#lore-ish

[transformers-bold-bright-brisk]

Prince’s First Day

Pt. 2 / Pt. 1: A Stern Talking To

Tagging @sonia-aquamarineson @asmito @novafire-is-thinking @bdwarrior1

Summary: Basically Prince and Predaking having an argument about Prince needing to attend RBA(Rescue Bots Academy).

Preview: Prince is what can be referred to as a “spoiled brat”. Of course they weren’t always like that. In fact, he used to be polite, just on the verge of well behaved… for a hyper newborn dragon, that is.

Apparently the all powerful Predaking didn’t know any better and never exactly said ‘no’ all that much when raising Prince. If you catch my drift? Not to mention letting them get away with pretty much anything—heck—he could probably get away with murder if they wanted to.

With Predaking having to deal with the backlash of his people not being all too happy with his protégé’s behavior; he decides to send them to RBA to where he has a trusted friend who’s teaching there. To help Prince take a break from the royal life and to realign their misguidedness.

May Primus help whose poor spark is entrusted with the feral beast.

— — —

Once upon a time…there was a young prince, who lived in a far far away kingdom. A land of Predacons. Voracious creatures who roamed an entire planet known as The Predacon Kingdom. The Predacon Kingdom is ruled by their terrifying yet benevolent king—Predaking. Also known as mentor to their majesty Prince, of The Predacon Kingdom. No, not as in a spawn of the king; their literal name is ‘Prince’.

Their relationship is not simply bound by the energon flowing through their veins. The bond between the two cannot be described as nothing more than an apprenticeship. At least, in the beginning it was…

CLATTER!

Now they have begun to have a closer bond…

SLAM!

Such as a bond between a parent and child…

CRASH!

Loud noises have disrupted the staff within the castle, with everyone turning their heads to triangulate where noise came from. Echoing off the walls and down the corridors, another loud tumbling of what seems to be a gargantuan sized chair. On top of the chair was a small two headed metallic dragon, with sharp yellow claws, a protoform as dark as graphite, and big orange wings emanating a neon glow. The little dragon suddenly had light shining through one head’s neck to its jaw, which immediately shot a large coordinated blast of fire at its target.

“I’m not going to some stupid school on some stupid planet- a billion lightyears away!” Prince shouted. “And you can’t make me!” The two headed dragon jumped into the air and perched himself on a jagged beam connected to the large dome ceiling.

“You will attend the academy, whether you like it or not—child!” Retorted the grand dragon Predaking. An enormous rough-scaled mechanical beast, with big sharp claws and armor dark as obsidian. His body is lined with alien magma shining through his seams and crevices. Most of all, his body takes up a majority of the room as he has been chasing his protege all over the castle. Trying his hardest to be reasonable, though it seems as if nothing would be able to get Prince to listen.

“Why are you trying to make this difficult for me? Attending the academy is your “punishment” for your recent inappropriate behavior!”

“Why? Why?! Are you kidding me?! You're sending me off to get—to get domesticated!”

“For the last time! Learning manners and proper discipline, for your sake and others, isn't as cruel as surrendering your free will! And it's not as if this was my only choice-”

Just as Predaking was about to finish his statement, Prince shot a stream of fire at their mentor’s face; and they took off thinking he was distracted. Leaping off the beam and heading down the nearest corridor. But he didn't have enough time to realize how unfazed Predaking was with his attack.

As Prince was in midair, giant talons suddenly wrapped around him—restraining the little dragon. “Let go, you jerk!” Exclaimed Prince, as he spat another blast of fire at Predaking’s muzzle.

Predaking shook off the flames and replied sternly, “No—I will not tolerate your immature behavior any longer. You’re going to do as I say, and you will do it even if I have to force you through that portal myself.” Prince still continued to struggle in his mentor’s grasp.

Whatever Predaking said went through one audial and out the other. They were putting up one heck of a fight against his opponent, even though he knew deep down it was pointless. But he wasn’t one to back down from a fight so easily.

— — —

[ask-insomniac-cuphead]

Hey cup, do you like cookies?

*Shows giant box full of different kinds of cookies*

Take them! I'm sure you'll find your favorite cookies =]

“thank you!! my favorite is definitely oatmeal raisin, but i pick the raisins out”

“y’know, mugsy is the one who-”

“nevermind..”

- mod 🦠

[juniper-clan]

Moon 14: Birth of Venus

(AKA the twins!)

