting to explore, that she is immature and does not know as much life context and political context as the rest of them. tl;dr she's just way more interesting when geralt isn't involved

"i forgot this character existed" + "i actively dislike them sorry": i forget she exists in blood of elves because she does not contribute much to the plot, i do not forget her during the lodge scenes though!

"they work better as part of a dynamic" + "they didn't get enough screen time": if sapkowski had given us a scene with triss and philippa, with philippa persuading triss to leave yennefer and join her winning side... this scene exists in my head because it just makes sense for canon...

"wow! they are a horrible person" + "if they were real i would be afraid of them": i'm afraid of backstabbers and the destruction of friend groups, powerless, insecure, catty environment... i like trusting people and being genuine... i wouldn't be able to figure her out because autism, so i'd probably fall for whatever plans she had for me, yikes

send me character opinion bingo now that i'm off hiatus (bingo post)

[pillage-and-lute]

Hey there!! First off wanted to say I love your writing, especially how you portray autistic Geralt, it is very relatable and makes me feel happy!! I just had a thought, what if one of the reasons Geralt doesn’t speak much is bc he has a hard time controlling his volume levels?? I struggle a lot with that, and it’s an autistic trait that isn’t talked abt much, but I think it would fit him!! Idk just thought you’d like to hear the idea haha. 💛 an autistic anon

Hi Anon!

I love this, I didn’t know volume control was an autism thing too, I struggle with it with my ADHD. Geralt absolutely has this.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It had been okay as a little kid, lots of other kids were loud, Geralt knew. But then, during training, he got some looks sometimes, he said something too loud and those that had passed the trials gave him black looks, his voice ringing in mutated ears. 

It mostly happened when he got excited, and the things he got excited about were monsters and their lore, which meant he was too loud a lot. 

Eskel helped him. Other people yelled or told him off, Eskel just helped him train his volume a little, so he could keep it in check. It was nice, too, because others would have tried to train the loudness out of him entirely, Eskel just wanted him safe when a loud voice could get him killed, accepting the volume otherwise as just part of Geralt.

In the real world, post trials, however, no one was nice like Eskel. A loud witcher was dangerous, fightening, a threat. No one wanted witchers to speak anway, so Geralt bit his tongue and gritted his teeth and kept quiet.

Quiet was important now too. Before Geralt had been easily overwhelmed when the world was too much, but with freshly, raw nerve senses it was too much all the time. Sometimes he wanted to sit in a dark cellar somewhere.

So he didn’t talk and mediated to keep out the muchness of the world.

Then along came an idiot bard with a very loud voice, always talking and never leaving. Sometimes his volume would spike and Geralt would wince, sensitive ears protesting, but he never wanted his bard to leave. Geralt had precious few friends, even if the word never crossed his lips.

When he winced, though, Jaskier would carefully adjust his volume. Someone had taught him, Geralt could tell. Someone like Eskel had coaxed volume control into Jaskier, but when the bard was excited he got louder. It had been years since the trials, decades, and Geralt had gotten used to noise somewhat, so the bard wasn’t always too much. He was grateful for the companionship.

Then, slowly, Jaskier drew volume out of Geralt. The habits of a couple decades crumbled under careful persistance and Geralt chatted happily, volume raising as he went on about various venoms and monster classification. Instead of putting off the bard, Jaskier seemed fascinated, eyes wide and little charcoal pencil a blur. 

His songs got much more accurate too, and he never minded Geralt being loud, even if birds flew from the bushes nearest. 

Cities were still too much, and Jaskier lowered his volume carefully, trying not to contribute to the everything that agonized Geralt so much. Then, in one such city, he handed Geralt a parcel wrapped in wax paper rather bashfully. 

“It’s enchanted beeswax,” he said in a near whisper, the only sound in their darkened room. “A mage enchanted it for me, if you put a little in your ears it can block the sound.” 

Geralt tried it and the world around him stopped. It was like water in a desert. He thanked Jaskier, and he was sure his voice came out much too loudly, practically booming in the little room, but Jaskier threw his head back and laughed, then gave a thumbs up. 

