#but whether or not they are ace didn't seem relevant

[genericpuff]

Just saw your response to someone asking about plot points you hate. Can I ask why you don't like Athena/Hestia? From what I remember (take this with a grain of salt because while I've read the whole comic it's more in a junk food, read and forget til next time kind of thing)

From what I remember it's not a huge plot point? Like its just kinda.. there? It doesn't really impact much of the story at large.

Also I agree with the hades/thanatos thing, that's kinda odd and it doesn't make hades any better or more sympathetic of a protagonist. If I remember right, doesn't he abandon thanatos or push him away?

I have issues with the Hestia x Athena plotline the same way I have issues with the Hera x Echo plotline. It all feels shoehorned in for the sake of seeming 'inclusive' towards gay relationships, but gets next to no actual development or screentime aside from the odd lip service meant to benefit Rachel.

Especially when Hestia and Athena were already embraced as LGBTQ+ icons to begin with and didn't need to be shipped together to make it possible. Rachel has a really hard time comprehending aroace identities and this is present even back in her Tumblr days-

If Hestia and Athena are still supposed to be at least ace in LO then we haven't seen any indication of that. So it just makes them look hypocritical as fuck for running the "virgins only club" that is TGOEM (and even going so far as to punish Persephone for being around Hades by confiscating his gift to her) and that unfortunately makes them look like really terrible people which isn't a great look for the only lesbian couple in the story (at least until Eros and Hera were established but whether or not they're an actual couple now or if that was just a one time kiss scene remains to be seen). Like even the reveal that they're together is Artemis figuring it out and then being pissed that she's the "only one following the rules", not them coming out about it on their own terms.

Also no, the Hestia x Athena plotline wasn't as big as the other plotlines, but it was one of the ones that felt so out of left field and forced when it was first established. Plus I'd just love for them to be aroace rep again, there are characters who are legitimate gay icons that got erased so that Rachel could retroactively shove it into other characters without any reasoning or relevance to the plot.

I honestly wouldn't have been so salty about the Hestia x Athena plotline if it were just written better (and if it didn't reek of aroace erasure) and that goes for a lot of the queer relationships in LO, because so many of them are only given the tiniest ounces of screentime, enough for Rachel to take credit for being "inclusive" but not enough for her to actually have a diverse cast. Morpheus is the most consistently present character we've gotten for LGBTQ+ rep and now even she's been fridged :/

Anyways, as for Hades and Thanatos, yeah, the retcon that Hades was a 'father figure' to Thanatos the whole time seems like it was purely written in to make Thanatos look like a hypocrite for having very reasonable concerns regarding the special treatment being given to Persephone at work. But then Rachel had to actually resolve that plotline so in S3 she had Hades approach Thanatos in search of his brother just for them to have a weak 'heart to heart' where Thanatos took the blame for being a 'handful' and Hades trauma dumped and never really took accountability for everything. The fact that we're supposed to believe they have a father-son dynamic really makes the first season gross to read because the whole time Hades is legitimately treating Thanatos like scum. It absolutely does NOT make Hades more likeable, even with the attempt to 'redeem' him which really just made him look like an even bigger asshole u.u

[theamazingmaddyas]

*Essay on Children of the Big Three, original characters, and canon compliance*

Trigger Warnings: Death/Murder

During ace week this year, in one of my oneshots I had a, minor, original daughter of Zeus named Enid, which has sent me down a rabbit hole of thoughts about big three children, and how to make original characters with Zeus/Jupiter, Poseidon/Neptune, or Hades/Pluto as their godly parents while still maintaining the integrity of the story. That is to say, Percy being the child of the prophecy and the acknowledgement that the Big Three Pact was created and subsequently disbanded from the mid-1940s [while Grover says in the Lightning Thief that the pact was post-WWII, I have reason to believe that the prophecy itself, (and therefore the pact), was given during the war, between 1941 and 1943, rather than after it's conclusion. The reason behind this has to do with Riordan's wonky timeline, which I will probably make a separate post about] to the end of the Second Titan War in The Last Olympian, which is quite a large window of time; about seventy years. Note, this is solely talking about the creation of OCs that do not contradict canon at all, and therefore is not talking about OCs such as another Jackson kid, a third Grace kid, or a different prophecy child, those stories are not meant to fall under the realm of canon compliance.

First, it is easiest to split the children of the big three into four distinct categories—older than 16 when the pact was enacted; under sixteen, but already born, when the pact was enacted (this category would include Hazel, Bianca, and Nico); born during the pact (Thalia, Jason, and Percy); and born after the pact was dissolved (my character in The Hearth's Children Enid). I also will be looking into the difference between Greek and Roman Big Three kids, as that has some interesting implications of the pact.

While none of the books talk about whether the pact also included in their Roman forms, I am writing this under the assumption that it is. There are many reasons I believe this, but I will detail the main ones below. While it is evident that the Twelfth Legion has never heard of the Great Prophecy, we also know that the Sibylline Books, where the Romans are known to get their prophecies from, has been destroyed for centuries and only remains in Ella's photographic memory. This is not relevant, however, because Ella, of course, is not known by Camp Jupiter until after Percy fulfills the prophecy. Additionally, the only reason they know the Prophecy of Seven is because it was transcribed before the book was burnt. It is not unreasonable to believe that the Great Prophecy, like the Prophecy of Seven, was in the original Sibylline Books but lost because of it being destroyed and was not saved. It can also be inferred that Camp Jupiter did not know of the pact made as well, given they do not seem too shocked at Jason, and later Hazel and Nico's, existence. That being said, Jason's treatment is also a big indicator that the pact was still prevalent to Jupiter, Neptune, and Pluto. While Jason being at camp didn't seem to be overly shocking to the Camp Jupiter population from what little we know about it, he is also revered by everyone, despite being in the 5th Cohort, which is known to be valued as less than. If the Big Three pact did not cross over to the Romans then wouldn't it be safe to say that Jupiter and Neptune (and to some small degree, Pluto) would have had a ton more kids to compensate for the fact that they couldn't have Greek kids? There is no feasible reason for Percy and Thalia to be Greek if Neptune and Jupiter respectively could have as many kids as they want with no consequences. But since Camp Jupiter isn't aware of the Big Three Pact, the lack of big three kids over the past half-century probably seems more like a strange coincidence than anything else. [Note, it is extremely likely that, even in series, there are legacies of Jupiter, around camp. While it is unknown just how many generations removed a legacy is allowed to be to still join the legion, Octavian is still a member despite his family being in the legion for 100 years (meaning Apollo must be, at minimum, his great-grandfather) which would put his first family member in the legion pre-pact, and therefore pre-the decline of Big Three Kids. Additionally, Claudia (from Camp Jupiter Classified) has no problem entering the Legion as a great-granddaughter of Mercury before she learns that she is, in fact, a demigod too. Shen Lun, Frank's great-grandfather, is extremely far removed from Poseidon, but I count him as an anomaly because he was allowed to join the legion due to his strength rather than his nearness to godly blood. Neptune and Pluto are far less likely to have descendants at camp (Pluto actually wouldn't have any at the time of Heroes of Olympus cause Hazel claims she would be alone if they separated by godly parent, though it is possible there are descendants of Pluto in New Rome or have already left the legion) and, as we see with Percy and Shen Lun, Neptune's children and descendants were othered, and therefore would be unlikely to send any children they had to the legion which would explain why Percy's existence seems far more shocking than any other Big Three kid] This fact can also have been why Jason, Hazel, and Nico weren't completely gaped at, since legacies of their godly parents likely have been steadily in the legion for decades.

Now that we have covered the Greek/Roman divide when it comes to Big Three Kids, and that your OC being Roman or Greek has very little effect on their existence, only on their peer's perception of them, let's move onto years. (Before we begin that, I would like it noted that I will be referring to the gods collectively as their Greek names; by that meaning Zeus will refer to both Zeus and Jupiter, unless otherwise stated for simplicity sake) The easiest two, and the only two where there isn't any nuance and will be plausible in canon timeline 100% if the time are: over 16 at the time of prophecy and born post-The Second Titan War. If your OC is already 16 by the time a "Child of the Eldest Gods/Shall Reach Sixteen Against All Odds" than the prophecy could not be about them. While, yes, part of the reason the Big Three Pact was enacted was due to the overpowered nature of Big Three children, a larger portion of it was so that the prophecy was postponed as long as possible. It would be a lot easier for a seventeen year old, who is not the prophecy child, to fly under the radar rather than a fifteen year old, who very well could overthrow the Greek gods in accordance to the Oracle of Delphi. No matter who you make your OC's godly parent, they could, plausibly, exist within the realm of the series. Same goes with children born after the Last Olympian. When Percy is being awesome and declaring that the gods pay child support, he also mentions the fact that the pact was kind of stupid since two thirds of the gods broke it anyway. And with the prophecy already fulfilled, much of the gods (especially Zeus') fears were greatly diminished. Personally, I believe that the Zeus cabin would fill up pretty quickly about a decade after the Percy Jackson series conclusion due to the rather adulterous and promiscuous myths involving Zeus, and that the Poseidon Cabin isn't that far behind in size. (In fact, Poseidon even jokes with Percy to say to expect siblings in due time, which could mean he already has plans to have more kids now that he knows he won't subject them to a life of pure horror). Hades is a bit more subdued, and is often portrayed as being overall pretty loyal and not so promiscuous so his cabin probably would not fill up too fast, but rather have a few kids sporadically here and there rather than a bucketload at the same time like his brothers.