PREVIOUS l NEXT

[greelin]

i can’t look at the wiggles at all without remembering my aunt used to have an insane crush on one of them. like she was genuinely infatuated. with a wiggle

[radarchives]

pov: you're a spoiled prince but then daddy randomly decides that tomb is life

[loregoddess]

some more thoughts I had while reviewing a few banters, that I can't quite fit into the analysis I'm currently writing...

In the "New Paper Plays" banter between Temenos, Agnea, Castti, and Partitio, Temenos mentions that he wrote and illustrated his paper plays himself, noting that he specifically tailored them to be appealing to children. This got me wondering about all the "mistakes" he makes while reading these plays to children, which I've wondered about a lot because Temenos is clearly very familiar with all the scriptures (to the point where he can share certain stories at a moments notice when he feels they're fitting for the situation), so it seems strange that he would mess up the details.

And then it hit me--Temenos is probably making the mistakes on purpose. This would achieve three things: 1) It allows the children to have fun learning the scriptures because they can laugh and correct Temenos on the details he messed up, 2) It helps the children to build their confidence because they feel smart when correcting him and aren't afraid to speak up and correct him, and 3) It teaches the children not to blindly rely on and trust others for things they either know to be true or could otherwise investigate and learn the truth themselves, even when (or especially when) the information comes from someone who should "know what is correct"--which is the core of Temenos's approach to his faith. The third point I feel is what Temenos is specifically trying to get at with his mistakes, since he is an "authority" figure, and if the children aren't afraid to stand up and correct him, then they may become adults who likewise aren't afraid to question and investigate things for themselves.

It's rather clever really, since Temenos isn't outright saying "hey, you should doubt things that are presented to you as true and told not to question". Instead, he's modelling the actual actions for the kids by presenting them with something they know isn't correct from someone who should "know best", and allowing them to question and correct him.

It's a very "Temenos" approach to teaching the scriptures, and considering that doubt and questioning and coming to one's own conclusions can be a form of faith, it isn't even antithetical to his role as a cleric. It's a really neat bit of characterization that I didn't even notice until I realized that Temenos clearly put a lot of thought into how his plays were constructed, and that his purposeful and careful thought process is central to a lot of his characterization, so of course the "mistakes" he makes while reciting the plays would be thought-out and purposeful as well.

[ollylotl]

a dream of home

[bunnymedley]

im looking for any resource packs that change how villagers look cus im just not rly into having weird human-like mobs in minecraft personally and would prefer something different, and unfortunately it seems like theres not many options but theres one that turns villagers into cockroaches?? and i kinda like this one?? like its kinda creepy and it doesnt have fresh animations sadly but they look rly cool and unique

[y-rhywbeth2]

Upon reaching the age of majority (15 years)

I knew I wasn't making it up! I admittedly saw that first in a different source that I still can't find, but there it is again: the age of majority in human society on Toril is 15 years old (or around). Welcome to adulthood; if you're of a traditional Calishite family you now have five years to get a decent job, get your own household, get married and give us grandchildren or you're a stain on the family's reputation.

This is presumably why Ulder was too comfortable kicking Wyll out (17 is totally a responsible adult! Never mind that jumping to conclusions and exiling him without hearing his side of the story would've been terrible at any age and is a reflection on Ulder's shitty personality problems...), why Karlach being hired as a body guard as (presumably) a teen isn't seen as overly weird, and 15-ish is also the age at which Sceleritas would announce his presence to Durge - time for your religious indoctrination, my liege!

[incorrectskyrimquotes]

im soooo fucking normal about odahviing. I'm so normal ab the fact that he's the only other dragon who likes you, who is your friend, who swears himself to you. And Paarthurnax was mostly just doing what he had to, and had to overcome his evil nature through great effort.

But it doesn't take that much effort for Odahviing. You trap him and negotiate with him, and he suddenly views mortals as worthwhile. Or, at least, he views you as worthwhile.

[tunapesto]

I wanna know more about you

[tiredsmashbros]

"happy birthday, bluejay."

2k words ; tsari fanfic

"gAH!" tari yelped as she lost her grip on the wooden plates nailed to the tree. fear of adrenaline rushed inside her veins, glancing a peek below her, acknowledging the height and distance above from the ground. she didn't have a fear of heights, yet it still was an alarming issue to imagine in her mind what could happen if she were to fall.

