#or he thinks they're dangerous and wants to have control over them as a “technical parent”)

[mutable-manifestation]

#dpxdc#danny phantom#dc comics#superman#a shit brickhouse of a man who doesn't look like either one of them#accusations of cheating on lex with his arch nemesis superman#vlad is so offended clearly he's lexy's arch nemesis how dare!

Lmao okay but imagine Vlad backslides more because he has to be the nemesis. Like. This is not a slight that can go uncontested.

So like? Vlad backslides. And starts making more clones.

Superman clones. Like "if one Superman is your archnemesis - scoff - let's see how you feel about the source of consist stream of an increasing number of Supermen."

Like? Getting DNA is no biggie for a ghost - just possess the guy mid-flight, pass off some hairs to a duplicate, move on.

And Vlad already has his cloning tech on point. It just takes a bit of rebuilding.

He gets about three Supermen in before the Dannies notice.

He gets so defensive. Like oh, when a woman makes another person it's fine, but when I, Vlad Masters-

And they're just like. *deep breaths* You aged them up taking away years of their lives and also: did you bother to get permission from Superman or did you just steal his DNA?

Vlad: ...

So anyway now Vlad has three Superman sons. They're all fully-grown but like. They all know they aren't the real Clark. And Vlad is...odd? But it's not like he's asking them to do anything they don't want to.

"Prevent Lex Luthor from doing evil stuff" and other various heroics aren't anything they wouldn't be doing anyway.

Also Vlad learned his lesson with his first clone - positive reinforcement only lest they fly straight into the arms of the enemy. So like. He's being nice to them - they all have their own rooms, he got them civilian IDs, he's willing to set them up with jobs of their choice or college, and all he wants is "if Lex Luthor breathes wrong check up and see if he needs to be stopped" which. They'd want to do anyway.

Plus the Dannies all just treat them like their own people, so even the "being a clone" thing is less crisis inducing than it could be. Especially when they learn Dani is a clone and technically so is Dan.

They are... coping. With the names.

in the lineup we got:

Lark - the first clone, kryptonian name (because he mentioned the Kal-El thing at some point & Vlad was like "oh sweet I get to name you again! Love naming things! :D") Kar-El. Yeah. Like Carl.

Chad - the second clone, Clark doesn't have a lot of variations but he wanted a C-name. And of course, the kryptonian name: Char-El (yeah Vlad is not a creative man. Listen he literally tried to copy/paste a son okay. Creativity is not his strong suit. It's not even a suit he has, I think)

Aaaaand the youngest. The babiest of boys: Archie - he wanted another name with "ark" in it but couldn't think of one. So he went *shrug* arch is close enough. Kryptonian name: Ark-El (yeah he jumped at the chance to give him an ark-name when he realized he could make another one. Yes I'm implying he forgot middle names exist. None of the clones have middle names)

Anyway, Vlad is very supportive of their hobbies & such. Not a bad life, all told, save for the whole thing where they miss Ma & Pa and also remember being married and now they very much aren't. Luckily the memories are more "information I have & stuff I observed" than "stuff I experienced" but it's still the majority of their memories for a good while so like. Upsetting.

Anyway with the whole precedent of "Vlad Masters' babies have absurd growth rates" everyone just assumed that they're his actually kids & that he either had triplets or has an ongoing relationship with Superman.

And you know what? That is a free explanation that doesn't involve admitting to cloning so sure, that happened.

Superman knows it did not happen but no one believes him.

Well okay, everyone he knows personally believes him - but the public doesn't.

He's being put in a love triangle with Lex Luthor and Vlad Masters. Some people are calling them OT3. He is climbing the walls. He hates this so so so so so so much.

Lex & Vlad are having public fights about this and Vlad is just. "I don't recall ever agreeing to be exclusive *condescending eyebrow raise* Where I go and what or who I do are frankly none of your business. *insert snooty hmph noise here* Don't you have somewhere to be, like your bi-weekly beatdown from your precious "archnemesis""

And he means it in a "I should be the one who you consider your archnemesis" way, but everyone watching this takes it as "Lex and Vlad both cheated on each other, both with Superman."

You Know How There Are Those AU? Where SUPER Injured Ghosts Need To Retreat To Their Core?

No one seems to be USING that to its fullest potential! For SHENANIGANS! Because! Who?? Could POSSIBLY carry a Halfa's Core safely... but another Halfa?! A FULL ghost would KILL them. A human would be killed! What terribly precarious peril we find ourselves in! Oh nooooooo!

Well, no worry!

As much as Dani fuckin HATES this. That there is her brother. Her Template. Her Clone Daddy and Bestest of Bros. Like HECK she's gonna let him suffer for centuries and possibly DIE. She can take it, Doc! Pop him in! We'll go road tripping and-

What do you MEAN "No"?

Unstable??! Of course she's unstable! But the-.... Oh.

Turns OUT? Dani? Can hitch a ride in DANNY for Emergency Medical Aid... but NOT the other way around. Her body is too loosely held together. He would parasiticly consume her from within. Instead of feeding off her Ecto System like injured ghosts are supposed too, because she's a CLONE? AND an unstable one at that? His Core would just... see her body as free ectoplasm. All of it.

He'd eat her.

Which mean Frostbite can not and WILL NOT allow that.

But he's HURT! That big, off screen, cataclysmic Fight To Save Everybody From *cough cough mumbles* and settle us all in the DC universe, REALLY messed him up! What are we supposed to DO!? He can't STAY like this!!!

Enter-> My FAVORITE DCxDP Trash Ship! Vlad&Lex!!! *horrified screaming from the crowds, someone shouts "oh god, no! Please!"* Ha! There are no gods here, silly billys! Only two terrible, terrible HIGHLY Dramatic, self serving, incredibly damaged, gay peacocks. In Business Suits that cost more then your house is worth.

They're AWFUL~♡

And! Vlad was sent ahead to lay the ground work. Insure there would be no GIWs. Also because no one could stand him and his EXTENSIVE criminal record. But that's besides the point.

But!

You know what he found? A Business Nemesis. Who he routinely dates and/or Dramatically Hate Fu-*coughs* I mean, attempts a Corporate Take Over(tm) off. You know how it is. Business. He ALSO gets to make it no secret he's a "Meta", thanks to the INCOMPETENCE of one Jack Fenton, because that- *seething rant*

Yet? Dispite his STILL burning hatred for Jack? And his finally letting go of Maddie? You know what he STILL wants?

For Danny to be his Son.

*Gets a call from Frostbite*

...............soooooo........ what you're SAYING is..... I can be pregnant with Daniel.

You, Frostbite, need ME, Vladimir Masters, THE ONLY OTHER HALFA, to carry Daniel around inside my body, in what to all appearances resembles a pregnancy, in order to heal him. Because I am an Older And Stronger Halfa Upon Which He Relies.

:)

*instantly begins plotting*

Just? Imagine. Vlad is a FUCKIN LIAR. No one but him would even KNOW what was going on! He just? Rocks up one day, like? *falsely demure* "oh I couldn't POSSIBLY has any scotch, Lex! >:) I'm eating for Two~☆" and just? Deals the MAXIMUM amount of psychic damage he can.

Probably says it at their weekly, public, Veiled Threats Brunch.

It makes front page news. Luthor choked on his eggs. The paparazzi lost their SHIT. Vlad is doing the FULL Celebrity Mom Thing. The classes. The photo shoots. The Gucci sunglasses as he peruses high end strollers. All while HEAVILY suggesting that not only is "The Baby" Lex's.... but that he's going to withhold the child and deny Lex any access.

Danny isn't even aware. He's in a lovely lil medical coma. Dani is trying to find a good spot to plop down Amity. She just know Vlad is being... Vlad. Meh. He can handle it. Dan? He's not even IN the human realm and is not sure he wants to be.

But over in the LEAGUE? Everything's on fuckin FIRE.

Kon is losing his SHIT and Clark is thousand yard staring into the void. Kon's half brother is in the hands of a... Less Then Ideal... Meta that Batman is PRETTY sure is highly suspect. Might be a deliberate weapons experiment. Certainly is a hostage. And the DRAMA.

Lex has never been worse.

He might actually stab his...partner? Vlad. At the hospital. The SECOND the child is born. There are already long term kidnapping plans in the making. He's hiring lawyers. Getting VICIOUS. There have been talks with DEATHSTROKE. By BOTH OF THEM.

Clark wants to cry.

@hypewinter @ailithnight @nerdpoe @hdgnj @the-witchhunter @mutable-manifestation @babbling-babull

[asthedeathoflight]

I do think 70s devils minion adds a whole layer to Daniel and Armand's relationship that we're not really taking into account enough bc while it does kind of technically happen in canon (that they break up and then get back together) we never actually get to SEE them when they're back together and so its not really taken into consideration for their dynamic.

But like Armand is someone who has for his entire life been another person's possession, who has defined himself as a person that people Have instead of Love. And what the Queen of the Damned chapter shows is Daniel Molloy as someone who Armand wanted to possess and who wanted to be possessed by Armand. Armand has never owned anything in his entire 500 year life and so he NEEDS to own Daniel, he needs to have just this ONE THING to himself after all this time. And Daniel for his part is very into being so consumed by another person. For a time, Daniel is exactly what Armand needs. Here is a person who cannot hurt him, who wants to belong to him, who he can finally assert authority over and in doing so assert his own independence. Nobody in Armand's life has ever been truly HIS in the way that Daniel is.

