#i cannot imagine what actual viewers feel like

[nenasspot]

is everyone ready for the coldest take in kpop right now?

....the fantasy boys final line-up is doomed

[chirpy-poppy]

How would the ghouls react to PC wearing their dorm uniform ? I've thought about this too much for my own good. No pressure

Thanks for the prompt! I'm guessing you mean the uniforms they get at the opening ceremony and not just the colored pin/tie (although that gave me an idea, stay tuned). Hope you like this!

Jin - How to make this man’s heart swell. Jin has a territorial personality. Seeing you in the blue that makes you look like one of his (subjects) people makes him feel secure in his relationship with you. He’d stand a little taller than usual and suddenly gets the need to take a walk with you for “exercise” and totally not to parade you around, flaunting that you’re his.

Tohma - “You look very nice.” He’d make it sound like a platitude, but he truly means it. He already considers you as one of the people in his circle, especially since the two of you spend hours in the vault taking care of Frostheim’s internal affairs together, but seeing you dress the part would truly seal the deal. He’s not one to help others if there’s nothing in it for him, but he’d feel inclined to take care of you when you’re dressed like that. 

Kaito - “Are you finally joining Frostheim? With me?” Tears stream and snot drips down his face. Even after you tell him it is just for a mission, he’d relish in the fact that you are matching. He’d try to sneak away with you during the mission to go on a “date” in your “couple’s outfit.” 

Lucas - “What is the occasion?” … “It suits you very well, PC. You should wear this more often.” Your fancy Frostheim skirt is more cumbersome than your uniform one, so he watches out for you even more. Think opening doors, getting utensils for you at the cafeteria, and carrying your bags. 

Alan - Would feel uncomfortable. “You don’t belong here. It’s dangerous.” He’d send you home to get changed. As he’s fixing up a car later that day though, he’d let his mind imagine how it’ll be like if he were a normal guy and you can sit together in class, side by side, and walk back to the dorms together. 

Leo - Starts streaming as soon as he catches sight of you. He’d come up to you talking like you did all this just for him. Showers you with sweet compliments for his viewers. When he’s done though, he’d mock you. “Why are you dressed like me? Are you in love with me or something? Ew, please don’t. I don’t want to be involved with an NPC.” As if he didn’t just force you to be involved with him for a 20 minute stream.

Sho - “Senpai? Is there a mission?”He wouldn’t compliment you outright, but he might compliment the clothes. Might hyper-fixate on one article so he’d have an excuse to keep looking at you. “That jacket looks really aerodynamic.” “It’d probably let Bonnie go even faster. Want to test it out?” If it is for a mission, he’d actually stand up to Leo if the vice-captain opposes him being partnered with you.

Haru - Might actually cry. He’s probably the one who got you the uniform, and he takes it as a green light to get you to help with some of the tasks around Jabberwock. Of course, he’d customize the uniform so it’ll accentuate your… features. Haru keeps his eyes narrow so you can’t tell which way his pupils are pointing.

Towa - Very pleased that you match. During the day, he’d drag you everywhere with him because you are twinning, and twins do everything together. He’d even drag you across the mud because Haru cannot complain about him getting your actual uniform dirty now. At night, he tells you how adorable you are. He’d note how the clothes don’t make the person since he’s very strong but you still look so weak in the jumpsuit.

Ren - Confusion. Why would you voluntarily wear something like that? He makes a disgusted face at you and yeets away as quickly as he can because this probably means you’re meeting up with Haru, and Ren is not about to entertain “that clown.” However, the next time he has to put on his own jumpsuit, he’d feel less bad about it and his own situation. But then he’d stand in front of the mirror in his green get-up and wonder why he doesn’t look nearly as cute as you in it.

Taiga - Might mistake you for a Sinostra student. He’d have an even harder time trying to remember who you are since he’s not used to you wearing those clothes. When he finally comes around his memories, he’d pull you into his lap to play poker as usual. He doesn’t have much of an eye for fashion anyway, so he wouldn’t act much differently than usual.

Romeo - “Huh. You finally don’t look like you walked out of the dumpster.” Takes you to his office to take a good look at your outfit. Will give a few critiques (obviously), but also will help you fix up your fit. By the end of the day, you are ready for the Met Gala. He might even pamper you a little bit, doing a face mask with you and dabbing some serum onto your face. You’d feel like a million dollar purse poodle, but you’re his million dollar purse poodle, and he’d personally make sure you look the part.

Ritsu - Boy’s elated. Takes it as a sign you are committing to Sinostra and bringing them the Laurel Crown as his business partner. The fact that you look stunning in it is but the fine print of this whole thing. However, if you’ve ever met Ritsu, you’d know he pays close attention to fine print.

Subaru - Tea party! He’d quickly put on his own robes if he isn’t in them already and bring you to Hotarubi’s terrace with some fancy daifuku and tea. “You look very nice, PC.” He finds eye contact a little easier that day. In fact, he keeps his eyes on you the whole time. Despite his social awkwardness, the beauty and grace you extruded while in those robes spoke to his kabuki culture and had him enraptured.

Haku - He was probably the one who tricked you into putting on the garment with the Fox Robe. “Now we look like a couple,” he’d say with a wink. He’d do this around the time of the spring festival so now you ‘have’ to go visit it together otherwise it’ll be such a waste of a good opportunity. Walks under cherry blossom trees so he can pick petals out of your hair for you. Oh no! There’s too many people here. Better hold hands so you don’t get lost!

Zenji - “You look like an absolute doll, my dear!” Walks/floats in circles around you like a satellite, taking in your new look from all angles. “You look like the first flower that blooms after a harsh winter! You breathe life and hope into the hopeless!” Non-stop poetic(?) compliments accompanied by a biwa. Expect to have your ears burning by the end of the day.

Ed - “This reminds me of the gothic era. I must say though, you manage to pull it off better than most of the children I saw back in the days.” There’s a video playing on his tablet, but he’s watching you instead as you go about cleaning his room. Might actually remember to warn you about mysterious liquids in his room so you don’t soil your clothes. 

Rui - You were supposed to look ghoulish and scary in your Obscuary get up, but Rui still finds you super cute. Then again, he finds you cute even when you’re just breathing. Takes a million pictures together. “PC, this just calls for a romantic walk through a graveyard. They say fear makes the heart grow closer!” He’d insist you stay over for the full Obscuary experience. You’d wake up to a full spread of breakfast and another Obscuary outfit hand tailored by yours truly.

Lyca - “You’re wearing more fur than usual. And more purple. Hey! Are you joining our house?” Lil pup would be so excited but try to hide it beneath his scowl. Since he didn’t get placed into the same house as Subaru, he really wants a friend as a dorm mate. Since you are human, he’d also be happy that Obscuary seems less like a place for creatures.

Yuri - “Don’t think you can become the assistant of the great Yuri Isami just because you are dressed like that.” Despite what he says, Yuri would take you around Mortkranken, showing you all the specimens and teaching you how to use the machines. “You better come back here tomorrow immediately after class so you can put some of what you learned to good use. You’d better not waste my efforts!” Oh, and you better wear that outfit again too. You’re supposed to wear lab attire in the lab, after all.

Jiro - “Take it off.” What he meant is for you to put on the patient gown so he can conduct his examination. The patient gown is basically your Mortkranken uniform any other day since that’s all you’re in whenever you go there.

[burst-of-iridescent]

Hi,

Hope you are doing well.

I actually saw some of your posts regarding Aang being a bad father in LOK, and I have to say it really cannot be defended.

I remember hearing that the creators saying that Kya and Bumi were exaggerating Aang's bad parenting. But, it is bad parenting when we see that they still feel angry about it. Also, the Air Acolytes, a group of people who wanted to learn about the Air Nomads were literally surprised when they heard Aang had other children other than Tenzin. The minute they heard Bumi and Kya were not airbenders, they dismissed them. Its really sad for those two.

And also, regarding Katara's parenting, since nothing is shown about her parenting, we can assume she was a good mother.

However, I am also surprised that the creators wrote Aang like this if they made that exaggeration implication.

I would like your thoughts on this.

let’s do a little exercise and work backwards for a moment.

imagine you’ve never watched avatar: the last airbender. you learn about aang for the first time in LOK. what does the evidence alone tell you about his parenting?

he took his only airbending child on exclusive solo vacations, leaving the other two at home

he didn’t tell his cultural descendants, the keepers of his legacy, about those non-airbending children

his eldest child holds onto a deep-rooted sense of personal failure for something he couldn’t control, still clearly ashamed about it well into his fifties

his youngest son apologizes for failing to live up to his legacy, suggesting he was under some kind of near-impossible pressure

two of his children express resentment and frustration at what they see as his exclusion of them in their youth, even decades later

if you had no prior context, you really couldn’t be blamed for thinking aang was a neglectful father at best and overly biased or unfairly demanding at worst. hell, even with context, i’m not sure anything is improved.

the job of a writer is to do exactly what we just did. to follow the trail of breadcrumbs and make sure that the audience sees the vision you want them to see. of course, audience perception doesn’t (and can’t) always match writer perception, but if the creator does their job well enough, the viewers — at least the majority of them — should be able to understand why those choices are being made and what they are intended to convey about the characters and narrative.

bry.ke failed to do this because they were unable to align their depiction of aang with the image they had in their heads. in their eyes, aang — and kat.aang by extension — is near perfect. any anger or resentment felt by bumi and kya isn’t meant to be seen as a reflection of aang’s shortcomings, but their own. hence why the episode ends with the siblings reminiscing over an ideal family that, for all intents and purposes, didn’t actually exist.

that’s the danger of projecting onto a character instead of seeing them as a vessel to be carefully and meticulously constructed, which is how we end up with characterizations like adult aang’s where the tell ends up being diametrically opposed to the show. the dissonance arises as a result of the fact that the creators couldn’t distance themselves enough from the character to really consider the implications of the story they were writing — which is the real problem here, and one that continues to be a pervasive issue throughout the rest of LOK.

[powerpuffobsession]

Am I the only one who feels that Hazbin Hotel's overall vibe is far too naive and upbeat for an adult cartoon about hell and redemption of sinners?

I feel like before writing this cartoon, Vivzie and the other writers should have made a trip to unfortunate areas of the world and watch how the lifestyle there rolls. Because hell is said to be a place of misery, where there is no trust and a lot of hate, both internal and external... Adam is an object of pure unfiltered hartred (both from writers and fandom) because he dares to live in heaven, such a safe and friendly-natured place...

