#ren the avatar of disappointment

[creations-of-a-certain-no-one]

Ren's version of some of the behind-the-scenes workings from Simeon's birthday.

That's how the negotiation should go, definitely.

Also

[frumfrumfroo]

I get tired of Zuko being brought up as the archetypal redemption arc (I get why people on the pro-redemption side do it, because he's a cultural touchstone for many people when we're kind of in dearth of villain redemptions, contrary to popular belief). But it's interesting how he lacks many of the elements I find engaging about redemption arcs, partly as a consequence of it being a children's show - Zuko can safely be redeemed because his daddy is the true baddie, so we still have the archetypal 'hero defeats villain' story; Zuko doesn't have a romance, and you can argue he's a villain protagonist in many ways, so the absolute product of his arc is kind of discrete; Azula (though apparently she was intended to be redeemed) still functions as a baddie for him to take down, so it's not like nonviolence is embedded in the narrative (which is what I personally find powerful) - and so on.

If I may add to your post, I definitely agree with you that it's a product of the current cultural/media climate, and comparisons to Zuko tend to not be productive. The anatomy of the fallout is little to do with the emotional arc or verisimilitude of the character's development, and so changing that isn't going to change anything. There are also elements like, Zuko gets to be the 'one' contrastive character who did it correctly - emotionally unbound in the story (his major redeeming relationship is with his uncle, even) - and for many people in the current discourse, from a time of childhood idealism. If I were to psychoanalyse these people, Kylo Ren, for instance, is so uncomfortable as a product of teenage narrative cynicism, maybe even worse because the Sequel Trilogy unearthed the OT. Zuko functions sort of like 'the one female character written correctly' which people bandy about to silence discussions of female character criticism or the presence of female characters, despite the fact this is an extremely limiting and antihumanistic approach (for black characters, for black female characters, for disabled characters, and so on - we want a variety). It's like how the 1:4 ratio of women to men is considered 'even'.

But I would go so far to say that why Zuko fails as a point of comparison is that many elements I view as powerful, moving, and challenging in redemption arcs are simply not there. This makes him feel safer. If Zuko is the 'limit', then you can suppress the discussion surrounding villain redemption arcs this way. Because romance isn't a feature, nonviolence isn't a conclusive feature, Azula can't be redeemed (she's truly crazy and evil), so redemption is a 'yea high' bar of disappointment. This is why I am tired of Zuko as a point of comparison bandied by the anti-redemption crowd, both because it stymies storytelling (there is no limit on what sorts of stories deserve to be told) but because it's actually kind of... not the same thing as what we're talking about. It doesn't go far enough. It barely does at all (and in anime, the villain redemptions tend to go pretty far, so what Avatar was playing off of was, well, playing it safe).

I also think it would be a different story if they had gone for Zuko/Katara with a female POV, but I don't really believe that both of those things were ever the intention. There's not really room for it in the Aang Show where the girl is a prize. But I'm not sure that many would meditate on it with such content if romance were involved at all. Hell, even now there are people who insist that Vader's redemption wasn't one at all because it commits too much - and that's why I think Zuko as an example persists.

I can't speak on the actual content because I was never in the fandom and haven't seen the show, but I'm sure you're right. I also think it's largely to do with these people having seen Zuko's arc when they were younger and it being 'grandfathered in'. As we see with some of the antis in sw fandom being totally fine with anidala or thinking Anakin is a sympathetic and tragic character, but lose their shit at the suggestion Ben is intended the same way despite being a far, far less demanding example. Even though anidala actually was an abusive relationship and reylo is not. etc.

Because they grew up with it and have already accepted the story's conclusion, they retrofit the 'good' and 'hero' labels and are thus fine with Anakin's redemption. The label is more important than any action he could take, because these people are working from an indelible label-based 'morality'. It's a form of Protagonist Centred Morality.

And I'm confident the same is true of A:TLAB.

And yes, there's also the fact that it's apparently an extremely tame and not very challenging redemption, because it's a show for little kids and thus Zuko doesn't kill anyone or do anything that violent. And again, I haven't seen it, but I get the impression he was always at least a bit sympathetic? So you never saw him as a simple and unrepentant villain. I could be wrong about that idk.

It is an extremely annoying thing that people still trot this out as the 'one acceptable redemption arc for all fiction ever', but that attitude has nothing to do with the writing of his arc or his character and everything to do with the people saying this and the circumstances under which they were exposed to him. And it's a self-fulfilling prophecy at this point because he's been given the pass, so even people coming to the show later already have permission to like him and won't respond to him the way they would otherwise.

The anti echo chamber will keep perpetuating this.

[wanaery]

Socionics Type: IEI

Examples & Description 🌌🔮🎭

Intuitive Ethical Introvert, IEI, INFp, Sergei Yesenin, Beta Quadra

Romantic dreamer and visionary. The IEIs principal value in this world are the invaluable gardens of his own imagination, with the aid of which it is possible for him to penetrate into the past and future, to feel the surrounding world in its wholeness, to understand the dynamics of present events, A dreamer and romantic, the IEI is easily separated from reality and taken by his thoughts into the land of images and insights, from which he derives enjoyment and meaning of his existence. He’s drawn to literature containing elements of the fantastical and breathtaking adventures. He imagines himself participating together with heroes of the novels, giving himself up to periods of creative imaginings. His mind, as a rule, focuses on something that is sublime and elegant he may think of a journey around the world aboard an ocean liner (alongside a refined public), of an alluring cottage with a fireplace and white piano, of beautiful transcendent love. Curious: not indifferent to anything that is novel, unusual, and fascinating. Leaves an impression by his unexpected, sometimes extravagant behavior and statements. Has a refined sense of humor. Knows how to comfort a person, how to uplift the mood.

Emotive and charming; may smile even when he is saying something unpleasant. Insistent in his requests when he is strongly motivated. Knows how to pick a good moment to approach a person with his request. Freely manages his own time and that of others. If IEI enters a period of melancholy and disappointment, and this is not a rare occurrence, he will then isolate himself. When the dark period is over, he will once again emerge bright and alert, with positive expectations of the future and of his life. If he is in luck and finds himself in a loving and supportive atmosphere, his best qualities are revealed: the ability to be compassionate and to provide moral support. Being keenly perceptive of the moods of people around him, he when in elated spirits is ready to offer warmth and sympathy.

Possessing high impressionability, the IEI sensitively responds to all forms of art. He especially loves music and poetry, sometimes creates his own artwork, writes music and stories. He enjoys attending concerts and art exhibits, manifests natural literary gift.

Attentive to his own appearance and that of others, aware of its influence. If necessary, dresses elegantly even exquisitely. In a demobilized state complains of about his life and hardships. Likes when he is looked after, when someone is attentive to his worries. Finds it difficult to give up comfort that he has grown accustomed to.

Without strong directives becomes disorganized and demobilized. Cannot focus his attention on a task for lengthy periods of time. In handling money uneconomical and careless: may spend a large sum money on something “for the heart and soul”. May give promises that he hasn’t considered well. Entertains himself to drown out disturbing premonitions. An optimist and positivist, not a weak creature, capable of surviving in harsh environments. Protected and valued as a peacemaker, stress-resistant despite a delicate emotional constitution. Possesses 'psychological weaponry' such as positive self-programming, with a firm belief that all will be well. And usually, things do turn out well.

Examples:

Anaïs Nin

Fiona Apple

Kate Bush

Amy Lee

Weyes Blood

Melanie Martinez

Lana Del Rey

Wanda Maximoff

Kylo Ren

More IEI Examples:

Mitski

Tori Amos

David Lynch

Robert Smith

Jeff Buckley

Sylvia Plath

Chelsea Wolfe

Jesse Jo Stark

Edgar Allen Poe

Soren Kirekegaard

Friedrich Nietzsche

Fictional IEIs:

Wanda Maximoff (MCU)

Kylo Ren (Starwars)

Violet Harmon (AHS)

Luna Lovegood (HP)

Veronica Sawyer (Heathers)

Kat Hernandez (Euphoria)

Raven Queen (Ever After High)

Belle (Beauty and the Beast)

Kiri (Avatar)

Joe Goldberg (You)

Loki Laufeyson (MCU)

The Riddler (Batman 2022)

Arthur Fleck (Joker)

Abigail Hobbs (Hannibal)

Persephone (Greek Mythology)

Rose Dawson (Titanic)

[ninjapotatohead]

Sonic Chronicles, a Sonic RPG from Bioware back when they still had a perfect reputation & is the closest we got to a game based on the comics continuity. It got B's & 80%s from various review sites & magazines. What could possibly go wrong?

Oh God it hurts, please make the hurting stop.

Here's 3 quick facts about me: A. I can play Sonic games B. I can play RPG C. I can't play rhythm games to save my life

Which of these 3 facts would you say is the most important to playing a Sonic RPG? Well it turns out the answer is C because every damn attack & spell requires the player to do some Elite Beat Agents bullshit to work. Made worse that the you-did-it-wrong sound effect sounded more like a you-did-it-right SFX to me, so I didn't realize how badly I was screwing up for the longest time.

