#honestly I am a very contrary person by nature but

[psalacanthea]

me, every time I’m tagged in something:  oh, that’s nice of them, but I don’t think I want to do that

me, every time I’m not tagged in something: oh :(  that looks fun

[nimrodinked]

Snakes, Flame, and the Cycles of History

Hello out there, missed me? Well office employment does so drain a person, though not of creativity. And, what with Elden Rings DLC out and me playing it, the time has come for more rambling. This is going to decidedly be more couched in theory and game lore, though Vaati I am not.

It goes to say that this will be a very spoilery talk, be warned.

For one, I am really quite pleased that the story has become clearer in the DLC. What with NPCs and very straight forward storytelling I am able to craft quite a more concrete picture of the goings on in the Lands Between, as well as implications beyond. For one, finding Bonny Village, Gaol, and seeing the jar people was quite horrific and visceral, and that coupled with Marikas own village being an empty place bathed in gold make for a heart tugging emotional moment. That connects nicely to Messmers theme, which also sounds a remix of part of the opening title. Messmer (foe of my beloved people) is quite the interesting character, even putting aside his yaoi MC proportions. Even if I haven't found much in the way of evidence myself, as far as timelines and just vibes go Messmer certain comes across as the oldest of the demigods sired from her. I'm fairly certain all of Rennala's children are older, but for Marika-Spawn he's certainly the oldest. He's also cursed just like his siblings, and here is where I am most interested and focused. Honestly the DLC gives enough that I may make more than one post, though I prefer to write here longform, and I'm not sure how much I could cook up from my brainpans secretions.

In any case, Messmer and his crusade are the first main obstacle most players will run across, seeing as the furnace golem is right smack dab outside. The closer one gets to his keep, the more and more fire-relations one can find. Messmers embers are described as embers of his fire, the fire knight armor and spells describe messmer giving his fire to his troops, the grease describes that everyone, even rank and file in his legions use fire. So, clearly, and obviously he is very connected to fire. But, and what most people will assume more sinister, he is connected to snakes. Snakes are part of him, both the winged ones that appear on his outside, and the "base serpent" that I am assuming resides within him, as he unleashes full snake attacks when he breaks his grace seal, while his first phase largely involves his titular flames. The snake, the 'abyssal serpent' within him was sealed by marika with the same bestowing seal that Radagon (presumably) had received. And that's stated.... Somewhere as the reason that Marika had shunned Messmer and sent him on his crusade. Given snakes and their already close connection to blasphemy, it makes sense. However, contrary to that, I have quite another theory.

Mainly I think that Messmer represented a threat to Marikas "eternal" ruling by way of his flames. Seeing how naturally the flames of the giants are feared and shunned by all who worship the erdtree, Marikas firstborn not only having the fire-red hair of the giants, but also a mastery over fire itself must have been not only humiliating, but a threat to all that Marika ruled over. And Messmer doesn't just have fire, he's got Messmerfire! Which sounds like it's the same but from every description and allusion, it's quite potent, potent enough to lay waste to the land of the hornsent through their largest of soldiers. The Furnace Golems, which may not be directly connected.... But they work in a land of fire, scoop up hornsent and burn them to ash, and you can even bring one to life by throwing a hefty furnace pot into it's head. A hefty furnace pot is crafted using messmers embers among other ingredients, and the description says that the flames burn away both body and soul, cleansing the victims. This would no doubt be a cruel fate for the hornsent that worship and revere souls... But it also puts Messmers flames on the level of extremely dangerous to the erdtree. It's consistent if not immediately apparent that fire is treated very poorly by most everyone within the Lands Between, so much so that the Lord of Blasphemy just so happens to also live in Volcano Manor, the semi active lava zone of this fucked up mario game. Snakes and fire... But while Rykard most certainly leaned to the snake side of things, Messmer is flame all the way, to the point you need his internal fire to break open the sealing tree and access the final area of the DLC.

So, the assumed firstborn of Marika possessed not only a horrid inner curse, but flame powerful enough that it is it's own incantation school. That's another interesting thing littered through the dlc and the game in general. Faith. Faith makes power, more than power draws faith. As shown by the faith talismans describing a mass of believers, faith is the strongest affirmation. Now, let us further this idea. Messmers fire, much like Melinas, was capable of burning a tree, the symbol of power in Marikas order. He was also afflicted with a curse of snakes, which Marika sealed away without helping. The blessing of marika is quite clear on this. "Once she made several of them for Messmers sake, but never again". So.... Why? Why not help her son after pushing on him the onerous task of crusading in her name? Or perhaps it was after the crusade began that Marika got an idea in her head. Messmers gear says that he made himself the symbol of fear and hatred for the hornsent, allowing all the feelings of resentment to flow to him. Not exactly deific.... But just as he was loathed by the hornsent, his knights venerated and even worshipped him. He was a demigod, after all. So this being of fire, gaining new worship and power in the lands between, would almost certainly represent an eventual threat to Marikas rule. As for why she never again made her healing flasks for messmer, I also have an idea. The kindling of messmer describes it as being eaten away at by a snake. the sbake within Messmer no less, his base serpent. Sealed away, it would have no way to sustain itself should it need to, the only things to gnaw on were it's host. So, rather cruelly, Marika may have realized that allowing her son to wither, his powers to wane, would be the smartest course of action, however horrible it may be.

It's a tragedy that, despite flame being his power and gift, Messmer hated it. The orb of messmers describes that he often wished to be rid of it, but ever would it burn. With that chestnut we might think that, rather than gaining worship on purpose, Messmer wished to impart his gifts so they would lessen. A description reads that he tried to implant his flame in others but failed, and the incantations are a way to make up for that. When you fight him he even maintains that he keeps eternal watch, and allows no one without light to pass. He even begs forgiveness from his callous mother as he plucks his own eye out to release the snakes. It's only when he's freed of both life and vigil that he curses Marika, perhaps as a realization of how far he's been betrayed, or perhaps a final damnation of his unrequited feelings of love for his deity parentage.

So! Messmer, poor deluded fool, was betrayed and left out of sight to guard a piece of Marikas mistakes, much like Maliketh. Everywhere you really look into it, the queen eternal seems to get worse and worse. It's interesting to look back on moments like the ashen capital, like gideons speech with new light. Marika, it seems, really is the worst. Tragedy colors her ascension and I really do feel for her, seeing how she didn't want to cause yet more death in her new golden order. But she has done horrid things to keep that order, and while her atrocities have a shinier, cleaner coat of paint, they reek of the same barbarism the hornsent employed to their enemies and underlings. It makes me wonder, really, if there is such a thing as a good ending for Elden Ring. While I haven't roflstomped tender miquella, I've heard his ending is quite seperate from the main game, meaning that we're still stuck with ages of mediocrity at best. And, even with an ascension to "perfect" order, it seems difficult to believe that all will be well, as the rune only claims to quell the hearts of men, and as you can see clearly across the lands between, there is a much deeper rot that spreads...

Anyway! This was fun, this is the first game I've really felt the need to sink my teeth into in regards to fromsoft, though I've enjoyed stories of theirs before. There's plenty more to discuss, so perhaps I'll make another lore/theory post of my thoughts. As for my closing thoughts.... Well-

CHAOS TAKE THE WORLD! CHAOS TAKE THE WORLD!

[all-pacas]

i think you're deeply in denial about being a chase/cam shipper or you gotta change your definition of shipping or something. because whatever you're doing here absolutely 100% looks like shipping them. to the untrained eye

in reality i have this very multi long paragraph disclaimer that's too convoluted to even explain but here ya go:

they are my two favorite characters

i like seeing them interact because of this fact

i find their deeply complimentary set of flaws fascinating. i love seeing cameron in a Relationship because she's such a fucking unreliable narrator about herself. i like seeing chase in a relationship because the very concept of "putting someone besides yourself first" is so antithetical to him and the opposite of what he has learned his whole life. i want to put them in a room together. i want cameron to talk at glowing length about her soulmate dead husband and how she watched him die and i want chase to talk about watching his mother die and how much he hates and resents her. i don't know where that conversation would go but i Want It. it's like how i want chase and 13 to talk about murder and redemption together. it is a platonic smashing together of fake people, not about making them kiss

i think they were badly written in the sense that like. there's no writing. they're just together. now they're not. now chase has feelings. do we see them? no. now cameron has feelings. do we see them? no. now they date for three years. as someone who likes writing and narrative this drives me insane because it's so lazy.

i think i could do it better, not in a "because i want to write uwu fixit fanfic where they kiss" way but in a "this sort of writing drives me insane" way. like. huddy was badly written too but it very much existed. cameron and chase are just "oh btw chase fell for her at some point for some reason during fwb." why???? we can handwave but there is NOTHING IN CANON. cameron likes him too! why??? WHO KNOWS

however i also find it annoying when people go "solution: they never dated, we pretend it never happened" because that's ALSO lazy and retcons several years of canon including cameron's exit from the show. including the actual character development chase gets, which i actually do like. i think i'm a rare person who almost prefers late series chase. i like short haired chase. and i don't like the idea of erasing all that canon development just because "uwu i don't like it" (or, more petty, because "uwu i think cameron should have kissed x -- usually house -- so i hate this canon relationship that like it or not did exist")

this ties in to my actual fairly complicated feelings about cameron and how a lot of fandom tends to Girlboss her up in obvious and admirable contrast to her years of reddit-ish character bashing. where i admire the Spirit but deeply dislike this Girlboss characterization.

basically i am a deeply contrary person by nature

so whenever i see this ship i go IT COULD HAVE BEEN BETTER, and OUT OF SPITE I WILL DEFEND IT, which is a whole perpetual motion machine of feelings

i honestly could not care less about them kissing. except for the specific episodes where they allude to having a sex life and foreman all but flees the room. i actually care quite a lot about that, i think it's super funny. so in that context (in front of foreman, to troll him) i want them to make out.

i've gone and read old ffn stories from when the show was airing that featured them as a couple. like from true fans and believers of the ship. i disagree with almost all of it and think usually cameron and usually chase are ooc in these stories. but in different ways. this also triggers my spite

so sure. yes. i ship it. probably,

[theediviners]

𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐏𝐬𝐲𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐜 𝐀𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬

Collaborative PAC between @astrodoll2 , @neptunianrose, @m00nt4r0t , & @daarlingdatura

PILE ONE @astrodoll2

For this pile I’m seeing your strongest psychic abilities is your ability to manifest into the physical whatever it is you desire, you’d also be really good at witchcraft for this reason especially working with herbs and earthly things, a practical routine could suit you very well especially if you’re more of a logical person the more steps there is to something the more you may believe it’ll actually work since your putting effort into something you also without realizing it are putting intentions into it and greater energy which allows the power to manifest. You can manifest very quickly and easily especially with finances and material luxuries. You bring a lot of stability financially to yourself but you attract it most when you yourself are feeling stable and calm within, for as how they manifest whenever you’re generous with your resources and what you have to offer you receive it back 10 fold, you can be very fortunate and attract a lot of good luck but you could lose it just as quickly if you start doubting yourself, becoming worried or rushing/forcing things by being impulsive due to fear, since your mindset has alot to do with what you’re attracting over thinking negatively will do you any favors on the contrary the more you let go the more you bring in, don’t be impulsive but don’t be afraid to be bold and take risks, along with manifesting you can make actual wishes just by summoning your spirit guides and they will abide. How to strengthen this ability, well like I was saying before your mind needs to be at a relaxed state, meditation is recommended for you, don’t hold onto pains or past failures, you really need to let go of a lot of negative self talk or doubts within that create these limiting beliefs and cause resistance to your manifestions, speaking out loud in your room alone what it is you want like making a request to the universe or your guides, subliminals could help, don’t volunteer in gossip since it only attracts that back. Being optimistic and stable in the knowing that it will manifest is how you will bring it to you and once you start manifesting little things and keep seeing it come to fruition it will build your confidence and help you manifest a lot smoother because I see you will be a master at this once you’ve improved on your self worth especially, working on self concept is great but also because I feel like you may subconsciously feel like you aren’t deserving of all these luxuries you could get or feeling like you should work harder because you’ve heard others say things don’t come easy or money doesn’t grow on trees but honestly that is just a mindset which is why alot of people will stay at that point for basically their whole lives, so don’t let it be you, because I see that you’re meant to have all your desires as well all are but for you it will initially come easier maybe because you’ve had past lives where you were extremely good at manipulating energy so it’ll be natural once you get the hang of it. Let go and let flow. PILE TWO @neptunianrose

