#give it up for god's specialest boy

[shinesurge]

holy roller [ x ]

[bitchimasnake-sss]

iconic (random) quotes as the strawhat crew + shanks, ace!

luffy:

- if you didn't wanna get assimilated into my found family, you should have killed me when you had the fucking chance - i dont have sex cause it serves no narrative purpose to me - (flirting) you look so biteable today - the fact that i am constantly saying weird and unpleasant things is just part of my charm

zoro:

- he's probably texting so many girls sweet things. stand out. tell him you're gonna stab him. - got caught giving a fuck. embarrassing. - *clearly covered in blood and guts but trying to act normal* ok. maybe i did awaken my inner beast. so what. fuck u guys - dont care, didnt ask, plus my boobs jiggle when i walk

sanji:

- talking stage? baby just move in we can talk at home - hes NOT just some guy, hes my girlfriend - how is "pretty boy" an isult?? yes, i am the prettiest boy in town, call me a pretty boy - "what if your gf was wrong?" i'd reshape reality to make it right.

shanks:

- i knew i was gonna be a good daddy at the ripe age of fifteen - if i had a lame ass boyfriend i would hype him up so much. i'd make him wait outside as i go in first and and be like get ready here comes the most specialest boy ever if you dont cheer and clap for him ill blow this whole building up (talking about buggy) - bro your relationship with your friend is borderline homosexual and i think thats beautiful

ace:

- "i can fix him" good for you, i joined him in his insanity - (gripping the bathroom sink, knuckle turning white) but i stay silly :3 i stay silly :3 i stay silly :3 i sta - *gets caught pickpocketing cause i keep saying "yoink" out loud when i do it* - everyday i have to wake up and carry on being a little babygirl

nami:

- i am so happy for you and your ugly fucking boyfriend, im serious - if i had a boyfriend i'd trap him in a glass jar and shake him around - puts cocaine in my lip gloss so when she kisses me she thinks im god - you let a blonde man speak to you like that????

ussop:

-you can't "im just a little guy" out of this one cunt - i could never abuse substances, i love substances - you'd be amazed about the amount of times ive fucked around without finding one single thing

chopper:

- girls be like "i love animals!!" and hate themselves....... like you're an animal girl <3 peace on planet earht - if you look really closely i have this "fear meter" floating next to me that goes up whenever anything - being six feet tall seems excessive

[bonefall]

First off, obviously this is a WC blog so I won't go further but THANKS for the brief dunk of The Lion Guard, that's one of my biggest problems with the show. Second off, are you seeing this shit Elder Bones?! * Points at the Thunder Spoiler Thread at WCRPForums * Do try to avoid reading the posts that aren't chapters though, they're bad as usual for that site lol.

Maybe one day I'll grumble about Lion King on the side blog lmao.

Anyway... that spoiler thread. I try to take these threads with a pinch of salt, but... overall feelings are really getting negative. If I had a Vibes Barometer, the needle would be dipping out of positive right now.

We're 2 books away from the conclusion and I don't know if they have time to turn this around... and they chose to spend time traveling. It's partially a travel book, guys. Several chapters of pointless bullshit.

(Spoilers under the cut-- remember we are getting this secondhand from a spoiler thread. Some of this may turn out to be misrepresentation.)

NIGHTHEART STUFF

We start off where the preview left off. They jerk the shit out of your chain with Squirrelstar teasing but spoiler we DO got her

(CELEBRATORY SQUIRRELSTAR MUSIC)

We get a BrambleSquirrel screaming match. Please for the love of god divorce these characters, this is fucking insufferable

They also had to give Bramblestar a smug little gotcha moment where he's right about his argument, Squilf accidentally walks to SkyClan camp for the plot and it turns out that Bramblestar, the guy who was apparently supposed to have memory issues and brain fog, was right that Squilf forgot how to navigate her own territory

Im dead serious she like... accidentally walked to SkyClan.

This is a clever literary trick called bad writing <3

While they're there, Nightheart says, "HEY WASNT THERE A MEDIATOR THINGY? ISNT HE SUPPOSED TO SOLVE DISPUTES?"

*I look directly into the camera. Right at you. Reader I am glimpsing across the magical threads of the internet, directly into your soul.*

Leafstar

says

"I Forgor"

if this thread is to be believed. Then the canonical explanation for why Tree was not mediating up to this point. Is because every single cat around the lake. Including the geniuses who came up with a unique role JUST for the specialest little boy. Just fucking forgot about him.

(bestselling young adult series)

Do I laugh? Do I cry?

I think im unlocking the emotion that those lizards who shoot blood from their eyes feel just before a squirt

Anyway

There is also an absurd amount of Bramblestar winking at Nightheart and teasing him about his new mate and reminding the audience about how much Nightheart wuvs him. This is probably supposed to be charming?

it just feels unsettling, ngl.

It's even more Bramble Worship than normal, like the writer is trying really hard to stress how cool and awesome their special boy is :D and how dumb and mean his wife is >:( and it's so fucking forced.

They pad the book by having it be cloudy so that StarClan doesn't show up the first time they try to do the Squirrelstar thing

I kept thinking, "What if this wasn't a willing abdication?? What if the Clan didn't have a second chance to do this?? What if this was Nightstar 2 all over again and she died of plot convenience before coming back?! This dumbfuck system has fixed NOTHING"

Plumstone and Dewnose have a moment where they antagonize Nightheart over the fact he was chosen to accompany Squilf and Bramble to the Moonpool, because he just got back and it's not fair

And you know what? They're right actually

Nightheart huffs that Squilf was giving him a Chance To Prove Himself but he doesn't fucking get it! His whole life's been nothing but chances he threw tantrums about being offered or blew up through wrecklessness, like a spoiled brat nepobaby, and he keeps getting more and more

Meanwhile Plumstone here has been in the background just being this consistently steady warrior, and has never gotten a chance to shine

He also has a moment where he whines about Sparkpelt and Finchlight being mean to him in the past when Sunbeam shares they've been super nice to her.

Sunbeam offers that they're probably trying to make up for it and he agrees.

Folks. I REALLY. REALLY HOPE. That this ends with Sunbeam telling him, "Nightheart, you are the problem. They've treated me like Kin, and they treat their Kin well. Do YOU?"

Anyway something happens and suddenly Nightheart's on the trip with Frostpaw.

The rest of his chapters so far (at time of writing the spoiler thread is at chapter 14-ish) are traveling chapters.

The traveling chapters suck diet discount dick. They look like they were rejected submissions for the various travel shenanigans that happened in Riverstar's Home.

For me, this is the most disappointing part of the Thunder Spoiler Thread. I love Nightheart because I really like the idea of him learning to grow, consider his actions, and realize that he's actually been very loved in his life.

I like the impulsive Nightheart from Book 1 who doesn't know what's wrong with himself, shooting down every attempt others make to bond with him, making shocking descisions that frustrate the entire Clan and not realizing how much he gets away with. I hoped that maybe, just maybe, the writing could be a little clever for once.

But, no. On this trip he's still whining to Frostpaw about how his family "wanted him to be like Firestar" and this is treated as something Frostpaw is able to bond with him about, somehow, because Curlfeather wanted her to be a Medcat??? And now she's choosing to be a Medcat again anyway????

FROSTPAW STUFF

WC Writing Team: "Everyone is super invested in Frostpaw's story where she learns to choose her own path! Especially the idea that she chose to not be a medcat of her own will and made a brave choice for herself! Lets fix that"

Literally, I guess lol

Smoky Cameo. Fuck Smoky. I hate this character and I hate seeing his deadbeat ass.

Gotta love how Daisy's one major role in ASC so far has been to be a source of negative emotions for Nightheart, but Smoky gets to be the new Barley with a cutesy barn rest stop.

He calls for a human to come get Frostpaw because she's got wounds.

Like. Cat MEOW MEOW calling. And this summons... a magic vet?

She has the world's fastest field surgery, as if she's some kind of endangered wild leopard and a top-notch vet staff rolled out of a research truck.

They even inject her, by hand, with tranquilizer. Who the fuck carries cat tranquilizer around?

Is this barn in the back of a fucking vet office???

Does this universe have roving surgical vans that drive around and play music like an ice cream truck, waiting for cats to call them over?????

