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ppomumgranatum · 5 months ago

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forgotten legacy. [chapter 1]

available on Ao3

pairing: Sebastian Sallow x f!MC

tags: multi-chapter, Auror Sebastian, drama, romance, murders, major character death, original female character, possible 🔞 in upcoming chapters. (more tags on Ao3)

word count: 4.8k

Summary: Eleven years after Ranrok’s goblin rebellion, Sebastian Sallow, now an Auror, finds himself neck-deep in a string of unsolved murders. Things get personal when the trail leads him to Aderyn Pembroke, his old flame and Keeper of ancient magic. Forced to work together, the former lovebirds have to decide just how far they're willing to sacrifice for the world they both swore to protect.

RUTH SINGER MURDERED: AURORS LAGGING BEHIND By: Cressida Bloom, Special Correspondent The wizarding world has been left reeling after the brutal murder of Ruth Singer, Head of the Magical Law Enforcement Patrol. Singer was found dead in her own house after she failed to report to work. The identity of the perpetrator remains unknown, adding to the growing list of unsolved murders that have cast a dark shadow over the wizarding world in recent month. This latest tragedy follows the shocking murders of an Astronomer Amit Thakkar, and a fellow Officer, Natsai Onai just a few weeks prior. Speculation is mounting that the recent string of murders may be the work of dark wizards, as troubling evidence emerges from the investigations. Traces of Unforgivable curses have been found in the bodies of the victims, including Ruth Singer. This revelation has intensified fears within the wizarding community and raised concerns about a possible resurgence of dark forces targeting prominent figures within the wizarding world. This string of unsolved murders has sparked criticism of the Auror Office, which has so far failed to make any significant progress in identifying or apprehending the killers. Despite their reputation as the wizarding world's elite dark wizard catchers, the Aurors seem to be lagging in providing answers or bringing justice to the grieving families and colleagues of the victims.

Sebastian scoffed as he aggressively folded the newspaper and slammed it into his bin. He shook his head at the outrageous news— Aurors Lagging Behind? The once-respected Daily Prophet had clearly lost its way since the change in their Editor in Chief– whoever the fuck they are now. Sebastian couldn’t care less. Instead of quality journalism, it seemed their sole mission was to criticise the Ministry at every turn.

The first murder was just two weeks ago. Amit’s assistant found his body in his office when she came in the morning. The perpetrator appeared to be searching for something in his possession as things were scattered about. Despite the obvious signs of a struggle and the apparent motive to find something specific, there was frustratingly too little of something.

Just one week after, Natty was found at her home. The scene was messier. Jer wand was found next to her hand, and scorch marks marred the walls of her living room— evidence that she put up a fight before her life was brutally taken.

And just yesterday, Ruth Singer was claimed as the latest victim.

These unsolved cases had been haunting him every second of every day. The lives of three people he knew were taken. The only consistent thread between these murders was the state of the crime scenes and the traces of Unforgivables found on each victim. But other than that, the lack of evidence and motives made it almost impossible for him to walk into anything promising.

As the lead Auror in this case, it made him truly want to quit his job. With the press and the public breathing down his neck, demanding more answers, surely didn’t make anything easier either.

Sebastian sat slumped in his chair while the office bustled around him with the sound of typewriters and chatter. Another day of dead ends and unanswered questions had left him feeling drained.

Lost in his own frustrations, he was suddenly brought back to reality by someone sitting on the chair beside his desk. He looked up to see Andrew, his partner, just came back from Singer’s estate.

“Anything new?” Sebastian asked, though he wasn't holding his breath for a miracle.

Andrew’s eyes were reflecting the same frustration Sebastian felt. "Just more questions." He leaned back in his chair, exhaling deeply. "The traces of Unforgivables are undeniable but it still doesn’t lead us to who did it.”

Sebastian noticed how the blonde was looking equally worn out. His usual charming demeanour was looking rather dishevelled. Andrew is his trusted partner, any weighing cases Sebastian is bearing on his shoulder, Andrew would share the same amount.

“I’ve met with some of the patrol officers to ask if Singer and Onai might have been tangling in a case together that could lead to this, but nothing peculiar.” Andrew continued his report, “None of their past nor on-going cases are related to Amit either.”

At this rate, Sebastian was just collecting frustrations like they were chocolate frog cards. Every lead they followed seemed to evaporate into thin air, leaving them with nothing but the same nagging questions. He rubbed his temples, trying to ease the headache that had been his constant companion for days now.

"Well, their deaths must be connected somehow. It has to be." Sebastian repeated, more to convince himself than Andrew. He looked at the photographs of the victims pinned on the evidence board, each face staring back at him, demanding justice, “It’s too convenient of a coincidence that two of our former classmates and her boss were murdered in just the span of weeks.”

Meanwhile, Andrew's gaze fell upon Sebastian's bin, where the slightly crumpled newspaper lay discarded. With a curious tilt of his head, he reached down and plucked it from the pile. His furrows formed on his forehead as he scanned the front-page article.

“This is fucking bullocks. Are they writing comedy now?” He shook his head as he scanned the article further.

“Utter rubbish is what that is. You should’ve kept it where it belongs.” Sebastian replied with irritation crippling into his voice, “Stirring up panic and public doubt as if this case isn’t dreadful enough without the pressure.” His words dripped with exasperation as he watched Andrew toss the newspaper back into the bin, “Anything else?”

“Oh.” Andrew exclaimed like he just remembered something, “We found one thing.” He rummaged through his suit pocket and put an evidence bag on Sebastian’s desk, “Before I take this down to evidence— maybe you know something about it.”

Inside it was a small item, a crest– a maroon shield with a gold letter R in the middle. The shield is decorated with two crossed quills and a thistle, and he’s seen this before, “This.. this is the Rookwood family crest.”

“You mean the same Rookwood that wanted to attack Hogwarts eleven years ago?” Andrew asked, just as puzzled, “I thought their leader died?”

“He did.” Furrows etched across Sebastian’s face.

His mind raced with questions as he pondered the potential connection of current incidents to the Rookwood family. The possibilities seemed to be far-fetched because their organisation was destroyed not long after Victor Rookwood was dead. But then again this was the only solid evidence they have come across so far.

“The Rookwoods are known for their dark connections. If they're behind these murders.."

"It could explain the traces of Unforgivable curses.” Sebastian found the end of Andrew’s sentence.

"But why now? What could they possibly gain from killing an astronomer, a patrol officer, and the head of the Magical Law Enforcement Patrol?" The blonde remained sceptical.

"It could be a power play? Or maybe they're after something specific that each of these victims had access to.”

Andrew was quiet for a moment before he continued, “Didn’t Natty get involved with the Rookwood Gang back in school days? And if I remember correctly, Singer was an active officer in that case. Could that be it?”

“But we’re still missing Amit’s involvement.” With a sigh, Sebastian realised that answers wouldn't come easily. If there was any lead to be found, he knew Andrew was the one who could help him with it, “Larson, find what you can on Victor Rookwood. Any living relatives, offsprings, address, whatever it is I want everything.”

Andrew nodded, “On it.”

Sebastian watched as Andrew briskly made his way to his desk and his mind already calculating the best approach to the task. Sebastian poured over mountains of case files and reports over the last eleven years on Rookwood’s organisation, trying to find any link to the murder case.

Minutes turned into hours and his hair was tousled while countless cups of coffee had been devoured to keep him focused. There was practically nothing. No new activity, no fresh reports— they’d gone dormant for years.

Times ticked by and Andrew finally returned to his desk with his result, “Okay, there wasn’t much on our record about the family apart from their obvious criminal ring. Eleven years ago, most of the Rookwoods seemed to flee the country to avoid being connected to it but one– Agnes Barebone, née Rookwood. She was Victor’s aunt.”

Andrew handed a file containing Agnes Barebone’s information. There wasn’t much, though.

“Before settling down, she was reportedly the financial advisor for Rookwood's organisation during Victor’s father's reign until she married an American pharmacist, Oliver Barebone, and changed her last name. They settled down here and she's been under the radar ever since. They both died a year ago in a car accident but they still have an address in London.” Andrew pointed to the information stated on the paper, “The estate now belongs to their twenty-six-year-old son, Leopold.”

Sebastian quickly wrote down the address on his notes and kept it back in his pocket. He gave a pat on Andrew’s shoulder as he stood up to put on his coat, “Great job, mate.”

“Do you need backup?” He asked, referring to himself.

