#kids are going to grow up with a place in the star wars universe and i'm so

[how-the-feathers-have-fallen]

OKAY so rangers apprentice is this book series set in medieval europe-adjacent, like it has countries clearly inspired by european regions and the names are usually related to the real world name, so that combined with the locations is not hard to figure out which countries are which

the main character is this 15 year old kid named Will who grows up throughout the series (11 books), and he’s the ranger’s apprentice in question. the Rangers are this ultra-secret group of spy archers who work for the king and a lot of ppl think they’re dark wizards but they’re actually just good at camouflage, so Will is apprenticed to one of the rangers and he ends up saving the country a couple times.

there’s not much of an overarching plot through the whole series but there are smaller arcs that go through a couple books, like books 1-4 are mostly together and then 5-6 could have been one long book, book 7 is a weird outlier that takes place between 4 and 5, and so on.

what’s interesting about the setting tho is that there’s not explicitly magic systems/users, but it’s heavily implied that there’s more to the world than meets the eye (i think there’s demons in a spin-off series? idk haven’t read that one yet) it’s sooooo fun

and the characters are super engaging too!!! there’s Will, the protagnist; Halt, his mentor; Horace, his best friend; Alyss the love interest; and lots more side characters that are interesting too and even tho i described them as how they relate to Will, they all get super interesting development and backstory. this got so long i’m sorry but rangers apprentice is one of the best book series i’ve ever read and i highly recommend it :33

Finally archers getting the attention and spotlight they deserve! (can you tell I’m partial??)

It’s really interesting (in a good way) that there’s a “lack” of over-arching plot. a lot of longer “media” i’ve “consumed” (at least lately) has suffered from a sort of burn-out where the stakes feel wonky and over done, yet underwhelming after going on for so long; it’s often affected other stuff like continuity and character development and consistency (hello supernatural, how goes the Winchester self sacrifice reset?). I’m actually really excited to see how smaller chunks over longer time will feel after so long.

I also love the idea of a magic system not being explicitly stated wether it’s it a star wars-y “long time ago in a galaxy far far away” type thing were it’s implied that you’re reading an in universe recollection where you’re already supposed to “know” or it’s a narrative tool for the author to frame perspective/plot twists etc

I’m gonna go now and start looking for epubs and shit even though my kindles broke :,( (fuck you ryaniar) and i’m looking for a new one

[arkus-rhapsode]

Now I've been working on something involving Cartoon Network and its 30+ history and recently it really hit me just how much I had grown up with the channel, but also how much its still growing.

I had started watching in the early 2000s just before the CN City bumpers were a thing and would catch numerous reruns of shows from the 90s. In a lot of ways, Cartoon Network was my channel. Now I enjoyed Nickelodeon for stuff like Spongebob and Danny Phantom and Invader Zim and I just never had Disney Channel in our cable package so I missed out a lot of those shows. But CN... to say its got a special place in my mind palace is an understatement I remember the checkerboard and seeing Cartoon Network Studios at the end of an episode and their little animations. I was there when Miguzi was a thing as well as the alien invasion. I watched the Noods take over in real time and the transition from black and white to rainbow colors of Check it! for the network. I can even remember Johnny Bravo and Dexter's Lab showing up in the Hannah Barbera logo as I was barraged with these old times characters.

I think one of the things so captivating about this was Cartoon Network's skill at making their programs feel like a family. Like not a shared universe like Marvel or Star Wars, but rather entertainment companies having this identity of their properties able to fit together whether through shared advertising, little crossovers, Easter eggs, etc. Who remembers the "Spot the Block" campaign? I was cringing even as a child to that song. This is something companies like Nintendo does a lot or even what Nicktoons used to do. It made it feel so much bigger than just a show, but it also felt intimate. Personal. That all these characters off in their own little world could find themselves sitting down for coffee or playing catch.

However, by 2015 I had basically stopped with the network. My family opted to get rid of cable and invest in early streaming for entertainment and to be honest, I kinda just knew my time may have been up. I was a teenager almost done with high school and this channel is still primarily aimed at kids, my generation was passing.

I would hear about things through the grapevine. Stuff like Steven Universe and Teen Titans Go were kinda impossible to avoid in 2016. But for the most part what the channel did was kinda under my radar. I was perfectly content to transition into my "Anime 4 Life" adulthood. Cut to the 2020s with HBO Max, and I had the chance to catch up on some TV shows and it was fun. Going back down that rabbit hole of nostalgia and I was fine stopping there. But then this year I started working on a project which required my looking back into every Cartoon Network original show ever.

So of course that meant I had to do research into basically a whole decade after I had stopped watching. So I did some watching-We Bare Bears, Long Live the Royals, Mighty Magiswords, OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes, Villainous, Apple & Onion, Craig of the Creek, Summer Camp Island, Victor and Valentino, Mao Mao: Heroes of Pure Heart, Infinity Train, etc. This is probably the part where you expect me to say something like "Everything was better in my day" or something. But like no. I was not... sad about what I was seeing but like I was really glad. There was apart of me being like I'm glad this exists. I'm glad that you can still see that Cartoon Network DNA. It's different than it was before, but like there was still that core of what made Cartoon Network so unique in children's programming. Hell I was a little jealous I couldn't view this through the eyes of a kid today and what it feels like for them.

But for what I am, a man in his mid 20s who still watches animated content, I could almost feel like there was still this link between generations in a way I don't think I've ever seen before. These two halves of a thirty year time frame able to reach out be able to still be Cartoon Cartoons.

Yes I know, people will bring up how there's "dark times" but there always has been. This network wasn't perfect. I know a lot of people like to say there was a downfall, but I gotta be honest, the network always had mixed and controversial bags. I remember people telling me Chowder and Flapjack were garbage that pandered to only loud and gross out humor fans. Yet now they're talked about as absurdist comedy classics. CN Real is considered the lowest point of the network that goes against the entire ethos of the network, but in 2010 you got the debuts of shows like Adventure Time, Generator Rex, Ben 10 Ultimate Alien, etc. The real downfall I see happening right now is in how Warner Bros Discovery the Business has treated animated projects and their horrible treatment of animators in the name of corporate greed.

But I just can't truly dismiss all the good that has come for the last decade. And Hey we're apparently getting a new Cartoon Network show next year, Iyanu: Child of Wonder, it looks good so far. It looks like something that CN City heads wouldn't mind walking around town with Grim and Samurai Jack. And the thing that got me was how I taught to myself "Im glad that if I had kids I know they're is something good for them watch and I could watch alongside them..."

I don't know the future of CN. I don't think anyone can say. But when I really think about kids dedicated networks with an emphasis on purely animation, but also creative visionary driven animated programming, I really thought about how its history is very short in the grand scheme of the world. And I was lucky to be born in the early years of it. I can't tell you, how much a smile the Crossover Nexus special made me smile. Not because it was pandering to my nostalgia of CN City, but like seeing all of these characters preserved in statues in this world, from big names like Ed Edd n Eddy and Courage to stuff that were so short lived like Sym-Bionic Titan or Megas XLR to shows people would scream to the heavens they thought were trash like Secret Mountain Fort Awesome or Problem Solverz to so projects that barely got off the ground like Firebreather. It felt like everything mattered. That this short history means something. Its worth remembering the new and the old and everything in-between.

Because it's not just memories that matter, but it's carrying on that creative spark. That vision for a Network about and for cartoons. Carrying it beyond my life time. Carrying it far into the future. I hope I'm not the only one who feels that.

Welp, sorry for this ramble post to my usual followers. I was just taking a break from my usual discussion based content to work through some feelings I was having.

[autumnalfallingleaves]

Since I’m currently in a Star Wars phase, I was thinking…. How about a WondLa trilogy AU set in the Star Wars universe?

:D!!!!

It wouldn't be me if I didn't have a crossover or a couple for things I'm currently interested in, so I absolutely have a few, lmao.

I've been thinking of a post-WondLa canon SW AU wherein SW isn't in our past; rather, it's in the future and is currently set in the Prequels/Clone Wars era (my favorite :) ). I'm fudging with both canons a bit and putting WondLa several millenniums ahead of where it is in canon to fit in with the SW timeline and also saying that the galaxy is not far, far away. It's the Milky Way. SW humans are from the humans that abandoned Earth via the Dynasty Corporation and affiliated and just. Never came back.

(Continued under the cut because this got long lol)

It's been three or so years since the Battle of Solas, so Eva is around 16. My thinking is that Orbona is out in Wild Space, so it's been lost to charts and maps for a while, thus explaining why the people of SW don't know that the human home planet still exists, or even that there is a human home planet. During the War, the disaster trio (Anakin, Obi-Wan, Ahsoka) end up crash-landing on Orbona on the salt flat near Lacus and find themselves trekking from the now-broken Twilight to what they can see as the nearest civilization, which seems to be a mix of species, most of which-- barring humans-- the Jedi have never seen before. Let's say, for consistency's sake, that the aliens who ended up colonizing Earth/Orbona where from farther out, potentially the galaxy Ezra ended up in, so they're not present in the SW galaxy. Thus, the Jedi can't understand them. They, of course, manage to encounter Eva and co. and, since the humans speak Basic (or English, as the humans of Orbona know it), manage to get a rundown of where they are. (Obi-Wan's nerdy ass is incredibly excited to learn that Orbona/Earth is the planet of human origin. Think of the fossil records.)

And thus, through a series of shenanigans, Orbona is introduced to the larger galactic stage. A selection of beings from Orbona is chosen to go to Coruscant in order to present their planet to the Senate. This includes Eva, Vanpa, Rovender, and maybe Huxley? And others. Redimus is protection.

The Jedi have no idea what to make of Eva. She's extremely strong in the Living Force, but it presents itself in a way none of them have ever seen. I think she and Yoda would get along very well, to the horror of everyone else. She and Anakin would also eat bugs together.

One of the things I've been thinking about the most for this is Eva and the clones, because she, herself is also a clone, just of someone else. I can imagine they bond over that fact as well as personhood and being a second-class citizen in a place that doesn't really care for you. (Say what you want about New Attica, but Eva's status as a clone and her unique experiences were totally brushed over by the Atticans and I don't think she was super happy about that.) I think the vod'e would hear that Eva is still using her designation as her name (Earth in Vitro Alpha, ninth generation) and encourage her to find a name for herself, if she wants to. Eva Nine thus becomes Evelyn "Eva" Kitt :)

This somehow leads to Palps getting outed and ousted because I am all about fix-its in this house.

Other ideas I've had are SW characters in the WondLa setting, which I think is also very fun, but I've thought less about. For instance, the "Eva" would likely be either be Ezra or Omega due to the "naive little kid sees the world, grows up, and develops some pretty serious skills while also finding a family" thing. Ezra works thanks in part to already having similar powers and his relationship with his mentor/dad figure is similar to Eva's. Omega also works because of weird-little-girl-ness, vibes, being a clone, and a similar arc of losing a loved one and having to learn how to move on, though, in this AU, I feel like the person she loses- her caretaker- would have to be Nala Se and not a brother. (You can also insert Batcher in as Otto quite nicely. Maybe Ezra could get a Loth-Wolf?) Hunter is the Rovender, though I'd make it so he had a falling-out with his brothers instead of them being dead and that's why he left.

