#elves are so much stronger than humans

[aspenaspenaspenaspenaspen]

Dex says:

Eat The Rich✨✨

[gobbogoo]

I LOVE Dungeon Meshi's Realistic Fantasy Races

Ok, I had to stop for a moment to gush about the fantasy races of Dunmeshi, and all the consideration that's been put into them, because they actually follow a degree of natural/evolutionary logic not found in most fantasy stories!

Half-Foots (halflings/hobbits):

So we all know these fellows have excellent hearing and smell, but have you considered WHY? It's an adaptation to counteract their size. Humans (called tallmen in this setting) rely so much on eyesight because we're really tall compared to most animals, giving us a fantastic vantage of our environment. Half-Foots don't have this advantage, and therefore rely on their other senses. It's also much more important for them to be able to detect unseen threats and move quickly, because their size makes them ill-equipped for direct conflict.

Dwarves:

So Dwarves are depicted as MUCH stronger than tallmen despite their size, right? This is because strength is determined not by size, but by mass, and dwarven bodies are very dense! Yet this comes with the downside of their bodies burning more energy and overheating much faster, which is why dwarves are also shown to be heat-resistant, and why they tend to wear lighter clothing that exposes more skin! Their night-vision is also better than humans' due to their semi-underground lifestyle, while their hearing remains about the same since sound naturally carries in caves. Their hairiness is also likely a direct adaptation to counteract magic, as it's been shown to form a natural buffer when left unwashed.

Gnomes:

Gnomes are supposed to be evolutionary cousins to dwarves, and it shows! They share a similar height, but are less muscular and have peculiarly-shaped ears, almost mirroring the difference between human and elven ears. Their affinity with nature and spirits also makes sense, because physically they're in an awkward spot compared to the other short races, lacking both the hefty strength of dwarves and the light nimbleness of half-foots. Being less equipped both for fight and flight, it makes sense they'd instead adapt the instinctive ability to read their environments and mitigate its threats through cohabitation.

Elves:

Like gnomes, elves are in a physically awkward place, however it's even more extreme. Their relatively light and weak bodies make them ill-equipped for direct conflict, and while likely able to move faster than tallmen due to weight, they lack the half-foot's danger-detection senses. This makes them seemingly helpless, however interestingly it actually explains why they're so advanced compared to other races! They were basically forced to coordinate problem-solve, and control their environments out of necessity, which is reflected in their more controlling and direct relationship with magic and nature compared to gnomes.

This actually mirrors the real-world difference between humans and neanderthals. Anthropologists believe neanderthals weren't actually dumber than humans, but that their superior strength and durability meant they weren't forced to problem-solve or control their environments like humans, meaning they seemed less advanced.

[ominous-potato96]

Tiefling Physiology Headcanons that nobody asked for!

I've been thinking a lot about tiefling Physiology and body language, but have found precision few resources on the subject. So I wrote my own! My fellow fanfic writers, please feel free to use this!

Includes physical traits of Tieflings and some body language (and by that I mean the tail)

Claws: Modified nails that are thicker, stronger, and sharper than human nails. They grow rapidly, typically ending in points.

Teeth: Rather than having four canines (two upper, two lower), Tieflings have 6 to 8 (double canines on the upper jaw and either single or double on the lower jaw). Canines are elongated and much sharper than those of most other races.

Horns: The horns of a Tiefling are made primarily of bone, with a protective keratin layer. Their inner structure is not solid, but resembles a honeycomb, with blood vessels and nerves (I based this off of a cow's horn structure). Breaking a horn is excruciating and results in significant bleeding. Eventually the broken horn will develop a boney callous or cap to protect the inner structure from damage or infection. Horns DO have sensation, similar to that of fingernails in humans. Their primary function is dissipating excessive heat from the body and maintaining body temperature.

Ridges: Each Tiefling's pattern of ridges is subtly unique, though most follow a similar pattern: cartilaginous and bony bumps and/or ridges adorn the body. Ridges are most common on the elbows, upper arms, shoulders, chest, shoulder blades, along the spine and into the tail, hips, and thighs. Some (typically males) also have facial ridges along the brow, cheekbones, and chin. On the shoulder blades the vestigial remnants of wings can be found, including a claw-like spur.

Body Temperature: Tiefling body temperature can range from 99°F to 102°F (37.2°C to 38.8°C), making them noticeably warmer than other humanoids.

Eyes: Tiefling eyes can have either black or white sclera (some say that this is connected to parentage, white being human parents and black being from tiefling parents, but these claims have not been substantiated) and irises of almost any color with glowing, dancing flames framing the pupil. Pupils can be rounded or vertical slits (cat-like).

Tongue: A tiefling can have either a single pointed tongue or a forked tongue. In either case, the tongue is usually slightly longer on average than a human's.

Ears: Tieflings, like elves, have pointed ears which can be highly sensitive to stimulation.

Vocalizations: Obviously, Tieflings can talk, but they also have a range of other vocalizations. Growling, snarling, and even purring have been observed.

Tail: The tail is prehensile, usable to pick up and grip objects, assist in balance, express emotion (usually unconsciously), and can be used as an improvised weapon (not for stabbing, but it makes an excellent whip.) Some tails have a barb or spade-like structure at the tip, which is made of flexible cartilage. Sensitivity varies for each individual, but commonly the tail is not overly sensitive at the tip, but the base and underside can be.

Tail posture and movement can be very informative on a tiefling's emotions:

Happy/Excited: Tail is upright with the tip flicking or waving forward and back.

Angry/Agitated: Tail is low and whipping from side to side.

Nervous/Anxious: Tail is either tucked or wrapped around the tiefling's own leg.

Affectionate: To express affection (typically romantic) a tiefling will wind their tail around another person's ankle or wrist. If the other person also has a tail, they may link or intertwine tails. This is usually done as a romantic (but polite) gesture but is also seen with parents and children. It's equivalent to holding hands.

Possessive/Protective: A tiefling may wrap their tail around their partners thigh or waist if they feel possessive or protective. This is typically frowned upon in public as it is fairly intimate.

Presenting: When a tiefling is interested in someone sexually, their tail will be held up in an "S" shape. This is done by both males and females, and usually subconscious...which can lead to some very awkward situations...

[shirefantasies]

A Headcanon For Each Member of Thorin’s Company

Mini post between full request posts! Just felt like jotting these down hehe

✧ Balin knows a little bit of Elvish, but never lets on to that because, quite simply, it’s infinitely funnier not to. What fun would it be letting the elves shit talk him if they knew he picked up on bits of it?

✧ Dwalin’s dream wife is someone super soft and sweet. He’d die before he admits it, but he loves the idea of being the hero for his princess even if he acts like it’s an inconvenience.

✧ Some of it is natural, too, hardening from many of life’s experiences, but part of why Thorin puts on such a tough act is because he actually feels really awkward in conversations. For example, thus man dwarf cannot flirt to save his life.

✧ Oin hates being dismissed because of his hearing, but also? It can so be used to his advantage. The younger ones are squabbling over something stupid and trying to bring him i to it? Oops, sorry lads, can’t hear ya.

