#like you have to understand how many layers this phrase has

[butts-bouncing-on-the-beltway]

God I will never be able to describe what the line "the dezi to his lucy" does to me in my soul

Anyway, don't mind me I'm just having a semi-public, week long meltdown over the role of language and how we convey meaning in our experiences of self . Have a song about it.

[serpentface]

Come On Man.

(Extensive linguistic notes for this 'balls in my mouth' comic under the cut)

The extensive linguistic notes for this "balls in my mouth" comic:

Brakul's first language is the West Rivers dialect of the broader Highlands language, which is part of the Finnic language family. It first split from the Proto-Finnic spoken north of the Viper about a millennia ago with migrants traveling south overseas, and further split into what are now the two native Finnic language groups in Wardin (the Highlands and North Wardi tongues). The Highlands language is a dialect continuum- most neighboring dialects are mutually intelligible, but people from opposite ends of the language's home region would have troubles communicating clearly (though the continuum is not wide enough for any to be fully incomprehensible).

Brakul knew some very, very basic Wardi from occasional contact with Ephenni traders as a teenager, and would later become fluent in the South Wardi dialect as a second language. Wardi is from a wholly separate language family than the Finnic languages with EXTREMELY distant common ancestry, and very different in form and function. Wardi is in many ways less specified and direct, having a smaller variety of individual words to communicate emotional/sensory states and instead imparting many layers of meaning to the same words in different contexts, which Brakul sometimes finds difficult and irritating to navigate. This is one of a number of reasons he often expresses himself more fully in his mother tongue.

Janeys is a native Wardi speaker (South Wardi dialect), fluent in 'Seaway Burri' (which is a lingua franca of the Mouth sea powers, many people along the coastal cities know it as a second language), and semi-fluent in 'High Burri' (state language of the Burri Republic), and in the present day has a modest comprehension of the West Rivers Highlands dialect. This takes place 4.5 years after he and Brakul met, and he mostly just knows basic utilitarian conversational terms and parts of speech, and has a decent understanding of the grammar and how to conjugate verbs. After 13 years of exposure to Brakul talking at him and occasionally deigning to explain what he's saying, Janeys can Sort Of hold a conversation.

---

NOTES ON THE POST ITSELF:

I = Sí

My= Sig

You= Mí (casual) Mís (formal)

---

Mí vírim is “I love you”.

The unconjugated form of the verb is vírir. The dead literal translation is “to need”, but "mí vírim" translates more accurately as "I love you" than "I need you". It DOES have connotations of need, it expresses love as a sense of wholeness and natural dependency- you say it to express affection towards someone to whom you owe your existence, to a line of ancestors, to your descendants, to the people you create or provide for your descendants with. It says "you are part of my sense of place in this world, you connect me to something greater than myself that sustains me". It will mostly be spoken between immediate kin (parents, children, siblings), husbands and wives, and in practice of venerating your ancestors. This is a gay as fuck thing to say to an unrelated man.

There's at least three other ways to directly say "I love ___" one of which is an affectionate expression of camaraderie, one of which communicates strong aesthetic appreciation, and one that is used in practice specifically to express affection/gratitude towards livestock (though can be used more broadly).

Janeys comprehends the phrase "Mí vírim" as “(I) [UNKNOWN VERB] you” and he's able to discern from Subtle Context Clues that it's something like 'I love you'.

He guesses the unconjugated verb inaccurately as (v)írer, as -Er and -Ur verb endings are more common than -Ir endings, and -Er/-Ir verbs share all the same conjugated forms.

Wardi languages have no ‘v’ sound to begin with, and the ‘v’ here is very soft, between a ‘vuh’ and ‘fuh’. This doesn’t come naturally to Janeys (or most Wardi speakers in general) and comes out as a 'wuh' on first impulse and a hard ‘fuh’ when he tries to replicate it.

This is something he never gets good at and Brakul is grateful that it’s his brother who was named ‘Vrailedh’ (Vrai-lehd-hh)) and not him so he doesn’t have to hear ‘Wrai-lehd’ or ‘Frai-lehd’ all the damn time by his Wardi compatriots. (Many of them don't even get his actual name right, but it's a lesser sin of not rolling the R and under-emphasizing the -ul)

---

"Sí brūlmim fágh filshíbe" is “I am very gullible”. The use here is not particularly cruel and is more just that his first impulse upon realizing Janeys will repeat anything he says right now is to make a "someone wrote gullible on the ceiling" level joke at his expense.

Fágh is a word used to emphasize an adjective and some nouns, functionally close to 'very' but used specifically for non-physical/non-sensory qualities (emotion, personality, etc). You could use fágh in the sentence “I’m so sorry” "he's such an asshole".

Brūlmim is "I am" in present tense. The unconjugated form is brūlmur, meaning 'to be' in a permanent sense, as a matter of nature. Other verbs are used for ‘to be’ in a purely transitory sense (“I am tired”) or describing a prolonged but impermanent state, usually past tense (“I was a stupid teenager”).

Filshíbe straightforwardly means 'gullible'.

The 'h' at the end of fágh is vocalized as an exhale, sounds a little like 'fog-uh' with a VERY soft and breathy 'uh'. The '-e' at the end filshíbe is also exhaled, coming out as a quick, soft 'eh'. Neither of these sounds are natural to a Wardi speaker (especially the breathy 'eh', most -e ending words are pronounced with a strong '-ey').

Janeys is comprehending “I’m (very/so) [UNKNOWN WORD]” here, and his face is being touched so softly so [UNKNOWN WORD] is very compelling and he's learning new things and is kind of in the zone so might as well say it back.

---

"Mísig uns drótes vísti sig bahrég, s'vaige do mi?" means "Your balls in my mouth, please?". What makes the sentence Particularly funny to Brakul here is that it's Excessively polite (using a formal and deferential 'your' and very gracious 'please') and jarringly accompanied with lowbrow slang for testicles. A more tonally accurate english translation would be "Sir, may I please perchance take your fat fucking sack in my mouth?"

Mísig means 'your', but specifically implies deference- it's a word you would use to address an elder or authority figure, or to use while being very, very polite. (Mís is the equivalent deferential 'you').

Uns drótes is one of several slang terms for testicles. This one uses the word 'boulders', and is thus Specifically implying 'big balls'. It's lowbrow and a very mild expletive (in the same degree 'ass' is in English).

Vísti means 'in' or 'inside', as a physical state of something being inside of another thing- you would use it for 'there's a bird in that cage' but not 'there's fear in my heart'.

Bahrég means 'mouth', which is almost always used in the purely anatomical sense. The other word for 'mouth' in the language more commonly refers to the mouths of animals (might be better translated as 'maw') and also gets applied to non-anatomical objects (ie 'the mouth of the cave').

S'vaige do mi means 'thank you' (dead literally 'my gratitude to you', the S in S'vaige is a contracted sig/'my') but is translated here as 'please' for clarity. There isn't actually a word that directly correlates to 'please' in the Highlands language, a polite request is accompanied with a 'thank you' instead (IE: "Could you pass the salt, thank you?"). This is one of two direct ways to say 'thank you' and this is the more intensely polite of the two.