This also means that it's easy to insert Emerie as the Eva Eight figure, but also means that, in order for Ezra to work, there'd also have to be a bunch of Ezra clones running around. Lmao.

[braveclementine]

D.S. x E.M. x K.M. x Reader pt. 6

Warnings: 18+ readers only, Mentions of torture, fluff, angst, mentions of rape, happy 'ending'

Copyright: I do not own any TVD/TO/Legacies characters, nor any places in New Orleans or Mystic Falls that may be mentioned.

Your P.O.V.

I was curled up in Damon's bedroom on the bed with Elijah watching Hamilton on the TV, the musical/play turned up to drown out the sounds of my father- sorry step-dad or whatever- screaming in the basement.

After I'd killed him- his blood had tasted amazing- he'd come back into transition. Klaus pretty much forced blood down his throat. After that, Marcel, Enzo, Kol, Klaus, and Damon had taken turns torturing him for hurting me.

What my dad had done to me had spread throughout the others. Freya, Bonnie, Caroline, Davina Rebekah, Vincent, and even Alaric had taken their own shots at him.

I hadn't expected Bonnie because she was sweet, but she was furious. And I hadn't expected Alaric, but I think he was thinking about his own daughters when he was punched dad in the face.

Freya had a little to much fun torturing dad with magic.

I hid upstairs with only Elijah for company as I wanted nothing to do with dad who wasn't really my dad and also because now I had mixed feelings. Every time I tried hating him, I remembered him flying me over his head at the beach in Florida and all the sweet things we had done before I turned fourteen.

Elijah was one of the only people who cared about me that didn't hurt Dad. Mostly, I think, because he understood I didn't really like it. So he indulged me in watching Hamilton and Harry Potter and Star Wars and whatever else I wanted to watch. We binge watched all the Marvel movies in three days.

"I have an idea." Elijah murmured as the play came to an end- I was crying of course because Alexander was dead.

"Hmm?" I asked, burrowing my head into his T-shirt. Over the few days, he had reluctantly been wearing T-shirts and sweatpants because I wanted him in comfortable clothes instead of fancy. It was definitely a strange sight to see.

I looked up at him when he didn't answer and smiled, tugging at his hair which he was growing out a little.

"I'm going to take you to Orlando." Elijah said, wrapping his arms around my waist. "We can go to Universal studios and your Harry Potter world. And we can visit animal kingdom and magic kingdom and I'll spoil you silly."

I was hesitant, even though it did sound immensely fun. "But all those humans. . . I don't know if I can control myself."

"I'll help you, I promise." Elijah murmured. "But you need to get out of the house."

I nodded because I knew he was right. "Let's bring Caroline and Ric so they can bring their kids too." I murmured. "Ric needs to get out of this house too."

Elijah nodded, "Okay."

We both stared at each other and I asked rather hesitantly, "And. . . Klaus and Damon?"

"We can't force them to come." Elijah murmured.

I fiddled with my daylight ring. The sapphire, emerald, and diamond fused together along with the colours of the bands along with some starlight so keep me from burning during the day. "Why are they still torturing him? It's been a week? Hasn't he felt enough pain?"

Elijah took my face in his hands. His chocolate eyes were so warm and his brown hair that was slowly becoming floppy again made me flush. How did I get gifted with my handsome men? "Personally, I won't touch him because I know you're unhappy with it. But if I could, I would torture him day and night for centuries for hurting you."

Why was my brain arguing with him? Elijah was speaking the truth: he had hurt me. But at the same time. . .

I burst into tears. "I don't understand! Why do I feel the need to defend him? I don't understand! Am I messed up? Elijah please help me!"

Elijah's face twisted in pain, gathering me in his arms, laying back to hold me to him. "He's your father. You loved him once and that's the part that wants to defend you. But Y/N, you know he's hurt you and he's hurt you in a way that you should never have been hurt. You aren't messed up, you're just confused."

"He's not even my father!" I said, pounding on Elijah's chest weakly.

"You believed he was for nineteen years. That's not something you forget overnight."

"Might take a hundred years, yeah?" I asked, smiling weakly, attempting a joke.

Elijah laughed softly, reaching up and cupping my face in his hands, "Yeah."

"When do you want to leave?" I asked, still a little nervous about being in large crowds.

"Well, I was thinking almost no one will be there in January, in a few weeks, cause everyone will be back in school. It would be relatively uncrowded."

I nodded, "That sounds nice. Do you want Hayley and Hope to come too?"

"No." Elijah said with zero hesitation. "But if you want to invite Freya, Vincent, Bonnie, and Enzo you can. They might like the magic of Disney and romance."

I grinned, "That sounds nice. I'll drop suggestions to Klaus and Damon. I would hate for them to think I left them out."

Elijah nodded kissing my temple.

Damon and Niklaus came upstairs as I was putting the next movies series on. I wrinkled my nose, hiding my face in Elijah's shirt at the smell of dad's vampire blood. Elijah put an arm around me.

They stripped their clothes and Damon laughed, "Twilight Y/N? Sparkling fairy vampires."

I scowled into Elijah's shirt.

"Damon leave it." Elijah said curtly.

"Is something wrong?" Klaus' voice was filled with anxiety and worry for me. I smiled a little, looking over at him.

"'Lijah and I were talking about all of us going to Disney as a family." I murmured. "Well at first, just us. But I thought maybe Ric would like to take the kids with Care. And of course, Bonnie and Enzo and Freya and Vincent might like to go as couples."

"Disney?" Damon cocked an eyebrow.

"And Universal studios." Elijah said behind me. "She's been wanting to go to Harry Potter world forever."

I smiled, nodding my head excitedly. "And 'Lijah promised he'd make sure I didn't feed on anyone."

"Well I'm all for it!" Nik said excitedly, clasping his hands together before reaching into the closet for a fresh T-shirt.

"Damon?" I asked hesitantly.

He looked so angry, not at me, but probably at dad. His eyes were distant and his head snapped towards me. "What?"

Elijah's arms tightened around me and I asked, "Do you- do you want to come?"

"I'm going to stay here." He extracted a stake from the top drawer and made his way out of the room again.

I felt sad, leaning against Elijah's arms and Nik read my face, "What's wrong? You know it doesn't mean he doesn't love you just because he's not going."

"That's not it." I mumbled, shutting the TV off and snuggling into Elijah to fall asleep. Nik said nothing more until they thought I was asleep.

"What is it Elijah?"

"She feels conflicted about how you're treating Y/F/N. She thinks he's been hurt enough." Elijah murmured softly.

Nik scoffed, "He hasn't felt enough pain for what he's done to her."

"Nik, if you and Damon don't just kill Y/F/N and get this over with, Damon is going to end up losing her. You might too."

Nik was silent and then said in a very angry voice, "He deserves to feel pain Elijah. He literally had his dick inside of her! He had hands tied behind her back! He had her gagged! And he had a knife beside him! If we hadn't gotten there when we had he might've killed her! He doesn't even feel guilty for it! It's disgusting!"

I peeked my eyes open to see his eyes were now yellow, boring into Elijah's chocolate ones. I quickly closed them again.

"Niklaus, you have to respect what she wants. You're angry that someone hurt her, fine. I am too. But it's also the man she grew up thinking was her father and I think it should ultimately be her decision of what wants to happen. Just rip his heart out and be done with it."

Nik was silent again until he finally muttered, "Fine. The sun's still out anyways."

"Meaning?" Elijah asked with a sigh.

"We'll have a bonfire. I'll invite everyone to come." Nik sounded delighted.

"Very well. I'll be staying here with Y/N." Elijah muttered, running a hand through my H/C hair.

"You don't want to see him burn alive?" Nik asked curiously.

"I do. But I don't want her to wake up alone either." Elijah muttered.

Nik sighed, sounding disappointed. "And here I was thinking you could be the one to light him on fire as you haven't had the pleasure of torturing him yet."

Elijah ignored him. Or at least, I thought he had ignored until he said, "Fine. Let me grab a suit. Maybe Davina will stay with her until I get back."

"I think Davina will like to watch." Nik said. "But maybe."

Nik walked out of the room and Elijah slid from the bed, tucking me under the covers. He kissed my forehead and murmured, "I'll be back soon princess."

And then even he was gone.

I sighed, grabbing a pillow and holding it like a stuffed animal. So they were going to burn dad? Elijah was going to set dad on fire.

No. Not dad.

I thought about what Klaus had said. How he'd been raping me, had tied me up, had possibly wanted to kill me. I sat up quickly. I knew exactly what I wanted to do.

Elijah P.O.V.

I fixed my tie in the mirror, green this time as Y/N had expressed a liking to me wearing green ties. Strange how I had taken into account all her opinions when doing things.

At the moment, Y/F/N was wearing a daylight ring, being held by Marcel and Niklaus. Davina had said she didn't want to miss out on this and so Y/N was left upstairs by herself. It worried me slightly, but Hayley, Elena, and Stefan were in the living room with Hope, Josie, and Lizzy so if she woke up, they'd tell her where we were.

Elena thought we were being absolutely barbaric and was angry with Damon, Caroline, and Bonnie. She blamed Klaus and Enzo for Caroline and Bonnie's eagerness for Y/F/N's execution. Truth was, Y/N was just their friend and they wanted to see her attacker suffer.

Freya and Bonnie bound Y/F/N to the wooden stake that was placed upright by Alaric and Vincent earlier that day.

"Let's get this over with." Rebekah huffed, eyeing Y/F/N with dislike. Alaric was leaning against the tree next to Damon, both of them had bourbons in their hands. They clinked them together.

I sighed, rolling my eyes at the theatrics. This was weird, it felt wrong, but as I looked into Y/F/N's eyes, I saw he had zero regrets there. I touched his hand, going to pull off the ring and saw into his mind. He didn't regret anything, his mind not even focusing on his death, but of all the times that he had fucked Y/N. Her pain, the way that she screamed and begged him to let her go. All because she looked like her mother.

That did it for me. I yanked the daylight ring off his hand, tossing it to Enzo who caught it in one hand, tucking it into his pocket.

Y/F/N started to burn and he started to scream and none of us watched in pity.

"STOP! END IT!" Y/F/N shouted.

Out of nowhere, there was a whistling sound, and a carved stake out of the same wood used to make Y/N's bed back at her own house pierced his heart.

The burning died down as his veins started to shrivel, blood draining as his heart was pierced, and turn gray.

We all spun to see Y/N standing there: blue jeans, purple T-shirt, red jacket, and white shoes. Her hair pulled back in a H/L ponytail. [sorry if you have short hair]. She had flung the stake at him. We all stared in a bit of shock.

"So." She asked with a bit of a smirk, "Can we got to Disney now?"

I relaxed, smiling, "Anything my princess wants."

~Two Years later~

"Y/S/N, get back here right now!" Y/N yelled at our son as he ran towards the road.

