#commentary time babey!

[bokettochild]

This excerpt from Cider and Cocoa (one of my ultimate comfort fics) for the DVD commentary ask!! Idk if this is the right number of words because I Could Not count them.

  That night, they curled up on the couch with mugs of cider and cocoa, silently enjoying their final night together.  

  In the morning, Mr. Hero loaded him up with apples and spice, and Ravio scoured his bags for every last trace of chocolate to stock the hero’s cupboards. Neither would last forever, something that niggled the backs of both of their minds, but both sought to drown the thought with checking over house and bags respectively one last time.  

  The goodbye was tearful, both from the princesses and Ravio himself as he flung himself into Mr. Hero’s arms, blubbering and sobbing in a right mess, but Mr. Hero only sighed, shoulders trembling slightly as he’d gently patted his back (arms tight enough around him that Ravio could hardly breathe) the softest of sniffles sounding from his friend as the hero let him cry out all his goodbyes on his shoulder.  

  That night, in the big, stately, but painfully lonely and uncluttered, kitchen of Lorule’s castle, Ravio made apple cider. It didn’t taste quite like Mr. Hero’s, a far cry indeed, but that may have just been the salt in it.  

Honestly, I don't care that much about the word count. You could probably sneak 1,000 in and I'd still just be happy to talk about my fics!

Okay, so, the thing about Cider and Cocoa is that the fic sort of jumped out of nowhere. It's one of the ones that's charm lies in it's simplicity and the fact that there are so few spoken words, and rather the vague impression of speech, which lends it a dreamy, story-book sort of feel (or so I think) that makes it the perfect thing to read to help soothe troubled hearts and ease little sisters down to bed. It's one of @apparitianhanako's favorites to beg me to read to her for that reason, and my main inclination for hoping to one day record read-alouds of the stories, if only so she can always have me reading it to her whenever she wants, no matter what may happen :)

The passage you selected seemed to be the natural progression of the fic when writing it. I wanted to capture that serene sense of slowly warming up to each other, settling into orbit and finding a home where it's not expected. Unfortunately, according to LU cannon, Ravio didn't stay at Link's house, as many prefer to portray it, but instead went home. In the story I was establishing though, it seemed that such a parting would naturally be quite difficult for both of them.

One of the main focus points I had in mind was the severe contrast Ravio would be nearly overwhelmed by from having gone from working (and living?) in a castle, to suddenly being inside this small house with no servants and no silent halls and just... no opulence. Link's house is the picture of simplicity; a little cottage on a hill surrounded by apple trees, a garden and bee hives. The contrast is stark to Ravio, but also a relief; Link's house is a safe haven, both for Mr. Hero and himself, and feels like it's own little pocket of the world, seperate from nearly all else. Link likes it best this way, and Ravio grows to adore it.

Hence why leaving it is such a painful thing.

It's painful for both of them, as they've become awfully attached to one another. It's also why the two of them exchange recipes and why they heap upon the other the necessary tools to make them; both of them know they'll probably never see each other again. However, them being the stubborn bunnies they are, there's a part of them that wants to hold on as fast as possible, to believe that as long as the other one has even just a taste (quite literally in this case) of their time together, that they won't forget them.

Just the same, there's the hope that if they can have that taste of their time with the other, they won't be nearly as lonely once they've parted.

The goodbye itself was interesting to write, because its displays, I think the best of almost anything, the contrast between them. I always enjoy writing a contrast between heroes and princesses that I think I encapsulated best in A Royally Awful Prank, but also touched on here.

Link (Legend) is harsh in his words, in the way he wants the world to see him. It's a mask as we all know, but one raised defensively to protect a tender heart. Ravio, in contrast, has not been faced with the troubles to make him raise such shields, so while Link is trying to remain strong, for not only Ravio but also Zelda, Ravio himself is giving free rein to tears and sorrow.

Ravio sees nothing wrong with expressing himself honestly, whereas Link (Legend) feels the need to be the one offering strength, to bear the burden of the others' hurt as best he can to make their lives and struggle easier. it seemed something the hero would most likely pick up on, and for a hero like the Hero of Legend, who serves not his country, but to help people in need, it seemed in character to make him want to still be strong.

That said, losing Ravio is heartbreaking. Link (Legend) has lost so many people before, but this was the first time he knew it was coming, and knew how it was going to happen. it almost makes it harder because he was mourning it before it ever even happened. So when it does, yes, he's barely holding it together. When he gets home after that scene, he sits himself down in his orchard and just cries.

In that moment though, he's trying to shield his emotions by not speaking too much or crying, but unfortunately, he can't manage to not cling to Ravio for just a moment more, because he too has cherished having someone around in a place that feels like home who just... cares. Link and Ravio may have been using each other to an extant in order to save their homes, but they both knew it all the while and when it comes down to it, they saw all the worst and best of each other in that time. So letting go of the person who sees you for who you are, and not only accepts but cherishes that person, is so, so hard for both of them; Legend physically and Ravio more emotionally.

The last paragraph really focuses on the point I made to open: Lorule castle is big and lonely to Ravio. This is the first glimpse the reader gets of it, but it's a sharp contrast to the cozy home life that Link and Ravio had to share. In the castle, you can miss running into someone on complete accident, whereas the cottage made it to where they could hear each other all the time, no matter where in the house they went. To go from warmth and someone who understands, appreciates and accepts you, to a big, empty place where you're just a piece in a divine chess match is quite painful for Ravio.

Still, our merchant tries to make it a bit more like the house he now thinks of as 'home' by making Link's cider. it doesn't work though, because (as we learn in the next chapter, and as my sister happily brings up every time) Ravio messed up the recipe.

I didn't want to just end it there though, it felt so... disengenuine, so I added the last line.

"It didn’t taste quite like Mr. Hero’s, a far cry indeed, but that may have just been the salt in it."

I remember ditehring over this line for a while. i considered adding more, clarifying that Ravio didn't strait up put salt in cider, that he's crying so hard he might as well be drinking tear-water tea, but the open-ended nature and freedom of interpretation; letting the reader put it together themselves, seemed more appealing. it's not often I can do that without unnecessary confusion, but here I feel like it was well placed and easy to read.

Honestly, this is one of my favorite fics all around, and definitely the one that's stood up the best to time out of all of them. I'm really glad you gave me a chance to blather about it!

[icewindandboringhorror]

Various images from the past year or so... posting my evil little photo diary collections once again..

[bucknastysbabe]

idk if your taking requests but I’m in desperate need of more modern AU Jace fics. Maybe if he was a cocky hockey player with his giant dick I need smut 🙏

Rating: Explicit

Tags: Hockey player!Jace, Actress!Reader, fake dating trope, my not sly commentary about parasocial fangirl behaviors and pressure on women in high profile industries, she has honkers and he has a horse cawk match made in heaven, Jacey is a little sweet babey always, real kittycat eating hours, teasing, pnv!sex, v!fingering, fast burn, lots of banter :)

Taglist: @arcielee @aemonds-holy-milk @targaryenbarbie @valeskafics @fallingintoyourlilaceyes @fairysluna @sugarpoppss2 @lovelykhaleesiii

The contracts were to be signed today. Jace was to be in a PR ‘relationship’ with this break-out actress. He was a star himself in the NHL, winning the Hart Memorial trophy for being the most valuable player his rookie year. He played centre, covering the ice and passing to his teammates to make a goal. He got a huge deal in the aftermath.

Suddenly his world was much more glamorous.

He wasn’t sure who sucked whose dick but he agreed to dating the starlet. He flew down from Toronto to the upscale management office in New York to meet the chick. He’d heard her name, couldn’t put a face to it, and certainly didn’t look her up. The brunette hoped she was a looker like his manager said.

