#indirections verse

[lizardrosen]

i believe heart and soul that MULTIPLE TIMES laertes has listened to the Mary Ellen Carter and started sobbing to osric/rey/ophelia/some-fellow-commuter because "they love their ship!! they made her rise again! it's so beautiful" because he's a sentimental young man

and in the laertes survives verses, eventually he gets to a point where whoever's keeping him alive feels confident in playing it for him, and tells him "you did it, it was hard but you rose again" and then he's sobbing some more and realizing how in love he is

[cherrywhite]

Paige and hayward dynamic makes me sooooooo [smashes my fist against a brick wall]. My prophet and me. The prophet and her paladin. Do you trust him? Strangely enough..more than anyone. That a wedding band? You thought I was married? Maybe divorced. Why divorced??? And I wanted you to know, when we looked back on today, that we waited for him as long as we possibly could. If I never failed, I wouldn't be here. Winning at skimming stones. I'll put my faith in Paige, if I have to put it in anyone. Give me the gift of watching you walk away.

[spiderman2-99]

Here's a question. What if a spiderperson technically... wasn't a spiderperson?

... then they wouldn't be a Spider-Person?

[unbloodiedmartyr]

damn,,, faulkner kill count up to six. rip sibling raine, you were a real one

[flugelmann]

/forgotten prompt you're making a big deal out of nothing. i'll be fine. @w4rche1f

― “ Why  the  hell  are  you  coughing  then?  Because  you're  fine? ”     such  a  scowl  from  an  old  hat  shines  as  new  as  can  be,  his  sarcasm  oozing  out  as  a  fresh  cut.  Every  insistence  that  Zeke  had  been  ‘okay’  was  met  with  prompt  coughing  from  one,  and  a  proper  ‘tching’  from  the  other.  Levi  pushed  Zeke  down  by  the  shoulders  and  walked  with  a  purposeful  step  toward  his  bag,  rifling  through  it  for  medication.  Zeke  may  not  be  sick  in  an  obvious  way,  but  that  wouldn't  stop  him  from  catching  whatever  Zeke  was  carrying.  He  didn't  care  if  Zeke  was  sick  or  not,  he  only  hated  his  pathetic  face.  The  way  he  seemed  to  whine  that  he  didn't  require  care.  Hated  it.  Hated  him.

Zeke  had  gotten  up  again,  but  Levi  shoved  him  down  by  the  shoulder,  taking  his  canteen  of  water  and  handing  it  over.    “ SIT.  I'll  just  take  care  of  you  myself – I  don't  want  to  get  sick,  bastard. ” 

[leatherbookmark]

god and speaking of rap songs and production behinds i thought shinogi was like, officially and properly an homage to kendrick lamar's swimming pools given how THE SAME it is. like i thought oh it's so nice they did it! but it's... not... credited properly at all...? like they only credited one japanese guy for composition arrangement and lyrics. huh? eh? wh

[visionkept]

plucks the straw piece outta their mouth and puts it in hers.

The straw of hay dangled loosely on their mouth, a well known habit of theirs. By the ronin's side stood the blond, watching their every move from up close. Tomoya knows Tem's there, they had acknowledged it with a low hum before diving back to their thoughts.

The two had met in a similar scenario before. But at the time they were nothing more than mere strangers and the bond they shared was non existent, fissured by a wrong first impression and an eventual fight. But since then, things have changed drastically and she, who had once hated their whole presence, found her way hopefully enjoying their company. From her SCOLDING to a shared peaceful silence.

They get to be an idiot standing in the middle of nowhere again, too caught up on their thoughts to notice her scheming. When her hand reaches to pluck the piece, their concentration breaks and their gazes finally meet.

Her new stolen acquisition, nothing to see here.

❝ . . . . is this your new SUBTLE way to ask for a KISS ? ❞

[lizardrosen]

inspired by @cleverclove 's multiverse of laerteses, here's mine, with relevant playlists by myself and the incomparable kylee @all-mimsy !

default laertes: when i don't have a specific production/verse in mind. unless stated otherwise, laertes is assumed to have dated or hooked up with hamlet at some point. this laertes wears his heart on his sleeve and lives his best life in france, fencing and smoking and going to protests. and then his life falls apart and he's an unstoppable force of nature, but he can be redirected. it's absolutely essential that he dies asking for forgiveness and not saying "the king's to blame". General Laertes: Youth To Itself Rebels (kylee)

luke thompson laertes: from the 2017 andrew scott hamlet, he's the brightest cutest ball of sunshine, and he scrunches up his eyes when he's embarrassed. gertrude was like a second mother to him and really helped him cope with his anger and grief when his own mother died. he and hamlet broke up because they each assumed that’s what the other one wanted. currently dating reynaldo but only when they're in france and they don't call it dating because they're both ridiculous. when he comes back to denmark his whole body trembles and he So Clearly wants to be doing anything else, so he shuts his eyes because it's all too painful. Reynaldo: By Indirections Find Directions Out (kylee) Laertes/Rey: Let Him Ply His Music (me)

