#one obscure tidbit a day

[ammocharis]

One bit of obscure Dragon Age lore a day until Dragon Age: The Veilguard is released

Yavana is a daughter of Flemeth. She's the Witch of the Wilds who lives in the Tellari swamps in Antiva and protects the Silent Grove where dragons are sleeping. According to Yavana, the blood of dragons is the blood of the world. Yavana also claims that in a time before the Veil, dragons ruled the skies.

Source: Dragon Age: The Silent Grove

Previous bit

[linkito]

I am here to make puppy eyes at you and ask for Cub and Scar tidbits pretty please? <3

-🎀

YES HI RIBBON ANON!!!

Ohhh what to say about Cub and Scar... <3

Both of them are vex hybrids, of course, and I'm not sure how much I've talked about their Past™ before, but... the general idea is that they originally did live with other vex. But the Bad Kind. The kind that the hunters of the other world envisioned all vex hybrids to be.

Cub remembers it, but Scar really doesn't, because one day, Cub took the both of them and ran. This is why Scar doesn't know much about how to handle his vex instincts/magic at the beginning of our story, because it's something he was never really familiar with.

The thing about Cub, too, is, maybe he could have fit in there. It's not like the vex there were Evil, just... brutal. Focused on expanding their magic to its very limits. Strict and aggressive.

It's Scar who did not belong. Scar who had big dreams, a creative mind, and the brightest laugh.

Cub couldn't bear to watch the vex squander that. So one day he grabbed Scar and they fled.

Because of this, they're each other's only family, even if not directly related.

And speaking of family, did you know there are other sorts of vex bites besides the mating ones? The idea is definitely borrowed from omegaverse lore (shhhh), namely the diagram from this post here. It's only a loose similarity though, so don't take all of that info as canon to hhau! But another notable mark is that of a parental/familial bond—

Cub marked Scar when they were young. Scar doesn't even remember it. It's on the back of his neck, almost completely obscured by his hairline. You're never going to see it unless you know what to look for.

And with this little ritual comes a magic-laced bond—nothing too significant really, but it means Cub can always feel a sort of tug toward Scar's presence. It's subtle, almost unnoticeable, just an instinctual sort of thing... but imagine how Cub felt waking up from the destruction of Season 8 to having that feeling suddenly gone.

It's how the rescue team tracks down Scar as well. Scar alone.

And isn't it sad how all of those things Cub tried to protect Scar from happened anyways in that other world? Scar comes back with a white streak in his hair and Cub knows exactly what that means. Scar comes back on edge, claws out, ready to pounce and bare his teeth and it absolutely breaks Cub's heart.

But Scar and Grian also come back together, and that mating mark doesn't escape Cub's knowing eyes.

He's definitely one of the few Hermits to understand that the bond Grian and Scar have together is not something to be concerned about in the slightest. It's natural, really, just maybe not for what the Hermits have come to understand vexes to be like. Because Cub and Scar (up until now) have not been your typical vexes!

It's a little difficult, as a vex himself, to really change the minds of anyone else alone, but what he does do is make sure Scar knows he's there for him. He's still family and Scar is still Scar, despite everything that happened to him.

I actually wrote a mini-fic of sorts about hhau Cub and Scar back in April, but the premise is... very silly. I'm not sure if I'll share the whole thing LOL

buuuuuut you can have this <3 ~

[tj-dragonblade]

Fic authors self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers. spread the self-love ❤

Thank you! This is such a hard question! I love most everything I've written, picking favorites is hard, I swear it would be easier to name the ones I'm least thrilled with lol. And just because most of these are Sandman doesn't mean I don't care about my older fandoms either, just that almost always what I'm happiest with writing is going to be the most recent years. Maybe one day I'll go through fandom by fandom to pick a top three from each, or something. But for now! In no particular order, and after much thought, here we go.

When the Chips Are Down from the tail end of my Saiyuki days, published 14 years ago this month. It's comical crack-treated-seriously based on an obscure canon-adjacent factoid and that sort of thing has never been my forte, but I succeeded admirably here if I may say so. It was a joy to write, Jiipu is my favorite and forever under-utilized in fic so centering this around him, around a ridiculous tidbit of info about his counterpart in the original Journey to the West and telling it in his pov was absolutely delightful. I had so much fun writing this one and I'm still so proud of the character voice work I managed in here.

The Thessaly breakup fic from fluffbruary 2023, which I like for having a semblance of plot and because I see lots of talk about what Hob would think of Thessaly but I don't know if I've run into any other actual fics dealing with it. Not that this is the Hob-gives-Thessaly-a-piece-of-his-mind fic that I think we all need, but I'm still very pleased with it. And I just really like the scene of Dream crying on Hob.

Of Cutoff Shorts and Classic Cars. I'm just. So happy with how quickly this one happened, how much it kept growing in the writing and how it turned out in the end. I also laugh at myself for nitpicking over the right British terms for back yard and driveway and such but then I completely spaced using bonnet instead of hood. 😂 Also fun fact this was my first time ever writing oral with a vulva and I'm very pleased with how well it's been received.

The Keeper and the Traveler currently sits pretty high because I've always loved and wanted to write that fairy-tale narrative style and this got pretty close. I don't know if it will still be in my top five by the end of the year but for now, it is.

And lastly will cheat a smidge and say Cruise Ship Boys, because I love both pieces of the 'series' and can't decide which I like better. The porn piece again happened quickly and wrote easily and I'm delighted with how it turned out. The sequel was meant to be one cute-ish little scene to revisit them but snowballed into a whole depressing backstory for Dream and an illuminating look into his everyday life and again, it wrote easily which seems to be a theme with these faves, lol. But yeah. I would love to come back to this AU one day.

[everythingisawayoflife]

MORE Random West Wing Headcanons bc I said so

i’ve gotten back into the show recently (esp bc i understand all the politics and crap) and i feel the need to talk about my favorite dysfunctional political administration

in the first post i made, i said ainsley and sam dated for two years before breaking up. well that breakup didn’t last very long. a month later, they started dating again. from that point, on they never left each others side. they live in georgetown with a rottweiler and four kids.

after being really involved in solving a finance crisis, josh was invited to throw the first pitch at the Mets game. when the camera zoomed in on him, he was visibly emotional.

donna was over at josh’s apartment so much during his recovery period, they’ve begun to have weekly movie nights. they continue this tradition even after marriage and kids.

josh and donna’s house has a wall in the hallway of their house when you first enter that is covered with their kids’ handprints - at first, it was just their oldest being naughty but they let it grow into the Moss-Lyman art exhibit. even sam and ainsley’s kids, and toby and andy’s kids have added their prints to the wall

there’s a weekend every summer where all of senior staff and their families come up to Manchester and stay on the Bartlet Farm at Abbey’s insistence - she wears the title of “Grandma Abbey” proudly

at the inaugural ball (aka s4 josh & donna), josh and donna spend so much time together that a lot of the people there going to congratulate josh on getting bartlet’s second term mistake josh and donna for husband and wife - as a joke, donna and josh let people believe it

^^they end up getting quite the talking to from abbey - because she’s mad they didn’t tell her first (and cj, who has to field press questions the next day and they almost caused a domestic incident)

as an april fools day prank, zoey and charlie covered bartlet’s walls in the oval office with sticky notes - sam helped and wrote a “your mama” joke in latin as payback for bartlet having fun with the staff

josh has a terrible habit of biting the skin around his nails until they bleed - he doesn’t realize how bad it is until he turns some papers into the president with large drops of blood on them - donna keeps spare bandaids at her desk

toby likes to have a little fun with donna and say things to deliberately get a reaction out of her - some are truths, some are lies. one truth is that he likes beans on toast. donna called him clinically insane.

leo really likes musicals. can he sing? hardly ever. but on days he finds he needs to relax, he puts on the original cast recording of oklahoma and everything turns out okay

donna unofficially adopts a sickly kitten that lived in the trash near her apartment - she names it Brownie and nurses it back to health

^^Josh is allergic to Brownie but doesn’t say a word to Donna until after they’ve been married and had kids when they reach the age where they start asking for pets

Donna is sort of a multiple-threat kind of girl - she was an excitable kid so she grew up knowing how to do all kinds of things - these things are tap dance for seven years, karate for two years, horseback riding has been the only constant in her life, she can knit and sew, and she even speaks a little french - josh LOVES it when Donna speaks french

josh is always cold, he’s never run warm. donna knit a blanket for him as a birthday present. he’s never said anything but it’s one his favorite things in the whole world

donna actually likes hearing some of the president’s obscure historical tidbits - she even goes so far as to learning some of her own to exchange with him

toby visits the veteran’s grave that he buried every year and even talks to him a little while he’s there

it took a solid 20 minutes after donna had their first kid to let someone else hold him besides josh. the third person to hold their kid was bartlet.

