#because he saw desmond

[teecupangel]

From @saberamane’s reblog of this majestic leucistic moose

@teecupangel Desmond as a big ass white moose walking through Masyaf/Firenze/Boston looking for Altair/Ezio/Ratonhnhaké:ton because he needs to figure out where in the timeline he is so he can plan his next step. ...after he finds out if he can return to a human form. Being this big and blatant is attracting too much attention. (Surprise! He's stuck as a moose.)

“Good morning, Altaïr!” The informant cheerfully greeted him, either not caring or not seeing the darkness on the face of the Master Assassin turned novice.

‘Ah, he must have talked to Malik.’ The informant noted, deciding to just ignore the murderous air around Altaïr.

He knew Altaïr wouldn’t attack him. For all the bad rumors going around about his personality, everyone knew that Altaïr didn’t attack without a good reason.

“I assume you wish for information about a certain someone?” The informant asked lightly, “I may have something that may be of use…”

Altaïr’s eyebrow twitched when it became clear that the informant was not going to continue talking. He took a deep breath before he asked through gritted teeth, “What do you need from me?”

“A little of your time and talent, my friend!” The informant patted his shoulder and kept the hand there. When he saw Altaïr glare at the offending hand, he simply patted him again.

Perhaps he should care more about his life but he trusted Altaïr not to do anything.

He did pity the next man that Altaïr would have to ‘interrogate’.

“The guards have captured an animal. A supposed sacred animal from God.”

Altaïr’s lips curled into a frown.

“The guards have been guarding-” He waited for a reaction but just shrugged when Altaïr just glared at him, “-this sacred animal west of here, in the guards’ main base of operation.”

“Malik believes that I can slip inside and find out what this animal is supposed to be.” The informant continued, placing his other hand on his chest as he said with a nod, “I am honored by Malik’s trust of my abilities.”

“Yet here you are, asking me to be the one to slip inside and find out what this animal is.” Altaïr reminded him dryly.

“Knowing people who could do a better job and having the means to make them do it in your stead is also a kind of ability, my friend.” The informant countered with a smile. He patted Altaïr’s shoulder once more, ignoring the way Altaïr looked ready to smack it off hard enough to topple him to the ground, as he said, “All I need is to know what kind of animal it is, Altaïr. I will wait for you here, my friend!”

He placed his other hand on Altaïr’s shoulder, ignoring the warning glare Altaïr gave him as he said cheerfully, “I believe in you, Altaïr.”

.

20 minutes later, the entire city is engulfed in complete chaos as news of a hooded man, rumored to be an Assassin, was riding the sacred animal all over the city to evade the guards sent to hunt them down.

The informant paused and asked the most important question.

“And what is this sacred animal supposed to be?”

[sneaky-eel]

A modern au with no assassins and Desmond instead rebels against Bill by becoming an internet thot/onlyfans like model and Bill can’t do jack shit because a. Desmond is 25 and b. he makes enough money that Bill can’t threaten to cut him off. Bill owns a very successful business and Desmond plasters his own name around to embarrass him, like, “Why yes, my name is Desmond MILES. Son of WILLIAM MILES!”

More art under cut!

Bill isn’t to happy when his own employees find Desmond’s page.

His mom is there, she is the head of private security for Bill. Since Desmond came back into their lives, she tries to be supportive, but that woman can’t do anything in halves.

She also has some of her men keeping an eye on him to ensure he is safe. Desmond gets embarrassed but doesn’t block her because he doesn’t want to make her sad.

[teatitty]

Do you ever think about what it must be like to relive the memories of your ancestors and experience the emotions they experienced? Do you ever think about Desmond going to Italy and being hit by waves of nostalgia for a place he's never been himself but Ezio's hold is so strong on him he cannot help weeping at a picture of the Auditore home? Did he ever wake up in the dead of night wracked with grief over the death's of people he's only ever seen in another man's memories? When he comes back from the memory of Malik's death does he feel the loss just as heavily as Altair did?

Is this what the bleed does to you? Is this how it sends you mad, little by little, in the same manner as the artefacts of Eden? - Burdened with knowledge you were never meant to have

[alexiethymia]

my favorite twilight is the one who can’t help but go gooey over his family😫

[cloggedarteri]

ubisoft

imma hold you by the hand when i tell you this but

you clearly overestimated my intelligence when you gave me those 'find the apple' and 'decode the message' puzzles in 2

dont get me wrong, i did them

but know I took longer than I should have😐

[loosescrewslefty]

This was absolutely brilliantly done.

Because this isn't Anya's most closely guarded secret being discovered by accident without her consent. She made an active, CONSCIOUS choice to tell Damian that she is a telepath. Something that she was previously terrified would lead to her being hated if someone happened to find out. And throughout this little prom arc we slowly get fed the reasons that lead up to this moment. First being that while she initially saw Damian as a bratty, self centered jerk, Anya has slowly come to know him better and see a more noble and compassionate boy under all that cocky bluster.

