#cause regardless of if hes interested in it or not it takes lots of perception and smarts to do that

[menolly5600]

Cave boy Danny has way to much fun fucking with the bats after a while. Jason is too until Danny bites him after some unwanted human contact. Alfred gets a big wave of nostalgia when Danny does it too.

Danny can say that the Waynes have been ridiculously welcoming, all things considered. He still hasn't come clean about not being Bruce Wayne's alternative double, so to throw them off from finding out the truth and have a safe place to crash- he's missed plumbing- he has been invited to the Wayne Manor and has been lazing about when under their watch.

If there was one thing apparent, it was that Bruce Wayne did not laze about. It was mind-blowing to those who knew him to see Danny- a version of Bruce- act like walking across the room for a remote was too much work.

It drove them mad to see such a difference between them, and thus, none of the Waynes noticed Danny's side project to get home.

The Waynes gave him a giant room and helped set up a fake Identity for him while they worked on getting him home. To the public, he was Danny Kane, a long-lost relative recently coming to Bruce for help.

Thanks to the support of Jacob and Kate, they agree to make it seem that Jack Kane- Danny's made-up father- was the result of Bruce's material grandfather having a fling after his wife's death. Jake was hidden from the public eye but had his father's financial support until he was an adult.

Jack was never bitter and told Danny stories of his wayward father, filled with love to prove it. These stories inspired Danny to seek out the remaining Kanes after Jack's untimely death, which led him to Bruce as Martha Wayne nee Kane's son.

The day Danny would be sent home, the Waynes would fake his death, and no one would be the wiser that Danny Kane never existed.

Fine by Danny

. He only planned to stick around long enough to get his ship ready and pinpoint a location that had the vile between the living and dead thin enough to slice his way back to the Ghost Zone.

Unlike Wulf, who could open portals wherever he wanted, Danny had to find points weak enough to punch a hole through. He knows his parent's portal was way out of his set of skills, and he sure as hell wasn't going to give anyone the idea to build their own here. Two percent of portals were already two too many.

He mostly hung around the house- with someone always close by in a poor attempt to hide the fact they were watching him. Most of the time, Danny was either lazing around the house, eating and sleeping, and it felt like a costly vacation.

He refused to help on the coms when the Bats went out to kick ass, even after Dick offered to sit in front of monitors and relay information to the heroes like he was offering the chance of a lifetime.

This seems to disturb everyone else in the house except for Alfred.

If anything, the fact Danny straight-up refused to put on tights and rush into night to fight crime made Alfred adore him. The butler claimed he was worried everyone in the family would forget what everyday life was supposed to feel like.

A few Waynes couldn't seem to wrap their heads around the concept.

"You're not interested at all?" Tim asks, eyes narrowed. He was among the few who thought Danny was suspicious for not wanting to risk his life to fight the corrupted system.

"Nah, man, I'm good here. I got my nachos, I got a movie room and I got the softest bathrobe ever bathrobe." Danny snuggles more profoundly into the pink plush robe that Steph had lent him. "Why would I want to ruin any of these? Sides, I can't even throw a punch."

".....There has never been a single alternative Bruce Wayne that wasn't involved in this life in some way. If not as a hero then he was a villain. Bruce as a villain is one of the most dangerous things that can ever happen across the multiverse" Tim reveals grimly. "We've won every single encounter but only by the skin of our teeth."

"Damn. Let me guess. You guys beat the evil Bruces by sending his kids after him."

"Yes."

"Problem solve. You already know you can kick my ass, so if I try anything, you can take me out, right?" Danny doesn't wait for a answer. He turns away from the teenager to stare at the movie screen showing his picked movie. "I can do nothing but tremble before your bat might."

Tim steps into his line of sight. "I mean it. You do anything to harm this family and will regret it."

"Does that mean I can't bite Jason again? That sucks. It's the only way I can get him to stop trying to drag me to galas. He wants to scare the other rich people with my poor people's manners."

Tim's lip twitches and Danny knows he's fighting to keep his face under control. "You didn't have to lock your jaw in like that."

"I really did. Jason tested me."

Tim tilts his head. "You don't really feel like Bruce. You look just like him at fifteen. Alfred says you act just like him. But for the last three weeks, you've been trying really hard to make it seem like you're okay with doing nothing."

"I am comfortable doing nothing."

"I think you're lying," Tim says, moving closer to stare down into Danny's eyes with frankly a manic glare. Danny's core flares up with the sense of challenge he finds in that dark blue gaze.

Which is a first for a human, and frankly is terrifying. If Tim had been a ghost he would have easily been an Ancient assistant or a baby Ancient. He has to be able to match Danny's power like this. Holy shit.

"I think your parents didn't give you enough love as a child, and now you seek approval from everyone around you while trying to push everyone away because you are too scared to make yourself valuable. You find yourself in an endless loop of self-doubt and self-hate by doing both simultaneously." Danny blurts. He watches Tim freeze, then winces. "Shit, sorry, the psychoanalyze came out as a reflection. Forget that."

Tim is still frozen in a way Danny recognizes as someone hearing something challenging to come to terms with. This is why he needs to break the habit of using Jazz's psyche training as a weapon.

He forgets not everyone insults each other with their deepest insecurities. That's just how he and Jazz love.

"...Do you want to watch the Grey Ghost Marathon with me?" He asks after a long pause. Tim closes his eyes before plumping down next to him.

"I like that."

Neither mention Jason, who is gasping in the last row of seats and attempting to suppress muffled laughter behind the wrist cast that Danny lovingly gave him at the last gala.

On a side note, Danny Kane is called "Rabid Dog." by the elites of Gotham, who watched the boy make three grown men cry after two minutes of talking to him and also witness four Waynes attempt to pry his mouth open screaming, "No Danny drop it. drop it!" while the boy munched on Jason's wrist.

No one has noticed that half of the tech has disappeared.

[hornychristianprincess]

NSFW A-Z: WONBIN

a/n: this is just my personal analysis based off my perception and observations of wonbin's personality. all of this is fiction/fantasy

A = Aftercare (what they’re like after sex)

Immediately after sex, Wonbin wants to be close to you, no matter how sweaty or gross the two of you are. While recovering in bed with you, he’ll be filled with a sort of cocky smugness as he reflects on just how good the sex was. His confidence will be boosted, causing him to be more talkative than usual and say whatever’s been on his mind. Once you’ve both recuperated, he’ll more often than not want to go for another round.

B = Body part (their favorite body part of theirs and also their partner’s)

On himself, Wonbin takes a lot of pride in his abs/torso. As a dancer and performer, he works hard to achieve and maintain his physique. I can imagine him having a lot of shirtless pics on his phone.

On his partner, Wonbin is a boob man all day, every day. Regardless of his partner’s size, there’s just something about the softness of them that is comforting to him. Even just feeling them through your shirt during a hug is enough to rile him up.

C = Cum (anything to do with cum, basically)

I think Wonbin is a little finicky when it comes to any sort of mess so I’d say he prefers to come inside of his partner or in a condom. When he’s finished, there’s ease in being able to either throw the condom away or take a shower with you so you can wash up together.

D = Dirty secret (pretty self explanatory, a dirty secret of theirs)

We all know Wonbin works really hard to maintain this mysterious, cold image, but with a partner who he feels comfortable with, Wonbin is the biggest softie. When he finds someone he loves – a feat on it’s own since he is such an introvert – they become his entire world. He would do anything to please them. He doesn’t want anyone knowing this because of how it would crack this persona he’s crafted for himself.

E = Experience (how experienced are they? do they know what they’re doing?)

Wonbin has been handsome his whole life so I would guess he had no shortage of suitors. However, I don’t see him as the type to just go around slinging dick to everybody. It takes a lot for him to take interest in someone and even longer before he’s comfortable initiating sex. Still, I’d venture to say he has some experience under his belt.

F = Favorite position (this goes without saying)

Wonbin is a fan of any position where he can comfortably look into your eyes, so usually missionary or cowgirl is what he goes for. Being able to see your expressions as he pleases you is integral to Wonbin’s own pleasure. He likes to maintain intense, searing eye contact with whoever he’s fucking, and these two positions are what most easily allow for that.

G = Goofy (are they more serious in the moment? are they humorous? etc.)

In the lead-up to sex, Wonbin uses jokes to mask how nervous or excited he is. He hopes that by being playful he’ll come off as cool. Once the sex actually begins though, he is deadly serious and intense. He becomes too focused on either giving or receiving pleasure to find anything funny. It’s similar to how he is when he performs on stage; Wonbin on stage and Wonbin off stage are two different people. Off stage, he can be personable and charming, but once he gets into performance mode, he takes what he’s doing so seriously that he can’t consider anything else.

H = Hair (how well groomed are they? does the carpet match the drapes? etc.)

Wonbin only bothers to groom himself when he has a partner, otherwise he can’t be bothered. In the beginnings of a relationship, he appreciates it when his partner puts in the effort to shave. But once you’ve been together for a while and built that camaraderie, he couldn’t care less.

I = Intimacy (how are they during the moment? the romantic aspect)

I think Wonbin enjoys receiving intimacy but not giving intimacy if that makes sense. Like he is fully comfortable with saying romantic things to you and watching as it makes you get worked up and emotional. But the moment when you do the same and he starts to get overwhelmed with emotion, he’ll be quick to hide his face in your neck or bite your shoulder to hold back his whines. As I’ve already alluded to, he shies away from anything that would put a crack in his mysterious persona. In other words, emotional vulnerability is difficult for him but he’s more than happy to hold space for and even provoke your own expressions of emotional intimacy.

J = Jack off (masturbation headcanon)

Wonbin masturbates rarely and mostly as a means to either let off stress or cure boredom. I see him masturbating the most in the shower after a long day of work, allowing his worries to release down the drain. In many ways, I see him as someone who only appreciates masturbation for its basic utility rather than for the pleasure it brings. To him, sex is a pleasure best enjoyed with a partner.

K = Kink (one or more of their kinks)

overstimulation (giving and receiving): Wonbin is turned on by the idea of fucking until you both literally can’t anymore. To do that requires draining each other’s bodies for all of the energy they have. This man likes to go for rounds. And he won’t want to stop until you both can’t move.

marking (giving and receiving): seeing marks on each other’s skin after sex is a pride point for Wonbin. It’s evidence of just how good the sex was. when receiving, Wonbin likes scratches on his back or even a bloody lip after a passionate kiss. When giving, Wonbin likes seeing the fleeting mark of his handprint on your ass after he smacks it, and more longlasting, hickies on every part of your body.

L = Location (favorite places to do the do)

Wonbin doesn’t have any location preference. He is honestly down to fuck you any time, any place. Still, he’s aware that his partner would likely feel most comfortable to let loose in the privacy of a bedroom, so he’s fine with that.

M = Motivation (what turns them on, gets them going)

Before sex even comes to mind for him, he is turned on by a person who is a little hard to get. Because he is so used to the attention of potential suitors. It’s easier to get his attention by not trying to pursue him at all, at least initially. Additionally, he is attracted to unique people with lots of confidence in themselves and their interests. 

What motivates him sexually is feeling a strong level of trust with his partner. What also motivates him is his desire to please. I think Wonbin sometimes has thoughts of not being enough for a person. He sees sex as being the thing that could make someone stay if they feel like he’s lacking in other places. When he fucks, he makes the pleasure of his partner his biggest priority. He is turned on by their reactions and praise. In many ways, he sees praise of his sexual abilities as an affirmation of his personhood. Sex is one of his ways of expressing his love. Whenever he feels a strong surge of love for you romantically, it will immediately translate to him wanting to fuck you.

N = No (something they wouldn’t do, turn offs)

He’s turned off by someone who makes him feel even slightly judged for who he is as a person. I mentioned earlier that he likes people who play hard to get, but once you get past those initial meetings that define the beginning of the relationship, he has little tolerance for indifference. He wants his partner to be just as into him as he is into them.

O = Oral (preference in giving or receiving, skill, etc.)

Wonbin loves both giving and receiving head. As mentioned in my last answer, Wonbin is a huge giver. What turns him on about giving head is seeing his partner’s satisfied expressions and knowing that he possesses the power to make them feel euphoric in this way. And being the man he is, he loves to receive head. He finds you sexiest when you’re salivating over his dick, begging to have it in your mouth even after you’ve already made him come so many times this way before.

P = Pace (are they fast and rough? slow and sensual? etc.)

