#so it makes sense that he would change parts of it to make him seem like more of a heroic victim of fate

[woozinhos]

Hiiiiii okay so reader has a crush on mingyu and mingyu doesn’t care for her and wonwoo gets tired of her ass so he fucks her on mingyus bed ( ROUGHH) till all she can do is cry and scream ( he fucks her dumb basically)

Even on his bed I’m still better

Notes: stop why are all my fics so long today and why are they all hitting so good!

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Juicy smut below the cut

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The atmosphere was lively and loud as you stood chatting with Mingyu at the party. He was his usual charming self, laughing and joking with you, but you couldn't help feeling a flutter of nerves every time he smiled at you. You had been nursing a crush on him for months, and every time you saw him, your heart would race. You couldn't shake the feeling that there was something between you two, even if he didn't seem to notice.

Wonwoo stood off to the side, watching the two of you with a growing sense of frustration. He had been trying to get your attention all night, but it seemed like you were too caught up in your conversation with Mingyu to notice him. Mingyu was polite and friendly, but you couldn't help but notice that he didn't seem to reciprocate your feelings. He laughed at your jokes and smiled at your attempts to flirt, but there was always a hint of detachment in his expression. You tried not to let it get to you, but deep down, it stung. You couldn't understand why he wasn't interested in you when you were so obviously smitten with him.

As the conversation with Mingyu continued, you found yourself growing more and more flustered. You tried to steer the conversation in a direction that would make him realize your feelings, but he remained oblivious. You felt a pang of jealousy as he joked with another girl nearby, laughing at something she said. Wonwoo's frustration only grew as he watched you pine after someone who clearly wasn't interested. Wonwoo finally couldn't take it anymore. He walked over to where you and Mingyu were standing and inserted himself into the conversation.

"Hey," he said, his voice firm. "Can I talk to you for a minute?" Mingyu looked a bit surprised at Wonwoo's interruption, but he nodded and stepped away to give you two some privacy. You followed Wonwoo to a quieter corner of the room, your heart racing with a mix of anticipation and nerves.

Once you were alone, Wonwoo turned to face you, his expression a mix of frustration and concern. "You need to stop," he said bluntly. "Stop flirting with Mingyu and wasting your time." You were taken aback by his bluntness, but you couldn't deny that a part of you had been expecting this conversation. "Why?" you asked, trying to keep your voice steady. "He's not interested, I know that, but I can't just give up." Wonwoo's frustration grew as he saw the stubborn look on your face.

"You're so blind," he said, his voice rising slightly. "Mingyu doesn't care about you like that, and you're just setting yourself up for heartbreak." You crossed your arms, defensive. "You don't know that," you retorted. "Maybe he just needs a little push." Wonwoo shook his head, clearly exasperated. "No, he doesn't. He's made it clear that he doesn't see you that way. You're just wasting your time chasing after someone who will never love you back."

His words stung, but you couldn't deny the truth in them. You had seen the way Mingyu acted around you, the way he never reciprocated your flirting or gave any indication that he was interested. But despite that, you still held onto hope that things could change. "Maybe I'm just being optimistic," you said quietly, looking down at the ground. Wonwoo couldn't hold back any longer. He stepped closer to you, his eyes burning with a mix of frustration and longing.

"No, you're being stubborn and stupid," he said, his voice firm but tinged with desperation. "Because I'm the one who loves you. I've been right here, watching you chase after someone who doesn't deserve you." Your eyes widened in surprise as his words sank in. You had never seen Wonwoo like this before, so raw and vulnerable. "What?" you whispered, your heart racing. "You...you love me?" Wonwoo nodded, his expression a mixture of relief and vulnerability.

"Yes," he said, his voice barely above a whisper. "I've loved you for a long time, but I never said anything because I thought you were in love with Mingyu." Your mind was racing as you tried to process his confession. You had always thought of Wonwoo as a close friend, but you never considered the possibility that he felt something more for you. "Why didn't you say anything?" you asked, your voice shaking slightly. Wonwoo ran a hand through his hair, looking frustrated and defeated.

"I didn't want to ruin our friendship," he said. "I didn't want to risk losing you if you didn't feel the same way. So I kept quiet and watched you chase after someone who doesn't deserve you." Wonwoo looked at you with a mixture of hope and pleading in his eyes.

"Please," he said softly. "Give me a chance. I know I'm not perfect, but I'll do anything to make you happy. Just stop chasing after someone who doesn't appreciate you and let me show you how much I care." You were torn. On one hand, you had spent so long pining after Mingyu that it felt like giving up on him would be letting go of a part of yourself. But on the other hand, there was Wonwoo, standing in front of you, confessing his love and offering you a chance at something real.

You looked into his eyes, searching for any sign of doubt or hesitation. But all you saw was sincerity and longing. You took a deep breath, steeling yourself for the decision you were about to make. "Okay," you said quietly. "I'll give you a chance." Wonwoo's eyes lit up with hope and a small smile tugged at the corners of his lips. "Really?" he asked, as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing. "You mean it?" You nodded, a small smile of your own forming.

"Yeah, I mean it," you said. "I'm tired of chasing after someone who doesn't want me. I'm ready to give you a chance." Wonwoo's eyes darkened with a mix of desire and determination. "I want to show you how much I've been wanting you," he said, his voice low and seductive. "Will you let me?" You felt a shiver run down your spine at the intensity in his voice. The way he was looking at you, as if you were the only person in the world, made your heart race with anticipation.

"Yes," you whispered, your voice barely above a whisper. "Show me." Wonwoo's grip on your wrist was firm as he led you upstairs, his strides long and purposeful. He didn't even hesitate as he opened the door to Mingyu's room and pulled you inside, closing the door behind him. The room was dark, with only the soft glow of a lamp illuminating the space. Wonwoo pressed you against the wall, his body flush against yours. He pinned you against the wall, his hands roaming over your body as he pressed his lips against your neck.

"You have no idea how long I've wanted to do this," he murmured against your skin, his breath hot and heavy. Wonwoo's words were rough and possessive, his desire for you clear in his voice. He pulled back to look at you, his eyes burning with intensity. "Let me show you how much better I am than him," he repeated, his fingers tracing a path down your body. "Let me make you forget all about Mingyu." Wonwoo smirked as he continued to press you against the wall, his hands moving lower and lower down your body.

"Even on his bed, I'll still be better," he whispered in your ear, his voice dripping with confidence. "I'll make you scream my name and forget all about that idiot." Wonwoo pushed you onto the bed, his body following closely behind. He hovered over you, his eyes raking over your body with a possessive hunger. "You're mine now," he growled, his hands roaming over your curves. "No more Mingyu, no more thinking about anyone else but me."

"Yes," you gasped out, your breath catching in your throat as he continued to touch you. "I'm yours. Only yours." Wonwoo's lips curled into a satisfied smirk at your words. He leaned down and captured your lips in a searing kiss, his tongue delving into your mouth and exploring every inch. As he kissed you, his hands continued to roam over your body, his touch growing more urgent and possessive with each passing moment.

Wonwoo broke the kiss, his lips trailing down your neck and across your collarbone. He nipped and sucked at your skin, leaving a trail of marks in his wake. "You have no idea how long I've dreamed of having you like this," he murmured against your skin, his voice thick with desire. "All mine, writhing and moaning beneath me." Wonwoo's hands made quick work of the fabric of your dress, slowly revealing more and more of your skin. He pushed the material down your body, his eyes drinking in every inch of you as it fell to the floor.

"So beautiful," he whispered, his fingers tracing patterns across your bare skin. "You have no idea how long I've wanted to see you like this." Wonwoo tossed his t-shirt aside, revealing his toned chest and muscular arms. He looked down at you with a hungry expression, his eyes roaming over your body.

"You're perfect," he said, his voice rough with desire. "I can't believe I almost let you slip away from me." He leaned down, his body pressing against yours, his skin hot against yours. You could feel his hardness pressing against you through his jeans, and he let out a low growl of frustration.

"I need you," he said, his lips finding your ear. "Now."

Wonwoo's hands moved to the waistband of your panties, his fingers tracing the edge teasingly. "Lift your hips for me," he commanded, his voice firm and commanding. You obeyed his command, lifting your hips off the bed. Wonwoo slowly pulled your panties down your legs, his eyes fixed on the sight of your exposed body.

"You're even more beautiful than I imagined," he said, his voice low and husky. "And all mine."

"Get on your hands and knees," Wonwoo commanded, his eyes dark with desire. "I want to take you from behind."

"I'm sorry, but I need to show you what you've been missing," Wonwoo repeated, his voice filled with a mix of apology and determination. "You deserve to feel pleasure like you've never felt before." You slowly got onto your hands and knees, your body trembling with anticipation. As you presented yourself to Wonwoo, you felt a mix of vulnerability and excitement coursing through your veins. You could feel the heat of his gaze on your body, his eyes roaming over every curve and contour. You could sense the tension in the air, the unspoken promise of pleasure that was about to be fulfilled. Wonwoo positioned himself behind you, his hands running over your back and down to your hips. He leaned forward, his chest pressing against your back as he whispered in your ear.

"You have no idea how beautiful you look like this," he said, his breath hot against your skin. "All mine, ready and waiting for me." He trailed his lips down your spine, leaving a trail of kisses in his wake. His hands continued to explore your body, his touch growing more confident and possessive. "I'm going to make you feel so good," he promised, his voice low and seductive. "I'm going to make you forget everything but my name." Wonwoo slowly pushed himself inside you, filling you up inch by inch. He let out a low groan of pleasure as he bottomed out, his hands gripping your hips tightly.

"Fuck," he breathed, his voice strained. "You feel so good. So tight and perfect." Wonwoo set a punishing pace, his thrusts hard and rough as he pounded into you from behind. Each movement was filled with purpose, as if he was determined to erase any memory of Mingyu from your mind. He leaned forward, his chest pressed against your back, his lips finding the nape of your neck. He bit down gently, marking you as his own. As you arched your back, pushing your body against him, Wonwoo's grip on your hips tightened. He adjusted his angle, hitting that sweet spot deep inside you with every thrust.

"You're so good for me," he panted, his voice thick with pleasure. "Taking me so well, just like you were made for me." Wonwoo tangled his fingers in your hair, pulling your head back slightly. The sudden sensation sent a shiver down your spine, and you moaned loudly in response. "That's it," he growled, his grip on your hair tightening. "I want to hear you moan for me. I want everyone to know who you belong to."

"Scream my name," Wonwoo commanded, his voice rough and dominant. "Let everyone know who's making you feel this way." As he continued to pound into you, his thrusts growing faster and harder, you couldn't hold back any longer. The pleasure was too much, and you screamed his name. "Wonwoo!" you cried out, your voice echoing through the room. Wonwoo's grip on your hair loosened as he heard you scream his name, and he leaned down to whisper in your ear. "That's it, baby," he said, his voice filled with satisfaction. "You're mine. Say it again."

"I'm yours, Wonwoo," you panted, your voice ragged with pleasure. "I'm all yours." He growled in response, his thrusts becoming more urgent and desperate. He was close, and he wanted you to come undone for him. "Say it again," he demanded, his fingers digging into your hips. "I need to hear you say it one more time."

