#i think half the characters in this image are non-binary

[colourprinter]

Fiona Colour puts on a show!

I'm sorry, I just really like everyone in suits... Even if some (Wendy) don't like them too much

[curewhimsy]

Touhou USAmerican AU update

Don’t ask how the characters all know each other, because I have nothing for now. But one idea I have floating around is that they’re all magical girls and/or involved with supernatural incidents and are a team who solves them.

I’m still working out the details of this AU and debating keeping ALL of the supernatural/magical aspects of the original characters/universe.

I also don’t know exactly how many characters I’ll include. But I might have my OC group Resonate in this AU as OCs.

The AU also takes place in Colorado, as suggested by @counterattacker.

Reimu

Early 20’s

Seems practical but really isn’t

Seems meek but really isn’t

She’s friendly to strangers but is different and more assertive around Marisa

Done with (Marisa’s) shit

Banters with Marisa

Marisa always drags her into a bunch of incidents

She’s the one who has to resolve the incidents

Actually very formidable in a fight

Has burnout

Likes to take it easy but can’t

Eats rice with every meal. Even stuff like pizza

College student who is overwhelmed by all her duties

Plays violin but isn’t really that good

Half-Latina

Trans woman

Bisexual

Practicing Shinto in the USA

Has a crush on Marisa…

She’s stuck with Marisa as her sidekick and they’re always together

Marisa

Early 20’s

Feral

Steals things a lot… or rather “borrows permanently”

One of the things she stole was Reimu’s heart

Owes Reimu a lot of money

Flirts around as a joke but secretly really would take a bullet for Reimu

Loves Reimu a lot but doesn’t express it candidly

Has an inferior complex and perceives Reimu as better than her

Obsessive 

Boisterous

Likes pranks

Banned from Costco

Likes to scare people with her witch image

Loves Halloween

Gets into trouble a lot

Lesbian

Probably has ADHD

Reimu’s sidekick

Yukari

In her late 30’s

She’s a senior magical girl, mentor to Reimu and Marisa

Older sister type

Annoys Reimu

Doting but in an annoying way

Always says “when I was your age…”

Kind of like a (irresponsible) guardian to Reimu and Marisa

“Ara ara”

Mischievous

A bit like Princess Celestia but mixed with Eda from The Owl House

She’s the voice of reason for Yuuka

Cirno

Annoying kid

Precocious but also dumb

⑨ years old

Can’t do math

Tiny

Drives everyone insane

Annoying high pitched voice

Pretends to be an ice fairy, is actually somehow convincing

Loves shaved ice

Loves winter

A menace

Has an obsession with capturing and freezing frogs, but everyone else forbids her

Has stomped through Yuuka’s flowers before

Never seems to catch a cold. She thinks this is because she’s an ice fairy. It’s actually because idiots don’t catch colds.

Clownpiece

Another annoying kid

12 years old

Feral

Self-proclaimed fairy of hell

Edgy

Comes from a family of clowns

Draws cursed art

Probably has deviantart despite being too young

Likes wolves

Mixed-race (Native American, Japanese, White)

All her clothes seem to have the American flag on them

Her parents are patriotic and pick out all her clothes

Yuuka

Early 30’s

The “vengeful lady next door” who is just very overprotective of her flower garden

Known for having a beautiful and extravagant garden in her yard

She’s also a beekeeper

Kind of lonely but doesn’t admit it

Brutally honest

Makes children cry

Friends with Yukari

She acts soft around Yukari. She might have a crush on her

Patchouli

19 years old

Quiet and blunt girl who frequents the little town’s small library

Doesn’t show much expression

Hates her name

Done with life

Has read nearly all the books in the small library

Know-it-all

Knowledgeable about math, astronomy, chemistry, literature, and folklore

Friends with Alice

Nazrin

10 years old

Loves cheese

Innocent and a bit shy

Adventurous

Suwako

7 years old

Tiny even for her age

Energetic

Loves to go to the pond and play with the frogs

Often pretends to be a frog

Can’t swim

Half-Korean

Seems to be a “frog whisperer.” Frogs are somehow drawn to her

Again, she is ridiculously tiny

Wriggle

15 years old

Nobody knows her real name

Non-binary transmasc but still uses she/her

Loves cats but is allergic

Sakuya

Mid 20’s

Dependable but scary

Remilia and Flandre’s aunt and caretaker

Badass who can fence

Half-Japanese, half-French

Flandre

11 years old

Remilia’s younger sister

Feral edgy chaos girl

Vandalizes the school’s textbooks

Looks up to Marisa

Loves flan

Actually a really good pianist 

French

Likes horror movies

Banned from three grocery store chains

Bites people

Remilia

13 years old

Flandre’s older sister

French

Kind of spoiled

Snobby

Thinks her sister is uncouth

Ojou-sama laugh (“ohoho!”)

Rinnosuke

27 years old

One of Reimu’s friends in college, seemingly always classmates with her

Older brother figure to Reimu

Usually quite chill and polite

Good at math

His hobby is JRPGs

Addicted to ramen

Lowkey a weeb (despite being Japanese)

He’s gay

He’s single because he “can never seem to find another single guy”

Alice

19 years old

British

Has a British accent

Doll collector

Shy

[hsslilly-blog]

I want to know everything you're willing to say about Blair

omg okay, i'll try to be concise. here's their family tree and here's some design notes. the rest is under the cut.

blair (they/she) was born in an apainn/appin, in the scotland highlands on may 13th, 1997. full name: blair marina stewart. they have a gaelic name as well (bhlair maired stiùbhart). their parents are called james and eleanor, and they have an older brother as well; his name is colin and he's four years older than blair.

since an apainn is a very small town, with a super tiny population, she spent a lot of time with her brother around their family property. they'd herd sheep and take care of the other animals, and spend a lot of time at port appin watching the ferry. they were in a band together, with both of them playing the fiddle. blair also plays the piano, is very keen on tap dancing and they know how to knit. besides english, they speak scottish gaelic and they learn scots later on. they're left handed.

their family moved to glasgow in the first half of 2009 so blair could attend secondary school and colin could attend college. getting used to this different environment was very hard for blair and they struggled a lot. blair didn't understand their peers and they often felt alone. she had only two friends: moira stirling and aiden douglass. to make matters worse: colin and blair got involved in a very bad car accident in 2009 when he was driving them around (without authorisation), in slippery road. colin passed away and blair ended up with a broken arm and the scar on their right eye. this torn their family apart and their parents divorced in 2010. blair stayed with her mother, and then later on in 2013 they moved to the u.s. (right before the start of high school story prime).

they were raised roman catholic and their family frequented church. catholic guilt is a theme in blair's character and it's present in every single aspect of their life. from their identity, to their actions, to their choices, to the friends they make, to the words they say. guilt, fear and shame move blair. they stopped attending the church on their 16th birthday.

besides that, blair has issues with self-image and they've had an eating disorder from the time they were 13. being an overachiever, they push themselves too much and they have very unhealthy coping mechanisms. they're still mourning their brother as well, as it was something they felt they never got the chance to. a lot of survivor's guilt. they're riddled with anxiety, which makes them a very neurotic individual. they want to help everyone all the time and they want everyone to feel happy/comfortable/safe/welcome, which it's not something 100% possible to do and they end up getting overwhelmed.

blair is non-binary and bisexual, and while they're out to their friends, they're not out to their family. they don't have a good relationship with their mother. they were close to their father.

regarding high school story: i've mentioned before, but i see the game taking place in 2013 and it's set on blair's third year of high school. their best friends are autumn (of course) and payton, and they're really close to nishan as well. they're a nerd in game. they're in the cheer team and in the math team. they start dating wes sometime after the heist at hearst <- this causes them shame and guilty and everything else due to the... dynamics of their friend group.

i think that's it. there's probably more i can talk about, but i think this paints a good picture of their character. i can answer any questions about them and/or expand further on anything i've shared here!

[sazzujazzu]

Hello, as the days count down and the Bad Batch finale draws closer, may I show to the fine folks of tumblr my first Star Wars OC in 20 years, created thanks to this show? 😃

Too bad, I'm showing them anyway 😊 somberly chilling while listening to their bestie talk.

Please excuse the poor background (I got lazy) and half-finished Tech (I got sad)

there's, uh, a big mess of words under the image because I wanted to put into words the importance this show has for me, and I am bad at doing so.

