#but on the other the needed context for that situation would reveal information about me that no one should ever now

[jonny-b-meowborn]

What if you wanted to sleep longer in the morning because you didn't have school but god said ten thousand sleep paralysis the moment you close your eyes that make you feel like you're dying

[novlr]

How would i politely describe body types without being vague?

Characters are as diverse as the writers who write about them, but when it comes to describing them, it can be very easy to default to what we know or to succumb to clichés or stereotypes. This can be especially challenging when describing characters’ bodies. When you need to describe body types, it’s really important to strike a balance between being specific and respectful while avoiding harmful stereotypes or vague descriptions.

Why description matters

Description is essential to really bring a reader into a scene and connect with the characters you’re writing about. Physical descriptions help readers visualise characters, which, in turn, can influence story dynamics. Body descriptions can reveal a lot about a character and even affect the way that other characters interact with them. Like people in real life, the way we look influences both who we are and how we interact with the world. 

As a personal example, I am quite short, but I have very long limbs. This gives me the illusion of being tall. Consequently, I am often asked by people taller than me to help them get things down from high shelves because they perceive me as taller than I am. This is a common interaction in my life that has changed the way I dress and carry myself. You probably have similar anecdotes in your own life, which is why building those descriptions into your characters can be such a great way to really make them feel real. How a character looks is not all they are, but it does help create a well-rounded sense of character if we get a feel for how they interact with the world around them.

General guidelines to describe body types

Thoughtful representation matters in modern writing. Descriptions should exist to make your characters feel like people and not like stereotypes. To achieve this, you must:

Focus on relevant details that serve the story — don’t just describe a person’s body because you feel you need to. Everything, even character description should exist to serve the story.

Avoid loaded terms or judgmental language.

Use specific, relevant details rather than general statements for the sake of it. 

Consider the character’s own perspective of their body instead of only through the eyes of other characters.

Include dynamic descriptions that show how the character moves and interacts with their environment to give a sense of who they are instead of info-dumping a description.

Common pitfalls to avoid

Don’t make a character’s body type a central part of your narrative if it isn’t plot-relevant.

Don’t rely on stereotypes or clichés.

Avoid using food-related metaphors, as they’re often problematic.

Don’t make assumptions about health or lifestyle based on appearance. Only include this information if it is relvant to the story you’re telling and you’ve researched and fact-checked to ensure its accuracy.

Don’t over-focus on your character’s body as a defining character trait.

Don’t use derogatory or outdated terminology.

Don’t over-describe body type to avoid saying what you mean. Fat and skinny aren’t dirty words. Short and tall don’t have an implicit bias. You can be direct. In fact, it’s often better to be direct in your description than to labour over someone’s body in minute detail.

Effective techniques to incorporate body types in the narrative

Describe clothing and style choices.

Show how the character navigates their environment and how their personality shines through movement.

Consider cultural and historical context.

Include relevant occupational influences on physique or vice versa.

Reference genetic or familial physical traits when relevant.

Include distinctive characteristics or style choices that aren’t related to their body type.

Note how the character’s appearance changes in different situations (i.e., dressed up or casual, at home or at work).

Focus on functional strength and capability outside of their body type.

Consider historical context if writing historical fiction and be aware of changing beauty standards.

Avoid cultural stereotypes and generalisations.

Don’t make a character’s body the centre of their story if it’s not relevant to the plot.

Use precise, specific language – don’t beat around the bush. Say what you mean.

Choose words that match the tone of your story.

Describing body types doesn’t have to be a minefield. Writing a character respectfully doesn’t require any more technical knowledge than simply writing them like a real person. While description is important for reader immersion, it’s also not something you need to focus on in too much detail if it’s not relevant to the plot. 

Describe body types in a way that serves your story. Every character’s physical description should contribute to their overall characterisation and your story’s themes, and never distract from it. Physical description is just one aspect of character development, so the most respectful way to describe a character’s body type is to make it a natural part of who they are and not the focus. 

[anneapocalypse]

On Wuk Lamat's Role in the Back Half of Dawntrail

(Note: You do not have to like Wuk Lamat, you do not have to like any character, that is your business; however this post is not an invitation to expound to me on why you hate her, so if you aren't open to discussing her positively, please move along.)

Wuk Lamat is vital to the back half of Dawntrail. Her presence in the story there is both narratively and thematically important and its lack would render her character arc incomplete.

For context, I have seen some comments that there should have been less Wuk Lamat in the back half of Dawntrail. I truly don't see how that would have been possible or made sense without throwing out most of what was set up in the first half, or simply writing an entirely different story. Regardless of whether you personally vibe with her, Wuk Lamat is the main character of Dawntrail; this is her story, and it's themes and narrative beats are inextricably interwoven with her character arc.

First of all, can you imagine what people (in-universe and out) would say about her if after the attack on her people and the appearance of the dome she just... stayed in Tuliyollal with Koana and let other people do all the work? She's the Vow of Resolve. Of course she's going to be at the forefront of the action. The whole point of her choosing Koana to rule with her in a new interpretation of the tradition of blessed siblings is that they have complementary strengths, and they have a benefit that blessed siblings don't: they can be in two places at once!

Second, a big part of Wuk Lamat's journey is learning about the cultures of Tural so that she can fairly preside over them all, and in Alexandria we get to see her bring that lesson to bear in a big way when she learns about the regulators and the processing of souls. She's rattled by it but pushes past that personal reaction to say, as the Dawnservant, "Please teach me of your history and culture so that I can understand the importance of this practice." In doing so she learns critical information about the situation. This is a culture so far removed from the Turali peoples Wuk Lamat knows, and they're also a separate kingdom not technically under her rule at all, but that doesn't actually change her response. She still reaches out with curiosity and compassion, always seeking to learn and understand.

As she comes to understand Alexandria's history, she also learns the context she'll need to understand Sphene when her true motivations are revealed later. Moreover, Sphene is a very clear foil for Wuk Lamat. The Dawnservant characterized by her love for her people and her desire for their peace and happiness vs. the Endless Queen whose love for her people has been twisted into something destructive and terrible.

And then there's the narrative beats about family, and particularly the loss of parents in different ways: Wuk Lamat earning the trust of her brother's abandoned son and taking him in as family, and her being there for Erenville as he struggles to come to terms with the death of a parent (something Wuk Lamat has also experienced very recently).

And that's to say nothing of how personal Zoraal Ja's betrayal is to Wuk Lamat; of course she has confront him personally. It couldn't be anyone else (except maybe Koana, and they both seem to agree that it should be her).

The Rite of Succession is not Wuk Lamat's whole character arc; it's only the first half. It's after Wuk Lamat comes into her own as Dawnservant alongside her brother that she truly shines. It is in the back half of the story, when the stakes are dramatically raised, that all the lessons she's learned in her journey will be tested, when the peace she seeks to preserve is so brutally disrupted. We get to see her struggle emotionally with the shock of that in Tuliyollal, then rise to the challenge of leadership. How she responds to all of that is her character. It is the culmination of everything the first half of the story has set up. This is still her story.

And personally, I think it's wonderful to see a female character not only featured so prominently in the story but getting so much character development and such a complete character arc.

[fueioekjfisks]

Im so sorry im losing my absolute mind but please hear me out for a second.

Mild tw for implied SA - NOTHING ACTUALLY HAPPENED PEOPLE JUST THINK IT HAPPENED

You know the common misunderstanding au in the danny phandom rn about vlad being a creep and people thinking hes like a CREEPY CREEP and not just a supervillain creep?

Well imagine danny is going on break or something and his dad wants to bring the whole family up to vlads castle for whatever reason.

Danny, obviously, does not want to waste his ONE FREAKING CHANCE of getting some god damn sleep being tormented by vlad and his stupid birds. Plus, vlad will probably plan some big murder plot for his dad and danny CAN. NOT. HANDLE. THAT. RIGHT. NOW.

So danny decides to make a PowerPoint presentation about why he doesnt want to go.

Obviously he cant reveal vlad or his own halfa status so its mostly just really jumbled information about vlad being creepy.

He gets backup from sam, tucker, jazz, and even val. He also knows his mom already dislikes vlad and knows hes a total creep so all he really needs to do is convince his dad.

But??? As hes compiling evidence??? And rehearsing his presentation with hes friends??? He realizes that it sounds super fucked up???

And like, it’s mostly just bad without all the context. But he realizes that Vlad is actually kinda sick in the head. Danny knows he would never actually do something that terrible, but its supper concering how similar his actions are to like, actual bad people.

Danny isnt mad about it or anything, he’s actually just worried about it Vlad.

Danny is not perfect by any means. But Vlad is the only other member of his species besides, like, his fucking clone (which holy shit Vlad what the fuck) or maybe dan who is also fucked up.

Danny knew that Vlads death definitely messed him up, but he never really thought about Vlads actions beyond “obsessive fruitloop, at it again :/“ and is just now realizing that vlad might need psychological help. Which he feels pretty (REALLY) bad about.

Danny has no idea what to do, and no idea who to go to.

So he sneaks out, doesnt even go ghost as he takes the powerpoint to vlad who obviously freaks tf out because holy shit thats SO MUCH WORSE THAN ANYTHING HE COULD HAVE POSSIBLY IMAGINED. What if he had actually hurt daniel? What if he had hurt his precious Madeline?? He needs help like yesterday! How did he ever get so bad???!

So Vlad freaks, trashes his own house, apologizes to danny, and books it through the portal to find the far frozen or somewhere else he can get help.