He was pleasantly surprised, shaking her manicured hand. Jacaerys grinned as he introduced himself, poorly hiding his leering gaze on her tight little body. The actress was smoking hot. He wondered if she would be down to fool around. He had no desire for romance outside of planned sightings. He wasn’t much into that at the moment. Jace dated his high school sweetheart Rhaena until he’d gone big time.

She didn’t acclimate to fame and his constant absence. Jace understood why she broke it off. When they were seen— reporters interrupted. Pictures of fan girls crowding around him surfaced all the time. She deleted her socials due to harassment. He was saddened but figured it was a sign to let loose. So let loose he did.

Jacaerys had fucked plenty of puck bunnies, professional athletes, and the occasional hook-up with famous names by now. His brother called him cocky, and his mother snapped to not let the fame get to his head. He listened, truly, Jace loved his family and wanted to make them proud.

But honestly? When he was accomplishing everything he dreamed of and the money was flowing in, Jace couldn’t help but feel a bit over-confident. He knew he was talented, handsome, and a good fuck. He’d learned from a young age that his…dick…was different. In layman’s terms, he had a horse cock. By God, he was proud of that thing too.

They sat down in adjacent chairs, waiting for the agent to come to debrief them on the terms of the relationship. Jacaerys' brown eyes flicked over to her bored face, down to her busty chest, and back up. She scoffed “You haven’t seen my tits on the silver screen?”

He grinned, asking “I don’t get around to movies much. Care to enlighten me?”

Her lips turned into a frown, posture stiffening up. The actress shook her head, pulling out her phone to text rapidly. She was likely talking shit. Jace prodded, “What? Am I missing something? I’m playing hockey year round babe.”

“I literally am up for a Golden Globe for leading actress in a drama,” she grumbled, “Apparently you don’t read either.” She turned back to type on her phone again, lips settling into a pout. The athlete was a little taken aback by her attitude. He liked it. It appeared she was used to cinephile sycophants and co-stars trying to get a piece.

He hummed a laugh, spreading out in the wide chair. They waited, her nails clicking on the cell phone beginning to irritate Jacaerys. He absently asked "You like hockey? It's pretty fun to watch live."

"I don't really pay attention to sports, I act year round babe."

Jace's eyes widened in surprise. She was a spitfire under the glossy hair and now placid expression. He knew better than to irk her more, his mother taught him to respect women. The athlete was drawn in, he wanted a reaction, the attention whether it was negative or not. He smirked at her, leaning over, "Why did you pick me then? Don't like hockey, don't seem quite fond of me."

Her own lips curled a bit, the woman tucking a loose lock of hair behind a jeweled ear. She stated, "I got a list, you were single and cute. Word on the street was that you were a bit nicer than who I am sitting with now. Don't worry, it won't be too long, you'll be back to railing your way through Toronto soon." Her smile was thin, a blank look to her eyes.

Jace's chest fluttered a bit, guilt seeping into his mind. Before he could apologize the door opened. A man in a suit briskly walked in, setting down some papers. He eyed the pair to ask "Ready for the terms?" They both nodded, and Jace noticed her frown grow deeper. Damn. He felt like an asshole.

"Alright Jacaerys Velaryon, you'll be 'dating' my client for three months minimum. If you two hit it off, good job, enjoy your relationship. You two must be seen in public at least bi-weekly, my client will be at your games, and maintaining PDA is required. I'd recommend going out with your friends and playing the part. We'll sign an NDA and get this show on the road. Sound good?"

"Sure."

"Can't wait," she deadpanned.

They scribbled their names and exited the meeting. The actress ignored Jacaerys as she left, answering a phone call, pointedly looking away. He eventually cornered her up to exchange phone numbers. The pair had to exit the building at separate times so as not to draw attention.

Jace decided to read up on his faux girlfriend for the flight home. The actress was talented, the same age as him, and booked for the year. He decided to shoot her a text, damned lingering guilt eating at him. The hockey player was soft at heart, always had been. He could play the part of a cocky athlete but he truly hated confrontation, upsetting others, and general dickishness. That was for his uncles.

"Sorry about being a dick. Going to watch your movie tonight. Should I start with your small role in that sitcom?"

His dark eyes raptly watched the typing bubble. It disappeared, reappeared-- finally a response showed up. She had replied with an emoji rolling its eyes. "God, please don't, I look like a freak. The movie is much better. Then you can tell me about my tits. Apology accepted. See you next week in Toronto, make sure to clean the thongs outta your place."

Jace grinned, excitement coursing through his veins. He ended up making a big show picking her up from the airport. He grabbed the luggage and put it in his new sleek car. A couple of people had stopped her, even Jace for some autographs. The brunette made sure to hug the actress-- pulling her in for a searing kiss. His hand possessively splayed across her lower back, fingers grazing her pert ass.

He opened the door to let her in the car, cameras flashing now. Jace leaned in to whisper, "I have to admit, you have a beautiful body." She flushed and pecked his lips again, shooting him a smile. The hockey player climbed into the driver's side and off they went. He snuck a look and added, "I didn't really find any thongs but everything is pristine, Miss Golden Globe Nominee."

"Good, Mister Hart Trophy Winner."

Jace couldn't help but smile. He enjoyed her banter while they headed to his place. The woman was witty and playful, her icy facade melting as he listened to her. Jace carried her bags into the luxury apartment complex, while she had a roller bag. He teased, "You got boulders in here?"

"I'm staying for a bit, need to be prepared. You can run around in a tracksuit and no one bats an eye. If I look like a slob the tabloids are going to wonder if I'm a drunk or something. You won't believe the 'inside sources' I apparently have."

Jace frowned, scoffing, "That's bullshit. They put so much pressure on women in the industry."

She gazed at him, eyes softened as she thanked him in a reverent tone. Jace felt his cheeks heat up. He was beginning to wonder if he was having a moment of weakness or simply struck dumb by her looks and powerful presence. "At the least, I'm not a model."

Jacaerys snorted. He's had his fair share of models. He assumed they were all a bit nutty from the coke, not the horrid pressure from their nigh-impossible standards of beauty to uphold. "Good point," he conceded.

She stared around his loft, lips quirking up. The woman placed her bag down and strolled to the huge windows overlooking the city. Casting a glance back at Jacaerys she marveled, "It's gorgeous Jacaerys. Much prettier than LA." He smiled and replied, "Wait until you see it at night, I never get tired of the view."

Jace liked the way she said his full name. Maybe too much. He felt his cheeks begin to burn again. His animal hindbrain tittered "How would she sound moaning that?"

Awkwardness settled over the pair, her turning back to look out the window. Jace stated, "I'll put your things in the guest room, it's got a big bathroom and all."

"Thanks hun," she hummed. She followed along to place the luggage down, flopping onto the bed. Her big eyes followed Jace's form as she commented, "I highly doubt you decorated the place but it's nice. Very...Feng shui."

"Mom did all of that, I do try to keep it clean. I fear she'll appear and scold me. You could lick off the floor at my place growing up."

"Ha! I wish! I'm cluttered as all get out."

Jace gave her a faux glare, "Better keep it tidy, babe."

"Uh-huh, sure, what's on the docket for today? I want a tour and a cocktail to cap it off at dinner."

"You mean the club?"

Jace couldn't stop his cock from twitching when she smiled at him coquettishly, sparkling teeth gleaming as she purred "Of course stud, let's see what the rake of the Maple Leafs is putting down. I wanna see you dance!"

Oh. He was in quite deep. Jacaerys Velaryon might have developed an infatuation faster than he could pass a puck.

They held hands walking around Toronto, catching lunch as he showed her the sights. They rested on a bench in a park, Jace's arm slung around her shoulders, their heads close together as they spoke. The pair of them stared at her phone, giggling. The actress read off the Instagram post, "Starlet dating hockey star Jace Velaryon?"

"They're quick with it, for the love of god don't look at the comments."