I want to get some thoughts off my chest, because I have no one in my day-to-day life who cares about the animated Star Wars shows, and especially the Bad Batch. (well, other than my mom, but I don't want to bore her with my rambling too much. she already banned star wars from me once, i won't let that happen again lol)

I can't stop thinking how much I don't want Bad Batch to end.

This show has been so dear to me. I can't remember the last time I've loved something this much.

Before the second season started, I had an artistic block that had lasted way too long. Anything I drew or wrote, mostly turned out a horrible mess after staring at a blank page for hours and hours, if I ever managed to create anything at all. For someone who tends to draw whenever their hands aren't otherwise busy (aka all the damn time), such a block weighed down on my mental health.

Well, then season two happened, and full-on gave me back my love for Star Wars, a love that had somewhat gone out over the last few years. Then, Plan 99 happened, and broke me because again my favorite character "died" (I'm in team Tech lives until I draw my last breath or until proven correct. That chocolate-eyed cutie-pie is alive nothing will convince me otherwise). Pretty much after finishing the episode and staring at a wall for another 30 minutes, I said "nope" and began writing.

I wrote for hours. I believe it's been well over a decade since I last wrote fanfiction, but here I was, creating a Star Wars oc, something I'd last done as a ten-year-old. And now, roughly a year later, I think I've written over a hundred pages of (very self-indulgent) fanfiction with the Batch, and with my oc that I've come to love.

And drawing, oh boy, have I been drawing!

(... Sure, I've mostly been drawing Tech, over and over again, to a point I once actually considered lying and saying "yeah that's my boyfriend haha!" to a man at my job last summer, when asked who it was that I was drawing for maybe fifth day in a row 😂 likely would've been a more acceptable excuse for someone my age. But, I mean... I just really love drawing him, not only because he is my favorite character of maybe all time, but because he is just so fun to draw! And most of all, at least I draw again!)

And it is all thanks to this wonderful show about a bunch of defective and effective copy-paste boys and their sister.

It's probably something many say, but I've always felt like a bit of an outsider. I've felt like I have no place; when I was a kid, my interests were very different from the other kids of [gender assigned at birth], and trying to play with them while inserting my own interests into the games, often didn't go so well. I was... kind of an odd child (although now, older and questionably wiser, knowing that I might actually be autistic, many things make more sense now. me kind of discovering this about myself is also partially thanks to Bad Batch)

Also, growing up trans/non-binary, while not even knowing what that is or having a word for it, didn't really do much to help with the feeling of "I'm different and an outsider because of it". Perhaps it was one more reason I fell in love with Clone Force 99, because I could see some of myself in them. Being different from the "regs".

I love this show, and these fictional people have become my family, and I am not ready to say goodbye to them.

Alright, weird pile of thoughts over. In case someone read all this, uh... thanks 😊

[heyhoneyfox]

I have more OCs to share but they're in the Riordanverse 💞

(Left Image ID: a headshot image of a person made using a Picrew called OC creator by maetheellen. The person has powder blue hair in pigtails, droopy brown eyes, tan skin, red lips, and a white sweater. End ID)

(Right Image ID: a headshot image of a person using a Picrew called Character Maker by veluv_art. The person has brown shoulder length wavy hair, cute brown eyes, light skin, small features, and a CHB t-shirt under a grey flannel. They're wearing pink heart earrings, a flower crown, and a CHB bead necklace. End ID.)

On the left with the blue hair is Sasha, the non binary child of Hypnos. They may just be the sweetest demigod in existence, and any camper will tell you so. They assure every camper that their door is open 24/7, and if any of them have a nightmare, Sasha will cuddle them and sing them to sleep. They have nightmares too, but they feel that they need to stay silent about it. They're the one who helps others with their nightmares, not the other way around... Right?

On the right is Jasmine (Jazzy for short), the gender apathetic child of Aphrodite who mainly goes by he/him but otherwise doesn't care. He might just be the MOST nervous demigod to exist. Paired with his ADHD and dyslexia, he has extreme anxiety that is sometimes so overwhelming he passes out. He dated some toxic misogynist to get past the "break someone's heart" rite of passage without feeling bad, but it led to him having terrible relationship trauma. He specialises with a whip and dagger, but he doesn't like fighting. Most often, he's in the strawberry fields, his happy place.

Both Sasha and Jazzy are year-round campers. Once everyone's left at the end of summer, Jazzy basks in the calm emptiness, while Sasha worries for all the other demigods.

Jazzy has a long-term crush on Sasha, something he never admits to anyone. A lot of campers have this idea that Aphrodite kids should date Olympian demigod kids, ones who are conventionally strong or attractive or smart. Sasha isn't really any of those things, though they are cute and kind. At the same time, Jazzy feels that if he admits he has a crush, it'll turn into a big thing to set them up, and he doesn't want that. So, he avoids them, never going to them when he has nightmares, always just pretending to have no romantic feelings for them.

Sasha sees this distance between them as something to worry about. Jazzy is their friend, and so when he starts avoiding them, they feel like he's going through some kind of burnout or something. Not only that, but they really want to tell him about their crush on him.

It's well into fall, the weather becoming cool. Sasha is the only Hypnos camper that stays all year, and Jazzy is the only Aphrodite camper that stays all year. One night, Sasha has a terrible nightmare of being chased. They lie awake in the cold, too scared to fall back asleep. They keep thinking of Jazzy, worrying for him...

Their feet act on their own, bringing them to the Aphrodite cabin. They knock, waiting outside and shivering. Soon, Jazzy answers, confused. Sasha asks to stay in his cabin for the night. Jazzy reluctantly accepts, holding Sasha in his arms as he tries to calm his racing heart.

They sit in silence for a while, but then Sasha says "I love you." Jazzy, wanting to make sure he heard that right, says, "love, like... Love love?"

"Yes, love love."

After a moment's hesitation, he says, "I love you too."

Bonus facts!

They're both AFAB and quite feminine, despite not being girls

They call their relationship achillean/queer

Sasha is half Filipino

All of Sasha's clothes are made of the softest fabric comfortable. They're like a fluffy cloud <3

Strawberries and flowers are a big part of Jazzy's aesthetic

Their favourite dates are nap dates and picnic dates

Sasha is plus sized!

They prefer cuddles and hand-holding over kisses

Since they confessed their love in autumn, they can get used to being together without the other campers turning it into a big thing

When summer starts and the other campers arrive, Sasha and Jazzy completely forget that the others don't know they're dating, so they don't outright say anything and everyone is so confused

Sasha and Jazzy are the most CHILL partners ever. You could tell them you killed someone and they'd be like "oh really? Cool." Yes Jazzy has anxiety but around Sasha he mellows out quite a bit

They bake together all the time <3

[sapphicslender]

Greetings, I Am The Archivist.

I Come To Request Information For The Purpose Of Collection And Archival Of Slendlr And Adjacent. Would You Be So Kind As To Help Me Upon my Quest of Knowledge?

If So, Please Answer The Following Questions Below.

If You Do not Have An Answer to Questions Or Wish Not To Answer Some, Feel Free To Skip them. Some Questions May not Be Applicable To All Characters.

Additionally, All Questions Are Strictly For The Slendlr Character(S) Listed Here: Sapphic Slender

And May be Answered In Character Or By The Blog Moderator(S) Out Of Character And Are Not Asking For This Information Of The Moderator Themselves.

Questions

Character's Name/Aliases:

Nicknames (If Any, And By Who If Specific.):

Gender And Pronouns:

Orientation (If applicable.):

Are They A Slenderman (Regardless Of Gender), Slenderfolk, Slenderbeing Or Adjacent/Other/NA:

Status (Alive, Undead, A clone, Etc.):

Relationships (Romantic or Queerplatonic If Applicable):

Familial Relationships: (If Applicable):

Additional Relationships, Please Specify (Ex. Friends, Allies, Enemies):

Are They 'Related To/Based On' Any Specific Animal/Creature/Plant/Etc (Real Or Fantasy If Applicable):

The Character's Gimmick Beyond Being A Slender (If Applicable):

Is The Character And Adjacent Blog A Lore Heavy Blog:

Any Fun Facts You Think Are Important To Note:

Is There An Image/Drawing You Are Ok with The Archivist Using As A Visual Reference Of the Character Alongside The Written Archived Information Provided?

Final Question. If You Are Not Having A Good Day, The Archivist Hopes It Will Get Better.

Thank You For Your Time And For Answering What Questions You Felt Comfortable Providing Answers For. Have A Good Day.

