#do you understand that that makes the character better.

[dippedinmelancholy]

Honestly pre release I was just so spitefully supportive of Veilguard, because the critics speaking out were just so gross and stupid about the anti woke bullshit, but after sitting on it for a while, this is a huge reason I’ve fallen into kind of “meh” territory?

Despite the fact that for Inquisition, you end up making a lot of headcanons to flesh out your MC, the story absolutely never falters in the narrative that YOU are the main characters, the companions are all with you, but largely they look to you for guidance. You can shape them, and their stories, based on how YOU interact with them. How you treat them, how you treat the world, how much compassion you have for things that are different than you. You got shoved into the role of Inquisitor with no power, but you are the focus of the story and ultimately the only person who can save the world.

That just . . .absolutely cannot be said of Rook? They’re a person who has like, vague background of “rebellion for the right cause” in their chosen faction, which is meant to be a mirror to Solas. Except repeatedly Solas’s actions are painted as black and white rather than THIS IS WAR and war is brutal and painful and endless, and the Evanuris are a threat beyond what any person in modern Thedas can comprehend. Rook often feels like a secondary person with no true reason for being in charge? Their placement within the faction they come from makes them sound very young to begin with, with no real reason as to why Varric has put you into place as his second in command.

This could have been made better if they expanded thematically on the line Varric says when he introduced Rook to Neve.

“Rook, like the chess piece?”

“Yup, one of the strongest pieces on the board, but tends to think in straight lines.”

Expanding on that, on showing Rook just being so immensely stubborn and only seeing what’s directly in front of them, having such a powerful personality being one of the reasons all of your companions listen to you and follow your leadership, and yet another mirror to Solas, who sees his goal as so important nothing else matters, could have made Rook more engaging and entertaining and enthralling. But that never happens.

Rook is there, and it’s the companions who seem to have the majority of the focus. To an extent, I understand, everyone loves new companions and fleshed out companions with complexity are always amazing.

But Rook doesn’t feel like the leader or hero of the story. I stand by my opinion that it should have been the Inquisitor with Varric. It would have made Varric’s death more impactful and meaningful. The Inquisitor, going by ‘Rook’ as they try to track down Solas. Having a connection to his power, literally flowing through their body for so long, could have easily been used for a plot device for why Solas can’t use magic to enter their mind until the blood magic happens. With the ending of having their arm removed, the magic ripped from their body, easily justifies their power being a “starting” character level, and no matter what you choose to do with the Inquisition, you are not in control of it by the end of Trespasser.

There’s just so much that could have been done to make this a much more complex and compelling story that just . . .wasn’t.

What’s really jumping out at me on my second playthrough is that the writers of the first three games understood that your character was the main character. The Veilguard writers clearly thought that the main characters were their characters, the companions.

Every scene is about setting the companions up as cool or competent or sympathetic. Often, this is done at Rook’s expense. The companions get all the witty one-liners; Rook’s attempts at humor not only frequently fall flat, but are frequently called out for falling flat (even when they’re completely automatic and the player has no say in them).

The companions have all the knowledge and skills; Rook just brought them all together and gives them all pep talks so they can focus. I’m trying to edit out all of the comments where Rook is like “Um… what????” from my videos, and let me tell you, it takes WORK. There are A LOT of them. I can count on one hand the number of times when the Inquisitor or Hawke comes across as dumb, but it seems to be a built-in, unavoidable part of Rook’s character. I have not selected a single “purple” option in all of Act 1, and Rook is still coming across as the kid who tries to be the class clown to cover for the fact that he’s always confused. Rook’s role in most scenes is to say “Uhhh… what?” so that the companions look smart.

Rook is always the one offering sympathy and never the one getting it. No one actually comes to comfort you after Varric’s death. No one asks you how you’re feeling about having to lead the team now that Varric is gone. No one tries to reassure you or give you advice for dealing with the trickster god haunting your dreams. We’re told that Neve could keep Solas out of your head, but she never actually offers to do this for you. No one comforts a Shadow Dragon Rook when Minrathous is destroyed or a Grey Warden Rook when Weisshaupt is destroyed. Rook’s problems don’t matter. Only the problems of main characters matter.

Rook is a secondary character in their own story.

[megumismyhusband]

HELLOUU!! Hope you’re having a good day pls take rests and drink enough water, stay healthy~! (๑˃ᴗ˂)ﻭ

I’ve been thinking about the blue lock boys with a extremely girly and feminine reader headcanon, LIEK a scenario where the s/o takes an ungodly amount of time to do make up or shop (bonus point if reader drags them to different stores in each mall and makes them carry the shopping bags) i think majority of the characters are rather boy ish (maybe besides chigiri) so I wonder how they’d deal with a polar opposite , this is kinda based off me irl — my bf used to complain about how long i take when i do make up but now he just shuts up and plays games or scroll on his social media to pass time. Thankyew in advance if you do write for this request!

ヽ(o＾▽＾o)ノ

AJDKJDHWKJEH THIS WAS SO FUN TO WRITE!! >_<

Rin

- Rin does not understand why it takes you 45 minutes to perfect eyeliner, but he doesn’t argue—just sits there with his arms crossed and his “I hate the world” face.

- When you ask him which shade of pink lipstick looks better, he mumbles something like, “They’re the same.” (Spoiler: They are not the same.)

- Acts like he loathes carrying your shopping bags (he LOVES holding them for you). He’ll just trail behind you with a mountain of bags, brooding like he wants to disappear.

- If someone so much as looks at you the wrong way while you’re trying on clothes, Rin glares at them until they regret their life choices.

- Lowkey finds it cute when you get excited over glittery stuff but will never admit it.

Sae

- Sae’s patience is… questionable. He’s the type to lean against a wall, scrolling on his phone while you shop, throwing in sarcastic comments like, “Haven’t you already bought three dresses that look like this?”

- He’ll carry your bags but insists on negotiating after the third store. “I’ll hold these if we don’t go to another store after this.” Spoiler: You drag him into four more.

- Will openly tease you for taking forever with your makeup. “Do you really need to contour your nose? It looks fine.”

- Secretly appreciates how put-together you always look. If you ever catch him staring, he’ll brush it off with, “I was just thinking about something else.”

- Occasionally buys you cute stuff when he’s traveling but pretends it’s no big deal. “I just saw it and thought it’d shut you up for a while.

Nagi

- Suffering incarnate. Nagi is absolutely overwhelmed by your energy. “Do we really have to go to another store? Can’t we just order this online?”

- He slouches on every available chair while you shop and 100% falls asleep if you take too long in the dressing room.

- Doesn’t mind carrying your bags, though, because it’s easier than arguing. “As long as you owe me for this later… Maybe snacks or a nap.”

- Will absentmindedly compliment you when you’re putting on makeup. “Oh, that sparkly thing looks cool. What’s it called? High…lighter?”

- Somehow still finds your bubbly, girly energy soothing in a weird way. It’s like your enthusiasm balances out his laziness.

Karasu

- Karasu thinks it’s hilarious. He lives to tease you while you’re dragging him around the mall. “Babe, you don’t need another sparkly pink phone case. Oh wait, you do? My bad.”

- Constantly flirts with you while you’re shopping. “That dress is cute, but it’d look better on my bedroom floor.”

- Will 100% help you pick out clothes and accessories. He’s surprisingly good at it, too. “This shade of blue matches your eyes—trust me, I’m a professional.”

- Carries your bags with a smug grin, saying things like, “Anything for my princess.”

- Genuinely loves how different you are from him. Your energy and sweetness keep him on his toes, and he’s obsessed with it.

[signanothername]

I– I need to ask.

HOW DO YOU DO THIS?? Like, share your thoughts with everyone. Because I've been working on my universe for about three years now, AND I STILL FEEL LIKE IT'S NOT READY. At the same time, I’m still afraid to share these things...