By and large, I think his pace is dependent on whatever his partner asks of him at that moment or whatever he thinks is gonna feel the best for you. Usually he’ll start out slow just to get a feel for the rhythm of things, but he’ll have his moments where the sex starts to feel so good that he’ll get overwhelmed and start rutting into you roughly.

Q = Quickie (their opinions on quickies, how often, etc.)

Quickies aren’t Wonbin’s favorite way to fuck, but he’s also not at all opposed to them. It’s not something that happens often, especially because he likes to carve out substantial time with you so that he’s not having to rush intimacy. Still, in moments where you only have a few moments to yourselves, he’d rather have you for a short time than not at all.

R = Risk (are they game to experiment? do they take risks? etc.)

There is nothing inherently satisfying about taking risks for Wonbin. Rather, he can become so turned on by his partner that his desire outweighs any fear. If you and Wonbin are in public and he finds himself enthralled by you in some way, he has no problem with pulling you aside and having his way with you, or even playing with you under the table during a public dinner. The risk of getting caught is irrelevant if not meaningless to him. Were he ever to get caught, he would be quick to shut down any teasing or outside conversation. He prefers to keep the private life of himself and his partner out of the conversations of others.

S = Stamina (how many rounds can they go for? how long do they last?)

I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again – rounds rounds rounds rounds. In each round, Wonbin’s first priority is to make you come, and with that in mind, he is able to hold back on his own orgasm for however long he needs to. After each round, he does need some time to recuperate, but once he’s good, he’ll be ready and needy for more. On a perfect day with Wonbin you’ll fuck, watch a movie, get bored and fuck again, get some food, fuck, and just keep going in that pattern until you collapse in bed tiredly by the end of the day. Once he’s done though, he’s done. 

T = Toys (do they own toys? do they use them? on a partner or themselves?)

Wonbin is open to both using toys and having toys used on him. While he’s fucking you, I could see him reaching over to a bedside drawer, grabbing a vibrator and using it to stimulate your clit while he gives you long, deep thrusts. Conversely, if you were to incorporate a vibrator or cock ring while giving him head, he might just cry like a baby. All in all, anything that can be used to enhance both of your pleasures’ is a win for him. 

U = Unfair (how much they like to tease)

Wonbin is only a tease outside of the bedroom. Inside it, he gets right to the point and doesn’t have the patience to delay anything by teasing you. His focus is on making the both of you feel good. To him, pleasure is a feeling best enjoyed when instantaneous rather than to be delayed by pointless lollygagging.

V = Volume (how loud they are, what sounds they make, etc.)

Wonbin only allows groans and grunts to come out when he feels like they sound dignified and gruff. The moment a whine threatens to come out, he’s quick to bite your shoulder to hold it back. If a means of hiding his whines isn’t immediately accessible, he’ll just look and sound really pained as he fights to hold back what he’s feeling. He always wants to appear composed and in control of his reactions.

W = Wild card (a random headcanon for the character)

“I love you,” he’d say, a breezy tiredness to his voice as he fucked you for what felt like the tenth time that night. “So, so much.”

These were the sort of inclinations Wonbin would get every time he was inside you. The soft, sentimental part of him is something you only got to see, something you managed to bring out of him so easily with the pleasure of your sex. The closer he got to coming, the rougher and more restless he come feel himself being. He pinned your wrists against the bed, eyes never leaving yours as his thrusts increased in impact.

“You’re mine forever, Y/N. No one can fuck you as good as I do. You belong to me,” he’d growl, each thrust punctuated by a kiss from his signature star shaped necklace, hanging from his neck and dragging up your face. You were close, and he could tell, the feeling of you clenching around him plus the telltale shutting of your eyes giving it away. Longing to be close to you in these moments, his face collapses onto yours as he initiates a languid, messy kiss.

“Come for me. Wet me,” he’d pull away to command. “Wanna feel you drip down my cock, pretty girl.” Those were the last words you were able to register before you were launched into the most powerful orgasm of your life, Wonbin following after you with a poorly suppressed whine only shortly after.

X = X-ray (let’s see what’s going on under those clothes)

I don’t have any strong inclinations either way. I just know that whatever he lacks in the sack he more than makes up for in other areas. Whatever his size is, it gives him no reason to not feel confident in his sexual abilities.

Y = Yearning (how high is their sex drive?)

I’d say his sex drive is pretty average. Sex with him is pretty physically demanding so it often happens that you fuck 1-3 times a week with a day or two between each time. 

Z = Zzz (how quickly they fall asleep afterwards)

Once he’s gotten all the rounds out of his system, his energy is completely depleted. He’ll sleep like a baby.

[adelheidvonschicksal]

Fem Reader who possesses the Curse technique ability of the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception (This power comes from the Fate series)? Bonus, if she’s like sweet and gentle to everyone, but in battle, she’s cold, merciless, and swift? HCs with the JJK men, like Gojo, Itadori, Megumi, Sukuna?

Most characters think you can stand with them. The big dogs of the big dogs. As a student, they'd bet 100% that you'd go for Special Grade given the proper training. As an adult, you’re probably already one, if not a very strong first grade.

Sukuna has strong interest in your technique.

He sees someone with the ability to kill anything regardless of the power difference. He automatically wants to see it in action and the potential damage it can cause. If possible, he’d even like to claim the skill for himself (think of his interest in the Executioner’s sword).

Your technique causes you to be high on his list of most potential, second only to Megumi. The only thing that stops you from being first on his list is that you still need awareness on how to kill your target or get around their technique to be able to touch your target. If Sukuna touches someone, chances are he’s going to kill them anyway.

Either way, he wants to keep you alive for now if only to see if that sweet nature of yours (the one holding you back) will win out over the cold, calculated, barbarian he knows is inside you when you fight. It’s a form of entertainment while he’s under lock and key in Itadori’s body.

If things had been different, he might've been willing to keep you as a servant ALA Uraume.

Satoru thinks the world of you.

He has you right up there next to Yuuta and Geto in terms of skills and personal importance. He didn’t really expect after his birth, when the Jujutsu world spun and more powerful curses appeared, that it would also be accompanied by the revival of a technique once thought extinct.

Satoru likes to be paired with you to figure out how your powers work and to see you in action. A part of him would like to fight you and to test your skill out against infinity, but your curse technique has an added sure kill effect so that’s a bit out of the question.

You remind him a lot of himself. He definitely smiles when that good girl nature disappears and he can confirm for a fact, that you're crazy (affectionately).

Satoru likes to pick on you and constantly tries to rope you into his schemes and games, bringing you to his side when it comes to rewriting the jujutsu society. He likes to speak in terms of “our” “us” “we” when it comes to the two of you. Due to your potential to be a special grade, the fact that both your techniques revolve around your eyes, and the simple fact that you might be the only one who can grow to understand both the rush and excitement of power while being able to circumvent the loneliness that comes with it.

You’re also so genuinely kind to him, and he thinks that you earnestly care about him and want to be around him. You’re not the only one who is like this to him but it’s more special when it’s you.

Megumi is a bit annoyed by you, not because of anything you’ve done wrong, but mostly because that sweet nature of yours causes you to overly worry for him, like a mom, and vice versa.

Like Itadori, you’re a good person so he worries about you when it comes to interacting with others. He’s worried someone might take advantage of that gentleness of yours. However, he’s aware well enough that you can take care of yourself in a fight.

He isn’t really scared of your power. It reminds him of Nanami, after all. What he is scared of is your worry and fretting and scolding. Megumi absolutely refuses to tell you when someone or rather something gives him a hospital visit because of it, constantly reminding the others not to tell you when it happens for his own peace.

In battle, he relies on you much more than you rely on him, instantly feeling more relaxed and confident about hard missions when you’re there.

He gets embarrassed when you remind him that you rely on him, too, that the thing that helps you see is his planning and observation of the enemy, that’s better than your own.

Ironically and hypocritically, he finds you too self-sacrificing for your own good when you get out of control. At the end of the day, you’re more important than him.

Itadori thinks you’re scary since you first met under less-than-ideal conditions.

When you meet again at school, he’s shocked that it’s you. He straight up asks if you have a twin, a scarier really strong twin. He’s a bit more respectful when he figures out that you’re that scary twin.

You're easily one of his favorite people because of how nice you are. You're usually willing to go out with him when the others bail out. He often forgets how crazy you get otherwise.

Itadori really values your opinions when it comes to fighting and techniques. He confides in you often until he can rectify the fact he has to kill to survive, including humans. Itadori wonders how you compartmentalize everything, but between your sweet personality and the brutal one, but he’s too scared to learn your answer.

Despite this, Itadori still doesn't entirely understand your technique even when you explain it to him multiple times. He just knows it's kinda badass. You slice and things die, almost always.

(You're still working on figuring out how to explain it to him in a way he'd understand.)

[unmotivated-writer]

Platonic yandere Vile Faculty:

Countess Cleo:

For The Countess to take notice of you and to start to care for you, you would probably have to be a somewhat classy and reserved student. She likes the students who don’t interrupt or ask too many questions during her lectures, after all it is very rude to interrupt someone who’s talking. If you do that and try your best in her classes you will certainly gain her favor (and favoritism).

Her signs of affection may start of small, things like a small but genuine smile when you answer correctly, asking you to stay after class and to your surprise offering you some tea and biscuits while the two of you talk, helping you discreetly when you're having trouble figuring out the answer.

If someone were to call her out on this behavior she would scoff at them and deny it until the very end. ‘Me playing favorites? Oh don’t be ridiculous!’ She would say angrily as she storms off to have some tea/wine with you while she rants about the “foolish” claims that are being said about her.

As things go by you will start to receive hand sewn clothes of the most expensive material known to man sewn and put together by the countess herself as well as a bunch of stolen jewelry regardless of your gender.

She also invites you to all her expensive dinner parties with ‘the rich and famous’ where you’ll be seated right next to her. If you ever were to decline an invitation no matter how politely she would act like you’d just told her that you hate her and that she can fuck of and die.

Coach Brunt:

Good fucking luck with her no matter what she says anyone can see that she is definitely NOT over Black Sheep. She is so overprotective and paranoid that you might leave like Black Sheep did. Expect a lot of smothering and attention from her, she will helicopter parent you to death and infantilize you. Although not intentionally she fully believes that what she is doing is normal and necessary. Trying to protest or argue with her over this will be waived off as nothing but ‘a fuzzy child tantrum’. There’s no way to argue with this woman and most people don’t try for that long since her patience is far from long. Since she is basically a PE teacher she has a habit of keeping an eye on your diet and somehow always thinks that you’re eating too little or that you're malnourished, she will force feed you if she sees fit.

Unlike Countess Cleo she plays favorites a lot and doesn’t try to hide it at all. Why would she? After all you’re the perfect little child and student (doesn’t matter how old you are she still sees you as a kid). Just don’t try to leave Vile and go along with what she wants and you’ll be fine but if you don’t then well…Don’t act surprised when you wake up in a room with cameras all around and your ankle chained to a bed with Brunt crying next to you asking what she did that would make you want to leave. Well no matter cause you’ll never get that chance ever again. Sucks to be you I guess.

Professor Maelstrom:

Maelstrom would be a very tricky and difficult platonic yandere to have on your tail. Nobody, not even himself, could explain why he started taking an interest in you either way he is aware of his obsession and accepts it wholeheartedly. He is a very secretive and manipulative man who can and will twist and warp your perception of the world or yourself. He somehow seems to know all of your inner workings and feelings. You could tell him that you like apples and he would go into detail on how that is connected to your childhood trauma/other issues, and the worst part is that he gets almost if not everything right about you. That of course creeps you the fuck out, which he notices and becomes absolutely delighted by.

This man is the inventor of gaslighting and manipulation if you ever even think about wanting to leave Vile he will know and gaslight the fuck out of you, imagine Mother Gothel from tangled but ten times worse. My thoughts and prayers are with you, you're going to need them when dealing with him as a platonic yandere .

Dr Bellum:

Saira would love a chaotic but smart student, all it takes is a few conversations and she’s already decided ‘Yep this is now my child I will teach them all about explosives and biological war crimes’. You and her would be an absolute force to be reckoned with and when you're not planning the most diabolical evil shit ever she’s showing you a bunch of funny videos of cats. She’s like a mom coming up to you and showing you facebook memes of minions but it’s cats instead.

She isn’t too obvious in her favoritism but she doesn’t try to hide it at all. If someone were to ask her if she had any favorite students she would say yes and then tell them all about how brilliant you are without any shame or hesitation. In her eyes there’s nothing wrong with playing favorites.

