#but she cares so much she wants to protect other people from the perceived worst parts of herself

[hemerasiae]

not to steal charlie’s thunder about this but the “neve is emotionally immature” crowd is wild.

she is so in tune with her emotions to the point that she can set realistic expectations and boundaries so that - not only can she protect herself (even if it’s at her own expense) - she can protect those around her from herself. if she knows she’s going to bolt, she can warn you before it gets to that point so neither of you get hurt.

you’re getting your bachelor’s degree, and she has three doctorates!!

[nanawritesit]

Twice Headcanons: How They Act When They’re Jealous!

Nayeon:

on the outside, she’s completely calm. she gives off such calculated control, you’d never even know she was jealous

however on the inside, she’s having a complete downward spiral

her jealousy just validates the insecurities she already has; that she’s not pretty enough, not smart enough, not cool enough… not good enough for you.

she’ll start overanalyzing everything about her personality until she’s drowning in her own self criticism

all of this introspection makes her grow distant, which is your ONLY sign that something is wrong

the only thing that will snap her out of this is if you sit her down to her and explain in vivid detail how much you love everything about her, and how no one could ever replace her 💞

Jeongyeon:

scarily quiet

doesn’t like feeling threatened, so she gets insecure whenever someone seems to be making you happier than her

will start digging for dirt on whoever seems to be interested in you, doing a full background check

“hey Y/N, did you know they flunked out of college? no? oh, i just heard that through the grape vine.”

gives you a cold glare every time you mention their name

will protectively place a hand on your lower back the whole time you’re out with them

it’s not that she doesn’t trust you, it’s them she doesn’t trust.

if she gets pushed hard enough, she won’t hesitate to call them out on it in front of everyone

“why don’t you find your own girlfriend/boyfriend/ partner instead of chasing after mine? it’s honestly really pathetic.”

Momo:

the opposite of jeongyeon, she’s loud and fiery about her jealousy

not afraid to make a scene whatsoever

it’s kind of hot honestly

won’t hesitate to publicly humiliate someone for coming onto you

“Oh, you thought they were interested in you? That’s cute. Why would they want you when they already have me?”

would get violent if anyone put their hands on you

“get your filthy hands off of them before i break every bone in them.”

will kiss you in public if it makes people stop staring at you, and will smirk at them from across the room afterwards to rub it in their face that she’s the one who gets to kiss you

you would never even think of trying to make her jealous, she would be far too terrifying 😭

Sana:

her? jealous? no, never. jealousy is barbaric and petty, something totally beneath her!

at least… that’s what she tells you

if it’s just some average person, she wouldn’t care and just brush it off

but if it’s someone she perceives as more successful than her, she’ll start getting insecure

she doesn’t like competition, so if someone manages to shake her, she turns a little sour 😙

very passive aggressive

“why don’t you go hang out with them, since you two are so close?”

however, she’s adorable when she’s jealous, and has the cutest little pout… you can’t stop yourself from grabbing her face and kissing her, which 9 times out of 10 makes her feel better

Jihyo:

she doesn’t get jealous very often, she trusts you a lot and knows you wouldn’t run off with someone else just because they showed interest in you

she doesn’t see other people in your life as competition, she’s secure in the fact that she’s the one you chose as your partner

she would pretty much only get upset if she felt that you were blatantly disrespecting your relationship by shamelessly flirting with others

she doesn’t like to be controlling, but there are times when she’ll tell you not to associate with certain people anymore because of how they don’t honor your relationship. it’s not an ultimatum, more of a test to see how much you really care about her

but that’s only in the worst case scenario. most of the time she’s very open about her feelings. she’s not afraid to be vulnerable with you :)

Dahyun:

she doesn’t get jealous too often, but when she does, it can be intense

she doesn’t like coming off as insecure so she tends to keep it to herself

if it starts getting to her, she might start mirroring your actions

you start hanging out with your friends more than her? she can do that too. you have friends of your preferred romantic gender? she has some of those too

it will either go two ways: one, you’ll feel hurt and realize how you’ve been making her feel, and then the behavior will stop on both ends

or two, you’re perfectly fine with what she’s doing, and she realizes her jealousy was silly and lets it go

after this, she would FINALLY feel secure enough to have a talk with you about spending more time together 😑

Mina:

turns into a completely different person

she’s highly competitive, and will immediately double down and turn their little game into a death match

if you don’t seem interested in the other person, she’ll go to extreme lengths to secure your love by making extravagant public displays of affection

that person needs to know that she loves you more than they ever could

however, if you decided to play with her heart and act interested in this person? you’ll surely regret it

she has a ph.d in revenge, and will make you 10x more jealous than you made her 💋

she hates feeling replaced or forgotten, so if you start making her feel that way, she’ll immediately try and flip it back on you before it sinks in.

Chaeyoung: 

she’s highly possessive in her relationships. you belong to her, and she belongs to you. that’s the agreement you both made when you made things exclusive

and she’s not likely to stay with someone who doesn’t honor that commitment, so if you think she’ll tolerate you flirting around and playing the field, she won’t 😬

however if you’re not actively trying to make her jealous, she’s way more calm in how she handles things

she won’t lash out on you, but rather explain to you that it bothers her how this person looks at you/ talks to you. that way, if you continue to let it happen, she can’t say she didn’t set clear boundaries with you 😗

Tzuyu:

probably the least jealous member tbh

has a mindset of “if they want to, they will.”

i.e, if you want to cheat on her, you will. then she’ll leave you and move on with her life 💁🏼‍♀️

but obviously you don’t want to, because HELLO you’re dating chou tzuyu???

for real though, she’s super confident in herself, so she doesn’t get threatened easily

if you ever did manage to make her jealous, she’d probably just tell you straight out

and you’d apologize profusely because you’re WHIPPED for this woman as you should be

[pollen-blogs]

"I like it. The look on people's faces when they decide to stop holding back"

In case you don't remember that iconic line from Tsukasa, allow me to make sure you never forget it.

The way that both Tsukasa and Amane love people and each other is such a beautiful and intriguing concept and I need to yap about it: Tsukasa loves people no matter what, no ifs or buts; he embraces the ugliness within them and cherishes it like it’s something precious. What he hates about Amane is also what he loves because he wouldn’t be Amane without all his flaws (honestly, that's surprisingly mature coming from Tsukasa)

Tsukasa is basically saying that he likes seeing people at their worst, and he likes knowing that someone would feel comfortable enough to be that vulnerable around him. He personally saw Amane at his rock bottom, overcome by rage and insanity, but he still loves his big brother more than anyone else in the whole world. It is such a sincere and powerful kind of love which you can only give to a few people in your life and it would break you if it went away.

Understanding this makes you see how alike the twins really are, because Hanako does the same. Hanako is a lot more careful when it comes to love; he has been hurt and lost people in the past and doesn't want to experience that kind of anguish ever again, so he tries to keep it under control. We saw how he tried (and failed) to keep his distance with Nene only to end up caring about her even more than he previously did. The nail in the coffin for him was when he tried to move on to the afterlife and take her best friend with him, only for her to find a way to reach him and stop his plan completely. Oh, furious and confused didn't even begin to cover how he was feeling then, but this was the face he was making as he told Nene that she was childish and too idealistic for her own good

He embraces and looks at her like all her flaws are something precious he needs to protect. Barely 30 minutes before this, he told Aoi that he loved everything about Nene, and now here he is, seeing her at her worst; desperate, naïve, stubborn and reckless, but he couldn't be more smitten if he tried. He knows her better than anyone, better than he knows himself and his own feelings; what a vulnerable thing it is to be perceived, to be seen and loved for who you are.

Circling back to the twins, here's another thing I've noticed. Hanako, throughout the story, gradually got more comfortable around Tsukasa (mainly because the initial shock of learning that his brother was close to him this whole time wore off but there's more to it). Encounters with him didn't leave him in a near catatonic state anymore, they even fight together in perfect sync whenever they need to team up; a very low bar, I admit, but it's a start. Hanako's relationship with Nene actually greatly improved his relationship with Tsukasa, in the sense that he could understand where his brother was coming from better. Obviously, Hanako's relationship with Nene is different from the one he has with his brother; what I meant was that Hanako was able to feel what it was like to love someone so intensely again which brought him closer to his brother for better or worse. He loves Tsukasa so much, but recently, he was forced to confront the source of tension between them that drove him to murder, making their relationship do a full 180 and end up right back where they started. Can't wait to see more of how their relationship will progress after this hellish arc is over. And on that note, I'll see you all on the 18th, toodles

[kienava]

So someone asked me to make a post about Blake’s development so far in order to discuss the question of where Blake’s character can progress at this point in RWBY given that her arc with Adam wrapped up in V6 and she didn’t really carry a plot line in V7-8. I do media and story things for a living, but I’m also an intimate partner abuse survivor - needless to say, Blake’s story is important to me. Hopefully my perspective helps answer concerns about Blake’s story being “over,” because I think it’s very much the opposite.