Frostpaw wakes up back in the barn

But now her neck wound is fixed and she's spayed.

She looks down at the fresh cut on her abdomen and is like "what's this"

Smoky: "dont worry abt it"

If Frostpaw is okay with being sterilized, this will be the first time in the series that a cat being fixed will be seen as a good thing

Which, irl, it is. To be clear. Spay and neuter your animals

But dudes, this is really massively unsettling me. It seems like she doesn't know what has been done to her. This has never been treated as a positive thing in this series before. In the last book she was talking about the sort of life she would like to live

Once again she has been stripped of her own choices in a massive way

And if Smoky apparently lives so close to a vet that they just come when he calls,

I have so many questions im losing my marbles

Why is Smoky not neutered

Why were none of his 3, possibly 4 wives spayed

Why are his kids not fixed

Why were his kits with Floss taken "when they were too young to even open their eyes" back in TNP if their humans are so loving and educated

SO EDUCATED THEY WALK AROUND WITH CAT TRANQUILIZER

Anyway through the power of the writers not caring anymore, Frostpaw can now talk to StarClan whenever she wants.

They have magically bestowed a connection onto her.

This is apparently something they can just do now. Maybe it's tied to near-death experiences or the vet or something

Remember Shadowsight having a whole thing about this at the end of TBC?

Remember Mothwing and how upsetting it was to have no connection to them and how finding Willowpaw was a big thing in TNP?

Yeah apparently they could just do this whenever. Sorry.

Frostpaw is just cool with this because fuck the last book where she found out she likes being a warrior

Agency? What's THAT

It's not ok if your mom encourages you to be a doctor nun, but StarClan rips your organs out and forces you to be their mouthpiece and that's peachy-fucking-keen.

Then she goes traveling for several chapters i want to commit crime

Riverstar does the usual alarmist moaning, "ooooouuugh this newest crisis could destroy riverclan!!! Oooooooooooooouuououou it's for real this time!!!!"

Everything's gonna destroy the clans. A light breeze has just reduced ThunderClan to rubble. A beetle has landed gently upon Harestar's nose, 34 dead 25,430 injured

Girl help frostpaw is being followed by clickbait headline ghosts

And, also, for no good reason, the ghosts can't just answer a question. Why? Who fucking knows. Never explained. They can summon Frostpaw into a Ghost Zoom Call whenever they want now, but they're forbidden from revealing anything useful.

Average autistic experience with zoom calls though, can confirm, that is what every zoom call ive ever been in was like.

Im serious though, she tries to ask Reed who killed him, he just says no i cant :(

She tries to ask where her mom is. They don't tell her she's downstairs.

Riverstar says nothing useful

I have never been more frustrated with StarClan as a plot device. This is actually fucking insufferable.

They're annoying enough when they send vague signs and prophecies that amount to nothing, but now they can pop up like shitty unskippable cutscenes and STILL add nothing of value to the plot

Something I was ENJOYING was how much more grounded ASC was compared to previous arcs, and that StarClan was back to being difficult to access directly. Gone. Goodbye.

SUNBEAM STUFF

The highlight of the book everyone leave me alone i need to speak directly to sunbeam

I like how she's finding more reasons than just Nightheart to stay in ThunderClan, but is also struggling with the shift in culture

It's in a Sunbeam chapter that we FINALLY get Squilfstar. Everyone say Thank You Sunbeam

If you even LOOK at the Sunbeam wrong I will smash you to death with my hooves

For once it actually feels like we're using the cast in ThunderClan. Cherryfall, Dewnose, Plumstone, Myrtlebloom, Bayshine, Finchlight, Sparkpelt, and Lionblaze all get some significant little lines to add to this.

In particular I like Cherryfall throwing a bit of a fit about being a senior warrior and acting high and mighty, which Sunbeam immediately dislikes because ShadowClan doesn't do as much posturing. It's fun to see how she percieves ThunderClan cats.

I have a softness for these sorts of stories though, to be fair. The idea of moving to a new place and having to adjust.

It's also neat that she's growing frustrated with how Nightheart has now ditched her THRICE.

Girl please steal his family and dump him.

Be a legend. Marry his sister. It would make you the queen of pettiness you would become my favorite forever

Ivypool's exams are also pretty neat, they all test teamwork abilities. I'm going to be happy when I finally get to read them in full, if nothing else, these trials have been delightful to see.

Anyway the next emergency gathering comes up and it descends into an argument

Dovewing gets to yell at Ivypool and tell her to back off <3 "You're not going to manipulate my mate through me, screw you"

Tigerheartstar and the other leaders eventually agree to meet with the mediator off-screen because the writers don't feel like showing us Tree's madd skillz which definitely justify having this unique role that we completely forgot about until just now

It doesn't accomplish anything meaningful because they only acknowledged the mediator role to make the fans stop complaining

Tigerheartstar agrees to not station more warriors in RiverClan territory but nothing else. Waow.

aaand Berryheart's planning something and Sparrowtail, Sunbeam's father, accidentally spills the beans to his daughter. I like this because I have always imagined him as a himbo

so... yeah. It's not looking great. I'm not having a good time in this spoiler thread. I am hoping that a fair amount of it is misrepresentation, because if it's what the leaker says it is, I'm not going to be a happy camper

[harlequinoccult]

"OH MY GOD THAT'S HOW THEY KNOW EACHOTHER!!" <- me having an epiphany when you suggested Carter was the one to give Ariel his fake documents

anyway i had to get off anon for this one, just wanted to give u this super messy sketch i made of my specialest boy, w his mask on bc drawing faces is hard-

how does he see anything w that thing on? great question!

drawing has been hard for me to do recently, but i want to come up w a OD design so i can draw them being freaks together. maybe one day ill actually manage to do it-

anyway, just wanted to do this as a lil thanks for taking an interest in him and even helping to make his backstory make more sense one way or another XD

i hope you're having a lovely day! your IF has made a bit insane, so thanks for making it, i have two more freaks i can ramble abt later on if you're ok w that! don't forget to hydrate!!

-🦊

I love hearing about and seeing people's mcs and ocs and im glad i could help 😌

[lakesbian]

stirring aisha around in my brain soup pot. there's like zero textual anything for this because wildbow isn't even capable of not objectifying her himself but btwn triggering from fear of rape + various unspecified abusive stepdads + the inherent trauma of being societally sexualized and fetishized as a black girl who, like, Exists and also god forbid enjoys wearing shorts sometimes plus the whole neglect and the thing where the one family member she's really close to only knows how to protect her by controlling her and the sense of being an unwanted nuisance to society in general because of the disability. she is really sooo about wanting to be accurately perceived and wanted but being terrified of being seen wrong & consumed. aisha laborn my girl. anyway i don't have a point to this i just wish wildbow connected the dots and wrote her good. i also wish his dumb ass didn't not only pull the narrative equivalent of the black man dying first (black boy's arc kersploding and shitting itself first) but then have his own damn sister not give a single shit abt him. but i digress it feels tangentially related to her problems disorders that after her loved ones die, w/ the exception of her own brother whom she does not care about because wildbow is insane and needs to be strung up and pelted with tomatoes, she insists on making sure that they're Perceived And Treated Right. alec's first memorial very pointedly capturing the essence of him, particularly the tragedy of his life that everyone else missed, placed where people can't Not look at it, alec's second memorial being faithfully rendered dolls (my doll imagery boy ♥) she insists on people taking care of, her being very vehement about people not disrespecting or misunderstanding taylor's memory, etc. would love to come up with what she does for brian in secret good worm where wildbow doesn't shit the bed everywhere but i haven't thought of anything yet unfortunately. well. i am leaning towards the previously stated memorial leather jacket & hairstyle + her just like. perpetually loudly insisting that he was The Specialest Best Big Brother Ever if anyone ever speaks critically about him. not because he wasn't flawed but as sort of a "fuck you you WILL appreciate how hard he tried only I get to be mean to brian." i digress it's very Augh Ough how she insists on making sure that what's happened to her, the misperception & obscurity she's afraid of, never happens to her loved ones. quite frankly one of the characters of all time ever. aisha laborn rectangular prism. this originally started as a post about why redditors are wrong about shipping aisha and alec but then i started thinking other things so now it is not about that.