Danny is somewhat shellshocked about the whole situation. It doesnt get better when people start investigating Vlads disappearance.

The state of the manor indicates foul play and the police look into it further. Find security tapes. They see danny, frazzled and paranoid, enter Vlads property, everything goes to static, and only danny leaves.

Hes arrested of course, and he and his friends/family are interrogated.

Everybody vehemently denies that Danny would ever do such a thing, but when they are asked if danny has potential motives everyone (except for jack) gets all squeamish.

Its practically common knowledge in Amity Park that the mayor and the weird Fenton child had beef. People just were unsure why.

I think it would be really cool to focus a story around the polices pov of the investigation/ random Amity Parkers interpretation of the events.

Danny being kinda creepy after the accident (because death) could totally make people assume he did it and that would be awesome.

We can also add in de-aged Dani/Ellie and or Dan for that extra spice.

Imagine the fentons finding out about Dannys supposed kids in the context that they are MOTIVES FOR THEIR SON TO MURDER THEIR COLLAGE FRIEND ( AND DANNYS OWN GODFATHER) WHO APPARENTLY GROOMED HIM???!? AND THEY DIDNT EVEN NOTICE??!?

This could totally be a crossover too. Lucifer tv show. Batman. Supernatural. All are good.

Anyway, thought this could be kinda interesting

Please continue if you want

[invisible-pink-toast]

Is Misty a serial killer?

"I’m grateful, okay? I really am very grateful that your hobby seems to be figuring out how to be the perfect serial killer." "Why does everyone keep saying that?"

Misty is such a fascinating character. We know that since they were rescued, she's become a nurse/carer at a nursing home, that she's a prominent member of the Citizen Detective group, that she loves her bird Caligula and is training him, that she's gone on a lot of unsuccessful dates, and that she's kept tabs on all the surviving Yellowjackets.

But none of this explains the murder dungeon set up in her basement...

For context, Misty's had a fascination with medicine and healing since before the crash, taking the Red Cross babysitter's first aid course twice, but it's after the crash that she realises how useful this skill is in making her needed and letting her be in control.

It gives her power over people.

Her feeling appreciated for the first time in her life and feeling like she has a position of power in the group leads to her destroying the black box when she finds it. I'm not sure if she just meant to delay the rescue to give herself more time to shine, or whether she meant to trap everyone in the middle of nowhere permanently.

Even if her plan was just to delay, Ben is in a critical state, and everyone is injured and vulnerable to infection and exposure, not to mention their lack of supplies (Misty has no knowledge of the lake or cabin at this point). Either way it shows a complete disregard for others lives right from the get go.

Misty doesn't know much about herbs and plants when they're first in the wilderness, Akilah is the most knowledgeable from her time in the girl scouts. But Misty obviously pays attention, and she gathers plants into a binder that she secretly hides in the woods.

In her binder there is also a book on medicinal plants. As pointed out in this reddit thread, it looks faded, has no hole punches for the binder, and there's no reason Misty would have this with her in the crash. It's likely a book from the cabin. Instead of having it available for everyone, Misty has hidden the book so that only She has the knowledge - she's the one with the power, she's the most useful, and she appears to just know this information.

The plants in the binder include the ones that make you sick and hallucinate - you can see the 'vomiting' label! And this is not to know what to avoid, she gathers enough to use - which she does! It's completely premeditated.

Misty's eager to control Ben and poisons him when he appears to reject her advances. When she thinks she has a chance with him at Doomcoming she excitedly goes to drug him into a state of compliance. Her plan is ruined before she can attempt it (though I doubt Ben would've ever accepted another tea from Misty lmao) when Mari adds the shrooms to their stew. Misty knows that Everyone is going to be drugged and there will be consequences - but she says nothing and even has the stew herself in order to try and appear innocent. So she knows it's not something someone's supposed to be doing but does it anyway for her own gain.

"You poisoned me! Why?" "That's a very strong word. I wouldn't-"

Chronologically, the first death that Misty directly causes is Kristin's.

Misty threatens to kill her if the other girl reveals her secret (destroying the black box) and backs Kristin up against the cliff. When Kristin steps back, she falls to her death.

I truly don't think Misty meant to kill Kristin here. I think she was 100% capable of it, but her actual death was an accident. Misty panicked and was trying to gain control of the situation. Misty is in shock after Kristin falls off the cliff, she's devastated and climbs down and does CPR to try and save Kristin. Absolutely not a death she meant to occur, but despite her grief, Kristin's death does solve a problem for Misty.

Something that she'll remember going forwards.

The next death Misty is (at least partly) responsible for is Javi's. Misty is the one who relays Lottie's wish to be used as food if she dies, this causes the group to decide to sacrifice someone in Lottie's place. Natalie draws the card, Travis and Javi help her escape, but when Javi falls into the icy lake, Misty is the one to pull Natalie back from helping him and make it clear that it is Natalie or Javi's life and he is already drowning.

Misty also has complicated reactions to death. She immediately covers up Kristin's death with the blizzard, knowing that she'll be blamed if anyone discovers she fell from the cliff. But she's also panicked and upset and berating herself. She makes justifications for Javi's death and looks way too intrigued when Travis bites into the heart. But in contrast - Misty's devastated when the baby dies, and she actually convinces Ben not to commit suicide because "I can't have another death on my hands"

Yet Misty is also enamoured with violence - looking positively gleeful as Shauna nearly beats Lottie to death and grinning after they feast on Pit Girl.

At this point this is as much as we've seen of Misty in the '96 timeline but it's... troubling. Especially considering what she's like in 2021.

Misty's become a nurse, working in an aged care facility, where she can play God and have control over people's lives again without any real oversight.

But none of this makes her a potential serial killer. What does is:

1) Her basement.

Misty kidnaps Jessica (we'll get into that) but she already has a basement set up for this exact need. A bed, TV and kitchen facility in a basement isn't usually suspicious - but we know that Misty has ZERO guests staying (willingly) with her, the basement only locks from the outside, it's already set up with restraints on the bed (potentially just kinky but given the context more murdery), a wheelchair that someone can be easily handcuffed to, duct tape, etc.

There's also other details that show that... this is not the first time Misty has done this. She gives Jessica plastic cutlery like what a child would use (unlike the metal cutlery Natalie uses to stab Lisa and escape when she's kidnapped and chained to a bed). Misty wears gloves and a full jumpsuit to conceal her DNA and a pair of work boots that are clearly for this purpose only.

Even knowing that Misty is a researcher, is fascinated by true crime and is a citizen detective, there's just too many details in the set up for this to be a one off thing and first time success.

2) Misty's knowledge, supply of, and willingness to use drugs.

Misty kidnaps Jessica in about ten seconds. She's convinced Jessica to willingly get into her car to discuss what they talked about on the phone, and without a word Misty stabs her in the thigh with a syringe and knocks her out. Then Misty drives away with a smile. hm.

After discovering that Jessica will be harder to crack then Misty thought, she's perfectly willing to... murder Jessica's father. By lacing chocolates with a deadly drug and sending them to the guy from his daughter. Misty even gets his nurse to agree to deliver them personally sjdlk;fhaskl;dfh holy shit??

Drugs are Misty's weapon of choice. It's another thing that gives her power over people. She laces Jessica's cigarettes, murdering her, when Lisa shows up with a shotgun to try and get all the masked armed people away from Lottie, Misty's first instinct is to kill the girl. The only reason she doesn't succeed is that Natalie covers Lisa and sacrifices herself.

So in the adult timeline - that's one straight up murder (Jessica), two attempted murders (Lisa and Jessica's father), and one accidental-ish killing (Natalie). All with drugs.

3) Misty's manipulation and lack of boundaries

Not as big of a reason as some of the others, but important to consider overall. Misty has no boundaries with other people, and uses her skills against everyone around her, whether she thinks of them as a friend, foe, or a complete stranger.

She keeps tabs on the other survivors, including Travis, who changed his name and disappeared. She's disappointed in herself for not knowing Lottie was back from Switzerland.

She tampers with her own car to guilt her date into driving her home, then guilts him into coming inside by crying that he doesn't think she's pretty.

She tampers with Natalie's car in order to force Natalie into going with her to find Travis.

She texts Kevyn Tan pretending to be Natalie and starts up a relationship with him (i mean acab but still bad from natalie's perspective)

She puts a hidden camera in Natalie's room in order to spy on her, listening in on her conversations and watching her have sex (girl come on.)

To threaten Jessica, Misty finds out the aged care facility her father is in, who his nurse is, and using a fake name has a lengthy conversation with the nurse to find out as much information as she can.

Misty does a whole background check on the random motel employee in order to threaten / blackmail him into helping her.

Not to mention all the ways Misty abuses the residents in her care at her job.

4) She knows exactly how to get rid of a body

She's so flattered I just-

Once again, because she's a Citizen Detective and loves true crime I can see her knowing a fair bit about this. Like the 'fun fact' that 12% of killers are caught buying cleaning supplies. Why she knows exactly what brand of bleach is best to clean up a murder because "regular bleach leaves behind hemoglobin for the luminol tests" is not something anyone who has not cleaned up a murder scene would know. Also she knows exactly what to steal from her work to clean up a murder scene and dump a body on short notice...

A lot of things that Misty still uses are things that she learnt in the wilderness - the drugs, the manipulation, etc. Cleaning was not a part of the wilderness. This and her murder basement are things she has learnt over time since they've been back.

She's also so upbeat?? All of the survivors have dealt with bodies, but for most of them it's been a while and they're all pretty shaken when getting rid of the evidence of Adam's murder. Misty is practically glowing - but given that her 'friends' need her and that she's in charge, that tracks for her character.

