#so it could be smth that is already explained by other theories or even like alluded to in the demo for rev and i just have no idea

[heartbreakincident]

*pokes at my conspiracy board*

okay hear me out. there's a mysterious HG sibling that step is apparently the spitting image of but that "died" in juvenile detention. step themself thinks maybe said sibling could have been a source for the dna used to create them.

in retri sidestep repeatedly alludes to being a pet project of the scientists at the farm. yes, of course, that could be referring to the gates/whatever precisely happened after heartbreak, but i think it goes deeper than that. why waste resources on this one individual that keeps running away and fucking with you if you have the source dna and can start over, or if you have other test tube babies from the same batch, or whatever?

so like. do we know. for sure. that sidestep is a re-gene. do we know for sure that they weren't tattooed later in life, experimented on, and piles of trauma/farm scientist fuckery just knocked out their memories of their childhood?

anyway. *turns back to my conspiracy board*

[haesunflower]

if you're still taking requests, could you do a zb1 reaction to the members accidentally breaking something really special you gave them (such as like a first date gift, or smth that you saved up to buy for them)? thank u sm!!

how i imagine they would all interact lol

₊˚⊹♡.....zb1's reaction to their members accidentally breaking something you gave them .....₊˚⊹♡

pissed (externally) : ricky

rightfully so, ricky is so pissed when he finds out a member not only has borrowed something without permission but has also broken it. usually he has no problems with members using his things, but he doesn't lend the stuff that you specifically gift him, like the expensive watch you gave him for his birthday

so when he finds the broken watch, he takes a picture of it and sends it to the groupchat asking "who the fuck did this". when he finds out it's gyuvin he has to be physically restrained by gunwook, because he has half the mind to tackle him. yeah....they'll be ignoring each other for a while after that.

but gyuvin apologizes everyday and eventually ricky got sick of hearing it. he even contributes a little to the repair fee but only ricky can truly afford to repair it lol.

pissed (internally): hanbin

he wants to get mad but hanbin can't because he's the leader. he already warned the kids not to play soccer in the room because they might break something...and true enough, not even 30 seconds later, they accidentally knock over the vase you got him

they send over yujin to apologize on behalf of the team (because they think sending the youngest would soften the blow) but hanbin doesnt say anything, instead, he just sighs and excuses himself to go on a walk.

hao gets mad at gunwook, gyuvin, and yujin on hanbin's behalf. literally nagging like a mom when he says "see what happens when you don't listen!!"

cries: taerae & gyuvin

taerae is actually so devastated when he learns that the guitar that the members borrowed during their reality show broke, the strings came off and it can't be repaired. he calls you, tears in his eyes, about how the members didn't take care of the guitar you gifted him like he thought they would.

he would only speak to the members when spoken to, and when the cameras are on. otherwise, it's the cold shoulder....scary...

later on, he finds out that it wasn't handled properly by the staff and he got an apology from the manager. after that, he went back to normal with the members, even saying "sorry guys i thought it was your fault ehe" and gyuvin screams "i told you it wasn't us hyung!!"

as for gyuvin, he's doing the dishes with yujin when the younger member accidentally drops the mug you both made during your first pottery class together.

his face is frozen like 😀as yujin says "sorry hyung, it slipped from my hands" and for the record, he DOES feel bad about it okay

especially when gyuvin is crying to gunwook, who is patting him on the back when gyuvin dramatically says "how am i gonna tell y/n it's broken, she loves that thing". ricky is trying so hard not to laugh at gyuvin's crying face, so gunwook pushes him away telling him to go elsewhere

silent treatment: hao

hao doesn't even speak to any of the members once hanbin delivers the news that some of their pets have used the plushy you gave him as a chew toy. he likes to keep the mangled plushy on his bedside table as a reminder of his anger.

he's petty and only speaks to the members without pets. it takes a while for the other members to figure out that he's been mad and giving them the silent treatment.

in an attempt to be peacemaker, hanbin suggests for the members involved to find an exact replica as a replacement. lol goodluck because you bought that in another country.

makes his members fix it: gunwook & yujin

it's hanbin that softly delivers the news to gunwook that the sweater you made him has shrunk in the dryer and he's like "excuse me what did you say hyung" 😶

hanbin gets ahead of him and explains to him all the theories he has in order to reverse it. but gunwook is good at science and helps them figure it out anyways, he gets peace of mind that way

as for yujin (not romantic okay), your joint art project was sitting peacefully in his bedroom when jiwoong accidentally knocks a can of paint on it. yujin is scarily quiet when he says "you're going. to fix that. right hyung?" and jiwoong cooly responds with "yeah yeah i will don't worry kid"

but for once, he isn't confident over something and has to wake ricky up in the middle of the night and bribe him to help fix the art project. ricky sighs but gets his painting materials anyways.

doesn't make a big deal out of it: matthew & jiwoong

he knows it's an accident, so matthew is so chill about it. i mean he's a little sad that the picture frames you gave him got knocked over, but so did the rest of the pictures on display – after they decided to set up the PS5 in the living room. though, he does ask hanbin if he could tell ricky off or something, since it was his idea to set it up on the mantle.

the tasks spills over to hao (who can't do it), so it spills over to jiwoong (who also can't do it, since ricky helped him fix his mistake)

to put it simply, jiwoong is unbothered because you are unbothered. if you were mad about it, he would be mad too. but you were there when it happened, and you watched taerae and matthew bicker over the lyrics displayed on the ipad you gifted jiwoong

in the midst of their argument, the ipad drops on the floor, screen shattering. all jiwoong could do is look at you, carefully awaiting your reaction. your face is like 😦 then 🤭 before you say "damn guys that was expensive"

matthew and taerae are spilling apologies as they hand the broken ipad to jiwoong for him to examine, only for him to look them straight in the eye as he removes the broken tempered glass – returning the ipad to them, as good as new "be careful next time, will ya"

tagging: @dwcljh @aleiamk @snowflakemoon3 @kpoprhia @en-ct @weeiyin @aleinasstuff @jiaant11 @caocoamamam @mashihope @wonluvrbot @littlegirltacos @ihrtgw @seok02 @ollieluvrs @thejadeazalea

[azuphere]

Okay but you still haven’t explained what the glitch theory is, like what does it mean??

omgg lore dump time this is so exciting, more under the cut but the glitch theory basically revolves around this merch from phil from november 2019 !

(re: this ask)

so like at the time, this piece of merch had ppl like 👀👀 bc the concept and the graphic novel vibe and the way it said ‘to be continued’ had ppl thinking this might be a hint at a secret project!

and over the years, phil would keep hinting at wanting to channel his creative energies into a project, and how he'd love to do smth interactive like bandersnatch ! esp in 2019/early-2020:

in 'The Scary Reason I Didn't Buy A House' (april 2019), he said: "I do actually have a story in my head, I'm just not quite sure how I wanna tell it yet. So it could be a book, it could be like a TV series-style screenplay, it could be a movie script. I just need to consolidate all these ideas in my head and turn them into the thing. But I have been thinking about it for about five years, so it's just when the right time is to actually release the ideas."

in 'draw my life: part 2' (august 2019), he said: "maybe for the next secret big project, it's time for Philly to think about the big dreams he's always had! [...] What I've always dreamed of doing is writing stories and directing films to take what's in my mind and share it with the world on your screen, maybe even a bigger screen. Now remember the rule of secret projects! Who knows what's going on and if it'll ever be real, but let's just say some writing is happening."

in an interview from february 2020, he said that his plans for 2020 included: "a few projects on the burn which I'm not ready to announce fully yet. They all involve writing. There are some stories I'd like to tell, so with some hard work and a bit of luck I might be able to share these with you on-screen on in print next year."

in the TalentWorks podcast from vidcon london (february 2020) at about 29:35 (youtube link), he said: "I think I've reached a point where I'm ready to sink my teeth into a new big project [...] I'm ready to do something new that's also very Phil and very my own thing, so I've been looking into- I'm really obsessed with interactivity. I think there's been a big boom of it since Bandersnatch [...]. I already pitched one interactive thing which didn't work out, but I got a lot of other ideas that I'm thinking of."

and in one of the stereo shows, dnp also confirmed that they tried pitching an interactive show to netflix but it fell through cause of covid ! and there was this insta story of dan being in LA in january 2020, which aligns with the timeline mentioned in the podcast. a transcription of that stereo moment is here

so it was never confirmed whether the glitch hoodie was actually supposed to be smth greater or if it was just a fun merch idea, but it was a common fan theory that glitch was supposed to be one of phil's projects!

and i think one of the most notable theories that supported the glitch concept was that a couple weeks after the merch release, phil tweeted this:

bc the suspicious thing is that it's nearly identical to smth he tweeted 4 years prior on literally the same day and almost the same exact time ! so we’d joke about how it was like a glitch (!!) in the simulation and he even responded to a tweet about it. and he also talks about it in this liveshow (at 24:39), where he just jokes about how he's living in the matrix

so yea! tldr: glitch is just one theory about what (one of) phil's secret projects is <3

[trickstarbrave]

WIP WHENEVER

HIIIIIIIIII im very excited to share this wip. im so mad i wrote this out of order bc i wanna post it immediately. im looking forward tho to finally being able to edit and post it on ao3 normally

i got tagged by @caliblorn and @your-talos-is-problematic and im taggingggggg @woundjob, @thescrolls-haveforetold, @wellthebardsdead and my roommate @soundwavefucker69

here is smth for moon and star. lots of lorkhan talk. some chim. some trauma. even some dagoth ur

literally i was like "oh yeah. its all coming together" writing this also its long im sorry

also here is my god!nerevar sketch. can be interpreted also as just how lorkhan appears to neht and the ppl around him

Malacath’s hand touched his chest and pain wracked his body. Nerevar could feel the blade cutting away his skin—cutting through the bone of his sternum and splintering it. It ripped apart and opened his ribcage, before that damn hand was then inside his chest. His anxiety spiked as he could feel phantom touches on his heart, a hand gripping it, long claws digging into the muscle as it continued to beat loud and sturdy. His whole body had gone rigid, nostrils flared and his breathing coming in quick pants desperate to get more air in his lungs. 