Then there's the way Damian also mentions to her that many people try and use him in order to get close to his parents-- which she sees for herself when the other girls start swarming him demanding to dance-- hence his suspicions of her own intentions.

And the finally is the fact that, despite his own admission that his parents barely acknowledge he's alive, Damian still loves and admires them and is desperate to earn their affection.

In fact, during the Damian quiz, it's implied that Anya didn't use her powers to figure out who Damian's most beloved person was, because she already knew the answer just from knowing him. It's the only question we don't see her telepathic 'sparkles' or hear her listening on the answer.

It happened slowly and subconsciously, but despite the unflattering first impression Anya has come to care about Damian. She doesn't want him to be hurt or sad. She doesn't want to use him or take advantage of him the way she sees others try to (and the way a small subset of the fandom accuses Anya of trying to since they can't seem to grasp that Anya is at most six years old and hasn't thought as far as to how the fallout of Twilight's mission will affect the Desmonds). And she understand him a lot better than she ever realized. She trusts him with her deepest, darkest secret despite her fear and the uncertainty because she genuinely WANTS to be honest with Damian. It's her olive branch to him, after HE was vulnerable with her time and again when it comes to his family and his fear of letting others close after so many people tried to use him for his name.

Because more than anyone else, Damian has noticed her, and how intuitive she is of the thoughts of others.

And despite denying or deflecting it time and time again-- including intentionally bombing a few questions in this chapter to avoid standing out too much after Damian called her out again-- Anya FINALLY came clean to him about her powers.

And, of course, he thought she was messing with him, which in turn pissed HER off because this is her biggest secret, dammnit! XD

But despite Damian's refusal to believe her ATM, this isn't something Anya can take back, and Damian is perceptive enough of Anya that sooner or later he's going to realize that Anya was being honest with him. And it'll be a wild ride to see where things go from there.

[whateversawesome]

Spy x Family Ch. 110: Is Donovan Desmond a Mind Reader and Most Importantly, Is Twilight Doomed?

Nah.

Twilight isn't doomed, this isn't the end. Calm down, there's no need to panic about that.

Think about it for a second, if Donovan Desmond could read minds, the SSS would have arrested Twilight the minute he said bye to Desmond on that first meeting.

A few months ago, when we saw a young Donovan Desmond appear, I did a poll/analysis about whether or not he could read minds.

Even after the most recent chapter, my opinion is still the same: No, he can't.

Some people think that maybe he can get a glimpse into people's past. Although that would be a super awesome power (and it would be one hell of a plot), I don't think it's the case, because that wouldn't really tell him much and I don't think it would have affected him to the point of forcing him to distance himself from everyone.

I do have a theory about him. I've mentioned it before but here it is again:

I think he can tell when someone is lying.

Yup. That's it. A human lie detector. It made sense a few months ago, it makes even more sense now.

It fits his personality, his fixation with liars as a child, it also fits the theme of the whole story (everyone is a liar in sxf, everyone has something to hide) and most importantly, it fits his behavior.

We know that Donovan Desmond did not initiate war with Westalis. Chapman was Prime Minister when the war started and Desmond followed after him. There's a big chance war ended while Desmond was in power. If I'm not mistaken, the war has been over for about 10 years. I have the feeling that Desmond may have launched Project Apple as a means to protect peace.

And how would someone who is obsessed with lies do that? Of course, by wanting to know how others really think at all times.

My guess is that he volunteered himself to participate in the experiments, that would also explain the scars he has on each side of his head (which he didn't have as a child). It's unlikely he was a war veteran, because politicians and people in office never go into a battlefield, so he didn't get those scars in battle.

I think he really tried to obtain mindreading abilities and he failed, but not completely.

Imagine how it would be to have that awareness of people lying ALL THE TIME. How awful it must have been for him to get this power and realize than even his family, the people he felt closest to were lying to him. I think that's the reason why he isolated from everyone. It also fits what Melinda describe in the last chapter:

Let's look at that Desmond family dinner from that perspective. He cannot read minds but he can tell his wife is lying (because she's scared of him and doesn't want to be there!). It also makes sense that Demetrius keeps his mind blank because he suspects his father knows what he's thinking, so he's train himself to not think in front of others.

His behavior shows a person who has completely lost faith in humanity. He pushed everyone away because he didn't want any more lies, and to protect himself but, by doing this, he also ended up hurting his wife to such an extent that she doesn't recognize him anymore.

Since another theme of sxf is getting closer to and relying on people while forming bonds despite their masks and lies, I can totally see this could be Donovan's story, also parallel to Twilight's by the way: You can distance yourself from others to protect yourself but it'll be a lonely life.

Yes, Donovan is safe, guarded from everyone's lies, but he's also missing out on his family's love and also on the possibility of changing the world for the best.