So. How do you do it?D:

Alright my answer will seem a bit harsh and/or cruel, but know that I mean it in the most kind, genuine, and gentle way possible, i just don’t know how to word it any other way

With that in mind

Anon, you’re never going to be ready to share it, and the fear will always linger, you will never be 100% confident of what you share

And that’s ok

Again, I know that i make it seem super easy, but I promise that I’m just as afraid to share my ideas as anyone else (I’m a perfectionist, and that also contributes to my fear to share things)

It’s just, I think of it this way

I have an idea, and I got two choices

Either

1- I keep overthinking it, and succumb to my worries and fears when it comes to my idea, and keep my ideas with me, never to see the light of day

Or

2- I acknowledge that I’m afraid, acknowledge that my idea might not be perfect or ready, acknowledge that there might be flaws that I will probably notice later and even feel stupid about it, and still share my ideas anyway regardless of the voice in my head telling me to “wait a little more”

I usually go for choice number 2

The art and writing process is complicated, it’s so not easy to write something and feel ready to share it, no matter how much time it takes, you will never ever feel truly and utterly ready to share it, you’ll have that worry in your mind that maybe it’s stupid, or incomplete, or inconsistent or whatever else

And guess what? Sometimes, the worried voice in your head is completely right

But what matters is how you tackle it

Even if you share an idea, remember that you can always change your mind about it, you can absolutely go back and say, I don’t like that idea anymore and so I’ll remove/ change/ replace it

Ideas are never set in stone, you change and grow as a person as so do your ideas, they grow and change with you as you learn more and more, and sometimes they don’t, they don’t change at all, and that’s ok too

You can’t keep worrying about whether the story or idea you’re working on is ready or complete, because all you’re going to do is just walk around in circles and end up never sharing anything at all

It’s ok to be worried, but you can’t let your worries control you, of course, it’s not easy to ignore your worries, but it’s better than feeling stuck with your ideas

I myself do deal with these worries a lot, most of the time i just tell my brain “shut up” and share my ideas anyway, other times my worries do get the best of me and i tend to keep some ideas to myself

But sharing your ideas is actually essential for you to actually be able to work on them and refine them, because people might start asking questions or giving really good feedback that you actually sit with yourself to think about

But what if they ask you a question and you don’t know the answer to it? That’s actually a good thing, it’ll make you sit down and think of how to connect the dots and answer it, not only does it mean you’re actually making progress on your story/ideas, but these kinda questions help you understand different perspectives and by that, you learn and grow in your writing

It’s ok to be worried and to keep ideas to yourself sometimes, but don’t let them fester, because believe me, eventually your passion is gonna burn out because you kept overthinking it to the point it became just a worry than something you enjoy doing

In fact, to give you a bit of motivation, imma actually share one of the ideas I never shared cause I was afraid it’ll be a bit stupid and out of character

And I’m very worried about sharing it, but fuck my worry I do what I want

Remember when I mentioned Dream received one gift from Nightmare, and never received anything after? My idea for that gift was an echo flower he gave Dream, and it echoes one thing “I love you”

There, I shared it ouuughh the stress of sharing it is killing me actually, but I mean I can keep worrying about it forever, or actually share it and refine it later if I wanted, I choose the latter

And your ideas are never going to be perfect anyway, but you can improve them with time, even after sharing them

That’s all I do really shzggz

So go out there and start sharing anon, fuck anxiety, you can do whatever you want, you’re unstoppable

[redhoodfucker69]

Honestly people like to compare her to True Mandalorians quite a bit but... Honestly? I used to be team True Mandalorian. But nowadays... Satine's stance does make more sense.

Yes, True Mandalorians struck what was as close to a balance could be between the old ways and the way war was worshipped without being an actual empire. They had morals. They had rules. But, at the end of the day, they were highly effective mercenaries. They were effectively stateless, wandering vagabonds, relying entirely on their pay from acting as mercenaries to sustain themselves. That can be very sustainable... but not for a whole people. It's simply not the same. Were they terrorists? No. But they weren't exactly the moral authority, either. If you meet a white American that actively worked as a military contracted mercenary in Iraq or something, you're not going to think he's a good person. No, you're gonna think he was an actual psycho, even more than a regular Iraq War veteran. Mercenaries are not good people.

Were they better than the terrorists with grand plans of galactic domination? Yes, absolutely. There was always gonna be a need for mercenaries in the galaxy, and if they didn't do it, someone else would. Flat out. It's less overarching grand evil, but it is still very much every day evil you accept as normal.

Even with Galidraan, yeah, they were framed, but the governor was very much stylized as corrupt, and the insurgents they were there to fight were very much stylized as legitimate freedom fighters fed up with their government. They were never meant to be woobified and defanged by fandom. They were not supposed to be the good guys. But, they were.

Listen. I love the True Mandalorians, as they are. Not the popular fandom depiction of them. I think they're complex and fun. But... The idea that Jaster Mereel should have taken over Mandalore is... mm. Well. Could he actually have done it? Would it have gone well? Why do you want the commander of a private mercenary army to be Mand'alor? Yes, Jaster very much had popular support without even the darksaber. That does not mean he was in any equipped to lead and manage a complex government system. Satine was. Talk shit about politicians all you want, but the fact remains that it is a career that requires training and intimate understanding that the sewer system needs to be maintained and trash needs to be collected in a timely fashion and schools need to be funded and parks need to be built and agriculture needs to be developed and trade needs to be negotiated and EVERYONE needs to be happy within reason, not just the people that agree with you. It needs the knowledge of putting qualified people in the appropriate positions. You think Jaster could have managed all of that? While being a warlord and effectively spiritual leader of his people? Be so for real. Different people are good at different things. Different positions in life require different education.

There was a reason Satine was chosen, and to say it was just because the True Mandalorians were wiped out does her a disservice, and frankly, does them a disservice, too. Enjoying characters doesn't necessarily take more than surface level understanding. But you should still take the time to read into it and come to love the flaws evident in their characters and appreciate them for making them that more complex and alive. And the True Mandalorians had flaws.

Frankly, I would love a story where the True Mandalorians survived and Jango had to go up against his toughest opponent yet after taking care of Death Watch: a woman that knows what the hell she's talking about, and more than him, and he CAN'T solve the situation with a blaster this time.

Why do you think Satine (a pacifist who encourages diplomacy) did not try talking to them? @soliloquy-of-nemo

In “The Academy” Satine has wants the kids taught that “It’s every citizen’s duty to challenge their leaders, to keep them honest, and hold them accountable if they’re not.”

In “Voyage of Temptation” Satine tells Obi-Wan that “Even extremists can be reasoned with.” If she doesn’t consider Death Watch extremists, I don’t know who would qualify. This suggests she still has hope for a peaceful outcome with them.

In “Duchess of Mandalore” we learn that Death Watch cannot take over Mandalore without the “will of the people” which is part of the many pieces of evidence that Satine’s pacifist rule is favoured by the majority of Mandalorians. We also get “They are not powerful enough to destabilize our government. We will resolve this without conflict.” and “The Mandalorian government holds no secrets from its people.” Does any of this sound like a dictator who refuses to seek a peaceful mediation with her enemies?

I mention that Satine’s pacifist rule is favoured because in that episode she also tellingly states that “You would trample our right to self-determination.” about a Republic occupation. We don’t know if Mandalore is a democracy (I have trouble picturing them at the voting booth, but who knows) but what Satine represents is an attempt to decentralize power (she has a Prime Minister, a Council, does not call herself Mand'alor which seems to be an old-fashioned power grab move of ultimate rule when others do it.) Satine is a strong leader with a clear vision, but she doesn’t wish to rule with an iron fist: she wants Mandalore to develop naturally into a people who choose non-violence. This is why we see her care so much about education of the youth, and that those youth be taught that it’s morally correct to hold your government accountable and fight corruption everywhere it appears.

In “The Lawless” it’s clear Bo Katan and Satine haven’t spoken in some time, and we’re told “There was a time when we weren’t enemies.” Are we to assume that even when they were still sisters who spoke, Satine never tried to explain or communicate her ideas to Bo Katan? That they never had debates, never tried to compromise?

And compromise is a tricky word, because to believe that they could have just talked it out, you have to fundamentally fail to understand what Death Watch are fighting for. What compromise do you think they wanted? They believe in ‘might makes right.’ They believe the strongest should rule Mandalore, and that they should return to the glory days of warfare past. To let ol’ Pre tell it:

“We are the Death Watch, descendants of the true warrior faith all Mandalorians once knew. Now my people are living in exile because we will not abandon our heritage. Our people were warriors. Strong. Feared! Now they’re ruled by the New Mandalorians who think that being a pacifist is a good thing. They’ve given away our honor and tradition for peace. Duchess Satine and her corrupt leadership are crushing our souls, destroying our identity. That is our struggle.”

Does this sound like a guy who’s gonna compromise on some things? Say, “Jeez, Satine, I agree we should stop bombing each other but hey can’t we have a little conquest, as a treat?” It’s not like Mandalore was wholly demilitarized. Satine has guards. We see armor and weapons. She believes in a person’s right to defend themselves. What Vizla wants is for them to be active combatants – to be “feared” and to reject peace. They are, frankly, fascists, and saying Satine could have found common ground with them suggests that they have a point, and they don’t. What they want is fundamentally morally corrupt, and it is a credit to Satine that she continued to strive for peaceful resolutions with them in order to not betray her own ideals, but never gave in to their demands.

Also they’re a terrorist group composed of a small minority of the population called Death Watch who are shown to favour assassination, torture, DROID torture (?!), abuse of captives, militarized occupation of civilian populations, bombings, etc., etc. … I’m pretty sure the writers didn’t create them to represent a reasonable opposition, the way they sometimes did with the “heroes on both sides” of the galactic war.

