#same thing with when he's playing up the guilt he feels while they're talking about the trial. he's acting so that his behaviour fits with

[kindaorangey]

something i think is funny to do is to try and think of the differences between armand and lestat. zero emotional regulation? both of them have that. absolutely kill themselves in devotion to their companion? check check. fraught relationship with god? convinced they're going to hell so they refuse to let themselves die? lie and manipulate others and commit horrific acts of violence because they believe they know what's best for the other person? ding ding ding! genuinely the only thing i've come up with that's different between the two of them is that lestat acts with no filter whereas armand feels the need to launder his own emotions through his various façades and belief systems in order to express them at all. (until the gremlin comes out).

[the-s1lly-corner]

Hi!! this is my first time requesting anything but i was wondering if you could do creepypasta boys were you kiss / compliment there scars!

Kissing their scars (various crp)

Bro I scratched my skin right next to this burn last week and it HURTS so bad

Characters: Jeff the Killer, Ticci Toby, Eyeless Jack

Notes: Reader is GN, fluff, these boys need help

CWs: talks of violence in.. well all of them, mentioned of self harm in Jeff's part

Jeff

You decide to kiss the gashes in his cheeks, the ones that he carved.. he never really viewed them as anything very negative; sure it reminds him of the night he killed his entire gamily.. a fact he has a very wishy washy feeling of guilt over depending on the day

At first he thinks you're trying to kiss his cheeks but you make it very clear what you're trying to do when you begin to compliment them- they've healed so well since theyve been put there

Between the three he tries to play it off the most, of course it looks nice- they make him beautiful, and he always will be beautiful! What are you talking about reader?

Hes not at all willing to be vulnerable around you, it doesnt matter how long you two know each other or how close you get he never.. really let's himself just be in his feelings around others

But just know that hes going to be sitting in bed tonight looking up at the ceiling replaying what you've said and going back over the events that lead him here- rare moment of self reflection essentially

But to your face.. hes just the same as hes always been, even teasing you for having such a huuuge crush on him- bonus if the two of you are already dating

Eyeless Jack

You rarely ever get to see him without the mask, but when you do.. it's best not to do something like this the first time you see his eye sockets- hes very cagey about his face in the first place and hes not quiet ready to handle more attention drawn to it. The first few times it's off it's best to meet it with indifference

But when more time passes, you're more than welcome to test the waters. You already knew Jack had a fair collection of scars, but there was a different feel to the burned and gashed holes where his eyes would have been

He wont let you kiss him, mostly because hes unsure of what exactly the goo was made of, as well as naturally not liking the idea of someone putting their mouth where his eyes just to be- but you're allowed to trace your fingers along the scar tissue

Hes never going to tell you what happened unless theres a reason to, hes very firm when setting this boundary. It's just something that makes him feel.. gross..

He already doesn't talk much but he becomes silent as you trace your fingers and talk to him

He might go back to wearing his mask all the time again for a while but it's not exactly your fault, it was just a huge step- it's okay to back up a bit to process things

Ticci Toby

Due to his CIPA he has a bit of a disconnect between him and his injuries, scars included. He didnt really feel them when they were being made, sure he may have felt some pressure depending on what caused it but other than that, nothing really.. for a lot of them he doesnt have much thoughts- neither good nor bad

The only ones that really make him feel something are the ones he sustained from the crash- they're scattered across his body...

If you kissed or complimented any other scar he would tease you for being a little "weird", even making it a game to guess where he got the current scar from- with outlandish answers of course

But the second you reach one of /those/ scars the fun is immediately cut, you can tell theres something off

Similar to Jack, its something that has to be eased into due to the weight associated with the injuries. It's not the fact that it hurt when he got them but they serve as a reminder of what he lost

The only one who really tries to change the subject, perhaps by asking if you have any scars or markings on your body or simply changing the subject all together

Probably the only one who wouldn't want to be complimented due to the nature of some of his scars

[rubysparx]

Ok im gonna try and be mostly images for real this time (and im going to fail)

"From most to least interesting, the types of monsters he likes are: dragons = animals > magical beings > plants > insects > undead > spirits." (-Dungeon Meshi world bible/adventurer's guide, page 5)

at first glance that statement is easy to dismiss, ofc he doesn't really like undead or spirits, they're not really even monsters. Just dead humans, and he doesn't like humans. But there's more to it, he hates spirits because that's what got Falin outcast by the rest of the village (to the point of their father, the village chief, sending her away to magic school to get her out).

(Notably, the above is from the spirits chapter, "sorbet" chapter 11) but on top of blaming spirits, he also blames himself. Because it was his choice to sneak out into the graveyard when he heard there was a spirit there as a kid, he took his sister with him. He got attacked for his arrogance, and Falin saved him, revealing her powers to the villagers who never saw her the same afterwards. "If only I had been the one eaten by the dragon" "If there were only some way for me to take your place, then I would gladly"

So much of Laios' feelings of guilt and shame are directly tied to Falin. He feels guilty for being alive. He feels guilty for leaving the village and leaving her to eat alone for such a long time. But he also feels guilty for letting her run away from magic school and come to the island with him. It all just feels like a long repeat of when he let her come to the graveyard with him.

"she could've had a better life at the academy" "I left a year before she did"

He likely even blames himself for messing up her opportunity at a job he recommended to her when her gift was first revealed.

"Adults are just scared of magic" "laios grew up somewhere humans hated other humans for any reason they could find, so of course he hated them right back, esp being so othered already. and then seeing his sister be so othered, and partly blaming himself for it. Of course it was his fault, of course he was so hateful, he's a human after all." <- something relevant I said while talking about this on disc

and I don't wanna hide this in the tags, one last comment, I feel like it's important to note that in the fourth image posted above (Chapter 88, Winged Lion 3, page 17) Laios is witnessing Falin be shoved away from playing with another kid from the village, due to the village seeing her as a freak. The rest of that panel is humans doing bad things directly to him, but that one it's to his sister. But even still he left her alone in the village, what a very human thing to do.

Also, if you enjoyed this dive into Laios might I direct you to this post about representation of autistic anger? I really liked it and will be reblogging it in a few minutes

[basu-shokikita]

About Depths of Humanity

So, I talked about The Duel some time back and I thought, why not do the same for this song too? It's actually one of my underrated faves from Doomstar Requiem.

This more of a rant than a strict analysis though, I just really enjoy thinking about the implications of this song and what it means in regard to Skwisgaar.

Let's start with Ishnifus' warning. He claims that inside lies danger, the ghosts of their pasts and their fears. He cautions them to stay alert and Dethklok brave forward, even if scared.

Inside, they encounter their old manager, old groupies and Skwisgaar's old guitar teacher, in that order. As promised by Ishnifus', they're all people from their past, coming back to haunt them.

Immediately, these people start recriminating Dethklok for not having paid them back after how much they helped them. In short, they're jealous of Dethklok's fame and money.

The band is clearly affected by the plaints, quickly forgetting what they were here to do. Except Skwisgaar, who reminds them all they have to find clues about Toki's whereabouts. It does not seem like they're listening to him, though.

Now up to here, I want to point out 2 things:

That Nathan and Pickles seem the most upset by these confrontations.

That, while Skwisgaar is disturbed, he still has their goal in mind.

About Nathan and Pickles, I think it makes sense, they are the leaders of the band, they're most conscious of its tremendous success. They also know they're extremely talented musicians, meaning, they're aware of their value. They know they're far from being these miserable pricks demanding rewards. Nathan had a nurturing family while Pickles used to be in a huge band, previously to Dethklok. They're both people that have been inherently helped by other people, which is why being confronted is actually uncomfortable.

Skwisgaar is certainly a different case. I have to say, I was pretty surprised to find out that he had a guitar teacher. Based on the flashbacks in Fatherklok, I assumed he had been self taught. Skwisgaar himself has admitted he was pretty poor in his childhood so it's hard to believe Servetta would've invested in his music education. Plus, he can't read music which I think would be hardly the case if he had gotten classes.

But anyway, I'll play along. This teacher is speaking English and he doesn't make any mistakes so I'm guessing he's american. Meaning, Skwisgaar took classes when he went to America, which was later in his life. To strengthen his game and/or learn the technical bits he might have missed before? Maybe? And if this was the case, then Skwisgaar would've felt less obligated to indulge to other people in his life, when he learned to be independent from a really young age. He doesn't feel like he owes shit to other people, because other people didn't give him shit. Thus, the Depths of Humanity effect is not that strong in him.

You could also argue that the loss of Toki is a far more terrifying prospect than these bitter acquaintances from their past but I'll elaborate on that further in this post.

Murderface? Well, Murderface has low esteem and is the less popular member in the band, so of course he can't fall victim to guilt-tripping. Because that would mean acknowledging he feels like he's in a better place than others, it would mean that he actually believes himself superior than others. But he doesn't, Murderface is convinced he's worth nothing, so this whole charade is more grating than anything. Which brings us to the next moment.

The way Murderface is coaxed by the Depths of Humanity crew, is when a seemingly fan approaches him and starts praising him, claiming he's the best one. And then, is when Murderface is hypnotized by the attention. He's already such a negative person, of course more negativity isn't going to get to him. But positivism? That's another deal.