✧ Gloin is the proudest father. He can barely go a few minutes without busting out his locket’s picture of Gimli or telling a story about him…or both! Practically ready to throw hands with Bombur, who isn’t even competitive, on who has the coolest son.

✧ Bifur was quite the heartbreaker back in his heyday. He’s still a great flirt, but less people can understand him now so his lines often go unnoticed.

✧ Bofur quietly envies his brother’s family. He may not want fourteen kids or anything, but being around the wee ones warms his heart and he especially lives the idea of having a little girl someday if Mahal so blesses him.

✧ I of course adore the fanon/cast canon that Bombur has a huge family, but also? By dwarf standards his wife is super hot, so the others may make fun of him, but can’t deny that he scores!

✧ Dori is a way better cook than he seems like he is. The role tends to get passed to Bombur as he loves it the most, but since he grew up taking care of his brothers Dori knows his way around the kitchen!

✧ Nori loves cats. If he sees a stray in a village he offers it food and coaxes it over. The others marvel at how much the creatures love him, too, like some sort of instinctive trust.

✧ The others talk big about the ravishing women they’ve seen and he tries to keep up, but Ori doesn’t really actually get it. That’s how he realizes that, even though there isn’t such a word for it, he is demisexual. He also is more attracted to human women, they just seem softer and sweeter to him.

✧ Part of the reason Fili carries so many blades is because he enjoys crafting them. It’s a skill he learned from his uncle Thorin, standing at his side and helping before taking up the craft himself.

✧ Fili was the one who defended Kili from derision by other young dwarves when he chose to learn archery, an unusual form of combat in their culture. From then on, Kili vowed to become stronger and faster so he could defend those he loves, too.

✧ Bilbo bonds with Ori over sewing and knitting, smiling as he learns he has company because quite frankly he never thought a dwarf would know such arts, let alone join him as they teach each other.

[raayllum]

She Must Pay the Price, or A Drop of Mercy :: A Rayla and Leola Meta

Quick:

You're a young elven girl, and you show mercy and compassion to a human that you definitely weren't supposed to. When it's found out, you're punished, with elves even calling for your execution (6x09, book 1 novelization). Your father does what he can, but there's only so much. You're put on trial. You're found guilty regardless of intent, and only by association. You die for this; you die for them. You're a star. A guiding light. There's even a Great Fall off a precipice (though only one of you hits the ground).

Your name is Leola, or Rayla.

You're the beginning and the end, respectively.

So let's talk about it.

Tests of Love

For years, I had wondered where Aaravos' assessment of "Those who fail tests of love are simple animals. They deserve to be motivated by fear" (2x09) came from, cause you don't drop in a line like that if it's not going somewhere. It's quite a statement and worldview, after all. Now, with Leola's trial, it seems we know.

We can see, then, perhaps that Leola's gift giving was the first test of love — are you willing to break the Natural Law, the Natural Order of things? — to help another? To show another a source of power in order to share, to be compassionate, and in Rayla's case, to be merciful (though we'll get more to that in a minute).

We also know that the love Leola had was powerful and all encompassing:

She didn't care to follow the order set in the stars. Though she was born an immortal being from the Heavens, she loved this world... and all its flaws. Her heart was warm and open.

And she befriended mortals. Animals, elves... and humans.

ETHARI: Who I love, where I love, what I love, are all specific. But to Runaan and those like your parents... love is rooted in all families, all creatures. Souls like that feel called to protect everyone as fiercely as those they hold close. (Bloodmoon Huntress)

Okay, so Leola and Rayla both have big compassionate hearts and befriend creatures from all over the place. So what? So do Callum, Ezran, Soren, and most of our other main good guy characters. Even Claudia to a degree (though she could work on not using magical creatures for spell parts).

Well, specifically, it's because of how they intersect currently more with anyone else on the concept of

Mercy

KOSMO: Daughter of the Moon, yours is a wondrous heart. In a moment of mercy, you sent ripples out into the ocean of time. Ripples that have not yet stilled. (6x05)

Rayla sparing Marcos, as noted in multiple interviews by the creators and by myself in previous metas, is ultimately the inciting incident / lynchpin of the entire series. Without it, there would've been no soulfang proposal or Ez running away to find the egg or any of the number of other elements that had to come together to make achieving peace possible.

While we still have details to discover regarding Aaravos' Fall and development of dark magic, we know that a lack of mercy was ultimately what sent him on his path of vengeance. Leola was not shown mercy, and while it seems there were already "flaws" for an imperfect world, things were (probably) better than they currently are in Xadia in a variety of ways. Then, to kick off the entire Saga, we have Rayla sparing Marcos in a soundtrack literally titled "Mercy" and have Kosmo, seasons and seasons later, spell out directly what a big deal this was for well, the ocean of time.

None of this is to say Rayla can't act out of revenge — she did ("when I first came here, I was on a mission for revenge") and she has ("but I became so obsessed with revenge"), much like Aaravos ("he isn't doing anything out of love, he's doing it for revenge") — but that her general compassion and love for others has always been stronger than her grief or rage, and that even when she had every social and personal reason to, she was and is fundamentally unable to hurt someone innocent.

Even when she's shamed or punished for it by herself or by others. RAYLA: The human looked up at me, and I saw the fear in his eyes. RUNAAN: Of course he was afraid, but you a job to do! (1x01)

EZRAN: Yeah, but then you saw he was scared, and you knew he was a person, just like you. RAYLA: That shouldn't have mattered. I had a job to do. (1x08)

The Cosmic Council — and to a degree, the Silvergrove — say that the reasonings or motivations, the intentions, behind Leola and Rayla's actions do not and should not matter when it comes out to doling 'Justice'. So Leola faces her justice, being literally killed in the one manner that can kill a Startouch elf, and so does Rayla, being metaphorically Ghosted / 'murdered' by her community, regardless.

Neither are enough to ultimately quell their light or their love/power, however.

A Star

RAYLA: That beautiful shining star you just pointed out? We call it Leola's Last Wish. (5x02)

So both Leola and Rayla are stars in season 6, literally and metaphorically respectively. Leola's is more self-explanatory, whereas Rayla's is mostly about the role she has in Callum's life as a guiding light and star. I don't think it's a coincidence, though, that just as Rayla placed Callum on his path of being a primal mage, though, that Leola did the same for humanity. I also don't think it's a coincidence that Callum's love for Rayla restores Callum's own light and agency amid Leola giving humanity the same through light and fire.

It happened long ago, when humans had only just learned to hold fire in their hands without burning. They nurtured their precious primal flames secretly—in the dark of night, beneath shadows and shrouds—as cultivating its glow drew the eyes and ire of monsters. Eventually, for the audacity of their fire, they were hunted, and—though they looked to the stars for salvation—the stars, too, looked down upon them with disdain. Humanity had been given something it was never meant to have. (TDP shorts, Ripples)

In this way, we see the manifestation of a repeating parallel of Rayla representing Leola, a gift giver of life, magic, light, unjustly punished/killed, and Callum representing humanity, looking to the kindest brightest star for guidance, magic, restoration, and salvation if he's just given the chance to grasp it. After all, presumably, Leola's last wish would have something to do with primal magic and humanity, and who represents that better than Callum, with two arcana under his belt and possibly more on the way? With that in mind, I want to return to another quote from earlier but with a different focus on

Ripples

Daughter of the Moon, yours is a wondrous heart. In a moment of mercy, you sent ripples out into the ocean of time. Ripples that have not yet stilled.

