#he deserves a life where he can sort of not be constantly in battle

[gingacd]

had an idea for an au thingie for tf2 guys where Soldier works in a bakery after tf2. I think he’s the sort of fellow who just puts his heart into any job he’s asked to do so he’d obviously be a great baker (and teleport so much bread)

[heliumshorns]

NOT ME HAVING THE HONOUR OF BEING MUTUALS WITH ONE OF MY FAV WRITERS, HELLO?!?!?!?!?

anyways, i rlly can't stop thinking ab soft Gojo :(

just him getting super emotional while cuddling cus he's thinking ab just how much he adores and appreciates having someone in his life, who loves and sees him for who he truly is cus he's always just percieved as the strongest and not as Satoru </3 (Sugurus "Are you the strongest because you're Gojo Satoru, or are you Gojo Satoru because you're the strongest" HURTS)

it's just softness and fluff everywhere as he slowly traces his hands all over his lovers body; squeezing, caressing, tracing, overall just trying to get himself to believe: "You're here, you're real, i have you."

A tear leaving his eye as he makes eye contact with his love, and they kiss it away whilist caressing his cheeks and whispering sweet nothings into his ear, but also reassuring and reminding him that yes, you deserve to be more than a weapon, you deserve to be you.

I'm so emotional ab him :((, this can also count as a request btw, i was mostly sharing brainrot cus im very much despising the jjk manga and am actively living in delusions :)

you can add some soft sex or keep it fluffy and bittersweet (if you wanna ofc, no pressure<3)

I fucking LOOOVE a soft Satoru I DONT CAREEEE

He's so adorable and it HURTS MEEE

(also, HI MOOT AND AHHHHH FAVOURITE WRITER??? I HAVEN'T EVEN STARTED ANYTHING PROPER YET😭😭)

tiny drabble under the cut because HDGSHHSHSH

(i didn't write smut but I am planning on working with that 😩)

The way his gentle eyes meet yours isn't enough to put into words. Or maybe it's too much. Words are complicated sometimes.

So it's understandable why Satoru doesn't speak when he gets home like this. Tired. Exhausted. Feeling like his headache is so bad not even a box of panadol can fix. Hell, he feels the pain in his soul.

But the second your soothing voice reaches his ears, it's like all of the turmoil is gone. The world reduces itself to the warmth of your skin and the smoothness of your voice. It becomes the simple moments of intimacy, where you just hold him to soothe his six eyes.

Where they can all, truly, fall shut and rest.

Like a safe space of some sorts. With your careful hands caressing his hair as you both lay, cuddling, all of the lights out. No music. No noise. Just your shared breathing, and heartbeats. How his hands rest on your back, his full weight on top of you, hair tousled and messy. His breaths deep and slow, making him slowly melt more and more into your embrace.

With gentle words and gentler touches.

"I missed you."

"I missed you too, my love."

Even being called that makes tears prickle his eyes. My love. Not Satoru. Not Gojo. Not the strongest nor a weapon. Just... someone. A random guy, who met the most amazing person, and just happens to be loved. It's like when he's with you, all worries vanish. You're the calm to his storm.

Even if it isn't visible.

That's the funny thing about storms, right? If you're in the eye of the hurricane, you won't notice until you open your eyes. And he, sadly, has six of them to remind him how he's constantly fighting for his life.

Sadly, some people are born to fight. His heart yearns for the gentleness of a lover, and his body is used to fight the toughest battles. All while putting up the facade that he's the strongest. As if being referred to as such doesn't hurt him more than anyone can. Words, sadly, go through his infinity.

Something he absolutely turns off whenever near you.

It's like you manage to calm even the deepest, most obscure parts of his brain. You make him forget instinct. When he's in your arms, he doesn't need to protect himself from anything. He's safe. Your lips to his dampened cheeks that serve as a reminder that maybe he does deserve love. He deserves to not having to be The Strongest all of the fime.

"Such a funny thought to wrap you up in cloth

Do you find it all right, my dragonfly?"

HE DIDN'T DESERVE ITT WHAT THE FUUUUUCK HE JUST WANTED TO BE HAPPYYYYYYYYY AAAAAAAH

[moodymisty]

Getting it in at the last minute hopefully, but one thing that's on the brain is Chapter Serfs, the mortals who do a collection of jobs on fortress monasteries and are devoted to certain chapters. They're treated a whole range of ways depending on the chapter from "worse than slaves" to "members of the family". I've read somewhere that the Raven Guard treat their Serfs surprisingly well given they're all Spooky Scary, but I wanna know what you think!

Also on the brain is a serf worrying about her Raven Guard battle brother constantly, and being extremely gentle and doting on him because like... Look at him, being a space marine seems like an extremely painful existence.

[ 𝕸𝖔𝖔𝖉𝖞𝕸𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖞'𝖘 𝕸𝖆𝖘𝖙𝖊𝖗𝖑𝖎𝖘𝖙 | 𝕬𝖔3 ]

Author's note: This is a cute idea, and I want to write more Raven Guard. I hope you enjoy this little snippet!

Relationships: Unnamed Raven Guard/Gn!Reader (could be read platonic or very slightly romantic if you really squinted)

Warnings: Mentions of wounds like burns, Your astartes being apathetic about the whole thing

You almost have everything you think you'll need, looking over the spread of materials along the small table. If you've forgotten anything you hope he'll be as forgiving as the last times; As he always is.

The Raven's Valour has moored at Deliverance and you know his arrival is imminent; You'll finally be able to see him again. It's been months and while you serve the other Raven Guard with nothing but respect, there's something about your Raven Guard that is special. That has his arrival stirring your stomach.

It's become harder to even sleep without him nearby. You sleep in his private quarters with him- many of the serfs tending to higher rank Raven Guard do. The reasoning seems to be so you're always available to serve them, but too many of them seem to just like their serf's company to make it an excuse that doesn’t get doubted for a moment.

You hear the door open and quickly turn, spotting his wide shoulders and dark hair. Moments later however, you see that on areas not covered by his robes is what looks to be burns of some kind; Mostly chemical. It has that distinctive look, compared to a burn from a flame. He has other jagged cuts as well, but the burns are the most dramatic and eye catching.

"What happened?"

You say surprised, watching him sit down on the small bed and push his robes off his back. You can see his back is almost burned, and even though he has no reaction there isn't any way the cloth of his robes against his skin hadn't hurt.

You can also see the sores and dents where his armor weighed on him; in the weeks of nonstop use.

"We encountered heretics worshiping Nurgle. There were far more than expected, and they’ve learned new tricks."

He says little more than that, which doesn't surprise you. He isn't very talkative, particularly about these sorts of things. You presume his mission didn't go well if what little he gave was any indicator.

"I, I'm going to go get some things to help you, I'll be right back."

You quickly rush to grab any of the things you think will help, though much of it is more so for the humans around Deliverance than the astartes. The general consensus is they simply deal with the pain until it stops- that using healing solutions is a waste unless needed to preserve their life. you don't want him stay like this. He deserves more for protecting humanity; For protecting you.

"Here. This should help all of this heal."

You expected him to resist you, but you're surprised when he doesn't. You crawl onto the small bed and get behind him, holding your materials in your lap. He lets you come closer and apply medicine to all of his wounds, careful around the interface ports lining his back and shoulders. They run all along his back, digging directly into his spinal cord. They’re surrounded by old scars, and you fear it’ll hurt if you aren’t gentle.

You brush some burn cream over the massive one spanning his shoulder blade and he shifts, causing you to pull away for a moment.

"I'm sorry if this hurts, my lord."

He grunts at you, and you don't quite know if he's just responding, or scolding you for the use of title. Either way you eventually continue, but far more cautious.