So after all this, there's still the question:

Is Misty a serial killer?

Honestly? Yeah, probably. She has far too many resources and techniques and is just far too comfortable with murder and cleaning up afterwards to have not killed at least a few people that we don't know about. A serial killer is someone who has murdered at least three people over a period of time. I'm thinking Misty qualifies.

Then there's the question of why?

Misty thinks of herself as a hero. The underdog who's protecting her friends, especially Natalie. She's doing what needs to be done when the others aren't able to.

And it's the phrasing of the quote above that really gets me. The 2021 timeline in both season 1 and 2 takes place over only a couple of weeks. The bulk of it - from Jessica's kidnapping and the blackmail to ending up in Lottie's compound - happens over about two weeks.

In that two weeks, Misty has (according to herself) taken care of things such as: helping Natalie find answers on Travis' death, stopped Natalie from relapsing, killed Jessica and neutralised a potential threat, helped the others cover up Adam's murder & tracked Natalie down after her kidnapping.

Only they really didn't find answers on Travis' death, Adam's murder was not covered up and Shauna is being investigated, and Natalie stayed willingly with Lottie. The other two are highly debatable.

So Misty did not take care of things. Also, "always" is a strong way to phrase a two week period. Considering she hasn't seen the other survivors in years.

So is Misty... not talking about that two week period? Is she talking about before?

The Yellowjackets and their survival have been public speculation since their rescue. Jessica pretending to be a reporter and poking around for a story is not shocking to any of them. But no official story has ever come out. Maybe Misty has been "taking care" of any potential leaks.

Has anyone checked in with the author of 'Skin in the Game' i'm just saying

She already has the basement set up for interrogation. She already has the drugs on hand to make a murder look like an overdose. She would rather kill someone then deal with the consequences of them living. Take Jessica, or the fact that Misty used a lethal drug (probably the fentanyl) when attacking Lisa, when she could have easily used some sort of tranquilliser.

There's also the fact that she just enjoys having power over other people. She enjoys violence.

Some theories:

There's Stan, the guy she went on a date with in 1x02. It's obvious the date is going terribly. Misty is trying way too hard and he's not into her but she keeps pushing. That is in character, and maybe they're just trying to set Misty up as being desperate. But also... the guy is kind of a loser. He's just been fired, he tries to ditch the date at 6PM, he's even more awkward then Misty. But she still messes with her car so he has to give her a ride home. She still manipulates him into coming inside.

Why? Why does she want this guy in her house? To try to convince him to have sex with her? She doesn't really seem that into him either. And once Natalie turns up Misty could care less about the guy.

Maybe Misty was looking to use her murder basement. This guy just lost his job, if he disappeared would anyone notice right away? If he turned up a week later, dead of an apparent overdose, would anyone suspect anything? Misty sees herself as being noble, when she kidnaps Jessica she taunts her saying "good night, sleep tight, don't let the fact that you're a terrible person keep you up tonight". Stan was a jerk, so would Misty justify her actions to herself because of that?

Then there's Walter. He knows more about Misty then he's letting on. He may have found her on the citizen detective boards, but even with his odd behaviour, this doesn't explain his borderline obsession with her. When covering up Adam's murder, he's also covering Jessica's. How does he know about Jessica or that her murder relates to Misty? He's very into true crime - has he tracked Misty down because he's linked her to several suspicious deaths? It clearly doesn't bother him, it actually seems to be something that endears her to him, but it supports the serial killer theory. Also hilarious that he thinks her being a surviving Yellowjacket is the least interesting thing about her and... he's right actually jsldkfhsaldhfas;hf

At the end of the day, Misty Quigley is a fantastic and fascinating character and I can't wait to see where her story goes. I would love for this theory to be true, but either way I'm sure Misty will be as entertaining as ever.

"I know when you look at me, you don't see someone you should be afraid of, but, uh... you're wrong."

[henrysglock]

Superspy!

This post is just me breaking off the UD double agent section from my time loop theory post (14 Jan. 2024). It's not new, just wanted it separate for ease of referencing.

I'm not sure if anyone else outside the my discord server has noticed this, but in every season there's at least one instance of the UD just...offering up information.

"It does?"

Yup! Let me explain.

On first glance, we look at things like Nancy's vision and even El's vision with Billy in the cabin, and we go "Oh, it's because [insert "the bad guy's cruel/he wants to scare her/his hubris will be his downfall/all serial killers want to be known for their crimes" etc here]"...but maybe that's not the case.

For example: Vecna told Nancy his backstory, and then he immediately went

"Oh hey, so not only am I revealing my identity (Which may help you find out more about me via lab records later on, things like...maybe a list of my abilities, or my weaknesses, like the fact that I have a nut allegry. Allegedly.), but I'm also gonna give you a sneak peek of my apocalypse plans. For free. As a treat. Don't use these to prepare or anything. I'm totally not giving you a head start".

Terrifying, yes. A taunt and a threat on surface view, yes...but also showing his hand. "I want you to tell Eleven everything you see" Why. Why would he want that? He may be confident in his plans, arrogant, even...but he's not that stupid.

I'm serious, though. Check it out in comparison to Henrys visions of the future. The pattern is patterning:

We can track that back to El's cabin scene with Billy, wherein he tells her she shouldn't have looked for him, warns her that they all can see her, and that they're going to be coming after her...and he cries about it. That's vision Billy. That's someone else who piggybacked into El's mind from Billy's mind. Billy doesn't have powers. He can't piggyback into minds. That's not real Billy, just like how Billy in Max's vision wasn't the real Billy. That's someone with the ability to piggyback into minds (sit with that for a beat, it'll come to you). The person giving El that vision warns her.

Why on earth would that person tell her that they can see her, that they're coming for her? That's sensitive information! It would be smarter to let her think she's safe and use that false sense of security to catch her off guard.

In fact, this pattern patterns so well that I'd like to argue this: Henry's TFS visions, Nancy's vision, and El's vision are all the same type of behavior displayed in NINA's chess scene, just in different contexts.

Henry ("Henry") gives some kind of scary prophetic information ("He and the others are going to attempt to kill you", "I would very much like to show you where I am going", "You're going to kill me, aren't you?"), and then we're left to question if it's a scare tactic, manipulative misinformation, or helpful inside information.

It's not that the Mindflayer or Vecna can't hide things from people (see: "Somewhere he didn't want me to see")...like, say, the fact that the Mindflayer is now able to see El, or that Vecna's planning to open 4 gates with his 4 kills.

It's always this miraculous "Huh! Weird info-dropping behavior from the UD's side. Shouldn't look that gift-horse in the mouth though. It's probably just a writing oversight or a shoehorned exposé, so really there's no need to question it." situation where it's just...information that's offered up with no real explanation.

Some of my favorite examples:

...and it's all topped off with Max's line:

"He's been telling us his plan this whole time".

That is to say...You're telling me:

The first message from the Upside Down isn't any of the messages that are concretely Will's, but instead it's the one that's a repetitive Henry line...and it's conveyed in a distinctly not-Will style? A message that saves Joyce, something that's definitely not in the UD's best interest given her tenacity in finding her boy...but is definitely coming from the UD nonetheless?

Will, who fell total prey to the Mindflayer in less than 3 days, was not only able to figure out how to defeat the Mindflayer, but was also strong enough to convey it in Morse code? The Mindflayer, who is able to keep secrets (see below), just...let that information slip?

El, who acknowledges that the Mindflayer is more than able to hide things from her, is suddenly sent into Billy's memories and allowed to find the source completely unimpeded? (and she was sent, you can look at the positioning on "Billy's" hand in real time if you think I'm exaggerating)

The Mindflayer, as "Billy" (Remember: not actually Billy, because Billy can't give visions or invade minds), is telling El that because he's able to see her now, and that she shouldn't have looked for him? The Mindflayer, which was supposedly building the Fleshflayer to track El down and kill her? Suddenly he's telling her she shouldn't have done the very thing that allowed him to find her more easily?

Vecna's giving up all the information about himself and his plans before he's even gotten the 4th gate open, despite him being so secretive about it up until that point? He's not cocky enough to broadcast his plans earlier, but he is cocky enough to tip off the girl who found his family and drew all the connections...the "detective" of the group in ST3, about what's happening/going to happen...and tell her that she needs to tell Eleven, the girl who kicked his ass into Dimension X as an eight year old, all the future plans she sees?

Henry's visions in TFS are scaring him into resisting the Mindflayer, making it less likely that he's going to upgrade to killing humans, i.e. the very thing the Mindflayer wants him to do?

None of that makes any damn sense...until we hit this last point:

Orderly Henry is known for giving inside information about "Papa" to El with no clear motive other than getting her to leave the lab.

So, with this new frame of view, I'd like you to chew on this:

"He's been telling us his plan this whole time." vs "He's been telling us His plan this whole time."

By which I mean: "He's been telling us some other man's plan this whole time."

[Mike voice] Superspy.

As a parting thought, I made it all into a nice, neat set of collages:

I'll leave you all with this final, parting bit, too:

None of this even touches on them shoehorning in an entire arc about a spy who goes by the name Enzo/"Henry".

He isn't actually named Enzo/Henry (he's Dmitri), though (hello Edward), but he is working as a guard and feeding inside info about the KGB (CIA equivalent) to Hopper/a "bald" American:

...in hopes of setting said bald American free from prison/hell:

...only to get himself caught up in a creature massacre:

That kills off all the other guards and shaved-head inmates (while he himself is the sole "inmate" with longer hair) and sent on the run afterward.