Damon swooped in front of him, picking him up under the arms, carrying him back to the house. Klaus, Y/N, and I all sighed in relief.

"You would think we could keep a better eye on him." Y/N grumbled.

The surgery that she had undergone gave her the ability to conceive, also making any children we had either Niklaus'- if we had sex on or around a full moon- or Damon's as he had also undergone the surgery.

Y/N had feared I would feel left out, but I didn't mind truly. In a way, they were still my children too.

She was pregnant again, one of the reasons that she couldn't move as fast as Damon. We found that as she was pregnant, it seemed to make her more human and her vampire senses were cut in half, though she still needed blood and could still move a littler faster than humans and also was still able to compel humans.

Y/S/N yawned in Damon's arms, closing his blue eyes- which he'd gotten from Damon- and fell fast asleep.

"Finally." Y/N muttered, leaning into Klaus' embrace. "I thought I'd have to stay awake for another few hours."

She thought it was her responsibility to take care of the boy 24-7, even when Niklaus, Damon, and I had all told her we would share in the responsibility of raising him.

"Come on love." Niklaus said, kissing the side of her head, "Let's go upstairs shall we."

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Damon asked with a grin.

"You two are insatiable." I mumbled, taking Y/S/N out of Damon's arms.

"They're not the only ones." Y/N grinned, strutting towards me and throwing her arms around my neck, kissing my lips. "Come on Elijah." She tugged on my tie a little.

"Caroline!" I shouted and Caroline appeared from the girls' bedroom.

"Elijah?" Caroline asked, raising her eyebrow, flinging her blond hair over her shoulder in annoyance.

"I thought you should be forewarned that we're heading into the bedroom and we also need someone to watch Y/S/N." I explained.

Caroline smirked, rolling her eyes, jumping over the banister and landing in front of me. "Insatiable bastards."

"Unnecessary comments." I muttered.

"Ric! We're going out!" Caroline shouted, dashing back up to the room.

"Let's go." I said, kissing the side of Y/N's head.

⬅️➡️

[count-doodoo]

dooku: jedi lost: part 3: liveblog part 1

ok. time for part 3!

god the snark is 10/10. a credit to her lineage.

side note the courage of star wars authors to describe weird gross slime aliens is beyond me.

IF I'M UNDERSTANDING THE SERIES OF EVENTS CORRECTLY YES KY. YES YOU DID FAIL HER. (you can just???? adopt a kid and take her into danger constantly without even notifying next of kin in case something happens to you????)

SERIOUSLY. WHAT HAPPENED KY. WHY. (especially since he keeps insisting that dooku is lying about the jedi abandoning him. which means, if this is really ky, that he abandoned the jedi. that he's the sole decision maker responsible for depriving asajj of a support system.) either way, 10/10 for asajj immediately picking up on making fun of yoda. she's gonna meet him for the first time and be like "do i need to uproot a tree for you??"

the icon we don't deserve honestly.

OLD FRIEND?????? YOU'RE SEVENTEEN SIFO.

(although i suppose when i was seventeen i also felt quite ancient. but i wasn't going around calling people "old friend" lmao. then again i didn't have any friends quite like dooku.)

ALSO 17 YO DOOKU HAS A DISTINGUISHED REGAL BEARD

y'all i love sifo the seer but. i was enjoying their stupid childhood shenanigans WITHOUT visions! let them run around breaking into library vaults ugh. and they were being so cute before!!!! sifo brought back a cute souvenir from his mission for doo!!!! and then he BROKE IT BECAUSE VISION??? I RESENT THE ANGST!!!!

if i were dooku here i would probably once again draw my saber on lene and be like SINCE HE LEARNED TO OPEN HIS MIND??? WHAT DID YOU DRUG HIM WITH

(seriously i feel like i see a lot more love for lene in fandom than i'm feeling for her here. maybe she'll grow on me by the end of the book? but right now it really feels like she's just dragging two bright eyed boys into stupid dark side shenanigans without real care for the consequences. or maybe i'm just crying because hindsight is 20/20 and DOOKSY DESERVED BETTER 2KFOREVA.)

now that i've judged lene's take on sifo's visions, it's time to judge yoda for his.

a WARNING would not go amiss sir??? like this isn't "my vision said to commission a bunch of clones" or "my vision said to murder this guy" or something like that. this is just "hey what if we warn them of a potential natural disaster so they can prepare". what's misleading there??? no you don't want to create unjustified panic but making sure emergency systems are in place is always good especially if you have any reason to believe they may be necessary. this is like straight up due diligence??

i am kind of fascinated by this bit. i have somewhat mixed feelings about it, tbh; not sure that i'm a fan of the "he's always been obsessed with fire and damnation" take on dooku. i mean it doesn't not work, such a serious kid probably would have a relatively detached and academic take on armageddon, but... idk. reveling feels a step too far?

anyways, the other side of the mixed feelings is that i really love that end bit. "i knew the universe would endure, and if it didn't, it wouldn't be because of gods or powers beyond our understanding" is such a banger line. i'm just not sure it feels like a line that belongs /here/ exactly yk??

DOO DOVE IN TO RESCUE SI!! SI INJURED HIMSELF IN A SEA OF BACTA!!! i'm not happy he's hurt it's just these boys are so fucking precious. and stupid. doo doo doo dum dums

THE OLD FASHIONED WAY IS JUMPING OUT A WINDOW. DOOKU IS A CHAOS GREMLIN. don't let him trick you into believing otherwise. he'll act like he's the most sensible one of the disaster lineage while he's the one who became a sith and is leading a separatist movement.

[sizebrained]

Characters & Stats: Humans

So here's some brief stats and backstories about the humans in my imaginary Borrower universe. Some of this may or may not get further fleshed out in my stories. But I think the context helps. There's really no choice but to get it out of my head when all of this just starts bubbling up and filling it.

Ben (Benedito Alvarez) - Main Character

Age: 20 years old. 

Species & Gender: Human male. 

Height & Weight: He thought he was 6’11” tall (210 cms), 250 lbs (113 kgs). He’s actually 7’3” (220cm) and a little heavier. Here's when he finds out.

Sexual Orientation: Bisexual. 

Hair & Eyes: Brown curly hair. He kept it buzzed when he played basketball but it’s growing out. Bright green eyes.

Skin color: Whenever asked, Ben says “this color”. Hazel says his skin reminds her of the Professor's preferred drink of strong black tea with cream. Ben says that drink sounds disgusting and was offended the only time she told him that, but only because she compared him to something he thought was gross.

Details: Born in America to Brazilian immigrant parents (his father was forever disappointed that neither Ben nor his older sister played soccer). Speaks with a General American accent.

Growing up, Ben always felt out of place given his size and the meaner kids picked up on it. They teased him relentlessly through every grade until he became a freshman in High School. He often felt like he was some kind of zoo animal and hated that his height was the center of everything. He wished he could be more like Sam about it. Ben was very anxious growing up and his social situation made it worse. The summer before High School, Sam had had enough and trained Ben intensely basically demanding he try out for the basketball team. It worked and Ben found a new outlet that gave him some confidence. He earned the nickname “Big Ben” and fans would shout out “Ding Dong!” when he played.

Ben was a star player at his Big Ten, Division 1 NCAA school. He had just started his 2nd year at college and the basketball season. One night, he went home from a practice, in a bad thunderstorm, with his best friend and teammate Max. Ben had to sit in the backseat of Max’s car to fit. They were in a horrific head on collision withal a tractor trailer and Ben's right leg was destroyed, but Max died at the scene. Ben's basketball career was likely over and his anxiety had never been worse. Ben also now suffers from severe PTSD because of the accident. Using money from his lawsuit settlement, he bought a luxury condo and lived alone. One night he discovered Hazel in a glue trap and rescued her.

Ben and Hazel became fast friends, maybe more, and one day shortly after they met, Hazel suggested they enter into a revealing pact. Hazel is helping Ben recover mentally like she did with many of the wounded soldiers in Mary’s care at hospitals during the 2nd World War. Hazel is also tutoring him in school now, given her own extensive schooling from the Professor. Since Ben doesn't play basketball anymore, he decided to take studying more seriously and finds he really needs her help. ***

Sam (Samara Alvarez)

Age: 25 years old.

Species & Gender: Human female

Height & Weight: 6’7” (200cm), 175lbs (75kgs). 

Sexual Orientation: Gay. 

Hair & Eyes: Brown wavy hair she keeps in a ponytail almost all the time. Same green eyes as her younger brother. 

Skin color: Same as her younger brother.

Details: Born in America shortly after her parents arrived from Brazil. Has the same accent as her younger brother. Sam not only played almost every sport but dominated. She finally settled on volleyball in high school because that was what her girlfriend played. Sam was a star volleyball player, going to the same Big Ten D1 school that her brother would eventually attend. Sam was in a long term relationship with the team's captain (who was the same girlfriend from high school). They broke up shortly after Ben's car accident and Sam’s ex started medical school on the other side of the country.

Unlike her brother, Sam loves being bigger than almost everyone else. She’s very comfortable with her size and extremely outgoing. She’s also a goof ball and sometimes it makes her and Ben go together like oil and water. But Sam is fiercely protective and caring for her big little brother even though they don’t ever talk about emotions or anything that deep.

Sam is in now in graduate school at the same university for physical therapy (PT). She's very close friends and maybe more with Hazel's younger borrower sibling Cob. But Sam and Con are not in a revealing pact like Ben and Hazel…yet.

*** Mary Worthington Ward

1920-2011 (died Age 91) Species & Gender: Human female

Height & Weight: 5'4" (162 cm), 110 lbs (48 kgs) Sexual Orientation: Conflicted bisexual. Hair & Eyes: Dark black hair that was almost always braided or in a bun with Blue eyes. Skin color: Pale white. Details: British but left England after World War II with her new American husband, an injured pilot named Lt. James "Jack" Ward. Mary entered into a revealing pact with Hazel during World War II, shortly after they met in the hospital where Mary worked as a nurse. Mary was very conflicted and loved Hazel, it got physical. A lot. But Mary felt it was improper to be in a relationship with another woman, let alone a borrower one.

She was married Jack to try and prove she could be just as happy with a human man. Mary and Jack could not have children of their own and led a simple quiet life. She was very happy that Hazel understood her position and chose to stay with her even trying to undo the revealing pact, which she learned could only end when one of them died. After many decades together, Jack died of a heart attack and Mary suffered a terrible stroke not long after.

Mary was rendered nearly catatonic by the stroke and Hazel moved with her into a retirement home. Hazel took care of Mary for a few more decades before Mary finally passed away one night in her sleep. Hazel felt lost and took solace in her father and younger sibling.

The retirement home was eventually torn down and replaced by a new luxury condominium building that Ben eventually moved into, unknowingly along with Hazel's borrower family. ***

The Professor (actually Sir Reginald Ampleforth IV)

1879 -1941 (died age 62) Species & Gender: Human male. Height & Weight: 5'6" (167cm), 140 lbs (63kg)

Sexual Orientation: Asexual. Hair & Eyes: Gray for the time he knew Hazel and her family. Curious brown eyes behind wire rim glasses.