"w-wOaH! bj, grab my hand!" tsb directed extending his arm out, using his stretchable ability to allow tari a more secure reach. "come on!" he exclaimed, assisting her up until she was finally standing on the wooden surface base marked on their destination. "heh, trying to fall again now are we?" the man chuckled in hopes of lightening the mood, referencing an inside-joke recall based on their first meeting, "but on your birthday? what kind of a crazy bird are you!"

tari giggled, relief dominating over her after finally arriving at the top of tsb's home. "i'm not used to climbing up!" she began, taking a break to catch her breath, "why'd you have to live up so high? it's challenging to come to visit you!" the bluejay spoke glancing her eyes to take in the view as she recovered. she could see the showgrounds perfectly where she stood, watching her friends play in the grass field, and even a clear view of smg3's coffee and bombs. it was just a marvelous view, pondering why she hadn't thought to come here more often. with the wind brushing onto her face, and the shade provided by the tree's leaves to guard from the sun it was evermore peaceful and quiet. her worries gone within an instant, it was relaxing to say.

"then i suppose you'll have to come by more often to see silly o'l me, huh?" tsb responded, opening the entrance door for tari to enter. "birthday girl first~" tsb flirted, forming an exaggerated body gesture for her to enter in. tari shyly smiled and nodded, making her way inside the blue and yellow man's humble abode.

as if it was her first, tari couldn't ever grasp how peculiar and unique tsb's home was structured. the outer appearance appearing as a regular small treehouse built from wood and nails. yet the interior, god the interior was like an entirely whole other world. seemingly cartoonishly larger, covered in bright light blue walls, white clouds painted onto them. additionally, small rainbows scattered around. a giant painted sun on the ceiling, accompanied by multiple small paper-shaped stars assisted with tape dangled down from right above. high enough where her standing wouldn't bother it, but not so high where you couldn't acknowledge them. the area was furniture filled with shelves of unused big and small canvases, all sorts of art materials neatly placed and organized, with the man's silly personality of individually colored beanbags to sit on, and nets filled with all kinds of plushies and toys. it felt like a dream house for an art child really. dried used paint splattered about here and there on the walls and floor adding color to the bright white room.

"still breathtaking for you, birdy? i thought it would still be boring even doing some minor edits here and there." tsb scratched the back of his neck in embarrassment noticing tari's positive expressive expression as she glanced the place up and down, side to side.

"are you kidding? how could i not be? any normal person would find this breathtaking! your place is an absolute dream house, tsb! it's bright, cozy, colorful, and a playground of endless creative creation! i can't get over how you can manage to create this all yourself! very impressive!" tari exclaimed, as her smile stretched up to her cheeks, really absorbing and giving a twirl around the space. excitement fueled her as he bounced about exploring the other familiar areas and all of its satisfying gleam of bright colors. it felt like she truly was up in the clouds or a figment of what she felt was a physical imagination of heaven.

tsb could only watch and giggle from the side. his heart was pounding in glee seeing the bluejay prance about in joy, admiring the work of art he's created for himself to call home. he felt an over beamed of satisfied joy he endlessly craved being appreciated. especially from her. a compliment from anyone would've still been appreciated of course, yet hearing those words coming from her felt like he could die at any moment. and he wouldn't mind.

after some time of tari exploring the area admiring all the nooks and crannies of tsb's dream-like treehouse, tsb finally directed tari to his bedroom. a place he... coming to the realization he had never shown her before up until now. the first time smg4 interrupted them cutting their time short, and other visits were with other guests visiting to do arts and crafts or play board games. yet this was the first since her first visit it was just the two of them. tsb grew nervously anxious as he tiled the sun-shaped knob of his door, allowing entry to the girl he admired most. it was just his room and he truthfully had nothing to hide, yet it was still nerve-racking for him, pondering about her opinion.

"t-this is my room-" before tsb could even continue to create a proper introductory description, tari jolted up in joy, squealing in glee rushing inside to admire the new room, eager to explore. it had the same vibe and aesthetic as the main entrance room, the entire treehouse quite frankly, yet this room specifically was more in the theme of tsb's main colors. yellow and blue! additionally, instead of the walls being painted or scattered with paint, they were filled with drawings drawn on paper of different mediums taped onto the wall.