[hotvintagepoll]

Dwight Frye (Dracula, Frankenstein)—he's my babygirl please please please please please i want to baby bird feed him flies and spiders and pick him up and make glitter edits of him and give him gross forehead kisses like he's my cat. in dracula he was so incredibly creepy that he was typecast as madmen for the rest of his life and he fucking hated it but by god if he didn't do a fantastic job. he steals the show every time he's up on screen just because he's so fucking deranged. i need him

Harpo Marx (Night at the Opera, Night in Casablanca, Duck Soup)—While Groucho is better-known, Harpo's physical comedy is SECOND-TO-NONE. The man is a strange mime trapped in the paradigm of early 20th century movies. Every move is a symphony and simultaneously a colony of rats in a human skin suit. LISTEN. You MUST see this man in motion. Every still photo of him looks like a combination of a sad clown and a different, sadder clown, but it's only because he put so much joy in every motion.

This is round 4 of the contest. All other polls in this bracket can be found here. If you’re confused on what a scrungle is, or any of the rules of the contest, click here.

[additional submitted propaganda + scrungly videos under the cut]

Dwight:

He absolutely owns the entirety of Dracula (1931). Compared to the novel, his part is massively expanded and it's clear why. He's magnetically unhinged and his facial expressions are pure scrungle. And in Frankenstein, he begins the archetype of Frankenstein's assistant even if the character's name there is Fritz. He'd still go on to play other scrungly guys in later Frankenstein movies. But he's kinda the archetypal and progenitor of the scrungly lil guy. The scrungliest guy ever to scrungle. He's pretty much the blueprint for every mad scientist's assistant, and he's the best part of every movie he's in. He manages to make you feel sorry for the creepy little dudes, even when he's eating spiders and crawling across the floor. [editor's note: content warning for the "hunchback" stereotype and "madness" in the clips below]the "Rats" soliloquy:

I saw him in Dracula and frankly he has me bewitched. I could watch him do his silly routine forever. The gay tension with Bela Lugosi onscreen was frankly unparalleled. Kirk and Spock levels. I am chewing on the furniture

Played the weirdo little guy in Dracula AND the weirdo little guy in Frankenstein in the same year. Iconic.

The scrungles to end all scrungles! There's a reason why this man codified the manic vampire's familiar and the hunchbacked lab assistant for generations, because by God can this man be feral and scrungly: Whether he's soliloquizing about rats as Renfield, scurrying around Frankenstein's lab like a spider as Fritz, or skulking around dark alleys (and scaring the hell out of little baby me) waiting for a fresh heart to steal as Karl, if you want a scrungly little man for your classic film, Dwight Frye is your man. He has the range to play varying kinds of scrungle, with his wide eyes, his manic smiles, his soft, breathy voice, he is truly an undisputed scrungle master.

I honestly think it would be a crime to ignore Dwight Frye's scrungle factor. He played two of the prototypical creepy little henchman as Dracula's lackey Renfield and Dr. Frankenstein's hunchback servant Fritz, and I believe that his excellence in these roles absolutely shaped the future character tropes of the "Igor" type as much as Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff shaped the future understanding of Dracula and Frankenstein's monster. He's got it all from the looks, to the manic energy, to the crazed laugh, I'm telling you right now that I think he could win the entire tournament.

Harpo Marx:

He's like if a clown was a hobo was also somehow a classically trained harpist, his face is always in some kind of contorted silly shape, feral curly haired ninnymuggins always doing weird things to people

Harpo is mute in all of the Marx Bros movies and so his body language and facial expressions are SO over the top but he's also got fewer braincells than a goldfish while often being the emotional heart of the Marx Bros and he's just A Guy!!

Every scene with Harpo Marx is a treat! Just like watching a seagull steal a stranger's hotdog at the beach, it is a joy to watch him frustrate the hell out of all the other films' characters! Harpo Marx is the zenith of unhinged in all of his appearances, making any other funny man a straight man by comparison. (A fantastic feat considering he starred in films with his brothers Grouch and Harpo, who sported a shoe polish mustache and questionable Italian accent, respectively). The scrungliness of the little guys he plays come from his guileless, wide-eyed expression, curly blond wig, and the extreme ability to annoy others, despite never saying a word. Is he malicious? Most definitely, but hard to tell because he has a dopey grin on his face most of the time. Communicating through other sounds like honking horns and whistling, he is a force of chaos in every Marx brothers film! Also an accomplished harp player, the beautiful calm moments where Harpo plays juxtapose the zany, making him all the more scrungly. His visual style of comedy is timeless; Duck Soup had me rolling with laughter as a six year old and is still just as funny today.

In my opinion Harpo is the funniest of the Marx brothers because he is so good at slapstick comedy. Since he never speaks in his film appearances his performances are very physical, which contributes a lot to his scrungliness. He was fully committed to being wacky at all times. All of his hilarity is based on him being weird.

He's just a weird little guy who causes chaos everywhere he goes, and then sits down and plays a beautiful harp solo! He steals the show from his very chatty brothers without saying a word, and was surprisingly ripped under that old raincoat

All of the Marx Brothers are Scrungly to a degree, but Harpo is the scrungliest! His outfits are so big he gets lost in them, his pockets are full of everything, and because he never speaks, he always uses physical comedy. Also he's an incredible musician.

[darkficsyouneveraskedfor]

Not a Word 4

No tag lists. Do not send asks or DMs about updates. Review my pinned post for guidelines, masterlist, etc.

Warnings: this fic will include dark content such as noncon/dubcon, age gap, violence, parental abuse, and possible untagged elements. My warnings are not exhaustive, enter at your own risk.

This is a dark!fic and explicit. 18+ only. Your media consumption is your own responsibility. Warnings have been given. DO NOT PROCEED if these matters upset you.

Summary: You live a life in hiding, away from your father and the world, until a man decides to drag you into the light. (non-verbal reader)

Characters: Captain Syverson

Note:😻.

As per usual, I humbly request your thoughts! Reblogs are always appreciated and welcomed, not only do I see them easier but it lets other people see my work. I will do my best to answer all I can. I’m trying to get better at keeping up so thanks everyone for staying with me.

Your feedback will help in this and future works (and WiPs, I haven’t forgotten those!) Please do not just put ‘more’. I will block you.

I love you all immensely. Take care. 💖

The cops wade in and out of the house as your world turns as dusky as the ocean depths. You sit at the table, staring as the smell of seasoned pork wafts in the air with the voices and the crackle of radios. Footsteps go back and forth down the hall as shadows loom over you.  

The one across from you says your name. Again. Officer Bolton has thinning gray hair but a thick mustache. You know him. He knew your dad and would stop by whenever his cruiser needed a top-up. 

“I need ya to write it down, miss,” he taps on the notepad in front of you. “Since ya can’t talk. Need a written statement anyway.” 

You blink at him. You feel sick. The smell of the cooking meat is making it worse. You frown and get up. You go to the stove and turn the dial off. It’s probably dried out anyway. 

“Miss,” Bolton calls after you. 

A sniff comes from behind you and you turn. Sy enters with another officer; Private West. He’s probably about your age. 

“Don’t think I’ve ever seen as many of us in one place,” West says in a tone brighter than the circumstance. 

“Well, it’s a sight to see, isn’t it? Old Don, crushed...” 

You wobble forward and latch onto the back of the chair. You can hear the impact of Sy’s fist over and over. You glance at him as his brow furrows. You just got to tell the same story he did. The one he went over before they got there. 

“It’s her daddy,” Sy says as he comes forward to help you into the chair. 

You sit and rub your throat. You don’t have much of a choice. If you tell the truth, it doesn’t get you much. Your dad is still gone. You don’t know that anyone would believe it anyway. He always told them all you were too stupid. 

“Sorry, miss,” West scratches the back of his neck. “Didn’t mean nothing.” 

You stare at the paper and pick up the pen. Your hand shakes as you hover it over the page. What happens after? What happens if you don’t listen? Will Sy hurt you too? 

You put the nib to the paper and lean forward. It’s like writing a story. You go through what he told you too. You were in the kitchen and you heard a loud noise... 

“Good girl,” Officer Bolton praises. “We just need that statement then we can go file the report. They’ll have that body down at the morgue by midnight.” 

“Awful stuff,” Sy shudders. You almost believe him. 

“Should we keep someone here?” West asks. 

“Ya think the engine’s got a mind of its own,” Bolton scoffs over the scratching of the pen. “Sy, you gon’ look after the girl? Don’t think she ever spent a night without her daddy.” 

Just like always, you’re not there. They talk about you like a thing. Like you can’t understand them. You’re just the same burden you always were. 

“Well, that’s the thing, isn’t it? Her daddy just gave us his blessing, like I was telling the Private. You know, I offered to help finish up that old Bronco so we could talk about the wedding...” 

“Blessing?” Bolton leans back and stretches his arms behind his head, “well, how about that? Syverson, you a good man. Knowing she need someone, huh?” 