Twilight is going in exactly the opposite direction of him. He's becoming alive, tearing those walls down, learning to rely on others, and loving his family.

Another Important Thing to Consider...

Everyone is so worried about Donovan Desmond possible mindreading powers that no one has mentioned one very important thing: Twilight's purpose for Operation Strix!

THIS is what WISE and Twilight really want to do: to find information that would allow them to remove people who seek war from power.

It's one hell of a strategy and a tough one for sure. And I agree; scandal, especially in such a conservative society like Ostania could do a lot of damage to politicians like Desmond, parties like the National Unity Party, and institutions like the SSS.

It wouldn't surprise me if at some point in the story it actually works. However, I don't think Westalis is as clean as we think. Food for thought.

[sy-on-boy]

Real talk: the fact that Anya expects to read Demetrius’ mind but sees nothing is kind of sad because Demetrius saw his 6yo brother approach and congratulate him, and had zero thoughts in his brain. But that doesn’t mean Demetrius doesn’t care about him. When Damian stutters, Demetrius initiates conversation by talking about Damian’s grades, showing that he indeed pays attention.

Demetrius seems almost resentful by Damian’s insistence to impress Donovan, giving out a snarky, passive aggressive, teen appropriate response: “How would I know? It’s not as if I’m in regular contact with him.” This is like the passive aggressive version of whatever is going on with Melinda. Damian is a relatively innocent 6yo kid seeking his father’s approval, but both his mother and his brother appear to be seriously affected (in a bad way) by Donovan, and they avoid talking about Donovan even as Damian repeatedly mentions him. Demetrius doesn’t understand Damian’s desire for their father’s approval. He also doesn’t understand his father, hinting at some sort of disconnect between them.

What also saddens me a bit is how Demetrius barely acknowledged Damian’s friends talking to him. Like, they’re six year old kids trying to make a good impression. Still, Demetrius didn’t completely ignore them, just gave a meaningless “oh” and decided to stop thinking about people. It’s very much giving “stressed (and depressed) to the point of apathy”. When facing the innocence (ignorance?) and optimism of 6yo kids, Demetrius doesn’t understand. (And maybe he doesn’t understand friendship, which is what Damian has?)

I mentioned before that characters Anya met are probably “good” characters on the side of Forgers or at least are sympathetic to readers. Because if Anya met a “bad” character and read their mind, she would be too OP and the plot could be quickly solved. It’s like how we all thought Melinda was suspicious when she met Yor, but then Anya met Melinda and read her mind to reveal that she cares about Damian (even if it’s in a twisted way). Demetrius is interesting because he subverts what I said above by thinking very little, so Anya cannot really read him. But so far, I think his portrayal is that of a typical middle schooler with middle school angst, and he cares about Damian even if he has zero thoughts on his brain (and doesn’t like the way Damian craves fatherly approval). He is still a child and presumably a victim of his father’s parenting.

The framing is also interesting. Damian telling his friends to go on without him while he waits for Demetrius. The panel of Demetrius towering over a stuttering Damian. Demetrius going away, showing a panel of him as a small figure in an otherwise blank background. That panel when Anya thinks Damian’s relatives are weird has her looking at Damian while he’s some distance away from her (and the rest of his friends). The brothers feel disconnected. Damian is both eager and nervous to talk to Demetrius. Demetrius is nonchalant and apathetic, but not impolite or outwardly wholly dismissive.

Given Damian’s wacky family situation, I’m glad he has friends at Eden. Ewen and Emile of course are steadfast and loyal companions, always eager to back up their beloved boss man. Anya can read his mind and she knows about his insecurities (and also his weird family).

Becky is also good as a friend because she doesn’t care about sucking up to Damian, she often calls him out, but she also supports Damian when he deserves it. A sweet scene here is Damian saying he’s a Desmond so he’s expected to get a star, and Becky adding “it’s still a great achievement. Congrats!”. Becky is validating his success and telling Damian it’s okay to be proud and happy for himself. Even though she’s usually judgemental towards Damian, she’s still kind to him because that’s who she is as a character.

In the end, Damian still wants his father’s attention. He had no idea Demetrius wasn’t that close to their father… I would assume Demetrius spent most of his time at Eden and this is Damian’s first year at Eden, so he actually gets to interact with his brother instead of hearing things about him?

So far, Demetrius seems like a very jaded character in contrast to Damian who feels like a beam of sunshine now. He’s the heir so he’s got more troubles. But it’s nice that he’s finally debuted and no longer in mystery. Can’t wait to see what Endo has in store for him :)

[suzukiblu]

WIP excerpt for inkwell; Billy adopts Conner and it actually goes pretty good! (( chrono || non-chrono ))

“Oh, you don’t have to do those, you’re the one cooking,” Billy says. Lynn pauses again, then looks up again with another frown. 

“What?” he says. 