Skwisgaar once again insists that they have to find a clue on how to find Toki but it falls on deaf ears. Nathan is grabbing his head in despair while Pickles clutches his chest in what seems to be an impending panic attack.

Now I really like the wording 'I'll look if you do, too' from Skwisgaar. It almost feels like, even in this situation, he's trying to sound cool about it. He doesn't want to be the only one caring this much about Toki, he doesn't want to be the one leading this operation. He's not a leader, he's never been a leader, even less when it comes to emotional stuff, which is the implicit purpose of this search. They care about Toki, and that's why they're looking for him. But is Skwisgaar seems to be unconsciously rejecting this fact. This attachment.

However, his bandmates aren't listening, too self-absorbed in their anguish to do so. Skwisgaar continues the search and is quick to point out at something on the wall. It's a flyer that he grabs and, immediately, seems to connect the dots about. In an unusual display of leadership, he tells Nathan to grab Murderface so they can leave. Their purpose has been fulfilled and they can finally escape this horrid place.

Okay, so this is my favorite bit, obviously. Once they're outside, Nathan and Pickles keep complaining about what they were just subjected to, and Skwisgaar stops them to show his discovery. It's the same flyer he just grabbed, and it features the place where Toki had his audition. Also known as the place where they all met Toki for the first time and Skwisgaar and him had the legendary duel.

We don't have a precise Dethklok timeline but it's been a long time since Toki joined the band. Several years, at the very least. And this building is nothing but a far away memory, from when they were a lesser band. From when they weren't the big rockstars they are now. So, it really begs to question that not only did Skwisgaar remember the place, but he did so at once, when he hadn't seen or heard of it in years.

...Unless, he had been thinking about it recently?

We know, thanks to the beautiful central section of the movie, that Toki had been thinking of his audition, of joining Dethklok, as a means to cope with the devastating reality he was faced with. We know reminiscing of his dazzling battle with Skwisgaar and the happiness he found within the band gave Toki strength to carry on. But what about Skwisgaar?

For someone who considered himself much better than other guitarists, to the point he didn't want to play with another one, to actually find an equal, someone that challenged him, it couldn't have been anything short of extraordinary for Skwisgaar.

The summit is for the very best only, yet it's quite lonely too, and Skwisgaar had been basking in that isolation his whole life. Until he played with Toki, then the idea of sharing his field no longer felt like an insult, but potential instead. He found someone that could improve his own playing, someone that could compliment his guitar, take it to even higher heights.

And so, Skwisgaar was the one to invite Toki to the band, more specifically, to tell him he wanted him in the band. While we can't factually know how the rest of the members joined Dethklok, we know for sure that Skwisgaar was the sole responsible for making Toki join, as the rest were already bidding him farewell for failing to keep up with Skwisgaar.

So, when the one person that challenged Skwisgaar's playing was taken away, it wouldn't be a stretch for Skwisgaar to look back on how it all happened. To ponder about the circumstances that lead them to the current situation. It's clear the whole band loves Toki and, unable to deal with their own sadness, drank and fucked to oblivion. This also applies to Skwisgaar, except that with him it's especially complex, given that he's the one that brought Toki to his world to begin with. Given that Toki and Skwisgaar share the same instrument. (Fun fact: you don't actually see Skwisgaar fiddling with his guitar in Doomstar Requiem, just puttings dat out theres.)

Obviously, this is a bunch of mumbo-jumbo but as any Pepe-Silvia-scene impersonator that respects themselves, I want to point out how interesting of a coincidence it is that, less than 2 songs later, Skwisgaar is saying this:

Right before they head in to rescue Toki and Abigail, Skwisgaar imparts some reflection of his. He's been wondering if maybe it wouldn't be better to go back to being a one-guitar band. Toki has been in Dethklok for a long time now, so it's interesting Skwisgaar has been thinking about this...

...Except, that's exactly what his mentality used to be like, before meeting Toki. Right when he was trying to convince Pickles that they didn't need a rhythm guitar, he spoke these words exactly. One-guitar band.

It's almost like Skwisgaar is trying to do some self-preservation by returning to his aloof roots. He made Toki join the band, now Toki's gone and in danger, and maybe this wouldn't have happened if they had stuck with Skwisgaar's original plan. Because they attempted to replace Magnus is why this came to be. The revenge Magnus promised did arrive.

I just wanna be clear. I don't think Skwisgaar believes he's the sole to responsible for this, I'm sure he knows Magnus is the main perpetrator here. But the facts remain the facts, and had they all stayed as they were, then they wouldn't be risking their lives now to save their fifth member.

Like this, it seems entirely logical that Skwisgaar would be thinking of his former reluctance, of the Duel, of everything. It's all fresh in his mind once again, because Toki's kidnapping has forced him to realize they're not actually untouchable. Their mortality is back on the table, and so are their bonds.

In short, Skwisgaar had been repressing all his emotions about Toki's disappearance, but from the Depths of Humanity onward, he can't help but show them. He can't help but admit to himself and others, that he wants Toki back. So much, that a bunch of angry and entitled people can't affect him enough to forget it. So much that it's making him remember how distant he used to be, before Toki. So much that it's making him realize how different he is now.

[k3igol0ve]

⭑｡𖦹°‧ Betrayal. [ How breaking up with him would go // mean Keigo Takami.] — KEIGO TAKAMI X READER GENRE: HURT, ANGST.

; Somewhat canon divergence; " Enough is enough Keigo. "

Is love a temporary fleeting feeling? What did it take for someone to get bored of you? An important lesson you've learnt from Keigo; some people only crave a relationship for the feeling, for the attention you're giving them. They're obsessed with the idea of a relationship, they don't love you; they love the attention you give them. Besides, he could easily replace you couldn't he? Wrong, he'd never find another like you. No one would tolerate him as much as you did. Welcome to reality and Society, Keigo.

Unfair, it almost felt as if it was a one-sided relationship when it came to Keigo Takami. There you were, struggling to keep the relationship afloat, while Keigo played it off; almost as if he was indifferent. Communication with him was as good as talking to a brick wall, apparently you weren't allowed to show temperament, only he could. Only he could be annoyed, only he could be infuriated, only he could be disappointed. His feelings were placed above yours. He didn't care about what you thought, because he knew you'd never leave someone like him. You'd always have to be the one to mend things, even though it was never your fault, because he'd ignore you if you didn't. He'd act aloof as if nothing occurred while your thought rack up your guilt filled mind. Arguments were a result of Keigo's petty and irrational thinking and yet you'd be the one apologising. You couldn't be better than him, because he was the best. He thought of other people as lower beings, but he'd never say that in public to maintain his high and perfect reputation. He looked at the flaws of others, but never of his own; he only focused on his own perfection. His thinking was narrow minded. The best way to describe him; a narcissist, a selfish asshole; but you could never do anything about it. Keigo, could do anything and you wouldn't be able to say a single word. Hate him all you want, but you could never find the strength to leave him. Keigo could compliment other girls, comment on their appearance while comparing you to them. He humiliates you in the mean time, mocking you as someone lesser. So you'd decide you'd speak out against that, atleast attempt to communicate. But you know Keigo, it'd never work out. Instead of apologising, he plays it off. If he has it in him, he'd find a way to humiliate you more. " Maybe I wouldn't compliment them if you looked better, --" or maybe if you had what they did. Other times, he'd play it off as 'being part of his job' as a hero. He's sick of it, he's loosing his grip on you. You defying him, questioning him. Other days, he'd ignore you as if nothing had been said or simply reply with a mere thumbs up. You didn't matter to him. That is until, you are on the verge of leaving. Twice, you've fallen for the same trick. Keigo would beg, promising to change his ways, he doesn't want you to leave because you were an easy person to keep. He gloated on your insecurities to place himself as a higher being. You tolerated him when he knew no one else did. He'd lie, leaving fake signs and messages that would make you sympathise him and perchance come back to him. ' Maybe in another life we would've been together. ' It's these little acts that provoke pity in you, that you can't help but feel drawn back to him. ' Baby, I miss you. ' When you're back? That act fades away, he knows you'd come back. He knows you'd stay. He knew you were attached. It worked twice, but why not this time? Third time wasn't the charm. How did you fall for someone like him in the first place? Simple, his sweet charming personality, and his feigned innocence. He teased you, and chased you until you fall into his dreaded trap. He'd leave little notes, little hints that were subtle and not at the same time. Maybe it'd be love songs he'd sing to you while 'subtly' hinting it was aimed at you. Maybe it was little notes that implied his interest in you, but you could never be sure. ' Just be mine already. ' He'd be everywhere you were, how sweet was it that he asked his colleagues how to approach someone like you? How to court someone like you? Oh, how you had fallen from grace, my dove. How shattered were you when you realised you had fallen for a facade? Pet names, changed into derogatory terms. How much disrespect can one tolerate? 'My love', became 'My bitch,'. As if you were an object of entertainment and nothing more.

Then the effort he had given you when he was courting you dwindled to a 0. He knew you had fallen perfectly into his trap, into his arms where you had become attached. 'This wasn't the Keigo I fell inlove with.'