“She’s a nice woman,” he puts his hand on the back of your chair. “Quiet. And she makes a hell of a dinner. Seeing as you and the boys came all the way out, I’m sure you can help out with the roast she was slavin’ over. Can’t have it goin’ to waste.” 

You put the pen down. That’s it. The lies are in ink. 

You stand up and go to the stove. This is how it will be. Same as it ever was but it’s Sy now. You open the oven door and put on the mitts to take out the pan. 

“Does smell good,” Bolton says. “My old lady always overheats the damn thing and she got not taste for flavourings.” 

“If you don’t mind,” West adds. “I usually just pop a frozen pizza in after my shift.” 

“Y’all been so good about Don and there’s lots to go around.” Sy affirms as you carve up the tender meat. Not dry at all though to you, the smell is sickening. 

“It is late, past dinner, ain’t it?” Bolton grumbles. 

“We’ll get some plates down. Least we can do is feed y’all,” Sy drawls. 

You keep your head down and obey his indirect orders. You blood is a flow of ice. You’re trembling as you scoop the gravy and potatoes over the roast.  

Your dad’s dead. It’s a startling reality that hasn’t quite sunk in. That’s not what has you unnerved. No, it’s that new truth that you’re struggling to accept. Sy. He’s not going anywhere. 

You understand now what he was asking your dad. He wants to marry you, but why? Why you? Your dad wasn’t wrong. You’re boring. You’re dull. There’s something wrong with you. So why would anyone want you when your only family could never even stand you? 

💍

When the house is quiet, you don’t know what to do. When it was you and your dad, he ignored you. It was just like being alone. But with Sy, everything is different. Nothing can be like it once was. Like it always was. 

He calls your name from down the hall. You haven’t moved from the kitchen table since you served up the roast to the men invading your home. You didn’t kill your dad but you feel like you helped. 

If you could just speak up and tell Sy to go home before everything turned bad. No, you just stood there and listened. You put your back to it all and then... 

You get up and peek around the corner. His silhouette is like a cloud of gloom at the end. You shuffle toward him, hands fold, feet heavy. He flips on the light and you squint. 

“Hey, sugar, you tired? It’s real late, isn’t it?” 

You shrug and look at your bedroom door then back to him. You flinch as his large hand lands on your shoulder. You pout up at him and hold back a quiver of fear. You can feel how easily he hurt your dad. 

“I’m gonna have a shower, wash the day off,” he says. You notice his tie is undone. “You go on and lay down. You deserve a rest.” 

You lower your chin and he catches it in his hand. You bat your lashes and stare up at him. You move your hands behind you and bunch your fingers until your nails jab your palms. He leans in as you stand rigid and terrified. 

His lips meet yours and his coarse beard tickles you. He hums as he kisses you softly. You squeeze your eyes shut as your heart thumps. You’ve never been kissed before. Never even thought of it because it was just never something that would happen to you. 

You feel as if you might tip over as he pulls away. You stay like that as his hand falls away and he clears his throat. You open your eyes and blink. 

“Was that... okay?” He drags his hand over his beard. “Ahh, probably scratchy,” he combs his finger through the hair. “I’ma get nice and fresh for ya, sugar.” 

Your lips are tingly and hot. You turn and push through your bedroom door. He’s watching you but you’re too afraid to look back. 

You close the door but don’t latch it. You don’t want to make him angry. He exhales and his weight creaks in the floor. The bathroom door clicks and the shower buzzes shortly after. 

You turn on the light and glance around. You sit at the folding table. The small beads lay in their clusters, sorted by colour, but you can’t bring yourself to put them into the grid. Your vision blurs as you languish in the aftermath. 

You should cry. Your dad is gone. You should be sad. You’re scared, you’re confused, you’re lost, but there’s nothing in your heart missing.  

The air ripples and Sy’s yawn frightens you. His shadow moves into the room behind you. He grunts as you watch his arms stretch above him in his grey silhouette. Even then, he is huge. 

“You should come to bed, sugar,” he girds as he sits and tests the frame of your bed with a bounce. “Come ‘ere.” 

You look down at your hands and splay your fingers over your legs. You slowly stand and turn to him. He tuts as you gape at his shirtless form. He wears only a pair of plaid boxers. You gulp. You’ve never seen a man like that. Through the fabric, you can’t even trace... well... 

“You can’t sleep in that, can ya?” He says. 

You peer down and up again. You jump into action and go to your dresser. You take out a loose pair of linen pants and a bulkier tee. Before he can react or you can think, you flit out. 

You lock yourself in the bathroom and change. The familiar task keeps your panic from flowing over. When you’re done, you hesitate. You gather up your clothes and face the door. You have to go back now. 

You shudder and leave the bathroom. You enter your room and go straight to the basket of dirty clothes. You drop in the day’s outfit and stay facing the corner. He coughs. 

“Turn the light off, sug.” 

You keep your gaze averted as you obey. You turn off the light and tiptoe to the bed. You linger before it. You wince as he locks onto your wrist and tugs you closer. Your knees hit the frame and you let him bring you down next to him. It’s a small bed, narrow just for him, crowded with both of you. 

He nestles you against him as you curl up on your side. He brings the blanket over both of you and hugs you snugly. He nuzzles your hair and drones in content. 

“Isn’t this nice, huh?” He asks. 

You can’t move. If you had a voice to speak, you couldn’t. You just give in to his power. That’s what always kept you safe. To appease is to survive. 

You close your eyes and he yawns again, “I’m beat too,” he rasps. “But I’ll be all too happy to wake up next to you.” 

His breath puffs into your hair and swathes your scalp in damp heat. As each intake and exhale slows and steadies, he snores like rumbling thunder. It isn’t the noise that keeps you awake though. 

The night wears on with the subtle movement of shadows through the window. You listen to the house and its creaks and cracks. Even with Sy wrapped around you, you feel alone. Desolate. You wallow with the whirling winds as they swim through the leaves. 

Morning slowly peeks over the window sill but your world is no brighter. You grow restless and squirm beneath his arm. You turn on your back as you try to peel it away. He grunts and draws his hand back, cupping your chest to your horror. 

You clasp onto his hand and he purrs, “so soft.” 

You pinch his forearm then slap his bicep. He can’t touch you like that! You didn’t say he could. His eyes snap open and he leans back against the wall with a grunt. 

“Hmph, sugar, what’s going on?” He asks groggily. 

You sit up and cross your arms over your chest. You put your chin down and scowl. He reaches for you again, this time he strokes your arm, and you swat him away. He took your dad, he made you lie, and now he’s just touching you! Kissing you! 

You turn quickly and hop off the bed. He calls your name and you wave at him dismissively. You hurry from the room without looking back. Your heart races as you listen for his pursuit. You don’t hear it, even as you get to the kitchen. 

You stop on the tile and take a breath. Coffee. You can handle that. He drinks it, just like your dad. You remember. If men are all alike, then all you need to do is cook and clean and keep to yourself. 

[nataliescatorccioapologist]

I feel like Taissa is often mischaracterized as cold and/or having no remorse just because she’s ambitious and strong-willed. Her softness and empathy are often overshadowed by her ambition, which is a huge part of her character, but they absolutely shine through when you look closer. She's incredibly goal-oriented and driven, which can make her seem cold or calculating on the surface, but her actions reveal a deep sense of love and care for the people in her life. I really feel like Taissa’s compassion and strong sense of morality are criminally overlooked. In my view, she’s actually one of the most empathetic and remorseful characters on the show.

She is absolutely horrified with herself after she discovers she ate Jackie, so much so that she vomits and screams in despair. After she accidentally breaks Allie’s leg, she’s hanging her head in the locker room in shame and you can hear the remorse in her voice when she swears to Shauna that she didn’t mean to do it.

Tai supports Shauna through her pregnancy in the wilderness and through her affair with Adam (Tai is the first person Shauna tells about both of these things, and Tai passes no judgment, offering only warmth), she risks her own life to save Van from the wolves and doesn’t leave her side as she waits for the group to go get help, she is the only one to show genuine understanding and empathy for Natalie in the adult timeline (“Who does Natalie have?”), she is the one to stop Nat from shooting the blackmailers, and she is so scared of hurting her family that she begs Simone to leave her.

She is just as against Lottie’s leadership and the Wilderness worship as Nat is and she is not afraid to speak up about the dark practices she senses the group is descending into (“She’s not God you guys”). The only reason she eventually joins in Lottie’s circles is because she wants to support Van.

She’s not someone who wears her heart on her sleeve like Natalie, but she expresses her affection through actions: protecting others, making tough decisions, and taking on burdens to keep the group (or her family) afloat. Her empathy is quieter, but it’s always there, and it’s a core part of who she is. She just doesn’t allow herself the vulnerability of fully leaning into that side, because it might feel like a weakness in the face of all the responsibility she carries. It’s easy to misinterpret her actions—like freezing out Allie, forcing Shauna to burn Jackie’s body, or relentlessly pursuing her Senate campaign—as prioritizing ambition over her friends and family, but in her mind, she’s doing it for the people she loves, to create a better future for them. Her intentions are rooted in love, even if they don’t always land the way she hopes.

