#its ironic that what would make the whole thing interesting - the fact he could be hurt easier -

[spearxwind]

,, and I REALLY dont want people to be weird about him if hes 'weak' " I'm a little hesitant to ask, but what does this mean...? I'm unsure if I'm dense/oblivious/missed something but genuinely can't imagine what it could mean. People trying to (again) romance him? (Even though even if he's 'weak' it wouldn't work since he can't feel anything + they'd get murdered somehow anyway)

Please feel free to ignore and delete this ask if you don't want to discuss this topic.

Oh no worries, I can explain! The romance isnt so much an issue in this case fortunately

The thing is that strangers online love to be funny, and they love to not take characters seriously for the most part. I've gotten a lot of jokes directed at my ocs over the years

All in good spirits, I do like to joke around with people and i love humor! but if I am too lenient with it then people start latching onto that constantly and it gets to a point where its the only thing they will see. It's very easy to see an artist or a writer make a joke at their ocs, or make a joke with their friends, and as a stranger think "I can do this too and one-up them"

With "weak" versions of adri I made in the past, I experienced two things: one was people thinking he should be hurt in that state (as retribution), and the other was them using it as an excuse to amp the memeing up to 1000. I guess what I would describe it as would be "disrespect". Basically turned into a character to punch down to

I can disrespect my own ocs, theyre mine, but I don't really enjoy it when other people who I legitimately dont know come in randomly to drop either a really violent or a really goofy take directed at them 😅

I feel like currently with how I behave on here this will be less likely to happen again because I will cut that shit out immediately if i see it, but I would prefer if it doesnt happen in the first place and I don't want to be mean at people who are just goofin around

[felassan]

Letters from Lovers

Transcriptions of the letters from the various gear store items. under cut for length.

Isabela:

“My dear Hawke, Do you know anyone with a flock of parrots? I'm trying to cheat on a bet with Varric and the stakes are exceedingly high. If you help me, I shall take you to that breathtaking beach you so crave. Free of ancient horrors, too. I think. I'd hate to take respite from all my adventures, but there are other ways to make the heart flutter. In fact I'm already imagining a few. Aren't you? Sailing there can be fatal, but Admiral Isabela will keep you safe. Are you interested? I would love to see you again. Yours, Isabela”

Morrigan:

“My love, Now before that grin reaches your ears, perish the thought that this letter was my idea. 'Tis Kieran who would not give me peace until I wrote to ask how you are faring. Regale us, if you please, with another of your tales that I might read to him in bed. He is particularly fond of those wherein you spur mischief whilst you save the day. Thank you for your most delightful gifts. I shall make certain to wear them the next time you come home. Dream of me until then, my Hero of Ferelden, and have a care. Morrigan”

Dorian:

“My dearest Amatus, Home is ever as it was: a glittering whirl of dancing, politics, and murder. I'm used to people staring daggers at me - I quite relish it, actually - but the glares seem to possess a new intensity since my return to Tevinter. Do they disapprove of House Pavus freeing its slaves while I work in the Magisterium to end slavery across Tevinter? Perhaps they simply covet my cheekbones, and who could blame them? Real reform will take time, but we're making inroads. I miss you terribly, Amatus, perhaps almost as much as you miss me. I treasure you and your belief in my work here. Yours always, Dorian P.S. I wouldn't take it amiss if you might send me another barrel of that dreadful Fereldan beer?”

Alistair:

“My love, How are you? Is it true that you recently killed darkspawn with only a mean glare and a pointy stick? Ferelden is ablaze with this rumor! You do give people so much hope. Tales of your heroism never fail to astonish me and almost ease the pain of going to sleep without you by my side. Almost. I can't wait to be with you again. I'd bring you some roses, you could give me a tour of the keep, we'd drink with the new recruits and then cuddle in a tent. Without the new recruits! Tent time is just for the two of us. I want to make that clear. Now excuse me while I practice my death glare and rummage through the dog's stash of sticks. I love you. Yours forever, Alistair.”

The Iron Bull:

“Kadan, You won’t believe what I did today. I got a guy to flip! Twice! So yes, all is well. Except for all the demons. And this whole thing in which I’m far away from the love of my life. Really keeps me up at night. Anyway, you hearing these rumors of a dragon on the loose? Yeah! The boys and I are on its trail. Last I heard, it was flying toward the Frostback Mountains. Can you join us? I hope you’re not uh… all tied up. Don’t worry, I’m fairly certain it’s not a Ben-Hassrath trap. And if it is, you know I’m prepared. Ataash varin kata! I love you, Kadan. See you soon. The Iron Bull.”

Tali:

“By the way, I left something for you up in your cabin. Go have a look.” - Tali’Zorah  --- “Dear Shepard,   As you may remember, I presented this picture frame to you as a gift on the Normandy. It was my way of expressing my admiration for you and our bond as comrades-in-arms. On the back of the metal frame, I've emblazoned a promise that will never fade - 'Shepard, wherever you go, I'm with you.'  I know it's not much, but...this is what I look like under the mask. I'm sorry if it's not what you were expecting. I know Quarian faces can be a bit...different. Every time you look at my picture, I hope you will be reminded of our adventures on the Normandy, from our battles against the Reapers to our intimate conversations in the privacy of our quarters.    I am not one to express my emotions openly, but thank you for being my friend, my confidante, and my inspiration. I look forward to many more adventures together.  Keelah se’lai,   Tali’Zorah”

Another letter from Tali:

"Whatever the galaxy throws at us, I'll be at your side. - Tali" --- "Shepard It's been a while since I last struggled to sleep. You must be dreaming of falling through a fish tank or starring in a hanar vid? I can hear you muttering about jellyfish. It's funny. I've spent my whole life hoping for the future, but these days nothing scares me more. Keelah, why can't we stop time? Even for just a little bit? No war, no Reapers, nobody counting on us. Just you and me, as free as the dust in the solar wind. When this is all over, will you settle down on Rannoch with me? I love you. - Tali"

Bonus:

Shepard's N7 acceptance letter, from Anderson:

“N7 Congratulations on your graduation From Captain David Anderson Shepard, When I graduated from the N7 program I had the honor of meeting Admiral Grissom, the man who inspired me to pursue a career in the service, and I never thought I’d feel prouder in my life. I was mistaken. Don’t get me wrong, it was a big day. An important day. But there’s something about welcoming driven young people like yourself into the ranks that’s also pretty damn satisfying. Your distinguished service record may have gotten you into this program - but it was your courage, integrity, and tenacity that’s enabled you to join an elite few. You represent the best of humanity, and I feel certain you’ll make the galaxy a better place. And I’m not the only one who feels this way. Becoming an N7 means the entire Systems Alliance is telling you one thing - we believe in you. Let me end by saying this. Welcome to the team Shepard. We know you won’t let us down. David Anderson Systems Alliance Interplanetary Combatives Academy N7 N7 Acceptance Letter”

[humbledragon669]

S2E2 - The Clue Write Up P4 - Land of Uz: Crowley speaks to Job to a little alone time in the cellar

I’m going to start with an incredibly quick note, just in case there’s anyone out there reading this who doesn’t know/hasn’t realised that the actor playing Job is Peter Davison, who is not only linked to David Tennant by way of having played the fifth Doctor, but is also his father-in-law (in real life). I think I’m probably preaching to the converted with that little nugget, but it pays to be cautious with these things.

Alright, let’s get going proper, shall we? And I want to give a little nod of acknowledgement for the camera work we see going “through” the book page into the scene beyond. Not the first time we’ve seen this technique used to transition the audience from one place (in time, mood, or location) to another, but it’s pretty smooth nonetheless, and achieves its desired effect effortlessly. There’s something utterly ridiculous about some of the script for this initial scene too - some random dude shows up in your newly destroyed barn asking for your children and you don’t stop to ask who he is and what he wants? In fact, why not direct him to your wife to be as helpful as possible? Don’t stop there though, why not start pouring your soul out to him in a keenly ironic speech about being delivered to demons. Sure. Very convincing. Still, I don’t suppose there’s much in the way of official records of this conversation to base the scene on, is there…

Miracle noise alert! This one definitely originates from Crawley and definitely differs from the one we most recently associated with Aziraphale.

This one is… “flatter” is the word that springs to mind when I hear it. I think it’s intended to sound closer to a snake hiss; of textural note we are missing the little choir vocalisation that we heard in earlier miracle noises. Swinging back around to the theory about miracle noises relating to intent rather than caster, this particular noise would prove both theories. I guess what I really want to hear at this point is the noise from a miracle definitely cast only by Crowley with good or neutral intent. That might put this theory to bed for me, but I think we’ll have to wait a while for that (off the top of my head I can’t think if we get one of those in these season, but I’ll be on the look-out).

I find the choice of words used in the opening arguments between Aziraphale and Crawley interesting:

Aside from the opportunity to revel in Aziraphale admitting he was wrong about something, I think the different uses of don’t have to/couldn’t/can/will in this wordplay are worth noting. To avoid this getting too wordy, I’m going to break this down into a table to demonstrate:

And all of this hammered home with a final plea from Aziraphale, returning to his original point, and making an explicit statement that he believes that being a demon involves the ability to exercise free will (let’s face it, it kinda doesn’t - Crawley has little official choice than to follow orders, just like the angel). This point of view will become interesting as the season progresses and we see Aziraphale’s beliefs about free will and how it ties in with humanity morphing - after all, it wasn’t all that long ago that he was trying to convince a bunch of archangels on the street that the whole point of being human (not a demon) is to exercise free will (at least in our chronology - this conversation with Crawley and the one with the angels on the street are actually separated by some 4500 years…). What’s interesting to me about his beliefs at this particular point in time, is that they suggest at least part of his understanding of the differences between the agents of Heaven and Hell isn’t to do with morality or intent, it’s the presence/absence of free will. Ergo, the opposite of “Good” isn’t “Evil”, but “Choice”. Oof, that one hits pretty deep, doesn’t it? I could get into a big discussion about how this does or doesn’t resemble major religions even today but I feel like that goes a bit beyond my qualifications, so instead I’ll just make one more point about this handful of lines between our hero couple, this one on another more word choice for Aziraphale:

AZIRAPHALE: Crawley… You don’t have to destroy Job’s children.

Notice the word “destroy” and not “kill”. I’m not sure why this distinction has been made, not least because Crawley has already told Aziraphale 500 years previously that killing kids is not something he can get onboard with.

Maybe the word choice has been swayed somewhat by Crawley’s supposed disposal of the goats, where they simply disappeared in a puff of smoke. Perhaps “destroy” was thought to be a stronger word than “kill”, though that’s not a stance I would agree with, and I actually feel like it offers the opportunity to distance the “destroyer” from their actions somewhat.

Before we get too deep into the weeds with the next mini-section of Aziraphale pleading, there’s something I want to lay on the table. The last time this pair saw each other was 500 years ago. We saw that meeting, and earlier in this episode they even went so far as to confirm that was the last time they saw each other. That meeting, filled with shocking revelations about Heaven’s actions as it was, was very friendly. VERY friendly. We’ve gone from Crawley looking at Aziraphale like this:

to this:

I mean… What happened? No, seriously, what the actual fuck happened? The tension between this pair is palpable in both scenes, but they are very different types of tension. I’ve always thought that there’s something off about the way their conversation starts at the beginning of the minisode: it feels like that awkward conversation you have with someone when you bump into them after having had a blazing row and neither of you has apologised and despite time passing, you’re both still sore about it. Almost like… unexpectedly bumping into your ex? I realise that was all really wordy, when all I’m really trying to say is that I’m not clear on why the relationship feels so strained at the beginning of the minisode, just like I’m not clear on why Crowley is so grumpy when we see him in Rome. It occurs to me that we don’t see the end of their encounters in Mesopotamia and Golgotha (the previous meetings to Uz and Rome, respectively), and once again I say: what the actual fuck happened?

If we consider the possibility that the meeting in Mesopotamia potentially did not end as amicably as it began, Aziraphale’s desperate pleading with Crawley to do the right thing in this Land of Uz scene feels perhaps a bit more understandable. And let’s just be clear about Aziraphale’s plan of attack at this point - he’s no longer asking a demon not to the “bad” thing, he’s appealing to Crawley to be the being that he has fallen in love with come to know in the years before - one that is incapable of doing the unspeakable things he’s been tasked with.

Wait, wait, did I say understandable? Because this is truly unbearable for me - I can’t watch this without choking back a sob, for real. The little gulp as Crawley’s words hit home, the slumping shoulders, the slight wobble in his bottom lip, the rasping breath he takes (OH BUT THAT INTAKE OF BREATH WILL KILL ME). He is absolutely, and completely, devastated. And who can be surprised, because that speech from Crawley (complete with background hiss noise as he removes his glasses) is pure venom (no snake pun intended). Everything the demon says at this point is said with the sole purpose of hurting Aziraphale (and I say again: WHAT THE FUCK HAPPENED?!), prompting Aziraphale to use his ultimate weapon - it’s the forgiveness line. There is something particular about this usage though - on this occasion he doesn’t forgive Crawley personally, he asks for forgiveness on his behalf, which we’ve seen once before: on the bandstand. That encounter was very definitely a break-up and for a second it looks like this one might have been going the same way, and I think I speak on behalf of the entire fandom when I thank those goats for not being able to keep their mouths shut here.

As much as I am fully onboard with Aziraphale’s smugness in his response to finding out that Crawley was indeed the being he thought he was, I can’t help but feel like it’s slightly misplaced, and here’s why:

CRAWLEY: Doesn’t mean we’re on the same side. AZIRAPHALE: No, no!