In order to maintain canon compliance, if an OC were to be born post-pact but pre-the dissolving of the pact, there is no way their story wouldn't be inherently tragic. The only somewhat happy end for a Big Three character in this category would be to join the Hunters of Artemis, as Thalia and Bianca did to take them out of the running for Prophecy Kid, but if the OC were a boy? Well, they'd have to meet a tragic end before turning 16. Again, we know from the books that no big three kid attends camp after the pact is dissolved before Thalia is discovered, which leads me to believe that, if Zeus or Poseidon (In my opinion, the fact that Hades does not break the oath is a rather poignant and important factor in his characterization and how we, as the audience, are meant to interpret Hades in this medium. In Blood of Olympus, Nico talks about the justice of Hades to Bryce Lawrence, and a key aspect of justice is the keeping of one's words. Sure, Hades is often seen as a villain, but he never lies, but rather he manipulates the truth and omits, example being he said to Nico in The Last Olympian he would hurt Percy, which he didn't, but he never claimed he wouldn't hold him hostage. So, personally, I do not think a child of Hades OC born in this time frame could be seen as canon compliant, but one could try and argue if they see another way to keep the integral bits of Hades' personality while still breaking the oath. But, honestly, I don't see it as plausible.) were to sire a kid in their Greek forms, they'd most likely be dead before twelve, as that is the age that Camp Half-Blood typically begins looking for campers. As for their Roman aspects, again, the child would be dead before sixteen, but if we were to look at what was previously stated about Jason's characterization, it is safe to assume no Roman Big Three kid could make it to Lupa (as we know all Big Three kids would be able to pass her, as Jason succeeded at two). Why they fail to reach her is up to the creator of the OC, but personally, I think a Neptune kid would probably be struck down by Jupiter and a Jupiter kid by Neptune or Pluto (Jason's survival is strongly tied to the fact that he was from Sonoma and therefore didn't have to travel far to get to Lupa) would not only be plausible, but also have that inherently tragic Big Three thing.

There is a little caveat if the Big Three kid were born after Percy, which is to say that they could, possibly, survive past sixteen. Personally, I think this will depend on how much younger than Percy they are. If they were born within four years, their chance of survival is slim to none. They'd probably be killed. (Jason, of course, is an exemption, which is why their is a slim chance of survival, but the author would need an extremely thorough explanation on how they survived without either camp up until twelve to fifteen.) While it technically goes against compliance to have a Big Three kid arrive during the course of Heroes of Olympus and Trials of Apollo, there is the possible argument that can be made that an OC this age could still respect the integrity of the story, which is the most important aspect of Canon Compliance in my opinion. Over four years younger than Percy has a highest survival chance of kids born during the pact, with the younger they are, the chance of their survival increasing massively. A kid born a few days before the battle honestly has a pretty fine chance of survival.

Now, onto the most interesting category of Big Three Kids in my opinion: those born less than sixteen years pre-the Pact. Firstly, like with the previous section, I do not believe it is possible for a child of Hades to be in this section without destroying the integrity of the story. Hades' protectiveness when it comes to his children is an integral part of the story, as well as the way that Hades tries to hide them from Zeus, another Hades kid in this age range doesn't make sense. Additionally, if we are to go off the idea that the prophecy was first stated in 1941 (which, as previously stated, makes the most sense with the wonky timeline) another ulterior motive for Marie to move to Alaska could be to escape the wrath of Jupiter, and another reason Gaea targeted Hazel, because she had the power to be the prophecy kid. But, she dies before Zeus really has the chance to track her down. (Yes, Alaska is beyond the gods, but do you really believe Zeus would have let that stop him if Hazel survived until 15? I doubt it). A Pluto OC makes slightly sense than a Hades OC but I think in both aspects Hades' characterization is that he cares about his children as best he can. I think it's in character for Pluto to have actually visited Hazel, but Marie didn't let him get close to her because of her resentment towards him due to Hazel's curse. Also, Hades' having three kids within four years is a lot, and with his less promiscuous ways, it contradicts the integrity of canon too much to have other young Hades kids when the prophecy was uttered and the pact enacted. Also, Hades tries to harbor Nico and Bianca, and if he had more children he tried to do that with, Persephone would've started a riot.

Now with the logistics of Hades OCs out of the way, let's talk about Zeus and Poseidon. Honestly, it doesn't make sense for there not to be Zeus and Poseidon kids in this age range because of their, as previously stated, adulterous and promiscuous ways. It can be argued, and I will argue, that the way in which Zeus demands Nico and Bianca to be handed over by a certain date has the implications that Zeus already had kids that had been "turned over". As tragic as it is, the canon heavily implies that Zeus euthanized murdered his own children. At least, that is how I've always interpreted it. (I doubt he turned them into trees or other plants, but it is possible, it is just for me the reason Zeus turns Thalia into a tree is because he wasn't the one to kill her, Hades was, and Zeus does not seem like the type of god to take that lightly.) Poseidon's under sixteen kids must've been killed before Zeus went after Bianca and Nico, because Hades seems to be the only one who Zeus is really grilling to hand over his children from the memories we see in The Last Olympian. Was Poseidon planning on harboring his children like Hades tried to, but Zeus got to them first? Did Poseidon just cross his fingers and hope for their survival without much aid? Did Poseidon turn them over to Zeus to avoid fighting? We can't be sure. As much as I'd like to believe the first one, especially since Poseidon seems to be a decent enough father to Percy (and Tyson and Trident though neither of them are half-bloods and therefore could not be the kid of the prophecy), Percy also is heavily implied to be his father's favorite, though whether that's because of his status as a forbidden child or because of Sally, it is unknown, so it is possible Poseidon just crossed his fingers and hoped his children were strong enough to survive. I don't feel like Poseidon would turn his kids over to Zeus, but honestly who's to say?

Clearly, I have a lot of feelings about Big Three OCs and just children of the Big Three in general. If you're really interested in the discrepancies in the timeline of The Pact, feel free to ask questions on it, because I personally haven't seen anyone talk about it but I think about it all the time. Also, if you've seen any posts on that topic, send it to me! I think about Riordan's wonky timeline a little too often to be healthy.

[amarayys]

DRDT CHAPTER 2 EPISODE 12 SPOILERS UNDER CUT

teruko with glasses oh my teruko with glasses oh my teruko with glasses oh my

okay so i think it's really weird how hu keeps interrupting nico and talking for them. i think hu might be faking being with nico in the morning. Some notes before we begin: I suck at theories. please don't bully me /hj Hu and Nico might (??) be OOC for this, forgive me. My formatting sucks, but I tried. This is not meant to be an attack on Nico, Hu, or anybody who disagrees with this theory. please don't burn me at the stake /j If I accidently use the wrong pronouns for Nico at any point, please point it out so I can fix it!!! I've proof read this like 3 times because I keep making mistakes, but I DONT TRUST MYSELF. IDK WHAT TO CALL THIS SECTION LMFAO First of all, Nico never actually confirms being with Hu in the morning. They actually don't comment or react to it at all as far as the viewers can see. Hu has also been speaking for Nico (and interrupting them) quite a bit whenever they start to try defend themselves for a lot of chapter 2. Even before the trial, Hu has never actually let Nico defend themselves, instead just shouting at anybody who even tries to suspect them. ACE ATTACK Before I go on, let me say - I *do* believe Nico was the one who attacked Ace, and they did it without any outside influence. Nico confirms that they did attempt to kill ace, (image) without any prompting from Hu. Maybe Hu was involved in some way - for example, maybe she lent them the wire? - but she could also be in denial that Nico would do anything like murder and Nico got wire from storage or simply just stole it from Hu, which is what they probably did. We've seen them steal before (cough cough ROSE TURPENTINE) . I'm actually not too sure which one it could be... or if it's something completely separate, but that's not too relevant to the main topic of this post anyway. i seriously doubt hu forced nico to kill ace and I think this theory is based on the fact people think nico is some weak little baby (btw this is not an attack on people who believe this theory) cough cough anyway