The wisest of the humans looked upon the water. His own reflection smiled back at him, and he dared to imagine what such power would feel like in his own hands, should he be allowed to hold it. Imagine, he thought, if I were more than what I am. With a trembling hand he touched the surface of the water. Ripples spread from his fingertips. [...] I hope the stars were watching. I hope they saw it: the moment their perfect reflections turned warped and ruined, churned to chaos by the touch of a single human hand. In this, the humans taught me another lesson. And so I touch the surface of the water. I watch the ripples spread.

Water in TDP is a strange beast, symbolically speaking. There are some more straight forward motifs (reflections, "don't try to control where the river [of life] goes, there's one thing you can know and control: yourself"). For Aaravos, it's connected to deep loss but also his own sense of patience in playing and winning his game, as illustrated above. For Rayla, it's linked to shame, self-reflection, bravery, and loss. Aaravos weeps and creates a sea upon losing Leola; Rayla says goodbye to her family by the lotus pond times three.

We don't know what water represents for Leola. Not distinctly, anyway. The best we can figure though, is that by following the through line of the Rayla and Leola parallels, that the ripples Leola wanted to send out or did send out — not the distortions caused by her father and his grief — are ones that Rayla received, and then continued.

Rayla has always been a foil to Aaravos, and this hasn't changed. She is the one who set Callum on the path initially of being a mage, which put him in Aaravos' machinations as prey; she retrieved his Key; and she's the reason Callum's done dark magic, twice. At the same time, much like the moon, Rayla carries Leola's light as much as she shoulders Aaravos' dark. She literally represents light in Callum's life, helps lead him through the darkness, and him being a primal mage and it's possible growth to other humans is the best possible thing that could've ever happened to Xadia.

Sol Regem says that "no one can save" Xadia or fix what is deeply broken. The Cosmic Council said that Leola had broken the Cosmic order and had to pay the price. Rayla has repeatedly been willing to pay the price for both hers and other's actions in hopes of making things right, of sparing others' pain. Sometimes to her detriment, but—if Rayla as Callum's one Truth could fix the darkness within him, if she's the lynchpin for breaking the Cycle, for bringing back Runaan and fixing her family's souls, in opposing and presenting mercy amid the Council's lack of mercy, in the face of Xadia's violence—

Then Rayla's act of mercy in 1x01, and potentially beyond in S7 with Callum, will be what fixes Xadia.

Leola's gift of magic is what 'broke' Xadia, and her execution is what literally did so, leading to the division of the continent. She wrongly paid the price in the absence of mercy and love. Rayla is therefore her thematic successor — welcomed this time as Light and Truth — as the carrier of Mercy and Love, and she will 'fix' Xadia through her ripples and dynamics. She will mend them back together. There will, at last, be no price to pay.

Misc. Thoughts / Predictions

One thing I was always curious about going forward into future seasons was the prospect of a 'trial' or reunification of the Silvergrove. It felt like a no-brainer the Silvergrove would have to change in order to reflect Runaan's character arc, much the way we see Katolis and the Sunfire elves change to better accommodate the new, more compassionate world order. Pre-S4 a trial felt a little strange as an idea, though post-S4 the parallels it could provide to the Lucia tribunal made more sense about why include either (or both).

However, Leola's trial seemed to hammer home the almost necessity (as this is still a prediction, after all, that may not happen) of Rayla and/or Runaan saying their peace to the Silvergrove leaders. This would be a great opportunity to provide a contrast to the Cosmic Council, reaffirming that Xadia is ultimately better than them because the Moonshadow elves and everyone else can change, and the Cosmic Council seemingly cannot or will not. But I guess we'll have to wait for S7 or beyond (#GiveUsTheSaga) to find out if this'll come to fruition or not.

I also wanted to touch on what we see with Leola ("I'm so scared!") and the repeated emphasis on "recognizing fear as a moment of empathy and personhood" and the horror that can come if you don't have that moment of recognition. This is something I've touched on before most notably as a striking difference between S1 Rayla and S5 Claudia, but I thought it was worth mentioning as S6 added to it specifically with Viren towards Soren and Lissa. This is another point in the "Rayla is an inversion of the Council's lack of mercy" column, as Leola's — a child's fear, and Aaravos willing to pay the price and take her place — earns her no mercy. Rayla, meanwhile, sees someone innocent that she has 'every right' to execute is afraid of her, and that strays her hand; it steadies her sword, and she spares him. Because if someone is afraid of you, it's worth asking yourself why, and what you might want to do instead.

Last but not least I wanted to talk about Leola's parallels to Callum and Ezran as well, since they are very much there (though yet not perhaps to the same extent).

Ezran has Leola's friendliness to animals and soft heart. He too is a child whose death is called for as a means of Justice, and he is granted mercy through Rayla and the discovery of the egg, able to live and grow and help usher in peace. He is, I think, what Leola might've been allowed to be if she'd lived in different times. Callum, meanwhile, carries the gift giving motif through his cube, staff, and tokens he both gives to (moon-phoenix bracelet) and receives (the moon opal necklace) from Rayla, and previous 'human-Leola' magic dynamic. Callum being able to break free fully from Aaravos' and dark magic's control in S7 and turn his eye instead to primal magic will be what helps bring true justice to Leola and hope for humanity / Xadia in righting the Cosmic Council's fundamental wrongdoing. Hopefully, anyway.

Conclusion

I hope you enjoyed this deep dive into some parallels and potential narrative goings-on between Leola and Rayla as characters. TDP loves its historical and ironic layers in TDP (Ez and the Orphan Queen, Viren's arc from S1 to S6) and I think this layered thematic dynamic between the two merciful young girls was a good, brilliant choice by the creative team. I'm excited to see where this thematic thread goes in the future and how it may continue to be woven into the story. As always, thank you for reading, and I'll see you in the next one.

[thesummerestsolstice]

Silm AU Concept that Won't Leave me Alone:

Earendil falls ill, not long after his marriage. None of the healers in Sirion– human or elven– can explain why. Maybe it's because Idril and Tuor left for Valinor recently, and no one really thinks they'll make it there alive. Maybe it's the plague that's been sweeping through war-torn Beleriand. Maybe his body is just giving up on him– it's not unheard of for half-elves to die that way.

And it's becoming clear that Earendil is dying. Nothing they do helps. Some of Elwing's advisors try to keep her away from his bedside– half out of fear his illness is contagious and half because she spends all her time there, refusing to eat or rest. They're trying to protect her from the horrible truth. It isn't working.

