#i love the imagery of blunt being grey

[treasureguardingdragon]

ik a lot of people depict blunt differently, but i imagine his skin to be just as grey as the rest of him. he wears grey, his eyes are grey, his hair is grey, but i never really see him with his skin as lifeless as his humanity

that man is sickly from the horrors he turns a blind eye to. he is unearthly, the compassion leeched out of him long ago like the colour in his face

[desolatespring]

head empty, just thinking about trying to play a rigged drinking game with yan chrollo so he’ll get drunk and you can escape but it backfires completely

Mont la Salle

Ooh I love this idea! I’ve only written one other yandere work before so bear with me on this one 😭

CW: blood/light gore, mentions of alcohol, implied kidnapping, religious imagery, implied female reader, and Chrollo being Chrollo

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You sit on the steps leading up to the altar, the torn carpet doing nothing to shield you from the cold and rotting wood beneath.

“I offered you a seat next to me.” Chrollo remarks when he sees you shiver once again. Leering over your shoulder you see him sprawled on the priests celebrant chair behind you. His legs extended outwards before him. He seems almost pleasantly surprised when you stand up and walk towards him, his posture straightening in response.

“I’ll make a deal with you.” Short, sweet, and to the point was the best way you’ve found to communicate with Chrollo. The less you said the less he had to pick apart and dissect. “If you can make yourself useful and pick a lock for me, I will sit with you.”

Chrollo tilts his head in thought, most likely trying to figure out if unlocking anything will offer you a means of escape. When he finds no way of it aiding you he stands up. “Lead the way.”

He follows you to the church’s ambry; two full bottles of garnet tinted sacramental wine sat collecting dust behind the locked door. Chrollo shakes his head with a curt laugh. “You bribe me so you can steal altar wine. Have I corrupted you, dear?”

You cross your arms over your chest and purse your lips. “Are you opening it or not?” Another tactic you’ve found useful when asking for something of Chrollo is to be blunt. He’s less likely to tease you when you’ve been forthcoming, and you suspect, he’s intrigued by your boldness. Not many people are willing to try and push their limits with him.

Chrollo presses his hand lightly against your temple as he plucks a bobby-pin from your hair. He straightens the pin and makes quick work of picking the lock. Once opened he grabs a bottle of wine and brings it back to the altar. His eyes skirt across the label and he seems satisfied with his findings. He fishes a small blade from his pocket, the sharpened piece of silver pops the cork out with ease.

Chrollo places his right hand on the small of your back and ushers you towards his chair. Sitting down with the now opened, aged bottle of wine in hand, Chrollo deftly pulls you onto his lap. Clearly taking full advantage of your agreed upon seating arrangement. You’re unable to hide your grimace when the hand on your back snakes around and finds its home on your waist.

“I hope you like pomegranate and plum, my love.” The wine sounds almost as sickeningly sweet as the pet name. As the bottle reaches Chrollo’s lips you can’t help but piece together some noteworthy information.

There’s enough wine here to get him at least a little buzzed no matter how high his tolerance is, there’s no other troupe members around, and you aren’t currently confined with any restraints. If you’re going to make a break for it this may be your only chance.

You’re so deep in thought it takes you a moment to notice him passing you the bottle. You look up and see the deep cherry red it’s staining his lips. If any other personality were attached to the man before you, you might’ve been tempted to lick it off. The porcelain skin, grey pouty eyes, and shaggy black hair were enough to pull you in when you’d first met.

Now you’re stuck forcing a smile before taking a few small sips. Only drink enough to feel confident in your plan.

As the first bottle slowly empties, the vast majority of it going to Chrollo, you feel his fingertips creep along the fishnets under your shorts, gently tugging and slipping under them when he pleases. He always gets so handsy after a few drinks. You will yourself not to push his hand away, as it’ll only reveal how little you’ve had to drink if you start resisting him now.

When the second bottle is opened you take a few more sips, slightly bigger this time. Being so close to him you realize you underestimated how much you’d need to drink to build any semblance of courage.

When Chrollo’s eyelids droop the slightest amount and the touches on your thigh become less coordinated, now fueled with more hunger than passion, you excuse yourself to the restroom. You’re painfully aware he’ll only allow himself to get so inebriated in front of you, never wanting to lose his self control. This is the closest to an opportunity you’ll ever receive.

You climb from off his lap, and begin heading for the narrow staircase that leads to the bathroom, making sure to give your most convincing stumble along the way. Once the door to the stairwell shuts behind you, you drop the act and move quickly to the bathroom while still keeping your footfalls and breathing as soft as possible.

Now inside you shut the door. Clicking both the dead bolt and knob lock into place. You immediately head for the window which is just above eye level. To your relief the glass has already been shattered presumably due to the weather or past vandals, leaving only the screen intact. Picking up the largest shard of glass you can find, you hastily cut a hole in the screen before grabbing onto the windowsill and hoisting yourself up.

The sharp glass stings as it cuts into your palms but you ignore the pain to the best of your ability, knowing you only have so much time to act. Your arms shake as you pull yourself up and through the window. Cool mossy pavement offers your burning hands enough relief for you to pull the rest of your body through, careful not to cut yourself any further.

Once you’ve crawled out you stand up on the concrete, pausing just long enough to retrieve the glass shard from earlier and give the briefest look around to ensure Chrollo isn’t already outside and waiting for you. Feeling as if the coast is clear you begin running at a full sprint towards the woods, thinking it’ll hide you the best. You occasionally stumble over your own two feet as they refuse to move as fast as you’d like.

As you break through the tree line the first tendrils of hope begin to seep into you. There’s no way he can see you with the branches shrouding your figure.

Your right leg comes forward to jump over a fallen log and your hope vanishes just as quickly as it came. You gasp as your back hits the hard forest floor, leaves doing nothing to cushion your blow. By the time your lungs are ready to take in air again Chrollo’s already hoisting you off the ground and tossing you over his shoulder.

The speed at which everything unfolded leaves your neck stiff and your head reeling. It isn’t until you go to stab at him with the glass you realize you dropped it in your fall. With the last bit of fight you have left in you, you punch and thrash in Chrollo’s grasp, clawing at anything you fingers come in contact with.

Chrollo remains silent as he carries you effortlessly back towards the church despite all your frantic thrashing. By the time he gets you inside the cuts on your palms have reopened and your finger nails are chipped and bleeding from the strength you were using to scratch at him.

Chrollo less than gracefully pulls you off of his shoulder, gripping both your wrists in one of his hands, the other opening the door to the confessional booth before shutting himself in it with you. He places you on the bench, effectively holding you in place before leaning closer to you. “Now why don’t you start by telling me exactly what you had planned? And don’t forget to ask for my forgiveness.”

[clare-with-no-i]

whenever ur ready to give us the goods 🤲🤲🤲🤲🤲🤲 pretty white smile directors cut 🤲🤲🤲🤲🤲🤲🤲🤲 xo suze

hey bestie @thequibblah <3 ty for this / sorry in advance for how long it’s going to be, I’m sure

EDIT: oh god I was right this is a novel. oh my god can i shut up ever in my entire life

The Idea

So, the original conceit of pws was really about digging into the harsh, unpleasant realities of Lily’s life at Hogwarts, and I prepared to do so by making her a little bit more grey and brusque—that’s where the beginning note comes from, actually. I wrote that before most of the story was finished. Looking at it now, I don’t think it even comes into play that much in the finished product, because I spent a lot of time considering and reconsidering what this piece might mean and what messaging I wanted to get across.

I kept coming back to this one core concept, though: if I, as a Jewish person, were reading a piece about a character experiencing anti-Semitism, would I want it to be this dark, claustrophobic trauma porn that fundamentally changes a notably good and positive character? No, as a matter of fact. I wouldn’t. It’s one of those moments where the trope/the idea didn’t really fit the character or the setting, so I ended up abandoning it; and I’m glad I did! I think this is both more of an honest portrayal of Lily—something that could easily fit in my versions of canon—and it’s more of a well-rounded account of dealing with prejudicial thinking and ostracism. Like, yeah, Lily’s situation sucks (duh); but to deny her pockets of happiness and the opportunity to feel safe and loved, and to act accordingly? Not really my game.

Also, this was supposed to be 3k words. tf. I have no self control. chronic not shutting up disease wins again ig

The Motifs

So, to get into the story itself, we see two primary themes introduced in the first section:

That Lily still feels a connection to non-magical education, and that she wants to continue to teach herself disciplines like biology (and later psychology, literature, etc). This also introduces the recurring motif of ‘things lily learns through Petunia’s textbooks.’

Predator/prey imagery, and metaphors about animals. This is the biggest one IMHO, but that might just be because it’s the original motif I based the story around. Kit / Moonpuup labelled this lily “Lioness Lily” and I absolutely love that hehe

The Blood Prejudice

One day, on the walk to Hogsmeade, a Ravenclaw girl recounts loudly the story of her father rejecting a muggle-born apprentice for his archive of European wand-makers.

Not because he’s prejudiced, she disclaims loudly, but because it wouldn’t make any sense. Muggle-borns didn’t grow up with family heirloom wands, with an appreciation for the art. How could they be expected to properly account for their history?

Fitting in the different ways through which dynamics of oppression make themselves known (like this type of gross rationalization) was really important to me throughout pws. The pervasiveness of prejudiced thinking is so often that it’s easily ‘justified’, and can be masked and reframed as harmless.

There are also two mentioned incidents of a muggle-born-owned establishment being burned down or having the glass of its windows shattered; I intentionally wanted that to be reminiscent of things like Kristallnacht and pre-Nazi Germany. That’s one thing I’m pretty consistent about—I lean into the real-world parallel of Nazism, because @ Jo if you’re going to write a fake Hitler you might as well actually invest the reader in the precipitating events

She will let them walk away with her lips sealed shut, will listen to their jibes and their slurs and their cheap jokes without doing a single thing, because it serves her better to smile with pretty white teeth and let them think that her smile grew blunt-edged, that she hadn’t spent years in the mirror sanding down sharp enamel, practicing bloody-lipped grins in the mirror.

Because she knows that it’s only prey animals who mistake themselves for predators, not the other way around.

This was one of the first things I wrote in pws. I love the (metaphorical) idea of Lily sanding down fangs in the mirror and practicing something docile and unassuming like her smile, trying to tamp down the part of herself that wants to fight back. It’s a bit brutal and a bit shocking as an image, but it felt really emotionally authentic for her in this moment. Also, the teeth and smile motif follows for the rest of the story, and it’s the basis for the title.

Kisses him and thinks, I’m no better than that scientist. I want to surround myself with people who will always scope out the threats. People who will always draw first.

Having Lily get a muggle-born boyfriend was also important to me; not so much because he’d be some sort of foil character for James, but rather because it shows a lot about 1) companionship amongst people who feel targeted, and 2) Lily’s priorities at this point. She states directly what she wants out of a relationship—someone who understands her feelings, someone who grew up experiencing the same things she does.

It’s not that she wants refuge, she just wants solidarity. This changes as she grows; as she gradually allows herself to consider the possibility that safety might be possible to some degree.

First James Appearance :) :)

The transfiguration scene was really fun. Not only because I got to introduce little bits of canon like James’s talent for Transfig and Lily’s competitiveness with academia, but also because you see their belief systems but on display in this small, microcosmic interaction: Lily making a joke about how people want her dead (coping mechanism, you might say?) and James reacts disproportionately because he’s not used to being blasé about these things; he’s still, at this point, very black-and-white on what is and isn’t acceptable.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

I loved writing this, and I loved calling back to it. Fun fact - I had the callback written first, the scene where they’re making out and James saying he wants to take care of her causes the hierarchy to move around in her head. But after I wrote that, I was like: that is such a great, concrete image, and not only is it something that Lily could learn about in a muggle textbook, but it is also so deeply connected to dynamics of privilege and their complexities. I loved that it made it possible to attack hierarchies of privilege in a multifaceted way; there are some people who have blood privilege but not economic privilege, and vice versa, and other combinations thereof. Some people have needs of safety fulfilled but not esteem, or belonging. Some people have all of them - James included.

They were born in self-actualization, never worried for a second about things like safety or belonging. They sit prettily at the top of the pyramid, soft-palmed and smiling. She knows they will never recognize the calluses on her hands; the scars and the tears from sixteen years spent climbing.

I loved these lines. I loved describing something as ‘soft-palmed,’ not only because (as the CT discord girlies know) I love hand imagery, but as well, because it calls back to this aristocratic idea of softness and atrophied muscle as symbolic of wealth; the less manual labor you had to do, the more wealthy and soft you looked.

Sirius being…Sirius

Sirius’s scene was a bit of unexpected humor. I thought a lot about how I wanted the romance between James and Lily to come about, and the main thing I concluded was that I wanted it to be sort of lackadaisical, a little nonsensical and unplanned. I wanted it introduced in moments that Lily was not expecting, AKA she had not planned for, and I wanted her not to make sense of it internally. She spends so much of this fic being intentional, and observant, and I really found it enriching to make James this thing she hadn’t seen coming, and that threw her off from her survival mode.

Plus, this scene gave me the opportunity to say:

James talks slow and easy, the master of his speech, like he owns language in its entirety. If he slips up or stutters, it’s because he wants to; to make the other person feel comfortable, to lower himself like how he shrugs his shoulders down to direct the younger students, ducks his head. A man of the people.

I mean. that’s just Him, right?

Religion and The Bathroom Scene

maybe, she thinks, some part of her has always been wired to be incompatible with the church. Maybe the space in her body where faith was supposed to be stored was filled with magic instead.

Lily’s relationship with the church and religion was super fun to play around with in this fic. She’s not disdainful about it, and she doesn’t begrudge her family their faiths, but she lacks this intrinsic sense of belonging to it; further, she feels actively rejected by it. I think it’s a feeling that a lot of people can relate to, the isolation of not believing what you think you’re supposed to believe.

But I did want to keep her connected to her family. Again, it was important for me to give her reprieve, and give the reader time to take some breaths.