But the longer theyre together the less urgent the need to possess and control is, and the more Armand is able to love Daniel selflessly, the more they come into conflict because Daniel still WANTS that level of obsession. Their breakup in the books is inevitable because their relationship was built on impulses that, while important stages in their growth, over time became unhealthy. Daniel needs to get out of his cycle of addiction and Armand needs to grow past needing to possess people to believing they'll stay of their own free will. So they need to break up.

BUT unlike in the books where Armand's resolve ultimately fails him and he turns Daniel anyways, cementing the both of them into both of their unhealthiest habits, show Armand manages to work through his issues to the next stage of his growth: that he needs to let Daniel go. And he does! He lets Daniel go and he bears the burden of their relationship alone for 50 years so that Daniel could not only have a human life but also develop as a person in a way he never could have if he stayed with Armand. Show Daniel is a different man from 70s/book Daniel. He knows who he is. Even though he's falling back into old patterns now that he's a vampire he's still been through this cycle a few times and hes stronger now than he would have been if he was turned when he was 30.

I think, assuming devils minion did happen in the 70s, the present Daniel/Armand dynamic will be different from what we're expecting because they've finally grown enough as people so that they can come together on equal footing which is really important bc Armand has never been someone's equal in a relationship before! This is new territory for him! So I think their relationship has potential for development of both of them as characters to places they never got to go in the books. Please note that this is NOT me saying they will have a perfectly well adjusted healthy relationship I just think that this is the next step past their old dynamic and probably will be more dangerous for other people than it is for them which is always a win.

[seonghrtz]

𖤐ㅤ 𝖿𝖺𝗂𝗋𝗒 𝗍𝖺𝗅𝖾 𝗄𝗂𝗌𝗌. ๑ 𝗿𝗼𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗮 𝘇𝗼𝗿𝗼 !

ゾロ + femreader ! after being struck by the power of an akuma no mi, you are doomed to sleep for eternity. ／ fluff & mutual pining.

Being part of the Straw Hat Crew meant not only being a pirate, an outlaw, hunted by the Marines and the World Government, but also being in constant danger in exchange for satisfying Captain Monkey D Luffy's insatiable thirst for adventure.

Not that you didn't enjoy the adventures, you had the chance to meet incredible islands and people ⸻ you and the crew even ended up on an island in the sky! The Grand Line was full of mysteries, and it didn't hurt to unravel them as you continued to make your dreams come true. But some situations could have been avoided if Luffy hadn't been so impulsive in his desire to venture into unknown lands.

An example of this would be the current situation in which the Straw Hat crew find themselves...

You felt your legs betray you as you ran in a random direction through the forbidden forest that Luffy had decided to explore. Even the scary stories of the inhabitants of the small village near the forest, about a monster that inhabited the forest and all those who tried to explore this area never came back, weren't enough to dispel Luffy's desire to discover the true mystery of this place. Kids' bedtime stories wouldn't scare Luffy ⸻ but with you, Usopp, Chopper, and even Nami, it worked a little differently; it was enough to make you think twice before getting into trouble. By the way, if there were stories, it was because something had happened before.

But by some quirk of fate, the crew was trapped in the forest, fleeing from a monster ⸻ the monster from the stories that had turned out to be real. As you ran, looking for the right way out of the forest, you noticed the absence of your companions. You were alone, at night, in that vast, frightening forest.

With your legs tired and sore, you began to slow down until you came to a panting halt with your hands on your knees. You turned around, squinting your eyes to find a familiar figure in the darkness, but nothing. 'I really am alone...' you thought to yourself. As you turned forward again, you noticed a hooded figure standing in the middle of the path.

"I see you lost your crewmembers." A dark voice rose above the nocturnal sounds of the forest.

"Who are you?" you asked, trying to control your breathing.

"I have several names, but I am usually called 'The Witch of the Woods'," the person laughed.

"You're the witch from the stories!" You tried not to sound frightened when you met the figure who frightened the villagers.

"I see they're still talking about me, and there are still those who think they're brave enough to invade my forest, even after being warned of what I'm capable of."

"Look, to tell you the truth, I didn't want to be here." You scratched your head, unashamed of the sincerity in your tone, "This was all my idiot Captain's idea!"

"And to tell you the truth, I don't care whose idea it was for you to invade my property and put an end to the peace that reigned here. Either way, you're all going to pay for your captain's stupid initiative!"

Before you could say anything or prepare to flee, as your fatigue would not allow you to fight for long, you felt your body hit by something and gradually a feeling of drowsiness came over you and the only thing you could see before you closed your eyes was the sinister smile of the Forest Witch shining through the darkness.

Zoro had no idea where he was. Surely he was lost (again) in the midst of so many identical trees. But his main goal was to clear all obstacles, find the crew and get back to the ship. He couldn't remember exactly what had happened to make him run in that direction. The only thing he could remember was that Luffy had persuaded the crew (despite several protests from Nami, Usopp, Chopper and you) to explore the forest, which was technically forbidden, and that he heard a loud noise and Usopp and Nami's desperate cries and ordered everyone to run back to the ship.

"Oi! Who's there?" Zoro asked after hearing the sound of voices. He quickly put his hand on the hilt of his katana and approached the figure in front of him who was standing and looking at something on the ground ⸻ what Zoro soon realized was a body. The boy squinted, trying to see in the dark, when he noticed that the person on the ground was wearing a pink dress that he would recognize anywhere, even without meaning to. "What did you do to her?"

"Well, I didn't do anything." The hooded figure laughed, "She just got what she deserved, just like all those who invaded my forest, she's now condemned to sleep for eternity."

"Stop talking shit." Zoro grunted before he attacked the unknown person and threw them away. They hit something Zoro didn't even bother to look at. He bent down next to you on the ground and put his ear to your nose, listening to your faint breathing. "Hey! Hey! Come on, wake up! Hey, we have to get out of here!" He shook your body, not as gently as he should have. "What did that witch do to you?" Zoro picked you up like a bride and went back to looking for a way out.

The half hour that Zoro wandered through the forest like a ghost in redemption seemed more like an eternity, and with each passing second, though he wouldn't admit it even to himself, his concern grew for the crewmate in his arms who wouldn't wake up. Eventually ⸻ and with a bit of luck ⸻ Zoro made it out of the forest, first meeting up with Chopper and Usopp.

"Apparently she's under some kind of spell." Said a worried Chopper, "We'd better get her to the ship!"

It wasn't long before the others arrived on the ship, and Sanji was arguing with Zoro about his lack of responsibility for a lady's safety.

"Hey Chopper, did you manage to wake her up?" Luffy asked hopefully.

"Nothing so far." Chopper sighed sadly, "I'm going to do some more research on what I can do to wake her up."

In the corner of the room, Zoro let out a discreet sigh and heard the witch's voice in his head. 'She's now condemned to sleep for eternity.' Was it possible to sleep for eternity? How many years was an eternity? You couldn't sleep that long, you had dreams and goals to achieve. Would you never wake up, or was the witch just bluffing? Maybe the witch was making something up to scare him. Maybe you would be up bright and early the next day, ready to train with him. At least you were in good hands, so maybe he shouldn't worry so much...

For a week, you slept soundly.

Apparently, no method Chopper used was enough to wake her up, not even the ones he had learned in his medical books. And your absence made it seem as if something was missing from the crew ⸻ especially to a certain swordsman.

"I thought of something to wake her up!" Sanji exclaimed smiling, "Maybe I should kiss her!" His eyes turned to hearts as he imagined the most romantic scenario of a prince waking his princess with a kiss of true love and they spending eternity together.

"And why would you kiss her?" Usopp looked at Sanji blankly.

"Because that's how enchantments are broken in fairy tales," Sanji replied, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"And what guarantees that you are her true love?" Usopp asked again, emphasizing the 'you'.

"How much do you want to bet that I'm the love of her life?"

"Stop this nonsense!" Nami shouted, "If a kiss of true love is the solution to wake her up, then maybe she really is doomed to sleep forever." Nami's expression turned sad.

"Why do you say that Nami?" Chopper asked, holding back tears, he couldn't lose one of his friends, a part of his new family.

"What guarantees that she has already found her true love? They could be on the Grand Line, in East Blue, anywhere in the world, and they could be dead at the same time."

"Don't say that! I'll do everything I can to wake her up!" Chopper said with conviction.

"Trying won't kill anyone." Robin muttered so that only Zoro could hear.

"What did you say?" Zoro turned to the woman next to him, confused.

"I was just saying that trying doesn't kill anyone, you'd be a good match." Robin got up from the table with the smile of someone who was in on something and walked out of the kitchen.

Zoro looked down at his empty plate. A kiss of true love? Nonsense! You wouldn't wake up if Zoro kissed you, he was sure of that... But then why was he thinking about what it would be like to kiss you?

Zoro looked at your sleeping figure on the bed. The sight of you, completely relaxed, sleeping soundly without a care in the world, as if nothing could touch you, with no idea that you might never wake up again. Zoro was afraid for a moment. Afraid of never hearing you again, afraid of never looking into your eyes, never seeing your smile. Zoro was afraid to lose you. And Roronoa couldn't accept losing you, you were a part of his life that he couldn't let go of easily, he couldn't let you go ⸻ even though he didn't know why it was so hard to let you go.