(Continued below the cut because this turned into an entire essay.)

I want to preface this by saying I understand why it might be difficult to picture what Blake’s story looks like going forward. I largely credit this to the relative dearth of compassionate, healing-oriented narratives about abuse survivors in media. A lot of what we see is either revenge fantasies or stories about facing the abuser and arriving at a point of ultimate catharsis. In some sense, this is a broader fault in the standards of western storytelling, which is oriented around that singular, climactic catharsis, but that’s another essay. In truth, a mostly linear progression towards a pivotal point of recovery isn’t how healing from abuse works. It’s a messy process, and life is rarely as linear as in fiction. I think RWBY incorporates that nonlinearity into Blake’s arc very well.

Speaking of Blake’s arc, let’s look at that.

When we first meet her in volume 1, she’s introduced as an aloof, independent loner who’s very resistant to getting closer to people. Most of her classmates perceive her as mysterious and alluring at best, callous and cold at worst. Once we start to understand more of her history, it’s easier to see her attitude as the defense mechanism it is. She wants to keep people at arm’s length because she doesn’t trust them not to hurt her – but she also believes that she will harm people she gets close to just because of who she is. That whole Beauty and the Beast dichotomy, you know? Adam told her that she ruins things. It doesn’t help that he groomed her into a terrorist organization and thus her surrounding community has also labeled her a threat. She’s got a few overlapping layers of distorted thinking to work through when it comes to her image of herself and others. The way she perceives people is, at first, overwhelmingly informed by her traumatic experiences with Adam and the White Fang.

It’s pretty strongly implied that Blake bent the rules in the forest and intentionally selected Yang as her partner. When we first see Blake dashing around in the shadows, Yang is taking down a Grimm while sassing it to death. Blake talks later about how Adam’s charisma drew her to him initially, so it’s no surprise that when she was choosing her next partner, she gravitated to the same superficial qualities. During the first White Fang arc, after her self-destructive spiral, Blake starts to genuinely trust her teammates for the first time. That trust is tested when Yang fights Mercury. In this moment, Blake is confronted with the possibility that a pattern might be repeating itself: what if she was drawn to Yang for reasons beyond the superficial? What if Yang doesn’t just share Adam’s positive qualities, but his negative ones, too? The impulsiveness, the violence, the abuse – but Blake stops herself. She chooses to trust that Yang isn’t Adam, and she says as much. She’s accepting that Adam is in her past and electing to move forward. How perfectly, neatly linear. 

Then the end of volume 3 happens.

For an abuse survivor, the idea that an abuser you’ve gotten away from might come crashing back into your life is possibly the scariest thing in the entire world. This is exactly what happens when Adam shows up, and Blake’s worst fears come true. He makes a point of hurting someone she cares about simply because he can to prove that he still has power over her. Blake runs because she thinks the only way she can protect the people she cares about is to be away from them. That paradoxical duality of (1) fearing harm will be done to her by others and (2) doing harm to others herself rears its head. 

One specific question I was asked is why Blake talks about Yang so little in volumes 4 and 5. If Blake isn’t talking about the people she left behind, is she even thinking about them? I say, well of course she is. It’s coloring her entire attitude.

When Blake returns to Menagerie, she’s back in the place where she met her abuser. She’s at her parents’ house, a place that has been a symbol of everything she left behind when she ran away the first time. Now she’s run from another home. Menagerie is riddled with traumatic memories for her, both interpersonally and on a structural, systemic level. Everywhere she goes could be a place where Adam said something awful to her, made her obey him in some way, asserted control. She also has to confront him in person again, too.

With Adam around, of course she’s not going to risk mentioning Yang. He got one inkling that Blake cared about someone else and cut their fucking arm off. The one time Blake mentions Yang by name, her voice cracks so obviously it’s like she’s forcing herself to get the word out. Through both of these volumes, Blake has other external goals, but she’s still trying to protect someone she cares about. At this point, she’s constantly struggling with two motivations: hope and fear. She wants to make the world a better place, but she’s terrified of what she’ll have to confront in order to do it because of what she’s already lost. Her choice to reunite with her team and fight shows that ultimately hope wins out.

In Volume 6, Blake and Yang facing Adam is essentially the B plot of the whole volume. He appears in flashes before the major confrontation at the end, but the damage he’s done to both of them is intrinsically tied into Blake and Yang’s relationship throughout.

The end of this volume offers the climactic moment of confronting and overcoming the abuser. Afterwards, Blake collapses and cries. Catharsis! Yay! We’re done now, right? This may be why, to some people, defeating Adam is the obvious “end��� of Blake’s character arc. Again, I’d argue that this perception comes from how abuse is often depicted in media, but there’s also a very intense pressure in the real world for survivors not to speak out and share their stories. Even people who are abuse survivors might not publicly claim that label for a multitude of reasons. Namely, it fucking hurts to think about it, and also sometimes people are real weird about it. I don’t blame anyone who doesn’t want to carry that weight around all the time. We can see some inklings of Blake dealing with this challenge over the course of the show, though they’re subtle. Early on, she explicitly avoids talking about Adam until she absolutely has to, and even when she does start to unpack what he did, she often talks about it with visible shame (averting her eyes, etc). Unfortunately, shame is a very common sentiment for abuse survivors to carry, and addressing it is a major part of Blake’s journey as she starts to heal in volume 6.

Another point of interest posed was to look at Blake’s role in volumes 7 and 8. There’s an argument that she doesn’t really do anything or that her role is as a somewhat generic support figure within the group. I wholeheartedly disagree.

While Blake doesn’t carry a plotline herself during the Atlas arc, she and Yang embody polarized attitudes towards the global conflict the group is facing, and that contrast serves the larger narrative very well. Because she was raised by activists in a context where she was constantly thinking about civil rights, Blake wants to address the broader ideological conflict at play. Yang, whose childhood consisted of raising her younger sister, wants to help people in a practical, immediate way. Blake is an abstract, big-picture thinker, and Yang is more focused on what’s right in front of her. This isn’t a dig at either of them; it’s just a difference in prioritites. At first, Yang worries that these differing priorities will be a source of tension between them, but when she and Blake talk things through they’re able to understand each other without judgment. Blake is learning to reconnect with the idealist she used to be in her early youth, someone who fought for a cause purely because she wanted to make the world a better place. She’s able to embrace that side of herself around Yang even though they have different priorities, and they’re still able to support each other’s goals.

Furthermore, on a purely interpersonal level in V7-8, Blake has interactions with other characters that speak specifically to the healing journey she’s been on. Yes, these are significantly quieter moments than a fight to the death on a bridge over a waterfall, but that doesn’t mean they should be written off. Quiet and peace are part of healing, and that doesn’t have to undermine the story’s integrity. Dramatic tension is still possible amidst this, as we saw in Blake’s talks with Yang where they discuss their team’s split strategic approaches. When Blake talks to Nora about the importance of not losing yourself in someone else, that’s her speaking from experience. She’s lost herself in a relationship before, and she knows how hard it is to come back from that, but she survived. She healed. The asserted importance of self-compassion in relationships has a unique gravity coming from Blake. She has a strongly developed ability to balance interpersonal empathy with community- and global-level stakes, which we’re already seeing glimmers of at the beginning of V9 as she steps up to come up with a plan on the island. 

In summary, Blake’s arc isn’t just about that final showdown with Adam. She faces her abuser, runs away, faces him again, and again, finally evicts him from her life for good - and after that, her story continues.

She goes on to find ways to heal from her past. That process involves renewing compassion for her loved ones, her community, and the world as a whole; learning how to love without fear; and reconnecting with who she was before she was forced to become aloof and detached to protect herself. Although the circumstances of abuse convinced her that she was a coward, she is, and has always been, an incredibly brave character. She’s finally recognizing that at the current point in the story. Ultimately, I think this is the thing connects her to Yang and the rest of team RWBY so strongly: they’re brave enough to love and have hope even when forces of adversity tell them they shouldn’t dare to. Blake is a courageous idealist with a heart full of compassion, and ultimately not even Adam could destroy that about her.

My serious answer to the question of where Blake’s character will go now is that I think she’ll be a sort of de facto leader on the island as Ruby spirals into existential depression. Hopefully that arc resolves in a way that’s consistent with the show’s overall message about hope winning out, and past this volume Blake will still carry that optimistic but grounded revolutionary spirit and continue to be a center of compassion and hope.

My catharsis-oriented answer is this: aside from being trapped on a magical fairy tale island, Blake is free for the first time in a very long time, and she can go wherever the fuck she wants.  

[blakeswritingimagines]

Yandere Alicent With A Shy S/o

As a Yandere, Alicent is obsessive and possessive of you. She seeks to isolate you from any other people and control every aspect of your life. If you were to show interest in other people or behave in a way that Alicent deems inappropriate, it would lead to intense jealousy and rage. Alicent would use tactics like blackmail or threats to ensure your submission. She would also express her love for you through acts of servitude or other romantic gestures. However, your happiness would always be secondary to Alicent's own desires.