You see, I don’t think Aziraphale has realised that his actions have actually gone against Heaven’s wishes at this point. So as far as he’s concerned, Crawley and him being on the same side (which is clearly what he thinks, given the vocal delivery) means that Crawley is also on Heaven’s side. Which he most certainly isn’t, and even though the demon has a much clearer idea of how things are progressing, it’s obvious that Aziraphale thinks that Crawley’s point of view is just a cover story for him actually being on Heaven’s side. I think this is the first time that the idea of third “side” (i.e. not for Heaven or Hell) is introduced, chronologically speaking, even if it was thought to be a temporary arrangement and not specifically termed as “their side”. I find myself wondering if Crawley’s acknowledgement that they are “temporarily not on different sides” is the reason he doesn’t protest being called an angel by Job’s eldest daughter (Keziah), but perhaps that’s just because he wants to lull them into a false sense of security for the grand finale coming up.

I will be preaching to the converted for the second time in this write-up now I know, but as I said, it pays to be cautious. The young man playing Ennon is David’s in-real-life son. This episode is quite the family affair! Having that little bit of knowledge makes Crawley’s reaction to this self-important, arrogant little shit all the more funny too.

And whilst we’re on the subject of Crawley’s reactions, I love this facial expression we see in reaction to Aziraphale deciding to throw his weight around:

I slowed it down a bit, but you can see his face twitch ever so slightly just after Aziraphale starts bellowing, like it actually took him by surprise. Pranked or not, I think it’s pretty obvious to see that he does not think this new strategy from the angel is a good one. The background acting doesn’t stop here either, with an adorable little squeak from him in response to Jemimah’s charming nature. It makes me feel a bit sorry for the kids in the scene really, who are (I hope) acting their little socks off being the most repulsive versions of children they can be whilst David just stands there pulling a few faces/making some noises and manages to steal the scene.

There’s no reason for that gif other than to watch a loop of David winking (extremely careful typing required with that sentence).

Alright, maybe there was a little reason, other than pure aesthetics. I know I’m not the only one to say I find the interaction between Crawley and Jemimah adorable, but outside of just being really cute, this relationship does serve a narrative purpose in the context of the storyline. This playful banter he establishes with the young child is what lays the road for some mischief. I’ve talked about it in earlier write-ups, but we don’t see an awful lot of the mischievous demon in this season. Well, all that’s about to change, and I’m pretty relieved because up to now everything Crawley has done in this minisode has felt very serious. I love seeing him getting joy in causing harmless mayhem.

I also find it interesting that this side of the demon has only been allowed out now that he and Aziraphale have found some common ground - the dislike of the two older children - which suggests that their relationship is getting back on track. On that note, it occurs to me that he hasn’t been wearing his sunglasses for any of this scene, which had been firmly glued to his face right from the beginning of the minisode, even when he was alone of the top of a mountain. Whatever happened to cause the angry tension between our hero couple (if anything happened), I think the lack of eyewear would suggest that Crawley is already well on the way to forgetting about it by this point.

I find this blustering from Aziraphale interesting. He refuses to name Crawley as what he physically is, choosing to believe that because the demon’s intentions aren’t malign, his demon nature is simply a technicality. By that same logic, that would mean Aziraphale himself is only “technically” an angel, yet you never hear him refer to himself as such. Ultimately, his motives behind this are honourable, desperate as he is to believe that Crawley is still one of the Good guys, and I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised that there’s a double standard being applied here - that’s one of the motifs we see being applied to Heaven throughout the show (“one rule for us, another rule for everyone else”). He’s right in the end of course (at least as far as Crawley’s intentions anyway).

He knows Crawley has absolutely no desire to kill children, despite the fact that the house is blazing around them. The demon told him he couldn’t kill kids, remember?

There’s something about this exchange that niggles at me. On the surface it seems like we’ve gone back to an angry Crawley, challenging Aziraphale on his character judgement. I think there’s maybe a bit more to it though. There is a vague suggestion of Crawley asking Aziraphale if he really trusts him here, even though it’s not explicitly stated. And that trust theme is something we see developing, chronologically, throughout the minisodes of this season. The Agreement is a long way off into the future (about 3500 years in the future in fact), but I find myself wondering if this challenge from Crawley is its first iteration, because I think this is actually him asking Aziraphale if he’s sure he wants to be part of the plot to save the children. If that’s the case, and the angel understands the subtext, it would explain why he makes his declaration of surety so assuredly. And look at him making way for Crawley to deliver his coup de grace, united with the demon, and sure of his decision:

Side note: I love the fact that everything in that room falls through the ceiling to the floor below completely intact, including the table which is already laden with a whole ox carcass. The only sign of anything being disturbed is the noise of a metal pot settling.

Aziraphale’s response to this latest turn of events reminds me of what we see from him when he embarks on his journey to Edinburgh.

He’s so contented - he’s turned the whole thing into a game. One with a trail of clues he had to work out to solve the mystery of how the evil demon could still be an angel underneath it all. And he’s figured it all out, even though he knew it all along anyway, which Crawley is clearly not thrilled about. There’s another layer going on here though I think, because (if I’ve got my chronology right), this is the first time the demon has “rescued” the angel from a perilous situation. Never mind that the perilous situation was created by the demon in the first place. Besides, that might have been part of the game for all we know because it’s only now that Aziraphale starts to give Crawley a bit of slack for him to actually use the cover he’s trying to create for himself. And hold on, what’s this?

Is that a wink? Certainly looks like one to me. He also starts to use collective pronouns from this point, suggesting that he, just like Crawley, is getting comfortable with this relationship again.

We get some miracle noises in the cellar to have a quick look at here, although they are somewhat obscured by the soundtrack. Brief tangent: I’m not sure there are any miracle noises to be heard in the scene a moment ago where Crawley sets fire to the house, with the exception of the last one he does, opening up the floor to the cellar. That one, which is even more difficult to make out that the lizard-transformations, sounds more like the ones we heard from Aziraphale’s miracle in the pub, with that swelling noise that gets used so often in epic soundtracks. If that was the case, that definitely points towards the noise relating to the mindset of the caster, because that one would either have been driven by need or by the caster having good moral intent. The sounds we hear on the cellar on the other hand; they sound more like the snakelike versions we heard from Crawley earlier, although there’s something about them that sounds less ominous than previously.

In the last point of this part of the write-up, I find it notable that Aziraphale doesn’t try to interfere with Crawley’s transforming of the children, even though it’s clear he disapproves.

Perhaps it’s because he realises he’s pushed Crawley too far already to chastise him further for showing his true colours. Maybe it’s because there’s not really any harm being done in his actions. Maybe it’s because the angel was as disgusted with Ennon and Keziahs’ attitudes as Crawley is. Or maybe, just maybe, it’s because he’s actually pretty happy to be able to spend some time with the demon alone. I know which one of those theories I like the most.

This seems like as good a place as any to wrap up this part of the write-up, not least because we’re about to get to a pivotal moment of Aziraphale’s personal development and a fandom favourite in the relationship development, and I’ve already written far too many words on this tiny section to be normal. For now, and as always, questions, comments, discussion: always welcome and see you for the next one 😊

[weirdmageddon]

💿⚛️ davejade headcanons

sorry for leaving you guys waiting on this for like a week lol i kept being like “tomorrow for sure” but falling asleep but anyway here it is. i might add more to this if i think if anything but reblogs might not reflect the up to date source version so you can always find it here

most of these are pointing out stuff thats basically canon anyway but whatever lol. basically canon headcanons

dave tries to impress jade to get her attention because he likes her

this ones for you *misses hoop by 5 feet*

he doesnt mind jade’s inane riddles honestly. he isn’t perturbed by how she just knows things like rose is, because he doesnt think into it too far. he trusts her

he spends a lot of time indulging in her interests and showers her in his music and poetry

they draw things for each other a lot <3 jade has the pictionary modus and seems pretty good at drawing and of course dave sent her sbahj as furries in the mail. sending jpegs over the internet is BABY NONSENSE. real boys send their childhood friend/crush pictures they drew for them through the INTERNATIONAL POSTAL SYSTEM to an unspecified island in the middle of nowhere, pacific ocean that gets packages dropped by plane so the recipient can tangibly hold it and hang it in their room

actually i was going through the commentary and hussie addresses it as such:

“Also notice her SBaHJ furry poster, which was clearly a very thoughtful gift from Dave”

aww

jade would give dave a "cool" plushie of a tiger or something nd he keeps it on his desk . froot’s beautiful idea

he loves her plushie sensibilities. so much less unnerving than his bro’s phallic puppets. they're still soft but no cognitive dissonance this time about the softness coming from foam puppet ass hoorayyy

theyre still reading homestuck on act 4 but they understood them instantly

jade humors dave’s ironic cool facade because it makes dave feel more comfortable without feeling too exposed, but it’s because of this that he feels like he can open up to her because she isnt prying. (im still not over the smile here btw. only jade could make dave smile after a fucked evening where he spilled juice on his turntables and accidentally skewered an innocent crow with his sword and broke his window this mf is TYPING. also getting a bit of joy out of the fact that the only visible suit on his cards-themed bedcover in this panel is a heart)

but he knows that jade is not unaware of what he's hiding. couldnt even refute her lol

from the knight’s perspective, it’s “i’m not as [blank] as i appear. i want you know that about me if i know you well and trust you, or i DON’T want you to know that about me if i DON’T know you well. the reason is that i want to know that i can trust you to avoid turning my insecurity into a Whole Thing”

basically she allows dave to take initiative when HE feels comfortable and confident in sharing the things he’s self-conscious about. this really helps him be comfortable and form a strong bond with her

dave would wrap his arms around her to “ironically” imitate a pair of tangle buddy squiddles (while actually concealing genuine affection basically unbeknownst to himself) but he winds up looking just a little too into it for just an “ironic” bit yall……

jade is slower to realize her deeper feelings since she shows love to everyone (so long as theyre deserving of it!!!) it just hits her one day that she actually Likes him in a special way, while for dave it is more dynamic and gradual but very on the downlow, expressed in creative acts and services

once dave actually recognizes he’s really caught feelings for her down the line, dave and jade happily do the tangle buddies hug all the time. its like their handshake. its their weird couple thing

these two when together as a unit they do not give a shit about what other people think of them

this shit lol:

Creative Fucking Powerhouse the two of them

davejade ass song to me

jade is quite spacey and super appreciates dave’s level-headedness and steady pragmatism while at the same time not being a rigid stick in the mud about it. for example when they were acting as each others’ server players dave was advising her but it was appreciated by jade

sorry its just literally socionics duality LITERALLY THIS IS THEMMM (also i spent WAY too much time making these graphics and integrating texts from multiple sources please appreciate it)

fittingly with that, as ouroborista writes about the opposite space-time aspect dichotomy,

Space and Time are the fundamental Aspect pair. Their job is to make shit take place. To create novelty. Between them they span not only all of existence but also the inseparable twin approaches of any creative project. Space goes for breadth, for ideas, for expansive, holistic input, while Time goes for needlepoint focus and a rapid-turnover ability to pull through on the prompt. There’s a reason why these are the two Aspects necessary for any successful session of SBURB.

jade is literally always having a little giggle about him. dave is a funny guy. lame court jester ass boyfriend

he’d draw his post-ironic fursona and show it to her with the usual deadpan expression on his face, eyes obscured by his shades. but jade will look at it and when he sees her smile and laugh it makes it all worth it. his cheeks feel warm and he’ll smile slightly like “heh heh”. dave the type to smile like an idiot over anything jade does like his mouth keeps making a thin line and hes trying to fight it but . Jade

dave thought jade looked absolutely stunning in her 3 in the morning dress his mouth probably stupidly hung open the tiniest amount seeing her after swapping into it

of course she only wears it for what she considers "very special occasions"…..spending time with dave seemed to be a very special occasion :)

jade think dave looks sharp in his suits!!

imagine jade adjusting daves crooked bowtie and lapel and his palms start to sweat and he darts his eyes from behind his shades and chews the inside of his cheek she making him nervous bro 💯

jade is definitely the teaser and dave is the teased. still i dont think jade teases dave as much as john and rose which is why he feels more comfortable opening up to her about his shit. her teasings are much lighter and inconsequential

despite how funny and informal he is dave is a classy well-put-together romantic. he is responsible and harmonious in how he choses to present himself. remember when he got secondhand embarrassment from rose when she was drunk before her date with kanaya and he suggested to her and kanaya that the two reschedule? … he’d NEVER do something like that. sober. suit is ON. hair is neatly combed. he is right on time, not too early not too late, and his first words are “yo whats up”

dave has this designated driver energy about him

after dogtiering jade’s dog ears can perk and flatten, adding even more expressiveness

jade has so many hobbies and interests i think she’d get dave into horticulture somehow unironically

theyre both the kinda mf to ask “would you still love me if i were a worm”

dave’s hands are warm

jade’s skin can be cool to the touch in some places like the back of her arms or shoulders and dave places his hands there to warm them. or by rubbing them or something

idk just some associations space is cool and time is warm to me. the vaccuum of space is cold and time is associated with gears which are associated with generating heat and dave’s classical element is fire and jade’s is earth and her planet is initially covered in snow and daves is covered in lava idk…. just makes symbolic sense i guess but its also cute in its own right

dave would love going to the beach with jade on earth c cause the ocean is so boob i mean boob i mean boob i m,ean boob i mean SHIT . blue. blue

this Fucking animation bro

she infodumps about science and he sits his ass down to listen

jade does this (excuse the fact that the url is roselalonde)

[nottswitch]

but daddy, I love him

summary: your choice of a partner doesn't leave your parents satisfied, seeing as it's Sirius Black, an infamous "blood traitor". does anything have the power to convince them? are you even willing to try?

pairing: sirius black x reader

warning: wizarding bigotry, teenage angst, smoking

wc: 3.8k

a/n: the first of the many inspired by taytay's ttpd. "but daddy I love him" is so sirius coded, I had to.