You continue tending to his wounds, cleaning them and applying medicine to speed up his already incredibly fast healing. You know he doesn’t need it; But you know it will at least help. He's silent almost the entire time, until he turns to look at you over his shoulder.

"I can hear you thinking." You look up from his wounded shoulderblade.

You're thinking that he deserves better than this; To not be in pain, and treated like a weapon to be thrust at the enemy, and then be left in pain he's been trained to ignore. Or at least refuse to show.

"Sorry," Is all you can mutter, however. He looks at you for a moment longer, and you notice his dark eyes flicker around your face before he turns back around.

Once his wounds are as well as you can make them you rake your fingers through his black hair, until it's untangled enough to pull it back. Once you're finished, he looks towards towards the top of his bed. His hand tugs the thin fabric draping over it.

"You slept in it," He says bluntly and out of the blue, catching you red handed. You're still kneeling on the bed behind him, wringing your hands.

"I couldn't sleep one night. I was worried since the Raven's Valour was gone longer than you'd said it would be." He turns, and you notice a very small smile on his face.

"Do not worry about me so much." You look away, and you don't know why your eyes suddenly feel so watery.

"If I don't, then who else will?"

His small smile stays, but you notice something change in his look that you can't quite place.

And before you have a chance to even try he reaches a hand up, and rustles the top of your head. Afterwards, he cups your jaw with the same hand and keeps you facing him.

Don't worry little raven, I'll be fine."

[sun-undone]

“got so much to lose, got so much to prove, god don’t let me lose my mind”

i’m emo about jj maybank today so i’m gonna ramble for a bit about how i think these lyrics from trouble by cage the elephant are the most jj lyrics i’ve ever heard, ESPECIALLY in light of season 4 part 1.

for the first time in his life, jj really has so fucking much to lose. he and his friends (family) have built themselves a new safe haven on the very land where jj was raised to believe he deserved nothing of the sort. he’s dating his dream girl, and she loves him. he has stability and success for the first time ever.

got so much to lose.

but how does the boy who was told he was a worthless piece of shit process all of this positive upward change in his life? how can he possibly reconcile the unconditional love that the pogues constantly show him with the self hatred that’s been beaten into him? by overcompensating.

HE is the one who takes the reins at the auction to buy back the maybank property. HE is the one to gamble the last of their gold to try to get them back on their feet. HE is the one close to tears desperately trying to defend himself like we’ve seen him do several times throughout the series when a plan of his goes awry. “see me, see how hard i’m trying to deserve your love, see how much i think i don’t deserve it.”

got so much to prove.

jj really does have this seemingly bottomless well of desperation within him to prove to the pogues that he deserves to be kept around, which manifests in his plots and schemes and gambles that range from over the top to straight up manic at times. but at the same time, he also has this equally seemingly bottomless well of self hatred that manifests in his self sabotage. his desire to be loved and his insistence that he doesn’t deserve it are constantly battling for dominance within him, and the chaos of that never-ending push and pull is (in my opinion at least) the very essence of jj as a character.

and of course, the tragedy of it all is that he already has the love he craves so desperately. he’s clawing up at something that’s in the palm of his hands. he hopes the pogues understand what he can’t express with words, and they do, but he also knows that one day, that won’t be enough, and they’ll realize what he’s known from the very beginning.

god don’t let me lose my mind.

[mech-bull]

IWTV musings

Particularly on Twitter, I see a lot of Louis fans constantly acting like he never does or could do anything wrong (and in contrast, Armand is a terribly evil abusive person who can never be redeemed. Somehow, Lestat never seems to get the same judgment or at least to the same degree…hmm…wonder why…). Now don’t get me wrong, I love Louis and recognize the many times he was mistreated by both of his boyfriends in the show. I also fully understand and agree that, even though I love them as characters, Armand and Lestat are abusive assholes who deserve comeuppance and would have to work hard for any sort of rehabilitation and even if they did manage that, Louis is under no obligation to forgive either of them (and ahem, neither are they obligated to forgive Louis for any of the ways he may have wronged them).

I also don’t want to imply that anyone in real life who is in an abusive relationship is weak or at fault for their circumstances or something, especially if they stay in it.

That said, taking into consideration that this is a fictional show that needs to tell a compelling narrative, I am not interested in the simplistic read that Louis was an innocent victim trapped in a loveless abusive marriage for 77 years. I also don’t think the behind-the-scenes people intend that to be the arc of the fricking protagonist of the first two seasons of the show. The guy had agency. He knew at least some of what was going on, and to a certain extent, he chose to stay in that life or return to it whenever they split, regardless of whatever Armand might have been doing to manipulate him. More importantly, he was actively engaged in a constant battle of manipulation (and arguably abuse) with Armand and knew exactly what buttons of Armand’s to push when he needed to.

There are numerous instances where this is clear, but one that doesn’t get talked about enough is the line “I had you covered” (might not be the exact quote) to Claudia (and the "or he's mine" line). To me, this definitely implies that he was purposely using his relationship with Armand to protect Claudia (and probably also because it allowed him to be the one with power at least some of the time). Not to mention the whole “I used to be real good at running things”/maître stuff. Btw, the most hilarious read of that particular scene to me is the interpretation that wonderful Louis was being kind to little baby Arun there.

Overall, do I think that Armand has the right combination of issues that would make him do everything in his power to keep a relationship even when the other person clearly doesn’t love him? Yes, honestly, I do. That’s both a terrible flaw and a tragedy.

Do I think that Louis left with Armand to spite Lestat? Yes, I do. Quite explicitly. I don’t think that’s even in question.

Do I think that Louis would stay miserable with Armand for 77 years to spite Lestat? Absolutely the fuck not. He’s not that big of a masochist. Do I think that Louis was cluelessly unaware of all their issues even if he didn’t know the truth about the trial? Absolutely the fuck not. Yet, Louis knowingly stayed in the relationship, which suggests to me that he was getting something out of it. Was it some kind of love, safety, occasional happiness, occasional kinky sex, penance? Who knows? I haven’t figured that out and he himself might not even be able to articulate it. Regardless, viewing their relationship as a complex, fucked-up mess is so much more interesting to me than “Oh, that evil dragon Armand has trapped poor defenseless Louis in his tower like a princess!”

[devourensarc]

On Sk.irk and His Mental State

warnings for: death, discussions of trauma, dissociation/depersonalization, sui/cidal behavior

Ajax fell into the Abyss at 14 years old — a child. He fell into a land of darkness and monsters, alone, barely a teenager, and this was absolutely traumatic for him. Here, he met Sk.irk.

When we see their reunion in the AQ, she dismisses him as weak — despite him fighting the Narwhal for weeks, a beast that took a fully realized Sovereign to beat (not kill; beat). She states she does not talk to him or give him much acknowledgement because of this perceived weakness.

This was the person who he found in the Abyss, as a lost, scared child. A weak child who needed to become strong to earn a scrap of her attention, attention that was key to his survival. Knowing this, it's easy to see why he is so obsessed with becoming stronger. Even after meeting her, he had to fight for every second of his survival, because to be weak in her eyes meant he would be alone again, in an unfamiliar world full of beasts trying to kill him.

The only reason she gave him any attention at all was Foul Legacy — on this blog, she did not teach him the transformation, but rather how to use it.

Even after he left the Abyss, this fear for his life stayed with him. In addition to my other hcs regarding this (his sleeping habits, nightmares, hiding food, etc), he fixated on becoming stronger because the memories of those monsters are always there. He cannot be that helpless child ever again.