So this was it, and Keigo knew it. You had gotten mad at him, wanting time alone. You started to ignore his calls, you changed your apartment's code. You haven't responded to his texts in a week, haven't responded to his subtle hints of him wanting you back. He misses the attention you gave him.

' A woman can say she loves you and never speak to you ever again. '

Keigo is way too prideful to accept being broken up with so he'd do it first. In turn, he chooses to give up; well not really; he attempts to make you jealous. Keigo moves on fast, he really does.

Afterall he is ‘ the man who moves too fast for his own good.’

Simple really, he would find another and date them, attempting to make you jealous. Naturally you'd want closure. You'd have to do it, atleast getting a sign was better than nothing.

As infuriating as it was, you did get a sign in the form of a ' 👍 '. It was good enough. Then he tries again, he really does.

For the first time in 2 years, he apologises; for everything. For being a 'prick' with communication. He keeps up the act of having a lover. He actually does have a lover, and so you have accepted it, afterall you basically gained your freedom.

Thank the stars for the god sent girl who had taken Keigo's interest for a period of time, and god save her from the emotional stress she would receive because of Keigo's emotional immaturity.

He failed, getting you back. He failed seeing you feel jealousy, and he DESPISED failing. So he replaces you with his lover, but its pathetic really.

During this time, he publicly humiliates you, showing his obsession with you despite it being MONTHS since you have separated.

He flaunts his new lover, she's better than you afterall. He continues to make you jealous.

' She works better than we ever did '.

But you don't care do you? It hurts, but despite it all you heal, you attempt to move on. The presence of him haunts you, interviews, social media, even his presence in public. He takes every chance he gets to humiliate you.

He's angry, he's infuriated. Why won't you come back to him? Why is nothing working? So he goes further, he insults you. He doesn't even subtly insult you anymore, he outright insults you. He's petty, he resorts to insulting your appearance, especially things you're insecure about. He's petty, he compares you with her at any chance he gets. He practically prays on your downfall going as far as to ruin your reputation in public.

He wishes you the WORST in everything.

Though, humans have their limits don't they? As much as you desire and crave to respond, you don't. To show you are the bigger person, to show that truly you don't care. Over the months you have moved on while Keigo proceeds to tarnish your reputation and attempt to bring you down without prevailing. It's getting tiring really, how isn't he sick of it when his topic is always focused on you. Isn't his current lover sick of hearing your name in his mouth?

He's wasting his efforts, because his current lover becomes an ex. He spent too much effort on you. He had it coming, someone as shitty as him doesn't deserve anyone. It was a curse upon those who had fallen inlove with him. Keigo lost someone who would listen to him, permanently, and he couldn't fathom that.

Though, she was nothing compared to you. You were the best of the best, you tolerated him, you endured his shitty behaviour, you forgave him despite everything, you promised to stay with him till the end, but where were you now?

So he's desperate once more, though this time you don't come back. Afterall what has been said was said, he couldn't take back his words, he couldn't take back his hurled insults that were created in the heat of the moment.

At night, irrational thoughts would swirl his head while he's intoxicated. He unblocks you, texts you once more with pleas of pathetic desperation.

"I miss you, I'm sorry. " It could go on for hours, and even a whole paragraph could appear. You'd ignore it of course, and if you were petty enough you'd laugh to yourself.

He even goes as far as degrading himself,

' Knowing you were my only chance to change, I left you. ' It's pathetic of Keigo, it really was.

It was useless too, you'd move on with your life. Your heart free from his shackles, your heart was lightened. Maybe you didn't have a significant other, but you were free.

It'd go off and on, in his vulnerable moments he'd miss you. He didn't miss you of course, he missed the attention you gave him. The gentleness that no one else could provide.

Then when he was feeling infuriated, angered by something in particular he'd start up his insults. Bipolar behaviourisms. Every time you'd post on your socials, he'd talk behind your back; pointing out your apparent insecurities as if you'd give a flying fuck. He wanted a reaction out of you, but you weren't going to give in.

You wondered when he would give up but, you know relationships aren't important, you know the limits of a damaging relationship and chose to focus on yourself.

You're much happier now, despite the occasional thought of him.

IF ANYONE OF YOU ARE IN A RELATIONSHIP LIKE THIS, I'LL SAY ONCE LOUDLY; RUN, LOVE, I PROMISE ITS NOT WORTH IT. HE/SHE/THEY IS NOT WORTH ALL THIS MENTAL TURMOIL. FOCUS ON YOURSELF. EMOTIONAL MANIPULATION IS NOT WORTH IT. Take care of yourself .

[still-a-morosexual-help]

Here's something mildly heartbreaking :) (my speciality!)

Mammon definitely cried when MC died right?

• He (along with Asmo) is the character who cries the most in canon;

1.) He cries during sad parts of movies/shows/plays/books

2.) He cries while watch animal documentries

3.) Hell he cried because Beel ate the soup he was making MC

• MC died on a day where the rest of the brothers were (up until that point) having a relaxing, fun day - playing a game to get Lucifer & MC closer together. Their death was definitely unexpected/an extreme shock

• MC's injuries were bad according to Satan? (Levi?) Bad enough that a human wouldn't have been able to survive it. Bad enough that even Lucifer knew he couldn't do anything to save them when Asmo asked him to. That means the body Mammon was holding was........ I mean it would have been a gruesome sight

• Mammon's been spending every day since the beginning of the year with MC. At this point he's already obviously in love with them, they're his best friend, the two of them share a bedroom frequently. They were close

The point being: Mammon held a dying human in his arms and sobbed his fucking heart out while asking them not to die. In front of Belphie.

The point being: Mammon didn't cry when Lilith died. No listen, he absolutely broke down when she died but he didn't do it in front of his brothers. Mammon was the one keeping it together and looking after everyone when they Fell. He couldn't scream and cry and beg like he wanted to when Lilith died because he had to be the strong one, he had to soothe everyone's injuries and fears and guilt, he had to show them that things could be better, that they could move on to a brighter future (shoutout to Mammon's lines in his unit song with Lucifer).

But you know what Belphie would have seen?

He would have seen his older brother breaking down over a human he's known for months when he wouldn't even cry after his little sister, who he'd known for thousands of years, died

And we all already know what Belphie thought about humans at this time:

And we already know what he thought about his brothers at this time:

For a moment there, while MC was dying Belphie would have hated Mammon. Would have felt vindicated for causing Mammon that kind of pain, when he (as far as Belphie knew) couldn't even spare that for his sister.

Belphie would have felt angry and betrayed. Justified for what he said and did but so so painfully hurt.

And then (in s1 of the anime) when the brothers were tiptoeing around Belphie, were trying to reach out to him and act normal after what he did, but were so obviously failing, when there was a distance between them and Belphie that had previously never existed, that even Beel couldn't find away to breach, Mammon was the first to take that step forward and close the distance which prompted everyone else to do the same, to bring Belphie back to them, to show that he was accepted and loved and always a part of them

And I am very emotional about them.

Disclaimer: this is absolutely not a post bashing Belphie or his thoughts/actions/feelings. They're both complex characters and I always love trying to breakdown and figure out what certain characters were feeling at a time by bringing up other moments in canon. If you try to make this post into something to bash Belphie or start dumb discourse I will eat your entire right leg🐸

In addition, me stating things from canon or talking about negative emotions or things characters have done and comparing those things to another charcter's actions/emotions/responses is not me putting down one character to raise up another. Sometimes when analysing characters you have to compare and contrast them with others present in that or similar situations -> doing so doesn't mean I'm shit talking one character. A character can do, say, think, believe bad or complex things -> there's nothing wrong with talking about/analysing those things or still loving that character.

I know it seems stupid to say something that should seem obvious but *takes out cigar and blows smoke* I've been in this business a long time, kid (3 years for om!, 7 years actively in a fandom, 14 years in fandom in general) I've seen things, terrible things

Also, lemme shamelessly plug in my fic because it's related to this post -> Changing Seasons

Ft. Belphie coming to terms with MC after Lesson 16

Onesided Belphie × (unnamed gn!) MC

Mammon x MC being Besties

Belphie & Mammon talking, but not talking enough

Belphie's PoV

Mammon very briefly being an eldritch nightmare as a little treat for you monsterfuckers

Edit:

Huge additional part added because I realised the entire focus of this post could be misunderstood

Ajznxodjfc9enhd7ejx 😭😭😭😭this was supposed to be Belphie's post about Belphie's feelings. Y'all know I love Mammon, but he's not supposed to be the focus here🥲

Usually when I make an analysis post I take evidence from canon and then add it all together to get ✨️The Main Point✨️ of the post.

In this post I had to infer all of mammon's "canon evidence" (via other actual canon evidence) because we're never explicitly told he cried when MC died and we never see his instant reaction to Lilith's death.

Belphie's side of it was however all explicitly stated in canon so I just added the screenshots. Which is why I wrote much more about mammon on this post than Belphie.

But ✨️The Main Point✨️ that I was always getting to and what made me write this post is actually about how absolutely fucking pissed off Belphie would have been because of Mammon. How hurt and angry and betrayed he would have felt that his older brother who's meant to protect him and his family apparently valued the life of some random human over their sister's.