Silence could be nice, Geralt thought, slipping into meditation. But maybe he didn’t always have to be silent, not with a friend around.

[bloededhoine]

world building cause twn doesn't pt. 2: nilfgaard!

pt. 1 on the northern realms here

okay i'm making this because 1 witcher netflix is the most convoluted and confusing thing i've ever seen and does literally no world building and 2 special interest make autism brain go brr.

about this series

this is gonna be a multi part series about the witcher universe but this is all about nilfgaard!

ciri's timeline in twn encompasses the entirety of the first northern war, beginning with the attack on cintra and ending with the battle at sodden

the show ended in 1264 when we saw geralt meet ciri

this is just covering the human portions of nilfgaard. i'll talk about elven allied groups like the scoiatael later.

colour code cause i fucking love colour codes - already happened/introduced, probably s2, important background info, stuff that might be in the prequel, extras

background

the witcher takes place on the continent, which is mainly divided between south and north

the north is a collection of many kingdoms while the south is basically just nilfgaard and its many territories, dependencies, provences, and vassal states.

some of these conquered areas include toussaint, vicovaro, nazair, and mettina

nilfgaard loves invading the north. a lot. like this is the driving force of most of the plot in the witcher.

basic info

nilfgaard an insanely powerful absolutist monarchy, ruled by an emperor who has a huge collection of talented mages, spies, commanders, and advisors

as of ciri's timeline in twn, the emperor is emhyr var emreis, or, to those on more intimate terms with him: the white flame dancing on the graves of his foes

[ID: middle aged white man with slicked back shoulder length greying black hair. he is wearing a black dress with a red and black embroidered shirt underneath. he is wearing a gold medallion around his neck, has black leather boots, and is holding a silver goblet. end ID]

emhyr is crazy important, both as a character and to the politics of the witcher. he's also a member of the house of emreis, which i'll go into detail on in a bit.

he is also a major walking spoiler, so i won't talk about him in the context of twn or the books

nilfgaard is divided between the "heart" of the empire, also known as lower alba or simply nilfgaard, and the conquered territories, dependencies, provinces, etc

for all of nilfgaard's imperialism, it does allow these areas to retain a lot of their original cultural identity, to the point where someone from vicovaro would not really consider themself nilfgaardian

this works out because nilfgaard would not consider a vicovarian nilfgaardian either

lower alba

lower alba is the home of "real" nilfgaardians, and is also where the capital city is located

theres a bit of racism and racial purity here: lower albans consider themselves superior to the rest of humans due to their elven ancestry

this elven ancestry is also why nilfgaard is far more sympathetic to nonhumans than the north and uses a language similar to hen llinge (elder speech)

there are a LOT of notable albans, so i'll just keep it to the important ones and my favourites: carthia van canten aka cantarella, morvran voorhis, stefan skellen, the house of emreis, and vattier de rideaux

the capital, known as the city of golden towers or simply nilfgaard, is home to the imperial palace, where the emperor spends most of his time

i say most because there is also a summer residence at loc grim palace

now that we know the basics of the core empire, let's visit the other territories!

toussaint

the duchy of toussaint is one of the most important nilfgaardian states, and definitely the most beautiful. it's main economy is in wine

toussaint actually has no secret service or military, something quite rare on the continent. it does however, have a large system of knights errant that love chivalry

the capital is beauclaire, which is where the duke/duchess live

as of twn, its ruler is the duchess anna henrietta. i'll let you all make your own assumptions about the lovely annarietta

also for some reason in toussaint, people have 2 names that are smushed together. so anna henrietta becomes annarietta, sylvia anna becomes syanna, carolina roberta becomes caroberta etc

annarietta is also distantly related to emhyr, her great grandfather is the half brother of emhyr's father

the most notable toussaintois are the mages fringilla and artorius vigo

here's fringilla in twn. [ID: young black woman in a long sleeve grey-blue cloak. her hair is pulled back and she is looking slightly up and to the right with a blank expression. end ID]

vicovaro

"THERE ONCE WAS A MAID FROM VICOVARO..."

okay vicovaro is vassal state near the southernmost part of the empire, but we know it more for the people from it than what it actually is

there is an actual ruler, but the state is largely controlled by two key houses: the var anahid family and the dyffryn family

the capital is vicovaro, but the houses have their own land. we don't really hear about the var anahids, but the dyffyn house controls dyffra

notable vicovarians include assire var anahid and cahir mawr dyffryn aep ceallach. cahir in twn is right there.