He was terrified. More than terrified, in fact. It was like being killed in the heart chamber but all the more worse somehow. He was choking now, gagging on blood—thick, black blood that was pouring from his chest, bubbling up in his throat.

And then Nerevar was overcome with the urge to laugh. To laugh besides the terror coursing through him, to laugh even though he was gagging and choking on his own blood. He knew he would die; it had been a part of his plan all along. He hadn’t known what death would be like, but he had anticipated it, at least on his own terms. And yet here Trinimac was, killing him himself. Ripping his heart from his chest. 

He had intended the first death to be slow and simple. A fading ember rather than a bright, all encompassing flame that destroyed everything with it. He had intended to bear the burden as the cause of the first death in their reality where death did not yet exist—was merely a theory. But here Trinimac was, unknowingly mantling that sin himself. A cruel irony he would be the one to blame for this. It was not his fault, but it would be his responsibility and duty.

He’d collapsed at some point, gasping, crying, and choking on blood as Voryn held him close. Voryn shouldn’t see him like this—not his beloved, sobbing and begging. He couldn’t hear his voice over the drumming of his own heart but he tried to speak despite all the gagging he was doing. His gorgeous, sweet lover, his beautiful hawk shouldn’t have to watch him die like this. Not when Nerevar knew this was coming, deep down. Not when he had doomed them both, sacrificed Voryn’s life on the altar just as much as his own. He was regretting it now, if only because he couldn’t apologize; how could he speak when Trinimac had already ripped out his heart? How could he explain he never wanted to hurt Voryn in truth? How would his beloved hawk even react to his death? Oh the fury he could bring down, how he could drown the world in blood and tears if he was pushed to the brink…

And what of Azura, his sister? His poor, vain, vindictive sister… She hadn’t agreed to help him, but he knew she would be in a rage over his death. And even the man killing him was sobbing and crying, apologizing despite his lord—Nerevar’s own brother—ordering his execution. How could he apologize to this man? To tell him he knew he didn’t mean for it, that Nerevar was the villain all along in this story? Would that soothe his grief? Trinimac, Kyne, Azura, all of the others… How would they fair without him? Tears were now spilling from his eyes not from pain but sorrow that he wouldn’t be there to comfort and love them. Ah, if only he could kiss his hawk one last time…

“Nerevar!” Voryn’s voice finally cut through, and a disconnect happened in the vision. He was untethered now, the sensation of falling back into his own body hitting him, and his ears were ringing loudly, a dizziness washing over him. There were no more feathers on Voryn’s face or on his cloak—why would there be? Voryn wasn’t… Voryn wasn’t a hawk, why would he call him that so fondly? There weren’t even tears streaming down his face like he had seen before, but his face was in a grimace, pained watching him writhe and flail choking on imaginary blood.

His hand came up to his chest as he felt around, but there was no gaping wound like he’d expected. Why had he felt it so clearly then? His whole body was still shaking from the terror and pain, unable to calm the trembling. 

“Do you remember now, Lorkhan?” Malacath asked, still standing over him. Vivec and Sil were currently being held back by the numerous orcs, though they were swearing up a storm and desperately trying to fight their way closer to defend him. Even Voryn had a spell prepared as he cradled Nerevar close to his chest, posed with the ferocity of a wild animal protecting its young.

“I-I’m not…” Nerevar began, though it felt like a lie on his tongue. He could still taste the metallic black in his mouth, the unnatural blood he was choking on. His body felt hot now, his mouth dry making the metallic taste all the more nauseating. “Lorkhan is dead!” He shouted definitively. Lorkhan was a dead god—long dead before Nerevar had ever been born as a lowly half blooded chimer in that ebony mine. 

“And yet, here you are, alive and in the flesh.” Malacath responded, his expression unwavering. “I would know that heartbeat anywhere. I would know how you battle more than anyone else.”

“Stop it!” Nerevar shouted, covering his ears, still shaking. 

“Why you deny it is my only question for you.” 

“I’m not Lorkhan!” Nerevar growled, teeth bared. His whole body felt like it was burning, just like in the heart chamber. That supernatural chanting from his dream came back too, at the edges of his senses, as he fought back the urge to vomit. “I’m not Lorkhan, just shut up, shut up, shut up!!” 

The next thing he knew, everything went black, the last thing he heard being his own heartbeat pounding in his ears and Voryn calling his name. 

--

Nerevar’s eyes snapped open. His hands frantically touched at his chest, once again checking for the wound, only to find nothing. Still, the unmistakable ache was there, however faint. 

“Where…?” He found himself someplace… Bizarre. There was stone architecture, that much he knew, but it seemed… Foreign, though they were in a state of disarray. It looked like some kind of abandoned tower, the roof having long since caved in, vines growing over stone. In the middle, where Nerevar was laying was soft grass and a few wildflowers. He sat up, looking around even further, confused. 

“Damn Trinimac, causing problems again…” Someone behind him muttered, and Nerevar quickly turned to see--

Himself? 

He jumped, panicked. No, no he could tell it wasn’t himself. He looked a lot like Nerevar, and sounded a lot like Nerevar, but there was something off about his appearance. He was taller than Nerevar--around Voryn’s height maybe? His hair was much longer too, not to mention he was wearing long robes Nerevar would never wear given how complicated and annoying they looked. Not to mention the longer he looked at him the more his appearance seemed to change--subtle ripples you had to focus on to know. His eyes subtly changed shape, along with his other features, sort of at random in moments where if you blinked you’d miss them. 

“Apologies for that.” The man said, walking over and plopping down to sit next to Nerevar. “I never expected his followers to summon him, nor that he’d do something like that…”

“Who are you?” Nerevar asked, his heart still racing in his chest. The other simply plopped his chin in his hand, staring back at Nerevar, amused.

“You and your lover--both just asking questions instead of even trying to figure it out for yourselves…” He tsk-tsked with a soft click of his tongue and a shake of his head. 

“How the hell am I supposed to know who you are?” Nerevar snapped. “I don’t even know where I am!” 

“Easy, no need to raise your voice.” He still looked amused, despite Nerevar’s anger. 

“Why in Oblivion do you look like me?” Nerevar demanded an answer now; he was in no mood to play games at the moment. He felt his heart being ripped out by that damn orc god and now he had someone playing mind games with him. 

The other sighed.

“I am Lorkhan.” Nerevar’s blood ran cold. 

“What…?” Nerevar stared in confusion and shock. “But Lorkhan is--”

“Dead?” He asked with a smirk and a quirk of his brow. “Don’t I know it.” Lorkhan then laughed heartily. “But when did that stop the dead from interfering with the living from time to time?”

“Why are you here?” Nerevar asked, leaning away from him. 

“I thought it would be only fair to show myself to you after that stunt Trinimac pulled.” He explained. “Though I imagine the fact you were stabbed through the chest once before only made it that much harder for you.”

Nerevar was trying to figure out the situation he was in, putting the pieces together the best he could. Several daedra called him Lorkhan, and here was Lorkhan looking remarkably similar to Nerevar. Was it possible people were mixing them up based on appearance? That didn’t seem quite right; it would make sense for Malacath and potentially Dagon, but Dagon didn’t call him Lorkhan initially, and not to mention it wouldn’t explain the nords. He doubted the elf hating people of Skyrim would so readily accept an elven appearance for their chief deity. Nor did it explain the strange, supernatural beating of his heart that drove him to accomplish strange feats out of sheer willpower alone. 

“... Why do you look like me?” Nerevar repeated his question again.

“Come now, I thought you’d be smart enough to figure that out.” Lorkhan laughed again. 

“Answer me.” 

“Well,” Lorkhan’s grin looked mischievous now. “It’s only fitting I look like you because I am you, don’t you think?”

This time a numbing tingle followed the chill in his blood. “Y… You…”

“Or well, I suppose it might be easier to understand if I say you’re a part of me.” Lorkhan continued. “You wouldn’t be the first mortal to be a fragment of me, anyways.”

“I’m not you!” Nerevar snapped, gritting his teeth. He did what he was best at: lashing out when he was truly scared and confused--when problems became too difficult to ignore or solve on his own. “I’m not you! I’m not Lorkhan!!”

Silence followed, the faint sound of birds chirping having vanished, the sky turning a stormy gray. He was panting from his outburst of yelling, but the screaming hadn’t really solved anything. Lorkhan was still sitting in front of him, looking at him with a serious expression, unphased. He was still in this crumbling tower, sitting in the grass. 

How long could he run from this? Daedric princes called him Lorkhan. The nords called him Shor. The strange visions he received that only made sense if they were Lorkhan’s memories, not to mention his heart--

Nerevar curled up, hands moving up as he felt a pain in his chest, clutching his shirt tightly. 

He was scared. He was scared and he didn’t know what was going on. He was terrified because ultimately, he didn’t know what this meant. He didn’t know what this made him.

Gingerly, two arms wrapped around him, pulling him up from the fetal position he curled himself into and into a warm embrace.