Her pretty eyes rolled, "They call me an industry whore, nothing new, let me see this." Her red lacquered nail clicked on the comments. She guffawed, lips spreading into a smile. Jace raised a brow and looked over. He shook his head in annoyance-- how could 'fans' of his be so angry? Wouldn't they want him to be happy?

'Please, this won't last a second.'

'Pr relationship so obvious.'

'Jaceeeee whyyyyy she's such a bad actress.'

"A Golden Globe nominee is a bad actress? God, don't listen to that nonsense," he grumbled, tightening his arm around her shoulders. She shrugged and clicked on a fan page of her own. Jace seemed to settle at the more uplifting comments. He laughed out loud at one, 'Loveeee get it mother!' Jace outright guffawed at the second one, 'Be careful babes, don't get split by his infamous horse dick!!!'

"I like my fans better. I'll have to check out your fan cams at some point."

Jace rolled his eyes, helplessly grinning. His eyes flicked to a camera shuttering. Ah great, paparazzi, he thought. The brunette was planning on intentionally kissing her. He glared at the person and sniffed, "Come on, let's head back to my place for a bit." She cooed "What? Don't want your pic taken Jacey?"

"Nope, we need nap time before hitting the nightlife."

"I hope we see Drake. That would be cool."

Jace laughed his ass off. When they got into the elevator he crowded her up, hands on her waist. She inhaled, eyes widening, full lips quirking up. He murmured softly, "You're so...I can't find the words." Her arms loosely linked around his shoulders, soft lips so close. She whispered, "Actions speak louder than words pretty boy."

Next thing Jace knew her legs were locked around his hips, the pair making out as he blindly keyed open the door to his loft. Kicking the door open, the brunette pressed her against the wall, mouthing his way down her neck. The actress' nails dug into his shoulders as she moaned, breasts heaving in excitement. He nipped at her collarbone, mumbling, "Lemme eat you out, fuck, please."

"Bed now," she demanded in return.

He deposited the beauty on his bed, wildly jerking at his clothes. She was shimmying off her leggings, the sweatshirt she borrowed hitting the wall. Jace climbed atop her in his underwear, grinding against her pussy, mouth latching back onto plush lips. She whined under her breath when he lapped into her mouth, calloused hands playing with peaked nipples.

They grew sloppy, Jace finally kissing and sucking his way down her tight body. He grabbed one of her legs as he sucked on the thin skin of the hip, dark eyes blown black with arousal. She gripped at his hair, breathless, "Fu-uck Jacaerys, please, please." Jace grinned, rumbling, "I gotcha baby, screw the club, I'll show you a good time tonight yeah?" He was hopelessly earnest, swollen lips hovering above her mound.

"Yes yes baby, want it all, please, you're killing me." Jace could lose his mind at the way her voice cracked into a whimper, brows pinching in agony. She even thrust fruitlessly upwards-- Jace's other hand keeping her hip pinned. He grunted, "Spread em' sweetheart."

He tongued at her engorged clit off the rip, hands digging into the soft meat of the thighs. The actress cried out, back arching all gorgeous, tits bouncing with the movement. Her hand tightened in his curls as Jace suckled, eyes watching every little move. He snuck his fore and middle fingers up and across her sopping slit, smirking.

He delved them into her cunt as his tongue joined, playfully lapping as the excess slick, moaning at her natural taste. She whimpered again, thighs tightening as Jacaerys crooked his fingers up into her g-spot, flicking his tongue upwards and back to her clitoris. He paused to groan, "You feel good pretty girl?"

She moaned his name and babbled nonsense, pussy throbbing and drenching his fingers. Jacaerys' smiled-- she moaned his name just as he imagined. He had a rhythm alternating between teasing jabs of his tongue and suckling on the bundle of nerves. She was growing frantic, tossing her hair around and practically howling in pleasure.

He sped up the pace, relentlessly working her pretty pussy until the darling shrieked his name, clenching his hair. Her thighs twitched and clamped around his head, body arched as she heaved and cried. Jace groaned at her gushing around his fingers, long lashes fluttering in pure want. He needed to fuck her, now.

He pulled down his briefs as she laid back, panting, pretty face dazed and flushed-- a light sheen of sweat had covered her naked body. He climbed atop her, pleading, "C'mon sweets, think you can take it? Take me? I'll give you another orgasm, too goddamn perfect not too, god."

Her lidded eyes widened at his cock. It was flushed and heavy, too heavy to do anything but hang between his impossibly toned thighs. The actress rasped, "Give it to me, I can take it, ease it in." She kissed the brunette open-mouthed and wet, shaky legs pulling up to cage his hips in.

Jace's breath stuttered as he guided the fat tip of his cock into her soaked pussy, feeling the stretch immediately. She clung to him, pouring herself into his lips, nails digging into his shoulder blades. He slid in another agonizing two inches, gasping, "Fuck you're tight."

She responded by sucking blooming marks into his tensed neck, eyes rolling up when the thick middle of his cock spread her wide open. "Jacaerys, Jacaerys, you feel so good- so damn big baby!" He kept pushing against the slight resistance, settling as deep as he could.

His brown eyes clenched tight, she was like a silky glove around his cock. Hazily he felt her stomach, eyes lolling around at the bump from his cock. She was mewling wetly at the junction of neck and shoulder, non-stop babbling about being so full. Jace panted, "Mm, yeah, lookit' you, stretched your pretty pussy out."

He began to fuck in earnest, chasing a high. Her cunt dragged and clung to his fat cock, ridged insides sending sharp arousal up his spine. Jace lost himself in the moment, mouthing at a pert nipple, heavy balls slapping against her ass. She cried and yelled, worthy of a fucking porno. He knew he wasn't going to last long. But the way she was practically shivering and fuck-dumb, slurring her words of nonsense, she was right with Jace.

"M'gonna cum baby, you on birth control?"

"Fuck me, jus' keep fuckin' me," she rasped. Plan B was always an option when her mind returned to non-mush. Jace kept fucking her as instructed, groans growing desperate and guttural. His balls were drawing up, aching from how needy he was to cum.

He kissed her one more time, swallowing her noises before pulling back to pant against her cheek, hips beginning to stutter. He snuck a hand down to her cunt, thumbing her clit. Just when he thought it couldn't get any better-- she shrieked again. A gush of her slick engulfed his cock, wet noises filling the bedroom. Jace cried her name, shoving himself deep and filling her up.

He might've sent her into another orgasm but Jacaerys was whited out from pleasure. All the athlete could do was pathetically groan as his cock twitched and pumped his heavy load into her cock, thickening the slick coating on his prick, collecting around where they joined. It was delightfully filthy. He came too with a deep inhale, sliding out with a mewl and flopping away.

Overstimulation was a common theme with the girls he fucked-- Jace knew to give some space in the immediate aftermath. It wasn't too long before she complained, "Why are you flopped over there? Get over here, you just fucked my brains out."

He grinned like a sap. How did she have yet another moment where he found himself deeper in desire for the woman. Jace murmured, "My bad, my bad, didn't want to overheat you or anything." She retorted, "I'm a cuddler Jacaerys Velaryon, you should remember that about your girlfriend." He chuckled, jerking her into his embrace, tucking a chin on her shoulder.

"They didn't lie about your horse dick. Hate to tell your fan girlies that cock belongs to me now."

Jace smirked, pressing a gentle peck to her skin, "It's all yours, believe me. They can find the next rookie of the year to be their online boyfriend."

[somanyfuckedupiftruebooks]

Interesting how many statement-givers who have no knowledge of the Entities still seem to instinctively reach for the power of the Eye when it comes to defending themselves from other Entities. 'If I can just watch this closely enough, I'll be able to keep in control of the situation. If I can just figure out what is happening, I'll be able to keep myself safe.' Nope, but good try I guess.

Okay, theory time!