edward bennett laertes: from the 2009 david tennant hamlet, he looks a little scowly and imposing but he’s really just a shy nerd goofball under the surface, and is absolutely terrible at being clandestine when he doesn’t want to be spied on. this is also the verse where I get most of my osric headcanons and characterization, and both of them have had a thing with hamlet at various points in the past. best universe is when they somehow figure out how to be a proper triad with actual communication skills. when he comes back to denmark he’s so cold and determined, but he’s also an open wound and claudius is completely willing to throw him under the bus. Osric: Bubbles Are Out (me) Hamlet/Osric breakup: All's Golden Words (kylee)

blc laertes: from the 2013 bethany lutheran college production, which also has my absolute favorite claudius (this is important). laertes starts out very soft and earnest, wearing soft nerd sweaters. when his father dies he has a total glow up and comes raging into the castle with a very hot determination. the chemistry between him and claudius is electric and claudius offers to sleep with him just to help him unwind and get out of his head for a bit, and later trusts him enough to tell him he killed his abusive brother. they both have way more feelings than they’re willing to admit, and after ophelia dies things get messy and sad. he says “the king’s to blame” hoping that claudius will run and save himself, but knowing that he won’t. your honor, I love them. Claudius: Bosom Black As Death (me) Gertrude: Imperial Jointress; Sometime Sister; Wretched Queen (me) Claudius/Gertrude: Delight & Dole (kylee) Fic Series: Put Me In Your Heart For Friend (me and kylee)

more specific AUs and canon divergences under the cut!

d&d au: an offshoot of bethany lutheran college, in which everyone multiclasses, and hamlet is the warlock of the Forbidden Graveyard which messes with the dead of all denmark. laertes makes his paladin oath identifying hamlet as his greatest foe and actually Kills Him Dead in the duel. he and gertrude both get poisoned but claudius doesn’t and stays by their bedsides healing them. meanwhile horatio has gone to wittenberg to resurrect hamlet, which messes with laertes’s paladin powers. he and claudius spend the first half of the campaign hunting hamlet down and fighting him, and the second half reconciled with him and fighting the far greater evils in the land. everyone gets to have a long domestic life, with claudius/laertes/gertrude all married and in love, and they have dogs and gardens and children!! D&D verse: When Churchyards Yawn (kylee) Claudius/Laertes: My Acquaintance Seal (me)

indirections verse: offshoot of luke thompson in which hamlet never returns to denmark. laertes is deeply, catatonicly depressed because he’s been robbed of his chance for vengeance and his whole family is dead. laertes believes he’s a poison who destroys the lives of everyone around him and tries to push rey away “for his own good” and says some incredibly cruel things but reynaldo is endlessly kind and patient with him and makes sure he stays alive — he finds the poison that laertes brought to kill claudius, and quietly gets rid of it so he won’t do anything stupid. it gets very dark and cuts very close to the bone, but eventually laertes starts to crawl out of the hole he’s in and relearns how to love himself and how to love reynaldo, and he proposes to him in a park! Playlist: Both Worlds To Negligence (me)

to this point I stand: offshoot of edward bennett in which hamlet never returns to denmark. if indirections is a slow drowning, then to this point is a flash flood. laertes throws himself into every bad decision he can find just so he won’t have to stay still or think about anything he’s lost. this laertes doesn’t think he’s a poison, he thinks the world is a poison and it’s taking things away from him to punish him specifically, but the truth is that he’s doing a lot of this to himself. osric provides him a temporary escape from the world, and finally challenges laertes to get it together. this laertes is also deeply depressed, but it doesn’t look like depression in the overwhelmingly apparent way luke thompson is depressed, but because he’s such an active disaster zone things escalate very fast and the catalyst to start recovery happens relatively sooner. Playlist: To This Point I Stand (me)

orphic journey au: offshoot of luke thompson in which reynaldo travels to the underworld and makes a deal to save laertes, and oops the terms of the deal mean laertes is in a three year long timeloop and isn’t allowed to talk about it to anyone! so he gets to try to fix things but he also has to experience many variations of the Tragedy of Hamlet. I’m keeping the details of this one very secret for now! Playlist: Orphic Journey AU (me)

roger guenveur smith laertes: from the 2000 campbell scott hamlet, he and his family are the only black characters in an elsinore that’s aggressively appearance-focused, with manners being everything. his father’s drilled into his head that he has to work twice as hard to get half as much and can’t afford to make any mistakes, so he’s incredibly restrained in a way that looks like he doesn’t have strong emotions, but he’s really just tamping them all down. I don’t really write or talk about this one that often but he’s very distinct from any other laertes so he deserves a mention. he and hamlet likely didn’t hook up but did share some reserved but intense kisses.