"I'm yours, I'm yours, I'm yours," you chanted, the words spilling from your lips like a mantra. You could feel your orgasm building, the pleasure coiling tight in your core.

"That's it," Wonwoo groaned, his voice strained. "Come for me, baby. Come for me and I'll give you everything." You felt your body tense, your muscles coiling tightly as your orgasm washed over you. You cried out Wonwoo's name, your body shaking with the force of your release. Wonwoo followed soon after, his own climax crashing over him as he thrust into you one final time. He buried his face in your neck, his body shuddering against yours as he came deep inside you. Wonwoo's thrusts slowed as he rode out his orgasm, his body trembling against yours. He held you close, his arms wrapping around you as he caught his breath.

"Fuck," he muttered, his voice hoarse. "You're amazing. I don't think I've ever felt that good before."

Wonwoo carefully pulled out of you and rolled onto his back, pulling you with him so that you were lying on top of him. He traced lazy patterns on your back, his fingers skimming over your skin. “I'm never letting you go," he murmured, his voice filled with possessiveness. "You're mine, forever." Wonwoo reached over and grabbed a blanket, pulling it over the two of you. He wrapped his arms around you, holding you close as you snuggled into his chest.

"We should stay like this for a while," he said, his voice sleepy. "Just us, no one else."

"That was...incredible," you murmured, your voice soft and dreamy. "You were incredible."

All of a sudden the door swung open and Mingyu walked in, stopping in his tracks as he took in the sight of you and Wonwoo lying together on his bed, wrapped up in each other. His eyes widened in surprise, and for a moment he just stood there, speechless. Mingyu's eyes darted around the room, taking in the scattered clothes and the obvious signs of what had just happened. He looked back at you and Wonwoo, his expression a mix of shock and anger.

"What the hell is going on here?" he demanded, his voice sharp. Wonwoo smirked, his arms tightening around you as he spoke.

"Just showing her what she's been missing, that's all," he said casually, as if it was the most normal thing in the world. "And I must say, she's been enjoying herself quite a bit."

[princeofassassins]

I disagree with this framing of Vax's feelings as him being 100% inflexible about his role with the matron. Before his behavior with her could be read as that, but he has directly stated that he also wishes he could go back, its mainly that he doesnt want to go back on a promise.

The results of what happens with the gods, informs how his fate tied to the raven queen will end up, whether he gets a leave of absence, is still tied to her after de-deification, or she is consumed. His main character trait is wanting to be some reliable, someone who can help others, and lighten the mood. In his old life he sought to be a breath of fresh air, a bit of an impish prankster, someone who wanted to enjoy the fruits of life and encourage others to share them with him.

I don't think resurrecting Vax is overriding Vax's desires as he clearly would like to return to his life but his strong sense of moral obligation means that unless circumstances change he wont consider it. He wont agree to them tricking the Raven Queen or utilizing a loophole to bring him back unless he either has her blessing or his duties are done/taken up by another. That doesn't mean he's anti revival under any circumstances.

Plus we've seen Keyleth struggle over being happy that Vax is back for one more night, despite the Raven Queen granting him a temporary respite. She has clearly been going through it, and what seemed like a sweet gesture with the ravens he sent, are something that prevents her from moving on. She wants finality to move past this schrodinger's mourning period. Either Vax becomes part of her life from now on or she needs to extinguish the possibility of it happening.

Even so despite Keyleth having a lot of negative bias toward the Raven, even if it has subsided over time, she still doesn't try to beg or plead with Vax to ignore the Raven Queen. She understands his sense of honor amongst this and doesn't to force him to go against his own beliefs. The same attitude is true of Vex, although to some extent she's more willing to try and pester him about it in a sisterly way. I dont think either of them would make a concerted effort to influence Vax against his own desires for their own benefit. And If Vax returns, it will be in a way where he is making his own choice and liking sticking to his word to the Raven Queen.

I think I pinned down what bothers me the *most* about the "Free Vax from the Raven Queen" sentiment, including from the characters in the game (only because of how I see their in-character arguments being used in discussions). It boils down to the fact that people do not listen to what Vax himself says that he wants. He's said it multiple times, if you listen! And I understand why Keyleth and Vex kind of brush it aside (because they miss him and if they accepted this is his choice they would have to accept that they're angry at him for choosing it), but seeing so many arguments from the fandom to the effect of "Keyleth is sad, they need to fix it!" ignores Vax's agency in the situation by putting Keyleth's wants above his, and also says that Keyleth should be protected from having to actually deal with her grief.

Resurrecting Vax and having them live out Vax's remaining years together without consequence (because no matter what, she *will* outlive him by about ten times over) would not "cheapen" the story of his sacrifice, because that's not how stories work, but it would say that Keyleth's wants and values and needs are more valuable and important than Vax's.

Resurrecting Vax for Keyleth is akin to Deanna being resurrected for her husband. One person's choices are being placed above another's.

[steorrneleom]

BG3 Elven Names: A Watsonian Perspective

Amongst folks who like Astarion as a character, the meaning of his name is a common topic of discussion. The answer is typically that it is a variation of Astērion (Ἀστερίων), a Greek name meaning starry, which makes complete sense considering that he is likely a moon elf, but it is based in a language that does not actually exist in the Forgotten Realms. This isn’t a problem, a Doylist answer is completely valid, but I thought it would be fun to figure out what the meaning would be in Elvish (the D&D version), a Watsonian answer (1). After Astarion's, I set out to see if this could be done with Halsin and Cazador as well. I present here my results, with narrative. I have also included a TLDR at the end for those who want to skip the methodology.

(1) To any who may not be aware: Doylist means that it is what the author was thinking when writing / what their intention was. Watsonian means the in-universe perception / explanation. Example: Why did magic change so much between D&D 3.5e and D&D 4e? Doylist answer is that they wanted to simplify how magic worked to draw in new players. Watsonian answer is that Mystra was assassinated by Shar and Cyric resulting in arcane magic becoming unstable and changing its behavior.

In the Lack of Duolingo

First things first, I needed a resource for the Elven language in D&D. As with many collaborative canons, official uses of the language were spread through many mediums and over the course of decades. This makes hunting down sources difficult, but luckily a wonderful person by the name of Diane Morrison was kind enough to create ‘A Treatise on Espruar,’ which offers a complete dictionary. This is what I will be using:

A quick disclaimer that, also like with many collaborative canons, this language has inconsistencies and gaps which makes a true cannon language impossible until a complete conlang is officially released. What I present is to the best of our current resources.

Method to the Madness

I have the words, but next comes the challenge of using them. These names were not made to be interpreted in the lens I am using, so it is kind of like trying to fit a square peg in anything but a square hole. Some words can line up near perfect but have meanings that make absolutely no sense, like dragon royal world, or some words can have the right meanings but have the wrong letters. I resolved this with the following criteria:

The words used must be as close to the name as possible.

Sound shifts must be minimal and not drastic.

As few letter drops as possible.

A meaning that makes sense in context (as much as possible).

Key

Word / part of word Meaning

Astarion

Something noteworthy about Astarion’s name that I kept in mind when translating it is that it was his ‘child name’, the name that was given to him by his parents and not one he chose for himself (2). This means that the meaning wouldn’t necessarily be one that he himself liked, but rather one that a parent would like to ascribe to their child.

Searching for words, one almost seemed perfect at first: Aasterinian (meaning quicksilver). It was already so close to his name without having to Frankenstein words together, but sadly it broke nearly all of my rules. It had three letter drops and two sound shifts: er to ar and ian to ion. I also was of the opinion that while quicksilver was a fine name meaning, it wasn’t one that felt like it was meant for a child.

So, the next option was a combination of Aestar (meaning together or one heart) and -ion (meaning noble). I was hesitant of this one at first. The meaning I wanted to use for Aestar, heart, had seemed to be reserved for the context of marriage at first glance, but then I saw the name Araestar with its meaning of Goldheart. This is evidence that heart is valid for names as well.

Thus, my Watsonian idea is that Astarion’s name comes from Aestarion, which translates to noble heart. This only has one letter drop and a slight sound shift from Ae to A. I also personally think noble heart is a fitting meaning for a child’s name.

(2) Astarion’s tombstone has his name and states he was 39 when he ‘died’. Elves are typically considered adults and choose their new name when they reach the age of 100.

Halsin

Halsin was a bit of a hard one, where there were tons of possibilities but near all of them just didn’t fit right. Halsin is 350 years old, he would have presumably chosen his name with a meaning that represented him as a person. He, in my opinion, wouldn’t have a name that meant something random like weak brook or red. In addition, I had to find a combination of words that fit my rules.

So, I had to write down three prefix possibilities, five word possibilities, three suffix possibilities, and mix and match until I got something that met my criteria. I won't include my rejected combinations due to their number, but here are some reasons I rejected them: ‘r to l sound shift is too drastic’, ‘the on sound is too different from in’, and ‘though m and n are close in the IPA the sound shift feels too great’. Luckily, I did find a combination I was satisfied with in the end.

My Watsonian idea is that Halsin’s name comes from Halasan which translates to one who is free and wild. The ending of Halasan would likely be pronounced like in already so it would only be a letter change instead of a sound shift. The only other change needed would be a letter drop, the a in las.

Cazador

Now this name I went in thinking that it would be the true challenge, the 'z' felt distinctly non-elven to me, but much to my surprise D&D elven does have the z sound and letter. It was still hard to get a good meaning out of it, especially since it is unknown whether this would be his child name or his adult name and there was only one combination of words that worked.

The collection of words at my disposal were cas which means herald, -adar which means world, and za which means royal, of royalty. From this, I got Cazadar, which is a modification of Casadar that adds za. This would give a direct translation of herald of royalty world, which I feel would be interpreted as royal herald (to the world). It isn’t the cleanest meaning, but I feel like there is ego and world domination vibes to it, so it works.

A slight tangent, it is debatable how valid my overlapping construction is. It is possible that the shift from cas to caz would be seen as just a letter shift and not an addition of the word za. This wouldn’t be a problem, herald of the world is still a valid meaning for my purposes, despite it losing some of the ego. There is also the possibility that the za is seen but it results in the caz being interpreted as ca, a letter shift from ka which means dragon. Since there is no dor or dar in elvish, it is possible that it would be seen either as an ornamentation or a shortening of -adar, in which case the translation becomes dragon of royalty or dragon of royalty world. These meanings aren’t horrible in the case of a wrongful interpretation, but it doesn’t entirely make sense, and Kazaadar breaks the rules I imposed.

With all this being said, my Watsonian idea is that Cazador’s name comes from Cazadar, which can be translated to royal herald (to the world). This is the one name that I created that feels like a stretch, but I tried my best.