MOTIVES So...why would Hu lie? Why is Nico going along with it? Well, I have a few (shaky) ideas. 1. Hu came up with her and Nico's "alibi" in the moment, and it wasn't premeditated. Why? To keep herself and Nico (as she clearly cares for them) out of suspicion, whether they are involved in the murder or not Nico went along with it because they didn't want to be suspected, (we've seen them lie about what they were doing during murders in chapter 1 - where they claimed to be in their room while in reality they were walking around the place - because they didn't want to be suspected. They then proceed to heap blame on everyone without alibies to get suspicion off them, even though they had nothing to do with the case and were most likely just scared of being suspected as the blackened)

OR Nico didn't really notice Hu lying, and they were more focused on being interrupted. (again, nico doesn't confirm/comment on Hu saying they were together, instead focusing on how they keep getting interrupted)

OR

Nico is the murderer and is threatening/manipulating Hu to cover for them. This would be pretty ironic, seeming as many think it's the other way around... but Nico has no reason to go for Arei, and basically all the people left have more evidence against them, so I doubt it. Just thought I should include this anyway 2. It was premeditated, Hu is the culprit and Nico is being threatened/manipulated (for the whole of chapter 2??) and is helping her out. I **REALLY** doubt this, there's nothing to support this and it's VERY ooc for both Hu and Nico. It just doesn't work. Also, as I mentioned, Nico would not just kill somebody cause Hu told them too. Nico is NOT A PUSHOVER LISTEN TO ME- ahem. So no, I don't believe in this, but I suppose it's a possibility?? OR It was premeditated, they are both lying to cover each other, whether they are the culprit or not. Kind of OOC for them, but maybe??? I think I'm going to go with the first idea, along with Nico either not noticing Hu's lies or just going along with it to stay safe. It's just the most likely and most in-character for them. SUMMARY. Alright, here we go. PRE-MURDER: Nico steals (or simply just asks for, seeing as Hu would never suspect them) Hu's wire and uses it to cut Ace's neck open. Hu in uninvolved in Ace's murder any further than that. 1. Hu sees an opportunity to come up with an alibi for her and Nico. She doesn't want people to suspect them, so she lies in order to keep them safe and out of suspicion. She needs to keep everyone safe, as she sees herself as useless if she can't help people (episode 11 dialogue yall!!!) especially Nico, so she lies to keep them away from suspicion. 2. a) Nico notices Hu's lies. They hesitate, before realising the opportunity. They won't have to fight the others and be under suspicion if they have an "alibi". Hu will continue to defend them. They decide to divert the attention to them being interrupted again and don't say anything about Hu lying. 2. b) Nico fails to notice Hu's lies, more focused on being interrupted again. Their frustration leads them to completely miss Hu's comment, and the topic moves on. OR Im reaching per usual and nobody was lying about anybody's alibies. wooah. this was fun to make, although it kinda sucks.... ANYWAY, let me know what you think!!

[batmanisagatewaydrug]

Hi sex witch, i realise that this is not an actual sex ed related question and I hope this isn't overstepping any bounds.

I'm sort of in a weird spot right now a la my sexuality and am trying to figure out if I actually want a relationship and if what I feel is romantic attraction or Friendship levelled up. I've known for a long time that I'm Demisexual or Ace, and I thought I knew that I still felt romantic attraction but now I'm less sure.

How did you come to realise that you were aromantic? In that discovery did you ever wonder if it was a sort of 'mental block' or something similar that would be better off working through? (I ask because I'm sort of stuck in that state of mind right now, and I'm just curious to see if it's a common experience or not)

I realise that this is a fairly sensitive topic, and I really don't mean offense by asking.

I also realise that no two people's experiences will be the same but I was interested in hearing about it from another person's perspective.

I hope you have a great day whether or not you give this ask the time of day.

I've asked you other things in the past and it's always been brilliantly helpful. Thanks a lot for everything you do.

hi anon,

no worries about overstepping boundaries :) this is a pretty reasonable thing to ask of someone, and I'm happy to talk about it!

there's a funny story that I tell about the moment I probably should have known, but didn't yet have the language. in sixth grade my class had an assignment that involved making a collage timeline of the rest of our lives (a proto-vision board of sorts) and I think I was the only kid in the class who didn't put getting married on my timeline. everyone else did, as far as I can remember, and most of them also included having kids. being a pedantic little fuck I pointed out to several of my friends that it was really unreasonable to assume they would find someone they liked enough to marry who liked them back, to which everyone told me (paraphrasing) to shut the fuck up and stop being a little bastard.

but it still seemed very strange to me, because even when I was very young - back when I barely had the language to conceptualize being gay, let alone aromantic - I never imagined my life with a romantic partner. romantic pairings were interesting in stories, sure, I ate that shit up from a very young age! the star-crossed lovers shit going on in American Dragon: Jake Long did a number on my developing brain, and my Barbies and Littlest Pet Shops got up to INSANE relationship drama, but for myself it never really felt, like, relevant? not unpleasant, just uninteresting.

but I still had crushes on people as I grew up, and more importantly I had crushes on people of various genders, so during my teen years I was WAY more preoccupied with repressing my burgeoning bisexuality than drawing any conclusions about my romantic orientation

spoilers: the bisexuality won.

in college I had a friend who identified as asexual at the time, who spent maybe a year trying to convince me that I was aromantic. and I didn't want to hear it! I don't know why, honestly; maybe some part of me, despite loving the community I had found coming into my queerness, was still subconsciously afraid of being too different and grappling with the consequences.

so instead I did this uuuuh real dirtbag thing where instead of just acknowledging to myself that I was pretty fundamentally uninterested in romantic relationships and that that's fine, I spent the first half of college leaning hard on self-deprecation to explain my single status. oh, me? why aren't I dating? well, I'd probably be a really bad partner. yeah, I suck. I mean, I'm so busy all the time! and I'm weird.

(at the time I know I definitely had friends who assumed I was Like That because my parents were divorced, which is hilarious old-fashioned and also categorically untrue. I was Like This way before my parents got divorced!)

it actually took a relationship ending pretty badly to make peace with the idea that maybe I didn't want a relationship at all. I won't get into the details on that, because it involves another person and we were both very young and accidentally hurt each other a lot in ways we didn't mean and I don't think anyone was the villain, but I don't want it to come across like I had one bad breakup and then swore off romance, a thing I'd previously been interested in, forever. it was more like I found myself in a really heightened situation - they really desperately needed a good and attentive romantic partner after getting out of a bad relationship, I wanted our friendship to stay exactly the same but with a sexual component - that made very, very obvious what I was actually looking for in non-platonic relationships. which was, I guess, actually pretty platonic relationships, but with genitals involved.

haha just kidding, I actually didn't get that part through my skull until I spent an entire summer crying constantly, dissociating frequently, and spending way too much time on BAD dates having even worse sex that made me feel gross! but we got there eventually.

that part probably isn't super relatable to you if you're somewhere in the ace realm, sorry about that.

anyway, once the dust settled and I felt halfway human again I was feeling vulnerable and open to change - finally willing to see myself in a new way and reckon with parts of myself that I hadn't been before. I remembered what my buddy had always said about me seeming Really Aromantic, and I let it settle on me. how would I feel, if I actually was aromantic? how would it change my life, how I thought about myself?

and if I can use a cliche with you? it felt like a weight rolling off my shoulders. I suddenly had a whole sturdy base to build a better understanding of myself on, an easy way to justify the way I lived that didn't require throwing myself under a bus.

thinking of myself through the lens of aromanticism felt like a huge, HUGE relief, and frankly I think that, more than anything, is the best way for anyone to decide if they should be applying any identity label to themselves. which brings us back to you! I actually don't believe in the model of sexuality and gender that posits a secret innate Right Answer buried in each person that they'll discover if the just find the right terminology. all of the words we use are the result of our time and place, right? people like us existed all through history with different words for themselves, and they'll exist way after us calling themselves things we can't imagine.

so basically: I came to realize I was aromantic because calling myself aromantic felt like loving myself, and if that's the case for you than I strongly recommend you do it, too.

happy pride xoxo

[rocketturtle4]

Be My Favorite, we're back to the time travel!!!!

Gotta be honest, all my theories last week were wrong so

BUT BUT BUT My original theory of Kawi staying in the past which a lot of you read long form after episode 5 but I actually originally posited thusly

"[Kawi] having to decide whether to jump ahead and live without change or stay in the past and live and grow with uncertainty."

way back after episode 4 seems to have panned out and now they're both in on the choice! (i'm saving my clowned correctly till next ep, let's not get ahead of ourselves again)

I hadn't considered they're relative inequality in the last few episodes, after Kawi told Piseang the truth I was happy but @bengiyo points out how much more equal this makes them!