[literaryvein-reblogs]

Some Poetry Vocabulary

alliteration: The repetition of consonant sounds.

allusion: An indirect reference in art or writing to another visual or literary work or a historical personage or event.

antithesis: The contrast of ideas through the use of terms with opposite meanings.

appropriation: The practice of incorporating elements from a preexisting literary or visual work to create a new work.

assonance: The repetition of vowel sounds.

calligram: A type of poem, such as that created by the French poet Guillaume Apollinaire in his book Caligrammes, made up of words that are placed in such a way that they visually represent the subject of the poem.

coined words: Invented words.

concrete poem: A poetic work that calls a reader’s attention to the visual appearance or shape of the letters, words, or lines comprising the poem.

ekphrastic [ek-FRAS-tic] poem: A poetic work written about a work of art.

epic poem: A long, rhymed, narrative poem, usually about heroic characters and their actions.

epic verse: Text written in a rhythm traditionally used for an epic poem.

epistolary [eh-PIS-toh-lehr-ee] poem: A poetic work written like a letter, with one person addressing another, often including conventions typical of letters, such as a heading, greeting, body, closing, and signature.

form: The structure of a poem, whether standard (like a sonnet) or without a regular pattern.

hyperbole: A figure of speech in which exaggeration is used to convey a particular effect.

imagery: In literature, mental pictures of a feeling, sensation, or idea that are suggested by language; also, actual pictures.

list poem: A poetic work composed of a list of items.

metaphor: A type of figurative language in which a term for one thing serves as a symbol for another thing.

onomatopoeia: A word, such as swish, zoom, or whiz, whose name describes a sound.

pattern poem: A poetic work in which the words are artfully placed in the shape of a picture or symbol.

plastic poem: Term used by the Japanese Surrealists to describe a poetic work that utilizes photography, in addition to or in place of text, to evoke complex and symbolic meanings.

rhyme: The repetition of the sounds of words in a poem.

rhythm: In poetry, a pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables.

simile: A type of figurative language in which two different things are compared using “like” or “as.”

sonnet: A poem traditionally comprised of 14 lines written in a set rhyme scheme.

surrealism: A 20th-century artistic and literary movement that emphasized the role of the unconscious mind in creating visual and textual works.

symbolism: The process of using an object or idea to represent or suggest something else.

tableaux: Scenes depicted through posing without talking or moving, usually with costumes.

typographic poem: A poetic work in which the way words and letters look on the page is more important than what the words say.

visual poem: A general term for a poetic work, such as a calligram, concrete poem, pattern poem, or plastic poem, that uses an arrangement of text and/or images to visually convey meaning.

a list of poetic terms ⚜ More: Word Lists

[bravewolfvesperia]

"Yeah, more or less. Sometimes we split up to do solo work where we can. More jobs at the same time is more money to help sustain the guild." Also meant more jobs done, which helped their reputation. Even if Yuri was back and forth between Dahngrest, Aurnion and Zaphias, as long as the jobs got done under their guild name, it didn't matter what location they were completed in.

Hearing about malevolence was pretty new to him though, so even if this too was a guild job, he was more thankful he took this one. Dahngrest had been plagued by infighting once Don died, and while it was getting better, some guilds were still far too loose with their actions. Governing such things was difficult without a definite central leader. Harry was getting there, but many people still looked at him... and didn't see "Don Whitehorse". Didn't see a man capable of intimidating them to behave.

Heck, maybe it was good that they came here. Yuri couldn't help thinking that as he watched them flee in terror at nature turning on them. If the "danger" of the area made them second guess themselves, maybe they would rethink coming back, or trying to mess around in another territory just because it wasn't theirs. The cave was going to block out his view for a little bit if nobody else was in here, but hopefully most of the inner area wouldn't have many people if any. Last time he'd been to a mountain it was pretty desolate too.

"Ladylake, you say... I think I've heard of it, but I don't think I've been there yet. Not much time to explore while on the job, but... well, maybe after. I've heard something about that name and it being a beautiful place or something. Maybe once I head home I can plan to visit it sometime. There's someone I'd like to take with me if I can, depending on our work schedules."

She seemed a bit distant if nothing else, but maybe that was just because Yuri, too, was human. It didn't sound like she was keen on human friends or associations. The princess in question must have been a special sort of person for Edna not seem worried about malevolence around her. "Well, it's nice to hear you have a human friend though. I know a lot of us are whackjobs, but there are some good ones out there. I know a good bunch myself. Grew up around a community that sorta made me what I am now."