“No.” Sebastian fixed the collar on his shirt and then coat, “You keep on looking for any links between the murders and Rookwood. I’ll be fine.”

“Be careful.”

Sebastian gave Andrew a nod before disapparating from the office.

When Sebastian apparated back into the street a block away from the estate, he was greeted by the steady patter of raindrops. A curse escaped his lips as he felt the chill of the rain seeping into his clothes. With a resigned sigh, he retrieved the note containing the address from his pocket and set off down the street.

Jogging through the rain-soaked pavement, Sebastian scanned the area, eyes darting from one house to the next in search of the address. His clothes were slightly drenched and his vision was obscured. So he quickened his pace, desperate to get out of the rain.

When he reached, the house was quiet and shrouded in darkness. At first, he assumed nobody would be home, but when he spotted a small crack in the front door, he knew someone had either recently left or entered.

Cautiously, he moved forward, drawing his wand from his pocket and cast Lumos. His senses were on high alert as he checked every corner for signs of life, listening intently for any sound that might indicate someone’s presence.

The house looked well-maintained. The furniture was polished, and the floors were clean, Leopold must’ve been living there. Despite the general upkeep, some areas appeared quite messy. Drawers were left open, books were scattered across the floor, and papers were strewn about.

It reminded him exactly of the three crime scenes.

He moved deeper into the house and stumbled into a room that appeared to be a study. The first thing he noticed was the big paper of a floor plan pinned to the wall. He could notice it from anywhere— it’s Hogwarts. The map was meticulously drawn, with intricate markings pointing to secret passages, hidden rooms, and other notable features of the castle.

On a large desk beneath the map, there were numerous documents and notes. Among them, Sebastian found information on Ranrok and his loyalists. Most of them were information regarding their agenda in 1890.

Sebastian took a moment to mentally catalogue everything he had come across so far. So Leopold or someone had been here and digging up information about his family's involvement with Ranrok. Was he possibly looking for something related to Hogwarts? But where had he gone, and what was he seeking?

Speculating could only lead him nowhere, he needed to look for something more— something that would bring the pieces of the puzzle together. But his thoughts were abruptly interrupted by the sound of wood creaking just outside the room. His senses sharpened, and he proceeded slowly toward the source of the noise.

As he stepped into the hallway, a figure flickered in the corner of his eye. Instinct kicked in—Sebastian drew his wand and aimed it straight at the person, ready to stop them from bolting. “Don’t even think about it!” he ordered, “Turn around. Slowly.”

The figure hesitated but eventually turned. The dim glow of Sebastian’s wand revealed their face, and his heart nearly stopped when he realised who it was.

“Aderyn?” he whispered, disbelief and a myriad of emotions flooding his voice and demeanour.

It was Aderyn Pembroke.

The hero of Hogwarts— and more importantly, his ex-girlfriend.

Sebastian had been prepared for anything—dark wizards lying in wait, the bodies of another unfortunate victims, clues to lead him deeper into the tangled web of dark magic— he was ready to confront any danger head-on and the last thing he expected was to find was his ex-girlfriend.

In that instant, everything seemed irrelevant. The case, the danger, the unanswered questions, all of it was overshadowed by the unexpected presence of someone he never thought he'd see again.

She was present at a site filled with a treasure of evidence the Ministry had been dying to come across for weeks. Being ever the good authority, Sebastian had no choice but to detain her for questioning.

Sebastian took his shot in sixth-year. He remembered how nervous he was, mostly because he was holding so much pent-up emotions for the past year since Aderyn arrived at Hogwarts. He didn't want to hope, but when she laughed and told him that it took him long enough, he was relieved. Life felt like a fairy-tale, but happily ever after only lasted five years before she decided to end things, leaving Sebastian to piece together a life without her.

And that was five years ago.

“We found this on her coat.” Andrew snapped Sebastian out of his haze and placed a folder on his desk.

Sebastian opened the folder, revealing a series of documents that immediately caught his attention. There in black and white, were detailed records of suspicious transactions and clandestine meetings over the past year in Victor Rookwood’s name.

The records showed Rookwood’s name cropping up repeatedly, involved in secretive dealings that seemed to be supporting dark magic operations. Each entry was meticulously documented, indicating a pattern of activity that pointed to a significant and covert presence in the dark magic underground.

“These are all dated after Victor Rookwood’s death. Whoever did this must have used his name and reputation to fund and gather men for some dark magic op. The Rookwoods are definitely in on this, and somehow your friend is, too.” Andrew reminded him of the bitter potential, "Are you sure you don't want me to handle this?" He offered after noticing Sebastian’s distracted look.

Sebastian flipped the pages and there were reports on the murder victims. Each report contained personal information, their known associates, and recent activities.

Sebastian shook his head, "I'm good. I just need a moment," he replied. Though he was grateful for his partner’s concern.

Sebastian took a deep breath, pushing himself up from his chair and heading toward the interrogation room. He stopped just outside the door, peeking in through the small window. Aderyn sat there, hands bound, her hair a wet mess from the rain, and a blanket draped over her shoulders—probably the only bit of comfort the staff bothered to offer her. She looked exhausted like she’d been caught in the middle of a storm in more ways than one. But still beautiful as ever.

Seeing her like this—rumpled, vulnerable—hit him harder than he expected. It was a far cry from the woman he used to know, the one he once cared about more than anything. It felt strange, almost unreal that after five years of no contact and she became a criminal with accusations hanging over her head.

Yet there she was, sitting in the cold impersonal room waiting to be questioned.

Sebastian walked in, closing the door behind him. Without saying a word, he pulled out the chair and sat down across from her, trying to keep his expression neutral even though a thousand questions were running through his mind.

“Ms. Pembroke, would you care to explain why you were at the Barebone’s estate?” He kept his tone light, trying to ease into the questioning without coming off too harsh. When there was no immediate answer, Sebastian repeated his question with a firmer tone, “Ms. Pembroke, what were you doing at the Barebone’s estate?”

Instead of a straight answer, Aderyn’s lips curled into a faint smirk. “You cleaned up good.” She was dodging his questions on purpose, and he didn’t like it one bit.

“Ms. Pembroke, please answer my question.” He tried to keep the irritation out of his voice. But Aderyn’s eyes flicked over him again, taking in his appearance like she was sizing him up.

“And you’ve been working out.” her gaze tracing the lines of his broad shoulders, lingering on the rolled-up sleeves that showed off his muscular, veiny forearms. “Looks like those Auror training sessions really paid off.”

Sebastian's jaw clenched as he was firmly holding his gaze trying not to show any hint of vulnerability, “Answer my question.”

“You don’t have to assert your power over me, Sebastian. I’m not one of your criminals.” She snarked. Sebastian used to find it charming, but in this moment it was kind of annoying especially when he just wanted to get this job over with.

“That’s up for debate.” He shot back coldly, Sebastian sifted through the layers of documents he was carrying and unfolded the part regarding transactions and meetings under Victor Rookwood’s name. He flipped and slid it across the table towards Aderyn, “What’s this, then?”

She didn’t even bother to look at the file in front of her, “Abnormality.”

“Victor Rookwood’s dead.”

“Hence, the abnormality.”

Sebastian's frustration mounted at her nonchalant response. "Well, you must know something because it led you there.”

Aderyn remained silent, her eyes fixed on Sebastian’s. The tension in the room thickened while Sebastian’s patience was wearing thin.

“This isn’t a game. People have died.”

“You don’t think I know that?”

“Then why are you at the Barebone’s?”

“I’m innocent.”

“You’ve been avoiding my questions and you expect me to believe that you are innocent?” Truly, he was on the brink of losing his poise. He’d forgotten how stubborn she could be, "I think you are with the Rookwood gang.”

Aderyn’s expression hardened at the indictment, "That's outrageous. I was against Rookwood. I protected Wizardkind from a war that could’ve been the end of us. You think I’d turn my back on the very people we bled for? You bloody know me better than that."

“Well, I used to. But that was years ago—how can I possibly know who you are now when I haven’t seen you in five years?”

Sebastian was clearly losing grasp of his grit and grace for making it sound so personal. Years of training— painful training was in vain. He’s a damn Auror for Merlin’s sake, perhaps the best of his generation, but one woman showed up and he was on the brink of falling apart.

With a deep breath, he steeled himself and went back on the offensive, his tone colder, and more focused this time, “Where were you the night Amit, Natty and Ruth Singer were murdered?"

Her eyes flickered for a moment but she managed to mask it quickly, “I was at home.”

“Is there anyone who can confirm your alibi?”