And yet the sinners who happen to be main characters act more like school kids on a field trip (even more carefree than those, lol) - their selfish and sinful motives are so artificial and are brought up only when these characters need to look like a victim, not like criminals who somehow deserved a place in hell

Obviously, it's a manipulative trope to put them in a better light than Heaven and Adam (who is forever silenced by the writers and not allowed to voice any thoughts and reflections other than "hurr durr murder I luuuv murdering and being evil because that's what I was since I was born, even though Lilith and Eve, born literally the same way as me, were innocent victims from the get go, and no logical explanation for that will be provided whatsoever - men bad, women good")

In the light of all that, the sinners are too eager to trust each other and form "da epic powar of friendship" mlp-sonic-style

In a society built on terror, anarchy and survival instincts, no one would ever bother wasting vital power on noticing someone's problems and helping them out. Everyone is focused on their own problems and desires, and that's what drives them to act. Well, the exception may be family members, and even that varies

That's why Husk's intent to comfort Angel after the later attacks him over nothing at the bar, looks really fake, considering the setting. At first I thought that "loser baby" where Husk insults Angel, was some sort of revenge and Husk laughing in the spider's face. But no, it actually turned out to be a comforting song that started their friendship. Husk literally had no motivation to want to help Angel, because he was annoyed by him all the time prior. If there was some kind of basis for their bonding, I would have believed it. But not like this.

And Angel had no reason to actually like that sort of comfort. I get it when your best friend or a family member cheers you up in a harsh way - you know them. And even when coming from people you trust that can hurt. Now imagine a complete stranger doing that to you. That's actually something that shouldn't be done - trying to playfully insult or jester a person you haven't communicated with for a long enough time to gain their trust. And to make this even more strange, Angel at first reacts negatively, but then suddenly snaps to liking that disrespectful way of comforting for no reason at all.

And why did Angel even vent his problems to Husk, a stranger bartender who he'd hurt before. Wasn't he actually afraid of being laughed at and of Husk using his trauma to spread gossip around or something?

Next, Sir Pentious. In the pilot (which is officially part of canon, mind you), he already felt like a joke sunday cartoon villain, but at least he had some edge to him that made him look like a sinner with some dark history. In the series however, he gets nerfed the very moment he steps into the hotel to the point where it's painful to look at

His tendency to abuse his henchmen, his physopathic demeanor, his hartred for Cherri (instead of embarrassing attempts to get blue balled by her), his sincere power hunger - where did all that go? Vanished in a blink of an eye. All that's left of a promising snake demon is a pile of fanservice. So morally unchallenging and harmless that a viewer theoretically simply cannot resist loving him

Well i'm kind disappointed. We don't even know in what way Sir Pentious had to improve, because the plot never focused on his past, his life goals, whatever made him want to lead turf wars and whatever awful things he did in life, what was the point where he started degrading... none of that. He just became a better person after one "sorry song" and acted perfectly innocent ever since and didnt put any effort into getting ready to sacrifice himself for other main characters

The sacrifice... to me it's baffling how fast the sinners, over the course of just 6 months, actually became Charlie's family figures and risked their lives for her hotel. Such pure child-cartoon-styled power of friendship, built in hell, with the aid of a princess who cant even think through her project of helping sinners without bringing them more trouble... realistically, Charlie would have had to fight angels alone (how convenient it is that no main characters died in that chaotic brawl, right?)

And Charlie herself is far too naiive and soft-natured for someone who is free to walk along the streets of hell looking at all the muder, rape and othe horrible stuff that's happening there. Given that she's 200, Charlie had more than enough time to built up her street smarts and guts and learn to be more practical and mindful, instead of staying with the mind of a 12 year old who needs other characters to do everything for her (Lucifer, Vaggie, Alastor) and then get praised for THEIR efforts. That's hell's royalty and our main character?

Aaand since sinners are portrayed as Charlie's "people" (as if they are a nationality), sweet babies who all deserve redemption and are called innocent by Emily (I can't believe how dumb the writers made angels be) - the true essence of exterminatons is never focused on. Adam and his exterminator army are seen in the wrong, like some kind of monsters who terrorize poor souls. However, think about this - child molesters, rapists, torturers, bullies, nazists, actual racists etc died in those exterminations. Doesnt that seem like something a lot of us would want? To have scum like this disappear as revenge for people they have hurt/driven to suicide?

Exterminations are not really an act of racism, bigotry or something like that. They are an excecution of criminals, which a lot of sinners are.

But the black and white writing is trying to conceal that rather prominent highlight of the rotten part of Charlie's plan (not all sinners deserve mercy or redemption). All that was needed was to make exterminators these icky "villains" who luuuv killing and are never willing to listen

All in all, a cartoon that has an ambitious premise that should be driven by psychological reasearch/analysis and dark serious themes... makes me roll my eyes with its cliche use of "power of friendship" and " strictly good main characters, strictly bad villains" tropes. Too bad such beautiful animation was wasted on such juvenile writing that never had any effort put into it

There shouldn't even be any villains or heroes in a setting like this. Allow the lead roles (sinners in hell) do something actually questionable and be unlikable, don't coddle the viewer in fear of making them even the slightest bit uncomfortable. Allow those, who opposes sinmers, have personalities and reasons, not cliche sociopathy for sociopathy's sake to cause forced sympathy for the main characters

Pristine "safe" writing should not have a place in adult cartoons. Or else they will stay a product that'd rather be watched by 7-14 year olds instead of adults (I can't picture a single adult over 22 who would unironically call hazbin hotel a show that tackles realistic issues in an observant way)

[itsabouttimex2]

Tbh, I honestly really like the fact that MK's age is unspecified, because like you said in one of your posts, it can the individual viewer identify with him better. I personally like it because I think it's very fan-creation friendly, as in you can make him whatever age you want within a reasonable range and not have to make it an AU or future/past fic. Especially good for the Canon compliant folks!

(To start my silly little rant- obv this is not for people who genuinely can’t see MK as anything but an adult- that’s valid!! Just for people who try to invalidate the headcanons of others. If you see MK as a 100% 18+ and have no way to change your own mind, that’s fine! There’s a big difference between “I won’t ever stop feeling this way” and “No one else is allowed to have their own opinions/headcanons outside of mine.”)

Yes absolutely this is exactly my point! LEGO is honest to god a company built around creativity! The literal intent of LEGO is to provide a fun and stakes-free scenario to exercise creativity for anybody of any age and Lego Monkie Kid sincerely and honestly reflects that with its incredible handling of MK’s age, by leaving it intentionally ambiguous and throwing hints in every which direction to obfuscate any “true” answer.

If you want him to be a kid or a teen or a young adult or hell, even a man in his thirties or whatever, you absolutely can! It’s a wonderful scenario where the age ambiguity is believable and fits into the core theme of what LEGO is fundamentally about- generation spanning creativity.

I like Teen!MK and I like Adult!MK, and I’m willing to die on that hill! I like writing him as a as a kiddo, as a teen, and as a grown man! One of the reasons I made the “Let’s Start Over” AU is because I wanted to write more “unambiguous adult” MK!

Like, I love using real world stuff to inspire headcanons. For example: some species of monkeys (including macaques, like Bonnet Macaques) have cheek pouches! Because of this, I like to think that the FFM Mountain Monkeys, as well as SWK and SEM all have cheek pouches they can use!

And though I know it’s not canon, I can’t help but hope that we’ll see a monkey using their pouch in the show!

But when fans take one of these real world things (in this case, a law) and have, at large, decided… to throw their asses down and spread misinformation in order to further their headcanons as “true” it’s just… weird, I guess?

LEGO is meant for EVERYONE. From kids with poor motor skills barely capable of clicking pieces together to adults with hundreds of dollars to drop on sets, LEGO is a company built on and for creativity.

So when I see people say things like “MK HAS to be an adult! He can drive! He works a full-time job! You can’t think of him as a teen!”

If you watch a show made from a franchise built on imagination and creativity and boundless potential with an specific emphasis on unique artistic style and decided “I arbitrarily cannot suspend my disbelief about a fictional character’s age enough to allow other people to have their harmless headcanons” then…

Well, how?

How can you turn your brain off for mystic monkeys and dragon girls and demon swine chefs? How can you turn your brain off for gods and celestial emperors and spider people with transformative venom? How can you keep mum on ALL of that and then swivel sharply into “actually the story doesn’t make sense if one or two characters are under eighteen but don’t go to school. The magic was fine but that’s too much for me. I can tolerate the demon monkeys but not underage driving or truancy.”

I just… I don’t get it??? At all???

[trophywifetroybarnes]

do you have any other community ships besides trobed?

I definitely do! I'll go into it under the cut!

trobed is, for me, THE ship. They’re my favorite, and that one ship that I keep coming back to. they’re also one of the few ships out there where, I truly cannot imagine them with anyone else. like sure, I think there have been cases in between for both of them (Britta, Abed’s side adventures, Rachel, etc,) but none of those are relationships that I think can last, because Troy and Abed are so endgame—it’s like, they’re the one ship I look at and go, oh, okay, soulmates, and it’s because they actively worked for it.

Troy put effort into being Abed’s friend, and Abed has so much patience with Troy—they take the time to actually work. It looks so fun and seamless on screen, they’re so whimsical, it almost looks like it’s so easy and that they clicked right away, but no, they had to work for it. (Somewhere Out There being an example, with Troy realizing he has to help Abed too. The whole STD fair bit where Abed catches on to Troy being in the midst of a toxic masculinity induced breakdown and letting him win, etc.) And they have to keep working on it, (the celebrity impersonators, the pillow and blanket war, the lava and Abed learning to let Troy go and Troy learning how to leave, etc.)

they work because they took the time to do so. And because of that, and what they bring out in each other (Troy pulling Abed from viewer to active cast member, Abed pulling Troy from the repressed jock persona) as well as the actual insanity of the depths of their feelings for each other (just look at the way they look at each other. listen to the words that come out of their mouths. “Other half. I love you. I know. You were out there somewhere and you weren’t looking for me? By the way when I cloned you, I had to patch some missing parts of your DNA with genes from a homing pigeon. You may notice some side effects, like the compulsion to come back.” Just think for a second about how abed views Troy as a remarkable in a world of unremarkables.)

not to mention the way they complement each other. abed likes being in control (he’s a self-described control freak) and Troy likes being told what to do (‘I miss being told what to think’) and in particular seems very happy to be told what to do by abed.

They drive me crazy. and so, when it comes to Troy and Abed respectively, I don’t have any ships for them that isn’t just Trobed. And I mean, they’re also both very jealous or possessive when it comes to the other so, yeah, once they’re together I feel like it’d stay like that. Troy just needs to come back from sea already.

