#mal is WAY too forgiving

[stormbreaker-290]

*gives knife*

Go. Do a crime =).

HHHHHHH DONT TEMPT ME--

[harrowscore]

i love them SO much 😭😭😭😭

[kalims]

he's a ten but he...

premise. sometimes certain bad habits of theirs make their overall rating just a tad bit lower—besides the fact that they keep doing it.

characters. dorm leaders

content. gender neutral reader

malleus (doesn't have a sense of space)

"look beastie, that flower is a native of ours,"

"I agree mal, but I didn't think you taking up the entirety of my seat will make me see it better,"

he blinks, then shrugs.

like i said, has NO sense of space.

if an average person would make an excuse to constantly be in physical contact with who they admire, then malleus is the complete opposite. well, not entirely but he doesn't even bother to construct an explanation as to why he's literally sat over your seat when you coincidentally get put in a table together.

if you start questioning him about it the most you'll get in a very outright 'because he wanted to.' it's not even one of those sarcastic replies he's 100% serious!

cause he believes there's no use in lying about things to be honest.. to further emphasize that, if he ever acts like he does hold fondness for you that surpasses the platonic meter but doesn't mention it he probably hasn't realized yet.

if he did he'd already walk over and bluntly tell you about it.

(I wish I could be that unbothered.)

lilia thinks it's the cutest thing though. you swear you see flashes of light for a split second from the ceiling but when you look up there's only a suspicious swinging chandelier.

^ totally has his own album full of pictures.

if malleus ever discovers it he won't even be disturbed, probably would ask for a copy 💯

since human lives, and their bodies are so fragile he'd taken it upon himself to protect you from harm. even if it means trailing behind you everywhere way too close for comfort, or standing a bees wing away.

while he is respectful most of the time, he's encouraged if you don't comment. if anything, he seems pleased you dont seem to be bothered! (and it'll get harder to tell him to stop when he's so happy the more you let it happen..)

"child of man, have you slept?"

*starts leaning his body forward, to squint at your eyes.* practically right in front of your face.

"WTF."

not even a warning or anything! but atleast he's concerned?

idia (won't even show up for anything and insists a 'virtual' date is better.')

user: where tf r u??

ghoul666: WDYM? at the dorm?

user: IVE BEEN WAITING HERE FOR 20 MINUTES

unintentionally stood you up 💀

you literally have to tell him that you're waiting for him to arrive at the specified area you discussed where your date would take place but would end up vastly irritated when he questions if you guys even did.

ghoul666: we do??

user: I'm taking my minecraft bed away from urs.

ghoul666: NO PLS

ghoul666: HELLO????

next time you log in minecraft it's probably because he begged you to play, you WILL end up seeing some kind of structure that probably took days to make. that's not even the entire thing cause the inside is entirely decorated to your taste.

in short: he constructed some kind of venue for a wedding.. even changed his skin to wear a tuxedo 😭

though he has sparked your pettiness, hence the ignoring him period. even you have got to admit that it's freaking adorable...

big sign, emphasis on please: Im sorry pls put ur minecraft bed back I can't sleep w/o u and I have to wait entire days for it to turn into morning :(

with what he's built you're sure it's 65% true.

if you do end up forgiving him, few weeks later attempting to schedule another date will only end up in naught.

ghoul666: can we not go there

user: ����

user: you are testing my patience love

ghoul666: 😓 (he is screeching about the term of endearment part btw KABSJAJSAJA ortho would enter his room very concerned.)

ghoul666: how abt

ghoul666: mimic together? call

user: sighs

user: I'm only agreeing cause I want to spend time with you

queue more screeching from his end that you're completely oblivious to.

the only screeching you're gonna hear though is when you guys do get into call as you play, and it's mainly out of terror when his soul gets sent to the void ascending when the entity pops out of a corner and starts chasing him.

"I GOT THIS. ILL CARRY U THIS IS FINE" *screams again* but really wants to impress you so he pushes through.

unsurprisingly does carry you.

asks to match avatars right after (idia love languange)

vil (frets over you way too much.)

"vil, did you see the chocolate in the freezer?"

"oh, that? I noticed that you've already gone through the ideal number of bars this week so I took it upon myself to make sure you don't go sick on me,"

"I love you but please give it back—"

"I love you too, and no."

disclaimer: he does this for your own good 😜 (average mom excuse.)

looks out for you more than he does for his own dorm residents. everyone is wondering where he ran off to after class, especially since he's the one that scheduled the pomefiore meeting every fridays!

and to think he was the one getting irritated over the more newer first years for being late..

*shows up literally half an hour in*

why you ask? you simply shouldn't have texted him about abandoning your daily walk together through the gardens in favor of catching sleep since you called in sick (you're suspicious if crewel really did go in to check for proof, and not concern.)

vil's really feeling the absolute regret of not checking his phone during classes.. well, he only saw the message which was coincidentally sent like somehow ONE minute after the lecture started and he's only seeing it 59 minutes later.

oh you poor thing!! though the lunch break is short, he has about 5 minutes for a trip to the mirror chamber..

you'd think the 'seen' icon below your message was a weird omen for something you're not sure but it must be doom cause vil is right at the front porch of your crappy dorm. at his own expense?! looking more disheveled than you've seen him before.

if a few stray hairs was disheveled at all. more importantly, he still looked drop dead gorgeous!

you probably looked quite terrible with the blanket draped around your shoulders looking like you just crawled out of your grave, because he looked absolutely mortified at your state.

"oh great sevens.." he looked like he was faint, huffing and fanning himself with his hand. "look at you, why didn't you tell me sooner, darling?"

you blink, swallowing to make your throat less dry but your voice still comes out raspy. "I did, like an hour ago—" without your invitation whatsoever, he steps in. promptly shutting the door behind him (which surprisingly still stands sturdy.)

vil takes a hold of your shoulders before reaching his hands upwards to tilt your face around. "you should have sent earlier," he says. you keep in the comment that you were sleeping during it, and you told him about it during second period so.. "your face is so pale."

you sigh.

"yeah, I just saw. I know, I look hideous right now."

vil frowns at you, stopping to angle your face at him. "don't ever say that. I always find you beautiful even if you are.." he glances at you from face to toe, then back up. "sickly."

"... I feel offended."

"hmph, shush now. let me draw you a bath then I know something that will boost your system."

after much coaxing in his end, you reluctantly take a warm bath in the hopefully hygienic bathroom. true to his word, vil did... concoct something. though it looked pretty the random steam that flew from it was really suspicious.

the residents don't dare to question, except rook of course. who already knew what transpired! :)

epel: 😃 (atleast vil wasn't around.)

"roi du poison~ tell me, tell me! is the trickster well? have you cured them with your love?"

"rook, you have 5 seconds to get out of my face."

rook giggles away.

kalim (thinks money will buy anything, including your forgiveness.)

"here!" there's a suspiciously bright smile on his face as he hands you.. some keys?

you deadpan, jingling it in your hands. it weighs heavy than the average, probably because of the fact that it's literally made of gold. "... kalim what is this?" you emit a sigh, from suspicion and concern.

"a gift!"

"wait why does it say lot 111--"

as you can already, that was an actual, literal house. which you imagine would probably be a lots more grand, and new compared to your old baby ramshackle.

but you do love it despite it's love for falling apart at the most inconvenient of times..

fighting with kalim was rare but it was hard to even argue with him because the notion of disagreements are so bizarre to him that he unintentionally doesn't treat you seriously with your concerns, accidentally downplaying them aaaand now you're upset.

after the ranting to jamil about how you must be busy with a lot, since you haven't even talked to him in the past 2 days. all it took was a side glance to his friend in denial and jamil immediately knew.

"what do you mean they're mad!? D:"

"just.. go apologize, I don't want to get caught up in this."

if his definition of an apology is buying you an entire house...

( ^ it is btw.)

kalim really doesn't mean any harm. he just really wants to sate whatever anger you held for him <- maybe he's overthinking it but it's kalim so he's 99% sure it's his fault! even though it hasn't even been confirmed from your end he'd probably accept it whole heartedly.

he wanted you to talk to him again so badly that he wouldn’t mind showering you with houses... since your living situation doesn't live up to your kindness (sorry ramshackle love u xx)

you know what. he wouldn't even notice he's the reason you're upset at first even though he's been asking around on who put you in that mood. despite himself being the perpetrator but he didn't really know that did he?

the only reason he does is because he assumed you were just because you avoided him like some sort of.. cockroach! (he dislikes those.) and he couldn't take it anymore.

was probably 1 sec away from barging into your dorm which wouldn't take a lot of effort since one ram to the door would probably break it.

bless jamil for jailing all the carpets so kalim doesn't find them.

even if said carpets fling him off when he's riding them.

"kalim, why would you buy a literal house... and you also got a rare address paid--"

"for them! ;D"

"... you do know they'd be more offended by the fact that you'd try to replace that.., ahem. dorm, right?"

"oh... should I buy them a vehicle then?"

you only promise to forgive him once he takes back the keys, and the house entirely...

(grim begged you to keep it, 'house for him apparently.')

azul (keeps trying to offer you discounts thinking it's a good excuse to have you over.)

"I assure you. you'll find no deal better than this."