You wanted to love your family so badly, you truly did. Throughout your whole life your parents had been giving you whatever you needed and wanted – they had the money and they had the power to make your life as simple as the Accio spell. But no one ever stopped to think what it really meant to belong to one of the most ancient pureblood families in the Wizarding World. Everybody always saw the benefits: the new shiny textbooks, the perfectly ironed uniform, owls bringing you the most delicious snacks and rare books relating to your latest interests every week, your bed frame in the dorm decorated to the brim. You appreciated being that privileged, you never failed to thank your parents for the way they brought you up. However, you were fiercely shielded from any outside troubles that could possibly hinder your education and your innocence, as they put it. Ultimately, fate decided to perform its finest display of ruthless irony on you, and your parents’ endless disquietude became the very thing that led to the demise of your relationship with them.

You never expected your dating life to be of such interest to your family, simply thanks to the fact that it was never a question. You hadn’t had any serious partners before, partly due to your tender age, partly due to your own indifference to finding a suitable match.

But then Sirius Black asked you out, and your whole world had stars aligned in front of you in heart-shaped constellations; and it came down in shambles at the same time.

“Love, you alright?”

His delicately worried voice pulled you out of the misery that your parents’ letter promptly put you in.

“Uh, yeah, I guess,” you answered, shaking your head to temporarily kick the haunting unpleasantries out of your mind. “It’s just… this.”

You showed Sirius a thick envelope with a gold-encrusted seal, your family crest shining proudly and glaringly in the rays of the first summer sun. He barely glanced at the paper and snatched it from you, carelessly throwing it into the fireplace. You watched the flames hungrily devouring the carefully folded letter but leaving the seal perfectly undamaged. It stared at you like a glowing all-seeing orb, burning through your skull and serving as a reminder that everything you had just read was real and imminent.

“The school’s gotta give you props for all this rubbish to keep the fireplaces running.”

You chuckled at Sirius’ vitriol but it hardly lightened the thunderclouds gathering right above your head.

“You know words don’t burn, right?”

“Seems to me like they just did.” Sirius pointed at the seal that finally started to melt, stuck between pieces of firewood and piles of ash.

You let out a heavy breath and turned away from the fireplace to face your boyfriend. He was lying on the couch, head resting on a soft velvety cushion, looking at you with quite a joyful expression on his face. In your mind, it didn’t fit the situation at all, but you had gotten used to his nonchalance about your parents’… dislike of him. Or, better put, their vicious hatred that they never even tried to hide.

“Do you really not care?” you wondered for the umpteenth time, knowing that a no was a sure follow-up to your question.

“Why would I?” Sirius grinned and his hand safely covered yours, resting on the arm of the sofa. “The best part of your fam loves me, and others are a bunch of wankers.”

“I’m the only part of my fam that loves you, babe,” you pointed out, rolling your eyes but giving him a little smile. He smiled back, but stayed silent, noticing that you weren’t finished yet. “I’m already seventeen but I still feel like I’m a wee baby when they talk to me, or send me letters, or even look at me!”

“I know, love, it sucks. But you remember the plan, right?”

You nodded, and the smile on your face had finally turned genuine.

“The one where we come to my graduation dinner together even though my parents explicitly stated many times that there’s not a single universe in which they allow you to step on the property, and if you do, it would be over their dead bodies?”

“Merlin, the way you describe it! Might just be the best prank I’ve ever pulled!”

Sirius burst out laughing and you couldn’t help but follow his lead, his contagious joy making you feel whole again. The two of you came up with this madness of a plan as soon as you heard about your mother talking about a graduation dinner in your honour. They would never allow Sirius to attend, not in a million years; hell, they refused to even look at him when they saw you off at Platform 9 ¾ at the beginning of your last year at Hogwarts. They ignored his existence whenever he came into their sight, like during the holidays, when you got off the train hand in hand with your boyfriend and your parents greeted you, hugged you, kissed you on the forehead, but Sirius was frozen out completely, as if his existence was but a figment of your imagination. He never cared though; he would snicker at their theatrics and kiss you right in front of them, throwing a challenge directly in their stuck-up faces of the Wizarding nobility. Your parents came to know that their never-ending nagging wouldn’t stop you from dating Sirius Black, but they did hold specks of hope that you would grow out of your “immature phase” and give them what they wanted – a perfect little husband from another holier-than-thou household.

Never in a thousand lifetimes would you agree.

The time had come. You had to admit that you were somewhat nervous - never before had you defied your parents’ rules so explicitly and so shamelessly. You Floo’d to the Diagon Alley under the guise of last-minute preparations for the big event. Sirius was waiting for you right there, fully prepared: he was sporting a leather jacket, torn up jeans and a nearly finished cigarette in his mouth. This lad certainly went all out to look as much as a rebellious kid cliché as it was humanly possible, and you absolutely adored it. You couldn’t wait to see the reactions; your whole family was to be present at the dinner, even the most distant relatives, who might not have heard about Sirius at all – your parents hid the fact you were dating him like a dirty secret never to be uncovered.

“Love, you ready?”

Sirius took your hand in his, clearly feeling your accelerated pulse against his own steady heartbeat.

“I was less scared of our Transfiguration N.E.W.T., if I’m honest,” you admitted, hearing your voice tremble ever so slightly. “But then again, McGonagall isn’t a sanctimonious bitch.”

Sirius let out a short laugh, but his eyes were the most earnest when he gave you one last look before turning towards the fireplace, with a handful of Floo powder ready to go.

“Let’s show them, baby. You and I, against the world.”

With his encouraging words swirling in your mind, you let yourself get sucked into the labyrinths of the Floo Network, headstrong into what could turn out as the worst and the best moment of your whole life.

Your clumsy roll out into the main living room of the family manor was a perfect start for a spectacle that was inevitably about to unfold. As soon as you stood up, Sirius flew out right behind you, almost knocking you down to the floor again.

“Daughter? What is going on?!”

Your father’s voice sounded like a church bell above you. At last, you looked up at a crowd of people, all dressed up to bits, staring at you agape, their jaws on a synchronous road to meet the bristly carpet of the living room. The silence was so loud one could hear grains of sand pouring into the bottom half of an ancient hourglass adorning the mantelpiece.

“Mom, Dad,” you started, dusting off your ivory white Sunday best, “and you, Aunt Sarah, and you, Aunt Hannah, and, of course, you, Uncle Marcus! I’m terribly sorry if I’m forgetting some of you, it’s not often that you grace us with your presence!”

Sarcasm was spilling out of your pretentious speech, as you finally had the audacity to say what you had been wanting to express for the past year. Sirius’ presence gave you some much needed courage not to stumble on your words as you tore your heart out of your chest and pinned it shut on your sleeve.

“Merlin, you lot aren’t that suave for a bunch of sirs and madams!”

Speaking of the devil.

Sirius whistled, reaching your side and putting his arm around your bare shoulders. You had picked a dress like that specifically to piss your parents off a little more. They had always told you that any skin visible to the eye below the neck and above the knees was awfully indecent, very unladylike – so you just had to stick it to them.

“Daughter, what is he doing here?!” your mother tried to whisper, but in the deafening silence her voice could be heard as clearly as if she used the Sonorus spell. “Didn’t we tell you…”

“That you’d rather die than accept your dear daughter dating someone you deem undesirable?”

Your mother tried shushing you, giving desperate faux smiles to the guests around.

“What, you didn’t tell anyone?” you continued with a sneer. “Aunts, Uncles, cousins, meet Sirius Black! We’re in love!”

An array of ahs and ohs rang out in the air, and you could see Aunt Hannah clutching her chunky pearl necklace like it was her favourite childhood plushie. Sirius gave the crowd a way overly-exaggerated curtsy.

“Sirius Black, at your service,” he announced, taking out a cigarette out of the pack and popping it between his teeth, ready to light it. Before he had time to do it, the lighter was knocked out of his hands, hitting the wall on the other side of the room with a loud thump. You noticed your father’s moving hand hiding his wand back into the inner pocket of his jacket.

“Don’t you dare smoke inside this house!” the man shouted, wishing to incinerate Sirius right where he stood with his scathing glare.

Sirius barked out a laugh and another lighter appeared in his hand. He didn’t go for a cigarette this time, merely playing with the thing in-between his fingers.

“Rule number one when at a pureblood’s den,” he mockingly drawled the words, turning the lighter on and off, “always have a spare lighter.”

You couldn’t hold in a chuckle when you saw your parents ominously fuming at every syllable escaping your boyfriend’s mouth. Your father sighed so loudly, one would think he was on his death bed.

“Let us take this outside, shall we?” He motioned towards the field serving as the manor’s backyard. You looked at the innocent flowers quivering in the wind and thought that they didn’t deserve whatever mess was about to happen within family bounds on this beautiful summer evening.

“Don’t you think it’s unfair, Dad, to deprive our lovely audience?”

You gave the people around you the fakest brightest smile you could muster. No one returned it.

“Daughter, do not taunt me,” your father warned you. “We can use the dining room, if you so desire, but nothing happens here.”

You glanced at Sirius and caught his nod of approval. The dining room was close enough so that your parents couldn’t possibly hurt Sirius, or even you – you were quite sure they wouldn’t touch you with a tip of a finger, but a bit of discretion didn’t seem too excessive. Plus, and it was the only reason you agreed – you didn’t have to suffocate under the heavy stares of your kin.

The dining room wasn’t too different from the living room, the only obvious distinction being a long hardwood table stretching almost wall to wall. It wasn’t yet set – the meal itself was to start at a later hour. Your mother was the last to enter, struggling to dismiss a choir of what-a-messes from your pathetic aunts with desperate promises to deal with the whole situation as soon as they could. She cast a charm to silence you to the rest of the world and turned, at last, to face you. Your father slipped into one of the dining chairs, but you and Sirius remained standing, given some sense of dominance due to the now apparent height difference.

“I will not dance around the subject, daughter, we are terribly disappointed in you.”

Father’s words didn’t sting as much as you thought, and you almost let out a loud sigh of relief as this realization dawned on you. They almost had a tinge of freedom in them, a bittersweet taste of long-awaited liberty. All expectations burdening your fragile shoulders suddenly vanished and you could straighten your back and run, conquering hill after hill, mountain after mountain. They were disappointed. You had nothing to uphold anymore.

“Oh, I heard this one before.” Behind you Sirius laughed, almost grunting, which made you chuckle as well. “Trust me, babe, it only gets better from here.”

Mother shot a highly disapproving look at Sirius, but stayed silent. You always hated it; “A good wife lets her husband talk,” she once said in response to your childish question, and you never asked again.

“What about, Dad? Does my happiness look disappointing to you?” Your question sounded naive, but you knew you hit the exact spot. Your parents had been telling you since your earliest years that all they wanted for you was happiness. Apparently, they forgot to add “happiness that we approve of and scrupulously choose for you” at the end.

“Your happiness? What happiness, daughter? Him? He’s the happiness?”

Your father spat out each word as if it was poison he had accidentally drunk, as if it was a travesty to mention Sirius Black and happiness in the same sentence.

“You do not know what happiness looks like, daughter. You’re only seventeen. You do not know any better.”  

“And what do you know about happiness, Dad?!”

Your voice cracked as you felt it growing louder. At this point, the conversation couldn’t avoid turning into a full-blown fight, but it was destined to be exactly that from the beginning. You came prepared.

“Is this perfectly sleek suit of yours happiness? Are my Outstanding N.E.W.Ts happiness? Is having your whole life laid out in front of you from the day you were born happiness, Dad?!”

“You do not know what you are talking about!” Father shouted, his fist rapidly meeting the surface of the table. You flinched and Sirius was quick to jump in front of you, his wand squeezed tightly in his hand.

“Sir, just so you know, this wand has been used on authority figures before.” Sirius waved it in front of him, as if it was but another gauntlet thrown into your father’s face. The sarcasm in his “Sir” was flaming hot. “And for all I care, you’re no authority.”

Father took out his own wand from the same inner pocket and pointed it at Sirius.

“Boy, I will not bat an eye if you turn to dust right here and now,” he stated, his nose wrinkled in disgust, but his eyes slowly turning a shade of bloody red. It was your turn to step in between them, shielding your bold but reckless boyfriend from your father’s simmering rage.

“Dad, stop, I love him!”

It wasn’t the first case of you telling your parents that you loved Sirius, but as these words made an escape from you this time, they had almost acquired a new meaning. They felt more real, more pointed and firmer. Your father didn’t think so. He merely sneered at your proud declaration and rolled his exasperated eyes.

“Love, happiness… All this pointless charade just to prove that you are still a petulant child.” Father turned his head to look at his wife, who nodded in unconditional agreement.

“We did not raise you like that, daughter,” she finally spoke, her tone the same as your father’s.

“Your mother is right. You had everything, daughter, everything you did and did not need. And what do you do in return? Mess around with this blood traitor?!” Father spat out the last word with utmost repugnance.

Honestly speaking, the phrase had a way worse effect on you than on Sirius. He had time to grow some thick skin, dealing with bullshit bigotry from blood-purity lunatics for a while, but it was a first for you – hearing such venom from your parent, whom you still hoped to respect and to love.