Elwing knows of two great sources of magic. One is her own– inherited from Melian, running far stronger in her blood than any had expected, far stronger than it had in her father. Strong enough that she's spent most of her life learning to hide it. Flowers bloom under her feet, birds flock to her side. Elwing is powerful, but she's young; untrained. She tries to help Earendil. She fails.

And then there is the Silmaril. The Silmaril's power is not like hers. It does not make things grow, or bring the birds and gentle beasts of the world to their doorstep. But it drives away the orcs, keeps the wolves at bay, cuts through the darkness, burns away evil. It is a much more violent kind of purification.

And Elwing thinks, is it not evil coursing through my husband's veins, choking his lungs, threatening to tear him away from me?

She takes the Silmaril and pries it open with a dagger, pouring it's divine light into the abalone-shell cup that Idril had given her before she sailed away. She gives it to Earendil, comforts him, climbs into bed beside him. They hold each other, whisper their marriage vows again in the darkness. When Elwing drifts into sleep, she doesn't know if he'll still be there when she wakes up.

And then Earendil wakes up with clear, bright eyes. It works. It works very well. It works so well that Elwing has to teach Earendil how to hide the new light in his eyes and the shimmer under his skin.

Elwing keeps the Silmaril hidden away after that. Some whisper that she's become obsessed with it, just as her father had. In truth, she's just trying to hide the fact that the gem has no light left. Somehow, she doubts her advisors would approve of her decision.

But she doesn't care, and neither does Earendil. They are happy, and in love. Not long after Earendil's recovery– a recovery most think was a miracle sent by the Valar– they have children. Two very strange children with sharp teeth and bright eyes who they love very much.

It looks like everything will work out for Elwing's little family, right until the day the first letter from Maedhros Feanorian arrives.

[procyonloser]

(orc/elf Adamsapple mini. warning for mentions of childbirth and violence/bloodshed)

Adam was exhausted, his breathing was only now starting to even out, but he couldn't sleep yet. One of the taller elves handed him a round crying bundle, which he pulled up onto his breast.

The infant looked massive in comparison to the elven children that watched on from the entrance of the room - but it was minute compared to any orc children. His eldest child sat beside him on the birthing bed, sucking his thumb, not fully understanding what was going on, but he was just barely walking yet. Like his eldest, this infant had shorter pointed ears, somewhere between elf and orc, and a short tail, which the elven children found wildly hilarious. He knew his children would have a hard time growing up here, already being called names, like piglet. The alternative was impossible, his own village would kill them immediately.

Lucifer leaned in, pressing a kiss upon his brow, and then onto the newborn. A little girl, with a shock of blonde hair, showing she did take after him just as much as she did Adam.

"You've done beautifully, my love." Lucifer said, and Adam wanted to be happy, but the elven wet nurses looked at him with disdain at best, disgust at worst. They weren't supposed to allow orcs into their lands, and Lucifer was far from the most popular elf, even before he brought Adam home.

Maybe they'd find somewhere, someday, for their family - away from all the names and looks.

But how had he even gotten here? Well, it started two years back.

The orc village Adam was from was one of the largest, and Adam was the firstborn son of the current ruler. That, of course, didn't secure his position. He had to fight to keep it, and it was only a matter of time until someone challenged his father, or he was killed out on a raid. His sisters too seemed eager to get rid of him, but Adam wasn't about to let that happen. There were multiple ways to win favor within his village, but capturing an elf was always a big one.

They were fast, they could use magic, they had more advanced weaponry, and they had jewelry. They were always bedecked in things that glimmered, things that Adam's village had little of. Adam needed a wife to secure his own future as well, he needed heirs, and he needed gold to melt down and turn into a marriage dagger for the orc of his choosing. So, Adam needed an elf.

And, he'd just so happened to have spotted one in this area recently, an open glen within the woods. It was very far outside the line of their own territory, which meant the elf was either strong, or incredibly stupid - or as his mother Asherah, would say about Adam, a stunning mix of both.

Adam sat up on a high oak branch, one heavy enough to carry him, watching from above as his target made itself known. He couldn't tell if it was male or female, elves all looked the same to him, but it seemed short, even for their species. It walked around the glen, picking up sticks, bending them like it was testing the brittleness, before throwing them away. Elven bows were one of their worst weapons, the orcs had nothing so long distance besides throwing spears.

Adam waited until it was turned around, before he jumped down from his hiding spot, and swung his club hard into the elven figure with a cackle. It went flying, hitting a rocky outcrop, and collapsing as a cloud of dust rose around it. Adam grinned, resting his club on the ground, and waiting to see if the elf got back up.

"You shouldn't have come out so far, little one. You know, if you're not dead, all you need to do is give me all your jewelry and clothing, and I'll let you live." That was a lie. "You can go home." Adam wanted to see first if it was a male or female, then he'd probably trade them off to the humans.

The elf pushed up onto a hand, and Adam's grin spread. It was stronger than he'd thought. As the dust cleared, the elf got to it's feet, and made eye contact with Adam. Red eyes, that was uncommon.

"Somehow I doubt that," the elf said wryly, in a deeper voice than he'd expected. He had no weapons on him that he could see, not even a knife.

"Are you male?" Adam asked, and the elf gave a small nod. "Well, I have to admit that's less interesting."

Adam raised his club again, ready to finish the job. "Make your choice, elf."

The elf raised an eyebrow, dusting himself off, like he was entirely uninterested in Adam's threats.

Maybe because he was.

With a flick of his wrist, Adam went flying backwards, dropping his club, and falling down the side of a riverbank. Immediately, he knew something was wrong, he'd not expected such powerful magic out of an elf so small. Adam coughed, and coughed until it came up red as he landed, feeling a sharp pain begin to radiate from his center. Adam looked down, and felt cold. He'd landed on a downed tree, and a jagged broken branch had impaled him through his stomach.

The elf appeared at the edge of the riverbank, expression going from tired, to shocked. In an instant, he'd silently jumped down beside Adam, looking over the wound. "Oh no...I didn't mean for this to happen..." He whispered to himself, chewing on his lip.

Up close, Adam could see he was very pretty. A small heart shaped face, large eyes, long sharp pointed ears covered in dangling gold and gems. Adam's breathing got more haggard as he watched him move around, as though he was trying to find some angle where Adam wasn't going to die.

"Hey, what's your name?" Adam asked quietly, and the elf looked up, startled.

"Lucifer."

"I'm Adam. Could you do me a last favor? You elves have honor, right?" Lucifer paused, but nodded. "Could you give me one of your necklaces? When my people find my body, I want them to know I fought. I want my mother to have it."

Lucifer watched him, brows knit together as Adam spoke. He looked more pained than Adam felt, because, in truth, he'd started to not feel much of anything. He was cold, that's all he felt.

"This wasn't supposed to happen, why did you have to-" Lucifer shook his head, before he raised a hand, and Adam began to raise off the branch. Blood began to pour out of his open wound, as Lucifer lowered him onto river stones. A golden glow surrounded delicate fingers, and he pressed them against Adam's stomach.