“Shh, it’s alright,” Lorkhan whispered, “Just let it out.” As soon as he said that, tears were flowing out of Nerevar’s eyes as he openly sobbing into his shoulder, holding onto him. Nerevar never really had a father--as the Nerevarine he was an orphan who didn’t really know who his parents were and as Nerevar his father was hunted down before the two of them ever met. But at that moment Nerevar couldn’t deny there was something paternal in the way Lorkhan held him gently, letting him cry and sob with arms that felt so much stronger than Nerevar could imagine. As alien as it was, he felt safe in his arms, the pain in his chest fading though he was still distraught and crying. 

Eventually though, his tears died down to soft whimpers rather than open sobs, Lorkhan stroking his hair all the while. 

“It’s alright.” He repeated, trying to reassure Nerevar.

“It’s not alright.” Nerevar countered. “If I’m just you that means I don’t really exist!” It was the truth; if he was just some shard of Lorkhan then he had no real identity of his own. He was just a piece of a larger whole, delusional in that it thought itself independent and separate. “No one really knows me. No one really loves me.” The person Voryn loved wasn’t even real, just a false identity of someone who denied who they truly were. Was the person Voryn actually loved just the pieces of Lorkhan that made up Nerevar? Lorkhan said there were other mortals like him--what if Voryn left him for someone who was a larger, better part of Lorkhan? “I’m just a part of you, an extension of you. I don’t have any thoughts or feelings of my own!”

“Hey now, that’s not true.” Lorkhan interjected. “If you had no thoughts or feelings of your own, how could you deny being me?” 

“But--”

“You have thoughts and feelings and emotions of your own.” Lorkhan reiterated. “You have your own identity, your own history, your own relationships.” Lorkhan gently dried the tears on his cheeks, careful of the sharp nails on his hands. “You don’t have all the same traits as me, and likewise, how you act on things is entirely up to you.” 

“But then how am I you?” Nerevar asked, apprehensive. 

“Hm… How to explain this…” Lorkhan began, humming softly, trying to gather his thoughts. “... Do you know that sometimes people take cuttings from plants to make a new one?”

Nerevar did know that, though he’d never done so himself. He was bad at growing plants, but he’d heard of it a few times. 

“When they take a cutting from a tree for instance, it was once a part of that tree.” Lorkhan continued. “One of the many, smaller branches of it. But with care and cultivation, it grows roots of its own, and then spreads itself deep into the soil as a little sapling, before finally growing into a tree itself.” Lorkhan then smiled at him. “You’re like a cutting made from me that grew into its own tree. We might be made up of the same things and bear the same fruit, but you might have different branches than me and grow in different ways.” 

“... But what if someone only loves that tree because of its fruit?” Nerevar asked. 

What if Voryn only loved him for the parts of him that were Lorkhan? What if, when Voryn found out, he became disillusioned? Why would he bother with having Nerevar as a lover if he was just a part of a larger whole? What if there was a better piece of Lorkhan out there to love, or he could simply worship the dead god in earnest to get closer to the source?

Lorkhan responded by pinching his cheek playfully, pulling Nerevar from his mental spiral.

“Then someone doesn’t really love that tree specifically, now do they?” 

“But--”

“Trees are much more than the fruit they bear.” Lorkhan continued, cutting him off. “They provide shade in the sun, and shelter in the rain. They are homes for birds, and the wind whistles through the branches to make music, or even children play in the branches and leaves.” Lorkhan was still smiling at him warmly. “Even if they love the fruit it makes too, not just any fruit tree can be their tree. And if they only love the fruit, wouldn’t you prefer someone who really loved the tree to take care of it rather than someone who only cared about what the tree produced?” 

Ah, Nerevar saw what he was getting at here. If Voryn only loved the parts of him that were Lorkhan and didn’t care about him otherwise, that meant he didn’t really love Nerevar. Nerevar’s hand reached over to caress the scar on his left shoulder gently, unable to really feel it through his shirt and armor, but comforted by the knowledge it was there nonetheless. 

Would Voryn have really asked Nerevar to carve his name into him if he didn’t love Nerevar? Perhaps the rest of Lorkhan didn’t appeal to Voryn. Perhaps the other traits other mortals shared with Lorkhan weren’t the same as how Nerevar was. Nerevar wanted to trust Voryn with his heart and make this work--he shouldn’t be assuming once again that Voryn would be quick to leave him and replace him with someone else. Voryn committed to Nerevar.

“There we go.” Lorkhan smiled, seeing his stormy expression fade. 

“... But I don’t know what any of this means.” Nerevar continued. “Why am I a part of you? What does any of this mean?” How was he supposed to move forward like this? How many other daedra would challenge him calling him Lorkhan? “How can I tell what’s my thoughts and abilities and what’s just yours? How can I tell if I’m even real?” 

That was the part Nerevar was still grappling with. If he was called Lorkhan and acted like Lorkhan and did what Lorkhan was supposed to do… Didn’t that just make him Lorkhan? When he was the Nerevarine he slowly just assumed Nerevar’s memories, thoughts, and identity after he was sent back in time--or was going back in time not real either. “The future--what about my memories of the future? Are those fake too or--”

Lorkhan smiled softly, almost knowingly. 

“Oh little star,” Lorkhan chuckled as though he was recounting something funny. “None of your memories of the future are real.”

“... Huh?” They weren’t… Real? “But Dagoth Ur--the Tribunal--” Didn’t Vivec have a vision of Nerevar being killed as king? That was in the future Nerevar saw as well.

“None of it was real.” Lorkhan was still smiling, but Nerevar was sent spiraling again. 

It was all so real. Nerevar could feel it. He felt Vivec’s spear ramming through him. He could hear the hurt and betrayal in Dagoth Ur’s voice, along with the cold anger as he revealed he would never be able to trust Nerevar even if Nerevar had agreed to join him. Almalexia had attempted to kill him a second time as the Nerevarine, and he remembered fighting her after discovering Sotha Sil’s mangled corpse. 

Panic set in then. If none of that was real then… Why did he not remember his past? Why had he dreamed up such a strange turn of events? Why--

“I’ll let you in on a little secret,” Lorkhan leaned in close, a devilish smirk on his face now. “I’m not real either.”

Nerevar blinked in shock, only to find Lorkhan was gone. In fact, everything was gone now, leaving Nerevar floating in an inky, black void. 

Nerevar’s panic rose at that. It could have been Lorkhan just telling him he was a figment of Nerevar’s imagination and not actually the ghost of a dead god but… Nerevar knew that wasn’t the case. He could feel it, deep in the pit of his stomach, and the revelation was not a comforting one. He was left entirely untethered in this void, and looking down at his hands, he saw himself flickering in and out. 

If Nerevar was Lorkhan, and Lorkhan didn’t exist, then that meant that he didn’t exist either. Really didn’t exist. It was so much more comfortable to imagine himself as a shard of Lorkhan, living and moving on its own, ignorant to the fact it was part of a larger whole. 

A clawed hand touched his back and a sickening chill overtook him as he found himself in the heart chamber of Red Mountain once again. He was trembling as he continued to flicker in and out of existence. The heart’s rhythm was equally unsteady, stopping and starting at random, the sounds a disjointed mess. 

If the heart of the world was not stable--was not real--then what did that make the world?

What did that make his friends? The people he loved? 

What did that make Voryn?

A familiar voice called out to him, large, clawed hands gripping him tightly and pulling him in close.

“I told you once before,” Dagoth Ur began, “We are bound to the dreamsleeve together.” Nerevar knew that wasn’t right, but he didn’t know how to counter it either. 

“I am the dreamer,” Dagoth Ur continued, “And this is all my dream, my sweet Nerevar.” Nerevar didn’t like the fondness in his tone. This was a twisted version of Voryn, corrupted and maddened, fully delusional. He preferred Voryn sane and warm, affectionate and protective. He didn’t want the delirious, maddened version of him that was Dagoth Ur.

Then, the two had changed locations. Instead of the heart chamber with the unsteady heartbeat echoing around them, they were in what seemed to be a rainbow colored river, all the different colors flowing in strange, glowing patterns. They moved up and down, left and right, forwards and backwards, swirls of color that flowed like incoherent water simultaneously both much thicker and almost syrupy than pure water, and also like it was barely there as they caressed his legs. Each movement came with a strange, fragmented thought, emotion, or memory. 

“You are simply a part of my dream.” Dagoth Ur’s hands moved to the front of him now, caressing at his chest. “My most glorious, beautiful creation…” 

Nerevar knew that wasn’t true either though. It was an instinctive knowledge, perhaps, but he could tell that was simply not the case. If there was a dreamer, it certainly wasn’t Dagoth Ur. 

And then Nerevar looked to his hands to see he was a dunmer again, grey skin and all to match the equally grey hands on his chest. One of Nerevar’s hands moved to caress the scar left from corprus he got as a Nerevarine when he was forcibly attacked to infect him with it, sending him further in his quest, ironically. The scar was an ugly, messy thing--a gross mess of scar tissue trying in vain to form over an injury that wasn’t truly there, growing more mangled and grotesque by the day. Before he couldn’t remember where the attack was from Gares, as his memories of the Third Era faded more and more with his time in Resdayn like a hazy dream, leaving him unsure if it was on his chest, his stomach, his thigh, or his arm. But now he remembered it was--

All of them. He had been hit by the attack in all of those places, in different moments in time, in different versions of the same event. And in that way, it wasn’t one moment specifically but simply an event that could have played out differently, in a way bending and contorting around the flow of fate. And just as he realized it, the scar itself faded entirely. 

