#dex's discussions

[ihavedonenothingright]

Captive Prince: Historical References and Naming Conventions

Hi all! I've had this idea in my head for a while now, and I finally had some time (and an Ancient Greek dictionary), so I figured I'd give it a shot. I've always been fascinated by Pacat's worldbuilding, particularly the naming conventions, and as a classicist myself, I wanted to dissect them. So that's what this is. My focus is mainly going to be on Akielos since I don't have as in-depth a knowledge of French, but I'll go through some Veretian names too (je n'ai pas étudié le français depuis deux années, mais Arles… je voudrais parler d'Arles…)

I'm not approaching this with any kind of formal, academic structure, so if something wonky gets through, please let me know! And lastly, I have no idea how many of these are intentional on Pacat's part. This analysis is less about authorial intent and more about how the associations inherent in these names can lend to our interpretation of the work. I'll also be doing this analysis over a few different posts since there is a lot I want to cover. For post #1:

Country Names

This post will solely feature Vere and Akielos since that's already a lot, but I will tackle Patras et. al. later on. There's some very interesting stuff there that I would be remiss not to look at. Of our subjects for today, Vere is the simpler, and the one I am absolutely certain Pacat intended, so I'll start with it.

Vere

Disclaimer: I am in love with this choice. The word itself is actually a Classical Latin adverb derived from the adjective "vērus," meaning "true," and in Latin it's spelled "vērē" (though you will not see those macrons in extant texts, those are a modern pronunciation and differentiation aid). Vērē can be translated a handful of ways; often it's used for emphasis, and in that case it's usually translated as "indeed," but "truly," "rightly," "exactly," and "truthfully" all work in different contexts. Extrapolate vērus and its derivatives for around a thousand years and you get the Old French word "verai" (ouah c'est vrai !) which means, well, "true."

It's also close in spelling and pronunciation to the modern French "verre," which means "glass," which isn't entirely relevant, but is cool. It makes me think of shiny, fragile displays of opulence like the Galerie des Glaces in Versailles. 

The first reason I really like this name is that it calls back to Artes, the Roman-inspired kingdom that we're told once encompassed all of Vere and Akielos, while still fitting current Veretian (aka half-old-half-modern French) grammar and pronunciation. The second is, naturally, that it fits so well into the series' themes of truth, deception, and verisimilitude. The second we're introduced to Vere, and by extension Laurent, there's a subtle hint there that both he and his country are, at their core, more real, genuine, and truthful than Damen and Akielos. We're already building towards Damen's Kings Rising line, "I have never known a truer man." Even if you don't recognize the Latin, your brain will make the connection between Vere and verisimilitude later. It's perfect, 10/10 Pacat, could not have done it better.

And just for fun: a Latin example!

Commentarii de Bello Civili, 2:27. Latin and English available here. 

Hi, sive vere quam habuerant opinionem ad eum perferunt, sive etiam auribus Vari serviunt…

Loeb Translation: "Whether they convey to him the opinion that they really held, or whether they only flatter his ears…" (165)

Slightly more literal translation (by me): "Whether these ones truly convey to him the opinion as they held it, or rather are subservient to Varius' ears…"

Akielos

The name "Akielos" is a lot more… nebulous. I don't know if there is a Greek print of Captive Prince, but my guess is it would be spelled Άκιελος (modern Greek speakers please weigh in, I'm only a year or so into Ancient Greek so I haven't really touched accent marks). That doesn't map neatly to any modern or ancient greek word—at least that I know of. What is does remind me of is Ἀχιλῆος (Achileos) from Ἀχιλλεύς (Achilleus), aka, Achilles. They're so close that I actually realized lately I had unconsciously been pronouncing Akielos as "Akileos" for a while; and in fact, this makes the Veretian spelling "Achelos" make a bit more sense. English and French both use a hard "ch" to represent χ in Greek words; so I imagine, in universe, that the word might actually be spelled Άχιελος. It wouldn't even surprise me if this was the way Pacat originally wanted to spell it, but had to change it for ease of comprehension.