[ID: young white man in black armour. he has an angular face and brown slicked back hair. he is scowling]

mettina

okay mettina is a bit confusing since it is the shared name for three different places. the first is the administrative unit mettina, which includes the provence mettina (2) and the provence maecht. in the provence there is also the capital city mettina (3).

tor lara aka the tower of the swallow is in mettina, and not much else tbh

maecht was the home of duny (that little man) for an unspecified number of years

[ID: young white man with dark curly hair. his face is dirty and sweaty and he is frowning slightly]

"wait! i thought duny was the urcheon of erlenwald, and that's in cintra!" don't... don't think too hard about duny. he lived in mettina for a while and took a trip to cintra where he met pavetta.

ebbing

for all intents and purposes, ebbing is an autonomous state, although nilfgaardians do have a hand on the wheel

includes salm, a technically sovereign provence, but is de facto dependent on ebbing

ebbing is most notably home to stygga castle, the one time fortress for the school of the cat, and bounty hunter leo bonhart

also, roegner of ebbing, pavetta's father, is from here

nazair

nazair is kinda the least important of the more important nilfgaardian dependencies

it was independent for a while but was conquered by cintra under queen calanthe and then nilfgaard under emperor emhyr

its main industries are cinnabrite and silver, both luxury goods

the only mildly important nazairi is becca of nazair, ciri's 6 times great grandmother

other minor areas

alba, toussaint, ebbing, and vicovaro are really the only important nilfgaardian areas, although mettina and nazair are mentioned quite a bit. borders change a lot, especially with an imperialist power, but this is the general list of nilfgaardian areas as of the first northern war

regions - daerlan (notable for military), eiddon (owned and ruled by alban spy vattier de rideaux), liddertall, magne, rowan, ruach, slopes (home to haern caduch, the bear school fortress), tarnhann, winneburg, and ymlac

provences - angren provence (contains dol angra, a profitable trade route), cintra (1264-1268), etolia, gemmera, geso, mag turga, mettina (contains kingdoms mettina and maecht), and nazair

vassals - cintra (after 1268), ebbing, toussaint, and vicovaro

tl;dr: the most important part of nilfgaard is lower alba, which is surrounded by many dependencies including toussaint, vicovaro, nazair, and mettina.

thank you for reading! i'm definitely gonna make more parts and will link them here when i do!

[ramblinganthropologist]

Ok so I don't really go here apart from reading the books and force quitting the third game because I felt like I was embarrassing myself in front of the NPC (one of the reasons I probably need therapy lol) but something I keep seeing in regards to Geralt and his emotions struck me as familiar.

Y'all joke he says he can't do the thing but he's doing the thing anyway. That's familiar, because I also don't know when I'm emotional apart from being angry or sad. Now, I'm not a Witcher. I just have alexithymia, which is a condition where I'm just real bad at figuring out if and when I'm doing the emotional thing. It's related to my autism, but it can be comorbid with a bunch of shit.

Basically... what if Geralt has alexithymia as a result of becoming a Witcher? Or hell, maybe always. Up until 2 years ago I thought everyone lived as I did and said the appropriate emotion for the situation. Who can say he isn't the same? Maybe he is doing the emotion thing, but his brain can't register it because of everything? And maybe he's just crap at figuring it out now?

Anyway, like I said I don't go here but if y'all want to run with it be my guest. Maybe if it gets out there I won't be teaching my next therapist what I'm rolling with, lol. (That's a mild joke I love my current guy so far.)