She no doubt has at least one drone following you around at all times just to keep an eye on you or she’s watching you from the security cameras all over campus. If you were to ask her about it she would lie and say that she’s working on a behavioral study but would refuse to give you any more details.

Please comment if you would like for me to write about having them all as platonic yanderes at the same time or if you would like for me to write about some other characters!

[insightfulllama]

Dp X dc prompt!

In this prompt, liminals/ghosts need to consume fresh ectoplasm to stay healthy and not starve. In addition, the headcanons “only those exposed to ectoplasm can see ghosts as they really are”, and “how people see ghosts is based a lot on their personal perceptions of reality.” have been mushed together. Like, someone un-exposed to ectoplasm knows that SOMETHING is there and it’s scary, but they haven’t been exposed to enough ectoplasm to actually comprehend what it is, so their mind just fills in the empty space with whatever their scared of + what makes sense to them for the context.

So Gotham has a lot of ambient ectoplasm and that's enough to keep Jason from starving completely, but nowhere near enough to be healthy. The inherent ectoplasm he has is basically rotten cause Lazarus pit be like that, so although he is alive and well in human terms, from a ghostly perspective he is extremely emaciated and sickly. Jason has felt varying degrees of empty and BAD since he came back, but there’s not exactly a handbook for this sort of thing, so Jason just accepts feeling terrible and being quick to anger as his new reality.

Cue the bat family calling him up and asking him to check out some weird reports they've been getting. Apparently people have been seeing stuff- a shadowy floating baby, a rotting animal corpse walking around, a ball of energy floating through a wall, etc. Which would be strange enough, but since the sightings started popping up at the same time, Bat's is theorizing that all the sightings are being caused by one entity. And a lot of the reports are in Jason's stomping grounds, so they want him to take a look.

He obliges (not because he wants to help his family, it's JUST because it sounds interesting, ok?) and quickly finds the whatever it is. And he kind of wants to laugh because THIS is what everyone was freaking out about? The thing looks like a gumbrop. Granted it was the size of a cat and glowing a suspiciously Lazarus green, but STILL, what on earth was everyone so scared of?

Regardless, it was in his territory and needed to go. It moved surprisingly fast once it spotted him, and it was taking a lot for Jason not to lose sight of it. Oracle offers to send someone to help and even Jason is surprised at how angrily he says no. But maybe he shouldn't be- he'd seen it first, it was HIS to catch. He discarded his helmet after her next question- she was distracting and the little thing was now periodically turning around to chirp mischievously at him and he was going to GET it, darn it.

He tells himself that the frantic urge to catch the creature was just mission excitement. The wild, clawing NEED to have it was just enthusiasm. The aching pull in his stomach wasn't anything out of the ordinary, his mouth was watering because it had been dry, NO other reason.

He was fine. This was fine, nothing was wrong, he just REALLY needed this thing.

He loses sight of it for a second, but it's fine because he knows the direction it's going.

He turns the corner and pulls up sharply. The gumdrop thing has been caught, but not by him. There's a figure holding its limp form, staring at him with wide eyes, obviously in the middle of eating it.

Jason distantly thinks he should be confused or horrified, but all he can feel is devastation. It was supposed to be HIS- this was HIS territory, HIS place, he should be the one to get it. But he hadn't been fast enough and now he wasn't going to get ANYTHING-

Danny, meanwhile, feels like the biggest jerk in the world. He'd caught the fat blob ghost more out of habit than hunger, since it had practically run into him zipping around the corner. But this other liminal had been in the middle of hunting it and was now looking at him with abject betrayal.

Danny's feelings of guilt got worse as he crept a bit closer and realized that the other liminal was sick. They're ectoplasm felt tainted, contaminated in a way that spoke of long term illness. Danny's brain was going a mile a minute, connecting the pieces. This liminal felt fairly strong so he probably had his own territory, and since he was sick he probably couldn't go far to hunt. Which meant that in essence, Danny had waltzed into the house of a starving, bedridden liminal and eaten directly off his plate.

Yeah, Danny was officially the worst.

But he hasn't actually eaten it yet, so there's still time to fix it! Danny quickly offers to share, rambling to the not-quite-starving liminal that it's like the fattest blob ghost he's ever seen and he really doesn't mind sharing and he can have most of it if he wants, Danny's not that hungry and pretty please don't be upset?

Jason can hardly understand anything he's so ravenous at this point, but he does understand that he's being offered the food he thought he'd lost, so he chows down without any fuss, much to Danny's relief. He tries not to judge how messily the guy is eating cause who knows how long its been since he'd caught any fresh ectoplasm and its honestly no worse than Danny was the first time he ate a blobbie.

Except- the guys tainted ectoplasm seemed to be fading? Huh, maybe the illness wasn't as terminal as it seemed on the surface, if all that was needed to fix it was a decent meal.

Danny decides to leave, the liminal is obviously going to be fine and once they're head clears they're probably going to be embarrassed that Danny saw them in such a state and he doesn't want to deal with that kind of awkwardness. He carefully leaves, relieved that something that could have ended very badly had worked itself out.

Meanwhile, Barbara is trying to get Jason to respond to her without success. The last contact was almost half an hour ago when he'd snarled at her for asking if he needed someone to come help. She was pretty sure he'd ditched his comm after that, but his trackers were still active and she could see he'd come to a stop. He'd been very clear that he didn't want help, but they knew nothing about this entity and Barbara is hardly going to chance that he might be slowly bleeding out somewhere. She sends someone (or multiple someones) to go check on him.

They find Jason splattered head to toe in faintly iridescent gore, hunched over with glowing eyes and softly growling as he eats something unidentifiable.

[twobellsilence]

Okay, so I finally have time to write down my feelings about Mouthwashing. Especifically, Captain Curly. This gets a little personal at the end - hid it below a cut for those who don't want to see it.

The beauty of Curly's character is that he's probably the most morally gray out of the whole crew despite his intentions being objectively good; his actions come from a genuine desire to do good by all of his crew members, but this does NOT mean said actions are correct. This distinction between intentions and actions is crucial when trying to understand his character. For instance, he believed Anya and genuinely cared about her, but he also cared about Jimmy as his friend, and so he chose to "be good" to both of them, even though being good to Jimmy inherently meant making Anya unsafe - good intentions (be a good captain and friend to both), bad action (not treating what happened with enough severity and being soft with Jimmy because of his biases). Many people seem to either think Curly was simply oblivious to everything, and others even go as far as to say he was actively malicious with his enabling. But I don't think either of these are quite right, and it's because, in my eyes, this man is the living incarnation of "The path to hell is paved with good intentions".

Captain Curly is a people pleaser. He wants to keep the peace, play devil's advocate, everything to keep all members of the crew feeling well with themselves and each other, and he believes his team is as genuine and honest as him. This trust, this inclination to think that things can be solved with compassion, is what earned him his good reputation and the respect of his crew, which persisted even after they believed he'd deliberately tried to kill them. But it is this same desire to do things from a place of true care and act as a mediator that caused him to break protocol with the higher ups' message, fail Anya, and ultimately doom everyone. I don't think he was oblivious to Jimmy's flaws, but rather, like he implied in the pixel scene, he saw only "the bigger picture" and gave Jim the benefit of the doubt because he saw his perceived qualities over his issues despite knowing they were there. Of course, this perception was undeniably distorted because of his and Jimmy's close relationship, which meant he extended an inappropriate amount of trust to Jimmy despite his actions and past because he genuinely, wholeheartedly thought Jim was just misunderstood and what he did was a mistake. Jimmy played Curly like a fiddle by taking advantage of his belief that Jim was as honest as he and the rest of the crew were.

Of course, there is a lot to be said about the fact that Curly put his perception of Jim over Anya - Curly is undeniably an enabler, if a naïve one, and is at fault for the bad decisions he took about the matter regardless of his mental state at the time. He is NOT all innocent, not by a long shot. But at his core, all he wanted was to help everyone and work things out. Because he's *Captain* Curly, and he ALWAYS made it work, and in his sleep-deprived, slightly unwell head, Jimmy's interests and Anya's need for protection clashing didn't mean that Jimmy was an actively dangerous person that needed to be stopped, but rather that he was just not trying hard enough to make things better. This was exacerbated when Jimmy pointed out everything would fall on him as the captain, and he froze, because he knew Jim was right. It would fall on him, and it'd be just, because he failed to stop it. He completely failed Anya, not only as a friend, but more importantly, as a captain, and suddenly his fears of not doing enough came true.

And this is where it gets really personal for me, because I see a lot of myself in Curly. I, too, have trouble examining people's flaws. I let my biases cloud my judgement of others from time to time and allow them to manipulate me because I hoped they'd have good intentions like I did for them. I am also a mediator, a peacekeeper, a people pleaser. And I have also been an enabler. Not of things as horrible, of course - not even close - but an enabler nonetheless. And like Curly, I too have had to watch helplessly as my tendency to give everyone the benefit of the doubt damaged me, and at times even the people around me, because I kept on hoping things would work out if I kept everything "going smoothly" but they never did. The way this game makes Curly go from unable to see the dead pixel to being forced to stare at it, unblinkingly, as it eventually blows the whole screen - something HE could have prevented if he had listened to the one person who was all too aware of it being there - makes me very uncomfortable, because I've been there, and it makes me feel bare in a way no other game has done before. The situations I've been in are the size of a grain of sand when compared to the tragedy that happened in the Tulpar, obviously, but seeing such a parallel in Curly has left me shaken and invited deep introspection regardless. You can't fix everything. You can't always play both sides. Not everyone has the will to change and be better. And you must take action before said action is taken for you. All things this god forsaken game has made me think very long and hard about by showing me a man whose fatal flaws, almost the same as mine, made him lose everything and more.

[lovelyjasmari]

Pomefiore Endnote - Perfectionism, Apathy and the True Tragedy of Book 5

Warning: Long post and pic heavy.

So…this is something of a continuation of my last twst reaction post, where I analyzed the Absolutely Beautiful dance video. I ended the post by saying that the true tragedy was not that NRC Tribe lost but that Vil could be convinced he was an inferior performer compared to Neige. Now I’m going to expand on that…in excruciating detail. XD

In all seriousness, though, I'm not really sure if I'd call this an analysis in the traditional sense. Maybe more like a long-winded rant based on canon observations. But all the same, I’ve been grappling with this for the last year and a half since when Book 6 first dropped in EN. I’ve wanted to share my thoughts for a long time but decided against it because I acknowledge how contentious this topic is in the fandom and I prefer to keep my online space as drama-free as possible. I also didn’t want anyone to get the idea I’m attacking others when at most, I’m just being critical. 

But with the new story update imminent and it looking like it will be Pomefiore-centric, I’ve come to the realization that if I don’t share this soon, I never will. My timing is admittedly ass but I think it would be worse if I share this AFTER the update and you’re about to understand why.

So before we dive in, disclaimer. This is going to cover the end of Book 5 and the first few chapters of Book 6 and my in-depth opinions on both. There will be mentions of trauma/mental illness and some very blunt (but honest) Rook criticism. But please keep in mind, that while I have my own interpretation of the twst characters and their respective arcs, I am not Yana and ultimately, my opinions are just that. Opinions. Everything I say is subjective at best but a lot of what’s coming up is based on a blend of canon observations as well as my own specific, personal experiences as someone with very similar life experiences as Vil and has been dancing for most of her life.  

Still, these are just opinions and I have no intention to offend anyone. But if you don’t like reading negative things about Rook or take issue with this general way of thinking, I HIGHLY advise you to ignore this and respectfully (or quietly) agree that we disagree.

When I wrote the greater bulk of this, it was around when Book 6 dropped in EN. A year has passed since then and I’ve had time to think more about my opinions here and, to a greater extent, how I feel about Book 5. This may sound strange but I feel that Book 5 is both the best and worst part of twst’s main story to date. I really like how it touched upon something that isn’t really isn’t talked about much; how we as a society both admire beauty but also vilify it. Vil’s primary dilemma is how he is wrongfully villainized for his beauty, wealth, and harsh personality, despite subverting expectations of cruelty at every turn. Ironically, when the fandom mischaracterizes him as vain, cruel, classist, racist and the like, they are falling into that same literary trap. Proving the point of his arc.

And as much as I hated the ending from an emotional point of view, I actually love it as well, ironically for reasons that might not have been intentional. What I hated, mostly, was the fandom’s response. There was a great opportunity here for some deep discussion regarding society’s views on beauty, how constant trauma causes us to internalize false perceptions of ourselves, and the rather fascinating/dangerous dynamic Vil has with his vice dorm leader. Instead, any interesting discourse has been lost in all the misinterpretations of Vil. To the point I wonder if we all actually read the same story. I’m disappointed in the fandom, but somehow not surprised either.

