#not that extreme (as far as I've seen) but it heavily depends on what you're used to watching

[illesecrita]

Finally continued to watch some Kern, on this 80+ minute compilation I found some time ago. Did so after rewatching submit to me on a different channel (Kern's own?), was hoping I could find submit to me now inside this compilation but it doesn't look like it's there, so my search will have to continue. Anyway, the first film in this I hadn't watched was the second one, the right side of my brain, 23 minutes. I liked it, one of the best I've seen so far, lunch does a pretty hypnotic narration that openly talks about a deep self destructiveness. Something to let yourself feel if you're in the mood for it. "So it kills me... So what."

[paragonrobits]

thinking about how a few people pigeonholded Wyll early on as 'standard Goody Hero you wind up ignoring for more interesting companions later' and how this is very much not the case but it takes some attention to notice it

among other things, he's a non-ironic and genuine hero, free of prejudice in a way that is SIGNIFICANT in the setting; tieflings are widely hated and feared, accursed and constantly driven out wherever they go, and Wyll's establishing character moment is him leaping to their defense, holding the line to protect the tiefling refugees and the adventuring group present at the grove, and then training tiefling kids to defend themselves with a heroic encouragment that they are extremely unlikely to have seen at all from non-tieflings, especially a human. this same attitude underscores his character overall, where he never does any kind of self-righteous attitude you might expect; he's surprisingly indifferent for the most part for traveling with a vampire as long as Astarion keeps his appetites in check, and his response to you voluntarily becoming more illithid/embracing the power of the tadpole is 'weird but you do you'

then, there's his dynamic with Karlach

they have a LOT of closeness over the course of the game that can be read as romantic, and they're certainly very close over the course of the game, with Karlach passionately referring to Wyll as her best friend not that much later on (I think I've seen it proc as relatively early as sometime around the grove party, depending on character quest progress?). They are the single most straightforwardly heroic members of the party besides Halsin (who is only actively a party member much later on), work very well as ideal mainstays for a heroic/compassionate playthrough as well as a Dark Urge struggling to keep themself in check, and are exclusive to siding with the tiefling refugees, reinforcing their status as moral exemplars.

More to the point, though, they're linked to each other; Wyll's quest, upon joining, encourages you to beeline it to Karlach, and his story arc VERY HEAVILY leans towards siding with her and accepting the consequences, and this means that they're basically peas in a pod, character-wise (and assuming you're not playing as a melee-focused class yourself, synergize quite well for making a party as their default classes and set ups lean well towards a beatstick and melee/magic hybrid respectively).

this is where Wyll's character design-as-story communication comes in, subverting the assumption of him being a 'boring' character; quite apart from the fact that a POC adventurer is rather atypical, especially one shown as prominently as Wyll, along with the fact that he is a warlock (arguably one of the stereotypically 'evil alignment classes', or at least inherently edgy, ESPECIALLY with Wyll clearly being a Fiend Pact from the get-go) but is nonetheless the single most moral person you meet early on; he's a scarred guy clearly who has been Through It but is nonetheless charming.

Then, in what seems to be his expected character arc, he accepts that Karlach is not a devil at all but a tiefling in a similar situation to him, fully aware that he is going to horribly suffer for it and gritting his teeth anyway. This leads to him being transformed into a devil himself (or referred to as such); his face warped with massive horns, scale-like protrusions all over, his remaining eye turned bright red. He explicitly cannot hide this transformation, as they are all far too obvious, and even in the weird world of Faerun he sticks out with many characters who knew him before are outright aghast to see what has become of him.

Wyll looks like a devil; one of the iconic and most horrific monsters in the setting, and he is cursed like that specifically as a punishment for doing the right thing; his cursed appearance is an indicator of how moral and righteous he genuinely is, a scar he suffered to do the right thing. It highlights his morality, and if you came in expecting him to be a pretty standard hero, its hard to say how it gets more of a swerve from that than 'a cursed hero doomed to look like a devil as punishment for doing the right thing'

[smonk-wonk]

POC system here. Not every POC will have the same opinion on this, no one singular person is an authority on the matter. And some will also have harmful perspectives or even think mine is harmful somehow so I recommend listening to many voices and doing what you feel is right and respectful. Plenty of POC have different feelings on the matter

I've personally seen slurs used by a white bodied system with "alter race" being their justification. Saying they, as an alter, were black so their use of a slur that has never been used to oppress them is fine. Some others agreed, a startling amount of people when it started discourse. But that's a no-no. For some people those were or will be the last words they will ever hear so it's fucked up for a white bodied person to use. I'm sure most will agree there.

And I agree that "alter race" does not exist. You're whatever race your body is. I don't believe a white bodied system should say they have a "black alter". You can describe their appearance as is. Really I personally wouldn't care if one described their alter as "(race) presenting" or resemblant of (race) or something- as long as they do not say that is their race. Using words like reseblant or presenting differentiates identity from appearance, so when it's framed as such it makes it more clear that you aren't describing their background. Some may not approve of that or feel on the fence, depends on who you ask so I suppose be mindful. I do however think this is not exclusive to white people. If you're black, you don't have a Vietnamese alter, if you're Mexican you don't have a Jamaican alter, etc, etc.