Janeys will have understood this sentence as "(polite 'Your') [UNKNOWN WORD] (in? inside? within?) my [UNKNOWN WORD], please." This one throws him off, but he's pretty sure he's about to be kissed on the mouth for the first time in his life so he's willing to go with it.

[vaguely-concerned]

I have so many thoughts I (ironically) can't put into words yet about the use of heightened and ritualized poetic language and phrases in connection to magic in Nevarra (or possibly within the mourn watch?). they don't default to an ancient language for it like tevinter predictably seem to, and while they do have a whole scholarly language for the academic side of it -- when they're actually casting it and interacting with the dead, they speak in common but through poetry and metaphor in ways we haven't seen any other culture do. maybe the avvar, as the closest, just in a different literary tradition. they speak to the dead, but in a living language. ingellvar rook gets a bit defensive and even reproachful during emmrich's recruitment quest when the other companion makes some sort of comment to question it. 'it's watcher tradition! >:('

'Open your hearts to the final day, companion of all the ages'. even a rook who doesn't take the almost religious element of the role of watcher as seriously knows that one by heart no matter what you make them say during walking the graves. when myrna in so many words says that the necropolis is still rook's home, the way they agree with her is simply to quote 'A home in life, a berth in death...' and her smoothly finishing the thought with 'a house of many mansions'. there are several times with emmrich where rook answers something he says just by quoting from some watcher text they both clearly know well. (if you do this to weasel out of answering when he asks if you're afraid of dying, he is understandably peeved you're quoting watcher 101 stuff at him, and rook clearly knows exactly what they're doing.) this shared base of literature -- and more than that a kind of oral tradition, it sounds like? it's just What You Say when you do certain things, do you think half of this is even written down anywhere? this shared inheritance of language making for a feeling of belonging and continuity is beautiful and moving in a way but also. a bit cold and distant, all mind and no body connection. which I feel might be a running theme around the necropolis haha they mainly seem to have interest in bodies once life has vacated them, they don't give that much thought to what makes it feel good to be in one while you're here. we can only imagine the psychological effects of growing up a crypt baby in this particular cultural milieu.

you know what it reminds me of a little bit in places, actually? the way the qun uses language and set phrases to convey layers of meaning. the qunari are an oddly poetic bunch. and I think there's also something here about like... cultures whose religious side are more about philosophy and the language used than an idea of the divine as such. yeah nevarra is technically andrastian, at least on the surface, probably largely for reasons of 'ugh it would be SO inconvenient to have an exalted march called on us :/ some of us have real shit to get on with you know this body isn't going to mummify itself. sure tell orlais we'll join their dumb club or whatever'. but within and beneath that the syncretism with and survival of much older traditions are still so obviously (and double ironically!) alive. how much does your average watcher believe in god, and how much and how immediately do they believe in the grand necropolis, and in their duty to what has been, what is and what will come after them -- the quest for knowledge? memento mori ass culture to the point of absent-mindedly forgetting about everything else including god (affectionate). maybe the maker exists, but he's just not that relevant down here. he may take the souls, but we still tend the graves. render unto the chantry what's the chantry's, and unto the watcher what is theirs!!! really is the whole thing huh

[annieversary3]

frerdy fasbear ? do you agree

many words have been said regarding the topic of frerdy fasbear. to jump into a discussion on the subject without first aknowledging their significance and contributions to the past, present, and dare i say future of the frerdy fasbear discussion, would be tantamount to a crime, which i would not dare commit for fear of retaliation from my friends and family. so to begin to even answer and or reply, to even think of preparing a response, or to even follow the train of thought guided by and generated from a question such as this one, without giving proper thought and adequate consideration to the scholars, scientists, and philosophers that have come before us, would be cause for ethical concerns. i will not partake in such a manner of academic indecency, so in order to correctly form a response to this tumbler ask, let us first ponder, analyse, and understand the words of those that have come before us. it is in such an act that we pay respects to the great minds that form the pillars on which we stand today. so let us begin by studying these profound words, in which we shall find the tools to construct a valid and adequate response to this question. personally i have and continue to be deeply inspired by the ouvre of mr. iplier, from whom i have learned many a subjects, and who's works have greatly and directly impacted my own. his achievements on this field of academic study have been a huge source of encouragement, as they could without controversy or argument be called the fundamental works which allow us to even ask this question today. in particular, in his seminal essay published on the 12th of august, 2014, mr iplier begins with the known and critically acclaimed phrase "hello everybody, my name is mark iplier". what else can be said about such a fundamental piece of lyricism that hasnt already been said before by scholars of yore? it is a deeply impactful word composition, readying us and preparing our minds for what comes next: "and welcome to five night s at fredys". utterly spectacular. if i am to be allowed a slight shift in tone into the personal, i would like the record to show that these words have been ingrained in my mind since the first minute i heard them. how else can they be described? how can a mortal mind generate such a sentence? this is the basis of this crucial work, which has gone on to inspire countless of scholars and academics, and will undoubtedly keep on doing so for years to come. it is on shoulders of giants that i can stand here today to answer this (seemingly) simple and minor question. but peeling the hidden layers we can reaveal a complex and interconnected network of topics, subjects, and efforts which brings into question the answerability of the proposed topic of this essay. of course, we wouldnt be sitting here right now if the answer were a simple "no". therefore, we can reason that the response we look for is indeed more complex, and full of depth. for us to construct this reply we so desire, i would propose we look inward into our very souls. you, the reader, i would suggest do the same. those soulless in the audience tonight i would recommend look to the person on their right, who will most definitely have a spare one. once this has been dealt with, and with the due and necessary interpolations taken care of, we can truly begin to answer this question which has plagued generations past. in this essay we will leave out of consideration the hidden, nested question of whether even asking such an inquiry should be performed on an open forum as this. we will assume that the answer is yes, of course, as science and knowledge should be shared openly and without restrictions. it is for this reason and with great conviction, that the author proposes a complete eradication of the concept of copyright, and encourages science magazines to freely and easily share all the papers they contain, as it is though sharing that we show our care and affection for others. it is thanks to mr iplier's freely shared work that we are sitting here today discussing, thinking, introspecting. had he not

openly shared his endeavours with the world, asking such a question today would have been completely worthless. but he did openly share, and so we stand with this question in hand. so finally and without delay, when it comes to the topic of answering this question, this author would like to make it clear and understood that it's reply is: "uhhh yeah i guess i would have to agree"

[sandyferal]

LET’S GO Perirep “play” vs. real dynamic essay. And I’m going to actually go in depth on this. Like actually. It’s going to be long. With references to other media and shit. (I’m gonna be real there’s like a few paragraphs talking about Megamind but I promise it’s VERY RELEVANT.) Only read if you’re interested in that!!

But anyway uh. Very opinions, don’t take this as me trying to make an objective statement. Cause it’s really not. Please Perirep fandom don’t get mad at me for trying to dictate their dynamic I’m really not trying to do that especially since I’m mostly talking about my au

It also very much states things I’m trying to convey more subtlety in my fanfic so if you don’t like that don’t read 👍

NOW. To start off, what is a play dynamic? It’s entirely possible there’s an established word/phrase describing what I mean, but if there is, I’m unaware. So for now that’s what I’ll call it. And what a play dynamic is, is a performative dynamic between two characters that does not reflect how they would interact genuinely, or how they really feel. You could think of bedroom roleplay/dynamics as an example, but it definitely applies in non-sexual settings. Case in point! The movie Megamind.