She hesitated, “No.”

Sebastian’s expression hardened, and he leaned back, crossing his arms, “Well that’s convenient, isn’t it?” He didn’t even try to hide the sarcasm dripping from his voice.

“I didn’t do it.” She sounded genuine.

“Well then let me repeat my first question, what were you doing at the Barebone’s?” His tone grew icier with each word and it was a sight of Sebastian she never witnessed before.

“I am not with Rookwood, Sebastian.” Her voice grew strained.

“So you were just trespassing on a private property?”

“No, that’s not—”

“Or were you just busted on a crime scene trying to cover up the murders you’ve committed?”

Aderyn slammed her fist on the table, “How dare you.” She seethed, “Natty was my friend.”

Not a single muscle in Sebastian’s body flinched at her outburst. He noticed the way her hand trembled slightly. There was fire in her eyes, a mix of anger and something else—something that bordered on desperation. But Sebastian couldn’t afford to let himself be swayed by it. Not now.

Sebastian leaned forward, “Then act like it. Stop hiding behind half-truths and start giving me answers.”

Then Aderyn fell silent. Her initial tense and rigid shoulder slowly relaxed as she leaned back on her chair. A heavy sigh escaped her lip and her defiance melted away.

And Gods, those looks in her eyes— suddenly he couldn’t believe his own bitter accusations that he’d been bluntly throwing at her. Every tension and anger fell away and all he could see was the woman he once cared for so deeply.

Never once in his life had he seen himself playing bad cop with Aderyn.

"Look," Sebastian's voice was soft, almost like he was pleading, “If you really aren’t a part of this you’ve got to stop fighting me and tell me what you know so I can help you.”

She was quiet, but he could see the wheels turning in her mind, the way she bit her lip, the way her fingers fidgeted—he remembered every subtle tell.

“Aderyn,” He said softly, “Let me help you.”

She took a deep breath, her shoulders slumping as if the weight of it all was finally too much to bear on her own.

“About three days after Amit’s death I was stopped by two men demanding me to follow them if I want to prevent another friend from dying.” She began.

“What happened after that?”

“They blasted the Killing Curse on me when I refused.” She continued, “I bested them but there was no way of identifying who they were. I’ve had some help to trace their wands. But they’re untraceable. Possibly illegal modifications or some cursed enchantments.”

Sebastian frowned, the pieces of the puzzle still not fitting together. “Did they say anything? Give any clues as to why they targeted you?”

“No, but I knew immediately that they were talking about Amit. I just couldn’t figure out what they wanted. And only a week after that—” Aderyn swallowed the lump that seemed to be growing in her throat, “Natty happened. From there, I began to speculate and took my shot at Rookwood. I reached out to my contact to look deeper into their family background. By the time I found out about the only Rookwood known to be living here in Britain I was too late and Ruth Singer was murdered.”

“So their deaths are in fact related?” Sebastian asked and Aderyn nodded, “How?”

“Do you remember in the fifth year when I told you about how Natty and I took down Victor Rookwood’s right-hand man?”

“Theophilus Harlow.” He nodded, “Andrew guessed it. And he mentioned that Singer was the Patrol Officer on duty around Hogwarts at that time.”

“Correct.”

“What about Amit?”

“He helped me infiltrate a Goblin lair and translated schematics that revealed the drill Ranrok and his loyalists were constructing.”

“So what? This is some payback act for destroying his family’s plan years ago?”

“It’s not just a payback, Sebastian. I was at that house for the same reason you did, looking for Leopold Barebone. There was a detailed map of Hogwarts, revealing every corner and every room of every floor. He’s looking for something and I think I know what it is.” Aderyn opened up her palm when suddenly a brown wand with golden and translucent blue crystal spirals along its length began to appear on her hand. She took a moment to grasp it, feeling its weight, and stroked it gently with her thumb before placing it on the table with care.

Sebastian knew exactly what it was. “The Keepers’ wand.”

“I think he wants to take the repository– to finish what Victor Rookwood couldn’t.” Aderyn confirmed with a solemn nod, “He must’ve been tracking down anyone who might know how to gain access to it.”

“But if he’s after you too, how come there aren’t any reports about you in his file?” Sebastian asked, eyes narrowing as he tried to make sense of everything. “If Barebone’s tracking down everyone connected to the repository, you’d be at the top of that list. So why is your name missing?”

“I truly don’t know. But you have to believe me, Sebastian. I am not with Rookwood.”

Sebastian studied her, searching her face for any sign of deceit. Her eyes met his but beneath that brave front, he could tell she was scared—scared of what Leopold was capable of, scared of being misunderstood, and scared that Sebastian, of all people, wouldn’t believe her. There was a raw honesty in her words, a desperate plea for him to trust her.

“And if he’s digging into connection to the repository, then your life is in as much danger as I am.” Her voice softened, “I told you everything back then—every detail, every secret the Keepers left behind. You know as much as I do. It’ll be just a matter of time before he tracks down everyone connected to me and the repository.”

Sebastian’s jaw tightened, memories of their fifth year flashing before him— the battles, the secrets they uncovered, the sacrifices they made.

“Who else knows about it?” He flipped open his pad and began taking notes.

“The Ministry shouldn’t be a problem,” Aderyn said, “We kept everything out of the public record. The secrecy the Keepers maintained for centuries, we carried on. The official reports were scrubbed clean of any mention of the repository.”

Sebastian nodded, still scribbling in his pad. “And outside the Ministry?”

“There’s Poppy—she and I worked together to disrupt Rookwood’s poaching operation.”

“Where is she now?” His quill paused, hovering over the paper.

“Her latest letter came to me just last week. She’s heading to Arizona, studying Thunderbirds,” At least one name will be far from danger for a moment.

“Who else?”

“The professors—Sharp, Onai, Ronen, Hecat, and Weasley. They’re all aware of the location.” She paused for a moment before continuing, “And Ominis. I told him everything, too."

“What about your contacts?” He asked.

“They should be fine. I never give away the important details.”

“I still need their names, Aderyn” He pressed, “Whoever helped you track down the wands and Rookwood’s background— They clearly know a lot.”

“They’re fine, Sebastian.” She insisted, “Trust me. They’re not a threat nor are they in danger.”

“Aderyn—”

“Please.” She pleaded with that same desperate look, “You have to trust me.”

Sebastian sighed heavily, “I am taking a big leap here with you.”

“I know.” She replied softly, “That’s all I’m asking.”

Sebastian leaned back and stared at the ink that wrote the list of all the familiar names.

For weeks, he’d been chasing leads, only to find himself circling back to the same empty conclusions. And like some sick twisted game that life is playing on him, somehow his ex-girlfriend had to be the one bearing the pieces of the puzzle he's been trying to solve.

Every name on that list was more than just ink on paper— they’re friends, mentors, and allies who had fought to protect the wizarding world. His stomach churned at what's at stake. He could feel the weight of responsibility settling onto his shoulders and it left a queasy knot in his stomach that made his head swim. It was up to him to bring everyone together and put an end to this once and for all, and the pressure of it all was almost suffocating.

He needed a moment to think, but every second was slipping away faster than he could grasp. As he exited the room, Andrew anxiously stood waiting. Sebastian wished he could spare him the truth, keep him out of harm’s way. Dragging him in meant putting another name on the list. But there was no avoiding it now, this was the life they’d signed up for, and there was no turning back.

“Do you trust her?” Andrew asked.

There was no immediate answer. But Sebastian's hesitation didn't come from a place of doubt. If anything, he trusted every word that came out of her mouth and it bemused him. After all the years of being apart—years spent trying to bury the pain and erase the memory of the night she walked out of his life—he still trusted her.

“With my life.” He replied.

#hogwarts legacy #sebastian sallow #sebastian sallow fic #hogwarts legacy fanfic #hogwarts legacy mc #sebastian sallow fanfiction #sebastian x mc #sebastian sallow x mc

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pluckyredhead · 8 months ago

Note

So the Bill Willingham Steph post crossed my dash again and got me wondering... if you're a writer, what IS the best way to respond to fans (singular or group) that publicly call out your writing at a con? Obviously you shouldn't wish violence on them but since it's not like you can un-write the story, do you ignore them? Change the subject? Argue back?

I mean, I can't pretend to know the BEST way to handle a volatile question in a public space, when saying nothing is not an option.

But I also want to challenge the idea that fans were "calling out [Willingham's] writing," because that wasn't what they were doing. Sure, plenty of people said he was a hack online. But at cons, what they were asking was "Why doesn't Steph have a memorial case?"