‘Trying won't kill anyone.’ Robin's voice echoed in his mind. Maybe he should try to kiss you? Would you mind if he kissed you? Would you like him to kiss you? What if he kissed you and you didn't wake up? What would that mean? That he wasn't the love of your life, or maybe that only works in fairy tales? What if Sanji kissed you and you woke up? Zoro shook his head, trying to forget the image of Sanji kissing you and you waking up. He certainly wouldn't want that to happen...

But what if he kissed you and you woke up?

Were you meant to fall in love and stay together? Were you made for each other?

Maybe Zoro wasn't ready to get romantically involved ⸻ but he wouldn't have minded if it was with you...

He tightened his grip on the Wado Ichimonji, determined to carry out his plan. And if you didn't wake up after the kiss, he would do the impossible to wake you up. And in the end, Robin was right, it wouldn't kill him to try just once.

As he got closer to your face, Roronoa felt nervousness rising inside of him. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, he couldn't give up when he was so close. And then he locked their lips in a three-second kiss before standing up quickly, incredulous at his own actions. He slowly opened his eyes and looked at you, you were still sleeping...

A sigh left Zoro's lips and he turned quickly with his back to you, ready to leave the room.

"Zoro...?" Your voice came out weakly as you blinked your eyes slowly, trying to adjust to the brightness, and sat up in bed, stretching.

"What?" Zoro turned to you in surprise.

"Huh? What's going on? The last thing I remember was meeting someone in the forest who called herself a witch..."

"You were hit by an incantation, Chopper suspected it was the power of an Akuma No Mi. You slept for a week..."

"And you woke me up?"

"Um..." Zoro murmured in confirmation.

"With a kiss?"

"Um..." Zoro murmured again and scratched the back of his head, feeling embarrassed, something that certainly wasn't in his nature.

"Thank you," you smiled openly. And it was then that Zoro realized how much he missed you, perhaps he had never realized what your absence could do to him. You got out of bed and approached Zoro's still figure with long steps, on tiptoe you reached for the boy's cheek with a kiss. "Thanks for saving me again."

"It was nothing..."

"So... you're my Prince Charming?" You smiled teasingly and nudged Zoro's waist.

"This is no fairy tale and I am no prince." Zoro stared at you, his words carrying no weight.

"Yeah, I know!" You laughed, "But you woke me up with a kiss anyway!"

"Yes, but don't think that I'm going to take it easy on you in training." Zoro smiled sideways as he saw the smile disappear from his face, "And remember, you haven't trained for a week."

"Come on Zoro... don't be so mean! You should be nicer to me!" You sulked, "We're soul mates, you shouldn't be mean to me."

"If you do everything right like a good girl, maybe I'll reward you at the end." Zoro's sly smile made you burn with shame.

Zoro could have awakened you from a deep and eternal sleep, but he would have been the reason for your death.

© seonghrtz, 2024. all rights reserved, please do not copy / steal / translate / modify any of my works !

[mer-acle]

i hold all the power (evil laugh, evil laugh)

Give me...

The big athena hcs

I desire knowledge and inspiration (evil laugh, evil laugh)

Haha

You kinda put me on the spot there. Not bc I don't have big headcanons but bc I'm like how do I phrase this without being like "here's the plot of that fic I wrote" yk? And now I'm unsure what constitutes a big headcanon... so I'm just gonna give you some more random ones and maybe you can help me out with what you were thinking of? (O.O)

For Epic specifically: Her owl form is a dark barn owl, bc they're really pretty and rare and have ginger feathers that match her hair

She dislikes Poseidon so much because he's so much like her father but her perception of him isn't softened by the love she has for Zeus.

Prometheus really saved her after Pallas's death. He kinda filled the void that losing Triton as a paternal figure had left more so than that of Pallas herself, but he took her along for his little creation projects (like the humans whoops) and they really match each other's freak. Yk. Until Zeus takes Prometheus away and definitely forbids Athena from visiting. I will literally murder him one of these days.

Speaking of Zeus taking people away, Athena was STRUGGLING after Pallas. Unsurprisingly, but still. Nobody but Hephaestus knows her from when she was still pretty openly mourning, they're all too young, and he never really asked why, but my girl was so depressed and lonely. She spend IRL HOURS in Quick Thought rewatching that battle and trying to figure out the moment where she went wrong. She knows Zeus intervened, but it doesn't matter to her, it's her spear, it's her kill. He was all like "for a nymph?" when she asked to take Pallas's name. "well, if you think that is a title worthy of your status..." It was her most open rebellion against his wishes for a while.

Her favorite domain is wisdom, but it's followed by crafting, not war. Don't get me wrong, she enjoys a good fight, but if she had to choose and wasn't worried about Zeus's opinion, she would choose crafting over war any day. The reason in my hc is how the domains are assigned, she was basically born with Wisdom, her powers are all about thought, and Zeus later assigned her with warfare which her powers work well with, but weren't technically meant for it. Meanwhile crafting is her "Passion domain" meaning her power in it literally stems from her intense enjoyment for creating. Imagine "What else can I do" from Encanto, but it's her discovering making clothes for the first time. The angst factor of this obviously being "My life has one mission, create the greatest warrior" Why is that her one mission? Is it the crushing weight of who she has to be?

My favorite bigger concept has to be her relationship with truth. In other words, Athena lies and manipulates her way through life, she is smarter than her father but knows he holds the power, so her council is whatever works in the moment, if she knows it's hopeless, she'll tell him what he wants to hear. Life has become a game for her, a game where she sells her soul for approval, bc she's lost those who loved her unconditionally, and can't trust those around her bc they're all trapped in the game with her, she doesn't want to be the favorite, she needs to be the favorite, it's the only way to survive, the only way for some semblance of safety and control, and yes, she gets along with mortals better than gods because they hold no power over her, they can't threaten the position she's worked so hard to achieve. Until Odysseus compromises a part of her that she hadn't thought she still had. Attachment never felt like danger with Pallas, but it does now, because what does it matter if you're more powerful when you respect the other person too much not to honor their wishes, should they tell you to leave them alone? If asked, she will have to leave, and that's terrifying (None of that would be overly conscious before My goodbye but for me, that breakup deep down always will be Athena being scared of her own feelings and trying to stop it before it goes too far and being at least 15 years too late.)

Woah that got dark lol I just wrote the last section and was like 👀fuck I am projecting SO bad. Like... gods I am so not okay. Jokes on me I thought I had headcanons all I have is trauma lmao

Anyways lol

Hope you liked it, and do let me know if you had something else in mind, I'll do my best :3

[janewayintersection]

the amount of people who are like "omg i ditched kaidan for garrus after he was mean to me on horizon!!" baffle me. shit on bioware's writing for making shep work with cerberus all you want, but kaidan calling shep out on this and not joining them is NOT the issue. in fact, him reacting like this is why i love him??

he specifically states he trusts shep, just not cerberus. which is the only rational response in that whole entire goddamn game!! like?? you spend all of me1 stopping cerberus operations. they kill several alliance soldiers and admiral kahoku, try to make a rachni army -- they are WELL known for cloning and ais... miranda even outright states she wanted to plant shep with a control chip. there is literally zero reason for kaidan to believe the shep in front of him isn't some cerberus sleeper agent. or an ai. or indoctrinated. or being manipulated (THIS ONE IS CANON BTW). even if he trusts shepard, he doesn't trust cerberus not to pull any of this. quite frankly, i'm baffled more companions don't have this exact, entirely justified concern.

loyalty is important, but blind loyalty is dangerous.

honestly, the crew in me2 is lucky that the illusive man was so weirdly and uncharacteristically insistent on shepard remaining untouched. things could have gotten very bad otherwise.

being best friends with someone, or more notably, being in love with someone, isn't the end all be all magic potion in this world. being in love with someone doesn't mean you should blindly trust their actions. if my significant other joined a terrorist group, you can bet my ass i wouldn't join them! sorry! if anything, it's healthy that kaidan has his own sense of morals and priorities he follows over shepard. he's his OWN person, love shouldn't be something that makes you suddenly give up who you are and what you believe in.

not to mention kaidan is entirely out of the loop for the whole game. his intel states that cerberus is behind the abductions (the horizon incident is partially a result of cerberus' fiddling btw), and that shep has been alive and never even reached out to anyone. he doesn't have the information we the players have. he doesn't know that the illusive man insisted on no control chip. he doesn't know about the lazarus project or its specifics.

and as for the "cheating" discourse if you romance someone new in me2, i do personally believe shep getting with one of the me2 love interests is cheating on their me1 love interest. to shep, they skipped those two years. they wake up as they did during the me2 prologue. no time has passed. and then they immediately get with someone else after one (1) argument with their love interest over them, may i remind you, joining a terrorist group. even if you don't think it's "technically" cheating, it's at the very least pretty trashy and flakey.

if anything, i'm gonna say it! kaidan is more forgiving than i'd be! the fact that he even sends an email saying he still cares and that they can see what happens after this is all resolved is WAY more than i would have done. the fact that kaidan will find out shep got with someone else, and STILL be willing to give shep a chance is like. man. it's saying a lot. i am just saying.

imagine losing someone. you see them literally die as your ship explodes and they burn up in the nearby planet's atmosphere. you grieve. you put yourself into your work. then suddenly, two years, later. they pop back up again. ALIVE. and with a terrorist group. and basically tell you the equivalent of "just trust me bro" despite the fact that while you trust them, you don't trust the terrorist group. so you're like hey, what the fuck. why are you with a terrorist group. and they're like i'm not with them, we just have common goals. and you're like. i'm gonna say it again. i trust you, not the terrorist group. okay?? i can't join you for this reason. please be careful out there, seriously.

and then they immediately jump into the pants of that one guy you knew back on a mission from two years ago.

what would you do?? would you not feel hurt? betrayed? upset? confused?? i'm sorry, i'm completely on kaidan's side. i'd go as far to say that he's far more understanding than he should be in me2.

me3 is all about regaining that complete and undying trust back, and that cerberus didn't fuck around w shep. or that being with cerberus didn't change them. his "loyalty" quest is just visiting him in the hospital and showing him shepard still cares. that they're still the same. that cerberus truly didn't alter them. that there was more going on. that shepard was forced to work with cerberus out of complete necessity and only did what they thought was right. and i think that's neat!!!!