[idkacatmonstermaybe]

okay hello @headfulloffeathers jess this is for you and the approximately two other people who might care about this meta breakdown but these are some of the parallels i see between look homeward and supernatural

(thank you for providing a distraction boot smut is stumping me i only have like 700 words written 😭)

(also uh supernatural spoilers? i guess? in the year of our lord 2024?)

okay so idk how much you know about supernatural so extremely surface level summary when dean is four and sam is like a few months old a demon kills their mom and then they spend their entire childhood on the road with their dad hunting supernatural monsters and searching for the demon who killed their mom. that’s like………. the bare bones basic premise of the show before they started delving hard into the angels/demons/biblical lore which gets really interesting and convoluted and tbh i stopped watching at a certain point bc i got bored and confused. SO basic vibes their mom (mary) is killed and their entire childhood they’re dragged around the entire country learning how to kill things bc their dad (john) is on a revenge bender.

so big overarching parallels: dean is a literal toddler when he is given the responsibility of caring for his baby brother which is so similar to a1 being 12 and assuming responsibility for sickly little 9 year old a2

sam is also like…. “assigned wrong at birth” lmfao bc the demon that kills their mom feeds him his blood to give him special powers? very confusing BUT there are moments where he’s ostracized for his powers and being born different and the way that parallels gods specialest boy a2 actually hurts me

follow up to that is sam goes through a phase where he is discovering these new abilities and goes a little power hungry and he starts drinking demon blood (lol don’t worry about it) and this gives me pretty strong serial killer era a2 vibes? but this one is a little looser bc sam and dean are still hunting together while this is going on and i’m pretty sure serial killer a2 is during the 92-01 separation? but they both have “dark” eras lmfao

okay also re: 92-01 when sam graduates high school he goes away to stanford for college and there’s a big falling out with john a “if you walk out that door don’t bother coming back” type moment so the boys don’t see each other for several years and there’s kind of the energy of really not knowing if they’re ever going to see each other again which parallels the very little we know about 92-01.

ALSO there are several moments throughout supernatural where sam is pushing to try to have a “normal” life—like going away to college to try and get a piece of normalcy that they never got to experience as kids. there’s also an arch in a later ish season where sam goes to hell (again……. don’t worry about it) and his like dying wish is that dean gets a chance at a normal life so dean shacks up with this woman lisa and her son ben but then when sam comes back he obviously ditches them lmfao. so there’s even an eden parallel sneaking in there lololol.

one thing that stays consistent throughout the series is also the way sam and dean are willing to do absolutely anything for each other like…… literally bring about the apocalypse if it means keeping each other safe which is The Dynamic of all time and is part of what makes a1/a2 so compelling

oh also sam is the vessel for the archangel lucifer and dean for michael which is flipped based on a1 and a2 but it’s also a fun little tidbit

obviously none of this means literally anything BUT early season supernatural was a fixation of mine for a while (obviously lmfao) so i find it so fitting that there are so many themes and motifs from one of my og hyperfixations are present in my current one

[specialagentartemis]

Driving me crazy (in a good way, I find it an absolutely FASCINATING framing) how Epic: The Musical presents Odysseus telling his name to the Cyclops and how it's framed, emotionally.

This crucial moment is an act typically told and interpreted as one of his primary moments of hubris, taunting, unnecessary gloating revealing his clever ruse - the 19th century poet William Cullen Bryant translated this moment:

Thus to the Cyclops tauntingly I called:— “ ‘Ha! Cyclops! those whom in thy rocky cave Thou, in thy brutal fury, hast devoured, Were friends of one not unexpert in war;

His men tell him "seriously, do not tell him your name, what is wrong with you, let's just go," but he continues,

And then I spake again, and angrily:— “ ‘Cyclops, if any man of mortal birth Note thine unseemly blindness, and inquire The occasion, tell him that Laertes’ son, Ulysses, the destroyer of walled towns, Whose home is Ithaca, put out thine eye.’

We get it, Odysseus thinks he is so clever, and wants the Polyphemus and anyone else who asks to know it was he, Odysseus, King of Ithaca, who did it. And this moment of pride and gloating and telling Polyphemus his name is what dooms him and his crew.

Epic: The Musical reverses that emotional context. In "Warrior of the Mind," we see an Odysseus who is successful and gloating and kinda hubristically trying to one-up a god - after he kills Athena's boar.

ATHENA Well done. Enlighten me, what's your name?

ODYSSEUS You first, and maybe I'll do the same.

ATHENA Nice try, but two can play this game.

This is Odysseus at his most confident and in control, and he's playing smug little "no u" games with a goddess. Refusing to give his name first is a power move; he wants Athena to introduce herself first to show just how impressive she finds him. (It's a good thing Athena thinks it's cute rather than insulting.) (I also think it's extremely relevant that at this point in the narrative, he's a teenager who hasn't seen war or committed atrocities yet.)

So the ending of the Cyclops Saga shows us the opposite. After escaping from Polyphemus, Epic shows us an Odysseus who is not confident or emotionally in control. Epic has been leaning heavily on Odysseus's role as captain and leader with a duty to his men, and losing his people - including his best friend - so catastrophically leaves him in shock, grief, and anger. His call to the Cyclops here isn't a "if anyone asks you why you're blind now, tell them--" it's "the next time that you dare choose not to spare, remember them - remember us - remember me." It's a scream of grief and rage. It's a follow-through of the concept that his comrades will not have died in vain. It's a, how could you? The war was supposed to be over! We were just trying to go home! This isn't an Odysseus who feels in any position to gloat. Even Athena characterizes it as "reckless, sentimental at best," rather than prideful.

This is one of the big things I mean when I say Epic: The Musical makes Odysseus much more heroic and moral according to modern values than he's portrayed in the Odyssey. We are much, much more willing to sympathize, and empathize, with a protagonist who makes really bad decisions because he was driven by love and grief and a desire for mercy over violence than a protagonist who makes really bad decisions because he thinks he's the smartest specialest boy around and wants to make sure his enemies know it.

And I'm not necessarily saying that in a bad way. I think this in particular is a super interesting adaptation choice, reversing expectations and making Odysseus's doom read to us as genuinely tragic rather than "what the fuck did you expect, you dumbass."

[painedpen]

Hi, i wanted to ask about your Mondo Oowada headcanons and platonic pairings :) i want to hear a rant, so dont worry about rambling

Okay so I’ve already answered an ask about my Mondo hcs, so now we’re gonna talk about my Kiyotaka hcs because he’s my second specialest little guy.

Fluff:

- Taka only really relaxes when he’s at home. He lets himself slouch and put his feet up while he works on a project. His manner of speech is much more casual when talking to his father. All around it’s the only time he can truly be peaceful.

- Takaaki’s grandfather came to the country from Spain, and thus the whole family is fluent in Spanish. This, of course, includes Taka. He speaks so fast it’s almost impossible to understand him when he’s speaking Spanish.

- His dad read somewhere that ear piercings could help soothe migraines, and decided to take Taka to get a couple for his birthday. Taka refuses to wear his ear cuffs anywhere outside the house, but he likes them because they make for good tactile and audio stims.

- Obviously autistic. Like c’mon.

- He is Very Normal about martial arts and weaponry. He researches extensively, and practices extensively as well. Because of this, he has a bizarrely wide knowledge of how to kill or seriously maim people.

- He actually spars with Sakura quite a bit. While he definitely can’t beat her, she enjoys that Taka is a bit more of a challenge than other people.

- Because of poverty and such, he was never able to afford good ingredients, so he only knows how to cook very basic dishes. He’s the best at making those basic dishes, though.

- You want ramen but don’t have the energy to make it yourself? Go to Taka, cause his ramen will have you meeting God so you can spiritually high five Her.

- You do have to specify not to put a crazy amount of spices in it though. He and his dad have so much spice tolerance it’s honestly concerning.

- He tries so hard to be well behaved, but growing up with Takaaki has had its side effects. Taka’s startle response is to excessively swear in Spanish. He’s mortified with himself every time.

- Honestly he’s so much more chill when he’s not in a professional environment. If you’re not at school or work he doesn’t give a shit if you swear or whatever. Just don’t do it in front of kids and he’s fine.

- Protesting king. Oh, it’s against the rules for people to wear their pride pins? Guess who’s walking down the halls wearing a rainbow flag as a cape? It’s Kiyotaka Ishimaru, motherfucker.