I added the S1 bit because it nicely rounded up Belphie & Mammon's story. Because it proved Belphie wrong. It proved exactly how much Mammon (and the others) valued him and each other. Because he got to see how heartbroken Mammon was when MC died, he knew exactly what it was like to be that heartbroken, he knew exactly what it was like to NEVER forgive that which caused the pain, and yet he was forgiven. And THAT I think more than anything would have proved Belphie's initial thoughts wrong. It would have eased any lingering feelings of betrayal and hurt he had. Would have proved how much he was loved by his older brother.

So yeah, this was absolutely made to be Belphie's post and I don't think I explained that well enough in the original post💀 in my defense i was half an hour late in feeding the kids & getting yelled at🥲

[breadandblankets]

how i hc duke's relationships with the other (main) bats

bruce: mentor/friend/weird HS teacher u bond with kinda thing, i think bruce on his end still feels simmering guilt for not being there for duke when he needed him, duke feel simmering resentment towards bruce for being another adult that left him, this will boil over at some point but then they'll get over it, they will never be that dumb nuclear found family thing, i think doug and elaine would like bruce tho so maybe one of those friend of the family situations where u call someone ur not related to aunt/uncle

cass: very very good friends, would probably consider her a sister from another mister if u will, i would hesitate to call her a best friend *gestures at all of war* but i think she's up there, i really love the headcanon that there is some tension on duke's end because cass has the ability to be more efficient but she actively chooses not to, i think for a long time duke is going to be holding some unhealthy and unrealistic standards both for himself and also people around him, like everything else this causes tension then erupts before it gets resolved, cass i think would know about said tension the whole time but have no idea how to bring up the issue or how to even think about resolving it so it drags on

dick: i think duke holds a grudge for the robin war thing, and i think he fucking should iykyk, (the way he just leaves duke on a roof??? with cops????, i was shouting at my fucking comic) idk i think dick would probably make light of it for a while but duke would be real fucking clear that he remembers and won't be forgiving and forgetting any time soon, i think they're acquaintances at best but realistically, coworkers

damian: like cass Extremely good friends, found family if you will, honestly i think they got a lot of their interpersonal issues out of the way before duke becomes signal, so really its a matter of time before they actually become friends and not just acquaintances, they're old man young to me, i think they do old man things like feed birds in the park and play Go together, i think damian is probably one of the only people duke doesn't hold to his standards, he thinks damian deserves to be a kid, making damian be a kid is probably some of the only time that duke is forced to relax by proxy, therefore duke and damian's friendship is strongly encouraged by bruce who is out of his depth for what to do with both of them and throwing them at each other seems to be working (👍 parenting)

tim: i honestly don't think they know each other well, like i think they may have talked once??? so i don't have shit to base their relationship off, generally i think they're amicable if distant, like a coworker you say hi to at the coffee machine

babs: i Need them to interact, honestly it would be really funny if duke meets babs for the first time as oracle and he's just like??? you're my favorite librarian? and babs is like !! we missed you when you stopped volunteering!!! and duke has to be like yeah that was the joker, i think they would have a good relationship, they don't work together all that much cause oracle doesn't run duke's ops and duke isn't usually on the night shift but they know they can call each other in if they need. one of duke's few trusted AdultsTM

jason: i think rocky at the start, duke would definitely have some Memories of the red hood, that would probably be a hill to overcome, but i generally think that jason will eventually move into a more positive position in the city even with the shadows of all that stuff following him ofc. they are absolute Assholes to each other in a way that is clearly affection, jason will let duke get away with anything up to and including murder, duke will never let jason get away with anything, its like a typo in the group chat

steph: re same as tim, and babs practically nothing to base the relationship on BUT i think they would get on like a house on fire, like cass: sister from another mister energy, steph is giving duke the "you just found out ur dad is a supervillain" support he needs, they are the only bats successfully going to college they probably go to events on campus together, idk they have so much potential as the forgotten robins and all that, i think they should bully bruce together that would be so fun.

[necrotic-nephilim]

ok ok but jayroytim😏

this feels especially funny if brudick happens in the background and oliver hates the fact he's now in-laws with bruce

so i have to regretfully admit i'm not really a fan of JayRoy, or at least i'm not a fan of the popular version of JayRoy. i think JayRoy could work and would be a lot of fun! but i have *zero* interest in New-52!JayRoy (or New-52!Roy in general) or rlly any version of Jason and Roy on the Outlaws together. both bc i'm a pre-Flashpoint stan at heart. usually i can stand newer content for ship fodder but for these two oh man it grinds my gears how badly Roy got fucked over-

BUT BUT. that doesn't mean i think the ship has *no* merit. because Jason and Roy *do* have some fodder in pre-Flashpoint. they meet briefly when Jason is Robin, and then again when Jason is Red Hood during that Outsiders arc where Black Lightning is in prison. so! there's definitely material to work with. especially playing into the more fucked up nature of Roy knowing Jason when he was Robin. i think it's cute if Jason had a childhood crush on Roy. and maybe Roy even thought Jason was kind of cute, a spunky kid with a lot of energy and passion. then with Jason as Red Hood, Roy openly doesn't trust him and doesn't like that they're working with him. Jason is just a run-of-the-mill villain with a nasty kill count. and sure, Roy's got a record of tangling with people more on the villain side of things, but even going near the Red Hood feels like a step too far.

adding Tim to the mix is really fun. bc honestly it gives Roy some kind of a fetish for guys who have been Robin and i find that to be delightful. like, even if Roy just sees Jason as the Red Hood, he can't *quite* let go of the image of Jason as Robin. like it just won't get out of Roy's system ever since Jason came back. i think, if i were to write these three together, i'd have Roy and Tim get together first of all people, just because Roy is trying really hard to stop thinking about Jason as Robin, especially now that Jason is older and a little meaner. he's full of guilt about it, and he can't talk to Dick because he's still not sure where Dick's feelings fall about the whole Jason thing so. he goes to Tim instead, thinking if he fucks a different Robin, maybe he'll get it out of his system. Tim's pretty and he's just old enough that it's not *too* morally questionable for Roy to seek him out. it takes a while for Roy to work up the nerves because he and Tim aren't particularly close, so how do you even approach that conversation to make it look organic. it's awkward and Tim can definitely tell something is up but hey, who's going to say no to Roy Harper offering sex? one of Dick's best friends? especially if we put this right after Kon and Bart's death where Tim is just. sort of lonely and seeking companionship. in some ways,, Roy would remind him of Kon, just a little. that sort of cocky attitude and snarky smile.

i would add Jason in by having JayTim happen alongside RoyTim. it's not like Roy and Tim are serious enough to be exclusive and Tim knows Roy is sleeping around, so Tim ends up in a weird hatefucking situation with Jason, which definitely was not supposed to happen. Jason just has a damning way of getting under Tim's skin and won't stop bothering Tim until he gets some kind of attention from Tim. and somehow Jason is interesting enough for Tim to cave. and he doesn't even think about the two relationships he's balancing until he happens to sleep with Jason after being with Roy the night before and there are still marks all over him and Jason does *not* like sharing. so when he interrogates Tim and gets nothing, he does the reasonable thing of stalking Tim to figure out who it is. and it just happens to be the guy Jason had a crush on as a kid.

i think Roy finding out he tried so hard to avoid Jason that he accidentally ended up with the same fuck buddy as Jason would be the funniest thing in the world. like it's not something he can run from anymore and he has to accept that. he tries to awkwardly ask what Tim even sees in the guy bc well, Jason's a killer and not known for being mentally stable. but he's also the guy who exonerated Black Lightning with no real motive besides just helping out. he's complicated and Roy doesn't know how to react. Tim just sort of shrugs bc how do you even explain Jason Todd and well, one thing leads to another and Tim ends up in the middle of the most emotionally charged threesome he's ever been in. love the idea of Jason and Roy using Tim as a toy while they work out their feelings for each other. to me that's the peak dynamic. Jason and Roy are pissed about liking each other and somehow, Tim got roped into things. their relationship is not healthy or normal whatsoever, but somehow, they end up balancing each other out nicely.

background BruDick is also hilarious tho. bc there is no one who hates Bruce more than Oliver and he'd be so annoyed that not only did Roy get tangled up with the Bats, but now everything is so weird their families are pretty tangled together and Oliver has to deal with Bruce a lot more than he wants to. and he's glaring daggers about it the whole time.

[comradeboyhalo]

So I went back and watched Bad's conversations with Foolish, Baghera, and Tina and the difference in how Bad talks to each of them really speaks to who each character truly is.

While Bad's conversation with Foolish is still very much a test, he talks to Foolish like an equal, someone to bounce ideas off of. Bad knows Foolish's morals lines up with his own, and he is constantly seeking justification from him. They talk in metaphors, but their shared understanding of each other makes this one of the bluntest conversations Bad's had. He doesn't really lie, because he's heavily relying on Foolish to piece things together himself. It's him who asks openly "How much can I trust you, Foolish?" and Foolish gives him a very honest, logical answer. It's perfect for Bad. He's not looking for pity or emotional support. He just wants to know who's going to get in his way. And Foolish, untrustworthy as he may be, seems to be the only one actively cheering Bad on. They sound like co-conspirators. Bad knows he and Foolish are both playing two separate games of 3D chess ("It's a fun game, it's a fun game we're playing, Bad!"), so why would he pretend like he's not?