But regardless, Rook’s actions were extremely disquieting but not for the reasons you might think. There was nothing wrong with his decision but the way he went about it and how he (and Vil) tried to justify it really left such a nasty taste in my mouth and I gotta talk about it to get it out.

First I just want to commend Vil for his level of maturity and rationality regarding his overblot. Even when it was happening, not once has he tried to justify his actions and in fact it was his own guilt at his potential wrongdoing that ultimately caused it. His fear that in a brief, desperate attempt to be seen as not a monster, he became exactly that. Throughout Book 5, it is implied that Vil already sees himself as a villainous person and internalizes that image of himself almost with pride. But despite this false perception, his actions have always proven the opposite and it’s clear that Vil has always valued being altruistic, determined and just. And his guilt when he failed to meet his own standards was beyond compare.

I feel that this guilt sets Vil apart from the other overblots thus far. Most importantly, he apologized of his own volition and wasn’t forced to. That alone makes him stand out among the overblot characters and, to my mind, makes him the most compelling of them all. If I’m being completely honest, out of all those who have overblotted thus far, Vil has been the LEAST problematic even before his overblot. And the one instance where Vil displayed any “cruelty” beforehand is EXTREMELY subjective. (his treatment of Epel) But the fact that Vil has been the least problematic overblot student so far also makes him the most tragic. And makes what’s about to happen next all the more disturbing.

Interestingly enough, Jamil is correct about this but for the wrong reason and here comes the first point. There was no indication that the audience was anything but enthralled with NRC Tribe. And if Vil or any of the others made significant mistakes, because of Vil’s fame, I’m certain they would have been pointed out by magicam netizens. With the recent release of the Absolutely Beautiful mv over on twst jp, we now also have a visual to go off from. 

I talk about this more in a previous post but basically, yes, NRC Tribe’s performance wasn’t perfect, but based on what I saw, I would have expected A LOT worse considering the circumstances. The fact is all evidence points to the NRC boys giving a wonderful performance made all the more remarkable by the fact they were still able to perform after dealing with Vil’s OB not too long before. And the audience clearly thought so too if they were only one vote away from victory. 

To add to this point, when the other characters comment on the NRC Tribe’s performance, they make no mention of any noticeable errors. And when Crowley laments their defeat later, again, there’s no mention of any errors. Considering that Ambrose was pretty pretentious about RSA winning, I'm sure he’d mention that, too. 

Even further, one thing you learn from being on stage is that your audience rarely notices mistakes unless they are extremely obvious. You, as the performer, might notice, but you quickly learn not to draw attention to your errors and keep it moving. Now of course, the NRC characters could be biased because they want to defeat RSA. But considering the nature of a lot of them, I doubt they would lie so flagrantly. Especially Jack who is pretty no-nonsense even with the people he likes. And Malleus who seems pretty difficult to impress. So if their commentaries are to be believed, this shows that any errors made by the NRC Tribe were not noticeable. 

That Vil would think otherwise speaks to something far deeper and far more insidious. Stick a pin in that; we’ll come back to it soon enough.

Vil then goes on to explain to the boys that Neige and his friends worked just as hard and had their own struggles. That Neige grew up in an improvised environment and had to juggle acting obligations with household chores and helping out the dwarves. Again, it is extremely commendable that Vil is able to acknowledge this about this rival. It shows that his contempt for Neige was never as simple as “boo hoo people think he’s more beautiful than me” and he at least respects Neige’s efforts even if this explanation once again falls flat. 

Firstly, narratively speaking it doesn’t make sense that Vil is just finding out about Neige’s backstory now (likely from Rook) because I feel like he should already be aware. In fact, all through Book 5, I thought that he did know but didn’t care. Honestly, Neige’s backstory shouldn’t matter to Vil anyway and surprisingly, it’s Ace of all people who explains why.

Neige’s struggles might matter to his fans but at the end of the day if Neige cannot perform better than Vil, then that’s his own fault. There are many artists out there who have to deal with similar struggles but come out as phenomenal performers and yet Neige’s “best” basically consists of the twst equivalent of this meme. Precious, but cannot compare to all the sweat and tears Vil and his team were put through. 

There’s actually an interesting analysis floating around this hellsite about how Neige’s childish performance was actually an incredibly manipulative tactic and could have been intentional if he were a different character. I’m not gonna link it cause I don’t want to bring any heat to the op. But I will say that while I don’t think Neige intended to manipulate the audience with his cuteness, in the end, it did indeed work in his favor. And the fact that Vil thought to train Epel to weaponize his cuteness to defeat Neige indicates that he’s already no stranger to seeing such underhanded tactics in the industry he works in. In his beansday vignette, Vil mentions an actor he initially admired destroying one of his stage outfits. If Neige weren’t presented as so naive and twisted from a traditionally “good” character, his choice regarding his performance could be regarded as deliberate. Which is why Vil lamented that he and his team had been “outplayed”.

Back on topic, what I took away from this was that, once again, Vil’s hard work and determination count for nothing because of things he cannot control. Because he was born to wealth, because he didn’t have the same hardships, he doesn’t deserve the same consideration or sympathy as Neige. And his wealth and beauty once again put him in the position of villain to Neige’s hero. It’s a textbook case very common in media, like Sharpay opposing Gabriella in High School Musical. But what’s worse is that from all that we’ve seen of Vil, he could coast on his wealth, beauty and father's fame if he wanted to. 

Instead, he chooses to work hard and have his accomplishments come from his own merit. When anyone else in his situation could easily choose the opposite. And just from a personal standpoint, if I practiced day and night for a dance competition and ended up losing to someone under my level simply because they were cute and disenfranchised, I would feel extremely insulted. At the end of the day, Ace is correct and whatever struggles Neige and his team had, they were still inferior performers. 

And to add to this point, I believe that at some point Vil KNEW this even AFTER his OB. Despite his earlier anguish at never being able to perform innocent cuteness like his rival, once his mind was clearer, he was able to see that NRC Tribe’s performance was still technically better. He was able to see how the audience responded to Neige and still believed in himself as a better performer. I say this based on another scene earlier in book 5. 

Vil was undoubtedly in a very emotionally vulnerable place right after his overblot. He went to great lengths to conceal the aftereffects before going on stage to the point he collapsed as soon as he was alone. After going so long trying to hide them, his darkest, ugliest emotions were laid bare to his teammates and to himself. Manifesting in the worst way possible. And as a professional performer, if any errors were made, he would have been painfully aware of them.

And yet, despite having just dealt with the darkest moment of his life, Vil was still able to stand upon the stage until the very end and give the best performance he could. Against all odds, before a world that has wrongfully perceived him as evil and hideous for most of his life.

And despite knowing that Neige possesses all that he never can, it is strongly implied that Vil still chooses to vote for his own team. Meaning he saw the appeal in Neige’s performance and STILL knew that he did better. And I’d like to believe that even if Vil was aware of Neige’s backstory, he would have still made the same decision. It’s easy to be beautiful when everything is right and perfect in your world. But being able to smile even when you’re struggling and your heart is breaking is even more beautiful still. 

Sadly, Vil isn’t likely to realize this anytime soon and will continue to see his own mental struggles as not as valid or “ugly.” Now back to that original pin of thought, Vil will likely continue to believe that he didn’t deserve to win the VDC despite all evidence to the contrary. He’s likely to continue internalizing the false villainous image of himself as well. And for that we now must get to the crux of this matter.

At first glance, this statement doesn’t seem like much but when you look deeper, and look back at some of Rook’s own actions, this comes off as incredibly hypocritical and cruel. As we have seen from Vil’s backstory, he has dealt with untold hardships as well. But Vil’s anguish is more internalized than Neige’s and it’s very unlikely that he has ever really been open about how dehumanizing and hurtful his treatment has been. 

And from an outsider’s perspective, his problems aren’t as dire anyway. It’s just like Vil said, his life has been quite different from Neige’s. But mental trauma doesn’t know demographics and can affect anyone. The fact is what Vil has gone through is extremely traumatizing and comes from nothing beyond people wrongfully vilifying him for his beauty. Projecting their insecurities onto him from a very young age. It’s clear that what Vil has dealt with has fundamentally altered how he sees himself. 

But at the same time, what do you think would happen if Vil WAS more open about his frustrations? The dehumanizing effect and the bullying? The typecasting and prejudice thrown his way? And the feeling that nothing he does will ever be enough to break free from his villainous mold? What would happen if Vil were to be open about ANY of that? He would be mocked and shamed and perceived as shallow, petty and crying about nothing. Lowkey how many in the fandom already see Vil anyway. We as a society sadly don’t take mental illness as seriously as we should but when celebrities deal with it? It quickly becomes meme fodder and nowhere is this more obvious than on stan twitter. We are all guilty of feeding into it, whether we’re honest about it or not. 

Ironically, Vil’s mental struggles is one of the things that would make him more “relatable.” But the truth is that people would never accept that because society has a long history of trivializing the mental issues of celebrities because they seem so far removed from normal people. And then being surprised pikachu faced when they do something drastic to themselves. So Vil internalizes all of it because he knows he can’t be open about it. 

A person like him simply can’t be open about his hardships but HERE is the kicker: neither can Neige. He also has an image of perfection to uphold so it is likely he is also internalizing mental struggles of his own. Living and caring for seven others can’t be easy in addition to trying to grow his career. And if his deeper origins are anything like his Disney counterpart, how he came to live with the dwarves must have been traumatic as well. 

But here’s the difference: from Rook’s perspective, he is “better” at internalizing those ugly emotions than Vil is. After all, Neige is able to overcome all his struggles and still smile and not give hints to them, but when Vil finally buckled under all of his own trauma, we see what happened. 

There’s also the fact that since Rook and Neige attend different schools, Rook doesn’t have as close a seat to any of Neige’s more personal troubles. So it’s likely easier for Rook to project his own ideas of beauty onto Neige because from his perspective, he is perfect. He is beautiful. He is pure. Like the legendary singing princess Rook so reveres. He isn’t plagued with any of the ugly emotions that caused Vil to overblot. And if Neige DOES have ugly feelings or ugly trauma responses, Rook isn’t privy to them, so they clearly must not exist. 

I genuinely believe that THIS is what Rook meant when he stated Vil’s performance wasn’t as beautiful as Neige’s. I know he mentions another reason at the end of book 5 but in my mind, they are both one and the same. Whatever technical difficulties NRC Tribe had, they were still polished enough to garner enough votes that it was only Rook’s flawed ideology that sealed their fate. And throughout book 5, Rook is hinted at being aware of Vil’s internal struggles and yet still chose to stay silent. He frequently saw that Vil was struggling but tried to justify his silence by saying it wasn’t his place to interfere. 

But that is also untrue because we’ve seen time and again Rook is more than willing to stick his nose in Vil’s businesses. His labwear vignette is the most obvious example but there are plenty of others. In Book 6 Rook admits that his decision to go to the Isle of Woe was fully a selfish one. Leaving Pomefiore without leadership and potentially falling into chaos (the only dorm to have no clear leadership at all during the crisis) simply because he wanted to give Vil skin products that he really didn’t need. A few days without them wouldn’t do that much harm and Rook essentially placed Epel, Yuu and himself in great danger for a reason far more shallow than anything Vil has done in the name of beauty. 

He also admits that he would have been willing to drink the poisoned juice Vil gave to Neige for again, a pretty shallow (and extremely twisted) reason. If he’s willing to do that, he is more than capable of intervening in other matters on Vil’s behalf. And later in book 6, it’s revealed that Rook was originally a Savannaclaw student but made the very unprecedented decision to transfer to Pomefiore in part due to his fascination with Vil and desire to further study beauty under him. So Rook had EVERY opportunity to step in regarding his overblot. Even if Rook couldn’t be his “savior”, the fact that Vil would see that he at least had support could have gone a long way. 

But Rook’s silence is rather in keeping with his character and his own ideas about beauty. I find this quote very ironic based on how he and Vil are frequently misconstrued. The Pomefiore dorm leaders' views on beauty appear to be the opposite of each other. 

Vil can be extremely strict, harsh and can come off as critical at times, but he is never harder on someone than he is himself. He has shown time and again that he sees beautiful potential in anyone. And Vil is more than willing to share the spotlight with his NRC Tribe; build them up from scratch and give each of them the chance to show off their potential. Likely because he knows all too well what it means to be in the shadow of someone else. 

