#let Duke be mean 2024

[redhelmetguy]

Random thingies I drew because ahhfhfjisksndk

Nightwing is ooc in this my man is a certified hater but I couldn’t think of anyone better

PLUS I’m pretty sure Duke doesn’t like him anyway so it fits (cough cough Robin War) (I wouldn’t forgive him either 🙏 then again I’m petty like that) (but so is Duke so)

Jason’s ashy and pale as shit bc he barely ever interacts with the sun. Like even though there’s barely ever sun in Gotham he somehow beats everyone else out in the “how little can I touch grass” competition (… in my head at least)

I think people need to draw/write Duke being a hater more often. He’s so fricking sassy how did his character become “the normal one”

Looking at you WFA. You aren’t the only source of this but you’ve had a huge impact on the fandom and it kind of hurts 😞

Anyway i feel like these 4 as a group could be SO amazing together. Like. Just think about it

[redhelmetguy]

Bring back hater Duke

WFA ep. 132 but if it was We Are Robin!Duke instead.

[incorrectbatfam]

In 2024, I ruined everyone's year with this post talking about the batfam's ages if they were living in the same year as us. Well, get ready to have 2025 ruined too.

Depending on how old you see Damian, he could be anywhere from 9 (like in WFA) to 15 (like in the mainline comics). I'm gonna go in the middle and say he's around 12. That means he is a Gen Alpha iPad baby born in 2013, the same year we saw Catching Fire and the Doge puppy.

NOTE: in my previous post, Damian was 10 years old and born in 2014, but I've since amended it since his age is depicted as all over the place. If you want to go with 10-year-old Damian today, he would've been born in 2015, the same year Undertale came out.

If we assume Duke is around 16, then that means he is the youngest Gen Z batfam member born in 2009, the same age as songs like Boom Boom Pow and Party In The USA.

Since Tim will always be 17 against his will, in 2025 it means he would've been born in 2008, the same year Obama was elected and Breaking Bad first aired.

Steph is a little older than Tim, so let's say she's 18. That means she was born in 2007, so along with obvious stuff like the iPhone, she would be as old as Bully Maguire and Rickrolling.

Harper is a little older than Steph but they went to college together at one point, so I'll pin her age at around 21. That means she was born in 2004, when Shrek 2 was the movie of the year.

Cass and Jason were born just months apart and are written to be in their early 20s, and I used 23 in the last post so I'll do that here. That means they were born in 2002, making them the first post-9/11 batkids and the same age as the book Eragon.

Dick and Barbara are both approximately 27, so they would've been born in 1998, the same year Destiny's Child, Coldplay, and System of a Down made their first debuts.

Helena (and I think Bette too, not sure) is a little older than both Dick and Barbara, so I'm gonna put her down as around 28. That makes her the oldest Gen Z batfamily member born in 1997, the same year as the movie Titanic.

Luke is somewhere between Helena and Kate but I can't find any specifics, so I'm going with 30. That means he is the youngest millennial batfam born in 1995, when Internet Explorer and the USB were first released.

Kate is approximately a decade younger than Bruce, making her around 35. In 2025, that means she would've been born in 1990, when Home Alone was released and Yugoslavia began to break up.

Selina's age is a little iffy because different sources give different age gaps between her and Bruce, but she's younger than him and older than Kate, so I'll go with 40. Being born in 1985 means she's currently the same age as celebrities like Bruno Mars and Lana Del Rey.

Bruce is around 45, so being born in 1980 means he is the very last of Gen X and as old as The Empire Strikes Back. It also means he would've been in middle school when Nirvana went mainstream in 1991 with Smells Like Teen Spirit.

Alfred's age is ambiguously old, but I used 75 in my last post. That means he would've been the only Baby Boomer batfam born in 1950, the same year that the TV remote and credit card were invented. He would've enlisted in 1968, at the start of the Troubles.

[captainsophiestark]

One Night Werewolf

Dick Grayson x Reader

Masterlist - Join My Taglist!

Written for Fictober 2024!

Requested by @bandshirts-andbooks! I had a different idea for the prompt originally, but this came to me in a flash and wouldn't let me go until I wrote it lol. Hope you enjoy!

Fandom: DC

Day Nine Prompt: "Don't listen to me, listen to them."

Summary: Game night is never a calm affair when Dick and his SO host all the Batkids for the evening.

Word Count: 1,486

Category: Fluff, Humor

Putting work into an AI program without permission is illegal. You do not have my permission. Do not do it.

I leaned forward over my crossed legs on the couch, slowly moving in towards my boyfriend, Dick Grayson, until we were basically nose to nose. I stared into his deep blue eyes, just waiting for him to blink or flinch or otherwise give himself away. He didn't move, the faint, charming smile never once faltering.

"Don't listen to him! He's lying!"

The smile on Dick's face grew as I did my best to block out the shouting from his siblings. Everyone had been at Dick and I's apartment for a few hours now, since the two of us regularly hosted a little Batkids game night. We were deep into our sixth game of werewolf, and to say things were getting intense would be an incredible understatement.

"Baby," I said, my voice low and level as Dick and I continued our staring contest. "Are you lying?"

"Obiviously!" Tim shouted.

"I actually think I agree with Tim," Duke added.

"All you have to do is look at Stephanie!" Tim continued. His suggestion was met with outraged shouts, since Stephanie had been killed by the werewolves and wasn't technically allowed to influence the game anymore.

Dick just grinned. "I'm not lying, sweetheart. But if you're really that determined... or if you're not really a villager after all..." He shrugged. "Don't listen to me, listen to them. You guys have played it perfectly, if you're one of the werewolves. You've got Duke on your side now, he's all you need."

I closed my eyes and sighed, leaning back from Dick and uncrossing my legs as I flopped onto the pillows of the couch.

"If you're not the werewolf, why do you seem so okay with losing?" I cried. I didn't have to look at my boyfriend to know he was still smiling.

"Maybe I just love you, and I'm impressed with the game you're playing."

I huffed. I was a villager, which was my least favorite role to play. Especially with the Batfamily, who made it ten thousand times harder than normal to figure out who was lying, and about what.

Until this round, I'd been pretty confident that Tim was one of the werewolves. Everyone in the family was a good detective, but Tim more often than not took that deductive reasoning to a whole new level, which meant he usually got killed first when he wasn't a werewolf. Cass had been the first casualty of this game, which had immediately put the suspicion on Tim. We'd gone back and forth and played a few rounds without voting anybody out, until Dick had claimed to be the seer. Nobody in the game had contradicted him, but as Tim had pointed out, Stephanie seemed to be barely restraining herself from shouting a rebuttle.

Still, with her and the rest of this family, that didn't necessarily mean she was the seer. Last month, Jason had been correctly voted off as a werewolf, but managed to convince us all through facial expressions that he had been wrongly removed as the seer, and had played us all to a werewolf win.

I sighed, then finally sat up. Dick and I were still knee to knee on the couch, but I did my best to ignore it. Everyone in the room was staring at me, which worked pretty well as a distraction.

Dick and Jason were pulling for me to join them in voting out Tim. Dick claimed to be the seer, and said he'd seen that Tim was one of the werewolves. Tim continued to claim innocence, and had convinced Duke to join him in trying to vote out Dick, even though we'd all been suspicious of Tim since the beginning. Not a single person still in the game showed a crack in their poker faces.

"Okay... alright. Tim, I'm sorry, but I'm just not buying that you're a villager. You're always the first kill, and I know we've been joking for a long time about the round where somebody finally does it differently, but I'm not convinced that's this round."

"No! Dammit, Grayson's lying to you!"

"Or else she's one of the werewolves..." said Duke. Jason raised an eyebrow, but I just shook my head.

"I'm done with the back and forth, you all make it impossible to play this game." I met Dick's eyes again, and he gave me a gorgeously charming smile. "I'm trusting you. Don't make me regret it."

"Never."

I narrowed my eyes, but I knew if I let myself keep going in circles for another minute, I'd literally never stop.

"Alright, I'm calling it," I said. "Let's vote. I vote Tim."

"No!"

"I also vote Tim, since I saw his werewolf card," said Dick. I narrowed my eyes at him, but he just reached out to rest his hand on my thigh and gave it a gentle squeeze.

"I vote Dick! Because he's clearly the werewolf!" cried Tim. Jason rolled his eyes.

"Nice try, werewolf. I vote Tim."

"Well, I guess it doesn't matter then," sighed Duke. "But for the record... I'm still going to vote Dick."

"Tim has officially been killed by the village," Damian jumped in, continuing his job of narrator, his face and tone completely neutral. "He was not a werewolf. There are only two villagers left, and still two werewolves. The werewolves win."

"Hell yeah we do!" cried Jason, leaping off the couch and punching the air. Dick jumped up with him, grinning and high-fiving his stupid werewolf teammate.

"I told you it wasn't me!" Tim cried.

"I was the seer!" Stephanie shouted at the same time. "I'm gonna get you back for making me sit through that, Grayson!"

I just sat and watched the uproar until my boyfriend plopped back on the couch next to me, turning to face me with a grin. I narrowed my eyes at him.

"You'll never make me regret trusting you, huh?"

The grin took on a tinge of regret as Dick took my hand and leaned closer to me, but it didn't disappear. I narrowed my eyes further.

"I'm sorry, baby," he said, barely sounding sorry at all. "But I have some good news."