And of course, when he finally returned home, his parents could not or would not help this traumatized child. He tried to prove his strength to them, but instead of acknowledging it, being proud of it, they were terrified. His escalating violence to get them to see it, to pay attention to him, was a reaction born from his interactions with Sk.irk; but this only made his parents more terrified. They treated him like a monster, for the very thing that helped him survive.

When they brought him to the Fatui, again he used a show of strength to preemptively protect himself — see, he was strong, he was not some weak child to prey upon. And again, this only served to scare others, and once again, he was outcast. Pulcinella was the next adult figure to give him any sort of attention, and the young Ajax latched onto this, still caught up in his survival mechanism from the Abyss. Someone was giving him attention, praise — so he would be exactly what Pulcinella, what the Tsaritsa, wanted of him.

Blood and violence does not bother him, but he does not enjoy hurting others for the sake of hurting them. He is not a sadist, nor does he lose control of himself during a battle. He says during the Liyue AQ he doesn't want to release Osial and harm innocents, but he does so anyway to complete his mission, with the full belief Rex Lapis will show himself to fend off Osial. During the Fontaine AQ, he shows situational awareness in that fight with the Narwhal; he knows where the fleeing civilians are and drives the Narwhal away from them, and he is able to set up the Narwhal for a shot from Neuvi, and all of this despite already having fought the thing for weeks and being clearly exhausted.

He needs to be wanted, and he needs to be seen as strong, because to not be these things would have meant his death in the Abyss. Even out of the situation that traumatized you in the first place, it sticks with you, and coping mechanisms that may have helped you survive that situation can very well be maladaptive outside of it. He never got any sort of support to heal from that mindset, and the Fatui actively fed into it.

But inside is still that child who longed to be a hero, who wanted to be loved. You can still see him in Ch.ilde's love for his siblings, his dedication to those he cares for. Ajax wants to be seen, to feel worthy of being seen without constantly having to prove himself strong enough to deserve it — and yet this is not a mindset he can readily put down, even for one person. It is ingrained into his behavior at a fundamental level.

This desire to be strong has led him to separate himself from 'Ajax'. He views Ajax as a weak, naive child, and convinces himself that is no longer him. He is a mask that Ch.ilde will wear around his family because he loves them, but that child is no longer him. (You believe that, right? Please believe that.) Yet his Harbinger persona is as much a mask as Ajax is. He chases battle, is always trying to become stronger, not only to convince others around him but himself.

Mentioned su/icidal behavior cw. He is so caught up in this he doesn't care about his own safety, his own life. Delusion that saps your life force? Don't mind if he does. Throwing himself into battle against stronger opponents? Here he goes. Pulcinella states that he craves encounters that bring him closest to his own demise. It is a sort of thrill, a comfort to him, proving to himself he can survive, but if he does die? Fine. He does not care for his own life. End cw.

tldr: he is not okay. His time in the Abyss was absolutely traumatic for him, and his time with Sk.irk and how his parents treated him afterwards has led to his current mindset today.

[stutee]

Thoughts while and after watching The Crown Season 6 part 1 -

1. As the crown was and is about the Queen(now Late Queen), this season made me dislike her character more. Claire Foy's character was, if not sympathetic, at least helped us in humanising her as a young woman who did not like the spotlight but had to become one of the important people in the world. With Olivia Coleman's queen, her coldness grew. And Imelda Staunton strengthened her position as the cold mechanical Queen. Still won't deny that she had some sort of charm that made people like her or at least be intrigued about her but other than that, there is nothing

2. Season 3's Charles deserved sympathy. He had so much potential to do something but was constantly shut down and beaten until he lost that battle and ended up being ruthless. But if at one side you wish to show the utter heartlessness with which he and others treated Diana, then how can you show Charles as someone who needs to be sympathised and felt sorry for. Sure as any other human he deserved happiness but on the cost of what? This whole thing with Diana was a huge chain of events that resulted in this. There are articles which wrote that in a better way on how if at one side the crown shows him as the selfish husband, on another side it shows his political/royal campaigns as an attempt to show that he is not entirely a bad person?

3. Which brings us to here, the Ghost of Diana. That was terrible. If that all, we were supposed to have Diana's spirit visiting someone it should be only and only her sons. Some article or someone here wrote how it would be better if Diana haunted the Queen and Charles provoking feelings of regret and guilt rather than a learning and a redemption arc. But out of all the people she went to comfort and impart wisdom to the two people who were the most responsible for her pain.

4. Showing Diana as reckless and seeking attention was a terrible move again. Okay maybe they showed how the royals perceived her but the writing was also aimed at showing how she was also not without her faults and even going to the extent of showing Charles as the bigger person.

5. What's interesting is seeing the growth of Prince Philip. From someone who valued his freedom and independent thinking to becoming one with the royals. Sure if we see from Season 1 and 2's perspective of the husband he was, this is better in how Elizabeth and Philip have now become partners. He advises her and supports her and even fights for her(season 5) but now he is just another royal. Telling her how she should not go to London to offer her regards to Diana's funeral. In real life he is known for weird racist remarks which obviously weren't shown here and yes he wasn't any better either way. But still, he eventually became the Prince of windsor from just Philip.

6. There is obviously a grey area where one finds themselves standing, when we see a personal tragedy depicted in a fictional series. Sure Diana was the people's princess and a public figure but somewhere it felt slightly strange witnessing the whole thing. I can't name or describe the strangeness but well it was there.

7. Last and not the least, there is this one thing that I conclude every season i complete, that is, the royals are utterly useless. Now I get that you are all from a large history and it is nice to keep your traditions and cultures alive but not growing or staying stuck to it even after the world outside was changing rapidly? Saying the same old scripted speeches when the common people were desperate for food and better living conditions is terrible. I am not saying to abolish the monarchy, I mean yeah that would be great but sure if you wish to keep that culture but why the pomp and show and treating them as invincible and even funding them. Why can't they have normal jobs? Sure some royals lead pretty normal lives, so why can't they just be normal? Why on earth do they still feel so superior and God like even in the 21st century? The recent events of King Charles lll speaking of poor living conditions sitting on a throne of jewels. That's such a poor taste and being so ignorant of basic things.

I have always loved the cinematography and acting of this series. No wonder it won awards. And while some of it remains in the final seasons, it lacks the same charm of the initial seasons.

Waiting for part 2 to see how this series concludes.

[batsplat]

what are your thoughts on casey’s career being regarded as a what if…..specifically when it comes to his retirement in 2012. personally, why would anyone want casey to stay knowing how his relationship to the sport was? seems like it could actually only get worse if he stayed longer. plus it’s just kinda unfair no?

yeah I think people love it because it's an interesting hypothetical, which I did explore here wrt the marc teammate dynamic... but well, my conclusion there was basically. y'know. it'd go badly wrong and casey would retire soon after anyway probably and I'm kinda glad he didn't go through that experience. I also don't think treating all of this as a straight up 'what if' is properly contextualising his career and what he went through to achieve what he did. the extensive list of physical and mental health issues, battling with chronic fatigue syndrome while being an active motogp rider, the undiagnosed anxiety disorder... it is insane that he managed to have the success that he did, even accounting for the ridiculous amount of talent he had. casey in 2012 was still of course an excellent rider in an injury-affected season, but like... he was clearly done with it. at a certain point he'd just burned himself out. it feels like it was the right time to retire