As far as names, I actually don't think it's an extremely big deal but use your judgement. And there are gray areas as well that make it more complicated to police names, I feel. Do you draw the line at a name more common but not exclusive to Black people like Tyrone, Miles, D'Angelo, or Monique? Because if I met a white person with those names I wouldn't care. Or do you draw the line at say more traditionally African names like Imani or Kwame? A Japanese character introject, do you draw the line at Kira? Hotaru? That's somewhere that I think you can use your own judgement. I'm sure you're capable. And you can be mindful of how you present yourself outwardly to others. Like if you're unsure about a name like Tyreese, Tyrone, or Tyrisha, you can go by something like Ty. If you're unsure about Eduardo, Ed is fine. They can also just be nicknames used to outwardly present/introduce yourself as that is much more important than whatever you do/call yourself amongst your system

But I wouldn't really care, in my personal opinion, what you called yourself for the most part. Especially if this is only among friends, but generally I don't think it's that important. So long as it is not heavily symbolic with cultural significance or associated with some sort of status. For example the name of an alter that takes the appearance of someone from a tribe (from or heavily inspired by any real world culture) shouldn't be accompanied by a status label like "Sachem" (or similarly "Chief", but many Native Americans find "Chief" insensitive). But know that I'm not all knowing of all cultures, and their opinions or what carries significance or is derogatory in their cultural context

You don't need to use my or any singular voice as a guideline as I am just one person (well yk what I mean). Other voices should be heard and research should be done if a POC feels you're not accounting for culture or historical context. It'll make it easier to use your judgement to listen to the commentary of those from various cultures. Others will feel more or less strongly about this than me but at the end of the day it isn't gonna affect my life

This is no hate, we're just really confused on the whole "alter race" debate. We have a lot of headmates from different cultures and ethnicities, many who are fictives and simply came with the name from their source. (We are a white bodied system, I'll make that clear.) I'm one of those headmates (a host as well) and I have a name that doesn't match with the body's race, yet I don't use it to refer to the body. My friends however do use it to refer to me in specific though. I was talking to another system friend in a non-white body about this and they also seemed confused. Should their headmates all take names of the body's race? What exactly do you mean by names? Although many of us still identify with our respective races, we don't appropriate or use any terms that the body couldn't claim which is why we're all a bit confused. /gen /nay

again i am a white bodied system as well just relaying information that i have been told from poc systems and it is a pretty big debated topic where i mostly view content which is tik tok, i am sure you can find more information on i am pretty sure one of my mutuals accounts on tik tok deepsea.system also known as cream as their nickname but it is infact racist and culturally appropriation, yes someone can look differently to the body in the headspace but they are not from that race nor that culture if the body is not from that culture or race i apologise that i am just really bad at explaining your stuck with me for a bit since i am sadly front stuck https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTRThwNVx/

i feel like these videos could help you understand a bit but i do hope you do more research into this as well i know there are a few videos about it on the rainbow systems account because there was recent drama of a white system using racial slurs and using alter race as a way to defend themselves not sure if this will help but a lot of people to help understand alter race and why it isn't real is when they look at it like transrace because you can't change your race

[totiredtowrite]

"Ｔｈｅ Ｇｒａｖｅ Ｄｉｇｇｅｒ"

Warnings - Talks of death, blood

Note: plot didn't agree with me ig, if it sucks deal with it 🙄

FEM READERS DO NOT INTERACT (SHE/HER, SHE/THEY)

/̵͇̿̿/’̿’̿ ̿ ̿̿ ̿̿ ̿̿

There were only two people in this town who nobody seemed to see. Whether it be by their own choice or public displeasure, they hardly showed their faces. Town hall meetings, events, the occasional festival, never. Unsurprisingly, the two men who never showed up both worked with the dead.

The executioner, and the undertaker.

Matsukawa Issei, the undertaker, wasn't commonly known by his name. Or even his title, for that matter. Somewhere along the line he'd earned the nickname of 'The Grave Digger.'

He knew why, of course. Everyone knew why. The only time the bulk of the townsfolk saw him was when he was out digging graves at the edge of town. For those who lived near to the graveyard, it was a rather common sight.

Just as dusk fell they would see him out in the field, rusted copper spade in hand as he shoveled up dirt. Typically there was a body wrapped in linen laying somewhere near him, and on the nights where they weren't the people knew he would be back the next night with one.

At first, he'd struggled quite a bit.

Digging human sized holed in the ground, six feet deep, wasn't easy work by any means. Especially not for one man. At nineteen was when he'd started his work. If he wasn't well built before, he certainly was now. If it was possible, he was sure that his shovel would have dents in it from where he clutches it. It was his own little cycle. He obtained the body, he prepped it, (if the family could afford a funeral), he dug, he buried.