,Sincerely The Archivist.

Sapphic, formerly River

N/A

Non-Binary, Any

Aro Lesbian

Slenderman

Alive, or whatever something is after being turned into a slender. Possibly undead?

N/A

I think one of the Heroes was my half-brother?

I think I’m friends with @lemon-slenderman, i stayed with it for a bit

Fish, maybe? I have fins.

Being a slender that’s sapphic

No, but there is some lore

None

[lewvithur]

OC: Rylzyne Auvryndar

well i did this for Brynnrae a few months back, and since this is December 8th, it has been a full year now since i brainstormed this Bhaalspawn babe who has won my heart. so let's talk about them and how they came to be.

meet Rylzyne!

(i was working on some art i meant to have ready for this post, but my tablet pen kept fucking up so you just get this)

now here's how it goes. i was wondering to myself what should i do for a Dark Urge run of Baldur's Gate 3. at the time, i was doing a run with a tiefling sorcerer named Zenith, but i was thinking about other things. then one night, while i was driving, a song happened to start playing, and that was Angel of Small Death and the Codeine Scene by Hozier. and that's when the idea snapped into place. this Durge would be the epitome of sex and death whose very presence is akin to a high one becomes dependent on. who loves to slit throats at any form of climax. who draws people into their crazy little world and then end them just as fast. the lyrics that stuck out to me was "straw blonde hair" and "tongue so mean". that was what i was working with.

the next day, i fucked around in the character creator to give myself ideas. i chose a short feathered bob, and then the idea came to me. i want this character to have Roxie Hart vibes. someone who could easily be seduced into evil by the fame that is promised by being a killer. this may have eventually melted away, but the conceit is there. someone who isn't good aligned. someone who is selfish. someone who likes killing. and in fact, someone who is not above manipulation and deception to get what they want, which is the finer things in life.

i also decided to make them non-binary, because frankly i will make any character non-binary if i wish. and that is why their name is Rylzyne by the way. i found a table for drow names, picked the first half from the male section and the second half from the female section. already, this makes them an anomaly among drow, as if the pale skin is not enough. these were fun little hints i put in to suggest that as a Bhaalspawn, they have no real connection to drow heritage. otherwise they'd most likely be fucking slaughtered for refusing to play into their matriarchal society by just straight up not having a gender.

a bunch of other things started to creep in. by making them a dual wielding fighter/rogue, they became an assassin, bhaal’s favourite little killer. everything about them is geared towards making them a streamlined perfect murderer. they’re light on their feet, barely eating, a waif that clings to the shadows and catches victims unaware. however, their favourite method is what they call the little death that starts the big death. they love to kill their victims during sex. that’s what that means.

in order to create perfect scenarios for themselves to kill without getting caught, they’ve developed a talent at reading people. their penchant for insight grants them opportunities, including one Enver Gortash. that said, their charisma could do with some work. while they do try to play the role of in-over-their-head ditz who is secretly a silver-tongued bastard who holds all the cards, the truth is they’re not a silver-tongued bastard. so when that mystique is destroyed, they reveal just how much of a brat they really are.

there is also a gamine aspect to their character, an impish boyish charm. they also aren’t good hearted, despite ultimately resisting the Urge. they only care to do good if it benefits them, and they dream of a life surrounded by jewels and gold and more people than they know what to do with. they want their name to go throughout Faerûn. Rylzyne, the most beloved killer. they’ll steal your heart. maybe literally. they love the image of a killer. the mystique it brings. the certain je ne sais quoi. all of that and more.

but even with all of this, there is one thing they crave more than anything else in existence. they crave control. and the Urge is a threat to this very control. there is poetry in a kill. it is an art form. and the Urge wants them to paint a canvas with nothing but splatters of blood. they want to be present within the moment. they don’t want to close their eyes and find a corpse mangled beyond recognition. and the moment they start holding people close to them, the last corpse they want to see is their loved ones. so their game is a tightrope act, balancing from embracing to resisting and then ultimately disposing of Orin and being reborn into their Urge-free self.

the way i imagine Rylzyne going from act to act is. act 1, they're tetchy and grumpy because of this headache and these urges, and since bloodlust is soothing them, they might as well indulge. that said, they think the tieflings aren't a satisfying enough kill, so they're hunting goblins instead. turns out they can do the good thing, if not for completely fucked up reasons. Alfira is an example of what a bad kill feels like. they do not know yet that the reason they didn’t like seeing Alfira dead is because it was out of their control. they just assume that it’s because this kill was too much. this is an outright gore fest that feels motivated by a deep primal hunger that they are trying to fill with a single slice. but hey, at least they aren’t making themselves sick by holding back. so they’ll gore it up. for now.

act 2 is when they realise that these orders from the butler are more structured. but Rylzyne doesn't like being told who to kill. they decide it for themselves. so they do what they can to not kill Isobel by hoping that spilling blood in the shadow cursed lands will make up for it. it doesn't, and now they're forced to put a hand on Astarion's neck. at least until they fight back. it is then when it hits them that they can't soothe the wound of murderlust with more murder. they want their body back. they want control. and they can't mindlessly kill their way to this control.

act 3 is finally when they turn over a new leaf, knowing that they are a Bhaalspawn and this is their birthright. now they know who to aim the knife at. Orin. they'll shed a tear for her because they see themselves in her. but in the end, they are still quite selfish, and if they have to spill Orin's blood to be rid of these urges, so be it.

post game, they'd realise their love of luxury is really mostly a fascination with jewels. the artistry and precision of cutting jewels is a skill they can practice quite well. they’d probably end the game running a jewel shop with all of their finest works for sale. at least, by day. by night, they’d play hero for a bit, killing for hire. maybe Astarion can join them too, if he’s up for it. but the important thing is they’re killing by choice, no longer to sate a hunger that has haunted their mind for too long.

that’s their story, but i did come up with some other bits of information.

one thing i developed is their thoughts surrounding food. as a Bhaalspawn, their concerns were keeping light, not concerning themselves with eating as that could weigh them down, and only ever feed the hole in their stomach with raw meat when they felt like feasting. it wouldn't really be until Astarion sits them down and offers them food that they realise "yeah if it helps him have tastier blood I'll do it, it’s all part of the transaction". and then they become more aware of the yawning ache within them, and they find whatever helps to ground them, whether it be a good meal, love, or indulgences they denied themselves because it wasn't murder.

there is also their view on sex. in some ways, it strengthen Astarion's views, in that they see him as part of a transaction. because of their emotional intelligence, they figure out quite quickly what he's doing, but they're willing to play along because it will motivate him to fight. and hey, he's the only person they've slept with that they haven't had the urge to kill because he's already dead! there's also the fact that he's the only one who is willing to let them indulge. so when he admits his feelings and admits he's been seeing this as a transaction, they assume that he knew that they knew this already, which is why it confuses them. but now that he’s putting his heart on the line, they will do the same. and they will hug. and it’s great.

so uhhhh that’s them!

on another note, i have to give many thanks to @abysskeeper for breathing life into this character through their commissions. after seeing these fun little conflicts with them and Astarion i've been given new angles i've seen this character through. it's added another dimension to them and i love it. stormy has taken a basic description and turned it into vignettes that speak to my vision. again, thank you so much. and check out their stuff! it is very good <3

[doctorstrangereview]

0013: Strange Tales #123

Cover Date: August 1964 On-Sale Date: May 12, 1964

Doc once again interacts with the Marvel Universe at-large. He faces a new-to-him, but not new foe. The Mighty Thor's sparring partner, Loki, visits our master sorcerer with evil intentions. Doc shares half the cover this round! His popularity must be growing. He's also got something weird going on with his hands that may be the colorist's bad decision. Doc's hands are flesh colored but his wrists are orange like his gloves. It's almost like the gloves are in multiple parts and Doc chose to wear only the gauntlet parts. However, no line creates a clear delineation between hands and possible gauntlets. The masterworks recoloring respects this odd choice. The Pocket Books reprints from 1978 did not and made them appear as regular gloves. The bottom of the splash page promises Thor putting in an appearance "drawn in the somewhat different Ditko style." Ditko is better at Kirby characters than Kirby is with Ditko characters.

Doc, enjoying a casual day (sans big cloak,) floats in his study attempting to master the art of levitation, while he is being spied on by Loki, Asgardian god of evil. At this point, Loki is pure evil and not the ambiguous, non-binary imp of today. As we've seen multiple times before, Doc isn't so hot on the security thing, mystic or physical so any magic user can peek on what's going on inside the Sanctum Sanctorum. Doc may be in the same study we've seen before, but the Sanctum's depiction has always been really inconsistent so who knows?