"I'm not even that hungry for sea food, actually I'm craving some--"

"you're in luck then! ahem, it's 26% off due to a special event for today."

pro tip: keep insisting to eat at other places cause he's gonna keep increasing the discount by 2% until you eventually relent. once, you made him go to the point of 75% off, it's almost hilarious if not for the fact it only worked once.

now he won't go last 50!

ahem. if you look closely you can almost spot tiny cracks accumulating with each denial you respond with, and each increase of his discount. he's grown to be wary about the bullshit 'lucky' promos you just happen to stumble on.

last time you did he practically lost a week's worth of the presumed income he's predicted cause you actually went around and told your first year friends about it... who.. in turn told some, other friends of theirs about it and you could guess.

love must hurt.. and unfortunately it's his wallet wailing.

but azul is not so easily swayed by this! for you have swayed him first! *wink wonk*

but azul has another trick up his sleeve... keeping on roping jade and floyd into it; whom are far too enthusiastic cause finally— something fun to do! someone to bother! not only have you got the most stubborn octopus having frequent suspicious 'deals' but here are his equally suspicious lackeys.

who keeps.. talking about fried octopus..

yeah, you're not sure if preaching about azul’s species is the job they were assigned.

they're fairly easy to point in the right direction anyways. the tweels have always associated you with the word 'fun' so just a little, friendly suggestion from and they were off to their merry way. mortifying every single person you come across with their sudden attachment.

one of their tricks? following you around. and just somehow, every single place you enter is just mysteriously full even though you peered inside and there was like 7 tables empty. what are they hosting? ghosts? spirits?

...

they do look like they've seen some though..

jade rn: "a shame indeed, you must be hungry. why don't we escort you back to monstro lounge?" :)

long story short you can't even reply cause the sleek eel is already guiding you around by the use of his hands on your shoulders. just to make sure you don't stray away from the destination, he says.

"didn't you say that yesterday's promo was like, a one day thing?" you quirk a brow, and you almost fool yourself into thinking he flinched.

azul clears his throat. "well—today is.. the month before you've graced octavinelle with your assistance—"

he praises himself for his quick thinking.

COME ON! it doesn't matter if you're sick of eating stir fried shrimp, or the butter one, or every single dish they serve that includes shrimp! (also do not mention that you ate somewhere else before you just decide to visit his dorm because that establishment just mysteriously got filed a non-legal business report.)

then you've got floyd chasing you around with a fork. which is more terrifying because he's holding it in a notion that would seem like he'd just stab down at you when he catches up with your little goose chase.

it's just.. you're not sure if your stomach could take another bite of the poor food he stabbed into, and is now chasing you around with.

you screech. "JADE PLEASE."

the man shrugs. "it's a free taste."

"AZUL."

"... only on a condition of course."

frankly. it took all the balls he had to actually sputter out the most simplest sentence ever, cause during the time he rehearsed that in front of his mirror it just plagued him with embarrassment but he's getting desperate.

'I'd like to take you out to dinner, somewhere else of course.'

actually, maybe obliterating any possible craving for the food of his lounge just might've been part of his plans to ask you out..?

leona (prevents you from actually being productive via dragging you down to 'nap' every. single. time.)

"I will literally fail if you don't let go of me right now."

"hmph. so what? it's not like failing a grade killed anyone."

"leona just because you've lived through a lot of fails doesn't mean I have to, we're not all rich enough to not finish school."

to which he'd retaliate that all you'd need is to marry him and you'd be set for life.

there is no winning an argument with leona when it comes to his naps. if he states that you're to be next to him as he sleeps, its final. no buts, no retaliations, cause apparently they're all invalid according to him even if you drag him to court.

rhetorically of course, that if its a comical court scene his only statements are; 'well you're wrong', 'who cares', and 'i dont care'. one way or another he's still gonna win you over and now you're fit snugly in his arms, lamenting.

and if crowley chastises you for not doing the errands (via leona's common interference.) the only thing you need to honestly do is to complain to leona about it and suddenly crowley has the kindness to forgive you for your 'laziness' then says something about enjoying your time together?

leona's work no doubt.

you suppose he does has its perks. even if most of it isn't exactly ideal.

if you're being smart then you should give him an ultimatum or something, or bribe him. but... that really has no guarantee to work either cause you're ending up defeated, or just defeated and flustered since he's somehow unconsciously flirty.

at the end of the day you can't really hate him cause the following day you find out he sent an already sleep deprived ruggie to do your work. 'so you can shut your fussing up and let me enjoy you.' he says, and you quote.

it goes something like;

"if i finish my work i'll stick by you all day."

a stready flow of confidence keeps your voice firm as you glower down at the blank-faced leona sat on the grass. he merely tilts his head, raising a brow at you and seemingly pondering from the way his eyes fly to the sky.

you'd think that maybe your plan actually worked but he merely grunts and flops backwards, holding the back of his head with his palms as he laid. and! he ignores you.

...this little greedy man... "why should i care whether or not you finish your work?" he huffs, like the evil, arrogant spawn he is but you can't really defend yourself cause said evil spawn bewitched you so much that you actually still like him.

"because you care about me?"

"...fine," he scowls, releasing a breath you'd mistake for irritation. "then, do you really think i need you to finish your work when i can just keep you right here?"

you sulk. "i'll do anything you want?"

he deadpans as if you said something stupid. "i don't need you to anything else but sit still and be pretty."

...

...

see what i mean about him eventually winning you over? yeah.

next morning there's a rebellion in savanaclaw about overworked residents and ruggie is the head of them.

"he said that he doesn't need you today." <- ruggie, steering you away.

"really?" <- you, confused

riddle (overthinks TOO HARD.)

“I'm just a little busy.”

“I understand,” riddle says.

“I'm just a little busy.” he understands.

“a little busy.” its just… a small thought…

“I'm just busy.” his mind is a hazard at this point. 

for someone as supposedly maintained as riddle—you'd think his mind is as composed as it is organized. like the pens you'd perfectly align in correlation to order of colors, or the neat pile of clothing folded neatly, tucked in some corner in your closet that is farther in since it's used less.

that's just how he is, or at least seems to be. a bundle of organized thoughts, every thought connected to another. a mind too clean to be going on haywire (when he isn't in a particular mood, that is.)

you're just busy. he thinks. you said it yourself, with that agonizingly nice smile that must be sprinkled with some kind of spell from the way it just eradicated all the protests in his throat upon sight. he isn't one to question it, he wants to help but not if you don't ask.

he can only stare with resigned acceptance at your insomnia induced eyes.

but when the curtain of darkness befalls night raven college, even in the comfort of heartslabyul is he still thinking about that thought–and he can’t help but wonder; why exactly are you busy? its not that he’s suddenly hyper aware of your lack of presence since you’ve been attached to the hip the previous week and now you’re just.

…busy…

riddle likes to think of himself as a level-headed, private person. like the boy he raised himself to be and therefore proud of. but its way past 10AM. which is usually the time he sleeps, and let me tell you that he’s never once broke the cycle for years. yet here he is, a frown of frustration present on his face as he wills his mind to sleep.

somehow closing his eyes felt forced, he immediately snapped them open once his mind decides to conjure an image of you even in the darkness his lids offers.

“THIS IS ABSURD.”

and the yell promptly woke up the entire dorm from the ferocity of his scream. (and of course gave them the flashback of their year.)

that night was one of the worst he’s ever had because he woke up with red rimmed eyes and a pounding headache that ensured his bad mood the rest of the day.

everyone noted to steer clear.

and he unknowingly steered clear of yours since you were ‘busy.’

“why are you sulking?” a voice queried, spoken as though they were eating something as they asked. a reprimand rises in his throat, but it all just dies down once his sharp eyes settle on you, slipping into the seat in front of him then raising a brow and the traces of irritation practically evaporates from his eyes.

he feels the need to cough–so he does. “i’m– i’m not.” he clears his throat, avoiding your eyes but still sneaking in glances, something he notes is that you’re still looking everytime he does. (and boring an unimpressed face because he knows you don’t believe him at all.)

guilt rises in his mind, because he feels a slither of annoyance and its the presence of pettiness that bothers him. riddle knows you’re not at fault, just his mind at convincing that you just somehow decided in the span of a day that you might not like him anymore–so he can’t help the bite. 

“why are you here?” a glance not intended to look mean.

“i thought you were busy.” he adds.

your brows raise, he spots your teeth holding your lips back from showing your grin and he feels warm. “what?” he hisses defensively, despite you not even having replied to him yet.

he leans backwards, straightening up in his seat when your chin leans forward, resting on your intertwined fingers. you flash him a smile. 

“mr. rosehearts, are you perhaps… sulking because i’m busy?”

“no!”

silence.

“no.” he repeats, weaker.

“well,” you continue, beaming. “i heard from ace that you were awake the entire night, and that you kept him awake too. are you alright?” 

he sputters. “it wasn’t because of you!”

you snort. “i didn’t even say anything about me.”

so you incline to following riddle around, poking fun at him and still trailing after the seemingly enraged red head because despite his angry protests, demanding you to go away because you’re annoying he keeps glancing back to see if you’ll follow,

so cute…….

[amethxxt]

i'm ranting about descendants again and this is a long one

Alright, I talked a little bit about this on twitter literally yesterday (https://x.com/amethxxt/status/1798768561613361458) but I wanted to do it here too, so here we are!!

I think everyone has seen these pictures by now. It's from Descendants new book "The World of Auradon: Royals & Villains".

Now, at first, I got really excited (in a way, I still am) because it'll probably give me more material to use in my fics. Also, Uma looks absolutely stunning, so I immediately began reading her page and... Well, it's not the nicest things, right?

Like I said on twitter, I can't be the only one who sees the majorly different ways they talk about Uma and Mal.

With Mal, they start saying she's a "confident natural leader", and like- no, she's not, far from it.

I think the best version we got from Mal was on D1. She was such a good character and that's when I think the writers succeded the most with her - I believe it was hard to find someone who actively disliked or simply hated her.

When D2 came out, things went slightly downhill. Mal's inner conflict of not being the picture perfect Lady of the Court and feeling that the odd one out because she wasn't doing well in Auradon when compared to her friends is very realistic.

The pressure that she was feeling to be perfect and all the new things that came with being the King's girlfriend makes you understand why she was so anxious and wanted to leave. Now, I think we should all understand that this makes Mal a very insecure person.

She's insecure, she's flawed and runs away the first chance she gets because everything becomes too much. And if they wrote her like that, how is she a confident natural leader?