[tibby-art]

I’m adoring the Hitman AU. Scar and Cub share a braincell and Grian just looks like she wants to go home and sleep.

I’m curious as to what powers ConVex has. Or what their motives are with Grian. (ConVex trying to corrupt her.)

I've been picturing Cub and Scar's vex powers as being able to transform into a vex form (pale blueish skin, white hair/eyes, wings, fangs, claws, the whole nine yards). The forms allow them to move at lightning speed and fly, making them perfect as silent killers in their roles as hitmen. They're super sneaky and fast.

I think the vex work with pacts as well - if you make a pact with a vex, they're unable to go against said pact. That's how they ended up working for the government as hitmen. I imagine that in their past they were very powerful and corrupt criminals at Concorp (standard protocol for convex in an au i'd say). One day the government catches up to them, and they're given a choice: Go to top-security prison for one bajillion years because you're a dangerous vex criminal OR make a pact with the government and work under them, using your powers for good. So, Cub and Scar are technically here by choice, but their choices were limited. They're bound by a fae contract that they must perform their given duties as hitmen - they bend the rules and find loopholes whenever possible, though. Vex are tricky like that. They'll get ordered to take out a dangerous crime boss, but because you didn't technically specify that you wanted that done today, they took the day off to go golfing. They'll get to it tomorrow :J (The government learns the hard way that when you order Cub and Scar to kill someone you must specify to them not to eat the person because that has happened and that will happen again and everything is terrible)

Grian is in a similar situation, but he was given less of a choice. While Cub and Scar made their own pacts with the vex to gain their powers, Grian's watcher powers are something she did not ask for at all. The Watchers are much more mysterious than the Vex, not a lot is known about them and they're considered almost a myth until Grian shows up. This makes her more dangerous and unpredictable, in the government's eyes. Grian isn't allowed to just walk away and go back to being a normal member of society - nobody knows what he's capable of (not even Grian knows) so the government needs to keep a close eye on her. When she's paired up with Cub and Scar for missions, the vex are ordered to keep an eye on Grian, and step in if things get too dangerous. Cub and Scar think this is BS and they almost pity Grian, deep down, since he's essentially in the same spot they're in but worse. When their pact says to keep Grian from getting too dangerous, they interpret it as, "Well, if we help her figure out her powers, she's more in control and that will make everything safer :J"

I don't think Convex is trying to corrupt her - I think the government is the one being manipulative here. Convex sees it. I think they genuinely want to help her grow and discover new abilities and how to use them. They're Convex, though, so they might not be the best role models lol. I think what they're trying to do is help her get more confidence and more control over her powers. Cub is a scientist who is very good at figuring out how Grian's abilities work, what he can and can't do, the limits of said abilities, etc. and Scar has the most creative and insane ideas on how to utilize watcher powers that it sometimes leads to discovering something brand new. I can picture him being like, ":J Hey have you ever tried using your watcher powers to spy on a specific location from like, fifty miles away" and Grian is like "Scar that's ridiculous that's not how it works" and then she tries it and is amazed when that actually does work. Scar's like ":J yeah I made that up I didnt think it would work Can you spy on Disneyland now"

[venacoeurva]

Want some Corprus thoughts and headcanons while I take a coffee break

Putting under a readmore since I ramble

You know how Concept Art Dagoth is doing some weird flesh manipulation with his hand and his muscles n shit are just slippin out? and the patterning on his other arm just kinda. looks like he can unravel. Maybe if he wanted to, he could drop the humanoid body and just be a funky flesh mass thing a la final boss mode 2 or something? Fun to think about, I explored it a little with my Longoth Ur stuff.

Yeah anyway, what if the Nerevarine could do that, but to a lesser degree after they seek out treatment and the more dangerous aspects are subdued, particularly if you follow the idea of them actually being Nerevar's reincarnation and having Azura on their side actively helping and not just everyone going "huh sure" and improvising?

Following the idea that Corprus is a divine disease mortals just can't handle, and it's a display of controlling it. People who aren't ~worthy~ basically turn into your standard corprusbeast, and I like to think Ascended Sleepers basically detonate into an explosion of flesh (whose screams become almost musical once more of the tentacles start replacing where their mouth was) once they hit a certain point of transformation (enlightenment!) as well. Maybe the higher on the hierarchy of who can handle it they can sort of retain a body that's more... normal looking and not teratomas to the max with your arteries deciding they want to be outside of you.

In my Nerevarine's case, most of the remaining effects are internal, with his left leg deteriorating during and after the plot of the game resulting in an eventual above the knee amputation and his internal organs are a little wonky (besides some damage he has like 2 extra kidneys, notably). I like to play with the idea that he has some flesh manipulation abilities, too, he's just not aware of them and they're more or less just subconscious, but they giving him an ability to "link into" his prosthetics, letting him to develop prosthetics like a leg from taproots that resemble a spriggan's flesh and function as if it were a normal leg, kind of like a leg transplant, and connects to his tissues. He's preferential to that one since it comes with less discomfort of more standard ones. I also think the ability gives his flesh a little more leeway in his werewolf transformations being a little less taxing on the body since he kinda just has more... stretch? and adaptability.

I also think it works against the Nerevarine, though, even once it's technically asymptomatic, even if they're aware of it and developed a whatever control they could over it... or maybe they try to ignore it. This would vary by who they are. In Wren's case, it keeps him alive when he's passively trying to die (he hates being immortal), and his left arm tends to do its own thing sometimes in the presence of other people/entities with/involved with Corprus or the Sixth House, which is a denial of his sense of autonomy--Something Wren is terrified of losing and loathes the Nerevarine prophecy for already stripping him of it in a sense.

It's a fun idea, and I think we should play with it within our own Nerevarines and if you have any Sixth House OCs, in particular, get wild, get funky, maybe they can also yoink their arm muscles out from under the skin to be tentacles, I dunno! It's your house!

[foressfaction]

My Jack and Toby headcanons (they're bfs)

The scar I usually draw over Toby's nose was actually given to him by Jack. When they first met, Jack only saw Toby as another victim to kill and eat. What else could you expect when a demon see's another random human. They ended up having a pretty bad fight at the very beginning due to Jack's animal instincts. Toby left a nasty scar over Jack's back and Jack left a deep cut from his nails on Toby's face. So now they both still have sorta matching scars from their first encounter. Are they happy memories? No. Sometimes Jack gets angry that Toby doesn't cover it up more. As covering that part of his face would involve either a full face mask or constantly wearing gauze over it, which is what he DOES do often. Jack tries not to be as harsh on the other about it but he doesn't like seeing the scar he put on Toby and remembering how he used to be and that he had hurt someone he cares so dearly about now.

As for ages and other basic information, they are two years apart. Jack is 21 while Toby is 19. Jack has long pointy ears that come from the sides of his head along with a long thin tail that has a poof at the end of it that's the same color as his hair. Jack stands at around 6'8, his animalistic legs giving him a huge height advantage. While Toby stays around 5'6-5'7 when not slouching.

The main reason Jack actually didn't manage to kill Toby was because when going for the goal, Toby's kidneys, he took notice of the operator symbol carved into him. Jack knows way too well to mess with any of that entity's 'proxies.' As last time he attacked one and killed them, The Operator struck Jack hard and left bad mental trauma. Technically…Jack is terrified of that thing, and wants nothing to do with it. Much less be involved in another killing of its proxies.

Jack still occasionally gets monstrous urges to attack and kill Toby even now that they are close. Everyday it's a risk that Toby takes to still stick around Jack. That fact alone makes Jack feel special, that even with his tendencies and urges, Toby remains unafraid of him. This is what makes him get so attached.

As dangerous as it is, following the last statement, Toby does stick around. He doesn't even realize how much that means to Jack. He himself can't understand why the other wouldn't just kill him day one. Toby is severely disaster prone and is not scared of dying, plus he's tried to commit several times himself. Being around Jack during the other's manic episodes is natural to him. Even in times that Jack would attack and try to hurt Toby, he would almost let it happen. It's dangerous how much trust he puts into the demon, but after so long it no longer bothers either of them, as they both know they have more control than the thing that tries to take them over and ruin what little happiness they do have.