Loki spends several panels in long-winded exposition for the audience's sake which boils down to "I will trick Doctor Strange into stealing Thor's hammer for me!" He conjures a cool looking insect type sigil above his cauldron (which is really just a hole in the ground) and pops into Doc's Sanctum delivering Doc quite a surprise! He even dressed in odd chains for the occasion and blaming the "evil" Thor for his predicament!

Now, the Avengers have been around nearly as long as Doc has at this point and Loki has been annoying Thor for longer than that. Doc is also a highly skilled and well informed magic user. It seems to be stretching suspension of disbelief to think Doc is completely unaware of who Loki is. Yet, he seems to have never heard of Loki here. I guess no one had answered that Village Voice ad for continuity coordinator yet.

Doc's All-Purpose Amulet probes Loki's chains not suspecting that the evil he senses is Loki, not the fake Thor chains. "Dude! Only Thor's gnarly hammer can free me!" "Okay dude, but I need a piece of the hammer to cast the proper spell!" "What a coincidence! I have this little sliver of leather from the handle that I've been carrying around since the beginning of time!" "Perfect! Let's go!"

Doc throws the sliver into his own cauldron, mumbles some mumbo-jumbo and viola, a metal hand rises from the cauldron, flies off and grabs Thor's hammer. He's in mid-flight so he's got no where to go but down. Loki is able to see this and then imagines a giant version of himself standing on the earth with a giant version of the hammer, apparently unaware of the massive gravity disruption giant Loki with giant Mjolnir would cause.

Doc, using his own investigative skills and the All-Purpose Amulet sees there is no evil in that little, tiny bit of leather and realizes "It was Loki all along!" He might have been smart enough to deduce this, but not smart enough to not say it out loud. Loki's sharp ears (even though covered by his costume) catch this and he attacks Doc. Doc threatens to stop the spell which has stolen the hammer, which is probably something he should have done at that moment.

What follows is a visually spectacular battle between the two. Doc is severely outmatched by Loki, but soldiers on. There's some back and forth where Doc imprisons Loki who shrugs it off and Loki imprisons Doc who has a much more difficult time escaping. Using illusion images of himself, Doc hides in the next room, changes to his spirit form, sneaks up on Loki and cancels his "steal Thor's hammer spell."

The hand disappears and the caption reads that "time spins back, back... until, before Thor's fall finished..." Does this mean that Thor went splat? Did the spell rewind the world, like Superman in the first Christopher Reeve movie? The world may never know.

"Oh, hell!" thinks Loki, "I really need to hurry things along." Doc attempts to entrap Loki in the Purple Dimension, but that doesn't work. Doc uses the All-Purpose Amulet to throw up a shield as a last resort. Loki crouches like a monkey and uses what looks like a floppy lightning bolt to pummel Doc. It's quite a ridiculous panel! I love it!

Thor flies toward the Sanctum as Loki prepares to administer the coup-de-grace. "Damn it! Gotta go, Doc!" Loki's spirit form returns to Asgard as Thor flies by the Sanctum. We get a close-up look at Ditko's Thor. It's definitely different from the Kirby rendition, but it certainly isn't bad. In fact it's slightly more realistic.

Just wait until Kirby draws Doc again in a couple of months!

Thor's hammer stops tingling so he doesn't visit Doc but flies by the big, round Vishanti window as Doc looks out. Doc says some platitudes on how good must always triumph over evil out loud to himself and our story ends.

Well that was exciting! We get a truly one-sided battle where Doc is really overwhelmed by his foe. As a bonus, we get an Avenger guest starring. But that's really a cock-tease since he's more plot device than character. I really wish I could ask Lee and Ditko if Thor actually died in this story and was magically un-splatted. Visually, the battle between Loki and Doc is great. Ditko is getting more and more imaginative depicting magic. He is also getting lazier when it comes to backgrounds and they're mostly negative space. I suppose it helps when the funky chairs don't distract from the bolts of bedevilment. Overall, it was nice to have Doc interact with the rest of the Marvel Universe again, especially in his own series.

[piereoglyphics]

Genderbent names and hairstyles for Ninjago?

(keep in mind the images are just for the hairstyle, they dont dictate what ethnicity i may or may not headcanon the characters as)

Morro-- I feel like his name would be Fumika (It means wind in japanese!) And I feel like he'd rock a half up bun.

Kai's name would be Alicia-- for no particular reason. I think it just fits him. For his hairstyle it'd be jellyfish :]

Nya would be Ryo! it has a bunch of different meanings actually, one of which being dragon. Her hairstyle would also be a bun!!

Lloyd(Maybe his name would be Saina?) would keep his hair short I feel like. People say they dont like his avatar skin but I think its lovely and he would rock a mohawk.

Zane would probably have an afro imo!!!! His name would be Yuri(as a girl name) or Aspen(Non binary name)

Jay is difficult... His name could be Sofia or Samantha. An S of some sort. He'd have the LONGEST .. CURLIEST hair ever.

Cole would be Crystal. (Could be enby or womans name) Deadlocks for days :] he'd definetly have jewelry in there too. His dad would disagree with the style just because it would slap his face if he twirled....

TYSM for asking!!!! 💥💥

[proteas-leaf]

I noticed you're starting to show your characters cosplaying as Askthealphabet's... she's my girlfriend. And we agreed that I'd go into anon asks on her blog in the future and give some of her same-sex ships kiddos. And we both agree... Fang and Nelson's son, Aster is the cutest bby. Here he is.

And Liam and Owen's daughter Verdana is definitely the toughest, she already has the mentality of an adult. Owen is a half-demon, so Verdana is quarter-demon. She hates Owen but loves Liam because Liam was a victim of Owen's threats too. Owen is in jail now so Verdana and Liam are safe now. Here's Verdana.

This is her with her demon features out.

If you want to show them to your characters when they cosplay as my girlfriend's, you're free to do so! I figured I should give you permission because technically they're my OCs. Aster's personality is that he's hyper, super friendly, loves both his fathers, and he loves all animals. He's also a dumbass, but a lovable dumbass. He loves food, too. Use mouths with sharp teeth for him, he broke his own teeth to match Fang. He doesn't have pain receptors, so he can't feel pain.

Verdana is tough, doesn't put up with bullshit, and terrified of turning out to be like Owen. She's a lesbian, and she's overprotective of Liam.

( I did this in an ask and not in the messaging system so I could send multiple images )

Hello! Nice to meet ya :)

About Aster:

I really like him, he Is totally the opposite of Corazon, the smallest of the large family-

A Little thing...

I do not ship F and N. Hope this isn't a problem. The story Is long. F Is aromantic, but he became a Planet like Z (in my AU, Z Is F and Q's Father) so he still has kids. Five Kids. You can find them searching "Zodiac sings lore" I think. A thing about Corazon: he died when he was six because he got kidnapped by an ex friend of One of his Brothers (called Saith). The kidnapper's name is Voice and he killed Cor two days After the kidnapping.

If we talk about L and O, I totally ship them :D

They aren't divorced or something like that, they live happily with their Kids (collaboration with @peachdollrose ). O in the past was an idiot but he changed!

Thank you for the permission anyway!

OH, another thing.

I SUPPORT YOU AND YOUR GF❣️❣️❣️❣️❣️

I'm Aromantic non-binary! :)

[swearyshera]

And some more...

I did actually edit George's tattoo in Reunion to say, as Adora advised, 'boobs' instead of 'books'. So I might through another random edit in just to give people a little extra nugget of fun, like I do occasionally in the image descriptions.

Ok, yep, I hold my hands up on that one - it was very clumsy wording. I was referring to the way that DT's speech seems to border on blaming Catra for what Hordak and Shadow Weaver did to her. And that does track logically in the story, because Double Trouble only knows half of the story and is likely extrapolating. People have gone into this far more eloquently than I ever could. So, no, I don't think it's a huge problem given that it makes sense for DT's character to say, but at the same time, I want to make that speech a little more... I'm not sure of the word. You'll see what I mean, hopefully.

And yes, Scorpia did not call her out and leave her at the last second, but she did it long after she should have done. She's blinded by her attachment to Catra, and doesn't see that it's not healthy for either of them. If we're judging her by our real life standards, then she should have said that much earlier, but story must story.