In fact, the audio top to bottom is just terrible Shadow's "voice" is the falling-down-the-tube SFX from Sonic Spinball. & the music, Hoolee Moolee the music. Apparently Bioware ran into legal issues with their soundtrack in the 11th hour or some other shit & at the last minute replaced most of the tracks with MIDIs from a fan site. The results weren't pretty.

Story is.............ok. To Bioware's credit, they've done some homework & tied previously unconnected threads from multiple past games together to form this game's backstory & this was probably the last time any Sonic game remembered the Master Emerald. However, some of these callbacks don't really amount to much in the long run. OK, so the Dark Brotherhood built the Gizoids from Sonic Battle, what of it? The gizoids in the game might just as well have elite Brotherhood troops for all the difference it makes. If Gemerl from Advance 3 made an appearance they could've gone somewhere with it but he doesn't so nevermind.

Speaking of the Dark Brotherhood, the other disappointment is that this is like the only Sonic game to incorporate elements from the archie comics canon, except not really. Instead of the Dark Legion/Julie Su/Dimitri, SC has the store brand knock-offs Dark Brotherhood/Shade/Ix. It's like getting Kylo Ren instead of Jacen Solo. I hate to imagine a sequel having substitute Freedom Fighters if Bioware kept going.

Dialogue choices seem to be there for the sake of Bioware tradition, not to actually add anything of note. You can either choose from sarcastic Sonic or serious Sonic, but the results the same regardless. This probably would've been a better game to work in a custom player avatar instead of Forces, Bioware at least could've done more with it. Tails is so insufferable about reminding the player to save the game, he continues to do it even after telling him to stop. That's how inconsequential choices are.

Stats are so weirdly implemented. Damage output is not a visible stat, you can equipped items that increase your damage but they don't show by how much. There's an "Attack" stat that you can see, but it actually refers to the attack's accuracy, which I didn't know for the longest time & was hella confused at why I was doing so little damage. You give party members protection from different elemental attacks, but there is no single enemy in the whole game that even deals any sort of elemental damage so the shields are pointless.

In short, it's a game where every facet of it fails. Crap graphics, terrible audio, lousy controls, half-assed gameplay, weak story, & a cliffhanger ending that'll never get resolved thanks to a lawsuit from a dumbass ex-writer. It may not be the worst Sonic game ever but it was the 1 that broke my heart the most.

Though, to be fair, Chronicles also sold like shit. If memory serves me, there were special "Viral" Chao that were supposed to be given out at special events, but they never were due to poor attendance from the players.

Chronicles is only just barely passable as "baby's first RPG", but it's when the game is shown to someone who's played many better RPGs that the game's many glaring flaws are laid bare for all to see.

[impossiblycolorfulpanda]

PS Bryke. You also knew that deep down, you never really cared for Katara as a rounded character, you only saw her as a means to an end.

In your infamous anti-zutara fanart video, you also added in some anti-azulaang content. Believing that Azulaang is even worse than Zutara.

But it's no surprise you'd mischaracterize Azulaang as well as Zutara. In contrary to popular belief, Azula is not just a female counterpart of Ozai. If anything, she's like Iroh during his general/war criminal days. Both of them had plans to sentence the earth kingdom to the same fate as the air nomads if they refused to fall in line. No one can convince me that Iroh immediately had a change of heart after his son died, never lost his sanity many times over, and didn't still have some PTSD that haunted him for the rest of his life. I also stand by the theory that Iroh proved himself worthy to Ren and Shaw after Lu Ten died, not before, and he got the title "Dragon" prematurely because of nepotism. No way would the last remaining dragons entrust a murdering scumbag (at the time) with their sacred knowledge meant for positivity.

Azula is not as power hungry as Ozai, in fact, it's Zuko who takes after Ozai in that trait. Based on the context of the beach and what the spirit showed her in her solo comic, what Azula truly wants is to be normal and have a stable friendship, family life, and even a romantic relationship without any draining pressure and strings attached. Sound like anyone we know?

Zuko and Aang had this dynamic of developing a connection because of Zuko being a descendant of Avatar Roku. The same can be done with Aang and Azula but on an even more personal, intimate, and spiritual level.

Azula would not bite her tongue in situations like this. It would be a big trigger for her and she is willing to relapse in her old violent ways if Aang refuses to let go any thoughts of favoritism or disappointment in their children for not having a certain trait he wanted. She'll also remind him that he has energybending and he should go forth and take full advantage of it.

In other words, Azulaang is the opposite of Kataang and that, ironically, makes it the healthier pairing in comparison.

“That is one happy family.” (post-ATLA pre-LoK headcanon)

But seriously.

Imagine that small, barely-readable moment of disappointment that must’ve passed through Aang and Katara, when they realized that their firstborn child… born from a prodigious air -bending Avatar and the most powerful water-bender to exist in a century… was a non-bender.  

Knowing Katara, she would’ve just breathed deeply and held that child even more tightly and lovingly, accepting the little boy as is.  

But Aang?  

Aang must’ve thought the Spirit World was taunting him. No doubt he would be devastated, thinking that bringing air-benders back into the world would be a lot trickier than he thought.  That guilt he once felt about running away from his people would come crawling back under his skin, all over again.

Katara would comfort Aang, as she always does.

He would be adamant, saying that no, Bumi has to be an air-bender!  He has to be.  He just needs some time!  Aang would double-down.  He would make sure to give Bumi the same air-bending spirituality and influence to hopefully trigger the boy’s air-bending gift.  As soon as Bumi were weaned, Aang would take him to visit all of the Air Temples for weeks at a time, and Katara would oblige, staying behind in Republic City to work diligently on behalf of the Avatar.  

But there’s only so much time that Aang can be away, because Republic City needs him.  So, Aang would build a fifth temple just off the coast of the city: Air Temple Island.  It would be Aang and Katara’s permanent home base, bringing as much influence of air culture as he can… with air bison and air acolytes to give Bumi all of this immersion in his first few years of life.  

Katara doesn’t protest any of these changes, despite not having much say in them; she doesn’t reject all of the young pretty female acolytes suddenly living in their home, spending time with their son, her husband… because Katara knows it’s for the best.  She knows how desperate Aang is to have their son be an air-bender.  She still gets to know Bumi regardless of his lack of bending, still finds herself laughing with him, teaching him things whenever the acolytes can give her some quality time with her son.  In secret, Katara also tries to connect with Bumi with water-bending… wondering if, just maybe… but that, too, becomes a fruitless search.  

But actually, no– she notices how Bumi loves the water anyway.  She notices how he loves going out into the water near the island, his hands paddling the water-bent boogie board she makes for him.  She wonders if it would be a good idea to visit the Southern Water Tribe regularly in the future, to see if Bumi can connect with that part of his identity… or perhaps visit the Fire Nation to immerse the boy with Fire Lord Zuko’s naval ships, to see if he might someday be a naval commander.

She brings this idea up to Aang, hopeful that he would like this idea, too.  Aang smiles, but he lowers his head in the way that looks defeated, beaten.

Katara would comfort Aang, as she always does.

Five years pass, and Bumi has visited the Southern Water Tribe and the Fire Nation multiple times.  He has grown to enjoy the water, despite not being a water bender.  No, he is still not showing any signs of air-bending. Aang is sad, but still tries to connect with this child.  It doesn’t come easily, since he knows nothing else… since he was raised by air-benders, who laughed at the idea of gravity all the time.  

Aang becomes more emotionally removed, feeling like a fraud parent in front of this child, and finds himself telling Katara how she’s always been great with kids, how she practically raised Sokka, another non-bender... hears himself making so many excuses to not be around Bumi. 

Katara would comfort Aang, as she always does.

He spends most of his time alone, meditating, traveling to the Spirit World to find an explanation as to why.  Why would the Spirits give him a non-air-bending child in the midst of an extinct air-nation?  Months pass by, and no answer is found, and despite being among his air-bison and acolyte kin on Air Temple Island, Aang feels so empty.  Hopeless.  Alone.

Aang runs off to find solace in the other air temples and acolytes, focusing his energy on bringing back his culture with his most devoted followers, once again leaving Katara to speak on behalf of her husband whenever Republic City asks about Avatar Aang’s absence.  She says he will return soon.

He doesn’t come back for a year.

His relationship with Bumi would suffer.  His relationship with Katara would strain.  Despite her emotional distance from Aang, and his neglect to their child, Katara remains devoted to the Avatar (and her husband, for better or worse) so she stays on Air Temple Island raising their son until his return.  

It’s not until she writes to him in the temples: Don’t worry, Sweetie, we’ll make an air-bender sooner or later. Just come home, please…  that Aang is finally compelled to return to Air Temple Island to try again for another kid.  He has a good feeling about it, too, considering that this second child would be born and fully-immersed in Air Temple Island.  

Imagine the surprise, then.  How… in spite of all of that air culture… their second child is born to be a water-bender.  

Katara is beside herself with joy, and Aang smiles, seeing this sweet little girl who shares her mother’s eyes… but he cannot hide his disappointment.  Katara sees it, too, and she fights that bitter, stinging feeling of guilt in her stomach as she gradually builds a connection with her own daughter.  