Even further, when we look at the dichotomy of a villain versus a hero, the main difference is how they respond to their personal pain. A villain takes their pain and says “the world hurt me so I’m gonna hurt the world”. While a hero says “the world hurt me and I’m not going to let it hurt others”. Up until his overblot, Vil has been the latter of these examples. He wants the best for those around them and while his methods might be difficult to understand, they always bear results. Vil can honestly see beauty in anything, even if he has to coax it out in his own way. 

Rook’s views on beauty however, all seem to be based upon the superficial and the evidence can be found in his Halloween vignette. There, he explains further how he grew to adore Neige and based on what he said, it sounded more like obsession than actual reverence. There’s also hints to this in his most recent birthday vignette as well. His ideas seem to be very fantastical, far removed from reality and so obsessive to the point that it actually affects his ability to be a good person. Such an obsession can sometimes make people oblivious to the world and in Rook’s case, often cause him to act out in ways that border on problematic. 

In his fixation, he stalks Leona and Jade, says some weirdly otherist shit to Malleus, harasses and assaults Ruggie, and places ridiculously high standards on both Vil AND Neige that rob them of their humanity. Rook saw firsthand how deeply Vil’s insecurities ran. He heard Vil cry and scream out how ugly he felt. He saw Vil’s anguish and despair firsthand and seeing all that, still chose to punish him because Vil’s lack of confidence made him unable to respond to his trauma in a beautiful way. Or at least in a way he could deem as beautiful based on his vapid description of the word. 

Rook will likely never be privy to any ugliness Neige has displayed so for him, the fantasy remains intact. And in chasing that fantasy, he betrays not just Vil, but his other teammates as well. Then has the audacity to try to justify it with bullshit ideology and sadly, because of Vil’s low opinion of himself, Rook succeeds. Vil holds Rook’s opinion so highly that he is able to take advantage of that and compel him (and the others) to see his point of view. And believe it or not, in chasing that fantasy, the NRC Tribe members were not the only ones Rook hurt. 

Neige might have been happy to have won but he was essentially rewarded for an inferior performance and robbed of an important lesson. One far more valuable than any “lesson” Vil had to learn. As mentioned before, even with all of his hardships, if what we saw in book 5 was the best Neige could do, that still means he is not as good a performer as Vil. If cuteness, nostalgia and warm fuzzy feels are the only thing Neige can offer, he could easily find himself struggling to remain in the entertainment industry as he ages. Not unlike many other former child stars in real life. 

Losing the VDC could have been a major wake-up call to Neige that if he wants to continue acting, he has to do better. People might not take him seriously when he’s still doing the cutesy bullshit ten years from now. But because he won, this will likely never cross his mind. Neige will learn nothing. 

Now before anyone begins writing up their comments about how Vil verbally stated that Rook was right, I’d like to bring up one final point: Vil agreeing with Rook was another trauma response. Internalizing Rook’s response because it is so in keeping with all he has been made to believe about himself, about Neige, and how it has all now been “confirmed” by his overblot. From his point of view, Rook has no reason to lie to him. 

But just because Vil states that Rook was correct, does not mean that it’s true. Despite being one of the more positive characters in the game and being twisted from a “good” character, Rook is just as morally grey as everyone else in the twst cast and just as capable of dubiousness. And this would not be the first time something like this has occurred between Vil and Rook. Once again, I bring up Vil’s labwear vignette. Particularly this exchange here:

Okay, so beyond the general tactlessness of telling Vil he’s gaining weight in spite of knowing how such a statement would affect him, what Rook is basically suggesting to him is that he cannot trust anyone but him. Not even his own senses. That for all of his perceptiveness, Vil is incapable of seeing himself accurately. Though he initially does not believe it, Vil eventually does accept  Rook’s statement despite knowing it was bullshit twenty seconds before. 

Later on, Vil mentions to Trey that Rook’s only crime is being too blunt and perceptive. It’s true that having another point of view is important at times, but the level of trust Vil has in Rook’s opinion can also be dangerous if he can convince Vil to doubt himself so easily. Theirs is an interesting dynamic but it also has potential to be extremely toxic and detrimental to Vil. At best, Rook gives him useful insight and pushes him to be the best he can be. But at worst, Rook contributes to Vil’s insecurities, enables his more toxic tendencies and his fawning of Neige feeds into his obsession to be the fairest one of all in the worst way possible. Rook can’t be completely oblivious to this. It would be such an easy thing for him to take advantage of Vil’s doubt in himself and value/dependency on his opinion. 

Which is exactly what Rook does. As much flack Vil gets in this fandom for being critical and harsh to others, he never criticizes someone harder than he will criticize himself. This is a person who has grown up in the spotlight and has had to maintain an image of perfection for most of his life.  A person who gave up one of his favorite condiments because of the damage it caused to his skin. A person who has so deeply internalized the villainous image people have projected on him that he wears it almost as a badge of honor. And because he holds himself to such a high standard and already internalizes a lot of toxic beliefs about himself, it makes perfect sense that Vil would agree with Rook. In his current way of thinking, Vil has no reason to disagree with Rook because from his point of view, Rook has always been honest to him and his overblot already proved he was unworthy of victory anyway. 

Of course Vil must be gaining weight. How could he possibly be objective regarding himself? How vain he must be. And how could Vil possibly be objective regarding his VDC performance and still vote for himself after such an ugly trauma response? He can’t trust his judgment, he can’t even trust his own senses. How arrogant and pathetic Vil must be if he can still vote for himself in good conscience after witnessing the pure wholesomeness of Neige Leblanche. Someone who would never overblot. Thankfully, he has Rook to humble that arrogance and tell him what he needs to know. Even if he’s tactless about it. 

I mean, Vil literally ran looking for a scale immediately after Rook’s comments on his weight. He probably added an extra hour to his daily workout routine the morning after eating the cake Trey gave him. I don’t believe that Rook is completely oblivious of Vil’s darker feelings, just as Vil has stated, he keeps too close an eye on him not to be oblivious. And he was astute enough to keep his infatuation with Neige a secret from Vil for nearly two years. This had to have been intentional. It honestly makes me wonder what Rook thinks of Vil on a more personal level. 

But regardless, the fact is, Rook was always going to vote for Neige and his explanation at the end of Book 5 was always going to be his reasoning. Vil’s overblot just gave him a more “legitimate” reason to do so. For whatever reverence he holds for Vil, it was never going to trump his reverence for Neige. The fact he brought all of his Neige photos with him to the training camp further implies that he was never going to be objective in this situation. And seeing Vil almost poison Neige probably further convinced him that Vil was undeserving of victory. 

That may make Rook seem duplicitous considering how positive and sincere he seems to be, but he’s still human. And truthfully, him voting for his bias is not an inherently bad thing. What makes him inconsiderate in this situation is openly telling Vil he prefers the catalyst for all his insecurities and overblot, while Vil was still grieving and in a very vulnerable place. Then justifying his decision as the correct one based on his own personal preferences, weaponizing that vulnerability to avoid being called out. Knowing that Vil wasn’t likely going to object. 

Even if NRC Tribe did win, it’s very likely Rook would have still brought up his vote to Vil and still convinced him it was undeserved. I would even go so far as to argue that Rook’s remarks about Neige early on in book 5 as well as Vil’s labwear vignette foreshadow the ending of book 5/start of book 6 far more than the fact that the huntsman betrayed the evil queen in the original Snow White. 

That coupled with a perfectionist like Vil looking back at their less-than-perfect performance is what compelled him to agree with Rook. If we take into account the idea that Vil still chose to vote for his own team afterwards, Rook’s actions and words probably further pushed him into believing in the idea of his inherent villainy and inferiority to Neige. After all, surely Neige Leblanche would never be reduced to such a hideous state. His heart is too pure, the fairest one of all and as different from Vil as night and day. 

If left to his own devices without Rook to influence him, Vil might not be so hard on himself in this case and would resent his defeat more. As he has every right to. But instead, Vil agreed with what was easiest and what made most sense based on everything that has happened in his life and all that he has been made to believe about himself. Why should he continue protesting when no one else will? 

Nevermind all the evidence we’ve seen of Vil’s tenacity, excellence and kindness. Why should he believe that he is the most beautiful one of all when Mira frequently tells him the opposite? Why should he believe in his own noble spirit when people openly say it’s not enough and that he’s not relatable enough to be a hero? Why shouldn’t he believe he is hideous when the entire world says it’s so? When even a large majority of this very fucking fandom mischaracterize him as such and agree with Rook anyway? 

Why should Vil question any of this?

And Vil will sadly continue to be second to Neige and will likely never question it. He will continue to internalize the toxic dichotomy between him and Neige and again, why shouldn’t he? After all, Vil is the evil queen to Neige’s Snow White, the Sharpay to his Gabriella, the Odile to his Odette. And Neige is the Madonna to Vil’s whore. Vil is not supposed to be the hero in this story and not even his trusted vice dorm leader has faith in him.

In discourse regarding the end of book 5, I’ve often heard it said that this was a “lesson” Vil had to learn in order to become a better person. I believe there was indeed a lesson to be learned from this, but not the one that many think. Since Vil knew from the beginning that trying to poison Neige was wrong, he didn’t need to learn how to play fair like Leona. 

Despite being a harsh leader, Vil was generally always fair with his teammates and again, as a former dancer, the way Vil instructed the NRC Tribe members seemed tame compared to some of the dance teachers I’ve had in the past. So learning to be less tyrannical wasn’t the lesson to learn either, like with Riddle. And part of what led to his overblot was realizing that NRC Tribe had been “outplayed” by Neige’s cuteness. But he still had enough faith in his ability to vote for his own team, so learning not to be manipulative wasn’t really needed either, like with Azul. 

No, the lesson for Vil here is that hard work is rarely ever rewarded fairly. And that his trauma is not valid because he was blessed in a way that Neige was not. He must always take second place to him because of his blessings while simultaneously ALWAYS being perfect. And because of his blessings, he can never express ugly emotions, he can never express anguish, and he must always, ALWAYS, take his mistreatment in stride. And God forbid if Vil DOES respond to his trauma in an ugly manner, he WILL be punished for it. He will ALWAYS be punished for it and by those closest to him no less. 

If Vil doesn’t like how they’ve treated him in his darkest hour, tough titties. It’s all his fault for not hiding his trauma to begin with. And he doesn’t even have the right to a moment to himself to cry. 

But that is where my analysis ends. Honestly this was kind of painful to write because it has made me fully realize just how much I’ve grown to disdain Rook after adoring him for so long. You all have no idea how hard I was hoping he would have some scrap of redemption in book 6. It’s really upsetting that so many people in this fandom look down on Vil or mischaracterize him but somehow don’t notice the glaring red flags in his dynamic with his vice dorm leader. 

Honestly, when I think about it, the ending of Book 5 is actually kind of brilliant, even if it’s also emotionally sadistic and lacking in other aspects. I'm not sure if that was Yana’s intention, but the fact that so many in the fandom tend to see Rook as the kinder one compared to Vil is very telling. 

Now I’m not saying that Vil is absolutely without flaws, Heaven knows he has many. As does every person in the twst cast. Vil is impulsive, domineering, harsh, difficult to please, overwhelming at times and extremely complex. But he is also helpful, perceptive, intelligent, genuinely kind and wants the best for those around him. Not for his own glory but for their own happiness and well-being. He is also clearly a deeply misunderstood and insecure young man, so I guess because of Vil’s faults, it’s “easier” to mischaracterize him. 

As for me, I find Vil’s character all the more compelling in spite of his harshness because I can see in him a true understanding of beauty that is both profound and attainable by anyone. If we are brave enough to behold it.