^^^donna has never seen josh more in love than when he held their kid for the first time. cj took a photo of josh gazing at the little baby swaddled in blue clothing with visible tears streaking down his face. it’s one of donna’s favorite photos.

Sam is really good at hockey. He takes his kids to hockey games whenever he can.

[pedgito]

Enjolras grabbing you and holding you up against a wall for a quick fuck super dirty just shoving clothes aside panting into your neck

author’s note: i realize writing for enjolras can be a tricky but to anyone seeing this and not agreeing with the way i wrote it, don’t bother me, because frankly i don’t care lol. anyways, that being said, to those of you that do read this, i hope you enjoy!

cw: 18+ (minors dni), bbc!enjolras, fem!reader, canon divergence, unprotected sex, semi-public but clothed, mentions of drinking, this was literally just a reason to write for enjolras to see how people liked it/how i would enjoy writing him, so if it flops, this didn’t happen. if i missed anything lmk!

word count: 2.6k

You’d wasted nearly a month of your time infiltrating their rebellion under your father’s order—and it had been going well, not a single hendrence in your plans until a very unfortunate night, on the precipice of courageous attack being led by Enjolras himself, speaking out in a boastful manner to his people at these sacred meetings—it gave many hope that things could change, that they had a fighting chance. In your eyes, it was all lies. You came from the other side, experienced how they lived, the power they had—it was a battle he was going to lose regardless of how passionate he was for it. He was outnumbered, easy to outsmart, and despite his passion for the cause, he was blinded by it.

You felt sympathy, it was why you were able to fit yourself in so easily, so well—he never questioned your intentions for a second, swearing by the look of determination in your eye, your willingness to throw out ideas, boost the morale—but if there was one thing about him, it was that he knew just the right things to say, even to the people who didn’t believe it. He was great at convincing people to believe lies, acting like he had the answer to everything and everyone’s problems.

It would be easier if there wasn’t a war at all, but it seemed like the only way to solve issues now, fight first and solve things later.

The first night you end up alone with him isn’t intentional. It’s a late night at the bar, your tired figure nestled up in a chair in a dark corner of the room, Enjolras nursing his drink from the other end, watching as his friends parted ways. You had a bed to sleep in, a lavish home to keep you safe, but you wanted nothing more than to be away from that, if even for just a moment.

Enjolras tells you of his background, how he grew up, why he cared about the things that he did—and it made you realize that under all his anger and crazed acts, he was a lot like you. If not, he was more sure of himself than you. You were lost, fighting between right and wrong and only doing what your father had ordered, but you could feel it in your bones—this wasn’t right.

They had every reason to fight against the more fortunate; the richer, arrogant, mindless people running the show—they were all just as horrible as everyone assumed and you’d seen it firsthand.

Your backstory is simple—you came from nothing, were nothing, and you were tired of living that way. You’ve practiced it for weeks, making it all seem as believable as possible. He believes it, at least, he acts like he does.

From that point on, and the weeks follow, Enjolras turns to you every night, both of you staying later than necessary to talk about the day and complain about nonsense, sometimes sitting in the silence, listening to the other conversations in the establishment, watching as Enjolras separated the food on his plate, sharing with you.

You never went hungry, not when you were being served several course meals most nights, but you played along anyways.

Enjolras is dedicated to the cause with an obscured ambition and it feels like maybe you won’t be able to break-through to him, relying on the fact that maybe you could seduce him enough to have him slip-up, even the smallest tidbit of information.

Your father was growing angry, more and more upset that you were coming home empty-handed.

Until another night leads to several drinks, Enjolras leaning over you as he grabbed for the liquor, a sated smile pasted over his face. He didn’t smile often, not genuinely, but it was mesmerizing nonetheless.

“Darling, you’re going to clean this place out, you know?” He comments, voice thick as he swallowed the bitter alcohol.

“Must you insult me like that?” You tease, “I am a lady, after all.”

Enjolras gives you a look, one that’s calling your bluff outright.

“I am,” You squeak, shoving him away playfully, “Shall I prove it?”

Enjolras tilts his head slightly, considering it.

“I’m not being serious.” You tell him before he can answer.

“Yes, darling. I’m aware.” He tells you, “It does not make the idea any less intriguing though, I must admit.”

You snort softly, grabbing at your peacoat and shrugging it over your shoulders, “I think you’re at your limits, Enjolras.”

He peers at the bottle, holding it up to shine under the light, only enough for a small sip left in the bottle. He still seemed as sturdy as a rock, just more relaxed, less worrisome.

“I think you are right.” He agrees with a giddy laugh, pressing the bottle back against the table, the uneven weight of it causing the glass to rock, rattling to a stop. “Leaving already?”

“Yes, unfortunately.” You tell him, rising from your seat. It doesn’t take him more than a second to grab your hand, fingers pressed gently against your ring and middle, an unthought attempt to stop you. “Are you going to be alright?”

“Tomorrow.” He tells you simply, eyes unnerving as he glances toward the floor, around the room, before landing back on you.

“Where?” You inquire, knowing full well what he meant.

“Outside the wine shop, if things go south.”

It was the piece of information you so desperately needed, giving the other side even more of a fighting chance—your face fell slightly, nodding in response as you shrugged your hand away.

“Sleep well, Enjolras.” You tell him before fleeing without another word, disregarding the few goodbyes you receive, feet carrying you faster than you can manage yourself, stumbling over your feet as you round the corner outside the bar, disappearing down a dark alley.

You take a long breath, body relaxed as you feel the weight drift from your chest, removing the coat you had shrugged on as you felt hot, overheated, throwing it to the ground angrily.

“Running home to daddy, I assume?” His voice travels like an echo down the long, dark alley.

Your hand clutches over your chest, heart feeling like it’s going to burst. You muffle the scream with your other hand, staring at the dark figure as it approaches—his face was cold, eerily void of emotion.

“Enjolras, please.” You beg, knowing there was no using in lying. If he knew, he’d known for a while.

He huffs a vindicte laugh, pulling uncomfortably at the right ascot around his neck. “Is that where you go every night?”

“Enjolras, you do not understand.” You ignore his question, trying to level with him.

“I believe I do, darling.” He responds tensely, “How would he feel knowing you’ve been fraternizing so closely with the enemy? I thought it was all business with you monarchy people.”

“Wouldn’t you know?” You retort, “You are no different—only because you’re fighting against them you think that makes you better? You come from the same life that I do, do not try and belittle me.”

“So that, back there, that was only an act?”

The flirting, he means. You’d never considered he cared, giving his unwavering attention to his own cause, you didn’t think he cared that much. But clearly, you were wrong.

“Isn’t all of it?” You retort.

“You tell me, darling.” Enjolras challenges, taking a brave step forward, forcing you to stumble back against the wall. “Are you really going to allow all of these lives to be lost? Are you going to run back home and tell him everything?”

You shove him away weakly, eyes glaring harshly.

“It is no business of yours, Enjolras.” You tell him firmly, “Give this up, come fight with us—you’re on the side that has no chance, you do realize?”

“Are you trying to convince me?” He asks, “My love, you must try harder.”

“You’re infuriating.” You complain, “Your voice, your attitude—I'd rather hinder my hearing if that meant not having to listen to your voice again.”

It’s not the route he’s expecting you to take, but two can play at that game. The frustration was building, boiling over, and he could see it in the way your body canted toward him inconspicuously, despite your vile words.

His touch ghosts over your hip, pulling at the shirt tucked loosely in your britches, squeezing at the soft skin.

“Likewise.” He agrees, watching as you rested your hand against the him of his trousers, traveling up his dirtied shirt, over his vest, pulling at the ascot until it came loose. “Now, let us see if I can change your mind, yes?”

Enjolras gently yanks the red material of his ascot from your hands, taking his time as he wraps it around your head, knot settling between your teeth as you bite down, eyebrows furrowing in confusion.

“Not a word,” He warns, “Understood?”

You roll your eyes in annoyance, letting him shift you until your front is pressed against the brick wall, his hands sifting through the layers of clothing shared between you both until he’s free enough that he can fist his cock, the hard ridge of it pressed against the curve of your ass, his hands squeezing soft at the flesh of your thigh, traveling up enough to tap against the innermost flesh, motioning for you to spread your legs slightly.

His calloused fingers drag over your folds, finding their way to the center and covering his fingers in your slick, moan muffled around the soft fabric shoved into your mouth.

“They’re probably worried sick,” Enjolras comments, “wondering where you are, if you’re hurt—if they only knew.”

You make a noise of defiance, pressing back against his fingers, the pad of his middle nudging against your clit, eyes squeezed shut in response.