When the Core Four and Ben go after her, it's when things begin to change. Mal has a few moments in this movie: running away and leaving just a note to her best friend, claiming Dizzy was going to be fine when Evie felt sorry about leaving a child in the abusive place they all grew up in, betraying Uma's trust. Yeah.

I'm gonna make it very clear that I really like Mal as a character. I criticize her a lot because the writers started putting her in a pedestal, overpowering her and trying to erase anything that could be seen as bad.

Why would they have Mal apologize for using a love spell on Ben when they make such a cute couple and would be endgame anyways?

It gets worse in D3. I remember watching them announce that Hades was Mal's father and being like "No fucking way" because you want this girl to be not only half-fairy but a half-god?? Was this the only way to have his ember in the story?

Well, I think we got used to that plot after a while, but then - Oh, Mal's also Lady of the Court, she'll be a part of the decisions that concern the Isle of the Lost and a voice for the other VKs.

Yes, Mal is "a confident natural leader" who turns her back on her people and comes up to the idea of closing the Barrier for good to protect Auradon citizens.

Why do they refuse to bring up the fact that it was her idea?? Nevermind the fact that her and Ben weren't married yet, she was not the Queen and had absolutely no power to make that decision. They make Ben so useless, a King with no voice because he's not the main character, right?

So she makes a decision that's not up to her and proceeds to lie to all of her friends, makes empty promisses to both Celia and Uma, and when shit hits the fan, nothing happens.

Having Evie confront her about it is one of my favorite scenes, but what are the consequences? I understand that it was the final movie, but it's so rushed that makes everyone else feel out of character.

Mal and Evie can be the best of friends, but you can't tell me Mal would be like "I was wrong, I have to be a voice for everyone and I shouldn't have lied" and Evie would be just "Ok, perf".

And what about the opposite? When Mal betrays Uma for probably the third time, Uma has no trouble forgiving her? Of course they don't mention what happens in the books, they don't mention Mal trying to hurt Evie (or even get her killed lol) and they don't mention the "shrimpy" incident with Uma.

They don't talk about Mal's wrong doings the same way they talk about Uma.

Uma, according to the new book, is a "confident and resourceful VK with a major mean streak". Sorry, Uma has a mean streak? I don't think so. What Disney and Descendants keep doing is use the definition of a villain for a character who's an antagonist.

Villains have malicious intentions, they are evil. You're gonna tell me the girl who simply wants for all the children to get off the Isle, a place they were forced to live in along with murderers and other criminals, some of those who happened to be their parents, all while surviving off of the garbage that came from Auradon, is the evil one?

That is not to say Uma doesn't make mistakes or does bad things. Mal and Uma have the common point of using a love spell on Ben, which is awful and should be acknowledged as that, but they only do it in Uma's case.

"When Mal and her friends successfully freed Ben, Uma took it one step further by putting Ben under a magic love spell" x "She [Mal] used spells to mess with other students, to convince Ben that he loved her, and to change herself in order to fit in as Ben's girlfriend. But once she realized she needed to ditch the spell book and learn to survive without magic, she was able to become the queen she was always meant to be"

Those... are not the same to me. They detail every thing Uma does during D2, making it clear that using a love spell was worse than the previous actions of kidnapping him, but with Mal it almost feels like they excuse her actions because, eventually, she learned that magic wasn't the way to become who she was meant to be.

Also, what do you mean Mal felt guilty about the other VKs who were left behind? Mal didn't even look sad when her and Evie were leaving Dizzy behind! Evie was the one to come up with the idea to bring more children to Auradon, and when that magically turned into the VK Day (my arch-nemesis plotline along with Merlin Academy), she didn't look worried at all that it would them so long to free all the kids if they were going to pick 4 each time.

And again, her idea to close the Barrier for good (with no way in or out) would mean that eventually, everyone left in the Isle would die. I know it's Disney, and they would never make that happen, but if you're not going in to even leave your trash there (aka their food source), yeah, they're all dying.

Now, with Uma, they point out how she wanted to escape and get revenge on Mal, but like...... not really? Of course she mentions in D2 how she wants Mal's new turf and tries to make a deal with her to leave with her crew, but when she's actually free and we get into D3, it's been months (I think) and while Auradon's scared she's going to do something, we find out Uma spent all that time looking for a hole in the Barrier to get the kids out.

When she makes another deal to help Mal, all she asks for is the guarantee that every kid who wants to leave the Isle is able to do so. Who breaks that promise? The "villain" with the major mean streak or the confident natural leader?

I'm not saying that Mal is real villain, because she's really not. But she's far from how they describe her and if you're gonna tell me she's a natural leader, I better not see her bringing down the Barrier, letting both the kids and villains out, and acting like it's the right thing to do.

VK Day wasn't the answer to free the innocents, but bringing down the Barrier isn't it either! Mal doesn't "help convice Auradon citizens to accept all VKs into Auradon Prep" she just decides to do that lol

And again, that decision is not up to her, she had no legal right to do it. She was just Lady of the Court and nothing else.

Like I said on twitter, Disney and Descendants like Uma because she's a fan favorite, she was one since they announced her as a character. But they insist on the idea that Auradon changed her for the better, as if she was never someone who fought for what was right. She's not perfect either, but they can't write about her in a way that makes her look better than Mal.

How did Mal stop her at the end of D2? Mal didn't do anything, they were fighting, Ben made a speech, Uma turned around and left. That was it.

How did Auradon transform her? Of course they are implying that because of Rise of Red and her becoming the new principal, and even though this plot still kinda confuses me, it still seems like all the wants is for Auradon to be a fair place that doesn't discriminate against anyone.

I now this is getting too long, but I really like ranting about descendants. It's my comfort franchise but there's so many things wrong with it lol

And I also know I'm probably looking too deep into it, but I don't think I'm the only one who sees the ways Disney has always treated Uma and Mal differently.

I want to get this book and see if there's anything else about them. I really wished Disney and Descendants treated Uma better, though.

[merakiui]

Mera I beg of you, just a morsel, a sliver even, of overblot malleus content....

I am here to deliver a morsel of Malleus!!! >w< if you aren't aware of its existence, I also wrote an overblot Mal fic that can be found here!

I actually really love everything about Malleus in book 7. The absurd power he holds, the way he's essentially stitching together ideal dreams for NRC students (or dreams he thinks are ideal). I love the fact that he's poking his nose in and out of various dreams to ensure every dreamer remains sleeping. It's so eerie. The amount of control he has. I genuinely believe, if not for Silver's UM being a foil to Malleus, it's very likely he would have won and Sage's would've remained locked in eternal slumber. If anyone has watched Centaurworld, Mal reminds me of the Nowhere King's lullaby...... orz

I still can't get over how he breaks the fourth wall in the beginning of book 7 to hum the opening. That's still so insane to me........ top ten twst moments of all time omg!!!!

Ramblings aside, what if he constructs a dream for you in which you return home....... based on what you've told him about where you come from, he's able to use those details and take a few creative liberties of his own to construct a dream in which you've made it back home. But there's always something so unsettling and not-quite-right about this dream version of your world. Malleus's own preferences spill into the dream, and everywhere you go you're seeing bits and pieces of Mal. The trees that sway in the breeze look startlingly like a certain pair of emerald green eyes. The people who inhabit this dream feel so two-dimensional. It's home, or is it? Weirdcore vibes all around. <3

And of course there's the classic somno thoughts in which you're dreaming peacefully all while your body in the real world is subjected to Malleus's selfish, wicked indulgences.

Aaaa but maybe,,,, disregarding most of book 7 altogether,,, what if your ideal dream is just full of freakiness? >:) monsterfucking route where it's just you and overblot gangbang hehe. Or or!!!! To bring back apocalypse/infection au flavors....... a concept in which no one can stop Malleus and so everyone is trapped in eternal slumber. Maybe it's the blot that sustains the students after their internal faculties shut down. Waaaaa body horror + having to see your friends now in such a mindless state if you ever are granted the opportunity to wake up again,,, something something Mal needs wants a wife someone to rule alongside him and you're perfect for that role. Something something your friends aren't all there,,, reduced to undead dolls in a way.

Too many messy scenarios and thoughts,,, forgive how scattered it is, but I like overblot Malleus a lot. :3

[ikari-600]

Shattered Glass AU

I had already designed an SG Bumblebee in different colors because I was bored. I also drew Blitzwing, but I don't consider it part of an AU. However, yesterday I had a burst of inspiration along with a story idea, so I think this will be my first AU. I've started writing the story; it will be only five chapters long because I have another story I'm working on.

Here are some details about this "Bee": he is more reserved, prefers to work alone, and the fewer mechs that get in his way, the better. He is skilled with daggers and knives, and while he sometimes uses a sniper rifle, he finds it more exciting to dive directly into the enemy. His colors give him a great advantage for exploring and camouflaging, allowing him to catch more than one mech off guard. He is very good at what he does, which is why his superiors occasionally "forgive" him when he disobeys and goes on a solo mission.

There is only one mech who would think twice before stabbing him in the back, and that is Bulkhead. They didn't get along too badly in training camp, and Bulkhead also showed great talent in engineering. It was clear he was going to go far, and if that was the case, Bee preferred to keep a friendly relationship with him to have some leverage. With any luck, he might even get to meet Ultra Magnus.

----------------

Ya había diseñado un Bumblebee de la serie SG en diferentes colores porque me aburría. También hice un dibujo de Blitzwing, pero no lo considero parte de una AU. Sin embargo, ayer tuve un ráfaga de inspiración junto con una idea para una historia, así que creo que este será mi primer AU. He empezado a escribir la historia; constará de solo cinco capítulos porque tengo otra historia en la que estoy trabajando.