Last Names

I originally only did the first names when I decided to make this, but then I realized while typing all this that this probably wouldn’t be complete without trying the last names too... and so, I decided to give them a try. I sat down with the elven dictionary and felt the hope leave my body as soon as I wrote them down on my scrap paper. Ancunín, with a little accent on the ‘i’ and a super rare letter for D&D elvish, ‘u’; and Szarr, with two consonants (S and Z of all things) next to each other. I predicted a struggle, a struggle is what I got, and I fled the battle, unsuccessful. I was not able to find anything that met my rules… yet.

I will revisit this someday, but it will require a lot more research on Faerûn than I am able to put in right now, sadly. Here is the fun thing about last names, they are often more influenced by location as opposed to the ethnic origin of someone. Case and point: in the US a lot of folks changed their last name upon arrival to better fit in, or it was messed up enough times that they changed it for convenience sakes. Examples: Müller turning into Miller (a spelling change), Zimmermann becoming Carpenter (a direct translation), or going from Sadowski to Smith (A complete change to assimilate). They also have a different meaning convention compared to regular names to begin with, where they can be based on the location an ancestor lived, their occupation, or their nickname.

A Watsonian answer may exist for Ancunín and Szarr, but it would be rooted in where their families lived through the eras and other local languages that might have influenced the original elvish version. Like perhaps the location the Ancunín family is from has a predominant language which favors ‘u’ as a vowel. Maybe Szarr isn’t elvish at all and is an occupation name. I don’t know if I will be able to find a satisfying answer, but if I do one day I will be sure to post it.

Bonus

Espruar is the alphabet of the elvish language, which looks really cool in my opinion. Before I even started looking into the Watsonian origins of the names, I thought it would be cool to see what their names looked like written in it and so vectorized all the letters. Below are the character's names and their origin names written with Espruar.

Astarion

Aestarion

Halsin

Halasan

Cazador

Casadar

Cazadar

Little End Note

I want to thank everyone who read through my long explanations and tangents, I hope you enjoyed reading the thought process behind all of these ☺️. I also wanted to let you folks know that I am going to make another post soon with my vectorized Espruar alphabet so anyone can write with it should they want to.

TLDR

[nanamiscocksleeve]

Homecoming Wings Thoughts

Disclaimer: These are purely my interpretations, thoughts, and predictions. You are in no way obligated to agree with me, or even have the same opinion. Do not send me hate messages or correct me unless I made a CANON error. Buckle up buttercups because I am about to take ya'll on a joy ride through my nebulous brain.

Aight aight, that was truly a wild ride, but based off the trailer, we all expected just as much. Now despite EVERYTHING, I'm still going to say, Caleb's obsessive behavior towards the end might have a deeper meaning. I believe Caleb pulled a Snape.

Yes, that's right, a Snape. Now at the very end of Homecoming Wings, Caleb goes on another mission into the deepspace tunnel and essentially tells MC there's a good chance she might not see him again (lol, we know that's not true but anyway). Then in the last part, we see him landing at some sort of base for Ever, where it's revealed that they made some sort of exchange for Caleb, essentially saving his life after the blast and giving him that bionic arm.

Caleb gives the professor information about MC's whereabouts and though this makes him sus af, I believe this is his Snape-ness showing up. In Deathly Hallows, Snape purposely reveals to Voldemort the correct date that Harry was moved from the Dursley's because according to Dumbledore, Voldemort believed Snape to have played his role too well and any misinformation from him would have raised suspicions. Similarly, Caleb purposely leaked as much accurate information to Ever as he could to throw them off the trail. Also, Ever could literally end him if they suspected he was trying to be on MC's side.

That crazy, insane, possessive, weirdly hot scene that everyone is calling Caleb's 'true yandere moment' may have been engineered. While I don't doubt that he might be unhealthily in love with MC, I don't believe he is a true 'yandere' in the sense that he would hurt MC physically or mentally. He may have been showing off his power and saying those crazy things to ensure she doesn't come looking for him again. He might be aware that Ever has turned him into a weapon perfect for killing her, and the only solution he can think of is to get her to stay away from him. He knows he can't do it by himself because any attempt from her to reconnect and he'll buckle (have you seen the yearning in this man's eyes oof).

So it's easier for her to be mistrustful and scared of him rather than him trying to constantly keep her at arm's length. He seemed truly relieved when they were reunited in that first scene and he doesn't seem to show any creepy possessive behavior in his other memories before joining the Farspace Fleet. He knows she's a hunter and that despite her getting injured so frequently, she's a tough woman and can survive anything. Before the kaboom, his complaint was that she wasn't sharing things with him like before, not that she wasn't letting him protect her.

The kids that Ever seemed to be experimenting on. It looks like Grandma Josephine had a change of heart and defected with her team and MC at some point and Ever had been trying to pinpoint them ever since. It reminds me of the experiments Aizen did on hollows to make Arrancars (that's right, ya girl is a Bleach stan). Ever seems to be trying to mutate humans into wanderers but has been unsuccessful because the protocores they're using don't stabilize, and that's why they branched out to Onychinus hoping modified protocores could be the answer, but those also fail. They are stuck, and hence, need MC's heart to figure out why her aether core is stable and theirs isn't.

I legit thought there was going to be a moment where Zayne and Caleb crossed paths. Like what are the chances that Zayne was there for a conference and was also monitoring Mia's case? I was thinking MC was going to call him for help and then he gets the shock of his life when she tells him Caleb is alive.

The chips that were mentioned...maybe Caleb is chipped but not in the way we think. Perhaps his arm hurts him if he doesn't do Ever's will? Kinda like Pettigrew in Harry Potter when Voldemort gives him that silver hand and when he refuses to kill Harry in the end, it chokes him to death and he had no control over it. Hence why Caleb was so reluctant to tell MC about it (Painful Signal).

The events of Exclusive Aftertaste confused me. I don't think this was after the events of Homecoming Wings but before. I think this was after Caleb graduated college and was living in Skyhaven, and MC had also moved out of their grandma's house into her apartment. Perhaps she had been busy with her missions and had quit contacting Caleb as much as she used to? And his insecurity made him visit her? But the ending at the train station...why did he turn her around and tell her to leave and not look back? Was it because he was worried she would be more upset watching him leave? Ugh the angst and longing between these two is killing me.

Overall, I still like Caleb, I think he's a complex character and this was just his intro. We felt suspicious about Sylus as well, but it wasn't until we started getting bond memories and then his limited myth that we really put the pieces together. There is definitely more to Caleb, but I like the idea that Caleb doesn't have a past connection to her and this is his first life with her. It makes their relationship seem so much more purer in a way. I wanted MC to punch him in the face when he said he was leaving though. He just left her, despite knowing how much she didn't want to be left alone. He was the last bit of family she had, and he took that tiny bit of comfort away from her. Super assy move Caleb. (but I still love him).

End rant. Feel free to drop your thoughts, opinions, and predictions either in the comments or my inbox. Thanks for listening to me ramble.

[thefeastandthefast]

Flourished Peony thoughts (spoilers up to episode 11):

I find it incredibly satisfying that Jiang Changyang refrains from intervening in Mudan’s life unless she explicitly seeks out his help.

I was actually expecting the contrary and bracing myself for a bit of white-knighting, since I'd read criticism from someone who'd watched up to episode 11 specifically complaining about the FL being written as supposedly empowered and strong but instead relies too much on the ML, who always happens to be present whenever she needs help. But now having watched up to episode 11 myself, I wholeheartedly disagree with describing a FL who astutely leverages her limited resources as weak and disempowered.

She first goes to him for aid with her divorce in absolute desperation, because her other proactive and well-executed gambits needed time to come to fruition and she didn't have time. It's a hail mary move and he proves himself unexpectedly sympathetic. Ultimately, though, the legal victory he helped her achieve means very little on a practical level. She still ends up on the run, starting over from scratch, without her divorce papers and without her dowry.

This drama skillfully establishes how the realpolitikal power of strategic relationships and networks (that perennial term 关系) softens and often even circumvents the barriers of social convention and hierarchies in a way a single individual has little hope to do. The patronage of the powerful and influential is worthwhile to cultivate in this context, especially valuable when the price for patronage doesn't require moral compromise from the protege (i.e. in the case of Liu Chang).

Jiang Changyang is powerful and influential and, most importantly to Mudan, does not demand what she isn't willing to give, consistently demonstrating that he adheres to the adage he keeps quoting- "a gentleman doesn't demand/take that which others hold dearest." Mudan has real skills and expertise to offer in exchange for fair patronage. Her reliance on his financial and social capital and continued cultivation of this relationship simply demonstrates that she's smart?

If we want to have more period-plausible shows like this one, which tries to be consistent in applying the rules and structural inequalities of its world to all of its characters, then it only makes narrative sense that the FL may need to occasionally rely on the aid of more powerful others and won't be able to only scheme and Charisma check herself out of every sticky situation. It doesn't make her poorly written or disempowered. Besides, Jiang Changyang is not the only connection she cultivates to great effect- she is able to help Shengyi obtain her divorce with Yun Niang's help and seems to have just found new allies in A'Fu and her mother.

Plus, as of episode 11, we see the intentional care he takes to NOT overstep the agreed-upon boundaries of this patronage relationship. The gorgeous, gorgeous scene when Jiang Changyang is behind the screen, watching Mudan's heartbreak and dogged determination as she gathers up the last handfuls of coin she has left to refund the angry mob- even obscured by the fabric haze, we see how deeply he empathizes with her in that moment, his always bemused eyes holding not a trace of laughter for the first time since he's appeared in this show.

He's a guarded man who's constantly shifting from mask to mask. His favorite persona is that of a gleefully avaricious fop who takes no one and nothing too seriously. But in that scene, we see that detachment fail and the pain in his face shows just how seriously he takes her pain. Even so, he also takes seriously the easily upset balance of power inherent in their relationship and his trust in her ability to resolve her own problems. Without her specific request for aid, any presumption on his part to step in would create the kind of debt she cannot afford and may not want to repay.

[aggressivewhenstartled]

Nightwing continuity is so confusing. Please send help.

Possibly spoilers? Ahead? I have no idea.

I’m reading the Tom Taylor run (I know it ended recently, I’m only just catching up, love his take on Dick) and it seemed like it was a retcon of the whole bludhaven/blockbuster thing? Like blockbuster for sure died a while ago, right? It’s the whole reason for dicks panic attack with Catalina Flores. And a lot of the events match up, like his apartment getting bombed etc. At first I only see him, Barbara, and Tim, who is Robin when he shows up, which also makes sense for retelling that era.

But Jason and Damian both text him in the first part of the run, but didn’t Damian show up way later? And they mention Ric Grayson, which happened AFTER blockbuster for sure, and after spiral, right? I think?

If this were something like Beast Boy Loves Raven (or is it the other way around? It’s my daughter’s and I haven’t read that series) I would know to view it as a spin-off retelling not connected to the main timeline. But this is the official Nightwing comics, right? I know it’s connected in with Superman?

Everything I find online for timelines is all pre-Tom Taylor and I’m wondering if this is something other people know but I don’t? Also new52 was a thing but I can’t tell where it started in Batman’s corner of the universe? Or what actually changed?

[aceandanxious22]

Serious question based on an observation:

Why do people like Amanda so much but not Gavin, despite both of them being purposely dislikeable characters?