You’ve been deprived of touch for so long that this felt needed, wanted—and even the smallest touch had your eyes rolling back, keening against him. He gives no warning when he slips inside, though his movements are slow. He’s responding to your noises, the soft clenches of your walls around the tip of his cock as he moves in small thrusts, groans muffled behind his clenched teeth.

“Women like you don’t deserve to be bed properly,” He comments harshly, “are they attempting to marry you off already?”

You shake your head furiously, allowing him to grasp your hands behind your back, shoving your body gingerly against the harsh texture of the wall—it’s a stark contrast to the way he’s consuming you, but you don’t question it.

“I figured as much,” He comments lowly, lips pressed against the shell of your ear, panting harshly as he increases his speed, the ferocity of it, a startling gasp slipping from your lips, failing to be muffled by the fabric. Enjolras’s hand cups over your mouth, “Quiet,” He orders harshly, “do you not listen?”

Again, you shake your head. If you did, you would’ve never ended up in this situation. Enjolras leans back slightly, loose grip on your hands as he pulls out slowly, thrusting into you harshly, watching as his cock disappeared inside of you, squeezing at the soft globes of your ass.

“You drive me mad in the worst ways,” Enjolras admits, “but you are divine, you know?”

You make a noise, drawing his attention up. He sighs, pulling the fabric from your mouth, pressing a single finger against your lips to warn you of your volume.

“How so?” You ask quietly, teasingly, hoping it gets under his skin.

“You fit me perfectly,” He acknowledges, “such a shame you were ready to betray me so easily.”

“I had you fooled,” You chide, confidence seeping through, “for a while, at least.”

Enjolras releases your hands, his own palms spreading over the expanse of your back, forcing the shirt up higher as he grips your hips, pulling you tight against him. Your palms slapped against the wall, held there for support.

“I could teach you things,” He tells you softly, “things you haven’t even come to understand—I’d make you realize which side you should be fighting for, you’d never want to leave.”

“So, you’re not hoping for your—your cock to do the job?” You stammer out, whining softly with each movement of his hips. “I thought that was the point of all this?”

“Partly.”

“I’m not dull, Enjolras. I have higher education, I know—why do you think I agreed with my father so—so easily,” It’s redundant, he doesn’t answer, “I hate their stance just as much as you, but they are my family. I cannot abandon them.”

“A shame,” He seethes, reaching around your front to palm roughly at your breasts, pulling you back against him, other hand slipping over your cunt, circling your clit furiously, “—at least I have this to remember you by.”

You’ve never been with anyone like this—it’s usually slow, sensual, sweet. This was nothing but anger and frustration, hatred for the same cause, but fighting on two different sides. It was a battle, deep rooted in confusion.

“Knowing you may die tomorrow?” You ask tensely, stalling his movements slightly. “This is how you wanted to spend your final night? If it must be?”

“I liked you better quiet.” He spits at you.

You laugh brokenly, the harsh pass over your clit sending you over the edge, cunt clenching around him as buries himself deep inside, coming with little warning as he attempts to pull out, but held still by the hand forcing him there, buried into his shirt as you both ride out the high of your orgasms, moaning into the silence of the night, both of you barely visible at this hour from the lack of a full moon. His mouth rests against the back of your neck, nose buried into the back of your hair, most of it piled up messily atop your head.

“You’re at risk of dying, too—if not more than me. These people, they’re passionate. If they find out—“

“Will they?” You ask quietly, hearing the faint rustle of his pants as he pulls out of you.

You turn, connecting eyes with him. He seems hesitant to answer.

“Oh, darling—don’t be coy now. You come inside of me, threatening me with the burdance of bearing your child if fate has it that way, and now you can’t even look my way?”

“That’s not—“ He begins, shaking his head.

“You men are all the same.” You tell him harshly, “Just because what you think you’re doing is right, it doesn’t make you a good person.”

“My love—“ He begins.

“Calling me that doesn’t make it so,” You retort, “you hated me just a few moments ago, am I wrong?”

“I’ve never met anyone like you.” He admits, “Not before, not during the rebellion.”

You smile tightly, adjusting your clothes back to their original place, reaching down to fetch your coat.

“How sweet,” You tell him, patting his chest, “I guess we shall see how tomorrow goes, that should determine where this takes us.”

But unfortunately, you had a sneaking suspicion that none of this would end well, for either of you.

“Stay,” He tells you, “for a few more hours, that’s all I ask.”

You’re hesitant, every morsel of your being telling you otherwise. You ignore it, allowing yourself to enjoy what may be your last night.

“Another bottle and you have a deal, Enjolras.” You barter, watching the grin grow on his face—because despite how much he wanted to hate you, he wasn’t sure he could. Given the time he had gotten to know you, learn about you, he had to believe there was a part of you that would do the right thing,

Although, it was much too late for that.

“After you, darling.”

Please consider a reblog if you enjoyed this fic! It’s makes a huge difference. ♡

[pralinesims]

📩 Simblr question of the day: Choose as many sims/ocs as you'd like for this question, What's something INCREDIBLY obscure and/or out-of-pocket about your sim/oc? Something that nobody (fellow sims and/or your followers and mutuals) knows 👀 (This could be things about their social skills, physicality and/or birth defects, or it could be something they vaguely remember, a dream they had that actually predicted the future, etc etc... whatever you come up with)

( p.s I'm [the SQOTD anon] planning on starting a separate SQOTD blog for these asks/questions, and I'm open for input on this :) ) ( p.p.s freely share this SQOTD around, anon or not, and use the # SQOTD ~ 💛 )

TYSM for sending <333 Alrighty, here have one little tidbit out of all that I've collected over years of having constant brainrot lol

When he was younger he used to be a model, though even if he wasn't really well known, he was able to land a few commercial shoots here and there. His family got him into the industry through some good connections, later on he quitted because he was frustrated that his career wasn't taking off.

[workersolidarity]

Anti-Communism is something bred into Americans from the time we are children. We are taught how anything related to Stalin is automatically bad and anything involving the Soviet Union is inherently secretive and authoritarian.

This bias is so deeply ingrained, that, having finally after years of Marxist and Geopolitical study, I've finally reached a point where those little anti-Communist tropes and sound bites inserted into our political conversations catch my attention automatically.

Now this took a really long time to reach. Anti-Communism is so deeply ingrained in our society, so embedded in our information space, and this completely by design, that we don't notice it in our everyday lives. We're not meant to. We're meant to internalize these stereotypes until it affects every aspect of our political thinking.

And I'll give you an example of how even the most obscure media consumption can result in our exposure to anti-Communist propaganda.

So I'm watching one of these obscure science channels on YouTube, being interested in the science behind nuclear criticality. So in the first video, which is about a famous incident in which a Russian scientist was exposed to a particle beam in an accelerator that resulted in serious injury but he survived. And at the end of the video, they start talking about how he really suffered under that awful Soviet Bureaucracy when he was denied his free government healthcare in 1997. 🙄

I seriously face palmed on that one.

But then I'm watching an entirely different science video on an entirely different nuclear accident. This one the only fatal Nuclear reactor accident in American history.

So I get to the end of this video, they've done a great job at really helping you understand the science behind what triggered the accident, and I'm really satisfied with the video, and then, right at the end they throw this little tidbit of information out as though it too were a statement of fact:

[Speaking factually about the fatal design flaw responsible for the US accident in 1961 that was also present in the design of the Chernobyl nuclear accident in 1986]

"When we don't learn from history (deeply accusing stare at the Soviets) it tends to repeat itself"

Ugh!!!!!!!

🤯

Okay, so basically he has to throw in the insinuation that somehow the Communists are even more deeply responsible for Chernobyl than the Americans were for SL-1, the destroyed US nuclear reactor from 1961.

Now on its face, most people aren't going to think twice about such a statement. It is meant to evoke a response inside you of "ugh those Communists were just terrible to see our mistakes and repeat them anyway!" without ever giving any kind of critical nudge at the thought whatsoever. After all, we Americans all know how evil and awful Communists, and especially Russian Communists were.

And that's supposed to be the end of that. Two science videos, both ending with throw away lines of anti-Communist propaganda, both meant to leave me feeling superior as an American and especially an American Capitalist!

But the reality exposes the absurdity of American anti-Communist propaganda!

How would the Soviets have known about the US design flaw years earlier?

Am I just mistaken and it was common practice from the 1960's to the 1980's to share our nuclear trade secrets with our greatest adversary??? To share nuclear designs with the great evil empire the USSR at the height of the Cold War?

Please. How the fuck could the Soviets have known the details of the SL-1 design flaws?

But that's not even really the point, because in the end, it does not matter how ridiculous or absurd or counter factual US propaganda becomes because the public is just so deeply propagandized, so well trained, and so peppered with this kind of subliminal propaganda all day every day.

