#lucien txt

[trans-loki]

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[crimsonpeak-d]

hiii, this is a new blog i made for a fresh start. it'll mostly be an aesthetic + interests blog or whatever i wanna post. i don't have a dni but i will block based on vibes (don't take it personally i just want a fun and relaxing internet experience). i will say tho: terfs + zionists, this is not a blog for you so go away shoo shoo. also minors, i don't want minors following me. 18+ only!! please and thank you!!!!

[sweetzzzone]

made my btd goretober 2024 list so this is what ill be posted each day :3 hope this looks fun for yall

1. gutspilled - ren x reader

2. decay - lawrence x reader

3. bloodlust - vincent x reader

4. kiss of death - sano x reader

5. strangulation - strade x reader

6. bludgeoning - vincent x reader

7. true love - ren x reader

8. meat - vincent

9. false face - rire x reader

10. cannibalism - ren x reader

11. inferno - cain x reader

12. vivisection - sano x reader

13. drowning - lawrence

14. savior - daimen x reader

15. skewered - cain x reader

16. bugs - lawrence x reader

17. teeth - vincent x reader

18. bear trap - vincent

19. absolute terror - rire x reader

20. execution - akira x reader

21. tied down - ren x lawrence

22. eyes - strade x reader

23. imortality - cain x reader

24. carving - vincent x felix

25. scissors - ren x reader

26. untrustworthy - strade x reader

27. in the name of science - sano x reader

28. accidental - vincent x reader

29. scavenger - ren

30. undead - sano x reader

31. free day/halloween - vincent x reader

[foxxism]

I HC that every time Blue spells his name different. Like telling a new friend his name is Blue but spelt Bleu or Bloo. I think it’s super funny :D

alternates between lucien/lucian because people always spell it wrong

[stradespuppy]

heyyyyyyyyy it’s rire ‼️

[juice-enjoyer]

i am trying. so hard. to just draw anything rn lol

[dayeumi]

one day, i shall get that lucien content i deserve. one day.

[gutterspeak]

Last Six Lines

technically seven lines. oops. this WIP is an admittedly very ambitious (for me) idea for the owlcatober prompts "fake names" + "home" 😏 I'm pretty excited about it, here's hoping I can finish it!!

All lives of a people more inured to lies and knives in backs than a kind word. Or a cheerful party. Animated, yes. Sometimes even raucous when the wine gets out of hand. But not cheerful. Not fun, not when alliances are forged or broken in a look, when a pretty smile can mean either friendship or warning depending on who flashes it and when. It’s a game for a room full of predators, and woe be to any harping fool caught playing the part of their prey.

thank you for tagging me @dujour13!! (her entry here!) I think a lot of people have been tagged already so sorry in advance if I give you another one!! no pressure tagging @crows-of-buckets, @the-raging-tempest, & @starlightcleric 💕

[foxcort]

howl’s moving castle but it’s feyre as sophie, tamlin as howl and lucien as calcifer

rhys/and as the witch of the wastes because they both wear black and he too has a crush on tamlin/howl

[dawnsbreaking]

One of my favorite things about MLQC is the frequent use of symbolic imagery and motifs to set scenes and center characters. I think it’s incredibly clever, considering the importance of MC’s dreams, that the dreamlike symbolism is present throughout the story. At times, in MC’s confusion of piecing events together, reading the story almost feels like a sort of dream or vision interpretation. I love how consistent these symbols are for the characters and the way conflicting or contrasting imagery is used to add depth throughout the story. Also, since the story is told through MC’s perspective, the use of imagery shows us that her perception of the world is colored by her care for the main cast. When she’s with Gavin, MC notices fluttering leaves, when she’s with Victor, time slows, when she’s with Kiro, the sun is brighter, and when she’s with Lucien, she’s more attentive to light and shadow.

Under the cut, I have written more (1400ish words more) about symbolism in MLQC and how it adds depth to Lucien's characterization in particular.