Gavin is supposed to represent racism. I get that, but he isn't really shown to be an inherently terrible person outside of hating androids.

Amanda, from what I've gathered, is supposed to represent everything we hate about big corporations, and what our future could possibly look like if they continue to grow and become more powerful.

From all the fan art I see of her, they mostly just admire her as a black woman, which is perfectly fine imo. But I see so much praise towards her with no one really talking about what she represents. I just see "wow, beautiful black woman" which, again, is fine.

Gavin, on the other hand, gets tons of hate. I completely understand why. He's a white cop who's ugly side is brought out by androids. He obviously has some serious personal issues and directly represents oppression based on ignorance and intolerance. I understand why people are so quick to rag on him.

However, we're not given much about him beyond what we see on the surface. Hank could be looked at in the same light if we weren't given an opportunity to see directly into his life, allowing us to better understand him and, therefore, sympathize with him. Would people treat Hank the same as Gavin if his storyline was cut? Would Gavin be treated differently if he was given a storyline similar to Hank's?

The community has done a pretty good job at giving Gavin a "redemption arch" which makes him more personable and realistic. I've been observing both sides of why people love him (more specifically, the fandom's version of him) and why people hate him.

I personally think both sides are valid. However, I also believe a character can change over time if given an opportunity. We don't see that opportunity in the game so, naturally, people made one up. I think that's great. A character with potential being explored. But there's still an entire group of DBH fans that will go out of their way to harass people who do give Gavin a chance, and it doesn't seem fair. Most people who do like Gavin, like the fandom version of him. Very rarely do I see people praising his canon character. (Again, everything we see is very surface level.)

The argument I see the most is that he represents racism, which again, couldn't you say the same about Hank? There's no other argument (that I've personally seen) outside of that. But if you completely take away the android element of the game, that argument completely falls apart, because we don't see any other behaviors that suggests he's a flat out racist person. Then again, we don't see much. And that's the point I'm trying to make. We simply don't know enough about him to completely define his character or why he acts the way that he does. I'm not really trying to make an argument for or against him specifically, it's just something I've noticed in the fandom overall. We get entire back stories for characters based on little to no information, and everyone is divided. But when there's a defined character like Amanda, all that is ignored because she's a black character, it seems.

I'm not entirely sure where I'm going with this; I guess I'm just looking for another perspective maybe? To me, there seems to be racial undertones that I don't see many people talking about. I've seen some discussions on Markus arguing weather or not he's a hero or the bad guy. Or some racial implications that don't really make sense within the context of the game or character.

The point of the game is that it directly implies racial elements, no arguments there, but the way people seem to completely miss the point and twist it into something completely different is disappointing. It's part of the reason I'm even writing this. I don't mean to rant but there seems to be an imbalance of fans putting certain characters on a pedistool based on the wrong reasons, skin color being one of those reasons.

Of course, I could be looking into this way too hard, but the amount of Amanda fan art has me a little confused. Maybe I'm the one that's missing something lol. Either way, I'm just wondering what other people think. Sorry for the long post.

[sunmaylight]

LCF/TCF AU - Yandere Choi Han

((Something I am finally transferring over from Twitter that I’ve forgotten about for over four years))

Looking back, this is more possessive Choi Han but does have the potential to go darker.

Anyways, spoilers for WEBTOON readers as this is part of the webnovel.

Set in the Empire Arc with Adin

Yandere Choi Han that’s triggered as his darkness is evolving. Instead of becoming what is known in the novel, it becomes twisted. Only wanting to be with Cale and destroy everything else.

The change is triggered when Prince Adin decides to make an almost lethal strike at Cale as Choi Han’s powers are evolving.

Choi Han knows logically that Cale will be fine because Raon is with him, but mentally he sees Cale coughing blood and being drenched in his own blood.

Looking like he is at death’s door.

Something inside Choi Han snaps as he decides enough is enough. He doesn’t want Cale, his rock (his precious person), to be hurt anymore. Not by their enemies, or especially by that idiot’s plans where CALE is the one getting hurt.

He doesn’t register the fact that his aura swallowed Adin and his attack. Not even the way that Raon flinches and disappears when the dragon sees him. He miss the way Cale flinches at his aura devouring all of the dead mana around them.

All Choi Han can focus on is Cale Henitus.

Choi Han’s aura moves at his subconscious will, surrounding Cale in a possessive embrace while the man himself goes to pick up Cale in a bridal carry.

Cale is asking Choi Han what he is doing, but he ignores the red hair noble as he asks Raon to teleport them back home.

Raon obliges with the request and teleports them home.

Choi Han quickly jumps to Cale’s room while giving Raon a request -never a demand or else Cale will be disappointed with Choi Han- to barricade the room to make sure no one can enter and no one can here them.

The dragon does he is requested to do and vanishes from Choi Han’s senses.

Finally, the two are alone. Choi Han gently placed the quiet Cale on his bed then removed his cloak. Followed by removing his own shoes and Cale’s.

Choi Han would have removed his bloody clothes, but Raon already used magic to make him and Cale spotless.

What an intuitive dragon.

Cale is asking him what he is doing, but Choi Han only hums and pushes Cale on the bed so that the noble is laying down on his back.

Choi Han joins him and hugs Cale in his arms. He strokes the other man’s head possessively. Not registering the fact that his aura coils around the both of them in a strong hold.

“Choi Han, what are you doing? This doesn’t seem like you.” Cale asks Choi Han in a calm manner.

Choi Han smiles innocently, “Don’t worry Cale-nim. I will make sure that what is mine will never get hurt again. Not by our enemies, friends, or even yourself,” Cale flinches but Choi Han ignores it as he continues to talk, “I will make sure to definitely find a way to bring you back to my home and keep you safe.

“Choi Han, what are you- mmph” Cale is cut off by Choi Han passionately kissing him

“Don’t worry Cale-nim. Just let me love you.

My lord”

—

That is a wrap. Wow, I don’t know what I was thinking when I made this on Twitter in October of 2021. But go me for trying something new

I’ll post the tumblr link to Twitter and have a Twitter link that will be broken in the future

[moonlight-tmd]

Hi

I'm a little bit possessed by the headcanon that Longarm as an individual bot had existed at some point and he was working with many autobots before he was captured by Shockwave, who stole his frame.

I LOVE dancing around the idea that Shockwave was controlling someone's dead body, using it as a shell to camouflage.

Just imagine that somewhere in a secret laboratory, on the operating table, there is still a disassembled bot, from which the frame was taken, the optics were taken,the voicebox were taken, but the hearing was left so that he could hear all the reasons why he could never return to his friends again and could not do anything about it.

Yes, Shockwave would definitely tell him what he has done in details.

One more thing!

Shockwave is a mnemosurgeon, right? I'm sure he had been messing with Longarm's brain many times in order to get information about bots or behavior that he must comply with.

Anon... you have just send me the worst path of angst-filled romance i've ever imagined.

It's so sad- like, imagine you meet someone you were close to and they seem different than the last time you met them. Everything just seems so off but you don't know what...

Bumblebee and Longarm have started their friendship in boot camp. Even thought they were quite different from one another they got along perfectly and knew so much about the other without even asking.

Then one day Bee had to switch programs due to trouble he caused and was doomed to repair crew training just outside the campus. He snuck in whenever he could do meet with Longarm but eventually he had to leave cuz the program was finished.

They stayed in contact all the time, Bee messaged Long when he was working and Long called whenever he had breaks from lectures and training. But then everything went dead on Bee's end... the crew he was assigned in was declared missing. Longarm swore that he'll find them- he'll find Bee- once he becomes part of the Guard.

Years passed and there was nothing, Longarm did his duty and earned a status raise. During one of his missions the ship was attacked by a fleet of Decepticons, most of the crew were found either dead or missing. Except the temporary captain of the ship, Longarm. He was found wandering the wastelands cycles after the tragedy.

In the meantime Bee was missing his companion, even tho he was in stasis so long it felt like a nap, but the few years he spend on Earth felt like eternity stretching on. They had no contact with outer space nor anyone who could help them, their only chance was to wait and hope someone picks up a signal from their crashed and sunken ship. He wished to see Longarm again, to chat with him and hug him once more.

And his wish was granted since Elite Guard with Sentinel on board was came to the planet to investigate, and Longarm was on board...

He couldn't contain his excitement when he saw him and ran to him, embracing all he could reach. He was so excited and happy but when he looked Longarm in the optics- something was off.

It was the same as he remembered, the eyes, the smile, the voice... yet something didn't feel right. Even when he spoke the same way Longarm spoke to him it still felt different. Even in private when Longarm was much more relaxed and open Bee felt it.

Longarm was a prime now, much higher position than when he last heard from him. it would make sense he's gotten more mature and busy in the important tasks and not have much time for his friends but Bee expected something more when they met...

He knew people's relations change when they're far apart or not in contact for long, he knew how little it was for him to be in stasis and how long Longarm had to live thru without him... he really hoped it wasn't the case.

He yearned for the moment where Longarm would hug him unexpectedly or call him one of the nicknames they used in boot camp but it never came...

Decepticon activity on earth was growing stronger, both Elite Guard and Team Prime was working together to hold off the enemy. Still, it was most often than not that the teams followed their own plan instead of coming with a shared one, Sentinel could never talk with Optimus peacefully. Bee was assigned to infiltrate the landing site of the ships that recently came to earth.

Things have been going smoothly, at least until he spotted a familiar face wandering the zone. Longarm was there, seemingly doing the same as he. Bee wanted to call him over but he hesitated, he had questions and he needed to know the answers... He knew it was wrong but he stayed back, watching what the Prime was up to.

He watched him wander around a bit before boarding one of the ships, he discreetly followed and hid inside. He was talking with someone, but he couldn't see who. The conversation was interrupted by a sound of a turbine powering on and ship's system activating. They were taking off. Bee tried to get away but he had no way of safely booking it to the exit, before he knew they were leaving the orbit. He couldn't contact his teammates, something in the ship was blocking all signal. He chose to stay in hiding for however long the ride took.

It was few hours until they landed, Bee had managed to slip out and hide inside the hidden facility on a small planet. The more he wandered the more he realized that the facility in question was one big crazy workshop. He found Longarm once more and followed him, he planned to confront him about whatever was going on but it all came to a full stop soon...

He followed Longarm but lost him just few moments later, he didn't have enough time to look around when he heard someone else coming his way. He hid inside one of the rooms- it was a laboratory. Wires and computers hanging from walls, tools scattered on various tables, and parts... actual mech parts along with vials of energon neatly put aside.

He had mere seconds to hide when the doors opened and Longarm walked in, holding something. He was talking to someone,.. Bee managed to peek out of his hiding- he saw Longarm standing near the medical station, the same one Bee was crouched next to a moment ago, but this time Bee could see what was on it; there on the diagonally angled table laid a wreck of a mech. Longarm talked to him sweetly, almost like one would with a pet, telling him all about team prime and elite guard and his tasks... Bee felt his own frame going cold at the scene, listening to every word Long said in silence...