Aang, you’re a water-bender too, remember? she encourages, and that little fact brings some light in Aang’s disappointed eyes, and he spends time with his daughter, building a connection through his natural water-bending skills.  

But still… that is not enough, and Katara knows. 

She sees it in the way Aang’s eyes aren’t fully present when he plays with his daughter, his son.  As Katara looks at her husband looking at their children playing together, she can tell by his his defeated, weighed-down grin that truly… deep-down…  he wishes they were something else.  

When Aang packs up to travel again to the air temples, Katara doesn’t protest.  When she learns how Aang has been refusing to even mention Bumi or Kya in the other temples, Katara reasons to herself that it must be because of that pain it causes him– that internal shame Aang carries with him as the Last Airbender who cannot bring more of them to the world.  

That’s what Katara keeps telling herself, as she continues to raise Bumi and Kya on the island on her own for almost another year. 

Thankfully, Aang returns to Air Temple Island, refreshed and fully new.  There’s a sense of hope in the air – now that the Spirits blessed him with a water-bending daughter – that an air-bending child might not be so far away. 

And the third time becomes a charm.  

When Tenzin is born, Katara is indeed happy, joyful… and also relieved, by the look she sees in Aang’s eyes, discovering that this child’s silver eyes match his.  Katara is too preoccupied living this specific kind of joy vicariously through Aang… she forgets to be happy about just having this third child. Her child.  

And when Aang refuses to let go of this child… refuses to give up Tenzin for his mother to hold him that day he’s born… Katara doesn’t protest. 

She brushes off her tears as more happy ones than sad ones, because it’s all she can do to live with this man, now.  This man who is also a kid, who is also the Avatar.  Who’s already gotten so accustomed to the world bending to his every want and need, there is now no going back. Katara knows. 

The world is, of course, rejoiced by the first air-bender born in over a century, and no sooner is Tenzin weaned that Aang takes him all over the world.  

Katara remains with the other two children, keeping this emotional hole in the relationship to herself, but downright refusing to give Aang more children, no matter the eagerness he shows about wanting more air-benders. He talks about it publicly, unapologetically… in written and oral documents…. but whenever Aang tries to place a hand on her shoulder, her back… Katara now shrugs it away.  

When Aang asks her if she’s okay, it’s in that concerned, wise voice of a monk who knows all.  As if this were obviously something to do with her, never about him.  

As usual, Katara says she’s fine, but her arms remain folded, her eyes lowered and distant, all but gone.  

He never asks Katara if she still loves him; that would be ridiculous.  That’s all but assumed; she did marry him, didn’t she? And they had three kids together. 

She never asks Aang if he still loves her; that would be ridiculous.  She already knows the answer.  She’s always known.

No Avatar has ever broken their marriage… according to what Katara has read… and through the stories her Gran Gran always told her, she knows that a marriage is a sacred bond, held for better or worse, before the spirits of Tui and La.  Katara looks at her husband, and then their children… still very young, still considered the Avatar’s kin… and she stays.  She chooses to.  

It’s what she tells herself, on particularly rough days– that she had a choice, and that she made it.  

Aang stops trying to touch her, eventually, and when he takes Tenzin on long-term trips to the other air temples, Katara doesn’t protest.  Whenever he returns to the island, of course she’s there to greet his arrival, but they now sleep in separate quarters.   

When people ask Aang about the possibility of more air-benders after Tenzin, he replies that it’s Katara’s health that is now preventing them from trying for more children, and Katara confirms this with a smile… assuring that Tenzin will be kept safe and protected, with constant vigilance wherever he travels, before he one day has air-bender children of his own.  

In public, Katara still smiles.  In writing, Katara still praises the Avatar. 

When Aang asks her to write a letter to Tenzin for his air-bender legacy book, she obliges quietly, too tired to argue anymore. 

In this letter, she explains to Tenzin what got her to fall in love with his wonderful father, and of course shines light on his fun and kid-like way about living, and how she felt lucky enough to stand by and witness his many deeds for the world and the air-nomad culture.  Katara is too enveloped in this internalized, shameful resentment that has sat and grown for the man who has become her husband… she doesn’t realize she has failed to remind Tenzin in this letter that he is also part Water Tribe through his amazing mother… a woman who stood by the Avatar when nobody else would, who was his anchor of hope and strength when he had none… who taught herself water-bending and became her own hero while waiting for one to be realized.   Katara’s tears stain the parchment of this letter, so much so that she doesn’t notice she didn’t even mention Tenzin’s beautiful siblings, Kya and Bumi, who – while they might not be air-benders – would still love him and be there for him throughout his life. 

The photographs of the family are indeed happy, and courteous… rehearsed, and poised… because this, this is the family that must inspire people.  

Leave it to Katara – the one who always placed others before herself – to always be thinking about that bigger picture.  

After all, what kind of message would it bring to the next generation… a world, still vulnerable by the consequences of war… if they saw the Avatar’s family as unhappy?

[aromanticmara]

random if the tdp characters [whichever ones you feel like talking about] were in the atla universe, what kind of bender would they be If they were a bender? nonbenders? do any of them have avatar vibes?

omg corey i saw this and completely forgot i’m so sorry <3 anyways interesting question 🤔

rayla: earth. she’s stubborn and strong which is an earth bender thing.

callum: either air or water bender. but mainly air. he’d be clumsy in both tho

ezran: non bender! he is an amazing ruler without the need for bending!

claudia: fire! fire is kinda like the dark magic so i associate it with her

soren: non bender. fits with the theme of claudia being a prodigy and he’s the disappointment in v*ren’s eyes if that makes sense.

amaya: earth! same reason as rayla tbh

ethari: non bender

runaan: water bender

[gale-gentlepenguin]

New york superheroes for the ask game

Concept: Live action Avatar | Disappointing | “I dont know what I was expecting” | True Neutral | I see potential | Solid | Excellence | The creation of Penguins Execution: Live action Avatar | Disappointing | “I dont know what I was expecting” | True Neutral | I see potential | Solid | Excellence | The creation of Penguins

Its foreshadowed early that there are other super heroes. Which is cool in a potential world building set up

But unlike with Ren Ren. The super heroes really dont get a lot of development.

Majestia and Knight owl along with their side kicks get the most development but they are mainly kind of lame.

The president being a super hero was fun. That made me laugh.

And Hot dog Dan is a gem and the most american hero ever.

But outside of that... i felt it was very lacking.

I know that they had to cut the special short. So I wont be too hard.

But I wish they did more with it

[creations-of-a-certain-no-one]

Devil Hold'em

Fandom: Obey Me!

Character: Lucifer, Mammon, Ren (MC / OC)

Content warnings: gambling

Summary: Lucifer was notified that Mammon took Ren, the human exchange student, to a casino. To prevent the disaster, he immediately headed to the scene only to find…

Also I can't believe that I actually finished it after almost three years.

[I just saw Mammon dragging Ren into a casuno I ghought you should know]

Lucifer frowned at the message. He wasn’t expecting Simeon to report to him on that. They barely exchanged a few written words since the exchange programme started – it wasn’t a long time indeed, but still, slightly surprising. On the second thought though, if the avatar of greed himself was trying to get an innocent lamb into gambling, that’d probably indeed be something to demand immediate action upon, in an angel’s eyes.

In his own demon eyes as well, considering the possible repercussions.

[Tell me which one.]

Lucifer typed back and left the music shop, already annoyed at both his brother and the human. Whichever casino it was, most of them were away from a respectable place like the music shop, so he headed towards the district where Mammon usually went to gamble.

It took him a bit of time to locate the exact location, and probably enough for Mammon to gamble away the human’s allowance entirely. Simeon wasn’t very familiar with the town yet, so could only give him very vague coordinates, but it was enough to narrow down the number of casinos and find the right one eventually.

The staff already figured out it would be happening, so they let him in without much hassle and showed the table where Mammon and Ren were supposed to be. And there, indeed, he spotted the two of them easily – Mammon’s by his white mane, Ren – by the black and red, both messy like if they didn’t know of the existence of combs.

He immediately headed towards them.

The view he found at the table was mostly exactly what he predicted. Mammon was sobbing in his chair, slumped over the table with no credits or cards left. So he spent all of his – and definitely some of not his – money and lost it all, as usual. A disgrace and a bad example for the human, definitely. Or so Lucifer thought, until he actually took a better look over the table.

What Lucifer certainly did not expect, was the human hoarding almost all chips that must have had belonged to other players – and the stash barely fitting on his side of the table. He probably couldn’t even see the community cards in the middle anymore.

But Lucifer did. And had to admit that if someone landed the two cards missing for a straight flush, they’d clearly be set for the win.

Ren was sitting at the table with a dumb smile, like someone who didn’t have a clue what they were doing and just got a hand so good they can’t contain the excitement. He stared at his cards with his grey eyes wide and innocent, and with an expression devoid of any signs of thinking.

He must have landed the flush, his happy face was saying everything you’d need to know that this oblivious innocent thing was on his lucky streak.

He raised the bet.

Maybe someone would check or raise too, but other players were almost entirely out of their chips, and out of patience as well.