“Nerevar, stop this.” Dagoth Ur warned, his voice concerned. Almost frightened if Nerevar was being honest, though he knew the other wouldn’t admit to it. 

“It… Didn’t happen.” 

“Yes, it did.” Dagoth ur stressed, but Nerevar stepped away from his hands, walking along the multicolored river. “Do you doubt your own memories? My own memories?” Dagoth Ur insisted. “Just as that was my dream, this too is my dream. A dream where we get to be together.” His voice took on a facsimile of warmth and affection. “A dream where nothing can keep us apart--”

“No,” Nerevar countered, his voice soft. “It happened and… It didn’t. Just how this… None of this is real either.” The thought wasn’t as scary as it was the first time around. In fact, the revelation seemed to almost bring some relief. He dipped his hand into the liquid that pooled around his thighs, running his fingers through it in what seemed to be an arbitrary pattern, relishing in the feelings that washed over him. Like this, he could make them seem coherent. Like this he could move them until he could faintly hear a song--

“Nerevar Mora, return to my side at once.” Dagoth Ur’s tone was threatening again. It seemed that Nerevar had gotten under his skin. 

“You are not a god. I’m not a figment of your dream…” Nerevar could insist if anything he might be the one dreaming all of this up but… He knew that wasn’t quite right either. Lorkhan didn’t exist. Nerevar didn’t exist, so he couldn’t be the one dreaming. But he knew he wasn’t a figment of Dagoth Ur’s imagination, that was for certain. “... And you’re not a figment of mine.”

Dagoth Ur was in front of him again, clawed hands gripping his arms tightly while his teeth audibly grit from behind the gold mask. “If I am not the dreamer then you’re saying I don’t exist! Do you even understand what you’re saying?!” His hands gripped Nerevar’s arms even tighter, but Nerevar himself was unphased. “I exist because I say I exist. You exist because I allow you to exist.”

“Or have you forgotten your nightmares? The memories of me?” Dagoth ur changed gears now that he saw it wasn’t persuading Nerevar. “Have you forgotten the way you shuddered at my touch? Or the way I could make such sweet, passionate love to you that you forgot everything else?” Nerevar had to admit he did in fact enjoy those moments with Voryn; Nerevar loved nothing more than losing himself completely in Voryn’s body, of being unable to think about nothing else but how wonderful Voryn could make him feel. But Nerevar knew he couldn’t forget this whole mess even happened and fall readily back into Voryn’s arms, trying to delude himself that it was real. He knew he’d go mad even trying, unable to take joy from it as he tried to deny the reality he was confronted with before. 

“Do not make me rip you asunder and remake you.” Dagoth Ur threatened, venom dripping off his tongue. But at the threat, Nerevar reached his hands out, cupping the golden mask in them, before throwing the mask off entirely. 

His face looked like Voryn’s but so much older and more tired. His eyes were dead, glazed over and foggy, with only the third eye on his forehead seemingly capable of sight. His complexion was equally dead--ashen even for a dunmer. A dead sleeper who dreamed he was still alive, just as that wise woman said so long ago. 

Nerevar leaned up, pressing a soft, gentle kiss to his lips. He didn’t like this maddened version of Voryn, but he knew he still loved him. He loved Dagoth Ur and mourned for him. As horrible as it was, it was a mercy for Nerevar to slay him as the Nerevarine. It was a mercy for things to return to the past so they could have a better future, one where Nerevar wouldn’t hurt him as cruelly as he did the first time around. 

Then, just as the gentle kiss started, Nerevar pulled away, whispering softly. The words tumbled out of his mouth before he even realized it, but the truth spoken in them was more real than anything else he had seen. 

“I already unmade you.” 

Dagoth Ur stared down at him in shock, before, like ash in the wind, he faded. And Nerevar was left standing alone in the dreamsleeve. 

Yet, something was gnawing at his psyche. If Dagoth Ur was not the dreamer and didn’t allow him to exist, then what was his purpose? If this was all a dream, then who was dreaming? 

Dread washed over Nerevar again, overwhelming him as he felt like someone or something was watching him. Like he was a tiny insect crawling where he shouldn’t have, about to be crushed by the figure that finally realized he existed. 

Yet, part of Dagoth Ur’s words made sense. He wasn’t real. None of this was real. Nerevar could either stand there and accept it and fade into the liquid around him and dissolve into nothingness…

Or he could insist he did exist. That he wanted to exist. That he wanted to continue on, in spite of how nonsensical it was. 

“... I exist because I will it.” Nerevar knew he wasn’t the dreamer, but he existed in spite of it. He refused to vanish and become nothing more than a disjointed collective of memories free floating around him. 

“Well done.” Lorkhan’s voice echoed, and Nerevar found himself once more in the black, inky void, outside of the dreamsleeve. “I was a bit afraid you might not be able to handle it,” He chuckled softly, “But I can see it was silly of me to worry. You already remade the world, you’d be ready to handle the revelation of the tower.” 

“Was that… You?” Nerevar questioned, wondering if Lorkhan took on the appearance of Dagoth Ur just to help him along. 

“No. What was in fact a remnant of Dagoth Ur, based on your memories.”

“My memories?” Nerevar raised a brow, as the crumbling tower and soft grass slowly came back into focus around him, real and present once more. It was more comfortable than just free floating anyways. 

“Things can’t exist if nothing remembers them.” Lorkhan explained. “But you remembered him, so he continued hiding and lurking…”

“Would he…” Nerevar began, apprehensively. “Would Voryn have become him again…?”

“No.” Lorkhan’s voice was firm and confident, making Nerevar relieved. “Your beloved has already rejected that path.”

“Then how could he exist?”

“He existed outside of Voryn. A part of him and also not. Perhaps in a way also part of you?” It was a confusing explanation, but Nerevar supposed that was in line with everything else so far. “I suppose it doesn’t matter. He doesn’t exist anymore--not as he did just now.” Lorkhan hummed softly again. “Now he’s merely a memory, returned to water once more.” 

“I… Don’t understand.” Once again, Lorkhan reached over to pinch Nerevar’s cheek.

“Yes you do, don’t lie to me about that.” 

“I mean I get that he’s no longer a problem since I just saw him vanish but I don’t… Know how I did that.” 

“He was mostly tied to you. It would have been very easy for anyone in those circumstances to cut him off.” Lorkhan clicked his tongue. “Then again, I suppose not everyone can be connected to the dreamsleeve and confront not existing as well as you did.”

“So I don’t exist?” It was a question, but not asking for an answer more so a confirmation that he was understanding it correctly. 

“You don’t. And yet, you do.” Lorkhan confirmed, before elaborating. “All of us exist in that state. But I made Nirn in the first place because I realized it was impossible to move beyond that revelation and actually do something about it without real growth--growth that can only come from trial.”

“... What?” Now he was losing Nerevar. Go beyond the revelation of not existing? How would you even move past something like that? 

“Dagoth Ur had a few things correct I’ll admit.” Lorkhan continued, almost rambling now given how little it made sense to Nerevar. “The trial of flesh is needed to overcome the dream…”

“Again, I don’t really understand.” Nerevar interjected, before Lorkhan sighed.

“Ah… Right. I’m getting ahead of myself.” He then reached over, pulling Nerevar into a hug once more. “We don’t have all day, unfortunately. Linear time still exists.” He gave Nerevar’s back a firm pat. “I would explain if I could but… Well, we’d be here for some time. I think your beloved is calling you.” A ringing was in Nerevar’s ears now, the rest of the dream getting fuzzier and fuzzier. 

“Voryn…?” Nerevar asked, before his eyes cracked open. 

He wasn’t in the grass, but laying on Voryn’s cot, blinking up in a confused daze. It was night, that he could tell from how dark it was in the tent. Beside him, he heard a gasp, as Voryn looked to him frantically. 

“Oh thank gods,” Voryn looked close to tears. “Nerevar, do you have any idea how worried I was?” He cupped Nerevar’s cheek, his hand warm and familiar. It felt like Nerevar had been away for ages and also hardly any time at all. “I thought I almost lost you again…”

“I’m alright,” Nerevar sat up slowly, but his arms felt weak. “How long was I out for…?”

“More than a day.” Voryn explained, before helping support Nerevar’s upper body, settling Nerevar to lean against him. “Nothing we did could wake you up. We wanted to raze that damn orc camp to the ground,” He could hear the anger in Voryn’s voice. “But Malacath said his people would assist us and that you would wake up in time.” 

Nerevar could tell Voryn hadn’t believed the prince--not after what seemed like an attack on Nerevar. 

“I’m fine now.” Nerevar insisted, stroking Voryn’s face. “I’m--”

“Is he awake?” Vivec asked from outside the tent, and Voryn stiffened under Nerevar’s weight.

“He just woke up--” Voryn began, “Give him a few minutes to regain his senses before you shake him down for answers.”

Vivec entered the tent now, his brow furrowed. “You swore I could ask my questions when he awoke.” 

“At least give him until the morning.” Voryn pleaded. Vivec looked between the two of them, and it seemed that Nerevar looked haggard enough for Vivec to relent, though he was unhappy about doing so. 

“Fine,” Vivec scowled, leaving the tent once more. “In the morning I want answers.”