What does the Operator think of these two? Well it doesn't really matter. Its only motive is to break its chosen puppet's minds. If it knows one of its 'precious proxies' has found peace of mind and true happiness then it realizes it can no longer manipulate them into thinking that it is the only thing filling that empty hole it impaled into their hearts from the start. Love and friendship being its one true pet peeve its human slaves can experience.

Due to its hatred to the relationship, whenever Toby has a dark moment, the operator gets him away from Jack and then tries to take control. Upon success, Toby would immediately lash out and attack Jack. It's the same situation Jack has with his inner demon, instead that is apart of Jack, while for Toby it's a completely different story. After weeks of this repeating, Jack usually has to restrain Toby, knowing how that thing can be, it would have no problem tearing the boy apart just to get to Jack's mind as well. Jack now knows not to ever truly leave Toby alone by himself with his still healing mind. And Toby knows not to pry or tempt Jack in any way involving food or accidentally angering the demon. These two are bombs waiting to blow up if any little thing goes wrong. And that's really sad.

I feel like Jack would be the tired but supportive dad personality type when it comes to Toby. Motherfucker shows up with 6 different kinds of tree bark and goes on an autism rant about what he knows about each one and how flammable they are while Jack would sit in a crouched position, ears perked in interest. No matter what it is, Jack is always wanting to be a part of it. When NOT angered, Jack is like a big cat. He doesn't understand these silly human emotions Toby experiences and kinda lowkey uses the boy to learn them again. Toby can show a span of different emotions within just an hour. He's such a spaz and a mess but that also helps Jack study and learn these mannerisms so he can be a better friend/boyfriend. So if it takes sitting and listening to Toby go on about something Jack has absolutely no idea about then he will.

Due to not understanding Toby completely, being a different species and all, Jack will occasionally ask personal, weird or just normally creepy questions. Not trying to be either of those things obviously, he doesn't know what to ask or how others feel about things. He's lucky it's Toby he asks these questions because all he does is cackly stupidly at them while Jack just lowers his ears and frowns in confusion. Bro just wants to know things that he will never get to personally experience or know. These questions could range from questions about body fluids, how humans digest, how they do their business, basic stuff. Sometimes Jack lacks a filter of basic modesty though, and asks things that could really catch Toby off guard and embarrass the absolute shit out of him. Technically Jack is an unconscious rizzler.

For a relationship, cheesy things like pet names don't cross either or their minds but they still subconsciously do it. Jack has tiny furs that cover his entire body that makes his skin super soft and well, fuzzy. Especially his hands and elbows. Due to this fact, Toby spat up a stupid nickname that he calls him religiously. That name being 'Fuzzy.' Jack of course doesn't understand that having fur is natural to him, having no recollection of his once human life. Jack would sometimes wonder why Toby didn't have fur, and how the other stays warm even without it. Jack knows he's human, but that still just boggles him. I feel he'd ask "So are all humans skinned at birth?" "WHAT?!-"

Jack has no eyes but can still see, but not how he used to at all. His vision is very dark and almost grainy. At night he sees mostly in infrared and relies on sound and vibrations. Toby is helpful to him for that due to the other's tics. One thing Jack would never understand. As yeah Toby IS human, but not a healthy one at that. The boy has many disorders that make him different than the average person, this confusing Jack even more about him.

Toby's problem of being completely numb has always concerned Jack. He remembered studying nursing and to be a doctor but never why, or when that was. Still occasionally Jack would recall certain things he learned and would be the aid to Toby when the other would hurt himself and not even know it. I feel like if anyone it would be Jack to notice first if the other was seeming off or weak. I feel like Jack had to point out multiple times "You're bleeding-" "am i?"

Jack would keep Toby well bandaged and healing too, somehow knowing how to treat a wound better than Toby who's been doing it ever since he stayed around the forest. Toby is very thankful to have Jack's help but that doesn't mean he would let him help every time. Jack mainly has to beg Toby to let him help, as the other is literally laying in his own blood, denying it as if he knows jack shit about what's happening or where the wound even is due to the lack of pain.

Jack doesn't fully understand how sick Toby really is. He watches the other down pills constantly and doesn't know why. The Slender sickness is a thing in this universe and all of the people who are close to that entity deal with it. Toby is like a puppet to that thing so he has the sickness pretty bad.

I like to think that they were each other's first ever hug after the incidents that happened to them. After Jack hugged Toby that's when he realized that he might actually truly love the boy.

Toby is absolutely obsessed with Jack's tail. I feel he would just sit and hold it when sad and Jack would just let him. Obviously confused on why but he eventually learned to just stop questioning this boy.

Neither of them really have a full grasp on what love actually is, but they show it as if they do. Jack is very lovable when he wants to be and Toby got used to it. Formerly being someone who hated physical touch. Only Jack. Only Jack..

There was actually a time when Toby let Jack literally take one of his kidneys. It was all Toby's choice too, doing it knowing that one, he wouldn't feel it, and two it would help Jack tame his hunger and urges. Letting Jack have one actually made the demon crave eating the other a lot less, knowing he at least got a piece. The healing process was a bitch but both were content about it. Toby was a cackling mess the whole time, seeing Jack's expression shift when Toby was perfectly willing to let the other take an organ he could live with one of. "Are you sure? i don't wanna hurt you" "you want the kidney or not." "....yeah…."

They definitely work together when getting food for Jack. Toby eats normal food and Jack can't, therefore they work together constantly and hunt food for Jack. It's mostly trespassers that enter the forest that get killed first. Toby is usually the distraction while Jack goes for the kill. Toby chops the body up and helps Jack store it.

Jack is very insecure about his face, hence the mask he wears. The way Toby found out what Jack looks like is actually pretty funny. Curiosity gets the best of him and he eventually just ripped the mask off of Jack, seeing that when the other wears it is when Jack is the most hostile. Jack obviously was frozen in embarrassment, scared his face would make Toby fear him but Toby's reaction was nothing more than a shrug. He wasn't scared of Jack or judged him for his face, in fact Toby only held Jack's face in both his hands and just stared at him. They're falling for eachother your honor.

Going along with the mask thing, Toby would definitely wear Jack's mask around just to get a reaction from the other, which would usually be Jack just yanking it back with a cackle.

Jack would totally just put his hand on Toby's head and just rub his hair like a mangy dog. "so soft-" "boy what-"

Au Headcanons

Toby would 100% be a stoner. He'd probably get zooted almost every night and Jack would get highly concerned but never think much of it. At this point he learned a lot about Toby and knows what he's gone through. He knew weed was bad but if it helped Toby then he would be there to support if the other became immobile from how absolutely zooted he'd get.

Toby always tend to fall asleep better when Jack is around. There's times where he literally leaned into the other and just fell asleep right then and there. Jack ends up having to carry him to his room or somewhere with a cushion. This happens with Jack too but he usually wakes up before Toby could tuck him in somewhere. Jack is a rather light sleeper while Toby could sleep through a nuclear war once he actually gets to sleep.

[actual-changeling]

Oh! Oh, listen, question about the Morag thing. The good/bad stuff apart I mean I def agree on that in general. I read the scene a little different. We know they both aren't allowed to intervene, Aziraphale said it himself, but he holds this whole speech how he's going to help Morag and Crowley looks super gloomy and keeps trying to interrupt him but Aziraphale doesn't let him before Crowley tries a little more vehement and says that it's too late so I think neither of them could have brought her back because she was too far gone already by the time they realized how fatal the wounds were. Like they're both visibly saddened by the death. I think Crowley couldn't have done anything without risking probably even a lifetime in the torture dungeon if what he did for Elspeth (Elsbeth? Elsbet? Help) was enough to warrant years of torture even with the plausible deniability that he was high and not responsible for his actions, Aziraphale wanted to do it and would have faced less repercussions from Heaven because he's after all supposed to do the Good Thing.

Neil said they can resurrect doves and ducks and we see them do both but not humans (in the context that Crowley could help that carpet guy because the demons didn't kill him) and I think that line of what they're able to do might be not from the point of death but that they can't help if a person is already too close to death? It doesn't even matter for the plot but I'd really love to hear what everyone thinks abt it

When it comes to their powers and the kind of miracles they can do, I think there are "rules" heaven and hell have settled on, but that does not mean that those are the actual limitations they have.

Their Jimbriel hiding miracle had a strength of ~ 25 Lazarii, and Neil said that most miracles are measured in Centi- and Millilazarii, usually the later. That is one hell of a difference.

0,025 Lazarii vs. 25 Lazarii, the miracle they performed was one thousand times as strong as your regular, daily miracle, and they did that without actually meaning to. We don't know why exactly it was that strong, but now we DO know that they are capable of performing miracles on that scale.

So, technically, either of them could have saved Morag from death, but the existing rules presumably forbid resurrecting random humans—meaning Aziraphale would have gotten in some trouble, though not as much as Crowley would have.

Their powers are a result of self-actualization, which we are shown in season one when Crowley crosses the M25 simply because he imagines that he and the Bentley make it. He wants it to happen, he believes that he can make it happen, so it happens.

Most angels and demons probably have no reason or prompting to even consider doing miracles they have never seen anyone else do/that aren't a regular occurrence. But if they TRIED to do something different, they could! They absolutely could, and that is why control and isolation are such important parts of heaven as an institution.