Okay. I guess. That's fine. Nothing smells Creel-y about that.

Not mention, of course, the interpretation of the Russia arc paralleling Vecna and Hopper rather than El and Hopper. Local father figure gets his ass kicked and sent to "hell" from which he has to escape to go home. Like. Yeah, I get it.

I'd like to posit that this might be a spot for further exploration irt multiple parallels -> multiple versions of events, as per my series on the NINA fight (which showed us at least 3 tangibly different endings for the 4.07 fight). We could very well have one version focused on a Murray/Yuri type deal, one with a Hopper type deal, and one with an Enzo type deal depending on which ending they were involved in. That's just speculation atm though.

[yaekiss]

𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑾𝒐𝒓𝒎 𝑸𝒖𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏

꩜ Room Content: GN! Reader x Kaveh, nothing but fluff, established romantic relationship, reader is a woodcarver, Kaveh still stays at Alhaitham's home in this, SFW ꩜ A/N: I LOVE KAVEH (worm or not), pardon any mistakes I wrote this in one sitting at 4.15am LOL

"Would you love me if I were a worm?"

The cup headed towards your mouth stills and you glance over at your boyfriend seated across the table. You roll the question around in your mind. It's not the strangest thing he's ever asked, no, far from it really. Oftentimes, the both of you like to pose unusual situations to each other, serving as an opportunity to lightheartedly pry into the other's thoughts and minds. His question this time has a simple answer and you reply speedily, confidently.

"Of course I would," your assuring tone is cut off when the cogs in your mind turn again and a myriad of context questions pop up. "Wait a sec. Are we talking about a scenario where I've never met you before and you're just a worm that wriggled into my life? Or, or are you saying that somehow, one day in the future, you just turned into a worm?"

Now, it’s Kaveh’s turn to pause and ponder.

“In this case, let’s just say you realised I somehow, overnight, turned into a worm when you come to pick me up from Alhaitham’s place.”

‘Ooh, interesting scenario Kaveh.” Taking a swig of your beverage, your mind works out an answer with the new information granted by the blonde.

“Yeah, my answer doesn’t change, I’d still love you of course,” and at this, your boyfriend beams, nothing shy of brilliant and loving, but then your train of thought continues.

“Oh! Do you think Alhaitham would somehow become a worm too? Assuming the worm transformation was a proximity thing of course-” a laugh leaves your lips, “-Imagine arguing with worm Alhaitham! Would I be able to tell the two of you apart?”

Kaveh snorts and rolls his eyes, jokingly offended that you wouldn’t be able to recognise and tell a worm version of him apart from a worm Alhaitham. 

“Alright, alright. How you wound me [name], you’re just teasing me at this point.” Shaking his head with a hand to his forehead in mock misery, the blue feather in his hair waves jovially with his actions. The two of you share a laugh before continuing with the dinner, chatter flowing freely once more.

A few more weeks roll by and a tear of the calendar page reveals the seventh day of July, your beloved Kaveh’s birthday. Of course, you already had his present ready for him. What kind of partner would you be if you forgot the birthday of the most lovable sweetheart? Furthermore, you would be dishonest to say you weren’t excited for him to see one of the gifts you had in store.

Picking him up from Alhaitham’s for a dinner date, your breath catches when the door swings and before you stands a Kaveh dressed to the nines. He was already stunning to begin with, he always is, with how he can only be described as a sunray incarnate and the best of the world wrapped into one. But in front of you is Kaveh in a new outfit, accented with pink from the ripest Zaytun peaches and fiery reds and regal golds that serve to highlight the beauty of his ever-bright crimson eyes. The handiwork by the tailor is masterful and you feast your eyes on how every seam and stitch accentuates Kaveh’s elegance. 

“Is… is the outfit alright?” Twiddling with his thumbs, he tacks on a follow-up, “This was Alhaitham’s birthday gift, as much as I insisted I didn’t need a new set of clothes.” 

Mentally, you high-five Alhaitham for dressing up your lover because you can’t help but drink in the sight of him. Stepping up closer to him, you press a kiss on his plush lips, picking up on the taste of his fruit-scented lip balm.

“I think you can tell my answer, lovebird. You’re nothing short of the definition of gorgeous, far exceeding it even.” The blonde giggles and his laughter chimes delightfully in your ears. (You know you’ll be replaying that sweet sound for as long as you live.)

“Shall we get going?” Extending your arm to Kaveh, he loops his own through and the two of you leisurely make your way to your dinner reservation, arm in arm.

Dinner goes smoothly, the food is sublime, and the company even more so. A clink! Is heard as you toast to him and you sip at the drink before perking up, remembering something.

“Ah! Before I forget, let me give you my present, lovebird.”

Over the years, you’ve gotten to know Kaveh enough to know that he’s not exactly… fond of expensive, pricey gifts. It leaves him with a mixture of gratitude and gnawing guilt. In Kaveh’s case, it truly is the thought that counts. Thankfully, you’ve worked your way around it. Being a skilled woodcarver has its perks after all. Year after year that you’ve been with Kaveh, you always gift him meaningful little trinkets and carvings that never fail to brighten up his birthday. Once, you walked into his study and you saw all the carvings you had given him lined up on his desk. Noting how none of them had a trace of dust on them, even the first carving you gave him (a cute wooden carving of him as a fungus), your heart sang at the care he showed to your creations.

Pulling out a box decorated with a bow that matches the colour of his feather, you slide it across the table with a chipper “Happy birthday, lovebird! Open it up!” Eager hands gingerly unwrap the gift and a smile cracks on Kaveh’s face as he holds up a carving of Mehrak, the size of slightly more than half of his palm. 

“There’s more, take a look at what’s inside,” you laugh.

“You’ve outdone yourself this time [name]!” He exclaims as he unlatches the top, marvelling at how intricate the tiny clasp is. The mini Mehrak opens up at its functional hinges and Kaveh is greeted by the sight of the most adorable miniature renditions of his architectural tools. A compass, various rulers (because Archons know where he keeps leaving them around the house), a protractor, and triangular rulers of different sizes. To top it all off, there’s a plaque with some carvings etched into the wood. He squints to make out the words, “My Love and Heart, Kaveh”. Your gift is a touching blend of being practical (for a teeny weeny version of him), aesthetically pleasing to the eye, and so tenderly sentimental.

“Remember the conversation we had about if you turned into a worm? Now, if worm you carried around that little plaque, I’d, without a doubt, recognise you.” Your words process in his mind and everything clicks into place. Soon, he’s laughing again (you’ll never tire of the sound), and you find yourself laughing alongside him. Tears are running down Kaveh’s cheeks and he doesn’t know if it was from how much and how hard he’d been laughing or if it was from how loved he felt right here and now. 

“I’d love you no matter what, Kaveh.” And a kiss from you to him seals the promise, everlasting, evergreen.

Thanks for reading! Consider supporting me on kofi if you enjoyed this or check out my other works hehe ♡

[occasionallyprosie]

Just randomly curious

Why do you call Legend, the scholar instead of the veteran like what's mostly used?

Ohhh I've been waiting for someone to ask this kind of question! Ok ok ok, this is a bit long, so!

I call him Veteran a lot too but it depends on context and who is addressing him. Warriors, for example, sometimes *hates* to even think of Legend as a hardened veteran because he's a kid. So even if he will actively acknowledge Legend's experience and skill, he will avoid to only address him for that. He also avoids it because he thinks that maybe Legend would rather not be only known for his hero work (like Warriors would not want to only be known for his looks or for his warfaring past). He will call him "Vet" or "Veteran" still because it's easier to say, or because he's outwardly and directly acknowledging Legend's experience without having to directly reference the fact that he is experienced even if he's young.

Why? So I'm pretty sure it's been said that in the canon our boys don’t call each other "Twilight" or "Warriors" or their hero titles, partially because of spoilers with their own adventures that they're all basically keeping secret from each other. I'm certain Jojo said that at one point and referenced Twilight specifically as being a nickname that would cause spoilers/reveal his past prematurely.

They have nicknames then, like "Veteran," or "Sailor" and "Smithy." In certain situations they'll call each other "Link" if they think they need to, be it a moment where they need the other hero to pay attention or to ground them.

For me, I think "Veteran" is almost a spoiler because it reveals that Legend has been on over half a dozen adventures, but that the Chain would find that out before they ever hear/use hero names, and that's when Legend gets that nickname on top of "Scholar" and "Collector". But when they first meet? He doesn't want to tell them anything about his adventures, he doesn't trust them, not even how many he's been on, so how would they know he's a veteran at this?

"Collector" is obvious. "Scholar" comes from the idea that Legend's a very information curious person. That kind of person who is asking "why" just because they're curious and want to know, Vio would've been the same but Four is keeping splitting secret, so Legend gets "Scholar" as a nickname from Vio. He eventually gets "Veteran" when the group has been together and he trusts them enough to tell them that, yeah, this has been his entire life.

Lately, I've used their names (Legend, Warriors, Time) outside of dialogue because that's easiest to read and understand. But in dialogue it's been other nicknames only. That doesn't apply to all my fics, some were written before I made that decision and thus won't reflect that.

The only exceptions really are Sky and Hyrule. Sky is still called Sky as a shortened form of "Sky Knight" and "Skyloftian." However, Sky and Hyrule both also made the mistake of mentioning their titles when the group was suggesting nicknames. So they (at first) were teasingly called "Chosen" and "Hyrule," before "Chosen" just became one of Sky's nicknames and "Hyrule" became "Rule" became "Rulie." Legend, Wild, and Sky are the only ones who call Hyrule that though.