entering the room revealed tsb's bed, filled with drawings of rainbows and clouds above as seen the theme all over the place. the bed is cuffed below of soft felted cloud-shape border with a uniquely colored placed rainbow for a bed frame. to the right side of the wall was a large window viewing of the sky, and next to it a tall dresser. accompanied by the wall where the door was placed, was filled with drawings she could recognize were drawn from her friends. boopkins, luigi, heck even some dumb doodles from smg3 she recalled tsb telling the tale of them hanging out one night.

the last wall to the left side of the room erupted with colors of different shades of green and brown. taken aback coming to the realization tsb's home lacked the color green almost entirely, let alone any color of brown other than the "disguise" from the exterior. illustrations of trees, squirrels, and small rodents, and what she could make out looked like a television. causing a shiver down her spine being reminded of mr. puzzles, yet these looked nothing like him. furthermore, they looked the same tv of a design with a nice chestnut brown with a cyan-like blue screen. some with hearts, some crossed out even wrinkled, and others... tari stared at it in confusion. she assumed it was an interesting relation due to tsb heavy interest in cartoon shows, he would watch several frequently with mario. however, something inside her told her it meant something else. as if it linked to-

"soooo what do you think, bluejay?" tsb queried, interrupting tari's thoughts. to the bluejay's surprise, he was resting on his bed in a crisscross position with his hands questionably behind his back slightly awkwardly.

"oh! i-it's awesome!" she quickly responded, trying to rid herself pondering over the mystery of this "tv". "i don't recall you ever showing me your room before. what gives! trying to hide more secrets?" she confidently spoke back, removing any possible suspicion. taking a seat next the the cartoony man.

"noo, of course not! just something i suppose i hadn't had the time to show you till now." tari rolled her eyes playfully trying to seem hurtful by his response. tsb giggled.

suddenly, he began to clear his throat, straightening his back, and shifting closer to tari with a slight struggle refusing to use his hands for support. however, fear rose inside as he wondered if he was too close to the bluejay, but she didn't seem bothered and instead mimicked his actions. receiving another giggle from the man feeling his face grow hot. "i uh," tsb began, "i have a gift for you! um..." tsb slowly unhidden his hands to reveal a bird-like figure in his palms. tari began to decipher it being a hand-crafted bluejay figure with a neatly small bowtie around its neck. yet she was utterly confused and speechless, it allowed tsb to continue his monologue. "i'm... not very good at making something supposedly grand like parties or cakes, for someone's orbit around the sun, but i do like handcrafting things for people i... um... admire most." tsb confident outward speech turned to stutters and quiet speech seemingly looking down as he could feel his hands sweat under his golden gloves. "i hope you like this gift-"

"of course i do!~" tari finally bursted into squeals having her hands turn to fists positioned up to her face in an attempt to hide her overly joyous smile. shifting her position to admire the beautifully hand-crafted bluejay more up-close. "it's so cute!~" she squealed once more feeling like she could feel herself almost cry from overstimulated happiness. "how did you use to make it?" she queried swiftly, staring at tsb's shades, eyes wide with sparks of adoration.

tsb only stuttered to find the words, his face growing hotter by the second hearing the beats of his pounding heart inside his ears. "i-i used cardboard to create the base of the shape... and um gluing layers of newspaper to give some texture... a-after painting it with acrylic- nO gouache a-a-and reusing some old thick ribbon i had in my scrapes to gave it a bow!" swiftly adding in the end, "y-you know! because it's a gift! cause it you're birthday! a-and purple to match your eyes! b-because your eyes are purple! oH and this is a bluejay, not a duck i-i-i-im not sure if that was obvious um-"

"it's perfect.~" tari softly interjected, cupping tsb's hands and lowering them down from their chests. "it's adorable of you think of me like that. i've never received a gift like this before... it exactly represents me and considering the thoughts you had i seriously appreciate the effort you put in. it's," tari couldn't help but giggle.

before tsb could muster to search for words to say thank you, tari kissed tsb on the cheek. "it's really cute. thank you.~" shots of physical cloud of air flew out of tsb's ears, face even red than the color red itself, stunned and completely flustered he sat there frozen. tari once again giggled seeing the clouds of smoke coming out of their ears like a real-life cartoon, yearning to see what more of a reaction she can get. she was always fascinated by tsb's strange cartoonish nature she just simply adored him more and more. nothing about him could ever bore her. 

just if by instinct, she removed her hands from tsb and reached out to remove tsb shades. settling it down by the bed, gazing admirably into his brown eyes as they were shifting animatedly to pink hearts back and forth. "t-tari-" tsb started, but was unfortunately cut off by someone outside. turning his eyes into pupils with red outlines from surprise.