"I'm not going to let you die, Adam. I'm going to heal you, then you can see your mother yourself." Lucifer said, meeting his eyes with resolution on his face. He raised a bloodied hand to Adam's cheek, caressing it just briefly, before returning it to start the healing work. Adam closed his eyes at the soft touch, and waited for death to take him, but it never came.

Adam woke up, who knew how much later, weak, but alive. They were in a cave, illuminated by a soft red glow, and he heard gentle singing, and felt a hand running through his hair. He leaned into the touch.

It was the beginning of their life together.

[teriri-sayes]

Reactions to Chaos Creator's Chapter 290

Brief summary: Sword tries to brainwash Clopeh but fails. Clopeh talks about the sword's power. The pope arrives at Exion's lair.

===========

The battle between the crazy bastard and the crazy sword was hilarious. 🤣🤣🤣

Sword: Offer yourself to the greatest being, the dragon. Give your life unconditionally to your master, the dragon- Clopeh: Should I break it? Sword: !!! *greatly shakes* Clopeh: The solution is simple. *gently strokes the sword with affection* Clopeh: I will cover your body with dragon blood. I will give you the life and blood of the dragon. Okay? Cale: *trembles* Clopeh: A sword is a sword. It shouldn't have a mouth. It only moves according to its wielder's will. Fufu~ Sword: ...Crazy bastard! *resists greatly and tries to brainwash Clopeh again* Clopeh: I'll bathe you with dragon blood. Sword: ...Y-You bastard! Clopeh: *slashes his palm to soak the sword with his blood* Cale: Uh... you only need a drop or two of blood... Clopeh: Fufu~ *spreads his blood on the sword surface* Raon: Human! Clopeh doesn't seem to feel the pain in his palm! Clopeh: I don't want to give to anyone what Cale-nim gave me, so I must mark it as mine. Fufu~ Sword: *groans in pain* Clopeh: I like it better now. Sword: ... *no longer talks*

Poor sword lost to Clopeh's madness. 😂 And Cale... 😂😂😂 Cale couldn't hear the sword's voice, so imagine what he felt when he saw Clopeh muttering stuff about covering the sword with dragon blood and then laughing gently. 🤣🤣🤣🤣

The sword also had a special power called equivalent exchange. The more lives it took from powerful enemies, the more its wielder's power was amplified for a certain amount of time. And in times of crisis, more power would be given to its wielder if it was soaked in the blood of elves.

Woah, that's one crazy sword. It really took advantage of the elves's fascination and near-worship of dragons. Unfortunately, it met Clopeh, and the voice of the sword disappeared.

The sword turned white, but did not shine light. Cale remarked that it was like Clopeh, someone who was "white" but a shadow, devoid of light. He also thought that the sword made its wielder more of a berserker than a knight after hearing Clopeh's explanation of its power.

Cale: Will you be okay? Clopeh: Please do not worry. I am not foolish enough to be swept by the madness of blood and death, and lust for greater power. And a knight lives for his convictions, not for power. Cale: ... Raon: Human, isn't Clopeh already mad? Why is he refusing to be consumed by madness when he already is mad? I think that sword has been tainted by Clopeh's madness! Cale: *ignores Raon's words* Choi Han: Was my judgement wrong... Cale: *also ignores CH's words of regret*

HAHAHAHA 🤣🤣🤣🤣 CH was regretting his decision... 🤣🤣🤣🤣

Cale: I really like the fact that you're going to be a shadow, that you'll fight the way you fight. Don't forget that. (In short, don't come out in the open and show off.) Clopeh: I haven't forgotten. (How dare I stand in the way of the legend?) Clopeh: *smiles brightly* (I like it. I might fight a god in the future. And I'll become stronger if I fight a stronger enemy. I'll be a shadow and aim for their gap. I will protect Cale-nim.) Clopeh: *smiles more brightly* (I like it very much. But I don't think this is all the power this sword has.) Clopeh: *fervently stares down at the sword as he continues to smile brightly* Cale, CH, and Raon: *takes another step back away from Clopeh*

The three stepped back again. 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 So Clopeh's bright smile = Clopeh's crazy smile. 😂😂😂

Moving on, It seemed like not all the elves were on the side of the dragons. The elven elder guarding the World Tree and the 3rd Heretic Inquisitor were saddened that Future Dragon Maxi failed because they got a signal that someone became the owner of the sword. I look forward to them becoming Cale's allies.

Cale and Clopeh came with Pope Kesilia as her attendants, but their group already had an advance party in Exion's lair. It was poor Eruhaben who was stuck with two troublemakers, Rasheel and Hannah. 😂

Ending Remarks Cale's group finally arrived at Exion's lair. I'm excited for the chaos Cale will create again. And perhaps a glimpse or demonstration of the power of Clopeh's new sword.

[incorrectfatui]

Today on my headcanons: are they superstitious?

Note that with superstition I'm primarily talking about belief in/worship of supernatural creatures/practices outside the Gods and known magic. Think knocking on wood/throwing salt over your shoulder/buying fortune slips. However I will make exceptions on beliefs in Gods/Entities that are not explicitly true, like the rumours surrounding some of the Youkai in Inazuma and how to avoid them.

With that being said:

In general, I think out of the regions, Inazuma and Liyue would be the most superstitious, with Mond and Snezhnaya close behind. Yes, Natlan, Fontaine and Sumeru have their own magical creatures and such, but Inazuma, Liyue and Mondstadt have much more obvious displays of superstition- Mond mostly in regards to the Gods (yes including Andriud and Vanessa) and Liyue and Inazuma with their prominent non-human population. Youkai and Adepti seem much more elevated above and less integrated in the general population than Foxians and Elves in Sumeru or Saurians in Natlan/Melusines in Fontaine. Snezhnaya I'm mostly going off of vibes tbh.

Least superstitious I'd say is Khaenri'ah, which is funny given that they're almost entirely based off of/inspired by Germanic Mythology.

I'd say my final order would be Inazuma > Liyue > Snezhnaya/Mond > Natlan > Fontaine > Sumeru > Khaenri'ah

As for the Fatui:

Pierro: Literally from the Atheist nation, so no, and he thinks it's stupid. Unlike a certain someone, though, he keeps his opinion to himself unless asked about it.

Capitano: no, but respects it when others are. Will participate for traditions, or to pay tribute to others culture. Does follow some superstitions just out of habit, but will gladly subvent them If necessary.

Dottore: actively looks at superstitious, tries to figure out how to do them wrong/offend the entity the worst, then does that.

Columbina: ABSOLUTELY superstitious. Technically stronger than most entities, but thinks they traditions are fun, so she follows them. Makes up her own little rumours as well.

Arlecchino: Not really superstitious, but tries her best to follow actual rules that surroung some of Teyvats non human residents, just to be sure. Fontaine is relatively low key in this regard compared to some other reasons, so she mostly doesnt have to worry about it

Crucabena: used to be incredibly superstitious when she was younger, but grew out of it for the most part. Likes using scary fairytales to get the children to do what she says, but lowkey kind of believes some of them herself on a lesser scale.

Pulcinella: yes. The grandpa type of superstitious. Doesn't take it too seriously, but definitely would rather follow the traditions then not.