That was long, I hope that explains it! I'd be happy to clarify anything about anything.

[yamchaisawesome]

Rewatching Steven Universe more recently has made me appreciate Future a lot more.

We can tell from like the earliest episodes of season 1 that Steven feels kinda neglected and tries to help because that means that he’ll be able to spend more time with his family and validate his own self worth. I’m not saying he’s not kind- that’s still obviously the case- only that it also stems from feelings of neglect and insecurity.

By The Test, Steven kinda internalises that feelings of others around him are more important than his own. He feels cheated and lied to, moreover feeling babied and useless which he hates because of his aforementioned “my only worth is helping people” thing. However, he decides their happiness is more important than letting them know how he feels about the situation.

As the show goes on, we sort of move away from focusing on Steven as a character. Instead, the show starts using him more like a catalyst for the issues of the gems. This makes for a great metaphor for how we start viewing our family differently as we grow up the more we gain new information and context about them, but I digress. The point here is that while Steven gets better at helping people, the underlying feelings of insecurity and neglect are never really addressed. In all fairness, why would they? His newfound ability to help people has given him more connection with his family than he could’ve dreamed of earlier in the series and his self worth is satisfied.

This is all fine and dandy as long as he’s helping people, but what happens when he doesn’t need to anymore? Future.

Steven Universe Future is what happens. Now that Steven doesn’t have anyone to help, he fears things going back to how they were when he was younger. Nobody needing him to be useful means that they’ll just leave him behind like they used to, right? This is obviously irrational but you can see how this would happen to someone with Steven’s upbringing.

The main thing that triggers the conflict in Mr Universe is that Greg’s upbringing and subsequent counter reactionary parenting of Steven sorta led to this. Leaving him largely with the gems and outside of regular institutions that facilitate connection, like school, is the reason for his neglect and subsequent complexes.

School is actually brought up a lot in particular. Mind you, Steven isn’t uneducated. In the semi canon comics it’s revealed the gems (mostly Pearl) homeschooled him fairly proficiently, to the point where he performs as well as Connie in a standardised test. It’s more so what school represents to Steven: social connection and normalcy.

This is what he’s craved since the beginning, and future addresses these aspects of Steven’s character that weren’t really resolved in the original series.

[classicanalyzer]

The Acolyte - Choice Thoughts

"A vergence could create life like what we see on this planet. It's a power that should be studied. Protected. Nothing could be more important to the Jedi. This is a noble mission." Sol

"Someday, those noble intentions you all have will destroy every Jedi in the galaxy." Mother Aniseya

This episode was an absolute doozy. Kogonada did it again. I was glad I was also right that this episode's title might have a choice-based theme.

I love that Mother Aniseya continues to be a good mother by making it clear that she puts her children's needs first over the witches' needs. Though we do see more of her dark side in how she was willing to manipulate and fuck with Torbin's head. She didn't even blame Sol for her death given the circumstances. I did think she was possibly going to diffuse the situation or at least get Mae out of the ensuing chaos by possession. Her warning about the Jedi's good intentions resulting in their destruction will prove prophetic 113 years later with Clone Wars/Order 66 and the Great Purge. I also like the reveal that the twins were a singular mine split into two (literal light and dark personifications). It's sad to see that only she was willing to let her child decide while the rest of the Coven chose an aggressive, violent path that only ended in the death of the entire coven when Indara forced them out of Kelnacca's head (the possession must've been also a dangerous Dark Side technique) and the separation of the twins.

We also get to know why the Jedi are on Brendok. They weren't there looking for the witches but to find the vergence in the Force. I also recently started reading the HR novels so hearing a mention of the Emergences was satisfying to me. I love that Sol took a more personal approach to trying to ease Torbin's mind compared to Indara's more traditional approach. We see the HR Jedi performing a check-up on this vergence and the miracle of non-sentient life that persists in this world unaffected by the Emergence.

I'm on the Jedi's side in this situation. Given what the Jedi saw, it looked like the witches were abusing the children and using them for dark purposes. The children seemingly implied to be manipulated to serve the coven's interests with the whole "'Everyone must walk through fear. Everyone must be sacrificed to fulfill their destiny.'" (Mae actually misquoted her mom and it was another step to tragedy). They also used the vergence to split a child's soul into two which based on the information and the ceremony, gives the impression that the coven was planning to sacrifice the children to empower the coven. Then there's the fact that only Mother Aniseya was the one who was willing to let Osha go with the Jedi with the rest of the Coven, especially the ones led by Mother Koril, being incredibly hostile towards the Jedi. Plus the possession of people and the mist move appeared like an attack which I can understand why Sol tragically killed Mother Aniseya (as I said, she didn't even look like she blames Sol). However, I do love that the Jedi did make mistakes as well. Torbin's impulsiveness to get off the world escalated the tension and the dark mist conjured by Mother Aniseya looked like an attack on either Mae or others.

I like how we get to see another side of Mae from the flashback. We see that even she's unsure about how she could become a leader of the Coven despite being a child. We also see that she wasn't responsible for the fire! She was just trying to simply try to burn the Jedi book but accidentally dropped the lamp. It's good to see that at least she wasn't that axe-crazy. Plus seeing a Jedi who killed her mom right in front of her with zero context would definitely explain her singular hatred for the Jedi.

That Kelnacca fight was absolutely terrifying. Kelnacca was not only a Jedi but an absolute beast of a fighter. Seeing Torbin get his scars and almost get killed was chilling. Speaking of Torbin, his biggest flaws were not appreciating non-Coruscant life and his overeagerness to get back to "normalcy." I also felt chills when I saw how the possession worked which definitely played a part in Torbin's desire to go back home. Torbin got his wish of heading back to Coruscant in the worst ways possible. No wonder he took the Barash Vow, went into exile, and later committed suicide to atone for how his actions resulted in the ensuing mess. It also explains why Kelnacca (who unwillingly used his claws which is an act of heresy in Wookiee culture) decided to isolate himself and why he drew the symbols of the Coven given his brief possession by the entire Coven.

Indara is also a standout of this episode. While she does represent a more stoic Jedi character, she does hold the team together. She made sure Torbin tries to appreciate life out of Coruscant, keep Sol level headed to realize the difference between Osha’s and his desires, and saved Kelnacca from possession. I also love how she recognized how cultures are different from their own views but also concedes to how from what info they had, the things they did see were fishy. If Sol is the empath of the team, then Indara is the anchor of the team.

I really love how empathetic Sol is. His empathy is his greatest and clouded trait. He was willing to defy the Council to protect what he saw as abuse against children and using them. And God, he looked so broken when he killed Mother Aniseya (in front of Mae too which he thought was Osha!) and for a while, I think he was in shock as Mother Kohril got some good hits on him. I also love how Sol almost said shit when Kelnacca is revealed to have been possessed. Then he had to make the most sadist choice of all time by choosing to prioritize using the Force to save Osha as his powers were failing. I don't blame him for wanting to turn himself over to the Council and wanting to save Mae no matter what she did.

This was an amazing episode as I said. Also, I was absolutely jamming to the Power of Two by Victoria Monét (It came out on June 14th) and I was so glad to see being used here as the end credits. The song was pretty sad considering the dialogue being the twins being ashamed and bitter towards each other. I also love the massive departure music-wise from even the franchise with this song.

"My children are our future. Her wish must be considered...Right now I choose mother." Mother Aniseya

"After everything this little girl has lost tonight, you'd take away her dream as well? Before you throw yourself at the mercy of the Council, ask yourself why you made this choice." Indara

[yolowritter]

A Perspective on Miquella the Kind

"Miquella the Kind...is a monster." Those are some of the first words uttered by Sir Ansbach once the Empyrean's Great Rune is shattered, and the charm placed upon his followers in the Lands of Shadow is lifted. But...are they actually true? With all the new information we have about Miquella in the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC, it's worth to re-examine all we know about his character. Naturally, a huge part of the community is budy combing every nook and cranny for more lore on this Demigod. And...others are displeased with the new information given, or more specifically, what Miquella's plan is revealed to be at the DLC's end. So today, I want to take a closer look at Miquella as a character, his followers, and of course, the overarching plot which the Tarnished becomes involved in after slaying Radahn and Mohg. As an aside, we really owe the Lord of Blood an apology as a community. Nevermind the murders and cult sacrifices, Mohg managed to beat the allegations! Anyway, I do intend to also give my own interpretation in regards to the more...questionable things in the new Lore, so let's get right to it!

Firstly, it's worth establishing a baseline for who Miquella is as a person. As we all know, he is the son of Queen Marika and King Consort Radagon, as well as brother to Malenia. As a side note, the whole "Miquella divested himself of Saint Trina" situation most likely explains how this family dynamic would be possible, but that's another post altogether. Marika's...questionable marriage choices aside, Miquella has always been described as a kind, gentle soul. In some ways, his narrative place in Shadow of the Erdtree serves as a foil to Marika herself. Where his mother schemes and conceals the truth, Miquella is extremely upfront about his goals. Make the world a kinder, gentler place. And honestly? I believe him. I fully believe that Miquella, having grown up next to his cursed sister and seeing the Golden Order unable to do anything for Malenia, wished for nothing more but to better the world. And after realizing the Order wasn't working, I've no doubt he went on to discover the many, many attrocities committed against those of the Crucible, like the Misbegotten for example. However...this is where things get a little muddy, in terms of morality that is.