"tari!" a familiar voice called, "TARI!" smg4 called again louder.

"smg4 must have the party essentials ready. we should go till he gets impatient hehe!" tari stood up from the bed grabbing the bluejay gift with one hand while the other grabs for the cartoon man's glove. 

"y-yeah..." he replied, still stunned by what happened. eventually after a soft tug from tari, he regained his senses and threw back his shades on. springing off the bed and following tari out of his room. 

"you think there'll be cake left after mario gets to it first?" tsb asked.

tari chuckled, "i doubt it." 

END

[anghraine]

Hi! Can you explain what really the power of foresight was with Faramir? I read the books earlier this year and I don't really quite understand it. He could predict the future? Like he would see it in his dreams? But how did he found out from Gollum that he was taking frodo and sam to cirith ungol and that he had committed murder before?

No problem, it's one of my favorite topics!

The concise explanation: I think Faramir's foresight/aftersight in terms of visions is a largely separate "power" from his ability to bring his strength of mind and will to bear on other people and animals, and to resist outside influence. The visions seem more a matter of broad sensitivity, something Faramir doesn't appear to have much if any control over. The second power is (in our terms) essentially a form of direct telepathy, limited in some ways but still very powerful, and I think this second ability is what Faramir is using with Gollum.

The really long version:

In my opinion, Faramir (or Denethor, Aragorn, etc) doesn't necessarily read thoughts like a book, particularly not with a mind as resistant as Gollum's. Faramir describes Gollum's mind in particular as dark and closed, it seems unusually so—

"There are locked doors and closed windows in your mind, and dark rooms behind them," said Faramir.

Still, Gollum is unable to entirely block Faramir's abilities. In LOTR, it does not seem that Gollum can fully block powerful mental abilities such as Faramir's, though his toughness and hostility does limit what Faramir can see. (Unfinished Tales, incidentally, suggests iirc that Denethor's combination of "great mental powers" and his right to use the Anor-stone allowed him to telepathically get the better of Saruman through their palantíri, a similar but greater feat.) I imagine that this is roughly similar to, but scaled down from, Galadriel's telepathic inquiries of even someone as reluctant to have her in his mind as Boromir, given that Faramir is able to still see some things in Gollum's mind, if with more difficulty than usual.

(WRT Boromir ... ngl, if I was the human buffer between Denethor and Faramir, I would also not be thrilled about sudden telepathic intrusions from basically anyone, much less someone I had little reason to trust.)

Disclaimer: a few years after LOTR's publication, Tolkien tried to systematize how this vague mystical telepathy stuff really works. One idea he had among many, iirc, was that no unwilling person's mind could be "read" the ways that Gollum's is throughout LOTR. IMO that can't really be reconciled w/ numerous significant interactions in LOTR where resistance to mental intrusion or domination is clearly variable between individuals and affected by personal qualities like strength of will, basic resilience, the effort put into opposition, supernatural powers, etc. And these attempts at resistance are unsuccessful or only partially successful on many occasions in LOTR (the Mouth of Sauron, for one example, is a Númenórean sorcerer in the book who can't really contend with Aragorn on a telepathic level). So I, personally, tend to avoid using the terminology and rationales from that later systematized explanation when discussing LOTR. And in general, I think Tolkien's later attempts to convert the mystical, mysterious wonder of Middle-earth into something more "hard magic" or even scientific was a failed idea on a par with Teleporno. Others differ!

In any case, when Gollum "unwillingly" looks at Faramir while being questioned, the creepy light drains from his eyes and he shrinks back while Faramir concludes he's being honest on that specific occasion. Gollum experiences physical pain when he does try to lie to Faramir—

"It is called Cirith Ungol." Gollum hissed sharply and began muttering to himself. "Is not that its name?" said Faramir turning to him. "No!" said Gollum, and then he squealed, as if something had stabbed him.

I don't think this is a deliberate punishment from Faramir—that wouldn't be like him at all—and I don't think it's the Ring, but simply a natural consequence of what Faramir is. Later, Gandalf says of Faramir's father:

"He can perceive, if he bends his will thither, much of what is passing in the minds of men ... It is difficult to deceive him, and dangerous to try."