Does she do some really, really fucked up things sometimes? Yes, definitely. But so does every single character on this show, that’s the point. They all have some degree of kindness and compassion within them (yes, even Misty), but none of them know how to show it in a healthy way. Taissa’s way of showing love may be a bit gruff and stoic on the surface, but underneath you can tell how much she cares about the people around her and is absolutely terrified of hurting them.

[rebel-wrath]

I'm something of a chaos goblin at heart, my DND alignment is always chaotic, and the only use I have for rule books is toilet paper, unless their on my kobo because that would not be comfortable. Or sanitary.

There is one rule I've found that cannot be ignored if you want to grow as a writer. Everything else you can burn. Show don't tell is great as long as you understand where to tell not show. Proper spelling and grammar can be ignored, if you understand how and can justify it. Don't infodump except when you are required to, because there's times when you have to. Don't head hop unless you're using a narrative style that allows you to head hop. Every rule except this one comes with caveats, and growth as a writer isn't measured in how well you learn the rules and can stick to them, but in how well you learn when they don't apply, and can write around them.

Don't believe me? The first Discworld novel starts with an infodump. It has to, because readers expect fantasy worlds to still be globes, and if you're breaking that rule you have to start by stating outright that you are breaking it. There are incredibly popular books filled with head hopping (the thriller genre especially). Even spelling can be ignored if you want to write in a dialect, or have a POV character writing the story who struggles with this.

I'm posting a serial story on here three times a week (Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday) under the tag #NofNA which repeatedly breaks rules that are constantly said to be inviolable. It works, because I write comedy, because my narrative style makes it work, and because I actively seek ways to break rules all the time.

So, what's the one rule that can't be broken? It's WRELA. And it's the most important writing rule there is, and the only one you should never break.

WRELA. Well, technically, W.R.E.L.A.

Write. Write something. Write anything. It doesn't matter what you write, and it doesn't matter how good it is. Write.

Read. Read your own work back. Read old pieces you wrote years ago, and the thing you just finished. Read it out loud. Read it to yourself. Read it to others. Read things others have written. Read comments, blog posts, movie reviews, short stories, fanfic, scripts, and novels. Read the back of the cereal box, the receipt when you buy something, the terms and conditions, the small print. Read skeets and subtitles and emails and the sms from your granny, God bless her.

Edit. Go over the work you have written, again and again if you have to. Edit it once or edit it 1000 times. That story I'm serialising? It took me fifteen years (on and off) and two lifetimes (when I believed I was cis and after I learned that I'm trans) to write, and the finished version is as different a book to the original as it was possible to be whilst still being about the same thing.

Learn. Learn from your writing, from your reading, from your editing. Don't learn the rules. Don't take what worked for Vonnegut or King or Aristotle and blindly apply it to your work. Learn yourself. Learn who you are, what your voice is, what you're trying to say to the world. Learn how to say it. Some of those rules from other writers might work well with you. Some of them won't. That's fine. Learn what makes you a better writer.

Apply. Put the things you learned from the last piece of fiction into the next piece of fiction you write. Then do it again. Learn from that and put that into the next and then again.

The next section is me using my writing to back up my previous statements. It's a bit "markety" because I'm discussing my writing. Feel free to skip it if you want.

Okay, let's back this up: NofNA, Noun of Noun and Adjective, is a fantasy comedy that satirises our world and parodies other books. I have a few chapters up already, if you want to read it. It's about a transgender princess who joins a magic mirror reality show called Heroic Quest in return for a magical gender transition (she's a trans woman). Structurally, it has similarities to Discworld novels (one thing I learned was footnotes are a pain in the ass). Another thing I learned was that I had to keep editing the narration because I wanted to directly comment on the story as the narrator and it wouldn't work.

So I applied what I learned to the next book I wrote, Attack of the 50 ft Trans Woman.

This is a story about a Trans Woman who undergoes an experimental procedure to change gender. She grows to fifty feet, and the government sends the army after her even though she's done nothing wrong. So she heads to London to have a word with the Prime Minister.

But I knew what I'd learned from Noun of Noun and Adjective, I knew I wanted to narrate however I pleased. So the prologue makes it clear that the story is actually being told to you by an alien. As the alien narrator, I was able to interrupt the narration, go off on tangents, make jokes, and just generally be weird. It sounds like it shouldn't work, but it does. Even the huge dance scene near the end works. There's a scene from the POV of a terf, Karen, that doesn't have pronouns in it and was an absolute pain in the ass to write, but it works because the narrator is respecting Karen's insistence that Karen doesn't have pronouns. Therefore, no pronouns are used to refer to Karen in Karen's scene except the occasional first person when directly quoting Karen's tweets because Karen does not respect Karen's choice to not use pronouns for Karen.

Seriously one of the most difficult things I've ever written, but it backs up my point that you can ignore any rules you please if 1) you can justify it, and 2) you can pull it off. I ignored basic grammar itself there.

Attack of the 50 ft Trans woman is available from all major ebook retailers and a paper version is planned for later this year

Readers have told me it made them laugh, it made them sad, it made them angry. Since anger was the point, I can happily say it works.

It was also the most fun I've ever had writing and it took me a week to do the first draft. Remember, writing is meant to be fun, and when I applied what I learned from the previous book, I went from a book that took me 15 years from start to finish to a book that took only a few months.

So I took what I learned from Attack and I applied it to Bigoted Book Burners Bloodily Bludgeoned by Badly Burnt Books. I wanted to write about book burnings, and I decided the best genre for what I wanted to write was a horror. This story had a more traditional narration, but it's essentially two different stories told simultaneously, and has a bulleted list of content warnings a page long. The even chapters are the story of a kid growing up trans when the only parent she has is her terf mum. It was horrendous to write, there were days I could only manage a paragraph. I'm not looking forward to the edit.

The odd number chapters start with the book burning, with the grimoire of a witch being thrown on the fire, then causing all the books in the village to animate and kill people. It's a massively over the top splatterpunk extravaganza and is hilarious and the perfect antidote to the even number chapters.

What I learned from Attack was that I'm not a very reliable free flow writer. I need plans. And so every chapter of B5bB3 was planned before it was written. I could see how dark some scenes were, and it meant I knew where to balance them out with correspondingly funny scenes. I learned more about character agency and development.

And from B5bB3 I learned about building narrative tension, about holding off the horrible so it's not overwhelming until suddenly bang! it is overwhelming, and I'm applying that to TWTSQ, my current WIP.

B5bB3 will be out later this year, hopefully around June.

There's other books I've written, under various other names, but I'm only discussing the ones I write as Caledonia Fife. But everything I've written and everything I've read has taught me about writing, and I can honestly say that the books I'm putting out now, under this name, are so much incredibly better than the first book I put out in 2010 under a different name.

So if you want to be the best writer you can be:

Write

Read

Edit

Learn

Apply

[cheetz0]

I wrote some character analysis of Cole last night and thought I'd share :) below the cut 🔽

Cole is someone who's grown up to be the one who loses. He actively chases it. He can't be a leader not because he's incapable because that'd mean there won't be anyone above him punishing him. He's learned to live through everything by humiliating himself, acting like a fool, like he can't tell penny from dime long enough until the ones looming ahead with blades meant for his head are gone.

He survives and he hates it. He's good at he does and he wish he weren't because he's the horrendous murderer he is now because of how good aim with that six shooter of his, or how easily he can charm people into believing whatever bullshit he masterfully weaves and sells as reality.

He should've died, shouldn't have been born, shouldn't have survived those dozen hundred times he nearly missed death but he's too damn good at being this monster that beats people in the game of survival. His hands aim for their own and he's not sure how to not do that anymore. Just point at the space between their eyes and pull the trigger and wonder when you even commanded your arm to do this. Just shoot and add the burden of murder to the pit of other hundreds of people and their futures you marked futile. He doesn't know how to not make his arms not do what they're best at. He doesn't know what he is besides this, besides half-truths and a shaky will to live. Besides the unsureness of what he'll be doing today when he wakes up that gives its place to simply accepting anything.

So what if I go on that mission? My arms will let me survive. So what if I make that decision? I'm always so neatly placed on the line between truth and lie that it won't matter afterall. So what if this and that happens to me? I haven't been the one living this life anyway. It's always my trigger finger making me survive the fights and my thousand made up selves saving the aftermath.

Cole isn't living his own life. He's watching it from afar. He's as surprised as the other person when anything happens in his life. He's lived a lie, a disgrace, a life that shouldn't have been created. He's lived them for so long he doesn't care anymore.

He remembers a time when he was a teen and tried to fix his wrongdoings. He remembers a time when he cried after taking a life. He remembers a time when he, too, seeked redemption. He remembers a time when he was human enough to care.