Aside from adding to the mood of the story, the symbolism can also be used to narrative effect, showing us how MC is interpreting a character’s actions or motivations.

For example, we can look at how MC sorts through her feelings about Kiro/Helios in Chapter 29. Sun imagery pervaded previous chapters that centered Kiro while moon imagery is associated with Helios. In CH29, MC uses the harmony between the sun and moon as a metaphor when she accepts that Kiro and Helios are one and the same. This adds depth to what MC is feeling about Helios and also serves to contextualize the relationship between the two identities. (Note: I just love the idea that Helios has the same “sunshine” as Kiro but that he reflects it in a subtle way rather than being overwhelmingly positive like Kiro. This dynamic is only ever implied by the imagery and symbolism but it’s so perfect.)

In particular, though, I want to talk about some of the symbolism associated with Lucien and what we can learn from the way these symbols interact with one another.

Light and Shadow

One motif that is very present when the story is focused on Lucien is the balance between light and shadow. (Note: It’s very on the nose at times but executed well, I think, so I’ll give them a pass.) This motif is introduced far before Lucien’s betrayal is ever revealed, as early as his first meeting with MC. (Note: I literally wasn’t sure when the motif was first introduced but I went back to Lucien’s first scene and SURE ENOUGH, there it is. I love how consistent the writing is in this regard. The motifs are handled so well and so intentionally.)

During Lucien’s first scene in the game, light shining in from the window obscures his face. Far ahead of the betrayal, light and shadow are symbolically playing at obscuring his identity from MC. The light/shadow motif is used at first to symbolize Lucien being duplicitous, without much hinting toward his internal struggle. Later, when it’s clear that Lucien is struggling with a choice between metaphorical “dark” desire to continue his mission and “light” of protecting MC, light is used to hint at that internal conflict. An example of this is below, from Lucien's first standoff with Victor in Chapter 11.

Notably, though, sometimes, the “light” represents MC directly while the “shadow” represents Lucien. After Lucien’s internal conflict and desire to protect MC is first touched on in Chapter 16, the two are symbolically juxtaposed by scene-settings back-to-back in the last two units of CH16. 16-24 opens with a description of Lucien’s dark, gloomy room and 16-25 opens with a description of the lamp on MC’s desk casting a bright light. (Note: MC’s Evol is also represented by light often, so I think this imagery for her works even beyond its juxtaposition with Lucien.)

The same thing happens again when MC comes back from the Eternal Winter world, Lucien’s office is described as dark and shadowy when he is alone and then it’s cast in an “ephemeral glow” as soon as MC steps into the room.

Mirrors

A large part of Lucien’s character arc is his failure to properly make sense of his own identity, this struggle is represented by mirrors/reflections. Often, mirrors are shattered or distorted, implying an added difficulty of perception.

Because of the expectations that have been put on him from a young age, Lucien is very disconnected from his own identity. Even with Black Swan set completely aside, because of his savant-like personality and inability to relate to others, Lucien doesn’t view himself as a human being. Beyond that, there is also a struggle between the two identities of “Lucien” and “Ares” implied.

I think that the answer to this struggle is MC understanding Lucien and having clarity about who he is as a person. Light reflected in mirrors represents this concept symbolically in the Mirror Painting date. (Note: I believe this date is only currently available in the CN server, I read this translation) In this date, Lucien and MC paint each other and then use mirrors to reflect light onto the painting when it’s displayed. After being painted and, therefore, symbolically seen by MC, Lucien is finally allowed to turn away from the mirrors and stop worrying about who he is. The mirrors that represent his struggle with identity are able to add depth to a beautiful image when paired with the lights that represent MC’s understanding.

Shattered and Distorted Glass

This goes hand-in-hand with the mirror motif but is worth mentioning on its own because the symbolism is slightly different. While distorted mirrors imply difficulty for Lucien to perceive himself, distorted glass implies a difficulty for others to perceive Lucien. Shattered glass also represents a fractured relationship between the identities of “Lucien” and “Ares” in a few scenes.

