#but i do think there's plot potential in all of these that we don't necessarily see explored

[darkficsyouneveraskedfor]

Watchers Anonymous

Warnings: non/dubcon, stalking, and other dark elements. My username actually says you never asked for any of this.

My warnings are not exhaustive but be aware this is a dark fic and may include potentially triggering topics. Please use your common sense when consuming content. I am not responsible for your decisions.

Characters: Peter Parker, skinny!Steve Rogers, Bucky Barnes, Thor, Loki, Curtis Everett, Jake Jensen, Cole Turner, Captain Syverson, (so far)

This AU is called Watcher Anonymous and will include different series for each of the above. This is our introduction to the group.

Summary: men with illicit infatuations come together to share and plot their perfect fantasies.

As usual, I would appreciate any and all feedback. I’m happy to once more go on this adventure with all of you! Thank you in advance for your comments and for reblogging ❤️

Introduction

"Do you really think we need snacks?" Jake asks as he unwraps the pan of rice crispy squares with sprinkles and chocolate drizzle. "I didn't think so but my aunt gave them to me," Peter shrugs. "I don't know."

"You're aunt?" Jake scoffs. He might be a loser but he's no mama's boy.

"Yeah, I mean, I usually go to bingo with her on Wednesdays but then this came up and... I had to make an excuse. I told her we were campaigning," he shrugs. "So she said, oh I'll make you boys some snacks..."

"Right," Jensen crosses his arms, reassured that he's not the lamest one in the pack. Not so far.

"When's that buddy of yours showing up?"

"Curtis? Oh, he said he wasn't sure," Jake shrugs. He hopes he has a friendly face there but he understands if it doesn't pan out. They all have places they'd rather be.

"Kinda nervous, not gonna lie," Peter confesses. It was his idea that they all meet up but now he's kind of regretting it. Strangers on the internet, on discord of all places, aren't necessarily the trustworthy type. He figures he's on there though and he's not that bad.

"Well, you seem chill," Jake offers. "So..."

"Thanks, I guess," Peter huffs.

There's a scuff at the door. A skinny blond stands in the doorway, looking down the hall behind him. He smooths his hair with his sweaty hands, slightly trembling. "Buck," he calls out in a voice deeper than one would guess by his appearance. "Down here." "Yeah, yeah," another replies behind the tramp of thick treads. "Looking for a john in this place. Shouldn't have had coffee."

"Oh, uh, Steve?" Peter greets uncertainly, "if I have that right?"

"That's me, yeah." He clears his throat and faces them. His nose is too big for his face, like a beak. The rest of him is tiny. He makes Peter feel big. Just like his special one... they'll get to that in a minute.

His friend catches up to him. Stood right behind him, he looks massive. Peter knows him too. Virtually at least. 

"And Bucky?" Peter adds. The other guy grunts and nods.

"This all?" Steve looks around at the mostly empty room.

"There's food?" Bucky wonders as he combs through his long hair. "Wasn't aware this was a catered event."

"Just snacks," Peter insists. He doesn't need any more hazing. Next time, he'll leave May's baking at home.

Steve wrings his hands before tucking them into his pockets. He chews his cheeks as Bucky heads for the snacks and greets Jake. There's more voices coming.

"Brother, don't be so grim," the large blond enters buoyantly, "it's about time you made some friends."

"I have friends," a slither returns dully.

"Ah, it is Peter!" Thor booms, not needing any introduction, though Peter wonders how he recognises him. "And let me guess, Jake with the glasses. Bucky has the shaggy hair like a dog, and Steve is slighter in frame."

"How..." Jake mutters.

"It is a gift of mine," he proclaims, "I'm Thor in case you couldn't guess. Oh and this," he pulls the other man forward and slings his arm over his lithe shoulders. "Is my brother, Loki."

Peter considers the uninvited sibling. Not as tall as his brother, or thick, and with sleek black hair and a long nose. They don't look related at all.

"I didn't know we were bringing plus ones," Bucky chews on a tart.

"Me either," Jake says.

"Oh, I do hope you don't mind. I wanted to invite him to the chat prior but... he is not often on the phone."

"It's fine," Peter assures, "I guess."

Bucky grumbles with less optimism and Jake sways. It's not exactly a gaming group or wholesome in any manner. Outsiders aren't safe.

"Relax, he has a special one," Thor girds. "Haven't you, brother?"

"I told you to mind your business," Loki retorts and gets only laughter in return.

"Jensen," a man enters without hesitation and marches to aforementioned man.

"Curt," Jake greets him with a nod, "you made it."

"Not thanks to... you!" He spots Thor and squares his shoulder. "You know, that truck is too big for your skillset."

"Ah, yes, it is only a ding, we will exchange info after," Thor rubs his neck with a guilty smile.

"Who are we missing?" Steve asks.

"Sy?" Jake suggests. "Don't think anyone else could make it."

"I'm here!" A sudden scramble through the door ends in a heap on the floor. The group of men turn to face the newcomer. "Urgh, ow." The man lays on his back after his slip. "I'm okay!"

He sits up and rubs the back of his head. Bucky tuts, "smooth."

"I'm--" the man pushes himself to his feet, "Cole. Ugh, I had to drive all the way here-- well, I know we all did, but, just not used to city roads."

"Cole," Peter is the first to approach, it's strange being the one doing most of the leading. Especially among this bunch. "Hey, nice to meet you. Peter."

He goes around the room and introduces everyone. Cole repeats each name anxiously. A sole squeaks through the door and a throat clears. A burly man with a baseball cap and scuffy bear wears a canvas jacket in grey camo.

"Sy," he intones as he enters. "Oh, are those brownies?"

"Right, that's everyone," Jake declares. "So, uh... what now?"

[detective-pancake]

Hey, so I don't want to be that guy, but when are we going to acknowledge that Akechi was right?

No, I obviously don't mean about the things he was very clearly wrong about. I'm referring to the things he says in interviews about the Phantom Thieves. I hate how many people switch up after playing through his betrayal who previously agreed with his views, because nothing he said is wrong and nothing he did changes that fact. He speaks in the TV Station on the objective facts that he should know about, and with or without the context of his form of justice those facts stay true. It's a fallacy to claim that his form of justice being universally less approved of makes the Phantom Thieves better by comparison, or discredits anything he said. I don't think the Phantom Thieves are evil, or that they should necessarily be imprisoned, but I do think that they are not morally sound. They're kids. Prior to his betrayal I think he served his purpose well, but it's easy to disregard the validity of his words when you find out that he's a murderer. With the knowledge he SHOULD have had (and that many DID have), everything he says is true. And honestly? It still can be true for basically the entire plot of the game. Mishima's confidant tests the thieves in that way. They could have changed the hearts of anyone who's not a persona user, for any personal reason. It's a slippery slope.

I'll use these three options as an example for why he's right:

"They're justice itself" is just subjective and incorrect, because justice as a concept is individualized and given how each Phantom Thief has different reasons for being one it's ridiculous for even them to say. Their first target was before they even formed a group, and Ann was ready to kill Kamoshida. The others were not even going to step in, and they were going to respect her choice either way. All the members are so different, so this is an insane claim to make.

"They're necessary" is wrong because to say they are necessary is pretty disingenuous to all "justice" that has ever happened BEFORE they existed. I don't believe that the Thieves were a necessity per say, and personally I think their actions can only be judged on a case by case basis. Some Mementos targets for example have issues that stem beyond what they have done. Now they have their desires stolen but still have the issue that pushed them to immortality in the first place, plus a shitton of guilty baggage. The Thieves only help with the atonement, but not the push. How many of those people didn't just go right back to their past behaviors? How many of them got worse in other ways? Think about Futaba, she felt so guilty for something she thought she did, she formed a palace to condemn herself to die alone. To claim the Thieves are necessary to reform society implies that their method is the most effective, and I think that's a lot to claim for something they don't understand.

"They do more than the cops" I almost agree with. Legally the police in Japan in this game anyway (yes I'm aware it extends to reality in many ways, but I'm referring to just the game right now) are corrupt and flawed for the most part, but the thing I don't agree with is that this makes the Thieves a better alternative. They're not. For the same reason Yoshizawa says later, the Thieves can only do so much as vigilantes, and to imply that society should rely on these faceless nameless flawed people to fix society is not any better than what they have now. Especially with the method being unknown, potentially unsafe, and easily exploitable. I cannot be the only one who if the Phantom Thieves were real, would be extremely alarmed by the prospect of a group of vigilantes "changing hearts" right? It's so vague, and the pattern is dystopian. At least police methods are familiar

What I'm saying is that they're kids, and it's kind of insane that this game places Akechi as the narrative foil for the Thieves in their message and then makes it so easy to disregard because "he's an assassin so how could he know anything about justice". The Thieves don't either, and Ann was nearly a murderer. If the bar is "don't commit murder when you're infiltrating someone's mind" then it's far too low. I wouldn't trust a group of adults with this power to reform society, even less a group of teenage vigilantes. I'm 19, and I find this odd. And Strikers frames them as even more righteous, and it bugs me even more in that game. At least Royal has the third semester to give a bit more nuance to how big of a responsibility Ren was given, but that's also very frequently misinterpreted.