But what happened next truly made his tanks drop; Longarm's frame shifted and merely a second later stood a Decepticon in it's place. It continued speaking about recent events and tests... eventually ending one of his sentences with the same name he's been using. "...won't you agree with me, Longarm?"

Another mech entered the lab, calling out to the Decepticon. They both left and slowly, Bee crawled out of his hiding spot. His optics landed on the remains of the mech on the table...

Its limbs were gone, uninstalled in a professional way, more than half of its plating gone revealing the skeletal-alike structure inside and vital mechanisms, parts missing and empty slots left in their place,... its helm was baren and cables plugged to processor slots, facial parts uninstalled to prevent recognition more so contact from the mech...

Bee looked at the unfortunate mech, unknown feeling swirling in his spark... he found himself focusing on details left behind; the specific attachments at shoulders, size and layout of the inner support, the headlamp remaining on its head but most importantly the spark... it pulsed is it's casing, uneven, scared... yet the feeling of its light was unmistakable.

Fear and sorrow had overtaken Bee as he realized this was his Longarm. The one and only.

Shaking, he reached out his servo and as gently as he could placed his digits on the mech's cheek structure. Bee could feel him shiver under the touch, he couldn't hold his tears as he uttered the same he's been misusing the whole time. "...Longarm?"

It was dark and quiet, he lost all senses so long ago and has felt nothing but fear since, all he ever knew was the enemy digging his claws into his mind and tearing it apart bit by bit. He wanted to die, he only wished to be killed and taken to the Well... but then there was a voice. Soft and warm, one he always would recognize, but now oh so agonizingly broken. He almost didn't believe it, he didn't want to fall for another lie, but his spark, oh his spark could feel another presence and it was not the enemy he always felt on him... he tried to speak, to call, to yell, let out any sound but all he could was force static electricity out his unconnected cables, hissing the desperate words he could not say.

"What did he do to you?" Bee wanted to cry, to wail and embrace the broken mech but the sounds of others approaching snapped him out. He couldn't stay here, no matter how much he wanted. "I'm sorry, i have to go. I'll come back for you, I promise." He whispered into Longarm's audial before being forced to hide again. The two mechs returned and started working on something away from the door, allowing Bee to slip out and run. He will come back for Longarm, he'll bring help and save him. He had to...

He found his way onto the take off platform, desperate to find a way back home. He found a small ship, capable of being operated by one bot. Starting it off turned out to be harder that he thought, just as he was taking off the alarm sounded from the facility. He fled and managed to get past the orbit but his hopes to escape were cut short as the ship was shot down...

Bee woke up in a medbay, much unlike the one he saw in the facility. He was confused and skittish but then Sentinel walked in. Bee was found adrift in space by a space patrol and brought onto Steelhaven. Sentinel wanted to know what he was doing so far away from earth but Bee never answered his questions. Soon after he was treated he was let out to contact his team in the control centre but just when they were leaving the medical sector the other mech approached... the fake Longarm.

Bee's energon boiled as the his pained processor forced back what he saw and he charged at the mech with his stinger. Other Elite Guard had to hold him down as he went into frenzy out of nowhere and screamed incoherently at Longarm. He was put in stasis and locked in medbay until they arrived at earth.

The word around the ship spread out and soon Jazz was looking into the situation. Bee was his friend and knew that it wasn't like him to go crazy like that... Against Sentinel's orders to let this situation be handled by him he went and under no one's watch woke Bee up from stasis. Bee was panicked and it took Jazz a little bit before he could speak with him- Bee was muttering something about him overhearing and Jazz didn't know what it meant until Bee broke and told him everything he saw. Jazz was beyond shocked, he wanted to help but Bee insisted to not tell anyone they don't trust 100% as the info would spill back to the spy.

They came up with a plan. They snuck out during shift-change hours and stole an emergency pod. It wasn't long before the systems alerted the crew of its deployment, Bee barely managed to steer them out of the radar. Bee managed to call his team with the emergency signal. They were all so shocked and worried about him, it's been nearly a week since they lost contact with him and things weren't looking good back on Earth. Bee told them what he found, who he found and everything else in one desperate breath.

"I knew something was wrong. I knew it! I- Primus why didn't I do anything- why--" He knew something was off and he never did anything. By the Allspark why didn't he do something?! Jazz was quick to notice the sudden meltdown Bee was having and comforted him while Team Prime listened over the call.

Bee knew Longarm for a long time, he was the best mech he's ever met. Longarm was very dear to him, the two shared so many intimate moments back in boot camp. Longarm always looked at him with such adoration before calling him the sweet nicknames only he was allowed to say. They've known more about one another than the time they spend together and yet, both of them knew it was more than just simple love. Bee felt so guilty for ignoring the warning signs and getting fooled by the mimic.

The two told them their plan to get the real Longarm back, Bee knew the coordinates of the facility. All of them were much against only the two of them going but Bee assured them they were gonna be alright and that they need to work on getting the fake Longarm arrested.

It wasn't too long before they arrived back at the facility, after scanning the area from the orbit they made a quick and stealthy landing and got inside the facility. While Jazz worked on getting the alarm systems down Bee made his way back into the same laboratory. He rushed to his beloved and worked on getting him off this damned machinery. He carefully unplugged all the cables and binds keeping him there while hastily whispering words of comfort to Long. There wasn't any designed way to move him but Bee managed to get him onto the supply wagon along with the energon IVs. It was then that hell broke loose. Jazz was trying his best to keep the guards away so Bee can make the escape. Soon they were both running thru the corridors dodging blaster shots and other guards ahead. Jazz held them off while Bee got Longarm into the pod and started the engine. Jazz managed to make it just in time before Bee blasted off back home... but during that he got a serious injury. Once they were set on steady course Bee hurried back to them and patched him the best he could but Jazz was still losing energon quick... Bee panicked and scrambled to do anything to help, the pod shook at it got caught by an EM magnet and pulled into the slot of the bigger ship. When the doors opened Bee was greeted by the lesser crew of Steelhaven.

They took the injured mechs to medbay at once and set course back to Earth while Bee sat there, waiting anxiously for the outcome... When Bee saw Optimus ran into the control centre he bursted into tears, mumbling apologies over and over. Optimus just held him, glad that he was okay and safe. Soon the whole team reunited. Bee learned what battle ensued during his mission and that the fake Longarm was caught trying to scrap agent Blurr. The majority of Steelhaven crew was down on Earth with Team Prime, Optimus has let them know of what Bee discovered therefore they were able to catch the impostor. Ratchet was more than glad to disassemble every single part of Longarm's off this scrapheap's frame. (According to Jazz, he was fine and Prowler was worrying about nothing... which earned him a slap to the helm.)

It was weeks before the Longarm was ready to function again, Bee has stayed by his side every moment of it. When Longarm first woke up he was still adjusting to coordination and speaking, when he saw Bee again he tried to move towards him. Bee leapt off the seat and embraced Longarm for the first time in forever while Longarm tried so hard to hug him back as his voicebox garbled noises in attempt to speak to him.

Bee stayed by Longarm's side every day and night, he spoke to him and told him what happened. Longarm told his story the best he could- he still had a lot of recovery and rehabilitation to do but as long as Bee was there it would be okay.

The moment he was allowed to roam Sentinel came up to them informing him of the status and a high raise as a compensation for all he endured. But that didn't matter to anyone- "I don't want a compensation, I don't want a high rank... I quit. I'm staying here, with Bumblebee."

No matter how much Sentinel tried to persuade him to stay, that he shouldn't make serious decisions like that when still recovering, it was all for nothing. Longarm filed the official resignation and Optimus welcomed him with open arms to his team.

Bee has said a lot about Longarm in the past and now that they had real Longarm with them they were more that happy to get to know him. They've redone Bee's room to house the two mechs together and Longarm couldn't have it any other way. He missed Bee so much.

Once everything has calmed down, when the city has been repaired they would go on a dates. Bee would show him around the city and all his favorite places. They would find a secluded area by the river and spend the entire day there until both of them would perform their conjunx ritus at sunset, just the two of them alone, like they always wanted...

And Shockwave would still be locked in a dark cell, missing parts and plating to cover the painful wounds no one ever bothered to fix fully.

You give me angst, I give you a fic-sized post. Hope you're happy.

Oh, and Wasp was never really in the picture, he got transferred to a higher program when Bee was forced to switch and no spy rumors ever existed. No murder hornets for them, my bro.

[quibbs126]

Something that’s been bothering me, in Cyberverse Season 1 we hear about the Decepticon cause being made because Megatron wanted to fight against and change the corruption on Cybertron

But like, we never actually saw any of that in the flashbacks. Best you can say is Starscream having a high opinion of himself due to being a jet (or at least that’s what I think was going on? It was something about Starscream and being a jet), but you can also assume Starscream’s just being an ass, not that this is a systemic issue on Cybertron. Outside of that, everyone seems to have been doing fine, they got along and everyone was vibing and having fun, going to Cube games and chilling at Maccadam’s, going out to do some racing on a vacation to Velocitron

I do suppose we were limited to only seeing things that Bee witnessed himself, but he was there for other important events before war was declared, we could have seen some more evidence that things were bad on Cybertron before the war and why Megatron and Optimus were so intent on changing things

As it is, it feels more like telling and not showing, and I don’t really understand why the Decepticon cause was needed in the first place. Well I mean I do, but that’s because I know the story in other continuities, not because Cyberverse told me

And if I can pivot slightly, I feel like this is an issue in other shows as well. Earthspark barely went into the backstory of the war at all, only making vague allusions like the “lower-class” remark and Orion Pax getting the Matrix (which honestly I don’t remember why he got at all and if it was related to the war). And yes, Earthspark was about moving forward after the war, but also the show wanted to portray Decepticons in a more neutral light, allowing them their second chances to do better after the war. Not to mention Megatron switching sides due to realizing how far he’d strayed from his original cause. I don’t feel like telling the Terrans the original causes of the war would be out of question, it makes all the sense. Also if we’re trying to portray the Decepticons as not being pure evil, explaining the horrible conditions that drove them to starting it would do wonders. Megatron is here, he can tell the Terrans with all the correct info if the Autobots can’t

Prime also has this problem, but I’m willing to give it a lot more leeway because it was part of the Aligned continuity, which was made up of more than just this one show, and Transformers Exodus I’m told went into this backstory a lot more. So okay, it’s explained somewhere. Though personally, I wish we went into this backstory a bit more in the actual show, because all I know from it was that Megatron was a gladiator fighting for change, Orion Pax met him and agreed, then they proposed their ideas for change to the Senate and it caused them to split. I don’t actually know why they were fighting for change. Again, I know Exodus did and it was around at the same time as the show, but we don’t all have access to Exodus. And honestly it might be the reason the other shows don’t go into it much either, despite it being the only one with an excuse

Like I think this annoys me because it feels like the shows expect you to know the general backstory so we don’t have to go into it. But you’re supposed to tell us this, especially when this isn’t like Batman or Superman’s origins where everyone knows the backstory of the war

I know what the backstory is, but not because these shows told me. It’s because Emperor Kumquat told me in a YouTube video where he was explaining the Aligned backstory from Exodus, while making the point that people who only watched Prime wouldn’t know all of this. How was I supposed to know this information if I hadn’t?