“Beginner’s luck”, mumbled some exasperated demon, folding his cards finally and leaving the table with the few last chips he still had. The last demon standing followed the suit and left, clicking his tongue and casting such a glare that definitely meant trouble later. But as vengeful as the demon might ever become, if the fight was not poker, Mammon would be strong enough to ensure the human’s safety – any of his brothers actually would.

Ren however seemed completely undisturbed by the hostile display.

At this point, Lucifer either didn’t particularly care about the situation anymore. The only thing of any importance was that Ren was secured and that the incident didn’t cause a dent in the exchange programme’s financing.

 “Phew.” Ren looked up at Lucifer. His eyes, up to this point completely thoughtless, were suddenly sparkling with mischief. “That was close.”

He put down his cards, so miserably weak that they that couldn’t even give him a pair with the community cards of this round.

“We’re heading home then?”, he asked, innocently as if he didn’t just con some demons that thought that a wide-eyed human would be an easy win.

His high spirits rubbed Lucifer a wrong way, but if the incident was resolved, there was no point addressing it any further.

“Yes.” That’s all that Lucifer had to spare him. The boy probably still sensed his irritation – his movements showed a bit of nervousness as he tried to collect all the chips into a bag much smaller than it should be for the stash.

“Come on, lucky charm. Help me collect all of this.” Ren poked Mammon’s shoulder.

“Collect it yourself”, the demon grumbled.

“Should I just take your share for myself then?”

Mammon immediately stopped crying.

“I get a share?”

Upon getting a nod, Mammon resumed sobbing, this time out of happiness, but obediently helped to bring all the chips to the exchange.

After they left the casino, Lucifer sent Mammon away – not without the latter’s protests. Those were however cut short and Mammon immediately evacuated, once Lucifer started lecturing Ren on the dangers of gambling. Unfortunately, the boy listened to him with the same blank, vacant expression that his brothers did and Lucifer really wanted to string him up from the ceiling like he’d normally punish his brothers. But at least Ren did listen – whenever Lucifer demanded him to repeat something, the boy more or less knew what he was talking about. More or less.

“…and this is why I hope I will not see you in such establishments again,” Lucifer finally concluded, just in front of the gate of the House of Lamentation.

“You know that it can be difficult with Mammon as my guardian,” Ren refuted, but his tone seemed like he was purely stating a fact and not arguing a point. “And anyway… Mammon brings luck, doesn’t he?”

“You did seem lucky today, indeed.“

“Yeah. I mean, I did play with him the whole afternoon. It’d be hard not to notice. It’s not just a rumour, is it?”

“If you know of the rumour, then you should know what happens to the luck later.”

He pondered for a moment.

“It should be sufficient to prevent big losses though.” He shrugged. “The luck running out shouldn’t be much of a problem, if he just gets back what he lost.”

“It is not negotiable. I do not wish to see you gambling again.”

“Fiiine.” Ren sighed. “We’ll make sure to avoid you better next time.”

And then he darted towards the house.

That little…!

Well, at least it didn’t cause yet another bill coming to the House of Lamentation.

[nilnether]

My general rule for this is that if character embodies some popular/cool/resonating tropes and is underdeveloped it's going to generate fandom. If they are dead and generic/underdeveloped it's even better because they can be filled with whatever favourite character traits people would like them to have (Neteyam is notoriously OOC). They are your toys now.

And, of course, they are prefect for shipping. Canon no longer can hurt you there. I saw your new post (just replying here first) and I feel for the person who wants Spider with a male Metkayina. It's like Finn and Poe Dameron and Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes and can only end in disappointment. You are right, it's so very unlikely Disney would have a main character in their biggest current franchise be not straight (also Jack was like 12 when he filmed A3 with other actors - there is no way there will be any romance stuff until after time jump in A4). But if you ship Neteyam canon no longer applies. It's your AU and you're calling all the shots. You are not going to see the hopes dashed on screen. And if it's popular enough it can almost feel like canon.

And yes, we all do it. Speculating on what happens next makes fandom fun. And it's so cool when your theory proves to be true. But some things are more likely then others. That Spider one seems pretty likely since there are so many different sources for that particular development (and so many people were imaging this for Spider even before spoiler it seems a lot of people find it likely already). All of the shipping ones seem pretty unlikely (Spider/Kiri is probably the likeliest but it's still like half/half and not before time jump). But even things that seem likely may not come to be and willingness to admit it is saves you a lot of heartache.

My pet theory since seeing the movie is that Spider will become something I call Holy Ground for Quaritch and Jake. It references the Highlander franchise when the characters kill each other in combat for power but are not allowed to do it on holy ground so the heroes and villains can talk without killing each other. If it just sets up the final fight or leads to cooperation depends on story. I figured that the change from Spider being adopted to him being stuck in limbo of not quite belonging anywhere was to keep him in that middle ground (and I don't think he's been adopted at the end of A2 - he still seems to be not quite there as he attends the funeral with the family but lacks the mourning stripe they have). I think in Avatar's case it may help humans and Na'vi relations and ability to see the other side as more than just enemy. Spoilers seem to back me up on this one too. But I could be totally wrong about all or parts of it.

There is always a chance that the author of the story will stumble and the story will loose luster for you and leave you with only your headcanons. Or they try to change something because of leaks or people just figuring it out and it can be very detrimental (Game of Thrones showed what happens when they go for shock value instead of story telling). But Cameron doesn't seem to be that kind of storyteller and it looks like he knows exactly what story he wants to tell so I doubt he'll change it because of that. And he certainly knows how to tell stories.

There are always things you would love to be explored (I would love exploration of identity for recoms as manufactured beings but I know this is not that kind of story) or hate to see in fiction (I was so against Rey/Kylo Ren as I hate those tropes but that wasn't what destroyed the Star Wars sequels for me) but ultimately when it's not your sandbox you have to live with what the author chooses. If you are prepared to let go of your headcanons it's much easier to enjoy the story as is. And then fill in the blanks. I'm really hoping that since Cameron has the whole arc already planned it's going to be as engrossing as it was so far.

Which recoms do you think Spider bonded with the most? What would some of their interactions look like? Would Spider ever try to pry embarrassing information about Quaritch from them, would he ask about his mom, or just joke around?

I've seen a lot of fanfics, both AUs and canon universe, that expand on Spider's relationship with the other recoms, and that's really great and fun to explore, especially when Wainfleet becomes like an uncle to him.

But to be completely honest, if we're talking canon to the story of Avatar, I don't think Spider really had much of a relationship with any of the recoms other than Quaritch even though he did spend a lot of time with them. At the end of the movie, when Wainfleet shot Neteyam, Spider was running right next to him, and Wainfleet didn't seem to care if he hit him at all. Then after Neteyam's death, there's another brief scene where Wainfleet has a clear shot at Jake, but Spider is standing in front of him and would get caught in the crossfire. Wainfleet was ready to shoot Jake even if it meant hitting Spider too, and he only stopped because Quaritch told him to. And then right after that, Spider showed Jake where to ambush the recoms on the boat with zero hesitation. Spider didn't kill any recom himself, but his help made it a lot easier for Jake and Neytiri to almost wipe out the whole squad.

They spent months with each other, but when it came down to it, Spider and the recoms were willing to kill each other. Quaritch was the only exception, and even then, he had a long moment of hesitation before he could admit to himself that he did love spider more than he hated Jake. So even though in the og script and deleted scenes, we see Spider make fun of the recoms a little bit, I don't think Spider ever got comfortable enough with them to joke around or ask about such a sensitive topic like his mom.

Sorry if this is a boring answer, but I'm trying to stick to canon. And even though I don't think it's realistic to canon, I still LOVE fics that flesh out the recoms' relationship to Spider more! Fics are for bending canon anyway!

[shippersinc]

What is your favorite ship from each of the fandoms you listed?

(≧▽≦)We are very happy for the question anon, you all are more them welcome to ask anything, maybe we won't be able to have all the answers but we certainlly gonna try our best (｡•̀ᴗ-)✧ - Sayu

Heyy thank you so much for the question I really hoped someone did so I could write and simp over this beautiful list with these beautiful ships I love so much!! I’m so excited, so here we go, prepare yourself for a long af post! - Alya

Avatar: The Last Airbender Alya: Tokka (Toph x Sokka) My forever OTP Sayu: i'm gonna watch but still not quite there , but o already love Suki

Teen Titans Alya: BB/Rae (Raven x Beast Boy) and Flinx (Kid Flash x Jinx) Sayu: Kid Flash x Jinx 🌹

Young Justice Alya: Spitfire (Artemis x Kid Flash) Sayu: Kid Flash x Artemis ( ◜‿◝ )♡

Over the Garden Wall Alya: Beatrice x Wirt

Infinity Train Alya: Jesslake (Jesse x Lake)

Noragami Alya: Yatori (Yato x Hiyori)

Hey Arnold Alya: Shortaki (Arnold x Helga)

RWBY Alya: Flower Power (Ren x Nora), Whiterose (Ruby x Weiss), Rosegarden (Ruby x Oscar) I’m a mix of don’t see Ruby with anyone, but still find the dynamic really cute Sayu: Still only watched 2,5 but i like Flower Power (Ren x Nora) and Checkmate (Weiss x Blake)