I’m so sorry btw. That you asked me about whether or not I have any ships besides trobed and I said yeah I sure do! And then went on to talk about trobed 😭

I was just trying to explain first that I do have other community ships but not in regards to Troy and Abed. Now onto the other ships before I get sidetracked again;

Jeff/Britta— they are my second fave ship like. I love them to an unhealthy degree, and I love how they also build off each other. (The “you need to bang his mom” scene always gets me) I read a fic once, by @troybarnesbabygirlconfirmed where Jeff was thinking about how he and Abed are so similar, and if anything "Abed was simply Jeff more devoutly committed to the people he loves, and that Troy is Abed’s Britta." I’ve been losing my mind over that ever since because yeah, that’s it exactly. You know how I said Trobed are soulmates not just bc of the way they click but because they work to understand each other? Jeff and Britta have that too, I think, in that Jeff does value what Britta says, and Britta cares so much. Jeff cares so much. The thanksgiving episode will forever gut me. The only reason I haven’t put JeffBritta on the Trobed-level is because whereas I cannot separate Troy and Abed, I do have another Jeff ship and another Britta ship.

Jeff/Shirley- okay. okay hear me out. how come nearly everyone had some sort of entanglement within the study group and not Shirley? I don’t think it’s just cause of Andre. I like Jeff/Shirley. They’re the same age, and they complement each other well, with Jeff trying to run from love while simultaneously craving it, and Shirley trying to hold on to love and toughing it out even when sometimes it doesn’t seem worth it at all. Besides, the whole foosball episode, where they found out they knew each other when they were kids? I love that episode, because the way they were hanging out and having fun was just so precious. And, in the episode with Blade, it’s also revealed that whenever Jeff is up to some sort of scheme/plan/type thing that he doesn’t want the others to know about, he goes with Shirley. He loves gossiping with Shirley. Their rapport is just so good, I loved seeing it. And I can’t help but remember that one post about an AU where in s1, after Shirley’s divorce, and when Jeff is living in his car, Shirley puts up a room in her home for rent, and Jeff ends up moving in. The POTENTIAL. Him meeting and interacting with her kids. we could have had it all. I know s1 Jeff may not have been ready for that. But we could have had it all!!!

Rich Stephenson/Ben Chang- entering crack ship territory but I just think it would be so funny.

Annie/A Girlfriend- She's a lesbian guys. At least, that's my take. I cannot view her as a character who isn't experiencing comphet. Okay. Sexuality is fluid, and I've never been into labels myself because sometimes, the overlap and intersection of attraction--in whichever form--gets tricky for me, personally. Like okay, I think Abed, Jeff, and Britta are bi. I think Annie is a lesbian, and that Shirley is straight. But sometimes I look at Troy, who I think is gay, and think yeah, he could be a high 5, almost 6, on the Kinsey scale. Which is to say--I think he's gay! But I think there could be a small possibility of a moment or two where he could get dominated by a strong capable woman. Do I think the chance is high? No. Its low but not totally zero. But then, this is Troy we're talking about. Troy who once made it clear to Annie that he liked butt stuff while holding his arms out and closing his eyes, so we can only assume from that moment that he was expecting her to top. That and Troy is someone who can be weird about his gender as we--oh my god, i went on another tangent AGAIN, I am so sorry. basically--GIVE ANNIE A GIRLFRIEND. i see the potential for annie kim/annie edison, i think it would be hilarious, but also, I was rewatching CW's Nancy Drew with one of my friends and. I was so enamored with the character of Bess to the point where I think, FBI agent Annie should get with a down on her luck former-conwoman from London. (Someday I'll finish my transfemme Troy Barnes fic and Annie will get that plotline, SOMEDAY)

Dean/Dean- toxic yaoi, its messy, i want more

Dean/Happiness- let the dean be a happy and free and

Frankie/Britta- I haven't actually watched past a few episodes post-geothermal escapism, and haven't reached that point in my rewatch, but I've read a few fics, heard out a few friends and I see it.

Todd/His Wife-I just hope that when the study group broke todd they didnt break his family while they were at it

[eyeris-moni]

are jeff and raz.. kissboys..???!?!

This ask's wording had me DYING HELP

Forever adding that to my mental dictionary HAHAHA

I have to be completely honest with you, I myself have no hecking clue what their relationship is.

And I HAVE TRIED TO FIGURE OUT OK OTL

The TLDR is that I don't know!! and that you're welcome to HC and see them how you want as of now.

My own reins are loose and I just draw what feels in character (:

Thought-vomit below in case you want to hear my thoughts on it. It's long because i cannot for the life of me remember how much I've talked about before--

__________________

Most of the time I'm more focused on exploring the intricate, intimate feelings of their dynamic (something I just can't do justice with a couple of doodles here and there aughh).

Like--

Let's talk about the almost infantilized elements of Raz's repressed nature.

(Btw, this is not an issue to me - don't feel bad if you genuinely, or even on a meme level, refer to him as a baby. From Raz's perspective, that's how you're meant to, and in turn, that's the narrative I often draw. I draw him cute - he is cute!)

Every character, viewer included, is invited to see Raz as 'babi OwO', because that's a part of Raz's wants. When he feels threatening, he will literally make himself smaller, visually plead for you to see him that way.

Not because he is a tiny baby, but because he has learnt that doing so makes people nicer to him. He doesn't actually ever become a child. Instead he will look the part to spark care in others, and adapt a very simplistic worldview when needed. Not because he cannot grasp anything more complicated, but because it's too distressing to do so!

Like imagine how you might start thinking politics in term of simple 'bad' vs. 'good'. Not because there isn't nuance, but because it's stressful and exhausting and takes away your ability to be happy.

Sometimes Raz does that, but instead of it being politics, it's everything!

And I think it's genuinely interesting how Jeff kind of knows this and once he gets an idea of how it works, he doesn't coddle or treat Raz like a child.

In part because he's a stubborn asshole and kind of refuses to infantilize Raz beyond what is 'healthy'.

He learns to treat Raz as an adult, but obviously simplifies and helps out when Raz is overwhelmed. Example:

The rest of the times he and EJ do their best to help Raz learn how to be responsible and build healthier relationship. How to be self-sufficient.

And it's important because it's Jeff that's pushing for Slender to let him into the mansion, arguing that Raz isn't just a kid, but an adult that can take responsibility for his actions. He's pushing and arguing for Raz to be viewed the same way Jeff knows he can be, capable and responsible.

THAT IS ALL TO SAY I find it genuinely interesting and endearing how Jeff is able to connect with Raz (by being a stubborn asshole) and in turn helps Raz by holding him accountable. To see the glimpses of Ezca before they ever truly met, and how he shuts down Raz's unhealthy habits of making himself smaller, while idolizing everyone around him.

It's cool and I do think it makes their specific relationship special.

I mostly talked about Jeff's influence on Raz, but I could also talk for hours about how my version of Jeff slowly learns to be more patient and more emotional from Raz being around. (I imagine he lost a lot of his ability to be emotional ever since he entered a pact with Slenderman.)

I think their friendship is really cool and complicated and full of little intricate parts and having to label that is HARD GKDNDN

I wouldn't know if there's anything romantic in there - I've never drawn anything with that explicitly in mind?

But I draw them very close! Raz enjoys physical touch and closeness, and as they learn to work together, (especially post roadtrip together,) Jeff is kinda chill having Raz just laying/hanging/sitting around and on him.

Really the one concerned should be Raz because lord knows when Jeff last has showered and washed his clothes but i guess that's a benefit of being non-human NFKDNSJS

_________

I'm so sorry for the insanely long rambly answers!

I've been walking around with these characters in my head for years and it's HARD EXPLAINING STUFF

Also yall keep asking genuinely interesting question about them and the fan/nerd in me desires to make sure I cover my bases-

[adorawritesalot]

yo. hi. mh boys w a streamer s/o?:)

hello everyone, excuse my sudden disappearance:( i have really important exams coming up and i barely have time for myself between studying!! promise i'll get better at writing regularly afterwards🙏

anyway, thank you for the submission! sorry i didn't send you the preview, it's your ask anyway:) love u tomi!!!!!

Alex:

To be honest, he seems like a streamer guy. What do you think he was doing for almost a year before he called Jay again? Streamed Minecraft or something (imagine it was possible back then for me, please).

Anyway, he would be so supportive. He is your #1 fan (but wouldn't say it outloud).

"Hey Alex, I've been thinking about buying this Stream De-" "TAKE MY MONEY"

Would kill anyone who says it's not a real job, because he sees the work you put into it, the tears from receiving hate, and the inevitable happiness it brings you.

If you asked him to join you on stream one day, he would almost piss himself.

"ME??? On stream??? With my FAVOURITE streamer??? YES!" In a teasing voice, but he is secretly overly excited.

Jay:

He is very happy for you when you start becoming famous, because he sees how happy it makes YOU. He loves seeing your dreams come true in front of his eyes.

He would get you the best camera the world has to offer. Is there not a good enough one for your pretty face? Fuck it, he makes it.

A sweetheart when it comes to making you feel better after a hate raid. Draws you a bath, orders your favourite food (he cannot cook for the life of him), cuddles you in bed.

If you asked him to do a stream with you one day, he would gladly agree. He would be nervous at first, but then he would just goof around and you both would have a great time.

Brian:

He would like to just watch your streams while he works on his line delivery or something. Your voice soothes him, and that is exactly what he needs.

Would beg you to do one of those "I gave my viewers 500$ to spend on Amazon" streams. Then you reminded him that you would actually have to have those 500$. That shut him up pretty quickly.

Sometimes you think your chat likes him more than you. When he occasionally comes into your streaming room in the middle of a stream with food, your chat starts spamming his name and various versions of greetings.

One "Hey chat!" and a grin later, he is now playing with you next to him. Be ready for more streams with him! He really enjoyed it and chat did too.

Tim:

Tim wouldn't really get why you are willingly putting your face (or just yourself as a person) out on the internet. Still, he would be very supportive. He always is.

Would sit with you in your streaming room. He loves your voice.

Reminds you that you don't have to do this job if it mentally drains you after every hate raid. He is very protective of you, and he wouldn't want to lose you to a bunch of jerks on the internet.

You talk about him on stream a lot, so chat is, of course, clamouring for a boyfriend stream.

He eventually agrees, but he doesn't yet know what he's gotten himself into.

It's a cooking stream. And you basically just do what he is telling you to do while looking at eachother cutely. Beware of the edits!

[collectionoftulips]

One thing about the writing of the show and Colin... (spoilers for part 1 of season 3). I'm not hating on Colin but I have some thoughts about how he is being written, so I'm being a bit critical, but it's towards the writers rather than the character or actor.