Skin color: Pale white. Details: Minor British nobility, but he was the black sheep of the family. The Professor was an odd man out in more ways than one. He served in the Boer War in 1899 with his older brother but abhored everything about armed conflict between people. After the war he became a staunch pacifist and pursued his real love of academics. Eventually he earned a doctorate and became a tenured professor at Oxford (his nobility was a big help in getting the position at the school). His older brother stayed in the military and died in World War 1. After his older brother's death, the Professor took over the family's country estate. He was unmarried and the last of his line.

One day in the library, a 2 and a half inch tall girl walked out onto his desk interested in the illustrations in his copy of Audubon's The Birds of America. The tiny girl's mother, who would be named Lily by the Professor, explained borrowers and entered into a revealing pact with him for her daughter’s safety. As part of the revealing pact, the Professor promised to educate Hazel with her mother's blessing.

When World War II erupted in Europe, the Professor chose to volunteer with his brother’s connections in military intelligence in London. He had a lifelong guilt that he had survived the Great War while his brother did not. He also knew how much of a threat Nazi Germany posed to the world. Lily and Hazel accompanied him into the city. Hazel's then 2 year old sibling, Cob, stayed with their father at the country estate. During this period, Hazel would meet and enter into a revealing pact with Mary at a war hospital next door. One night during the Blitz, the hospital and intelligence building were heavily bombed. The Professor and Hazel's mother Lily died. Hazel was devasted by the loss. Unbeknownst to Hazel, the Professor had left all of his family's wealth and estate to her considering her the daughter he never had. ***

That's the main ones so far, other than Jack. Send help I love them so much.

[universaln0b0dy]

Adding random ocs into Twisted wonderland

day 1: Uni from Universes connect.

Look, waking up in a coffin isn't the weirdest thing that happened, which still doesn't stop her from almost killing Grim with her portal powers. But what was to be expected, Univer Versails Nohbodie didn't go through all that trouble of rebuilding her empire just to end up in a school?!?

Because she is already 26 and way to old to be sorted into a form, Crowley employs her as an assistant/ therapist. Uni can't get taken advantage of easy and tells Crowley of at needed times, another thing is that she still has all of her magic powers from the other world, which honestly scares Crowley occasionally.

She meets Ace and Deuce because she hears they and Grim have caused so much trouble they have to enter the dwarves mine. Uni being the good assistant she is helps them survive the mine by teleporting them out of it before they can get crushed by its stones.

After this Ace and Deuce start to idolise the teacher from another world, who seems to be able to control her magic in every single aspect.

Uni is honestly pretty strange to look at, with her purple skin, eyes and hair, her freckles that glow like stars, but poking fun at her will hand you the worst disappointed mother stare in the existence.

During Riddles Overblot she is the teacher that manages to show up on time and to help the students. She also becomes Riddles therapist after this doing a job that should have done way before this.

Leonard's Overblot stays the same pretty much.

Azuls Overblot is a bit different , as Uni doesn't make a deal with him until he actually becomes a threat to her.

Floyd and jade accidentally find out about her past and because of that grow wary of her, because she admits to the fact that Azul taking her current magic wouldn't do alot, as it would require blood, lots of blood to work properly, since he never underwent the training she did and her magical system quite littarly being blood magic doesn't help.

She makes a deal with Leona that if he helps her in stopping Azul from going berserk she would teach him how to use his blood (which she found out shares quite a few components with her magic infiltrated blood, but needs extra training to be awakened)

She doesn't have a lot to do with the scarabia problems until she realises what Jamil was up too and decides to help the poor students.

She grows closer to the students in NCR, to some becoming an aunt, or in riddles case a (better) mother figure.

During the 5th book, Uni also meets the Diasomnia squad through Carter, because he knows their vice dorm leader, who invites her to tea, because they found out they have something in common. (Both have children and are war veterans) And manages to eat Lilias cookies without dying, shrugging it off with she has eaten worse.

She also actively helps with the vdc, watching over the students training, she also cheers the hardest during the contest because she is a supportive aunt.

She goes berserk in chapter 6, like the mother in Mitchell's and the machines when fighting those super robots. You can imagine that exact scene when she starts fighting, cuddling grim before going back to mama bear mode.

During Malleus Overblot she only gets awakened because they all decide that awakening a few staff members couldn't hurt, her dream is a mixture of her childhood, her life before NCR and NCR in which they find out that she was actually designed to fight against magicians and dragons, though she stops then finds her kids yada yada yada.

In this au Uni is actually the one to find a way out of Twisted wonderland and they don't hear anything from her till a year later her son comes to the school as an exchange student, with a few others (you guys get to choose who will go to Uni's universe with them)

An event she is in is during the tsum and camp vargas. An event I made for her is: "Mirror of age" in which her past self accidentally comes into the world by switching the place with current Uni. So they have to deal with an angsty teenager ready to kill them on sight :^D.

This was it so far! Because I lack male ocs this will have mostly female ones, though i of course try to include some of my male ones^^

[kitkatt0430]

Get to know me tag game!

Tagged by @goldheartedchaoticdisaster ^_^

Do you make your bed?

Sort of? I tend to leave it in a half-made state. Especially now that I've got the adjustable base and I often leave it in a 'sitting up' state in the morning after reading a little bit. I'll pull the covers up some so it looks neater, but still in an easy to hop back into sort of way.

2. Favorite number?

I don't really have one

3. What’s your job?

Software engineer, specifically frontend development.

4. If you could go back to school would you?

Down the road i might? Right after getting my bachelors degree I considered getting my masters but then I got a full time job (same one I'm still at) and decided I didn't need it. But I considered being a teacher once upon a time and it's something I still might choose to do down the road.

5. Can you parallel park?

Yes but I prefer not to. If there's parallel parking up close and normal parking further away, I'll walk the distance.

6. Do you think aliens are real?

I think so. The universe is vast and it seems more unlikely that we would be alone in it than that we have super distant neighbors out there somewhere.

7. Can you drive a manual car?

I've only ever driven automatic and I don't really like driving enough to learn to drive manual too.

8. What’s your guilty pleasure?

Starting projects I haven't finished yet. ;) I may have more of those than I really should.

9. Tattoos?

No, but I keep thinking more and more that I'd kind of like one? Despite my dislike of needles. I don't know... a stylized feather done in aro flag colors just seems kind of right for me?

That said I have no idea where I'd want it to go, so I'm likely still a long way off from actually getting one.

10. Favorite color?

Green, though blue is a close second. I used to love yellow as a kid, but as my eye sight started to become strongly near-sighted yellows (and some oranges) started to make my eyes ache after a while, which kind of cut down on my enjoyment of the color.

11. Favorite type of music?

Rock is my favorite, though I lean specifically towards soft rock. But to be honest? I've yet to hear a genre I didn't enjoy at least a little.

12. Do you like puzzles?

Yes, but I think I enjoy them more as a group activity than a solo one.

13. Any phobia?

I tend to get claustrophobic in loud, packed places. The claustrophobia coming from having too many people packed in around me and the noise making it hard to think. So I'm not much for clubbing or places like that.

14. Favorite childhood sport?

Soccer. I was on a team for a while in elementary school and I was actually a decent goalie and mid-fielder. But when it got more competitive and less for-fun I lost interest. I keep thinking I should get a ball and net for my backyard and just kick balls for fun again... but I haven't yet. (I also liked basketball, but I was never a very good shot.)

15. Do you talk to your self?

I'll think out loud a lot, so yeah. I'll also give 'voice' to what I think my dog is thinking. She's very sassy as far as I'm concerned. :D

16. What movies do you adore?

Science fiction and fantasy movies definitely. Star Trek, Star Wars, Stargate, Lord of the Rings, Ghostbusters... I'm a nerd, what can I say?

17. Coffee or tea?

Tea. I used to at least drink coffee socially, but it turned into an IBS trigger and I was glad to give it up entirely.

18. First thing you wanted to be growing up

Archaeologist. Or maybe a geologist? I bounced between the two a bit so honestly, it could be either. Quite different from what I actually chose to be.

Tagging: @hawkstincan @bottomoftheriverbed @coldflasher @corelliaxdreaming @angst-is-love-angst-is-life and throwing it out to anyone else who'd like to join in ^_^

[ambrozians]

4 12 and 21 for Roy <3

4. if you could put this character in any other media, be it a book, movie, anything, what would you put him in?

this is not specific in the slightest but he was made to be in wild wild west and vampire hunter aus, imho. i think he deserves to walk around with a cowboy hat, boots, and a fire coat. what do they say again? save a horse, ride a cowboy? yeah, that! 🙈 there’s a version of him that exists in some universe where he’s a vampire hunter so going off of that, i’d toss him into castlevania for a bit. the netflix version though (i’ve never played the games), specifically nocturne because even though the show doesn’t take place there, america exists at that point. one last thing: it would be cool to see him as a rebel in star wars!

12. what’s a headcanon you have for this character?

the better question is, what’s a headcanon i don’t have for him? i have so many that it’s hard to narrow it down but let’s get into a few!

when he first began raising lian, his cooking abilities did not extend past following instructions on frozen food and heating up ramen, mac and cheese, hot dogs, etc. not a great diet for a superhero and certainly not one for a growing baby, so he watched cooking shows religiously and tried out several recipes until cooking became second nature to him. he does his best to learn vietnamese so that lian has someone to practice with but his pronunciation is not great, but he’s trying! he subconsciously drums (ex. making beats on the table w/ his fingers). he might be the only redhead in existence who tans well. kids love to climb on him. he and lian go to the zoo every month and volunteer at animal shelters often. he enjoys thrifting. he can sing!

21. if you’re a fic writer and have written for this character, what’s your favorite thing to do for this character? what’s something you don’t like?

i love describing his smile! roy is a very laidback yet confident guy, so his mannerisms, particularly his smile, should reflect that. whenever i write one in i can picture his grin so clearly, so i hope my readers can too! there’s nothing i dislike about writing him, tbqh.

ask game

[bedlamsbard]

I know the MCU is your wheelhouse, but given you like comics as well have you read any? Find it interesting or just don't particular care given the different continuities?

I've read Loki: Agent of Asgard and really enjoyed it; I own this one in hard copy and there are references to it in my fic. I bounced really hard of the Loki Journey into Mystery comics by Kieron Gillen and have never finished them. Gillen has the problem -- and this is true in Star Wars, in DIE, in The Wicked + The Divine, so it's just him at this point -- of doing something that in theory I really really like, but then doing it in a way I really, really hate, so I have learned not to read Gillen anymore. I haven't read any Loki comics since, but that's just me not being in the mood.

I also read the Thor: God of Thunder comics (by Jason Aaron) that deal with Gorr the God-Butcher and I think the lead-up to War of the Realms, but not actual War of the Realms. (I think this is the 2012 one?) I unfortunately really liked the comics arc that deals with Gorr, which is unfortunate Thor Love and Thunder is very, very different in the way that it deals with that arc. (It's the multiverse era! this is the perfect time to do time travel bullshit with multiple Thors! Hemsworth is good enough to pull it off!) I tried to read Mighty Thor but unfortunately I really really disliked it (Jason Aaron is really hit and miss with me).