Because if you do not control the way they think and act, then they will follow their own free will, and once they do that—well, they can do everything, anything, whatever they set their mind to. It's dangerous and a threat to the Metatron's power over heaven, so that's why they have regulations and rules. The Great War probably prompted a lot of rules too.

This inherent self-control over their powers—even though you said it might not matter for the plot—will, in my opinion, definitely play a big role in season three.

[silverskye13]

okok i've another question but not an in-universe one; were there any rules or patterns you followed when coming up with the appearances of the helsmets for RnS? :V or are they all moreso based on What Seemed Right for each individual character :0

Mostly just what seemed right, to be honest! A lot of it is based on what I'm trying to do with them as character themes.

Tanguish started out as more of a riff on Tango as a fire-related character. Then I decided Tango would be fire/redstone, ergo his double would be ice/sculk. That eventually kinda balooned into his personality. He's contained, isolated, secretive, sneaky. But he seeps into things. If you've ever had to deal with your road deteriorating over winter, because water keeps freezing in the cracks and breaking the asphalt apart, that's his vibe. You almost don't know he's there until he's cracked you open.

Helsknight has a canon design, but his 110% was just me designing something that looked cool. My first Wels/Hels designs had Wels as a Ottoman inspired knight, with a focus on short, blocky shapes. Meanwhile Helsknight was more of a pointy anglo-saxon knight style, with a lot of triangles and sharp lines. Eventually when RnS started to reform my ideas, I decided Wels was a more caricatured english knight, with a lot of modern crusader/paladin vibes, and focused on making Hels a dark mirror of that. Giving him sharp, unapproachable armor was a visualization of him being an angry, brooding character [which is why, as a lot of people have noted, he opens up a lot more when he starts taking the armor off. That's also why, when he's feeling vulnerable, his nervous ticks have to do with the buckles on his gloves, or the hilt of his sword. He's trying to decide if he's going to open up about something.]

Martyn and Red both have canon designs as well, technically, since they're the 3rd Life versions of their characters, just a little to the left. The crown the Red King has, which covers his eyes, is a direct reference to Ren's quote, "The blood is dripping into my eyes. I can't see. I've been blinded by the violence." He's been blinded by violence, and finds it hard to keep his humanity intact when the crown is off. It binds him to his purpose as The Red King -- protecting people. Martyn in my head looks almost exactly like his 3L red life skin, and that's purposeful. He wants to keep a low profile. He doesn't want his other half to know he's his own entity that exists.

EB's design has a lot to do with his past and not his present. [I feel like I keep alluding to him having a backstory,,,, we'll get there someday.] The way I've put EB and EX as characters in relation to Xisuma, is they represent different struggles he's had at different points in his life. EX was the hubris of being a server admin, the desire for limitless control. EB was the pride of success, and the white knuckle grip it required to keep it. He used to be a very prideful, and very dangerous, person. And stung pride [ha! bee jokes] can lead to some very angry outbursts. So he looks very waspish, long and thin, and sharp angled. The fact that he's an android is 110% just because I headcanon Xisuma is a robot. Sorry doomguy I've fallen in love with the AI headcanon.

The Demon is a take on ImpulseSV's character trait of sharing that turns into exploitation. One of his big collab points with other people is the fact that he makes farms, and in 3L there was an entire plot point around how he kept giving people things, and all of those people individually agreed because he kept giving everyone things, he was on nobody's side, so, you couldn't really betray him, could you? The Demon therefore is a character who is determined not to be used or exploited in any way. He hoards his wealth like a dragon, makes pacts and bargains that only benefit him, like a demon, and his eye is always watching for a knife in the dark [don't think too hard about Tanguish taking knife lessons]. The man has, to put it bluntly, trust issues. So his design echoes that idea of a monstrous person so busy armoring himself he's forgotten how to connect with people. Bright golden eyes, impenetrable scales, armor and tools disproportionately strong compared to what he should ever be expected to use them for. He's daring someone to betray him, so he can be justified in destroying them for it.

I'm trying to think of other characters that've popped up.

Evil Sausage [I think the fandom calls him Bratwurst??] is mostly just a parody of some of his appearances in Empires. I liked how linked he was to Xornoth, so I imagine the shadow that makes his elytra wings is what's left of his union with Xornoth the demon.

Hels!Watcher Grian is both a reference and a handwave at the fact that Grian is an instigator. It makes sense that a fear, or mirror, for that would be someone who refuses to interact with the world, or maybe wants to but physically can't. Eye themes abound.

[loud shrugging]

Yeah, that's it. It's whatever seems right for what the characters are doing.

[soapskies]

Could I request yandere btas riddler and scarecrow, where they're helping each other to keep the reader all for themselves.

I love your writing so much I just want to eat it

YANDERE BTAS SCARECROW + RIDDLER

MALE READER. ROMANTIC HCS. CW FOR YANDERES TEAMING UP (GONE WRONG)

— sorry if these are a little short!

Spookiest man alive with smartest man alive, what could go wrong? (A lot actually)

Though you knew Scarecrow longer, Riddler would fall for you first, and harder.

They both admire your drive and your determination to accomplish your goals, but for Scarecrow it’s more about the fears that come with such a person…

Perhaps you’re afraid of failing, or proving yourself incompetent? It makes him find you all the more fascinating…

At first they had a bit of a rivalry. Scarecrow wasn’t willing to share, and Riddler wasn’t fond of the spooky fellow all that much. Riddler was especially concerned that Scarecrow would harm you for the sake of his experiments.

They respected each other, but taking their darling away from them? Neither of them are willing to give you up.

Edward is a lot better at hiding his disturbing tendencies, at least from your view, than Scarecrow is. He tries to romance you in the usual way, arranging things so you spend a lot of time with him and delivering (not so secret admirer) gifts to your doorstep.

Sure, Edward’s eliminated a lot of people in his way, but you don’t have to know that! He’s lucid enough to realize playing the long game will be more successful for him

While Edward plays savior, promising to protect you from Jonathan, Scarecrow takes advantage of your fears. He tries to convince you that Riddler is only acting polite for personal gain, that he would have no problem throwing you in one of his traps if you proved incompetent…

What if dear old Eddie pitied you, hmm? Only kept you around to make him feel better about himself? There hasn’t been anyone that Riddler considered an intellectual equal before, besides the Batman, after all. Scarecrow is just telling you how it is.

They may try to kill each other indirectly, but neither succeed. They were both expecting it.

Riddler is more open to working with others, and he sees Scarecrow as a grand opportunity to force you into his clutches.

It’d be a lot easier to control you if you were caught between two rogues.

When they meet, they come to an agreement: Scarecrow will be able to continue his experiments as long as they don’t put you in serious danger, driving you towards the Riddler, while Riddler will handle the technical stuff to ensure you’ll never be able to escape them.

Your relationship with them would be like running between two abusive exes.

Scarecrow’s manipulative, putting ideas into your head about your inadequacy and terrifying you into staying, always some underlying threat laced into his words when he shows you what he’s been working on or asks you to do something for him

While Riddler is very overprotective, constantly has you under surveillance, and caters to your every need, which can feel infantilizing and suffocating.

Even more so when you slowly find this all out, as his layers are pulled back the longer you live with him… it makes you think back to what Scarecrow had told you.

At this point, you’re probably too far gone to be dragged out of it. Edward’s taken care to remove you from any semblance of your old life.

Every time one of them hurts you, you run to the other for comfort, and it’s a never ending cycle.

And Riddler has to admit, it’s fun when you’re under the influence of a bit of fear toxin, and you’re desperate enough to be held and reassured, doing nothing to fight their hands all over you…

[onyxsboxes]

I haven't had the time to read the latest 100th Find Out which is a tragedy if you ask me but I hope to have the time to properly read and review it by wednesday ❤️ In the meantime, I wanted to ask you, I think you mentioned somewhere that Wolf!Buck had some scars from fights, does he often get into fights? Are there any other Were in the Air Force or the RAF that he got into a fight with ?

Ps: I'm now stuck with the idea of Buck getting hurt in a fight and not being able to hide it because of his light fur and either Bucky finding him like that or Buck turning back into Human form to hide his wounds but Bucky still finding out. I swear I didn't mean for my whump tendencies to shine through like that 😭

Hi there, hope you are doing well.

Thank you for the ask 🥰

If you know how many new chapter notifications I still have to read…. 😅.

(I'm leaving the rest under the mark because it's longer than expected)

I think you're talking about this post and specifically this part: "He has scars: some date back to his childhood, the bite, and serious injuries he's accumulated over the years. Most of them are usually hidden under his clothes."

Gale doesn't get into many fights on his own. In fact, it's mainly because of Bucky and the 100th that he fights most often. Thankfully, he can be pretty intimidating effortlessly, so people back off pretty quickly when the tall, quiet leader stands up. When he fights however, pray you're not on the other side, because he knows how to fight, and viciously.

Were-people are not common. Because most were-types are territorial, they don't like to move around much. The army has the highest concentration of were-people, compared to the navy and air force.A large number of werewolves in a small area can quickly turn nasty, especially if it's a new werepeople. In support functions (administration, technical, logistics, etc.), they are much more numerous. In the air force/RAF, weres are mainly werebirds (they are very good meteorologists) and werecats but not a lot of them fly. Some werebirds even get airsick when they fly, because their bird parts go haywire when they're not changing while they are up there.