[waterflowing-under-ground]

Tell your good friends

You love them all doubtlessly

Wordless and senseless without reservation

Now's the time

Now's the time

Now's the time

Now's the time

Tell your good friends you love them without complaint

This road stretched for miles, straddled the countryside

Licking the hills with autumn decay

A fire that burned the bright gold covered forest down

This is the end of all that you thought was good

This is the end of reckless young energy

Breathless suspense and restless potential

This is the end

This is the end

This is the end...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This song from an obscure indie band from the mid-2000's I saw live once, opening for Andrew Bird when he was still just breaking into the scene and played small venues came to mind as I've been sitting with and processing grief that's aged 15 years, and reflecting on my most significant friendship of a quarter century, all because I decided to re-read Andrzej Sapkowski's The Witcher saga. It hit me hard then, but it's hitting differently now as a 40-something.

When I was 26 (I'm 41 now), I lost a close friend who was 27 years old at the time. I was very involved in post-death events after he died (suddenly, expectedly, and unfortunately, violently).

I helped his mom (who is also sadly no longer with us either as of a few years ago) clean his belongings out of his apartment which was one of the most surreal and disconcerting experience of my life.

She gave me the textbook from an undergrad class he and I happened to attend together years prior (we had known each other outside of the community college we took that class at, but being in that class together was the catalyst for becoming as close as we did) and all of his comic books.

I was asked to contribute to the eulogy for his celebration of life. I spent so much time with his family. I had vivid dreams about him nearly every night. And I didn't cry, not really, for several weeks. I was in shock. He was 27. It was not real. We'd had plans to hang out the Friday before he died (which happened on that following Monday) and I cancelled because I was tired. But the last time I heard his voice, it was a cheerful little chat on the phone. I remember he said, "awesome sauce, let's try again when you're feeling better." And it was not real.

Well, it wasn't real yet. Until it was. And it hit me all at once one random afternoon when I was sitting alone in my living room. It was quiet. And it was suddenly real.

The immediate post-death events were done and there weren't any more planned. And it hit me suddenly, seemingly out of nowhere, that he was really gone forever, that I'd never see him or speak to him ever again, that this wasn't just a nightmare that I was having that I would wake up from any moment now. My dear, sweet, lovely, funny, intelligent, loyal affectionate, outspoken, wildly eccentric friend was gone. Forever.

That's when I heard a voice come out of my body I'd never heard before, something that sounded like it wasn't even coming from me or even a human being. I was screaming until my throat went raw, and then I was sobbing. I've never screamed like that since.

And I was alone. Just me and my grief finally catching up to me, weeks after my friend had gone. Me and the debt, the price I had to pay for loving someone, for the precious 8 years of friendship we had shared. Because I think of grief as the debt we pay for being able to love.

So tell your friends how much you care about them, how much you love them. It's not too mushy to do that. It's not too sentimental or cloying or whatever negative label someone wants to slap on being affectionate and demonstrative and vocal about your love for someone. It's important. I like to hope I did a decent job of showing him while he was alive, I hope he knew, but I always wish I'd done more, said more.

With the other friend in my life who I consider equally close to my heart, my BFF of 25 years, I recently decided to tell her I love her using those exact words and telling her how important she is to me. In this post about the Witcher (in particular the Geralt and Dandelion friendship), I mentioned that my friend tends usually not to be the touchy-feely type (but that it doesn't make her any less loving or caring or supportive because she is all those things to be clear). If you read that post it'll hopefully make sense why I brought that up.

But in any case, I saw her recently and decided to tell her some things. Because, to be honest, my Witcher re-read (because the Witcher has much to say about grief and loss along with myriad other aspects of the human experience and human conceits) got me thinking about my late friend who I lost over 15 years ago, and my best friend now, who I cherish and love with every part of me, who has seen me through so much, has seen the ugly bits of me as well when I was at my lowest, and who still loves and supports me, enjoys me because she loves me for who I am, considers me enough (as I am, in my unfiltered form in all my autistic and mentally ill glory), and chooses me after all this time. Because I am enough. And for me, she is enough, I love every part of her, I've seen her through low times and when she wasn't well, and I still chose her because she's my friend, my person, and I wouldn't change a single thing about her. We have both made mistakes and hurt each other's feelings in the past at times (not on purpose but still owned it), but real repair was done in those cases, and it made our bond stronger. And that's real, and as I'm learning as I get older, RARE.