As a yandere with a shy s/o, she is possessive, obsessive, and jealous. She would do anything to protect you, even if it means harming others or herself. She would be constantly tracking your whereabouts and trying to gain your affection by any means necessary. She would also be unwilling to let anyone else get close to you and would likely resort to violence or other drastic measures to ensure that she remains the only one in your life. She would be deeply attached to you, and your rejection would be the worst thing in the world for her.

If Alicent were to have a shy s/o, she would be drawn to your innocent and humble nature. However, she would quickly become frustrated with your lack of assertiveness and desire to avoid conflict. She would want to bring out your confidence, but in doing so, she would likely become too controlling and push you away. The more she tries to push you, the more you would retreat, creating a vicious cycle. Unless Alicent is able to learn to respect your boundaries and autonomy, the relationship is likely doomed.

Despite your shyness, Alicent's s/o would have to make certain compromises to keep her happy. Alicent would want to spend as much time with you as possible and would want to know every aspect of your life. Alicent would be constantly seeking validation from you and would be wary of any signs of secrecy or distance. If you were to try to assert your independence or put other people first, she would feel threatened and it would likely lead to conflict. However, Alicent would also dote on her s/o and shower you with gifts and compliments.

If Alicent were to have a shy s/o, her behavior towards you would be very different. She would be more patient and understanding of your need for privacy and independence. Alicent would work to build trust and allow you to open up at your own pace. She would be supportive and encouraging, but still make sure to establish clear boundaries in the relationship. Alicent would still be possessive and protective, but not to the same extreme as with an obsessive s/o.

Alicent would be careful not to overwhelm you with excessive affection or romantic gestures. She would be mindful of your need for alone time and would try to create opportunities for you to express yourself without the pressure of her constant attention. Alicent would value communication above all else and would be open to hearing your feelings and concerns. If her s/o were to show signs of doubt, insecurity, or fear, Alicent would do everything in her power to reassure you and make you feel safe and loved in the relationship.

If Alicent had a shy s/o, she would also be more forgiving of any perceived slights or mistakes. She would be more willing to listen to your feelings and take them into account when making decisions. She would also be more likely to compromise in order to achieve common goals. Alicent's main priority would be to foster a strong, trusting relationship with her s/o rather than control every aspect of their life at least at first. Despite her tendency towards possessiveness, Alicent's behavior would be more subtle and gentle with a shy s/o.

Alicent's behavior towards a shy s/o would also be more affectionate and romantic. She would be more likely to express her feelings through physical touch, gifts, or words of affirmation. Alicent would find ways to show you how much you mean to her and make you feel appreciated and loved. She would be more attentive to your needs and feelings and do what she can to make you happy. Alicent would want to create a strong, supportive connection with you and allow you to feel comfortable and safe in the relationship.

In addition, Alicent's actions towards her shy s/o would also be guided by her intuition and understanding of your needs. She would be more perceptive of your feelings and able to anticipate your responses to certain situations. This would allow Alicent to manage her own emotions better and communicate more effectively with you. She would also be more comfortable expressing herself and asking for reassurance in return. Overall, Alicent's relationship with a shy s/o would be founded on mutual respect and understanding, creating a deeper and more satisfying connection.

If Alicent had a shy s/o, she would be more mindful of your sensitivity and social anxiety. She would make an effort to create an emotionally safe and comfortable environment for you. Alicent would be understanding if you struggled to express yourself or show affection openly. She would also try to provide opportunities for you to build your confidence and social skills even if she's breathing down your neck. Alicent would also be mindful of any triggers or traumas that you might have and work to help you overcome them. Overall, Alicent would be more attentive to the needs and feelings of her shy s/o.

[orenji-iro-no-sora]

Thoughts on TGCF book 1.

Vol 1 | Vol 2| Vol 3| Vol 4| Vol 5| Vol 6| Vol 7| Vol 8

*Spoilers*

Xie Lian's crush

I finished the first book and at this point Xie Lian might as well be sighing, giggling, twirling his ponytail and kicking his legs. He is so charmed (I don't blame him). It's funny that literally in bottom of a deathly pit, he's worried that he's too comfortable in Hua Cheng's princess hold. MXTX protagonists really have the worst timings for gay epiphanies. (Does it count as an epiphany if you're still oblivious?)

Body in abyss, isolation, friendship, and reverence

While they did say that Xie Lian learned that when body is in abyss, the heart can't be in paradise, I think he still managed to find tiny moments of paradise with Hua Cheng. And isn't that life?

Xie Lian has been extremely lonely all this time which contributed to him being attached to San Lang quite quickly. Also, Hua Cheng's sincerity shines through even in a disguise so immaculately created. Xie Lian is smart and figure things out easily, he's able to perceive Hua Cheng for what he is, irrespective of what others say about who he was. Their friendship is something that he holds dear; he values Hua Cheng's company.

Him being able to tell that Hua Cheng is the only one who ever called him 'His Highness' out of genuine respect instead of sarcasm also shows how aware he is of other's harsh sentiments towards him.

However, I do believe that even though it may be idealistic to accept and focus on the positive, Xie Lian as deep as he has been in the abyss, carries a troubled heart. His desire to forget his own suffering, embarrassment at his own actions, even when they stem from right intentions is a proof that he sees himself as someone who failed at all levels.

Instinct to protect

This idea is brought up again and again but Xie Lian is helpless in his desire to save people. First, as the commander who "died" saving Banyue, facing demotions and ridicule yet trying to protect civilians at the border, protecting is his way of showing that he cares. And he cares... alot. He is instinctual in his love. He didn't need to protect San Lang (from the bite, from the pit) especially when he knew that he's Hua Cheng yet he acted before thinking. Someone who's as calm and collected as him falling to his knees, screaming from the edge of pit really demonstrates how much he care about San Lang (to the point of irrationality, atleast by his standards).

Saving the common people, parallels to morality in real life

While he acts embarrassed of his foolish (yet brave) dream of saving the common people, it's something he's still striving for. Despite feeling self conscious and disappointed that he could not live up to his words, despite his strong belief in his own misfortune, despite his poor self confidence and lack of support, despite still not knowing the answer to how to save people, he's still doing it. He's still brave.

Xie Lian is also a perfect example of how people who choose morality and ethics in life are often treated by the rest. MXTX often makes her characters pay the price of taking a moral stance. There's a strong culture of self serving in the Heavenly Realm, officials want to extend their influence and climb the ladder. They carry disdain for Xie Lian, thinking him naïve for wanting to do something fruitless and selfless like striving to save the world. Hua Cheng carries admiration for the exact same goals.

Heavenly Realm, to me, is a reflection of society, where people are worshipped for their accomplishments, elevated to a godly status for their fame and influence, even when they have acted mostly in self interest. Service to community is not desired, even laughed at. There's an acceptance for certain doom and no initiative to change it.

Banyue: symbolism for young adult cluelessness

When state preceptor Banyue asked Xie Lian how to save the people, he expressed remorse at his inability to answer her. Banyue feeling like she had been a failure because she hadn't figured out life in 200 hundred years is such a parallel to how it feels to be a young adult having no idea what you're supposed to do in life and slowly wasting away with the time passing gradually out of your control.

I always thought being an immortal would take away the pressure of time, but I guess nothing can save us from this commodifying mindset, trying to find value and reason for existence. Even ghosts want purpose. Even deities do.

Ambiguous conflicts and nuanced feelings through Nan Feng and Fu Yao

One of the things that I really liked was that both the major conflicts in the story, that of Xuan Ji and Banyue vs Central Plains, were ambiguous in terms culpability. Who's to blame? Every party involved was responsible and in case of the war helpless in their own need for survival. Another parallel to reality.

Similarly, Nan Feng and Fu Yao's feelings towards Xie Lian were also nuanced. They "volunteered" to help him but carried anger and resentment towards Xie Lian, towards themselves for not supporting him back then, admiring him but also condemning him at the same time. I'd love to see how it'll all play out, I'm sure Xie Lian knows who they are and I want to see how he'll deal with it all. Emotions are often nuanced and complicated, you can love someone but dislike them, you can fear someone and still crave them and this juxtaposition of complicated feelings is something I really enjoy in fiction (and hate in real life).

Stereotypes and expectations

Tremendous Masculinity. XD

It might be a gag, but it also shows that even deities do not wish to live up to any expectations people may have of them. Often what is believed is not rooted in reality at all, and heavenly officials are powerless and unable to control people's beliefs about them.

Worshippers' ideas about gods also contributed to Xianle's downfall. Xie Lian was not invincible, that was his crime. That's why, later Xie Lian constantly denied Puqi people that he cannot offer wealth or a wife or a child to anyone. He won't make promises he can't keep.

Hua Cheng's name

Finally, I'm not sure which idea I like better: Hua Cheng being his real name, destined and fated to seek and hold flowers, or Hua Cheng being his fake name that he chose to live for Xie Lian, that he chose to find meaning in him.