In the 100th group, Buck is the only were-people. This isn't unusual and doesn't bother him at all, because he keeps his distance from the others.

During his childhood, and especially after he was bitten, everyone watched him like a hawk, waiting for him to lose control, to make a mistake. The villagers wanted nothing more than to see him lose it, so they could justify their actions. That's also why he doesn't fight. Because to fight would mean losing control, proving them that he's dangerous, wild and untrustworthy (even if it's only in self-defense). But there are also things he won't let go of, things that break his resolve to prove them wrong. And that's when people attack what's his.

During the bar scene in episode 2, Buck almost gets into a fight with another were, but Curt takes the fight. During the training days, he got into several fights with people who spoke ill of Bucky (calling him a mutt and other degrading terms). Buck loses it, not because of the insults (which are bad, but to which he's unfortunately accustomed) but because they're talking about Bucky. People quickly learn that Bucky and the 100th are under his protection. Newbies learn not to talk about Bucky's dog-like behavior (werewolf to them) if they don't want to get on the wrong side of Major Cleven's wrath.

Oh whump, I love these. Don't worry, I've got plenty too.

In this au, the were-form also shows a psychological aspect. Someone can be in perfect health physically, but if they're not in good health psychologically, it will show on their were-form: dull coat, lost feather, lost hair, behaviors, ….. So for Gale, who always shows a strong front, Bucky can always tell when he's not well when he shifts.

I have two fic ideas about Gale's whump where he breaks down. For one the trigger is more physical and for the other more psychological (but for both there is an important psychological part). I'm still working out the details and writing, but part of these ideas is that Bucky finds out.

Hope the answer isn't too messy.

[random-dragon-exe]

OK hot take, (probably) but I think that Adrian Graye is actually a powerful witch just like the rest of the covenheads.

I say this because there's a lot of people who think that Adrian is a lot weaker than the rest of the Covenheads because of Gus beating him in Labyrinth Runners.

I will say that granted, his magic is illusions and yeah illusions have no physical aspect to them, but there's two things I'd like to add here:

Even though illusions aren't a physical magic, they're more about deceptive measures and at most psychological in nature.

Adrian finds a way around the lack of the physical aspect by hiding the scouts he has under his illusions to have them interact with people. (So when you think about it, he's quite clever for doing that since he could focus on keeping up the illusion and keeping himself safe)

Technically a third but when you think about it, if Gus can make it look like a witch's powers aren't working, as shown in Through the Looking Glass Ruins:

Then, Adrian could do that too however, with way more ease than Gus as he said it took him a lot of concentration to maintain it.

Of course, since Gus has the ability to force people to see their worst memories, so can Adrian.

If we want to go further with it, Adrian can totally make an entire illusion labyrinth just like Gus too but it'd be more controlled since he's more experienced than Gus.

Yes there's the scene where he asks Gus "how" is he making the labyrinth, but this could just be him being surprised that an illusion that powerful is coming from a 12 year old as younger witches shouldn't be able to make complicated spells. (Gus is an extreme outlier in this)

(Not only that but Gus’s labyrinth was induced by his emotions getting out of hand and was therefore accidental)

Also real fast, I'm pretty sure being forced to see your worst/darkest memories would render anyone in the state that we see Adrian in last. So I don't think it's just "a him" thing.

Moving on and going further with this, Adrian could go full on Mysterio on his enemies asses. Anyone seen Spider-Man: Far From Home?

From tricking the target to using the real (unillusioned) environment against them:

To using psychological horror and using their emotions against them about a beloved person's death:

To faking his own death:

To making it look like someone close to the target is in danger:

To altering the entire perception of the playing field at a massive scale:

The person won't be able to figure out what's an illusion and what's reality until it's too late:

This is also not to mention the other post I have about the extensions of illusion magic and its effects (which I think both Gus and Adrian can do to varying extents based on their experience with illusions).

What I'm getting at is that Adrian is definitely powerful in his own right at illusion magic (and can very well do these things).

It's just that we don't get to see the full potential because of how the writing favored Gus's powers over Adrian's in Labyrinth Runners due to the shortening.

I'm not trying to diminish Gus’s abilities as an illusionist, I'm just saying both of them are powerful in their own ways (Gus having raw power for his age, yet needs to refine and control his powers and Adrian having experience and control with his magic yet his ego gets the best of him and he underestimates his opponents)

Not to mention his vague feedback to the scouts often works against him unknowingly.

Like honestly, if the show wasn't shortened there'd be more time allowed for him to be a more terrifying threat in Labyrinth Runners or other episodes with him.

TLDR: Ya'll are sleeping on what could've been an even more epic version of Labyrinth Runners and Adrian's powers. Like yes, we can still make fun of him being beaten by Gus, but let's just acknowledge that it would've been really cool to see two skilled illusionists fighting 1v1.

[eccentric-nucleus]

the only story in the progression fantasy/litrpg/etc space that i've really enjoyed and kept up with has been super supportive, tho that's with the caveat that the first sixty chapters are basically a self-contained novel that is pretty good, and then the next uh hundred and thirty chapters spend a lot of time defusing a lot of the setup. it's not just the slice-of-life stuff that predominates, it's the part where the story slowly picks away at the setup

like so, this is gonna have spoilers for the first chunk of super supportive. i've already made a post about this before i think but this will be post #2 i guess.

so super supportive introduces the state of the world: it's like 2040, and aliens contacted earth in the 1960s and brought with them all sorts of cool technology, intergalactic communication, and also the system. magic is real and aliens can do it and now with the system some people will get selected to have superpowers and get to go on quests to alien planets and get fabulous quest rewards (further superhero powers!) for doing so! wow everybody wants to be a superhero because it's so cool!

oh yeah so the technical term for the system is 'the interdimensional warriors contract', and earth is tithed to submit people to it. the aliens get to choose who. and if they choose you, you can't refuse. you also can't really refuse a summons. one of the most popular, to the aliens, classes is the one where you're just a personal assistant. classes with actual superpowers also sometimes get summoned away on some quest and are never heard from again. sometimes they get death notifications, months or years later, but sometimes not. you don't get to pick your class either; those get assigned to you, though you can swap classes with somebody else during a brief provisional period after you've been selected but before your superpowers come due. also, humans have no clue how to really use the system; the aliens make a big point of not telling anybody anything about how it's put together or even things like "these skills are good and these other skills suck". part of the 'appeal' stat involves mental changes to make you more sociable and agreeable.

they do pay superheroes for their work. but they can't really say no to a job, or control what they do. one early example of 'tasks superheroes get summoned to do' is 'help evacuate a dangerous research station' 'but only our contracted employees; explicitly do not allow the other staff who have not contracted to our corporation to leave'.

also, a major character early on is: literally an imprisoned slave who's chained to his desk and has a geas over him such that he's not able to do things like 'express preferences'. some alien wizard just dropped him down at the embassy and he's been stuck working there for decades now. i'm sure it's fine.

so as it goes through the early chapters and these things get revealed there's a lot of tension between how everybody in-universe thinks about this ("superheroes cool") and the out-of-universe information, in which it's clear this is something more like indentured labor. there's a lot of ominous weight about the power differential there. this is a world where magic is real, the universe runs on magic, aliens can use magic, but humans can't. and the magical system aliens have put in place on earth is one that is explicitly gamified with pretty tokens and prebuilt skills and nothing even approaching, like, information on how it works.

so that's interesting! and then the first 'book' ends and the main character gets back to earth and it seems like there's a lot of backing-off of those implications. all the aliens we meet are super cool and nice and honorable. despite some gesturing at various factions of aliens, there hasn't really been a lot of followthrough on, like, the alien politics involved or how they're set up. so i'm still reading because i think it definitely still has promise, & it's written in a fairly engaging fashion, but all of this is basically contingent on it actually having a good payoff for all the buildup, & i'm not really sure that the author really cares about that stuff specifically.

[valle-de-sombra-de-muerte]

Homestuck Reread: Act 2, Part 1/3 (p. 249-439)

Read the previous post here.

From this point on, these successive Act breakdowns will be spread across multiple posts. Act 1 is easily the shortest Act at 248 pages, so I was able to fit everything in one post. I think I just barely made it under the image limit. Anyway, let's move right along to Act 2.

I didn't discuss Rose's character in the last post, so I think this is a good time to talk about her. She strikes me as a bit of a "gifted kid" that was always ahead of her peers in terms of academics. She's bookish and more educated than her friends, a fact that she flaunts by utilizing her robust vocabulary and making allusions that go over other peoples' heads.

She must love having a dullard like John as a friend. He's too dumb to cotton onto her pretentious, ridiculous metaphors. She can act like a pseud all she wants and he'd never question it. He just sees big words, assumes she's talking about something far beyond his understanding, and laughs it off. To him, she just comes across as very smart, which is precisely the image of herself she wants to cultivate for others. Having someone like that in her close friend group must give her immense validation.

This GameFAQs guide is a great showcase of her big ego. She uses multiple paragraphs full of unnecessary verbiage to deliver a simple introduction. "My introduction will be sparse" my ass! Imagine trying to scour through this while meteors are crashing down all around you. Even though nobody who reads this is going to survive, she still insists on making a big spectacle of things and flexing her skills as a writer.