And it truly took years for me, not just to be able to recognize propaganda anyone can do that, but to really begin to understand the depth and nature of which we are being saturated in this constant stream of pro-Imperialist, pro-Capitalist, often conflicting narratives that are intended to make us accept without ever critically analyzing what "approved" sources tell us.

I cannot stress enough the importance and personal responsibility of every worker to educate yourself on the nature of advertising and propaganda and their relationship to Capitalism and Imperialism.

It is so important that we understand how Wall Street, the Big Banks, Big Investors and Big Corporate bosses, how they use the tools of the media and internet to control and maintain the information available to us and how they use that control to maintain the myths of Capitalism, Neoliberalism and an Imperialist Foreign Policy, as well as maintain the myths of "authoritarianism " and "human rights violations" maintained around US Adversaries like the Soviet Union and now Russia, Iran, Cuba, DPRK, Vietnam, China and on and on and on.

[sneezypeasy]

ATLA Original Scripts: Extra Goodies

As I’m sure you may have guessed, the very first script I chose to open at the WGF was The Southern Raiders (I mean, can you blame me? 🤣). But shippy lore and zutara fandom history aside, I did unearth quite a few unrelated tidbits, author’s notes and script changes that I found interesting or funny enough to note down. As promised, here is a compilation of some of these tidbits, with little connecting theme or pattern other than “I thought the fandom might find these snippets interesting” 😁

1. Elizabeth and Aaron Ehasz are genuinely hilarious.

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Credit for finding #1 and #3 goes to my husband, who was with me on Day 2 of Original Script Investigations :3

I don’t mean to say that the other ATLA writers are necessarily boring or unfunny – as I said I didn’t get a chance to read every script and there may have been other genuinely amusing snippets from other writers that I honestly just missed. All I know is, the most entertaining action/non-dialogue lines that I did find were written by these two chuckleheads. I fuckin’ love them, lmao 🤣

2. In Day of Black Sun, Zuko was originally meant to redirect lightning using his dual swords.

I can see why this detail was changed during the storyboarding/animating process (as he just uses his bare hands in the show, the way Iroh taught him), but at the same time the sword-lightning-redirection thing really intrigues me. Dual swords are strongly associated with Zuko’s Blue Spirit vigilante persona, and there’s several episodes where Zuko uses them as part of obscuring his Fire Nation identity, whether that’s to help him keep his cover or even to help him get away with what the Fire Nation could reasonably consider as acts of treason.

So the idea that Zuko would use his swords to redirect Ozai’s lightning comes across as powerfully symbolic to me: Zuko standing in defiance to his abusive father, channeling some Blue Spirit energy to defend but not to kill; Zuko facing down a terrifying display of Fire Nation aggression and wrath, absorbing it into himself and then directing it back to its source, using a non-bending instrument, one he’d previously used in service of vigilantist or even sabotage/treasonous acts… yeah, I think that’s pretty damn cool, ngl.

From a Doylist standpoint, I like it. Very nice.

From a Watsonian standpoint, I can (grudgingly) understand why they likely chose not to portray this scene the way it was scripted.

Ah well.

3. In Lake Laogai, Katara’s healing water was meant to “turn black” as a visual indication that Jet’s injuries were too severe for her to heal.

This scene kind of plays out in the show, but not in the way that the script implies it should:

You can see that in the show version, the water turns black right as Katara appears to pause her work and look up to say “This isn’t good”. Maybe it’s just me, but the show doesn’t seem to imply that the water “turned black” despite Katara’s best healing efforts; I instead get the impression that the water stopped glowing because Katara (momentarily?) suspended her healing efforts upon registering how bad Jet’s injuries were.

The script seems to suggest that the scene should have played out like – Katara tries to heal Jet, the water turns black while she’s still moving her hands and working, Katara might then visibly react with shock or alarm, before finally looking up to remark, “this isn’t good”.

And honestly, I’m actually really bummed that they didn’t animate this sequence out! It would only have taken maybe a couple more seconds, but can you imagine if the writers had been able to employ the dramatic effect of “[Character] is so heavily injured, the healing water turns black” to its maximum potential?

Imagine Katara trying to heal Aang’s lightning wound in The Awakening, but it turns black and then he has that chi-shock attack. Imagine her explaining beforehand that she’d tried healing his wound multiple times over the two weeks he’d been unconscious, and it had always turned black, but she hoped that with him being awake maybe it wouldn’t fail this time - except that it does 😭

Imagine Katara trying to heal Zuko after the lightning scene in Sozin’s Comet, and the water turns black, and Katara grits her teeth “Oh no don’t you dare” and visibly puts all her effort into making that water glow again and finally he wakes -

Argh, it’s one tiny visual clue and yet there’s so much potential for drama and angst (yum!) - I’m so frustrated it wasn’t kept! Huge missed opportunity imo. Ah well, for all you fan-artists and fanfic writers, consider it free real estate. Make it canon, let’s gooo 🤣

4. In The Runaway, after being accused of being “too motherly”, Katara actually slaps Aang when he doesn’t respond fast enough 🤣

I don’t really have much to say about this one other than that I just found the mental image pretty funny. I do find it interesting that as much as the writing did a better job of developing Kataang in the original script, there also isn’t any serious effort to tone down Katara’s motherly tendencies towards Aang either (in fact, I think one could easily argue that slapping Aang’s hand away makes the whole mom thing come off stronger, but idk). Either way, this was pretty entertaining to read. 😂

5. In Tales of Ba Sing Se, Zuko and Jin are both a lot more expressive in the script, and it’s way more fun:

In the script, Zuko looks “totally overwhelmed” when Jin asks him out. In the show, he just looks… blank? Expressionless? Idk. I did get the sense that this was unfamiliar territory for him, but to me the show doesn’t animate him to be nearly as flustered as the script suggests he ought to be. He doesn’t scowl at Iroh immediately either, and even when he does he looks more irritated than “furious”, imo. 🤷‍♀️

I did figure that Zuko telling Jin she has a large appetite was his attempt at making polite conversation, but the script makes him come off more sympathetic with that too:

In the show, the waiter doesn’t roll his eyes at anyone, he just walks away, the shot does pan out to the other diners staring but they move on very quickly, and notably Jin appears completely unperturbed by the whole thing. She doesn’t look sad or “hurt” as the script suggests, and Zuko’s attempt at a compliment isn’t framed as him regretting his outburst and awkwardly trying to make up for upsetting her (as she doesn’t seem to be upset at all).

I’m honestly a little sad that so much of this was cut; it really softens Zuko’s character a fair bit. I mean we already know that underneath his hot temper Zuko always had a deep sense of compassion and empathy for others, but these little details really help bring that side of him to the surface and I’m just sort of bummed that they shaved them off here :/ not sure why they felt the need to do that.

Anyway, we all love awkward turtleduck Zuko, so here, have some more:

I like that Zuko is explicitly written as being more at ease once he and Jin have found a quiet area to be alone in. Neurodivergent Zuko confirmed? :P

Also, love the little addition that Jin “peeks” through her fingers right before Zuko starts firebending (they didn’t include that part in the show either). Makes you wonder, did she see? Did she see, and accept Zuko anyway? :P

(Too cute.)

6. In Zuko Alone, Zuko stops Lee from hurting himself with the dual swords:

On the one hand, I don’t mind that the show portrays Lee just having fun with the swords and looking to Zuko for approval (and getting it!). It’s sweet. On the other hand, I think there’s a layer of foreshadowing here that the show missed - without Zuko there to help, Lee’s recklessness and impulsivity will get the better of him (as it ultimately did). I’m sort of torn on this one.

Edit: I’ve been thinking about this a little more and I think I definitely prefer the script version, if only for the fact that Zuko’s “imperceptible smile” is at the end of his and Lee’s encounter. In the show, Zuko smiles at Lee encouragingly after he gives him a swordfighting “lesson” and then lets the kid swing the swords around a bit, which is definitely a heartwarming moment but it has a very different connotation to Zuko smiling with Lee after Lee opens up about Sen Su to him. In the show Zuko is smiling for Lee, to give him encouragement and support. In the script, Zuko smiles during a bonding moment for both of them, in a way that seems to suggest he is grateful/touched that Lee is sharing something so personal with him. It’s a really soft moment for Zuko and upon thinking about it more I’m definitely bummed they cut that little smile. :(

7. In The Chase, after Azula attacks Iroh, Zuko is apparently doing his best to comfort and stabilise him – he is not simply overcome with despair over his fallen uncle:

And in Crossroads of Destiny, Katara isn’t just angrily pacing the “prison cell” back and forth before Zuko is thrown in with her; she’s actively searching for a way out:

I kinda wish both of these were kept in too. Zuko and Katara may be hot-headed at times (they are definitely two of the most passionate characters in the show, if not the most passionate) – but not to such an extent that it overwhelms their ability to work through a crisis; I find it more consistent to their characters that they would still try to do something even when they appear to be in a pretty hopeless situation. That seems to be a trait they both share, in the show.