Now, in the movie, Megamind has two relevant play dynamics. His interactions with Metro Man, and his interactions with Roxanne. His interactions with MetroMan are relevant when talking about Perirep for the rivalry aspect, and for how it affects the “villain’s” sense of identity. His interactions with Roxanne are relevant when talking about how it affects the development of romantic relationships.

First off, Megamind defined his own identity through his rivalry with Metroman. This is extremely relevant to Irep! From young ages they were presented with a “good guy” who was more loved and more successful than them. And for the majority (or all in Irep’s case) of their lives, the only goal they strived towards was “defeating” that enemy. But I think Megamind shows that in reality, accomplishing that goal would eventually leave Irep somewhat depressed and empty. Because that’s not how he really feels. And because he doesn’t truly know who he is outside of his rival. So that play dynamic isn’t something that can work if played out to its natural conclusion.

Then there’s Megamind’s dynamic with Roxanne. Many people have noticed that even when Roxanne was the “damsel” and Megamind the “villain” there was a little bit of banter. Maybe even flirty banter. Or tension. Because that can often arise from play dynamics. But in reality, that dynamic was performance. It’s implied Megamind was not used to her being so unaffected, meaning she may have played along in the past, but it’s clear that she had gotten used to it a long time ago. No real danger. And even being tied up, there barely even felt like a true power imbalance.

Despite all this, their romantic relationship only really worked when they moved past that dynamic. Truthfully, they couldn’t have created a real relationship with that play dynamic, because it didn’t reflect the reality of who they were, and because Roxanne clearly did not want Megamind when she viewed his villainy as a genuine threat. And I think Perirep is very similar.

At the beginning of my au, Peri and Irep haven’t gotten past their play dynamic. They were in this performative mindset of “scary evil domineering anti-fairy” and “soft goody two shoes fairy” that only truly existed for public perception. They have some sort of real feelings for each other, but they’re so so so buried that there was no possible way they would be acted upon genuinely. So the way their feelings eventually came out was through sexual tension via their play dynamic. And that’s how the pregnancy happened.

That causes a layer of insincerity and awkwardness, specifically on Peri’s part. Because their relationship was started because of that play dynamic. Something that Peri understands is performative and not accurate to who they really are. In which case he questions whether they are capable of a real relationship, because he doesn’t know what their genuine relationship is at all, or if they even have one. Meanwhile, Irep literally defines himself through it. It’s how he sees himself, and all he’s ever been told to be.

In reality, Peri is not soft. He’s irritable, and tired and sassy. He’s occasionally sweet or anxious or pathetic or over-dramatically upset, but he’s not truly vulnerable to Irep. And in reality, Irep is not that domineering. He’s failed almost constantly from birth, and has never actually overpowered Peri. He’s a silly little over dramatic loser who tries too hard.

Does that mean he isn’t possessive or protective? No. Irep is those things I think. Or he tries to be. But there’s not a definitive power imbalance in his favor. At least not once they’re in a relationship. No matter how many times he says Peri is “his” or “belongs to him,” Peri could easily leave. Any time. Not even an issue. And Irep would be sobbing and wailing and begging him to come back.

Now do neither of them enjoy or play into the play dynamic? I don’t think so. I personally think they find it kinda fun. And Peri can get flustered by it (although sometimes Irep is too lol). But they have to realize how performative it is if they want to stay together. Because in my mind, if Irep takes his act too seriously and tries to genuinely enforce that dynamic on Peri in a romantic relationship… Peri would straight up just leave. Like no he would not take that.

In regards to what I think their genuine dynamic would be like. I think Peri struggles to be affectionate and express his feelings. Sometimes he will get anxious or flustered or be a little pathetic. He can also be very confident, stubborn, and independent in the relationship. He wants to have the assurance that he’s capable without Irep. He can get a bit distant or snappy at times, but deep down he cares a lot.

Irep on the other hand can get very needy and clingy. Things can set him off, making him insecure, possessive and jealous. He’s very protective during the pregnancy but less so afterwards. Deep down though, I think he wants someone he can be mushy and sappy with. To the point that he might develop codependency issues. Over time he starts to think of himself as scary and evil and powerful like a dog does. In the sense that he likes it when Peri pats him on the head and tells him he is.

Now!!! All of this is very much my personal opinion! I will clarify, this is obviously not the only way to think about their dynamics. This is how I write them but ppl who write them differently are super cool and awesome!! I just. Think of them like this myself. As a reminder, I am also writing them for an au! So I expect them to not be fully canon accurate. Especially since I’m pretty sure their canon rivalry is meant to be genuine to some degree.

[i-heart-hxh]

Is there really a married couple dynamic between Killua and Gon? If so, any examples of similarities to other couples in the anime?

The director of the 2011 anime thinks so!

I agree with what he said, although of course there's a limited degree to which this comparison applies because we are talking about two young boys (who aren't even in an actual romantic relationship yet), after all. :p The ways they resemble a married couple in my opinion include, but are certainly not limited to:

Extreme trust between and reliance on one another

Being synchronized in their actions and thoughts in many cases (as if they've been together a long time)

They have a good understanding of each other and insight into how the other thinks

They bicker over silly things, but quickly go back to getting along after disputes

They essentially lived together in the around two years they were together. They were with each other almost constantly during that time, and there's a degree of domesticity and closeness/comfort to their relationship as a result

They talk to each other almost non-stop, to a point where we see them chattering away in the background frequently

They work together towards common goals by default and generally only compete for fun

To quote Hiroshi Koujina (from the post linked above), "Gon is the free-spirited husband, and Killua is the wife who silently supports him" <- I think this is a good summary of their dynamic within this context, LOL

It's hard to compare them to many couples in the series because honestly, HxH doesn't have many actual romantic couples to begin with. Togashi tends to kill one half or more of the romantic couples he sets up, often before they get to have a good life together. Think Squala and Eliza, Pokkle and Ponzu...

However, Meruem and Komugi are parallels to Gon and Killua, and that's essentially undeniable with how many layers of parallel/similarity exist between the two pairs. That's a topic for a whole other post (I could go on and on, and it's hard to summarize), but the way Meruem and Komugi's relationship develops is also telling of Gon and Killua's dynamic because the two are intended to exist in comparison with each other and reflect each other.

One of Komugi's final lines to Meruem was essentially an old-fashioned way to accept a marriage proposal ("I may not be much, but please, let me accompany you"), and Meruem and Komugi complete a lovers suicide (like Killua was considering doing with Gon). Obviously these character pairs are separate, and it's not as though I think Gon and Killua will suffer the same fate, but I do think it's very meaningful (especially in conjunction with the loads of other subtext present in the series) that Togashi chose another pair with obvious romantic subtext to mirror Gon and Killua, and that that relationship ended with "marriage" in an abstract sense.