First up, I completely misremembered this statement. It seems like the vase works by fucking around with your stuff, mostly taking the things you own (not just stealing them, but wiping them from existence Stranger style) but also occasionally giving you things or just messing with your and other people's memories of what you do and do not own. Then at some point (when you're scared enough) everything that was taken comes back and Mr Bad Fingers climbs out of the vase (which is actually his house) and steals your husband (or whatever you value most, probably). This is not how I remember this statement at all.

I thought the vase just took more and more stuff (wiping it from existence each time) until it was... full I guess? And then it spat everything it had taken back out agin, but a Distorited version of it. So the copy of Catch-22, for example, would be written in some sort of incomprehensible nonsense language. The shoes would no longer be wearable by human feet. Etc. Etc.

So I thought what happened was that David disappeared before the end of the statement. He was the last thing the vase took before Andre started watching it around the clock. And when the vase started spitting out twisted monster versions of everything, a wrong version of David was the final thing to come out. The statement giver fled and we never really found out what happened with the new and improved Spiral!David.

...until we meet Dr David in Season 5.

My headcanon was that Dr David was the Spiral version of this guy, building on his actions here of gaslighting his husband and trying to have him committed. Maybe he even really used to be a doctor, Andre doesn't mention what David did for a living.

Relistening to this statement has made me realise that this headcanon maybe doesn't add up as neatly as I thought it did. But I don't give a shit because I still like it. There no canon but what you make, and I say that Dr David is what was left of this episode's David after the homophobic vase was done with him.

Yeah, I'm sorry dude, but if it's still taking things then I really doubt it's gone. We know from the post-statement that it never took Andre himself (otherwise his own name wouldn't be on his marriage certificate) but I strongely doubt that this guy's ordeal is over.

And that's basically confimed right here. We don't get to actually hear the rest of the follow up, but by opening with the marriage certificate putting everything else in a new light, we know that Jon was about to tell us a bunch of weird stuff about what really happened to Andre.

Elias is buying artefacts from Salesa? Please tell me Peter took him on a weird date to one of Salesa's improvised warehouse showrooms and bought him a bunch of cursed shit. Weirdly, that might even be too romantic for those two...

I see you 👁🕷

So the Web has been waiting for the perfect moment to trigger Jane's assault on the Archives, and it's notable that it happens in the middle of Jon talking about Salesa. I know Salesa deliberately stays un-aligned from the Entities, but I think the Web is fond of him. It would snap him up in a heartbeat if it weren't for the fact that he's already so useful as an unaware puppet.

Dear all fanfic writers (including me, I'll admit I am guilty of this) and fanartists who depict Jon as being helpless and overwhelmed with fear at the very sight of a spider: please pay attention to this scene! The first time Jon ever encounters a spider in canon he doesn't freeze or run or jump up on top of a desk, he immediately chooses violence and kills it so hard he breaks the wall down.

And I would say the line about Martin giving multiple lectures on their importance to the ecosystem implies that Jon routinely kills the spiders he sees around the Archives (because trust me, any large space full of old paper will have plenty of spiders). They have had enough arguments about it that Sasha immediately knows not to get the two of them started again.

I'm sure this is nothing to be worried about :)

@a-mag-a-day

Mag 38

We love a man who's well organised <3 He has experience with needing to get the fuck out of dodge and I respect that.

Surely these can't all be Leitners? It would be insane to store them like this, right? And as far as we know Salesa isn't a moron.

Although it is cool to think that he stole them all from (laughed out of town cowboy motherfucking) jurgen leitner after his internship ended. Punitive damages.

Homophobic vase??? Already??? I didn't know this was a Season 1 statement! I thought this motherfucker showed up in like 3 or 4.

Anyway, great to be like, 'This disorienting vase had a pattern so impossible that it gave me a headache. It was amazing and I bought it immediately.'

What is with people in TMA wanting cursed shit in their homes? (Remembers thst I have a framed bat skeleton on my bookshelf next to a Japanese puzzle box full of replica human teeth and directly opposite the lovechild of a porcelain doll and a rusty tin can that I have to keep nailed to the wall) ...nevermind.

Hello David, the gaslighting king. I had a headcanon about him that relistening to this episode may have ruined, but I'll expand on that later.

Wild that Salesa now seems to be afraid of that vase. I mean, it makes sense from his POV. He just received a photo of what is obviously a Spiral artefact that he has absolutely no memory of but apparently owned at one point. Fear is an appropriate response here; he's obviously only narrowly dodged some kind of bullet.

But what about when he had the vase originally? How did he get it? Did he not know what it was, or what it did? I know he lives a dangerous life, but it seems deeply reckless to be a person who makes a living by aquiring and selling goods and in any way interact with something that makes it impossible for a person to keep or own anything. If he hadn't somehow fluked his way into passing the vase along without consequence, it could have destroyed him.

Actually you know what commentary cancelled. I am being such an idiot. I am asking how and why Salesa came to own a thing cannot be owned and (at a minimum) distorts the memory of anyone who tries to buy or sell it. Salesa had never set eyes on that vase until the exact moment that Andre wanted to buy it, then he lied and pretended to know what it was until the sale was over (because he's a criminal) then he promptly forgot it ever existed.

These certainly do seem to be the actions and thought patterns of a person who is mentally well.

Again, I've said this before, but Spiral statements like this get under my skin because they feel so unfair. Of course a person will start losing track of their sanity if you mess with their literal reality to the point at which they can no longer determine what's real. David isn't gaslighting Andre, Andre isn't losing tough with reality, it's the vase's fault for changing reality around both of them! And even saying that sounds crazy!

Alright Salesa, no need to be a cunt about it. This could have very easily been happening to you.

You see this shit? How can this not break your heart? He's not wrong; it's the vase's fault!!

I don't know why this kind of thing bothers me for the Spiral specifically when all the Entities do basically the same thing. It doesn't feel unfair for the Buried to eat cave divers alive, or for the Lonely to isolate depressed loners, but when the Spiral takes people who are perfectly sane and fucks around with them until they are paranoid delusional messes it just feels like bullying I guess.

It's not fair how crazy he sounds when he is accurately describing what is literally happening to him!! The Spiral can fuck off.

Keep these details about David in mind for the theory I will be expanding on later.

[carnivalcarriondiscarded]

this is probably one of my favorite outfits that i've ever put together! and it's all for one of my top five fav character designs, like... Ever!

rambles:

i would like to note that my dear beloved Jaime (@/awkwardalphajay here on our very own hellsite<3 check em out <3) helped out a Ton by sending inspiration photos and providing insightful commentary on details and vibes!

overall i wanted Sally to have fancy vibes! while i was originally going to have her fit very much based on her canon one, i wound up veering off course and - while still keeping some elements - mostly went for Medieval Entertainer and Her House insp! continuing with the day/night theme, and leaning heavily into the fire aspect - she's a literal star fallen to earth, after all!

it was suggested that she should have dragonscale used in the making of her clothes since she's, you know, kind of made of fire! and it was genius! I imagine she has extra fire charms on this fit and also the rest of her clothes, since dragonscale is hard to come by and is a finite resource once Gathered. she gets better at Not burning everything she wears over time, thankfully!

i think that, like Frank, she'd have One (1) Dagger. for emergencies! it's likely very ornate, and she'd hate to scuff up the gleaming blade. Probably. plus, why would she need it? she's got firepower, babey!

there isn't quite as much to say about this as usual... mostly because this one was more Vibes than strategic "ok this and this and this because this and also-" i was just! makin a fun outfit!

[askerror87]

So, I've been considering Homestuck for a while, and I already know stuff like that all the Flash comics still work if you use the Unofficial Archive, and that none of the official post-canon content is any good, and have a general awareness of some of the larger memes, but is there anything else you think one should know before reading? You seem like the guy to ask.