Beautiful are the gifts that have been bestowed upon you but the best of them all is your healing ability! Your words are melting walls away, caressing wounds, making worries disappear. Specifically, anything that is related to one's childhood and most innocent years can be so easily healed and through your help! You can identify hidden traumas and cuts. There are times when you think you've said the wrong things and get the truth is that you just hit clode to home, even without intending to. I like your energy if I am being honest. Your gift can be used as a weapon as well but that won't ever be the case cause you don't want to create pain. I am reminded of Katara from Avatar and her amazing skills. If you do intent to expand these parts of yourself you could become quite well known for it. There are many energy healing methods, reiki being the first to pop up in my head, which I recommend you to look into. Whichever stands out to you the best can be the gateway to a whole new path that will bring light into your life. Spiritualism seems important for you and your purpose! I usually dislike talking about things as if they are set in stone but you are clearly meant to use your inclination towards the mystical for helping people. Healing can be in itself a way for you to tend to your own wounds and help you process your grief better. I got the six of cups which makes me think that you can specifically access someone's inner child and fantasies. They feel safe enough around you to allow this aspect come to light and be shown to you (and that only tells us what a beautiful soul you have!). I want to say that, as rare as they might be, occasions in which your gift is turned against others are not impossible. Us humans can be defensive when pushed to, even the kindest of all. So don't underestimate your desire to hurt when you yourself are experiencing a big amount of anger. This is just an advice coming from the source to prevent you from causing too much damage (don't forget you are a human though and mistakes can be made).

What I am about to say in this part is very similar to the paragraph above but, with enough patience, you could easily channel any secret or hidden information. You have a psychic ability which you're unaware of that helps you remove the shadows and see what usually lurks inside of them. You have definitely used it unintentionally at times and most likely thought it was just intrusive thoughts but oh my, that is so far from the truth! I do feel like there is more to your gifts that have been revealed today but you must work on these for now before diving deeper.

PILE THREE @m00nt4r0t

okayy so as soon as i lit my incense, the flame was big and continued to grow in size. it was a bit hard for me to blow it out at first, but don't worry, i did lol. to me, this indicates very fiery and passionate energy, and that it must be contained before it gets out of control and engulfs everything in it's path.

what are your unique psychic abilities? i feel like a major psychic ability you possess is the power to avert danger away from you and others. there's this very protective, nurturing essence that surrounds you and basically scares away danger itself. i feel like the reason you have this is because of your emotional, loving and creative nature. you could've gone through some dark, traumatic experiences that have caused you to have this "man-eater" vibe (although the phrase specifies men, i mean it for any gender.) you have a very deep, emotional side to you that is very nurturing and caring, and you protect it with a harsh demeanor. you are a very passionate person and i wouldn't be surprised if you triggered heavy amounts of passion in others by simply just existing and doing your thing. you could be reposting whatever resonates with your energy and this inspires others to step more into the energy that you naturally possess. you are someone who is very influencing, whether you try to be or not. if you have any siblings, whether they're older or younger than you, i feel like they definitely look up to you and admire your style and your way of being. if they're older, then you influence them to indulge in more "youthful" trends and whatnot. okay, i'm also getting that part of your psychic abilities could be making others sick?? like, if they do wrong by you or have ill intentions with you, they become sick or their skin starts to break out, or maybe even someone they love gets sick. you also cause others to fear changes with you? like, whether the change is good or bad, people you connect with tend to be a bit intimidated by you and aren't very good at reading your emotions nor your energy, so they may think that certain things they say and do will cause a transformation in the connection.  also, you have the ability to take on a lot at once. even if you don't think so, you are very good at multi-tasking. i also think that you're most spiritually powerful whenever you're sitting down (or during moments of personal peace and stillness.) you have a lot of passed on loved ones by your side whom are also pretty powerful and they are part of the reason that others get sick whenever they cross you. also, i feel like your power heavily includes your knowledge and your wittiness. you're someone who knows a lot more than they say and this makes you so so so powerful. i feel like people know you know a lot, but they don't know what you know so this can be a bit intimidating to a lot of people. you may also know a lot of secrets which could include other people's secrets and secrets of the universe. i feel like you're more than capable of communicating with those on the other side and you could've been doing so since you were very young. i also feel like your family may be very similar to you in this way, even if they don't believe it. if you have an altar then this is increasing your psychic abilities more than you may have expected it to. lastly… your seductive energy is immaculate and every time you step into this type of energy, it grows stronger and stronger. i'm seeing an aura just expanding and engulfing more and more people within it. i don't want to get to explicit so i'll just say this: if you haven't studied sex magic, you probably should. also, adding your sexual energy into whatever you create will be extremely magnetising, so keep that in mind.

how do your psychic abilities manifest? your psychic abilities manifest in a way that makes others want to cling onto your energy for dear life. people refuse to let go of you. even if they don't speak to you, they will still think of you, check up on you online, ask people about you, be inspired by you, etc.  i feel like there's a lot of people from your past who are "stuck" on you, even those who claim not to like you (they're literally in love with you.) and although i said you avert danger, i feel like danger still lingers. to give you a visual, i imagine danger as some person looking at you through the window of your house; they can't get in, but they are watching. this could be in terms of evil eye and baneful magick towards you. i'm also getting that your abilities manifest in the way that others speak to you and about you. for example, people tend to feel very seduced by you so they flirt with you. another example, people don't want the connection with you to change so they over-explain and basically kiss your ass to stay on great terms with you. this feels kind of obvious but your abilities manifest in forms of creativity and random moments of intense inspiration that you get. if you randomly get the urge to write a song, write a book, draw something or make a piece of clothing, it's because your abilities are looking for an energetic outlet. you may tend to keep your abilities to yourself but they are begging to be released and seen/heard by others (3:33 on my clock) because whenever you do something creating, it is being driven by the powers you have within you and you're pretty much doing magick by creating, even if it is just a piece of clothing or writing on a paper. your abilities manifest in the littlest things you do, whether it be taking a bath, smoking a cigarette, laughing at something funny, dressing up to go out. all of it is, of course, inspired by your psychic abilities because they're so magnetizing that even you tend to get hypnotized by them. however, i do feel like whenever you're feeling extremely angry/sad/bitter, then it can manifest some chaos into your life if you don't release these emotions as calmly and quickly as possible. bottling up your emotions is not at all good for you and those around you because of how powerful you naturally are. i feel like you don't have to worry too much because of the fact that you're very protected, but it's still important to keep that in mind. your abilities also manifest in the way that you love and care for others, so i can definitely see a protective shield around those you love simply just because you love them. your abilities may also manifest in those you love and they become more enlightened in their own ways.

how to strengthen your gifts: as i shuffled an image of someone smoking (specifically a blunt, but could be anything) came into my head, so i think that smoking certain herbs (please study which herbs are safe to smoke) can strengthen your abilities! i feel like even smoking marijuana could be beneficial (when monetized) because it can help you analyze more and open up your mind. but, of course, marijuana does not impact everyone the same, so only take that if it resonates. also, meditate!!! meditation really helps to clear the mind of any excess "junk" floating around in there and helps for clearer intuition. if you already meditate, then maybe meditating for a few more minutes or lighting an incense while you meditate could enhance the effects. deep breaths will help you clear your mind as well. this is a pretty obvious one but the more shadow work you do, the stronger your abilities become. i feel like your abilities get "watered down" after long moments of not doing shadow work; this could be for many different reasons but a specific reason i'm getting is because when you don't do shadow work, you tend to be a bit more impulsive/chaotic therefore your abilities weaken for your own good. your abilities strengthen whenever you challenge yourself and allow some healthy competition into your energy. also, sleep!! when you get the amount of sleep that you need, it's easier to control and hone in on your abilities. whenever you take time to be alone and self-reflect, realign yourself and do shadow work, your abilities strengthen immensely. another way that you can strengthen your gifts is simply by not giving up; this shows that you're more than capable of what you got and that you're ready for more. 

PILE FOUR @daarlingdatura This is an interesting pile, I see that you may be someone who is able to predict loss, disaster, and other "negative" events. You are someone who's abilities are deeply rooted in their emotions & the impressions of energy around them. You're reflective, "like a pond" I heard. It's important that you take ample rest from social situations as necessary. I definitely see here that you may be someone who also knows how to like... take on the minds of other people? You can think through their heads if that makes sense. I also sense that you may be able to channel energy or intentions through your hands to bless, heal, hex, curse, or effect things in some way. It's interesting because I definitely feel like your nightmares could end up often being signs. You may also unintentionally dream walk, I see that you may also be prone to anxiety that isn't yours. It's important you cleanse regularly to avoid any entities taking advantage of you.

I see that you may have many more psychic abilities that you don't fully understand or that are still currently dormant. I definitely see that you are being prepped to develop extremely intense abilities. It reminds me of how in Wednesday her mom is a dove & she's considered a raven. You would be a raven, the way that you tend to pick up on danger & hidden information. You usually see through people very clearly, though at times the images can become distorted if you become close enough to the person. When you become incredibly close with someone there can be a sort of energetic merging. Where you're both in limbo drowning in each other's energy. I heard pathological, your abilities deeply deal with the mind & I feel called to say death as well.

I wouldn't be surprised if you have predicted deaths or if you have dreams where the dead appear to you with messages. I feel this has past life roots, it may be possible that you have a divine connection with death and the dead. You may find as you grow closer to people they are forced to shed old skins and rebirth themselves anew. In some ways you are a catalyst, but in a less explosive way. Your energy reminds me of a snake- which I think is beautiful. In ancient times, especially near the middle east female deities were often depicted as snakes or dragons. So this is definitely giving ancient energy. As your gifts develop you may begin to see/hear dead people, you could also develop insanely vivid visions. Some of the people in this pile have already begun developing this gift. I do have a slight warning here, make sure you regularly cleanse and ground. You are extremely connected & it's imperative that you prioritize your health. Your service or abilities either could already be highly sought after or will become highly sought after.

[autisticlancemcclain]

Jackie supports the lion swap? How dare you!

Okay SO. This is not the first time I’ve gotten an ask or a comment like this, and I’m fully aware it’s a joke (or at least I think), but I also know that it is kind of a controversial topic on here! And I’ve already written an essay in the topic, but I have some more thoughts I’d like to dive into.

I used to be team Blue Paladin Lance, and hardcore on that team, too. If you look at some of my old fics, you’ll see that. However since I am a contrary person by nature, I started to notice that Red Paladin Lance was way less liked, and so I started to like it more. I really grew fond of the dynamic Keith and Lance got to have as co-leaders, both because it was homoerotic as hell and because the symbolism was fun to explore, but klance is not the main reason I started to care so deeply for the lion change — it was actually Shiro and Allura.