Before I get into the bathroom scene, there’s a little idiosyncrasy I want to point out: Lily’s description of colors. She called leaves ‘red-yellow,’ and sunlight ‘yellow-orange,’ and the light in James’s bedroom ‘red-gold.’ This was intentional! I felt really inhabited in her narrative voice in pws, and it came to me that this is a small quirk of hers, an intentional rejection of convention—a fun little rebellion for her to partake in privately. There are definitely words in the English language that describe those colors, but I really enjoyed the idea that Lily has her own creative classifications for them, and that she can sort of play around in her head to describe things in a manner that befits her. Like, she fits in some space between her two worlds, so other things (colors included) now exist in dichotomy, as well. This was sooo tiny and inconsequential but I just loved adding it.

anyway.

I had someone in the comments point out that they enjoyed that it was girls who attacked Lily and not boys, and I was like!!! Yes!!! Women get overlooked as perpetrators of harm so often, especially women in positions of privilege like straight / cis / white women. It was important to me that this attack be committed by women, and that we don’t know their houses (Pendita Parkinson, maybe, but not the others).

She knows she’s not quick enough, and she should be collapsing and writhing until they inevitably kill her, but instead, in a way it never has before, magic explodes out of her and reverberates around the room, sending the girls sprawling and throwing their wands against the walls. She sees Pendita’s snap in half.

A few things here: first, having Lily stop an Unforgivable was something I’d planned since the beginning; yes you all guessed it, I wanted to set up the Voldemort Halloween moment! She has that power! That untapped inherent magic that, if she wants to, she can weaponize! Second: I wanted to call back here to when Lily joked with James about people wanting her wand snapped, and what that symbolism means. To snap Pendita’s wand, ostensibly do this thing that bars her from magic, felt like a good way to give Lily this unexpected agency.

Instead, Lily walks over to the row of sinks to wipe the blood from her mouth and fix a pretty smile in the mirror. In her reflection, a teenage girl wears messy red lipstick and too much blush on one cheekbone. Shaking hands brush crimson hair back and off of her shoulders. She pushes the door open with one hand, grabs her wand in the other, and makes her way back to Gryffindor Tower.

This is one of the moments where the title comes in full-force: Lily turns these injuries on her face—the blood on her lips from being punched, the redness that’s going to be a bruise from being slammed into the wall, the way her hair was pulled—into some facsimile of beauty. Blood becomes lipstick; a bruise becomes blush. We see violence and femininity, the ways they can be confused and intertwined.

Loved having her say ‘I am the rapture.’ Fuck yeah you are.

What Do You Like About Me?

This entire scene was just realization after realization. And, like, you’d think she would know already that he liked her—for fuck’s sake, Sirius told her! But in pws she is so focused on getting through the day that she just has not developed a sense for people genuinely wanting good things for her, and maybe wanting her as a result; it is so foreign that James could be in love with her that it takes him drunkenly saying you know what I like about you? To make her think, YOU LIKE ME??

“I like that you let people think you’re not dangerous,” he murmurs, and she stills. “It’s like…it’s like you’re a cat, and you let people pet you—er, sorry, this is an odd metaphor, I guess, I don’t even know what that means—” he clears his throat, “—but you’re like this cat that everyone thinks is so cute, but then you still have fangs and claws. And you know how to use them.”

having James just…See Her in this way was the big thing for me. He is not put off by how dangerous she is. He does not begrudge that she hides this danger; he's beginning to understand the necessity of it. and he likes her for it all the more.

She wants to keep talking to him. She wants to know what else he likes. She wants to tell him every little thing she likes about him, all the things that are only at this very moment forming speakable words in her mind, after seven years of silent accumulation. She wants to keep being seen like this; to show him that she sees him, too. Even if she always used to pretend to look away.

This is the first time that Lily articulates a genuine, non-survival-based want. She just wants something to have it. And what a freeing thing, right?

Also, the entire conversation is left up to her: he doesn’t say here’s what I like about you. He asks a question, and he lets her lead. God the power dynamics between them are so FUN and so HEALTHY I love Jily

Dating James and Feeling Safe

Having James get into a fistfight with Slytherins over her is soooooo not new (shoutout tmwysl, it is my Bible) but hey if it ain’t broke don’t fix it. It also is so good for serving up the idea that Lily is jarred by this new security she feels, and there’s that instinct of hers to reject it and go back to warrior mode. I think it’s also emblematic of who James is when they start dating: too quick to engage, too sure that just because he believes the right thing, it should always be acted on.

But then, flash-forward, in the next scene (four months later approx) Lily describes him as:

the exquisite peak of humanity: holds himself back when he’s angry, thinks through his every move, makes existence look effortless and facile. Mammalian instincts curbed but not scrubbed from existence.

So, you see? He’s LEARNING. OR she’s just seeing him through rose-colored glasses. Or some combination thereof.

“James,” Lily says through a kiss as she parts the sides of his button-down, “leave it. You can take my shirt off later. Just, let me—”

I wanted to engage Lily’s survival instincts with her sexuality from the get-go, so this scene was really important to me. The idea that she not only feels the need to perform femininity and harmlessness in her daily life, but then she also feels compelled to perform femininity in a sexual setting insofar as the need to sacrifice her own pleasure to focus on James, felt vital to the narrative. As I’ve come into adulthood, I’ve thought a lot about what conditioned instincts women experience during intimacy: to be smaller, to divert focus, to not be ‘difficult’ or ‘needy.’ I suppose there’s something to be said for the fact that Lily’s taking some sort of initiative here, with him, but in a later paragraph, her narration elaborates:

The first time they get to this point, Lily sat herself in his lap and curled her fingers into his hair, pressed herself down on him at every possible junction. Focused on drawing gasps and groans from his throat, reached down to place one hand on his beating heart. It was strong and fast beneath her palm. Ba-dum. Ba-dum. Ba-dum. She wanted so badly to feel it jump, to know that it was because of her.

She is invested in his experience not just as a willing and enthusiastic partner, but more so as someone desperate to feel sexual and wanted; insecurity masked by overcompensation, as though this experience is another in which she’ll have to calculate and prepare. It actually takes James’s articulation that he wants to take care of her that allows her to somewhat let go of that. Hoping this doesn’t come across as a ‘boy teaches girl sex’ moment but more, like…being safe in an emotional and interpersonal sense, where you can begin to let down those barriers.

Also, I believe one of my favorite and most symbolically loaded lines:

So she tips her head back and bares her neck, expects to feel teeth. Shivers when she receives lips instead.

In pretty much all things in pws, Lily is teeth; wanting to bite his neck, smiling and imagining fangs. James is lips, softness and whispers. he has a lot of the spoken dialogue in their interactions, which I did intentionally. she bares her neck to him, this incredibly vulnerable part of herself, and he chooses a path of affection and gentleness.

The “I Love You”’s

A fan fav I did not expect:

Because wizards have always understood that magic is wonderful, but they always seem to forget the other side of the equation: that wonder, in itself, is magical.

Yeah, I’ve always been really tied to the idea that Lily refuses to be ashamed of her muggle background, and there is so much about her upbringing that she wishes would be recognized in the wizarding world. And I think that we kind of forget, reading about a world with a concrete magic system, that so much of the real world is so magical. Love is magic. Happiness is magic. Wonder, of course, is magic.

This is the way the world ends. Not with a bang, but with a whimper.

The TS Elliot quote was something I’ve read before but popped up recently on The Internet, and I was like oh. ok this is amazing and fitting for the scene - how the idea of telling James she loves him is, in some way, the end of the world as she knows it; and so is letting that love in, receiving it. Also helped that I literally made her whimper. I love being the arbiter of what people do

Again, I wanted to take these really significant moments in their relationship and sort of…either not mention them at all or turn them on their heads. We never get a quoted dialogue “I love you” from Lily, but we get the moment it happens, and we get how she feels and how she processes it—which, in this version of her, felt much more important to get across.

Also, the last line: 

So she does. She does, she does, she does. 

To write something that repetitive and that short felt almost whimsical, which I really liked, as though the narration itself is sort of giggling.  It’s almost childlike; and I found that to be a real comfort—that she’s healing her inner child here, letting those giddy moments arise and giving credence to them.  It’s like—squee! she does love him! she does she does she does!

Final Section: Harry

When I first wrote this scene, it went in a different direction. Lily was not as fond of James’s “no fangs” comment, and she was sort of looking to Harry as her one living relative who might get where she’s coming from. But then, as the story evolved, I completely reclassified how I think she would feel about the interaction: not resentful of James, but glad that their son will be raised in a household that is so steeped in goodness, that has both survival and leisure as normal.

I wrote the ending lines pretty much write after I wrote the beginning - which, I think, is pretty obvious, given the number of parallels between them. I was really worried that people would be freaked out by Lily mentally encouraging Harry to engage in violence, but as I refined more aspects, it felt so fitting and undeniable: she will teach him how to survive. He will have to learn, because people want him dead just like they wanted her dead, if not more.

Other Stuff

I said in the notes of the story, and I still believe it, that this is first and foremost a story about safety. But even past that, it’s about what safety might mean for a person throughout their life; does it mean freedom from harm? Does it mean intimacy without embarrassment? Does it mean belonging to someone, have someone belong to you in turn? That’s sort of what I was thinking about as I wrote.

An unspoken theme here is the ‘fight or flight’ instinct; but, as I have learned, it’s actually fight, flight, freeze, submit, attach. You see Lily do all of those in pws. She fights, she runs away, she freezes, she submits, and she attaches.

I enjoyed writing pws so much! I love Lily so much and am so protective of her as a character, so to really nestle into the hardships of her life was tough but ultimately rewarding.

YEAH that’s about it, love u thank u mwah

[themysteryofwriting]

Masterpost

Sanders Sides OneShots

What Happened Before Accepting Anxiety - what I think happened that caused Virgil to sink out

The Creativity Split -my interpretation of the Split.  Warning for slight U!Pat and gaslighting

Analogical Clothes Prompt - some fluffy Analogical with Logan stealing Virgil’s clothes

Moceit No Mom prompt - fluffy Moceit prompt with a bit of demiboy Patton or Patton in a skirt where Patton is oblivious til the end

Royality short Pat prompt - no further explanation needed

Can’t You See It - Analogical One Shot. Virgil wants the others to know about how loving Logan is...and that he’s a giant memelord.  Is that so bad?  Hints of background Roceit And Remus being himself

Who say you have to leave your past behind you - my first one shot with Rachel. Some stuff has changed about her since this but it has a special place in my heart.  Hinted at Past U!Pat and Remus being himself. Dee speaks in lies ofc.

This is the Worst Ending - oh boy.  okay this is what I call my angst :tm: If you are senstive to any of the following: don’t read Unsympathetic Patton, multiple major character deaths, blood, Sayori like scene, string imagery, gore, depression, brainwashing, emotional manipulation,murder, strangulation, eating disorder(kinda), stabbing, gaslighting There was a part 2 but......it didn’t last long, i wasn’t proud of it

Puppet!Ray Origins - the first part of my fnaf au! (i literally only have this part and the end so far).  Warnings for U!Pat (he’s Afton), along with child death. However some cute Logan and Ray interactions

Puppet!Ray: End of Everything: continuation of FNAF AU.  This time the Henry scene at the end of FNAF 6.  The fic I got to use the tag ‘is it still fluff if everyone dies’ on.  TW: Hinted Unsympathetic Patton because of who he replaces

And They Were Roommates - a hurt/comfort fic writen for the sanders gift exchange last year.  LAMP fic, nonbinary Dee, college AU, supportive boyfs all around

Prinxiety Prompt - takes place post DWIT, Virgil and Roman talking/flirting

Moxiety, Mobster Patton - again, nuff said.  no death, actually pretty fluffy for the prompt.  maybe a little kidnapping?

Movie Night: cute fluffy LAMP

Logan Prevents A Murder: QPP Analogical, Virgil debating murdering Roman

The Bane of Protectiveness: Ray was there when Roman....and she couldn’t stop him   TW: Suicide, Self-deprecation, self-hatred

MM3: The Murder: based of a Murder Mystery from a discord server, how Talyn’s death played out  TW: death, murder, vomiting, planned murder, drugging a drink, Unsympathetic Logan

How Ray Became Anxiety: Little clip from an au of mine where Ray becomes anxiety, along with keeping protectiveness. TW: character death, Virgil ducks out, Patton and Roman are jerks

Fighting the Dragon Witch isn’t Therapy: after POF, Roman will do anything to prove himself  TW: Temporary Major Character Death

Random Fandom One Shots

Peter Meets Angel - short one shot about my oc meeting Peter (Marvel)

Mitsue Goes Off:  Mitsue was already having a bad day, so when the LOV kidnaps her, she’s going to give them a piece of her mind (MHA)

We Have Mic - Mic gets kidnapped, Aizawa has something to say bout that (MHA)

Scar to Remember - Overhaul left a mark on Mitsue (MHA)

Demise Of A Gamer (DR) - Chp5 of SDR2 from Chiaki’s Pov

Friends Protect Each Other- Tubbo goes to visit Tommy during his exile...and finds Dream with him  TW: manipulative Dream

Original Writing

Saving The Moon - a short story I wrote for a contest a few years back

Never Trust A Newbie- short story written for a writing camp

The Hug Wizard- if you know, you know

Spiritfarer Hug Wizard: o w o

Soulmates Don’t Have to Be Romantic (finished :D )

my platonic soulmates series, starring my oc Ray

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Soulmate GC

Based off my soulmate story, a gc with the members messing w/ each other. Crack fic.