"It better be some record breaking amazing news, Grayson."

"You know the game night betting pool that you quit after the first month?"

I snorted. The Batkids ran a ridiculous, next-level complicated betting pool on various possible scenarios across game night, including who might win certain games, in how many rounds, etc. All the payouts were for things like telling Batman about a mistake on behalf of the group or switching villain assignments when one of them didn't want to fight Condiment King. I'd participated exactly once, and it had been so intense, nitpicky, and insane that I'd decided to sit out all future betting pools.

"...I remember it, yeah. Why?"

"We had one going this week that if Jason and I managed to win as a team in werewolves—which of course had pretty bad odds—everybody would pitch in for an extra-special date night for the two of us, and they aren't allowed to interrupt us for a full eight hours."

My eyebrows shot up. I think the longest Dick and I had gone without some kind of contact from one of his siblings was six hours, maximum. Despite the werewolf argument still raging around us, the corner of my mouth started to pull up in a smile.

"Seriously?"

"Seriously."

I huffed a laugh, then leaned in until Dick and I were nose to nose again. I met his eyes, this time with a smile matching his and about two thousand percent less suspicion.

"I take back my outrage at you making me a patsy in werewolf. You did a great job, and I can't wait for our date night."

"Neither can I."

In sync, the two of us leaned forward to close the rest of the distance between us, our mouths meeting in a sweet, smiling kiss. Dick's hand wandered my waist, and I started to lean into his lap until a chorus of "ew!"s sounded from his siblings. We broke apart, both of us still grinning.

"That is not allowed at game night."

"Save it for your stupid eight hour date!"

I laughed, leaning back against Dick as he wrapped an arm around my shoulders. Everyone else had more or less settled back into their seats, so I sighed.

"Alright. We're done for now, I promise."

Everyone nodded, sighed, or otherwise overacted their relief. Dick shook his head, and I just laughed.

"Damian, give me the werewolf deck," I said, holding out a hand and deciding for the group that we were moving on. "I'm officially calling narrator. Obviously Dick and I are getting a happy ending, but I need a break from playing mind games with you people."

The assorted grins from the Batkids around me could've made even the most hardened criminal run for the hills. But after spending countless hours with them since I'd started dating Dick, for some reason, the looks just made me want to smile. I loved these scary, ridiculous idiots, almost as much as I loved Dick Grayson.

****************

Everything Taglist: @rosecentury @kmc1989 @space-helen

DC Taglist: @gaychaosgremlin @v1ckycheesue @lavender-dinos

[scaredyspooks]

BG3 Kinktober 2024

Because I'm a perverted conduit that the void speaks through, I'm doing a Baldur's Gate 3 themed kinktober this year on here and AO3. As I publish the fics I'll be updating this list with links to them, and so y'all can gauge your interest here's the list!

Astarion (spawn) - roleplay - what's an innocent magistrate to do when his assistant propositions him when they're staying late at work?

Gale - pegging - growing bored of the wizard's endless accounts of how he and his goddess' bodies once intertwined, you notice there's one pleasure she never showed him.

Shadowheart - sensory depravation - life's greatest pleasures can be found in loss and darkness.

Lae'Zel - leather - peeling the leathers from your lover's body are one of the greatest rewards of battle.

Wyll - chastity - just because he wants to take things slow, doesn't mean you can't torment him a little.

Karlach - temperature play - attempts to cool her down end up having an interesting result.

Minthara - bondage - an interrogation goes south as you try to get to the bottom of the Absolute's cult.

Halsin - olfactophilia - after almost a tenday of not having time to bathe you head to the river, only be blocked off by a large elf.

Mizora - public - shrouded in the cloak of the hells atop a secluded pedestal, only to find it is in fact a stage.

Rolan - electro - someone's ego boost at getting a new tower has him coming out of his shell.

Zevlor - glory hole - the commander and the cleric need a release, things get interesting when the stranger behind the wall ends up being far too familiar.

Ikaron - semi-public - tensions are high in The Hollow, but you think you can help.

Raphael - naked platter - the devil has made a patisserie of you for his guests, though they seem to fade from existence as he grows distracted by the meal he's making of you.

Haarlep - size difference - the succubus is shocked that you want to see their true form, turns out they're a lot bigger than their master.

Rugan - impact play - the Zhentarim seeks to punish you for trying to skip out on your deal, he doesn't get very far.

Gortash - power play - your relationship has always been somewhat of a dance, one that you're determined to lead.

Dammon - edging - the forge's flames illuminate more than the smith realises, but you're happy to "help" once things quieten down.

The Emperor - hypnosis - the ilithid believes he can still get through to you, with one last attempt.

Aradin - hate fuck - your competitor, the thorn in your side, but damn if he doesn't have good stamina.

Abdirak - sado-masochism - two priests of Loviatar aid in each other's prayer.

He Who Was - free use - his ability to travel the shadowcursed lands unhindered has him popping up everywhere, making you pay for his insatiable desires.

Lia - wax play - after the first few drops, it's hard to tell what's blush and what's burn among the giggles in the Elfsong.

Cal - play fighting - a little extra training won't do any harm, though the proximity may prove... challenging.

Gale - findom - what starts as a simple shopping trip to Sorcerous Sundries takes a turn as you drag the wizard to more and more shops.

Astarion (ascended) - biting/marking - your last night as a mortal will be one to remember.

Shadowheart - human furniture - god's favourite princess needs a throne.

Wyll - roleplay - the son of a duke has a duty to mingle at these important events, though it usually shouldn't lead him to a cupboard with a handsome stranger.

Lae'Zel - predator/prey - your heart races, your breathing to quick to catch, and you know the more you sweat the easier it'll be for her to catch you.

Karlach - human ashtray - she's been making fun of you all evening for your drunken confession about her cigars, but once the other's go to bed she's happy to indulge you on the Elfsong's roof garden.

Halsin - breeding - ever the beast of nature, with your perils finally at an end he lets himself run loose with you and you realise it’s going to be a long night until he’s done filling you.

Minthara - body worship - the drow isn't keen onbeing nursed after but with injuries so severe you need to make sure she's alright.

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Kim Messick at Salon:

During the 2024 presidential campaign and after, a recurrent theme among the commentariat was that liberal Americans shouldn’t be, well, mean to Donald Trump supporters. This admonition applied to words as well as sticks and stones; there were just certain things liberals shouldn’t say to, or about, Trump’s familiars. Foremost among these was any hint that proposing to elect a man with 34 felony convictions who had attempted a coup might signal a shortage of smarts, at least when it comes to politics. This, apparently, would be a very not-nice thing to do.  “[T]he liberal impulse has been to demonize anyone at all sympathetic to Donald Trump,” Nicholas Kristof intoned in The New York Times, imploring liberals not to “belittle” voters eager to send a sociopathic ignoramus back to the White House. Quoting the Harvard philosopher Michael Sandel, he then sighed that “scorn for people with less education [is] ‘the last acceptable prejudice’ in America.” In other words: Hey, all you smarty-pants liberals — you’re the real bigots here! Take that!

I have searched unsuccessfully for any other way to describe people able to gaze upon the human wreckage that is Donald Trump and conclude that he is fit for any office that doesn’t have bars. Well, I try — really, really try — to be nice to everybody. And I would never say that all Trump voters are stupid. Quite the contrary, actually; in many cases, I have no difficulty understanding why people would vote for this viper. If you are an oligarch who wants to turn the federal government into your valet (like, say, Elon Musk), then it makes perfect sense for you to support Trump, an oligarch wanna-be who will help you loot the treasury as long as you line his pockets and fawn over him. If, on the other hand, you are an oligarch who just wants the government to cut your taxes and let you poison the planet (like, say, the Koch Brothers), then, again, a vote for Trump is completely rational. Alternatively, you may not be an oligarch at all, just an average joe who loves Trump because he hates the same people you hate. In none of these cases would I say people are behaving stupidly. Despicably? Sure. But stupidly? Nah.  

But then we have voters like the ones in this Times piece from early December. Asked for one word to describe Trump, their choices include “common sense,” “compassion,” and “patriotism.” Keep in mind that they are talking about a man who suggested ingesting bleach could help cure COVID, put migrant children in cages, and tried to steal an election. Later, a truck driver says that Trump “believes in Christ,” while a lacrosse coach tells us that he “runs this country like a business,” though he does allow that it’s “tough for some people to see that.” Yeah, I confess to getting hung up on small details like the eight trillion dollars Trump added to the national debt. As for Trump the apostle of Christ, well, this brings to mind the words of the Duke of Wellington: “If you can believe that, you can believe anything.”

And this, in sum, is the problem. We’re not talking here about thinking that Mitt Romney’s views on marginal tax rates were incrementally better than Barack Obama’s, or, alternatively, that Ronald Reagan’s vigilance toward the Soviet Union was a better bet than Walter Mondale’s more dovish approach. These positions moved, more or less persuasively, within the space of rational discourse; perceptive, well-informed people could profitably debate them. But seeing Trump as a compassionate Christian, or as a brilliant businessman and avatar of common sense, signals an epistemic collapse so profound that it removes the opinion from the sphere of rationality and into that of pure, unfiltered credulity. There is simply no way for a person whose cognitive faculties are operating efficiently to hold these views. 