One thing that really stands out to me in part one of the third season, in my opinion, is that I think the characterisation of Colin isn't that consistent? Like one of the joys of each character having their own season is that we get to see facets to them that we haven't seen before and get more of a sense of how they work on a deeper level.

For whatever reason, so far with Colin, that isn't happening for me. It is true for Penelope, but not for Colin. I think a huge thing for me is that I never had a particularly clear sense of who Colin is based on the show other than he likes travelling. I haven't read his and Penelope's book, so I'm relying a lot on the show telling who Colin is and as a casual viewer I'm not entirely sure. Anthony is the 'responsible older brother', Benedict is 'the artist', Eloise is 'the feminist' etc, but I never had much of a sense of Colin except maybe as 'the traveller', maybe? But unlike his siblings, we never actually see him do any of the things that define him. He talks about his travels once he is back, sure, but we don't actually see him have any of the supposedly important revelations and lessons from his travels as they happen off screen (and then he alludes to them without articulating any of them).

But I think the most telling thing, for me, this season is that I feel like the writing isn't fully set on who Colin is either. We start the season with Colin getting his now standard 'Bridgerton male lead' makeover and in that process, he's been on another bit of travel but generally seems to now espouse a lot of the opinions that I would expect out of Benedict, but in a lighter way. So to some degree, he starts off Part 1 to me seeming a bit Benedict-lite. He's now not caring about society, he tells us, and he listens only to his own inclinations etc etc (I'm paraphrasing). Personally, I didn't really see any behaviour from him when in society during part 1 that would indicate that sentiment being prevalent, but I guess some things can be internal revelations and/or I missed something.

But then there was that conversation with Violet, which I in broad terms generally liked. But in that, we are again told via Violet, that apparently Colin the most sensitive of her children and always put the needs of others before his own. It was at this point I was absolutely confused, personally, because - again - as far as I'm aware we have not seen any indication of this general pattern within his family in the three seasons of this show. The estimation about putting other people's needs before his own reads to me as more of an Anthony characteristic that is now being ascribed to Colin. Especially as I cannot get the 'putting others needs before one's own' to match with him travelling to 17(!!!!) different cities in four months(!!!!) (I can't get the maths to maths on that one - by modern travel that would be bananas and by regency travel times, it is downright mythical) and last season when he added a bunch of destinations to his travels last minute (causing Anthony stress about the expense). That seems to me to be indications of someone who does have boundaries about who they are and does do things for themselves and their own enjoyment.

I suppose I'm saying all of this because I am surprised that we are seemingly halfway through the season and I'm still very confused about who Colin actually is, despite him proclaiming that he has learned who he is. I also think there might be - if the pattern holds for part two - a really interesting conversation to be had about what the writers imagine a 'Bridgerton male lead' to be, because so far the remit of that role and what they are imagining that to be seems very narrow. There could have been a really interesting storyline about Colin trying to figure out his own identity, who is he is and what he wants, but the show seemingly decided to forgo that really interesting journey and instead give him a male lead experience much more similar to S1 and S2.

I'm not making this post to start anything, but if I'm missing some crucial context or information, please do share, or let me know if you've had similar experiences watching season three?

[hebuiltfive]

The Five Mistakes of Virgil Tracy

HAPPY BIRTHDAY VIRGIL!

I posted an actual happy story for one of their birthdays? I am in shock.

This is part of a wider alternate universe set in the Regency era that I'm developing... with a twist. You may have a hundred questions regarding a certain scene in this story, but I promise it will all make sense once the actual Regency AU story is published (which will be soon, I hope!)

For now, enjoy Virgil getting up to some mischief.

There is no explicit smut or sex in this, but it is implied. If you do not like romance, this one might not be for you.

For those who prefer to read on AO3.

Mister Reeves's private art collection is not quite what Virgil had been expecting to visit. What happens at the Reeves's family estate, stays at the Reeves's family estate.

March, 1816. London.

It had been a stroke of luck — of good or bad was still to be determined — when John noticed Lord Tycho Reeves contemplating one particular landscape. He had soon introduced him to Virgil as a friend and colleague at the Novatores club. Virgil had been overly keen in meeting one of John’s friends. Most of the time, his studious brother kept his club and its members far away from the rest of the family. Virgil did not mind, although making a good impression had been paramount.

Art seemed to be the topic of choice, given their location. Virgil had turned to the painting Lord Reeves had been assessing and began to critique it earnestly. Surely any smart man who was a member of John’s club, and who possessed an interest in art, would too be able to see the imperfections of the piece.

“It lacks imagination,” Virgil had so boldly claimed. “The shadows are all wrong for one thing. Even a novice would be able to see that those shades are entirely incorrect. It gives the painting an inauthentic feel, and then, of course, there is the case of the sky.”

“What is wrong with the sky?” Another voice had asked. If Virgil had been paying proper attention to his surrounding company, he would have noticed that, while this new man sounded like Lord Reeves, it was not he who had spoken.

“It’s grey.”

“The skies of England are usually grey, are they not? Perhaps, as an American, you would not recognise this.”

Offended, Virgil finally returned his attention to the group. Though Lord Reeves had humoured his inital critique, he was now standing a little further back with his arms behind him. His grin looked suspiciously like a smirk. Next to him, John had a twinkle in his own eye.

That was when Virgil had realised they had been joined by another man. Slightly taller than Lord Reeves, with similar features, but identifiably a very different man.

“Please,” this new addition to the group continued, “carry on. What is wrong with the sky being grey?”

Virgil, suitably uncomfortable and feeling like he was missing part of the puzzle that made it all so amusing to Lord Reeves and his brother, had meekly explained. “… Everything else in this landscape suggests… a happy memory. The lake twinkles as the sunlight catches it, though I cannot fathom where the sunlight is coming from, which suggests a magic spark.”

“Could it not be simply the light refracting the surface of the water?”

“That would be too literal.”

“And art cannot be literal?”

“Of course it can, but this is obviously not.”

“How so?”

Virgil sighed with a hint of irritation. “Metaphors in art are curated in the palettes, designed in the brushstrokes, admired by the viewer. Imagination is what drives art forward. Creative, human spirit!”

“The sunlight could pierce the clouds.”

“It does not represent that.”

“Imagine that it does then.”

Before Virgil could further dig himself into a hole, Lord Reeves stepped forward. “Mister Tracy, please allow me to introduce to you my younger brother, Percival… the artist of the piece you are currently observing.”

The blood had drained from Virgil’s features as the situation slowly sunk in.

He was thankful that Mister Reeves had not been insulted by Virgil’s strong critiques. Instead of turning away from him in anger, he had invited Virgil to tour the rest of the gallery with him and, once they had finished, invited him to visit his own private studio back at his family seat in Kent. This invitation had been solidified when, two days later, Virgil had received a letter from Reeves once again inviting him to his family home. Feeling as though he could not decline such a kind request, Virgil organised his schedules for his trip and set off the following week.

The long journey south had filled Virgil with anxiety. Every couple of hours he’d contemplate whether visiting would be a good idea. The last thing he wanted to do was put his foot in it again. When his carriage rolled up to the Reeves’s Estate at noon, Virgil had still not reached a definitive conclusion on what was best. He noticed Reeves all but skipping down the steps to greet him and quickly decided it was too late to do anything but stay.

April, 1816. Kent.

As Virgil stepped out of his carriage and the man drew closer, Virgil could make out the intricate pattern on Mister Reeves’s waistcoat. A design of dark, swirling lines, blooming in flowery explosions. The colours complimented the rest of his attire well and Virgil instantly realised two things: the first was that this was a man who knew how to present himself. Of course, he was hosting a guest for the next couple of days, however the clothing he wore suggested to Virgil that was ostentatious. The second realisation was that Reeves was a man who prided himself in being that way. If Virgil hadn’t already known better, he wouldn’t have been shocked to hear of Reeves’s love of art. He used himself as a canvas, and Virgil unexpectedly found himself appreciating that.

The first item of their agenda, according to Reeves once Virgil’s luggage had been seen to be a footman, was a guided tour of the country estate. His brother was apparently out for the weekend with their mother and Mister Reeves had expressed great relief at having the estate to himself (minus the obvious staff that flitted in and out of rooms as they passed through them).

Before arriving, Virgil had done thorough research on the man he was about to visit. He had asked John for tidbits of information from what he’d heard from Lord Reeves regarding his younger brother, and had surreptitiously inquired about the man at various events and social gatherings in the week leading up to his journey. He hadn’t been expecting Reeves to share as much as he currently was during their stroll, but had listened intently, as he would with a close friend, pretending he hadn’t heard half the story already.

Unlike his brother, Lord Reeves’s imagination had led him down a path of academia. He favoured turning to science and mathematics in order to understand the world around him. Percival's passions had always been more fanciful, decreed by the arts and a far cry from the world of equations and physics.

With his freedoms as the second-born son, it meant that Reeves had spent the better half of his youth creating. While his brother conducted his technological tests up in his study, Mister Reeves had dared to study the various crafts of art. First, the childish abstract art that a muddy puddle in the grounds of their vast country estate, then, as he grew older, so did his interests. Sculptures and poetry fascinated him, but it was in painting where his true passions dwelled.

Virgil could relate to most of that. He, too, was called to a different path than his brothers. It was refreshing to hear Mister Reeves’s brief story, though when he asked questions regarding Virgil’s own family in the process, Virgil was a much more closed book. He was thankful when the topic of conversation changed to the varieties of plants in Tycho’s greenhouses, even if neither of them were particularly knowledgeable on the subject.

Drizzle began and they made the decision to start back up to the house. They passed a lake that appeared very similar to the painting Virgil had critiqued when they had first met, and then various flower beds before ending the tour by the stables just as the rain began to pick up.

It had been fascinating, taking a walk through the gardens of the Reeves’s estate, but Virgil was far more at home once he was given the tour of the interior. The paintings that hung on the walls of the house were more familiar to Virgil than plants and trees. They strolled further into the grand manor, passing through halls and rooms so elaborate they would no doubt rival the Royal Palaces themselves, until they eventually came to the private art gallery.

Most of the artwork that lined the first room was very similar to those that Mister Reeves had already displayed at the gallery where they’d first been introduced: a couple of watercolour landscape pieces that had been inspired by his home in Kent; a portrait of his older brother painted with oils; a few commissioned pieces that had never been paid in full and so Reeves had kept them as payment.

“An unfortunately common occurrence.” He had sadly claimed.

All had been what Virgil was expecting to see upon arriving. No bold, critiquing comments were made on any of the pieces he saw, however. He had learned his lesson the first time around and the shame he felt in the aftermath… Virgil hadn’t forgiven himself for days. If that had been him on the receiving end, he wouldn’t have recovered for a while. Not that his self-esteem was bad, that is. The case with Virgil came down to his sensibilities; out of the five Tracy brothers, Virgil was undoubtedly the most sensitive.