I always hammer that point home because it's so astonishing to me now. We didn't want them to bring Steph back from the dead. We just wanted them to memorialize her fairly. We were asking for crumbs, and it infuriated Willingham and DC Editorial. To the point that when they did bring Steph back by revealing Leslie Thompson had faked Steph's death, Tim goes "So that's why she didn't have a memorial case!" They would rather have her alive than give a bunch of (mostly) female fans the tiny bit of fairness they had been asking for. It's just mind-boggling to me now how little we were willing to settle for and how angry it still made DC.

Anyway, the decision to kill Steph was editorially mandated, and the decision not to give her a case was also editorially mandated - neither of those were Willingham's decision to make. (The other objection fans had, the sexualized depiction of Black Mask torturing Steph, was also not Willingham's fault - that was artist Jon Proctor.) Now, obviously Willingham couldn't just say "Not my fault, ask DC" because throwing his employer under the bus would not have been good for his career. But DC also shouldn't have hung him out to dry.

I think ideally with any controversial storyline, the publisher should have a discussion with the creators about the best way to handle questions so that everyone is on the same page. But what happens instead is that creators (underpaid freelancers who are almost all in precarious financial circumstances) bear the full brunt of any anger, blame, or harassment, and the publishers (massive corporations*) get to ignore it.

Of course, in Willingham's case, he was not harassed, but asked a polite question ("Why doesn't Steph have a memorial case?") that he probably could have easily said was up to DC without getting in trouble. But instead he chose to publicly fantasize about committing violence against real women, because he was annoyed. So that's DEFINITELY not the answer.

So in conclusion: in general publishers should step up more, in specific Willingham is a fucking douche.

*When I say "massive corporations" I'm talking specifically about DC and Marvel, who are owned by Warner Bros and Disney respectively. Image is not a massive corporation. Also, DC Comics and Marvel Comics are in tricky positions because they are actually small, weirdly ramshackle legacy publishers who in a lot of ways still operate like they did when Marvel had two (2) actual employees, Stan Lee and his secretary Flo Steinberg. They operate on tiny margins, everyone who works there is criminally underpaid, their HR is a fucking joke... So like, none of this excuses editors for repeatedly not supporting their creators during times of controversy (THE FUCKING MOCKINGBIRD COVER, Chelsea Cain is a TERF but that shit was ridiculous), but I think it's also important to remember that when we're talking about the people editing these books on a monthly basis, we're not talking about Bog Iger or David Zaslav - we're talking about someone living in NYC or Burbank working 60 hour weeks on a $45K salary so that Disney has enough IP to make Guardians of the Galaxy 9 or whatever. It's complicated.

#comics #stephanie brown #spoiler #robin

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choicesmc · 5 days ago

Text

LoA Book 1, Chapter 5

Welcome to the fifth installment of this series! Thank you to everyone who’s read this far!! Mad impressed that y’all are still listening to my rambles <33

As always, post under the cut!

banner by: @/roseschoices [the post]

Gigi + Beau’s Corner

As I said, there weren’t a lot of scenes with Gigi and Beau in this chapter but the earliest one relating to either one of them was this line below:

Immediately, I’m pretty surprised that Gigi and Martin are (what seems to be) the preferred choice for the people in the firm. For this run, Fiona’s been #1 in ranking since from the beginning so I would’ve thought the firm would lean to whoever’s been first in the rankings. Moreover, isnt it a little weird that the firm choices Martin and Gigi, two relative outsiders, over Aislinn? Given that Aislinn is the only person whose skill level they have a clear understanding of, wouldn’t it be natural to default to her over, again, two relative strangers?

Additionally, Beau isn’t mentioned is the lineup. Out of everyone on that team, Beau isn’t mentioned! The firm doesn’t consider Beau a part of the firepower for his own team. It’s clear that the firm reads Gigi and Martin as the real “talent�� between the five senior associates and Beau’s place is… not among them in kindly terms.

Yet during the actual proceedings, it’s really Beau who gets to shine.

My first time playing through I’d thought that Gigi and Martin gave Beau the opening for reasons similar to why Aislinn took it… it’s a relatively straightforward task that’s hard to mess up. But, in light of my reading from [Chapter 3] of Beau as someone whose talents lie in interpersonal communication, I think Beau does the opening statement because it is exactly within his forte. It’s his prime chance to show how good he is at working a jury and, well, he’s good. Or, at least, Aislinn certainly thinks so! And so does Sadie.

Now Beau could just be starved for praise but it clearly means a whole lot to him that Sadie, in specific, thinks that he’s grown. At this moment what Beau is hearing is not “you have done a good job” but “you’re becoming more like me.” For Beau, living up to Sadie’s legacy, becoming Sadie, is the only way to be a good lawyer. With that in mind, it holds that the only way to be a better lawyer is to be more like Sadie. When Sadie congratulates the team on improving, Beau hears her happiness that he’s becoming her.

Heading back to the moot court, Gigi might’ve taken the direct examination specifically because it is the one role that doesn’t really require the lawyer to connect with the jury. Additionally, Gigi’s courtroom decorum is… something.

Now, I’m not a lawyer by any means but I’d be willing to bet that’s not how you’re supposed to end a direct examination. Given everything Aislinn told us about McGraw Bryne’s moot court being taken incredibly serious by the firm (Sadie literally chastises Gabe for working on a real case instead of getting to moot court on time!), it’s almost ludicrous that Gigi would end her direct examination with “Your witness, MC.”

It feels so casual for an otherwise serious event! For me, this blatant disregard of courtroom protocol raises a really interesting question: Is Gigi a lawyer purely for the interesting cases she that might come across?

There’s no arguing that interesting cases is her primary reason for pursuing the profession, but Gigi shows a surprising lack of aptitude in pretty much every other area of legal practice. Given that she has been an attorney for some time already, it is strange that she seems less prepared for any aspect of being a lawyer outside of research and writing.

Due to this, I think Gigi primarily worked in contract law before coming to McGraw Byrne. It would explain her exceptional ability in the “paper work” part of being a lawyer and her lack of experience elsewhere.

Here, we see a very delightful truth: Beau can be a conceited mf. Whenever I point out his low self-esteem, it is specifically with regard to the top-tier environment he is in. Outside of the S-tier lawyers he works with, Beau understands that he is a cut above your average lawyer. (And, for the record, so does Gigi.)

At the end of this chapter, we get to (kind of) meet Philip Rothswell and this is how Gigi reacts:

This actually ties into a headcannon I have about Gigi’s backgrounds. [Here] I laid the bare bones of my headcannon but, simply put, Gigi’s family is a socialite one. Here, Gigi is the only one to react to Philip Rothswell’s name. Given that Beau and Martin don’t, we can reasonably assume that they either aren’t aware of who Rothswell is or don’t care.

Either way, the fact that Gigi both knows and cares about Philip is notable. Using the way Gigi describes him as “heir to the Rothswell railroad fortune… has stakes in restaurants, real estate, tech…” it is fair to reasonably assume that Rothswell isn’t a well known man, he’s just a wealthy one. So Gigi’s knowledge of him can’t be simply an ‘online’ thing —she has to be extremely in the know to know who Philip is.

Under my headcannon, Gigi’s mother, Leanne’s, extensive social network would explain why Gigi both knows and is shocked by meeting Philip in person!

banner by: @/roseschoices [the post]

Fiona’s Corner

By now y’all know the usual disclaimer but still: if you’re here only for Gigi and Beau stuff, you won’t want anything from this point on <3

Do. Not. Get. Between. Fiona. And. His. Ethics.

It’s not something that gets to come up often but Fiona does his damn best to follow ethical codes to the letter. He would go as far as to avoid the appearance of impropriety, in all honesty.

Given that Fiona is being cautious around Gabe by this point in the story, this reaction from Gabe does please Fiona. Like, it’s not going to make him run back to chasing Gabe by any means but it is good to know that, despite the mixed signals, Gabe does want Fiona is some way.

One of the reasons Fiona likes trial is that it almost feels like being a teacher again. At its very base, all trial lawyers do is lead the jury towards a particular conclusion using submitted evidence and testimonies —like guiding a classroom towards a particular concept using theorems and real life applications. It’s all very sentimental to him.

banner by: @/roseschoices [the post]

misc. thoughts

these are just some thoughts I couldn’t place anywhere else xD

mad props to Martin. Literally the scariest sentence in this chapter. How high do you think billable shave to be before they become “unignorable”. That’s insane work.