I did have some other interpretations of the name, but I think this is the strongest. Because in addition to the obvious association, the name Ἀχιλλεύς is thought to be derived from the words ἄχος, "distress/grief" and λαός, "people," making it either "the grief" or "grief of/to the people" depending on who you ask (you rely on cases for that sort of distinction in Greek and they're not exactly present here. iykyk).

I really like the idea of Akielos being associated with grief; we're first introduced to it as a country in mourning, and then later on, as the cause of grief in Delfeur. And then you have the association with Achilles, himself a prolific brother killer, who Pacat references later in 'The Fall of Inachtos,' our in-universe Iliad. Insane levels of grief on grief on grief. Plus, because it looks closer to the genitive form, I automatically associate it with the opening line of the Iliad:

μῆνιν ἄειδε θεὰ Πηληϊάδεω Ἀχιλῆος

menin aeide thea Peleiadeo Achileos

Sing, goddess, the anger of Achilles, Peleus' son

So we can throw a little rage into the equation. As a treat. 

Also important to note that the -os there is a masculine ending. It doesn't have the most bearing, but it does mean that if we want to be strictly accurate to Ancient (and modern!) Greek grammar, I have to throw a quick article in front of it, making our final "how do the Akielons spell Akielos?" answer: ὁ Άχιελος ("ho Achielos"). The ὁ here is equivalent to le in French, with the major distinction being that in French, you don't typically need an article in front of a proper noun, whereas you do in Greek.

That's it for today's analysis! See you guys next time around for Patras, Artes, and (maybe) Arles, Ios, and Delfeur/Delpha.

Part 2 >>

[sga-owns-my-soul]

jeannie: this is my brother

rodney: hi

jeannie: and this is my brothers emotional support team

ar1: hello!

[bitegore]

if your ocs were bosses in a video game, what do you think their boss fight would be like?

[whoredmode]

warmup doodle of vice kings anteros since i think i promised i’d draw him. outfit based on early VK concept art and john galliano menswear f/w 2004 lol

like i said in my other post about VK anteros, i think they’d be the gang he’d most likely end up affiliated with had the saints not found him first because the VK (more specifically tanya) already owned the hood where TnA was at. since anteros worked there for several years prior to the start of sr1, he probably already knew of tanya. i imagine in the universe where he is a VK, he’s probably more or less tanya’s assistant. honestly i don’t think they’d get along, but that contention makes things interesting right

[constantvariations]

My scavenge for screenshots that I might use in an upcoming video essay led me to Lilith Fairen’s blog where, lo and behold, she apparently saw this post of mine and decided she had to talk about it

That’s an interesting way to say “the blog has me blocked, so I can’t reblog the OG post.” Fairen, you know what a block means, right? It means I don’t consent to you being on my damn blog. So either you don’t understand what boundaries are or you think it’s okay to ignore them so long as it’s the right kind of person you’re invading. Neither of which reflect well on you

[burned-lariat]

The adult Benson children use trauma as an aphrodisiac and a manipulation tool to pull their partner into it. In this essay I will-

[anobodynameddex]

Fuck Wilbur soot.

[homobiwan]

Now that check please will likely have a resurgence in 2025 we need to talk about how fucked up it is that ngozi deleted the tweet about nursey and dex having one (1) night of passion and never discussing it ever again

[theunmappedstar]

can we take a minute to discuss how betrayed everyone would feel if they knew keefe had been living and dining in cahoots with alvar for weeks. if they knew he healed him? imagine how sophie would react. the confusion, the guilt, the betrayal at her now-boyfriend having spent half of his time in the forbidden cities with the guy who planned her kidnapping, torture, and eventual disposal. and dex, too!! and hey, we obviously all know it wouldn't go well with fitz. and the look on biana's face? the lip quiver?