Aquí algunos detalles sobre este "Bee": es más reservado, prefiere trabajar en solitario y cuanto menos interfieran otros mech, mejor. Es experto en el uso de dagas y cuchillos, y aunque a veces usa un rifle francotirador, encuentra más emocionante lanzarse directamente sobre el enemigo. Sus colores le proporcionan una gran ventaja para explorar y camuflarse, permitiéndole sorprender a más de un mech. Es muy hábil en lo que hace, por lo que sus superiores tienden a "perdonarle" de vez en cuando cuando desobedece y se embarca en una misión en solitario.

Hay solo un mech que pensaría dos veces antes de apuñalarlo por la espalda, y ese es Bulkhead. No se llevaban mal durante el campo de entrenamiento, y Bulkhead también demostró un gran talento en ingeniería. Era evidente que iba a llegar lejos, y si ese era el caso, Bee prefería mantener una relación amistosa con él para tener cierta influencia. Con suerte, incluso podría llegar a conocer a Magnus.

[albert-kafka-camus]

Tagged by @sopheadraws 👑👑👑

(I love music games so much!!!)

I would like to inform you all that my playlist is 66 hours long and I have a diverse palette so I am not responsible if The Cast Of My Little Pony Equestrian Girls 2 covers a Frank Ocean song or something

1. Johnnie Taylor’s cover of Vienna (by Billy Joel)

Okey this is insane this would be so good it would be different but still preserve the original feeling (I need this actually)

2.Hadestown Broadway Original Cast’s cover of Rehab (by Amy Winehouse)

ANOTHER MASTERPIECE like the fates would kill those ‘no, no, no’ s. Like this would be a fates heavy song with others chiming in and I would be obsessed thank you very much 🙏🙏

3. Rachel Zegler’s cover of Alejandro (by Lady Gaga)

I have never heard her sing a song badly but this song won’t go well with her voice. I think an acoustic version with harmonies would be good tho. (The more I imagine a soft acoustic version more I want it)

4. Billie Eilish’s cover of Hound Dog (by Big Mama Thornton)

no

5.Robert Cray, The Robert Cray Band’s cover of No More Rain (In This Cloud) (by Angie Stone)

I think it would be good but I feel like he would make small changes to the instrumentals don’t know what else to say about it

6. Lana Del Rey’s cover of Dance With You Tonight (by Laufey)

I think it would be different definitely darker/moodier but I love the original too much so I kinda think she wouldn’t do it justice especially if it was live cause I feel like the way she sings and the playfulness in her voice is very integral to the songs whole identity

7. Beyoncé’s cover of Forgiveness (by Rina Sawayama)

weirdly a huge YES from me I think she would lower the sound of the instrumentals and focus on her vocals which she would destroy (of course)“Sometimes I blame you sometimes I don’t” especially could be very lemonade

8. Hozier’s cover of Diamonds and Rust (by Joan Baez)

amazing. no notes. perfection. hozier covers are my mental health treatment

9. (again!!) Hozier’s cover of WAP (by Cardi B, Megan Thee Stalion)

I am conflicted…. slay?

10. (again!!?!!) Hozier’s cover of Nothing You Can Take Away From Me (Boot-Stomping version) (by Rachel Zegler, The Covey Band)

I interpret this as Hozier’s formal apology after the WAP incident (Handsome Squidwardian event for sure) He would do justice to this song, (very him) I would go insane if this was real

+11. (doing another one because hozier took 3 spots jdkdkdkdjsj😤✊) The Cast Of Hamilton’s cover of Dumb & Poetic (by Sabrina Carpenter)

I regret my choice to do another one and I don’t listen to Hamilton often so only thing I can think of is Lin Mal Miranda impressions on tik tok that are then used to make unserious gay ship edits so obviously.. 10/10 this is what the industry is lacking thank you for coming to my conference 🙏🙏📈📈👆👆😘😘

@simplysummers @angelhummel @freddieslater @bansheeheart @inlovewith-icecream

Also @ anyone who sees this and wants to ✨

[mercymaker]

the honey inside your hive - Halsin x Tav fic

Rating: E

Pairing: Halsin x female Tav

Word count: 2,4k

Content: smut, established relationship, post-game, drow tav, intercrural sex, oral, (sorta) size kink.

Summary: Halsin, unsurprisingly, is a bit too much for his lover to handle. However, the Hero of Baldur's Gate is nothing if not resourceful and finds a way around this hurdle, leading to a night of intense pleasure...

Link to AO3.

It was a surge of desire that made Maleane pull the druid into her bed. The same desire that pushed her fingers to hastily undress him. And it was nothing else but unbridled desire slipping out of her lips in waves of sultry words and heated kisses.

Halsin was more than happy to follow her lead, quickly moving behind her as she lay on her side, looking over her shoulder with nothing but lust burning behind her pale purple eyes. And his kisses soon turned just as fiery, his touches just as hungry as hers. Mal guided his hand, pulling it first to her breast—allowing the druid’s fingers to linger there for just a moment—and then pushing it down between her legs so he could feel just how desperately aroused she was.

All that passion soon rushed her own hand, and as the drow pushed her back against his chest—bending over just slightly to expose herself to him and make the rest of her plan more than obvious—she grasped his erection and guided it right to her entrance.

Yet, no matter how much she wanted it, how much she craved to feel him deep inside her, his size proved to be simply too much for her to handle. Even when Halsin moved slowly, doing everything in his power not to lose control and succumb to his primal instincts, discomfort soon turned to pain and as the sharp bite pierced her core, Maleane lurched forward, her hand quickly grasping his hips and pushing the man away from her.

“No, wait,” she whimpered. “It’s too much.”

Trying to recover from the unpleasant sensation, the drow ceased trying to accommodate his girth, instead moving forward enough to break the fragile connection they’d both tried to foster.

It was more than just frustrating. It was almost infuriating just how unfair it all seemed; how she couldn’t wholly enjoy whatever little pleasures the life had offered her. Those moments of desire, of true passion were so rare to begin with, glimmering little rubies constantly slipping out of her grasp and right into an endless pit of darkness, to be drowned in waves of sadness and despair before Maleane could even seize them. And yet, when she did manage to pull them out of the dark waters, they seemed more fragile than her psyche, destined to crumble under any pressure, a single wrong move. And tonight seemed to only foretell a handful of red dust slipping past Mal’s fingers.

She felt the druid’s lips press softly against her shoulder, lingering there for a moment before moving away.

“Forgive me, my love.” Halsin’s voice was soft and breathy, yet she could sense the strain behind it as his lust refused to dissipate. “Shall I soothe you instead? Or do you wish to stop?”

Maleane didn’t want neither of those things. As much as she enjoyed the wood elf’s way of worshiping her in bed, tonight it wasn’t his tongue that the sorcerer truly desired.

She craved something feral, her hunger calling for a thing that was primal and untamed. Maleane wished to be taken and mounted and claimed, to feel the beast behind the druid’s every touch, to be overwhelmed both in body and mind.

“No, no… I want you,” the drow finally uttered, her gaze soon finding his as she peered past her shoulder. “I want you to let go a little. Tonight I want to be yours.”

Maleane leaned backwards to kiss him, the passion bubbling inside her belly finding its way to her tongue and pouring straight into Halsin’s mouth as he met her lips with his own. It was electric, the way Mal made him feel—all the restraint and control he had exhibited before chipping at the edges with her every touch.

“You want it as well, don’t you?” Maleane parted their lips for just a second, the druid’s sweet and salty taste lingering in her mouth.

He couldn’t help but smile in response, the answer to her question dangling on the edge of his tongue too obvious.

Of course, he wanted it. As he held the sorceress close, Halsin wished for nothing more than to have her, to let go of the thorny tangle in his mind that constantly dictated what to do and how to act. It was a call—as natural as the flowing rivers, as pure the flowers of the field unfurling their petals—one he craved to embrace with his very being.

And when Mal reached back behind her and wrapped her long fingers around his shaft, Halsin couldn’t help but grunt in response. All of her fiery kisses, the hungry touches that he’d received from her before they even had the chance to reach the bed were filling his glass to the brim, fogging his vision and numbing his mind. It was the added pressure from her hand that turned his last resolve into smoke in the wind.

Halsin pushed his hips forward, chasing the tight grip of her hand as his fingers greedily reached for the drow’s body, sinking into the soft flesh of her bottom with untamed yearning. No matter how close they were, how warm and soft Maleane’s skin felt under his grip, the druid wanted more. He felt like a bear holding a hive between his sharp claws, eager to tear it open just so he could taste the sweet honey inside. How could he resist such a temptation?

Instead, he tasted her lips once more, tongue searching for the sweetness inside her mouth. And yet, even that seemed like it wasn’t sufficient. Halsin craved her warmth, the delighted moans that roused in her throat when he pleased her, that enveloping feeling of closeness when he was inside her. Even when he moved his massive hand to her jaw—just so he could deepen their kiss, have her closer to him than before—it simply wasn’t enough.

“Mal, my heart, I want you,” the druid whispered, the strain and desperation behind his words unmistakable. “I need you.”

She felt a puff of hot air roll against the back of her neck as Halsin let out a low growl, and then, his fingers curled around her hips, nails digging into the gray skin with rising hunger. Despite her best attempts to satisfy his craving with her hand, Maleane sensed that her efforts were simply falling short against the increasing urge taking over the man’s body and mind.

“What if we tried this?” Mal asked, trying to draw the druid’s attention away from the lustful trance that was slowly consuming him.

As Halsin opened his eyes to look at Maleane, his gaze was met with a cheeky smile on her face before she turned away and hastily slid her hips backwards until her ass was pressed flush against his erection. Yet, instead of trying the same strategy as they had employed before, this time, the sorcerer had a different plan in her mind. She lifted her leg just enough to put her hand underneath it, so she could easily guide Halsin’s cock into the warm crevice between her dewy thighs. And once Mal could feel the stiffness of him pressing against her soft flesh, she closed her legs and pressed them together tightly, crossing her feet to create as much friction as possible. The drow dragged her fingers against the slimy surface of her tongue, licking the tips, leaving a dripping film of spit on them before she found his length again, gently massaging the head as it protruded from right underneath the spot where her legs met.