Either way, I'm looking forward to learning more about who he really is.

Final Note- Ruoye is so cute. It's a band but it's cute.

I am sure my ideas are bound to change as I proceed with the novels but for now I'd say the first book was really enjoyable, a good mix of horror and action and fun interactions. Onto the second one!! <3

[everettes-requiem]

Hello Everette! How are you, my preciosu child after that homophobic crisis ?I came here to ask for your opinions on Norman Alexander, Kikita, Ann Dwight, Michael6 and Nathaniel to draw you all again!!

love you^^

(kisses to Kuni too)

im doing, alright, i suppose. i’m doing as well as i can considering we’re stuck on an island? or did you forget? i wouldn’t be surprised, i mean with the amount of people i’ve had to interact with who seem to be complete and utter imbeciles who can’t even think, what’s one more?

well, i will say that it isn’t the worst. going to the shore and sitting under the shade of a tree is nice, if you aren’t being bothered by the littluns who seem to constantly be everywhere all at once on the island, like pieces of rubbish on the street. or sometimes when i go into the ocean water to wash off my hair it makes me feel slightly better about the situation at hand it… reminds me of how my mother used to bathe me. ‘hough, my hair has grown out since then and tangles easily, and the water is cold, and my fingers can’t replicate her tenderness. but, it isn’t good either, obviously.

there’s things to eat on the island, various berries and fruits, but god knows if these ‘hings are fit for proper consumption in the long run. there’s pigs too, but merridew and his useless hunters can barely even graze the skin of one. not only problems of sustenance come up though. with the failed attempt at trying to get rescued and the tension that’s building between some people because of not only that, but disputes over chief. the place other boys thought of as paradise is bound to wither as the days pass. civilization is going to go to ruin, savagery will unavoidably take hold. the island isn’t protected from the corruption of war, after all

my concerns haven’t consumed me however, unlike that one littlun. i believe his name is percy? perceive? something along those lines, i can’t bother to recall it. all he does is cry and mutter nonsensical white noise under his breath, it’s incredibly annoying. they can all have their frolics around fires and pigs, arguments over chief and meat. as long as i don’t get dirty and tossed about, then…

i pray for our safety, or at least my safety, every night. i hold out hope that we’ll get rescued because god loves me, so surely i’ll get some safe… i have to get home. i can’t imagine how worried mam must be. i pray too, for her safety, that the war hasn’t taken her like how it crashed our plane down onto this island in the first place.

but i digress since i’ve been neglecting your question, which happens to be about other people, again. fine, whatever. i’ll try to keep it short and sweet, but if you’re the one asking about my opinion on them ‘hen of course you should listen to me no matter how long winded the answer may be. people should revere me, after all.

ann dwight, i don’t know much about her except she’s one of the few whose belongings survived alongside her. she holds little importance to me, unlike how she does to the littluns. i often hear the littluns call her mother, or mum, and she does play the part. nurturing, caring, a maternal figure. she one of the only people who can soothe one of those things to sleep, or to stop them from crying. in a way, to some extent, im thankful towards her because god knows that without her on the island i would have lost my mind. i hate children.

im indifferent about nathaniel, he’s just a childish kid who i can’t seem to understand, not like i want to either. he lives in his own world, albiet oftentimes he bleeds it into the real world. he plays pretend a lot, one of the only things i actually remember about him other than his name because it’s one of the only things he does. he pretends that he’s a vampire, he says he’s a vampire, he insists he’s a vampire. it’s as if he actually believes he is one, it’s something i truly don’t get. why would you want to? why put up a facade of something created by the devil?

loud and obnoxious, ‘hose are the first words that come to mind when thinking of michael. honestly, i don’t want him to even cross my mind because he’s just that loud and obnoxious. it’s as if i can hear his voice shouting in my head, which could very well actually be him shouting from across the island. no one even knows where he came from, he appeared at random one day when we were sure we had accounted for everyone on the island.

ever since then he’s never stopped blithering. at the very least he makes use of it by giving way for entertainment by unknowingly provoking merridew. speaking of that, he did propose an idea to me. something about calling merridew idiot in french? i still have to get back to him about that because he was yelling at me when asking and i got fed up and left. but, the idea does sound promising.

kikita… was choosing the most insignificant people, or the people who are total nuisances, on purpose? if so, she is definitely a nuisance. no, she’s more than that actually because who in their right mind and in gods name bites people? how do i know this? for one, i’ve seen it been done to the other boys. she’s bitten michael, she’s done it to ralph too, and i’m sure she’s gone around and bit a few more for good measure. that’s not what i’m getting at though, it’s that worst of all, she bit me.

god it was awful, it was as if she was stuck to me because no matter how hard i tried shaking her off she would not get off! human bites are no laughing matter you know. with the amount of bacteria that mingles in our mouths i was sure that i was going to foster some type of ugly disease if the bite broke ‘hrough my skin. luckily it did not, but it still left an indent on my pristine skin. putting her savage tendencies aside ‘hough, i am, somewhat partial to her though because she did push merridew to the ground that one time.

alexander kid? alexander kid… oh, him. you must be referring to norman alexander. yes, i’ve been made aware of him. it’s hard to miss him when he’s so unreal. don’t be mistaken, im not trying to say that “oh he’s so amazing, he’s out of this world!” even though that’s how many see him. littluns, other boys our age, adults alike. that would make me gag saying that about him, saying that about anyone really. what i’m trying to say is that he feels so synthetic, so superficial in a world full of authentic flesh.

there’s something about him. his smile, the way he looks at the world around him, the way words leave his lips. it’s all, unsettling to say the least, but it isn’t at all compelling. i think the most indicative part of him is his dodgy attachment to simon and how he’s seemingly close to merridew. rather, it’s more so obsession than anything actually. i would prefer not to speak about him much longer ‘hough, otherwise he might actually think i pay attention to him, something he would think most likely. he isn’t worth my time, none of these people are.

— everette ainsworth

[basilpaste]

hey hey do yall want my incoherent classpect rambles for the isat cast that i wrote while half asleep at 2 am?? too late!!!

odile is a heart player. 'oh but basil!! shouldnt she be a mind player or something?' no. the core of her character is her identity and lack thereof. shes intelligent and strong willed and has an innate understanding of many things. she cares for others deeply in a way she keeps close to her chest. mage of heart? she understands people but feels separate from them. i think her repeatedly almost clocking siffrin is also something that feels right for a mage of heart. despite sharing a classpect with meulin, shes less of a leijon heart player and more of a dirk one. if that makes sense.

mira is a maid of hope. this is an easy one. she could also be breath, i also see breath, because… change. but her character is so tied to the idea of hope that its gotta be. other peoples hope for her, the pressure she puts on herself because of that, that stuff. shes a maid not just for the housemaiden thing but because maids are 'fixers'. it ties nicely into her quest to save her home and also the fact that shes the only one who can. i also think her lack of belief in herself is a very 'hope' thing. jake is a pretty prime example of a hope player who doesnt hold hope for themself as much as for others.

i!!!! like mind player isabeau!!!! i think odile heart and isa mind is very good!!! im thinking heir of mind isa. heirs are passive which works well with isa being the character who gives the team the most buffs! heir of mind reads 'im going to weaken my enemies and bring up my team' to me. hes a smart guy. he knows hes smart. even when he lets people walk all over his intelligence. hes shockingly bad at handling his own emotions despite being good with other peoples. hes a loyal and trusting guy who often finds himself lost within the gap between who he is and who hes perceived as.

bonnies a range player. thumbs up. anger and fear are their driving forces for a lot of the game. theyre deeply emotional at the best of times. theyre a kid with a lot on their plate. this makes sense. i kind of like rogue of rage for them? their feelings tend to instill emotion within the rest of the party. even the idea of them being hurt drives a protectiveness in the adults. in the same way, they can steal away peoples emotion and mellow them out by being the most emotional person in the room.

also i like the symmetry of two aspect pairs with sif being alone. which leads me to:

sif is a time player. an argument could be made for him being a space player. but they are a time player because of the fucking. time loops they manifested for themself. sifs a knight. hes a knight of time. yes like dave strider but also because they are. every action they take is for their family. the time loop they stick themself in is because he wants to continue to be with them. knights serve. they push away their own thoughts and feelings for the sake of protecting those they feel an obligation towards. get back to the stage, siffrin.

loop is also a knight of time! hope this helps!! but theyre an arguably less stable knight? their influence in the story is mostly from the sidelines. they dont have control over anything anymore. they watch as the same thing happens over and over and over again. i think that seeing that and knowing that you not only caused it but you cant directly do anything to stop it is the worst punishment a knight could possibly receive.

[cat-downthestreet]

Okay, everyone... It's time to talk- really talk- about Furina.

I cannot be the only one who is angry at the people of Fontaine for their treatment of her.