The last member's description does strike her as odd. A woman wearing a psuedo-shirt... Edna is not crass enough to ask, but Yuri seems fine with that person, so she's not going to ask anyway. ( Just hopes it's not another pervert because Zaveid is like five perverts in one. ) ❛  She's too busy to help you here, I'm assuming?  ❜

She remembers how the malevolence back at Goddodin was murky and depressing until Sorey found them a Lord of the Land to purify it. It would only affect Edna in a terrible way if she was surrounded by it. She still doesn't know how it happened to her brother, but she had her suspicions... ❛  I'm fine with that. Perhaps you didn't know, but it's easy for a seraph to be suspectable to malevolence that humans make from their negative emotions. If exposed to it for too long... It wouldn't be good for us seraphim. It wasn't a risk I wanted to take. That, and because of the curse Onii-chan had.  ❜

Yet, he still left all the same, she bitterly thinks, but is surprised to see Yuri suddenly excusing himself. She watches him work; it looks like they're discussing something, but the other man seemed very... vexed? His mood seems foul as he starts walking away, Yuri coming back to accompany her. Edna won't ask about what was said, but she is thankful that he got the man to leave without destroying anything from the mountain. At his suggestions, she curiously tilts her head.

Looking at two small figures with pickaxes in the distance, she figures they are the second and third looters, affiliated with the man who just left, and so: she stomps once on the floor, pouring some of her powers into the earth, then she says, ❛  Oops,  ❜ leisurely watching the giant rock spike on the ground suddenly breaking in half, the sharp top portion conveniently falling tip-down towards the spooked intruders. At the same time, a boulder comes rolling down the path, both of them desperately backtracking after scarcely evading the spike. Finally, a great idea that she likes! Edna resumes leading the way, more pleased now. The halfway point is just over there with its circular platform leading into a short tunnel. It contrasts the thin path they're on; although, there are more thin paths and forks beyond the tunnel's exit. 

❛  I don't want to handle so many thickheads at once. I've got my hands full here anyway.  ❜ A beat passes when she remembers the dream Sorey and Mikleo always wanted. They're a step closer to it if she's still talking with Yuri. Surely, this is proof that it isn't an impossible dream; that it will someday make true progress. ❛  But I do visit a town sometimes, though: Ladylake. A few friends live there. One of them is a human—more precisely, a princess.  ❜

[perplexingly]

I've been wanting to write a description of the Watermill Theatre's Lord of the Rings musical for these who were unable to see it, so I'll mention some of the things that stood out to me.

Also first of all, I saw that @emeraldskulblaka was kind enough to compile a masterpost about the musical, sharing the available videos and audios here

Now to the Watermill production:

The audience was encouraged to come 30min before the start of the show to celebrate Bilbo's 111 birthday.

During that time the actors were playing music, talking with the audience, playing games with the audience, I almost got hit in the face as Gimli in front of me failed to catch a ring that was thrown at him : D I saw there are some recordings of this part around, eg:

While still outdoors, the play started seemlessly with Bilbo's iconic birthday speech. After his disappearing act (in a puff of smoke), we moved indoors and while the audience was settling down, Frodo sat on stage all sad perusing letters

This stage is very tiny but they used it in a clever way; eg. there were moments when, to show the distance, the actors would say their lines behind the audience on the upper ring. They would also utilise the doors at the center stage or the ladders on the sides to climb on. The lighting also gave each scene a lot of character:

Also each actor doubled as a musician, often playing on the edges of the stage but still in full view, giving this interesting illusion of environment.

I think my favourite moment of using actors as parts of the environment was during Sam and Frodo's Now and for Always duet: once they started singing, Bilbo came to sit on the edge, in the shadow, just looking at them, and with each verse a new hobbit/musician came behind, hanging out in the shadows and giving this dreamy idea of Shire. And when Sam fell asleep, there was Rosie coming a bit forward to caress him.

Another such wonderful moment was near the end, when Frodo could go no longer and Sam helped him. The earlier situation when Sam fought off Shelob with Eärendil's light reminded the viewer of Galadriel's - and the elves - indirect help. And when Sam put his arms around Frodo to guide him, quietly, in the shadows around them illusions of elves appeared to show them the way and to catch them when they stumbled.

Speaking about the plot point - act 1 encompassed the first of the trilogy while the second act the other two. To achieve this condensation in the second act, most characters that were not directly related to the fellowship were either removed or merged with other, eg. Denethor and Theoden were combined into one, with the Rohan/Gondor politics removed altogether. But honestly, I thought it was the smarter choice, as we get the time to get attached to the main cast.

One more thing I'd like to mention were the practical effects. While ents were just an off-stage voice, when they were talking there were leafs falling down from the ceiling. But the most impressive was Shelob, which was a giant puppet with real-like leg movement, mostly in shadow except for the reflective eyes. I saw that there's an early test for Shelob posted on Instagram:

Also, I talked about Gollum in an earlier post, but I just wanted to make a quick illustration of the adorable moment between Gollum and Bilbo that I saw in the epilogue:

[vanillablankcanvas]

Part 1 Trolls Headcanons/ Theories/ Thoughts/ Ideas

Part2 Part3 Part4 Part5 Part6 Part7 Part8 Part9 Part10

Trolls - in general Trolls are pretty rare outside their usual kingdoms and it's considered good luck to meet one.