I think people are really into the romanticism of the whole thing, like it's this sort of... oh, youthful, fragile genius taken from us too soon (sometimes I can still hear his voice), if only we'd been able to see him fully spread his wings. and where it does actively begin to bother me is I feel like a few too many people are engaging with the idea of him more than they are with his actual career. like, he raced for quite a few years! he had a lot of great races and a lot of success! sure, it's a massive pity he was constantly dealing with all these hardships and were ultimately limiting him to some extent - but also, you can swing too hard the other way and treat his entire career as one big hypothetical. casey is more than his potential... he achieved that potential, he was a fantastic rider. let's talk about it! this isn't a story of unfulfilled promise, never has been

the other place where this comes from imo is that people have internalised how massively talented casey is - basically right up there with the great of greats, the valentino's and marc's of the world, if not more talented than them still... an assessment valentino at least wouldn't necessarily disagree with. and it's almost like... if he had all this talent, then surely he should have won twenty titles - so the fact that he didn't is in some way underachieving. but idk man, I just don't think that's how anything works. sports would be literally unwatchable if it were a straight conversion between amount of talent and amount of success. it gets really weird when people frame the valentino/casey rivalry as a contest between this delicate waif of a prodigy on the one hand and this cunning quasi-fraudulent brawler - one completely relying on talent and the other completely on brains (which I suppose is 100% nurture not nature). now, to some extent it's an interesting distinction they lean into themselves, as discussed here, but like. at the end of the day I'm never going to be massively into talent as a concept and a lot of this stuff mostly just annoys me. you don't deserve to win more because you're more talented, and casey was more than his talent. is it too much to ask for to simply discuss a career on its own merits without constantly measuring up to some illusory idea of how much someone was SUPPOSED to have won

so, like. yeah. he would have been miserable and I'm happy he got out. posted these quotes from journalists from the time of his retirement a while back, also this from 2014 which kinda got to me:

like, man, he's been racing since he was four years old. for most of his life it was a profoundly joyless experience. it would be far worse and far more depressing if he'd felt the need to keep going because it was the only thing he knew how to do - which is part of the reason why he soldiered on throughout this process, despite his realisation when he was still in his teens that this wasn't really his dream at all. that it was a dream others had pushed onto him, and he was now stuck with. at a certain point, you just kind of feel trapped, right? he knew the sport wasn't heading in a direction he supported... and while you can agree or disagree with his specific complaints (I think with the benefit of hindsight we can probably conclude the introduction of crt bikes did not in fact permanently ruin the sport), at the end of the day that's really his choice to make. and he had the strength to walk away. he doesn't seem to have had any regrets about it, so why should anyone else? I understand why people like the idea of watching casey and marc race - and, like, I do get it, I'm a fan of the valentino/casey rivalry which was unquestionably pretty miserable for casey a lot of the time. as a fan of the sport and of him as a rider and thinking about how much fun it would have been to see him and marc compete, of course a part of me wishes casey could have stuck around a little longer. as a fan of narratives and conflict and tension and what an interesting guy casey is when he's confronted with something he hates! as a fan of casey the rider, of course I would've liked to see more. but on a more personal emotional level, I'm glad he left when he did

[icharchivist]

I do like that Aerith's death and sacrifice are treated with the gravity they deserve, genuinely

Yes, it hurts, but I prefer that to everyone looking sad for five minutes and then it's business as usual. I like that they really let you feel the loss

god yeah, this is really something that stands out to me about ffvii

Aerith was so beloved by everyone in the party. In the first part of the game she is such a well rounded character, with so much joy and mischief and her being there for everyone in need. She's always so sweet and helpful while also being torn by this legacy she is the only one left to honor.

And then she dies, and all of this still follows through. The whole party mourns her, each with their own connection to her making the pain even harder to get through.

Her death isn't about Cloud or the pain it gives him. Like, sure Sephiroth tried to have Cloud kills her because it's one stone two birds for him, he can get his petty revenge and full control on Cloud at the same time as he's getting rid of Aerith, but it's not Cloud's grief that is centered. It's really more about everything Aerith wanted to do, hoped to do, being taken away from her, and from everyone else who wanted to make that future with her.

After her death the game constantly reminds you of her because she was the only person with all the keys to save the world, and now everyone has to try, to figure out what she knew, what they could do in her place now.

Everything reminds them of her, they carry her with her.

and none of them sees her death as this sort of sacrifice because her death should never have happened, and they need this spite from how unfair it is to make them move forward.

In further parts of the game where the whole party assembles, you can always see a hole in the way they're gathering - like they're keeping a place for Aerith, like she is still a part of them, even if she's not here anymore. But they keep her in mind, even with her absence.

Not to mention how much her battle kit was genuinely unique and something gamers usually rely on a lot because it's genuinely a lifesaving kit, and losing her make you really realize just how much you relied on her just to keep everyone alive. without her, it's harder to survive.

and it's so touching and it's why i often talk about how important the thematic of Grief is, because they're all coping with the way her death left a hole in their heart, but they have to move on, if only because she sacrificed too much for them to give up now.

and on top of that it adds to the ecological reading of the game. The whole game revolves around the planet dying, about the mega corporation taking all of this life away, creating abominations in an attempt to control the planet, and leaving it for dead. Yet the planet can persist. it can live on. it can still find the strength to get going.

Aerith's name is pronounced like "Earth" in Japanese. Because she is the physical extention of this thematic. she is the flower that bloomed in a floating city detached from nature. She's been through grief, through pain and loss, but she carries on, she remains as strong as she could be. Shinra tries to experiment on her, abuse of her, treat her like an animal they can just breed for their own convenience. But she was resilient, she remained strong, as long as she could, only to be killed by the ultimate "perfect" experiment the Shinra has made trying to control the Earth once and for all.

And now as Meteor is approaching, as Shinra is using more and more of the Mako Energy to try to stop the Meteor even if it kills the planet in the process, as the Weapons awake to protect the earth at all cost even if they have to destroy humanity for it..... is when we lose Aerith. But our companions who have been fighting for the future of the planet still have now to fight for it, if only in honor to Aerith who gave her everything.

and spoiler alert but... it's not the last we hear of Aerith and especially how she influences the plot. Because still, like the Earth on the verge of dying, her will carry on.

And everyone still misses her so much.

in Advent Children, years after the conflict has been settled, all of the members of Avalanche wears a red ribbon on their arms as a memento to Aerith. And when they fight in battle together, they can feel Aerith with them. They will mourn her for as long as they're still alive, but they'll remember her, they'll talk about her, because she is still part of them, what they wanted to protect at all cost.

Aerith's death is often mentioned as being one of the most influencial moment in gaming history because of the way it makes you feel her loss every time as the game continues. It's just. really powerful in the way it's still woven in the narrative.

I miss her so much....

[adarkrainbow]

So, the thing I have been hinting at since a few posts is that - if you are not aware, Bill Willingham, the creator of the big DC comic book franchise "Fables" (a landmark in the history of both fairytale media and urban fantasy), decided to make "Fables" public domain. And everybody is losing their mind.

I am not sure of the details of the matter, but from a quick glimpse around the boiling Internet, Willingham was fed up with how DC handled their ownership of Fables and kept reinterpreting the contract Willingham had with them, ranging from DC chosing cover artists Willingham had not approved of, to him receiving apparently no money for the video game adaptation "A Wolf Among Us". So, tired of having to constantly battle with a DC company that apparently wasn't "playing fair", he decided to "cut the grass under their feet" as we say in France, and to make Fables public domain so that now everybody can make Fables work and sell them legally.

I am not sure if this will actually be happening since I am fact-checking my info while writing, and DC Comics has published a response explaining they will do everything they can to prevent this from happening - so this seems to be the beginning of another legal battle between Willingham and DC.