[ya-killin-me-smalls]

A while ago you made some Deimos x Teammate headcanons, and they were all absolutely WONDERFUL

Would it be possible to get some Hank x Teammate headcanons? 👀

absolutely!!

headcanons under the cut

2BHank:

obviously gotta start with these two, respect for the elderly and all that

- divorced but it's complicated

- they started out as roommates while Doc was in college and Hank, unbeknownst to Doc at the time, was just getting started at being a menace to society

- they were close. a little too close. but nothing ever came of it aside from a mutual pining

- when Doc began working for the Agency/Nexus it drew a hard line between them. both believed they were doing what was right and that the other was a lost cause

- it turned into a physical fight and Hank did in fact leave Doc for dead

- he got better dw

- fast forward a few years, Doc has swapped sides and is incapable of admitting he was wrong

- Hank is not even a little bit sorry because in his mind it was deserved at the time

- they're different people now though and they both know that. the past is in the past. the world keeps turning

- their relationship has moved beyond platonic since but it's still complicated. they don't have the luxury of deep "what are we" conversations or quality time spent together unless Hank is injured

- regardless, Hank spends whatever downtime he does have in Doc's personal space. he's the type of guy that will just loom over you silently while you're working and patiently wait for Doc to pay attention to him

- Doc still keeps things professional for the sake of professionalism. his guard is only ever truly down when they've retired for the night and he can give Hank every drop of attention he craves

- Hank finds physical touch grounding so on days when his head is a mess and all his thoughts sound like they're underwater, he'll drape himself over Doc's shoulders and try to map out the sensation of him for a while

- "Wimbleton" is as close to a pet name as Doc will ever get. if he uses Hank's first name it's usually when he's mad/annoyed

- Hank doesn't necessarily bite Doc but he's got this weird form of cute aggression that makes him want to put his teeth on him

Hankmos:

yeah I already did this in the last post so what

- their first meeting was the equivalent of finding a wet kitten at the scene of a car accident

- Deimos hadn't yet made a name for himself but was well on his way, torching every stitch of AAHW property he could get his hands on (pyrokinesis Deimos my beloved)

- Hank was sent to raid a cloning facility when it happened. the entire place had gone up in flames and was little more than smoldering debris by the time he got there. he was there to kill everything that moved so of course he had to parse through said debris for any survivors

- what he found was a scrawny fucked up little dude passed out at the center of it all, completely unharmed, the only sign he'd been involved in the fire being the singed remains of his clothes

- interesting enough for Hank to not kill him despite being visibly a clone. instead he wraps Deimos's tiny ass up in his trenchcoat and brings him back to base

- Deimos still wears said trenchcoat because he's a fanboy and nothing will change that

- which also means he glues himself to Hank's hip from day one, not being a nuisance but always in the vicinity, tags along on whatever missions he can, asks Hank to train him in CQB

- and of course Hank grows fond of Deimos. how could he not? his rambling is pleasant background noise that helps keep Hank in the moment, he has a nice smile and laughs a lot, and it doesn't take long for him to become a worthy opponent for Hank

- a lot of their communication is done through body language and micro-expressions. Hank is incredibly perceptive of those subtle shifts and for Deimos it comes naturally

- Deimos goes out of his way to impress Hank. whether that means making stupid jokes to try and get a laugh out of him or showing off on the battlefield at every opportunity, his efforts know no bounds. it makes his heart flutter in a weird way whenever he gets those little signals of approval

- neither is keen on eye contact which works out perfectly, Hank because of the 'tism and Deimos because it feels like someone is trying to square up

- I feel like romantic cannibalism in the literal sense but as a metaphor would suit them so well. there's so much want between them and it's like they can't ever satisfy it. simply touching isn't enough. they need to grab. they need to hold. they need to squeeze. they could become each other and it still wouldn't be enough

- on the outside they play it cool for the most part obviously but the tension is always there. everyone can feel it

Hankford:

woefully underappreciated

- these two have the same vibe and demo and soldier tbh

- Sanford's whole thing is blowing shit up and setting things on fire

- Hank's thing is killing people in increasingly dramatic and violent ways

- combine the two, what more could you want out of a ship

- most of their initial bonding happens over explosions and combat tactics, as well as the inherently homoerotic act of patching each other up during battle

- after a particularly high risk/high reward mission, standing amongst the rubble of what was once a weapons factory and still high on adrenaline and dopamine, Sanford grabs Hank by the lapels of his coat and kisses him

- oh to make out with someone in the aftermath of an explosion

- these two lack a balancing factor. neither needs to be protected by the other. neither has ever been chill a day in their life. both are itching to destroy something at any given moment. they hype each other up and egg on every OSHA violation in the book

- Hank does feel protective towards Sanford because that's just in his nature, but he doesn't feel like he needs to hover or have eyes on him constantly. Sanford has dragged his sorry bleeding ass out of trouble more than once, after all

- Sanford is the king of PDA and they have to establish pretty early on that Hank isn't comfortable with others seeing that much of his private life. holding hands is as far as it goes if others are around

- alone? Sanford can't keep his hands to himself. his favorite thing is to dip Hank when he least expects it just to make him blush

- Hank isn't sure how to reciprocate at first. his hands are meant for crushing and tearing and Sanford is so gentle and tender. it's a learning curve and the way his hands shake when he's excited doesn't help

- they work it out over time together though, Sanford making an effort to lead affection and letting Hank sort out what he likes along the way

- Sanford is Hank's weighted blanket I take no criticism on this

- Sanford calls Hank "Doll". Hank incorrectly interprets this as sarcasm because he can't imagine someone associating him with something delicate or cute

- neither of them is allowed anywhere near the kitchen. not because they can't cook but because neither of them has any impulse control and the microwave will be blown up "for science"

- Sanford, ever observant and a little obsessive, begins mapping out Hank's behaviors and mental state as best as he can. he isn't surprised that Hank is a little fucked up, but there's a lot more going on in their than expected. and Hank, uncharacteristically, does open up to Sanford about the dissociation and memory problems

- Hank has outlawed the word babygirl because it makes him flustered angry

[vidavalor]

I'm purposely not going to commit too hard to a specific vision of what sorts of twists and turns GO's plot could take, for all the reasons people usually do that. But I gotta say, the idea of Satan taking on the Metatron's appearance is a fantastically juicy twist. Having the Metatron and Satan engaging in an appearance swap of sorts would mean they're doing to Crowley and Aziraphale exactly what Crowley and Aziraphale did to them, so it flows perfectly with the rest of the series, and it leaves the central conflicts of the Final Fifteen intact, so it doesn't handwave away the big feelings. Maybe you pointed this out and I forgot, I've just been thinking about the twist itself a lot lately.

Yessss. 😍 That's one of the things I love the most about it. Thanks for dropping me a note. 💕

It's also just really funny to me that they would give the paralleling body swap plot to Satan and The Metatron because they are the two characters in the show who have the, uh, least amount of body from what we've seen? We still haven't seen Satan in his true form and The Metatron is, in a bit of glorious meta commentary, a floating head. Our villains really had to work at it to handle their bit of the mirrored storytelling here. 😂

Yeah, like you mentioned, the theory isn't meant to rewrite any of the emotions driving the action in 2.06. I have no desire to handwave away the big feelings. Big fan of big feelings, me. I'm more interested in how maybe some perception of what's happening in the scene might impact ideas about where the characters are at when it comes to those big feelings that are still part of the story regardless of what ends up being the path the story takes.

I haven't written this other hint to it anywhere yet but you know how the film, Clue, was referenced earlier in S2? (Spoilers below.)

The Metatron is Satan = a deadly serious version of the drinks-bearing butler Wadsworth is really Mr. Boddy in the main ending that is also the one used in the stage play. The false endings = debate over what's happened. Clue's "and here's what really happened" is Good Omens-esque, in terms of providing context for earlier scenes and full understanding of them with later ones. The entire story set around people showing up at the front door of the manor house and the use of doors all throughout.

Michael McKean-- our Shadwell-- playing the only character in Clue who didn't kill anyone, even if he also wasn't who he said he was. Shadwell being the one at the door in S1 who broke in and caused Aziraphale to be discorporated and be trapped in Heaven, in a mirroring sequence to what's happening in The Final 15. Shadwell being a character who is always trying to expose the evil he feels is at the core of everyone; Mr. Green revealed to be an undercover cop who was at the mansion to expose Mr. Boddy and the others in Clue.

[waffowo]

Another way to appreciate Hell Bent is if you consider its structure and compare it against Heaven Sent. As much as Heaven Sent occurs in media res, it is very much an “ordered” story that regardless occurs at the beginning, just not the correct temporal one. There is a clear linear trajectory in what the Doctor does and what he experiences, with only the “difference” (consider the usage here loosely) from other episodes being that he is entrapped in a constant cycle of the narrative hero versus monster-of-the-week being different from a lot of episodes.

In comparison, the moment he breaks through the Azbantium wall, he stumbles upon the mythic, previously inaccessible Gallifrey. Where Heaven Sent is orderly in structure, upon giving up his heroic ideal to rescue Clara, he acts as a destructive force that causes the mythic place of Gallifrey to collapse upon itself. This results in what should be a “stable” narrative set in Gallifrey for a mythic hero to give way into a series of symbols, subtexts and themes. This is most evidenced by the Gallifreyean conflict mirroring that of a Western, which is subverted. The Doctor is shown to completely give up his mantle and act as an Eastwoodian, man with little words gunslinger archetype (it is incredibly ironic and interesting that Rassilon states that, “words are his weapons” when the coup occurs with barely a word stated). The positioning of the Doctor as an archetype such as this is vital because it unveils a certain dual perception. The archetype suggests a certain connotation of the heroic for the audience while its intrinsic ties to the masculine, violent gunslinger also in hindsight frames the Doctor as clearly in violation of any moral code (it is also interesting if you compare this to The Doctor Falls which likewise utilises the Western genre to illustrate a contrastive point)

This “collapse of narrative” upon stumbling into Gallifrey is also most notable during the scene when Clara is extracted from her timestream. From the lens that I am taking, it is incredibly fascinating to hear what seems to be something breaking (the sound design is really interesting to observe when taking this lens) followed by Clara and The Doctor rendered with a stereoscopic effect (think about the fact that there is a clear disruption of the process of the medium of television itself) and THEN they proceed to enter a blank white room and away from the prior narrative space. I bring attention to this because if Heaven Sent occurs as a series of repetitions that perpetuates the same heroic ideal, Hell Bent shatters the heroic narrative setting of Clara’s demise and she’s essentially dragged to an observer space, or a space behind the scenes.

To even further elaborate on this, think about the cloisters, a labyrinthine graveyard of Doctor Who lore that is doomed to persist. Time Lords get lost in the hell which is the Cloisters because it is a narrative hell. The messy, overgrown basement that is covered over by the face of a linear mythos. Think about the backstory of the Doctor or even better, if you’ve listened to Zagreus, if you’ve read any comic, there isn’t a clear linear canon of the lore that we expect there to be. The cloisters represents that question of how we navigate the mythology of Doctor Who itself. Gallifrey then isn’t just a backdrop to the relationship of Clara-12 but the way in which Moffat subverts what we expect of Gallifrey though the visual imagery and metatextual subtext also reveals to us that Gallifrey is not at the foreground because The Doctor by denouncing his mythic status, directly attacks the foundation of the mythology he was built from.

This also functions as the reason of why Clara can ascend and in my analysis, I state that she sails off not just into a narrative ambiguity but into a narrative infinite. The Doctor is not just destructive in the aforementioned ways, but he’s also destructive in how he seeks to (by retconning Clara’s demise), enforce a new narrative order with a degree of masculinity due to the aforementioned ties to the gunslinger figure. Clara (as protege) as the successor of The Doctor is also that of a refusal to be bound to a masculine narrative order and also the inevitability to contribute to merely the lore surrounding the mythology of The Doctor.

Robin in The Robots Of Sherwood stated:

“History is a burden. Stories can make us fly.”

Clara is no longer historical (refer to the General’s speech) bound to the burden of The Doctor’s history (history as an accumulation of narratives based in reality). She has become a story by breaking out of the confines of the screen (refer back to the extraction scene’s visual language). In conjunction with her splinters and her separation from her codependency, she is free to carve out a mythology separate from that of the show. Thus, she DOES sail into a dual infinite/ambiguity; in order to transcend, she cannot be observed but only imagined.

Heaven Sent/Hell Bent are powerful pieces of media not just because they are stories about love or grief but also how their subversion of narrative is incredibly layered. I think the power emerges from the multiplicity of interpretation the viewer can derive from both pieces. I think both are equally challenging works that deserve the hype. If you want to explore more of this, I’d HIGHLY recommend Gigawho’s brilliant essays revolving around Hell Bent: Bent Sent and Everything You Know Is Lore. They are both some of the best essays I’ve ever read with respect to both Doctor Who and literary criticism! In fact, I was originally planning on writing something longer with references to both essays.

(Note: You can also observe the subjective presentation of Heaven Sent or how Hell Bent demystifies Gallifrey by removing the mythic from it setting wise by illustrating a more “real” political backdrop and conflict in comparison to the more “othered” setting of Heaven Sent. It is also worth looking at the conversations of Clara And The Doctor in Hell Bent’s diner in context of an encoded narrative)

[princess-aeducan]

3,6, 21

This got a bit long so Dragon Age OC rambling under the cut!