This is from the scene where Tyler and MC get splashed with water and it’s a weird line, right? Like the narrative has been transparent about Tyler being attracted to MC so this line reads oddly, especially considering that the literally next line is MC getting splashed w/water and offering Tyler the chance to propose a hookup w/MC —it almost reframes the water splashing as perhaps purposeful rather than purely accidental. It might be just me but it’s an odd line.

Ryan is a real one <3 wish we saw more of you 💕 In general, he’s been an absolutely delightful side character and I’m pretty glad they gave him just a tiny bit of character detail! That being said, I’m honestly unimpressed at the writers finding enough time to give Ryan a goal/fleshing out rather than doing that for Gigi.

We know Ryan:

Wants to go to law school

Is working at McGraw Byrne to pay off undergrad debts

Dislikes how the partners disregard/disrespect the paralegals and other non-lawyer staff

just from the things he has said to MC despite being (at best) a tertiary character!

But Gigi does not get the same consideration at all. The writers just needed a smart party girl and left it at that and I am pretty pissed about it. Throughout this little thing I’m doing, it becomes frustratingly obvious to see how little care was given to the female characters in relation to their male counterparts and that fucking sucks.

#loa reactions #choices laws of attraction #gigi sinclair #beau mcgraw #fiona lightwood

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posttexasstressdisorder · 12 days ago

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Newsletter from Marc Elias

For the first week of Trump’s second presidency, we’re offering full previews of the exclusive content available to our premium members. There will be a lot of noise and distraction over the next four years — that’s why we’re here to expose the actions taken by the Trump administration to undermine our democracy and cover the legal efforts to fight back.

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When all the news is about Trump and pardons and lies, it is easy to want to retreat and stop paying attention. Don’t. It is precisely when things are hard that we must all lean into remaining vigilant and informed.

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the-way-astray · 4 months ago

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this is a repost of a couple of theory explanation reblogs i've done because some of you haven't seen my genius (jk lmfao these theories aren't even all mine, i've just expanded and thought about them a lot). these are both disproven. sadly. stellarlune, when i catch you . . .

glimmer is keefe's secret twin sister theory:

so basically in the years between legacy and stellarlune there was a theory that glimmer was keefe's twin sister. i was an avid fanatic of this theory because it would've been so interesting from a plot perspective (but also i did not give a shit about glimmer, so i was kind of like meh). the main points were something like this (i don't know how much of this i made up and how much was in the original theory, so):

lady gisela does freaky pregnancy experiments with the shadowflux and quintessence to try to do . . . whatever it is she did with keefe (this is canon)

freaky experiments result in her getting pregnant with twins. one is keefe, one is glimmer. she was not aware of this at first, she thought the abnormalities she was seeing were because of the weird shadow-light thing she just drank

eventually, she pops out twins. cue massive, massive, massive freak out from her husband, the one and only lord crustius. in an attempt to save face, he demands she finds a way to get rid of/hide one of the children

alvar states in legacy that she wanted a son specifically, which i actually had a separate theory about, but that's irrelevant for now. anyway, because of this, lady gisela chooses her daughter to be the one she "hides" and keeps her son as her and cassius's "actual" child

she washes cassius's memories of this. he does not know

she takes glimmer to the neverseen hideout and raises her, brainwashing her into the nevereen's cause. she raises her as her own daughter in a way that's not dissimilar to the way she raised keefe. her plan was always to bring them together again at one point

having twins gives gisela further reason to be in the neverseen (prejudice against twins would've affected her, as the mother) aside from whatever it is she's already trying to do

this explains why gisela considers glimmer to be one of the most loyal neverseen members, especially to her. keefe literally hates gisela and the narrative acknowledges that even he has some complicated feelings about her. how much more would he be attached to her if he didn't know she was evil? that's what glimmer is dealing with

this is also why glimmer was willing to do the thing to keefe in loamnore. gisela had it done to her, too, because she's part of the experiment, just like keefe. she managed to manipulate glimmer into thinking she was doing this for her, which is the same thinking glimmer applies to keefe when she does the thing to him. she's helping him, her brother, just like her mom helped her. it all makes sense from her pov

her perfect mom illusion was shattered by tam, sure, but mostly by keefe himself. she was surprised to see that her own brother hated his mom so much. why is he fighting this? doesn't he know what's good for him? eventually she realizes that she and keefe are the same. gisela is wrong, and so is she. and that's why she ultimately switches sides in loamnore. not because gisela backstabbed tam, but because she saw herself in keefe, and realized, hey, maybe my mom doesn't want what's best for me, actually

and that's why she won't take down her hood. she knows, immediately, that 1) she'll have to face keefe one day, not just as a former neverseen member, but as his sister and that 2) everyone will immediately see the resemblance between her, cassius, keefe and gisela and put everything together. and she doesn't want that. she doesn't want to be related to gisela, she doesn't want to deal with all the questions about what keefe must be going through, because she went through it herself. she doesn't want to be studied, used as a case study for what keefe must be going through. she just wants to live her life, now that she's free of her mom's lies

also, in legacy they start to suspect gisela may have a second ability. if it was flashing, that would explain where glimmer got her flashing ability. gisela told her to keep all her other, weirder abilities a secret (they're similar to the ones keefe has)

anyway that's where the actual theory ends, but i also thought it would be great in terms of potential. keefe being mad at glimmer, then realizing that he understands what she's going through, and strangely, knows her better than anyone else can even though he's never met her. they're undergoing the changes brought on by the same experiment, after having been abused by the same person, in the same way. he can't be mad at her even though she's responsible for his current situation, because he understands what it's like to be manipulated by gisela as a child. he can only imagine how much worse it would be having been raised knowing exactly what you were going to end up someday

they bond over this or something. idk what the details would be

"wanna meet dad?" "hard pass"

glimmer (who becomes friends with linh, eventually) finds keefe and tam's relationship hilarious. they're even more similar now (twins)

this reveal means gisela's even more manipulative than everybody thinks and has even more secrets up her sleeve than anyone could've dreamed of

anyway stellarlune disproved all this so. welp. we'll never get it i guess. maybe someone can write a fix-it fic with this general premise

there was only one (1) very tiny piece of evidence in tam's short story that would disprove this theory, which is that tam notices glimmer's hair is black . . . not a good sign if she's to be the daughter of two blondes. but we reasoned that either the experiments affected her hair color somehow (stina actually theorized this with sophie in legacy) or she's dying her hair as an extra precaution to throw tam off

gethen is kenric and oralie's secret child theory:

again, i don't know how much of this is the original theory and how much i made up. this is the one i'm lowkey obsessed with. it makes me insane :)

gethen was the illegitimate child of kenric and oralie. they had a kid together while they were still on the council, which is a humongous no-no

so after gethen was born, kenric wiped both of their memories of gethen and stored it in his cache. they then abandoned or gave away gethen, who was then found or taken in by the neverseen. neither kenric nor oralie remember gethen because the secret is locked away in kenric's cache

gethen grows up. he learns what happened (maybe because whatever neverseen member rescued him saw kenric or oralie abandon him??? idk) and he is fucking furious at his abandonment. this gives him a motive to really commit to the neverseen's cause. he wants the downfall of the council (because let's face it, he really has no motive right now, he's a telepath and an ultra-powerful washer, so he should be perfectly fine living in the lost cities)

but more specifically, he wants his biological parents (kenric and oralie) dead. kenric dies, so that's one down, one to go. it explains why he targeted oralie in particular during lodestar, more so than any other councillor

since he isn't supposed to exist, he doesn't have a registry record and nobody knows who he is, which is why alden putting his face through the council's database turned up nothing

he's blonde. he's a telepath. he's a washer (i don't know if washing is something you can inherit, but if it is . . . there you go)

this theory would have kenric and oralie's feelings for each other actually become plot-relevant, instead of just something random shannon threw in to fill time. it would give gethen a backstory. it would make it so that sophie's biologically related to gethen, which could dissolve into a whole web of implications for her. it would answer important questions we have about gethen, especially the question of why he doesn't have a registry record. it would give sophie a chance to further question the council and all the things they try so desperately to bury. and eventually, it could all come to a head if she sees gethen again (which she almost certainly will)

so oralie would be visibly pregnant after a while. that would obviously raise a lot of questions. but honestly? there's probably a way to get around it. the elves literally have a gadget that makes it feel like they're all living in the same time zone. i think they could make something that could hide a pregnancy

the other thing is that during oralie's pregnancy, during the telepathic discussions between the councillors, the other councillors could pull that information from oralie's or kenric's head. but also, that's probably not true either, seeing as oralie was able to hide the fact that sophie is her biological child. so really, that covers all the possible plot holes

it was perfect. it was right there. a way to answer so many questions, make the story exciting, bring kotlc's attention back to its core themes, give sophie something to internally grapple with, and even a way to give oralie something that could possibly shatter her sanity to create a sense of tension in the story. it was all perfectly set up. but this possibility was sadly disproven, as none of kenric's seven secrets have anything to do with an illegitimate child between him and oralie

didn't say this in the original post, but. fix-it fic of this would be cool, too

#kotlc #kotlc theory #kotlc theory disproven #gethen ondsinn #kotlc gethen #kotlc oralie #councillor oralie #kotlc kenric #kenric fathdon #councillor kenric #kotlc glimmer #glimmer #kotlc keefe #keefe sencen #kotlc gisela #gisela sencen #lady gisela #alright that's it fam sorry i just realized i posted NEITHER of these into the actual. kotlc tag #mine