Trollhunters Alya: Stricklake (Barbara x Strickler) and Steli (Steve x Eli)

The Dragon Prince Alya: Rayllum (Rayla x Callum), the way season 3 handled it disappointed me a little, but I still like it

My Little Pony: FiM Alya: Rarijack (Applejack x Rarity) everything to me

Miraculous Ladybug Alya: Marichat (Marinette x Chat Noir) and Lukanette (Marinette x Luka). I actually ship the whole Love Square, but Marichat stands out Sayu: Alya x Nino

The Legend of Korra Alya: Kainora (Kai x Jinora) and Boleska (Bolin and Eska), Ik, kinda weird

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Alya: Leorai (Leo x Karai)

Star vs the Forces of Evil Alya and Sayu: Marcapoo (Marco x Heckapoo) <3

Steven Universe Alya: Sadie x Lars and Lapidot (Peridot and Lapis) platonically Sayu: Ruby x Saphire (ʃƪ＾3＾）

Disney Alya: This one's hard to choose one but if I have to, Tiana x Naveen and Judy x Nick Sayu: ヘ（。□°）ヘ Soo many choices and i don't remember even one(;~;)

Kung Fu Panda Alya: TiPo (Tigress x Po)

Wordgirl Alya: Tobecky (Tobey x Becky)

Doctor Who Alya: I have many, specifics with different Doctor, but generally, it's Thoschei (Doctor x Master)

DC Comics   Alya: Oh boi, hard too, but let's go with Selina x Bruce, cause I'm basic, Gar x Raven, Tim x Steph

That 70's Show Sayu: Hyde x Jackie o((^▽^))o

Detentionaire Alya: Lee x Brandi

She-Ra and The Princesses of Power Alya: Catradora (Catra x Adora) and Entrapdak (Entrapta x Hordak)

Ducktales Alya: Goldie x Scrooge and Magica x Gladstone, Webby x Lena is also pretty cute Sayu: Goldie x Scrooge (◡ ω ◡) Louei is their heir

Carmen Sandiego Alya: Red Crackle (Carmen x Gray)

Barbie Alya: There are many possibilities as well, but let's go with Anika x Aiden, Elina x Nori and Erika x Dominic (maybe Anneliese and Julian too) Sayu: 乁| ･ 〰 ･ |ㄏ Barbie x Ken in life in a dreamhouse(?)

Haikyuu Sayu: Bokuaka (Bokuto x Akaashi)♡(˃͈ દ ˂͈ ༶ ) love them wayy too much

Card Captor Sakura Sayu: Sakura x Syaoran, Sakura x Tomoyo and Touya x Yukito ✧◝(⁰▿⁰)◜✧ Gotta love them all

If you want us to make specific posts about these ships and explore more what we said about them, feel free to ask! =D

[princepondincherry]

Wish RWBY was better? Try ATLA

To start: Yes, I’m aware ATLA and even LoK probably have much larger fandoms than RWBY already. I think they also have more content and were produced with a larger budget, which means we have to give RWBY some slack. It doesn’t mean criticism isn’t valid.

Since Avatar came out on Netflix, I watched both shows, and I can’t help drawing parallels with RWBY since they’re both animated shows I’ve loved about badass kids/teens with magic powers. And Avatar is SO MUCH better. For instance, inter-party conflict. The Gaang argue ALL THE TIME, and it’s just presented as the normal state of affairs, not some dramatic, crazy detail when one sibling has a slight disagreement with the other sibling. And as much flak as the Mako relationship drama gets in Legend of Korra, at least it had substance to it. We still don’t really know what the problem is with Ren and Nora. Oh, and The Last Airbender handled an unwanted kiss forced on someone who didn’t think it was the right time for romance SO MUCH better, with an immediate, “I SAID I was confused!” and the instigator having a scene right after where they called themselves an idiot, instead of the Renora kiss being presented as romantic or something.

Now I kinda want to write a list of things I feel Avatar does better. There’s a poorly-argued word vomit below the cut:

- The dead mother thing--Salem mentions Summer once with no details, and Ruby completely breaks down? What? Like, grief is fine, but this has literally no foreshadowing since the songs don’t count as full canon, and it made no sense given Ruby’s established (ha) character and the situation. Katara would have flown into a rage, and it would have been so much better.

- Arguments with adults on your side--Pakku was set up as an asshole teacher from the start, and he when confronted with the consequences of his misogyny, he changed his ways for the better. Zuko arguing with Iroh is never intended to have Zuko be in the right. Korra argues with Tenzin all the time, and usually they’re both right, but have to come to a better understanding of each other’s perspective that helps them grow as people. In fact, this conflict drives a lot of the story for the first two books of LoK. Unfortunately, RWBY seems incapable of this sort of nuance. Qrow is just drunk until he isn’t, but then later gets Clover killed, and Ozpin is supposedly just awful.

- Arguments with adults who should be on your side but aren’t--Long Feng SHOULD be on the same side as the heroes, defending the Earth Kingdom, but he isn’t for pretty stupid reasons. But, unlike Ironwood shooting people like a maniac, Long Feng is against the heroes for stupid reasons that (mostly) make sense in-universe: he wants to remain in power. (I still don’t understand why he didn’t just quietly explain that he had the real power in the city, not the king, and shuffle the kids off to whoever was running the military defenses that allowed him to pretend there was no war. I guess he thought if he just gave them the cold shoulder long enough, they’d go away?) Whatever problems there were with Long Feng’s storyline, at least he was consistently written as a bad guy. In contrast, Ironwood is inconsistently written as a good guy who has all the trappings of a tyrant but doesn’t act like it AT ALL, except when he occasionally does something extreme like shoot Oscar. He’s written (I guess unintentionally?) as a subversion of the military tyrant, except when he suddenly acts like one again. It’s like they were shooting for a Tarrlok (sketchy government official who’s both bad for the obvious reasons AND worse than he appears beneath the surface, even though he often works for the side of good) but actually wrote Suyin (someone who could easily be a totalitarian dictator, but decided not to be because of her moral principles, and is actually nice), except occasionally she attacks her allies for disagreeing with her.

- Costume design--I loved Ruby’s, Weiss’s, Ozpin’s, Qrow’s, and a few other original costumes, and Ruby’s had some very solid costumes. However, Volume 7 was terrible. The animation looked weird on Weiss’s braid, Jaune’s hair was awful, and a bunch of them weren’t really dressed for the weather. In contrast, the Avatar characters change outfits whenever it’s appropriate. You know, like real people. (If this is a “3D animation makes outfit changes harder than 2D animation” thing, then maybe 2D animation is just a superior art form when you’re on a budget.)

- Consistent power levels--Katara starts weak and gets stronger. Aang starts as only an airbender and consistently gets better at everything else. Toph invents metalbending and gradually gets more proficient with it. In contrast, RWBY’s Volume 1-3 feats are often better than their later feats, and Aura strength blatantly depends on plot. Yang’s gotten *slightly* better at fighting, Weiss learned a new skill and promptly got her butt kicked by focusing on it too much, Ruby supposedly learned hand-to-hand combat but really just did a headbutt, and RWBY SOMEHOW beat the most premiere team in Atlas after training with them for a few weeks. Sure, Toph, Katara, Azula, Aang, and Sokka are all ridiculous prodigies, but they’re established as such from the beginning. Katara still loses soundly to Pakku before he trains her. (Despite the memes about her kicking the ass of the patriarchy, he’s obviously going easy on her and still crushes her.) Aang gets beaten by Ozai without his OP special ability. Azula gets beaten easily the one time we see her go up against an adult (Iroh, on the ship in the beginning of book 2). And Toph is more like Pyrrha than anyone on Team RWBY. Honestly, this is one of my weaker points, but I still stand by the fact that the Avatar kids’ victories felt much more earned.

- Bad Fights--Yes, I know, heresy. I actually think the best of RWBY’s fights (RWBY vs. Torchwick’s mech, Ozpin vs. Cinder, Pyrrha vs. Cinder, RWBY vs. the Nevermore, Qrow vs. Tyrian) are somewhat more exciting, visually interesting, and (sometimes) emotionally charged than even the best of Avatar’s fights (Aang vs. Ozai, Zuko vs. Azula, Kya vs. Zaheer, Korra vs. Zaheer, Tenzin and his siblings vs. Red Lotus, Suyin vs. Kuvira). But my actual point is that RWBY’s bad fights are BAD, whereas I can’t even think of what the worst Avatar fights are. Sokka vs. Zuko in episode 1 was pretty bad, but that was more of a gag than a fight. Umm...Big Glowy Korra vs. Unavaatu was kinda cheesy, but I still liked it. Meelo fartbending vs. the Equalists? Idk. Meanwhile, RWBY has the Scuffle of Haven, that time Ilia seriously hurt Sun somehow, Qrow vs. Tyrian vs. Clover (visually impressive, but made NO FUCKING SENSE), Oscar landing a massively-telegraphed blow on Neo...well, okay. Maybe there weren’t that many awful fights. I still think I came away from more RWBY fights disappointed, but I can’t really argue my case very well.