- Has probably been detained before due to involvement in protests. He’s always peaceful, but if the attending officers get a bit too eager, he’s gotta do what he’s gotta do.

- Can leap over an eight-foot-tall fence in a single bound, and will at the slightest hint of provocation.

- If he’s too focused on his work, the filter between his brain and mouth will forget to work. It’s honestly so entertaining because he’ll just say whatever comes to mind, no matter how insulting or rude it is.

Angst: (CW for Violence, Child Abuse, Scars, Eating Disorders)

- Okay here we fuckin go.

- Taka has more scars than anyone else in his class. Some are from his grandfather (more on that later), but most of them are from his grandfather’s enemies.

- As everyone has already guessed, Toranosuke wasn’t all that great to Taka. He would spend weekends babysitting sometimes, and would force Taka to study for days.

- He would lock Taka in his room and wouldn’t let him out until he decided that Taka had done enough. Sometimes Taka would go the whole weekend without any food.

- At one point, Taka tried to sneak out to get something to drink, but his grandfather caught him. Long story short, that’s how he got that huge scar on his shoulder.

- Taka dissociates while he studies now. He absorbs the information, but he’ll be mumbling to himself about “yes, sir… I’ll do better, sir… sorry sir…” even though no one else is in the room with him.

- This boy has had more pints of coffee than hours of sleep in his lifetime.

- He will mix black coffee and five hour energy and down the whole thing in under a minute. Everyone who knows him worries for his health.

- He obviously struggles with nightmares, so he’ll study or work out to avoid sleeping most nights. He normally stays awake until he collapses from exhaustion.

- Touch used to be a huge No for him. Even Takaaki could barely pat him on the shoulder for a long time. When Makoto first held his face, Taka started sobbing.

- Sometimes he’ll genuinely forget that people can be kind. When he sees someone doing something nice for him or others, it kinda knocks the breath out of him because “That’s so strange… I forgot people had the capacity for it…”

- Will straight up not eat for days. He got so used to being without food as a child that having three meals a day will actively make him sick.

- He does not trust teachers in the slightest. He’ll be respectful to them, but he’d rather bite off his own tongue than ask one for help.

- This is mainly because of his middle school days. Other students would beat him to a pulp, and the teachers would just stare at him, in a puddle of his own blood, and walk away.

- There was one teacher who did something worse than that, but I don’t feel comfortable going into details at this moment. Use your imagination, it’s probably as bad as you think.

Platonic Pairings:

Kiyotaka + Sayaka:

- I’m so smart for this just let me explain.

- Sayaka asked him to teach her how to do several Latin dances, and they’ve been best friends ever since.

- They really relate to each other in the sense that they both have had to work extremely hard in order to achieve their goals. They both believe that hard work can achieve anything.

- The entire idol group loves Taka, but Sayaka is the only one he sees everyday.

- He hangs out with the lot of them very often, and they help him loosen up a bit.

Kiyotaka + Aoi:

- This one is so obvious.

- Hina is Colombian, so she was ecstatic to find another Spanish speaker in her class. She constantly clowns on Kiyotaka’s accent though.

- They’re both so passionate about the things they care about it’s so cute to watch them interact.

- I think Taka is one of the only people that can keep up with Hina’s energy level consistently.

Kiyotaka + Kyoko:

- They are childhood friends.

- Think about it. Taka’s dad is a detective, so is Kyoko’s grandfather. Kyoko’s grandfather is too smart to fall for the whole “all Ishimaru’s are evil blegh!” thing.

- I’m saying they hung out when they were little. I’m right too.

- Taka helps Kyoko express her emotions more clearly while Kyoko helps Taka calm down and focus his mind.

Kiyotaka + Peko:

- Top tier sword bros.

- Taka saw Peko training one day and promptly decided that she was the coolest person to ever exist.

- Peko admires his true passion for the art of swordplay. He reminds her of herself when she was younger.

- I’m making Peko sound like an old woman here please excuse me.

- Taka admires her so much it’s so cute. He calls her Shishou until Peko asks him to stop. After that he sticks to Peko-Senpai.

Kiyotaka + Gonta:

- Sobbing crying throwing up punching the air.

- Gonta wants to be a gentleman and Taka is one of the best people to go to for lessons in etiquette.

- They are autistic together.

- Gonta calls Taka Senpai exactly one time. Taka starts crying cause he’s so honored. Gonta thinks he hurt Taka’s feelings. He never calls Taka Senpai again.

- Taka liked bugs as a kid, and still kinda does, so he and Gonta get along so well.

*Insert autism creature Yippee sound byte*

[sad-stucky-shipper-107]

WOW SO EPISODE 2 HUH?

This guy just str8 up tried to gun down a couple of kids huh?

Why is he so cool

Side note, why is his character design so hot

he is so silly n whimsical i love him

The way he just switches from super silly to super serious skdjkjd

Jesus fucking christ that's horrifying

What a giga chad, I stan

HES SO SMART LIKE DAMN, I COULD NEVER

nEVER HAVE I SIMPED HARDER FOR A FICTIONAL CHARACTER, SORRY SASUKE

Listen. Listen this guy. DO U UNDERSTAND. THIS GUY HAS VIBES. HE IS A- OH MY GOD WHAT THE FUCK IS HE?! WHY IS HE SO HOT?! WHAT THE FUCK IS HAPPENING TO ME?!

He truly is gods specialest favourite boy, is what im getting from this

OH GODS. THE ABSOLUTE NO AMOUNT OF EMPATHEY HE HAS CUZ HE EXPETIENCED THE SAME THING. THE COLD AND YET ABSOLUTELY RIGHT ADVICE HE'S GIVING HER- OH GOD- OH SHIT- OH GODDAMN-

[illmetkismet]

for the character thing, the outsider?

🙏🙏🙏 thank you so much, and a please accept my preemptive apology for the essay this will probably become...

How I feel about this character: I was saving this one for last from the batch of asks I got for this game, because the Outsider is my specialest boy of all time 🥹 I played D1 and was like, 'oooh how fun and sexy, a mysterious Void god!' but then D2 happened with the whole Omelas-ass reveal and my brain melted like a caterpillar in its chrysalis into a soup of sadness and suffering from which the beautiful butterfly of my borderline-unhealthy obsession with the Outsider emerged. You can't just give me a character who's a metaphor for isolation, expulsion, and profound loneliness, and not expect me to pick him up and put him in my pocket forever. Do I project onto him? Over-identify, even? Yeah, shut up, so whaaaaaat? Aren't all of us trapped in a Void of our own, really? Who here hasn't been forever altered by the cruelty of others? And who among us isn't constantly sticking their fingers in the pie of life, poking around in there, hoping against hope to find some glimmer of goodness and hope and joy? Who isn't sick of all this shit and just wants to rest?? Ha ha as you can see I'm totally normal about him.

All the people I ship romantically with this character: Just Corvo. He fascinates the Outsider, he surprises him, he's the catalyst for the kind of moments the Outsider says he waits for (this is, crucially, a line you only get from him after the low chaos Burrows elimination). I think the Outsider's been searching for someone who won't disappoint him for such a long time, someone he could give a piece of himself to who won't turn around and do something terrible with it. Like.... Come on! That's it, for me. To love is to give yourself away a little bit, to be surprised when the person who receives that gift treats it with the seriousness and consideration it deserves. And that's Corvosider 🖤🖤🖤

My non-romantic OTP for this character: Billie's whole journey to find him, and the understanding she comes to about him means so much to me.... 100% they become friends post-DotO. Letting him live is her way of letting herself live, to put her past behind her and prove to herself, once and for all, that she's more than a killer. And for the Outsider, she's the one person who could best understand the truth of what he is, how he was made into what he is, because in a way she's had the same done to her. The world fucked them both over so hard and forced them into these untenable positions that caused them both so much pain.... Oh god I have to stop thinking about this. They're best bros for life, next question!

My unpopular opinion about this character: I definitely prefer D2 Outsider over D1. I know ppl were very invested into the whole whale god thing, but his human sacrifice backstory was what really did it for me. Plus I love the way Robin Lord Taylor voiced him - the Hollows speeches in DotO make me so fucking emotional... He does a great job of going from bitchy to breathily earnest, and the emotional whiplash that gives me is very fun. Plus the way he scrunches his nose a little sometimes! Aaaaaa D2 Outsider my favorite son!