“If you, sir, are dumb enough to think this was an insult – try the fuck again.”

Mother gasped and shouted “Language!”, but Sirius’ only response came in the form of a sly grin. As soon as he did it, Father jumped up from his seat and pointed his wand at Sirius with such force that it almost slid out of his hand. Sirius mirrored his actions in a relaxed, almost lethargic manner, as if he was calling Father’s bluff.

“STOP. RIGHT. NOW!”

You couldn’t hold it in anymore. With every single passing second, your boundaries were being stomped on by your parents, and even though you had the most pleasure doing it back, you wished for the mess to end. The two men lowered their wands and stared at you simultaneously – Sirius with pride, and Father – with fury.

“Dad, Mom, do you not understand?! You never saw me as a person, just a damn doll to dress up!” You completely ignored your parents’ shock at your straightforward use of a very simple curse word, because it was just a beginning. “You gave me everything, and for what? For me to follow your every fucking order to a T?! For you to bitch and moan about every single decision I make using my pretty damn sound mind?!”

“What has this blood traitor done to you, daughter?” your mother sighed, looking at you with forced sympathy. “You are swearing at your own loving parents who just want to save you…”

“If there’s something to save me from, it’s you!”

You didn’t buy Mother’s crocodile tears that were about to stream down her cheeks. Always the same shit, always her clutching her heart, or her head, or both at the same time. She wasn’t about to coax you again.

“Listen to your mother! You are carrying our noble family name, tracing back centuries. You cannot disgrace it with your outrageous behaviour!”

“Not for long!”

Sirius’ voice was a breath of fresh air in a viscous swamp of your parents’ soliloquies, but for the first time today you didn’t know where he was going. The only thing he gave you was a reassuring smile, which was nice but not helpful at all.

The next minute unraveled in front of you second by second, and you felt each one pass by like the Unforgivables barely missing you and whizzing through the room. Sirius hid his wand and instead took something out of his pocket – you couldn’t discern the thing, but it looked suspiciously similar to a tiny box, – simultaneously getting down on one knee. Three pairs of eyes widened at the same time, but with different emotions concealed in their depths: Father was enveloped with pure wrath and despair; Mother was simply shocked, covering her mouth with a trembling hand; you felt nearly hysterical, your brain vacant from any foreign thoughts except for the man kneeling in front of you with what you could already see was a ring peeking from the wooden box.

“My love,” Sirius began, fully content with every reaction he received so far, “my baby, my little nugget of joy…”

You didn’t want to interrupt him but couldn’t help laughing at the pet name.

“I’d be a bit wordier if it wasn’t, y’know…” His head tilted towards your parents, who still hadn’t evaporated the two of you for some reason. “But I hope to have a lifetime for that. Now, just one question, love.”

You were ready to nod your head away until it would fall off and roll into the corner, but you wanted to hear Sirius say the sacred four words. Most importantly, you wanted your parents to hear them, and maybe pass out at your enthusiastic agreement.

“Will you marry me?”

Your yelled out “YES!” could very likely pierce through whatever silencing charms your mother had put on the dining room. A second later the ring was already on your finger, and you were in your fiancé’s arms, spinning around in endless circles of sheer love and uninterrupted bliss. Your lips quickly found his. Your parents were furious. You didn’t care.

“Daughter?!”

Your father’s voice wasn’t a church bell anymore. It resembled a first-year getting caught up in the Whomping Willow for the first time – abnormally high, breaking and unequivocally frightened.

“Dad?” you mimicked his tone and were pretty damn good at it, if Sirius had a say. “You know what, Dad? If this is the blood running through my veins, I’m more than willing to betray it.”

Mother’s cheeks were wet from tears at last; the flood wasn’t sorrowful, not at all – it was filled with spite. Father clutched his wand, but something stopped him – maybe he was ultimately conscious of the fact that from that moment on he had no power over you. You thanked Merlin for his obsolete mentality that told him wives were their husbands’ properties – well, not yet husband’s in your case, but the premise remained. Oh, the irony! The thing that made him have a measly shred of respect for Sirius was the fact that he was about to marry you – not that he had been your choice of a partner for at least a year.

“Now, if you don’t mind, I’m taking my future Mrs. Black the fuck away from here.”

Sirius was a gentleman. He offered you his arm, chivalrously opened the door for you and proudly displayed your hand with a shiny stone on your ring finger to each and every nosy aunt willing – no, desperate to take a look. You parents had already left the dining room, but shifted along the wall to avoid the ever-inquisitive relatives. You swiftly reached the fireplace and grabbed a handful of powder each. You were so ready to finally leave the manor behind that your whole body moved by itself, without any input from your consciousness.

“And she’s having my baby!” you heard Sirius shouting just before you disappeared into the green fire of the Floo Network.

Both of you rolled out of the fireplace somewhere in the Diagon Alley, one after the other. You could finally let your guard down and burst into genuine, merry laughter; Sirius did the same, standing up and pulling you into his loving embrace.

“Love, you should’ve seen their faces!” he claimed, excitement washing over him and capturing you by association. “Bet they won’t forget us until the day they die.”

You secretly hoped they wouldn’t.

my masterlist

[moodcrab]

Fixing Skyrim's Daedric Quests

Part II - Clavicus Vile

Honestly this was the most underwhelming Daedric Quest in Skyrim, but Skyrim is by no means unique in this as it's just the most recent in a long line of underwhelming Clavicus Vile quests in the Elder Scrolls franchise. Vile, the god of wishes, deals and dodgy monkey palm style tricks forms a natural counterpart to the Divine Zenithar, god of honest work and trade, but for some reason there isn't a Vile quest that isn't "Go to dungeon and kill X". Skyrim, to its credit, tried to make it interesting with Barbas, but still resorted to "go to this cave and kill this guy."

The whole story of Sebastian, the mage who wished for a lycanthropy cure for his daughter only for Vile to grant him an axe, is a truly boring misunderstanding of what Vile is all about. An axe isn't a cure, not even in an ironic double meaning of the word cure. Any axe, indeed any weapon or spell, can kill a werewolf, but he didn't wish for his daughter to be killed, something he could easily do without making a deal with the devil. There are several ways to cure lycanthropy in Tamriel, death is not one of them. If you have cancer but you die in a car accident you are not cured of cancer, literally the opposite in fact. This isn't a mind bending M Night plot twist, it's bullshit. Not only is a dead werewolf not a cured one, he didn't wish for his daughter to be killed, so there's nothing stopping him from just throwing the axe in the sea and going to find a Glenmoril Witch. Vile gains nothing from this arrangement, and Vile doesn't enter into arrangements that don't benefit him.

A true Vile wish would have cured the lycanthropy in such a way that causes unforeseen consequences that end up killing the daughter, dooming her soul to The Fields of Regret, his realm of Oblivion. The wish would be technically granted, but it backfired horribly. The only thing remotely Clavicus Vile-ish was the big "rug pull" at the end of the quest where he offers you the axe if you kill Barbas, and like, no. No thanks. I have access to better axes, I'm not killing a dog for this *two handed 🤮* one. I never wanted this axe, there is no reason in the quest to even use the axe yourself let alone grow attached to it, unlike Barbas who has now accompanied me all through the quest. This isn't a choice.

Quest: Best Wishes

The quest opener is being moved from Falkreath to Morthal, because vanilla Morthal has no general store. Well, now it does. Compared to all the other stores you visit it will have a unique look, very mysterious and quirky with oddities on the shelves, and the owner will be an eccentric character with a cute dog. For the quest to activate you must have traded at the store a few times and reached a level. On entering, the owner will be distraught and refuse to trade unless you agree to find his dog who has gone missing.

You go on a bit of a dog hunt. Asking around Morthal gets you little useful information. In fact, if you ask certain people, they will say some curious things; like they have no idea who you're talking about, or that there isn't a general store in Morthal at all, "Oh that old place? That closed down when I was a child after old man whatever died"...

You eventually track the dog down outside the city and, surprise, it talks! Barbas explains the situation, that he is the somewhat loyal side kick of Clavicus Vile, who has an offer for you. He also makes it clear, this offer is an invitation only, you would walk away right now if you were wise. Assuming you aren't a pussy, you of course return Barbas to the shop and hear the offer.

The shopkeeper transforms into Vile, in all his jovial Skaafin glory. He tells you about a wish he has recently received, one that he would like your help in granting. There's this would be merchant in the city of Whiterun named Ysolda, who you have likely already met as she is a very popular wifu, she has been a devout Zenithar worshipper for years, but has become impatient with waiting for her hard work to pay off. She really wants to be a trader, and has prayed to Vile to make it so. If you agree to take care of it for him, he will reward you. As Barbas has recommended, you can quit the quest right now. Or...

You head to Whiterun and start investigating Ysolda. It's up to you how the wish gets granted, depending on what you discover about her:

1. She would like to buy the Bannered Mare of her friend Hulda, who isn't ready to sell. So you could ruin the business to make Hulda desperate to sell, but Ysolda would get a ruined inn. Or you could forge Hulda's will and stage an "accident", so Ysolda inherits the inn at the expense of her friend's life.

2. She has done some work with the Khajiit caravans, learning what she can about mercantile skills, but expressing how hard and horrible their lifestyle sounds. Investigating this will lead you to a secret meeting between Ysolda and an Orc. The Orc hands Ysolda a "the goods" but Ysolda complains there isn't enough. The Orc explains how dangerous getting it is. Ysolda doesn't care, she tells him he needs to go get more. If you follow the Orc to Sleeping Tree Camp you'll witness his death at the hands of the giants there. On his body there is an incriminating note, which you could show to the Whiterun guard captain, who will banish her from the city as punishment. Ysolda will spend the rest of her days with the Khajiit caravan, living as a vagrant and exiled from her home, but a trader, just as she wished.

3. As Barbas, who will accompany you, advises, you could warn Ysolda and break your side of the bargain. She believes your story (how else could you have known about the wish?), but depending on your speechcraft and personality attribute - because a fixed Skyrim would obviously have attributes - you either strike the right amount of fear into her that she flees to the temple to seek sanctuary, or you miss your mark and she decides to go check out this shop in Morthal for herself. When she gets there Vile will reluctantly let her take over the store, but if Ysolda repents she will one day become a Priestess of Zenithar, and convert the shop into a fledgling temple.

Just Deserts

When you return to the general store in Morthal it will have transformed into an abandoned ruin.

Any outcome of options one or two will please Vile, he will award you his Masque which will be light or heavy armoured dependant on which skill is higher for you and it will have a powerful speechcraft, personality and price discount enchantment. You also have the opportunity later on to take over and run the shop yourself.

If Ysolda comes to Morthal to take over the store, Vile will be annoyed at you and Barbas for being boring, but will accept that the wish is technically granted and Ysolda, now his devotee, will be spending her afterlife in his realm. You get the Masque but she gets the store ( unless you marry her...)

If you break your deal and save Ysolda, you get a curse; permanent debuffs to speechcraft, personality and prices. The cost of being a hero is high, especially when it comes to the Daedra. (Maybe Ysolda can lift the curse once her temple is up and running, but that will be a while).

[futurequibblerjournalist]

The Ancient and Most Noble House of Black names explained:

I’ve gotten a few asks about my thoughts on the Black family and specifically their names and the middle names I’ve assigned them so I figured I’d make a post and explain them all, along with how I see the meanings of their names translating to their personalities! I was originally going to do the Black sisters and brothers in this one too but it just got too long so you guys are getting Riddle era Black family until I return with the second installment vjnbjgnbj

tw: brief mention of rape in Lucretia's section

Walburga Irma Black:

Unlike most of her family members, Walburga is not named after a star. Her first name is an alternative spelling of Walpurga which comes from Saint Walpurga, a nun born in 710. Saint Walpurga was also given an annual feast day called Saint Walpurgis Night or Saint Walpurgis Eve. Ironically one of the things she was hailed for was battling witchcraft. She was said to repel witches and was known as a healer of illnesses and one of her only talents not fully related to her religion is noted to be very detailed embroidery. I like to pull things from things like this, especially when it comes to characters we know very little about, so what this tells me about Walburga is that she likely did not have a lot of (female) friends which fits with the fact that I generally think the Black family kept to themselves. She was a skilled healer, which is very interesting considering how she’s usually portrayed as a woman who ruins so much. Is she aware of this aspect of her personality and that’s why she decided to learn so much about healing? And at last, she’s talented at embroidery. This yet again fits with another headcanon of mine that the finer families in pureblood society showed their status through things such as embroidery or homemade lace, to show that the women in the family were so well taken care of that they could focus on nothing but raising a family and making said family look good. I would imagine Walburga was taught by her mother.

Speaking of her mother, Walburga gets her middle name from her mother, Irma Black (born Crabbe) which means she is once again not given a name with a connection to the stars. Irma means complete; entire and is derived from the Old High German word ‘irmin’ meaning ‘world’. One could argue that while Walburga does not have a star specific name she is named in a way that could be interpreted as someone’s whole world.