I also didn't have a problem with the future getting erased and actually feel this fits with how the story has in fact been structured, the way the latter half of ep 10 and the early half of ep 11 was playing out felt intentionally choppy to me given that I belive this show is playing with flash forwards and backs very intentionally @sparklyeyedhimbo we got late episode flash back again!!

For the record WE DON'T KNOW IF KAWI DIED IN THE FUTURE so I am not on the his death was inevetable train (especially as his dads heart diease was already present when Kawi travelled back in time, whereas Influenza is something you catch, and he didn't have it in his original future) although I can see it and think it's credible. (cc @twig-tea)

(Also for real, if this was Covid it's weird they didn't name it but, (at least on my later version of the subs) they called it influenza which is also a horrible disease that can kill people (our ongoing spanish flu) especially since he was actually dying of pneumonia)

ANYWAY

I loved to see everyones but especially @waitmyturtles (twig-teas talks about this really well too!) point out the awfulness that was Piseang being considered not Kawi's family and the idea that this theme could be tied in as a goal for them returning to the past.

Like maybe they've both had a chance to live to the future, and now they have to fight for a better one? Our adorable relationship montage didn't include much fighting and given we had the LGBTQIA+ POWER Episode a few weeks ago that got everyone up and writing, I feel like the message in the last episode could focus back in on these themes in a way that would be INCREDIBLY satisfying. Especially now they've BOTH been to the future and come back.

I'm retroactively a bit mad at episode 10 (I agree with you there @lurkingshan)

(also just adding in, I have officially let go of ace!kawi, I will remain slightly mad about episode 10, because of the flagging, but I let it go by the start of the episode, none of the 'previously on' included the relevant points so it's clearly not where the show is going and I'd rather focus on what I do like especially when it still feels like the show has so much to say)

I am not remotely unhappy with this episode and I am REALLY EXCITED for how next week might end!

(@grapejuicegay @dribs-and-drabbles)

[asknarashikari]

Kari., any school boy or school girl headcanons for the Geats 4? Like how is Keiwa with his peers and people his age? How is Ace? (because Takahashi doesn't like exploring those pasts of his characters)

Well, he doesn't really talk about it, because they're not really relevant to the characters' current lives, but I think we can safely assume some things given what little we do know of their pasts.

Ace

He's told us that in every lifetime he's had so far, he finds the coin Mitsume gave him as a parting gift (which belonged to his original father) sometime in early childhood, and that triggers his memory of his past lives. Considering this, I doubt he would've thought about really making friends with his peers, since he'd be too busy plotting to somehow get into the DGP and save his mom.

I also think that him being trapped in a seemingly endless cycle of rebirth, at some point they'd feel a bit... meaningless. I mean, even in the present day he doesn't seem eager to form attachments with anyone, corroborated by how he never got around to addressing even his closest allies by name. And then there's the unfortunate implications of his wish to make the DGP staff his family for his current life's biological parents... Neither of which are ever addressed, of course.

Keiwa

Aside from the loss of his parents in his early teens, we don't know much about Keiwa's childhood. In my opinion, this speaks to the mundanity of it. In other words, he's probably had a fairly normal childhood with normal friendships and such.

Neon

We know from her backstory that she was basically shunted into an ivory tower after the kidnapping incident, so had very little opportunity to make meaningful connections to peers, especially ones that her parents didn't approve of.

She probably did have some acquaintances in those parent-approved circles she got along with okay, but as she grew older she probably became less and less interested in their lifestyle, which may be partly why she started to seek the connections she lacked elsewhere. And because of her situation, basically the only way she could get that was rebelling against her parents.

Azuma

Again, we know very little of Azuma's past. We know though that he dropped out of high school along with Tooru, and that both of them got into a lot of fights even before then. However, that was when they were both older, quite close to the present day in fact.

Again, this to me means that he likely had a more normal childhood than not. Maybe a bit rougher of a childhood though, given his attitude in his later years- though, since we don't meet any family of his during the show, we don't have any context as to whether this likely-rougher childhood is due to not getting along with peers, or having family problems that later affected his socialization with peers.

[yumedoca]

I've been noticing your posts of Detective Conon (is that how it's spelled?) anyways I'd been noticing them and tbh I'd forgotten who it was and I'd been seeing the little boy wondering why he looked so familiar before I remembered where I'd seen him.

He's from the Lupin III X Detective Conon special. That's when it clicked that you were posting Detective Conon. Bro I didn't realize it was him till I remembered this- 😭

[Warning: Rambling's of a fangirl Ahead]

Hai there! Hope you're having a great day!!

Yeah, The Conan (as in Arthur 'Conan' Doyle) X Lupin special was a thing, lol. The thing is that I'm just like you except I'm on the other side of the spectrum, I've only watched Detective Conan, but I haven't watched Lupin at all. I've watched the special as well, but it seems that it was more Lupin focused (I heard it was made for anniversary or something??), so I was kind of confused for some of the parts. There's a crossover movie as well, but after my reaction to the special, I figured that I'd watch both after I have consumed Lupin media. I still haven't watched it but that's because I'm too busy to watch anything at the moment now, but once I'm able to have more free time, I'd love to start watching Lupin since it seems like a lot of fun!!

I'm pretty sure the crossovers were made because both shows share the same animation studio. Detco's (short for detective Conan) mangaka, Gosho Aoyama is a huge fan of the series, even stating Fujiko is his ideal woman. There's even a character who's based off of Fujiko in detco as well!

As for Detective Conan, considering all the fandom I've seen you be a part of (You have great taste BTW), I feel like it would be a shame if you didn't check out the series because I feel it fits perfectly into your tastes. I myself started the series when I heard there were Urusei Yatsura references in the series:

Couldn't find a clear anime counterpart of this so have the manga version instead. This is only just one of the references though.

And while looking up the reference, I came across a small plot summary and it intrigued me. Then I started the anime and I've been obsessed since. Like Ace Attorney, Detco is a mystery series with tons of lovable characters. It also has an overarching plot which keeps you intrigued at the same time. A series filled with Love, Thrill, Shock and Suspense to the brim. I would highly recommend it!!

You can experience the series by either manga or anime. I'd say for you anime might suit better since the manga is still ongoing, over 100 volumes, is officially licensed but it has localization (the names, 96% of the fandom uses the Japanese names), it is readable on the VIZ app for a small subscription, but the localization problem still exists. Of course, you can read fanscans without localization as well. Mangadex is good site for that.

As for the anime, it has over a 1000 episodes (+ movies and OVA and other stuff) but that's because it has tons of fillers. 65% of the series is canon to the manga. You can easily look up a filler list and watch which are canon according to that. There are good fillers, but you can watch those in your own time. There are movies as well, which even though not canon, I'd definitely still recommend.

I'd say if you're watching the TV series in the quickest time, it would take a few months. I think I took 5-6 months, but I also took a lot of breaks in between so it isn't all that relevant.

Anyways, even though watching Detco is time consuming it is still something I do not and will never regret because of story and characters this amazing (and memeable) and I'm pretty sure everyone else who have watched it feels the same.

Detco does have a sister series called Magic Kaito which is much shorter in case you've decided not to watch Detective Conan. It's a phantom thief focused series with 5 volumes and 25 something episodes. However, if you do watch Detco, you will come across Magic Kaito whether you like it or not..

In the end, the choice is up to you. Sorry for all the rambling, when I start talking about any my favorite things I just can't seem to calm down..

If you have any queries, feel free to ask! I'm open to any discussion!!

[whimpers-and-whumpers]

18. Do you prefer to give your ocs specific labels, or keep it unspecified? Why? If applicable, do you change their labels depending on circumstance?

For me, it really depends! A lot of the time, I don't know at first, unless their sexual/romantic/gender identity is one of the most fundemental parts of thier self identity or the plot. Sometimes, it's a changing thing.

One of my whumpees, Aiyan, is a great example! At first, I assumed only they/them pronouns, but eventually I realized they were a they/she type of person. I also had no idea about their agab until it became relevant (thry were naked in a scene). I still don't know their exact gender identity, just thrir pronouns and the fact that they're cisn't.

I also originally thought that she was asexual and aromantic because they seemed completely uninterested. But then, they developed a romantic relationship with another character and I realized they were demiromantic and grey ace.

When I figure out thier identities, I typically use modern terms to keep everything clear for myself, but will often change terminology in the actual story to mesh with their experiences.

For example, another character of mine is attracted to multiple genders and is a woman, but doesn't use the labels bi or pan because she's in a Victorian inspired setting. Similarly, Aiyan was raised in a very isolated and fundementalist community, so they didn't have the language to describe themself until they left.

So really, it depends on whether they have the language to describe themselves, whether that language would be different than today based on setting and culture, and whether I'm writing the story or a meta post like this!