I read Ms Marvel and the Fraction Hawkeye back in the day around when they were first coming out (in trades) and were really being talked about in fandom circles, so like...ten years ago, possibly more, and I reread them at some point in the last couple years; I own them in hardcopy back at my parents' place so it would have been probably summer 2021 or 2022. They're fine, I don't have strong feelings about them. I was reading Runaways when it was coming out in TPB -- when I was in high school, actually, so mid/late-'00s, didn't keep up with it, was keeping up with new Runaways for a while when it started again a few years back, but it's a lot of effort to keep up with comics, you know?

There's other Marvel comics I've read; I will go through phases every couple years where I read comics, but there's a base level of knowledge that tends to make it difficult, plus the eternal problem of same title, same number, different comic. Some of Marvel I know enough that I can more or less just jump in -- I went through all of Astonishing X-Men some years back, because I know enough about the X-Men that I could do that -- but not everything by a long shot, and it's really hard to figure out what is actually supposed to be good. (especially when everything has the same name.) I have actually had an easier time with it in DC rather than Marvel -- not that I read a lot of DC and it may just have more to do with what specific comics I picked up, which were Gotham Academy and Wonder Woman Rebirth, which are both pretty standalone. (I have read other DC comics, not recently; DC as a universe just doesn't do it for me, which is why I'm over here in Marvel instead.)

I have read indies, I read WicDiv and Saga and Motor Crush and tried a few others that didn't stick with me. I don't read comics very often, especially since Amazon killed Comixology. (though I do have a comics reader app that I really like, but that requires I go hunt down the specific comic in .cbr or .cbz.) For a very long time, I kept up with all the canon Star Wars comics (I think I still have all the flimsies bagged and boarded from the first year 2015-2016, maybe into 2017, including some pretty rare variant covers that I'll get priced at some point in my life), and there are a lot of EU Star Wars comics I really, really love, like Knights of the Old Republic and Legacy and the Ostrander/Duursema Republic/Clone Wars comics. I actually did grow up reading comics, but I grew up reading my dad's comics from when he was a kid, and these were not Marvel or DC comics, these were the old Gold Key Tarzan comics, so it took a really, really long time to break me of hearing "comics" and immediately thinking "Tarzan." No one ever means "Tarzan" when they say "comics," they mean "superheroes." (I also grew up reading Edgar Rice Burroughs novels. I tell people this and they go "this explains everything about you.")

In Marvel I also have the problem of being really attached to the MCU versions of most of the characters, which makes the entry level of getting into those characters' comics really difficult for me because I already have strong feelings about specific versions of those characters that don't exist in the comics -- Black Widow and Captain America are the big two here. (Don't ask me why I have an easier time with Thor and Loki, I don't know.) I've never read a Black Widow comic, I don't know if it would go well or if it would go poorly; it may go fine or it may be too much of a discrepancy that it will be impossible for me to read. Same with Cap. (But like, feel free to rec BW and Cap comics to me if you think that for whatever reason they'll work for me, just bear in mind I hate BuckyNat, which limits a lot of BW comics.)

One of the things that has for a very long time been a strength of the MCU has been that the less you know about the comics, the better the viewing experience actually is; every time they've leaned really hard on prior comics knowledge it's backfired on them (AoU, Loki "Journey into Mystery," parts of Hawkeye, DSMOM, the frickin' "Avengers Assemble" line in Endgame that I hate, Captain Marvel in general, Ms. Marvel is also a serious offender here, unfortunately). So in a lot of ways as a MCU fan, it's easier and even preferable to not know things about the comics, especially because nothing translates 1:1 and if you expect it to, you'll be disappointed. (see: why I have been avoiding TLAT, because I love the Gorr arc in the comics.) I see a lot of people in the fandom going "why don't they do [comics thing], XYZ is (comics) canon, they're just ignoring canon" and it's like...no they're not, that does not exist as canon in the MCU, you can't make that assumption, we made this very clear back in 2008. (BuckyNat my beloathed. Same for Loki/Sigyn. Or in a less ship way, people going "well, THIS is Bruce Banner's REAL backstory" or "this is a FAKE Yelena.") So it also kind of puts me off knowing things about the comics, though I am on Wiki a lot looking up background details to use in fic, but in the same way the MCU does, the "I am going to use this as a kernel to build off of," not straight 1:1 adaptation. This is going to sound super petty, but I will say it anyway: I also at this point will nope out of reading fic if it's very clear that the author is using comics backstory over the MCU canon. (Even if it's an old fic that predates the new canon, it is now just unreadable to me.) Like, you do you, but it's just what I can't read. I can't read most MCU fic in general anymore anyway.

I feel like lately I've been circling around doing another comics reading phase; I don't think I read any in 2022 (other than the MCU movie prequel comics), but I read Agent of Asgard and Thor: God of Thunder in 2021, so I'm probably about due, it does tend to be about every other year. I don't know, what's good right now that I probably wouldn't hate?

[marajunecollins]

"You can't be everything you want to be before your time."

Name: (Dr.) Mara June Collins Age: twenty-nine (29) Birthday: 6 October 1944. Place of birth: Stillwater, CA Neighbourhood: Oakbury Pronouns: She/Her Sexuality: Bisexual

BIOGRAPHY

tw: familial death; car accident

On Mara June Collins’ 4th birthday, she received a medical play kit. A bulky carry case held the works – a crisp, white lab coat, a stethoscope, a thermometer, plastic syringes, and even a blood pressure cuff!

That’s all it took. Mara knew exactly what she would grow up to be.

Mara was raised as a middle child in a warm, stable home. Loving parents that loved each other. Pesky siblings that bugged but adored each other just the same. A neat ranch house with a manicured lawn. A family canine. They could’ve been the cover stars of The Perfect Nuclear Family Monthly if such an issue existed.

Daddy owned a mechanic shop, momma’ was a former teacher turned housewife, and both were perfectly content with the life they built together. They were immensely proud of the scholar, cheerleader, and sports star they raised. Can you guess which Mara was? (If you guessed scholar, you’d be correct!) The kids, too, were content and secure in who they were. After all, it’s hard to doubt yourself when your parents encourage you at any and every point. There was never a day when Mara’s parents didn’t support her dream of pursuing medicine one day.

Regardless, Mara often found herself dreaming of more. The daily routine of her household, however fulfilling it was to her family, did not resonate the same with her. After-school curriculars, weekend baseball games, Sunday backyard barbecues, and surprise parties for every birthday – how could she ever complain? They were happy. She had everything and anything she could ever need. Still, her family were plain homebodies who never dreamed outside their hometown. Mara, on the other hand…

When her older brother graduated high school, it was no surprise he chose to run the family business with his father. Two years later, it was also no surprise when Mara got a pre-medicine offer to a university in a larger city hours away. The tears in her father’s eyes, as he unloaded her suitcase from the family station wagon, tugged at her heart.

“I’ll come home every two weeks, Daddy. I promise.”

The first semester, she stuck to her promise. In the second semester, she aimed to make it home once a month. Once the more challenging biology and chemistry classes came around… she might’ve made it home a total of two times during a semester. And Mara, itching to get on with her career, studied through every summer. One summer, then another, and then another, spent away from her family.

Medical school was no different, except family visitations took the shape of rushed phone calls home. Mara was only genuinely present with her family during her winter breaks and maybe a lucky week during the summer months.

At 25, she found herself only three weeks shy of graduating from medical school when her world fell apart without warning.

Her father and her brother, dead, in only a blink.

The following months were a blur. Mara wasn’t living, but she existed only by going through the motions. She did not attend her own graduation but still received her honors. She went home, of course, and spent time with her mother and sister… but the house was so painfully silent. Mara couldn’t bear it. The silence left too much space for her suffocating regret.

So, she buried herself in her medical residency work. She did little else but work. Day. Night. Twenty-hour shifts at times. It did not take long for her to declare trauma surgery her specialty and for Stillwater General Hospital’s on-call room to become her new home.

Three years into Mara’s residency, the Vietnam War raged on. In the lifestyle she had created to specifically avoid her past, the unresolved trauma began slipping through the cracks. When the US government appealed to (training) medics across the nation to join the effort, she accepted the new challenge. While well-intentioned, it was just another attempt to suppress her lingering regret. In mid-1972, she was flown to work in a hospital in Yokohama, Japan, where she would treat Vietnam War soldiers in the burn unit.

She returned to Stillwater a year later to resume her last year of surgical residency. Mara, or Dr. Collins, is 29 years old and has proven to be a fiercely skillful surgeon, consistently outperforming her peers. Now, she has reached the point where she’s entrusted with solo, unsupervised surgeries. Her success, however, comes at a heavy price. She entertains nothing outside the walls of Stillwater General. She eats, sleeps, and breathes surgery. Anything else leaves her hollow inside.

[phanfictioncatalogue]

Completed Chaptered Tumblr Fics (2) Masterlist

part one

A Blue Starfall - wavydanrises

Summary: Phil is a botanist who enjoys going on hikes through the woods, when someday he walks into someone quite… particular. He didn’t believe in coincidences, so maybe it really was fate that guided his steps.

A Familiar Kind of Love - auroraphilealis, ineverhadmyinternetphase

Summary: Born in a world full of magic, Dan spends his days running an apothecary and curing the sick. Potions and antidotes are his only friends, and he lives a happy life of quiet solitude - until a familiar he never wanted takes it all away. Forced to make a decision that’s life or death for one of them, Dan and Phil have to learn to co-exist together, entering a journey of self-discovery… and a familiar kind of love.

a long walk to a dark house - cecilpalmrwriting

Summary: dan didn’t plan to run away, but then again, it may have been for the best. he has an abusive girlfriend, a strange disease, and, in his opinion, nothing to live for. but when a stranger with brilliant blue eyes finds him and offers him a place to stay, dan discovers that he does have a reason to live after all. love.

A Slow Descent - phan-panda

Summary: Falling in love with your best friend is a secret usually best left untold. Phil Lester, however, has never been good at keeping secrets.

All Is Fair - jilliancares

Summary: Dan Howell has made many mistakes in life, the first of which was being born to Aphrodite (or maybe just being born at all, in his uncle’s opinion). It’s never made much sense that he was son of the Goddess of love, seeing as he didn’t even believe in it. Still, maybe there’s time for his mind to be changed when he finds himself going on a quest to retrieve his mother’s “Cupid’s bow” with Phil Lester, son of Ares.

Beautiful Scars on Critical Veins - whalefairyfandom12

Summary: In which Phil works at a cinema to pay off his university fees and Dan is the student he finds sprawled on the floor with deadened eyes and a love of alcohol and fireflies.

Begin Again - curiosityandrain

Summary: Phil never expected Dan to take up a career in theatre but Dan moves to London to pursue it, leaving Phil behind. Three years later, Phil goes to see Les Mis where Dan plays Marius. Thanks to Phil’s friend Louise, they reconnect after the show. With both of their careers growing and going in separate directions, Dan and Phil are faced with the decision of whether or not they want to begin their relationship again.