Ohhhhh, you have catered well to my autism, beloved mutual

First off, I am actually a lover of postcanon in at least an authorial sense! I would argue that anyone who really cares about Homestuck by the end of the comic should at least give the 'friendsim' style games a chance, as they're built off of but not dependent on a knowledge of postcanon. Pesterquest has got to be one of the most satisfying official depictions we've gotten of who Dirk is as a character in a very, very long time. "Good" is a matter of subjectivity in this sense given that I really do think they were created to get people to challenge their perception of the characters. It genuinely saddens me that people won't even give postcanon a chance given the reputation that it has since it's pretty much a miracle that it's still going. It went off of hiatus just last year under a completely new management!!! There has never been more action in the official sense from the community in years! Hell, we finally got an actual height chart of the characters thanks to a cafe event in 2023 there has never been a better time for postcanon babey

The Unofficial Archive is a thing of wonder to me, but something I hear less often about is people talking about Homestuck.net itself, which is a massive resource for anyone wanting to do research on any aspect of the comic. You want to find ripped fonts for something as innocuous as Dirk's handwriting? Homestuck.net's got you covered. Need to track down a bunch of unreleased (in the official sense) midis that Toby Fox made for a research paper and it's practically lost media at this point (an actual real thing I had to do)? Check the Homestuck Soundtest that's hosted on there. Don't read the Skaianet Archives. If I can express anything in particular about the comic itself? Read it with the extension/ mod where you get Hussie's author commentary, it was genuinely an eye-opening experience getting to see them talk about their work even if it was mostly in a sardonic sense. Do NOT use the slur replacement project mod on your first readthrough unless you really cannot handle the occasional 'joke' because it genuinely will mess with moments you should be paying attention to for some of the kids. Is the language outdated? Absolutely. Is there a point to it? Yes. Dirk is cool as fuck and also a massive dork. I cannot emphasize how much these two go hand in hand with each other. I'm fairly sure the moment that cracked my egg was a panel of him sadly making two pngs of himself and the boy he likes kiss each other. Homestuck is good and it's probably influenced a lot more media than you think. I genuinely think the reputation it's gotten is unfair. It's ruined my life and I wouldn't have it any other way.

[ultraternative]

Muddposting old art 6 (I think?):

Couple a scrinkles

Commentary under the cut

It's back babey! Not too many in this group just cause I didn't do as much at the time.

The first image, in case it wasn't obvious, is just a silly little guy. Essentially an ad for a plush that doesn't do much.

The second image was because valentine's was the day before and I wasn't putting either of my characters in a relationship then.

The third was because I spent years of my life on reddit and thought "Yeah I can share this accomplishment." Yknow, because that's where I was before.

The fourth image was because pokemon scarlet/violet had been announced earlier and sprigatito aka weed cat had taken over the internet. Figured I'd do a funny with these new little guys.

I did also make an unrelated character around this time that was basically just vague shape of black cat with eyes, but much like scrinkles it didn't really go anywhere. Gotta post the next one of these soon though so the first image can still be valid.

[kafus]

file too big for tumblr so you get a youtube video but HIII I DID IT!! I BEAT THORTON!!! I GOT THE GOLD PRINT BABEY I WAS NOT EXPECTING THIS TO HAPPEN TONIGHT!! months of on and off grinding and then 3 days straight of doing this nearly all my waking hours and losing so many streaks and I DID IT!!! this is one of the hardest things you can do in gen 4 ever i think i'm losing my mind. pthgss battle factory does NOT fuck around

some commentary below the cut if you're interested in my thoughts/strategy while doing this

when i saw whiscash i swapped into scizor because i thought it was safe and i wanted to preserve weavile's strength, speed, and fake out for later... and i did my calcs wrong. i've been hunched over calculators and spreadsheets for hours to have the best odds of winning this streak and somehow i was calculating doubles damage instead of singles so EQ was stronger than i expected. embarrassingly i didn't notice this until someone pointed it out to me after the fact LOL. i don't even know how i didn't catch it, of course EQ does more damage, it's STAB!! so that was actually a pretty damn dangerous switch! but he missed stone edge i am BLESSED stone edge more like stone MISS AHAHAHAFSDKFSDAL

anyway after whiscash was down i let entei take out my scizor because scizor is slow and was already on low HP, if i tried to preserve it it would probably just get outsped and die to a legendary or something later. and entei had two dangerous sets in particular it could possibly be so i really needed to scout its fire move. tbh when i saw entei my heart sank, i knew my team was really weak to fire and that it could be a problem but i just never found any good pokemon to swap while climbing round 7. i just hoped that garchomp resisting and having earthquake would suffice... but the entei had a shuca berry (halves a super effective ground hit) so outrage actually did more damage. if entei crit me at any point it would have been over but otherwise it would have been impossible to take out garchomp in two hits thankfully. and i had a persim berry if outrage ended in two turns and confused me. but didn't end up mattering!

my heart SANK when the focus band proc'd on latios (a 10% chance) but then i was like YES!! THIS IS WHAT WEAVILE HAS BEEN WAITING FOR!! THERE'S NO WAY IT PROCS TWO MORE TIMES IN A ROW RIGHT?! because weavile using fake out would give me a chance, and then if focus band proc'd again, the flinch from fake out would let me get a second turn and weavile outspeeds that latios SO it was pretty safe unless i got insanely unlucky. AND IT WORKED OUT!!!!

i dunno if i deserved this win because my round 6 (the round before this one) was INCREDIBLY lucky, like, i got the round 7 staraptor in my draft and it had choice band brave bird and just decimated EVERYTHING except a couple bronzongs which i had a strong vaporeon for, so... it was basically a freebie and then round 7 had some close calls but also i got garchomp from trading with the literal first trainer (who i almost lost to but shhh) and then all the stuff with scizor/whiscash... BUT. it's been long enough i'm TAKING IT

anyways POGGERS

i'm probs gonna upload this battle video to the dns exploit server later but i gotta wait for my parents to go to bed so i'm not interrupting them using wifi by turning on the gen 4 compatible guest wifi lol

(btw if you want to do factory yourself please look up smogon's resources on it and use calcs and stuff i promise without it it will be a living nightmare 10x more than it already is)

[utilitycaster]

I don't know if you've looked over the new UA, or if you're planning to, but i've always loved your commentary on the strengths of the warlock and the pitfalls of the sorcerer (and also debunking of a lot of the whining about pre-tasha's sorcerer subclasses), so if you do end up looking over it, I'd love to hear your thoughts on the mechanical changes to the classes!

I haven't been keeping up for a while but I have returned for the most recent list so here's a very cursory list of thoughts. Sorcerer and warlock stuff in depth is bolded for your ease of finding.

buying a drink for whoever came up with the "if you fucked up which spells you prepared as a wizard? BURN A SLOT BABEY". this person gets it.

I don't love eldritch blast only scaling by warlock level but making it free does help; there's also no way to really like, reward people for playing warlock/paladin and point and laugh at them for playing warlock/sorcerer and shrug at them for playing warlock/bard so like, I get it I guess.

sorcery incarnate is great at making sorcerers suck less because it really is like. once you're out of sorcery points? you are just a wizard who is less smart, with worse spells.

Barbarian rage updates seem very good - the taking damage thing has always irritated me, and I agree, it should be what you do, not what happens to you. Also a fan of the Primal Knowledge.

NGL I'm obviously a huge caster main and I have to look up how you calculate your weapon damage every time so I will return to weapon mastery on the weekend when I am well-rested, theoretically.

Sorcerer: wow this class doesn't suck here! Increasing the number of spells is really the biggest thing, but moving metamagic to level 2 makes muticlassing into sorcerer an actually feasible option, and making it something you can change on a long rest is HUGE, particularly because metamagic is very much a case of "if you have the exact correct metamagic option it will save your ass but if you picked wrong at level 3 you are dead." Sorcerous vitality is good and in general I think sorcerers should gain abilities that make them more self-sufficient [insert Critical Role Campaign 3 joke here]. In general the always prepped sorcerer spells are good. Arcane Apotheosis is unhinged but in the right and proper way of high level characters so that's fine.