He sees Hanzo burning with what he felt when he first shot a man in the heart and saw him die. He sees him drowning in boiling hot regret. And he knows best that regret is nothing but a sad understanding that you could do better than what you did. He sees him bury himself in what he felt in the innocence of his youth, a beg for forgiveness. A cry to the universe or whatever is up above that they care. He sees that and immediately softens. He's a man stern as a rock with the innocence of a kid at 13 when he first had to shoot a man. He cares.

He's not stupid though, they're both sinners. But he knows that if there's 7 hells, and if they go both to one for all they did, he belongs the deepest depths for not caring what he does anymore. And hanzo? He cares.

[sunnydbeam]

If you ever do make that beta fic someone else asked for, how would the Y/N react to getting swapped with Biohazard's Y/N and vice versa? Also, go ahead and take some time to answer this. I know how much time it takes to think of a Y/N's personality, plot out the beginning, and just over all storyline- Please don't take this as forcing or demanding in any way, just thought it'd make some good shananagens lol ^^

Awaw don't worry!!

Hoho well, I have to be honest here. That Beta fanfic is already written, and the truth is that it's Biohazard's YN. The fic is rather meant to be seen as a spin-off or “what if?” since, of course, it's far from the meeting I had planned for these two in the original story. In this fic, Beta and YN meet much earlier and under different, friendlier circumstances. If they were two different YNs swapping places, I agree it would be fun! A YN who is used to the calmer personalities of Alpha and Beta being thrown into an unhinged, out of control robot would absolutely give them a heart attack! (and a couple of traumas). While the YN we already know, who has dealt with this mess is instead allowed to meet these two robots, would have a hard time trusting them not to hurt them or get out of control like Biohazard

Alpha and Beta's YN would be a bit more sympathetic about Biohazard's emotions, but they would still be confused about how the robot could become so aggressive, or why the rest decided to keep him locked up instead of actually trying to do something to help him. Biohazard's YN, however, canonically takes longer to understand that robots feel and that Biohazard is going through things that torment him and make him act the way he does, and would then lump Alpha and Beta in the same bag. This, depending on at what point in the story they met

This Beta x YN fic is set roughly between the second arc of Gamma Code, where YN already has a clearer notion and their relationship with Biohazard improved a bit, so it also allows them to trust Beta more easily. This is one of the reasons why I haven't posted the fic yet. It has too many spoilers even though it's not canon, so I thought it was better if you read chapter 2 first to introduce a dynamic that is briefly touched upon in the spin-off

I also think it's important to mention that there is already a character like YN for Alpha and Beta, with a similar role, but it's not YN

[sailor-hufflepuff]

I’m going to answer in good faith that you are actually curious as to our rationale, and not trolling us.

I never said he saved the world. His priority was, and always has been, to turn Ravka into a refuge for Grisha, so that they had somewhere safe to come.

Two, “expanding the Fold” didn’t mean “plunge the whole world into shadow”. It meant “expanding it into enemy territories as a threat, to get them to stop invading Ravka constantly so the country can get a freaking break.” If he had the power to move it where he wanted to, that gave him leverage to bring other governments to the negotiation table.

Next, in the show we are blatantly shown that Novakribirsk is a military town, at that time mostly filled with a rebel faction that were ready to declare war on Ravka (and also were working with the druskelle to sell Grisha to Fjerda). Were there civilian casualties? Yes. But if that attack prevented a full on Ravkan civil war, then the body count would arguably be worth it.

Stealing Alina’s power was where he really messed up. In him mind, he was basically putting her in time out - he made it obvious that he planned on them eventually being equals, but at that point she was too young and impetuous to be trusted with her powers (especially since she had complained CONSTANTLY about wanting them to be gone). Was it wrong? Yes. Can I see his logic? Also yes. In his mind, the two of them had eternity to figure things out between them, he was just making sure she didn’t screw up his plans in the meantime.

This is where it starts to get complicated. Honestly, nearly ALL of the Darkling’s actions from S&S on are nonsensical, and a total contradiction to everything we know about him before that. The Watsonian explanation is usually that the merzhost he used to survive the Fold after Alina abandoned him there drove him insane.

The Doylist explanation is that the Darkling got popular, and LB got too much push back from the puritanical side of the fandom, so she started making him do All The Evil so they readers would understand He’s The Bad Guy (Really, Don’t Look at the Monarchy).

That being said.

If by “hurt Genya” you mean the scarring in S&S, she was a soldier under his command who actively worked against him in a combat scenario. If you’re referring to her serving in the Grand Palace… that is 100% on the King and Queen, not him.

Attacking Alina’s home and killing her mother-figure (honestly a laughable concept, nothing about Ana Kuya before that implied any such relationship): he was trying to stop Alina. She was fighting a WAR against him, and was the only person with a chance of stopping him.

What should he have done? She’s the one who brought Keramzin into it by sending Grisha there. He didn’t harm the children, whatever he claimed, but he executed her allies.

He is a General. Fighting a War.

Those people he was taking from her? Abusers. Monarchy supporters. Turncoats. In his mind, he was freeing her from their influence. They were the ones holding her back.

Again, I don’t agree with these actions, I think they were not the correct way to handle things - mostly because he SERIOUSLY underestimated Alina’s selfishness and desire to fade into obscurity with Mal regardless of what that meant for the world - but if you remember that these are two military leaders in a war where thousands are dying, and not a YA couple going through a bad breakup…

The logic isn’t hard to understand.

“Heroes” and “Villains” exist in context. If there were someone who was better for Ravka, who helped people and made the world a better place, then yes, he would be an example of an anti-hero becoming a villain in his extremis.

But there isn’t. Literally every other character on the “Hero” side does things just as bad - and usually worse - for the country.

Meaning when you tally the actual outcomes of characters actions, for good or evil… he comes out as the greatest force for good in the entire narrative.

How can you call that person a villain?

Apparently I need to say it again:

While other people may ship darklina because they enjoy seeing the heroine with the villain, I ship them because I DON’T think he’s a villain.

In fact, all things being equal, he did more good for Ravka and the Grisha than all the “heroes” combined.

[starberry-cupcake]

I'm trying the post-it method and it's really messy but, if it helps, I'll keep it up, because I feel like live-reading doesn't help me out with processing this as much as going back on notes does...god, I sound like palmolive...

previously, in nona del 9:

this happened

this is the general tag for all the recaps I've done

CHAPTER 8 (third house skull, which, I guess, but tangentially)

sriracha girlie from school is still on the case and asks nona to up her game in the surveillance task and pretend she's on a radio call

she doesn't elaborate but I doubt it'd help nona understand much anyway if she does

she's just happy to help

nona has to put little boots in the six-legged dog's feet before going out into the scorching heat, though

it's the summer here, so I feel you, noodle

(bonus info: our new puppy apparently has been aptly named because she has 0 fear and is trying to jump into the pool head first like a maniac)

so nona, because she has no preservation skills either, just like our puppy, thinks is a good idea to pretend like she's talking to coronabeer

she still calls her "crown", but it doesn't make me feel any more ok with her pretend calling coronabeer of all people

wasn't she with BOE and whatnot? what if the enemy is listening?

she invites her to her birthday party on the beach

and I might be too cautious but I know better than to share so much information in the wild outdoors where someone could listen

like 'I'm gonna be in this location at this day, please come steal from me or whatever'

maybe it's just my latine self talking, but be careful out there

how do they trust this girl to not be a hazard on her own?

she's like 8 years old

oh, great, I sound like mercygirl now

nona starts drowsing off and a bible chapter comes in, which people have told me is her sleeping

gonna remind everyone I didn't find that out on my own

that's not a victory for me

JOHN 15:23

"Whoever hates me hates my Father as well" is the bible verse in this one

well, then

I haven't read the bible this much since I was in my second school (out of 4)

so here we are again with dr. reverend emperor john buttface's monologue

there's a distraction tactic possibility to get him killed, if we ever need one

he mentions the eye color change as things get weird with their experiments

and says cassiopeia?? potentially? or cyrus? told him he looked like edward cullen "from that old movie twilight"

like I'm not gonna clock dr. reverend emperor john having read twilight with his own two changing eyes

so dr reverend emperor john the menace and his terrible lyctors start doing awful things to the corpses that aren't rotting

allegedly due to dr reverend emperor john "loving them"

whatever that means

and the corpses remain undamaged

what I'd like to point out here is that these people are deranged and god awful even when they hadn't been 25 million years old

this is them brand new from the package and they're all either terrible or complicit in being terrible

I think cassiopeia is the only one visibly suffering but still, man

these people were always like this, this isn't some "we've been out in space so long we've lost touch with our humanity"

happy out of touch thursday, this is you, this has always been you

dr reverend emperor john starts talking about touching the corpses' hands and feeling them even when they aren't there with him

mercygirl is doubting his sanity

yet still they all followed him to hell, so who's crazier here

they picked two corpses, a guy and a gal, to make more specific experiments on, and he named them ulysses and titania

titania after the shakespeare character

ulysses not after the greek hero

and by controlling their hands from across the room I guess they discover necromancy

he's still talking to harrow through all this

CHAPTER 9 (sixth house skull, but at what cost?????)