Chp 1

Chp 2

Bad Things Happen Bingo

The Collector - Logan collects people. TW: U!Logan, Kidnapping, Taxidermy on a person, blunt force trauma, character death, implied use of a date rape drug, major character death

Pressure Doesn’t Always Make A Diamond: Reminding a side for their mistakes was never a good idea.  Especially when they feel guilty about it like Patton did.  TW: Unsympathetic Deceit, Unsympathetic Logan, constant guilt-tripping, self-hatred, self-deprecation, blaming someone for something that isn’t their fault 

 He’s Not Yours: Patton’s parents....aren’t the best  TW: emotional abuse, yelling, numbness

Keeping Them Pure: Patton just wanted to make sure his kiddos wouldn’t get corrupted by those nasty dark sides  TW: Unsympathetic Patton, Kidnapping, Forced holding, chains

The Past Can Haunt You: Remus keeps getting left by those he cares about  TW: Abandonment, Self deprecation, Childhood Trauma,  the split, implied unsympathetic light sides

Snakes Don’t Like the Cold: Dee is part snake...so what happens when he gets trapped in a freezer  TW: Unsympathetic Roman, locked in a freezer, hypothermia

All It Takes Is One Mistake: It’s very easy for the Ego to crack  TW: Roman angst ,cracks, roman needing to talk to people

A Game of Paranoia: Something seems off to Rantaro as he goes through this game

You Just Need a Push to be Good: Patton couldn’t let those dark sides keep corrupting Thomas  TW: Unsympathethic Patton, using shock collars as punishment

‘I’m Fine’ And Other Lies: Introduction of Mitsue, my bnha oc.  Mitsue gets hurt in a fight and doesn’t realize how bad it is until it’s too late  TW: mention of blood, hospitals

They Never Saw It Coming: a small one shot with my own sides.  Warning, the title is a really bad pun.  TW: graphic eye injury

The Collector: What Happened Before: a sort of prequel to The Collector, Patton thinking over what happened TW: hypnotism, mind control, U!Logan

Replaceable?: takes place post POF, Logan’s reaction to what Janus did 

Those Left Behind: Ray was there when Virgil left them

You’ll See: From my given to Overhaul AU: Why Mitsue works with Overhaul  TW: Forced Starvation, Kidnapping, Parents not caring

Why Roman’s Sword Isn’t Allowed In the Common Room: All I’m gonna say is this is not as much as a crack fic as it sounds. TW: stabbing, coughing up blood, fighting

Scar To Remember: Mitsue wasn’t left okay after Overhaul got a hold of her

We Have Mic: Someone kidnaps Mic to get to Aizawa.  TW: Kidnapping

Don’t Hurt Ray Or Else: Even while with the lights, Virgil is going to protect his sister  TW: Morally Grey/Unsympathetic Patton, Outing Someone, not Accepting someone,  Transphobia?, mentions of fighting someone

Even In The Face Of Death, Logan Ignores His Feelings - a day to relax goes wrong when Remus decides to mess with Logan  TW: blood, stabbing

Trapped- Virgil gets kidnapped while out in the imagination.  It doesn’t go well. TW: kidnapping, panic attack, flashbacks, claustrophobia, implied pranking, implied fighting

Who Knew Sleep Paralysis Could Be Deadly?- Talent Swap AU with Makoto and Kyoko  TW: stabby stab, K-nife, sickness, sleep paralysis

Kokichi’s Sacrifice - Kokichi’s POV of Chp 4  TW: major character death, strangulation

A Well Needed Lesson - Byakuya has had enough of the Ultimate Lucky Student, Kyoko responds in return

Oh Look, A Yandere - Mic gets kidnapped by a yandere and has to try to escape TW: Yandere, kidnapping

Bad Things Happen Bingo Part 2: New Card, New Category

To Manipulate A Protector -Orange goes after Virgil? Or is that just a trick? TW: Kidnapping, implied fighting, manipulation, being controlled

Some Apologies Go Nowhere - after chp 4, Kokichi tries to apologize to Shuichi. Key word there is try

No One Noticed...- What if Shiro hadn’t been the only one Replaced? TW: Abandonment, heavy doubt, replaced and not noticed

Of All People Why’d it have to be Deku? - Bakugou and Midoryia switch bodies. Chaos ensues. TW:… cussing I guess?

A Broken Disc- Spoilers for the March 1st Tommyinnit Stream  TW: Major Character Death, Attempted Manipulation, Flashbacks

not again...: Nagito gets kidnapped...again  TW: kidnapping, locked in small place

Goodbye Green- Who ever said the Creativity twins were supposed to be separated?  TW: Morally Grey Patton, having to leave someone you care about

One Step Behind: Phil’s POV of what happened that fateful day  TW: Major Character Death, Stabbing, Bleeding Out, Explosions

Adrien’s Realization

Lila Bashing fic where Adrien finally realizes that ‘Hey what Lila is doing to me isn’t good’

Chp 1-  TW: Unrequited flirting, unrequited crush, Lila hate(?)

Chp 2- TW:Self doubt, bad advice

Another Path

After All Might tells Izuku he can’t be hero, Izuku decides it might be better to take another path to help people. Planned mix of actual story and chat fic

TW: slight All Might bashing

Prologue

Chp 1

Chp 2

[bookspined]

❝ that’s all history is after all: scar tissue. ❞

{ cis-man, he/him }  huh, who’s FROY GUTIERREZ? no, you’re mistaken, that’s actually SCORPIUS MALFOY. he is a TWENTY-TWO year old PUREBLOOD wizard who is A HEALING APPRENTICE. he is known for being CAPTIOUS, RETICENT, FACETIOUS, DISMISSIVE, and DRAMATIC but also RESOURCEFUL, CONSCIENTIOUS, FERVENT, INNOVATIVE, and OBSERVANT, so that must be why he always reminds me of the song IN DREAMS BY BEN HOWARD. i hear he is aligned with THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX, so be sure to keep an eye on him. { merry, 24, gmt, she/they }

CHARACTER PARALLELS: Amy Santiago (B99), Claire Temple (Daredevil), Chidi Anagonye (The Good Place), Giles (Buffy TVS), Michelle Jones (MCU), Simon Tam (Firefly), Elizabeth Swan (PoTC), Spock (Star Trek), Clarke Griffin (The 100), Harley Keener (MCU), Gregory House (House) suggested honorable mention Gizmo (Gremlins) 

pinterest [blood, medical imagery tw]

wanted connection ideas

Full Name: Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy Gender/Pronouns: Cis man | he/him Age: Twenty-three Birthdate: January 20th Parents: Draco Lucius Malfoy & Astoria Céline Malfoy (née Greengrass) [Not biologically Astoria’s due to her health, if you ever point this out he’ll flay your eyeballs] Siblings: N/A. Birth place: St. Mungo’s Hospital, England Height: 5’11” Weight: 56 kg Sexual/Romantic Orientation: Demiromantic Bisexual Nationality: British Body Alterations/Marks: A ragged diamond shape scar at the base of his throat.

Blood Status: Pureblood Hogwarts House: Slytherin Wand Arm: Right Pet: His pet toad, Jarvis, recently passed away. Patronus: Arctic Fox Wand: 11 2/3 inches, Willow, Supple, Dragon Heartstring.

Willow is an uncommon wand wood with healing power, I have noted that the ideal owner for a willow wand often has some (usually unwarranted) insecurity, however well they may try and hide it. While many confident customers insist on trying a willow wand (attracted by their handsome appearance and well-founded reputation for enabling advanced, non-verbal magic) my willow wands have consistently selected those of greatest potential, rather than those who feel they have little to learn. It has always been a proverb in my family that he who has furthest to travel will go fastest with willow.

Personality Traits: Brilliance, innovative, empathetic, individuality, openness, social consciousness, inventive, logical, practical skills and self assertion; lack of attachment to people outside his circle and the “real world,” over-intellectualizing of the emotions, dismissive, anxious, crotchety tempered, facetious, rigid, prone to self-isolation, intellectual arrogance, and stubborn. Zodiac Sign: Aquarius/Capricorn Cusp Moral Alignment: Neutral Good Core values: Loyalty, Knowledge, Hope Four temperaments: Melancholic  

HOGWARTS HOUSE ANALYSIS

Slytherin Primary and a Burned Ravenclaw Secondary.

Slytherin Primaries prioritize their own selves and loved ones first. Slytherins don’t feel guilty or selfish about this– they feel righteous and moral. The most important thing is to look after your own. Abandoning or hurting one of your own is the worst thing you can do.

A Burned Ravenclaw Secondary might want to be skilled, curious, and prepared, but they feel like they are (or like people think they are) limited, clumsy, or inconstant. Gathering knowledge, hobbies, skills, or tools is the right way to achieve their goals, but Burned Ravenclaws know that’s not going to work within their capabilities. So they take other paths and use other tools– maybe a Gryffindor’s bluntness, a Slytherin’s flexibility, or a Hufflepuff’s slow and steady dedication.

You may have a Hufflepuff Secondary Model.

Hufflepuff is the House of grit, reliability, and determination, and Hufflepuffs use those values to help live, act, and succeed. If you model Hufflepuff Secondary, you also value these things and like to live by them. You like to be hardworking, dedicated, and consistent– but you wouldn’t feel guilty for abandoning those values in the service of other, higher priorities. If there’s another, easier way to get what you want– you’d take it. You think hard work provides valuable rewards– and those rewards are why you work. The work doesn’t have persuasive value in itself.

Despite his very best resistance he’s always been pretty empathetic in nature, he tries to rule his emotions as well as he can but fails more often than not. He was always one of those toddlers that if another kid started crying he’d be right along with them, not because he wanted attention but because he just couldn’t not. A bit of a crybaby, has researched how to magically seal up his tear ducts. Obviously managed to keep the family’s flair for the dramatic there as well. After a few years he leant into the sarcastic vague-snobbishness to hide the core of overwhelming anxiety.

Just managed to scrape through his schooling with nearly all top grades, this isn’t really due to him being a model student. He has always accrued information with a voracious appetite. Any knowledge he could find, even if most people would consider it entirely useless. His mind clicks into that place? You can’t keep him away. However, when there is not an immediate stir of interest on his approach to a topic he has to fight with himself tooth and nail to carry on. 

Predictably found exam season highly stressful, was never open about it but was quietly competitive and silently smug over his good grades. Could comprehend well above his reading level from an early age and would often look into experimental research and complicated magic but found himself lost in OWL level History of Magic when chapter upon chapter lay ahead of him about something that didn’t catch his interest. Some people he beat just to spite cause he hates them. It worked, whatever.

Tends toward introversion and finds himself tired sometimes quite easily by a large amount of social interaction. Witty and big-mouthed when he feels comfortable or is in the presence of those that embolden him and very likely to get flustered and snap at people when things are becoming a bit too much. Especially if he feels however unjustly that someone is blocking his escape. Has matured slightly in this since leaving school but it happens still, he’s just anxious. Quite fickle and can at the drop of a hat decide that he’s done with you for the day once his Give Me Attention Meter is maxed. Could be an absolute bloody brat when he felt like it but feels he has grown out of it, which he mostly has.

Always been very, very aware of many people’s distrust of him and his family, he used to sneer and play it up if anyone tried to bring up his dad and go on the offensive but was genuinely affected quite deeply by it all. In his early school years, despite his weakness to the cold, he constantly had his sleeves rolled up to the elbow so that his blank forearm was bared as a statement to just about everyone. I am not marked, I never will be. Now he’s older he has more of a handle on things and can be diplomatic in situations where people are clearly discomforted by his presence and his family history.

Even though the war culminated far earlier in this verse I imagine Scor would have had to have been relatively sheltered as a child if not for how emotionally sensitive and prone to periods of ill-health he was, it was definitely for his own safety. He is still the grandson of a known high-ranking Death Eater and that made him a media target and put one on his back for anyone else that might happen to be watching. 

Never produced much of a talent for offensive magic and wouldn’t resort to those methods unless he had literally no other choice, not a front line fighter by any means. His talents with strategy, potion-making, healing and his perseverance with defensive magic are what define him to the Order. While everyone kind of knows who he hung out with at school and who his friends are he is deliberately very mischievous with releasing rumours and misleading people. He deliberately keeps his cards very close to his chest so most people don’t know that he is aligned with anyone, he usually uses glamours or a scarf to conceal his identity if he has to. 

While he is knowledgeable about healing and anatomy, he is the WORST at taking care of himself. The literal embodiment of Healers make the worst patients, tends to forgo sleep and basic bodily needs if he’s locked into what he’s focusing on. Sometimes needs reminders to sleep and eat, like a child. 

Healing is the most satisfying part of his life and he would never give it up, he likes to experiment as he has a fascination with magic and muggle science and where they might intersect. A fucking nerd honestly. While he thinks he’s being fairly subtle about it a large part of his academic life has been doused in research into blood maledictions, for obvious reasons. He does his best not to flutter too obviously around his Mum. She is capable and ten times stronger than he is. 

Lives in a small studio flat in Diagon Alley that is mostly stacks of books and makeshift shelves.

the stillness of the world the moment you take the first step into fresh snow, cashmere and fine wool, the pearlescence of dreamless sleep draught, the scratch of a quill on parchment, faintly tremoring fingers, a shiver up your spine in a warm room, the exhilaration of a problem solved, a thunderous grey overcast sky, the bite of a stitching charm, sleeves rolled up to the elbows, petrichor, the burn in your eyes before a well of tears.

Always had somewhat fragile health tending toward sickly. Hands are never warm, his existence is an endless heat seeking mission. 

Went to one Slug Club meeting and used his time to verbally berate and or challenge most of the contacts in attendance, he was not asked to return. 

Potions Club, Charms Club, used to sometimes be willing to be dragged to Dueling Club but didn’t enjoy himself. 

Plays quite a bit of chess.

Bruises like a fucking peach and scars so easily.

Views quidditch as a good fly spoiled. 

Is a very skilled pianist almost entirely due to his Grandmother’s tutelage. 

Surprisingly great with children/toddlers/babies, no one including himself expected this, he mostly feared them beforehand. 

Bit of a mummy’s boy in that he practically GLOWS when people talk of Astoria’s achievements. 

When he has time off from healing he will have chipped black nail varnish on. 

Highly intelligent but rarely manages to match a pair of socks, chews his quills but no one else’s. 

While very eloquent and well spoken, he is markedly less posh than when he first arrived at Hogwarts.

When he isn’t prone to bouts of insomnia he can take a nap pretty much anywhere. He was once found in a tree after several frantic hours search.