I’m going to start with Shiro, because he’s one of the most fascinating characters in VLD, if not underdeveloped. Part of that fascination for me is that he probably has the most arcs and opportunities for character growth and development in the show, and yet somehow he’s the flattest. He’s portrayed as very one-dimensional in a lot of fic — he tends to be less of a character and more of a role. He’s the Space Dad, or the older brother, or the cool teacher, or the kind and wise friend, or even the stoic Black Paladin. He is loved, I think, but the role he plays is loved, not quite the person he is. And that makes sense, because that is exactly how he’s portrayed in canon.

To Keith, Shiro is “like a brother to [him]”, but what do we see of that dynamic? The show has a clear sense of how a brother acts, that’s a good chunk of Pidge’s character. We barely even know Matt, but Pidge carries herself in such a way that it’s clear when her brother shines through her. And yet even though Shiro also goes missing, twice even, Shiro does not shine through his brother. Keith’s impulses are his own, developed from general abandonment issues rather than Shiro’s specific absence. Shiro’s absence becomes less of Shiro’s absence and more of an absence of a beloved leader figure, kind of a martyr, a “Shiro would have wanted you to carry on”. It is really hard for us as a fandom to use Shiro’s disappearance as anything but a plot device, because that’s all it felt like! We have occasional moments with Shiro, enough to care about him in some way, but as a figure, not as a person. Someone pointed it out on one of my fics and I agree wholeheartedly — Shiro is not shown with any flaws, and that makes it really hard to love him, because you don’t really get the pleasure of defending him, of seeing his motivations, his reasons. Not until the very end, at least.

This is, in all honesty, likely just poor writing. Shiro’s character was honestly just sidelined to a role, because he is really not that present in the show. But I am going to work with the benefit of the doubt, and see if I can use the lion change to explain why we all kind of love Shiro anyway, despite the fact that he’s flat as hell.

Shiro isn’t the Black Paladin. He never was. He flew the Black Lion, yes, and he flew her well — but he was never her Chosen. He couldn’t have been. From the very beginning, the Black Lion was in mourning; she was in no space to choose a new paladin. She accepted Shiro, and she loved him, but he did not fall into her as much as he fell into the role she provided for him. He piloted the Black Lion, but he was not her Paladin. This is made obvious in two ways: in that he never got her bayard, and that from the very beginning, he set up a replacement for himself.

Doesn’t that strike anyone else as odd? I haven’t seen the show in five years, and I don’t plan on rewatching, but I do remember that every moment with Shiro almost had this underlying tension. The closest thing I have to canon off the top of my head is the Handbook (which I had to stop reading because they did everyone SO dirty there, even though some of it was honestly pretty funny), which was released in S2, and even that incredibly early canon talked about Keith replacing Shiro!

From the very beginning, Shiro was planning an out to his role. He knew it was not meant for him. He did the role well, but it was not his to do.

Aside from those two reasons, Shiro also…can’t be the Black Paladin. He can’t be that and himself, I mean. This part is a little more complicated, so I’m going to borrow some of my own tags from some awesome fanart I saw:

I really do think Shiro is defined by his humanity (as is heavily implied by his illness — this is a character who is completely and totally bound to his mortality. Of all the other characters, he is the one most familiar with death, so he is the one who is most intimate with the raw fear of being human. But more on that later), but it’s my last comment that I want to focus on — “he is DEFINED by his his humanity…even as his greatest asset is the part of him that is not human”.

Every second that Shiro is leader of Voltron, he is the Champion. That can literally be his only goal — he is the head of the fight against Zarkon and the Empire. Either Shiro comes out the Champion, or Zarkon does. Either Shiro has to grit his teeth and fight off the flashbacks and the fear and the pain and use the one thing that forces him to reconcile with the fact that he had his entire personhood stripped away (his arm, his Galra arm, one of their biggest advantages as a team; his connection to Zarkon through Black, something that can only help the war effort at a direct cost to him; everything he does in this war is shoving him right back into that Arena again and again and again), or Zarkon wins. Every second Shiro pilots Black, every time he plays her paladin, he has to be who the Empire made him to be. He has to be the Champion. Once again he is not Takashi Shirogane, the person, the astronaut, the man, he is the Role. He is the Space Dad he is the Pilot of the Black Lion he is the Champion. For every second he is in that lion he is stripping away himself.

Obviously, that is something that was never sustainable. On this argument alone, Shiro was going to waste away eventually. There was always going to be a point where Shiro was not going to be able to be the Champion anymore. There was always, from the very way the dynamic was set up, going to have to be a lion switch. Now, interestingly enough, there could have been a really easy fix to this: Black Paladin Allura. She’s already a born and raised leader, already shown her immense competence, already someone the rest of the paladins follow. With her at the helm, nothing else would have to change, right?

Well, maybe. We’ll never know. One part of that is absolutely true — Allura should have been a paladin from the very beginning. Her quintessence is canonically closest to the entirety of Voltron (something that bears its own essay,; the relationship between all six of the paladins and Voltron is wrought with heavy symbolism), she is the most highly trained, she is smart, and she actually wants to be out on the field. She should have been in that armour from day one.

But Allura cannot be the Black Paladin. Allura cannot handle other’s sacrifice.

Of course this is a complicated subject. Should a leader sit back and let her crew sacrifice themselves instead of her? Must she hold herself in higher regard, convince herself she’s more important? Of course not! Teams, especially Voltron, are built with assets. While not everyone might be ‘equal’ in the traditional sense, they are all integral, and expecting sacrifices is not the stance I am trying to take here. But the point of a team, especially a team so small and vital as Voltron, is that everyone is willing to be the sacrifice, as they have to be, and Allura simply can’t handle that. She shows us this from the beginning, when she disguises herself as Galra and is taken in place of anyone on the team she barely knows, and again in Oriande with the White Lion, and finally in the piece of shit canon ending. Allura has to be the sacrifice. Every time.

And how could she not be? The last time she spared herself of sacrifice, she lost her entire people. The last time she let others sacrifice themselves for her, she was left alone, to shoulder a war bigger and greater than she could ever handle. Allura is painfully familiar with the agony of being the survivor, and she cannot do that again. She cannot and will not put herself through that again. As the Black Paladin, she would have to let her team make sacrifices — she would have to let them have their own agency, their own decisions; she would have to let them choose to get hurt and choose to do risky things and analyse and react and act. As leader she would have to trust her team to put themselves in harm’s way, and not only that, but she would have to authorize them to do so.

Like Shiro cannot last as the Champion, Allura cannot last as the Survivor. Shiro cannot even last in Voltron, and it is foolish to keep Allura out of it. A lion change is absolutely necessary for the show to move forward, for the war to move forward. The initial team was doomed to fail.

How would it change, then? What would fit? I know I’ve said my piece. I know who I think would fit where. But since I’ve been comparing character arcs to their roles as paladins, I’d like to keep doing that — what about Keith makes me so sure that he’s the true Black Paladin?

I’ll show you with process of elimination. I know Black Paladin Lance is a favourite, and I can see why. Lance has many leadership qualities, is a good tactician, and cares deeply. However, aside from his desire for power making him less suitable for the role, Lance functions best as support, despite how much he hates it. He is the one who knows how to pick up the pieces of a broken situation. He is an excellent guide, which makes him an unbelievably valuable second. He is adaptable, so he can fill in for many different roles. He can step in for leader when necessary, but putting him in Black would encourage a more active role for him; would force him to anticipate and plan for specific outcomes rather than his strength as one who analyses any outcome as it arises and works within it then. Lance could be the Black Paladin, yes, but taking him from the body and placing him in the head would be a fool’s choice. It would be crippling to Voltron, to put the jack of all trades as a master of one. Lance’s arc is all about learning to love and trust himself as he is, as the seventh wheel. Not to put him in charge of the vehicle.

Well, what about Hunk? Hunk is incredibly intelligent and analytical. He probably could lead Voltron, and did in several occasions. But Hunk’s arc is interesting because it was handled so early in the show. Unlike the rest of the team, Hunk’s arcs were solved largely in the first season. His biggest flaws were his distrust of people and, literally, his inability to fly. He could not take his feet off the ground. He was so untrusting that he could not manage to take a step forward. However his bonding with Yellow and trust with the team and their subsequent and returned trust resolved these issues, more or less, which is probably why Hunk was treated more and more like a side character the longer VLD went on. Hunk didn’t need the role of Black Paladin because he had settled into the Yellow Paladin in a way that was sustainable.

Pidge is in a similar boat. Her arc, primarily, has been about finding her family. Voltron was almost second priority for her, or at least not her only first priority. And understandably so! As the youngest she was afforded with that lenience. Her growth was about growing into her own pain, about becoming her own person alongside what she had become in the absence of her brother. As the Black Paladin, she would no longer have the space to prioritize her search for her family alongside Voltron, so her position as Black Paladin would be unstable. She is best suited in Green, where she can focus on several things at once.

That really only leaves Keith. In many ways it comes full circle — the Black Lion healing from her grief by choosing the man who ran from his Galran heritage and his power as a leader, rather than the man who chose nationalism and power over anything else. Keith is Zarkon’s direct opposite, and as such is the other side of the same coin, the one who is truly Black’s Chosen. We know this because Keith is the one who wields the Black Bayard, and Keith is, from the very beginning, the one the rest of the team chooses to follow — I ask you whether it was for Shiro that the three other humans ran off to chase in the desert, or Keith? Who was it that Lance could not leave alone? Who was it that piqued Hunk’s curiousity? Who was it that challenged Pidge to choose Voltron, rather than the search for her family?

That covers Black Paladin Keith. But what about Red Paladin Lance? I’ve established already why he cannot be the Black Paladin, but why did he have to move from Blue? For that, I bring you another few slices from early, S2 and previous canon:

“I thought what we had was special!” “Seventh wheel, if you count the Alteans.” More than once, Lance laments over being forgotten. He struggles with feeling like anything but the extra, the unnecessary. Whether or not Blue Chose him is irrelevant — he does not feel Chosen by her. The Pilot of the Blue Lion position for Lance is as unsustainable as the Pilot of the Black Lion position for Shiro — Lance does not trust it. He doesn’t trust himself in the role, and doesn’t trust Blue in having chosen it for him. Obviously, this is not the role for him.

But Red? Keith’s Red Paladin, at least? Yes, he struggles with feeling like Keith’s second, but that is literally his arc. Lance’s development is about becoming his own person despite his own misgivings about being second-best. His role as the Red Paladin is the fulfilling of his arc, and is thus the best Lion for him, the Chosen. And Red did Choose him, mind you. There was an adjustment period, of course there was, but Red did more than let Lance pilot her. She opened up new possibilities for Lance — think the broadsword — that he could not see. Red saw his potential and revelled in it. She Chose him.

Lastly — and this turned out to be less relevant to the essay than I expected, but I do want to go over it a tad — is Shiro’s tie to humanity. I mentioned two important points: Shiro’s connection to mortality makes him the most intimate with his humanity out of all the characters, and he is undoubtedly the flattest character of them all. That is, if you don’t consider his clone to be part of his character.

But I’m begging you to reconsider. Reconsider, perhaps, who the clone is — Haggar had pure access to Shiro for a year, you remember. His thoughts, his dreams, his mannerisms, his priorities, his body. Even him at his most human, his most deranged, his most scared. She had Shiro then. She had Shiro when he had nothing to look forward to. She had Shiro when he hurt his crew to make sure they would live, at direct cost to himself.

She stripped him of his humanity — his connection to his own mortality. She took his illness from him. And who, then, did she return to the team? Who was clone? Shiro, mostly. The clone was happy to play with the team. The clone was clever. The clone believed, fully, that he was Shiro, only he was angrier and meaner, a little, and less capable of shoving down his own pain. Shiro, stripped of his tie to humanity and mortality, stripped of his compulsive need to be strained and stressed and the one everyone else can rely on, the Role rather than the Person, is emotional. He has flaws and outbursts. He can’t manage his own pain. He is is cruelest to the one person on the team — Lance — who canonically reminds him closest of himself.