3. opinion on blood magic?

Dani Aeducan: All magic is kind of weird to her, but she’s not particularly heated about it. If it’s a tool that can help her cause, she’s all for it, but she would understand the fear around it.

Juno Hawke: She’s wary of it in the sense that Templars will be even more violent around it and demons are dangerous, but doesn’t moralize the practice itself. She supports Merrill in her endeavors, but has some hesitations around her safety (being asked to kill her if she becomes possessed was horrifying). She does trust Merrill’s knowledge and competence, though, so that eased her somewhat. She’s supportive of it, but worries about it in the same way she worries about everything.

Ataashi Adaar: the only mage of the bunch, she tends to be fascinated by magic on an intellectual level and blood magic is no exception. She told Solas she would be interested in learning it, but by the end of the game she’s probably comfortable enough in her specialization and conscious of her reputation that it’s no longer actually true. Still, she respects the form and finds it fascinating.

6. attitude towards the Qun?

Dani Aeducan: Sten being confounded by her being both a warrior and a woman was very odd to her, as someone who’s always been valued for her battle prowess. She doesn’t see it as especially more strange than all the other new cultures she was exposed to when leaving Orzammar, though. The idea of having a determined purpose is something familiar to her.

Juno Hawke: She just loves Isabela and would do anything for her, so her perception of it isn’t particularly positive after the events of Act 2. She generally values personal freedom and choice so she would be opposed to it regardless, but isn’t particularly politically intense about it (she’s more concerned with her inner circle).

Ataashi Adaar: Has a lot of resentment towards it. Vehemently hates the way it treats mages in particular and the fact that she couldn’t have truly had her own life under it. Killing the saarebas in Trespasser was tragic for her- if things were different, that could have been her.

21. Biggest regret

Dani Aeducan: Honestly, maybe crowning Harrowmount. It would have been better for Orzammar and she would have her brother, no matter how fucked up he is. She would never admit this to herself or anyone else, though. She’d like to say she regrets letting Alistair kill the archdemon, but I’m not sure she’d actually do that differently. She feels like even more shit because of that.

Juno Hawke: taking Bethany to the Deep Roads. 🥲

Ataashi Adaar: After the Inquisition, the time she spent as a mercenary maybe feels like wasted time— she should have been like this all along, shaping the world to her values. But I also think she knows she would have never ended up in the Inquisitor position if anything HAD been different. So no true regrets, because she does feel she ended up exactly where she needed to be, even if she’s sort of devastated about it.

[animation-is-my-jam]

Halo heloo!! Popping in to say if you have any more Wordgirl hot takes? I'm new to the fandom and I saw your post about the opinion meme. (Btww my favorite character is Lady Redundant Woman and I ship Tobecky-- I wonder if you also have unpopular opinions on those mostly cause im curious)

Hi!! Thanks for the ask.

Kinda funny that I'm asked fandom/character questions considering my activity and obscurity, but I have been in the Wordgirl space for 7 years and observed it back in the early 2010s.

As for hot takes...hmm, I could give some since I was watching through the series again, and I recently had some discussions with a friend about Wordgirl stuff. (The Disclaimer, aside from one of the takes I have, these aren't that serious, or do I want to come across as confrontational, just my thoughts and opinions):

Scoops is not a jerk. Random, I know, but it's also connected to the idea of Scoops being this secretly selfish boy and why he's the least liked kid character in the fandom next to idk Eileen. Yes, Scoops is a bit of dunce and can often say or do stuff because he gets carried away or his ego--but he wouldn't straight up be malicious. He's a kid. And idk, I think it's pretty funny how oblivious or callouse he can be to others. But no Tobecky fans, Scoops wouldn't just straight up hate or stop being Becky's friend if she either confessed to him or started seeing Tobey. (I agree that he's such a dummy at times and could say the wrong things, but come on, look at Scoops and tell me he would treat his friends terribly.)

Granny May is funny. I know a lot of people don't like her or her episodes because they hate the gaslight or turn on Wordgirl schemes, but idc I think it's hilarious that this 75 year old is beefing with a child and gets away with manipulating people for the 100th time. Plus, I think it's interesting that her episodes could bring out a Becky that makes us question if she's doing good deeds bc it's the right thing or doing them because it gives her purpose and adoration. Either way, I'm like the only Wordgirl fan who is interested in Granny May character lore, and what exactly is her relationship to her own kids and grandkids. And that's cause she makes me laugh.

(Oh boy, serious time) Okay, so this is a very recent observation and discussion I had with a friend who is more educated on this matter over the entire fandom perception of Two-brains|squeaky. And I'm gonna say it on mine and on their behalf... I don't like the usage of squeaky as this ultimate evil or an overt metaphor for the difficult/bad side effects of mental illness. Like, okay, I know this is touchy for people since Two-brains is the favorite--but I don't like the constant fandom aesthetic sticking to making Two-brains the ONLY character with either DID or any number of serious mental conditions just because he fused with the brain of a evil mouse, especially when their depiction of it is worse than Detroit Become Human with racism. At worst, it could be ablelist and ignorant to people with those actual diagnoses. What do I mean by this? Well, it's mostly for people who think that Steven is still inside Two-brains or that Two-brains could be fixed. I'm one of the Steven is gone believers, but regardless--it's kinda ehh to try and make Two-brains represent someone with mental illness or addiction and just say "dw he can be cured if we kill this other part of himself". Even worse than when he does get "fixed," it's only squeaky's influence that encourages his bad behavior and that others would care for him more if only he got rid of the "problem" and went back to being "normal". Like...that's not how a mental illness/condition works. I should know. And this idea kinda makes me uncomfortable because idk, it's like the equivalent of when TOH was still airing and some ppl going: "Why doesn't eda just isolate or destroy the owl beast?" Or the audacity to say that she should have been fully healed at the end when no, she was a good example of the metaphor, and it would completely ruin the purpose. (Plus, I don't get the Jekyll and Hyde comparisons if you try to apply the mental illness metaphor).

As for the other parts of your question. Hmm do i have unpopular ideas/takes of Lrw or Tobecky?

For LRW, um, not really? She's one of my favorite villains, so I'm good, not really any complaints with her or how she's done in fandom tropes. All I know is that fandom actually makes her cooler somehow, and I get mad about that bc shes so awesome/lhj

For Tobecky...yeah I know, another discussion about them, lol, can't help it. But for unpopular ideas/takes...I guess one is that I don't think Wordgirl was completely terrible during the Miss Power scene with him. Like obviously it hurted Tobey's feelings and Wordgirl shouldn't be so mean, BUT you can't lie to say that if not then...Wordgirl would have blown up at him one day and it's good that Tobey at least knows what she deep down thought of him. I know a lot of people who like Tobey don't think he should be treated badly ever, but no, the kid kinda needs the humbling (the stuff of his appearance was uncalled for though. Like who cares about his drip Wordgirl--he destroys buildings and belittles others 😭 thats the least of his issues.)

Another one is that I don't think Wordgirl/Becky owes him anything just because he likes her and is secretly lonely. Like you can have Tobey as your favorite and want him to be happy, but, to me, it's like don't just make Tobey the one who only gets Becky because he like deserves it after getting mega sad or he "won" her (im saying this as a tobey fan). What's Becky thoughts? Or make her the one to realize why she would be with Tobey? How does Tobey make her happy? And that it's okay that Becky rejects Tobey in a fic or art. It doesn't make her the bad one in the scene or that she's treating him unfairly. (Something I realized in my own fic).

[mdhwrites]

what are your thoughts on luz insisting on calling philip 'belos'? as a trans person it felt like a weird decision cause he specifically asked to be called philip. what makes it worse is he is depicted as an evil monster/irredeemable for being so "two-faced" which is not great when he says something that most definitely does not sound cis

i'm inclined to believe this wasn't intentional malice on the part of the show writers cause honestly they probably forgot he said that or just didn't put too much thought into the dialogue when they were writing it. regardless it still came off as slightly irritating to me. i like ur takes so im curious what u think

So first I just want to throw out that despite the fact that I'm pushing myself more and more to be inclusive, transgender identity and characters is one of those things I'm not comfortable doing myself. I still argue with myself about a joke with Daina in Rich Witch that has spoiler explanations/justifications. It's not because I'm anti-trans either. Trans rights are human rights. Period. But like… There's a reason Juro Rigged Pets, literally started the day I chose to stop watching TOH or close to that, is a converted fic because I want to use the community as a soundboard for not fucking up with my first enby character because Luz is non-binary in that one.

And if you're going "Wait, why are you okay with writing sapphics then?" Well, my personal reasoning is that I see love as love and that that emotion is fairly universal, even if the expression is going to change due to gender. There is still an emotional in for me to write them, I've been exposed to a LOT more sapphic emotions and talking than I have anything about trans identity and in general I just like writing and hanging out with girls more. Not even from a "Hurr hurr, I'm a straight white dude" perspective but more from a "I like that these people seem to be capable of being more mature, emotional and honest than a lot of the guys my age seem to be." I literally spent lunch most of the time in High School with only girls around me. I just don't know if I have a comfortable, emotional in when it comes to gender identity. While identity is universal, questioning one's gender and how people treat you about it is not. It's just not the same from my perception as a feeling like love. Is that maybe small minded me? Maybe. I don't know. Sometimes I feel like the best I can do in a situation is admit my own ignorance and hope I learn to do better in the future. My ears are always open though to try and learn and understand better.

I say all of this because… Well I don't think I have a lot to say about your ask. I mostly agree. It's not meant to have any active malice to it even if it's a dick move by Luz. If we're charitable, it's meant to be reinforcing the point Luz makes in that scene about Belos wanting to be called a human name when he has clearly thrown away his humanity for his goals.

Which… I don't like in general. Yes, he is monstrous and has magic but it's really the only time they make the case and Belos still identifies as human more than he identifies as magical. If they were willing to interrogate it more, it'd be a cool recognition of the use of religion and the like to say you have noble goals while being the literal worst person ever but it's much more about Belos being a literal monster than his inner monstrosity in that moment. Like so much with Belos, it's an interesting idea obviously on the writer's mind but not done anything with because they won't dedicate the effort to it.

If we take it less charitably and look at Luz's character as a whole… Why should Luz care about other people's identities? Her claims of caring about other weirdos and the like never come out to anything. I've talked about before how Yesterday's Lie plus the pilot kind of implies that Luz actively chose never to make friends with nerds because they weren't special enough. That Willow and Gus only meet her requirements because they have magic.

Luz doesn't see Belos as meeting those requirements so why would she care about basic rights such as being given the name you desire? I think this is too mean of a take. I don't know if I personally agree with it but it is the unintentional effect that one can take from it just like how you feel awkward about the dead name being used at all when a preference is shown.

It's like if someone calls me Mikey. I don't like it. Someone pointed out to me that it's like a dog's name when I was a kid and ever since I've HATED being called that. Mike is fine but don't call me Mikey. If someone does, I know they don't give a shit about me and so I shouldn't give a shit about them and we better split our separate ways. Same goes for the assholes who have befriended my brother and called me shit like Chris 2 or Chris' Brother. Alright asshole, I see how little I matter so I'm just going to go now.

Hell, I gained a little bit of an identity issue with my brother when we were both in JROTC because a lot of people go by last names in that program. You have a twin, you end up getting called the same thing. Equated to each other. Etc. like that. Fun times.

But like Luz disrespecting Belos, I didn't take it as disrespectful until people started thinking I could be my brother's wrangler or that I should be matching my brother's athletic accomplishments. And that's what I feel about with Luz denying Belos the courtesy. It's kept at just the functional level of "You're the villain and this is the name you used to rise to power so I will not let you forget that," then seeming to be active malice about a person's identity and how they wish to be called.

Could it have been cut to be more comfortable to those who care deeply about dead names, identity, etc. like that? Yes. Could I imagine people with those same issues also overlooking it because at worst it's a microaggression as presented and the show is at least mostly respectful to people's identities? Also yes. So I don't really know which way to lean on it.