I decided that it was the right time to tell her I love her, actually saying the words, and I was nervous she'd be embarrassed, but to my elated surprise, she was touched, told me she loves me too, and we had a sweet and heartfelt conversation about our history, our love and affection for each other, and our amazing friendship that we're so lucky to still have after a quarter of a century, a deep abiding trust in each other, and how we hope to be old and cantankerous together. She is just as important to me as my live-in partner, and I wanted her to know that. I'm so glad I told her because she clearly appreciated hearing it. And I'm relieved and feel peace after telling her, and after hearing her say the same things to me.

Anyway, people, please tell those important people in your life how much you love and care about them, because they need to know, they need to hear it, and it's important. Because nothing is permanent. Losing someone you love will never be easy, even if you do tell them you love them, but it's still important to do so.

"When he heard the death rattle, Gilgamesh moaned like a dove. His face grew dark. 'Beloved, wait, don't leave me. Dearest of men, don't die, don't let them take you from me.'"

- The Epic of Gilgamesh

"Who are you? You are no one that I know. I am Gilgamesh, who killed Humbaba And the Bull of Heaven with my friend. If you are Gilgamesh and did those things, why Are you so emaciated and your face half-crazed? I have grieved! Is it so impossible To believe? he pleaded. My friend who went through everything with me is dead! No one grieves that much, she said. Your friend is gone. Forget him. No one remembers him. He is dead. Enkidu. Enkidu. Gilgamesh called out: Help me. They do not know you as I know you."

- The Epic of Gilgamesh

"Gilgamesh wept bitterly for his friend. He felt himself now singled out for loss Apart from everyone else. The word Enkidu Roamed through every thought Like a hungry animal through empty lairs In search of food. The only nourishment He knew was grief, endless in its hidden source Yet never ending hunger." Herbert Mason, Gilgamesh: A Verse Narrative

[keo6323]

Okay, what if I wrote a modern AU with Geralt having autism and schizophrenia and totally not being mentally okay, Jaskier being his imaginary best friend that keeps him going and stables his inside mind, Yennefer is a woman who plays with his problem of what's real and what's imagined and easily being manipulated so she sexually harasses and rapes him, telling him he likes it and telling him she's a mage, something special like him to get him to trust her (helping Jaskier with healing him after the djinn)

Also what if he murders someone because an imagination tells him they did something bad (Renfri)

... Welcome to my coping mechanism...

...help pls?...

[mrmeatys]

(sprites by @augusttrolls​)

pinterest board

spotify playlist

name: Karama Xiariq

nickname(s): Kara (universal), Kiki (Ceodoa only).

age: 12 sweeps (25 years old)

hatchdate: September 21st (Virgo)

gender: Agender (they/them), avoids gendered language. As masculine as they look they feel connected to femininity.

sexuality: Gay (NBLM)

hemocast: Hemoanon, Lime (#81c335)

symbol: a scarab beetle holding the sun sign.

lusus: Scarabaeous sacer (scarab beetle)

strife: any manner of axe available. Battle, wood chopping, or otherwise.

trolltag: scarabsAnomaly

height: 7’1” without horns, 7’7” with them.

weight: 290-310 lbs roughly.

build: very large with broad shoulders and chest, very muscular, poor posture.

hair: asymmetrical side part most of the time! One side goes past their jaw and the other just past their ears. Their hair is black, wavy, and sort of coarse. It often covers their missing eye or otherwise droops into their face. 

eyes: Their right eye is missing completely, and they rarely if ever use a glass eye or eyepatch. They have hooded eyelids and naturally droopy lids, making them look upset or tired a lot. Their missing eye is surrounded by scars, and their healthy eye has some dark circles. Their eyebrows are thick and often make them look upset as well.

scars: Lots of scarring around missing right eye, and a scar going across their whole face and over their nose. The rest of their body is covered in various scars, and have prominent claw mark scars on their neck. They also have scarring around their missing limbs.

tattoos: A large tattoo of an Egyptian scarab with outstretched wings taking up their left shoulder, a similar but slightly smaller tattoo of a Japanese rhino beetle with outstretched wings on their right shoulder, band tattoos consisting of 3 above the left elbow, three below, and three at their wrist (all on right arm).