[ CREDIT : CHARACTER PSD template by @karmahelper (defunct url) I tried to find a current social this week by messaging around but couldn’t find anything unfortunately. Forgot to copy this over from the google doc! ]

[agentrouka-blog]

1 So, based on your latest posts, and because you take the time to explore things that have been on my mind lately: 1 Jon-Sansa reunion is foreshadowed in Jamie-Cersei meeting at the Sept over dead Tywin and Jamie's dream of his mother. 2. T-S wedding not annulled, T will press his claim. Horrible suspicion: Sansa forgot her bedding and her PoV is completely blurred. Her next PoV is when she escapes and she thinks she should tell T about her moodblood!

2 T never once denies that he bedded her. He thinks "I am not bedded" once but that's because he wants to be chosen and S doesn't want him. He did what Tywin wanted "bed her once". He'll probably press his claim to WF based on that. In Catelyn's chapter Robb says he'll take his head off for what he did. This foreshadow comes also in Ts chapters in ADWD. Please explore Ts chapters more! Nice catch the whore-wife thing! 

Oh hi, anon!

OMG, you make an excellent point! I think that GRRM planned something quite like this with the 5-year-gap he ended up having to scrap. Now it makes sense! I’ll put in some quotes below that show the hints.

It might still happen now. Obviously, not involving the actual wedding night, but as a “completely blurred” experience that involves Sansa (and probably Tyrion) at a point in the future. A point where Tyrion doesn’t care about being nice anymore. But for now, let’s look at what might have been.

Here’s where the hints come in after their wedding in ASOS:

For their wedding night, they had been granted the use of an airy bedchamber high in the Tower of the Hand. Tyrion kicked the door shut behind them. “There is a flagon of good Arbor gold on the sideboard, Sansa. Will you be so kind as to pour me a cup?” “Is that wise, my lord?” “Nothing was ever wiser. I am not truly drunk, you see. But I mean to be.” Sansa filled a goblet for each of them. It will be easier if I am drunk as well. She sat on the edge of the great curtained bed and drained half her cup in three long swallows. No doubt it was very fine wine, but she was too nervous to taste it. It made her head swim.

They both drink a wine that Tyrion has provided for them. Arbor Gold, he says. A different chapter with Shae suggests something else.

“We should go back,” he said reluctantly. “It must be near dawn. Sansa will be waking.” “You should give her dreamwine,” Shae said, “like Lady Tanda does with Lollys. A cup before she goes to sleep, and we could fuck in bed beside her without her waking.” She giggled. “Maybe we should, some night. Would m’lord like that?” Her hand found his shoulder, and began to knead the muscles there. “Your neck is hard as stone. What troubles you?” 

Tyrion could not see his fingers in front of his face, but he ticked his woes off on them all the same. “My wife. (…) He had come to his last finger. “The face that stares back out of the water when I wash.”(ASOS, Tyrion)

She mentions the dreamwine and he gets tense as a stone, the thought of his wife troubles him and he can’t stand the look of his own face. Hmmm… (That last one is also a Tysha hint, but I digress.)

The pivotal moment at the wedding night:

She climbed onto the featherbed, conscious of his stare. A scented beeswax candle burned on the bedside table and rose petals had been strewn between the sheets. She had started to pull up a blanket to cover herself when she heard him say, “No.” 

The cold made her shiver, but she obeyed. Her eyes closed, and she waited. After a moment she heard the sound of her husband pulling off his boots, and the rustle of clothing as he undressed himself. When he hopped up on the bed and put his hand on her breast, Sansa could not help but shudder. She lay with her eyes closed, every muscle tense, dreading what might come next. Would he touch her again? Kiss her? Should she open her legs for him now? She did not know what was expected of her.

“Sansa.” The hand was gone. “Open your eyes.” She had promised to obey; she opened her eyes. He was sitting by her feet, naked. Where his legs joined, his man’s staff poked up stiff and hard from a thicket of coarse yellow hair, but it was the only thing about him that was straight. “My lady,” Tyrion said, “you are lovely, make no mistake, but … I cannot do this. My father be damned. We will wait. The turn of a moon, a year, a season, however long it takes. Until you have come to know me better, and perhaps to trust me a little.” His smile might have been meant to be reassuring, but without a nose it only made him look more grotesque and sinister. (ASOS, Sansa)

This feels rewritten, doesn’t it? The sudden break, the sudden reprieve. It could just be Tyrion’s creeping conscience making him change his mind. Or it could be Sansa’s mind rewriting the moment. As the series stands now, it can be both. But this issue between them is so heavily referenced that it will have to come up again in the future, one way or the other. It was always meant to be important.

This is at the end of the wedding night chapter:

“On my honor as a Lannister,” the Imp said, “I will not touch you until you want me to.” It took all the courage that was in her to look in those mismatched eyes and say, “And if I never want you to, my lord?” His mouth jerked as if she had slapped him. “Never?” Her neck was so tight she could scarcely nod.  “Why,” he said, “that is why the gods made whores for imps like me.” He closed his short blunt fingers into a fist, and climbed down off the bed. (ASOS, Sansa)

That’s some violent imagery for a kindly refusal to rape her, isn’t it? We all know what Lannister honor is worth (a bucket of…) and we see that Tyrion does feel entitled to her, or he wouldn’t react with dismay at her suggestion that she may never want him. 

The chapter is followed by an Arya chapter describing Stoney Sept, the Battle of the Bells, and this comes up quickly:

More recent battles had been fought here as well, Arya thought from the look of the place. The town gates were made of raw new wood; outside the walls a pile of charred planks remained to tell what had happened to the old ones.

(…)

“When the westermen came through they raped the Huntsman’s wife and sister, put his crops to the torch, ate half his sheep, and killed the other half for spite. Killed six dogs too, and threw the carcasses down his well. A chewed-up corpse would be plenty good enough for him, I’d say. Me as well.” (ASOS, Arya)

 Tyrion used that ugly “smash your portcullis” metaphor just in the chapter before. That’s not subtle.

Let’s look at two angles at Sansa’s POV, keeping in mind the dreamwine. One of the biggest hints that something bad happened (or will happen) to Sansa is in a TWOW sample chapter, “Mercy”. Arya will be “raped” by a dwarf on stage, in a play that’s about the Purple Wedding. Mercy is likely to play Sansa’s character.

She had fastened the shutters back so the morning sun might wake her. But there was no sun outside the window of Mercy's little room, only a wall of shifting grey fog. The air had grown chilly... and a good thing, else she might have slept all day. It would be just like Mercy to sleep through her own rape. Gooseprickles covered her legs. Her coverlet had twisted around her like a snake. She unwound it, threw the blanket to the bare plank floor and padded naked to the window. Braavos was lost in fog. (TWOW, Mercy)

The Tyrion chapter with Shae and the dreamwine is followed directly by a Sansa chapter that opens thusly:

That was such a sweet dream, Sansa thought drowsily. She had been back in Winterfell, running through the godswood with her Lady. Her father had been there, and her brothers, all of them warm and safe. If only dreaming could make it so … 

She threw back the coverlets. I must be brave. Her torments would soon be ended, one way or the other. If Lady was here, I would not be afraid. Lady was dead, though; Robb, Bran, Rickon, Arya, her father, her mother, even Septa Mordane. All of them are dead but me. She was alone in the world now.

Her lord husband was not beside her, but she was used to that. (ASOS, Sansa)

If only dreaming could make everyone safe and warm.

So, why would this have happened? Because Jesus-Jon Snow Needs a Virgin Mother Mary Magdalene.

Like many other female characters, Sansa is surrounded by biblical Mary imagery. “Lys”, in fact, is French for “lily”, the virginal flower that represents the Virgin Mary and, as a city name in Essos, the den of high-end prostitutes. Look for “lys”, it’s everywhere. Madonna-Whore is one of the biggest themes in the books, right next to the light and dark messiah represented by Dany and Jon. Sansa is currently still heavy on the “Maiden” aspect, but that was going to change. But with a twist. Mary is, after all, a virgin mother. 

A woman who doesn’t remember having been raped is still a virgin, yes?

Starting in Sansa’s “sweet dream” chapter, we get a barrage of pregnancy and bastard allusions all through Sansa’s arrival at the Fingers, along with lots of food symbolism. She has a fluttery “tummy”, she can’t eat. After her Escape, she arrives by ship nauseated and is offered fruit by Littlefinger. She rejects the pomegranate, i.e. marriage to Hades, she rejects the blood orange, i.e. wrathful revenge, but she chooses the pear, i.e. the virgin Mary AND child. 

So, Virgin Mary and the bastard child. Or, as the world would call her: the whore. 

More hints with Lysa:

As Sansa stepped back, Lady Lysa caught her wrist. “Now tell me,” she said sharply. “Are you with child? The truth now, I will know if you lie.” “No,” she said, startled by the question. “You are a woman flowered, are you not?” “Yes.” Sansa knew the truth of her flowering could not be long hidden in the Eyrie. “Tyrion didn’t … he never …” She could feel the blush creeping up her cheeks. “I am still a maid.” “Was the dwarf incapable?” “No. He was only … he was …” Kind? She could not say that, not here, not to this aunt who hated him so. “He … he had whores, my lady. He told me so.”

So Tyrion “had” a whore. And Sansa has repressed the memory, making her a maiden in her own mind. But a maiden with child. 

Littlefinger would have loved it, apparently.

I always anticipated that she would beggar the realm and destroy herself, but I never expected she would do it quite so fast. It is quite vexing. I had hoped to have four or five quiet years to plant some seeds and allow some fruits to ripen, but now … it is a good thing that I thrive on chaos. (AFFC, Alayne)

Thanks for the self-insert, GRRM.

There are plenty of allusions in all the chapters to rape, protective walls (around people’s hearts) and Jon, in particular, climbing walls, pregnancy, childbirth, Trauma, etc etc etc.

Tyrion’s first chapter after their wedding opens like this:

Nothing remained beyond the King’s Gate but mud and ashes and bits of burned bone, yet already there were people living in the shadow of the city walls, and others selling fish from barrows and barrels. (ASOS, Tyrion)

To make it short: “Wall” is a code for Sansa. There are people living in the shadow of the wall after a gate was destroyed. Hmm.

His marriage was a daily agony. Sansa Stark remained a maiden, and half the castle seemed to know it. When they had saddled up this morning, he’d heard two of the stableboys sniggering behind his back. He could almost imagine that the horses were sniggering as well. He’d risked his skin to avoid the bedding ritual, hoping to preserve the privacy of his bedchamber, but that hope had been dashed quick enough. Either Sansa had been stupid enough to confide in one of her bedmaids, every one of whom was a spy for Cersei, or Varys and his little birds were to blame. (ASOS, Tyrion)

This is the only snag in the theory. Tyrion corroborates Sansa’s version of events. Or so it seems. Maybe Tyrion also misremembers. Which fits with his Tysha repression. There not being a “bloody sheet” is a mystery, though, for another day. There’s a Tyrion scene with Shae in AGOT or ACOK where he, ahem, barely manages to “storm the castle” before he finishes. It may have played like that. If it did. We don’t know. 

It doesn’t matter now. But anyway.

Another hint when Catelyn arrives at the Twins for the Red Wedding, describing Lord Walder Frey:

His chair was black oak, its back carved into the semblance of two stout towers joined by an arched bridge, so massive that its embrace turned the old man into a grotesque child. There was something of the vulture about Lord Walder, and rather more of the weasel. His bald head, spotted with age, thrust out from his scrawny shoulders on a long pink neck. Loose skin dangled beneath his receding chin, his eyes were runny and clouded, and his toothless mouth moved constantly, sucking at the empty air as a babe sucks at his mother’s breast. (ASOS, Catelyn)

My suspicion on what would have eventually happened to that bastard:

What does he want me to say? “That is good to know, my lord.” He wanted something from her, but Sansa did not know what it was. He looks like a starving child, but I have no food to give him. Why won’t he leave me be? Tyrion rubbed at his scarred, scabby nose yet again, an ugly habit that drew the eye to his ugly face. “You have never asked me how Robb died, or your lady mother.” “I … would sooner not know. It would give me bad dreams.” “Then I will say no more.” “That … that’s kind of you.” “Oh, yes,” said Tyrion. “I am the very soul of kindness. And I know about bad dreams.” (ASOS, Sansa)

Children starving in the winter is something we heard from Old Nan.

“The Others,” Old Nan agreed. “Thousands and thousands of years ago, a winter fell that was cold and hard and endless beyond all memory of man. There came a night that lasted a generation, and kings shivered and died in their castles even as the swineherds in their hovels. Women smothered their children rather than see them starve, and cried, and felt their tears freeze on their cheeks.” Her voice and her needles fell silent, and she glanced up at Bran with pale, filmy eyes and asked, “So, child. This is the sort of story you like?”

I’m not sure if this would have happened, but there is plenty of precedence of decent young mothers suffering horribly: Helaena Targaryen, Elia Martell, countless unnamed civilians, even Gilly and her two rabbits that Ghost killed. 

At this point, of course, it doesn’t matter because it happened differently. Since GRRM had to scrap the 5-year-gap for being unworkable, this plan had to change. Sansa has been in the Vale for way long enough to be certain that pregnancy, at least, is not a factor. This theoretical Lannister baby is a scrap in the bin. 

Whether he will pick up this thread directly (by possibly even repeating it when the un-annulled marriage becomes a factor again) or transfer some of this onto Sansa’s storyline by another character, Sansa remains officially a maiden and will most probably become pregnant at some point in a way that recalls the Virgin Mary. It may straight up be Jon’s baby at this point, what with the time constraints. Not remembering is certaintly something that will come up between them. Or it may have either an uncertain or a more sinister “source”.

It’s going to be interesting!

Either way, thank you so much for the ask, it really inspired me!

[unklarity]

Critical Role: Yasha

“I feel like I’m either very unlucky or cursed. And I don’t believe in luck.”

It's not very often I get the urge to make a box for a character from a series I've never seen/read/played before, but I clearly have a type, so I decided I needed to make a Yasha box.

Below is the description and explanation of all the contents of the box as well as more pictures!