[queenie-blackthorn]

FINALLY, ive finished 25% of exile, the second book in the kotlc series. here are some thoughts i had :)

tags: @aylin-hijabi, @that-multi-fandom-hijabi, @tastetherainbow290, @nerdy-girl3791 (im tagging everyone who asked to be tagged in my notes for book one, but lmk if you wanna be tagged too / dont wanna be tagged anymore)

first off, why are second books in a series always the ones that take the most time / are harder to start? ig it could be that we've already established the worldbuilding n main characters, but its still that dragging stage between *where you already know mostly everything in the universe* and *where the climax builds up in anticipation of the "final battle" or the beginning of the third act, usually*. nothing to do w the book itself, just an observation

second off, alicorns are so much more important than being just "another species to save", im sure of it. theres wayyy too much of the council getting involved n talk abt how alicorns are sooo important. to anyone whos read percy jackson it kinda reminds me of the ophiortaurus (bessie) from sea of monsters, who seemed to be a recurring animal side character who turned out to have a lot of significance to the very universe they were in. im expecting smth similar, why else would everyone go to such lengths to ensure alicorns dont go extinct? or maybe im overthinking it lmao but what gives it away is the heckses literally tryna kidnap silveny-

speaking of the heckses, who the fuck tries to steal an alicorn. stinas parents are the whiniest bitches ive ever seen, and im a fifteen year old girl. like cmon ive seen some drama queens over the years, but those two- also, fucking stina. i mentioned before that i hope to see some character development w her, so shes not just the boring one-dimensional mean girl thats prevalent in literally every piece of media thats come out since mean girls w regina george. clearly not yet, tho, but im waiting on it (if it does not happen i will be majorly disappointed)

also, delving into theories now. its kinda far-fetched, but, was brant w the black swan ? i mean, it would add up pretty decently. it would explain why his guilt for jolies death runs so deeply (since grady rlly rlly seems to believe that the black swan killed her) because he would be with the literal organization that killed her. it would also explain reeeeaaaaalllllyyyy well why he recognized sophie. the fact that he knew her was wayy too emphasized to mean nothing. idk JUST A THEORY, its not based off of anything other than it would fit nicely w everything else.

but also if grady is so adamant that it was the black swan, and (hypothetically) brant is w the black swan, then would it be improbable to assume that he killed her? which would explain the guilt even MORE. but then again, he does seem to love her, so that last part is added very tentatively. (maybe he killed her by accident... but then would the note to grady three days before her death just be a coincidence? im sure that has some deeper meaning.)

maybe it wasnt the black swan who sent those notes to grady...

to end on a funnier note: alicorn poop. sophie faceplanted into alicorn poop. it happens to all main characters, it always has to be someone walking in at the worst moment. i thought id be the vackers w keefe who show up n embarass her, but who better than the council to get humiliated in front of ? i dont hate sophie i just laugh at her pain

i think thats all for the 25% mark, im gonna keep reading today. im gonna go to my grandmas house so maybe i can get a couple hundred pages in !!!

[cringelordofchaos]

HELLO FELLOW JACKSON'S DIARY FAN

WOULD YOU LIKE TO HEAR A FEW OF MY THEORIES FOR JD? Yeah you do.

Please tell me your thoughts. 1) S1 E1 started with Jackson's dream, S2 E1 started with Exer's dream, so S3 E1 might start with David's dream, or maybe someone else's. 2) Throughout S2, Timothy got a few close-ups, so he might play a bigger role in S3. 3) Since we're pretty sure Lucy-furr was created by the diary, it's possible that she already had powers before getting hit with Exer's lightning bolt.It would also explain why she wasn't hurt by Exer's bolt, maybe having the powers means she isn't affected by his? Then again, Exer would get electrocuted so idk. 4) Harry has seen the doodle of Lucy right before she was taken by Exer, he's also read through most of the diary. He might start realizing that Jackson and Exer are connected by it in S3. 5) Marco (Pamela's older brother) is mentioned to have had terrible experiences from high school, so we might get a backstory for him 6) now that Jackson somewhat understands how the diary works, do you think he'll get revenge on Exer for all of the bullying? Would he give himself magic? There are so many things he could do with it now, but I hope he tells someone (probably Pamela or the detention kids) about it first. SORRY FOR THE LONG ASK, I JUST DON'T KNOW MANY OTHER JD FANS AHDFKAJDHFKAH

HELLO

im sorta outta my jd obsession for now but I'll definitely return in a bit

I think that makes sense, but I am also not exactly sure of it? Cuz I feel like the focus has always been on more Exer and Jackson rather than anyone else bc they both specifically have smth to do w magic. (Jackson is the only one who can see it and was directly attacked by it, Exer creates the magic, you get it?) Though it would make sense for him to take more center. I say all this cuz him having a dream at the start of a season would imply that HE would get more attention that season (like Exer w season 2) sorry if none of what I had said made any sense

That would be cool !!!

Oh that actually makes sense? It could also be that Jackson simply created a normal cat, and then it was given magic, but that seems pretty plausible

Exers dad has got to find that detail out at one point, even though it would traumatize him to death and back he would then probably find out more details abt how it affected Exer and what he could've goje through

Oh that would also be cool! Though he doesn't seem to have much of a role besides being Pamela's Cool Older Brother with occasionally advice to give to her, it would be nice to get more out of his character

THIS SHIT. I'VE BEEN THINKING ABT IT AND. IDK. I think it's a bit more probable that he just stops using the diary all together or experiments a bit and he'll probably have multiple breakdowns over it. HOPEFULLYYYY He talks to someone about it. Maybe he'll try to get an absolute confirmation from Exer to see if he's actually dating David first though I'm not sure if he would directly ask it. Maybe. Just maybe he would feel a bit guilty? Or fulfilled ?? Knowing that Exer DID feel the same pain Jackson did ?? Like Jackson wished for during one therapy session??

FELL FREE RO ASK MORE QUESTIONS SORRY I RUSHED THE ASK ANSWER

[therainscene]

2/5. lights confuse me so much in general. like, why does it require effort from will in s1 and teens in s4 to make lights flicker, but in the presence of smn/smth dangerous lights flicker by themselves? also, why do people and vecna affect lights directly from the UD but demogorgons & the flesh monster only affect lights in the normal dimension? i'm sure monsters are always roaming in the UD, but they don't mess with lights in hawkins the way vecna does (i suppose he does it unintentionally, so the lack of effort doesn't explain anything to me)

Hi, thanks for sending me these asks about the Upside Down! I'm going to address all five of them in this post -- but I'm going to leave this particular question for last. You'll see why in a bit.

First though, you're getting a rolled-up newspaper to the snoot for calling yourself stupid and your questions dumb. 🗞️🐶 There are still a lot of mysteries in this show, and questioning its inconsistencies is exactly how you solve them!

Why is the Upside Down literally upside down at some points but oriented the right way up at other points?

The Upside Down isn't literally upside down; that's just a visual metaphor the show uses to illustrate its trippy extra-dimensional nature. I wrote a post explaining the basics of extra-dimensionality a while ago that you might find interesting.

Why are the Christmas light decorations at the Snow Ball visible in the Upside Down if it's supposed to be frozen on 6th Nov 1983?

We know from the teens using Holly's Lite Brite in S4 that electronic lights in the real world naturally produce glowing particles in the corresponding spot in the Upside Down, even if those devices weren't there on 6th Nov 1983. Most likely that's what we're seeing at the Snow Ball.

Alternatively, it could be the case that the flow of time in the UD is more complicated than S4 led us to believe, and the Snow Ball lights will make more sense once we've watched S5. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

What's up with the random temporary gate in the tree that Nancy uses to visit the Upside Down in S1?

Nancy's tree isn't the only weird gate -- we see lots of temporary portals open throughout S1.

The show doesn't explain how these work beyond heavily associating them with Demogorgon attacks, and I think we're supposed to assume that the Demogorgon is opening them itself. This would explain Nancy's tree -- the Demogorgon was nearby at the time.

The trouble is, this raises far more questions than it answers. Why don't Demogorgons seem to use portals outside of S1, especially the ones imprisoned at Kamchatka? Was that one Demogorgon from S1 just a special boy with unique abilities? Why did Vecna need to wait for a gate to be opened by El if his minions were capable of opening their own gates? Did the Mothergate "unlock" this ability while open and "lock" it again when closed? If so, why no temporary gates in S2?

We're not supposed to know the answer to these questions yet; it's pretty clear that they're saving it for some big reveal in S5. I have a theory on what that reveal might be... but that's for another post.

Why are the circumstances of El banishing Henry to the Upside Down in S4 so different from when she does the same thing to the Demogorgon in S1?

On a literal level... yeah. The differences don't make a lot of sense. It's probably safe to assume that El opened a portal in S1 like she did in S4, and it had already closed itself by the time the particles dissipated enough to unblock our view... but as for how she ended up in the Upside Down, and why the Demogorgon wasn't in there with her...?

To answer this one, I think it's helpful to remember that literal readings only get you so far when you're dealing with a story as steeped in metaphor as Stranger Things.

When El banished Henry to the Upside Down, it was a triumphant act of self-defense, asserting her autonomy against an abuser. But when she banished the Demogorgon, it was a tragic act of self-sacrifice -- she defeated it (thus why it disappears), but at the cost of remaining stuck in the "weapon" role Brenner had forced her into her whole life.

Both Henry and El were at a low point when they "died", and getting sent to the Upside Down afforded them an opportunity to start a new journey of self-discovery free from Brenner's influence. But while One stayed there and became Vecna, Eleven chose to escape and be "reborn" as El.

[The rebirth symbolism really couldn't be any more on-the-nose. 👀 Speaking of this portal -- you wondered where it came from -- it's the same one the Demogorgon burst through in the S1 finale.]

And so we've arrived at your final question.

In my opinion, the lights are part metaphor, part mystery being saved for S5.