Maleane didn’t need to hear his words to know that her lover was more than satisfied with the idea, as Halsin immediately responded with another low rumble stirring in his chest and his hips jolted almost involuntarily, desperately seeking relief to all that pressure building up in his core. And soon, the elf’s movements grew sharper, the rolling of his hips becoming frenzied and erratic.

“Yes, love, yes. Let go, just like that…” Mal whispered as she turned her head to the side to face him.

Instead of meeting his hazel orbs, the drow witnessed a sweeter sight: the druid’s eyes shut tightly, brow furrowed, his upper teeth peeking through the small gap as he pressed them against the bottom lip. It was more than clear that the man was getting lost in the sensation, the intense pleasure that fucking her thighs was providing. He could finally allow himself to break free from all the restraint that he simply had to shackle himself with in order not to hurt his lover, yet the craving that had been locked behind it remained, growing with every touch, every kiss, every time Maleane offered him the sweet honey inside her hive.

Halsin couldn’t get enough of that sensation—how warm her skin felt against his, how delicious she tasted when he put his mouth on her, how pleasant her scent was when he inhaled—feeling as if his appetite grew deeper the more he’d tried to sate it. But this time, he didn’t have to resist it, instead leaning into that call and following his instinct, rolling his hips into her with fervor, losing himself in the saccharine warmth of her thighs.

The harder his thrusts grew, the more Halsin leaned into her, soon forcing Mal to put her hands on the bed as they both veered forward, his hairy chest almost pressing her into the sheets. The wood elf grasped her hips from underneath, pushing his fingers into the soft gray flesh as he pulled her closer, holding her lower body in place. It felt so warm and tight and good, the way her thighs enveloped his cock, how both of them were growing wet from all the pleasure and desire engulfing them like a flame.

He pressed his face into the curve of her neck, breathing her scent in as if it were an aphrodisiac, allowing himself to take and take and claim her, the way the animals of the forest would their mate.

It was exactly what Maleane craved tonight—to have the beast she knew had been hiding inside him all these months, to be overwhelmed by such desire, such ferocity—and Halsin was more than rewarding. As the druid angled her hips against his, the drow felt his length brush against her wet folds, sending a moan bursting right out of her mouth.

“Mmm, yes, Hal- Halsin…” Mal’s voice was shaky and uneven as the intensity of the act swiftly seized her body like a fist.

Every single sensation—from the way his body radiated heat to his hulking weight pressing her down into the bed to the slippery friction sending jolts of bliss up her body—was like a wave after a wave of pure thrill cascading against her very being, suffocating any tameless thoughts in her mind that threatened to pry that glittering ruby out of her hands.

And soon, Maleane heard yet another low growl slip past the druid’s teeth—the deep rumble in his chest sending vibrations through her pale gray back—as his fingers dug even deeper into the pliable flesh of her hips. She felt his heavy cock twitch between her thighs as Halsin spilled himself over her, the surge of seed dripping hot on her damp skin.

It only took a couple of moments for the druid to recover from his peak and right as he came back to his senses, the beast leapt out of their bed and the ever-considerate, gentle giant returned in its stead. As the bliss slowly dissipated from his body, Halsin shifted backwards, moving carefully to make sure that Mal wasn’t in any discomfort or pain.

For just a brief moment, he had truly lost himself in the pleasure and the freedom that his lover had so generously provided, that now he feared he’d truly crushed the honeycomb between his claws just to taste the sweet liquid inside.

And yet, when he carefully moved his hand to touch her face—to check up on her—Maleane turned her head back with a soft smile growing on her lips.

“Just what you needed, mm?” Mal smirked then, satisfied with the way she had managed to draw something entirely feral out of him.

Months ago such a prospect would have surely terrified her. Allowing this towering elf—who could easily break her spine into pieces without breaking a sweat—let go of all that restraint, especially in bed, had seemed like an idea she would never accept. And yet, right now, the thought alone sent nothing but excitement through her body, causing her to bite her lip.

“More than that, my love,” Halsin replied.

Despite the usual softness that was so true to him returning, there was a certain breathlessness to his voice that betrayed the traces of desire that still lingered within him. He cupped her cheek and leaned in close to kiss her, as if to thank her for giving him such a sweet treat that he’d never even dared to ask for.

“I made such a mess of you,” he continued, his hand moving to the side of her thigh, where streaks of wetness glistened like golden chains in the flickering candlelight. “Let me take care of that.”

Seeing where his attention was moving, Mal chuckled in agreement, pleased to to find out that she was getting her own sweet treat after already enjoying a bountiful meal.

As Halsin moved between her legs, Maleane lay down on her back, shoving one of the few pillows underneath her head and getting comfortable as his hands pushed her thighs apart. He moved slowly—with patience that had seemed to not exist in his arsenal just a few minutes ago—placing his lips in the middle of her gray thigh, kissing a line up with eagerness, tongue gliding against the wetness as if he was tasting fresh honey.

Mal closed her eyes, the comfort of knowing exactly what was in store for her covering her like the softest silk cloak. And as the druid’s tongue pushed her folds apart with nothing but devotion dancing at its tip, Maleane was sure that no matter what sort of beast she could unleash in their shared bed, there was enough trust between them to ensure that he could never truly harm her. Not with the way he was touching her now, not with the way his mouth was soothing whatever traces of past discomfort he had given her.

[vulpixisananimal]

<Null> {Mal Du Pays} [Loop] (Siffrin)

[It's still raining.]

[You've stopped at the fork in the path, those two strangers just a few feet ahead of you. One tall, with dark skin, lightless hair and a stoic face. They were standing under the tree reading something. The other was shorter, with dark hair. He was sitting down, eyes closed with a smile on his face. Both had bonded earings to eachother.]

[Why were you filled with dread?]

"Loop?" [Mirabelle leans close to you.] "Do you think. . ?"

"Maybe." [You tug at the rim of your cloak.] "You start the talking."

"O-okay!" [Mirabelle took a deep breath, and stepped forward. You followed behind her.] "Uhm, excuse me?"

[The taller one looked up from the book. A slight, genuine smile on her face. They waved.] "Ah, hello! May I help you?"

[Mirabelle cleared her throat, then continued.] "W-well, there's been something going on at the homestead a little ways back, and, we wanted to check in! Make sure everything's okay, uhm. ."

[The tall one nodded.] "I understand. We're both just fine. Thank you."

"O-oh, well-"

[Okay, you needed to step in.] "We wanted to ask you a few questions if that's alright."

[They nod again.] "Of course, My name is Merlan, and this is Perci, forgive him, he gets lost in thought."

"That's okay! U-uhm, I'm Mirabelle, it's good to meet you."

"Siffrin, it's a pleasure~"

[Merlan raised an eyebrow.] "Ah, Saviors? Oh forgive me." [They leaned down to their partner and shook him.]

[Perci yawned, and stretched, and opened his eyes to look at you. Directly at you with a little, sly smile.] "Company? I just closed my eyes for a moment!"

"N-no it's okay! No need to worry about it!" [Mirabelle reassured.]

"Ah thank you, Lady Mirabelle. So, what can I do for you." [He seemed, charming.]

[You smell something, it was hard to tell because of the rain.]

[Mirabelle started talking.] "Okay, well, uhm, there's been a very, dangerous sadness in the area! So, so I wanted, to, to-"

[You cut her off.] "-To make sure that it wasn't going after fellow travelers. You two haven't seen anything like that, have you?"

"I'm not sure, have we?" [Perci turned to his bonded.]

"I've seen glimpses of it." [They were tapping their foot.] "A dangerous thing, to see a bonded sadness even after the Kings defeat is, curious."

[Bonded sadness? Was that like that pair of strong sadness on the second floor of the house? You keep smiling.] "And there's not been anything else strange?"

[Merlon shook his head.] "Nothing, nothing. Apart from randomly meeting the Saviors of Vaugarde! How'd you beat him, by the way?"

[Mirabelle held her hands close.] "I, reflected his freezing spell back at him, and-"

"Oh no no no! I know that! I mean more, how you got to him. That house full of sadness and traps. One wrong move and it's all over, so, well, how?"

". . . Uhm, luck?" [She responds. Yes, luck. Luck and not the time loops you were stuck in for hundreds or thousands of loops.]

[Perci's eyes are digging deeper into you. Why was he so intense?] "Must have been some wild luck. If the King was strong enough to freeze time. . ."

"An impossibility." [Merlon finishes. They were back to reading, writing, in a book.] "Time cannot be crafted without dying. Unless you had outside assistance."

[Like a wish.]

"It, it wasn't easy, at all. . ." [Mirabelle looked away.]

[Three floors of complex mazes and keys and traps that you had long, long, long ago memorized. It was a hell.]

<Be on guard.>

[HOW long have you- ugh, nevermind! You shrug, still smiling.] "Well, if you're sure you two haven't seen anything. . ."

"Positive!" [Perci is still smiling.] "Honestly we should be going, if a sadness is nearby."

"O-okay, well, we'll leave you too it, then!" [She glances at you, you nod.]

"It's wonderful to meet you both, take care Merlon, Perci~" <You turn to walk back, and wave. You were excited to get out of here, you didn't like this.>

"Goodbye Saiviors." [Says Merlon.]

"Hope we see you again, Mirabelle, Loop!" [Says Perci.]

<You stop.>

[You turn around, still smiling, looking right at the two of them.] ". . . Sorry?"

"I said. . . Goodbye, hope we see you again?" <Perci respond. Merlon quietly kicks him in the shin. They exchange a look.> ". . . . Mirabelle, and. . ."

"Siffrin." [Merlon interupts.]