I started out getting information about her from various places, including friends who DO watch Critical Role (I thank you all for your service and for answering my ridiculous questions) and then I got to work. I had a specific color scheme and plan in my head - for one, I wanted to use mainly flowers instead of an even mix of flowers and herbs, and I wanted to really lean heavily on the storm imagery.

Stones:

I struggled finding a focal point for the box for a while, and I'd finally decided on hunting down an Astrophyllite tower when I happened upon something even cooler: a mineral called Arfvedsonite, which is very similar in appearance and composition to Astrophyllite but with a blue sheen instead of a gold one. I found a sphere with the most amazing lightning-like flashes, and I really love the way it looks in the box. It conjures the image of a stormy sky, filled with turmoil and chaos.

I first chose it for looks, obviously, but when I investigated its meaning I was surprised how well it fit Yasha! It’s meant to help soothe deep sadness and emotional turmoil, and assist with moving forward and imagining a future after dealing with emotional pain, grief, and loss. it also helps people who have trouble communicating with others, encouraging them to speak clearly and be able to share their feelings truthfully and accurately. Lastly, it helps make major life changes easier, and can help when your life takes you in new and scary directions.

The sphere also contains almandine garnet and pyrite. Almandine garnet (aka Eudialyte) can help a person let go of the belief that they are unable to avoid suffering or hardship, is used to dispel anger, negativity and guilt, and also assists with processing the difficult end of a relationship and letting go peacefully. Pyrite is a stone for protectors, and helps increase both strength and self-worth, overcome feelings of inadequacy and help reach one's true potential.

Next, I collected some smaller crystals for the box. From the beginning, I knew I wanted some Iolite in the box as it reminded me of Yasha as soon as I read about her. It's a stone that helps wanderers and travelers with navigation, and helps with finding your path when you're lost, literally or figuratively.

There's also a baby blue chunk of celestite, a tumbled piece of gold sheen obsidian, a small purple amethyst tower, and a faceted blood red garnet. Celestite, as its name suggests, is connected to the celestial, which I thought was a good match for Yasha (lol). It represents gentleness, softness, connection with the divine, and helps nerves when talking to others. Gold sheen obsidian is a stone of protection -but also gentleness, which I thought fit well. It's good at shielding from negative energy and evil influences, and lets us shed our negative perceptions and grief slowly while bringing comfort. It also helps to stop us from self-sabotaging.

Garnet, in my practice, represents the heart. It means commitment, devotion, and trust. It helps you to remember things you've forgotten, and helps control self-directed negativity and anger.

Amethyst is traditionally a stone of protection, which does fit, but it also facilitates confidence and calm and banishes anxiety, helping you to form bonds with others and better communicate with them.

Potions:

The potions are a bit different for Yasha than my normal process, because I really wanted to try as hard as I could to use almost ALL flowers. Normally I use a mix of about 50/50 flowers and herbs, with the occasional other materials, but I wanted to make them full of flowery goodness this time. It took a bit longer and I had to source a ton of flowers from all over the place, but it was totally worth it, in my opinion.

There are 7 potions, labeled on the bottom with their corresponding number. The first potion in the first picture (#1) represents devotion and love. I wanted to make something that really showed Yasha's devotion to Zuala and her love for her wife, because I definitely cried about it and needed everyone else to do it too. The potion contains dogwood, lavender and sunflower for devotion, delphinium for commitment and yarrow for eternal love. It is sealed with silver wax and stamped with a sunflower in black.

The second potion (#2) represents the other end of devotion- faith and duty. I felt like devotion was the best word for both of them, because Yasha is very devoted to the Stormlord, but her sense of duty and faith is a different kind of devotion. This one contains amaranth and rosemary for faith and loyalty, and peach rose petals and bluebell for gratitude to the Stormlord for pulling her out of "hell” and is sealed in silver wax with his symbol.

The third potion, (#3) and last in the first photo, represents the contrast between Yasha's strength and her softness. She's tall and intimidating, but she's compassionate and kind to her friends. This potion includes pink roses for gentleness, pink carnation for sweetness and kindness, vervain for tenderness, chrysanthemum for awkwardness or bluntness, and then also contains hydrangea for coldness and aggressiveness, and marigold for cruelty and rage in combat. It is sealed in black wax with a silver sunflower stamp.

The next photo depicts the remaining 4 potions. The first one (#4) represents grief. Yasha has had her fair share of grief, definitely, and I wanted to be sure I touched on that. There's dark red rose petals for mourning, magnolia for grief, purple hyacinth which means "Forgive me," and Zinnia for carrying the memory of an absent friend in your heart. The Zinnia is for Molly, and the hyacinth for Zuala, but the rest of the flowers I think apply to both, and also to Yasha having to leave behind parts of herself with the people (and memories) she has lost. The bottle is sealed with silver wax and a black sunflower stamp.

The second potion in this photo (#5) represents fear and doubt. I really connected with Yasha saying she thought she was cursed, or doomed to suffer. I think the pain she has gone through really affects how she interacts with others. This potion contains chamomile for adversity and rue for obsession over your mistakes (rue and chamomile can also represent feeling cursed or doomed to misfortune), plus purple heather for solitude/wanting to be alone, and agrimony and yarrow for fear, cowardice and self-doubt. Sealed with black wax and a blue eye stamp to match Yasha's blue eye.

The next one (#6) represents growth and the journey that Yasha has made so far, both literally and spiritually. It contains rose quartz for healing and mending a broken heart, yellow rose petals for friendship, and cloves for gaining friends and being made a better person by those around you. There is one clove for each member of the Mighty Nein. Sealed with black wax and a purple eye stamp, to match Yasha's purple eye.

The last potion (#7) was a late addition, but when I looked at all the rest of the potions I felt something was missing from the narrative. This last one represents contrast, but most importantly transformation - in a few ways. Obviously there's the literal: Yasha says she looked different when she woke up on the Stormlord's altar, and then there's the transformation she goes through with the Necrotic Shroud and her wings. But I wanted to draw contrasts between Yasha running from her tribe and leaving the M9 at the behest of the Stormlord; between her struggling with being a coward and being so willing to fight. I wanted to show the transformation from her being helpless to being a protector to so many - from being saved to being someone who saves others - and what had to happen for those changes to occur. It contains bay leaf and moss for strength/power and becoming a protector, cinquefoil for being saved and granted protection, mint for virtue, and labradorite for transformation. This one is also sealed with silver wax and the symbol of the Stormlord.

To tie everything in, I added a small sachet with a hand cast d20 (filled with heather and rosebuds), a small health potion, and a sword charm to represent Yasha’s greatsword. I also included a pink carnation and dogwood flower, along with one of my favorite parts of the box: a miniature leather book that contains a four-leaf clover and other pressed wildflowers. I loved Yasha and her flower collection so much I knew it had to be a part of the box as soon as I heard about it! I hand pressed and added all of the flowers, and there’s room in the second half to add more.

Finally, I painted the inside lid with a lightning storm scene to tie in all my storm references, and the bottom of the inside of the box is painted with a set of black wings and a grey rose.

Inevitably I started watching Critical Role about ¾ of the way into making this box and am a fan now, so I’m blaming my friends for this one :)

Thanks for reading! Yasha will be available in my shop in my July 7th update (EDIT: she has SOLD). Feel free to ask questions on this post or in a message!

You can find my site and shop at unklarity (dot) com!

[leavingcertnightmares]

Shakespeare uses an array of dramatic techniques to convey a world of corruption and deceit in his drama ‘Hamlet’

The metaphoric and symbolic complexity of Shakespeare’s tragedies is perhaps what he is best known for. Outside his great drama and fascinating characterisation, the imagery and dramatic techniques used ensures these masterpieces live on centuries after his death. In studying ‘Hamlet’ I was fascinated by the use of the supernatural as well as theatre, and the imagery of sickness and poison. It is, however, the use of an anti-hero/anti-villain, the depiction of a world of greys instead of black and white morality, that sets Shakespeare’s work aside from the very popular Elizabethan revenge tragedies.

Shakespeare continuously subverts expectation by shirking the idea of any truly good or evil characters existing in the world of Elsinore. Both of the main characters display a depth uncharacteristic of the hero/villain they are meant to be representing. This lack of a ‘good vs evil’ plot that is so central to what audiences have come to expect, paints a picture of a corrupted society with uncomfortably ambiguous morals. 

The audience expects to be hailing Hamlet as the hero of the story, but as the play progresses he provides many examples of villainy and indecisiveness. His treatment of Ophelia for example, in act 3 scene 1 is downright cruel. ‘Wise men know well what monsters you make of them’. He treats his mother with the same cruelty in act 3 scene 4. With his accusations of murder and incest he denounces female frailty and unchastity and makes known his horrified sense of the consequences of marraige. ‘Frailty thy name is woman’. ‘Thou turn’st mine eyes into my very soul, and there I see such black and grained spots’. After Hamlet’s many displays of misogyny and procrastination, the audience cannot be sure if his intentions are heroic or not. He is deceitful and weak-willed, two decidedly villainous traits, and is the epitome of an anti-hero.

Claudius too breaks away from the role of villain at times and cannot be treated as wholly evil. Although he is guilty of murder and does many awful deeds, one has to consider his initial introduction as a brilliant king who is well loved by the people of Elsinore. He balances the grief of a kingdom along with the threat of war with Norway. One of the most impactful scenes with Claudius is act 3 scene 3, the prayer scene. He expresses genuine guilt for his actions ‘Forgive me my foul murder’, and shows that he does have a moral compass. He shows true complexity when he weighs up being forgiven over giving up the fruits of his crimes ‘My crown, mine own ambition and my queen’. And the moment he decides against repenting for his sins is the moment he is truly corrupted. Shakespeare crafts Claudius into the perfect embodiment of an anti-villain whom the audience cannot completely turn against. Afterall one of the biggest tragedies is when someone can be good, but chooses to be bad. This technique of portraying morally grey characters is one of the most influential in conveying the corrupted, deceitful nature of the drama but is not the only one.

 Shakespeare uses the Ghost not only as a plot device but as a symbol of the inherit corrupt nature of Danish society. The Ghost plays a hugely important role in the play as he is the first evidence that ‘something is rotten in the state of Denmark’. He effectively captures the audience from the beginning when he is classed as a ‘dreaded sight’. The Ghost of King Hamlet introduces the theme of corruption and deception. It shows deep disturbances in the kingdom, ‘bodes eruption to our state’, which shows the audience that this is not a regular occurrence in Elsinore. 

Hamlet’s dead father is the catalyst for change, and it is his dramatic revelations that get the play underway.  The revelations about ‘the serpent that did sting thy father’s life’ allow the audience to join the dots and understand that it is indeed Claudius who is the snake in question. Hamlet’s problem with his mother is confirmed when the Ghost speaks of ‘his shameful lust that will of my most seeming virtuous queen’, which gives the audience an opportunity to form an opinion about Gertrude. However, the task of vengeance imposed on his son intensifies his suffering. Shakespeare proves how filial duty is of utmost importance to the young prince. He is fully aware of the corruption that infects the monarchy, he knows being loyal to his father is the only way to stop this vicious circle.

The Ghost also forces the other characters to question Hamlet’s sanity. When he returns to ‘To whet thy blunted purpose’ during the closet scene, Gertrude cannot see the Ghost of her husband past. She can only see her crazy and disturbed son. We are almost unsure what is and isn’t deceptive at this point. This phantom works as a narrative exposition, he sets the theme of deception and corruption from the moment he enters the play and gives Hamlet a sense of purpose.

Another core technique used in the play is Imagery. There is a running motif throughout of sickness and poison. The play begins and ends with poison which lends a cyclical quality to it. Claudius is referred to by the Ghost as a ‘serpent’, an animal not only a fitting symbol of poison but whose biblical connections associate it solely with deceit and corruptness.

 All characters who die in the tragedy die of one fatal flaw. Polonius of interference in the business of others, Hamlet of indecisiveness. That is the nature of poison, it is slow-acting, targets weakness, and ultimately corrupts. 

The consistent view of Denmark throughout is of a society that is infected or dying, ‘Something is rotten in the state of Denmark’. Even the events of the play are diseased, ‘Oh to my sick soul’, ‘Quick of the ulcer’, ‘canker’. This image of sickness combined with the image of poison creates a sense of inevitability, a foreboding atmosphere, if Elsinore is sick then its unavoidable death will soon follow.

A technique that also contributes to this corrupt society is Shakespeare's use of Theatre and Acting. There are no characters, with the exception of Horatio, that are completely honest. In fact, deception plays such a huge role in the drama, that the audience can only be sure a character is giving their true thoughts in asides and soliloquies. Shakespeare uses this technique both in grand, obvious ways, such as the Mousetrap, as well as more subtle ways. It is a constant throughout the play, present in almost every scene. Hamlet’s antic disposition, the most major example of theatre, blurs the line of acting and true madness until the audience is sure of nothing, and can trust no one.

 And just as the audience is getting used to questioning everything, Shakespeare presents a scene, the only scene, that is completely devoid of acting.

The arrival of the actors. Hamlet is shocked into dropping all pretences for a moment around those he believes he can trust. ‘My excellent good friends’. The appearance of Rosencranz and Guildenstern brings out the jovial sociable side of Hamlet. In this scene Shakespeare uses the dramatic technique of theatre as a composer might use silence. When a movie has an amazing, emotional score the whole way through, composers will often have one scene with no music at all. This draws attention to it. In allowing the audience to feel an absence of what we expect, it draws attention to the moment. Shakespeare, using the absence of a major theme in this scene, expertly calls attention to its huge presence in the rest of the play.

The facades and acting of all the characters in Elsinore create an image of a crooked, dishonest kingdom, that relies so heavily on deceit that ‘to be honest is to be one man picked out of a thousand’.