Even Komugi's phrase I mentioned above has similarities with Gon and Killua, with Killua's, "Gon. You are light. Sometimes you shine so brightly, I must look away. But even so, is it still okay if I stay at your side?" It's essentially saying the same thing as Komugi's phrase.

I'd argue there's also some degree of parallels with Ging and Kite, Knuckle and Shoot, Kacho and Fugetsu, Kurapika and Pairo, and most likely others, though of course those aren't romantic in nature. I do think the fact that there are so many points of comparison is interesting, though, it reinforces the themes of the series that Gon and Killua exemplify.

Also, just a silly little sidenote, but Nagareboshi Kirari from the 2011 anime does have wedding bells in it. Take that as you will!

I hope that's helpful!

[one-flower-one-sword]

"Gege, don't panic just yet. I'll repeat those words to you. Give them a listen."

"...Alright," Xie Lian said.

Hua Cheng's memory was exceptional, and he clearly and precisely repeated the words as soon as they left the area where the corpse-eating rats had gathered. Xie Lian stared intently at his lips as he pronounced a series of moderately paced and somewhat bizarre-sounding phrases. The words had a strange, ancient rhythm to them. Hearing them spoken with such steady control through Hua Cheng's lips made the notes deep, beautiful, and pleasing to the ears.

TGCF Volume 5, page 343

Mu Qing rolled all the silk veils into a ball and tossed them to the side, his veins popping slightly. "How would I know? Because all your clothes, accessories, and daily living needs were my responsibility back then. I washed for you, I mended for you - and every item in your wardrobe was unique. These statues are too detailed - everything is there, exactly the same, completely! When I saw those clothes, of course I knew which face they would have!"

TGCF Volume 6, page 50

For he had remembered something else: the tale of the red-clad ghost who set hundreds of civil and martial temples ablaze. Hua Cheng became famous overnight when he defeated thirty-three heavenly officials and obliterated every single one of their temples and shrines across the entirety of the Mortal Realm.

Xie Lian had long forgotten how many heavenly officials had fought him over that blessed land; their titles, their faces, and even the words they said were lost to him. He could only vaguely recall that there were about thirty of them.

TGCF Volume 8, page 24

Was thinking about Hua Cheng's memory while rereading these scenes and how he appears to basically have perfect recall. Yes, we know he can "record" things with his butterflies, but he only seems to be doing so during strategic moments. If he had recorded what the corpse-eating rats were saying, there would have been no need for him to repeat their words himself, but he does. And they were words in a language he could read but not understand when spoken, and he only heard them spoken once and when there was no reason for him to memorize them. And yet he can recall them perfectly.

Xie Lian wonders if the extreme accuracy of the statues' details is because the sculptor's mind was so filled with images of him and only him, and while that's not wrong, I do think it's remarkable that Hua Cheng was able to remember all those intricate details. After all, they're from a time where he mostly was only able to watch over Xie Lian from afar, and even when they were close for once, it was usually during very stressful circumstances. Yet years later, he can still recreate it all perfectly, to a point that, according to Xie Lian, not even Xianle's most renowned sculptors were able to.

Same with the thirty-three heavenly officials - Hua Cheng was a ghost fire during that time and again it were very stressful circumstances where he was actively trying to defend Xie Lian with what little power he had. And yet, even years later, even after he was almost dispersed as Wu Ming and out of his mind, he can apparently recall every single one of their faces and knows exactly who was there. It's a stark contrast to how Xie Lian has no idea anymore even how many there were, much less their names and faces.

Of course, at this point it's been several hundred years, so that's not surprising. Still, there are many moments like these where Xie Lian is confused and taken aback by Hua Cheng's strong reaction to things he himself can barely remember and often doesn't even really think about anymore. That's a multi-layered issue of course - for one thing, trauma messes with memory, and Xie Lian himself has stated things like that he'd rather remember the delicious meat bun he ate the day before than how he'd been trampled to death years ago. For another, Hua Cheng has reason to cling to those memories Xie Lian would rather forget because of his immense anger on Xie Lian's behalf.

This doesn't explain moments like with the corpse-eating rats though, since like previously stated there was no reason for Hua Cheng to actively try and memorize what they were saying. It can thus be extrapolated from these examples that he always remembers everything this precisely, whether he wants to or not, even if he only heard or saw it once, and no matter how much time has passed since then.

On the one hand, this would evidently serve him very well in cases like his worship of Xie Lian or his goals in aiding and protecting him. On the other, this would mean that every moment of suffering he went through - or that Xie Lian went through, which to Hua Cheng is the worst kind of suffering - will forever be present in his mind in perfect detail. To him, it will always be as if it happened just yesterday. Even if he wanted to, he couldn't forget, because there's no "off setting" to his perfect memory, it's always "on" and can't be overwritten.

I think this might also be a small but not insignificant part of what makes up Hua Cheng's palpable intensity and sharpness, and also contributes to the strong emotions he surpresses beneath his controlled exterior.

[howlsmovingmind]

The phrase “The Oscar Wilde sort” is one of my favorite things ever. It used to be as readily understood as “fruity” is now, but if I tell someone I’m “the Oscar Wilde sort”, ALMOST EVERYONE AROUND ME IS CONFUSED. And that’s hilarious.

“Friend of Dorothy” has, in a way, kept its previous meaning and use because it’s still coded to be something mostly only queer people understand. My brother is a well read person whom I typically expect to understand my references. I said something like, “Well, I am a friend of Dorothy after all.” And he looked at me with such confusion. My brother, the most well read person I have met in my small town (keeps himself informed on current events, history, and internet culture) didn’t know queer history hardly at all. Lavender Menace, Lavender Scare, the YMCA, Sappho, the word Sapphic, Plato and his Platonic ideals, cowboys, or Polari.

This made me realize just how little cishet people know about queer history. Maybe even how little queer people know about queer history. We aren’t really taught these things in the States and the people around us don’t typically have knowledge about any of it either. We have to go digging for it because we want to know about the people like us. We want to know more about our history. Because it is ours. It’s personal and special.

Him not knowing these bits of history confused me. I thought, for some reason, he knew everything I knew and then some. But he was just as uninformed as I was. But he didn’t care. Because it didn’t mean anything for him. (And that’s not a problem!) Polari seems like a dead language a lot of the time. But interactions like this make me realize that there is actually still a place for it. Because, really, it has evolved to look and sound different, but it’s still there.

I feel like I’ve lost the plot of this post, but I’m gonna keep going because I want to.

Queer history is so beautiful and human. It’s so unbelievably human. That’s why literature like “The Picture of Dorian Gray”, “The Price of Salt”, and “Maurice” are so important. Sappho’s poems and knowing they’re about women is important. Knowing Walt Whitman was queer is important. Knowing Emily Dickinson was queer is important. This is a whole group of people who have been hidden from the public eye and hated and scorned and killed because of who they love. And it is about who they love. You cannot tell me this is simply about the physical aspect of it all. Because it’s not. It’s really not. The AIDs crisis? There was no way that was just about having sex. AIDS was such a problem because they wouldn’t help the queer people affected by it. Only when straight couples were being affected did they do anything.