So, IMO, Faramir's quick realization that Gollum is a murderer doesn't come from any vision of the future or past involving Gollum—that is, it's not a deduction from some event he's seen. Faramir does not literally foresee Gollum's trick at Cirith Ungol. His warning would be more specific in that case, I think. What he sees seems to be less detailed but more direct and, well, mystical. Faramir likely doesn't know who exactly Gollum murdered or why or what any of the circumstances were. Rather, Gollum's murderousness and malice are visible conditions of his soul to Faramir's sight. Faramir doesn't foresee the particulars of Gollum's betrayal—but he can see in Gollum's mind that he is keeping something back. Faramir says of Gollum:

"I do not think you are holden to go to Cirith Ungol, of which he has told you less than he knows. That much I perceived clearly in his mind."

Meanwhile, in a letter written shortly before the publication of LOTR, Tolkien said of Faramir's ancestors:

They became thus in appearance, and even in powers of mind, hardly distinguishable from the Elves

So these abilities aren't that strange in that context. Faramir by chance (or "chance") is, like his father, almost purely an ancient Númenórean type despite living millennia after the destruction of Númenor (that destruction is the main reason "Númenóreanness" is fading throughout the age Faramir lives in). Even less ultra-Númenórean members of Denethor's family are still consistently inheriting characteristics from their distant ancestor Elros, Elrond's brother, while Faramir and Denethor independently strike Sam and Pippin as peculiarly akin to Gandalf, a literal Maia like their ancestress Melian:

“Ah well, sir,” said Sam, “you [Faramir] said my master had an elvish air; and that was good and true. But I can say this: you have an air too, sir, that reminds me of, of—well, Gandalf, of wizards.”

He [Denethor] turned his dark eyes on Gandalf, and now Pippin saw a likeness between the two, and he felt the strain between them, almost as if he saw a line of smouldering fire drawn from eye to eye, that might suddenly burst into flame.

Meanwhile, Faramir's mother's family is believed to be part Elvish, a belief immediately confirmed when Legolas meets Faramir's maternal uncle:

At length they came to the Prince Imrahil, and Legolas looked at him and bowed low; for he saw that here indeed was one who had elven-blood in his veins. "Hail, lord!" he [Legolas] said. "It is long since the people of Nimrodel left the woodlands of Lórien, and yet still one may see that not all sailed from Amroth’s haven west over water."

In addition to that, Faramir's men believe he's under some specific personal blessing or charm as well as the Númenórean/Elvish/Maia throwback qualities. It's also mentioned by different groups of soldiers that Faramir can exercise some power of command over animals as well as people. Beregond describes Faramir getting his horse to run towards five Nazgûl in real time:

"They will make the Gate. No! the horses are running mad. Look! the men are thrown; they are running on foot. No, one is still up, but he rides back to the others. That will be the Captain [Faramir]: he can master both beasts and men."

Then, during the later retreat of Faramir's men across the Pelennor:

At last, less than a mile from the City, a more ordered mass of men came into view, marching not running, still holding together. The watchers held their breath. "Faramir must be there," they said. "He can govern man and beast."

Tolkien said of the ancient Númenóreans:

But nearly all women could ride horses, treating them honourably, and housing them more nobly than any other of their domestic animals. The stables of a great man were often as large and as fair to look upon as his own house. Both men and women rode horses for pleasure … and in ceremony of state both men and women of rank, even queens, would ride, on horseback amid their escorts or retinues … The Númenóreans trained their horses to hear and understand calls (by voice or whistling) from great distances; and also, where there was great love between men or women and their favorite steeds, they could (or so it is said in ancient tales) summon them at need by their thought alone. So it was also with their dogs.

Likely the same Númenórean abilities were used for evil by Queen Berúthiel against her cats. In an interview with Daphne Castell, Tolkien said:

She [Berúthiel] was one of these people who loathe cats, but cats will jump on them and follow them about—you know how sometimes they pursue people who hate them? I have a friend like that. I’m afraid she took to torturing them for amusement, but she kept some and used them—trained them to go on evil errands by night, to spy on her enemies or terrify them.

The more formal version of the Berúthiel lore recurs in Unfinished Tales:

She had nine black cats and one white, her slaves, with whom she conversed, or read their memories, setting them to discover all the dark secrets of Gondor, so that she knew those things "that men wish most to keep hidden," setting the white cat to spy upon the black, and tormenting them.