Throughout their conversation, he's constantly moving to talk to Foolish on the same ground level, until the very last conversation about Ron. This is when Bad drops his most important piece of info, shrouded completely in metaphor. He's looking up towards Foolish; he is finally showing his hand and placing Foolish on the upper ground. And when Foolish affirms what Bad wants the most from him--that family is above all else--he then tells him they're on the same page, and walks up to be eye-level with him once more.

"When the time comes, Foolish, I'm going to need your help. We'll burn it all down, Foolish." They do not trust each other, but can understand each other's motives. And this, for now, has Bad and Foolish on the same side.

Baghera and Bad's conversation has the most clash. The "test" for Baghera was in showing her Ron, so this is a continuation. Similar to Foolish, they have a co-conspirators vibe, but it's not fun for Baghera at all. It's as if her friend showed up with a dead body, and she's horrified but scrubbing blood out anyways. They're on different wavelengths: Baghera just wants to make this right, but Bad is only thinking about his benefit. ("Badboy, now we have to make things cleaner, not dirtier.") Baghera agrees with Bad in the sense that she's willing to do anything for the eggs--but she's not willing to justify it like Bad is. And here's the issue: Bad is not justifying his torture of Ron because he's trying to escape guilt, he genuinely believes his beliefs are correct. He talks childlishly to Baghera, like a kid caught with their hand in a cookie jar. He needs her to walk him through, step by step, the issues of his morals.

It's just...not a fun conversation. It feels like the devil trying to drag Baghera down to hell alongside him. Throughout their conversation, Bad's gaze is constantly shifting. With Foolish, they made constant eye contact. But here, all of Bad's agreements with Baghera comes off shady. He's just placating her. His mind is running a thousand miles a minute while they talk, and not all of it is shared with her. "So we're on the same page?" / "No." <- It's a direct parallel to landduo's conversation. They are on the same side, yes, but they are not the same.

"We can try to walk the road we're on. Baghera. And whatever paths we need to take to reach that destination, Baghera, I'm willing to take." Bad asks if Baghera understands him, and she says she does. Baghera will remain a trusted friend, but he'll remember their differences in beliefs. They share a destination, but not a path.

Now Tina and Bad...where do we even begin. Their conversation is the most emotionally-charged. Bad matches her vulnerability. This is simultaneously the most honest he's been, as well as the most manipulative. He gives her multiple tests throughout their talk, while also rewarding her with the most information. He doesn't actually want her to help him. These are all tests to see her reaction, to gauge her motives. ("I don't actually want you to say anything to Foolish.")

Tina's motives are selfish in such a pure way. She just wants to be trusted, wants to be helpful. And that is understandable to Bad. She is the only one who gets a vocal admission of trust, and I think it's because he can see right through her. I think there's part of him that admires her. They share commonalities. They are lonely. They want to be loved. They are willing to hurt themselves for love. But Tina, in Bad's eyes, is someone who has not yet been beaten down by the island. And instead of protecting her against all this, he believes it is inevitable she will fall. So he might as well kickstart her corruption and have her join him. Once again: "I think we're on the same page," he says.

She sits, huddled, as he circles her like a hawk, before they finally end up sitting side-by-side, not quite looking at each other. Tina is not an unsuspecting mouse, in this conversation. She is willing to fall into every trap she sees laid out if it means she can be trusted. Bad talks to her gently, with the hint of a threat. His finger is on the trigger, but the gun is not pointed at her.

"Y'know whats interesting, Tina? I like that. I think you just want someone who confides in you. Someone who cares about you for you no matter what. The eggs were like that, Tina." Bad sees his own self-destructiveness in Tina. He understands her from an emotional standpoint, a stark contrast from his understanding of Foolish. Perhaps he believes that if they get the eggs back, they'll both be fixed.

tl;dr: Bad treats Foolish as an equivalent gamemaster -> he understands that he and Foolish could potentially play on the same side. Baghera is Bad's trusted friend, but disagrees with his methods -> Bad will continue to trust her, but is aware their paths will diverge. Tina and Bad are very similar emotionally -> he is willing to use her, and she is willing to be used, and that puts them at an understanding.

[theflyindutchwoman]

Of course I'm scared. If we do this and it doesn't work, I'll have ruined the most important relationship in my life. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said, um -- No. Um… You're right. So we should just keep going the way we have been, right? It's not worth the risk. Unless it is.

| ANATOMY OF A SCENE - CHENFORD EDITION 5.08 - The Collar

Words cannot describe how much I love this scene… It's how different and refreshing this is… It's how Lucy has finally allowed herself to come to terms with her feelings for Tim, that he is the one for her… And now that she knows that, she can't brush it off or ignore it any longer. Just like Tim, who wanted to talk about it once he was aware of his own feelings for her. She has caught up to him, ready to be completely open and honest after their conversation in the shop...

It's how mature this feels. There's no need for unnecessary drama, for a shouting match or, worse, for one of them to play dumb. These two have spent years developing a shorthand and are pretty good at communicating, there is no reason for this to be suddenly any different. But most of all, they know each other, their character. They both understood what their willingness to sleep together meant, even if it was under the guise of undercover. They infered the same conclusion : for them to be ready to cross that line, there had to be feelings. The only thing that was holding them back, besides their respective partners, was the fear. The fear of losing the other, of losing this relationship that is so important to them… Of losing their person...

It's how, in the end, this scene feels like a breath of fresh air… Where the respect and love Tim and Lucy have for each other shine through. Where they both take that leap together. And it's how this happens in the parking lot, in front of the station… A place charged with history, where so much has happened lately. This is very close to where Tim fake-proposed to Ashley, with a heartbroken Lucy watching… To where they met the morning after their first kiss, both hopeful and awkward… To where he watched her leave with Chris, the pining and longing written all over his face… And yet, despite all of this, this feels like a brand new place… On the other side of the sidewalk, as they're crossing a symbolic threshold… With a much softer and romantic atmosphere, with all the flowers and plants around them, creating a colorful bubble just for them… Both sitting so close to each other, completely disregarding the chairs nearby… Forgetting the concept of personal space, as always.

It's how Tim was waiting for Lucy, as if they had convened of a meeting at the end of their shift, to end what they started in the shop. An idea that is reinforced when Lucy claims they need to talk as soon as she arrives : she knew where to find him. I'm a bit curious as to what she was actually planning to say before Tim joked about yet another listing and took over the conversation… Regardless, this part illustrates how they are still a bit out of sync. Lucy might have had her revelation, but Tim is very much in the dark in that regard. As far as he knows, she has at best realised that Chris isn't the one… She's one step ahead of him here. And it absolutely shows with the way he goes right back to where their discussion ended in the shop. Asking her again why she is staying with her boyfriend when it's clearly not working. And, while it might sound a bit judgmental, he's simply trying to understand what's stopping her, so he can help her. This is truly about her for him. I like how he zeroes in on her guilt because she did stay with Chris longer than necessary out of guilt and responsibility. For almost cheating on him. For what Rosalind did to him. And it was all the more obvious when she was trying to convince herself that she should love him back, implying that something was wrong with her… She deflects a bit - again - by calling him out for doing the same thing. And she isn't wrong : everything he told her in the shop fitted his relationship with Ashley to a T. He was settling, knowing full well they didn't want the same future, not arguing because it wasn't worth the bother (her retirement plans, the Whole30 diet…). If anything, this highlights how they were both denying their feelings, hiding behind a safe relationship. Not wanting to be alone.

And this is where their frustration boils over… Lucy because the conversation is not going the way she intended and they are getting off topic a little… And Tim because he is getting defensive. He's correct in his assessment : she definitely stayed this long because it was safe. But he couldn't be more wrong about the other part : this has everything to do about him. He is the reason she stayed with Chris (why she even went out with him in the first place, one might argue)… And, ultimately, why she could have never committed to a life with him either. Because he's not Tim. And so Lucy blurts out how she feels, why she is so scared… what she figured out in the shop. Out of frustration and out of nervousness. And because this is something that has been on her mind since their last talk. That's how intense those feelings are : she can't contain them anymore.

'If we do this, I would have ruined the most important relationship in my life'… It may not be a love confession per se, but the implications in this one sentence are huge. And in a way, it feels more powerful and true to them : it encompasses the entirety of their relationship, what he fully means to her. As I said earlier, she's not even questioning if he has feelings for her : she knows. She saw the looks, the signs, the reactions. Like when he was ready to talk about their feelings, something he usually avoids doing… or when he came in her apartment… When he didn't want her to worry about him… or when he said she deserved someone who's worth the bother and effort… What she doesn't know yet, is the extent of these feelings. But it wasn't really the risk of hers being unrequited that was scaring her the most : it was the fear of losing him, of losing what they have. Because their bond is already special, even without the romance. He is her person, the one she trusts completely and implicitly, the one whose opinion matters the most, the one who supports her unconditionally… And it's not like her fear isn't legitimate : she spent the last couple of months believing that she had already ruined everything, when Tim pushed her away (or so she thought). She was devastated in that hallway. And now that they're getting back to where they were, she doesn't want to lose him again.