Thanks for asking!

[theothersarshi]

ADDITION!

Sorry, I was writing this in the middle of watching Columbo last night, and I was too distracted to add Relevant Information. So here's a very long post.

I'm aware of the difference between aces and aros now... but kid!me wasn't. Additionally, I've since met aces of all sorts, but I can't remember meeting aros who might not be aces (unless my memory sucks, or they didn't come out to me). So, inevitably, when I talk of my own experiences, they'll be of meeting aces. Sorry, aros who aren't aces! I'd be happy to meet you, too! But fate hasn't decreed it yet.

Anyways, back to terminology, growing up and MORE.

Romania in the '90s wasn't exactly the most progressive place, and it was very busy going through social and economical upheaval, so I was often left to my own devices. I believe this happened even more to me than to my peers, because my family was also Going Through Some Things as I was growing up.

Anyway, I was a latchkey kid growing up in a world without internet and boring TV, few friends, few adults, reading, reading, reading. I came across things like spinster aunts and bachelor uncles in my fiction, and they were lovely characters who didn't seem to be miserable. I assumed they had made a choice to live that way, and I came to the logical conclusion that they were uninterested in relationships. Which, to me, was absolutely fair.

But I can't remember anyone talking about this. The real world around me was pretty limited, and the handful of adults I knew didn't often discuss their troubles, woes or personal views of the world around me. In turn, I didn't talk to them about my own views, either. This continued long after I became a teen.

(It would have been funny, I guess, if they'd known teen!me was coming up with action or adventure stories in which I was not only a grown woman kicking ass like a spy from hell, but I was sleeping around with men, and dating this guy who was dating other women. So you'd have dialogues like, "Put me in contact with your bf X's gf Y, who is a master poisoner."

But we didn't have those conversations. I found out very late that people actually do prefer monogamy, and it's not just a social convention, like whether you take your shoes off when you visit someone.)

I was lucky to move straight from my own head into the wide, wide world of fandom, reading a thousand variations on relationships and people. I didn't learn it bit by bit; I just dived, and because it wasn't structured learning, one thing I learned was to always allow for new data and new ideas. People are different! And that's awesome! Meeting all sorts of interesting people and hearing about all sorts of points of view is amazing!

I don't always click with other people's stories. I don't get trans people, for example; they are a mystery to me* (or rather, their particular trans experience is a mystery to me; as they're human, we can have a lot of other things in common). And, to be way more honest than is wise or polite, trans women have this period mid-transition when their voices do a thing that I can't handle for prolonged periods of time (to be fair, I get that with a small set of cis women, too; and one cis guy who has a voice issue).

But I've developed an idea about that, too: other people existing in a way I don't understand, or even a way that clashes with my sound sensitivity and saps me of energy, is not bad. Variation remains lovely and wonderful, even if I don't understand it or if I outright clash with it. We're all sure to bother others somehow, or to be incomprehensible to others, so it should be common courtesy to treat people well regardless.

(It's also important to learn how to tell the difference between "I'm bothered for reasons" and "I dislike this person".)

Anyway, I'm not always good with terminology, and I'm always forgetting this or that aspect, and I'm not following a lot of discourse. Which means that, sometimes, coming across discourse in the wild feels like landing somewhere in the aftermath of a disaster.

It might be a very flower-power outlook, and I might be too optimistic and silly, and it probably sounds too much like the naive "why can't we all get along", but I really think it all boils down to this: it's lovely to take a step back and appreciate that the world is complex, and there are all kinds of people you can meet, who have interesting lives, or have interesting views.

I might have mentioned aces in particular because they were on my mind last night, but it's lovely remembering how many ways there are to live a good life in general.

---

* I'm kind of agender, so the idea of "feeling your gender" is a mystery to me even when it comes from cis people, because it feels made up. Trans is like... "do you know the imaginary thing people arbitrarily feel one way or the other? Well, I don't feel one way, I feel the other!" And it's a bit like trying to multiply 3 2-digit numbers in my head, having to carry digits, remember where I'd started from, adding stuff, then losing it all in the middle of the operation as my mind goes blank.

I really like aces. They help me prove a point.

The point is that aces exist.

[hopelessly-aro]

Day the Universe Took Things Into its Own Hands

Soulmate September Day 10: Tattoo-like mark you share with your soulmate

Pairing: queer-platonic Analogical

Tags: soulmate au, college setting, queer-platonic relationship, aromantic Logan, aromantic Virgil, "just friends" to QPPs, mild angst, platonic love confessions, fluffy ending

Words: 2960

Summary: Logan and Virgil have been closer than best friends for years but Virgil can't work up the courage to tell Logan how much he loves him, and Logan doesn't know whether it needs saying. They have been dancing around the subject of their relationship for months. Eventually the universe takes the problem into its own hands.

Notes: I had the very vague idea for something like this for a while and when I saw the prompt decided I had to do this with analogical. QPRs of this relationship have a special place in my heart for reasons that are many and varied so I hope I did this justice. And in case it's not clear, they are in college, sharing an apartment.

Warnings: cursing, panic attack, lack of communication (but doesn't cause conflict)

AO3

"Today's the day" Virgil spoke to himself, running the shower. "I'm gonna tell him today. No backing out this time. No false starts. I'm going to do it."

It was the same thing he'd said to himself yesterday morning...and the day before that...and the day before that...and...

Ok to be honest he'd been planning to say it every morning for over a month but today felt different. Never mind that every day felt different, that wasn't the point.

It wasn't his fault he hadn't been able to tell Logan yet! Stuff just got in the way. Like sudden illness, or the time the bathroom flooded, or when Logan lost his favourite tie, or when Virgil's black ring went down a drain, or emailing back and forth with the student welfare team about repeat soul-status discrimination. Or all the times Virgil had just flat out lost the tiny amount of courage he'd been able to muster up while giving himself a pep talk in the shower.

About a week back, he'd gotten very close to succeeding, getting as far as "Logan, we've been best friends for five years now and-" before Logan suddenly realised they were both late for their next classes and asked to postpone the conversation for another time. Virgil had been very guilty relieved about the interruption. It was such a cliché way to start a conversation like that and he didn't want Logan to think he was a complete dork.

Yeah that was totally the reason. Virgil wasn't a coward at all.

No, today he was going to tell Logan just how much he loved him and that he wanted an official relationship with him. Logan wouldn't take that the wrong way would he? God, that would be really awkward if he thought it was a romantic confession. But, Virgil reassured himself, any misunderstandings would easily be cleared up and once it was done, it was done. They were already closer than best friends, lived together, knew each other better than anyone else, were really emotionally close. All Virgil was doing was saying a few little words they hadn't said before, and putting an official label on whatever society-defying thing their relationship was.

It wasn't that terrifying. He could do this.

-----

Virgil could absolutely not do this.

Nuh-uh, no way, not in a million years, never.

What if Logan didn't actually love him the same way Virgil did?

(That was ridiculous, of course Logan loved Virgil. Why else would he have moved in with him, and stayed through all the shit the two of them put up with, and hung out with him basically 24/7.)

What if Logan didn't want to put an official label on their relationship?

(Logan loved labels and definitions, and he said so often.)

What if he secretly thought that only soulmates should be in official relationships and soulmate-less people like him and Virgil were meant to be alone in every way?

(Highly unlikely given literally every one of Logan's previous actions and loudly vocalised opinions, ever.)

But Virgil was very tired and also a college student so you can imagine the kind of stress he was under.

Clearly it was just not meant to happen, he decided, lying face first on his bed and trying not to scream. It was useless to try. Obviously in not giving Virgil a soulmate, and then sending Logan his way, the universe had decided he was destined to a life of being with his best friend and platonic love of his life without ever actually being able to tell him how much he loved him, or being able to ask if living together and understanding each other and occasionally falling asleep curled up together was actually classed as a queer-platonic relationship.

By this point the universe was getting fed up.

-----

Logan was very confused.

It was rather difficult to tell if he was platonically in love with Virgil when all the descriptions and parameters of "true love" he had been able to find were centred around romantic love only and usually assumed the person you were in love with was your soulmate. Society's definition of love was highly inconvenient for two soulmate-less aromantics like them.

Was wanting to spend the rest of your life caring for another person enough to say you loved them? Probably.

Did Virgil feel the same way when he declared that socialising and affection sounded fake and then promptly spent the rest of the day lying on top of Logan, on the sofa, listening to music, and napping? Possibly.

Was it safe to assume the two of them were already in a queer-platonic relationship or should Logan check? Was that even what Virgil wanted? Logan had no fucking clue.

This was a problem Logan had no idea how to address. What should he hypothesise and how should he go about testing it? What data should be collected? When Virgil had said "Logan, we've been best friends for five years now and-", what on earth was he about to say?