[ihavedonenothingright]

ALSO I got a spot on an archaeology project I was aiming for, so HELL YEAH!!!! Very successful day on the 'Dex is an insufferable nerd who wants to touch pottery' side of things.

[camelspit]

Roisin's Reading Rumble 2025

i cant believe we're going into the 4th reading rumble!! this is crazy ❤️ and im hoping to make this the biggest best year ever

Project

There will be 12 teams:

The Sophie team

The Keefe team

The Fitz team

The Biana team

The Dex team

The Tam team

The Linh team

The Marella team

The Stina team

The Maruca team

The Wylie team

The Jensi team

Everyone who enters will be assigned a team based on your choice of character. The max # of people in a team is 5 (this is subject to change depending on how many people enter)

The goal? To work together and make as much art, fic, analyses, etc. as you can to post on your assigned day (each team will have a dedicated posting day).

Teams will be assigned on February 1, and you will have until JULY to do as much as you want. Each person should have at least 1 submission.

Note: While its not required, I do recommend having a Discord account, because a server is going to be created so that you can discuss ideas with your team and have fun.

I'm so excited for this and I hope everyone else is too ❤️ Posting dates/info and Discord info will be released after team assignments are posted!!

I also want to add that this is open for EVERYONE. even if you're not sure if your art/fic/whatever skills are good enough or if you think you can only create one thing, if you want to join, join!!!!!

If you have any questions, don't hesitate to message me!!!!

[i-drop-level-one-loot]

Yandere!Monster X Barbarian!Reader

❤️ Barbarian Reader who seems to have put all their stat points into Strength/Dex, and completely forgot Intelligence

💀 thembo.exe

❤️ A huge sweetheart, and I mean huge

💀 Was always the tallest in their village, towering over both women and men alike

❤️ Due to their height (Reader) had a lot more placed on their shoulders from a very early age

💀 Some internal reflection could have led to a deeper understanding of their secret yearning to rely on another person, but that sounds like a lot of work... And thinking...

❤️ Happy to be sent as part of their tribe's representation when meeting with a tribe of monsters despite knowing nothing about politics

💀 While the presence of the monster people caused visible discomfort in their fellow warriors, (Reader) was too busy being star struck to think about how easily this new species could kill them

Xyleth emerges from his tent, unimpressed with the shivering smooth skins before him. His form was only vaguely human in the front, with a gun metal blue chest and face, sparkling in the sun like his skin was dusted in finely crushed gems. However, his backside and limbs were armored in an inky black shell, spiked for protection along his joints and down his long tail, with bone colored claws adorning his claw like appendages. His eyes seemed black in the shade, but held a universe of stars in the light. Xyleth was born to be a leader, only the strongest of his species developed this coloring, separating him from the rest of his tribe whose shells were a sandy brown to hide in the desert of their home.

❤️ (Reader) didn't notice the congregation were speaking, still taking in the sights about them, before they finally looked forward, witnessing the tallest of the monsters

💀 (gasps) "Damn, you're huge!"

❤️ The barbarians gasp in horror, and flinch away from (Reader)

💀 Was this some sort of joke?

❤️ A tight smile formed on Xyleth's chiseled face. "Yes?"

💀 "Yeah, I thought I was big, but damn, you could crush me without breaking a sweat, huh big guy?"

❤️ What's this? Was this human attempting to flatter him? A war lord of a different species?

💀 No, (Reader) was genuinely impressed.

❤️ "And the point of you bringing this up, small one?" He asked, his on edge grin softening into an amused smile. Although he would have no interest in something not his own species, it was adorable how this human flirted with him so confidently (that's not what's happening)

💀 "Ah, no point. I'd love to wrestle you though!" (Reader) knocked their fists together, pumped at the idea of testing their strength against the beast

❤️ Xyleth and his guards were taken aback, Xyleth's tail smacking the ground with surprise. No one had ever been so brave, so brazen. Unknown to the barbarians, the armored monsters had a very unique mating ritual, similar to scorpions dancing while pressing up against each other to test the male's strength

💀 Despite (Reader) being taller than their fellow barbarians, they were still several feet shorter than Xyleth's shortest villager

❤️ But your personality... None of the women or men had ever approached Xyleth like (Reader) had (again, not what's going on..)