And yet, she's so secretive of her private writings, refusing to let the reader even look at them. Her persona of being a highbrow intellectual obsessed with psychoanalysis is all a facade, something she uses to conceal her genuine interests (wizards and fantasy).

I guess what I'm trying to say with all this is that even though Rose comes across as garrulous and self-important, she's still a more fleshed out character than John.

I severely dislike these little walk-around segments. Normally I'm a fan of point-and-click adventure games, but this feels so clunky and not fun to move around in. You explore them the first time and have no inclination to do so ever again. I can't even find any worthwhile dialogue clicking on any of the objects. It's a waste of time. I'm glad there's only one other page like this later on before Hussie switches to the "Alterniabound" design.

Rose exposits this fantastical scenario John has found himself in, as well as the impending danger threatening the rest of the world. All he has to say about it is "wow, ok." I can't deal with this kid, man. He must've been lobotomized shortly after birth or something.

He has more of a reaction to Rose seemingly forgetting his birthday than to any of the other crazy shit currently happening. He doesn't even thank her for helping to save his life. This reread is really making me hate John.

John seems to draw the line at following potentially life-threatening commands. Though I somehow think this has more to do with WV having gained control of the command console at this point in the story. Unlike Rose or the reader, WV has a very rude and authoritative way of typing commands that upsets John. I wonder if he'd have less reservations crossing the catwalk if Rose told him to do it.

Here's the beginning of the "Fedorafreak Saga" where this man is shown to survive the cataclysm brought on by Sburb. It's kind of a fun little diversion, but there's no real payoff to it.

"especially ethnic wedding" is another crazy Rose quote. Also this GameFAQs guide continues to be incredibly word-dense and not at all conducive to helping players succeed in this literal life-or-death scenario. Especially when they're on a time limit.

For narrative purposes, it's just info-dumping all the technicalities of the various Sburb mechanics. It really isn't worth reading, in my opinion. The game mechanics might be one of the least interesting parts of Homestuck to me. I don't want to get bogged down reading about how an alchemiter works.

Besides, we saw all these mechanics in action during Act 1; it's unnecessary to read about all of it again. This sort of thing should be reserved for supplemental material, not as a part of the work itself.

Dave be spittin' bars here. I don't think enough acknowledgement is given to Dave's rhymes. I think they're pretty funny. I'd like to hear someone actually rap them over a beat.

Dave continues to make reference to his and Rose's flirting. John is tired of hearing about it.

needleKind might be a contender for the dumbest kind abstratus since knitting needles aren't even sharp. I wonder if Hussie was even aware of that. Probably not or else he wouldn't have included that "filet a sword fish" line.

All the creature entries in the Grimoire are funny, but this one takes the cake. Every sentence here is gold.

This is a nice passage that I like a lot. It seems to relate to Rose's quest to "play the rain" later on in the story. I'll talk more about it when I reach that part, but it was always a part of the story that I wanted to see come to fruition and it burned me that it never did.

However, reading this passage and noting how it actually does foreshadow Rose's reluctance and ultimate failure to play the rain does help ease the sting a little bit. It is thematically relevant to Rose's character for her to put on this grandiose display of competence only to fumble when put on the spot. She's a kid who's way in over her head, something that applies to many of Homestuck's characters.

Unfortunately, it's capped off with the fourth instance of this dumb misattributed quote gag. The Charles Barkley detail is part of another running gag where all the kids are associated with a black celebrity, Charles Barkley in Rose's case. It's weird and I don't get it.

Dave swoops in from nowhere and interrupts Rose's scene to do his intro. Like Rose, he also disobeys the reader's commands, going so far as to slice apart the text box when the joke name is typed in. (Insufferable Prick... now where have I heard that before?)

(Rose's joke name "Flighty Broad" was also based on a line Dave called her before).

Dave's interest in photography and dead things don't manifest nearly as often as his love of rapping and music. He specifically likes obscure bands because he's a hipster doofus. Funnily enough, I don't see as many people call him a hipster as often as they do to other characters like say, Eridan.

Dave never does bleat like a goat by the comic's end, does he?

Dave, despite outwardly acting like an aloof jackass most of the time, really does care about his friends. I think that's part of the reason he's always been my favorite out of the kids.

I love that Clubs Deuce just flails about uselessly when the Midnight Crew are all beating the shit out of each other.

In Dave and Rose's first pesterlog, Rose immediately suggests Dave might be gay because he's been ignoring her. Unlike John, Dave is able to keep up with Rose's repartee and the results are some of the better written pesterlogs in the whole comic. I love the chemistry between these two so much. Dave is less cerebral than Rose, but he's just as intelligent. He's able to see past her shit and challenge her instead of being awed by her intellect. She in turn also sees right through his own mask of "irony" and tries to poke holes in it.

Their friendship seems the strongest out of the whole group; Dave even mentions that he knows who's messaging him before he checks the Pesterchum window. In previous conversations with John, he acts as though Rose is a nuisance and that she's always bugging him, but here we see them get along very well. At no point does he attempt to brush her off or weasel out of the conversation.

For Rose's part, Dave isn't some sycophant or a dupe who's swayed by her way with words. He's someone she can respect, someone who can match her mentally, and someone who loves typing out over the top metaphors just as much as she does. It's likely refreshing for her to be around someone like that, which is why she's always pursuing him for conversation.

Ah, I'm sure there will be plenty of opportunities to further gush about these two as I progress through the story. For now, let's keep moving.

Oh don't worry, she'll hold you to that promise.

Rose responds to Dave's earlier interruption with one of her own and we're back to her perspective again. Even meta-textually, they go back and forth with each other.

For an aspiring psychoanalyst, Rose is quick to dismiss the idea that her mother's behavior is motivated by anything except spite. Rose's mom knows her daughter loves wizards, so she buys all this wizard memorabilia in the hopes it'll make her happy. Rose, refusing to believe her mom feels genuine love toward her, twists these gestures into ones of malice and mockery. Teenagers, am I right?

This is similar to how John's dad displays all that harlequin junk in the house to please his son, even though John can't stand any of it. Parents not understanding their children is a classic theme in Homestuck.

Rose acting utterly deranged in response to her mom's sincere, albeit excessive, displays of affection.

Dave's conversation with Jade is void of all the wit and chemistry present in his talk with Rose. Here he strips himself of his sardonic, crude side because he is a dumb teenage boy fawning over the "nice girl" to get in her good graces.

Jade is just... I don't think I can put off talking about her for much longer. Perhaps in the next post I'll explain my gripes with her character.

I'm not sure what to make of Mom Lalonde's "ironic negligence" where she offers Rose her martini. Is she playing into Rose's idea of her as an incompetent mother, or is she just that drunk right now?

I don't think that Mom is the perfect parent, mind you. She does come across as emotionally distant and constantly intoxicated. To compensate for that, she showers Rose with gifts, which isn't exactly a good substitute for proper parenting, well-intentioned as it may be.

Mom isn't perfect, but she's trying. Rose's insistence that she's some kind of spiteful, passive-aggressive mastermind is pure delusion on her part.

Dave trusts Rose enough to tell her that he doesn't like his brother's puppets as much as he lets on. Very interesting for someone who is so hesitant to drop his mask around others.

Also, Rose reveals that she likes his brother's puppet porn websites.

Oh no! Yeah, really selling that distress, John.

He has a bigger negative reaction to being told to eat some cookies than he does to finding out his father had been kidnapped. If I was in Rose's place, I'd be losing my mind.

In this first third of Act 2, it still suffers from the same PS-esque jokes and video game references. John is still aggravatingly dull and his conflict with WV is unfunny and interrupts the pace.

But the stakes are also getting higher, the plot is progressing, and the cast is expanding with two much stronger characters. Overall, I think this is a step up so far.

Read the next post here.

[obae-me]

Lmao how long can we keep this Siren!Lucifer AU brainrot going (Forever. It never ends. We’re stuck here forever now. Siren Lucifer is aLL YOU SHALL THINK ABOUT-)

I just had this realization about this AU and it’s getting me man- There’s this sense of dramatic irony all over the story of this AU simply because, if you ask me, MC technically does get hypnotized by Lucifer but not in the way he thinks (or really wants)!!! Like hear me out MC is fully immune to the siren song, that’s just fact, they can’t be controlled through those hypnotic magical ways. BUT ever since that night when they first met Lucifer, heard his song, and saw his beauty they have been coming back again and again just to see him. They know that sirens are dangerous hunters and that they could be putting their life in danger, but despite that they keep coming back cause of their growing connection with Lucifer. Lucifer has basically metaphorically hypnotized MC via their love and care for him. And the dummy doesn’t even realize that!!!!!

Course the “spell” is broken when they get betrayed but STILL (Though I don’t doubt Lucifer is still constantly lingering in their thoughts whenever they visit the ocean)

However will Lucifer realize his wrongdoings and mend his relationship with the human he learned to hold dear to his heart? He must work quickly as danger begins to loom beneath the waters surface…. *dramatic music* (lol)

I've been thinking about siren Lucifer for a long time (and just mermaids/sirens in general my entire life). I'm really tempted to maybe just experiment with this idea on my own time...

I love the thought of him just having that "so be it" attitude at first when MC stops coming around. He doesn't care (is what he tries to tell himself). But the longer they're gone...the more worried he gets... To the point where he starts to wonder if he can somehow leave the water to go find them. All just for closure, surely...

God, this AU, I can't.