Alphard Pollux Black:

Alphard is named after the star of the same name, the brightest star in the constellation Hydra. Alphard comes from the Arabic al-fard which, if Wikipedia is to trust lol, means “the individual”. The star is also known both as “the backbone of the Serpent” and “the heart of the Serpent”. From this I like to pull a bit of personality. Alphard has a clear connection to his family, one with a noticeable connection to serpent imagery through the Black family’s consistent history of being sorted into Slytherin. He’s an individual, he’s got the backbone to stand out yet still in a way more acceptable to the family and he’s got the heart to still show love and kindness towards Sirius. I think, and I don’t know if this is an unpopular opinion, that Alphard values his family a whole lot. Which is ironic, because in part that’s what gets him blasted off of the family tapestry. Another name for this star is Soheil Solitarius, which translates to the bright solitary one. I interpret this to think he’s got some sort of loneliness to him, even within a family with so many people. That is what being too much of an individual in the Black family gets you. You can only push it too much before you become an outsider and I think Alphard is living right on the cusp.

Just like Alphard, Pollux is yet another star that is the brightest in its constellation, this time it’s the Gemini constellation. Just like how Walburga got her middle name from her mother, Alphard got his from his father. The name Pollux, albeit also the name of a star comes from the twins Castor and Pollux in both Greek and Roman mythology.

As a fun little extra thing, I think Alphard’s fun older guy that he seduces whenever he feels like it (Arvid Thicket) calls him Hydrae and occasionally he calls him Hydra’s Heart because he’s a sap lol.

Cygnus Phineas Black:

Cygnus was the third Cygnus in the family, being named after his paternal grandfather. It's suspected that Cygnus I was likely Cygnus's great-great-grandfather which would be the father of the second man he's named after, former Hogwarts headmaster Phineas Nigellus Black. Cygnus, the constellation derives its name from the Greek word for swan. Looking at the most common symbolism associated with swans, we can assume Cygnus has a certain amount of wisdom to him, which also works perfectly with the fact that he was named after a former headmaster at a respected institution.

Speaking of said former headmaster, Cygnus got his middle name from Phineas Nigellus Black, the most disliked headmaster of Hogwarts, at least believing the statement from Cygnus nephew, Sirius Black. The name Phineas does not come from a star but instead it is a name of Hebrew origin meaning “the mouth of a snake”/“serpent’s mouth”. From this we can pull that Cygnus not only shares the typical views of his family, but looking at a similar saying “having a serpent’s tongue” which means having a tendency to speak maliciously, we can assume that Cygnus might have been either particularly opinionated, a tendency to come off as harsh or negative or both. I would also like to note that Cygnus is specifically named after Phineas Nigellus and not Phineas Nigellus’s son of the same name (as he was disowned for supporting muggle rights).

Lucretia Elladora Black:

Upon first glance, one might think Lucretia is another Black not named after a star. That would technically be correct, though she is named after an asteroid known as 281 Lucretia, an asteroid belonging to the Flora family in the Main Belt. Lucretia also shares her first name with a noblewoman from Ancient Rome. Lucretia was raped by Sextus Tarquinius and subsequently committed suicide after confessing about the rape to her father and husband. It's said that this act was the/one of the first stepping stones in the rebellion that made the Roman government transition from a kingdom to a republic. While I won't go into details interpreting the fact that her namesake was raped, we can look into the fact that Lucretia was noted to be exceptionally devoted to her husband. I think this is especially interesting given how the Prewett family is connected to the Weasleys. They likely weren't at the time Lucretia married Ignatius but even if they were she probably walked the line of marrying someone too different from the Black family and yet she was so devoted to Ignatius that to her it hardly mattered.

Lucretia's middle name Elladora comes from Elladora Black, the sister of Phineas Nigellus. Elladora was actually alive when Lucretia was born (she died six years later in 1931) so it wouldn't be far off to assume that the two possibly had some sort of relationship. Elladora is another name not derived from a star or anything similar, though it is speculated on Elladora Black's wiki page that the name comes from Elladora's mother possibly being named Ella and Callidora Black (the character known as Callidora Black is born after Elladora of course, being the daughter of one of Elladora's nephews, but knowing how the Black family liked to name their children after previous relatives it does not seem completely unbelievable that there was a Callidora Black born before Elladora that she could have gotten the second half of her name from). There are two takes on "Ella", that it comes from the Norman form of the Germanic "Alia" which means "other" or "Aella", a Greek name meaning "whirlwind". Either way, looking at Lucretia one could argue that they fit in regard to her marriage to someone who is from a family that is not necessarily the most respected and in later years is very much considered an "other" to the Black family. The second half, "Dora" is derived from the Greek word "doron" and means "gift". It kinda follows a similar pattern to Walburga's middle name. Just like Walburga is "someone's whole world" Lucretia is "gift/a gift". Considering the usual take on the Black family I think this is kind of sweet.

On the opposite end, to talk a bit more about Elladora. She is noted as the Black that introduces decapitating house elves and hanging their heads on plaques when they're no longer useful. I think Lucretia would share a similar sentiment to her namesake and a more aggressive/demanding way of handling the elves does not seem far off.

Orion Regulus Black:

Orion is a constellation known for featuring a number of bright stars. It is also known for being a good star to navigate from. Looking at this I think it fits with Orion being the head of his family but also the head of Black family in general based off of the fact that he and his family were the ones to live and grow up in 12 Grimmauld Place, the ancestral home of the Black family. I’ve always found this very interesting with him being the youngest as well. In ancient Egypt the stars of Orion were regarded as a god and to me this tells me that this man holds himself in high regard, likely above others even his fellow Blacks. Ironically the bible mentions Orion three times, naming it “Kesil” which literally means fool. I think this perhaps speaks more to others perception of him rather than his own. I would suspect that perhaps due to his age there would be circumstances where he wouldn’t be taken as seriously, something that would surely infuriate a man who considers himself godlike. In Greek mythology he is described as unnaturally strong which one could pull from for a physical description though I don’t personally. What I find interesting is that he stood up to Gaia saying he could kill every animal on earth and was thus punished for it by Gaia sending a scorpion (the constellations of Scorpius) after him. He was later revived by Ophiuchus, the serpent bearer. He’s described as a hunter and a skilled one and while the best way I can think this translates to what we know of him in canon, it could be the way he protects his ancestral home with quite skilful magic. The fact that Orion is made up of so many stars, especially bright ones could also symbolise the Black family in general and how many not only came before him but also how tight knit the family is that he is literally made up of them. This could also be a nod to their incest tendencies, especially given how Orion is the only Black we actually know of (other than his wife of course) to marry another relative.

I am personally a big fan of Orion’s middle name being Regulus, no matter if it’s from a cis or trans Regulus standpoint. Either Orion named both his sons after himself which seems entirely on point with a man that likes himself so much, or Regulus looked enough up to his father and valued family naming traditions enough to name himself after the man. Obviously sharing a name with his son there's going to be some overlap when it comes to personality traits that you can pull from it. Regulus means "prince" and/or "little king" in Latin and this is another time where you see Orion with a name that means something of great importance/something that is generally speaking better than someone else. It is also known as "the king", "the great", "the mighty" and "the centre" as well as one of the royal stars in the Persian monarchy. Even if the whole "heart of the lion" does not fit with Orion in the same sense that some might think it fits Regulus, I'd argue that Orion values/possesses/wishes to possess a good amount of the things that a lion traditionally symbolise, such as courage, nobility, royalty, strength, stateliness and valour.

This ended up so much longer than originally planned which is why I'm saving Bellatrix, Andromeda, Narcissa, Sirius and Regulus for another post lol. Hopefully someone enjoys this ramble vjnfjbngjb I've already made multiple people listen to it as it was being made.

This was inspired by an ask I got from @starchildlazaro so I figured I'd tag you since it turned into a post instead of just a normal answer,,,

[familyvideostevie]

october twenty-eighth

day twenty-eight: sirius black will a haunted house finally bring you and sirius together? | pre-relationship, friends to lovers, some fake gore | 1k

You swear you're going to tell him one of these days.

You're an adult. You can fess up to a fancy. Even if you're worried it'll rock your entire friend group if Sirius isn't interested in you. Even if you'll be a bit more heartbroken than you'd like to admit because of it. You're going to talk to him about it.

Just…not tonight. Tonight, you're doing your best to maintain your composure as scare actors and regular people alike scare the shit out of you at every turn of this stupid haunted house theme park.

You don't know how but someday you're going to get James back for this whole idea.

The park is teeming with people when you all arrive and you decide to walk around a bit and get some food before you get in line for a real haunted house. You like this kind of stuff, to a point. The most fun part is being with your friends and being scared together, not so much the actual being scared part. Your heart might beat out of your chest by the time this is over.

The only thing that seems to be working in your favor is the fact that Sirius has taken it upon himself to stick by your side. He moves between you and the scare actors, shoulder bumping yours as he takes the brunt of each fright.

“You alright?” he keeps asking you.

It's infuriating. It should not be allowed for one person to be so handsome, so kind, and so…tempting. It's properly cold tonight but he's in his usual leather jacket, though for once it's actually zipped up all the way. He keeps his hands in his pockets and you wonder what it would be like to hold one.

“Oi!” Remus calls. “One of you help me with drinks, yeah?”

“I will,” you say quickly. You need to remove yourself from Sirius's side before you do something silly.

But your plan backfires, as no comfort is to be found in your friend as you wait for everyone's hot drinks.

“So,” Remus says, casually. 'You going to make a move tonight?”

“Oh, piss off.”

He laughs. “Just asking!” He narrows his eyes over your shoulder and you know he's looking at Sirius. “I just think its's worth telling you that it's on you, darling. He's a bit of an idiot.”

“I know,” you mutter.

“He'd be fucking thrilled, though,” Remus assures you. “He's utterly besotted.”

You see what you think might be proof of that when you hand Sirius his mulled wine. He beams at you like you made it yourself. “Thanks, love,” he says.

“Alright,” James says. “Gather round, my dear friends.” Everyone groans.

Sirius presses your arms together and sips his wine.

“Once we're all properly warmed and armed with some liquid courage, we're going to go into that house.” He points to…the biggest one.

“Oh, bloody hell,” Sirius mutters.

“Yes, yes, I know it's the scariest one. But you're all brave, are you not?” James looks far too pleased with himself.

“You're the one who screams loudest,” you tease. James narrows his eyes at you and Sirius and you sense trouble.

“We'll see about that.”

The line for the house moves faster than you'd like.

“You alright?” Sirius asks again.

You raise an eyebrow at him. “Are you alright?” He grins crookedly at you.

“Course,” he says. “Nothing like a bit of adrenaline, right?”

If only he knew. Being close to him gets your heart going almost as much as the jump scares you've had tonight. “Just don't think too badly of me when I scream bloody murder.”

He winks at you. Good god. “As if I could ever think badly of you.” Your group reaches the front of the queue. A bored teen stands at the door, waiting to let you in. You can hear the screams of other patrons already. “It's not too scary, is it?” Sirius says. He sounds like he's trying to convince himself.

The teenager looks unimpressed. “Good luck.”

James and Lily lead the group, Remus on their heels, you two last.

The scary shit starts immediately. A dark, dismal alleyway is littered with bones and lined with iron cages and rag-covered prisoners jump out at you and rattle the bars.

“Oh, fuck,” Sirius cries. It takes a second for you to realize that he's grabbed your hand. Out of fear, maybe? You wait for him to pull away but…he doesn't.

You remember what Remus said. Well, looks like this is your time to make a move. You lace your fingers together and squeeze. The house is dark but you see the flash of Sirius's teeth.

Okay. You can do this.

“Sirius,” you say as you walk through the hall, trying to be on your toes for people jumping out at you and failing to anticipate them every time. “Where did the rest of them go?”

You both realize that your friends, who were in front of you, are…not there anymore.

“They've abandoned us,” he curses. “Very funny. No way out but through then, love.”

The alleyway turns to a creepy hospital turns to a dungeon turns to haunted woods.

At some point, you start trying to make each other laugh.

“Bet he's got indigestion,” Sirius whispers in your ear when a guy covered in fake blood fists his hands in his fake intestines.

“She's actually very good at blackjack,” you say of a woman with her eyes gouged out.

You don't call him on it when he screams, and he never lets go of your hand.

“How big is this place?” Sirius mutters.

Just as he says it, there's a literal light at the end of the tunnel.

You spill out into a street-lamp lit holding area where plenty of people are recovering, hands on their knees to catch their breath.

Your friends, however, stand at attention, eyes on the two of you.

“Oi,” Sirius yells. “Don't look so pleased with yourselves. See if we stick with you when we're chased by a serial killer.”

James starts clapping.

“Oh, do shut up,” Lily says. “Glad you two made it.”

Sirius squeezes your hand. Oh. You should probably let go now, right?

“Should we do another?” he asks instead.

You let yourself look at him, really look at him. His eyes are bright, face a bit flushed. He looks like a man who knows exactly what he's doing.

“Okay,” you say.

He doesn't let go for the rest of the night.

thank you for reading <3 reblog, send feedback, general masterlist here! promptober masterlist, find all fics under #fvspromptober23

[thekingofwinterblog]

There is one detail were I think I need a second opinion on:

So during the manga ending, there is that detail of supposedly Lord Death, with his "madness of order" being able to control everyone on earth - basically being able to solve all crime/evil things from happening.

The fact that he doesnt use this power is presented as a positive thing, basically an indirect way of answering the problem of evil with "actually God gives us free will and thats why evil happens, because denying us the free will would be more evil than anything else"

So ok, what is the sticking point to me? Well Lord Death was kinda hinted as being deeply flawed, and even his death at the end is framed as tragic but as the time necessary and a positive thing, a new generiation taking over creating a better wolrd, ect.

But isn't including such a huge revelation - a revelation that only makes sense with an All Good, kinda absolute God?