Scaramouche: Kind of hard to explain. Inazuma definitely seems more suitable for superstition, given the Youkai, but considering his own heritage he's very aware about which legends are true and which aren't, and doesn't feel very threatened by them. Used to follow superstitions out of politeness as Kabukimono, now he doesn't really care. Imitates Dottore in actively disobeying tradition, but only in regard to the Shogun and Yae- he doesn't dislike the youkai enough to try and piss them off on purpose, although he definitely doesn't go out of his way to respect them either. Actually probably has quite a few urban legends and superstitions surrounding himself as Kunikuzushi and the Kabukimono.

Sandrone: no. Doesn't give a fuck. Thinks Dottore's approach is really annoying because he's actively inconveniencing everyone else in the process, but she herself wont follow tradition unless its useful to her.

La Signora: it's a little hard Not zo project on her (and Pierro) given they're from the nations inspired by my culture xD For her, I'd say surprisingly yes. She wont follow Seelies in the dark because they remind her of Will O' Wisps, and definitely believes Dragonspine and Old Mondstadt are haunted. Has shared books on scary Mondstsdtian fairytales (look I need to bring up German fairytales whenever possible) with Crucabena more than once.

Pantalone: Kind of. He used to follow all the good luck superstitions when he was a kid, but have up on them when they werent working.

Childe: a little weird case. Definitely kind of believes in Snezhnayan superstitions (and post Scaramouche leaving he believes in Inazuman ones, because remember the paper mansion?), but likes to take them as a challenge. Will be told to watch out for evil spirits and intentionally try to goad them into fighting him, but doesn't do that around his elders because it's rude and some of them get genuinely scared. Would do 3AM YouTube Challenges.

[sindar-princeling]

I am still baffled by some of the choices made by rop so far, and in a big part it is because. there is such a good story right there. and unless they had no rights to literally any plotline ever described in any of tolkien's works... why fix something that isn't broken, you know? ESPECIALLY if you're not actually fixing it ajsjdjdjdfjffj

I can't really get (yet, at least. benefit of the doubt until the whole story is told) what justifies adding Isildur's sister or those women dressed in white or Sauron pretending to be Just A Human Guy On A Raft while the story we have, however generally described, is fascinating

elves get tricked by Annatar because he says he's an emissary from Valinor - the HOME they're banned from just got brought to them! you can show why and explain just how big of a deal it is that they can return at the end of LotR so much better than "we're told it's a big deal but Galadriel jumps and returns anyway". AND this way it's the elves' collective mistake, not just hers. were they too hubristic to believe Annatar's offers? did they just miss home too much? there's a big, deep story here about AGES of middle-earth's history. and even if you wanted to tell a new story in this show - it IS new to most people who know LotR anyway, because most people know it from the movies and have never read the book, let alone the Silm! this is a new story for them!

maybe things could get wrong slowly even before Sauron creates the one ring - at first deniably, until it can't be ignored anymore. maybe there's some agitation among the free peoples, and elves can see that their mortal acquaintances are different, they're not sure what is happening, but it's wrong. there's a growing, nearing sense of dread, and by the time the one ring is forged, by the time they realise the threat was right under their noses this whole time, it's too late, and it has been too late for a long time. by having made the three, the elves managed to create not a solution, but barely a means to stop MORE damage, but they only managed to help themselves anyway.

the world starts to grow smaller, weaker, diminish into the third-age middle earth that we know, and there's some sweetness in it for us as viewers because this is the world we're most familiar with, but it's first and foremost bitter and tragic. it's not a happy ending. the war will continue, and many of our characters will have no choice but to continue seeing it through because they're elves. they will live to see it, or they will die, or they will run - and not all of them can run

series fucking ends.

anyway, I will. try. to not make this blog into a pool of bile in the next few days after s2 comes out, but as it turns out I'm still pissed about the "stronger than the foundations of the earth" bit coming from sauron and not galadriel in s1 and stripping her of her best character trait so! 👍

[emilianatsuki]

I initially didn't have much interest in Dungeon Meshi when i first heard excitement for it becoming an anime last year. I just assumed it'd be a decent, wholesome cooking anime and that's all. However i finally got convinced to try the anime out back in April and i fell in love asap. The way the cooking aspect of the show aligns with the world and way you learn about it slowly each time. The cooking aspect just fits perfectly with the themes of the story and the characters and it works so well.

Marcille is also one of the reasons i got so into the anime because unlike a lot of female characters in fantasy series she isn't just 'the girl' that's in the group to become a love interest and just be the straight man. She has a lot of depth behind her motivations and she's more than just a surface level character. She's a half elf so she had to deal with feeling like she didn't belong in her own race, the elves nor other races since they have the same misconception about her that the races do in regards to all elves. Something i love about this is rather than wanting to change herself or 'become normal' (becoming a full elf or curing her infertility) it motivates her to want to achieve equality for all races no matter who they are.

Additionally, despite being an 'honour student' she has a lot of human flaws due to the fact she was sheltered for most of her life and didn't really have any friends. Falin was the first person to accept her for who she is underneath and thanks to Falin she started finding comfort in another person. She first meets Laios through Falin and when Falin gets eaten she deals with immense loss around having someone else taken away from her. She grows closer with Laios and the group on their journey but near the end it makes her fear of loss and outgrowing everyone even stronger. She comes to terms with it near the end of the story thanks to the group and manages to save Falin.

Basically Marcille just captivated me because she has a lot of typical traits most female characters in fantasy series tend to have but it's more than just a surface level look. She's complex, she feels human and I just love her so much. The rest of the characters in this series also subvert typical expectations on fantasy tropes and it's done so well.

[growingingreenwood]

Some (mostly unforeseen) Effects of Thranduil's Enchanted River In No Particular Order.

1 - The river seems to be nutritious, for lack of a better word.

Plants that grow from its enchanted water grow faster, bigger, bear more fruit, and are noticeably more individually aware of themselves and the world than plants that grow farther away from the riverbanks. The animals that live in its waters and the land animals that ritually drink the water are similarly affected, growing larger and smarter than their counterparts in unaffected waters. According to some, the animals even taste better and keep for longer before spoiling.

 Humans that ritually drink the water (like the people of Laketown) suffer from fewer diseases and are generally less affected by them when they do occur and on average have longer lifespans than other humans by about 5 - 10 years. There’s no real PROOF of this, but it’s also believed that Humans who regularly consume the enchanted waters are significantly less susceptible to the pull to darkness, this is thought because so very few of the humans who live around Mirkwood join the forces of darkness even though they’re literally right beside it for several generations. 

Any creature of light that consumes the water will have their thirst quenched faster than they would have with other liquids, and foods made using its water will fill your stomach faster than food made without. (Same principle as Lembas bread.) 

2 - Creatures of Darkness are harmed by the River Water, as it acts like an extremely acidic or corrosive substance to them. Even a few drops on their skin can give them huge welts or blisters, stepping into the water causes severe burns on anything that touches the water, and prolonged exposure can essentially disintegrate whatever it is touching. So if an Orc falls into the river, they will somewhat quickly get burned/boiled alive and then disintegrate and break apart into the water.