I also see a lot of posts heralding Willingham as some sort of hero for standing up against the "big company" that is DC and all that, I'll take a minute to remind you how before this all happened, Willingham had gotten a more ambiguous, if not unsavory reputation. I do like Fables (or at least I like the core of it, after a moment it really dragged on too much and tried to live way past its natural lifespan), and I am thankful it exists - but it doesn't change the fact Bill Willingham hasn't proven to be the greatest guy. His most recent dark note being his rudeness at the "Writing Women-Friendly Comics" convention, where he participated as a member of the panel, but apparently kept interrupting, mocking and disagreeing with all the women participating in a very rude and stubborn way. The guy certainly had cool ideas - but it doesn't mean he is a good guy, and given the series of accusations against him, and bad behavior incidents he got into, the whole "public domain" thing doesn't surprise me. Willingham has been giving off "petty diva" vibes these recent years, and this "public domain" move can be read in this direction.

I already highlighted how when it comes to actual variety in genders and sexuality, we have to wait for the spin-offs of Fables rather than the comic itself, spin-offs not written by Willingham - and there is also the whole thing of how he wrote one of the most perfect and heart-touching metaphors in Fables for the experience of being a trans person (the story of the wooden soldiers who wanted to become humans of flesh), but from what I heard he actually is not at all a trans-ally in real-life, not to say he might be transphobic? (Note: as I am writing this I discover he might also be doubtful, if not actively denying, climate change? Really?)

I am not sure of it all, again there's a lot of drama going on I have not spent my life documenting. But all of that to say... if Fables ever becomes public domain I would be so happy, because the original Fables truly exhausted its run in Willingham's hands (the recent revival has proven to be very disappointing, furthering my point), and only got breaths of fresh air within other writer's hands so far, so I would be very happy to see the franchise being explored and remade by other people. Again, Fables is a great concept and has been a big influence on so many things - it deserves to exist without the shadow of Willingham's dramas behind it.

At least that's my personal opinion. And with DC making all it will can to prevent the entering in the public domain, it might as well not happen...

[rahleeyah]

Re: one of them dies… (ask 1/2) lol.

Idk if this has been said already, but either one of them dying in fic would be so compelling.

If Olivia dies, let’s say right as this season picks up, we have Elliot and Noah leaning on each other and working through the grief (as you mentioned). But we still see the struggle and adjustment that both Elliot and Noah go through for a while. Even butting heads with each other.

We also have the dynamic of the other stabler children bringing Noah into the fold of siblings and giving him that support system. 

IMO, yes, Elliot might be a sort of catatonic at first in a way that he wasn’t when Kathy died and for LONGER, but he can’t go off on a rampage like he did when Kathy died either. He has a preteen in his house now. He’s got middle school and dance recitals and he wants to make Noah’s life as close to normal is possible, even though everything has changed. Thats not to say that him going off half cocked all the time was right when he did it with Eli, but he knows he can’t do that again to any of his kids, including Noah.

He never forgives himself. Not only did he leave for 10 years, but spent the time they were together, either under cover, covered in grief, or just being an idiot. 😂😂  because it is only after she has passed that he begins to learn about all that he missed. He will never get to talk to her about Noah’s adoption and baptism, Lewis,  the men in her life, her climb up the ladder, etc. she will never know that he saw her everywhere he went, and how there was never a day that way, but he didn’t think about her.

There’s lots of therapy and anger and rebuking of his God. Questioning why it happened to her and where was her team during this? He has it out with Fin a lot. And his kids know that he’s not OK. So while they never ask if he is, they constantly worry.

He talks to her every day. When no one is around. And tells her all about the day. Everything from the mundane to the extraordinary because he believes that she is listening and that she is with them. he doesn’t even try to date because he knows that that is never going to happen. so instead he slows down, focuses on the kids and the grandkids and making sure that Noah grows up knowing who his mother was.

On Elliot next.

Re: if one of them died (2/2)

Now, on the other hand, if Elliot dies at the start of the season, does anything change for Olivia on the surface?

ON THE SURFACE being the key part of that question.

Elliot was gone for 10 years. And like I said, in my last post in the time he has been back, there has not been a ton of progress in their friendship or any sort of romantic relationship. He’s been undercover, grieving, etc..

Olivia would be more inclined to be battling her own internal demons I believe. When Elliot was aWay, although it was the most difficult thing she’s ever done, she learned to live without Elliot. She knew he was alive somewhere.

She adopted, Noah, climbed to the ranks, and built a found family. All the while, and knowing Elliot was always out there somewhere and I think that made it a SMIDGEN bit more bearable.

But now he’s not out there.

The possibilities are gone. Friendship. Romance. All buried 6 feet under with everything she never told him, but always wanted to. She’ll have to grapple with regret. She couldn’t or wouldn’t let him in on any level even though she wanted to and now it’s too late. (Putting aside whether he deserved it or not)

She’ll send Noah away to a dance intensive or to his brothers upstate or to Amanda’s so that she can fall apart in private. Later she’ll maintain a brave face that she is fine. meanwhile, the inner storm that is brewing it’s becoming something she can’t control.

Her squad worries but they can’t ask. Fin tries, Amanda tries, Cragen tries, but she’s FINE. It’s finally Cassidy that gets through to her. Bc he KNOWS how much she loved Elliot. And he becomes her person to lean on. are they in a relationship? Who knows. Maybe one day they’ll try again? probably not. But for now, she likes that he seems to have matured, if only a little, and is willing to just sit there. Even if it means not talking.

As with Elliot, there is lots of therapy and anger, but Noah is growing up. He’ll be in high school soon and possibly college or a dance career after that. She knows that retirement is on the horizon, either voluntarily or not. And without work to occupy her brain, she knows her thoughts will, consume her.

She eventually decides to reach out to Elliott’s kids who are now parentless. And is genuinely surprised they have seamless they accept her into the fold. although adults themselves, they’re finding it difficult to go through life without their mother and father. They crave and need guidance and help.

Maureen feels overwhelmed with matriarchy being thrust upon her and custody of Eli, who has not really known peace since he left Italy.  Kathleen is constantly trying to run around and “fix” things.  Liz and Dickie, ever the twins, become even more sullen and withdrawn, respectively. And Eli, although a few years away from being legal, resents and Butthead’s with his siblings, who, realistically, he barely knows.

Of course, liv fixes all of this. And in essence becomes sort of that cool Aunt to the kids. She is the one they call with good news or for advice. She knows she can’t replace their mother, but she is gigi to the grandkids, none the less. They accept Noah as a younger sibling. And while she is grateful for her found family of Fin and Amanda, etc. only the Stabler Children know what it is like to live without Elliot.

They tell stories of Kathy and Elliot at holidays and on their birthdays. And Olivia lets them know about a side of their dad, but they didn’t often get to see. And somewhere along the way, she began to heal.

Ok. So I know these were lengthy posts, but I do think that both Alia and Olivia are strong characters. And even with one of them, gone while devastating, they both know they still have to continue on living. And for fic purposes Noah always ends up with five older siblings that protect him at all costs

-----

I don't have a response this is A LOT what do y'all think lol

[universestreasures]

@crimsonkaiser​​ (Plotted Starter)

“With a boost from Bicorn, go Barking Cerberus! Finish him off!” 

The command from the assassin springs the holographic images from the units projected from the helmets of the motion figure system to life, the multiple-headed beast charging force and striking Dragonic Kaiser Vermillion straight into the chest. A smirk doesn’t leave her face as the sixth and final damage is dealt successfully, it growing larger as it is placed into the Damage Zone. Not even a heal trigger could have saved Toshiki Kai at this point. She still had her Nightmare Doll Alice and a Skull Juggler standing in her right Rear Guard column, both having been powered up by a double Stand Trigger, ready and waiting to attack.

She completely decimated him, decimated the guy who she constantly had to struggle with for Ren’s attention. It was a shame Ren wasn’t here to witness such a triumph. Surely she would have praised her for taking down the Narukami user, especially considering her win rate against Toshiki Kai was slightly lower than his victory rate against her. The struggle between the two for who was the third member of the team or the alternate continued on, but Asaka is happy she once again showed him that she is a force to be reckoned with and deserves her place on this team.