I wish I did. I wish I felt more comfortable with the subject. Frankly I'm paranoid about my personal stories here to give context to my perspective on these matters still being tasteless. I try not to let stuff like this stop me from giving my thoughts but…

Well, I want to be respectful. Maybe even more respectful than Luz is to others, depending on how you want to turn the globe of her character. Edit: I do want to mention that I actually have a fanfic where Luz is non-binary. I'm actually proud of how much that story will theoretically touch on identity and change frankly. At the time I also thought I had a Discord who would help me make sure to do it right/convinced me to give it a shot and didn't realize that enby people are considered on the trans spectrum. It's called Joro Rigged Pets. Like Crises Girlfriends, I plan to convert it someday after I finish it first as fanfiction. I'd love all of yours thoughts and feelings on how I'm doing it because like I said: I do try to be respectful. ========

I have a public Discord for any and all who want to join!

I also have an Amazon page for all of my original works in various forms of character focused romances from cute, teenage romance to erotica series of my past. I have an Ao3 for my fanfiction projects as well if that catches your fancy instead, If you want to hang out with me, I stream from time to time and love to chat with chat.

And finally a Twitter you can follow too!

[youraverageaemondsimp]

Mae, of course, answer when you will have time even after exams. I wish you so much luck on those! You are smart and I know you will pass 💅💗

But

At some point of us being moots

I'm just curious

About your opinion

On claims on the iron throne

So simply

Rightful heir?

(I respect any opinion you may have of course)

I'm failing in 2 subjects, but one has a retest on Monday so i guess it's only gonna be 1 subject?? IDK AAA okay but about the iron throne.

Hmm my opinion on who should claim the throne is highly split because Aegon doesn't really have any good qualities (for now since we haven't seen him in action yet), and rhaenyra has some good qualities but she has her shortcomings as well.

Viserys deemed Rhaenyra as the rightful heir, so she must be the rightful heir, but what I never really liked was he then went on to have children with Alicent, which is an active threat for Rhaenyra, and I'm pretty sure he knew that as well, making the realm think he had changed his mind, which is why they easily believed Queen Alicent when she said that he had changed his mind in the final moments.

I answer these types of questions based on the entire team cause a king/queen rules with the help of a council, but if we had to go individually, both of them have their shortcomings, however rhaenyra is better than Aegon and has verbal claim from viserys, so I guess I lean more towards her than Aegon, unless we add Aemond into the mix, and if we considered the teams, I lean more towards team green (so I guess aegons claim?) because they have much more complex characters and reasons for their actions.

My personal priority is like this Aemond > Rhaenyra > Aegon.

I know people take Aemond's rule as prince regent as an example why he would've sucked as a king too, but we should keep in mind and it was in the middle of the war and obviously everyone makes stupid decisions in war. Aemond would've been perfect for the throne, he knows duty, realm matters, he can fight and basically, he's perfect in every aspect, except the fact that he's a little bit arrogant and egoistic (c'mon who from the targs aren't?)

I love how you asked for the rightful claims between rhaenyra and Aegon and I'm like "yeah Aemond" AND PLEASE TRUST ME I'M NOT SAYING THIS ONLY CAUSE I'M A SIMP AAAA.

I have so much to say, but I don't want it to get long, and my opinions vary often as more information is revealed which inevitably causes perception change! This is what happens when you support both the teams haha 🤭

Edit: Also Aegon has been through some shit, but what he does in the books to defend his own is applaudable, his character in the show was fucked up but let's be honest, I don't wanna brush what he did underneath the mattress but why is that the only crime in the show that the fans are holding the character accountable for? what about grooming, incest, martial r*pe, murder, torture, slaughter shown by other characters?

Tbh everyone is equally bad and that's what makes it interesting, and I can't just pick one side and settle for it and answering these types requires a lot of character analysis and breakdown to form an opinion, however the opinion won't be correct regardless of who because there will always be a flaw that disturbs it! 💞

There will be no correct answer cause this debate is highly based on perception and how you take the characters, and it's even harder for me because I support both the teams LMASOWOD

[da-birb-writes-sometimes]

Hi there I go by Voidless! (She/Her or They/Them). I'm in search of a romantic matchup for the TWST boys.

● I tend to be forthright with my emotions, yet there's this current of sensitivity to rejection that I sometimes forget is there

● I like share knowledge and fun anecdotes! It can be rather forceful in conversations when I have something to say though.

● I think I may have some abandonment issues... There's this deep fear of not measuring up.

●A trait I'm not proud of is how often I say sorry. On some level I say it often so I can inspire pity and have people undeservingly go easy on me when I mess up. Yeah too late for apologies... ●Regardless I'm torn between a need to be recognized (taking my place in the sun), vs. and acknowledging a deep unsettling unmet want of love and security.

●That, and my sense of self is warped (it cycles through high-highs and low-lows). I have some unattainable goals I've to hinge my identity on in the past and couldn't seem to let go of, which also leads to a fear of failure.

According to UQuiz and some remarks that have resonated with me over the years:

"Captivating, like a fire."

"Airheaded and excitable, but posses a real serious side. A natural-born leader who takes charge when necessary (even, and *especially* under dire circumstances that cause others to crumble), a lot more cunning than you'd think. True blue and loyal. Would go to hell and back for their friends."

"Definitely makes people around think deeply and a bit too hard on grand, philosophical concepts but eh, they're better for it."

"Short and traumatized."

"Loves to share everything with a partner eternally curious, and hungers for knowledge. Seems to enjoy exchanging ideas and personal philosophies with others. Exceptionally buoyant, enthusiastic, and can even inspire in their communications."

"Drawn to the hidden layers of life, people, and situations. Highly observant and perceptive, too. Notices things others miss, especially emotional nuances and subtleties. Ability to understand human motivation and honesty."

"...Knows how to lift other people's spirits. Posseses big dreams."

● Hobbies: Anything under the sun! I'm a bit of a Renaissance woman and sincerely wish I could live forever to do everything. I love to sing and tell stories and invoke the imagination. I also write and enjoy the great outdoors and astronomy!

Less-so hobbies, but I also enjoy things like: Going to museums/planetariums/aquariums and interesting places, Learning new things, collecting cool rocks, having a good laugh, hiking, kayaking and playing videogames.

● In a relationship: I want one where we can be intimate emotionally and see every side of them as they see mine. My person shouldn’t be afraid to show their feelings and tell me how they feel. To thrive, I need someone who is very loving and always has your back.

Someone I can feel at home with and will uplift me. An adventure.

● How I love: I really try and take the time to learn about and understand those I love, give them my everything. Admittedly I'm very intense, and passionate, but I also love as powerfully. I'm easily excited, and feel things very deeply.

● I will not tolerate: Cruelty. I just can't take someone who wants to break my spirit.

● How I want to be loved: Gotta say I'm a fan of Shakespearean/old-timey way of flirting - I want to feel cherished and special. I'm the world's most hopeless romantic.

● Astrological Profile: Libra Sun, Scorpio Moon, Capricorn Rising, Virgo Mercury and Libra Venus

● 4w5, ENFP

Hi Voidless! For your match-up, it seems you have captured the heart of...

Rook Hunt

Rook is perceptive, reassuring you that you can tell him anything and he will be there to listen; your heart is safe with him, and he will treat it with the utmost of care. He will stand by you, during your highest of highs, and your lowest of lows, but will also hold you accountable in a reassuring manner.

“Ma chérie, I see you, I hear you. I will always be here for you. You don’t need to be sorry,” he would say in a soft manner, looking at you with loving eyes. “Je t'adore.” He would also reveal the parts of himself that only you are able to see, not hiding anything from you; your heart is his, so his heart is yours.

He would listen to any and all of the things you know and anecdotes and would offer you back some of his own if you wanted. You and Rook could get lost in discussion; it could morph from talking about philosophical ponderings, telling each other stories, to the two of you just sitting there and then he would look at you, kiss your hand, and then place it on his heart.

Rook will make you feel loved in a soft yet intense way, matching your energy. He will look at you like you hung the moon and stars and will tell you as such. He too, is a hopeless romantic; this may or may not include him reciting an entire book of poetry that he dedicated to you, full of flowery phrases so sweet that they could give you cavities. He would also sing you sonnets, embodying the values of Shakespearian romance; turning it into an art to try and win your heart, a knight (or huntsman) in shining armour.

Speaking of stars, he has kept note of your interests and would surprise you with a night hike to the best observation area to look at the night sky together, looking up to the heavens together.

Other dates will be a combination of your and his interests; he loves seeing your face light up with curiosity and being with you. He will take note of anything that caught your fancy while out, and save it in his internal collage of moments that he holds dear. 

If you want adventure in your life, look no further. He would love to make weekend getaways where it’s just you and him, a tent, and a kayak, exploring the world together. But he would also enjoy staying at home and having you show him some of your favourite video games and offering a friendly wager; regardless of if you win or he wins, he will serenade you, so it's a win-win situation.

Overall, Rook is a soft yet intense match, adoring you, and wanting to warm your heart and soul, much as the hearth would the home. As that is what you are for him; a flame that warms his very being.

"Mon amour pour toi est éternel, mon ange.~"

I hope you enjoyed this, and enjoy your Rook! He does indeed, have several books of poetry dedicated to you and there are more to come. He intends to make you melt.

[lepoppeta]

Favorite Elite Four members of each region, GO GO GO

Buckle up, buttercup.

KANTO - LORELEI. I have a Pokemon Adventures manga from my elementary school years that showcases several stories from the Yellow arc. At one point, Yellow gets chased and later cornered by Lorelai of the Kanto Elite Four (who are, in fact, all villains in the Adventures manga, hell bent on killing humans who caused the suffering of Pokemon). Villain or not, Lorelai is memorable in both aesthetic and personality; I like her sexy businesswoman vibe, and "Lorelai" is just such a pretty name. Ice is also one of my favourite types, even if it is a touch frail.

(Runner up - Lance, but he doesn't really count so much anymore because he becomes Champion in the sequel Johto games).

JOHTO - KAREN. I'm not sure what GameFreak were going for with Karen's design, because she sure doesn't look like a Dark-type trainer, but I like her regardless. She's got the all-famous quote:

"Strong Pokemon, weak Pokemon. That is only the selfish perception of people. Truly skilled trainers should try to win with their favourites."

... which I think really encompasses what Pokemon as a game is at least supposed to be (it was only successful in executing this I think in the most recent two or arguably three generations). Her Destiny Bond-Gengar is also a staple.

(Runner up - Will)

HOENN - GLACIA. When I was 9 and first taking on the Hoenn League in Emerald, I'm pretty sure Glacia gave me the most trouble due to her Hail strategies and also because her bulky Walrein was impossible for little old underleveled me to one-shot. Her outfit and overall vibe reminds me of an opera singer somewhat and I really like that. Also - more Ice types!

(Runner up - Sydney)

SINNOH - LUCIAN. I've always found Lucian to be much harder to beat than Cynthia, mostly due to his Bronzong and the fact that it's really hard to overlevel in the Sinnoh games (the later level jumps, especially in DP and BDSP, are kind of insane). I'm a big fan of calm, collected boss-types and Lucian definitely fits that bill.

(Runner Up - Aaron)

UNOVA - GRIMSLEY. I love Grimsley's energy so much; this lazy, aristocratic vibe he clings to. It's such a shame that he's got such an intense and detrimental gambling addiction (or at least he does until SM was released, I assume at that point he's in rehab) and what seems to be some sort of reliance on chance (maybe a sprinkling of OCD) but it's also what makes him so interesting. He was definitely the most intriguing of the Unova E4 for me.

(Runner up - Shauntal)

KALOS - DRASNA. I must say that I don't find the Kalos E4 to be particularly memorable as individuals (although the environment and build-up to fighting them is spot-on), so this was a little tough, but I'd have to ultimately pick Drasna as a favourite. She's just so nice to you! It's also nice to get another female Dragon specialist, and she's a heck of a lot more enjoyable than Claire ever was.

(Runner up - Wikstrom)

ALOLA - KAHILI. This one's a little weird because, at least to me, Kahili is the only member of the Alolan E4 (except for perhaps Molayne); all of the others (Hala, Olivia, Acerola) in my mind are temporary since this is the first League match.

Kahili is interesting in many ways; she's obviously a very serious person, she's a professional golfer (which I believe is a first for Pokemon), and she's the first Flying E4 specialist we ever got.

(Runner up - Molayne)

PALDEA - HASSEL. The man, the myth, the legend. There's no way I could complete this list without mentioned our dearly beloved bow-legged Dragon master. It helps that SV fleshes out pretty much every important adult NPC in the entire game, and it also helps that Hassel is one half of a whole ship that both I and @roxycake adore immensely. His history is out in the open for you to discover and yet still shrouded in a healthy layer of mystery. I wonder if anything new will be discovered when the DLC comes out later this year.

(Runner up - Rika)