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon: Obviously I really really really wanted to see what he would get up to after he became human again, cause uh, I wrote a novel about it lol.... But one thing I really wanted to see, that I didn't even do myself, was for the Outsider to go meet Sokolov, finally, as a mortal. I think that would be such great closure for both of them: for Sokolov to see indisputable proof that the power he was chasing was terrible and cruel (something he realized for himself in his final years, but meeting the Outsider would have driven this home beautifully), and for the Outsider to conclusively put away his old fickle relationship with humanity. For both of them to see each other as human beings, to really understand how fucked up the way they related to each other was. I'd love that!

[ass0nance]

on this blog so its between me and god here. do not fucking talk to me about harry potter i am not going to even ACKNOWLEDGE anything that jk rowling wrote.

yes I also read it as a child, I was living and breathing during the 2000s. however. I also have the capacity to grow and change my opinions. I have the ability to reevaluate even things which I once loved.

I'm not even against separating the art from the artist, on principle, it's just that so often you can't. JK's radical centrist nothing-ideology story about what if wanna-be jock in the uk was the worlds most specialest boy and grows up to be a cop is not separate from her personal beliefs. there's an implicit message in the story that there is an elite class of people, largely genetic, and that it's their moral obligation not to do anything to benefit the rest of the world outside their own community. It's isolationist, and it's the archetypal centrist approach: the actual platform of the people considered most sensible in the story is merely a toned-down version of the far-right villains! All Voldemort offered was escalation of the wizard-supremacy status quo that remains in place at the end of the story! ON TOP OF THAT the racism! cho chang!?? you're kidding me. even as a child I could clock that one. and the vagueposted antisemitism.... it's not giving "separate from her personal beliefs" here. The entire subplot about what if there were slaves except here they like it that way is not able to be separated from the author, here.

like Look if you can separate the art from the artist, go ahead i guess... but you can't do that here, it's essential that jk rowling wrote those books and her ideologies permeate them. leave them in the past. it's okay to let go. it's okay to move on. it's okay to have loved them when you were young, and it's good to be able to take in new points of view as time goes on, and adjust your lifestyle accordingly. this is part of what keeps us young at heart and keeps us from turning into conservatives. it's not all about conserving the nostalgia of your youth. sometimes it's about looking back and saying: i only liked that so much, that only seemed so simple, because I was young and didn't know what I know now.

and if you can't do that, don't fucking talk to me about harry potter

[blistering-typhoons]

BBC SHERLOCK REWATCH - A STUDY IN PINK (REAL TIME NOTES)

From the perspective of someone who watched this show when they were thirteen, made it their whole personality and then stopped being a massive prat.

I thought about organizing this into a cohesive review, and maybe as I go on I'll delve deeper into some of my observations but for now I thought it would be funny to present my findings in raw, mostly unaltered form:

- loud ass opening, my god

- only bit of acting Martin freeman ever does lmao

- dances along to theme against my will

- god the effects and transitions are so shit

- all the shots of the pills are so ugly

- oh yay molly - whoo - yayyy

- the potential withe these two goddamn

- also this sherlock does not drink his respect women juice by god

- fucksake the deduction about john's sister- not only is it translated awfully into this modern setting, it's explicitly a deduction Sherlock is supposed to make once they know eachother a bit better

- THE POTENTIAL

- also sherlock displaying one insecurity when john accidentally insults his stuff- well done moftiss, characterization

- How far away is the crime scene, why it dark

- pls the transitions

- PIPE BOMB, WHOO Phone deductionnnn

- oh my god it's so shit

- uuuuuuuugggghhhh the potential I hate this shooooow

- fuckin deduction as a way for witty one liners and sexism, i hate this place

- 'you were thinking it's annoying' i'm going to send myself off a cliff, CRINGE

- RACHE- moffat, come here a sec- literally putting ACD on par with the police, who are always wrong the sheer audacity- also just a bad change

- these lens flare white lights are so goofy please, you will never be a whole scene of silence with jeremy brett

- benedict cumberbatch is very pretty i will grant

- terrorized by the fact i used to quote this show unironically

- from a writing point of view I understand that John gushing over Sherlock is to show off and emphasize their specialest boy- but, some sincerity is infused into it from an acting standpoint

- 30:02 GIRLIE WHAT IS THAT SOUND EFFECT

- OOH YAY THE PSYCHOPATH/SOCIOPATH STUFF WHOO YEAAAAH

- All the phones calling as john walks past is kinda cool but mostly stupid

- oh anthea, what a rich character lmao

- how long was mycroft posed like that

- First johnlock queerbait whooo

- Where does he fuck off to???

- he just vanishes lmaoooo

- Three patch problem. Bruh.

- I am bored as shit, help

- This music- girl

- Bloated is a very good word to describe some of these scenes

- HERE SHE IS- THE BIG DADDY OF QUEERBAITING

- this scene is insane fucKING INSANE I HATE THIS SHOW

- god how much episode is left fucksake

- the stop/go signs- pick a tone girl

- this episode is so almost good and it's anytime Sherlock makes a mistake lmao

- not the drugs bust :/

- ooh sociopath line- whoo

- "I don't have to [imagine]." OOOH OKAY, WELL, YOU GUYS GET *ONE* POINT FOR THAT SHEESH

- this is so ridiculous- COME WITH ME- girl shut up

- I wanna be done I wanna be doooone.

- lamenting the confrontation we had in the unaired pilot

- The 'Frwhoomp' noise as the light goes out, girl

- 20 Minutes left my christ

- BRO- I forgot that bit of ADR wooooof

- and thus begins the scree of Moriarty

- five years, why is Scotland Yard still doubtful of Sherlock's skills? I know he might have been deep in his addiction during some of that, but they evidently kept him around for crime solving.

- Great man/good man quote has me fumin babes, my god, what a fundamental misunderstanding of Sherlock Holmes

- boring ass back and forth

- this piano is giving me war flashbacks

- is it a five orange pips reference?

- also the pills look like that speckled gum that burns your throat

- when is it oveeer

- falling asleep

- bomb under the table but the table is made of glass and hates gay people

- she tooks the kidssssssssssssssssssssssssssss

- 13 min

- love, or rage, dude, come on Sherlock

- i hate this 'enjoying crime too much' theme they've written

- like watching a stupid play

- once more, the potential

- moriarty he said calmly

- also, so out of character for Sherlock do I even need to say

- peaks of what could have been- FUCK

- this mycroft fake out- lord

- also, mummy, fucksake

- cheesy ending BUT IT'S OVER

[silvermahogany]

Bro I need to know more about Iolys every scrap of information you post about that freak haunts me /pos

UEHEHEH

ASK AND YOU SHALL RECIEVE

Jeremy and Jessie dont read this im about to spoil literally everything

Ouuugh Iolys,,, my pookie bear.. my specialest princess... my poor tortured boy......

A tempest cleric of Tiamat currently at level 7 in the campaign im playing him in, he specialises in spells surrounding thunder and lightning as well as utility and healing. He fights long range and sucks at close combat, though he does carry a shortsword and has means to skitter away if enemies get too close.

Ive fucked about with his tiefling traits a lot and cat coded him to the EXTREME. His legs are slightly feline, though his feet arent entirely pawlike theyre definitely not. Normal. And he has small spikes all over his body. His skin is similar to a shark's being smooth when brushed one direction but brush and even a little sharp when brushed the wrong way. His teeth are pointed so sharp that he finds them to be inconvenient, hes always catching on his lips and tongue and struggles to eat small grain foods or anything that requires molars. He has to focus extra hard whenever he eats anything to not chew the inside of his cheek to shreds. He also gets regular neck pain from how heavy his horns are, they nearly double the weight of his head.

He sleeps as curled up as far as human anatomy will allow with his tail fully wrapped around, unless hes sleeping nect to something/someone he cares about. Then his tail will wander and wrap itself around them in his sleep, holding onto them tight as if scared theyll disappear in the night. Despite his practiced disinterested autism stare, his tail will often give away his true feelings, lashing when hes angry and thumping happily on the ground when praised.