Creatures that have a neutral relationship with Greenwood and its elves are mostly unaffected by the water. If it gets splashed onto them the water can numb the area for several hours any substantial exposure to it (such as stepping into it, drinking it, or falling into it) will result in being put into a deep and magical sleep. The sleep is lifted either by being removed from the forest, or the elves coming to investigate and personally dispelling whatever charm put the creature to sleep.

3 - Depending on who you talk to, some say that the River itself can come to life and act of its own free will, a bit like the tree’s can. There’s reports of the river ‘luring’ people into its waters. There’s also reports of Jets of Water shooting out to injure or distract anything trying to harm the elves.

The most spectacular stories along this vein include a figure rising from the water in the form of a beautiful elvish woman, with only her feet remaining as ‘normal’ water. It's an extremely rare occurrence and usually means something, very, very bad for the creatures of darkness. Rumor has it that the river takes the shape of King Thranduil’s wife that passed away.

4 - The water remains the same temperature year round. It feels slightly cool in the summer, but in the winter it remains warm enough that the river never freezes completely over and neither does the lake which Lake Town resides on. No matter how cold the rest of the world around the water is, on particularly cold days a little bit of steam can be seen rising into the air.

5 - The average magical power among Greenwood Elves is a bit higher than most other elven populations, and it's thought that this is due to them ingesting so much of Thranduil’s Enchanted Water. The additional magical power also helps them to resist the negative effects of living so close to Dol Guldur for so long.  It’s also thought that this is why the bond between the Greenwood Elves and things of nature (especially Tree's) is so much stronger than it is for others.

6 - The water acts as a highly effective shield against the magic of others. Its the river that prevents the other elven realms from seeing and sensing much in Greenwood no matter how hard they try. It doesn’t affect Thranduil and his people's ability to see OUT of the forest though, if anything, it probably makes it easier.

[dollarstoreartsupplies]

day 2: party - @lautski-week

get it.,, like a..,,.,,, dnd party.,.,.,..,,

i straight up gasped when i realized i could use this as an excuse to talk about my lautski dnd au, so, if ur interested im gonna go feral about it below the cut:

steph: half-elven fighter

solomon lauter is a deeply corrupt, incredibly magical high elven king whose maintained his rule through intense dealings with the pantheon of the lords in black

he married a human woman at some point in his rule and he does love her, at first, just not as much as his power

so when the lords in black make him promise to sacrifice her in the name of some deal, he's sort of upset but... obviously he's gonna do it, she was gonna die before him anyway, it's not like it's a huge deal to let her die a little early, his subjects will think it was a squishy human life span thing, bada bing bada boom, hands clean of the whole affair

BUT.... then his wife gets pregnant and has a Stephanie... which kinda fucks shit up because said Stephanie is still fucking there after his wife has been sacrificed

he hates her, partially because she's a half-elf and partially because of what she represents, and she hates him, which results in her having very few boundaries because he doesn't want to deal with her

she's still a princess, and she's surrounded by high elves who think she's stupid and inferior because she's only a half elf and she has very little magical prowess, so it's not exactly ideal circumstances even with her extra freedoms

so she learns to punch things

because if people are dicks she can't outwit them but she can deck them

eventually the lords in black offer another trade with her dad where he can trade her for extra magic, but mostly it's just a test to prove his loyalty and he is honestly more than happy to get rid of her

except steph gets wind of it (because she's generally close with the kind of people who fucking hate the king/don't get treated with enough respect for people to not gossip around them) and she runs the fuck away

so now she's being chased down by her father who is facing pressure from the libs for not making the sacrifice, all the while experiencing actual respect and freedom for the first time from her party members

pete: teifling warlock-wizard multiclass

so you know that post thats like it's ethically ambiguous but you can hand off any cursed object to a baby? that's pete's whole thing in this kind of

ted, his full human older brother, was a intentional patron of tinky, who hadn't really thought it through and tried to get out of it by making a stupid promise and really just ended up dooming himself and his unborn brother (he felt really bad about it before he disappeared under mysterious circumstances, tho)

pete was born with a warlock pact to tinky (which was pretty obvious when his full human parents created a bright yellow teifling baby)

he hates tinky and is very uncomfortable and upset by the whole thing, so he multi classed into wizard shit when he was, like, eleven

tinky actively attempts to prevent him from gaining levels in wizard

he lies about being only a wizard and has spent years coming up for excuses about why a lot of his 'wizard spells' are very specifically warlock ones if someone asks (literally no one has ever noticed or questioned it)

because he was born with the pact bond tinky's hold over him is way stronger, and if he really submits (when shit gets super bad) tinky can take over his body and puppet him into doing some fucked up violent shit

he is truly treated like SHIT for being a teifling in his home town and it really minimizes a lot of his academic prospects, even though he's so smart, so part of the reason why he's traveling with his party is to try and find a real wizarding academy that will take him

(and one that can maybe help break his pact with tinky)

Bonus:

Ruth: human rouge who desperately wants to be a bard, but she's too nervous to perform and ironically, tragically hiding the fuck out in the shadows comes a lot easier

Richie: firbolg artificer -- he's pretty bad with the magical aspects of anything, but he builds a lot of cool ass machinery to make up for it (even if, god, hes SO upset by how bad he is at magic)

Grace: High Elven Cleric who WILL become a fucked up little warlock to the lords in black eventually (she is from steph's kingdom and followed her when she ran away to 'protect her'. Steph has been trying to shake her this whole time)

[simplysslytherin]

I felt like breaking my own heart tonight with the thought of Astarion with a human Tav, who he treats like glass because they have the shortest life span of all the races, and the idea of someday losing them terrifies Astarion more than anything he’s ever experienced. And Tav gives him shit for it, wishing he’d stop walking on eggshells around them.

"Stop it Astarion! I'm not made of glass!" Tav yelled conformable in the fact that the children where not in the house.

Tav sighed pointing a finger at him. "Even if you were mortal, which you keep reminding me your not, we would have the same problem!" Tav jabbed their finger into his chest, "elves live centuries and humans only live a century give or take. We all know this so stop treating me like I will break." Tav huffed and left the room.

Astarion scrambled after them.

"But darling in your condition-"

"I'm just pregnant! We've been through this twice before! Gods! Your worse than when I was pregnant with Vesper, and she was our first!"

"But you could die. So many die in childbirth." His voice was soft, scared.

"But I won't."

"You don't know that!"

"Even if i do, you'll be fine."

"I won't survive without you."

Tav blushed, "of course you would your much stronger than me. But..." They cupped his face in their hands.

"But?"

"I may of made "arrangements"."

"What type of "arangements" darling?" He looked angry.

"Well, magic."

"Your not coming back as a undead! I forbid it! I wont stand for it! One undead is enough in a relationship! You'll lose so much and I-" his speech was cut off suddenly.

"Astarion! Astarion my love its not necromancy." He calmed at that.

"I've payed in advance to have a mage cast the reincarnate spell on me."

"Reincarnate spell?"