I love this game, and I love this fandom, and I have thoughts that get weird and ranty. I apologize, but I hope you all found this as interesting as I did.

[itwasntimethatdidit40]

On a razor's edge.

Gif credits

Pairing/Au: Joel Miller x F!reader, no outbreak.

Word counts: 3087

Rating: +18, MDNI, NSFW

Summary: Joel helps you shave. there.

Warnings: pov second person, no use of y/n, smut with very little plot, established relationship, soft Joel, Joel helps to shave your pussy (I also wrote it in the fic but I'll repeat it here, I don't mean to judge anyone's habits, I respect everyone's tastes and habits and everyone can do what they prefer with their body. Do you want to shave? Good. Don't you want it? Good too. For me it's enough that you are comfortable in your body and if you aren't I hope you can be soon), mention to reader's mom who is annoying about shaving, use of a razor, mention of a potential razor cut (it doesn't happen, there’s no blood), unprotected p in v (wrap it up IRL!), I didn't mention Joel or reader’s age but in my mind I imagine them both around 30/40, reader has hair, breasts and vagina, no other specific description of her is given, pussy pronouns, references to pussy as a flower, sex in the shower, oral (f receiving), cream pie, pet names (baby, honey), I think that's all, if by chance I realize I forgot something I'll add it right away.

English is not my first language, no beta, no proofreading, I already know I'm going to notice a lot of mistakes as soon as I post this and I will have to edit again and again because I'm like this, what can we do? 💀

Comments, reblogs and interactions are very much appreciated, please be kind.

Thanks to anyone who will read this!

Archive tags: @pedrostories ♥️

You love Joel.

You really love him with all your heart and soul.

You also love your private time in the bathroom, that little time in your day that you spend alone doing skincare, face masks, tweezers your eyebrows, scrubbing your body and taking a nice shower with your favorite music playing in the background.

You just took off your favorites eye patches and you're ready to shave with your trusted razor when Joel knocks on the door.

“Honey, we’re going to be late, hurry up” His voice is muffled by the closed door but you can clearly hear a certain apprehension.

You hum as you take out your shaving cream and reply, “I’ll be right there”

Your neighbor invited you to his pool party the other day and of course you enthusiastically accepted.

It’s been so hot lately that being able to enjoy his pool for a while seemed like a dream.

Unfortunately, work kept you busy all week so you couldn't make an appointment with the beautician and you've arrived today with a few hairs on your legs and in your bikini area.

You're not particularly concerned when you can't wax and totally respect those who don't, hair removal is a personal choice and everyone should be able to do what they want with their own body.

Joel doesn't care if you have them or not, he's happy to have you either way and is feral with you regardless. In fact, you suspect he especially likes it when you have some down there but still he never stopped you from choosing for yourself and he never made inappropriate comments.

Anyway, today you planned to wear your favorite bikini and you wouldn't feel comfortable with hair sticking out from the sides of your bottoms.

The fact that a woman must necessarily be hairless down there is something that has been instilled in you since you were a teenager and as much as you manage not to care about it most of the time, when you wear a bikini you still have your mother's voice in your ears telling you to make those hairs disappear.

Ugh, your mother.

You shake your head, get in the shower and wash yourself, body and hair.

Then you spread the shaving foam well on your legs. You pass the razor carefully and rinse.

This neighbor is quite wealthy and Joel has heard that he would like to renovate his house so he is fully intent on offering him a quote with his construction company, which is why he is so worried about being late.

He needs some time to approach him until there are not too many people, have a casual chat and throw out the idea.

You also want to make a good impression since his wife is the head of the neighborhood committee and you want to ask her to convince the neighbor next door to cut down some branches that end up right in your yard filling it with annoying leaves. You tried to talk to him yourself but he is a cheap man and doesn’t want to spend money to have a gardener come and do the work. Joel tried too but to no avail.

Joel, on the other side of the door, is still impatient "baby, what are you doing?" you hear him ask after another 10 minutes have passed.

“I’m getting ready,” you say out loud from the shower as you check to make sure there’s no hair left on your ankles.

“You’ve been in there for an hour, what else do you have to do?”

You giggle, Joel will never understand how long it takes to be the way he always sees you. He’s in the bathroom for a maximum of 20 minutes when he decides to trim his beard, otherwise 10 minutes is more than enough for him to take a shower and come out with a towel around his waist looking as beautiful as a God. It’s so unfair.

“I'm making myself beautiful for you” you shout at him smiling at the thought of his answer which in fact comes exactly as you imagined “Love, you're gorgeous, you don't need to do anything, just get out of there”

“I'm almost done,” you reply as you begin to spread the foam on your bikini area.

“You said the same thing 10 minutes ago and yet you're still there,” he grumbles “and I don't hear water running so I don't understand why”

“You don't understand ‘cause you're a man darling, it's not your fault” you grin while you carefully run the razor to the right of your sex, at the point where your leg attaches to your pelvis.

You can clearly see him in your head rolling his eyes, hands on his hips, his weight resting on his right leg while his left leg is slightly jutted forward, his typical pose when he's annoyed.

“Cut me some slack, baby, you know how much I care about getting this job” he replies

“Yeah I know” you say sweetly “but I can’t come around like that, I need to be extra pretty next to you”

At this point he opens the door, just enough to enter and as he does so he replies "no one has a prettier girlfriend than me, I don't know how many more times I have to tell you"

You're all busy shaving so you don't even notice him until you hear his voice closer than before.

You look up and jump, almost cutting yourself with the razor. “Are you crazy?!” you yell at him. “Joel, I almost cut my thigh because of you!”

“And how was I supposed to know?!” his expression is halfway between embarrassed and horny, his eyes scan your body as if it were the first time he's seeing it, his pupils are dilated, his jaw muscles tense and his lips tight on the verge of curling into a smile, you can see it growing at the corners of his mouth.

Seeing you like this, leaning against the shower wall, completely naked and with nipples hardened from the fright he gave you, his nerves are going away.

“So, what? I have to finish, I certainly can’t go around with only a small part of my bikini area shaved, can I?” you rumble at him feigning irritation but oh, you like the way he's looking at you, hungry and feral. And you like that particular dark shade his eyes take on when they're lit up with desire.

He frowns and asks, “Can I help you?” rubbing his neck.

“Doing this?” you ask, raising an eyebrow, moving from the wall to the center of the shower, razor still clutched in your hand “Joel…”

“Let me try,” he murmurs hoarsely

“Joel, if you cut me…” you say feeling a shiver down your spine, your eyes fixed on his, sparkling in anticipation.

“I won’t. I promise” He is deadly serious.

“Okay” you say with a sigh and you immediately regret having said it.

Joel takes the razor from your hands brushing your fingers slightly and then drop to his knees fully dressed on the wet shower floor without even thinking about it, as if in some kind of lascivious trance. At least he’s barefoot.

The deal, the job, the money seem like a distant, faded memory and the neighbor’s tree? You’ll think about it another day.

His heavy breathing crackles on your skin as he brings the razor close to your skin with the most intent look you've ever seen him do.

He starts with small movements from the bottom up and shaves a small portion of the left side of your pubic area, his hand is firm and precise and he doesn't seem to have any hesitation, however he is proceeding with caution and you are grateful for it, you have been holding your breath since he started.

The razor seems so small in his hand, like a child's toy, yet it has sharp blades that could cut you at any moment if his movements were not precise.

He pulls it away from your skin to shake off excess shaving foam and rinse it under the flexible shower head and you catch your breath.

You flinch for a moment as he brings the razor closer again, “stay still” he tells you in a peremptory voice.

There is something deeply erotic in what he is doing, in his calm and dedication, in his deep knowledge of every curve of your body. It seems like he knows exactly how to move his hand so as not to hurt you.

He rinses the part, then proceeds to take more foam and spread it tickling your skin with his calloused fingers. You're even impressed that he didn't put too much on, just a thin layer, so he can see the part and have full control of what he's doing.

His jeans are now soaked and stuck to his legs and you can see a bulge growing in his crotch.

He stretches your skin with his fingers and runs the razor over you, still in small motions, shaking it, finishing the sides of the top of your pubic bone.

“I need you to lay down, baby, I have to do the bottom part” he says tilting his head to one side to look better at what he has just done.

Joel himself wanted this shower to be big enough for two people, it's his job and he knows how to be far-sighted in this.

It is wide enough for you to lie down and for him to sit between your legs without difficulty.

You bend down and lay your back on the floor “spread your legs” he tells you “keep them raised”

The floor is cool and wet against your skin but you still feel heated.

You crane your neck to look at him and his eyes are focused, deciding how to position you to do the job.

He takes your ankles and bends your legs slightly, if it was a moment when you wanted to laugh you would say that you look like a frog but now you feel like a rose of flesh. A bold, cheeky flower that has blossomed for him.

“Stay like this, can you?”

You nod because you can’t do anything else, you don’t know what to say, you’re hypnotized by his deep breathing and his eyes.

You feel a pulse between your legs.

A heat that starts to rise from below.