💀 Perhaps Xyleth would actually listen to the barbarians, instead of slaughtering them for having the audacity to request a conference with him like he originally planned

❤️ The barbarians were invited to stay with the rival tribe for a week as they discussed various topics (Reader) had no interest in

💀 (Reader) quickly became loved by the local children, the children adoring (Reader) as a human loves their pet puppy, allowing (Reader) to rough house with them and feeding them snacks like a stray

❤️ (Reader) did not find this insulting, and was enjoying the affection and attention they were receiving

Xyleth was bored in his meetings with the soft skins, upset that (Reader) wasn't involved. He had learned that (Reader) was brought in as the muscle, which irked him. Did they not research how giant his species were before arriving? What did they think someone as small and sweet and adora- Xyleth thumped his tail loudly, frightening the barbarians. Why couldn't he get (Reader) out of his head? "Let's continue this after lunch."

💀 Xyleth roamed his streets in search for (Reader). Although they weren't there as part of the 'debate team' it was a little upsetting that (Reader) wasn't at least waiting for Xyleth near the meeting tent seeing how enamored they were with him

❤️ (Reader) was found in a circle of chuckling adults, struggling with all their might to lift two children at the same time

💀 The sight immediately filled Xyleth's heart with warmth, seeing the children as their own for a split second, and picturing an entire future with the barbarian

❤️ He knew (Reader) would have no objections to becoming his mate, however their people might argue

💀 It didn't matter if he had to kill the other barbarians staying in his town, he had initially planned on slaughtering them anyhow, but it would be better if they enthusiastically supported their love

❤️ And they did support his proposal, especially since it was either trade (Reader) for their protection (from Xyleth's own tribe) on their hunting paths, or die right there and have their entire tribe extinguished

💀 What a supportive family (Reader) has~!

(Reader) didn't notice when the rest of their people left the village, still having the time of their life with creatures that more matched their strength and height. One of the kids gasped and wiggled his way out of (Reader's) arms, running away as his parents also turned back towards their homes. A large shadow approached the confused human, who got up, patting the dirt off their legs.

"Play fighting with young boys? Are you trying to make me jealous, little one?" Xyleth joked with a smile.

(Reader) felt their heart soar being called "Little One", relishing in the friendliness they experienced from the citizens the barbarians called monsters.

"Bwahahaha!!! Jealous? If I was as imposing as you, the only one who could make me jealous would be a god!"

Xyleth couldn't control his tail, whacking the ground in embarrassment over his love's honesty flirtatiousness.

"If it wouldn't be too inconveniencing, I would be honored to take you up on that wrestling proposition now.." He could hardly speak with how excited he was, fearful the adorable little human could hear his two hearts rapid beating.

"Really? Right now? I'm a little worn out, but I'll never turn down a challenge! Just don't be too disappointed!"

Xyleth picked (Reader) up in his arms, fighting every urge to take them right then and there in the center of his village.

"I could never be disappointed in you~" his deep voice vibrated against (Reader's) body, as he carried them to his tent, the poor human completely unaware of what he was about to do to them.

[where-dreams-dwell]

*spoilers for One Day*

For people saying ‘it’s tragic, Dex and Em only got 3 years together’ no. They got 15 years together.

Glossing over the span of their life together to sum it up as ‘only 3 years together’ misses all the love and time they had together that wasn’t solely romantic.

Why is their relationship only ‘important’ or ‘counts’ when it’s a romantic one? Maybe there was always romantic love buried in there or growing steadily but there was a whole lot of platonic love there too.

For 15 years they were the most important person in the world to one another, they described each other as their ‘best friend’ and the person they reached out to at every high and low moment. And for the last 3 of those years they were also a couple.