This is a strong statement, and I don’t want to be misunderstood. To be crazy when it comes to politics is not to be crazy in any global way. Most of the people in the Times piece are, I’m sure, perfectly competent in other areas of life — they hold down jobs, raise kids, socialize with friends, etc.. I’m sure, also, that they are perfectly nice people. But when it comes to politics they are willfully ignorant. There — I said it. I have searched unsuccessfully for any other way to describe people able to gaze upon the human wreckage that is Donald Trump and conclude that he is fit for any office that doesn’t have bars. It’s not a close call — it’s the only call. Trying to evade this fact makes it more, not less, difficult to understand what is happening in our politics. What we’re dealing with is nothing short of a crisis of political rationality — including the possibility, suddenly very urgent, that rationality may no longer be a concept of any relevance in politics. It is an explosion of irrationalism not seen in the West since the 1930s. Remember how that ended?

And it comes in many guises. A more subtle variant is to attribute the choices of working-class Trump voters to economic motives alone. Stranded in the blasted industrial heaths whose defunct smokestacks once sustained whole communities, they feel neglected, bitter, and vengeful — and Trump is their retribution. An excellent recent example of this approach is Jonathan Weisman’s “How Democrats Lost the Working Class,” which also appeared in the Times. His argument, put simply, is that Democrats in the late ’80s and early ’90s succumbed to the market triumphalism that attended the fall of the Soviet Union, dropping their advocacy of economic justice in favor of a corporate-friendly regime of globalization, low taxes, and deregulation. Now, a generation later, the results are in — shuttered factories, withered towns and cities, and a working-class so steeped in despair that suicide seems preferable to living.

Any blame for things that go south in America during Trump's term rest with the MAGA Cult.

[zoobus]

Otome Isekai Roundup

With the new year, I feel the need to make some kind of year-in-review list. So even though I've largely stopped reading comics (the desire to read ebbs and flows every six month), here are the otoisekai that stuck out to me the most in 2024

Crimson Lady/Resetting Lady

What can I even say about the GOAT? As we crawl towards a conclusion, the despair only grows. Death is the only answer, death must be avoided at all costs.

The Villainess Who is No Better than an Extra Cross-dresses to Be a Love Interest

I never talked about this one, namely because I'm not sure how to describe it without focusing on its wokeness. But it is woke. It's bizarrely, strangely woke, as well as genuinely enjoyable, but I keep getting fixated on all the genre-unusual progressiveness, like

BELIEVABLE female crossdressing in a shojo manga

her older brother is fat, a good person, and nobody ever comments on his weight (this point is the most shocking to me honestly)

Older brother is loudly supportive of his gnc sister and male cousin

Unclear if MC is gay, transmasc, or just doing this out of survival, but it says something that becoming a love interest was her *first* response

Boy the MC bewitched in girl form as a child is thrown off by her handsome appearance as an adult, yet awkwardly asks if she wants help breaking her engagement with a man

I forgot, originally he was the stock "sexist love interest who dials it back for his one true love" type, but this one shatters the mold not by making her the one girl he isn't mean to, but instead having him step back from his feelings and step UP as a genuine, actual, fr ally and continuing their friendship. Insane upgrade.

And it all feels pretty organic! They'll hint at complicated feelings from the people around her without grandstanding or molding medieval-y types into 21st century values

Like I can't emphasize enough how weird it is to see a child drawn like this and they're not evil

Behind Her Highness's Smile

I never talked about this one for the opposite reasons of the above. Um. Extremely horny ethicsplay* thriller about a mentally-challenged princess forced to marry a duke (who, in turn, was forced to marry a mentally-challenged princess). What if you were the abused sexy sensual prisoner princess forcibly married to a smoldering tall dark-haired duke AND you had brain damage.

Let me say that I enjoy this story sincerely and that her issues are not played lightly, but it is absolutely going for eroticism. Like oh nooo, you're not mentally competent enough to consent 😉😉 the duke could do whatever he wants and you're too dumb and doll-like to do anything about it😉😉😉 also your maids roofied you😉did I mention your sick bastard brother-king made you like this? And that he takes immense pleasure in that fact?🤫

But I know what you're thinking. Because I was thinking it. For chapters and chapters. "Surely this is a ruse. They didn't actually write a mentally handicapped female lead, not when it's already so horny. This is just to add to the fucked up atmosphere that feeds into everything because there's no fucking way anyone would keep to this premise. Wow she's really committing to the bit lol, not giving an inch. If I were gullible, I would believe they're actually going to fuck. Wait. Was that guy supposed to represent the writer talking to the reader? Hey?"

Did they? Read to find out :)

*I've always hated describing stories as problematic (positive). Ethicsplay, like the story is fucked up. They know it's fucked up, YOU know it's fucked up, and that's why you're here reading it.

A Splendid Revenge Story of a Super-Dreadnought Cheat Villainess

I don't have a lot to say about this one other ​than it's a refreshing revenge-centric OI. It's not treading new ground, but it executes the genre's tropes well. The villains are exaggerated caricatures of hubris, brazen leeches who've forgotten whose blood they've been surviving on, each with their own distinctive brand of arrogance introduced at a measured pace to keep the true hero's OPness from getting boring, all with a unique stylistic flair.

Princess revenge stories are frequently derailed by dull romance or the desire to reinvent capitalism, so the fact that Super-Dreadnought commits itself to smiting Lunaria's enemies without straying from the path makes it a high recommend.

Turning the Mad Dog into a Genteel Lord

I realized I don't have enough screenshots to prove my controversial opinion (that this is less puppy dog bf fantasy and more crypto-age reggressor/caretaker right up until they knew it would mess with the overall light and goofy tone), and I can't say those kinds of things without proof. so. I'll save that for another day.

Anyway. Plot: Priestess Diarin, who is so hot I have more screenshots of her than any of the men, has to tame an abused beast-like 6'8 shredded ex-child soldier into a noble. She's the only one who can change him, she's the only one he can be vulnerable with. Middling plot, heavy slapstick/reaction face-based humor, but everyone is sexy and there are mild to moderate sadist-on-the-art-team impies, so. Recommend.

On an unrelated note can tappytoons please stop picking up manwha with good art? Their translation choices make me unreasonably mad.

If they draw shoes like this, please let Lezhin handle it? I can't take the comma stutters and obvious tone neutering.

[katyahina]

Gwyn's family tree members references and genetics (! slight update on 12/30/2024)

(An ask reply to an anon)

(A graph for convenience)

Alright, I will go with what we can certainly make out of the family tree! ...almost. There are definitely some missing links! You don't have to accept all of my suggestions here and only focus on 100% confirmed ones, but I will explain why I added them! Let's start in order!

Gwyn, his mother, his uncle Lloyd and... sister? cousin? fifth known child?

Unfortunately, yes, we can't be sure of Gwyn's eyes color since it appears to be just reflection of fire, nor of his hair color as he looks pretty aged!

UPDATE 01/12/2025: There is a datamined image of Gwyn without facial hair by kingborehaha on Bluesky ( x ):

So, he had a really strong and square jaw XD Might or might not get inherited by Nameless King?

However, Lloyd is his uncle, as well as certain locations connected with the Way of White stuff (Sunlit Altar, altar in Undead Paris that Reah prays at, and altar in Catacombs where you find Darkmoon Seanse ring) all feature a statue of a woman in a crown, that holds an infant with a sword:

I do not believe it is mother of Nameless King at all, since 1) statues of his were destroyed, so why keep the infant one? 2) his trademark weapon is spear, not sword, but Gwyn's IS sword and 3) this statue appears to be some 'common' object connected with Way of White!

UPDATE 01/11/2025: Found this concept art, that also confirms this statue IS of a Goddess, and also shows it in better detail!

Now, I am going to do something I normally dread to do. I am going to..... *swallows nervously* quote the text of the items descriptions in this post, instead of posting screenshots. :s Okay this will be VERY trying, but I have to do it to fit within images limit per post!

WHITE SEANCE RING

A divine ring entrusted to the head bishop of the Way of White and apostle to Allfather Lloyd, uncle to Lord Gwyn. It grants additional attunement slots. The head bishop of the Way of White is the guardian of law and caste, and one of the great royals of Thorolund.

LLOYD'S SWORD RING

Ring given to knights of the Way of White. Depicts Allfather Lloyd's Sword of Law. Boosts attack power when HP is full. Much time has passed since the worship of Lloyd was common in the Way of White. The clerics of Carim had always strongly asserted that Lloyd was a derivative fraud, and that the Allfather title was self-proclaimed. (Japanese script has 'collateral relative' (傍系) rather than 'derivative fraud')

GOLD COIN

Coin made of gold, with Allfather Lloyd and his white halo shown on its face. (...)

Lloyd have been a very relevant figure amongst clerics, taking Gwyn's role after his death until Gwyndolin grew some backbone, and 'white halo' is basically a symbol of the Way of White! However, as an uncle, he'd have to be a brother of either Gwyn's mother or father (I choose mother), and Gwyn's parents are never mentioned... I assume they died earlier. Maybe, like the statue with Gwyn in infancy suggests, too early and Gwyn was basically raised by Lloyd!

We will get to Seath and Shira properly in due time, but in Japanese, Seath's description uses 外戚, which means in-law, related by marriage to a (female) relative of Gwyn! I don't think it is Gwynevere; she is only ever stated to marry Flann, besides, Yorshka calling Gwynevere a sister while also being child of Seath feels like a dealbreaker to me! I don't think it is Fillianore either, since she was given away to keep Pygmy away! But, Shira is a "daughter of the Duke", and also can use lightning that can be a gene if both Gwyn and NK owning it is of any indication!