And to go back to Cyberverse, I can make excuses for Prime and Earthspark; both were set long after the war started and Prime especially didn’t have much reason to go into it outside of what it did. But not only did Cyberverse have the means to show us corrupt pre-war Cybertron vis Bumblebee’s flashbacks in Season 1, it had at least a little leaning to making the Decepticons more sympathetic. They are still for the most part antagonistic, but it did make the point that Optimus originally agreed with Megatron, we had bots on both sides getting along during peace talks and Windblade being angry at Slipstream’s killer, had most of the main threats not be Megatron’s forces that had the two sides forced to team up, and by the latter half of Season 3, had Megatron be more heroic, with him saving the day from the Quintessons and wielding his own Matrix of Leadership, and working to stop the other him that he knows is coming to reclaim his Matrix. They aren’t at Earthspark Season 1’s level, but they weren’t making the Decepticons pure evil either. So I feel like we should really see what it is they were fighting for originally

[brightsstar]

Been a bit in the making, but i redesigned Phoenix (Eclipse v4) to fit better with the post-Mimic version of him, as well as laying out some new headcanons, which i will also type in text cuz of my chaotic handwriting on paper.

One of the more difficult things about this was trying to figure out where to have Puppet's hair be visible. I was inspired by a couple other designs i saw where Puppet's hair is visible on him in some form. My initial idea of him was that Puppet put her hair inside of him, but i didn't like that idea much, so I used this instead after a bit of debate with what i wanted to do with it. Puppet's hair is tied around Phoenix's shoulders. I'll also add some extra info to some of the headcanons to better make sense of how i see them.

Headcanons:

1. Phantom pain all over his body. Puppet's hair blocks out the worst of it. (He has times where he doesn't feel it at all, and even when he does, it's mainly a dull ache that doesn't vary much in intensity, and doesn't hinder his movement or ability to function. Reason i am not saying chronic pain is because the intensity doesn't vary that much. It remains mostly consistent. Annoying to him, but consistent. Going off what the show has shown so far. Eclipse doesn't seem very affected by his crushed endo, so i am going with this unless that changes)

2. His endo is still just as badly damaged as Mimic left it. (Ruin wants to properly fix him, but Eclipse still won't let Ruin that close to such a vulnerable spot. Yes, he still, very much has trust issues, and Mimic did not help that situation at all.)

3. His eyes have more gold than white as the incident brought out more Solar traits in him. (Past digital pieces i made depict Phoenix with golden eyes fading into white. Reason for that being because i still firmly believe Ruin made Ember/Phoenix (v3/v4) from that code he copied from Solar so long ago, and my Solar has golden eyes, and so does Ember in Sea and Sky, which would also be his true eye color if he had all of... well... Solar's memories in the main Stoked Embers AU. Because at Ember's core, he is a Solar, not really an Eclipse (as in the evil, vengeful types like v1/2 were. He has way more Solar mannerisms and traits, which carried over to v4). Ruin made tweaks to Phoenix to make him more Eclipse-like, by doing more proper implementation of Eclipse's memories, something that failed to happen with Ember. Ember was simply stuck with directives telling him how to behave and what to do. Phoenix doesn't have those. The white parts of his irises were leftover from Ember when he was killed, and the fact that Phoenix also doesn't have the full picture. However his eyes began to change to gold the more he grew and changed. He's behaving closer to Solar as time goes on and his eyes reflect that growth.)

4. He's a little nicer, but still very much Eclipse. (Self explanatory.)

5. He tries to hide Puppet's hair under his ruffles. Doesn't work very well. (He hates how weak it makes him look, knowing that's what's allowing him to be able to stand and move. The only other one who knows about this, besides Puppet ofc, is Ruin, but even if the others don't know, he doesn't like having it show.)

6. Of course he can't take her hair off or he'll be left as he was when Mimic was kicked out. (Not really a headcanon, it is canon.. but i'll throw it in anyways.)

[crowdusk]

CHAPTER 1136 THOUGHTS

[note: i read the official version when it comes out so i keep away from scan spoilers]

interesting that Who's-Who is (maybe) back considering he was the first to name and talk about Nika

Luffy so cute

I still don't like that we're getting a feast first thing in the arc...does not bode well but oh well let's go

more reinforcement of Elbaph being isolated/insular (which is weird considering Harald seemingly did so much to try and open it up...what was this dude doing)

speaking of which, I'm more and more suspicious about this dead king...I know I said he probably was just naive but hmmmmm. the fact that Jarul put him on the same level as Loki (a character that so far most giants have described as evil), the theme of misinformation and reputations being misleading, that the sword in Jarul's helmet looks like Harald's, that Jarul is definitely hiding something about Harald's death and Loki (look at his eyes in the panel where the giant is saying Jarul was there and tried to stop Loki). Harald smells fishier and fishier to me by the chapter, and it wouldn't surprise me if he was working with the Holy Knights/Elders in some way, maybe offering giants as military assets in exchange for (diplomatic) power. we also hear that he would leave Elbaph for periods of time which isn't all that suspicious by itself, but to me speaks to a disconnect between what he was doing and what his people were aware of.

so much lore!!!

interesting that a) Rodo says all giants growing up want to be the sun god and rule the world and b) there are different versions of Nika, which makes complete sense. Luffy literally does embody almost all the aspects mentioned - laughter, destruction, liberation - but it's interesting that the one thing Luffy has absolutely no interest in is ruling. he is a leader because people want to follow him, not because he wants to lead - how much is that true for Nika as a god, too?

I personally wasn't that surprised at the revelation that the world has been destroyed twice - I always thought the Void Century wasn't the earliest 'catastrophe' since the arrival of the people from the Moon was much earlier than that, and probably itself was a big cataclysm/reshaped the planet. plus, Nika probably comes from the Moon people (like the Shandorans) and so must be much older than the Void Century.

I am interested in the Harley, though (I SAID THERE WAS GOING TO BE IMPORTANT MYTHOLOGY PASSED DOWN IN ELBAPH). wondering if Robin could glean some information from it (pleaseeeeee) - but of course she's not there because Oda's smart and tricksy and annoying like that

the idea of change being both destructive and generative gets reinforced, and that it's to do with the toppling of power structures

of course, we need Luffy to reject the 'chosen one' fate, which he always does - he wouldn't be free otherwise

we kind of get told of Loki's deeds, finally. importantly, they're described as pranks and we actually see Loki laughing in the exact Nika pose Luffy takes on in gear 5. again, this idea of Loki really embodying the destructive but also comical and mischievous aspect of Nika makes me think he isn't a real antagonist to the Strawhats. plus, as we know with One Piece, the more someone is portrayed as one-dimensional by reputation (take Zoro for example), the more Oda likes to subvert those expectations. to me, Loki's pranks sound like a child acting out and messing around.

confirmation that Shanks caught Loki and that's probably what made him an Emperor, but seems like there's more to the story if Loki's calling him a coward. from later parts of the chapter it's clear Loki embraces the Elbaph warrior principles, so it doesn't seem like he'd call Shanks a coward if Shanks had beat him in a straightforward fight (but we'll see). this also makes me think, along with the last parts of the chapter, that Loki might actually take deals seriously and therefore may not have lied to Luffy (maybe he knows where Shanks is because he knows where the last road poneglyph is).

we get Zoro being pretty perceptive, and some explanation to why he was on edge. I maintain he's stressed and not quite himself post-Egghead, probably because he doesn't feel like he's as strong as he needs to be (and the crew isn't as strong as they need to be) - so he's being extra serious and careful. interestingly, Zoro is going off of Loki's reputation and as we know reputations are often false (as in his own case)

as we knew, Luffy's solution to Loki maybe tricking him is just 'well i'll beat him up if he causes any problems' - very much like his approach to Law and other pirates

i'm interested to see what Luffy Nami and Zoro will find in the castle, if they go there (any hints as to what happened with Harald?)

I thought the Knights were either going to try and kill or recruit Loki, but to be honest was leaning more towards the killing possibility so, I was wrong (although let's see what happens). I imagine it's to do with his devil fruit and general strength making him a useful asset. i'm actually leaning more towards his devil fruit being something related to prophecy/predicting the future/fate, since there was a mention of Harald prophesying his own death, and he keeps talking about fate and the future. plus, eyes are often a strong symbol of prophetic ability, visions etc and his eyes are covered. a strong giant with some kind of future-related ability? invaluable to the upper echelons of the World Government.

i did enjoy Loki calling them trash a lot, and it made me think that the Holy Knights may well recruit people from different countries across the world so that they have a network (notably since Gunko doesn't have a 'Saint' title and therefore may not have been born as/may not be a Celestial Dragon)

also very funny that the agents they sent got taken out by Rodo's weird scheme

obviously Oda giving us absolutely nothing wrt Shanks twin's face but atp we know it's not Shanks

it feels to me like the Shanks guy is her superior, since he kind of chastises her for getting ahead of herself

we see that Loki seems to follow the old warrior principles and beliefs, like Dorry and Brogy. he also isn't heartless, since he actually talks about his feelings quite openly (and not just rage but sadness too, which he also mentioned during his conversation with Shaggy). it feels like there's a strong emotional drive to his desire to 'destroy the world', not just cruelty and the enjoyment of senseless violence. i look forward to finding out where that comes from.

One Piece Chapters 1134 + 1135

SUMMARY (I simply cannot be concise so I thought I'd add summary points for anyone who doesn't want to read a whole long piece. Clown music though because even the summary is long. I can't help it.)

Also you can find previous Elbaph thoughts/predictions here.

I believe Elbaph’s current culture of peace and absolute non-violence came from Harald (who was probably an idealist) and Mother Carmel, who was – and is still – seen as a holy woman and saint by the giants. Her rhetoric was all about ‘everyone living together in peace’ in a superficial, unrealistic and one-dimensional way that hid and enabled a lot of violence. Including, of course, her literal job providing military assets to the World Government in the form of orphaned children to be made into spies and soldiers. 

Mother Carmel’s infiltration may have led to Harald developing a relationship with the World Government (which he probably wanted Elbaph to become a part of), while we know that the Five Elders are wary of giants and have always sought to co-opt their strength. This might explain how the two Holy Knights looking for Loki were able to teleport into the castle (I believe there must be physical rules/limitations to the magic circle transport, e.g. some kind of physical anchor to the place you’re going).

This arc is going to look at and explore questions around peace and violence. Peace by and for whom? For example, ‘peace’ can look like the people at the center of society living without disturbance or discomfort while those on the margins suffer and are silenced (neoliberalism). Peace as defined by the absence of overt conflict doesn’t mean there is no harm or violence – it can be repression, manufactured consent, etc. True peace cannot be imposed from the top, it must be collectively built. And so forth. Conversely, violence and conflict are sometimes necessary to protect what you care about (your treasures), as we see with the Strawhats. Creating a peaceful and knowledge-centric society doesn’t have to be at odds with warrior culture, since being willing to put your life on the line is important in some instances. What will happen if external factors threaten Elbaph’s treasures? 