Brozone - drastically changed their looks coz they hate that they used to dress the same.

Bruce - one of those dads who would get a new barbeque and show off all the cool features to the other local dads.

Bruce - "No kids, we're not keeping that stray animal, end of story, no way..." - 1 week later and he's giving it kisses and building it an over the top kennel with a heated blanket and a water fountain.

Bruce - (canon?) carried all their eggs, indirect reason why his hair is so big. (Side note - I read somewhere someone called all their kids 'The Bakers Dozen' and I frigging love that)

Floyd - solo career after he left Brozone - all his songs were PINK FLOYD SONGS! (Maybe that could've been his stage name?)

Floyd - his hair is naturally pink but JD made him make it redder because 'we're a boyband and pink is a girls colour'

John Dory - has embarrassing baby pictures of his brothers as leverage

John Dory - over-exaggerates his retellings of stories "I fought off 30 no no no 40 snakes with one hand behind my back."

John Dory - always casually asking Poppy, Brandy and Viva to marry him, over small things too "Brandy, these pancakes are delicious, marry me."

Clay - writes long and very detailed critical reviews of restaurants

Clay - has reading glasses. Probably the ones that attach magnetically at the nose ridge.

Clay - labels everything (labelmaker is to Clay as Gary is to Branch)

Clay - very into color coded itineraries and always know everyone's business "Poppy is currently at Smidge's pod doing her hair" "How could you possibly know that?" "I have my sources."

Clay - also a notary and registered marriage celebrant

Clay - hair was always naturally green but JDs hair was already green. JD said he had to be yellow for the band, they needed that color coordinated group vibe.

Clay - has drafts for his own book series

Clay - actually plays golf

Clay - gets clumsy when trying to impress someone he admires (imagine him meeting King Peppy and he just knocks things over)

Clay - competitive af - brothers know better than to verse him at anything - has an over the top victory dance

Viva - that concept art of tiny Viva is the age she was when they escaped the Troll Tree. So like 15 maybe?

Viva - wants to make up for all the missed holidays/birthdays/parties with Poppy so she is constantly popping out from places with gifts yelling SURPRISE!

Branch - for Pop Trolls - being in a famous singing group is the equivalent of being a recognized expert in your field. So the fact that Branch is in TWO famous boy bands is like he has several PhDs.

Branch - Kismet formed inside a group home for Trollings

Poppy and Vivas mother - my theory is that they managed to keep princess Viva a secret from the Bergens. They chose the Queen for Trollstice when they discovered what they thought was her first egg. The Troll Tree escape plan came about when Chef promised the new royal trolling for the young Bergen prince.

[thesummerstorms]

So the other thing is, in my headcanon verse, Dick and Jason (Todd) both definitely think Annabeth is dead.

She was a seven year old run away in the streets of Gotham. Neither Batman nor Jim Gordon were ever able to discover a single lead. Just from their mutual experience, the most likely options were death or trafficking that took her out of Gotham.

And at some point, after Tim became Robin (so Bruce and Dick were very tentatively starting to reconcile) but before Jason came back as Red Hood, GPD does finally find something.

Something is a damaged silver bracelet with Anna Elizabeth Wayne's initials engraved on one of the charms and a snapped link where a different charm (the elephant representing Dick Grayson) broke away.

It's an exact match for the gift Dick Grayson gave his baby sister the year she turned six, full of guilt about how little time he spent with her now that he and Bruce were barely speaking.

A hummingbird charm, in part as an indirect reference to Robin, in part because Anna reminded him of a hummingbird with her inability to sit still. A hummingbird in a flock of Robins and Bats.

A star and moon charm, for Kory who Anna idolized and who suggested the gift to begin with. Or for Bruce "I am the night" Wayne. Or as a reference to NIGHTwing. Dick's explanation changed based on his mood and the audience.

A tiny silver disk, engraved A.E.W.

A dog, just because Annabeth so badly wanted one of her own.

The bracelet is found in a crime scene full of teenage skeletons. There isn't a body that can be identified as Anna Wayne's- none are quite the right age, and none match Bruce's DNA sample- but some of the other victims are identified as run away children.

The conclusion seems pretty obvious to Jim Gordon.

Dick accepts it, grieves, and withdraws again, freezing Bruce out while he tries to come to terms with what happened.

Tim knows what's going on, but it all seems somewhat... detached somehow. As if he's watching a blurry bit of film. Like most of Gotham PD, his brain has glazed over most of the other details within the year. He doesn't have enough of a personal connection to see through Athena's manipulation of the Mist.

Bruce Wayne isn't accepting anything as fact until they actually find a body. Some gut instinct, the part of him that hold on to his subconscious impressions of Athena, tells him it isn't that simple.