The world of deception and corruption evoked by Shakespeare is effectively brought to life through the use of the moral ambiguity, the supernatural, imagery, and theatre. These techniques bring this world to life for the audience and help them to deeply understand the themes and characters of the play. The play would be much less compelling and would lack depth. I personally think that the masterpiece that is Hamlet is thought provoking because of all of the hidden techniques Shakespeare effectively used to evoke the world of deception and corruption.                H1 Standard: 95%

[kieren-fucking-walker]

Hello! I’m excited to do this as I don’t rec much, reccing things terrifies me because I hate feeling like I’m picking/playing favourites and leaving people out, and I also am just generally bad at picking my favourites of anything because I like too many things too much. I also am very bad at bookmarking, keeping track of fics I read, and generally being able to recall the names of fics to be able to rec them. So, with all that in mind I thought I’d start with something easy, on the understanding that this isn’t by any means an exhaustive list and I’d be more comfortable with this being “ten fics I like” rather than a top ten because there are far far too many fics I love in this fandom to ever do a list of favourites. So, in no particular order: 

Ten fics under ten thousand words (that I love):

Hypocrite by Lynds [@gold-from-straw​] - Rating: G, WC: 1.6k, Pairing: N/A

Summary: How can Todd possibly expect to be forgiven if he still can't forgive everyone who hurt him? Why I love it: This is one of my favourite explorations of a very specific part of Todd’s character, and it’s worth noting that the characteristics are spot on. I come back to this fic over and over again, and while in many ways it’s painful it’s also real and honest and just a beautiful bit of writing concerning Todd and his guilt.

Dork Greatly's Holistic Laundry Service by obscureenthusiast -  Rating: G, WC: 2.8k, Pairing: Brotzly (kind of)

Summary: Dirk very generously offers to help Todd with his household chores... an offer which Todd eventually takes him up on. The laundry gets a little out of hand when Todd remembers a game he and Amanda used to play and Dirk enthusiastically joins.

Why I love it: Cute!! It’s cute silly fun of these two bonding over laundry and sock puppets, gentle ribbing and acting like children. It gets even better when Farah joins in, I’m a sucker for those three being dorks together. 

My Mind Is My Own Worst Enemy; It Keeps Trying To Convince Me That You Are by DontOffendTheBees [@dont-offend-the-bees​​​]  -  Rating: T, WC: 1.6k, Pairing: Brotzly

Summary: His voice is so familiar and yet also just so… wrong. There’s something missing in it. Some vital aspect of Todd that Dirk didn’t even notice until it was gone.

Why I love it: ANGST! This appeals to every single one of my angst tendencies, and as I’m using this rec list to rec things I love I have to give a shoutout to the most wonderfully angsty fic I’ve read. I love this fic. I love the premise, I love the tension, I love the way it’s written, I love how awful the situation is. I love the way this fic is resolved, I love that it’s plausible, realistic in that. It’s incredibly emotional in all the worst ways and that makes it one of my favourite short fics ever.

Cut To The Feeling by zaphodthebb -  Rating: G, WC: 2.1k, Pairing: Brotzly 

Summary: Post Blackwing rescue, Todd is awake and on guard duty. He's had too much coffee. Also, Dirk can't sleep.

Why I love it: I’m such a sucker for post-big-things fic and this one nails the feeling perfectly. You can feel the exhaustion, the way smaller things they didn’t have time to worry about before catching up to them now they can stop for a moment. Both Dirk and Todd feel tired and real and it’s just a lovely read. 

split the secret up by piggy09 [@sharkodactyl] -  Rating: T, WC: 5.1k, Pairing: N/A

Summary: He asks if Dirk can hear it and Dirk just laughs, the sound reassuringly human.Well, not reassuringly. Reassuringly would mean Todd had to be reassured.It’s just – it sounds human. Which is good. Because Dirk is human. Definitely

Why I love it: Why don’t I love it? The idea of the Blackwing subjects being Eldritch in some way is a concept I’ve explored numerous times because it appeals to me so much, and if it appeals to you then you want to read this fic. It’s eerie and unsettling, the ability to hit the tone of not-quite-right is perfect, the pacing is astounding and it’s so hard to write a fic like this and keep the idea together as well as it’s done here. I love experimental styles of writing and when they turn out like this it’s not hard to see why. I love this fic a lot. (I would also recommend reading on desktop not mobile because the formatting of this fic adds so much to it!)

Catharsis by ben8615  -  Rating: T, WC: 1.3k, Pairing: Brotzly

Summary: Dirk is broken as heck, so why not have him cry it out? That's it. That's the whole story. You can all go home now.

Why I love it: The title and summary say it all really! This is such a lovely little fic about Dirk getting some catharsis in a way we all know he desperately needs, and paired with Todd taking care of him so gently? It’s such a perfect, wonderful little fic that just feels quiet and safe and wonderful.

objects in mirror may be closer than they appear by sharlook [@aceabed]  -  Rating: T, WC: 8.8k, Pairing: Brotzly

Summary: You’re alone, with your arms wrapped tight around a pillow at god knows what time in the night, and there are tears running down your face because you can’t seem to stop thinking about it, not even in your dreams. And then clutching your covers you get an idea. (In which Dirk has nightmares about Blackwing, goes to Todd for help, and is really, really, really in love.)

Why I love it: This fic aches in such a beautiful way. It doesn’t shy away from the ramifications of what Dirk went through and how that plays out for him, his fears and paranoias feel real and present in a way I really appreciate. The choice to use second person is a really good one, it’s a tricky pov to pull off but this definitely gets it right and is better for it. The development of Dirk and Todd’s relationship, particularly looking at Todd’s reactions to Dirk’s worries through Dirk’s eyes is just wonderful and it’s well worth a read. 

Those Grey Days by TheRoyalPrussianArmy [@theroyalprussianarmy​]  -  Rating: G, WC: 2.4k, Pairing: Brotzly

Summary: The bad days weren't always days. They could creep up, like some small, silent predator and deliver a swift bite that poisoned its victim's outlook. A blue sky could turn into grey one heartbeat after a laugh. The gentle sound of the wind in the trees would suddenly become overwhelmingly irritating. Even so much as a door closing or footsteps across the floor could lead to a strong desire to cry and scream, to rage and throw things. They would always pass, of course, but in the moment they were devastating.

Why I love it: We all know I love a good Todd characterisation, and I love a good exploration of the shitty realities of bad mental health and letting other people help you with that. I really really love this fic for both of those reasons, it’s unflinching without being gratuitous, and I really love the way it doesn’t promise sudden miraculous recovery at the hands of someone else, but ends on a gentler kind of promise of having people be there for you if you let them be. Also I’m a huge fan of the way this is written, it reads so nicely and it’s more than worth it. 

Light Work by  juniper_and_lamplight  [@juniper-and-lamplight​​​​]  -  Rating: T, WC: 2.8k, Pairing: Farina

Summary: Tina had, with her typical blunt insight, poked at Farah’s motivations for baking the cake herself. “Is it some kind of control-freaky thing? Like you can’t trust anyone else to get it right?” And while Farah couldn’t honestly say no to that question, her real motivation ran deeper.

Why I love it: This fic is wonderful. I always think we need more Farah insights, and this fic does just that in such a beautiful way, catching on her idiosyncrasies and the character building is to die for. It’s such a simple idea and yet the story itself manages to be rich and full, the imagery is simply gorgeous and every little snippet of a look into Farah’s life as it was in the past and is right now just delights me. Honestly this fic will leave you with a sweet, warm feeling all the way down to your toes and dwelling in the comfort of knowing Farah is loved by herself and others in all the ways she deserves.

or make a home by reptilianraven [@actualbird​​]  -  Rating: T, WC: 6.6k, Pairing: Brotzly

Summary: “Perhaps,” Dirk says in his best ‘yes, I’m bullshitting you, but I’m your boyfriend and you love me still’ voice. “The universe wants it this way.”“The universe wants you to always forget to put the cap back on the toothpaste,” Todd says, unimpressed, screwing the cap on himself.-Or Todd’s adventures in dating Dirk Gently, the mundanities of which unsurprisingly turning out to not be very mundane at all (featuring, among other things: intergalactic wormholes, regular periods of lying down on the floor, and several annoying habits that concern toothpaste and toothbrushes.)

Why I love it: You know those fics you read that make you want to throw your face into a pillow and scream with emotions? Yeah. This fic is so ridiculously good. The beauty of mundane daily rituals that make up part of a relationship! The way those things grow together, evolving into each others spaces and lives, this fic explores that so well. The portrayal of their relationship is so soft and tender, so happy and bright and silly and sad and everything a relationship should be. Honestly I can’t overstate enough how much I love this fic, I can’t go on and on here, but I’m about 99% sure this fic invented love-in-small-spaces kinda way. Also, sidetracking from all my other comments, if you like Mika’s song Tiny Love and the reprise of it then you’ll love this fic because I listened to it and immediately thought of it. Beautiful, emotional, fic. If this fic was a blanket I’d burrito myself in it and never leave. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

There we go! I obviously have far more than ten fics that fall into this category and hopefully more of them will be cropping up over the course of this week if I can find the time to make that happen, but as this is something I’m lowkey scared of doing I’m pleased enough to have this much! Thank you so much to @dghdafeedbackfest​ for organising this!

If you read any of these fics and like them please let the author know! Also check out some of their other stuff, because a lot of these authors are writers I love in general! 

[dothewrite]

Scenario for akaashi and makki with a sarcastic s.o who likes to bicker with them about literally anything and it kinda gets on their nerves but its also extremely endearing? Thanks!!

I fully believe that Akaashi is fully capable of channeling a little shit whenever he wants to. Which is quite often, imho. Hope you like!

It’s a quiet day outside in theheady heat of mid-summer and the sun is muted graciously by the shroud of greyforms lounging above the mountain caps; the ground so warm from the morningsunshine that the raindrops almost hiss as they hit the concrete, one waveafter another.

They’re the only ones still outside.In a stroke of luck, the café they had discovered the day before yesterday hadremained open despite the warnings on the news channel the night before and thecorroborating showers, but most of the chairs for outside seating have beentucked away underneath massive square-shaped umbrellas to preserve the delicatewood from soaking through.

Akaashi can feel the baffled, andoccasionally disgruntled, gazes lingering on the back of his head from the wise,sensible patrons who had opted to sit indoors in such weather. It’s a grumpy,good-natured sort of gaze, gazes from people who can’t really be bothered to beparticularly critical when there’s warm coffee tucked between their palms, afresh set of newspapers sprawled over the narrow tables, and a comforting humof steady rain against the tinted glass on an early afternoon.

He can taste the rainwater that’ssplashed into his own cup of black coffee, but it’s too bland of a taste forhim to consider buying another one and brave the grouchy looking owner who keptthe store. He takes a quick sip, and with a hand that brushes away the moistbangs that plaster to his forehead, he watches her lean forwards on the slattedtable, a yearning on her face almost as if to leap out into the dense showerand become one with the storm.

He keeps his phone tucked carefullyunderneath his jacket to keep it safe from stray droplets and lounges backagainst his stiff backrest, the scent of damp pine rubbing its tendrils into hisback.

“If you stick your head out somemore,” he cautions before taking another deep sip, “you’re going to look veryinteresting with only your face wet.”

He can see her shoulders shake oncewith a possibly befuddled laugh before she shrugs them.

“The dewy look might be in vogue.Think I’d look more interesting than you?”

He flicks his thumb up to move ontothe next BBC article. “Hard to say. I can be a very interesting man.”

She cranes her neck to give him aglance-over: a navy shirt, just like the one yesterday, and oh! Happycoincidence! The same one as the day before that too. His pants have changed,she’ll concede. Sometimes. On days when she hides the rest. His watch, the sameone he’d been wearing for the past four years—it being a graduation present isnot a viable excuse for lack of fashion—matched the small coloured twine aroundhis other wrist. She’d forgive that one though, considering she’d given it tohim as a matching anniversary present when they were young enough to rely onallowances for gifts. He hadn’t taken that one off either, ever. Not even forshowers, white-water rafting, nor torrential rainy days.

“Mhmm.”

They share a serene moment ofsilence before Akaashi puts away his phone and sighs, heavily, from the bottomof his old, weary heart. “I can hear you holding your breath all the way overhere. Go on, say it. What’s wrong with my outfit today?”

She shrugs again, this time muchmore dramatically. Empires could rise and fall on those bony little shoulderswith a drama that even Caesar would envy. “Nothing.”

“Is that so,” Akaashi says dryly. “Doesthat mean I can wear this again tomorrow without hearing another word fromyou?”

“It really depends on what sort ofwords,” she grins, and vaults a leg above the other to twist around just theright amount for Akaashi to catch her sharp profile against the drizzlingbackground. “If you’re filing a complaint, I can always replace those tricksywords with other ones you might find even less appropriate.”

“Yeah. And what exactly is wrongwith my shirt again?”

“Nothing,”she repeats emphatically, “if you’re on a tight budget and brought a single shirt on holiday with you toEurope.”

“I see. So, if it’s anywhere butEurope—”

“Then you can wear that same shirtall week at home with the exception of Sundays when you have practice?”

“Possibly.”

“Ah yes,” she says, throwing herhands up in exasperation. He’ll give it another few minutes before they startdrawing frenzied little diagrams in the air with her finger as a wand. “Let thescent of your armpits saturate into the corners of your shirt, and may itattract some unwitting females during mating season.”

Akaashi doesn’t give in to the urgeto lift his arm to double check his armpit. He is a much better man than that,and an even better one when he shouldn’t be. He leans back and settles down withthe comfortable knowledge that he’s washed this shirt quite thoroughly, and hisgo-to deodorant hasn’t failed him yet if she’s still willing to endure hispresence.

“You like how I smell,” he mentionswith a small smile, “but if you insist, I can always buy several more likethis. To reduce my, ah, scent.”

He is an expert indeed in keeping astraight face after many, many years of practice with exasperating fellowsaround him, and he lets it rest on his face with ease when she squints at him,brows stretching between a raise and a furrow, and her blunt fingernails diginto the armrests to keep her uncomfortable twist in place.

It does make her look rather poised,with crossed legs and a carefully positioned arch to her back. Akaashi keepshis eyes politely on her face, but his peripheral vision goes off, as they say,and swallows every inch that he can. He wonders if it’s part of why she oftenchooses to be so prickly about everything, even in good humour; if he took thatmuch care to look half as good when indignant about something, he’d probablyinstigate a lot more rows too.