- LGBT representation, normalized to the time period--Yes, Korrasami never got past handholding in the finale, but somehow Yang and Blake haven’t either? Even though it’s 2020? Actually, this is a symptom of a larger problem:

- Romantic relationships being ignored--Why won’t RWBY explicitly confirm anything? The RWBY cast are closer in age to the LoK cast than the ATLA cast, but it feels the other way around. Kataang was both heavily present in ATLA the whole time and by no means taking over the plot. And, okay, there was Jaune/Pyrrha, but she’s dead now, so the most-developed ship is Renora. Who held hands, then didn’t talk about their relationship at all for a full volume, and then had a nonconsensual kiss handled worse than the Kataang kiss in Ember Island Players. I’m glad there haven’t been any Romantic Plot Tumors in RWBY, but something would be nice. Or just don’t bring it up at all if you’re never going to develop the relationships.

- Sibling relationships--Yang and Ruby were great as sisters in the early volumes, but lately it’s just been Yang deciding to yoke herself to Ruby’s judgement, until suddenly she’s not anymore. I feel like they barely talked in Volume 7.

- Villains--If Salem wants to kill everyone and collect the Relics, why hasn’t she? She’s invincible! Ozai at least was still human, but he left to handle things himself as soon as he got a power-up. More vaguely, I just find Avatar’s villains more interesting than RWBY’s most of the time.

I’m aware that some/most of these are unfair. It’s more intended as an incoherent rambling to get my views out of my head than as any sort of persuasive argument.

[itsclydebitches]

Am I the only person disappointed that Salem wasn't a Pure Evil Abuser Fire Lord Ozai/Emperor Palpatine(Star Wars)? When the Big Bad is female there's always a "But actually!" catch to absolve/forget all of their crimes like the Grimm's Corruption or the Brothers following Greek tragedy rules not literally any other Divine Rules. seriously in the age of Rep female on male abuse gets treated as comedy at worst, black at best. and serious? NOPE! Salem Humanoid grimm plz. *hugs everyone*

Excluding the specific issue of ignoring/making light of women abusers (which yeah, isn’t something I’m pleased that the story or the fandom has glossed over), I think the problem lies more in the lack of women villains compared to men. I’ve discussed before how well written (that’s subjective) villains are usually complicated villains and how you complicate a villain is (usually) by humanizing them in some way. Thus, the more villains you produce the more chance there is to get a good balance between that “Irrevocably evil they’re just That Bad” characterization and “Evil can be complicated and they may be a victim too.” Star Wars is a great example. There are a TON of male villains that immediately pop into someone’s head when they think of the franchise - Darth Vader, Palatine, Darth Maul, Snoke, Kylo Ren, Dooku, Boba Fett, General Hux, presumably all of the stormtroopers, etc. - so you get this nice combo of Evil For The Sake of Evil (Palpatine) and more Sympathetic Evil (Anakin). Meanwhile, I admit I’m no expert on the series, but off the top of my head I can only think of Phasma and Ventress so... that doesn’t leave nearly as much room for that balance. Same with Lord of the Rings. By giving us a nearly male-only cast we have the space for both Sauron (evil-evil) and Gollum (corrupted-evil). Avatar has pretty great gender balance from the get-go, resulting in Lord Ozai (evil) and Zuko (manipulated) and Azula (a mix of being manipulated like Zuko but never rising to the chance to be better like he did). 

Basically, you need to include women in your stories before you get a significant number of women villains and you need to actually make more of those women the Big Bad (not side-kicks like Ventress and Phasma). That way it’s not getting only three (3) prominent  women villains over a five year period and getting annoyed that they all happen to have Tragic Backstories. With low numbers it feels like that’s the only thing women are allowed to be. However, if you give us 15 prominent women villains instead, suddenly that particular trend is diffused. I mean, I can name 50 culturally influential villains who are men off the top of my head but honestly? Women are a little harder. I think Harry Potter does a good job of giving us both Bellatrix and Umbridge, neither of which are sympathetic. We have straight-forward cartoon villains like Ursala or the Wicked Witch. And then yeah, we have the villains who are around so long and are such an integral part of the story that it’s pretty much inevitable that they’ll seem sympathetic at some point, like Cersei Lanister or Poison Ivy. But that’s not a lot. Not compared to what men have anyway. Here some readers are no doubt thinking, “But there’s also - !” and yeah, of course other women villains exist. But how long did they stick around? What audience were they aimed at? How prominent are they in the story? How big did those stories get? Sure, Umbridge and Bellatrix are absolutely fantastic, but they’re also just two villains next to (again, off the top of my head): Voldemort, Snape, Mr. Malfoy, Draco, Crabbe and Goyle, Grayback, Quirrell, Pettigrew, most of the other Death Eaters, Sirius for a time, Grindelwald, Crouch Jr., Lockhart, Kreacher, Karkaroff, and Fudge. To say nothing of how often non-humans like Aragog, the dementors, or the bassilisk are assumed to be male. That’s not a very fair comparison. 

So I think this is a larger problem to tackle. It’s not just the issue that “women villains are only allowed to be ___” but rather that women villains simply don’t take up the same space in popular culture that the men do, thereby perpetuating ideas about what they’re “supposed” to look like because we have such a small pool to draw from. Sure, someone can point to this fantasy series they adored and show how it possesses a huge range of women villains. That’s great! But are a lot of other people reading that series? Has it achieved critical fame? It’s the men that tend to dominant American popular culture  - Voldemort, Darth Vader, Sauron, President Snow, Hannibal, the Terminator, Thanos, Loki, the Joker, Moriarty - rather than that one woman villain that yeah, people loved, but she wasn’t apart of a story that made it big. Or she only lasted one movie. Or she was only aimed at kids, etc. I think those expectations for women villains absolutely exist, but we also need to make more women villains to begin with before we say definitely that we “only” have this version of them. It’s a two-fold issue that needs improvement. 

[creations-of-a-certain-no-one]

“Drank a truth serum by accident. Do not interact.”

That’s what he sent in their group chat.

The demons thought Ren was embarrassed of all the cute things he’d undoubtedly say to his precious demons. They expected the sunshine boy to flood them with praise and appreciation so they all immediately ran to interact.

What they didn’t expect was a scowl on his face, his bright sunny smile gone and an annoyed “tch” he let out immediately after seeing them do exactly the opposite of what he asked.

“I told you it’s a bad idea,” Satan sighed, looking at his dumbfounded brothers.

“But you came anyway.” Ren shot him a judgemental stare.

Satan decides it’s best to be honest too.

“I couldn’t miss you roasting them.”

Ren didn’t even comment on that. And Asmo missed the cue entirely, completely ignoring Satan’s remark. “We want to know what you think of everyone!”

“Tch. It’s a truth serum and not answer every question serum and I don’t want to talk.”

“Did something happen?”, Lucifer studied Ren’s face with slight concern, not used to Ren being this snappy even to him. “You seem upset.”

“Oh, I look upset now then, deal with it.” He shrugged. “Drank a truth serum. And then some clowns immediately decided they’re going to ask me questions I don’t want to answer.”

He shot them a disdainful glare.

“Are you… always like this?” Mammon asked in a quiet voice.

Ren looked away with discomfort. “I’m sorry. I can’t control it now.”

He didn’t deny it. As regretful as he sounded, it was still true.

“Have you been lying to us?”, Belphegor asked the question everyone had in mind. Or almost everyone.

“Listen…” Ren sighed and rubbed his temples. “I... I am very on edge now. I will gladly spend time with you all, just… later, after this shit wears off. I will. I want to. My time with you has been the best time ever.” He blurted, almost losing control over the potion. “Really. I mean it. But…” he let his hands fall to his side, completely defeated, “today’s just a horrible day. I already messed up so much and because of that stupid potion I can’t pretend I don’t care. I can’t even smile through it like I always do.”

“So… you’re not angry with us?” Levi asked reluctantly.

“No, not specifically with you, I wouldn’t say so. If you refrain from asking invasive questions for now, that is. I just… don’t think I can handle anything at the moment. I don’t know how anymore.”

“And it’s infuriating?” Satan helpfully added.

“And it’s infuriating,” Ren agreed.

For a few seconds everyone contemplated all Ren’s coping mechanisms being both completely dysfunctional as well as entirely and impressively down just because of one truth potion. Save for Beel, who had been always most perceptive of people he cared for and for whom the whole ordeal was much less of a surprise. But now for each of them the boy’s frustrated scowl seemed now rather miserable than scary.

“If that’s how it is, I have an idea!” Asmo’s voice voice a bit too high not to be fake optimism. “You need to relax, and what’s better for that than a beauty session!”

“A good book, obviously.”

“A nap.”

“Exquisite classical music.”

“A thrilling game!”

“Shopping and some big wins!”

“Something delicious to eat.”

Ren looked at them arguing about who spends time with him again, but for once didn’t even try to diffuse the situation and present any solution.

“You know what?” he said finally causing the brothers to glance at him anxiously. “I want it all. Asmo, you’re really good at taking care of people so let’s start with the beauty session.”