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malinowaj · 18 days ago

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for hope and legacy: 20, 6, 26

hi 💜

prefacing this by warning that there'll be spoilers up to and including chapter 4

6. what do you need to write? is there anything special you need to do/have to help your creative flow?

short answer: time. i need to know that i'll have a good amount of time to sit down and stare at my doc and write. i do write down a sentence here and there if i suddenly think of something that fits, but in general i need at least an hour of writing time to get anything done. the more time i have, the better.

i also need background noise. it can be the fic specific playlist, it can be whatever i've been listening to earlier that day, it can be a competition (oh yes, i've written parts of H&L while watching the grand prix final). but i can't write in complete silence.

20. what is something you wish more people noticed about this fic?

honestly, there are so many things you could only notice and understand if you're deeply into skating (or sports in general) and i'm not sure i'd wish that upon anyone 😂 like, the arranged marriage thing mentioned in chapter 4 is based on the recent-ish US ice dance teen marriage revelation. or the fact that kristina had a flag for wille and stella and didn't give it to simon. that subtle thing about being prepared just in case, and the pressure it brings. but also not wanting to share, because simon's not her skater and she's not a team player. a lot of the small details are just random figure skating lore slightly modified.

i guess the one thing i'm surprised no one has noticed, or at least hasn't commented on, is the title. it becomes a little more obvious in the later chapters, but it quite literally is another way of saying "simon and wilhelm".

26. wild card! i'll tell you a fun fact about this fic!

i'm feeling generous, so have three fun facts: i have real world reference programs for simon's, wille and stella's and august's programs, exhibition programs included. and one more program i've been watching to get the mood for one of simon's upcoming skates right. (i also have planned program content that i've scored for several of the competitions but that's more of a 'wtf you're insane' fact.)

all the rinks, save for their swedish home rink, are real ones. i've had a lot of fun making them go to rinks i've either spent time at or watched host events. related, the outdoor rink in chapter 4 exists for real as well.

there was supposed to be a simon and wille lift in chapter 4. and before you threaten to hurt me, it'll come in a later chapter! it did not fit the flow there, and definitely has a very different vibe when it eventually happens than it would have had there.

you can ask me behind-the-scenes questions about my fics

#from the askbox #phneltwrites #hope and legacy

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amxthystiine · 2 months ago

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limbus martin you say.. 👀

(MOTWE onwards spoilers)

My insane paranoid funny dramatic wannabe detective man who’s got vampire blood in him and has no fucking idea (it’s why he’s so fucking fixated on seeing justice served & why he gets concerningly violent and bloodthirsty at times, almost like he’s in a trance)

I’ve had him as an OC in general for a while now but it’s really fucking funny cause recently I have been thinking of him as a sinner, but he’s A LOT like (our) Don funnily enough 😭 (with maybe a little bit of Sinclair parallels with the slumbering bloodthirst + incredible potential to do their job well but shh)

main sin = Lust, obsessed over a specific job title of people due to seeing justice done [Detectives for him and Fixers for her], has Bloodfiend fuckery going on, probably has to kill their mentor at one point during their canto because they’ve become the opposite everything that Don/Martin stood for, etc

Except he’s very arrogant, argumentative and a show off who sees the others as below him - because to him he has to be right and if we’re talking moreso specifically Limbus lore I’m thinking of I think the guy’s be associated with K Corp because green fluid go brr & because I’m probably gonna make his Canto a murder mystery that he falls into because his promise in his contract was discovering who killed his parents (which is the reason why he’s so determined on becoming a detective - I think in this AU one would be a Seven fixer and the other a Cinq West fixer, they used to tell him tales of their cases all the time and that’s why he wants to become a detective - he wants the glory and to enact justice while also avenging his parents by carrying on their legacy)

The plot twist with him though might be that his current mentor, a Roland-style nihilistic “The City runs on suffering so my bad actions are justified because I’m doing what I need to survive and other people’s problems are not my own” bloodfiend Fixer who leads his own office (maybe a good Grade 3 or so? Idk man) tried to sire him as to force Martin to work under him (because he recognized the kid’s determination and that he was very perceptive and quick-witted) and failed, with his initial hunger being so intense he bit into his parents [might keep this plot point might change it, also lmao another Don parallel FUCK] resulting in him having to deal with Martin following him around and slowly becoming a bloodbag over time, deciding to take the kid under his wing and make him his protégée as to make the most out of the situation.

The reason why I kinda want to make HIM the murderer rather than his mentor is because I want him to just utterly implode internally, because he does a similar thing in his main lore when discovering he’s part vampire despite thinking he was the only normal person around town - because to him others are far more willing to do bad things for themselves, but his bad actions are justified to him, so if he suddenly realizes that the very thing he considers the worst thing to happen to him is actually HIS fault rather than someone else’s, he’ll realize that what he hates most INCLUDES himself, and that according to his own moral code HE HIMSELF is EVIL, so he is NOT going to be ok about that, especially while losing his mind during his canto due to bloodbag brain decay

And yes I have a possible solution to how his bloodbag transformation was so overdue - and that’s the K Corp ampule fluid, because it reverts your body to a state from seconds before, right? It can basically bring people back from the brink of death, so could it be used by said mentor to keep his transformation in check and from happening, with Martin taking some ampules when he eventually ditches the Office for Limbus Company, but they eventually run out in the time coming up to his Canto, beginning his slow descent into blood-craved madness.

Funnily enough I’d probably make his main weapon a gun (with maybe an alternative melee weapon, perhaps a small dagger???), perhaps making him the only ammo base ID, with his being one of the many things I’ve taken from that short time I played as this funny little guy in VTM,, like we know Limbus has a LOT of money in their pockets LET ME HAVE A GUN USING SINNER RAHHHH HE DOESNT EVEN NEED TOO MANY BULLETS

I haven’t decided on a logo or colour (probably a light shade of green) nor a word (probably in French considering he was French-Canadian in the VTM session I played as him and his full name is basically just Mint Martini because of his OG design 😔😔 [Martin Menthe])

God I’m insane about my attempted noir detective wannabe little guy and it’s funny cause this is the part of me that he kinda represents like he’s passion and willpower incarnate in both a good way (strong sense of justice/to his own moral code, confidence, dramatics, etc) while also in a bad way (violence/anger, overconfidence, believing so hard in his ideals being the only right ones, with these aspects of him being broken down and mellowed post/during Canto, when he does admit and realize that he too, can be as bad as he paints others in his mind sometimes)

Yes his mentor would be the final boss and yes the only reason I had insane brainrot about them was because of “It Had To Be This Way” & “Find Your Flame” 😔😔 they fucking bangs tho

Also HE’S A REALLY GOOD FOIL TO MY SELF INSERT LIKE

THE ONE WHO WILL FIND OUT THE TRUTH AT ANY COST VS THE ONE WHO’S FAKING HER WHOLE PERSONA

THE ONE WHO ACTS DUE TO HER EMOTIONS BEING CONSTANTLY IN CHECK, YEARNING TO FEEL MORE VS THE ONE WHO’S EMOTIONS MAINLY DICTATE HIS ACTIONS, DESPITE HIS LOGIC TELLING HIM OTHERWISE

but they also both are heavily repressing a part of themselves and during their Cantos this more unhinged part of themselves comes out in full force and hhhhhhh parallels :)))))))

Lust vs. Gluttony oh yeah baby woooo this shit was way too long lmaooo and I can’t remember if I’ve mentioned all the ideas I have for this little guy yet (here’s his main lore design rn)

#amethyst’s little rambles #ocs #oc #amethyst’s oc dumps #limbus company #art #artists on tumblr #digital art #lore #lcb #LCDE yapping #< new tag I’ll hopefully start putting these under

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rahuratna · 6 months ago

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Hello friend ✌️

I have come here to ask the age-old question: why did Levi choose Armin over Erwin. I googled it and I was not happy with the answers 😂 😭 😭

Erwin’s motivations

This is probably because of my bias for Erwin. He’s probably my favorite character from AOT. In terms of his dream of wanting to discover the truth, is it selfish? I mean like, I guess?? But not really? I feel like it’s just a human thing to just want to know why things work the way they do and to want to find a deeper meaning beyond what we already see. In the case of AOT though, Erwin’s desire for truth is pitted against the survival and future of humanity. How so? Well for Erwin, it’s just his personal goal, while the survival of humanity is all-encapsulating, something that everyone else wants.