Faramir, by contrast, has a strong aversion to harming/killing animals for any reason other than genuine need, but apparently quite similar basic abilities. He typically uses these abilities to try to compassionately understand other people or gather necessary information, rather than for domination or provoking fear. Even so, Faramir does seem to use his mental powers pretty much all the time with no attempt to conceal what he's doing—he says some pretty outlandish things to Frodo and Sam as if they're very ordinary, but it doesn't seem that most people he knows can do all these things. This stuff is ordinary to him because it flows out of his fundamental being, not because it's common.

It's not clear how much fine control he has, interestingly. This is more headcanon perhaps, but I don't feel like it's completely under his control, even while it's much more controlled than things like Faramir's vision of Boromir's funeral boat, his frequent, repeated dreams of Númenor's destruction, the Ring riddle dream he received multiple times, or even his suspiciously specific "guess" of what passed between Galadriel and Boromir in Lothlórien. Yet his more everyday mental powers do seem to involve some measure of deliberate effort in a lot of the instances we see, given the differing degrees of difficulty and strain we see with the powers he and Denethor exhibit more frequently and consistently.

This is is also interesting wrt Éowyn, because Tolkien describes Faramir's perception of her as "clear sight" (which I suspect is just Tolkien's preferred parlance for "clairvoyance"). Faramir perceives a lot more of what's going on with Éowyn than I think he had materially observable evidence for—but does not see everything that's going on with her by any means. He seems to understand basically everything about her feelings for Aragorn, more than Éowyn herself does, but does not know if she loves him [Faramir].

I'm guessing that it's more difficult to "see" this way when it's directly personal (one of the tragedies of his and Denethor's relationship is that their shared mental powers do not enable either to realize how much they love each other). But it also doesn't seem like he's trying to overcome Éowyn's mental resistance the way he was with Gollum, and possibly Frodo and Sam—he does handle it a bit differently when it's not a matter of critical military urgency. With Éowyn, he sees what his abilities make clear to him, is interested enough to seek out Merry (and also perceive more than Merry says, because Faramir has never been a normal person one day in his life) but doesn't seem to really push either of them.

So I tend to imagine that with someone like Faramir, Denethor, Aragorn etc, we're usually seeing a relatively passive, natural form of low-grade telepathy that simply derives from their fundamental nature and personalities (as we see in Faramir with Éowyn, possibly Faramir with Aragorn). That can be kicked up to more powerful, forceful telepathy via active exertion of the will (as described by Gandalf wrt Denethor's ability to "bend[] his will thither" to see what passes in others' minds, and seen with Faramir vs Gollum, Aragorn vs the Mouth of Sauron, more subtly Faramir vs Denethor). At a high point of strain this can be done very aggressively or defensively (Denethor vs Gandalf, Denethor vs Saruman, Denethor vs Sauron seriously is there a Maia that man won't fight, Faramir vs the Black Breath given his completely unique symptoms that Aragorn attributes to his "staunch will", possibly Aragorn vs the Black Breath in a healing capacity...).

Anyway, I hope these massive walls of text are helpful or interesting! Thanks for the ask :)

[localcanadiancryptid22]

GUYS IM SO NORMAL ABOUT GRAVITY FALLS RN IM SO NORMAL IM SO NORMAL GUYS IM TOTALLY NOT THINKING ABOUT THE NEW LORE EVERY WAKING MOMENT. I CAN BE TRUSTED TO NOT MAKE A BAJILLION FANFICS ABOUT THE NEW LORE. TRUST ME GUYS.

Lowkey how i feel rn ^^^^

[skyward-floored]

He is furious.

Volga storms into Cia’s lair, shoving monsters and minions out of his way as his gut burns with rage. His mind is focused on only one thing, and nobody dares try and stop him as he approaches the sorceress. Cia is reclining idly on a chair as he enters, but Volga is unconcerned with whatever she’s doing, striding to her side as his chest heaves with anger.

“Oh Volga, I didn’t expect you back yet,” Cia hums, sounding only mildly interested. “Was your mission a success?”

Volga glares at her.

“You knew he was my son.”

Cia slowly blinks, and she flicks her gaze up, red eyes unreadable.

“Who?”

Volga slams his spear into the floor, a snarl escaping his lips. “The Hero. He is my son. And you did not see fit to divulge this information to me.”

“Oh that,” Cia hums, resting a hand on her staff, almost casually. “It never came up.”

“He claims you told him,” Volga hisses, feeling the urge to shift into his dragon form and demand answers. “Weeks ago. You saw it fit to inform him, and yet kept this information a secret from me?”

Cia has the audacity to laugh.