He smears a thin veil of foam on the inside of your thighs near your pubic area, he runs his fingers almost absentmindedly near your folds, you know that every movement is thought out, he's purposely ignoring your pussy so he doesn't lose his concentration but you can feel desire creeping through the air between you.

It's thick, heavy, and smells of your perfume that invades your nostrils now that you're playing the obscene dancer for him, with your legs bent as if you had to warm up your muscles before a show.

He draws your edges with the razor, rinsing continuously, you feel the blade glide over you, darting across your skin, only slightly resisting to your roughest hairs.

You feel a glimmer of clear drool dripping between your petals, all the way down to the crack of your butt, that gives away your eagerness.

A couple more gentle swipes and he's done.

You can hear him swallowing nervously, your throat is dry too.

“All done” he whispers, running his fingers over your smooth skin.

You sit up, legs at the sides of his body and tug at his shirt to give him a kiss. You suck his bottom lip between yours, tasting his minty flavor.

You dwell on that ecstatic feeling for a while before you let go of his lips and take a breath back into your lungs.

“Do you want me to shave it all off?” Sometimes you do, you like it when you feel just the soft, just that, that tingles every time he runs his tongue over it.

Shiny as egg white, voracious, naked luscious lips ready to salivate and swallow until they’re full.

But now you can't wait and you know he doesn't care, they're short hairs anyway, you keep them trimmed.

It's just a little line that surrounds your flower to browse.

“No baby, I need you”

The razor is lying on the shower floor, you pick it up and place it on the steel shelf that Joel installed for you to put your things on.

“Mmm tell me what you want” He asks, grinning from ear to ear, his eyes sparkling with lust.

He already knows the answer.

“Fuck me” you plead, voice trembling with excitement “fuck me with your tongue and fingers, please. Fuck me with your cock. Fuck me until I see white and I’m a mumbling mess underneath you”

You put your hand over his bulge, running slowly to his zipper strained and you fiddle your fingers on his button.

You feel him squirming, his eyes feral and mesmerized by your touch and your words.

You open his jeans as he takes off his water-spattered shirt and throws it on the floor outside the shower.

Sitting like this, you notice even more the softness of his belly, that little bit of flesh that you love to bite.

He gets up to get rid of his jeans, now soaked, annoying, heavy, he throws them on the floor and they land with a dull thud.

His boxers are damp and have a big stain on the front, but it's not water. It's his pleasure dripping.

He’s rock hard leaking profusely.

He leans down and gives you a long kiss, looking at you. His hands slide slowly over your arms, slipping onto your hips, squeezing your flesh and your body arches towards him, your tongue quivers on his, every fiber of you reacts and bends gently to him.

He brings a hand to your cheek, deepening the kiss, eagerly licking the inside of your mouth, tasting you.

You moan into his lips as you feel his other hand move up and rest on the side of your breast, his long fingers reach your nipple and trace its contours, they move circling it, he does it first with his thumb and then with his index finger. He passes them over your bud, titillating it, making it harden under his fingertip.

He makes space between your knees again, makes you lay down on the floor, caressing your torso, going down to your ribs, he touches the area just below and whispers “you look beautiful here”.

You like that he appreciates everything about your body, even those parts that others ignore, he sees the overall harmony and knows how to notice the details. He knows the map of your scars and every shade of your skin. He goes down, brushing your navel and then unexpectedly goes back up and takes your lips again.

He sucks.

He tastes.

He drinks.

He lowers himself and leans over your opening. He breathes hard as he gives the first lick, with his tongue flat, crawling from bottom to top, lingering on your clit. He spreads your folds a little with his thumbs and looks at you for a moment whispering “God, baby, you have the most beautiful pussy I’ve ever seen” he inhales your scent “and she’s so wet…” and he licks again “so sweet” another lick “and she tastes so good”

You throw your head back, squeezing your eyes shut, wrapping one hand around the back of his neck, pushing him against you.

He keeps his mouth glued to your slit, his tongue seems everywhere, meticulous and insatiable, it seems he can never get enough.

You listen to his movements with your whole body, as if he were speaking to you, using a language unique to yours.

You feel his hand resting on your hip, you grab his wrist and bring him back to your tit, you don't need to ask him to touch it, he silently takes your nipple between his fingers pinching and twisting.

Your ribcage expand for air, you gasp with your mouth wide open and a long moan leaves your lips rising from deep inside you.

You lift your head to see him, looking disheveled and grateful, his beard glisten with your fluids as two of his thick fingers slide into you.

He traces with his tongue that little stripe of hair he left you, which frames your lips, he caresses them, takes them in his mouth, sucking lightly.

His strong aquiline nose is hitting your clit now, fingers curl to find that perfect spot, the one that makes you see white, like you asked.

You moan in disarray “your cock – God – I want your cock, please Joel”

He gives a couple more licks and then moves, towering over you, kissing you with lips that taste of salt and lemon, of you. It’s your taste, all over his mouth.

He lower his boxers and the tip of his cock presses against your hole, slowly making its way in.

You throw your arms around his neck, giving him sloppy kisses on his sultry skin.

He grunts as he thrusts into you, you wrap your legs around his waist as he slides a hand behind your arched back, pushing you, anchoring himself to you so you don't slip on the wet floor, his knee braced on the floor.

You stammer senselessly yes yes yes, you're both close to your peak.

You feel disarmed, completely enveloped by him, by his body, by his scent.

You're sweaty, even though your skin is still wet, your body contracts against his, waves of pleasure modulating your breathing.

Your orgasm explodes in a long sigh, then it goes silent, you bite your lips, you are overwhelmed.

He takes your hands, intertwines them with his and brings them above your head, sinking relentlessly inside you, hitting again and again, deeper and deeper until you feel thick, sticky stems filling you, painting your walls, dripping from inside you onto your thighs.

His hair is plastered to his forehead, his eyes searching yours as he fills his hands with your ass cheeks, giving the last hard thrusts before he pulls out of you and lets himself go on the shower floor next to you.

You take deep breaths, trying to come back to your senses, your bodies completely exhausted.

“Well,” he says after a while, “we’re officially too late to go now.”

“Do you mind?” you ask, rolling onto your side, tracing his broad chest with your fingertips.

“No,” he replies without even thinking.

You burst out laughing together.

No, this is definitely more important.

[liketwoswansinbalance]

what wouldve happened if the Saders (especially Marialena) didn't foretell the prophecy? What wouldve happened if Rafal didn't leave?

This has been in my ask box for months. I hope anon is still around if they still wanted the answer.

@fourleafclovxr Feel free to ignore this, but if you're interested, do you have any thoughts about this question—since it deals with seers and Saders?

⸻

If the neither brother had knowledge of the prophecy then there's a slight chance it may not have happened in a self-fulfilling way with their attempts to prevent it from coming true only furthering its completion. They might've been able to maintain peace.

Yet, even if the prophecy were not told, well, their world is still governed by fate, and considering how much of an inescapable grip that predestination has over everyone's lives, how fates that can't be circumvented—I'm not sure if the innate genre they lived in could have changed from "tragedy."

Even if fates can be subverted by being fulfilled in unconventional ways (as any room for interpretation could be exploited by participants) I don't see how fratricide and there being just One left standing(?) could contain some kind of exceptional clause.

Regardless, this possibility would mean that some sort of "user-friendly" loopholes could exist in their world, like how Chaddick's blood on the handkerchief allowed Rhian II to pull Excalibur when he otherwise wouldn't have been able to.

That instance of cheating is the best example I have at the moment. The rightful son didn't pull the sword, but the event itself, of the sword being pulled, still was able to happen given situational factors. The rightful heir's blood still came into contact with the sword, the sword was pulled (by someone), and the "right" candidate became king by the end. What happened between seminal events may not have mattered in the grand scheme of things.

Thus, prophecies may well work in a top-down way, only going as small-scale as they need to, to ensure outcomes.

So, from this, we could take away that the endings may be predetermined, but that the path to such endings could be open to interference—only to the degree that the ending wouldn't change as the result of any meddling, even if unanticipated third parties involve themselves.

The parties not affected by the prophecy, outside its bounds, could plausibly do whatever they wanted, and have free will (ostensibly, everyone has free will though), but I could venture to say that the consequences of said, seemingly free actions could be manipulated by the hand of fate, to produce those certain outcomes.

Basically, in the Woods, no matter what you try, since you at least have the freedom to try, you won't change a thing with your actions. All those actions would still snowball to produce the exact outcome that's set to happen. (And, if this were true, trying to change your fate would be futile. E.g., think of how Sophie and Agatha were locked into their true natures. They couldn't switch sides.)

(Keep in mind that this post just represents my view of things. We don't necessarily have canon confirmation of anything I'm speculating about.)

Applied to the prequels, if Midas' or the Pan's presences/roles were never predetermined, then they just helped the inevitable end along. If neither of them had been there, perhaps the prophecy still could have reached the same ending by other equally-as-effective means. (Different potential plot(s), one outcome.)

We could also argue that Adela's wording was vague enough to exploit.