"Siffrin! Ah yes right, hope to see you again-"

"No." <You smile wider, that kind of smile.> "Drop the act."

". . . Act?" [Perci says. Nice acting.]

"You said Loop. That's not my name. In fact, no-one knows that name." <You step forward.> "Why are you taking a rest here?"

"Well, because I was tired-"

"Because mind craft has a range limit." <You interrupt.> "Don't try fooling me, Perci, when it comes to acting I am of the best."

<There is a cold, tense silence. The rain giving the most dramatic of backdrops. Perci stands.>

". . . Bravo." <He claps.> "Truly, bravo."

<At this point, Mirabelle is standing by you. Hand on her sword.> "You two were behind this?"

<He bowed> "Forgive the misdirection, watching from the sidelines is much better for gaining information."

"What does that blinding mean!" <You were getting angry. You eye up your enemy, two swords, mind craft, how strong? Quick? What was his craft type?>

"People tend to lie, saivor. Not so much when you step back and let them open themselves up. Oh, scissors craft, by the way."

<?!?!?!?!??!?!?!?!>

[?????????????????????]

"You're writing all this down, my love?" [Perci turns to his bonded.]

"Every moment." [They reply.]

"W-what?!?" [Mirabelle was getting frustrated.] "You, you're controlling our friends for information?!?"

"Of course! I'm not doing any harm, they wont notice anything different, I get to poke around their heads, and if anything bad happens I snap my fingers and it's all forgotten."

<You want to kill him.> "Did you do this to Ramos?"

"Oh Ramos? Oh they were such a mess, but they were raised by someone from a forgotten culture! I had to interview and poke around in that mind. And just left them with, a parting gift!" <He talked so casually, waving a hand.>

"They turned into a sadness!!!" <Mirabelle yelled.>

<Both were taken aback by that, and looked at each other.> ". . . Is that what happened? I felt some strange and strong emotions before the charm was broken, did they really. . ?"

"You didn't know?!?"

"No, but, that is fascinating!" <He turned to Merlon.> "Do you think we could replicate that? Someone turning into a sadness like that. . ."

"Oh I'm sure we can figure it out." <Merlon replies casually.>

"That's, that's horrible!!!" <Mirabelle exclaimed.>

"It's increddible!" <Perci turned back to you, a sparkle in his eye.> "A sadness created through strong emotions enhanced through mind craft? Aren't you just a little bit curious about it?"

"No!!!!"

"No? But isn't that what Change is all about?"

<You step interject.> "Stop talking. What do you want."

"Information!" <Perci said with a flourish.> "Lore! History! The truths hidden within the words and minds of thousands of people! Everything from the smallest story to the grandest legends! Even legends that don't want to be remembered~"

[Dont want. . Like, our home?]

<You ignore Loop.> "And so to get to it you violate a persons privacy? Their will?"

"Oh it's not like they'll notice, or remember, it's fine!" <He laughs, waving away the question.> "Besides, wouldn't you do something like that? For your home?"

". . . . . . . ." <You're reading our mind. Aren't you>

"I am! What a quick learner."

"H-huh?!?" <Mirabelle looked confused.>

[Oh if you're reading our blinding thought I'll tell you to jump off a cliff PERSONALLY!!! You BLINDING IDIOT!!!!]

<Our head isn't ready for one more voice. Get out.>

"Ahaa, very fascinating. Two voices? I thought I was going mad."

<Yes, two voices. You should be able to tell more, since you are using mind craft.>

"Oh no no no! From here I can only tell the most surface of thoughts. But just shake my hand, and-"

<Fooled you. Thanks for the information.>

[HA! HAHAHAHHAHAHA!!!!]

<You see Perci wince, then laugh, shaking his head.> "Oh tricky! I like you, Null and Loop, correct? In the body of Siffrin the nobody. Now, was that a craft? Or-"

"An identity disorder, love." <Merlon adds.> "Many types, all acting very differently, caused by trauma in childhood. Our hero has a dramatic backstory."

[Stop talking like we're FRIENDS!!!]

<You glance over at Mirabelle, she's looking confused between you and Perci.> "He's reading our minds."

"He's- no!! That's private!!" <Mirabelle exlaimed.>

"Oh! No this is fascinating!" <Perci looked like a teacher excited to explain todays lesson. You wanted to rip him apart.> "See, Lady Mirabelle, your mind is so cluttered thinking about every single possibility at once it's very hard to single out many thoughts! So full of anxiety and fear."

"But your friend, friends, here are so much different! They are having a conversation in their mind! Yes many people have an internal monolog but this is an internal debate! It's a breath of fresh air, honestly!"

<. . . . . . .>

[Disgusting, get OUT!!] "Why do you need this!! You've caused enough harm already!!!"

"Because!" <Perci waves his arms dramaticly in the rain.> "Because of that island culture! The island north of Vaugarde, it's history, it's people! They're yearning for home and I can see it. And I will deliver it to them, I will dig, and dig, and dig untill every bone, every word, every little tale is exposed for the world to see!"

[. . . . . . That. . .]

<Doesn't. . . . Seem evil. . .>

[No, it doesn't. But. . .] "But you're, you're just going to hurt people and poke in their heads for that?!? I never asked you to help with our home! How do you know others will!!"

"I asked." <Merlon says, flatly.>

<. . . .>

"I want to see the beach again. The forrest, the maze of water and winds. The darting stars whispering through the night sky, the clouds hugging the stone reaching for the lightless night. . ." <For the first time, you see some emotion on Merlons face.>

[. . . You look away.] "And you're fine with, hurting people to remember that?"

"Yes." [They reply, too quickly.]

[. . . . .]

"Haven't you see their faces, Loop?" <Perci steps forward.> "Other islanders begging for an explination for why they're like this? For their memories, names, faces? What about that man at the Inn? Polaris? What would he do to remember."

[. . . . . . . . You're done talking.]

<Agreed, you take another step, hand on your dagger..> "If you want to help islanders, stop using mind craft."

"Well, sorry, but no. It's too useful a tool." <Perci put a hand on his sword. He knows this talk is over.> "But. . . A wager? A one-on-one fight, if you win, I undo the mind craft here. I win, you let me poke around that brain of yours as much as I like."

"What?!?" <Mirabelle exlaims.> "That's rediculous! You can't just-"

"-Fine." <You interupt, drawing your dagger.>

"Loop?!?"

"Lady Mirabelle, let them fight." <Merlon comments.> "My bonded will not do any undue harm, if your rogue does the same."

"It's just a friendly match, Mirabelle dear." <Perci draws twin swords, stepping forward.>

[Yes, friendly. Very friendly. Extremely, friendly. . . Ha. Hahaha. . .]

<You're pathetic, Perci. You're a conniving snake, a crab, a bastard and betrayal to the concept of history and stories. I am going to kill you.>

<You see the corner of Perci's mouth twitch.> ". . Shall we?"

[Do we have a plan, dearest Null?]

<Yes. You rush in.>

<Speed above all. You step as fast as your feet allow you, aim low, avoid his touch, you'll win this.>

<He stabs a sword low to block your attack, and swipes with the other. You jump, dodging the blow by a hair. You swiped again now that he's exposed, but he twist around you knife, in the end you only get a small slice on the shoulder. He steps back.>

"Bleeding- Ah, my mistake for underestimating you." <Perci rolls his shoulder and gets ready to attack again.>

<You rush again, going for a strike from the left, you just need to figure out his patterns. He blocks with one sword, and slices with the other- too slow.>

[Not this AGAIN.]

<Every advantage must be used. You're mid dash, this time, you'll feint right. He's already ready to block your attack but you change course at the last second to strike his other side.>

<He blocks that as well.>

[. . . . . . . That's-]

<A fluke. Try something else, you let him come to you, running at you swords to his side. Once he's in striking distance, he swipes. You jump back in time to dodge one, but he delayed his second swing and catches you->

[You're going to kill us.]

<We will not loose this. He's rushing at you again, he delays his second swing, so block the first and jump over the second.>

<He lunges, you block the first->

[?!?!?!??!?!?!]

<He, swung with both at the same time.>

[He's CHANGING THINGS]

<Impossible, it's, it's a fluke. Rushing at you again, you, you- >

[You froze up, and got stabbed. STARS Null what are you-]

<SHUT UP!!!>

<You focus, you need to, to, to think. He's about to strike, you wait, step back from the first strike, second one comes in, catches your hand. It stings, it burns.>

"S-siffrin!!" [You hear Mirabelle exclaim. Your breathing is heavy, you were already exhausted from looping and THIS ISN'T HELPING!!!]

"Increddible, absolutley increddible." [Perci is staring at wonder.] "It's like your thought switch in an instant. Going from one plan to another faster than any mind should be able to!"

"Future vision? Perhaps?" [Merlon adds. You look over to Mirabelle, you share a look.] "No, not quite. . ."

"Oh!" [Perci snaps his fingers.] "Is that what that looping you keep thinking about is? Time looping back when you loose?"

<. . . . .>

[Percis face lights up.] "It IS!!! Oh, oh my, Merlon we have a lot of work to do."

<He rushes in again. Block, dodge- >

<Again. Jump, stab down- >

<Dash in to meet him, leap, craft- >

[IT'S NOT WORKING]

<He can read our movements. Can't, think them, just, focus on- >

<Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow, Creeps in this petty pace from day to day.>

[What are you DOING?!?]

<Stop thinking. Block, strike, dodge, block, craft->

<To the last syllable of recorded time; And all our yesterdays have lighted fools.>

<The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle! Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player,>

"Reciting plays to cover your thoughts?" <Perci says. Strike block lunge.> "It might work~"

"Your rogue is a very talented fighter, Mirabelle." <Merlon's voice.>

". . . ." <Mirabelle> "He, he is."