I also like that Zuko’s efforts to help Iroh humanises him a bit more and puts the emphasis on Zuko caring about Iroh’s recovery, rather than Zuko just being upset that things have turned out so horribly. I was sympathetic to him before, but I’m even more sympathetic now, if that makes sense. 😭

8. In The Painted Lady, Katara’s disguise is blown due to a hair-loopie malfunction, rather than Aang literally blowing her disguise (off).

This is more of a subjective thing but I wish they kept this one in too! I think it’s cute :P

9. The Puppetmaster was originally meant to be titled The Dark Side of the Moon, and includes some differences on how Katara regains control of herself in the battle with Hama:

I understand why the script made Katara “pirouette” and dance under Hama’s bloodbending – it’s a reference to the whole “puppetmaster” thing (which, by the way, I have to say “The Dark Side of the Moon” is a much cooler title, but I can see why they changed that too – it’s way too spoiler-y, sadly). Ultimately though I prefer the show’s version where Katara is forced to her knees and then breaks free – it’s more dramatic, I think, and it reminds me of the earlier scene in The Waterbending Master where Pakku has knocked Katara down, and she takes a breath and steels herself and then gets back up to fight again. I’m not sure if the animators meant to mirror that scene or not, but either way I think Katara standing up after being pushed to the ground is a lot more powerful and compelling, both visually and symbolically, than Katara breaking free of a dance that she’s forced to move to under Hama’s hand. Maybe that’s just me.

I will say though, the ending shot is different to how it is in the script, and I wish they’d kept the script version:

10. Finally, the ending of The Fortuneteller has Katara actually hearing and reacting to Meng’s insult.

Which I thought was mildly amusing. Slightly bummed this was cut, but only a little 🤣

I hope you guys enjoyed reading these as much as I did 😊 I actually have about 6 or 7 more tidbits left that I want to share, but I’ll pause this compilation here as 10 is a good number and I think this post has gotten long enough already 😅

Thanks to @korranguyen​ for her effort in spotting and transcribing the Zuko/Jin snippets 😊

[shiny-jr]

I've read the sneak peak for the fourth, and genuinely, this one is the one I'm most excited for—especially with that sneak peak!

I wonder how Jamil will realize that the parrot is no longer the same person he knows, and when the reader accidentally threads past a line that they shouldn't have with Jamil. And if the reader will have their relationship with Prince Jaseer progress further, and take a change—then, the thief too, that will be playing Aladdin, how would they interact? And the genie! I'm excited to see who will get to the genie first, will it still be the thief, Jamil, the reader, or someone else entirely? (It would be funny if the story takes a drastic stir away from the original and things become more complicated, that the reader realizes, that they could no longer rely on the story anymore, but their mind to thread now because the story became so obscured). And of course, the dynamic between Jamil and the reader is so fun! It feels more livelier than the last ones.

It felt comfortable in a way—yet that's the thing that makes it disturbing when things finally become downhill. When Jamil has a shift in the way he speaks towards the reader, or when he realizes that it isn't the parrot. And what if another character entirely realizes the change too (similar to how Jade did)? And what happens if the reader does get to the lamp first? What then? And what if they couldn't wish to return, but instead, have to waste a wish for somethin else entirely?

I'm just filled with so many what-ifs right now that I'm getting so excited! I think this may be my favorite one already compared to the others, and straying away from peak-4. I'm also curious if you'll have one of the readers for the chapter take the role of the hero, or the villain instead, and the yandere takes the role of something else—a hero, etc. Someone just unexpected, it would be fun, though, I do love where you're taking this story <3!!

(Savanaclaw)

I think this one's so good—yet at the same time, I wish we got to see more interactions between Leona and the reader, it would be lovely. But at the same time, it was perfect, the scene where Leona spreads the blood on his hand to their face was so lovely and it in a way, it was like a message to say, you (we) did this. And it just stuck to my mind so hard!! Compared to the rest, it felt the most intriguing one.

And just a question, did you consider having the reader's identity be discovered by Ruggie and the people, or having reader possess a different person? And what made Leona say that the Hyena chieftain wouldn't be this "daring to speak like this to him" (quotations because I can't exactly remember the exact bit, I'm so sorry 😭) have he interacted with the chieftain before the reader? And why does Leona want the reader? Is it due to them being "outwordly?"

And did Ruggie sometimes felt something was off with the chieftain or no? (As he did knew the chieftain since they were young). And did you thought of placing Jack in another role, rather than being a guard? And imagined a what if that the plan still fails, and Cheka still manages to escape? Or a different role entirely?

I'm so sorry if I have a lot of questions and just, word-vomitting on you right now. But I hope it's not too much of a bother—if it is, feel free to ignore this, and have a great day!

Long comment about damnation, let's goooo. I love these, y'all have no idea. I love explaining little lore and tidbits and behind the scene stuff, because there's a surprising amount that goes into making such a long project like damnation. I even have a Pinterest board I like to work on and add to the further I get into the project. But anyways, back to responding to this ask.

I'm so so happy people like the Scarabia sneak-peek! It's a huge relief! I read over the first draft and was just :// meh, this is kinda boring. This is not it. Which is why I decided to change it and spice it up, so I'm glad that it paid off and I made the right decision to do so! Here's to hoping that I can make the rest of it as interesting, hopefully even enough to make people wonder if Scarabia was better than Heartslabyul.

About the whole Jamil find out mc's real identity, I can't exactly reveal that because it would be major spoilers, but I have that roughly planned out. Whether it'll actually happen or not, I guess you'll just have to wait and see. Of course the same goes for the whole plot thing. Can't reveal too much. But again, I am happy people are enjoying Jamil and mc's relationship dynamic!

Like I said in a previous post, writing this based off Jafar and Iago is a lot more fun because they had really fun interactions and dialogue between each other. Like, mc is the only one that can call Jamil a snake to his face and he'd actually be cool with it, anyone else and he'd be plotting their demise. I guess I can reveal this, but at some point in the story, something will happen and I plan for mc to talk to Jamil and say something along the lines of, "Okay, master, I'll get you the dark wizard daily so you can enchant yourself some bitches." I really want to add this line, not sure if I actually will though.

Anyways, about the roles, the mc will never take a role other than the henchman. The characters we know will remain villains, and the protagonists will remain heroes. That's kinda like, the whole theme of this project. Henchman mc, nothing else.

As for Savanaclaw, I tried to give Leona more time than the others. Technically he does have more time with mc when compared to Ruggie and Jack. Leona meets mc a total of four times. It was harder to come up with reasons for Leona to appear considering the situation with him as a prince in the kingdom and mc not in the kingdom. Compare that to Ruggie who was with mc since the very beginning, and eventually Jack who would choose to stay beside mc. It was a lot easier for them to appear because they're literally right there. As for the blood thing, you hit the nail on the head. That's exactly what it was! Some people said it was gross and weird, but like... come on, that's kinda the point? The message I'm trying to convey is mc caused this, yes Leona plotted it but mc is just as guilty. The mcs of this project aren't meant to be morally good.

Ruggie? I mentioned in another post and went into detail about how I originally planned more things for him like him finding out about mc's identity but I ultimately ran out of time for that. Talked about it a bit here.

Anyways, ever since I came up with the concept of this project, Chief!mc was one of the first ones I decided as soon as the ideas formed. Them as well as King!mc. They were the first two I knew for sure what role I wanted them to be. If it's not obvious, Chief!mc is loosely based off Shenzi. Fun fact: I looked for as many voice acting clips that I could find for the Lion King, specifically more for the hyenas and Scar. Might've mentioned this before, but I liked to analyze the voice actor's expressions, the way they moved, or little habits they might've showed and think about adding little similarities to what I was writing. One clip I rewatched a lot was this one. This doesn't account for the fact that I rewatch each movie at least once (usually up to three times or more), and usually replay certain scenes a dozen times or more just to note down every little detail. This process was how I noticed Jafar actually rolls his eyes when Iago is talking and I thought that was a good bit to add for Jamil when mc was talking because it fit perfectly, lol.

Okay, I'm getting way off track. Back to your original question. About what Leona said about the chief. If you think about it, the environment and plot before mc arrived, of course Leona would know about the hyena chief because the hyena folk were always causing trouble for the kingdom he was the prince of. In the beginning, Ruggie reports that Leona was on the borderlands again, meaning he's done it before, he's tried to meet with the chief at least once before. If you take into account the assumption that Falena too has also likely encountered the chief probably more than once likely due to conflicts, it's even safer to say that Leona knows who the chief is and has meet them before too. Finally, Leona doesn't really want them because they're otherworldly. At first Leona may see them as an asset once he realizes that they know way more than they let on, but eventually he comes to enjoy their bickering and teasing and such, and has a lot of fun seeing how certain words and actions puts them on edge. That's how his attraction starts, and begins to snowball into something much more once he realizes that mc is similar to him.