Mister Reeves guided him through to the second room of the studio. It was low lit and more crowded than the first chamber. As they entered, Reeves pulled back the covers that had been blocking the windows and the afternoon sun streamed in. Light lit up the area, the canvases that were haphazardly strewn across various work surfaces…

And Virgil stopped dead in his tracks.

The previous landscape images and average portraits were the paintings he had been expecting to view.

The image of the scantly clad woman, however, was not.

Virgil blushed.

And Percival Reeves liked that. His smile turned devilish.

“Is this imaginative enough for you, Mister Tracy?” Reeves asked as he sidled up beside his new friend.

Virgil observed the painting. It was certainly suggestive and Reeves’s alluring demeanour and tone only amplified it.

He convinced himself that he was only interested in the brushstrokes, in the colour palette that had been used. It only half-worked.

The ivory dress the model wore had slipped down substantially, leaving bare shoulders on display. Delicately painted hands held up the gown which remained covering her more intimate parts, but the suggestion was enough. Soft ringlets of her brunette hair fell from her fancy up-do.

Whoever this woman was, she was exquisite. Virgil wasn’t sure whether she was real or merely a figment of Reeves’s imagination, and he dared not ask for her identity. The last thing he wanted to appear as was indecent.

Then again, it had been Reeves who had invited him to his private studio, who had guided him into this second chamber, who had revealed to him these secret paintings.

To further his point, Reeves did not seem to care for indecency. As if reading Virgil’s mind, he traced his fingers lightly over the woman’s painted features. “Her name was Clara. She was a model down at the club I frequent.” His index finger reached the rouged lips of the model. “She’s magnificent, isn’t she?”

A variety of questions inundated Virgil’s mind. He kept them at bay and simply — meekly — nodded. “You said ‘was’?”

“Clara no longer models for us.” Mister Reeves explained, dropping his hand back down to his side. “Rumours claim that one of our members became ‘involved’ with her and, when their relationship ended unpleasantly, Clara left and never looked back.”

So entranced as he was by such a scandalous image, that was now additionally paired with a scandalous story, Virgil found he could not take his eyes off the painting.

When Mister Reeves’s gaze drifted over to him, he felt the man’s eyes on him rather than saw them.

“Gossip can be such an obstacle.” Reeves continued. “The Ton seem to thrive on tittle-tattle. Have you ever read that damned gossip sheet that makes it’s rounds now and then? Utter poppycock! Drivel! I believe it to be a vulgar practice. In fact, I think spreading frivolous gossip is far more vulgar than showcasing a painting of natural beauty. Would you not agree, Mister Tracy?”

Beside him, Virgil felt Mister Reeves inch closer.

“Yet, while the gossip rags are allowed to be published and distributed, my paintings are prohibited from being shown in public art galleries. Tell me, do you believe that to be a fair practice?”

Virgil’s collar suddenly felt too tight. The question posed by Reeves sounded like a test of some kind and Virgil found himself not wanting to fail. He could see how such an illustration could be deemed “too promiscuous” to display, no matter the natural beauty it showcased, but made no comment. He continued to stare at the painting, unblinking.

Reeves went on. “I do not think you are the sort of man who enjoys listening to mindless gossip. You appear to be a man who prefers thoughtful conversation.”

His host’s words became more emphasised, more accentuated, more connotative.

“You come across as someone who would rather indulge in more stimulating dialogue, no?”

Virgil grew hotter. Mister Reeve’s arm now brushed against his own and Virgil’s heart-rate quickened. He blamed it easily on the portrait that he still stared directly at.

If Reeves was testing him, Virgil thought that is was a rather unfair test.

“How do you like to be captivated, Mister Tracy?”

His host was being wilfully provocative. Mister Reeves’s arm again brushed up against his own sleeve. It was a momentary touch, fleeting and possibly accidental… No, not accidental. Paired with the words and the images and the previous touch, Mister Reeves had intentionally moved closer a second time.

Still Virgil said nothing. Still he did nothing. He allowed the feelings, so unfamiliar to him they almost frightened him, to swell and infect every part of his body and mind.

He began to wonder if this was the sort of thrill his brother sought when he visited her. If that was the case then Virgil was on the path of understanding what the appeal was.

Mister Reeves had grown quiet, and Virgil realised he had yet to answer his question.

Nervously he cleared his throat, his words seeming foreign on his tongue as he spoke. “I, uh, do partake in poetry.”

He dared a glance towards his host. That was his first mistake —

No, it was his second.

Virgil’s first mistake had been accepting Mister Reeves’ invitation, though, of course, despite his initial hesitations, he had not known back then what would transpire.

This second mistake of his — turning to face Reeves — could have been far more avoidable. Upon seeing the portraits, Virgil could have upped-and-left. That would have been the proper thing to do.

But he had been so transfixed by the images he had seen, marvelled by their beauty, that Virgil simply could not leave. Never mind the fact that it would have been a rather rude gesture towards the man who had essentially given him a second chance with that kind invite.

Just as the painting was easy to get lost in, Mister Reeves’s eyes, Virgil realised, were the sort one could drown in. Without a second thought, he imagined how he could possibly paint them. Bold and daring, with a touch of tawny in the hazel iris. Perfectly opulent…

Dear Lord, he was staring! Straight into the other man’s eyes and—

Virgil’s blush returned with vengeance. His cheeks grew warm and there was nothing he could do to stop them from reddening.

Perhaps the invite had not been kind at all. Perhaps it had been an elaborate scheme that Mister Reeves had concocted to further embarrass him after he had made those comments!

Reeves chuckled, however. It was not the sort of vicious or malicious laughter that came at the expense of another, but one that was reassuring. Gentle and understanding, Mister Reeves reached out.

Despite the fabric of his shirt separating their skin, a thrilling tingle was still sent up Virgil’s arm upon his touch.

…

Oh, this was ridiculous!

Virgil cleared his throat, attempting to compose himself in the face of Mister Reeves. He inhaled deeply, which proved to be his third mistake. The scent of rich orange and bergamot coming from the man standing beside him drowned his senses completely.

“One shade the more, one ray the less, / Had half impaired the nameless grace / Which waves in every raven tress, / Or softly lightens o’er her face; / Where thoughts serenely sweet express, / How pure, how dear their dwelling-place.”

“Byron.” Virgil instantly recognised the piece.

“I, too, partake in some poetry from time to time.” Mister Reeves admitted.

“It is a beautiful poem.”

“It is. I have a variety of poetry books in my private library.”

Virgil cracked an amused smile. “Is this private library as solicitous as this private art collection is?”

Mister Reeves simply stared at him and, for a moment, Virgil wondered if he’d been too bold.

Before he could backtrack and offer an apology, however, Mister Reeves’s smile curled. “Would you think poorly of me if they were?”

Virgil did not think poorly of any man or woman, with the exception of a couple who were truly, under Virgil’s terms, despicable. Mister Reeves, in the short amount of time he had known him, did not seem to be that sort of man.

“Art is not to be thought poorly of.” He diplomatically decreed. “It should be subjective, not discredited due to themes or images alone.”

“Unless it is an unimaginative piece down at the Royal Art Gallery?” Mister Reeves chuckled, the twinkle in his eye suggesting he was glad Virgil was being more direct.

“Am I ever to live that down?”

“It is looking more and more unlikely, Mister Tracy.”

That was fair enough, he thought to himself. “I see. Well, in that case, I shall have to work hard to regain your trust in my judgement.”

“I do not distrust your judgement in the slightest, Mister Tracy.”

Virgil could feel the blush return to his cheeks. “That’s very kind of you to say, Mister Reeves.”

“Please, call me Percival. If we are to be friends, it feels only right.”

The offered hand that Mister Reeves — Percival — had extended was met halfway by Virgil, who had been expecting a handshake from the man. There was no handshake, however, and instead Percival enclosed his fingers around Virgil’s hand, squeezed gently and then pulled him back through the doorway of his art studio. Virgil did not stop him, which proved to be his fourth mistake, and they retraced their steps through the hallway, turning in the opposition direction to lead down a new staircase Virgil had not yet seen. The steps were lined with a beautifully soft red runner and, eventually, Percival came to a stop outside another room, this time locked.

Percival made short work of unlocking the door, opening it to a view of his private library, if the lines and lines of shelving were any clue. Percival pulled Virgil inside, only letting go of his hand once the door behind them was shut.

“This is my second home.” He announced rather proudly. “Or my third, if you were to count the actual house as a home.”

“You do not?”

Virgil’s question was asked half-distractedly. He began to inspect the rows and rows of books that sat upon the nearest shelf.

On the Origin of Species

Believing Is Seeing: Is There Life on Mars?

Relativity: The Special and General Theory

Dark Matter and Dark Energy: The Hidden 95% of the Unknown

A Brief History of Time

Challenging Technology

Sustainable Transport Innovations

The Voyage of the Beagle

Beyond the Horizon: Exploring Breakthroughs in Modern Science

Whatever answer Percival had given to his question, Virgil did not hear. He ran a finger along one of the books worn spines, feeling the groove of the embossed titles that made no sense. After all Percival had said regarding the differences between his brother and himself, Virgil had half-expected a library full of books on the arts. This library looked more like a trove fit for Tycho instead.

His eyes scanned over the titles again.

A Brief History of Time… The Voyage of the Beagle… On the Origin of Species…

Virgil’s mouth grew dry. Beneath the layers of his clothing, goosebumps rose.

Something was wrong.

Fog descended on his mind, skewing his thoughts from questioning any further. The hair on the back of his neck rose and static noise drowned out whatever Percival was currently speaking about. There was a steady beeping sound that was barely audible amongst the crackling disturbance.

Virgil glanced back to the row of books, impossible books, books that seemed wrong. They didn’t belong here, and not because he thought they were Tycho’s books instead. There was something Virgil couldn’t quite put his finger on, something very obvious that was staring him right in the face… but that damned hissing wasn’t helping him think! He resisted the urge to lift up his hands and cover his ears; it wouldn’t have helped.

Virgil jumped when Percival’s hand landed on his arm. The fog instantly lifted, the noise dissipating until he could hear his host’s words clearly once again.

“Are you feeling well, Tracy?”

Without missing a beat, Virgil nodded his assurance. “Yes! Yes, I am… I am well. My apologies.”

“Are you quite sure? You seemed…” Percival trailed off, his eyes searching Virgil’s cautiously. “… distant. Like you were—”

“I assure you, I am fine!”