And yet...her victory felt...somewhat hollow. The teen had noticed it during the game, the lack of Kai’s usual striking intensity. He didn’t misplay or anything of the sort. To the other Asteroid members who spectated the match, or those who would watch the recording later to analyze their fight data, he seemed to be playing normally. But to Asaka, who has battled him on the surface of the Planet Cray plenty of times before, he definitely wasn’t putting his all into it. 

And she had to know why. Ren’s didn’t need any weak links that could bring the whole team down and thus potentially compromise their next National Championship victory or whatever plans Ren had for the team. That’s why she walks over to him after removing her helmet, grabbing him by his black jacket collar aggressively and bringing him towards her.

“What was that?” Her voice is low and cold, but true flames of anger could be seen seeping behind Asaka’s icy hues. The intensity in the air was so much that the other Asteroid members could be seen leaving the room, knowing well to get out of the way unless they stay to face the wrath of The Assassin. “You put no effort into that game. It was like you weren’t even trying. Such a piss poor performance, even in a practice game, is a disgrace to Team AL4. You’re lucky Ren wasn’t here.”

And Asaka fully planned on telling Ren the results of her little investigation. It was her duty to make sure her leader stay informed about things, especially regarding Toshiki Kai since she didn’t trust him since the second they. Was it because she was envious of the attention and favor Ren gave him? Perhaps, but there was always something about him that didn’t fit right with the culture of this place. It...It was almost like he wasn’t meant to be here and was meant to be somewhere else. 

“So, what’s your deal? You’ve been acting different since our last match of the first day of this years Nationals, since we battled those weaklings Team Q4. The others might not have noticed it, but I sure have.” Her grip tightens as she gets closer, Asaka fight into the face of the taller teen. She may not look it, but she had become pretty observant over the years. She sort of had to be when you had people like her teammates who were all hard to read, the situation forcing Asaka to learn to read subtle changes in body language or facial expression. And she can tell just from how he’s been that he’s been acting different, and she has a hunch as to why that may be. 

“Don’t tell me that decimating that Q4 twerp at the Nationals to the point where he cried like a baby in front of the entire world is throwing you off. Since when have you ever cared about your opponents? I thought you were rather incapable of it considering you lack a heart.” She takes the chance to strike more blows, the ever opportunistic Assassin making sure that what she is going to say will sink in. “If you don’t shape up real quick, you might see yourself getting kicked from this team. We have no need for weakness on Team AL4, and we both know Ren would agree.”

After all, losing a single official match was enough to evict someone from AL4. That was the high standard she, Kai, and Tetsu had been held to for years. Loses were unacceptable to those who were at the highest level of the organization, no matter if they had been childhood friends with the leader or not. Everyone had to fight for their place here, Toshiki Kai included.

~

[recordsofelysia]

Planes of Existence: Lower Planes

It's time, last 3 planes, time to go evil mode.

The Lower Planes are those that are aligned with "evil". They are places where they strong take, and the weak are less than worthless. To be compassionate in any of the lower planes is to be a liability or a fool, or both. Everything is done to better oneself, no matter the impact on others, and in many cases to bring harm to another is the primary goal.

Physically, The Lower Planes are unique in that they are somewhat tangibly connected to each other geographically (mostly), at least more than other planes. Their designation as seperate 'planes' is closer to a formality, as the characteristics of the Lower Planes are more unorthodox, being made of multiple layers.

Dimensional geography is weird to explain. just trust me, you can walk from abyss to avernus. well actually no it'd be really hard to do that, but theoretically you could.

The Nine Hells

The Nine Hells (or simply The Hells) is the plane of Lawful Evil. It consists of a heirarchy of rigid rules and policies, overseen by the courts of devils. Trickery and loopholes are the only way to gain power in The Hells, and devils are constantly attempting to outsmart each other in their games of legality to gain an upper hand.

The Hells is also a final destination for many mortal souls, as they are sent there during sorting by The Raven Queen, if she believes it is what they deserve. Souls are valuable currency for Devils, who use them to trade, barter, and bribe. A more virtuous soul is more valuable, but very few souls of such a nature find their way to The Hells, usually only by accident or through infernal pacts.

Geographically, The Nine Hells are composed of, shockingly, 9 Layers, that all have their own features, but are generally desolate and unwelcoming. The most notable, and topmost layer, is Avernus, the location of the River Styx and site of The Blood War.

Speaking of, the River Styx is the river of blood, souls, and molten rock found at the centre of Avernus, seperating it from the rest of the nine layers, and must be crossed by souls being sent to The Hells. To do so safely, they are of course gathered and transported by the boatman of Avernus, but I'm not sure if I want to say too much about them in this post ;)

The other main notable feature of Avernus in particular is The Blood War, which is the everlasting war between Devils and Demons, who hail from the Abyss. Demons come to The Hells in search of souls to consume, and are repelled by infernal forces. This war is fought across Avernus, as the ranks of the demonic forces constantly replenish in number.

Lastly, but certainly not least, while The Hells are overseen by many courts of Devils and Archdevils, the ruler of The Nine is Asmodeus, the Prince of Evil, who rules from the lowest layer of the hells, where he was trapped after both The Divine War and The Descension. His reign is constantly beset by usurpers who attempt to outsmart him, though the operative word there is "attempt". Singular.

Gehenna

Gehenna is the plane of Neutral Evil. It is a desolate landscape where no joy is to be found, only pure misery and hate.

Gehenna is the "no-mans land" that sits between The Hells and The Abyss. It is a barren, ashen wasteland where Demons slowly maraud towards The Hells, and Devils who have been banished for whatever reason are sent.

The Abyss

Abyss is the plane of Chaotic Evil. It is a realm of pure terror, where wanton violence and unbridled malice reign.

Similarly to The Hells, Abyss is made of multiple layers, but rather than being limited to 9, the layers of Abyss are fathomless, with recorded numbers reaching the hundreds to thousands, with a possible infinite more unrecorded. Each layer of Abyss is a unique type of dreadful, a microcosm of fear and evil.

The Demons of the Abyss grow stronger by killing those weaker than them, feeding upon their life essence or souls, and as such are in constant battle. A few demons who grow exceptionally strong are known as Demon Lords, and can appear similar to minor deities in their strength and abilities.

A myriad of such Lords exist, but the highlights include Demogorgon, Orcus, Yeenoghu, Baphomet, and Graz'zt, though many more obscure, though no less powerful, Lords exist.

The Abyss is even where a few of the Architect Gods were sealed, and they have shaped their respective layers, examples including Gruumsh and Lolth (my belobed).

One of the few things that is absolutely certain about the Abyss is that Tharizdun, the Chained Oblivion, God of destruction, is trapped at its very bottom.

And that's the Lower Planes, and all of them! I really really have a lot to say about the Lower Planes, they have really cool, well developed lore, though I've made some changes here and there. I could definitely dedicate whole other posts to topics touched on here, like the River Styx, and Demon Lords, but we'll see.

So, with the planes done, that rounds out everything I have to say on the world from a cosmological standpoint, which is probably a good thing considering a lot of it isn't actually my own writing and worldbuilding, just adapted and frankensteined from other d&d material.

So, until next time! Where I might talk about something way smaller scale, like idk imma talk about Okshore or some shit.