On the wall of the abandoned Ultima Bioresearch Lab, MC finds a quotation written on the wall from the Bible. “For now we see through a glass, darkly. The truth is projected into the hearts of men through a glass lens. It’s distorted, blurry, and one-dimensional.” (Note: I’m assuming that this verse was translated from the Chinese dialogue and not transcribed from an English Bible translation, because this is, at the very least, not a popular translation of the verse that I’m familiar with. Ironically, it’s more popular to translate “glass” here as “mirror” so there goes this whole section LMAO.)

Because of the way it’s presented, I think that this image of distorted glass represents not how MC actually perceives Lucien but, rather, how Lucien believes he perceives her. Obviously, this is also foreshadowing the betrayal so, in a way, he’s correct in asserting that she is not seeing all of him. But, on the whole, this distorted glass imagery is delivered in a way that implies the distortion more as an insecurity on Lucien’s part rather than the reality of MC’s vision.

Rainbows

Keeping with Lucien’s themes of paradox and duplicity, one of his main motifs is the appearance of rainbows, despite the fact that he is colorblind. This is, again, representative of MC’s “light” being transformative to Lucien because the rainbows appear when they are together. I think that, rather than being a symbol for Lucien alone, rainbows represent Lucien’s relationship with MC. It’s a sort of combination of MC’s light imagery and Lucien’s refraction/distortion imagery. In the right circumstances, they can create something beautiful together.

It’s also implied throughout the story that Lucien is able to see colors when he’s around MC, so he is truly only able to appreciate the beauty of rainbows when he is with her. (Note: It’s unclear how this works but I think that it’s a side-effect of his Evol mimicking hers. There’s a footage mission where it seems like Lucien has to ask MC to look at something before he can tell the color of it so I think that he is somehow able to see the world through her perspective, possibly by using her Evol to have real-time visions. Does this make sense? Who knows, but I refuse to accept it just as soulmate magic!!!!)

If you haven’t, I highly recommend reading Lucien’s “Rainbow Luck” R&S. (Note: A recording is available here!) In this story, told from the perspective of Lucien’s pen, Iridescent, MC and Lucien see a rainbow together and it’s implied that this is Lucien’s first time being able to see a rainbow because MC is there. (Note: Iridescent as a name itself is an instance of Lucien’s rainbow motif.)

(Note: Lucien's Moments also features a rainbow paperweight at Bond Level 40.)

TLDR: Imagery and symbolism are used in MLQC to imply things about the characters and their relationships with MC. In particular, with Lucien, recurring imagery is used to represent his internal conflict and his desire for love and understanding from MC. The symbolism of light and its reflection/refraction is used to great effect throughout Lucien’s story, implying a complex web of internal struggles.

[immren]

what if i bg3-ify my vtm ocs. my immediate thoughts are vengeance paladin ambrose + wild magic sorcerer lucien. maybe ambrose can be a dhampir and lucien is dealing with the same thing as astarion, being a vampire spawn w/ a tadpole so he can walk in the sun. bc i cannot let them lose any vampirisms 🙄

[trans-loki]

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[odysseys-blood]

i have to wonder since crestoria even shows up in asteria does luminaria show up? like any character from it? or are they all in limbo now after being in the shortest (and tbh worst i think) mobile campaign ever

[lithopsy]

there’s not enough zayne lore in lads yet and my lucien mlqc obsession is reawakening to compensate

[xolaanii]

to authors of the kaidan mod thank you and also i need those new updates yesterday dscbbdsk

[aralors]

seriously though besides obvious misogyny i never got the astrid hate bc literally what else could you do in her shoes. ofc she sold the db out to protect her family they've all known one another for so long. if you were facing being killed by some imperial freak or protecting everyone else via sacrifice of one life what do you do? she's head of the murder cult ofc she's sacrificing the player character