There are loads of examples of Dex reaching out to Em when he’s at his lowest: the last birthday with his mum, then he’s reeling from his divorce, when he’s scared people will hate him on TV. And you *could* read that as pathetic and Em being his emotional crutch, with Dex latching into her. But you could *also* see that as when you’re struggling and low, you just want your best friend. Because they *get* you. And part of being a best friend is being there in those low moments.

And Em has done the same with Dex, just in different ways. That first year out of uni Em had no idea what she was doing; in a job she couldn’t wait to leave, a relationship that didn’t make her happy, not sure where she was going in life or what she was doing. Em writes to Dex often, and doesn’t need him to reply to her, just to read her letters and be *her* emotional crutch and person to vent to.

Even at that breakup-dinner, Em has things she ‘needs to talk about’ and she’s reached out to Dex to do it. We don’t see her discussing it with Tilly, we see her trying to talk about it with Dex. She’s at arguably her lowest moment (hates her job, hates her partner, hates her home) and she wants her best friend to listen to her. Just like he did when she was 24 and thinking about giving up and leaving London, and Dex convinced her to stay and keep going.

So they are emotional crutches *to one another*. That’s also part of being someone’s best friend.

And for all the low moments Dex also wanted to share his best moments with her too: when he’s excited about the TV pilot he calls Em to say ‘the only person I want to share this with is you’, and begs Em to find a way to be there. Yes this is also him dismissing and ignoring her achievements, yes this is self absorbed and rude and at the height of his egomania, but in that moment of triumph he only wants his best friend there with him.

When they see one another again at Tilly’s wedding Em is brave and self assured when she reveals she’s ‘thought of you every day, missed you every day’, and that even though they are friends again now the fact that Dex will have a wife and child ‘feels a bit like loosing you all over again. Because people with families have different priorities…’ That’s how close they were before.

The sentiment that ‘we grew up together’ is really true, for the both of them. They were very different people throughout their lives, and if they had tried to be a romantic couple earlier there is no guarantee that version of them would have lasted the course.

Would Emma have stayed with a peak-of-his-tv-fame Dex, partying and living life ‘to the full’? Or would they have explosively ended and decided they were too different for one another for it to ever work?

Would Dex have even tried for a career in TV or a full year of travelling if he’d become a couple with Emma after Uni? Or would he have done something else but grown resentful of what-could-have-been?

If they had sorted out their issues and apologised after their fight and Em had left Ian, would Em have found the strength to turn rock bottom into a spring board and finally write her book? Would she have even hit that bottom at all? Or would the hook have remained a pipe dream while she continued as a teacher, happy with Dex but professionally unfulfilled?

We will never know what could have been, and that doesn’t necessarily make those alternatives the ‘better’ option that they ‘missed out on’.

Maybe they would only ever have had 3 years together as a couple and getting it in their mid 30’s the way they did was their most mature and peaceful version.

So yes at times their relationship feels like it’s moving toward the inevitable conclusion of a romantic partnership. But the time before they get there wasn’t wasted or unimportant or unnecessary. And they were always together.

[thebardbullseye]

The Wizard, The Witch, and The Wild One & Exploring Ethics* Through D&D

There are six ability scores in Dungeons and Dragons:

Strength (STR)

Dexterity (DEX)

Constitution (CON)

Intelligence (INT)

Wisdom (WIS)

Charisma (CHA)

The first three are abilities of the body and the last three are of the mind. Ethics is inherently of the mind.

The Wizard, The Witch, and The Wild One explores ethics by emphasizing these three abilities, their archetypes, and through their characterization.

Suvi, the Wizard (INT caster): explores ethics through intelligence and reason.

Ame, the Witch (WIS caster): explores ethics through insight and perception.

Eursulon the Wild One and knight (CHA caster): explores ethics through honor and performance.

This is probably stating the obvious for most listeners, but I wanted to express this succinctly, for myself and others, especially given a lot of discussion that implies a false binary of choice. There is never only two options.