Remember that Miquella is basically a God. He is one of the few who can succeed Marika in a new Age. But...he doesn't seem like a fighter to me. He isn't one, which is where Radahn comes in. Now, forgive the aside, but we need to have a chat about what exactly "Consort" means as a word. Yes, it's typically used in the context of marriage, but from the original Latin meaning (I'm no expert here, feel free to correct me), a consort is someone with whom an individual shares a destiny. Miquella himself talks a little about this, both in the fight against Promised Consort Radahn, and if the Tarnished is charmed by his Circlet. Yes, that's the thing he uses to hypnotize people, it's in the item description. We understand the concept of a consort as the more modern interprepation of a romantic partner, a spouse of some kind. However, Elden Ring doesn't work by the same rules. Yes, it can mean spouse, given that Ranni welcomes the Tarnished as one and grants the Dark Moon Greatsword as a wedding gift, but it doesn't have to.

Unfortunately, I think the community is falling into the same pitfall we did with Mohg's wording of his own desires to become Miquella's consort. Unlike Ranni, neither situation here necessitates romantic feelings, and frankly I don't believe they exist here. Miquella was fascinated by Radahn's strength and kindness, and believed his brother would be an excellent person to share the remainder of his plans for a New Age with. And Radahn was, objectively speaking. He's hailed as a hero from everyone who knows him, even Ansbach treats him with great respect should you summon him for the final battle. I think the Vow made between Radahn and Miquella happened before the Shattering, and was something along the lines of Radahn helping Miquella make the world a better, kinder place. It's something the Red Lion would absolutely want, since despite his element being war, we get many accounts of him being an honorable, good man. It would make sense why Radahn at first agreed with Miquella, so let's see why Malenia even needed to go and do what she did in the first place. Why did Radahn not hold up his end of the deal?

To put it blunty, it's because he's a Golden Order fanboy. I'm still not entirely sure how Messmer ties into this from a timeline perspective, but Radahn grew up with his older half-brother (presumably before the Holy War against the Hornsent), his father Radagon, and Lord Godfrey as his primary male role models. Even if Godfrey had been exiled by that point, the evidence of his crusades was memorialized in song for Radahn to be inspired by. Of course he believed the Golden Order to be righteous and good, and wanted to uphold the honorable values he was raised on. Considering his own character, I'm quite confident in speculating that Radahn saw the Order's faults, and probably agreed with Miquella that there was a distance between the stories he grew up on and reality. So naturally, upon seeing his younger half-sibling try to fix things, Radahn quite possibly supported the idea.

Where I think the divide happened...was Miquella's method of problem-solving. As I said before, I've no doubt that he is as Kind as they say; it's just that Miquella envisioned a world without violence and had the power of make it so. His broken Great Rune holds the power to resist charms, so it's pretty reasonable to assume that the whole thing once held the power to perhaps inflict them. Miquella later replaced it with the Circlet he now wears, but still. He was strong enough to evoke a cult following from most of those who laid eyes on either of his forms. Again, I firmly believe he was doing good here, as both himself and as Saint Trina. From Miquella's point of view, he is helping. He grants the restless a peaceful sleep, he gives a home to the outcasts, he protects the Albinaurics, etc. That's why so many people wanted to follow him. What interests me is that Miquella seems to be a classic case of the road to Hell is paved with good intentions.

He undoubtebly, truly wants to make a kind and gentle world, but has little qualms about forcing people to stop fighting. As Leda tells the Tarnished when asked about Hornsent, she explicitly states that without Miquella's charm, he would be attacking her and the others right now. Yes, it is arguably better for people to not fight to the death, but Miquella enforces this "good" thing in the wrong ways. Everywhere in the Lands of Shadow, we can see something similar. Sir Ansbach for example explains that Mohg himself got charmed, and that upon trying to rescue his Lord, Miquella brainwashed him as well. And he only sounds upset about it after the charm is broken. This gives us a very interesting character, since Miquella is technically correct in what he states. Should his Age of Compassion come to pass, there won't be any more War, or violence, or destructive conflict. However, taking away people's free will is arguably worse. So, what happened? Why does there seem to be a difference between the morally grey (but with good deeds to his name) Miquella, and the more extremist version we battle in Enir-Ilim?

Well...I think Miquella's Crosses hold the answer. At every site, he "divests himself" of something. It's clearly stated that he had doubts, he second-guessed if this was the right thing to do. He had moral qualms, but forced himself to leave them all behind. And there is one more thing he abandoned. Saint Trina. I believe this is why he seems so jarringly different to what we know about him. Because Saint Trina is his love and compassion. Every genuine feeling that Miquella held was left behind to make space for the more nebulous "Greater Good" of his new age...and evidently, very little that made Miquella himself even exists anymore. Despite the radiant light at the Gate of Divinity, his demeanor seems cold and calculated, much more akin to how I and many others might characterize Queen Marika. In attempting to ascend to Godhood, Miquella ironically became what he sought to destroy.

That's why there's such a difference between the Miquella we hear about in the main game, who does seem to be using his powers yes, but for a good cause...and the DLC version of Miquella, who is abusing his charms. Ever since entering the Lands of Shadow after he cocooned himself, Miquella has slowly divested himself of everything except the greater goal. Godhood is all that's left of him by the time we arrive at Enir-Ilim, which is why Saint Trina begs us to kill him. Miquella has already killed himself in a way, and all that's left is a brilliant yet hollow shell. The genuine warmth and compassion he once held for the Lands Between and their people are void, leaving behind only the unfeeling rays of pure gold, much like the ever-present Erdtree. He seeks to supplant Marika's Age...and then install himself as a God, just like his mother. I'm sure that he did have genuine kindness in his heart, but now...there isn't any left within him. That's why he's enforcing his will upon Moore, Ansbach, Freya, Thiollier and Hornsent. Because he's become just like Marika.

It's unfortunate, and a brilliant tale a self destruction that if correctly decoded shows how masterful Fromsoft is at this kind of storytelling. Now, I'm not claiming to be completely correct in this interpretation, since this is just my personal viewpoint of how and why things played out this way in the DLC. Feel free to drop your thoughts below, I'm more than happy to open up a disccussion about Miquella! Anyway, if you'll all excuse me, I need to go replay Shadow of the Erdtree. I'll see you all soon, but until then, Stay Tarnished everyone!

[besttropeveershowdown]

The Most Annoying Trope Showdown: Round 1, Poll 20

Out-of-Context Eavesdropping

Someone overhears a conversation and, lacking the full context, misinterprets it as something more serious.

Propaganda:

I hate all miscommunication tropes but this is the one that makes me want to strangle people the most. "we need to fabricate a reason for A and B to hate each other, but not one based on their actual personalities or situation. Instead, Person A talks about something personal and important, but they decide to word it in the dumbest way possible. Person B decides to listen in on a private conversation and then gets so mad at this stuff they weren't supposed to hear that they don't even listen to the final sentence that completely recontextualises the whole conversation. also 90% of the time A would never express feelings this way AND B would never snoop this way. just poor writing to inspire the world's most insipid conflict between morons.

The Unreveal

A major reveal is set up, but no information is actually revealed.

Propaganda:

I'm a nosy bitch and I hate not knowing stuff!

[pommunist]

Honestly, I've been very scared to keep posting about the situation, since I don't want people who follow me to think I'm ''too negative'' or judge me when I'm not remaining as positive as before, or to bring negative posts to dashes of people that I know are very stressed about this. And I appreciated before how you are a safe place for neg thoughts, so I'm here to vent a little bit if that's okay.

My experience since the reveal can be described as a rollercoaster that only has been going down.

I was incredibly stressed when Lèa revealed everything, but remained hopeful that things could change for the better. I had trust.

At first, the next few days after that, I thought the leaks of the changes made were odd since they looked like they lacked context, and the lack of context could lead to fandom outrage, which I was worried about at the time. Why was I worried? Well, I still had trust right things were in progress to be done. Looking back into that, while we got the context later on and it reassured me then, not jumping into immediate conclusions and waiting for more points of views was more my way of protecting my mind from spiraling further into distress, all while knowing full well that Lèa has only acted with the best intentions and none of this was in bad faith.

Then we get hit with this: Admin after admin are leaving, and it gets to the point that Lumi and Shade leave, because the communication never existed in that workplace and priorities were proved to be incredibly out of place. My trust was B R O K E N. And like I promised an anon back then, I finally allowed disappointment to sink in.

And why was my trust broken? Fun fact: When it matters to me, I have good memory, and I remember Q's statements. The words and the actions are not matching.

- He said that he was going to collect testimonies and investigate. Ah yes, the investigation tactic of not contacting anyone in the workplace and actually gathering their testimonies, I heard it's a good source of information to make important changing decisions /srcsm.

- He said the CCs were being updated about the changes. Then we see CCs saying they actually don't know shit going on bts except for a couple of general announcements.

And there may be other stuff that does not match, but those two are the most relevant to me right now.

Like, genuinely I didn't even care about whatever the fuck Q said after Lumi and Shade's statements, and any other post that tries to reassure the fanbase just feels like very hopeful thinking, that I used to have, but I DON'T anymore. It feels like false promises and looking for things that make sense, when, really, that shouldn't be our job. At this point I need tangible proof of improvement, not just words because these fucking words have proved to not be enough for me to believe whatever the fuck Q says it's being done.

I can't even trust fully that the merch money will actually go to payment for the remaining admins and compensation for the ones who left. That would be the best case scenario, but can I even TRUST this scenario to occur? Right now, no, I don't think so, I have not been given proof to trust this. And seeing any merch with Pomme, Dapper or Ramon in the Qsmp Awards just felt extremely wrong and I hated it.