The thing is... I am not sure who this mysterious relative of Gwyn is, specifically. Sister? Cousin? Unmentioned child? (if Gwyndolin and Filianore were never "showcased" unlike NK and Gwynevere, maybe someone else was dodging the spotlight? heh) Lloyd's element appears to be simply sheer, clear white light, in it's purest form, whereas Gwyn's element is sunlight and lightning, so I feel like this relative at least has to be of the same generation as Gwyn himself or below (like NK)! But, yes..... this family tree is really weird, right?

Nameless King / Faraam

(This ( x ) video by Crest)

He is another character with whom I am not sure! It appears that he not always had his wonderful mane, but I am not certain whether his hair always were white or not! Unlike other known children of Gwyn, that appear to combine Gwyn's traits with second parent's, NK is also kind of just "Gwyn at home", having nothing much to stand out by his own...? Gwyn's hair is most likely grey from aging, and this could apply to NK as well since he lived for a very long time. He also looks like a husk now!

On the other hand, white/grey hair might be an actual gene running in the family that doesn't depend on age! Just write NK down, this is something that will be useful later! Remember about the jaw shape tho

+ I played around with the idea that Velka could have been his mother since crows are following him too until I got a better idea, but this would be just a fun headcanon! Here ( x ) is a short post if you want to read, but in simple words; Caffrey Goddess of Fortune might have been his mother, to which he owns the chance to rebuld as God of War Faraam instead after having lost everything, who is also a sister of Velka as someone connected to birds too with the wings!

Gwynevere and her mother Fina / Nehma

Thankfully, Gwynevere HAS decent references, and could even shed a light (ba dum tss) on some genetics!

Her eyes look rather orange, just like the sunlight associated with her healing miracles (Bountiful Sunlight and Soothing Sunlight), yet there is a little grey circle at the pupil! x) It might become relevant later! Fun fact: she has distinct moles on her body ( x )! Though you can observe from her textures too:

As for Fina, I really think she is a SUPER likely candidate for her mother!

Notice how her symbol is Estus Flask, and Gwynevere is strongly associated with healing! As for why Nehma = Fina:

NAME-ENGRAVED RING

A special ring that can be engraved with the name of a god. Becomes easier to connect to worlds of players who chose the same god. There are countless vestiges of long-lost gods in the ruins of Drangleic. Or perhaps they are the very same gods as ours, only known by different names.

Another case right here is Pharis being named Evlana in Drangleic! Similarly, Fina got another name, since she IS Goddess of Love!

EMBRACED ARMOR OF FAVOR

Armor of Lautrec the Embraced, representing the goddess Fina's love. The goddess's arms wrap around it, as if to embrace the wearer.

^ This line makes me wonder whether Fina was not a regular humanoid God, but had literally golden body! There is a nameless and faceless Blacksmith Deity in the setting whose death gave birth to Titanite Demons, so why not another atypical God like this? I can imagine her being mostly non-physical save for some... obvious places

ESTUS FLASK

The Undead treasure these dull green flasks. Fill with Estus at bonfire. Fills HP. The Estus Flasks are linked to the Fire Keepers. The Dark Tales also make reference: An emerald flask, from the Keeper's soul She lives to protect the flame, And dies to protect it further.

^ Lautrec kills Anastacia and takes her soul, and his next destination past that point is Anor Londo, but specifically the hall that leads to "Gwynevere's" chamber! He made Fina's love his whole guidance, Estus Flask is a symbol of Fina in Dark Souls 2 menu, Estus Flask is made of a Soul of a Fire Keeper, Gwynevere seems to be very much connected with love and healing too, and he goes to where "she" is! I would not put it past him that "Gwynevere" messed up his radar, he seems to act irrational in his delusion about being "loved by Fina", but you can see everything about this questline is thematically connected! ...there is also the fact that if Lautrec's armor is of any indication, Fina was wearing a crown! Gwyn was the king, so another one crowned would be his wife, right?

I think whereas Gwynevere didn't inherit Fina's (presumed) golden body and turned out a regular humanoid deity, the orange glint of her eyes might be Fina's gene, a color of healing (the liquid in Estus Flask)! Gwyn's eye color might actually be grey and only show in her eyes vaguely! (This is a surprise tool that will help us later). Brown hair might belong to either Fina, or to Gwyn when he was way younger! Or.. to Gwyn's parent? Put a pin on this!

Rosaria, Anri and Horace

I think Rosaria's line is the furthest diluted from the divine ancestry, since having children with a human resulted in JUST humans, not sort of Demigods! Also, Irithyllian preset does say these humans have "features of old gods"!

(Video by Bonfire VN ( x ))

Unfortunately, Rosaria doesn't have eye texture! Grey skin looks cool, but oh well. I suppose it is more fair to take the look from the final version, which is just normal, if only slightly less saturated!

Her hair appears to be not black but actually just dark grey, like Filianore's, however, Anri, Horace and average Irithyllian appear to have black hair!

(From this ( x ) page, without Hollowing filter)

dggsdfsfd Yeah I know, most of Dark Souls 3 face data is just bald, and their hair color data is just black, but! I think it is kind of "legit" since you can see their eyebrows, that are black too! Sorry for a cursed joke about Artorias though, he does have black hair and I just thought it was a funny idea that he did sleep with Gwynevere at some point- look, Gods were wery proud of his accomplishments against the Abyss and even gave him that medal ok? fsjjfd xD

Why Anri's Hollowing is "regular" and Horace's is green-ish that was introduced in Drangleic is another topic tbh. But, I think that Anri takes more after Rosaria, whereas Horace takes more after Aldrich! Anri's grey eyes are from Rosaria, and I think Aldrich would have blue eyes like Horace's! look it is thematically appropriate right?

Also an idea: maybe Anri's gender thing should be taken at a face value? Although basically just a human at this rate, they are still a kid of a mother of rebirth, so maybe they legitimately can have either biological gender for the purpose of being able to have children with any person? Just an ability inherited from Rosaria, because this is what Rosaria's power is about! What do you think?

Flann and Dancer of the Boreal Valley

Flann was a God of Fire, and Dancer is stated to be a direct descendant in the royal line!

RING OF THE SUN PRINCESS (DS1)

This ring is granted to those who enter a Covenant with Gwynevere, daughter of Lord Gwyn and the Princess of Sunlight. This slightly warm ring boosts the synergy of miracles. The Princess of Sunlight Gwynevere left Anor Londo along many other deities, and later became wife to Flame God Flann.

SUN PRINCESS RING (DS3)

(...) Gwynevere left her home with a great many other deities, and became a wife and a mother, raising several heavenly children.

I think that the place the Gods of Anor Londo left to was Heide in Drangleic, and even there we arrive long past its ruin! Not certain where they are now and how many generations of these children appeared, but at least some direct children or even descendants returned into Lordran continent! Aldia, Creighton and Gilligan travelled from Drangleic to Lordran continent, so why not some of these relatives too? (Considering how oddly nobody in Drangleic knows shit about Lordran continent despite it being literally there oversees, I take it as it got concealed for undefined time, and maybe these descendants of Gwynevere, along with some other Gods, opened the path back to it?)

SOUL OF THE DANCER

Soul of the dancer. One of the twisted souls, steeped in strength. Use to acquire many souls, or transpose to extract its true strength. The Pontiff Sulyvahn bestowed a double-slashing sword upon a distant daughter of the formal royal family, ordering her to serve first as a dancer, and then as an outrider knight, the equivalent to exile.

(In Japanese, 旧王家の末裔 - 'descendant of the Old Royal Family')

DANCER'S CROWN

Crown worn by the Dancer of the Boreal Valley. The mirage-like aurora veil is said to be an article of the old gods, permitted only for direct descendants of the old royal family.

Dancer can conjure fire in her hands, which the Pontiff and Fire Witches who use the Profaned Flame can't do, which might imply hers is all natural, and does this smoke-like thing when using her dark magic sword (which is, again, unlike the Pontiff's actual arsenal with HIS dark magic sword). Considering Flann is God of Flame, her capacity for using fire and ash "naturally" convinced me that she descends from Gwynevere and him!

Unfortunately, nothing to latch onto considering her or Flann's appearance, really.. But I'd suggest that if she takes his abilities more than Gwynevere's, whatever you imagine Flann looking like, she'd look more like him as well!

Queen of Lothric, Lothric, Lorian, Oceiros and Ocelotte

Well, first things first: I do not think Queen of Lothric IS Gwynevere! There are no damning evidences for this!

For one, Gwynevere's name is not forgotten or obscured by the events of Dark Souls 3, it is mentioned in descriptions and by Yorshka, so why would it be omitted under just 'Queen of Lothric'! Second, Gwynevere is still referred to as a princess consistently, she never queened-up! The only exception from this is illusion of Gwynevere calling herself a queen, and... well, it was needed, to support the legend. :p Third, Rosaria is also linked to items associated with Gwynevere, same as Queen of Lothric, so this is just descent, really!