Queer shipping does not lose the plot of stories or discount everything that a piece of media has explored and built up. Like people shipping Anderperry. It’s not a crazy thing! It does not take away from Neil’s acting being a point of contention between him and his father. It could add a layer to maybe why it was such a big deal beyond his father simply being a controlling jerk and not allowing Neil to engage in something outside of what he’s “supposed” to do. Mr. Perry made Neil drop the school paper at the beginning because it would be “distracting”. We know that Mr. Perry is controlling and never would have allowed Neil to act no matter what. Because it wasn’t the plan. But Neil being queer adds a layer to this narrative that a lot of people have seen and found themselves in. It doesn’t have to distract from the story and the themes that the author or creator is presenting. It can add a layer. I mean, Walt Whitman being such a huge part of the film and message all throughout adds to the queer message.

I just think that… it’s interesting and important and it means more to so many people than we assume. History and every aspect of humanity is important.

And saying “I’m the Oscar Wilde sort” is objectively hilarious.

An Oscar Wilde Fan,

Howl

[feedthefandomfest]

Thank you for all the great tips on commenting on fics! Lately I've been reading a lot of fan translations. I want to thank the translators for their hard work but I feel like I'm saying the same thing over and over again, and I'm hesitant to just comment the same way I would on a fic. Any ideas?

Oh, interesting ask!! Translators for sure deserve the love and appreciation. And saying the same thing over and over (thanking them for their hard work) is totally fine, but I understand the desire to tailor something more specific to the translated fic.

Something that comes to mind is all the different translations of the Odyssey I've read, which really highlighted for me how much the translator's own interpretations and personal creative choices factor into the final product. There isn't a one to one replacement for every word or phrase, and tons of terms have multiple possible alternatives that vary only by the slightest difference in tone or connotation or whatnot. So a really good translation is one that captures as many layers of meaning in the original text as possible, to make the experience of reading the translation just as nuanced and complex.

All that to say: I think complimenting the translator on their writing the way you would any other writer is totally valid! If their rendition of a character really rang true, or the tone/mood was entrancing throughout, or they conveyed the humor of a scene really effectively, then you can say it! Because it's guaranteed those are all things they really made an effort to preserve.

I'd also thank them for ensuring that a whole other audience can access and enjoy an amazing story.

Hat's off to fic translators!! If anyone has other tips or suggestions, feel free to share.

[widebrimmedhatsblog]

I'm going to combine my reply to yours on AO3 with this, but yes, I 100% get it. People can be so rude and unappreciative and I know it's usually not on purpose but it can still be grating. Not very demure, not very mindful 😓

This is a really young fandom (not just in age specifically, but in fandom experience) and I try to remind myself of that all the time. I'm in a place now where I just scroll past in my inbox and barely take in comments like that, but I get how disappointing it can be. We work really hard on these pieces and they genuinely take a lot of our time and energy we could spend doing other things (I haven't read a book in months), so getting responses like that on a labour of love is so grating.

I feel so awkward as a writer who gets it even phrasing "I'd love to see more" in comments. It's very: I want this person to know I loved it so much I want to see more of it, but also: I don't want this person to feel pressured to do it just because I love it, I just want them to know. Even when I commented, I had in the back of my mind how many WIPs you were working on and how stressful that can be holding all of that in your head, but I don't think normal people realise.

It's like you have a million things to do but you've spent all day baking a triple layer cake with filling and frosting and all the toppings and you're exhausted and your feet hurt but you're eagerly watching someone eat the first slice...and they say "nice! have you got any biscuits?" and you're just like???

@justallihere and I always talk about starting a fandom podcast to talk about things like this and educate people and honestly, I think the world needs it. People treat writers like TikTok content creators and that's just not how it works over here.

(Also, I promise we're not girlbossing it, we're bullshitting our way through every minute of every day)

I'm annoyed that this has ruined the excitement of posting a new work for you, you should be able to bask in our shared joy after gifting us something like this. I really loved the work, truly and I can understand the lack of inclination to continue it given the little worldbuilding we've been shown. It certainly doesn't make canon-adjacent fic easy. Love that you don't like Brennan though, or have any desire to write him. He's dodgy as fuck.

As a writer, you can only write what you want to write. If you're not enthusiastic about it or inspired by it, it either won't be written at all, or the magic won't be there. If you can see where it goes but you don't want to write it then you shouldn't.

I'm so grateful for you taking on the prompt in the first place, it was a wonderful gift and the pair of them were everything I could have hoped for—Violet being her prickly self and Xaden still being a self-assured casanova? Delicious. Plus, we love a fic where Violet gets eaten out in the wilderness 😉 Welcome to the club! Should we create a 'cunnilingus in the wilderness' tag for this fandom?

You put so much thought into this whole world and it's absolutely, truly appreciated by those who matter and understand how hard the process is and what a gift it is—thank you, thank you, thank you! 🙏

Amy!!! You are so lovely, thank YOU. I get you 100000% and I didn’t feel pressured by you whatsoever. I definitely agree that people who aren’t writers just don’t get it. I got a comment this morning that was like I’d read 200k more of this, and it’s like, someone has to WRITE 200k more of it then. Two hundred thousand words are not going to fall out of the sky just because you’d like to read them. But I digress!!! There’s been a lot of joy in it too, especially in discussing the backstory with everyone. If you and Alli had a podcast I think I would go a little insane!

I personally am just not huge on writing Brennan when he’s alive because he makes NO SENSE. I feel slightly similar about the Fen & Xaden dynamic. I just prefer to write him being dead for that reason.

Again, I’m so so SO glad you specifically enjoyed the fic!! I thought about you a lot while writing it, so I’m glad that paid off.

Cunnilingus In The Wildnerness Tag!!! Absolutely. I am honored to join the club .

This made me very happy, and definitely helped me feel better about things + my reaction to them. Thank you.

[m1dori-eyes]

Be wary of linguistics rant, Elden Ring ahead

Ok so I just made a different post about this but I need to elaborate: The Elden Ring messaging system is legitimately such an interesting microcosm about how language is used as a tool and shaped to suit the needs it's being used for. I could actually make an entire study about how this can be used to better understand the formation of pidgin languages in the same way that epidemiologists studied the Corrupted Blood Incident in World of Warcraft to better understand the mechanics of how disease affects human behavior. Video games as an academic lens into peoples' minds has always been a fascinating topic to me, and by the end of this, you'll see why.

First off, message.

So for those not indoctrinated into the series/game, Elden Ring is a big open world game made by From Software, which won game of the year 2022 among some other awards (if you've played it or know anything about it, just skip to the next header). Each player plays as a Tarnished and explores this massive environment called The Lands Between individually, but if another player is walking in the same area that you are, you can see their "ghost" moving through the world, and you can "invade" or "be summoned" into another player's iteration of the world in order to briefly interact with it before returning to your own iteration. This occupies a weird space in between singleplayer and multiplayer, with these heavily limited and kind of random methods of interaction between players, but that's not the most interesting way of communicating with your fellow Tarnished; that title goes to the messages system. You can write a message onto a small stone, and leave it on the ground, and then that little stone with the message on it will have a random chance to appear in any player's iteration of the world for them to read. This is a tradition which has been going in From Software's games long since before the inception of Elden Ring, although I'm mostly going to be focusing on the message system of that title, because documenting the history of the 13+ years running Soulsbourne franchise is way too much, even for a nerd like me. The point is that messages are a lot more likely to be seen than any other method of player-to-player interaction, and you can even leave little "gestures" to go with them, where the reader can see your character striking a pose while they read the message. What a neat little mechanic, which definitely doesn't have any hidden layers of depth, and certainly wouldn't spawn an entire emergent system of pseudolinguistics, right?