​And the World, both Real and Spirit, needs the Intelligence of the Wizard, as much as it needs the Wisdom of the Witch, as much as it needs the Honor of the Wild One.

It's why I love this podcast and this story. And I can't wait to see what other stories they tell. Thanks, @worldsbeyondpod for ALL that y'all do. It's a bright light in the dark. 🕯️🧡

~~TheBardBullseye~~

(*For the purpose of this short post I am defining ethics generally as a guiding philosophy, or when and how to "do right"-- longer essay(s) on this and other topics to come...)

[toasty-coconut]

I wanted to put together some thoughts that I have regarding the passage of time in Pokemon Horizons. I'm a writer by nature who likes to pick out tiny details and examine them to the fullest. Horizons has thrown hints at us multiple times to suggest that time has been passing within the series. And now with a solidly defined time skip having happened, I thought it would be fun to look back and piece together how much time has passed until now!

Before I do that though, I want to preface with a few things:

All of this is purely speculation based on loose evidence provided to us throughout the series. I'm not claiming anything I say as definitive fact. This is merely for fun. Everything I say could be completely wrong.

The passage of time in the Pokemon anime is a tricky topic. After all, time "passed" in Ash's series without ever really passing; weeks or months would be stated to have gone by, but Ash himself was explicitly stated to be forever-10-years-old and on an eternal summer vacation. Despite that, growth and the passage of time seem to be important themes at the base of Horizons (i.e. the 100-year tale of Lucius, the generational parallels between Amethio and Liko and their ancestors, how time has impacted Gibeon, etc.). These themes weren't relevant in Ash's series (at least, not in the same way), which is why time was never a focus. That's not true of Horizons though, and that's why I think it's at least worth discussing.

I understand that the characters don't seem to grow/mature much physically throughout the series—even after the time skip. Realistically, if a significant amount of time has passed then the characters should be physically aging more than they are. My argument to that is that this is a long-running anime that's ultimately a marketing tool for the most successful multi-media franchise in the world. They likely want to keep character designs consistent for as long as possible so they can market them on products, goods, and in advertising. If their designs gradually changed every 20 episodes or so to signify physical growth, that would be much harder to accomplish.

With those things in mind, let's get to it! Note: This post is very long and contains spoilers for Pokemon Horizons episodes 001 - 089!

I want to start by addressing Liko's age, because that's what we'll be using as a base for this rough timeline. The tera leaks that came out regarding the development of Horizons stated that Liko was meant to be 13-years-old. I take most things in the tera leaks with a grain of salt; however, I'm going to agree that I do think Liko is meant to be 13 at the start of her journey. My reasoning for that is I believe Indigo Academy is meant to be the equivalent of a Japanese middle school (grades 7, 8, and 9). The average Japanese 7th grader is 12 going on 13. The average Japanese 8th grader is 13 going on 14. And the average Japanese 9th grader is 14 going on 15. (While I understand Liko herself is Paldean, it's stated Indigo Academy is within Kanto--a Japan-based region).

If Liko is 13 then she fits squarely within the box of being a first-year middle schooler. This lines up with Liko being a new student at her school and attending an entrance ceremony with the rest of her class.

Note that everyone at the entrance ceremony is wearing a leaf pin on their uniform. This is probably an indicator that they're all in the same graduating class (everyone in Liko's classroom is also wearing a grass pin). We also see students with fire pins walking around the academy, and as a result we can assume there are students wearing water pins around somewhere, too (though we never see them). I'm going to guess the fire pin students are the second-year students, while the water pin students are the third-year students (following the Poke Dex starter pattern of grass = 1, fire = 2, and water = 3) . It's common practice in Japanese schools for uniforms to have class indicators on them, so this makes sense. Typically they'll change with each year; however, Liko still has the grass pin even after the time skip. Because of that, we can assume the pins are cycled out with each graduating class (meaning, when the current third years graduate, the new incoming first-years will become the "water" class, while the "grass" class becomes second-years, and the "fire" class becomes third years, etc.).