Despite the confidence with which Virgil had declared his health, the truth was much more different. His heart was still thundering away behind his chest, his head swimming, not only from confusion but from some sort of after effect. He held onto the shelving for support, disguising the fact by gesturing to the line of books. “You have a wonderful collection here, Percival.”

It was only once he complimented the books that Virgil dared to look at the titles again.

The Analysis of Beauty

A Treatise on Painting

The Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors and Architects

Bile rose up Virgil’s throat. He was certain those same books held different titles only moments ago. He frowned, tearing his eyes away from the books that had caused his funny turn; he did not wish to go down that rabbit hole again.

“Thank you.” Percival bowed his head in acknowledgement.

Whether he could sense Virgil’s unease or not, Virgil did not know. All he knew was that his host was guiding him by the arm to sit upon one of the leather couches in the centre of the library. Virgil allowed himself to be seated, forcing himself to offer Percival a weak smile. It did nothing to quell Percival’s look of scepticism.

Nevertheless, Percival continued. “As I was saying, I count this as a home away from home.”

“Yes, you said you did not class your house as a home.” Virgil recalled, tracing his mind back to their conversation before he’d been swept up in… whatever that had been. “Is the house not naturally your home?”

“No.” Percival had been nothing but confident since Virgil arrived. He had stood tall, spoke relatively freely and without concern. Yet, with that small, one-worded confession, the man had changed. His tone became quieter, his shoulder hunched making his appearance seem smaller than normal.

“I find the house is less of a home and more of a place where one resides.” He explained carefully. “My studio, this library, feel more homely to me than the house at large does. Oftentimes, the bottom of my liquor bottle is more conversational than my brother or anyone else in this damned household.” Percival’s eyes met Virgil’s. “Do you not feel that way too sometimes, Mister Tracy?”

He took the seat beside him on the couch, his arm stretching out across the back cushions behind Virgil. “Do you not feel encased or entrapped by the house in which you reside?”

Virgil shook his head, though in truth, he had never once given it a thought. His family were the kindest, most welcoming people he knew. They made his house a home. He refrained from sharing that, however. The last thing he wanted to do was sound as though he was boasting, even if Percival had asked him the question in the first place.

Percival grinned with a subtle touch of jealousy. “How lucky you are to not understand first-hand what the pain is like.”

“But surely your brother—”

“I told you, Tycho is less interesting than my bottles of liquor on a good day. He rarely cares for what I do, being too busy tinkering away in his little laboratory or polishing himself up in order to appear just as our father did, a pillar of society. He does not care what I do or who I have become.”

“He was at your art show the other month.” Virgil carefully pointed out. “Surely that means he still must care in some capacity?”

“Everything Tycho does is for show, Mister Tracy.” Percival met Virgil’s eyes again and the vulnerability was clear. This was a man who had turned to his creative pursuits to escape his own reality. Virgil could relate to that, even if he couldn’t entirely empathise with the exact reasons why.

“You must be lonely.”

“Sometimes.” He smiled weakly. “But I am glad I have found a friend in you, Mister Tracy.”

“Please, if I am to call you Percival, you must call me Virgil.”

Percival’s smile grew, softening the hurt in his eyes. “Well, I am glad to have found a friend in you, Virgil Tracy.”

“And I with you.”

“Do not tell me a man such as yourself is without friends?”

“I am afraid all my friends are back home in America.”

Any trace of Percival’s vulnerability was shed. He welcomed the change in topic gladly, lifting one leg up to tuck underneath himself as he turned to face Virgil, his arm still outstretched behind him. Virgil felt relief when Percival did not retrieve that hand, and then batted away his feeling once he’d realised it.

“Tell me about home. My father visited once but he rarely spoke about it.”

“Probably because there isn’t a lot to say.”

“Nonsense! Do not be modest with me now, Virgil. I showed you my most secret collections.”

Virgil grinned. “Perhaps do not call them ‘secret collections’.”

“Why not?”

“It gives the impression that you are a secretive man.”

“Is there a problem with secretive men, Tracy?”

“No, not at all, but it usually begs the question as to what the man is keeping secret.”

“I have laid pretty much all bare with you. What possible questions might you still have?”

“If everything is a secret, Reeves, I’m afraid I wouldn’t know what else I might be wondering about.”

“In that case, allow me to wonder about you. You may not have private art collections, Virgil Tracy, — or maybe you do, who am I to judge? — but you are quite the enigma yourself. Tell me, compared to myself, how deeply have you answered my questions this afternoon?”

Virgil felt slightly guilty. “Perhaps I am simply not as deep as you might think I am.”

“I would have to disagree with you there. I think that you’re extremely deep and meaningful. You just don’t trust very easily, which I understand entirely, but…”

Percival trailed off, shuffling a little closer to Virgil. The hand outstretched behind him gently brushing against Virgil’s shoulder. He tried not to elicit a reaction, tried to ignore the sweet tingle that was left once Percival’s hand left him again, but it was harder to hide than it had been in the art studio.

“But you don’t have to worry here.” He continued, so close his whisper breezed Virgil’s cheeks.

Virgil Tracy’s fifth mistake was not standing up and leaving the library in that very moment, though mistake might have been too harsh a word. The word ‘mistake’ is commonly left with connotations of regret, and Virgil did not regret what happened next in the slightest. Percival’s rich scent of orange and bergamot clouded Virgil’s senses. It enveloped him, ensnared him. He noticed now how Percival’s eyes were more tawny than they were green, citing the different in lighting in the library being the primary reason. He’d have to remember that when he painted the man… if he painted the man.

His muse quite often struck at odd moments. On one occasion, while stuck at the dinner table of one of Lord Clingsdale’s banquets, Virgil had composed an entire symphony in his mind. On another occasion he had written the most beautiful poem whilst playing a round of ninepins with his family. He transcribed it later that evening before he could forget it entirely.

But this sudden surge of creative passion was different. It was stronger. This time his inspiration did not arrive due to boredom or having a lovely afternoon on the green with his family. This time his inspiration came from the very handsome man who had invited him into his home and bared his soul to him.

Virgil reigned himself in.

There was never a logical or calculated moment for when his muse would strike, but he just couldn’t be thinking about that, not now.

Not when Percival was this close to him.

Not when Percival inched his face toward him.

Not when Percival’s lips, so soft, experimentally pressed against his own.

It was over within a second. Percival pulled his lips away and stared at Virgil, assessing his reaction. The kiss had been so fast, Virgil hadn’t been able to process it fully. His confused blinking had Percival frowning, his cheeks warming up.

“Was that…? Oh, God, that was too much, wasn’t it?” Percival jumped up from his position, clearly embarrassed, but all Virgil felt was his absence the moment he left. Beside him, the couch still had a Percival-shaped dent from where he’d been seated.

Distraught, Percival clamped a palm over his forehead. “I’ve ruined it all now, haven’t I? Please, Mister Tracy, accept my thorough apologies! I do not know what came over me…”

The buttons on his waistcoat, unique in its periwinkle shade, were fiddled around with. That vulnerability Percival had displayed earlier, of which Virgil was sure he’d only barely glimpsed, only scratched the surface of witnessing, had returned.

Virgil stood immediately and strolled over to the pacing man. He caught Percival’s hands before he could do any damage to his waistcoat buttons and, to his surprise, Percival ceased his fidgeting. Virgil knew he had a calming quality, an aura that was tranquil, but he rarely didn’t surprise himself with his abilities. His father had once claimed that he was a lot like his mother in that regard and Virgil had held that compliment close to his chest ever since.

The not-quite-tawny-not-quite-hazel eyes glanced at him with hesitance, but Virgil didn’t allow him to back away. If Scott was allowed to have his fun, then why couldn’t he? After all, one more kiss was harmless enough, wasn’t it?

Gently, for he did not want to ruin Percival’s intricately designed waistcoat, Virgil’s fingers wrapped around the lapels and drew him nearer. Their slight difference in height had Virgil leaning forward and up, but he wasted no time in reassuring Percival that he hadn’t ruined anything.

This time, Virgil made sure that their kiss wasn’t so light and experimental. Their brief few hours together had enticed both of them, and Virgil wanted Percival to know that he wasn't the only one who felt that way. Whether it was love or lust, or maybe a mixture of both, Virgil did not know. All he knew was he craved more of Percival’s attention, more of his touch.

Percival seemed stunned when Virgil went in for his less delicate kiss but, once he got over his initial shock that yes he hadn’t ruined his new friendship — could it be deemed such now? — with this man, gave as good as he got. Hands trailed clothed bodies, tables were bumped into and enamoured giggles were exchanged in short bursts of breath, until they found themselves back at the couch once again.

When Virgil had first arrived earlier that afternoon, he had not known what to expect. If he had been able to cast his mind’s eye to the future to envision this current scenario, he might have turned away out of fear. Now that he was here, however, living in the moment and cherishing every second, he was glad humans did not possess that impossible ability.

‘One more kiss’ turned into a cascade of them. Lips began to explore more areas — cheeks and necks and chests. They almost missed dinner, too wrapped up in themselves and their desires to care for the time. When society deems something as taboo for too long, one is more inclined to take a bite out of the denied apple.

In between their fits of passion, Percival assured Virgil that what happened during his stay would remain within the walls of the manor… or the greenhouse, or the confines of the lake area, wherever they wished to adventure next. Silly little love affairs were not something to be ashamed of, Reeves had claimed, but something that deserved to be experienced every now and then, and Virgil had to agree.

He was almost sad to leave the following afternoon. Percival had been disappointed that Virgil did not accept his offer to stay longer, but after promising him he’d return as soon as he could, Percival had lightened up a little again. He waved him off as his carriage departed and Virgil found himself looking back through the cab’s windows, watching the small speck that was the Reeves Estate slowly disappear over the horizon.

When John had inquired about his trip the morning after he’d returned back home, Virgil had kept the details minimal. If his brother had seen through some of his more reserved statements, he did not let on, nor did he question Virgil when he spent more time in his studio painting over the subsequent month. Virgil was grateful for that. Inspired by Percival’s private art studio, Virgil had installed a small lock on the door to his own. The portrait he was currently working on was for his eyes only. He didn’t want to make the mistake of allowing one of his brothers to accidentally stumble across it. He was on a running streak of not feeling guilty over the last five mistakes he’d made, and, high on life, Virgil had no intention of breaking that streak just yet.

[thanx-files]

Gethsemane Review and Season 4 Wrap-Up

Listen. Listen. These get longer every season, but I can’t help myself. I spent a ridiculous amount of time trying to put my thoughts into comprehensible language after Gethsemane. So please, indulge me, agree with me, start a fight with me in the replies, but whatever you do, just join me in being unwell about season 4 of The X-Files. Spoilers, of course.