Warlock: I'm sorry but warlock should not be permitted to be wisdom based. If you were wise you'd make better choices. Int is fine though obviously since wizard stupid/hubris is frequently true of other mages. Anyway. Moving the spell slot progression to half-caster systems is probably wise given that once a warlock hit level 9 it became Time To Exploit Things but I do have a soft spot for pact magic; mechanically this is good, emotionally this is eh. Medium armor by default is good because warlocks are frequently in situations. Moving Mystic Arcanum softens the blow a bit, and moving the pact boon to level 1 along with the patron will hopefully help people understand the warlock narratively better (iykyk). Contact Patron, and getting Hex at will at L18 are both great. My only argument is that pact weapon should, like the others, last until dismissed or until you die; like, realistically, what is going to happen is the player is going to say "just assume I fucking cast it each morning and also each night to ensure I have weapons at the ready if we're attacked in the middle of the night" so may as well cut out the middleman. The invocation changes seem fine; Hexer is hilarious and perfect.

Wizard stuff is great, big fan of the Academic feature.

[elderwisp]

i spent the last hours reading tessellate from the start so i just wanted to drop a little love because eeeeeee i like it so much!!! first off all ur characters are a hit!! dynamic personalities, and they all mesh with one another really well in interesting ways. it all feels like a little peek into the lives of random people and sometimes that all you really need babey! i'm excited to see where you go with things especially with atlas, dan (my beloved), also the way that there are multiple storylines/ a large cast of characters yet i never feel overwhelmed <3333 and ofc visually, the post are lovely. the one juxtaposing frances and atlas coping...u know you ate with that. that last closeup with ares and dan with the lighter and frances's recital?? so pretty!! stapled in the brain.

on a less serious note, frances and icarus SAVE ME i like their dynamic so much their interactions seem very organic and fun. a friends to lovers (would they fall under that category..ik he's her boss but they're friendssss) for the ages. i feel like with a name like icarus things are destined to get messy between them and im afraid of it but also im not....but also i need only good things to happen to frances always, tu sabes. and its so funny that i finally read this after you mapped out their first kiss scene, bc i would not have survived the irl four years of building their relationship up godbless <3 also BEEE!!! sorry i just remembered i love bee and i hope she stands up to her boss at work one of these days (and gets whatever she wants for the rest of her life despite how inadvisable it may be at the moment :) )

hope this all isn't too weird, but i had thoughts to share and who better than with the author. tldr: your story brought me joy at 1:15 am and i appreciate it!! also everyone has such cool names??? what a slay. ty and take care <3

live footage of me reading this:

this seriously made my evening i think i reread this about ten times!! i honestly had to retype this message several times because just being able to receive commentary like this is everything. a lot of these characters have been with me for such a long time so to be able to share the little dudes livin their lives AND have people enjoy it??? AWESOME! a lot of the scenes you mentioned are also seared in my mind forever LMAO especially the scene between frances and atlas. i think the week i was gathering everything to shoot it, i completely scrapped the original and the parallels post was a complete spur of the moment thing but i'm glad it happened GAH i'm so excited to share more in the future <3 also with icarus and frances, they're actually my most difficult pair to write for simply because initially (in my ts3 days) icarus was supposed to be such a small part but they had such a good dynamic i had to expand that! so he's a fairly new character for me!

anyways thank you so much! i hope you have a great day! :D flowers is for u <3

[bokettochild]

Really hoping for the dvd commentary. From Chapter 2 of Kintsugi.

Another blink, this time with that same flicker of silver hues as they watch him, that hint of a smile that is so often reserved for those younger. It looks like Link’s, like that of the skeleton only hours ago left behind in a world destined for destruction. “The sharpest arrow of the goddess’s quiver does not lack power for its speed and shine,” Dei recites, like some ancient proverb or forgotten verse. It’s unknown to him, but the significance of the word picture doesn’t evade him.  

‘Flen’ the deity calls him. Flen; that which flies straight and true to its target to cast destruction upon either that which harms or that which, by its death, will provide. ‘Flen’ a word foreign to those of Hyrule’s higher classes but known and spoken well in towns bordering the forgotten forests where fairies whisp through trees and linger to share their stories and mischief.  

‘Flen’, a word which means ‘arrow’ to those raised where language turns rough to protect against words rougher from those of higher class.  

“If you seek Hylia’s sharpest, I think you’d best look to your Kit, his tongue by far out does my own, and as for speed-”

The deity does not stir, watching.  

Warriors sighs. A hand ploughs through hair just beginning to curl again at its ends clutching at the roots with a sigh before his gaze returns to that which bears down on him. “FD, I’m no deity.”

Holy crap I forgot Kintsugi even existed! I swear I saw this in my inbox and straight up stalled going....what story is that? What is it about? When did that come out? Did I write it or are...but Kintsugi is my motif....nvm

And then I read it and remembered.

So! DVD commentary (which believe it or not I love listening to!)

The point of kintsugi as a motif is to show the strength of that which has been broken, which of course Warriors personifies to the extreme. Warriors in this story is a broken man who's been torn down, torn apart, and watched everything in his life, including himself, shatter. The use of kintsugi to represent his becoming stronger through his suffering was meant to be a main point of the story and this scene in particular was going to foreshadow that.

"The sharpest arrow of the goddess’s quiver does not lack power for its speed and shine" is implied to be a quote from poetry or something. The Hero of Warriors is, in a way, the sharpest arrow in the quiver of the goddess. The heroes are meant to be the 'arrows of the goddess' which itself is sort of a play on how the holy weapon that all Zelda's use is a Bow of Light. Each hero has his own qualities and strengths, and Warriors, as the soldier of the group, is one of the sharpest and harshest of the group, because he didn't only face monsters, he faced men.

What Dei means by his words though is that even if Warriors' strength lies in his sharpness, in his blade, he's not in any ways limited to that as his only strength. 'Lacking power for speed and shine' means that he's not just fast on the field and pretty to look at, he's also a powerhouse in his own right, he just doesn't know it yet.

The use of the arrow to represent Warriors is something which I included since the beginning of the story. "Flen" is I think the Old Norse(?) word for 'arrow', and is Dei's distinguishing name for the captain since the first time Warriors put on the mask. Using arrow imagery to tell Warriors he is more powerful than he thinks is sort of the theme of the next few paragraphs.

‘Flen’ the deity calls him. Flen; that which flies straight and true to its target to cast destruction upon either that which harms or that which, by its death, will provide

This basically just means arrows cause chaos, prompt chaos or provide where there is a need.

The next bit though, talking about how the word is foreign to the average Castletown dweller, is meant to remind of Warriors' heritage as a man who was raised in the poorer parts of the world. It's a nod to him being something rough and lowly, but crafted and sharpened from a common thing to an arrow for the goddess' use. He references that the language that the nickname comes from is one that his people use to hide themselves and protect themselves from those who only speak Hylian, thus separating themselves and further establishing the contrast between who he once was, what he was raised to be, and what he became.

“If you seek Hylia’s sharpest, I think you’d best look to your Kit, his tongue by far out does my own, and as for speed-”

This is Warriors trying to deflect. He's basically pointing to Legend ('kit' is Dei's distinguishing name for the vet) and saying "you want something great? look there!" and then continuing to try and point the finger to everyone else to point out their strengths. Earlier in the piece, there was a lot of emphasis placed on Warriors' feelings of mediocrity in the face of his extremely powerful brothers and team-mates, and this results in him continuing to look at them rather than looking within as Dei is asking him to.

Dei isn't having it though. Dei knows Warriors is more because he has seen Warriors unlock his own godly strengths. he's not going to stand for Warriors talking himself down, because the more the captain does that, the less Warriors will be able to see what Dei is trying to show him, the fact that Warriors is, in fact, a demi-god.