piercings: visible piercings are stretched ears (1-½ inches / 38 mm).

personality: Karama is rather shy and a bit awkward and tends not to trust others very easily. They’re a bit stoic and give off the impression of a hardened, cold, mountain troll. That is hardly the truth! As intimidating as they can be, Karama is very gentle and compassionate. They care deeply for others, but oftentimes their fears can get in the way of showing this. Karama is a troll of few words, and prefers to speak through their actions. They’re hard working and disciplined, and very independent. They aren’t one to let others help them easily, and can be very stubborn. Karama means well, but their lack of exposure to other trolls can lead them to be almost childish about some things. They’re a level headed troll, even when they’re anxious, and rarely become angry (that being said, don’t get them to the point of anger). They like comfortable silence and alone time, but are also very lonely. Be their friend!

likes: robotics, insects, plants, folklore/tales, alone time, quilts, working with animals.

dislikes: highbloods, crowds, overlapping noises, hatefulness, tight clothing around their arms.

hobbies: journalling, gardening, tinkering, foraging, nature walks, archery, exploring.

strengths: physically strong, very resourceful, high stamina/endurance, very intimidating.

weaknesses: decreased speed due to being so heavy, no extensive training of their abilities (making them not as strong or easy to use), poor social skills, often restricted by fear of being found out by others or the government.

psych.: social anxiety, autism, PTSD.

phys.: right eye is missing, often not filled with a glass eye. They are missing their right arm and left leg.

abilities: remote sensing/viewing (can sense and “see” things out of their sight range, including specific targets), divination is more accurate and responsive to them, and psychic materialization (the ability to turn psychic energy into tools, objects, weapons and other items, create semi-living constructs and/or create structures of varying permanence).

occupation: self-sufficient homesteader.

religion: no specific religion but very spiritual, practices are based around mostly Paganism.

language(s): Swedish and English, understands Arabic.

voice claim: Henry Cavill as “Geralt of Rivia” in Netflix’s The Witcher.

face claim: Muriel from The Arcana, mostly as a joke. They have no real life face claim.

quadrants:

♢: N/A

♡ : Kallai Galina || #rebel hearts

♤: N/A  

status: 

[likehephaestionwhodied15]

I’ll do all the work to make Geralt a real muse later but pls, I’m already in love with him 

Geralt was born in Poland, but it doesn’t take long for those around him to realize he’s an Ice Hockey prodigy. He’s sent to Russia at a young age to attend a hockey school, which ends up being more hockey than school. He plays his first KHL game at the age of 16 for CSKA Moscow, going on to win the Rookie of the Year award as well as defenseman of the year while his team wins the Gagarin cup. He plays just as well the next year and is drafted third overall into the NHL by the Columbus Blue Jackets. 

In his first year in the NHL Geralt wins the Calder Cup for the rookie of the year in addition to the Noris trophy for Defenseman of the year. His team goes on to win the Stanley Cup and Geralt is named MVP of the playoffs. 

It all takes a turn after that. 

Suffering from severe burn out Geralt is sent to the Minor leagues, where he doesn’t do near as well as everyone expects him to. He’s traded to the New York Rangers but only plays one NHL game before being sent back down to the minor league to finish his contract. He doesn’t sign another contract, and retires from hockey. 

Geralt spends the next year as a line cook at a 24 hour diner before his boss convinces him to go to school, he takes to school like a fish out of water, finally feeling at home despite being a non traditional student. He spends his free time with the International students, and in Eastern European culture center. He writes his thesis about the modern implications of Polish Folklore. His professors encourage him to continue his education and he’s glad he listens to them, eventually receiving a PhD and teaching eastern European Folklore and mythos. 

It is his time as an undergraduate when Geralt truly faces his sexuality, and autism head on, finally having space to be something other than the hockey player everyone wants him to be.

Geralt Adops Cerila when he hears a friend knows of a young Polish girl who had recently been orphaned. He asks how he might be put in touch with her, at first he only wants to help her keep a coonection to Poland, but then, he realizes, he would not mind adopting her at all. [can change if RPing with a Ceri]