Whew, that was a lot. I hope I answered everything, or mostly everything.

[ammocharis]

One bit of obscure Dragon Age lore a day until Dragon Age: The Veilguard is released

The Steel Age was named in recognition of the dramatic and mysterious death of Queen Madrigal of Antiva, whose body was found in a forest stabbed through the chest with four steel blades. One of these blades was a replica of the Blade of Mercy, a legendary sword used by Archon Hessarian to put Andraste out of misery as she burned on the pyre.

According to one legend, Madrigal rode out into the forest alone to bargain with a Witch of the Wilds called Yavana. Madrigal was informed earlier by the Witch that she and her young son, Prince Eladio, would soon die. When Eladio became gravely ill, his mother went to meet Yavana - and there Madrigal died. Eladio recovered from sickness, but then vanished without a trace - only a year before his adulthood and the awaited coronation.

Source: Codex entry: Blade of Mercy, Dragon Age: The World of Thedas, vol. 2, p. 46

Previous bit

[mindsmade]

[ silence ] 🤫

meme

Two plastic chairs he bought days ago sit atop his trailer, each occupied. On the right sits V, piecing together the obscure tidbits of information he can find on constructs, the Relic — all under the guise of simply browsing; distracting himself.

On his left sits So Mi, reading a book — of actual paper. Old school, he'd called it, to which she retorted not everything needs to be wired to be worth their time. She had a point, and so he'd nodded in assent, smiling that type of smile only seen when legitimately impressed.

That was about an hour ago. Since then, he's scooted his chair a little closer to her twice — under the pretence that he just wanted to see what she was reading. To some degree, he did, if only to learn what she was into; what relaxed her. More importantly, though, more honestly, at that: he just wanted to sit a little closer to her.

She's since placed her legs onto his lap, so casually, having adjusted the angle of her chair in relation to his minutes ago. The only thing keeping him from resting his hand on her shin is that age-old hyperawareness of his; the shame in not only initiating touch, but even returning it in any way beyond the passive.

He unplugs from the net, shutting all windows in favour of soaking up the feeling of her proximity even in the face of his longing for just a little more. The sight of the sun setting over the Badlands, reaching towards and across the city, is an added bonus — and a welcome one in his endeavour to take his mind off his pining.

His eyes slip shut as he lets the citrine light wash over him, lighting the right side of his face and leaving its left counterpart in shadow. The white of his shirt takes on an orange undertone; likewise the plastic armrests occupied by his forearms and hands.

His mind's on the comfortable weight of So Mi's lower legs on his thighs, however — still, despite his intentions to focus on the sinking sun. He needs no practice in restraint, so he doesn't need to take this as an occasion to do so. In fact, he hesitates to even let himself enjoy the sensation, wondering if even that constitutes a transgression, notwithstanding its existence being limited to his own mind.

A sigh escapes him as he tries to untangle his thoughts. Maybe he should've tired himself out on the net.

Or maybe he should turn his head to look at So Mi in search of his next distraction. He yields to that compulsion, finding her eyes on his already, assessing him from below two arched eyebrows.

❛  Sorry. Feelin' restless.  ❜

'That's what this was all about.'

Right. He grins again, acknowledging the tenacity of his inability to sit still — with her, with himself, with his rumination.

❛  Hrm ... Fine.  ❜ Another pause ensues, this one spent holding a breath at the top of what've otherwise manifested as another sigh. The darkening skyline of the megapolis draws his gaze towards it. Or, more likely: his reluctance to drink in the sight of So Mi's sunbathed features for fear of what that might say about him and his feelings compels him to look west again.

❛  You're good company to practice sittin' restlessly with, at least.  ❜

[consanguinitatum]

David Tennant's Obscure Short Films: 1996's Quality Control

I'm back for a short(er) little David Tennant in Obscure Performances post today. Let's have a teeny-tiny chat about another rarity of David's, shall we? - a short film he did in 1996 called Quality Control. And when I say this is a rarity, believe me….it's a rarity.

I've at least been able to confirm David acted in this short film, for he mentions it as a film credit in two places: the 1996 programme for The Herbal Bed, and the 1997 programme for Hurly Burly - as evidenced by this cast listing of his from my Hurly Burly programme:

Quality Control has very little to no presence on the Internet, and there are only a few mentions of its existence. The first one I've been able to track which attributed the short to David was from a "David Tennant Fact Of The Day" post from May 2012.

The second mention is from the British Film Institute (BFI). If you study this notation, you'll notice another interesting detail: unlike many other works, the BFI does NOT hold any film or video materials relating to Quality Control. So they don't have a copy!

The BFI describes the film as a "comedy in which a job centre trainee finds himself totally inept in his new position of quality controller at a skateboard factory." But I hoped I might find a few other clues from another contemporary source: newspapers. So that's where I went!

All of the descriptions said Quality Control was a 20-minute short comedy - but I also learned it was the trainee's first day on the job, too. One can also assume (and I certainly do) David plays the role of the trainee. Here are some various listings I found:

What's very interesting, though, is something the BFI doesn't list: Quality Control was also re-broadcast two years later in 1998! The 'Fact of The Day' I mentioned earlier clued me into that detail, and that tidbit was invaluable in my search for mentions of the short. Why? Because this one's a real tough one to search. David's never mentioned in any printed synopsis, and seriously…just try to do a search using only the words, "Quality Control." It's an utter nightmare!

But knowing what I knew, I was able to add to the information the 'Fact Of The Day' had provided. Quality Control originally aired at 1:55p on 10 Jun 1996 on BBC Channel 4. In 1998, Channel 4 aired it two more times: on 8 Feb 1998 at 3:30p, and at 1:30p on 26 Oct 1998. It was also repeated regionally on S4C at 1:30p on 6 Nov 1998.

Its repetition in 1998 has intrigued me. It implies the BBC kept a copy of the short from 1996 to its re-air dates in 1998. The BFI listing for the short says it doesn't have a copy in its archives, but unless the BBC has subsequently erased it, a copy of that short might still exist. Somewhere. I'd love to find it, as it's one of the few things David did during that time I haven't seen. So we have no screenshots. But we know he did it. And who knows if the BBC has it in their archive.

But you know, maybe someone's got it recorded somewhere on an old Betamax tape.

[blarrghe]

For DADW, "We can never be together kiss"

I have been sitting on this prompt unsure what to do with it for a very long time. I found something! More Dorian x Lavellan pining. What else? Added to the canon prompts collection!

@dadrunkwriting

--

Taren Lavellan was having a rare good day. 

Most days were productive. Busy. And that helped. He had made certain friends, or at least there were people around to support him, to ask for assistance, to count on to have his back in the field, and that helped too. Cassandra was good with a shield, and never shied away from giving advice. The Iron Bull was good with a greataxe, and never shied away from a drink. Sera was growing on him, or he was growing on Sera. She was never shy, at least, and never let him feel like more than he was. 

Then, there was Dorian. 

Dorian made him feel like… like the most important person in the world, when he was warm. And like an idiot when he wasn’t. 

Today, he had him hooked with the former. 

A rare good day. Not just productive, not just busy, but good, after that. They’d made inroads and progress in the Hinterlands and then made it back to Skyhold in one piece. There had been celebrations. Warm food, fresh ale, music. Taren sat at a table in the Herald’s Rest, and almost forgot that he was the Herald in need of it. Sera let him teach her a few Dalish dance steps. The Iron Bull poured him too many pints. Dorian stayed by his side, laughing and talking with the crowd of them, smiling warmly, leaning close. 

He left with him, too, when Taren stumbled out of the place with claims that it was time for him to actually rest. 

He seemed to have gotten Taren’s various clumsily dropped hints. 

They walked through the courtyard, a place where they often stopped to talk in passing. Dorian would find him there and share tidbits of gossip and exaggerated frustrations. Taren would find himself looking for him there, looking for him to lighten the load of the very real frustrations and unhappy whispers which often followed him around. 

The courtyard in the daylight was something of a mixed blessing; there was the sunlight, the scents of familiar herbs growing surprisingly well in their orderly little planters, the birdsong and the mountain view, but also it was a popular spot. Josephine’s tours of interested nobles chattered through with indiscreet judgement, Chantry sisters stopped him to appraise his supposed divinity and desperately attempt to remedy his incorrect faith, Templars eyed him warily. When he found Dorian there, his swagger could sometimes outshine all that. He knew how to navigate nobles and castles, judgmental glances and too-invasive questioning. Taren did not.

But now, in the cloudy twilight, the place was empty. Quiet. Peaceful. And, technically, his. 