Basically, maybe I'm just looking for nitpicks, but to me these two things clash - like the story and Ohkubo couldnt decide between if Lord Death was holding the world back and needed to pass the torch or if he actually was the wacky all knowing force for good all along -

Like if instead it was revealed that Lord Death was pressured to make Kid be an automaton to avoid an Asura situation, but he refused because he didnt sucumb to the despair of failure and had hope in humanity and freedom, it could work as "wow Lord Death had past sins and couldnt steer the world into the future, but here is an action that proved that the flame of his vision was still good and know Kid will be his resurection, like that old NAS song"

Idk, maybe this is all just nonsense to normal people but to me its the best example of Soul Eaters (more the mangas) unwillingness to commit to the "Death is not all good thing" - like the whole WMD's parrelel and shit seems even more out of place and ironically as a way to say "well Bush made mistakes, but American imperialism is a good thing overall!"

(Ok i probably shouldnt have included "politics" here lol)

Anyway I think the anime in the end was better with its more simplistic worldview - cause atleat it didnt break itself - the shadyness of Death was worked into Kids isuess of trust and accepting that he isnt perfect and can place his trust in his partners and is more simmilar to his father in this way etc.

So yeah, if you are still reading and didnt delete it out of boredom, Im interested in a response, cause I'll admit I'm not sure about it 100 percent myself so if you go and say "Nah, thats wrong cause-" I'll probably open to listening

Eh, i'd say that you're looking at this from a wrong perspective.

Shinigami was a good, if very flawed individual, but the thing is that the reason why he could not lead the new age was not because be was flawed... It was because in chasing perfection, he made an error so great that he could never recover from it.

That error being the way he created his first son, not to create a successor, but instead as a byproduct of ripping his fear out of his own self in order to become a "better" God of order, a desciaion that had enormous consequences in that it laid the groundwork for the first Kishin, but also because it left him utterly incapable of feeling fear, and thus incapable of feeling bravery either, and drastically affecting his descision making.

As such, he was incapable of decisively defeating his son, and had to resort to sealing him away, something that also required him to stay in one place forever afterwards.

The school that he founded afterwards to replace his team of immensely powerfull warriors that Asura and Excalibur was a part of, came as a consequence of his own failures shattering that group, and with him no longer being able to move around, he couldn't even uphold his actual purpose in the world.

And thats withouth taking into account how much getting ridd of his own fear screwed him up as a person. Through the series, shinigami is utterly incapable of showing real, true fear, no matter how dire things get. All of his angry moments happens in the moment, as things are happening around him.

He was incapable of truly feeling any sense of urgency when Asura was about to escape, and only after he is free is he able to confront the very real consequences on an emotional level.

Similarily at the end of the series he isnt actually afraid of the witches betraying them despite thinking this is the likely outcome, but when he thinks they do, he flies off the handle to reveal just how much hate he truly has for them.

Hia philosophy debate with his son near the end of the anime is all about exploring how these two family members are unable to feel fear and by extention understand bravery.

Ultimately what Shinigami came to realise and finally accept, is that as a consequence of chasing utter perfection, he ironically made himself too fundamentally broken to lead the way, both as a person, and as a king/god who should be leading his organization by example, rather than being trapped in his city.

Fundamentally Shinigami was a good person... But by his own actions, while chasing perfection he crossed a line that he was never able to uncross. Very much like his son, he believed that if he was the strongest, withouth "flaws", he would be able to see his vision through. Only where Asura wanted to feel completely out of any possible danger, Shinigami wanted keep the word orderly and safe for the good people of the planet.

A good goal. But as they say, the road to hell is paved with good intentions.

[animatedapostasy]

Persona 4 has been bouncing around in my brain even more than usual and I wanna complain about it.

I think the main problem with Persona 4 is that it has nothing to say. Despite being a game that is dealing explicitly with topics like gender, sexuality, queerness, and identity, the game has absolutely nothing interesting to say about any of it. In fact, its viewpoint is pretty conservative. Nothing upsets the status quo.

Almost all of the character’s shadow selves are rooted deeply into the character’s insecurity and fear around their gender and/or sexuality and how it fits in with society’s norms. The exceptions are Teddie and Yosuke (ironic I know). Despite this, in the individual character arcs: all of the characters make decisions and end up almost exactly in line with what society expects of them. No one dares to go against the grain.  Yukiko ends up running the inn just as she was expected to her, only now she’s happy about it. Rise returns to being an idol just like everyone wanted her to only now she’s happy about it. Naoto sheds their gender non-conformity in favor what society expects. Chie, despite seeing firsthand the incompetence and corruption of the police, still wants to be a police officer (Makoto Niijima also says hello here)

Yosuke’s cut romance is a pretty good microcosm of this and I don’t think you need to be particularly yaoibrained to see it. With his romance, he could have had an arc of “boy in search of someone who makes him feel special overcomes his internalized homophobia to fall in love with his best friend”. At the very least, you have to admit it would have been transgressive when it was released. But it was cut and nothing remains except ash, homophobia, and fujoshi tears.

Ironically, I think Kanji with all his discourse around him has the arc with the most to say. Honestly in my opinion, his arc was never about being gay but defining a healthy definition of manhood that includes having “feminine” interests. But in the end he ends up conforming too. Just look at his epilogue outfit. They did away with all the visual things that made Kanji unique to look “normal”. The same applies to Naoto whose gender non-conformity is completely erased in their epilogue look.

For a game whose whole theme is “Pursuing Your True Self”, it pretty much says that “true self” shouldn’t be anything that challenges the status quo.

[iorekbyrinson]

Sorting Better Call Saul: part 2

I promised this post...like, a year ago, so I'm posting these three I've got some kinda idea about now as a peace offering. Not the full cartel yet, but watch this space!

Mike Ehrmantraut - Lion Badger, Burnt primary, Bird model

Ok, to start with Mike. Mike has the traits of all four houses - the hard work and honesty of a Hufflepuff, the loyalty of a Slytherin, the intelligence of a Ravenclaw, and even the fierceness of a Gryffindor when roused. Let's start with Hufflepuff, which is the first - Mike has a Puff streak a mile wide, valuing honesty, hard work, and fairness to an insane degree.

You could argue that this could be the iron clad code of a Ravenclaw, but I think that's a myth. Mike has put on the icy and unfeeling armour around his Puffness to match the "code" of the gangland warfare he finds himself in, but it's got too much of a warm Puff heart to be truly Ravenclaw. Scratch it and you find the gruff older mentor who takes Jesse under his wing, the one whose arguments of "in or out the game" are essentially ways of stopping himself feeling for those who he is forced to kill, and despite all that is the character most likely to stand in harms way to protect another who he can't bear to see harmed - Nacho, then Nachos father, then Jesse, even Werner.

In both series, this devotion specifically revolves around his love for his granddaughter. It's all for Kaylee, for him to find a foothold in his granddaughter's life, and provide for her future. In simple terms, this seems like a Slytherin way of categorising his world - caring, in a structured form, with blood prioritized first - or is it? The Slytherin loyalty rears it's head, but I actually think Mike is working off the terms of paying a debt - that he "broke his boy" by morally corrupting him, making him take a taste of the corruption he'd dipped his hand in for pragmatic reasons for decades, which led to his death. Now that's a vessel you can never really fill again.

This cool headed-ness and Mike's legendary problem solving skills could indicate Ravenclaw, but I'm disinclined to consider it for either primary or secondary. Mike simply doesn't work along the same terms as Gus or Chuck. He's a deeply felt man that's found a way to operate in the world using higher means of practical tools and skills. But Mike TOILS. He doesn't form master plans or collect people to suit specific purposes, and out of the whole cast he's the most likely not to socially engineer a situation (well, aside from a bit of acting now and then), turning his nose up at Gustavo's double life and scripts. Every single plan he has works on the basis that he can deconstruct it down to its bare essentials (see: the infamous car scene). He's patient, like stone under deep earth. You try and move against him and he is utterly firm. In this way, I'm going to anoint him a beautiful Puff secondary with 0 interest in mirroring or people pleasing.

So what's his Primary? Well firstly, Mikes primary is deeply charred. It's the tragedy of his character - a man so capable, so intelligent and functioning in the world, yet his heart is utterly dried up. There's no gas left in that particular tank, by both circumstance and design - if Mike allowed himself to feel, he would annihilate himself in disgust for what he sees as his transgressions (JBanks discusses this). So, a moral, felt Primary. I'm gonna say he's not a double Puff. Mike shows little interest in belonging to groups and in fact thrives as the archetypal lone wolf, like a gunslinger with a broken code. He's dead to himself and yet deeply aroused by things pertaining to his own individual morality - like Hector massacring the Good Samaritan, or Gus paying off Werner's wife. Mike, Burnt or not, operates from a sense of judgement about how the world should be, and deigns his own judgement frequently. One of the tragedies of the show is witnessing this drying up - going from trusting his gut instinct of right and wrong to becoming an accomplice to Gus having given up on his sense of morality entirely. So, Gryff primary, making Mike Ehrmantraut perhaps the most unlikely Lion Badger in the whole compendium.

Lalo Salamanca - *RETYPED (prev Bird Snake) Lion Snake, Burnt Badger secondary model

*see below post for new Primary reasoning

(((Now, Lalo. Definitely NOT an internal primary - I see external primary AND external model for this guy. He strikes me as a Bird Snake actually, and the reason I don't build his sorting the way I did with Mike is because Lalo is best taken from the outside in - it forms a more complete picture of him (because there's nothing going on inside).

First, getting rid of that typical Slytherin primary. To do this, we need to look at where his main trait, commitment to his family, comes from. For Snake primaries, this loyalty is innate and instinctive. However, when we see Lalo acting out of instinct, it is almost certainly for survival - or *fun*. This guy is going around setting a charge to situations that majorly eff things up for HIM AND HIS FAMILY because he gets bored. He never shuts up, constantly on one tangent or another. Now, that's not to say Snakes can't be chatty (especially Snake secondaries), but Lalo's constant stream of consciousness seems to have a function. It is a pure externalisation of his interior monologue, a way of understanding and implementing his ideas and actions. Snakes need to reserve a portion of themselves for themselves in order to survive. Lalo, arguably, shares too much, flying well in the face of a TRUE loyalist manipulator (which is also why Gustavo gets so pissed with him, because...he's a real, true blue almighty Snake and he CANNOT understand or even tolerate the faux Loyalty the Salamanca family wears like a badge of honour. After all, he "understands blood for blood").

Secondly, he's got that Bird Snake vibe of being a manipulator that is just weird enough to get everybody's hackles up whilst staying (almost) one move ahead of everybody else. Also, when you leave him alone (and let his walls come down a bit), he starts theorising - random theories about Gustavo, and when he's by the fireplace with Nacho, little nuggets of not being able to sleep at night. It's a funny scene, one a lot of the fandom interpreted in a VERY Snake way as a sign some kind of loyalty was being exchanged/revealed, but in honesty it's kind of both trite and sad. Lalo trusted Nacho enough to reveal one of the twisty sides to his character, the intellectual grain in a personality entirely constructed to fit the macho conventions of the cartel.)))

Lalo has a very, very dark Badger model, which he uses as an in to his messed-up family, and also to smooth cartel relations (which, ironically, causes an oil/water reaction amongst folks, because Lalo isn't precious about his Badger model and his real self tends to bleed through - Lalo simultaneously gives the impression he's including you AND excluding those he doesn't like, in one smooth swoop. It's very unsettling for ACTUAL regular Badger Juan Bolsa, who far prefers Gustavo's very specific brand of Snake packaged in servile Double Badger. It's easier for him to understand.) It's a social convention that greases the wheels in the cartel families/businesses, which are hierarchical, you're-with-us-or-against-us places. Gus also does this, but he does it a lot less graciously than Lalo, because he hates everyone and gets nothing from it. Lalo enjoys the way it relates him to others - such as with his staff, or his family, or Eladio -, and he coaches Nacho in these methods later in order to get him into Eladio's good graces.

This is just speculation, but I have an instinct it was also a way of packaging the brutal dehumanisation and pack-loyalty the Salamanca family in particular seem to enjoy. Hector has compelled his whole family into a cult of following the family credo (family is everything) as a means of centralising his power and bolstering his hair-trigger ego. The younger Salamanca generation are all lessons in how individuals respond to that kind of pressure - Tuco, perhaps the most like his uncle (Hector would love to think Lalo takes most after him, but that's untrue) goes all in on his own Lion secondary, the twins become shallow facsimiles of Badger secondaries with their own Sortings buried perhaps so far they will never be found (and always be within reach of their best securities, each other) and Lalo, perhaps the cleverest of all the Salamanca progeny, learns to model or even perform a Badger primary in order to SEEM like he's fully in step with the structures around him whilst following his own path.

Actually, I'm certain it's a Badger performance more than a model, one he seems to knowingly laugh at (such as when he sees Gustavo doing the same thing and sees RIGHT through it, such as when he goes to Germany to see Marguerite and Casper and keeps up his performance of "American Tourist Abroad" for approximately twenty seconds. It's not Marguerite's fault she was a trusting Lion primary and didn't bother to probe. Marguerite was tryna get some.) This veneer of bonhomie totally falls away by the end though. As he says to Hector - "screw Bolsa, screw Eladio, I'm getting revenge and I'm gonna cause this guy some pain".