Logan's only current plan of action was "wait and see" and it was a plan he hated.

Oh boy was the universe getting fed up. They needed a push in the right direction.

-----

Virgil wasn't even going to bother trying that day. His undying platonic love for Logan would have to remain unspoken.

He got into the shower and focussed his pep talk on how he was not going to even open tumblr until he'd done at least one class assignment, and he was going to go to bed by midnight. Virgil wasn't really sure why he bothered with all these promises to himself if he knew full well he wasn't going to keep them.

He'd make a good politician he thought sardonically.

As he climbed out the shower, and tired to throw on a towel without freezing, out the corner of his eye Virgil caught sight of a purple bruise on his shoulder. Odd. He didn't remember hitting his shoulder on anything recently.

Virgil turned to the mirror, twisting to get a clear view of the mark...and froze.

That was not a bruise.

If Virgil didn't know better, he'd say it was a soul mark, but that couldn't be right! He was twenty years old, these things were supposed to appear at like age 12! Why the hell would the universe give him a soulmate now of all times? Had it been waiting for him to give up trying to tell Logan how much he loved him? And now it had tied him to some other person he would never want to be with?

But there was no other explanation. It was a muted purple-grey cloud with a thin silvery moon in front of it and four stars in a sort of zig zag shape filling in the space where the rest of the moon would be, and a sort of navy blue smudge around the edges of the whole thing. Unless someone had tattooed it on him in the night, Surprise Soulmate was the only explanation.

After years of fighting society's prejudices against those without soulmates, and forging a relationship closer that anyone believed he should have with the one person who had ever understood him, Virgil had a soulmate. His most important defining feature, according to the rest of the world, had changed over night leaving Virgil completely lost.

What was he supposed to do?

Virgil was distantly aware that he was sitting on the bathroom floor, with his back to the wall, and his breathing was far to fast but also not fast enough. And all he could think was who even was he anymore?

He'd tried not to let his soul-status define him for so long but now it had changed how was he supposed to think of himself now?

Why had it happened?

And how would he tell Logan?

-----

Logan stared at his forearm, a litany of curses running through his head. It was unprecedented, completely illogical, that a soul mark should appear this late in life. That was the only reasonable explanation for the strange image of a cloud and celestial objects that had appeared on his arm.

Why, in the name of every scientist who had ever studied soul marks, himself included, did the universe refuse to give him a soulmate until after he had fully accepted himself as soulmate-less? He had completely settled into his life with Virgil, and was just starting to think maybe they could stay like this forever, and now this had happened. Fate had left him alone for so long, why was it paying attention to him now?

He felt like it invalidated every single struggle against prejudice and bigotry and self-loathing and fear he'd ever had to overcome. His entire life, Logan had struggled to be accepted by the rest of the world, but what was the point now? It felt like everything had been for nothing.

Even his friendship (or whatever it was) with Virgil had been built on the fact that they were both ostracised from society for the same reason. It was their mutual lack of soulmates that brought them together in the first place and the relationship had been built from there, and grown into so much more. And now Logan had to tell Virgil it was all a mistake because apparently the universe wanted Logan to be 'normal' after all.

There was a thud from the bathroom.

Virgil!

Suddenly all thoughts of cosmic authority were gone as Logan rushed across the tiny apartment to the bathroom. The shower had stopped running but the gasping from inside instantly told Logan that Virgil was either having or about to have a panic attack.

"Virgil! Virgil! You need to breath. Can you hear me? Knock on the door if you can. Virgil?"

There came a single knock but the breathing didn't clam down.

"Ok I'm going to come in. Knock now if you don't want me to."

There was another knock and that only worried Logan more. It seemed Virgil would have been able to grab a towel to cover himself if he were indecent so Logan didn't know why he didn't want to let him in. But that wasn't the priority right now.

"Alright, I shall help you as best I can from out here. Just listen to my counting and try to breath in time."

For several minutes Logan just counted: to four, then to seven, then to eight, and start again, until eventually Virgil was able to breath in time with the counting. He didn't stop until he heard a very small "thanks L" through the door.

"Would it be alright if I came in now? I need to check that you are not injured in any manner."

"Nah, I'm ok Lo. Y-you gotta got to class soon." He took a very unsteady breath and Logan frowned.

"I am not so dedicated to punctuality that I would be comfortable leaving you alone after an anxiety attack. However, I can see that right now you wish to have some space, therefor I shall cease pestering you...but please note I will be willing to listen if and when you ever want to talk about what happened. I presume I shall see you at lunch as per usual?"

"Jeez Logan, you can just say "suit yourself" you know. But yeah I'll see ya later."

"Indeed. Ahem, "see ya"." Logan's words had a slight rising inflection as he wondered if that had been the correct use of the phrase. From Virgil's shaky chuckle from the bathroom, he surmised he must have been at least partially correct.

Logan left for class, knowing he would be worrying about his definitely-not-just-a-friend at least until lunchtime.

-----

Lunchtime arrived far quicker than Virgil would have liked. He sat on the bench in the tiny campus park, bouncing his leg in anticipation of Logan's inevitable questioning. The bouncing increased when he spotted said man making his way over with two takeaway coffees.

"If the anticipation of telling me what caused this morning's panic attack is so stressful, you do not have to tell me anything. It is no problem if this is too personal."

Virgil was surprised. "You know, Logan, for someone who claims to be bad at reading people, you can always tell exactly what I'm thinking."

"I suppose that is what happens when one live for someone for two years."

That sent a stab of guilt through him. This morning he'd woken up to a sure sign from the universe that he was destined to end up closer to someone else than he was with Logan. What would Logan say if he knew? Would he think Virgil had been lying all this time? Would he insist that they stop being...whatever they were? Was Virgil going to break his heart when he told him? Or maybe Logan wouldn't care at all. That would probably break Virgil's own heart.

Keeping it secret from him was out of the question: Logan would know Virgil was hiding something and would probably assume he had done something to upset him. Besides, communication was important in any relationship, including ones so undefined as theirs.

"Logan...something happened this morning-"

"Is anyone hurt, mentally, physically or emotionally? Including you?"

"N-no! Not really. No, not hurt just...ugh this is so hard. Right. Okay. I just got to say it. Okay." He took a deep breath, and then another for good measure. "LoganIhaveasoulmark!"

There was a pause.

"I just found it this morning when I was having a shower it must have appeared over night I'm sorry I don't know what to do I don't want a soulmate I...Logan?"

He had that face on that meant he was processing a lot of thoughts far too fast for Virgil to tell what he might be thinking. It was a long minute before he spoke.

"Virgil I have a hypothesis I wish to test but whatever the outcome I want you to know that this development does not have to signal a change in our relationship or dynamic whatsoever unless you wish it to. Do you understand?"

"Oh yeah thank God I thought you might hate me or something-"

"That is preposterous Virgil, I could never hate you. Now, please describe what this soul-mark looks like."

"I..um...okay. It's a purple cloud with a moon and some weird ass stars and a bit of blue around it...L? You ok there buddy?"

As Virgil had spoken, Logan had become somehow more stiff than usual.

"Did-" he swallowed. "Did it look like this?" Logan pushed up his shirt sleeve to show...a soul mark...exactly the same as the one on Virgil's shoulder.

"Oh my God! It is! Fucking hell, look!" Virgil shrugged off his hoodie turning away to show Logan the mark on his shoulder, not covered by his tank top. "Oh thank God! Thank fuck it's you! My best friend is my soulmate! My best.... Logan? What's wrong?"

As Virgil turned back he saw Logan's face. His whole expression had closed off, the pain and confusion somehow clear as day. He looked...heartbroken.

"Is that all we are?"

"What?"

Logan swallowed. "Are we just friends?"

"O-oh...well I didn't think...I thought we were...what else would we be?"

"I...well I guess I thought we might be...q-queer-platonic partners. We never discussed it and I wasn't sure but I thought it was supposed to be obvious and that was why we never said anything..." he trailed off. Virgil had never seen him so speechless.

"Oh. I...yeah I mean shit Lo, I love you, platonically I mean, but I thought maybe you didn't or you didn't want our relationship to have that label..."

"If I have ever done anything to make you think I don't love you in the same way then I sincerely apologise. You have been much more than just a "best friend" to me for a very long time. It seems as though we may have to seriously work on our communication."

"...oh..."

"And Virgil what part of my essay on the importance of labels and micro-labels was unclear to you?"

"Cut me some slack here! I'm not the rational one in this relationship."

"Quite. So, to confirm: we both love each other-"

"At this point I'm basically platonically in love with you L."

"We are both in love with each other platonically, we both desire to label our relationship as queer-platonic, and we are also now soulmates for whatever reason."

"And we're both idiots."