Last review, I talked about how I think one of this arc’s central themes will be the juxtaposition of reality and fiction, truth and lies, stories and lived experiences. Illusions will shatter and false gods/idols will fall – I think the giants’ idolisation of Mother Carmel and Harald will end, one way or another. For the latter, I don’t necessarily think he was evil. More so that he was just one person who made mistakes and had flaws, rather than a perfect king who only ever brought wonderful changes to Elbaph. On the other hand, Loki may not be a god but he could have the powers of one, and I think the first impressions we got of him will be changed and shown to be misinformation to recast him in a more positive light. I think he had a good reason to kill his father, and that the events of Harald’s death are another false story that must be clarified. Oda loves a good character twist. (Honestly if Harald turns out evil, I’m here for it). 

I also said in my last piece that I thought there would be internal divisions, and I still think this is going to be the case. For example, we don’t know why Hajrudin initially left Elbaph – could part of it have been feeling stifled by the loss of warrior traditions? This would make sense, since he wanted to follow in Dorry and Brogy’s footsteps. However, I think we might just see more of a spectrum of positions, rather than, say, two clear factions. Nevertheless, I still think the Strawhats will have to bring a lot of people together to fight a bigger antagonist, maybe even including Loki (as the potential king??) – but they’re pretty good at that. 

Last time I wrote about 1132, I was still a little unsure about Loki’s vibe, but I didn’t think he would be the big villain. This is now pretty much confirmed for me and I think will become even clearer once we get the truth of his backstory. The more we see of him, the more we see a silly side – one that hides genuine care for people under a violent and fearsome facade. I think he’ll probably end up as an ally (even if he’s still morally ambiguous). Classic case of Luffy’s gut being right once again. I am particularly interested, though, in what this means about Loki’s proclamation that he’s the sun god who will destroy the world. Is it metaphor? Does he want to declare war on the WG? Is he still going to do some fucked up things? Unclear. But I still think divinity, myth and belief are key to Loki’s character and his juxtaposition with Luffy, and I’m interested to see exactly how.

I wrote about strength after chapter 1132, and I still think it’s going to be an important theme. What I’d like to add is that I think it will be specifically about strength in relation to pride, and warrior culture in general. Essentially, it will be about why people fight. Why people want to be strong, and why they take pride in it. The Strawhats fight for what they care about, especially people. This also includes things that carry the wills of people who have died, like the books of Ohara, or even the concept of people’s dreams. This arc will look at warrior culture, and the difference between a warrior society and an oppressive/hegemonic society which uses violence (fear and the threat of death) for extraction and control. Fundamentally, all these themes are about power in relation to collective freedom, and what it means to live a good life. There is rightful pride in being able to fight from a place of knowledge and connection, to fight for what you love and believe in (including people’s freedom) as opposed to the soulless genocide and extraction from those considered less deserving of life. 

I think the declaration of the warriors at the feast might also be a foreshadowing of exactly what the Strawhats will do in Elbaph. Understanding and protecting their ancestral pride as warriors, and helping them reconnect to it as a country. Freeing them from ignorance (revealing the truth of what really happened with Carmel, Harald, and Loki). And saving them from being destroyed (this one’s pretty self-explanatory, but I believe it will be to do with Yggdrasil).

Ok if you’re here for the full whammy, yay! SO MUCH HAPPENED IN TWO CHAPTERS. GAH. Let’s just get straight into it. 

So, in chapter 1134, we open with the strawhats meeting Saul outside the library. I don’t have much to say about this part thematically (same with the previous chapter) because I think it’s pretty straightforward. I’ll summarise: I loved it, Luffy poorly copying Jinbe was extremely funny, the reunion did actually make me cry, and I am forever crying over Robin just – being happy now. Being relaxed, content, smiling more, bonding with Bonney. My heart, my heart. 

We also see Lilith introduce herself to Saul as Vegapunk, and explain to him (and us, for the first time!) that she has brought a “perfect re-creation” clone of Vegapunk with her. She plans to settle down in Elbaph and build a new lab. Ok, cool. Honestly, I’m a little eh about a Stella comeback (because I think it’s more interesting for him to be embodied by just his satellites) but just because that’s the plan doesn’t mean it’ll go smoothly, or happen for sure. On the other hand, I’m genuinely pleased that there’s a potential to bring Kuma back, not that he was ever never actually dead. We’ve had so many hints that there’s hope for him. Plus, he’s one of the characters that truly just went through the worst of the worst over and over for the sake of liberation and his loved ones, holding onto faith throughout. I think he deserves to be a father and be happy, I don’t care if that’s cheesy. But again, no guarantee that will actually happen. 

Love and Light Only 

We then see the Walrus School where the children are educated and hear that it was founded 20 years ago by Saul, at the behest of the former king, Harald. Once again, huge huge kudos to the assistants because wow. I want to live there. What follows is Luffy’s encounter with some of said children, who turn out to be, well, absolute wimps. They don’t use ‘bad’ or potentially insulting words, and they’re not going to be setting out to sea to fight ruffians when they’re older. They’re learning in school, rather than being trained to be warriors. In fact, as their teacher Ripley tells us, being a warrior nowadays isn’t fashionable, because “insults, violence, pillaging, war” are just “not the world we live in anymore”. [Side note: the number of beautiful giant women Oda is giving us??? It's tough out here for a gay]. Absolutely nothing even close to violence or antagonism are allowed, not even petty insults, specifically by the children, which tells us this is very much the way they’re being raised and taught. It’s giving weird, cloying, toxic positivity. I was even going to say there is no war in Ba Sing Se, but I don’t think we’re dealing with brainwashing here – just insularity and idealism. 

We see this reinforced by the repeated mentions that Elbaph has very little connection to the outside world – they don’t pay attention to it, they don’t get news coos, they just mind their own business. Interestingly, we also know that any “intruders” immediately get captured (presumably to be vetted and potentially kept out if they risk disturbing the peace). I honestly can’t remember if the news coo thing has come up before in the context of non-WG countries, but I don’t think so? Anyways, that’s pretty bad. Like, if a country isn’t in the World Government (which, remember, requires paying literal tribute to the Celestial Dragons) they just don’t get information about what’s happening in the world? Wild stuff. In some ways maybe that’s protective, but in other ways, extremely dangerous. 

On the topic of language, we also immediately see ways in which these cultural rules are being broken. The way Ripley speaks is rougher, as she herself calls the kids brats and says she teaches by “negative example” (do as I say not as I do). So we’re seeing a clear generational rift in culture between what Ripley later says is the “last generation of warriors” (presumably she’s around the same age as Hajrudin, Loki, Rodo, Gerd etc) and the current children. When we meet Collun, we also immediately see that the way the other children treat him isn’t exactly kind. Despite strictly following rules around things like name-calling, they outright say they hate him. He replies in kind, but it’s not hypocritical of Collun in the way it is for the other children. He’s clearly the rough “wild child” who’s following the older warrior culture, whereas the ways in which the educational system is teaching ‘non-violence’ clearly doesn’t preclude them from excluding or being rude to a kid who’s different from them. In fact, they’re just following the rules and it’s ok to be mean to him because he’s always causing trouble and not following the rules, so he deserves it. They even basically imply why are you here. I think this kind of petty behaviour isn’t abnormal or horrendous for kids, but it does highlight to me that the kind of ‘peaceful’ culture Elbaph is aspiring to feels extremely one-dimensional, oversimplified, and somewhat superficial. Even the way Ripley talks about it feels so smoothed out and idealistic, which is strange coming from the mouth of someone who still looks and behaves like a warrior. What happened from one generation to the next?

Ripley goes on to say Harald’s policy was “don’t fight other countries – trade with them!” Sound familiar? Yeah. Those were exactly Mother Carmel’s ideas for the giants a hundred years ago, when she lived on Elbaph. This was following the dissolution of the Giant Warrior Pirates because Dorry and Brogy had started their century-long duel on Little Garden, when she appeared as a “wandering holy woman” and ‘saved’ some of their crew from execution by beseeching the marines for forgiveness and an end to violence. The giants understandably see her as a saviour and saint who performed a miracle. We only learn later that this was a stunt pulled in collaboration with the marines and the World Government, which allowed her to gain the trust of the giants and infiltrate Elbaph as a child trafficker.

Now, I’m not saying Harald was aware of Carmel’s true nature, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he was inspired by/agreed with what she was saying, thus starting Elbaph’s current era of ‘peace’ with the Giant Warrior Pirates out of the way. Carmel was a perfect human link to the WG who could help Harald carry out his ideas, while her saviour position in the eyes of other giants helped him convince his people. This is important, because that means this peace was potentially built with a foundation of deceit tied to military strategy. Carmel wasn’t operating alone – she was specifically selling orphaned children to the WG to be marines, spies and agents. We see her talking to and dealing with CP0, who work directly under the Celestial Dragons and the Five Elders. Mother Carmel was a morally putrid money-hungry old hag, yes, but she was also an instrument of the WG. We also know that the WG has long been interested in harnessing and controlling the power of giants (from Carmel talking about getting giant children into the navy, like John Giant, to MADS’ and later Caesar’s gigantification experiments). In a world based on power inequality, oppression and authoritarian domination, the giants are military assets – if only they can be assimilated into the system. And who is easier to indoctrinate and control than children? 

To be clear, I think peace with a focus on education and knowledge is great! I would love for the world to be that way. And I definitely don’t think the “goal” of this arc should be to renounce those ideals or simply go back to being a completely war-based culture. Knowledge is extremely important in One Piece – that’s quite literally a central theme of the whole series. And of course, we are shown time and time again how horrific and devastating war is. However, history – why and how things come to be is crucial. Is something coming from people’s informed collective desires, or is it coming from the decision of one person/a few people? Is it something that benefits everyone? Is it growth from a place of understanding, or historical amnesia and bypassing material reality? The truth is that right now, the One Piece world isn’t past “violence, insults, pillaging, war”. It’s very much full of those things, specifically because it is rife with inequality. Elbaph so far has been sheltered from these problems, but what happens if the problems come to them? 

This is one of the central questions I believe Elbaph is going to grapple with. What is peace, and what is violence? How can true peace be created? Can violence truly be eradicated from the world? What different kinds of violence are there? 

I think the books from Ohara, the Owl Library and Yggdrasil are going to be of crucial importance to these questions. We know that Yggdrasil is extremely important to Elbaph, and we also know that accumulated collective knowledge and education – as represented by the books – are beyond precious. So, the giants have something to protect that isn’t just their own lives: they have a collective treasure. I wouldn’t be surprised if threats to these treasures are the catalyst for the giants’ reconnection to their warrior natures. Pillaging and engaging in violence just for the sake of it or for sadistic pleasure is unnecessary and cruel, but being a fighter and a warrior in order to protect what one cares about – one’s treasure – is important. All the warrior cultures we’ve seen so far in One Piece have shared this reason for their strength, from the Shandorans protecting their sacred ancestral lands and history, to Wano with Pluton, and the Minks with their poneglyph and Zunesha. 