The thing is, Warriors isn't a deity in the same strain as the others. In the previous fic, First (Dei) and Legend actually have a discussion about something related to this.

(First is speaking here): “A guardian. Your soul,” He motions to the other. “I may not be the goddess, but any good soldier can be perceptive. You and yours all have souls that sing to a tune. Time.” He motions to the armored leader. “The sea, storms and wind.” Wind. “Light.” The goddess’s youngest, (Hyrule) lightning dancing on his finger-tips as his mother watches with faint laughter. “The elements, the building blocks of life.” The Four heroes who are somehow one. “The forest, the wilds of the world, nature herself.” The goddess’s eyes set in the face of a young boy who spins shadows on his fingers (Wild). “The night, the shadows and the lost and wandering.” He motions to the rancher, to Twilight who sits and watches the others with a gaze dark and yet bright, a contradiction, a shadow that is somehow full of light. “War.” The captain who stands polished and pristine yet who’s very spirit seemed to sing on the field, who’s blade swung stronger with every drop of blood fallen. “Life.” He turns to Legend.  

The other takes a moment to catch onto the fact that he’s stopped, that he’s staring at him, and when the lad does see it, his eyes widen slightly. “Life?”  

“The living; the breathing earth, the trees and animals, the people . You live to give life and preserve it.” His smile is crooked, he knows. “It is your calling. Forgive my boldness, but I dare say we are the same on that front; we live to preserve what they bring to fruition.”  

Except that Warriors does not live to bring things into fruition (which I couldn't clarify without derailing that conversation) but rather, he also lives to preserve. Warriors' very existence is to preserve and unite things, thematically speaking. So yeah. Warriors is different from the others, which prevents him seeing his greatness, but Dei, who is basically the same, can recognize it.

The whole scene you selected- the whole chapter in fact! is about Dei trying to provoke Warriors into realizing his power. As we saw though, it failed :(

[syrupsyche]

⭐ i'd love to hear your director's commentary on how marius won the hand :D

THANK U for the ask!! You probably already read my dir. commentary on Ch. 5 and Ch. 6 of How Marius Won the Hand [...], so I'll jump back and do a commentary on Ch. 4 of the fic!

I confess: I had no idea what to name Courferre so I picked the two names I feel I've heard the most often when it came to fan-assigned names. And not to give any spoilers, but Courfeyrac's name will come into play again in the future!

Also not to pull a Hugo but I wanted to emphasize how pretty Cosette was lol. Needed to give her and Enjolras some physical similarities first (beauty, etc.) before some spiritual similarities later on in the story!

Cosette canonically loves to tease Marius! See:

Ten years later, with the love of Marius in her heart, she would have answered: “A pedant, and insufferable to the sight! You are right!” (4.3.7)

“Monsieur, you are handsome, you are good-looking, you are witty, you are not at all stupid, you are much more learned than I am, but I bid you defiance with this word: I love you!” (4.8.1)

“Don’t cough, sir; I will not have people cough on my domain without my permission. It’s very naughty to cough and to disturb me.” (4.8.1)

And so I needed Cosette to have her spunk here as well!

Ninny mention!! *cue cheers and applause* Wanted the Valjean reveal to be Hugo-esque ("omg who could this mysterious old man be 🤭") and I'm glad ppl noticed it! Also, Valjean hates Marius so much that I NEEDED to include it, though I suppose Ch. 6 is a lot more obvious with it.

Pilf wrote an excellent post about what Valjean's dynamics with the Amis would be like. Though the context in this fic is quite different (Courferre + Marius having to gain Valjean's favour) but I still think it fits! Courfeyrac would be far too Courfeyrac-ish to gain Valjean's immediate liking, in contrast to Cosette who would love Courf immediately (which only just worsens Courfeyrac's standing). Combeferre, however, is able to stick to safer topics! They're just Two Polite Men. This fic has also only just hinted at Enjolras' and Valjean's father/son dynamic so far but it's very close to Pilf's post on it too. They do not talk to each other at ALL; they will sit in silence together for hours and enjoy it. That's their father/son bonding time babey!

A call back to an earlier part of the chapter when Marius tried to make sure that "his palms were not slick with sweat". Mission failed!

I like to write Courferre stumbling over each other trying to impress Cosette. Idk I just feel like they have that sort of energy à la Tulio and Miguel from The Road to El Dorado.

I'm really glad ppl liked this scene ehe. How did Marius drink soup with a fork? Just part of his Pontmercying shenanigans I suppose.

Cosette being shocked at Enjolras taking her hand is the same energy as someone getting shocked when a particularly introverted cat suddenly comes up and sits on their lap. I hc that Enjolras isn't a very tactile person (which could be canonically derived from his only-two-kisses moment), so Cosette appreciates any physical displays of affection she can get!

I argue that the main thing Marius lacked in canon that could have given him a proper 'character development' was the belief that he could have a solid support system outside of bourgeois circles. He was so close to connecting with Les Amis de l'ABC but he ultimately fell back into a self-deprecating hole once his world views were challenged. In this fic I hope to get Marius to reconnect with Les Amis on a personal level first (via Cosette and Enjolras) before attempting to push him towards connecting with them politically (and he's already beginning to, in Ch. 5!).

And it's no surprise that the first person he reaches for when he realises that he DOES have actual friends is Courfeyrac! Writing this fic and rereading les mis letters has got me in my Courfius feels; Courf was such a good friend to Marius and (fic spoilers?) is definitely deserving of being his chief groomsman!

—

And that's it for my Ch. 4 analysis! Sorry for the late answer lol; immediately after reblogging the post I got thrown 5 different assignment deadlines.

If anyone wants any other fic analysis (or even an AU analysis as a whole!) feel free to ask! I'm only one message away from blabbering like an idiot <3.

[prettyflyshyguy]

Ok place your bets how angry am I going to get at spn for their handling of S4 Sam because Dean's right.

"So far all you've told me about is a manipulative bitch who uh, screwed you, played mind games with you and did everything in the book to get you to go bad."

Yeah babey I'm tired, it's my day off, and I've braved myself up to tackle the tumultuous S4 because it's giving mixed feelings!!!!

You know the drill. Unhinged thoughts, commentary and screaming under the cut. I've been in full media analysis mode for the last week so it might get a little academic too, who knows.

A warning - I'm not enjoying the Heaven x Hell sub plot. I know, I'm sorry (not really.) I will persist as long as I can but you can't rip seasons 1-3 out of my cold dead hands because I'm clinging to them too strongly. They just hit the spot near perfectly. World's biggest fandom member disappointment, and proud, over here.

Anyway commentary bellow!

S4E9/10 - I Know What You Did Last Summer & Heaven and Hell

Ok so, this is a real topic, and I'm going to tread lightly here, but I appreciate the sinister undertones of Ruby coming onto Sam and him actively pushing back - he's vulnerable, abusing a substance, and she's actively taking advantage of that and doesn't stop after he makes it clear he's uncomfortable the first time. A boundary is broken and pushed through. Very icky. I have seen spoilers for Ruby's character (unfortunately!) and like, have to say, she got me. But I think I'd start to really clue in with this episode that something is deeply not ok - based on that one scene alone.

I am however, deeply worried, that the emotional manipulation is not going to be handled with the consideration it needs (especially with regards to a woman coming onto a man and being too pushy) and it'll be played off lightly. I guess we'll find out. But I'm getting defensive already. Appreciate that Dean clocks it immediately however.

On a lighter note - go psychic boy go

Anytime Dean makes this face I go mental. He looks like a concerned version of the Eyes emoji. Top 10 expressions I have too much fun trying to replicate in art. Buddy being dead for 6 months must've sucked you've missed so much Oh No.