There are a lot of series called Invisible, most of which ended before She-Ra did. Which one do you mean?

I'm non-binary, but you still scored 50% on the "sending facts" test.

[lemonpixycat]

THINGS I’VE NOW FOUND OUT UPON READING THINGS AND COMMENTS

1. Frankie’s VA is non binary, and an article I read has confirmed they/them pronouns for Frankie! So it is carrying over into this series! That’s cool! 2. Lagoona is latina! Love to see it! She’s described as “sweet yet ferocious”, so I’m really curious to see her personality. And she’s kind of a ‘fish out of water’ style character apparently, where she’s new to the world of land and is still learning things about it. Should make for an interesting character.

3. Clawdeen is half human. I think I can excuse the dog nose now, because somehow I think being humanoid with a dog nose makes MORE sense for some one that is half werewolf? I don’t know why I think that. it doesn’t make much sense but somehow it works for me now that I know she’s half human half werewolf.

4. Draculaura is apparently chubby! I dunno where people are getting the information from as I haven’t seen any fully body image of her yet, but it’s really cool if true. especially using one of the MAIN main ghouls. It’s clear that monster high has favored Draculaura more and more over the years and has put her somewhat center stage, so I think it’s huge to choose to use her as chubby rep. Especially since they’ve confirmed she’s a monster of color.

5. Toralei is from a well established monster family, which is really interesting as I wouldn’t have expected that from her character previously. I dunno if they’ll go this route, but in the original series, toralei told spectra this story about her being an orphan or something and ending up in jail, where bloodgood got her out and enrolled in MH? And it we never knew if that was the truth or not. For some reason, it is really hilariou st o me to think of her still telling that story to people when in reality the whole time she’s, like, a trust fund baby.  Would highly love it if they did this. I’m sure I’ll discover more as i read more and people tell me more, but so far, I’m getting more excited as I learn new things about this reboot. I can’t  to see more!

[aro-comics]

Fashion Analysis (Part 2: Outside of Amatonormativity Alone)

[Note: This post is a part of a series analyzing self-expression, fashion, aromanticism, and how they interact with other parts of identity. For full context please read the whole thing!]

Outside of Amatonormativity Alone: Sexism, Homophobia (and/or Transphobia), Racism, Ableism, and Other Factors That can Impact Self Expression 

My comic was originally meant to be a light hearted joke. I’d always been told I’d want to dress up one day, be pretty and feminine once I fell in love with a boy (BLEGH). I was so certain that I would never do that, and now … here we are. I put lots of effort into my appearance, present feminine, all in the hopes I’ll impress a very special someone - a potential employer at a networking event. I think there’s a certain irony to all of this, and I do find it funny that I managed to both be wrong and completely subvert amatonormative stereotypes! 

But having the chance to think about the whole situation, I realize now that my changes in presentation reflect far more. The pressure I felt to dress differently are still influenced by fundamental forms of discrimination in society, and I would be remiss to not address these inherent factors that were tied with my experiences alongside my aromanticism. So in this section, I will briefly cover some of these factors and summarize how they can influence people’s self expression as a whole, before discussing my own experiences and how these factors all intersect. 

Sexism

The pressure on women In This Society to uphold arbitrary norms is ever present and often harmful, and while I wish I had the time to discuss the impacts of every influence the patriarchy has on personal expression, to even try to cover a fraction of it would be impractical at best for this essay. Instead, since the original comic focuses on professionalism and presentation, this is what I will talk about here. 

Beauty standards are a specific manifestation of sexism that have a deep impact on how people perceive women. It’s a complicated subject that’s also tied with factors like capitalism, white supremacy, classism, and more, but to summarize the main sentiment: Women are expected to be beautiful. Or at least, conform to the expectations of “feminine” “beauty” as ascribed by the culture at large. 

They also tend to be considered exclusively as this idea that "women need to be beautiful to secure their romantic prospects, which subsequently determines their worth as human beings. The problematic implications of this sentiment have been called out time and time again (and rightfully so), however there is an often overlooked second problematic element to beauty standards, as stated in the quote below: 

“Beauty standards are the individual qualifications women are expected to meet in order to embody the “feminine beauty ideal” and thus, succeed personally and professionally” 

- Jessica DeFino. (Source 1) 

… To succeed personally, and professionally. 

The “Ugly Duckling Transformation” by Mina Le (Source 2) is a great video essay that covers the topic of conforming to beauty standards through the common “glow up” trope present in many (female focused) films from the early 2000s. 

“In most of these movies, the [main character] is a nice person, but is bullied or ignored because of her looks.”

Mina Le, (timestamp 4:02-4:06)

Generally, by whatever plot device necessary, the ugly duckling will adopt a new “improved” presentation that includes makeup, a new haircut, and a new wardrobe. While it is not inherently problematic for a woman to be shown changing to embrace more feminine traits, there are a few problems with how the outcomes of these transformations are always depicted and what they imply. For starters, this transformation is shown to be the key that grants the protagonist her wishes and gives her confidence and better treatment by her peers. What this is essentially saying is that women are also expected to follow beauty standards to be treated well in general, not only in a romantic context, and deviation from these norms leads to the consequences of being ostracized. 

The other problematic element of how these transformations are portrayed are the fact that generally the ONLY kind of change that is depicted in popular media is one in the more feminine direction. Shanspeare, another video essayist on YouTube, investigates this phenomenon in more detail in “the tomboy figure, gender expression, and the media that portrays them” (Source 4). In this video, Shaniya explains that “tomboy” characters are only ever portrayed as children - which doesn’t make any sense at face value, considering that there ARE plenty of masculine adult women in real life. But through the course of the video (and I would highly recommend giving it a watch! It is very good), it becomes evident that the “maturity” aspect of coming of age movies inherently tie the idea of growth with “learning” to become more feminine. Because of the prevalence of these storylines (as few mainstream plots will celebrate a woman becoming more masculine and embracing gender nonconformity) it becomes clear that femininity is fundamentally associated with maturity. It also implies that masculinity in women is not only not preferred, it is unacceptable to be considered mature. Both of these sentiments are ones that should be questioned, too. 

Overall, I think it is clear that these physical presentation expectations, even if not as restrictive as historical dress codes for women have been, are still inherently sexist (not to mention harmful by also influencing people to have poor self image and subsequent mental health disorders). Nobody should have to dress in conformity with gender norms to be considered “acceptable”, not only desirable, which leads us to the second part of this section. 

Homophobia (and/or Transphobia)

So what happens when women don’t adhere to social expectations of femininity? (Or in general, someone chooses to present in a way that challenges the gender binary and their AGAB, but for the sake of simplicity I will discuss it from my particular lens as a cis woman who is pansexual). 

There are a lot of nuances, of course, to whether it’s right that straying from femininity as a woman (or someone assumed to be a woman) will automatically get read a certain way by society. But like it or not, right or not, if you look butch many people WILL see you as either gay, (or trans-masculine, which either way is not a cishet woman). This is tied to the fact that masculinity is something historically associated with being WLW (something we will discuss later). 

This association of breaking gender norms in methods of dress with being perceived as a member of the LGBTQ+ community has an influence on how people may choose to express themselves, because LGBTQ+ discrimination is very real, and it can be very dangerous in many parts of the world. 

I think it’s very easy to write off claims in particular that women are pressured into dressing femininely when it is safer to do so in your area; but I really want to remind everyone that not everyone has the luxury of presenting in a gender non-conforming way. This pressure to conform does exist in many parts of the world, and can be lethal when challenged.

And even if you’re not in an extremely anti-LGBTQ+ environment/places that are considered “progressive” (like Canada), there are still numerous microagressions/non-lethal forms of discrimination that are just as widespread. According to Statistics Canada in 2019: 

Close to half (47%) of students at Canadian postsecondary institutions witnessed or experienced discrimination on the basis of gender, gender identity or sexual orientation (including actual or perceived gender, gender identity or sexual orientation).

(Source 3)

Fundamentally this additional pressure that exists when one chooses to deviate from gender norms is one that can not be ignored in the conversation when it comes to how people may choose to express themselves visually, and I believe the impacts that this factor has and how it interacts with the other factors discussed should be considered. 

Neurodivergence (In general): 

In general, beauty standards/expectations for how a “mature” adult should dress can often include clothing that creates sensory issues for many autistic people. A thread on the National Austistic Forum (Source 6) contains a discussion where different austistic people describe their struggles with formal dress codes and the discomfort of being forced to wear stiff/restrictive clothing, especially when these dress codes have no practical purpose for the work they perform. If you’re interested in learning more on this subject, the Autisticats also has a thread on how school dress codes specifically can be harmful to Autistic people (Source 7). 