[musecaravan-info]

Alejandro Manolo Ramírez Montoya

"A monster lies in wait in me, a stew of wounds and misery, but fiercer still in life and limb, the me that lies in wait in him." ~ Clive Barker ~

Basic Information

FACE/BODY CLAIM: Antonio Banderas

AGE: Approx. 2500 years old

EYES: Light Brown

HAIR: Dark Brown

HEIGHT: 5'9

PESANTA FORM STATS:

HEIGHT: 3.5’ (Nearly 8’ when standing on hind legs)

EYES: Bright Orange

HAIR: Deep Black, almost void-like

PRIMARY OUTFIT: Mostly dark/muted colors; long sleeves, sweaters, and jackets - even in summer; a little nicer than business casual; any patterns are also muted and 'tasteful'

Personality

Alejandro can often seem a little off-putting, but it's not intentional. He has a brooding sort of aura about him that's usually a little too intense for most people. He's soft-spoken under normal conditions, and has a, almost graceful appearance. All of his movements have an air of thoughtful intent.

LIKES: books, quiet, stormy weather, sweets

DISLIKES: stupidity, cruelty, pettiness, excessive talking

HOBBIES: reading, collecting antique weaponry, collecting antique books

Powers & Weaknesses

To avoid repetitiveness, see this post.

Romance

When it comes to sex, Alejandro will often use this as a precursor to feeding off of someone. There's a lot of guilt he associates with what he does, so he often enjoys taking someone to his bed before giving them horrible nightmares (unless he thinks the person deserves those nightmares.) Essentially, he'll flirt (and sleep) with anyone who seems receptive to the idea.

Developing an actual relationship takes more time. There's a part of him that never recovered from being forced to kill his lover all those centuries ago. It makes him cautious about allowing the potential for that kind of pain into his life again.

Where to Find Him

For most RPs (unless we're doing an AU of some kind) i'll have Alejandro working as a librarian for an art or history museum. He maintains the collection, helps people with research, restores antique books, etc. To keep things open, I'm willing to have him working just about anywhere.

Random places to find him would be coffee shops, public libraries, botanical gardens, etc.

If you want something a little more 'exciting' he unintentionally can gravitate to places where there's fear/suffering - a battle, a natural disaster, a tragic accident, etc. If there's enough people in one place all feeling fear, he can feed without laying a hand on anyone.

Verses

Just because a verse isn't listed here doesn't mean I'm not interested in writing it. I adore all kinds of AUs, and welcome the chance to get creative with my muses. If you've seen a verse that another of my muses has, and you'd like to see this muse in something similar, let me know. You can also check out my 'Plot Ideas' tag, too. ^_^

Main Verse:

This takes place in the present day, and follows Alejandro's backstory. Often I have him searching for a way to protect himself from magic-users. After being captured and enslaved by a dark wizard back in the 15th century, Alejandro's constantly on the lookout for ways to make sure it never happens again.

Marvel Verse

This is basically the same as his Main verse, only set within the Marvel universe. The only difference being that Alejandro will acknowledge the existence of mutants and superheroes/supervillains. However, he isn't a mutant himself; he's still a mythological creature.

Werewolf Verse

This is currently a private verse, however if the idea of Alejandro as a werewolf appeals to you, let me know and we can come up with something different.

Current/Ongoing Threads

If your thread with Alejandro isn't listed here it's probably because it's been long enough since your last reply that I thought you'd dropped it. Message me to let me know you're still interested, and I'll happily add you to the list (with no pressure for a reply.) ♡

Arn:

Through the Woods (Werewolf!AU)

Cam:

Accidental Ties (Marvel!Verse)

Kurt:

With Waking Nightmares (Marvel!Verse)

Completed Threads

I don't have many of these on any of my blogs, but RPs I've actually completed deserve to be acknowledged, I think. ;)

Cam:

The Fire (Main Verse)

Maximus:

Now You See Me (Main Verse)

Stuff That's Good to Know Before Starting a Thread

The face and name he currently uses once belonged to his lover... a man he was forced to kill back during the 15th century. If you want an RP taking place somewhere before the 1400's, then Alejandro will become Matheo Compagni, and his faceclaim will be a 20-something Raoul Bova.

This isn't something you NEED to have you muse know, however, I'm going to tell y'all here so that if you think it's something your muse WOULD know, you can write it in. Alejandro's last name is Ramírez, NOT Montoya. If your muse addresses him as Mr. Montoya he will most likely correct them. If your muse addresses him as Mr. Ramírez he'll probably be pleasantly surprised that they knew enough about Spanish names to get it right.

There may be bits of Alejandro's past that are potentially triggering. I won't go into any gory/graphic details in an RP without warning you, but things are likely to be mentioned in passing, even if it's only in Alejandro's thoughts. He spent several centuries enslaved to someone who abused him in every way you might imagine. It wasn't pleasant, and those years have stayed with Alejandro even into the present day.

Links

Please keep in mind, this blog is an ongoing work in progress. Not all of these links may lead somewhere, but they're here because they link to potential tags for this muse.

All Things Alejandro

Headcanons

Drabbles

All Threads

Ask Replies

Meme Replies

Aesthetics

Face

Special Links

Original Blog

Alejandro's Canine Form

Alejandro's Car

Alejandro's Collection

Alejandro's Home

Alejandro's Magic

Return To Full Muse List

[primus-why]

Oh my god, imagine if we had gotten Skyfire in TFP instead of Smokescreen?

No hate to Smokey fans, I'm just asking to picture an AU where if we had to add a new Team Prime member late in the game, it could have been Skyfire. (Please bear with me, I'm mostly just jotting down ideas so it's a bit all over the place)

Idk I just have this very specific dynamic in mind, like:

Skyfire: So I crashed here a gazillion years ago when I was exploring with my science partner.

Arcee: What happened to them?

Skyfire: I... don't know. You didn't find anyone else with me?

Bulkhead: 'Fraid not...

Skyfire: ... Oh.

Bumblebee: *beep boop bwee*!

Raf: Yeah! We'll go back and help you find them!

Skyfire: Really?? But... aren't you guys too busy to mount a search and rescue for a stranger? I don't want to be a burden...

Optimus: Even if you two are strangers to us, we will not abandon a fellow Cybertronian. Saving a life is always worth the effort.

Skyfire: Thank you, Prime.

《LATER》

Ratchet: The medbay is prepped to warm up your friend once they're brought in.

Skyfire: Thank you all again!

Arcee: So what's our perimeter? Did you see where they landed?

Skyfire: Well, no, I crashed before he did.

Bumblebee: *breep bworp*

Skyfire: I suppose it's possible he could have survived...

Miko: Couldn't you look him up in some sort of Cybertronian phonebook and just call?

Skyfire: I did try to reach him, but it seems he's changed his com line. Which makes sense, I suppose. So much has happened...

Bulkhead: Hm... oh! What about the N.A.I.L. census? I know it's super out of date, but...

Miko: Hold on, "Nail" census? Is there a census for sledgehammers too?

Fowler: N-A-I-L. It stands for Non-Aligned Indigenous Lifeforms. They're the Cybertronians who didn't pick a side.

Raf: So... they're neutral? Not Decepticon...

Jack: ... or Autobot.

Ratchet: A census was created and distributed among the N.A.I.L.s so they would be able to find eachother after the exodus. They planned to regroup and form their own colonies off-world.

Optimus: Hm. It would be a good idea to exhaust our options that avoid risk.

Skyfire: Agreed! Let's check out that census.

Arcee: I can pull it up. What's your friend's name again? You guys were from Vos, right?

Skyfire: Mhm. And his name is Starscream.

Team Prime: ...

Skyfire: ... Do you want me to spell that for you, or...?

Miko: I'm sorry, I think I misheard you, because I could have sworn you just said Starscream.

Skyfire: Uh yup. That's correct.

Arcee: *closes out of the census*

Skyfire: ... is there a problem?

Ratchet: Oh, there are several problems!