Black Is the Coldest Color - phils-flower-crown

Summary: A high school senior name Dan was never one to believe in love at first sight. His life is changed when he meets Phil, a young college student with black hair, who will allow him to discover desire, to assert himself as a man and as an adult. In front of others, Dan grows, seeks himself, loses himself and ultimately finds himself through love and loss.

Blossom - crescendohowell

Summary: Phil is a rich businessman who decides to leave the city in favor of buying a house in the country.  He expected to find beauty in the house and the surrounding gardens, but he didn’t account for a cute gardener who loves flowers and hates him.

Burn and Bloom - jilliancares

Summary: Phil’s been hiding the fact that he’s an Earthbender for ten years, ever since it’s been considered illegal when the Fire Nation invaded. And, of course, the only solution to a random Fire Nation soldier seeing him earthbending is to kidnap him, right?

But They Say We’re Made Of Stars - cactuslester

Summary: 3000 years into the future, Dan and Phil meet as kids still in primary school. They follow a journey of becoming best friends to eventually falling in love and trying to navigate through the ups and downs life throws at them: secrets, bad teachers, intergalactic war, the usual.

Details Of An Asteroid - dantiloquent

Summary: “If you think about it, aliens probably believe in us, too. We’ve got our own intergalactic cheerleaders.” 

Famous Last Words - whalefairyfandom12

Summary: In a world where the last words your soulmate will say to you are written on your wrist, fearful and introverted Phil works in a bookstore. His greatest fear? The words counting down the seconds until he meet his soulmate, someone called ‘Dan.’ But it isn’t until he befriends a university student that he nicknames ‘Bear’ that Phil realizes that surviving through fear isn’t the same as living.

Head Down Low - camisadan

Summary: (TW) Dan isn’t right. He’s not like most of the others, he’s not genetically pure. He has no destined path, he has nothing going for him in life. He’ll be lucky to get himself a job in a fast food kitchen, and everyone looks down on him like he’s a piece of dirt stuck at the bottom of their shoe. Except one person: Phil Lester.

Imaginary Friends - adorkablephil

Summary: Nothing’s AU ... except that Dan and Phil have been appearing in each other’s dreams since childhood without realizing it because they’re soulmates. Everything on the outside looks like the reality we’re used to irl.

Misplaced - jilliancares

Summary: Phil wakes up in an alternate universe. And then Phil… wakes up in an alternate universe. Both Phil’s try to navigate back to their own life while simultaneously trying to deal with each others'. (AKA YouTuber!Phil tries to deal with the fact that he’s in a band and he and Dan are enemies, and Band!Phil tries to understand how in any universe he and Dan could be lovers.)

Notifications - notanannoyingfangirl

Summary: Indie movie actor, Phil Lester hadn’t meant to get under Dan Howell’s skin. In fact, they could both had could never have even dreamed of meeting other. So when a shitstorm erupts over twitter claiming that they’re a couple (who knows how that rumor started) and their agents desire to take advantage of the attention to launch a movie featuring the two of them… well the could both be happier.

Oxymoron(ic) - kidpxv

Summary: “Hey I have to photograph someone for class will you be my model?”

((In which Dan hates contrast and Phil is a walking oxymoron))

“It’s Up to You Now” - danalingphil-fics

Summary: in which Phil isn’t normal and it maybe hits Dan the hardest // aromantic!Phil (2009 and 2015 story lines)

Renegade - awesomesockes

Summary: It’s World War 2. Phil, a young German soldier, is stationed in Denmark. There he meets Dan - a rebellious Danish school boy who is intent on making his job hell. But before long, they realise they have more in common than they’d have thought. How do you hide a friendship when you come from two different sides of a war?

Steal My Heart (steal my whole life too) - ineverhadmyinternetphase

Summary: Captain of the Royal Guard and Prince of Morellia, Philip Lester has never been given the chance to find love. Instead, he’s run from a system that works to end class differences and improve equality for its citizens. Happy as he is to make the world a better place, Phil can’t help feeling bitter towards his ancestors for making it impossible for him to find someone who will actually love him for more than just his title, and strives instead for a life of justice and doing good - only to meet his match in the King of Thieves, a man who will change everything he once thought he knew in life. Together, they must depart on a quest to save the kingdom, and, in the process, destroy their differences and find their own form of love.

Sweet Pea - botanistlester

Summary: A nickname that goes bitter in your mouth. Cries for help that no one listens to. Gentle hands that make you quake on the ground you’re standing on. When Phil first met Nico, he thought he was a gift from the heavens. But behind the mask lies something daunting, something unnerving, that Phil never foresaw. Through his journey, he finds solace in Dan, the regular at his workplace, who seems to be the only one who sees through Nico’s mask to the darkness underneath. 

The Blind Boy - jilliancares

Summary: Dan Howell liked to think of his entire life as a series of tragic accidents. Because really, how many people can say that they managed to become blind and obtain a supposedly Cute Boy’s hate all in the span of one year? And Phil Lester has not had the best school life, so in order to avoid bullying or a bad reputation, he refuses to take shit from anyone at this new school. Even if that someone just so happens to be blind.

The Next Night - nebulous-frog

Summary: Germany in 1937 was a hard place for anyone "different". Dan just wanted to live his life, fall in love, and die surrounded by family, but his particular community was too "different". Dan found himself hiding, wishing for a better world, maybe even finding it in the eyes of an unlikely savior.

The Pianist and the Artist - crescendohowell

Summary: Dan is a struggling university student who loves piano that becomes friends with his neighbor, Phil, the artist.

The Proposal - fiction-phan

Summary: Dan Howell is the executive chief of a very known company which deals with publishing best seller books. He is hated but everyone in the office but everyone is too scared of him to say anything, unless they want to get fired. Phil Lester is his assistant. As much as he hates Dan and the way he treats him, Phil keeps quiet because of his dream of becoming an editor. When Dan learns that he might be facing deportation charges because of his expired visa, he convinces Phil to marry him in order for all charges to be dropped. The plan is to get a divorce after a few years but a weekend spent in Phil’s family house might just change both their plans, and the way they think.

The Reject - butterflyphil

Summary: Dan might be a little bit in love with his best friend, but it’s okay. Phil doesn’t get crushes, at least as far as Dan can tell, so Dan has spent the last two years pining in secret while learning to accept the fact that Phil might never see him the same way.

And it’s fine. It is. He feels lucky to have Phil as a friend at all, and he is perfectly happy to keep things the way they are. But things are bound to change when he finds some pretty convincing evidence that Phil does get crushes. And, as it turns out, boys who look like Dan are exactly Phil’s cup of tea.

The only problem? The object of Phil’s affection is Dan’s twin brother.

Those Who Trust - theshyauthor

Summary: (TW) Dan used to be a submissive and now he’s just a broken shell of a man.

Unintended - zeldainhiding

Summary: Foreston Academy was the very last resort for angry, lonely Dan Howell. He never could have imagined meeting anyone like Phil Lester, and Phil never could have known that befriending his new roommate would change his life entirely.

Is there such a thing as being too forgiving?

Writing About Blue Eyes - crescendohowell

Summary: Phil moved to a small town in order to help run the family restaurant. He only planed to be there for a year but he doesn’t account for Dan, the writer who loves the town and surrounding forest he calls home. While Phil doesn’t want to hurt Dan when he moves away, he can’t help falling in love with soft smiles, endless conversations, and the boy who always carries a journal.

[dream-beyond-the-fantasy]

Top 5 characters who left the deepest impression on you growing up and why?

I know that it's been five years since you sent this, but I think I'm finally at a point to answer it. It took a lot of thought and to be honest, I did forget about this ask. It's also hard to think of just five characters and the whys.

Fran Fine, The Nanny - she was the unconventional mom that I always wanted and a style icon. She is still a comfort character after all of these years.

Kimberly Hart, Power Rangers - Girls could be beautiful and feminine yet still be heroes and kick ass. Kimberly and Tommy had one of the best romances on a kid's show.

Leia Organa Solo, Star Wars - Let me preface this by saying, this is the Leia that I grew up with from the Expanded Universe/"Legends" continuity. She was iconic. A princess, a senator, a freedom fighter, a politician, Chief of State of the New Republic, Jedi Knight, wife, mother, and grandmother. That woman did it all, although, it's true that she struggled with balancing everything and had varying levels of success. She wasn't afraid to get her hands dirty. Leia had a big heart and never stopped fighting for what was right and to help people.

Belle, Beauty and the Beast - Belle loved to read. She was a free spirit with her own thoughts and dreams. Deemed an outcast for not going along with her community and befriending the Beast. She wasn't afraid to stand up for herself and those she cared about. Belle wasn't looking for love but found it with the right person after they got to know and care for each other.

Fa Mulan, Mulan - She is strong-willed and will do anything to protect her family, whom she loves dearly. It took guts to pretend to be a boy and volunteer to take her father's place in a war. Mulan was an outcast, who didn't do as she was told by society and yet, she was the one who saved her people and country from Shan Yu and his army. She is socially awkward and chafes against society's expectations and sexism, yet she is persistent and gains confidence in herself and her abilities.

Sorry that it took so long!

[yanderefairyangel]

Elyos timeline vs Xenelyos timeline

I was bored so i decided to see how much things changed between the main Elyos and the Xenelyos 

and because spoilers ahead, see under the cut

1- Genesis vs Xenogenesis

Elyos was a peaceful lands until Sombron decided to go to war a 1 000 years ago. Chronogically, Sombron arrived in Elyos when he was a child and was taken by humans, but then Emblem 0 gone Sombron choosed violence and spent the time he was here growing and turn to conquest, making kids with Mage dragons. I guess that during his time here since he is as old as Lumimi this allowed people to make him the figure of the cult of Elusia for whatever reasons since Elusia seems to have been worshiping him for as long as he has been here but basically this means that Fell dragons don’t originate from Elyos but from whatever realm Sombron originates from, and Sombron is the sole survivor of his tribe in his world (unless there were others fell kids that survived and they were send into another world idk) whereas Divine one and Mage dragons are native species

Meanwhile XenElyos was a land without any dragon, until a dragon was born and then his descendence got splitted into divine dragons and fell one, making both species native to Elyos and originally of the same kin, which explain better why Xenobron might have been place as the same status as Lumera’s unlike in Elyos where we have to imagine how the heck was it possible for him to gain this much authority. It’s worth noting though that the Realms in Elyos exist as well, but reversed since the map is mirrored in it’s axis, and those realms have a different reputation : Firene is a peaceful land in Elyos but in Xenylos it’ a land of warior, in short they swaped with Brodia.

2- Emblems 

So the accessories and Emblems are different since Elyos was blessed with 12 rings whereas Xenylos was blessed with 7 bracelets. Unlike what was shown of our units, Emblem seems to be unique to their worlds, however the emblems all represent the same world.