No message ahead, be wary of mimicry

Well, when I said that messages are written by other players, that was a lie. To make a message, you don't type it out with your keyboard, you select what you want to say, from a big list of preset phrases. It works that way for a lot of reasons, foremost of all as a profanity filter, but also to prevent too many spoilers and maintain atmosphere. The sets of phrases are incredibly limiting, famously requiring players to use weird fake old-english diction in order to express a simple thought (Strong foe ahead, be weary of death. Look carefully ahead, visions of item. Suffering, o suffering, why is it always bad luck? etc). This seems like a limitation which would put a serious damper on anyone trying to actually communicate their thoughts, but gamers are a persistent sort, and have a lot of trouble taking no for an answer. They also have way too much time on their hands, and like to solve puzzles, a terrifying combination of traits, and the perfect one to accidentally create a conlang. With the unexpectedly massive audience that this game picked up on launch, millions of people left messages desperately trying to get something across, and if the game's preset vocabulary didn't contain the phrases to express it, they would forge their own path. Any big fans of linguistic history can already tell the direction that this might be going, as we move on into the next chapter:

Teacher, Liar, Lovable Sort

When the game released, there was chaos. The Lands Between are fraught with hidden passages, deception, and blatant bullshit, and the first kind of players leaving messages tried to helpfully communicate what you could trust, and what you couldn't. This is what the message system was intended for after all, giving advice to your peers, and what many people still use it for today. The second kind of players tried to do the opposite, deliberately leading people to their doom, just because they could. The third, and most numerous sort, were simply awestruck at everything the game had to offer, and left a series of remarks on the beauty and humor of the world. The messages left by each group are pretty easy to differentiate to the trained eye, which is the main feature causing me to point out this division of players. Let's call these groups the teachers, the liars, and the lovable sorts. A teacher can be recognized if their messages suggest something within reason, and being backed up by the peer-review of nearby messages to the same effect. If three messages are all sitting on the ground next to eachother, each saying something along the lines of "seek up, look carefully ahead", then a local collage of teachers are trying to let you know about a secret path ahead leading you up towards a hidden objective. However, a single message next to a bloodstained cliff-edge stating "jumping required ahead" is almost certainly a liar, trying to deceive an unsuspecting player into making a dubious leap. Liars sometimes use slightly simpler grammar than teachers do, being less committed to getting their point across. Wait a minute, linguistic variance based on intent? No no, this is just a video game about fighting monsters, surely such an interesting emergent system wouldn't arise from something like that. Lastly, the lovable sorts have the most ranging grammar, spanning from a simple word such as "dog" (a word used colloquially to describe all creatures, from turtles to dragons), to complex sentences requiring the combination of many phrases. However, a lovable sort can be differentiated by the fact that they merely remark upon the world as it is, instead of trying to offer advice to other players, as a teacher or liar might. Some of their most iconic phrases are "Elden ring ahead", used to sarcastically denote a dead end where a player might have been expecting treasure, "you don't have the right, o, you don't have the right" which indicates a locked door, or the world-famous "try finger, but hole", a phrase which explains itself. The most incredible thing about the words of the lovable sort, is that they all require a little bit of thinking to understand their actual meaning, but once you get the hang of it, it becomes like a second language to you! Wait a minute, a second language?

Message? Wasn't expecting introspection

As time went on, the three main groups of message-writers still kept chugging along, creating new works of writing every day, but advancements in understanding of the game's inner workings allowed these messages to become more and more complex. Compound words started to be formed to represent concepts outside of the preset vocabulary, like "skeleton, house" for coffin, "dung, key" to describe the donkeys accompanying traveling merchants, and "edge, lord" being used to refer to the NPC Ensha, a man wearing flamboyant armor made out of bones who takes himself way too seriously. It's worth noting in this section that for a specific period of time, The Lands Between were overtaken by a horde of messages stating only the words "fort, night". Despite the crude and humorous nature of the entire thing, it was clear to see that the linguistic patterns of the Elden Ring community were evolving into their own beast, far beyond the usages that the developers had intended. Words had shed their original meaning, to instead take up contextual meanings based on how players used them, effectively becoming different words entirely. Depending on how you define this, it's either a microcosm of incredibly fast and severe linguistic drift, or the emergence of a new pidgin or conlang entirely. If you really stretch things, you could almost call the message system of Elden Ring an entirely new language in and of itself.

Well done, victory ahead!

I think that video games are an excellent way to observe human behavior under conditions which are controlled, accelerated, and completely recordable, and this is the closest that we've ever seen to an entire language growing completely from scratch. People are always the same, whether you want to call it instinct or just cyclical tendencies, but normally the formation of a new language can take incredible periods of time, hastened only by tragic events like diaspora or massive losses of cultural knowledge (research what's been happening to Gaelic as a spoken language for more info about this sort of thing, it's kind of depressing but is also important to learn about, and there's a lot of people on this site talking about it who can do the topic way more justice than I can). Even for other topics which either require great passage of time, or great tragedy in order to research (I.E. geology or epidemiology, respectively), there are a lot of simulations and predictive models which can tell us how these systems behave without actually experiencing them. Linguistics has never had this sort of thing...until now, perhaps. Obviously there won't be any academic breakthroughs based on a bunch of people online all writing "rump ahead", but it's an incredibly interesting thing to see happening for a field which is so hard to actively advance, and it could lead to actual scientific methods of generating new languages via human interaction for research purposes. Of course, there's always the sizable chance that this goes nowhere and I just wrote this insane rant because I like to type, but if nothing else, I at the very least exposed some of my mutuals to "try finger, but hole".

[mayapapaya33]

I'm about half an hour into the third episode, and I see a bunch of people in the chat saying that the Gods never explain themselves, which sure, could be a valid criticism. But they have said that destroying a God is different than replacing them via ascending because their mantel of power won't be upheld. The Matron killed/replaced/erased? the previous God of Death and took their place. It has been heavily implied/ basically outright stated that the Factorum Malleus (God Hammer) would not just be the end of the Gods, but the end of their domain which does NOT just affect said God, but also all mortals, who are their creations. The phrase "never have existed" has been thrown around a couple times. If the Gods never existed, with no one to take their place in the weave, guess what, neither has anyone on Exandria, ever. That's my read on the situation anyway. Cause and Effect: Gods create mortals, no Gods ever, no mortals ever. To use a pertinent quote, it's very Wibbly wobbly timey wimey.