So, the same thing could apply to the twins: the prophecy of the One and Adela's betrayal, war, death could happen, and lead to the same outcomes, but the specifics could unfold differently. Or, the events could all happen in the same way but hold different meaning/implications for the future (no 200 year curse despite fratricide or death of another form for Rafal?). Or, none of the events could happen in the same way, but the final ending would be fixed, like I proposed before. I guess we don't really know how malleable or interpretable prophecies or visions are.

And seeing that it's Marialena, I wouldn't put it past her to use red-herrings or mislead, even without saying a word of prophecy. Lying, other methods, or other dialogue/persuasion could produce the same results.

It's hard to separate out the cause and effect to me. We should ask: did (early) knowledge of the prophecy affect how it played out? Or was it set in stone? Or was it inevitable that Rafal's particular combination of character traits (the extorting, the threats, etc.) and the situation (in Monrovia) would have led him to finding out about the prophecy and that that very moment was also a part of the prophecy in action, happening or beginning?

⸻

Second, if Rafal hadn't left, I think the characterization that would hold true was the bit of internal monologue we saw in Fall, that he intentionally cedes some minor(?) arguments to keep the peace with Rhian.

Rhian might not even realize anything were wrong or that Rafal were (probably) hurt by his side being devalued.

I would suspect if Rhian were aware, not much would change. Rhian is prone to burying conflict and truth after all. But, I couldn't see him dwelling on the conflict Rafal lay to rest, unless he had good reason to, or lasting guilt/shame over it.

Rafal on the other hand holds grudges, and while we know he isn't the Evil brother now, he has Evil tendencies, of course, so he could easily let his resentment accumulate and fester inside until he found it in himself to do something: either leave, like he did, or perhaps, display passive aggression?

Outright anger against his brother would not be productive, but if his resentment became that severe, he could potentially lash out, and Rhian would see Rafal's "unprovoked" response as coming out of nowhere. Then, Rhian could accuse him of being irrationally antagonistic, like a villain without motive, or Evil that "always" (often, as of late) loses and that has to deprive Good of an ending to gain one for itself, as we would see the beginning hints of Evil's losing streak no matter what.

By that point, Rafal might either drop the issue, but secretly continue to hold the grudge for the rest of time, a reasonably moderate and functional if not flawless happy ending for the both of them. (Would it last? I'm doubtful.)

Or, Rafal could argue back, setting off the prophecy, even if it had a delayed start this time since I suspect any major enough argument could have set the brothers down the wrong path, no matter what the argument was about, Aladdin or someone/something else, if their bond had weakened over the decades, like it might've been implied to have done in canon.

[olderthannetfic]

I remember awhile ago there was wank about people using the DD:DNE tag too broadly, and not using it for exclusively for dark stuff, and basically just using it as a general "I mean these tags". I'm honestly not too bothered by it though - I mean, the tag IS still generally used/understood to mean darkfic colloquially. If I hear someone say "I write a lot of dead doves" I'm gonna assume they write a lot of dark or potentially triggering/squicky material, not that they are someone who Really, Really, Means Their Tags.

So honestly I think the amount of people who misuse dead dove to be something like "hey guys! this is a crack fic! i'm serious about it being a crack fic! dont read if you hate crack!" are honestly a vocal minority, and not really worth ranting about. By all means we should (gently!) tell people the correct definition of the term if someone misuses it, but like...if I see a dead dove on a silly thing like a fluff fic or a chat fic (not that chat fics cant potentially be edgy but you know what i mean) I'm not gonna assume that there's actually dark stuff hidden somewhere untagged - I'm gonna assume that it really is just silly a fluff without plot fic, and that if I want something serious I should stay away from it.

I've also seen it used for non-edgy but more "stigmatized" things, like fanfics that have a really unique/different take on a popular or character or ship that fans who like the canon/fanon versions might not enjoy. Seen it in RPF too a few times, because unfortunately RPF writers DO often have to signal "hey. this IS rpf. i write these celebrities fucking. if you do not like that please leave now. because i have already tagged it in several different ways. if you still dont get it thats on you."

Like...it's definitely a bit *silly* to use dead dove as a way to signal that you're serious about something goofy, when it IS primarily used for rape, incest, underage, severe mental health issues, abuse, torture, MCD, etc, but like...I see those cases as "theyre a little confused but they got the spirit".

And one common argument I see against this 'softer' definition of DDDNE, is, "well, doesn't EVERYONE mean their tags? Otherwise you'd be tagging improperly!" Hell, I don't even disagree with this, but I think DDDNE has always been about the quantity of the content, right? For instance, a fic with background or past rape might be tagged with rape non con, but it wouldn't necessarily mean use of DDDNE is necessary - whereas someone who writes graphic rape might want to use DDDNE. Similarly, a fic that simply has funny scenes might use "Humor" or "Crack" in the tags, but that does not a crack fic make, hence why someone might dead dove their fics that are pure crack, if they don't fully grasp the meaning of the tag.

--

[rmgold-blog]

I posted this in a reblog but I worked really hard on it so I wanted to make it into its own post.

Tarot in Episode 7

Before I begin: how Tarot is read in the show is a very watered down version of how Tarot is read irl, so I'm gonna try and keep it within the simplistic bounds of the show.

My thought was when Billy and Agatha were doing pulls - they weren't doing it right.

Billy was pulling with intention - but he was the one pulling the cards, and he wasn't answering any questions. So he was just "reading vibes".

As for Agatha's pulls - she wasn't using intention. To her it was a numbers game. Therefore the cards may not mean anything. But I did attempt to read them since set dressing is important to read.

Billy's Tarot Reading for Agatha

The Chariot

Direction/Control/Willpower

I feel like Agatha has been pretty aimless up until this point. In combination with some of the cards in Agatha's reading. I think this is a message of what Agatha needs - but not necessarily what she wants.

Agatha has been falling to this perpetual cycle of hurt - people say she's a bad person, so she is a bad person, so people say she's a bad person... and Agatha needs to break free from that cycle in order to grow. Take control of her own narrative.

The Seven of Swords Reversed

Deception/Trickery/Tactics and Strategy

Telling the Truth/No Deception

Billy describes it as trickery and deception - but it's reversed so it's the opposite ("but that can't be right"). To me this is the more important one to the story. It's more than just talking about "the truth coming to light" it's saying: Billy thinks Agatha is deceiving him. He looked up to her until Alice died, then he felt betrayed, because he believed she could control what she was doing and she killed her on purpose. That she's been deceiving him this whole time. But this card is telling him she's not.

Before we get to the cards Agatha pulled in the beginning of the episode, let's look at what Lilia read for Billy first, because Agatha's pull has a lot more cards and leaves a lot more things up to interpretation, so it's a bit lengthy

Lilia's Tarot Reading for Billy

Perhaps the most important thing to come out of this part of the episode is this conversation about who you need to have a question - not just on how to get out of here, but something that's important to Billy's journey on earth.

Now - later when Lilia does her own reading we don't see her ask a question. In fact she pretty much already knows the answers. So that means this question was solely important (plot wise) for this reading for Billy.

Billy asks: "Am I William or am I Billy?"

Essentially - Who am I?

The Traveler: The Magician

Willpower/Desire/Creation/Manifestation

Lilia describes this card to Billy as him having enormous potential and the ability to turn all his goals into a reality.

This card is very literal - the question is "who am I?" and the card slot is basically the arrow on a map saying "you are here".

Wiccan's powers deal not just with telepathy, but with Willpower. We see this a little bit in the episode when Billy says "I wish Lilia were here". (Now this could just be a nod to this power, since it's not like they just appeared, we know they had been making their way there before Billy said this. But we also know from Lilia that time isn't linear so idk).

What's Missing: The Sun

Joy/Success/Celebration/Positivity

Now this is obviously the interesting one. Lilia brings up "Reunion", which perks Billy's interest.

Obviously we are made to believe that it references Tommy. However the question wasn't about Billy's journey on the road, or even about his life. The question was "Who am I?" "Am I William or am I Billy"

So this reunion has something go do with Billy's identity. It could be the reunion between Billy and William, as many people have speculated that these two identities - William Kaplan or Billy Maximoff - become one Billy Kaplan.

Or - if my theory about the origin of Billy's soul is correct - it could be a reunion between Nicholas Scratch and Agatha, as I believe that Nicky is the original holder of the soul and is the secret third part of Billy's identity...

Agatha's Tarot Reading

A (Vertical): The Traveler

B: What's Missing

C: The Path Behind

D: The Path Ahead

E: Obstacles

F: Potential Windfall

A (Horizontal): Final Destination

The Traveler: Five of Wands

Competition/Rivalry/Conflict

So right off the bat my thoughts are that this relates to the coven as a whole - or Agatha's relationship with Rio. Therefore I'm going to attempt to read both. Alternatively it could just be referencing Agatha as a whole - as she is someone who likes to stir conflict as her means of survival.

Warning: I am not Agathario fan, and I honestly think they're going to come to head to head in the finale.

What's Missing: The Two of Wands

Planning/Making Decisions/Leaving Home

Agatha: this card really marks the beginning of a journey - so I'm interpreting this as taking the first step. She needs to take the first step away from the life she's leading now. Leaving the familiar.