"Yes, the only side effect is I might not be human anymore. I'll still be me just in a new body."

"Why?"

"Did you really expect me to leave you alone? I told you I'd love you forever I ment it."

Tears streamed down Astarion's face as he crumpled into Tav. As Tav made soft shushing noses as they stroked his hair.

[asharaks]

solas in DAI part 2 (the game)

read part one here!

so the vision for solas in DAI is, first of all, to bring his design closer to his concept art. while he carries himself the same (hunched, head down, making himself smaller), he’s a visibly brown man with a strong, slightly hooked nose and dark eyes. he is still masquerading as a humble elven apostate and still, absolutely, planning to tear the world apart, and completely willing to accept the deaths of millions as a consequence of his plan to tear down the Veil, but his motivations are no longer tied to a belief in the lack of sapience or personhood (for lack of a better term) of qunari, dwarves and even humans. instead, he is trying to stave off disaster: reinforcing the crumbling prison he’s locked his blighted peers away in as the blight eats them alive. they’re growing stronger, and more dangerous, in their agony, as the blight robs them too of the capacity for higher thought with which they were imbued as protector spirits, and solas has neither the heart to try to kill them and end their suffering nor the courage to risk attempting to cure them of blight, of which he is mortally afraid. similar to ‘actual’ DAI solas, he mirrors the inquisitor’s attitude towards him (which can be seen in his interactions with other companions, too), responding with suspicion and antagonism to an antagonistic inquisitor and open humility and generosity to a friendlier one, however, throughout the game he occasionally ‘tests’ the inquisitor through attempts at manipulation and leading questions/statements, and the inquisitor’s response determines his respect for them overall. he also still shows flashes of his former role as mythal’s capable lieutenant in times of urgent stress, assuming command decisively and with charisma that he doesn’t otherwise display. 

gone is his surprise at the individuality of qunari and dwarven players; and while he remains occasionally dismissive of elven culture (both city- and dalish), as the game progresses, it becomes increasingly apparent that this disregard is an expression of the guilt and responsibility he feels, seeing in them everything he has taken from them and everything he feels he is responsible for diminishing them to. the suffering of his people, per solas, is his fault, though he will not state this directly: the loss of immortality, the loss of the old magic and the incredible accomplishments, the loss of land and freedom; perhaps patronisingly, solas sees all of this as the inevitable consequence of his own failure, and at least at first struggles to see past this in his interactions with modern elven culture. 

though solas remains fully romanceable only by elves, as he is a character fixated on the plight of his own people, he can be romanced by lavellans of any gender, and flirt options for a ‘partial’ romance or a charged dynamic are available to all inquisitors; lavellan is his connection back to his own people, but all inquisitors are representations of his own failures and the increasingly steep price he pays to correct them to him, and accordingly he can become entangled (not necessarily healthy) with any version of them. he also maintains contentious relationships with the primary cast; he struggles with sera in particular, as an elf taught to hate elves and being elven through abuse and bigotry, his antagonism with her is laced with both condescension and self-recrimination, while, for example, he is much less affected (and even at times amused) by cassandra’s distrust. among the inquisition, he can grow to respect, among others, vivienne (disagreements with whom reliably make him angry as he sees himself as indisputably correct and her as someone more than smart, reasonable and compassionate enough to know better), cole and varric; however, none of these relationships — least of all his relationship with the inquisitor, even lavellan — can turn him off his path. he may care for them (may love lavellan in particular, who can push back on him significantly without sacrificing the romance), but until the plans he’s putting into motions fail, he simply can’t be brought to consider that he may be wrong, and the question lingers of just how capable he is of seeing even a romanced inquisitor as an individual person rather than as a personification of his mistakes. It’s only in Veilguard, trapped in the fade and able to interact with the world only through the medium of rook, that he can be effectively reasoned with. 

instead of having this final confrontation confined to a DLC, solas is brought into the main game as its final villain, with a corypheus figure (not corypheus. something hawke didn’t defeat with three disastrous friends and a prayer) as the ‘middle’ antagonist. the game ends on the loss of the inquisitor’s hand and solas’s disappearance in the midst of the culmination of the inquisitor’s influence on thedas (choice of divine, wardens, mage rebellion, disbanding the inquisition or not, etc).

(previous - solas in DAI part one)

[ann-atar]

Was watching parts of season 1 and now can clearly see Sauron's mind at work when he meets Galadriel and the Numenorians:

Meets Galadriel and they're fighting for resources on the raft, and since she's stronger than the others he puts her in the temporary ally category (much like that poor old soul he took the heraldry from despite that man's kindness)

They get to Numenor and he tries telling her to fuck off because he wants to reinvent himself, which works for about five minutes because

... surprise, surprise, he can't reinvent himself (join the Smith's guild)!

It's Deceiving Time! Manipulates Galadriel's need to find a cause, in this case saving the Southlands and returning them their king

And during the Southlands episodes you can see his shitty little smirk when he sees how readily Galadriel and the Numenorians buy into that cause.

Does he give an actual crap about Galadriel, the Numenorians, or the Southlanders? No, but he sees a concentration of orc (Uruk!) power and that *does* intrigue him

Further manipulates Galadriel by faking a more human connection with her, why? Because despite her trauma-informed response to the idea that she can save the Southlands through him she's very smart, and Sauron's not stupid either and knows that at some point she will smell a rat

Meets Celebrimbor and hears about the elves' potential project. And now in those early scenes I think we do see some of the best of what [good] Sauron might be capable of because he is genuinely excited about making something new, unique, and powerful. Creation does thrill him, which is why he went in so hard for the smiths' guild in Numenor. If there is any light left in him we get to see it during those early days at the forge in Eregion, but ...

Galadriel is smart as hell and she finds out the truth, and Sauron tries to murder her in cold blood, then cuts and runs.

When I watched the "reveal" scene with Galadriel I was even more infuriated than I was the first time because he does everything he can to put an illusion in her mind and deceive her in that scene, and why? Not because he actually thought she would join him, no: he wants to pull her into a dream not to win her over, but because it would make her easier to kill. Easier to dump in the river like trash, so he could get away.

And he feels nothing about that except momentary irritation, and maybe a little thrill at Galadriel's horror when he impersonates her brother. It's almost too creepy.

I have to say that I was unprepared for how hard that hit during the rewatch even though in retrospect it was obvious that any bond they had -- or would have had if Sauron was anyone but Sauron -- was carried entirely by Galadriel.

Like, Sauron put hardly any work in, was just smirking on the sidelines while she elevated him into the position of Lost King of the Southlands.

Any then? Oh well, Sauron's little game is over, time to go! If Elrond hadn't saved her she would have been cold and dead.

All this to say: they really set everything up so well because when you go back to those early episodes his otherworldly coldness is right there. And so is Galadriel's pain; she was an easy mark, was low-hanging fruit for Sauron and it sucks, but also makes one really appreciate these actors.

And now in season 2 you can see those moments of disgust and self-loathing where Galadriel must be thinking: why didn't I see it, when the truth was right there?

I hope next season's Galadriel can forgive herself because this season has been rough.