In addition to potentially dressing differently (which as we have already covered can be a point of contention in one’s perception and reception by society as a whole), neurodivergence is another layer of identity that tends to be infantilized. Eden from the Autsticats has detailed their experiences with this in source 5. 

Both of these factors can provide a degree of influence on how people choose to express themselves and/or how they may be perceived by society, and are important facets of a diverse and thoughtful exploration of the ways self-expression can be impacted by identity. 

Also, while on this topic, I just want to take a chance to highlight the fact that we should question what is considered “appropriate”, especially “professionally appropriate”, because the “traditional” definitions of these have historically been used to discriminate against minorities. Much of what gets defined as “unprofessional” or otherwise “inappropriate” has racist implications - as an example, there is a history of black hairstyles being subjected to discriminatory regulation. Other sources I have provided at the end of this document (8 and 9) list examples of these instances.  

Racism (being Chinese, specifically in this case): 

For this section, I won’t be going into much depth at all, because I actually have a more detailed comic on this subject lined up. 

So basically, if you were not aware, East Asian (EA) people tend to be infantilized and viewed as more childish (Source 10). In particular, unless an EA woman is super outgoing and promiscuous (the “Asian Bad Girl” stereotype, see Source 10), IN MY OPINION AND EXPERIENCE it’s easy to be type casted as the other end of the spectrum: the quiet, boring nerd. On top of this too, I’ve had experiences with talking to other EA/SEA people - where they themselves would repeatedly tell me that “Asians are just less mature”,  something about it being a “cultural thing” (Yeah … I don’t know either. Maybe it’s internalized racism?). 

Either way, being so easily perceived as immature (considering everything discussed so far) is also tied to conformity to beauty standards and other factors such as sexism and homophobia, which I believe makes for a complex intersection of identity. 

[Note from Author: For Part 3, click here!]

[followtheowls]

For a fic prompt, could you possibly write something about Ezra being injured and the medbay and Kanan and Hera are waiting for him to wake up/are worrying. Thank you so much :)

Thanks for this prompt <3 I also used it as a part of my ficlet series on ao3! I hope you like it

tw: medical talk (nothing to gory or graphic though), non graphic mention of injury

fandom: star wars rebels

characters: Kanan Jarrus, Hera Syndulla, Ezra Bridger

Words: 1.7k

The Medbay was not a quiet place, Kanan decided. He took in his surroundings from his place in his chair, in the corner of the small Medbay that was designated for waiting. He could hear the medics bustle around chatting and moving from one patient to another, the medical droids zooming around looking for their next task or procedure, and the medical equipment and machinery hum and creak while they carried out their functions. He could hear the beeping and chattering of binary from the droids, and the medics’ attempt at a hushed conversation. To Kanan, it seemed ironic that a place for healing and resting would be so incredibly noisy, but then again, he was probably more sensitive to it than most. He found that the loss of his vision had forced his other senses to adapt and subsequently become more sensitive to compensate for the loss of his eyesight.

The scent of bacta was thick in the air. So thick, in fact, Kanan could feel it burn his nostrils as he breathed in. The scent provided almost an instant headache, and his stomach churned as it reminded him of agonizing memories, in this very Medbay, from his recovery after returning from Malachor. Nothing eased the effect of the smell, it was something that was burned into his memory unchangeable. Even breathing through his mouth was only a half solution, the odor was so saturated and overwhelmed the air that he could almost taste it. Kanan wondered how the medics were able to work here all day. They probably become desensitized to it, he thought, too much time spent alongside it to let it bother them anymore. Kanan hoped he wouldn’t have to spend enough time in this overwhelming environment to even get near the point of getting used to it.

Kanan felt like a raw nerve, exposed and vulnerable. There was a lot to try to keep track of through the Force, and though he had grown accustomed to using the Force to guide himself through life, right now it was taking extra concentration to center himself. He was feeling everything too keenly. He jumped as he felt someone brush his side accidentally, sitting down in the seat next to him. Hera, he thought. He felt her hand slip into his and squeeze. He returned the gesture, squeezing back with equal pressure. He waited for her to speak first. 

“The medical droid says if all has gone well in surgery that they should be finished soon. He’ll probably be put in a bacta tank for a day or two, depending on how well the surgery goes. They didn’t have any other information to give us.” She stated quietly. Kanan just nodded and tightened his grip on her hand. They sat in silence for several minutes, and Kanan once again became ambushed by the chaos of the medbay.

He prided himself on his ability to remain calm in stressful situations, something that had been hammered into him during his upbringing at the Jedi Temple, but, at the moment, he could feel himself begin to drift from those teachings. Somewhere in Medbay, his padawan, his son in everything but blood, was lying broken and exposed on a table in an operating room, with several surgeons working hard to save his life. He needed to find his balance and his center, but he didn’t know how to do that when he was teetering on the edge of losing everything. 

He should’ve been on the mission, Kanan scolded himself. He should have been there to look out for Ezra, to protect him from what he hadn’t learned yet or from the hate of the Empire. Force knows no one ever did that for Ezra before Kanan was around. Kanan could even fathom imaging the possibility of losing Ezra now. That’s not how it was supposed to go, children were not supposed to go before their parents, it’s against the natural laws of the universe. 

Hera spoke up suddenly. “Stop,” she said sharply. “I know you. Don’t do that.”

“What?” Kanan responded, genuinely confused.

“You’re blaming yourself. I can see it all over your face. This is not your fault or my fault. The Empire. They did this,” she hissed, her anger a white hot presence in the Force. He just hummed in agreement and stroked his thumb over the back of her hand.

Several more minutes passed, it was hard to tell how long they sat there not speaking, just waiting. It could’ve been five minutes or an hour. Kanan really couldn’t tell. He felt Hera stiffen next to him and sit up straighter, and through the noise of the Medbay, he could hear footsteps getting louder and moving towards them. Together they both stood to greet the medic.

“He’s alive and he made it through the surgery. It was touch and go for a while, and his heart arrested once on the table, but we were able to successfully revive him and repair his internal injuries,” explained the medic. Kanan let out a shaky breath he didn't even know he was holding, and slid back into his seat, nauseated and tortured by the knowledge that his padawan’s heart had stopped. 

Hera’s voice shook as she found the strength to speak. “Thank you so much. Will there be any long term effects? Any lasting issues we need to know about? And can we see him?”

“He will, hopefully, make a full recovery,” responded the medic. “There is a very small possibility that there could be some neurological deficits caused by lack of oxygen to his brain during the time that his heart stopped. But, in my professional opinion, I think that possibility is extremely low due to how quick we were able to restart his heart, but we won’t know until he wakes up. Otherwise, he is young and strong, and it is expected that he should recover just fine. though he will need to take it easy and rest for a few weeks. Right now, we have him immersed in a bacta tank to ensure a speedy recovery. I can take you both to see him if you like.”

Hera let out a cry of relief and happiness and she bent down to tackle Kanan in a desperate embrace. He returned it with equal ferocity, almost numb with relief. If the situation wasn’t so dire and serious, Kanan maybe might have made a joke and pointed out just how mom Hera was being. It would have been funny if the situation wasn’t so, just, not funny. The tears were evident in Hera’s voice when she responded that yes, they would like to go be with him, but Kanan was not one to judge. He knew if he had functioning tear ducts, he would’ve been bawling minutes ago.

The medic led them out the door and into a big open room adjacent to where they just waited. Kanan could sense a few medical technicians and droids fluttering around doing their jobs, but his focus immediately snapped to the muted-but-thankfully-still-there presence of Ezra that was emitting from what was presumably inside the bacta tank in the center of the room. While Kanan was his usual brand of stoic and silent, next to him Hera let out a half-suppressed, choked gasp. The medic respectfully excused himself to give them space, telling them he would be in his office if they needed anything.

Beside him, Kanan heard Hera let out another water breath, and he felt her struggle in the Force to contain herself and her emotions. He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her into his side, prompting her to lean into him. It was just as much for his support as it was for hers. It would be okay, they could be unbalanced together. 