And Tim… The magnitude of her statement is hitting him in full force. He was so focused on her relationship with Chris that he's completely caught off guard by her confession. He certainly never expected to be this important to her, this significant. To be chosen, let alone be her first choice. Because time and time again, he has been relegated to second choice. Told repeatedly, even if implicitly, that he wasn't enough. So Lucy, of all people, telling him this, is blowing his mind. The micro-expressions on his face are amazing. The editing is as brilliant, with this moment of stunned silence, both needing some time to comprehend what has just happened, emphasising in the meantime the lyrics in the background : 'I'm scared to go home'… And this epitomises what they are feeling so poetically. They are each other's home.

Lucy is the first one to recover, all nervous and terrified that she has said too much. That she has scared him away. But she hasn't. Even when he agrees with her statement, she still doesn't question his feelings for her. She simply takes it as his way of saying they should maintain the status quo and go back to how things were. That it's not worth taking the risk of ruining their current relationship. 'Unless it is…' Her confession is all the final push Tim needed : he has been ready to talk about this and risk everything since that second kiss. He knew what he wanted since then, he just didn't think it was in the cards… But now that she is opening the door a second time, he's not holding back. His sigh… He's gathering his courage before asking her out to dinner. And his grin! He is absolutely elated. And it matters so much that he's the one taking that first step… 'Rules matter, Boot'… But 'some things matter more'. She matters more. He told her earlier that she deserves a relationship that is worth the effort, so it fits perfectly that he would assure her that this one is worth the risk. That THEY are worth the risk. And how heart-warming is it that after all the heartbreak he went through, he doesn't hesitate to take that leap of faith with her… The fact that Lucy was the one who helped him heal along the way and get to this point, just makes all of this even more beautiful.

Her little 'yes' is so adorable… She comes off a little shy at first, becoming more assertive. Tim couldn't look happier, flashing his trademark Lucy Smile… Before experiencing the biggest whiplash when she suddenly says no. The way he's instantly shutting himself off, using his hands almost as a barrier between them, sitting a bit straighter and away from Lucy… How she reaches for his thigh to stop him and reassure him that she hasn't changed her mind… She simply remembered that she is still in a relationship - a detail they both tend to forget in the heat of the moment… And she's right : she needs to break up first. For Chris. And for them. They deserve to start their romantic relationship on a clean slate, with no regret, especially after almost jumping to bed together… While Tim agrees with her, it's clear that he isn't completely convinced either : it's like he is afraid she may change her mind. It's really when she tells him to ask her again, 'after', that he fully grasps that she is just as committed as him. Well, that and how she lights up. That last shot of them, with her little shimmy (the one she always does when she's excited) and his bashful smile while looking down is the cutest thing… It's so soft and full of promises and hope… and the perfect tone to end this scene.

[serenedash]

Let's talk khux gameplay and plot,

imo I think part of khux's story telling and the impact of the story gets lost now that the game is defunct. I always thought people didn't appreciate how the gameplay and the mechanics actually had an impact on the story and while that impact become virtually nonexistent later on, I always thought it made the story far more engaging when the game was just chi/unchained chi and also the English translation didn't do it too well ngl

Anyway what I'm specifically talking about is the medal system. Also I feel like the whole bangle thing wasn't explained well in game but really it just comes down to leveling up medals specifically. If you never played khux, you equip medals to your keyblades and they doa specific attack and to level them up you combine multiple of the same medal and you could see how leveled up a medal is by the amount of yellow dots next to it and, in JP at least, this was called "guilt" and like wow that name fucking slaps. And when nightmare chirithy reveals the player has been collecting darkness this whole time thru the medal system, you have literal guilt on your conscious. You are guilty of collecting darkness and negative emotions like guilt to use for your own power. And in Back Cover when the foretellers are made aware of this, there's no stopping it and ofc the player can't stop either, they HAVE to get stronger, you literally have to keep playing the game,

Another part of the game that I appreciated is the way the name changes factored into the game; chi was the original "world line" that the dandelions existed in and at first unchained chi had come off as just a remake but really what we're playing is the continuation, where the player and the dandelions are now in this unchained state/new world line and they're reliving their time as wielders but now without the war/"dark" memories and finally when they relive everything and get back to the "present," they continue on after into "union cross" which I feel like. wasn't explained well in game that much tbh but if you didn't understand what that meant in game, it was just to say that unions didn't matter anymore and they were all dandelions so the unions. when the unions are crossed.

and tbh the experience of playing this game in real time also added to the experience a lot and the impact of the story especially with a player insert character. I think the most effective use of this game being played in real time was Strelitzia. Now in the english version, everything with Strelitzia was all one update and the english ver was behind so honestly they had to do catch up they couldn't really afford to lag behind. But in JP, which most khux fans kept up with using fan translations, Strelitzia's introduction and her death happened about a month apart so it gave the players time to actualyl grow attached to her and THEN we get crushed. You can easily pin point the exact time certain khux fan art was drawn bc in a group drawing of the dandelions Strelitzia is there instead of Lauriam since he was only introduced after her death

and another thing! It only became apparent by the end of the game but khux actually takes place over the course of about 4 years. which is fucking insane. because the dandelions were stuck in the data for 4 years and didn't know it until the glitches started. and the game ran for roughly the same amount of time and we weren't even aware of that either until the glitches! ("why 4 years" there are cutscenes that literally say "4 years ago" so yeah girl what the fuck haha)

Anyway yeah this was just me rambling I think about this so much all the time can you tell. I hope missing link does something like this too tbh it makes it more fun and makes it feel that your actions as the player actually have impact on the story

[jevilowo]

I have an idea for an Omari Au

Instead of being a roleswap where Mari kills Sunny, it's like. Canon divergence.

So canon happens, Mari gets mad at Sunny for screwing up the song and throwing his violin down the stairs and Sunny accidentally pushes her. BUT! She doesn't land on the violin.

Basil still took photos and is still like "omg you killed Mari quick let's do an overcomplicated plan where we pretend she hung herself" and Sunny still goes along with it. But while they're setting up the noose, Mari wakes up.

She still got a massive bang on the head, but she didn't land on the violin so it wasn't fatal. She sees Sunny and Basil carrying her but she doesn't really know whats going on so she just mumbles their names. The two boys fucking PANIC and drop her and lowkey have breakdowns over how she isn't dead and oh my god we nearly actually killed her.

They drop Mari and Sunny tells Basil to go back inside and call an ambulance while he watches Mari, who in the meantime went unconcious again. Sunny sees the noose, still swinging there and he feels nothing but guilt over what happened.

On the spur of the moment, he decides he should punish himself. After all, he nearly killed his perfect older sister who did nothing but love him unconditionally. He hates himself.

He wonders what it would have felt like for her, and before he's processed what he's doing he's stepped up on a box and put his head through the noose.

He doesn't actualy mean to kill himself, but he slips off the box and the noose does its job. Mari comes to again, and what she sees of Sunny's hanging body from her angle on the ground becomes her Something.

When Basil sees what happened, he fucking skedaddles in panic. He has no idea what to do. So he does nothing.

Eventually the ambulance arrives and takes Mari and Sunny away.

Mari spends the three years Sunny spend hiding in canon in a coma. She had dreamspace explained to her enough by Sunny, and as the last things she saw were her brother, dreamspace kind of takes over her mind.

She still plays the role she did in canon: supporting from her picnic rug while the others go on adventures. In canon, Mari tries to make Sunny forgive himself, and in this Sunny is trying to make sure Mari stays oblivious to what happened as she doesn't remember and hate him.

However, Mari wakes up in the real world after the three years and that's where things start Occuring.

I haven't actually beaten the game yet myself (my puted deleted my progress when I was in Sweethearts Castle and I haven't felt like putting in another 6 hours since) but when I do (or watch a playthrough) I can develop further.

The dream before she wakes up is the same as canon, except as it's from Mari's picnicy POV the player doesn't see much. It's kind of similar to White Space in canon, Mari just roams between a toy piano, a computer and Mewo and there's a few cutscenes where she wonders why she's confined to the Picnic. Basil disappears (she sees this in like a vision sort of thing) and then she wakes up! Gasp!

She wanders her room in the hospital for a while, picks up an oversized syringe and even heads out into the corridor, but she's stopped by a nurse and she falls unconscious again.

Mari is still stuck at the Picnic back in the dream, saying nothing and smiling while her friends and Sunny talk (yeah he gets to talk here lol) about how they're going to help Sunny surpass his fear of heights, and then she's left alone again.

In this, whenever the party aproach a canon save point, the Picnic blanket crumples up with Mari and her things inside it, and it's dragged through a tunnel of sorts before popping out at the save point.

So on her second night, she decides to use her syringe to cut through the blanket and she does. She holds onto Mewo and the basket so while the blanket rolls off, she still has the cat and the ability to save her progress.

I'm not entirely sure what goes on from this point, but it likely involves Mari going on her oen adventures in these mysterious areas below the Headspace, maybe even having Stranger join her party at some point so they help each other figure out what's going on.