Elyos                                                                                                     XenElyos

World of Fe1/Fe3 : Marth’s ring                                                        Tiki’s bracelet

World of Fe7 : Lyn’s ring                                                              Hector’s bracelet

World of Fe 9/10: Ike and Micaiah                                              Soren (yes 10 too since it’s older Ike that appear in Radiant Dawn even if it’s to represent Radiance)

World of Fe 13: Lucina’s ring                                      Chrom and Robin’s bracelet

World of Fe14: Corrin’s ring                                                       Camilla’s bracelet

World of Fe 16: Byleth                                                     Eddie, Dima and Claude

The others Emblem don’t have a counterpart to represent their world but Vero-chan being here to represent multiverse you could argue

3- War of 1000 : case of uchronie

In french we call uchronie a case of alternate history and here the war went way differently. But since it’s parallel world, the events took place in the same time in parallell fashion unlike a classical case of uchronie where it’s “what if things took place differently” in a universe independ, like that one Friends episode of what would have happened if Rachel married Barry and we aren’t in a alternate universe but just a bonus what if episode, so i think you get the difference now.

- Elyos was already peupled with Divine Dragons and Mage dragons since Sombron said that when he was a kid, Elyos was alreday full of it. In his world however, his entire kind as being slewed in a war to control Emblem rings against others dragons whose nature is not specified but seeing how Fell dragon were exclusive to his world and that Divine one are native of Elyos, I am guessing it was not Divine dragons. Sombron brought one of the ring of his homeworld with him, 0 emblem and they stayed together until villagers found baby Sombron and took him within, 0 Emblem left and Sombron went bersek, killed the village and then growing up decided to find a way to return to his world and reunite with 0 emblem. This happened a 1000 years ago, since Lumera and Sombron are of the same age, this means it happened when Lumera herself was very young. Then a 1 000 years later when Sombron and Lumera are both 2000 years old, Sombron started to wage war to get back the rings to open the world’s gate and to do date he mated with Mage dragon and had numerous children so many that he can’t recall the face and names of many despite being the one having given them their name. Overall he was in this world “close” to only 2 of his kids, being Alear and Veyle. By that time, Veyle was still very young and Alear was their last sibling alive since all of Sombron’s children perished in the war of 1000 years ago and that’s during this war that Alear was slayed by Sombron at the cost of sealing him. By that time Alear befriended Lumera and they had agree that Lumera could turn Alear into a divine dragon and adopt them, so in their “dying moments” Alear begged her to so and Lumera waited for them a 1 000 years infusing her essence, turning Alear into Pepsi protag. Also, chapter 24 proved that Sombron’s side had managed to get back a great number of rings, including Marth which was fighting by Alear side until Alear betrayed Sombron and stayed with Alear during their 1 000 slumber and that by that time Lumera was the last of her kind.This also means that Sombron was the sole representant of his kind and that all fell children are actually Mage dragon/Fell dragon hybrid. 

                                                         vs

- In Alternate Elyos, there was no dragon. Until a 1 000 years ago a first dragon was born. By that time, Sombron arrive in Elyos in the main world. Then this dragon had among his descendance Divine dragon and Fell dragon, meaning that in this universe Lumeralt and Xenobron are long distant relatives and that Fell dragon and Divine dragon are cousins species. Seeing how 0Emblem was an emblem ring and Emblem are uniques, this meas that Xenobron had different motivation (might make a whole post about it). Just like Sombron did a 1 000 years ago, Xenobron started a war against Divine dragon with his spawn which, because of his different genetics, are all born as twins. Meanwhile, seeing how the chronolgy is different, Lumeralt had a bioligical child with one of her fellow Divine dragon (idk if it was the one that was Lumera’s spouse in MGElyos though) that child being Altlear, however 1000 years ago, during the war, Sombron got sealed, Lumera died and Nil died too, leaving Rafal to switch places and according to Rafal, that happened when both were still children and unlike what happened in the main world, many others of the Xenobron children survived before the twins betrayed Xenobron to joined side with Alear (remember in the last CG Xenobron said that it had been sometimes since Nel and Rafal betrayed him) since there was a CG showing Nel killing at least 4 others fell children. This was after that they joined side with Altlear and Altear fought Sombron at the cost of their lives, which must have happened recently enough for Nel to still be deeply hurt by it. 

4 - The 4 hounds vs the 4 winds

Biggest changes are them. So let’s see.

Zephia vs Zelestia : Zephia was a powerful Mage dragon, so powerful that according to Mauvier, she could have remplaced Sombron and destroyed her own village, before entering Sombron’s side. She fought along side him during the war of 1 000 and was the one that founded the 4 hounds. This happened when Sombron was in slumber, as she also managed to get Veyle back once she met the Fell Dragon sympathizers that took her away when she was a sleeping in the temple. She mets Griss and Marnies as children and took care of them, along with Mauvier to “form a family”

Zelestia however, had a very different life. She for some reason that i think must be biological was way weaker than her Mage dragons fellow. In this world, Mage dragon refused to side with Xenobron (which can only makes me wonder how Sombron got to have stick to their side) which resulted in their kind being exterminated by Xenobron and Zelestia foind refuge by Lumeralt and Altlear side. Unlike Zephia, Zelestia meet with the other members of the 4 winds very late, Gregory saved her during a battle and Mauvier, founder and second in commend, was with Maddie when they encontered. 

Griss vs Gregory : Both were Elusian boys with neglectful parents. Whereas Griss got abandonned Gregory was sold to the worshippers of Sombron. Both had to go though the same ritual, expect that Gregory came to hate pain unlike Griss who become a masochist after experiecning it. Griss was taken care of by Zephia who was both a mother and elder sister figure to him, who still jad quite a sequels as apparently he was unable to speak for a long moments, whereas Gregory meet Zelestia during a battle where he saved her from a Corrupted. But both guys have strong bond with Zephia and Zelestia.

Marni vs Madeline: Marni was the daughter of a poor woman and had numerous brothers. Although she helped her mother took care of the household, the latter saw her of having no value explaining why she was longing for praise. Despite her efforts, her mother ended up abandoning her at a church of the Fell dragon. There she was raised by the clergy and receive the affection her mother never gave her and her abilty attracted the Fell dragon sect, explaning why Zephia took her with her. 

Madeline had a different alternate family. Rather than being the child of Marni’s mom’s double, like Altlear, she had a knight mother and knight father who served the Lumeralt party and had no siblings at all, in short she was a lonely child. She lost both her parents during the war against Sombron, but she was saved by Mauve who took her as her apprentice and according to Zelestia they looked like father and daughter. 

Mauvier vs Mauve : We all know Mauvier. He is a Firene native that moved to Elusia with his mother when his father died due to an illness and then they become member of Sombron’s chruch. Mauvier became a knight serving Veyle and grew found of her as he was the first person she met when she woke up. He doesn’t join Alear’s party until Marni’s death mainly because of Veyle, but seeing what Zephia did to her and how she killed Marni, he drew the line and join Alear. 

Mauve (that’s how I call Parallel Mauvier)’s origins are unknown but his Veyle dying sooner than in the MG, he had no other reason to stay as I suspect that Xenobron was the one to get rid of her and that he was just as dedicated to her than Mauvier to Veyle. He took Madeline with him and founded the 4 winds to protect the Fell twins but it doesnt change the fact that Zelestia like Zephia was the leader as Mauve left her the spot. 

6- Fell dragons vs Fell dragons

Strangely enough, the Fell siblings and the Fell twins don’t quite exaclty belong to the same species because of the difference. Sombron isn’t a native to his Elyos, meaning he can’t be a descendant of Lumera’s ancestor unlike Xenobron and Lumeralt so Fell dragon in MG Elyos have no link to Divine one whereas in XenElyos, Fell dragons are cousin species of Divine ones. After all the only reason why Fell dragon in our world could awake Emblems was because of Sombron having similar rings but Xenobron and his spawn would be able to do it just fine since they have a common ancestor to explain the why. That’s without taking into account the fact that unlike in Elyos where Sombron was the only pure fell blood, Xenobron could have mate with other of his fellow fell dragon seeing how there many others and no Mage dragon, and he killed them way before Veyle and Nel and Rafal were born so it’s more likely. Which makes it very weird because

Alear : Fell dragon turned into a hybrid Fell/Divine dragon

Veyle : Hybrid Fell/Mage Dragon

Sombron : pure fell dragon

The Fell twins : Pure fell dragon but their species is slightly different due to their origins...

If you noticed Veyle and the twins shared the common trait of having weird taste buds, something Alear doesn’t have anymore since Lumera messed their anatomy and seeing how Alear can use both invocations and prayers as well as having only one side with bed hair, being the red one, I guess this means there isn’t that much difference but when you compared Sombron’s dragon froms to the twins, the twins looked more like lizard which i think is because of that change of ancestor because some of the Lumera dragon from feature reapears through their own dragon form. And seeing how Xenobron had that quirk of having only twins unlike Sombron, I guess that’s also proof that Fell dragon in Elyos arent quite the same species as in the XenElyos

And that’s all I spotted for now. 

[kuiilandtorch]

For the Author Commentary, a few snippets, all from A different kind of blood! (One from each chapter instead of a huge slug :P)

ch 1 Finishing his ministrations, Luke wiped the sticky, pungent residue of bacta from his hands and stowed the supplies back into the medkit.  Placing it back into his bag, he pulled out the canteen of water and considered how to compose his next offer, since all he had to go on were assumptions drawn from Grogu’s memories and the context of their parting on the cruiser.  In all of Grogu’s experiences, at least the ones he’d imparted to Luke, the Mandalorian had always worn his helmet, even on occasions where other parts of his armor were removed.  The fact that Grogu had asked to see his father’s face before leaving with Luke meant that he had never seen it. The Mandalorian’s decision to grant his son’s request had likely been as sacrificial as his choice to surrender him to Luke. Just for once…let me look on you with my own eyes. And Luke hadn’t turned away from it then, too caught up in his own memories and fighting to wrestle them under control, lest he show weakness at a crucial moment. ch 2 He’d promised Grogu he’d see him again, and while knowing it was at best a placating lie to comfort the child, perhaps one he’d forget if enough time passed, Din did not give his word lightly.  That was one thread he could grasp.  He’d thrown away his honor for the life of his foundling, and no matter how deeply the Creed was etched into his mind and spirit, somehow he could not imagine a universe in which it mattered more than that. ch 3 Grogu squealed with glee and made grabby hands for the canister, and Luke sighed in amusement.  “I guess Yoda didn’t have bad taste because he lived in a swamp, he just had bad taste.”  That you share, kiddo, he thought, but charitably kept that to himself.  He supposed he was one to talk — he thought womp rat tasted just fine in Aunt Beru’s stew, but he knew people outside Tatooine would be disgusted.  “We should probably take this outside so we don’t stink it up in here.”  He could see now, peering down into the canister, that it held some kind of fermented fish, which explained the intense odor. Sitting out on the walkway, Luke settled for some more of his own jerky, though the reeking fish had stolen any appetite he might have had.  He only kept up appearances so that Grogu wouldn’t be distracted from enjoying his meal.  The child tucked into the canister with gusto, digging his claws into the fishmeal, and Luke hoped he wouldn’t get it onto his smock, though he knew he probably wouldn’t be that lucky.  Unless Luke successfully managed to clean him up in whatever facilities were available in the room given to them, Din was going to have a very noxious son on his hands. “Did you know I went nineteen years without ever tasting fish?” Luke said, just to make idle conversation.  “The first time I ever tried some, I couldn’t get enough.  It was like the first time I’d seen rain and puddles of water after growing up in the desert where there was nothing but sand everywhere.”