I don’t like it when it’s framed like this :(

Mainly because these two goals aren’t that different or separated even if they are shared unevenly by different people. If humanity wants survival, they have to uncover the “truth” (truth in quotes because later there were two different versions of the story from Marleyans and Eldians, and so we realize that no objective truth exists). Erwin is willing to sacrifice soldiers for the pursuit of exploration and knowledge, which can be interpreted as cruel or selfish. But if we flip it around— sacrifice is needed to save the future of humanity— it feels more justifiable in that regard.

Basically i boil it down to this: Erwin’s motivations are not exactly the same as the other’s, but his own motivations aid towards this broader goal. Especially with his willingness to sacrifice/gamble, which he believes is the only way to move forward (that’s hawt).

Armin’s motivations

Armin wants to discover something he hasn’t seen before: the ocean. And it’s rooted more deeply into the idea of the existence of something more meaningful beyond what we already have. It’s somewhat similar to Erwin’s goals, but I think this resonates a lot more with Levi considering his upbringing. Growing up in the underground, he knew there was something more above. His goal was to bring him and his group of friends there, just like Armin wanting for him and Eren to see the ocean.

Was armin willing to sacrifice the lives of other soldiers simply for the ocean? Probably not 💀 That’s not the right question though. Would he do it for humanity? Again, probably not at first, keeping in mind that he was still young then.

My interpretation

Here,I’m assuming that Levi’s decision was made based on humanity’s future/survival, so who would be the best fit to contribute, and not just through leadership. The problem is that with Armin, we still had no idea what he could do in the future, but we had a glimpse with his strategic skills.

How would his potential live up to Erwin’s abilities to lead, motivate, and take risks? Basically it’s uncertain at that point. So the way how I like to interpret it is that Levi is taking a page from Erwin’s book. Changing his mind in the heat of the moment was his own way of gambling, betting that Armin could either further carry on the legacy, or find a new approach to saving humanity. I think it’s the latter. Was Levi expecting Armin to live up to what Erwin had already set? I don’t think so. It’s specifically Armin’s unique creative and strategically thinking he’s betting on. It’s something different, and that in itself is the gamble. In this way, I could see the impact Erwin had on Levi.

Discussion:

There’s other factors to consider too like bias, Eren/Mikasa, etc. Levi said something like Erwin deserves to rest peacefully now. Maybe because Erwin was already willing to give up his dream and die (*sob sob*) right before when he charged straight towards death with the soldiers… In comparison, Armin wasn’t ready yet. Ahhhh, idk idk

What do you think went through Levi’s head in the heat of the moment? Do you think Armin had “lived up” to the standards or somehow set himself apart? (Imma be honest, I barely remember how Armin contributed to the show after that event…)

Sometimes I think, oh yeah, I’m completely over AoT. But this is probably something I’ll never get over. 😭 😭

Hope you are having a lovely day, it’s almost Friday!! 💞💞

- Court

Hi @courtneedsleep !! I finally get round to answering this one. And oh boy, did I have many thoughts that required some serious unpacking. I think the most interesting thing about this, is if you'd asked me about it closer to the time I watched the show, I might have given you a different response based on my strong reaction back then. Since then, I've been able to think a little more objectively (even though those strong feelings remain) and tell you some of what I've been considering.

I absolutely agree on all of the points you made here, and will just expand on them a little with some of the thoughts I've had since the show's conclusion.

Levi's decision ... didn't make much sense to me at all at first. I wouldn't say I was surprised by that turn of events (I believe that we were meant to see the fates of Armin, Erin and Mikasa play out as cogs in the wheel of this epic story) but placing the decision in Levi's hands did raise many questions for me.

I will say that I think Levi's decision was more intuitive rather than based on cold logic. You've already given an amazing breakdown on Erwin and his motivations. He is a man who needs, with a certain fundamental drive, to know the truth. Erwin's truth is not subjective to him. It is clear-cut, set in stone, indisputable. He would lay down the evidence before mankind, even if it meant panic, discord and even loss of life.

Having said that, I don't see Erwin as some kind of zealot in search of selfish meaning, to find answers for himself in order to be satisfied with the status quo. He is a man who has consistently shown that he has great FAITH in humanity; in its ability to adapt, overcome, conquer.

Conquering fear is no easy feat, considering the sheer horror of what the Survey Corps endure outside the walls. The refrain of 'offer up your hearts' never grows old, no matter how many times we hear it through the series. There is a visceral image here, of these men and women who voluntarily place their bodies and minds on the line, who offer up their flesh to the titans so that humanity can progress and find a foothold in this world.

Erwin's speech and final charge is the most perfect rendering of his own beliefs. He looks like a man possessed, a man facing his own death with a blaze of courage, dare I say it, a zealot leading his soldiers headlong to their own destruction?

But is that really what it is? In Erwin's final moments, I saw fear. I saw the same rictus of crippling existential horror one has when they realise how very, very small their existence truly is, placed against a backdrop of all creation. Maybe that's me projecting and being dramatic, as usual, lol, but I felt that the scene was cathartic alongside the hopelessness, violence, ugliness and juxtaposed beauty it conveys. Death is the greatest equalizer, and Erwin rode to his death alongside the same men and woman he commanded.

Erwin faced his destruction in full knowledge of the pain and horror that awaited them. He also did so with a firm belief inside him, that his sacrifice wasn't in vain. He fully believed that the future generations, the youngsters Levi raised, would grow to be a force for change and revolution in their own right.

He couldn't have foreseen the truth behind their walled city, and the secret of the basement, but something tells me that he had an unerring instinct that their world existed on a perilous platform, one barely held in balance by the forces that governed and surrounded it. He wanted to know this truth with such desperation, and yet, handed the dream over at the very end when he CHOSE to end his own life.

Levi's choice, as you said, is very much spurred on by Erwin and his unique outlook. After all, who took the boy from the slums, who had the bleakest future ahead of him if he remained entrapped, and gave him the opportunities that transformed him into humanity's strongest soldier?

Erwin's belief in others, and their ability to live up to their true potential, knows no bounds. I wouldn't say that it's rooted in altruism. He knows far too much of the world (and the ugliness of humans) for that. I would even venture to say that he made use of Levi's loyalty to him in certain ways. But that powerful belief in humanity as a whole, in the triumph of truth, even with great cost, speaks volumes about Erwin's character, and the core of his conscious thought process.

It is no wonder that some of this transferred to Levi, who was then able to make the decision to save Armin. Even if Erwin did forsee the very slim probability of himself hanging onto life by a thread, one that would allow Levi to revive him, I think that he would have been completely satisfied with Levi's decision.

After all, he placed all of his trust in Levi to lead humanity to victory, even if, in the end, humanity was pitted against itself. He believed in the continuation of hope, of a torch of life handed down to those who survive, much like a certain progenitor of the titans. She encountered something alien that gave her the ability to pass her dreams for freedom onto others who inherited her will, enshrined in her very flesh.

Erwin's legacy is no less symbolic in its physicality. Armin has many things to offer, in his ingenuity, his analytical ability, his ability to manipulate to gain advantages and, above all, his dream for a better world for him and his friends. I think that Erwin offered up his heart, his body, his mind, so that some human in times to come, not necessarily Armin, could partake of his dream and lay the table for humanity's future.

As he intended.

Thank you for the lovely analysis, and for letting me express all the THOUGHTS I've had stewing about AoT for a while now!