But what truly cemented my opinion is that in Japanese script, Queen of Lothric is said to be compared with 'the' Goddess of Bounty and Grace! (Taken from this ( x ) document by Last Protagonist, it is for Bloodborne but it has a Dark Souls WIP folder). Why would Gwynevere be compared with herself? :p

(Upper image of the ribbon in statue by Lokey's Lore ( x )) The ribbons seem to miss in the concept art, but I feel like they got added to further hint at descent rather than to... well, add a plot hole...? x) Miyazaki initially wanted Gwynevere to have motherly vibe and the design we have now only exists because the guy who drew that concept liked it too much, so maybe his initial idea for her got a second chance in another character?

Like I said, the grey in the eyes WAS important, because, look! The brothers' eyes ARE grey! :p Their hair is actually very grey as well; with a very slight hint of blond for Lothric and slight hint of brown for Lorian, but you can tell game's lighting makes their hair look way more saturated than they actually are! Lothric's eyes are also blind of course, you can more clearly see from the texture that the pupil is ruined..

Ocelotte's model is a cut content, but he really has grey skin, and some crystals! Notice that Oceiros is also lacking scales, but is growing fungi-like things that are otherwise found in Vagrants!

In Dark Souls 2, essence of Seath lives on same as Gwyn's, Witch's and Nito's but in a form of nearly an "element", and corrupts the Duke of Tseldora into madness, driving him to indulge in mad experiments and create weird beings! It is possible that this happens again in Dark Souls 3 when now the vessel of "Seath" becomes Oceiros instead and similar descent into madness repeats! Very ironically, Seath DID reach immortality if you think of it, but he no longer realises that he did fhdfhds As for Vagrants, I wonder whether it was intentional too, since Seath did experiment with marine life forms quite a lot (Pisacas, Giant Clams)...?

I think the grey eyes and hair is linked to Queen of Lothric; the orange hues must have weakened over generations, and it is not the last of grey hair you'll see x) Really have no idea what Oceiros would've passed onto them, though...? Ocelotte's grey skin is most likely a dragonic trait.

Gundyr, Gertrude and their parents

GUNDYR'S HELM

Ancient helm of a set of cast iron armor, belonging to Champion Gundyr. Modeled after a former king. Gundyr, or the Belated Champion, was bested by an unknown warrior. He then became sheath to a coiled sword in the hopes that someday, the first flame would be linked once more.

古い王 - king from long ago, king from the past, etc

Gundyr doesn't appear to be one of Oceiros' children, but I've been thinking about it for a while.. I figured out what made the most sense for his story is being a collateral relative to the twin princes, considering he was sent out to replace Lothric (well, this is what he was told..) It will be a tangent to explain, so here ( x ) are my conclusions on what exactly happened with Gundyr!

Granted, I might end up making him more of a distant relation than her direct son from previous marriage- it'd be even better, to be honest! But, this is a base draft of the family tree. His helmet resembles his ancestor, that, again, would work better as someone several generations apart from him!

UPD 12/30/2024: I did decide it made more sence if "ancient king" was... well, ancient fdgfdsd And appeared to be ancestry of Oceiros instead, with Gundyr being collaterally related to Oceiros! I am not strong with familial terms so I am not sure what this relation is called now if I move him further than being half-brothers with the twins and Ocelotte :o Just thought it worked better!

BOUNTIFUL LIGHT

Miracle taught to knights of Gertrude, holy maiden to the Queen. Gradually restores a large amount of HP. The Heavenly Daughter is said to be the Queen's child.

DIVINE PILLARS OF LIGHT

Miracle of Gertrude, the Heavenly Daughter. Brings down multiple pillars of light in the vicinity. The Queen's holy maiden Gertrude was visited by an angel, who revealed this tale to her.(...)

The fact that her own daughter is simultaneously described as her servant of sorts gave me an impression of being the bastard child! I guess one thing Gwynevere certainly passes down to her descendants is sleeping around, except this is ACTUALLY Fina's fault hdhfshfgsdh

Seath, Gwyndolin, Filianore and Priscilla

I think this is apparent that Gwyndolin is a child between Gwyn and Seath, as serpents in this lore are "imperfect dragons", and Seath himself is inherently connected to Moonlight element (Moonlight Butterflies he created, Moonlight Greatword being literally made from a part of his body)!

COVETOUS GOLD SERPENT RING

The serpent is an imperfect dragon and symbol of the Undead. Its habit of devouring prey even larger than itself has led to an association with gluttony. This gold ring, engraved with the serpent, boosts its wearer's item discovery, so that more items can be amassed.

MOONLIGHT GREATSWORD

This sword, one of the rare dragon weapons, came from the tail of Seath the Scaleless, the pale white dragon who betrayed his own. Seath is the grandfather of sorcery, and this sword is imbued with his magic, which shall be unleashed as a wave of moonlight.

And, yes, needless to mention that Gwyndolin is a sorcerer. Sorcery is THE Seath's thing!

I would actually take Aldrich's render with a grain of salt; right, we don't know what Gwyndolin's eyes were like in Dark Souls 1, but also Gwyndolin has white/greyish skin, when Aldrich using this body has a pretty much human skin tone! The hair on Aldrich also appears to be way more white (a trait of being corrupted by Dark, check Four Kings or Abyss Watchers), not grey like Gwyndolin's 🤔 I guess his look is more of an approximation than literally just using Gwyndolin's body! Though, pale eye color can still be used as a headcanon! Just maybe less dead looking..?

Filianore also has this grey hair with a very slight hint of brown that might as well be neglected! Her eyes also appear to be corrupted by sort of wooden texture, and after time runs wild, she honestly reminds me of what Elana looks like...? Turning into wood is a common sign of devolution in this setting as everything that isn't a Dragon evolved from the trees! But... furthermore, connected with darkness.

It is Humanity when it is not running wild! Four Kings becoming very tree-like is the quickest example! The void-face type of Giants also turn into trees upon devolving and, interestingly enough, their particular souls have a spot of darkness within! Further clue towards Filianore having some Dark in her by nature is the very fact that she was sent away with Pygmy lords! Would not a God that actually has some Dark/Humanity in them be THE best candidate to keep them in check.... and the one most likely to remain safe there in Gwyn's eyes, you know?

Priscilla has a little scales and eyes, unlike Seath, despite being most likely his child! Seath being white-colored is accentuated, and so is her being "stark-white" crossbreed!

SOUL OF PRISCILLA

(...) Use the soul of this crossbreed bastard child and antithesis to all life to acquire a huge amount of souls, or to create a unique weapon.

LIFEHUNT SCYTHE

Scythe born from the soul of Priscilla, the stark white crossbreed trapped inside the Painted World of Ariamis. Even the Gods feared Priscilla's lifehunt ability, and in the hands of a mortal, its power will turn upon its wielder.

I think Priscilla and Yorshka have to have a shared second parent, since you can get a miracle version of Priscilla's Lifehunt Scythe when Aldrich dreams of Yorshka! At the same time, Gwyndolin is the lastborn of Gwyn yet Yorshka is their younger sister, nor Priscilla or Yorshka are recognised as Gods by the narrative! Basically.. Gwyn got cucked dfggffd I keep telling you all and you don't believe me!!

Okay, but what connects Priscilla to Darkness is definitely not from Seath's ancestry, as Dragons are beyond Light or Dark! I absolutely agree with the idea that Priscilla and Velka were connected; Velka's crow people and some clerics are in the Painted World of Ariamis, Occult Ember is here, Priscilla's Dagger has Occult affinity, in Dark Souls 3 the Crows worship Priscilla, there is a statue of mother holding a child... But, I think Velka rather adopted her than was her biological mother! Another thing is that Velka is a "heretical" deity, implying she made Darkness her own weapon rather than was naturally aligned with it or corrupted by it to the core! What Priscilla inherited though, had to be inherited directly, biologically, naturally and not learned, since her "ability" manifested since infancy:

PECULIAR DOLL

A strange doll in strange dress. There once was an abomination who had no place in this world. She clutched this doll tightly, and eventually was drawn into a cold and lonely painted world.

The Daughters of the Dark in Dark Souls 2 are fragments of Manus' own darkness, and their elements naturally oppose everything about Gods and their world! Nashandra's element is Death and Alsanna's element is Ice/Cold, both opposing Life and Fire respectively! Elana is the devolution into a tree life form, whereas Nadalia is ash - both oppose the concept of time as Age of Fire created it! Elana by devolution, Nadalia by exhaustion as ash is final result of burning, when nothing IS left to burn! And in every game, death more blatantly goes hand in hand with the darkness, too.

Priscilla embodies two of these: Ice and Death! She is even connected with invisibility, too! At the same time, since Gwyndolin's hair is AKTYALY grey, Yorshka's hair is brown and Shira's hair is brown also and was white only in the concept, her white hair might also be result of the Dark settling within, not same as her white fur!

As for who IS that mysterious parent that passed the 'Darkness gene' to Filianore, Priscilla and Yorshka...? Okay, here I will slide a theory about how Caitha of all people fits the role well ( x ) compiled very well by @val-of-the-north, if you want to read! I really liked it and honestly think it fits within lore! Besides, Gwyn sure likes to flirt with the danger, as scared as he is. 🙄 He was enemy of the dragons but let Seath close and kept Midir alive, he feared humans but still trusted Four Kings... would not put it past him to look at someone aligned with the Darkness and go "I should not put my dick in it, however," fhsdhff

Shira and Yorshka

(Shira's face data from this ( x ) page)

Her hair is light brown, or perhaps dark blond, in the final version? Her eyes are also green though, even if not as radiant in color as Priscilla's! Her name literally means 'white' though, and she is 'daughter of the duke'! You can also see the original intention for her was white hair! or..... is it grey hair? AGAIN? x)

I am not sure why she turned out to be so humanoid, not showing draconian features whatsoever! Perhaps how many features manifest is a random chance, and her mom's genes just turned out to be much stronger than Seath's! Though this makes me wonder if Seath's "intended" eye color is green, and that would be the color if he had eyes?