Hes an avid collector of gemstones and shiny stones, always carrying a bag of precious gems on his travels. Some of them are used for his tithing ritual, the prayer to Tiamat performed each night where the worshipper must bury a gem and pray for the dragon queen's power, but many he just keeps because he likes them. Close companions will often find gems of their favourite colours at the bottom of their bags... though he doesnt admit to knowing where they came from.

His personality is somewhat contradictory. The cult taught him to be sharp and cruel to outsiders, to not allow others to get too close lest they distract him from his objectives. Upon first meetings, he will be snarky and dismissive, but he doesnt have it in him to be truly mean to most. If you stick with him for a week or two and not let his cutting words drive you away, he softens remarkably quick, still retaining his sarcasm but behaving much more like a gentle housecat than a pointy stray. Hes remarkably quick to trust, desperate for human connection, and will do borderline anything for the people he cares about.

He doesnt know how to show affection in normal ways, having spend his whole life worshipping some god or another, and so worship is how he cares for people. He'll buy them gifts, offer them gold and gemstones and protect them with his life. He'll often side with his loved ones even if theyre blatantly in the wrong, and will hype up theyre passions in an attempt to make them feel good about themselves. He seems shellshocked whenever recieving gifts in return, and will treasure anything his friends give to him.

hrm,, ok backstory time strap in

Iolys was born to a human mother and tiefling father, third generation of the tiefling curse in his bloodline. However at a few months old, he and his parents were attacked by bandits while travelling and both of his birth parents were killed.

He was found soon after by a hunting patrol of the nearby clan of golden dragonborn, the Dordeldrons. They were a small village of Bahamut followers, a few hundred in numbers, living nearby in a forest clearing, and they took pity on the crying infant. They gave his parents burials, and returned with him to their home.

Not long before this time, one of the Dordeldron women had recently suffered a miscarriage, and fell immediately in love with the orphaned tiefling child that the clan was struggling to figure out what to do with. Her name was Lorxious, and she happily volunteered to raise him as her own. As he was born female, Lorxious gave him a feminine name in her native tongue of draconic meaning 'survivor', however as he would ask later in childhood if he could be a boy instead, she happily agreed to give him a new name. One that surely encompassed all he had been through, one with deep meaning that people would admire-

"Can it be dragon themed?"

... and so in reference the higher fallen dragon deity Io Asgaroth, she renamed him Iolys.

He grew into a strong and curious child, given all the love and care one could need. Lorxious taught him draconic so that he would better fit in with the rest of the clan, whilst teaching herself infernal to teach to him in turn so that he would feel better connected to his tiefling roots. She taught him to sew basic stitches, to cook simple foods, and to care for the livestock that the village maintained. he grew a strong love for the animals, sitting for hours with the highland cows brushing their fur and plaiting small braids into their hair claiming he 'wanted them to see better'. Not all of the clan were eager to accept an outsider into their ranks, especially not one of infernal lineage, but Lorxious stood her ground. She would swiftly shut down any comments thrown his way and put pressure on the clan's educators to intercept any bullying the second it arose. Despite a rocky start, Lorxious' efforts saw that Iolys grew to be accepted by the clan, and before he even reached double digits most would see him as one of Dordeldron's own.

Very quickly, he began to take in interest in the clan's worship of Bahamut. He would beg Lorxious to take him to the sermons held in their modest church, listening with an intent that caught the attention of even the clan's priest. This interest in Bahamut would soon extend to other gods of all kinds, the library becoming his new favourite place as he researched all matters of deities. From the few known overdeities to the lesser known demigods, he would spend hours upon hours reading of their histories, their powers, conflicts with other gods, their rituals and convents. He took particular interest in ancient gods, those who had long fallen leaving scraps of their past glory to be uncovered. But above them all, he put his full faith in Bahamut.

He became one of the most eager worshippers of the platinum king in the clan, near obsessively learning his doctrine and history down to each word of every hymn. He would proudly announce to Lorxious his desire to become a priest, and travel spreading Bahamut's word of peace and justice, which she happily encouraged. As a young teenager, the clan priest Calrur offered for him to become his apprentice, which he was overjoyed to accept.

But along with his pure enthusiasm for Bahamut and admiration for other deities, Io's curiosity didn't stop at gods of the good alignment. All through his life he heard cautionary tales being sung of Bahamut's sister and enemy Tiamat, and how everybody seemed to speak of her with fear and distaste. Surely she couldn't stand up to Bahamut, could she? He who resided on the great Mount Celestia, king of justice who spread order and peace amongst man. He was surely unbeatable.

As time went on, so did his questions multiply. He focused his research deeper into the cult of the dragon, learning the workings of Tiamat's convent and how they terrorised good people wherever they lurked in the shadows. With his newfound apprenticeship he was allowed access to the church's archives, and he greatly took advantage of this to read every scrap of literature on the dragon gods he could find.

The archives were limited, but contained many ancient tomes that Calrur warned him told of rituals that must never be cast. But his fascination overrode reason.

One tome in particular caught his interest and for weeks he could think of nothing else. It was old and battered, containing more ripped and ruined pages than intact ones, and little could be made out from its faded text. He spent hours upon hours studying it, restoring whatever pages he could and memorising each arcane rune it showed. One page depicted a summoning circle that listed no origin and no result. it simply showed the symbols to replicate and listed the required components. And Iolys' curiosity overpowered reason.

Freshly turned 14, he took the tome from the archive behind Calrur's back, and returned to the church later that night with everything the ritual needed. He offered a prayer to Bahamut for protection, having full faith that if anything happened his beloved god would protect him from any harm. He drew out the arcane symbols onto the smooth stone floor in pure white chalk, poured a small bottle of acid into the center, and finally nicked his finger with one claw to imprint a single drop of infernal blood.

It happened too fast for his memory to retain.

He remembered dark green eyes and a threatening hiss, followed by searing agony striking across his face. He was blinded by his own blood as claws dug deep into his torso and launched him off the ground, followed by a shattering crack as the green dragon avatar burst through the roof of the church and dropped him to the ground. Something crunched in his abdomen from the impact and he couldn't move. Couldn't speak. Couldn't see. He lay there on the gravel as sounds of calamity ravaged around him, screams of terror and the sickening squelch of his clanmates being slaughtered. He heard the metal of the clan's defenders striking the beasts's hide, and the head guard barking orders whilst herding people to safety.

He didn't know how long he lay there. What had gone wrong? Wasn't Bahamut supposed to prevent things like this happening? He had asked him to be there if something happened, had he ignored him? Had he wanted to punish him for something? Had he not been a good enough devotee? Where was the justice in letting this happen?

He felt a rough hand grab him by the back of the shirt and drag him over the ground, a loud voice ringing in his ears and piercing through his trance. Traitor. Defector. Execution. Justice.

He heard the swing of an axe and heavy approaching footsteps through the echoing cries of distress of the crowd. The hand returned to force him to sit up, and suddenly he couldn't hear anything over the sound of his own breath.

Then a cry to stop. A gut wrenching crunch. And the splatter of someone elses blood mingling with his own.

He clawed at his eyes to try and clear the blood, and years later he still wishes he hadn't. Lorxious, his mother. She was clutching the shoulder where her left arm used to be, the sudden crowd forming around her the last think he saw before his vision was once again filled with red.

Another hand taking him by the arm.

The feeling of the gravel ground turning to grass, and then the jagged forest floor. A voice telling him to "Go. Now." His legs were moving without him telling them to, the sounds of calamity fading out behind him. He could have walked for minutes or hours, but it made no difference to him. His head pounding and senses swimming from the bloodloss, he felt himself fall to the ground.

Gonna have to start sectioning this up good lord

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

He awoke to a cold touch to his head, and a comfortable warmth bloomed over the splintering pain in his face and abdomen. Metal hands wiped at his eyes, and he looked up to be met with an older drow woman in full black armour.

"You are alive? Good.

You tell me of this dragon attack, and i'll bring you with me for proper medical attention. Yes?"

He gave her a small nod, the warmth fading into a dull ache. Under the gaze of this woman, her head haloed in the dawn light as she extended to him a hand, he felt small. He wanted to go home, god he wanted to. But that wasn't an option now. He had nowhere else to go.

He took her hand.