Gethsemane

I, a child of the 21st century, am watching this show on a streaming platform. It has long since wrapped, and I know for damn sure that David Duchovny will return as Fox Mulder for many of the seasons to follow. Even so, I am choking on this ending. What the exact and entire fuck do you mean HE DIED?

I cannot imagine watching this, then waiting MONTHS to know what happened. I know those message boards were buzzing. Not only that, but the viewers would not have had the benefit of the Dean Winchester trope thanks to which every time a main character dies you think, “it’s fine honestly don’t even worry about it, they’ll be back in two weeks.” (Even if you’re wrong.)

UGH okay now that I’ve talked about that, it’s time to be a broken record: I love to see Mulder and Scully at odds. The scene as they’re leaving the Smithsonian is ART to me. They’re no longer fighting the same war; they’re on the same battlefield, arguing about who the fuck is shooting at them in the first place.

He doesn’t see that she needs him because of how desperately she doesn’t want to need him. She says she’s out of the game while sliding all her chips into the center of the table. They’re impossible. I’m obsessed with them.

Also we got more Catholic Scully in this ep, and we know I love that, too. I love that no one can touch whatever God is to her — not a priest and not Mulder either. I love that she is unthreatened by the truth, whatever it happens to be.

Also, the dialogue this ep goes hard in general, but Mulder hearing the phrase, “They invented you” is so fucked up. He’s a cog in the very machine he hopes to dismantle. Or is he? Or was he?

This ep had me, who jumped onboard with MSR the second Mulder turned on that slide projector in the pilot, wondering if I had been wrong the whole time. Then they pulled that ending. The last seven seconds of the ep had me so fucked up. Scully getting choked up — the FBI official she’s been explaining it all to trying to keep her from saying the thing out loud. It’s overwhelming.

This has all been a lot of summary and not a lot of reviewing, but what else is new? TL;DR: This ep fucks. Favorite season finale so far, followed by Anasazi.

Season 4

One of the strengths of season 4 is how connected it all feels. With a few notable exceptions, we start up on this rollercoaster hill of autonomy, mortality, power, and the self. I know those are major themes of the whole series, but when you look at them through the lens of the cancer arc, they look kinda different. Suddenly we have foreshadowing. We have the specter of death looking in on us for more than just an episode, a moment. We start to feel like maybe something bad could actually happen to Mulder and Scully —something permanent and paradigm-shifting.

The weakness, for me, of season 4 is that it has no sense of humor. No Clyde Bruckman. No Coprophages. No Jose Chung. The episodes are good, of course, but none of them are fun! I don’t need another sitcom ep, but I do need a breath, for the love of God.

5 favorite eps:

Musings of a Cigarette-Smoking Man: Yes! I am as surprised as you are, seeing as I made a comment last season about how little patience I have for the CSM and his musings, specifically. But I find I did actually want to know who this guy is. And the fact that he’s watching the Gunmen the whole time — that’s the power thing I was talking about before. He says it himself: He could kill them anytime. But not today.

Tunguska & Terma: The first time a 2-part mytharc sequence has made it to my favorites list! I fucking love it when Alex Krycek shows his face around Mulder and Scully because he WILL stab them in the back and it WILL be dramatic as fuck. (I wrote down the phrase “just kiss already” something like 7 times in my notes during these eps, basically any time Mulder and Krycek were on screen.)

Demons: I know we all love to see a pathetic shell of a man abandoning all reason. We also love to see Scully as the deranged, protective one, stopping at nothing to save her partner. Even if said partner made some truly terrible decisions.

Gethsemane: See above.

5 least favorite eps:

The Field Where I Died: Not only was this slow and boring, but by the end, I was ready to crawl into the TV and slap Fox Mulder my own self. This case could’ve been solved and no one had to die. But he wasted their time. (Please feel free to correct me in the replies; I would actually love to be wrong.) Also, the southern accent for the big field monologue made my Carolina girl heart wither.

El Mundo Gira: That’s not even remotely what a chupacabra is. I feel like this was supposed to be our Jose Chung this season. It let me down.

Tempus Fugit & Max: Back to our regularly scheduled programming where I get lost in these two-parters because who is that? Where are they going? Who is chasing them? What? Huh?

Zero Sum: I am confused and I miss Scully. Skinner and Mulder will just do circles around each other and growl at people without her. I know this is a glimpse of the stakes of the cancer arc, but it’s not very good TV, is it?

[moghedien]

Is show Moraine stilled stilled or did Ishamael like tie off a shield on her or something? Cause the way they're talking about it it seems like she's supposed to be stilled, but if she were Lan's bond would have been severed and passed to Alana, no? Pretty confused about that

So they seem to be very intentionally not giving whatever happened to her an exact name. When Rafe and others were asked behind the scenes, they very specifically didn't say exactly what happened. Within the show itself, they haven't actually used the word stilled to describe what happened either. The most they said is that she was cut off.

They way I'm currently interpreting that is that Moiraine and everyone else believe she's stilled, but she isn't actually and Ishamael just tied off a shield on her. A few reasons for that, Lan's bond being a major indication that she isn't stilled as he woulda felt something at the very least if that bond was gone-gone. For another thing, it seems like she still can't lie. That isn't completely confirmed I guess, but they seem to imply that she still can't lie a lot, which wouldn't be the case if she were stilled.

But a few other reasons I have is that I feel like they'd have no reason not to say the word stilled in the show if she was actually stilled. I feel like they're specifically not saying that word now because some viewers would take characters saying that as confirmation from the show that she were stilled, even if its just a character saying what they actually believe. I feel like its an intentional choice to not make things too definite.

They also very clearly reminded us of shielding with the moment with Nynaeve and Liandrin when Nynaeve gets shielded. Liandrin pointed out things like you can feel the source and see weaves, which are things we see Moiraine experiencing. I think you can still feel the source while stilled (don't remember 100%) but the Liandrin moment seemed very clearly like trying to show us this one thing you can do with the one power and the implications of it.

But also in terms of the actual moment it happened in season 1, it looks like Ishamael is tying off something and its sorta being set into Moiraine. It doesn't look like when Logain was gentled, and I can't imagine the process of stilling and gentling is so different that it would look dramatically different. And you also have to remember that Moiraine cannot see weaves from a male channler. She wouldn't have seen exactly what Ishamael did to her, she would have just felt it. So she is largely just working with assumptions on what happened based on what happened to her after the fact. Maybe she suspects it wasn't a stilling, but she might not have any way to be completely sure, since stilled women don't usually stick around to be questioned.

Also this might be completely bullshit because I genuinely don't remember for sure, but I do feel like there was something about tying of a shield on someone that wasn't common knowledge with the Aes Sedai at the beginning of the series? I don't always remember what was common knowledge and what was learned as the series went on and more lost info on the one power was discovered, but I really felt like there was *something* that present day Aes Sedai didn't know could be done that would mean they wouldn't know that a shield could be tied off on someone. Again, that could be completely wrong though, I don't remember for sure

[scrumptiousstuffs]

i may be on the other hand but i would find fascinating if kantbison and fadelstyle didnt end up together, we are so not used to it that sounds absurd but with the story we now on (we now nothing but what was shown on the trailer) would make so much sense if everything just colapses. imagine they killing each other? peak cinema i might say, would be so iconic, so out of everything.

i think these thai series are afraid of trying new things, i still remember how angry ppl was with OF (still this day and i don’t understand those who don’t like this show.) i think bc of that we don’t have diverse shows, just more sily ones. ppl can’t get a deep character, can’t understand their actions and what motivates them. it sucks actually, ppl want easy things, fluffy ones, they don’t like to think anymore. we all love to say how not me is incredible and what is so good about this one? it don’t do the ordinary! dk where i wanna get with this thought, just started thinking about one ask you answred about someone being mad bc (in their mind) fk is always doing the same, when is not even close! they are going outside the box and that is what is good about them.

Ok. Wow a lot to unpack here. I decide to answer these 2 asks together, cause they are kinda of similar?. Also, a complete 360 degrees from a recent ask that dislikes sad ending and wishing FK/JD a happy ending in THK 😬.

You both mentioned loving Only Friends and it's messy storyline. Like both of you, I love how Jojo/Ninew (and our fabulous actors/ actresses) portray them. We all know a Ray/Mew/Ton /Top/Nick etc. in real life (or shades of them!) and I think what makes the story compelling is people can relate to these characters (be it one aspect or more).

And yes, I remember very well how divisive the audience became with OF. I think part of it relates to the expectations of what they want for each character (and well, we can never please everyone!) - some watchers thinks OF was slut-shaming Ton while others got upset because TonNick were not an item. Others were dissatisfied with the way Mew/Ray handled their friendship with Ton. They were also grumbles on how the only reason SandRay + MewTop got together were because the actors are branded CPs.

To me, these viewers forget the characters are actually not very nice people. They are immature adults in their early 20s making terrible choices while navigating friendships & relationships. None of them are sweet angels (including Sand, as much as I love our boy). In fact, I think all of them are hypocritical at some level.

Personally, I think people who were dissatisfied with the particular ending (for a character) falls into 2 categories: They identified/ invested the most with a character in that show and feels personally attack or because they cannot fathom why a character acts the way they did. (Mew forgiving Top but not Ton? - viewers labeled Mew as sanctimonious bastard. Well, I think people forget that Mew never cared Ton was sleeping around before. He only started to care when the latter slept with his boyfriend. And why won't he forgive Top? Yes, he cheated but we all know someone in real-life (or heard from someone) who takes back their cheating partner. Whether or not it's advisable is beside the point. They are just portraying something can happen realistically. Similarly, why is Nick not allowed to dump Ton when they are on different wave length on what define their relationship? But people again interpret it as Nick slut-shaming Ton). And don't get me started on what people say about Ray.

And as for Thai BL (and GL) in general, I'm not going to call myself an expert. However, I get the impression the contents we have now are way better (and varied) then it used to! There is a genre for everyone out there! So, watch what you want - GMMTV tends to stick to light-hearted shows cause they mainly cater for the younger audiences but they are slowly branching out. Also, companies outside of GMMTV are flexing their creativity muscles (some that comes to mind include The Signs - fantasy; Manner of Death - crime/mystery; PitBabe - A/B/O; I feel you linger in the air - melodrama/time travel; the upcoming Goddess Bless You From Death - horror)

In terms of THK - I do not think we will have KantBison & StyleFadel all dying cause it's sold as rom-com (although it will certainly be a huge shock factor if KB and SF both died in a dramatic shootout. But what will I know, the recently finished 4minutes Thai BL had their second leads dying in each other arms).