Shiro, in the purest form that Haggar can make him, is flawed and self-hating. That is where our love for him comes. Not the man who pushes himself down at the same time as he sacrifices his personality to be someone for others, but the man who is struggling and can’t keep it locked down. That’s where it comes from.

Anyways. Like with my other essay, I’ll admit that this analysis is probably reading into this. The writing of VLD was flawed, at best, but regardless, I think the lion change is a rich amalgamation of the characters and who they really are.

[stellae-de-baphometis]

Hello!! I am extremely new to demonolatry as I have very recently discovered it and I would like to know if you have any resources for beginners to read/watch that are helpful. Don’t worry about it if you don’t or if you simply don’t feel like it, I don’t mind!! Ty and have a nice day!!!!

Hey there! Terribly sorry for answering this so late. Xx So I've only been into Daemonolatry for about a year now, though I have learnt a lot thus far and I'd be more than happy to share some really important pointers to aid you in walking this path. ^.^

⭒☆·━━━━━━━•( 🌑 )•━━━━━━━·☆⭒

So first and foremost before I get into the main blogpost, I really cannot stress this enough...

Please educate yourself on closed practices and steer clear of cultural appropriation in your personal practises. There are a group of people in the Daemonolatry community who appropriate the heck out of Jewish daemons, especially Lilith. Judaism is a closed practise and therefore it's only respectful to not incorporate Judaism into your personal practises. Appropriating Judaism is actually a form of anti-Semitism, so please be mindful and respectful of these things! 🖤

I'm ashamed to admit this but I actually used to think it was completely fine to appropriate Jewish daemons last year, thanks to subreddits like r/DemonlatryPractices who would constantly try to push propaganda about Lilith being a "Mesopotamian Pagan Goddess" and other excuses for appropriating her. That same subreddit decided to attack me when I merely mentioned (on a completely different subreddit, mind you) that I disagreed with them appropriating Lilith, and in turn I got witch-hunted so that's great lmao. 🤡

Please avoid that subreddit at all costs, it's an absolute cesspit of cultural appropriation and passive anti-Semitism, and honestly they exhibit cult-like behaviour if you do so much as simply disagree with the appropriation of Jewish daemons. It's pretty disturbing... But yeah anyways sorry for rambling lol.

I'd also recommend avoiding people and organisations such as S. Connolly, V.K. Jehannum, Satan & Suns/Sons, BlackWitchCoven, The BecomeALivingGod Forum, The Satanic Temple, Joy Of Satan Ministries, The Order Of Nine Angles, scarletarosa (a user that literally exists here on Tumblr... yikes), etc. They engage in Jewish appropriation, and some of them even have ties to Nazism, racism, and other forms of bigotry too.

Some other Jewish daemons/spirits that you should avoid appropriating alongside Lilith are; Naamah, Agrat Bat Mahalath, Eisheth Zenunim, Samael, Abyzou, and the Grigori / Watcher Angels.

There are many other closed practices too, but if you'd like to do further research I can leave that up to you. ^.^

Okay sorry about that huge ramble lmao, just thought I would get that out of the way before getting into the main post because I think it's an important point to make and I don't want you to fall down a cultural appropriation apologist pipeline like I did at the beginning of my practise lol. Xx

Anyways, let's talk about The Infernal Divine!

+: GIF Credit :+

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So we'll start with some really basic stuff. What exactly are daemons?

It's not commonly known outside of Daemonolatry that daemons themselves actually predate Christianity. The term 'demon' (alternatively spelled 'daemon') comes from the word 'daimon' which originates way back in Greek mythology. Daimons were a type of tutelary deity as well as guiding spirit whose divine nature was that of both mortals and deities. They were also sometimes regarded as bringers of knowledge, wisdom, and destiny. In this sense, they could be considered deities in their own right.

Contrary to popular belief, daemons are not evil and never were to begin with. It was only until the coming of Christianity that daemons as well as other gods were vilified and ostracised due to the cultish, radical, monotheistic mindset a lot of Christian extremists held back in the day. Lucifer himself was a "demonized" Roman god also known as Phosphorus, associated with light and the planet Venus. From that description alone, I don't really get evil vibes lol.

In my opinion, our world cannot simply be split up into just black or white, and daemons are no exception. Daemons aren't evil, but they aren't completely love and light either; They're neutral. Much like humans as well as the universe itself, the Infernal Divine are various shades of grey, and all daemons are unique and differ in personality.

⭒☆·━━━━━━━•( 🌑 )•━━━━━━━·☆⭒

So with all this in mind, what are some good resources that don't endorse and/or engage in appropriation of closed practices?

The YouTube channels ESOTERICA and ReligionForBreakfast have great information on the history of various religions and practises!

~ Book Recommendations ~

Livre des Esperitz

Dictionnaire Infernal

Pseudomonarchia Daemonum

Pandemonium: A Discordant Concordance Of Diverse Spirit Catalogues

I personally am working towards being a daemonolatry resource myself, but I haven't been able to post much lately due to my mental health issues. I also took an active break last year, as it was pointed out by a friend of mine that my belief of thinking it was fine to appropriate closed practises was obviously problematic, and so I took time off from posting in order to educate myself and delete any problematic blog posts I had made endorsing that in the past.

But nonetheless, I hope that what I was able to provide in this post was helpful! I wish you well on your spiritual path. 🖤

❀ ~ Many Blessings ~ ❀

-Korv

[arlechinav-blog]

The Literal vs. Folkloric Interpretation of Spider Bites in Mediterranean Spirit Traditions

June is Spooder Season! aka Tarantella Season so I will be doing dives on Tarantella all month. Here comes a fun one.

One of the things that I find most entertaining about Tarantella is how little people actually knew about it in the last few decades. When humans don't know the answer to something we are inclined to fill in the blanks with a best guess and that has had some hilarious results as that knowledge gets filled in later. For quite a while the prevailing theory around Tarantella is that the ritual evolved as a method of working spider venom out of a person's body by making the body sweat. That theory was held for a disturbingly long time. And as research emerged that showed that this does not actually work, the goal posts started to be moved. Instead of it being a method of working out spider venom in general, it was supposed to be the venom of one particular very rare spider that hadn't been tested for.

The identity of the one spider whos venom could be treated in this manner started to shift. Hopping from native spider to spider, continually being proven wrong, until somebody came up with the brilliant idea that perhaps this ritual involved a now extinct species that nobody could test. And this was around the same time that somebody finally said that it cures a spiritual spider bite. Not a real one. Which was collectively met with the question, "WTF is a spiritual spider bite?" (I am definitely paraphrasing, summarizing, and generalizing the history of beliefs and anthropologist nonsense involved in Tarantella's history but that is perfectly in keeping with the folklore vibe of this blog. It is a story! Enjoy it. lol)

Folklore is fun in that lots of things can be true simultaneously, even contrary things. The world does not have to make sense. That being said, I am going to try to explain WTF a spiritual spider bite is and how Tarantella relates to both material world spiders as well as spiritual spiders. If you guessed that this is cultural code for something, give yourself a treat.

All of this confusion is brought to you by two deities. Dionysos & Eros. Or better yet, the cultural coding that they represent and come from. These were ideological seeds that were planted a very long time ago and we are still enjoying the fruit.

Eros is a little prick. Not as an insult but as a cultural function. A pricking from the arrow of Eros is to be injected with certain overwhelming feelings and urges. These feelings are externalized as not coming from inside you but from without. There may be many reasons for this but the one I am going to hone in on is the idea that humans are not responsible for their actions if those actions came from somewhere else. A very respectable person can be pricked by Eros and do some socially unacceptable things (maybe not morally wrong but still not thought of very highly) without losing the esteem of their community because the community sees those acts as not coming from them but from Eros.

This is also true for Dionysos to an extent. And honestly, how much or how little your fellow humans are willing to look the other way while you do things that seem at odds with the rules of civilization also comes down to how much those people like you. So this is not a get-out-of-social-pariah-jail-free card. Just a running concept functioning in the background that gives people a little leeway now and again.

Moving onto Dionysos and the quintessential spiritual snek. Snakes are code for a lot of different things depending on the surrounding context but the one that concerns us most here is snake as a spiritual envoy and snake bites as vectors of possession. The (folkloric) natural desirable state is to be cool and dry. Or at least not covered in your own bodily fluids as that can lead to dehydration and loss of spiritual potential. So there are a lot of beliefs about the exchange of fluids and the properties of liquids.

All of the modern vectors of possession involve some kind of liquid. The transference of venom or just saliva from a spider or a snake into a human body, or the mishandling of blood, or a suspicious form of running water. These are believed to carry spirits from the spiritworld into our world and more specifically into our bodies. Things like rabies and epilepsy were often filed together under the same umbrella as the prick of Eros or of Dionysian madness. These were things that caused a person to act contrary to their established nature. And this ideological loophole allowed people to continue to engage and be treated with respect even though they had behaviors that would be considered impolite.

Getting back to spiders and what this all has to do with spiritual spooder bites... The arrival of summer brings Tarantella season. This is a warm if not outright hot weather phenomenon connected to some aspect of agricultural field work. The bite of the spider is encoded as the pinch of unrequited love or lust. A hopeless feeling that makes it impossible to concentrate, that gets under your skin and causes you to act contrary to your regular nature (which, of course, is that of an upstanding and reasonable human).

We would all be very respectable people if not for the constant meddling of the spiritworld! ✊ And I would have perfect spelling if not for the constant meddling of the spiritworld too! 🤭 (This can work for a lot of things.)

Tarantella can be described as a broken-hearts-club. Those who suffer from a great burning spiritual affliction that causes them such great distraction that they will humiliate themselves in the name of love. Many Tarantella threads (spirit songs) have lyrics relating to tragic romance, the loss of a loved one, the pain of loneliness, an inability to marry a sweetheart, or even about cheating rascals who broke hearts. There is a bit of a spectrum to it. Some songs are just very sweet and romantic but intoned in a tragic voice.

The purpose of Tarantella is not to cure an actual spider bite by sweating the venom out. That is the kind of nonsense you get when you look at a folk practice and take everything literally instead of as encoded culture. The purpose of Tarantella is to replace that pain in your heart with Dionysos. Because if the person you loved has died, he is not coming back to life but that pain will be there forever if you don't DO SOMETHING about it.

However! The spider is very real. The pain in a Tarantata's heart was probably there before the spider bit them but the bite is the catalyst that tips the balance. The Tarantata has been chosen as a Bride and she must dance to confront that pain and find healing. There are so, so, so many layers to this and I am simplifying it a lot but this is still a good place to begin building an understanding from. All of the behaviors of the Tarantata are a part of the expected cultural coding that gives them the time and space to process these incredibly powerful emotions.

I am pretty sure that I already explained somewhere on this blog that Tarantella is also a misnomer. The spooder gets all the credit but literally any biting creature can set off a Bride. I frequently name 7 vectors of possession, the seven little ambassadors of Eros and the spiritworld. But those are just the 7 most common culprits. There have been cases of dog bites setting off a Tarantata's lifelong journey as a Bride of Dionysos (or St. Paul--whatever name you chose).

[gffa]

Lumi, question, because I trust your judgement a lot and I'm weighting the headcanon for myself.

On a scale of 1 to 10, how likely do you think it could be that actual canon Anakin is a bit of a prude that finds premarital sex scandalous?