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

She introduced herself as Ornyryn, and brought him to a small base in a dimly lit building in a town he had never seen before. Had this always been so close to home? Cloaked figures stared at him from the shadows, and he clung tighter to Ornyryn's cape.

She waved a hand, and a cleric was by their side. Iolys jumped back at the healer's dragon mask, but Ornyryn soothed him, allowing him to cling to her arm as healing spells were cast and clean bandages were wrapped around the worst of his wounds.

"Not to worry child, you're in a place of worship.

Our deity is very different to the one youre used to, but i'm sure youll come to love her just the same. Your god abandoned you, did he not? Denied you protection, ignored your cries, allowed your village of such devout worshippers to be ravaged. Why, if i hadnt found you you would have died there, rejected by your home and your lord alike. But not to worry sweet boy, youre safe here. Queen Tiamat welcomes you."

Despite his initial panic at the admission, he had no way of leaving in such a state, and Ornyryn's doting quickly calmed his nerves. He told her everything that had happened as promised, and her face twisted in faux sympathy that his shattered mind could only process to be genuine.

She had been his salvation. He trusted her.

She promised him the dragon avatar would be slain and justice would be had.

He felt sick.

it wasn't long until the cult began to prey upon his vunerability in the time he spent with them. They showered him with assurances and promises of safety, of belonging, of a home to return to. He was carefully and meticulously indoctrinated, the spite of his exile ripped from his brain and twisted against him. Ornyryn was right, Bahamut had lied to him. What point was there in dedicating your life to a god only for them to turn their back on you in your time of greatest need? As immoral as Tiamat was, at least she was upfront about the price of her power.

He stayed with the cult until he had healed. And then accompanied them to the next city over. And then followed Ornyryn to the cult's main base in Waterdeep. She taught him Tiamat's doctrine and had him study spellcasting, strict and demanding. But when she praised him for his successes, he felt like the hardship was worth it.

One day, he called her Mother on accident. And she allowed it.

He would come to learn of her position as the blue wyrmspeaker of Tiamat, the second highest authority to the cult second only to the red wyrmspeaker and the dragon queen herself. He should have been scared, but he only felt pride. Pride that she had chosen him.

Years of Ornyryn's careful manipulation and teachings of the arcane morphed him into the most devout of Tiamat cultists with an evergrowing grasp on the harnessing of magical power. He had a family again, people who cared for him. Didnt they? He certainly believed so, and despite the gnawing guilt that plagued his mind day after day and the nights he would choke back tears at the uncertainty of his mother's fate, he was well and truly enwebbed in the cult's grasp.

He would lie, cheat and steal for Tiamat's benefit, devoting himself to her worship and fully dedicating himself to he cause. The cult accepted him despite the dire mistake he had made, and he swore to himself he would repay Ornyryn's kindness at any cost.

The night he turned seventeen, Ornyryn sat him down and ran her claws through his hair with a whisper of a spell under her breath. He watched in awe as dark blue streaks were left where her hand had passed, shining in the dim light.

"You've proven yourself capable, child. You're one of us now, one of my own. Let this spell be a reminder to you, that when you see your reflection you will always know where you belong."

The addition of 'and who you belong to' went unspoken.

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

i think thats uhhhhh all the main backstory stuff. Hrmm miscellaneous information now methinks.

Since the aftermath of the attack, Io has a deeply rooted fear of large dragons. Greatly ironic considering his whole life has revolved around them since he could remember, but every time one of Tiamat's wyrms passed him in the cult base he would be struck with the reminder of the sensation of having the flesh ripped from his face in their claws. Turning rituals were the worst of it, when he would be ordered to participate in a mass ritual to poison the mind of a captured dragon to Tiamat's will.

He spends the whole time fighting to keep his hands and voice steady, at war with his brain against the urge to turn and run for his life, but the thought of Ornyryn's disappointment keeps him rooted in place. He'll find a private spot to collapse in immediately after, breaking down and sobbing out the panic until hes able to compose himself and go back to pretending nothing was wrong.

Hes kept his special interest in ancient religion all the way from his childhood and will often beeline to libraries in every new settlement the party arrives in. He carries a bunch round with him at all times, and keeps a journal containing writings of his recearch topics, his personal thoughts, notes on quests and anything he wished to report back to Ornyryn with.

After fourteen years of dealing with him, Ornyryn is SICK of him. Shes sick of his kicked puppy eyes and the way he follows her around like a sad little stray kitten. She keeps him around because of his genuine devotion to the cult, believing him to still be somewhat useful, but is secretly waiting for him to slip up. For any excuse to either kick him out or kill him on the spot, and right now in the campaign hes on slightly thin ice...

He doesnt start transitioning until after being indoctrinated into the cult of the dragon, they oversee all his medical affairs. Eventually they offered to give him his top surgery or whatever the medieval fantasy equivalent and he of course enthusiastically agrees, only for Ornyryn to have the surgeon carve the scars left behind into the style of dragon wings as a way of branding him. A permanent reminder of his devotion to the dark queen etched into his flesh and for years he LOVES it. Its proof that he belongs, proof that they see him as one of them. Dont think he'll be such a big fan if he ends up defecting but however the campaign goes will decide that <3

Currently in the campaign, he has grown close enough with two of the party members to consider them close friends. Leaf, a qood elf bard and Arcrath, a dragonborn paladin of bahamut. Io and Arcrath have clashed for months on end for obvious reasons, starting out as enemies when me and my friend were playing them in spread out oneshots before using them in a proper campaign, but over the year and a bit we've been playing them theyve grown from enemies into pretty solid friends. Though they did just come out of a divorce arc we dont talk about that- they care deeply about each other. and maybe a little something more is brewing wink wink

One original member of the party was killed (friend couldnt play any more) but two more have recently joined, a sweet little goblin ruid of spores named Floof and in the most recent session, another tiefling, a warlock known as King. They had somewhat of a bitch-off when they met heghegdhe, kinda like a catfight in the street. But theyre begrudgingly now working together.

hgng. i think thats all the main stuff??? but i have loads of extra info and will very happily answer any questions thank you so much for beinig interested in him hes my scrunkly wunkly doomed miserable boy im slamming him into the wall im chewing on him. my sad autism riddled creature im so so proud of him mwwwah

tee hee giggle

his themesong

and his full playlist if you want

[bloodhoundg4ng]

hi every1 i am chewing my own arm off (metaphorically) with excitement and whimsy alas. INTERACTION ANALYSIS TIME HOORAY

y'know what we're switching this shit up. because im the specialest boy

This time, from AMERICAN PIE 2 :

(Honourable mention for the most GOATed soundtrack in film history : That's blink-182's "Every Time I Look For You" in the background!)

Anyway - I'd first like to point out a nice parallel between AP2 and the original, American Pie; both of Stifler's introductions revolve around him greeting Oz. Nothing changes too drastically between them, really; both using the exact same language/terms towards one another ("Fuckface" and "Ozzy"; with Stifler just being referred to "Dude", see analysis 1 fo that context)

Also, about the note - this is such a minor detail, but - Oz kept it. He could've easily screwed it up or something, but he didn't.

He never really reacts negatively to the "insults" Stifler gives him. Especially in this scene - he's able to understand Stifler and his sense of humour, and appreciate his presence all the more for it.

adam herz just let them kiss already god damn!!!! ����

(installment 4/???)

[worlds-oldest-teenager]

Because I have to make everything in pjo about my specialest boy, Apollo, I like to think about this AU where Apollo helps raise Thalia and Jason. (Raise is a strong word but he's doing a heck of a better job than beryl). It's also not really an au and could be canon if you squint cause no one said otherwise.

He basically gets insanely worried about the family cause Hera, Poseidon and Hades are going to brutally murder them if they ever find out Zeus broke his oath and had a kid. So in a moment of weakness he ends up in disguise as this punk rocker/med student and moves in next door to the graces. He's also a woman. There's no reason for this.

All this happens before Jason is born.

Things are chill and actually going quite well. Thalia has a safe place to be when her mother gets drunk. They play music and Apollo helps with homework and cooks a nice hot meal (despite having no ingredients in his fridge) for Thalia when Beryl forgets. He teaches her how to drum to get out her pent up rage.