(Images by Moonlight Ruin on Twitter ( x ))

I think Yorshka has her mother's eyes, as they do not have draconian narrow pupil! (Well, if it was Caitha, she very likely has blue eye and red eye, and this is just the blue!)

Seath is not only white, but also cyan/blue/purple/pink, and Yorshka displays these features! As well as taking after the mysterious parent with the 'Dark genetics', specifically with the ability manifesting as Death / Lifehunt shared with Priscilla:

LIFEHUNT SCYTHE (DS3)

Miracle of Aldrich, Devourer of Gods. Steals HP of foes using an illusory scythe. Aldrich dreamt as he slowly devoured the God of the Darkmoon. In this dream, he perceived the form of a young, pale girl in hiding.

All things considered, I feel like brown hair gene comes from somewhere in Gwyn's family, likely from his mother? However, the grey hair gene apparently suppresses it on every occasion!

Dunnel and Painter

I just think Dunnel is a likely candidate for whoever was father of the Painter:

PYROMANCER'S PARTING FLAME

The pyromancy flame of Livid Pyromancer Dunnel that attracts the echoes of the death. When Dunnel lost his hideous spouse, he gave his own pyromancy flame as an offering, which transformed into a parting flame. Not long after, Dunnel became a mad spirit, cursed to wander the lands.

Priscilla is referred to as an abomination within the lore, and hideous spouse is not quite far off! It clearly refers to the context of what life itself fears rather than... well, like, her actual appearance. And Priscilla is connected with Death, whereas combining his flame with her changed it into something connected with Death as well! He also invades in a place that looks a lot like her arena in Dark Souls 1!

Bro just looks like old Patches -_-

(Video by BonfireVN ( x ))

Her skin is definitely more grey and dragon-ish, but I am not sure to which family member I could link orange eye color to :') Just the fact that she is meant to envision the Flame, I guess?

_________________________

Okay, thank you for giving me a reason to organise all this! I thought I'd just dump some references together, but it turned out to be sort of an analysis, and I figured some useful things for myself too! So, my conclusions are:

Grey hair gene is very real, it might even be natural hair color of Gwyn and Nameless King, not reliant on their age! Gwyndolin's hair is also grey, and Aldrich's version having white hair is reasonable since Darkness corruption seems to cause white hair!

Brown hair gene most likely appears from Gwyn's mother, or other relative of his

Descendants of Gwynevere tend to have grey hair and grey eyes, seems like the brightness of sunlight have worn out over time genetically in this family

Dancer is the only known 'apparent' descendant of Gwynevere and Flann, others appear to be either much more diluted or not having ties to Flann at all

There is a 'Darkness gene' running in the family in Filianore, Priscilla and Yorshka that manifests in different forms like it was with Daughters of Dark (ice and death with Priscilla, death with Yorshka, defiance of time with trees/ash with Filianore)

Mixing with a dragon genetically has very random results, from apparent to absolutely indiscernable

Someone GOT to inherit Gwyn's super square jaw shape at some point XD

[kiragecko]

Batfamily Relationship Tournament 2024

It's time once again to decide which Batkid relationships we like best!

Rather than pitting the Batfamily against each other, we're teaming them up! (And THEN pitting them against each other.)

In 2023, the winner was Dick & Tim, though Tim & Cass and Babs & Cass also made strong showings. I'm fine with one of them winning again this year, or with a surprise upset. Let's see what happens!

We've now added in the complications of DOUBLE ELIMINATIONS. Mostly so I can see a bit more Duke. This means that there is a Loser Bracket and complicated math going on. Complicated math makes me happy! Current plan is that Winners Bracket votes will be one week, and Loser's Bracket votes will be one day. (Because the loser's bracket has twice as many voting periods.)

You don't need to understand double eliminations. Just know that every pairing will get at least two competitions.

Starting 1PM Central time (an hour from now)

Round One Matchups:

Dick & Tim VS Dick & Steph

Jason & Damian VS Babs & Tim

Tim & Steph VS Helena (any version) & The Batfamily

Jason & Tim VS Damian & Duke

Alfred & The Batfamily VS Jason & Duke

Steph & Damian VS Cass & Damian

Tim & Damian VS Babs & Steph

Steph & Cass VS Babs & Damian

Babs & Duke VS Tim & Cass

Jason & Steph VS Dick & Cass

Dick & Babs VS Tim & Duke

Bruce & The Batfamily VS Dick & Duke

Kate & The Batfamily VS Babs & Cass

Babs & Jason VS Jason & Cass

Dick & Jason VS Cass & Duke

Dick & Damian VS Steph & Duke

-

Reminder that I'm aroace, and DO NOT CARE about how problematic a ship is. (I can assume things are platonic that would awe and dumbfound you.) You can assume they're kissing. You can hate them kissing. But if you a uncomfortable voting without complaining about Batcest or something else ... just sit this one out, please.

[di-42]

2024 fic roundup

Finally getting round to doing this! Just in time for the end of the year!

Many, many thanks to @curiouspupsicle and @bellisima-writes for tagging me all those weeks ago, ant to @cheeseplants for creating the questions. Enjoy curious's answers here, bellisima's answers here, cheeseplants's answers here.

What fandoms do you write in?

Good Omens, only Good Omens, nothing but Good Omens.

How many words have you published in 2024?

133k. Huh! Me?

What is your greatest achievement this year?

In the context of fandom and fanfiction, being brave enough to put myself out there and share my work is probably my greatest personal achievement. But I'm also quite proud to have plotted an 85k fiction while working 55 hours a week (and being lucky enough to have a husband and friends to spend my free time with).

What are your favourite top three fics you wrote this year?

That's an easy one! None of my favourite three are the ones with more engagement, strangely enough!

And I Did, rated E, 85k.

While I know this could have been written much better, I am incredibly proud of this fiction. It's whole season 3 fiction where I managed to pour all my headcanon in a way that hopefully doesn't feel too forced. I think it has an original plot, good side characters and tension. I tried to throw in some humour wherever possible as well. It features Supreme Archangel Aziraphale and Grand Duke of Hell Crowley. They haven't talked for almost two years. The end of the world is approaching. They are on opposite sides. And they both know neither of them was ever going to make a different choice to the one they made.

Only Ever Meant For Someone Else, rated T, 9k.

My first human AU, wheee! It was so much fun to write! I think writing human AUs allows so much freedom, although one shots and shorter stories can be a bit harder than canon compliant short stories. But I had a chance to explore some versions of the characters that I don't really see in canon, but very much enjoy in fictions, and wanted to try my hand at that. And I liked the result! Written for the Scribbling Vaguely Downwards advent calendar.

Every year, the night before Christmas, taxi driver Aziraphale drives passengers to and from the hospital for charity. On the Christmas morning of 2023 he was ready to go home and rest with a cup of tea, a mince pie, and a book after a long night.

Guess who?

“No, you may not!” Barked the other. Then he started pacing up and down the pavement, rambling to himself. “Anathema’s going to kill me. She’s actually going to kill me! She had to go into labour on fucking Christmas day, just my luck!”

Oh, dear.

“In-into labour?”

The stranger stopped pacing and, yet again, looked at Aziraphale sternly. He joined together the tips of his right thumb and forefinger, and punctuated his next words with a gracious movement of his hand.

“Yeah. It means she’s about to give birth.”

“Does it, now.”

Angel! Angel! They're At It Again! rated M, 5k

I really love this little story of mine. I've been told that it made some readers cry and laugh at the same time, and it doesn't get much better than that.

It's the year 2030. The world never ended. Aziraphale and Crowley are living happily and safely together as a married couple. Everything would be well, if it wasn't that lately Aziraphale has been a bit busy. A bit distracted. Now, Crowley can't have that, can he? He seeks the advice of his girlfriends, who unwittingly give him an idea on how to liven up his marriage.

A fluffy story about how we get to a certain cottage.

What was your biggest pit of despair moment?

Tying up all the loose ends in And I Did. Sometimes it felt like I was just hitting a wall and I couldn't possibly ever go through. I felt so embarrassed -mortified, really- that some people had read the story up to a certain point and I had just to let them down, because I couldn't possibly write anything that would make sense with the rest of the story. Even though the main points were planned from the beginning, there were still all those little details that write themselves, basically, and I had no idea what to do with some of them towards the end. I still don't know how I managed to pull it off, honestly, but somehow I did it in a way that I found satisfying enough.

What have you learned?

That people are so much better than I am. Really. And I don't mean at writing fiction. Well, people are better than me at writing fiction, but that's not what I mean here. The amount of people who are ready to read about someone else's ideas and headcanons with an open mind, enjoy stories that they don't necessarily agree with, is astounding. I have very much to learn from this community.

What fic did you want to do but never made it off the ground?

I could tell you. But then I would have to erase your memory.