The Coven: was missing in this group is their ability to work together. Consistently, they're always fighting and they don't trust one another.

Agathario: what's missing is making the decision to leave. Leaving this relationship behind. To stop holding on.

The Path Behind: The World

Fulfillment/Harmony/Completion

Agatha: from my perspective Agatha chose this life because it's what everyone told her she was. They said she was evil, so that's what she became. This was her harmonizing with how the world saw her.

The Coven: after Alice's trial things had seemed to be looking up for the coven - before everything went to shit. They had worked together - literally harmonizing - and around the fire they were bonding. But that's in the past now.

Agathario: their relationship in the past was fulfilling - they both felt loved, Agatha got someone who believed in her, and Rio got someone who wasn't scared of her.

Obstacles: The Wheel of Fortune

Change/Cycles/Inevitable Fate

Agatha: using the mental energy, allowing herself to be curious - what more can she be, who can she become? Restlessness, breaking free from the mold she's been made to fit.

The Coven: they need to learn more about one another - break out of their past perceptions of each other, and think critically. What have they heard that could be lies? Biases? Do they believe that?

Agathario: to move forward Agatha needs to be inquisitive, critical. I feel that Rio is reeling Agatha in - she's trying to simultaneously make Agatha look bad to the rest of the coven, make the coven look like they don't trust her despite how much Agatha is frying, and make herself look better in Agatha's eyes for continuing to be so caring for her. The message Rio wants Agatha to receive is: no one will ever love you like I do. Agatha needs to be critical of that claim.

Windfall: The Hanged Man

Sacrifice/Release/Martyrdom

Agatha: falling into old habits, throwing up her defenses whenever she feels threatened. See: when Billy stopped believing in her, she didn't push being genuine, she decided to play the role again - not show weakness. She needs to be vulnerable to grow.

The Coven: cycles of falling back on assumptions - Jen especially always brings up that Agatha is dangerous, not to be trusted. I'm sure she may feel similarly about Billy, knowing who he is too, and what he did to her. They need to overcome this.

Agathario: Agatha is falling into the same trap - this toxic cycle they existed in. "You kill every Witch around you and I get my bodies" They have a working relationship, and it can be easy to fall into those same patterns.

Destination: Ten of Swords

Failure/Collapse/Defeat

...seems kind of final doesn't it. No matter what way I read it seems like the end of the Road leads to complete and tragic failure.

But that's not the only possible outcome.

Agatha keeps going - it's a numbers game after all - and we see her put down another card on top of the Ten of Swords.

Destination: The Chariot

Direction/Control/Willpower

Hang on... we've seen this before. This is the first card Billy pulled for Agatha. It all comes full circle.

As I said earlier - the Chariot here may reference Agatha breaking free from this cycle of selfishness, hurt, and hunger of power. She can put aside people's assumptions of her and do what she wants, instead of filling the role others have cast her for.

Not a hero by any means - but not a villain.

I think by having two cards here, it references there are two ways this can end for Agatha. She's at a crossroads. Will she lower her guard, accept help and understanding, or will her walls stay up, not allowing for input and change?

[yanderes-galore]

Betty Grof (Adventure Time) Platonic/Romantic hc :3 🪲 [Shiny Bug Anon]

Sure! Sorry if it's a bit short... I was focusing on behavior HCs over plot. This is before Fionna and Cake.

❗️Potential Adventure Time Spoilers Below❗️

Yandere! Betty Grof Concept

Pairing: Platonic/Romantic

Possible Trigger Warnings: Gender-Neutral Darling, Obsession, Manipulation, Overprotective behavior, Clingy behavior, Delusional behavior, Magic murder, Kidnapping, Isolation, Forced companionship/relationship.

Honestly, I feel Betty is a yandere who means well... but ends up not knowing when to quit.

We see in the show all the things she's willing to do for Simon.

Even beating up entities and making herself go insane with magic just to find a way to save the one she cares for.

She's willing to do anything to save the one she loves.

She'll never let the one she cares for go, even if it means sacrificing herself.

I'd consider Betty an overprotective, delusional, and self-sacrificing yandere.

She's willing to sacrifice anything and everything just to live happily with the one she cares for.

She isn't really possessive... just overbearing from what I've seen.

Even if letting you go would be the best course of action, she won't.

She dedicates so much of her time to the one she loves that she refuses to think about living without them.

Also, once she obtains magic, she's one of the strongest yanderes in Ooo.

It would be so easy for her to obliterate anyone she sees as a threat once she has magic.

No blood needed, she'd probably make someone just explode with confetti.

They're definitely still dead though.

The good thing is Betty isn't usually murderous.

The only time she is if you're in danger.

Although with her delusional mind... who knows what that counts as?

Betty is more likely to be a romantic yandere due to how she is with Simon.

Although, it would not surprise me if Betty was like this with a close friend or someone else she saw as family.

She definitely means well... but that doesn't excuse her actions.

She's incredibly devoted and loving, clinging to you and refusing to let go.

She devotes her entire being to you, she lives for love.

I think she's fine with you having friends as long as you reassure her she's your favorite.

Better do that if you want to save your friends from being subjected to magic.

So, she isn't necessarily possessive.

She's mostly just overly protective.

To a lethal degree.

Girl would fight against anything to prevent you from dying and leaving her.

In that aspect, she's similar to how I write Finn.

Except while Finn tries to ignore his obsessive desires, Betty accepts it.

She knows you make her insane.

You're all she has.

If she doesn't live to protect you, what does she live for?

Her obsession becomes her entire reason for existence in Ooo.

She doesn't care what happens to her or anyone else.

As long as you're safe, as long as she can make you happy...

Nothing else matters.

She's a bit manipulative, the entire time just trying to convince you what she's doing is right.

It would not surprise me if she kidnapped you to keep you beside her.

She doesn't trust anyone else to care for you like she does.

You may struggle now... but she doesn't want you to hate her.

She'll do anything for you to love her back...

Except let you go.

Letting you die or go off to belong to someone else sends her spiraling.

It's not like you could get away from her anyways.

She teleports to you easily and could trap you in a pocket dimension only she knows about if she wanted.

Betty essentially can do near anything with magic.

She won't force you to love and care for her...

But she'll dedicate herself to you regardless.

She'll give you whatever you want... as much affection as you want... enough gifts to spoil you...

She loves you, no matter what form of love... she adores you.

It soothes her and makes her happy to commit to you.

Even if you don't accept her adoration... she hopes she can convince you...

She'll never stop loving you... she'll still give anything she can to you...

Including sacrificing her life to keep you happy and safe... or isolate you so no one will threaten that perfect fantasy.

[raayllum]

The creators once posted sometime after S7 concluded that they had considered giving Karim a redemption arc before deciding that having him die making one last poorly thought-out power grab would be a more satisfying conclusion for his arc. I have no complaints about Karim being irredeemable, but how do you think making him beyond redemption is a better choice for the overall story?

Karim is one of my favourite characters in the show, and going forward into S6/S7 I wasn't entirely sure which way his character arc was going to land. I'd expected him to win in S6 (so that he could free Kim'Dael) and so that he'd have further parallels to Ezran (S4/S5 meta on that here). This was mostly due to me expecting Karim to foil and be a contrast to other characters — Callum, Viren, Ezran, Janai — as his primary narrative role.

For Callum & Ezran, it was as brother-mages (Callum) who'd betray the other (over Runaan) whenever that plot point came around. For Viren, Karim was following his path politically and was usurper. For Janai, ridden with uncertainty and doubt, Karim was impulsive and all too certain.

However, it was evident that the brothers would reconcile (they did), that Viren had cinched a continuing atonement arc (already in s4, then outright in s5 — which, afterwards is when the bulk of the linked meta was written), and that Janai would ultimately reclaim/remain being queen of her people.

So where would that leave Karim?

An important note I think, then, is that TDP has never preached complete pacifism. It has always, routinely, framed violence as a last resort but still a resort, and that figuring out what is worth violence vs what isn't is a crucial, difficult, but occasionally achievable process. Ezran is the most pacifistic character by far, and he still has a huge attempted "people I (would've) murdered" body count after all.

So I'd argue that TDP's stance isn't so much as "people can always change" so much as it is "you have to be real damn sure that a person Won't choose to change before you kill them". And even then, it acknowledges that stopping a person from doing active harm in that moment even unto death/murder (S3 Viren with Rayla; S7 Aaravos with the archdragons) is not an exclusively bad thing, either.

Life is precious. Life is valuable. We take it, but we do not take it lightly.

What then, is 'irredeemable' in TDP? To put it simply, there's not much: you can kill someone, or kill someone's beloved family member, or orchestrate a war, or gaslight/deceive people, or burn people alive, or repeatedly use dark magic or consume your own flesh, or all of the above, and still be considered Redeemable within TDP depending on 1) why you did any of the above regarding the Circumstances and/or 2) if you changed afterwards.

That doesn't mean you're going to get endless passes, not every character can have the same arc for both time, variety, and personality, but most characters (Kasef, Viren, Claudia, even Aaravos) have at least the seed of potential to make better/other choices.