They also said that there are things beyond our mortal comprehension that exist outside this world that would take the combined might of ALL the Gods to defeat. Now, that "beyond mortal comprehension" bit can come off as condescending for sure, but what if it's literally just the truth and they genuinely can't explain it to us more specifically than a general outline. Go back to the beginning of episode 1 of Downfall, we couldn't even comprehend their NAMES. They were/are impossible fractal patterns and balls of light and sensation and sound and thunder and fire. Imagine all the other things that we just physically cannot process.

Imagine trying to teach quantum physics to an ant. You like the ant, the ant is really cool, and charming, and fun to be around. You love the ant and think it's great. You're very proud of the ant's achievements. The ant has impressed you with its skills. You want to protect the ant and you also want to protect yourself. You aren't trying to be a dick. But it's still an ant. How ARE the Gods supposed to translate the untranslatable Eldridge Monstrosities that lurk beyond? The things that, were you to grasp a fraction of their reality, they would break your mind and leave you a drooling mess on the floor, clawing at your head with madness. Other than by saying; 'look, there are layers here you don't understand, and also threats that require all of us to combat. Shit's complicated, sorry.'

This is all in addition to the "the Gods are a fractured family and would rather put each other in jail than murder each other" thing. Which honestly, that's fair. If someone I loved went off the deep end and started killing innocent people, I too would rather put them in jail than murder them. And many things can be true at the same time. They can both long to be a family again AND have legitimate/strategic reason for not killing each other. Not wanting to kill your family doesn't automatically make you a liar or a bad person lol. The prime deities DID choose saving mortals over getting along at thanksgiving with the betrayers and a lot of people seem to be forgetting that. From what I can tell, it would have been super easy for them to be like, 'ah fuck it, fine. Have it your way bro. Smush the ants if it means that much to you.' But they didn't.

[crusherthedoctor]

My hot take: Eggman doesn't get enough appreciation and he doesn't need to be something else to be good

What did you expect | Strongly agree | Agree | Neutral | Disagree | Strongly disagree

Calling Eggman underappreciated might sound bizarre on the surface, because how could one say that, right? He has plenty of fans. He gets loads of fanart. He's widely recognized as an iconic video game villain. Why would anyone claim that?

But when you stop to pay close attention, it's true. It's no secret that Sonic fans who frequently toss him aside in favor of other, "cooler" villains are all too common, even nowadays. It's no secret that fans of other IPs tend to look down on him, believing that this chicken-legged individual doesn't deserve to be in the same pantheon as the likes of Bowser and Ganondorf. It's no secret that fans like to paint him as something he's not out of the belief that it's the only way to flesh him out, and that he's one-dimensional as he is, even though they're perfectly fine with the villains who take his spotlight being one-dimensional for real. It's no secret that even those officially involved with the franchise seem to disregard him, given how many times he was upstaged in increasingly humiliating ways, and the way it's been brought back with a vengeance thanks to IDW and Frontiers.

Yet, even among fans who seemingly accept him as his real unrepentant self, there's sometimes an air of... patronization surrounding his discussion. Maybe I'm looking too deeply into certain phrasing, but when he's referred to as just a cackling baddie, or saying stuff like "after so many serious stories with epic god monsters, it's back to the good old simple days where it's just silly Eggman and his dumb plans"... you get the impression that he's not genuinely respected or seen as a credible and formidable antagonist. And for what? Because he loses to the hero? So do most villains. Because he has a goofy side? Other villains across fiction have that as well, some of them being praised specifically for it, so I don't understand why it's a bad thing here. Because the Time Eater had a so-so boss fight? As if the other 3D Super Sonic fights were much better.

The strange thing about fandom hijinks are their tendency to create opposite problems at the same time. In this case, while a lot has rightly been said about layered characters being simplified one way or the other by fans who aren't willing to see the full picture, things tend to go very differently when the character doesn't behave in an "obviously" layered manner. For all the internet's obsession with analyzing every angle of a character down to the bone, they swiftly throw that out the window when it's a wholly villain or a wholly good guy. Suddenly, what's there is never enough, they have to insert their own narratives that make no sense for the character in question, and it's welcomed with open arms instead of discouraged for missing the officially established layers. So you have Eggman being secretly good deep down, and caring about Maria for some reason, while Sonic is IDW's questionable idea of flawed even though he already had flaws to work with. Meet characters halfway they say, except for these ones apparently, becuse what canonical depth could they have amirite.

But anyway, I would never seriously say that I'm the only person on the planet who understands the ins and outs with Eggman's character, as that would be a very egotistical and Ken Penders-sounding thing to say lol. I'm just a fan who wants to do him justice with my fics, nothing more. But it really does feel next to impossible to find fans who are on the same wavelength in regards to him, because the amount of times where he's been misused or reduced to Sonic's frenemy is truly exasperating. You could argue that for basically any Sonic character at this point, but this has been going on a lot longer with Eggman than it has for probably any other cast member, with the possible exception of Amy, and even then, the issue surrounding her these days is completely different.

[twothpaste]

Showing (as opposed to Telling) how much 2 characters respect & cherish & care for each other is one of my fav things to write. like a little silent gesture of support. or remembering fond stories about times they spent together. or teasing in a way that they know will prompt laughter instead of hurt feelings, implying they've learned the nuances of each other's boundaries. i love tryin to see how bigly i can convey deep affection without dropping phrases like "she cared about him" in prose or "i love you" in dialogue (except for rare & special occasions where i think it hits harder). and i'm really used to writing characters (especially siblings) who love each other simply and obviously. so i get to weave in lots of sappy little moments like this. it's fun, and sweet, and i like it :'D

porky & agnes are complicated because the unconditional familial love is there - it's there despite them both knowing better and it hurts like hell - but there's so many layers of strain and distance and trauma between them that neither can say so. they can't let themselves think it, so i have to tiptoe carefully around it in the prose. they can hardly even show it, except just by the mere fact they chose to be present with each other at all. throughout their conversation they both make lots of little sacrifices & concessions for the other's sake, and it's kind of up in the air whether these are strategic ploys to keep things civil, or expressions of genuine care. they're holding this tense unspoken truce that whispers "i care about you whether i want to or not. we suffered a lot together. i understand why you've done the things you've done. you and i did deserve better." but that love is not enough to save them - least of all porky - on its own. and they both know it. even though by now they know how to maintain surface level courtesy like grownups, there's a thick air of mistrust and guilt and pity hanging over the whole thing.......

(and on top of all that, porky's still just inherently an asshole. so he has to strain against his bad impulses & insecurities constantly in order to maintain the conversation. which is probably the effort that best shows how much he cares about his sister - hell, it's almost selfless! that's a huge deal for him!! but it doesn't really look like love or kindness, cuz he's so gnashed up and bitter on the inside 🥲)

[the-nosy-neighbor]

History of the Stickers Page

In the interest of finding more information about what is going on with this puzzle, I went and checked the archived versions of the Stickers page.

A bit of this is repeated from when I was writing the other post on solving the puzzle.

I was looking at the Halloween update once again.  Based on information from Nightmind’s stream about it, they verified that the looky loo page in the beginning is a code.  It appears to be a directional code that uses the sticker page as a guide.  They were unable to finalize decoding it.  There is some confusion as to what it means, what direction to move in and what the origin is.  In the news portion of the update, it says that they are starting with a musical monster so that makes sense, and on the sticker page it states:  “remember, there’s no place like Home, neighbor!” 