I mean, they loved Furina. She was their mascot- the true representation of justice in Fontaine. And we all know how it goes- Furina was placed in the role of the new archon, and then had to pretend to be haughty and self-important to gain her nation's approval. That's bad enough.

But Fontaine wasn't exactly at fault for that. They couldn't have known how painful it would be for her to act the part of their archon. They didn't even know it was just an act. So what made me so furious about their treatment of Furina? Not that. Though that certainly added onto the mess that played out during the archon quest.

No, what got to me was the humiliation they put Furina through, followed by their abandonment of her.

The trial was bad enough. Furina was ripped apart, put on the spot, and unable to defend herself without risking the safety of Fontaine (which I have a few questions about the validity of that statement, but I digress). And then the truth was revealed.

Except it wasn't.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't Neuvillette keep what he found out about Furina and Focalors to himself? Fontaine never learned about the pain she went through over those 500 years. They only learned that Furina was a "fraud" and a mere human. All they saw was a human who pretended to be a god in place of their true archon, and they probably even believed Furina had done something to their true god so she could pretend to be the vessel of justice. I'd believe that if I found out my idol was a fake. But that's just speculation on my part.

The point is, Fontaine doesn't know that Furina is the human counterpart to Focalors. They don't know that the divine part of Focalors is already dead. They don't even know the truth about the prophecy or why Furina had to pretend to be their archon.

All they know is that their perceived deity was a fraud all along and their real god is nowhere to be seen.

And that leaves a lot to the imagination, a lot that can be filled in with lies and delusions...

...delusions that say Furina is the reason why their real god is gone.

No one knew how hard Furina tried to prevent anyone from dissolving. No one knows how important it was that Furina told no one who she really was and pretended to be their god for so long. No one knew how much it tormented Furina to isolate herself and pretend to be someone she wasn't. No one knew that the entire reason why Furina did this was because she loved her people and wanted Fontaine to be safe.

No, all the people of Fontaine knew was that their "god" was a fraud and presumably had done nothing to protect the nation from the rising waters. All they knew was that Furina had failed to save Poisson before the disaster struck.

The people of Fontaine only see Furina as a failure and a fraud, nothing more.

The real tragedy though? It's that Neuvillette knew what Furina had gone through for so long.

Yet he said nothing when Furina was cast aside post-flood. He said nothing when the people of Poisson shunned her for her failure to act.

But worst of all, he failed to make sure Furina was okay when all was said and done.

For all the remorse Neuvillette seemed to show upon learning of Furina's story, he barely seemed to care about her after the flood.

He, just like the rest of Fontaine, forgot about her and left her behind.

Furina was left to rot by her people, her other half, and even the closest thing she ever had to a friend.

That's the true irony of Fontaine.

The mascot of justice, unjustly humiliated and forgotten in front of and by her own nation.

I've never heard of a crueler fate.

And don't forget- Furina doesn't even know who she is anymore. How much harder do you think that is for someone who has nothing and no one to turn to?

Even the Traveler mocked her and only cared about her for answers about their sibling.

Furina has no one, is no one, and will be remembered as no one. Except as a fraud, a failure, and an egomaniac. Because that is the role she was forced into.

Focalors was deluding herself. Furina could never be free to act as whoever she wanted. Furina was always doomed to play the same part, and she was always doomed to be hated and ultimately forgotten by her own people.

And all we, the Traveler, did to "help" her, was to force her to take the stage again.

Also, do you really, honestly believe that Furina started acting again during her story quest solely because she has a passion for it?

No. It's familiar. And it's all she has left.

Furina only took to acting again because we forced her into it, and she only chose to continue because it's all she knows how to do.

Furina is truly the most tragic character in all of Genshin.

[therealslimshakespeare]

This might just be an AWFUL take and I might be just hypersensitive about certain things (also I am a little drunk right now) 🤨🤨 But I’m not gonna lie, as much as I agree with the opinions of Bucky and Gale knowing about the worst of it too, I like the idea of it being from off handed comments from Ida because, just hear me out! This really is probably just me. And probably not a good point. But. Because the trinity is already established as being like parental vibes with Lu I just feel differently about that. Lu is my fav like I adore that sweet girl so so much and that’s in part because I identify with a lot of her insecurities about being perceived as young and stupid. And the thing is, you’re right, we know that (especially in that moment) this isn’t something she’d want them to know. She probably doesn’t even want Maureen, Ida and Tilly all talking about it but the majors are obviously different. And while I know that this is just a group of people that care about her, I need to protect my baby’s dignity and autonomy 🤞🏽 And I really can’t explain it but for me it feels different for them to hear it from Ida vs. Maureen, with Maureen is feels more… not like gossip. But lighthearted. And I promise that’s nothing on her because I like her like honestly I always have. I think it makes sense for her and maybe Tilly to be casually catching up with Lu and put these dots together and then communicate it to Ida who is Germany but I feel like the ultimate and most impactful sharing of that info (based on what Lu herself would want) is to Bucky and Gale and when it comes from Ida I just feel it gives different vibes because again, we’ve literally talked so much about how they’re trauma bonded to her like parents would be to a child and I could be just insane but it seems totally different to my drunk mind right now. I guess cause again they’re already established as parental figures and I just think it’s different for someone to talk about your life like that as a parental figure vs. a friend. As innocent as it might seem. Maybe I’m just being sensitive ok I admit it! But I feel like I prefer a domino effect, Maureen and Tilly complaining to Ida and then Ida telling her coparents instead of one person sharing the info to several people. Im not saying Maureen shouldn’t make those comments and such afterwards but the initial sharing about the sensitive stuff gives me Ida vibes maybe I am crazy.

Anyways I might make no sense and I am fully aware that we are just brain rotting about something so convoluted and underdeveloped , something that might not even be a plot because we just took it and ran with it haha. But I’m getting fomo and wanted to give my two cents!!

I actually really like your points here -the domino affect is what is becoming more and more cemented in my heart for what I want. Just as you put it. And then as far as what Ida knows -it not being more than the majors. It’s a general sense from Tilly and Maureen that things aren’t good but we don’t have any sordid details because Lu wouldn’t offer them, and knowing this friend group, they’ve felt with delicate things before. Dignity is huge to each of them. So to keep in character with that for each, the Trinity and Maureen and of course sweet Tilly; I agree I like a more concerned approach with a domino effect and it being generalities of concern all in all.

And again, to emphasize what was concerning others: I see Lu being 100% the one who ends this.

All this concern, etc, is for her but doesn’t actually get involved

[peace-love-and-french-toast]

Adam is an actual good character to like, enjoy and even kin with reasonable arguments. Like on the surface? Yeah, he's the biggest bitch in all of hell. But if ya look closely he has his moments in which his insecurities show, in which he does not seem all that confident and full of himself.

It's an act - he's all fake it til ya make it. This bitch is so insecure, the only way for him to deal with that is to play down others. He feels like he's the worst so he acts like he's the best.

He's also probably super traumatized because the women God had created for him and only him turned against him and both slept with Lucifer - Lucifer whom he had probably called his best and first friend during Eden, Lucifer whom he had thought he could trust. It was is position to keep Lilith in place, yet she described him as "controlling and demanding" (I'd like to clarify: the story Charlie tells us in the beginning of Hazbin is a story Lilith has told her thousands of times as a toddler, it's a subjective story. She framed Adam as controlling, that does not mean he was all that controlling.)

Also can we talk about that from Adam's view, the exterminations are valid? Adam wants to protect heaven like he used to protect Eden, it's not only in his blood and what he had been created for, it's also his home. Adam is trying to keep his home safe from sinners, to low-key protect "his people". Because what if a sinner only pretends that they got better and then fuck up heaven? The only safe space Adam has these days?

And people calling Adam a misogynist are totally missing so fucking many points. Yes, he calls women bitches, but knowing Adam he'd call everyone a bitch. He calls all the sinners cunts in "Hell is Forever", it's just the way he speaks, he's not actually insulting them (I feel him on that bc I call my friends bitches & hoes too). He named Vaggie after "the best thing ever" not because she was the weakest and she sees pussy as something weak but because she was the strongest, the baddest bitch in the entire army. Also his army: a women only thing. Why? Because Adam knows that women are fucking badass, that they can fuck shit up. Yes, he's probably trying to deal with the trauma of the first two women leaving him, but so what? We all have our issues and we all have our ways to deal with it.

On the surface Adam was an asshole, yes. But all in all his character goes so much deeper and that's why I love him so much. If ya don't look closely he's just a rock but if ya crack that rock open and look closely he's a gemstone - and one of the prettiest I've ever seen too.

mkay so i'm gonna do a mini blurb about adam's character and his 'EGO’.

Most people will look at him and say, "Oh his ego is so high, he's up his own ass, he doesn't care about anyone-"

No.

He cares so much.

So much about the way people perceive him.

He's the type of person to apologise when you bump into him. It's a force of habit for him. He apologises for everything he does, it doesn't matter if he's right or wrong, because in his eyes, all he does is wrong. He isn't capable of doing anything right.