Doing my best to be completely honest and as objective as I can:  This occupies a nebulous space in my head, re: Narrative Intention vs What I Think Works For The Character Honestly And Truly. Do I think demi!Anakin who's a prude about premarital sex is the Actual Fax Intended Reading that Lucas had in mind when he wrote the prequels?  I wouldn't put money on that bet. But do I think it makes sense for the character, when I'm talking about them seriously?  That I don't just say it for a silly, fun joke, but that I could write serious fic about it, that I see it as a serious part of the character?  I am ready to die on that hill. For me, Anakin Skywalker never seems interested in anyone outside of the people he loves, he never really flirts with anyone (he tries to pretend he does once in TCW, when he says he's popular with women, but he's talking to Obi-Wan at the time and we never see him actually flirt with friends or enemies), and he never moves on from them.  Once that guy is in love with someone, he is in love with them forever, even if he's willing to kill them, even if he hates them, it's because it's coming from the source of his love for them. We could complicate this by talking about the way Anakin treats Padme is often paralleled (not intentionally, but with a fair amount of frequency) with the way he treats Obi-Wan, but even looking solely at the way Anakin is in his relationship with Padme, he's not gravitating to anyone outside of that marriage.  Even Padme has occasional moments, like with Clovis.  Or she talks about Palo, showing she had interest outside of that relationship once upon a time.  Anakin is just laser-focused on the one relationship, in contrast. Now, a big chunk of that is tied up in Anakin's possessiveness and greed for those he loves, but I can see a very easy, natural step from that hyper-emotional investment in those specific people to being demi, that he's only interested in someone once he's fallen in love with them, that the two aren't separable in his mind. I see Anakin as someone who tends to idealize people, he thinks the sun rises and sets on those he loves, even when he's mad at them or thinks they betrayed him, I see part of that as coming from a place of, "You were supposed to be perfect!  You were supposed to comfort me!  You were supposed to love me perfectly!" which I can see extending to his views on sex in a relationship, that he idealizes the process of falling in love with someone, that his feelings for them are special and grand and epic, that he has the most feelings ever, so naturally sex should be part of that.  Sex should be between people who love each other, sex should be only with people you have these big, uncontrollable feelings for. Sex should mean EVERYTHING to you, just like his feelings for someone should mean EVERYTHING to them. That's how Anakin approaches his feelings, his relationships with people he loves, and I think with sex, too. So, I don't think its precisely premarital sex that Anakin takes issue with (though, it's fun to joke about it) but the concept of a relationship without intense, all-consuming love.  Sex without being eaten alive by your love for that person is contrary to how he himself approaches relationships. I make jokes about how he would rain psychic scorn on anyone in the entire Jedi Temple who was getting their dick wet without being ~in love~, because I think it's funny and because I think you could rile him up to be prickly about it, but that ultimately I think he would just make a, "Ugh, gross." comment to himself about it and mentally block it out, because he's not actually that confrontational when it doesn't involve himself.  Does he have strong opinions about it?  Yes.  Does he get up in others' business about it?  Not unless prompted by something else going on with the situation. Ultimately, though, yeah, I do seriously think that Anakin views sex and love as being inseparable and it'd be weird and gross to fuck someone without loving them, even if he intellectually understands that other people feel differently and are apparently just fine with being weird about it.

[brb-on-a-quest]

Day Ten!

if you woke up tommorow with magical powers, and had them for 24 hours, what would they be, and what would you do with it?

what is one quote/proverb/saying/whatever that you strongly disagree with (and why), and one that you strongly agree with (and why)?

if you woke up tommorow with magical powers, and had them for 24 hours, what would they be, and what would you do with it?

I've thought about this a fair amount. My first initial thoughts were mind reading (in reality I'd hate that because either all my anxieties would be immediately reassured or I'd get so much worse instantly). I'd also like the ability to just communicate 100% goodly whether it be in my language or not but as of rn its not really practical.

soooooooooooooooo i'm picking teleportation. And then I'm going to call off sick from work. And then I'm going to *poof* in a puff of smoke. And I'm going to show up at your house, dear person reading this. And we're going to go on an adventure. Anywhere in time and in space, where would you want to go?

(line break here because vibes honestly)

what is one quote/proverb/saying/whatever that you strongly disagree with (and why), and one that you strongly agree with (and why)?

"A leopard can't change it's spots" -> this expression talks about how we can't change our inherent nature. To an extent, this is true. No matter how far and how fast technology advances, I am never going to sprout more human arms to hug moots with because that would (very unfortunately) be contrary to my birb nature. However, and this may just be an example of the circles I grew up with but this phrase kind of got used to reinforce stereotypes and particular qualities of a person. Think: lazy, stupid, helpful, mature, nurturing, entrepreneurial, addicted, whatever. And to be cliché, I don't think three-dimensional people can be stuck with one-word labels and further more, I think those labels can change (charcter growth or character bastardization). We notice change in ourselves all the time. (i'm wiser than I was last year, I'm more patient since I've started doing x, y, z) and we know we can change (some things, know your own physical, mental, limits) about our situations and our labels if we put in some kind of effort to change. I've been trying to unteach myself this mindset for a looooooooong time. It's slow going. It's especially hard when people who giveth immediate red flags walk into any room at any given time but yk we're learning. They may be red now, but we pray for their (hopefully very swift) dye to like maybe a orange, or even a yellow. They will not always be red flags.

"A journey of a 1000 miles begins with a single step" or, shorterned "BEBE STEPPE" has saved my existence a couple of times. I get overwhelmed by many tasks on the to-do list. especially when they're high-value tasks like "be at work for 9 hours" or "spend X amount of time doing school research" or "Don't forget to do these chores or face The Consequences of Your Actions." It's never fun. But Baby steps allows me to take the initiative in starting just one thing. Just one. the other tasks don't matter until i have to do them. and then sometimes if it's a good day, it all spirals up until i am productive. its very useful.

[lastoreadoras]

Since I’m not asking to be hypnotized or something, I think this is at least mostly appropriate: are there any tips that you have for a beginner hypnotist? I have a beginner’s guide, and am making my first audio file.

This is a list of things I wish I knew early on in my hypnotist experience. I've separated them into sections with titles for easier reading. That said, this is a long post, so I've included a TL;DR at the bottom if you're in a rush.

1 - Confidence can be very helpful!

One of the biggest things I can say for someone just starting out is that you should have confidence in yourself! If you've ever done improv, you will know that rolling with mistakes is part of the fun. This applies to specifically live sessions, but if you're just making files, being confident helps too. A surprising amount of individuals will drop into trance if you're simply assertive.

There's one style of induction that I occasionally use that gaslights someone into dropping. It's really effective when it works, specifically because people trust what you say when you have authority in your voice, fake or not.

Naturally, confidence doesn't just drop everybody into trance and learning induction techniques is essential, so understand that when you learn a hypnotic method of some sort, it's a tool in your toolbox that you can apply to the right situation.

Because people are different and sometimes certain methods are more or less effective, it's good to have lots of knowledge and learn as much as you can so you can use the right tool for the job!

2 - Live and learn!

While this is just general life advice and can apply to multiple things, it's worth mentioning that if you make mistakes or don't know enough to hypnotize someone and they don't drop, it's not the end of the world. Think about how you can improve rather than getting down about the idea that you did something wrong. Being a hypnotist can be very demanding, so don't push yourself too hard just to gain subjects or something similar.

3 - Rapport is important!

Rapport, or a relationship in which you both trust each other enough to communicate your feelings clearly, is very important. If you want to hypnotize someone, gain their trust. Some people will throw themselves at you without wanting to know anything about you or share anything about themselves. Honestly, it's not worth the effort for people like this, and you should just let them listen to your files if they want hypnosis from you.

Why is this? Hypnosis is very BDSM adjacent in that it is something that can greatly deepen a relationship if both parties are consenting and eagerly doing so. Imagine hypnosis to be like a rope you're tying someone up with. If they don't trust you, or you don't trust them, tying the rope tightly will be difficult, and the experience will be lackluster for both people.

I know what you may be thinking. "How do I gain some random stranger's trust?" And the answer to that is simple! Just be a good person. I know it sounds weird, like, "Hey, I'm already doing that." But it's important to just... be polite. Put the effort in to create a pleasant interaction and they will (usually) do the same.

4 - Learn what you can!

There's lots of books out there that you can find and read. The internet is very helpful, but I've been told that "The Brainwashing Book" by sleepingirl is a helpful resource. Also, while it seems strange, books designed to teach you how to talk to people more effectively (usually directed at businesspeople or salespeople) can be very helpful as well. Clear communication is important, and there are some vaguely hypnotic things you can learn about language and communication in general.

Just by reading this you're already taking steps in the right direction! It's very bite sized compared to books you will read but I'm fairly certain that this information will be helpful.

5 - Don't forget about consent!

Contrary to popular belief, you can (kind of) make people do things they don't want to do. It's a very long process, and involves changing what they actually want so that when you hypnotize them to do it they "wanted it all along," but this is generally to be avoided unless you're doing some sort of cnc play with someone who trusts you a lot. That said, people can shorten the process by throwing themselves at you, and very eager or less informed hypnosis enthusiasts are easier to take advantage of. Sometimes. (People are different, with different brains and different thoughts!)

That said, it's very important to only do what you have permission to do. And don't ask for permission when they're already hypnotized! That'd be like asking someone for something while they are drunk or otherwise inebriated. Ensure that both people know what is going to happen in the "scene" (the hypnosis session, the trance, etc) so that both of you can enjoy it fully without issue!

Worst comes to worst, set up a safe word. While it can be difficult to safe word while entranced (for some people), it is possible and doable, so if you want to "surprise" someone make sure you give them a way to stop the trance if they need to.

6 - You are a person too!

While it's fun to take on the role of an all-powerful hypnotist and let people put you on a pedestal, sometimes you want to get down from the pedestal and just be a normal person. In the past, I personally have found it difficult to come to terms with the fact that I have needs too, but even if you don't struggle with that, it's an important reminder that, hey, you're not a trance dispenser!

If you set up a session properly, there will be time for trance and time for just... talking! Hypnosis is an excellent common interest to find similarly kinky friends, and friends are the best people to hypnotize.

7 - Closing word

At the end of the day, you're a person with your own ideas about what you want to do and how you want to do it. But I'm confident that you will take my advice to heart, because you were seeking it to begin with! Feel free to discard anything you disagree with or otherwise don't need, but I hope I was able to help in some way.

If anyone ever has any questions about hypnosis, I'm typically quite happy to answer them. Feel free to ask in my ask inbox or in my dms! It doesn't bother me if you stick to anon, but I'm always looking for more hypnosis friends.

Thanks for reading!

Or, if you didn't read, here's the TL;DR:

Be confident in everything you do- even if you doubt yourself, puff out your chest and smile. It helps!

You'll probably make mistakes, as everyone does, but as long as you learn from those mistakes, they were never really mistakes to begin with.

Hypnotizing friends and people you trust is far superior to hypnotizing random people on the internet. However, random people on the internet can quickly become a friend that you trust, with simple conversation!

Always keep an eye out for more hypnosis info, be it from books, posts like this one, or even learning from scripts/files.

Consent is hot and essential.

Don't let people put you on a pedestal for longer than you're comfortable being on said pedestal.

And of course-

Don't forget to have fun!

Cheers! <3

[astroyongie]

hii yongie, could you give a advice? my question is a bit odd but i think that other people must also have the issue as me.

Well its been a while that im in my spiritual journey, alot of up and downs. Now I have been recognizing with a little more clarity when my spiritual guides are advising me, which is very good because I feel like I am progressing on my journey and I no longer feel alone BUT the bad part of dont feel alone is that I still don't understand if I have privacy or not, like.... I can't masturbate anymore without feeling guilty or ~observed~ I don't feel comfortable honestly

Im also creating habit of praying asking my guardian angels for protection to sleep better, which is working but sometimes there are days when I just want to masturbate before sleep but now i feel guilty.. This seems stupid to say but I really don't know very well how it works because certainly this practice of masturbation is a taboo for many people and religious people but I think it is a healthy practice idk 😭

Thank u yongiee 😭

Actually thank you for this question because it’s super interesting

I first want to point out that masturbation is totally normal and it actually has many health benefits. We should stop demonizing something that is totally normal to the human nature.