In order to understand a little bit better what is going on with the stickers, I decided to hit the internet archive:

Jan 13, 2023

This is July 23 of 2023.  

I looked at it and thought, normal, but wait!  Barnaby is missing.  Sometimes on the archive layered items are left off, but I don’t think it would have been the only layered item.  

From November 2023:

He’s back, and they all have new outfits.

This is from February of 2024.  

This is Wally’s answer from the small update.  I noticed recently while looking at this that he has included quotes around OK, like the prompt has.  He didn’t include the period.  He has also made himself a little house where he and home are hanging out.  He also has put an eye in a home.  Based on this, I am wondering if there are other shapes in there or if he just threw the extras down to the bottom.  There are multiples of each banner and sticker. All of the character banners are on “I.”  There is a Wally banner at the top on his face, his seems to be the only one with some that have just his face, not I.  But up there at the top is Wally and his good buddy Barnaby.  Notable is that this page is titled “spread the good word,” which connects to our theories about religion.  

In reviewing the notes again, I wanted to focus on phrasing. This text about starting with Julie has to be a really strong clue. They are talking about the record sets and how they are in terrible shape, “we thought we would organize these findings by each of the neighbors.  After all, every neighbor is important and we want our favorite puppets to shine as brightly as they did so many years ago.  A musical monster seems like the perfect start. Keep an eye open and have a Happy Halloween.  Don’t forget to wave down below.”  

Side note:  I thought the “down below” bit was a clue in the past, but it might be just a Halloween thing.  

So, there are a few potential hints there:

“Shine as brightly” could be a reference to Sally

“Musical monster seems like the perfect start” considered to be a hint to begin with Julie.  This makes me think of some stuff released on ko-fi before the update that is not found on the site at this point.  It was related to music.  

But this–”keep an eye open”; I thought wait–Julie is keeping an eye open.

For more info on who is staring at who, see my previous post about Looky-Loo.

Also, and this isn’t chronological, but nowhere in this seemed to make sense so far, (forgive me if I repeat myself from my last post) but I noticed that on the title page, the biggest black smear is on the title page where you would see the author’s name.  I’m a little unsure if Wally is responsible for the black stuff.  We’ve seen him paint over the page with Julie’s family, and use bright colors, but there is also black.  I have theorized in the past that the black stuff is from the transfer from their reality to ours, but there are also the tendrils to deal with.  I assume escaping.  I wonder if we should be looking for more black stuff in the media from the show itself.  Back to the title page.  I have attempted to lighten this photo, and it surprisingly worked really well.  

So it looks like there isn’t an author’s name to begin with, but maybe they were all counting on me to not lighten it.  Another option I thought it might be is a character (still looking for Sunny), but you can see there isn’t a character there.  

I found a parallel in between the experiences of both Eddie and Poppy.  They both pull the Steve Martin “all I need is this…:” (from The Jerk)

Eddie: (He lets out a heavy sigh as he finally relaxes.) Maybe this is what I needed… A loveseat and my single pea on a plate... Yeah… Yeah! I’m finer than a frog’s hair split four ways!  

POPPY: [Sighs]…What a relief, I’m not sure I could have done another show. Who knows what she would have had me done that time. All I need is my peace of mind. Oh and my um- Where is my lantern-

[Doorbell chime plays. Scratching on wood.]

POPPY: Ah- There you are, you beauty… Allow me to light you.

POPPY: [Sighs] Everything I need. My sewing needles, my lantern… And my peace of mind…

And I just have to point out, she had crochet needles earlier.  She is holding crochet needles in the picture.  I’m not sure that it is relevant, but I figure it could be a clue to things going wrong. 

[vidavalor]

Hey! Sorry if I'm missing something, but I've had the phrase "unexpected quarter" rolling around in my head for a while and I was thinking about "quarter" as a term for "shelter" or "mercy," and how Aziraphale wasn't at all expecting to be out here giving Gabriel shelter and mercy, but he is, and wondering whether that could be foreshadowing - maybe Gabriel will wind up returning the favor somehow. Do you think there's anything to that, or do you think I'm looking at the wrong definition of the word?

Hi @chaoticlivi! Hot chocolate for your Gabriel-themed Ask. *adds marshmallows* 💕 You and me are on the same page with this one and I'll add to your thoughts. (*does happy dance over other people looking at the words* lol)

Quarter is actually the word that The Voice of God uses as an example in Her opening monologue to teach us to do exactly what you're doing-- to look for multiple definitions of words being used. You're doing exactly what the show is suggesting we do, imo.

When The Voice of God opens up the series, She first discusses theories on when the universe was created, which is both for language benefit and also just to help establish that the Earth is only a little over 6,000 years old in the GO universe. When She gets to the bit about the almost-correct theory, She says that it was off by "almost a quarter of an hour," right? Within the same monologue, She then later reads from the horoscope about help coming from "an unexpected quarter." We now have, in a monologue full of language instruction, the same word used twice, in two different ways, and there are a lot of other examples of things like this. It foreshadows that we will see this a lot and tells us to be on the lookout for it.

I wrote a thing about other ways quarter has been used and about how it's pointing towards Gabriel that I'll link down below if you want to check it out but I want to add this into your thoughts because I totally think that Gabriel will be lending shelter and understanding in S3 to Aziraphale.

If Crowley can walk into Heaven and still open up highly classified files and if, as we've seen in the story, he and Aziraphale discovered long ago that angels can do what the demons can and that that the fallen angels still have their old powers and Heaven is lying to them, then they are now, as of the end of S2, in a position to tell other angels and demons this. Crowley already basically told Muriel when he opened the file in front of them. This would then mean that Ol' Purple Eyes is still, in terms of power, The Supreme Archangel of Heaven. Overthrow The Metatron and the being with the most individual power is Gabriel (who also, honestly, seems like a being about ready to democratize the fuck out of that situation lol.)

In 1.01, The Voice of God re-introduces us to Crowley & Aziraphale together with a four-sentence intro to the park scene that is full of language details, some of which have actually gotten more meaning since S2. Just like how Crowley's joke in the scene of "not delivered-delivered-- just handed it over" about delivering Adam got even funnier after S2 gave us Bildad the Shuite, there are a couple of things in God's monologue in the same scene that make more sense after S2 and much of it has multiple meanings that worked before S2 and still work after it. The first sentence has a line that is very relevant to S1 and overall but has another, new layer after S2, and which goes with our ideas for S3:

"Everyone knows that the best place for a clandestine meeting in London is-- and always has been-- St. James' Park."

One of the many meanings of clandestine in the sentence is what you get when you break the word up: clan destined. A clan isn't just an extended family-- though, it can be-- but it can also just describe a group of people with specific things in common. One definition of park is also just an area devoted to a specific purpose (like an industrial park.) With that in mind, a line that sets up understanding of plot in S1 is also then prophetic for the end of the series as well because the best place for a clan destined meeting in London is-- and always has been-- St. James Park and, well...