With this in mind, Viren's atonement/redemption arc being almost exclusively about his interpersonal relationships > his global political wrongdoing makes the answer abundantly clear as to what TDP thinks is unforgivable if you don't come back from it: forsaking your loved ones.

This does not mean abandoning them, or even standing / fighting against them. It doesn't even necessarily mean killing or trying to kill them!

It means seeing them as JUST the enemy or JUST a thing. Just an obstacle or barrier in your way, or a tool to use for your own ends.

This is, notably, when ultimately dooms Aaravos in S7. He forgets about his child (Sir Sparklepuff) till it catches him off guard. He does not fathom that Avizandum's love for his mate and child could be stronger than Aaravos' control over him. And it is this forgetfulness, this 'twisting' of love into something else, that Terry lampshades as well: "Maybe this started out as a story of love, but along the way it got twisted. He isn't doing anything for love. He's doing it out of revenge" when it comes to personal love, and Runaan when it comes to other matters: "I remember I fought you. I tried to kill you! How could I?" / "I was a peacemaker, a twisted peacemaker, I suppose [...] but I am not dead. I am alive. I have a family I love."

Much like Kasef is 'punished' narratively for his impulsivity and penchant towards violence, providing a contrast for our young heroes and proof that not every young person will make the same choices they did, Karim is a cautionary sign of what happens if you forsake your loved ones — and you do not recover it.

There's a reason that despite walking Viren's path in so many ways, Karim does not recover the same way Viren did, because Viren re-learned how to see his children as people, not objects. Not heirs or spell parts or assets.

Karim became so concerned with seeing others — his family members, his loved ones — as symbols (things), he lost sight of everything else. He got so swept up in seeing Janai as a queen, and then a false queen who was in his way, that he couldn't see her clearly as his sister anymore, and this eventually extended to everyone / everything else in his life, including himself (viewing himself as a martyr, a true king, a flame to remake the world through).

This is also why the broyals reconciliation is through the lens of "we're brothers and we need each other" and has nothing to do about being king or high mage. Those are their jobs and especially for Ezran are important parts of themselves, but it's still just parts, not the whole. It also helps indicate that Claudia and Soren at the end of 7x09, who clearly do still hold love for each other, are not as broken as Janai (who retained love) and Karim (who did not). None of them ever lost love like the way Karim did. There's a lot throughout arc 2 about how steadily he got there, which may be worth a meta someday, but who knows.

The actual manner of death — Karim swaggering in arrogant and puny as ever, severely overestimating his power and leverage, with consistent focus on his hands (his red glove, holding 'fate' between his fingertips with the sun seed) being little more than a red smear in Aaravos' hand is also some deliciously chewy symbolism and an ultimate slap in the face (deservedly so) to his own ideals of grandeur.

Is there an interesting story to explore of Miyana, or something else, being a catalyst for Karim changing? Sure! But I think Miyana and her children's situation — as well as her potential dynamic with Janai and Amaya — is infinitely more interesting given his absence, as well as allowing Karim to occupy a more unique part of the narrative with his thematic explorations. He's a fantastic character foil and character in his own right, and I think he embodied everything they set out to do like, absurdly exceedingly well.

So short form answer: yes! I'm inclined to agree that it's a more satisfying ending tbh, especially with his writing in 7x03 onwards! I do miss him dearly, though. I miss him every day.

[mixelation]

have you heard of the dire wolves coming back (sorta?) through genetic engineering?? When I read about it my first thought was of you and how you'd probably write a post about its actually all a scam or something...

Ha! Yeah okay, so multiple people have contacted me over this now lol. For reference the only real article I've read about it is this one, plus some general chatter on tumblr, like this post.

I've posted about the company behind this, Colossal Biosciences, a little bit here. The tl;dr of that post is that I think I'm more pro "de-extinction" or "resurrection" than a lot of other people yelling on tumblr. I don't think the goal necessarily should be re-introduction to current ecosystems, but such techniques could give us new ways to study extinct species and the tools we'd have to develop to get there would be MASSIVELY useful to conservation of extant-but-endangered species. I'd okay with a (responsibly managed) plot of land dedicated to letting rich people go ride mammoths or whatever if the money from that (and the general public excitement/interest in biology it would generate) and the technology made to MAKE that are then put into conserving interesting types of worms or other less charismatic species.

The dire wolf being "de-extinct" thing is........ clickbait. They assembled a "good quality" dire wolf (Aenocyon dirus) genome from DNA extract from fossils, which is a pretty cool feat if true. They then made 20 gene edits to grey wolf (Canis lupus) embryos to make them "look like" dire wolves. In the article I linked, the scientist they interviewed was pretty frankly like "yeah it's like 99.9% grey wolf." There's also been screen shots going around of whatever Colossal Biosci spokespersons being like "noooo this totally counts guys. Species is a manmade concept! It's the phenotype that counts!" which I think people are right to be annoyed by. You made some grey wolves slightly more dire wolf-like, my guys. Claiming you're made a "de-extinct" species is just..... not true.

All that being said, it's not like they did NOTHING. The headlines and the reddit AMA or whatever defending these wolves as "totally real dire wolves!!!" makes it sound like the company is just doing things without know what they're doing, but making 20 separate gene edits in a wolf and getting three healthy puppies is actually really impressive. They also said they used techniques they developed during the dire wolf project to clone some puppies of the critically endangered red wolf, which is potentially amazing news for conservation. Streamlining complex gene editing means potentially helping wolf populations that have gone through huge bottlenecks and are now highly inbred. Being able to put a gene of interest into another organism also means the gene can be studied, so no matter what people bitching on tumblr say, these fake dire wolves could provide insight into studying actual dire wolves, albeit in a limited capacity. I'd rather there just be public support and tons of government funding for research and conservation work, but in the capitalist hellscape we currently live in, a bro-y biotech company selling annoying clickbait but also contributing actual important work on the side is perhaps the strategy we're going to have to live with.

So, those are the potentially positives I see, but I also have very mixed feelings about Colossal Biosciences as a whole because it's unclear to me what their actual mission, like..... is? They could get us some real conservations #Wins, but they could also do shit like copyright genes and refuse to coordinate with outside scientists they'd need in order to move conservation form the lab to real ecosystems. What are they even going to do with their dire wolves, or their cloned red wolves? Is it really just to show off a big wolf or are they interested in actually studying them? Why are their representatives saying insane shit about "de-extincting phenotypes" on reddit? They're privately funded so there's not necessarily peer review or verification that their various claims are even true.... DID they actually successfully make 20 gene edits? DO they actually have a good quality genome? I have no idea. If anyone knows, please point us at their publications in a peer-reviewed journal.

anyway if i were fuck-off wealthy, i'd be resurrecting weird bugs and various diseases, so. could be worse

[ominousgradient]

I maintain the opinion that Snotlout and Ruffnut should have dated for a couple episodes in rtte, the writers clearly felt the need to pair up all their female characters and I think it would have made for some fun interactions with them annoying the other riders and asking for relationship advice. I'm not even a Rufflout shipper it just seems like a good plotline.

They could have ended up paired together for some job, maybe they go against Hiccups wishes like in the speed stinger ep. and while they're annoyed with eachother at first they end up bonding over their similarities, like that they're both troublemakers with a penchant for schadenfreude

Rufflout would go back and forth between being a very publicly affectionate couple because they both think they're tough shit for having a partner and loudly bickering to the point that they jeopardize missions, just middle school tier relationship drama

They'd end up breaking up but have gained a newfound appreciation for eachother. I feel like they'd only really have dated because they wanted to have a partner, not because they wanted eachother necessarily but you could imply that Snotlout still has some lingering feelings for Ruff as a setup for the second movie (it's wild to me that rtte had so many romance plots but they didn't bother to set up the 2nd movie love triangle at all besides two short scenes in the very last episode that don't really tell us anything, at that point you might as well just have left it out)

You could mix in some Hiccstrid as well, maybe things where heating up between them but seeing how disruptive a relationship can be to the team dynamic the two of them might have to reconsider how them being together would affect the group and their mission (they already do that but being exposed to constant Rufflout drama would make things even worse), plus you could have Ruffnut and Astrid and Snotlout and Hiccup have two respective conversations about the opposite sex and dating advice where Hiccstrid gives their opinion on relationships and love in general (bonus points if the convo is extremely awkward and both are clearly thinking about their crush but Snotlout/Ruffnut cuts them off to tell them that they’re acting weird and aren't being helpful at all)

It would also be interesting to see Snotlout actually dating someone, since he's so invested in getting into a relationship. Would it be a "dog that caught the car" scenario or would he be over moon and try his best ?

There’s also some great potential for Tuffnut here, judging by the second movie he'd dissaprove but if we go by Snotlout gets the Axe he might not have a problem with them dating and would support his sisters romantic endeavours. Maybe he provides well-meant but deeply bizarre insights on men and what they're into, or he goes the opposite route by giving purposefully bad advice (that still somehow ends up working) or by just outright trying to kill Snotlout

[planetaryaether]

Where do you think the other doorways to the facility come from?