That's how he sees himself.

Two brides, both made for him, and yet he couldn't keep either of them at his side. He most defiantly blames himself for it. Even though the fandom is just going to ignore the fact that Lucifer in Eden is a manipulating grooming asshole who acted on his selfish desires and ruined any semblance of a 'normal' relationship Adam could've had with either woman. Obviously, he didn't intend to hurt him, but manipulating "adults" who have the mind of children because they don’t know anything? Kinda icky.

Back to Adam. Ask anyone with a large ego. I for one, have a 'huge' ego. But I really don't. It's a mechanism people use to avoid letting other's in. Adam loved Lilith. Maybe not as a wife or in a romantic aspect, (though I fully believe that he adored her) and he most defiantly adored Eve. Both of those women were ripped from him. Why would he let another person get close only to have them pull away from him. And Adam would cling. He would beg, and cry. Don't leave him. You can't. Not again. Like wet wool to a thorny branch. And it would hurt. Being alone again hurt. Adam could love again, but the feeling of love, in contrast to everything that might go wrong. It isn't worth the risk. So, Adam will close himself off; act like dick to avoid people coming to close. Push others away. He ends up alone sure, but that's his fault. It's ok then. If it's his fault. That's the reason for his 'ego'. Ask anyone with attachment issues. The feeling that's worse than them leaving, is feeling like you're a burden. Too clingy. So, they push, and pull. They want attention, and affection, but then they feel bad for asking so much and pull away.

How do people cope?

Cut themselves off.

Build a shield.

Don't let anyone in.

You'll get hurt again.

Adam uses his 'ego' as a way to avoid being hurt again.

He most defiantly has a large house, that he never lives in. He sleeps there sure. But it's not home. Covered in dust. It hasn't been loved. Plain. Unfurnished. He probably has a beautiful garden. And its full of animals. I believe, when things get too much, he'll strip and set foot into 'Eden' once more. But this isn't like his old Eden. He can't be hurt here. He's vulnerable. In a sense it's his form of age regression.

I got carried away whoopsies.

Yesssss <3 <3

on most points except the Lucifer thing but agree to disagree

[msommers]

2, 16, 41, 87, and 97 for riya and meredith!!

over a year old draft but hey it's the eventual completion that counts, right // warm up dnd character questions (this thing took me so long to find again in the archives my god)

2) Who in the party would your character trust the most with their life?

RIYA — Cian is the obvious answer because he's kept her alive plenty through healing magic, and helped to keep her sane during those first few months of spiraling. that's her lil introvert who she has unconditional trust in on the battlefield 🥰 for fun: Minah would probably be the second choice after that triple broodmother battle. she already trusted her combat ability well enough, but Minah staying up there with her to continue fighting the darkspawn after their other party members were tossed into the pit went a loooong way in solidifying that she'd have her back in danger. Minah had plenty of chances there with her position on the field to flee but she didn't take ‘em and that didn't go unnoticed, y'know.

MEREDITH — another obvious answer here but Alistair. he's always there to bash the worst of the enemies away and then taunt the rest lmfao. they're also in love or w/e in some timelines so that adds to the zealotry of the protection that she both sincerely appreciates and lowkey finds incredibly attractive. Wynne comes after for obvious healer reasons, but she also trusts her dedication and loyalty to the cause—and they both lend to keeping Meredith very much alive, thank you very much.

16) If your character wasn’t whatever class* they are, what would they be instead?

* i’m going to tweak this to subclass to stay on theme w Thedas <3

RIYA — force mage, hands down. she already has spells in her spellbook that deal with gravity and crowd control, as well as the whole concept that some of her spells come about from pure force of will and a sort of raw connection to the fade’s arcane energy. could have easily been Riya's focus if she hadn't discovered her love of tourneys and sword play (ha).

MEREDITH — she’s cheating by being from origins where you can have multiple specs. perhaps a duelist taken from da2?? it would certainly suit her style of selecting a target and not wavering until it has been eliminated, as well as toying with that righteous fury of hers that flares up when she spots somebody who she feels has wronged her.

41) Does your character care about how they’re perceived by others? How do they change themselves to fit in with other people?

RIYA — she cares about her appearance most out of anything tbh. she wants everybody to look at her and see a hot mage with fantastic taste in fashion and sexy hair. other than that, Riya doesn’t particularly put much thought in how strangers or acquaintances perceive her personality/goals/humor/etc etc. she’ll start to care a bit after befriending somebody, but it’s still Riya and she doesn’t feel any pull to change who she is to fit into a space, goes against everything her father taught her tbh. she’s fine easing back on certain types of humor if a friend or smth asks her to cut it out, but for everything else it’s going to be a hard sell on asking for change.

MEREDITH — i think she cares quite a lot, which is both a blessing and a curse with her status. a great deal of gaining influence in Fereldan has to do with forming alliances and loyalty and so she simply must care about how others perceived her, whether it be favorably or otherwise. overall she doesn't change herself to better fit in with a crowd because she's firm in her convictions, but she isn't above shifting perspectives in a debate or proposal when she knows a new approach will garner approval. in her earlier days i think she was even okay with weaving some small deceptions to earn favor, but as she gets older that's thrown out of the window. you're either on her side or you're on the wrong side, buddy.

87) What major arcana tarot card best represents your character?

decided to just copy/paste some writing from biddy instead of rewording things myself, save the effort lmao

RIYA — the tower, upright. "When The Tower card appears in a Tarot reading, expect the unexpected – massive change, upheaval, destruction and chaos." / "any event that shakes you to your core, affecting you spiritually, mentally and physically. There’s no escaping it." / "Your world may come crashing down before you, in ways you could never have imagined as you realize that you have been building your life on unstable foundations – false assumptions, mistruths, illusions, blatant lies, and so on." / "The best way forward is to let this structure self-destruct so you can re-build and re-focus." / "After a Tower experience, you will grow stronger, wiser and more resilient as you develop a new perspective on life you did not even know existed."

MEREDITH — the emperor, upright. "represents a powerful leader who demands respect and authority. Status, power, and recognition are essential to you, and you are most comfortable in a leadership role where you can command and direct others. As a leader, you rule with a firm but fair hand. You have a clear vision of what you want to create, and you organize those around you to manifest your goal. You listen to the advice of others, but you prefer to have the final say. Conflict doesn’t scare you, and you won’t hesitate to use your power to protect those you care about. And in return, those people will repay you with the loyalty and respect you deserve. Claim your authority as leader and influencer and don’t let others put you down." / "The Emperor reflects a system bound by rules and regulations. You create law and order by applying principles or guidelines to a specific situation."

97) What is most important to your character: health, wealth, or happiness?

RIYA — right now it’s happiness. she’s having a rough time away from her lifelong support system while suffering through the most despair-inducing events in a ridiculous unending sequence and just wants to go back to being carefree and full of joy ://

MEREDITH — health, i think. health and safety for herself and her companions, as well as the kingdom at large. she doesn't need to be happy to secure those things, and she discovered wealth wasn't required either throughout origins, but they certainly make the job easier.

[lady-corrine]

Hello!

I just wanna say I love seeing all your love posts to Rhaenyra. Because she deserves them all. Rhaenyra is a beautiful character because she is a girl who likes being a girl. Is she stubborn and prideful? Yes, but it doesn't matter. She has every right to be, moreover, she should be. She doesn't have to apologize for the fact that she exists. She has every right to be proud of herself and what she has done. Another thing I love about her character is that she is very feminine and in a powerful position. She relishes having someone protect and care for her, she wants to dress pretty and be a good mother. All of this, and being in the position of someone usually very masculine. She defies what is expected, and Rhaenyra rallies love and admiration from her people and family. For being a bright person who is good at her duty.

I am sad that they changed her in the show for these reasons. Don't get me wrong I love her still, but I would love to see Book Rhaenyra in the show. In the show, she is more masculine, wanting instead die in battle than birth children. Book Rhaenyra did not want to die a knight's death in battle. It is sad the show made her into a tomboy-ish character, instead of having her be a feminine girl who wheeled power well. Who didn't see a need to change herself just because she was going to be Queen. Who stood her ground and people loved her still. I am very passionate about Rhaenyra.

Love your posts about Rhaenyra and Daemyra.

Hello, @tinemilk! God, I am so, so sorry for the late reply! Only these days I finished with my exams!

Thank you so much for your kind words! I am glad to know you love Rhaenyra as much as I do! I must say, seeing all the vile hate she received and continues to receive is genuinely jarring to me. Other than Dany, Rhaenyra is the most hated Targaryen in my opinion.

Rhaenyra... God, where do I even begin? She makes me so sad. The way this fandom perceives her, the fact that she is not allowed to be loved and cherished, the fact that every single rumour about her - which absolutely screams misoginy - is not questioned even once by these people. Seeing Eustace and Mushroom's obsessions with her virginity/sexual life as something normal? Body shaming her?