For now, he thought, bringing hiscup to his lips, he was content with simply admiring.

“You’re insufferable,” she says,rolling her eyes.

Akaashi pretends to be stung. “Me?Do I smell that much?”

She grumbles something under herbreath, but she’s not quite taken her eyes off him just yet. He watchespatiently as she comes up with a different approach to the problem. After all,they have all afternoon, as long as they’re willing to shell out a few morecups of coffee.

“I smell fine, don’t I?” Akaashiprods. She really brings out the worst in him, and deep down he finds itendlessly entertaining. “Unless you want me to wear more cologne? Should Ichange my shampoo?”

“No.”

“Oh, that’s great,” he says, turninghis phone back on with his worst attempt at sounding enthused to date.

“It’s just…” she adds, and he hearsher chair grate against the coarse ground as she tugs it closer to him. “It’s always blue. And always a shirt. I know you wash your clothes, but youcan’t possibly expect that from anyone else.”

“Navy is a nice colour. What’s wrongwith blue?”

“It reminds me of the thing with thefriends on American television, but every day, all day.”

“Foster’s home for imaginaryfriends? He’s sky-blue.”

And muchless fit,he thinks, but he is a humble man, not prone to lapses in judgement, so thatcomment stays obediently in the back of his mind as he swirls the last dregs ofhis coffee around, watching the course grounds dance in a storm. The poker faceremains where it is, performing its role perfectly and any tells stay strictlyaround his lips in an unwilling upturn.

She’s far too busy rummaging aroundher mind for more analogies to properly notice, anyhow.

“Pictures,” she says triumphantlyafter a minute or two. Akaashi looks up from his sports news and gives this newattempt of hers another go. “Maybe I might be mistaken if you’re aiming for thetime-traveller look, but you’d look exactly the same in all the pictures wetake. New landmark? Same shirt. New city? Same shirt. New girlfriend? Sameshirt.”

“New girlfriend?” He repeats with aneyebrow raised. She meets his look defiantly, her angled chin daring him to firesomething back. “I wasn’t informed that I was in the market for a replacement.”

“Well perhaps you should read thebook, then.”

“Have you?” He asks incredulously.“Have you really finally gotten around to it?”

There’s definitely a small twitch toher mouth as her eyes narrow, twinkling a bit at the corner. “Wikipedia is thenew SparkNotes. My point still stands, time-traveller.”

Akaashi thinks about it for a while,tapping his fingers against his chin. “It’s not such a bad concept, really.”

“Your mum would be disappointed withthose photos. You know it.”

“But you’re so very good at makingme look attractive.” He rolls his eyes ever so slightly. Not enough to get himinto trouble, but enough so that it’ll stop pushing at his eyelids for freedom.“Or is it all just me? Or maybe, is it alljust this shirt?”

“Okay, let’s test that.” she thrustsher arm out at him and beckons imperiously with two fingers. Her eyes flash asif daring him to do otherwise. “Hand over that shirt, I’ll try it on Tetsu thenext time I see him.”

“As if he needs any help.” Akaashidoes a full-on roll with his eyes this time, with a smidgen less amusement. Hedoesn’t want to think about it—as much as he loves his irritating as all hellfriend—least of all in his own shirt, stolen unrightfully, and with her all over Kuroo. Alright, maybe shemight not be, but the imagery is very much unappreciated all the same.

He swallows the rest of his cooledand watery coffee in a single gulp and rests it on the damp table with morefocus than intended.

“Just my shirt? Does nothing elsebother you more than my fashion this morning?”

She gazes at him with an inscrutableexpression whilst Akaashi refuses to avoid her eyes, unyielding as hechallenges her in silence for something else to nag about, another tiny littleproblem that seems almost impossibly insignificant underneath the madness thatis drinking hot coffee on an equally hot and equally soggy noon. A slightbreeze, however, has begun to blow somewhere between their bickering, grazingalong the soft weeds that frame the banks of the Danube they face, and the rainhas quietened into a gentler morning shower. It would be walkable, albeit onlytowards their temporary home considering they’d be soaked to the boneafterwards, and Akaashi almost considers asking her. Almost.

He waits to see if she’s gotanything more to say that’s smart, snappy, and altogether exhausting onoccasions.

She’s still staring at him with aspectrum of emotions flickering in her eyes when she speaks again, words tingedwith a beleaguered sigh.

“If I think about it, then maybe thiscoffee. It doesn’t taste so good with rain. There’s this weird salty taste toit, but salt doesn’t evaporate, so it’s possibly entirely in my head.”

“A lot of things might entirely bein your head,” Akaashi replies, and he takes the side eye she shoots him withcomposure and grace. “Like how I’ve only got one shirt, ever.”

“You wore it yesterday. And the daybefore.”

“The washing machine is broken,love,” he reminds her patiently. “Our host hasn’t responded to me yet.”

“Alright, maybe not navy, but they’reall shirts,” she insists. She twirlsher empty cup around her fingers, seemingly unaware of how precariously it sitson her fingertips, and Akaashi can’t quite recall when she’d managed to finishit earlier than he. “I’m not saying you’re a boring person—” she shoots him alook heavy with meaning, “—but dressing to reflect that wouldn’t be a bad idea.On the contrary, in fact.”

They had been brainstorming in therain for activities they could head for to replace their outdoorsy excursion toseveral palaces that day, but Akaashi thinks he’s got the right idea in mind.Never say that he’s an inattentive, inconsiderate partner. A shade petty whenpiqued, perhaps, but that all pales in the various hues of sarcasm she paintswith when unoccupied.

Still, there is the way her nosescrunches up when she frowns, and the brisk way she rests her weight on herarms that has her stretched out into fine lines and soft edges that Akaashikeeps safely to himself whenever he watches her as inconspicuously as he canmanage. It just about makes it worth it, he wagers, tossing his new idea back andforth in his mind, to listen to her furrow her brows verbally again.

“Thrilling, you say.” He murmurs. Hereyes follow with suspicion as he slides his phone into his jacket pocket, zippingit up all the way for protection. “Are you sure this isn’t just a ploy to getme to take off my clothes?”

“Not in public,” she says calmly,but the twinkle in her eye has returned, and a reluctant smile eked out of her.“Honestly, as if I’d share.”

His cheeks, despite their longfamiliarity, still flare up against his will and Akaashi tries his best to coolit down with a hand as discreetly as possible. Her smile only deepens, and hehas to clear his throat to prevent his poker face from cracking.

He pushes back on his chair andstands up, abandoning his seat to the elements. When she doesn’t follow, heleans in with a brow elegantly raised and a teasing smile tickling the edges ofhis lips.

“Let’s go home.”

She looks at him as if he’s gone offhis rocker. “The weather,” she says slowly, pointing up at the grey skies, “wedidn’t bring an umbrella.”

Akaashi shrugs a shoulder. “That’sthe point.”

“You’llget sick.”

“Not if we run,” he begins to counton his fingers, “not if we take a shower, not if we turn on the heating, andnot if I make you a cup of hot chocolate after.”

Her eyes are almost sparkling, andAkaashi finds it a hopeless battle against falling right into them. “So, you’vehad the time to come up with this whilst listening to me all this time?”

“I can be a very interesting man,”he repeats sagely, and easily dodges the smack she aims at his arm. “Trust me.”He offers a hand to her, palm up, and a soft smile awaiting her answer.

Multitudes dance along the edge ofher lips, and Akaashi watches every single one as they drizzle past the precipicesof her cheeks and along the faint laugh lines blooming from her eyes. He doesn’tmind for as long as his arm doesn’t ache, and he could stand underneath a beigecafé umbrella with the splashes of rain drenching their trouser hems for amonth if it meant that she would be able to turn that diamond edged glint towardshim and place her palm in his.

She does, after a small shake of herhead, and it takes only a minute or two. He laces her fingers together,slightly clammy from the wet, and draws her up against him. He can feel herwarmth seep through his dreaded navy shirt, and when he tugs her closer, herhair frizzy from the weather tickles where he’s left the last two buttonsundone.

“You wanted thrilling, remember?” Hebreathes lowly into her hair, and without another warning, he jerks the both ofthem out into the pouring rain. She lets out a startled yelp, but Akaashibarely flinches as he turns towards the street and pulls her along with him ina steady jog.

He swears he’s about two timesslower than his usual morning jogs, taking her lack of exercise into account,but he’s still surprised when halfway there she begins to drag his arm back, clothesand hair utterly soaked and sluiced against her face with breathing as ifsomeone had punched her in the gut.

Akaashi pauses, feeling the rain nowconcentrating on his shoulders, and leans against the railing along the riverbank.

“Need a rest?”

“You—” she gestures vaguely in hisdirection, “—yes. Stop—looking so—”

“Composed?” He offers calmly. “Healthy?Not dangerously unfit?”

“Thankyou, Keiji. We all know how you feel about my cardio.”

“Non-existent?”

Finally catching her breath, shegives him a good glare. “Yes. That.”

Feeling slightly in better humour, Akaashilets his free arm fall and reaches out for hers. “I didn’t want you to get sick,but you love the rain.”

“What I said at the start,” she beginswith a snort, but seeing his confidence slowly melt into a thin layer ofconcern, she leans into him, ignoring his jolt of surprise. “It’s too late now,so let’s not worry about it. I brought medicine.”

“So did I.”

“Well, then.” She’s a good footshorter than him, but with a good firm tug, Akaashi allows himself to be pulleddown enough for a warm kiss on his cheek. “Let’s do a power walk back instead.”

The image popping unbidden into hishead makes him bark out a startled laugh, and he lets his smile stretch out aswidely as hers does, all trembling and chilly and feeling his toes curl fromthe warmth that seems to pulsate from where their hands are joined.

When she throws her head back to whipher hair back from her eyes, there’s a moment where steals his breath away; hisbeautiful little storm witch. She lets her head fall forwards again and thatmoment passes, the only thing that lingers is an absent beat in his veins and aturbulent grin that reaches her eyes.

“I could piggyback you, you know,”Akaashi says when they resume at a brisk stroll, both completely drenched andhis shirt pulling at his skin with each stretch. “I’d probably still be able torun faster than you with your feet.”

She sniffs. “I’m declining that onprinciple, you ass.”

Confident that nobody else will be ableto spot him in the midst of the downpour, Akaashi laughs as quietly as he can,and lets the smile stretch as wide as it wants all the way back.

He did have something else plannedfor the rest of the day; he wasn’t lying by any means. It just so happened thatit would come later at night, when the rain would die down, ready for astreet-lit shopping venture for the very thing that she sniped so much about.

That is, he’d tell her, after they’dtaken a shower, turned on the heating, and each with a mug of hot cocoa intheir hands.

Neither of them was in a particularhurry to do any of those things when their door finally closed behind them.Akaashi had slotted her against the back of it immediately, letting his fingerstrail their way slowly up the rises and dips of her sides. Their lights wereforgotten, the only sound in the apartment a cacophony of the storm outside,their dripping hair and heavy breaths ghosting against each other’s mouths. He leanedin, languidly tasting the rain along her skin.

Despite her unfocused gaze and breathhot against the crook of his neck, she managed a warm laugh, and reached outwith determined fingers to remove that dreaded navy shirt.

[theantisocialcritic]