A fiction that has never made it off the ground is a fiction that has yet to make it off the ground.

Did you beta any fics? Any favs you want to shout out?

I was asked a couple of times, but due partly to my lack of time, partly to English not being my first language, I had to reluctantly decline. I do offer my thoughts on my betas' fictions, though. One of them hasn't published her work yet, and the other has a fantastic one shot on Ao3, called The Corset.

Aziraphale never understood just why he had been issued with a body likes his. He was the Guardian of the Eastgate, after all! So when in the 17th century corsets for men were fashionable again, he had an idea ...

What three fics have you read this year that you love?

Hah! We both know it's not going to be only three, don't we?

Some of these fics were written before, some long before, 2024, but I only read them this year. It's quite hard to pick my favourites among so much talent and creativity, but I'll do my best. I also can't help but notice that my all time favourites are not among the superpopular ones, so please don't be shy and check them out! (And leave kudos and comments!)

The Beginning Of The End (Again), rated M, 78k.

Season 3 fiction full of plot, great characterisation, humour and pining. It has of course a happy ending. It is beyond me how this fic didn't get more engagement, especially when it first came out, closer to the end of season 2.

The Anon Before Christmas, rated E, 66k.

One of my favourite human AUs. The characterisation is spot on and the slow burn is just absolutely perfect. But I did love the whole array of characters surrounding Crowley and Aziraphale. I love how this story is as much about friendship and chosen family than it is about love and romance.

The Bookseller And The Garden, rated T, 13k.

Canon divergent fiction where Crowley is a demon stationed on earth, Aziraphale is an angel stationed on earth, but they have never met until present day. There's no end of the world in sight, only an angel and a demon falling in love and not knowing how to break it to the other that they're not human. I laughed all the way through.

Wrong Turn, rated T, 37k.

Honestly, I don't know why this fiction touched me so much. I just couldn't stop thinking about it for days after I finished it. It's a post season 1 fiction where Crowley suddenly finds himself in a parallel universe at the time the apocalypse is just about to happen. The Crowley and Aziraphale in that universe have a different history to our Crowley and Aziraphale. All our Crowley wants to do is to go back to his universe and his very own angel, but how? As you follow the main plot and focus on Crowley's thoughts and actions, you'll start slowly feeling the other story get hold of you, and it won't let go until the very end and beyond.

Happiness, More Or Less, rated M, 21k

This human AU moved me so very much I cried. Crowley moves into his new flat in Soho, only to discover the flat in haunted by the ghost of the owner of the bookshop downstairs. I won't tell anything else about the plot other than it does have a very sweet happy ending, and it gets there via a rollercoaster of emotions. This is really one of those fictions that leave me in awe of the fandom's talent and creativity. Read it, read it, read it!

One last one that I haven't finished reading yet, but I know it's one of my all time favourites, is The Last Angel, rated E, 162k.

Canon divergent fiction where Crowley and Aziraphale were never assigned to earth, Armageddon happened and hell won the war. I've said many things about this fiction, among which that I can't believe the writer does this in her spare time and writing is not actually her job, and this is the most Good Omens-y fic I have ever read. It's astoundingly good.

What ideas are percolating for next year?

Watch out for The Angel Horror Show! When I learned that Peter Hinwood, the actor who played Rocky in The Rocky Horror Picture Show didn't have a long career as an actor, bout instead went on to become an antiques dealer, I knew I had to write this fiction with Aziraphale as the actor who many years ago played Angel/Rocky in The Angel Horror Show and subsequent film The Angel Horror Picture Show and is now living a comfortable life as a book and antiques dealer, and Crowley as the actor who played Demon/Frank, and went on to become a successful movie and theatre actor and director. I've just started writing it and I'm extremely excited about it!

Who do you want to thank?

Without the shadow of a doubt @sabine-smitten-obviously and IneffableShortCake who have been so incredibly generous with their time and support in the past 8 months! But also everyone who's ever left me a comment making me feel like my stories were liked, from the long comments to the ones with just enthusiastic syllables, from the incredibly witty ones to the more personal ones, thank you, thank you, thank you!

Tag, answer any Qs that suit and play along!

I think because I'm so late in the game that most of the writers I would usually tag have already been tagged by someone else, but perhaps a few haven't done this yet.

@smua70 @ngk-668 @ineffable-duck7

And anyone who wants to answer!

This was fun!

[duketectivecomics]

Since it’s 2024, I think it’s about time for my yearly PSA:

Hey, Hi 👋 in case it isn’t obvious, this is a Duke Thomas resource/archive blog, dedicated to raising awareness for Duke! I’ve got all sorts of great resources linked in my pinned post, including a Reading Rec list, FAQ, and info about our annual Duke Week! (& so much more!)

I want to especially encourage my followers to reblog this to help spread the word. I’m seeing more and more posts in Duke’s tag that are completely missing the mark when it comes to understanding Duke. One on hand, it’s great news bc that means more people are at least aware of duke (yaaaay)! On the other, it means he’s being subjected to fanon flanderization (boooo).

I want to encourage y’all because those kinds of posts are exactly why I made this blog in the first place. Duke is by FAR the easiest batfam member to read for. I’ve also curated a lot of great meta on him over the years & im always looking forward to adding more! Give this blog a follow, shoot me an ask, let’s learn more about Duke in 2024!!!

[galixy0universe]

Kinktober 2024- Batfam Edition

Here is the list for kinktober based on the batfam!

Is it late? Yes, I got sick when I was supposed to upload it and then was busy with my life afterward. I hope to do a big upload with last week's and this week's prompt on the weekend. Until then, here is the list and the requests that were accepted. Please note that if it was not accepted, it may be because I just don't have confidence writing that specific kink. All of these will be rather short to keep up with everything I have to write and my IRL things. I will make a final master list at the end of the month with all the links if I can. If you still want to make a request, let me know; anything in Italics can be replaced.

Size Kink-Jason Todd

Breeding- Damian Wayne (18+ This means he will be over 18)

Creampie- Tim Drake

Gloves/Leather- Duke Thomas

Roleplay- Tim Drake

Biting- Bruce Wayne

Exhibition- Dick Greyson

Aphrodisiacs- Damian Wayne (18+)

Anal- Dick Greyson

Double Pen- Jason Todd & Dick Greyson

Prostitution- Tim Drake

Glory Hole- Damian Wayne (18+)

Dom/Sub- Dick Greyson

Pregnant- Bruce Wayne

Lactating- Dick Greyson

Fingering- Damian Wayne (18+)

Toys- Damian Wayne (18+)

Tifuck- Bruce Wayne

Bondage- Bruce Wayne

Uniforms-Tim Drake

Quickie- Duke Thomas

Face sitting- Bruce Wayne

Phone/Video- Jason Todd

Lingerie- Dick Greyson

Free Use- Jaosn Todd

Stripping- Damian Wayne (18+)

Spanking- Duke Thomas

Lovebites- Tim Drake

Mirror Sex-Bruce Wayne

Car Sex- Dick Greyson

Collar- Jason Todd

[wilsondick-winterexchange]

The WilsonDick Exchange 2024 is here! Join us on the first day of posting 💙🧡

6 NEW WILSONDICK works await you today. Please remember to double check the warnings and tags before proceeding!

WORKS

five days [FIC] for inabsurd [Mature, Graphic Depictions of Violence, Rape/Non-Con, Underage Sex, Omegaverse] [Slade/Dick, Wilson Siblings & Dick]

Summary:

Rose's daddy goes on a business trip. But that's okay, because her new mama is still there to take care of her, and her two older brothers. She really, really loves her mama.

Crucible [FIC] for Eriord [Explicit, Rape/Non-Con, Omegaverse] [Slade/Dick, Wade/Dick, Wilson Siblings & Dick]

Summary:

Slade is killed during a routine visit to his kingdom's border, and it is on Dick to protect the family they have built. But what is an Omega to do when Slade's brother attempts to take the throne?

Wood Stained Red [FIC] for hmmBarkBark [Teen+, No Warnings, Horror] [Joey/Dick]

Summary:

Dick agrees to join his boyfriend Joey for a weekend at a family cabin to meet said family. Surely nothing can go wrong with that. Except that fact that literally everything goes wrong. Or: Dick learns that his boyfriend is from a family of cannibals and he reacts about as well as you could expect him to.

We Found Each Other [FIC] for Midosune [Gen, No Warnings, Omegaverse] [Slade/Dick Respawn & Dick]

Summary:

Slade's in town and with a new kid following him. Dick can't wait to meet him.

the one that does not belong [FIC] for nursal1060 [Explicit, No Warnings] [Slade/Dick]

Summary:

Bruce’s parties are always huge, glamorous affairs befitting his status as the Duke of Gotham, which means there are bound to be times Dick encounters unexpected guests at them. None, however, have been as unexpected as Slade.

Freaky Friday [ART] for dicknge [Explicit] [Slade/Dick Joey/Dick]

Summary:

'It's not usual the three of them are all available at the same time, so Dick suggests they can have fun together tonight - let Joey posses Slade. But somehow Joey and Slade actually body-swap by accident. And that’s not gonna ruin their plan for the night!'

[weirdowithaquill]

Traintober 2024: Day 12 - Teamwork

Rusty has to Work with Fred:

Rusty the little diesel does not often like working with Fred. To Rusty, Fred is everything that the little diesel despises: he’s lazy, slow, uninterested and often more occupied with his latest daydreams than any of the work he’s meant to do.