He's right. The crime scene is actually a monster's nest, and one that Annabeth successfully escaped. But he doesn't know that. And he also isn't convincing anyone, including himself, that his denial doesn't stem purely from his guilt.

And then, with all of this context, a resurrected Jason Todd returns to Gotham in secret.

And, look, it's hard to imagine how his initial reunion with Bruce could have gone much worse...

But finding out that his baby sister, who despite all the other family bullshit he loved deeply, ran away from Bruce and was seemingly murdered in the same year as his own death?

Well... That's definitely not going to help.

[more-than-a-princess]

"Would you ever want to go back?" Sonia blurted out before she could reconsider. If Yaguchi was going to be this candid with her, then she would reciprocate in kind. To the best she could, at least. It was easier to talk about someone else's home than her own, even if hers was the one of the few still standing. Barely and crumbling and at the precipice of monarchists and anti-royalists turning on each other, but still standing. The latter was why she was urged to return with such haste: more people didn't need to die on her account, but Sonia doubted her own inner strength to face it all. A lifetime of being shut away in a castle: maybe if she grew her hair long enough, someone would climb up the side, not be entirely repulsed by her appearance and her past, and free her from a life of solitude.

Fairytales, she reminded herself, didn't suit her. Unless they were the most morbid sorts: where families perished and no one found happiness, fulfillment, or love at the end: those were far more accurate to her family than the sanitized cartoon versions.

"E-even if there is no dojo standing," She continued carefully, realizing the reason why Yaguchi had lost her home, and everything else, was due to her and her friends. No matter whose hands were directly responsible, they were all guilty: Sonia couldn't forget that. "That is quite a legacy to leave behind. Considering you work for the Future Foundation, I cannot imagine them objecting you to claiming your family's land and heritage once more for a new, post-Tragedy world."

She fluffed the towels around Miss Kitty, waiting for the first of likely many new arrivals as Yaguchi countered her suggestion. About leaving if she was too tired for the evening, but Sonia's head snapped up to look at her as if she were being scolded for merely suggesting she leave in general. The cats, her care of them, and Jabberwock Island as a whole: even if it hadn't been Yaguchi's intention, her tone was firm and unwavering, and with the severity of her expression behind her glasses...well, there was no deterring her. Sonia swallowed: why was she so intimidating? There had been a time when, in the midst of her madness, she wouldn't have second-guessed torturing her to establish control before finally killing her. Finding what would break Yaguchi bit by bit until she could no longer withstand living would have brought great pleasure to the Bloody Queen of Novoselic.

And now, Sonia Nevermind flinched at the woman's sharp tone and fierce expression. The simulation had made her meek and sad and insecure, the reality of her actions fully sinking in after her friends had died one by one around her. "You did," She confirmed, her cheeks turning pink with shame as she turned her attention back to the cat and how she was on the brink of birthing her first kitten. "I just did not want to be a burden, me or my choices." She reached to gently scratch Miss Kitty under the chin, who paused mid-yowl to lean into Sonia's fingers. Even at the most painful and distressing time of her life, she would accept any affection from her. Sonia sighed, unable to hide her smile towards the cat. Miss Kitty didn't care who she used to be, only who she was now, something she couldn't hope to find anywhere else.

The first kitten had come without complications and the second was clearly on the way as Yaguchi started the movie, the one about high school students in a Shakespearean retelling. "It looks like their school is in a castle, how fitting," She remarked, gently patting Miss Kitty's head as she began to pant again. She couldn't be exhausted yet, not with presumably so many more kittens to go, and Sonia would encourage her for as long as the cat would allow it. The introductory credits played, revealing two very different sisters: one who smiled and the sun shone upon favorably, and the other who frowned, criticized the school curriculum, and was sent to the school counselor.

"I think I used to be like her, years ago," Sonia remarked, nodding to the younger sister, who smiled and laughed and befriended seemingly everyone except her sister. "Blissfully happy and unaware of the real evils of the world. Which turned out to be me, but nevertheless. Thank you, by the way."

She reached for the bottle when offered, her lips softly enveloping the top as if she were giving it a light kiss before drinking down a good amount of its contents. The film was rounding out the rest of its cast: the awkward newcomer in love with the cheerful sister and his unpopular best friend, the mean, vain boy obsessed with charming her, and the recluse who, by just his first words alone, intended to charm both the older sister and the viewer alike.

"They seem so content," Sonia said, just as the older sister turned down the recluse for a date and stalked off the football field. "When all they need to worry about is who is in love with them and if they will attend the university of their choice. I cannot remember much about such things, barring the...erm, obvious." The scar on the bottom of her foot being the painful reminder. Sonia stuck her bare feet beneath a blanket to hide it, but she was otherwise unmoving at the mother cat's side. "I wonder what life would have been like, if I had stayed on that path."