Archive Project - March 28, 2014 - Noah Review

Go see it! Really! You should just go see it! More than just being a good movie, Noah is at the center of the cultural conversation right now and being able to talk about this movie appropriately is important! Its not really a religious film in the traditional sense so if you aren't interested in that don't worry! If you are religious i'd still suggest you go so you can be able to talk about it! Ok? ok! I'm going to break into mild spoilers for the movie, but it is the story of Noah's Arc so I don't imagine much of what i'm telling you will be too surprising. ————————————————————————————————————————— ————————————————————————————————————————— Noah, 2014. Darren Aronofski 139 Minutes Watch the trailer here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qmj5mhDwJQ ————————————————————————————————————————— ————————————————————————————————————————— As I said, this movie is a huge part of the cultural conversation right now, and a controversial one at that. Taking the famed Biblical story of Noah and The Ark, stripping out it's spirituality and using it to tell a metaphorical story about family, survival and climate change.   How is the movie? Well.. Its fantastic!! A genuinely great movie with a well realized world, beautiful special effects, great acting and an emotional, gripping story that manages to pull off moments of horror and sadness. Everybody knows the story of Noah and the Arc, hopefully. In the Bible, God looks down on his creation and sees the wickedness of man, and only one man amongst them who hasn't turned to wickedness. This man is named Noah. God tells this man that he plans to send a flood to the earth and destroy all of his creation so that he may start anew, and for Noah to build an enormous ship so that he might survive the flood. The elderly Noah does so and brings aboard his family and two of all the creatures of the earth so they may survive the flood. God sends a storm and after 40 days and 40 nights, all of creation but that upon Noah's arc had been destroyed. The arc eventually lands on dry land where it is greeted by a rainbow, signifying that God will never again destroy his creation in a flood. The movie Noah takes a very liberal approach to the story, stretching out the rather straightforward story with elements fantasy fiction. Methuselah at one point wields a flaming sword. Giant rock monsters called Watchers are depicted as fallen angels who tried to tried to assist humanity after the exile of Adam and Eve from the garden of Eden. God is only ever referenced as "The Creator". The whole production cuts the biblical meaning of the story in favor of using the movie as a cautionary tale relevant to modern day politics. Making a Noah movie like this is fairly controversial as it is considered offensive to fundamentalist Christians who take the stories in the Bible very seriously. Speaking as somebody who is fairly religious but has spent a great deal of his life outside of the church, and as someone who loves fantasy epics, I can pretty much understand where everybody is coming from with their issues in this movie. It walks the line for two hours of being epic fan fiction and horribly offensive blasphemy. Though considering the director i'm afraid it teeters over to the side of the latter for the most part. The symbolism is almost laughably simplistic. The beginning of the movie references the story of Cain and Abel (and apparently Seth!). The two sons of Adam and Eve, Cain and Seth both go on to create tribes of their own. Cain's tribe allied with the Watchers to produce an industrial society while Seth's descendants chose to be one with the land and essentially chose to become hippies. By the time the movie starts, Noah and his children are the last members of that tribe. Considering the traits of both these tribes, its blatantly obvious what the movie is trying to tell me: The descendants of Cain are all are carnivorous, violent, selfish people who kill, destroy nature and self people into slavery. The descendants of Seth all live one with the land, never kill animals or even pick flowers and only take what they need to survive. …. The on-the-nose symbolism is only lacking the righteous indignation to join Avatar, White House Down and Elysium in my list of Most Blunt Movies of All Time! I have to give credit where it is due though! As I said this movie is really good! The action scenes, especially a great action beat towards the end of the second act, are among the best i've seen all year! They harken back to great fantasy epics like The Lord of the Rings, with grand armies and giant monsters going head to head. Its truly a marvel of filmmaking! However it is after that act two action beat that the movie starts going off the rails a bit, introducing a much more morally grey plot line in which Noah is conflicted by his love for life, the action of mass murder he just committed and his confusion whether or not humanity deserves to survive the destruction it has conflicted upon the world. Some of the character actions during this portion of the movie might very well wreck the movie for you, as it almost did for me. The movie really does peak at the end of the second act. Though the images and story from this point in the movie is where the writing quality and imagery gets to it's most iconic, I didn't like it as much. The Controversy This movie is stirring a lot of attention and things aren't looking pretty… Christians are preemptively judging the movie as blasphemous before giving it a chance. Intellectual atheists like TV host, Bill Maher lashed out against the movie and called Christians dumb for believing in God, (http://www.christianpost.com/news/bill-maher-curses-god-bible-noah-story-and-stupid-americans-who-believe-calls-god-psychotic-mass-murderer-116276/cpf). Then Paramount tried to censor the movie during a bunch of early screenings for members of the Christian community which ticked off Aronofsky and anti-censorship purists. The movie has been banned in the middle east for it's depictions. Plus one of the digressions in the movie involves a skit of The Big Bang and Darwinian Evolution being played while a voiceover of Noah tells the story of the creation of man from Genesis. It's really a mess. The sad thing is most of the people who are fighting over this movie haven't seen it, aren't giving it a chance and are denying the possibility that it can be a good, influential movie despite either portraying Biblical material, and not doing it accurately. Hollywood used to do this all the time! Back in the day, Hollywood did TONS of liberal religious movies because it was a very simple way to get around censorship standards and allowed them to show all the gore, nudity and sexuality Hollywood wanted too, as long as they could claim it was "Biblical". In recent years though looser standards have allowed Hollywood to do those things anyway so the remaining Christian entertainment industry has transformed into it's logical extremes: super safe family entertainment like Veggie Tales, and bad crap crazy movies like Passion of the Christ. I'm not defending that this portrayal is at all "good", but honestly, give it a chance! Without the Biblical connection, this movie is a fantastic movie! Being at the center of the cultural conversation right now justifies seeing it just to know what everybody is complaining about! It aint a Christian movie, buts a dang good film! Go see it! Form your own opinion and join into the conversation! Noah receives a big recommendation from me! ————————————————————————————————————————— ————————————————————————————————————————— Thank you for reading! Live long and prosper!

[doublehex]

Impressions of 7x02 “Stormborn”

So we got the second episode. Let’s have a chat.

Dragonstone:

We open up with a fierce storm raging outside Dragonstone, and I love this for several reasons. First off, the obvious allusions to the night that Daenerys was born, but most importantly I love the imagery of it. It is nearly black, save for the outlines of thunder strikes and the fire from within the Targaryen keep.

The scene opens with strife amongst Daenerys’ advisors. Elaria Martell has no shame over killing Tyrion’s niece Myrcella back in the final episode of Season 5, and I have to say I was disappointed by how it was played out. Tyrion seems to just casually accept what Elaria has done, a shrug off his shoulder. He should be pissed, and demanding from Daenerys some kind of retribution. I really do hope that something comes out from this, because otherwise it would just seem the showrunners are just waving off a critical relationship between characters.

Daenerys questions Varys about his loyalty, and I really do need to ask…why now? This is a conversation that needed to happen, but not after months of sailing together across the Narrow Sea. Why did Dany not speak with Varys in the final episode of season 6? It just seems awkwardly placed, although it is decently written.

Varys’ character suffers from cutting out the Golden Company plot from the books. Without Varys’ “perfect prince”, it doesn’t make much sense for him to have backed Viserys in the first season. He should have known that Viserys was the same kind of man that Aerys was, so why would he go for that? It feels like the writers are trying to salvage a ship that is made out of seaweed and is on fire.

I do however like Daenerys’ response – that if Varys felt she is doing a poor job as queen, he will say so to his face. And her threat of killing him if he should conspire against her shows she is not going to just accept his loyalty. Varys has jumped from monarch to monarch several times over now. He was essential for bringing Dorne and the Reach into the fold, and Daenerys is in need of a spymaster. But she does not trust him one bit, nor should see.

Then we get a Melisandre scene, where she reveals that perhaps Daenerys is the Prince(ss) That Was Promised. In the books, the revelation that the prophecy may have suffered a grammatical mistranslation came about as a sort of bitter moment…Aegon had been mistaken all along, and perhaps his error resulted in Rhaegar’s rash decision. Here it’s played as a mediocre female power moment.

Also, why is Melissandre in the throne room? Dany should be there on the stone throne, and Melissandre should be escorted in. Dany sees herself as queen – she should be showcasing that as much as possible.

When they plan for how Daenerys will retake the Seven Kingdoms, it is only her and Tyrion that vouches for the least amount of blood shed as possible. They realize that the Dothraki and Unsullied will only fan the xenophobic flames of the Westerosi. In order to establish Daenerys as a rightful ruler, it can’t be the Essosi that take King’s Landing. The Reachmen and Dornish will lay siege to King’s Landing.

This scene does a good job of showcasing what everyone wants out of Daenerys. Yara just wants the Iron Islands to be independent, she wants a quick end to the war. Ellaria and Olenna want Cersei to suffer, damn the consequences. Daenerys’ alliance is a fragile on at best. Besides the racial tensions between Dorne and the Reach, which have always been high, the alliance is split on how to proceed. It seems only the fact that Daenerys has dragons and a formidable army is what keeps the others from abandoning the cause.

At the end, Olenna tries to remind Dany that she is a dragon, so she must “be a dragon”. Olenna is trying to push Daenerys towards fire and blood, highest amount of casualties, giving the Lannisters as much misery as possible, and one can’t help but worry that this will be the show’s version of the “dragons plant no trees” from the books.

The Missandei and Grey Worm romance has finally come to it’s…blunt conclusion. Although it was good to hear Grey Worm speak of what the training of the Unsullied was like, the romance between these two characters have felt very contrived and forced. The sex scene is rather mild by the standards of the show, which comes as a relief, because the dialogue leading up to it was as awkward as one could get. One really has to ask just what this side plot added to the series, that couldn’t be better spent somewhere else.

Kings Landing:

Cersei seems to have taken Jaime’s advice to heart. She is doing her best to rallying the support of the Southern lords…and that seems to means just the Reach, if Randyll Tarly’s presence is anything to go by. The language she uses in her speech reminds me a great deal of Trump, where she is relying on an appeal of the Other and objectively false claims to secure a base.

It may have been unintentional or not, but I got several ISIS vibes when we had Qyburn defame Balerion’s skull with the ballista. They start off that scene with a bit of a history lesson, showcasing that Balerion is a big part of how the Seven Kingdoms were forged. It’s a priceless relic for all intents and purposes. Then we have Cersei deface it, and look pleased about it.

It seems to me that D&D are trying to create parallels between modern day and with Cersei. She has overturn the political system, going against the will of the people, to secure power. Now Trump did not perform a coup d’état like Cersei has. As far as we know, his election was legal. Influenced by outside forces, beyond a doubt, but legal. Most people did not want Trump as president, and almost nobody in Westeros wants Cersei to be their queen.

Another comparison between Team Lannister and the Alt-Right is the racist language Jaime has employed in recruiting Randyll Tarly to their side. Othering the Unsullied and the Dothraki in an appeal for Westerosi Nationalism (and luring the prospect of a new Paramount Lord of the Reach) seems to have worked on Lord Tarly.

One very keen thing to take away is that Jaime states that he no longer likes his sister. A rift is growing between the Lannister twins, and it will surely culminate in Jaime having to make a choice.

Winterfell:

Jon is finally starting to listen to Sansa. He speaks to her about the summon to Dragonstone, and she is wary. Despite her insistence that Tyrion is a good man, it is too risky. Sansa is still very much in bunker mode – after years of witnessing her family come under siege, she views anyone else but a Northman as a threat. She is not entirely wrong, but Sansa is also focused on the Southern threat, while Jon is focused on the Northern one.

In the end, Jon goes against the pleas of all his lords (including Lyanna Mormong) and accepts the invitation. Jon is getting flashbacks to his time as Lord Commander, when he is the sole voice for an unpopular action that must be taken. Even if it weren’t for Daenerys’ dragons, the North has been under siege for years. Food supplies are low, men are short. There’s a reason that boys and girls are being taught to fight. They need more manpower against the White Walkers, and Daenerys’ army is precisely what they need.

But once again, Sansa openly objects to Jon’s proposal in front of their lords. D&D continue to strike the same source of conflict between these two characters, in a way that seems artificial and forced. Especially when Jon rewards her with ruling the North in his absence. We just saw Jon seeking her counsel a scene earlier – why doesn’t he tell her his plans in private? The Starks look divided, and that won’t look good in front of the Northern nobility.

Petyr Balish also seems to be out of place this season. There is no clear understanding of just why, precisely, he is in the North, or what he is trying to accomplish. He may view chaos as a ladder, but the ladder doesn’t seem to be leading him anywhere. And the creep vibes he gives off does not seem to serve a purpose. In the earlier seasons, Petyr was very good at being everyone’s friend. That skill seemed to have evaporated by season 7 has rolled around.

Just what is Balish’s endgame plan? We are not getting much of a sense that he has one. Just like Varys, the changes to the narrative post season four has left Balish hanging.

Oldtown:

Sam’s arc is quickly becoming one of the best parts of the season. With an emphasis on being “hard rock Hogwarts”, the pacing of these scenes is stellar. They are glorified info dumps, but they are info dumps with style, and I am along for the ride. Maester Slughorn…err, Marwyn…no, Ebrose, sorry, is a darkly charming mentor for Sam.

The Grandmaesters actually had a good reason for hiding the greyscale cure – it tends to get the treater killed. But Samwell doesn’t have a say no attitude, and by golly he is going to save Ser Jorah. No matter what.

The cure for greyscale being entirely mundane instead of magical was a sigh of relief. And with the cure being to actually carve out the corrupted skin, one could not think of a better face for a character with morals are corrupted and dubious as Jorah Mormont. Next time, Ser Jorah, do not enslave people just to fulfill the debts of your wife. Also, don’t abuse the trust of a young woman and violate her privacy by kissing her without permission. No matter how sexily Ian Glen can growl “Khaleesi”, that is unforgivable.

And he does nothing for the narrative anyways, except slows it to a crawl.

Arya:

And the best scene transition goes to…pus soaked flesh into chicken pot pie! Mark Mylod had to be crackling as he directed that, and I wouldn’t blame him one bit. Grossing people out is a wonderful hobby to have.

Say one thing for season seven, and say that Arya’s arc has been on point, and her time in the inn is no exception. Watching her eat the pie surely made the entire audience hungering for something to stuff down their gut. You could hear every crunch, see the crumbs get stuck on Maisie Williams’ cheeks, and just get the sense that the pie was really damn good.

We also got a sense that the Hound had a profound impact on Arya. Her statement to having baked some pies is the kind of casual appeal to murder that sounds like it would come from Sandor Clegane’s mouth.

Arya also seems to have not realized that any of the Starks were alive, up until Hot Pie drops the fact that Jon took back Winterfell and was the King in the North. That changes her trajectory completely, from killing Cersei to reuniting with her family. Although that warms the heart, one has to wonder just what her last line to Jaqen H’ghar was supposed to mean. If she was “going home”, why was she not in Winterfell already?

The scene with Nymeria was, of course, wonderful, and D&D avoided the expected trap of having Nymeria rejoin with Arya. They haven’t been with each other for years, and Nymeria has long since found her own path in life. Nymeria has a pack, and Arya is on her way to reunite with hers.

Oh, of course this happens the moment Jon heads south for Dragonstone, but that’s plot convenience for you.

The Battle in the Narrow Sea:

So, we got one good scene and one bad one. The interaction between the Sand Snakes is almost…endearing. I actually found it a bit heart warming to see these three half-sisters are toying with each other. It almost makes one forget that they went and killed their nephew and joked about it.

But then we get the most awkward flirting with Yara and Elaria. “A foreign invasion is in progress”. Good god. They improvised most of those lines, and it really shows.

Once that nastiness is out of the way, we get a real sense of just what type of villain Euron Greyjoy is meant to be. The book version was an sorcerous pirate captain with delusions of eldritch power. Show Euron is the Mountain on the Sea. An absurd murderer with no desires to hold back his bloodlust. From the moment the Silence rams into the flagship of the Greyjoy fleet, Euron is an absurd villain.

And he rocks that role. Euron is utterly bloodthirsty that reflects the raised stakes of the series. Daenerys has brought dragons to Westeros, but Euron is showing us the true meaning “fire and blood”. Between the flaming ballista bolts and the Iron Islanders carving through each other, we get plenty of both.

The show does allude to how Euron from the novels would cut the tongue out of his crewmates. They are all silent, not speaking a single word, and one of the final shots is them cutting out the tongue out of the survivors.

The scene ends with Theon facing a new Ramsay. Seeing the way the Greyjoy loyalists are butchered by the crew of the Silence reminds Theon all too much of his abuser, and he can’t take it. Alfie Williams deserve an award for this scene alone. He utterly sells just the shame and fear in Theon.

When the episode draws to a close, Theon is left behind, just another bit of wreckage in Euron’s wake.

The episode opened with a storm of water, and it ended with one of blood.