sriracha girle tells nona that, after her imaginary phone call with coronabeer, the ceaseless watcher left the building

literally

nobody knows what this means but sriracha girlie is still on the case

then they start hearing shots outside and everyone has their safety precautions but they're all bored about it instead of afraid

wish this was just a fiction thing and not the current world

so everyone gets picked up except for sriracha girle, as ush

camilla comes to pick up nona from school and gets pastries (aka facturas, where I'm from)

camilla is doing the lord's work here

she got them by selling out pyrrha's cigarettes, apparently, which I find a great exchange but I don't smoke, so I'm obviously team facturas

then, we get a nona flashback from a month prior, about the Event which prevents them from going swimming anymore

they used to go to the sea at dusk to have some private time with the water

and by them I mean nona went swimming, because the sea is filled with deadly jellyfish, so they'd kill a regular person, but not nona

she can swim with the jellyfish, which sounds beautiful, actually

the whole swimming description is so relaxing and beautiful and I am hating this heat but I'm grateful for the swimming opportunity it provides

swimming is great

swimming with jellyfish without dying must be great

relaxing moment for 3.5 seconds for everyone

of course things can't be relaxing for too long, this is tlt we're talking about

nona sees some people surrounding camilla and guesses it must be the police

which, in every universe, is a Problem

tons of police men surrounding one woman, yeah, doesn't look great

but I was fine because this is camilla fucking hect we're talking about

no cops at pride, just camilla and knives

nona can't hear their conversation but, at one point, she can hear camilla say "speak House"

which ??????????????????????'

doesn't sound good AT ALL

nona sees one of them pointing a gun and warns camilla, which earns nona a shot through the shoulder

so then, when nona resurfaces, she finds everyone lying motionless and camilla squatting on the sand

and I was like "of course my baby did that"

but then nona looks at her and she's got one camilla eye and one palmolive eye

and is talking like camolive is some sort of dragon ball fusion

they ask nona not to freak out

I'm freaking out

camolive's timer starts going like crazy and they ask nona to drive them home

camilla comes back to herself at this point BUT

she's bleeding everywhere

like, blood coming out of her skin

it's everywhere

nona asks her to get palmolive but camilla says they can't

so nona has to drive them home in the middle of the night with the blood and the salty water and the potential police following

nona thankfully can manage and pyrrha says camilla is in thanergy shock

she says they can never do that again and that if palmolive wasn't sharing a body with her, she'd be kicking his ass

AND I WOULD BE TOO

PALMOLIVE, I SAID IT LAST RECAP, MAN

YOU HAD ONE JOB

KEEPING CAMILLA SAFE

WHAT ARE YOU DOING??????

camilla asks them to not tell palmolive she was "weak"

pyrrha drinks in camilla's honor while she's recuperating and nona asks her why she said goodbye to her if she's gonna be fine

to which pyrrha asks how does she know she was saying goodbye

basically, camilla is not dying but she's also not fine

which I got from the very heavy bleeding, thank you very much doctor pyrrha

if something happens to camilla I swear to whatever god that isn't the monologuing prick in the sleeping chapters I'm gonna go feral

PALMOLIVE I'M GOING TO CHASE YOU DOWN

AND THAT'S IT FOR THIS RECAP!!! I think the post its system is better for me?? I'll figure it out as I go. See you on the next one!!!

[ploppythespaceship]

So to absolutely no one's surprise, the new Section 31 movie is quite bad. Critics are tearing it to pieces, and rightfully so. As IGN said, "Section 31 will infuriate Star Trek fans and bore everyone else." And... yeah, that's about right. I don't know if it's the worst Trek movie ever made, but it's certainly in one of the bottom slots.

This post has no major spoilers, but I am putting it under a cut because it turned into a long rant.

The core problem here is the cast. It's an ensemble piece consisting of characters ranging from mildly boring to actively irritating. There's no depth or interesting dynamics at play here. Just a bunch of characters trying to be zany and edgy.

Which brings me to the next issue -- the tone. Basically, this movie wants to be James Gunn's Suicide Squad, but it doesn't understand the careful balance needed to pull that off. It wants to be the edgy, gritty Star Trek movie where people get to murder and be bad, while also having wacky side characters that get to joke around. The result is that half the cast feels like it's in a gritty drama, and the other half feels like it's in a bad comedy.

To emphasize how bad this issue is -- the very last line of the movie is a yo mama joke. No, I am not kidding.

The pacing is pretty bad. You can tell that this was conceived as a miniseries before being cut down to a 90 minute film. The whole thing feels choppy and uneven. They spend too long in some sections and then not long enough in others. At one point halfway through, I literally said out loud, "Oh that's where episode one would have ended," because you could practically feel the entire film switch gears.

We also don't see enough of Georgiou and San's relationship, which the climax sort of hinges on. All we get are flashbacks of them pressing foreheads together in a backlit room, saying that they're one.

This either needed to be stretched back out to a full miniseries -- which probably still would have been pretty bad -- or it needed to be drastically reworked to better suit its runtime.

The style is also absolutely all over the place. It's trying to emulate something like Suicide Squad or Guardians of the Galaxy, but with a laughable incompetence. The first scene left me gaping in awe of how terrible the editing was. There are so many badly placed cross-fades, extended establishing shots, weird almost-music-sequences that aren't willing to commit... then other scenes will just be filmed normally. If they wanted this film to have its own distinct style, they needed to fully commit to it, and make that part of the story's core identity. This just feels like they tacked things on without fully understanding how to actually utilize them.

And the QUICK ZOOMS. This might be a weird thing to fixate on, but I genuinely felt like I was losing my mind. This movie would not stop doing quick zooms, on everything, for every scene. You'll be watching two characters exchange quiet, calm dialogue, and the camera just keeps cranking in closer to their faces. It's just another stylistic choice that they're doing without any real understanding of why.

Perhaps most irritatingly, this movie fundamentally misunderstands the concept of Section 31. First, they just don't get the most basic premise of the organization they based their entire movie on. A Starfleet officer is an official part of their team, expressly there to serve as their Federation oversight. Excuse me?? Did you watch a SINGLE previous Section 31 episode?? The entire point of this group is that they exist beyond official oversight.

But even worse, I'm not sure these writers understand that Section 31 are the bad guys. One of Georgiou's lines is, "Section 31 is just the place for officers who bend the rules, never quite break them, until they do." The final scene has Garrett fondly calling Georgiou a "bad bitch." And the team doesn't really do anything all that morally questionable -- they all just crack terrible edgy jokes the whole time. In this movie, Section 31 genuinely is just Starfleet but edgy, and it pisses me the hell off.

Genuinely, the utter misunderstanding of Section 31 is one of my least favorite things about modern Trek. I really hope this movie's reception will convince them to just shelve the group entirely for a while.

I do think a decent version of this movie could have existed. Cut the entire side cast to have a tighter focus on a trio of Georgiou, Alok, and Garrett. Georgiou and Alok have a similar enough backstory that they could develop a really interesting dynamic with more screentime. And Garrett can be there as the Starfleet officer who stumbled into the situation against her will, and tries to maintain her moral compass while also recognizing that drastic action is needed to defend the Federation.

Then you could actually explore the meaningful differences in morality between these characters. Touch on the core themes of what Section 31 was originally meant to be. Do the ends justify the means? At what point have you gone too far? And with Georgiou specifically -- is it even possible for someone like to her to seek redemption? Can she truly earn it?

Instead, we get a bland movie that isn't interested in exploring any deeper meanings. It just wants to be an edgy Star Trek version of Suicide Squad. And that's a damn shame.

[emryx]

When two NPCs with maybe 5 total minutes of screentime have you so obsessed you give them a child 🏃🏻

BEHOLD—my Teiago fankid, Elias de Riva (plus an info dump about him and his parents below because I’m very normal abt them but you can skip that and jus look at all the art if you want 🫣)

Realistically, it’s really hard to imagine a scenario where these two have a kid. But that’s what fanart and hcs are for 🙌 As of right now, I hc that around the time of the dialog from one of the crows abt Teia and Viago being "on again" is when he's conceived. But they don't really find out until after the ending of Veilguard. Any symptoms Teia might experience beforehand are just written off as stress or straight up ignored because of how much they have on their respective plates with the Antaam and the gods. Viago even calls her out for never going home and insists she takes a contract to “kill a vacation.” So I don't think it'd be too far fetched for her to look the other way until things are settled in Treviso again because of timeline stuff.