I think I'd need to comb through the whole show double-checking every instance of the lights flickering to properly address the mystery stuff, and unfortunately I don't have time for that right now. But I'll say this much: I think you're on the right track for questioning the way the lights behave, because it's possible the show has been misleading us into thinking we're looking at one thing (let's say a monster) when really we were looking at something else (let's say a kid with powers).

As for the metaphor? When Will and the teens were trapped in that cold, dark, despairing realm from which it seemed like there was no escape, what saved them was reaching out to the light of hope -- their loving friends and family.

Even El, who escaped all by herself, was still beckoned back to the real world by its light shining through the portal.

At the end of the day, that's what this show is about: love and hope conquering the despair of being different and rejected and abused. Bearing that in mind makes it a lot easier to figure out what's going on with the lights and the Upside Down, in my opinion.

It's why monsters only make the lights flicker or go out when they breach containment and enter our world: because they're destroyers of hope. It's also why powers sometimes make the lights flicker and sometimes make them surge: being different can be difficult to cope with... but it's also a beautiful and valuable thing to be.

[ozlices]

having Thoughts abt the gin is miley's son theory i wanna talk abt,,

my apologies in advance if anything we say has been said numerous times already. this game is super complex w a Lot of content we are still working our way through, both from the actual game and within the fandom, so! bare with us please lol

anyway, so.

one of the most compelling things for me wrt the theory is that gin is targeted in pretty much every chapter by a trap. lots of things seem to be set up specifically so he, as a young child with a very pure heart, would be targeted. like the twist about the tokens in chapter 2, for example. which could be a thing because they're aware of miley's intentions and want to get rid of him to stop her.

i feel like,,, if the theory is true, miley's intention was to join the games as a floormaster so she could have power in it to ensure gin's safety. even if he's not on her floor, she has still shown to be manipulating things to ensure he makes it out, like with gashu, making sure everyone knew of his transgressions so they had an out if it was needed.

i feel like her goal would be ensuring that he wins so they can take down the games from the inside, since it's pretty universally accepted that the reward for winning is to most likely become the new asunaro leader.

and, easily, her motive could be tons of resentment for driving her lover mad and making him an alcoholic, and also resentment for forcing her son to participate in something like this.

it would also make sense for her seeming to hate sara and trying to target her. i'm sure the floormasters know what everyone's role is meant to be, including that sara is meant to be the winner. she probably holds resentment towards her for that, but. sara is also very clearly probably the most precious person to gin in the games.

he fully sees her as a big sister figure, to a point where she's the person he runs to first when he needs to be consoled and held during a breakdown.

if it came down to just gin and one other person, the others would protect him sure, but sara is the only one that miley would be able to confidently believe would do whatever it took to protect him. she has had that exact notion tested numerous times, and never falters on that desire, even if it comes with a brutal cost.

i just think this theory adds so many interesting angles to so many dynamics within the games. if gin is miley's son, perhaps she knew he'd get attached to sara, so she agreed to help ensure sara's victory because she knew she'd protect him and ensure his victory as well.

after all, maple confirms it is possible for two winners to win since a majority vote cannot be held with just two people. if miley can assure that sara wins, and sara had to come down to picking anyone over gin, sara would undoubtedly pick gin. the only person she might've picked over him is joe, and he's gone, so.

idk! i truly do not know but this is the theory i've seen that i've thought about the most and that compels me the most and i really cannot wait to see whether or not it comes to fruition in the finale, and How it comes to fruition if it is true cause it's. so good.

edit cause i just realized smth else: this would also explain what gin was doing when he went back down to the first floor and why he was safe. he was visiting his mom, and was unable to let the others know. it also makes sense as to why he's able to endure so much trauma and hardship at such a young age. he knows he has not just sara, but his mother watching over him and looking out for him as well.

[zanes-pet-catfish]

Mindless headcanons if you'll indulge me

Zane has really quiet footfalls and scares the ever-loving shit out everyone. (Garroth has kinda come to expect Zane behind him at all times so he's more surprised when he's nowhere in sight.)

Vylad does the same and that creeps Zane out. (Garroth however has light but still audible footsteps)

The Ro'Meave brothers used to do lkke baller or smth when they were kids (Zianna is canonically a pageant mom and I will make her a dance mom too)(Garroth ended up quitting as soon as he could, Zane quit after college and refuses to continue and Vylad quit doing lessons and doing it professionally but you'll occasionally find him doing some moves when he's bored)

Dante and Aphmau are like around the same height

Zane stopped wearing the eyeliner only because the brand changed the formula and it irritated his eye. He could have changed but no he really couldn't.

Zane doesn't like buying things he isn't 100% sure he'll like.

Laurance cooks every meal in the house because Garroth is no longer trusted around anything flammable or sharp and Laurance is like 67% sure Zane will poison him if he keeps him up at night... again

Zane and Laurance have the same phone and Zane absolutely has zero patience for trying to explain that to him whenever he tells him to turn off the button sounds on his phone.

Aaron and Zane have been consistent friends for the longest out of everyone on the street other than Lucinda and Katelyn. (Consistent just meaning they kept in contact the entire time)

Firm believer in the theory that Dante and Aphmau are cousins they just do not know it until like mid 30s when they overhear Maria, Sylvanna and Zianna chat shit when they're down.

Rachel respects anyone who is as stubborn as she is.

Melissa and Gene unlikely duo. She just makes fun of him every single time she sees him and no one knows why but literally everyone cheers her on because yeah

Everyone is always astounded by Zane's distaste of marshmallows even if they already knew (the projection is strong with this one)

The friend group play truth or dare one time and it ended in Zane moving out and moving in with Lucinda because he decided he would prefer to be her occasional guinea pig at 40% rent than deal with Garroth and Laurance flirting and keeping him up at 33% rent

Lucinda and Zane play protective sibling when they go to bars and someone they don't like is hitting on them.

(I just need Zane Lucinda sibling relationship yaknow)

Vylad is an archaeologist

Zane was scared of birds. Exposure to Bigglesworth earmed him up to owls.

Aaron and Zane used to be roommates

Zane's first instance of gay panic was in when he met Laurance during his last year of middle school. (It did not last that long)

Ro'Meave is Zianna's maiden name.

[tigerdrachin]

sooooo, I have been rewatching a few table skits because the last days were shitty and I needed to laugh

I maybe have come up with a theory about New York (It probably has already been noticed, but I didn’t do a deep dive into the unstable canon of this fandom for nothing, ok)

So in the ‘DC statehood’ skit we see New York (State) and NYC

NYC with the normal red beanie we know and love

NY State with a bills (I think. I’m not big on football) beanie

we have seen both beanies multiple times after (and I think before it switched too sometimes) but the red is much more prominent

So. are we looking at NYC most of the time? Representing how NYC dominates the states image?

 (also another piece to support this theory is that in ‘Weekly News Recap 6/5′ NY ask why the military is walking on HIS streets not NYC streets HIS streets, he is speaking in first person about NYC when he is constantly insisted that NY (not him, but NY) is more than just the city (I could be wrong on that as I don't know what happened beyond what's said in the sketch so feel free to correct))

Edit after rewatching more vids:

(found another thing ‘Night Before Christmas in NYC’ AND I QUOTE: “This has been ‘The night before Christmas in NYC’ by ME NYC” he's wearing the coat he has the beanie he said it himself what more evidence do you need)

Do they have a Texas/Austin or California/beach cal or Florida/Miami (from Cal and Flo we can also learn that states can change outfits when switching personalities) thing going on, just with the City being in control most of the time?

What would their relationship be like?

(I’m just gonna refer to them as State and City from here on, as this is annoying)

In the episode (D.C. wants to be a state) State would like to get City out of the state but gets shut down by City

State seems much nicer and happier than City does (still not nice, but nicer)

Would they have a sibling like relationship, City being the overprotective older brother (my research said NYC is older, correct me if I’m wrong) taking all the attention on him, as he always has, while State just wants to be seen independent of NYC?

Do they get along when nobody's locking?

Does City ask State when something that's not the city is brought up?

Because City clearly cares about States feelings, with his stubborn telling everyone that NY is more than just a city, even tho (If we go by beanie logic) said city is in control.

And if we spin this over analyzation further, NY outfit isn't consistent at all, but all reappear from time to time, different from all other states that changed outfits, so does that mean that other cities also can take control?

Also, are the other States aware of it because they all refer to him (NYC, NY and other) as only New York.

Like we got (I have evidence for NYC, NY (state), Albany and Buffalo but I’m not through with my digging, so maybe Rochester will be added when I find an outfit that I can’t sort to anybody else)

Red beanie, coat, gray hoodie (only in the early eps) Bills shirt - NYC there is so much evidence I'm not listing here (ask if you want more insight to my research), it’s also the most seen one by a lot (I counted) so it supports my theory that NYC is mostly the one in control (He shares this one with buffalo tho as NYC said in one of the early skits that buffalo like jumping through fold tables Bc football or smth, and in the Holiday special (The one where NY Buffalo smiled) he said in this outfit that he already did jump through tables, I don't think buffalo comes out much tho beyond football which is why he doesn’t have his own outfit

Red Beanie, no coat, bills shirt - That's Albany, but the hints to that are very subtle. The first time that outfit was seen was in the episode that started with tear gas in different states (NY included) Albany was the only city (important enough for me to consider here) that used tear gas (There is a little more but explaining that would take too long)

Red beanie, no coat, New York shirt - also New York City (Just his warm wetter outfit lol) Same personality just different shirt, try telling me otherwise I will pull out the loads of evidence I have for this. I’m just too lazy to write it all out, rn. (beside NYC so has more than one outfit to wear, he’s NYC after all)

UPDATE AFTER MORE DIGGING: this ^ is shared between NY and NYC I will explain: In the bosten tea party video is ny in this outfit agreeing with mass which means it can't be NYC as he stood against what mass did back then so either NY just took over because he represented the popular opinion in the state (making it a austin/texas kinda situation where the more popular has more representation) or back then they were still one person and split up later when NYC became the face of NY (would explain why not even the northeastern states are aware of it as NY didn't have multiple personalities back then) and albany appeared when it became capital and buffalo just showed up some day (I do not know the history of buffalo so when I get into research for his part in this (he shows up the least so he is the last one I will look into), his place in the timeline I'm establishing here could change)

There is another version of this one just with a different Shirt which only appears in ‘DC statehood’ and is explicitly said to be NYC

Bills beanie, no coat bills shirt - NY (state) as far as I’m right now with the episodes it has appeared in DC Statehood with the exact label NY as the state and In the drunk NY scene in ‘Table News: Two Tickets to Martha’s’ and in both he's adorable, fight me.

