#but still be able to influence you

[ma-vhenan-is-sky-blue-siha]

SPOILERS FOR DAV, ONLY READ IF FINISHED THE GAME

Read at your own risk!!! Ever since finishing the game, I've started replaying the game. And I've been noticing some details. Some very specific details...

Is Varric actually fully Solas? All throughout the Lighthouse? I know that Solas made Rook see Varric, but I was under the assumption that it was kinda like Rooks mind filling in the blanks, or something along those lines.

But there's a scene I caught, at the very beginning. Where when Rook is looking away and whichever companion enters the healing room and talks to them. The camera keeps cutting back to his expression. And I feel like the expressions on his face doesnt fit Varric.

The gif is a bit grainy so I'll add a clearer screenshot to show his expression.

The little micro shift in his expression. It feels like aggression. Could this really be just Solas imitating his friend, and actually getting more involved to shape Rook into what he needs? It would put so much more weight into his words. "I molded you into someone the prison would accept in my place." "I taught you well."

Yall please tell me I'm not crazy and you're seeing this too. I'm so sick rn about all of this.

[sunbleachedskull]

i think if an english/literature teacher were to magically stumble upon my blog (or me, in real life) and pat my head and ruffle my hair and tell me about the classes he's taught over the week and complain about the mountain of essays he has to grade and fuck me to relieve his stress, that would be absolutely stellar

[mishkakagehishka]

"We're old moms, we can't wait to stop breastfeeding so we can get [very excited, shrill even] botooooox!!!"

We are never making it out of the patriarchy.

[dragonsarecats]

To be fair CF is just as much about found family than VW

Hi anon! I'm gonna link the post I talked about the Golden Deer here for clarity's sake lol.

I think when discussing themes of found family in different three houses routes, it's important to talk about Byleth. In a game where the single, main variable between possible futures is Byleth's interference, it means the story has to be written in a particular way--I mentioned this before when talking about character supports and endings; each character needs to be able to have a romantic ending with Byleth, which affects how their supports are written. In the case of the Lord's, this means you're given tangible reasons why you should've chosen them.

I mean. Let's be real here. Claude has the highest survivability rate of any character in the base game. He can't die if you're completing Verdant Wind (for obvious reasons), or Blue Lions. He's heavily implied to live to see another day in Silver Snow, and you can spare him in Crimson Flower! Edelgard and Dimitri die without the professor's stabilizing influence--but Claude? What does he lose without the professor.

That's sort of how I determine subtler themes of each route in a way--by comparing what you get with and without Byleth.

So when I argue that Verdant Wind is the most about found family, I mean it thematically; the other routes don't have tangible less found family, but without Byleth members of the Golden Deer just blatantly disappear unrecruited post time skip in several routes!

Without Byleth, the option for found family is removed for Claude in a big way, I personally feel, and not just by full recruitment runs lol. Not completely, of course--even in Crimson Flower a recruited Lorenz laments having to face off against Claude and Hilda is willing to die in defense of him and the city--but enough that it was blatantly shocking to me that if you don't recruit Marianne, she does not appear at all post time skip, no exceptions.

In a narrative sense, perhaps slightly unshocking; but in a practical sense? This leaves Claude without a healer.

Claude can't hold onto all his Deer even if you don't recruit any of them in the Academy phase. Silver Snow, Azure Moon, Crimson Flower--Marianne will always be gone; consistent, non variable. Depending on the route other characters like Lorenz might disappear as well.

The themes of found family are prevalent in all the routes, but since each route is pretty much defined by the Lord who leads it, I feel as though their personal relationship with the found family is most defining, if that makes sense.

People stand by Edelgard, Dimitri, and even Rhea for better, or for worse. Even recruited, characters like Felix make it abundantly clear that switching sides doesn't change the immense emotional attachment they have to their original lord.

This just. Isn't true for Claude.

Without Byleth, he doesn't get to keep everyone together. Without Byleth Hilda is recruitable in two routes. The idea that you could ever do the same with Hubert or Dedue is blatantly laughable.

Byleth's presence is what enables Edelgard, Dimitri, and Rhea to remain the most of themselves, if that makes sense. Edelgard's war strategy in Crimson Flower is a lot less aggressive and scorched earth then it is in the other two routes because she's had the professor as an emotional rock. Similarly for Dimitri, he's able to recover because Byleth is there to keep him alive and safe. And then Rhea will blatantly die in the Verdant Wind route where she doesn't in Silver Snow. Byleth, in every sense of the word, keeps these three characters alive and well.

But without her? They still inspire loyalty and devotion--unquestionable, again, if no recruitment takes place. Dimitri, Edelgard, and Rhea can all face up against you as enemies with the full force of their houses/allies (save for, oddly, Annette).

Claude does not.

Claude's whole route is about learning to trust others in a way that allows them to trust him. The Deer are devoted to Claude in Verdant Wind in a way they just, textually aren't otherwise, and that's due to Byleth's influence, both as a Professor to these individual students, and to Claude.

When I say that Verdant Wind is the most found family thematically to me, I mean it at a very base level. Claude knows he doesn't have what Dimitri and Edelgard seem to take for granted. It seems almost effortless, in Verdant Wind, the loyalty and devotion he inspires in his friends despite how often you, as Byleth, are told that Claude appears to be an untrustworthy and sneaky individual.

But it's easy to see in routes where you don't chose him that without Byleth, that image mantains. Claude is an outsider. And maybe he doesn't need Byleth in the way the other lords do to survive or achieve his dream (after all, there's nothing saying he can't open diplomacy with his former classmates after he goes back to Almyra so long as he lives to do so), but just as Byleth is uniquely able to be a peer to the Golden Deer, so can Claude uniquely trust and gain the trust of his house in full.

It's not as dramatic as the other two houses, and I think it's the point. Edelgard and Dimitri have already built a solid foundation of devotion and loyalty. Ferdinand and Felix (your "rival" characters in those houses) are loyal without Byleth, even if Ferdinand claims it's to guide her or if Felix complains every step of the way. Lorenz isn't. In Verdant Wind, you sort of take it for granted that everyone will be there at the reunion if they survived the Academy phase. Of course they will--they promised, didn't they?

But outside Verdant Wind, it's clear to see that you as the player took it for granted. And that's why I think Verdant Wind is thematically the most found family. It's not because the other routes don't love each other as much or aren't as complex or there isn't devotion. It's because fundamentally Verdant Wind is about Claude, for the first time in his life, having a group of people he can rely on and who will rely on him without hesitation. It's about the formation of found family, and how Claude doesn't need it to achieve his dreams, but man, does it give him something to achieve those dreams for.

[lunar-years]

Chappell’s thoughts on the election sound a heck of lot like many of the takes I see daily on social media in fandom spaces and leftist spaces and on my personal accounts from people I went to high school/college with etc. etc. and I actually think it’s helpful that she’s giving voice to the thoughts a lot of people are clearly having and acknowledging a fairly prominent point of view amongst a portion of young voters whilst STILL ultimately saying she’s going to vote (for Kamala!) and emphasizing the importance of local elections. Like, I personally don’t agree with her stance but many people do and many in that group are the ones going around saying they’re not voting entirely or trying to get us all to vote Jill fucking Stein. Maybe what Chappell is saying will register with some of that group? Maybe they will get out and vote for Kamala despite not agreeing with all of her policies and viewpoints? Which is…a positive thing? What am I missing here 😭

[saints-who-never-existed]

One specific thing I'm thinking about Lieutenant Edward Little today concerns his relationship with Hickey.

I cannot for the life of me find it now but I'm sure I've seen a post here detailing the full depth of the "A full court-martial is technically required..." line in Episode Four. How there's a lot more to it than meets the eye and is Little really trying very hard to curb Crozier's worst urges, trying to insist on a controlled, by-the-book approach to punishment rather than an abusive, bloody, psychologically-tortuous one.

And if that is indeed the case then that's very interesting to me as it's not the only time Little speaks somewhat in Hickey's defence.

I'm thinking of his asking "What is our evidence against him?" at Terror Camp, of how he's very much right to do so because at that point, he's not been given any information to confirm Hickey's guilt other than Crozier's word (although of course, proper evidence is produced right afterwards).

He's seen Crozier come down on Hickey before with every awful, savage, psycho-sexual thing he's got so it makes perfect sense that Little would try to get out in front of that in any way he can, to prevent at best further cruelty and at worst, further violent injustice.

I don't really have a point to be honest - it's just an interesting little parallel that makes me read those scenes just that wee bit differently now.

[wesavegotham]

Unless the post is completely incomprehensible I feel like other people should be forbidden from correcting grammar and spelling on the internet.

A lot of people are not native speakers, typing is different than writing by hand and of course there is also auto-correct messing things up.

My own posts would probably be better if I used my native language. But I doubt there are many dc comic fans here on tumblr who would understand me so I'm kind of forced to talk about comics in a language that is not my own.

I probably sound arrogant quite often too, but man, how pretentious can people be.

And I'm the daughter of a teacher for german in Germany! I have corrected spelling and grammar in exams for my mother for years! I was raised to care about this stuff!

I'm still not going under anyone's post going "actually it's you're not your, huh huh". Like fuck off. How much of a pretentious prick can someone be. Get a hobby or something.

[snekdood]

nah yknow why i hate the whole "acting like trans men and cis men are the exact same and thus the sins of cis men is the responsibility of trans men who arent even nearly half like that" is bc i dont go around assuming just bc trans women are women that they're more likely to be essentially the worst of the worst of women like tradwives etc. and have to call for the crimes of all cis women, so....????????? why are people doing it to us exactly...????

[that-crazy-five-foot-two-chick]

New Stray Kids comeback, you probably don't know what that means!

Part one of memes made from @ao3-crack posts+the first skz five star photoshoot!

[dropthecop]

why did my boromir post get notes i'm scared

[blackvahana]

Yeah. Man. I'm just sitting here remembering I've been doing this my entire life. I feel like there was a patch I wasn't, part of the teen years, and that's either I've forgotten because trauma orrrr something else but

No wonder I've never felt anchored on this plane. But it doesn't matter, well, no, it matters a lot, but this life is just constantly isolating in how it works so I will keep the talk of not fitting in here and what being weirdly one got in one foot out has done to talking to myself lmfao but... I remember. I remember being in the garden as a really young child and I'm not a young child. I'm this chimaeric fairy-type thing of swirling and bulging colours like a psychedelic faceted-insect-eye's led trip, four or more wings of different types that are again, so ungrounded, so psychedelic, vivid. Not uncertain. Not half-formed. Fully formed, the starbeing in me just barely contained in the shape of the human-pretending-to-be-a-fae it's pretending to be

I remember so much, actually, and it's. it's just weirdly melancholic....? Maybe not melancholic, but it's so sad and I don't know why. Actually. I mean I've been trying to piece it together for like twenty minutes now but... People get a little irritated at me for being very "you don't understand and no one sees me" but like. I have lived an entire life walkinv streets where no one sees me. It's very complicated, there's. mental health stuff in there because of course I've come across a lot of spirits but I have bad issues seeing people as real but like. Man yeah no I am a snail and one part of me can be physically seen but the other has always been on the other side

[tasmanianstripes]

People need to practice minding their own damn business

Don't come into people's inboxes giving unsolicited advice or criticizing their personal stuff. Don't reblog somebody's posts saying how much you hate it and their opinions.

Don't like somebody's characterisation, AUs or the kind of art they post? It might even annoy you?

Okay, cool. Go make your own post. Block them. Be a little hater about it to your friends. It's good for your soul!

But don't be goddamn rude to people. Don't make it their problem.

"I don't like what this artist likes mah mah mah"

Here's a wild idea;

Artists...don't need to cater to you. You are not entitles to their work. Nobody on the internet should coddle you and post only stuff you like.

Shocker, I know.

[poisonouspastels]

@beegswaz genuinely i think my favorite tags on any of my work ever. i fucking love when people talk abt my characters like this

[omarwolaeth]

thinking 'bout how the lads interact with what the bracelets represent, especially in their decks

[kirbyddd]

one thing that's just one of my weird little personal wishes, i really wish gandalf used more of his Hobbit style alchemical "magic" in LoTR, he really only uses it for fireworks at the very beginning then he mainly just uses his ring and divine authority

[iphisesque]

Are you black? If not why are you using aave 💀