<Dodge, duck, jump, cornered. Block He looks you in the eye.>

<That struts and frets his hour upon the stage- >

< -And then is heard no more. It is a tale>

<Block, parry. Block, dodge.>

"No crafts, Null?" <Perci lunges.> "Focused too much on your footwork, perhaps."

[I can. Just-]

<No. You just. Needed. A dagger.>

<He's taunting.> "I can tell by your thoughts, you've already tried beating me quite a bit."

<Cut him. Jump. Hit, trip- >

<Told by an idiot>

<Your little wounds hurt. Legs getting weak. Looping, hard.>

"Stop it!!" <Mirabelle.> "Both of you!! They, S-sif you'll, you'll-"

<Jump, duck, parry, counter.>

<He's gloating.> "I'd call it cheating, but, it looks like you're only hurting yourself."

<He knocks your dagger away, you- >

<Full of sound and fury,>

<You collapse.>

<Your legs, arms, feet, chest, hands, stomach, it burns, it BURNS. It's all numb, it's all pain, it's nothing, eveerything. Null. Zero. Nothing. Nothing but pain, pain, pain- >

<Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, Signifying nothing.>

<You can't go on.>

<You lost.>

[fashion-foxy]

You know something that's odd to me? How weirdly the child of the Beauty and the Beast get handled in media. (Obviously, my only examples are EAH and Descendants, but walk with me on this.)

The Beauty is someone who will, for better or for worse, always see the best in everyone. They are kind and good-natured but is usually someone who still holds people accountable for their actions and intentions, not what the Beauty thinks their intentions are.

The Beast is someone who typically does not look past the surface level of a person out of stupidity or willful ignorance. The Beast is also very selfish ,closed-minded , and stubborn. Unfortunately , that means in retellings, the Beast is the only one to go a character arc, and the Beauty comes off as judgmental or too forgiving.

Both characters being foils means that it could be a bit challenging to portray a character that is a result of both of those personalities, but if done right, it creates a very interesting character!

So, what did EAH and Descendants do with what they were given?!

Well, for starters, a bad job, but you already knew that. Let's take a look at Rosabella Beauty and Benjamin Florian No Last Name Given. (Idk most Descendants characters don't have last names)

Rosabella is judgemental, which could definitely actually be a super cool thing that she got from her dad, but based off the fact that she didn't go on an arc and it didn't get presented as a character flaw, I suspect this was accidental. Which is real shame. It would've been a really cool concept to explore Rosabella actually being the Beast.

She is also, by not getting any meaningful character development, giving off major 'I could fix him' vibes with Daring. Except, she's ignoring what's actually wrong in his life and looking at surface level interpretations of what she thinks he's like. Then, deciding he's a self-centered narcissist who she needs to fix so he meets her standards. Hey, wait a spell. She kind of seems to embody more of the Beast characteristics than the Beauty's. I wonder if the writers might have had other plans but were forced to change her into something else or perhaps Mattel wanted to sell a doll of her and Daring so they had to awkwardly force a relationship and not use their original plans?

Ben is way too forgiving. When we first see him, he says that he wants to give the Isle kids (kids who were born to villians who've been trapped in a magic prison all their life) a chance at a normal life, which is great! It's probably one of the best things a 16 year old king could do. So when's the next time he forgives someone? When he tells Mal that he knows she drugged him. So, it's at this point where you kinda realize that he isn't being too forgiving he's trapped in an abusive relationship. Once he sees that Mal realizes the implications of that, he goes back on it, and he tells her that it's not that big of a deal that it's ok that he still loves her.

When's the next time something like this happens? When Mal tries to erase some of his memories after catching her lying about using magic. He obviously yells at her because that's a fucked up thing to do. She downplays the situation and makes excuses. Shortly after, she runs back to the Isle. Ben, assuming that she had the best intentions, blames himself and ultimately gets kidnapped and then drugged again. All of these interactions are all portrayed as 'his fault' and that he'd deserved everything that happened to him because he was holding Mal responsible for her actions. In the third movie, he even stops doing it. Hades asks him why an Auradon kid gets to be excused and why everyone on the Isle doesn't, and he looks at Mal but ignores the question. Mal doesn't answer because she's the reason this Auradon person (Audrey) is hurt because she ruined her life and is currently being excused by everyone, including the writers, but Audrey won't. Ben definitely won't.

So, aren't these the best portrayals of the Beauty and the Beast characteristics? Because mixing the traits incorrectly. If Ben was given more Beast characteristics than just roaring sometimes. Mal wouldn't be abusive if their were actually moments where Ben was being unreasonable and too quick to draw surface level conclusions.

Rosabella wouldn't come off as rude and judgemental if she was given more Beauty characteristics. If Daring was actually self-centered and Rosabella considered others and thought about others instead of drawing conclusions.

[mapsareforbraindeads]

some rough redesigns of red and chloe from rise of red because this movie pissed me off. more to come??? maybe??? anyways here’s some things i would change as well as some design insights (under cut)

red and chloe have clashing color schemes. red has red, black, and a light pink, while chloe has blue, gold, and a light teal. typical red/blue gays but also with added accents to better match the typical descendants cast.

red’s space buns are shaped like hearts for obvious reasons. chloe’s shoes are also given a more distinct heel for a possible arc of trying to become a good enough person for her mother through the metaphor of learning to walk in heels. this will reach a head at castlecoming.

speaking of castlecoming, we get to see the ball in my rewrite. i WILL be designing outfits for everyone and that is a fact.

i am also erasing uliana’s existence and having maleficent and hades be the main villains here. not only are they more threatening, but they will actually have motivations. in the first movie, maleficent brags to mal about how evil she was when she was mal’s age. maybe she has the school hostage or something and bridget is a ray of sunshine she has to snuff out. rather than being an actual student, she’s gonna be invading the school with hades in some way i haven’t figured out. just wreaking havoc for the sake of being evil. also her and hades are gonna be absolutely insufferable to watch ❤️

maleficent will probably end up manipulating ella into cursing bridget. maybe she uses some magic, or promises ella something in exchange. maybe a way out of her abusive household? anyways, this would be remedied later when we have fay (yes she’s going to be relevant) sneak her out and get her into castlecoming.

jaladdin is cut. because what the fuck was that

the theme of the movie is gonna center around forgiveness and learning to never take friendships for granted. that could have been a really good lesson for kids being raised in 2024 but nope. we didn’t get that

i’m aging maddox down and having him be red’s age. they were childhood friends, and he got invited to auradon as well but declined going because he wanted to fix wonderland in red’s name. something cute like that. and then he gives her the pocket watch because he actually has consistent motivations

i have some more thoughts so you can shoot me asks about this if you want 🫶🏻 this is a secondary project though so don’t expect too much content

tagging @bananaballs21 bc you asked

[mirroredmemoriez]

More Denlon Thoughts

From finally posting my comparison down below about the Denlon's and John, it made me spiral even more into them.

I have said it there above and I'll say it again- Jeff's test in my eyes accounted the fact his grief would slow him down. John wouldn't have of wanted him to be able to speed through it, especially due to the fact he's getting improv brain surgery. There was a bit of a reliance on the fact that Jeff wouldn't complete his test like, halfway through Lynn's. Which, I believe sometimes the fandom doesn't think about? Yes he's, ''Slow Ass Motherfuckin Jeff.'' However, if he wasn't Saw 3 would've been way shorter- Like imagine he showed up before Amanda was having her full blown breakdown? And or mid brain surgery. Another thing I mentioned is the fact that in comparison, Lynn is handling her test much better than her husband... And in turn this actually makes him seem even MORE slow than before. What we have to think about here is though, Lynn was not dubbed the ''best'' in regards to her medical pursuits for no reason. The playing field is working way more with her, the biggest stress and issue Lynn faces whilst going through her test is Amanda. Otherwise, if you took that factor out? Yes she may be using shit like a power drill but Lynn is a fucking amazing doctor. We get to see this even before she was kidnapped because it can be said she should've been there sooner, but when she helped that patient in the hospital she literally stabilised him in almost a minute flat whilst disregarding the other doctors inputs.

Lynn's test doesn't have her constantly facing her own grief and in comparison to Jeff? We don't know whether or not she even holds a shred of need for vengeance like he does. The most we know about the impact it has had on her, is she's now addicted to anti-depressants, neglects Corbett and her marriage is so fractured she's having an affair. One thing I'll hone on in here is the child neglect... We don't get to see the way Lynn does that as much as we do Jeff. The assumption is her long work hours and being out well... Having that affair! But also how active would Lynn have been in her children's lives even prior to Dylan's death? She to me is the main ''breadwinner'' let's say and Jeff is more so the one who is regularly looking after the children, because Lynn is a literal brain surgeon where generally surgery can last from 3-5 hours to even 5-7! How much did her role as a parent change when Dylan died in regards to how active she is in Corbett's life?

Shuffling back to the games- It's also such an interesting concept to think of Lynn going through Jeff's test, I stated this before in my previous post but it's still an ever running thought for me. Jigsaw tests tend to always be specifically designed for the person within them- In the Denlon's case they're being tested for almost the exact same reason... They are husband and wife after all. So although I don't think that means oh yeah they can be inter switched! Everything is still very close to home for the both of them. Like if Lynn was face to face with Timothy Young the way Jeff was, that is the man who killed her son. Mistake or not. It's whether or not she can or wants to forgive. Lynn in theory and I guess also in practice really, is good at detaching her emotions from what is at hand. Does she like John? No- But will she ignore that in favour of living? Yes! The same way possibly in her career she has had to save the lives of people morally she doesn't agree with. However, as previously mentioned- This is so much more closer to home. So does that all go out the window for her? We just don't know.