But all are just called New York for some reason (somebody write a fic about the other states after moving in being confused as all hell at NY different personalities. It. would. Be. Hilarious. or good angst (duh) or hurt/comfort (The system supporting each other) or just Texas and New York bonding over it)

Everybody can use this, go nuts, this fandom can sure as hell use more NY fluff/Angst fellas!

If this interested anyone, just ask for more info if you want it, I have done so much digging for this (Do not recommend) so that you don’t have too and I’m happy to share everything I found, just this is already pretty long so yeah.

If ya want more info I have a few sites written full of details I noticed by going through all of NY episodes for this (Most also have episodes it appeared in referenced so you could check yourself if you want)

just differentiate if you only want things I found in the skits or if head canons mixed in would be ok (It would be marked with HC tho)

This took three hours and it’s not even half of all I found out and I’m not even through all of NY appearances but I don't wanna do more digging rn.

[randomgentlefolk]

Thinking abt cursed princess club again and. Wondering about how the pastel kingdom royal family mentions their beauty fading quickly, and how badly they want to unlock that whole eternal beauty thing and. Do you think maybe they were going at it in the wrong way? The former king and queen were mad at their son (I frgt the kings name help-) bc he was marrying Gwen’s mom and that would “undo all their hard work.” But she WAS beautiful and all of their kids ended up beautiful, and idk. I wonder where and when beauty got defined a certain way in the pastel kingdom anyways, and that, if the mom DID “break” the cycle so to speak, haven’t they already unlocked longer lasting beauty? Bc the reason it seems to fade so quickly, I feel, has to do with them and their goals and stress- but leelathee is not of the pastel kingdom. So she’s introduced smth new to the bloodline. This didn’t even make sense I’m sorry 😭

No, no it does makes sense! I actually made a post similar to this a few months ago

Maybe beside the stress and goal that is messing up with their cycle, it could also be that while they are beautiful on the outside, they are not so much on the inside (this sounds cliche but bare with me). Maybe they have been looking at it the wrong way, or they have been looking at it the right way but they view themselves as someone with beauty inside too (which they are not :/)

Because let's be real here, if Jack married someone with only beauty on the outside, it's prone that the children wouldn't as good either. Imagine the pastel siblings with the same superpowers, but they're not kind.

I can't really explain how it would be but it wouldn't be exactly the best :')

Anyway, so with Leelathae, like you said, introducing something new to the bloodline, I think that is what has been the perfect mix into the cycle, therefore creating the generations Jesse and Helena always wanted. (This was worded so wrong, I am really sorry. English is not my first language so it can be hard sometimes)

So, yes! I agree with you. I think they did go at it the wrong way.

Oh, and speaking about the Pastel King and Queen (I'm just gonna say Jesse and Helena) stress which affects the cycle, on episode 107, there was a moment where Jamie was freaking out because he has a grey hair, and he freaked out right after he was stressing out about someone that is going to harm his sisters

Leopold did say it was probably premature aging though. But if it wasn't, maybe it was the same thing Jack, Helena, Jesse, and maybe others experience? Stress mixed with the side effect of their immense (it being gone quickly).

Thank you for your theory, anon!! I miss doing posts like this haha.

[and-stir-the-stars]

What do you think about the dittophobia theory of the afton brothers being subjected to william's allucinations for who knows how long, probably not even knowing they were being experimented on, at least for a while.

I was thinking if you take it into account, you could explain mike trying to scare evan around with a foxy mask of all things (i mean, id you think about it, in universe the animatronics are this comforting and cute entities of a silly kid's restaurant, if he wanted to scare his brother he could have looked for a spooky mask but he thought foxy would scare him. And he was right

On the other hand, evan being scared of the animatronics is just as likely so like, mike just took advantage of the fear that was already there or smth idk

Personally I don't know much about the books.

I know in my mbmw au, William uses illusion discs on his kids. He uses them on Evan to make Ev, and everyone, think he's over reacting and lying about seeing Liz almost die. But William ends up morbidly liking having control over Evan and seeing the pure fear in Evan’s eyes every night bc Ev is sure he's about to die, so he doesn't stop, but keeps going and pushing Evan to his limits. I think mbmw Will would do similar illusion disc trials with Mike and Liz too, but haven't figured out what they are.

I haven't decided yet if William does these trials outside of mbmw, but I don't think he uses hallucination gas to do it. Just illusion discs, I would think.

I do think William experimenting on his kids would be very in character for my William.

And I do think that for the Foxy mask, Mike used the mask to scare Ev bc Ev was already scared of animatronics.

[foxtriestobiteandmaimandkilland]

long ranty post ahead abt my own experiences w learning instruments and playinf sports

dude yknow what i miss but also dont. playing sports n playing instruments. bc ive done quite a few different of each just in the past. like i was actually a Big football kid when i was around 5 but hated the club i went 2 bc i was the only girl and basically couldnt play bc even at fucking 5 i wasnt treated as an equal player. but also i didnt rlly mind that it was more so how aggressive it was and i didnt like being pushed around n kicked n shit. and i also played cricket which i liked i just timed it badly bc it was around a year where my immune system just fuckin gave up on me and i was sick like every other week and it out me off cricket bc i always felt so guilty for not being able 2 play it that often. n i also played tag rugby which i loved i just hated my coach she was an asshole she made these like 9 yr old kids do some baddd shit. like one time we played a match against another school and it was a cold wet rainy muddy day and i had played a couple times only and was already in so much pain and i went to her fucking in tears bc i had so many scrapes and i could barely feel my hands from the cold and every time i was passed the ball it literally hurt so fucking much and she ucking LAUGHED at me and told me 2 shut up and deal w it bc i agreed 2 play tag rugby so i was gonna do it under any conditions. like i wanted 2 kill her in that moment and i fucking shouldve i remember that moment so fucking clearly bc it was the absolute worst for me i could barely fucking do school work for ages after that bc my hands hurt so fucking much from not being allowed a goddam break when i was 9 years old. anyways yea sports is fun tho its just unfortunate situations. and i rlly wanna do cricket again or atleast like rounders or smt. man americans r actually right w this one tho baseball sounds so much better than rounders rounders sounds like a baby sports baseball sounds like. cool. anyways also w instruments it was a similar sorta thing. i played piano 4 likeee 3 or 4 years and basically picked up nothing lol other than basic music theory but thats expected bc i was like 7 or 8 on average . i also played the flute for another like 2 or 3 years which i was better at and actually played at concerts n shit but i quit that too bc i hated the stress i got from it bc i hated practicing and i hated the structure of my lessons and i hated my schools wind band i was forced 2 join and fucking guilt tripped not to leave bc i was the best player or w/e even tho i fucking hated that bc it put so much pressure on me at like 10 yrs old bc i did all the loud melody bits so if i made a mistake everyone would notice and i hated it. i also tried the cello and the guitar 4 like a month each which i also hated. now im explaining all this i kinda sound like a rich snob. well my initial point was gonna b how sports and music didnt feel 2 different. like ill use tag rugby and the flute 4 my example bc i did those things at around the same time and they were the ones i cared abt the most. but like. it felt like there was a sorta path drawn out for me in both cases. sometimes w the sheet music and sometimes w the playing field. altho i didnt know how 2 sight read and i am also not very observant so u might think oh ok i followed the path drawn out 4 me. but in both cases it felt like i was winging it int he same way. 4 the flute i always wrote the note names (and had many meltdowns over being forced 2 play w sight reading even tho i didnt wanna learn 2 sight read bc i could always just write the note names) but id write it out and instead of like. reading ahead. i just played what was in front of me. and it felt like each time i played it was like. a match or smth and i was just holding out and holding out and skipping over mistakes until i got to the end. and id never plan out the route id take first it was always just my reaction time i relied on which to be fair was not a good idea bc i have dogshit reaction time. but in tag rugby id do essentially the same. when i was on the offensive team, id usually be in front since i was good at avoiding being touched which i realise now is probably a result of my parents bc i was like constantly ready 2 avoid bein hit n shit. but i was always in front but i could never just see the whole playing field so i focused on like. exactly what was directly around me and just depended on my reaction time to avoid being tagged out. and idk i was just thinking. the exhaustion i felt after playing the flute for so long and never being taught how to breathe properly only that i should and the exhaustion i felt after playing sports for so long and never being told how to improve and only what i did wrong and the exhaustion i always felt after being in my house 4 so long and never being told what i was supposed to do and only how everything i was doing was wrong and. yea. connections between childhood trauma and playing music and playing sports.

[leshyleaf]

Ok I replayed all of deltarune again so silly deltarune theory time!