When you are a Huevito, this has been wild: First, Artea leaves, and then, Shade reveals to us that Ramon's OG admin was fired around the time Artea took the role, while this entire time most of the Huevitos thought the OG admin was back around the last days of february. It feels worse when you can connect the dots about what happened with Ramon's OG admin, when we know that he was extremely busy with school last time we saw him, and we consider Lèa saying how management would fire you if you were not active enough...

Must clarify, all the love to BOTH Ramon's OG admin and Artea, they both killed it with the role, they are both wonderful people and I wish the best to them and the new Ramon admin that was with us at the beginning of march aswell. Also all the love to them. Must be hard to play a character that was played and developed by two different people before, and the effort is deeply appreciated.

I also feared to say the above since I was scared to spread misinformation somehow. But honestly, I'm trusting Shade's words, you know, the one who's best friend irl with Ramon's OG admin should know full well what they are talking about and the status of employment of said best friend.

And when you have been a ghostie for months since basically the beginning: This shit SUCKS and people are SO EXTREMELY VALID for being upset and grieving.

I think no company should ghost their employees even when they are ACTIVELY TRYING TO REACH OUT. Fucking paranoia of leaks ain't cutting it for me as an excuse for this mistreatment and I don't blame Lumi and Shade at all for taking the decision that was healthier for themselves after that. Just a ''we can't say much right now due to legal reasons, but we are still slowly working on it'', LITERALLY JUST THAT HAD TO BE SAID, WDYM NOT EVEN THAT.

The french community have every right to be angry after this. The CCs stated they were leaving if Lumi left, and that's an entire language going away from the server. Yeah, no shit they are upset.

And I want to just grab Bad by the shoulders and say YOU DO NOT HAVE TO PLAY ON THE SERVER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO, YOU ARE CLEARLY DISTRESSED, DO WHAT'S BEST FOR YOUR MENTAL HEALTH AND WELL BEING, WE UNDERSTAND.

Of course I want this to turn out for the best, like everyone. I believe the basis of this project was a wonderful idea, and I'm grateful for the positive things it had brought. But this shit is not being resolved the right way, as we could see. And with Q seemingly no understanding the underlying issue, then why would I remain as hopeful as before.

Another fun fact: When you break my trust, it's really fucking hard to gain it back or for that to happen in the first place, so.

I have stated that my hyperfixation to Qsmp has died out, since I decided to keep my distance in order to collect my thoughts, reflect, breathe and do what's best for myself. Nowadays I only would watch two specific CCs play, but if at some point they decide to leave, which I would not blame them if it reached that point, then that would be it for me. I would be done with it. I don't blame the people who also feel this way or the ones who think it is already over.

If I'm only staying here it's purely for love for this community. In the anniversary, I could not bring myself to say happy birthday to the Qsmp, I said happy birthday to Qsmpblr instead. I love the people I have met and interacted with here dearly. Even if our opinions don't match, because hope and trust have left me, the love is still there, you know?

That would be everything I wanted to get out of my chest, sorry for the big text and angry rambling. I would prefer to stay anonymous for this one. Take care, Pommunist.

Hey anon ! I don’t really know what to say in response to all this, just that I agree with most of what you just said here.

The feeling of being afraid that you’re being too negative too often ahah big same here ! I didn’t think my blog would turn into what it is when i made it, and I felt many time like I was bothering people with my frequent posts on the situation (I also know I’m not the best at tagging stuff I promise I try my best though !).

We have to remember that we aren’t being negative for fun or drama, we are just talking about a situation that is negative so of course this isn’t going to be fun and rainbows. And personally I’d rather do that than « faire l’autruche » as we say in french (Translation would be : to do the ostrich aka to put your head in the ground so you can ignore your problems), as it is too serious of an issue .

Also using your post to express my admiration and gratitude to Ramon’s OG admin and Artea because they both did an amazing job playing him and shaping him into the character we love so much (Our beautiful baby boy).

And yes, the community is great ! Even if you don’t feel like watching the server or at least less than before, we should still interact with the wonderful people thanks to it ! Also, keep sharing fanarts, fanfics, anything ! the artists are blessing us with wonderful art and stories they still deserve our support ! I understand people who do but we don’t have to stop talking about something we love altogether if we don’t want to, the things that made us like it are still here, at the end of the day we can keep that love at least.

My thoughts are so disjointed here anon I’m sorry but lots of love to you ! As someone who was hyper fixated on it too, the fall from grace was particularly painful, can relate 😣

I’ll reiterate that I don’t mind anons at all, you don’t have to justify yourself ! It just makes a bit sad the number of people who told me they didn’t feel like they could express their thoughts publicly.

Take care too ! ♥️

[utilitycaster]

I know there have been many Takes about Laudna and Orym after latest episode. Yours saying that this is not a bad development for Orym is interesting to me because my knee-jerk reaction while watching was being horrified he went so cold about Bor’Dor’s death. But after some time, I guess him finally choosing to be pragmatic after days torn by his own idealism would be a much healthier route for him in the long run.

I want to know what you think about Ashton, though. Some people are saying, they “let” Laudna kill Bor’Dor because they thought it’s what she needed. That sits wrong with me because Laudna made that decision and she’s not a child, but Ashton is my favorite character and I can’t help think I am biased lol.

Please excuse my badly structured sentences, I’m not native speaker.

Hi anon! Your English is great!

I think this is a revealing question in that, in fandom, I think a lot of people lead with "well, obviously, my favorite character is clearly morally in the right, or, failing that, the character I don't like is morally in the wrong" rather than considering the situation, the context, the genre norms, what makes for the most interesting story, etc. So recognizing that Ashton's your favorite and that might be coloring your opinion puts you ahead of a lot of people.

Anyway: I think it can be true both that Laudna made her own decision and that Ashton could, had they wanted, chosen to make an effort to stop her and they didn't. I don't think that means Ashton is responsible for what Laudna did per se, but I also don't personally think he had a moral imperative to save Bor'Dor. I think someone who thinks he did have that moral imperative might disagree, but they should also be blaming Laudna just as much in that case.

Someone else remarked to me that based on the discourse you'd think Orym - the only person who did not attack or restrain Bor'Dor - executed him in cold blood. Just to recap the fight: we only really had one round during which Orym gave Prism a potion to heal her up and did bait and switch to protect her; Ashton hit, with non-lethal intent; Deni$e restrained Bor'Dor; Laudna cast Hunger of the Shadow, knocking Bor'Dor unconscious; and Prism punched him. The following round was technically not run as combat in initiative order, and had it been, Bor'Dor could theoretically have died of a failed death save before Laudna's turn, but Orym and Deni$e made no attacks and Ashton chose to lead away Prism. Probably any of the three martial class characters could, had they wanted to, stopped Laudna. None of them did.

Which I think goes back to the second paragraph: In the end? I think most people are making their judgments of whether or not they think Bor'Dor should die, and even further back to whether or not the Ruby Vanguard is a cultish, terrorist organization, deciding on whether his death was justified or not, and then, if they think it was not, pinning blame on the character they like least. You can argue for any, though frankly, I think Orym is the weakest argument: Laudna is the one who literally killed him, both knocking him unconscious and taking the final death save. Prism took the most death saves with her punch. Ashton dealt a significant amount of damage and did not intervene when Laudna had an unconscious Bor'Dor at her mercy. Deni$e is the one who initially brought up her suspicions, forcing Bor'Dor's hand, and similarly made no physical effort to stop anyone. Orym indicated his approval to Laudna and did not try to stop her.

I think that had Bor'Dor not attacked the party, and had instead simply run away, tracking him down and killing him would have been excessive, but on the other hand, he had a lot of information that could have been extremely dangerous to Bells Hells, so at the very least I think they needed to take him prisoner; but he's not wanted by any specific legal system, so I think he'd just be their hostage, dragged along, indefinitely, as they attacked his friends over and over again. There isn't a nice, neat solution where everyone is happy. Deradicalization is an admirable goal, but it requires a massive amount of effort and resources that I don't think Bells Hells have, and no one should be expected to deradicalize someone who is actively committing violence against them. Once Bor'Dor attacked, to me, this became self-defense and an admission that he was lost: that he'd spent several days with them during which they were kind to him, but because of their ideologies, he attempted to kill them anyway. At that point, I don't fault any of the characters present for killing him/letting him be killed in response.

I guess the last point I'll make is that while, in terms of empathy, there is obviously a huge difference between killing someone regretfully, and killing someone and relishing it, they are, in the end, dead either way. I don't interpret Orym's behavior as cold, but rather merely calm acceptance that he can no longer avoid the inevitable war - and I do think that acting as though Orym's subjectivity in this situation is problematic while ignoring that Prism and Laudna were in no way objective either is an incredibly poorly considered argument, and deeply unfair- but in the end, whether Orym is stoic or whether he breaks down crying, Bor'Dor is still dead. I am not going to fault a character for having an outward emotional reaction that doesn't match what I think it should be when I think their motivations were reasonable.

[rogloptimist]

the rot has started leaking out of my ears unfortunately (context; jonas is president of the library planet and tadej is elected(?) leader of a beige cult. they both exist within a larger cult centered around necromancy that consists of an entire solar system, and have been summoned to god’s home to become saints but someone was found dead the previous night)

jonas is elbow deep in documents older than dominicus itself when the heir to the eighth walks into canaan house’s library. he sits on the disintegrating leather chair across from him, the movement across the rotting floorboards rattles the keyring sitting on the glass table between them. tadej pogacar shines in the morning light, looking utterly unaffected by the late night of harassing a recently dead body. he smiles at jonas, a laugh dancing across his eyes.