Taren stepped lightly across the cobblestone to the old gazebo, tipping his head back to inhale the cool air and admire the hazy sky as he did. The early night stars were mostly obscured by low-hanging mists and the grey day’s still lingering clouds, but they twinkled delicately through the night. A thin sliver of moon cast a little light over the shadowy courtyard, and inside the shelter it was nearly fully dark. Taren took a seat on the bench inside, and pulled out his pipe. 

Dorian leaned on the stone pillar of the structure and watched him. Taren lit the pipe, inhaled, released a long stream of earthy smoke, and held it out in offer. Dorian stepped closer, blinking in the dark. Remembering, Taren cast up a small orb of magical light. 

Wordlessly, they smoked together. Dorian took a seat beside him, and took his turns with slow, contemplative draws. Taren leaned into his shoulder, and the mage did not move. It was warm, comfortable, if a little stiff. 

“Dorian,” he murmured finally, his arm reaching into a hold around Dorian’s back. 

“Mm?” 

“Come up with me,” Taren proposed, words drunkenly drawled, but clear, “to my quarters.” 

“Inquisitor…”

Dorian only ever called him Inquisitor when he meant to say no.  

“If you want to.” 

“Wanting is not the —” Dorian pushed himself from the bench, leaving a cold spot upon Taren’s shoulder in his wake, and stood. “We can’t,” he said, facing him, handing back his pipe. “You know that we can’t.” 

“Why not?” Taren looked at him plainly. Dorian’s eyes flicked quickly away. He sighed, frustrated. Taren knew why they couldn’t. They had had this conversation already — Taren had confirmed this decision already. 

“You don’t really want that.” 

“I do. As do you.”  

“You’re drunk.” 

“As are you.” 

Taren stood too, leaving his pipe on the bench to smoulder. He took a step closer, Dorian did not move. He extinguished the light. 

He kissed him. 

Dorian’s face was cold, his skin chilled by the high mountain air. His lips responded warm. His hand found Taren’s waist. He tasted of the tavern’s terrible wine and elfroot. Taren must have too. 

“You’re drunk.” Dorian said again, letting go, stepping back. Cold air rushed in between them. “We can’t.” 

And then he left.  Taren sat back on the stone bench in the dark. He did not need the light to see Dorian pace away, without backward glance, to disappear through a door in the stone of the castle walls. 

He finished his pipe alone.

[tokyogruel]

Hi, I wanted to ask a quick Milgram question! I saw your theory about Shidou lying about his family, and thought it was really cool :D I'm just having a hard time thinking the project would have characters lie in those interrogation-style questions -- from a writing standpoint, the videos should be looser because they're meant to be debated/studied, but you'd lose your audience credibility if everything was up for debate. It's a really interesting idea, so I was just wondering your thoughts on how/when the characters can lie 👀

hi there, thank you so much for this ask! ive been sitting on this theory for a few weeks, and these interrogation questions have only given me more fuel to my theory fire, so to speak lol.

if im being honest, i think the interrogation questions (as well as the voice dramas) are the only place prisoners CAN outright lie, as it has been stated that prisoners cant straight up lie in their music videos- since theyre extracted straight from their subconcious.

This, however, does not mean the characters are unable to obscure the truth… if they’re sneaky (or focusing on he wrong aspect of their crime, like mahiru)

and of course, what good is a character breakdown from me, if i neglect to talk about both sides of the coin?

so i present to you, yes you dear anon, my analysis of mahiru shiina and shidou kirisaki:

LOVE, LYING, AND INTENT TO KILL: 005 and 006

part one...

a quick disclaimer before we begin: i believe shidou has good intent behind his lies, but he is intentionally obscuring his crime, or misleading us on what his crime was in order to win an innocent verdict also, i apologize if this is way too long, rambly, and if i go on too many tangents. this theory has been eating me alive for weeks

this theory is also heavily supported by this post by @milgrammatical explaining how they believe the MILGRAM extraction process works

if you have the chance, please click the link and reblog the original post! however for this breakdown ill provide a screenshot:

now, to begin this post, i would like to start off by providing more evidence that this is, indeed, how the extraction process works.

to do so, i will use mahiru's first and second MV and VD, as well as shidous second MV and VD

PART ONE: interrogation to extraction

mv. 1 this is how to be in love with you

just before mahiru's first extraction, she makes it a clear point that love is dear to her, in fact it's Everything to her. her video is then titled "This is How to be in Love with You."

mahiru also gets sidetracked at one point during her voice drama, misinterpreting the articles Es has read to relate to articles that she has read: relationship and fashion advice from magazines

because she becomes focused on this idea, and reminisces on the articles she has read in an attempt to be a good girlfriend, Mahirus thoughts shift towards being part of those magazines, inserting herself into the pages that she has learned from in the past. we can assume these advice columns, as well as the accompanying pictures, are being pulled from her long-term memory

please also note how clear these are: her outfits in the first photo appear during the later "days" of her video, theyre consistent. the photos have realistic backgrounds, they are clear, distinct, REAL places that she has been. nothing in her video is obscured, except for her boyfriend. and even then, its because she does not see him as an important aspect of her trial at this point in time. there's one thing that is important to her this time around: love, showing Es who she is as a person, and the events leading up to- and into her relationship

ill be moving on to her second mv, but i cant resist including this fun little tidbit, even if it's just pure coincidence, it tickled me:

mv. 2, daisuke

this one is slightly less straightforward than the previous connection, though i believe it still holds up

to start, the second trial interrogation is where mahiru first starts to acknowledge that she was not the only person in the relationship. she mentions her partner, how they both felt about each other- and she makes it very clear what their relationship was: boyfriend and girlfriend

this is then followed by her mv, where we finally see the man behind the tan jacket in TIHTBILWY, her boyfriend. he is fully fleshed out, his eyes are visible, his style matches that which weve only seen glimpses of in her first MV. he looks unique (in a very.. bland way, but nonetheless recognizable)

his appearance pre-daisuke was also hinted at with this interrogation:

while it may seem unrelated at first glance, you can see there is somewhat of a resemblance between mappi's boyfriend and mikoto- short, brown hair, soft eyes, layered jacket, "the kind of guy they seem to make in a factory" as jackalope would put it. its thin, but its something. at the very least, i cant see any other reason why mahiru would throw mikoto under the bus like this, without knowing him at all.

i dont mean to go on a tangent already, but i would like to note that, despite the comparisons made between mikoto and mappi's boyfriend, they truly do not resemble one another much, and are distinctly different from one another. (this will be important later)

back to the voice drama,

in Love is [Un]dead, Es points out that Mahiru was likely blinded by love, and that the first MV to come from her may have been tainted by it, as they say here:

mahiru also makes a point that she may have been too lovestruck to acknowledge her wrongdoing- even subconsciously.

this winds updirecting the daisuke music video itself, and we IMMEDIATELY see a difference. the opening shot is not of mahiru, like her first MV- instead, front and center, is a very clear shot of her boyfriend hanging by his neck. she is no longer clouded by her ideals of love, and is spitting out the truth, showing us all the ugly sides of her relationship

and yet, we can still see mahiru's original perception of the relationship. there is likely truth behind it as well, a bad relationship can still have it's highs

but there is a key part of this MV that ive also seen people touch on briefly:

the distortion.

mahiru's views of her relationship are warped, it's been that way since trial one. but this is... different. she's suffered head trauma, the "carousel" of her relationship literally becomes warped- though in a way we've never seen before. the song becomes scrambled (though still catchy), and the imagery begins to twist, the video has static cuts, and the bright and shining carousel slowly melts into reality.

in my interpretation, this is because of the damage she has taken from kotoko- a physical impairment, rather than purely mental

but at the end of it all, mahiru has granted us what she has denied (even to herself) in the past: the truth. her relationship was dirty, broken, poisonous

.. to be continued

[dasphinxone]

Preview of Chapter 3 of As Above, So Below

They actually talk to each other without threats of death. Progress! Well...sorta 🤣

Three more days passed in the same fashion. 

However, on the third night of her being in Talokan, Attuma didn’t stand guard outside Okoye’s room. This time as she sank into her hammock, he dropped to take a seat on the floor near the the table in the far corner of her quarters. Flicking out a large cloth of some sort he pulled from the strapped satchel he wore, it covered his large lap.

Okoye sat up to see him threading a bone needle with brightly colored thread and…starting to embroider the cloth? 

Rather than standing guard, he’d placed himself closer to her and in her room. While his scythe was propped on the wall behind him and as far away from her as possible, it wasn’t in hand like the previous nights. It all meant he clearly didn’t see her as a threat. Which she could use to her advantage. 

“What are you doing?” she asked, forcing her voice to sound interested. Putting him at ease could result in letting his guard down and making an escape less daunting. 