Elbaph can be a peaceful nation that focuses on education and knowledge, and still be able to protect that knowledge if necessary through maintaining relationship to the core aspects of their warrior culture: honour, courage, strength, skill, freedom, etc. I think that’s also where pride can sit, in the space of being strong enough to do what’s needed to protect life, dreams, love, and what we care about. This is, after all, what we see time and time again in pirates like Luffy and the Strawhats – that fighting and strength are absolutely not everything, and look different for everyone, but are ultimately important to protecting what’s important to us. There is pride in embracing one’s dreams, taking action, resisting oppression and injustice, and having a strong relationship to life and death as warriors do. As an aside, I do think Usopp will be a key person who inspires this shift and re-invigorates the giants’ pride (big speech time!). 

Ideals and Idols

Two things jumped out at me in this section of the chapter. The first is that multiple people have referred to Harald as a “great king”, or something along the lines of ‘beloved by everyone’. Now, that’s not so strange. He could’ve just been a really caring or charismatic leader. But the emphasis makes me a little suspicious about what was going on behind the scenes, especially since we know what Mother Carmel was really doing, but the giants still don’t know the truth. They still see her as a holy figure and miracle worker who saved them and even cared about Linlin, a “god of disaster”. I think it’s no coincidence that the figures of Harald and Carmel have been set up as key figures of this hundred-year period who are idolised by the giants, and the illusion is going to crumble at some point. I believe the truth about Carmel being the epitome of ‘peace and love’ hypocrisy will come out, and so will whatever truth about Harald. Again, to be clear, I’m not saying I think Harald was evil or had bad intentions – it’s more likely that he was tricked and manipulated by Carmel and the WG because of his idealism. I think he probably wanted to make Elbaph part of the WG (in order to pursue his goals of peace and trade), he wanted Elbaph to open up to the world, and he wanted ‘peace’ in the sense of blanket non-violence. 

That last part we already saw expressed with terrifying clarity in a child Linlin, when she locked a bear and a wolf in a cage to stop them fighting because “fighting is bad”. I won’t get into analysing that metaphor right here (I think I’ll make a separate post) but it is so on the nose – forced peace and non-violence is itself violent and creates more violence, especially because it requires imposing your will on other beings and taking away their freedom. Peace for whom? And by whom? I believe the truth of Harald’s engagement with the WG, and either his collaboration with them or his mistakes in dealing with them will come to light, and I’m sure Loki’s reasons for killing him are related.

In this way, Harald opened Elbaph up to infiltration and engagement from the WG, who I’m sure were only waiting for an opportunity to gather intelligence and start undermining the giants’ power or bend it to their use. Like I said previously, I strongly believe that the Warland giants had ties to the Ancient Kingdom and the events of the Void Century. It would absolutely be in the WG’s interest to bring them over to their side and disconnect them from any remaining traces of that history. In fact, Mother Carmel’s House of Lambs also centered around the idea of ‘reforming’ children and helping them leave their ‘problematic’ past behind. This same idea of reform has been used to describe Elbaph itself. This treats history as something to bury and leave behind – something shameful, rather than something to acknowledge properly, learn and grow from. And of course if we know anything about One Piece at all, we know that forgetting or erasing history is literally one of the most central problems/mistakes/evils of the series. We see this further shown in the fact that Ripley is the one to bring up Nika to Luffy, and that she specifies she’s from the last generation of warriors tells us that the children might not even know about him. Why would they, if he’s a warrior god and they’re actively being taught to be anything but warriors? It gave me chills, no joke.

So the ‘peace’ in Elbaph feels especially uneasy right now, despite Ripley’s words. There are antagonists working for Garling/Imu on the island. There is what seems like a red herring of an antagonist (Loki). There is misdirection and mystery galore. So many illusions and false stories to be shattered. False idols to be toppled. Funnily enough, the one story we know is real right now is a literal living myth (Luffy’s Nika form), who is also just a guy. Ideals and idols need to be brought down to earth for real living people to connect with materially, instead of being held aloft and out of reach. What did the arc open with? Rodo pretending to be a god. We’ve also had another character claim to be a god in Loki, meanwhile we know Celestial Dragons (including the Holy Knights) pretty much believe themselves to be gods. Yeah, I’m reiterating my point that ideas of faith and divinity are going to be crucial in Elbaph. In fact, I will put it out here right now that we’re going to get more information about the Lunarians, who were also called gods (I have a whole theory about that). 

Updated Loki thoughts 

The last thing I wanted to talk about is some updated thoughts on Loki. Basically, he’s a tsundere?? Love to see it. It seems that at least part of the unhinged and violent temperament we’ve seen from him so far is a facade, since his long-term friend ‘Shaggy’ says “I’ve realized recently that those fearsome words of yours hide your kindness”. We see that Loki has a friend he’s never met or seen, but known for a long time through den den mushi conversations. He empathises with said friend’s recent traumatic experience, saying it hurts him to hear it, while overreacting when they call him kind. Typical bluster, which seems to compensate for what is a sense of compassion and understanding. Not a heartless villain, then. This of course consolidates the idea that he isn’t how he appears on the surface and how he was first introduced, and that Luffy’s instincts were right. This does make me feel much better about their ‘promise’, even if it will still probably end up causing chaos. On top of that, it reinforces my feeling that he reminds me of Law, and will probably end up as an ally to the Strawhats in some way. Maybe by the end of the arc he will even be restored as the king of Elbaph, potentially alongside Hajrudin. Speaking of which, I went back to the previous chapter where the Giant Warrior Pirates were talking about Loki and Hajrudin, and the description of Loki as “another official child” of Harald makes me think Hajrudin is probably his illegitimate half-brother. But we’ll see. 

All of this has me thinking about the other giants calling him the “shame of Elbaph”. Initially I thought this might be because his actions are considered dishonourable, and I still think that’s probably the case. But having had the developments about Elbaph’s cultural shift, I wonder if part of the dishonour is just doing any kind of violent acts in Elbaph at this point. Thinking about how the other children treated Collun, and talked about insults, is there a sense that anything ‘barbaric’ on the island is shameful? Have they maybe even been taught to be ashamed of their violent past as Warland? I wouldn’t be surprised. And if so, that makes me even more worried about how that happened and the consequences of such revisionism and reform. As I said earlier, it’s one thing to want to change and improve, to move forward collectively for everyone’s good. It’s another to completely reject the past and bury it. Shame can be an important part of reflection and acknowledgment, when deserved, but it can also prevent real growth. I worry that Harald and Carmel’s approach was just to give Elbaph a PR-style culture change that has left them with a flimsy and fragmented social structure. One that is particularly vulnerable to hegemonic influence and external danger. 

Speaking of which, my thoughts on the two strangers (I’m going to call them Holy Knights because I’m pretty sure they are) looking for Loki are that they are either here to kill him, or to influence/recruit him somehow. I’m sure they’ve had intel on the situation in Elbaph, including the fact that there is no king since Loki didn’t ascend to the throne. Given that it seems Harald wasn’t a threat to the WG, I assume they know that Loki is different somehow. We also know that the Holy Knights are essentially the military special forces unit of the Five Elders/Imu, so I don’t think they’re there for a tea party. Even if their mission involves diplomacy, I think violence and threats are probably part of the plan. Hence, persuading him of something (with force if necessary) or assassinating him. We saw Loki has a “special” bounty, probably because he killed his father and/or has a legendary devil fruit, so it makes more sense to me that the knights are there to take him out. Plus, from a narrative point of view, if Loki is a rebel compared to his father, and is likely to ally with the Strawhats, he’s probably a character that is going to be set in opposition to the World Government. 

I don’t have much to add to what everyone’s already saying about the Shanks lookalike Danks, other than I agree it’s not Shanks and is either a relative or a clone, especially with the way clones keep being brought up. They’re clearly very powerful if the bandage person is anything to go by (bandage-bandage fruit?? the way they used it to break the guy’s bones was something), and I’m hyped for more. I’ve been waiting to see the Holy Knights since we got the God Valley flashback. I’m so ready for new villains. I'm also pretty scared, since we're getting a feast at the beginning of an arc. That doesn't bode well for the ending to me...but let's enjoy the good vibes while they last.

Honestly it feels like these last two chapters just left us with more questions than answers, and knowing Oda, we might not get those answers for a while! But let’s see. The opening parts of an arc are always the most fun to me because of that.

Bonus favourite bits:

Saul asking why Vegapunk's a woman and Lilith being like "who gaf"

Robin being happy always

Chopper and Robin library time I cry

Ripley being excited to see Nika Luffy, and Luffy's response

BIG ANCIENT OWL!!!!!!!! I LOVE

Bonney, Chopper and Robin on giant books

Luffy's interaction with Collun - truly big brother

the way Stephen Paul translated the kids' speech (vylence, vishus)

the new outfits, very cute (especially love Jinbe's)

the Jarul gag????? unserious

[longagoitwastuesday]

ngl it sort of pisses me off the way adults regard Gojo in Jujutsu Kaisen at times. Which could be a very interesting and poignant point in a good way if well written, but as it is it becomes mainly just frustrating and sad in a negative way.

Nanami saying Gojo never cared about anything or anyone other than himself crashes interestingly with Kusakabe saying the whole situation was just all his fault because he refused to kill Itadori. The students are very aware of those aspects of Gojo's personality, but overall they seem to regard him with way more kindness and fondness even when at their rudest, not truly coinciding with either Nanami's or Kusakabe's views.

[beloved-child-of-the-house]

for the most part I actually don’t see Harry and Draco as being the get married types or at least not the have a wedding types but it’s also fun to just. Have them do it anyway. Weddings are fun and fun to write and read about!

[turtlemurmurs]

Some older sketches (October 2021, to be exact) of Wilson that I probably won’t be messing with coloring, but they deserve to be posted I think :3 Mostly relating to the headcanon that he’s trans; I was gonna make a post about it but ehh, it’s a pretty popular headcanon so I’m sure you get the gist xD

[look-better-in-gold]

one thing i think one piece fans forget is that for most of the characters in it having the d initial doesn’t mean anything. we don’t find out it’s anything to think about until skypiea while robin is talking to gan fall (who met roger) and he says “d.? i see. one letter of his name… that can’t just be a coincidence!!!” and laughs. we only know what we do bc luffy’s the main character. i guess you could argue kureha saying roger’s name is gol d. roger at the end of drum counts but it’s brushed off and you’re not like. encouraged to think about why it’s different. she only knows this bc she’s a REALLY old lady who was around when roger first set out. and gan fall met roger. law knows about it from cora, Who Used To Be A Celestial Dragon. nobody who knows about it is a normal citizen. the world government wants it to be a secret. they successfully wiped out 100 years of history. “the will of d.” or those “eat like a d.” jokes are NOT something everyone is making!!! GUYS. WE ONLY KNOW BECAUSE WE’RE THE VIEWERS. WE’RE WATCHING THE MOST POWERFUL PEOPLE IN THE WORLD RIGHT NOW. NOT EVERYONE WILL KNOW WHAT THEY DO!!!!