Hera shook under his arm, and he felt her lose a bit of the emotional battle she had been fighting. He heard the small plops of tears as they slipped off her chin and made contact with their clothing. He squeezed her a little tighter and whispered reassurances that Ezra would be okay, trying his best to be comforting, but certainly feeling like he was failing. Kanan was hovering between a mix of not knowing what to say and navigating his own residual numbness, shock, and terror from the terrifying moments when he hadn’t known if he still had a living son or not.

After a minute or two of silence between them, Hera, always the most verbal with her emotions, spoke up. “Kanan, he - he,” she was cut off involuntarily by a forceful sob. She attempted to gather herself and start again. “He - just - he looks s-so young,” she whispered, her words choppily cut apart by sobs. “And so f-fragile, in there. The tank is so b-big and - and he just looks so small.” She finished her sentence, and abandoned any premise of maintaining her composure by dissolving into quiet, but powerful tears. She turned away from the sight of their kid in the tank and leaned into him fully, pressing her wet face into his sweater. 

Kanan couldn’t or didn’t have the capacity to imagine what she was looking at. He couldn’t bring his mind to produce that image for him. But, for the very first time in the eight months since becoming blind, he didn’t actively wish for his sight back. At this point, Kanan had mostly accepted his blindness, and had learned to lead his life without sight. But, typically the most emotional moments with his family were the moments he truly wished for his vision. But not right now. He knew that the scene in front of them would be seared into Hera’s memory for life, but something deep inside him, he realized guiltily, was relieved he couldn’t see it. Relieved, because, maybe, he hoped, this way the image wouldn't haunt him. That he wouldn’t go to sleep at night and dream of it, or freeze in the midst of a firefight for fear of seeing it again. Just in that fleeting moment, he felt grateful. Grateful that he didn’t have to see what Hera was seeing, Ezra hurt and broken, and suspended in bacta while connected to a million wires. Grateful that Ezra was going to recover. Grateful for more moments with his family.

[hag-rambling-on]

Boys hc’s feats Diaspro

Riven

Riven Cassios was born to two Omega prisoners. What surprised everyone, because staying healthy enough to carry out a pregnancy on a planet that sucks your magic is... Obviously the Rocalucce Council keeps an eye on the planet, they took him out of there because no child would pay because his parents, and he has been in foster homes, although it doesn't last long since the requirements for his adoption were more strict than most -which in the long run the Council would realize was COUNTERPRODUCTIVE for his character-. That is what Darcy detects and why the high spheres are somewhat "permissive" with him.

His mother died giving birth, it was already miraculous that she lived so long and ‘bout his father I think I'm going to kill him too, maybe. The father I assure you would be love him (he called Riven to himself Daru, his gift) thought was not his initial idea, the mother always saw him as an experiment (she was a witch who followed the Ancenstresses). Ohm, also in his blood there are dark elves and giants.

Riven surname is actually the name of the galaxy where he was born or a derivation of it, as is common for orphans. So the boy knows NOTHING about the above.

Timmy and Riven are the only specialists who have passed the full course at Fonterossa, without skips. In the end they bond about it. Timmy gives him a recommendation to work as a part-time mechanic at Magix (good boy face, he knows how to use it)

Timmy

Timeus “tshhhh, it’s Timmy.... i’m not my grandfather” fulfills the physique requisits as much as any other specialist, but it is true that his physique and abilities, adapted to the distance, give him a more "feline" air.

He is also the one who wakes up at night and moves silently, scaringthe rest of the squad if they wake up unexpectedly.

His glasses are for both sight and Aura Vision. His parents are rich enough to pay for an operation, but since he would have to wear glasses for his ability anyway, why? Practical guy.

And the glasses make people look down on him, something that when his self-esteem is high and he’s being rational and cunning he knows it’s wonderful, although many others times may hurt. He is mostly leprechaum with something human.

Nex

Nex is still a Paladin born in Lymphea and with blood of literally ALL races. He adapts well to any planet, although not its people at first. His race mix makes his face “charismatic”, like always draw attention even if people don’t know very well why they are draw.

His ability is Delay Sleep. It allows him to hold over his need to sleep for days without going crazy or losing physical capacity or needing many days to recover (he can stay awake for 5 or more days, sleep 8-10 hours and go back to being his usual self). Sometimes he does not control this well and has plenty of energy in need of drop but he is the one who has the most control of his ability.

One of his parents spent time in Rocalucce Fortress as a "guest" so at times he feels like he has something to prove.

Roy

Coming from Andros, most of the population are merpeople with a few elves and humans. which avoids the 100% aquatic population. Roy, unlike Aisha is mostly human-elf with a bit of merpeople in a grandgrandgrand level. One of his parents comes from one of the colonies on the moons of Andros and he was born there although they moved almost immediately.

Roy’s paladin ability being the canon “Triton Aura” used to breathe underwater. That and learning to swim and drive all kinds of water vehicles was what made him feel "adapted" to Andros. But he always try to be useful.

He only became a Paladin at the beginning of season 6, and it was visiting him that the season began. He’s bi but he thinks of himself as straight.

Nabu

I plead guilty to liking Nabu even though I shipped Aisha with Flora and Nex. So I have a hard time thinking about him. Except, EVERY time I try to think of something. EVERY TIME. Rapunzel. So, he will never cut his hair.

But with an island instead of a tower and a babysitter (male and wizard) more dumbledoor (not, actually more like Newt Scamander mentor like).

Sometimes he misses out on some "social customs/things/normalcies" whatever is called due to his little dealing with people. He may seem naive or that don't understand sarcasm. He understands and learns quickly, but people were very respectful to him and there are things he is not used to. 1/2 merpeople 1/4 half elf 1/4 human as both of his parents are half merpeople.

He likes to swim as much as any merpeople, but they didn't let him do it much because they were afraid he would go away or lost, so he usually went off "to the heights", going up to the rooftops and things like that.

Helia

Helia is trans but keeps his first name as chosen name which I don’t understand. Also he has formally tried study practically everything he wanted. Specialist, Paladin, Wizard (of Threads). Painter.

He can't make up his mind, his family hurries him just to STOP making them dizzy and spend a few years with everything -and actually end a single “major” choice- he wants to experience, that he has a very long life and can dedicate a few decades to Everything and they can support them. Well, more or less, but he was vip pass to all these options because family connections.

Long story about Sky, Brandon and Dia.

Sky, Brandon and Diaspro's first meeting was a show. Has it all. Costumes, lies. Confusion. Kidnapping. And that is why Diaspro insists on the wedding (I would like to mention that although I don’t know her romantic orientation yet surely bi or lesbian, here, Dia is asexual. And Sky is non-binary but his parents do not approve so go for he/him to avoid problem with them. And here our story begins)

A bit of background. Brandon actually hails from Isis, the son of the military and was chosen by the whimsical chibi!Diaspro as a playmate and future personal guard (because then she believed that touching children gave "lice" and her character and age did not have the 18like wall of royal education, then in a random encounter he called her among many things what Dia's mind translated in a strange way "uncracked geode", which is a double-edged compliment in Isis that many would not accept from strangers but she liked it). Rarely they would end up becoming friends in the end. When the series begins, Brandon and Diaspro keep up with calls, which will prevent Dia's reaction with Bloom on the one hand.

On a visit (officially only from the kings of Erakyon to to the kings of Isis) for the children to get to know each other, somehow, they all ended up happily dressing up, with Sky and Dia looking like two pretty princesses and Brandon assessing whether his dress would be green or yellow because Diaspro insisted that she and Sky had already taken the blue and red and so it would be more "thematic".

Here began the first of many attacks on Sky's head, because before it had begun to be rumored (true) that Erendor had fertility problems (btw his race dwarf-high elf and Samara is leprechaum-high elf, Sky gots mostly high elf part). When they came in and saw two girls and a boy, Brandon, not the highest IQ, but one of the wisest of his team and definitely the best fighter, played along so he ended up pretending to be Sky (also helps that his hair colors looks like Erendor) Everything worked out well in the end, although Brandon ended up as Sky's squire (better for him, worse for Diaspro), and Diaspro made Sky promise that he owed her a big favor. Anyway they grew up over the years in friendship and they both knew they were not of each other's true love interest, but, they could put up with each other (because that's what royalty does).

Sky and Diaspro have a sonorous (affectionate) war over Sky's hair to annoy/exasperate Brandon. Diaspro always complains that he doesn't grow it and it would look great then. Sky says that he is fine as with his hair at it is (it's actually Erendor's thing). The soft part of Diaspro that she doesn't usually show off has taught Sky many ways to style his hair and subtly put on makeup to look more feminine if he wants to.