No clue how they react after the initial news rn but that can come later. They start being a little less childish with their back and forth break-ups at least once the seriousness of it all sinks in lol

Viago did not like the idea at first, I know that much. Mans was STRUGGLING with Elias in the early stages. Babies are loud, unpredictable, often inconsolable little heathens that he can't analyze or have a consistent system for. It would drive him nuts. A tiny human who can't yet care for itself and constantly needs to be held and directed, paired with his touch-aversion, OCD, and need for set routines? Yeahhh…Teia understands, but on one hand that woman just went through 9 months of her own hell and she's shoving that boy into his arms sometimes regardless of his bad days LMAO

It helps, in the end. Pushes him to gradually get used to it over time. Viago starts to realize there is somewhat of a system to the whole dad thing and fatherhood grows on him because I said so.

He holds a lot of resentment and hatred towards his own father. As a bastard of the king and one of his drunk mistresses, I doubt Viago’s upbringing was too great. The whole “demon teeth” comment was enough to hint as such. He wouldn't be thrilled about taking care of a baby, but the thought of entrusting his son to nannies? Strangers?? No. That's something his dad would and did do and he’s better than him. This is his kid; He doesn't care if it's gross, he'd rather feel uncomfortable sometimes for the sake of Elias’s comfort than stoop as low as the king.

On top of spite, the paranoia with poison extends to Elias in a way; one of my favorite hcs I’ve seen is Viago being exposed to assassination attempts on the king or his mistresses/servants while he was growing up before joining the crows, whether it’s via stories or witnessing first hand. The thought of entrusting Elias’s life to anyone else gives him flashbacks to being a child himself, scared to eat or drink anything prepared by anyone because of how many times others were killed that way around him. Even doing extensive checks and handpicking a trustworthy nanny is not reliable and doesn’t guarantee safety. We love a paranoid dad.

Teia on the other hand? | think she'd like a family tbh. Maybe she didn’t react well to first finding out she was pregnant, but otherwise the idea grows on her quickly compared to Viago. As an orphan, she didn't get much of a family—the crows became her family, Caterina as her "nonna" and some of the older Talons as her weird uncles. Being able to experience what she never had with a child she can ensure has a good life feels fitting for her character. Heals a bit of her own inner child too, yk? 🫠 She’s such a caring woman despite her occupation and she’d make a good mother. Scary, but good LMSKSKX

Life as a crow is harsh. Being the child of not one but two Talons?? On one hand that kid is very protected but on the other he has a huge target on his back. If Viago was worried about people thinking House de Riva and House Cantori had an alliance, I can only imagine what a wholeass child would stir up. They both would prepare him well for the future in their own ways. It’s not canon to him, but the thought of Elias being ridiculously resistant to poisons because Viago started building his immunity up so young is funny to me 😭

Anyways ramble over. Some creative liberties were taken, such as his eyes being more golden like how Teia’s are described in Tevinter Nights. I may give Elias his curls back because he looks goofy next to Teia and Viago with his emo hair JAKAMC

I love their little family…

[wasabiburger]

I haven't run into overly narrative answers to questions but one thing I have run into a lot are players who try to surprise me as the GM by not speaking to me out of character. As in, I ask them what they want to do, they give me a vague answer, so I ask them what they are attempting/what they are aiming for so that their vagueness isn't being misunderstood by me and they just tell me "You'll see". Not that I'll definitely react in the way they want and give them what they want necessarily, but it will give me a better idea that we are on the same page about the imaginary situation we are communicating from our shared brainwaves.

I can't tell you how many times I have disappointed a player because they wanted to surprise me with some crazy shit but they don't tell me what they want to do so I have the character or world react in the way that makes sense to me but nullifies whatever weird idea they had planned for me to see which we could have avoided if you just told me what you were attempting or communicated in some way that kept the surprise but made me understand what you were trying to do more.

It's like a ttrpg equivalent of those jokes that need the specific response for the joke to make sense, and if you get the person to respond properly just by chance then great but 90% of the time you have just confused the other person and now you're not happy at the awkward situation you've created.

Another effect of the whole "roleplay v rollplay" nonsense people do is refusing to answer ooc mechanical questions in plain answers, which is some of the most irritating behavior.

"What's your bonus to perception?" "I am quite adept at noticing the unseen".

"Oh that was a big hit, how much hp are you at?" "I am at death's door".

I hate it. Makes me jump through mental hoops to try and figure out what they mean and there's absolutely no reason to do it.

Yeah seriously. Like, what the fuck Derek, the game mechanics are an abstraction: my Cleric might not know what the fuck a hit point is but that's the language I the player have to make sense of the game state right now, we can safely assume that if you give me a straight answer as to how many fucking hit points your elf is missing my Cleric who is specialized in healing spells will know how many healing spells he should use. Shut the fuck up Derek, Christ.

[alexa-fika]

You know how child!Dokusha often ends up in places she shouldn't be? I think that most of the characters would be understanding of the childs curiosity, while others would scold them for not sitting put.

For example child! Dokusha as mihawks child would get scolded by their father alot for it but he understands that children will be children and be curious. Also the more you tell kids to not do something the more they do it

I feel like shanks would be A father that also let's his crew be fathers. Personally I love the idea that lucky roo is a amazing babysitter, I don't know why

Eat water drink food Alexa 👍

Sneaky sneak ft Mihawk and Lucky Roo

A/N Alright the title is kinda weak but I have nothing, also this is pretty weak especially the part with too so i’m sorry holo 🥲 I am late and lack in

Reader here is replaced with Dokucha for the enjoyment of both reader and oc character readers

Dokucha grinned, realizing the room they had sneaked into was the armory. Their eyes shined in excitement as they examined all the weapons in the room, hopping, crawling, and sneaking around the glittering artifacts until a specific one called their attention.

Grinning, they climbed down from the small ledge they had climbed to take a peek at a bow; they approached the familiar weapon, lips slightly parted in awe as they stood in front of the sword.

"No way…" they muttered gingerly touching the handle of the sword as thoughts raced through their mind.

"It's so beautiful…the best quality leather in the market wrapped on the handle with a lapis lazuli encrusted on the pummel," they muttered, eyeing the large jewel and rubbing the leather, shivering at the supple, slightly grainy texture.

"A half-a-meter gold hand-carved guard with jade and tanzanite on the quillon and the Ricasso," they gushed, eyes twinkling in amazement as their hand lowered to the body of the sword

"A black blade; it could have been his haki, but maybe it was forged like this, put in heat time after time to get such a beautiful obsidian color, and they even added hand-carving to its fuller."

"And it's-

"Not yours to he touching." A stern voice cut in, taking a firm but gentle hold of their hand as it began inching toward the edge of the blade

"Ah! Dad! What are you doing here? " they yelled, their eyes wide as they jumped back from the man, arms now crossed on his chest as he stared them down.

"That is hardly the question here, isn't it?" He questioned, raising an eyebrow, watching as the child began to fidget and look away from the man, trying to put their sight on anything but him.

"I just ended up here; I was going to leave….but then I saw you, and I got a lil distracted."

Mihawk stared at the child, his frown softening until he let out a chuckle. A rare amused smile grew on his face, though he was quick to erase it.

"You know you are not supposed to be here, " he chided, shaking his head as he took hold of his sword. His amusement grew as the move instantly caught the attention of the child.

"However, I will forgive it this time since I see you have been keeping up with your readings," he called, glancing at them; he noticed this caused their attention to switch to him, placing Yoru in its rightful place behind him.

"How about I teach you some hands-on lessons on the art of the swords?" He suggested turning around and making his way out of the room

"Yes!" They hollered, scrambling to follow after the man

"Oi, have you found them yet?!" Hongo called, his voice echoing across the deck, and various negative responses echoed back, much to his annoyance.

"Commander Hongo, do you think they might have followed Shanks out of the ship?" A crewmember questioned, scratching his neck as he looked around the deck for the child

"No, they're a rascal, but they know the consequences won't be light if they leave the Force without permission; they know better," Hongo huffed out.

"This would be so much easier if Yassop were here; he's the only one that can bypass their presence masking," he muttered, calling out to the crewmates to continue their search as he joined them.

"Ha! That's right! Without Uncle Yassop here, they have no chance!" They snickered from below them as they hid on the gun's deck, browsing through the different weapons that were kept alongside the canons

"Oh! They keep the grenades here! Sweet!" They cheered, grabbing the small sphere with a mischievous grin on their faces, until a hand grabbed it from their hands, causing them to shoot up.

"U-Uncle Roo!" they gaped, watching the grinning back as he put the grenade back where they had found it.

"Ha! Ha! That's true, but you still have to find a good hiding spot if you don't want the rest of us to find you," he called teasingly

"You're not supposed to be here," he stated, letting out a small laugh as they just looked away.

"You can't sneak here every time he leaves; you know we are going to find you."

"…are you goin' To tell Dad?"

"Hm, I could! But I could also cut you a deal," he snickered, taking a bite from the usual chicken leg on his hand.

"Deal?"

"You finish your chores, and I won't tell him."

"Ugh!"

I thought I was cookin

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