Not into the question. I understand that you might feel a little uncomfortable with that thought which is normal. Personally I don’t think you should put so much thought into it for several reasons: 1) many religions and practices actually normalize sex and masturbation and some of these activities are even used in rituals or to celebrate Gods’ days (depending on the religions); 2) spiritual guides are spirits. They are energies and you can be sure they won’t be judging you on physical actions that are part of the human nature. Plus you aren’t harming yourself nor anyone (the contrary is only stated in certain monotheist religions that were written by MEN). You are actually producing energy (positive one) and that’s it. Your spiritual guides won’t be angry at you for having normal thoughts ❤️

In conclusion, find your place and time to feel comfortable and to find balance between your spiritual practice and your sexual practice

[feminismisstillahatemovement]

I assumed that you would note the existence of prostitution before capitalism, that's why I put 'especially under capitalism' in parentheses. I'm specifically referring to how capitalism has made the sexual exploitation of women worse. Is it not reasonable then to form a feminist movement against this? I'm not a "sex-positive" feminist (however you interpret that term) so the rest doesn't apply to me.

I think it's pretty clear and simple to see that men are the main perpetrators of domestic violence and rape. Every statistic I have ever seen and all personal experience says otherwise. I have seen generations of women (including in my own family) being abused by their male partners. I have NEVER seen it the other way around. It's part of entire cultures, it's been documented in history for ages. I really don't get where you're getting this from.

Also hard disagree with your point about empathy. I have no incentive to believe otherwise. You're just as much relying on anecdotal evidence as I am, but I think most people would agree (and I believe there are studies about this too), that women are far more empathetic than men.

I feel like you're making a lot of short-sighted leaps in logic here. I would have liked to be taught better, but so far it just sounds like a lot of "actually it's the other way around" without evidence to me.

Also curious about your thoughts on the rampant pedophilia among men.

"Curious about your thoughts on the rampant pedophilia among men."

There is no rampant pedophilia amongst men. Attraction to pepubescent children is, thankfully, a strange and rare aberration. And again, you're ignoring and/or excusing one half of the people engaging in that problem, because of their sex, and that is entirely because of your feminist indoctrination.

"I think most people would agree (and I believe there are studies about this too), that women are far more empathetic than men."

Yes, but not to men, especially not men they don't know. I was asking you to listen in your daily life to how women talk about "men" as a group and how men talk about "women". It's a very simple test, but it relies upon you engaging honestly with it and putting aside your biases. If you do that, you will find that everywhere you go, you'll hear women in every part of life talking with disdain and contempt for every man who's not their immediate friend, present lover or blood relative. Whereas you are much more likely to hear men talk about the need to defend and protect all women. Men as a demographic will vote for things that disadvantage themselves if it helps women as a class, whereas it's impossible to get women as a demographic to vote for anything that would disadvantage themselves but help a bunch of men they don't know. And that's just nature: women evolved to be more selfish in that way. But it IS reality, and yet it runs contrary to everything you've been indoctrinated into believing throughout your life.

"I think it's pretty clear and simple to see that men are the main perpetrators of domestic violence and rape. Every statistic I have ever seen and all personal experience says otherwise."

You're wrong:

"I'm not a "sex-positive" feminist"

I can tell.

"I'm specifically referring to how capitalism has made the sexual exploitation of women worse."

Well, as I started out saying, you're beginning with an ideological assumption that there is such a thing as Capitalism - and also "patriarchy", presumably. But both of those concepts originate only with Marxist and Feminist beliefs. And, like the great majority of people, I'm neither, so I could only really respond to how technology has changed how women have packaged and commodified parts of themselves to make money. I mean, certainly, there are thousands upon thousands of women in the world today prepared to do anything sexually to acquire more money, but then there were thousands of women prepared to do the same back in Ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome, so I don't really see what's changed, other than perhaps a decline in the belief in the human soul being an aspect of the divine. If you're asking whether I think people should commodify themselves for money, and put money above everything else in life, then no, I very firmly do not.

"Is it not reasonable then to form a feminist movement against this?"

No, it's not reasonable to form a political movement to fight things that don't exist.

[baejax-the-great]

For the fic writer asks! 7, 10, and 45 :))

7. Any worldbuilding you’re particularly proud of?

Ahaha, I know I recently talked to a friend about how I did almost no worldbuilding for eiial other than "Tartarus is a country now that's probably an island and vaguely near Greece." I don't think moving the Olympics to Seoul counts, either. Probably making Charon an immigration lawyer was the most inspired thought I had.

On the contrary, instead of being proud of my worldbuilding, I'm very much enjoying trashing Chicago in my ancient Achilles fic. I actually truly love Chicago and think it is the most beautiful city in my country, but sometimes you just gotta dunk on something you love.

10. How do you decide what to write?

Almost exclusively by what makes me laugh.

Okay, that's not entirely true, but that is the surest way to get me to write something. The sillier the premise, the more deranged I get about writing it, lmao.

45. What’s something you’ve improved on since you started writing fic?

Lots of things! This might sound stupid, but I was genuinely surprised to see myself getting better at writing just by practicing. It seemed like the kind of thing that I would have to study or truly purposefully work at in order to improve, but honestly? While I have done a little of that, most of my improvement happened naturally. The things I've noticed in particular are:

Speed. I write so much faster now. It is so much easier to get my thoughts down as words.

Depth. I am not the most visual person, and writing descriptions has always been a struggle for me, but I know I've gotten a lot better at adding details to a scene to give it depth. It's something I would like to continue improving on.

Plotting. This comes from early mistakes writing fics with fun premises that I had no idea how to resolve. After writing myself into a corner one too many times, I generally have the whole plot sketched out before I start writing in earnest/posting. I do still get stuck sometimes, but never so much I don't know how to conclude the entire fic. HOWEVER a big caveat is that I don't think my plots are particularly complicated or interesting. I'm way more interested in characters being silly than I am in twists and turns, so I wouldn't say my plots are anything to write home about.

[whatdoyouneedsugar]

I can't speak for my mom, but I consider myself a witch bc I've always been drawn to nature, it's beauty, and I've always felt this strange bond with it, like I'm a part of something bigger when I'm in nature. I've also believed wholeheartedly in magic ever since I was a kid. Most of the magic I do involves tarot. I've only ever done 1 spell and it kinda backfired on me bc I didn't protect myself beforehand 😬

The next morning, I ended up throwing up 3 times in a row and having really bad diarrhea with no other explanation! Nothing I ate was outdated or smelled funny, it was something I'd eaten before, and I hadn't felt sick earlier, it was just a sudden strike of violent illness.

Being a witch is unique to everyone, honestly. Some of us are super devout and regularly pray/ask for guidance to our deities, some do candle magic or read tea leaves, some cast spells—it's all unique to the witch. As for deities, it can be anyone! Some people say they're picked by their deities, and others say they pick their own deities—I'm a mix of both. I've always felt a strong connection to Aphrodite, so I feel like she picked me, but I also really love Hades and Apollo, so I have altars dedicated to them.

There's a lot I could tell you about it, really, but I don't want to just go on and on and jump around a lot 😅

So if you have any particular questions, I'd be happy to answer! I love talking about what being a witch is like, but I don't want to ramble, haha

And yes, it's fine to say that me being a witch makes me sexier 😂

I am curious about why, though? What makes witches so sexy to you? Just the vibe? 👀

(Also, contrary to popular belief, "witch" is an all-inclusive term. It's not get for girls or fem-aligned people! I'm a trans guy and I call myself a witch!)

- 🐸

wow i had no idea about any of this. i am not a spiritual person, so i can't relate much, but it sounds really interesting and i always found belief and faith to be very inspiring, no matter what you believe in. i'm glad you also have family members to share this with.

and as for what makes it sexier, yes, it's the vibe ahah it's just my lizard brain hehe

wish i could take you on a date outdoors, maybe a picnic, surrounded by beautiful nature, where you can enjoy and relax 🩷

I'm already in 2024 btw ahah it's looking pretty much the same 🤣

[call-sign-shark]

Oh yess Lee, I'm kicking my feet right now! You can't imagine how impatiently I've waited for that first chapter.

Aurora arriving in the room and moving with a cat's grace felt so intense through your description of her body language that I could almost see her in front of me. You're perfectly balancing the typical sexism of the era with the creation of a strong woman character, which is not an easy task. Quite the contrary. I particularly love the lines "Although she hadn’t been invited to give her opinion, she’d been listening to every word, silently judging the ludicrous plan Luca was suggesting" and "The air grew thick with their silence and as Aurora’s eyes scanned the room, she noticed not one of the men looked in her direction". How she manages to stand fierce in a room full of men, to the point of facing Luca is impressive even if I can't help but be afraid for her knowing the nature of their relationship. This is later perfectly described with your wonderful (and my personal fav) line "However, there were things she’d learned on her own as a result of being the only woman in a room full of men. How you had to demure and make them think an idea had been their own".

Honestly, I am just in love with the way you built tension in their relationship. I don't know how can someone be so incredibly skilled with words, but I can feel the fire and the storm when they argue. The discussion between Enzo and Matteo was also a brilliant way to add a layer of violence between Aurora/Luca. Luca's abusive nature and Aurora's temper are so well known that they've grown used to it, to the extent of joking about Aurora's death -- this had me literally reacting with goosebumps. Overall, every time you describe their relationship is extremely efficient. I especially think about the way she's become skilled at hiding her bruise and how she always falls back into Luca's arms. His line "Thank God she married a man like me to keep her in her place, right?” is truly frightening. Your portrayal of Luca is incredible, you've managed to create a whole threatening aura around him. The fact he hit her just before meeting the Solomons and made her fall broke my heart.

Now, I kinda smiled like an idiot when I read about Rose. This is such a lovely addition as well as a very fitting character for the story. I love this OC so much that seeing her interacting with Aurora was too much for my little heart. Your portrayal of Flor's character left me impressed: I think you've perfectly pictured the essence of the Rose, with her asking for Aurora to come with them and, later, with her helping our favorite Italian girl. You're really spoiling me. 😁

The scene between Aurora and Tommy was exquisite. I loved how their introduction to each other starts with his resentment for his wife death, it's really in character. I can't continue commenting without mentioning the line "Violent men all had the same deceiving comportment, a snake coiled and ready to strike. " which is just perfect. You never cease to amaze me with your talent. In truth, I was wondering how this first meeting between your OC and Tommy would be, considering she's a Sabini and that she's known as a fierce woman. Truth is, I am not disappointed: the way they behave around each other and their mutual distrust create an incredible dynamic. That last exchange, with Tommy asking her why she is laughing is heartwrenching but her confession is also one of the most beautiful depictions of emotional distress I've ever read. Watching this stunning and fierce woman crumbling in bits made me teary.

Lee, I think I don't need to expand on your literary talent because at this point, it's not fanfiction. It has the quality of a published piece of work. What I need to say though is how I love this new OC of yours. You've managed to build such a sad, strong, and broken character at the same time! I must say that I'm now emotionally involved with Aurora, she's my poor little sweetheart (even if she's as fierce as a wildcat). I can't wait for the next chapter.

My Sun, My Moon and All My Stars-Part 1

Luca Changretta x OC (Aurora Sabini Changretta) x Tommy Shelby

Summary: Luca and Aurora Changretta come to the UK to avenge the murder of Luca's brother and father. However, as their volatile marriage unravels, events take an unexpected turn.