To Fred, Rusty is just a grumpy old busybody who won’t stop griping about the trackwork.

One morning, the two diesels were stuck together in the shed at Lakeside Station. The night before, an out-of-season snowstorm had blasted the Skarloey Railway, much to Rusty’s horror. It had come too early! Poor Rusty and the gangers hadn’t had time to prepare the line. When their drivers arrived, the little diesel slowly peeked out of the shed to find that the entire countryside was covered in a thin layer of white. It looked like something off of a Christmas card!

“Get up!” hissed Rusty. “We have work to do.” Fred opened a bleary eye. “Noooooo,” he yawned, stretching out his jaw before pouting at Rusty. “It’s cold, and I’d rather stay in here.” “Fred, we have work to do,” reprimanded Rusty. “The gangers are coming, our drivers are here, and we need to get the line ready for Duke’s first train.” “Too late for that,” sighed Rusty’s driver. “Duke’s driver called – apparently the tunnel’s blocked. The snow dislodged that one bit we were worried about.” Rusty groaned, and started out of the shed. The little diesel and the gangers had been worried about a large overhang that had been threatening to collapse in front of the tunnel for ages – and much to their dismay, it had chosen to be knocked loose by the snow the day before they were going to carefully remove it.

“There wasn’t meant to be snow for another two weeks!” complained one of the gangers as he ambled over to where Rusty had shunted the tool van, crane and a coach ready for the group. “This is insane!” “It’s a problem,” agreed Rusty. “Snow only comes this early if there’s a storm coming in.” The group all looked skyward, and spotted the thick grey clouds. They needed to move fast.

Which of course meant that Fred dragged his wheels. The little diesel was meant to bring a line of empty trucks up behind Rusty to take away the empty debris, but instead he was moping about the sidings, doing his absolute best to be a pain.

“He’ll join us soon enough,” sighed Rusty’s driver, and the little diesel set off.

They found the tunnel soon enough. It was completely blocked by the landslip, which had brought down three trees and a painful number of brambles in its travels. “Looks like the snow just grew too heavy for it,” sighed one ganger as they all stepped out of the coach. Rusty positioned the crane to lift away some of the large logs, and then waited impatiently for Fred.

The little diesel waited and waited and waited, and still Fred did not come. Rusty’s engine began to grumble lowly, and the little diesel scowled. “Where is Fred?” Rusty demanded. “Let’s go find him,” sighed Rusty’s driver.

Rusty found Fred dozing at the head of his train as his driver tried fruitlessly to get his engine to tick over. Rusty’s eyes turned furious, and the little diesel snuck over silently before…

“WAKE UP!”

Fred burst to life in fright, and zipped forward several feet!

“Why would you do that?!” he demanded furiously. “Because you’re being a lazy layabout while we have work to do,” snapped Rusty. “If we don’t work together, there will be no trains, and no getting back to the sheds. That means being stuck up here all winter long. Now will you get moving so we can get the work done?” Fred agreed to that.

With both engines working hard, it didn’t take long. Rusty’s engine was used to power the crane while Fred pulled loaded trucks away. Soon, the line was cleared. While there was some damage to the tunnel and track, it was light enough for the two diesels to pass carefully through so that Rusty could collect the necessary supplies from Crovan’s Gate.

As the two split off, Rusty smirked back at Fred. “See, Fred,” the little diesel hummed, “that’s what a little teamwork can do.” Fred didn’t answer, instead rolling straight into the sheds for a nap.

Back to the Master Post

[lalalian]

let’s talk students: aethergarde dr (dragon rider academy dr)

date: july 1st, 2024

welcome back to another episode of me blabbing on and on about the students in this DR! Today, I’ll be talking about Callisto Lancaster.

pronunciation:

Callisto: (Cal-list-oh) (‘Cal’ as in ‘Callie’)

Lancaster: (Lan-cast-er) (pretty easy right?)

appearance:

Callisto is quite pale and has stark white hair. His eyes are an intense light blue along with a dark rim surrounding his iris. Unlike his brother, he has a large snake tattoo spanning from the left side of his throat down to his chest.

Callisto’s appearance is often described as intimidatingly ethereal— as if he’s some sort of deity.

He’s lean and boasts a more lithe and elegant physique compared to Teagan (I realized I was spelling his name with an o this whole time— I’m changing it to Teagan 😭). He has pierced ears, which is a bit rare for younger men who aren’t associated with some sort of crime syndicate.

Callisto did get the tattoo and piercings without his parents knowing, though of course they know about it now and are pretty mad about it.

personality:

Callisto is a free spirited guy that tends to like sneaking around and doing whatever he wants; if I had to pick a fictional character that kinda acts like him, I’d pick Jesper from Six of Crows.

He is usually carefree, but can definitely get serious if the situation calls for it. His risky escapades often gets him stuck in some dangerous situations, though, Callisto isn’t the type to get others involved. Instead, he likes to handle everything himself. He is doesn’t trust people easily.

He harbors a strong fascination for the underground and has several powerful connections with people that have as much influence as him, but in different ways.

Callisto has been obsessed with the idea that the gilded dragon hasn’t become completely extinct in the last 5~ years or so, and has used his connections to find evidence proving his theory. He’s been trying to locate the egg and find out who is its riders.

Out of all the students I’ve introduced to you so far, Callisto is the one you should be most wary about.

relationships + social status:

Callisto is the son of a duke— which means his father has a position in the Room of Consuls. He is also pretty disliked by nobles, though there are a good few socialites who support and adore him.

Callisto is not close with his mother, father, or nanny. He has no close relationships with his family.

He despises his older brother, Asterias Lancaster, because he thinks that he doesn’t deserve to be idolized by his parents; Callisto always felt like he was overshadowed by him.

He is close to nobody, and has no true friends.

If you do manage to get close to him, his nickname would probably be Cal.

likes & dislikes:

likes:

- alcohol

- smoking

- being away from home

- horse riding

- dragons & dragon riders

- investigating things

- fighting

dislikes:

- his parents, but especially his brother

- banquets and other noble gatherings

- he’d probably dislike you tbh bc no matter who you are, you wouldn’t live up to his standards (at least at first, anyway)

- kids

aura:

Callisto’s aura is categorized as a vivid sun, and consists of a dark crimson (inner) and a burnt orange.

#401320

#4d1d10

dragon:

Despite his hopes of obtaining a gilded dragon, he instead is bonded to a male white+red+black naeyndrah. He names him Aamon.

strengths & weaknesses

strengths:

- genuinely just a really good fighter

- may know about things sooner than the public does

- really loyal and protective if you’re close friends with him

- can be quite charming when he wants to be

weaknesses:

- has so many connections to dangerous people that if he wanted to, you’d disappear

- has no friends (Miaene and him are in the same boat, but for different reasons)

- uncooperative

- holds grudges sometimes for small things

fighting style:

Callisto fights without weapons often, but if does use a weapon, he’d use daggers.

He is as good as fighting with daggers as he is without.

upon shifting here…

Callisto will be a first year student at Aethergarde Academy.

wanna know more about my aethergarde academy dr? here's a masterlist with everything I've posted about it!

poll time!

[saintmeghanmarkle]

Is Hugh Grosvenor really Archies godfather? Or is more lies from Meghan Markle? Lets find out by u/Ruth_Lily

Is Hugh Grosvenor really Archie’s godfather? Or is more lies from Meghan Markle? Let’s find out Previous to the Duke of Westminister‘s wedding where Harry & Meghan are NFI, Hugh was the actual godfather of Prince George Hugh Grosvenor did not invite Harry & Meghan to his weddingMeghan has been burning up pr saying that Hugh Grosvenor, who is superrich, was Archie’s godfather.However a simple search which shows that previous to this wedding that they are NFI to, that Meghan had previously pr released the names of who the godparents are to Vanity Fair“Mark DyerTiggy PettyferCharlie van Straubenzee They’re all confirmed, that leaves 2 moreVanity Fair thinks the rest are Markle’s friends“Lindsay Roth and Genevieve Hills“https://ift.tt/hdNn8b6 & Country also not mentioning Hugh Grosvenor in this articlehttps://https://ift.tt/qF70rNA since the wedding kerfluffle, and the Harkles being NFI, suddenly Hugh is one of Archie’s godparents, according to Meghan’s endless expensive daily pr.From December 2023, the Times now mentions Hugh Grosvenor being Archie’s godparent, for the first time everhttps://https://ift.tt/1BoYZz6 that means that Meghan would only have possibly 1 godparent/friend on her list of godparents for Archie.Perhaps not even that.Do we believe this? She’s obviously trying to h*t the very wealthy Hugh Grosvenor over the h*ad with this, and her anger….but I’m not sure it’s even true. Just because she SAYS it’s true & keeps pr releaing it over and over doesn’t make it true. This is how she does manifesting pr/pressure PR. Idiots like Harry crumble in the face of this kind of PR…. post link: https://ift.tt/ekO0p7n author: Ruth_Lily submitted: May 28, 2024 at 03:50AM via SaintMeghanMarkle on Reddit disclaimer: all views + opinions expressed by the author of this post, as well as any comments and reblogs, are solely the author's own; they do not necessarily reflect the views of the administrator of this Tumblr blog. For entertainment only.