"Indeed. I believe the phrase would be "why are we like this", correct?"

Virgil snorted. "You've summed it up pretty well there L."

"In that case, I suggest that queer-platonic relationship should be how we describe...this and we should refer to each other as our queer-platonic partner, though I do think 'my person' has a nice ring to it, and a certain sappiness which I find quite appealing at the moment, if you are amiable?"

"'My person'. Sounds perfect, L."

"Satisfactory."

Virgil leant into Logan's side and took a sip of his now very cold coffee.

"I love you."

He spoke so quietly he wasn't sure Logan heard until he put and arm awkwardly around his shoulder, making Virgil tuck in closer beside him.

"I love you too." Logan murmured back.

The universe sighed fondly. A day's work well done.

~~*~~

Frick I love these two and I always think a QPR suits them so well. I hope I conveyed their relationship ok. Thank you for reading!

I did a little drawing of the soul mark by the way, here.

@tsshipmonth2020

[fallintosanity]

😸

haha, I had an absurd amount of fun trying to figure out which cookies Sephiroth liked. I didn't want it to be anything as mundane as chocolate chip, and something about the words "strawberry cream" makes it 10x funnier to me that they're the favorite of Final Fantasy series' most notorious evil villain.

This was also a little bit of me-the-author lampshading the fact that nobody ever freaking comments on Sephiroth's slit pupils. I know I ranted about it in the chapter notes, and that there are potentially perfectly valid reasons for it, but like. COME ON. Noctis, as a complete outsider to the world, doesn't have the context or the history to not comment on it. (And as a cat lover, he has the relevant physiological understanding to recognize the meaning behind the pupil motions.)

On the more serious side of things, Noctis is also thinking about Ravus here, and the still-new-to-Noctis revelation that the daemons he'd been indiscriminately killing, were in fact innocent people and animals infected with Starscourge. Counting his time on Gaia, it's only been about eight months since everything that happened in Gralea, at least as far as his perception of time goes. (It's actually been close to five years, but in canon he doesn't seem to have any awareness of how much time passed in the Crystal until Talcott tells him.) After learning about mako mutants during the mission to Rocket Town, he's seeing uncomfortable parallels between mako mutants and daemons. Given how SOLDIERs are made, Noctis is trying to figure out whether Midgar is another Gralea waiting to happen - i.e., that the entire populace, starting with its military, will get turned into monsters.

Finally, I wanted to use this conversation, despite Noctis's questions, to humanize this timeline's Sephiroth a bit. He likes cookies! He gets excited to see his favorites, and takes extras! We spend most of this fic inside Cloud's head, and he sees Sephiroth and the Calamity as the same person monster, but they're very much not.

In Crisis Core, at least pre-Nibelheim, Sephiroth is intensely human. He sighs, he leans on things, he (within the limits of the PSP's graphics capabilities) blinks and breathes, he visibly winces and yanks the phone away from his ear when Zack yells too loudly. Meanwhile, the animators for Advent Children mentioned in an interview that they deliberately stiffened AC!Sephiroth's animation - unlike all the other main characters, he doesn't blink, doesn't breathe, doesn't show signs of effort while fighting, etc. They wanted him to look alien and inhuman, to emphasize that he's become a monster in truth.

I wanted to do the same in this fic - to delineate between the pre-Nibelheim Sephiroth who's remarkably human despite his alien genetics, and the Calamity who has cast aside all his humanity. Noctis noticing, and remarking on, the fact that Sephiroth got excited about cookies is meant to help readers remember that Cloud's perception of Sephiroth is biased, and this Sephiroth is still a human guy in his early twenties, despite his extreme military upbringing.

(This scene is also a nod to my desperate desire to see Sephiroth's pupils actually do the thing in Remake somewhere. C'mon, Squenix, make it happen!!!)

Ask me stuff?

[coldgoldlazarus]

So, let's see where everyone's at right now.

-Ironwood has put a huge metaphorical gun to the head of an entire city, and as a result has made enemies of like, 95% of the people who might still have held some scrap of hope for him to come around. After this, I don't think there's any hope for reconciliation. Whether he realizes it or not, he has changed his gamemode to Current Objective: Survive

-Qrow and Robyn are loose and incredibly pissed. I have no doubt Qrow is gunning for Jimmy's head already, and if she saw the emergency broadcast, Robyn will be even more furious. They will be out for blood.

-Winter's currently in "abused child shying away from angry dad" mode, but it's hard to say how long that'll last. If she goes along with this, it'll be out of fear rather than genuine belief in what she's doing, but with Weiss's life potentially on the line, she may finally turn on Ironwood for good. Meanwhile, Marrow is just, increasingly done with all this bullshit. Pspspspsps, etc.

-The other three Ace-Ops may also be ready to defect. Even Harriet, lost in the sauce as she is rn, was shocked by Ironwood's tablesmash; I'm holding out hope that they can get past their indoctrination and do the right thing as well.

-The other Happy Huntresses are presently indisposed keeping Ironwood's initial salvo from killing people, and unless the action goes back down to Mantle, I don't see them being especially relevant for the time being. However, that doesn't mean they're completely out for the count, and could still plausibly come in clutch later.

-RWBY+ are finally back together, and Ironwood has just definitively announced himself as their current enemy. They have to at least pretend to go along with his demands to keep Mantle from getting destroyed, but they absolutely will not just give in that easily, especially now that they have an illusionist with something to prove on their side.

-Speaking of which, Emerald is an illusionist with something to prove. She's not completely in the group right now, and there's a lot of understandable mistrust to sort out, but for the time being I think she's tied to them whether they like it or not. That may either change or be solidified, however, by whatever comes from her inevitable reunion with Cinder.

-Penny seems to be down for the count again after her thrashing by the Hound, but the virus is still worming its way in, and she's still the Winter Maiden; control over her is what this whole conflict has been about, and I have little doubt she will be active and central again soon enough, likely in a way that throws a monkey wrench into everyone's plans.

-Team FNKI are still MIA. If they didn't survive, I will be pissed. Also, Where The Fuck Is Ciel Soleil?

-Cinder is currently caught between her desire for power and her fear of Salem, and will have to choose between getting the Maiden powers from Penny, or getting the Lamp back by finally completing Neo's loyalty mission. Either way, however, it's gonna put her on a collision course with RWBY+, and who knows how that will turn out. Watts will likely be along for the ride whether he likes it or not, and Neo will definitely be getting involved.

-Ironically, the Lamp may be a moot point now, if Neo did indeed use the last question. And if she did, that could have drastically changed her course as well; she may still be gunning for Ruby, but she may be about to turn on Cinder as well. As ever, she's a wild card unto herself amidst the general chaos.

-And all the while, it's anyone's guess how long it will take for Salem to respawn. She may not be infinitely powerful, and losing Monstra was definitely a huge blow, (though given how slowly it's dissolving, and the rib structures that seem to be left behind, I wouldn't be surprised if it remains relevant in some way) but she's still Salem, and the clock is ticking.

I don't know what exactly the last few episodes are going to look like, but it's going to be insane. I can only imagine a massive five-way battle-royale in the Vault Chamber when all is said and done, but the situation is still so volatile that it could wind up going in a completely different direction. I can't wait to see it happen.

[bobbyshaddoe80]

Liberated Audio Reviews

Blake's 7 - Liberator Chronicles Vol. 4 Review

RELEASED MAY 2013

Recorded on: 22 February, 18 April and 3 July 2012, and 4 January 2013

Recorded at: Moat Studios

Review By Robert L. Torres

Promises by Nigel Fairs

'Saurian Minor. A dead rock in space.

Cally is alone with Travis, Blake's mortal enemy, both trapped on this desolate world - and someone has brought them here for a reason.

As they delve into the past, a long-hidden secret that links them both is uncovered.

Gradually, the truth about Scetona Clorensis will be revealed...'

This is a superb two hander/dual focused story starring Jan Chappell as Cally and featuring the return of Stephen Greif to the role of Space Commander Travis.

From the moment he was introduced alongside Jacqueline Pearce's Servalan in the Series A episode 'Seek-Locate-Destroy', I have loved the character of Travis. He was the Javert to Blake's Jean Valjean, and I was pleased as punch to hear Stephen Greif's dulcet tones give life to this character once more.

As an aside, I have always preferred Greif's portrayal of the character over that of Brian Croucher's. Nothing against Brian Croucher as a performer, as I feel he did great in 'Robots of Death' and the Kaldor City audios. However, Stephen Greif gave Travis a nuanced and layered performance, which gave his obsession with bringing Blake to justice a certain subtlety in its intensity... All of which was sorely lacking in Croucher's portrayal.