“Um–if somebody cooks for you, the polite thing to do is do the dishes for them after. So I can do ‘em,” Billy clarifies, because probably Cadmus actually wasn’t really very interested in teaching Lynn, like, normal manners and stuff, come to think. Because Lynn wouldn’t have needed to know that, if they weren’t ever gonna be letting him go be normal. 

Jerks. 

Lynn stares blankly at him again. He’s holding a dish. Billy hopes he’s not embarrassed or anything. It makes sense that he doesn’t know, obviously, and even if it didn’t make sense it’s not like Billy’d hold it against him, but, like–obviously Lynn doesn’t know that kind of thing yet. 

It’s probably gonna be a while before he does, Billy figures. Though Lynn’s technically still really little, so he might have an easier time letting his guard down a little? He hasn’t really had much life experience to tell him he shouldn’t, so . . . 

Billy . . . well, he learned pretty quick not to let his guard down too quick in a new foster home. Or, like . . . ever, really. At all. 

He’d like it if Lynn just . . . didn’t have to, though. Didn’t have to learn that kind of thing, he means. Like–yeah, definitely Lynn should keep his guard up on patrol and missions and stuff, but not at home. 

There’s not any kryptonite in the apartment for a reason. Pretty much the same reason Billy wants Lynn to be able to let his guard down. 

“You want to . . . do the dishes,” Lynn says slowly. 

“Yeah,” Billy says. “I mean–if you like doing them yourself it’s fine, just since you cooked I thought I should at least, you know, offer?” 

Lynn stares blankly at him some more. He does that a lot. Billy wonders if Lynn’s maybe just not very good at using facial expressions yet, come to think. That might make sense, right? He saw some pictures of the other genomorphs in the mission report, and most of them didn’t have very expressive-seeming faces either, and almost nobody actually human-looking spent too much time working down on Lynn’s sublevel, it seemed like. And also the head security guy apparently wore a helmet with a half-mask involved, and Dr. Desmond was, um . . . maybe not a great person for Lynn to be taking any cues from, considering–plus who even knows how hands-on he was in the lab anyway–so maybe Lynn just still hasn’t seen all that many expressions yet. Like, outside of his uploads and stuff, anyway. Or maybe he just didn’t see all that many of them “growing up”, depending on how awake he was for that? 

Or both, maybe. Maybe just both? 

Cadmus did not do a very good job teaching Lynn how to be somebody outside Cadmus, Billy is pretty sure. Which, well–yeah. Of course it wouldn’t have. 

Cadmus didn’t want Lynn to ever be somebody outside it, or even be outside it at all. 

That’s just so, so messed up.

[sulfies]

If I Lead (pt1)

"You have to be fucking kidding me..."

He really thought the whole Isu shit was behind him. The world burned and his job was done. Nearly all of 7 billion people dead, but at least not under an evil Godesses whim as slaves. He was doing as he was told, he was leading the people out of the doom he inflicted upon them and helping them rebuild. 

His job with all the Apples and Isu bullshit should be done! So why did his eyes open in the sanctuary of Monteriggioni out of all the fucking places. 

"That's what I get for touching that damn shit!" 

He should have left it fucking alone, it was perfectly fine where it was! Hidden under rubbles and sand in a half-collapsed cave Desmond ventured in to map out to see if there was any underground water source. 

He had found a gorgeous cenote in the depths of the cave with fresh water, which was all fun till he noticed an all too familiar golden sheen at the bottom of it. 

He should have turned around and left the place, fuck the Isu's, fuck the apples fuck everything.

"FUCK!" 

He kicked the base of one of the statues. His voice echoed in the stone room.

He just had to dive in and get it, didn't he. He was conditioned like a dog. Like a Pavlovian itch, he swam into the depths just to touch it.

"Because why not huh, maybe it can help us, maybe I can learn something from it" He mumbled to himself in a mocking voice "God I am so fucking stupid! I should have left it alone." 

He knew nothing good came out of any Isu artifact! He knew it yet he still touched it and now he was here after the all too familiar light show he experienced.

He squatted on his knees, holding his head in his hands. "I am way too old for this"

He raised his head and took a look around. This place did not change at all. Even in his forties, this place was always fresh in Desmond's mind like a second home and nothing had changed at all. 

He wiped his face with a palm and shook his head. Alright...He was in Italy now. 

He had to figure out how to get back.

Thankfully Shaun and Rebecca could perfectly handle the camp while he was away but he was already a month late from his exploration and now who knows how long it would take for him to get back. Few months with a boat? That is if he could find one.

"Good job Desmond, you fucked up once again" he sighed and got up, hearing his knees crack. 

He scratched his beard and looked toward the stairs that led to the main exit. "Let's hope the fires and the rubble didn't block the exit, again"

He did not want to do the parkour thru the caves again. Especially the part where he had to swim in that slimy water.

But this place looked fine, even better than the last he remembered which did surprise him but maybe it was that well built.