Cue Team Prime explaining all the things Starscream has done, and Skyfire has a hard time believing it, so he sets out on his own to see Starscream for himself.

Once they see each other and spend a bit more time with each other, Skyfire can see how much Starscream has changed. But he still cares for him. He thinks Starscream can be better than this, deserves better. He doesn't like the Decepticon culture, the way Starscream has become so paranoid and twitchy and violent, constantly looking over his shoulders and not trusting anyone. That's no way to live!

But as Starscream is about to go back to the Decepticons, he starts a spat with Skyfire. (In his own way, Starscream is just keeping Skyfire out of Megatron's servos, because he knows the shuttle will end up following him.) So Skyfire goes back to Team Prime and is like... "I don't want to take up your brand, but if you'll allow me to stay here I can use my skills to assist in the med bay and help look for energon to share. I don't have it in my spark to go into battle. Of course, I know some basic self-defense, but I just don't want to be involved in this war's violence. I'd much rather heal and help others, and... if at all possible, I want to try to rescue my old friend." and Optimus agrees.

Cue an energon mining mission where Team Prime + Skyfire fall under attack by some vehicons/insecticons or whatever, and Skyfire is able to show off his quick thinking skills and brute strength in front of everyone to save the day! This could be especially impressive to anyone in Team Prime that may have thought N.A.I.L.s were cowards or unable to fight.

Fast forwarding a bit, Skyfire has tried many ways to lure Starscream away from the Decepticons, but the seeker continues to rebuff him, yelling at him to stay away from him, saying cruel things, and renouncing him as a friend. But Skyfire doesn't give up. He explains to the kids when they ask him about his persistence later that he knows Starscream is hurting/is in danger, that he's always been duplicitous when it comes to his true feelings.

Going back to Starscream... imagine if Soundwave presented evidence to Megatron that there's a new face among Team Prime these days. "A new member?" Megatron ponders, but then looks a bit closer, "Hm... they wear no brand. So the Autobots are hosting a neutral? How interesting..." Then Soundwave reveals that Starscream has known about this new arrival, but hadn't reported any of his encounters. What's more, it appears they know each other. "... How very interesting indeed."

Team Prime stumble upon an energon deposit that's already being mined by Decepticons (including Starscream), so they hang back to decide if they should use the element of surprise to strike, or if they should try their luck elsewhere. While observing this mission from back at the base, Skyfire sees Megatron make a surprise visit and confront Starscream. Starscream tries to deny that he even knows him that well, and claims that Skyfire isn't very skilled so he won't be much use to the Autobot's cause. But Megatron doesn't buy it. He grabs Starscream, intent on beating the truth out of him, but Skyfire commandeers the groundbridge and bridges right to their location. We get to see more of that brute strength in action as he hits Megatron from behind, yelling at him to let Starscream go. It disorients Megatron long enough for him to grab Starscream and run off with him, telling him he won't let Megatron hurt him anymore. Skyfire and Starscream don't return to their bases that night.

And that's all I got for now! I figured they'd hide out on earth, possibly in that old ship Starscream had once visited in the show. Maybe they straight up disappear for the rest of the show up until that time where all the kids were captured and had to get exchanged for Omega Keys, or at the end where everyone has to defeat a Unicronified Megatron. Like I want them to show up as Science Bros Who Are Here To Kick Ass And Help... double bonus if things are dire and Wheeljack gets roped in for science stuff too. You'd really have a Moment of a former Decepticon, an Autobot Wrecker, and a Neutral working together and that would just be Neat.

[has-brain-rot]

I FINISHED SEASON 2 OF VOLTRON

OKAY SO SO SO that was a WILD season and the showdown in the last 2 episodes? it was so dramatic and deserved. Really interesting to see the mages(?) get more screentime (though barely) because they are so funky. what are they doing why are they there. but anyways like last time I'lll put the rest below xD

BACK ABOUT THE MAGES. I don't remember their names but the head mage gives off "puppeteering-everything-from-the-background" vibes. I wouldn't be surprised if they turned out to be the real mastermind behind it all. Like if the magic was used to corrupt some minds and help build the empire. Although I don't know what that would do to the world building?

Shiro. WHERE DID SHIRO GO. Like they went HARD on Shiro this season. He's trying his best but life keeps attacking him. The mind battles he has are super cool and WOW this man can fight. but also Shiro do you ever sleep. does he sleep. does he believe in self care. I don't think he's ever heard of sleep before.

Pidge gives off some of the vibes of Haruhi from OHHC. They both have similar genders. Love how she gets time to shine at the tech planet!

Hunk being a master chef is cool, especially considering he's probably never seen any of those ingredients before. Still kinda disappointing that they made 3/4 of his personality food. I also think he'd be good at hugs lol

Keith my man are you okay?? I'm getting vibes of orphan club which like same xD. But also now that Shiro is gone Keith is probably going to have to take over? The red lion has shown to act independently so if Keith takes over the black lion then they could still form voltron? (the black lion has show to not care as mucha bout who's in it, at least compared to the red lion.

ALSO the red lion acting independently feels kind of like a parallel to hyper-vigilance. Keith doesn't feel safe often so his lion is always on guard and ready to protect, unlike a lot of people who generally don't have such a hyperactive "I must protect myself at all costs" mentality. It's the constantly engaged survival instincts you honour

Love how lance is just some guy. I am not invested in him and I feel like he would not be invested in me if we ever met xD. Love how he's just some guy while Shiro has gone through insurmountable psychological and physical trauma. he's just there.

THE MERMAID ADVENTURE WAS SUPER NEAT. LOVE HOW THE QUEEN DIDN'T TURN OUT TO BE BAD (maybe? it felt a little rushed when it got to that point). The suspense of figuring out what was causing the mind control was pretty neat. Also the giant worm beast was living it's life. technically wasn't decimating the mermaid population so.. (joking joking I just really liked its design)

Black lion trust battles are super cool. But I gotta say the black lion has like, reverse trust issues. please just stop trying to pick the genocidal dictator that keeps killing millions of people. please. Though it does make me wonder if part of the reason the black lion accepted Shiro so fast was because Shiro reminded the black lion of the previous paladin? With the arm and vibes and everything?

Coran is growing on me. he's just built like that and honestly good for him. He's like a space dad. Also emo Coran is great, might be a heavy stereotype but you know what we can ignore that and let him own it. Give him back that haircut. Also how he speaks sometimes makes me think that he's not from the same planet Allura is? Like maybe he's from a sister planet of a species that evolved extremely similar but not identical. Because he can't do everything Allura can. UNLESS Allura can do it because she's a princess whichhhh eh. It's cool for her but also tiring to see the whole "royal families are good and deserve their positions because they are inherently more special and valuable" sort of message.

ALLURA. QUEEN. SHE IS FLEXING HER POWER AND I SUPPORT HER ON THAT ENDEAVOUR. She was being mean to Keith but all things considering I can understand her hesitance considering everything. Stills sucks that Keith had to go through her projections. but also DAMN when she blends in to sneak onto the ship I loved seeing her fight. like her fighting style there was literally "what if I just slam everything together". I love that for her

also Keith being only half(?) human is really cool but WOW the team was not very understanding. Just let the guy be. He's trying his best but he also needs time to process and adapt. And I don't think he adapted too well if his first(ish) reaction to being part galra was to throw himself into enemy ships and nearly die AGAIN

red lion going feral is cool. Love how it has a stronger personality compared to the others, but it makes the other lions seem less powerful? not powerful perse but more so they get almost kidnapped a lot more and don't really do anything about it while the red lion will fight for its own freedom.

ANYWHO I should probably go watch the third season because I MUST know where Shiro went. is he okay <- judging by his character he is one of the MOST least okay characters.