Attuma looked over at her for a long while before he slowly lifted up the pale colored cloth for her to see. Embroidered within its center lay a circle of kelp with brightly colored stems surrounding the outline of a satsun. Okoye vaguely recalled seeing them on missions to Mexico in the very region where these people originated. Remembering Shuri explaining how one lay in the center of Talokan where their artificial sun rose and set, it made sense. 

Attuma nodded. “Warriors are expected to contain many talents besides the slaying of our enemies. Namora’s hand with a chisel creates some of our nation’s most stunning glyphs for recorded documents of great import. She also proves an excellent weaver.”

She had no idea how the shark man managed to see his detailed work in such dim lighting from the spherical, bioluminescent lamps hanging from the thatched roof above.

“You embroider?” she asked with genuine surprise. 

It was similar in Wakanda. People were expected to be well rounded. She personally enjoyed gardening and picked up languages quickly, especially the obscure and older dialects of the various tribes. Before they passed away, her parents always said she would've likely owned a restaurant considering her excellent cooking if she hadn't become a Dora Milaje. Her sisters in the Dora all held special talents outside of battle as well.

"What is it for?" she nodded at his work.

It was hard to tell if smiled due to his rebreather. However, his brows softened. "A new satchel for my sister. Her children ripped her old one apart, the little menaces." It was said with surprisingly light affection as he went back to swiftly stitching.

Okoye startled at the revelation. But of course he would have a family. These blue people existed outside of their current threat to her and the others. As much as she wouldn't hesitate to kill them to ensure their safety, that didn't preclude them from having other, normal pursuits.

"I'm sure they will like it," she murmured as laid back down on her hammock and wrapped the blanket around her.

Okoye filed away that tidbit of information on alleged incursions for later. Sure, he could be lying to her for the sake of manipulation. Or not.

Attuma shrugged. "I am not as skilled at this as my father is," he huffed. "I must practice more. The increasing incursions into our kingdom has taken time away from all of this," he sighed. Biting off the edge of the thread, he began with a new color of stitching.

She settled into the hammock and attempted to fall asleep. But as was the case previous nights, she struggled.

“You should sleep for once, warrior,” Attuma called out after roughly an hour of her feigning it. He didn’t bother looking up from where he pulled the brightly colored thread through the fabric of his latest project. “Pretending to do so does you no good,” he sniffed.

Okoye let out a derisive noise. More on account that she’d been caught. “How do you know when I’m not asleep?” she huffed. 

“Your breathing is not the same as when you fall into real sleep in your exhaustion. When you’re awake, your heart rate is also elevated.” Okoye froze at his easy response. “I can hear both,” he continued. 

Apparently, these people contained heightened senses too. It would make sense, considering their bodies evolved to the pressures of the deep sea. That still didn't make his revelation any less uneasy.

“Well, it’s rather difficult to sleep in an unfamiliar environment,” she scoffed. 

Attuma looked up, eyes velvety black in the low light. “Why did you not say so?”

“I doubt you care,” she nearly hissed as she shifted slightly forward and closer to the edge of the hammock. Closing her eyes, she didn't wait for his response.

Attuma looked at her for a long moment before he went back to his embroidery. 

Suddenly, the air was fill with a low, melodic hum. It seemed to pull at her with strangely comforting fingers, wrapping around her being like the soft touches of a familiar embrace. Her body immediately began to relax. Even as her mind fought it and her eyes struggled to stay open.

It took what felt an age for her to form words as she realized it was Attuma's tune that echoed around her. His notes switched from low to slightly higher but just as hypnotically soothing after a while. No matter how she couldn't tell how much time passed as his music shifted yet again to nearly lull her to sleep.

"What…what are you singing?" her tongue struggled to form the words as a bizarre warmth settled over her. "How…how are you doing this? Affecting me?" she insisted.

Attuma murmured, "How does my song render you?"

"Calmer than I've felt since I've been down here," she slurred out.

Attuma eyed her before going back to his embroidery. "We have songs of various melodies that hold strength in power. They serve numerous purposes to compel others to do and feel a multitude of things."

She immediately snapped her mouth shut, lips pressed into a firm line of regret and with no idea of what compelled her to reveal such to her enemy. For as soon as his song stopped, her emotions shifted back to her usual unease with her current situation.

Her mind spun with the implications. She'd heard tales from other cultures of sea creatures who held the same abilities. Often it proved a curse or enchantment to those they sung to. Her own pantheon of dieties contained legends of water spirits who could prove mischievous to murderous. The fact that these people of the deep made it a reality caused her stomach to churn.

"You must have an extraordinarily strong will, warrior," Attuma declared. He sounded almost proud. "Most would be firmly at slumber and within the land of dreams by now."

Siren, she angrily mused to herself, They call them siren songs.

"Do not do that again," she ordered. She hoped her voice didn't sound as shaky as it did in her ears.

Attma furrowed his brows. "You need your sleep to remain strong-?"

"I can find it on own. Do not compel me," she snapped.

"Your sleep has been erratic since you arrived," his voice dropped, "You deserve a nightly rest of peace."

Okoye utterly refused to entertain that he came from any place of concern as she grit out, "That is none of your business. Keep your songs to yourself. I won't repeat myself."

His deep sigh sounded…disappointed?

She didn't care. Why in the fuck should she care?! He was her jailer and she, his prisoner. She should be plotting how to eliminate him in order to secure Shuri and Riri's lives to get them all out of this accursed place.

Rolling over to face the wall, she pulled the blanket all the way over her head. "I need nothing from you, shark man," she tossed out.

She held her breath, waiting for his reply. He remained silent.

It took what seemed like hours for her to finally fall asleep. She despised how she missed his song and how it'd nearly pulled her down into the blessed depths of sleep.

She couldn't wait to escape.

[classicdatabase]

CD Entry #005

Released in 1993 exclusively in Japan, the Famicom board game-style spinoff of the classic series, Wily & Right no Rockboard: That’s Paradise! is notable for several reasons. While it is far from the most obscure Mega Man game, it is certainly the most overlooked of the 8-Bit era, and a majority of non-Japanese fans likely have only a vague knowledge of the title. As such, this entry will cover several miscellaneous tidbits related to Rockboard, as well as its impact on the later series.

Rockboard, as a general overview, is a digital board game commonly likened to Fortune Street or Monopoly. Players compete to purchase ownership of property spaces and accumulate money through charging rent on other players, though there are also a number of cards one can randomly obtain with varying effects.

This premise is, on its surface, completely unrelated to the Mega Man universe, and could be misjudged as a generic tie-in. However, in actuality, Rockboard introduces enough classic series charm that it actually established aspects to later reappear in the more well-known entries. ‘Zenny’, for instance, is a reoccurring currency in many Capcom titles, but first made its debut into Mega Man serving as the money in this game. It would later appear prominently in the two spinoff series of Mega Man Legends and Mega Man Battle Network respectively. The mechanic of cards is also one rich with charm, as they are all effects based on, and using sprites of, characters from throughout the series up to that point. Game Boy exclusive characters such as Quint and Enker had their only Famicom appearance in Rockboard, as well as the bird robot Reggae, who was created for and first appears in this game; he appears both as a card that deals negative effects as well as a visual to taunt the losing player. Reggae would make his next appearance two years later as the invalid password icon in Mega Man 7, and after that became an infrequent support robot to Bass much the same way Beat is to Mega Man.

One of the most obvious oddities with this title comes with the very characters you play the game with. Despite the game’s name, Mega Man only serves as a sort of host and mascot, introducing game rules and appearing on the results screen but not taking part in the game directly. In his absence, players choose from any of the named human characters in the series up to that point, including consistent antagonist Dr. Wily, as well as Roll, the only playable robot. The game’s loose plot justifies this as each of the five having their own ambitions, from world domination to becoming a princess, that all happen to require building up their own real estate and acquiring plenty of funding. These characters also get plenty of dialogue throughout a match reacting to the various goings-on, though little of it is of any substance besides conveying game information. Still, Rockboard marks the first time that these characters’ personalities are elaborated on to this extent within the game itself.

To conclude, it’s somewhat common knowledge at this point (but still very much worth noting) that Rockboard was intended to receive a full port to Game Boy, making it the only Famicom Mega Man game to receive this treatment as opposed to a ‘Mega Man World’ game. This port was mostly completed, even having full battery saving compatibility, but was shelved for reasons not fully known.

Thankfully, this version of the game has been preserved through 2020’s Nintendo Gigaleak, and can be played through emulation or a flash cart today. Famicom Rockboard itself does have a rough, yet functional English fan translation that can also be played in the same manner, so even though the game has never received an official re-release, anyone intrigued by either version of this under-appreciated title is able and free to play it in the modern day; even you, the reader!