Denying her amazing accomplishments - her being the youngest dragonrider in Targaryen history, being bright and precocious, to prop up irrelevant side characters? Denying her popularity, the love the realm had for her, how much Viserys and Daemon adored her... And all to idolize unimportant characters with two lines max. 😐

Of course she had every right to be proud! She was treasured by her parents, her uncle, her grandfather, the darling of the entire court, known as the youngest dragonrider - why wouldn't she be? Qualities like stubborness and pride are admired in male characters but hated in female ones. Why is that I wonder? 🤨

That is why I said that I am no "team black", only team Rhaenyra. Because self-proclaimed team black move extremely nasty when it comes to Rhaenyra and everything connected to her - from her relationship with Daemon to her children (we know who those people are, but let me not name them).

All in all, I find the attitude towards her character to be baffling at best and deranged at worst.

But I am glad to know you appreciate my posts and my takes on her character. And thank you so much for your message once again! I hope you have a great day! 🤗

[your-enby-antihero]

I’ve been sitting on the intro duos in Bells Hells (baring Chetney because he was a solo intro and also Dorian because he is a separate case) and just thinking. Like in the case of the applebees solstice splits we can kind of see the dichotomy of the duos, Fearne and Orym, Fcg and Ashton, and Imogen and Laudna. In this essay I will…

[no but actually there is a mini essay it’s just kind of long so it’s under the cut :)]

Like obviously we all know that they each care for each other greatly, the intro duos in this party are incredibly attached to each other but when you think about it we can kind of see similarities in the parts of these duos. Namely having a person driven to protect the other because of their perceived inherent worth and the other being driven by a protective instinct due to isolation and loneliness and grief. Now I’m not saying that all these bitches aren’t codependent as fuck but I think there is a bit of a difference in the levels due to past events and personal histories.

Okay for example Imogen and Laudna, now both are heavily reliant on each other emotionally and physically (having been the only safety on the road with each other for years). Though I would argue that Imogen takes being separated from Laudna more poorly than Laudna does being separated from Imogen. One could argue the opposite but that not really what I’m focused on because this all connects to the rest of the duos. Laudna always has the utmost faith in Imogen and not to say that Imogen doesn’t feel the same in regards to Laudna but I feel like there is a difference because Laudna (as she has said) has already had the worst thing to happen to her happen. She doesn’t want to die but the fact is that she knows the feeling of dying and loss, of grief. Laudna is fiercely protective of Imogen because she thinks Imogen deserves better than what Laudna got because she is a good person and because she doesn’t want Imogen to have a life like she experienced. I would argue that Imogen leans on Laudna, not only because of the situations occurring in the campaign and their history, but in cases that they are separate she has lost the one person that is not a legitimate physical pain to be around. She is more vulnerable to the thing that she would rather not think about and she fall into the trap of catastrophizing events because she is unaware of the feeling of being only alone and left behind (I am aware of backstory showing that Imogen, Fcg, and Fearne were isolated or suffered with grief due to abilities or events but I think the differences in those cases are different than the case of Laudna, Ashton, and Orym) and having death or grief be the dripping driving motivation in her life, either consciously or subconsciously.

This is well documented in the other relationships as well, Ashton is incredibly protective of Fcg because they cannot let this broken but kind and sweet robot deal with the pain that they endured. However Fcg is incredibly attached to Ashton (especially in the beginning of the campaign) and dealing with their problem and making sure that Ashton stays alive because they believe that Ashton has more inherent worth because of their physical being. Fcg even though they have been left alone and has face murdering their friend and being alone, they actively has very few memories of those events. Ashton is driven by his loneliness and isolation whilst Fcg is driven to protect Ashton due perceived worth.

On the last pair Fearne and Orym it feels more cut and dry in terms of my argument. Fearne believes that Orym is kind and worthy of so much love because he has been irrevocably kind and giving to her. She is protective of him because of her perception of his worth (and I’m not saying anything negative about this I’m mostly just observing). Orym on the other hand has faced the grief of losing a loved ones to circumstance and misfortune and it is a core part of his character. The loss of these important people drives him to be incredibly protective of these new relationships and the connections the other has with outside relationships because he does not want to see what happened to him happen to the others and specifically Fearne.

In conclusion, all these duo have a common thread of one half being protective of the other due to their perception of the other person’s worth (which in this case is that they are incredibly deserving of a good happy life due to the past and the person that the other half of the duo is to the first half). Whilst the other half of the duo as a core part of their character has experienced grief and loneliness and death and so desperately wants to protect the other from experiencing what they have. This common connector between all these duos are reflected in other relationships throughout the group and with guest players and npcs but it is so interesting to me that it is a common thread in our intro duos.

Anyway that’s it bye 👋

[kusukixcrystal]

MM Classpecting: V

Zen Classpect

Yoosung Classpect

Jaehee Classpect

Jumin Classpect

707 Classpect

Personality/General Info: His real name is Jihyun Kim. V is his photographer name. Extremely private and respects the privacy of others. If he has a secret he will keep it till the grave (literally). He is timid, a people-pleaser, and sensitive to the opinions of others. Loyal, so much so he was willing to stay with Rika even after she became twisted. Famous photographer. His family is rich. is Christian.

In high school, V's personality was apparently very different. Very similar to his father or Jumin: a pragmatist. He didn't see any value in abstract ideals, only on accomplishments pertaining to financial or social success. He changes after the death of his mother in Another Story.

The head of the RFA after Rika's 'death'. Rika was his fiance. Jumin is his childhood friend, who he cherishes, but he still hides secrets from him. Saeyoung and Saeran he cares about deeply, doing what he can to protect them. On good terms with Zen, and was interested in taking pictures of him. Yoosung and V have had a rocky relationship ever since Rika 'died'. Jaehee and V are pretty neutral.

Role in Narrative: Head of the RFA. Can be considered one of the antagonists, hiding all of Mint Eye from the RFA despite how much of a threat they have become. Covers up Rika's disappearance as a suicide. Dies at the end of SEs.

Active or Passive: He is Passive. he does things to benefit others, like helping the Choi twins escape their father, or still insisting that he can help Rika. Even Jumin considers him a push-over, bending to the will of others if they argue about the party date.

Classpect - Sylph of Life: One who makes Life, or makes through Life for others.

How this applies to V: Just like Jaehee??? Whaaa. But it makes sense considering what he does in the narrative. Sylphs fix and heal and try to keep things running. While Jaehee uses her Mind to keep C&R/RFA/Mint Eye mission running, V puts all of his efforts into trying to fix Rika on his own. All he wants to do is to meet the needs of other people.

Sylphs are meddlesome. V really meddles in the lives of others: The Choi Twins, Zen with getting him to join the RFA and being concerned for him when he gets in his motorcycle accident, Rika, etc. V knows what's happening around him, more so than most characters in the game, a trait shown within Sylphs. He is passionate about his interest in photography and shares this hobby with those he trusts, like Jumin or when he got Saeran interested in it. At the same time, he may alienate himself from those he doesn't trust like his father. Sylphs are known to be open to those they love and trust, and an enigma to those who are not within their circle. Though, in the events of Mystic Messenger he begins to become an enigma even to those he cares about. BUT, he does this for what he perceives to be for their own benefit. V acts for who he thinks is important to him: Rika, the RFA and Saeran. Though his 'help' is actually doing more harm to everyone involved, his methods and actions questionable.

This is what the Extended Hiveswap Zodiac has to say about the Life Aspect:

“Those bound to the aspect of Life are the universe's healers. They are concerned with the betterment of themselves and those around them, as well as the onward march of positive progress. Deeply empathetic, they have an intuitive understanding of other's suffering and the best way of righting those wrongs. If you're poisoned, chances are the Life-bound have something for what ails ya. This applies to both physical and mental suffering, though it might not be a cure you'll like. They also have the tendency to put other's needs before their own, which never ends well for anyone, because the Life-bound can grow bitter if they feel their own self-care has had to be shunted aside. At their best, they are great listeners, caretakers, and nurturers. At their worst, the Life-bound are passive aggressive, and pushy-they're certain they know best.”

I think Life also represents health, kindness, nature, positivity, and growth. Occasions where people are happy or celebrating (like a party) I also believe to be Life-coded, with its association to positivity and celebrations of life that you see in things like birthday parties.

The challenge seen within a Life bond is balancing helping others and themselves. But most importantly, there seems to be a connection between Life and privilege. In Homestuck, Feferi, Jane, and Meenah are characters we know are Life players. What do they all have in common? They are either princesses/heiresses, set to inherit great power and influence. They seemingly have to grapple with their position, and how that effects the way they interact with others.