Now that we've established Liko is a first year middle schooler, let's get back to the timeline. The traditional Japanese school year begins on April 1st. With that knowledge, we can assume that the start of episode 1 happens on April 1st of Year 1 of Liko's journey. Going forward, I'm going to be referring to sections of this timeline as "Year 1", "Year 2", and "Year 3", with each year spanning from April to March to reflect the Japanese school year (rather than January to December).

In the first episode, we see Liko arrive at her new school, attend an entrance ceremony, go to class, receive Sprigatito, bond/train with Sprigatito, and then ultimately get confronted by Amethio at the end of the episode after Ann leaves for break. Within this episode alone, there is already a notable time jump. I believe episode 1 starts on April 1st of Year 1 and then ends around July 20th of Year 1. Ann going home for break mid-episode is the giveaway for me. The first extended break in the Japanese school year typically starts around July 20th and ends around September 1st (about six weeks).

A quick aside: I want to caveat all of this by saying if Liko is the equivalent of a first-year middle-schooler, then she would have needed to start the school year at the age of 12. We've already established that she's 13 though, and I personally believe she's meant to be 13 at the start of her journey with the Rising Volt Tacklers. That being said, I'm going to say that Liko is 12-years-old at the start of episode 1, but is 13-years-old by the end of episode 1. That would mean she celebrated her 13th birthday at some point between April 1st and July 20th of Year 1. Take that as you will! My personal headcanon is that her birthday is on April 14th (the day Horizons aired for the first time ❤️). That being said, that's just my personal opinion. Liko's age/when exactly she turns 13 doesn't matter too much.

Back to our timeline - something else of note happens around July of Year 1: Hamber reaching out to Diana. While there's no definitive proof that this absolutely happened in July of Year 1, we can assume it most likely did. We know that Diana was immediately suspicious of Hamber and she knew that he wanted her pendant, which was already in possession of Liko at that point. We also know she reached out to Lucca, who then reached out to Friede to bring Liko home. I can't imagine why Diana would wait to tell Lucca that Liko was in danger, nor can I imagine why Lucca would wait to reach out to Friede to protect Liko. That's why I believe Hamber reaching out to Diana couldn't have happened any more than a week or so before Liko's first confrontation with Amethio.

With all of that in mind, we know Amethio showed up at Indigo Academy under Hamber's orders on the same day that Ann left for summer break. Friede came to rescue Liko that same evening, and took her aboard the Brave Olivine. Liko herself even says in HZ074 that this event marked "the start of her adventures". So we can fairly conclusively put this event as happening right around July 20th of Year 1.

After boarding the Brave Olivine for the first time, Liko experiences a small stint with the Explorers before the Rising Volt Tacklers ultimately stop at Roy's island. The black Rayquaza emerges from the Ancient Poke Ball and Roy joins the crew. We don't have anything to indicate how much time has passed again for a while. That being said, I'm going to assume that approximately six weeks pass between the end of HZ001 and HZ008, putting us at around September of Year 1. My only reason for saying that is because HZ008 is the first time where we see Liko taking classes again, which would indicate that her summer break is over.

It is worth noting that we do see Roy taking classes remotely in HZ004. That being said, HZ004 seems to happen relatively close to the start of Liko's summer break, so we could assume Roy's summer break hasn't started yet. Alternatively, we could assume the school he attends doesn't follow the standard schedule that Liko's seems to. It honestly doesn't matter too much considering it's the only time we see Roy actively taking classes. I just thought it was worth noting.

Back to the point - the next time the passage of time is mentioned is in HZ024, when Liko and co. meet up with Diana. During their meet-up, Diana claims that she met up with Hamber "a couple of months back". It's not a very clear indicator of the exact amount of time that's gone by, but we at least know Liko's journey began a couple of months prior. "A couple months" doesn't imply a significant amount of time, though. That's why I think we can assume this episode happens somewhere around the October/November mark of Year 1, meaning approximately 3-4 months have gone by since the start of Liko's journey.