"Mm," Shinobu hummed. "The family story goes that my ancestor in the 17th century was the talented, orphaned son of a disgraced samurai, who eventually traveled to a great archery tournament and soundly defeated every more distinguished competitor." How much Shinobu believed the story, she wasn't sure. Something had been embellished or other, surely, and it wasn't as though it mattered now. The estate was gone - the plaques, the ledgers, the dojo, so many of her bows. Hadn't she wanted to be free, some small part of her, from being the Yaguchi Dojo's vessel?

She shrugged with a soft sigh. "As an upstart with a disgraced pedigree, the other competitors wanted him executed, but it's said his performance charmed the shogun, who offered to grant him a new name, and a plot of land in Tokyo, upon which a dojo was to be built." Four hundred years or so, up in smoke. Perhaps it should have bothered her more than it did. "The estate shrunk over time, particularly after World War II, but, my family lived upon that gifted plot up until I left it behind."

Well, it was just a story, anyway. Perhaps one that was better forgotten. Rather than some ancient history, what was more important in the moment was Sonia, and the cat, and taking as much care of both of them as allowed. No, she wasn't nurturing, not naturally. Shinobu knew that they didn't have those sorts of instincts. Instead, it was something to work for - to consciously choose, in an attempt to be useful to the person she cared for.

"I already said that I'd be here, didn't I?" It was kind of Sonia to present them with some sort of out if they wanted, but they wouldn't take it. "Please believe me when I make promises to you, Miss Nevermind." She twisted the top from the bottled water and took a drink, before setting it down on table space away from the bed. "I have no intention of offering my assistance, and then pulling away when you might need it most." Absolutely not. It was the least she could do to be reliable for Sonia, whenever she might need it.

As Sonia rushed over towards the bed, Shinobu took the cue to move back to the stack of films, so as not to crowd mother and baby more than was necessary. Of course, as soon as Sonia was speaking, she couldn't ignore her. Her surprise, her fawning excitement - if anything in the room was cute, it was Sonia herself. When last had she looked like this, Shinobu wondered. Surely she didn't know how much comfort it gave Shinobu to see her experiencing even some brief moment of happiness, so much so that the archer had to disguise the smile that threatened to overtake their lips.

She nodded, both at Sonia's request, and her assertion that the kitten was cute. "Very cute," she agreed, though, truthfully, Shinobu was talking about Sonia herself rather than the cat, "and alright." Sonia's explanations hadn't been too much to go off of. There was a black cat on the cover of the animated film, which perhaps made it an appropriate choice, but then again, that also could make it more suited to the end of the evening, when things had slowed down, and all the cats were safely at their mother's side.

As such, she instead opened the other film, the high school romance based on that old play. There was something nostalgic about these high school films, even if American high schools seemed so radically different from her own experience as to belong to another species, rather than simply another country. As usual, she configured the film for the proper subtitles, loaded in the disk, and then sat near enough to Sonia, such that she could join her when she was finished looking at the cats.

"Well if the night will be as long as you say, I imagine we'll have time enough to get through a number of things," she murmured, watching Sonia rather than the advertisements and studio credits that played at the start. Peering past her, she looked at the small kitten, and its mother, with a soft, appraising nod. "And, don't forget that you should rest, drink water, eat, and relax as you can, as well, Miss Nevermind." To that point, she offered Sonia her water bottle. "You can rely on me to fill in the gaps where necessary, so don't think you need to do everything on your own."

[anneapocalypse]

On Urianger in ARR.

I'm not sure I agree with what seems to be a popular opinion that Urianger is more cryptic in ARR. I think he's actually just not as cryptic as the reputation the precedes him, period. Pretty much everything he says in ARR has a pretty clear intended meaning when you understand the language he's using to say it.

The times I think he truly comes across as cryptic (as in, what he's saying does not have a clearly discernible meaning and is open to some kind of interpretation) is when he's quoting someone. When we first meet him in the Waking Sands, he greets us with a quote from Louisoix, which while maybe a little overly formal or socially awkward relative to the other Scions, isn't really inappropriate to the situation. Nor is the quote he chooses especially cryptic, though he doesn't get through the whole thing because Minfilia gives him a Look and he swiftly course-corrects and says, "The words of a dear friend. I am glad of our meeting," which is a pretty straightforward greeting. His diction is archaic and poetic, and sometimes a bit verbose, but that's not the same thing as cryptic. (Compare this to the verse he quotes in Stormblood to see the Scions off the Far East, which is far less clear in its meaning and how exactly it's supposed to aid you.)