#rahu answers #courtneedssleep #aot #levi ackerman #snk levi #erwin smith #snk erwin #snk #snk character analysis #character analysis

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duusheen · 4 months ago

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Hi! So I’ve been following the Pollock legacy since the start & I absolutely love your way of storytelling/gameplay! I’ve always been curious if you follow a specific legacy challenge or if it’s all randomized for each gen? I’ve been wanting to get into a legacy myself but I completely suck at storytelling. So any tips/advicr? Love your blog!!

heyaa!! First of all, omg thank you so much! I really appreciate your kind words 😳 and thanks too for sticking around from the very beginning lol 6 generations of Pollock… wow 😫

aaanyway! this is kinda long so ☝🏽🤓

Ngl it took me a while to figure out how I wanted to tell my sims’ story because I’d probably wither away and die from stress if I had to do 100% storytelling (I truly admire those who can seriously), and I’d most likely get bored if I went full-on 100% gameplay simmer. This balance works for me, half storytelling, half actually playing the game (because, let’s be honest, if you don’t create a story in your head, this game sucks)

So that brings me to the following tips:

Create a story! Give your Sim context, build a backstory in your head—their origins, their childhood, their personality. Even if you can’t or don’t want to write it down or showcase it in gameplay, it’ll help you connect with that Sim, who you know so well. You know their flaws, strengths, and secrets (even the dirty ones 😳)

Tell your story! Whether through gameplay, storytelling, poses, animations, random facts—whatever you’re comfortable with! It doesn’t have to be 100% one way or the other. Go wild! It’s your story, and you tell it however you want.

Look for inspiration! Other challenges, simmers, movies, TV shows… even your own chaotic life(?. Whatever works. This will help keep you from getting stuck and keep things interesting. You can also ask for help from the people here. (I promise they’re all very kind and willing to throw ideas your way if you need them!)

The most important thing: It sounds cliché, but have fun! If you’re not enjoying it, you won’t want to stick with it, so try to have a good time, do whatever you want, and enjoy it!

Try everything. Not all players like to follow a challenge strictly. Some prefer more flexibility with the rules, while others need clear objectives to play. It all depends on your playstyle and what you feel comfortable doing.

Ask (respectfully) for a Sim! If you’re not feeling attached to your own Sims, you can always ask one of your mutuals to make you one. I love playing with Sims that others have created, knowing they put love, dedication, and time into them (sometimes, if you’re lucky, they’ll even give you a backstory to work with), motivates you to give them the best Sim life possible!

Now in my case, for example, I started doing the Globetrotter Challenge (just kidding, I started with the Human Enough challenge, but shh). I made Wilde, took him all around the sim world, and at some point during the challenge, I grew attached to him. He had a personality, likes (he had a boyfriend someone made for me, my first friend in the community), and it felt wrong to just leave him forgotten in a save file. So I kept playing. Now, I’m not following any specific challenges or rules (except the ones I make myself), though I have a Jiminy Cricket in my DMs with whom I conspire every day to make life miserable for my sims (and hers lol)

#du replies

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backjustforberena · 8 months ago

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Hi! I've been enjoying reading your insights regarding the Velaryons, especially Rhaenys. I don't know if this has been asked already but if it hasn't been yet, please do rant about 'the juxtaposition of Corlys and Rhaenys at their daughter's wake and how it perfectly represents and underlines the divergence they are having in respect to legacy which leads onto their opposing positions in regards to succession.'

Hello! I assume you mean from this gifset? I would love to talk about it. And thank you for your compliments on my "insights", I really like having a ramble about these characters. It's fun, and escapism, and they occupy far too much of my headspace.

So, yes, the wake. I've done a bit of a meta, HERE, about it, and then a more in-depth look at specifically Rhaenys's movements during both the funeral and the wake HERE.

And I think my thoughts, just generally, about them as a couple during this whole entire episode, is that they are diverging and that ebbs and flows throughout and then you get the break of that relationship being the most visceral and violent event at the end, with Laenor's death and Rhaenys screaming and Corlys yelling. And that's what leads us into this six-year gap. They are ripped apart by this. It's the only thing that could have done so because the love and the marriage is pretty solid otherwise.

At the wake, obviously, both Rhaenys and Corlys are reacting to the same incident. The same trauma. The death of their daughter. But they each react in different ways which means they can't understand the other or even make room to try. They're at opposite ends of the spectrum and that is really new for them. It doesn't happen.

As I touched on, in the first meta I've linked to, they grasp onto their grandchildren as some sort of remedy. As some sort of answer. Both characters are fierce in their ideas of family and propelled by the love of their family but, in cases such as this, what that love amounts to is different.

For Corlys, it's the idea of legacy. So, he looks to Luke, who is to be his legacy as Lord of the Tides after Laenor. He tries to take comfort that, despite a major pillar of his love and family (and legacy) having been taken (Laena and an unborn grandchild dying in childbirth), all is not lost. All is not despair. Luke represents a future and a way out of this pain and grief. A brighter day and one, dare I say, that will absolve Corlys of any regrets at yoking his family to the Targaryen royals. It's a way of not facing his demons and not facing his culpability (however you want to look at that whether as illogical guilt, support of a match that meant Laena was away from them, his ambitions driving the family) in the situation he's in now.

I don't think it's any coincidence that he goes into familiar territory rather than looking at his granddaughters, who are basically living copies of the daughter that just died and are the last piece of his daughter. He's not engaging with the fact that they've lost Laena. He doesn't even do it in the following scene when Rhaenys wants to talk about Maesters. He fobs her off. For a man obsessed with legacy, he doesn't consider the legacy of his daughter specifically.

Whereas, looking at Rhaenys, all she can do is face the fact that her daughter is dead. Rhaenys is, in my opinion, light-years ahead of her husband in terms of the consequences of ambition. It's why she's the cautious one of the pair and why we only have them really, truly, on the same page about the Iron Throne in Episode 10 - because he's now been humbled by all this war and deaths and the cost. For Rhaenys, that sort of lesson has been burnt into her since the Great Council. So, she's painfully self-aware of her sins and the cruelty of the world, as opposed to Corlys who is a very accomplished man. Who does what he wants and very rarely gets burnt. I think Rhaenys is all too ready and willing to blame herself. To blame them.

And Rhaenys's view on legacy and priority on legacy has to be different to Corlys's. In part, because Rhaenys's legacy has been set for decades. What will she be remembered for, if not as "The Queen Who Never Was"? But also due to her sex. Her children do not have her last name. She has no holdings or land. Her name has every chance of being in a long list of Meleys's riders. Any title she could have passed on was stripped from her: her children are not even Prince or Princess. She has nothing to give that she cannot give day-to-day, during her lifetime, whilst she lives: her love, her body, her protection.

Corlys can cement his line, be remembered as grandfather to Kings, and leave behind a prosperous Driftmark with a secure succession of Velaryon after Velaryon, at least in name. His voyages and discoveries will be legend, his accomplishments will become myth, he will have victories and claim territories etc etc. He will be in the history books. He lives for legacy because legacy can be something to him. It can't be, for her. Any legacy as she would have liked it (Queen of the Seven Kingdoms) was taken from her long ago.

But back to Rhaenys and the loss of Laena, specifically... she can't deal with anything else. It's all she thinks about. All that motivates her, in this episode. There was even some cut dialogue during the knife scene (which I do agree on being taken out but nevertheless gives us insight) where, as Rhaenys and Corlys enter, she berates the room at large: on the day we buried our daughter (I'm paraphrasing). It's all about Laena and being unable to prevent Laena's death. It's self-reflection on her own actions or inactions.

Of course she's going to prioritise blood because that is the only thing she has to care about. She's going to prioritise Laena's legacy. Not Corlys's. Not her own. Laena's. Because those girls are all that is left of her daughter. She's going to protect those girls with everything she has and give them all she can and atone. Giving those girls a happy life and keeping them close and keeping them safe is the only thing even remotely within her control. It's also a way of fulfilling her daughter's wishes.

But, as we see in the fireside scene, it becomes about choosing. To elevate Baela (which is a massive thing to do, like I cannot emphasise enough how out of line Rhaenys was with that suggestion), you cast a shadow on the boys. You just do, without meaning to. So it becomes an argument, rather than a conversation because that threatens what Corlys is trying to find solace in - the communication goes out of the window. And that whole conversation spirals because they are just grieving parents looking to different things to make them feel okay again.

But I'll stop rambling there. It's just layered.

#bad meta #<- tag is ironic #house of the dragon #corlys velaryon #rhaenys x corlys #rhaenys targaryen

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