Supremely embarrassed that it ONLY JUST CLICKED that they're doing a whole Sam's with the Demons, Dean's with the Angels thing.

I'll focus in on the most specific shit and then something so blunt will fly over my big idiot head. Amazing.

Ironic of course, and clearly intentional that its cause Sam was always appointed the 'better one' but that's only cause Dean purposefully inserted himself as the moral-fall character as a way to try and protect Sam. Obsessed with that concept, not so much with the heaven v hell stuff.

REGARDLESS, two angels rocking up and Ruby's immediate response being to turn on the demon eyes makes me wonder - is this intentional - did she choose to do this, was an otherworldly force compelling her to do it?

No I'm not just asking these cause I'm cooking up ideas for Sam to get more demonic nooooooo what're you talking about noooooooo

Hilarious that Cas and his mate rock up like "Hello we are literal fucking angels, we want this human woman please we're going to kill her now, please hand her over"

like they can't just yoink her regardless.

And this is starting to stray into "Why Shy really isn't enjoying the heaven-hell stuff in spn" - which I should save for an entirely separate post, but most of it boils down to the stakes don't feel serious anymore, the comparative power levels of character's feels unbalanced, it takes away ANY weight to Sam's personal faith as a character trait, and--

I'm sorry I just cannot get behind any of it. Really dislike it. Unfortunate. Oh well. Sozzles.

Heaven and Hell was a real hard episode for me to watch for a number of reasons and overall, I deeply disliked it, but the ending scene of Dean breaking down was extremely well done so huge props for that. Fantastic writing and acting all through. Much to consider!!

S4E11 - Family remains

The summary for this one looks. Fun.

"And what am I running from?"

"What you told me. Or are we pretending that never happened?"

OUGH. OUGH. AUGH. OOMF. ACK. AUGH.

I appreciate that unlike every ghost hunter I've watched on youtube, this show recognises that EMF readers cannot be completely trusted. 10/10 thank you supernatural. One small little line about the needle being wacky, and Dean noting that there's power lines right next to the house. Love it.

Nice.

I can sense I'm going to enjoy this episode.

I LOVE A GOOD GHOST-HUNTING EPISODE!!

Also love that this episode forcibly made the boys reconcile with the confliction of killing humans vs killing creatures, but the humans were in a way like the creatures (monsters), the same way the monsters can be like humans.

Anyway, tonal whiplash, yet again with this show:

S4E12 - Chris Angel Is a Douche Bag

The Winchesters need worksafe inspector fake ID because It'd be perfect for this episode specifically

I LOVE the three older magician characters. These guys are great.

WHAT

Anyway this is a good bit. This is a really good bit.

Yeah Sammy what kind of kool aid are you drinking?????

That was.... A weird one but a fun one.

Anyway I'm really starting to feel like I want to cherry pick eps but I'm going to hold off. Till I hit S5 at least.

Like I rabidly consumed seasons 1-3 like a starving animal and now I'm reluctant to watch episodes cause I know there's good shit in here, and each episode has some important development moments for characters, or relevant plot that I want to know about so I don't feel like I can start picking and choosing episodes based on descriptions yet. But damn. Lot more misses than hits for me this season. Seriously considering buying a dvds of just S1-3 cause GODDAMN. Loved almost everything about the first three.

[itmustbek8]

Everyone takes their shirts off this time because why not. It's Yakuza babey

Commentary for the Yakuza: Like a Dragon stage play, act 2

[icewindandboringhorror]

Daily Log 4

Trying out (probably just temporarily) making short daily-ish notes about things, in an attempt to see if it helps me be more reflective or productive lol.

Activities: Woke up late because I went back to sleep with a headache briefly, then kind of struggled to focus all day ToT

Worked more on the aforementioned tapestry/painting type of thing. I've done the base layer of painting for the main image, now I'm lining in darker outlines. I wanted to finish the center art before getting into the intricate borders. Still haven't translated the text lol..

Made a small bowl and also a little box with a lid out of more avocado pits. Still just with random nail cuticle tool things and kitchen knives, as I don't have proper carving tools.

Finished editing and proofreading the new poll adventure post!! I don't have time to post it tonight because I need to get to sleep early but.. I have it Completely 100% Ready.. finally..

Also washed the clothes I got together yesterday. Called about the bloodwork. Sent an email to a doctor.

Reviewed some writing documents to get back into my game maybe?? (basically, I started working on a visual novel type game a few years ago, decided it was a huge project so kind of put it on the backburner for a while in favor of things that were more easily finishable/tangible. then later on a game website I play (similar to neopets or something, there are collectable little creatures, etc.) there was an opportunity for me to design a pet on site, so I made a smaller shorter visual novel centered around that, where people on the site have to play the game in order to earn the pet, and I have a google form for them to answer a few short questions about it. All of the feedback is quite positive (reached 200 responses a while ago! though still only like 4 comments on the itch.io page lol.. Mandatory Form vs. Optional Comments evil showdown), but sometimes I get commentary that's really enthusiastic and inspires me to start back working on the OTHER bigger game. The small game was kind of like, a proof of concept that was safe because I had a guaranteed audience, that has helped me gain more insight for the larger one.

Anyway, since I've abandoned the Main Large Game for so long, I have to re-read and review/probably rewrite A LOT of things just to pick it back up again as A Thing I'm Actively Working On, so it's another one of those tasks that I do maybe 45 minutes of and then realize it's going to take days and days and get discouraged lol..

Notable sights: Saw two cats in windows. No clovers. It rained a little today but I didn't get to go outside and see it. One of the pieces of asparagus in the fridge was like the size of a carrot, comically overgrown downright ridiculous looking asparagus. Maybe I'll get taller after eating it.

Goals moving forward: Consistent sleep schedule. Focus on social activities, finding new friends in the places I want to move, communicating with ones I have. Physical therapy exercises. Plant nasturtiums. Finish and upload videos, edit costume pictures & etc.

Notable foods: ASPARAGUS AGAIN BABEY.. yeaAAAAGHHH asparagus squad !!!!!!

[thequiver]

Inspired by @thrakaboom here’s my Spotify top 10 with commentary

1. The Mountain Song - Tophouse

Okay first of all I got to see them in concert and hearing this live was magical. Second of all this is first dance at a wedding material and I adore it. And thirdly I am debating using this for a fic with my X-Men OCs.

2. Cast the Bronze- Reyes

This song FUCKS, I am genuinely surprised that this wasn’t my #1. I’m obsessed, everyone go listen to it now.

3. Riot- The Scarlet Opera

Okay so the scarlet opera is SO GOOD and this is SUCH a good song it’s so fun. It’s catchy, the harmonies are great, and it has some lovely hook lyrics. Also just great vibes 10/10.

4. Rule #33 Pyre - Fish in a Birdcage

TOM CASSIDY SONG OF ALL TIME. Oh the parent issues feels that came with this…..cried the first time I heard it.

5. Warrior of the Mind- Epic the Musical

I cannot explain why but I get like Billy Kaplan animatics in my head when I hear this song and they’re always lovely.

6. Dial Drunk- Noah Kahan

It’s a good song. The song is good. “In the name of someone I no longer know” as something applied to the self fucks me up.

7. Alive- The Scarlet Opera

This is such a feel good bop? Encouraging? Upbeat? Beautifully sung? 10/10

I’m not usually a happy music person but this - this is good.

8. Delta Dawn - Home Free and Brooke Eden

For the life of me I can’t tell ya why I know Sam and Paige Guthrie consider Delta Dawn their song but every time I hear this cover I think of them.

9. He Set Her Off- Emily Ann Roberts

Paige Guthrie anthem of all time babey. “Thought she was fragile like a flower but she’s fragile like a bomb.” Country songs about killing terrible husbands are always good approved family fun.

10. I Am Appalachia- Josiah and the Bonnevilles

I’ve been goin through it with my accent this year…….