When Urianger is indirect in his own words, there is usually a reason for it beyond just trying to sound mysterious. I think a good example of this is his dialogue in the Waking Sands as the Scions are preparing to leave for Revenant's Toll, and Urianger will be staying behind:

Urianger: Thou art ever welcome, Forename, but I require no assistance. Pray take thy leave unburdened by concern for my well-being. Urianger: Verily, thy countenance bespeaks a desire to quit this place without further delay. Hm. Mayhap thou thinkest this chapter of our tale concluded─that these halls should rightly be consigned to the annals of history...? Urianger: In man's eagerness to seize the future, how readily he doth set down the past. Urianger: Full many a proud pioneer hath bravely stridden into the great unknown, only to find there the banner of his ancestor, faded by the eons. And still man glorieth in his discoveries. 'Tis through his pride that wisdom doth ever give way to ignorance, while they who lurk in shadow remain hidden, lost no sooner than they are found. Urianger: <sigh> Be not offended, Forename. Thy conduct hath ever been beyond reproach. Despite thy surpassing strength, and all thy many victories, thou hast never been so convinced of thine own greatness as to imagine thyself above the failings of thy forebears. Mayhap it is the Echo which hath opened thine eyes to the lessons of history. Would that the same could be said of─

Here, he is concerned that the Scions are ignoring the lessons of history and heading down the wrong path, though he assures the Warrior of Light that he finds no fault with their actions. The object of his criticism is pretty clearly the decisions being made by Alphinaud and Minfilia--both of whom he respects too much to directly tell them he thinks they're fucking up, and yet he comes really close to saying it directly to the Warrior of Light here, before he's cut off by the scream from the Solar. I don't see this moment as him being cryptic nearly so much as him wanting to share his concerns directly but stopping just short because he feels it improper to do so. That he confides even this much to the Warrior of Light to me really speaks to the fact that he already places a lot of trust in them.

But beyond that rare moment, most of the time in ARR, he's just... answering questions, providing information, or asking the WoL to do stuff.

Urianger's writing in parts of ARR and particular the early primal quests has some oddities in its own right--there's multiple places where modern English conjugations slip in, and a rare instance of Urianger saying "Yes" rather than "Aye" (if you know of others, I'd love to see them!). And the writing is really inconsistent about using "thine" before a vowel instead of "thy," sometimes even within the same paragraph. It's kind of all over the place when you really look closely at it. I can only assume the English writing team at the time was shaky on Early Modern English and whoever was writing him wasn't getting consistent direction and editing.

But what I wouldn't call any of it is cryptic. His dialogue about the primals tends to be a bit long-winded, and peppered with effusive praise for the Warrior of Light, but it's not cryptic; in fact, it would be counterproductive for him to be cryptic, because he's trying to give you intel. He doesn't even really do much prophecy quoting at all; he likes to cite that particular Louisoix writing about "primal desires" and the "blade born of light," which I think he definitely sees as prophetic and the Warrior of Light as fitting that appellation. But his meaning is never obscure or ambiguous. Frankly, I wonder if the writing team was struggling with what to do with him now that the mysterious doomsayer persona he was playing in 1.0 was no longer necessary for the story, and the new role chosen for him was one of conveying fairly straightforward information. Perhaps this is what led to the idea of having him play a deceptive role in post-Heavensward, in order to bring some mystery back to the character, though I can only speculate.

If he seems more straightforward in later expacs, I venture to say the reason is twofold. First, you're just more used to hearing him talk; you've picked up on some of his speech patterns if you were previously unfamiliar with them, and his meanings are easier to parse. And second, as the story proceeds, Urianger's role in it grows both larger and more personal. While his dialogue in ARR isn't actually cryptic, you might not have much investment in it and be inclined to hastily click through without reading it as carefully, leaving the impression that it was more impenetrable, while in later expacs, you might be more invested in him as a character and thus listening more closely to what he has to say.

[thesiltverses]

oddly enough, our brief interlude with Tainsley in this latest episode ended up reminding me of a plot point from the Eragon books, of all things - an infant child is blessed with magic to be "shielded from pain", but the spell is mistranslated, and instead she's blessed to be "a shield from pain", which compels her to experience and attempt to prevent the pain of everyone around her, a curse so powerfully traumatising that it forces her to physically and mentally age rapidly beyond her years just to cope with the strain. it's one of my favourite moments of pure gut-churning horror that i've ever encountered in fiction, and the connective tissue between that and Tainsley's fate - that being the destructive power of apparent blessings which, thanks to carelessly worded statements made by individuals clumsily wielding power beyond their own reckoning, become cruel and unusual punishments - really struck me. so i thought you might find it interesting to hear about a very silt verses-esque moment in an otherwise completely unrelated story.

That does sound like a great conceit!

In general, I think one of our biggest challenges this season - seriously hard to thread into the storylines of a small-cast audiodrama, but in my opinion important enough to make the effort worthwhile, even when it's arguably led to excess narrative sprawl here and there - has been demonstrating those ripple effects you talk about. The large-scale and indirect consequences of the core characters' actions across the greater world of the show, for good and for ill.

The world will inevitably outlast Carpenter, Faulkner, Paige and Hayward. And their actions and words and the memory of who they were and what they meant...all of these things will live on beyond them in ways they couldn't have possibly predicted. That's the sanctifying power and the imprisoning curse of legacy, baby!