He also trains her cause he knows she's running on borrowed time. It's in a smart inventive way cause he can't tell her she's a demigod but it's enough to give her a fighting chance.

In my au Beryl is struggling hard. Postpartum depression, depression depression, bipolar disorder. I also like to think of her as being a former child star and being on the much younger side cause that makes hers and Zeus relationship so much more insidious.

Apollo being the god of healing would judge her parenting but also see her as a struggling young woman and want to help (Apollo internally: 'Deep breaths. Not everyone can be like Leto'). And they become pretty good friends. She's working hard trying to combat her addiction and put herself back together.

And she actually succeeds.

Everyone is so proud, especially Apollo who's happy that Beryl is in a better place now and can be the mother Thalia deserves. Apollo even jokes about setting her up to get her next big break in the acting world because it's no longer a point of tension for Beryl but something they just can casually talk about.

And then one day Jupiter appears.

Everything goes wrong from there.

Apollo accidentally bumps into him in the hallway Infront of Beryl's home and freaks so bad he bursts into toga Apollo form. He isn't supposed to be here. This is direct interference.

He weaves some tale and Jupiter doesn't really look bothered, just extremely guilty and like he's trying to get away.

And then Beryl opens the door, looking disheveled and half naked.

Understanding hits Apollo like a truck.

He and Beryl get into a bad fight after that. He asks her if she'd just changed to get Zeus back and not for Thalia and begs her to not do this. She demands to know why the hell he even cares. Escalates. She accuses him of being jealous that she could do what his mother couldn't do. Get Zeus to come back.

Talk about a self death sentence.

Apollo doesn't murder her immediately. Just informs her that her decision has sealed not only hers but her children's fate which will all end in tragedy.

I like to think Apollo can see several possiblities of the future and he's just seen Beryl prune her tree of fate into a rootless stub that will die a slow and painful death.

It's just kind of devastating all round. Beryl is manic and genuinely believes she's won over the king of the gods again. Thalia is ambivalent to seeing her father but hopes he won't leave this time. Apollo begs Zeus to not destroy this family but realizes it's futile.

Beryl is pregnant which leads to a very serious conference between Zeus, Athena and Apollo before they realize it's a Roman child.

Zeus: She has to abort the baby.

Apollo : She doesn't want to.

Athena: Why don't we just throw her down the stairs?

Apollo : Do not throw the pregnant woman down the stairs.

Jupiter doesn't like how his quick fling turned into a mess and leaves.

This sends Beryl into the lowest she's ever been in her life. Crying all the time, unable to get out of bed, unable to eat. It gets even worse after delivering the baby.

Apollo sticks around but only to help Thalia with Jason. He tries to get a little food in Beryl and occasionally magics their house tidy but that's it.

Zeus meanwhile makes everything worse by deciding to be a good husband and confess everything to Hera. Hera is pissed off because not only did her husband cheat on her while under a binding oath but Athena and Apollo knew and did nothing. (Sidenote: I like to think of these four as the council's council. The big brains or so they think. )

Apollo and Athena manage to mollify Hera by persuading Beryl to name him Jason and eventually hand him over to wolf house when he's of age.

Years later, a heated fight between Zeus and Hera, Hera goes and tells Poseidon and Hades that Zeus has a child.

All hell breaks loose.

You know the rest.

I think Apollo would seriously hate himself for the decision to come into the graces' life because of how badly they've suffered since then.

Beryl ends her own life speeding drunk, high and reckless. She had nothing to live for anyway. Apollo's the only person to show up to Beryl's funeral.

End.

Additional: I'm not sure if Thalia was at the funeral but this was more dramatic.

I'm also torn between Apollo looking like himself vs in disguise cause if he looked like himself that could have been the reason Thalia got so attached so fast to Luke. Luke doesn't start a war because of Thalia's death but I'm sure that would help.

Also firmly believe Apollo knew Thalia didn't die and told Zeus. For once having good intentions, Zeus makes him swear not to tell the grieving demigods because then Thalia would die for real. This action will have consequences.

This au also primes a huge Apollo vs Thalia fight because he knew the whole time that Jason was alive? He helped beryl get sober enough to let Jupiter wreck their lives? Love you Apollo but you accidentally and purposely enable abusers so much.

[video-game-kids-tournament]

MEET YOUR CONTESTANTS!

Psychonauts spoilers under the cut!

Name: Razputin "Raz" Aquato

Age: 10

Pronouns: He/him

Video Game: Psychonauts, Psychonauts in the Rhombus of Ruin, + Psychonauts 2

Backstory: “Psychic circus kid with a cursed blood line, who ran away to become a psychic secret agent”

• “They have psychic powers, the main thing of the games, and because of this run away from their family in the circus, to a summer camp where the first game begins. This is because their family hates psychics because one cursed the family to die in water.”

• “Born and raised in the Aquato family circus. Was always told by his father of a bloody past feud with a family of fortune tellers from a rival circus wherein they cursed the Aquatos to all die in water. Because of this, Raz assumed his father hated psychics and so would practice his psychic abilities in secret. He grew up reading a comic series about a psychic spy agency known as the Psychonauts. When he was given a pamphlet for Whispering Rock Summer Camp, a secret government camp designed to train young psychic into Psychonauts, he decided to run away from home to secretly go to the camp.”

• “Raz comes from a large family of acrobatic circus preformers. his family is very predjudiced against psychics, because of the curse that a psychic placed on their family. (they are cursed to die in water, and raz is dragged in by the hand of galochio whenever he touches large enough bodies of it.) but raz is one and wants to be a psychonaut, a member of the super psychic agents. his father forbids this, having him train extra hard to keep him busy and away from using his powers. after a show one day, a mysterious stranger gives him a pamphlet to whispering rock summer camp, a psychic summer camp for kids to train and hone their abilities, run by the psychonauts themselves. he runs away one night to attend this camp, and the story of the games goes on from there!”

• "With his psychic powers becoming more prominent, he ran away from the circus to a psychic summer camp, but with strange happenings going on with both the children and the counslers only he can help the camp.”

• “He's a psychic kid who grew up in a travelling family circus, who ended up running away from it to attend a summer camp that trains psychic kids to be international super spies, which he ends up being really good at because of him being able to do sick-ass backflips in peoples' brains.”

• “Raz felt ostracized from his family growing up due to his psychic powers. The whole family had a deep-seated hatred of psychics, and while his father and sister learned to hide their psychic abilities, Raz never could, nor did he really want to. Inspired by his favorite comic series, True Psychic Tales, he ran away from home to pursue becoming a Psychonaut, helping those in need while honing his abilities! Also, turns out that one of his most idolized Psychonauts is the one responsible for psychologically implanting a hatred of psychics into the Aquato family. Whoops.”

Why should they win the tournament?: “- Nice ÷] - Can shoot lasers - Knows acrobatics”

• "The first that we see of them, they break into a summer camp with amazing security declare they have father issues in front of three government agents and a lot of children, and are extremely excited to be experimented on immediately. “

• "Both a powerful psychic and a trained acrobat. I think he's noted as being a stronger psychic than most children of his age and training.”

• “hes the most specialest boy ever. oh my god hes the skrunkly supreme. hes a very kind young man who genuinley wants to help people. hes also a bit of an imp who blasts birds and says "see ya in hell!'. hes so ten years old. these games have truly left an impact on me, in the most positive way. hes pretty op, esp for a 10yo. oh my god theres so muh more i could say but its HUGE spoilers. i love him. vote for him. play/watch a playthrough of the psychonauts series. you will not regret it.”

• “They got acrobatics, psychic powers, and hes just a little goober”

• “Because he's just great!! He's a super charming protagonist - he's spunky and determined but still just a kid and can get in over his head sometimes while trying to do the right thing. Raz has a lot of fun moments throughout the whole series and he's right in the mid-point between "sweet little fella who just wants to help" and "feral little freak". (see the YouTube video "Psychonauts out of context but its just Razputin Aquato being iconic" (note: there are spoilers for all the games there if you care about those)) Also going with the death game thing his dad put him through grueling acrobat training meaning this kid is both strong and fast as hell, and also in the first game he sets seagulls on fire with his brain while cheerfully saying "see you in hell!", so he has a decent shot of winning one of those based on that I think.”

• “he's just a little scrimblo bimblo. he's got autism swag. he's even employed.”