It's going to be a while before we get any super clear mentions of time again, but I like to think we can use context clues to fill in some of the blanks before then and get a rough idea of when things happen. Liko, Roy, and Dot enroll in Naranja Academy and start undergoing tera training in HZ046. While there's no definitive evidence, I'd like to think that they're starting this training at the beginning of the school's winter trimester. I think we can back this theory up with the evidence of Ann, Coral, and Sidian (and seemingly other background characters) all starting the course at the same time, too. So many trainers starting together makes me think it must be the start of a new trimester.

If true, then I think we can say Liko was on her winter break between HZ045 and HZ046. There does seem to be a small gap in time between those two episodes, so I feel like that would make sense. She probably spent that time (about a week or two) at home with her parents. It would also mean that HZ046 (and thus, the start of Arc III) takes place in early January of Year 1. It's also worth noting that Liko's mother states she seems to have gotten taller at the start of HZ046! (Her character model seems the same to me though, tbh lol But it is a cool indicator that she's growing and time has been moving.)

If we follow the logic that Arc III takes up an entire school trimester, then that would mean HZ046 through HZ067 happen from the beginning of January to the end of March of Year 1. The arc itself breaks time up pretty nicely for us, too. I we assume the tag battles against the Elite 4 are the equivalent of a mid-term exam, then we can place HZ054 and HZ055 at around mid-February of Year 1. Likewise, if we consider the trainer battles at the end of the arc to be the equivalent of a final exam, then that means HZ066 and HZ067 happen in late March of Year 1.

With that being said, that means that HZ067 marks the end of Year 1 of Liko's journey. I feel like it's a pretty appropriate end to her first year as a trainer. It goes off with a bang in her battle against Roy and is ultimately an accumulation of everything that she learned in that year. It's poetic in a lot of ways. Plus, as a writer, I like when things bookend nicely like that haha

That brings us into Year 2 at the start of Arc IV (in other words, the start of Liko's second year of middle school). This arc is a little weird because a lot happens in a relatively short span of time. The first mention we get of time passing is in HZ074 when Diana visits the Brave Olivine. During her visit, Diana clearly states that it has been one year since her last meet-up with Hamber. That's noticeably different from the couple of months that she mentioned before!

This means it has now officially been one year since Liko set off on her adventures with the Rising Volt Tacklers. That puts HZ074 at July of Year 2. That also means HZ068 - HZ074 happened over a span of approximately three months. That certainly feels like a lot, though I suppose they did travel a fair amount in that time.

It's a little bit difficult to tell how much time passes between HZ074 and HZ084, but I would imagine at least a month or so. That would put the climax at Laqua around August or September of Year 2. HZ084 through HZ089 happen over a span of approximately 48 hours, with there ultimately being a one-year time skip at the very end.

It's worth noting that the time skip is said to have happened one year after the events at Laqua. So, with that in mind, that puts the beginning of Arc V around August/September of Year 3.

I think that breaks down... pretty much everything haha I don't have any spectacular thoughts to end on, so I'm not sure how to wrap this up. But I do want to add that I find it interesting that when you combine the time Liko spent traveling with the Rising Volt Tacklers along with the time skip, that would mean two years have now passed since the events of HZ001. It's very likely that the remainder of the story will happen over the course of another year, making for a grand total of three years. Also, if you subscribe to the belief that Liko is 13 at the start of her journey, then that means she was 14 during the events at Laqua, is 15 post-time skip, and will probably be 16 at the end of the series.

Not only would Liko's journey lasting for three years align with the viewers watching the series for approximately three years, but it would also be reflective of the three-year middle school experience. So, at the end of her journey, Liko and the viewer will be "graduating" from the series, essentially. I Just Think That's Neat.

[anobodynameddex]

Defending abusers just bc they are your friend is actually so cringe! Like literally stfu