SPEAKING OF: Lalo's primary is Lion. I previously said Bird because I couldn't get a read on his fae-lord view of morality, but once I twigged that's a Lion trope, it all fell into place. Lalo and Hector share a Primary, and you can absolutely see how Lalo's character is shaped by looking at his uncle (as I've said above). And although I said previously that Hector is probably a Double Lion, I think the magnitude of how Exploded Hector is gets in the way of what his secondary is. I think Hector may just be an awful Badger secondary, one that shows up as functional when he tries bargaining with Mike in the guise of senior citizen, for instance, or tries to pay off Nacho's father. The wince-inducing efforts to suck up to Eladio, also, show an adherence to the old ways that just aren't current with Gustavo's slicker, profit-oriented over person-oriented methods. It's heavy-handed and doesn't work either way, but it doesn't stop it from being a Badger method. It's the Lion primary that runs the Salamanca family, and Lalo has taken his own fae-lord, it is what it is stance on this, sustained by the fire that keeps their family at the top of the heap, Ambition, Glory, and all those other darkGryffindor vibes.

Also I think it's interesting that Hector, for all Lalo's doting nephew persona, doesn't end up being taken care of by him at his hacienda. Lalo chooses to plant himself as far from the Salamanca proceedings north of the border as possible, with even a restrained, utilitarian villa with an entourage of unrelated staff and a few of the peasantry that adore him as a Don in his own right. I think this is a little indicator of some Glory Hound Lion being in there (which means Lalo sees himself as a hero, which...tracks), as well as a further proof that Lalo doesn't have a Slytherin primary - I don't see a Snake VOLUNTARILY ever wanting to have distance between them and their innermost circle.

Which brings us to what underpins Lalo's personality; his truly incredible Snake secondary. This guy adores being in neutral. He likes to switch in and out and watch those around him squirm in discomfort. At his core he doesn't seem to give a cheery sh*t about any kind of social niceties and performances and seems to use any socializations outside of cartel business to out and out psychologically mess with people. As for the rest - literally look at any ten second clip of the guy. Dude is revealing secret bathtub tunnels and diving in and out of vents like he was born for it. And he has a truly terrifying Neutral face, when necessary - as seen with Kim's conversation with him in the prison. Brrrr.

So, Lalo - Lion Snake, with a Badger secondary performance, and an arc in the later seasons that makes him full-on Exploded and out for vengeance.

Gustavo Fring - Double Snake (exploded secondary), Bird Secondary model, Double Badger performance

So I watched Better Call Saul first before seeing Gus in BB...which is tricky, because so much of Gus's character is designed in BCS as a nod to BB, as a piece that provides more context to the BB Gus, aka drug lord supreme. In BCS, we see Gus in an awkward in between stage, like a bug in a chrysalis. He's still working at the restaurant but he's still not far along in his relationships as we see them with Bolsa, Eladio and especially Mike, and Hector isn't in the chair. The reason why I mention this is I think it's interesting - even telling - that one can plot Gus's evolutions as a character across his major relationships. So I'm saying off the bat Loyalist.

Now which Loyalist? Snake all the way down, like the centre of a stick of rock. Outside the stick of rock, Gus is wrapped in a number of Primary models. First is Badger, part of his all-in-one benevolent restaurant manager/member of the community Double Badger package. Gus wears his immigrant status like a gentle bandage, making others sensitive to the elusiveness he has built into his past (unknowable to even the viewer except in hints and stories).

What powers this construction? Why, an empire-building Bird secondary. Gustavo, down to the coldest, most insignificant detail, has his scheme. He has the players, the equipment, the personas, the schedules set up. Everything is waiting in the wings to enter. So why am I still talking about the stick of rock and primaries? Because, gentle reader, I am going to posit a theory - there is a Double Snake lurking in there too.

Now, to understand this, we have to look at the "Generalissimo" and his past and current actions as they occur in BB/BCS. We know his closest friend and partner Max was murdered. We know he came from Chile hot off the Pinochet regime and with dubious German connections that could interrelate with other, murky origins. We know even his closest allies do not know him. And there are those possibilities that are thrown in there, like ingredients floating through a soup - the toys at his house, the mention of a family, the slide from his personable boss and cook to blank-eyed drug lord.

So to support what I feel is the core of Gus's character, I am going to excise David the wine guy from Gus's narrative. Shocking! But you see why - I don't think Gilligould actually chained this together with the other parts of this unknowable cipher they had constructed together. David is supposed to show the beating heart at the centre of the Snake primary, and a kind of courtly old fussiness to Gustavo's secondary that heavily hints at Bird, under all the models.

However, I think this is an over-simplification of a character that has always dealt in a kind of complexity. Compare Gustavo with Snake Bird Tywin Lannister and Double Snake Petyr Baelish. Tywin is utterly above board (not...morally, but in terms of his movements). Even his subterfuge and planning come from a completely cool place that has the contingencies and players lined up. So seemingly Gustavo.

But look at Petyr, and you really see parts of Gustavo's character take shape. An unknown man coming from obscure origins, with a tragic love written into his texture to give him grounding for his visions, and an ever evolving, ever looping pattern of Snake secondary that keeps his character one step away from being coherent to those around him, even the audience. Take that attribute up to ten, and you get Gustavo - his remove, his iciness, his resolve, his consummate Bird Secondary model, keeps the viewer from being able to understand the root of his analysis, how he puts together the main blocks that make him who he is.

And the thing is, he doesn't experience any dissonance over it - except where the writers, in my opinion, become heavy handed. Giancarlo has described how he uses yoga techniques to slow his movements and breath and facial actions down in order to reach the level Gustavo operates at, and I think this can be a useful key in SHC also. I think by the time BCS's final seasons roll round, Gustavo doesn't even know he's a Snake secondary.

Before when it worked in tandem with his Snake primary, obstacles began to occur - he noticed superiors such as those in Chile responded negatively to it, so he constructed a Bird Secondary to work as a utility model whilst being a slippery, hard-to-know creature at his core. It was not strong enough to withstand the brutal immediate action of the cartel, and in that moment Gus fled into his Bird secondary, as a creature tied down by not being able to adapt or change away from a terrible loss, and formed ANOTHER secondary performance, his handy dandy Double Badger, in order to fool his contemporaries, plan, and execute. But Gus's true character - his Double Snake - is long gone. He has buried it so deep that only smoke signals come up every now and then to show it's still there. And that is the tragedy of Gustavo Fring - a man lost even to himself.

I don't know how far SHC goes to support this analysis and honesty a lot of it is such speculation and canon-divergent I don't know how much weight it will hold, but this is as good an analysis I could put together for Gus, so, with a deep breath:

Gus - Double Snake with an Exploded (and buried) secondary, a Bird Secondary model, and a Double Badger performance.

Note: this is what makes Gus's fear of Lalo hilarious and kind of frustrating from a writing perspective - we can never reconcile the ever adaptable and prepared Gus of BB with the one crippled by fear in BCS, by actions he would see as child's play in the original canon. It's supposed to create more material and energy between him and the Lalo character, and I don't actually think it's successful - I think it was an impulse to "humanise"that actually took the character out of his own canon. Which just goes to show, when you're writing a Snake secondary at the heart of a dozen models interacting with ANOTHER Snake secondary at the heart of a dozen models, even the fleetest of writers are going to hit a roadblock. It just ain't the kind of psychology you get anywhere but with a Snake sec, God love em.

[allyricas]

still cannot get over the fact that smyer actually thought a solution to the jacob x bella x edward love triangle was for...

jacob to "imprint" on recalcitrant

icky yuck eughh brother eughh bella deserved better, jacob deserved better. reconnaissance should have never even been a thing.

the whole imprinting thing on babies but don't worry it won't be romantic yet thing is fucking out of sight.

it also makes bella's feelings for jake and vice versa meaningless. she calls him her soulmate if it wasn't for edward-like if vampires didn't exist and she was not addicted to edward, jacob would have absolutely been the one. she saw the whole vision of it. she genuinely loved him, so the whole idea that jacob felt that pull because of retractor being in bella's eggs or whatnot, just please no.

ratatouille was just so unnecessary. she could eat regular food but preferred blood. would bite jacob. bit her dying mom. and had the awareness and understanding of a much more developed child. ugh.

its like smyer said to herself: what could i do to really make sure i irrevocably fuck up jacob black? what would really be the worst ending for him? was eclipse and her effort to rewrite him as an abusive "animal" not enough? we all know it was because too many people were team jacob and her precious white pure as the driven snow edward had to be the most popular.

it's the worst ending for bella too. she didn't want to get married or have a child, she just wanted to be a fucking vampire. she basically got manipulated and enthralled into doing whatever eddie boy wanted which was some puritanical 1900's "no sex before marriage' shit. bella straight up said she did not care about children.

in fact, ironically, the only time she shows any interest or concern about children is when she has the vision of her children with jacob in eclipse. she sees that future and desperately wants it with him but is too "in love" with edward. she sobs over jacob. worries about him until she takes her last breath. she was in love with him.

i think had she had the chance to grow older and heal from the parentification she went through her entire childhood and adolescence from renee and charlie, she might have been happy to have a family with jacob. but bella shows no interest of that with edward, she only agrees to pacify him and get her forever after.

vampirism was bella's chance at freedom from always being responsible, in charge, the parent. it was her chance to feel like she fit in after a life of not doing so because of her parentification. she says she was doing the bills at ten. she completely took care of her mother, then she moved to forks and immediately played the role of wife (cooking, cleaning, worrying about his health) for charlie. she never had fit in because she never felt like the kids around her. that is a hill i will die on forreal tho.

so bella and jacob really didn't get their happily ever after. jacob hated the concept of imprinting, of losing his free will and his choice in who he loves. the answer to that: have him imprint on his love's half vampire baby forever ensuring he will not be able to stop phasing and age. he will always be stuck around vampires even though the stench actually hurts, they are natural enemies. he's basically resume's guard dog forever. all his choice taken away. that's a very unhappy ending ugh.

[starheirxero]

They've finally given us a break from the angst! :D And have given us so much lore, golly gee-

First of all👆: HELL YEAH SUN, GO OFF!!! Seeing him talk back to Eclipse and the Creator has healed me!

After these episodes, the Creator has officially gained the first place for biggest god complex- WE HAVE A LITERAL GOD ECLIPSE, AND HE SOMEHOW OUT-COMPLEXES HIM, HOW THE HELL IS THAT EVEN POSSIBLE?? Mfer is taking it to a whole new level! At least God Eclipse stays in his own damn dimension!

As for Ruin…he is so interesting, HELP- How does he know all this??👀 Who is he??? I am very certain now, that he lied to Bloodmoon about his creation! He did say he "suffered one", which can have a lot of implications. Of course there's the obvious, which is what he did to their dimension, but there is also the possibility, that Ruin was never a daycare attendant at all. Maybe he was created for the virus, and was kept around by his creator?🤔 Maybe their relationship was a lot more personal??

There's also the dimensions in general! We know Stitchwraith's origin now, or at least the reason for it. There are only thirteen in all the dimensions combined👀 It really makes me hope for a deeper look into the multiverse in general!

But there's also Eclipse. And then there is Lunar. Both of them actively defy fate.

Most Eclipses die, be it still in Sun, or shortly after. Yet our Eclipse keeps on dragging himself out of his grave. He dies and keeps dying, yet he won't. stay. dead. He actively laughs in death's face. And that is so intriguing!

And there's of course everything surrounding Lunar. For one, the Creator wants to use them. It's so ironic, to be honest. They were created to be used, and now that they finally want to move on, want to leave this part of their life behind, there's this giant, looming threat, wanting to use them again. And unlike other villains, this one cannot be stopped! This one is on another level, and not even Moon knows what to do about him!

There are also their powers. This wasn't supposed to happen. And the way Ruin worded it, it seems that Lunar is the first of a kind! And it makes me wonder why. What makes our Lunar different? What makes them so special? Was it really just a cosmic storm? Or was there a higher power involved? I an literally shaking in my seat about it!

Also, on a side note: the amount of angst possibilities Ruin has opened up by talking about what the creator council would do to Lunar, Jesus christ-

-Stardust

RIGHT LMAO back to your regularly scheduled external horrors!! 😁

GHOD YEA SUN JUST CAME OUT GUNS A-BLAZING THAT WAS ABSOLUTELY WILD 2 ME. My man is at his LIMIT!!!

AND GHOD YEA THE CREATOR. THIS MAN HAS SOME GALL. Honestly tho the fact that he wants to use Lunar's star power is a sign to me that Ruin probably wasn't at all lying or exaggerating about the Creator Council's motives. Honestly, he was probably the one who gave them the idea in the first place 😭

AND RUIN,,, HONESTLY YEA I'VE BEEN WONDERING THE SAME THING. If all of this is so multiversal, it raises SO many questions as to how Ruin knows about things like their plans and motives. MAN if it turns out that Ruin was basically a living weapon made to stand next to the creator, I will go INSANE. (Smth smth Lunar n Eclipse parallels too.....)

ANS AUAAGAGGHHH YEA THE WORLDS OMG. The fact that most Eclipses die is smth both insanely tragic and insanely ironic to me. Like it's so sad to think that so many of them didn't make it past our Eclipse's point and just,, died alone and bitter in a body that wasn't their own. But also it's almost unfathomable bc like u said, that man does NOT STAY DOWN.

AND LUNAR,,,, GHOD YEA LUNAR. It makes sense if they're one of a kind because honestly, if there were others who had star power literally threaded into their being, the Creators could have easily gone for that person instead, yk?? But that fact is simultaneously horrifying and intriguing tbh HDJAHAJS BUT ITS LIKE U SAID, WHAT MAKES THEM SPECIAL HERE.

THERE'S SO MICH FUN STUFF REVEALED FROM THOSE TWO EPS LIKE AOAUAGAHGHHH EXCITING!!!!