Only the reverend and the grifter who hung around these parts really had any continued conversation with him. Even still, he and the reverend had limited conversation. Their talks were short, concise, formal. And, even more so, that was only when a family could pay for a funeral and wanted it in the church.

Naturally that left little to no opportunity for relationships.

Though, it wasn't like people didn't want him. Unlike the executioner, people vied for his attention. The few times he goes into town, he can feel eyes on him. Women and men alike. The grave digger has earned the tag of 'tall, dark, and handsome.'

He sighed heavily, dropping his spade by the door of his home. He never liked burying children. He had two today, twins. It always made him feel remorseful. Like they could have done so much. All he really wanted to to was stare at the ceiling in the company of his phonograph.

It didn't help his mood that the grave robber situation was spiraling. Some sicko was taking bones from graves, keeping them. Maybe he was selling them. Issei opened the door, turning his back to the main room to close it. He let his head fall against the oak. He relished in the silence, though something didn't feel right.

He narrowed his eyes to the door, slowly taking his hand of the handle and turning around when–

"It's honestly about time. What was that six hours? You usually take less."

He stopped, eyes wide in your direction.

The shock prevented him from really saying or doing anything, so you took that as an invitation to continue. "Anyways, nice place! This is the first time I've actually seen the inside," you laughed a bit. From where you were sat, Matsukawa could make out a few things.

A shovel sat by your side, one similar to his. Similar, except it was very clearly made of silver. You were seated on a desk against the far wall, directly across from where he stood. Your legs, one crossed over the other, were clad in dirtied work pants. His expression turned defensive at the realization that there were little splatters of blood near your boot.

"Though you did have to bury kids today huh?" You continued. "I get it. S'not fun digging them up either." You sighed dramatically.

Your remark killed any words I'm previously in his throat. The grave robber.

His face quickly morphed into something threatening, something that most people would run far away from. "You're the–"

"Yep!" You didn't let him finish, pulling up a wanted poster from god knows where. There was no face on it, just a black silhouette with a white question mark in the head. "This is what you meant right? You're absolutely correct."

He moved to advance. "What the hell are you doing in my home," he snarled.

You held up a hand. "Woah there, tiger. You know these things can seriously hurt someone, right?" You tilted your head to the shovel at your side. Matsukawa stopped in his tracks, though his deadly glare didn't falter.

"Look," you sighed, "Can we please get off on the right foot? I'm (l/n) (y/n), the man who's been digging up bodies. Well, parts of bodies. It honestly depends on the price," you giggled. "I know exactly who you are, but why don't you tell me anyways?"

No words left his throat. Well, none that were very nice anyways.

"Right," you rolled your eyes at the obscenities that left his mouth in the place of his name. "But I'm not here to fight." You slid off of the table in a rather smooth manner, sweeping up the shovel at the same time. "In fact, I'm here to help!"

Matsukawa's lips pursed in thought. He should turn you right in to the sheriff. Yet, some part of him wanted to hear what you had to say. After all, if he didn't like it, you've simply engineered your own arrest. He didn't say another word, harshly grabbing your shoulders and steering you towards the small dining table. "Sit." he said gruffly, not giving you a chance to respond before he practically threw you into the chair.

Taking the seat across from you, his eyes locked on you expectantly. You took that as a sign to speak. "Ha, anyways, the other day I found this," you set a femur on the table. Matsukawa cringed slightly. Not because he was nervous by it, but because where did you even have that? "This belongs to a man that's easily six feet tall."

Matsukawa nodded. "And?"

"And," you scoffed, "I found it in the grave of a woman. A woman who was no more than five feet." Matsukawa decided to ignore how weird this conversation was getting. "Unless you're just really bad at your job, these bones aren't matching up. Not to mention the woman I dug up the other day," you let out a breathy laugh. "Can you believe it? Her jaw was far too large."

He shuddered, declaring to himself that he had a psychopath sat at his table.

"Anyways, handsome," you have him a predatory grin, "Wanna entertain me for a bit? Just how do you think those bones are being misplaced? It's messing with my business, you know. Making me less credible."

"Business? What business?" He couldn't stop himself from asking.

"Y'know, grave robbing? You think I just keep the bones I take? The bodies?" You laughed. "Gross, no. I sell them. Shady medical students who wanna get ahead, witches, people who do extremely innocent things with dead bodies." Matsukawa cringed again.

"I should turn you in," he said. He stood up to lean over the table, slamming his hands down right in front of you, eyes angled down his nose.

You, unfazed by this, shrugged. "If you turned me in, you'd get the money, but you'd never know what's going on with the bones switching place."

He let out a muted frustrated noise. "Come on," you tilted your head to let the candlelight illuminate your eyes, "What's the worst that could happen?"

~

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