At the end of every night, Mari emerges from the tunnels and is found by her worried friends who take her back to the playground and she wakes up

The secon time Mari wakes up, Hero visits her in hospital where Kel did in canon, and he offers to sneak her out so she can see everyone. Really he's just desperate to talk to her again, and she isn't saying anything now and he thinks going outside may help. I'm thinking maybe he started interning at the hospital over the summer if he still was forced to go to medical school, and so knows how to sneak her in and out.

Like I said, not sure what happens from here but Basil feels even more guilty from contributing both to a death and a serious accident, Aubrey hasn't dyed her hair yet (she's waiting for Mari to wake up first) and Mari still doesn't say anything. She's amnesiac to be fair, and only remembers who Hero is from her dreams.

This whole au thing was inspired by me thinking about Mari as a character. We barely know anything about her other than that she was the perfect sister/girlfriend/mother figure to everyone. Maybe that's why she was a perfectionist. She was seen to be so perfect all the time and felt pressured to act that way.

Sunny's entire life revolved around her, they always spent time together and she's the reason he had friends in the first place. But what if Mari wasn't 100% fine with this? She loved her brother, sure, but maybe she just wanted something that was just hers. Not her boyfriend's, not Aubrey, Basil or Kel's and not even Sunny's.

Thus, the piano, and subsequently the recital. She got to be on her own for five minutes every day doing something she enjoyed (...to an extent, she got very frustrated when she fucked up) while her parents were forced to actually pay attention to Sunny for a while.

It's implied they were quite neglectful (didn't see Sunny drowning that one time, was away from the house long enough that the stairs and hanging incident went off without a hitch) and I'm sure this only added to Sunny's clingyness to Mari.

Which was why he got so upset that he couldn't spend time with her every second of every day when she started up with the piano. I'm not villainising him, obviously he was just a kid with neglectful parents, but I am saying that maybe he overreacted a little. Mari couldn't have been spending hours and hours at the piano everyday and even if she was he still had his other friends like right there, and he'd have more time with her after the recital.

So of course when he got upset and their friends started pointing it out Mari was all but obliged to include him somehow. Thus, the violin. And, perhaps, just a little resentment on Mari's end.

The violin that Sunny kept missing notes on. Mari was better at the song because she had practiced for longer, but it was easy to forget this when it kept happening. Over. And over. And over. And...

Eventually the resentment built up. Sunny was going to ruin her performance, the one she had put so much effort into practicing. Was he even trying?!

And so they argued, the violin was thrown, Mari shoved Sunny and he shoved back and–

We all know what happened.

So yeah the au idea came from my long long train of thought. Hope this ramble makes sense lol.

Oh yeah I'm thinking I might call this au like Kyojakuna (infirm), Konsui jōtai (comatose) Yowai (fragile, frail) or some variant bc Mari isn't a Hikikomori she's literally just stuck in hospital lol.

[esther-dot]

That's a Pretty Name 1k @greenhikingboots

While dancing, Jon receives a lecture from Sansa on the importance of complimenting ladies when he meets them.

Courtesies 4k @softvniverse

Jon Snow is in love and Sansa is there to help him.

Memories 1k

“Gilly, he called me. For the gillyflower.” “That’s pretty.” He remembered Sansa telling him once that he should say that whenever a lady told him her name. Jon remembers a simpler and happier time with Sansa.

Dance With Me ficlet

"I told you that I can't dance!" he snapped. He didn't even know why he had agreed to this in the first place. Or Sansa's interest in his behaviour towards women. But ever sense she had seen him talking to the serving girl with a fierce blush and shy stammer she had taken it upon herself to teach him how to talk to girls. And how to dance with them apparently. "Nonsense," Sansa chirped, standing. She beckoned him forward. "Dance with me."

We Can Brave the Dark 2k by @thatgirlnevershutsup

When Arya dares Sansa to spend the night in the crypts, it’s Jon who comes to her rescue.

Nightmares ficlet

Sansa can't sleep, and normally she'd crawl into bed with Father or Robb, but they're not here. Jon is though, and he's even better with a sword than Robb, he can protect her from the monsters.

Games ficlet by @emberalchemist

Mother never likes it when Sansa talks to him, even though Sansa hardly ever talks to him.

First Dances, Feasts, and Other Fights 4k by @castaliareed

Winterfell has visitors from the Vale and Sansa couldn't be more excited. Her half-brother Jon is less enthralled.

Maybe in another lifetime ficlet by @ladywolfmd

Moments before they were to leave Winterfell, Ned goes up the battlements for a moment when he caught sight of a scene that always brought him sadness and yes, guilt. And sometimes with the same longing of things that could've been. But maybe in another lifetime.

Playing Pretend 1k

Robb never wanted to play Knights and Maidens with Sansa anymore - until Sansa asked Jon to be her knight instead.

Before She Knew Better 20k

Sansa Stark wasn't always so distant and cold to Jon Snow.

the half doesn't negate the brother by @thewolvescalledmehome

Jon learned early on in his life what bastard meant. He thought he was five years of age the first time he’d been told he was one. He couldn’t remember who it had been who called him that, but he remembered the heat and anger he’d felt, even though he didn’t actually know what it had meant. He just knew it was meant to hurt and hurt it did.

a moonsbreath from your side 3k by @simply-kelp

Jon has spent nights and days thinking what it would be like to crown Sansa the Queen of Love and Beauty himself, thinking of the kiss she’d given Robb and wondering what it might feel like if she pressed a kiss to Jon’s cheek.

Nipped in the Bud ficlet

Little Sansa feels sorry for her half-brother Jon Snow… Until she finds the perfect solution for his problem!

Maiden in the Tower 2k by @greenhikingboots

While playing a game in the godswood, Sansa decides to teach Theon in a lesson in humility by choosing Jon to bestow with her maiden’s kiss. A story inspired by pre-canon theories.

We're all just songs in the end, if we're lucky 2k by @myrish-lace-love

“Sing me another song, Jon.” Sansa curled up next to Jon’s side. She tucked her head under his chin as the thunder boomed. Jon’s chambers were smaller than hers, but as soon as he saw the first flash of lightning he knew Sansa would be off and running, on her way to him. Sansa was proud of being a little lady at four, but Winterfell’s storms terrified her.  “What do you want to hear?” Jon stifled a yawn. Jon would stay up with her, as long as she needed. Robb would, too, of course, but Sansa had confided that Robb teased sometimes, about being afraid of the rain.  “Florian and Jonquil.” 

untitled ficlet by @allbrainsnosense

He tries not to get jealous—though at first Jon isn’t quite sure just what the knot in his stomach is when he watches Sansa bestow a gentle kiss to Robb’s cheek for saving her from the “ferocious dragon,” as portrayed by an energetic Bran. Sansa coos over Robb affectionately, keeping up her role as fair maiden, and Robb kneels before her like her noble knight. It’s a game the siblings had all played many times before—sans Arya, who refuses to be Robb’s “noble steed” as Sansa demands—and Jon has always found himself an onlooker to the merry play-acting that occurs in the godswood.

I've picked up the speed (to jump your palaces) 1k

Jon takes Sansa to the Godswood. She does a bit of thinking.

Blossoming Feelings 2k @hawkeyescoffee

Sansa studied Jon silently as he fell to his knees, particularly trying not to touch the blanket and smiling to Bran in front of him. It was a fond smile that stretched over his face and made his grey eyes sparkle in the sun. It was a smile that made Jon’s usually hard and sullen features soft and nice and handsome? Pretty even. Sansa pressed her lips harder together until they were just a bloodless line as she was biting the inside of her cheek. Did she just really think that?

In another perfect life 1k @captainbee89

Ned comes clean to cat and the rest of the family about Jon's true parentage and notice that things have changed between Jon and Sansa now that the truth is known.

I will ask you once. Please, will you give me my first kiss, Jon Snow? 2k @alczysz17

Sansa catches her cousin, Jon Snow kissing a girl and wonders what a kiss would be like. She can't get it out of her head so she mind as well go to the source!

kiss me on the mouth (and set me free) 5k

Sansa Stark hates her bastard half-brother. She hates his brooding stare, his dark, stranger’s eyes. She hates the way his very existence hurts her mother, that Robb and Arya love him all the same. And she hates that fire that sparks to life every time they argue. --- An AU of the secret, complicated relationship between Jon and Sansa pre-series.

WESTERN - FAIRYTALES - REGENCY - LITTLE WOMEN - HOLIDAY - SEASON 6 ANNE OF GREEN GABLES - THE GIRL IN GREY - FREE CITIES - FAIRYTALE PART II - POLITICAL MARRIAGE - SALTY TEENS - POST CANON

[moonspirit]

Now that u have answered Annie’s sister in law, we need Armins siblings in law (so Pieck and Reiner)

Maldonado as a side note Annie is Pieck’s younger sister, but she is also Reiner’s older brother. Idk why but that’s just how it is based on dynamics.

Hi anon!

Hahah xD Oh Reiner and Pieck.

Tbh post-canon I really enjoy thinking about these two sets of relationships: Jean-Annie-Connie and Pieck-Armin-Reiner. Each half of Aruani sandwiched between two people from the side opposite to which they once belonged.