[rosanecrosisow2]

Hii I made this blog to share my overwatch ocs and my ideas!!! I hope u like em 🥹

(if you haven’t noticed already I LOVE pink.)

Lore down here!!

Rosa

Early Life

Throughout Rosa Thorn’s childhood, she had to suffer through her uncontrollable temper and anger issues. Still, she had very loving and supporting parents. Her father (Gustav Thorn) and mother (Natasja Thorn) met during the omnic crisis, and bonded over their love for science. They thought it was ironic that their last name was Thorn because they both especially enjoyed Biology, so they named their one and only child Rosa, yes that’s how much they love Biology. Despite her anger, she had her family, THERAPY, and her best friend Martin! She took Biology very seriously, though Martin was more keen on chemistry. Rosa was really inspired by Overwatch, and wanted to become a hero like them too one day.

School Project

When she was 14, she had a school project to find something interesting for biology, which was worth a lot of their grade! So Rosa wanted to do her best. Very kindly, Martin’s Aunt Heidi offered to drive them to a park with quite a big forest. When they got there, Martin and Rosa ended up splitting up and looking for themselves. Whilst she was looking, she found something. It looked like a flower, but no flower she had ever seen before. She called for Martin, but he was too far away. She dug it out of the ground, making sure to preserve every root, and started bringing it to him. His suggestion was that they both look online and find out its name and a description of some sort. It could be amazing for the project! When they returned home, they looked everywhere online for the flower. But nothing. It was nowhere. They thought it was incredibly unlikely that they had found a new species of flower, but Martin encouraged her to meddle with it. So she did.

The Accident

(GORE WARNING!!!)

One night she was poking around at it, and something happened. It released some sort of spur onto her face. Before she could even react, she could feel her head becoming lighter.

When she woke up she felt her arms feeling hurt and… wounded but not quite? She had a terrible dream. She heard her parents cry and scream in it. As she gained full consciousness, she literally saw blood everywhere. She was in her living room, and she saw her parents completely torn open and bleeding. They were mortally wounded. Rosa screamed out and started sobbing. Her head really hurt at the same time. She didn’t know what to think, or who did it. She just cried over their bodies until police arrived. She didn’t want to be caught, so she ran out of her house and as far as possible.

Talon

She was recruited by Talon when she bumped into Sombra’s translocator and when she teleported through it. Turns out the flower was a new species, it fact it wasn’t a flower at all. It was a very powerful fungus in disguise of a flower, primarily focused on capturing bees. For example: if triggered by a bee, the bee would kill as many as its kind as possible, and if it was killed by its hive before it could do so the fungus would grow from it and overtake the hive.

Immediately, Moira thought she had good potential to be an operative, despite Reaper and Doomfist’s wishes. She performed experiments on her (Rosa wanted this, she didn’t want to hurt anyone else) and she had to wear a metal plate on her head that kept her brain anchored for a while, until she could fully harness it. It gave her new abilities, like latching vines onto things from her arms, but it took 4 years to learn. She even got reunited with Martin during a mission in Malmö, Sweden. He went by his new sobriquet: Necrosis. He used chemicals to clear a path for his future. He wanted to stay reunited with her, so he became an ally to Talon, even though he doesn’t fully agree with their ways. Rosa also gained quite a good friendship with Sombra.

Necrosis

Early life

His whole life, he had to live up to his parents’ awful expectations. They wanted him to become a soldier and fight for Copenhagen, but he believed he could do better things. The only people who believed in him were Rosa and his Aunt Heidi. Heidi scolded his parents for forcing things on him, even Rosa’s parents privately disliked them. Necrosis’ main focus was chemistry.

Missing Friend

When Rosa’s parents were discovered, there were no finger prints that they could work with. All they found was a dead flower (the spurs had dried up), and young Martin was devastated. His parents were somewhat relieved (BRUH???) and were happy he had no distractions from that ‘unruly girl’ anymore. Heidi was equally devastated and got into an argument with his parents about what they were saying. Two years later, Heidi fell victim to cancer and eventually died. He became even more depressed and unmotivated. Everyone who believed in him was gone.

Becoming Necrosis

Another two years went by, and he had enough. He took his savings and left Copenhagen. He was forced to become a thief, and his intelligence helped him become the person he is now. When he got reunited with Rosa, it was his spark of hope. Becoming an ally of Talon has boosted his success, and confidence.

Let me know what you think of them! I’ve been working on them for like a year now 😭 be sure to ask if you have questions!

[colourful-void]

ALRIGHT CLOSING UP FOR THE NIGHT: UPDATE (its long)

oh mizuki my darling my sweetie gravy i missed you so much hi mizuki hi mizuki missed youuuu

nothin on ryuki but man she's so fun to play as. it's alos just. nice that she and aiba act a lot friendlier to each other. dont get me wrong tama and ryuki's dyanmic is fun, and i know they really care about each other, but like. doing the crime scene investigation and aiba cheering mizuki on with her acting was really sweet. i loved it.

the mizuki boss daughter mother thing ramble starts here.: so i read all the profiles and glossary stuff pretty religiously, and i know that in Boss's glossary for her current profile, it says she adopted Mizuki. and if not for that it would be impossible to tell. come on gangggg that's so insanely interesting as a concept can anyone mention it like even vaguely in passing im BEGGING. i also nEED to know more on bosses First daughter, who i suspect is missing now? maybe she's related in some way to kizzy's first Big Sis?

but srsly its bugging me so bad, like that tracks w/ how casual mizuki is to her but !! it drives me insane there's a literal interaction in which boss says 'dont act like my daughter' and the take away is that mizuki SOMEHOW didnt know about bosses FIRST daughter bcs it NEVER came up?? im assuming boss just lied there and the daughter thing slipped out, (more points for boss daughter and kizzy sister same girl, both remind them of mizuki), so despite the fact that, i dont know, adopting a girl after already adopting one kind of feels like the sort of thing that would end up being mentioned somewhere in there, paticulartly considering that boss's daughter was still living with her as of one day before date died, like. she didnt come home that night and im assumin gshe never did, ran away or something??

i can't tell if the game is just setting breadcrumbs in a weird way or if they just decided boss should be a mom now and then never actually do anythin w/ it. AND SECONDLY, how is THAT the wtake away when 'dont act like my daughter' is a legitimately insane thing to say to the GIRL YOU ADOPTED. SHE LITERALLY IS YOUR DAUGHTER THAT IS HOW ADOPTION WORKS AM I LOSING MY MIND.

the mizuki boss mother daughter rant is now over. you are safe.

so putting that aside: hilarious they didn't model lien any differently. i like to think this is a repersentation of his inabilty to move on. im just. im choosing to believe that. i'm not a wheelchair user, so I can't speak to much on the whole arc kizuna's got going on here, i'm just kind of... carefully watching it. it could be... alright? but it could also drift into some territory i feel is kind of. stereotype-y?

haven't found shoma yet, on a note semi related to the mizuki boss thing. his house is identical to how it was 6 years ago down to whats been left on the floor and you're telling me he still lives there. does aitsf suddenly take place in a world where children over the age of 11 can just chill out on their own-- I SWEAR THIS MANS WIFE LEFT HIM. WHO IS WATCHING THIS CHILD. HELLO?? CAN ANYONE HEAR ME?? being buddies with lien is not a legal guardian!!!!!

NOW. COMPLAINTS ASIDE> ima ctually having a lot of fun. inverted controls is a . im mixed on it on one hand it's a litttttle cheap making it physically harder instead of making more complex puzzles. on the other hand it fits so so well and its just the right level of challenge for me so i kinda love it.

but i love mizuki and aiba hanging out they're really really fun. i love what we're building with what im calling 'kanji madness ryuki'. lots of questions w/ the masked woman and the iron mask man. why does everyone hate date personally who knows.

current predictions/observations/questions: i suspect time travel. i really think time travel is involved or morphogentic fields or something i really do. this could be good or bad. idk. i could be totally wrong here, but. there's a lot more. explict stuff in teh other timelines i shouldn't know that i do. PATICULARLY WITH DAHLIA BOAT AND ALL. stupid name i love it. i wonder if its an anagram but im shit at those. its a little suspect how much mizuki route stuff i've seen actually, if we cant pull in timelines seperately.... w/ the first aitsf it wasnt rlly timelines as much as it was like 'getting date's memories back' i played zero escape im down for timeline hopping bull. lets do it!!. pelase i need mizuki roue continuation. very curious about what aiba was doing.

hopes for the future: the videos are really cool i want to do a somnium like that. pleaseee please let me do a somnium like that. i know im totally mizuki biased but. plelpelaspleaspleaseeee plEASE let me do her somnium proper you cannNOTT tease me with that mizuki route somnium with the stew and everything and the bird cage and horse GODDDD its so cool pLEASE let me play it im BEGGING. i. i want more mizuki date interactions. i want them to have another good emtional moment. like mizuki route. i dont know if u can tell i really like mizuki route. i dont know HOW we do that if we even can but. please. im begging. can we get a proper aiba and date interaction b4 the end as well. liek i know he's not the pov character anymore but after the way the last game ended you cannot just have them come back and only fight on screen thats absurd.

but yeah feelign good enjoying the game rn! im. a little worried about some stuff but in general... i hold hope.

[ell-vellan]

Iron Bull Banters that informed my opinion of him the most, part 2

Ben Hassrath/Spy Bull

part1 part3

Bull was raised to believe there is no line between thought and action, justifying re-education and the need for Ben-Hassrath. He also doesn't allow himself to think "illegal" thoughts under the Qun and actively squashes any line of thinking that would lead to anything contradicting the Qun. His Tama noted that he had a sharp mind and that he was "too wise." He can't let himself turn his wisdom against the Qun because he would find the places it doesn't work and he isn't allowed to argue, to pick the shaky logic apart; that's not his role. He puts up walls in his own mind so he doesn't break the rules. There was the dialogue "one day I woke up and couldn't think of a damned reason to keep doing my job." That's when he had had enough, when the pointless bloody misery of Seheron made him question his being there, question if he was actually doing any good at all -- in effect, questioning the Qun's wisdom. Which he isn't supposed to ever do. Weapons don't have opinions. And Bull so wanted to be a good, obedient tool of the Qun that he submitted himself to be tortured back into thought-obedience.

Even after he becomes Tal Vashoth he doesn't externally engage in conversations that go against the Qun. He doesn't take the bait when companions say things like "you're free" because becoming the monster he used to fight still stings. Because imo he's only just starting to learn it's safe for him to deconstruct his worldview. He just assures everyone he's fine, and since he adopts this easygoing persona who never seems to take anything seriously ever, all the companions leave him alone about it. (I wish we could have reassured him and given him a safe place to open up in-game as his friend, but alas, saving the world takes priority)

One of the examples of Bull describing (and downplaying) what his job as a spy has been. This and "fighting, drinking, writing notes, that's all it really takes." You could take this as him buddying up to Varric early on and making himself seem less of a threat, while at the same time the fact that he's doing this is also part of Being A Spy. He never outwardly reveals how good he is at changing his persona to match who he's chatting with.

With Varric he specifically and purposefully calls being a spy drinking fighting and writing notes because HE KNOWS VARRIC. Varric is famous as an author and friend of the Champion of Kirkwall. Bull knows he's friends with Isabela, who at one point had the stolen Tome of Koslun in her possession and therefore is of interest to the Qun. Bull absolutely got briefed on the Inquisition and its most important members at some point. He is so good at obfuscation that even Varric can't pin down his true nature - he's doing the subtle machinations right in front of Varric's eyes this whole time. He knows Varric's onto him from the word go and would see any tricks coming. So he shoots completely straight with him to get Varric on the back foot and make him question if Bull is really even a spy at all

Bull's razor-sharp spy observation skills used against Solas and against a Tevinter spy in a village they pass. Companions comment their surprise of his abilities. Bull quietly takes the initiative to tell Leliana about the Tevinter spy, trusting her own spy skills to handle it. Not pictured, but Bull also quietly notices a change of the guard rotation that tips off his own assassination attempt, after which he notes that he's been dosing himself with the Qun poison they used on him, and that he previously took years of Ben Hassrath training to hide his facial expressions

The insight of Bull's mother figure into his personality, and a glimpse of the Qun bureaucractic fallout of losing him as an asset. It seems like the Ben-Hassrath went back to the source to see where they went wrong with Bull. Being a spy meant Bull wouldn't have to conform to the rigid, unquestioning role as a soldier, but it gave him just enough freedom of thought, just long enough of a leash that he was able to finally break free

Bull's thankful to be given a window into the mindset of probably one of the only people left in the Qun who might still love and know his original self. I think he's relieved that his Tama doesn't hate him being Tal Vashoth. Interestingly, this glimpse of another member of the Qun who's not a warrior or spy is a softer person than we otherwise get to see in the game. She remembers Bull, remembers key details about him all this time later, is crying over him, but isn't angry with him like Bull assumes, as far as we can tell from this

Tama "smiled sadly", either because he was leaving her to go to the Ben-Hassrath or because she could see the writing on the wall with Bull even when she spoke those words to him. IIRC kids get assigned their roles in the Qun at age 12. Tama's probably raised a lot of other kids since Bull left; he's at least in his 30s. He was raised by someone who truly loved and cared about his well being, and I think that shows through the kind of person he became: selfless and caring in return. She knew how the Qun would use his skills and intelligence and I think the "He got away" can be intrepreted as gratitude that he's no longer chained by the Qun and will now be allowed to exist as he was meant to, a fully realized individual.