“It changes nothing,” she says with a wave of her hand, meeting his gaze. “I knew it would serve only as a distraction to our goals. That is why I informed him, and not you— it now consumes his thoughts, and the Sheikah leader’s as well. Their minds are filled with distractions, which makes them more susceptible to mistakes.”

She strokes a hand along the length of her staff, and her eyes flash.

“And Link is the Hero, and therefore mine. His relation to you is of no concern.”

She waves her hand in a clear dismissal, and turns back to whatever it was she was doing before.

Volga narrows his eyes, smoke trailing from his nose as he stares at her. He had not concerned himself much with Cia’s infatuation, focused only on the goals which she set before him. But now, learning his son is the object of such lust...

There is a different sort of fire in Volga’s chest now, one that he has not felt in nigh over eighteen years. Something that burns not only for himself, but for the hatchling he did not know existed until mere hours ago.

They may be enemies, but the boy is his kin.

And Cia seeks to chain him to her side, without any choice on his part.

“He is not yours,” Volga growls finally, the fire growing in his chest. “I am his kin, and therefore if he is anyone’s, he is mine. I reject your false claim on him.”

Cia’s hand tightens on her staff, and the fire in his heart stalls, a creeping fog overtaking it.

“Make no mistake, dragon,” she says in a low, cold voice. “You are only here by merit of your usefulness. And I do not tolerate meddling with what is rightfully mine.”

The fog creeps deeper, soft and inviting as it spills in. It beckons him to sink into it, but Volga resists, glaring at Cia.

“Witch,” he spits, starting the transformation into his dragon form, “you have no honor, using magic to persuade me. Curse you—”

Volga’s grip on his spear loosens, and he grunts, his transformation stopped as pain ripples up his chest and through his head. The fog follows it, dark and thick as it spills through, and the conversation and reason he had stormed in sink away into it, lost in the mists of his mind.

Cia smiles.

“Leave me, dragon. I have work to do. I will call you when I have another mission that requires your skill.”

Volga grunts again, a distant buzz of pain in his head. His anger is gone now, the fire nothing but embers whisked away by Cia’s magic, and he nods, giving the sorceress a small bow.

Then he turns and leaves the room, Cia watching him go with that same small smile.

[that-wizard-oki]

To me, Malistaire cared very little about the Wizard in Arc 1. We're more of a mild bother to him as he schemes and plans and whatnot. The only goddamn thing on this guy's mind is getting Sylvia back. everything else is background noise. That is his madness, and that is what drives him.

I think this makes Arc 2 stronger in retrospective because, while she may carry herself like she's above it all, Morganthe is much more personal with the Wizard, not just about herself and her life, but in a way that targets the Wizard's own insecurities, flaws, etc- and how similar we are to her, vice versa. This gets way, way more under the Wizard's skin than anything I recall Malistaire doing or saying; which is FINE! It would actually be a disservice imo to have Malistaire act similarly to how Morganthe acts around the Wizard. Morganthe's specific motives have much more to DO with the Wizard (meaning she's under the influence of Spider, who needs the wizard to be so invested in defeating Morganthe that they would eventually get to Khrysalis and release him), so it makes sense to me why she deliberately gets under the Wizard's skin, or makes comments about how similar they both are. Malistaire doesn't care who specifically is trying to stop him. Could be anyone or anything. All that matter's is resurrecting Sylvia. Both of these antagonists have very different motives that inherently mean they will interact & veiw The Wizard in wildly different ways.

(side tangent: this is also why im not a huge fan of Malistaire the Undying still having like... a feud with The Wizard specifically... like Mr. Drake sir, you did not even. Also he's reunited with Sylvia anyway as spirits, why would he even care about he Wizard foiling his plans when us beating him ultimately got him what he wanted.... anyway)

Arc 1 is your classic fantasy story, where in the end it is less about the Wizard, and more about The Drakes. The Wizard is just a perspective device for the player during that Arc. Arc 2 however, is when The Wizard actually becomes the main character. The story (especially during our encounters w/ Morganthe) constantly forces The Wizard to face their reality as not just a Wizard in the Spiral, but the SAVIOR of the Spiral, and how that's tied to their worth & identity, just like Morganthe's own power influenced how people saw her. Idk, to me is sort of like A New Hope vs. Empire Strikes Back when it comes to Arc 1 & 2. Both are solid, but the second almost comes off as stronger because it inherently expands upon what the first had established.