Anyway. I said it in some set of tags recently, but I love the potential of the bond Reiner and Armin could share post-rumbling. They're both similar in the respect that they have some self-hatred (though the root-causes are a bit different). This self-hatred, if shared, is something they'd understand. Reiner fought the very essence of life (the hallucinogenia) to help humanity live despite yearning for death himself. After the battle, his mental health is a goner; the guilt of everything that happened right from his birth to the present is extremely heavy to bear alone. If he was at rock bottom before, well now he's below any visible surface lol. Armin isn't too different from him then; he's just as shattered, guilt-ridden and debating his right to exist - but the hope that's inside him is a very, very hard thing to kill. It's because of that hope that the battle could end at all, and even if Eren's death and the loss of much of humanity is a planet-sized sin for him to carry, he's still hopeful, he's still a dreamer, he still sees the beauty in life.

Armin has the potential to lead the way in both his and Reiner's paths to healing. And Reiner, ever the protective big brother, will be unable to hide his genuine care and concern for Armin's well being and safety throughout their political work. The two go on long walks, hands in their pockets, talking about the past and future and everything in between; they play plenty of chess; they pore over maps of the remaining world; they rely on each other to pick the other up when the bouts of guilt overwhelm them.

Pieck now, is very very interesting. Not only is she the sole outsider in the Ambassador group, but she's also the one person who carries no good memories nor much empathy for Eren. She's every bit grounded in reality as Armin cannot help but dream. Initially, I think she'd find Armin's optimism and hope quite naive and delusional; after all she's always been aware of the cruel truth of their existence and the Eldian race's place in the world. Moreover, Armin's bond with Eren puzzles her - she can see that Armin is not a bad person; far from it in fact, he's reasonable, empathetic, careful and strategic. How could it ever have been possible that someone like him and Eren used to be inseparable friends? Over time though as Armin confides in her more about his and Eren's friendship, she learns to appreciate the bittersweetness of two boys who were each the other side of the very same coin.

Pieck and Armin, I hc, share a love for music and gadgets. They are both incredibly smart and this makes it very easy for them to fall into place as a very strong political team. They plan, they strategize, they discuss methods and tools and issues in their way. Armin values Pieck's level-headed approach to viewing and solving problems, while she appreciates his innovative ideas, tact, and careful consideration in minimizing damage. They enjoy conversations, they buy each other music records to play on the gramophone, and while Pieck helps Armin see the things he misses when he's lost in dreams, Armin helps Pieck feel welcome and like family, in their gang of six.

(Bonus: Reiner's always prattling on to Armin about how he's so glad his "little sister Annie" is happy with Armin, while Pieck annoys him to no end by never missing a chance to point out what an adorable simp he is lmao)

[qveenpoppy]

things i noticed in my pilot rewatch:

wolf almost immediately grabs a glass of champagne when he walks into the wedding with his first patient. i know the show's hinted at him having drug issues, but maybe he has some alcohol ones too? (unless that idea was abandoned since the pilot was written/filmed.)

"except now we're prescribing drugs instead of taking them." "speak for yourself." yeah he's definitely still dealing with those drug issues. i feel like the show's mostly implied for that to be a past thing (we've only seen him take anything twice, to my memory? not counting 1x09's upcoming flashback sequence) but i wonder if/when that'll become an issue again (maybe another patient loss that hurts wolf harder than roman's did? like a father figure, that'll bring back his feelings of guilt over his dad's death?)

it's tiny but i feel like van's crush is hinted at here, with him offering ericka an extra pair of scrubs (while jacob cockily jokes about his being too big for her) and the way he sneaks a glance at her while she changes (not in a creepy way, it's like a nervous/shy kinda way).

he also smiles at her when she yells at jacob while they're searching for hannah's childhood home, after jacob un-empathetically says the kids would be better off with their dad (guess van likes strong women; girlboss/malewife vibes? lol)

"do i ever have to talk to him again?" (wolf talking about nichols.) lmao, you're gonna be in love with him in about 6 episodes from now. also someone write me some pilot era wolfnichols hate sex.

"name one person you like who's not a patient." "you, i like you!" he's so autism-coded ❤️

wolf still uses cassette tapes in his car (which is also quite old, since it still plays tapes), what a grandpa

carol has a picture with michelle obama in her office (not really an important thing to notice, but i thought it was cool)

there's a line in one of the flashbacks (apologies for not quoting it verbatim) from muriel about "keeping our differences to ourselves", which probably explains why wolf isn't super open about his facial blindness. (and probably applies to all of his other traits that make him "different", like his sexuality, or popularly headcanon'd autism. i mean, i know he's open about his sexuality now as an adult, perhaps as a way of rebelling against his mom, but, as we may see in more flashbacks, he probably kept it to himself for quite a while.)

van is completely frozen when hannah has her seizure, he even backs up a little when she falls out of her chair. probably didn't wanna touch her and experience a phantom seizure.

whoever directed the ep made zach & teddy look like they're the same height when nichols confronts wolf and kicks him off the case. i guess it keeps them, literally and figuratively, on the same level in the dispute. but now we all know that wolf's actually shorter, and it's funny how that's been primarily highlighted when they're fooling around with each other. (i know it's an intentional directing tactic, though, bc a similar thing was done in the batman v superman movie when bruce and clark stand eye to eye - henry cavill is also 3 inches shorter than ben affleck. emphasizing the height difference would imply a power imbalance, which you don't want in these sort of gray zone conflicts!)

"the only way this will work is if we open up to each other." [nichols walks by and catches wolf's eye] foreshadowing

(i don't mean just like foreshadowing their romance, but maybe also the impact that nichols will have on wolf, getting him to open up about his past and whatnot. same, perhaps, for nichols, since we still hardly know anything about his background, besides his military experience and implied own closeting.)

(could also quite easily and literally refer to their work relationship, as we learned from that interview with teddy that, despite their romantic connection, they're still going to have some disputes about patient treatments in future episodes/cases.)

[gffa]

Character Ask Game: Obi-Wan Kenobi, 4 8 &12

4. If you could put this character in any other media, be it a book, a movie, anything, what would you put them in? Obi-Wan is one of those characters that probably has been in all those other media and, of course, I always want more of him, but I think if you offered me the chance to have one new Obi-Wan project, it would be: A Star Wars Holiday Special: Obi-Wan & Anakin, where they get Ewan and Hayden to do a 45 minute special about their time as Force Ghosts, as they look on over Luke working to find Jedi artifacts, talking with him when they have the spiritual energy to pull together for it, while they look on over Ahsoka trying to process her feelings about Anakin even after all these years, while they watch over Grogu as best they can while he tries to find his path in this world without the Jedi. It would be half-serious, talking about Anakin's choices and how he had to learn to let go, that that's what it means to be a Force Ghost, you have to let go of all the hate and the rage and the fear and the guilt, that it's not about blame, but about delving into Anakin's mindset, about delving into Obi-Wan's mindset, how they both had to learn to let go of everything they were carrying around before they could move on. Obi-Wan had to do that during the series of Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin had to do that during Return of the Jedi, and I'd love to see them have a conversation about how they want to help Ahsoka do the same thing. Bonus points for filming a scene of Obi-Wan watching as Vader threw Sidious down the reactor shaft and the light dawning on his face that, oh, his Padawan is coming back, that he can reach out his hand as Anakin dies, with a genuine smile and say, "Hello again, old friend. Let me help you over." But then it would be half-silly antics where they're basically Crow T. Robot and Tom Servo just roasting the hell out of all the dumbass shit they have to put up with in this galaxy. Bonus points for Anakin giving Obi-Wan the once over after they see Luke at the party on Endor's moon: "Wait, why do you look like that? Why aren't--" "I appear as the person remembers me, as they most need me to appear." "....so are you saying that everyone NEEDS me to look like the hottest holonet star on--" "[dryly] Apparently so." 8. What's something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you despise? Taking away his love for and belief in the Jedi ways. Obi-Wan's entire ultimate purpose is to be the contrast to Anakin's character, to be the wise Jedi mentor who doesn't have to be perfect, but is generally correct, that his purpose is to show the path that Anakin should have been on. But also, just straight up as a character, Obi-Wan loves the Jedi, that's his culture, his family, his people, he believes in the methods of the Jedi, he believes in the philosophy of the Jedi, he lives and breathes as a Jedi. And it's made him the person he is, he cherishes that, that he can regret that there isn't room for other paths in life, but that he doesn't regret the path he's on as a Jedi, that even when he considered other paths, it was with the full respect for what being a Jedi means. Obi-Wan Kenobi is a Jedi, and even if he might choose another path for himself, he always, always believes in what it means to be a Jedi, he believes that path is valuable and sacred. Taking that away from his character just fundamentally is not who he is imo.

12. What's a headcanon you have for this character? Obi-Wan Kenobi is an absolute monster when it comes to playing cards. He has perfected his bland, unreadable face and sleight of hand, so you can suspect he's a dirty rotten cheater at cards, but you can never prove it. He will absolutely murder anyone and everyone at sabacc and never give away the game, he'll just blandly look at you and pretend to be losing, all until he's lulled you into a false sense of security and then he'll rob you blind and probably leave the winnings in the pocket of someone asking for change on the street. He's an absolute bastard to play cards with and Quinlan and Anakin both straight up refuse to do it anymore because it's so infuriating.