He looked at Altaïr's statue, not one crack showed on his whole build. The Master Mentor of all standing proudly as always, he laughed painfully. "Things were weirdly simpler back then huh... You probably would not have failed." 

He pursed his lips in a thin line and turned back to the stairs to try the door. His hands found the mechanism easily enough, just as he was wondering if the mechanism inside survived the heat, the door slid open smoothly. 

Way too smoothly.

The hair on his arms stood up as Desmond's eyes met with the Monteriggioni villa in the night air. No destruction in sight.

"No..." 

He walked through the door as his boots met with the polished tiles underneath. His hands touched the soft fabric of the curtains. He saw the desk in the study littered with papers like someone was going to come back to it come morning. 

His head turned to the right to see the codex wall... Some pages already pinned down onto the board, more than half incomplete but on the right track.

Desmond felt the sweat drip down his back,  he breathed in harshly. 

"What the fuck..."

He really should not have touched that devil's orb. 

—-------

Once the reality actually sank in, he could not have run out of the villa faster. 

He opened the window closest to him (the glass was still intact) and hopped out to the courtyard (the healthy grass under his boots squished) and booked it. He ran into the woods (there were trees!) till his breath ran out then he ran some more. 

This had to be a joke, no matter what, he had to be seeing a vision or something. Maybe his bleeding hit him hard this time and he was hallucinating this whole thing... He had to be.

Desmond slowed down to stop at the forest once he came to the hill edge. He choked a shocked sob.

There in all its glory, the village of Monteriggioni stood in front of him. All the buildings standing up with no rubble nor the damage of the flare around. 

The sun, like a big fuck you to him only, was making its way out of the peak of the mountains slowly as torches around the buildings were illuminating the dark roads in between houses the light had yet to reach

Desmond crouched down activating his sight. Hundreds of grey figures came into his view, many of them asleep in their bed and Desmond couldn't hold his eyes from watering. He listened intently to hear some drunkards walk the street blabbering and singing to themselves as they went home. He heard the merchants and workers shuffle around their homes getting ready for the day.

He let out a shakey breath and fisted the grass under his hand. It has been a while since he saw this... 

It used to feel like such a small place when he first reached this town, the village in contrast to New York seemed like nothing…

Now, after the flare. It was insane to see this many people in one place like this again.

A boat was not going to be enough to take him back home.

—-------------------

Desmond had to be quick before the town really woke up, he was already scouting the rooftops and wires people hung their clothes on to for stuff that would suit his frame. Hopping one rooftop to another he was biting his cheek to stop himself from the slight grin that wanted to get out of him.

He had missed this. 

There were no rooftops left to climb after the flare, no buildings to scale. No points to jump off of not even trees. It had all burned away and dammit his body has missed this.

He snatched a few garments that looked roughly his size from the wires he crossed by and hopped into a rooftop garden. 

He needed to wipe the smirk off of his face...

He would have killed to be able to visit Ezio’s time before, to run these streets again, but now all he could think was; how fucked it was that he was finding a sliver of joy in this while people back at home were probably battling to stay alive as always.

He was supposed to lead them, he was too much of a pussy to save them all before the least he could do was rebuild them as well as he could as they have told him to. 

And now he was gone. All because this time he couldn't keep his hand to himself. 

He sat in the rooftop garden looking through the clothes he picked and judged their size. Truth be told at this point they were in better condition than the clothes he had on at the moment. 

He took off the scarf and the threadbare jacket and sat with his hoodie on… He could not get rid of that damn thing no matter what. It had way too many memories to him, especially after the flare where it was one of the only things left from before. 

He was attached to the damn thing even if it was holding together mostly with patches these days, stitches jutting out of the clean hems of the cloth where it had gotten town again and again. 

He took it off but stuffed it down his backpack Rebecca had found in a surviving underground bunker and gifted it to him for his 30th birthday. It was faux leather so it would not look that much out of place he decided.

He shed his shirt and pants next, shivering from the chilly air. Quickly putting on the doublet and the vest then he fumbled with the pants for quite a while… 

“I need to figure out better shoes” He had grabbed a pair he saw sitting outside on a windowsill, probably the owner had left them to dry out overnight, thinking it was high up enough for anyone to not be able to steal.

But they were too small for comfort, a week in these and his feet would be ruined. He threw on his backpack and gathered his pants, shoes and shirt in his arms. He had to burn these somewhere.

He jumped out of the garden and made his way to the outside gates before the town started its routine.

—----------

As he made it to the clearing just outside of the walls, Desmond breathed in the clean air. No smell of char reached his nose. It was wild… after twenty years of inhaling the slight burnt smell of the world, all he smelled now was the fresh air.

He found a less grassy spot and piled the clothes on, retrieved his flint from his backpack pocket.

As the fire burned the only clothes he had for a while he listened to the birds chirp. Those were gone as well, as most of the animals were. Only the ones lucky enough to be near an artifact at the time had survived. Shaun had come up with the theory.