The story itself, which is very well written by Nigel Fairs, allows both actors to showcase aspects of their characters we never got to see portrayed onscreen while still remaining true to what was shown onscreen. Its interesting that this story is basically a sort of return match for Travis and Cally, and a great opportunity for Cally to get some payback following on from the events of the aforementioned 'Seek-Locate-Destroy'. Jan Chappell and Stephen Greif do exceptionally well with the material, as it was nice to see their antagonism focused and concentrated without the presence of Blake and company. It was rather nice having the tables turned between them, and for very specific reasons.

I loved how this story explored the events that ultimately led to Cally's introduction to the series in the episode 'Time Squad'. And it was also rather nice to gain some backstory on Travis and I especially loved how the dual focus for their stories was tied to the character of Scetona Clorensis.

9 out of 10 Plasma Bolts

All in all, a great opening story to volume four.

Epitaph by Scott Harrison

'When the Liberator picks up a distress call from a stricken ship, Jenna and Vila teleport across. For Jenna, it's the chance for a reunion with a fellow smuggler.

But the cry for help is not what it appears, and Jenna will meet the surviving members of her family.

The reunion will take her on a deadly mission - one from which not everyone will come out alive...'

This is another fantastic story, this time focused on another one of my favorite characters from the first two seasons: Jenna Stannis, once again played by the lovely and talented Sally Knyvette.

Before getting into the story, I have to say that I thought Jenna was awesome right from the start. However, I felt that she wasn't given enough to do or much to work with over time. It was very disheartening to see this beautiful, badass ace pilot be reduced to, as Sally Knyvette herself put it, "the Liberator Housewife".

I felt it was quite unfair to her as an actress that her character got the short end of the stick in terms of character development, agency and plot relevance. Which is why its no surprise she left after Series B.

Kudos to BF for doing everything in their power to right this terrible wrong even before crafting this brilliant Jenna-centric story.

In Volume 1's 'Counterfeit', there is a point in the story where Blake describes a moment where Jenna actually posed as Supreme Commander Servalan for one of their missions. And you have no idea how much I would have loved to have seen that happen onscreen.

As an aside, credit to Nigel Fairs and Simon Robinson for the music composition work they've done on the Blake's 7 range. They manage to recreate the otherworldly retro future soundscape created on a Casio Keyboard that was very indicative of late 70s early 80s era low budget scifi on TV in the UK.

Anyway, this story sees Jenna reunited with her brother and sister-in-law, forcing her to deal with the ramifications and consequences of her decision to join Blake's fight against the Federation. Its a great story that is well supported by Michael Keating as Vila, as it allows Jenna to be the badass babe she was always meant to be. The plot provides Knyvette with some great character exploration, as well as some great introspection over whether being a stronger person equates with being a better person. As a bonus, the story even sows the seeds for Jenna to have her own Travis-like nemesis in the form of Marshall Cade.

9 out of 10 Plasma Bolts

If Knyvette had been given more material like this during her time on the show, she probably wouldn't have left.

And don't worry... The Marshall Cade plot thread will be picked up again in the full cast audio 'Mirrors'. But that's a review for another time.

Kerr by Nick Wallace

'Supreme Commander Servalan believes she has a vital insight into the Liberator crew - a clone of Avon.

He looks the same. He sounds the same. He even appears to think the same.

And he offers to spring a trap that will bring down Blake and his crew.

But can the clone be trusted?'

We close out Volume Four with yet another excellent story.

The central focus of the story is once more on Supreme Commander Servalan, played to perfection by the late Jacqueline Pearce.  It is here that we witness Servalan's latest plot to ensnare Blake and the crew of the Liberator from the perspective of the Supreme Commander herself.  The plot itself involves utilizing a clone of Avon to devise a winning strategy, which also involves an old ally from Avon's past.

The notion of utilizing clones is familiar enough to anyone that saw the Series B episode 'Weapon' (ideas and concepts that will FINALLY be followed up on in the upcoming Worlds of Blake's 7 boxset 'The Clone Masters').

Despite the fact that LC Volume 4 indicates that this story is meant to take place during the events of Series A, it doesn't really feel like a first season story.  For one thing, Servalan didn't officially meet the Liberator crew until the Series B episode 'Pressure Point'.  For another, its during Series C and D that we have the back and forth sexual tension between Avon and Servalan.  As such it wouldn't make a lot of sense for Servalan to specifically have a clone of Avon created for one of her schemes before she even met him. So, setting this story between 'Pressure Point' and 'Trial' makes a lot more sense, especially given what transpires in the story itself.

Its an excellent story that showcases Servalan's fascination with Avon fairly early on, and highlights well the similarities and flaws in both Avon and Servalan. Both are intelligent as well as ambitious. Both tend to have ulterior motives and are not above employing subterfuge, guile, deceit and manipulation of others in order to achieve their goals and agendas.

While Avon often knows he is the smartest person in the room and often finds most people annoying (usually Vila), he doesn't completely dislike people. But his problem is that he doesn't completely trust people. And it seems that even his clone, Kerr, shares that particular character flaw.

Servalan shares with Avon a profound sense of confidence that borders on arrogance. But what compounds that arrogance is Servalan's smug, self-centered sense of superiority. She treats people as little more than disposable pets, useful and able to provide amusement, but otherwise are unimportant.

In addition, her egocentric narcissism essentially has her view everything and everyone as beneath her. She believes all and sundry are meant to serve her will without question or discussion, and rudely dismisses any attempt made by those she sees as lesser to engage with her socially or intellectually.

The only one she feels could even be CLOSE to her equal is Avon. And yet, even with a clone of Avon, Servalan cannot help but treat him as little more than a dog on a leash rather than as a person.

But of course, we all know what happens when a dog is mistreated too often by its owner... Don't we?

10 out of 10 Plasma Bolts

A brilliant story that also nicely foreshadows (in a retroactive manner) certain events in Series D, and may even provide some valuable context and insight into Avon's actions and mindset during the final moments of the series finale.

Final score for Liberator Chronicles Volume 4 in its entirety is 9 out of 10 Plasma Bolts.

An outstanding step up in quality that demonstrates Big Finish's enduring policy of maximizing potential in both character and story development that had otherwise been left unfulfilled. Highly recommended.

[aro-thoughts]

Ok ok here's the tea and it's relevant to what you're saying abt relationships-

The anniversary of when I realised I was aro is coming up very soon, see- twas last year, on the day of the 15th of June. At the time, I identified as biromantic asexual cuz I mistook my aesthetic attraction for romantic while knowing that I definitely was ace. I'd seen aros every now and then on Tumblr and never thought that was me. Until this day.

I was in a group chat w a bunch of my irl friends. Almost all of them were queer in some way and there was 1 other alloace called Leah. The topic of the day was romance - everyone was talking abt how they craved, needed a boyfriend/girlfriend/partner right fucking now. It occured to me that I did not relate to this conversation at all. I knew I had felt romantic attraction twice in my life (still debating whether that rlly was romantic or not) but I had never, in my entire life, craved romance. And now that I was thinking abt it I'd never even mildly wanted it ever other than only those 2 times. Interesting.

But I asked Leah abt this tho cuz I assumed this was just an ace thing right? No, she said she actually craved romance, like, all the fucking time?? Oh. Okay then.. And it seems everyone else in the group chat was also craving romance all the time. Interesting.

I did some research into aromanticism, identified with the label greyromantic, and my then girlfriend broke up with me for some ironically similar reasons to me being totally fine with it. She wasn't identifying as arospec herself but she'd felt some kind of romance aversion and just didn't want romance, and coming to terms w my arospec identity let me handle that completely well 👍

I dug into more research, coming across the term queerplatonic. I found it very intriguing and loved it a lot. What I think I should've mentioned in the section abt me not craving romance earlier is that I hadn't realised I was aro sooner cuz I liked the idea of being close to someone or being in a close relationship. I showed this term to my now queerplatonic partner and soon before his birthday he asked me out :)

Unfortunately, he asked me out over Instagram and for some reason even when I scroll back as far as I can go I can't find the date it happened on? So we just count the anniversary of my realising I was aro as our relationship anniversary (his birthday is 10th September..just thought it'd be stupid to pick any random date).

In conclusion- I realised I wasn't aro because I realised I didn't crave romance. Now that I think abt it I don't crave a relationship either, but I like them a lot. I think I want cuddles and kisses and fun dates at town but I don't crave any of them, nor have I any attraction towards ppl surrounding them. I like romantically-coded activities but in non-romantic ways.

I hope that helps you in some way :) thank you for asking and thank you for giving me an opportunity to share my story 😊

Okay, question for aromantic people who want/are in a qpr:

How did you guys realize that you’re aro? Because I’ve been searching the internet a bit and I’ve seen a lot of aro people saying they realized they were aro because they never wanted a relationship, but how did you guys figure out that you’re aro while still wanting to be in a relationship of some sort?