I'll stop here for now because I'm a mad man who rambles too much- Thanks for reading if you've got this far down! -MAL OUT

[starleska]

Heya. So um... I got a question. Which character you fell in love the most? Maxime Le Mal (Despicable Me 4) or Ronaldo (Helluva Boss) or maybe both of them? If someone already asked you that question, that's fine

oh...forgive me, you made me think about Maxime Le Mal and Rolando at the same time, and i think my brain blanked out for a second 🥴💖 what were we talking about? 🙈🙈

my first response to this excellent question is: why would i ever pit two bad bitches against each other? 🥰💖 i adore both characters in different ways for different reasons but i think trying to figure out which one i love 'more' is a bit like that 'two cakes' comic. it's less about one cake being better than the other - i'm just like, 'Holy shit! Two cakes!' 😂💖

however, this is an interesting pair as they have a lot of similarities to each other!! both older, fancily-dressed villains wearing tinted glasses (why is it always the tinted glasses?! 😖) who spend a great deal of time trying to cause distress to their targets and who are hiding a sexy monstrous form 😉 equally funny - the second i saw both of them in their respective trailers, i knew i was doomed. sometimes you just see a character and hear the autistic equivalent of the Kill Bill siren, you know? 😭💖

if we're going by a 'how ill is this guy making you' metric, i can confirm that i've done very little but think about our new favourite eel fellow for the past few days...and Maxime had me in a similar 'can't think about anything else' grip 🙈 a lot of my character fixations can be put on a spectrum somewhere between brief crush and Category 5 Autism Event, with the closeness to the latter being determined by 'how much have you talked about them', 'how many fanworks have you created in a short period of time', and 'how severely are they reducing your functioning' 😂 i think the absolute worst i've had over the past year or so were the Toymaker (i have never made that amount of fanworks for a character so quickly) and Nordic Bunny (i forgot to eat 💀💀). but!! i hold all of my beloved characters close to my heart even if they were just teeny-tiny little fixations, or if they're characters of fixations past...if something makes you happy even a little bit, i think they're just as worthy as the things which make you really happy too :3c

[pleasestayawayidonotlikeyou]

I thoroughly enjoy that one pregnancy ask, rite for some juicy drama. May I be so bold to request a similar situation with Fellswap Sans (Mal) and Fellswap Papyrus (Mutt) separately?

Bonus points if the day after the babybone's birth, s/o sends them a picture of said baby with the caption

"Surprise Motherf#cker. It's you the f#cker of this mother. I told I was telling the truth."

Hehehehe >:)

Featuring: Mal and Mutt

Masterlist

Mal

Even if he wants to believe you, the words that Toriel put in his mind years ago never left, "A Human and a monster can never breed, we're completely different species, it's impossible."

He can't swallow his pride and it ends up in a huge argument, things broken and Mal leaving you.

Does he feel bad? None can tell, but his brother notices him being even less open with people.

Yet here he stands, staring at the screen of his phone showing a picture of you right after birth holding a skeleton baby with magenta- purplish eyes, just like his, with a text "Surprise Motherfucker, looks like you're the fucker of this mother."

Oh fuck. Fuck fuck fuck.

This isn't good, this wasn't supposed to happen!!

He never truly stopped loving you, he simply repressed the feeling and brushed it off as a stupid feeling.

So, who does he go to in this occassion? The woman who he most hates yet is your closest friend, Muffet.

Is it easy to get information out of her? No. It never was and it never will be, especially when she absolutely despises Mal.

But she lets out the date that you'll be out of the hospital after some good 8 thousand are thrown into the desk. Old habits die hard.

So here he is, standing at your door dressed all fancy while playing with his fingers.

"(_____).. I Would Like To Apologize For.. What I've Done Some Months, Would You Give Me A Second Chance Despite My Actions? Please?"

Mal understands if you don't want him back, damn, he wouldn't want himself back if the same happened to him, but... It's your choice after all.

Mutt

Genuinely believed that the child is his, yet Mal manages to put in his mind that they aren't.

Mutt isn't one to argue, so he simply tells you that he doesn't believe the baby is his and leaves.

He does feel really bad after this, especially because leaving someone who he had thrusted and been for years just feels... Off.

The lack of your presence sets him off, sometimes he caughts himself looking for you on various occasions.

He wants to get back with you, even if the kid isn't his, yet the shame and anxiety don't let him even text you, he's way too embarrassed to do it.

His face lit up seeing you had texted him, but died down quickly when he saw the message, "Surprise Surprise, you're the fucker of this mother" with the picture of you holding a small babybones who looked exactly like him when younger.

He could already feel the tears going down his face as his phone fell to the ground, cracking the screen.

Was there any going back? No. So why not go to your house to beg for forgiveness? It's not like he'd lose anything..

"(_____) please take me back.. please forgive me for not believing you, please I promise to be better! Please... I still love you..."

He begged, yet his cries for forgiveness may end up in humiliation and waste of time or in him being forgiven... It's your choice.

[aleksanderscult]

what I feel the thing about blade boy is many people were willing to forgive him in the first book. I was one of those people too. I thought,' oh he's probably come back from a traumatic experience, he doesn't mean what he sat, right?' Although I still thought that mal beig mad that alina was happy was suspicious.

Then too boy, the second book. People argue that 'oh he's like the same age as alina, we can't hold a teenager to impossibly high standards!' and I'm just like yeah, that's true. But Leigh just portrays this as a normal couples quarrel which ends up in a perfectly happy marriage (not a dysfunctional relationship which realistically would not work out).

oh oh and then comes his hypocrisy. Remember that scene at teh banya? Directly after he kissed zoya? Alina offers him that she will give up her power and run away with him (idk if she was serious or not) but mal says,' has it wver occurred to you that you're meant to be a queen and I'm meant to be nobody?' And then when alina snaps out of her stupor and stands her ground, saying the old alina ain't coming back, he just whines' I want her back?' WHY DOESNT HE PICK A SIDE?

And then ' has it ever occurred to you that I may not follow?' moment. See, if person A really does love person B, A will do whatever they can to make person B happy??? Is that not common sense? If you love a person and it's in both your better interest to let them go? You let them go? I mean, this dude literally said 'idgaf if you danced naked on the roof of the little palace with the darkling'and he is pulling this crap?

Anyways thanks for coming to my yapfest. All in all, I have many other points about blade boy that are just suspicious. I was honestly hopi g that alina remain teh leader of the second army and/or marry Nikolai and use her power to better ravka and the grisha. But we can't have that. Stay safe, take care of yourself!

-🎀 annon

Every time a person rants in my askbox is a blessed day for me. Because those facts are always delicious.

Leigh Bardugo tried so hard to make fans understand that Darklina is toxic but turns a blind eye where Malina is concerned.

True love is when you accept the other the way they are. You don't want to change them, you love everything about them. And here we have Mal who crawls away from Alina's Grisha side like it's a parasite or something. Like it's not her entire being and soul.

And that quote you mentioned "I don't care if you danced naked on the roof with him" is kinda rich coming from the man who was losing his shit every time Aleksander was in Alina's range.

That hypocritical jerk did much to Alina and he got away with that. He never apologized and even when he did, he phrased it in a way as if it was Alina's fault for acting that way against her.

That asshole is the most egomaniac character in the Grishaverse (yes even more than the Darkling. At least the Darkling could think about somebody else too.)

[bedtimegiraffe]

I'm on a Valleros family dynamics kick again!

I really believe they had to nerf King Arlan in Book 2 to make him worse, and by extension make Aerin look better. You can of course put in some work and make it make sense in-universe (I certainly tried here), but that sure feels like the meta reason.

In Book 1, honestly, outside of Aerin's account (which is not spectacularly credible given his corruption/ motivation to seem sympathetic/ generally poor mental health), King Arlan seems pretty good, if negligent when it comes to his kids. He:

Seems to genuinely worried about Aerin's safety in the Shadow Realm despite the murder

Looks at Aerin if you bring him back with "rage, pity, and sorrow"

Defends you from the (very powerful) Temple pretty immediately

Pardons Mal from a big enough bounty to 'buy a villa' with a wink.

Overall, pretty decent dude in a terrible situation. If one of my kids killed the other, I'd be pissed too! Aerin comes off like a self-interested ass, while King Arlan looks like a good guy.

If they wanted King Arlan to look awful, they could have easily let him respond to Baldur asking if he should 'rough Aerin up.' King Arlan could have said, "Go for it son, beat up your younger brother to teach him a lesson!" It would have quickly established him as a problem. But that doesn't happen. I'd guess Arlan was supposed to be a classic, good, helpful fairytale king in the first book.

But Book 2... King Arlan becomes drastically worse from his first conversation. He says this out loud! About his only living child! (As far as we know. Never can rule out bonus kids, especially with kings.)

Then in the epilogue (portals or merged realms), if you romance Nia, your MC says, "I really don't like that guy," in response to basically nothing. And Nia agrees.

So Book 2, King Arlan is supposed to be a ruthless, awful person your whole party hates by the end. Why?

Because Aerin has a lot of sympathy to build back up, which is way harder if his father was actually a good guy who cared about him and tried to connect. There are tons of decent people who lack the ability to connect to their kids for one reason or another. But can you imagine Book 2 playing out the way it did if the king was like, "I visit Aerin every week. He still refuses to have an actual conversation with me, but no matter what, he's my son and I won't give up on him"?

(Ok, now I kind of want a version where they both realize they have some responsibility for their current bad relationship and slowly forgive each other and get better. But that's not what we have, so moving on!)

If you captured Aerin in Book 1, as far as MC is concerned Aerin was always supposed to go back to prison. If he was with the goblins, MC still has some motivation to turn him into Morella's government. You know, for all the treason and almost (or, actually?) causing Nia's death.

But Aerin spending the rest of his life in a cell doesn't work for his redemption arc/ is a huge downer. So King Arlan has to be so awful and dangerous to Aerin that it feels irresponsible to turn Aerin in. So Aerin gets to go live his redemption arc and MC gets to feel like they have the moral high ground releasing a man who almost ended the world.