(I dont peruse tumblr all that much so sorry if someone already posted about this specifically)

so we’re all very heartbroken about the lack of papyrus in chapter 2, right (at least I am). Basically, I’m just very curious about what Sans’s little brother is gonna be like. ((It’s not even confirmed to be papyrus, but considering that they are sans’s little bro, and of course, the trousle you trigger when you knock on their door, it’s gotta be highly likely lol.

I’m almost positive he is going to be a teen, as it would be weird for sans to schedule a hangout with someone much younger or much older than Kris.

Anyway…what If he turns out to be a human?

shut up and hear me out okok

I think it would be really interesting!! Because

We’d get to interact with another living human for the first time in the utdr verse

It would be a really cool character/family parallel to Kris and their situation…I’m not sure how to put it eloquently, but one of the many themes in deltarune/undertale seems to be that feeling…of being a bit of an outsider in your own family/among your friends ((I mean, kris used to want to be a monster when they were little, I’m sure to “fit in”; they even wore little monster horns…and the town members seem to regard them as a bit of a weirdo)) ALSO, there was a really dope theory post about Susie being from a human/town family that explained a lot about her/her actions.

And this “outsider feeling” I think fits papyrus well…he doesn’t have many friends; he’s a bit brash, loud, clearly neurodivergent…and is just. Lonely. Sometimes I forget how lonely he is. In deltarune, sans tells you that he really needs more friends, so I’m sure this carries in some degree to deltarune. (I’m glad he seems so happy after the pacifist ending in ut. It warms my heart.) I mean, just check out the Christmas party dialogue.

Anyway, even the library has books on how to take care of humans, (checked out by only toriel, but the brothers just moved here, so.) it just seems like one of those thematic scenarios that Toby might throw us for a loop on.

There is even some dialogue in ut that somewhat, jokingly, goofily, suggests… something.

Not to mention all that “behind-the-ear dabbing” lol

Of course, these might all seem like silly jokes, but Toby has a bit of a habit of disguising real lore with humor (which I’ve always thought was genius.)

“ but this dialogue is from undertale, not deltarune!” Good point, I say, good point. Except NOT

Toby himself said there would be SOME connections, and in my recent replaying of undertale (and farming for river person dialogue), flowey AND riverperson both directly reference the world of deltarune, with flowey showing seam’s eye before his omega flowey fight, while saying (as differentiated from humans and monsters) “EVERYONE.” And river person says “beware the man who comes from the other world” or smth like that (I didn’t get the screenshots for these, sorry lol.) also, sans’s gaster blasters, ofc.

Now. This theory is kind of debunked by well. This

LOL. BUT!!

BUT!

No bones in ch. 2…Just the trousle. (And honestly, the trousle of bones in ch. 1 could just mean nothing, or be just a reference to the name of his theme, or the box of bones he maybe still has ((why did he have that in undertale?? It would actually make more sense for him to have that if he was not?? A skeleton monster?? That could magically produce bones and thereby would not need a box of them for attack use??))

This theory could also somewhat explain the fact that papyrus is the only main cast member that we haven’t seen yet.

I would like to end this theory with a disclaimer [this is just a small crack-y theory haha, I don’t actually think this holds much weight at all, I just thought It was interesting and wanted to share!]

And of course, this famous dialogue from dt.

Oh, and also, some doodles and sprites of human teen paps I did when I was thinking about this bc why not!!

[danothan]

I think based off the fact that Cait was following Jayce to his apartment with his equipment in early episodes Jayce spent alot of time indulging Cait like a big brother or upperclassmen would. Telling her neat facts, explaining the mechanics of his experiments or doing fun science experiments like how you can make fire different colors. I know alot of people hc them as found family but I just mean I think Jayce tried to involve Cait and make it fun for her as much as possible.

oh for sure!!! we already know they confide in each other, like when jayce found out he was giving the speech, he immediately rushed over to give cait the news! and later in the same ep, cait is like “remember what i told you abt my investigation??” and he’s like “yes yes, your conspiracy theory…” AGH they share everything with each other they are best friends <3

so in that way, when she was younger and starry eyed and not yet disillusioned to jayce’s antics, i agree that she would follow him everywhere and he would try to share his interests with her. my friend even pointed out that he had 2 sandwiches in his room before the break in so they could eat together 🥺 but also if that was the case, get her a plate or smth… jesus do you feed all your guests table crumbs 😭😭

[rhine-gold-archive]

Question! - It seems like a popular theory that Kaeya is somehow royalty? I was wondering, if that's the case, then tf is the abyss-sibling thinking, trying to hack some fountain in the chasm instead of using their 'last hope'? The royal theory seems off. Surely, the abyss-sibling wouldn't forget/not know about their actual prince living in Mond? His last name says smth about 'stealing and then becoming king' - that implies he is just a plain citizen before he does something. Idk 🥴 help???

asdfghj ok, hold on anon, you seem to be making a lot of jumbled assumptions here, let’s unpack them before I answer. First of all, you seem to be conflating “Kaeya is royalty” with “Kaeya is Khaenri’ah’s last hope”, which are two completely different things. Kaeya being a prince is an unproven fandom theory, but Kaeya being called “last hope of Khaenri’ah” is a canon text, it’s from his character story. Are you arguing that like, devs are lying to you in actual in-game descriptions? :D

“Surely, the abyss-sibling wouldn't forget/not know about their actual prince living in Mond?” Why not?? clearly, there are many different factions of Khaenri'ah survivors - the abyss order, the Black Serpent Knights, who do not obey the abyss, but protect the hilichurls, Dainsleif, and then there is Kaeya’s dad who seem to smuggle Kaeya to Dawn Winery in complete secret, without any of the other factions knowing. Kaeya’s mere existence contradicts what abyss sibling and Dainsleif know, it doesn’t even matter if he’s a prince. Dain was part of the Abyss Order and knows most of their secrets, and he’s adamant that he’s the ONLY survivor of Khaenri'ah who was not turned into a monster. He says that he was not transformed by the curse because of mysterious “it” thing he has, which is hinted, but not explained. But even this “it” doesn’t protect him completely - he wasn’t transformed, but he’s still under effects of the curse - he’s immortal and he can’t age, and he lives in suffering. 

But Kaeya is not only not transformed into a monster, but he also can age normally, he grew up at the same rate as Diluc. We don’t know if he’s completely free from the curse, but he’s obviously able to live a normal human life, this is why he’s so special. And yeah, it wouldn’t make sense for abyss to be fucking with the fountains if they knew that there’s a seemingly totally cured Khaenri’ahn existing already, so obviously, they don’t know that “the last hope of Khaenri'ah” is drinking shots in the Mondstadt tavern. Again, it doesn’t even matter if Kaeya is from Eclipse dynasty or not, the mere fact of his existence would change everything, why do you think Hoyo keeps namedropping him in every Dain’s quest, but never lets them meet. He would be a gamechanger for the both sides. 

Another assumption you seem to be making is that abyss sibling belongs to  Khaenri'ah when you say “abyss-sibling wouldn't forget/not know about *their* actual prince”. The Traveler siblings are not Khaenri'ahns, if they were, Dain wouldn’t call himself the only survivor who was not transformed, he obviously knows abyss sibling exists. also, does it not seems off to you that the Traveler says that they and abyss sibling came to this world 500 years ago, saw the destruction of Khaenri'ah, tried to leave and were stopped by the Sustainer of Heavenly Principles? How could this be if the siblings were indeed from Khaenri'ah? And would the Traveler not know already know what Khaenri'ah is and why it fell? And like, know who Dainsleif is? How can the siblings be from Khaenri'ah and only enter Teyvat at the moment of Khaenri'ah's destruction at the same time?  

One theory that I personally agree with is that the traveler siblings are not from  Khaenri'ah, but from the more ancient civilization that fell long time ago when the Second Throne came, and Khaenri'ah was built on the ruins of this civilization. We know that Enkanomyia was part of world-wide ancient civilization before the fall and also that there was even more ancient civilization of the Seelies, so both are valid options. The theory is that the Travelers left at the destruction of their much more ancient home and traveled for so long, they don’t even recognize their home when they return to Teyvat. That would explain the inteyvat flowers in Lumine’s hair even if she’s not abyss sibling - they only grow in  Khaenri'ah, but if Lumine and Aether are from civilization that was in the same place as  Khaenri'ah many hundreds years ago, it would make sense why she has the flowers, but doesn’t know what Khaenri'ah is. In this case, when abyss sibling talks about “homeland” they don’t mean exactly Khaenri'ah, but the place where Khaenri'ah was built on.

Another thing that supports it is that hilichurls have different tribe markings, and some of them clearly reference Khaenri'ah sigil, but many others don’t. So it’s very possible that Khaenri'ah is not the first nation to be transformed into monsters by this curse, that the hilichurls contain remnants of several different civilizations, one of which was the Traveler’s destroyed ancient home. 

as for why Kaeya is theorized to be Khaenri'ah‘s prince - it’s a popular theory, so I’m not going to go into detailed explanations, I’m sure you can easily find them, but why I personally believe it - Alberich is the reference to the dwarven king from Nibelungen saga + sword from heaven explaining “the stealing” you seem to be confused about+ Kaeya’s C1 called “Excellent blood” + his voiceline “Haha, then according to that logic, I at the very least am some royal progeny of a last reigning dynasty too, right?” + he’s absolutely covered head to toe in “Khaenri'ah stars” which are confirmed in the Chasm to be from the banner of the Khaenri’ah royal house. It’s all not very subtle when you put the pieces together, tbh.