I'm also not sure if THK is going to be as messy as OF (cause I think in terms of relationships, this will be straightforward - we probably won't have the boys swapping partners, that's for sure!). However, I'm sure we will get the backstory of how the brothers are adopted, their relationship with their adopted mom/handler and older brother (Pepper!!). And perhaps how Kant shifted gear from a criminal to a tattooist.

Whatever the journey will be with THK - I have faith FK and JD will bring their A-game and acting skills to the table. At the very least, we can be assured the soundtracks and cinematography will be on point. I mentioned on a previous ask I like happy endings for my leads, but I certainly won't mind seeing them suffer before that. So, I'm ready to go on a roller coaster journey as we have Kant/Style seducing our assassins while struggling morally to accept they love someone who kills for a living. Or the crushing agony when Fadel/Bison finds out about the betrayal.

[grailfinders]

Grailfinders Viewers' Choice: Beast IV L

if anything's getting my icon blurred out, it's this one. anyways!

it's that time of the month once again, and this time I feel like an absolute beast. well, to be more accurate, y'all felt like getting an absolute beast. a beast (fgo definition) that summons beasts (D&D definition). I'm sure this won't be confusing at all.

as usual I highly doubt this build is even remotely balanced for actual PvE play, but beasts are supposed to be world ending threats, so that shouldn't be a surprise.

the build itself will be under the cut, because hoo boy there's a lot to go over.

first up, beast IV can show up in her standard Koyanskaya form, which is the one primarily used when outside her lair. this is effectively a suped-up version of Koyanskaya of Dark, with access to unlimited weaponry and NFF-brand grenades, all of which work like standard "weapons of <x> slaying" do in D&D- they deal extra damage to humanoids, and can knock humanoids prone.

the big addition here aside from standard high-level-boss resistances is her Add to the Collection ability, where once per day she can try to forcibly plane shift a non-humanoid creature into a demiplane of her creation, basically putting them in suspended animation. this will be important for later.

form two is effectively Koyanskaya's big shadowy fox form. I didn't make any hard and fast rules about how these forms connect to one another, but I would probably say her masked form can turn into this combat form once a day, probably for a couple minutes at a time.

the gimmick for this fight is her Seasonal Cycle, which both reduces the number of legendary actions she gets to actually attack people each round, but also gives her buffs. I tried to keep this close to her lostbelt-based buffs in her final fight, but I also changed the names to be less FGO-centric if you want to use this build in a game. there's not a ton to say about this one that isn't regurgitating the seasonal cycle, it's just Masked Form with a bigger focus on kicking humanoid ass.

The big nipply form shown in the build picture has a lot of text, but I'll do what I can to break it down. This is Beast IV's final form, and it's the one that sets up the Tunguska Sanctuary in the first place, so there's a lot going on. Once again her humanoid-slaying effect grows larger, but she can only take this form in her lair, plus her speed is cranked wayyy down at this point. I just. cannot imagine that thing moving any faster than a crawl. if you need something done fast, that's what your lackeys are for.

speaking of lackeys, let's Reveal the Collection. this is a ten-minute ritual, which upon completion can summon copies of creatures that were stored by the Masked Form. The higher the CR of the creatures being made, the less you can make at a time, and the shorter your range is. there's also a lesser version of this you can do as a legendary action, and it's restricted to one creature at a time, of up to CR 10.

but of course, you need a place to put all those creatures! that's why she's got Regional Effects too! it's a whole lot of text, but it basically boils down to making a life zone and a death zone around her lair. half of your collection will tend towards the life zone, and half towards the other. in the life zone, the area is choked by plants, slowing down all humanoids in the area, and also healing effects targeting non-humanoids are more powerful. the death zone has extreme heat, and humanoids have disadvantage on saves against it. also, all summoned creatures in this region have double their normal perception distance when it comes to perceiving humanoids.

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

So overall, this build isn't a world-ending threat like Tiamat, or an orbital laser like Goetia, but she's not supposed to be a full-grown beast yet, so I'd cut her some slack. plus, if your party includes non-humanoid players you can make a dozen clones of them to fight the party which sounds like a really fun time. that being said, I do pity any DM who as to keep track of her seasonal buffs in a fight.

[ceilidho]

Hi, really strange question, so feel free to ignore, but how do you deal with the constant surge of content - art, really. You seem to be a generally more well known/viewed blog, and so I'm sure you've developed quite a community on here, whether it be people you know or interactions with other artists. And I've been following you for quite some time, and I always get excited when I see the "updated now" for your blog. But (here is my actual question), do you ever get overwhelmed knowing that you can't read/see/experience everything? I'm very new to social media, and online spaces in general, and it's generated this fear in me that if I don't keep up with what has been posted by those I follow, I am now suddenly lost. Missing a piece of what should have been catalogued in my mental history. Fanfiction has become such a relief in my life now, and I've gained this new appreciation for human creativity and the beauty of sharing yourself in your art. But I am constantly left wondering that if I miss something, will I also miss an opportunity. I love learning more, and reading, and viewing; appreciating beauty in this lifetime, but I don't know how to combat the overwhelming feeling when I cannot keep up with those who I admire, what's left of me, simply as a viewer?

Oh absolutely!!!! I wrote about this in another post around the traditional publishing industry in general and this overwhelming sense of FOMO that’s super evident in both readers and writers (for readers, that they won’t be part of the current discourse and won’t be part of the reading community, and for writers that they won’t keep up with demand and lose their reader base to other more prolific writers or just to new trends in general because to be honest, the constant microtrends in the book community are hard to keep up with even if you are a relatively fast writer).

I think I’m lucky that for some reason I tend to write very fast - I have a solid backlist of ideas, when I do sit down to write it tends to all come out at once, I (fingers crossed) haven’t dealt with a really bad bout of writers block in awhile - but yeah even I sometimes have moments where I feel guilty that I’m not writing enough. I think it’s super easy to feel like people are simply going to forget about you if you take any time off or if you start a multi chaptered fic and it takes you awhile to finish it.

And I won’t lie, sometimes that pressure isn’t just imagined! Most people that leave comments like “more people!” “Part 2??” “I need more of this!!” are simply expressing their love and I understand that, like I’m not completely insensitive to that (some creators tend to take it very very personally and I understand that too but I think we all have to have a little bit of grace and understanding and give each other the benefit of the doubt), but I will say that I have gotten some seriously rude comments before about taking too long to finish a fic. There is a grain of truth to the fear that some readers will lose their patience with you for simply taking your time to write.

I experience this more as a “creator” rather than a reader (tbh I don’t feel much guilt about not being able to keep up with what my mutuals are posting because I know it’s always there for me when I’m ready) - although actually now that I’m saying this, I take that back. I do sometimes feel very very guilty when I don’t have time to get into a friend’s fic. Oh wow yeah that was a huge lie, I DEFINITELY have felt extremely guilty before about not having enough time to read someone’s fic and feeling like I’m letting them down in some way and not adequately supporting them. Yikes. Goes to show ya.

I am hoping that as more and more people become aware of this that people will start appreciating slowness and ephemerality - taking your time to read or write something, starting incomplete fics just to appreciate them even if they’re short lived or never completed, forgiving yourself for not being able to read everything or write everything right now and realizing that you’ll get to it when you get to it. It’s easier said than done and I do feel guilty sometimes about perpetuating this by being a very fast writer, but yeah! Unfortunately it’s sort of on each of us to do this since the very medium of social media demands instant gratification - tumblr and ao3 (the latter by virtue of being an archive) are perhaps the least egregious of them, but it’s definitely in the nature of social media to induce this kind of behaviour.

[gabessquishytum]

I've been watching a lot of West Coast Swing Dance videos, and I seriously think fandom as a whole is sleeping on this as a new AU: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4WsmJllMA5c

WCS competions have a format called Jack & Jill that is totally improv, where your music and often your partner are chosen randomly, and it's a very latin-inspired kind of dance so as a viewer it's very easy to imagine sexual tension between the dancers. You compete as either a leader (typically men) or follower (typically women) and it's essentially the lead's job to provide the strength and stability to show off their follow, who's usually doing the fancier-looking moves like spins and dips.

So imagine: Hob is a well-known swing dance teacher, he mostly makes his money running classes for engaged couples to dance at their weddings, and while he doesn't compete much anymore he's known as a very capable lead. He's an expert at helping beginners learn their fundamentals and feel comfortable.

Meanwhile, Dream is a notoriously difficult follow on the competition circuit. He is very creative, and an undeniably graceful dancer, but he pushes his partners too hard and doesn't actually follow his lead's lead (bratty sub vibes for days).

When the two get partnered up, Dream expects Hob to be boring, but instead it feels like he's being understood for the first time ever. Hob just *gets* him, his footwork is excellent and his read on Dream's body language is like nothing Dream has ever experienced. Hob understands that when Dream pulls away too hard he doesn't want Hob to let go, but instead needs him to match his strength and give Dream a stable anchor for his next crazy move. They are unstoppable force meets immovable object and watching them dance is like magic. There are established couples dancing choreographed dances that don't look as in sync as these two.

And more than that, Hob knows how to 'yes, and' better than any partner Dream has ever had, maintaining his lead and his control no matter what wild new move Dream thinks up and even bringing things to their dance that Dream would never have thought to include. It's enough of a difference for him that at one point Dream gets annoyed at not being the one in control and attempts a move that is genuinely dangerous. But Hob just controls his body's momentum and smoothly turns it into something safe, then pulls Dream close to tsk in his ear.

"Now, don't make me put you over my knee in front of all these people, darling."

I cannot dance to save my LIFE so this fascinates me so much.... improv!!! Wow!!!

Of course Dream is a brat. He wants to be the centre of everyone's attention, naturally, but he also wants to do his own thing. Sometimes he might as well be dancing solo, for all the effort he puts into engaging with his partner. But Hob isn't having any of that. From the first moment, he's forcing eye contact. Reading Dream like a book. Not allowing him the control he's so used to having. And yet he isn't blocking Dream, or stopping him from expressing himself... oh no, he's just matching the energy. If Dream takes it up a notch, Hob is already there with him - he anticipates what Dream might do before Dream has even decided!

Dream hates him. And it's also the most satisfying dance he's ever had. His body is in love. And Hob is infuriatingly casual about the whole thing. He even goes so far as to critique Dream! "Your lines are very good but you do get a bit sloppy with your facial expressions. You could at least try not to look like you want to burn the world down." He means it in a friendly way, Dream thinks, but his ego still can't take it. He vows never to dance with Hob again.

At the next competition, one of the leads drops out, and guess who kindly steps in as a replacement? And guess who gets randomly picked as Dream’s partner?

And after they win the competition, Dream kisses Hob so hard he nearly knocks both of their teeth out. Totally worth it.