Author's Note: This has been on my mind since I created the moodboard ages ago. And it's been requested in several forms, the most recent being a lovely anon who wanted to see Tommy with an American mafia girl. OC Rose Solomons belongs to @raincoffeeandfandoms. Prequel has been posted as phone calls in two parts here and here. I would def recommend reading that before starting this fic! One more part coming soon!

Warnings: language, domestic violence, mention of blood, use of ethnic slur

Luca stood pointing at a map with his forefinger, tracing a path from the garden to the center of Arrow House, mumbling in a low voice to his men. Thunder rumbled overhead as Aurora made her way into the room, unnoticed by everyone, tracing the perimeter of the room as she listened carefully. When she’d heard enough she spoke up from the back of the room, voice loud enough to be heard, but even and measured to show she was in control as much as her husband. “Non sono d’accordo, Luca.”

Luca’s head shot up as he searched between the faces to find his wife, though he thought he’d caught a hint of her perfume moments earlier, taunting him as he attempted to strategize. 

“It’s too risky to approach him at home again,” Aurora declared, stalking toward the desk with cigarette in hand. The smoke parted the men before her arrival at the table and she stamped out her cigarette a bit too forcefully before joining her husband where he stood. Although she hadn’t been invited to give her opinion, she’d been listening to every word, silently judging the ludicrous plan Luca was suggesting.

“Don’t you remember what the intelligence said about his family? They’re gypsies, fucking savages,” she emphasized. “And he’ll be expecting us this time,” Aurora said with a dismissive shake of her head. Luca’s face and neck reddened at the scolding tone of her voice, his blood boiling instantly at her show of arrogance. 

The air grew thick with their silence and as Aurora’s eyes scanned the room, she noticed not one of the men looked in her direction. They shifted uncomfortably as Luca reached for a matchstick, placing it between his gritted his teeth.

A low growl emitted before his words, causing everyone to stand at attention once more. “And what would you have me do, tesoro?” he said the pet name without any hint of warmth, but Aurora did not back away. In fact, she stepped closer to her husband, standing just below his shoulder as she placed a hand to his forearm gently. 

“I’m only asking that we consider a few more options,” she said diplomatically. Then she reasoned, “There must be another way to get to Tommy Shelby. His sister’s home in London or perhaps one of his factories. We’ll have to wait for him to come to us this time.”

Luca removed the match from his mouth as she spoke, lighting it and held it perilously close to her face as he taunted, “We smoke him out, principessa? Is that what you want?” he asked moving even closer, the flame in danger of catching her loose curls on fire.

Aurora didn’t blink as she watched the flame dance before her eyes. She could feel the heat close to her skin and her pulse quickened. “Basta cosi!,” she warned with raised eyebrow.

As lightning flashed outside the office window the spell was broken, Luca blew out the match with a dark chuckle. Turning to his men he concluded with a wave of his hand, “You heard my wife.” Then rolling up the map before him with haste he added, “We’ll pick this up tomorrow when everyone’s rested.” Everyone filed out, but Matteo and Enzo remained to ensure nothing else was needed for the evening. Aurora remained at the window as Luca instructed, “Seven o’ clock sharp, you understand?” 

“Yes, boss,” Matteo and Enzo replied, trudging toward their rooms. It was only their second night in England and they had not yet acclimated to the time difference. They felt the exhaustion seeping into their bones, the relentless demands weighing on them heavily. 

Before they could move more than a few steps down the corridor, they heard the shouting begin. It was an open secret that Luca and Aurora fought loudly and often. Aurora had grown up in a powerful New York family and thought herself equal to Luca which was not an opinion he shared. When his temper grew, he liked to prove that to her. Luca’s men knew better than to to involve themselves in their disputes despite the fact that Aurora often appeared with all manner of injuries the next day.

As the sound of glass shattering broke the crescendo of voices, Matteo ran a hand down his face, a hint of irritation as he sighed heavily. “Do you have the number for the hospital?” he asked Enzo, with quiet efficiency. 

Enzo nodded slowly. “And the morgue,” he added solemnly, eyes lingering on the doorknob. He didn’t want to listen to the distinct sounds of Luca’s blows striking the object of his ire or Aurora’s muffled cries, but he would have to stand watch until it was over to know how to proceed. 

Luca tired easily tonight and Aurora limped from the suite thirty minutes later, hair disheveled to hide the bruise forming across her cheekbone. She fell once, picking herself up from the plush carpeting with a sniffle and Matteo and Enzo turned from her as though they hadn’t seen her in ruin, a familiar routine of make believe.

“Let’s get some fucking sleep,” Matteo said when she disappeared into a separate room.

Enzo had just closed the door to his room and kicked off his shoes when the phone began to ring.

“Enzo, what’s going on? Luca hasn’t phoned,” Mr. Sabini grumbled.

“Luca’s been…working on strategy,” Enzo fumbled, thinking of the fight he’d just witnessed. He didn’t dare mention it to Aurora’s father though. Out of everyone who knew of their tumultuous marriage, Antonio Sabini was somehow unaware of his daughter’s plight. 

As if on cue, Antonio asked, “How’s Aurora?” 

Enzo gulped as he thought of a reply. “You know, she’s got her ideas,” he said truthfully.

“That’s my little girl,” Antonio answered proudly. He had always encouraged his daughter’s sharp mind and hadn’t objected when she insisted on accompanying her husband to advise him during the vendetta. If he was honest, she was much better at delicate affairs than her mercurial husband who was prone to snap judgements based solely on emotion. By contrast, Aurora handled pressure with a calm, collected detachment.

“Keep me informed, Enzo. I want to know everything,” Antonio said sternly. “And keep Aurora out of danger if it comes to that.”

“Yes, sir,” Enzo reluctantly agreed, unsure how he was going to keep the promise. 

“And Enzo, buy her blue hydrangeas tomorrow,” Antonio ordered. “They’re her favorite. I don’t want her feeling homesick,” he added softly, the fondness of a memory seeping into his voice and making it much quieter than before.

“Of course,” Enzo said, replacing the heavy receiver in the cradle and falling into bed, only to be awoken an hour later by the sounds of lovemaking in the room next door.

—————————————-

At seven the next morning, Aurora entered Luca’s office, smiling to herself as she held a large bouquet in her arms. All the men in the room turned to drink in the sight of her glamour, a trait that lived on in her from her exceptionally beautiful mother. Enzo and Matteo exchanged knowing glances as they traced the lines of her face, noting how talented she’d become at hiding the swelling and bruises. 

Although it sickened them to watch, she bent low to capture Luca’s mouth in a tender kiss, pulling away to breath a near silent “mi dispiace” against his lips. For reasons known only to her and Luca, they always fell back into each other’s arms. It was as predictable as the rising sun.

“I know you are, baby,” he replied, turning her out of his lap. 

“Grazie, amore,” she said sweetly holding up the flowers and stroking his cheek adoringly.

Luca knitted his brow, a hint of confusion noticeable, before he glanced up at his wife with a smug grin. “Of course, sweetheart. If you’ll excuse us, there’s business this morning and I think you had your say last night.”

Aurora nodded obediently and went to put the flowers in water as though in a trance. As soon as the door had shut behind her, Luca’s expression changed to a deep grimace. “Which one of you assholes got flowers for my wife?” He leaned forward onto his elbows, awaiting an answer.

Soon Enzo spoke up with a slight tremble in his voice. “It was me, but it wasn’t because of last night, Luca.”

Luca narrowed his eyes. “What the fuck did you say to me?”

“Her father asked me to get ‘em,” Enzo clarified with a slight cough, suddenly remembering his lines in the play they were subconsciously rehearsing at any given moment.

“Figlio di puttana!” Luca said, smacking the desk with his palm. “He spoiled her and now look how she acts!”  He shook his head with an indignant scoff, turning to look out the window. “Thank God she married a man like me to keep her in her place, right?”

———————————————

“We aren’t in Darby’s territory any more. Where are we going, Luca?,” Aurora asked as the car bumped along the narrow roads. Luca turned to look out the window as though he didn’t hear, second guessing his decision to bring his wife along to the negotiations with the mad baker of Camden Town. However, Aurora would not be ignored. She had played the dutiful wife for two weeks so as not to insult his manhood further, but every attempt at moving closer to Tommy Shelby had failed, resulting in multiple casualties. To make matters worse, every man lost was a member of her own family, brought from New York to aid the Changrettas in their vendetta. The idea of losing more men sickened her and she began to consider the possibility that she would have to challenge her husband once more.

Then Luca spoke up, but he only offered a sliver of information. “We’re on our way to Camden Town, alright?” he said before settling back into his seat with a sigh.

Aurora was an intelligent woman, raised at her father’s elbow watching the deals he made and how he researched his enemies. However, there were things she’d learned on her own as a result of being the only woman in a room full of men. How you had to demure and make them think an idea had been their own. She’d learned the art of manipulation and weaponized it early on as a means of survival. Today called for such an approach.

“An alliance with the Jews? That’s clever,” she praised, hoping her guess was correct. Running a hand along his knee seductively, she waited for Luca to confirm her suspicions.

Luca turned to face his wife, a surprised look on his face. “And how do you know about Alfie Solomons?” 

“He’s connected to the east Boston Jews. But, Darby knows him, of course. Says he’s unpredictable and violent,” Aurora added wearily.

She watched the muscles in Luca’s jaw tighten beneath the shadow of his fedora, knowing he didn’t like Aurora involving herself. Rubbing two fingers against his chin thoughtfully, he dismissed her concern. “I’ve spoken to your father and he approves. That’s all you need to know,” Luca said firmly.

“I wish you would tell me more about today,” she cajoled.

“No, amore. Not this time,” Luca said, clasping his large fingers over her gloved hand and giving her a squeeze that bordered on painful reprimand.

As the car jerked to a stop in front of a dilapidated building in Camden Town, she turned to her husband and took once last desperate chance as they exited the vehicle. “Luca, let me speak to Mr. Solomons. A woman’s touch might be just the thing to keep him from imploding,” she said innocently, biting her lip.

This infuriated Luca and he pulled her back, making her stumble on the rough cobblestones. “Like hell you will. This is my deal!” he spat.

“That concerns my family name and my blood!” Aurora retaliated, hitting him across the face, unable to control herself further.

Luca’s eyes blazed with fury, striking her in return with full force. Unstable on her injured leg, Aurora fell to the street, slicing her arm as she hit, immaculate clothing ruined in the filthy street.

“Get the fuck up,” Luca hissed through clenched teeth, unapologetically. 

Aurora winced as she pushed herself up, feeling the pain in her arm throb as soon as he placed weight onto her hand. She would never admit weakness though. “Vaffanculo!” she yelled, placing her fingertips to her chin and thrusting them toward him. 

Luca leaned down and dragged her to her feet, fingers digging into her flesh as he swore, "You make any more trouble for me and I swear to God you'll die here, Aurora. No one will know the difference. Maybe I'll marry your little sister when I get back. Always liked her better anyway," he smirked cruelly as a small woman with dark hair appeared before them. 

“Can I help you with something?” she asked, looking the couple up and down, hands on her hips with more authority than someone her size ought to have. 

Luca released his wife immediately, straightening her clothes as he painted on a charming smile. “My wife fell on the cobblestones,” he explained smoothly. “I’m here to see Alfie Solomons. Is he in?” he inquired as he stepped forward, seeming to forget his wife in distress.

“Depends on whose asking,” the woman replied, glancing at Aurora with concern. 

Luca removed his hat as he introduced himself. “I’m Luca Changretta,” he said, extending a hand.

Nonplussed by his attempt to con her, the tiny woman tilted her head at him. “And who is she?” 