They decided to stay in, as letting Ren into a casino would be counterproductive - his poker face and bluffing ability were unfortunately turned off. But with Mammon’s room having both a home cinema and a console, Mammon didn’t complain to become the most important person of the plan and host the evening. Upon completing their strategy, brothers scattered to prepare their part of the emergency measures to help Ren survive the time he couldn’t lie to himself.

The next day Ren was his sunny self again, smiling all over the place, chirpy as ever or maybe even more after a whole day of being spoiled rotten, but brothers paid more attention to keep him as spoiled as possible from now on, since the idiot doesn’t even say anything if he needs rest.

MC! Monday Prompt #4

MC! Monday Masterlist

MC accidentally drinks a truth potion around everyone. Seeing the opportunity, Asmodeus asks MC what they think about each and everyone one of them. What does MC say?

[therainrogue]

🎾 Sportember ‘20 {30/30}

🏀 𝕀𝕟𝕥𝕣𝕠𝕕𝕦𝕔𝕥𝕚𝕠𝕟 / Introduction

Hello hello and welcome to my masterlist for my Sportember set! ^~^)/ If you want to check out the original post, please click here. I’m really excited for this event and I hope a lot of people decide to join this event with me!

I’m going to list the prompts and the characters I’m thinking about writing for that prompt. If you’d like to suggest someone for one of the prompts, feel free to send me an ask, but keep in mind that I may not follow through with your suggestion!

Prompts with [✓] have already been written and are waiting to be posted, so the character will not change.

I hope you enjoy this set, thanks so much for reading (ღ˘⌣˘ღ)

xoxo Rain

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🏐 WEEK 1; Sports or Song Lyrics

↬ Sep 1st - Greatness / “We’re not nameless, we’re not faceless, we were born for greatness.” | Kaede Okumura, Prince of Stride | fluff _ ficlet

↬ Sep 2nd - Cult / “Do you wanna start a cult with me? I’m not vibrating like I ought to be, I need a purpose.” | Masaharu Niou, Prince of Tennis | slice of life, school, friendship _ one shot

↬ Sep 3rd - Sparking Eyes / “Promise me you’ll never leave my side. Show me what I can’t see, when the spark in my eyes is gone.” | Asashi Azumane, Haikyuu!! | angst, school, romance _ one shot

↬ Sep 4th - Fable of Stars / “I’ll be more than just a fable, I’ll be written in the stars.” | Chenle, NCT | slice of life, fluff, au _ one shot

↬ Sep 5th - Price I Pay / “You will never know, it’s the price I pay. Look into my eyes, we are not the same.” | Chikara Ennoshita, Haikyuu!! | slice of life, angst, romance | one shot

↬ Sep 6th - Hidden / “I’m the poster child of denial, there’s nothing I can’t hide.” | Ren Mihashi, Ookiku Furikabutte | slice of life, angst, fluff _ one shot

↬ Sep 7th - Long Way Down / “Life is walking on a tightrope, with nothing but a blindfold. It’s a long way down.” | Morisuke Yaku, Haikyuu!! | angst, fluff _ one shot

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🏐 WEEK 2; All Rounder Prompts

↬ Sep 8th - Adversary | Yuuichirou Tajima, Ookiku Furikabutte | slice of life, angst, fluff, school _ one shot

↬ Sep 9th - Announcement |  Kunimitsu Tezuka, Prince of Tennis | slice of life, fluff, friendship, college au _ one shot

↬ Sep 10th - Massage |  Shinji Watari, Haikyuu!! | fluff, slice of life _ one shot

↬ Sep 11th - Goals |  Satan, Obey Me! | angst, fluff, friendship _ one shot

↬ Sep 12th - Bet |  Gintoki Sakata, Gintama | fluff _ one shot

↬ Sep 13th - Guardian |  Yuu Nishinoya, Haikyuu!! | angst, school, friendship, fluff _ one shot

↬ Sep 14th - Professional |  Lev Haiba, Haikyuu!! | angst, slice of life, fluff, school _ one shot

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🏐 WEEK 3; Sentence Prompts

↬ Sep 15th - Fun Times / “Come on, it’ll be fun!” |  Ryouta Kise, Kuroko no Basket | friendship, comedy, fluff, slice of life _ one shot

↬ Sep 16th - It’s Not / “That’s not a sport.” | Neito Monoma and Hiryuu Rin, Boku no Hero Academia | fluff, slice of life _ one shot

↬ Sep 17th - Tryhard / “Why do you try so hard?” |  Mr. Compress/Atsuhiro Sako | fluff _ one shot

↬ Sep 18th - Hurt / “I don’t want you to get hurt.” | Choutarou Ootori, Prince of Tennis | fluff, slice of life, high school au | ficlet

↬ Sep 19th - Helpful / “Let me do that for you.” | Issei “Mattsun” Matsukawa, Haikyuu!! | fluff, school, slice of life _ one shot

↬ Sep 20th - Paid / “I don’t get paid enough for this.” | Aoyama, Aoyama-kun is a Clean Freak _ fluff, slice of life, family _ one shot

↬ Sep 21st - Dislike / “I dislike sports.” | Takanobu Aone, Haikyuu!! _ school, fluff, slice of life _ one shot

↬ Sep 22nd - A Reason to Win / “I’ll win - for you.” | Jisoo Kim, Blackpink _ slice of life, au, fluff _ one shot

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🏐 WEEK 4; Angst or Fluff Prompts

↬ Sep 23rd - Protection | Russia, Axis Powers Hetalia _ slice of life, au, fluff _ one shot

↬ Sep 24th - Supportive | Sakaeguchi Yuuto, Ookiku Furikabutte _slice of life, fluff _ ficlet

↬ Sep 25th - Encouraging | Mineta Minoru, Boku no Hero Academia _school, slice of life, friendship _ one shot

↬ Sep 26th - Security | Marui Bunta, Prince of Tennis _ slice of life, fluff _ ficlet

↬ Sep 27th - By Your Side | China, Axis Powers Hetalia _ fluff, romance, au, slice of life _ one shot

↬ Sep 28th - Disappointed | Sokka, Avatar the Last Airbender _ fluff, au, slice of life _ ficlet

↬ Sep 29th - Kindness | Tanaka Ryuunosuke, Haikyuu!! _ fluff, slice of life, school _ one shot

↬ Sep 30th - Not Enough | Sawada Tsunayoshi, Katekyo Hitman Reborn! _ angst, au, slice of life _ one shot

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🏈 𝕾𝖕𝖔𝖗𝖙𝖘 𝕬𝖓𝖎𝖒𝖊 𝕸𝖊𝖓𝖚 / Sports Anime Menu

I am not biased toward sports anime.

I am not -

✰ Prince of Tennis - 5 ✰ Kuroko no Basket - 3 ✰ Haikyuu - 6 ✰ Oofuri - 2

Damn it.

I am so biased toward sports anime (；一_一)

I’m kind of shook that I did more Haikyuu than I did Prince of Tennis but I’m gonna just blame it on how I’m currently watching Haikyuu so of course I’m more obsessed at the moment! Plus, there’s plenty of time to switch the characters around so let’s see if these numbers change ヾ(⌐■_■)ノ♪

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🏈 After Completing the Set:

✰ Top three anime I used:

Haikyuu!! (9/30)

The Prince of Tennis (4/30)

Ookiku Furikabutte (3/30)

✰ Top three sports quotes used:

Haikyuu!! (15/30)

Kuroko no Basket & The Prince of Tennis (each 4/30)

Eyeshield 21 (3/30)

Yup, totally not biased at all  (⌐■_■)ノ♪

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[oofluc]

⌠ AXEL AURIANT, 20, CISMALE, HE/HIM ⌡ welcome back to gallagher academy, LUC MONTAGNIER! according to their records, they’re a FIRST year, specializing in AWARENESS TRAINING, BREATH CONTROL, HAND TO HAND COMBAT + KNIFE FIGHTING SKILLS, SWORD TRAINING, PRECISION SHOOTING, FIREARMS & SWAT TRAINING; and they DID go to a spy prep high school. when i see them walking around in the halls, i usually see a flash of ( dried blood on busted knuckles, forced smiles and sweat drenched after training ). when it’s the (virgo)’s birthday on 09/17/1999, they always request their SEARED SCALLOPS from the school’s chefs. looks like they’re well on their way to graduation. ⌿ ooc mochi, 23, she/her, gmt ⍀  

slight warning to those who saw i originally planned him to be an anxious soft boi … i was wrong also there is a suicide mention & some subtle child abuse maybe... plus it’s kind of long ? and an incoherent mess but whatever !! plotting is welcome either on tumblr or on discord which you can find me at mochi#7066 !! his pinterest is here yes i went overboard with sections esp bc im gonna add more hdjf !! stats here and a full connection page here with most stuff i have so far ! @gallagherintro​

PARALLELS

fred jones | scooby doo

stefan salvatore | the vampire diaries

hatsuharu sohma | fruits basket

noatak | avatar: the legend of korra

FAMILY

phillipe montagnier | 54

ameline montagnier | 46

marc montagnier | ✝

luc montagnier | 20

charles montagnier | 18

elias montagnier | 18

HISTORY

the montagnier family was originally located in the south of france until luc’s grandfather moved them to quebec. their empire was in manufacturing all kinds of weaponry and selling them to governments and other spy families and organisations. if you needed something a bit obscure or unique, this was the family you'd come to.