OK- *rolling up sleeves*

Ch. 1: I will forever foam at the mouth at all the missed opportunities in the S2 finale, and the fact that we have to imply them ourselves. Like, don't even think about the crack shipping for a second, THEY MADE MR. STAR WAR HIMSELF STAND IN FRONT OF A GUY TAKING HIS HELMET OFF FOR HIS KID, SHARING THIS BLATANTLY EMOTIONAL MOMENT, AND YOU EXPECT ME TO BUY THAT HE TOOK THAT WITH A DEAD-INSIDE STRAIGHT CGI FACE?????????

That was the biggest, most painfully obvious parallel and all jokes aside, it would not have stolen the thunder from Din and Grogu connecting and it would have only enriched the moment to take a second to show Luke's facade cracking to show the haunted, bittersweet joy and grief you know he had to have been feeling witnessing this. No matter how many versions of this scene I rewrite into different WIPs, I always have to include this framing because it's essential and inescapable to me. Luke survived and the galaxy was saved because his father ultimately chose selfless love, and he saw that beauty again; he was inadvertently included in this extremely intimate, powerful moment and it's such a profound honor. And he had to hold himself together because he knew this guy giving up his kid was devastated enough, he didn't need the stranger he was trusting with Grogu to fall apart too. (At least, that's what he tells himself.)

That's really the driving motivation Luke has to do what he does for Din in this story - yes, he wants to be a compassionate Jedi, but like his father, Luke holds strong loyalty and love for specific people, and while he wouldn't or doesn't want to name it as such at this time, Luke already loves this man on a soul-deep level for being a selfless father to this traumatized child, even if he knows nothing about him, and if he can show kindness to him in any small way, he'll do it. He wants Din to feel appreciated for everything he had to go through and give up.

Ch. 2: ok here's the thing-

I get the face-value notion that when Din said those words, he really was determined to see Grogu again. For me personally, I think something very very important about the S2 finale - removed from anything that came afterwards - is viewing it through the lens of Din and Grogu mutually agreeing they need to separate for their own good, no matter how painful it is. Yes, we see Grogu being sad and clinging to Din's leg, but he's a kid, it's understandable, yet he's showing great maturity in being willing and ready to leave with the Jedi. He's the one who urges Din to let in whoever's on the other side of the blast doors. He's the one who mentally informs Luke that he wants Din's permission, not that he's resisting departure. And as badly as Din's heart is breaking, I think the pragmatist in him would be accepting the fact that this was likely the last time he'd ever see Grogu. He would at least be preparing himself for that. It was literally his quest: return the kid to his "kind," and then it's over.

Din is absolutely a man of honor who does his best to keep his word, and if somehow, some way later on he'd get the chance to reunite with Grogu, he wouldn't turn away from it. But I took the view that Din said that more as a reassurance to help Grogu feel better about leaving than anything else. That moment was about Grogu, that was the entire reason for him putting the final nail in the coffin of his creed and taking his helmet off right there, to grant the kid a parting gift of love and respect for his wish. Din realized and accepted that he loved Grogu more than his own soul, regardless of the fact that his own creed does hold children in the utmost importance. If he saw any contradiction in his principles, he was going to fall on the side of preserving an innocent life no matter what the cost, fuck himself and everything else.

But that's why Din was crying in that scene. He felt this was goodbye. He'd fulfilled his obligation, and it was tearing him apart, but this was what needed to happen, this was what was best for Grogu. The kid was still so little; he thought maybe, eventually, if he was content wherever he was, Din would just fade to a blip in his life and Grogu would move on to better things, and that would have to be okay.

The other parallel I don't see talked about nearly as much in this scene is that Din is Shmi Skywalker. Din is ripping his heart out of his chest and handing it over to a Jedi, and being as brave and reassuring as possible to his son to see him walk towards a more promising future, away from strife and misery.

Ch. 3: I COULDN'T NOT GIVE MANDALORIANS SPACE SURSTRÖMMING >:D

And look, for the record, I fall squarely in the "Luke is domestic enough to be functional in a rural capacity because you can't exist on a farm and not know basic useful life skills along with farm chores" camp. No, he's no chef, but he can skin and dress a varmint like nobody's business and make a decent stew and cheese because he wants to keep his aunt's memory alive. No, he's not much of a fashionista and he couldn't make couture, but he sure as fuck knows how to mend shit to keep it going and sew some basic patterns. He's fond of his fair share of pickled and fermented and dried and heavily spiced foods from back home, but nothing on Tatooine can touch Mando space surströmming, that's for sure. XD

I love to showcase Luke idly telling Grogu silly anecdotes about himself and trying to inject some fun into Jedi teaching because he just wants to make this kid happy, and it buoys him to see Grogu being happy at whatever, even if it's super stinky fish.

[icarusthelunarguard]

This Week’s Horrible-Scopes

It’s time for this week’s Horrible-Scopes! So for those of you that know your Astrological Signs, cool! If not, just pick one, roll a D12, or just make it up as you go along. It really doesn’t matter.

If I had done a themed Horrible-Scope, this is where I’d tell you about it. …yup. Right here. Except that I didn’t have NEAR enough time to do what was suggested; super-special One-Off Characters from Star Trek. So here we go. It’s gunna be a bo-o-o-oring set this week.

Aries 

Respectability is something you strive for, and with good reason. You want to be the “Asks Permission” type rather than the “Begs Forgiveness” one, but only because you have an ulterior motive. We’re onto your little charade, Aries! You want to be able to get away with something BIG later. And we respect you for that level of planning. This week, practice your poker face again.

Taurus 

There ain’t no stoppin’ you now! After the last few weeks of crappy weather and air quality, it’s time for you to be out there and learn how to water ski. Sure, the lake water’s still cold, but that’s just encouragement for you not to fall in. Just remember the first rule - when you fall, let go of the tow rope. This week imagine what it’s going to feel like when you don’t let go and your eyes stay open. SPOILERS… they’re gunna feel like they’re literally floating in their sockets.

Gemini  

You want things to happen in a specific order, with well-established cause-and-effect progressions, because you’re a creature of habit. But you know what? Some things will happen, always, no matter what you want. And this is a good thing - it means there’s a power out there you have no control over, like gravity. And nuclear fission… and Neutron Star Starquakes. This week, contemplate the vastness of the Universe… contemplate it and feel how small you really are.

Cancer Moon-Child 

What was the last spy movie you watched? Believe it or not, it was 2016’s Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. You think it’s NOT a spy movie? What’s the premise? Work for a hostile power, get the Secret Plans, escape with them, and deliver them to the hostile power. Simple, right? This week… break out your Nerf Alpha Strike Claw QS-4 Blaster, keep it hidden in your belt, and take out your friends one-by-one. And drink your Grimace Shake.. Shaken, not stirred.

Leo 

English sucks. I mean… the expression, “How Do You Do?” Do what, exactly? Do the Dew like in the advertising campaign? Otherwise it just sounds like an unfinished interrogative sentence. English is a linguistic thief, shanking other languages in a dark alley, leaving them damaged but still alive, rifle their pockets for anything of value, taking anything they can find, including lint, then running away. This week… I don’t know, man! Just learn how to say “Hello” in three different languages. REAL languages this time! None of that Lord of the Rings crap this time.  

Virgo 

This week you’ll have luck beyond your wildest dreams. Cars will avoid hitting you, birds will miss dropping ‘stuff’ on you, and horses won’t step on your foot. Want to have it proven? Find your jigsaw puzzle and shake it up and down, hard for twenty seconds. Then open it. You’ll find that parts of the puzzle will have actually fallen into place! This week realize that the puzzle you tried to do that with wasn’t YOUR puzzle. It’s got agency and purpose of life. It’s got feelings! Stop thinking everyone is your plaything.  

Libra 

Remember when you played little league baseball as a kid? How much fun it was to be up at bat, swinging for the fence every time. But when you switched sides where were you placed? Yup - Right Field. And what did you do? Watched the dandelions grow. Because Little Leagues don’t have lefties that pull. So this week, get back to your roots… and make some Dandelion Wine! Or Dandelion Salad. You know, just.. Chew the grass. 

Scorpio 

You need to learn how to maximize your spending these days. Can you tell the difference between a real diamond and a Cubic Zirconia? Yeeaahhhh… No you can’t. A real diamond is about $7,000 a carrot. Cubic Zirconia is more like Thirty Bucks per. And you can buy them in bulk! This week, just… buy ALL the fake stones, enjoy throwing your fake bling around, and find out who your real friends are.

Sagittarius 

Your neighbor is having a party this week and you’re invited. So bring on your casserole and potato salad… but please, please, PLEASE remember that you are NOT going to blow anyone away by adding raisins in it. So please… Just.. Ok, look. Your great-aunt Mildred’s recipe might be the best you’ve ever had, but we’re not your family. This week, BUY AND FOLLOW A COOKBOOK’S RECIPE!

Capricorn 

You get to be the Final Arbiter of Opinion for professional firework displays. Should they be just “Whatever”, meaning just set them off in a way that just Feels Fun; should they be synched to a musical score, so like to some popular musical song; or should a 25-minute’s collection of stuff just all be set off at once, lighting up the skies like an active war zone, blowing it all in under a minute? And remember… this was done once already. And if you choose wrong we’re all coming after you with Roman Candles built into Phaser Rifle replicas. Choose Wisely.

Aquarius 

The electrical junction box in your house used to be called “The Fuse Block”. These things were death traps just waiting to happen. And you know why? Ok, so.. For you youngun’s … the fuses in these things were threaded screw-ins, kinda like the bottom of a light bulb. And in the dark you were expected to be able to figure out which one had blown, unscrew it, find the right replacement, then screw that one in. You know what people used to do instead? That’s right, press a penny into the bottom to bypass the 20 Amp fuse with a 600 Amp hunk of metal. This week check your pockets for pennies. Then throw them at the seagulls as you eat Burger King outside.  

Pisces  

Math Hard. Philosophy Convoluted. Chemistry Dangerous. Physics Counterintuitive. Dean’s List ACHIEVABLE! You’ll make it if you’ve studied and interned in Computer Science… You’ll know how to edit the Student Records database if you look up the XKCD Comic and look for the input on how a database gets dumped. Good Luck, Joshua!

And THOSE are your Horrible-Scopes for this week! Remember if you liked what you got, we’re obviously not working hard enough at these. BUT! If you want a better or nastier one for your own sign or someone else’s, all you need to do to bribe me is just Let Me Know! These will be posted online at the end of each week via Tumblr, Twitter, Facebook and Discord.