Luca coughed to cover his embarrassment. “This is my wife, Aurora. She’ll be staying outside,” he said with a pointed look at his wife, who stood, cradling her arm.

“If you want to see my husband, I insist this woman come in as well. She requires medical attention,” Rose said sternly. 

“If you insist,” Luca said, pursing his lips. 

“I insist,” the woman said with a smug smile. “I’m Rose Solomons, Alfie’s wife. Please come in,” she said with a wave of her arm.

“Darling,” Luca said with a sneer, extending his arm toward Aurora.

Aurora pushed past him and followed Rose inside. Luca followed two steps behind, removing a match from his pocket and chewing it ferociously. He didn’t like being humiliated by the Solomons woman and made a mental note to make Alfie pay dearly for it.

As Luca was shown to Alfie’s office, Rose took Aurora to a separate part of the distillery. Her interest was peaked now that she’d witnessed something between husband and wife that felt unsavory. The Solomons’ liked to make it their business to know everything about their associates and this felt like something worth noting.

———————

Rose expected someone quite different from the woman she was meeting today. She’d heard Aurora Changretta was a tigress, someone who never gave an inch to her enemies. However, the woman who stood before her bloodied and broken was not in a position to argue. She might listen to the plea on Rose’s lips so she began in earnest.

As Rose handed over a flannel dipped in cool water, she admitted what she wanted. “I’ll be blunt, Mrs. Changretta. My Alfie has cancer. He’s riddled with it. The doctors say it’s probably from the gas during the war,” she explained with furrowed brow as though she didn’t understand or believe the words that came from her lips. However, Aurora knew them to be true. They were the admission of someone who loved deeply and had not yet come to terms with an imminent loss. 

“I’m sorry,” Aurora responded. “But I don’t see how I can help,” she admitted.

Rose cleared her throat and straightened her shoulders, rising to her full height. “You can get that man out there to go home. Leave us in peace for the days we have left,” she asserted.

Aurora bit her lip to keep a bitter laugh from escaping. Instead she just shook her head. Taking a deep breath she turned to Rose and spoke slowly to make the other woman realize her predicament. “You think I tell him the ways of the world? No, he doesn’t listen to me anymore,” she admitted, dabbing at her wounds. “He has very little use for me these days,” Aurora admitted in a soft whisper.

Rose took in the sight before her, bruises covered by layers of make up, bones badly healed over time. The limp when she walked inside and the arm she cradled gingerly now. This was a woman who knew suffering. 

“You’d die by his hand? Because that’s where you’re headed, love,” Rose warned, recalling her own difficult past. “Won’t you try?”

Aurora paused for a moment, a trickle of bloody water running down her elbow as she washed. This went against everything Aurora had ever been taught. You never spoke against your family, no matter what happened. Her parents ingrained that in her at an early age. However, her parents’ marriage had been one based on love and respect. No matter how many times they reconciled, she and Luca did not carry the same affection.

As she sat in the damp distillery, listening to the distant sound of machinery, she thought of her future with Luca and his intention to crush her beneath him became abundantly clear. He didn’t care for her as he once did. When the money and the resources were gone, he would dispose of her.

Finally Aurora mumbled one word into the darkness of the small room, keeping her voice low in case Luca was nearby. “How?”

Rose inhaled a sharp breath, chin rising suddenly with renewed hope to meet Aurora’s wide hazel eyes, full of questions and doubt. She knew how hard it would be to ask this of kind of trust from a stranger, but if she could convince her to take the first step, the rest would fall into place.

“We get you to Tommy Shelby,” Rose said confidently.

Aurora shook her head violently. “No, please. He’ll kill me.”

“He won’t. He’s not Luca,” Rose promised, rushing the rest of her speech for fear Aurora might bolt in fear. “This vendetta was started by the Changrettas and your husband is using your family to fund his war. Now he’s asking my husband to help. It won’t stop unless we say so. We can stop him, Aurora. Will you join me?” Rose asked, reaching for Aurora’s bloodied hand.

Aurora’s lip trembled thinking of crossing Luca, but she had had enough. If there was one thing her father taught her it was to fight for her own interests and she knew she still had fight within her. 

“Yes, I’ll help you,” Aurora agreed on a shaky breath, reaching for Rose.

“We’ll protect you, I promise,” Rose said, intertwining her fingers with Aurora’s stained fingertips. The blood that tainted her would soon be washed clean.

————————————

It had taken another week and several clandestine phone calls before Aurora could steal away to meet Rose. She’d convinced Luca that she needed medicine for her cuts and he allowed her to leave the hotel though she knew she didn’t have long. Rose knew a man who could help them meet on neutral territory, but it would be brief as Luca sent a man to watch over Aurora whenever she left. With that in mind, Aurora stole away one afternoon wondering if this was all a mistake.

The bell above the door of the chemist rang out and Aurora took a deep breath, scanning the small shop for Rose. Just as she thought of leaving, she spotted the tiny woman stood in the corner, observing a box as though she were another patron. Aurora thought to approach her when a door opened at the back and she was beckoned inside. Within the span of a few moments Aurora found herself face to face with Tommy Shelby. She knew him from photographs and descriptions of his deep blue eyes like two pools that could drown you if you stared too long.

“You killed my wife,” Tommy said, a stillness coming over his features. Aurora sucked in a breath, recognizing the calm before the storm. Violent men all had the same deceiving comportment, a snake coiled and ready to strike. 

“Tommy, please. Take one look at her and you’ll see that she’s not here to harm you,” Rose interjected. Surely Tommy could see the state of Aurora. Then again perhaps he couldn’t see past his own pain. Rose glanced at Aurora and noticed a visible change in her demeanor, a hardening of her exterior as she refused to show any kind of weakness.

“Luca killed your wife. I only tried to kill you,” Aurora said defiantly, head held high.

“Then I want to know why you and you’re family are helping him,” Tommy said, a lump forming in his throat.

“You misunderstand, Mr. Shelby. This isn’t my fight,” Aurora whispered, feeling the weight of every life lost. 

“If this wasn’t your fight, as you say, why the fuck are you supplying your husband enough money and soldiers to overthrow the British empire, love?” Tommy countered, never losing his footing.

“Loyalty. I hear that you’re like me when it comes to your family, Mr. Shelby. You would do anything to protect them. I didn’t agree with my husband, but I promised to protect him….”

“Do you honestly think he’d do the same for you?,” Tommy asked, blue eyes icing over to match the chill in his voice. He knew he was being cruel, but he had to test her in this moment to see if she would crumble.

“I have no illusions about our marriage, Mr. Shelby,” Aurora confided on a low breath. She forced herself to make eye contact as she said, “I don’t want this life anymore. Rose told me you might be willing to strike a bargain.”

Tommy scoffed, turning away from Aurora and she worried what she’d been told was false information. 

“Fucking hell, Tommy. She’s here and she’s willing to talk. Isn’t that enough?” Rose asked, placing herself before her friend.

Tommy turned with a look of warning, “Alright, give him up.”

“What?” Aurora asked.

“Give up your husband and we’ll call it even,” Tommy said, a wicked grin coming over his handsome face.

Aurora swallowed harshly, considering the choices at her disposal. Stay and see more bloodshed or end it with one final betrayal. It took only a fraction of a second to see the choice she had to make. 

“An ambush,” Aurora said quietly, fixing her gaze on Tommy. “We have to make Luca think you aren’t expecting him. That he can take the shot.”

“How do I know I can trust you?” Tommy asked.

Aurora began to laugh.

“That’s fucking funny to you?” Tommy asked.

Aurora shook her head as a tear fell from her cheek, the enormity of her decision causing her to fall into a momentary fit of insanity. “He married me and he saw cashmere, cologne, red racing cars…” she sniffed as she looked away from him, trying to catch her breath. “All I wanted was love. It wasn’t supposed to be like this. My parents didn’t want this for me. It’s like a nightmare now, Mr. Shelby. I just want out, you understand? I want out from under him,” she confided, her whole body beginning to shake. 

Rose approached her and covered her with her shawl. “It’s alright, Aurora. You’re going to be alright,” she promised, looking to Tommy.

“Artillery Square, two days time. Then I’ll know,” he said with a nod. 

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

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[aphroditelovesu]

Yandere Ares headcanons pretty please?

"I am not affectionate but for you... I don't mind trying." - Ares.

❝⚔️– lady l: here it's! Sorry that take so long, but I hope you like it, anon. Ares is officially my new obsession, behind only Aphrodite of course lol

❝⚔️tw: yandere themes in general, mention of murder, blood and torture, obsessive and possessive behavior, dub-con, implicit non-con.

❝⚔️ pairing: yandere!ares x gender neutral!reader

Ares is one of the most possessive Gods in the pantheon, second only to his mother. You were his and anyone who dares to touch you will deeply regret it.

Honestly, not even he's sure why he's interested in you. You were beautiful, yes of course, but there was something else about you that attracted the god of war. Either way, it didn't matter to Ares, you belonged to him now.

Ares was wandering aimlessly along a deserted beach in a small town. The god was angry and frustrated, he just wanted to try to calm down a bit, normally he would have done that by fighting new wars, but nothing was helping. He wanted something more and he, after visiting the beach, got just that.

That's when he saw you. You were stunning, not like Aphrodite, but that made him more captivated. It seemed silly, considering you were wearing plain chiton and picking up shells on the beach, but Ares was taken aback. You had a certain charisma that caught his attention.

You were a young human girl/boy, the child of farmers, you lived in a small village that didn't have any kind of importance and was unknown to most people and everyone who lived there knew each other. So when you found this man, you were intrigued, since you had never seen him before.

From that moment he met you, Ares couldn't stop thinking about you. You were on his mind the whole time and he was dying to meet you. No one had ever fascinated him the way you had, not even Aphrodite, and he was hungry for more.

As stated before, Ares is one of the most possessive gods in the entire greek pantheon. He sees you as his property, his only to own and keep. No one else was allowed to touch you, talk to you, or even think impure thoughts pure you. He will punish them and you to make his point clear.

Once you're with him, there's no escape. If you try to run away from him, Ares is more than willing to set the whole world on fire just to get you back. You will be punished severely and after that you will be taken care of. Careful in Ares way, which basically means more brutality.

You will not be allowed to leave his side. Ares will find a way to trap you with him, wherever he goes you would be forced to follow him. From bloody battles to simply taking a shower.

Speaking of which, Ares loves to bathe with you. He loves it when you help him clean the blood off his clothes or when you try to clean his wounds and tend to his battle scars. This is one of the rare times he's soft with you.

Ares is extremely jealous, needless to say. The first and last time a guy dared to give you a funny look was the first time you saw someone strangled to death. And Ares had done it with the utmost ease and satisfaction.

He's very clingy. Ares rarely leaves your side and when forced to do so, he becomes quite grumpy. But don't worry, his bad temper won't be taken out on you, in fact, you're the only person capable of calming Ares' uncontrollable fury.

When it comes to sex, Ares is definitely not gentle, quite the contrary, he is rude and just has a habit of pushing hard inside you.

Overall, Ares is rude and brutal, you will rarely see any kind of kindness coming from him. He just takes what he wants when he wants it and you don't have the option to refuse. Ares is used to brute force and will act strangely if you try to be nice to him.

But if you play your cards right, you'll be able to deal with Ares' violent nature. But let's be clear, if you do that you'll have an extremely possessive and violent god on your ass, who will kill anyone who dares to look at you. But honestly, it's better if you do that.

If you keep denying and trying to run away from Ares, you will be broken in every possible way. Ares doesn't care, he just wants you to be with him and if even if he hurts you and you don't give in to him, he might have to ask his son Eros for help. And Eros is always at his father's disposal.