luc grew up in a fairly isolated countryside area in a family of four brothers who he loved for the first few years of his life. first was marc, shy and respectful, luc himself two years behind, and then another two years graced the family with twins; charles and elias who lived by their own rules. marc and luc had always been close, marc was the best big brother possible and luc loved him a lot.

eventually after being pitted and forced to compete against each other for so long, it got quite personal and their bonds started being tested. their mother turned a blind eye to their father's borderline abusive methods when luc overtook his older brother in their father’s tests and training. bruises and broken bones were only natural in training so there wasn't much she could say even if she wanted to.

from as long as he could remember, he'd been firing guns. there was a shooting range on their estate and they went on hunting trips, too. his dad often had him show customers the potential of their weaponry and so he'd always been thrusted into that life whether he wanted a say or not. it’s been clear since he was around fourteen that if anyone was taking over the family business it'd be him, not his older brother, marc.

this definitely caused somewhat of a rift between him and marc, as he'd end up getting much harsher punishments when luc would disarm or ground him.

luckily for luc, he did enjoy fighting and was exceptionally gifted in the life planned out for him. he was always the most determined to gain their father's approval, which definitely showed in their results and how obedient he was in front of the man. when he finally got what he wanted, he didn't quite expect it to mean what it did. it was rare but every now and then he would kill for his dad. whether it was someone who betrayed the family or a potential threat to their business, if his dad told him to, he would, no questions asked. it was during this time he was more excluded from training with his brothers since he would be with his dad instead.

SUICIDE TW !!!!!!

his oldest brother marc was sent to blackthorne once he was eighteen and ended up committing suicide at the end of his second year, with luc set to follow the next year. this news was shocking for the montagnier family as luc's father was bitterly embarrassed and disappointed by his firstborns' death, wanting to cover it up as a murder so it couldn't be tied to the family name with such dishonour. it quickly created a divide as charles and elias defended marc's actions and revealed he'd been struggling with depression for the majority of his life, much like they did, which was all unknown to luc, who, for the first time, felt the repercussions of his father's favouritism. he had a new found rebellion against him that was violent with them going at each other's throats for the foreseeable future. luc ended up avoiding his place at blackthorne in hopes to piss off his dad and becoming more reclusive and bitter as time went on.

he really took his brother's death personally, believing he was a factor in it and wishing he'd been there for him more closely. if anyone so much as mentions marc to him he will be on guard and very easily angered. i think before marc died he was very charismatic, egotistical at times and driven whereas now he’s lost a lot of his energy and is more negative & aloof.

the following year was Rough™. he was no longer his dad's golden boy and the family dynamic shifted a lot with marc's death as luc ended up protecting his younger twin brothers instead of beating them for their dad's favour. he's certain he'd have been disowned had his mother not aligned herself with the kids as well.

i think their family dynamic is kinda like the cha family from sky castle if anyone has seen it !

luc eventually decided to enrol in school late, only to end up at gallagher instead. which... i mean, i think before marc died he was excited about attending blackthorne. so he’s bit ??? uncertain about the girls school.

PERSONALITY

genuinely i think it comes down to so many factors, whether he’s in a good mood, who’s speaking to him etc but neutrally he’s quite charming, happy to mess about a bit but more or less takes most stuff too seriously. since he’s not around his dad i do think he will explore a lot more and seek out adventure and fun but if he’s got a test or something due the next day then he’ll bail early since he is defo the type to never let his grades or performance be ruined

he’s quite cocky + likes to win no matter what so yes he will ruin a friendship to beat u at monopoly. second place is last place in his head.

at his best he can be confident, alluring, courteous, loyal… at his worst he's aggressive, destructive, apathetic and always says shit he doesn't mean !!!! will he apologize ?? unlikely but he'll try n make it right once he’s calmed down

thinks the best way to deal with things is with his fists, he’s so EASY to snap and start a fight n he’ll.... maybe apologise for it

i think he defo likes to pretend he’s got no problems and so reverts to a social, supportive friend every once in a while. the type to be brutally honest !!

he’s a definite know it all, thinks he’s the dog’s bollocks, gods gift etc !!!!! doesn’t believe in god but still. I kinda see him a bit jocky idk why but more brooding n isolating 70% of the time bc he’s easily pissed off but when he’s having fUNNNNN he’s ok like a solid guy at times just easily angered

very flirty, he's a major ladies man despite actually being GAY. which is a secret. sh. only two people know he’s gay and that’s his current beard girlfriend ellie cavanagh and childhood friend regine ren. more ppl can defo find out in time and i’m sure ppl have speculations ? maybe have seen him hooking up with guys or something when he thought no one was looking etc probs think he’s bi who knows!!! but for now those two are the only people he’s actually spoken to about it!!!! so if anyone else tries he will deny it as he’s very against the idea of coming out so will not discuss it ty pls.

and it’s not that he doesn’t enjoy sleeping with girls, he’ll be having a great time regardless but he just aint abt to love them like that pls understand

still, he is in a current relationship with ellie who is acting as his beard for him. they have ‘ dated ’ before and are off and on a lot, so they probably seem pretty toxic tbh since ellie n him can clash n argue and he defo still hooks up with other girls despite being in a relationship so feel free to kill him for cheating !

wanted connections !!!

going off the last point, maybe some of ellie’s friends who come at him for how he seemingly treats her !!!

i'd love for blackthorne ppl to have known his brother, he'd have been around about 22/23 and a fourth year now if he was still alive so ?? it might help luc with some closure if he could talk about him since it happened at blackthorne

ppl to know the family, some family friends would be amazing !!! i feel regardless of alliances etc their family would have stayed as neutral as possible since they're selling weapons so they want all the customers.

so people that know HIM while he was growing up would be interesting esp those expecting him to have joined blackthorne when he was supposed to 2 years ago, and obvs him probably changing from who they knew him as to a more negative version now

might put a wc for his twin bros as they potentially joined his arrival at gallagher as first years too but who knows. they’d be 18 so if anyone wants a family friend connection that is around that age, maybe they were closer to the twins than luc ??

he sleeps with a lot of girls to kinda ‘make sure’ no one knows he’s gay as he defo doesn't feel comfortable with being out. the guys that he sleeps with he'll always pin it on being too drunk to remember or he'll threaten them if they told etc ?? he's very on edge about it and would only hook up super secretly sooo if anyone’s down for that with him

and then obvs need a lot of ladies he’d wanna sleep with to keep his image

previous ex gfs ?? from prep schools !!!!!!!

some positive influences would be good

bad influences as well bc tho he is a bit of a party guy, he doesn’t drink loads and he doesn’t do drugs !!!!!!!!!!!!!! but…. I mean i bet he could be convinced now he’s away from home so

study / sparring buddies !!

i’d love someone to teach him pop culture n normality !! his childhood was training and competing with his bros so he defo doesn’t watch many movies or tv or play games etc so ? someone making him watch all the harry potters ?? binging parks and rec ?? he’d find it so dumb but who wouldnt enjoy it ??

[braincoins]

(Click on character sheet to Embiggen and then bless @yliseryn​ for the beauty your eyes are beholding!)

Meet Kyrenne Lyon, aka ‘Renne (just pronounced “ren”). She’s a young noblewoman of Serenia, secretly a spy, and (unbeknownst even to herself at this point) the chosen avatar of Peruna, Goddess of Wind and Storms. Also, her family are sworn to the service of the Blue Dragon Flight, and because of that, she has access to dragonfire, an incredibly powerful spell. Since she was born to a Bloodsworn family, she is bloodsworn with a lower case b - one of the bloodline, but no formal Oath taken. She has magic in her blood, and she’s learned a few tricks - chief among them “how to control dragonfire” since it’s an incredibly destructive spell - but she hasn’t done much formal study, unlike her twin brother, Renard (aka Ren), who has become a full mage and sworn his Oath of Service to the Flight (making him Bloodsworn with the capital B).

And, frankly, the Flight needs spies, as not only do they have enemies, but there is a traitor in their very midst! ‘Renne puts her life in danger for her friends, family and Flight on a regular basis, with little regard for whether she lives or dies. She’s always felt like she didn’t quite fit in, no matter where she was in Society or the Flight.

And now, she’s begun to pray to and rouse gods and goddesses long forgotten by humanity. The Old Gods are waking, and one of them has chosen ‘Renne as her avatar on this plane. She will protect her chosen as best she can, and the enemies of State and Flight that are now turning against ‘Renne don’t yet know they’ll have to contend with a GODDESS.

‘Renne has a part to play in a prophecy coming into fruition now. She is not the “main character” of that prophecy as such, but her part is still important. But all she can see is the shifting of her life as she hides behind illusions, pretends to be other people so that her enemies believe her dead, and tries to come to terms with true love, and everything that that means for the both of them.

I commissioned @yliseryn for this character sheet for my lovely lass, and I was not disappointed! Just... just... AFGHAFCKNWOW, everyone! (Not that I’m surprised; all of Ylis’s work is amazerbeams!) Really, click on it to look at the full thing! It’s great!!