“warden,” he greets with a friendly nod. “not what you expected when god invited you to his home?” the question takes jonas by surprise- he might have been slightly busy staring.

“i suppose you could say that.” he says curtly. tadej is shockingly nonchalant given the situation. in fact, given his entire self. while his interactions with the 8th house were admittedly limited, tadej has none of the grim, sterile air that seems to come hand in hand with devoutness to… honestly? he isn’t quite sure what. when it came to religious cageyness, the eighth and ninth are neck and neck- unless you want to breathe in lungfuls of dust in the archives, their secrets remain buried.

“for academics, you sixth really do speak so little. i don’t bite, i promise.” his grin suggests otherwise. he gestures a go-ahead. “i don’t mean to disturb you. please.”

right. work. 

jonas looks down at the mildewy tome on his lap, but can only feel tadej’s gaze burning into his head. 

he looks up. tadej doesn’t react.

jonas closes the book. maybe it’s time to switch directions on research. as head archivist plugge would say, direct interaction with the subject is necessary to glean true progress in knowledge. circulating secondhand accounts always ends in a disastrous game of telephone. if he wants to know anything about canaan house, he’ll first have to speak to the people in it. a shocking amount of information is revealed when you simply let someone talk.

if he wants a conversation, i can give him a conversation.

“you’re not disturbing me. i actually wanted to speak to you after yesterday— the theorems you executed were… intriguing.” an understatement. while he knew about the procedure in theory, jonas had never seen a man’s soul be sucked out of his body and put back in the husk just minutes later.

“ah. the siphoning?” tadej smiles. “i’ve been told seeing it for the first time is…” he trails off, probably looking for a respectful way to put it. “surprising. adam and i were born for it, though.” (quite literally- jonas at least knew that they genetically engineered babies on the eighth for maximum compatibility for the practice.) “it doesn’t hurt him permanently as long as i don’t go too far, and i haven’t. with house relations as they are now, i’m sure it’s not just us with unfamiliar practices, no?”

he dances around his sentences like an acrobat. it reminds him of primoz and his fascinating ability to speak in riddles. jonas on the other hand, obscures meaning through omission- unfortunately, he is far more direct in his fewer words, so he chooses them carefully. “of course. i’ve been guilty- i admit, i’ve had many assumptions about your… culture broken. it seems public sentiment about the eighth isn’t quite up to date.”

this makes tadej burst into laughter. “you mean that everyone says we have massive, beige, god shaped sticks up our asses?” jonas goes red, but tadej graciously does not comment further. “it’s not exactly false. i may be a competent as an adept, but i’m not exactly a revered heir. back home, they tell me i…” he pauses. “they tell me i want too much. they say i am too hungry. that i need more, too quickly. that i mistake my own ambitions for the will of god.”

jonas thinks of adam on the stairs, going gray as light spilled from tadej’s eyes and mouth. he remembers tadej licking his lips. 

good. let him talk. humiliation forgotten, he raises an eyebrow. “and do you?”

tadej smiles. his hands float to the blindfolded skull on his neck. “i try not to make a habit of deciding what is and isn’t his will.” he releases the chain. the skull swings once, twice. “however, i do believe it an essential part of our paths to live in his image. was he not the one to discover necromancy? to resurrect us all? surely it requires hunger to want something so much you create life out of death.”

a heretic heading the templar of the white glass, then, he thinks.

“so you want to be god?” 

maybe slightly too blunt. the eighth adept continues anyway.

“who doesn’t?” tadej shrugs as he leans back into the seat. “it’s not that i wish to be worshipped, of course, but imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. i seek to be great so that i can be more holy. i seek to be like god so i can offer a purer version of myself to him. my success is his, my joys, my sorrows, my soul. my quest for the divine is my worship.” 

he straightens, slate grey eyes eyes slicing into his gaze. jonas feels a chill go down his spine. while servants of the eighth he’d met previously seemed faded, the soft white of their robes bleeding into their skin and eyes, tadej’s created contrast. every color was more saturated, his cheeks pinker, irises sharper, hair wilder. “you want it too. i can tell. people like us can’t touch divinity without needing more. the only error my people have made is mistaking that hunger for heresy.” 

suddenly, he rises from his chair and extends a hand, pulling jonas up to mere inches from his face. he touches where jonas’s jaw meets his neck, and the warden of the sixth’s breath catches. for a moment he cannot tell if he’s going in to kiss or to choke him.

he does neither. instead, he whispers in jonas’s ear, breath hot against his cheek.

“what you need to do,” he says, “is decide if you’re going to do anything with it.” he drops his hand. “it was lovely speaking with you, jonas.” 

jonas opens his mouth to reply, but tadej disappears out the door before he can even choke out a “you too”. 

face burning, he runs a shaking hand through his hair. although he barely spoke, he feels raw. he wonders if adam feels as if his ribs have been cracked open to expose his beating heart after his soul is siphoned- his life itself flowing through another’s veins before it is spat back out, tainted with the stain of being known. 

he sits back down.

it takes until matteo comes looking for him to discover the scarlet key is missing from the ring he left on the table between them.

[majaloveschris]

I would have a different opinion if they seemed happy or comfortable around each other, but to me, they don't. I can't imagine my boyfriend or somebody who is happier than ever with me acting like this, and we all can see that this is not his body language, not just around people he's been in love with but around people he just simply likes. //

But no one in the public has seen enough of his body language around her to judge. The videos that have been shared publicly are:

- The two pap walk clips; the official one where they’re outside the church that Page Six included in their article and the accidental fan video of the awkward handholding walk through the park

- The scare compilation video where each clip is a couple of seconds long and he’s literally doubled over on the floor laughing in one of them

- The chin video where he was very happy to have her lying on him in the couch and covering half her face with his hand to create the illusion of the face on her chin

- The brief interaction at the Ghosted premiere where she’s laughing with him

There’s also the Mario Bros video where you can’t really see him but you can hear him laughing and the Powerpoint Presentation slideshow, but there was no video in that.

If you’re judging through the videos listed above alone and the slideshow photos that isn’t really enough content to gain a genuine picture of his body language or what their relationship is like or how comfortable he feels around her. Is it really fair or sensible to judge their whole 1-3 years of knowing each other/dating/relationship and his feelings about it on content that amounts to less than 5 minutes in total?

You would need to actually know them or have reliable, trustworthy sources to have any real insight to that information. Many actual language experts will say it’s difficult to accurately tell someone’s body language from a still image because it’s literally a split second in time and it’s harder to get a sense of the actual context. Remember how a lot of people were saying he looked so happy and excited in the Four Seasons Portugal Hotel video that he made for the teacher? And then the context was revealed that he was 99.99% only there in the first place because he was visiting her? Yeah.

I respect that you have your opinion and I’m not trying to change your mind. I’m just offering another perspective. Mind you, I definitely feel like his energy has been off for a long time now but I objectively don’t know enough about the man or the situation, nor am I in his circle to be able to form a meaningful opinion to say that it’s because of her or their (I guess you would say “alleged” 😭) relationship.

To me, that NYC pap walk seemed incredible awkward. The way they were standing and walking next to each other (I'm talking about the staircase video and picture) seemed unnatural, like they were forced to be there. To me, the fact that he was holding her hands when he knew they were being photographed and when he didn't know they were being recorded (I'm talking about the video that the girl uploaded to Twitter), he wasn't holding her hands and didn't even pay attention to her, and when she saw that they were being recorded, she tried to grab his, but he didn't want that, shows that it was for the show. I know a lot of people say it was because of the pap walk, because they were in NYC, and because they knew what was coming next. Nobody asked them to make their relationship public by parading in Central Park, because I think we can all agree that that wasn't a natural sighting. They could've posted a few stories indicating they are at the same place; they could've posted a picture where they are together (getting one from the photo dump); or anything that would've indicated that they are in a relationship. But they wanted them to do that on the day her show premiered. For the show.

I don't think dropping on the floor was a natural reaction from him. We saw him getting scared by Scott, and he's never done that. During those videos, he either overacted (dropping, stamping) or didn't react at all (when he just walked away from her in his MA home). I don't think those were genuine reactions.

The chin video was too much for me. Trying too hard, same with the Mario Cart video; her acting was good in that one. It's not like it was any better in the scare videos; her fake phone dropping and her fake reactions weren't any better. Two actors, and they can't sell a relationship.

In the Ghosted premiere video, she was the only one laughing and smiling. Chris wasn't facing the camera, and Megan had a mask on, so nobody can tell for sure if they were smiling or not. To me, it didn't seem like they were.

Just because he was smiling on the teacher's video doesn't mean he was happy. He can fake a smile for a few seconds, especially if it's for something work-related or good cause-related. I'd also like to mention that you can see in those photos and videos, which they most probably took in the earlier stages, that it looked like he was trying a bit harder or more.

I'm also not trying to change your opinion, I just wrote down my takes on these things. Thanks for being respectful! ❤️

I think we've seen enough, or, should I say, even more than we wanted, or that we did of his previous relationships. You can see him acting way differently with those women, whom he was surely together with. I'm not saying we can tell everything for 100% sure about their relationship based on what we've seen, but to me, they seem unnatural and uncomfortable around each other; they don't seem like two people who are extremely in love with each other and happy together.

And one more addition: four pictures to compare two relationships of his: