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thesharktanksdriver · 1 year ago

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Red Burning Stars (Platonic)

Y’all asked for Shanks you have received. Since everyone was asking for him I decided to make his part of Determination it’s own thing. I’m thinking of doing something like this for other characters as well

Also Uta is canon in this cause I really like her and I said so

Hope y’all pick up a bit on my foreshadowing of shit. It’ll eventually be explained (not now tho cause I’m evil muhahahahhahaha)

Part 1 Part 2

Tagged: @peachsuka28 @emptynessinmyworld @badluckinfrench @j-s-l-m @tigerfang-rage @madokamagicaa @rymtea

From the moment that you had stepped aboard the Oro Jackson shanks had knew he wanted to be friends with you

It was an instantaneous affect

One that deepened and got worse the moment he locked eyes with you across the large ship

Your calm and kind eyes connecting with his own

He felt as if in that moment time had froze, it was just him and you on that ship alone

A tugging feeling in his very soul calling out to him

Telling him to approach

To say something to this stranger that had somehow caught his attention in a way no other had ever done

It’s an odd feeling to look back on in retrospect since he’d never felt it again or with anyone else

Especially considering he’d heard some typically describe what he felt as something akin to a romantic connection with someone

Hell, when he had explained the phenomenon to Reyleigh the first mate had assumed it was a crush until Shanks repeatedly told him it wasn’t like that

But no, he knew from the start it wasn’t a silly crush or love outside of that of platonic

It was more like…a calling from something greater than him saying that the two of you were meant to be allies

Telling him that the two of you were meant to meet

Meant to befriend one another

Like fire and gunpowder

Or a sailor and the sea

Two forces that are meant to be combined together

Naturally creating something new in the process

He doesn’t understand it now and sure as hell didn’t as a kid

But back then he didn’t question it much

Not when he was Solely focussed on that feeling

That call from the universe guiding him towards you through the crowds of men

Past Buggy who’s yelling at him for leaving all of a sudden from whatever they were doing before you were invited aboard

He felt like he was being pulled on a lead

Mindlessly following without a single thought in his head other than he had to meet you

Had to do something at least

And when he stumbles his way into Rogers office as you sat down on a cushioned chair

Turning around to meet his brown eyes once again

Shanks feels a wide smile stretch across his face as if it were rubber

“I’m Shanks! Wanna be friends!?” It stumbles out his mouth excitedly as does his jagged breaths. He whips out his hand, outstretched towards you as you stare at it for a moment in surprise. A bit of worry coats his face, shit he probably came off to strong-

Suddenly he feels your hand in his, gently shaking it. “Sure, I’m y/n by the way”. He nods, his smile getting wider. “Do you usually forget to ask for people’s names when you try to befriend them?”

“Nope, only you so far”

“I must be special then”

The entire time as that happened Roger watched on with a large grin

Practically kicking his feet beneath his desk out of enthusiasm

Despite being a grown man his captain was able to match his and Buggy’s childlike spirit

It’s perhaps because of that he was able to understand the connection the most

Not chocking it up to a crush or puppy love

It was something more akin to Nakama

Something the pirate king had felt when meeting some of his crew

He just knew they had to be friends

To be apart of his crew

Admittedly it take awhile for Buggy to warm up to you compared to Shanks’s instantaneous pace

But eventually the three of you fall into a comforting balance of personality

Whilst he and Buggy are rambunctious and rather impulsive your the opponent

Your a calm force, you think before you do and help them find a solution with more opportunities

If your combined force together is a hurricane then your the eye of it

The calm within the storm

It’s what the rest of the crew begin to affectionately call your trio

Even Roger begins to use it when referring to you all

Much to Buggy’s displeasure

He doesn’t mind though, unlike his friend shanks finds amusement in the nickname

One that he thinks actually fits the three of you quite nicely

Meanwhile you don’t think much of it

Instead just thinking of it as a the crew poking some light fun

Speaking of your role in the trio

You make sure neither of them get killed

Usually cause of both Buggy’s and his stupid plans of playing pranks or stealing more food from the kitchen instead of just asking

Both of which become much more successful that they aren’t arguing over said plan and screwing up

Now their Fort is stocked with cheese and as many sweets they could plunder

So much so that the cooks are now on edge as someone sets up a diversion for the other two to strike

It’s fun

A whole lot of fun that he realizes up until now you had seemingly missed

Admittedly he nor Buggy know much about you

Hell, none of the crew besides seemingly their captain knows anything

But honestly he’s fine with that

Their not entitled to that knowledge unless you deem them so

All that he’s focused on is the moment

The fun times he shared with you and Buggy

Nights spent out atop the crows nest looking up towards the stars

You explain that each has a story behind them all

Every island and their cultures have given them stories and formed differences constellations

It’s fascinating to him

Perhaps not Buggy who opts to go to bed

But as you both sit there, legs kicking back and forth while sitting on the ledge

It leaves him listening with eager ears

Engraining the new knowledge into his mind

It’s not just constellations that he listens about, it’s basically anything that you talk about

The others besides Rayleigh and Roger no one seems to notice how much you’d be seen despite your age

It’s odd but he notices

Especially as you sometimes mumble about how much you missed acting like a kid

Acting your age

It worries him

But he focuses on making you happy

Showing you the wonders of the life here

Stealing more food

Playing tag with Roger who can’t help but join much to everyone’s amusement

Outings on islands you sometimes recognize that usually end with the three of you raiding an ice cream shop

Sharing the spoils of stealing toys gotten from a few stores he might’ve yoinked them from

Times where he and Buggy protectively would start fights when other pirates at bats would try to pick on you

Roger would always laugh, calling them big brothers and mother hens

But of them would deny it even if they both knew deep down they saw you as a younger sibling

And that you did the same likewise

It was something unspoken but there that they all unconsciously and silently acknowledged

It came naturally as well

The two of them fretting over you when you got too close to the edge of the ship or did something reckless enough that even he and Buggy thought it was too dangerous

And that’s saying something

Their both really worried about that

You put your safety behind others

And whilst that might be fine in some cases in yours it’s dangerous

Really dangerous

There had been times he narrowly saved your life without you even knowing

A wild animal sneaking up from the brush

An enemy pirate almost swinging his sword at your neck

It bothers everyone on the crew how many close calls there were

Almost unnaturally so

But it makes him on edge even more when his captain has a look in his eye

One of unspoken sorrow and worry

Roger was a man who ran head first into danger

Someone who never considered the consequences before diving into the lions den

Never showing fear or hesitation for his actions

Only doing so when it came to the safety of his crew

And even then he knew they would be fine

They all had each other to rely on

But that look in his eyes directed towards you was something he’d never seen

Buggy tries to ease Shanks’s worried in his own…Buggy way

While he appreciates the effort not much can ease the tension in his shoulders

Roger never looked that worried

And that init of itself was scary

And it’s even more so when it’s directed at someone Shanks had dearly cared for

Rogers death comes as quick and painful as a shot to the chest

Burning white hot pain encompassing his entire form

Buggy and him got into a fight and when their separate ways

The crew disbanded

No one but Roger knows where you disappeared off to

He just said you were doing him a favour and like a whisper in the wind you were gone

Almost as if you were never there to begin with

The memories and small mementos show you were there though

Not a figment of his imagination

Not a cruel mirage

You were real, he knows that

Yet everything feels like a blur

Grief tinges his vision and mind like a filter over his perception of the world

For a long while he’s hopeless

Wishing and hoping to find someone

To perhaps find you once more

To find stability again

His dream lost and shattered

His life is very much the same

Yet after a long while he rebuilt himself

Began building his own crew

Finding and making stability once more as he sailed the seas both you and Roger loved with a whole heart

Many a nights he spends drinking and partying but occasionally finding a quiet corner for a moment

Staring up towards the night sky you taught him about

He always pours one out for the dead and lost of his former crew

A sign of respect for the people he might not meet again yet wishes to reunite with one day

In death or in life it doesn’t matter to him

Just one day meeting once more

You included

Though you had never formally joined the crew everyone had accepted you there with open hearts

Him definitely included

God he hopes your alright

That despite your terrible track record of danger and lack of self awareness you were alive

You’d be quite grown up by now

Maybe you found an island and settled down

He doubts that thought

You were much too like Roger and him

Souls called and nurtured by the sea and thrill of adventure

Never leaving her waves until possibly being drowned in her salty cold embrace

But that’s what makes him think that perhaps you hadn’t though

That perhaps instead you had died

The thought leaves him sick

So much so that when it happens he braces himself again the railing

Fingernails digging into the wood as his Haki flairs up

Seeping from his form and through the cracks of his cheery facade

Ben always notices

Pulling him back to the party and into his normal self

Handing him a fresh pint of beer with a knowing look

Shanks always gives him a thankful nod

Then going back to drinking with his crew

His first mate already knows of his history

Of why he’s wracked with grief and when no one’s looking stares off at the night sky

He’s never confused when Shanks returns to the party with an empty bottle yet doesn’t seem any drunker

Lucky and Yassop sometimes notice but don’t push him nor Ben on the topic

It’s better that way

Shanks would rather not air out old dusty laundry of his past anyways

Especially not when he had to keep morale up

Cause if his crew saw he was down in the dumps they’d follow suite

Caring too much about his sake to back down in doing something

It’s admirable

It reminds him of the good old days of the Oro Jackson

The way in which the crew would cheer you up when you were lost in thought

A glazed look of sorrow over your eyes they all desperately wanted to wash away

Because you were a kid

Because you were a friend

Because you were a part of their Nakama

Because you were his little sibling

No blood was shared between either of your veins yet the kinship of family was there anyways

He misses it

He misses a lot of things from the past but that’s one thing he especially longs for

Even if for just a moment he’d like to see you smile once more

Perhaps even hug you again and let himself cry

….yeah that sounded nice

Rumours on the sea spread fast and wide but are always dubious in nature and reality

It’s something you learn quick whilst on the seas

Especially when your as seasoned as he was in that retrospect

He’s spent his entire life on some sort of boat

being found by Roger in a treasure chest and being taken in by the entire crew

He was quite literally raised by the seas

It’s why when he hears rumours of a travelling child on the ocean going from place to place it doesn’t initially make him hopeful

It in fact makes him kinda melancholy

He can’t help it, not when he still wonders about you

Maybe that was your kid or something, he wouldn’t be surprised

But either way that wasn’t his business

Or at least that’s what he tells himself despite keeping an extra eye out for any small raft on the sea

A small desperate part of himself clinging to some sort of hope

That maybe it somehow was you despite the fact you’d be a grown adult

That after all this time of wondering and praying to whatever god had listened you were alive somehow

That the child more precious than any treasure he befriend all those years ago who he cared for as if they were his sibling was still out there

While at piers he tries to find what he’d imagined to be your grown up face in the crowds

Tries to find the rickety old dingy you called your loyal stead

And comes up empty handed as the whispers of the child on the raft continue to spill into his ears

At this point it’s either pointless fodder or a plain lie that leaves him disappointed

Ben pats his back as takes a sip of his drink, guzzling it down with ease as his men party around him

….and then someone enters the bar

He doesn’t care to turn around, not when he’s in a sour mood

Doesn’t care to bat an eye to the newcomer who sits themself down next to him on the only other empty barstool on account that no one wanted to be near a grumpy drunk emperor

Yet this either brave of foolish soul dares to do so

He’ll give them that, they either have balls of steel or a death wish since he really isn’t in the mood for bullshit right now-

“Huh?, what happened to Rogers hat? Did you give it away or something?”

Shanks goes still as the sound of your very familiar voice enters through his ears

He goes ridged and his emperors Haki lashes out

A few men drop to the floor as the attention turns to him and the small figure who sits looking up at him

Shanks slowly turns and faces someone he had missed for a long time now

There you sat

As young as ever, looking like you haven’t aged a day despite the fact it’s been well over a decade and now nearing a second decade

You still have Rogers coat but now it’s adorned with several trinkets and charms along with the fact you seemed to have gained more souvenirs from other pirate friends (much to his chagrin)

Your eyes are still innocent yet have the spark of something ancient in them

Chubby cheeks pulled up into a look of confusion at his agape reaction

He accidentally spits the beer out his mouth into Ben’s face

His right hand man can’t even seem to be mad when your looking up at the red haired man with a small grin at his expression

“Never thought you’d waste beer like that. Not when you’d beg Rayleigh and then sneak a sip from the mugs of people passed out”

Not even a word after that can come out your mouth before your in his arms

This feels unreal to him

Like a cruel dream he’s gonna wake up from

He’s preparing himself for it yet it doesn’t seem to happen

Your still in his arms

Your still you

He’s still him

His crew is watching gobsmacked and confused as tears begin to like his eyes

Him, red haired Shanks crying for the first time in years let alone at some small bar with a random kid he’s hugging

Maybe they think he’s so drunk that he’s imagining you as Uta or Luffy

But no

Your you

And perhaps that’s the one thing that makes this feel like some sort of fever Dream

He’ll give his captain credit where it’s due, he could’ve never imagined Roger keeping a secret let alone several important ones

Though Shank supposed that Roger was a man of his word, he’d rather cut off an arm rather than go back on a promise he made

And that extended to keeping something a secret

But he had to admit of all possibilities as to why you haven’t aged a single day this was the one he dreaded the most

He was hoping for some mad science experiment or just a weird devil fruit

But this was much worse

Immortality

Many people want it, but like a monkeys paw every blessing comes with a curse

And you had seen the extents of what it could bring to not only you but those you had gotten close to

The mental horror of watching someone you were close to die not knowing they would appear across the world moments later

And then having to grapple with the fact they had traumatized that person now with the possibility of meeting them again in the future

It sounded torturous

But it also now explained the fact as to why you were already hardened to the sea back then

Already seeing it’s worse storms and foes

It’s why your eyes despite their innocence are hallowed out, empty of life sometimes as you stared out towards the sea you loved

Why they always seemed older than what you looked

It’s cause you were technically older, just stuck physically and mentally as a child

One who had braved the seas for both its treasures and tortures

Content in wanting to explore and see all that could be seen, experience everything there was

It is fascinating as it is horrifying

He can’t imagine what you had been through up till now

Who you had met on your journeys

that explains why you’d always tell cryptic stories about people you’ve met that now looking back sound suspiciously like big mom and Kaido

Speaking of which that probably means their trying to look for you still

….god this did not turn out to be what he expected nor wanted

He takes a sip of his beer as his crew can’t also help but be exasperated from how nonchalant you are about all of this

As if dying repeatedly isn’t a big deal

Nor is meeting future emperors and Yonko’s who were definitely affected by your time with them

If he hears that you befriended Doflamingo or something then he’s officially done

With all these things coming to light though he can’t help the small grin that made its way onto his face

You weren’t exactly ok (at least mentally speaking) but you were alive

The greatest blessing that came with your immortality was that you were alive

He can’t help but continue to hold you close

You don’t mind, you had seemingly missed his presence over the years

Even if your time on his ship will be but a blip in your long life he knows you’ll remember it

You have that feeling as well

Every night with them is a party of sorts

Shanks had always been one who enjoyed a festival’s atmosphere so it’s no surprise that each night with his crew is an experience

They drink, laugh and dance with one another

Singing songs familiar to you and your years at sea

Even one that they now realize was made for you

The undying star in the sky that leads sailors to wonders untold

A spark of determination lit in their souls when the star moves across the sky to a new horizon

A lot of old stories and rumours at sea make sense now on the fact that your probably connected to them

But what’s perhaps the most funny thing about all that is the world government knows about you but doesn’t have a clear enough picture to try and pursue you

Photos are always blurry or downright incomprehensible, descriptions are muddied and vary

The people who met you refuse to tell even a pep of what you looked like

They can imagine it’s driving them mad

Especially Sengoku who has been tasked to find you for years now

And for a time you were right under his nose without even knowing

They all get a good cackle out of that

Imagining the old man’s face when he does eventually realize

It would probably take a big public event for that to happen though

Something you’d probably inevitably crash for whatever reason

So until then your relatively safe from marine pursuit

But even when that does inevitably happen you’ll have a good portion of the pirating world at your side

Him and his crew included

Like all those years ago on the Oro Jackson you work your ways into the crews hearts

A relatively quick process that somehow happens with everyone you meet

Yet it’s something that has yielded you much more power than you know of

Hell, your probably the most safe person on the sea not accounting your devil fruit ability on account of somehow getting on everyone’s good sides

How you did this he and his crew don’t know but it’s certainly something their suspecting is due to your devil fruit

Or you just have some uncanny ability in literally having the power of friendship or something

Either way their not writing it off as other just quite yet

Not when their all too caught up in your stories or insisting on teaching you blackjack

You don’t tell them you already know how to play, especially since you use that to win their desserts

Shanks just laughs, especially as they all sulk at “being beaten by a kid” momentarily forgetting your older than all of them

Whilst Shanks is both happy and ecstatic of finding you again he can’t help but feel melancholy

He swears he sees his old crew mates while lucky Rox and Yassop toss you around like a hot potato

His mind playing tricks as Ben messes up your hair just as Rayleigh did

Whenever this happens you seem to know

Always ending up at his side, going to a quiet part of the ship for a moment of peace where he can breath

In its there you both truly talk

You both catch up with what’s happened over the years

After the crew disbanded he was aimless

The fight with buggy

Him raising Uta with his crew before eventually leaving her for her own safety despite the fact it still kills him on the inside

The young boy who ate a fruit he was transporting for the world government, the reason why he doesn’t have Rogers hat anymore and why he’s missing an arm

It’s all a lot to process

Yet it’s even more when you tell him what’s happened on your end

The other pirates you’d met, the marines, becoming and dying as a slave

The pain

The loss

Everything

He can’t help but just sit there for a few solid minutes

Processing everything

And then comes the guilt

Tears

If he had tried harder to find you none of that would’ve happened

If he had done better

If he-

Your small hands shake him from his stupor as you place them gently on his tear stained cheeks

Here he was, an emperor crying as a child comforted him

Yet as he does it feels natural

Like back when he had a nightmare when he was a young teen and you talked with him to help distract from it all

The times that despite being your self appointed “older brother” he’d rely on you for advice

He crumbles in your gentle hands yet he does not care

Because when shanks is with you he knows he’s not the cabin boy of the Oro Jackson

He’s not red haired Shanks, the fierce-some emperor of the sea

He’s not shanks, the bastard child of some celestial dragon who was abandoned at birth in a treasure chest

He’s not the father who left his daughter out of both love and fear for her safety and wellbeing

He’s not the party animal who’s constantly drunk despite his power

To you Shanks is just Shanks

The man encompassed by the colour red

Rage

Stress

Love

Passion

And most importantly of all Determination

For once in a very long while he feels the stress fall from his shoulders

As much as he loves his crew and the sea he feels a heavy burden of responsibility on his chest out of love for them

But like a switch it melts away

He feels a bit guilty that he’s the one crying when your the one who went through so much pain

But when he sees your gentle smile he knows you don’t mind

A soft look of ‘its ok’ and ‘you can cry’

And so he does

So much so that his eyes turn red from irritation

It’s inevitable that you leave

He knows that when it comes to you yet he can’t help but feel sad

And notice something slightly different this time around

When on the Oro Jackson you’d leave from time to time

Staying for good portions of times before leaving for awhile and somehow always making your way back

You never once hesitated to leave

Back then they had all accepted it

Knowing you’d come back eventually, so much so that they’d plan parties in advance

But now as you prepare to leave it’s different

Your tired

It’s easy for him to tell since he’s known you for a good portion of time

Though your smile is as good as a mask as ever he sees the cracks

The way you don’t look at the sea like the way you once did

He can’t blame you

But it worries him

A part of him wants to offer you a place here permanently but that in some sense would be cruel

He can’t will himself to take advantage of your exhaustion to essentially trap you here

The sea is meant to be a place of freedom and would not shackle you like others once did

He won’t guilt you into this when he knows you’d stay out of guilt

He may be selfish but he isn’t selfish enough to do that

Not when all he wants is for you to be happy

So he prepares to let go

Knowing you’d meet again

But not before he throws you the biggest party they’ve had in a long while

Stacks of food are prepared

So many Desserts to the point big mom would have to stop and take a break from eating

Enough booze to create a running river

Streamers and confetti decorating the ship in all the colours of the rainbow

Songs sung loudly as the few who knew how to play instruments strummed away

Mihawk even showing up much to his surprise because he apparently already met you once before

Not surprised at that fact but Moreso on how that stubborn asshole gives you a small well made sword

One obviously custom made and designed for you with it’s whole star design

Neither of you elaborate how you both met

Both giving each other a silent stare before turning to him with shit eating grins saying that “that story is for another day”

It leaves his a bit huffy but he’s secretly happy that it seems the two of you are both well acquainted

Even more so that you finally have something to defend yourself with for once

God knows the amount of times he and buggy had tried to convince you to bring some sort of weapon only for them to say you’d be fine and then save you at the last minute from being stabbed

It seems Mihawk shared this same sentiment since he nearly jumps out of his skin when you start mock sword fighting with Ben and his second hand man gets the death eye of the century

It’s good though, especially as you sing with the crowd of drunks who are either happily joining in for the party or sadly joining in remembering this is a goodbye party

Your hoisted and thrown playfully in the air screaming the lyrics of shanties

Given a few sips of alcohol behind Ben’s and Mihawk’s backs (Shanks is guilty of this as well)

At some point someone decides fireworks are a good idea and almost set the ship on fire

It all works out though as sparks scatter in the sky

Fluttering down until fizzling out

All the while you watch on from the crows nest beside him

Everyone else down below watching and dancing

Mihawk nearby enjoying the lively atmosphere

It’s nice

Yet as he wishes for this moment can last forever he knows it can’t

The reminder of this is when you begin to speak once mor e

Shattering the silence he wishes to keep as to have the moment last longer

To not be reminded of the imminent departure from his ship that this entire party is about

Your words aren’t that bad yet it fills him with solace

You tell him you’ll keep your eye out for a kid in a straw hat

It’s probably inevitable you run into Luffy at some point

Knowing him you’ll probably even join him on some grand adventure

The kid Is a supernova waiting to happen and you seem to have an affinity for finding them

You also promise to check up on Uta for him if your given the chance

Meeting her when she was only a baby when he had found her in a treasure chest just as Roger had with him

For the first few months of her life you helped him raise her

The young toddler even eventually naming you her Auncle

The whole crew got a laugh out of that

As did he

But now as you say that it just reminders him you’ll be leaving again

He doesn’t have the courage to look you in the eyes until he looks up at the stars

They burn brightly in the sky

Golden light thousands of miles away yet still brilliant in their glow

And it’s there looking at those stars he’s reminded of the day you climbed aboard the Oro Jackson

The spark of determination in him to be your friend

…..determination

He remembers now why he had felt that calling all those years ago

The world government had been vague in why the fruit you ate was so important

Naturally Shanks attributed that to the nature of immortality that came with it

But it seems there was more to it than meets the eye

Whenever you had met someone you ended up being a catalyst to their determination towards something

And perhaps that was more powerful that immortality itself

Being the spark that can change someone’s entire life course

It’s no wonder why they wanted this fruit

One that would most definitely play into enlisting more powerful forces and lighting the fuse to their souls that would have them walk to the ends of the earth to accomplish it

It’s like with the gum-gum fruit that they had him try to deliver

But now thinking about it perhaps that one as well has some sort of other purpose they needed it for

Not if he has any say in it though

Shanks is a selfish pirate at heart and nothing comes between him and protecting his treasures

Whether that be a boy in a straw hat, a girl with half white and red hair or a child always floating at sea with stars in their eyes

He will fight tooth and nail to keep them safe

Cause selfishness is something taught to him by his captain

Protect what you love no matter the cost

Protect their freedom and your own,

Be determined to take the stand in liberation

Red is the colour of his hair and it encompasses his soul

Shanks’s hands are dyed that colour as well; the colour of blood and love.

He will continue to stain it that colour to protect what he’s passionate about with vigorous anger if the world government so much breaths in any of their directions

#platonic #shanks x reader #shanks #one piece x reader #one piece #determination!

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effloradox · 3 months ago

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Cat and Mouse

pairing: tamaki suoh x reader

summary: when a wager is made between the twins and the chairman's son, a desperate tamaki is left scrambling for ideas on how to win. it's only when kyoya mentions the twins' best (and only) friend that tamaki feels he might actually have a chance of coming out on top. the difficult thing is trying to get you alone.

notes: takes place during 1.20 (the door the twins opened!)

word count: 1.6k

You’re not sure what to make of Tamaki Suoh upon your first encounter. You watch him carefully when he first arrives at Ouran Middle School. After all, it’s not everyday a new student starts at Ouran, let alone the son of the chairman. You come to several conclusions very quickly. He’s an airhead, always surrounded by girls, and he seems like a complete idiot, but there’s something so vulnerable about him that you can’t help but be intrigued by him. He’s harmless too, that’s something you picked up immediately. Harmless and so very earnest.

Part of you thinks that the twins are going to eat him alive.

You’re no fool, you know why he’s sought you out. The twins had told you about their wager almost as soon as it had been made and, as the only person the twins speak to who doesn’t cry afterwards, you don’t particularly blame him for seeking you out.

Not that you made it easy for him.

It’s almost fun playing cat and mouse with Suoh, but after almost a week you position yourself somewhere he’s almost guaranteed to find you. Mainly because you’d made sure that his friend, the third Ootori son, had seen you walk into that library.

“If you’re absolutely determined to get to know the two of us we should play the ‘Which One Of Us Is Hikaru?’ game. You in?”

“The rules of the game are pretty easy. You just have to pick which one of us is Hikaru. We’ll give you one month. You can guess as many times as you want in that month but we’ll ask for your reasoning so no random guessing. For the record, only one person has ever been able to get it right.”

“If that’s alright with you, then try your best.”

There is a method to Tamaki’s madness. Kyoya-assisted method, but solid method nonetheless (though maybe it's Kyoya's help that makes it solid). Tamaki knows that it would take more than a month to be able to work out which twin is which, especially since the two of them have their guard up properly now to ensure that he can’t work out who’s who. That only leaves him with slightly more underhanded methods to try and win their bet.

Whilst they said he couldn’t cheat by guessing randomly, they never mentioned that he couldn’t ask who he assumed was the only person to win the game. Getting you alone, now that was the tricky part. If you weren’t with the twins then you seemed to be fairly elusive, always at some club meeting or wherever you went in your free periods. It’s only when Kyoya mentions in passing that he spotted you walking into one of the smaller libraries that Tamaki sets their plan in motion. He’s quick to make his way there, and if he didn’t know better he’d have thought you were waiting for him.

Sat in a fairly secluded corner of the library, you barely look like you’re paying attention to whatever textbook you have in front of you. Your eyes flicker up to observe him, and in that moment you remind him so intensely of Kyoya that it almost staggers him. He does his best to send you his signature charming smile to no avail. Your expression doesn’t change as you continue to observe him. He realises you’re not going to start the conversation and so he takes it upon himself

“May I sit?” He gestures to the seat across from you.

“Of course.” He nods at you as he slides into the seat, resting his elbows on the table.

“I don’t believe we’ve met. My name is Tamaki Suoh.” When he says his name is the first time your expression shifts from neutrality to something akin to a smile but with more mirth. It does nothing to dissuade him from his mission. After seeing Kyoya’s evil expressions early in the morning, this is a walk in the park.

“I know who you are.” It’s not what he expects you to say and he blinks at you for a moment.

“You do?”

“You’re quite hard to miss. You’re the new god Ouran is worshipping.” The way you speak makes it clear you’re teasing him, and he immediately understands why the twins like you so much. A small part of his brain jumps to involving you with the plans he and Kyoya are trying to make a reality but he does his best to ground himself in reality. You watch as he starts to shift in his seat, looking like a particularly excitable puppy.

“I’m flattered. It seems my reputation precedes me.”

“Indeed.” He smiles at you for a moment before remembering why he’s here in the first place.

“I think you know why I’m here.” The amused expression on your face shifts back to something more neutral and it’s fascinating to watch as your expression almost turns steely before his eyes.

“I’m familiar, yes.” He’s about to speak his somewhat rehearsed speech but you speak again before he gets a chance to open his mouth. “I’m not going to tell you how to tell them apart.”

“That’s not what I’m here for.” His response comes quickly because it’s the truth. His words seem to take you aback slightly though, like you can’t decide whether you believe him or not.

“Then why are you here?”

“How long have the three of you been friends?” His question takes you by surprise, he can tell from the way your eyes widen slightly at him. You look at him with suspicion but answer his question.

“A few years now. Why?”

“And in that time how many people have tried to use you to get close to the twins?” It’s a risky move making such a bold accusation so early into the conversation, but Tamaki is no stranger to taking risks. He knows he’s hit a nerve when you flinch back like he hit you.

“Too many.” Your voice is soft, laced with hurt no matter how much you tried to hide it, and Tamaki immediately feels awful. He knows what it’s like to be used for your name, but to be used for your connections is foreign even to him.

“I’m sorry to hear that. I can’t imagine how that feels.” His sincerity hurts more than the question, and it leaves you feeling uneasy. You’d expected this to be a quick conversation, ending once you’d refused to divulge a way to tell the twins apart. No one’s ever stayed beyond that if they came to you with that intention and you’re not entirely sure how to proceed.

“You get used to it.” The hurt is gone from your tone, leaving only a bitterness that again reminds him of how Kyoya was when the two of them first met. The two of you would get on quite well, he thinks, and he makes a mental note to try and introduce you soon.

“You shouldn’t have to be used to that.” It’s clear that your patience is starting to run thin when you close the textbook in front of you, staring hard at him.

“Why are you here Tamaki? What do you want from me?”

“I want to understand the three of you. I think the way to win the game has nothing to do with actually being able to tell the difference between them, at least not at first. They want to be told apart, but not just on a superficial level. I need to understand them, and I think to understand them, I need to understand you.”

“And how do you plan to understand me?” You’re not angry at his comments, not from what he can tell. Suspicious, maybe, but not angry.

“I want to be your friend, if you’d let me.” You look surprised at that, and so oddly vulnerable that it makes Tamaki’s heart clench. He’s seen you around school constantly surrounded by people and he wonders how you must view your peers if not as friends. What must it be like to second guess every interaction for an ulterior motive? No wonder you’re so suspicious of him. You look less certain now, that steely look disappearing before his eyes.

“And if I say no?” He shrugs at you.

“I’ll stick around anyway.”

“Is that what happened with Ootori-San?” Tamaki smiles at you, still warm despite your sullen tone.

“Something like that.” He stands up then, pushing the chair back under the table and bowing slightly towards you. “Think about what I said, will you? And I have someone I want to introduce you to, I think the two of you will be surprised how similar you are.” And with that, he turns on his heel, leaving you alone in the library once again.

It’s only when he’s left your sight that you finally smile. Maybe he’s not as much of an airhead as you initially assumed. You were right about one thing though: he’s incredibly earnest. You quickly pack up your books, heading to the classroom that has windows looking out onto the courtyard. It’s almost time.

You watch from the window as the twins confront the latest girl to give one of them a love confession. It goes the same way they always do, with her running off crying, but this time you see Tamaki running towards them. You’re not sure how their conversation will go, but if Tamaki can surprise you, maybe he can surprise the twins too. The future’s bright for all of you, who knows what it will bring?

#my writing #fics #ohshc x reader #ouran high school host club x reader #tamaki suoh x reader

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pinkrosealice · 10 days ago

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A non-exhaustive list of art, pieces of media, franchises, authors, and thinkers that I really need my fellow Cultsim/BoH/Secret Histories fans to get into and discuss with me and between themselves.

(WARNING A LOT OF THE FOLLOWING RECOMMENDATIONS COME WITH A LIST OF CONTENT WARNINGS AND ARE SOMETIMES CONNECTED TO CONTROVERSIAL ARTISTS AND PUBLIC PERSONS. THIS LIST IS NOT A ENDORSEMENT OF ANY PROBLEMATIC IDEALS OR STATEMENTS MADE BY ANYONE MENTIONED IN THIS LIST AND IT IS HIGHLY RECOMMENDED THAT ANYONE WHO LOOKS INTO ANY OF THE MENTIONED WORKS OF ART DO THEIR DUE DILIGENCE AND THOROUGHLY CHECKS FOR DISTURBING / TRIGGERING CONTENT AT THEIR OWN VOLITION)

Film Recommendations:

1. Dario Argento's Three Mothers trilogy, especially Suspiria & and especially especially the 2019 remake of Suspiria. Very Dancer DLC-coded, very Sisterhood of the Triple Knot and Thunderskin.

2. The Magic Lantern films of Kenneth Anger, who was a practicing Thelmaite* for many years. Lantern Principal is obviously what comes to mind when you hear of the name of the series and the dreams that were mystical experiences that inspired and were expressed in art, in this case films is very much akin to stuff we see in Cultist Simulator.

(* As shown in later parts of this recommendation list I argue that the games of Weather Factory become even more interesting and artistically impactful if you learn more about late 19th and 20th century occultism and movements like Theosophy and Thelma.)

3. Hereditary and Midsommar are obvious recommendations but even more so I would recommend the original 1970s The Wicker Man. Folk Horror in general is a great source of what the arts of The Bosk would look like in real life. They were definitely worshiping The Low Red Sun on Summer Isle.

4. A Dark Song, a 2016 horror film that actually revolves around the performance of a very famous and important real life occult ritual. I think a lot of the visual imagery in that film can give some inspiration for the kind of Rites our player character in Cultist Simulator is performing.

5. The Lair of The White Worm is a movie loosely based on a Bram Stoker story and is also very much a Gods of Stone overthrown by forces associated with humans raised to Divinity and the powers of the Sun and Apollonian principles type of story. Plus the whole Worm/Wyrms thing going on. I also recommend it because it's one of the more light-hearted and comedic entries on this list and I want some variation in tone. Also its psychedelic visuals compliment a lot of the surrealist elements that are tied to things like the Moth Principal.

6. Black Swan isn't explicitly supernatural but it is very Dancer Coded.

7. The Hellraiser movies, but only the first second, fourth, and the reboot. Leviathan, being associated with pain and pleasure and having the name of a mythical sea monster is probably very similar to whatever the hell The Tide was before The Red Grail vored her. The Cenobites are Long with Grail, Knock, & Forge as their Principals.

8. Pan's Labyrinth, for the Woods and the Bounds appreciators. I also think there is something to be said about the fascist subtext that underlines much of the Edge Principle, especially in The Colonel that can be explored and appreciated in this film and its reckonings with the evils of Spanish fascism.

9. To compliment the recommendation for the Magic Lantern films, also check out the short film The Wormwood Star, you can find it easily on YouTube and it's another piece of art heavily influenced by Thelma and stars Marjorie Cameron who I will talk about more later in this list.

Game Recommendations:

1. Hollow Knight, it might as well be a story set in the era of the Carapace Cross. Sentient bugs, mighty Wyrms and dream gods with the powers of light but not necessarily moral goodness. Even the Void in Hollow Knight, and it's antagonism to The Radiance is very similar to The Nowhere and it's relationship with the established hierarchies in The Mansus.

2. The Silent Hill games, particularly the entries that revolve around The Order; like 1,3, Origins, and Homecoming. Dream worlds, Sun worship, the Dark Feminine and female psychics/mediums with deep associations with blood, birth and menstruation. Valtiel is totally a Name. Even the fog and mist of Silent Hill is giving The Bounds and it's Forge smoke meets Woods darkness type energy.

3. Vampire The Masquerade Bloodlines, it's basically playing a Grail Long.

4. The tabletop games Geist: The Sin Eaters and Wraith: The Oblivion line up really well with the Ghoul / Medium DLC. *

(basically most if not all of the World of Darkness and Chronicles of Darkness tabletop games contain some themes, elements, or bits of World building that should appeal to anyone interested in the games created by Weather Factory)

5. The video games created by Korean studio Project Moon. Lobotomy Corporation has a lot of timers and simulation elements that have many similarities to those found in Cultist Simulator, and as the title implies Liberty of Runia takes place literally in a paranatural library just like Book of Hours even though the game play between the two is very different.

6. Fallen London and it's related media. The reasons why should go without saying. The controversies around AK aside, Echo Bazaar and Secret Histories are blood siblings and I desire more intersection and interaction between the respective fandoms.

7. The Bayonetta games have a surprising amount of real mythological and occult influence in their world building. The Solar Lumens juxtaposed with the Lunar Umbrans definitely has some resonance with Church of The Unconquered Sun and their on again, off again antagonism and allyship with The Sisterhood of The Triple Knot. The Apollonian natured House of the Sun contrasted with the Dionysian Woods & House of the Moo, and the Nowhere being connected to all three but being distinct; is not all together that different from the division of the Bayonetta universe into Inferno, Paradiso, the human world and Purgatorio between all of them.

8. The Shadow Hearts series of JRPGs are a Gothic, urban fantasy, historical fantasy, lovecraftian adventures around late 19th / early 20th century Europe and Asia. It has a lot of comedic elements and its world building and cosmology are not all that similar to the ones in Weather Factory games (barring their shared history as being inspired by Lovecraft). But if you want Lovecraft in video game form without the racism associated with his writings and you found Cultsim/BoH to fill that niche, then I recommend you give these games a try as well.

9. Secret World Legends, a functionally dead MMO but still incredibly fun to play and I think one of the best examples of urban fantasy / soft Lovecraft or post lovecraftian media in existence. Absolutely fantastic & memorable fully voiced NPCs and characters, really intriguing and rich world building and takes on mythology and folklore. Also given that you play as a quasi immortal with a deep association with bees and an ancient techno-organic goddess you're basically a Long.

10. To compliment the Lobotomy Corporation recommendation and the later SCP mention I think it's only natural that I also recommend the urban fantasy games of remedy entertainment like Alan Wake 1 & 2 and Control. Artists channeling / being used by Eldritch Forces in other dimensions and government institutions related to keeping a control on the supernatural are the most obvious similarities to stuff in WF games.

Visual Artists:

1. Francisco Goya, especially his Black Paintings, his insights into the witchcraft and folkloric traditions of the Basque region and elsewhere in the Iberian peninsula should be very appealing to fans of The Twins and The Thunderskin. Plus all of the Catholic imagery brings to mind The Mother of Ants.

2. Austin Osman Spare, Rosaleen Norton, and Marjorie Cameron. All three of these people were heavily influential occultists and illustrators/painters so their work is definitely a great representative example of the kind of occult art that you are making when you Paint in Cultsim.

3. Salvador Dali is also a relatively obvious, but I think very appropriate all the same recommendation. Surrealism is by and large the big big tonal influence on Secret Histories in my opinion. He also did a tarot deck so that brings in the Lucid Tarot connection

4.Erté, absolutely the kind of art and fashion you would find in Cultist Simulator's 1920's. Art Deco for days but also his works in particular show a more flowy and organic influence that we would more stereotypically associate with the Art Nouveau of decades prior.

Comic Books:

1. Alan Moore's run on Swamp Thing and Grant Morrison's run on Animal Man. DC's Red and Green (plus all the other elemental forces) are a deeply underappreciated and underexplored element of the setting, and I think they have a lot of similarities with the Principles we find in Secret Histories.

2. Related to the above, Alan Moore's Promethea and Grant Morrison's The Invisibles for an exploration of 20th and 21st century occultism. Despite the two authors general distaste for each other, their works are often very complimentary.

3. The Hellboy franchise doesn't have a lot of one-to-one parallels with Cultsim & Co. but they draw from the same artistic influences of gothic fiction, weird fiction, mythology and folklore and the occult. So I feel very strongly that fans of one would and should find the other to be enjoyable. Both fandoms need to be more active on this hell site and though there are a handful of quality hidden gems of fanfiction for both franchises I desperately need more people to be writing & reading fan fiction for both. Plus I do strongly believe that Mike Mignola' s art style would really excel at illustrating characters and settings from Secret Histories. His non Hellboy work is also recommended especially the works that fall under his Outervers setting, like Baltimore and Joe Golem.

4. Although I will admit that I am not up to date on it, and that there has been a considerable amount of discourse around the quality of its storytelling (especially within the past few years) I would recommend the webcomic Gunnerkrigg Court to fellow Cultsim fans. Alchemic imagery, interesting reinterpretations of folklore and a setting and tone that is quintessential British urban fantasy / science fiction, Gunnerkrigg is in my opinion a work that has a lot of appeal for fans of WF's games and stories.

5. Lackadaisy Cats is an awesome Webcomic and animated web series. 1920s/ 30s gangsters and bootleggers in the form of anthropomorphic cats! And absolutely beautiful Art Deco illustrations! What's not to love.........

Anime & Manga:

1. Any of the anime directed by Ryūtarō Nakamura especially Serial Experiments Lain and Ghost Hound(this one is seriously underrated in my opinion.) Surrealism is the name of the game as I've said earlier.

2. Le Chevalier D'Eon, both it's manga and anime even though the two are very totally different and have divergent takes on a similar premise. Historical fiction that reinterprets 18th century historical events through an occult lens is so very very Secret Histories. Plus both works have interesting explorations of gender and the nature thereof. It helps that as far as we know the French monarchy's Secret Histories equivalent are associated with the Hours, my personal headcanon is that Louis XIV was Lantern Principal aligned, and Louie XVI had Knock as his Principal. Also the manga version of the story has a lot of its magic system based around the Tarot.

3. You can't recommend D'Eon without recommending it's biggest inspiration (apart from Rose of Versailles of course) and that would be Revolutionary Girl Utena. Edge Dyads for days with that one. Utena and Anthy are totally The Twins. And the whole show and it's movie are full of surrealist pseudo occult imagery practically to the bursting.

4. Baccano! , a light novel / anime series that's about a bunch of immortal Mobsters in the 1920s and 30s. I mean that's basically The Exile DLC right there.

5. xxxHolic and Legal Drug / Drug & Drop, by CLAMP. A shop that grants wishes and a pharmacy that handles the paranormal are both the kind of businesses that I could see existing alongside Morland's, Oriflamme's Auction House & The Ecdysis Club. Plus both manga are hella gay and I will push my Weather Factory games are inherently Queer pieces of media agenda till the day I die.

Theater, Operas, Music and Albums:

1. Jimmy Page's unused soundtrack for Kenneth Anger's Lucifer Raising. Definition of Occult rock and role.

2. Kiki Rockwell, especially her two most recent albums Rituals on the Bank of a Familiar River, and Eldest Daughter of an Eldest Daughter.

3. Stravinsky's Rite of Spring might just be the closest we will ever get in real life to an occult ritual in the form of an entire ballet like we see in Cultist Simulator and Book of Hours. Definitely a skill that could fall under the Wisdoms of Birdsong and The Bosk.

4. On that note, Mozart's Die Zauberflöte is also full of Hermetic Elements, Lunar / Solar antagonism, mystical initiation and ritual deity impersonation. Mozart was a Freemason so the fanfic of him as a Heart Adapt practically writes itself.

Literally Fiction:

1. The webnovels Pact and Pale by wildbow. A magic system that revolves around incredibly hierarchical relationships between humans and mystical beings, where magic fundamentally requires discarding one's humanity and transforming into some kind of mystical being yourself is very similar to the Adapt to Long pipeline we follow in Cultist Simulator.

2. The Rivers of London series is one that I'm still familiarizing myself with but it's another example of wonderful British urban fantasy (that isn't the wizard books that shall not be named) The fact that the main characters of the series are magic police officers gives it a certain Suppression Bureau appeal.

Nonfiction- Philosophy and Occult works and Authors:

1. Georges Bataille!!!!!!!! If you only pick one thing from this list to investigate further let it be the philosophical works of this man. His theory of religion as it relates to concepts such as economy, sacrifice, and eroticism you literally completely change how you understand The Hours and The House Without Wall.

2. Aleister Crowley, and any of his students, especially Kenneth Grant. He really is the quintessential modern English occultist, whether or not AK and Lottie intended it, the DNA of his beliefs or those of his Golden Dawn contemporaries, or his students is all over Cultsim and BoH. The Red Grail is like, so blatantly Babalon it's kind of ridiculous.

3. The Book of English Magic by Phillip Carr- Gomm & Richard Heygate, is a good introductory source of information on the history of magical practice and occultism on the British isles.

4. Occult Paris by Tobias Churton is a fascinating insight into some of the mystical practices that were en vogue in Europe just a few decades prior to when Cultist Simulator takes place.

5. Atlas of Cursed Places by Oliver Le Carrer. I could totally see some of the places documented in this book as being locations you could send your Followers to in Cultsim.

6. Please read everything you can that is academically critical about Greek magical Papyri. There are tons of resources for reading translations and analysis of these documents that are some of the most foundational examples of what real historical magical belief and practice actually looked like.

Web Original Content, Podcasts, YouTube Channels and Tiktok Recommendations:

1. Greedy Peasant over on Instagram and tik tok does fascinating content related to Catholicism, medieval history and art, and other related topics. If you like all of the interesting reinterpretations of Christian religious iconography into sun worship that happens in Book of Hours I highly recommend his content.

2. The last few years have really seen an incredible ecosystem of academic scholarship on religion, mythology, occultism and esoteric philosophy develop on YouTube. Channels like Esoterica, Angela's Symposium, Let's Talk Religion, Religion for Breakfast, Jackson Crawford, The Modern Hermeticist, The Archaeology of Ancient Magic, and others are just overflowing gold mines of accessible and easily digestible but still academically critical and pseudoscience and conspiracy theory free information about mysticism historical occultism and esoteric religion and mythology.

3. There are also a number of great YouTube channels that aren't academically critical but are run by actual practicing witches and occultists and they offer fascinating and interesting insights into these same topics but from a lived more personal perspective which is just as important I think to learn about as the academically critical sources. Great channels include Benbell Wen, Maevius Lynn, Marco Visconti, & Nordic Animism.

4. In terms of fictional internet media, SCP is so broad that there's a lot of stuff that is completely different in appeal from what is enjoyable about Secret Histories, but there's also so much overlap. I need crossover fanfics and fan art more than air!!!!!

5. Lastly this is a fiction podcast so it's a little incongruous with the other nearby recommendations but, I cannot stress enough......... The Mangus Archives and Magnus Protocol!!!!!!!!!!!!! There are a lot of key differences between those two podcasts and Weather Factory games, but there are so many similarities that I have to write an entire three other posts about how similar the settings are and how I want to write a crossover/ fusion fic. I've seen like, one or two pieces of fan art and fanfiction that was related to both series but in my humble opinion it's not nearly enough. I really really really really really need Cultsim fans to talk more about Magnus and I need Magnus listeners to play these games soooooooo badly!!!!!!!!!!

Well that mostly concludes this piece of propaganda for the time being, will probably make another post with further additions in the not so distant future. Feel free to reblog this with any other pieces of media that you think would also be appealing to fans of Cultist Simulator and Book of Hours.

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powdermelonkeg · 5 months ago

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Echoes of Wisdom Trailer Analysis: Part 1

I'll tell you what, a new Zelda game, especially one this year, was NOT what I was expecting. I was hoping for a teaser a la "the sequel to BotW is now in development," but to have a full on main-series game come out? That caught me completely off guard.

But I've got my bearings. And I like what I see. So let's break down what we DID see, shall we?

Our opening shot has Link in some ruins, looking over at what appears to be Soldiers (as in the enemy, a lesser version of Darknuts), which are a staple for Fallen Timeline games.

However, they usually aren't this color, restricted to red, blue, and green. And they usually have swords or tridents, not axes.

The axes are a new development, as are the black armor and white capes. Maybe they've taken on the red -> blue -> green -> black -> silver difficulty pattern that BotW and TotK had?

Moving on.

Link here has a dark blue cape with teal geometric patterns on the back. Tempting as it is to connect this to the Zonai with the recent game-

-I'm going to abstain for now, because Zelda games like their teal geometry.

Looking around, the ruins Link finds himself in are unique.

We have eye patterns on the walls and double helixes framing the door. We haven't seen any pattern like this before, to my knowledge.

Link rushes in, sword drawn. The floor is plain square patterns on cracked tile.

We get our first glimpse of the Hylian Shield

As well as a clear shot of his sword. Oddly enough, it's not the Master Sword, or anything like it—it looks too plain to be something final, like the Four Sword or Phantom Sword:

And yet, it still very distinctly matches Link's current aesthetic, with the teal geometry.

Honestly, it looks more akin to a beginning sword that needs to change, like the Goddess Sword of Skyward Sword:

It's basic, it's easy to look at, but it's distinct and memorable.

Immedaitely after the cinematic run, the camera snaps to an overhead view, in which Link attacks. So there's at least a little gameplay as Link.

We see Princess Zelda in her crystal prison. Nothing unusual so far, but she definitely has a new look to her, even if her dress is distinctly Toon/Oracles/AlttP style remade.

Then we pan down to Ganon. Fallen Timeline's beast Gan, as we're used to seeing him. So far, he seems to look the most like his ALBW iteration, with the spiked cuffs around his wrists.

Link enters the scene. Purple mist is there for ambiance.

The pattern on the ground feels...ornamental. It doesn't stick out much or have enough detail on it to be the usual big-bad-evil-ritual.

Link throws his cape away dramatically.

Again, we get a camera-snapped view in which Link's attacks seem very much in the player's control.

And blocking Link off from escape, we have a magical barrier, though this one is emitting particles.

It's almost like Ganon's torn the ground open for this.

Defeated, ready for phase two, Ganon dissipates into purple sparks, only to reappear and start his tennis volley.

And here's where we get our proper view of him head-on.

ALBW's Ganon is a bit easy to miss in-game, because Yuga takes him over moments after he arrives. But he looks like this:

This is not our Gan's design.

He has the bracers, yes, but his forehead gem isn't spiked, his eyes are red, not white, his armor is gold with red edges and has chest plates that look a lot like really old art of ALttP Gan:

But most interestingly, his necklace is different.

In every version of Ganon that looks like this, he's either had a skull at his neck

Or a gem

But our Gan has something new. Something that, given the eyes in the corridor, feels deliberate:

There's a menace in this branch of Hyrule's history that's known for three things: a horned eye, purple magic, and possession.

And I'm out of images. Part 2 here!

#loz #zelda #eow #echoes of wisdom #long post #theory #analysis

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anghraine · 5 months ago

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One thing about the Jackson films that bothers me deeply is that they are uncritically upheld as being full of "positive masculinity." Excuse me? This is the series that has Faramir ordering his men to beat Gollum, Aragorn cutting off the Mouth's head, & Gandalf beating up Denethor on multiple occasions (& kicking him into the pyre!). Sam's meanness toward Gollum, while understandable, is never questioned as it is in the book. Frodo is delusional to pity Gollum. Killing is fun, & mercy is silly.

Belatedly, I do agree. I get that the Anglophone media landscape can feel so saturated by absurdly reductive representations of masculinity that what the films do inherit from Tolkien in terms of emotional expression, friendship etc can feel revolutionary. But the films make a lot of minor and major adjustments to transform the story's visions of masculinity to something more conventional and particularly more violent in a way that is often endorsed by the narrative, or at least framed as an understandable if unfortunate exigency of war.

I once pointed out that Aragorn killing the Mouth of Sauron, an ambassador—however distasteful—is something that essentially operates on the worst kind of superhero logic, a sort of good vs evil righteousness-justifies-the-means thing. It's really glaring when based on a book where the character closest to the author is like "it's one thing, however regrettable, to fight to the death to defend ourselves and our people, but morally, evil deeds beyond self-defense cannot be justified by a righteous cause, not even lying to an orc."

Tolkien's version of the Mouth is an evil Númenórean sorcerer who, while he cannot really contend with Aragorn in a battle of wills, is nevertheless a person of the same kind and general capabilities who chose to serve Sauron. The way that the films use design to literally dehumanize the Mouth, to wholly distance him from the heroes he's literally akin to, and justify straight-up killing him although he poses no personal threat, because he's ugly and evil and (evilly) taunting them so they're mad and it's cool—yeah. It's not really that far removed from Gandalf clobbering Denethor being framed as a bit comedic and a bit cathartic, and seems part of a pervasive ethos of the films that seems to have completely fallen out of discussion of them.

I think we especially see this with the handling of not just my main faves, but Frodo, who really suffers in this more conventionally masculine framework. I often felt like the films want the real protagonists to be Aragorn and (to an extent) Sam, and Frodo feels a bit like dead weight from fairly early on. Adorable dead weight, but still, Tolkien's Frodo especially feels like a challenge to this kind of narrative ethos that the films are just not really up to handling.

It's not that everything about masculinity in the films is Terrible Actually, but I do think there are some unfortunate patterns like the ones you mention. And I'm constantly being recommended videos and posts about Aragorn (or others, but mostly Aragorn) as this unproblematic ideal of masculinity where I'm just ... yeah, no. He is interesting to me, including in the context of masculinity specifically, but I absolutely cannot buy the ideal positive masculinity thing.

#anon replies #respuestas #pj critical #anghraine rants #legendarium blogging #legendarium fanwank #the mouth of sauron #gender blogging #jewel of the seashore #aragorn critical #(but specifically film aragorn)#frodo baggins

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invalidstories · 8 months ago

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Palette of Fate (Part 1)

Warnings: captivity, fear, distress, nightmare

Part 2

As the sun dipped below the horizon, casting long shadows over the city, Civillain was lost in the rhythmic strokes of her paintbrush. Art was her sanctuary from the chaos that lived outside her small studio apartment. The city was a place where heroes fought with villains in endless battles. Civillain wanted no part in it. She despised the city's glorification of violence and the way fear lurked everywhere. People cheered for battles that tore their homes and streets apart.

That night as she cleaned her brushes and prepared to go to bed, a sudden darkness enveloped her. Before she could scream, a hand clamped over her mouth, stifling any sound. She felt panic surge through her veins as she was dragged. The world dissolved into darkness as a sickly sweet smell invaded her senses. Before she could even comprehend what was happening, consciousness slipped away from her like sand through fingers.

She awoke to a dimly lit room, the cold stone floor pressing against her cheek. Panic surged within her, heart pounding against her ribs like a caged bird. Where was she? Why was she here?

Before her stood the figure of nightmares. It was the embodiment of terror that had haunted the city for years - Villain. His face obscured by shadows, his eyes glinting with malice. He was everything she hated, cold, evil and ruthless. His presence sent fear through her, causing her breaths to become short and shallow.

"Why am I here?" Civilian tried to mask the fear in her voice, but her eyes betrayed her.

Civilian's heart hammered in her chest as she awaited Villain's next move, her mind a whirlwind of fear and uncertainty. But instead of revealing his intentions, Villain smirked, clearly enjoying the torment of his captive.

"You're quite talented, aren't you?" Villain's voice dripped with malice, sending shivers down Civilian's spine. "It's a shame it might go to waste if your little hero friends don't show up soon."

Civilian's breath caught in her throat as she struggled to comprehend the meaning behind Villain's words. What did he intend to do with her? Was she doomed to spend the rest of her days in this wretched place? In what lifetime will the heroes save anyone?

With mocking laugh, Villain disappeared into the shadows, leaving Civilian alone with her fears.

The next morning, she found herself in a new room. It had a small mattress, an attached washroom, and a few clothes. But, that wasn't what caught Civilian's attention. It was a box filled with canvases, paint, and brushes. For a moment, Civillain dared to believe. Perhaps, there was a bit of humanity buried beneath Villain's icy exterior. But as she reached for the door, only to find it locked tight, the truth came crashing down upon her like a tidal wave.

She was still a prisoner, still at Villain's mercy. The room offered her a brief break from the dark that surrounded her. But, Civillain knew that she could never be free until she escaped her captor.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Days turned into weeks as Civilian languished in her prison. Villain had lost hope that anyone would come for her, especially those self-absorbed heroes. He tossed and turned in his bed, but sleep wouldn't come to him. Giving up, he went to work on his plans to make those heroes pay.

Suddenly, he heard screaming. His curiosity piqued, and he walked toward the sound. His footsteps echoed through his silent lair's halls.

Opening the door, he froze when he saw Civillain, who lay tangled in her sheets, her face contorted in terror, tears streaming down her cheeks. Villain watched for a moment, a strange sensation stirring within him. For the first time in a long while, he felt something akin to empathy.

With a sigh, Villain approached Civillain's bedside, his movements surprisingly gentle. He reached out a hand, hesitating for a moment before tentatively brushing a strand of hair from her face.

"Civillain," his voice was soft, lacking its usual edge of cruelty. "You're fine. It's just a dream."

Civillain's eyes snapped open, startled by Villain's unexpected presence. But as she met his gaze, she saw something there that she had never expected - kindness.

For the rest of the night, Villain stayed by Civillain's side. He chased away the shadows of her nightmares with whispered reassurances. The first light of dawn crept in. Civillain hoped that Villain wasn't the monster she had always believed him to be.

Masterlist

#invalidstories #writers on tumblr #reading #hero x villain #villain x hero #short story #hero #villain #villainsxheroes #hero and villain #villain x civilian #hero x civilian #civilian x villain #angst with a happy ending #angst #hero x villain fluff #fluff

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evilwizard · 2 years ago

Note

The concept of goblins are inherently antisemitic. 💔

The concept of goblins has traditionally, for quite a long while, been associated with antisemitism. But not all goblins in folklore, especially pre-Christian folklore, are antisemitic. There was in fact a fairly-lengthy stretch of time in human history during which a “goblin” (from the Old French gobelin, itself from the Ancient Greek kobalos, meaning imp or rogue), would have been considered by most to be a particular subset of fae creature, akin to dwarves (the pre-Tolkien kind which forged weapons for the gods), gnomes, or elves (again, pre-Tolkien). Similar creatures can be found in folklore from around the world, including from Korea, Bangladesh, the Zulu people of Southern Africa, Russia, and the indigenous American Wampanoag people.

It is extremely unfortunate that, in large part due to Christian, European, and white antisemitism over the years, goblins have come to be known as purely an antisemitic stereotype. We have something of a chicken-and-the-egg situation here: early goblins didn’t have “hook-noses” and weren’t generally “greedy” so much as mischievous and otherworldly. Some of the antisemitic traits now attributed to goblins were definitely added over the years—but some, such as general ugliness (at least to a human eye) and smallness of stature, existed long before antisemitism had a chance to warp our perception of the purely-mythological creature.

We are left with a conundrum: are goblins “redeemable” in fantasy/mythological stories? If not, what do we replace them with? Attempts have certainly been made: take Kobolds, for instance. Taken from the Ancient Greek kobalos, the same root from which goblin comes, Kobolds are in part an attempt to separate earlier goblin-lore from later antisemitic additions. But do we have to change the word we use when we do this? Certainly, use of the word “goblin” has to a large extent been usurped by antisemites, but this is in part because it is one of the primary words used in modern times to refer to the group of creatures that goblins represent. Is it right, or ethically correct, to abandon this mythological concept altogether? Is the word so purely associated with antisemitic tropes now that it is impossible to ever redeem it? Can updated mythological retellings by Jewish authors be used to reclaim/respond to these prevalent antisemitic tropes?

These are all good questions, and I truly do not have the answers. I’m not an expert on this subject, and I’m not a Jew. But speaking as a person who has read/studied a lot of mythology, I would advise caution when it comes to a trope like this. Pretending antisemitism doesn’t exist here would be wrong and stupid—but pretending we can, or should, wash our hands of goblin-folklore entirely could be even more dangerous. Antisemitism in these tales are a symptom of real-world hatred and evil… but I don’t personally believe that is all this particular archetype has to offer.

I would love if we could make this post a place for careful consideration and discussion on this topic, and one where Jewish voices in particular have a place to be heard.

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puppetwoman17 · 1 year ago

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Okay, so there’s this Billy Batson post-Injustice fic called A Reason to Fight on AO3, and it’s got me wanting more fics like that.

I mean, there’s so many different ways it could go.

One fic could be where he did die, and we can’t bring him back. The JL are brought back together to take on an otherworldly evil(surprise surprise) and they need the help of the gods to do it. With both conventional and unconventional means, they’re able to be granted passage to Olympus for this one catastrophic emergency(begrudgingly, because the gods sorta hate their guts).

Then they see this one glowing building, separated from the rest. It’s got a lightning bolt on it. Sparks flying around it. Gives off a less imposing vibe. There’s suspicions about what it’s for, but no one feels compelled to ask. Until a leaguer(doesn’t have to be specific, maybe Guy Gardener or Flash or whatevs) gains enough courage to ask what that place is.

The god leading them to Zeus stops dead in their tracks. They don’t speak yet. They turn and look at the leaguer who was dumb enough to ask a grieving god a question like that.

And the god replies: “The Hall of Champions is where every champion goes when they die. They are allowed to spend their afterlife in complete relaxation as the fruits of their labor. They meet others like them and forgo the troubles of their mortal lives.”

The god says that last part bitterly.

The JL immediately knows who’s inside. The building just speaks Marvel. That same stupid league member asks if they can go inside. If they can speak to one of them, no one in particular(everyone knows they’re lying, but the guilt is just too much).

The god laughs. Actually just laughs right there, in front of a bunch of mortals and super powered people who dare to think they can come anywhere near the former Champion of Magic.

The god tells them: “We granted him his wish of being part of a team because we thought it would help him through such trying times. We thought he finally had others who would look after him, something we may not always be able to do. We thought he would finally, after all these years, have something akin to family.

“And just like that, those hopes and dreams were taken away, all because our champion finally saw the light again. If you go so much as a foot closer to him, the gods of Olympus will show you the same mercy you showed your so-called teammate.”

Lol, that’s as far as I’ve gotten.

Another fic could be where he actually didn’t die, like in A Reason to Fight. He comes back to life after recharging just like in A Reason to Fight. But this time, there’s a change.

He doesn’t make himself known. He changes his identity and stays under the league radar. He doesn’t transform into Cap, but he secretly helps the people of Fawcett with his powers because BILLY was chosen, not the avatar itself.

Dunno how to go about the next part. That all depends on the plot, what characters are still alive and still dead. The timeline of when exactly he comes back and how long he stays incognito.

But somehow, someway, the League becomes aware that Marvel, that Billy, is alive. They rush to see him after (however) long. They see him alive and well…

And he’s just disgusted. Heartbroken. Scared. Angry. Tells them to f*ck off and find some other kid’s dreams to destroy. Tells them to never contact him unless it’s for business that requires the Champion’s reputation. Because despite everything, he still takes his job as Champion very seriously. Because he thought he could finally trust these adults, and they turned their backs on him.

He especially hates Superman for the looks of guilt he gives him. Just wants to punch him in the face. Same with Diana. Same with Lantern. Same with Flash and Cy. Maybe not Batman, but even association can hurt.

Again, idk where this one might go, or how the plot is or whatever, but I need more post-Injustice fics on Billy Batson damnit!

#billy batson #captain marvel #dc universe #justice league

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antispopausandstuff · 4 months ago

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my SPOP universe pt. 1 - character bios ( very long, i'm sorry )

disclaimer // note - it'll be SPOP-focused, but i do take a 'few' things from the original show and implement them here.

preferred style(s) - ATLA // LOK, ROTTMNT, LMK ( s1-s4 ), Spiderverse, or Kill la Kill

( part of the reason for these styles is the VFX, battle coordination, and creature // environmental design, esp with vibrant media like Spiderverse, ROTTMNT, and LMK )

theme song - something akin to "The Call" by League of Legends or "The World That Ends in Three Days" by Koji Kondo, ROZEN, & Celica Soldream.

rating - PG-15 ( i'm not a writer for young children and don't handle things in a very kid-friendly way )

note - here's some gender // sexuality hcs of the characters, though it isn't all of them.

established changes:

the runestones don't exist

the cast is 18+ unless stated otherwise

roles will be changed for plot relevance or sense ( for ex, neither perfuma, entrapta, scorpia, spinerella, or netossa are royals )

the first ones are not evil

mara and adora are the only she-ras

most ships will remain noncanon

there's no white people here, sorry

cast ( pt. 1 ) . . .

Adora - Long Lost Princess of Eternia, Force Captain ( former ), Daughter of Hordak and Shadow Weaver, and She-Ra. 20 yrs old, 5'0, was abducted as an infant, from her home planet, and taught to be a solider for the Horde. raised by Shadow Weaver and Hordak ( it's separate care, not romantically coded ). unofficial caretaker of Catra.

she was raised to be very serious and no-nonsense like, always remaining calm and strategic in drastic situations to prevent the worst case scenario. due to this built-in stoicism, along with other factors, Adora struggles with interpersonal relationships and knowing her own sense of self, including what she is or isn't comfortable with ( such as unnecessary conflict ).

before She-Ra is even a possibility, the weight of the world was already bestowed upon her shoulders, and she sets on carrying out her duty to protect the world from those who wish to harm it.

beneath it all, however, Adora is a young woman who desires connection and peace. she secretly hopes for that to be her reward.

design would be inspired by Cal, Zav 1, Zav 2, Zav 3, and Fern ( blue guy ) by animatorroseoak, Midas by sleeepybacon, and with these details by me! outfit color palette would go from black and red to white, gold, and blue. just to clarify, though she is mythical, she'd still be afro-latino coded.

theme song - Song of Healing by The Marcus Hedges Trend Orchestra

Glimmer - Princess of Brightmoon, Daughter of Queen Angella and King Micah, and Leader of the Rebellion. 19 yrs old, 5'6, was raised by her widowed mother ever since she was an infant. due to her lineage, she is a demigod and will likely live longer than the average Etherian.

ever since she was born, Glimmer's powers were too great for her body to handle, causing her to lose control very quickly, especially when her emotions were heightened. Angella brought her to Castaspella, her aunt and the greatest sorceress on Etheria, to teach her control and balance.

Glimmer has always been a bright mind with an even brighter personality, striving for excellence and success, and has never let her misfortunes, whether it be her powers going haywire or a plan not going through, weigh on her. at least, that's what she shows to her people and mother.

but, on the inside, she is actually very insecure over her lack of understanding of her own powers, what her mother thinks of her, and how she can handle being future Queen. afraid of change and what fate could hold for her, Glimmer is avoidant of talking about her upcoming role to Brightmoon, seeing Castaspella again ( they haven't talked in years ), or taking a break from her leadership in the Rebellion.

design would be inspired by Ube by kleahvii, Mika by kienan_lafferty, Marlowe & Buwa by sleeepybacon. high focus on the astral theming, with minor details of the angelic theme. i imagine her with either pinkish blonde hair or black hair with pink and blue ombre streaks. her species would be a hybrid of elf ( Micah ) and chimera ( Angella ).

theme song - Termina Field by Koji Kondo & ROZEN

Bow - Guardian of Whispering Woods, Friend of Madame Razz, Best Friend of Princess Glimmer's, Son of George and Lance, and Co-Leader of the Rebellion. 20 yrs, 6'0, is a runaway from home after a particularly bad argument ensued between himself and his family. he is a pacifist and uses his archery to assist, not to cause harm ( or, at least, irreversible harm ).

his reasons for running away aren't exactly known, even to Glimmer herself, and he always gives half-truths or not-necessarily-lies to anyone who asks about his family and history. but he is very open about his beliefs, his current living situation ( currently resides in the Whispering Woods ), and how he feels.

as the Rebellion's mechanic and stealth strategist, Bow uses his technological intelligence and creativity to aid his allies. he's proven time and time again to be reliable, intuitive, and thinking of just about everything. whether or not that's a good thing.

in contrast to his secrecy, Bow is open-minded, well-meaning, and has a very strong belief in kindness. after living in the Whispering Woods on his own for a few years, and experiencing hardships unbeknownst to anyone else, he aims to be the example for others that people weren't for him.

design would be inspired by Jequ and Agnes by dewfroq, and Earth-42 Miles Morales in Across The Spiderverse. i think i want to make him a cyborg-type of character.

theme song - Goron Lullaby by The Marcus Hedges Trend Orchestra

Angella - Queen of Brightmoon, Mother of Princess Glimmer, Widowed Wife of King Micah, and Angel of Etheria. 47(?) yrs old, 7'5, her exact origins are unknown, even to her daughter. some speculate that she was born from a star or moon, others guess she is from a different dimension entirely. the only one who even had an idea was the late King Micah.

benevolent, calm, and wise, Angella has been Queen for longer than she has been anything else. in some ways, she considers that a blessing. in others, she considers it a curse. accepting her fate decades ago, the pain has dulled enough to be barely noticeable.

though most don't know it, she has lived way longer than almost any of the Etherians, having experienced more than the Horde's genocide and eventual war. maybe even the universe beyond Despondos.

her abilities align, though not rely on, with the moons and stars, especially with specific constellations. but, as Despondos has a lack of those constellations ( and there are much less stars in the sky ), Angella has not reached her full power in decades.

it's only to Glimmer that she shows her true self, the self that is curious, easily endeared, and overall heartful and passionate, which is a stark contrast to the all-knowing, mysterious, powerful being that is the Queen of Brightmoon. because of this, her daughter has a hard time explaining to others that her mother isn't as stonewalled as she appears.

design would be inspired by Lucifer by fourleafisland, Sera by idolomantises, and Lifegiver and Sold Adopt Design by sleeepybacon. she is a flight-based chimera that has a lot of astral and angel theming, with her facial features obscured by a secondary, smaller set of wings.

theme song - Song of Time by The St. Louis Ocarina Trio

Hordak - Emperor of the Fright Zone, Father of Adora, The 'Big Boss'. 55 ( appearance wise ), 6'7, his origins are about as unknown as Angella's. it's unknown if he even likes or dislikes to discuss it, as no one has dared to ask him about his life before the Horde.

having brought Etheria to its knees decades ago, Hordak is easily bored or disinterested in his surroundings, often indulging himself in sadism for entertainment. however, he does have a soft spot for his children, Imp and Adora, and finds enjoyment in their company.

when She-Ra comes around, he isn't all that irritated. in the beginning, at least. in fact, he's rather riveted by the new challenge. discovering her identity, however, made all the difference. now, he constantly has to pick between being a father and being an Emperor.

design would be inspired by Fei by cronchy_baguette, Jacks by par0llel, Unnamed OC by crazycomet107, and Miguel O'Hara Illustration by sairasays. his design would definitely be a mix of cyborg and beast, lots of predator and prey metaphors.

theme song - Elegy of Emptiness by The Marcus Hedges Trend Orchestra

Shadow Weaver - Sorceress of the Fright Zone, Second In Command, Mother of Adora and Catra. 50(?), 5'11, was raised in the Crimson Waste, but ran away and became a student in Mystacor at a young age. after obtaining the dark arts, however, she was banished and considered a freak of nature. soon after, she was found by Hordak.

the 'freak of nature' title didn't leave, however. rather, Shadow Weaver had to embrace it in order to become immune, using her dark magic to protect and provide for herself and whatever or whoever she needs to succeed or gain power.

she keeps most, if not all of her relationships at arms length, paranoia and trust issues running deep. though this doesn't exclude her daughters, Adora and Catra, it's less so with them. even if it's for separate reasons.

after Adora turned on the Horde, this instilled Shadow Weaver's already unstable mindset and kicked it into overdrive. obsessive, aggressive, and erratic in behavior, she eventually becomes a danger to herself and others.

design would be inspired by Peter Pan & Captain Hook Illustrations by sairasays, The Heads and The Witch by kelpible, and Arek ( 3rd form ) by sleeepybacon. her design would be parallel to her life as Light Spinner.

theme song - Midna's Theme by Monsalve

Catra - Cadet of the Horde ( former ), Force Captain, Daughter of Shadow Weaver. 19 yrs, 5'7, was abducted as a toddler and taught to be a solider, though succession rates are varying. she was originally born in a Kingdom, but her memories are limited and she's rather uninterested ( or unmotivated, it's not clear ) in finding out where she's from.

as she was raised by Shadow Weaver, Catra became an odd mix of codependent, lazy, defiant and aggressive, borderline sadistic, obsessive, and jealous, driving away most people, which only solidified her unhealthy relationships.

once Adora left the Horde, she was no better than her mother, in terms of mental decline, and it was part of the reason why she became Force Captain. unofficially speaking.

design would be inspired by Eralisto by animatorroseoak, Bacon 1 and Bacon 2 by sleeepybacon, Cairo by cronchy_baguette, and Elliot by spam0_llel. i like to think her design becoming more and more feral // unhinged as she develops.

theme song - Majora's Mask by Koji Kondo & ROZEN

Scorpia ( Lynda ) - Force Captain, Ex-Warrior of the Crimson Waste, Sister of Octavia, Harbinger of Poison. 21 yrs, 6'3, a fighter with a tough exterior, but a gentle soul. once she gets to know you, anyway. in her time in the Horde, she has formed a bond with Octavia and knew of Catra and Adora, but hadn't met them personally until Catra becam Force Captain.

after running away from the Crimson Waste after killing the leader, Scorpia was recruited by Hordak for her strength and poison // paralytic touch. though, it wasn't exactly like she had a choice.

when meeting Catra, the two were at arms-length for a while, with Scorpia being a little off-put by the other's intensity in bringing Adora back. but, somehow, they eventually become friends. as much as they could be, anyway, considering the circumstances.

design would be inspired by Gora ( tall, dark-haired goliath ) by pen.lilixeesketche and Tora and Gabu by par0llel. i read up the original character's details and decided to have kind of a 'mish-mash' of the original and reboot ( not quite, though ).

theme song - Bolero of Fire by Giulio Capone

Entrapta ( Es'Tra ) - The Fae of Entanglement, Lady of Dryll, Heart of Technology. Late 40s ( forgot specific age ), 4'10, works for the Horde as their technician, isolated and muted, but finds comfort in the Emperor's company. when he has time for that.

no one really knows why or how she got there, but it's evident that she's chronically exhausted and has a habit of becoming hostile with those who don't respect her space ( it's how she met Catra one on one ). when she's in a better mood, however, she's more likely to talk, but not guaranteed, and shows to always have more knowledge than anyone would expect.

in the rare instances she's completely happy, Entrapta is very friendly, engaging, and there's an increased percentage she'll share technology // technological-know-how with you.

design would be inspired by Bitten Lady and Faubron by animatorroseoak, Eris by boots.oc, and Remi by par0llel. lots of plant cycle symbolism in her environments and hair.

theme song - Song of Storms by ROZEN

Double Trouble ( Rebekk ) - Diamond of Mischief, Multi-Mask, Fae of Deceit. Early 20s ( exact age is unknown ), 5'11, a busybody that absolutely hates the Horde, which helps them not give a damn about anything more than bare minimum privacy, and who also happens to be Glimmer's cousin, adopted by Castaspella.

when they're not busying spying on the Horde, Double Trouble spends time working on their own plays and shows or trying to play around with their peers, being a generally needy person that craves attention and validation. it's not hard to make them happy, though. usually, a simple compliment makes their entire day.

none of their family knows of their work, though. and they'd like to keep it that way.

design would be inspired by Rue by lizard_b.rain, Thraniavas by spidertams, Cantaluse by animatorroseoaks, and Original Character Animation by kelapabiru. a random design tidbit that doesn't really matter, i like to think their hair is dyed blonde, but they have brown // black roots.

theme song - Minuet of Forest by Giulio Capone

not all of the character biographies, not even close, but i'm currently working on pt. 2 as we speak, so that'll be out soon! probably will have a pt. 3 and pt. 4, though, there's a lot to go through.

thank you for reading! this and pt. 2 took forever.

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thecoolerliauditore · 18 days ago

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Big post for episode 2 alliance by alliance EXCEPT for the evil one (you know) because they're getting their own quarantined post.

Lag's gone yippee!!!!

This mechanic is awesome I loved the initial bout of confusion. Poor Ren lmao

I'm a hypocrite here because I'm usually an RNG hater but this mechanic is so funny I don't actually care. Etho eating redstone real. Insert c(l)ock joke here. Mental imagery of skizz shovelling dirt into his mouth is really awesome.

The BAM Boys (Bamboozlers now but they're BAM Boys in my heart) continue to be a SSS+ tier alliance. I love how quickly they've become Grian/Mumbo/Skizz's shitty horrible upstairs neighbour.

THE PARROTS ARE REALLY CUTE AND REALLY AWESOME. Very very excited to see what the avian headcanon and canary symbolism people are going to do with that.

I can't wait for Jimmy's POV from the looks of it he's. such a little shit this session. Which is good these are signs of a happy Jimmy. The part where they box him in while he's AFK is really cute to me and I know this is probably on the more insane side of the scale for me but I can't help but read it as Jimmy having an episode of some sort and Scar and Lizzie making sure he's okay until he recovers.

And I won't lie watching Scar punch Scott even if it was just for silliness was just the slightest bit satisfying.

Lizzie is a bit. odd to me because she seems to have adapted the same mindset as alot of other people in assuming incompetence on Jimmy and Scar's part.

I ☝️think her saying she's the best survivalist out of the group is more a reflection of her being insecure in her own abilities than her genuinely thinking of them as liabilities. Don't get me wrong she is a crucial member of the Jimmy Ecosystem and thus very much subscribes to that hierarchical set of beliefs But she's been conscious in the past of her own shortcomings and I don't think it's like? Something that necessarily actually bothers her in the way Skizz and Mumbo worry Grian to death.

Plus she spent her episode building parrots (which are awesome) -- she's just overall a much more whimsical personality and I think the "best survivalist" stuff is more another example of her performative nature coming in akin to when she plays sitcom wife or manipulative seductress with Joel. After all the "only brain cell" is a very. The Girl One role that pops up and literally like the first time she implies her teammates are incompetent is her "surrounded by idiots" line that she's saying about a bit SHE LITERALLY STARTED ‼️

So like TLDR I don't think Lizzie is like. genuinely malicious towards her teammates she's just very performative. What she says is still very wrong and might reflect badly on her teammates, though.

(side note I remember at the end of SL there was a bit of discourse surrounding the way people talked about Scar's win and people were especially not accepting of posts that implied Grian's 1v3 or Pearl's previous win had anything to do with him winning because it also implied Scar's win wasn't all due to his skill. and I can't help but wonder how those guys must feel now lmao I'm so sorry)

I really hope the sub ones/floaters/spanners just keep switching team names like every single episode. Would be nuclear for the tagging system but it would be really funny.

Mumbo being self-aware of his own paranoia wasn't something I saw coming and I find it very interesting. I'm not a Mumbo guy he's more or less a silly cartoon animal to me but I'm sure a Mumbohead could have a field day with that one. His reaction to Tango killing Skizz and his pathetically desperate attempts at revenge afterwards are also extremely. Something. (hilarious to watch but. Something)

Grian and Mumbo are both really funny to me when they're in a certain state of emotional distress, specifically Grian when he's annoyed and Mumbo when he's panicking and there is. Alot of that this episode. By far one of the funniest POVs for me.

Skizz oh poor Skizz. If this was 3L he would be OUT. REALLY excited to see where the thing he has going on with Tango will lead (usually I try not to comment on the CC side of things but I must say it is really sweet to me that these two are good enough friends that Tango, socially anxious as he is, can do that).

Nothing much to say about Joel from me this episode I hope his car is okay after that wild animal chewed on its tires.

Gem though is interesting. Not to get to into The Horrors in this post because I want to save most of them for Their Post but her conversation with Pearl is and later Scott is? Fascinating me a bit.

I very much do see the comparison to DL Pearl's naivete regarding past alliances sticking but Gem is? Very abrasive and the wording she uses to Scott is that he needs to "control" Pearl specifically which is!! A very strange thing to say when her whole thing with Pearl was celebrating Scarlet Pearl.

Again not claiming to be a Gem understander so don't look at me but it feels like to me these are the consequences of her idol worship illusion being shattered similar to how she used to treat Etho with the "washed up" stuff. I want to say of course she sides with her previous ally Scott regarding Pearl but she tells Etho to steal from "Pearl and Scott and stuff" near the end of the episode so it seems more like. Her being antagonistic to that alliance as a whole? Honestly not sure what to make of it, will need more episodes but this is intriguing this is fun. This is fun. I'm sorry gempearl girlies.

"Tuff Guys".... Whatever man.

This one is good this one is fascinating. So first off other people have pointed out them lacking a leader and Skizz's absence which is totally cool I'm so not emotion about that.

But we're just? Going full mask off. Bdubs is pulling a Liauditore and questioning the importance of the concept of an alliance itself in these games which I, being Liauditore, can judge as the objectively correct thing to do, based of Bdubs, swear ALL this shit off don't ask me questions.

Usual ethubs shenanigans are ensuing. I don't really know how to put that in a better way but they are full force ethubs rn.

One interaction I found interesting with Bdubs are his conversation with Scar and Tango when Scar asks Bdubs if he should let the name-ever-changing-grian-mumbo-skizz alliance kill Tango and Bdubs is kinda like. Ehhhhhdhkldhhkkkkjj 🤷‍♂️🤷‍♂️🤷‍♂️ about it. But when Scar leaves Bdubs he goes straight to Tango and just says the word "VENGEANCE" in his goofy scary voice before Martyn interrupts them.

Like. It feels as though? Now that we're all in the open about Not being loyal or whatever to eachother, the relationship with Tango is? Relatively better. Then again saying you don't expect eachother to be loyal is not the same as actually being emotionally okay with that and it'll be fun to see how much b-dgaf-dubs stays as b-dgaf-dubs. But again I think establishing expectations is good and a lot more healthy than what Some Other Alliances are doing.

For all the Pearl angst we've been bouncing back and forth I've seen nobody bring up his interaction with her this episode where he approaches her to poison her and when she falls for it Bdubs immediately goes "No. I can't." and admits what he was trying to do. It's very cute. (mounders I'll love you forever). Bdubs cares her.

Also I think I might be a level of cooked that Bdubs goofily singing little mermaid made my brain go ding ding. Idk. the gay agenda, I guess.

Tango is fucking insane someone check on him. Why did he eat that tire. Why did he eat Skizzleman.

But real talk that kill was kind of awesome I love non-conventional kills and people finding ways to kill that are more adaptive to their individual strengths than just brute forcing pvp. I love a good pvp fight don't get me wrong but that sort of kill through using his smarts feels so much more. Tango than if he pulled off an insane sword combo out of nowhere or something as awesome as that would be. Reminds me a bit of Lizzie farming her fireworks crossbows in LL but on a way smaller scale.

Also wasn't sure if I should say this here or in the BAM section but Tango floating away into the distance panicked but giggling is so funny when paired with Jimmy's POV where he's going OH NO TANGO TANGO OH HE'S DEAD I'VE KILLED HIM HE'S GONNA HATE ME ETC ETC. Jimmy he.. Jimmy he Does Not care.

Anyway I love this version of Tango I hope he stays. I hope he murders Bdubs.

Etho is Etho. No more gravel pranks thank god. His fearful reaction to Joel's "family" comment is so funny I could see the LimL flashbacks beam out of his skull when he nervously asks about family dinners.

I'm not a gemtho guys by any means but her giving him an allium and him putting it in a pot to "protect" it surely means something. It's very sweet to me.

Bdubs' comment about it smth smth "as soon as you put value in something..." with the other half of that being implied to be something like "other people will try to destroy/steal it" is. quite something as well. really neat lampshading of this group's overall dilemma so far (if you don't value an alliance, you won't lose it, you can't lose out on value that you never place in anything).

Treebark is Treebark. Ren asking Martyn first thing what role he should play is a bit crazy (I love you ever-shifting 3L power dynamics).

This isn't exactly About them but I like the contrast between Ren starving to death in front of Skizz and Grian who barely care and Martyn starving to death in front of Pearl who is so distraught she takes to chat to apologize. Pearl they could never make me hate you Pearl.

Outsourcing this one to the treebarkposters they seem. Fairly chill? To me? Still? But god don't look at me. Ren "I can fix him" Dog is pretty cool. And him kissing Cleo is cool (I'm gnawing my arm off). As is him randomly deciding to crown Bigb a king (I'M GNAWING MY ARM OFF).

ok cool whatever thats all the alliances no more posts about this episode hahahahahahhaha bye!!!!

#random thoughts #wild life spoilers #traffic spoilers

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diaphin93 · 4 months ago

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Fantastical Misconceptions Part 2: The Safflower Chapter

And here is the second part where I go more in depth on some of the mischaracterizations, misinterpretations and at times outright misinformation that I've seen Fantasyinvader spreading. It initially started with me being widely amused by the very reaching claims about the inspirations of Fire Emblems Dragons he was making, combined with my awareness of his often orientalist and superficial fixation of interpreting 3 Houses on what he believes eastern religion entails, something I am by no means an expert on, but even I can see the reach and grasps in, especially since for me it always invokes the impression of this very fetishistic notion of Japan as this isolated, culturally 'pure' nation which certain groups also love to spread, often with the goal of molding Japan into a homogenous representation of the Idea they want to promote.

In this case I also felt the need to make the part centering Edelgard into its entirely own blogpost due to me becoming aware of some outright misogynistic and, I will say it openly, incel-esque sounding interpretations of Edelgard as a character, which is especially distasteful if you consider Edelgards status as one of the few actually central female main Lords in the series, but also as Fire emblems first ever canonically queer Non-Avatar Lord. So lets get started with reposting the screenshot that inspired me to this three part series:

In my first post I already made it clear that this is yet again just a very abstract and in my opinion somewhat orientalist interpretation of Dragons in the Fire Emblem Series, ignoring the series choice of designs and cultural inspirations as well as widely misinterpreting both western and japanese dragon folklore, which is already highly debunked by the existance of Duma and Mila as two Divine Dragons who have to be overthrown for humanity to creat a land free of divine intervention, akin to the Crimson Flower Route.

But then the issue is, that interpreting Edelgard as the evil dragon of the game doesn't work because she is plain and simply not a dragon, by no stretch of the imagination and her demonic transformation, an expression of the lengths she would go through for her ideals, is unique to one single route and bears no design elements associated with dragons. And interestingly, if anything her hegemon transformation plays into one of the games subversive elements, its deconstruction of divine bloodlines, which play into the games overall very anti-feudal and anti-theocratic attitudes, which Fantasyinvader loves to dismiss and actually argue in favor of feudalism and theocracy which is...yikes. Combined with whats to come, I can't view this guy and his personal views in no semblance of good faith, I'm honest in this regards.

The concept of a demonic beast is brought up as early chapter 5, when we see Miklan being transformed into a demonic beast by the Lance of Ruin, the first hint towards the true sinister nature of crests and heroes relics. With its power of turning those not belonging to them into demons, and even being capable of corrupting and transforming those who possess these bloodlines, the concept of the divine bloodline and the holy heroes relic itself is innately tied towards demonic powers, as is further supported by the energy they radiate being presented in a dark red and blackish color scheme, as opposed to the bright colors we associate with light and divinity. In Edelgards case, one could view it as another subversive element, as the form is connected to Edelgard awakening the full power of her twin-crests, her unleashing the Fire Emblem in service of her ideals.

But with the demonic connotations of the crests and her transformation, I think more than a traditional intsys evil dragon, Edelgard plays more into the influences that Koei Tecmo brought into 3 Houses, with it being confirmed through their Dream Interview that they borrowed heavily from Romance of the Three Kingdoms, while the team involved in the development of 3 Houses has a long history of Nobunaga-centric Sengoku era strategy games, I think what Edelgard invokes much more as the final boss of Azure Moon is the popular image that Cao Cao is associated with and that is also highly connected to Nobunaga, two historical figures Koei Tecmo has a history of interpreting and utilizing in their games and who clearly inspired central aspects of Edelgards personality and role, namely the popular image of the demon king. Thats right, Hegemon Edelgard is Edelgard, faced with those who want to preserve the old order of things and stand against her ideal, fully embraces her role as the Demon King of the Sixth Heaven.

And that is where it becomes interesting, as Team Kou Shibusawa, named after the companies founder and CEO, traces its and the companies history back to historical games and the Nobunagas Ambition Games, which did subvert the popular image of Nobunaga as the Demon King by presenting him as more nuanced and favorable, something they also started to do with Cao Cao in Koei Tecmos Dynasty Warrior Series. There is a great fondness and positive reception for this historical archetype deep in Koeis DNA and we know, that ultimately they contributed a majority of the writing team for 3 Houses. Thats were really Fantasyinvader's grasp for straws fall apart in trying to frame Edelgard as a purely villainous figure, it simply contradicts with the attitudes of the company which wrote the games journey. She does invoke the traditional Fire Emblem Archetype of the Rudolf, but subverts it while at the same time going way back into its foundations. Because after all, Rudolf himself was already a very morally grey and nuanced antagonist, who was revealed to actually voluntarily play the part of the villain and tyrant to set his plan in motion of creating a hero who is capable of ruling Valentia free of godly influences, which Edelgard does heavily imbody, only with the twist that the game indirectly encourages you to support, not oppose her. After all, the game itself heavily humanizes her even at the end of Azure Moon, where the mask of the Demon King, the Hegemon, she put on herself is lifted and she is El at the end, dying not at the Hegemon but as El. Visually the fact that the Hegemon Form is lifted from her at the end and Dimitri approaches her as El already shows, how the Hegemon itself was nothing but a facade, a role she was forced to play in service of her ideals. Even the ending theme is set up to be bittersweet, being Lady of Hresvelg which is entirely about Els perspective and her unfullfilled desires and wishes. Fantasyinvader's interpretation simply does not hold up under any scrutiny.

But here we also go into a darker territory which I need to express, namely what I learned about the misinformation and mischaracterization FI does spread about El, which goes far and above about your typical Edelgard Critical positions into a territory that is unambigiously rooted in some form of misogyny and, as I hinted at, kinda incel-esque attitudes. What I learned is that some time ago, Fantasyinvader started to refer to Crimson Flower as Safflower, based on the japanese name of the route which is Benibana translating into deep-red flower and being the japanese name of the flower, where he started to to push forward his personal blackpilled interpretation of CF and Edelgard as something of a seductress who seduces and manipulates the player and Byleth into being attracted to her in order to mislead them and manipulate them into rejecting enlightenment. What I gathered is really disgusting and dirty, as well as deeply problematic due to the context surrounding Edelgard as a character. As a non-sexualized, three-dimensional and nuanced female Lead character and central Lord of the game, as shown with her being the lead of the Engage 3 Houses Emblem, it is already kinda disgusting to really twist and bend the character into this kind of interpretation, especially with the added context of her backstory involving her being stripped of her bodily autonomy, something he seems to deny, as well as her position as Fire Emblems first canonically Non-Avatar Lord. It screams probelamtic and bad attitudes in every direction that he does go that low and I will not treat Fantasyinvader in any good faith after learning of that. For me it only supports the notion of the Edelcrit community having super misogynist and lesbophobic undertones, considering their vitriol and deranged hatred towards a character whose contemporary popcultural relevance is predominantly one of being a female queer gaming icon. Textually, the notion of Edelgard luring the player in with a seductive and adorable side is just...not what happens. Edelgard starts of as strict and less personable than the other leaders and requires active player effort by the player to show them her vulnerable and her more adorable side. For the most part she wears a mask of a strict class rep and later on, the flame emperor.

Then there is the issue of him outright lying. It begins with him seemingly pushing the interpretation that in flower language, Safflowers represent attraction, not love. Not helping with the I-Word image here, as this is outright untrue. What Safflowers actually represent is Good Luck and Happiness. In Folklore they are said to attract love and marriage. So in actuality, the meaning in flower language is the opposite of what he seems to want to push to his gullible audience. The Crimson Flower represents love and joy. Fantasyinvader also seems to spread lies about developer intentions and player receptions, seemingly talking about how the Developers talking about how Edelgard tricks the player and that Crimson Flower was made more accessible to trick them, which is simply a lie. There seems to be also comments about 'asian' players feeling tricked by Edelgard after playing Crimson Flower, which is not sourced and I feel rather skeptical about. It is reminiscent to claims that koreans hate Edelgard, when it was actually just posts from Kchan which were primarily motivated by bigotry and homophobia. Despite what many of the Edelcritical players try to tell themselves, most metrics indicate Edelgards popularity across the Fandom. She did bad in the Dream Interview Poll early on, but then sweeped her first round of CYL in Fire Emblem Heroes by being the most voted hero to this day, she consistently showed up as the most deployed unit of the game at its beginning and again in Heroes has her alts usually rank high before the voting gauntlet.

All in all, this bloggers particular points as far as I was made aware of them seem to be mostly based on misinformation, outright lies and some interpretations which he pushes forward with authority as truth that reflect more negatively on him than on Edelgard and again, in my opinion imply a bias coming from a darker place. It spreads a very problematic interpretation of the game that is simply not supported by the games text, subtext or presentation and sounds rooted in misogynist attitudes.

Having this out of my system and the blog already becoming very long, I will release a third part of the Blog where I will go deeper into the Demon King parallels between Edelgard and classical Koei Figures such as Cao Cao and especially Nobunaga and my thoughts on much of the roots of the attitudes towards Edelgards motives, goals and the war itself. Stay tuned for the upcoming part 3: Edelgard, Demon King of the Sixth Heaven.

#fe3h #edelgard positive #edelgard discourse #edelgard critical

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audreyscribes · 8 months ago

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How are Hestia's Flamekeepers (I'm going to call them that because it sounds so cool!) and Artemis's Hunters different? What abilities do Flamekeepers have from Hestia's Blessing?

I sort of eluded to Hestia’s Flamekeepers abilities in my story “Carry on My Wayward Child” with the Reader’s aunt being Hestia’s Priestess/Flameskeeper and the reader becoming one at the end, but here we go into more depth-

To start off, Hestia and in turn, Hestia’s Flamekeepers revolve around the hearth, home, place of belonging, family, bonds, and so forth; while Artemis’ revolve around sisterhood, maidenhood, wilderness, and hunting.

So aside from the sisterhood and shared maidenhood, swearing off romantic love, etc… they’re plenty different in terms of aspects. As a general differences between it’s like to be Hestia’s Priestesses from Artemis’ Huntresses:

I would say that unlike Artemis’ hunters, the Flamekeepers are non-combatants; matching with Hestia’s non-confrontational nature. While the Huntresses are out hunting monsters and moving at Artemis’ will, the Flamekeepers are back at home, places of refuge, maintaining it and keeping those there safe. Instead, I think the Flameskeeper are knowledgeable in healing, nothing too over the top like the Apollo kids, but more around the realm of medicinal home remedies, tending to wounds and pain from knowing first aid to soothing aches and pains both mentally and physically; like kissing a boo after putting a bandage on it. Not that they won’t or have any special, magical healing abilities but it's very down to earth. There’s nothing like making a literal magical bowl of chicken noodle soup to make someone magically feel better.

I’m not sure if Hestia would bestow partial-immortality to her flamekeepers, but given how Hestia sometimes look, the alternative is that she bestows her flamekeepers some sort of youth and vigour to them. A liveliness that is akin to being at home with a certain liveness to it. (I’m not sure if instead of not just a vow, they also step into the sacred fire, allowing the fire to burn away small amounts of mortality, thus bestowing immortality).

Being part of the Hearth, I’d imagine the more a flamekeeper tends to the flame, they stroke not only the physical flame, but also the one in their hearts/soul. The more you embody Hestia’s flame as you tend to it, you learn the whispers of the crackling flame before you find yourself using it. While you can use it how you see fit, you don’t really feel the need to use it in a fight; instead you feel more kin to using it for other things like lighting a candle, using your fire to rekindle the cold coals to boil the kettle to make someone a cup of tea, to light someone’s way through the darkness, providing warmth to those who need it. It’s not as ferocious as a roaring flame of Hephaestus, but it’s just as powerful. Just don’t use it to hurt for evil misdeeds. While the Flamekeepers are non-combatants, mostly, it doesn’t mean they won’t take up arms and do what is necessary when faced with danger; especially if it threatens the home and hearth. It’s a rare sight but when a force or someone tries to encroach your hearth with evil intentions to cause harm and destruction, the Flamekeepers will bear arms and stoke the flames that will burn away the evil.

Furthering healing and with fire, I also think the Flamekeepers are a master of blessings and curses. While rare to bestow a curse onto others, you still learn how to cast both blessings and curses, because to be knowledgeable in one, is to learn the other. In rare cases, you have to cast curses when someone has encroached the Flamekeepers’ place without permission or done something bad towards them. This information is more or less an open secret since Hestia doesn’t approve of her priestesses casting curses willy-nilly. Besides, it’s majorly to learn about curses to learn how to break them. The Flameskeepers are often bestowing others blessings when they leave camp for the year or when they go on a mission, and people come to you for help to burn curses; most often caused by Campers. Afterall, fire not only bestows warmth, it also burns.

It’s not a whole lot but I believe seasoned Flamekeepers are able to claim sanctuary and create a safe space in space they’ve made their own. From starting a small campfire in the middle of nowhere to your own personalized space. Anyone who enters your space that you’ve opened your door to is safe from danger, allowing you and others to rest and be safe. It won’t stop a god or a titan, but the more powerful and well-seasoned Flamekeeper is, the stronger their sanctuary is. So at the least, you can keep evil and some monsters away while you help feed and care for them; which is as much as demigods can ask for. In a more practical movement, you can protect others to a degree.

Like the Huntresses who have their silver palkas and gear, when enough time has elapsed and when they pledge to Hestia, they’re gifted with a veil. It not only as a minor protection, it also has minor invisibility that lets the wearer hide away from evil, harm, and such. It's not as invincible as wearing the Nemean Lion hide or powerful with the invisibility as the Helm of Darkness of Hades, but for a priestess of Hestia? That’s more than enough. You can wear it on your head like a veil or a headcovering (i.e. tichel, hijab, dupatta, so forth), a shawl, a scarf, to wrap around your waist, or whatever you like you find comfortable. It’s been weaved together with the help of all the sisters within the Flameskeepers with little ember hole marks by Hestia. If the Flameskeeper don’t have the beads from Camp Halfblood or Tattooed by Camp Jupiter, they have (also) the veil. Each year you all get together to embroider your veil with a design, helped by your sisters or by yourself, showing everyone. It can be elaborate or as simple as you like.

In a more practical, down to earth way, the Flamekeepers are domestics. I would like to think overtime each individual Flamekeeper becomes more talented in certain domestic activities; either its mending and sewing clothes, cooking and/or baking, and so forth. Being from the Hearth, you bring a home-like quality to everything you do and especially as you sing songs from home. So imagine all of that with some magical, blessing effect. So I guess if I had to put a term for it, it would be literal Household Magic.

That’s all I can think of. There’s probably more that other Flameskeepers that may think of when reading this but that’s only the beginning. Thanks for asking this, I had a lot of fun thinking about this! Hope you all have a great day!

#pjo imagine #percy jackson and the olympians imagines #pjo #pjo imagines #demigod h/cs #demigod headcanons #demigod imagines #hestia cabin #hestia #flameskeeper #scribe's note #ask the scribe #ask box #ask me stuff #asks

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