I meant to answer this before today's episode but they are probably just Easter eggs/exist so that there isn't just a single entrance focused on the JF2 teleporter which would have a whole lot of implications. There is a great reddit post here that breaks down all of the potential references.

now if we are to do my favorite thing and overanalyze this, this is (or seems the at least) the storage room for jaffa headquarters which implies that they are shipping something to/from each of those locations. Narrowing in on the SOI door because lets be honest of course we are going to do that (and it would have the biggest impact on the lore):

The physical cloning machines in yoglabs (bottom right) have always had a lot of visual similarities to those of SOI (bottom left) even down to the freezing/use of water/ice on the person being cloned, with the main difference being the aesthetics of the rest of the room.

The JF2 cloning room (top left), has some visual callbacks to SOI beyond the clone vats specifically I am mainly focused on the amount of green in the room. In the episode there are green lights going all the way up towards the ceiling, on the sides of the walkway, practically everywhere in the clone room. This goes well beyond a green 'ready' indicator. This feels like a callback to the radiation/green themes in SOI (note: both JF2 #53 and SOI #39 where these images are from are focused on defeating evil/failed honeydew clones).

The difference in aesthetics is interesting since this is clearly after yoglabs in the timeline, but whoever is really in charge has moved away from the clean lab aesthetics of yoglabs towards that of SOI. If you assume it is Xephos prime, that could signal a level of desperation or obsession with SOI tech or something specific that happened there/then.

With the idea of technological advancement in mind for both yoglabs and the jaffa factory, moving towards older tech is interesting. Perhaps there is some lost technology that whoever is in charge believes is they key to their goals, or that it is some version of a 'I can do it right this time' plot with SOI tech.

It would be really interesting to see any of the other tech from SOI reinter the yogs canon besides cloning, and this would be a great opportunity to do that, although I don't necessarily think it is likely.

The prominent theme of radiation in both series is really interesting too, and there is a lot of potential development to be done there. Maybe radiation is causing master clones to slowly decay or there is some sort of limit. Maybe radiation could be tied to some other form of immortality (and making clones for securing Xephos prime/Honeydew's safety not necessary). It is too early to say more than this right now but there could definitely be something here.

[wetcatspellcaster]

Veilguard Thoughts

(my sort-of review, more of a ramble, below the cut in case of spoilers)

I had particularly low expectations for this game, as it felt to me like it was rushed out to try and hit the BG3 crowd and get them to pay £70 at the point where their hyperfixation was failing them. It felt like a very commercially-motivated decision, and I tried to modify my expectations accordingly.

I then started playing... and had to modify my expectations again.

But with two lowering of expectations completed... I genuinely enjoyed this game! I had fun! Sort of! if I squint!!

Thoughts!

I am not a competent gamer, so I like combat that feels fun and engaging without being challenging or a chore (cough, BG3 Act 3, cough), but without being lazy either. I played as a mage in Veilguard and I felt like this hit a sweet spot - moments where I was stressed kind-of invested, no moments when I was bored. The graphics for mage (for spellblade particularly) were awesome and badass, and I loved to new mode of engaging with the mage class in orb and dagger.

I understand the frustration with a lot of lore being retconned, ignored, or wilfully erased or moved away from. Some parts I understood: I do think Veilguard tries to make a move away from grimdark, not out of disloyalty to the franchise and it's roots, but bc grimdark is a very different prospect now than when Origins released. it's a genre that gets a lot more criticism and bad press, and that some people feel genuinely uncomfortable perpetuating as a results. While Origins is my favourite dragon age game, there's a lot of insane things you need to just let slide to enjoy it - like the fact that multiple origins begin with some kind of rape and sexual assault if you're playing as a woman. I don't think retconning that stuff is anything other than being politically savvy, and a little more sensitive to how fantasy has changed.

(I also think this is why they've moved away from the chantry conflict to be honest. Like the optics of Christian religions in fantasy has also changed, and let's be honest, Dragon Age had already fucked THAT, multiple times.)

I did however, like everyone, find it a bit disheartening to see how little Keep decisions mattered. Why is there no Keiran with Morrigan? why can't Mythal move to an inquisitor who drank the Well of Sorrows instead? why is my Inquisitor defending Solas when she ended the game hating him? Why is Hawke being in the Fade meaningless? I know this is just echoing what people have already said, but it was sad to see the 'conclusion' to the franchise (that probably isn't the end, let's be honest, not now that people paid £70 for an underwritten game) was even less satisfying in terms of choice and agency than ME3

This game deliberately skewed itself to read as a 'better DA2', than a 'worse, rushed inquistion'. IDK, it just makes me feel a bit grossed out, and manipulated. I mean, we know DA2 can be made in crunch, lads!!!!! :)))

Criticisms!

EVERYTHING is underwritten. The game is woefully short. If I can complete all the sidequests in a game, then something is wrong. The romances, the character arcs, the main quest, the dialogues. Everything was sparse, with the bare bones of a plot, that (in the case of companions quests) was rarely seen through to a full and satisfying conclusion. And I *know* that's not the writers fault, necessarily, but that doesn't mean it couldn't be done better.

There's so much potential, but I found that most of the companions could be boiled down to one or two traits, and while I can see people headcanoning reasons for this in real time, it's just... underwriting, or bad writing. Extremely telling to me that both Emmrich and Davrin were my favourite companions... because they had their own companions. That meant that they had multiple story hooks - their professions, their relationships, and then their little guys. They got three things, when most people only got two.

This was particularly egrerious for me with Taash, because they started out amazing, and I ended up being extremely disappointed as I watched both them and their mother being reduced down to flat one-dimension caricatures and a tired queer narrative of 'my parents hate me'. Only, this time, it's 'my immigrant parents hate me'. when you couple the reductive approach to Taash with bioware's inability to write the Qunari well or without falling into Orientalism??? they're suddenly an evil repressive queer phobic religion after being supportive of trans characters in inquisition???? you're telling me Shathann, a woman who was forced into a more feminine role by circumstance but considered herself more genderless/masculine as a scholar, wouldn't be on board with non-binary identity? just galling tbh.

The romances are underwritten. And they are badly written, to me. Luckily I know we'll have fic, but in Inquisition, each romance was 90 minutes worth of content. In Veilguard, Lucanis's romance is the longest... at 18 minutes. It just seems stupid and strange to me - if this game is chasing on BG3's coat-tails, why don't they know everyone is fucking horny?

While I liked the decision to give companions more banter together and flesh out their interpersonal relationships, I felt that the balance was off... probably bc it's cheaper to have two actors share a piece of scripted dialogue, than voice a decision tree. It meant that to me Rook often felt like a bystander in their own story, or excluded from their own found family. HR Manager-core, as it were.

General uselessness of the Lords of Fortune coupled with the Orientalism of the Lords of Fortune.... big sad.

I think the choice between Lace and Davrin is highly!!!! suspect!! do you go with fantasy racism (kill off the only dwarf, thus meaning all your dwarf companions are dead in the game, including the one who represented to future for her people) or the real racism (kill off the black man). I really wish this decision was more reactive, and perhaps based in faction strength or character bond, not just a pre-set choice.

I'll never care about solas, the way trick weekes wants me to care about solas. pretty dumb decision, to make a whole game contingent on this fact.

The ending and epilogue screens were underwhelming, and left the game feeling incomplete to me.

Joys!

To end on a more positive note...

everyone is hot. I honestly think everyone is hot. No other dragon age game had a cast of characters whom i all found attractive. This is unheard of. This is why I know all the fic will be fucking stellar.

And you know who else is hot? Rook. Genuinely one of my favourite DA protagonists! Maybe bc of the faction thing, or just the chemistry of the VA I chose. I just felt like she was pretty fucking hot tbh, and that more people in-game should be taking notice of it. Everyone should stop having conversations with each other and start desiring Rook carnally.

Weisshaupt was genuinely an amazing sequence and questline. In fact, I loved that this game featured Grey Wardens more heavily, and I loved all the lore about Wardens that was introduced.

Assan!! <3 Manfred!!! <3

Bellara and Neve kissing with tongue!!! No, I will not elaborate!!!

(I think that Bellara and Neve were two characters who did have strong stories, and that they should kiss about it.)

Elgarnan and Ghilanain.... never before has a dragon age game known what it's like to have a charismatic villain. This time, we got two. Ghilanain was my favourite, bc I'm fucking gay, but even interactions with Elgarnan and his boss battle felt engaging. I honestly don't think a dragon age game has ever had a good villain before, and these guys were both fucking cool.

[detective-pancake]

Hey, so I don't want to be that guy, but when are we going to acknowledge that Akechi was right?