Once again the sense of peace he felt was quickly replaced by his guilt. He rubbed his chest, it ached with every memory. He didn't deserve to see all of this. Not when he was the sole cause of that madness people back home were subjected to daily. 

Twenty-plus fucking years he tried to make up for his mistake. He found whoever he could and took them back to their camp. He gathered whatever he could, and used every bit of the knowledge he gained from the apple to lead what was left into a better place, and now he was gone.

Abandoned them to their fates on a random weekday.

Because he could not keep his hands to himself.

He rose up from where he stood and kicked in the dirt to smother the ambers. Watching them sizzle down.

He had to find a way to get back… If a piece of Eden took him here, it could and should take him back.

—----

He needed to figure out what year it was first, and where Ezio was. 

Not to meet him of course, If all went well he would never see the man and no one here would know he even took a step in this time.

But he needed to know where Ezio was so he could know where the apple was. 

Since Monteriggioni was standing perfectly intact, it was before he embarked to Rome. The codex pages were just starting to get collected so he would have been quite young. This meant the apple was barely even on his way to Venice on a ship…

“Shit, he must be what… 25-27 at best?”

God…. Thats so young, was he even officially initiated yet? If the age he guessed is right Ezio should be in Venice, either with the thieves or the courtesans… he needed to know the date to be sure.

Ezio did not even know of the apple's existence yet probobly.

He so wished he could just go where the ship was right this very moment and get to the apple but truth be told his memory of Ezio’s life after 20 years of apocalypse wasn't too fresh on his mind… So even if he knew the date It wasn’t like he could sail on a vessel and interrupt the ship alone.

Which meant Desmond had to track the apple at the same time as Ezio. 

—-------------

Desmond sat on top of one of the watchtowers near the walls, watching the town come alive as people went about their day. It was overwhelming yet he couldn't tear his eyes away. 

To think he lived in one of the most populated cities before, and now seeing 500 or less people in one spot made him nauseous with awe. So many mouths to feed, so many resources to find….

He looked away,

these people weren't his commune. He wasn't responsible for them but he couldn't shut his mind up. 

It felt unreal, like in any moment he was going to blink and this was going to reveal itself to be a one extreme bleeding episode.

He did still have those, but he knew they were never like this.

After decades of living with it, he knew what a bleed felt like. They rarely caught him off guard nowadays unless he was having particularly bad days.

But this wasn't one.

[saberamane]

So I'm nearing the end of Valhalla (I already have the main map fully completed) and just saw the scene with The Reader and just...

Damn, Desmond was hiding some pecs under that hoodie. Being built of pure light energy now, I really should not have been able to notice his Tiddies, with a capital T because, again, damn. DId he have those before the Animus?

I'm seriously losing my mind right now over this very minor fact.

[teecupangel]

What if desmond was reborn as the 5th auditore child? Like he was just a baby/toddler when the auditore were executed

Hey, nonny.

We can make Desmond be born on March 13, 1476 so he would only be months old when the Auditores are executed.

Wanna fuck with Desmond and the Auditores some more?

What if we keep Maria’s mental state after the execution and make her believe that the baby in her arms is Petruccio.

The only person who could remind her that she was holding and caring for her fifth child was Claudia and it was becoming harder and harder for her to keep trying to stay strong when her mother treating Desmond as Petruccio makes her think that she’s in the past and asking when her husband would be back or if Federico and Ezio be back from playing outside.

The final nail in the coffin is that Maria mistook Claudia as someone else, maybe an older sister that was already dead or even her old nanny who died when Petruccio was just born.

Ezio saw what was happening and pushed Claudia to managing Monteriggioni to keep her from spiraling.

It becomes apparent that Maria sees Giovanni in Ezio and Mario tells him that it might be better if they slowly separate Maria from Desmond.

It’s not doing either of them any good and making Desmond replace Petruccio was a fate that no child should ever shoulder.

So Ezio pretends to be Giovanni taking Petruccio for walks and tries to be there for his younger brother.

But being an Assassin made it hard for him to return home frequently.

He tries his best and he knows Claudia also tries to make their younger brother understand that they don’t see him as a replacement and that their mother is simply… confused at the moment.

That’s how Desmond grew up, pretending to be Petruccio when he’s with Maria Auditore.

Mario trained him while Ezio was running around but he couldn’t leave Monteriggioni because Maria starts to ask where Petruccio is whenever she doesn’t see Desmond for a few hours.

Ezio went to Firenze after journeying to Spain (and got entangled with Bonfire of the Vanities) when Maria finally realized that Desmond isn’t Petruccio. To be more exact, Desmond had turned 21 and Maria cried as she remembered that Petruccio would have never grown as old as Desmond.

At that point, Maria’s relationship with her youngest child was strained by her own guilt and grief while Desmond just accepted it because he loved Maria and a part of him believed that he should have done something more (even if he was still a baby, guilt does not care about one’s age)

Desmond starts doing Assassin work as well but goes rogue for a few months, returning with the remaining seals for Altaïr’s statue.

Desmond takes the armor for himself and just shrugged it off as Ezio’s birthday present or something equally unimportant and Ezio returned to Monteriggioni with… well…

A very awkward family reunion, that’s for sure.

So many things have happened at that point and, as much as he is happy to see his mother healing, he feels guilty for not being there for Desmond who just shrugs it off and tells him “I understand.”

“I understand.”

That was the worst phrase Ezio heard.

He kept hearing it from his younger brother.

At first he was relieved that his brother understood.

Then he realized that the phrase meant more than that to Desmond.

It was a resignation to his current situation.

And Ezio wasn’t really in the best place himself.

He was still grieving the death of Cristina who died while Ezio was in Firenze for Savonarola and his men so there was also a bit of guilt there.

So Mario suggested Ezio takes Desmond to the Vatican with him as a ‘trainee’ and Ezio agreed.

He tells Desmond that he never wanted him to be an Assassin, that he hoped he was the only one who had to carry the blood that drenched the Auditores’ blade.

Desmond just stares at him and goes…

“I understand.”

And Ezio knew that he failed being a brother to his youngest in this bloody path of vengeance he had taken.

[spyxrambling]

I find the discussion around chapter 109 interesting because a lot of people seem to think that Twilight will be a good therapist and help Melinda Desmond and honestly...I'm not so sure about that.

Melinda is already estranged from her husband and lives apart from him and her sons, yet she's still terrified of him to a degree where she apparently doesn't even seem to believe he's human anymore.

While it's not part of Twilight's job as a fake psychiatrist to tell Melinda to get a divorce, removing Donovan from her life as much as possible is probably the best advice one could give Melinda in this situation.

But I don't think Twilight will do that for multiple reasons.

1. We already saw him telling a patient who was utterly terrified of his wife to talk things out with her instead of seperating before the Mole arc:

And we have to remember he gave this advice to a couple whose relationship he doesn't have a vested interest in.

2. We know that Loid's colleagues and previous patients think he's an amazing psychiatrist, but until recently Loid was kept away from VIP patients so he had very little reason not to give his unimportant patients the best treatment he could think of to eventually qualify for VIP patients. He had no reason to manipulate them to gain intel.

3. Twilight has an interest in getting the Desmond family closer together again even if its not good for them. Anya getting close to Damian and Yor getting close to Melinda is kind of pointless if neither of them can get Twilight into Donovan's social circle.

4. Some people think Twilight will try to gain intel from Melinda but then stop to genuinly help her once he realises how much she is suffering. With the way Twilight has been acting since the Mole arc I can't imagine his human side getting the better of him.

Twilight thinks that he lost to Wheeler because his emotions stopped him from killing Yuri, leading to Twilight getting injured before facing Wheeler. He doesn't know that strong emotions (Nightfall's love and rage) were also the reason he was saved and Wheeler defeated. Twilight is currently at a point where he noticed that he has developed feelings for his family, but he sees it as a weakness that needs to be eliminated.

And while we see Twilight feeling slightly bad for viewing everything through the lense of intel gaining instead of forming genuine bonds:

But so far these feelings of shame have not yet lead to a change in his behaviour:

In fact I wonder if the only thing that could get Twilight to seriously overthink his approach would be if his fakeness and manipulative behaviour for the sake of intel lands him in serious trouble.

[spyxfamilyanalysis]

[SPY x FAMILY Chapter 107] Part 2 (Inner thoughts & Family matters)

-> Part 1 (Damianya)

As we all know, Loid always thinks about Operation Strix whenever and whereever he hangs out with his family

Actually, he was quite good at predicting! He thought that Melinda might be here in this festival, and he was right!

In the next chapter, she temporarily worked as a newbie fortune teller (because she is someone who believes in occult stuffs, mystical things..., or maybe as we believe, her husband is the main reason)

And Anya again, competing with Yor about Plan B & C 🤣 He won't abandon you, Anya.

Kinda smart for Anya to think that she can learn secrets from Damian's family through mind-reading... Damian is quite an innocent boy, and he hardly thinks too much about his family, it'll be hard to read him, though, when all he thinks of when he meets you, is you, Anya 🤭

If we actually going through many chapters about Damian, his parents or brother never even hanging out with him for fun stuffs. I understand that his parents are important people, barely made an appearance in public, his father is a Chairman, his mother is a Lady Patriot. They are busy and can't be with him... His brother as well, being busy with school works, barely talks with Damian about anything other than stay inside his room like a hikikomori (depressed man has social problems)

Aww, he was hoping to see his mom, too!!!

Do you even realise, Melinda and his servant Jeeves always there to support Damian, I mean, he is a kid as well. Even though we mostly saw Jeeves with Damian to escort him; after the Red Circus Hijack Arc, Melinda started to be more open to him! She started making food for Damian, worrying about her son at school...

I think Anya has limited vocabulary, it's funny that Anya called Damian's friends's servants as henchlings' henchlings :)))

Loid still thinks about Strix, get straight to work immediately! 😁

Like, why didn't he have any fun with his 'family', he had a "wild" childhood, after all. I just thought that, he should spend some time hanging out with his family to fill up the blank space of his childhood...

Finally, our sweetheart's BFF & super rich lady, Becky and our sumpreme bold friend with military dad, Bill!

Look at this huge bias of Twilight: Becky's family and Bill's family are so detailed analysed, and yet, George's family was completely ignored🙂‍↕️

Have to admire Endo's work so detailed in the characters' inner thoughts, especially Loid. He's a complicated man with thoughts about mission, surroundings, family... Anything comes to his mind, he will think like, a lot😇

Anya quickly sympathized George...

Anya was loved by his classmates' family~ Ever since the hijack, she was quickly well-known and loved by her classmates~ An ordinary girl with superpowers, being loved by families with high social standards! I suppose letting Anya studying this class was a great decision, Loid! He not only gets to know more about the Desmonds, but other families as well!!!

Loid seemed very suspicious about Jeeves... He's hiding something...

Loid just overcomplicated stuffs, again.

Look at the way Loid sees Anya, it's like he only sees her, nothing else surrounding her matters...

Loid must have cared Anya very much, if you remember episode 1, Loid wished for this world once ended this cold war live in peace, where no children will have to cry to beg to suffer. And he was actually emphasizing on Anya, even though the word 'children' was in general, but he actually specifically talking about Anya, ever since he met her 🥺

Loid's inner thoughts are pretty much complicated. Understanding that he is a spy, he can't just be simple-minded, he worries about other stuffs as well. Throughout the mission, he worries first about Anya's fun time, home, care, school, education, friends; even go to lengths 'forcing' her to say 'sorry' to Damian for hitting him on the first day at school; Stella and Tonitrus, social activities...🫨

He may seemed cold towards Donovan, suspicious about everything around him, his colleagues, spies, problems with the Operation; but he always manages to have the time to spend with Anya and his new family!🥰

Bonus: Yor seemed quite in this chapter, huh? She only started talking when she met Melinda for fortune telling.

[yumeka-sxf]

Today's new chapter continues the Henderson x Martha angst 😭 In just a couple chapters Endo has done an amazing job conveying how much Martha loves Henry, how volatile the war-torn world they live in is, and how Henry's ideals about education shaped who he became...but also led to regret. If Endo can weave this much of an engrossing side story about minor characters, I can't wait to see what he'll do with the main characters!

A lot of people have pointed out parallels between Henry and Martha's relationship with that of both future Twiyor and Damianya. They definitely have similarities, and while there's no guarantee that Henry and Martha's story has any bearing on the outcome of the other two relationships, my interpretation of it, at least right now, is that it's a cautionary tale...it's showing that this is what could happen to Loid/Yor, Damian/Anya, and honestly any future couples, if things don't change for the better. What we're seeing from Henry and Martha's story is how relationships can get so easily torn apart from war, as well as how clinging so hard to one's ideals - like what Henry has been doing - is also a recipe for tragedy. I mentioned in my last chapter review that I see this as a parallel to Twilight holding on so hard to his spy persona and ideals that he could be doomed to lose out on potential happiness if he doesn't realize his true feelings.

Also, if Twilight fails his mission and another war does break out, the consequences would be extreme both on a worldly and personal level. We saw in this chapter that Martha's path in life was greatly altered as a result of the war (she changed from wanting to be a ballerina to joining the army) and thus she and Henry were torn apart further. What would happen to the characters in the current generation if Desmond does do something to entice war again?

I also really liked the below panel showing what's probably the last scene of where Henry and Martha spent their most pleasant times - now it's empty, one chair has fallen, and a bird chips while war planes fly overhead. Such a great use of subtle symbolism to hammer in the tragic mood.

The chapter ends with mention of Henry potentially getting married due to pressure from his parents than because he wants to. I'm really curious how that turned out, plus how Martha ended up working for the Blackbells. Looks like their sad story will continue for at least one more chapter 😢

[ethan-acfan]

DESMOND HAS TERRIBLE TASTE IN FOOD

He drinks his coffee black, not for the energy or to be pretentious, but just because he genuinely fucking prefers it that way. He prefers the taste of strong alcohol, give him a can of 4loko, and he will drink it like plain water. He eats overly spicy food (like so spicy it just straight ruins the flavor), not even just because he has a high spice tolerance, just because he likes it???? He eats canned soup straight out the can without even heating it up, actually, he refuses to heat up any kind of leftovers and just eats them cold even if it's something that absolutely should not be eaten cold. Everyone refuses to eat at his house after they saw him throw back a can of cold baked beans without even blinking.