How I am amused by that image from wikipedia and that Diaspro entered Sky's guard so quickly. Another headcanon is that Diaspro would sometimes change her appearance a bit and go into Sky's guard to be with Brandon to annoy him and Sky, when Brandon has to talk about her without giving details, she is simply "his sister Charbonne" (she hates that alias). They were discovered when she was 15 years old but she had already trained and the royal families considered it a sign to formalize the engagement since “they search each other” (people only sees what they wants).

The Diaspro family is not good, first Brandon was a shield (emotional) because as a child they were not “that” bad and then Sky joined him (physically and politically), handling things with Bloom so like that was not a good idea when the floor was full of cracked bottles.

... omg i’m sorry you three i’m sorry what I did to you

Also, Brandon's ability as a green user is very interesting and helps with this a lot. I temporally call it “Keypoint Warning” and I like it a lot, it's like a "tic" that tells him "be careful, what you say, what you do now, even the smallest thing could change everything for youself (for better or for worse)”. He actually has a scar on his forehead (not a lightning bolt) that his hairstyle hides after “that” day but a little less fine on the words and the kidnappers might have broken his mouth so... His parents have been cured (spoiler: no) of heart attack since then.

[zedecksiew]

“Exotic Warrior”

(Am writing this because it’s been bubbling over in my mind. This post is an exorcism of bad vibes over bad ideas that have held me hostage, the past few days.)

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There is now criticism on Twitter arguing that the “Exotic Warrior”, one of Troika!’s d66 Backgrounds, is racist because it is coded as Orientalist / Asian.

I would like to respectfully disagree.

(There are other arguments in the initial complaint. I am commenting the “Exotic Warrior” specifically. Because by being actually East Asian -- part of the diaspora, living in Southeast Asia -- I feel I have some standing to comment.)

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When I encountered “Exotic Warrior” in the book it stood out as a neat background and helped sell me on Troika!.

As I read it, the Background is a deft piece of work: it references the “adventurer from a foreign land” thing, but occludes said trope’s usual Orientalism -- an attempt at deconstruction.

A foreigner, in Troika!, can be anybody. This isn’t just a platitude; it’s supported by the book’s implied science-fantasy setting -- is essentially Spelljammer, but on more acid.

It is similar to Electric Bastionland / Planescape / etc in that it features a melting-pot, nobody’s-local “city at the centre of creation”-type deal. (I have Thoughts about RPG setttings that focus on metropoles, but that’s a separate post.)

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Here’s the “Exotic Warrior” ’s text, in full:

24 EXOTIC WARRIOR No one has heard of your homeland. Your habits are peculiar, your clothes are outrageous, and in a land jaded to the outlandish and new you still somehow manage to stand out.

POSSESSIONS - A WEIRD & WONDERFUL WEAPON. - STRANGE CLOTHES. - EXCITING ACCENT. - A TEA SET or 3 POCKET GODS or ASTROLOGICAL EQUIPMENT.

ADVANCED SKILLS 6 Language - Exotic Language 3 Fighting in your Weird Weapon 2 Language - Local Language 2 Spell - Random 1 Astrology 1 Etiquette 

Honestly? None of the above reads as particularly problematic. It’s a legit, characterful beginning point for a player-character.

Sure, my Western-media-battered brain jumps to Samurai Warrior -- 

But immediately also to Sufi Missionary or Varangian Guard. And indeed comes to rest at Indeterminately White Gentleperson Naturalist -- the kind of exotic visitor Southeast Asia got, a lot, those scouts of European imperialism.

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These readings are possible because of the illustration the entry is paired with. Here they are together:

Setting aside the surrealist stylisations:

The shape of the costume, the belt, the “skirt” -- these look like Europeanisms, to me. And the figure’s laughing abandon opposes the standard Orientalist tropes of wise inscrutability or red-faced savagery.

The choice to run “Exotic Warrior” with a decidedly non-Orientalist-coded illustration isn’t an unintentional piece of art direction.

(PS: any critique of an illustrated text that only focuses on the words is incomplete. Image is half the text of an illustrated text.)

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The nondescript-ness of the entry plus its accompanying image is an open door. Opening this door isn’t without risk: whatever assumptions you make about your particular “Exotic Warrior” are drawn from your own biases.

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Regarding “Etiquette” and “Astrology” and “Tea Set”?

With my biases: I don’t read these things as uniquely East-Asian. (When I first encountered “tea set” in Troika! I genuinely thought: “English tea service”, instead of: “temae”.)

The one that I did read as real-world Eastern was “Pocket Gods” -- but many human cultures had this, pocket gods are a part of Troika!’s wider fantasy setting, and “Exotic Warrior” isn’t the only Background to start with them.

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A note on “exotification”:

The criticism of “Exotic Warrior” fundamentally seems to be: “Playing a character from the Other / that is Other-ed = BAD”.

I fundamentally disagree with this notion.

I have no lived experience of a society where being other-ed (in terms of culture, race, class, gender expression, etc) isn't an ever-present thread in the fabric of one's life -- and therefore a crucial and profound source of conflict and insight into the human condition.

(The ethnic fault-lines in Malaysian society have become so unbridgeable today primarily because it was official policy to sweep all that other-ing under the rug of “Malaysia Truly Asia”, as opposed to working through our ugly whispered prejudices towards understanding.)

We are not all the same. Cultural, geographic, and material differences exist. The mismatch in knowledge and understanding this creates? It matters.

In fact: To insist on universal cultural-knowledge parity; To push for “nobody’s born here, everybody belongs” melting-pots as the default framing; To nudge questions of difference and arrival into ghettos (to paraphrase one of the tweets I saw: “you can only explore issues surrounding the Other in a game specifically designed to do so”);

All that comes off to me as a very neo-liberal position, designed to safeguard and disguise the privileges of “mainstream” metropolitan melting-pots.

I read it as:

“Post-modern cosmopolitan societies want to be inclusive but don’t want to pay the admission price of history and discomfort, so they generally opt for erasure instead.”  

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Throughout this post I have been careful to speak from my particular context. Because context matters.

More context:

I like Troika!. Like, a lot. I think its creator, UK-based Daniel Sell, strives and succeeds at making thoughtful work. I consider him a friend, whom I’ve had personal (albeit Internet-bound) interactions now and again.

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I have BJ Recio to thank for the following insight. Talking to him about “Exotic Warrior”, BJ brought up a crucial point that I’ll paraphrase here:

Roleplaying the outsider can be bad, especially when it is used as an excuse by the West to do fucked-up shit. But it is not default bad. Assuming it is default bad centres the discussion on “Will White people fuck this up? (Yes.)”

Essentially, the argument against “Playing a character from the Other / that is Other-ed = BAD" assumes two things:

(a) Western participants as default; (b) harm (because of ignorance or bad faith) as default.

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If your context -- your Background, hah! -- prompts you to experience Troika! with those assumptions; and therefore read “Exotic Warrior” as necessarily Orientalist, and racially-charged?

Your context is your context; I’m not going to invalidate it.

If you are located in a society where the binary of White / non-White overpowers everything, I certainly understand the whys and hows of your position.

Your context matters.

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So does mine.

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I think I’m reacting badly to this because I personally feel turned away by this RPG Discourse Around Representation (tm), supposedly done in the name of my East-Asian ass.

I resent the idea that “Playing a character from the Other / that is Other-ed = BAD”. It threatens to render verboten the entirety of my RPG work.

I am a SEA creator trying to explore and be true to my context. If there is one constant throughout SEAsian experience, it is difference.

Our peoples have ever encountered and glamourised and hated each other, all of us simultaneously Us and the Other:

Japanese and Malay enclaves in Ayutthaya; Mongol invaders in Java, who never left; Luzones mercenaries, employed by both the Sultan of Melaka and his Portuguese enemies; The reputation of the Ilanun / Bajak Laut; White conquistadors (aforementioned above); The entire history of diaspora Chinese identities (my identity!) in SEA, generally;

Foreigners from foreign lands -- feared, not fully understood, not fully understanding, simultaneously conquering and settling and finding modes of belonging, becoming a part of the land.

Always arriving.

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That the background music of my geography, discordant though it may be, is somehow so harmful it may only be meaningfully depicted in the hermetic context of a “game specifically designed to explore that”?

This feels bad, and extremely unwelcoming. It feels like a shut gate instead of an open door.

I refuse to be turned away.

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(Hopefully I can finally stop thinking about this shit.)