No, I obviously don't mean about the things he was very clearly wrong about. I'm referring to the things he says in interviews about the Phantom Thieves. I hate how many people switch up after playing through his betrayal who previously agreed with his views, because nothing he said is wrong and nothing he did changes that fact. He speaks in the TV Station on the objective facts that he should know about, and with or without the context of his form of justice those facts stay true. It's a fallacy to claim that his form of justice being universally less approved of makes the Phantom Thieves better by comparison, or discredits anything he said. I don't think the Phantom Thieves are evil, or that they should necessarily be imprisoned, but I do think that they are not morally sound. They're kids. Prior to his betrayal I think he served his purpose well, but it's easy to disregard the validity of his words when you find out that he's a murderer. With the knowledge he SHOULD have had (and that many DID have), everything he says is true. And honestly? It still can be true for basically the entire plot of the game. Mishima's confidant tests the thieves in that way. They could have changed the hearts of anyone who's not a persona user, for any personal reason. It's a slippery slope.

I'll use these three options as an example for why he's right:

"They're justice itself" is just subjective and incorrect, because justice as a concept is individualized and given how each Phantom Thief has different reasons for being one it's ridiculous for even them to say. Their first target was before they even formed a group, and Ann was ready to kill Kamoshida. The others were not even going to step in, and they were going to respect her choice either way. All the members are so different, so this is an insane claim to make.

"They're necessary" is wrong because to say they are necessary is pretty disingenuous to all "justice" that has ever happened BEFORE they existed. I don't believe that the Thieves were a necessity per say, and personally I think their actions can only be judged on a case by case basis. Some Mementos targets for example have issues that stem beyond what they have done. Now they have their desires stolen but still have the issue that pushed them to immortality in the first place, plus a shitton of guilty baggage. The Thieves only help with the atonement, but not the push. How many of those people didn't just go right back to their past behaviors? How many of them got worse in other ways? Think about Futaba, she felt so guilty for something she thought she did, she formed a palace to condemn herself to die alone. To claim the Thieves are necessary to reform society implies that their method is the most effective, and I think that's a lot to claim for something they don't understand.

"They do more than the cops" I almost agree with. Legally the police in Japan in this game anyway (yes I'm aware it extends to reality in many ways, but I'm referring to just the game right now) are corrupt and flawed for the most part, but the thing I don't agree with is that this makes the Thieves a better alternative. They're not. For the same reason Yoshizawa says later, the Thieves can only do so much as vigilantes, and to imply that society should rely on these faceless nameless flawed people to fix society is not any better than what they have now. Especially with the method being unknown, potentially unsafe, and easily exploitable. I cannot be the only one who if the Phantom Thieves were real, would be extremely alarmed by the prospect of a group of vigilantes "changing hearts" right? It's so vague, and the pattern is dystopian. At least police methods are familiar

What I'm saying is that they're kids, and it's kind of insane that this game places Akechi as the narrative foil for the Thieves in their message and then makes it so easy to disregard because "he's an assassin so how could he know anything about justice". The Thieves don't either, and Ann was nearly a murderer. If the bar is "don't commit murder when you're infiltrating someone's mind" then it's far too low. I wouldn't trust a group of adults with this power to reform society, even less a group of teenage vigilantes. I'm 19, and I find this odd. And Strikers frames them as even more righteous, and it bugs me even more in that game. At least Royal has the third semester to give a bit more nuance to how big of a responsibility Ren was given, but that's also very frequently misinterpreted.

I love this game, and I love this fandom, and I have thoughts that get weird and ranty. I apologize, but I hope you all found this as interesting as I did.

[loumandaniel]

Loumandaniel s3 predictions ( I don't necessarily mean this in a shippy way- this can be about characters too)? ( I know I know we don't have anything to go on- no shooting dates nothing but still).

at the end of the day, the hardest prediction is whether they'll cut the vampire lestat in half. i don't think they should because i'm tired of 8 episode seasons, but they may. anyways, i'm not sure how coherent this is, but ummm bon appétit:

for some plot, i do think louis will take over the interview when they revisit nola+claudia while daniel potentially chases down armand, or interviews marius mid way into s3. regarding armand, marius states in tvl that older vampires need to have another 'death' (sleep) to maintain their sanity with this unending life. so, my opinion has been that he's not intentionally missing from 2022-26, but sleeping under ground. it would be fun to have him wake up to lestat's music (i know this is something lestat does in that book, but idc because it's funnier with armand). he'll likely appear at some point because daniel will want to cross-reference the story of nicolas de lenfent and gabrielle with armand's version. also, in rolin's words they'll have "plot points leading up to devil's minion." there's also no doubt in my mind that an entire episode will be armand's backstory. my hope is that it's armand telling it to daniel rather than lestat, but who knows?

going forward with louis and daniel, situationship? not sure, but i can imagine daniel's begging for it. i think their relationship is on shaky ground from louis' perspective. louis retracted consent on the book, and daniel broke his trust by selling louis' entire life story anyway. to be honest, my number one theory has been that the book was a ploy to tell daniel his precautionary tale of vampirism before louis offered to turn him at the end of the interview. those jokes about louis and armand interviewing for a third? not jokes to me. i take armand's "i hope you'll join us" line in the finale literally. regardless, i think louis is carrying guilt for daniel - not guilt for his being turned, but rather HOW he was turned. that guilt is probably the only thing keeping daniel in louis' good graces. i'm sure the rumspringa journey daniel and lestat go on won't help either.

the big thing i hope and predict for louis and armand is that louis is reconciling that he still loves armand. like, i would really love a scene of louis telling lestat that there's still a lot of love for armand within him, even after learning the truth of the trial. it's something lestat can relate with. i mean, these guys do love armand, but armand is...well, he's armand. louis does forgive, and i don't think he's happy to lose armand. i could imagine he's hoping armand atones so he can have him back in his life. the difference between lestat and armand with louis is that lestat suffered for seventy-seven years with his shame, and armand did not. if he sees that armand is hurting, it would bend louis towards him in my opinion. and hey, after making an impulsive fledgling post-divorce? armand is suffering.

with armand and daniel, predictions get difficult because all we have is the book chapter and really cryptic comments from in and outside of the show (jacob's quotes specifically make me go red string theory crazy). i could expand some other time, but i do think louis and armand were more involved with daniel's life in the 70s than daniel knows. i think there will only be hints at whatever the fuck they've got going on in s3 though, and we won't have complete answers until qotd seasons.

also, i do think daniel's madness arc is definitely still on the table. in fact, i think he's losing his mind in s3. i think it's why armand abandoned him after turning. i've said it before, but daniel's eyes changing colors is either power level or instability. s3 could have moments where daniel is losing his mind, lost in a forgotten memory or start in on the dreams about (book spoilers) the twins. i love daniel being a sponge for characters so having him as this voltron of paul, claudia, amadeo, and nicki that louis, lestat, and armand project onto is so fun to think about.

[zenkindoflove]

how do you think elain could be involved in the politics of the spring court?

I think there are two main ways: 1) giving the world more "gardens" by revitalizing the land of the Spring Court and 2) helping with the politics between human and Fae relations, which Spring Court will be immensely important.

And I think this will largely reside in her and Lucien helping Tamlin come back into his own as High Lord of Spring.

For the first point - I have a head canon that Elain, along with her Seer powers, has powers related to "life" (to juxtapose Nesta and death) which will look a lot like the earth powers we see Sathia and Tristian use in HOFAS. We haven't really seen this magic used yet in the ACOTAR universe, and I think that it likely will be revealed with Elain, who is often seen gardening and associated with a lot of flower imagery.

I also think that Tamlin has some of these powers too (i mean it would only make sense given that it's SPRING). I think Elain's storyline will heavily focus on her exploring her magic with Lucien and I think that will bring her to both Day and Spring. In general, Elain's story arc is about her accepting the gifts given to her from the Mother (her powers and the mating bond), so I think it'll all be interconnected with the story arc. I could see Tamlin serving in some mentor type role to help her understand her powers, which in turn heals his own negligence of his court. I think it's also possible all of this is hinting at Elain being the heir to Spring and possibly Tamlin losing his HL powers (whether that is through the magic leaving him or his death - ack!). But I don't necessarily think it's a given that her hints and connections to Spring means she is destined to rule it. But we will see.

For the second point - I think that Elain's social skills, her empathy and care, acting as the bridge between people, and her connections to humans will be immensely important for the work that Vassa and Jurian are doing in the human lands. Ultimately with the wall down now, human and faeries will have to coexist, and Spring as the southern most court will have to be apart of how this intermingling occurs. And so I think another motivation for revitalizing Spring and helping Tamlin assume his rule again will be so that it can be a safe neutral zone for these affairs.

And considering that Beron is the one who is looking to take over Spring to gain more power and influence while Tamlin is weak, Lucien is inevitably tied into all of these plots (especially considering he is permanently stationed in Spring at the moment and has spent immense time in the human lands).

In essence, I think Spring is sort of central to Elain's plot. And while I think she and Lucien will travel a lot in their story (to the human lands, Spring, possibly Day, and likely even the Continent. And potentially for some high high drama - Autumn), it all sort of comes back to Spring tying a lot of these places together. A lot can't happen until we get Spring right (and if Elain is able to help heal Spring, it could mean some really critical roles she might have in future books when it comes to Dusk and the healing of that land, which I think we need Elain's growth first before we ever get into those storylines).

Anyways, I'm not sure all of these will happen and it's possible SJM could totally go in another direction. But these are some of the ideas I've chewed on when thinking about it.