How this applies to V: He starts his life in a position of privilege. His family is rich like Jumin’s, but it is all the more painful if he falls. V is heavily tied to Life because he is a Sylph. It has shaped him into the person he has become. He struggles to understand others, even if he has a better time than Jumin. He wants to understand and empathize with Rika, but has extreme difficulty. If you wanna bring Another Story into this, he doesn’t understand or empathize with his mother at first, having difficulty with it. It's because he has a hard time relating to others due to his background (also due to his father's influence). This is the struggle of a Life bond. Also, ironically, he loses his Life in the secret and multiple endings, more often than other characters. Another thing is that I think the Life bond fight against the status quo of society. Being one of the founders of the RFA, being a famous photographer, etc. He is fighting to make an impact on it, though he needs Rika and Jumin to implement all these things. He isn’t a social butterfly like Rika or business savvy like Jumin. So, he has big ideas but struggles with implementation.

As a Sylph of Life he creates Life for others. This seems to make him the ultimate healer, however that all depends on what he does with his Aspect. Life isn’t just about healing. Being one of the founders of the RFA party, he creates Life by setting up the date and making the party happen. His struggles as a Sylph is to not act on his opinions, and just waits by the sidelines. V talks about Life a lot, encouraging members to live it to the fullest. He tries to fix and heal often. With the twins he tries to create a new life for them, sending Saeyoung to become a hacker and entrusting Saeran with Rika. He is there the night Zen gets into a motorcycle accident. In Another Story we see that he helps Zen out by being his guardian in order for him to receive a surgery. Finally, by sacrificing himself and dying, he offers an opportunity for Rika to grow by witnessing his death.

When it comes to relevance, a fully realized Sylph can become one of the most powerful players in a narrative. However, if they are held back, they will fade away into obscurity. We see this happen to V in most endings in the game. In the Casual Story routes he barely appears in the chatroom in the first place, and when the route reaches its end V usually just... vanishes. Its because in the CS its not the main story, its not his time to shine. His role is to be a dangling question within the narrative until we get to DS/707 route/SEs. That is when he finally gets to shine as the Sylph of Life and we begin to understand his true motives.

We learn about the story of V and Rika in the SEs. How V wants to be her 'Sun', to fix her, and ultimately succeeds at the cost of his Life. After V's death, Rika seems to finally find happiness even in the state she is left in. Sylphs play a more supporting role, and in this case he is supporting Rika, giving her another chance at Life. It's tragic, but that is his role in this story.

Okay the only problem with V being a Sylph of Life is that its mentioned in Homestuck that Sylphs are a female only class. Though, I think the author retconned that and now there are no gender-locked classes. And... yeah I think this Classpect really suits V.

(Sorry I didn't discuss Another Story, but I think we see enough in the SEs to safely determine his classpect).

[ecargmura]

Dog Signal Episode 6 Review - Niwa's Past

It was really nice learning about Niwa’s past. I really liked learning about why he became a dog trainer and why he became the person he is currently. It is also very heartbreaking. Man, he had it rough. Hopefully, his issues with Fujiwara will get resolved in the future. The entire episode is Ritsuka explaining about Shinichiro’s past to Miyu, but there’s also another flashback from the day he decided to become a dog trainer. Since the flashback scenes are a bit out of order, I’ll talk about them in order.

The reason Niwa became a dog trainer was because of how he couldn’t protect his dog Kuma. As a kid, he has always loved dogs and would always go to Ritsuka’s family pet salon to play and feed the dogs there. He finds Kuma tied to a lamppost one day; Ritsuka finds a note in a bag, showing that it’s abandoned. Shinichiro takes Kuma home, but his mom said no. Fortunately, Mr. Niwa saved the day by telling her that he and Shinichiro would be responsible for it; she caves in, only on the condition that it stays outside. Caring for Kuma and his dad’s love for the dog only fueled Niwa’s love for dogs even more. However, one day, both his dad and Kuma died; his dad died in a construction accident while Kuma died after getting hit by a car at night on his way to search for Mr. Niwa. Kuma had no idea Mr. Niwa died and was very anxious that he wasn’t showing up one day. It turned out that Mrs. Niwa released the dog, which spiraled towards its untimely demise. Because of how he lost his dad and dog in a short amount of time, it caused him to close himself off to people and resolved him to become a dog trainer so that no dogs would get hurt ever again.

Now this childhood flashback was full on bittersweet. Niwa went from a happy boy who loved dogs so much to a traumatized boy who closed off and perceived himself as weak for not being able to protect Kuma. I have to say, I hate Mrs. Niwa so darn much. I usually try not to hate anime moms only if they’re awful; for example, I don’t think the Yuzuki brothers’ mom was that bad of a mom for neglecting Mikoto and focusing too much on Minato because there are times where the mom does focus on Mikoto too, as shown in Episode 8 of the Yuzuki Family’s Four Sons. Mrs. Niwa, on the other hand, sucks. She doesn’t care about her son’s feelings towards Kuma and just released him without his consent. Sure, she made a promise with her son that if he doesn’t train him properly, she’d release it, but the fact that she did without second thoughts was heartless as fuck. Definitely worst mom of this show so far.

As Niwa got older, he decided to work part-time jobs at Ritsuka’s pet salon in order to pay for his tuition for the school of his choice. Because Ritsuka was worried about him, she decided to go to the same school as they have dog grooming certification there too. Attending that school was there they met Dr. Kubo and how Niwa met his teacher Seiji Fujiwara, a professional dog trainer. To Niwa who was tired of his teachers teaching him with textbooks, Fujiwara was his idol, ideal teacher and the kind of trainer he wanted to become. After graduation, Niwa worked under Fujiwara at his dog training center. Fujiwara taught him that bad owners make bad dogs and that a bad dog should never be hurt by human hands. That also became Niwa’s philosophy until he saw he man he looked up to harm the dog that had attacked him.

For this part of the flashback, I get why Niwa became the way he is now. He has always been dogs first, humans second. He hates it when humans hurt dogs; it was a mindset that Fujiwara also shared with him. I understand why Niwa and Fujiwara are on bad terms now. His hero went against his own philosophy and hurt a dog. First off, why have such an aggressive dog? They knew that dog was aggressive, yet they still keep it. Second, I hate seeing animals being harmed too, but in this case, this was necessary. It sucks that he had to witness his master doing this when he had bright hopes for his future—taking over Fujiwara’s dog training center as its new owner once he died.

Fujiwara as a character is like the total opposite of Niwa; he’s like an older, mature version of Miyu in a way. Maybe Miyu will be like Fujiwara in the future. Anyways, he’s not related to Niwa in anyway; he’s just his mentor. He seems to have a laid-back attitude towards everything unless it’s necessary to stand up. I liked the parts where he gets kicked by Ritsuka for calling her Niwa’s wife; he gets kicked three times. He’s almost like a father to Niwa in a way; perhaps, the reason why Niwa was willing to stay with Fujiwara was because of the lingering attachment.

It was nice learning that Ritsuka and Niwa were childhood friends. They seemed quite close. While Ritsuka is wife material, she doesn’t seem to be interested in Niwa and thinks of herself as his mom friend. Dr. Kubo met the two in college and stuck around since. It’s nice to see that their friendship still remained ever since. Though, I do wonder why Dr. Kubo wants to learn about dog grooming; he’s still a freak.

I think learning about Niwa’s past can also help Miyu understand him more. In fact, this whole episode is Miyu learning about Niwa. Hopefully, Miyu will do something about Niwa’s issues either next episode or in a future one. He is Proud Dog’s saving grace, after all. Without Miyu, the whole place is gonna go bankrupt. I do like that Niwa from the past was like Miyu and how Fujiwara and Niwa were mentor and student, Niwa and Miyu became mentor and student too. Although Singe isn’t that important in this episode, I do like how his positions and expressions change every time the episode cuts back to Miyu. There was even one instance where Singe was trying to get his dad’s attention; that was super cute.

I’m surprised with the casting for the new characters. Toshiyuki Morikawa plays Niwa’s dad. From what I know, Morikawa is a huge dog lover; he even named his voice acting agency, Axl-one after his late dog, Axl. Also, he has been playing a lot of dads lately, so I guess this adds into his ever growing list of playing a protagonist’s dad. I didn’t expect Shunsuke Takeuchi to play the aggressive dog Maro. Where are they getting these high quality voice actors from? Do they just find them passing by the recording studio and ask them to come in and record for a minor role or something? Young Niwa is played by Makoto Koichi and young Ritsuka is played by Anna Nagase. I’m not too familiar with them. In fact, I looked up Anna Nagase and I just learned that she’s 18. So young! There’s also a name that rather surprised me when I saw the cast list. Ritsuka’s mom is played by Kumiko Higa. She’s most known for voicing Lan Hikari/Netto Hikari in the Megaman NT Warrior anime (Rockman.EXE). It’s cool that this anime is getting rather known names for their supporting cast.

I’ll end my review here since I feel like it’s getting long (It’s almost 1300 words). I do feel like this is a two-parter. Maybe Miyu will save the day and help Niwa and Fujiwara patch things up as he is good with handling people. It sucks that the original source material is Japanese-only so I can’t really read what’s gonna happen next because I don’t have access to it. If you’re watching this anime and seen this episode, what are your thoughts on Niwa’s past?